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uzbek <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a drunk passenger tried to hijack a turkish airlines flight to russia on wednesday before he was brought under control , the head of turkey 's civil aviation authority said . the turkish airlines passenger jet was en route from turkey to russia when the incident took place . the plane landed safely and on time wednesday afternoon in st. petersburg . russian authorities promptly arrested a slightly intoxicated ' passenger from uzbekistan , russia 's interfax news agency reported , citing a national police spokesman . the suspect , in his early 50s , was arrested on suspicion of trying to hijack the plane , interfax reported . turkish media initially reported that the plane had been hijacked . when asked about those reports , a turkish airlines spokesman said the flight experienced an urgent situation ' as it headed to st. petersburg , without offering further details . interfax said the flight was carrying 164 russian nationals . there have been several attempts to hijack turkish airlines in recent years . in august 2007 , two men hijacked an istanbul-bound atlasjet airlines flight with 136 passengers and crew on board from cyprus , claiming to have a bomb on board the flight . they forced the crew to make an emergency landing in antalya . both hijackers eventually surrendered to turkish authorities . in april 2007 , turkish authorities detained a man they believed tried to hijack a turkish airliner , possibly to iran . the suspect , mehmed goksin gol , was not armed and all 178 passengers and crew aboard the pegasus airlines flight were unharmed . the flight was heading from southeastern turkish city of diyarbakir to istanbul , but landed at ankara 's airport , where the suspect was detained . in october 2006 , a turkish man hijacked a turkish jetliner with 113 people aboard en route from the albanian capital tirana for istanbul . he forced it to fly to a military airfield in brindisi , italy , where the passengers and crew were released unharmed . cnn 's maxim tkachenko in moscow and nicky robertson in atlanta contributed to this report | new : interfax : flight arrives at st. petersburg , police arrest uzbek man in his 50s |
gosnell <tsp> a pennsylvania doctor is accused of running a house of horrors ' in which he performed abortions past the 24-week limit allowed by law -- even allegedly as late as eight months into pregnancy . he used scissors , authorities say , to sever the spinal cords of newborns who emerged from their mothers still alive . now dr. kermit gosnell , 72 , is about to stand trial . he has pleaded not guilty . if he 's convicted , prosecutors want him put to death . a doctor who cuts into the necks severing the spinal cords of living , breathing babies , who would survive with proper medical attention , is committing murder under the law , ' philadelphia district attorney seth williams said . a grand jury investigation determined that health and licensing officials had received repeated reports about gosnell 's practices for two decades , but had taken no action , williams said . gosnell 's attorney has cautioned against a rush to judgment . ' dr. gosnell should enjoy the same presumption of innocence anyone in this country , you or me , should get if we were charged with a crime , ' william j. brennan said in 2011 . jury selection was set to begin monday . the charges gosnell faces eight counts of murder : for the deaths of seven babies , and in the case of a 41-year-old woman who died of an anesthetic overdose during a second-trimester abortion . the babies were born alive in the sixth , seventh and eighth months of pregnancy , but their spinal cords were severed with scissors , williams said . 2011 : philadelphia doctor accused of murdering patient , newborns ' it was a house of horrors beyond any type of definition or explanation i can humbly try to give , ' williams told cnn in january 2011 , shortly after gosnell was charged . and it 's very sad for the women that were there , that were subjected to such horrific and barbaric -- i would say medical treatment , but it was n't medical treatment . ' several other people who worked in the west philadelphia medical office have already pleaded guilty to related charges . a judge involved in the case said in 2011 that one of those employees was expected to testify against gosnell . the practice the practice , called the women 's medical society , served mostly low-income minority women for years . gosnell is not a board-certified obstetrician or gynecologist , williams said . originally , he said , the clinic used another doctor as a consultant so it could receive a license to perform abortions in 1979 . the doctor gained a reputation . people far and wide knew that he performed abortions at any time , ' williams said . 2011 : philadelphia abortion clinic worker pleads guilty in a 2010 interview with the philadelphia daily news , gosnell said he was a positive force in the community . ' the reporter who interviewed him , david gambacorta , told cnn that gosnell believed he was helping an under-served population in his west philadelphia neighborhood . the scene when authorities searched gosnell 's office , they found bags and bottles holding aborted fetuses scattered throughout the building . jars containing the severed feet of babies lined a shelf . furniture and equipment was blood-stained , dusty and broken . my grasp of the english language does n't really allow me to fully describe how horrific this clinic was -- rotting bodies , fetal remains , the smell of urine throughout , blood-stained , ' williams said . williams described one of the alleged infant deaths . the baby had been born and was on a cold steel table and murdered by using -- there 's no medical basis for snipping or taking scissors and putting them into the neck and cutting , severing the spinal cord . it 's just homicide . it 's just murder , ' williams told cnn . according to philly.com , a joint website of the philadelphia daily news and the philadelphia inquirer , gosnell was back in court last thursday , to mull a possible plea bargain . it 's unclear what the outcome of the meeting was , because of a gag order imposed on attorneys and other people involved in the case . 2011 : survivor of accused abortionist kermit gosnell tells her story | dr. kermit gosnell is charged with murdering seven babies and a pregnant woman |
gosnell <tsp> a pennsylvania doctor is accused of running a house of horrors ' in which he performed abortions past the 24-week limit allowed by law -- even allegedly as late as eight months into pregnancy . he used scissors , authorities say , to sever the spinal cords of newborns who emerged from their mothers still alive . now dr. kermit gosnell , 72 , is about to stand trial . he has pleaded not guilty . if he 's convicted , prosecutors want him put to death . a doctor who cuts into the necks severing the spinal cords of living , breathing babies , who would survive with proper medical attention , is committing murder under the law , ' philadelphia district attorney seth williams said . a grand jury investigation determined that health and licensing officials had received repeated reports about gosnell 's practices for two decades , but had taken no action , williams said . gosnell 's attorney has cautioned against a rush to judgment . ' dr. gosnell should enjoy the same presumption of innocence anyone in this country , you or me , should get if we were charged with a crime , ' william j. brennan said in 2011 . jury selection was set to begin monday . the charges gosnell faces eight counts of murder : for the deaths of seven babies , and in the case of a 41-year-old woman who died of an anesthetic overdose during a second-trimester abortion . the babies were born alive in the sixth , seventh and eighth months of pregnancy , but their spinal cords were severed with scissors , williams said . 2011 : philadelphia doctor accused of murdering patient , newborns ' it was a house of horrors beyond any type of definition or explanation i can humbly try to give , ' williams told cnn in january 2011 , shortly after gosnell was charged . and it 's very sad for the women that were there , that were subjected to such horrific and barbaric -- i would say medical treatment , but it was n't medical treatment . ' several other people who worked in the west philadelphia medical office have already pleaded guilty to related charges . a judge involved in the case said in 2011 that one of those employees was expected to testify against gosnell . the practice the practice , called the women 's medical society , served mostly low-income minority women for years . gosnell is not a board-certified obstetrician or gynecologist , williams said . originally , he said , the clinic used another doctor as a consultant so it could receive a license to perform abortions in 1979 . the doctor gained a reputation . people far and wide knew that he performed abortions at any time , ' williams said . 2011 : philadelphia abortion clinic worker pleads guilty in a 2010 interview with the philadelphia daily news , gosnell said he was a positive force in the community . ' the reporter who interviewed him , david gambacorta , told cnn that gosnell believed he was helping an under-served population in his west philadelphia neighborhood . the scene when authorities searched gosnell 's office , they found bags and bottles holding aborted fetuses scattered throughout the building . jars containing the severed feet of babies lined a shelf . furniture and equipment was blood-stained , dusty and broken . my grasp of the english language does n't really allow me to fully describe how horrific this clinic was -- rotting bodies , fetal remains , the smell of urine throughout , blood-stained , ' williams said . williams described one of the alleged infant deaths . the baby had been born and was on a cold steel table and murdered by using -- there 's no medical basis for snipping or taking scissors and putting them into the neck and cutting , severing the spinal cord . it 's just homicide . it 's just murder , ' williams told cnn . according to philly.com , a joint website of the philadelphia daily news and the philadelphia inquirer , gosnell was back in court last thursday , to mull a possible plea bargain . it 's unclear what the outcome of the meeting was , because of a gag order imposed on attorneys and other people involved in the case . 2011 : survivor of accused abortionist kermit gosnell tells her story | gosnell has pleaded not guilty |
hiker parade <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a 1997 cadillac plowed into a parade crowd in virginia on saturday , injuring dozens of spectators and leaving others pinned underneath the car . the accident injured up to 60 people , with 10 hospitalized , but none of the injuries appeared life-threatening , cnn affiliate wjhl reported . rescuers lifted the car to free people trapped beneath it after the accident in damascus , said bill nunly , the town 's police chief . a medical condition caused the driver participating in the parade with hikers to lose control and plow into spectators , wjhl reported , citing pokey harris , an emergency management coordinator with washington county . it was unclear what condition it was , and the driver was not identified . revelers and trail blazers were filing down a street in the town near the tennessee state line to celebrate the appalachian trail when the sedan veered off the road . it then moved into the hiker parade , where it started striking hikers , ' nunly said . it also crashed into other vehicles . hikers and rescuers dashed after the car to stop it . the doors were open ; people were able to make entry inside , ' nunly said . timothy tabat was in the right place at the right time . i reached back and grabbed the handle for the driver 's side rear door , jumped into the car , and put the car into park , ' he said . then the crowd that had pursued the large car lifted it up to free those pinned underneath it . of those injured , at least five or six were trauma victims , ' an emergency dispatcher said . the accident occurred during the hiker parade at the annual trail days festival , which honors the famed hiking trail . dalton thomson told cnn affiliate wcyb that he was pushed out of the way of the oncoming car by a hiker . we all looked back . there were hikers on top , hikers under the car , ' he said . it was unreal . ' cnn 's chelsea carter , janet digiacomo and jennifer moore contributed to this report . | accident occurs during the hiker parade at the trail days festival |
mandy moore <tsp> ( instyle ) -- the multi-talented star mandy moore shares her stylish secrets . mandy moore spins in a chaiken cashmere dress and ibisco belt . 1 . start defining your style ' it all goes back to wanting to be an individual . i have my days of not feeling super-great , but that 's universal . my style has evolved as i 've become more aware of myself as well as what looks good on me -- and what does n't . ' 2 . find labels that work for you ' it 's always nice to have a running tally of designers that fit your body well and that you feel comfortable in for any number of events . it makes you feel less limited . ' 3 . identify shapes that flatter ' i 'm not super-picky about color . i 'm more picky about the cut of a garment . i look terrible in anything bias-cut for instance , and i prefer empire waists . ' mandy explains other fashion choices » 4 . dresses are secret weapons ' i love dresses ! if it 's flowy and loose , you do n't have to worry about what shape you 're in , frankly . plus there 's something romantic and ethereal about vintage dresses that i adore . ' 5 . when in doubt , bring a belt ' i 'm looking at my dress today , and i wish i had brought a belt with me because it looks like a gigantic tent . having a belt to define your waist is always better than hiding behind something . ' 6 . what really makes you look good ' if you 're confident and you feel good , people pick up on that . and it does n't really matter what 's happening from the neck down . i 'd rather be comfortable than anything else . ' instyle.com : witness mandy 's amazing style transformation 7 . some trends wo n't flatter you -- avoid them . i tried footless leggings and then i realized , this is not a trend for me . when something stops at your midcalf , it can be somewhat shortening . but i feel like long tights make any look ladylike and classy . ' 8 . find a great tailor ' i 've been having trouble finding jeans lately . so i 've been buying vintage high-waist trouser jeans and having them tailored . my tailor understands my body . she 's always encouraging me to wear stuff tighter . ' 9 . hoop earrings work on everyone ' my friend raina 's always telling me to wear hoops . she 's like ,'even if you 're in jeans , a t-shirt and flats , hoops are sexy , cool , and everyone looks good in them .' 10 . give yourself a break ' you have to take a break and treat yourself . i treat myself by getting massages , manicures or pedicures . i treat myself by having a cookie or frozen yogurt , or whatever it may be , because i know i work hard and i deserve it . ' e-mail to a friend get a free trial issue of instyle - click here ! copyright © 2009 time inc. all rights reserved . | mandy moore offers style tips : avoid unflattering trends |
latino <tsp> ( cnn ) -- every time hispanic heritage month rolls around , i learn something new about the latino footprint in the u.s . but until i spoke to robert lopez , i never knew how this celebration came to be . in may of 1988 , lopez , former intern for the congressional hispanic caucus , was asked to work on a bill that would amend the 1968 federal law , authorized by president lyndon b. johnson , to change it from a week to a month-long celebration . today , lopez is a veteran journalist who has helped produce award-winning investigative and multimedia projects for the los angeles times , and a social-media expert who has taught reporters , students and academics in the united states , south america , the caribbean and the middle east . lopez said bettie baca , executive director of the caucus at the time , said a house version had already been introduced in 1987 by rep. esteban torres but was stalled by two subcommittees . a similar bill passed the senate and there was support from all 13 latino members of congress in the house . hearing this , lopez thought getting enough supporters would be a slam dunk ' -- until he received pushback from some quarters . i got resistance at first . people did n't just did n't want to support commemorative legislation . people said things like ,'well , why would we do that ? are n't we all american ? that 's not a thing we want to support ,'' lopez said . i was a bit naive at the time and did n't know what to do , so i asked the black caucus to help me out , and we focused on writing'dear colleague'letters to new york , texas and california . ' what we now know as black history month originated in 1926 , founded by carter g. woodson as negro history week , but then the celebration was expanded to a month in 1976 . president gerald r. ford urged americans to seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history . ' lopez asked the library of congress to put together a list of notable latino achievements in order to better sell the bill to other members . to me it was a fascinating learning experience . when i went to high school there was n't latino studies or chicano studies , ' lopez said . i knew of some history here and there , but was shocked to learn of all the latino history in this country from the congressional research service , part of the library of congress . this bill became a lot about self-discovery , ' lopez said . he wrote in a piece for the l.a. times that he learned about such notable figures as bernardo de galvez , a military officer who aided american colonists in their fight against the british during the revolutionary war . then there was luis alvarez , who was born in san francisco and won the nobel prize in physics in 1968 . ' there was a ticking clock element to lopez 's task . since this was the second session of the 100th congress , if the bill did n't pass this time around it would have to be introduced all over again . on an august morning in 1988 , lopez walked into the house gallery in a blazer and tie , watched the bill pass , and the battle was over without any big fuss . i had no idea it would be as big as it is today , ' said lopez . the third-generation mexican-american grew up in an english-dominant household . his parents were raised in an area of california where you were punished for speaking spanish , where mexican immigrants were forced to be american ' and assimilate . so lopez did n't grow up speaking spanish at home . but that was n't the case for his two children , who attended spanish-language immersion schools . now , america dedicates a month , from september 15 to october 15 , to celebrating the culture and traditions of those who trace their roots to spain , mexico and the spanish-speaking nations of central america , south america and the caribbean . after speaking to lopez , i felt a surge of urgency to keep sharing his story . i wonder what would have happened if he had n't been assigned this project during his internship . what if he had n't pushed for the bill with his dear colleague ' letter and phone calls , or even worse , what if the bill had been put on the back burner until the following year ? would we be celebrating hispanic heritage month today ? i hope hispanic heritage month helps people learn the things i did n't know growing up , the importance of latinos in our history , and the contributions they 've have made , ' lopez said . it 's a good way to celebrate our own culture , but also for non-latinos to be exposed . you ca n't really understand american history without understanding latino history . ' | you ca n't really understand american history without understanding latino history ' |
lopez <tsp> ( cnn ) -- every time hispanic heritage month rolls around , i learn something new about the latino footprint in the u.s . but until i spoke to robert lopez , i never knew how this celebration came to be . in may of 1988 , lopez , former intern for the congressional hispanic caucus , was asked to work on a bill that would amend the 1968 federal law , authorized by president lyndon b. johnson , to change it from a week to a month-long celebration . today , lopez is a veteran journalist who has helped produce award-winning investigative and multimedia projects for the los angeles times , and a social-media expert who has taught reporters , students and academics in the united states , south america , the caribbean and the middle east . lopez said bettie baca , executive director of the caucus at the time , said a house version had already been introduced in 1987 by rep. esteban torres but was stalled by two subcommittees . a similar bill passed the senate and there was support from all 13 latino members of congress in the house . hearing this , lopez thought getting enough supporters would be a slam dunk ' -- until he received pushback from some quarters . i got resistance at first . people did n't just did n't want to support commemorative legislation . people said things like ,'well , why would we do that ? are n't we all american ? that 's not a thing we want to support ,'' lopez said . i was a bit naive at the time and did n't know what to do , so i asked the black caucus to help me out , and we focused on writing'dear colleague'letters to new york , texas and california . ' what we now know as black history month originated in 1926 , founded by carter g. woodson as negro history week , but then the celebration was expanded to a month in 1976 . president gerald r. ford urged americans to seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history . ' lopez asked the library of congress to put together a list of notable latino achievements in order to better sell the bill to other members . to me it was a fascinating learning experience . when i went to high school there was n't latino studies or chicano studies , ' lopez said . i knew of some history here and there , but was shocked to learn of all the latino history in this country from the congressional research service , part of the library of congress . this bill became a lot about self-discovery , ' lopez said . he wrote in a piece for the l.a. times that he learned about such notable figures as bernardo de galvez , a military officer who aided american colonists in their fight against the british during the revolutionary war . then there was luis alvarez , who was born in san francisco and won the nobel prize in physics in 1968 . ' there was a ticking clock element to lopez 's task . since this was the second session of the 100th congress , if the bill did n't pass this time around it would have to be introduced all over again . on an august morning in 1988 , lopez walked into the house gallery in a blazer and tie , watched the bill pass , and the battle was over without any big fuss . i had no idea it would be as big as it is today , ' said lopez . the third-generation mexican-american grew up in an english-dominant household . his parents were raised in an area of california where you were punished for speaking spanish , where mexican immigrants were forced to be american ' and assimilate . so lopez did n't grow up speaking spanish at home . but that was n't the case for his two children , who attended spanish-language immersion schools . now , america dedicates a month , from september 15 to october 15 , to celebrating the culture and traditions of those who trace their roots to spain , mexico and the spanish-speaking nations of central america , south america and the caribbean . after speaking to lopez , i felt a surge of urgency to keep sharing his story . i wonder what would have happened if he had n't been assigned this project during his internship . what if he had n't pushed for the bill with his dear colleague ' letter and phone calls , or even worse , what if the bill had been put on the back burner until the following year ? would we be celebrating hispanic heritage month today ? i hope hispanic heritage month helps people learn the things i did n't know growing up , the importance of latinos in our history , and the contributions they 've have made , ' lopez said . it 's a good way to celebrate our own culture , but also for non-latinos to be exposed . you ca n't really understand american history without understanding latino history . ' | robert lopez pushed the idea in 1988 while working for congressional hispanic caucus |
lopez <tsp> ( cnn ) -- every time hispanic heritage month rolls around , i learn something new about the latino footprint in the u.s . but until i spoke to robert lopez , i never knew how this celebration came to be . in may of 1988 , lopez , former intern for the congressional hispanic caucus , was asked to work on a bill that would amend the 1968 federal law , authorized by president lyndon b. johnson , to change it from a week to a month-long celebration . today , lopez is a veteran journalist who has helped produce award-winning investigative and multimedia projects for the los angeles times , and a social-media expert who has taught reporters , students and academics in the united states , south america , the caribbean and the middle east . lopez said bettie baca , executive director of the caucus at the time , said a house version had already been introduced in 1987 by rep. esteban torres but was stalled by two subcommittees . a similar bill passed the senate and there was support from all 13 latino members of congress in the house . hearing this , lopez thought getting enough supporters would be a slam dunk ' -- until he received pushback from some quarters . i got resistance at first . people did n't just did n't want to support commemorative legislation . people said things like ,'well , why would we do that ? are n't we all american ? that 's not a thing we want to support ,'' lopez said . i was a bit naive at the time and did n't know what to do , so i asked the black caucus to help me out , and we focused on writing'dear colleague'letters to new york , texas and california . ' what we now know as black history month originated in 1926 , founded by carter g. woodson as negro history week , but then the celebration was expanded to a month in 1976 . president gerald r. ford urged americans to seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history . ' lopez asked the library of congress to put together a list of notable latino achievements in order to better sell the bill to other members . to me it was a fascinating learning experience . when i went to high school there was n't latino studies or chicano studies , ' lopez said . i knew of some history here and there , but was shocked to learn of all the latino history in this country from the congressional research service , part of the library of congress . this bill became a lot about self-discovery , ' lopez said . he wrote in a piece for the l.a. times that he learned about such notable figures as bernardo de galvez , a military officer who aided american colonists in their fight against the british during the revolutionary war . then there was luis alvarez , who was born in san francisco and won the nobel prize in physics in 1968 . ' there was a ticking clock element to lopez 's task . since this was the second session of the 100th congress , if the bill did n't pass this time around it would have to be introduced all over again . on an august morning in 1988 , lopez walked into the house gallery in a blazer and tie , watched the bill pass , and the battle was over without any big fuss . i had no idea it would be as big as it is today , ' said lopez . the third-generation mexican-american grew up in an english-dominant household . his parents were raised in an area of california where you were punished for speaking spanish , where mexican immigrants were forced to be american ' and assimilate . so lopez did n't grow up speaking spanish at home . but that was n't the case for his two children , who attended spanish-language immersion schools . now , america dedicates a month , from september 15 to october 15 , to celebrating the culture and traditions of those who trace their roots to spain , mexico and the spanish-speaking nations of central america , south america and the caribbean . after speaking to lopez , i felt a surge of urgency to keep sharing his story . i wonder what would have happened if he had n't been assigned this project during his internship . what if he had n't pushed for the bill with his dear colleague ' letter and phone calls , or even worse , what if the bill had been put on the back burner until the following year ? would we be celebrating hispanic heritage month today ? i hope hispanic heritage month helps people learn the things i did n't know growing up , the importance of latinos in our history , and the contributions they 've have made , ' lopez said . it 's a good way to celebrate our own culture , but also for non-latinos to be exposed . you ca n't really understand american history without understanding latino history . ' | lopez faced resistance from members but kept working for passage of the bill |
liverpool <tsp> ( cnn ) -- argentina midfielder javier mascherano wants to leave liverpool , according to the english club 's new manager roy hodgson , but spain striker fernando torres wants to stay . mascherano has been linked with a move to european champions inter milan , where his former liverpool boss rafael benitez is now coach , and informed hodgson of his desire to leave on his first day back at anfield following a post-world cup break . the 26-year-old joined liverpool in 2007 on loan from english rivals west ham , and signed a permanent four-year contract in 2008 . yes , he wants to leave the club . he has made that perfectly clear , ' hodgson told reporters at a press conference ahead of thursday 's europa league qualifier against macedonia 's rabotnicki . i think he wanted to leave a year ago and he wants to leave now . but he 's contracted to liverpool football club , so whether he leaves or not is our decision . the mere fact that the player is a little bit unhappy with his situation and would prefer to leave does n't necessarily mean he will leave . it disappoints me , but it 's not unusual . he has a two-year contract and i expect him to honor that until the day comes when the club decides to accept an offer for his services . ' however , hodgson had better news about the future of top scorer torres , who has been linked with english double winners chelsea after admitting to the former fulham manager that he was unhappy with aspects of life at liverpool . as far as i know , he is looking forward to coming back here on monday , ' the 62-year-old said on tuesday . he is enjoying a holiday , which is a well-deserved break as i do n't think he 's had one for three years . he is spending a lot of time with his family and , as far as i know , is keeping a very low profile and not really speaking to anybody . but he has told us he is looking forward to monday , looking forward to getting back to work and looking forward to playing for liverpool next season . that 's what i know , and i would suggest all other reports are erroneous . ' meanwhile , liverpool midfielder lucas leiva has been recalled by brazil for the friendly international with the united states on august 10 in new jersey . the 23-year-old was not selected for the 2010 world cup , but has been named by new national coach mano menezes -- who he worked with at previous club gremio in brazil . menezes has called up 11 debutants in a 24-man squad , which features just dani alves , ramires , thiago motta and robinho from predecessor dunga 's line-up in south africa . dunga was sacked after the five-time world champions were beaten in the quarterfinals by eventual runners-up the netherlands . | liverpool midfielder lucas leiva recalled into brazil squad after missing world cup |
liverpool <tsp> ( cnn ) -- argentina midfielder javier mascherano wants to leave liverpool , according to the english club 's new manager roy hodgson , but spain striker fernando torres wants to stay . mascherano has been linked with a move to european champions inter milan , where his former liverpool boss rafael benitez is now coach , and informed hodgson of his desire to leave on his first day back at anfield following a post-world cup break . the 26-year-old joined liverpool in 2007 on loan from english rivals west ham , and signed a permanent four-year contract in 2008 . yes , he wants to leave the club . he has made that perfectly clear , ' hodgson told reporters at a press conference ahead of thursday 's europa league qualifier against macedonia 's rabotnicki . i think he wanted to leave a year ago and he wants to leave now . but he 's contracted to liverpool football club , so whether he leaves or not is our decision . the mere fact that the player is a little bit unhappy with his situation and would prefer to leave does n't necessarily mean he will leave . it disappoints me , but it 's not unusual . he has a two-year contract and i expect him to honor that until the day comes when the club decides to accept an offer for his services . ' however , hodgson had better news about the future of top scorer torres , who has been linked with english double winners chelsea after admitting to the former fulham manager that he was unhappy with aspects of life at liverpool . as far as i know , he is looking forward to coming back here on monday , ' the 62-year-old said on tuesday . he is enjoying a holiday , which is a well-deserved break as i do n't think he 's had one for three years . he is spending a lot of time with his family and , as far as i know , is keeping a very low profile and not really speaking to anybody . but he has told us he is looking forward to monday , looking forward to getting back to work and looking forward to playing for liverpool next season . that 's what i know , and i would suggest all other reports are erroneous . ' meanwhile , liverpool midfielder lucas leiva has been recalled by brazil for the friendly international with the united states on august 10 in new jersey . the 23-year-old was not selected for the 2010 world cup , but has been named by new national coach mano menezes -- who he worked with at previous club gremio in brazil . menezes has called up 11 debutants in a 24-man squad , which features just dani alves , ramires , thiago motta and robinho from predecessor dunga 's line-up in south africa . dunga was sacked after the five-time world champions were beaten in the quarterfinals by eventual runners-up the netherlands . | liverpool manager has mixed news over futures of javier mascherano and fernando torres |
nba <tsp> ( cnn ) it was right after one of the longest lockouts in nba history . jeff green , then playing for the boston celtics , was looking forward to getting back to the hardwood . that was until a routine physical stopped him in his tracks . the physical revealed he had an aortic aneurysm near the left valve of his heart . i was shocked , ' said the memphis grizzlies small forward . i had no symptoms of fatigue , shortness of breath . ' green had to have open heart surgery . leading up to it was nerve-racking , ' he said . i could n't run . i could n't touch a basketball . i could n't get stressed out , it was tough . ' as green learned how doctors would open up his chest to repair his heart , he considered the possibility he may never play basketball again . the first couple of weeks after i was told , i really focused in on my career and what was next , ' said the basketball player . i wanted to make sure if i wanted to come back , i was able to come back and play the same way i did before i left . ' if that opportunity was n't there , green wanted to have a backup plan . so , he headed back to his college roots at georgetown university , finished his degree and became the first person in his family to graduate from college . green 's nba basketball career was n't over , but it was a slow progression back to the court . he missed the entire 2011-2012 season . i did n't even watch any basketball , ' he said . six months after the surgery was the first time i set foot on a court . ' it was with the hoyas where green laid back down the foundation of his game , healing his body and regaining muscle . the timing was off , ' he said . i was n't concerned about getting hit , the biggest thing was just being in shape and being able to move and being able to function on the floor . ' green believes the surgery and hard road back to the nba have given him a new perspective and more meaning in his life . i will never forget those days that i could walk 15 steps for five minutes , ' he said . now i attack every game like this could be my last . ' i feel like the year i missed really added more years , ' he explained . it added more life into what i 'm doing because i 'm more grateful for it . ' green 's now using his story to raise awareness of hidden heart risk . he also spends time with children dealing with cardiac issues -- often telling them they are superheroes ' and encouraging them to show off your scar -- embrace it ! ' | nba player jeff green had open heart surgery to repair an aortic aneurysm in 2011 |
green <tsp> ( cnn ) it was right after one of the longest lockouts in nba history . jeff green , then playing for the boston celtics , was looking forward to getting back to the hardwood . that was until a routine physical stopped him in his tracks . the physical revealed he had an aortic aneurysm near the left valve of his heart . i was shocked , ' said the memphis grizzlies small forward . i had no symptoms of fatigue , shortness of breath . ' green had to have open heart surgery . leading up to it was nerve-racking , ' he said . i could n't run . i could n't touch a basketball . i could n't get stressed out , it was tough . ' as green learned how doctors would open up his chest to repair his heart , he considered the possibility he may never play basketball again . the first couple of weeks after i was told , i really focused in on my career and what was next , ' said the basketball player . i wanted to make sure if i wanted to come back , i was able to come back and play the same way i did before i left . ' if that opportunity was n't there , green wanted to have a backup plan . so , he headed back to his college roots at georgetown university , finished his degree and became the first person in his family to graduate from college . green 's nba basketball career was n't over , but it was a slow progression back to the court . he missed the entire 2011-2012 season . i did n't even watch any basketball , ' he said . six months after the surgery was the first time i set foot on a court . ' it was with the hoyas where green laid back down the foundation of his game , healing his body and regaining muscle . the timing was off , ' he said . i was n't concerned about getting hit , the biggest thing was just being in shape and being able to move and being able to function on the floor . ' green believes the surgery and hard road back to the nba have given him a new perspective and more meaning in his life . i will never forget those days that i could walk 15 steps for five minutes , ' he said . now i attack every game like this could be my last . ' i feel like the year i missed really added more years , ' he explained . it added more life into what i 'm doing because i 'm more grateful for it . ' green 's now using his story to raise awareness of hidden heart risk . he also spends time with children dealing with cardiac issues -- often telling them they are superheroes ' and encouraging them to show off your scar -- embrace it ! ' | green missed the entire 2011-2012 basketball season |
green <tsp> ( cnn ) it was right after one of the longest lockouts in nba history . jeff green , then playing for the boston celtics , was looking forward to getting back to the hardwood . that was until a routine physical stopped him in his tracks . the physical revealed he had an aortic aneurysm near the left valve of his heart . i was shocked , ' said the memphis grizzlies small forward . i had no symptoms of fatigue , shortness of breath . ' green had to have open heart surgery . leading up to it was nerve-racking , ' he said . i could n't run . i could n't touch a basketball . i could n't get stressed out , it was tough . ' as green learned how doctors would open up his chest to repair his heart , he considered the possibility he may never play basketball again . the first couple of weeks after i was told , i really focused in on my career and what was next , ' said the basketball player . i wanted to make sure if i wanted to come back , i was able to come back and play the same way i did before i left . ' if that opportunity was n't there , green wanted to have a backup plan . so , he headed back to his college roots at georgetown university , finished his degree and became the first person in his family to graduate from college . green 's nba basketball career was n't over , but it was a slow progression back to the court . he missed the entire 2011-2012 season . i did n't even watch any basketball , ' he said . six months after the surgery was the first time i set foot on a court . ' it was with the hoyas where green laid back down the foundation of his game , healing his body and regaining muscle . the timing was off , ' he said . i was n't concerned about getting hit , the biggest thing was just being in shape and being able to move and being able to function on the floor . ' green believes the surgery and hard road back to the nba have given him a new perspective and more meaning in his life . i will never forget those days that i could walk 15 steps for five minutes , ' he said . now i attack every game like this could be my last . ' i feel like the year i missed really added more years , ' he explained . it added more life into what i 'm doing because i 'm more grateful for it . ' green 's now using his story to raise awareness of hidden heart risk . he also spends time with children dealing with cardiac issues -- often telling them they are superheroes ' and encouraging them to show off your scar -- embrace it ! ' | nba player jeff green had open heart surgery to repair an aortic aneurysm in 2011 |
al qaeda <tsp> a global travel alert issued friday by the state department warned al qaeda may launch attacks in the middle east , north africa and beyond in coming weeks , a threat that prompted sunday 's closure of 21 embassies and consulates . the u.s. government 's actions are in response to growing intelligence that shows a potential for attacks in yemen and elsewhere in the middle east as well as north africa , said u.s. officials who spoke to cnn on condition of not being identified . the threat appears to be much worse than it has ( been ) in a long time , ' said a senior national security official in yemen , where the government is on high alert against possible attacks in the days to come . ' various western targets -- not just those tied to the united states -- are under threat , according to two u.s. officials . according to three sources , the united states has information that al qaeda in the arabian peninsula members are in the final stages of planning for an unspecified attack . one of the sources said that such preparations appeared to have increased in recent days with the approaching end of the muslim holy month of ramadan . in particular , sunday is laylet al-qadr , or the night of power , which is one of the holiest moments on the muslim calendar . said one u.s. official : it all leads us to believe something could happen in the near future . ' based on intelligence , u.s. officials said , there was particular concern about the u.s. embassy in yemen between saturday and tuesday . president barack obama -- who , amid regular updates on the situation , has directed officials to take all appropriate steps to protect americans -- praised yemeni president abdo rabu mansour hadi for his country 's efforts following a meeting thursday at the white house . photos : attacks on u.s. diplomatic sites still , it 's unclear whether the apparent plot targets that arabian nation or one elsewhere -- which is why the travel alert applies so broadly , and why embassies from bangladesh to libya are being closed . the expected time of an attack also is n't known , with the u.s. travel alert noting the threat extends through the end of august . terrorists may elect to use a variety of means and weapons and target both official and private interests , ' the alert states . u.s. citizens are reminded of the potential for terrorists to attack public transportation systems and other tourist infrastructure . ' new york rep. peter king , a member of the house intelligence committee , called the information the most specific i 've seen . ' while the principal attention is on the arabian peninsula , he stressed to cnn 's wolf blitzer that ' we ca n't rule anything out . ' we are focused on the middle east , but it 's a potential series of attacks that really could be almost anyplace , ' said king . 21 embassies , consulates ordered closed the state department made public friday a list of 21 embassies and consulates that will close sunday , which is normally the start of the work week in the countries affected . the 17 affected u.s. embassies are in afghanistan , algeria , bahrain , bangladesh , djibouti , egypt , iraq , jordan , kuwait , libya , mauritania , oman , qatar , saudi arabia , the united arab emirates , sudan and yemen . the u.s. embassy in israel will be closed as normal sunday . see the whole list consulates in iraq , saudi arabia and the united arab emirates are also being shut down for the day . embassies and consulates in the region typically close their doors or operate with minimal staff on fridays and saturdays . the shutdowns could extend beyond sunday , a senior state department official said . retired gen. james mattis -- who until earlier this year was head of u.s. central command , responsible for a 20-country area that includes the middle east -- said the decision to close the embassies shows the reality of the threat and the wisdom of u.s. policymakers . u.s. embassies have been targeted before in places such as yemen , turkey and tanzania , he pointed out . moreover , al qaeda in the arabian peninsula is one of the terrorist network 's most active and most destructive branches . we have to remember that we 're up against an enemy who kills indiscriminately -- whether it be women , children , diplomats -- and our embassies ... have been one of the targets , ' mattis told cnn on friday . they are showing some proactive discretion here , making certain that we do n't give the enemy an opportunity that we can deny them . ' questions , concerns after benghazi house leaders have been briefed on the situation , democratic leader nancy pelosi told reporters , adding that the travel alert and embassy closings provided some understanding of the seriousness of the threat . ' king , who has also heard such briefings , applauded the government 's decision to close its diplomatic missions . i give them credit , ' the republican said of the obama administration . i think the government is doing exactly the right thing here . ' such bipartisan agreement in washington come at a time politicians are still pushing to seek answers regarding the september 11 , 2012 , attack on the u.s. consular compound in benghazi , libya , which killed four americans , including ambassador christopher stevens . since then , republicans have been pressing president barack obama 's administration for answers , with some accusing officials of covering up what happened in benghazi and not doing enough to track down the attackers . eight gop lawmakers are asking that incoming fbi director james comey brief congress within 30 days about the investigation . they say the administration 's inquiry thus far has been simply unacceptable , ' according to a draft letter obtained by cnn . earlier this week , vice president joe biden and senior state department officials went to congress to discuss embassy security . biden also briefed congressional leadership , key committee chairmen and ranking members about the latest threat concerns , a source who attended the meeting said . another official said the recent intelligence might not have warranted such a response before the benghazi attack , given the political firestorm it created for the obama administration . on thursday , state department spokeswoman marie harf said the agency was taking the steps at diplomatic sites out of an abundance of caution . cnn found embassy attack suspect before fbi | the state department issues a global travel alert on possible al qaeda attacks |
