Questions remain in deadly Florida highway crash

Debris and wreckage lie along the highway after a multi-vehicle accident that killed at least nine people, on Interstate 75 near Gainesville, Fla., Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012. Authorities were still trying to determine what caused the pileup on the highway, which had been closed for a time because of the mixture of fog and heavy smoke from a brush fire. At least five cars and six tractor-trailers were involved, and some burst into flame. (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

Debris and wreckage lie along the highway after a multi-vehicle accident that killed at least nine people, on Interstate 75 near Gainesville, Fla., Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012. Authorities were still trying to determine what caused the pileup on the highway, which had been closed for a time because of the mixture of fog and heavy smoke from a brush fire. At least five cars and six tractor-trailers were involved, and some burst into flame. (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

Firemen hose down a commercial carrier truck on Interstate 75 near Gainesville, Fla., after it was involved in a multi-vehicle wreck which killed at least nine people in the early hours of Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012. Authorities were still trying to determine what caused the pileup on the highway, which had been closed for a time because of the mixture of fog and heavy smoke from a brush fire. At least five cars and six tractor-trailers were involved, and some burst into flame. (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

A fireman sprays the interior of a burned vehicle that was involved in a multi-vehicle accident that killed at least nine people, on Interstate 75 near Gainesville, Fla., Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012. Authorities were still trying to determine what caused the pileup on the highway, which had been closed for a time because of the mixture of fog and heavy smoke from a brush fire. At least five cars and six tractor-trailers were involved, and some burst into flame. (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

At left, firemen rest after fighting fires that resulted from a multi-vehicle accident that killed at least nine people, on Interstate 75 near Gainesville, Fla., Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012. Authorities were still trying to determine what caused the pileup on the highway, which had been closed for a time because of the mixture of fog and heavy smoke from a brush fire. At least five cars and six tractor-trailers were involved, and some burst into flame. (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

Florida Highway Patrolmen inspect the damage from a multi-vehicle accident that killed at least nine people, on Interstate 75 near Gainesville, Fla., Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012. Authorities were still trying to determine what caused the pileup on the highway, which had been closed for a time because of the mixture of fog and heavy smoke from a brush fire. At least five cars and six tractor-trailers were involved, and some burst into flame. (AP Photo/Phil Sandlin)

GAINESVILLE, FLa. (AP) ? Just hours before a pileup that killed 10 people, authorities had closed a stretch of highway smothered in smoke and fog due to a three-vehicle crash that left a passenger seriously injured. Why they reopened it just minutes before the second crash ? and who made the call ? remained murky Monday, with the Florida Highway Patrol refusing to answer questions as national investigators hinted they might join the inquiry.

An FHP report noted that police closed Interstate 75 about midnight Saturday following the smashup between two SUVS and after drivers called in reporting low visibility. They reopened the roadway at 3:30 a.m. ? 15 minutes before at least a dozen cars, six tractor-trailers and a motorhome collided south of Gainesville, pushing some of the cars under the crushing bellies of big rigs, causing others to burst into flames and sending metal shrapnel flying through the air. Eighteen survivors were hospitalized.

FHP spokesmen at the state and local level did not respond to several phone calls and emails Monday from The Associated Press seeking answers to what protocol authorities follow ? and whether it had been altered following a similarly deadly crash in 2008 on Interstate 4 between Orlando and Tampa, about 125 miles south of Sunday's crash. Four people were killed and 38 injured in that crash.

Meanwhile, the National Transportation Safety Board sent investigators to Gainesville on Monday to determine if it would formally join the inquiry into the crash and its causes. Either way, the highway patrol will remain in charge of the investigation, NTSB spokesman Peter Knudson said. "We've investigated a number of these pileups and we just want to see if there is any lesson we can learn from this particular series of accidents," he said. "One of the areas that our investigators will be looking at is the reopening of I-75."

The pileups happened on both sides of the highway. When rescuers first arrived, the smoke and fog were so thick the only way they could locate victims was by following the sound of their screams and moans from the wreckage, which was strewn for nearly a mile.

Authorities had not released the names of the victims, but did say that four people died in one of the cars and that a "tour bus-like" vehicle also was involved in the pileup. The fog and smoke had cleared enough Monday to reopen all lanes of the roadway.

Steven R. Camps and some friends were driving home hours before dawn Sunday when they were drawn into the massive wreck. "You could hear cars hitting each other. People were crying. People were screaming. It was crazy," the Gainesville man said hours later. "If I could give you an idea of what it looked like, I would say it looked like the end of the world."

Before Camps hit the fog bank, a friend who was driving ahead of him in a separate vehicle called to warn of the road conditions. The friend said he had just seen an accident and urged Camps to be careful as he approached the Paynes Prairie area, just south of Gainesville.

A short time later, Camps said, traffic stopped along the northbound lanes. "You couldn't see anything. People were pulling off the road," he said. Camps said he began talking about the road conditions to a man in the car stopped next to him when another vehicle hit that man's car.

The man's vehicle was crushed under a semi-truck stopped in front of them. Camps said his car was hit twice, but he and another friend were able to jump out. They took cover in the grass on the shoulder of the road. All around them, cars and trucks were on fire, and they could hear explosions as the vehicles burned.

"It was happening on both sides of the road, so there was nowhere to go. It blew my mind," he said, explaining that the scene "looked like someone was picking up cars and throwing them."

The fire that is believed to have contributed to poor visibility on the highway had destroyed 62 acres and was still burning Monday. Florida Forest Service spokeswoman Ludie Bond said the fire began Saturday and investigators were still trying to determine whether the blaze had been intentionally set. She said there were no controlled burns in the area and no lightning. No home are threatened by the fire. ___ Associated Press writer Freida Frisaro in Miami contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-01-30-Deadly%20Interstate%20Crash/id-4c64e4788b30457599bfb6f896091d4a

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Trying to read between the lines of the Fed rate message (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) ? For a central bank that wants to make transparency its hallmark, the Federal Reserve's new forecast of nearly three more years of super-low rates has left room for a few doubts.

The Fed surprised markets last Wednesday when it extended its previous forecast for keeping its key interest rate "exceptionally low" until at least late 2014, more than a year longer than its previous guidance.

Ninety minutes later, the U.S. central bank published charts showing that more than a third of its policymakers expected a rate rise before 2014, whiplashing bond markets.

The difference in tone between the dovish statement of the Fed's policy-setting committee and the somewhat more hawkish-looking projections of its 17 individual members, has left some economists unsure as to when the Fed will start to reverse its historic, all-out support of the U.S. economy.

Some are re-examining the Fed's choice of language and questioning whether the term "exceptionally low" really means the current level of the Fed funds rate of zero to 0.25 percent.

Others are asking what the phrase "late 2014" means more precisely as they try to decipher the nuances of a central bank that is taking bold steps to support the economic recovery while at the same time stressing transparency into its inner workings.

"You can't possibly know with any degree of confidence what will unfold given this degree of uncertainty," said Michael Moran, chief economist at Daiwa Capital Markets, in New York, referring to the wide range of views on where rates are headed. "You just have to keep an open mind on monetary policy."

The Fed has kept short-term rates below 0.25 percent for more than three years already and purchased some $2.3 trillion in long-term securities to help the U.S. economy claw its way back from a brutal recession.

With the recovery still fragile and at risk from fallout from Europe's crisis, the Fed is running out of tools and has turned to making statements about its intentions over the coming years in the hope of assuring skittish markets that it is committed to sticking with its super-loose monetary policy.

That could keep longer-term rates low in the open market. Low rates usually encourage economic activity and boost hiring.

This delicate management of expectations is playing out just as Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke is shining a light on what in the past were the central bank's opaque internal deliberations.

The first-ever release last week of projections by Fed policymakers of where they expect interest rates to be over the next few years revealed a remarkably wide range of views.

