Sunday, March 31, 2013

10 Things to Know for Monday

Kaufman County Sheriff David Byrnes, right, speaks at a news conference, Sunday, March 31, 2013, in Kaufman, Texas. On Saturday, Kaufman County District Attorney Mike McLelland and his wife, Cynthia, were murdered in their home. (AP Photo/Mike Fuentes)

Kaufman County Sheriff David Byrnes, right, speaks at a news conference, Sunday, March 31, 2013, in Kaufman, Texas. On Saturday, Kaufman County District Attorney Mike McLelland and his wife, Cynthia, were murdered in their home. (AP Photo/Mike Fuentes)

FILE - In this March 25, 2013 file photo, Kris Kitko leads chants of protest at an abortion-rights rally at the state Capitol in Bismarck, N.D. Rival legal teams, each well-financed and highly motivated, are girding for high-stakes court battles over the coming months on laws enacted in Arkansas and North Dakota that would impose the nation's toughest bans on abortion. The Arkansas law, approved March 6 when legislators overrode a veto by Democratic Gov. Mike Beebe, would ban most abortions from the 12th week of pregnancy onward. On March 26, North Dakota went even further, with Republican Gov. Jack Dalrymple signing a measure that would ban abortions as early as six weeks into a pregnancy, when a fetal heartbeat can first be detected. (AP Photo/James MacPherson, File)

Trainers check on Louisville guard Kevin Ware (5) after Ware injured his lower right leg during the first half of the Midwest Regional final against Duke in the NCAA college basketball tournament, Sunday, March 31, 2013, in Indianapolis. Ware left the court on a stretcher. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Your daily look at late-breaking news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about Monday:

1. GUNNED-DOWN TEXAS DA KNEW HE WAS AT RISK

Mike McLelland told the AP that he carried a gun everywhere, even to walk his dog around town, a bedroom community for the Dallas area.

2. COURT BATTLES COMING OVER ABORTION LAWS

Tough laws in North Dakota, Arkansas challenge the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision.

3. HOW TO SELL THE U.S. ON OBAMA'S HEALTH CARE LAW

The administration turned to the science of mass marketing to craft pitches aimed at convincing the uninsured.

4. LONG PATH TO U.S. IMMIGRATION BILL

Despite a key agreement between business and labor groups, lawmakers from both parties say negotiations aren't finished.

5. WHERE MANDELA SPENT EASTER

The 94-year-old is in a hospital receiving treatment for a recurrence of pneumonia.

6. WHO FACES TRIAL IN WISCONSIN TO DETERMINE SANITY IN KILLINGS

Aaron Schaffhausen has conceded guilt in the grisly deaths of his three girls, but maintains he's not responsible due to mental illness.

7. ABBAS CLAMPS DOWN ON CRITICS

The Palestinian leader's government in the West Bank has interrogated, prosecuted, even jailed journalists and bloggers for allegedly 'defaming' him.

8. THESE WORKPLACES INCLUDE BIKE SHOPS, LEGO STATIONS, ARCADES

This spring, as the tech industry soars out of the Great Recession, plans are in the works for a flurry of massive, perk-laden headquarters at Yahoo, Google and other Silicon Valley companies.

9. WHEN OPENING DAY IS ABOUT MORE THAN BASEBALL

For nearly 150 years, Cincinnati has celebrated the new season with parades, parties and concerts.

10. FRIGHTENING INJURY EN ROUTE TO FINAL FOUR

Louisville's Kevin Ware breaks leg, but teammates carry on to defeat Duke and reach big dance. Michigan, Syracuse, Wichita State also punch their tickets.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-03-31-10%20Things%20to%20Know-Monday/id-48dbc523b72f48c59004b0d114c56f2b

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Reward for dead California fugitive policeman shrinks

(Reuters) - A second group has pulled its money from a pooled $1.2 million reward offered during a manhunt for a renegade former California policeman who died in a fiery standoff, a Los Angeles television station said.

The Peace Officers Research Association of California withdrew the $50,000 it pledged for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Christopher Dorner, KNBC said.

An official for the association, which represents 64,000 police union members, told the television station on Friday that the conditions for the reward had not been met because Dorner was not arrested.

On Monday, the city of Riverside, California, pulled its $100,000 contribution to the reward pool for similar reasons. It said its offer was contingent on Dorner's capture.

Dorner had been fired from the Los Angeles Police Department and was accused of killing four people in a vendetta against police. He shot and killed himself in a burning cabin in the mountains above Los Angeles during a standoff with police on February 12.

Dozens of groups and municipalities pledged money for the reward during the intense nine-day manhunt, and a payout announcement is expected in mid-April.

At least three people have submitted claims for the reward. Karen and Jim Reynolds called police after Dorner tied them up in their Big Bear Lake condominium and fled in their SUV shortly before his death.

Dorner crashed their SUV and carjacked a pickup truck from another man, Rick Heltebrake, who also called authorities, and has submitted a reward claim.

(Reporting by Jane Sutton; editing by Jackie Frank)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/reward-dead-california-fugitive-policeman-shrinks-165401317.html

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Thursday, March 28, 2013

Judge approves American-US Airways merger

FILE - American Airlines and US Airways jets prepare for flight at gate at the Philadelphia International Airport, in this Feb. 14, 2013 file photo taken in Philadelphia. The merger of US Airways and American Airlines has been arroved by the bankruptcy court Wednesday March 27, 2013 giving birth to a mega airline with more passengers than any other in the world. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

FILE - American Airlines and US Airways jets prepare for flight at gate at the Philadelphia International Airport, in this Feb. 14, 2013 file photo taken in Philadelphia. The merger of US Airways and American Airlines has been arroved by the bankruptcy court Wednesday March 27, 2013 giving birth to a mega airline with more passengers than any other in the world. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

FILE - From left; US Airways Group Chairman and CEO Douglas Parker with American Airlines and AMR Corporation, Chairman, President and CEO Thomas Horton, and American Antitrust Institute Director and Vice President Diana Moss, testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, in this March 19, 2013 file photo, before the Senate subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights. American Airlines won bankruptcy court approval Wednesday March 27, 2013 to combine with US Airways and form the world's biggest airline. But the judge declined to sign off on a proposed $20 million severance package for Tom Horton, currently the CEO of American's parent AMR Corp. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)

NEW YORK (AP) ? American Airlines won bankruptcy court approval Wednesday to combine with US Airways and form the world's biggest airline.

