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manchester united <tsp> ( cnn ) -- manchester united have agreed a deal to sign arsenal striker robin van persie , the club announced on wednesday night . manchester united is pleased to announce it has reached agreement with arsenal football club for the transfer of robin van persie , ' said a statement on the club 's website . the deal is subject to a medical and the agreement of personal terms . a further announcement will be made in due course . ' arsenal 's website confirmed that the dutch striker , who scored 30 goals in 38 games for the london side last season , will travel to manchester on thursday in order to agree personal terms and complete a medical ahead of a proposed move . ' in july , van persie stunned arsenal manager arsene wenger with a statement on his personal website that stated his goal has been to win trophies with the team ' and attempt to return the club to its glory days . ' the dutch striker explained that following a meeting with the wenger and the arsenal chairman , ivan gazidis , it has again become clear to me that we , in many aspects , disagree on the way arsenal should move forward . ' with a year left on his contract , after which van persie could move to another club for free , the statement was understood be a public declaration of the striker 's intent to leave this summer . manchester united star wayne rooney has previously described van persie as a fantastic player ' and discussed the prospect of linking up with him at united . he 's been amazing for arsenal over many years . if he does come here , he would be a great addition to the squad . ' last summer saw arsenal lose two of their start players , samir nasri to rivals manchester city and club captain cesc fabregas to barcelona . van persie was appointed arsenal captain last season after the departure of fabregas . coincidentally , fabregas moved on the same date last summer - august 15th - as arsenal agreed a fee for van persie this summer . | manchester united and arsenal agree fee for striker robin van persie |
van persie <tsp> ( cnn ) -- manchester united have agreed a deal to sign arsenal striker robin van persie , the club announced on wednesday night . manchester united is pleased to announce it has reached agreement with arsenal football club for the transfer of robin van persie , ' said a statement on the club 's website . the deal is subject to a medical and the agreement of personal terms . a further announcement will be made in due course . ' arsenal 's website confirmed that the dutch striker , who scored 30 goals in 38 games for the london side last season , will travel to manchester on thursday in order to agree personal terms and complete a medical ahead of a proposed move . ' in july , van persie stunned arsenal manager arsene wenger with a statement on his personal website that stated his goal has been to win trophies with the team ' and attempt to return the club to its glory days . ' the dutch striker explained that following a meeting with the wenger and the arsenal chairman , ivan gazidis , it has again become clear to me that we , in many aspects , disagree on the way arsenal should move forward . ' with a year left on his contract , after which van persie could move to another club for free , the statement was understood be a public declaration of the striker 's intent to leave this summer . manchester united star wayne rooney has previously described van persie as a fantastic player ' and discussed the prospect of linking up with him at united . he 's been amazing for arsenal over many years . if he does come here , he would be a great addition to the squad . ' last summer saw arsenal lose two of their start players , samir nasri to rivals manchester city and club captain cesc fabregas to barcelona . van persie was appointed arsenal captain last season after the departure of fabregas . coincidentally , fabregas moved on the same date last summer - august 15th - as arsenal agreed a fee for van persie this summer . | manchester united and arsenal agree fee for striker robin van persie |
van persie <tsp> ( cnn ) -- manchester united have agreed a deal to sign arsenal striker robin van persie , the club announced on wednesday night . manchester united is pleased to announce it has reached agreement with arsenal football club for the transfer of robin van persie , ' said a statement on the club 's website . the deal is subject to a medical and the agreement of personal terms . a further announcement will be made in due course . ' arsenal 's website confirmed that the dutch striker , who scored 30 goals in 38 games for the london side last season , will travel to manchester on thursday in order to agree personal terms and complete a medical ahead of a proposed move . ' in july , van persie stunned arsenal manager arsene wenger with a statement on his personal website that stated his goal has been to win trophies with the team ' and attempt to return the club to its glory days . ' the dutch striker explained that following a meeting with the wenger and the arsenal chairman , ivan gazidis , it has again become clear to me that we , in many aspects , disagree on the way arsenal should move forward . ' with a year left on his contract , after which van persie could move to another club for free , the statement was understood be a public declaration of the striker 's intent to leave this summer . manchester united star wayne rooney has previously described van persie as a fantastic player ' and discussed the prospect of linking up with him at united . he 's been amazing for arsenal over many years . if he does come here , he would be a great addition to the squad . ' last summer saw arsenal lose two of their start players , samir nasri to rivals manchester city and club captain cesc fabregas to barcelona . van persie was appointed arsenal captain last season after the departure of fabregas . coincidentally , fabregas moved on the same date last summer - august 15th - as arsenal agreed a fee for van persie this summer . | van persie was voted premier league player of the year last season |
mikhail youzhny <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a worrying back problem and the damp british weather were not enough to stop roger federer marching into a 33rd successive grand slam quarterfinal on monday . the 16-time major winner kept alive his hopes of joining pete sampras on seven wimbledon successes after beating another tennis veteran xavier malisse 7-6 ( 7-1 ) 6-1 4-6 6-3 for the 850th victory of his illustrious career . federer , who had to come from two sets down to defeat fellow 30-year-old julien benneteau on friday , needed to call for a medical timeout to receive painkillers at 4-3 up in the opener . i was in a lot of pain . the treatment and the painkillers worked . i started to feel better as the match went on , ' said the swiss , who will next play another 30-year-old , russian 26th seed mikhail youzhny . it was a shock for it to happen in the first set of a grand slam when you have to play five on grass . i thought i was in big trouble at 5-6 and he was serving for the first set . i apologized to xavier for having to go off , but it was just a freak thing . ' the cool , wet conditions did n't help federer 's back , but he said he was glad that the centre court roof was not closed before he completed his win over the belgian . i was happy they kept it open because it is an outdoor tournament at the end of the day . we do n't want to play indoors all the time , ' he said after extending his record against 2002 semifinalist malisse to 10-1 . it 's not that big of a deal coming on and off . to see the referee coming out and inspecting the courts , that 's the whole drama that belongs to wimbledon . eventually , if it 's too bad and it 's really raining , this is when you shut it . ' youzhny had previously reached the fourth round on six occasions , including last year , but but went one step further this time as he beat uzbekistan 's denis istomin in a five-set match lasting more than four hours . if third seed federer gets past youzhny , then he will next face world no . 1 novak djokovic , who beat fellow serbian viktor troicki 6-3 6-1 6-3 on centre court later monday . it was the friends'first meeting on grass , but defending champion djokovic had no problems posting his 12th successive win over the 34th-ranked troicki -- who might be his doubles partner at the london olympics -- to reach his 13th consecutive major quarterfinal . the 25-year-old will next face the winner of the match between french 18th seed richard gasquet or no . 31 florian mayer of germany , who led 6-3 2-1 when play was halted earlier in the day on court three . british fourth seed andy murray had won the first set to lead his last-16 clash with croatia 's marin cilic 7-5 3-1 when rain halted play on court one , while france 's world no . 5 jo-wilfried tsonga lost his opening set against mardy fish as the american led 6-4 1-1 on court two . the three delayed matches will resume on tuesday , along with the two last-16 tiers that did not even start : spanish seventh seed david ferrer against argentina 's no . 9 juan martin del potro , and unseeded american brian baker versus no . 27 philipp kohlschreiber of germany . | federer will next play russian 26th seed mikhail youzhny in grass-court event |
russian <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a worrying back problem and the damp british weather were not enough to stop roger federer marching into a 33rd successive grand slam quarterfinal on monday . the 16-time major winner kept alive his hopes of joining pete sampras on seven wimbledon successes after beating another tennis veteran xavier malisse 7-6 ( 7-1 ) 6-1 4-6 6-3 for the 850th victory of his illustrious career . federer , who had to come from two sets down to defeat fellow 30-year-old julien benneteau on friday , needed to call for a medical timeout to receive painkillers at 4-3 up in the opener . i was in a lot of pain . the treatment and the painkillers worked . i started to feel better as the match went on , ' said the swiss , who will next play another 30-year-old , russian 26th seed mikhail youzhny . it was a shock for it to happen in the first set of a grand slam when you have to play five on grass . i thought i was in big trouble at 5-6 and he was serving for the first set . i apologized to xavier for having to go off , but it was just a freak thing . ' the cool , wet conditions did n't help federer 's back , but he said he was glad that the centre court roof was not closed before he completed his win over the belgian . i was happy they kept it open because it is an outdoor tournament at the end of the day . we do n't want to play indoors all the time , ' he said after extending his record against 2002 semifinalist malisse to 10-1 . it 's not that big of a deal coming on and off . to see the referee coming out and inspecting the courts , that 's the whole drama that belongs to wimbledon . eventually , if it 's too bad and it 's really raining , this is when you shut it . ' youzhny had previously reached the fourth round on six occasions , including last year , but but went one step further this time as he beat uzbekistan 's denis istomin in a five-set match lasting more than four hours . if third seed federer gets past youzhny , then he will next face world no . 1 novak djokovic , who beat fellow serbian viktor troicki 6-3 6-1 6-3 on centre court later monday . it was the friends'first meeting on grass , but defending champion djokovic had no problems posting his 12th successive win over the 34th-ranked troicki -- who might be his doubles partner at the london olympics -- to reach his 13th consecutive major quarterfinal . the 25-year-old will next face the winner of the match between french 18th seed richard gasquet or no . 31 florian mayer of germany , who led 6-3 2-1 when play was halted earlier in the day on court three . british fourth seed andy murray had won the first set to lead his last-16 clash with croatia 's marin cilic 7-5 3-1 when rain halted play on court one , while france 's world no . 5 jo-wilfried tsonga lost his opening set against mardy fish as the american led 6-4 1-1 on court two . the three delayed matches will resume on tuesday , along with the two last-16 tiers that did not even start : spanish seventh seed david ferrer against argentina 's no . 9 juan martin del potro , and unseeded american brian baker versus no . 27 philipp kohlschreiber of germany . | federer will next play russian 26th seed mikhail youzhny in grass-court event |
daily beast <tsp> ( the hollywood reporter ) roseanne barr has revealed that she is slowly going blind . in an interview with the daily beast , barr said she suffers from macular degeneration and glaucoma and told the website , my vision is closing in now . ' the comedic actress said smoking marijuana is good medicine ' for relieving the pressure in her eyes . tribeca 2015 : 9 must-see films ' it 's something weird . but there are other weird things . that one 's harsh , 'cause i read a lot , and then i thought ,'well , i guess i could hire somebody to read for me and read to me .'but i like words and i like looking . you do what you have to do . i just try and enjoy vision as much as possible -- y'know , living it up . my dad had it , too , ' the actress said . barr also defended her use of pot , saying , it 's expansive . it opens your mind ' and it makes you wonder . it does n't close that down . ' roger ailes : why fox news will never hire jon stewart doctors have not given barr a definitive timeline on when she can expect to lose all visibility . the actress attended the tribeca film festival in support of her documentary roseanne for president ! ' directed by eric weinrib , the film follows barr in her unsuccessful attempt to become the green party 's 2012 presidential nominee . the peace and freedom party eventually made barr its nominee . | roseanne barr told the daily beast that she is slowly going blind |
barr <tsp> ( the hollywood reporter ) roseanne barr has revealed that she is slowly going blind . in an interview with the daily beast , barr said she suffers from macular degeneration and glaucoma and told the website , my vision is closing in now . ' the comedic actress said smoking marijuana is good medicine ' for relieving the pressure in her eyes . tribeca 2015 : 9 must-see films ' it 's something weird . but there are other weird things . that one 's harsh , 'cause i read a lot , and then i thought ,'well , i guess i could hire somebody to read for me and read to me .'but i like words and i like looking . you do what you have to do . i just try and enjoy vision as much as possible -- y'know , living it up . my dad had it , too , ' the actress said . barr also defended her use of pot , saying , it 's expansive . it opens your mind ' and it makes you wonder . it does n't close that down . ' roger ailes : why fox news will never hire jon stewart doctors have not given barr a definitive timeline on when she can expect to lose all visibility . the actress attended the tribeca film festival in support of her documentary roseanne for president ! ' directed by eric weinrib , the film follows barr in her unsuccessful attempt to become the green party 's 2012 presidential nominee . the peace and freedom party eventually made barr its nominee . | barr said she has macular degeneration and glaucoma |
barr <tsp> ( the hollywood reporter ) roseanne barr has revealed that she is slowly going blind . in an interview with the daily beast , barr said she suffers from macular degeneration and glaucoma and told the website , my vision is closing in now . ' the comedic actress said smoking marijuana is good medicine ' for relieving the pressure in her eyes . tribeca 2015 : 9 must-see films ' it 's something weird . but there are other weird things . that one 's harsh , 'cause i read a lot , and then i thought ,'well , i guess i could hire somebody to read for me and read to me .'but i like words and i like looking . you do what you have to do . i just try and enjoy vision as much as possible -- y'know , living it up . my dad had it , too , ' the actress said . barr also defended her use of pot , saying , it 's expansive . it opens your mind ' and it makes you wonder . it does n't close that down . ' roger ailes : why fox news will never hire jon stewart doctors have not given barr a definitive timeline on when she can expect to lose all visibility . the actress attended the tribeca film festival in support of her documentary roseanne for president ! ' directed by eric weinrib , the film follows barr in her unsuccessful attempt to become the green party 's 2012 presidential nominee . the peace and freedom party eventually made barr its nominee . | roseanne barr told the daily beast that she is slowly going blind |
hebron <tsp> jerusalem ( cnn ) -- israeli police evicted 15 jewish settlers from a an illegally occupied house in the restive west bank city of hebron on wednesday following a weeklong showdown between the settler community and israel 's defense ministry , which administers the occupied territory . we are determined to make sure that the rule of law and the authority of the state of israel over all its citizens will be assured . when there is a violation , it will be put back to track , ' defense minister ehud barak told reporters shortly after the operation and explained that the house was taken over by citizens against the law . ' the men , women and children were removed without any violent resistance , police said . about two dozen settlers moved into the hebron house in the middle of the night last thursday , claiming they had legally purchased it from a palestinian man . but palestinian authorities , including hebron police chief ramadan awad , disputed that the purchase was made legally . our investigation shows no evidence that the house was sold to settlers by palestinians , ' awad told cnn . prime minister benjamin netanyahu released a statement wednesday that tried to strike a balance between demands from the settlement-supporting members of his governing coalition and the laws regulating settlement growth . we strengthen the jewish settlements in judea and samaria and we strengthen it in hebron , the city of our fathers , ' he said , using the biblical term for the west bank . but there is one principle we maintain : we do all that while abiding the law and will continue to do so . ' imad hamdan , general director of the hebron rehabilitation committee of the old city of hebron , said the eviction process will help to reduce tensions . i believe this is a good step forward , ' he said . hamdan said that if the settlers appeal the eviction , we are going to go against them and we will prove the ownership of this building to whom it belongs . they have evicted the settlers from the house , but they have not removed any furniture or belongings of the settlers that they have been bringing into the house since they have illegally moved in , ' hamdan said . responding to those claims , barak stressed that the facts will be checked according to the legal standards by the proper authorities . ' on monday , the israeli defense ministry , citing the absence of required paperwork and prior notification , ordered the settlers to move out of the home by tuesday afternoon or be subject to forcible eviction . hebron is the largest and most contested city in the west bank . it is home to more than 180,000 palestinians and several hundred jewish settlers who live in an enclave protected by the israeli military . movement for palestinians in the area is extremely limited . the city , which is believed to be the biblical burial site of abraham , is home to the religious holy site known as the cave of the patriarch to jews and the ibrahimi mosque to muslims . relations between israelis and palestinians living in hebron have been marked by years of hostility and tension that have frequently erupted into violence . netanyahu asked barak on monday to postpone the eviction to allow the settlers to present their legal case , but barak ordered the operation to go ahead . the eviction triggered an immediate wave of criticism from many members of netanyahu 's coalition who have become increasingly critical of barak 's continued role in the government . defense minister ehud barak is dragging the entire government into direct confrontation with the settlers , ' said danny danon , the outspoken deputy speaker of the israeli knesset , or parliament , and likud party member . netanyahu must replace barak without delay . he is running a failed political campaign on the account of the settlers . we will not give up and will pursue legal proceedings to allow the acquisition of the house , ' he told cnn . the eviction followed an announcement from netanyahu on wednesday seeking to legalize construction in the west bank settlements of bruchin , sansana and rechalim . further development on the three west bank outposts has been banned , according to settlement watchdog group peace now , because they have been built on private palestinian land . netanyahu also asked his attorney general to develop a legal solution that would prevent the planned destruction of housing units in the west bank settlement of beit el . the israeli government is under court order to demolish the houses built in the settlement by may 1 of this year . danon welcomed the decision and said : these houses were built under the consent and sponsoring of the government , there is no reason to demolish them . ' the eviction comes as the israeli government announced that netanyahu will meet with palestinian authority prime minister salam fayyad next week in an effort to restart direct negotiations . in retribution for the eviction , hamdan added , israeli settlers from tel rumeida in the old city of hebron burned a tent that was set up by palestinian activists in protest of the taking over of the house . no one was injured . a spokesman for the israel defense forces told cnn that the structure will remain closed off until all the legal issues will be determined . ' cnn 's guy azriel , kareem khadder and kevin flower contributed to this report . | hebron is the most contested city in the west bank |
chelsea <tsp> ( cnn ) -- jose mourinho 's imminent return to chelsea appears to be the worst-kept secret in world football -- and the english premier league has already jumped the gun by announcing his reappointment before a deal has been done . the epl 's website published a story on sunday , dated monday , with the headline jose mourinho makes chelsea return . ' its subheader read : portuguese coach back at stamford bridge after signing a xx-year contract . ' the story was taken down , and the epl issued a statement apologizing to chelsea -- which is searching for a new manager following the departure of interim coach rafael benitez . it was a publishing error . we took it down as soon as we were notified of it , and we 've spoken to and apologized to chelsea , ' it said . we have no prior knowledge of any movement or any announcement . ' chelsea has made no comment . mourinho 's final game in charge of real madrid was saturday 's 4-2 win over osasuna , which left the spanish club in second place in la liga -- 15 points behind barcelona . the 50-year-old did not talk to reporters after the match , though he did an interview with spanish television in which he denied omitting goalkeeper iker casillas and defender pepe -- with whom he has had public disputes -- and top scorer cristiano ronaldo for any other reason than they were not fit enough to play . last month he described this season as the worst in his career after losing the spanish cup final to atletico madrid , meaning no trophy for real in 2012-13 . i wish everyone associated with real madrid much happiness in the future , ' he said in a statement on friday . i appreciate the support of lots of fans and respect the criticism of others . once again , a lot of happiness to everyone and , above all , good health . hala madrid ! ' mourinho officially joined chelsea on june 2 , 2004 -- the epl website ran an archive feature on sunday -- and dubbed himself the special one ' after having led porto to the european title the previous season . he was unable to take chelsea to the champions league final , but guided the club to two successive epl titles -- its first english championship successes since 1955 . after falling out with chelsea 's russian owner roman abramovich in 2007 , mourinho joined inter milan the following season and won two successive italian serie a titles and the champions league in 2010 . he was then courted by real with the goal of ending the club 's long wait for a record-extending 10th european title , but despite winning la liga in his second season madrid fell three times at the semifinal stage of the champions league and his relationship with key spanish players such as casillas deteriorated . as in italy , he had a prickly time with the local press -- who took every opportunity to publish stories about dressing-room unrest at the santiago bernabeu . real announced last month that he would be leaving , despite having signed a contract extension until 2016 . while mourinho might have departed , the man who hired him will stay in charge of the club for the next few years . incumbent florentino perez was the only candidate put forward for real 's presidential elections , it was announced sunday , and the 66-year-old will be officially confirmed in the role on tuesday . perez was first president from 2000-06 , a period when real last won the champions league , and returned three years later as he continued his policy of signing the world 's best players -- the so-called galacticos . ' | english premier league apologizes to chelsea after publishing a story about jose mourinho |
moscow <tsp> a day after a spectacular meteor blast shook russia 's urals region , the cleanup operation got under way saturday in the hard-hit russian city of chelyabinsk . although some buildings were unscathed when sonic waves from the friday morning explosion reverberated through the region , others lost some or most windows or had walls come tumbling down . more than 1,000 people were injured , including more than 200 children , according to news reports . many of them were hit by flying glass . most of those hurt were in the chelyabinsk region ; the majority of injuries are not thought to be serious . however , one woman was flown to moscow to be treated for a spinal injury resulting from the shock wave from the blast , state media reported . about 50 people were still hospitalized saturday . altogether , more than 4,000 buildings , mostly apartment blocks , were damaged and 200,000 square meters ( 77,220 square miles ) of glass were broken , the state-run ria novosti news agency cited the chelyabinsk regional emergencies ministry as saying saturday . 5 things to know about meteors and asteroids local officials have estimated the damage at more than 1 billion rubles ( more than $ 33 million ) , ria novosti said . chelyabinsk gov . mikhail yurevich promised compensation to all those affected , the official itar-tass news agency said . with temperatures dipping well below freezing at night , the need to fix windows left gaping by the blast is urgent . the city of chelyabinsk was functioning normally saturday as the repair work began . workers swept up broken glass , boarded up holes and began fitting new panes of glass in some buildings . this is no exaggeration ' residents told cnn of their shock as they saw , heard and felt the awesome blast , and the chaos and confusion they witnessed in the moments afterward , when no one knew what had happened . many were relieved nothing worse came to pass and believe the city had a lucky escape as fragments of the meteor came raining down . denis kuznetsov , a 23-year-old historian from chelyabinsk , told cnn via e-mail that he had heard and felt the shock wave despite being far from the center of the city . at first there was a blinding flash lasting several seconds , which made him want to shut his eyes . the light shone like 10 suns , ' he said . this is no exaggeration . ' kuznetsov said he experienced what felt like a push , ' as a sound wave passed through his body . for some seconds i simply stood , ' amid the sound of breaking glass , he said . after calming his parents , kuznetsov tried to call friends , but all cellphone coverage was down . the internet still worked , however , and he managed to reach a friend in the city center who told of emergency responders heading into the streets . at first , confusion was widespread , he said , with many people believing the boom had to do with a satellite or plane . but within an hour or so , news broadcasts declared it was a meteorite . there was no panic . all behaved quietly , ' he said . schools and many offices closed . kuznetsov monitored the news , as the reported number of victims grew hour by hour , ' he said . thank god no one died . ' meteor tweets we wish we 'd thought of cnn ireporter max chuykov saw the meteor trail from the city of yekaterinburg . he shared on instagram that it was close to the ground . ekaterina shlygina posted to cnn ireport and wrote on instagram : upon chelyabinsk a huge fireball has exploded . it was n't an aircraft . ' tiny asteroid ' packs a big punch about 24,000 emergency response workers were mobilized across the chelyabinsk region saturday , itar-tass cited the governor 's office as saying . hospitals , kindergartens and schools were among the buildings affected by the blast , said vladimir stepanov of the national center for emergency situations at the russian interior ministry . west of the city , authorities sealed off a section of a frozen lake where it was believed a sizable meteorite crashed through the ice . but a team of divers has found no trace of any meteorite in the lake , an emergencies ministry spokeswoman told state media on saturday . opinion : do n't count'doomsday asteroid'out yet the meteor was a once-in-a-century event , nasa officials said , describing it as a tiny asteroid . ' the space agency revised its estimate of the meteor 's size upward late friday from 49 feet ( 15 meters ) to 55 feet ( 17 meters ) , and its estimated mass from 7,000 tons to 10,000 tons . the space agency also increased the estimated amount of energy released in the meteor 's explosion from about 300 to nearly 500 kilotons . by comparison , the nuclear bomb the united states dropped on hiroshima in 1945 released an estimated 15 kilotons of energy . the whole event , from the meteor 's atmospheric entry to its disintegration in the air above central russia , took 32.5 seconds , nasa said . saving earth from asteroids the national space agency , roscosmos , said scientists believe one meteoroid entered the atmosphere , where it burned and disintegrated into fragments . amateur video footage showed a bright white streak moving rapidly across the sky before exploding with an even brighter flash and a deafening bang . the explosion occurred about 9:20 a.m. local time , as many people were out and about . a once in a lifetime event russians captured vivid images , many using dash cameras inside their vehicles . dash cameras are popular in russia for several reasons , including possible disputes over traffic accidents and the corrupt reputations of police in many areas . drivers install the cameras for their own protection and to document incidents they could be caught in . opinion : meteor shows why it is crucial to keep an eye on the sky five regions of russia , one of them chelyabinsk , are thought to have been affected , itar-tass said . ria novosti cited emergencies ministry officials as saying three regions and kazakhstan were involved . nasa said on its website that the meteor was the largest reported since 1908 , when the famous tunguska event took place in remote siberia . in that incident , an asteroid entered the atmosphere and exploded , leveling about 80 million trees over an area of 820 square miles -- about two-thirds the size of rhode island -- but leaving no crater . we would expect an event of this magnitude to occur once every 100 years on average , ' said paul chodas of nasa 's near-earth object program office at the jet propulsion laboratory in california . when you have a fireball of this size , we would expect a large number of meteorites to reach the surface , and in this case there were probably some large ones . ' nasa estimates 4,700'potentially hazardous'asteroids in what astronomers said was an unrelated coincidence , a larger asteroid , called 2012 da14 , passed relatively close to earth around 2:24 p.m . et friday . stargazers in australia , asia and eastern europe could see the asteroid with the aid of a telescope or binoculars , but it never got closer than 17,100 miles to the planet 's surface . the russian meteor was about one-third the size of the asteroid . the two bodies were on very different trajectories , scientists said . | state media : 50 still in hospital , one woman with a spinal injury flown to moscow |
england <tsp> ( cnn ) -- manchester united have hit back at owen hargreaves after their former midfielder claimed he had been mistreated by the english champions'medical staff . hargreaves , who joined united 's archrivals manchester city in august after his contract at old trafford expired , was reported in the british press as having said he felt like a guinea pig during an injury plagued four-year spell with the red devils . the england midfielder was speaking after making a goal-scoring debut for city in their 2-0 carling cup win over birmingham city on wednesday . manchester united is disappointed with owen hargreaves'remarks after the game on wednesday , ' read a statement on the three-time european champions'website . what are the reasons behind man utd 's flying start ? the club gave him the best possible care for three years and is as disappointed as anyone he was not able to play a part in the team 's success at that time . it has shared all the medical records with manchester city and is comfortable with the actions taken by its medical staff at each step of his many attempts at rehabilitation . ' the canada-born star arrived at united from german outfit bayern munich in 2007 , but only made 27 appearances for alex ferguson 's team due to persistent injury problems relating to the tendons in his knee . they said i would be fit for the start of pre-season but , after that , i never got back on my feet , ' hargreaves was reported as saying in british newspaper the guardian . my tendon was never the same . they said my tendon was good , but it felt like i was made out of glass . we treated it and it got significantly worse through the injections . that obviously had a huge impact . basically , i was left to pick up the pieces , which was incredibly frustrating . that was surgery , and that was 18 months gone . ' but united denied hargreaves'claims , with the statement continuing to say : united does not acknowledge any validity in the comments owen is alleged to have made . manchester united has some of the best sports medical staff in world sport , who have made a significant contribution to united 's on-pitch success in recent seasons . ' prior to joining city , hargreaves posted a series of clips on the video-sharing website youtube aimed at proving his fitness . the 30-year-old made his professional debut for bayern in 2000 , and went on to win four bundesliga titles with the club and the european champions league in 2001 . hargreaves also represent england at both the 2002 and 2006 world cups , and won a second career champions league title when united beat chelsea in moscow in 2008 . | the england midfielder spent four injury-plagued years at old trafford |
nikkei <tsp> ( cnn ) -- japanese stocks closed down 10.55 percent , recovering from deeper losses earlier in the session , as the nation grappled with a crisis at an earthquake-damaged nuclear power plant and the aftermath of last week 's earthquake and tsunami . it was the third steepest percentage fall in the nikkei 's history . at one point , the nikkei plunged more than 1,390 points , or more than 14 percent , nearing the worst-ever plunge of 14.90 percent on october 20 , 1987 , after the u.s. stock market crash on black monday . the close at 8,605.15 , combined with the 6.2 percent drop on monday , the first full trading day after the quake , marked a nearly 17 percent drop in two days . a few hours earlier , prime minister naoto kan said the risk of further releases of radioactive material from the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant remained very high . ' the tokyo market had opened shortly after the owner of the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant in northeastern japan reported an explosive impact ' at the plant 's no . 2 reactor , a day after a hydrogen explosion rocked another reactor . the plant was among the many structures damaged or destroyed by the 9.0-magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami . the death toll following the quake has risen to 2,475 , authorities said , with at least 3,118 people missing . the kyodo news agency said that does n't take into account reports of thousands of bodies in one northeastern prefecture . more than 450,000 people are reported homeless . other asian markets were also down markedly , a day after modest gains in the face of the japanese sell-off . hong kong 's hang seng index was off 3 percent in afternoon trading . u.s. markets were set for a lower open . s & p and dow futures were lower by 0.6 percent , while nasdaq futures were down 0.8 percent . check world markets world markets finished generally lower monday as investors assessed the impact of the japanese disaster on the global economy . in the united states , the dow jones industrial average slid 51 points , or 0.4 percent . in europe , britain 's ftse-100 ended down 0.9 percent , with france 's cac-40 and germany 's dax both more than 1 percent lower . | at one point , the nikkei plunged more than 1,390 points , or more than 14 percent |
nikkei <tsp> ( cnn ) -- japanese stocks closed down 10.55 percent , recovering from deeper losses earlier in the session , as the nation grappled with a crisis at an earthquake-damaged nuclear power plant and the aftermath of last week 's earthquake and tsunami . it was the third steepest percentage fall in the nikkei 's history . at one point , the nikkei plunged more than 1,390 points , or more than 14 percent , nearing the worst-ever plunge of 14.90 percent on october 20 , 1987 , after the u.s. stock market crash on black monday . the close at 8,605.15 , combined with the 6.2 percent drop on monday , the first full trading day after the quake , marked a nearly 17 percent drop in two days . a few hours earlier , prime minister naoto kan said the risk of further releases of radioactive material from the fukushima daiichi nuclear plant remained very high . ' the tokyo market had opened shortly after the owner of the fukushima daiichi nuclear power plant in northeastern japan reported an explosive impact ' at the plant 's no . 2 reactor , a day after a hydrogen explosion rocked another reactor . the plant was among the many structures damaged or destroyed by the 9.0-magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami . the death toll following the quake has risen to 2,475 , authorities said , with at least 3,118 people missing . the kyodo news agency said that does n't take into account reports of thousands of bodies in one northeastern prefecture . more than 450,000 people are reported homeless . other asian markets were also down markedly , a day after modest gains in the face of the japanese sell-off . hong kong 's hang seng index was off 3 percent in afternoon trading . u.s. markets were set for a lower open . s & p and dow futures were lower by 0.6 percent , while nasdaq futures were down 0.8 percent . check world markets world markets finished generally lower monday as investors assessed the impact of the japanese disaster on the global economy . in the united states , the dow jones industrial average slid 51 points , or 0.4 percent . in europe , britain 's ftse-100 ended down 0.9 percent , with france 's cac-40 and germany 's dax both more than 1 percent lower . | the close marks the third steepest percentage fall in the nikkei 's history |
secret service <tsp> ( cnn ) just as the agency begins to recover from a series of high-profile missteps , the secret service is facing yet another scandal . a female employee accused xavier morales , a supervisor within the agency , of assault after he made sexual advances at her , according to the washington post . the woman told police and agency investigators that morales , her boss , told her during the party at capitol city brewing company that he was in love with her and would like to have sex with her , ' and later tried to kiss her in the office , according to a report from the washington post . during the incident , he grabbed her arms when she resisted ' and the two tussled until morales gave up , sources told the paper . the post reports that the march 31 party was in celebration of morales'new assignment as head of the louisville field office . a secret service spokesperson confirms that morales was placed on administrative leave and his security clearance was suspended . this incident was first reported on april 2 , and secret service director joe clancy was briefed that afternoon . clancy called the allegations very disturbing . ' any threats or violence that endangers our employees in the workplace is unacceptable and will not be tolerated , ' he said in a statement . this is just the latest chapter for an organization embroiled in scandal over the past several months . last month , two top-ranking officials were suspended following an incident at a white house command post during an investigation of a possible bomb . clancy was not made aware of the episode until five days later . the agency has also faced scrutiny for another lapse in late january when a drone crash-landed on the white house lawn . secret service director julia pierson resigned in september after a fence-jumper gained access to the east room of the white house . earlier in september , an armed security contractor was allowed to get into an elevator with president barack obama during a trip to the centers for disease control and prevention in atlanta . an independent report released in december found that the secret service is stretched beyond its limits , ' needing more training , more staff , and a director from outside its ranks . clancy , who formally assumed the post in february , is a 27-year veteran of the agency . it 's going to take time to change some of this culture , ' clancy said at a house appropriations committee hearing last month . there 's no excuse for this information not to come up the chain . that 's going to take time because i 'm going to have to build trust with our workforce . ' the incident will be further investigated by the office of the inspector general . | secret service says supervisor 's security clearance has been suspended |
boston <tsp> ( cnn ) -- bread served hot out of the oven . fluffy pancakes topped with huckleberries . an espresso bar . these are the kinds of hotel breakfasts that keep guests from venturing out to a nearby restaurant . the following properties want each element of your stay to be unforgettable , starting with the first decadent bite of the day . each of the following breakfasts is included in the nightly rate , so go ahead -- indulge in that second still-warm croissant . bespoke inn , cafe & bicycles , scottsdale , arizona the four-room boutique bespoke inn , cafe & bicycles offers a three-course breakfast full of indulgences for every palate . if you have a sweet tooth , try items such as ginger scones with fresh peaches drizzled in local honey or vanilla french toast with toasted almonds , berries , and real maple syrup . for those that prefer a savory start to the morning , tuck into a croque madame with black forest ham and gruyere or asparagus topped with poached eggs , extra virgin olive oil , lemon juice and parmesan . these breakfasts will set you up for a day of exploring scottsdale on complimentary pashley bikes . starting nightly rate : $ 259 . the new hotel , athens countless affordable restaurants with a tasty breakfast fill the capital city of greece , but the flaky croissants at new taste -- the ground-floor restaurant in the new hotel -- are irresistible . pastries are baked fresh in-house every morning , filling the restaurant with that just-out-of-the-oven aroma . the bread and pastries are served alongside a refined buffet of fresh fruit , cheeses and meats , along with eggs cooked to order and an espresso bar ready to whip up your favorite morning coffee . starting nightly rate : about $ 240 ( €180 ) . mandarin oriental , boston a decadent breakfast with a sense of place often means one thing in new england : lobster . breakfast at the mandarin oriental in boston features a lobster omelet with big chunks of lobster , boursin cheese , asparagus , caramelized onions and breakfast potatoes on the side . guests looking for an upgrade on a classic should check out the hotel 's gourmand version of bacon and eggs with poached eggs , grilled glazed thick cut bacon piled on top of grilled sourdough bread with roasted tomato , arugula and smoked pimenton hollandaise . starting nightly bed and breakfast rate : $ 539 . number 31 , dublin , ireland the best breakfasts showcase an authentic taste of your destination . at a boutique guesthouse in central dublin , traditional irish brown bread is pulled from the oven each morning , forming the foundation of a distinctly irish breakfast . this crumbly bread is a fragrant and hearty accompaniment to smoked salmon and scrambled eggs or a modern execution of a full irish breakfast , among other cooked-to-order choices . while awaiting your order , nibble on cranberry and nut cake , vanilla poached pears or mixed berries . each component of this breakfast is exquisite and served by warm irish hosts . starting nightly rate : about $ 200 ( €150 ) . the resort at paws up , montana fresh montana air brightens each bite of breakfast at the resort at paws up . choose accommodations in the luxurious cliffside camp overlooking the blackfoot river and watch a private camp chef pick huckleberries from the surrounding slopes to create fluffy huckleberry pancakes and other memorable dishes . linger over freshly brewed coffee and maple glazed bacon for an impressive breakfast in the montana wilderness . starting nightly cliffside camp rate : $ 1475 , including all meals . the torridon , scotland indulgence varies according to destination , and in scotland , it translates to a full scottish breakfast with maybe a wee dram of whiskey on the side . this loch-side luxury property sets the table for a leisurely breakfast of free-range highland eggs , potato scones , cumberland sausages , highland back bacon , grilled tomatoes and more . wood-smoked salmon with scrambled eggs and homemade toasted brioche is also a highlight . travelers looking for the pleasures of natural scotland will find them at this inn . bed and breakfast starting nightly rate : about $ 360 ( £230 ) . saxon boutique hotel , villas and spa , johannesburg , south africa what could be a more decadent start to the day than oysters and champagne ? that is how executive chef david higg likes to start his favorite meal of the day . the continental breakfast also includes smoked scottish salmon , mini quiches , fresh fruit and scones . for those that might prefer a cooked-to-order breakfast with their complimentary champagne , eggs benedict with parma ham or french toast with camembert cheese and crispy bacon are also available . starting nightly rate : about $ 828 ( zar8170 ) twin farms , barnard , vermont surrounded by 300 acres of meadows in vermont , twin farms makes an impression with its breakfast as well as its location . many guests return raving about the lemon soufflé pancakes , served with vermont strawberries . these light-as-air pancakes are a perfect accompaniment to fragrant kona coffee , a nod to the owners'hawaiian roots . this all-inclusive relais & chateaux property also offers fresh pastries served with jam made from berries picked on site . all-inclusive starting nightly rate : $ 1450 , including all meals , alcoholic beverages , use of facilities and gratuities . | at the mandarin oriental in boston , have some lobster as part of breakfast |
perry <tsp> driftwood , texas ( cnn ) -- texas gov . rick perry won his state 's republican gubernatorial primary outright on tuesday , avoiding a potentially costly runoff election against sen. kay bailey hutchison . hutchison called perry to concede the race after returns indicated that the governor was cruising toward a resounding victory in the closely-watched primary . now we must unite , ' she said . we must win texas for republicans . ' perry 's win ended a yearlong intra-party fight that was billed from the start as a clash of texas political titans but ended with a whimper as hutchison struggled to fight a tide of anti-washington sentiment among conservatives . the governor cast his victory as a warning shot to washington in the mold of recent gop wins in the virginia and new jersey governor 's races and the massachusetts special senate election . i think the message is pretty clear , ' perry told supporters at his election night party near austin . conservatism has never been stronger than it is today . ' perry said the message to washington was simple : quit spending all the money , ' he said . stop trying to take over our lives and our businesses . ' he added : stop messing with texas ! ' perry , the longest serving governor in texas history , is seeking a third full term in austin . his opponent in the general election will be democrat bill white , the former houston mayor who dispatched six opponents in the democratic primary . with nearly two-thirds of precincts reporting , perry maintained a 20-point lead over hutchison and appeared to be on pace to cross the crucial 50 percent mark needed to avoid a six-week runoff election against the three-term senator , who began her gubernatorial bid as the prohibitive frontrunner but stumbled as perry 's campaign cast her as a big-spending washington insider . gop activist debra medina , a conservative with strong support among tea party activists , looked to be headed for a third place finish . white , the popular former three-term mayor of houston , the country 's fourth-largest city , predicted that perry will try to nationalize the race and tie him to unpopular democratic agenda items in washington . he 'll run against president obama , ' white said in an interview . that 's probably for his own political career . i think he wants to run for president . i 'm just running for the people of texas . it should n't be about a party or who 's doing what to whom in washington . ' | perry will face ex-houston mayor bill white in general election |