al qaeda <tsp> a global travel alert issued friday by the state department warned al qaeda may launch attacks in the middle east , north africa and beyond in coming weeks , a threat that prompted sunday 's closure of 21 embassies and consulates . the u.s. government 's actions are in response to growing intelligence that shows a potential for attacks in yemen and elsewhere in the middle east as well as north africa , said u.s. officials who spoke to cnn on condition of not being identified . the threat appears to be much worse than it has ( been ) in a long time , ' said a senior national security official in yemen , where the government is on high alert against possible attacks in the days to come . ' various western targets -- not just those tied to the united states -- are under threat , according to two u.s. officials . according to three sources , the united states has information that al qaeda in the arabian peninsula members are in the final stages of planning for an unspecified attack . one of the sources said that such preparations appeared to have increased in recent days with the approaching end of the muslim holy month of ramadan . in particular , sunday is laylet al-qadr , or the night of power , which is one of the holiest moments on the muslim calendar . said one u.s. official : it all leads us to believe something could happen in the near future . ' based on intelligence , u.s. officials said , there was particular concern about the u.s. embassy in yemen between saturday and tuesday . president barack obama -- who , amid regular updates on the situation , has directed officials to take all appropriate steps to protect americans -- praised yemeni president abdo rabu mansour hadi for his country 's efforts following a meeting thursday at the white house . photos : attacks on u.s. diplomatic sites still , it 's unclear whether the apparent plot targets that arabian nation or one elsewhere -- which is why the travel alert applies so broadly , and why embassies from bangladesh to libya are being closed . the expected time of an attack also is n't known , with the u.s. travel alert noting the threat extends through the end of august . terrorists may elect to use a variety of means and weapons and target both official and private interests , ' the alert states . u.s. citizens are reminded of the potential for terrorists to attack public transportation systems and other tourist infrastructure . ' new york rep. peter king , a member of the house intelligence committee , called the information the most specific i 've seen . ' while the principal attention is on the arabian peninsula , he stressed to cnn 's wolf blitzer that ' we ca n't rule anything out . ' we are focused on the middle east , but it 's a potential series of attacks that really could be almost anyplace , ' said king . 21 embassies , consulates ordered closed the state department made public friday a list of 21 embassies and consulates that will close sunday , which is normally the start of the work week in the countries affected . the 17 affected u.s. embassies are in afghanistan , algeria , bahrain , bangladesh , djibouti , egypt , iraq , jordan , kuwait , libya , mauritania , oman , qatar , saudi arabia , the united arab emirates , sudan and yemen . the u.s. embassy in israel will be closed as normal sunday . see the whole list consulates in iraq , saudi arabia and the united arab emirates are also being shut down for the day . embassies and consulates in the region typically close their doors or operate with minimal staff on fridays and saturdays . the shutdowns could extend beyond sunday , a senior state department official said . retired gen. james mattis -- who until earlier this year was head of u.s. central command , responsible for a 20-country area that includes the middle east -- said the decision to close the embassies shows the reality of the threat and the wisdom of u.s. policymakers . u.s. embassies have been targeted before in places such as yemen , turkey and tanzania , he pointed out . moreover , al qaeda in the arabian peninsula is one of the terrorist network 's most active and most destructive branches . we have to remember that we 're up against an enemy who kills indiscriminately -- whether it be women , children , diplomats -- and our embassies ... have been one of the targets , ' mattis told cnn on friday . they are showing some proactive discretion here , making certain that we do n't give the enemy an opportunity that we can deny them . ' questions , concerns after benghazi house leaders have been briefed on the situation , democratic leader nancy pelosi told reporters , adding that the travel alert and embassy closings provided some understanding of the seriousness of the threat . ' king , who has also heard such briefings , applauded the government 's decision to close its diplomatic missions . i give them credit , ' the republican said of the obama administration . i think the government is doing exactly the right thing here . ' such bipartisan agreement in washington come at a time politicians are still pushing to seek answers regarding the september 11 , 2012 , attack on the u.s. consular compound in benghazi , libya , which killed four americans , including ambassador christopher stevens . since then , republicans have been pressing president barack obama 's administration for answers , with some accusing officials of covering up what happened in benghazi and not doing enough to track down the attackers . eight gop lawmakers are asking that incoming fbi director james comey brief congress within 30 days about the investigation . they say the administration 's inquiry thus far has been simply unacceptable , ' according to a draft letter obtained by cnn . earlier this week , vice president joe biden and senior state department officials went to congress to discuss embassy security . biden also briefed congressional leadership , key committee chairmen and ranking members about the latest threat concerns , a source who attended the meeting said . another official said the recent intelligence might not have warranted such a response before the benghazi attack , given the political firestorm it created for the obama administration . on thursday , state department spokeswoman marie harf said the agency was taking the steps at diplomatic sites out of an abundance of caution . cnn found embassy attack suspect before fbi | sources say al qaeda is in final planning stages of unspecified plot |
somalia <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a russian heavy missile cruiser stopped three pirate ships off the coast of somalia , and detained 10 pirates , according to a statement released friday by russian navy headquarters in moscow . russian missile cruiser peter the great ' moored in cape town , south africa , last month . the cruiser , peter the great , halted two small high-speed motor boats and a mid-size , support vessel on thursday , the russians said . ten pirates have been detained . all of them are citizens of somalia , ' the press release obtained by cnn stated . officials from the northern fleet 's military prosecutor 's office are currently questioning the detainees aboard the peter the great . their future will be decided in coordination with the russian foreign and justice ministries . ' the russians said a russian helicopter ka-27 , which took off from the cruiser , had located two small boats , which were moving toward an iranian fishing vessel at high speed last thursday . when those in the boats spotted the helicopter overhead , the boats began slowing down , then veered off toward their support vessel , which was adrift nearby . the helicopter crew could see pirates in the two motor boats throwing weapons into the sea , and kept chasing the boats until the russian cruiser arrived in the area . the three boats were ( captured and ) delivered to the peter the great , and ten somalian pirates were taken aboard . the detainees possessed weapons , including a g-3 rifle , an ak-47 , two akms machine-guns , two grenade-launchers and two anti-infantry grenades , and also had a gps receiver , a ladder , 500 grams of drugs , a large amount of money , a bag of sugar and a bag of rice . the detained pirates were high on drugs , ' the press release said . meanwhile , somali pirates have released a panamanian-flagged , japanese-owned vessel that was hijacked in the gulf of aden in november , according to a non-governmental group that monitors piracy . the ship , named the mt chemstar venus , was released late thursday , according to ecoterra international . the 18 filipino and five south korean crew members were reportedly unharmed . the international maritime board , a group that also monitors piracy , told cnn that the company had not confirmed the release of the ship , but said shipping companies sometimes wait a few days before going public to ensure the safety of the crew . the ship was hijacked on november 15 . it was unclear whether the pirates were paid a ransom to release the ship . this incident comes a week after somali pirates released a ukrainian ship carrying tanks , ammunition and crew after receiving a ransom of $ 3.2 million . -- cnn 's david mckenzie contributed to this report . | russia : 10 pirates have been detained -- all of them are citizens of somalia |
hancock central <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a preliminary investigation is under way into an altercation that left a high school football coach hospitalized with severe facial injuries after a georgia football game , a sheriff 's investigator told cnn on tuesday . inspector ricky brown of the hancock county sheriff 's department said initial interviews are being conducted into the incident , which occurred friday night in sparta between players from hancock central and warren county high schools . warren county head coach david daniel was released monday from an augusta hospital after surgery to repair broken bones around his right eye , cheek and nose , said warren county superintendent jean carey . she told cnn he suffered crushed facial and ear bones and an irreparable injury to one of his tear ducts . carey said daniel was struck on the side of his head by a helmet when he tried to intervene in the fight , which occurred after warren county , the visiting team , defeated hancock central 21-2 . carey said hancock central players attacked warren county players as they were trying to get into their locker room , which was locked . georgia bureau of investigation spokesman john bankhead told cnn that carey had contacted the regional investigative office in thomson , which covers warren county , asking that the state agency investigate . however , the incident venue is in hancock county , not warren county and , under georgia law a school superintendent can not initiate a gbi investigation , ' bankhead said . that request would have to come from the hancock county sheriff 's office , who is investigating this incident , ' bankhead said . carey told cnn that daniel wants to come back to school and focus on ( this friday 's ) game right now . but he 's got to take care of himself first . ' she added , all of warrenton is just real upset . ' daniel was promoted from defensive coordinator to head coach the week of the first game this season , after marleau blount , a warren county alumnus , resigned under pressure for having practices with players who had not completed physicals . blount is now hancock central 's defensive coordinator . it was real unfortunate , ' blount told the augusta chronicle . i 'm upset at everything . ' sporting events between the schools have been canceled for the rest of the academic year , the warren county superintendent said . the two schools , which are about 25 miles apart in east-central georgia , west of augusta , are members of the same conference . cnn 's chris youd contributed to this report . | the fight broke out friday night after warren county defeated hancock central |
dream team <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it 's been arguably the biggest sports-debate question of the past month : who would win in a head-to-head matchup between the original 1992 olympic basketball dream team ' and the 2012 edition that just won gold in london ? larry , magic and michael , or kobe , kd and lebron ? we 'll never know , right ? maybe not . 2k sports is ready to let the fans decide by including both superstar teams in their upcoming basketball video game , nba 2k13 . ' the fantasy matchup , in which gamers can match both teams in a virtual showdown for the ages , is the result of a partnership with usa basketball , the organization that represents the u.s. in world basketball events . the public debate over which team is better started before the london games when the los angeles lakers'kobe bryant said he thought he and his teammates could beat the 1992 squad . well , just from a basketball standpoint , they obviously have a lot more size than we do , ' bryant told reporters after a pre-olympics practice . we have just a bunch of young racehorses , guys that are eager to compete . it 'd be a tough one , but i think we 'd pull it out . ' in one game , we can beat them . no question about it . ' the resulting back-and-forth between members from both teams sparked an idea from nba 2k13 ' executive producer jay-z . why not let the fans interact , play the game , and decide who is the better team ? in'nba 2k13 ,'we 're giving fans the opportunity to play as two of the best teams ever assembled in sporting history , literally putting the debate right into their hands , ' jay-z said in a statement . the original dream team is considered one of the most dynamic sports teams ever assembled . eleven hall of fame players , including michael jordan , larry bird , david robinson , magic johnson and charles barkley , came together to crush international opponents and win olympic gold in barcelona , spain . this year 's olympic team featured many likely future hall of famers , including bryant , lebron james and kevin durant . not surprisingly , the famously competitive jordan believes his team would triumph over the 2012 bunch . in an interview this week , he said playing both teams in nba 2k13 ' is likely to start more arguments than finish them . when you stack all the stats , which is in some ways how the game is going to be viewed and discussed , our stats are going to be a lot better than their stats , ' jordan said in a conference call with reporters . i think it 's going to start debates . i do n't think it 's going to end any . the only way it would end is for us to lace 'em back up and play them . ' jordan thinks nba 2k13 ' gamers will get a good appreciation of the different styles of play over the two eras . the third-leading scorer in nba history also offered some advice to fans playing as the dream team in the new video game . if you want to score inside , you have to throw it to charles ( barkley ) or karl ( malone ) , ' jordan said . if you want to throw it to the perimeter , larry ( bird ) or chris mullin can set up . myself , i 'm pretty sure i can score in any environment . ' jordan also believes the inclusion of the all-star teams will give international gamers a chance to experience american-style hoops firsthand . with the usa basketball portion ( of nba 2k13 ' ) , you are going to have a lot of europeans being able to play the dream team fantasy . ... i think that 's going to be fun . ' nba 2k13 ' will be released october 2 in north america and october 5 internationally . it will be available for the xbox 360 , playstation 3 , windows pc , psp and wii . a wii u version also will be released during the holiday season . | nba 2k13 ' will let gamers pit the london gold medalists against the 1992 dream team |
london <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it 's been arguably the biggest sports-debate question of the past month : who would win in a head-to-head matchup between the original 1992 olympic basketball dream team ' and the 2012 edition that just won gold in london ? larry , magic and michael , or kobe , kd and lebron ? we 'll never know , right ? maybe not . 2k sports is ready to let the fans decide by including both superstar teams in their upcoming basketball video game , nba 2k13 . ' the fantasy matchup , in which gamers can match both teams in a virtual showdown for the ages , is the result of a partnership with usa basketball , the organization that represents the u.s. in world basketball events . the public debate over which team is better started before the london games when the los angeles lakers'kobe bryant said he thought he and his teammates could beat the 1992 squad . well , just from a basketball standpoint , they obviously have a lot more size than we do , ' bryant told reporters after a pre-olympics practice . we have just a bunch of young racehorses , guys that are eager to compete . it 'd be a tough one , but i think we 'd pull it out . ' in one game , we can beat them . no question about it . ' the resulting back-and-forth between members from both teams sparked an idea from nba 2k13 ' executive producer jay-z . why not let the fans interact , play the game , and decide who is the better team ? in'nba 2k13 ,'we 're giving fans the opportunity to play as two of the best teams ever assembled in sporting history , literally putting the debate right into their hands , ' jay-z said in a statement . the original dream team is considered one of the most dynamic sports teams ever assembled . eleven hall of fame players , including michael jordan , larry bird , david robinson , magic johnson and charles barkley , came together to crush international opponents and win olympic gold in barcelona , spain . this year 's olympic team featured many likely future hall of famers , including bryant , lebron james and kevin durant . not surprisingly , the famously competitive jordan believes his team would triumph over the 2012 bunch . in an interview this week , he said playing both teams in nba 2k13 ' is likely to start more arguments than finish them . when you stack all the stats , which is in some ways how the game is going to be viewed and discussed , our stats are going to be a lot better than their stats , ' jordan said in a conference call with reporters . i think it 's going to start debates . i do n't think it 's going to end any . the only way it would end is for us to lace 'em back up and play them . ' jordan thinks nba 2k13 ' gamers will get a good appreciation of the different styles of play over the two eras . the third-leading scorer in nba history also offered some advice to fans playing as the dream team in the new video game . if you want to score inside , you have to throw it to charles ( barkley ) or karl ( malone ) , ' jordan said . if you want to throw it to the perimeter , larry ( bird ) or chris mullin can set up . myself , i 'm pretty sure i can score in any environment . ' jordan also believes the inclusion of the all-star teams will give international gamers a chance to experience american-style hoops firsthand . with the usa basketball portion ( of nba 2k13 ' ) , you are going to have a lot of europeans being able to play the dream team fantasy . ... i think that 's going to be fun . ' nba 2k13 ' will be released october 2 in north america and october 5 internationally . it will be available for the xbox 360 , playstation 3 , windows pc , psp and wii . a wii u version also will be released during the holiday season . | nba 2k13 ' will let gamers pit the london gold medalists against the 1992 dream team |
saleh <tsp> sanaa , yemen ( cnn ) -- yemen 's embattled president has been huddling with members of his ruling party in neighboring saudi arabia as world and regional powers press for an end to the political crisis in his country and a smooth transition of political power . ali abdullah saleh met on wednesday with officials and leaders of his ruling general people 's congress party , the state-run news agency saba and a high-level party official said this comes amid immense pressure from the international community ' to accept an agreement for a transition of power , the official told cnn . the six-nation gulf cooperation council , a group of gulf arab states , has come up with a plan to ease saleh out of office , a move that would placate widespread anti-government sentiment in the impoverished arab nation . the official said salehwants to make sure he consults senior party officials before he would sign a power transfer deal . saleh and other top yemeni officials were badly injured in june during an assassination attempt on the presidential palace amid a tribal revolt against his 32-year rule . saleh was taken to saudi arabia for treatment . saba reported on thursday that the party officials congratulated saleh and others for their recovery and on the advent of the holy month of ramadan . the president and the others reviewed conditions in saudi arabia and touched on the security council statement , saba reported . saleh underscored the gpc 's commitment for ways to solve disagreements with the opposition . he underlined the significance of keeping on the positive dealing with the gulf initiative and to look for the appropriate mechanism to be carried out and to ensure peaceful and smooth transfer of power in accordance with the constitution , ' saba said . yemen has endured months of protests and militant violence . protests against saleh began in january after the successful uprising in tunisia triggered regionwide reform movements . the protests led to open street battles after saleh balked at the political transition deal . at the same time , the government has also faced off with islamic militants , including the al qaeda wing in yemen , regarded by analysts as a potent and dangerous group . saleh had been discharged from a military hospital , but it was not clear when he would return to yemen . saleh 's vice president , vice president abed rabbo mansour hadi , has been running the government since then . | saleh met with party officials in saudi arabia , where he was treated for wounds |
saleh <tsp> sanaa , yemen ( cnn ) -- yemen 's embattled president has been huddling with members of his ruling party in neighboring saudi arabia as world and regional powers press for an end to the political crisis in his country and a smooth transition of political power . ali abdullah saleh met on wednesday with officials and leaders of his ruling general people 's congress party , the state-run news agency saba and a high-level party official said this comes amid immense pressure from the international community ' to accept an agreement for a transition of power , the official told cnn . the six-nation gulf cooperation council , a group of gulf arab states , has come up with a plan to ease saleh out of office , a move that would placate widespread anti-government sentiment in the impoverished arab nation . the official said salehwants to make sure he consults senior party officials before he would sign a power transfer deal . saleh and other top yemeni officials were badly injured in june during an assassination attempt on the presidential palace amid a tribal revolt against his 32-year rule . saleh was taken to saudi arabia for treatment . saba reported on thursday that the party officials congratulated saleh and others for their recovery and on the advent of the holy month of ramadan . the president and the others reviewed conditions in saudi arabia and touched on the security council statement , saba reported . saleh underscored the gpc 's commitment for ways to solve disagreements with the opposition . he underlined the significance of keeping on the positive dealing with the gulf initiative and to look for the appropriate mechanism to be carried out and to ensure peaceful and smooth transfer of power in accordance with the constitution , ' saba said . yemen has endured months of protests and militant violence . protests against saleh began in january after the successful uprising in tunisia triggered regionwide reform movements . the protests led to open street battles after saleh balked at the political transition deal . at the same time , the government has also faced off with islamic militants , including the al qaeda wing in yemen , regarded by analysts as a potent and dangerous group . saleh had been discharged from a military hospital , but it was not clear when he would return to yemen . saleh 's vice president , vice president abed rabbo mansour hadi , has been running the government since then . | saleh is amenable to working on a peaceful and smooth ' transfer , news agency said |
marco rubio <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- the path to the white house is paved with former frontrunners -- or maybe call them buzzleaders , since we 're three years away from 2016 and nobody is officially running for president yet . time magazine has put three different gop lawmakers on its cover . first it was marco rubio . then it was rand paul . now it is chris christie . do n't forget to sprinkle that seasoning over all the sugary buzz surrounding christie , who was emphatically reelected as new jersey governor this week . the foreshadowing was evident as he sailed to victory and a second term . there 's no doubt christie is mulling a run for president . i know that if we can do this in trenton , new jersey , then maybe the folks in washington , d.c. , should tune in their tvs right now and see how it 's done , ' he said during his victory speech , suggesting he had found the right mix to work together with democrats and rise above partisan rancor . he was even more pointed with cnn 's jake tapper when he suggested that republicans have veered away from a winning path and onto an ideological one . where does christie go next ? i think that the party 's got to focus on winning again , ' christie said from his campaign bus tuesday , sending a clear message to conservative idealists and the tea party . you know , sometimes , i feel like our party cares more about winning the argument than they care about winning elections . and if you do n't win elections , you ca n't govern . and if you ca n't govern , you ca n't change the direction of a state , like we have done in new jersey . ' the big question , assuming he does run for president , will be whether he can get conservatives he does n't see eye-to-eye with to support him in order to get to a general election . the christie narrative goes like this : the dynamic new jersey republican has flourished as a red governor in a blue state . he 's defied unions and enacted conservative policies without doing something too drastic , the way mitt romney did with health insurance reform . he 's shown a willingness to work with democrats . he showed leadership after superstorm sandy . there 's no doubt about it : chris christie won a huge victory tuesday . and the way the media works these days , a big win for a governor like christie makes him the odds-on favorite to be the republican nominee for president in 2016 , three years from now . until he is n't . wait for it . or just ask rubio about working across party lines in washington . rand paul is n't much known for working with democrats , but his buzz has faded lately as he 's dealt with a plagiarism scandal . and he has competed with sen. ted cruz for attention with the most conservative bulwarks of the party . when moderates fight back : gop civil war could be brutal in 2014 elections christie 's relationship with social conservatives , a key gop constituency , could be frustrated . he laid down his sword , for instance , when it became clear that courts would allow same-sex marriage in california . but conservatives in iowa are n't ready to reject him simply because he lost the battle over same-sex marriage . he accepted , i 'll say it , the position of gay marriage existing in new jersey , ' said rep. steve king , a republican from the key state of iowa . he said economic issues will be more important . we 've had to make accommodations for that in iowa . we have some experience with that . but he did n't endorse gay marriage . and the tea party themselves , i 've been in many discussions with them and tried to argue to the contrary , they say we want to stay with the economic and the constitutional issues . not the social agenda . ' and do n't forget : romney , the republicans'2012 presidential nominee , was governor of the first state to allow same-sex marriage when courts there ok 'd the practice back in 2004 . christie has got the cover of time this week . back in february , it was rubio pictured confidently on the cover of that publication with the bold headline , the republican savior : how marco rubio became the new voice of the gop . ' back then -- just this past february -- rubio was the young senator with tea party credentials and a willingness to work across the aisle . the rubio narrative is just as compelling as christie 's . the son of cuban immigrants came to washington on a tea party wave and staked his career on a bold and politically courageous effort to rewrite the nation 's immigration laws . he sought to heal a perceived rift between republicans and latinos and bring millions of undocumented immigrants out of the shadows . it was a tortured process , but the senate did , four months after rubio was featured on the time cover , pass 68-32 the immigration bill he helped write . it took mostly democratic votes to do it , however . and rubio 's tea party cred was hurt . election night 2013 : christie wins big , virginia provides drama now that bill on which rubio spent so much political capital is , as he told cnn 's dana bash on wednesday , stuck . ' and rubio is the first to admit he has paid a political price with republicans for working with democrats and supporting a pathway to citizenship . i was in favor of immigration reform . it had nothing to do with politics of it , although it may have some political implications . it was because it was the right thing to do for our country . ' the more conservative house of representatives wo n't touch rubio 's bipartisan bill , which has put him in the tough position of potentially having to support something less expansive in order to get anything done . what comprehensive bill on anything is going to get passed around here right now ? ' he asked . we ca n't even get a farm bill passed . ' farm bills , fyi , are normally bipartisan and easily ratified . but not this year , with a stubborn congress and a divisive president . people think washington is gross , ' he said of the current atmosphere . later , rubio told bash he does n't yet know of any senators running for president ( meaning him ) , but he hopes his experience in washington wo n't be a permanent liability . you can work in washington without being of washington , ' he said . luckily , i have n't been here long enough to believe that what goes on here is normal . ' | sen. marco rubio 's prominent profile has led to complications for the potential 2016 contender |
christie <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- the path to the white house is paved with former frontrunners -- or maybe call them buzzleaders , since we 're three years away from 2016 and nobody is officially running for president yet . time magazine has put three different gop lawmakers on its cover . first it was marco rubio . then it was rand paul . now it is chris christie . do n't forget to sprinkle that seasoning over all the sugary buzz surrounding christie , who was emphatically reelected as new jersey governor this week . the foreshadowing was evident as he sailed to victory and a second term . there 's no doubt christie is mulling a run for president . i know that if we can do this in trenton , new jersey , then maybe the folks in washington , d.c. , should tune in their tvs right now and see how it 's done , ' he said during his victory speech , suggesting he had found the right mix to work together with democrats and rise above partisan rancor . he was even more pointed with cnn 's jake tapper when he suggested that republicans have veered away from a winning path and onto an ideological one . where does christie go next ? i think that the party 's got to focus on winning again , ' christie said from his campaign bus tuesday , sending a clear message to conservative idealists and the tea party . you know , sometimes , i feel like our party cares more about winning the argument than they care about winning elections . and if you do n't win elections , you ca n't govern . and if you ca n't govern , you ca n't change the direction of a state , like we have done in new jersey . ' the big question , assuming he does run for president , will be whether he can get conservatives he does n't see eye-to-eye with to support him in order to get to a general election . the christie narrative goes like this : the dynamic new jersey republican has flourished as a red governor in a blue state . he 's defied unions and enacted conservative policies without doing something too drastic , the way mitt romney did with health insurance reform . he 's shown a willingness to work with democrats . he showed leadership after superstorm sandy . there 's no doubt about it : chris christie won a huge victory tuesday . and the way the media works these days , a big win for a governor like christie makes him the odds-on favorite to be the republican nominee for president in 2016 , three years from now . until he is n't . wait for it . or just ask rubio about working across party lines in washington . rand paul is n't much known for working with democrats , but his buzz has faded lately as he 's dealt with a plagiarism scandal . and he has competed with sen. ted cruz for attention with the most conservative bulwarks of the party . when moderates fight back : gop civil war could be brutal in 2014 elections christie 's relationship with social conservatives , a key gop constituency , could be frustrated . he laid down his sword , for instance , when it became clear that courts would allow same-sex marriage in california . but conservatives in iowa are n't ready to reject him simply because he lost the battle over same-sex marriage . he accepted , i 'll say it , the position of gay marriage existing in new jersey , ' said rep. steve king , a republican from the key state of iowa . he said economic issues will be more important . we 've had to make accommodations for that in iowa . we have some experience with that . but he did n't endorse gay marriage . and the tea party themselves , i 've been in many discussions with them and tried to argue to the contrary , they say we want to stay with the economic and the constitutional issues . not the social agenda . ' and do n't forget : romney , the republicans'2012 presidential nominee , was governor of the first state to allow same-sex marriage when courts there ok 'd the practice back in 2004 . christie has got the cover of time this week . back in february , it was rubio pictured confidently on the cover of that publication with the bold headline , the republican savior : how marco rubio became the new voice of the gop . ' back then -- just this past february -- rubio was the young senator with tea party credentials and a willingness to work across the aisle . the rubio narrative is just as compelling as christie 's . the son of cuban immigrants came to washington on a tea party wave and staked his career on a bold and politically courageous effort to rewrite the nation 's immigration laws . he sought to heal a perceived rift between republicans and latinos and bring millions of undocumented immigrants out of the shadows . it was a tortured process , but the senate did , four months after rubio was featured on the time cover , pass 68-32 the immigration bill he helped write . it took mostly democratic votes to do it , however . and rubio 's tea party cred was hurt . election night 2013 : christie wins big , virginia provides drama now that bill on which rubio spent so much political capital is , as he told cnn 's dana bash on wednesday , stuck . ' and rubio is the first to admit he has paid a political price with republicans for working with democrats and supporting a pathway to citizenship . i was in favor of immigration reform . it had nothing to do with politics of it , although it may have some political implications . it was because it was the right thing to do for our country . ' the more conservative house of representatives wo n't touch rubio 's bipartisan bill , which has put him in the tough position of potentially having to support something less expansive in order to get anything done . what comprehensive bill on anything is going to get passed around here right now ? ' he asked . we ca n't even get a farm bill passed . ' farm bills , fyi , are normally bipartisan and easily ratified . but not this year , with a stubborn congress and a divisive president . people think washington is gross , ' he said of the current atmosphere . later , rubio told bash he does n't yet know of any senators running for president ( meaning him ) , but he hopes his experience in washington wo n't be a permanent liability . you can work in washington without being of washington , ' he said . luckily , i have n't been here long enough to believe that what goes on here is normal . ' | there 's no doubt christie is mulling a run for president |
quick <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it was supposed to be a big day for kevin quick . his youngest brother was turning 40 and , to celebrate , kevin planned a big birthday bash -- hiring a dj , hanging decorations , not to mention inviting friends and family to join in the fun . but the host never showed up . the waynesboro , virginia , auxiliary police captain 's absence from that party saturday spurred his loved ones to look for him . when they had no luck , they turned to law enforcement . when he never showed , that was when people could tell there was something really wrong . ' sgt . brian edwards of the waynesboro police department said . family was really important to him . he would n't just ditch out on the family . ' authorities found his silver 1999 toyota 4runner parked under a metal carport in mineral , virginia . that 's in a rural area about 60 miles east of afton , where quick left his mother 's home on friday night for what was expected to be a short ride out to visit a friend . they have linked two men to quick 's car and released a photo of one of them in hopes the public can offer more clues . civic leaders have put up $ 22,500 in reward money for information leading to quick , edwards said . and given what they know about quick , 45 , and the case so far , the virginia state police have announced they suspect foul play . it was so truly out of character ... for him to just disappear like that , ' said corinne geller , a state police spokeswoman .'kevin is definitely a family man' quick 's family is deeply rooted in waynesboro , a city of about 21,000 residents along the edge of the appalachian mountains some 25 miles west of charlottesville . the family also has strong ties to its police department . kevin 's late father joined waynesboro police 's reserve arm in 1983 . his eldest son joined him in 1990 , ascending the ranks over the subsequent years . ( the middle brother , glenn , is an officer with the u.s. capitol police in washington . ) making up 15 of its 44 members , reserve members play a significant role in waynesboro 's police department , according to edwards . like full-timers , they hold ranks , have badges and carry firearms . kevin and his family are institutions in the police auxiliary unit , ' edwards said . quick worked in the reserves while working paying day jobs , including the past 15 years as a production coordinator for the synthetic fabrics company invista . his position there was eliminated in what edwards called an amicable ' separation . quick was given a severance package of an unknown amount , according to an affidavit released tuesday . that money has not yet been accounted for . even without a full-time job , quick kept busy , with his apparent focus being his family , as it had been for years . the morning of friday , january 31 , he 'd taken his mother -- with whom he was living in afton -- out to breakfast at a local cracker barrel . that meal was the last time quick 's credit card was used , according to edwards . he 'd also spent that day prepping for his brother 's surprise birthday celebration , including getting the venue and music in order . quick had been legally separated from his wife since 2007 , but their divorce was not final , edwards said . he said another woman gave birth to quick 's daughter four months ago , and he was headed to their home in neighboring albemarle county at the time he disappeared . according to the affidavit , quick texted his child 's mother , saying he was on the way . his phone has been turned off since friday night . kevin is definitely a family man , ' edwards said . he is the eldest of three siblings , and he really took on the role of taking care of his mother ( after his father died ) . ... he is a very dutiful son . ' suv tracked to 2 spots with unknown men so when the party 's 1 p.m. saturday start time rolled around and there was no kevin , his family suspected something was up . at that point , they did n't know that -- after leaving his mother 's house around 10:15 p.m. friday -- he never made it to the home of his child 's mother , some 20 miles away at an apartment complex in charlottesville . authorities subsequently traced every possible route that he could have taken ' between those locations , according to geller , as part of extensive air and ground searches . but they did n't find him . they were able to track his toyota , however , to at least two spots in virginia . the first such match was late friday in fork union , which is located about 30 miles southeast of charlottesville . on saturday -- around when quick should have been at his brother 's party -- the suv was spotted about 90 miles north of fork union in manassas , in prince william county . photographs linked two men to quick 's vehicle . one image shows one of the men in a hooded sweatshirt covering much of his face . does he or the other man know where quick is ? authorities are n't sure , but they 're hoping the public can help them track down the man in the photo they released so police can talk to him . as of tuesday , police had not , though they had received at least 50 tips in the case . rural virginia residents shaken by case so what happened to kevin quick ? according to edwards , authorities have already ruled out the possibility that he disappeared of his own accord . citing the ongoing investigation , geller from the state police has n't offered much detail or laid out possible scenarios . she does say investigators have determined that the resident of mineral who spotted quick 's toyota shortly after 8 a.m. monday -- parked at some point the previous night under a carport on his property , with no evident damage suggesting it had been in an accident -- has nothing to do with the case . the whole ordeal has shaken many throughout rural western virginia . chris woodson says he 's particularly unnerved by the idea that a law enforcement officer is missing . if the police ca n't even keep themselves safe , what are we supposed to do ? ' woodson , who lives in mineral , told cnn affiliate wtvr . it makes me think that i 'm going to have to lock my doors at night when i thought i lived in the country and i did n't have to do that . ' the community has rallied around the quick family , in person and online . in comments on the state police 's facebook page , numerous people offered their prayers , best wishes and laments for what the family is going through . said one : i 'm sick about this . ' cnn 's carma hassan contributed to this report . | his family became worried when quick did n't show up for a party he 'd planned |
quick <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it was supposed to be a big day for kevin quick . his youngest brother was turning 40 and , to celebrate , kevin planned a big birthday bash -- hiring a dj , hanging decorations , not to mention inviting friends and family to join in the fun . but the host never showed up . the waynesboro , virginia , auxiliary police captain 's absence from that party saturday spurred his loved ones to look for him . when they had no luck , they turned to law enforcement . when he never showed , that was when people could tell there was something really wrong . ' sgt . brian edwards of the waynesboro police department said . family was really important to him . he would n't just ditch out on the family . ' authorities found his silver 1999 toyota 4runner parked under a metal carport in mineral , virginia . that 's in a rural area about 60 miles east of afton , where quick left his mother 's home on friday night for what was expected to be a short ride out to visit a friend . they have linked two men to quick 's car and released a photo of one of them in hopes the public can offer more clues . civic leaders have put up $ 22,500 in reward money for information leading to quick , edwards said . and given what they know about quick , 45 , and the case so far , the virginia state police have announced they suspect foul play . it was so truly out of character ... for him to just disappear like that , ' said corinne geller , a state police spokeswoman .'kevin is definitely a family man' quick 's family is deeply rooted in waynesboro , a city of about 21,000 residents along the edge of the appalachian mountains some 25 miles west of charlottesville . the family also has strong ties to its police department . kevin 's late father joined waynesboro police 's reserve arm in 1983 . his eldest son joined him in 1990 , ascending the ranks over the subsequent years . ( the middle brother , glenn , is an officer with the u.s. capitol police in washington . ) making up 15 of its 44 members , reserve members play a significant role in waynesboro 's police department , according to edwards . like full-timers , they hold ranks , have badges and carry firearms . kevin and his family are institutions in the police auxiliary unit , ' edwards said . quick worked in the reserves while working paying day jobs , including the past 15 years as a production coordinator for the synthetic fabrics company invista . his position there was eliminated in what edwards called an amicable ' separation . quick was given a severance package of an unknown amount , according to an affidavit released tuesday . that money has not yet been accounted for . even without a full-time job , quick kept busy , with his apparent focus being his family , as it had been for years . the morning of friday , january 31 , he 'd taken his mother -- with whom he was living in afton -- out to breakfast at a local cracker barrel . that meal was the last time quick 's credit card was used , according to edwards . he 'd also spent that day prepping for his brother 's surprise birthday celebration , including getting the venue and music in order . quick had been legally separated from his wife since 2007 , but their divorce was not final , edwards said . he said another woman gave birth to quick 's daughter four months ago , and he was headed to their home in neighboring albemarle county at the time he disappeared . according to the affidavit , quick texted his child 's mother , saying he was on the way . his phone has been turned off since friday night . kevin is definitely a family man , ' edwards said . he is the eldest of three siblings , and he really took on the role of taking care of his mother ( after his father died ) . ... he is a very dutiful son . ' suv tracked to 2 spots with unknown men so when the party 's 1 p.m. saturday start time rolled around and there was no kevin , his family suspected something was up . at that point , they did n't know that -- after leaving his mother 's house around 10:15 p.m. friday -- he never made it to the home of his child 's mother , some 20 miles away at an apartment complex in charlottesville . authorities subsequently traced every possible route that he could have taken ' between those locations , according to geller , as part of extensive air and ground searches . but they did n't find him . they were able to track his toyota , however , to at least two spots in virginia . the first such match was late friday in fork union , which is located about 30 miles southeast of charlottesville . on saturday -- around when quick should have been at his brother 's party -- the suv was spotted about 90 miles north of fork union in manassas , in prince william county . photographs linked two men to quick 's vehicle . one image shows one of the men in a hooded sweatshirt covering much of his face . does he or the other man know where quick is ? authorities are n't sure , but they 're hoping the public can help them track down the man in the photo they released so police can talk to him . as of tuesday , police had not , though they had received at least 50 tips in the case . rural virginia residents shaken by case so what happened to kevin quick ? according to edwards , authorities have already ruled out the possibility that he disappeared of his own accord . citing the ongoing investigation , geller from the state police has n't offered much detail or laid out possible scenarios . she does say investigators have determined that the resident of mineral who spotted quick 's toyota shortly after 8 a.m. monday -- parked at some point the previous night under a carport on his property , with no evident damage suggesting it had been in an accident -- has nothing to do with the case . the whole ordeal has shaken many throughout rural western virginia . chris woodson says he 's particularly unnerved by the idea that a law enforcement officer is missing . if the police ca n't even keep themselves safe , what are we supposed to do ? ' woodson , who lives in mineral , told cnn affiliate wtvr . it makes me think that i 'm going to have to lock my doors at night when i thought i lived in the country and i did n't have to do that . ' the community has rallied around the quick family , in person and online . in comments on the state police 's facebook page , numerous people offered their prayers , best wishes and laments for what the family is going through . said one : i 'm sick about this . ' cnn 's carma hassan contributed to this report . | authorities ask for help in locating 2 men who photos link to quick 's toyota suv |