"The merger is an excellent result. I don't think anybody disputes that," Judge Sean H. Lane said before issuing his decision.

But the judge declined to sign off on a proposed $20 million severance package for Tom Horton, currently the CEO of American's parent AMR Corp.

The approval is an important milestone for American, which filed for Chapter 11 in November 2011 after having long resisted using the bankruptcy process to cut labor and other costs. The merger still needs approval from Department of Justice antitrust regulators and US Airways shareholders. It is expected to close by the fall.

The combined airline will have 6,700 daily flights and annual revenue of roughly $40 billion. The new American Airlines will fly slightly more passengers than United, the current No. 1. It will be run by Doug Parker, the CEO of US Airways Group Inc., who began pursuing a merger shortly after American entered bankruptcy protection.

The U.S. trustee, a federal bankruptcy watchdog, had objected to the severance package for Horton. While he didn't question the amount, Lane agreed that the timing of it seemed to violate prohibitions in the bankruptcy law.

"Approving it today is just not appropriate," Lane said. The judge plans to issue a written decision at a later date detailing his reasoning.

Horton has spent nearly his entire career at American, becoming CEO when the company filed for bankruptcy. Horton will cede the CEO position to Parker when the deal closes, and has agreed to leave the company's board within a year of the closing date.

In 2011, Horton was paid a salary of $618,135. He also got stock awards and options that were valued that year at nearly $2.7 million, but the company argued those could be nearly worthless after the bankruptcy reorganization. Figures for 2012 aren't yet available.

The proposed severance package includes $19.9 million in cash and stock as well as a lifetime of free first-class tickets on American for Horton and his wife.

Horton could still receive the payout. American's lawyers offered a possible solution during the hearing: American and US Airways would amend their merger agreement to say that Horton's severance would be subject to ratification of the board of directors of the new airline, after the merger closes.

Jack Butler, a lawyer with Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom, said he expects Horton to eventually get his payout. Butler's firm represents American's creditors, who support the merger.

"Tom has never made this case about himself, and I don't expect him to start now," Butler said.

In most bankruptcy cases, creditors lose part of the money they are owed. Thanks in part to the merger, creditors in this case will get back what they are owed. Onetime shareholders of AMR Corp. are slated to get a 3.5 percent of the new airline.

Separately, Lane approved a motion to extend American's exclusive period for filing a reorganization plan until May 29, the last such extension allowed under law. There is then a 60-day waiting period for creditors to object to the plan before Lane can sign off on American's emergence from bankruptcy protection.

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Airlines Writer David Koenig in Dallas contributed to this article.

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Scott Mayerowitz can be reached at http://twitter.com/GlobeTrotScott.

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Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2013-03-28-American%20Airlines-Bankruptcy/id-8c53cfb6230e4d599c2428ece1f4285c

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Wednesday, March 27, 2013

You don't 'own' your own genes: Researchers raise alarm about loss of individual 'genomic liberty' due to gene patents

Mar. 25, 2013 ? Humans don't "own" their own genes, the cellular chemicals that define who they are and what diseases they might be at risk for. Through more than 40,000 patents on DNA molecules, companies have essentially claimed the entire human genome for profit, report two researchers who analyzed the patents on human DNA.

Their study, published March 25 in the journal Genome Medicine, raises an alarm about the loss of individual "genomic liberty."

In their new analysis, the research team examined two types of patented DNA sequences: long and short fragments. They discovered that 41 percent of the human genome is covered by longer DNA patents that often cover whole genes. They also found that, because many genes share similar sequences within their genetic structure, if all of the "short sequence" patents were allowed in aggregate, they could account for 100 percent of the genome.

Furthermore, the study's lead author, Dr. Christopher E. Mason of Weill Cornell Medical College, and the study's co-author, Dr. Jeffrey Rosenfeld, an assistant professor of medicine at the University of Medicine & Dentistry of New Jersey and a member of the High Performance and Research Computing Group, found that short sequences from patents also cover virtually the entire genome -- even outside of genes.

"If these patents are enforced, our genomic liberty is lost," says Dr. Mason, an assistant professor of physiology and biophysics and computational genomics in computational biomedicine at the Institute for Computational Biomedicine at Weill Cornell. "Just as we enter the era of personalized medicine, we are ironically living in the most restrictive age of genomics. You have to ask, how is it possible that my doctor cannot look at my DNA without being concerned about patent infringement?"

The U.S. Supreme Court will review genomic patent rights in an upcoming hearing on April 15. At issue is the right of a molecular diagnostic company to claim patents not only on two key breast and ovarian cancer genes -- BRCA1 and BRCA2 -- but also on any small sequence of code within BRCA1, including a striking patent for only 15 nucleotides.

In its study, the research team matched small sequences within BRCA1 to other genes and found that just this one molecular diagnostic company's patents also covered at least 689 other human genes -- most of which have nothing to do with breast or ovarian cancer; rather, its patents cover 19 other cancers as well as genes involved in brain development and heart functioning.

"This means if the Supreme Court upholds the current scope of the patents, no physician or researcher can study the DNA of these genes from their patients, and no diagnostic test or drug can be developed based on any of these genes without infringing a patent," says Dr. Mason.

One Patented Sequence Matched More Than 91 Percent of Human Genes

Dr. Mason undertook the study because he realized that his research into brain and cancer disorders inevitably involved studying genes that were protected by patents.