perry <tsp> driftwood , texas ( cnn ) -- texas gov . rick perry won his state 's republican gubernatorial primary outright on tuesday , avoiding a potentially costly runoff election against sen. kay bailey hutchison . hutchison called perry to concede the race after returns indicated that the governor was cruising toward a resounding victory in the closely-watched primary . now we must unite , ' she said . we must win texas for republicans . ' perry 's win ended a yearlong intra-party fight that was billed from the start as a clash of texas political titans but ended with a whimper as hutchison struggled to fight a tide of anti-washington sentiment among conservatives . the governor cast his victory as a warning shot to washington in the mold of recent gop wins in the virginia and new jersey governor 's races and the massachusetts special senate election . i think the message is pretty clear , ' perry told supporters at his election night party near austin . conservatism has never been stronger than it is today . ' perry said the message to washington was simple : quit spending all the money , ' he said . stop trying to take over our lives and our businesses . ' he added : stop messing with texas ! ' perry , the longest serving governor in texas history , is seeking a third full term in austin . his opponent in the general election will be democrat bill white , the former houston mayor who dispatched six opponents in the democratic primary . with nearly two-thirds of precincts reporting , perry maintained a 20-point lead over hutchison and appeared to be on pace to cross the crucial 50 percent mark needed to avoid a six-week runoff election against the three-term senator , who began her gubernatorial bid as the prohibitive frontrunner but stumbled as perry 's campaign cast her as a big-spending washington insider . gop activist debra medina , a conservative with strong support among tea party activists , looked to be headed for a third place finish . white , the popular former three-term mayor of houston , the country 's fourth-largest city , predicted that perry will try to nationalize the race and tie him to unpopular democratic agenda items in washington . he 'll run against president obama , ' white said in an interview . that 's probably for his own political career . i think he wants to run for president . i 'm just running for the people of texas . it should n't be about a party or who 's doing what to whom in washington . ' | perry is longest-serving governor in texas history |
perry <tsp> driftwood , texas ( cnn ) -- texas gov . rick perry won his state 's republican gubernatorial primary outright on tuesday , avoiding a potentially costly runoff election against sen. kay bailey hutchison . hutchison called perry to concede the race after returns indicated that the governor was cruising toward a resounding victory in the closely-watched primary . now we must unite , ' she said . we must win texas for republicans . ' perry 's win ended a yearlong intra-party fight that was billed from the start as a clash of texas political titans but ended with a whimper as hutchison struggled to fight a tide of anti-washington sentiment among conservatives . the governor cast his victory as a warning shot to washington in the mold of recent gop wins in the virginia and new jersey governor 's races and the massachusetts special senate election . i think the message is pretty clear , ' perry told supporters at his election night party near austin . conservatism has never been stronger than it is today . ' perry said the message to washington was simple : quit spending all the money , ' he said . stop trying to take over our lives and our businesses . ' he added : stop messing with texas ! ' perry , the longest serving governor in texas history , is seeking a third full term in austin . his opponent in the general election will be democrat bill white , the former houston mayor who dispatched six opponents in the democratic primary . with nearly two-thirds of precincts reporting , perry maintained a 20-point lead over hutchison and appeared to be on pace to cross the crucial 50 percent mark needed to avoid a six-week runoff election against the three-term senator , who began her gubernatorial bid as the prohibitive frontrunner but stumbled as perry 's campaign cast her as a big-spending washington insider . gop activist debra medina , a conservative with strong support among tea party activists , looked to be headed for a third place finish . white , the popular former three-term mayor of houston , the country 's fourth-largest city , predicted that perry will try to nationalize the race and tie him to unpopular democratic agenda items in washington . he 'll run against president obama , ' white said in an interview . that 's probably for his own political career . i think he wants to run for president . i 'm just running for the people of texas . it should n't be about a party or who 's doing what to whom in washington . ' | incumbent rick perry defeats kay bailey hutchinson in texas gubernatorial gop primary |
american <tsp> ( cnn ) -- arab residents in the middle east and north africa may enjoy hollywood blockbusters , but they are also wary of the content , saying it is potentially harmful to morality , ' a study finds . the entertainment media use in the middle east ' survey , commissioned by northwestern university and the doha film institute , interviewed more than 6,000 people -- both nationals and expats -- in qatar , saudi arabia , lebanon , egypt , tunisia and the united arab emirates . according to the survey 45 % of respondents say they watch hollywood movies , but 34 % say american films have content that is harmful to morality . ' only 15 % say u.s.-made films are good for morality -- as opposed to 71 % who feel the same about arab movies . the respondents are also conflicted about other foreign films . while two-thirds say people benefit from watching movies from different parts of the world , 65 % say they prefer films that portray their own culture . more than half ( 54 % ) say films are an important source of information about their own culture . it is no surprise that an overwhelming number prefer arab films , which are favored by more than 80 % of overall respondents . in contrast , only around half of the citizens surveyed say they enjoy american and european movies . a large majority of respondents believe entertainment should be regulated for both romantic and violent content . more than two-thirds agree that films or other entertainment programs should be banned if they are deemed to be offensive . respondents in saudi arabia and egypt show the strongest support for censorship -- 76 % and 77 % respectively . tunisia appears to be the most tolerant of all , but still more than half of its respondents support censorship . these apparently contradictory findings really are not , but reflect how the arab world is coping with globalization and still grappling to preserve local culture , ' everette e. dennis , dean and ceo of northwestern university in qatar , says in a statement . in early march , three gulf countries -- qatar , the uae and bahrain -- announced that hollywood biblical blockbuster noah ' could not be screened in cinemas , saying the depiction of noah -- whom muslims revere as a prophet -- is taboo in islam . two months earlier , in january , censors in the uae and qatar cut more than 40 minutes of the three-hour-long wolf of wall street , ' a martin scorsese-directed portrayal of a wayward stock trader , due to foul language and explicit content , ' angering moviegoers in both countries . yet , the northwestern university-doha film institute survey shows that 72 % of qatari residents and 68 % of emirati residents generally support banning offensive content . hollywood films are not the only ones that ran aground in the middle east and north africa . qatar pulled bollywood erotic horror flick raaz 3 ' from theaters in 2012 and , along with the uae , banned indian comedy grand masti ' last year . in 2012 , a tunisian court fined the head of a private tv station 2,400 tunisian dinars ( around $ 1,400 ) after his nessma tv aired persepolis , ' a french-american animated film whose depiction of god was slammed by some religious leaders as offensive to islam . | but more than a third say american films have content that is harmful to morality . ' |
rolling stone <tsp> ( cnn ) -- journalist michael hastings , known for his 2010 profile of gen. stanley mcchrystal that led to the officer 's abrupt retirement , died in a car accident in los angeles on tuesday . the 33-year-old had been a reporter for buzzfeed since last year , when he was hired to cover the obama re-election campaign . michael was a great , fearless journalist with an incredible instinct for the story , and a gift for finding ways to make his readers care about anything he covered from wars to politicians , ' buzzfeed editor-in-chief ben smith said in a statement . he wrote stories that would otherwise have gone unwritten , and without him there are great stories that will go untold . ' hastings was also a contributor to rolling stone , and it was his profile in that magazine about mcchrystal that led to the the general leaving his position . in his profile , hastings quoted mcchrystal and his staff criticizing and mocking key administration officials . the young reporter wrote that mcchrystal and obama failed from the outset to connect , ' and that the president looked uncomfortable and intimidated ' by top military officials . hastings wrote that an unnamed aide to mcchrystal mocked vice president joe biden . the fallout of the article was significant , with the general resigning from his post as the top u.s. commander in afghanistan , followed by his retirement from the armed forces . hastings'hallmark as reporter was his refusal to cozy up to power , ' his obituary in rolling stone read . while other embedded reporters were charmed by mcchrystal 's bad-boy bravado and might have excused his insubordination as a joke , hastings was determined to expose the recklessness of a man leading what hastings believed to be a reckless war . ' read excerpts from hasting 's profile of mcchrystal | he is remembered for his rolling stone profile of gen. stanley mcchrystal |
clinton <tsp> ( cnn ) hillary clinton is finally announcing her candidacy for the 2016 presidential election . although she has watched her standing in the polls sag in recent months , there is likely to be a boost in the days that follow the announcement . for democrats , there is ample reason to be excited about clinton 's run for the presidency . she is certainly one of the strongest candidates in many decades . she brings to the table extensive political and policy experience , a combination of skills that is often lacking . she has been through some of the roughest partisan wars and emerged stronger than ever before . she has a keen sense about the nature of the modern news media , how to use it to her advantage and how to survive scandal frenzies . she is a hardened , tough partisan who will not shy away from republican attack . americans have many positive memories of clinton name , given the booming economy of the late 1990s during bill clinton 's presidency . if hillary clinton puts together an effective campaign , she could be unbeatable in the democratic primaries as well as in the general election . however , during the buildup to her final decision , some of her weaknesses have also been exposed . clinton does n't want to end up like vice president al gore in 2000 . although he did relatively well in the final election ( with many americans believing that he did actually defeat george w. bush ) he did n't generate much energy once the campaign started . although he too was touted as a perfect ' candidate who was the ideal person for the job , something seemed stiff and inauthentic when he actually hit the trail . he seemed to freeze when the television cameras were rolling . gore had trouble connecting with voters , and he seemed to remake his image constantly . his biggest asset ended up being that he was viewed as the inevitable nominee , rather than what he actually stood for . clinton must avoid following gore 's path . she suffered this fate in the 2008 primaries and ca n't afford to do so again . she needs to do more than rest on the perception that her candidacy is inevitable and on her record of experience . that is not enough . more important is for her to put forth an exciting vision about what she would stand for in the white house . voters thirst for signs of greatness when they pick their presidents , even if they are savvy enough to understand that the reality of a polarized washington will probably limit her ability to achieve bold change . a recent story in the washington post suggests that her advisers are aware of this potential liability . after the announcement , they are going to avoid big rallies and events and instead concentrate on smaller events where she will meet with voters directly in states such as iowa and new hampshire . clinton also will have to contend with doubts about her authenticity . in his first day on the campaign trail , sen. rand paul immediately tapped into these concerns by raising questions about whether she could be trusted . that question has dogged the clintons ever since they came onto the national political scene in the late 1980s . their greatest virtue , their immense skills as politicians , has often come back to haunt them . bill clinton was attacked as slick willie ' by members of both parties for the perception that he would say anything to win and hillary clinton has faced similar criticism . when she tried to distance herself from her vote for the use of force in iraq , many democrats did n't buy her critique of president george w. bush 's foreign policies and went for barack obama instead . when she conducted her listening tour ' of new york before running for the senate , many voters saw it as a manufactured effort to hide the fact she was running for office as an outsider . when she explained that there was nothing to the recent stories about her use of a private email server rather than her state department email , some felt that even if the story was relatively minor it indicated that she was n't always telling us what she was really about . even if she is n't hiding anything , she often gives that appearance . during the next few months , clinton will also have to connect with her party 's base . the ongoing speculation about sen. elizabeth warren of massachusetts has suggested that the most active part of the democratic party is not that enthused with clinton 's candidacy . while they will probably vote for her , they are not very motivated and do n't trust that she will stand for democratic values . she will need to address these concerns , not through her style but through her agenda . voters will want to hear her talking about issues such as tougher financial regulation and policies to diminish economic inequality as well as her positions on race and policing . she will also need to make clear that she has heard voters on being too hawkish about going to war and give clear indications about how she would handle a nuclear agreement with iran . clinton will also have to contend with the gender bias that still exists in the electorate at large . without any doubt she will be subject to questions and comments -- about her appearance , for instance -- that wo n't be aimed at male candidates . part of her candidacy is itself an effort to break down these remaining vestiges of political sexism . but the struggle will be tough . finally , and this relates to the last challenge , clinton will have to contend with her husband . to be sure he can be an immense force on the campaign trail , one of the most compelling democrats of our generation . but he can also be liability . as she learned in 2008 , bill clinton is not always easy to control . when he speaks his mind , as he did in dismissive comments about obama 's candidacy , it can often work against her . the fund-raising records of the clinton foundation will also raise questions about conflict of interest , and ongoing stories about his personal life , as was the case when monica lewinsky returned to the media a few months ago , could re-emerge on the campaign trail . whether that is fair or not is beside the point : everything is fair game on the modern campaign trail . hillary clinton has the potential to be a hugely successful presidential candidate . but she and her campaign team will need to address the multiple questions and weaknesses that have become clear in recent months . | clinton also needs to convince voters of her authenticity , zelizer says |
clinton <tsp> ( cnn ) hillary clinton is finally announcing her candidacy for the 2016 presidential election . although she has watched her standing in the polls sag in recent months , there is likely to be a boost in the days that follow the announcement . for democrats , there is ample reason to be excited about clinton 's run for the presidency . she is certainly one of the strongest candidates in many decades . she brings to the table extensive political and policy experience , a combination of skills that is often lacking . she has been through some of the roughest partisan wars and emerged stronger than ever before . she has a keen sense about the nature of the modern news media , how to use it to her advantage and how to survive scandal frenzies . she is a hardened , tough partisan who will not shy away from republican attack . americans have many positive memories of clinton name , given the booming economy of the late 1990s during bill clinton 's presidency . if hillary clinton puts together an effective campaign , she could be unbeatable in the democratic primaries as well as in the general election . however , during the buildup to her final decision , some of her weaknesses have also been exposed . clinton does n't want to end up like vice president al gore in 2000 . although he did relatively well in the final election ( with many americans believing that he did actually defeat george w. bush ) he did n't generate much energy once the campaign started . although he too was touted as a perfect ' candidate who was the ideal person for the job , something seemed stiff and inauthentic when he actually hit the trail . he seemed to freeze when the television cameras were rolling . gore had trouble connecting with voters , and he seemed to remake his image constantly . his biggest asset ended up being that he was viewed as the inevitable nominee , rather than what he actually stood for . clinton must avoid following gore 's path . she suffered this fate in the 2008 primaries and ca n't afford to do so again . she needs to do more than rest on the perception that her candidacy is inevitable and on her record of experience . that is not enough . more important is for her to put forth an exciting vision about what she would stand for in the white house . voters thirst for signs of greatness when they pick their presidents , even if they are savvy enough to understand that the reality of a polarized washington will probably limit her ability to achieve bold change . a recent story in the washington post suggests that her advisers are aware of this potential liability . after the announcement , they are going to avoid big rallies and events and instead concentrate on smaller events where she will meet with voters directly in states such as iowa and new hampshire . clinton also will have to contend with doubts about her authenticity . in his first day on the campaign trail , sen. rand paul immediately tapped into these concerns by raising questions about whether she could be trusted . that question has dogged the clintons ever since they came onto the national political scene in the late 1980s . their greatest virtue , their immense skills as politicians , has often come back to haunt them . bill clinton was attacked as slick willie ' by members of both parties for the perception that he would say anything to win and hillary clinton has faced similar criticism . when she tried to distance herself from her vote for the use of force in iraq , many democrats did n't buy her critique of president george w. bush 's foreign policies and went for barack obama instead . when she conducted her listening tour ' of new york before running for the senate , many voters saw it as a manufactured effort to hide the fact she was running for office as an outsider . when she explained that there was nothing to the recent stories about her use of a private email server rather than her state department email , some felt that even if the story was relatively minor it indicated that she was n't always telling us what she was really about . even if she is n't hiding anything , she often gives that appearance . during the next few months , clinton will also have to connect with her party 's base . the ongoing speculation about sen. elizabeth warren of massachusetts has suggested that the most active part of the democratic party is not that enthused with clinton 's candidacy . while they will probably vote for her , they are not very motivated and do n't trust that she will stand for democratic values . she will need to address these concerns , not through her style but through her agenda . voters will want to hear her talking about issues such as tougher financial regulation and policies to diminish economic inequality as well as her positions on race and policing . she will also need to make clear that she has heard voters on being too hawkish about going to war and give clear indications about how she would handle a nuclear agreement with iran . clinton will also have to contend with the gender bias that still exists in the electorate at large . without any doubt she will be subject to questions and comments -- about her appearance , for instance -- that wo n't be aimed at male candidates . part of her candidacy is itself an effort to break down these remaining vestiges of political sexism . but the struggle will be tough . finally , and this relates to the last challenge , clinton will have to contend with her husband . to be sure he can be an immense force on the campaign trail , one of the most compelling democrats of our generation . but he can also be liability . as she learned in 2008 , bill clinton is not always easy to control . when he speaks his mind , as he did in dismissive comments about obama 's candidacy , it can often work against her . the fund-raising records of the clinton foundation will also raise questions about conflict of interest , and ongoing stories about his personal life , as was the case when monica lewinsky returned to the media a few months ago , could re-emerge on the campaign trail . whether that is fair or not is beside the point : everything is fair game on the modern campaign trail . hillary clinton has the potential to be a hugely successful presidential candidate . but she and her campaign team will need to address the multiple questions and weaknesses that have become clear in recent months . | julian zelizer : hillary clinton has immense political and governmental experience |
hillary clinton <tsp> ( cnn ) hillary clinton is finally announcing her candidacy for the 2016 presidential election . although she has watched her standing in the polls sag in recent months , there is likely to be a boost in the days that follow the announcement . for democrats , there is ample reason to be excited about clinton 's run for the presidency . she is certainly one of the strongest candidates in many decades . she brings to the table extensive political and policy experience , a combination of skills that is often lacking . she has been through some of the roughest partisan wars and emerged stronger than ever before . she has a keen sense about the nature of the modern news media , how to use it to her advantage and how to survive scandal frenzies . she is a hardened , tough partisan who will not shy away from republican attack . americans have many positive memories of clinton name , given the booming economy of the late 1990s during bill clinton 's presidency . if hillary clinton puts together an effective campaign , she could be unbeatable in the democratic primaries as well as in the general election . however , during the buildup to her final decision , some of her weaknesses have also been exposed . clinton does n't want to end up like vice president al gore in 2000 . although he did relatively well in the final election ( with many americans believing that he did actually defeat george w. bush ) he did n't generate much energy once the campaign started . although he too was touted as a perfect ' candidate who was the ideal person for the job , something seemed stiff and inauthentic when he actually hit the trail . he seemed to freeze when the television cameras were rolling . gore had trouble connecting with voters , and he seemed to remake his image constantly . his biggest asset ended up being that he was viewed as the inevitable nominee , rather than what he actually stood for . clinton must avoid following gore 's path . she suffered this fate in the 2008 primaries and ca n't afford to do so again . she needs to do more than rest on the perception that her candidacy is inevitable and on her record of experience . that is not enough . more important is for her to put forth an exciting vision about what she would stand for in the white house . voters thirst for signs of greatness when they pick their presidents , even if they are savvy enough to understand that the reality of a polarized washington will probably limit her ability to achieve bold change . a recent story in the washington post suggests that her advisers are aware of this potential liability . after the announcement , they are going to avoid big rallies and events and instead concentrate on smaller events where she will meet with voters directly in states such as iowa and new hampshire . clinton also will have to contend with doubts about her authenticity . in his first day on the campaign trail , sen. rand paul immediately tapped into these concerns by raising questions about whether she could be trusted . that question has dogged the clintons ever since they came onto the national political scene in the late 1980s . their greatest virtue , their immense skills as politicians , has often come back to haunt them . bill clinton was attacked as slick willie ' by members of both parties for the perception that he would say anything to win and hillary clinton has faced similar criticism . when she tried to distance herself from her vote for the use of force in iraq , many democrats did n't buy her critique of president george w. bush 's foreign policies and went for barack obama instead . when she conducted her listening tour ' of new york before running for the senate , many voters saw it as a manufactured effort to hide the fact she was running for office as an outsider . when she explained that there was nothing to the recent stories about her use of a private email server rather than her state department email , some felt that even if the story was relatively minor it indicated that she was n't always telling us what she was really about . even if she is n't hiding anything , she often gives that appearance . during the next few months , clinton will also have to connect with her party 's base . the ongoing speculation about sen. elizabeth warren of massachusetts has suggested that the most active part of the democratic party is not that enthused with clinton 's candidacy . while they will probably vote for her , they are not very motivated and do n't trust that she will stand for democratic values . she will need to address these concerns , not through her style but through her agenda . voters will want to hear her talking about issues such as tougher financial regulation and policies to diminish economic inequality as well as her positions on race and policing . she will also need to make clear that she has heard voters on being too hawkish about going to war and give clear indications about how she would handle a nuclear agreement with iran . clinton will also have to contend with the gender bias that still exists in the electorate at large . without any doubt she will be subject to questions and comments -- about her appearance , for instance -- that wo n't be aimed at male candidates . part of her candidacy is itself an effort to break down these remaining vestiges of political sexism . but the struggle will be tough . finally , and this relates to the last challenge , clinton will have to contend with her husband . to be sure he can be an immense force on the campaign trail , one of the most compelling democrats of our generation . but he can also be liability . as she learned in 2008 , bill clinton is not always easy to control . when he speaks his mind , as he did in dismissive comments about obama 's candidacy , it can often work against her . the fund-raising records of the clinton foundation will also raise questions about conflict of interest , and ongoing stories about his personal life , as was the case when monica lewinsky returned to the media a few months ago , could re-emerge on the campaign trail . whether that is fair or not is beside the point : everything is fair game on the modern campaign trail . hillary clinton has the potential to be a hugely successful presidential candidate . but she and her campaign team will need to address the multiple questions and weaknesses that have become clear in recent months . | julian zelizer : hillary clinton has immense political and governmental experience |
rottman <tsp> ( cnn ) -- when men and women enlist in the military , they take an oath to support and defend the constitution , including the first amendment , against all enemies , foreign and domestic , and affirm that they will bear true faith and allegiance to the same . ' that oath is betrayed by legislation that sneaked through the house of representatives last week and was signed into law by the president monday . known as the sanctity of eternal rest for veterans act , ' it passed as a small piece of an otherwise unexceptional omnibus veterans'bill . it would broadly expand existing restrictions on political protest on public land near military funerals . notably , the aclu of eastern missouri is actively litigating against similar state legislation that is far narrower in some respects . protests can not be held within 300 feet of the cemetery , and the law bans conduct that blocks someone from entering or leaving the cemetery within a 500-foot radius . protests are prohibited two hours before the funeral through two hours afterward . it similarly expands restrictions on protests at government cemeteries and gives people injured by the protest a right to sue . although it covers all protests near military funerals , the law is targeted , at the westboro baptist church , and that 's a first amendment problem in and of itself . its members believe that the wars in iraq and afghanistan , and the attendant casualties , are divine punishment for america 's acceptance of lesbian and gay rights . they protest outside military funerals to publicize their beliefs -- holding signs that say pray for more dead soldiers ' and god killed your sons ' -- but do not cause any disruption of the funeral proper . now , as repellent as these protests are , they are a permissible exercise of the freedom of speech . if the first amendment means anything , it 's that the government can not target a group for censorship because it disagrees with the group 's message . this legislation does exactly that . sen. olympia snowe , r-maine , introduced the bill a month after the supreme court ruled in snyder v. phelps that , as lawful speech on a public issue , westboro baptist church protests warranted the highest protection of the first amendment against state tort claims . but the imprudence of this legislation goes further . part of the public reaction to westboro baptist protests , as happens with much unpopular political speech , are counterprotests . those would likely be barred as well by the expanded law , under its tendency to disrupt ' language . if the counterprotests are immune from the law 's reach because the government agrees with their message , the law will be doubly unconstitutional . the issues raised by this new law are a lot like those in the dust-up after chick-fil-a ceo dan cathy spoke out against same-sex marriage . i agree that chick-fil-a should n't be celebrated as some sort of free speech hero , and if you choose not to indulge in a chick-fil-a chicken sandwich in protest of intolerance , more power to you . but i 'm more concerned by the suggestion of a chicago alderman that he would go so far as to block a local chick-fil-a franchise 's building permit simply because of cathy 's views , rather than any discriminatory policy of the chain . in some ways , a willingness to ignore the law to shut down someone with whom you simply disagree is worse than cathy spouting off against marriage equality . part of living in america means putting up with words with which you not only disagree but that offend deeply . this is especially true when , as in the westboro baptist church case , the words actually carry a political message . the expansiveness of the new law violates this core principle . it is n't about protecting the solemnity of a soldier 's funeral ; that 's already fully protected under existing trespass , private property and disorderly conduct laws . it 's about censoring unpopular speech . that is inconsistent with the law , the constitution and the military 's oath to the constitution . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of gabe rottman . | rottman : all political speech , even if it 's unpopular or hateful , must be protected under law |
rottman <tsp> ( cnn ) -- when men and women enlist in the military , they take an oath to support and defend the constitution , including the first amendment , against all enemies , foreign and domestic , and affirm that they will bear true faith and allegiance to the same . ' that oath is betrayed by legislation that sneaked through the house of representatives last week and was signed into law by the president monday . known as the sanctity of eternal rest for veterans act , ' it passed as a small piece of an otherwise unexceptional omnibus veterans'bill . it would broadly expand existing restrictions on political protest on public land near military funerals . notably , the aclu of eastern missouri is actively litigating against similar state legislation that is far narrower in some respects . protests can not be held within 300 feet of the cemetery , and the law bans conduct that blocks someone from entering or leaving the cemetery within a 500-foot radius . protests are prohibited two hours before the funeral through two hours afterward . it similarly expands restrictions on protests at government cemeteries and gives people injured by the protest a right to sue . although it covers all protests near military funerals , the law is targeted , at the westboro baptist church , and that 's a first amendment problem in and of itself . its members believe that the wars in iraq and afghanistan , and the attendant casualties , are divine punishment for america 's acceptance of lesbian and gay rights . they protest outside military funerals to publicize their beliefs -- holding signs that say pray for more dead soldiers ' and god killed your sons ' -- but do not cause any disruption of the funeral proper . now , as repellent as these protests are , they are a permissible exercise of the freedom of speech . if the first amendment means anything , it 's that the government can not target a group for censorship because it disagrees with the group 's message . this legislation does exactly that . sen. olympia snowe , r-maine , introduced the bill a month after the supreme court ruled in snyder v. phelps that , as lawful speech on a public issue , westboro baptist church protests warranted the highest protection of the first amendment against state tort claims . but the imprudence of this legislation goes further . part of the public reaction to westboro baptist protests , as happens with much unpopular political speech , are counterprotests . those would likely be barred as well by the expanded law , under its tendency to disrupt ' language . if the counterprotests are immune from the law 's reach because the government agrees with their message , the law will be doubly unconstitutional . the issues raised by this new law are a lot like those in the dust-up after chick-fil-a ceo dan cathy spoke out against same-sex marriage . i agree that chick-fil-a should n't be celebrated as some sort of free speech hero , and if you choose not to indulge in a chick-fil-a chicken sandwich in protest of intolerance , more power to you . but i 'm more concerned by the suggestion of a chicago alderman that he would go so far as to block a local chick-fil-a franchise 's building permit simply because of cathy 's views , rather than any discriminatory policy of the chain . in some ways , a willingness to ignore the law to shut down someone with whom you simply disagree is worse than cathy spouting off against marriage equality . part of living in america means putting up with words with which you not only disagree but that offend deeply . this is especially true when , as in the westboro baptist church case , the words actually carry a political message . the expansiveness of the new law violates this core principle . it is n't about protecting the solemnity of a soldier 's funeral ; that 's already fully protected under existing trespass , private property and disorderly conduct laws . it 's about censoring unpopular speech . that is inconsistent with the law , the constitution and the military 's oath to the constitution . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of gabe rottman . | gabe rottman : bill targets westboro baptist church , which rallies at military funerals |
ye <tsp> ( cnn ) -- asiana airlines flight 214 passenger ye mengyuan was alive when flung from the plane during this month 's crash landing but was killed moments later when run over by a rescue vehicle , a california coroner said friday . ye died as result of multiple blunt injuries that are consistent with being run over by a motor vehicle , ' said san mateo county coroner robert foucrault . those injuries she received , she was alive at the time . ' officials previously had said that was what they feared had happened after the crash on july 6 at san francisco 's airport . ye , 16 , of china was one of three people who died in the crash and its aftermath . read more : asiana crash probe moved on from sfo san francisco fire department chief joanne hayes-white , attending a news conference with foucrault , called the incident a tragic accident ' and apologized to ye 's family . one of the department 's aircraft rescue and firefighting vehicles struck the girl while she was on the ground , possibly covered with firefighting foam being sprayed on and around the burning plane , the chief said . i particularly want to express our condolences and apologies to the family of ye mengyuan in light of the coroners'findings ( in ) this tragic accident , ' the chief said . obviously this is very difficult news for us . we 're heartbroken . we 're in the business of saving lives , ' she added . there 's not a lot of words to describe how badly we feel about it . ' the fire department is reaching out to the family through the chinese consulate 's office . the investigation of what happened after the crash remains with the city 's police department . police are reconstructing the crash scene to ascertain what happened during the rescue , the chief said . she called the crash a difficult , challenging scene . ' we believe it was one of the specialized rigs at the airport , the arff rigs , aircraft rescue firefighting vehicles , ' hayes-white said . san francisco mayor edwin m. lee said he was profoundly saddened by the involvement of a responding emergency vehicle in the death of 16-year-old ye mengyuan . ' on behalf of the people of san francisco , i offer my deepest condolences and regret for her tragic death , and the deaths of her close friend , wang linjia , and 15-year-old liu yipeng , ' the mayor said in a statement . ye and wang , also 16 , were part of a group of 35 teachers and students from a middle school in jiangshan traveling to california for a summer camp program . wang was found dead at the scene along with ye . liu died days later in a san francisco hospital . foucrault , the coroner , met with the three families thursday to discuss his findings , the fire chief said . the mayor said firefighters and first responders helped save the lives of 304 of the 307 passengers and crew aboard the flight . the national transportation safety board is investigating the crash landing , which also injured more than 180 people aboard the flight . | ye mengyuan , 16 , of china was struck and killed by a fire department vehicle |
ye <tsp> ( cnn ) -- asiana airlines flight 214 passenger ye mengyuan was alive when flung from the plane during this month 's crash landing but was killed moments later when run over by a rescue vehicle , a california coroner said friday . ye died as result of multiple blunt injuries that are consistent with being run over by a motor vehicle , ' said san mateo county coroner robert foucrault . those injuries she received , she was alive at the time . ' officials previously had said that was what they feared had happened after the crash on july 6 at san francisco 's airport . ye , 16 , of china was one of three people who died in the crash and its aftermath . read more : asiana crash probe moved on from sfo san francisco fire department chief joanne hayes-white , attending a news conference with foucrault , called the incident a tragic accident ' and apologized to ye 's family . one of the department 's aircraft rescue and firefighting vehicles struck the girl while she was on the ground , possibly covered with firefighting foam being sprayed on and around the burning plane , the chief said . i particularly want to express our condolences and apologies to the family of ye mengyuan in light of the coroners'findings ( in ) this tragic accident , ' the chief said . obviously this is very difficult news for us . we 're heartbroken . we 're in the business of saving lives , ' she added . there 's not a lot of words to describe how badly we feel about it . ' the fire department is reaching out to the family through the chinese consulate 's office . the investigation of what happened after the crash remains with the city 's police department . police are reconstructing the crash scene to ascertain what happened during the rescue , the chief said . she called the crash a difficult , challenging scene . ' we believe it was one of the specialized rigs at the airport , the arff rigs , aircraft rescue firefighting vehicles , ' hayes-white said . san francisco mayor edwin m. lee said he was profoundly saddened by the involvement of a responding emergency vehicle in the death of 16-year-old ye mengyuan . ' on behalf of the people of san francisco , i offer my deepest condolences and regret for her tragic death , and the deaths of her close friend , wang linjia , and 15-year-old liu yipeng , ' the mayor said in a statement . ye and wang , also 16 , were part of a group of 35 teachers and students from a middle school in jiangshan traveling to california for a summer camp program . wang was found dead at the scene along with ye . liu died days later in a san francisco hospital . foucrault , the coroner , met with the three families thursday to discuss his findings , the fire chief said . the mayor said firefighters and first responders helped save the lives of 304 of the 307 passengers and crew aboard the flight . the national transportation safety board is investigating the crash landing , which also injured more than 180 people aboard the flight . | san francisco 's fire chief calls it a tragic accident ' and apologizes to ye 's family |
interpol <tsp> paris , france ( cnn ) -- interpol is chasing more than 200 leads on the potential identity of a pedophile suspected of molesting young boys , just one day after launching a global manhunt . interpol has launched a global appeal to find this man , accused of abusing young boys . the organization , which facilitates global cooperation among police agencies , said its web site logged 30 times more visitors than in an average day after it made its plea for the public 's help tuesday . interpol is trying to locate a man who is pictured sexually abusing young boys in hundreds of images on the internet . 'the public 's response has been very positive , ' said kristin kvigne , assistant director of interpol 's trafficking in human beings unit , in a news release . the smallest piece of information from anywhere in the world could be crucial in identifying this man . ' the man is featured in 100 photographs sexually abusing at least three boys between the ages of six and 10 , interpol said . the organization posted six pictures of the suspect on its web site . the pictures came to light in 2006 , when norwegian authorities discovered them in the possession of a man they arrested . watch a report on interpol 's man-hunt » ' while these images were only discovered two years ago , we believe the photographs were taken between april 2000 and may 2001 , so clearly this man will be older than he appears in the pictures , ' said kvigne . last october , interpol disseminated pictures of another man whose face appeared in more than 200 images of sex acts with children . it dubbed its operation vico , because the images were thought to have been taken in vietnam and cambodia . ten days later , christopher paul neil -- a 32-year-old canadian man who had been working as an english-language teacher in south korea -- was arrested in thailand and charged with child abuse . following the success of that operation , the organization 's general assembly approved a resolution allowing interpol to seek public help in child sex abuse investigations . | new : interpol chasing 200 new leads in global manhunt for serial pedophile |
interpol <tsp> paris , france ( cnn ) -- interpol is chasing more than 200 leads on the potential identity of a pedophile suspected of molesting young boys , just one day after launching a global manhunt . interpol has launched a global appeal to find this man , accused of abusing young boys . the organization , which facilitates global cooperation among police agencies , said its web site logged 30 times more visitors than in an average day after it made its plea for the public 's help tuesday . interpol is trying to locate a man who is pictured sexually abusing young boys in hundreds of images on the internet . 'the public 's response has been very positive , ' said kristin kvigne , assistant director of interpol 's trafficking in human beings unit , in a news release . the smallest piece of information from anywhere in the world could be crucial in identifying this man . ' the man is featured in 100 photographs sexually abusing at least three boys between the ages of six and 10 , interpol said . the organization posted six pictures of the suspect on its web site . the pictures came to light in 2006 , when norwegian authorities discovered them in the possession of a man they arrested . watch a report on interpol 's man-hunt » ' while these images were only discovered two years ago , we believe the photographs were taken between april 2000 and may 2001 , so clearly this man will be older than he appears in the pictures , ' said kvigne . last october , interpol disseminated pictures of another man whose face appeared in more than 200 images of sex acts with children . it dubbed its operation vico , because the images were thought to have been taken in vietnam and cambodia . ten days later , christopher paul neil -- a 32-year-old canadian man who had been working as an english-language teacher in south korea -- was arrested in thailand and charged with child abuse . following the success of that operation , the organization 's general assembly approved a resolution allowing interpol to seek public help in child sex abuse investigations . | interpol issued appeal for first time in october , arrest made after 10 days |
interpol <tsp> paris , france ( cnn ) -- interpol is chasing more than 200 leads on the potential identity of a pedophile suspected of molesting young boys , just one day after launching a global manhunt . interpol has launched a global appeal to find this man , accused of abusing young boys . the organization , which facilitates global cooperation among police agencies , said its web site logged 30 times more visitors than in an average day after it made its plea for the public 's help tuesday . interpol is trying to locate a man who is pictured sexually abusing young boys in hundreds of images on the internet . 'the public 's response has been very positive , ' said kristin kvigne , assistant director of interpol 's trafficking in human beings unit , in a news release . the smallest piece of information from anywhere in the world could be crucial in identifying this man . ' the man is featured in 100 photographs sexually abusing at least three boys between the ages of six and 10 , interpol said . the organization posted six pictures of the suspect on its web site . the pictures came to light in 2006 , when norwegian authorities discovered them in the possession of a man they arrested . watch a report on interpol 's man-hunt » ' while these images were only discovered two years ago , we believe the photographs were taken between april 2000 and may 2001 , so clearly this man will be older than he appears in the pictures , ' said kvigne . last october , interpol disseminated pictures of another man whose face appeared in more than 200 images of sex acts with children . it dubbed its operation vico , because the images were thought to have been taken in vietnam and cambodia . ten days later , christopher paul neil -- a 32-year-old canadian man who had been working as an english-language teacher in south korea -- was arrested in thailand and charged with child abuse . following the success of that operation , the organization 's general assembly approved a resolution allowing interpol to seek public help in child sex abuse investigations . | interpol web site logged 30 times more visitors than in an average day |
portuguese <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it is a measure of the squad alex ferguson has at his disposal that the manchester united coach can make eight changes to the side that drew with real madrid and still move closer to an historic treble . with his side 12 points clear at the top of the english premier league and in the box seat after drawing 1-1 with real in their european champions league last 16 tie , they moved into the last eight of the fa cup with a 2-1 win over reading . only goalkeeper david de gea , midfielder phil jones and striker danny welbeck , who grabbed united 's goal at the bernabeu , survived from the real madrid test as they defeated struggling reading . portuguese winger nani and mexican striker javier hernandez put united into a 2-0 lead before jobi mcanuff ensured a tense last ten minutes at old trafford . united are now in line to play chelsea in the quarterfinals , if the blues beat second-tier middlesbrough . the only negative of the evening was a potentially serious injury to jones , who limped off after 42 minutes and later left the ground on crutches . it was a good cup tie and ended up a really good one , ' ferguson told espn . they ( reading ) went for it , piled the ball into the box and we withstood that . we played some great football , missed chances , had shots blocked and their goalkeeper made some saves . i ` m satisfied with the quality of the game . we had to defend , our goalkeeper made some excellent saves because at 2-0 we were never comfortable . ' on jones'injury ferguson told the club 's own channel mutv : we will have to assess it in the morning . it is an ankle injury so i would imagine he would not be ready for saturday and we will see what he is like after that . ' arguably , ferguson 's finest moment in his 26-year stint as manager of united came in 1999 when his side won the premier league , the fa cup and the champions league . and his side are in with a chance of repeating that famous triumph after extending their unbeaten run to 16 matches . united piled on the pressure in the early stages but reading goalkeeper adam federici kept them at bay with smart saves from tom cleverley and ashley young . nani came on for jones and twice went close , volleying narrowly wide before forcing federici to tip over his fierce shot but the pressure finally told as the portuguese tucked home from antonio valencia 's cross . three minutes later hernandez doubled united 's lead with a near post header but mcanuff 's finish on 81 minutes gave reading hope though they could n't force an equalizer . in italy , lazio spurned the chance to leapfrog ac milan into third place after they went down to a shock 3-0 defeat at siena . innocent emeghara put siena into a sixth minute lead , turning home matteo rubin 's cross before alessandro rosina polished off another rubin center to make it 2-0 . emeghara got his second and siena 's third on the hour mark to seal an important win for the club , who remain in the relegation zone despite picking up three points . | goals from portuguese midfielder nani and striker javier hernandez see off reading |