quick <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it was supposed to be a big day for kevin quick . his youngest brother was turning 40 and , to celebrate , kevin planned a big birthday bash -- hiring a dj , hanging decorations , not to mention inviting friends and family to join in the fun . but the host never showed up . the waynesboro , virginia , auxiliary police captain 's absence from that party saturday spurred his loved ones to look for him . when they had no luck , they turned to law enforcement . when he never showed , that was when people could tell there was something really wrong . ' sgt . brian edwards of the waynesboro police department said . family was really important to him . he would n't just ditch out on the family . ' authorities found his silver 1999 toyota 4runner parked under a metal carport in mineral , virginia . that 's in a rural area about 60 miles east of afton , where quick left his mother 's home on friday night for what was expected to be a short ride out to visit a friend . they have linked two men to quick 's car and released a photo of one of them in hopes the public can offer more clues . civic leaders have put up $ 22,500 in reward money for information leading to quick , edwards said . and given what they know about quick , 45 , and the case so far , the virginia state police have announced they suspect foul play . it was so truly out of character ... for him to just disappear like that , ' said corinne geller , a state police spokeswoman .'kevin is definitely a family man' quick 's family is deeply rooted in waynesboro , a city of about 21,000 residents along the edge of the appalachian mountains some 25 miles west of charlottesville . the family also has strong ties to its police department . kevin 's late father joined waynesboro police 's reserve arm in 1983 . his eldest son joined him in 1990 , ascending the ranks over the subsequent years . ( the middle brother , glenn , is an officer with the u.s. capitol police in washington . ) making up 15 of its 44 members , reserve members play a significant role in waynesboro 's police department , according to edwards . like full-timers , they hold ranks , have badges and carry firearms . kevin and his family are institutions in the police auxiliary unit , ' edwards said . quick worked in the reserves while working paying day jobs , including the past 15 years as a production coordinator for the synthetic fabrics company invista . his position there was eliminated in what edwards called an amicable ' separation . quick was given a severance package of an unknown amount , according to an affidavit released tuesday . that money has not yet been accounted for . even without a full-time job , quick kept busy , with his apparent focus being his family , as it had been for years . the morning of friday , january 31 , he 'd taken his mother -- with whom he was living in afton -- out to breakfast at a local cracker barrel . that meal was the last time quick 's credit card was used , according to edwards . he 'd also spent that day prepping for his brother 's surprise birthday celebration , including getting the venue and music in order . quick had been legally separated from his wife since 2007 , but their divorce was not final , edwards said . he said another woman gave birth to quick 's daughter four months ago , and he was headed to their home in neighboring albemarle county at the time he disappeared . according to the affidavit , quick texted his child 's mother , saying he was on the way . his phone has been turned off since friday night . kevin is definitely a family man , ' edwards said . he is the eldest of three siblings , and he really took on the role of taking care of his mother ( after his father died ) . ... he is a very dutiful son . ' suv tracked to 2 spots with unknown men so when the party 's 1 p.m. saturday start time rolled around and there was no kevin , his family suspected something was up . at that point , they did n't know that -- after leaving his mother 's house around 10:15 p.m. friday -- he never made it to the home of his child 's mother , some 20 miles away at an apartment complex in charlottesville . authorities subsequently traced every possible route that he could have taken ' between those locations , according to geller , as part of extensive air and ground searches . but they did n't find him . they were able to track his toyota , however , to at least two spots in virginia . the first such match was late friday in fork union , which is located about 30 miles southeast of charlottesville . on saturday -- around when quick should have been at his brother 's party -- the suv was spotted about 90 miles north of fork union in manassas , in prince william county . photographs linked two men to quick 's vehicle . one image shows one of the men in a hooded sweatshirt covering much of his face . does he or the other man know where quick is ? authorities are n't sure , but they 're hoping the public can help them track down the man in the photo they released so police can talk to him . as of tuesday , police had not , though they had received at least 50 tips in the case . rural virginia residents shaken by case so what happened to kevin quick ? according to edwards , authorities have already ruled out the possibility that he disappeared of his own accord . citing the ongoing investigation , geller from the state police has n't offered much detail or laid out possible scenarios . she does say investigators have determined that the resident of mineral who spotted quick 's toyota shortly after 8 a.m. monday -- parked at some point the previous night under a carport on his property , with no evident damage suggesting it had been in an accident -- has nothing to do with the case . the whole ordeal has shaken many throughout rural western virginia . chris woodson says he 's particularly unnerved by the idea that a law enforcement officer is missing . if the police ca n't even keep themselves safe , what are we supposed to do ? ' woodson , who lives in mineral , told cnn affiliate wtvr . it makes me think that i 'm going to have to lock my doors at night when i thought i lived in the country and i did n't have to do that . ' the community has rallied around the quick family , in person and online . in comments on the state police 's facebook page , numerous people offered their prayers , best wishes and laments for what the family is going through . said one : i 'm sick about this . ' cnn 's carma hassan contributed to this report . | kevin quick 's phone has been turned off since friday night |
barefoot bandit <tsp> miami , florida ( cnn ) -- the barefoot bandit , ' teenager colton harris-moore , was taken tuesday from the bahamas to miami to face charges , the fbi said . special agent judith orihuela said he landed at 6:23 p.m. aboard an american eagle flight on which the fbi was aboard , and will appear wednesday at 1:30 p.m. in federal court in miami . the 19-year-old 's arrival occurred a few hours after he pleaded guilty in a bahamian court to a charge of illegally landing a plane , paid a $ 300 fine and was ordered deported , his lawyer said . a federal law enforcement official said the $ 300 came from a program for u.s. citizens abroad who are strapped for cash . harris-moore 's lawyer , monique gomez , said her fee was being paid not by her client but by an anonymous donor . ' he seems to be very remorseful , ' the lawyer told cnn in a telephone interview from nassau about her client , who attended the court hearing wearing white sneakers , shorts and a t-shirt bearing the word bahamas . ' harris-moore was taken into custody on harbour island in the bahamas early sunday . he is sought in a string of home and airport break-ins in various u.s. locations along with thefts of vehicles . asked whether he acknowledges guilt in the other cases , his lawyer said , let me put it this way -- he wishes he had done things a little differently in his life . ' still , she added , he appeared in good spirits . ' authorities in madison county , nebraska , issued an arrest warrant for harris-moore last month on charges of burglary and theft by unlawful taking or deception . the affidavit supporting the warrant alleges the youth waged a crime spree . he faces charges in washington state in the theft of an aircraft , and police have said they believe he stole a cessna in indiana and flew it to the bahamas , where it was found in the shallows off abaco island . the teen had been on the run since he escaped from a juvenile halfway house in renton , washington , in 2008 . the fbi had offered a $ 10,000 reward for information leading to his arrest . typically in extradition cases , the accused makes a first appearance in the federal court closest to where he was arrested , said emily langlie , spokeswoman for the u.s. attorney 's office in the western district of washington . the southern district of florida , in miami , is the closest jurisdiction to the bahamas , said langlie . in his initial u.s. appearance , he will be told of his rights and read an initial charge of interstate transportation of stolen property , langlie said . the complaint , which was sealed until last week , was filed last december and stems from his allegedly stealing a plane in bonner 's ferry , idaho , and crashing it outside granite falls , washington , she said . u.s. marshals will then take him to the western district of washington in seattle . under the federal system , the case will then go to a grand jury . if an indictment is returned , more charges could be filed . the federal charge of interstate transportation of stolen goods carries a penalty of up to 10 years . federal prosecutors are working with other states to determine the best way to go forward in this case , but the washington courts will get him first since he was arrested on their warrant , she said . harris-moore is called the barefoot bandit ' because he was without shoes when he allegedly broke into houses . he also was barefoot when apprehended in the bahamas at the romora bay resort and marina by police responding to a reported sighting sunday . the youth has amassed more than 80,000 facebook fans . in december , time magazine dubbed him america 's most wanted teenage bandit . ' also , 20th century fox has purchased the rights for a film based on his exploits . romora bay officials said in a statement harris-moore arrived on harbour island from the nearby island of eleuthera in a 15-foot skiff . the marina 's security director , kenneth strachan , reported seeing him running down the dock about 2 a.m. sunday , carrying a gun . the young man told him , they 're going to kill me , ' strachan reported . he put out a call for help . guards disabled the skiff 's engine , but the young man attempted to steal a second boat , according to resort manager anne ward . however , he ran aground in the shallow water . authorities surrounded him and shot out the boat 's engines , ward said . at one point , the boy threw his computer in the water and put a gun to his head , ' she said in the statement . he was going to kill himself . police talked him out of it . ' authorities loaded him into a resort work truck and took him to a police station , the statement said . police said a gun and other items were seized from him . cnn 's ashley hayes , patrick oppmann , susan candiotti , tom watkins and insession correspondent jean casarez contributed to this report . | barefoot bandit ' pleads guilty to landing plane illegally |
north <tsp> one day after south korea staged exercises near yeonpyeong island marking the anniversary of north korea 's deadly shelling , the north 's military threatened a sea of fire ' upon the south 's presidential office , the south 's yonhap news agency reported thursday . a year ago wednesday , north korea launched an attack on the civilian island of yeonpyeong , killing two marines and two civilians and shattering the sense of security that south koreans had enjoyed for almost 60 years . the island shelling came half a year after north korea torpedoed a naval ship , the cheonan , killing 46 sailors . north korea 's military supreme command denounced the south 's anniversary exercise as a rehearsal for war against the north and warned that the north 's armed forces are ready for a decisive battle to counter any military provocation , ' yonhap reported . if south korea dares to impair the dignity of ( the north ) again and fire one bullet or shell toward its inviolable territorial waters , sky and land , the deluge of fire on yonphyong island will lead to that in chongwadae and the sea of fire in chongwadae to the deluge of fire sweeping away the stronghold of the group of traitors , ' the command said in an official ( north ) korean central news agency account , according to yonhap . the north korean statement used a different spelling for both the shelled south korean island and cheong wa dae , korea 's presidential offices , yonhap reported . south korea 's defense ministry had no immediate comment , yonhap reported . north korea invoked identical rhetoric in 1994 , when pyongyang had expelled international nuclear inspectors and threatened to turn seoul into a sea of fire . ' with the united states mulling air strikes on north korean facilities in 1994 , former u.s. president jimmy carter flew into pyongyang to meet kim il sung , and that set the scene for the so-called agreed framework ' under which north korea would give up its nuclear facilities in return for light water reactors from the international community . | a year ago , the north shelled the island , killing two marines and two civilians |
north <tsp> one day after south korea staged exercises near yeonpyeong island marking the anniversary of north korea 's deadly shelling , the north 's military threatened a sea of fire ' upon the south 's presidential office , the south 's yonhap news agency reported thursday . a year ago wednesday , north korea launched an attack on the civilian island of yeonpyeong , killing two marines and two civilians and shattering the sense of security that south koreans had enjoyed for almost 60 years . the island shelling came half a year after north korea torpedoed a naval ship , the cheonan , killing 46 sailors . north korea 's military supreme command denounced the south 's anniversary exercise as a rehearsal for war against the north and warned that the north 's armed forces are ready for a decisive battle to counter any military provocation , ' yonhap reported . if south korea dares to impair the dignity of ( the north ) again and fire one bullet or shell toward its inviolable territorial waters , sky and land , the deluge of fire on yonphyong island will lead to that in chongwadae and the sea of fire in chongwadae to the deluge of fire sweeping away the stronghold of the group of traitors , ' the command said in an official ( north ) korean central news agency account , according to yonhap . the north korean statement used a different spelling for both the shelled south korean island and cheong wa dae , korea 's presidential offices , yonhap reported . south korea 's defense ministry had no immediate comment , yonhap reported . north korea invoked identical rhetoric in 1994 , when pyongyang had expelled international nuclear inspectors and threatened to turn seoul into a sea of fire . ' with the united states mulling air strikes on north korean facilities in 1994 , former u.s. president jimmy carter flew into pyongyang to meet kim il sung , and that set the scene for the so-called agreed framework ' under which north korea would give up its nuclear facilities in return for light water reactors from the international community . | north korea makes'sea of fire'threat after south korea holds exercises |
south korea <tsp> one day after south korea staged exercises near yeonpyeong island marking the anniversary of north korea 's deadly shelling , the north 's military threatened a sea of fire ' upon the south 's presidential office , the south 's yonhap news agency reported thursday . a year ago wednesday , north korea launched an attack on the civilian island of yeonpyeong , killing two marines and two civilians and shattering the sense of security that south koreans had enjoyed for almost 60 years . the island shelling came half a year after north korea torpedoed a naval ship , the cheonan , killing 46 sailors . north korea 's military supreme command denounced the south 's anniversary exercise as a rehearsal for war against the north and warned that the north 's armed forces are ready for a decisive battle to counter any military provocation , ' yonhap reported . if south korea dares to impair the dignity of ( the north ) again and fire one bullet or shell toward its inviolable territorial waters , sky and land , the deluge of fire on yonphyong island will lead to that in chongwadae and the sea of fire in chongwadae to the deluge of fire sweeping away the stronghold of the group of traitors , ' the command said in an official ( north ) korean central news agency account , according to yonhap . the north korean statement used a different spelling for both the shelled south korean island and cheong wa dae , korea 's presidential offices , yonhap reported . south korea 's defense ministry had no immediate comment , yonhap reported . north korea invoked identical rhetoric in 1994 , when pyongyang had expelled international nuclear inspectors and threatened to turn seoul into a sea of fire . ' with the united states mulling air strikes on north korean facilities in 1994 , former u.s. president jimmy carter flew into pyongyang to meet kim il sung , and that set the scene for the so-called agreed framework ' under which north korea would give up its nuclear facilities in return for light water reactors from the international community . | north korea makes'sea of fire'threat after south korea holds exercises |
gbagbo <tsp> abidjan , ivory coast ( cnn ) -- heavy fighting continued tuesday in yopougon between forces loyal to president alassane ouattara and militiamen loyal to former president laurent gbagbo even as he was said to have accepted his loss of power . the military operation was launched monday by pro-ouattara forces to crush the last pocket of resistance remaining after the militias turned down a call from ouattara to disarm or face force . the new violence erupted after a delegation of mediators led by former u.n. secretary-general kofi annan completed a two-day visit to ivory coast intended to encourage reconciliation and healing . annan was joined by archbishop desmond tutu of south africa and mary robinson , the former president of ireland . their visit followed post-election violence that claimed the lives of hundreds of people and led nearly a million others to flee the city of abidjan , according to aid groups . i was locked into my house for the past two weeks with no food to eat , ' said sery gregoire , a resident of yopougon . but this morning , we were able to escape . ' mathieu mimi was not so lucky . we are trapped in guerilla warfare , ' he said tuesday . the militiamen are mobile and melt into the populations . it is hard to catch them . ' the mediators visited gbagbo , who remains under house arrest in the country 's north . annan said they were pleased to hear gbagbo say that he wants the country to return to normal as soon as possible . he seems to have accepted that ouattara is the new president , ' annan said . we are encouraged by the president 's willingness , and that of many of the people we met , to move forward in a spirit of reconciliation , but much of society is still polarized . ' the mediators asked the government to allow the international committee of the red cross to visit gbagbo , his wife and all other detainees , as soon as possible . | gbagbo said to have accepted his loss of power |
france <tsp> ( cnn ) -- france on saturday welcomed an agreement between military coup leaders in mali and a regional bloc that would return the country to democratic rule , two weeks after a coup plunged it into turmoil . mali state television announced late friday that the leader of mali 's coup , captain amadou sanogo , and the economic community of west african states ( ecowas ) had signed up to the plan . the parties agreed to set up a transition process leading to a presidential election , sanogo said , in exchange for the end of trade and diplomatic sanctions . a transitional prime minister will lead the transition to manage the crisis in the north of mali and to organize free , transparent and democratic elections in accordance with a road map , ' he said . the announcement of a promised return to civilian rule came shortly after separatist rebels , who had captured large areas of mali 's vast sahara region in the north of the country , declared independence for a region they call azawad . a french foreign ministry statement urged all parties to put the measures set out in the agreement into effect as soon as possible , especially those laying the groundwork for presidential elections . the presidents of ivory coast and burkina faso , both members of ecowas , will meet to discuss the next steps , the foreign ministry said . once a constitutional government is restored , france -- the former colonial power in mali -- will resume military and civil cooperation with mali , the statement said . france will help the future government find a political solution to the problems in northern mali , where the tuareg rebels have gained control , it said . france also urged the rebel leaders to seek a political resolution . journalist katarina hoije , in the capital , bamako , said the coup leaders had been left with little choice but to agree to the plan after coming under sustained pressure from ecowas and losing ground to rebel groups . the rebels say they will continue to fight to preserve the territory they have gained , hoije said , although it is unclear how much control they have on the ground . the rebel declaration of independence was made in a statement posted online by the secretary general of the azawad national liberation movement ( mnla ) . the claim followed more than 50 years of corruption and poor governance with the complicity of the army and the politicians , putting people 's lives at risk in azawad , ' the mnla said . in a statement , the african union expressed its total rejection ' of the rebels'independence claim . the african union will do all it can to restore the authority of the government of mali to its entire territory and bring to an end the attacks being carried out by armed and terrorist groups in the northern part of the country , ' it said . french defense minister gerard longuet said the declaration of independence in northern mali was meaningless if it was not recognized by african states . the rebels had called a cease-fire thursday , saying they had captured key territory in the sahara region and achieved their military mission . the tuaregs , who consider azawad to be the cradle of their nomadic civilization , launched an insurgency in january to achieve a separate homeland . the conflict has uprooted more than 200,000 people from their homes . buoyed by the chaos after last month 's coup , the rebels swept through the north and wrested control of several strategic cities , including kidal , gao and timbuktu . the rebels effectively split the west african nation in two , and northern areas remained volatile and tense , preventing aid agencies from accessing displaced people , the united nations refugee agency said thursday . kidal , gao and timbuktu experienced days of looting , abductions and chaos after they were occupied by armed groups . the coup leaders had deposed the democratically elected president amadou toumani toure because of his alleged inability to handle the tuareg rebellion . cnn 's bharati naik , laura smith-spark and kamal ghattas contributed to this report . | france welcomes a deal by coup leaders to restore power to a civilian government |
afghan <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a man wearing an afghan national army uniform shot at coalition service members in eastern afghanistan friday , killing one , officials said . nato 's international security assistance force did not say which country the deceased soldier was from . but a local police chief in kunar province said the deceased soldier was an american . it is unclear whether the attacker is an afghan soldier or an infiltrator wearing the uniform . police said the attacker was an afghan soldier . but the taliban said the attacker was part of the taliban and had infiltrated in order to attack foreign soldiers , said zabiullah mujahid , a spokesman for the militant group . the problem of afghan troops who have turned their weapons on allied forces -- so-called green on blue attacks -- has intensified this year . in march , gen. john allen , the commander of the nato-led international security assistance force , said an erosion of trust that has emerged from this , ' but said that the systems the afghans and isaf have in place to help stop these attacks before they happen is having an effect . allen said isaf officials are working on a new procedure to check the backgrounds of afghans who sign up for the army or police force , and the afghans have taken a lot of steps themselves . ' the attacker was able to escape after the shootings , police said . | it is unclear whether the attacker is an afghan soldier or an infiltrator |
afghan <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a man wearing an afghan national army uniform shot at coalition service members in eastern afghanistan friday , killing one , officials said . nato 's international security assistance force did not say which country the deceased soldier was from . but a local police chief in kunar province said the deceased soldier was an american . it is unclear whether the attacker is an afghan soldier or an infiltrator wearing the uniform . police said the attacker was an afghan soldier . but the taliban said the attacker was part of the taliban and had infiltrated in order to attack foreign soldiers , said zabiullah mujahid , a spokesman for the militant group . the problem of afghan troops who have turned their weapons on allied forces -- so-called green on blue attacks -- has intensified this year . in march , gen. john allen , the commander of the nato-led international security assistance force , said an erosion of trust that has emerged from this , ' but said that the systems the afghans and isaf have in place to help stop these attacks before they happen is having an effect . allen said isaf officials are working on a new procedure to check the backgrounds of afghans who sign up for the army or police force , and the afghans have taken a lot of steps themselves . ' the attacker was able to escape after the shootings , police said . | the issue of afghan troops who have turned their weapons on allied forces has intensified |
gadahn <tsp> islamabad , pakistan ( cnn ) -- the identity and nationality of an alleged al qaeda operative arrested in pakistan remained shrouded in mystery and conflicting information monday , a day after pakistani officials said one of the fbi 's most wanted terrorists was in custody . a pakistani military official said monday that the man arrested is a foreign operative linked to al qaeda . the official did not specifically describe the man as american and gave no further details . on sunday , a senior pakistani government official said that adam gadahn , a u.s.-born spokesman for al qaeda , had been arrested . a second senior pakistani government official later confirmed gadahn 's arrest . but a u.s. intelligence official said there appeared to be no validity to the reports that gadahn was in custody . other u.s. officials also said they had no indication gadahn had been captured . u.s. counterterrorism officials said monday they had received no indication from pakistan that any american had been arrested . one official said there was no validity ' to reports that gadahn was arrested . another called the reports bogus . ' news reports monday cited pakistani officials as saying that a different man , believed to be an american member of al qaeda , had been arrested . but u.s. counterterrorism officials said the united states has not heard of the person , who was identified in some reports as abu yahya mujahdeen al-adam , an american born in pennsylvania . one official said the reports coming out of pakistan were a real head scratcher . ' rick snelsire , a spokesman for the u.s. embassy in pakistan , said monday that the embassy had not received any information about an american being detained by pakistani security forces . gadahn , 31 , also known as azzam the american , was indicted on charges of treason and providing material support to terrorists in 2006 . the u.s. government has offered a $ 1 million reward for information leading to his capture . he is the first american charged with treason since 1952 . reports of an arrest sunday came hours after islamist web sites posted video of gadahn praising a november massacre at fort hood , texas . on the video , gadahn said the army major charged with gunning down 13 people lit a path ' for other muslim service members to follow . authorities have targeted several key islamist figures in karachi -- the heavily populated port city and financial capital of pakistan that , for some time , has functioned as a hideout for taliban and al qaeda sympathizers . a city of 13 million -- with some estimates saying there are 100,000 new arrivals a month -- karachi has seen an influx of pashtuns from the tribal border region with afghanistan . many fled there during fighting and pakistani military offensives in the northwest frontier province and waziristan , making karachi a comfortable place for the taliban to blend in and count on a network of supporters . cnn 's reza sayah , nic robertson and adam levine contributed to this report . | u.s. officials : reports that gadahn is in custody do n't seem valid , are a real head scratcher ' |
gadahn <tsp> islamabad , pakistan ( cnn ) -- the identity and nationality of an alleged al qaeda operative arrested in pakistan remained shrouded in mystery and conflicting information monday , a day after pakistani officials said one of the fbi 's most wanted terrorists was in custody . a pakistani military official said monday that the man arrested is a foreign operative linked to al qaeda . the official did not specifically describe the man as american and gave no further details . on sunday , a senior pakistani government official said that adam gadahn , a u.s.-born spokesman for al qaeda , had been arrested . a second senior pakistani government official later confirmed gadahn 's arrest . but a u.s. intelligence official said there appeared to be no validity to the reports that gadahn was in custody . other u.s. officials also said they had no indication gadahn had been captured . u.s. counterterrorism officials said monday they had received no indication from pakistan that any american had been arrested . one official said there was no validity ' to reports that gadahn was arrested . another called the reports bogus . ' news reports monday cited pakistani officials as saying that a different man , believed to be an american member of al qaeda , had been arrested . but u.s. counterterrorism officials said the united states has not heard of the person , who was identified in some reports as abu yahya mujahdeen al-adam , an american born in pennsylvania . one official said the reports coming out of pakistan were a real head scratcher . ' rick snelsire , a spokesman for the u.s. embassy in pakistan , said monday that the embassy had not received any information about an american being detained by pakistani security forces . gadahn , 31 , also known as azzam the american , was indicted on charges of treason and providing material support to terrorists in 2006 . the u.s. government has offered a $ 1 million reward for information leading to his capture . he is the first american charged with treason since 1952 . reports of an arrest sunday came hours after islamist web sites posted video of gadahn praising a november massacre at fort hood , texas . on the video , gadahn said the army major charged with gunning down 13 people lit a path ' for other muslim service members to follow . authorities have targeted several key islamist figures in karachi -- the heavily populated port city and financial capital of pakistan that , for some time , has functioned as a hideout for taliban and al qaeda sympathizers . a city of 13 million -- with some estimates saying there are 100,000 new arrivals a month -- karachi has seen an influx of pashtuns from the tribal border region with afghanistan . many fled there during fighting and pakistani military offensives in the northwest frontier province and waziristan , making karachi a comfortable place for the taliban to blend in and count on a network of supporters . cnn 's reza sayah , nic robertson and adam levine contributed to this report . | on sunday , officials from pakistan government said adam gadahn had been arrested |
rena <tsp> ( cnn ) -- oil leaking from a container ship that ran aground on a reef off the pristine east coast of new zealand 's north island has begun washing ashore . clumps of oil have been found on mount maunganui beach in the bay of plenty . new zealand 's oil spill response agency , maritime new zealand ( mnz ) , is advising people to avoid the beach for health reasons . oil began leaking from the rena , a liberian-flagged vessel , after it struck the astrolabe reef , about 12 nautical miles off the coast of tauranga , on the north island , on wednesday , creating a five-km ( three-mile ) slick . efforts to recover oil from the grounded ship , now heading south down the coast , are being hampered by high winds and strong swells . approximately 10 tonnes of fuel oil was transferred to tanks on board a barge before the recovery operation was suspended on monday . most of the 1,700 cubic meters ( 450,000 gallons ) of fuel carried by the ship has remained within the vessel 's hull . however , the ship has sustained some damage from current movements and has leaked a significant amount of oil , which mnz estimates to be 130-350 tonnes . mnz said dispersants are being tested on the oil that has leaked . however , there are sea swells of up to four meters , which can make it difficult for the dispersant to work . worsening weather prompted the ship 's crew to be evacuated as a precautionary measure after a mayday call was made on tuesday . naval architects and salvage experts on board the rena are monitoring the vessel and have placed sensors to provide advance warning should the ship 's structure come under too much stress . mnz has established a one-kilometer maritime exclusion zone around the ship due to the health risk posed by the oil spill . national on-scene commander rob service said the operation to remove the oil from the ship , led by svitzer salvage , would be complex . there is no way of doing this quickly , ' he said . a rescue center has been set up in the city of tauranga to clean oil from animals affected by the spill and mnz has 12 teams working to assist oiled wildlife . nine birds have been recovered -- seven little blue penguins and two shags , the agency said . about 300 defense force personnel are on standby for a shore cleanup if needed , the agency said . officials fear the stricken ship may spill additional oil as its condition deteriorates . i think we 'd expect that at some point to have further problems and potentially even break up , ' transport minister steven joyce told broadcaster tvnz . greenpeace expressed extreme concern ' about the spill and urged the government to avoid using further toxic dispersants . this is an unfortunate illustration of just how difficult it is to deal with oil spills at sea , ' the organization 's steve abel said . even a slow , and relatively accessible , oil spill like this one has clearly stretched new zealand 's response capability to its limits . it is also a potential disaster for the blue whales and dolphins presently calving in the area , as well as numerous other marine species . ' new zealand prime minister john key said two inquiries had been launched into the incident to discover how the ship hit the reef . this is a very large ship , that in calm waters has hit an extremely well documented reef , ' he told television new zealand . some serious questions need to be answered about why that happened and who is responsible , ' he said . cnn 's karen smith and laura smith-spark contributed to this report . | the rena ran aground on reef off new zealand 's north island |
monaco gp <tsp> ( cnn ) -- nico rosberg overcame accusations of gamesmanship to beat his mercedes teammate lewis hamilton and win a tense and at times dramatic monaco grand prix . the german driver led from the start with early championship pace setter hamilton , nursing an eye injury later in the race , having to make do with second place . red bull 's daniel ricciardo finished third . but the race , much like the build up , was dominated by tensions between the two mercedes drivers . with rosberg and hamilton -- who were separated by just three championship points going in to the race -- vying for pole position on the final lap of qualifying saturday , rosberg left the track after his front wheel locked . the stewards brought out caution flags , preventing hamilton from completing his final qualifying lap and handing pole to rosberg . rosberg claimed it was a simple error and a steward 's inquiry agreed , concluding that there was no evidence of any offense . ' but hamilton was less convinced . i found the time at the end and was n't able to execute it so it was n't a true showing of my true pace , ' the british driver told the bbc after qualifying . but i should have known that was going to happen and done it the lap before , ' he added . despite mercedes non-executive chairman niki lauda voicing fears that the two drivers may collide at the first corner , the front row got away without incident and rosberg built a strong lead on a course renowned for its difficulty in overtaking . a stalemate followed until lap 28 when sauber 's adrian sutil crashed out , causing the safety car to come and provoking a flurry of tactical pit stops . thereafter hamilton caught up with rosberg , and looked set to challenge for the lead , until he suddenly dropped back , complaining to his team that he could n't see out of his left eye . in the end hamilton was lucky to clinch second after ricciardo pulled close in the final laps . but hamilton held on . the result saw rosberg take the lead in the drivers championship , with hamilton dropping back to second . but with many making comparisons between the famously bitter team rivalry between ayrton senna and alain prost , the battle , and the mind games , are likely to continue until the last race of the season . | mercedes'nico rosberg wins monaco gp |
hungary <tsp> ( cnn ) -- dutch star arjen robben has n't given up hope of playing in the world cup after he was diagnosed with a hamstring tear . the bayern munich winger was injured during the netherlands warm-up match against hungary on saturday . scans revealed robben has a small tear in his left hamstring but he is confident that intense physiotherapy can help salvage his dream of playing in south africa . he told reporters : on sunday i had the scan and it 's just a small tear in my left hamstring . it 's the first time i have a injury on that spot of my leg . if i just let it heal then i 'm back on the field in four to six weeks , but we do n't have so much time . i have one chance and i have to go for it . ( physio ) dick van toorn is going to help me . we 're going to work incredibly hard . i 'm going to fight until i drop . the last 24 hours i have had so much support from all the people around me and that had a positive effect on me . after the injury i went to the locker room for a first diagnosis which was very difficult . but it was clear that it was n't good because i had a lot of pain . ' dutch coach bert van marwijk has already confirmed he does n't intend to call up a replacement for robben in order to give him as much time as possible to recover . the netherlands are in group e along with denmark , japan and cameroon . their first game is against denmark on june 14 . | robben sustained a tear in his hamstring during a friendly against hungary |
lubbock <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a body found near lubbock , texas , has been identified as that of a baby sitter seen in a motel surveillance video with a longtime family friend charged in the case , authorities said wednesday . the medical examiner identified the remains found monday about seven miles outside of the city as belonging to elizabeth ennen , 15 . she had been strangled , capt . greg stevens told cnn . stevens told reporters that humberto salinas jr. , 45 , was being held on a $ 250,000 bond on an aggravated kidnapping charge . police are talking with the district attorney about taking a murder charge to the grand jury , he said . elizabeth was reported missing after baby-sitting at a motel for salinas , who was a friend of the ennen family and the father of her boyfriend , police said . the girl did baby-sitting jobs several times for salinas at the motel , where he lived , police said . stevens would not say whether salinas was cooperating , but he indicated the remains were not found by chance or through a tip . elizabeth was reported missing january 5 , and salinas was charged in the case on friday . are you missing a loved one ? share your story a relative of salinas declined comment when contacted by cnn wednesday . stevens defended the time it took to conduct the investigation and arrest salinas , saying the suspect was a family friend who deceived the family and police on the girl 's whereabouts . but police believe elizabeth was dead by the time they got a report that she was missing , stevens said . they [ the family ] trusted this guy to speak ... to the officer , ' said the captain , who would not comment on a possible motive . lily huckabee , elizabeth 's aunt , told hln 's nancy grace that the girl 's mother , virginia , is holding on the best she can .... ' salinas was married and always presented himself very respectful , ' said huckabee , who described elizabeth as loving , caring , shy and interested in music . police have a january 4 surveillance video of elizabeth being taken from the carriage house inn , but they did not know of it when they began their investigation , stevens told cnn . according to an arrest affidavit , the video shows salinas holding the teen 's arm and leaving the motel , he said . we believe he killed her while he was gone with her , ' stevens said . salinas went to elizabeth 's home and talked with her mother early january 5 , police said . he helped her file an initial report , the captain said . according to that report , salinas said he brought elizabeth home from the motel and went back to get her purse . when he showed up at the house , the mother asked about her daughter 's whereabouts . the suspect indicated elizabeth might have left the neighborhood with his son , believed to be 18 or 19 , stevens said . he began misdirecting the investigation , leading it in the opposite direction of the truth , ' the officer said . police initially classified the case as a runaway , but within days learned the son had a solid alibi . they began looking at the elder salinas , who initially gave another location for the baby-sitting , said stevens , adding police for much of the investigation believed elizabeth had disappeared from her home . we came around 180 degrees , ' said stevens , adding an investigator suggested they check with the carriage house inn on possible video . officers saw the video on the same day they arrested the suspect , police said . stevens defended his department from criticism on the time it took to make an arrest and find the body . these ( type of cases ) can often take years , ' he said . a candlelight vigil in elizabeth 's memory is scheduled for thursday night at monterey high school , where she attended , cnn affiliate kcbd in lubbock reported . her funeral is friday . diena thompson , the mother of a girl found dead in a georgia landfill , told hln 's jane velez-mitchell she has issued financial assistance from the somer thompson foundation to elizabeth ennen 's mother . thompson 's daughter , somer , was taken from her florida neighborhood in october 2009 . the child was raped and killed and her body left under a pile of trash . cnn 's phil gast contributed to this report . watch nancy grace monday through sunday starting at 8 p.m . et on hln . for the latest from nancy grace click here . | elizabeth ennen , 15 , was missing since january 5 ; her body was found near lubbock |
argo <tsp> ( cnn ) -- everyone 's a critic ; i get that . but does everyone have to be a historian , too ? what audiences perceive as their inalienable right to challenge the accuracy and authenticity of movies seems to get much more exercised before the academy awards than at any other time of the year . the latest challenge came tuesday from rep. joe courtney of connecticut , who said steven spielberg 's lincoln ' misrepresented the way his predecessors in the 1865 house of representatives voted on the 13th amendment banning slavery . courtney looked it up online and found in his research that all four connecticut representatives voted for the amendment -- the movie shows two voting against . so in a letter to spielberg 's dreamworks production office in los angeles , he asked dreamworks for some form of correction . ( dreamworks has n't been heard from yet . ) the film , considered a favorite for a best picture oscar , places the back-and-forth struggle over the amendment in the forefront of its depiction of the 16th president , played by daniel day-lewis . courtney , unlike most others who have complained about big-time oscar contenders , is n't out to ruin anybody 's chances . he says he likes everything else about the movie . he merely wants props restored to his home state . and he seems to have a good case . but you can bet your annual subscription to us weekly magazine that the chatterboxes who gossip about and/or handicap the academy awards are going to try using his complaint as further indication of lincoln 's ' slipping stature as a best picture shoo-in . some of these pundits claim argo ' is charging hard from behind since its unexpected wins at both the golden globes and screen actors guild awards . and yet argo ' has truthiness issues of its own . director-star ben affleck even admitted before the movie 's release last fall that his movie about the 1979 cia rescue of state department employees from iran stretched certain details for dramatic effect . ( spoiler alert ! ) there was , for instance , no last-minute car chase on a tehran tarmac as americans tried to escape on a plane , and their check-in at the terminal was n't in real life nearly the white-knuckle sequence of events you see in the film . others have said the movie misrepresents the iranian people as completely unified in their support of the takeover of the u.s. embassy . thirty-three million iranians ... did not commit acts of murder and terrorism , ' iranian commentator kambiz atabai wrote on the daily beast . thirty-three million iranians did not chant'death to america !'or take americans hostage . ' but neither lincoln ' nor argo ' has reaped the whirlwind of criticism of kathryn bigelow 's zero dark thirty ' for its depiction of events leading up to the 2011 killing of osama bin laden . even before its limited release in december , the movie could n't be discussed without referring to those accusing the movie of glorifying waterboarding of suspected terrorists or , at best , misleading audiences into believing that such so-called enhanced interrogation ' played a key role in guiding the united states to bin laden . whatever critics or defenders say , the dispute alone is enough to make academy voters skittish about rewarding something that causes so much trouble . you have to wonder : what is the big deal ? none of these films are documentaries and thus do not have the same obligations to fact . yet one could argue that taking too many liberties with real life ( whatever that means ) could distort for generations the true story ; that , indeed , what is enhanced for dramatic purposes becomes what everyone believes is what actually happened . it 's not so cut and dried . consider d.w. griffith 's 1915 the birth of a nation , ' regarded as the first great american film epic , whose glorification of the ku klux klan makes contemporary audiences uneasy at best , infuriated at worst . despite protests by the naacp and other civil rights organizations , audiences generally agreed with president woodrow wilson 's purported assessment of the movie : it 's like history written with lightning . ' but society can change perception of art over time to the point of neutralizing , even transfiguring its original intent . no one now mistakes griffith 's movie as anything close to historic fact , but it could still be seen as a representation of a racist viewpoint that once held sway over much of america then there is john ford , the great american director of such classic westerns as stagecoach ' ( 1939 ) , the searchers ' ( 1956 ) and the man who shot liberty valance ' ( 1962 ) . it was in the latter movie that ford 's aesthetic credo was put forth by a minor character , a journalist who discovers that the career-making triumph of a u.s. senator over an outlaw did n't happen as originally believed . the journalist chooses to keep things status quo . this is the west , sir , ' he explains . when legend becomes fact , print the legend . ' he might have added : because it makes a better story . ' or consider my darling clementine , ' ford 's 1946 version of the wyatt earp saga . as the movie opens , the earp brothers are herding cattle to tombstone , arizona , in 1882 when the youngest brother james is shot dead ( in the back , of course ) by the rustling clanton family . three things , right off the bat are wrong : james was the eldest of the earps , not the youngest , the earp brothers never had any cattle either heading toward or ensconced within tombstone 's city limits and , though james'death is depicted as the spark that eventually led to the earps'confrontation with the clantons at the ok corral , that famous gunfight actually occurred in 1881 -- if you 're scoring , that 's one year earlier . and the inaccuracies only begin there . and yet the movie endures as one of ford 's best even after four movies about the same legend have been made , each claiming to be more faithful to historic fact than clementine . ' but my darling clementine , ' a dream about a past that did n't exist , endures in collective memory . it may not be factual , but it 's true to something ; a vision , a state of mind , an aspiration to something we wish had been , or could be . the most recent film about the legend , lawrence kasdan 's wyatt earp ' ( 1994 ) , is so faithful that you can barely remember anything about it . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of gene seymour . | he says oscar chances for argo , ' zero dark thirty ' may be hurt after facts questioned |