Three officials expected a rate rise as soon as this year. Two others did not see that happening until 2016.

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Economic, rate projections: http://link.reuters.com/zud36s

FOMC statement from Jan 24-25 meeting: FED/FOMC

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CONFUSION

In an early sign of confusion, yields on 10-year Treasuries dropped after the Fed's late-2014 comment on Wednesday and fell to as low as 1.92 percent. They bounced back to 2 percent after the rate projections were revealed.

Asked for clarity by reporters, Bernanke made it clear that the statement from the Federal Open Market Committee, which sets rates and currently has 10 voting members, prevailed over the 17 individual projections.

"The FOMC will always, in some sense, trump the projections of forward interest rates," he said.

But Charles Plosser, president of the Philadelphia Fed and among the most hawkish of the Fed's top officials, acknowledged on Monday that the FOMC's statement was "not as clear as it could have been."

Having low rates until late 2014 is "conditional on the evolution of the economy. I think that we don't make that clear enough," Plosser told CNBC television.

"A lot of people have been reading the statement as if it was a commitment and it is not a commitment."

ALL EYES ON 2014

Plosser, who has focused more on keeping a lid on inflation than lowering the 8.5-percent U.S. unemployment rate, confirmed that he was one of the three officials forecasting a rate rise this year. He is among those skeptical of the Fed's ultra-easy policy and its talk of standing pat for some time to come.

Six of the FOMC's 17 policymakers saw rates rising to between 0.25 percent and 2 percent by the end of 2013. By the end of 2014 they were joined by a further five who expected increases in borrowing costs and as a group they saw rates between 0.25 and 2.75 percent, with a median of 0.75 percent.

The other six projected no change until after 2014.

Adding to intrigue over the path ahead for rates, Plosser, fellow hawk Richard Fisher of Dallas, and Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota, a moderate hawk, all regain positions on the FOMC in the critical year of 2014.

Bernanke, along with vice chair Janet Yellen and William Dudley, the influential head of the New York Fed, has steered the Fed's policy moves. But the chairman's current term expires in early 2014, adding to the uncertainty on the horizon.

Since August, when Bernanke clearly implied in a speech that "exceptionally low" rates meant zero to 0.25 percent, Wall Street has run with that assumption.

Now some economists are reading between the lines.

"There are different definitions of 'exceptionally low' levels of the federal funds rate. Perhaps one could think of any rate below 1 percent as exceptionally low," said Thomas Simons, money market economist at Jefferies & Co, who co-published a note to clients on the topic.

"What is your definition of late 2014? Maybe it's September," Simons said.

Accordingly, futures traders are hedging their bets over what the Fed will actually do.

According to rates contracts at exchange operator CME Group Inc, traders are pricing in a 48 percent chance that the first rate hike will occur in June, 2014. There is a 62 percent chance that it comes in July, 2014.

Economists at FTN Financial argued the Fed's statement was intended to reinforce the primacy of the FOMC over the broader group. "The unspoken message is that there are enough voting members at or near zero to keep rates unchanged even if others at the Fed disagree," they wrote last week in a note to clients.

(Reporting by Jonathan Spicer; Additional reporting by Ann Saphir in Chicago; Editing by Kim Coghill)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/economy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120131/bs_nm/us_usa_fed_interest_rates

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3 killed in Sacramento SUV-light rail train crash (AP)

SACRAMENTO, Calif. ? Two adults and an 18-month-old boy died when their SUV collided with a light-rail train in Sacramento, moments after the vehicle's driver ignored flashing warning lights and veered around a rail crossing arm, authorities say.

The only other person in the Nissan Pathfinder, a woman in her 30s, was hospitalized with serious injuries, said Niko King, assistant chief with the Sacramento Fire Department.

Six of the roughly 50 passengers on the light rail train suffered minor injuries in Saturday's crash and were taken to a hospital, he said.

King and a spokeswoman for the transit line said video from a camera at the crossing clearly shows the SUV driving around the crossing arm.

The collision, in a working class neighborhood south of downtown, occurred shortly after 4 p.m. and pushed the Pathfinder about 30 yards from the point of impact.

"All I heard was a big bang, and I saw a light-rail train heading south with a big truck smashed on it," said Ravin Pratab, 42, of Davis, whose car was among those waiting for the train at the rail crossing, on the opposite side of the tracks from the Pathfinder.

The train was going about 55 mph at the time, a typical speed for that location.

The light rail followed two Union Pacific freight trains, which use separate tracks, and the arms had remained down during the interval, said Alane Masui, spokeswoman for the Sacramento Regional Transit District.

"They were down after the UP trains and before the (light rail) train approached, so the crossing arms were properly working," she said.

She said the length of time between the freight trains clearing the intersection and the light rail train crossing it had not yet been determined and would be part of the investigation. Investigators also were reviewing video from a camera mounted on the light rail train.

Authorities did not release the identities of those in the Pathfinder or their relationship. A man and woman in the vehicle, both in their 40s, died at the scene while the baby boy was pronounced dead at a hospital. Firefighters said one had been ejected.

The University of California, Davis Medical Center in Sacramento would say only that the woman remained in serious condition late Saturday.

The light rail system carries an average of 50,000 passengers a day, with lines stretching from the state capital to its suburbs in the north, south and east.

Masui said there are four sets of tracks at the crossing ? two for freight and two for light rail so trains from both systems can run in either direction.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120129/ap_on_re_us/us_suv_light_rail_crash

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Russian great Plushenko wins 7th European title

Russia's Evgeni Plushenko celebrates after performing in the Men's Free Skating program competition at the European Figure Skating Championships in Sheffield, England, Saturday Jan. 28, 2012. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Russia's Evgeni Plushenko celebrates after performing in the Men's Free Skating program competition at the European Figure Skating Championships in Sheffield, England, Saturday Jan. 28, 2012. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Russia's Evgeni Plushenko kisses his gold medal after winning the Men's Free Skating event at the European Figure Skating Championships in Sheffield, England, Saturday Jan. 28, 2012. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

Russia's Evgeni Plushenko kisses his gold medal after winning the Men's Free Skating event at the European Figure Skating Championships in Sheffield, England, Saturday Jan. 28, 2012. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

France's Florent Amodio celebrates after winning bronze medal in the Men's Free Skating event at the European Figure Skating Championships in Sheffield, England, Saturday Jan. 28, 2012. (AP Photo/Jon Super)

SHEFFIELD, England (AP) ? Russian great Evgeni Plushenko produced a career-best performance Saturday to beat protege Artur Gachinski and win his seventh men's European figure skating title.

The 2006 Olympic champion put together a compelling routine to "Tango de Roxanne" from the Moulin Rouge soundtrack and scored a personal-best 176.52 points in the free skate for a total of 261.23 ? Plushenko's highest ever overall mark.

His breathtaking display included a perfectly judged quadruple jump ? an exploit he claimed he couldn't perform this week because of injuries to his left knee and back.

"I did a little bit of history in figure skating today," an overjoyed Plushenko said.

The 18-year-old Gachinski led his mentor, idol and training partner by 0.09 points after the short program but finished 14.96 points behind in second with 246.27. Gachinski, the bronze medalist from last year's worlds, scored 161.47 points in his free skate for a 246.27 total.

Defending champion Florent Amodio of France rallied from fifth place to take the bronze with an overall score of 234.18, ahead of Michal Brezina of the Czech Republic (153.17).

With the spectators at Motorpoint Arena already rising to their feet, Plushenko ? dressed in a glitter-lined black outfit ? put an exclamation point on his routine with repeated fist pumps at the end.

Even with Gachinski and three other rivals to come, the greatest male skater of his generation knew the gold was again his at age 29 ? 12 years after winning his first continental title.

"You all saw my emotions at the end," Plushenko said. "I felt like I did eight years ago."