uriel sinai <tsp> uriel sinai 's affection for kazakhstan started as a straightforward reporting assignment . the world press photo award-winning photographer went to kazakhstan and other central asian republics in 2006 to capture how they had changed since the collapse of the soviet union . it was quite amazing , i did n't expect to see what i saw there , ' he says . visually , it was the blend of the new and the old that attracted him to kazakhstan . seeing the mixture of things that are very much soviet-like and then the current kazakhstan , with its wealth and money , ' he says . that really struck me . ' being an iran-born israeli national , sinai 's chances of ever visiting his real birthplace are slim . having no memories of iran ( he left as a baby ) , he looks for hints of his birthplace elsewhere . i am always trying to feel the place . everywhere i go , i am trying to feel this place that i am not able to go to . ' kazakhstan and its vast steppes , rural areas , mosques and arid climate reminded him of iran more than anything . i think it is as close as i can get to somewhere close to where i came from , ' he says . he says he felt the connection while driving for hours through the rural countryside .'you can really feel it in kazakhstan , ' he says . you can feel iran in the air . ' | uriel sinai won the world press photo for his coverage of israeli resettlement from the gaza strip |
gulnaz <tsp> karachi , pakistan ( cnn ) -- with a few drops of vaccine , gulnaz shields another child from the devastating effects of polio . it 's a simple but potentially life-saving task . it 's also incredibly dangerous -- not for the children , but for gulnaz , who works in one of the most violent parts of karachi . last year , her niece and sister-in-law -- also polio workers -- were gunned down by men on motorcycles . the u.n. 's children 's agency , unicef , said they were shot to death for vaccinating the children why polio has n't gone away yet but the deaths have n't stopped gulnaz , who is using one name for safety reasons . everybody in my family was suffering from shock . some of them tried to stop me , telling me not to do this job anymore because two coffins leaving one house leaves a mark , ' she said . anti-polio campaigns have been targeted by militants ever since u.s. intelligence used a fake vaccination program to help in its hunt for al qaeda leader osama bin laden in 2011 . the cia used a fake vaccination program to collect dna samples from residents of bin laden 's compound to verify his presence there . taliban to u.s. : end drone strikes , or no more polio vaccines that was n't a polio campaign , but the fallout still lingers . since july 2012 , at least 22 polio workers have been killed . still , gulnaz remains undeterred . after this tragedy , i 'm not scared at all . in fact , i feel even stronger and more determined , ' she said . every woman in this country who is doing this job is praying for me . when i 'm working in the field i 'm with my partner , but i also sense that my niece and sister-in-law who were killed are walking alongside me . ' gulnaz and her partner are escorted by paramilitary soldiers who seal off the area -- guarding each end of a street to ensure that young children get access to the crucial drops of vaccine that most parents and children around the world can simply get from their local doctor . unrelenting attacks on monday alone , two people were killed and 13 others were wounded in a bombing that targeted polio workers in northwest pakistan , police said . that blast took place on the outskirts of the violence-plagued city of peshawar . at the u.n. , money backs up vow to eradicate polio by 2015 the bomb was detonated remotely as polio vaccines and accompanying materials were being handed out to health workers , said najeeb-ur-rehman , a senior police superintendent . last year , a taliban commander in northwest pakistan announced a ban on polio vaccines for children in the region as long as the united states continues its campaign of drone strikes . it was n't immediately clear if the taliban played a role in the most recent attacks . a father 's dilemma osman was infected with polio as a child and wanted to make sure his children were vaccinated . but after the raid that killed bin laden , he decided not to vaccinate his 3-year-old son , musharraf . the boy became one of the 28 cases of detected polio in pakistan in 2013 . i 'm not stupid or illiterate . i made sure my other children got the drops , ' osman said . but i was very angry and wary of aid workers , because if they are cooperating with spy agencies , then it 's better to keep away from them . i am sad my youngest suffered , but i do n't regret my decision . ' paralympian : we ca n't afford to lose the fight against polio osman , who is using only one name for safety reasons , changed his mind only after the government released a booklet with a series of religious edicts from muslim scholars telling parents that polio drops are safe . polio is a highly infectious viral disease that can cause permanent paralysis in just hours . it has been eradicated around the world except for three countries where it is endemic : pakistan , nigeria and afghanistan . after the number of cases spiked sharply last year , pakistan stepped up its eradication efforts . the numbers fell from 173 in 2011 to 58 in 2012 , according to the global polio eradication initiative . i am appealing to my fellow pashtun society , to give their kids polio drops , ' osman said . it 's a message that health care workers hope others will hear . it could not only make their jobs safer , but also save children from a lifetime of disability . | gulnaz 's niece and sister-in-law were gunned down for giving polio vaccines |
obama <tsp> los angeles ( cnn ) -- american-based firms that use legal loopholes to avoid paying u.s. taxes have effectively renounced any allegiance to their home country , president barack obama will claim during remarks at a community college here on thursday . taking up a harsh new attack against companies that establish residency in tax havens like the caymen islands and bermuda while keeping the bulk of their operations in the united states , obama will call on congress to mend a loophole allowing billions in tax revenue to slip through the government 's fingers . a white house official , previewing obama 's remarks , said the president would make the case on thursday that tax-avoiding companies are essentially renouncing their american citizenship so that they can ship their profits overseas to avoid paying taxes -- even as they benefit from all the advantages of being here in america . ' the white house has aimed this week to advance the president 's domestic agenda , focusing on jobs programs and the economy . bolstering the middle class has formed much of obama 's midterm election year pitch . but world events -- including israel 's ground invasion of gaza and furor over the downed airliner in ukraine -- have largely overshadowed the intended topics this week , despite the white house 's attempts to highlight new job training measures . obama 's remarks thursday , which he 'll deliver at a technical college in downtown los angeles , come at the end of a three-day fundraising swing which also brought him to seattle and the silicon valley . the event will be the only public showing for obama during his stay on the west coast . he withstood some criticism for not canceling the trip , which aides countered by saying the president could conduct his job from anywhere . the white house did , however , nix an appearance on jimmy kimmel live , ' replacing the late night show with a more sober cnbc interview . obama will touch on an issue democrats believe could help them win over voters in this year 's midterm contests . the president has long decried the inherent unfairness in large , multimillion dollar corporations that operate chiefly in the united states but pay little in u.s. taxes . he used the issue to attack republican mitt romney during the 2012 presidential campaign . both republicans and democrats say the entire tax code needs an overhaul , but obama is pressing lawmakers to take action now to prevent so-called inversions , ' which allow u.s. companies to merge with foreign firms in countries with lower tax rates . in the past decade , at least 47 u.s. companies have made the move . several inversions have been proposed this year and more are in the works . we should prevent companies from effectively renouncing their citizenship to get out of paying taxes . what we need is a new sense of economic patriotism , where we all rise and fall together , ' said u.s. treasury secretary jack lew in a letter to lawmakers last week , adding he believed any new measure should prevent companies from gaining tax advantages by incorporating overseas . lew said a new law should retroactively bar any firm that moved abroad after may 2014 from enjoying lower tax liabilities . cnnmoney 's jeanne sahadi contributed to this report . | remarks part of obama 's effort this week to advance his domestic agenda |
obama <tsp> los angeles ( cnn ) -- american-based firms that use legal loopholes to avoid paying u.s. taxes have effectively renounced any allegiance to their home country , president barack obama will claim during remarks at a community college here on thursday . taking up a harsh new attack against companies that establish residency in tax havens like the caymen islands and bermuda while keeping the bulk of their operations in the united states , obama will call on congress to mend a loophole allowing billions in tax revenue to slip through the government 's fingers . a white house official , previewing obama 's remarks , said the president would make the case on thursday that tax-avoiding companies are essentially renouncing their american citizenship so that they can ship their profits overseas to avoid paying taxes -- even as they benefit from all the advantages of being here in america . ' the white house has aimed this week to advance the president 's domestic agenda , focusing on jobs programs and the economy . bolstering the middle class has formed much of obama 's midterm election year pitch . but world events -- including israel 's ground invasion of gaza and furor over the downed airliner in ukraine -- have largely overshadowed the intended topics this week , despite the white house 's attempts to highlight new job training measures . obama 's remarks thursday , which he 'll deliver at a technical college in downtown los angeles , come at the end of a three-day fundraising swing which also brought him to seattle and the silicon valley . the event will be the only public showing for obama during his stay on the west coast . he withstood some criticism for not canceling the trip , which aides countered by saying the president could conduct his job from anywhere . the white house did , however , nix an appearance on jimmy kimmel live , ' replacing the late night show with a more sober cnbc interview . obama will touch on an issue democrats believe could help them win over voters in this year 's midterm contests . the president has long decried the inherent unfairness in large , multimillion dollar corporations that operate chiefly in the united states but pay little in u.s. taxes . he used the issue to attack republican mitt romney during the 2012 presidential campaign . both republicans and democrats say the entire tax code needs an overhaul , but obama is pressing lawmakers to take action now to prevent so-called inversions , ' which allow u.s. companies to merge with foreign firms in countries with lower tax rates . in the past decade , at least 47 u.s. companies have made the move . several inversions have been proposed this year and more are in the works . we should prevent companies from effectively renouncing their citizenship to get out of paying taxes . what we need is a new sense of economic patriotism , where we all rise and fall together , ' said u.s. treasury secretary jack lew in a letter to lawmakers last week , adding he believed any new measure should prevent companies from gaining tax advantages by incorporating overseas . lew said a new law should retroactively bar any firm that moved abroad after may 2014 from enjoying lower tax liabilities . cnnmoney 's jeanne sahadi contributed to this report . | obama to slam companies that establish residency in overseas tax havens in speech thursday |
france <tsp> london , england -- french euro 2008 qualification hopes were dealt a blow on monday when bolton striker nicolas anelka was ruled out of the critical midweek qualifier against lithuania in nantes . bolton striker anelka celebrates his goal in saturday 's 6-0 victory against the faroe islands . anelka , who has hit 11 goals in 42 international appearances , suffered a thigh injury in saturday 's 6-0 thrashing of the faroe islands and has returned to his english premier league club for treatment . france must win their final two group b games -- they complete their program away to ukraine on november 21 -- if they are to be sure of a place in next year 's finals to be jointly hosted by austria and switzerland . les bleus are currently in third place one point behind italy and two points adrift of group leaders scotland who play in georgia on wednesday . the italians play in scotland on november 17 and complete their fixtures at home to the faroe islands four days later . france , meanwhile , are also without five-cap sevilla defender julien escude who has failed to recover from an injury suffered before the weekend win . e-mail to a friend | france striker nicolas anelka will miss midweek euro tie against lithuania |
france <tsp> london , england -- french euro 2008 qualification hopes were dealt a blow on monday when bolton striker nicolas anelka was ruled out of the critical midweek qualifier against lithuania in nantes . bolton striker anelka celebrates his goal in saturday 's 6-0 victory against the faroe islands . anelka , who has hit 11 goals in 42 international appearances , suffered a thigh injury in saturday 's 6-0 thrashing of the faroe islands and has returned to his english premier league club for treatment . france must win their final two group b games -- they complete their program away to ukraine on november 21 -- if they are to be sure of a place in next year 's finals to be jointly hosted by austria and switzerland . les bleus are currently in third place one point behind italy and two points adrift of group leaders scotland who play in georgia on wednesday . the italians play in scotland on november 17 and complete their fixtures at home to the faroe islands four days later . france , meanwhile , are also without five-cap sevilla defender julien escude who has failed to recover from an injury suffered before the weekend win . e-mail to a friend | france must win final two matches to be certain of a slot in the 2008 finals |
porto <tsp> ( cnn ) -- inter milan coach jose mourinho will lead his italian team into their first european champions league final in 38 years on 22 may . his task will be to drive inter milan to their first european cup title since 1965 by defeating german champions bayern munich at the bernabeu stadium in madrid this saturday . like bayern coach van gaal , the 47-year-old is targeting a treble , having already secured the italian league and cup titles this year . a victory for the italians would also signal a second treble for mourinho who last achieved the three required victories at porto back in 2004 . can mourinho beat van gaal to become king of europe ? inter 's run to the final of the european competition was made all the more impressive with a win over title holders barcelona in the semifinal . record after promising but brief spells coaching at portuguese sides benfica and uniao de leira , mourinho brought home his first silverware while in charge at porto where he claimed the league and cup titles in his first year , and treble in the second . mourinho then moved on to english premier league side chelsea where he won six trophies in his three years at the helm , including the league titles in 2005 and 2006 and the fa cup and league cup in 2007 . since 2008 mourinho has been at inter milan where he won the serie a title in his first year as coach , successfully defending the title in 2010 as well as winning the domestic cup . if the team go on to win the champions league final , it will be the first time the milan side has done so since they beat benfica in the final in 1965 . perhaps the most impressive stat to mourinho 's name is his run of 136 unbeaten home matches across his reigns at inter milan , chelsea and porto -- his last league defeat on home turf coming at porto in 2002 . personality ' do n't call me arrogant , but i 'm european champion and i think i 'm a special one , ' were the first words spoken by mourinho upon his arrival at chelsea in 2004 , and he has since been dubbed the special one ' by the english press . mourinho has never failed to provide the media with entertaining press conferences and many memorable quotes though such outspoken comments have caused trouble down the years as well as making mourinho a big personality . however , his ambition on the football field can not be underestimated and there is speculation that mourinho might leave inter for real madrid after the final . he has been quoted in the past as saying he has dreams of coaching in england , italy and spain , so it would not be a surprise if his next challenge was at the bernabeu . previous clashes mourinho learnt his trade working as assistants at estrela amadora , porto and barcelona . at the spanish club he was first a translator for english manager bobby robson and then second in command to louis van gaal , who he says he learnt a lot from in the early stages of his career . van gaal is a very confident person and at a moment when a coach like me was young , that was very important . he gave me the confidence to coach the team on the pitch , ' mourinho said . the rivalry between the pair intensified when mourinho became the first coach in history to guide three different teams to the semifinals of the champions league -- only for van gaal to do the same a day later . and whoever finishes on top on saturday will join an even more elite group of those to have coached more than one team to the final of the competition . austrian ernst happel and german ottmar hitzfeld are the only two coaches to have done so in the past . whether or not he can do it this weekend mourinho is confident that he will at some point in his career . i will do it one day , but i would love to do it now because of the circumstances of inter not winning the competition for a long time . ' tactics mourinho has been praised for his team 's resilience in the second leg of the champions league semifinal against barcelona , when despite being reduced to 10 men they still managed to keep the spanish challenge at bay and go through 3-2 on aggregate . the inter coach is reported to be a big fan of long fitness sessions and punishing long training runs to keep his squad in shape -- a technique also used by van gaal -- and it is this which is thought to have helped get mourinho 's side through to the final . he will be hoping that this will also stand them in good stead in the final against bayern munich , especially as like the german team who are without franck ribery , they will be missing a key player through suspension -- midfielder thiago motta . mourinho will be looking to veteran captain javier zanetti , dutch playmaker wesley sneijder and cameroonian striker samuel eto'o -- who has won two champions league titles with barcelona in 2006 and 2009 -- to take him to victory in the competition that he has described as even bigger than the world cup . ' | mourinho 's last defeat on home turf in the league was with porto in 2002 |
non-hispanic <tsp> ( cnn ) -- by 2050 , minorities will be the majority in america , and the number of residents older than 65 will more than double , according to projections released thursday by the u.s. census bureau . the census bureau looks at 2000 results and assumptions about future childbearing , mortality rates and migration . minorities , classified as those of any race other than non-hispanic , single-race whites , currently constitute about a third of the u.s. population , according to census figures . but by 2042 , they are projected to become the majority , making up more than half the population . by 2050 , 54 percent of the population will be minorities . minority children are projected to reach that milestone even sooner . by 2023 , the bureau said , more than half of all children will be minorities . part of it is a higher fertility rate for some of the minority groups , hispanics in particular , ' said dave waddington , chief of the census bureau 's population projection branch , which issued the report . those groups also tend to be more of the childbearing age . non-hispanic white people tend to be a little bit older . ' the projections are based on census 2000 results and assumptions about future childbearing , mortality rates and net international migration , the bureau said . the group predicted to post the most dramatic gain is the hispanic population . it is projected to nearly triple , from 46.7 million to 132.8 million , from 2008 through 2050 , the bureau said . its share of the total u.s. population is expected to double from 15 to 30 percent . thus , one in three u.s. residents would be hispanic , ' the census bureau said in a news release . the african-american population is projected to increase from 41.1 million to 65.7 million by 2050 , going from 14 percent of the u.s. population to 15 percent . the asian-american population is expected to increase from 15.5 million to 40.6 million , or from 5.1 percent to 9.2 percent of the population . among the remaining races , the bureau said , american indians and alaska natives are projected to increase from 3.9 million to 8.6 million , going from 1.6 percent to 2 percent of the u.s. population . native hawaiian and pacific islanders are expected to more than double , increasing from 1.1 to 2.6 million . in addition , the number of u.s. residents identifying themselves as being of two or more races is projected to more than triple , increasing to 16.2 million from its current 5.2 million , the census bureau said . meanwhile , the non-hispanic white population is not expected to post dramatic gains in the same period . by 2050 , whites are expected to number 203.3 million , slightly increased from the 2008 number of 199.8 million . whites will comprise 46 percent of the u.s. population by 2050 , down from the current level of 66 percent , the bureau said , as the group is projected to lose population in the 2030s and 2040s . by 2030 , all baby boomers will be age 65 and older -- comprising nearly 20 percent of u.s. residents , or one in five americans , the bureau said . by 2050 , the 65-and-older age group will increase to 88.5 million , more than doubling its current number of 38.7 million . meanwhile , the number of those age 85 and older is expected to more than triple , from 5.4 million in 2008 to 19 million by 2050 . non-hispanic whites make up most of the baby boomers , waddington said . they 're in a higher mortality rate ... nonminority groups tend to be older and dying off faster ' instead of reproducing at the rate projected for minorities . obviously , the projections will have very strong policy implications , ' he said -- medical care for an increasingly elderly population , for instance , educational needs for increasing numbers of minority children and economic effects for the labor force . who 's going to do the jobs that are characteristically held right now by certain types of people ? ' waddington said . all those things are subject to change . ' the united states is projected to reach the 400 million population milestone in 2039 , according to bureau projections . by 2050 , the population is expected to be 439 million . of those , 235.7 million are expected to be minorities . as u.s. cities and towns have increasingly become more diverse , census officials knew the day of a majority minority would come , waddington said . and the aging one is sort of simple , ' he added . that 's demography 101 . ' other highlights from the report released thursday : • by 2050 , 62 percent of the nation 's children will be minorities , up from 44 percent today . of those , 39 percent are projected to be hispanic , up from 22 percent in 2008 , and 38 percent are projected to be white , down from 56 percent in 2008 • the percentage of the u.s. population between the ages of 18 and 64 -- the working age ' population -- is projected to decrease to 57 percent in 2050 from 63 percent in 2008 . • the working-age population will become more than 50 percent minority in 2039 , and by 2050 will constitute 55 percent of the population . • by 2050 , the working-age population will be more than 30 percent hispanic , up from 15 percent in 2008 ; 15 percent african-american , up from 13 percent in 2008 ; and 9.6 percent asian , up from 5.3 percent in 2008 . waddington said the timelines are not written in stone . it 's a projection . and things like the baby boom generation could n't be predicted . ' major changes in policy affecting families and children , or a major policy affecting immigration , could have an impact on the expectations , he said . the nation 's undocumented workers -- estimated at 12 million or more -- are included in the projections , waddington said . census data includes all u.s. residents , regardless of their legal status , he said . cnn 's ashley broughton contributed to this report . | census : by 2050 , 54 percent will be other than non-hispanic , single-race whites |
snapchat <tsp> what would you do if you only had one day to live ? probably not spend time downloading and fiddling with a mobile app , we 're guessing . but a new app , sobrr , wants you to embrace life in just that way . it lets you create a social network geared toward meeting new people around you , sharing photos and videos of what you 're up to and supporting other users who are also living it up . or whatever . using gps , sobrr identifies other users close to you and shows them your posts . they may then cheer ' or comment on those posts and , if both parties agree , they can become 24-hour friends . ' there 's an option for users who hit it off to make each other permanent parts of their network . the kicker is that , anything you do using the app is totally erased after 24 hours . texts you send to other users disappear after a few seconds and photos or videos you share can go away nearly as quickly . the app 's co-founder , bruce yang , says that in an era when your third-grade teacher can find you on facebook and anyone you 've ever met at work wants to network on linkedin , people are craving an app like sobrr . it lets them share without worrying their actions will go down on their permanent record . it promotes sharing only the most refreshing contents and leading a casual relationship with no strings attached , ' said yang , an alum of fitbit , linkedin and microsoft . so , you can call sobrr the anti-facebook . but if you want to call it tinder meets snapchat meets foursquare , you would n't be that far-off either . the app 's name reflects the moment the idea first dawned on yang -- the morning after a las vegas bachelor party . he says he noticed all of his fellow partyers rushing onto their social media accounts to make sure they had n't shared any incriminating info about the previous night . no , yang says , his app is n't just another tool for the hookup culture or a way to send naughty photos without having to answer for them later . but if somebody wants to use it that way ? he 's not here to stop them . from the party animals that i 've surveyed , more than half admitted that they want to meet new people in the party , and crave for a one-night stand , ' he said . sobrr lets users post content that they might otherwise feel too embarrassed to post on other platforms , ' he said . yang also said it 's important for users to have their own space and little secrets . ' but he maintains that naughty stuff ' is only a small part of what users have been sharing in the month since the app 's release . we understand that'hooking up'is the need of many users on the platform , but we really value more of the casual interaction and conversation on the platform -- the foreplay of hooking up , ' he said . people are more attracted by each other based on their life moments or a common interest . ' it 's possible the silicon valley startup is onto something . in the past year or so , ephemeral messaging apps such as snapchat , confide and wickr have flourished . so far , the app 's user base remains relatively small , boasting 10,000 users in the weeks it 's been available exclusively for apple 's mobile devices . whether more folks will flock to it to live a more carefree social media life , or merely hide the evidence from their wild nights out , remains to be seen . | disappearing message apps like snapchat have become popular |
european <tsp> london ( cnn ) -- as the scandal over the discovery of horse meat in products labeled as pure beef widened , the european union 's health chief vowed wednesday to put in place a plan to restore consumer confidence . the issue before us today is therefore overwhelmingly one of fraudulent labeling rather than one of safety , ' tonio borg said in a statement after an emergency meeting in belgium with authorities from france , romania , holland , luxembourg and britain . he noted that eu legislation allows horse meat to be used for the production of minced meat and meat preparations , however , it has to be declared on the label . ' it is the responsibility of eu member states to check on whether a product presents a risk and complies with the law , borg said . in the case of horse meat , the commission has checked on whether member states have complied with requirements about hygiene and residues of veterinary drugs , he said . analyses are under way to identify the possible presence of residues of veterinary drugs , especially where unlabeled horse meat has been found , ' he said . a meeting of the standing committee of the food chain and animal health is scheduled for friday , he said . this meeting will provide a forum to ascertain the precise state-of-play of the ongoing investigations in the member states , and enable discussions on a possible coordinated response , ' he said . the commission will recommend to the standing committee a plan that will include widespread testing to restore the confidence of all european consumers , ' he said . the plan should be communicated by member states by 15 april , ' he said . the plan will recommend that member states ensure that any misleading labeling practices ' be identified , and will ask , as a preventive measure , ' that member states ensure that any residues of the veterinary drug phenylbutazone be identified in establishments handling raw horse meat so as to unearth any related safety concern . ' the member states should then report their findings back to the commission , he said . the talks in brussels came a day after british police and health officials raided a slaughterhouse and meat company as part of the investigation into how horse meat ended up in products identified as beef . the slaughterhouse , in todmorden , west yorkshire , is believed to have supplied horse carcasses to farmbox meats ltd. , a welsh firm that then sold the meat as beef for kebabs and burgers . authorities have suspended operations at both facilities and seized all remaining meat and company files , which include a client list . neither company was immediately available for comment . i ordered an audit of all horse-producing abattoirs in the uk after this issue first arose last month and i was shocked to uncover what appears to be a blatant misleading of consumers , ' andrew rhodes , food standards agency director of operations , said tuesday . environment secretary owen paterson called the revelations absolutely shocking . ' it 's totally unacceptable if any business in the uk is defrauding the public by passing off horse meat as beef , ' he said . i expect the full force of the law to be brought down on anyone involved in this kind of activity . ' in a written statement to parliament , paterson said wednesday that both the raided businesses had a legitimate trade in horse meat , but investigations so far indicate that horse meat has been used in uk produce as though it is beef . ' horse meat was discovered in products that are supposed to be 100 % beef sold in sweden , the united kingdom and france . they included lasagna sold by frozen food giant findus and spaghetti bolognese sold by uk supermarket giant tesco , both made by french supplier comigel . the industry was already reeling from a bombshell last month , when irish investigators found horse and pig dna in a number of hamburger products . investigations are under way in france , sweden and britain . in romania , prime minister victor ponta said monday that the two slaughterhouses in the country that were initially suspected to have links to the horse meat scandal never had direct contact with comigel and have done nothing illegal . this tendency to throw the responsibility as far away as possible , eventually to the new members ( of the european union ) , to countries that might have a weaker pr policy , is something that bothers me , ' he said . minister of agriculture daniel constantin said there was no evidence of mislabeling in romania . comigel has not responded to cnn 's requests for comment . but ceo erick lehagre told french news agency agence france-presse on sunday that a french supplier fooled ' his company . we were victims , ' he told afp . this month , britain 's national beef association called for more specific labeling of meat products and asked that labels bear the words united kingdom origin . ' british food companies have been told to test their beef products for authenticity ' and report back to authorities by friday . british supermarket chain waitrose said wednesday that it had in recent weeks ' removed from its shelves frozen meatballs labeled as beef after tests indicated that two batches may have contained pork . but tests revealed no horse meat in its meatballs or frozen beef burgers , it said . in the united states , congress effectively prohibited the slaughtering of horses for human consumption in 2007 , by denying the use of federal funds to inspect horses destined to become food , a 2011 government accountability office report said . the legal maneuver does not preclude horse owners from selling to slaughterhouses in canada and mexico , and the gao said in a report that many americans have taken advantage of that opportunity . from 2006 through 2010 , u.s. horse exports for slaughter increased by 148 and 660 % to canada and mexico , respectively , ' the report said . as a result , nearly the same number of u.s. horses was transported to canada and mexico for slaughter in 2010 -- nearly 138,000 -- as was slaughtered before domestic slaughter ceased . ' cnn 's kat kinsman in new york , susannah palk and kendra wates in london and journalist liliana ciobanu in bucharest , romania , contributed to this report . | european ministers hold talks on the issue of horse meat found in beef products |
scotland <tsp> actress ashley judd and champion race car driver dario franchitti are ending their marriage after more than 11 years . a representative for the actress confirmed the news tuesday . best known for movies such as double jeopardy ' and high crimes , ' the actress attended franchitti 's races for years . she cheered from the sidelines , wearing floppy hats and cheery sun dresses . shortly after the news broke , judd tweeted that the pair will remain family forever ' despite the divorce . family forever , ' franchitti tweeted her back . his tweet was later deleted , but still appeared in a log on his website . the star has said she did not know much about cars , but that changed when she met franchitti . hours before the divorce was announced , judd responded to a twitter question about her favorite sports car . she said her taste in cars mirrors that of franchitti . especially the old porsches and ferraris , ' she tweeted . he has taught me about the art or the automobile . ' the pair got married in his native scotland in 2001 . in addition to her movie roles , judd served as a tennessee delegate at the democratic national convention last year . her attendance sparked speculation that she may be considering a senate run in her home state of kentucky . she also advocates for humanitarian causes , and has traveled to nations such as cambodia and rwanda as part of her mission . franchitti is a three-time indianapolis 500 winner . | the pair got married in his native scotland in 2001 |
booker <tsp> newark , new jersey ( cnn ) -- to the family of zina hodge , the man who dashed into their burning home and pulled their loved one to safety through intense heat , falling embers and dense smoke could just be superman . but newark mayor cory booker most definitely did not feel like the man of steel on friday as he recovered from smoke inhalation and second-degree burns suffered during the rescue of his 47-year-old neighbor the previous night . i did not feel too heroic , ' booker told reporters . it all happened very , very quickly and i just feel very blessed that she and i got out of the building alive . ' booker , 42 , has fostered a reputation as a hands-on mayor of sorts , once spotted shoveling city streets during a 2010 blizzard and using his twitter feed to coordinate snow plows and the delivery of supplies . his latest feat for his constituents went viral friday as news of the rescue spread and social media users quickly dubbed him super mayor . ' a new tumblr blog named supercorybooker was thrown together friday with tongue-in-cheek memes about the mayor 's knack for getting things done . just another day , saving newark , ' read one . for his part , booker was quick to cast off the superhero ' title . i think that 's way over the top , ' he said outside his home . there are people who do this every day , ' referring to police officers , firefighters and other first-responders . i 'm a neighbor that did what most neighbors would do , which is to jump into action to help a friend , ' booker said . the incident began around 9:30 p.m. thursday as booker was en route to his newark residence . two members of his security detail -- already waiting outside for the mayor -- noticed flames coming out of a second-story window of the neighbor 's home and called fire dispatch before banging on the door to alert the home 's occupants . the security officers , detectives alex rodriguez and santos duran , managed to rescue three people by the time booker arrived . as the last one was coming out , i was going up the stairs and she 's screaming that her daughter is still in the building , ' booker recalled . flanked by the two detectives , booker rushed toward the building , he said . something exploded and sent a lot of flames over the steps , and my detail just grabbed me and started trying to drag me out of there , ' he said . booker exchanged heated words with rodriguez , who was pulling him by the belt to get him to safety . look , this woman is going to die if we do n't continue , ' booker recalled saying . the detective relented and let him continue on . once inside , booker had what he described as his proverbial come-to-jesus moment ' as he felt the intensity of the heat and had trouble finding hodge . the reality is i did n't feel any courage . i felt fear , ' he said . i 've never been so almost convinced that this was it . it was time to hope that i was going up and not down . ' but just as he was praying , thinking , hoping , ' hodge called out and booker found her in a back room . hoisting her , booker ran through the flames , embers falling from the ceiling , and made his way outside before collapsing onto the sidewalk . her mother gave me a hug i 'll never forget for getting her out , ' he said . at that point , i felt this sense of gratitude . to go moments from thinking you 're dead to kissing the newark pavement ... i felt like i was delivered from the fires of hell . ' thursday 's rescue marked booker 's latest foray into the media spotlight . the mayor has enjoyed a steady rise in national prominence as an outspoken advocate for urban issues since taking office in 2006 . his efforts to turn around a city long struggling with high crime , chronic poverty and a restrictive budget are chronicled on the sundance channel 's series brick city . ' his reputation also contrasts with that of several previous newark mayors , a few of whom were convicted on corruption-related charges . hodge is being treated at barnabas hospital in livingston , new jersey , where she is in serious condition , officials said . newark fire director fateen ziyad said the three other residents who were removed from the home are doing well . ' it 's like one in a million , the mayor to get your family out , ' said robert cooper , 20 , who is hodge 's nephew . still , booker said his two detectives were the real heroes ' and sought to give rodriguez and duran most of the credit . as for his own super powers , booker said the whole incident unfolded in a way that i think that angels helped to make it so . ' cnn 's marina landis and mark norman contributed to this report . | cory booker is quickly dubbed super mayor ' as word of his heroic rescue spreads |
booker <tsp> newark , new jersey ( cnn ) -- to the family of zina hodge , the man who dashed into their burning home and pulled their loved one to safety through intense heat , falling embers and dense smoke could just be superman . but newark mayor cory booker most definitely did not feel like the man of steel on friday as he recovered from smoke inhalation and second-degree burns suffered during the rescue of his 47-year-old neighbor the previous night . i did not feel too heroic , ' booker told reporters . it all happened very , very quickly and i just feel very blessed that she and i got out of the building alive . ' booker , 42 , has fostered a reputation as a hands-on mayor of sorts , once spotted shoveling city streets during a 2010 blizzard and using his twitter feed to coordinate snow plows and the delivery of supplies . his latest feat for his constituents went viral friday as news of the rescue spread and social media users quickly dubbed him super mayor . ' a new tumblr blog named supercorybooker was thrown together friday with tongue-in-cheek memes about the mayor 's knack for getting things done . just another day , saving newark , ' read one . for his part , booker was quick to cast off the superhero ' title . i think that 's way over the top , ' he said outside his home . there are people who do this every day , ' referring to police officers , firefighters and other first-responders . i 'm a neighbor that did what most neighbors would do , which is to jump into action to help a friend , ' booker said . the incident began around 9:30 p.m. thursday as booker was en route to his newark residence . two members of his security detail -- already waiting outside for the mayor -- noticed flames coming out of a second-story window of the neighbor 's home and called fire dispatch before banging on the door to alert the home 's occupants . the security officers , detectives alex rodriguez and santos duran , managed to rescue three people by the time booker arrived . as the last one was coming out , i was going up the stairs and she 's screaming that her daughter is still in the building , ' booker recalled . flanked by the two detectives , booker rushed toward the building , he said . something exploded and sent a lot of flames over the steps , and my detail just grabbed me and started trying to drag me out of there , ' he said . booker exchanged heated words with rodriguez , who was pulling him by the belt to get him to safety . look , this woman is going to die if we do n't continue , ' booker recalled saying . the detective relented and let him continue on . once inside , booker had what he described as his proverbial come-to-jesus moment ' as he felt the intensity of the heat and had trouble finding hodge . the reality is i did n't feel any courage . i felt fear , ' he said . i 've never been so almost convinced that this was it . it was time to hope that i was going up and not down . ' but just as he was praying , thinking , hoping , ' hodge called out and booker found her in a back room . hoisting her , booker ran through the flames , embers falling from the ceiling , and made his way outside before collapsing onto the sidewalk . her mother gave me a hug i 'll never forget for getting her out , ' he said . at that point , i felt this sense of gratitude . to go moments from thinking you 're dead to kissing the newark pavement ... i felt like i was delivered from the fires of hell . ' thursday 's rescue marked booker 's latest foray into the media spotlight . the mayor has enjoyed a steady rise in national prominence as an outspoken advocate for urban issues since taking office in 2006 . his efforts to turn around a city long struggling with high crime , chronic poverty and a restrictive budget are chronicled on the sundance channel 's series brick city . ' his reputation also contrasts with that of several previous newark mayors , a few of whom were convicted on corruption-related charges . hodge is being treated at barnabas hospital in livingston , new jersey , where she is in serious condition , officials said . newark fire director fateen ziyad said the three other residents who were removed from the home are doing well . ' it 's like one in a million , the mayor to get your family out , ' said robert cooper , 20 , who is hodge 's nephew . still , booker said his two detectives were the real heroes ' and sought to give rodriguez and duran most of the credit . as for his own super powers , booker said the whole incident unfolded in a way that i think that angels helped to make it so . ' cnn 's marina landis and mark norman contributed to this report . | i felt like i was delivered from the fires of hell , ' booker says |
lyla mehta <tsp> ( cnn ) -- millions of hectares of land have been acquired in the past few years across africa by investors who are moving into large-scale agriculture to take advantage of potential windfall gains . popularly these deals have become known as land grabbing , ' but they could just as well have been framed as water grabs . ' the current global rush for agricultural land grew partly in response to increased global food prices since 2007 . global capital is finding its way to agricultural investments on the basis of expectations of high returns , either through increased production or through speculation on further rising land prices . optimistic promises that such investment would also reinvigorate depressed rural economies , by virtue of employment creation and improved livelihoods , have proven to be vastly overstated , if not unfounded in many cases . but one of the untold stories of the global land grab is the quest to capture one of the most vital resources : water . as land is grabbed and earmarked for development , this often has implications for the water nearby , for local people 's land and water rights and environmental sustainability . all around the world powerful actors ( transnational as well as national ) are pointing out that the lands in which they invest are marginal ' and unproductive ' lands . this has been shown to be untrue for many cases ; either the land is already used by small-scale food producers , or is of prime quality and associated with good ( potential ) access to water . read this : the myth of africa 's land grab in the tana delta for example , the kenyan government marked the tana river basin for development , designating the floodplain area as unused ' and the adjacent terraces as empty dryland ' with irrigation potential . but this region has long been home to small peasant farmers , fishers and pastoralists from different ethnic groups , whose cooperative sharing of fragile land and water resources over the years has been possible because of delicately balanced customary use rights agreements amongst themselves . the violence last year in the kenya 's tana region demonstrates the perils -- and tragedy -- of ignoring more complex social realities that exist on the ground . in most countries where land deals are taking place it is no use having land without also having access to water . research published in a special issue of water alternatives has shown water to be one of the prime drivers of the global rush to acquire land . despite this , many land deal contracts -- or the prior environmental assessments upon which they ought to be based -- do not explicitly mention water requirements , let alone quantify them . the issue of water grabs is a particularly slippery one . unlike land , water flows and moves from one place to another ; its availability goes up and down , affected by the seasons , human use , or climate change ; it can be visible on the surface and invisible underground . it can be a source of food , or disease and pollution . rights , access and uses are complex and varied . who has the right to the water in a river -- the people who live beside it in a given place , the farmers who depend on it for irrigation , or those upstream or downstream ? read this : one woman 's mission to fix water crisis water 's elusive nature makes it a prime target . the boundaries between legality and illegality are often fuzzy , and questions of jurisdiction over water can be unclear . grabbers often take advantage of this legal complexity . in ghana , according to research by the international water management institute , the separation of land and water rights created the space for water grabbing : pre-existing customary water rights were abolished and instead ownership , management and control of water were placed under authority of the state . similarly , water-quality impacts reach far beyond the place of pollution . a case in point is a large-scale land deal in the iringa region of tanzania under a lease-agreement with the government . according to a paper published by italian ngo acra , fertilizers , pesticides and faeces of cattle led to the contamination of downstream drinking water sources serving a population of some 45,000 people . proponents of large-scale land deals deploy powerful narratives of underutilized land and water resources that require ' investment to unlock ' their potential , or an abundance of water and land , ready to be woken up by commercial agriculture . but it is at least debatable if the targeted land and water resources are indeed unused or even underutilized . the narratives of unexploited resources ' provide justification for governments to displace existing users of resources and the ways in which smallholder farmers use their water remain unrecognized some can create new scarcities for others . the hidden aspects of water grabbing do not just make it a very slippery ' terrain , but also imply that large-scale land acquisitions all around africa actually can be understood as water grabbing . ' that we call this a process of grabbing does not mean that these deals are strictly illegal , but there are serious underlying social justice questions . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of jennifer c franco , lyla mehta and gert jan veldwisch . | jennifer franco , lyla mehta and gert jan veldwisch ask : who has the right to the water in a river ? |