gene seymour <tsp> ( cnn ) -- everyone 's a critic ; i get that . but does everyone have to be a historian , too ? what audiences perceive as their inalienable right to challenge the accuracy and authenticity of movies seems to get much more exercised before the academy awards than at any other time of the year . the latest challenge came tuesday from rep. joe courtney of connecticut , who said steven spielberg 's lincoln ' misrepresented the way his predecessors in the 1865 house of representatives voted on the 13th amendment banning slavery . courtney looked it up online and found in his research that all four connecticut representatives voted for the amendment -- the movie shows two voting against . so in a letter to spielberg 's dreamworks production office in los angeles , he asked dreamworks for some form of correction . ( dreamworks has n't been heard from yet . ) the film , considered a favorite for a best picture oscar , places the back-and-forth struggle over the amendment in the forefront of its depiction of the 16th president , played by daniel day-lewis . courtney , unlike most others who have complained about big-time oscar contenders , is n't out to ruin anybody 's chances . he says he likes everything else about the movie . he merely wants props restored to his home state . and he seems to have a good case . but you can bet your annual subscription to us weekly magazine that the chatterboxes who gossip about and/or handicap the academy awards are going to try using his complaint as further indication of lincoln 's ' slipping stature as a best picture shoo-in . some of these pundits claim argo ' is charging hard from behind since its unexpected wins at both the golden globes and screen actors guild awards . and yet argo ' has truthiness issues of its own . director-star ben affleck even admitted before the movie 's release last fall that his movie about the 1979 cia rescue of state department employees from iran stretched certain details for dramatic effect . ( spoiler alert ! ) there was , for instance , no last-minute car chase on a tehran tarmac as americans tried to escape on a plane , and their check-in at the terminal was n't in real life nearly the white-knuckle sequence of events you see in the film . others have said the movie misrepresents the iranian people as completely unified in their support of the takeover of the u.s. embassy . thirty-three million iranians ... did not commit acts of murder and terrorism , ' iranian commentator kambiz atabai wrote on the daily beast . thirty-three million iranians did not chant'death to america !'or take americans hostage . ' but neither lincoln ' nor argo ' has reaped the whirlwind of criticism of kathryn bigelow 's zero dark thirty ' for its depiction of events leading up to the 2011 killing of osama bin laden . even before its limited release in december , the movie could n't be discussed without referring to those accusing the movie of glorifying waterboarding of suspected terrorists or , at best , misleading audiences into believing that such so-called enhanced interrogation ' played a key role in guiding the united states to bin laden . whatever critics or defenders say , the dispute alone is enough to make academy voters skittish about rewarding something that causes so much trouble . you have to wonder : what is the big deal ? none of these films are documentaries and thus do not have the same obligations to fact . yet one could argue that taking too many liberties with real life ( whatever that means ) could distort for generations the true story ; that , indeed , what is enhanced for dramatic purposes becomes what everyone believes is what actually happened . it 's not so cut and dried . consider d.w. griffith 's 1915 the birth of a nation , ' regarded as the first great american film epic , whose glorification of the ku klux klan makes contemporary audiences uneasy at best , infuriated at worst . despite protests by the naacp and other civil rights organizations , audiences generally agreed with president woodrow wilson 's purported assessment of the movie : it 's like history written with lightning . ' but society can change perception of art over time to the point of neutralizing , even transfiguring its original intent . no one now mistakes griffith 's movie as anything close to historic fact , but it could still be seen as a representation of a racist viewpoint that once held sway over much of america then there is john ford , the great american director of such classic westerns as stagecoach ' ( 1939 ) , the searchers ' ( 1956 ) and the man who shot liberty valance ' ( 1962 ) . it was in the latter movie that ford 's aesthetic credo was put forth by a minor character , a journalist who discovers that the career-making triumph of a u.s. senator over an outlaw did n't happen as originally believed . the journalist chooses to keep things status quo . this is the west , sir , ' he explains . when legend becomes fact , print the legend . ' he might have added : because it makes a better story . ' or consider my darling clementine , ' ford 's 1946 version of the wyatt earp saga . as the movie opens , the earp brothers are herding cattle to tombstone , arizona , in 1882 when the youngest brother james is shot dead ( in the back , of course ) by the rustling clanton family . three things , right off the bat are wrong : james was the eldest of the earps , not the youngest , the earp brothers never had any cattle either heading toward or ensconced within tombstone 's city limits and , though james'death is depicted as the spark that eventually led to the earps'confrontation with the clantons at the ok corral , that famous gunfight actually occurred in 1881 -- if you 're scoring , that 's one year earlier . and the inaccuracies only begin there . and yet the movie endures as one of ford 's best even after four movies about the same legend have been made , each claiming to be more faithful to historic fact than clementine . ' but my darling clementine , ' a dream about a past that did n't exist , endures in collective memory . it may not be factual , but it 's true to something ; a vision , a state of mind , an aspiration to something we wish had been , or could be . the most recent film about the legend , lawrence kasdan 's wyatt earp ' ( 1994 ) , is so faithful that you can barely remember anything about it . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of gene seymour . | gene seymour : lincoln ' error on emancipation vote shines light on how films tell history |
united <tsp> ( cnn ) -- manchester united moved five points clear in the english premier league after snatching a 1-0 win against bolton on saturday despite having a player sent off . second-placed arsenal lost ground after coming from behind to earn a 2-2 draw at relegation-threatened west brom , but have a game in hand on the leaders . third-placed manchester city face fourth-placed chelsea on sunday in a match that will have a big bearing on the champions league hopes of tottenham , who could only draw 0-0 at home to struggling london rivals west ham on saturday . second-half substitute dimitar berbatov was united 's hero as he bundled home an 88th-minute winner after visiting goalkeeper jussi jaaskelainen failed to hold a shot by nani . the bulgarian striker had never before netted for united coming off the bench , but made a telling impact after replacing in-form mexico forward javier hernandez at halftime . chelsea draw english rivals manchester united in euro quarterfinals united , with manager alex ferguson watching from the stands as he started his five-match touchline ban , failed to dominate a bolton side seeking to claim sixth place from liverpool . the home team lost jonny evans with 14 minutes to play when the irish defender was sent off for a raised-studs challenge on stuart holden that required the united states midfielder to be carried off with a gashed leg . but united kept pushing for a winner , which finally came as berbatov moved two clear of city 's carlos tevez in the english scoring charts with his 20th premier league goal this season and 21st overall . arsenal went into the match at west brom hoping to resurrect the team 's final chance of winning a trophy this season after being knocked out of the champions league and fa cup plus losing in the final of the league cup . but steven reid 's third-minute header and a second goal by nigeria striker peter odemwingie in the 58th minute after a mix-up by goalkeeper manuel almunia and sebastien squillaci gave roy hodgson 's hosts hope of a much-needed win . however , andrei arshavin reduced the deficit with 20 minutes to play , and dutch striker robin van persie equalized on 78 with an effort that just crossed the line after the russia forward 's cross hit the post . the result lifted west brom a point away from the bottom four clubs -- led by west ham on goal difference from wolverhampton . fifth-placed tottenham trail chelsea by two points after failing to score against the hammers , despite hitting the woodwork three times as harry redknapp 's team once again crashed back to earth after european heroics . having earned a champions league quarterfinal against real madrid after eliminating ac milan on march 9 , redknapp saw his team frustrated by west ham 's former england goalkeeper robert green on a day that spurs'wales winger gareth bale signed a new four-and-a-half-year contract . everton claimed eighth place , joining bolton on 40 points , with a 2-1 win over fulham in the late match . young irishman seamus coleman opened the scoring in the 36th minute and france striker louis saha doubled the lead four minutes after the restart with his 10th goal this season before u.s. midfielder clint dempsey reduced the deficit just after the hour mark . fa cup semifinalists stoke moved above newcastle into 10th place after a 4-0 thrashing of their mid-table rivals that maintained the side 's unbeaten home run in 2011 . striker jon walters headed a first-half opener and his provider jermaine pennant made it 2-0 after the restart before danny higginbotham 's free-kick added to the lead soon after , and jamaica forward ricardo fuller capped the victory at the end when he came on as a late substitute . just three points separate the bottom eight teams , with four clumped together on 33 after blackburn came from behind to earn a 2-2 draw at blackpool and aston villa lost 1-0 at home to midlands rivals wolverhampton . wolves joined west ham on 32 points with a first win at villa park in more than 30 years thanks to a winner by winger matt jarvis , while bottom club wigan moved up to 30 with a 2-1 win over league cup winners birmingham , who remained in the relegation zone . liverpool , eliminated from the europa league last week , travel to sunderland on sunday . | dimitar berbatov scores late winner as manchester united beat visiting bolton |
united <tsp> ( cnn ) -- manchester united moved five points clear in the english premier league after snatching a 1-0 win against bolton on saturday despite having a player sent off . second-placed arsenal lost ground after coming from behind to earn a 2-2 draw at relegation-threatened west brom , but have a game in hand on the leaders . third-placed manchester city face fourth-placed chelsea on sunday in a match that will have a big bearing on the champions league hopes of tottenham , who could only draw 0-0 at home to struggling london rivals west ham on saturday . second-half substitute dimitar berbatov was united 's hero as he bundled home an 88th-minute winner after visiting goalkeeper jussi jaaskelainen failed to hold a shot by nani . the bulgarian striker had never before netted for united coming off the bench , but made a telling impact after replacing in-form mexico forward javier hernandez at halftime . chelsea draw english rivals manchester united in euro quarterfinals united , with manager alex ferguson watching from the stands as he started his five-match touchline ban , failed to dominate a bolton side seeking to claim sixth place from liverpool . the home team lost jonny evans with 14 minutes to play when the irish defender was sent off for a raised-studs challenge on stuart holden that required the united states midfielder to be carried off with a gashed leg . but united kept pushing for a winner , which finally came as berbatov moved two clear of city 's carlos tevez in the english scoring charts with his 20th premier league goal this season and 21st overall . arsenal went into the match at west brom hoping to resurrect the team 's final chance of winning a trophy this season after being knocked out of the champions league and fa cup plus losing in the final of the league cup . but steven reid 's third-minute header and a second goal by nigeria striker peter odemwingie in the 58th minute after a mix-up by goalkeeper manuel almunia and sebastien squillaci gave roy hodgson 's hosts hope of a much-needed win . however , andrei arshavin reduced the deficit with 20 minutes to play , and dutch striker robin van persie equalized on 78 with an effort that just crossed the line after the russia forward 's cross hit the post . the result lifted west brom a point away from the bottom four clubs -- led by west ham on goal difference from wolverhampton . fifth-placed tottenham trail chelsea by two points after failing to score against the hammers , despite hitting the woodwork three times as harry redknapp 's team once again crashed back to earth after european heroics . having earned a champions league quarterfinal against real madrid after eliminating ac milan on march 9 , redknapp saw his team frustrated by west ham 's former england goalkeeper robert green on a day that spurs'wales winger gareth bale signed a new four-and-a-half-year contract . everton claimed eighth place , joining bolton on 40 points , with a 2-1 win over fulham in the late match . young irishman seamus coleman opened the scoring in the 36th minute and france striker louis saha doubled the lead four minutes after the restart with his 10th goal this season before u.s. midfielder clint dempsey reduced the deficit just after the hour mark . fa cup semifinalists stoke moved above newcastle into 10th place after a 4-0 thrashing of their mid-table rivals that maintained the side 's unbeaten home run in 2011 . striker jon walters headed a first-half opener and his provider jermaine pennant made it 2-0 after the restart before danny higginbotham 's free-kick added to the lead soon after , and jamaica forward ricardo fuller capped the victory at the end when he came on as a late substitute . just three points separate the bottom eight teams , with four clumped together on 33 after blackburn came from behind to earn a 2-2 draw at blackpool and aston villa lost 1-0 at home to midlands rivals wolverhampton . wolves joined west ham on 32 points with a first win at villa park in more than 30 years thanks to a winner by winger matt jarvis , while bottom club wigan moved up to 30 with a 2-1 win over league cup winners birmingham , who remained in the relegation zone . liverpool , eliminated from the europa league last week , travel to sunderland on sunday . | second-placed arsenal trail united by five points after being held 2-2 at west brom |
united <tsp> ( cnn ) -- manchester united moved five points clear in the english premier league after snatching a 1-0 win against bolton on saturday despite having a player sent off . second-placed arsenal lost ground after coming from behind to earn a 2-2 draw at relegation-threatened west brom , but have a game in hand on the leaders . third-placed manchester city face fourth-placed chelsea on sunday in a match that will have a big bearing on the champions league hopes of tottenham , who could only draw 0-0 at home to struggling london rivals west ham on saturday . second-half substitute dimitar berbatov was united 's hero as he bundled home an 88th-minute winner after visiting goalkeeper jussi jaaskelainen failed to hold a shot by nani . the bulgarian striker had never before netted for united coming off the bench , but made a telling impact after replacing in-form mexico forward javier hernandez at halftime . chelsea draw english rivals manchester united in euro quarterfinals united , with manager alex ferguson watching from the stands as he started his five-match touchline ban , failed to dominate a bolton side seeking to claim sixth place from liverpool . the home team lost jonny evans with 14 minutes to play when the irish defender was sent off for a raised-studs challenge on stuart holden that required the united states midfielder to be carried off with a gashed leg . but united kept pushing for a winner , which finally came as berbatov moved two clear of city 's carlos tevez in the english scoring charts with his 20th premier league goal this season and 21st overall . arsenal went into the match at west brom hoping to resurrect the team 's final chance of winning a trophy this season after being knocked out of the champions league and fa cup plus losing in the final of the league cup . but steven reid 's third-minute header and a second goal by nigeria striker peter odemwingie in the 58th minute after a mix-up by goalkeeper manuel almunia and sebastien squillaci gave roy hodgson 's hosts hope of a much-needed win . however , andrei arshavin reduced the deficit with 20 minutes to play , and dutch striker robin van persie equalized on 78 with an effort that just crossed the line after the russia forward 's cross hit the post . the result lifted west brom a point away from the bottom four clubs -- led by west ham on goal difference from wolverhampton . fifth-placed tottenham trail chelsea by two points after failing to score against the hammers , despite hitting the woodwork three times as harry redknapp 's team once again crashed back to earth after european heroics . having earned a champions league quarterfinal against real madrid after eliminating ac milan on march 9 , redknapp saw his team frustrated by west ham 's former england goalkeeper robert green on a day that spurs'wales winger gareth bale signed a new four-and-a-half-year contract . everton claimed eighth place , joining bolton on 40 points , with a 2-1 win over fulham in the late match . young irishman seamus coleman opened the scoring in the 36th minute and france striker louis saha doubled the lead four minutes after the restart with his 10th goal this season before u.s. midfielder clint dempsey reduced the deficit just after the hour mark . fa cup semifinalists stoke moved above newcastle into 10th place after a 4-0 thrashing of their mid-table rivals that maintained the side 's unbeaten home run in 2011 . striker jon walters headed a first-half opener and his provider jermaine pennant made it 2-0 after the restart before danny higginbotham 's free-kick added to the lead soon after , and jamaica forward ricardo fuller capped the victory at the end when he came on as a late substitute . just three points separate the bottom eight teams , with four clumped together on 33 after blackburn came from behind to earn a 2-2 draw at blackpool and aston villa lost 1-0 at home to midlands rivals wolverhampton . wolves joined west ham on 32 points with a first win at villa park in more than 30 years thanks to a winner by winger matt jarvis , while bottom club wigan moved up to 30 with a 2-1 win over league cup winners birmingham , who remained in the relegation zone . liverpool , eliminated from the europa league last week , travel to sunderland on sunday . | united reduced to 10 men with 14 minutes left after jonny evans is sent off |
ipad <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- president barack obama , who has enjoyed apple 's products along with millions of other americans , wednesday night hailed steve jobs as one of america 's greatest innovators , a man brave enough to think differently , bold enough to believe he could change the world , and talented enough to do it . ' the world has lost a visionary . and there may be no greater tribute to steve 's success than the fact that much of the world learned of his passing on a device he invented , ' the president said in a statement . praising jobs'breadth and the impact of his work from personal computers to iphones to movie production , the president added , steve was fond of saying that he lived every day like it was his last . because he did , he transformed our lives , redefined entire industries , and achieved one of the rarest feats in human history : he changed the way each of us sees the world . ' this week , obama , known for his affection for the blackberry , revealed he actually was a recipient of an advanced copy of the ipad 2 directly from jobs . steve jobs actually gave it to me , a little bit early , ' he told abc 's george stephanopoulos . yeah , it was cool . i got it directly from him . ' in march , cnn photographed the president holding an ipad . the president and jobs met several times , including at a dinner in san francisco in february with silicon valley executives and last year when they discussed issues revolving around technology and the economy . many politicians also praised jobs as the truest example of the american dream , an icon . house speaker rep. john boehner , who also uses an ipad , tweeted : steve jobs changed the world for the better w/his innovations and genius . ' house majority leader rep. eric cantor , r-virginia , tweeted , there is not a day that goes by , and often not an hour , that a steve jobs invention does not better my family 's life . thank you steve . ' fellow californian rep. nancy pelosi , the house minority leader , called jobs a visionary who changed the way we live , an innovator whose products brought joy to millions , a risk-taker who was n't afraid to challenge the status quo , ' and also said in a statement , his sage advice was respected by policymakers on both sides of the aisle . his courageous fight against cancer brought strength to many . ' cnn congressional producer deirdre walsh contributed to this story . | this week , obama revealed he received an ipad 2 directly from jobs |
ipad <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- president barack obama , who has enjoyed apple 's products along with millions of other americans , wednesday night hailed steve jobs as one of america 's greatest innovators , a man brave enough to think differently , bold enough to believe he could change the world , and talented enough to do it . ' the world has lost a visionary . and there may be no greater tribute to steve 's success than the fact that much of the world learned of his passing on a device he invented , ' the president said in a statement . praising jobs'breadth and the impact of his work from personal computers to iphones to movie production , the president added , steve was fond of saying that he lived every day like it was his last . because he did , he transformed our lives , redefined entire industries , and achieved one of the rarest feats in human history : he changed the way each of us sees the world . ' this week , obama , known for his affection for the blackberry , revealed he actually was a recipient of an advanced copy of the ipad 2 directly from jobs . steve jobs actually gave it to me , a little bit early , ' he told abc 's george stephanopoulos . yeah , it was cool . i got it directly from him . ' in march , cnn photographed the president holding an ipad . the president and jobs met several times , including at a dinner in san francisco in february with silicon valley executives and last year when they discussed issues revolving around technology and the economy . many politicians also praised jobs as the truest example of the american dream , an icon . house speaker rep. john boehner , who also uses an ipad , tweeted : steve jobs changed the world for the better w/his innovations and genius . ' house majority leader rep. eric cantor , r-virginia , tweeted , there is not a day that goes by , and often not an hour , that a steve jobs invention does not better my family 's life . thank you steve . ' fellow californian rep. nancy pelosi , the house minority leader , called jobs a visionary who changed the way we live , an innovator whose products brought joy to millions , a risk-taker who was n't afraid to challenge the status quo , ' and also said in a statement , his sage advice was respected by policymakers on both sides of the aisle . his courageous fight against cancer brought strength to many . ' cnn congressional producer deirdre walsh contributed to this story . | boehner tweets on his ipad : steve jobs changed the world for the better ' |
syrians <tsp> more than 50 million people worldwide currently are refugees , asylum seekers or internally displaced within their own countries , the u.n. refugee agency said friday , in a new report released to mark world refugee day . that figure is more than the entire population of spain , south africa or south korea , or more than double the population of australia . the 51.2 million registered for 2013 is also 6 million more than the 45.2 million reported in 2012 , according to the unhcr 's annual global trends report -- a big jump in the wrong direction . the huge increase was driven mainly by the war in syria , which at the end of last year had created 2.5 million refugees and displaced another 6.5 million people within syria , the report said . major internal displacement was also seen last year in africa , in the central african republic and south sudan , where conflicts have taken on an increasingly ethnic nature . we are seeing here the immense costs of not ending wars , of failing to resolve or prevent conflict , ' said u.n. high commissioner for refugees antonio guterres . while humanitarian organizations can provide some relief , he said , political solutions are vitally needed . without this , the alarming levels of conflict and the mass suffering that is reflected in these figures will continue . ' the latest conflict in iraq , where sunni extremist fighters are advancing southward toward baghdad , does n't figure in the report since it covers 2013 . but more than 1 million people have been displaced by fighting in iraq so far this year -- half of them in the past couple of weeks . that 's about one in 30 people nationwide who have fled their homes . the soaring number of refugees means more demand on the world 's wealthier donor countries to provide aid and on those nations on the front lines to shelter and absorb the refugees . jordan , lebanon , turkey and iraq have all taken in large numbers of refugees from syria since its 3-year-old civil war began . speaking in geneva , switzerland , on friday , guterres warned that if the current conflict in iraq worsens , prompting citizens to flee the country , the region will come under even greater strain . looking at the region , one asks ourselves , how can refugees from iraq be received in the context of all the other situations that exist around iraq ? ' he said . so , i hope that this outflow will never come because the capacity of the region to deal with it is practically nonexistent . ' according to the report , the total number of refugees registered with the unhcr and its sister organization , the united nations relief and works agency for palestine , in 2013 totaled 16.7 million . the largest populations were from afghanistan , syria and somalia -- together accounting for more than half of the global refugee total , the unhcr said . by region , asia and the pacific had the largest refugee population overall at 3.5 million people , the report said . sub-saharan africa had 2.9 million , while the middle east and north africa had 2.6 million . another 1.1 million people submitted applications for asylum last year , according to the report , the majority of them in developed countries , with germany a favorite . asylum seekers from syria lodged the most applications , some 64,000 , followed by the democratic republic of congo and myanmar . more than 25,000 asylum applications were filed by children who were on their own or separated from their parents , in what the unhcr said was a record number . there were relatively few refugee returns in 2013 , the report said , totaling fewer than 415,000 . opinion : deterring and denying asylum seekers in australia iraqis choking roads to kurdistan fear airstrikes , wanton violence | afghans , syrians and somalis make up more than half the total 16.7 million refugees |
delaware <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- for the first time since media coverage was banned in 1991 , the return of the body of a fallen member of the u.s. armed forces was opened to news outlets late sunday . a transport plane carries caskets of u.s. servicemen in this photo the pentagon released in 2005 . the u.s. air force informed media on sunday that the family of staff sgt . phillip myers consented to allowing coverage of his casket being returned to dover air force base in delaware . myers , 30 , of hopewell , virginia , was a member of an engineering unit based in britain . he died saturday in a roadside bombing in southern afghanistan , the u.s. military reported . in february , president obama and defense secretary robert gates overturned a policy that dated back to the first persian gulf war . they agreed to allow reporters to observe the remains of american troops being returned to the u.s. military mortuary at dover , as long as families agreed . the policy was supposed to take effect on monday , and no reason was given why reporters were allowed to view the proceedings on sunday . watch report on lifting of the ban » | body of myers brought to dover air force base in delaware on sunday night |
phoenix <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the first pictures from nasa 's mars phoenix lander , which successfully touched down near mars'north pole sunday , showed a pattern of brown polygons as far as the camera could see . the mars phoenix lander took this image of the planet 's surface at its landing site sunday . it 's surprisingly close to what we expected and that 's what surprises me most , ' said peter smith , the mission 's principal investigator . i expected a bigger surprise . ' the landing on the red planet 's arctic plains -- which ended a 296-day journey -- was right on target , a feat nasa 's ed weiler compared to landing a hole-in-one with a golf ball from 10,000 miles . the landing -- dubbed the seven minutes of terror ' -- was a nerve-wracking experience for mission managers , who have witnessed the failure of similar missions . in mission control at nasa 's jet propulsion laboratory in pasadena , california , they celebrated the lander 's much-anticipated entry . it was better than we could have imagined , ' barry goldstein , project manager for the phoenix mission , told cnn . watch the celebration at mission control » the phoenix 's 90-day mission is to analyze the soils and permafrost of mars'arctic tundra for signs of past or present life . the lander is equipped with a robotic arm capable of scooping up ice and dirt to look for organic evidence that life once existed there , or even exists now . we are not going to be able to answer the final question of is there life on mars , ' said principal investigator peter smith , an optical scientist with the university of arizona . we will take the next important step . we 'll find out if there 's organic material associated with this ice in the polar regions . ice is a preserver , and if there ever were organics on mars and they got into that ice , they will still be there today . ' the twin to the mars polar lander spacecraft , phoenix was supposed to travel to mars in 2001 as the mars surveyor spacecraft . they were originally part of the better , faster , cheaper ' program , formulated by then-nasa administrator dan goldin to beef up planetary exploration on a lean budget . but polar malfunctioned during its descent into mars'atmosphere in 1999 and crashed . an investigation concluded that as many as a dozen design flaws or malfunctions doomed the spacecraft . the failure of that mission , as well as another spacecraft called the mars climate orbiter the same year , led to nasa to put future missions on hold and rethink the better , faster , cheaper ' approach . mars surveyor went to the warehouse . watch the challenges the mission faced » but all was not lost . in 2003 , smith proposed a plan to re-engineer the mars surveyor and fly it on a mission to look for signatures of life in the ice and dirt of mars far north . mars phoenix , literally and figuratively , rose from the ashes of surveyor . engineers set to work , testing and retesting the onboard system to ferret out and fix all the flaws they could find . ireport.com : send your photos , video of space ' we always have to be scared to death , ' goldstein said . the minute we lose fear is the minute that we stop looking for the next problem . ' the team was concerned about the phoenix landing system . nasa had not successfully landed a probe on mars using landing legs and stabilizing thrusters since the viking missions in the late 1970s . the other three successful mars landings -- pathfinder in 1997 and the spirit and opportunity rovers in 2004 -- used massive airbags that inflated around the landing craft just before landing to cushion the impact . learn about nasa 's past missions to mars » the phoenix does n't have airbags because the lander is too big and heavy for them to work properly . its landing site was targeted for the far northern plains of mars , near the northern polar ice cap . data from the mars odyssey spacecraft indicate large quantities of ice there , likely in the form of permafrost , either on the surface or just barely underground . follow the water ' has become the unifying theme of nasa 's mars exploration strategy . in 2004 , the rover opportunity found evidence that a salty sea once lapped the shores of an area near mars'equator called meridiani planum . astrobiologists generally agree that it 's best to look for life in wet places . cnn 's kate tobin contributed to this report . | phoenix mission is to analyze planet 's soils to find signs of life |
phoenix <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the first pictures from nasa 's mars phoenix lander , which successfully touched down near mars'north pole sunday , showed a pattern of brown polygons as far as the camera could see . the mars phoenix lander took this image of the planet 's surface at its landing site sunday . it 's surprisingly close to what we expected and that 's what surprises me most , ' said peter smith , the mission 's principal investigator . i expected a bigger surprise . ' the landing on the red planet 's arctic plains -- which ended a 296-day journey -- was right on target , a feat nasa 's ed weiler compared to landing a hole-in-one with a golf ball from 10,000 miles . the landing -- dubbed the seven minutes of terror ' -- was a nerve-wracking experience for mission managers , who have witnessed the failure of similar missions . in mission control at nasa 's jet propulsion laboratory in pasadena , california , they celebrated the lander 's much-anticipated entry . it was better than we could have imagined , ' barry goldstein , project manager for the phoenix mission , told cnn . watch the celebration at mission control » the phoenix 's 90-day mission is to analyze the soils and permafrost of mars'arctic tundra for signs of past or present life . the lander is equipped with a robotic arm capable of scooping up ice and dirt to look for organic evidence that life once existed there , or even exists now . we are not going to be able to answer the final question of is there life on mars , ' said principal investigator peter smith , an optical scientist with the university of arizona . we will take the next important step . we 'll find out if there 's organic material associated with this ice in the polar regions . ice is a preserver , and if there ever were organics on mars and they got into that ice , they will still be there today . ' the twin to the mars polar lander spacecraft , phoenix was supposed to travel to mars in 2001 as the mars surveyor spacecraft . they were originally part of the better , faster , cheaper ' program , formulated by then-nasa administrator dan goldin to beef up planetary exploration on a lean budget . but polar malfunctioned during its descent into mars'atmosphere in 1999 and crashed . an investigation concluded that as many as a dozen design flaws or malfunctions doomed the spacecraft . the failure of that mission , as well as another spacecraft called the mars climate orbiter the same year , led to nasa to put future missions on hold and rethink the better , faster , cheaper ' approach . mars surveyor went to the warehouse . watch the challenges the mission faced » but all was not lost . in 2003 , smith proposed a plan to re-engineer the mars surveyor and fly it on a mission to look for signatures of life in the ice and dirt of mars far north . mars phoenix , literally and figuratively , rose from the ashes of surveyor . engineers set to work , testing and retesting the onboard system to ferret out and fix all the flaws they could find . ireport.com : send your photos , video of space ' we always have to be scared to death , ' goldstein said . the minute we lose fear is the minute that we stop looking for the next problem . ' the team was concerned about the phoenix landing system . nasa had not successfully landed a probe on mars using landing legs and stabilizing thrusters since the viking missions in the late 1970s . the other three successful mars landings -- pathfinder in 1997 and the spirit and opportunity rovers in 2004 -- used massive airbags that inflated around the landing craft just before landing to cushion the impact . learn about nasa 's past missions to mars » the phoenix does n't have airbags because the lander is too big and heavy for them to work properly . its landing site was targeted for the far northern plains of mars , near the northern polar ice cap . data from the mars odyssey spacecraft indicate large quantities of ice there , likely in the form of permafrost , either on the surface or just barely underground . follow the water ' has become the unifying theme of nasa 's mars exploration strategy . in 2004 , the rover opportunity found evidence that a salty sea once lapped the shores of an area near mars'equator called meridiani planum . astrobiologists generally agree that it 's best to look for life in wet places . cnn 's kate tobin contributed to this report . | the mars phoenix lander landed on mars on sunday |
gray <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- after washington mayor vince gray voted tuesday morning and a vocal contingent of volunteers moved on to another precinct , gray 's campaign manager headed downtown to write three news releases to issue based on the outcome of tuesday 's democratic primary election . chuck thies started with the hopeful news first and wrote the release his campaign would blast out if the mayor won the contest with a wide margin . but as voters across the district went to the polls tuesday morning , even gray 's closest confidants and advisers acknowledged that outcome was not likely . many cautioned that the election would be close , possibly within a few thousand votes . thies then wrote two other news releases : one for if the race was too close to call but gray was winning , and one for if it was too close to call and muriel bowser , the upstart councilwoman who was gray 's most obvious challenger , was leading . thies did n't write the news release for a loss . why ? i am superstitious , ' he said . as results slowly streamed in tuesday night , it became apparent that the we lost ' statement would be the one the gray campaign would be forced to send . shortly after midnight wednesday morning , gray conceded defeat to bowser in the district 's democratic primary . at that point , 127 out of 143 precincts had reported and bowser was running at 44 % of the vote , compared with gray 's 33 % . and shortly after gray conceded , bowser accepted her party 's nomination in front of a raucous crowd . for gray , no moment knocked the wheels off his campaign more than what many campaign insiders began calling machen monday ' -- the day that u.s. attorney ron machen went to court and linked gray to a 2010 shadow campaign run by businessman jeffrey thompson . prosecutors publicly claimed in march that gray was aware of the illegal fundraising and had agreed with thompson to cover it up . even though gray had not been charged and has vehemently denied any wrongdoing , the news elevated questions about honesty and ethics that had plagued gray since his 2010 campaign and left many voters with doubt . d.c. mayor says he wo n't resign over scandal march was full of bad news for gray . the washington post endorsed bowser that month , while polls showed the race tightening . the thompson news , which the u.s. attorney has been inching toward for years , sent shock waves through the democratic primary . gray 's opponents seized on the thompson plea deal , and the ethical questions propelled bowser into a neck-and-neck race with the incumbent mayor down the stretch . the thompson plea deal sucked a lot of the oxygen out of us , ' close gray campaign aide stephen glaude said after the primary loss . some volunteers left gray 's campaign after the news , according to glaude , and some usually deep-pocketed supporters tightened up and stopped giving . clearly the thompson plea and the manner in which it was reported was a shot to the gut , ' he concluded . and then the public polls hit . while gray was the frontrunner in early polls , a washington post poll shortly after the thompson news showed a surging bowser with 30 % of democratic support . gray remained stagnant at 27 % , according to the poll . it was more than just external polling that had gray 's team a bit nervous . their internal polling also showed the same thing . poll : d.c. mayor leads , helped by crowded field , in re-election bid according to thies , the gray campaign 's initial polling showed the mayor with 28 % support and bowser with 19 % . shortly before machen monday , ' another internal poll showed that gray 's support had grown slightly to 34 % but that bowser 's had grown more and was sitting at 28 % . but then news broke of thompson 's plea deal and , according to thies , the campaign bled off everything that we had gained and we went back to our base . ' while thies contends that gray has a solid base of support in the district of around 28 % to 30 % of democratic voters , he admitted that an internal poll after the announcement showed the race in a dead heat . the good news is that stuff is coming back to us , ' he said tuesday morning , based on voter contacts and knocking on doors . and that outward positivity might have been why gray was so publicly confident monday night and tuesday morning . at a stop to rally the troops at campaign headquarters , the mayor munched on a burger , some fries and drank a soft drink . he talked with campaign supporters , slapped a few backs and thanked everyone for their work . in the morning -- admittedly not gray 's favorite time of day -- he talked about the campaign 's late momentum and the good feel he had about tuesday 's primary . he acknowledged that machen monday ' set him back but said he thought the race should not be close . given the record that we have , there should be no question about re-election for us , ' gray said with a bit of bravado . this city is going in the right direction , and i am excited that people see that . ' vincent gray is the latest d.c. mayor to be dogged by scandal but by tuesday night , as polls closed across the district and results began to stream in , it appeared that gray 's confidence could n't overcome the numbers . by 11 p.m. , bowser had a sufficient lead on the mayor , and at gray 's campaign party at a local hotel ballroom , volunteers started to feel slightly concerned . i ca n't do this , ' said bernita carmichael , a vocal volunteer who chanted for gray for most of tuesday . while she did n't say she was worried , carmichael said she got a negative sense from the room . her senses were correct , because by that time , gray and his closest advisers in a back room had begun to have doubts . as a cadre of close advisers watched results stream in , glaude said the mood was souring . by the time 20 % of the precincts were reporting and bowser 's lead was not shrinking , gray 's political guru said it was apparent that the campaign was n't doing as well ' as it needed . we were hopeful , but when it jumped up to 20 and people were staying where they were , we kind of knew , ' glaude said . | challenger muriel bowser 's poll numbers surged while gray 's remained flat |
gray <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- after washington mayor vince gray voted tuesday morning and a vocal contingent of volunteers moved on to another precinct , gray 's campaign manager headed downtown to write three news releases to issue based on the outcome of tuesday 's democratic primary election . chuck thies started with the hopeful news first and wrote the release his campaign would blast out if the mayor won the contest with a wide margin . but as voters across the district went to the polls tuesday morning , even gray 's closest confidants and advisers acknowledged that outcome was not likely . many cautioned that the election would be close , possibly within a few thousand votes . thies then wrote two other news releases : one for if the race was too close to call but gray was winning , and one for if it was too close to call and muriel bowser , the upstart councilwoman who was gray 's most obvious challenger , was leading . thies did n't write the news release for a loss . why ? i am superstitious , ' he said . as results slowly streamed in tuesday night , it became apparent that the we lost ' statement would be the one the gray campaign would be forced to send . shortly after midnight wednesday morning , gray conceded defeat to bowser in the district 's democratic primary . at that point , 127 out of 143 precincts had reported and bowser was running at 44 % of the vote , compared with gray 's 33 % . and shortly after gray conceded , bowser accepted her party 's nomination in front of a raucous crowd . for gray , no moment knocked the wheels off his campaign more than what many campaign insiders began calling machen monday ' -- the day that u.s. attorney ron machen went to court and linked gray to a 2010 shadow campaign run by businessman jeffrey thompson . prosecutors publicly claimed in march that gray was aware of the illegal fundraising and had agreed with thompson to cover it up . even though gray had not been charged and has vehemently denied any wrongdoing , the news elevated questions about honesty and ethics that had plagued gray since his 2010 campaign and left many voters with doubt . d.c. mayor says he wo n't resign over scandal march was full of bad news for gray . the washington post endorsed bowser that month , while polls showed the race tightening . the thompson news , which the u.s. attorney has been inching toward for years , sent shock waves through the democratic primary . gray 's opponents seized on the thompson plea deal , and the ethical questions propelled bowser into a neck-and-neck race with the incumbent mayor down the stretch . the thompson plea deal sucked a lot of the oxygen out of us , ' close gray campaign aide stephen glaude said after the primary loss . some volunteers left gray 's campaign after the news , according to glaude , and some usually deep-pocketed supporters tightened up and stopped giving . clearly the thompson plea and the manner in which it was reported was a shot to the gut , ' he concluded . and then the public polls hit . while gray was the frontrunner in early polls , a washington post poll shortly after the thompson news showed a surging bowser with 30 % of democratic support . gray remained stagnant at 27 % , according to the poll . it was more than just external polling that had gray 's team a bit nervous . their internal polling also showed the same thing . poll : d.c. mayor leads , helped by crowded field , in re-election bid according to thies , the gray campaign 's initial polling showed the mayor with 28 % support and bowser with 19 % . shortly before machen monday , ' another internal poll showed that gray 's support had grown slightly to 34 % but that bowser 's had grown more and was sitting at 28 % . but then news broke of thompson 's plea deal and , according to thies , the campaign bled off everything that we had gained and we went back to our base . ' while thies contends that gray has a solid base of support in the district of around 28 % to 30 % of democratic voters , he admitted that an internal poll after the announcement showed the race in a dead heat . the good news is that stuff is coming back to us , ' he said tuesday morning , based on voter contacts and knocking on doors . and that outward positivity might have been why gray was so publicly confident monday night and tuesday morning . at a stop to rally the troops at campaign headquarters , the mayor munched on a burger , some fries and drank a soft drink . he talked with campaign supporters , slapped a few backs and thanked everyone for their work . in the morning -- admittedly not gray 's favorite time of day -- he talked about the campaign 's late momentum and the good feel he had about tuesday 's primary . he acknowledged that machen monday ' set him back but said he thought the race should not be close . given the record that we have , there should be no question about re-election for us , ' gray said with a bit of bravado . this city is going in the right direction , and i am excited that people see that . ' vincent gray is the latest d.c. mayor to be dogged by scandal but by tuesday night , as polls closed across the district and results began to stream in , it appeared that gray 's confidence could n't overcome the numbers . by 11 p.m. , bowser had a sufficient lead on the mayor , and at gray 's campaign party at a local hotel ballroom , volunteers started to feel slightly concerned . i ca n't do this , ' said bernita carmichael , a vocal volunteer who chanted for gray for most of tuesday . while she did n't say she was worried , carmichael said she got a negative sense from the room . her senses were correct , because by that time , gray and his closest advisers in a back room had begun to have doubts . as a cadre of close advisers watched results stream in , glaude said the mood was souring . by the time 20 % of the precincts were reporting and bowser 's lead was not shrinking , gray 's political guru said it was apparent that the campaign was n't doing as well ' as it needed . we were hopeful , but when it jumped up to 20 and people were staying where they were , we kind of knew , ' glaude said . | a businessman 's plea bargain agreement over gray 's 2010 campaign raised doubts |