Plushenko is a sporting icon in Russia, and the only living male skater with three Olympic medals to his name. Having started his senior career in 1997, he will attempt to stay on until the 2014 Olympics on home soil in Sochi.

"When I am going to be healthy, I will do a little bit more," said Plushenko, who will head to Germany to undergo surgery on his problematic left knee in two weeks ? a procedure that will keep him out of the world championships at the end of March.

His previous best overall score was 258.33 when he won gold at the 2006 Turin Games. He scored 167.67 in the free skate in that competition, his previous best mark for the longer of the two disciplines.

Plushenko's excuse for not doing a quad during his play-it-safe short program on Thursday was that it would take 3 or 4 minutes for his body to recover.

Lo and behold, Plushenko opened the free skate with a quad toe loop ? which earned the maestro 11.59 points ? and set the tone for the rest of a joyous and nearly flawless routine that had the crowd transfixed.

The veteran skater denied he had played mind games with his rivals, insisting instead that his medical team had performed miracles.

"Today, the problems with my meniscus were overcome," he said. "Today, I skated at full capacity."

He went on to nail both a triple axel-triple toe and then a triple lutz-double toe-double loop combination, and achieved a level four with his flying sit spin and camel spin.

The intimidating score left him way clear of the field. Gachinski, Javier Fernandez and Amodio had yet to skate, but following Plushenko was virtually impossible.

Needing to skate the best routine of his young career, Gachinski opened up stylishly with a quad toe combination and another quad toe but was marked down on his latter jumps.

"I am still happy," said Gachinski, who also broke his personal best of 241.86 points. "This is my second Europeans and I got a second."

Tomas Verner of the Czech Republic was third after the short program but flopped in the free, slumping to fifth and allowing Amodio to climb onto the podium despite the Frenchman not managing a quad.

"It was a difficult experience but I'm proud," Amodio said. "I started to feel like the real Florent Amodio."

The women's title will be decided later Saturday, with Italy's Carolina Kostner in the lead after the short program as she goes in search of a fourth European gold.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2012-01-28-FIG-European-Championship/id-3fd9187623424927a2969557266e1a5a

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Blues singer Etta James remembered in Los Angeles (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) ? Hundreds of mourners gathered at a Los Angeles-area church on Saturday to remember rhythm-and-blues singer Etta James, saying she overcame great personal and professional hurdles to sing "the times that she lived."

During a two-hour service that featured performances by pop stars Stevie Wonder and Christina Aguilera, the Rev. Al Sharpton eulogized James as a woman who rose from a tough childhood and poured her pain into her music.

Aguilera performed a version of "At Last," James' show-stopping hit and best-known song.

James died at 73 at a Riverside, California, hospital on January 20 from complications of leukemia, prompting numerous tributes from artists and musicians who were influenced by her work, including Mariah Carey and Aretha Franklin.

"People need to understand that when they hear the music Etta James sang, she sang the times that she lived," Sharpton told friends and family at Greater Bethany Church City of Refuge church in the Los Angeles suburb of Gardena.

"She put our pain and our dreams and our love and our need for one another in her vocal chords, but the difference between her and other artists is somehow you felt she meant what she was saying."

James, who was born to a teenage single mother, won wide acclaim and three Grammys, but saw numerous ups-and-downs in her career and personal life. She struggled with obesity and heroin addiction, ran a hot-check scheme and had troubled relationships with men.

But, Sharpton said, James should be remembered for blazing a trail for the entertainers who followed her.

"Etta was the one that brought class ... generations behind will try but never quite have the strut and swagger and talent of Etta James," he said.

"At last you (Etta) can get the gratitude of the savior now. Go on home Etta. Get your reward now ... you beat them Etta. You won Etta. Get your reward Etta. At last. At last. At last."

James won her first Grammy in 1995 for her album, "Mystery Lady: The Songs of Billie Holiday." She also won Grammys in 2003 and 2005, and a lifetime achievement award in 2003 from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, which gives out the Grammys.

James is survived by her husband, Artis Mills, two sons Donto and Sametto who played in James' backing band, and four grandchildren.

(Writing by Dan Whitcomb; Editing by David Bailey)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/music/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120129/music_nm/us_ettajames

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Video: Cargo ship slams into Kentucky bridge

The ship was traveling upriver when it hit the aging Eggner Ferry Bridge, the steel wrapping around the ship?s hull. NBC?s Brian Williams reports.

>>> transportation officials in kentucky are trying to figure out how this happened. that's the eggnor fairy bridge . that is a huge cargo ship that slammed into it last night. nobody was hurt, but at least one guy driving across it in the rain says he didn't realize a 20-foot section was missing until he slammed on the brakes with five feet to spare. something else here, the barge was carrying atlas rocket components to a launch site.

Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/nightly-news/46169761/

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US weapons for future include key relics of past (AP)

WASHINGTON ? The lineup of weapons the Pentagon has picked to fit President Barack Obama's new forward-looking defense strategy, called "Priorities for 21st Century Defense," features relics of the past.

They include the Air Force's venerable B-52 bomber, whose current model entered service shortly before Obama was born. There is the even older U-2 spy plane, which began flying in 1955 and burst into the spotlight in May 1960 when Francis Gary Powers was shot down over the Soviet Union.

When Obama went to the Pentagon on Jan. 5 to announce his new defense strategy he said that as the U.S. shifts from a decade of war in Iraq and Afghanistan it will "get rid of outdated Cold War-era systems." He was not specific. But when the first details of the Pentagon's 2013 budget plan were announced Thursday, it was clear that some prominent remaining Cold War-era "systems" will live on.

That includes not just the B-52 bomber and the U-2 spy plane, but also the foundation of U.S. nuclear deterrence strategy: a "triad" of nuclear weapons that can be launched from land, sea, and air. That concept, credited by many for preventing nuclear conflict throughout the Cold War, is now seen by some arms control experts as the kind of outdated structure that the United States can afford to get rid of.

Some think the U.S. should do away with at least one leg of that "triad," perhaps the bomber role. That would not just save money and clear the way for larger reductions in the number of U.S. nuclear weapons ? an Obama goal in line with his April 2009 pledge to seek the elimination of nuclear weapons.

Carl Levin, D-Mich., chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said recently that maintaining the current structure of American nuclear forces was "not in keeping with the modern world." He and like-minded lawmakers argue that nuclear weapons play no role in deterring threats such as global terrorists.

The U.S. now has about 5,000 operational nuclear weapons, about half as many as a decade ago. They can be launched from ballistic missile submarines, from underground silos housing intercontinental ballistic missiles, and from B-52 and B-2 bombers at air bases in Louisiana, North Dakota and Missouri.

The Air Force, which provides the land and air legs of the triad, argues for preserving that Cold War-era configuration.

"It remains our conviction that as you go down (in numbers of nuclear weapons), the triad actually becomes more important," Gen. Norton Schwartz, the Air Force chief of staff, told reporters Friday. "The diversity, the variety, the attributes associated with each leg of the triad reinforce each other to a greater degree."

Both the B-52 and the B-2 are capable of doing more than carrying nuclear weapons. The B-52 has been modernized many times and is now used in a variety of roles, including close-air support of troops in conflict and can carry missiles, bombs and mines. The first of the current H models entered service in May 1961.

The land-based intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) force dates to 1959. Ballistic missile subs, known as "boomers," were first launched in 1960; the current Ohio-class fleet dates to 1981.

The administration is nearing completion of an internal review of how many nuclear weapons are required to meet today's security needs; that process will lead to decisions on whether to reshape the nuclear arsenal. That effort is linked to consultations with NATO allies on whether to withdraw the remaining U.S. nuclear weapons from Europe, an arrangement that also is rooted in the Cold War. Also at play is how to set the stage for a new round of nuclear reduction talks with Russia.