muasher <tsp> ( cnn ) -- moammar gadhafi 's exit from libya is a reminder that the arab awakening will not just fizzle out , despite what some observers are saying . recently , commentators pointed to the public cheers heard in egypt as the army pushed protesters out of tahrir square as a signal that the uprisings were petering out and the hope of the arab spring would soon be lost . the doomsayers were wrong . indeed , the uprisings are entering a difficult but inevitable phase where the two sides -- the protesters and the leaders -- are at a loss on how to proceed . the protesters , on one hand , still have no leadership and have yet to translate their protests into any coherent political and economic reform program . with initial objectives in egypt and libya met -- the overthrow of dictators that ruled over them for years -- they have not been able to move into the next phase of building an alternative system of governance . their message is dying out , and regular people , who are relieved that hosni mubarak and zine el-abidine ben ali are gone , want to see their countries move beyond street protests that are starting to upset their already difficult economic situations . this is what lies ahead in libya . on the other hand , the one party able to lead a gradual reform process -- ironically the ruling elite , such as the military in egypt -- is largely unwilling to embark on a process that would slowly rid itself of its privileges and install a pluralistic , stable and prosperous system based on merit rather than patronage . no one should be surprised by this . ruling establishments in the arab world have always made sure that political parties and civil society organizations are either suppressed or outlawed . there are few alternative leaders and systems . in such an atmosphere , organized parties like the muslim brotherhood , which commands about 20 % of the popular vote in egypt , will be sure to use their organizational and mobilization skills to gain political representation that will exceed their popular strength . the ruling elite , fearful of this , will naturally resist opening up political systems and resort to economic and security measures in a desperate attempt to stem the tide of change . but the only way to deal with opposition parties that are not totally committed to democracy is to gradually open up the political systems to real alternatives , instead of casting all protest votes against the ruling systems in favor of the islamists . after the arab public has a sense of what freedom feels like , it will not accept the replacement of secular autocrats by religious ones . it would be wrong to assume that because of these difficulties , the uprisings will fizzle or die down . what has taken place in the arab world is the start of a genuine and permanent process of change where the average citizen suddenly discovered real power . although the ability to effect change peacefully is a new phenomenon in the arab world , it is a wave that will only grow . organizations such as al qaeda are the first to lose , having unsuccessfully preached violence . but so will ruling establishments , if they do n't internalize the new reality and lead a serious reform process that redistributes power among the executive , legislative and judicial branches . the only way to keep power in the arab world from now on will be to share it . the process of change is one that will take decades to unfold , it wo n't be linear , and it will undergo many seasons , multiple times over . but it is irreversible . during a recent trip to jordan , i was most struck by a young generation no longer afraid to talk about all the issues relating to their future , and talk openly without taboos . this generation is not willing to live by the rules their parents faced , nor afraid of the powerful intelligence services in making their views known . both sides are wrong , however , to stick to tactics that do n't work anymore . protesters need to start organizing themselves into political parties , develop programs and build constituencies . they need to shift from starting change to institutionalizing it . otherwise , they will be unable to maintain public support . ruling elites should n't conclude that the status quo can be maintained because public support for protests seems to be wavering . they need to understand that they can not push aside opposition parties like the muslim brotherhood , act as if they do n't exist or deal with them through security measures . both ruling establishments and the protesters need to know that they have to engage in constituent politics . even with a quick change in libya , the short-term future will be messy , very bumpy and undoubtedly feature lots of mistakes and missteps . but waiting and doing nothing is no longer an option . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of marwan muasher . | muasher : elites and protesters are at an impasse , need to move toward consensus building |
muasher <tsp> ( cnn ) -- moammar gadhafi 's exit from libya is a reminder that the arab awakening will not just fizzle out , despite what some observers are saying . recently , commentators pointed to the public cheers heard in egypt as the army pushed protesters out of tahrir square as a signal that the uprisings were petering out and the hope of the arab spring would soon be lost . the doomsayers were wrong . indeed , the uprisings are entering a difficult but inevitable phase where the two sides -- the protesters and the leaders -- are at a loss on how to proceed . the protesters , on one hand , still have no leadership and have yet to translate their protests into any coherent political and economic reform program . with initial objectives in egypt and libya met -- the overthrow of dictators that ruled over them for years -- they have not been able to move into the next phase of building an alternative system of governance . their message is dying out , and regular people , who are relieved that hosni mubarak and zine el-abidine ben ali are gone , want to see their countries move beyond street protests that are starting to upset their already difficult economic situations . this is what lies ahead in libya . on the other hand , the one party able to lead a gradual reform process -- ironically the ruling elite , such as the military in egypt -- is largely unwilling to embark on a process that would slowly rid itself of its privileges and install a pluralistic , stable and prosperous system based on merit rather than patronage . no one should be surprised by this . ruling establishments in the arab world have always made sure that political parties and civil society organizations are either suppressed or outlawed . there are few alternative leaders and systems . in such an atmosphere , organized parties like the muslim brotherhood , which commands about 20 % of the popular vote in egypt , will be sure to use their organizational and mobilization skills to gain political representation that will exceed their popular strength . the ruling elite , fearful of this , will naturally resist opening up political systems and resort to economic and security measures in a desperate attempt to stem the tide of change . but the only way to deal with opposition parties that are not totally committed to democracy is to gradually open up the political systems to real alternatives , instead of casting all protest votes against the ruling systems in favor of the islamists . after the arab public has a sense of what freedom feels like , it will not accept the replacement of secular autocrats by religious ones . it would be wrong to assume that because of these difficulties , the uprisings will fizzle or die down . what has taken place in the arab world is the start of a genuine and permanent process of change where the average citizen suddenly discovered real power . although the ability to effect change peacefully is a new phenomenon in the arab world , it is a wave that will only grow . organizations such as al qaeda are the first to lose , having unsuccessfully preached violence . but so will ruling establishments , if they do n't internalize the new reality and lead a serious reform process that redistributes power among the executive , legislative and judicial branches . the only way to keep power in the arab world from now on will be to share it . the process of change is one that will take decades to unfold , it wo n't be linear , and it will undergo many seasons , multiple times over . but it is irreversible . during a recent trip to jordan , i was most struck by a young generation no longer afraid to talk about all the issues relating to their future , and talk openly without taboos . this generation is not willing to live by the rules their parents faced , nor afraid of the powerful intelligence services in making their views known . both sides are wrong , however , to stick to tactics that do n't work anymore . protesters need to start organizing themselves into political parties , develop programs and build constituencies . they need to shift from starting change to institutionalizing it . otherwise , they will be unable to maintain public support . ruling elites should n't conclude that the status quo can be maintained because public support for protests seems to be wavering . they need to understand that they can not push aside opposition parties like the muslim brotherhood , act as if they do n't exist or deal with them through security measures . both ruling establishments and the protesters need to know that they have to engage in constituent politics . even with a quick change in libya , the short-term future will be messy , very bumpy and undoubtedly feature lots of mistakes and missteps . but waiting and doing nothing is no longer an option . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of marwan muasher . | marwan muasher : doomsayers who say arab spring is petering out are wrong ; it is irreversible |
citisoles <tsp> ( cnn ) -- susie levitt 's and katie shea 's feet had had enough . walking around manhattan sidewalks between classes in their high heels was getting unbearable . katie shea and susie levitt , founders of citisoles , ' said walking around manhattan in high heels was painful . tal raviv felt frustrated . while studying in hong kong in 2007 , he found that adjusting to a new city was hard enough . even more aggravating was trying to connect with friends on facebook whose names were common . jaun calle and adam berlin were bored . watching college football on television is n't as exciting as being there in person , they thought . instead of just grinning and bearing it , all of these university students did something : they started their own businesses . levitt and shea created citisoles , ' a shoe company that makes a foldable shoe for when the pain of high heels gets unbearable . raviv created dropcard ' an e-business card that lets users send more contact information than is commonly found on a business card . calle and berlin formed sec excursions ' a travel company that provides busing , tailgate parties and hotel accommodations to college football games . the recession and lack of experience might stop most adults in their tracks , but these students were n't discouraged . there is no better time [ to start a business ] , ' said christopher hanks , director of the entrepreneurship program at the university of georgia . during a depression or recession , innovation always increases . ' the dorm is the new garage while the founders of google built success in their garages , these college students found it in their dorms . in addition to their course work , studying for midterms and balancing extracurricular activities , they wrote business proposals and figured out financing . from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. , i am in chemical engineering classes , and from 5 p.m. to 9 a.m. , i work on dropcard , so i do n't get much free time , ' said raviv , 22 . levitt and shea said launching their shoe business was essentially nonstop , and the work did n't end on friday . and for calle , the compromises in his academic and social life were n't a burden . we enjoy ourselves , ' said calle , 21 . we do n't see it as a sacrifice . ' hanks said these attitudes are typical of student entrepreneurs . they do n't have the pressure of supporting themselves -- their living expenses are usually being paid for -- and they have a wide support system . they certainly have their advantages ... their enthusiasm level is really high , ' hanks said . they do n't know what they do n't know . ' hanks added that the excitement of creating a business revs up the students even more than the chance of getting rich . they get excited about'would n't it be cool if we did that'versus the money , ' said hanks . the journey is not as much as about the money as about the challenge . ' figuring it out none of these students followed a set formula for starting their businesses . levitt and shea used alibaba.com , an online trade portal , to pitch their idea to suppliers and dipped into their savings for start-up money . an investment firm helped raviv , and calle and berlin found investors . levitt and shea , both 22 , took less than $ 10,000 ' from their savings to start citisoles in 2008 . that covered the cost of the shoes and a web site designer . from there , they worked with suppliers and factories in asia to scope out which would be the best fit for their company . the pair conducted market research and found nothing similar sold in the united states . it was all done online , ' levitt said . we became nocturnal . ' the shoes , made of imitation leather , come with a compact carrying case . a patent for the shoe is pending . when the first order for 1,000 pairs , weighing over 400 pounds , arrived at shea 's long island home unexpectedly , levitt said they were overwhelmed . a few days later , an article about their company appeared in the new york daily news , but they were n't ready for the onslaught of orders . they quickly set up a paypal account . from there , we got on the phone to boutiques , sent out retail kits and samples ... and now there are 17 boutiques around the nation selling them , ' said levitt , who is studying economics and will graduate this fall . her partner , shea , double-majored in finance and marketing and graduated in may . last summer , raviv , along with two of his friends , applied for funding for their e-business cards with dreamit ventures in philadelphia , pennsylvania . dreamit is a business incubator ' that helps entrepreneurs launch companies . raviv , who graduated from the university of pennsylvania with a chemical engineering degree in may , was honest with the investment firm when it asked how his e-business cards would make money . i actually do n't know , ' raviv told them . they said'perfect . thank you . we know there is no possible way to know right now .' raviv said the lack of a detailed business plan helped dreamit see how it could assist them . they received $ 20,000 from dreamit . dropcard initially targeted technology companies but went after old-fashioned ' businesses like car dealerships that proved to be more lucrative . dropcard is currently in trials with four companies to see how they can tweak their business plan . feedback is instrumental in dropcard 's growth . we refine everything instead of sitting back and strategizing , ' raviv said . let our customers write our business plan . ' calle , a senior at the university of georgia who is pursuing a degree in business administration , launched sec excursions with a mix of investors and help from the terry college of business entrepreneurship program at uga . hanks helped calle and berlin in fleshing out their idea and making it potentially profitable . started in july 2008 , the company found success in a trial trip to baton rogue , louisiana , for the uga-louisiana state university matchup . the first trip offered a two-night stay at a hotel , busing to the game and a tailgate party . the packages , which do n't include tickets to the games , vary from $ 100 to $ 300 a person . the company has contracts with bus companies and various hotel chains . it has student reps at four college campuses and plans to add more . calle said the company 's most loyal customers are in the greek systems , ' but it 's open to all students who wish to purchase a package . the students really like it because everything is planned for them , ' calle said . we 've heard nothing but good things . ' | susie levitt and katie shea created a foldable-shoe company called citisoles ' |
dropcard <tsp> ( cnn ) -- susie levitt 's and katie shea 's feet had had enough . walking around manhattan sidewalks between classes in their high heels was getting unbearable . katie shea and susie levitt , founders of citisoles , ' said walking around manhattan in high heels was painful . tal raviv felt frustrated . while studying in hong kong in 2007 , he found that adjusting to a new city was hard enough . even more aggravating was trying to connect with friends on facebook whose names were common . jaun calle and adam berlin were bored . watching college football on television is n't as exciting as being there in person , they thought . instead of just grinning and bearing it , all of these university students did something : they started their own businesses . levitt and shea created citisoles , ' a shoe company that makes a foldable shoe for when the pain of high heels gets unbearable . raviv created dropcard ' an e-business card that lets users send more contact information than is commonly found on a business card . calle and berlin formed sec excursions ' a travel company that provides busing , tailgate parties and hotel accommodations to college football games . the recession and lack of experience might stop most adults in their tracks , but these students were n't discouraged . there is no better time [ to start a business ] , ' said christopher hanks , director of the entrepreneurship program at the university of georgia . during a depression or recession , innovation always increases . ' the dorm is the new garage while the founders of google built success in their garages , these college students found it in their dorms . in addition to their course work , studying for midterms and balancing extracurricular activities , they wrote business proposals and figured out financing . from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. , i am in chemical engineering classes , and from 5 p.m. to 9 a.m. , i work on dropcard , so i do n't get much free time , ' said raviv , 22 . levitt and shea said launching their shoe business was essentially nonstop , and the work did n't end on friday . and for calle , the compromises in his academic and social life were n't a burden . we enjoy ourselves , ' said calle , 21 . we do n't see it as a sacrifice . ' hanks said these attitudes are typical of student entrepreneurs . they do n't have the pressure of supporting themselves -- their living expenses are usually being paid for -- and they have a wide support system . they certainly have their advantages ... their enthusiasm level is really high , ' hanks said . they do n't know what they do n't know . ' hanks added that the excitement of creating a business revs up the students even more than the chance of getting rich . they get excited about'would n't it be cool if we did that'versus the money , ' said hanks . the journey is not as much as about the money as about the challenge . ' figuring it out none of these students followed a set formula for starting their businesses . levitt and shea used alibaba.com , an online trade portal , to pitch their idea to suppliers and dipped into their savings for start-up money . an investment firm helped raviv , and calle and berlin found investors . levitt and shea , both 22 , took less than $ 10,000 ' from their savings to start citisoles in 2008 . that covered the cost of the shoes and a web site designer . from there , they worked with suppliers and factories in asia to scope out which would be the best fit for their company . the pair conducted market research and found nothing similar sold in the united states . it was all done online , ' levitt said . we became nocturnal . ' the shoes , made of imitation leather , come with a compact carrying case . a patent for the shoe is pending . when the first order for 1,000 pairs , weighing over 400 pounds , arrived at shea 's long island home unexpectedly , levitt said they were overwhelmed . a few days later , an article about their company appeared in the new york daily news , but they were n't ready for the onslaught of orders . they quickly set up a paypal account . from there , we got on the phone to boutiques , sent out retail kits and samples ... and now there are 17 boutiques around the nation selling them , ' said levitt , who is studying economics and will graduate this fall . her partner , shea , double-majored in finance and marketing and graduated in may . last summer , raviv , along with two of his friends , applied for funding for their e-business cards with dreamit ventures in philadelphia , pennsylvania . dreamit is a business incubator ' that helps entrepreneurs launch companies . raviv , who graduated from the university of pennsylvania with a chemical engineering degree in may , was honest with the investment firm when it asked how his e-business cards would make money . i actually do n't know , ' raviv told them . they said'perfect . thank you . we know there is no possible way to know right now .' raviv said the lack of a detailed business plan helped dreamit see how it could assist them . they received $ 20,000 from dreamit . dropcard initially targeted technology companies but went after old-fashioned ' businesses like car dealerships that proved to be more lucrative . dropcard is currently in trials with four companies to see how they can tweak their business plan . feedback is instrumental in dropcard 's growth . we refine everything instead of sitting back and strategizing , ' raviv said . let our customers write our business plan . ' calle , a senior at the university of georgia who is pursuing a degree in business administration , launched sec excursions with a mix of investors and help from the terry college of business entrepreneurship program at uga . hanks helped calle and berlin in fleshing out their idea and making it potentially profitable . started in july 2008 , the company found success in a trial trip to baton rogue , louisiana , for the uga-louisiana state university matchup . the first trip offered a two-night stay at a hotel , busing to the game and a tailgate party . the packages , which do n't include tickets to the games , vary from $ 100 to $ 300 a person . the company has contracts with bus companies and various hotel chains . it has student reps at four college campuses and plans to add more . calle said the company 's most loyal customers are in the greek systems , ' but it 's open to all students who wish to purchase a package . the students really like it because everything is planned for them , ' calle said . we 've heard nothing but good things . ' | tal raviv co-founded dropcard , ' a new take on the business card |
susie levitt <tsp> ( cnn ) -- susie levitt 's and katie shea 's feet had had enough . walking around manhattan sidewalks between classes in their high heels was getting unbearable . katie shea and susie levitt , founders of citisoles , ' said walking around manhattan in high heels was painful . tal raviv felt frustrated . while studying in hong kong in 2007 , he found that adjusting to a new city was hard enough . even more aggravating was trying to connect with friends on facebook whose names were common . jaun calle and adam berlin were bored . watching college football on television is n't as exciting as being there in person , they thought . instead of just grinning and bearing it , all of these university students did something : they started their own businesses . levitt and shea created citisoles , ' a shoe company that makes a foldable shoe for when the pain of high heels gets unbearable . raviv created dropcard ' an e-business card that lets users send more contact information than is commonly found on a business card . calle and berlin formed sec excursions ' a travel company that provides busing , tailgate parties and hotel accommodations to college football games . the recession and lack of experience might stop most adults in their tracks , but these students were n't discouraged . there is no better time [ to start a business ] , ' said christopher hanks , director of the entrepreneurship program at the university of georgia . during a depression or recession , innovation always increases . ' the dorm is the new garage while the founders of google built success in their garages , these college students found it in their dorms . in addition to their course work , studying for midterms and balancing extracurricular activities , they wrote business proposals and figured out financing . from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. , i am in chemical engineering classes , and from 5 p.m. to 9 a.m. , i work on dropcard , so i do n't get much free time , ' said raviv , 22 . levitt and shea said launching their shoe business was essentially nonstop , and the work did n't end on friday . and for calle , the compromises in his academic and social life were n't a burden . we enjoy ourselves , ' said calle , 21 . we do n't see it as a sacrifice . ' hanks said these attitudes are typical of student entrepreneurs . they do n't have the pressure of supporting themselves -- their living expenses are usually being paid for -- and they have a wide support system . they certainly have their advantages ... their enthusiasm level is really high , ' hanks said . they do n't know what they do n't know . ' hanks added that the excitement of creating a business revs up the students even more than the chance of getting rich . they get excited about'would n't it be cool if we did that'versus the money , ' said hanks . the journey is not as much as about the money as about the challenge . ' figuring it out none of these students followed a set formula for starting their businesses . levitt and shea used alibaba.com , an online trade portal , to pitch their idea to suppliers and dipped into their savings for start-up money . an investment firm helped raviv , and calle and berlin found investors . levitt and shea , both 22 , took less than $ 10,000 ' from their savings to start citisoles in 2008 . that covered the cost of the shoes and a web site designer . from there , they worked with suppliers and factories in asia to scope out which would be the best fit for their company . the pair conducted market research and found nothing similar sold in the united states . it was all done online , ' levitt said . we became nocturnal . ' the shoes , made of imitation leather , come with a compact carrying case . a patent for the shoe is pending . when the first order for 1,000 pairs , weighing over 400 pounds , arrived at shea 's long island home unexpectedly , levitt said they were overwhelmed . a few days later , an article about their company appeared in the new york daily news , but they were n't ready for the onslaught of orders . they quickly set up a paypal account . from there , we got on the phone to boutiques , sent out retail kits and samples ... and now there are 17 boutiques around the nation selling them , ' said levitt , who is studying economics and will graduate this fall . her partner , shea , double-majored in finance and marketing and graduated in may . last summer , raviv , along with two of his friends , applied for funding for their e-business cards with dreamit ventures in philadelphia , pennsylvania . dreamit is a business incubator ' that helps entrepreneurs launch companies . raviv , who graduated from the university of pennsylvania with a chemical engineering degree in may , was honest with the investment firm when it asked how his e-business cards would make money . i actually do n't know , ' raviv told them . they said'perfect . thank you . we know there is no possible way to know right now .' raviv said the lack of a detailed business plan helped dreamit see how it could assist them . they received $ 20,000 from dreamit . dropcard initially targeted technology companies but went after old-fashioned ' businesses like car dealerships that proved to be more lucrative . dropcard is currently in trials with four companies to see how they can tweak their business plan . feedback is instrumental in dropcard 's growth . we refine everything instead of sitting back and strategizing , ' raviv said . let our customers write our business plan . ' calle , a senior at the university of georgia who is pursuing a degree in business administration , launched sec excursions with a mix of investors and help from the terry college of business entrepreneurship program at uga . hanks helped calle and berlin in fleshing out their idea and making it potentially profitable . started in july 2008 , the company found success in a trial trip to baton rogue , louisiana , for the uga-louisiana state university matchup . the first trip offered a two-night stay at a hotel , busing to the game and a tailgate party . the packages , which do n't include tickets to the games , vary from $ 100 to $ 300 a person . the company has contracts with bus companies and various hotel chains . it has student reps at four college campuses and plans to add more . calle said the company 's most loyal customers are in the greek systems , ' but it 's open to all students who wish to purchase a package . the students really like it because everything is planned for them , ' calle said . we 've heard nothing but good things . ' | susie levitt and katie shea created a foldable-shoe company called citisoles ' |
alain thebault <tsp> london , england ( cnn ) -- french speed sailing trimaran , l'hydroptere has broken yet another world record as its crew draw closer to two major milestones . the flying yacht : french trimaran l'hydroptere is closing in on two major speed sailing records . l'hydroptere is now the fastest yacht in history over 500 meters and one nautical mile , after its average speeds of 46.88 knots and 43.09 knots respectively were ratified by the british world sailing speed record council ( wssrc ) . the records were set by alain thebault and his crew off port saint-louis du rhone near marseille in the south of france . the boat is now poised to pass the 100km per hour mark ( 54 knots ) after reaching a peak of 53.69 knots in training last month . the major record the l'hydroptere is trying to claim is the world absolute speed sailing record , ' which is currently held by american kite surfer robert douglas , who achieved 49.84 knots over 500m earlier this year . thebault and his crew now have until 22 december to establish new records this year . these attempts will be presided over and measured by a representative from the world sailing speed record council . thébault told cnn he had a long-held dream of skippering a boat that could fly . ' he said several subtle design changes had been made to the boat in 2008 and he 's confident the crew can produce the record speed in the near future . i think the boat is ready now . i have always dreamed about a flying yacht . it was a big emotion for all of the crew and myself when we passed 50 knots , ' he said . | the boat is based in marseille and is skippered by frenchman alain thebault |
gsk human performance lab <tsp> ( cnn ) -- jenson button might not be having his best year on the race track , but it 's been another notable year for the briton competing in triathlon events . what started out as a way of keeping in physical and mental shape for the rigors of formula one has turned into serious hobby for the 2009 world champion , earning him -- at the age of 34 -- the distinction of being called the fittest man in the pit lane . in july , button hosted his third annual charitable triathlon at luton hoo estate in bedfordshire , raising a huge amount ' for cancer research uk , and last month he finished 11th out of 1,675 competitors and second in his age group at an ironman event in the philippines . all of which makes button -- who is seventh in the f1 drivers'championship with just one podium finish all season for his mclaren team -- one of the most famous amateur triathletes in the world . but how does he measure up against the very best professionals ? earlier this month , before he jetted off for this weekend 's singapore grand prix , button was given the opportunity to find out when he was pitted against british triathlon stars alistair and jonathan brownlee -- gold and bronze medalists at the london 2012 olympics -- in a cycling , swimming and cognitive test . an afternoon of grueling activity was organized by the gsk human performance lab ( hpl ) -- a multimillion-dollar sports science facility based in west london which specializes in physiology , nutrition , biochemistry and neuroscience . the center , set up by pharmaceuticals giant glaxosmithkline , has forged partnerships with all three athletes and others including world no . 1 golfer rory mcilroy . button is a big fan . it 's got everything that we need and it makes a big difference to us as drivers , ' button told cnn . there is still so much to learn about the human body , nutrition and pushing yourself to the limit and getting the best out of yourself . in formula one we love technology -- so this sort of thing is great . ' heat of battle button was paired off against 24-year-old jonathan brownlee in the cycling performance test in the hpl 's enviro chamber , where the temperature was set to 35 degrees celsius ( 95 fahrenheit ) and 70 % humidity -- similar to conditions button can expect in singapore . results showed that button initially responded to the heat better , maintaining a lower core temperature despite having to work harder at the beginning of the test . but overall , brownlee was the clear winner , producing more power throughout , a lower core temperature in the end and a lower heart rate from start to finish . brownlee was encouraged by the results as he and his older brother look towards the rio olympics in 2016 , where climatic conditions could be similarly sticky . one thing we 've not been good at in the past is the heat , ' brownlee said . so we 're trying to use the hpl to create a strategy to cope -- whether that 's drinking something beforehand or going somewhere hot beforehand . ' in the swimming test against 26-year-old alistair , button displayed good technique , maintaining a high position in the water and matching brownlee for distance covered in meters per second . but he used more energy , completing 40 strokes a minute -- each one covering 1.66 meters -- whereas alistair averaged 37 strokes per minute , covering 1.80 meters each one . i 'm miles away from those guys , ' button conceded . they are so much fitter -- this is their job -- but it 's good to see i 'm doing the right sorts of things in terms of my training . ' on the button button was n't going to be outpaced in the cognition tests , though , and ended up trouncing his younger rivals in a series of tasks completed on a bespoke ipad app created by axon sports which assessed both reaction time and accuracy . in fact , button was one of the quickest and most accurate athletes ever tested at the hpl with an average reaction time across eight tasks of 613 milliseconds and no errors . by comparison , the best average brownlee time was 748 milliseconds set by jonathan . it might be what you 'd expect from a man who drives a car at speeds of up to 220 mph ( 350 kph ) but button was reassured . the reaction stuff is always interesting because , you know , i 'm 34 years old and people say ,'oh , i 'm sure he 's past his best ,' he says . to be fair , damon hill ( who won his only world title at 36 ) had n't really started in formula one when he was my age . so , to show that i still have good reactions , i think that is something that you can help with a bit of training anyway . ' mclaren will be hoping that the partnership with hpl can pay dividends as cognitive training is officially rolled out for the pit crew next season . these guys are working 24/7 nigh on four days around the race , ' says mark langley , hpl 's general manager . so anything you can do to get a little bit more efficiency and focus is good . it 's about getting their nutrition , their sleep right so they can perform as well as the drivers can perform . ' as for the remainder of this season , button is clearly not expecting miracles . we are not going to challenge mercedes for a win this year but we are making progress which is good to see ... we have direction , ' he said . watch the video of button vs. brownlees | gsk human performance lab helping unravel secrets of elite performance |
mclaren <tsp> ( cnn ) -- jenson button might not be having his best year on the race track , but it 's been another notable year for the briton competing in triathlon events . what started out as a way of keeping in physical and mental shape for the rigors of formula one has turned into serious hobby for the 2009 world champion , earning him -- at the age of 34 -- the distinction of being called the fittest man in the pit lane . in july , button hosted his third annual charitable triathlon at luton hoo estate in bedfordshire , raising a huge amount ' for cancer research uk , and last month he finished 11th out of 1,675 competitors and second in his age group at an ironman event in the philippines . all of which makes button -- who is seventh in the f1 drivers'championship with just one podium finish all season for his mclaren team -- one of the most famous amateur triathletes in the world . but how does he measure up against the very best professionals ? earlier this month , before he jetted off for this weekend 's singapore grand prix , button was given the opportunity to find out when he was pitted against british triathlon stars alistair and jonathan brownlee -- gold and bronze medalists at the london 2012 olympics -- in a cycling , swimming and cognitive test . an afternoon of grueling activity was organized by the gsk human performance lab ( hpl ) -- a multimillion-dollar sports science facility based in west london which specializes in physiology , nutrition , biochemistry and neuroscience . the center , set up by pharmaceuticals giant glaxosmithkline , has forged partnerships with all three athletes and others including world no . 1 golfer rory mcilroy . button is a big fan . it 's got everything that we need and it makes a big difference to us as drivers , ' button told cnn . there is still so much to learn about the human body , nutrition and pushing yourself to the limit and getting the best out of yourself . in formula one we love technology -- so this sort of thing is great . ' heat of battle button was paired off against 24-year-old jonathan brownlee in the cycling performance test in the hpl 's enviro chamber , where the temperature was set to 35 degrees celsius ( 95 fahrenheit ) and 70 % humidity -- similar to conditions button can expect in singapore . results showed that button initially responded to the heat better , maintaining a lower core temperature despite having to work harder at the beginning of the test . but overall , brownlee was the clear winner , producing more power throughout , a lower core temperature in the end and a lower heart rate from start to finish . brownlee was encouraged by the results as he and his older brother look towards the rio olympics in 2016 , where climatic conditions could be similarly sticky . one thing we 've not been good at in the past is the heat , ' brownlee said . so we 're trying to use the hpl to create a strategy to cope -- whether that 's drinking something beforehand or going somewhere hot beforehand . ' in the swimming test against 26-year-old alistair , button displayed good technique , maintaining a high position in the water and matching brownlee for distance covered in meters per second . but he used more energy , completing 40 strokes a minute -- each one covering 1.66 meters -- whereas alistair averaged 37 strokes per minute , covering 1.80 meters each one . i 'm miles away from those guys , ' button conceded . they are so much fitter -- this is their job -- but it 's good to see i 'm doing the right sorts of things in terms of my training . ' on the button button was n't going to be outpaced in the cognition tests , though , and ended up trouncing his younger rivals in a series of tasks completed on a bespoke ipad app created by axon sports which assessed both reaction time and accuracy . in fact , button was one of the quickest and most accurate athletes ever tested at the hpl with an average reaction time across eight tasks of 613 milliseconds and no errors . by comparison , the best average brownlee time was 748 milliseconds set by jonathan . it might be what you 'd expect from a man who drives a car at speeds of up to 220 mph ( 350 kph ) but button was reassured . the reaction stuff is always interesting because , you know , i 'm 34 years old and people say ,'oh , i 'm sure he 's past his best ,' he says . to be fair , damon hill ( who won his only world title at 36 ) had n't really started in formula one when he was my age . so , to show that i still have good reactions , i think that is something that you can help with a bit of training anyway . ' mclaren will be hoping that the partnership with hpl can pay dividends as cognitive training is officially rolled out for the pit crew next season . these guys are working 24/7 nigh on four days around the race , ' says mark langley , hpl 's general manager . so anything you can do to get a little bit more efficiency and focus is good . it 's about getting their nutrition , their sleep right so they can perform as well as the drivers can perform . ' as for the remainder of this season , button is clearly not expecting miracles . we are not going to challenge mercedes for a win this year but we are making progress which is good to see ... we have direction , ' he said . watch the video of button vs. brownlees | mclaren driver tests fitness against pro triathletes the brownlee brothers |
mclaren <tsp> ( cnn ) -- jenson button might not be having his best year on the race track , but it 's been another notable year for the briton competing in triathlon events . what started out as a way of keeping in physical and mental shape for the rigors of formula one has turned into serious hobby for the 2009 world champion , earning him -- at the age of 34 -- the distinction of being called the fittest man in the pit lane . in july , button hosted his third annual charitable triathlon at luton hoo estate in bedfordshire , raising a huge amount ' for cancer research uk , and last month he finished 11th out of 1,675 competitors and second in his age group at an ironman event in the philippines . all of which makes button -- who is seventh in the f1 drivers'championship with just one podium finish all season for his mclaren team -- one of the most famous amateur triathletes in the world . but how does he measure up against the very best professionals ? earlier this month , before he jetted off for this weekend 's singapore grand prix , button was given the opportunity to find out when he was pitted against british triathlon stars alistair and jonathan brownlee -- gold and bronze medalists at the london 2012 olympics -- in a cycling , swimming and cognitive test . an afternoon of grueling activity was organized by the gsk human performance lab ( hpl ) -- a multimillion-dollar sports science facility based in west london which specializes in physiology , nutrition , biochemistry and neuroscience . the center , set up by pharmaceuticals giant glaxosmithkline , has forged partnerships with all three athletes and others including world no . 1 golfer rory mcilroy . button is a big fan . it 's got everything that we need and it makes a big difference to us as drivers , ' button told cnn . there is still so much to learn about the human body , nutrition and pushing yourself to the limit and getting the best out of yourself . in formula one we love technology -- so this sort of thing is great . ' heat of battle button was paired off against 24-year-old jonathan brownlee in the cycling performance test in the hpl 's enviro chamber , where the temperature was set to 35 degrees celsius ( 95 fahrenheit ) and 70 % humidity -- similar to conditions button can expect in singapore . results showed that button initially responded to the heat better , maintaining a lower core temperature despite having to work harder at the beginning of the test . but overall , brownlee was the clear winner , producing more power throughout , a lower core temperature in the end and a lower heart rate from start to finish . brownlee was encouraged by the results as he and his older brother look towards the rio olympics in 2016 , where climatic conditions could be similarly sticky . one thing we 've not been good at in the past is the heat , ' brownlee said . so we 're trying to use the hpl to create a strategy to cope -- whether that 's drinking something beforehand or going somewhere hot beforehand . ' in the swimming test against 26-year-old alistair , button displayed good technique , maintaining a high position in the water and matching brownlee for distance covered in meters per second . but he used more energy , completing 40 strokes a minute -- each one covering 1.66 meters -- whereas alistair averaged 37 strokes per minute , covering 1.80 meters each one . i 'm miles away from those guys , ' button conceded . they are so much fitter -- this is their job -- but it 's good to see i 'm doing the right sorts of things in terms of my training . ' on the button button was n't going to be outpaced in the cognition tests , though , and ended up trouncing his younger rivals in a series of tasks completed on a bespoke ipad app created by axon sports which assessed both reaction time and accuracy . in fact , button was one of the quickest and most accurate athletes ever tested at the hpl with an average reaction time across eight tasks of 613 milliseconds and no errors . by comparison , the best average brownlee time was 748 milliseconds set by jonathan . it might be what you 'd expect from a man who drives a car at speeds of up to 220 mph ( 350 kph ) but button was reassured . the reaction stuff is always interesting because , you know , i 'm 34 years old and people say ,'oh , i 'm sure he 's past his best ,' he says . to be fair , damon hill ( who won his only world title at 36 ) had n't really started in formula one when he was my age . so , to show that i still have good reactions , i think that is something that you can help with a bit of training anyway . ' mclaren will be hoping that the partnership with hpl can pay dividends as cognitive training is officially rolled out for the pit crew next season . these guys are working 24/7 nigh on four days around the race , ' says mark langley , hpl 's general manager . so anything you can do to get a little bit more efficiency and focus is good . it 's about getting their nutrition , their sleep right so they can perform as well as the drivers can perform . ' as for the remainder of this season , button is clearly not expecting miracles . we are not going to challenge mercedes for a win this year but we are making progress which is good to see ... we have direction , ' he said . watch the video of button vs. brownlees | mclaren driver seeks fitness expertise from advanced sports lab |
arsenal <tsp> ( cnn ) -- on the day alisher usmanov was named as britain 's wealthiest man , his soccer club arsenal overtook that of one of his rich list ' rivals in the race for a european champions league place next season . usmanov , the english team 's joint-biggest shareholder along with american stan kroenke , is worth £13.3 billion ( $ 20.2 billion ) according to the annual sunday times table -- a rise of almost £1 billion ( $ 1.5 billion ) since last year . arsenal moved up into third place in the premier league with saturday 's 1-0 win at fulham , putting arsene wenger 's side two points above chelsea -- owned by usmanov 's fellow russian roman abramovich . abramovich is fifth on the sunday times list with an estimated wealth of £9.3 billion ( £14.16 billion ) -- a drop of two places . his team 's fortunes have also been sliding since last year 's champions league success , but the blues can regain third with victory in sunday 's trip to liverpool . defeat , however , could allow fifth-placed tottenham to join chelsea on 61 points if the london side beat second-placed manchester city earlier in the day . despite moving five points clear of spurs , arsenal 's top-four hopes remain in the balance , having played two more matches than both london rivals . the gunners next face runaway leaders manchester united , but the final three games are against teams near the bottom of the table . we are on a strong run and we just go into the next game and focus on winning that , ' wenger told arsenal 's website . the next game will be man united so it 's a good challenge for us . ' defender per mertesacker scored the only goal against fulham just before halftime , as the home team had former arsenal midfielder steven sidwell sent off for a rash lunge on mikel arteta early on -- his second red card in as many matches . arsenal also ended the game with 10 men after france striker olivier giroud was sent off . he said to me that he slipped at the moment he went for the ball , and it 's confirmed by the television , ' wenger said . i have n't seen it but he 's not a tackler . he went over the ball and , knowing that sidwell had been sent off before , i had no illusion of the color of the card . ' another club with connections to a man on the rich list took another step towards relegation on saturday as queens park rangers lost 2-0 at home to stoke . indian steel magnate lakshmi mittal retained a one-third stake in qpr after malaysian businessman tony fernandes became principal shareholder in 2011 , but the club 's fortunes have mirrored his own . mittal had been britain 's wealthiest man eight years in a row , but has dropped to fourth on £10 billion ( $ 15 billion ) -- with £2.7 billion ( $ 4.1 billion ) wiped off his value . his shares in qpr may also be worth considerably less if the club returns to the second division after just two seasons in the epl , despite having spent large sums on players under fernandes -- that will happen on monday if aston villa manage an unlikely victory against manchester united . saturday 's defeat left the london club level on points with bottom side reading , who lost 2-1 at norwich , while stoke climbed six points clear of the relegation zone after ending a run of six defeats and a draw . it put stoke on 37 points along with newcastle -- who held eighth-placed west brom 1-1 -- and sunderland , whose 1-0 win over everton was the second successive victory for new manager paolo di canio . sunderland 's victory -- the club 's second since january 23 -- dented sixth-placed everton 's hopes of european qualification , leaving david moyes'team two points behind tottenham having played two more matches . wigan stayed in the third and final relegation place after a 2-0 defeat at wigan , while ninth-placed swansea drew 0-0 with southampton , who stayed 12th . | derby victory gives arsenal the edge in race for champions league place |