Under U.S. patent law, genes can be patented by those researchers, either at companies or institutions, who are first to find a gene that promises a useful application, such as for a diagnostic test. For example, the patents received by a company in the 1990s on BRCA1 and BRCA2 enables it to offer a diagnostic test to women who may have, or may be at risk for, breast or ovarian cancer due to mutations in one or both of these genes. Women and their doctors have no choice but to use the services of the patents' owner, which costs $3,000 per test, "whereas any of the hundreds of clinical laboratories around the country could perform such a test for possibly much less," says Dr. Mason.

The impact on these patents is equally onerous on research, Dr. Mason adds.

"Almost every day, I come across a gene that is patented -- a situation that is common for every geneticist in every lab," says Dr. Mason.

Dr. Mason and his research partner sought to determine how many other genes may be impacted by gene patents, as well as the overall landscape of intellectual property on the human genome.

To conduct the study, Dr. Mason and Dr. Rosenfeld examined the structure of the human genome in the context of two types of patented sequences: short and long fragments of DNA. They used matches to known genes that were confirmed to be present in patent claims, ranging from as few as 15 nucleotides (the building blocks of DNA) to the full length of all patented DNA fragments.

Before examining the patented sequences, the researchers first calculated how many genes had common segments of 15 nucleotide (15mer), and found that every gene in the human genome matched at least one other gene in this respect, ranging from as few as five matches 15mer to as many as 7,688 gene matches. They also discovered that 99.999 percent of 15mers in the human genome are repeated at least twice.

"This demonstrates that short patent sequences are extremely non-specific and that a 15mer claim from one gene will always cross-match and patent a portion of another gene as well," says Dr. Mason. "This means it is actually impossible to have a 15mer patent for just one gene."

Next, researchers examined the total sequence space in human genes covered by 15mers in current patent claims. They found 58 patents whose claims covered at least 10 percent of all bases of all human genes. The broadest patent claimed sequences that matched 91.5 percent of human genes. Then, when they took existing gene patents and matched patented 15mers to known genes, they discovered that 100 percent of known genes are patented.

"There is a real controversy regarding gene ownership due to the overlap of many competing patent claims. It is unclear who really owns the rights to any gene," says Dr. Rosenfeld. "While the Supreme Court is hearing one case concerning just the BRCA1 patent, there are also many other patents whose claims would cover those same genes. Do we need to go through every gene to look at who made the first claim to that gene, even if only one small part? If we resort to this rule, then the first patents to be granted for any DNA will have a vast claim over portions of the human genome."

A further issue of concern is that patents on DNA can readily cross species boundaries. A company can have a patent that they received for cow breeding and have that patent cover a large percentage of human genes. Indeed, the researchers found that one company owns the rights to 84 percent of all human genes for a patent they received for cow breeding. "It seems silly that a patent designed to study cow genetics also claims the majority of human genes," says Dr. Rosenfeld.

Finally, they also examined the impact of longer claimed DNA sequences from existing gene patents, which ranged from a few dozen bases up to thousands of bases of DNA, and found that these long, claimed sequences matched 41 percent (9,361) of human genes. Their analysis concluded that almost all clinically relevant genes have already been patented, especially for short sequence patents, showing all human genes are patented many times over.

"This is, so to speak, patently ridiculous," adds Dr. Mason. "If patent claims that use these small DNA sequences are upheld, it could potentially create a situation where a piece of every gene in the human genome is patented by a phalanx of competing patents."

In their discussion, the researchers argue that the U.S. Supreme Court now has a chance to shape the balance between the medical good versus inventor protection, adding that, in their opinion, the court should limit the patenting of existing nucleotide sequences, due to their broad scope and non-specificity in the human genome.

"I am extremely pro-patent, but I simply believe that people should not be able to patent a product of nature," Dr. Mason says. "Moreover, I believe that individuals have an innate right to their own genome, or to allow their doctor to look at that genome, just like the lungs or kidneys. Failure to resolve these ambiguities perpetuates a direct threat to genomic liberty, or the right to one's own DNA."

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Weill Cornell Medical College.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


Journal Reference:

  1. Jeffrey Rosenfeld, and Christopher E Mason. Pervasive sequence patents cover the entire human genome. Genome Medicine, 2013 (in press) DOI: 10.1186/gm431

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_science/~3/jAfUr59mL1E/130326101614.htm

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Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Keepin' it real fake: the Star S5 Butterfly clones its HTC namesake, skips the good part

Keepin' it real fake the Star S5 Butterfly clones its HTC namesake, skips the good part

If you're going to engage in KIRF-ology, you could certainly do worse than HTC's lovely 5-inch slab of unibody plastic, the Butterfly. But if you want to sell it for $222.00, certain niceties have to go out the window -- like the signature 1080P screen, for instance. Star's slipped a 720P unit in there instead, while also downgrading the RAM to 1GB and swapping out Qualcomm's 1.5GHz quad-core CPU for a cheaper MediaTek model. The Chinese cloner's at least kept the other specs real, matching the kosher model's 8-megapixel rear and 3-megapixel front cameras, dual-sim option, SD card expansion slot and Android 4.2 software. Of course, nothing keeps costs down like not having to pay a designer -- and knowing that most of that pesky marketing's already been done for you.

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Five Easy Pieces of Energy Legislation

After half a decade in which the energy debate in Washington has been dominated by political posturing and produced almost no legislative action, both Democrats and Republicans who work on energy policy say they?re optimistic about prospects for a number of single-issue energy bills in this Congress.

The hope, they say, is that progress on some smaller-scale bills could restore the trust and relationships needed to build momentum for action on bigger bills.

Signs that something may be breaking loose in the energy deadlock come as members of Congress surprised even themselves last week by reaching bipartisan agreement on a stopgap budget bill absent the dramatic brinksmanship that has, until recently, dominated fiscal debate.

Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, the new Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee chairman, told National Journal Daily?he?s optimistic that, with the bitter politics of the presidential election behind them, lawmakers are now interested in actually passing legislation.

?What?s different now?beyond the fact that elections are a renewal?is that a very significant group of senators are coming up and saying, ?We?ve just got to find a way to move ahead on energy,? ? Wyden said. ?Energy can?t just be an ongoing polarized bickerfest where everyone sits around and throws rotten fruit at each other.?

There?s a growing urgency among lawmakers to take on energy policy, in particular, since energy?where it comes from, how much it costs, how many jobs it generates?is central to the health of the economy. Also growing is the desire to address the fossil-fuel pollution that contributes to global warming.

Congress last passed a major energy law in 2007, but the provisions of that law don?t do much to address today?s most pressing issues, including high oil prices, greenhouse-gas emissions, and surging energy?demand in countries such as China and India.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., has said he?d like to prioritize movement of energy bills in his chamber. And the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee has become a surprising oasis of bipartisan cooperation. Wyden and the panel?s top Republican, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, have developed what both senators call a warm, productive friendship, and the two are focused on forging bills that could gain enough support to pass the Senate with a 60-vote, filibuster-proof majority.

Wyden and Murkowski have also met in recent weeks with their House counterparts: House Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich.; his top lieutenant on energy issues, Rep. Ed Whitfield, R-Ky.; and staff from the office of House Energy and Commerce ranking member Henry Waxman, D-Calif. Such a meeting may sound like it should be commonplace on Capitol Hill, but participants said they couldn?t recall the last time they?d been in a serious policy meeting with members of both parties and both chambers.

For the past two years, House Republicans have focused on energy chiefly as a political-messaging issue. Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., has spearheaded those efforts. Before the election, that meant moving a nonstop parade of bills focused on aggressively expanding oil drilling while handcuffing the authority of the Environmental Protection Agency. The point, at the time, wasn?t to actually pass legislation (none of the bills had any chance of success in the Senate). It was to create talking points aimed at attacking Democrats running for office?particularly President Obama.

But now that the election is over, McCarthy is taking a different tack. His office has taken pains to point out that the first two energy bills that Republicans brought to the floor this year were not typical GOP ?drill, baby, drill? measures; they were renewable energy bills. The intention, McCarthy said, was to send a message that, on this issue, Republicans are prepared to work with Democrats.

?If we lead with something else, like drilling, and were criticized, they wouldn?t listen to the rest of our energy policy,? McCarthy said. ?Let?s first enter the places that we?re more united on. You crawl before you walk and you walk before your run. If you start out and build coalitions and build trust on both sides, we can keep doing the harder bills as we grow.?

Leaders in both parties and both chambers are quick to clarify that they don?t expect to see a major energy bill anytime soon?and that even single-issue energy proposals will meet plenty of obstacles. But they pointed to these five proposals as ideas that have legs.

Energy Efficiency

The House has started a bipartisan caucus aimed at passing energy efficiency legislation?bills that would require buildings that provide the same amount of light and heat with less fuel, for example. The leaders of the caucus have serious political chops: Republican Cory Gardner of Colorado has been designated by House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, to serve as a point man for the GOP on energy issues. Democrat Peter Welch of Vermont is a staunch liberal with close ties to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. And in the Senate, a bipartisan bill sponsored by Democrat Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Republican Rob Portman of Ohio is gaining traction. ?People are tired of gridlock,? Gardner told NJ Daily. ?You?re starting to see that frustration that members don?t have something to go home and show people. These energy bills are opportunities to show our constituents that we not only talk about it, we bring something home to show for it.?

Offshore Drilling

This issue is gaining traction thanks in part to the retirement of Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., former chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Bingaman did not oppose offshore drilling, but he did oppose the idea that coastal states should share a portion of the revenue generated by drilling in federal waters. The new Energy chairman, Wyden of Oregon, isn?t a big fan of offshore drilling, but he doesn?t object to proposals that send more money to coastal states. Murkowski, the panel?s ranking Republican, has introduced a bill with Democrat Mary Landrieu of Louisiana?that would expand offshore drilling, give coastal states a taste of the profit, and require some of the money to go toward development of renewable energy. The multi-pronged bill is drawing a mix of supporters?and is being taken seriously by leadership on both sides of the aisle.

Nuclear Waste Storage

This is another issue that?s gaining traction thanks to the push of local politics. The nation still has no solution for nuclear waste, which today is kept in temporary storage facilities at nuclear power plants across the country?a situation that?s viewed as dangerous and also expensive. The federal government, by law, was to have taken title to the waste in 1998, and every year that it doesn?t, it pays millions of dollars to nuclear power companies. An old proposal to build a federally run nuclear-waste dump at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, was killed by Obama and will likely remain on ice as long as Nevadan Harry Reid retains seniority in the Senate. Proposals to build an interim ?medium-term? nuclear-waste dump were also stalled until this year, as the most likely site for such a facility is New Mexico. But Bingaman, the New Mexican who chaired Senate Energy and Natural Resources, was not a fan. Now that he?s retired and been replaced by Wyden?whose state has a closed nuclear-power plant that still stores radioactive waste?plans for a ?medium-term? nuclear-waste storage dump are suddenly on the move.

Ethanol Reform

For the first time since Obama won the White House in 2008, the top Republican and top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee are working collaboratively on a controversial piece of energy policy: the renewable-fuels standard. There?s growing opposition to the provisions of a 2005 law mandating that oil refiners blend an increasing share of plant-based ethanol into the nation?s gasoline mix. Oil companies complain it raises their costs, and the use of corn to produce ethanol has also contributed to rising food prices in the wake of last year?s drought. Meanwhile, the technology to produce ethanol affordably from nonfood crops still isn?t commercialized. Given those pressures, there?s a growing coalition of strange bedfellows?the oil industry, environmentalists, food manufacturers, and antipoverty groups?pushing for the law to be reformed. To that end, Upton and Waxman are working on a series of white papers aimed at opening up the issue for debate and, they hope, legislative action.