The only move the Pentagon is making on the nuclear weapons front in the 2013 budget is a proposed two-year delay in development of a new generation of submarines to replace those how equipped with Trident nuclear missiles.

The Arms Control Association, which favors cutting nuclear weapons, estimates that the new fleet of ballistic missile submarines would cost $350 billion to build and would last for 50 years. It advocates shrinking the number of subs to eight, which is says would save $27 billion over 10 years.

Laicie Olson, senior policy analyst at the Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation, said in an interview Friday that she was surprised, given Obama's commitment to reducing the number of nuclear weapons, that the administration is not using its 2013 defense budget to take substantial steps in that direction.

"All of these things are sticking around," she said, referring also to the U-2 spy plane, which was to have been retired in 2015 and replaced by a high-tech successor, the Global Hawk, which is flown without a pilot aboard.

Preserving such Cold War-era weapons "actually seems like the opposite of what the president set out to do," she said.

The Pentagon announced Thursday that the Global Hawk turned out to be a disappointment and no cheaper to use, so it is being canceled. As a result, the Air Force is extending the lifespan of the U-2, nicknamed "Angel" by Kelly Johnson, the Lockheed engineer who helped design the high-altitude spy plane.

Since 1994 the Air Force has spent $1.7 billion to modernize the U-2, whose claims to fame include the October 1962 flights over Cuba that confirmed the presence of Soviet nuclear missiles, touching off the Cuban missile crisis.

___

Online:

Pentagon: http://tinyurl.com/84ouz2u

Center for Arms Control and Non-Proliferation: http://armscontrolcenter.org/

Arms Control Association: http://www.armscontrol.org

___

Robert Burns can be followed on Twitter at http://twitter.com/robertburnsAP

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/obama/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120128/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_pentagon_in_with_the_old

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Long road ahead for Conn. home invasion survivor (AP)

NEW HAVEN, Conn. ? How does a man move on with his life after losing his wife and daughters to two ruthless home invaders who tormented, then killed them?

For more than four years, a nation both disgusted and captivated by a chilling crime in prototypical suburbia has wondered that. Only one man ? Dr. William Petit, the sole survivor ? can provide the answer.

On Friday, with the second killer sentenced to death and the book closed after two long, graphic trials, Petit gave a clue as to how he copes with pain he has been forced to revisit continually in court.

"My only hope is for justice to be served and to do my best to honor the lives of my family, who should all still be here to share their gifts and love with the world," Petit said Friday right before a judge sentenced Joshua Komisarjevsky, 31, to death.

"I hope to continue to honor my family," said Petit, who survived being beaten with a baseball bat and tied up. "I push forward in the hope that good will overcome evil, and feel the need to tell the world that evil lives among us and we need to rid the world of it."

The gruesome crime evoked comparisons to Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood," about the brutal murders of a Kansas farmer and his family.

Komisarjevsky admitted in an audiotaped confession played for the jury in his trial late last year that he spotted Petit's wife, Jennifer Hawke-Petit, and their 11-year-old daughter, Michaela, at a supermarket and followed them to their house in Cheshire, a suburb of New Haven.

After going home and putting his own daughter to bed, he and Steven Hayes, now 48, returned to the Petit house in the middle of the night, while the family was sleeping, to rob it.

Dr. Petit was beaten, tied up and taken to the basement. Michaela and Hayley, 17, were tied to their beds. In the morning, Hayes took Jennifer to the bank to withdraw money, while Komisarjevsky stayed at the house.

It's believed that's when he sexually assaulted Michaela, the 11-year-old. Hayes was convicted of sexually assaulting the mother.

After Hayes arrived back at the house with the girls' mother, she was strangled. The pair doused the house and beds with gasoline, set it ablaze and left. The sisters, bound helplessly while flames and fumes rose around them, died of smoke inhalation.

Dr. Petit managed to escape the basement and hop, roll and crawl across a yard to a neighbor's house for help ? too late to save his family.

"July 23, 2007, was our personal holocaust," Petit said Friday. "A holocaust caused by two who are completely evil and actually do not comprehend what they have done."

Petit called his wife a friend, confidant and wonderful mother. He noted that Hayley would be in medical school by now and that Michaela loved to cook and sing.

"I lost my family and my home," he said. "They were three special people. Your children are your jewels."

Petit said he has difficulty sleeping and trusting. Family gatherings are subdued, he said, with no one quite sure what to do or say.

Jennifer's sister, Cynthia Hawke-Renn, said via a video played in court that everyday items like gas, rope and bedposts conjure horrific memories.

"There is no escaping the horrors of that night," she said.

Petit's father, William Petit Sr., said his son is not the same person now as he was in the days when he was a happy husband and father.

"Not only did we lose Jennifer, Hayley and Michaela, we have lost the Bill that we knew, and it is heartbreaking daily to watch him," Petit said. "He puts on a brave face and tries to hide his anguish and despair by working hard."

Petit has found what he calls occasional moments of peace, dedicating himself to a charity named for his family that raises money for education, the chronically ill and those affected by violence; and by campaigning for tougher laws, including the death penalty.

He has admitted he contemplated suicide many times. But this month he became engaged to a woman who volunteered at foundation events.

Petit has maintained his composure in court through three trials, even as the defense referred to him and his family as the "Petit posse."

Komisarjevsky's lawyers had worked to spare him the death penalty by describing sexual abuse their client endured as a child. The jury and the judge ? who had been subjected to grim evidence including pictures of charred beds, rope used to tie up the family and autopsy photos ? were unmoved.

The crime led to the defeat of a bill to outlaw the death penalty in Connecticut and sparked tougher state laws for repeat offenders and home invasions.

"This is a terrible sentence, but it is in truth a sentence you wrote for yourself with deeds of unimaginable horror and savagery on July 23, 2007," Judge Jon Blue said.

Komisarjevsky conveyed a mixture of regret and insistence in court Friday, saying that he didn't intend for anyone to die, that he didn't rape Michaela and that he didn't start the fire.

"I wonder when the killing will end," he said of his death sentence.

He described regrets and the devastating consequences of his decisions ? but blamed Hayes for the killings.

"I know my responsibilities, but what I cannot do is carry the responsibilities of the actions of another," Komisarjevsky said. "I did not want those innocent women to die."

The state's last execution in 2005 was the first since 1960, and Komisarjevsky and Hayes will likely spend years, if not decades, in prison.

William Petit and his relatives left the courtroom before Komisarjevsky spoke. The killer noted that "forgiveness is not mine to have" but said it wasn't the forgiveness of the victims' relatives he needed to find.

"I have to learn how to forgive my worst enemy ? myself," he said.

Petit's sister, Hannah Chapman, said Komisarjevsky tried to blame others when he planned and carried out the crime, escalating it by attacking her brother and molesting her niece.

"Either way, he will be damned to hell for what he did," she said, "and that is where he belongs."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120128/ap_on_re_us/us_home_invasion

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Twitter's new censorship plan rouses global furor (AP)

NEW YORK ? Twitter, a tool of choice for dissidents and activists around the world, found itself the target of global outrage Friday after unveiling plans to allow country-specific censorship of tweets that might break local laws.

It was a stunning role reversal for a youthful company that prides itself in promoting unfettered expression, 140 characters at a time. Twitter insisted its commitment to free speech remains firm, and sought to explain the nuances of its policy, while critics ? in a barrage of tweets ? proposed a Twitter boycott and demanded that the censorship initiative be scrapped.

"This is very bad news," tweeted Egyptian activist Mahmoud Salem, who operates under the name Sandmonkey. Later, he wrote, "Is it safe to say that (hash)Twitter is selling us out?"

In China, where activists have embraced Twitter even though it's blocked inside the country, artist and activist Ai Weiwei tweeted in response to the news: "If Twitter censors, I'll stop tweeting."