army <tsp> ( cnn ) -- my medvol number is 6856 . i was at edgewood arsenal from january 1975 to april 1975 . ' with those words , stephen coffman reached out to cnn last week after seeing its stories about edgewood arsenal , where the army conducted top-secret drug and chemical tests on soldier volunteers . coffman was just 22 years old when he was recruited for testing at edgewood , one of about 7,000 soldiers who took part in the program from 1955 to 1975 . the army field computer operator says that in december 1974 , edgewood arsenal recruiters came to fort campbell , kentucky , where he was stationed and told him he could help design the new field artillery computer system . in january 1975 , he reported to edgewood . his first test was non-chemical , simply determining what size keyboard to use , he remembers . a display would flash a series of numbers , and he would try to input them using the test keypad and his bare hands . next , he repeated the task wearing gloves . then mittens . then it was with a gas mask on , ' coffman said . then with a gas mask on in a gas chamber . then it was'try to input the numbers after being exposed to some gas .'my accuracy rate went from 99 % barehanded to 57 % gassed . ' the testing continued . one in particular haunts him to this day : he recalls being in a padded cell ' with just a thin exercise mat and a blanket . the room was orange ; the walls flowed down onto the floor like lava . ' i remember putting my finger in the lava and watching it flow around my finger , ' he says . there was a nurse who would come in and take blood samples , urine -- i had to wait till they came in to void -- and give me water . i do not know how many days i was in there . i lost seven pounds during this'lost period .' coffman said that after that test , he was told to report to the medical center and was shown a piece of paper that he had signed , volunteering for other experiments . he did n't remember signing but says it was his signature . i was told that if i did not do the experiment as i had agreed , i would be listed as unsat and returned to fort campbell . ' unsat is a military term that means the service member is unsatisfactory . ' in other words , the service member failed to complete his or her assignment . it is not a label one wants to have applied to them , ' coffman said . we were isolated and given injections . i secretly wrote down what the vials said , but my notes were taken from me by a doctor . i was threatened with punishment . the tests continued . ' in an effort to find out what drugs he had been given and what his health files contained , coffman filed a freedom of information act request . he got his records in 1985 . they showed that he had been given a potentially deadly nerve agent called sarin gas -- and its antidotes . according to the records , he had also been exposed to physostigmine , scopalmine and 2-pamc1 , and these were used to treat anticholinesterase inhibitor overdoses . ' he was also given a chemical called tab . he still has no idea what it was . coffman says that before the testing began , he was given a complete physical . his ekg -- a test that records the heart 's electrical activity -- was perfect , and he was rated in perfect shape . according to the foia , i was subjected to the same chemical twice within 25 days , ' coffman said . the doctor 's note ... noted that two exposures so close together caused a negative reaction to the subject 's heart . ' for most veterans in the program , the stay was two months , but coffman 's stay was extended to four . when his edgewood tour was up , he went back to fort campbell . i was sent back with the threat of'do n't tell anyone anything , and if anyone asks , say you are fine .' he was honorably discharged from the army in 1977 . he spent a year with the national guard and joined the coast guard reserve in 1988 . in 1995 , another ekg showed abnormalities . his began seeing a private cardiologist . an mri revealed 98 % blockage in one of his arteries , and the cardiologist asked whether he had ever had an injury to his heart . he said it looked like the heart had been damaged but not due to a heart attack . ' in 2007 , coffman had a quadruple bypass . to this day , he wonders whether the damage was related to edgewood . all things considered , the married father of two says , he does not regret his service . i believe it may have helped save the lives of other soldiers in the case of chemical attacks . i recall that ( the doctor ) who conducted the tests was instrumental in helping the victims of the tokyo subway terrorist attack , ' coffman said . i guess it is like when a service member goes to war and gets wounded but does not regret their decision to go to war . ''time bomb' his only concern , he says , is for his two children . there is nothing in the file about the experiments where i was kept in the padded cell . that is what i would like to know about for my children 's sake . considering agent orange has been shown to affect veterans'offspring and possibly second generation , it is like having a time bomb that may go off or may be a dud . ' this was just one of the stories cnn got from edgewood arsenal test veterans responding to the special investigations of the army 's top-secret cold war drug and chemical testing program . buck conder , 70 , said he volunteered at edgewood in 1964 . he remembers putting on a hospital gown , getting in bed and having six or seven doctors arrive bedside in gas masks . they put a drop of liquid on the inside of his forearm . whatever happened , i have no idea . i woke up in the same bed ' 24 hours later , conder said . in 2000 , conder received a call notifying him that he 'd been exposed to sarin gas . conder , who says he was wounded while serving two tours in vietnam , has a blood disease and a related skin condition that he blames on chemical exposure at edgewood . conder also said he was more nervous and irritable after his two-month temporary duty at the maryland base . read about widow who blames va for her husband 's death jeff jefferson went to edgewood in 1966 to be closer to his home in reading , pennsylvania . he recalls getting an injection on a monday ; he woke up ' on wednesday . in the past year or two , jefferson says , he applied for his records and learned that he 'd been given bz , an incapacitating agent . jefferson says he remembers little of what happened while he was under the influence of bz , but he thinks they went to the rifle range , because his thumb was bruised , apparently from getting caught in the breech of an m1 rifle . jefferson , now 65 , says his health has been good . dr. james ketchum , a former edgewood researcher , took issue with veteran tim josephs , who said he was coerced into taking part in the tests after arriving at edgewood . no one was forced to participate nor told they would be punished or imprisoned if they chose not to take part , ' ketchum commented on cnn.com . those who participated all received letters of commendation and all received thorough medical evaluations before and after being in the program . ' gordon erspamer , the attorney who has filed a lawsuit seeking health care for edgewood veterans , said josephs'story is not unique . a number of edgewood veterans have told him superiors threatened repercussions for soldiers who quit : ' you 're going to get a bad conduct discharge , or we 're going to write you up and send you back , and we 're going to send you right to vietnam , ' erspamer said . read about tim josephs'time at edgewood'i was easily swayed' michael cooney , now 62 , was still a teenager when he started his two-month tour at edgewood . since i was only 19 , i was easily swayed , wanting to do my patriotic duty , ' he says . i have no idea what they injected into me , as i ca n't recall much of my two months there . ' cooney says that since his discharge , he gets a survey every five to 10 years asking how his health is . i always responded by asking them for a physical and a request to know what they tested on me , ' cooney said . those questions were never answered . ' he knows he was injected with atropine and was tear-gassed . he says that while he 's not in perfect health , he does n't blame edgewood arsenal but feels the government should take responsibility for those harmed . he says he 'd do it again . i 'm patriot , but do n't send me out in a war unarmed , and if i come back injured , take care of me . i 'd volunteer in a minute if there was a need , but there needs to be government responsibility on the back end . ' | several cnn.com commenters say they volunteered for secret army drug tests |
democrats <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- house gop leaders unveiled a 2013 budget blueprint tuesday that has little chance of becoming law but draws a clear contrast with democrats on taxes , spending , and a host of hot-button political issues -- all of which could play a pivotal role in the 2012 campaign . republicans cast the $ 3.53 trillion plan -- which doubles down on past gop proposals to overhaul medicare and other politically sensitive programs -- as a bold attempt to reverse skyrocketing federal deficits and avert a looming fiscal catastrophe . this plan of action is about putting an end to empty promises from bankrupt government and restoring the fundamental promise of america , ensuring that our children have more opportunity than we do , ' said house budget committee chairman paul ryan , r-wisconsin . we 're here to offer americans the chance to choose which future they want for themselves : the president 's path of debt and decline , or the path that we 're proposing , a path to renew prosperity for americans . ' democrats called it a betrayal of last year 's bipartisan deficit reduction deal , and characterized it as another gop giveaway to the wealthy at the expense of the middle class and vulnerable seniors . sensing electoral opportunity , they also tried to hang it around republican presidential frontrunner mitt romney 's political neck . if you 're mitt romney , you 're going to love this budget , because what it does is provide another round of tax cuts for the wealthiest americans and does it at the expense of middle-class taxpayers and seniors , ' maryland rep. chris van hollen , a member of the house democratic leadership , told cnn . white house communications director dan pfeiffer said in a written statement that the proposed gop budget fails the test of balance , fairness , and shared responsibility . ' it draws on the same wrong-headed theory that led to the worst recession of our lifetimes and contributed to the erosion of middle-class security over the last decade , ' he argued . white house bashes budget proposal among other things , the house gop plan calls for a reduction in individual tax rates and brackets . instead of today 's six brackets , with rates from 10 % to 35 % , it calls for just two -- 10 % and 25 % . the proposal would eliminate the alternative minimum tax , while dropping the top corporate tax rate from 35 % to 25 % . gop leaders would compensate for lost revenue by closing a series of tax loopholes and ending numerous deductions . they declined to offer details tuesday , however , on exactly which loopholes and deductions would be affected , noting that the matter would be taken up at the congressional committee level in the near future . returning to one of the most controversial points from last year 's budget fight , the proposal includes dramatic changes to the medicare program . it would offer future seniors a choice of staying in the traditional fee-for-service plan or opting instead for a medicare-approved private plan , all of which would be available via a new medicare exchange . no matter which plan they chose , including the traditional medicare plan , seniors would receive a government subsidy to help pay for their choice . we propose to save and strengthen medicare by taking power away from the government bureaucrats , ' ryan said . we preserve the medicare guarantee for today 's seniors so they can count on the benefit that they 've organized their retirement around , and we preserve that guarantee going into the future for tomorrow 's seniors by empowering them with choices . ' the republicans have made it clear they want medicare to wither on the vine , to die , and this is an important step for them in that direction , ' said house minority leader nancy pelosi , d-california . bless their hearts , they do n't believe in medicare , and they act upon their beliefs . ' medicaid , which provides health coverage for the poor , would be converted under the gop plan into a series of block grants for the states . individual states would be empowered to tighten eligibility rules or revise enrollees'cost-sharing obligations . budget proposal would overhaul medicaid the republican proposal also protects defense spending by undoing a scheduled $ 55 billion cut in the pentagon budget , replacing the reduction with cuts elsewhere . ryan has called the scheduled pentagon cuts -- part of the agreement reached in last summer 's budget control act -- devastating to america 's defense capabilities . ' among the compensating changes : greater federal worker pension contributions and more means-testing of entitlement benefits . overall , the gop plan caps 2013 domestic discretionary spending -- programs other than defense and entitlements such as social security and medicare -- at $ 1.028 trillion . democrats immediately cried foul when the new proposed cap was unveiled , noting that it 's nearly $ 20 billion below the total agreed to in last summer 's deficit reduction deal . the republicans shook on ( that deal ) and they passed it as law , ' senate budget committee chairman kent conrad , d-north dakota , said tuesday . now they are threatening to ... walk away . ' if house republicans fail to stick with the agreement , he warned , they will once again threaten to shut down the government and needlessly imperil the economic recovery . ' house gop leaders insist they can propose any amount under the $ 1.047 trillion level , because that figure simply represents the top limit for discretionary spending , not a level up to which congress must spend . people have limits on credit cards . that does n't mean that you 're required to spend up to the limit , ' argued house speaker john boehner , r-ohio . we all know that we 've got a real fiscal problem here in washington , and frankly we think we can do better . ' while the house republicans'proposed budget has no chance of becoming law , it does promise to have a major impact on both the presidential and congressional campaigns . democrats believe the proposed medicare changes in particular could prove devastating to gop hopes in key swing states such as florida , which has a large elderly population . a number of republicans , however , believe they 'll ultimately be rewarded for having the political courage to tackle politically sensitive issues . conservatives also argue it 's critical to draw clear distinctions between top republicans and democrats before voters go to the polls in november . if we simply operate based on political fear , nothing is ever going to get done , ' ryan told reporters tuesday . if we allow entitlement politics -- fear that your adversaries will turn your reforms into a political weapon to use against you -- and we cower to that , then america is going to have a debt crisis . ' ryan insisted that the eventual republican nominee will firmly support the house gop 's blueprint . all of our candidates have campaigned on these various ideas , ' he told reporters . we are sharpening the contrast between the path that we 're proposing and ( obama 's ) path to debt and decline . ' and yes , we do believe our nominee ... is going to be perfectly consistent with this , ' he stressed . i 've spoken with all of these guys , and they believe we are heading in the right direction . ' shortly after ryan 's remarks , romney released a statement praising the house republican leadership for taking a bold step toward putting our nation back on the track to fiscal sanity and robust economic growth . ' chairman ryan and i share the same goals of cutting taxes and fundamentally reforming our tax code , dramatically reducing federal spending , as well as finally tackling the crushing debt our nation faces , ' romney said . cnn 's kate bolduan , jeanne sahadi , and rebecca stewart contributed to this report . | democrats say the plan will hurt the elderly and middle class |
democrats <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- house gop leaders unveiled a 2013 budget blueprint tuesday that has little chance of becoming law but draws a clear contrast with democrats on taxes , spending , and a host of hot-button political issues -- all of which could play a pivotal role in the 2012 campaign . republicans cast the $ 3.53 trillion plan -- which doubles down on past gop proposals to overhaul medicare and other politically sensitive programs -- as a bold attempt to reverse skyrocketing federal deficits and avert a looming fiscal catastrophe . this plan of action is about putting an end to empty promises from bankrupt government and restoring the fundamental promise of america , ensuring that our children have more opportunity than we do , ' said house budget committee chairman paul ryan , r-wisconsin . we 're here to offer americans the chance to choose which future they want for themselves : the president 's path of debt and decline , or the path that we 're proposing , a path to renew prosperity for americans . ' democrats called it a betrayal of last year 's bipartisan deficit reduction deal , and characterized it as another gop giveaway to the wealthy at the expense of the middle class and vulnerable seniors . sensing electoral opportunity , they also tried to hang it around republican presidential frontrunner mitt romney 's political neck . if you 're mitt romney , you 're going to love this budget , because what it does is provide another round of tax cuts for the wealthiest americans and does it at the expense of middle-class taxpayers and seniors , ' maryland rep. chris van hollen , a member of the house democratic leadership , told cnn . white house communications director dan pfeiffer said in a written statement that the proposed gop budget fails the test of balance , fairness , and shared responsibility . ' it draws on the same wrong-headed theory that led to the worst recession of our lifetimes and contributed to the erosion of middle-class security over the last decade , ' he argued . white house bashes budget proposal among other things , the house gop plan calls for a reduction in individual tax rates and brackets . instead of today 's six brackets , with rates from 10 % to 35 % , it calls for just two -- 10 % and 25 % . the proposal would eliminate the alternative minimum tax , while dropping the top corporate tax rate from 35 % to 25 % . gop leaders would compensate for lost revenue by closing a series of tax loopholes and ending numerous deductions . they declined to offer details tuesday , however , on exactly which loopholes and deductions would be affected , noting that the matter would be taken up at the congressional committee level in the near future . returning to one of the most controversial points from last year 's budget fight , the proposal includes dramatic changes to the medicare program . it would offer future seniors a choice of staying in the traditional fee-for-service plan or opting instead for a medicare-approved private plan , all of which would be available via a new medicare exchange . no matter which plan they chose , including the traditional medicare plan , seniors would receive a government subsidy to help pay for their choice . we propose to save and strengthen medicare by taking power away from the government bureaucrats , ' ryan said . we preserve the medicare guarantee for today 's seniors so they can count on the benefit that they 've organized their retirement around , and we preserve that guarantee going into the future for tomorrow 's seniors by empowering them with choices . ' the republicans have made it clear they want medicare to wither on the vine , to die , and this is an important step for them in that direction , ' said house minority leader nancy pelosi , d-california . bless their hearts , they do n't believe in medicare , and they act upon their beliefs . ' medicaid , which provides health coverage for the poor , would be converted under the gop plan into a series of block grants for the states . individual states would be empowered to tighten eligibility rules or revise enrollees'cost-sharing obligations . budget proposal would overhaul medicaid the republican proposal also protects defense spending by undoing a scheduled $ 55 billion cut in the pentagon budget , replacing the reduction with cuts elsewhere . ryan has called the scheduled pentagon cuts -- part of the agreement reached in last summer 's budget control act -- devastating to america 's defense capabilities . ' among the compensating changes : greater federal worker pension contributions and more means-testing of entitlement benefits . overall , the gop plan caps 2013 domestic discretionary spending -- programs other than defense and entitlements such as social security and medicare -- at $ 1.028 trillion . democrats immediately cried foul when the new proposed cap was unveiled , noting that it 's nearly $ 20 billion below the total agreed to in last summer 's deficit reduction deal . the republicans shook on ( that deal ) and they passed it as law , ' senate budget committee chairman kent conrad , d-north dakota , said tuesday . now they are threatening to ... walk away . ' if house republicans fail to stick with the agreement , he warned , they will once again threaten to shut down the government and needlessly imperil the economic recovery . ' house gop leaders insist they can propose any amount under the $ 1.047 trillion level , because that figure simply represents the top limit for discretionary spending , not a level up to which congress must spend . people have limits on credit cards . that does n't mean that you 're required to spend up to the limit , ' argued house speaker john boehner , r-ohio . we all know that we 've got a real fiscal problem here in washington , and frankly we think we can do better . ' while the house republicans'proposed budget has no chance of becoming law , it does promise to have a major impact on both the presidential and congressional campaigns . democrats believe the proposed medicare changes in particular could prove devastating to gop hopes in key swing states such as florida , which has a large elderly population . a number of republicans , however , believe they 'll ultimately be rewarded for having the political courage to tackle politically sensitive issues . conservatives also argue it 's critical to draw clear distinctions between top republicans and democrats before voters go to the polls in november . if we simply operate based on political fear , nothing is ever going to get done , ' ryan told reporters tuesday . if we allow entitlement politics -- fear that your adversaries will turn your reforms into a political weapon to use against you -- and we cower to that , then america is going to have a debt crisis . ' ryan insisted that the eventual republican nominee will firmly support the house gop 's blueprint . all of our candidates have campaigned on these various ideas , ' he told reporters . we are sharpening the contrast between the path that we 're proposing and ( obama 's ) path to debt and decline . ' and yes , we do believe our nominee ... is going to be perfectly consistent with this , ' he stressed . i 've spoken with all of these guys , and they believe we are heading in the right direction . ' shortly after ryan 's remarks , romney released a statement praising the house republican leadership for taking a bold step toward putting our nation back on the track to fiscal sanity and robust economic growth . ' chairman ryan and i share the same goals of cutting taxes and fundamentally reforming our tax code , dramatically reducing federal spending , as well as finally tackling the crushing debt our nation faces , ' romney said . cnn 's kate bolduan , jeanne sahadi , and rebecca stewart contributed to this report . | democrats argue the plan is a betrayal of last year 's deficit reduction deal |
east river <tsp> new york ( cnn ) -- four people were killed after a passenger car went into a creek in the queens section of new york , a city fire department spokesman said saturday . the accident was reported late friday night . police officers found the car submerged in steinway creek , and fire department divers removed four people . darius fletcher , 21 ; jada monique butts , 19 ; crystal gravely , 19 ; and jaleel furtado , 20 , all of east elmhurst , new york , were pronounced dead on arrival at area hospitals , the new york police department said in a news release . the driver , a 20-year-old man , is listed in stable condition at elmhurst general hospital , new york police department spokeswoman annette markowski said . investigators said the 2009 honda accord hit a curb on 19th avenue and rolled into the creek , part of the east river waterway . fire department spokesman mike parrella said there was a drop from the street to the water of at least 5 or 6 feet . the amount of water in the creek was enough to submerge the vehicle . ' parrella said . | the car hit a curb and rolled into the creek , which is part of the east river waterway |
new york <tsp> new york ( cnn ) -- four people were killed after a passenger car went into a creek in the queens section of new york , a city fire department spokesman said saturday . the accident was reported late friday night . police officers found the car submerged in steinway creek , and fire department divers removed four people . darius fletcher , 21 ; jada monique butts , 19 ; crystal gravely , 19 ; and jaleel furtado , 20 , all of east elmhurst , new york , were pronounced dead on arrival at area hospitals , the new york police department said in a news release . the driver , a 20-year-old man , is listed in stable condition at elmhurst general hospital , new york police department spokeswoman annette markowski said . investigators said the 2009 honda accord hit a curb on 19th avenue and rolled into the creek , part of the east river waterway . fire department spokesman mike parrella said there was a drop from the street to the water of at least 5 or 6 feet . the amount of water in the creek was enough to submerge the vehicle . ' parrella said . | the incident occurred in the queens section of new york |
flight 370 <tsp> montreal , canada ( cnn ) -- a united nations aviation agency agreed tuesday that global airline flight tracking is needed in the wake of malaysia airlines flight 370 's disappearance and established a september deadline for near-term implementation plans for applicable solutions . ' olumuyiwa benard aliu , president of the u.n. 's international civil aviation organization , made the announcement after officials from more than 40 countries met in montreal to examine a framework for worldwide standards aimed at preventing similar mysteries . icao will continue to provide the necessary leadership to ensure all issues are considered expeditiously to enable a'performance-based'international standard for global airline flight tracking , ' aliu said in a statement . as icao considers the requirements for global flight tracking , we will also be looking closely at the most effective means of sharing tracking data when needed with applicable search and rescue and accident investigation authorities , ' he said . flight 370 has been missing since march 8 despite an international search . global flight tracking is not a new issue , but there is new urgency as the global aviation community looks closely at more robust flight tracking in response to the disappearance of the malaysia airlines commercial airliner carrying 239 people . public perception is that in a world where every move seems to be tracked , there is disbelief both that an airplane could simply disappear and that the flight data and cockpit voice recorders could be so difficult to recover , ' the international air transport association said in a submission to the meeting . flight 370 , a boeing 777-200er , disappeared on a routine flight from kuala lumpur , malaysia , to beijing . its transponder went off and its maintenance reporting system stopped functioning . it lost contact over open waters between malaysia and vietnam . radar is not reliable over the ocean or , as is possible in this case , at low altitudes . it 's unclear whether the transponder -- a radio transmitter in the cockpit that works with ground radar to identify a plane 's position , speed and direction -- and the maintenance reporting system , which transmits periodic flight data to the ground , were intentionally disabled or malfunctioned . the search for the plane is concentrated in the indian ocean off the coast of perth , australia . damage to search vehicle meanwhile , the sole underwater vehicle searching for the plane was temporarily taken out of service because of damage , a u.s. navy official told cnn . the tail section of the bluefin-21 was badly damaged when it struck the side of the australian vessel ocean shield in the last 24 hours . but the submersible has been repaired and probably will be redeployed when daylight arrives in the southern indian ocean , the u.s. navy official said . the accident occurred when searchers , who were experiencing communications problems with the vessel , were hoisting the bluefin to the deck to examine it , said michael dean , deputy director of ocean engineering for the navy . they had 20-knot winds and 3- to 5-foot seas , ' dean said . they got the vehicle on deck , but in the process of doing so , the vehicle was damaged . they essentially had torn the propeller , the tail section had ripped away , and so there was some damage back aft ( in the area of ) the main electronics bay . there were quite a few components that we had to troubleshoot . the good news is the vehicle is repaired , ' he added . dean said the bluefin was repaired with spare parts loaded on the ocean shield during its recent refueling trip to port . he said it is likely the team will wait until daylight before deploying the bluefin-21 on its next mission . the vessel is probably more than halfway through ' searching the location of ping 1 , ' considered the second most likely place to find the wreckage of flight 370 . no wreckage was found during its search of ping 2 , ' considered the most likely location of the plane . during the mission in which it was damaged , the bluefin-21 never reached the ocean floor , so no data was collected . key topics for the icao the key consideration at this week 's icao meeting was developing protocols for tracking aircraft . the members listened to a brief presentation about several flight tracking technologies , but do not plan to prescribe a specific one . let me also clarify that performance-based standards differ from'prescriptive'standards in that they do not restrict operators to specific technological solutions , ' aliu said . this systems-based approach acknowledges that what will best service airlines and manufacturers over the longer term will be the flexibility to choose from amongst the latest and most cost-effective innovations that meet their global flight tracking needs . ' one potential standard could be preventing anyone from being able to turn the off flight tracking systems . this is not the first call for such international standards . air france flight 447 crashed in 2009 in the atlantic ocean off the coast of brazil , killing more than 220 people . it took five days to find wreckage and nearly two years to find the underwater debris field . the french accident investigation board recommended that authorities study the possibility of making it mandatory ' for commercial airlines to regularly transmit basic flight parameters , including position , altitude and speed . the icao changed some standards after the air france accident , which will go into effect in november . in what documents describe as initial steps , ' airlines were told to make better use of existing communication links , introduce mandatory warnings sent to air traffic control when a plane deviates from the cleared route , and improve procedures to ensure better connections . this was also identified as a low-cost solution , using existing ( equipment ) and technology , ' the icao secretariat wrote in working papers presented to this week 's meeting . now the organization is considering going further , mandating more frequent and more detailed flight tracking information . separately , a satellite communications company proposed a free global tracking service ahead of the meeting . inmarsat , the company whose satellite had the last known contact with flight 370 , said the service is offered to the 11,000 passenger aircraft already outfitted with an inmarsat connection . it said the tracking would cover virtually 100 % of the world 's long haul commercial fleet . ' hunt for plane is the most difficult in history cnn 's aaron cooper contributed to this report from montreal and michael martinez wrote and reported from los angeles . | u.n. forum focuses on better flight tracking after malaysia airlines flight 370 disappeared |
flight 370 <tsp> montreal , canada ( cnn ) -- a united nations aviation agency agreed tuesday that global airline flight tracking is needed in the wake of malaysia airlines flight 370 's disappearance and established a september deadline for near-term implementation plans for applicable solutions . ' olumuyiwa benard aliu , president of the u.n. 's international civil aviation organization , made the announcement after officials from more than 40 countries met in montreal to examine a framework for worldwide standards aimed at preventing similar mysteries . icao will continue to provide the necessary leadership to ensure all issues are considered expeditiously to enable a'performance-based'international standard for global airline flight tracking , ' aliu said in a statement . as icao considers the requirements for global flight tracking , we will also be looking closely at the most effective means of sharing tracking data when needed with applicable search and rescue and accident investigation authorities , ' he said . flight 370 has been missing since march 8 despite an international search . global flight tracking is not a new issue , but there is new urgency as the global aviation community looks closely at more robust flight tracking in response to the disappearance of the malaysia airlines commercial airliner carrying 239 people . public perception is that in a world where every move seems to be tracked , there is disbelief both that an airplane could simply disappear and that the flight data and cockpit voice recorders could be so difficult to recover , ' the international air transport association said in a submission to the meeting . flight 370 , a boeing 777-200er , disappeared on a routine flight from kuala lumpur , malaysia , to beijing . its transponder went off and its maintenance reporting system stopped functioning . it lost contact over open waters between malaysia and vietnam . radar is not reliable over the ocean or , as is possible in this case , at low altitudes . it 's unclear whether the transponder -- a radio transmitter in the cockpit that works with ground radar to identify a plane 's position , speed and direction -- and the maintenance reporting system , which transmits periodic flight data to the ground , were intentionally disabled or malfunctioned . the search for the plane is concentrated in the indian ocean off the coast of perth , australia . damage to search vehicle meanwhile , the sole underwater vehicle searching for the plane was temporarily taken out of service because of damage , a u.s. navy official told cnn . the tail section of the bluefin-21 was badly damaged when it struck the side of the australian vessel ocean shield in the last 24 hours . but the submersible has been repaired and probably will be redeployed when daylight arrives in the southern indian ocean , the u.s. navy official said . the accident occurred when searchers , who were experiencing communications problems with the vessel , were hoisting the bluefin to the deck to examine it , said michael dean , deputy director of ocean engineering for the navy . they had 20-knot winds and 3- to 5-foot seas , ' dean said . they got the vehicle on deck , but in the process of doing so , the vehicle was damaged . they essentially had torn the propeller , the tail section had ripped away , and so there was some damage back aft ( in the area of ) the main electronics bay . there were quite a few components that we had to troubleshoot . the good news is the vehicle is repaired , ' he added . dean said the bluefin was repaired with spare parts loaded on the ocean shield during its recent refueling trip to port . he said it is likely the team will wait until daylight before deploying the bluefin-21 on its next mission . the vessel is probably more than halfway through ' searching the location of ping 1 , ' considered the second most likely place to find the wreckage of flight 370 . no wreckage was found during its search of ping 2 , ' considered the most likely location of the plane . during the mission in which it was damaged , the bluefin-21 never reached the ocean floor , so no data was collected . key topics for the icao the key consideration at this week 's icao meeting was developing protocols for tracking aircraft . the members listened to a brief presentation about several flight tracking technologies , but do not plan to prescribe a specific one . let me also clarify that performance-based standards differ from'prescriptive'standards in that they do not restrict operators to specific technological solutions , ' aliu said . this systems-based approach acknowledges that what will best service airlines and manufacturers over the longer term will be the flexibility to choose from amongst the latest and most cost-effective innovations that meet their global flight tracking needs . ' one potential standard could be preventing anyone from being able to turn the off flight tracking systems . this is not the first call for such international standards . air france flight 447 crashed in 2009 in the atlantic ocean off the coast of brazil , killing more than 220 people . it took five days to find wreckage and nearly two years to find the underwater debris field . the french accident investigation board recommended that authorities study the possibility of making it mandatory ' for commercial airlines to regularly transmit basic flight parameters , including position , altitude and speed . the icao changed some standards after the air france accident , which will go into effect in november . in what documents describe as initial steps , ' airlines were told to make better use of existing communication links , introduce mandatory warnings sent to air traffic control when a plane deviates from the cleared route , and improve procedures to ensure better connections . this was also identified as a low-cost solution , using existing ( equipment ) and technology , ' the icao secretariat wrote in working papers presented to this week 's meeting . now the organization is considering going further , mandating more frequent and more detailed flight tracking information . separately , a satellite communications company proposed a free global tracking service ahead of the meeting . inmarsat , the company whose satellite had the last known contact with flight 370 , said the service is offered to the 11,000 passenger aircraft already outfitted with an inmarsat connection . it said the tracking would cover virtually 100 % of the world 's long haul commercial fleet . ' hunt for plane is the most difficult in history cnn 's aaron cooper contributed to this report from montreal and michael martinez wrote and reported from los angeles . | flight 370 disappeared in march on routine flight from kuala lumpur , malaysia , to beijing |
beijing <tsp> montreal , canada ( cnn ) -- a united nations aviation agency agreed tuesday that global airline flight tracking is needed in the wake of malaysia airlines flight 370 's disappearance and established a september deadline for near-term implementation plans for applicable solutions . ' olumuyiwa benard aliu , president of the u.n. 's international civil aviation organization , made the announcement after officials from more than 40 countries met in montreal to examine a framework for worldwide standards aimed at preventing similar mysteries . icao will continue to provide the necessary leadership to ensure all issues are considered expeditiously to enable a'performance-based'international standard for global airline flight tracking , ' aliu said in a statement . as icao considers the requirements for global flight tracking , we will also be looking closely at the most effective means of sharing tracking data when needed with applicable search and rescue and accident investigation authorities , ' he said . flight 370 has been missing since march 8 despite an international search . global flight tracking is not a new issue , but there is new urgency as the global aviation community looks closely at more robust flight tracking in response to the disappearance of the malaysia airlines commercial airliner carrying 239 people . public perception is that in a world where every move seems to be tracked , there is disbelief both that an airplane could simply disappear and that the flight data and cockpit voice recorders could be so difficult to recover , ' the international air transport association said in a submission to the meeting . flight 370 , a boeing 777-200er , disappeared on a routine flight from kuala lumpur , malaysia , to beijing . its transponder went off and its maintenance reporting system stopped functioning . it lost contact over open waters between malaysia and vietnam . radar is not reliable over the ocean or , as is possible in this case , at low altitudes . it 's unclear whether the transponder -- a radio transmitter in the cockpit that works with ground radar to identify a plane 's position , speed and direction -- and the maintenance reporting system , which transmits periodic flight data to the ground , were intentionally disabled or malfunctioned . the search for the plane is concentrated in the indian ocean off the coast of perth , australia . damage to search vehicle meanwhile , the sole underwater vehicle searching for the plane was temporarily taken out of service because of damage , a u.s. navy official told cnn . the tail section of the bluefin-21 was badly damaged when it struck the side of the australian vessel ocean shield in the last 24 hours . but the submersible has been repaired and probably will be redeployed when daylight arrives in the southern indian ocean , the u.s. navy official said . the accident occurred when searchers , who were experiencing communications problems with the vessel , were hoisting the bluefin to the deck to examine it , said michael dean , deputy director of ocean engineering for the navy . they had 20-knot winds and 3- to 5-foot seas , ' dean said . they got the vehicle on deck , but in the process of doing so , the vehicle was damaged . they essentially had torn the propeller , the tail section had ripped away , and so there was some damage back aft ( in the area of ) the main electronics bay . there were quite a few components that we had to troubleshoot . the good news is the vehicle is repaired , ' he added . dean said the bluefin was repaired with spare parts loaded on the ocean shield during its recent refueling trip to port . he said it is likely the team will wait until daylight before deploying the bluefin-21 on its next mission . the vessel is probably more than halfway through ' searching the location of ping 1 , ' considered the second most likely place to find the wreckage of flight 370 . no wreckage was found during its search of ping 2 , ' considered the most likely location of the plane . during the mission in which it was damaged , the bluefin-21 never reached the ocean floor , so no data was collected . key topics for the icao the key consideration at this week 's icao meeting was developing protocols for tracking aircraft . the members listened to a brief presentation about several flight tracking technologies , but do not plan to prescribe a specific one . let me also clarify that performance-based standards differ from'prescriptive'standards in that they do not restrict operators to specific technological solutions , ' aliu said . this systems-based approach acknowledges that what will best service airlines and manufacturers over the longer term will be the flexibility to choose from amongst the latest and most cost-effective innovations that meet their global flight tracking needs . ' one potential standard could be preventing anyone from being able to turn the off flight tracking systems . this is not the first call for such international standards . air france flight 447 crashed in 2009 in the atlantic ocean off the coast of brazil , killing more than 220 people . it took five days to find wreckage and nearly two years to find the underwater debris field . the french accident investigation board recommended that authorities study the possibility of making it mandatory ' for commercial airlines to regularly transmit basic flight parameters , including position , altitude and speed . the icao changed some standards after the air france accident , which will go into effect in november . in what documents describe as initial steps , ' airlines were told to make better use of existing communication links , introduce mandatory warnings sent to air traffic control when a plane deviates from the cleared route , and improve procedures to ensure better connections . this was also identified as a low-cost solution , using existing ( equipment ) and technology , ' the icao secretariat wrote in working papers presented to this week 's meeting . now the organization is considering going further , mandating more frequent and more detailed flight tracking information . separately , a satellite communications company proposed a free global tracking service ahead of the meeting . inmarsat , the company whose satellite had the last known contact with flight 370 , said the service is offered to the 11,000 passenger aircraft already outfitted with an inmarsat connection . it said the tracking would cover virtually 100 % of the world 's long haul commercial fleet . ' hunt for plane is the most difficult in history cnn 's aaron cooper contributed to this report from montreal and michael martinez wrote and reported from los angeles . | flight 370 disappeared in march on routine flight from kuala lumpur , malaysia , to beijing |
wakie <tsp> if the concept of being awakened by a complete stranger sounds good to you , as opposed to , say , creepy or disconcerting , then wakie is the app for you . originally launched in 2011 , wakie has finally made its way to the iphone 's app store , after a reported nine-month wait . it 's also available for android and windows phones and , according to the company , already has 1.5 million users in 80 countries . they call it the social alarm clock ' and a friendly community of people who wake each other up in the morning . ' and the concept is that simple . if you set an alarm through the app at , say , 6 a.m. you 'll get a call from another user waking you up when that time comes . likewise , if you 're in the mood to be the waker , not the wakee , ( wakies ' and sleepies ' in the app 's parlance ) you can go to the app , see how many people are ready to rise and shine and click to be the person who delivers the news . connections are made through the app and no one ever sees another user 's phone number . the length of a call is limited to one minute , and users are encouraged to sing songs , tell jokes , recite poems or use otherwise creative ways to kickstart their slumbering community members'days . if no wakies ' are on the app when you 've set an alarm , wakie sends you an automated robo-call to do the job . it 's worth noting that , on the app 's social feed , it 's not uncommon to see folks who have awakened to the sound of a stranger 's voice trying to track down that stranger , or vice versa . so that 's all well and good . but ... why ? why get a stranger to wake you up instead of , you know , an alarm . a lot of people keep snoozing alarm clocks and still ca n't wake up , ' hrachik adjamian , wakie 's ceo and co-founder , told techcrunch . our research shows that a one-minute talk to a stranger wakes your brain up with a 99 % guarantee . when someone asks you questions in the morning your brain has to wake up to answer . also you try to be kind , you try to turn on your social pattern of behavior . after the call you ca n't sleep anymore even if you had a short sleep . ' but what about the creep factor ? is there anything stopping someone from calling up and being abusive or rude ? there are in-app tools to report abuse , but adjamian says it 's never really been a problem . wakie is free , but there are plans for a premium version in the works . adjamian told techcrunch that version may allow conversations up to five minutes , as well as letting users choose the gender of the person who calls them . which starts to sound a bit too much like a wakeup dating app to us -- though there are worse ways to have early morning chats with romantically minded strangers , we suppose . | wakie lets you wake up to a stranger 's voice |
middle east <tsp> ( cnn ) u.s. president barack obama 's recent explanation of how his administration will engage with the middle east is far from reassuring to the region . in his interview with tom friedman from the new york times on april 4 , obama explained u.s. foreign policy moves on iran and cuba , which friedman described as the obama doctrine . ' he stated that we will engage , but we preserve all our capabilities . ' by capabilities , the president must mean the tools , whether diplomatic , economic or military , to protect and defend u.s. interests . the doctrine is significant because it provides greater clarity about the u.s. policy under the rest of obama 's presidency . instead of the new beginning ' that the president outlined in his much discussed cairo speech in 2009 , u.s. policy in the middle east remains mired in a contradiction between principles and action on the ground . for example , the president asserted in the interview that the u.s. 's core interests in the region are not oil , are not territorial ... our core interests are that everybody is living in peace , that it is orderly , that our allies are not being attacked , that children are not having barrel bombs dropped on them , that massive displacements are n't taking place . ' yet , at the very moment that the president was offering this assessment , u.s. allies , such as the arab gulf states , jordan , lebanon and the legitimate government in yemen , found themselves under serious threat and attack ; the syrian regime was continuing to relentlessly bomb its own citizens ; and the middle east was faced with the biggest refugee crisis in its history . implementing the core u.s. interests outlined by obama in the interview is clearly not working . there exist grave doubts about whether the current u.s. administration is indeed ready to deploy the above-mentioned capabilities . ' it seems that the u.s. will only use them when its national security is at stake . and those core interests are limited to dealing with terrorism and nuclear proliferation only and not the broader aspects mentioned by the president . the use of drone technology across the region , the military strikes being conducted against isis in iraq and syria and the framework agreement between iran and six world powers on the iranian nuclear programs are cases in point . establishing a region living in peace ' is clearly not an instance where those capabilities will be deployed and is not part of the so-called obama doctrine . in the same vein , the majority of the arab world and the entire gulf region look at the recently announced iran nuclear deal with a sense of suspicion and trepidation . having directly experienced the problematic interventionist iranian policies for decades , the arab world is simply not ready to give tehran the benefit of doubt on any regional issue . but neither is it ready to trust u.s. assurances that outside a nuclear agreement , the u.s. will indeed put forward a concerted strategy to contain iranian influence throughout the region or to defend the gulf cooperation council ( gcc ) states against any iranian threat . instead , the fear is that as long as iran abides by any agreement that might come into force later this year , the u.s. will negate , downplay , or simply ignore those iranian actions that the arab world considers as direct threats . here , actions speak louder than words and unfortunately one sees only the latter coming from washington . at a time when the region is faced with unprecedented turmoil and transition , the president even shifted the blame and directed his criticism toward the arab world . when he referred to our sunni arab allies ' the president gave an exaggerated picture by saying populations that , in some cases , are alienated , youth that are underemployed , an ideology that is destructive and nihilistic , and in some cases , just a belief that there are no legitimate political outlets for grievances . ' what obama failed to do is to highlight that this statement is in fact also applicable to iran . in his interview , he never questioned iran 's appalling record on human rights , treatment of the political opposition , and minorities'rights , among other disturbing issues . moreover the reference to saudi arabia being one of the sunni arab allies ' ignores the fact that there are non-sunnis living in the arab gulf and adds to the existing destructive sectarian tensions as well as the sensitivity of the non-sunni arabs . equally , the assertion that the biggest threats that they ( the arab states ) face may not be coming from iran invading . it 's going to be from dissatisfaction inside their own countries ... ' is another example of the detachment from reality . based on a gulf research center study , when there are 48 militia groups supported by iran operating in iraq and tearing apart the very social fabric of that country , it is simply naive to suggest there is no iranian threat . the bottom line here is that u.s. and arab national security interests are no longer on the same page . ever since the u.s.-led invasion of iraq in 2003 , those interests have increasingly diverged to the point that the arab world is tired of false promises . the ongoing operation of ten mostly arab coalition countries to protect the legitimate government of yemen is simply the latest move that underlines the determination of arab countries to take matters in their own hands . the gcc states may accept the invitation by the u.s. president to come to camp david , his maryland country retreat , and have an honest discussion with him about the situation in the region . but they question the value of being invited for purposes of being reassured when they are already being informed beforehand of what is wrong with them . the truth of the matter is that the region is ( not ) working ' and that misguided u.s. leadership and policies are among the reasons for the enduring tragedy in this region . unfortunately , the obama doctrine ' does little to change this and may in fact make matters worse . | sager : misguided u.s. leadership and policies are reasons for the enduring tragedy in the middle east |