gray <tsp> washington ( cnn ) -- after washington mayor vince gray voted tuesday morning and a vocal contingent of volunteers moved on to another precinct , gray 's campaign manager headed downtown to write three news releases to issue based on the outcome of tuesday 's democratic primary election . chuck thies started with the hopeful news first and wrote the release his campaign would blast out if the mayor won the contest with a wide margin . but as voters across the district went to the polls tuesday morning , even gray 's closest confidants and advisers acknowledged that outcome was not likely . many cautioned that the election would be close , possibly within a few thousand votes . thies then wrote two other news releases : one for if the race was too close to call but gray was winning , and one for if it was too close to call and muriel bowser , the upstart councilwoman who was gray 's most obvious challenger , was leading . thies did n't write the news release for a loss . why ? i am superstitious , ' he said . as results slowly streamed in tuesday night , it became apparent that the we lost ' statement would be the one the gray campaign would be forced to send . shortly after midnight wednesday morning , gray conceded defeat to bowser in the district 's democratic primary . at that point , 127 out of 143 precincts had reported and bowser was running at 44 % of the vote , compared with gray 's 33 % . and shortly after gray conceded , bowser accepted her party 's nomination in front of a raucous crowd . for gray , no moment knocked the wheels off his campaign more than what many campaign insiders began calling machen monday ' -- the day that u.s. attorney ron machen went to court and linked gray to a 2010 shadow campaign run by businessman jeffrey thompson . prosecutors publicly claimed in march that gray was aware of the illegal fundraising and had agreed with thompson to cover it up . even though gray had not been charged and has vehemently denied any wrongdoing , the news elevated questions about honesty and ethics that had plagued gray since his 2010 campaign and left many voters with doubt . d.c. mayor says he wo n't resign over scandal march was full of bad news for gray . the washington post endorsed bowser that month , while polls showed the race tightening . the thompson news , which the u.s. attorney has been inching toward for years , sent shock waves through the democratic primary . gray 's opponents seized on the thompson plea deal , and the ethical questions propelled bowser into a neck-and-neck race with the incumbent mayor down the stretch . the thompson plea deal sucked a lot of the oxygen out of us , ' close gray campaign aide stephen glaude said after the primary loss . some volunteers left gray 's campaign after the news , according to glaude , and some usually deep-pocketed supporters tightened up and stopped giving . clearly the thompson plea and the manner in which it was reported was a shot to the gut , ' he concluded . and then the public polls hit . while gray was the frontrunner in early polls , a washington post poll shortly after the thompson news showed a surging bowser with 30 % of democratic support . gray remained stagnant at 27 % , according to the poll . it was more than just external polling that had gray 's team a bit nervous . their internal polling also showed the same thing . poll : d.c. mayor leads , helped by crowded field , in re-election bid according to thies , the gray campaign 's initial polling showed the mayor with 28 % support and bowser with 19 % . shortly before machen monday , ' another internal poll showed that gray 's support had grown slightly to 34 % but that bowser 's had grown more and was sitting at 28 % . but then news broke of thompson 's plea deal and , according to thies , the campaign bled off everything that we had gained and we went back to our base . ' while thies contends that gray has a solid base of support in the district of around 28 % to 30 % of democratic voters , he admitted that an internal poll after the announcement showed the race in a dead heat . the good news is that stuff is coming back to us , ' he said tuesday morning , based on voter contacts and knocking on doors . and that outward positivity might have been why gray was so publicly confident monday night and tuesday morning . at a stop to rally the troops at campaign headquarters , the mayor munched on a burger , some fries and drank a soft drink . he talked with campaign supporters , slapped a few backs and thanked everyone for their work . in the morning -- admittedly not gray 's favorite time of day -- he talked about the campaign 's late momentum and the good feel he had about tuesday 's primary . he acknowledged that machen monday ' set him back but said he thought the race should not be close . given the record that we have , there should be no question about re-election for us , ' gray said with a bit of bravado . this city is going in the right direction , and i am excited that people see that . ' vincent gray is the latest d.c. mayor to be dogged by scandal but by tuesday night , as polls closed across the district and results began to stream in , it appeared that gray 's confidence could n't overcome the numbers . by 11 p.m. , bowser had a sufficient lead on the mayor , and at gray 's campaign party at a local hotel ballroom , volunteers started to feel slightly concerned . i ca n't do this , ' said bernita carmichael , a vocal volunteer who chanted for gray for most of tuesday . while she did n't say she was worried , carmichael said she got a negative sense from the room . her senses were correct , because by that time , gray and his closest advisers in a back room had begun to have doubts . as a cadre of close advisers watched results stream in , glaude said the mood was souring . by the time 20 % of the precincts were reporting and bowser 's lead was not shrinking , gray 's political guru said it was apparent that the campaign was n't doing as well ' as it needed . we were hopeful , but when it jumped up to 20 and people were staying where they were , we kind of knew , ' glaude said . | incumbent mayor vince gray at one time held a healthy lead in his re-election bid |
borger <tsp> ( cnn ) -- in watching mitt romney 's painful -- and self-destructive -- gaffe about the 47 percenters , ' it at first seemed inexplicable , as if the man was writing off half of the electorate . never mind that the self-declared victims ' he 's talking about include seniors ( who actually voted republican in 2010 ) and veterans ( many of whom might be inclined to vote for the gop ) . or that they 're also people who work hard and pay their payroll taxes , and might be getting some tax benefits for their children . so what is it about mitt romney , who should know these things -- and probably does -- that makes him so gaffe-prone ? another way to ask the question : why does a smart man say such stupid things ? ireport : i 'm the 47 % but - you 're wrong mitt romney ! i have a theory about this . in spending a lot of time this year thinking about romney -- and speaking with those who know him the best , politically and personally while reporting a cnn documentary -- this much appears to be true : romney has a businessman 's approach to politics . which means : he sizes up a situation ( or an audience ) . he figures out what he needs to do to cut the deal . then he does it , and expects it to work . ergo , romney speaks to a group of conservative gop fat cats , and tells them what he thinks they want to hear so they will cough up the dough . belief is almost beside the point . he was closing the deal . here 's something to know : while romney was born into politics , he 's not a natural-born politician . his father may have been a three-term michigan governor , but he told his son to go into business first . so he did . and now romney is a numbers guy who came to the ideological part of politics late . and it shows , especially when you are asking voters to trust what you believe to become president . some politicians are hatched out of strong loyalty to a cause or a party . romney is a businessman who came to politics out of a strong sense of duty -- and belief in his own ability to repair what 's broken . getting elected is what you have to do so you can do what you 're good at : fixing things . ( in an odd way , kind of like president obama , who also believes getting elected is what you have to do so you can do what you 're good at : transforming things . ) romney has had much success painting the self-portrait as a mr. fix-it . while he could n't defeat ted kennedy , he did become the governor of the liberal state of massachusetts in 2002 , running as a pro-choice moderate . opinion : how romney really feels about republicans once in office , though , when confronted with the difficult issue of abortion -- and looking at a presidential bid in the ever more conservative gop -- he flipped , explaining to me that it was a matter of conscience , tempered by the reality of political power . i realized what sounded good in a campaign , when i actually became the governor and would be the person who would sign a piece of legislation which could take human life -- i simply could n't do that , ' he told me . but there 's no doubt about it : romney had to move to the right to try and get the nomination , so he did in the 2008 campaign . and he did it again in 2012 . in trying to explain romney 's jujitsu , former adviser alex castellanos told me that romney 's journey on social issues was the journey of a businessman who mainly looked at governing as an economic proposition , all of a sudden confronting some social issues as a mature adult responsible for human life . and so he did evolve there . ' fast-forward to the severely conservative ' candidate of the 2012 primaries . and to the latest fundraiser chat in which romney says half of the american public believes it has been victimized , and the government needs to take care of them . cnnmoney : romney 's'47 % all of which leads to this question : does romney believe any of this stuff ? in the end , it 's hard to know . but i 'll subscribe to a theory advanced by david brooks in the new york times today : that romney is a decent man who says stupid things because he is pretending to be something he is not -- some sort of cartoonish government-hater . ' maybe that 's what romney thought he needed to be to cut the deal . but the problem is , presidential politics is n't just business . it 's personal . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of gloria borger . | borger : romney views electoral politics as what he has to do to get into office and fix things ' |
borger <tsp> ( cnn ) -- in watching mitt romney 's painful -- and self-destructive -- gaffe about the 47 percenters , ' it at first seemed inexplicable , as if the man was writing off half of the electorate . never mind that the self-declared victims ' he 's talking about include seniors ( who actually voted republican in 2010 ) and veterans ( many of whom might be inclined to vote for the gop ) . or that they 're also people who work hard and pay their payroll taxes , and might be getting some tax benefits for their children . so what is it about mitt romney , who should know these things -- and probably does -- that makes him so gaffe-prone ? another way to ask the question : why does a smart man say such stupid things ? ireport : i 'm the 47 % but - you 're wrong mitt romney ! i have a theory about this . in spending a lot of time this year thinking about romney -- and speaking with those who know him the best , politically and personally while reporting a cnn documentary -- this much appears to be true : romney has a businessman 's approach to politics . which means : he sizes up a situation ( or an audience ) . he figures out what he needs to do to cut the deal . then he does it , and expects it to work . ergo , romney speaks to a group of conservative gop fat cats , and tells them what he thinks they want to hear so they will cough up the dough . belief is almost beside the point . he was closing the deal . here 's something to know : while romney was born into politics , he 's not a natural-born politician . his father may have been a three-term michigan governor , but he told his son to go into business first . so he did . and now romney is a numbers guy who came to the ideological part of politics late . and it shows , especially when you are asking voters to trust what you believe to become president . some politicians are hatched out of strong loyalty to a cause or a party . romney is a businessman who came to politics out of a strong sense of duty -- and belief in his own ability to repair what 's broken . getting elected is what you have to do so you can do what you 're good at : fixing things . ( in an odd way , kind of like president obama , who also believes getting elected is what you have to do so you can do what you 're good at : transforming things . ) romney has had much success painting the self-portrait as a mr. fix-it . while he could n't defeat ted kennedy , he did become the governor of the liberal state of massachusetts in 2002 , running as a pro-choice moderate . opinion : how romney really feels about republicans once in office , though , when confronted with the difficult issue of abortion -- and looking at a presidential bid in the ever more conservative gop -- he flipped , explaining to me that it was a matter of conscience , tempered by the reality of political power . i realized what sounded good in a campaign , when i actually became the governor and would be the person who would sign a piece of legislation which could take human life -- i simply could n't do that , ' he told me . but there 's no doubt about it : romney had to move to the right to try and get the nomination , so he did in the 2008 campaign . and he did it again in 2012 . in trying to explain romney 's jujitsu , former adviser alex castellanos told me that romney 's journey on social issues was the journey of a businessman who mainly looked at governing as an economic proposition , all of a sudden confronting some social issues as a mature adult responsible for human life . and so he did evolve there . ' fast-forward to the severely conservative ' candidate of the 2012 primaries . and to the latest fundraiser chat in which romney says half of the american public believes it has been victimized , and the government needs to take care of them . cnnmoney : romney 's'47 % all of which leads to this question : does romney believe any of this stuff ? in the end , it 's hard to know . but i 'll subscribe to a theory advanced by david brooks in the new york times today : that romney is a decent man who says stupid things because he is pretending to be something he is not -- some sort of cartoonish government-hater . ' maybe that 's what romney thought he needed to be to cut the deal . but the problem is , presidential politics is n't just business . it 's personal . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of gloria borger . | gloria borger : romney comment about the 47-percenters ' inexplicable at first |
romney <tsp> ( cnn ) -- in watching mitt romney 's painful -- and self-destructive -- gaffe about the 47 percenters , ' it at first seemed inexplicable , as if the man was writing off half of the electorate . never mind that the self-declared victims ' he 's talking about include seniors ( who actually voted republican in 2010 ) and veterans ( many of whom might be inclined to vote for the gop ) . or that they 're also people who work hard and pay their payroll taxes , and might be getting some tax benefits for their children . so what is it about mitt romney , who should know these things -- and probably does -- that makes him so gaffe-prone ? another way to ask the question : why does a smart man say such stupid things ? ireport : i 'm the 47 % but - you 're wrong mitt romney ! i have a theory about this . in spending a lot of time this year thinking about romney -- and speaking with those who know him the best , politically and personally while reporting a cnn documentary -- this much appears to be true : romney has a businessman 's approach to politics . which means : he sizes up a situation ( or an audience ) . he figures out what he needs to do to cut the deal . then he does it , and expects it to work . ergo , romney speaks to a group of conservative gop fat cats , and tells them what he thinks they want to hear so they will cough up the dough . belief is almost beside the point . he was closing the deal . here 's something to know : while romney was born into politics , he 's not a natural-born politician . his father may have been a three-term michigan governor , but he told his son to go into business first . so he did . and now romney is a numbers guy who came to the ideological part of politics late . and it shows , especially when you are asking voters to trust what you believe to become president . some politicians are hatched out of strong loyalty to a cause or a party . romney is a businessman who came to politics out of a strong sense of duty -- and belief in his own ability to repair what 's broken . getting elected is what you have to do so you can do what you 're good at : fixing things . ( in an odd way , kind of like president obama , who also believes getting elected is what you have to do so you can do what you 're good at : transforming things . ) romney has had much success painting the self-portrait as a mr. fix-it . while he could n't defeat ted kennedy , he did become the governor of the liberal state of massachusetts in 2002 , running as a pro-choice moderate . opinion : how romney really feels about republicans once in office , though , when confronted with the difficult issue of abortion -- and looking at a presidential bid in the ever more conservative gop -- he flipped , explaining to me that it was a matter of conscience , tempered by the reality of political power . i realized what sounded good in a campaign , when i actually became the governor and would be the person who would sign a piece of legislation which could take human life -- i simply could n't do that , ' he told me . but there 's no doubt about it : romney had to move to the right to try and get the nomination , so he did in the 2008 campaign . and he did it again in 2012 . in trying to explain romney 's jujitsu , former adviser alex castellanos told me that romney 's journey on social issues was the journey of a businessman who mainly looked at governing as an economic proposition , all of a sudden confronting some social issues as a mature adult responsible for human life . and so he did evolve there . ' fast-forward to the severely conservative ' candidate of the 2012 primaries . and to the latest fundraiser chat in which romney says half of the american public believes it has been victimized , and the government needs to take care of them . cnnmoney : romney 's'47 % all of which leads to this question : does romney believe any of this stuff ? in the end , it 's hard to know . but i 'll subscribe to a theory advanced by david brooks in the new york times today : that romney is a decent man who says stupid things because he is pretending to be something he is not -- some sort of cartoonish government-hater . ' maybe that 's what romney thought he needed to be to cut the deal . but the problem is , presidential politics is n't just business . it 's personal . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of gloria borger . | borger : romney views electoral politics as what he has to do to get into office and fix things ' |
romney <tsp> ( cnn ) -- in watching mitt romney 's painful -- and self-destructive -- gaffe about the 47 percenters , ' it at first seemed inexplicable , as if the man was writing off half of the electorate . never mind that the self-declared victims ' he 's talking about include seniors ( who actually voted republican in 2010 ) and veterans ( many of whom might be inclined to vote for the gop ) . or that they 're also people who work hard and pay their payroll taxes , and might be getting some tax benefits for their children . so what is it about mitt romney , who should know these things -- and probably does -- that makes him so gaffe-prone ? another way to ask the question : why does a smart man say such stupid things ? ireport : i 'm the 47 % but - you 're wrong mitt romney ! i have a theory about this . in spending a lot of time this year thinking about romney -- and speaking with those who know him the best , politically and personally while reporting a cnn documentary -- this much appears to be true : romney has a businessman 's approach to politics . which means : he sizes up a situation ( or an audience ) . he figures out what he needs to do to cut the deal . then he does it , and expects it to work . ergo , romney speaks to a group of conservative gop fat cats , and tells them what he thinks they want to hear so they will cough up the dough . belief is almost beside the point . he was closing the deal . here 's something to know : while romney was born into politics , he 's not a natural-born politician . his father may have been a three-term michigan governor , but he told his son to go into business first . so he did . and now romney is a numbers guy who came to the ideological part of politics late . and it shows , especially when you are asking voters to trust what you believe to become president . some politicians are hatched out of strong loyalty to a cause or a party . romney is a businessman who came to politics out of a strong sense of duty -- and belief in his own ability to repair what 's broken . getting elected is what you have to do so you can do what you 're good at : fixing things . ( in an odd way , kind of like president obama , who also believes getting elected is what you have to do so you can do what you 're good at : transforming things . ) romney has had much success painting the self-portrait as a mr. fix-it . while he could n't defeat ted kennedy , he did become the governor of the liberal state of massachusetts in 2002 , running as a pro-choice moderate . opinion : how romney really feels about republicans once in office , though , when confronted with the difficult issue of abortion -- and looking at a presidential bid in the ever more conservative gop -- he flipped , explaining to me that it was a matter of conscience , tempered by the reality of political power . i realized what sounded good in a campaign , when i actually became the governor and would be the person who would sign a piece of legislation which could take human life -- i simply could n't do that , ' he told me . but there 's no doubt about it : romney had to move to the right to try and get the nomination , so he did in the 2008 campaign . and he did it again in 2012 . in trying to explain romney 's jujitsu , former adviser alex castellanos told me that romney 's journey on social issues was the journey of a businessman who mainly looked at governing as an economic proposition , all of a sudden confronting some social issues as a mature adult responsible for human life . and so he did evolve there . ' fast-forward to the severely conservative ' candidate of the 2012 primaries . and to the latest fundraiser chat in which romney says half of the american public believes it has been victimized , and the government needs to take care of them . cnnmoney : romney 's'47 % all of which leads to this question : does romney believe any of this stuff ? in the end , it 's hard to know . but i 'll subscribe to a theory advanced by david brooks in the new york times today : that romney is a decent man who says stupid things because he is pretending to be something he is not -- some sort of cartoonish government-hater . ' maybe that 's what romney thought he needed to be to cut the deal . but the problem is , presidential politics is n't just business . it 's personal . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of gloria borger . | romney was telling audience what he thought they wanted to hear , she says |
romney <tsp> ( cnn ) -- in watching mitt romney 's painful -- and self-destructive -- gaffe about the 47 percenters , ' it at first seemed inexplicable , as if the man was writing off half of the electorate . never mind that the self-declared victims ' he 's talking about include seniors ( who actually voted republican in 2010 ) and veterans ( many of whom might be inclined to vote for the gop ) . or that they 're also people who work hard and pay their payroll taxes , and might be getting some tax benefits for their children . so what is it about mitt romney , who should know these things -- and probably does -- that makes him so gaffe-prone ? another way to ask the question : why does a smart man say such stupid things ? ireport : i 'm the 47 % but - you 're wrong mitt romney ! i have a theory about this . in spending a lot of time this year thinking about romney -- and speaking with those who know him the best , politically and personally while reporting a cnn documentary -- this much appears to be true : romney has a businessman 's approach to politics . which means : he sizes up a situation ( or an audience ) . he figures out what he needs to do to cut the deal . then he does it , and expects it to work . ergo , romney speaks to a group of conservative gop fat cats , and tells them what he thinks they want to hear so they will cough up the dough . belief is almost beside the point . he was closing the deal . here 's something to know : while romney was born into politics , he 's not a natural-born politician . his father may have been a three-term michigan governor , but he told his son to go into business first . so he did . and now romney is a numbers guy who came to the ideological part of politics late . and it shows , especially when you are asking voters to trust what you believe to become president . some politicians are hatched out of strong loyalty to a cause or a party . romney is a businessman who came to politics out of a strong sense of duty -- and belief in his own ability to repair what 's broken . getting elected is what you have to do so you can do what you 're good at : fixing things . ( in an odd way , kind of like president obama , who also believes getting elected is what you have to do so you can do what you 're good at : transforming things . ) romney has had much success painting the self-portrait as a mr. fix-it . while he could n't defeat ted kennedy , he did become the governor of the liberal state of massachusetts in 2002 , running as a pro-choice moderate . opinion : how romney really feels about republicans once in office , though , when confronted with the difficult issue of abortion -- and looking at a presidential bid in the ever more conservative gop -- he flipped , explaining to me that it was a matter of conscience , tempered by the reality of political power . i realized what sounded good in a campaign , when i actually became the governor and would be the person who would sign a piece of legislation which could take human life -- i simply could n't do that , ' he told me . but there 's no doubt about it : romney had to move to the right to try and get the nomination , so he did in the 2008 campaign . and he did it again in 2012 . in trying to explain romney 's jujitsu , former adviser alex castellanos told me that romney 's journey on social issues was the journey of a businessman who mainly looked at governing as an economic proposition , all of a sudden confronting some social issues as a mature adult responsible for human life . and so he did evolve there . ' fast-forward to the severely conservative ' candidate of the 2012 primaries . and to the latest fundraiser chat in which romney says half of the american public believes it has been victimized , and the government needs to take care of them . cnnmoney : romney 's'47 % all of which leads to this question : does romney believe any of this stuff ? in the end , it 's hard to know . but i 'll subscribe to a theory advanced by david brooks in the new york times today : that romney is a decent man who says stupid things because he is pretending to be something he is not -- some sort of cartoonish government-hater . ' maybe that 's what romney thought he needed to be to cut the deal . but the problem is , presidential politics is n't just business . it 's personal . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of gloria borger . | she says romney views the world from the point of view of a business executive |
romney <tsp> ( cnn ) -- in watching mitt romney 's painful -- and self-destructive -- gaffe about the 47 percenters , ' it at first seemed inexplicable , as if the man was writing off half of the electorate . never mind that the self-declared victims ' he 's talking about include seniors ( who actually voted republican in 2010 ) and veterans ( many of whom might be inclined to vote for the gop ) . or that they 're also people who work hard and pay their payroll taxes , and might be getting some tax benefits for their children . so what is it about mitt romney , who should know these things -- and probably does -- that makes him so gaffe-prone ? another way to ask the question : why does a smart man say such stupid things ? ireport : i 'm the 47 % but - you 're wrong mitt romney ! i have a theory about this . in spending a lot of time this year thinking about romney -- and speaking with those who know him the best , politically and personally while reporting a cnn documentary -- this much appears to be true : romney has a businessman 's approach to politics . which means : he sizes up a situation ( or an audience ) . he figures out what he needs to do to cut the deal . then he does it , and expects it to work . ergo , romney speaks to a group of conservative gop fat cats , and tells them what he thinks they want to hear so they will cough up the dough . belief is almost beside the point . he was closing the deal . here 's something to know : while romney was born into politics , he 's not a natural-born politician . his father may have been a three-term michigan governor , but he told his son to go into business first . so he did . and now romney is a numbers guy who came to the ideological part of politics late . and it shows , especially when you are asking voters to trust what you believe to become president . some politicians are hatched out of strong loyalty to a cause or a party . romney is a businessman who came to politics out of a strong sense of duty -- and belief in his own ability to repair what 's broken . getting elected is what you have to do so you can do what you 're good at : fixing things . ( in an odd way , kind of like president obama , who also believes getting elected is what you have to do so you can do what you 're good at : transforming things . ) romney has had much success painting the self-portrait as a mr. fix-it . while he could n't defeat ted kennedy , he did become the governor of the liberal state of massachusetts in 2002 , running as a pro-choice moderate . opinion : how romney really feels about republicans once in office , though , when confronted with the difficult issue of abortion -- and looking at a presidential bid in the ever more conservative gop -- he flipped , explaining to me that it was a matter of conscience , tempered by the reality of political power . i realized what sounded good in a campaign , when i actually became the governor and would be the person who would sign a piece of legislation which could take human life -- i simply could n't do that , ' he told me . but there 's no doubt about it : romney had to move to the right to try and get the nomination , so he did in the 2008 campaign . and he did it again in 2012 . in trying to explain romney 's jujitsu , former adviser alex castellanos told me that romney 's journey on social issues was the journey of a businessman who mainly looked at governing as an economic proposition , all of a sudden confronting some social issues as a mature adult responsible for human life . and so he did evolve there . ' fast-forward to the severely conservative ' candidate of the 2012 primaries . and to the latest fundraiser chat in which romney says half of the american public believes it has been victimized , and the government needs to take care of them . cnnmoney : romney 's'47 % all of which leads to this question : does romney believe any of this stuff ? in the end , it 's hard to know . but i 'll subscribe to a theory advanced by david brooks in the new york times today : that romney is a decent man who says stupid things because he is pretending to be something he is not -- some sort of cartoonish government-hater . ' maybe that 's what romney thought he needed to be to cut the deal . but the problem is , presidential politics is n't just business . it 's personal . the opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of gloria borger . | gloria borger : romney comment about the 47-percenters ' inexplicable at first |
cnn <tsp> jacksonville , florida ( cnn ) -- florida gov . rick scott and former gov . charlie crist face off for the third and final time tuesday night in a debate hosted by cnn and jacksonville affiliate wjxt . the showdown comes just two weeks before election day and marks a final point in what 's become the most expensive 2014 midterm race in the country , more than any house or senate campaign . scott , an unpopular republican governor , is trying to fend off a challenge from his predecessor , a republican-turned-independent-turned-democrat whose likability numbers are also underwater . while crist entered the race last november with a sizable polling advantage over scott , the race has tightened up and the two men now find themselves neck-and-neck toward the finish line . a cnn/orc international poll last week indicated the race was tied at 44 % . the contest also takes place in the largest presidential swing state , meaning both parties are paying close attention to who will be in the governor 's office come 2016 . and last week the race became the setting for perhaps the most unusual moment in recent political debate history , when the candidates spent the first seven minutes in a stand-off over crist 's use of a personal fan on stage , a blow-up that 's since become known as fangate . ' it 's the perfect storm . you ca n't script a better race than this , ' said robert watson , professor of american studies at lynn university in boca raton . two unpopular candidates . the most expensive race . the backdrop of the 2016 presidential race — and now fangate . ' despite the political circus , watson added , the two men have stark differences on policy , and tuesday night gives them a final opportunity to hash out their disagreements . here are seven things to watch for in the debate : 1 . elephant in the room : while crist appeared to break the rules in last week 's debate by having a fan underneath his podium , scott might have fared worse in the optics of the scuffle . he maintains he did n't know the debate had started , but by not coming out on stage for seven minutes , democrats quickly seized on the episode to paint scott as petty and uninterested in debating the issues . fans of charlie crist can now buy their own fan the moment quickly became fodder for late-night tv , and it sparked renewed interest in a race that had extremely low voter turnout in the primaries . cnn has stated that no fans will be allowed , so it will be interesting to see how crist handles the lack of circulation tuesday night and how scott addresses the mini-drama that put a national spotlight on the race . 2 . will scott try to add some personality ? florida has a history of popular governors — from jeb bush to lawton chiles to bob graham . but the back-slapping retail politicking of scott 's predecessors has n't come easy for the current governor , a former health care ceo . he comes off as a cold fish ; one that does n't connect well with the average floridian , ' said kevin walsh , political science professor at broward college in the miami area . contrast that with a very personable , polished and telegenic charlie crist . ' opinion : when the rick hits the fan experts say scott needs to use the final debate to leave a lasting impression with voters , one that show he has a sense of humor and is capable of exuding warmth . 3 . look for the zinger . one easy way scott could display some humor would be to go after crist over fangate . closing debates offer candidates a chance to deliver a line or zinger that can help solidify the storyline for themselves or their opponent in the final stretch of the campaign . it 's their last chance to really make that final impression , both of them would love to come away with a zinger that really resonates , ' walsh said . i think they 're going to stay pretty close to their talking points , but i think they may want to take a risk at trying to produce a gotcha moment or real memorable moment . ' college gop :'say yes'to scott 's dress 4 . expect scott to link crist to obama . scott 's campaign released a new ad monday that features crist praising president barack obama . with obama 's approval rating at dismal levels — 39 % in florida -- it 's a strategy employed by many republicans against their democratic opponents this fall . unlike a lot of democrats , however , crist has n't entirely sought to distance himself from the president , which gives scott more room to sharpen his attack . the drinking game is going to be how many times rick scott mentions barack obama , ' watson said . scott will also attempt to pin crist as untrustworthy because of the former governor 's party switch . while crist agrees that same-sex marriage should be legal now , for example , scott argues it 's hard to know how crist truly feels about the issue , given that he opposed it in 2008 when he helped get the state 's same-sex marriage ban on the ballot . expect scott to pounce on this flip-flopping angle as much as possible . 5 . the three numbers you 'll hear ( again and again ) . the candidates are almost sure to use three numbers over and over again . one of scott 's most frequent talking points is an attack against crist for overseeing the loss of 832,000 jobs while he was governor from 2007 to 2011 . meanwhile , scott will be sure to highlight the 640,000+ jobs created under his administration since then . by this point , however , crist is well versed in how to respond to scott 's attack on the economy . people in florida know i did n't cause the global economic meltdown any more than rick scott caused the national economic recovery , ' he said last week in the debate . for his part , crist will focus on the $ 1.3 billion in education cuts during scott 's first year as governor . while the cuts were caused by the expiration of stimulus funds and while some of them were restored , education is nonetheless a big issue in florida and crist will attempt to hammer home the statistic as much as possible . 6 . libertarian appeal . according to cnn 's poll last week , libertarian candidate adrian wyllie pulled a significant share of the vote at 9 % , enough to make a huge difference in a tied race . experts say wyllie could pull votes away from both candidates but perhaps slightly more votes from scott , given his shared views with libertarians on small government , taxes and stand your ground laws . and an amendment to legalize medical marijuana is on the ballot this fall , which could boost democratic turnout and swing some of the libertarian vote toward crist , who fully endorses the measure . scott opposes the initiative , but he has already signed into law a bill that approves certain strains of marijuana for patients with epilepsy , muscle spasms and cancer . opinion : the truth about the midterms lance dehaven-smith , a public policy professor at florida state university , said scott could try to attract wyllie supporters by arguing for less government , but he 'll have to overcome his association with big business . ' crist , meanwhile , might find more favor with libertarians on social issues . i will be watching for comments bemoaning big government , big business , and big labor , ' said dehaven-smith . but of course this is not an easy sell for either candidate , because scott is supported by big business and crist by big labor . ' 7 . blue dog democrats . dehaven-smith added that neither candidate has done much to reach out to the rural , white southern voters in the panhandle and central part of the state . while most are registered as democrats , scott appears to think they will vote republican as they tend to do in statewide races , dehaven-smith said . but blue dogs might be up for grabs if crist stressed his florida roots . he is a native floridian . scott had lived in florida for only four years before running for governor , ' he said . without the blue dogs , crist needs a very large turnout to win . ' surveys say obama and democrats hit lowest marks so how would crist try to make such an appeal tuesday night ? dehaven-smith said to watch for how the democrat talks about environmental issues . blue dogs live in rural areas and like to fish and hunt , so they want to protect the environment for recreation and sporting purposes . this means they support public lands acquisition , water quality protection , high water levels in fishes and streams , ' he said . blue dogs and traditional white southerners have been ridiculed for being preoccupied by'guns , gays , and god ,'but they are actually more complicated than that . they love florida 's forests , swamps , rivers , and streams . ' | rick scott and charlie crist take part in a debate tuesday night hosted by cnn and wjxt . |
syria <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a syrian city known for its relative calm during the syrian uprising has been stormed by security forces , an opposition activist group said tuesday . the local coordination committees of syria -- a network of opposition activists -- said security and government forces entered the tal refaat neighborhood of aleppo . aleppo , syria 's largest city , is the economic center of the country , and the city 's merchant class had been largely unaffected by the country 's upheaval . meanwhile , the city of al-rastan was being bombarded by the army and heavy machine guns mounted on tanks , ' on tuesday , the syrian observatory for human rights said . the observatory said 20 people were wounded , seven of them seriously , in the homs province city . since protests began in march , demonstrators have demanded true democratic elections and the ouster of syrian president bashar al-assad , but such protests have often been met with force . almost 3,000 people have died in the government 's crackdown , according to some accounts . cnn is unable to independently confirm death tolls or events in syria , which has restricted access to many parts of the country by international journalists . the syrian government has been battling opposition activists for what it calls a campaign against terrorists . at the united nations , foreign minister walid moallem blamed foreign incitement ' for the troubles , which he said were fueled by u.s. and european sanctions . this course can not in any way be reconciled with pronouncements about concern for the interests , security and rights of the syrian people , ' moallem told the general assembly . it further runs counter to the basic principles of human rights in defense of which these states base their interference in our internal affairs . ' he said syria had been a model of peaceful co-existence ' among its people 's religious and ethnic groups , and that disturbing that peace was aimed at spreading western hegemony over the countries of the mediterranean and serving israel 's expansionist interests . ' on monday , the state-run news agency sana published a report citing an unnamed military source saying that authorities found israeli weapons , explosives and stolen military uniforms in homs and recovered weapons , ammunition detonators and other military supplies hidden in a drum and a water tank in the garden of a house in naseeb , a city in daraa province . cnn 's yousuf basil contributed to this report . | syria 's foreign minister blames foreign incitement ' for anti-government protests |
syrian <tsp> ( cnn ) walk through the streets of kobani , and the devastation wrought by fighting isis is immeasurable . entire buildings reduced to heap of rubble . a hospital virtually obliterated . shoes and clothes strewn throughout the debris , their owners nowhere to be found . after four months of intense fighting , kurdish peshmerga forces have liberated the syrian city from the grip of isis . their prize : utter devastation . kobani has been a coveted prize for isis , which has been on a murderous campaign to establish an islamic state across parts of syria and iraq . the city sits on the border with turkey and would have given isis a complete swath of land between its self-declared capital in raqqa , syria , and turkey . and while there are many isis battlefields in both syria and iraq , kobani is within sight from the turkish border -- which means western media and the world could see the magnitude of the fighting . peshmerga forces wrestling for control of kobani have received a boost from hundreds of u.s. and coalition airstrikes against isis . the strikes have hit terrorist targets , as well as buildings and houses . but after months of fighting isis , the kobani area is now almost unrecognizable . they were advancing with heavy weapons , tanks , artillery , mortars , heavy weapons . they attacked us , ' said bozane shere , who is from a village just south of kobani . they attacked us . then we took our cars and ran away . ' now , the city is no better than the village he left , he said . many civilians fled kobani for refugee camps in less volatile areas when the fighting first started , but others could not flee -- or were forced by circumstance to return . my daughter recently died . we brought the ( body ) here , ' one woman said . we said , we will not bury her in turkey ; we will bury her in kobani , our own mud is much sweeter than other 's homeland . ' while there is barely anything left in kobani , it 's still home to people like shere . i said i will not leave my city . i will stay here , and told my sons go wherever you want to go , ' he said . but for me , i will stay here , and i will die on the syrian land . ' photojournalist ricardo garcia villanova contributed to this report . | the syrian city has been a key target , in part because it sits on the turkish border |