One often-relayed tweet bore the headline of a Forbes magazine technology blog item: "Twitter Commits Social Suicide"

San Francisco-based Twitter, founded in 2006, depicted the new system as a step forward. Previously, when Twitter erased a tweet, it vanished throughout the world. Under the new policy, a tweet breaking a law in one country can be taken down there and still be seen elsewhere.

Twitter said it will post a censorship notice whenever a tweet is removed and will post the removal requests it receives from governments, companies and individuals at the website chillingeffects.org.

The critics are jumping to the wrong conclusions, said Alexander Macgilliviray, Twitter's general counsel.

"This is a good thing for freedom of expression, transparency and accountability," he said. "This launch is about us keeping content up whenever we can and to be extremely transparent with the world when we don't. I would hope people realize our philosophy hasn't changed."

Some defenders of Internet free expression came to Twitter's defense.

"Twitter is being pilloried for being honest about something that all Internet platforms have to wrestle with," said Cindy Cohn, legal director of the Electronic Frontier Foundation. "As long as this censorship happens in a secret way, we're all losers."

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland credited Twitter with being upfront about the potential for censorship and said some other companies are not as forthright.

As for whether the new policy would be harmful, Nuland said that wouldn't be known until after it's implemented.

Reporters Without Borders, which advocates globally for press freedom, sent a letter to Twitter's executive chairman, Jack Dorsey, urging that the censorship policy be ditched immediately.

"By finally choosing to align itself with the censors, Twitter is depriving cyberdissidents in repressive countries of a crucial tool for information and organization," the letter said. "Twitter's position that freedom of expression is interpreted differently from country to country is unacceptable."

Reporters Without Borders noted that Twitter was earning praise from free-speech advocates a year ago for enabling Egyptian dissidents to continue tweeting after the Internet was disconnected.

"We are very disappointed by this U-turn now," it said.

Twitter said it has no plans to remove tweets unless it receives a request from government officials, companies or another outside party that believes the message is illegal. No message will be removed until an internal review determines there is a legal problem, according to Macgilliviray.

"It's a thing of last resort," he said. "The first thing we do is we try to make sure content doesn't get withheld anywhere. But if we feel like we have to withhold it, then we are transparent and we will withhold it narrowly."

Macgilliviray said the new policy has nothing to do with a recent $300 million investment by Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Mac or any other financial contribution.

In its brief existence, Twitter has established itself as one of the world's most powerful megaphones. Streams of tweets have played pivotal roles in political protests throughout the world, including the Occupy Wall Street movement in the United States and the Arab Spring uprisings in Egypt, Bahrain, Tunisia and Syria.

Indeed, many of the tweets calling for a boycott of Twitter on Saturday ? using the hashtag (hash)TwitterBlackout ? came from the Middle East.

"This decision is really worrying," said Larbi Hilali, a pro-democracy blogger and tweeter from Morocco. "If it is applied, there will be a Twitter for democratic countries and a Twitter for the others."

In Cuba, opposition blogger Yoani Sanchez said she would protest Saturday with a one-day personal boycott of Twitter.

"Twitter will remove messages at the request of governments," she tweeted. "It is we citizens who will end up losing with these new rules ... ."

In the wake of the announcement, cyberspace was abuzz with suggestions for how any future country-specific censorship could be circumvented. Some Twitter users said this could be done by employing tips from Twitter's own help center to alter one's "Country" setting. Other Twitter users were skeptical that this would work.

While Twitter has embraced its role as a catalyst for free speech, it also wants to expand its audience from about 100 million active users now to more than 1 billion. Doing so may require it to engage with more governments and possibly to face more pressure to censor tweets; if it defies a law in a country where it has employees, those people could be arrested.

Theoretically, such arrests could occur even in democracies ? for example, if a tweet violated Britain's strict libel laws or the prohibitions in France and Germany against certain pro-Nazi expressions.

"It's a tough problem that a company faces once they branch out beyond one set of offices in California into that big bad world out there," said Rebecca MacKinnon of Global Voices Online, an international network of bloggers and citizen journalists. "We'll have to see how it plays out ? how it is and isn't used."

MacKinnon said some other major social networks already employ geo-filtering along the lines of Twitter's new policy ? blocking content in a specific jurisdiction for legal reasons while making it available elsewhere.

Many of the critics assailing the new policy suggested that it was devised as part of a long-term plan for Twitter to enter China, where its service is currently blocked.

China's Communist Party remains highly sensitive to any organized challenge to its rule and responded sharply to the Arab Spring, cracking down last year after calls for a "Jasmine Revolution" in China. Many Chinese nonetheless find ways around the so-called Great Firewall that has blocked social networking sites such as Facebook.

Google for several years agreed to censor its search results in China to gain better access to the country's vast population, but stopped that practice two years after engaging in a high-profile showdown with Chain's government. Google now routes its Chinese search results through Hong Kong, where the censorship rules are less restrictive.

Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt declined to comment on Twitter's action and instead limited his comments to his own company.

"I can assure you we will apply our universally tough principles against censorship on all Google products," he told reporters in Davos, Switzerland.

Google's chief legal officer, David Drummond, said it was a matter of trying to adhere to different local laws.

"I think what they (Twitter officials) are wrestling with is what all of us wrestle with ? and everyone wants to focus on China, but it is actually a global issue ? which is laws in these different countries vary," Drummond said.

"Americans tend to think copyright is a real bad problem, so we have to regulate that on the Internet. In France and Germany, they care about Nazis' issues and so forth," he added. "In China, there are other issues that we call censorship. And so how you respect all the laws or follow all the laws to the extent you think they should be followed while still allowing people to get the content elsewhere?"

Craig Newman, a New York lawyer and former journalist who has advised Internet companies on censorship issues, said Twitter's new policy and the subsequent backlash are both understandable, given the difficult ethical issues at stake.

On one hand, he said, Twitter could put its employees in peril if it was deemed to be breaking local laws.

"On the other hand, Twitter has become this huge social force and people view it as some sort of digital town square, where people can say whatever they want," he said. "Twitter could have taken a stand and refused to enter any countries with the most restrictive laws against free speech."

___

Associated Press writers Paul Schemm in Rabat, Morocco; Michael Liedtke in San Francisco; Peter Orsi in Havana, Cuba; Cara Anna in New York and Ben Hubbard in Cairo contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tech/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120128/ap_on_hi_te/us_twitter_censorship

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HP Officejet Pro 8100 ePrinter

Whatever capabilities you associate with ink jet printers, odds are you're in for a surprise with the HP Officejet Pro 8100 ePrinter ($149.99 direct).? The one point that should match your expectations is the low initial cost.? Beyond that, it's faster than many inexpensive color lasers, offers better paper handling than many, and prints at a lower cost per page.? The combination makes it one of the few inkjets that can go head to head (or toe to toe) with a color laser and wind up as the better choice for a micro or small office or busy home office.? That's enough to make it an Editors' Choice as well.

The 8100 is basically the Editors' Choice HP Officejet Pro 8600 Plus e-All-in-One ($299.99 direct, 4.5 stars) without the MFP features.? More significantly, it's also directly competitive with the Editors' Choice Epson WorkForce Pro WP-4020 ($149.99 direct, 4.5 stars), with similar print speed and output quality.? The 8100 and WP-4020 are so close in capability, in fact, that we can't in all good conscience pick one as the definitively preferred choice over the other.? Both are equally impressive, and the best choice for you will depend on relatively minor issues.

The difference in paper handling is a good example.? Both printers come with a 250-sheet tray and built in duplexing, but the WP-4020 adds a second tray for another 80 sheets, giving it a higher capacity.? On the other hand the 8100 offers a second 250-sheet tray as an option ($79.99 direct), giving you the potential for a higher capacity still.? Which printer gets the nod for better paper handling depends on whether you need a second tray, and?if so?whether an 80-sheet tray will be sufficient. ?