iran <tsp> ( cnn ) u.s. president barack obama 's recent explanation of how his administration will engage with the middle east is far from reassuring to the region . in his interview with tom friedman from the new york times on april 4 , obama explained u.s. foreign policy moves on iran and cuba , which friedman described as the obama doctrine . ' he stated that we will engage , but we preserve all our capabilities . ' by capabilities , the president must mean the tools , whether diplomatic , economic or military , to protect and defend u.s. interests . the doctrine is significant because it provides greater clarity about the u.s. policy under the rest of obama 's presidency . instead of the new beginning ' that the president outlined in his much discussed cairo speech in 2009 , u.s. policy in the middle east remains mired in a contradiction between principles and action on the ground . for example , the president asserted in the interview that the u.s. 's core interests in the region are not oil , are not territorial ... our core interests are that everybody is living in peace , that it is orderly , that our allies are not being attacked , that children are not having barrel bombs dropped on them , that massive displacements are n't taking place . ' yet , at the very moment that the president was offering this assessment , u.s. allies , such as the arab gulf states , jordan , lebanon and the legitimate government in yemen , found themselves under serious threat and attack ; the syrian regime was continuing to relentlessly bomb its own citizens ; and the middle east was faced with the biggest refugee crisis in its history . implementing the core u.s. interests outlined by obama in the interview is clearly not working . there exist grave doubts about whether the current u.s. administration is indeed ready to deploy the above-mentioned capabilities . ' it seems that the u.s. will only use them when its national security is at stake . and those core interests are limited to dealing with terrorism and nuclear proliferation only and not the broader aspects mentioned by the president . the use of drone technology across the region , the military strikes being conducted against isis in iraq and syria and the framework agreement between iran and six world powers on the iranian nuclear programs are cases in point . establishing a region living in peace ' is clearly not an instance where those capabilities will be deployed and is not part of the so-called obama doctrine . in the same vein , the majority of the arab world and the entire gulf region look at the recently announced iran nuclear deal with a sense of suspicion and trepidation . having directly experienced the problematic interventionist iranian policies for decades , the arab world is simply not ready to give tehran the benefit of doubt on any regional issue . but neither is it ready to trust u.s. assurances that outside a nuclear agreement , the u.s. will indeed put forward a concerted strategy to contain iranian influence throughout the region or to defend the gulf cooperation council ( gcc ) states against any iranian threat . instead , the fear is that as long as iran abides by any agreement that might come into force later this year , the u.s. will negate , downplay , or simply ignore those iranian actions that the arab world considers as direct threats . here , actions speak louder than words and unfortunately one sees only the latter coming from washington . at a time when the region is faced with unprecedented turmoil and transition , the president even shifted the blame and directed his criticism toward the arab world . when he referred to our sunni arab allies ' the president gave an exaggerated picture by saying populations that , in some cases , are alienated , youth that are underemployed , an ideology that is destructive and nihilistic , and in some cases , just a belief that there are no legitimate political outlets for grievances . ' what obama failed to do is to highlight that this statement is in fact also applicable to iran . in his interview , he never questioned iran 's appalling record on human rights , treatment of the political opposition , and minorities'rights , among other disturbing issues . moreover the reference to saudi arabia being one of the sunni arab allies ' ignores the fact that there are non-sunnis living in the arab gulf and adds to the existing destructive sectarian tensions as well as the sensitivity of the non-sunni arabs . equally , the assertion that the biggest threats that they ( the arab states ) face may not be coming from iran invading . it 's going to be from dissatisfaction inside their own countries ... ' is another example of the detachment from reality . based on a gulf research center study , when there are 48 militia groups supported by iran operating in iraq and tearing apart the very social fabric of that country , it is simply naive to suggest there is no iranian threat . the bottom line here is that u.s. and arab national security interests are no longer on the same page . ever since the u.s.-led invasion of iraq in 2003 , those interests have increasingly diverged to the point that the arab world is tired of false promises . the ongoing operation of ten mostly arab coalition countries to protect the legitimate government of yemen is simply the latest move that underlines the determination of arab countries to take matters in their own hands . the gcc states may accept the invitation by the u.s. president to come to camp david , his maryland country retreat , and have an honest discussion with him about the situation in the region . but they question the value of being invited for purposes of being reassured when they are already being informed beforehand of what is wrong with them . the truth of the matter is that the region is ( not ) working ' and that misguided u.s. leadership and policies are among the reasons for the enduring tragedy in this region . unfortunately , the obama doctrine ' does little to change this and may in fact make matters worse . | obama recently explained u.s. foreign policy moves on iran and cuba |
obama <tsp> ( cnn ) u.s. president barack obama 's recent explanation of how his administration will engage with the middle east is far from reassuring to the region . in his interview with tom friedman from the new york times on april 4 , obama explained u.s. foreign policy moves on iran and cuba , which friedman described as the obama doctrine . ' he stated that we will engage , but we preserve all our capabilities . ' by capabilities , the president must mean the tools , whether diplomatic , economic or military , to protect and defend u.s. interests . the doctrine is significant because it provides greater clarity about the u.s. policy under the rest of obama 's presidency . instead of the new beginning ' that the president outlined in his much discussed cairo speech in 2009 , u.s. policy in the middle east remains mired in a contradiction between principles and action on the ground . for example , the president asserted in the interview that the u.s. 's core interests in the region are not oil , are not territorial ... our core interests are that everybody is living in peace , that it is orderly , that our allies are not being attacked , that children are not having barrel bombs dropped on them , that massive displacements are n't taking place . ' yet , at the very moment that the president was offering this assessment , u.s. allies , such as the arab gulf states , jordan , lebanon and the legitimate government in yemen , found themselves under serious threat and attack ; the syrian regime was continuing to relentlessly bomb its own citizens ; and the middle east was faced with the biggest refugee crisis in its history . implementing the core u.s. interests outlined by obama in the interview is clearly not working . there exist grave doubts about whether the current u.s. administration is indeed ready to deploy the above-mentioned capabilities . ' it seems that the u.s. will only use them when its national security is at stake . and those core interests are limited to dealing with terrorism and nuclear proliferation only and not the broader aspects mentioned by the president . the use of drone technology across the region , the military strikes being conducted against isis in iraq and syria and the framework agreement between iran and six world powers on the iranian nuclear programs are cases in point . establishing a region living in peace ' is clearly not an instance where those capabilities will be deployed and is not part of the so-called obama doctrine . in the same vein , the majority of the arab world and the entire gulf region look at the recently announced iran nuclear deal with a sense of suspicion and trepidation . having directly experienced the problematic interventionist iranian policies for decades , the arab world is simply not ready to give tehran the benefit of doubt on any regional issue . but neither is it ready to trust u.s. assurances that outside a nuclear agreement , the u.s. will indeed put forward a concerted strategy to contain iranian influence throughout the region or to defend the gulf cooperation council ( gcc ) states against any iranian threat . instead , the fear is that as long as iran abides by any agreement that might come into force later this year , the u.s. will negate , downplay , or simply ignore those iranian actions that the arab world considers as direct threats . here , actions speak louder than words and unfortunately one sees only the latter coming from washington . at a time when the region is faced with unprecedented turmoil and transition , the president even shifted the blame and directed his criticism toward the arab world . when he referred to our sunni arab allies ' the president gave an exaggerated picture by saying populations that , in some cases , are alienated , youth that are underemployed , an ideology that is destructive and nihilistic , and in some cases , just a belief that there are no legitimate political outlets for grievances . ' what obama failed to do is to highlight that this statement is in fact also applicable to iran . in his interview , he never questioned iran 's appalling record on human rights , treatment of the political opposition , and minorities'rights , among other disturbing issues . moreover the reference to saudi arabia being one of the sunni arab allies ' ignores the fact that there are non-sunnis living in the arab gulf and adds to the existing destructive sectarian tensions as well as the sensitivity of the non-sunni arabs . equally , the assertion that the biggest threats that they ( the arab states ) face may not be coming from iran invading . it 's going to be from dissatisfaction inside their own countries ... ' is another example of the detachment from reality . based on a gulf research center study , when there are 48 militia groups supported by iran operating in iraq and tearing apart the very social fabric of that country , it is simply naive to suggest there is no iranian threat . the bottom line here is that u.s. and arab national security interests are no longer on the same page . ever since the u.s.-led invasion of iraq in 2003 , those interests have increasingly diverged to the point that the arab world is tired of false promises . the ongoing operation of ten mostly arab coalition countries to protect the legitimate government of yemen is simply the latest move that underlines the determination of arab countries to take matters in their own hands . the gcc states may accept the invitation by the u.s. president to come to camp david , his maryland country retreat , and have an honest discussion with him about the situation in the region . but they question the value of being invited for purposes of being reassured when they are already being informed beforehand of what is wrong with them . the truth of the matter is that the region is ( not ) working ' and that misguided u.s. leadership and policies are among the reasons for the enduring tragedy in this region . unfortunately , the obama doctrine ' does little to change this and may in fact make matters worse . | obama recently explained u.s. foreign policy moves on iran and cuba |
cuba <tsp> ( cnn ) u.s. president barack obama 's recent explanation of how his administration will engage with the middle east is far from reassuring to the region . in his interview with tom friedman from the new york times on april 4 , obama explained u.s. foreign policy moves on iran and cuba , which friedman described as the obama doctrine . ' he stated that we will engage , but we preserve all our capabilities . ' by capabilities , the president must mean the tools , whether diplomatic , economic or military , to protect and defend u.s. interests . the doctrine is significant because it provides greater clarity about the u.s. policy under the rest of obama 's presidency . instead of the new beginning ' that the president outlined in his much discussed cairo speech in 2009 , u.s. policy in the middle east remains mired in a contradiction between principles and action on the ground . for example , the president asserted in the interview that the u.s. 's core interests in the region are not oil , are not territorial ... our core interests are that everybody is living in peace , that it is orderly , that our allies are not being attacked , that children are not having barrel bombs dropped on them , that massive displacements are n't taking place . ' yet , at the very moment that the president was offering this assessment , u.s. allies , such as the arab gulf states , jordan , lebanon and the legitimate government in yemen , found themselves under serious threat and attack ; the syrian regime was continuing to relentlessly bomb its own citizens ; and the middle east was faced with the biggest refugee crisis in its history . implementing the core u.s. interests outlined by obama in the interview is clearly not working . there exist grave doubts about whether the current u.s. administration is indeed ready to deploy the above-mentioned capabilities . ' it seems that the u.s. will only use them when its national security is at stake . and those core interests are limited to dealing with terrorism and nuclear proliferation only and not the broader aspects mentioned by the president . the use of drone technology across the region , the military strikes being conducted against isis in iraq and syria and the framework agreement between iran and six world powers on the iranian nuclear programs are cases in point . establishing a region living in peace ' is clearly not an instance where those capabilities will be deployed and is not part of the so-called obama doctrine . in the same vein , the majority of the arab world and the entire gulf region look at the recently announced iran nuclear deal with a sense of suspicion and trepidation . having directly experienced the problematic interventionist iranian policies for decades , the arab world is simply not ready to give tehran the benefit of doubt on any regional issue . but neither is it ready to trust u.s. assurances that outside a nuclear agreement , the u.s. will indeed put forward a concerted strategy to contain iranian influence throughout the region or to defend the gulf cooperation council ( gcc ) states against any iranian threat . instead , the fear is that as long as iran abides by any agreement that might come into force later this year , the u.s. will negate , downplay , or simply ignore those iranian actions that the arab world considers as direct threats . here , actions speak louder than words and unfortunately one sees only the latter coming from washington . at a time when the region is faced with unprecedented turmoil and transition , the president even shifted the blame and directed his criticism toward the arab world . when he referred to our sunni arab allies ' the president gave an exaggerated picture by saying populations that , in some cases , are alienated , youth that are underemployed , an ideology that is destructive and nihilistic , and in some cases , just a belief that there are no legitimate political outlets for grievances . ' what obama failed to do is to highlight that this statement is in fact also applicable to iran . in his interview , he never questioned iran 's appalling record on human rights , treatment of the political opposition , and minorities'rights , among other disturbing issues . moreover the reference to saudi arabia being one of the sunni arab allies ' ignores the fact that there are non-sunnis living in the arab gulf and adds to the existing destructive sectarian tensions as well as the sensitivity of the non-sunni arabs . equally , the assertion that the biggest threats that they ( the arab states ) face may not be coming from iran invading . it 's going to be from dissatisfaction inside their own countries ... ' is another example of the detachment from reality . based on a gulf research center study , when there are 48 militia groups supported by iran operating in iraq and tearing apart the very social fabric of that country , it is simply naive to suggest there is no iranian threat . the bottom line here is that u.s. and arab national security interests are no longer on the same page . ever since the u.s.-led invasion of iraq in 2003 , those interests have increasingly diverged to the point that the arab world is tired of false promises . the ongoing operation of ten mostly arab coalition countries to protect the legitimate government of yemen is simply the latest move that underlines the determination of arab countries to take matters in their own hands . the gcc states may accept the invitation by the u.s. president to come to camp david , his maryland country retreat , and have an honest discussion with him about the situation in the region . but they question the value of being invited for purposes of being reassured when they are already being informed beforehand of what is wrong with them . the truth of the matter is that the region is ( not ) working ' and that misguided u.s. leadership and policies are among the reasons for the enduring tragedy in this region . unfortunately , the obama doctrine ' does little to change this and may in fact make matters worse . | obama recently explained u.s. foreign policy moves on iran and cuba |
battersea power station <tsp> ever since it appeared on the cover of animals , pink floyd 's 1977 album , battersea power station in london has been famous around the world . it has appeared in everything from the beatles'1965 movie help ! to christopher nolan 's 2008 batman movie the dark knight , and even dr who . but later this year , its distinctive chimneys -- the best-loved parts of one of london 's best-loved buildings -- will be demolished . then they will be built back up again . the chimneys are the most powerful part of the icon , ' says jim eyre , director of wilkinson eyre , the architects commissioned to develop the building . take them away , and you do n't have an icon . the coal fumes has decayed the concrete , so they have to come down . but we 're going to painstakingly reconstruct them . ' such will be the attention to detail that even the paint used will be precisely the same hue . and it will be sourced from the same manufacturer that provided the paint for the original chimneys , more than 80 years ago . the replacement of the chimneys is just the first stage in a development that will change battersea power station forever , arousing a passionate debate . a london icon the power station was built in the thirties as a functioning coal-fired electricity generator . but the building was so distinctive that it became recognized as a valuable part of the cityscape . the station stopped functioning in 1983 , and has since fallen into disrepair . it 's vast -- st paul 's cathedral , another of london 's landmarks , could snugly fit into its old turbine rooms -- and over the years it has acquired the status of one of the architectural world 's best-known white elephants . now , funded by malaysian developers , work is underway to transform the building into a massive complex of retail space , offices , and luxury villas ' . crowning the top of the development , at a height of more than 160 feet , there will be a roof garden . the first phase will be completed in 2016 . eyre 's plans for the chimneys are emblematic of his approach towards developing the site . two of them are still going to be used as flues for the massive , modern energy center that we 're going to construct to power the place , ' he says . the third will remain hollow with a glass roof , and the fourth will house a cylindrical glass elevator that will pop out at the top at a viewing platform . ' although the massive central cavity will be split into five floors and stuffed with stores and offices , eyre has included several areas where a cut-out ' will allow a glimpse of the distant ceiling . there was a temptation to fill it right to the edges , ' he says . but when you enter the building , there will be an opening into a big space that will preserve the stunning sense of volume . ' care will be taken to protect a flavor of the past on the inside , too . in an approach that eyre calls light renovation ' , graffiti and the stains of age will not be scrubbed clean or painted over . as part of the development , the building will be surrounded by large , modern office and retail blocks , with the flanks of the power station obscured from many angles . many feel that this is a shame , while others argue that this is the price for attracting investment to the site . questions have been raised , however , over the price of the new apartments . at £2,000 per square foot , they will cost the same as those in the golden postcodes ' of kensington and chelsea and parts of westminster . for an icon that represents all of london , that seems a little exclusive . i am aware of that , ' he says . the control room , for instance , is a wonderful example of art deco extravagance . it would be easy to turn it into a restaurant , but it would be a very expensive restaurant . instead it will be a space for public events , like fashion shows . ' controversial restoration the development of the battersea power station has re-opened the highly-charged debate about whether -- and how -- iconic buildings should be preserved , modified or replaced , and who they belong ' to . in this age of technology , fast-paced social change and innovation , many see it as the most important architectural dilemma of our times . sir terry farrell , one of britain 's foremost architects hose credits include everything from charing cross station to the mi6 headquarters on the banks of the thames , is sharply critical of eyre 's design . i think it 's rather sad , ' he told cnn . there 's quite a fashion for keeping the outside appearance of a building at the expense of the interior . when you 're inside battersea power station , you wo n't know it because the corridors , shops and apartments will be the same as everywhere else . ' my feeling is that it 's the sheer opportunity to get a couple of million square feet in there . under the pretext of keeping the shell of the building , you 're getting planning consent for a lot of space . in london , you can charge £2,000 per square foot . that 's quite a lot of money , and i can see the temptation . but there are other ways that could work just as well . ' farrell 's own design for the site , which was not taken forward because of fears over planning permission , would have turned the power station into an iconic ruin ' standing over a massive public space . it would have been made financially viable by the construction of high-value apartments around the power station . i said that what we should do is remove the walls but retain the colonnade , and make the whole interior a park , ' he said . it would be like a giant abbey ruins , or a greek temple with just the columns and no roof . the key features , like the control rooms , would be kept exactly in the place they occurred on legs . ' this , he argued , would enable people to go in and feel the space ' . you would understand far more what it used to be . it would be a sort of monument , ' he said . it would be far better than going to a shopping center , or a luxury home , and saying ,'do you realize this used to be battersea power station ?'' such controversy is only to be expected when the future of such an important building as this is at stake . and the more iconic a building , the more forensic critics of its redevelopment will be . eye-popping vertical : photos give hong kong skyscrapers a radical new look the enduring allure of steam trains : a nostalgic journey back in time a rare snoop inside homes of some of the world 's greatest living architects | as part of the battersea power station renovation , the chimneys will be knocked down then rebuilt |
malaysian <tsp> ever since it appeared on the cover of animals , pink floyd 's 1977 album , battersea power station in london has been famous around the world . it has appeared in everything from the beatles'1965 movie help ! to christopher nolan 's 2008 batman movie the dark knight , and even dr who . but later this year , its distinctive chimneys -- the best-loved parts of one of london 's best-loved buildings -- will be demolished . then they will be built back up again . the chimneys are the most powerful part of the icon , ' says jim eyre , director of wilkinson eyre , the architects commissioned to develop the building . take them away , and you do n't have an icon . the coal fumes has decayed the concrete , so they have to come down . but we 're going to painstakingly reconstruct them . ' such will be the attention to detail that even the paint used will be precisely the same hue . and it will be sourced from the same manufacturer that provided the paint for the original chimneys , more than 80 years ago . the replacement of the chimneys is just the first stage in a development that will change battersea power station forever , arousing a passionate debate . a london icon the power station was built in the thirties as a functioning coal-fired electricity generator . but the building was so distinctive that it became recognized as a valuable part of the cityscape . the station stopped functioning in 1983 , and has since fallen into disrepair . it 's vast -- st paul 's cathedral , another of london 's landmarks , could snugly fit into its old turbine rooms -- and over the years it has acquired the status of one of the architectural world 's best-known white elephants . now , funded by malaysian developers , work is underway to transform the building into a massive complex of retail space , offices , and luxury villas ' . crowning the top of the development , at a height of more than 160 feet , there will be a roof garden . the first phase will be completed in 2016 . eyre 's plans for the chimneys are emblematic of his approach towards developing the site . two of them are still going to be used as flues for the massive , modern energy center that we 're going to construct to power the place , ' he says . the third will remain hollow with a glass roof , and the fourth will house a cylindrical glass elevator that will pop out at the top at a viewing platform . ' although the massive central cavity will be split into five floors and stuffed with stores and offices , eyre has included several areas where a cut-out ' will allow a glimpse of the distant ceiling . there was a temptation to fill it right to the edges , ' he says . but when you enter the building , there will be an opening into a big space that will preserve the stunning sense of volume . ' care will be taken to protect a flavor of the past on the inside , too . in an approach that eyre calls light renovation ' , graffiti and the stains of age will not be scrubbed clean or painted over . as part of the development , the building will be surrounded by large , modern office and retail blocks , with the flanks of the power station obscured from many angles . many feel that this is a shame , while others argue that this is the price for attracting investment to the site . questions have been raised , however , over the price of the new apartments . at £2,000 per square foot , they will cost the same as those in the golden postcodes ' of kensington and chelsea and parts of westminster . for an icon that represents all of london , that seems a little exclusive . i am aware of that , ' he says . the control room , for instance , is a wonderful example of art deco extravagance . it would be easy to turn it into a restaurant , but it would be a very expensive restaurant . instead it will be a space for public events , like fashion shows . ' controversial restoration the development of the battersea power station has re-opened the highly-charged debate about whether -- and how -- iconic buildings should be preserved , modified or replaced , and who they belong ' to . in this age of technology , fast-paced social change and innovation , many see it as the most important architectural dilemma of our times . sir terry farrell , one of britain 's foremost architects hose credits include everything from charing cross station to the mi6 headquarters on the banks of the thames , is sharply critical of eyre 's design . i think it 's rather sad , ' he told cnn . there 's quite a fashion for keeping the outside appearance of a building at the expense of the interior . when you 're inside battersea power station , you wo n't know it because the corridors , shops and apartments will be the same as everywhere else . ' my feeling is that it 's the sheer opportunity to get a couple of million square feet in there . under the pretext of keeping the shell of the building , you 're getting planning consent for a lot of space . in london , you can charge £2,000 per square foot . that 's quite a lot of money , and i can see the temptation . but there are other ways that could work just as well . ' farrell 's own design for the site , which was not taken forward because of fears over planning permission , would have turned the power station into an iconic ruin ' standing over a massive public space . it would have been made financially viable by the construction of high-value apartments around the power station . i said that what we should do is remove the walls but retain the colonnade , and make the whole interior a park , ' he said . it would be like a giant abbey ruins , or a greek temple with just the columns and no roof . the key features , like the control rooms , would be kept exactly in the place they occurred on legs . ' this , he argued , would enable people to go in and feel the space ' . you would understand far more what it used to be . it would be a sort of monument , ' he said . it would be far better than going to a shopping center , or a luxury home , and saying ,'do you realize this used to be battersea power station ?'' such controversy is only to be expected when the future of such an important building as this is at stake . and the more iconic a building , the more forensic critics of its redevelopment will be . eye-popping vertical : photos give hong kong skyscrapers a radical new look the enduring allure of steam trains : a nostalgic journey back in time a rare snoop inside homes of some of the world 's greatest living architects | malaysian developers are funding the station 's transformation into offices and luxury villas |
cnn <tsp> it 's finally legal to swim off the shore of orange beach , alabama , after a crowd of sharks dispersed into deeper waters tuesday , officials say . the trouble on orange beach began friday when a helicopter pilot took a picture of five sharks circling a boat near perdido pass . the pilot relayed the picture to the city administrator , who told lifeguards to get swimmers out of the water . what on earth eats a 9-foot great white ? on saturday afternoon , double red flags -- warnings to would-be swimmers to stay out of the gulf of mexico -- were raised over the half-mile stretch of beach where the number of sharks continued to grow . there have been a significant amount of shark sightings prompting us to close the water in these areas . it is unlawful to enter the water when double red flags are flying , ' read a saturday post on the orange beach fire department 's facebook page . from that point , the situation only got worse . orange beach safety director melvin shepard , who says swarms like this are extremely rare , told cnn he saw a photo of 18 sharks in the same stretch of water sunday . i 've lived on the coast here my whole life , and i 've never seen a group of sharks as large as this one , ' said shepard . so what 's drawing the sharks ? shepard has a hunch . coastal alabama is known for its fresh seafood , and fishing boats are a common sight on the horizon . it 's customary for fishermen returning to port to clean their catch and dump the waste material -- heads , tails , guts , bones -- into the water , leaving it to the mercy of the tides . when the water gets pulled out into the gulf , the carcasses go with it . ... if ( sharks ) see a free meal , they 're going to come get it , ' shepard said . drawn ever closer to the source of their free lunches , the sharks could have entered waters close to shore , setting off the dangerous state of affairs in orange beach . the sharks began to move away from the beach monday . according to the fire department 's facebook page , aerial reports from that evening showed substantial dissipation in the sharks'ranks . it was not until early tuesday afternoon that orange beach was given the all-clear . the ban on entering the water was lifted after officials aerially observed only a few sharks off the jetties at perdido pass . rare goblin shark was n't the only thing that surfaced human remains found in search for woman'taken'by large shark in australia | on sunday , photo showed 18 sharks in same stretch of water , official tells cnn |
timberlake <tsp> los angeles ( cnn ) -- a homeless man included in a mock video produced by a friend of justin timberlake 's for the actor-singer 's wedding celebration wants timberlake to visit him on skid row . lawyer gloria allred , known for representing clients with high-profile complaints , held a news conference on skid row in downtown los angeles monday to publicize the demands of the man , identified only as eddie . i just want justin timberlake to come and talk to me about the things he can do to help us people that 's down and out and that 's lost things in our lives and not back on track , ' said eddie , ' who appeared at the news conference with allred . allred also challenged timberlake and his friends to take action to provide meaningful assistance to eddie and others like him . ' this issue is not just about fans being upset or anyone being offended by a video , ' allred said . it is about people being down on their luck and in desperate need of help by those who are in a position to provide it . mr. timberlake , you , and your friends and others are in a position to provide that help . ' mr. and mrs. timberlake help bring sandy relief the short video -- titled greetings from your hollywood friends who just could n't make it ' -- was not shown at the wedding of timberlake an jessica biel , which took place in italy in october . but allred said it was produced for a related event . eddie was one of several people who live on the streets of los angeles who are seen wishing the celebrity couple well in their marriage . jessica and justin , i have n't seen y'all in a long time . my gift is in the mail , ' eddie said in his clip . while he was paid $ 40 to appear on the video , eddie said he had no idea it would make fun of him or his friends . we 're human beings and we need to be noticed and appreciated , just like other people , ' he told reporters . not just to take a video of a person and put it in a rich wedding and everybody laugh about it , or whatever , like it was a joke on the homeless people . ' timberlake posted a letter on his website apologizing for the silly , unsavory ' video , which he said was produced by a knucklehead ' friend without his cooperation or knowledge . i do n't live my life making fun of people ( unless , of course , i 'm making fun of myself on snl ) ... especially , those who are less fortunate or those in need , ' timberlake wrote . i grew up with a family and community that instilled ideals in me like hard work , honesty and empathy . ' while timberlake said he had no involvement in making it , by association , i am holding myself accountable . ' eddie , who has lived on the streets for six or seven years , ' said he was hoping for a job as a clerk , custodian , caretaker or construction worker . once upon a time , i did have a job and was living good , and my mother passed and a lot of things hurt me within myself and by me not having a job , i kind of fell short of money , ' he said . and you know , if you do n't have any finances , you do n't have nothing to pay rent or anything like that you become on the street . ' next friday is his 58th birthday , but he 'll spend it on the street , just like this christmas , he said . his only family members are two daughters who live in another state , he said . timberlake 's representative did not immediately respond to cnn 's request for comment on eddie 's call for help . cnn 's jack hannah contributed to this report . | i do n't live my life making fun of people , ' timberlake says |
timberlake <tsp> los angeles ( cnn ) -- a homeless man included in a mock video produced by a friend of justin timberlake 's for the actor-singer 's wedding celebration wants timberlake to visit him on skid row . lawyer gloria allred , known for representing clients with high-profile complaints , held a news conference on skid row in downtown los angeles monday to publicize the demands of the man , identified only as eddie . i just want justin timberlake to come and talk to me about the things he can do to help us people that 's down and out and that 's lost things in our lives and not back on track , ' said eddie , ' who appeared at the news conference with allred . allred also challenged timberlake and his friends to take action to provide meaningful assistance to eddie and others like him . ' this issue is not just about fans being upset or anyone being offended by a video , ' allred said . it is about people being down on their luck and in desperate need of help by those who are in a position to provide it . mr. timberlake , you , and your friends and others are in a position to provide that help . ' mr. and mrs. timberlake help bring sandy relief the short video -- titled greetings from your hollywood friends who just could n't make it ' -- was not shown at the wedding of timberlake an jessica biel , which took place in italy in october . but allred said it was produced for a related event . eddie was one of several people who live on the streets of los angeles who are seen wishing the celebrity couple well in their marriage . jessica and justin , i have n't seen y'all in a long time . my gift is in the mail , ' eddie said in his clip . while he was paid $ 40 to appear on the video , eddie said he had no idea it would make fun of him or his friends . we 're human beings and we need to be noticed and appreciated , just like other people , ' he told reporters . not just to take a video of a person and put it in a rich wedding and everybody laugh about it , or whatever , like it was a joke on the homeless people . ' timberlake posted a letter on his website apologizing for the silly , unsavory ' video , which he said was produced by a knucklehead ' friend without his cooperation or knowledge . i do n't live my life making fun of people ( unless , of course , i 'm making fun of myself on snl ) ... especially , those who are less fortunate or those in need , ' timberlake wrote . i grew up with a family and community that instilled ideals in me like hard work , honesty and empathy . ' while timberlake said he had no involvement in making it , by association , i am holding myself accountable . ' eddie , who has lived on the streets for six or seven years , ' said he was hoping for a job as a clerk , custodian , caretaker or construction worker . once upon a time , i did have a job and was living good , and my mother passed and a lot of things hurt me within myself and by me not having a job , i kind of fell short of money , ' he said . and you know , if you do n't have any finances , you do n't have nothing to pay rent or anything like that you become on the street . ' next friday is his 58th birthday , but he 'll spend it on the street , just like this christmas , he said . his only family members are two daughters who live in another state , he said . timberlake 's representative did not immediately respond to cnn 's request for comment on eddie 's call for help . cnn 's jack hannah contributed to this report . | i just want justin timberlake to come and talk to me , ' homeless man tells reporters |
timberlake <tsp> los angeles ( cnn ) -- a homeless man included in a mock video produced by a friend of justin timberlake 's for the actor-singer 's wedding celebration wants timberlake to visit him on skid row . lawyer gloria allred , known for representing clients with high-profile complaints , held a news conference on skid row in downtown los angeles monday to publicize the demands of the man , identified only as eddie . i just want justin timberlake to come and talk to me about the things he can do to help us people that 's down and out and that 's lost things in our lives and not back on track , ' said eddie , ' who appeared at the news conference with allred . allred also challenged timberlake and his friends to take action to provide meaningful assistance to eddie and others like him . ' this issue is not just about fans being upset or anyone being offended by a video , ' allred said . it is about people being down on their luck and in desperate need of help by those who are in a position to provide it . mr. timberlake , you , and your friends and others are in a position to provide that help . ' mr. and mrs. timberlake help bring sandy relief the short video -- titled greetings from your hollywood friends who just could n't make it ' -- was not shown at the wedding of timberlake an jessica biel , which took place in italy in october . but allred said it was produced for a related event . eddie was one of several people who live on the streets of los angeles who are seen wishing the celebrity couple well in their marriage . jessica and justin , i have n't seen y'all in a long time . my gift is in the mail , ' eddie said in his clip . while he was paid $ 40 to appear on the video , eddie said he had no idea it would make fun of him or his friends . we 're human beings and we need to be noticed and appreciated , just like other people , ' he told reporters . not just to take a video of a person and put it in a rich wedding and everybody laugh about it , or whatever , like it was a joke on the homeless people . ' timberlake posted a letter on his website apologizing for the silly , unsavory ' video , which he said was produced by a knucklehead ' friend without his cooperation or knowledge . i do n't live my life making fun of people ( unless , of course , i 'm making fun of myself on snl ) ... especially , those who are less fortunate or those in need , ' timberlake wrote . i grew up with a family and community that instilled ideals in me like hard work , honesty and empathy . ' while timberlake said he had no involvement in making it , by association , i am holding myself accountable . ' eddie , who has lived on the streets for six or seven years , ' said he was hoping for a job as a clerk , custodian , caretaker or construction worker . once upon a time , i did have a job and was living good , and my mother passed and a lot of things hurt me within myself and by me not having a job , i kind of fell short of money , ' he said . and you know , if you do n't have any finances , you do n't have nothing to pay rent or anything like that you become on the street . ' next friday is his 58th birthday , but he 'll spend it on the street , just like this christmas , he said . his only family members are two daughters who live in another state , he said . timberlake 's representative did not immediately respond to cnn 's request for comment on eddie 's call for help . cnn 's jack hannah contributed to this report . | timberlake apologized for the silly , unsavory ' video , which a knucklehead ' friend made |
timberlake <tsp> los angeles ( cnn ) -- a homeless man included in a mock video produced by a friend of justin timberlake 's for the actor-singer 's wedding celebration wants timberlake to visit him on skid row . lawyer gloria allred , known for representing clients with high-profile complaints , held a news conference on skid row in downtown los angeles monday to publicize the demands of the man , identified only as eddie . i just want justin timberlake to come and talk to me about the things he can do to help us people that 's down and out and that 's lost things in our lives and not back on track , ' said eddie , ' who appeared at the news conference with allred . allred also challenged timberlake and his friends to take action to provide meaningful assistance to eddie and others like him . ' this issue is not just about fans being upset or anyone being offended by a video , ' allred said . it is about people being down on their luck and in desperate need of help by those who are in a position to provide it . mr. timberlake , you , and your friends and others are in a position to provide that help . ' mr. and mrs. timberlake help bring sandy relief the short video -- titled greetings from your hollywood friends who just could n't make it ' -- was not shown at the wedding of timberlake an jessica biel , which took place in italy in october . but allred said it was produced for a related event . eddie was one of several people who live on the streets of los angeles who are seen wishing the celebrity couple well in their marriage . jessica and justin , i have n't seen y'all in a long time . my gift is in the mail , ' eddie said in his clip . while he was paid $ 40 to appear on the video , eddie said he had no idea it would make fun of him or his friends . we 're human beings and we need to be noticed and appreciated , just like other people , ' he told reporters . not just to take a video of a person and put it in a rich wedding and everybody laugh about it , or whatever , like it was a joke on the homeless people . ' timberlake posted a letter on his website apologizing for the silly , unsavory ' video , which he said was produced by a knucklehead ' friend without his cooperation or knowledge . i do n't live my life making fun of people ( unless , of course , i 'm making fun of myself on snl ) ... especially , those who are less fortunate or those in need , ' timberlake wrote . i grew up with a family and community that instilled ideals in me like hard work , honesty and empathy . ' while timberlake said he had no involvement in making it , by association , i am holding myself accountable . ' eddie , who has lived on the streets for six or seven years , ' said he was hoping for a job as a clerk , custodian , caretaker or construction worker . once upon a time , i did have a job and was living good , and my mother passed and a lot of things hurt me within myself and by me not having a job , i kind of fell short of money , ' he said . and you know , if you do n't have any finances , you do n't have nothing to pay rent or anything like that you become on the street . ' next friday is his 58th birthday , but he 'll spend it on the street , just like this christmas , he said . his only family members are two daughters who live in another state , he said . timberlake 's representative did not immediately respond to cnn 's request for comment on eddie 's call for help . cnn 's jack hannah contributed to this report . | lawyer gloria allred challenges timberlake to help eddie and other homeless get jobs |