Hydropower

In January, House Republicans brought to the floor a bill to speed construction of small hydropower plants in the Pacific Northwest. The bill, sponsored by Republican Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington, was meant as a signal that the GOP was ready to work with Democrats on at least some form of renewable-energy legislation. It worked. Wyden has introduced a companion measure in the Senate. Members of both parties in both chambers are optimistic about its prospects.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/five-easy-pieces-energy-legislation-195106235--politics.html

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Syrian activists say senior rebel leader wounded

DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) ? A rebel military leader who was among the first to call openly for armed insurrection against President Bashar Assad was wounded by a bomb planted in his car in eastern Syria, anti-regime activists said Monday.

Col. Riad al-Asaad, leader of a now-sidelined rebel umbrella group known as the Free Syrian Army, had his right foot amputated following the blast late on Sunday, according to an activist in the town of Mayadeen where the attack took place.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights also reported the attack, saying some said al-Asaad had been killed while others said he lost a leg.

Calls to al-Asaad's cell phone went unanswered, and one of his aides reached in Turkey said he had no details.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

Al-Asaad, a former colonel in the Syrian air force who defected and fled to Turkey in 2011, became the head of the Free Syrian Army, a group of army defectors who were among the first to declare armed struggle the only way to topple the regime.

"They will soon discover that armed rebellion is the only way to break the Syrian regime," al-Asaad told The Associated Press in October 2011, soon after his group was formed.

At the time, most Syrian activists were inspired by the uprisings that had successfully toppled dictators in Tunisia and Egypt and thought popular protests would bring about the same result in Syria. But the Syrian government's vast, violent crackdown on opposition caused many to resort to arms.

Today, hundreds of independent rebel groups are fighting a civil war against Assad's forces across the country and many activists no longer bother to stage unarmed protests. The U.N. says more than 70,000 people have been killed since the first protests in March, 2011.

During that transition, al-Asaad, who spent most of his time in a refugee camp in Turkey, never managed to build effective links with most rebel groups or provide the support that would have made them recognize him as their leader. While most fighters in Syria refer to themselves as part of the "Free Army," those who say they follow al-Asaad are rare.

More recently, al-Asaad's group has been superseded by the Office of the Chiefs of Staff, which is associated with the opposition Syrian National Coalition and led by Gen. Salim Idris. That body, too, has failed to project widespread authority inside Syria, where most groups still cobble together their own funding and arms.

The Mayadeen activist said via Skype that a bomb planted in the seat of the car al-Asaad was riding in blew up as he toured the town.

The activist said rebels now control the town and most of the surrounding areas, although President Assad still has supporters, whom the activist blamed for the attack. He spoke on condition of anonymity out of concern for his safety.

Al-Asaad was traveling with an aide and a local activist, Barakat al-Haweish, both of whom were slightly injured, the activist said. Al-Asaad was taken to a local field hospital, where doctors amputated his right foot before transporting him to Turkey.

Also Monday, the opposition's exile political leadership, the Syrian National Coalition, said a delegation was heading to Doha, where the Gulf state of Qatar will host a two-day Arab League summit starting Tuesday.

Foreign ministers of the League's member states decided Monday to grant Syria's seat in the body to the opposition. The Syria government's membership was suspended earlier in the uprising.

Heading the delegation is Mouaz al-Khatib, the Coalition said in a statement on its Facebook page. He is going despite having resigned his position as Coalition leader on Sunday, citing restriction on his work inside the group and frustration with the level of international aid for the opposition.

Al-Khatib, a respected Muslim preacher before being chosen last year to head the Coalition, said in a post on his own Facebook page that he would address the summit "in the name of the Syrian people." He said the move had nothing to do with his resignation, "which will be discussed later."

The Coalition refused his resignation and has asked him to keep his job.

Also in the delegation is Ghassan Hitto, whom the coalition elected last week to head a planned interim government to govern rebel-held areas.

In Damascus, a series of mortar strikes near a downtown traffic circle on Monday killed one person and wounded several others, the government-run Ikhbariyeh TV station reported.

Umayyad Square, at the center of a large intersection west of downtown, sits near the government TV headquarters, the Sheraton hotel and a number of faculties of the University of Damascus.

Syria's state news agency reported no dead and at least six wounded in the strikes, which it said hit near the Opera House.

It was unclear who was behind that attack as well, reflecting the often chaotic nature of Syria's two-year-old civil war pitting hundreds of independent rebel groups against the forces of Assad. The U.N. says more than 70,000 people have been killed since the conflict began with political protests in March, 2011.

Such sporadic strikes on Damascus have grown more common in recent weeks and often appear to target government buildings. Most cause only material damage, but spread fear in Damascus that the capital, which has so far managed to avoid the widespread clashes that have destroyed other cities, could soon face the same fate.

Damascus residents reported hearing intensive shelling on Monday, though it was hard to tell where it was coming from.

____

Associated Press writer Albert Aji contributed reporting from Damascus, Syria.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/syrian-activists-senior-rebel-leader-wounded-084932608.html

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Activists to BRICS: Press Syria for access

JOHANNESBURG (AP) ? Human rights activists from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa are appealing to their leaders to use their influence to press Syria to allow unimpeded humanitarian access to U.N. agencies.

Camila Asano of Brazil's Conectas says it is "a responsibility" for leaders of a BRICS summit starting Tuesday in South Africa to act to protect Syrian civilians.

Human Rights Watch director Jan Egeland wrote separately that it is "time for BRICS to stop sitting on the fence over Syria's atrocities."

BRICS countries oppose foreign intervention in Syria and accuse the West of forcing regime change. Russia, China and South Africa have vetoed U.N. Security Council resolutions on Syria.