qatari <tsp> ( cnn ) -- he was the football star who came to symbolize one of the reasons why many argued qatar should n't be allowed the right to stage the 2022 world cup . on friday , a year to the day since he returned to paris following his painstaking exit from qatar , zahir belounis will take a moment to remember the scarring experience of being trapped inside his doha apartment for months on end . i can not forget what happened ... my head is still in that place , ' former french-algerian football player belounis told cnn . i never did anything wrong but my life was ruined and for what ? perhaps i do n't understand the seriousness of what i achieved in getting out and being able to tell my story . it 's not just about me -- it 's about all the people like me who have also suffered . ' last year , on november 28 , belounis was reunited with his mother and family after returning to france along with his wife johanna and two small daughters . belounis had become the face of the struggle against kafala ' -- the system which ties employees to a specific employer within qatar . fiercely criticized by pressure groups such as human rights watch and amnesty international , kafala ' has been labeled as facilitating modern day slavery , though recently qatar said it had been making progress in reforming the system . stranded in qatar following a 18-month pay dispute with football club el jaish , belounis was finally allowed to leave the gulf state after a lengthy campaign by human rights groups and those on social media . belounis , who had plied his trade in the lower divisions of french and swiss football , moved to qatar in 2007 and initially enjoyed success . in 2010 , he was offered a new five-year contract and signed the deal with the ambition of taking el jaish into the nation 's top division , which he achieved the following year . but once el jaish was promoted , belounis was sidelined and told he would not play again . there started the problem with his contract -- the club paying him only a small amount of what he was owed until the money stopped completely . for 18 months he struggled to feed his family , desperately contacting the french government and president francois hollande for help while he also sent an open letter to pep guardiola and zinedine zidane , two of the most famous men in football . the qatari football association denied belounis'allegations , stating that it had helped him recover unpaid wages from a previous club in the country and said the player had not lodged a complaint against el jaish . in telephone conversations with cnn before he left qatar , the footballer confessed he had been driven to drink and suicidal thoughts . even now , some 12 months later , it remains a difficult subject , both for him and his family . as a mother , there is nothing worse on earth than seeing your son screaming for help , crying on the phone , hearing him on tv , on radio , ' zahir 's mother fouzia told cnn . of course i was aware that he was n't held by some sort of terrorist group , but i felt like that every day . the worst was the article saying he was suicidal , but i want to forget that day , it is haunting me until today . ' a photograph of belounis emerging from the arrivals zone at charles de gaulle airport and moving almost immediately into the arms of his mother went viral online as the two embraced while cameras flashed and popped . i remember that night , ' said belounis . i was alone in the bathroom and just remember thinking ,'i 've had to come back to my mum 's house like a kid .' i had my wife and children and here i was , back at home . it was n't right . i was a grown man forced to crawl back to my mum -- it was embarrassing . ' belounis suffered from anxiety as he struggled to adjust to his new found freedom . when he arrived in paris , he was like a traumatized animal , scared of everything , ' his brother mahdi told cnn . it was almost impossible to make him smile or laugh . ' unable to settle in paris , belounis moved to malaga in southern spain where he found work at his friend 's restaurant -- as a waiter . in life you have to work , ' he said . my friend wanted to help me and i am so grateful towards him . at first it was difficult because i was used to the good life , being a professional football player . but now i have learned the trade and i respect the job of a waiter . i 've learned about the restaurant and i am grateful , although i never expected to finish my career like this . ' last week , qatar was back in the headlines after winning the right to host the 2019 world athletics championship . the decision was met with criticism by human rights groups who are unhappy at the gulf state 's treatment of migrant workers . in a statement , the ministry of labor and social affairs insisted the country is making progress and expects labor reforms to be implemented over the coming months . a new sponsorship law , currently under review , that will replace the outdated kafala ' system will be announced by next year , ' said the statement . we are also working on laws to cover domestic workers . as in every country in the world , change does not happen overnight . significant changes such as these take more time to implement that some may wish , but we intend to effect meaningful and lasting change for the benefit of all those who live and work in qatar . our plans are going through a legislative process and we expect to make announcements about new legislation by early next year . ' while belounis says he is encouraged by these developments , he is anxious to witness greater progress . according to a report by dla piper and confirmed by the government , 964 workers from bangladesh , india and nepal died while living and working in the country in 2012 and 2013 . the international trade union confederation has estimated that 4,000 workers could die while working on projects by the time the 2022 world cup begins . according to the qatari government , there are over 1.4 million foreign workers currently plying their trade in the country . qatar 's system is not a human system , ' belounis said . i think they have no choice but to make changes now . the last time i heard the emir speak , he said lots of good things but we want to see some action . we have to do something other than talk . i am a victim of the'kafala'system and the rules need to be changed so it will never happen again . ' belounis is still awaiting news from the french justice ministry in his claim for unpaid wages against qatari club el jaish , though he insists his is a struggle that is n't just about money . this is about human rights . i hope one day i will see justice and that the qataris will come out in public and admit they made a mistake . i want an apology . it 's the only thing which will finish this episode . ' both his mother and brother are desperate for belounis to put his time in qatar behind him . zahir is ready to fight even if we have to go to the european court , ' said mahdi . this is n't just about zahir , it is about hundreds and thousands of people who are in the exact same position that he was once in . he is the symbol of this human disaster . ' meanwhile , zahir 's mother is very much aware of the emotional torment her son has experienced . i can see it in his eyes , because i know my son . and i felt he was internally destroyed and fragile . i lost the kid full of joy i knew from before . it will take time , but i will get him back , i am sure . as for zahir he still has flashbacks -- the nights of sleeping on the floor in his qatari home , crying while he held his daughters , remain fresh in the mind . even now , the picture of his two young girls asking , what 's wrong daddy ? ' haunts him . the depression which led him to ponder suicide might have lifted but the memories have n't . i know that it will be a year since i came back but i just want to be alone , ' he said . i remember telling my little girls that'daddy does n't have any strength to fight anymore'but here i am . i am proud of what has happened to me and to be the first to highlight this problem . perhaps i have n't fully realized what i 've done ... but i will sit tomorrow night and i will remember . ' | belounis still awaiting payment from qatari football club |
sno <tsp> cnn -- ajax midfielder evander sno has suffered a heart attack whilst playing in a reserve match against vitesse arnhem on monday . a statement on the club 's website said the 23-year-old dutch midfielder had to be resuscitated before later being transferred to hospital , where he is expected to stay for two weeks . the incident occurred after 60 minutes with sno , who came on as a half-time substitute , having to be resuscitated three times . as a result of the former celtic player 's trauma the match was abandoned and he was treated on the pitch for more than ten minutes before regaining consciousness . sno has played in for bristol city in england , following earlier spells with nac breda and feyenoord . spain international antonio puerta died in 2007 after suffering a heart attack in his club side sevilla 's 4-1 win against getafe . in 2004 , cameroon international marc-vivien foe died after collapsing during an international match in france . | sno has to be resuscitated three times following the incident |
sno <tsp> cnn -- ajax midfielder evander sno has suffered a heart attack whilst playing in a reserve match against vitesse arnhem on monday . a statement on the club 's website said the 23-year-old dutch midfielder had to be resuscitated before later being transferred to hospital , where he is expected to stay for two weeks . the incident occurred after 60 minutes with sno , who came on as a half-time substitute , having to be resuscitated three times . as a result of the former celtic player 's trauma the match was abandoned and he was treated on the pitch for more than ten minutes before regaining consciousness . sno has played in for bristol city in england , following earlier spells with nac breda and feyenoord . spain international antonio puerta died in 2007 after suffering a heart attack in his club side sevilla 's 4-1 win against getafe . in 2004 , cameroon international marc-vivien foe died after collapsing during an international match in france . | ajax 's evander sno suffers a heart attack during a reserve match on monday |
baghdatis <tsp> ( cnn ) -- defending champion roger federer will seek to claim his fourth cincinnati masters title on sunday when he faces mardy fish . the third seed federer leads fish 5-1 in career meetings , but fish beat federer in their last meeting in 2008 at indian wells , according to atp world tour 's web site . in saturday 's semifinal , fish beat fellow american ninth seed andy roddick 4-6 , 7-6 ( 3 ) , 6-1 after rallying from a set down and near-defeat in the second set , according to atp world tour . two rain delays went in favor of fish , the first coming when roddick led 5-4 in the first set , giving each players an hour respite . the second delay came during the second set when fish was facing near-defeat at 2-5 . fish would return and force a tie-breaker , which he 'd win , followed by a dominant deciding set . i 've never felt better on the court , and i 've never been more confident and i 've never played better , ' fish said , according to atp world tour 's web site . i 've won a lot of matches this summer . [ the weight loss ] has a ton to do with it , ' he added , referring to some 30 pounds ( 13.6 kilos ) he has shed . of the weather , roddick said , according to atp world tour , that 's the thing with rain delays . the momentum can shift really fast . ' federer , playing against cypriot marcos baghdatis in the other saturday semifinal , won handedly 6-4 , 6-3 . the five-time atp world tour no . 1 from switzerland dropped only three points on first serve and attributed a more aggressive game , including rushes to the net , to his downtime since wimbledon . after wimbledon i had six weeks to work on a few things . on the hard courts it 's nice to play forwards and not always be defensive and let the other guy dictate , ' atp world tour quoted federer as saying . i 'm happy that the hard work is paying off right away . ' baghdatis , now ranked 20th , on friday upset world no . 1 rafael nadal for the first time in his career following six defeats to the spaniard . federer is seeking only his second title this year following january 's australian open success . | federer , playing against baghdatis in the other semifinal , wins 6-4 , 6-3 |
baghdatis <tsp> ( cnn ) -- defending champion roger federer will seek to claim his fourth cincinnati masters title on sunday when he faces mardy fish . the third seed federer leads fish 5-1 in career meetings , but fish beat federer in their last meeting in 2008 at indian wells , according to atp world tour 's web site . in saturday 's semifinal , fish beat fellow american ninth seed andy roddick 4-6 , 7-6 ( 3 ) , 6-1 after rallying from a set down and near-defeat in the second set , according to atp world tour . two rain delays went in favor of fish , the first coming when roddick led 5-4 in the first set , giving each players an hour respite . the second delay came during the second set when fish was facing near-defeat at 2-5 . fish would return and force a tie-breaker , which he 'd win , followed by a dominant deciding set . i 've never felt better on the court , and i 've never been more confident and i 've never played better , ' fish said , according to atp world tour 's web site . i 've won a lot of matches this summer . [ the weight loss ] has a ton to do with it , ' he added , referring to some 30 pounds ( 13.6 kilos ) he has shed . of the weather , roddick said , according to atp world tour , that 's the thing with rain delays . the momentum can shift really fast . ' federer , playing against cypriot marcos baghdatis in the other saturday semifinal , won handedly 6-4 , 6-3 . the five-time atp world tour no . 1 from switzerland dropped only three points on first serve and attributed a more aggressive game , including rushes to the net , to his downtime since wimbledon . after wimbledon i had six weeks to work on a few things . on the hard courts it 's nice to play forwards and not always be defensive and let the other guy dictate , ' atp world tour quoted federer as saying . i 'm happy that the hard work is paying off right away . ' baghdatis , now ranked 20th , on friday upset world no . 1 rafael nadal for the first time in his career following six defeats to the spaniard . federer is seeking only his second title this year following january 's australian open success . | baghdatis had earlier upset nadal |
american <tsp> ( cnn ) -- defending champion roger federer will seek to claim his fourth cincinnati masters title on sunday when he faces mardy fish . the third seed federer leads fish 5-1 in career meetings , but fish beat federer in their last meeting in 2008 at indian wells , according to atp world tour 's web site . in saturday 's semifinal , fish beat fellow american ninth seed andy roddick 4-6 , 7-6 ( 3 ) , 6-1 after rallying from a set down and near-defeat in the second set , according to atp world tour . two rain delays went in favor of fish , the first coming when roddick led 5-4 in the first set , giving each players an hour respite . the second delay came during the second set when fish was facing near-defeat at 2-5 . fish would return and force a tie-breaker , which he 'd win , followed by a dominant deciding set . i 've never felt better on the court , and i 've never been more confident and i 've never played better , ' fish said , according to atp world tour 's web site . i 've won a lot of matches this summer . [ the weight loss ] has a ton to do with it , ' he added , referring to some 30 pounds ( 13.6 kilos ) he has shed . of the weather , roddick said , according to atp world tour , that 's the thing with rain delays . the momentum can shift really fast . ' federer , playing against cypriot marcos baghdatis in the other saturday semifinal , won handedly 6-4 , 6-3 . the five-time atp world tour no . 1 from switzerland dropped only three points on first serve and attributed a more aggressive game , including rushes to the net , to his downtime since wimbledon . after wimbledon i had six weeks to work on a few things . on the hard courts it 's nice to play forwards and not always be defensive and let the other guy dictate , ' atp world tour quoted federer as saying . i 'm happy that the hard work is paying off right away . ' baghdatis , now ranked 20th , on friday upset world no . 1 rafael nadal for the first time in his career following six defeats to the spaniard . federer is seeking only his second title this year following january 's australian open success . | fish beats fellow american andy roddick 4-6 , 7-6 ( 3 ) , 6-1 |
moore <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it has been 20 years since filmmaker michael moore took on general motors in roger and me . ' he 's still sticking it to big business for what he sees as the deliberate shafting of the little guy . filmmaker michael moore says wall street created a invisible virtual casino ' with people 's money . his new film , capitalism : a love story , ' opened wednesday in new york and los angeles , california , and opens nationwide next week . moore talked with cnn 's larry king about whether capitalism is key to the american dream or the cause of an american nightmare . the following is an edited version of the interview . larry king : you describe this movie as the culmination of all the films you 've made . does that mean this is it ? michael moore : no . i hope not . it means that , for 20 years , as you said , i 've been doing this . i started out by showing people what general motors was up to and how this was a company that was making a lot of bad decisions and it was n't good for the company nor for the country . that was 20 years ago . and since then , i 've covered a number of issues and different things . but it all seems to come back to this one issue of follow the money . ' who 's got the money ? and whoever has the money has the power . and right now , in america , tonight , larry , the richest 1 percent have more financial wealth than the bottom 95 percent combined . king : you 're in that 1 percent , though ? moore : i do n't think i 'm in that 1 percent , but i make documentary films . but i mean , obviously , i do well because my films have done well . but , you know , even if i were , i think it 's my responsibility -- my moral duty that if i 've done well , that i have to make sure that everybody else . king : does well too or has a chance ? moore : well , has at least a chance but that -- and that the pie is divided fairly amongst the people and not just a few people get the majority of the loot and everybody else has to struggle for the crumbs . king : are you saying capitalism is a failure ? moore : yes . capitalism . yes . well , i do n't have to say it . capitalism , in the last year , has proven that it 's failed . all the basic tenets of what we 've talked about the free market , about free enterprise and competition just completely fell apart . as soon as they lost , essentially , our money , they came running to the federal government for a bailout -- for welfare , for socialism . and i thought the basic principle of capitalism was that it 's a sink-or-swim situation . and those who do well , the cream rises to the top and , you know , those who invest their money wrongly or , you know , do n't run their business the right way , then they do n't do well . watch moore talk about corporate greed and if you run your business the wrong way , where does it say that you or i or anybody watching this has to bail them out ? i understand why everybody seemed to get behind it , because a lot of people were afraid , because these people down on wall street had taken our money and made bets with it . i mean , they essentially created this invisible virtual casino with people 's money -- people 's pension funds , people 's 401 ( k ) s. they took this money and they made bets . and then they made bets on the bets . and then they took out insurance policies on the bets . and then they took out insurance against the insurance -- the credit default swaps . king : you started filming before lehman brothers went belly up . moore : yes . king : the stock market tanked . now , how did the events , as it occurred , affect the movie ? did it change gears ? moore : it did n't change in terms of what i was looking at , but it did , obviously , offer probably the best example of why this is a system that is really corrupt at its core -- corrupt because it does n't , it is n't run with democratic -- small d ' -- democratic principles . there 's no democracy in our economy . you and i and the people watching have no say in how this economy is run . the upper 1 percent , the people down on wall street , the corporate executives , they 're the people that control this economy . king : and they do n't want to see the economy do well ? they do n't want to see people ... moore : oh , they sure do . king : do n't they want people to make money so they can buy the products ? i mean it 's silly if they want people unemployed ? moore : oddly enough , yes . king : why ? moore : i 'll tell you why . because your employees are your biggest expense . and , as you 've noticed in the last few months , as the unemployment rate has gone up , so has the dow jones . now , you 'd think , you know , that wall street would respond with oh , my god , unemployment is going up , you know , this is bad for business . ' but the reality is , is that wall street likes that . they like it when companies fire people because immediately the bottom line is going to show a larger profit . king : are you saying the investor is more important than the employee ? moore : yes . the investor -- and the investor , these days , they want the short-term , quick profit and they want it now . but in the long-term , here 's what happened . when i was on this show 20 years ago , 20 years ago this week , i was here with roger and me ' . king : i remember . moore : and general motors , that year , made a profit of $ 4 billion . and yet they had just laid off another 30,000 people . now , why would you lay people off when you 're making a record profit of $ 4 billion ? i mean that was totally insane . but they thought , well , you know , we can make a bigger profit . maybe we can make $ 4.2 billion if we move those jobs to mexico . and so they 're always , you know , we can make a little bit more money if we do this . by firing those workers , larry , they got rid of the very people who buy their cars . | moore : richest 1 percent in america are wealthier than bottom 95 percent combined |
moore <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it has been 20 years since filmmaker michael moore took on general motors in roger and me . ' he 's still sticking it to big business for what he sees as the deliberate shafting of the little guy . filmmaker michael moore says wall street created a invisible virtual casino ' with people 's money . his new film , capitalism : a love story , ' opened wednesday in new york and los angeles , california , and opens nationwide next week . moore talked with cnn 's larry king about whether capitalism is key to the american dream or the cause of an american nightmare . the following is an edited version of the interview . larry king : you describe this movie as the culmination of all the films you 've made . does that mean this is it ? michael moore : no . i hope not . it means that , for 20 years , as you said , i 've been doing this . i started out by showing people what general motors was up to and how this was a company that was making a lot of bad decisions and it was n't good for the company nor for the country . that was 20 years ago . and since then , i 've covered a number of issues and different things . but it all seems to come back to this one issue of follow the money . ' who 's got the money ? and whoever has the money has the power . and right now , in america , tonight , larry , the richest 1 percent have more financial wealth than the bottom 95 percent combined . king : you 're in that 1 percent , though ? moore : i do n't think i 'm in that 1 percent , but i make documentary films . but i mean , obviously , i do well because my films have done well . but , you know , even if i were , i think it 's my responsibility -- my moral duty that if i 've done well , that i have to make sure that everybody else . king : does well too or has a chance ? moore : well , has at least a chance but that -- and that the pie is divided fairly amongst the people and not just a few people get the majority of the loot and everybody else has to struggle for the crumbs . king : are you saying capitalism is a failure ? moore : yes . capitalism . yes . well , i do n't have to say it . capitalism , in the last year , has proven that it 's failed . all the basic tenets of what we 've talked about the free market , about free enterprise and competition just completely fell apart . as soon as they lost , essentially , our money , they came running to the federal government for a bailout -- for welfare , for socialism . and i thought the basic principle of capitalism was that it 's a sink-or-swim situation . and those who do well , the cream rises to the top and , you know , those who invest their money wrongly or , you know , do n't run their business the right way , then they do n't do well . watch moore talk about corporate greed and if you run your business the wrong way , where does it say that you or i or anybody watching this has to bail them out ? i understand why everybody seemed to get behind it , because a lot of people were afraid , because these people down on wall street had taken our money and made bets with it . i mean , they essentially created this invisible virtual casino with people 's money -- people 's pension funds , people 's 401 ( k ) s. they took this money and they made bets . and then they made bets on the bets . and then they took out insurance policies on the bets . and then they took out insurance against the insurance -- the credit default swaps . king : you started filming before lehman brothers went belly up . moore : yes . king : the stock market tanked . now , how did the events , as it occurred , affect the movie ? did it change gears ? moore : it did n't change in terms of what i was looking at , but it did , obviously , offer probably the best example of why this is a system that is really corrupt at its core -- corrupt because it does n't , it is n't run with democratic -- small d ' -- democratic principles . there 's no democracy in our economy . you and i and the people watching have no say in how this economy is run . the upper 1 percent , the people down on wall street , the corporate executives , they 're the people that control this economy . king : and they do n't want to see the economy do well ? they do n't want to see people ... moore : oh , they sure do . king : do n't they want people to make money so they can buy the products ? i mean it 's silly if they want people unemployed ? moore : oddly enough , yes . king : why ? moore : i 'll tell you why . because your employees are your biggest expense . and , as you 've noticed in the last few months , as the unemployment rate has gone up , so has the dow jones . now , you 'd think , you know , that wall street would respond with oh , my god , unemployment is going up , you know , this is bad for business . ' but the reality is , is that wall street likes that . they like it when companies fire people because immediately the bottom line is going to show a larger profit . king : are you saying the investor is more important than the employee ? moore : yes . the investor -- and the investor , these days , they want the short-term , quick profit and they want it now . but in the long-term , here 's what happened . when i was on this show 20 years ago , 20 years ago this week , i was here with roger and me ' . king : i remember . moore : and general motors , that year , made a profit of $ 4 billion . and yet they had just laid off another 30,000 people . now , why would you lay people off when you 're making a record profit of $ 4 billion ? i mean that was totally insane . but they thought , well , you know , we can make a bigger profit . maybe we can make $ 4.2 billion if we move those jobs to mexico . and so they 're always , you know , we can make a little bit more money if we do this . by firing those workers , larry , they got rid of the very people who buy their cars . | moore says wall street took our money and made bets with it |
moore <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it has been 20 years since filmmaker michael moore took on general motors in roger and me . ' he 's still sticking it to big business for what he sees as the deliberate shafting of the little guy . filmmaker michael moore says wall street created a invisible virtual casino ' with people 's money . his new film , capitalism : a love story , ' opened wednesday in new york and los angeles , california , and opens nationwide next week . moore talked with cnn 's larry king about whether capitalism is key to the american dream or the cause of an american nightmare . the following is an edited version of the interview . larry king : you describe this movie as the culmination of all the films you 've made . does that mean this is it ? michael moore : no . i hope not . it means that , for 20 years , as you said , i 've been doing this . i started out by showing people what general motors was up to and how this was a company that was making a lot of bad decisions and it was n't good for the company nor for the country . that was 20 years ago . and since then , i 've covered a number of issues and different things . but it all seems to come back to this one issue of follow the money . ' who 's got the money ? and whoever has the money has the power . and right now , in america , tonight , larry , the richest 1 percent have more financial wealth than the bottom 95 percent combined . king : you 're in that 1 percent , though ? moore : i do n't think i 'm in that 1 percent , but i make documentary films . but i mean , obviously , i do well because my films have done well . but , you know , even if i were , i think it 's my responsibility -- my moral duty that if i 've done well , that i have to make sure that everybody else . king : does well too or has a chance ? moore : well , has at least a chance but that -- and that the pie is divided fairly amongst the people and not just a few people get the majority of the loot and everybody else has to struggle for the crumbs . king : are you saying capitalism is a failure ? moore : yes . capitalism . yes . well , i do n't have to say it . capitalism , in the last year , has proven that it 's failed . all the basic tenets of what we 've talked about the free market , about free enterprise and competition just completely fell apart . as soon as they lost , essentially , our money , they came running to the federal government for a bailout -- for welfare , for socialism . and i thought the basic principle of capitalism was that it 's a sink-or-swim situation . and those who do well , the cream rises to the top and , you know , those who invest their money wrongly or , you know , do n't run their business the right way , then they do n't do well . watch moore talk about corporate greed and if you run your business the wrong way , where does it say that you or i or anybody watching this has to bail them out ? i understand why everybody seemed to get behind it , because a lot of people were afraid , because these people down on wall street had taken our money and made bets with it . i mean , they essentially created this invisible virtual casino with people 's money -- people 's pension funds , people 's 401 ( k ) s. they took this money and they made bets . and then they made bets on the bets . and then they took out insurance policies on the bets . and then they took out insurance against the insurance -- the credit default swaps . king : you started filming before lehman brothers went belly up . moore : yes . king : the stock market tanked . now , how did the events , as it occurred , affect the movie ? did it change gears ? moore : it did n't change in terms of what i was looking at , but it did , obviously , offer probably the best example of why this is a system that is really corrupt at its core -- corrupt because it does n't , it is n't run with democratic -- small d ' -- democratic principles . there 's no democracy in our economy . you and i and the people watching have no say in how this economy is run . the upper 1 percent , the people down on wall street , the corporate executives , they 're the people that control this economy . king : and they do n't want to see the economy do well ? they do n't want to see people ... moore : oh , they sure do . king : do n't they want people to make money so they can buy the products ? i mean it 's silly if they want people unemployed ? moore : oddly enough , yes . king : why ? moore : i 'll tell you why . because your employees are your biggest expense . and , as you 've noticed in the last few months , as the unemployment rate has gone up , so has the dow jones . now , you 'd think , you know , that wall street would respond with oh , my god , unemployment is going up , you know , this is bad for business . ' but the reality is , is that wall street likes that . they like it when companies fire people because immediately the bottom line is going to show a larger profit . king : are you saying the investor is more important than the employee ? moore : yes . the investor -- and the investor , these days , they want the short-term , quick profit and they want it now . but in the long-term , here 's what happened . when i was on this show 20 years ago , 20 years ago this week , i was here with roger and me ' . king : i remember . moore : and general motors , that year , made a profit of $ 4 billion . and yet they had just laid off another 30,000 people . now , why would you lay people off when you 're making a record profit of $ 4 billion ? i mean that was totally insane . but they thought , well , you know , we can make a bigger profit . maybe we can make $ 4.2 billion if we move those jobs to mexico . and so they 're always , you know , we can make a little bit more money if we do this . by firing those workers , larry , they got rid of the very people who buy their cars . | filmmaker michael moore takes on capitalism in his latest documentary |
hawaii <tsp> ( cnn ) -- we 're fresh out of english-language ballots . how about japanese instead ? that 's basically what happened to voters at one precinct in hawaii after a series of unfortunate events . first , the polling place at hokulani elementary school on the island of oahu ran out of ballots . a two-hour line formed as polling workers tried to shuffle hundreds of people through a single electronic voting machine . next , according to mike kratzke , who was working the election , officials delivered more ballots -- but they were the wrong ones , featuring the wrong local races . everyone stop ! the ballots are wrong ! ' kratzke recalls yelling over an angry mob . finally : a sorta-solution . kratzke said he passed out japanese-language ballots to some of the english-speaking voters . by comparing the japanese ballots with those that included the wrong candidates , he said , the people of hawaii finally were able to vote . the candidates'names appeared in english , while the rest of the information -- instructions on how to fill out the ballot . race names -- was in a language foreign to most . it 's no fault of kratzke 's . in some ways , it 's a creative solution . ( hawaii , where everyone is a racial minority , offers voting info in four languages , including japanese ) . some people were able to submit their votes for the races they wanted to vote for on these foreign-language ballots , ' he said , but it was just a mess , man . ' in all , 69 precincts in hawaii saw ballot shortages on election day and 23 of those ran out of ballots entirely , according to the state election office 's spokesman . these issues were n't unique to hawaii . we saw lines four or five hours long -- and even longer ' in several states , said mary boyle , spokeswoman for common cause , a group that advocates for open , honest and accountable government . ' in virginia , she said , nine voting machines broke at one precinct , leaving only one to accommodate the masses . none of these mishaps resulted in another hanging chads fiasco , a la election day 2000 , but that 's beside the point . the scariest thing about the long lines and other such headaches is that they discourage people from voting -- now and , potentially , well into the future . at a time when so much energy in this country is spent on trying to prevent voter fraud , we should turn more of our attention to the experience of people who want to vote , play by the rules , and ca n't because it 's simply too difficult . kratzke told me 200 to 300 people left his precinct on tuesday without voting because of the long lines and the ballot shortage . it 's hard to blame them . in the modern world , as others have argued , who reasonably expects to wait in a line for more than an hour for anything ? the one exception is the iphone , but i doubt even those bleary-eyed , gadget-obsessed people would wait several hours to vote . there were older people who had a hard time standing out in the line , ' kratzke told me . we tried to bring chairs to people , but we did n't have enough chairs . there were people hurting -- people 80 , 90 years old who were coming in to vote . people with walkers who were n't able to stand that long . ' some precincts in hawaii that ran out of ballots were those that nonpartisan volunteers like joe heaukulani devoted his weekends to canvassing , encouraging people to participate . to me , it 's kind of sad , ' said heaukulani , who was a nonvoter into his 30s until a website asked him to make a pledge to vote . you put in all this effort to try to get people to turn out ( to vote ) , and then they have this kind of experience . ' those experiences perpetuate low voter turnout in hawaii , he said . the state had the nation 's lowest turnout rate in 2008 , making it the focus of cnn 's change the list project . ( it 's still unclear whether the state finished in 49th or 50th place this year ) . there 's no reason why they should have run out of ballots , ' he said . i think it 's part of that attitude that perpetuates low voter turnout .'well , we do n't expect most people to vote .'that has to change from the state . because that goes back to the whole voting experience ... if you want to have more people vote , make it as easy as possible for them to vote . at least have everything there that they need to vote and make sure they have a good time doing it . ( hawaii 's elections office ) just like totally messed that up . ' the state election office does n't dispute that perspective . our office made errors in the estimates of its allotment of ballots at the polling places in the general election , ' said rex quidilla , spokesman for the hawaii office of elections . that 's the simplest explanation i can give you . it was an error . ' newly drawn voting districts and a miscalculation that only 25 % more people would vote in a presidential race than the primary contributed to the error , quidilla said . there are some obvious solutions here , including bumping up the number of ballots polling places have on hand , as well as investigating what went wrong with backup plans . quidilla said ballots or electronic voting machines were provided so that everyone who wanted to could still participate in the election , but one polling place , he said , stayed open two hours and 45 minutes late to accommodate people . election day is not a surprise . it does not sneak up on us , ' said boyle , from common cause . you do n't wake up one day and say ,'hey , today we all vote !'it 's as simple as better planning . ' better technology could also go a long way . as boyle pointed out , it 's impossible in 2012 to expect millions of voters to all go to the polls within a 24-hour period . states , including hawaii , should do more to encourage early walk-in voting and , eventually , electronic voting . people in new jersey who were displaced by superstorm sandy were allowed this year to vote by e-mail . that 's not ready for prime time nationwide , but we should start investigating those options in a serious way . finally , a smarter -- or modern , ' as boyle put it -- voter registration system also would n't hurt . people in every state should be able to register to vote online , and a national system could make registration automatic when you sign up for other services . a nagging issue in hawaii , though , still seems to be a lack of confidence in and respect for voters . if the state does n't provide enough ballots , why would someone stand in line ? | 23 polling places in hawaii ran out of ballots |
hawaii <tsp> ( cnn ) -- we 're fresh out of english-language ballots . how about japanese instead ? that 's basically what happened to voters at one precinct in hawaii after a series of unfortunate events . first , the polling place at hokulani elementary school on the island of oahu ran out of ballots . a two-hour line formed as polling workers tried to shuffle hundreds of people through a single electronic voting machine . next , according to mike kratzke , who was working the election , officials delivered more ballots -- but they were the wrong ones , featuring the wrong local races . everyone stop ! the ballots are wrong ! ' kratzke recalls yelling over an angry mob . finally : a sorta-solution . kratzke said he passed out japanese-language ballots to some of the english-speaking voters . by comparing the japanese ballots with those that included the wrong candidates , he said , the people of hawaii finally were able to vote . the candidates'names appeared in english , while the rest of the information -- instructions on how to fill out the ballot . race names -- was in a language foreign to most . it 's no fault of kratzke 's . in some ways , it 's a creative solution . ( hawaii , where everyone is a racial minority , offers voting info in four languages , including japanese ) . some people were able to submit their votes for the races they wanted to vote for on these foreign-language ballots , ' he said , but it was just a mess , man . ' in all , 69 precincts in hawaii saw ballot shortages on election day and 23 of those ran out of ballots entirely , according to the state election office 's spokesman . these issues were n't unique to hawaii . we saw lines four or five hours long -- and even longer ' in several states , said mary boyle , spokeswoman for common cause , a group that advocates for open , honest and accountable government . ' in virginia , she said , nine voting machines broke at one precinct , leaving only one to accommodate the masses . none of these mishaps resulted in another hanging chads fiasco , a la election day 2000 , but that 's beside the point . the scariest thing about the long lines and other such headaches is that they discourage people from voting -- now and , potentially , well into the future . at a time when so much energy in this country is spent on trying to prevent voter fraud , we should turn more of our attention to the experience of people who want to vote , play by the rules , and ca n't because it 's simply too difficult . kratzke told me 200 to 300 people left his precinct on tuesday without voting because of the long lines and the ballot shortage . it 's hard to blame them . in the modern world , as others have argued , who reasonably expects to wait in a line for more than an hour for anything ? the one exception is the iphone , but i doubt even those bleary-eyed , gadget-obsessed people would wait several hours to vote . there were older people who had a hard time standing out in the line , ' kratzke told me . we tried to bring chairs to people , but we did n't have enough chairs . there were people hurting -- people 80 , 90 years old who were coming in to vote . people with walkers who were n't able to stand that long . ' some precincts in hawaii that ran out of ballots were those that nonpartisan volunteers like joe heaukulani devoted his weekends to canvassing , encouraging people to participate . to me , it 's kind of sad , ' said heaukulani , who was a nonvoter into his 30s until a website asked him to make a pledge to vote . you put in all this effort to try to get people to turn out ( to vote ) , and then they have this kind of experience . ' those experiences perpetuate low voter turnout in hawaii , he said . the state had the nation 's lowest turnout rate in 2008 , making it the focus of cnn 's change the list project . ( it 's still unclear whether the state finished in 49th or 50th place this year ) . there 's no reason why they should have run out of ballots , ' he said . i think it 's part of that attitude that perpetuates low voter turnout .'well , we do n't expect most people to vote .'that has to change from the state . because that goes back to the whole voting experience ... if you want to have more people vote , make it as easy as possible for them to vote . at least have everything there that they need to vote and make sure they have a good time doing it . ( hawaii 's elections office ) just like totally messed that up . ' the state election office does n't dispute that perspective . our office made errors in the estimates of its allotment of ballots at the polling places in the general election , ' said rex quidilla , spokesman for the hawaii office of elections . that 's the simplest explanation i can give you . it was an error . ' newly drawn voting districts and a miscalculation that only 25 % more people would vote in a presidential race than the primary contributed to the error , quidilla said . there are some obvious solutions here , including bumping up the number of ballots polling places have on hand , as well as investigating what went wrong with backup plans . quidilla said ballots or electronic voting machines were provided so that everyone who wanted to could still participate in the election , but one polling place , he said , stayed open two hours and 45 minutes late to accommodate people . election day is not a surprise . it does not sneak up on us , ' said boyle , from common cause . you do n't wake up one day and say ,'hey , today we all vote !'it 's as simple as better planning . ' better technology could also go a long way . as boyle pointed out , it 's impossible in 2012 to expect millions of voters to all go to the polls within a 24-hour period . states , including hawaii , should do more to encourage early walk-in voting and , eventually , electronic voting . people in new jersey who were displaced by superstorm sandy were allowed this year to vote by e-mail . that 's not ready for prime time nationwide , but we should start investigating those options in a serious way . finally , a smarter -- or modern , ' as boyle put it -- voter registration system also would n't hurt . people in every state should be able to register to vote online , and a national system could make registration automatic when you sign up for other services . a nagging issue in hawaii , though , still seems to be a lack of confidence in and respect for voters . if the state does n't provide enough ballots , why would someone stand in line ? | hawaii says it underestimated the number of voters who would show up |
jimenez <tsp> ( cnn ) -- european ryder cup star miguel angel jimenez snapped his putter in frustration at the volvo golf champions tournament in bahrain but then carded three birdies with his lob wedge to tie for the lead . the spaniard became increasingly frustrated with his play on the greens after missing a succession of birdie chances and snapped his putter in two on the 13th hole . but if anything , it gave his game a boost as he picked up shots on the 15th , 16th and 17th to finish with a 65 and tie with three other players at 11-under-par after the second round . italian edoardo molinari , sweden 's peter hanson and frenchman raphaël jacquelin share the lead with jimenez . after his extraordinary hat-trick of birdies jimenez joked on the european tour website : i think now i putt with my lob wedge . ' northern irishman darren clarke , who was a vice-captain during europe 's ryder cup victory over the united states in wales last year , was playing with jimenez when his putter felt the full force of his anger . clarke told how his playing partner just caught the edge of his bag ' with the putter , joking that his backswing was a bit long . ' molinari came flying out of the traps carding six birdies in the opening six holes but after such an impressive start he managed only one more in his round of 65 . hanson shot a five-under round of 67 to take a share of the lead , while jacquelin matched molinari and jimenez with seven birdies in his round . clarke is in a group of four players one shot behind the leaders with england 's paul casey , scot stephen gallacher and south africa 's james kingston . it was n't such a good day for england 's ian poulter who finished on three-under and tied for 50th place . after his opening round of level par on thursday he ranted on his twitter site . he said : played great today 35 putts , missed 1 green , simply the worst greens i have ever seen & im not joking they are embarrassing . ' he later added : apparently the architect wanted to make a statement with the greens , he did that alright they are & % $ # . ' | edaordo molinari joins jimenez on 11-under after round of 65 |
jimenez <tsp> ( cnn ) -- european ryder cup star miguel angel jimenez snapped his putter in frustration at the volvo golf champions tournament in bahrain but then carded three birdies with his lob wedge to tie for the lead . the spaniard became increasingly frustrated with his play on the greens after missing a succession of birdie chances and snapped his putter in two on the 13th hole . but if anything , it gave his game a boost as he picked up shots on the 15th , 16th and 17th to finish with a 65 and tie with three other players at 11-under-par after the second round . italian edoardo molinari , sweden 's peter hanson and frenchman raphaël jacquelin share the lead with jimenez . after his extraordinary hat-trick of birdies jimenez joked on the european tour website : i think now i putt with my lob wedge . ' northern irishman darren clarke , who was a vice-captain during europe 's ryder cup victory over the united states in wales last year , was playing with jimenez when his putter felt the full force of his anger . clarke told how his playing partner just caught the edge of his bag ' with the putter , joking that his backswing was a bit long . ' molinari came flying out of the traps carding six birdies in the opening six holes but after such an impressive start he managed only one more in his round of 65 . hanson shot a five-under round of 67 to take a share of the lead , while jacquelin matched molinari and jimenez with seven birdies in his round . clarke is in a group of four players one shot behind the leaders with england 's paul casey , scot stephen gallacher and south africa 's james kingston . it was n't such a good day for england 's ian poulter who finished on three-under and tied for 50th place . after his opening round of level par on thursday he ranted on his twitter site . he said : played great today 35 putts , missed 1 green , simply the worst greens i have ever seen & im not joking they are embarrassing . ' he later added : apparently the architect wanted to make a statement with the greens , he did that alright they are & % $ # . ' | miguel angel jimenez takes share of volvo golf champions after snapping putter |
jimenez <tsp> ( cnn ) -- european ryder cup star miguel angel jimenez snapped his putter in frustration at the volvo golf champions tournament in bahrain but then carded three birdies with his lob wedge to tie for the lead . the spaniard became increasingly frustrated with his play on the greens after missing a succession of birdie chances and snapped his putter in two on the 13th hole . but if anything , it gave his game a boost as he picked up shots on the 15th , 16th and 17th to finish with a 65 and tie with three other players at 11-under-par after the second round . italian edoardo molinari , sweden 's peter hanson and frenchman raphaël jacquelin share the lead with jimenez . after his extraordinary hat-trick of birdies jimenez joked on the european tour website : i think now i putt with my lob wedge . ' northern irishman darren clarke , who was a vice-captain during europe 's ryder cup victory over the united states in wales last year , was playing with jimenez when his putter felt the full force of his anger . clarke told how his playing partner just caught the edge of his bag ' with the putter , joking that his backswing was a bit long . ' molinari came flying out of the traps carding six birdies in the opening six holes but after such an impressive start he managed only one more in his round of 65 . hanson shot a five-under round of 67 to take a share of the lead , while jacquelin matched molinari and jimenez with seven birdies in his round . clarke is in a group of four players one shot behind the leaders with england 's paul casey , scot stephen gallacher and south africa 's james kingston . it was n't such a good day for england 's ian poulter who finished on three-under and tied for 50th place . after his opening round of level par on thursday he ranted on his twitter site . he said : played great today 35 putts , missed 1 green , simply the worst greens i have ever seen & im not joking they are embarrassing . ' he later added : apparently the architect wanted to make a statement with the greens , he did that alright they are & % $ # . ' | jimenez then carded three birdies with his lob wedge to tie for the lead |