peer <tsp> dubai , united arab emirates ( cnn ) -- the united arab emirates has refused to grant a visa to a female israeli tennis player , preventing her from competing in the sony ericsson world tennis association tour in dubai , the wta said in a statement sunday . the uae has refused to grant a visa allowing shahar peer to compete in dubai . shahar peer would have been the first israeli athlete to participate in a professional sporting event in the uae , cnn sports correspondent pedro pinto said . the uae has no diplomatic ties with israel . peer told cnn on sunday evening she was very , very disappointed ' to be denied access to the tournament . any player that qualifies should attend , and i was prevented , ' she said from israel . i 'm glad the wta support me . a red line was crossed for every athlete in the world -- politics should be kept separate from sports . ' the governing body of women 's tennis said it was deeply disappointed ' that peer was being denied entry to the country hosting the tournament , but it did not cancel the competition , which began sunday . the move runs counter to wta policy , which says no player should be barred from competing in a tournament for which she has qualified . dubai could lose its membership in the wta tour next year over the ban on peer , according to wta rules . that would mean professional players could compete only in exhibition matches in dubai , the results of which would not count in pro rankings . government officials in dubai have not responded to cnn 's request to comment over their refusal to allow peer to compete in the event . ms . peer has earned the right to play in the tournament , and it is regrettable that the uae is denying her this right , ' said larry scott , chairman and chief executive of the tour . watch scott express disappointment » ' following various consultations , the tour has decided to allow the tournament to continue to be played this week , pending further review by the tour 's board of directors . ' the patron of the dubai tennis championships is dubai 's ruler , sheikh mohammed bin rashid al-makhtoum . two million dollars in prize money is on the line . al-makhtoum told cnn in 2004 that dubai would accept israeli students to a school dedicated to students from the middle east who are talented at sports . in 2003 , dubai hosted world bank and international monetary fund meetings , which israeli government officials attended . the israeli flag -- among other member states'flags -- is still part of a globe monument in dubai . peer , 21 , is ranked 48th in the world among female tennis players . she was allowed to compete at the doha tournament in qatar last year , where she received a warm welcome , according to israeli daily newspaper haaretz . qatar , another gulf arab state , froze diplomatic ties with israel after israel 's military offensive in gaza last month . peer downplayed the political undertones of her participation in last year 's doha tournament , telling haaretz that she did n't come to qatar to help the politics of course . ' but she added that if her playing in the tournament can help for peace or anything , i 'd be really happy . ' scott said the tour will review appropriate remedies for ms . peer ' as well as appropriate future actions with regard to the future of the dubai tournament . ' peer was advised saturday by tournament and wta officials of the denial of her visa while she was participating in a tournament in pattaya , thailand , according to a wta statement . the dubai tennis championships runs through february 28 . | new : shahar peer , female israeli tennis player , says she 's very , very disappointed ' |
peer <tsp> dubai , united arab emirates ( cnn ) -- the united arab emirates has refused to grant a visa to a female israeli tennis player , preventing her from competing in the sony ericsson world tennis association tour in dubai , the wta said in a statement sunday . the uae has refused to grant a visa allowing shahar peer to compete in dubai . shahar peer would have been the first israeli athlete to participate in a professional sporting event in the uae , cnn sports correspondent pedro pinto said . the uae has no diplomatic ties with israel . peer told cnn on sunday evening she was very , very disappointed ' to be denied access to the tournament . any player that qualifies should attend , and i was prevented , ' she said from israel . i 'm glad the wta support me . a red line was crossed for every athlete in the world -- politics should be kept separate from sports . ' the governing body of women 's tennis said it was deeply disappointed ' that peer was being denied entry to the country hosting the tournament , but it did not cancel the competition , which began sunday . the move runs counter to wta policy , which says no player should be barred from competing in a tournament for which she has qualified . dubai could lose its membership in the wta tour next year over the ban on peer , according to wta rules . that would mean professional players could compete only in exhibition matches in dubai , the results of which would not count in pro rankings . government officials in dubai have not responded to cnn 's request to comment over their refusal to allow peer to compete in the event . ms . peer has earned the right to play in the tournament , and it is regrettable that the uae is denying her this right , ' said larry scott , chairman and chief executive of the tour . watch scott express disappointment » ' following various consultations , the tour has decided to allow the tournament to continue to be played this week , pending further review by the tour 's board of directors . ' the patron of the dubai tennis championships is dubai 's ruler , sheikh mohammed bin rashid al-makhtoum . two million dollars in prize money is on the line . al-makhtoum told cnn in 2004 that dubai would accept israeli students to a school dedicated to students from the middle east who are talented at sports . in 2003 , dubai hosted world bank and international monetary fund meetings , which israeli government officials attended . the israeli flag -- among other member states'flags -- is still part of a globe monument in dubai . peer , 21 , is ranked 48th in the world among female tennis players . she was allowed to compete at the doha tournament in qatar last year , where she received a warm welcome , according to israeli daily newspaper haaretz . qatar , another gulf arab state , froze diplomatic ties with israel after israel 's military offensive in gaza last month . peer downplayed the political undertones of her participation in last year 's doha tournament , telling haaretz that she did n't come to qatar to help the politics of course . ' but she added that if her playing in the tournament can help for peace or anything , i 'd be really happy . ' scott said the tour will review appropriate remedies for ms . peer ' as well as appropriate future actions with regard to the future of the dubai tournament . ' peer was advised saturday by tournament and wta officials of the denial of her visa while she was participating in a tournament in pattaya , thailand , according to a wta statement . the dubai tennis championships runs through february 28 . | united arab emirates refuses to grant a visa to peer |
peer <tsp> dubai , united arab emirates ( cnn ) -- the united arab emirates has refused to grant a visa to a female israeli tennis player , preventing her from competing in the sony ericsson world tennis association tour in dubai , the wta said in a statement sunday . the uae has refused to grant a visa allowing shahar peer to compete in dubai . shahar peer would have been the first israeli athlete to participate in a professional sporting event in the uae , cnn sports correspondent pedro pinto said . the uae has no diplomatic ties with israel . peer told cnn on sunday evening she was very , very disappointed ' to be denied access to the tournament . any player that qualifies should attend , and i was prevented , ' she said from israel . i 'm glad the wta support me . a red line was crossed for every athlete in the world -- politics should be kept separate from sports . ' the governing body of women 's tennis said it was deeply disappointed ' that peer was being denied entry to the country hosting the tournament , but it did not cancel the competition , which began sunday . the move runs counter to wta policy , which says no player should be barred from competing in a tournament for which she has qualified . dubai could lose its membership in the wta tour next year over the ban on peer , according to wta rules . that would mean professional players could compete only in exhibition matches in dubai , the results of which would not count in pro rankings . government officials in dubai have not responded to cnn 's request to comment over their refusal to allow peer to compete in the event . ms . peer has earned the right to play in the tournament , and it is regrettable that the uae is denying her this right , ' said larry scott , chairman and chief executive of the tour . watch scott express disappointment » ' following various consultations , the tour has decided to allow the tournament to continue to be played this week , pending further review by the tour 's board of directors . ' the patron of the dubai tennis championships is dubai 's ruler , sheikh mohammed bin rashid al-makhtoum . two million dollars in prize money is on the line . al-makhtoum told cnn in 2004 that dubai would accept israeli students to a school dedicated to students from the middle east who are talented at sports . in 2003 , dubai hosted world bank and international monetary fund meetings , which israeli government officials attended . the israeli flag -- among other member states'flags -- is still part of a globe monument in dubai . peer , 21 , is ranked 48th in the world among female tennis players . she was allowed to compete at the doha tournament in qatar last year , where she received a warm welcome , according to israeli daily newspaper haaretz . qatar , another gulf arab state , froze diplomatic ties with israel after israel 's military offensive in gaza last month . peer downplayed the political undertones of her participation in last year 's doha tournament , telling haaretz that she did n't come to qatar to help the politics of course . ' but she added that if her playing in the tournament can help for peace or anything , i 'd be really happy . ' scott said the tour will review appropriate remedies for ms . peer ' as well as appropriate future actions with regard to the future of the dubai tournament . ' peer was advised saturday by tournament and wta officials of the denial of her visa while she was participating in a tournament in pattaya , thailand , according to a wta statement . the dubai tennis championships runs through february 28 . | peer needed the visa to play in the dubai tennis championships |
grand prix <tsp> ( cnn ) -- lewis hamilton reserved a barnstorming final lap in qualifying for the spanish grand prix to take his fourth pole of the season saturday . with his 35th career pole , hamilton relegated mercedes teammate nico rosberg to second on the grid as he bids for his fourth straight win of the season . victory in sunday 's race would see hamilton leapfrog rosberg in the world title standings and would be his first at the circuit of catalunya . but it proved another sorry afternoon for four-time defending champion sebastian vettel , who could not take part in the final part of qualifying after losing drive ' in his red bull , and was later penalized five grid places for a gearbox change . it left him 15th on the grid , while teammate daniel ricciardo of australia again impressed by claiming third spot , although over a second slower on his lap than hamilton . finn valtteri bottas took a fine fourth for the revived williams team , with romain grosjean giving lotus a boost in fifth . ferrari 's home hero fernando alonso had hoped to give his vast following in barcelona something to cheer , but had to settle for seventh on the grid , being out qualified by his teammate kimi raikkonen . rosberg had raised hopes he could take pole ahead of hamilton by being fastest in third practice and then in the opening two sessions of final qualifying . but hamilton showed his superiority despite doubts he would have to give second best , clocking a time of one minute 25.232 seconds . nico ( rosberg ) has been driving really well through p3 and qualifying , so i did n't know if i could get it . at the end , i had to eek out everything and more from the car , ' he said . to have the kind of performance we have , i have never really known that before . i 'm overwhelmed , so happy . ' jenson button for mclaren , felipe massa in the second williams and nico hulkenberg for sauber , who narrowly missed out on final qualifying , round out the top 10 . | lewis hamilton takes pole for spanish grand prix in barcelona |
gu <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the downfall of senior communist party princeling ' bo xilai has become one of the most closely watched political scandals in china . culminating in a suspended death sentence for a murder charge against his wife , gu kailai , the veritable soap opera offers a glimpse into the workings of the highest echelons of the chinese government , which is preparing for a once-in-a-decade leadership transition this fall . november 14 , 2011 briton neil heywood is found dead in a hotel room in chongqing , a municipality in southwestern china . authorities later rule the cause of death was alcohol poisoning , and his body is cremated . heywood had been working as a business consultant in china for more than a decade . his death did not receive widespread attention until rumors of bo xilai 's alleged involvement arose in february . february 6 , 2012 bo 's right-hand man , chongqing police chief and deputy mayor , wang lijun flees to the u.s. consulate in chengdu . he stays one night before leaving of his own volition ' with chinese security forces , according to the u.s. state department . wang has not been seen in public since . the chongqing government releases a statement saying wang has gone on medical leave for stress . march 9 , 2012 at the annual national people 's congress meeting , bo speaks out at a press conference , dismissing the allegations against him and his family as sheer rubbish . ' a few people have been pouring filth on chongqing and me and my family , ' he said , rejecting western media reports that his son drove a ferrari . march 15 , 2012 the state-run xinhua news service announces that bo xilai has been stripped of his post as party secretary of chongqing . march 26 , 2012 the british foreign office confirms that in february it formally requested china to open a new inquiry in heywood 's death . in response to speculation that heywood was working as a spy in china , british foreign secretary william hague later announces that heywood was not an employee of the british government in any capacity . ' april 10 , 2012 xinhua announces that gu kailai and family employee zhang xiaojun have been transferred to judicial authorities on [ the ] suspected crime of intentional homicide . ' the same day , xinhua reports that bo has been suspended of his membership in the party 's politburo and the central committee -- the nation 's ruling bodies -- because of suspected serious breach of regulations . ' april 24 , 2012 a graduate student at harvard 's kennedy school of government , bo xilai 's son , bo guagua , makes his first public statement in the university 's newspaper . the 24-year-old denies rumors that he was living a playboy lifestyle while studying abroad but declines to comment on the ongoing investigation into his parents . june 13 , 2012 a french architect believed to be a close associate of gu kailai , patrick devillers , is arrested at his home by local police in phnom penh at china 's request . cambodian police later say that devillers , 52 , flew from cambodia to china on july 17 of his own accord to assist chinese authorities with their investigation into gu . devillers has denied any wrongdoing . july 26 , 2012 gu kailai and family employee zhang xiaojun are charged with intentional homicide ' and will be prosecuted in the hefei municipal court in anhui province , according to xinhua . it 's not clear whether gu and zhang have yet entered a plea because the legal proceedings have so far been behind closed doors . meanwhile , bo and the two suspects in the case have been kept out of the public eye since march and are unreachable for comment . august 20 , 2012 following a one-day trial on august 9 , the court delivered a guilty verdict for gu kailai in the murder in the death of neil heywood . it gave her a suspended death sentence , which is expected to be commuted to life in prison if gu does not commit crimes during a two-year reprieve . family aide zhang xiaojun was also found guilty in heywood 's death and sentenced to nine years in prison . | court finds gu kailai guilty of murdering neil heywood and gives her suspended death sentence |
gu <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the downfall of senior communist party princeling ' bo xilai has become one of the most closely watched political scandals in china . culminating in a suspended death sentence for a murder charge against his wife , gu kailai , the veritable soap opera offers a glimpse into the workings of the highest echelons of the chinese government , which is preparing for a once-in-a-decade leadership transition this fall . november 14 , 2011 briton neil heywood is found dead in a hotel room in chongqing , a municipality in southwestern china . authorities later rule the cause of death was alcohol poisoning , and his body is cremated . heywood had been working as a business consultant in china for more than a decade . his death did not receive widespread attention until rumors of bo xilai 's alleged involvement arose in february . february 6 , 2012 bo 's right-hand man , chongqing police chief and deputy mayor , wang lijun flees to the u.s. consulate in chengdu . he stays one night before leaving of his own volition ' with chinese security forces , according to the u.s. state department . wang has not been seen in public since . the chongqing government releases a statement saying wang has gone on medical leave for stress . march 9 , 2012 at the annual national people 's congress meeting , bo speaks out at a press conference , dismissing the allegations against him and his family as sheer rubbish . ' a few people have been pouring filth on chongqing and me and my family , ' he said , rejecting western media reports that his son drove a ferrari . march 15 , 2012 the state-run xinhua news service announces that bo xilai has been stripped of his post as party secretary of chongqing . march 26 , 2012 the british foreign office confirms that in february it formally requested china to open a new inquiry in heywood 's death . in response to speculation that heywood was working as a spy in china , british foreign secretary william hague later announces that heywood was not an employee of the british government in any capacity . ' april 10 , 2012 xinhua announces that gu kailai and family employee zhang xiaojun have been transferred to judicial authorities on [ the ] suspected crime of intentional homicide . ' the same day , xinhua reports that bo has been suspended of his membership in the party 's politburo and the central committee -- the nation 's ruling bodies -- because of suspected serious breach of regulations . ' april 24 , 2012 a graduate student at harvard 's kennedy school of government , bo xilai 's son , bo guagua , makes his first public statement in the university 's newspaper . the 24-year-old denies rumors that he was living a playboy lifestyle while studying abroad but declines to comment on the ongoing investigation into his parents . june 13 , 2012 a french architect believed to be a close associate of gu kailai , patrick devillers , is arrested at his home by local police in phnom penh at china 's request . cambodian police later say that devillers , 52 , flew from cambodia to china on july 17 of his own accord to assist chinese authorities with their investigation into gu . devillers has denied any wrongdoing . july 26 , 2012 gu kailai and family employee zhang xiaojun are charged with intentional homicide ' and will be prosecuted in the hefei municipal court in anhui province , according to xinhua . it 's not clear whether gu and zhang have yet entered a plea because the legal proceedings have so far been behind closed doors . meanwhile , bo and the two suspects in the case have been kept out of the public eye since march and are unreachable for comment . august 20 , 2012 following a one-day trial on august 9 , the court delivered a guilty verdict for gu kailai in the murder in the death of neil heywood . it gave her a suspended death sentence , which is expected to be commuted to life in prison if gu does not commit crimes during a two-year reprieve . family aide zhang xiaojun was also found guilty in heywood 's death and sentenced to nine years in prison . | sentence likely commuted to life in prison if gu does not commit crimes during two-year reprieve |
ferguson <tsp> ( cnn ) change is coming to ferguson . in the next few weeks the department of justice ( doj ) will begin to negotiate in earnest with the city to restructure the police department , which the department has charged with engaging in a pattern and practice of racial discrimination . it should not be forgotten that the doj review of the ferguson police department was precipitated by months of protests and activism following the killing of michael brown by a ferguson police officer and by revelations about the town 's dysfunctional government and court system by local civil rights law groups . now , after a half year of unrest , and with citizens on tuesday electing two new black city council members , change is beginning to come to ferguson . the question is , what kind of change ? the report from the department of justice offered a devastating insight into a police department and court system that preyed on its own citizens . through illegal traffic stops and arrests , and the use of excessive force , the police department held town residents in bondage . the municipal court system used excessive court fines and fees to ensure that citizens arrested for even minor infractions would be charged thousands of dollars or face jail time . court costs and fees constituted the second-largest sources of revenue for the town . rather than a force for public safety , the ferguson police department became , according to attorney general eric holder , a collection agency ' -- one that preyed disproportionately on the town 's african-american residents . the evidence of ugly and explicit racial discrimination was devastating . it included blatantly racist emails traded among officers , and evidence that african-americans were victims in all of the police canine bite incidents recorded by the department . but just a few weeks before the release of the report , the ferguson police chief declared there were no racial issues ' in his department . ferguson 's ugly , racist emails released the recommendations in the report , ranging from new training and supervision of police officers , addressing racially discriminatory conduct to structural revisions in the court system , will , if implemented , remake the law enforcement system in the town . ( a grand jury that investigated the shooting of brown by officer darren wilson chose not to file charges against him and the justice department also did n't find reason to prosecute . ) without question , change is coming to the town 's government . town manager john shaw , ferguson 's most powerful official and , until the doj 's blistering report , the one who inexplicably managed to elude public scrutiny , resigned weeks ago and has been replaced by the city 's deputy manager . three sitting city council members chose not to run for office again and , on tuesday , citizens elected two black candidates to the city council , changing its racial composition : five of six members and the mayor were white . now the council will be 50 % black . ferguson 's hapless police chief thomas jackson also finally resigned after holding on through a months-long display of astonishing incompetence . the department first drew the attention of the nation for its display of military weaponry and tear gas in response to civilian protests . the appointment of a commander from the state highway patrol was deemed necessary to begin quelling the unrest and to build community trust in the early days of the protest . jackson 's departure sent an important signal to the population of a town preyed upon by officers under his command . and so we can be certain that along with the new makeup of the city council , there will be a new police chief in ferguson . but does that mean that fundamental change will come to ferguson ? not necessarily . not unless protest and activism during this critical period turns to influence the vitally important opportunities that lie ahead in the coming weeks . the department of justice 's full-on negotiations with the leadership in ferguson will determine the shape of the new ferguson police department . indeed , the doj report alludes to the possibility of disbanding the department in favor of a regional policing integration with st. louis county . many local activists have suggested just such a solution , but given ongoing problems with policing in the county -- including the role of county forces in some of the most controversial clashes with activists in ferguson last fall -- community representatives will have to fight hard to ensure that the doj can fold st. louis county police into its monitoring and reform process . equally important were the april 7 general elections . turnout in municipal elections has been notoriously low in ferguson , with white voters nearly three times more likely to turn out than african-americans . but local groups had engaged in vigorous voter registration and get-out-the-vote campaigns .. the mayor has two years left to his term and has defiantly insisted that he will not resign ( although a petition for his recall has been circulating ) . that means that he will be a lead voice in negotiating with the doj to remake the police department . has he committed to a clear set of principles that will guide his participation in those talks ? community activists and residents must ensure that mayor james knowles plans to represent their vision of new ferguson police department . but there is an opportunity to begin thinking about even more ambitious structural change in ferguson and throughout st. louis county . ferguson 's governing structure , with a strong city manager and a weak council and mayor , mirrors that of thousands of other suburbs in the united states . that form of governance might have been precisely what thriving , middle class white suburbanites wanted when they fled racial integration in cities like st. louis . but working class suburbs like ferguson with a majority black population in which the needs of the population in the areas of education and economic opportunity more closely hews to the needs of urban residents , may need a more robust form of governance . in any case , a system in which the elected officials have minimal power , but non-elected leaders , like the town manager and the chief of police , have inordinate power , is a recipe for the kind of unaccountable , non-representative government that controlled ferguson 's residents . yet this precise form of government is in wide use across the country . likewise , missouri , like the vast majority of states , holds municipal elections in non-presidential election years , guaranteeing a significantly lower voter turnout -- although only a few states hold the primary and general election in march and april as missouri law requires ferguson to do . it 's not that ferguson is so different than towns across america . it 's precisely because ferguson holds up a mirror to flaws in our democratic system of government in towns across this country that the stakes are so high . ferguson residents now have the opportunity to begin a movement for change in the other 89 jurisdictions in st. louis county plagued by similar governance flaws , including those towns led by african-americans . and ferguson 's example should provoke self-examination in working class suburbs across the country , where the power and effectiveness of weak elected local government is inadequate to meet the needs of the population . change is coming to ferguson . but the scope and breadth of that change will depend upon the ambition and discipline of activists and residents , whose passion and tenacity have already transformed the trajectory of leadership in a typical american town . | she says ferguson faces other changes , too , that should spur rethinking in working class suburbs across america |
america <tsp> ( cnn ) change is coming to ferguson . in the next few weeks the department of justice ( doj ) will begin to negotiate in earnest with the city to restructure the police department , which the department has charged with engaging in a pattern and practice of racial discrimination . it should not be forgotten that the doj review of the ferguson police department was precipitated by months of protests and activism following the killing of michael brown by a ferguson police officer and by revelations about the town 's dysfunctional government and court system by local civil rights law groups . now , after a half year of unrest , and with citizens on tuesday electing two new black city council members , change is beginning to come to ferguson . the question is , what kind of change ? the report from the department of justice offered a devastating insight into a police department and court system that preyed on its own citizens . through illegal traffic stops and arrests , and the use of excessive force , the police department held town residents in bondage . the municipal court system used excessive court fines and fees to ensure that citizens arrested for even minor infractions would be charged thousands of dollars or face jail time . court costs and fees constituted the second-largest sources of revenue for the town . rather than a force for public safety , the ferguson police department became , according to attorney general eric holder , a collection agency ' -- one that preyed disproportionately on the town 's african-american residents . the evidence of ugly and explicit racial discrimination was devastating . it included blatantly racist emails traded among officers , and evidence that african-americans were victims in all of the police canine bite incidents recorded by the department . but just a few weeks before the release of the report , the ferguson police chief declared there were no racial issues ' in his department . ferguson 's ugly , racist emails released the recommendations in the report , ranging from new training and supervision of police officers , addressing racially discriminatory conduct to structural revisions in the court system , will , if implemented , remake the law enforcement system in the town . ( a grand jury that investigated the shooting of brown by officer darren wilson chose not to file charges against him and the justice department also did n't find reason to prosecute . ) without question , change is coming to the town 's government . town manager john shaw , ferguson 's most powerful official and , until the doj 's blistering report , the one who inexplicably managed to elude public scrutiny , resigned weeks ago and has been replaced by the city 's deputy manager . three sitting city council members chose not to run for office again and , on tuesday , citizens elected two black candidates to the city council , changing its racial composition : five of six members and the mayor were white . now the council will be 50 % black . ferguson 's hapless police chief thomas jackson also finally resigned after holding on through a months-long display of astonishing incompetence . the department first drew the attention of the nation for its display of military weaponry and tear gas in response to civilian protests . the appointment of a commander from the state highway patrol was deemed necessary to begin quelling the unrest and to build community trust in the early days of the protest . jackson 's departure sent an important signal to the population of a town preyed upon by officers under his command . and so we can be certain that along with the new makeup of the city council , there will be a new police chief in ferguson . but does that mean that fundamental change will come to ferguson ? not necessarily . not unless protest and activism during this critical period turns to influence the vitally important opportunities that lie ahead in the coming weeks . the department of justice 's full-on negotiations with the leadership in ferguson will determine the shape of the new ferguson police department . indeed , the doj report alludes to the possibility of disbanding the department in favor of a regional policing integration with st. louis county . many local activists have suggested just such a solution , but given ongoing problems with policing in the county -- including the role of county forces in some of the most controversial clashes with activists in ferguson last fall -- community representatives will have to fight hard to ensure that the doj can fold st. louis county police into its monitoring and reform process . equally important were the april 7 general elections . turnout in municipal elections has been notoriously low in ferguson , with white voters nearly three times more likely to turn out than african-americans . but local groups had engaged in vigorous voter registration and get-out-the-vote campaigns .. the mayor has two years left to his term and has defiantly insisted that he will not resign ( although a petition for his recall has been circulating ) . that means that he will be a lead voice in negotiating with the doj to remake the police department . has he committed to a clear set of principles that will guide his participation in those talks ? community activists and residents must ensure that mayor james knowles plans to represent their vision of new ferguson police department . but there is an opportunity to begin thinking about even more ambitious structural change in ferguson and throughout st. louis county . ferguson 's governing structure , with a strong city manager and a weak council and mayor , mirrors that of thousands of other suburbs in the united states . that form of governance might have been precisely what thriving , middle class white suburbanites wanted when they fled racial integration in cities like st. louis . but working class suburbs like ferguson with a majority black population in which the needs of the population in the areas of education and economic opportunity more closely hews to the needs of urban residents , may need a more robust form of governance . in any case , a system in which the elected officials have minimal power , but non-elected leaders , like the town manager and the chief of police , have inordinate power , is a recipe for the kind of unaccountable , non-representative government that controlled ferguson 's residents . yet this precise form of government is in wide use across the country . likewise , missouri , like the vast majority of states , holds municipal elections in non-presidential election years , guaranteeing a significantly lower voter turnout -- although only a few states hold the primary and general election in march and april as missouri law requires ferguson to do . it 's not that ferguson is so different than towns across america . it 's precisely because ferguson holds up a mirror to flaws in our democratic system of government in towns across this country that the stakes are so high . ferguson residents now have the opportunity to begin a movement for change in the other 89 jurisdictions in st. louis county plagued by similar governance flaws , including those towns led by african-americans . and ferguson 's example should provoke self-examination in working class suburbs across the country , where the power and effectiveness of weak elected local government is inadequate to meet the needs of the population . change is coming to ferguson . but the scope and breadth of that change will depend upon the ambition and discipline of activists and residents , whose passion and tenacity have already transformed the trajectory of leadership in a typical american town . | she says ferguson faces other changes , too , that should spur rethinking in working class suburbs across america |
nba <tsp> the naacp needs to sit down . though it 's debatable how effective a punishment donald sterling 's lifetime ban from the nba will be -- considering that for the time being , he still owns and thus profits from the l.a. clippers -- the one voice that should not be involved in this discussion is that of the naacp . not after news that the los angeles chapter was prepared to bestow upon the disgraced sterling -- whose racist behavior has long been known -- a second lifetime achievement award next month . ( the offer , not surprisingly , has been withdrawn . ) on tuesday , after nba commissioner adam silver brought down punishment on sterling , the naacp added its voice to a joint statement with the national urban league , the national action network and the national coalition on black civic participation that said sterling 's long-established pattern of bigotry and racist comments have not been a secret in the nba ... yet until now , they have been tolerated and met with a gentle hand and a blind eye . ' say what ? tax records accessed on citizenaudit.org , according to an article in the huffington post , revealed that the naacp 's l.a. branch had been party to the sanitizing of sterling 's legacy . how ? the group has received $ 45,000 from sterling 's foundations , which , given the real-estate mogul 's net worth of nearly $ 2 billion , is peanuts . the phrase sell out ' is one that gets tossed around , but for some reason , it does n't quite cover the naacp 's l.a. chapter in this case . the first time sterling was awarded a lifetime achievement award by the group was in the midst of a lawsuit for housing discrimination based upon race . to decide to honor him with the award a second time , after he had paid millions to settle multiple discrimination suits , after learning that he allegedly said that all the blacks in this building , they smell , they 're not clean ' and mexicans ... just sit around and smoke and drink all day ... so we have to get them out of here , ' is not selling out . selling out makes financial sense . no , considering what $ 45,000 means to a man of sterling 's wealth , honoring him with awards is just giving integrity away . i understand that sterling has donated to other black groups and established a scholarships for black students at ucla . and while that 's a positive , i also understand that such donations are tax-deductible and do not require him to actually be around black people . something , according to the now-infamous recordings , he is not a big fan of . at least not at his games . the naacp 's willful blind spot is particularly disturbing when you consider the growing wealth gap between blacks and whites in this country and that the biggest factors in that gap are fair housing and education . how could an organization supposedly dedicated to the economic advancement of blacks honor someone the department of justice said was working against its mission ? this curiosity is very similar to the new york chapter of the naacp joining a lawsuit with the united federation of teachers in 2011 in an effort to squeeze out successful charter schools and protect failing traditional public schools . thousands of parents , many of them minorities , protested . as was the case with the l.a. chapter , money reportedly was a factor in the new york chapter 's allegiance . it 's fine for the national organization to characterize questionable decision-making by local chapters as anomalies , but it 's hard to view the goings-on in new york and los angeles , the two largest cities in the country , as just being local . no , instead of worrying about joining in the censure of sterling , the naacp -- which is currently searching for a new executive director -- should worry about itself . when the naacp held a funeral for the n-word in 2007 , it felt as if the organization had buried its relevance beside it . it did n't help that the person helping lead the ceremony was former detroit mayor/felon kwame kilpatrick . yeah . in light of the crippling socioeconomic impact that housing discrimination has had on minorities in general and los angeles in particular , for chapter president leon jenkins to say god teaches us to forgive ' in the same interview monday in which he said we are negotiating with him about giving more moneys to african-american students at ucla , ' it sounds to me the naacp needs to take that finger it 's wagging at silver and the nba and point it back at themselves . silver 's working to clean up his house , but the naacp still looks dirty . | lz : naacp ca n't point finger at nba for tolerating sterling ; it must get own house in order |
nba <tsp> the naacp needs to sit down . though it 's debatable how effective a punishment donald sterling 's lifetime ban from the nba will be -- considering that for the time being , he still owns and thus profits from the l.a. clippers -- the one voice that should not be involved in this discussion is that of the naacp . not after news that the los angeles chapter was prepared to bestow upon the disgraced sterling -- whose racist behavior has long been known -- a second lifetime achievement award next month . ( the offer , not surprisingly , has been withdrawn . ) on tuesday , after nba commissioner adam silver brought down punishment on sterling , the naacp added its voice to a joint statement with the national urban league , the national action network and the national coalition on black civic participation that said sterling 's long-established pattern of bigotry and racist comments have not been a secret in the nba ... yet until now , they have been tolerated and met with a gentle hand and a blind eye . ' say what ? tax records accessed on citizenaudit.org , according to an article in the huffington post , revealed that the naacp 's l.a. branch had been party to the sanitizing of sterling 's legacy . how ? the group has received $ 45,000 from sterling 's foundations , which , given the real-estate mogul 's net worth of nearly $ 2 billion , is peanuts . the phrase sell out ' is one that gets tossed around , but for some reason , it does n't quite cover the naacp 's l.a. chapter in this case . the first time sterling was awarded a lifetime achievement award by the group was in the midst of a lawsuit for housing discrimination based upon race . to decide to honor him with the award a second time , after he had paid millions to settle multiple discrimination suits , after learning that he allegedly said that all the blacks in this building , they smell , they 're not clean ' and mexicans ... just sit around and smoke and drink all day ... so we have to get them out of here , ' is not selling out . selling out makes financial sense . no , considering what $ 45,000 means to a man of sterling 's wealth , honoring him with awards is just giving integrity away . i understand that sterling has donated to other black groups and established a scholarships for black students at ucla . and while that 's a positive , i also understand that such donations are tax-deductible and do not require him to actually be around black people . something , according to the now-infamous recordings , he is not a big fan of . at least not at his games . the naacp 's willful blind spot is particularly disturbing when you consider the growing wealth gap between blacks and whites in this country and that the biggest factors in that gap are fair housing and education . how could an organization supposedly dedicated to the economic advancement of blacks honor someone the department of justice said was working against its mission ? this curiosity is very similar to the new york chapter of the naacp joining a lawsuit with the united federation of teachers in 2011 in an effort to squeeze out successful charter schools and protect failing traditional public schools . thousands of parents , many of them minorities , protested . as was the case with the l.a. chapter , money reportedly was a factor in the new york chapter 's allegiance . it 's fine for the national organization to characterize questionable decision-making by local chapters as anomalies , but it 's hard to view the goings-on in new york and los angeles , the two largest cities in the country , as just being local . no , instead of worrying about joining in the censure of sterling , the naacp -- which is currently searching for a new executive director -- should worry about itself . when the naacp held a funeral for the n-word in 2007 , it felt as if the organization had buried its relevance beside it . it did n't help that the person helping lead the ceremony was former detroit mayor/felon kwame kilpatrick . yeah . in light of the crippling socioeconomic impact that housing discrimination has had on minorities in general and los angeles in particular , for chapter president leon jenkins to say god teaches us to forgive ' in the same interview monday in which he said we are negotiating with him about giving more moneys to african-american students at ucla , ' it sounds to me the naacp needs to take that finger it 's wagging at silver and the nba and point it back at themselves . silver 's working to clean up his house , but the naacp still looks dirty . | lz : it 's hypocrisy for naacp to join groups in calling out nba 's former tolerance of sterling |
world cup <tsp> ( cnn ) -- when former brazil international captain cafu is asked why he became a professional footballer , he gives a simple reply . i was born in 1970 , ' he says . that may seem like a slightly abstract answer to those unfamiliar with south america 's most populous nation . to those from the land of sun , samba and the beautiful game , however , it makes perfect historical sense . that was the year of the 1970 world cup in mexico , where pele , jairzinho , rivelino , carlos alberto and co. dazzled an international audience with a style of football seldom seen since . there are even some who maintain this brazil side remains the greatest team in the history of the sport . that says it all about how i got into football , ' cafu told cnn 's human to hero series . i was born during world cup time and from there it was just about giving sequence to what i really enjoyed and that was playing football . ' a rampaging right-sided defender with seemingly endless stamina , cafu played in four world cups , captaining brazil to football 's biggest prize in 2002 and starring in two others -- usa 1994 , where brazil won and france 1998 where they lost 3-0 to the hosts in the final . he also became the most capped brazilian player of all time ( winning 148 caps ) whilst picking up 21 trophies in a glittering career at club level in brazil , italy and spain . former manchester united manager , sir alex ferguson , even once jokingly queried if cafu had two hearts such was his ability to keep on running without getting tired -- even towards the end of his career . nowadays , everyone says that i should have continued to play , ' cafu said when asked on why he retired when he seemingly still had much gas left in the tank . but i thought that was the moment to stop playing ... ( at ) 38 years old . ' i think i had already given my contribution to football , not just nationally but internationally as well , ' he added . escape from poverty to be fair to marcos evangelista de moraes ( cafu 's full name ) , it was a long journey . one that stretched fully 18 years in total . it all began in sao paulo . cafu was born in the city 's impoverished jardim irene district , playing football in the streets and learning the tough lessons that would later shape his outlook on life . he now runs a charity foundation in his old neighborhood and hopes to encourage the young people there to dream big . everything i have , i owe to jardim irene , ' he said . i want the children to see me there , that i 'm giving them attention , so that they can have a good role model . what our children are missing today are good role models . ' the young cafu had trials at a host of brazilian sides in the late 1980s before eventually being accepted by hometown club , sao paulo . originally a right-sided midfielder , cafu was converted into his more familiar right back position by inspirational sao paulo coach tele santana . he excelled in this position and helped the tricolor claim back to back copa libertadores ( south america 's premier club cup competition ) crowns in 1992 and 1993 . a transfer to real zaragoza in spain provided cafu 's first foreign sojourn in the 1994-95 season before he returned to brazil one year later , first with juventude and then palmeiras . after a season at palmeiras , an offer came from roma to move back to europe . cafu would spend six seasons in the italian capital where he helped the giallorossi win only their third ever serie a title and their first in 18 years . in 2003 , cafu would make the final move of his career as he was transferred to ac milan . here , he would win serie a once more as well as the european champions league and world club cup titles . with so much success , picking out a favorite club moment is no easy task . in sao paulo , i won everything . milan , i won everything . roma , i was league champion . palmeiras , i was paulista ( brazilian league ) champion . ' all the titles have been memorable . i do n't have one that was more memorable or less memorable . they are all important titles with various teams . ' biggest prize the world cup is a different story , however . without a doubt , winning the world cup as a professional athlete is the highest prize in football . it 's the peak , the maximum that you can reach . ' this was a footballing zenith he reached twice . the first was at the pasadena rose bowl at the final of usa 94 where brazil faced off against italy in the sweltering california heat . cafu started the game on the substitute 's bench although he was required to come on for the injured jorginho after just 21 minutes . its an unexplainable feeling , ' he said of having to come into the game so early and unexpectedly . when ( coach , carlos alberto ) parreira looked at the bench and said i was going to come in , there was a lot of emotion . ' ( the other players ) were already warmed up , everyone was at a fast pace ... and you get on the pitch in that rhythm that looks like you are slower when in comparison to your opponents . ' he need n't have been so concerned . a tense , goalless encounter went to penalties with brazil triumphing after italy 's franco baresi , daniele massaro and roberto baggio missed from the spot . the second world cup triumph was even more satisfying . as captain , cafu led an unfancied brazil who had struggled through qualifying all the way to the final against germany at the yokohama stadium in tokyo . two goals from an inspired ronaldo settled the tie in brazil 's favor , securing a record fifth world cup crown for the country . in an iconic moment , cafu climbed atop the podium high above his team mates to accept the trophy . it was fantastic . climbing and getting the cup up in the air the way we did ... maybe that made is what made it so beautiful , ' cafu said recalling the moment . i think that brazil deserved at that moment to be in the highest place of the stadium . ' this exalted position is a place he hopes to see his younger compatriots occupy later this summer as the world cup comes to brazil for the first time since 1950 and south america for the first time since 1978 . with star players like neymar , oscar and hulk , as well as home advantage , brazil are rightly considered among the leading contenders . doubts have been raised , however , about the country 's preparation for the tournament as well as whether the economic benefits will be felt by all in brazilian society . the infrastructures are being built , the stadium is being built ( and ) the brazilian people 's faith is helping a lot , ' cafu said . for us it is going to be a very historic and fantastic moment . i have no doubt whatsoever that brazil will do a terrific world cup and they will be ( six time ) world champions , ' he added . the likes of argentina , germany , spain , holland and italy will no doubt have something to say about that . if the hosts can channel the belief and stamina of their former captain , however , there might be little the others can do about it . see also : from super eagle to african pioneer see also : the man who broke through football 's iron curtain see also : the best beard in football ? | former right back believes brazil will win a sixth world cup in 2014 |