Most other differences are similarly subtle.? The WP-2040 offers slightly better image quality, for example, while the 8100 offers slightly better speed.? In both cases, though, the key word is slightly.

Basics, Setup, and Speed
As you might guess from its paper capacity, the 8100 is pretty hefty for an inkjet, at 24.2 pounds.? Assuming you have enough flat space for its 19.5 by 18.9 inch footprint, however, setup is standard fare.? For my tests I connected it to a wired network and installed the drivers on a Windows Vista system.? You can also connect by WiFi?or USB of course.?

In addition, the printer supports Apple AirPrint for printing from iThings over WiFi and HP ePrint for printing through the cloud.? HP ePrint assigns the printer an email address so you can print from anywhere, and from any device with email, by sending it the documents to print as attachments to email messages.?

Not too surprisingly, considering its relationship to the 8600 Plus, the 8100 turned in equally impressive, and nearly identical, results for speed.? I timed it on our business applications suite (using QualityLogic's hardware and software for timing) at 5.9 effective pages per minute (ppm).? That's tied with the 8600 Plus and also essentially tied with the Epson WP-4020 at 5.6 ppm. ?More notably, the 8100 is faster than the laser-class Editors' Choice Dell 1350cnw Color LED Printer ($299 direct, 4 stars), at 4.9 ppm.? It also did reasonably well for photo speed, averaging 55 seconds for a 4 by 6.

Output Quality and Other Issues
The 8100?s output quality isn't as impressive as its speed, but it's good enough across the board so that it doesn't lose any points for quality.? As with the 8600 Plus, the text is suitable for almost any business use, as long as you don't have an unusual need for small fonts.? The text is also water resistant, smudging very little when I rubbed it with a wet tissue.

Graphics quality is easily good enough for any internal business need.? I saw some slight banding in full-page graphics, but depending on your level of perfectionism, you might even consider it good enough for, say, PowerPoint handouts.? Photos were easily a match for what you'd expect from drugstore prints, making them more than good enough for any business need.?

One last important strong point is the low claimed running cost, at 1.6 cents per black and white page and 7.2 cents per color page.? That's a lot less expensive than most competitive ink jets or lasers.? It's also a match for the WP-4020 for black and white pages, and a half-cent savings per color page.

As should be obvious, if you're thinking about buying a low-end color laser, you should be seriously considering the HP Officejet Pro 8100 ePrinter?and also the Epson WP-4020?as alternatives.? Not only are both printers a lot cheaper to buy than comparable lasers, they're cheaper to run and faster too.? Between the two of them, you may find a feature in one or the other that makes it the better choice for your office, but they're so closely matched that most people could pick either one and not be disappointed.? Like the WP-4020, the HP Officejet Pro 8100 ePrinter is an impressive option for a small or micro office, and equally convincing as Editors' Choice.

?More inkjet printer reviews:

??? HP Officejet Pro 8100 ePrinter
??? Epson WorkForce WF-845
??? Brother MFC-J280w
??? Epson WorkForce Pro WP-4020
??? Brother MFC-J625dw
?? more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/LeHzGG-BFCg/0,2817,2399429,00.asp

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Sources: No rescue planned for kidnapped American

By NBC News' Jim Miklaszewski and Courtney Kube

WASHINGTON - American officials told NBC News on Friday that they were "aware" of Somali pirates' threats to kill an American hostage they had grabbed over the weekend, but for now the Pentagon and U.S. military has no plans?to try and rescue him.

The American, Michael Scott Moore, who wrote a book on surfing, was in Somalia gathering material for another book on modern-day pirates when he was kidnapped by 15 armed men on Saturday.

A pirate commander was reportedly in charge of negotiating Moore's release, although it was unclear whether a precise ransom demand had been made.

The Navy SEALs caught the kidnappers by surprise, parachuting to the ground two miles away from their target. They killed all nine of the kidnappers, and rescued Jessica Buchanan and Poul Thisted who had been held since October 2011. NBC's Jim Miklaszewski reports.

Following the rescue of American aid worker Jessica Buchanan and her Danish colleague Poul Thisted this week, Moore's kidnappers threatened to kill him if the United States tried something similar.

There's was no indication, however, that a similar American mission is in the works.

As a rule, the U.S. military is "not in the business of hostage rescues," a senior official told NBC News.? The officials spoke to NBC on condition of anonymity.

The American official said the decision to launch a rescue is made on a "case-by-case basis" and depended on the circumstances at hand.

Several factors led to the decision to try and rescue of Buchanan, U.S. officials told NBC.? Firstly, the kidnappers themselves claimed that Buchanan was suffering from a potentially fatal health condition. Also, Somalia was largely lawless and there was little or no hope that local security forces would be able to track down the kidnappers and free their captives.

Finally, the group holding Buchanan was a fairly disorganized band of "criminals and thugs" making it a somewhat easy targets for the Navy Seals that saved her, the officials said.? Given the public relations blitz already launched by Moore's kidnappers and their open threats to kill him, recovering him would be a much riskier mission, they added.

More from msnbc.com and NBC News:

Source: http://worldnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/27/10251033-sources-no-rescue-planned-for-american-kidnapped-in-somalia

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Worst News Story of 2012? (Powerlineblog)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories News, RSS and RSS Feed via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/192034081?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Celeb birthdays for the week of Jan. 29-Feb. 4 (omg!)

Jan. 29: Actor-singer Noel Harrison is 78. Actress Katharine Ross is 72. Actor Tom Selleck is 67. Singer Bettye LaVette is 66. Actor Marc Singer is 64. Actress Ann Jillian is 62. Drummer Tommy Ramone of The Ramones is 60. Drummer Louie Perez of Los Lobos is 59. Singer Charlie Wilson of The Gap Band is 59. Talk-show host Oprah Winfrey is 58. Country singer Irlene Mandrell is 56. Actress Diane Delano ("The Ellen Show," ''Northern Exposure") is 55. Actress Judy Norton Taylor ("The Waltons") is 54. Guitarist Johnny Spampinato (NRBQ) is 53. Drummer David Baynton-Power of James is 51. Bassist Eddie Jackson of Queensryche is 51. Actor Nicholas Turturro is 50. Singer-guitarist Roddy Frame of Aztec Camera is 48. Director-actor Ed Burns is 44. Actress Heather Graham is 42. Actor Sharif Atkins is 37. Actress Sara Gilbert is 37. Actor Andrew Keegan ("Party of Five") is 33. Guitarist Jonny Lang is 31.

Jan. 30: Actor Gene Hackman is 82. Actress Tammy Grimes is 78. Actress Vanessa Redgrave is 75. Country singer Jeanne Pruett is 75. Country singer Norma Jean is 74. Singer Marty Balin of Jefferson Airplane/Jefferson Starship is 70. Horn player William King of The Commodores is 63. Musician Phil Collins is 61. Actor Charles S. Dutton ("Roc") is 61. Comedian Brett Butler ("Grace Under Fire") is 54. Singer Jody Watley is 53. Country singer Tammy Cochran is 40. Actor Christian Bale is 38. Singer Josh Kelley is 32. Actor Wilmer Valderrama is 32. Actor Jake Thomas ("Lizzie McGuire," ''AI") is 22.

Jan. 31: Actress Carol Channing is 91. Actor Stuart Margolin ("The Rockford Files") is 72. Actress Jessica Walter ("Arrested Development") is 71. Actor Glynn Turman ("The Wire," ''A Different World") is 66. Singer Harry Wayne Casey of KC and the Sunshine Band is 61. Singer Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols is 56. Actor Anthony LaPaglia is 53. Actress Kelly Lynch is 53. Singer-guitarist Lloyd Cole is 51. Guitarist Jeff Hanneman of Slayer is 48. Bassist Al Jaworski of Jesus Jones is 46. Actress Minnie Driver is 42. Actress Portia de Rossi is 39. Actress Kerry Washington ("Ray") is 35. Singer Justin Timberlake is 31.