The U.N. estimates some 70,000 people have been killed since Syria's civil war began with peaceful protests two years ago.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/activists-brics-press-syria-access-153518482.html

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Monday, March 25, 2013

EU finance ministers approve Cyprus bailout deal

Protesters hold a banner during an anti- bailout rally outside of European Union house in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Sunday, March 24, 2013. After failing for a week to find a solution to a crisis that could force their country into bankruptcy, Cypriot politicians turned to the European Union on Sunday in a last-ditch effort to help the island nation forge a viable plan to secure an international bailout. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

Protesters hold a banner during an anti- bailout rally outside of European Union house in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Sunday, March 24, 2013. After failing for a week to find a solution to a crisis that could force their country into bankruptcy, Cypriot politicians turned to the European Union on Sunday in a last-ditch effort to help the island nation forge a viable plan to secure an international bailout. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

From left, French Finance Minister Pierre Moscovici, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund Christine Lagarde and German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble speak with each other during an emergency eurogroup meeting in Brussels on Sunday, March 24, 2013. The EU says a top official will chair a high-level meeting on Cyprus in a last-ditch effort to seal a deal before finance ministers decide whether the island nation gets a 10 billion euro bailout loan to save it from bankruptcy. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)

A protestor waves a Cyprus flag in front of riot policemen during an anti-bailout rally outside of European Union house in Nicosia, Cyprus, Sunday, March 24, 2013. After failing for a week to find a solution to a crisis that could force their country into bankruptcy, Cypriot politicians turned to the European Union on Sunday in a last-ditch effort to help the island nation forge a viable plan to secure an international bailout. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

A protestor holds a banner as he takes part in an anti- bailout rally outside of European Union house in Nicosia, Cyprus, Sunday, March 24, 2013. After failing for a week to find a solution to a crisis that could force their country into bankruptcy, Cypriot politicians turned to the European Union on Sunday in a last-ditch effort to help the island nation forge a viable plan to secure an international bailout. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

Personnel carry in boxes of pizza to the European Council building as an emergency eurogroup meeting takes place in Brussels on Sunday, March 24, 2013. The EU says a top official will chair a high-level meeting on Cyprus in a last-ditch effort to seal a deal before finance ministers decide whether the island nation gets a 10 billion euro bailout loan to save it from bankruptcy. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)

(AP) ? Cyprus avoided bankruptcy, and potential turmoil across the eurozone, by securing a last-minute 10 billion euro ($13 billion) bailout with promises to sharply cut back its oversized banking sector and make large bank account holders take losses to help pay much of the bill.

Negotiations into early Monday ended with approval of the deal by the 17-nation eurozone's finance ministers. The European Central Bank had threatened to cut off crucial emergency assistance to the country's banks by Tuesday if no agreement was reached.

Without a bailout deal by Monday night, the tiny Mediterranean nation would have faced the prospect of bankruptcy, which could have forced it to become the first country to abandon the euro currency. That would have sent the region's markets spinning.

"It's not that we won a battle, but we really have avoided a disastrous exit from the eurozone," said Cyprus' Finance Minister Michalis Sarris.

The eurozone finance ministers accepted the plan after hours of negotiations in Brussels between Cypriot officials and the so-called troika of creditors ? the International Monetary Fund, the European Commission and the ECB.

"We believe that this will form a lasting, durable and fully financed solution," said IMF chief Christine Lagarde.

To secure the rescue loan package, the Cypriot government had to find ways to raise 5.8 billion euros ($7.5 billion) on its own. The bulk of that money is now being raised by forcing losses on large bank deposit holders, with the remainder coming from tax increases and privatizations.

Cyprus must drastically shrink its banking sector, cut its budget, implement structural reforms and privatize state assets, said Jeroen Dijsselbloem, who chairs the meetings of the eurozone's finance ministers. The country's second-largest bank, Laiki, will be restructured, with all bond holders and people with more than 100,000 euros in their bank accounts there facing significant losses.

The measures are likely to deepen the recession in Cyprus.

The cash-strapped island nation has been shut out of international markets for almost two years. It first applied for a bailout to recapitalize its ailing lenders and keep the government afloat last June, but the political negotiations stalled. After a botched agreement last week, the European Central Bank threatened to cut off emergency assistance to the country's banks.

"We've put an end to the uncertainty that has affected Cyprus and the euro area over the past week," Dijsselbloem said.

That uncertainty around the tiny nation of about 800,000 had shaken the entire eurozone of 300 million people, even though Cyprus only makes up less than 0.2 percent of the eurozone's economy.

Several national parliaments in eurozone countries such as Germany must also approve the bailout deal, which might take another few weeks. EU officials said they expect the whole program to be approved by mid-April.

The country's second-largest bank, Laiki, will be dissolved immediately into a bad bank containing its uninsured deposits and toxic assets, with the guaranteed deposits being transferred to the nation's biggest lender, Bank of Cyprus.

Dijsselbloem said it was not yet clear how severe the losses would be to Laiki's large bank deposit holders, but he noted that it is expected to yield 4.2 billion euros overall ? or much of the money that Cyprus needed to raise to secure the bailout. Analysts have estimated investors might lose up to 40 percent of their money.

Large deposits with Bank of Cyprus above the insured level will be frozen until it becomes clear whether or to what extent they will also be forced to take losses, the Eurogroup of finance ministers said in a statement.

Dijsselbloem defended the creditors' approach of making deposit holders take heavy losses, saying the measures "will be concentrated where the problems are, in the large banks."

The international creditors, led by the IMF, were seeking a fundamental restructuring of the country's outsized financial system, which is worth up to eight times the Cypriot gross domestic product of about 18 billion euros. They said the country's business model of attracting foreign investors, among them many Russians, with low taxes and lax financial regulation had backfired and needed to be upended.