world cup <tsp> ( cnn ) -- when former brazil international captain cafu is asked why he became a professional footballer , he gives a simple reply . i was born in 1970 , ' he says . that may seem like a slightly abstract answer to those unfamiliar with south america 's most populous nation . to those from the land of sun , samba and the beautiful game , however , it makes perfect historical sense . that was the year of the 1970 world cup in mexico , where pele , jairzinho , rivelino , carlos alberto and co. dazzled an international audience with a style of football seldom seen since . there are even some who maintain this brazil side remains the greatest team in the history of the sport . that says it all about how i got into football , ' cafu told cnn 's human to hero series . i was born during world cup time and from there it was just about giving sequence to what i really enjoyed and that was playing football . ' a rampaging right-sided defender with seemingly endless stamina , cafu played in four world cups , captaining brazil to football 's biggest prize in 2002 and starring in two others -- usa 1994 , where brazil won and france 1998 where they lost 3-0 to the hosts in the final . he also became the most capped brazilian player of all time ( winning 148 caps ) whilst picking up 21 trophies in a glittering career at club level in brazil , italy and spain . former manchester united manager , sir alex ferguson , even once jokingly queried if cafu had two hearts such was his ability to keep on running without getting tired -- even towards the end of his career . nowadays , everyone says that i should have continued to play , ' cafu said when asked on why he retired when he seemingly still had much gas left in the tank . but i thought that was the moment to stop playing ... ( at ) 38 years old . ' i think i had already given my contribution to football , not just nationally but internationally as well , ' he added . escape from poverty to be fair to marcos evangelista de moraes ( cafu 's full name ) , it was a long journey . one that stretched fully 18 years in total . it all began in sao paulo . cafu was born in the city 's impoverished jardim irene district , playing football in the streets and learning the tough lessons that would later shape his outlook on life . he now runs a charity foundation in his old neighborhood and hopes to encourage the young people there to dream big . everything i have , i owe to jardim irene , ' he said . i want the children to see me there , that i 'm giving them attention , so that they can have a good role model . what our children are missing today are good role models . ' the young cafu had trials at a host of brazilian sides in the late 1980s before eventually being accepted by hometown club , sao paulo . originally a right-sided midfielder , cafu was converted into his more familiar right back position by inspirational sao paulo coach tele santana . he excelled in this position and helped the tricolor claim back to back copa libertadores ( south america 's premier club cup competition ) crowns in 1992 and 1993 . a transfer to real zaragoza in spain provided cafu 's first foreign sojourn in the 1994-95 season before he returned to brazil one year later , first with juventude and then palmeiras . after a season at palmeiras , an offer came from roma to move back to europe . cafu would spend six seasons in the italian capital where he helped the giallorossi win only their third ever serie a title and their first in 18 years . in 2003 , cafu would make the final move of his career as he was transferred to ac milan . here , he would win serie a once more as well as the european champions league and world club cup titles . with so much success , picking out a favorite club moment is no easy task . in sao paulo , i won everything . milan , i won everything . roma , i was league champion . palmeiras , i was paulista ( brazilian league ) champion . ' all the titles have been memorable . i do n't have one that was more memorable or less memorable . they are all important titles with various teams . ' biggest prize the world cup is a different story , however . without a doubt , winning the world cup as a professional athlete is the highest prize in football . it 's the peak , the maximum that you can reach . ' this was a footballing zenith he reached twice . the first was at the pasadena rose bowl at the final of usa 94 where brazil faced off against italy in the sweltering california heat . cafu started the game on the substitute 's bench although he was required to come on for the injured jorginho after just 21 minutes . its an unexplainable feeling , ' he said of having to come into the game so early and unexpectedly . when ( coach , carlos alberto ) parreira looked at the bench and said i was going to come in , there was a lot of emotion . ' ( the other players ) were already warmed up , everyone was at a fast pace ... and you get on the pitch in that rhythm that looks like you are slower when in comparison to your opponents . ' he need n't have been so concerned . a tense , goalless encounter went to penalties with brazil triumphing after italy 's franco baresi , daniele massaro and roberto baggio missed from the spot . the second world cup triumph was even more satisfying . as captain , cafu led an unfancied brazil who had struggled through qualifying all the way to the final against germany at the yokohama stadium in tokyo . two goals from an inspired ronaldo settled the tie in brazil 's favor , securing a record fifth world cup crown for the country . in an iconic moment , cafu climbed atop the podium high above his team mates to accept the trophy . it was fantastic . climbing and getting the cup up in the air the way we did ... maybe that made is what made it so beautiful , ' cafu said recalling the moment . i think that brazil deserved at that moment to be in the highest place of the stadium . ' this exalted position is a place he hopes to see his younger compatriots occupy later this summer as the world cup comes to brazil for the first time since 1950 and south america for the first time since 1978 . with star players like neymar , oscar and hulk , as well as home advantage , brazil are rightly considered among the leading contenders . doubts have been raised , however , about the country 's preparation for the tournament as well as whether the economic benefits will be felt by all in brazilian society . the infrastructures are being built , the stadium is being built ( and ) the brazilian people 's faith is helping a lot , ' cafu said . for us it is going to be a very historic and fantastic moment . i have no doubt whatsoever that brazil will do a terrific world cup and they will be ( six time ) world champions , ' he added . the likes of argentina , germany , spain , holland and italy will no doubt have something to say about that . if the hosts can channel the belief and stamina of their former captain , however , there might be little the others can do about it . see also : from super eagle to african pioneer see also : the man who broke through football 's iron curtain see also : the best beard in football ? | cafu is a fifa world cup winning captain and brazil 's most capped player |
obama <tsp> ( cnn ) -- most americans do n't want the united states to launch military strikes against the syrian government . a recent abc news/washington post poll says 59 % of the american people oppose such an intervention , while 36 % support it . even more oppose supplying weapons to the syrian rebels , with 70 % against and 27 % in favor . many have welcomed president barack obama 's move to bring the decision before congress as giving the issue the kind of national debate it deserves . and hearings this week may move the needle of public opinion to give the president more confidence that he has the backing of u.s. voters . but even if that does n't happen , the president needs to move ahead with the plan to punish the regime of bashar al-assad for the use of chemical weapons in an attack outside damascus -- to degrade its ability to use such weapons of mass destruction in the future and to force its removal and replacement by opposition forces that we support . such action does not have to involve u.s. boots on the ground . it should not involve putting u.s. lives at risk . but what it will require is a kind of leadership , clarity and commitment that has been sorely lacking from our syria policy to date . while leadership often entails persuading others to follow before taking action , sometimes it requires taking action even when it is unpopular because it is the right thing to do . opinion : congress , support obama on syria in fact , setting foreign policy by opinion poll is among the most dangerous traps for a political leader . by nature voters are disinclined to take risks and to intervene in distant conflicts . given the outcome of the iraq and afghanistan wars , you can hardly blame them . in addition , citizens , even earnest ones , are often reluctant -- and sometimes ill-equipped -- to weigh seriously how the outcome of such conflicts might affect america 's long-term national security interests . that is not a slam on those citizens . often the issues involved are arcane , convoluted and mind-bending , even to so-called experts . presidents need to take these things into consideration when evaluating just how much weight to give to public opinion . furthermore , whereas presidents are elected by the people , they are sworn to do what they can not only to preserve , protect and defend the constitution but also to execute the duties of their office . this means serving as commander in chief of the armed forces , guiding u.s. foreign policy and working with the tools given to them by elected representatives , such as the war powers act of 1973 , which grants them the authority to take military action without consulting with congress if they deem it essential . ( they have to consult congress within 60 days . although it is worth noting that presidents often undertake such action not by drawing on the power granted them under the act but by that conferred to them under article ii , section 2 of the constitution . that 's the section giving them the responsibility for being commander in chief . ) the critical issue is whether the national interests of the united states are at risk and must be protected . in the case of syria , it is clear that the president must act . opinion : obama 's irony , mccain 's agony the administration has said al-assad has used chemical weapons . this is an abuse of international law and norms that can not be allowed to stand , or it will send a message to other bad actors -- some of whom represent a direct threat to u.s. soldiers , private citizens and allies , as is the case in the koreas , to choose one example . ( iran 's wmd threat to allies such as israel , u.s. friends in the gulf and u.s. military forces in the region is yet another . ) further , if the united states does not act after the president had rightly declared such action would be unacceptable , it would undermine deeply and perhaps irreparably our credibility in the middle east and worldwide . just as important , the assad regime is an ally of iran 's , seeking to advance iranian power throughout the region and doing so with direct iranian aid and weapons support . this is a threat to our allies , to regional stability and , by extension , to the global economy and vital energy supplies . further , the deterioration in syria has made the country a breeding ground for a new generation of extremists who might be empowered by an al-assad defeat . we must be careful to place our support behind others , such as the free syrian army , who are most likely to be sympathetic to our views . but we almost recognize that not stabilizing the syrian crisis , simply ignoring it , will make the situation throughout the region much more dangerous . we must send a clear message chemical weapons use is unacceptable . and we must actively support the opposition with weapons so that they can defeat al-assad . even if the regime that replaces him is hostile to us , it is unlikely to pose the kind of regional threat that one supported by iran does . risks are involved . outcomes may not be exactly what we seek . action may be dangerous and unpopular , but inaction is certain to make the situation worse and the threats to our interests grow . opinion : gop should n't bail out obama 's floundering foreign policy the president deserves credit for trying to make this case to the american people . but it is time for him to act whether there is broad support for him or not . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of david rothkopf . | rothkopf : obama has authority and cause to act whether there is broad support for him or not |
syrian <tsp> beirut ( cnn ) -- at first glance , the brightness of the colors might just be enough to fool the casual viewer . but this abstract scene in play in the city ' is n't a cheerful one . pain infuses this painting . here 's a person who wants to kill another person , ' says artist anas homsi , as he points towards a menacing figure in the composition , and here 's a person who wants to defend this person from being killed. homsi 's canvas is inspired by conflict - namely , the brutal civil war raging in his homeland of syria . it 's just one of several works on display at the joanna seikaly gallery in beirut . in the exhibit , entitled true colors ' , homsi along with two other syrian artists , wissam shaabi and fadi al hamwi , tackle warfare through works encompassing themes such as hope , survival and society . the violence pushes me to work more , to draw and paint , ' explains homsi , an intense young man who 's well aware how much he 's been impacted by the violence . it 's apparent in the faces , ' he says , describing the characters who inhabit another one of his creations , the abnormalities - these are internal abnormalities more than external . ' homsi 's striking images are made all the more poignant when he describes the horror of learning how close relatives of his were recently executed . i never imagined this would happen to anyone in my family , ' explains a visibly upset homsi , or that i would hear this news about anybody in my life . ' exiled syrian writer honored for homsi and his colleagues , art is what keeps them going through the toughest of times . as it turns out , the men are n't just close friends , they 're also former classmates , having studied together at the university of damascus'faculty of fine art . while the art scene in damascus had been growing more vibrant before the start of syria 's civil war , it quickly changed once clashes spread . there 's more syrian artists being showcased in lebanon because most of the galleries closed in syria , especially in damascus , ' says gallery owner joanna seikaly . for seikaly , who feels the art scene in lebanon has grown somewhat stagnant , this showcase is a timely one . it 's important to highlight the situation that 's going on in syria , ' says seikaly , who adds that several syrian artists who fled the fighting have ended up in beirut . young syrian amputee makes dangerous journey to find help for shaabi , who left for lebanon once it got too dangerous at home , it has been hard to remain optimistic . but he 's determined to do so . the only thing that keeps us running and living is hope , ' the soft-spoken artist adds . it 's hope that shaabi tries to convey more than anything else in his paintings . dreamlike images in which bright colors offset an approaching darkness . you know , art is all about a message , ' explains shaabi . you send the message for the people . ' in city of hope ' , shaabi presents an idealized vision of peaceful coexistence - hustle and bustle in an urban environment free of strife . the symbolism could n't be more striking . a closer look reveals both a crescent and a cross in this cityscape . we will remain looking for the future , ' says shaabi . for a bright future . that 's the whole idea . ' just around the corner , however , the works of fadi al-hamwi highlight a very different feeling - one of dread . you feel fear , ' says al-hamwi . you feel like anytime something can happen . ' as the last member of this group still living in damascus , angst is part of his everyday reality . i 'm inside syria . i can see the people . i can connect with them till now , ' he says . that connection informs his art ; pieces full of foreboding . in stinkbomb ' , a dying man is on display , with a gas mask on his face and a rose in his hand - clinging to hope while slipping away . melancholy seems to pervade al-hamwi 's personality . sometimes when you feel down - you feel all these people are dead , you feel like your country is just destroyed - you feel you should do something maybe different than art ' but those doubts do n't last long . al-hamwi sees his job as a necessary one ; that as an artist , he must document what he 's feeling and seeing . we feel sad , we feel tired . so for sure this will show in your colors . ' the colors are as vivid as life - from artists taking their audience on an artistic journey that constantly reminds of death . | several syrian artists who have fled the fighting have ended up in lebanon |
mexican <tsp> miami , florida ( cnn ) -- searchers looking for a woman believed to have fallen from a cruise ship off the yucatan coast of mexico have seen no sign of her , a u.s. coast guard spokesman said friday afternoon . the norwegian pearl is on a seven-day caribbean cruise . lt. matt moorlag , based in miami , said crews would work into the night to find 33-year-old jennifer feitz , whose husband reported her missing aboard the norwegian pearl about 3:40 a.m. friday . ship personnel called the coast guard for help when they could n't locate feitz . moorlag said he had not spoken with the woman 's husband . the search was centered about 15 miles east of cancun , mexico , in the caribbean sea , said petty officer 3rd class nick ameen , a coast guard spokesman . initial reports indicate the guest may have gone overboard while the ship was at sea , east of cancun , ' a spokeswoman for the miami-based norwegian cruise line said in a statement . annemarie mathews said the ship left miami on sunday on a seven-day western caribbean cruise . the coast guard dispatched an air station miami hu-25 falcon jet crew , and a c-130 fixed-wing aircraft crew from the air station in clearwater , florida , also was headed to the site , ameen said . the mexican government was aiding the search with a helicopter crew and three water- and ground-surface crews . | mexican government also is helping in the search |
gray <tsp> ( cnn ) freddie gray did not get timely medical care after he was arrested and was not buckled into a seat belt while being transported in a police van , baltimore police said friday . police commissioner anthony batts told reporters there are no excuses for the fact that gray was not buckled in as he was transported to a police station . five days after gray 's death and amid ongoing protests , police officials acknowledged mistakes were made during and after his arrest . gray , who was stopped april 12 after a foot pursuit through several housing complexes , should have received medical attention at the scene of his arrest , said deputy police commissioner kevin davis . a witness said the man was yelling and indicated he was having difficulty breathing . batts told reporters in an afternoon news conference : we know our police employees failed to get him medical attention in a timely manner multiple times . ' investigators are trying to learn more about gray 's condition at each of the three stops the van made on its way to a police station . at the first stop , gray was placed in leg irons . the driver stopped a second time to deal with mr. gray and the facts of that interaction are under investigation , ' davis said . the van stopped one more time to add a second prisoner . batts told reporters that at the third stop an officer saw gray on the floor of the van , asking for a medic . the officer and the van driver picked him up and put him on the seat , the commissioner said . when the van arrived at the western district station , police called for an ambulance , said davis , who is in charge of the investigation . an attorney for the gray family said it was positive news , but there is a more important issue . it 's certainly a step towards acknowledging the truth that the police did not follow their own internal regulations , ' jason downs told cnn 's erin burnett outfront . ' what it does not get at is , it does not get at the core of this case and that is why did mr. gray need medical attention in the first place ? ... that 's the question that still has not been answered . ' the developments came two days after a police union attorney spoke of the possibility that the injuries occurred during a rough ride , ' a frequently claimed practice in which police vehicles are deliberately driven in a way that injures suspects . at least two suspects have won court cases against the city after being left paralyzed in such rides over the last decade or so , the baltimore sun reported thursday . gray died sunday , one week after baltimore police arrested him . at some point , he suffered a severe spinal cord injury . his family said his voice box was crushed and his neck snapped before he slipped into a coma and died . batts said he had been given preliminary results of an autopsy on gray . the medical examiner 's full autopsy may take another 30 to 45 days , batts said , because toxicology tests still need to be examined and spinal experts may be brought in to assess gray 's injury . meanwhile , anger over the incident and the police response to it continued to grow ahead of a major rally that organizers vowed would shut this city down on saturday . ' the people are demanding immediate arrests , immediate end to the protracted investigation , and immediate end to the stonewalling , ' said malik shabazz , president of black lawyers for justice . but he and other officials vowed the protests would be peaceful -- much as they were thursday night , despite a few scuffles and two detentions . no one has come to try and burn baltimore down , ' another protest organizer , the rev . tim sutton , told reporters . mayor stephanie rawlings-blake thanked those protesters who have demonstrated peacefully . our community is very clear . they demand answers and so do i , ' she said . the mayor said that will take some time , but she had concerns about what happened to gray . i still want to know why the policies and procedures for transport were not followed , ' rawlings-blake said . i realize there is frustration over this investigation , but i want to be clear : there is a process , but we have to respect that process . ' batts addressed calls for his resignation after gray 's death by saying he would not step down . police first encountered gray as they patrolled an area known for crime and drug activity . when gray saw them , authorities said , he started running . gray was arrested after police found what they said was a switchblade on him . an attorney for gray 's family has said the knife was a pocket knife of legal size . one video of gray 's arrest shows officers dragging him to a police van , his legs dangling limply behind him . his leg look broke ! ' a bystander yells as a witness captures the arrest on a cell phone video . that witness , who only wants to be identified as kiona , said she knew gray as a joker and a ladies'man . but that day , he said only one thing to her . when i ran up the street and seen him , the first thing i asked him was he ok because i heard him screaming , ' kiona said . he did n't never say yes or no , he just said ,'i ca n't breathe ,'and just was yelling . ' gray 's family attorneys and protesters said police did n't have any probable cause to chase him but did so only because he was running while black . ' police union attorney michael davey said officers had every right to give chase . there is a supreme court case that states that if you are in a high-crime area , and you flee from the police unprovoked , the police have the legal ability to pursue you , and that 's what they did , ' he said . in this type of an incident , you do not need probable cause to arrest . you just need a reasonable suspicion to make the stop . ' andrew o'connell , an attorney for the gray family , said police have a lot of questions that need to be answered . ' what was the reasonable suspicion ? why were they arresting our client ? ' he said . he had no weapon in his hand . he was committing no crime , and he was n't hurting anybody . the police had no reasonable suspicion to stop or arrest him , ' the attorney said . the gray family has not yet seen the preliminary autopsy report , attorney william murphy said . downs said the family has commissioned an independent autopsy . while police say five of the six officers involved in the arrest have provided statements to investigators , the department has not released details of what the officers said or how gray might have suffered the fatal injury . the sixth officer has invoked his right to refuse to answer questions , batts said . baltimore protests : 5 questions demonstrators are asking the justice department is investigating whether gray 's civil rights were violated during the arrest . rawlings-blake said earlier she absolutely ' believes an outside investigation is needed , especially given the history of police misconduct . a wake will be held sunday for gray , with a memorial service and funeral following on monday . cnn 's holly yan , carolyn sung , ashley fantz , kimberly hutcherson , eliott c. mclaughlin , catherine e. shoichet , kevin conlon and dana ford contributed to this report . | police say gray should have received medical care at different points before he got to a police station |
gray <tsp> ( cnn ) freddie gray did not get timely medical care after he was arrested and was not buckled into a seat belt while being transported in a police van , baltimore police said friday . police commissioner anthony batts told reporters there are no excuses for the fact that gray was not buckled in as he was transported to a police station . five days after gray 's death and amid ongoing protests , police officials acknowledged mistakes were made during and after his arrest . gray , who was stopped april 12 after a foot pursuit through several housing complexes , should have received medical attention at the scene of his arrest , said deputy police commissioner kevin davis . a witness said the man was yelling and indicated he was having difficulty breathing . batts told reporters in an afternoon news conference : we know our police employees failed to get him medical attention in a timely manner multiple times . ' investigators are trying to learn more about gray 's condition at each of the three stops the van made on its way to a police station . at the first stop , gray was placed in leg irons . the driver stopped a second time to deal with mr. gray and the facts of that interaction are under investigation , ' davis said . the van stopped one more time to add a second prisoner . batts told reporters that at the third stop an officer saw gray on the floor of the van , asking for a medic . the officer and the van driver picked him up and put him on the seat , the commissioner said . when the van arrived at the western district station , police called for an ambulance , said davis , who is in charge of the investigation . an attorney for the gray family said it was positive news , but there is a more important issue . it 's certainly a step towards acknowledging the truth that the police did not follow their own internal regulations , ' jason downs told cnn 's erin burnett outfront . ' what it does not get at is , it does not get at the core of this case and that is why did mr. gray need medical attention in the first place ? ... that 's the question that still has not been answered . ' the developments came two days after a police union attorney spoke of the possibility that the injuries occurred during a rough ride , ' a frequently claimed practice in which police vehicles are deliberately driven in a way that injures suspects . at least two suspects have won court cases against the city after being left paralyzed in such rides over the last decade or so , the baltimore sun reported thursday . gray died sunday , one week after baltimore police arrested him . at some point , he suffered a severe spinal cord injury . his family said his voice box was crushed and his neck snapped before he slipped into a coma and died . batts said he had been given preliminary results of an autopsy on gray . the medical examiner 's full autopsy may take another 30 to 45 days , batts said , because toxicology tests still need to be examined and spinal experts may be brought in to assess gray 's injury . meanwhile , anger over the incident and the police response to it continued to grow ahead of a major rally that organizers vowed would shut this city down on saturday . ' the people are demanding immediate arrests , immediate end to the protracted investigation , and immediate end to the stonewalling , ' said malik shabazz , president of black lawyers for justice . but he and other officials vowed the protests would be peaceful -- much as they were thursday night , despite a few scuffles and two detentions . no one has come to try and burn baltimore down , ' another protest organizer , the rev . tim sutton , told reporters . mayor stephanie rawlings-blake thanked those protesters who have demonstrated peacefully . our community is very clear . they demand answers and so do i , ' she said . the mayor said that will take some time , but she had concerns about what happened to gray . i still want to know why the policies and procedures for transport were not followed , ' rawlings-blake said . i realize there is frustration over this investigation , but i want to be clear : there is a process , but we have to respect that process . ' batts addressed calls for his resignation after gray 's death by saying he would not step down . police first encountered gray as they patrolled an area known for crime and drug activity . when gray saw them , authorities said , he started running . gray was arrested after police found what they said was a switchblade on him . an attorney for gray 's family has said the knife was a pocket knife of legal size . one video of gray 's arrest shows officers dragging him to a police van , his legs dangling limply behind him . his leg look broke ! ' a bystander yells as a witness captures the arrest on a cell phone video . that witness , who only wants to be identified as kiona , said she knew gray as a joker and a ladies'man . but that day , he said only one thing to her . when i ran up the street and seen him , the first thing i asked him was he ok because i heard him screaming , ' kiona said . he did n't never say yes or no , he just said ,'i ca n't breathe ,'and just was yelling . ' gray 's family attorneys and protesters said police did n't have any probable cause to chase him but did so only because he was running while black . ' police union attorney michael davey said officers had every right to give chase . there is a supreme court case that states that if you are in a high-crime area , and you flee from the police unprovoked , the police have the legal ability to pursue you , and that 's what they did , ' he said . in this type of an incident , you do not need probable cause to arrest . you just need a reasonable suspicion to make the stop . ' andrew o'connell , an attorney for the gray family , said police have a lot of questions that need to be answered . ' what was the reasonable suspicion ? why were they arresting our client ? ' he said . he had no weapon in his hand . he was committing no crime , and he was n't hurting anybody . the police had no reasonable suspicion to stop or arrest him , ' the attorney said . the gray family has not yet seen the preliminary autopsy report , attorney william murphy said . downs said the family has commissioned an independent autopsy . while police say five of the six officers involved in the arrest have provided statements to investigators , the department has not released details of what the officers said or how gray might have suffered the fatal injury . the sixth officer has invoked his right to refuse to answer questions , batts said . baltimore protests : 5 questions demonstrators are asking the justice department is investigating whether gray 's civil rights were violated during the arrest . rawlings-blake said earlier she absolutely ' believes an outside investigation is needed , especially given the history of police misconduct . a wake will be held sunday for gray , with a memorial service and funeral following on monday . cnn 's holly yan , carolyn sung , ashley fantz , kimberly hutcherson , eliott c. mclaughlin , catherine e. shoichet , kevin conlon and dana ford contributed to this report . | attorney for the family of freddie gray says developments are step forward but another issue is more important |
lincoln <tsp> ( cnn ) -- barack obama 's historic train ride to washington on saturday drew large , cheering crowds of people who braved freezing weather and gathered along the tracks in cities and small towns along the way in hopeful anticipation of getting a glimpse of the nation 's next president . the crowd cheers as president-elect barack obama takes the stage in baltimore , maryland . in baltimore , maryland , alone , about 40,000 people stood shoulder-to-shoulder in the cold to greet obama as he stopped on his way to his tuesday inauguration . his welcome was raucous and animated , as the sea of people cheered , waved and took pictures . tears rolled down one woman 's face as obama spoke . we love you , obama ! ' another yelled out . i love you back , ' obama answered calmly , eliciting a roar from the crowd . the same emotions were expressed up and down the tracks on the 137-mile journey , a trip that started in philadelphia , pennsylvania , and retraced the train ride abraham lincoln took on his way to becoming president in 1861 . watch obama share the love » as he did so often during his campaign , obama drew upon american history in his remarks to pose a parallel to the country 's current challenges . he noted the struggles of the colonials , the first patriots , ' against the british . they were willing to put all they were and all they had on the line , ' obama told the crowd in baltimore . their lives , their fortune , and sacred honor for a set of ideals that continue to light the world : that we are all equal . that our rights to life , liberty and the pursuit of happiness come not from our laws but from our maker . ' later he said , the american revolution was , and remains , an ongoing struggle in the minds and hearts of the people . ' and , as in philadelphia , obama alluded to , but did not name , the president who inspired his train journey . the soon-to-be president used a call-to-action uttered by lincoln in his inaugural address in 1861 , an appeal to americans' better angels . ' obama , who will take up what he called the country 's enormous ' challenges in fewer than 72 hours , noted that they will probably not be solved quickly . there will be false starts ; there will be setbacks , ' he said . there will be frustrations and disappointments . i will make some mistakes . but we will be called to show patience even as we act with fierce urgency . ' he added , so , baltimore , starting now , let 's take up in our own lives the work of perfecting our union , ' an appeal that brought forth a loud rumble of approval . obama arrived later in washington , where he will take the oath of office tuesday . he did not have a speaking event there saturday . before getting on board the train in philadelphia , the president-elect implored americans to commit to a new declaration of independence -- rejecting ideology and bigotry -- as he acknowledged that the nation faces severe challenges . only a handful of times in our history has a generation been confronted with challenges so vast , ' he said at a town hall meeting in philadelphia 's 30th street station . an economy that is faltering . two wars : one that needs to be ended responsibly , one that needs to be waged wisely . a planet that is warming from our unsustainable dependence on oil . ' what is required is a new declaration of independence , not just in our nation but in our own lives -- from ideology and small thinking , prejudice and bigotry -- an appeal not to our easy instincts but to our'better angels ,' he said , using a phrase from lincoln 's inaugural address . the train stopped in wilmington , delaware , to pick up vice president-elect joe biden and his family and then headed to baltimore , maryland , on its way to washington . the train made its first slow roll ' in claymont , delaware , allowing obama to wave at cheering residents gathered near the tracks . claymont is also the town where biden 's family moved in 1953 , when he was 10 years old . ireport.com : is the train coming to your town ? send us your photos security for obama 's train ride was tight . law enforcement officers from 40 jurisdictions provided protection from the ground . the u.s. coast guard was stationed on waterways along the route as well . the federal aviation administration established moving ' flight restrictions that prevented private pilots , news helicopters , balloonists and others from getting anywhere near the train . the faa is imposing additional airspace restrictions in washington on sunday during pre-inaugural activities and from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. tuesday , the day of the inauguration . watch how security will protect obama on way to washington » nearly 2 million people are expected to hit the streets of washington on tuesday . police will shut bridges across the potomac river into the city , along with a huge chunk of downtown . people coming from virginia will have to walk or take public transport , such as the area 's metro subway system . read about the times and places for inaugural events » two of the major routes coming into the city -- interstates 395 and 66 -- will be closed to inbound traffic , at least for private vehicles . amtrak said it has increased the number and length of trains running to washington on inauguration day . tickets are still available but are going fast , it said . watch more on inauguration transportation and security plans » security officials also say charter buses , taxis and car services are an option for those attending . cnn producer rachel streitfeld contributed to this report . | he borrows from lincoln , urges americans to listen to our'better angels' |
kim jong un <tsp> london ( cnn ) -- north korean leader kim jong un 's hair is no laughing matter . not for the country 's embassy employees in london , at least . chalk it up to british humor when london barbers hung a poster in their shop of kim and his signature hairstyle : a longer top , with the sides of his head shaved . the barbers do n't consider that cut too appealing . so they used kim 's hair to try to drum up business for their m & m hair academy . having a bad hair day ? ' asks the sign , which features an image of kim . 15 % off all men 's haircuts through the month of april from tuesday to thursday . ' the day after the sign went up , two men in suits entered the barber shop and confronted the manager , according to the manager 's son , karim nabbach , 26 . the two men were n't laughing . they told manager mo nabbach , we are north koreans , and that is our leader on your poster , ' karim nabbach said . the two men apparently worked at the nearby north korean embassy . mo nabbach refused to give his name and told them to get a lawyer if they had a problem . he asked them to leave . the manager then reported the incident to police in case anything happened to his shop , karim nabbach said . police acknowledged the dispute between the north koreans and the barbers over what is -- and is n't -- bad hair . they even looked into the matter , but they found no crime . we have spoken to all parties involved , and no offence has been disclosed , ' a spokesman for scotland yard said . calls to the north korean embassy in london for comment went unanswered . cnn 's lindsay isaac and carol jordan contributed to this report from london . michael martinez wrote from los angeles . | barbers mo and karim nabbach put up a sign about kim jong un 's hair |
baidoo <tsp> ( cnn ) facebook may soon need to add just got served divorce papers ' to its list of relationship statuses now that a new york judge has said the social media site is an acceptable way for a brooklyn woman to serve her husband with a summons for divorce . ellanora arthur baidoo has been trying to divorce her husband for several years , according to her attorney , andrew spinnell . but , spinnell said , he and his client have n't been able to find victor sena blood-dzraku to serve him the papers . baidoo has been able to reach her husband by phone and he has told her that he has no fixed address and no place of employment , ' according to court documents . he has also refused to make himself available to be served , ' the document said . after exhausting other ways of serving him the papers , spinnell filed an application asking for service by alternate means , ' in this case , via social media . in his decision , justice matthew cooper said the advent and ascendency of social media , ' means sites like facebook and twitter are the next frontier ' as forums through which a summons can be delivered . ' before cooper agreed to her using facebook , baidoo had to prove the facebook account belongs to her husband , and that he consistently logs on to the account and would therefore see the summons . spinnell said baidoo 's marriage to blood-dzraku began to unravel shortly after they married in 2009 because her husband refused to participate in a ghanian wedding ceremony that would include both their families the couple never lived together , according to court documents . she 's not asking for any money , ' spinnell said , she just wants to move on with her life and get a divorce . ' spinnell said he has contacted blood-dzraku twice on facebook , but has yet to hear back . if blood-dzraku refuses the summons , spinnell said the judge can move forward with a divorce by default ' for his client . blood-dzraku could not be reached for comment . | ellanora arthur baidoo has been trying to divorce her husband for several years |
baidoo <tsp> ( cnn ) facebook may soon need to add just got served divorce papers ' to its list of relationship statuses now that a new york judge has said the social media site is an acceptable way for a brooklyn woman to serve her husband with a summons for divorce . ellanora arthur baidoo has been trying to divorce her husband for several years , according to her attorney , andrew spinnell . but , spinnell said , he and his client have n't been able to find victor sena blood-dzraku to serve him the papers . baidoo has been able to reach her husband by phone and he has told her that he has no fixed address and no place of employment , ' according to court documents . he has also refused to make himself available to be served , ' the document said . after exhausting other ways of serving him the papers , spinnell filed an application asking for service by alternate means , ' in this case , via social media . in his decision , justice matthew cooper said the advent and ascendency of social media , ' means sites like facebook and twitter are the next frontier ' as forums through which a summons can be delivered . ' before cooper agreed to her using facebook , baidoo had to prove the facebook account belongs to her husband , and that he consistently logs on to the account and would therefore see the summons . spinnell said baidoo 's marriage to blood-dzraku began to unravel shortly after they married in 2009 because her husband refused to participate in a ghanian wedding ceremony that would include both their families the couple never lived together , according to court documents . she 's not asking for any money , ' spinnell said , she just wants to move on with her life and get a divorce . ' spinnell said he has contacted blood-dzraku twice on facebook , but has yet to hear back . if blood-dzraku refuses the summons , spinnell said the judge can move forward with a divorce by default ' for his client . blood-dzraku could not be reached for comment . | baidoo is granted permission to send divorce papers via facebook |
ellanora <tsp> ( cnn ) facebook may soon need to add just got served divorce papers ' to its list of relationship statuses now that a new york judge has said the social media site is an acceptable way for a brooklyn woman to serve her husband with a summons for divorce . ellanora arthur baidoo has been trying to divorce her husband for several years , according to her attorney , andrew spinnell . but , spinnell said , he and his client have n't been able to find victor sena blood-dzraku to serve him the papers . baidoo has been able to reach her husband by phone and he has told her that he has no fixed address and no place of employment , ' according to court documents . he has also refused to make himself available to be served , ' the document said . after exhausting other ways of serving him the papers , spinnell filed an application asking for service by alternate means , ' in this case , via social media . in his decision , justice matthew cooper said the advent and ascendency of social media , ' means sites like facebook and twitter are the next frontier ' as forums through which a summons can be delivered . ' before cooper agreed to her using facebook , baidoo had to prove the facebook account belongs to her husband , and that he consistently logs on to the account and would therefore see the summons . spinnell said baidoo 's marriage to blood-dzraku began to unravel shortly after they married in 2009 because her husband refused to participate in a ghanian wedding ceremony that would include both their families the couple never lived together , according to court documents . she 's not asking for any money , ' spinnell said , she just wants to move on with her life and get a divorce . ' spinnell said he has contacted blood-dzraku twice on facebook , but has yet to hear back . if blood-dzraku refuses the summons , spinnell said the judge can move forward with a divorce by default ' for his client . blood-dzraku could not be reached for comment . | ellanora arthur baidoo has been trying to divorce her husband for several years |
facebook <tsp> ( cnn ) facebook may soon need to add just got served divorce papers ' to its list of relationship statuses now that a new york judge has said the social media site is an acceptable way for a brooklyn woman to serve her husband with a summons for divorce . ellanora arthur baidoo has been trying to divorce her husband for several years , according to her attorney , andrew spinnell . but , spinnell said , he and his client have n't been able to find victor sena blood-dzraku to serve him the papers . baidoo has been able to reach her husband by phone and he has told her that he has no fixed address and no place of employment , ' according to court documents . he has also refused to make himself available to be served , ' the document said . after exhausting other ways of serving him the papers , spinnell filed an application asking for service by alternate means , ' in this case , via social media . in his decision , justice matthew cooper said the advent and ascendency of social media , ' means sites like facebook and twitter are the next frontier ' as forums through which a summons can be delivered . ' before cooper agreed to her using facebook , baidoo had to prove the facebook account belongs to her husband , and that he consistently logs on to the account and would therefore see the summons . spinnell said baidoo 's marriage to blood-dzraku began to unravel shortly after they married in 2009 because her husband refused to participate in a ghanian wedding ceremony that would include both their families the couple never lived together , according to court documents . she 's not asking for any money , ' spinnell said , she just wants to move on with her life and get a divorce . ' spinnell said he has contacted blood-dzraku twice on facebook , but has yet to hear back . if blood-dzraku refuses the summons , spinnell said the judge can move forward with a divorce by default ' for his client . blood-dzraku could not be reached for comment . | baidoo is granted permission to send divorce papers via facebook |
jennifer stewart <tsp> abu dhabi , united arab emirates ( cnn ) lost luggage after a long flight is a common , frustrating occurrence of modern air travel . and sometimes , airlines lose things that are irreplaceable . american jennifer stewart says she was devastated to learn that etihad airways lost her most important baggage following a recent trip from abu dhabi to new york city : her 2-year-old pet cat , felix . stewart said that she and her husband , joseph naaman , booked felix on their etihad airways flight from the united arab emirates to new york 's john f. kennedy international airport on april 1 . shortly after the plane arrived in new york that evening , felix went missing somewhere on the grounds of kennedy airport , according to etihad airways . felix was able to get loose , stewart said she believes , because the cat 's plastic carrier was badly damaged at some point either during the flight or the transfer from the airplane to the pickup area . stewart said a cargo manager called the couple to an office after they landed at kennedy last week and notified them that their cat 's carrier had been crushed . photographs taken by stewart showed a large hole in the top of the cat 's carrier . at least one of the corners of the case appeared partially collapsed . nearly one week later , felix remains missing . for them to take a cat and ship him like he was cargo , not a live animal , makes me sick , ' stewart said . you trust that people care and are doing the job well , and then this happens . ' a representative for etihad airways told cnn that that the loss of pets during air travel is extremely rare . ' the airline shipped more than 200 pets last year . etihad airways is investigating the incident and is working with ground handlers at the new york airport to help locate the missing cat . the abu dhabi-based carrier also said it hired third-party specialists ' to help in the hunt for felix . we deeply regret this unfortunate incident and are keeping the owner apprised of the progress of the search , ' etihad airways told cnn in a statement . we will review our pet handling procedures in the wake of this incident , as the safety and care of pets traveling with etihad airways is a top priority . ' stewart and her husband booked the cat 's flight as part of their job relocation to the united states after living in abu dhabi for more than three years . the couple said they spent $ 1,200 to ship felix on the 14-hour flight . you pay all of this money , but for what ? people assume you pay extra to have your pets taken care of , but they 're treated no differently than a free piece of checked luggage , ' stewart said . it is n't the first time a pet has gone missing at new york 's busiest airport . in august 2011 , a cat escaped from its carrier before an american airlines flight from new york to san francisco . that cat was eventually discovered -- alive -- two months later in a customs room at the airport . but the cat later had to be euthanized because of injuries and malnutrition it suffered while lost . this weekend , stewart enlisted the help of a local nonprofit , which provided a highly trained detection dog , to help track down felix 's scent . a wildlife biologist who works with the airport has also placed traps to facilitate felix 's safe return , according to the port authority of new york and new jersey . officials at kennedy have offered to assist etihad airways as the airline investigates what happened , the port authority said . stewart said the couple will continue to search the airport until they have answers . we just want to find felix . but i just do n't know if we will , ' she said . | pets are treated no differently than a free piece of checked luggage , ' jennifer stewart says |
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