Feb. 1: Actor Stuart Whitman is 84. Actor-comedian Garrett Morris is 75. Singer Don Everly of The Everly Brothers is 75. Singer Ray Sawyer of Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show is 75. Actor Sherman Hemsley is 74. Jazz pianist Joe Sample is 73. Bluegrass singer Del McCoury is 73. Actor-writer-director Terry Jones (Monty Python) is 70. Guitarist Mike Campbell of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers is 62. Actor-writer-producer Billy Mumy ("Lost in Space") is 58. Singer Exene Cervenka of X is 56. Keyboardist Dwayne Dupuy of Ricochet is 47. Actress Sherilyn Fenn is 47. Singer Lisa Marie Presley is 44. Comedian Pauly Shore is 44. Drummer Patrick Wilson of Weezer is 43. Actor Michael C. Hall is 41. Rapper Big Boi of Outkast is 37. TV personality Lauren Conrad is 26.

Feb. 2: Actress Elaine Stritch is 87. Actor Robert Mandan ("Soap," ''Three's a Crowd") is 80. Comedian Tom Smothers is 75. Singer Graham Nash is 70. Actor Bo Hopkins is 70. Singer Howard Bellamy of the Bellamy Brothers is 66. TV chef Ina Garten ("Barefoot Contessa") is 64. Actor Brent Spiner ("Star Trek: The Next Generation") is 63. Bassist Ross Valory of Journey is 63. Model Christie Brinkley is 58. Actor Michael Talbott ("Miami Vice") is 57. Actress Kim Zimmer ("Guiding Light") is 57. Bassist Robert DeLeo of Stone Temple Pilots is 46. Actress Jennifer Westfeldt ("Kissing Jessica Stein") is 42. Rapper T-Mo (Goodie Mob) is 40. Actress Marissa Jaret Winokur is 39. Singer Shakira is 35.

Feb. 3: Comedian Shelley Berman is 87. Actress Blythe Danner is 69. Singer Dennis Edwards (The Temptations) is 69. Guitarist Dave Davies of The Kinks is 65. Singer Melanie is 65. Actress Morgan Fairchild is 62. Actor Nathan Lane is 56. Guitarist Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth is 56. Actor Thomas Calabro ("Melrose Place") is 53. Actress Michele Greene ("L.A. Law") is 50. Country singer Matraca Berg is 48. Actress Maura Tierney ("ER," ''NewsRadio") is 47. Singer Daddy Yankee is 36. Singer Jessica Harp (The Wreckers) is 30. Rapper Sean Kingston is 22.

Feb. 4: Actor Conrad Bain ("Diff'rent Strokes") is 89. Comedian David Brenner is 76. Actor Gary Conway ("Burke's Law") is 76. Drummer John Steel of The Animals is 71. Singer Florence LaRue of the Fifth Dimension is 68. Singer Alice Cooper is 64. Actor Michael Beck is 63. Actress Lisa Eichhorn is 60. Singer Tim Booth of James is 52. Country singer Clint Black is 50. Guitarist Noodles of The Offspring is 49. Country bassist Dave Buchanan of Yankee Grey is 46. Bassist Rick Burch of Jimmy Eat World is 37. Singer Natalie Imbruglia is 37. Rapper Cam'ron is 36. Singer Gavin DeGraw is 35.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/entertainment/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/external/omg_rss/rss_omg_en/news_celeb_birthdays_week_jan29_feb_4_060214720/44309930/*http%3A//omg.yahoo.com/news/celeb-birthdays-week-jan-29-feb-4-060214720.html

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Zynga Brings Social Gaming To The Bingo Hall With Newest Facebook Title

There's been one trend we've been noticing over the past few years when it comes to Zynga's game development strategy. The social gaming giant likes to re-create classic games like Hangman or hidden puzzles and add social elements for gameplay. We saw this with the release of Hanging With Friends, Scramble With Friends, Hidden Chronicles. And As Zynga revealed in October, next up is Bingo. Today, the company is revealing its social take on Bingo via a Facebook game, which will be joining Zynga Poker in Zynga?s newest franchise, Zynga Casino. Currently, the game is in private beta but will be launching to the public soon. In terms of actual gameplay, Zynga Bingo works similarly to the way an ordinary bingo game works. And if you've played Zynga Poker before, the game mechanics and nuances will feel familiar to you as well. As numbers are called out in the game, you cross off those that match on your card, with the winner being the first person who reaches a consecutive pattern on the card from the drawn numbers.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/S0QhwlHjMCQ/

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Egypt bans travel for US official's son, 9 others

An Egyptian protester reads a local newspaper as he sits in Tahrir Square, in Cairo, Egypt, Thursday, Jan. 26, 2012. Egyptian protesters camp in Tahrir Square as they mark the first anniversary of the popular uprising that unseated President Hosni Mubarak. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

An Egyptian protester reads a local newspaper as he sits in Tahrir Square, in Cairo, Egypt, Thursday, Jan. 26, 2012. Egyptian protesters camp in Tahrir Square as they mark the first anniversary of the popular uprising that unseated President Hosni Mubarak. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

An Egyptian protester sleeps in Tahrir Square, in Cairo, Egypt, Thursday, Jan. 26, 2012. Egyptian protesters camp in Tahrir Square as they mark the first anniversary of the popular uprising that unseated President Hosni Mubarak. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

An Egyptian protester prays next to a tent with a poster of a man killed by the security forces during the revolution with Arabic writing that reads " Shihab Al-Din Ahmed, the martyr of freedom", in Tahrir Square, in Cairo, Egypt, Thursday, Jan. 26, 2012. Egyptian protesters camp in Tahrir Square as they mark the first anniversary of the popular uprising that unseated President Hosni Mubarak. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

An Egyptian protester sits in Tahrir Square, in Cairo, Egypt, Thursday, Jan. 26, 2012. Egyptian protesters camp in Tahrir Square as they mark the first anniversary of the popular uprising that unseated President Hosni Mubarak. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

CAIRO (AP) ? Egypt banned at least 10 Americans and Europeans from leaving the country, including the son of U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray Lahood, hiking tensions with Washington over a campaign by Egypt's military against groups promoting democracy and human rights.

The United States warned Thursday that the campaign raised concerns about Egypt's transition to democracy and could jeopardize American aid that Egypt's battered economy needs badly after a year of unrest.

The travel ban was part of an Egyptian criminal investigation into foreign-funded democracy organizations after soldiers raided the offices of 10 such groups last month, including those of two American groups.

The investigation is closely intertwined with Egypt's political turmoil since the fall of Hosni Mubarak nearly a year ago. The generals who took power have accused "foreign hands" of being behind protests against their rule and they frequently depict the protesters themselves as receiving foreign funds in a plot to destabilize the country.

Egyptian opponents of the military say the generals are trying to smear the protesters in the eyes of the public and silence organizations they fear will undermine their managing of the country.

Also startling is the military's willingness to clash with its longtime top ally, the United States, over the issue, particularly since the army itself receives more than $1 billion a year from Washington. The December raids brought sharp U.S. criticism, and last week President Barack Obama spoke by telephone with Egyptian military chief Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi to emphasize "the role that these organizations can play in civil society," according to State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland on Thursday.

The ban became public after Sam LaHood, Egypt director of the Washington-based International Republican Institute, went to Cairo's airport Saturday to catch a flight and was told by an immigration official that he couldn't leave.