james holmes <tsp> centennial , colorado ( cnn ) after months of intensive questioning , a jury has finally been picked for the trial of colorado movie theater massacre suspect james holmes . twelve jurors and twelve alternates are on the list . the group includes 19 women and five men . it 's almost entirely white and mostly middle-aged . it 's a key step in the case , and it 's been a long time coming . jury selection started in january with 9,000 potential jurors . but the legal wrangling is the case is just revving up . holmes'defense attorneys asked for a change of venue after the jury was seated tuesday . the judge denied their request , noting that a jury had already been seated . opening statements in the trial are scheduled to begin on april 27 . holmes is accused of killing 12 people and injuring 70 others when he allegedly opened fire inside a packed theater during the midnight showing of the dark knight rises ' on july 20 , 2012 . the one-time neuroscience doctoral student faces 165 counts , including murder and attempted murder charges . now 27 , he has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity . if convicted of the most serious charges , he could face a death sentence . wearing a gray dress shirt and tan slacks , holmes sat quietly in court on tuesday , looking relaxed and leaning back in his chair for much of the day as lawyers made their picks from the jury pool . he looked down often , but smiled occasionally , such as when the judge made a joke about a juror needing to share his cheetos and when the district attorney accidentally addressed a male juror as a miss . ' even though he looked calm , defense lawyer tamara brady started her question and answer session with jurors tuesday by expression concerns about holmes getting a fair and impartial trial , saying i 'm nervous ' and my client is nervous . ' district attorney george brauchler warned jurors to brace themselves . tuesday 's court session , he said , was the lawyers'last chance to find out if there is any reason you should n't be one of the 24 to sit through the four to five months of a horrible roller coaster through the worst haunted house you can imagine . ' cnn 's ana cabrera and sara weisfeldt reported from centennial city . cnn 's catherine e. shoichet reported from atlanta . cnn 's michael martinez contributed to this report . | in the murder trial of james holmes , 12 jurors and 12 alternates have been selected |
sandusky <tsp> bellefonte , pennsylvania ( cnn ) -- when all was said and done , jerry and dottie sandusky did not ask the judge for mercy . they did not try to extol jerry 's virtues , list good deeds or express regret . instead , they depicted the boys he sexually assaulted as ungrateful and called them liars . they blamed the young men -- including their own adopted son , matt , who now claims he , too , was molested -- for their downfall . in letters to the judge who would sentence the former coach , the sanduskys portrayed themselves as virtuous victims of a vast conspiracy . they blamed powerful , image-conscious forces at penn state university , lying cops , ambitious prosecutors and a scandal-hungry news media . victims angrily confront sandusky at sentencing the couple 's letters were mentioned in court on tuesday but not read aloud . judge john cleland and the centre county courts made them public , and cnn obtained copies . in them , jerry sandusky expressed little sympathy for the 10 boys he was convicted of molesting . as he wrote about their families , he tried to shift the blame , pointing out that the boys came from unstable homes . nobody mentioned the impact of abandonment , neglect , abuse , insecurity and conflicting messages that the biological parents might have had in this , ' he wrote . he said nothing about the damaged lives and institutions his molestation case left in its wake . read the letters ( .pdf ) instead , both sanduskys wrote that the justice system let them down . just as letters to one of the boys he was accused of molesting helped secure his conviction , the letters to the judge all but guaranteed a maximum punishment , legal observers say . cleland , who presided over the trial and sentenced sandusky on tuesday to 30 to 60 years in prison , noted that others wrote letters as well . but he indicated that he considered only the sanduskys'letters in handing down a sentence that , for a 68-year-old man , is likely to be a life prison term . victim to sandusky :'because of you , i trust no one' ' sentencing is a time to ask for mercy , not to attack others , ' said laurie levenson , a former federal prosecutor who teaches legal ethics at loyola law school . in my experience , judges really hate letters that try to shift the blame to others or which belittle the victims or the court . ' b.j . bernstein , an atlanta attorney who comments on legal matters for cnn , agreed that sandusky did n't do himself any favors . the old adage'if you ca n't say something nice , do n't say anything at all'applies to sentencing statements , ' bernstein said . it is awkward when you deny you are culpable and a jury says otherwise . for appellate purposes sandusky was never going to accept responsibility or admit doing something wrong , but lashing out at everyone so strongly was irrational . ' she added that sandusky might have thought he was still playing to his penn state fan base , but it backfired . between jerry and dottie 's vicious protestations of innocence , ' bernstein said , all i can think is the victims -- and in particular their son matt -- should shout back the lyrics from the eric clapton song ,'before you accuse me , take a look at yourself .'' sandusky 's son comes forward as victim jerry sandusky bashed victims and laid out the conspiracy theory in a pre-recorded interview leaked to a campus radio station on the eve of his sentencing . he hinted at it again when he spoke in court on tuesday , after being warned by his lawyers to avoid criticizing his victims or the justice system . his performances on air and in the courtroom were widely derided by prosecutors , legal analysts and commentators as narcissistic , self-absorbed and even more hurtful to the young men he was convicted of molesting . jerry sandusky 's letter expanded on the rambling , 15-minute courtroom soliloquy that touched on everything from the writer henry david thoreau to special inmate friends ' to wet kisses from dogs . like that speech , it was part locker room pep talk and part sunday school inspirational , with a heaping side order of the frank sinatra ballad my way . ' he wrote about life in protective custody , and how it led him to think about all the interests that were being protected as the case unfolded : the system protected the system , the media , the prosecution , the civil attorneys and the accusers . everybody protected themselves , ' he wrote . penn state , with its own system , protected their public image , ' he continued . media protected their jobs and ambitions . prosecutors protected their jobs and egos . the accusers were protected and provided access to potential financial gain , free attorneys , accolades , psychologists and attention . ' mcqueary files lawsuit against penn state he wrote that he was heartbroken . my trust in people , systems and fairness has diminished , ' he said . in my heart i know i did not do these disgusting acts . however , i did n't tell the jury . our son changed our plans when he switched sides . ' matt sandusky was 18 when he was adopted by the sanduskys after spending time with them in foster care . the relationship always has been rocky , but it collapsed near the end of sandusky 's trial in june . as the prosecution 's case drew to a close , matt told investigators that sandusky had molested him , too . matt sandusky , now 33 , did not testify for either side , but jerry sandusky insists that his adopted son 's desertion and potentially damaging testimony kept him from testifying in his own defense . the sanduskys spared no one . there were so many people involved in the orchestration of this conviction ( media , investigators , prosecutors , the system , ' penn state and the accusers . ) it was well done . they won ! ' jerry sandusky wrote , as if a tragic court case about molested children was an epic gridiron contest . when i thought about how it had transpired , i wondered what they had won , ' he continued . i thought of the methods , decisions and allegations . i relived the inconsistencies and dishonest testimonies . ' he pondered what would happen if the tables were turned . when the hero falls off the pedestal : the emotion of betrayal ' what would be the outcome if all the accusers and their families who were investigated ? ' he wrote . i knew the answer . all their issues would surface . they would no longer be these poor , innocent people as portrayed . ' dottie sandusky also wrote of her disappointment , saying she has lost faith in the police and the legal system . to think that they can lie and get by with the lies . the press has been unbelievable . people who have not met us are writing untruths . ' dottie sandusky 's letter is revealing because she has stood silently by her husband in court . she testified at his trial that she never heard or saw anything strange or sexual going on in the basement of their home , where many of the victims say her husband molested them . in her letter , she unloaded on her adopted son , matt . people need to know what kind of person he is , ' she wrote . we have forgiven him many times for all he has done to our family , thinking that he was changing his life , but he would always go back to his stealing and lies . he has been diagnose ( sic ) bipolar , but he refuses to take his medicine . ' records from centre county 's probation department and juvenile courts tell part of the story of how matt h. , as he was known , came to the sanduskys . like the boys who testified against sandusky at the trial , matt participated in sandusky 's youth mentoring program , the second mile . jerry sandusky was in southern california , preparing for the rose bowl , when matt was arrested in 1995 . sandusky called personally and pulled strings to make sure matt was placed under his care and not sent to juvenile detention . opinion : for the victims , it 's about more than locking him up the court documents detail matt 's continuing troubles , including an aspirin overdose in march 1996 that is characterized as a suicide attempt . but he maintained that he wanted to stay in the sandusky home , writing to the court , i feel that they have supported me even when i have messed up . they are a loving , caring group of people . they have showed me what a family is really like . ' in another instance , sandusky called police to his house , claiming a burglar was trying to break in . it was matt , who said he had come to the house for a power tool . matt sandusky now is represented by a law firm in state college that is handling the cases of several other sandusky molestation victims . matt is extremely disappointed that dottie and the sanduskys have decided to smear his character in an attempt to deflect attention from jerry sandusky 's heinous crimes , ' his lawyers justine andronici and andrew shubin said in a written statement to cnn . matt has shown tremendous courage and strength , ' the statement continued . rather than supporting her son when he made the gut-wrenching decision to come forward and tell the truth about the abuse he suffered at the hands of jerry sandusky , dottie sandusky has chosen to continue jerry 's strategy of blaming and attacking the victims , thereby perpetuating the abuse . ' dottie sandusky wrote that her adopted son has had many run-ins with the law and stolen money and items from our family . we still love him and want the best for him , but because of his actions we can not express this to him . ... ' karl rominger , a lawyer for sandusky , did not respond to a request for comment . a spokesman for the state attorney general 's office said prosecutors stand by ' what they said tuesday about sandusky 's victim and system bashing . the lead prosecutor , joseph mcgettigan , described sandusky 's behavior as banal , self-delusional , completely untethered from reality . it was entirely-self-focused , as if he himself were the victim . ' jerry sandusky trial : all you need to know about allegations , how case unfolded | new : adopted sandusky son disappointed by his parents'smearing of his character , lawyers say |
washington <tsp> ( cnn ) -- it has been more than a year since the united states government withdrew its ambassador to syria and closed its embassy in damascus . on thursday , that ambassador returned to the region along with a u.s. delegation , touring a syrian refugee camp in turkey to bring more attention to the growing humanitarian crisis . as the civil war has intensified in syria , hundreds of thousands of people have sought refuge in turkey , lebanon , jordan and other neighboring countries . ambassador robert ford gave an exclusive interview to cnn 's ivan watson and described what the u.s. is doing to help the refugees and the syrian opposition . ivan watson : the u.s. has given $ 210 million in aid ( to syria ) , but i think that there is a perception problem because no one can actually point at what that help is . so people conclude there is no help . robert ford : the assistance is going in . it 's things like tents , it 's things like blankets , it 's things like medical equipment , but it does n't come in big boxes with an american flag on it because we do n't want the people who are delivering it to be targeted by the syrian regime . the regime is going after and killing people who are delivering supplies . you see them bombing even bakeries and bread lines . so we 're doing that , in part , to be discrete . the needs are gigantic . so even though a great deal of american materials and other countries'materials are arriving , the needs are still greater . and that 's why we 're going to kuwait to talk to the united nations and to talk to other countries about how we can talk together to provide additional assistance . watson : the head of the syrian national coalition , which the u.s. government has backed , came out with a statement very critical of the international community , saying we need $ 3 billion if you want us to have any say on events on the ground inside syria . where is that money ? ford : ( sheikh ahmed ) moaz al-khatib is a good leader , and we think highly of him and we have recognized his ( coalition ) as the legitimate representative of the syrian people . and , of course , he wants to get as many resources as possible because of the humanitarian conditions that i was just talking about . especially the ones inside syria . but we also , at the same time , have to build up those ( aid ) networks i was talking about . in some cases , they start out with just a few people . we do n't need just a few people , we need hundreds of people , thousands of people on the inside of syria organized to bring these things in . and so step by step , the syrians , moaz al-khatib and his organization , need to build that capacity . we can help build it , we can do training and things like that . but in the end , syrians have to take a leadership role in this . watson : is washington giving money to the syrian national coalition ? ford : we absolutely are assisting the ( coalition ) , with everything from training to , in some cases , limited amount of cash assistance so that they can buy everything ranging from computers to telephones to radios . frankly , if not for the american assistance in many cases , the activists inside syria would n't be in contact with the outside world . it 's american help that keeps them in contact with the outside world . watson : but , how much assistance has this coalition gotten from the u.s. ? ford : so far , we 've allocated directly to the coalition in the neighborhood of $ 35 million worth of different kinds of equipment and assistance . and over the next few weeks , couple of months , we 'll probably provide another $ 15 million worth of material assistance . watson : washington recently blacklisted jabhat al-nusra , the nusra front , calling it a terrorist organization even though inside syria , it has attracted a lot of respect for its victories and for comparative lack of corruption compared to many rebel groups . how has blacklisting the nusra front helped the syrian opposition ? ford : we blacklisted the nusra front because of its intimate links with al qaeda in iraq , an organization with whom we have direct experience , which is responsible for the killings of thousands of iraqis , hundreds of americans . we know what al qaeda in iraq did and is still doing , and we do n't want it to start doing that in syria -- which is why we highlighted its incredibly pernicious role . i think one of the things that our classification of nusra as a terrorist group did is it set off an alarm for the other elements of the free syrian army . there was a meeting of the free syrian army to set up a unified command , ( and ) nusra front was not in that meeting -- which we think is the right thing to do . as syrians themselves understand that nusra has a sectarian agenda , as they understand better that nusra is anti-democratic and will seek to impose its very strict interpretation of islam on syria -- which historically is a relatively moderate country in terms of its religious practices -- as syrians understand that better , i think they will more and more reject the nusra front itself . watson : but i 've seen the opposite . as i go into syria , i hear more and more support and respect for the nusra front , and more and more criticism for the u.s. government each time i go back . ford : i think that people , ivan , are still understanding what nusra is . i have heard criticism from the nusra front from people like moaz al-khatib who , in marrakesh ( morocco ) in his speech , said he rejected the kind of ideology which backs up nusra . ... we have heard that from the senior commander of the free syrian army as well . and so the more people understand inside syria what nusra is and represents , i think they will agree that is not the group on which to depend for freedom in syria . watson : do you think the u.s. government could have done more ? ford : i think the syrians , as i said , are the ones who will bring the answer to the problem -- just as in iraq , iraqis brought the solution to the iraq crisis , to the iraq war . the americans can help , and we helped in iraq , but ultimately it was n't the americans . despite our help , it was iraqis . in syria , again , it has to be syrians who find their way forward . twenty-three million syrians need to find their way forward . we can help , and we are helping : $ 210 million in humanitarian assistance , $ 50 million to help the political opposition get organized for the day after ( bashar ) al-assad goes . these are important bits of help . but ultimately , it 's not the american help . it 's the syrians themselves . | washington has also provided $ 35 million worth of assistance to syria 's political opposition |
big wheel <tsp> ( mental floss ) -- 1 . da vinci 's clockwork car a working model of leonardo da vinci 's car on display in 2004 at the museum of the history of science in florence , italy . leonardo da vinci is renowned for his forward-thinking sketches and intricate designs , which included blueprints for a bicycle , a submarine , and a helicopter . but you ca n't win 'em all . da vinci also designed a three-wheeled wagon-like device -- often referred to as the clockwork car -- that never really lived up to the hype . its spring-operated design makes it the first-known concept for a self-propelled vehicle . and because it was designed without a driver 's seat ( though a secondary steering column was present ) and was meant to be programmed along a specific course , the clockwork car is also thought to be one of the world 's first robots . some speculate that faulty interpretations of da vinci 's notes prevented the success of his ideas , but there 's plenty of evidence to the contrary . when engineers finally constructed a working model of the car in the late 1990s , it only traveled 40 feet . 2 . the monowheel in 1869 , french craftsman rousseau of marseilles built the first in history 's line of unsuccessful monocycles . sitting inside the monowheel , a rider steered the contraption by shifting his or her weight in the desired direction . as if that was n't difficult enough , the massive outer wheel remained directly in the rider 's line of sight at all times . braking was also potentially hazardous , as stopping too abruptly would cause the rider to be propelled forward along with the outer wheel . but perhaps the biggest strike against the monowheel was the immediate comparison of any rider to a gerbil -- something even the french would n't tolerate . 3 . the daihatsu trek it 's a car ! it 's a bed ! it looks suspiciously like a child 's toy ! for the outdoorsman who has everything except a really expensive big wheel , there was the daihatsu trek . a single-passenger off-road vehicle , the trek not only allowed drivers to travel to remote areas , it also gave them a place to bed down for the evening . with its collapsible seat , steering wheel , and roll bar , the boxy monstrosity from 1990 offered all the comforts of a really cheap motel room . and while we ca n't be sure why the car never made it past the concept stage at daihatsu , we can only guess members of the off-road focus groups felt silly driving a transformer . 4 . the avrocar a quasi hot potato of international engineering , the avrocar was initially funded by the canadian government , designed by a british engineer , and eventually assumed by the u.s. defense department as part of the cold war weapons race . the ufo-like contraption was 18 feet in diameter , but only 3 feet thick . it featured vertical takeoff and landing and was designed to reach speeds up to 300 mph while remaining elusive to radar . unfortunately , the two-person craft was never able to stabilize at heights above 8 feet , nor travel faster than 35 mph . after eight years and more than $ 10 million , the project was abandoned in 1960 . 5 . the dymaxion buckminster fuller was many things -- inventor , philosopher , nobel peace prize nominee , and bearer of a name that makes frank zappa 's kids feel average . among his many architectural and engineering creations , bucky tried his hand at automobiles . in 1933 , using a v-8 engine loaned to him by henry ford , fuller built the dymaxion car . truly a wonder to behold , the dymaxion was nearly 20 feet long , got 30-plus miles to the gallon , held up to 12 people , had a maximum speed of 120 mph , and could do a u-turn in 20 feet , thanks to a single rear wheel that controlled the steering . unfortunately , the car 's steering appears to be at fault for a fatal accident at the 1933 world 's fair , when the dymaxion was rubbernecked by another car . although later evidence placed fault on the driver of the other car , negative publicity surrounding the wreck caused investors to pull away from the project , and fuller was freed up to build geodesic domes and work on his friendship with john denver . the fortunate outcome of the dymaxion 's failure ? denver 's hit tune , what one man can do , ' which was written for fuller . 6 . the kaz originally designed in 2001 to push the limits of electric automotive technology , the kaz ( keio advanced zero-emission ) vehicle is part science-fiction , part sports car , part limousine , and entirely unattractive . but the beauty of the kaz lies in its eight wheels , each powered by its own battery , which allow the luxury concept car to reach speeds in excess of 190 mph without emitting any pollution . the car 's design also makes for a safe ride because what would normally be the engine compartment is a crushable zone , reducing risk to the driver . sadly , the kaz came off as less luxury automobile and more cartoon , sending the designers back to their drawing boards . e-mail to a friend for more mental_floss articles , visit mentalfloss.com entire contents of this article copyright , mental floss llc . all rights reserved . | daihatsu trek looked like really expensive big wheel |
bratislava <tsp> ( cnn ) -- backed into a corner and desperate ; that 's the view of some economists watching the european central bank 's latest attempts to curtail the euro bloc 's recession . thursday 's interest rate cut , designed to combat a three-year debt crisis , will not stimulate economic growth in the bloc , they say . less than a year after the ecb president mario draghi buoyed the markets with his promise to do whatever it takes ' to keep the currency together , the central bank 's governors move has left some economists questioning whether the ecb has reached the limits of its power . speaking in bratislava , slovakia , ecb president mario draghi said the central bank is ready to act if needed . ' but the italian shied away from announcing any extraordinary policy measures such as another big bazooka ' to increase bank liquidity or the unlimited purchases of government debt -- known as omts -- for troubled eurozone nations that sparked controversy in september . read more : the eurozone 's reluctant leader joerg rocholl , president of the european school of management and technology , told cnn that the rate cut is a desperate move , ' and means the ecb can avoid criticism that it is overstretching its mandate . ' despite the ecb 's commitment to bankroll ailing eurozone nations who request a full sovereign bailout by buying up government bonds , it has so far resisted the temptation to implement aggressive monetary stimulus . that intransigence puts it at odds with many of its peers around the world . the bank of japan , the federal reserve and the bank of england have all embarked on a process of quantitative easing -- increasing the supply of money in the economy -- while also introducing other policies such as an unemployment benchmark and a funding for lending scheme , intended to encourage banks to loan to small businesses . read more : will ` abenomics'lift japan from recession ? mujtaba rahman , head of research firm eurasia group 's europe practice , said draghi exhausted ' his political capital when he introduced the omt program in september . italian and spanish bonds , which had been been weighed down by market uncertainty , rebounded . rahman added the ecb may be reluctant to announce new support measures because it breeds inertia among politicians looking to push through changes , such as a banking union , needed to bring europe closer together . he said : the wind has gone out of the sails on banking union . once you announce intervention , you remove the incentive for countries to put the necessary structures in place . ' he told cnn that shovelling money ' to small businesses in peripheral europe is the most likely next step for the ecb , but says the german elections and legality of the ecb 's current bond-purchasing program are obstacles to any extraordinary policy announcements in future . with the worst hit countries in europe in a depression and unemployment rising , the ecb could be forced to take more action , in addition to the current measures , to prevent the crisis worsening . greece and spain are both suffering with unemployment above 27 % while italy is drowning in a government debt of almost 2 trillion euros ( $ 2.6 trillion ) , according to eurostat -- the european commission 's data service . read more : may day protesters flood streets of europe joerg kraemer , chief economist at commerzbank -- germany 's second-largest bank -- would expect the ecb to cut the deposit rate to negative territory before putting in place any other non-standard measures such as a loan scheme for small businesses . he said that the central bank is in a corner ' and has already exceeded its mandate significantly . peripheral countries must stop expecting the ecb to come up with solutions to problems that should be solved by governments , he added . we are already seeing drastic action , ' kraemer told cnn , the ecb has a very expansionary monetary policy , which i personally think , is too expansionary . ' he added : this immediately puts the reform pressure off the peripheral countries and especially italy . without far reaching reforms you do n't solve the reasons and the causes for the sovereign debt crisis . ' | speaking in bratislava , slovakia , ecb president mario draghi said the central bank is ready to act if needed . ' |
boko haram <tsp> kano , nigeria ( cnn ) -- at least 47 people were killed and 79 were wounded monday by a suicide bombing outside a school in northern nigeria , police said . the attacker was disguised as a student when he set off the explosion in a government boarding school in the town of potiskum , police spokesman emmanuel ojukwu said . we suspect boko haram is behind the attack , ' ojukwu said . the explosion took place at 7:50 a.m. local time outside the principal 's office , where students had gathered for a daily speech . we were waiting for our teachers to come and address us at the assembly ground when we heard a huge explosion , ' student adamu ibrahim said . it was not immediately clear how many of the casualties were students . although no one„ has claimed responsibility for the attack , boko haram is the prime suspect . the radical islamic militant group has carried out deadly attacks on schools teaching western curriculum . in february , boko haram gunmen killed at least 40 students when they opened fire and threw explosives in student hostels in a government boarding school in the town of buni yadi , in yobe state . and last year , 42 students were killed when boko haram gunmen attacked dormitories with guns and explosives in a government boarding school near potiskum . bring back our girls : meet the man who never gave up hope potiskum , the commercial hub of yobe state , has been repeatedly targeted by deadly attacks blamed on boko haram . just last week , a suicide bomber blew himself up in potiskum amid a large crowd of shiite muslims holding the annual ashura ceremony to commemorate the murder of imam husseyn , the grandson of the prophet mohammed . that blast killed 15 people . no one claimed responsibility for the attack , but boko haram was suspected . the group 's five-year insurgency is aimed at establishing an islamic state„ . | police suspect boko haram , which has targeted schools teaching western ideas |
france <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the tiny corpses , faces pale and grimy , lay side by side , wrapped in a red blanket . they are the latest child casualties in the bloody syrian civil war . they are also grisly evidence of the carnage in the besieged syrian city of daraya over the weekend . published monday by the opposition outlet shaam news network , the image underscores the horrors in daraya . at least 245 people were found dead in the damascus suburb over the weekend , opposition activists say . mass killings have been reported regularly across syria during the nearly 18-month-long crisis . like the others , this incident sparked international outrage . the killings in daraya need to be investigated immediately and impartially , ' said u.n. spokesman martin nesirky , passing along remarks from u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon . whoever is responsible needs to be held accountable , ' nesirky said . daraya is being targeted because it is the closest to the capital , and it is one of the first cities that revolted against the assad regime and was the spearhead of the peaceful demonstrations in the beginning of the revolution , ' said rafif jouejati , a spokeswoman for the opposition local coordination committees of syria . opponents of the syrian regime posted video of mass burials sunday , a day after the remains were found in daraya . in one of the videos , one woman shouted 'god is greater'as soldiers raided her house , ' an opposition member who goes by the name abu kanan said from the city . the soldiers arrested her with five men from her family and executed them . ' the remains of the dead were gathered in a mosque to be identified , and rebel fighters posted video of dozens of bloodied corpses online . the army started picking up young men from the streets , from their homes , and conducted summary executions ' before government troops pulled back to the city 's outskirts sunday night , he said . state-run and pro-government tv networks aired glowing descriptions of daraya 's recapture by forces loyal to syrian president bashar al-assad after a weeklong siege . it blamed the deaths on terrorists ' driven out by the army . opposition activists said the dead were victims of a rampage by government troops after the rebel free syrian army withdrew from the city late friday . the lcc said the 39 corpses of people kidnapped and slaughtered were handed over to to families monday . syrian television aired a different account , showing residents who thanked government troops for coming to their rescue amid bodies still sprawled in the streets . thanks to the military who is protecting us , ' one man told the pro-government network al-dounia . thank you for coming . ' every time we get into a region where the terrorists were present , we discover what these terrorists know best -- killings , massacres and all in the name of freedom , ' the report said . the development has prompted international revulsion . the french foreign ministry said monday it is deeply shocked by the discovery of mass graves ' in what appears to be a massacre of civilians . ' daraya was the scene of some of the first peaceful protests that were attacked by security forces in al-assad 's clampdown on opposition that began in march 2011 and became a civil war . cnn can not independently verify reports of death tolls , as the syrian regime has severely limited access by international journalists . in other developments : chemical weapons use would justify intervention , france says france warned the syrian regime that using chemical weapons could be grounds for intervention . we remain vigilant with our allies to prevent the use of chemical weapons by the regime which for the international community would be a legitimate reason for direct intervention , ' president francois hollande said monday in a speech to french ambassadors . britain and the united states have said they would revisit ' their approach to syria if the syrian government uses chemical weapons , the british prime minister 's office said last week . prime minister david cameron and u.s. president barack obama spoke by phone late wednesday and agreed that the use of chemical weapons would be completely unacceptable , ' the office said . obama said this week that the syrian government would risk crossing a red line ' and invite u.s. military intervention if it uses chemical weapons . hollande also urged the syrian opposition to form a provisional government that would be a legitimate representative of the new syria . we ask our arab partners to accelerate this step , and france will recognize the provisional syria government once it has been formed . ' government helicopter crashes near damascus as deaths mount an attack helicopter burst into flames and crashed in the damascus suburb of jobar on monday , apparently after rebels fired on it , the opposition syrian observatory for human rights said . cnn can not independently confirm the authenticity of videos posted on the reported crash . meanwhile , at least 231 people were killed monday , the opposition local coordination committees of syria said . at least 148 of the deaths were in damascus and its suburbs , including 42 in zamalka . other deaths were reported in the provinces of homs , deir ezzor , hama , daraa and idlib . the lcc reported a siege on the town of madeeq citadel in hama and shelling across the country . regime forces are intensely shelling the old quarters of homs , a district under siege for 81 consecutive days , ' the lcc said . the united nations has estimated the death toll at more than 18,000 , while opposition forces say more than 21,000 have died . refugee crisis worsens in jordan and turkey unicef is appealing for more money to help the throng of syrian refugees escaping to jordan . about 17,000 people -- half of them children -- are sheltered at za'atari refugee camp in northern jordan , but numbers are increasing daily with hundreds of new arrivals from syria , the agency said . syrians fleeing violence have been racing to jordan , lebanon , turkey , and iraq and to safe locations inside the country . we expect to have 70,000 people at za'atari camp by the end of this year , ' said dominique hyde , a unicef jordan representative . we must act now because it is children who continue to suffer most . ' so far , some 80,000 refugees have fled to turkey and that number is expected to rise above 100,000 in the coming days and weeks , said u.s. state department spokeswoman victoria nuland . the outflows out of syria are growing both into turkey and to jordan and to all the neighboring states , ' she said , adding that turkey is increasingly open to receiving international aid . government reports gains in aleppo soldiers in aleppo on monday cleared al-izaa neighborhood ' of terrorists , ' the state-run syrian arab news agency said . the security forces stormed a den for the armed terrorist groups in al-inzarat neighborhood in aleppo and seized a huge amount of ammunition and weapons . sana 's reporter in aleppo said that the seized weapons include pkc machine guns , russian rifles , pump-action shotguns , ammunition and a large quantity of bombs . ' government forces and their allies have been fighting rebels for control of syria 's largest city . the lcc reported fierce artillery shelling by regime forces ' in aleppo 's bab district . coming tuesday : report about life after al-assad a report with recommendations on a post-assad syria will be released tuesday . the u.s. institute for peace and the germany institute for international security affairs have produced the day after project : supporting a democratic transition in syria . ' the effort includes syrians across the spectrum of the opposition , including senior members of the syrian national council and the local coordination committees of syria ; former generals , economists and lawyers ; and representatives from the syrian diaspora . the project was a year in the making , the lcc 's jouejati said on twitter . it will contain recommendations that syrians can accept , reject or restate , ' she said . among the recommendations : writing a new constitution , establishing stability and putting together a special tribunal to try regime members , jouejati said . they also include mention of south africa 's transition from apartheid , she confirmed . the peace institute facilitated the iraq study group report , which made recommendations in 2006 on ending the war there . will syria 's first lady take a stand or stand by her man ? syria 's neighbors : what 's at stake ? syria explained : what you need to know cnn 's salma abdelaziz , joe sterling , holly yan , yousuf basil and saad abedine contributed to this report . | france warns against use of chemical weapons |
france <tsp> ( cnn ) -- the tiny corpses , faces pale and grimy , lay side by side , wrapped in a red blanket . they are the latest child casualties in the bloody syrian civil war . they are also grisly evidence of the carnage in the besieged syrian city of daraya over the weekend . published monday by the opposition outlet shaam news network , the image underscores the horrors in daraya . at least 245 people were found dead in the damascus suburb over the weekend , opposition activists say . mass killings have been reported regularly across syria during the nearly 18-month-long crisis . like the others , this incident sparked international outrage . the killings in daraya need to be investigated immediately and impartially , ' said u.n. spokesman martin nesirky , passing along remarks from u.n. secretary-general ban ki-moon . whoever is responsible needs to be held accountable , ' nesirky said . daraya is being targeted because it is the closest to the capital , and it is one of the first cities that revolted against the assad regime and was the spearhead of the peaceful demonstrations in the beginning of the revolution , ' said rafif jouejati , a spokeswoman for the opposition local coordination committees of syria . opponents of the syrian regime posted video of mass burials sunday , a day after the remains were found in daraya . in one of the videos , one woman shouted 'god is greater'as soldiers raided her house , ' an opposition member who goes by the name abu kanan said from the city . the soldiers arrested her with five men from her family and executed them . ' the remains of the dead were gathered in a mosque to be identified , and rebel fighters posted video of dozens of bloodied corpses online . the army started picking up young men from the streets , from their homes , and conducted summary executions ' before government troops pulled back to the city 's outskirts sunday night , he said . state-run and pro-government tv networks aired glowing descriptions of daraya 's recapture by forces loyal to syrian president bashar al-assad after a weeklong siege . it blamed the deaths on terrorists ' driven out by the army . opposition activists said the dead were victims of a rampage by government troops after the rebel free syrian army withdrew from the city late friday . the lcc said the 39 corpses of people kidnapped and slaughtered were handed over to to families monday . syrian television aired a different account , showing residents who thanked government troops for coming to their rescue amid bodies still sprawled in the streets . thanks to the military who is protecting us , ' one man told the pro-government network al-dounia . thank you for coming . ' every time we get into a region where the terrorists were present , we discover what these terrorists know best -- killings , massacres and all in the name of freedom , ' the report said . the development has prompted international revulsion . the french foreign ministry said monday it is deeply shocked by the discovery of mass graves ' in what appears to be a massacre of civilians . ' daraya was the scene of some of the first peaceful protests that were attacked by security forces in al-assad 's clampdown on opposition that began in march 2011 and became a civil war . cnn can not independently verify reports of death tolls , as the syrian regime has severely limited access by international journalists . in other developments : chemical weapons use would justify intervention , france says france warned the syrian regime that using chemical weapons could be grounds for intervention . we remain vigilant with our allies to prevent the use of chemical weapons by the regime which for the international community would be a legitimate reason for direct intervention , ' president francois hollande said monday in a speech to french ambassadors . britain and the united states have said they would revisit ' their approach to syria if the syrian government uses chemical weapons , the british prime minister 's office said last week . prime minister david cameron and u.s. president barack obama spoke by phone late wednesday and agreed that the use of chemical weapons would be completely unacceptable , ' the office said . obama said this week that the syrian government would risk crossing a red line ' and invite u.s. military intervention if it uses chemical weapons . hollande also urged the syrian opposition to form a provisional government that would be a legitimate representative of the new syria . we ask our arab partners to accelerate this step , and france will recognize the provisional syria government once it has been formed . ' government helicopter crashes near damascus as deaths mount an attack helicopter burst into flames and crashed in the damascus suburb of jobar on monday , apparently after rebels fired on it , the opposition syrian observatory for human rights said . cnn can not independently confirm the authenticity of videos posted on the reported crash . meanwhile , at least 231 people were killed monday , the opposition local coordination committees of syria said . at least 148 of the deaths were in damascus and its suburbs , including 42 in zamalka . other deaths were reported in the provinces of homs , deir ezzor , hama , daraa and idlib . the lcc reported a siege on the town of madeeq citadel in hama and shelling across the country . regime forces are intensely shelling the old quarters of homs , a district under siege for 81 consecutive days , ' the lcc said . the united nations has estimated the death toll at more than 18,000 , while opposition forces say more than 21,000 have died . refugee crisis worsens in jordan and turkey unicef is appealing for more money to help the throng of syrian refugees escaping to jordan . about 17,000 people -- half of them children -- are sheltered at za'atari refugee camp in northern jordan , but numbers are increasing daily with hundreds of new arrivals from syria , the agency said . syrians fleeing violence have been racing to jordan , lebanon , turkey , and iraq and to safe locations inside the country . we expect to have 70,000 people at za'atari camp by the end of this year , ' said dominique hyde , a unicef jordan representative . we must act now because it is children who continue to suffer most . ' so far , some 80,000 refugees have fled to turkey and that number is expected to rise above 100,000 in the coming days and weeks , said u.s. state department spokeswoman victoria nuland . the outflows out of syria are growing both into turkey and to jordan and to all the neighboring states , ' she said , adding that turkey is increasingly open to receiving international aid . government reports gains in aleppo soldiers in aleppo on monday cleared al-izaa neighborhood ' of terrorists , ' the state-run syrian arab news agency said . the security forces stormed a den for the armed terrorist groups in al-inzarat neighborhood in aleppo and seized a huge amount of ammunition and weapons . sana 's reporter in aleppo said that the seized weapons include pkc machine guns , russian rifles , pump-action shotguns , ammunition and a large quantity of bombs . ' government forces and their allies have been fighting rebels for control of syria 's largest city . the lcc reported fierce artillery shelling by regime forces ' in aleppo 's bab district . coming tuesday : report about life after al-assad a report with recommendations on a post-assad syria will be released tuesday . the u.s. institute for peace and the germany institute for international security affairs have produced the day after project : supporting a democratic transition in syria . ' the effort includes syrians across the spectrum of the opposition , including senior members of the syrian national council and the local coordination committees of syria ; former generals , economists and lawyers ; and representatives from the syrian diaspora . the project was a year in the making , the lcc 's jouejati said on twitter . it will contain recommendations that syrians can accept , reject or restate , ' she said . among the recommendations : writing a new constitution , establishing stability and putting together a special tribunal to try regime members , jouejati said . they also include mention of south africa 's transition from apartheid , she confirmed . the peace institute facilitated the iraq study group report , which made recommendations in 2006 on ending the war there . will syria 's first lady take a stand or stand by her man ? syria 's neighbors : what 's at stake ? syria explained : what you need to know cnn 's salma abdelaziz , joe sterling , holly yan , yousuf basil and saad abedine contributed to this report . | the united nations , france condemn daraya killings |