The drastic shrinking of the financial sector, the wiping out of wealth through the losses on deposits, the loss of confidence with the recent turmoil and the upcoming austerity measures all mean that Cyprus is facing tough times.

"The near future will be very difficult for the country and its people," acknowledged the EU Commission's top economic official, Olli Rehn. "But (the measures) will be necessary for the Cypriot people to rebuild their economy on a new basis."

Cypriot banks have been closed this past week while officials worked on a rescue plan, and they are not due to reopen until Tuesday. Cash has been available through ATMs, but long lines formed and many machines have quickly run out of cash.

Amid fears of a banking collapse, Cyprus' central bank on Sunday imposed a daily withdrawal limit of 100 euros ($130) from ATMs of the country's two largest banks to prevent a bank run by depositors worried about their savings.

The Cypriot government also approved a set of laws over the past week to introduce capital controls, in order to avoid a huge depositor flight once banks reopen.

Creditors had insisted that Cyprus couldn't receive more loans because that would make its debt burden unsustainably high. The IMF's Lagarde said Cyprus would now reach a debt level of about 100 percent of GDP by 2020.

A plan agreed to in marathon negotiations earlier this month called for a one-time levy on all bank depositors in Cypriot banks. But the proposal ignited fierce anger because it also targeted small savers. It failed to win a single vote in the Cypriot Parliament.

Cyprus' bid to secure more financial aid from its long-time ally, Russia, then failed, forcing it to turn again to its European partners. Russia was expected, however, to extend a 2.5 billion euro emergency loan granted last year, also lowering the interest rate due and extending then repayment schedule.

___

Associated Press writers Elena Becatoros and Menelaos Hadjicostis in Nicosia, Cyprus, contributed to this story.

______

Juergen Baetz can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jbaetz

Don Melvin can be reached at https://twitter.com/Don_Melvin

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-03-25-Cyprus-Financial%20Crisis/id-078c96f6dc774d8b9ca3297ea29fbe4d

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Friday, March 22, 2013

One Notion Under Jobs: Newly Unearthed Videos Show 1984 Steve Wozniak Speaking On Pranks, Probation, And Apple's Early Days

WozDamn it, Internet. I had things I needed to do this afternoon. So much for that. A VHS recording of a 1984 Apple enthusiast meetup was recently rediscovered, and it had at least one very special gem tucked inside: footage of a 34-year old Steve Wozniak giving a speech on just about everything you'd want to see 34-year old Steve Wozniak talking about. Pranks. The decision to quit everything and start Apple. Changing the friggin' world.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/oK1vcdNhpJs/

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Broadway hit 'The Book of Mormon' lands in London

(AP) ? Broadway sensation "The Book of Mormon" has landed in London, to a warm reception from theatergoers and mixed notices from critics

Reviewers delivered their verdicts on the show Friday, after an opening night that counted celebrities including "Homeland" star Damian Lewis and Duran Duran singer Simon Le Bon among the audience.

The exuberantly profane show by "South Park" creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone and "Avenue Q" composer Robert Lopez tells the story of two Mormon missionaries sent to spread the word in Uganda.

Most critics praised the production's skill and energy, though the Daily Telegraph's Charles Spencer said "its mixture of satire and syrup ultimately proves repellent."

Daily Mail critic Quentin Letts was even less enthusiastic: "I tired of it after 10 minutes."

And the Guardian's Michael Billington judged it "mildly amusing. ... a safe, conservative show for middle America."

Reviewers were full of praise for stars Gavin Creel and Jared Gertner as the young missionaries Elder Price and Elder Cunningham. Libby Purves in The Times loved the "big belting numbers, witty lyrics and joyfully athletic dances," but was troubled by the show's message.

She said the musical, "beneath its jollity, is morally null and ? without seeming to notice it ? racist."

"I don't see any Ugandans wanting to" see it, she said. "Even though the dances are great."

The Independent's Paul Taylor was more positive, saying: "I absolutely loved it ? albeit slightly guiltily."

Several critics compared the show unfavorably to "Jerry Springer: the Opera," a British musical that drew angry protests from some Christians.

Far from picketing "The Book of Mormon," the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints took out three pages of ads in the program, telling audience members: "You've seen the play ... now read the book."

"The Book of Mormon" won nine Tony Awards in 2011, including best musical, and is a hot ticket in London, where it is sold out through July at the Prince of Wales Theatre.

Among audience members at one preview performance was Prime Minister David Cameron, who was seen laughing heartily throughout.

Stone was impressed the prime minister had attended.

"That would not happen in America," he said. "A politician just wouldn't come to ... they just wouldn't be seen near our (stuff). No way. If you want to get elected, you don't go near Matt and Trey."

___

Associated Press writer Hilary Fox contributed to this report.

___

Online:

Jill Lawless can be reached at http://Twitter.com/JillLawless

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2013-03-22-Britain-Book%20of%20Mormon/id-cf545900431c4d06b235daf03d3204a3

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Give employee time to weigh severance offer ? Business ...

If you want to offer a severance package to an em??ployee in exchange for giving up the right to contest a discharge, give him plenty of time to consider the offer. If you don?t, the signed deal may not be final.

Recent case: Chirag, a Columbia University lab technician, held a foreign worker visa. He repeatedly clashed with his supervisor about working conditions, mainly claiming that he worked harder than his female colleagues.

Then Chirag was suspended when a co-worker accused him of sexual harassment.

The university offered to settle the allegations. The deal: Chirag would resign in exchange for a small severance payment, a good reference and compensation for his accumulated vacation and other leave. He had an hour to consider the offer, which had been negotiated with the assistance of a union representative. Chirag accepted the terms.

Almost immediately, he regretted signing, especially when he realized his permanent resident ?green card? application would be rejected and he would lose his work visa.

Chirag sued, alleging he had signed the agreement under duress and wanted to revoke it.