"I asked her why I was denied, she said she didn't know. I asked how to fix it, and she said she didn't know," said LaHood, 36. An hour later, a man in civilian clothes gave him back his passport and escorted him to the curb, LaHood said.

"It's a dark signal for groups who are interested in doing this kind of work," he said.

LaHood's father, a former congressman from Illinois, is the only Republican in Obama's Cabinet. The elder LaHood declined to comment.

The IRI was among the groups raided last month, along with the National Democratic Institute and a number of Egyptian organizations. Both American groups, linked to the political parties of the same name, monitored Egypt's recent parliamentary elections. In the raids, troops ransacked 17 offices of the 10 organizations around the country, carting away computers and documents.

The Egyptian government said the raids were part of a legitimate investigation into whether the groups were operating legally.

Sen. John McCain blasted Egypt's handling of the issue Thursday, warning that continued restrictions on civil society groups "could set back the long-standing partnership between the United States and Egypt."

IRI and NDI officials said they have been trying since 2005 to register as required by law, but were left in legal limbo, never officially denied nor granted permission. Both groups continued to operate while keeping authorities abreast of their activities, they said. Many Egyptian non-governmental organizations say officials often keep their groups in such limbo to maintain a threat over their heads.

Sam LaHood said he was told by his lawyer that he is under investigation on suspicion of managing an unregistered NGO and receiving "funds" from an unregistered NGO, namely, his salary.

Two other Americans and a European with IRI have also been banned from travel, Lahood said his lawyer had been told. From the National Democratic Institute, three Americans and three Serb employees are also on the list, according to its Egypt director Lisa Hughes.

Hughes, who is among those barred, said she has been interrogated for more than four hours about her group's work and that she had planned to fly to the U.S. next month before she heard about the ban.

"I think we would be silly not to be concerned," she said. "We were concerned the moment armed men showed up at our office door, and this has done nothing to calm those concerns."

The State Department's top human rights official, Michael Posner, told reporters in Cairo Thursday that such moves could jeopardize U.S. aid to Egypt, one of the biggest recipients.

"All need to have the ability to operate openly, freely, without constraint, not based on the content of their work," he said.

Posner pointed to recent U.S. legislation that blocks annual aid to Egypt unless it takes certain steps. These include abiding by its 1979 peace treaty with Israel, holding free and fair elections and "implementing policies to protect freedom of expression, association and religion and due process of law."

"Obviously, any action that creates tension between our governments makes the whole package more difficult," Posner said.

The U.S. is due to give $1.3 billion in military assistance and $250 million in economic aid to Egypt in 2012. Washington has given Egypt an average of $2 billion in economic and military aid a year since 1979, according to the Congressional Research Service.

Egypt's military has been locked in a confrontation for months with protesters who demand it immediately hand over power to civilians.

Hundreds of protesters camped Thursday in Cairo's central Tahrir Square, a day after several hundred thousand people massed there to mark the one-year anniversary of the 18-day anti-Mubarak uprising.

Thursday evening, hundreds moved from Tahrir and rallied in front of the state TV building, beating drums as they chanted for the "liberation" of state-run media from the military's control. They projected video footage of soldiers beating protesters onto the building.

State TV has been a mouthpiece of the military, broadcasting its accusations against protesters. Activists demand it be restructured as an independent media institution.

"The media is still manipulated and projects the same lies," said protester Mahmoud Ragab. "We will be here everyday to let them know it is a revolution."

___

Associated Press writer Sarah El Deeb contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-01-26-ML-Egypt/id-5b6fa1b968174c8a8a81712d020cbbb9

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Wounded British servicemen row across Atlantic

By NBC News

A group of?British servicemen?completed an epic voyage across the Atlantic on Wednesday, landing in Barbados to?enthusiastic cheers.

The six-man row2recovery team included four men?who lost limbs serving in?Iraq or Afghanistan. The men?took?51 days to?cross from the Canary Islands, battling a number of setbacks, including a broken rudder and lack of fresh water.

See their arrival below:

It's taken 51 days to row 3,000 miles across the Atlantic, and they've suffered setback after setback. But finally, they did it. A team of injured British servicemen completed their epic row across the Atlantic. ITN's Nina Nanar reports.

More from msnbc.com and NBC News:

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Source: http://worldnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/25/10237161-wounded-british-servicemen-row-across-atlantic

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Rescue operations resume on ship off Italian coast (AP)

GIGLIO, Italy ? Divers have set off two controlled explosions on the toppled Costa Concordia cruise ship as rescue operations resumed following a brief halt during the night because of bad weather.

Workers also kept up preparations to remove a half-million gallons (1.9 million liters) of fuel from the ship before it leaks into the Tuscan sea. Pumping is expected to begin Saturday.

Spokesman Martin Schuttevaer said "based on what we have seen the position of the tanks are in line with what we expected."

The Concordia ran aground and capsized off the island of Giglio on Jan. 13 after the captain veered from his approved course and gashed the ship's hull on a reef, forcing the panicked evacuation of 4,200 passengers and crew.

Rescuers have found 16 bodies, with 17 people are still unaccounted for.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120125/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_italy_cruise_aground

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Drug May Slow Early Prostate Cancer: Study (HealthDay)

TUESDAY, Jan. 24 (HealthDay News) -- New research suggests that Avodart, a drug used to treat an enlarged prostate gland, may help slow the progression of early stage prostate cancer, reducing the need for aggressive treatment in some men.

Prostate cancer can grow and spread slowly, which is why some men are urged to engage in so-called watchful waiting when the cancer is first diagnosed. Avodart (dutasteride) may help such men feel comfortable with surveillance as opposed to radical treatment, the researchers noted.

"The concept of active surveillance is gaining traction in most parts of the world," said study author Dr. Neil E. Fleshner, head of the division of urology at the Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto. Still, some men are uncomfortable with doing nothing in the face of a cancer diagnosis, he said. "By using this drug, we can improve the proportion of men who remain committed to the surveillance."

The findings are published online Jan. 25 in The Lancet.

According to the U.S. National Cancer Institute, one out of every six men in the United States will develop prostate cancer in his lifetime. But because many of those cancers are low-grade, most will die of something else.

Avodart belongs to a class of drugs called 5-alpha reductase inhibitors. These drugs work by interfering with the effects of certain male hormones on the prostate. In the three-year study, prostate cancer progressed in 38 percent of 144 men with early prostate cancer who were treated with Avodart and 48 percent of the 145 men who received a placebo.

Men seem less anxious about the cancer diagnosis when they are doing something more proactive, Fleshner said. "The drug augments active surveillance and avoids most of the side effects associated with surgery and radiation," he said. Prostate removal surgery and/or radiation can lead to impotence and incontinence, he said.

The medication does have side effects, however, including reversible breast enlargement and tenderness and some sexual dysfunction.

"We know that we are over-treating prostate cancer," said Dr. Louis Potters, chairman of radiation medicine at North Shore University Hospital and Long Island Jewish Medical Center in Manhasset, N.Y.

"In the U.S., patients have a tendency to hear the word 'cancer,' and want to treat it right away," he said. "In these men with early prostate cancer, we can now say, 'Let's put you on this medication, and see what happens over the next couple of months.'"

However, some experts have concerns about 5-alpha reductase inhibitors. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently issued a warning that men who take these drugs to treat enlarged prostate glands may be at increased risk for high-grade prostate cancer.

Dr. Ryan Terlecki, an assistant professor of urology at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, N.C., said this may dampen enthusiasm for use of the drug to treat cancer.

"The overall role that these medications will play for urologists will decrease," Terlecki said. Doctors will likely begin looking toward noninvasive and/or non-medical treatments such as the use of thermal heat to cope with some of the symptoms of prostate conditions, he added.

More information

Learn more about prostate cancer at the American Cancer Society.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/diseases/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20120124/hl_hsn/drugmayslowearlyprostatecancerstudy

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