mark macphail <tsp> atlanta ( cnn ) -- georgia 's parole board heard a last-minute appeal monday by troy davis , who is set to die by lethal injection for the murder 22 years ago of a savannah police officer . members of victim mark macphail 's family also appeared at the parole board hearing to describe their loss , saying afterward they felt the panel listened to what they had to say . a jury convicted davis of murder in 1991 , paving the way for his execution , which has been delayed three times and is now scheduled for 7 p.m. wednesday at a state prison in jackson , georgia . in a statement , the georgia board of pardons and paroles said it would not reach a decision in the case until tuesday at the earliest . options for the board include commuting a death sentence to either life without parole or life with the possibility of parole , or denying clemency -- which , in this case , would clear the way for davis'execution . the panel also can delay the execution to continue its consideration of the case . macphail , a police officer , died in 1989 after being shot three times . since davis'1991 conviction , seven of the nine witnesses against him have recanted or contradicted their testimony . there also have been questions about the physical evidence -- and , according to some , the lack thereof -- linking davis to the killing . we believe that we 've established substantial doubt in this case , ' said stephen marsh , the defense attorney for davis. and given the level of doubt that exists in this case , we believe that an execution is simply not appropriate . ' a small group of davis'supporters protested outside the building where monday 's meeting took place . a banner saying free troy davis now ' was hung nearby , and several protesters carried signs . on sunday , amnesty international , the naacp and georgians for alternatives to the death penalty asked people to join them monday for prayers , musical performances and speeches outside the building . according to these groups , there have been about 300 rallies , vigils and events worldwide in the past week or so . in addition , they say that more than 1 million people have signed a petition in support of davis'bid to be exonerated . but joan macphail , the victim 's widow , said after the hearing that those protesting against the execution do n't understand the facts of the case . we have lived this for 22 years . we know what the truth is , ' she told reporters . and for someone to ludicrously say that he is a victim -- we are victims . look at us . we have put up with this stuff for 22 years . it 's time for justice . we need our justice . ' in a 2008 statement , then-chatham county district attorney spencer lawton described how davis was at a pool party in savannah when he shot another man , michael cooper , wounding him in the face . davis was then driven to a nearby convenience store , where he pistol-whipped a homeless man , larry young , who 'd just bought a beer . soon thereafter , prosecutors said , macphail -- who was working in uniform , off-duty , at a nearby bus station and restaurant -- arrived . it was then , the jury determined , that davis shot the officer three times , including once in the face as he stood over him . davis'lawyers , in a federal court filing , insisted that there is no physical evidence linking ' davis to macphail 's murder . they point , too , to the unremarkable conclusion ' of a ballistics expert who testified that he could not find definitively that the bullets that wounded cooper and killed macphail were the same . georgia 's attorney general , in an online statement , claimed that the expert said the bullets came from the same gun type and noted that casings at the pool party shooting matched -- thus came from the same firearm as -- those found at macphail 's murder scene . two decades ago , a jury convicted davis on two counts of aggravated assault and one each of possessing a firearm during a crime , obstructing a law enforcement officer and murder . the latter charge led , soon thereafter , to his death sentence . while reviewing davis'claims of innocence last year , the u.s. district court for the southern district of georgia found that davis vastly overstates the value of his evidence of innocence . ' some of the evidence is not credible and would be disregarded by a reasonable juror , ' judge william t. moore wrote in a 172-page opinion . other evidence that mr. davis brought forward is too general to provide anything more than smoke and mirrors . ' the odds do not appear to be in davis'favor . the parole board denied him clemency once before . and the board has never changed its mind on any case in the past 33 years . after monday 's hearing , the victim 's mother , anneliese macphail , praised the parole board members for listening to what her family had to say . they talked to us . they gave us time that we did not get all of the time , ' she said in reference to previous hearings . sometimes we were rushed out of there in 30 minutes and we felt really rejected , you know , hurtful . this time , i think , was really , really good . and i feel confident . that sounds awful , but that 's the way i feel . ' choking back tears , macphail 's daughter , madison , said she told the panel that the future that we would have had together was taken from us . the future he could have had with this family was taken . ' meanwhile , the rev . raphael gamaliel warnock , who also testified monday , said before the hearing that he believes there is too much doubt in this case for an execution . ' i have met with ( davis ) on death row , ' warnock said . i believe he is innocent . ' -- cnn 's john murgatroyd contributed to this report . | the parole board hears he 's not guilty of mark macphail 's murder |
pedrosa <tsp> ( cnn ) -- spanish motorcycling star dani pedrosa has had successful surgery to remove a titanium plate from his shoulder , it was announced on wednesday . the honda rider , second in last year 's motogp world championship , had the plate inserted last october after suffering a double fracture to his collarbone in the japanese grand prix . the 25-year-old experienced numbness during sunday 's spanish grand prix , so chose to have the operation during a break in the 2011 calendar . the next race in the elite division 's season is not until may 1 in portugal because this year 's race in japan was canceled due to the devastation caused by last month 's earthquake and tsunami . dani pedrosa has undergone successful surgery at teknon medical center , in barcelona , to decompress his left subclavian artery and is expected to recover satisfactorily , ' the official motogp website reported . in order to release the arterial compression , the titanium plate and the screws fixed to the collarbone have been removed . pedrosa will remain in hospital for a further 48 hours to continue treatment with analgesia and anti-inflammatories . ' the sabadell native will be assessed by doctors next week to decide if he will be fit for the next round of competition in estoril . pedrosa , who moved up to motogp class in 2006 , is currently second in the standings after two races thanks to his second-place finish last weekend in jerez . he is nine points behind his compatriot jorge lorenzo of yamaha , the reigning champion , who won his home race for the second year in a row . a two-time 250cc class world champion and once titleholder in the 125cc class , pedrosa has won 12 races at the highest level but is yet to claim his maiden title . | honda repsol rider dani pedrosa has successful surgery to remove metal plate |
pedrosa <tsp> ( cnn ) -- spanish motorcycling star dani pedrosa has had successful surgery to remove a titanium plate from his shoulder , it was announced on wednesday . the honda rider , second in last year 's motogp world championship , had the plate inserted last october after suffering a double fracture to his collarbone in the japanese grand prix . the 25-year-old experienced numbness during sunday 's spanish grand prix , so chose to have the operation during a break in the 2011 calendar . the next race in the elite division 's season is not until may 1 in portugal because this year 's race in japan was canceled due to the devastation caused by last month 's earthquake and tsunami . dani pedrosa has undergone successful surgery at teknon medical center , in barcelona , to decompress his left subclavian artery and is expected to recover satisfactorily , ' the official motogp website reported . in order to release the arterial compression , the titanium plate and the screws fixed to the collarbone have been removed . pedrosa will remain in hospital for a further 48 hours to continue treatment with analgesia and anti-inflammatories . ' the sabadell native will be assessed by doctors next week to decide if he will be fit for the next round of competition in estoril . pedrosa , who moved up to motogp class in 2006 , is currently second in the standings after two races thanks to his second-place finish last weekend in jerez . he is nine points behind his compatriot jorge lorenzo of yamaha , the reigning champion , who won his home race for the second year in a row . a two-time 250cc class world champion and once titleholder in the 125cc class , pedrosa has won 12 races at the highest level but is yet to claim his maiden title . | pedrosa had the plate inserted after suffering a shoulder injury at 2010 japanese grand prix |
vincent kompany <tsp> ( cnn ) -- joey barton , one of the most controversial footballers in the english premier league , has been hit with a 12-match ban by the football association ( fa ) . the queens park rangers midfielder , who has 1.5 million followers on micro-blogging site twitter , was found guilty of two charges of violent conduct during a tumultuous clash with manchester city earlier this month . barton was sent off for elbowing argentina striker carlos tevez , then kicked tevez 's compatriot sergio aguero before appearing to aim a headbutt at city captain vincent kompany . the 29-year-old attended an fa hearing at wembley on wednesday where he was given a â£75,000 ( $ 117,000 ) fine in addition to his lengthy ban . manchester city win premier league as barton sees red in a statement on their official website the fa confirmed barton would receive an initial four match ban for his dismissal and eight more games for his two further offenses . the fa said : there are rules of conduct that should be adhered to , and such behavior tarnishes the image of football in this country , particularly as this match was the pinnacle of the domestic season and watched by millions around the globe . ' barton 's regular rants on twitter , interspersed with quotes from philosopher friedrich nietzsche and lyrics from songs of the smiths , have gained him a huge following . he often tweets about visits to art galleries and his take on modern culture , and he 's also been interviewed on uk political shows such as newsnight . barton 's indiscretions at manchester city are the latest in a long line of misdemeanors in what has been a checkered career to date . he was sentenced to six months in prison while a newcastle united player for an assault in liverpool city center and later transfer listed by the club after criticizing the hierarchy on twitter . prior to that , at manchester city , he was fined for stubbing a cigar out in the eye of a youth team player and in a separate incident , was sent home from a tour of thailand after an altercation with a 15-year-old everton fan . after his red card at city he took to twitter to try and explain his actions , stating : the head was never gone at any stage , once i 'd been sent off , one of our players suggested i should try to take 1 of theirs with me . ' his 12-match ban puts his future at qpr in doubt , the team having retained their premier league status on the final day of the season despite his red card . a rangers spokesman said : qpr will be making no comment in regard to the joey barton case . an internal investigation will begin in due course . ' | the 29-year-old then kneed sergio aguero and appeared to headbutt vincent kompany |
inter <tsp> ( cnn ) -- david beckham suffered an achilles tendon injury before clarence seedorf scored in the final minute to give ac milan a 1-0 win over chievo on sunday , a result that moved them to within a point of leaders inter at the top of serie a . veteran england midfielder beckham hobbled off the pitch in tears , reaching down to nurse his left heel , with tv network sky sports italia reporting that he had suffered a suspected ruptured achilles tendon injury . if that proves to be the prognosis , it would leave beckham 's hopes of appearing for england at this summer 's world cup finals in tatters . one sports physician has said beckham has no chance of playing in the world cup in south africa , according to the press association . it 's remotely possible he may be running in three months , ' said dr tom crisp . the chances of him being fit to play for england are non-existent . ' beckham 's injury soured milan 's eventual win , achieved with just 10 men as all three substitutes had already been deployed before the former manchester united midfielder was forced to limp off . one of those substitutes , seedorf , was to score the only goal of the game , firing home a superb long-distance strike . this was an important victory , but this injury prevents us from really enjoying it . it 's an important injury and we need to be able to judge how serious it is , ' milan coach leonardo told sky sports italia . the win means milan move to within a single point of leaders and city rivals inter at the top of the table . elsewhere , juventus managed to waste a three-goal advantage , with all their goals coming in the opening 10 minutes , to draw 3-3 at home to siena . alessandro del piero netted two of juve 's goals , but abdel kader ghezzal also hit a double for the visitors to leave juventus coach alberto zaccheroni stunned . roma remain in third position , six points behind inter , after they were also held to a 3-3 draw , this time at struggling livorno -- for whom cristiano lucarelli scored a hat-trick . a dramatic weekend in serie a began on friday night when leaders inter had sulley muntari sent off in a shock 3-1 defeat at catania . | the result sees milan close to within one point of inter at the top of serie a table . |
tajura <tsp> tripoli , libya ( cnn ) -- the coalition air effort to halt the libyan government 's attacks on civilians continued into thursday for a sixth day , with an airstrike in the tripoli suburb of tajura , a government official said . on wednesday night , the government reported that military and civilian locations in the neighborhood of al-jfara and in the tagora district of the capital had been struck by crusading colonial ' bombardment . in response , joint task force operation odyssey dawn lt. cmdr . jim hoeft said in an e-mail to cnn , it is not likely that civilians were a part of any airstrike today . ' he said coalition forces have been using all necessary measures to protect the citizens of libya from the violence and killing inflicted upon them by colonel gadhafi . ' an opposition activist in tripoli accused state media of lying about civilian victims of the coalition airstrikes . for example , she said , she was accompanying a cousin to a hospital for medical care when she saw a tv producer asking some people to close their eyes and play dead and others to pretend they were wounded . some of the wounded , ' she said , were soldiers in civilian garb . on wednesday , government officials invited cnn and other journalists to visit a house in tripoli that had been damaged in an air raid , but -- after driving around for more than half an hour -- were apparently unable to find it and so returned the journalists to their hotel . the drive revealed a city quieter than normal -- about half the stores were closed . people appeared apprehensive , anxious . opponents of gadhafi were afraid to speak publicly . in ajdabiya , parts of the city fell to opposition forces even though gadhafi 's men , who had been pounding the area with artillery and heavy tank bombardments , retained control of the northern and western gates , opposition fighters and witnesses told cnn . a hospital staffer and opposition fighters said nine people were killed wednesday in fighting near the northern gate . so far , the coalition has crippled the libyan air force , and established a no-fly zone that spans libya from east to west along its coastline , said u.s. navy rear adm. gerard hueber . hueber , the chief of staff for u.s. operations said wednesday that coalition planes had flown 175 sorties over libya -- 113 of them by u.s. planes . but the coalition had no indication that libyan leader moammar gadhafi was complying with a united nations mandate to stop attacks against civilians . on wednesday , troops loyal to gadhafi terrorized residents of the besieged rebel-held city of misrata . one witness said gadhafi 's forces had attacked the city 's main hospital , where 400 people -- about half of them patients -- were located . the push began at 8 p.m. ( 2 p.m . et ) , when heavy tanks for gadhafi troops start attacking the hospital -- the bombs falling here 20 meters ( 66 feet ) around us , ' said one person inside the hospital . he said two deaths had occurred around the hospital . ' at one point , shelling occurred without respite for 40 minutes , he said . now , fortunately , no more shelling , but the situation is so serious that all the teams here -- the doctors , the patients -- are paralyzed , scared . ' he called for international intervention to protect the civilians inside the institution . nobody can work here , ' he said . ambulances were not able to leave the hospital , which had lost its electricity and was using generator power , he said . coalition jets are using smart bombs to target mechanized forces and mobile surface-to-air missile sites and impede supply lines for their beans and bullets , ' hueber said . the targets include libya 's premier 32nd brigade , commanded by one of gadhafi 's sons and fully engaged in the fighting . it 's an extremely complex and difficult environment , ' hueber said about going after forces in populated areas . and our primary focus is to interdict those forces before they enter the city ... cut off their lines of communication and cut off their command and control , ' he said . there have been no reports of civilian casualties . our mission here is to protect the civilian populace and we choose our targets and plan our actions with that as our top priority . ' wednesday night 's outbreak of violence broke a respite that began earlier in the day with the coalition attacks -- the first calm in a week , misrata residents reported . we would like to express our gratitude to the international community since there were airstrikes this morning , ' said mohammed , an opposition spokesman in the city who would identify himself only by his first name . gadhafi 's forces had been stationed on the outskirts of the city , where they were providing support and supplies to loyalists fighting rebels in misrata proper . earlier in the day , grocery stores and other shops opened in the city , which is located two hours east of tripoli and has been inaccessible to journalists . one person inside the hospital told cnn that five more people were killed in the last 24 hours , raising the death toll to at least 95 in the last seven days . a man who died wednesday morning was shot by a sniper , the person said . gen. abdul fatah younis , a former interior minister who quit to lead opposition forces , said rebels have requested weapons from several nations to help the embattled city . misrata is destroyed and they need weapons , ' younis told cnn . we try to send them weapons , but of course they were all light weapons . there were no heavy weapons . ' asked about the situation in misrata , deputy national security adviser for strategic communications ben rhodes said , we 're concerned about it , but i think you 're actually seeing some indications that the effort of the coalition is ... focused on misrata and is having an effect there . ' the rapid advance of libyan forces had been halted , particularly their move toward the nation 's second-largest city , benghazi , rhodes told reporters aboard air force one . libya 's elite forces are drawn from tribes loyal to gadhafi . though they comprise no more than 10,000 men , those forces are on the offense , hueber said . those forces are fully-engaged in this conflict , that are attacking those civilian populations , ' he added . though the rebels are in a better position than they were a few days ago , the gadhafi forces have the upper edge , a u.s. official said . they remain capable of carrying out attacks on the opposition , are relatively well-organized and continue to fight effectively , the official said . rhodes predicted the transition of command and control to another entity would be effected in a matter of days . ' nato will likely play a key role in the command and control , he said , adding that he would not describe the conflict as an open-ended war , a land invasion in libya . ' the international airstrikes against libyan military positions began over the weekend after gadhafi defied a united nations-mandated cease-fire in attacks against civilians . the strikes are intended to help establish a no-fly zone . sweden announced wednesday it has frozen more than $ 1.53 billion in libyan assets in response to eu sanctions imposed on the northern african country . france launched the air campaign in libya and britain and the united states followed . germany is not participating in the military action , though it agrees with the united nations resolution in principle , and moved wednesday to ensure that its ships were far removed from the libyan campaign . a german navy spokesman said wednesday that all german ships previously under nato command in the mediterranean sea were reassigned to operate under national command and are returning to previously scheduled port stops in europe to await further instructions . german crew members of nato fighter jets were also under german command . britain has announced an international meeting for next tuesday to assess the situation in libya . the war was sparked in february by protests demanding an end to gadhafi 's nearly 42-year rule . the libyan strongman responded with force against civilians , prompting the international community to take action . however , a johns hopkins university professor said the coalition can achieve only so much through aerial strikes . we have to understand the limits of what air power can do , ' fouad ajami told cnn 's ac360 . ' this is a recipe for a stalemate , ' he said . criticism and questions persist about the international campaign , with no clear answer on who will take over command of the mission and what the exit strategy will be . u.s. president barack obama said the timetable for a transition of military leadership will be coming in days , not weeks . nato said wednesday it will decide shortly what its role in the operation will be . a spokesman added the alliance is well prepared . this is the bread and butter of nato , ' an official said . french foreign minister alain juppe has voiced his opposition to nato taking political leadership over the libya campaign . he suggested that a commission composed of foreign ministers from the participating states play that role . ajami , however , said the arab world would welcome nato involvement . they know that the calamity is unfolding in libya , and they know that no help is going to come other than from the west and from the united states . ' british prime minister david cameron said wednesday that kuwait and jordan have agreed to provide logistical support to the libyan effort . jordanian government spokesman taher edwan told cnn that jordan 's role will be limited to a humanitarian one . jordan did not and will not have any military participation in libya , neither in planes or on the ground at all in libya , ' he said . qatar has already contributed planes to mission . the united arab emirates said tuesday it will participate -- but only in providing humanitarian assistance . toward that end , the country has sent a ship and two planes with basic relief supplies , the country 's news agency said . cnn 's nic robertson , ben brumfield , jennifer rizzo , arwa damon , amir ahmed , barbara starr and diana magnay contributed to this report | tripoli suburb of tajura is struck , a government official says |
ned kelly <tsp> ( cnn ) -- edward ned ' kelly packed a lot of living , stealing and killing in his scant 25 years . so much so that mick jagger portrayed him in a movie . as did heath ledger . australian artist sidney nolan made ned kelly the subject of a series of paintings . the cattle rustler , robber and cop killer was hanged in november 1880 after a string of crimes , including the deaths of three police officers in one incident . his reputed last words : such is life . ' australia 's best-known outlaw , or bushranger , was buried in the old melbourne gaol . but his remains became lost ' after they were transferred to another prison near melbourne . on thursday victoria attorney general robert clark announced the search for the remains was over . through dna analysis , kelly 's headless skeleton has been positively identified . to think a group of scientists could identify the body of a man who was executed more than 130 years ago , moved and buried in a haphazard fashion among 33 other prisoners -- most of whom are not identified -- is amazing , ' clark said in a prepared statement . the official credited doctors and scientists at the victorian institute of forensic medicine . a dna sample taken from melbourne schoolteacher leigh olver , great-grandson of kelly 's sister , was instrumental . opinions on the infamous kelly and his gang are decidedly mixed , according to the australian dictionary of biography . some scholars and observers have described the outlaw as cold-blooded and egotistical . author clive turnbull said the son of an irish immigrant showed courage , independence and sympathy for the underdog . kelly is an integral part of australian cultural history , with his defiance of the oppressive british authority of the time striking a chord for many australians . kelly was captured and hanged after a shootout with police in the victorian town of glenrowan . in the shootout , the gang was wearing suits of homemade armor that had been fashioned from farming implements . in 2001 , the state library of victoria purchased a piece of it for $ 100,000 ( au $ 200,000 ) . the library 's collection includes the outlaw 's helmet and breastplate . according to clark , the outlaw 's remains were among those transferred from the old melbourne gaol to pentridge prison in 1929 . the skeletons were exhumed again in 2009 . the project required examination of the remains of 34 individuals in total , many of which were co-mingled and incomplete , making the successful identification even more remarkable , ' according to clark . the investigation began when a skull believed to be kelly 's was given by an individual to officials in 2009 . the skull had been taken from the old melbourne gaol in december 1978 where it had been on display next to the death mask of ned kelly . an ink inscription'e . kelly'was written on the side . ' the skull analysis prompted forensic experts to try to identify kelly 's skeleton . ned kelly 's remains turned out to be an almost complete skeleton found buried in a wooden ax box , although most of the skull was missing , ' australian officials said . consultations will commence shortly with ned kelly 's family and other parties involved , regarding the appropriate future resting place for ned kelly 's remains . ' one problem emerged in the process of identifying the remains , however : the skull from the old melbourne gaol was n't a match . that mystery continues . | ned kelly is considered by many in australia to be a folk hero |
australia <tsp> ( cnn ) -- edward ned ' kelly packed a lot of living , stealing and killing in his scant 25 years . so much so that mick jagger portrayed him in a movie . as did heath ledger . australian artist sidney nolan made ned kelly the subject of a series of paintings . the cattle rustler , robber and cop killer was hanged in november 1880 after a string of crimes , including the deaths of three police officers in one incident . his reputed last words : such is life . ' australia 's best-known outlaw , or bushranger , was buried in the old melbourne gaol . but his remains became lost ' after they were transferred to another prison near melbourne . on thursday victoria attorney general robert clark announced the search for the remains was over . through dna analysis , kelly 's headless skeleton has been positively identified . to think a group of scientists could identify the body of a man who was executed more than 130 years ago , moved and buried in a haphazard fashion among 33 other prisoners -- most of whom are not identified -- is amazing , ' clark said in a prepared statement . the official credited doctors and scientists at the victorian institute of forensic medicine . a dna sample taken from melbourne schoolteacher leigh olver , great-grandson of kelly 's sister , was instrumental . opinions on the infamous kelly and his gang are decidedly mixed , according to the australian dictionary of biography . some scholars and observers have described the outlaw as cold-blooded and egotistical . author clive turnbull said the son of an irish immigrant showed courage , independence and sympathy for the underdog . kelly is an integral part of australian cultural history , with his defiance of the oppressive british authority of the time striking a chord for many australians . kelly was captured and hanged after a shootout with police in the victorian town of glenrowan . in the shootout , the gang was wearing suits of homemade armor that had been fashioned from farming implements . in 2001 , the state library of victoria purchased a piece of it for $ 100,000 ( au $ 200,000 ) . the library 's collection includes the outlaw 's helmet and breastplate . according to clark , the outlaw 's remains were among those transferred from the old melbourne gaol to pentridge prison in 1929 . the skeletons were exhumed again in 2009 . the project required examination of the remains of 34 individuals in total , many of which were co-mingled and incomplete , making the successful identification even more remarkable , ' according to clark . the investigation began when a skull believed to be kelly 's was given by an individual to officials in 2009 . the skull had been taken from the old melbourne gaol in december 1978 where it had been on display next to the death mask of ned kelly . an ink inscription'e . kelly'was written on the side . ' the skull analysis prompted forensic experts to try to identify kelly 's skeleton . ned kelly 's remains turned out to be an almost complete skeleton found buried in a wooden ax box , although most of the skull was missing , ' australian officials said . consultations will commence shortly with ned kelly 's family and other parties involved , regarding the appropriate future resting place for ned kelly 's remains . ' one problem emerged in the process of identifying the remains , however : the skull from the old melbourne gaol was n't a match . that mystery continues . | ned kelly is considered by many in australia to be a folk hero |
the city beyond play <tsp> ( cnn ) -- author philip jose farmer died in his sleep wednesday , according to a message on his web site . farmer was known for his science-fiction and fantasy novels and short stories . he was 91 . his most popular work was his riverworld ' series , written in the 1970s . joe lansdale , a critic , writer and friend of farmer 's , credited farmer with changing the face of science fiction . i just ca n't begin to tell you how important he is to the field as well as other fields , ' lansdale said . critics say farmer , who was born in indiana but spent the rest of his life in peoria , illinois , was the first author to address adult sexual themes in science-fiction novels . jonathan strahan , an editor and critic for locus magazine , said farmer treated sex seriously , not in a juvenile manner or for cheap thrills . it was n't pornography and it was n't just about the sex of it , ' strahan said . it was about the sexuality of people in an interesting and intelligent way . ' his influence over the science-fiction community is becoming more apparent over time , critics said . one of the most well-known science-fiction novels to be influenced by farmer was stranger in a strange land ' by robert heinlein . strahan said heinlein was good friends with farmer . farmer was one of a handful of writers to win the lifetime achievement award from the world fantasy society and the grand master award presented by the science fiction writers of america . winning both the awards is rare , strahan said , because not many writers wrote as expansively in both fields as farmer did . lansdale said farmer was fearless when it came to the subject matter for his stories . farmer 's latest books were published by subterranean press . his last novel , the city beyond play , ' was published in 2007 . a statement on subterranean 's web site wednesday noted the death of farmer , who we have been lucky to publish , but have been even luckier to be readers of for so many years . ' you can imagine it 's been a sad day here -- we 're still working through our emotions about it , ' the statement said . but we can say that our memories of him are good ones . he was always a joy to work with , and we will dearly miss his intelligence and good nature . ' | his last novel , the city beyond play , ' was published in 2007 |
wisconsin <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a federal judge on thursday struck down the federal statute that established the national day of prayer , ruling that it violates the constitutional ban on government-backed religion . [ i ] ts sole purpose is to encourage all citizens to engage in prayer , an inherently religious exercise that serves no secular function , ' a wisconsin judge wrote in the ruling , referring to the 1952 law that created the national day of prayer . in this instance , the government has taken sides on a matter that must be left to individual conscience , ' wrote the judge , barbara b. crabb . the injunction against the national day of prayer will not take effect until the defendants in the case , president obama and white house press secretary robert gibbs , have exhausted their appeals , the decision said . the obama administration said in a twitter message on thursday that obama intends to recognize this year 's national day of prayer , which is may 6 . the white house press office referred a question about whether the administration would appeal the ruling to the justice department , where a press officer was unavailable for comment . conservative religious groups called on the white house to appeal the decision . the national day of prayer provides an opportunity for all americans to pray voluntarily according to their own faith and does not promote any particular religion or form of religious observance , ' said joel oster , senior legal counsel for the alliance defense fund . church-state separation groups , meanwhile , applauded the ruling . this decision is a tremendous victory for religious liberty , ' said the rev . barry w. lynn , executive director of americans united for separation of church and state . congress has no business telling americans when or how to pray . ' the interfaith alliance also welcomed the ruling . maintaining clear boundaries between religion and government only serves to strengthen both , ' said the group 's president , the rev . welton gaddy . one constitutional scholar doubted the case would survive an appeal to a federal circuit court . judges have never been absolutists in these establishment clause cases , ' said douglas laycock , a university of michigan law school professor specializing in religious liberties issues . if they were they would to tell the president to stop issuing thanksgiving proclamations and tell the treasury department to take'in god we trust'off our money . ' the lawsuit against the obama administration was brought by the freedom from religion foundation , a group based in madison , wisconsin . the statute that established the national day of prayer calls on the president to annually designate one day , other than a sunday , on which the people of the united states may turn to god in prayer and meditation at churches , in groups and as individuals . ' the law was amended in 1988 to designate the first thursday in may as the annual national day of prayer . the event has been celebrated more ostentatiously by republican than democratic white houses , partly because it has become aligned with religious conservatives . since 1991 , the national day of prayer task force has been led by shirley dobson , wife of conservative evangelical broadcaster and activist james dobson . shirley dobson criticized the obama administration last year for forgoing the white house celebrations that marked the national day of prayer under president george w. bush . but obama did issue an official proclamation designating a national day of prayer . throughout our nation 's history , ' obama 's proclamation read , americans have come together in moments of great challenge and uncertainty to humble themselves in prayer . ' | wisconsin case sued obama over national day of prayer |
paul <tsp> pope francis moved a predecessor closer to sainthood on sunday , beatifying pope paul vi on the last day of a gathering in rome of church leaders from around the world . it was a ceremonious close to this year 's synod of the bishops on the family , which has ended in clinches over how to minister to gay and lesbian people or whether to give holy communion to catholics who have divorced and remarried -- which the catholic church considers adultery . paul vi , who was pontiff from 1963 until his death in 1978 , had faced similar pressures during the advent of free love , when the church came out against birth control . pope paul vi based the decision on catholic teachings on marriage . but the church is honoring other aspects of his work , highlighting his efforts to spread social justice and minister to the poor , topics pope francis also carries on his banner . paul vi is also known for having pioneered papal world visits , traveling to africa , latin america and asia . he was the first pope to visit five continents , the vatican has said . he was also the first pope to visit the holy land since st. peter , the catholic news service said . a trip to the philippines in 1970 could have cost him his life , but it also provided one of the two necessary precursors for his beatification -- a relic . when he was attacked by a man with a bayonet in manila , two vests he was wearing were stained with blood , according to historian john-peter pham . one of the vests was brought to the beatification in a reliquary . the second precursor required for beatification is a miracle . pope paul vi 's involves an unborn child in california , vatican radio said . a doctor advised a pregnant woman to abort her child because of danger to her life and his , but she refused and instead had a nun pray for her using a photo of pope paul , cns reported . the child was born healthy . the announcement of the beatification came in may , two weeks after pope francis canonized two other predecessors , john xxiii and john paul ii , allowing them to ascend to sainthood . the unprecedented ceremony was witnessed by huge crowds gathered in st. peter 's square in vatican city . | pope paul was known for his world travels and ministry to the poor |
paul <tsp> pope francis moved a predecessor closer to sainthood on sunday , beatifying pope paul vi on the last day of a gathering in rome of church leaders from around the world . it was a ceremonious close to this year 's synod of the bishops on the family , which has ended in clinches over how to minister to gay and lesbian people or whether to give holy communion to catholics who have divorced and remarried -- which the catholic church considers adultery . paul vi , who was pontiff from 1963 until his death in 1978 , had faced similar pressures during the advent of free love , when the church came out against birth control . pope paul vi based the decision on catholic teachings on marriage . but the church is honoring other aspects of his work , highlighting his efforts to spread social justice and minister to the poor , topics pope francis also carries on his banner . paul vi is also known for having pioneered papal world visits , traveling to africa , latin america and asia . he was the first pope to visit five continents , the vatican has said . he was also the first pope to visit the holy land since st. peter , the catholic news service said . a trip to the philippines in 1970 could have cost him his life , but it also provided one of the two necessary precursors for his beatification -- a relic . when he was attacked by a man with a bayonet in manila , two vests he was wearing were stained with blood , according to historian john-peter pham . one of the vests was brought to the beatification in a reliquary . the second precursor required for beatification is a miracle . pope paul vi 's involves an unborn child in california , vatican radio said . a doctor advised a pregnant woman to abort her child because of danger to her life and his , but she refused and instead had a nun pray for her using a photo of pope paul , cns reported . the child was born healthy . the announcement of the beatification came in may , two weeks after pope francis canonized two other predecessors , john xxiii and john paul ii , allowing them to ascend to sainthood . the unprecedented ceremony was witnessed by huge crowds gathered in st. peter 's square in vatican city . | a relic and a miracle are required for pope paul vi to be beatified |
cliff giles <tsp> ( cnn ) -- even though she was 4 years old at the time , deborah gouin remembers it like it was yesterday . this plaque hangs in buddy holly 's high school , where ireporter cliff giles graduated a few years later . my mother would listen to this light brown zenith radio every morning to see if the school was closed , ' she said of her childhood in snowy michigan . one morning , gouin 's mother heard the news and notified her brother . she said ,'kenny ! buddy holly died last night !'' gouin asked her mother , who 's buddy holly ? ' her mother explained that he sang peggy sue . ' gouin remembers her brother being saddened at the news . my brother was at the age where he was interested in rock 'n'roll music , and would play the new songs on his trumpet . ' it was february 3 , 1959 , a day that would be immortalized more than a decade later in the don mclean song american pie ' as the day the music died . ' holly , as well as fellow rock 'n'roll musicians ritchie valens and j.p. the big bopper ' richardson , lost their lives in a plane crash early that morning . it is often recognized as the end of an early era for rock 'n'roll music , and ireporters shared their thoughts on on that tragic day and what it meant . in gouin 's case , she discovered holly 's work later in life . she owns a five-volume set of his work . i 'm totally a huge fan of buddy 's music , ' she said . it was a huge loss . i think he would have had an even bigger influence on music if he had lived . ' ireport.com : gouin shares her memories of that day beverly cummins clearly remembers hearing about the tragedy as well . her sister and cousin had spent the night at her house . my cousin had a crush on ritchie valens and played his 45 record'donna'the night before , among others . ' that morning , she heard her cousin screaming as a radio station delivered the news . i heard it for myself about an hour later , ' she said . it was stunning , and i started crying because she was crying . even though i was 7 , i knew what death meant . ' her cousin continually played records by valens while young and old tried to absorb how a series of tragic circumstances could have taken these three so young and full of life and promise . ' cummins said her cousin had her friends over for a memorial sleepover . they even got the ouija board out to see if they could contact them . it was quickly put away when it scared everybody enough . i can hardly conceive that 50 years have passed since this defining moment in my own little life . ' ireport.com : how teens of the time paid tribute to the trio cliff giles attended lubbock high school in lubbock , texas , the same school holly had attended a few years earlier . he was eating at a nearby restaurant when he heard the news . i remember thinking that it was a shame his life and career ended so quickly , ' he said . giles never met holly but became a fan of his music from listening to the radio at the time . like most teenagers then , i liked his early , up-tempo music best , ' he said . i remember kids complaining about how he had turned soft with the orchestra-backed album . ' ireport.com : concert re-creates final tour giles , a pilot , said , it 's probably easier for me to imagine the panic that gripped the very young pilot as he came to realize that he had lost control of the airplane on that dark and stormy night , and how easily it can happen . ' during the 40th reunion of his high school class , giles toured the building where both he and holly received their education . he says , i 'm proud of the photo that my son -- also a buddy holly fan -- made of me standing by a plaque commemorating buddy 's homeroom . ' ireport.com : read more about holly 's fellow alumnus robert graham grew up in his parents'record shop in the 1950s and remembers listening to buddy holly 's music often . he said holly wrote about what you were living at the time , what kids were going through , ' and that 's why his death affected so many . he remembers his sisters , who were 11 and 13 at the time , crying upon hearing the news . ireport.com : watch graham remember early era of rock george spink , a freshman at the university of california , santa barbara in 1959 , was listening to the radio as usual when the news was announced . we could n't believe it . it just seemed unreal , ' he said . it was really sad to hear that three of them were killed at one time . plus , these guys were only four or five years older than me . ' later that day , spink saw his girlfriend . she was crying her eyes out because she was such a big fan of buddy holly . ' ireport.com : college student talks about being named peggy sue spink enjoyed the big bopper 's music , in particular . he had a good sense of humor ; he was fun to watch and did n't seem to take himself so seriously . ' spink remembers being first drawn to rock 'n'roll music around the time blackboard jungle ' was released . the 1955 film included the song rock around the clock ' by bill haley & his comets . that was big among my friends in high school , ' spink said . we really liked a lot of rock and roll , rhythm and blues especially . ' as he was posting his ireport , spink listened once again to some of the music of holly , valens and the big bopper and says it still holds up today . i have a lot of good memories of when rock 'n'roll first began , and they were a part of it . ' ireport.com : the day what music died ? ' spink also recalls mclean 's 1971 song with the famous lyrics about the day the music died . ' i thought that was going too far , music did n't die , ' he says . their music did n't die ; it has lived on for 50 years now . ' | cliff giles attended the same high school as buddy holly |
north carolina <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a broad band of severe thunderstorms sunday sparked heavy rain and hail and prompted tornado warnings from florida to virginia , with multiple twisters reported in north carolina , according to the national weather service . at least eight unconfirmed tornadoes were spotted along north carolina 's i-85 corridor between charlotte and greensboro , with overturned mobile homes , toppled trees and downed power lines left by the storms , the weather service said . it 's been a very active evening for most of central north carolina , ' said julia jarema , spokeswoman for north carolina emergency management . the storms caused scattered power outages throughout the state , but because of the multiple bands of storms things are changing so rapidly we have n't been able to confirm numbers , ' jarema said . video showed a portion of metal roofing was ripped off an industrial building in belmont , north carolina , west of charlotte , littering nearby trees with clumps of yellow insulation . multiple mobile homes were overturned in linwood , north carolina , outside of lexington , and at least three people were reported injured , said cnn meteorologist jacqui jeras . a video posted on youtube purportedly showed flashes of snapping power lines as a huge funnel cloud loomed over high point , north carolina , near greensboro . at least 20 homes were reported damaged in the area , the weather service said . high point emergency management officials were going house to house checking for possible injuries , according to a fire department spokeswoman . news14 : tornado touches down in charlotte local law enforcement reported another tornado north of greensboro , north carolina , the weather service said . the storm was also producing 70 mph winds and hail as large as baseball or tennis-ball size , jeras reported . as daylight comes we 'll know really more about what kind of damage we are facing , ' jarema said . | new : eight unconfirmed tornadoes spotted along north carolina 's i-85 corridor |
north carolina <tsp> ( cnn ) -- a broad band of severe thunderstorms sunday sparked heavy rain and hail and prompted tornado warnings from florida to virginia , with multiple twisters reported in north carolina , according to the national weather service . at least eight unconfirmed tornadoes were spotted along north carolina 's i-85 corridor between charlotte and greensboro , with overturned mobile homes , toppled trees and downed power lines left by the storms , the weather service said . it 's been a very active evening for most of central north carolina , ' said julia jarema , spokeswoman for north carolina emergency management . the storms caused scattered power outages throughout the state , but because of the multiple bands of storms things are changing so rapidly we have n't been able to confirm numbers , ' jarema said . video showed a portion of metal roofing was ripped off an industrial building in belmont , north carolina , west of charlotte , littering nearby trees with clumps of yellow insulation . multiple mobile homes were overturned in linwood , north carolina , outside of lexington , and at least three people were reported injured , said cnn meteorologist jacqui jeras . a video posted on youtube purportedly showed flashes of snapping power lines as a huge funnel cloud loomed over high point , north carolina , near greensboro . at least 20 homes were reported damaged in the area , the weather service said . high point emergency management officials were going house to house checking for possible injuries , according to a fire department spokeswoman . news14 : tornado touches down in charlotte local law enforcement reported another tornado north of greensboro , north carolina , the weather service said . the storm was also producing 70 mph winds and hail as large as baseball or tennis-ball size , jeras reported . as daylight comes we 'll know really more about what kind of damage we are facing , ' jarema said . | tornado damaged 20 homes near high point , north carolina |
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