As proof of duress, he told the court that in the hour he had to think over the offer, he couldn?t digest it all or think straight. Plus, he pointed out that the union rep wasn?t an attorney.

The university argued that the agreement was valid and binding. It pointed out that Chirag had help from his union when negotiating the deal.

The court refused to dismiss the case. It reasoned that there was some evidence of duress, including the short period of time between the offer and his decision and the fact that Chirag didn?t have legal counsel. The case will continue. (Mandavia v. Columbia University, No. 12-CIV-2188, SD NY, 2012)

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Israel closes Gaza crossing after rocket attack

JERUSALEM (AP) ? The Israeli military has closed a Gaza border crossing and restricted Palestinian fishermen in the territory after militants fired rockets into Israel during President Obama's visit.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Moshe Yaalon instructed the army to close the border crossing used to transfer goods and reduce the permitted fishing zone in the seaside territory from six to three miles offshore.

Army official Guy Inbar said Friday that the restrictions will remain in place until Israeli officials decide to lift them.

At least two rockets landed in a southern Israeli town Thursday, causing damage but no injuries.

An al-Qaida-inspired group says it launched the rockets to protest a visit by Obama.

It was the second instance of Gaza rocket fire since a November ceasefire.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/israel-closes-gaza-crossing-rocket-attack-101524123.html

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Tuesday, March 19, 2013

Singer Beth Ditto Arrested For Disorderly Conduct

Singer Beth Ditto Arrested For Disorderly Conduct

Beth Ditto busted in OregonGossip singer Beth Ditto had a crazy, drunken night out in Portland, Oregon! Ditto was kicked out of the Bungalo Bar when she was extremely intoxicated and then went out onto the street where she began yelling, “Obama, Obama!” Beth Ditto, whose real name is Mary Beth Patterson, was arrested at 1:42am after being denied ...

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Source: http://stupidcelebrities.net/2013/03/singer-beth-ditto-arrested-for-disorderly-conduct/

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Nikkei: Panasonic may end plasma HDTV production soon

While we've heard rumors of the death of plasmas before, Japanese business paper The Nikkei is reporting that Panasonic may stop using the technology in fiscal 2014. Without citing sources, it claims Panasonic will shut down production at its main Amagasaki plant, reducing production gradually to avoid angering partners and retailers. A Panasonic spokesperson tells Reuters that the company has not made any decisions on the future of its TV business yet. The Nikkei's info indicates it will downsize the entire TV business, including reductions in LCD manufacturing, over the next three years.

What's next? OLED, as Sony and Panasonic are partnering on developing the technology and according to the report it plans to outsource manufacturing to keep costs down. We'll find out how much of this turns out to be true in the coming months, but for now we'll just appreciate the company's latest round of Viera plasmas.

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Via: Reuters

Source: Nikkei

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/17/nikkei-panasonic-may-end-plasma-hdtv-production-soon/

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Saddam's specter lives on in Iraqi landmarks

The image of former President Saddam Hussein still stands at the archaeological site of Babylon, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) miles south of Baghdad, Iraq. A decade on from the invasion that ousted the strongman, Iraqis still grapple with the country?s postwar identity and how much should be done to wipe away the dictator's influence.(AP Photo/Karim Kadim)

The image of former President Saddam Hussein still stands at the archaeological site of Babylon, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) miles south of Baghdad, Iraq. A decade on from the invasion that ousted the strongman, Iraqis still grapple with the country?s postwar identity and how much should be done to wipe away the dictator's influence.(AP Photo/Karim Kadim)

In this Tuesday, March 5, 2013 photo, flames are superimposed on pictures of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein are displayed at the Shaheed Monument in Baghdad, Iraq. Saddam had the split teardrop-shaped sculpture built in the middle of a manmade lake in the early 1980s to commemorate Iraqis killed in the Iran-Iraq War. The names of hundreds of thousands of fallen Iraqi soldiers are inscribed in simple Arabic script around the base. In recent years, the Shiite-led government has begun turning it into a museum honoring the overwhelmingly Shiite and Kurdish victims of Saddam's Sunni-dominated but largely secular regime. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)

In this Tuesday, March 5, 2013 photo, Iraqis visit the Shaheed Monument in Baghdad, Iraq. Saddam Hussein had the split teardrop-shaped sculpture built in the middle of a manmade lake in the early 1980s to commemorate Iraqis killed in the Iran-Iraq War. The names of hundreds of thousands of fallen Iraqi soldiers are inscribed in simple Arabic script around the base. In recent years, the Shiite-led government has begun turning it into a museum honoring the overwhelmingly Shiite and Kurdish victims of Saddam's Sunni-dominated but largely secular regime. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)

In this Tuesday, March 5, 2013 photo, an Iraqi woman looks at a display of pictures of people killed by Saddam Hussein's regime at the Shaheed Monument in Baghdad, Iraq. Saddam Hussein had the split teardrop-shaped sculpture built in the middle of a manmade lake in the early 1980s to commemorate Iraqis killed in the Iran-Iraq War. The names of hundreds of thousands of fallen Iraqi soldiers are inscribed in simple Arabic script around the base. In recent years, the Shiite-led government has begun turning it into a museum honoring the overwhelmingly Shiite and Kurdish victims of Saddam's Sunni-dominated but largely secular regime. (AP Photo/Khalid Mohammed)

In this Wednesday, March 13, 2013 photo, bricks inscribed with the name of Saddam Hussein at archaeological site of Babylon, about 50 miles (80 kilometers) miles south of Baghdad, Iraq. A decade on from the invasion that ousted the strongman, Iraqis still grapple with the country?s postwar identity and how much should be done to wipe away the dictator's influence.(AP Photo/Karim Kadim)

(AP) ? The soaring half domes of the Martyr Monument stand out against the drabness of eastern Baghdad, not far from where Saddam Hussein's feared eldest son was said to torture underperforming athletes.

Saddam built the split teardrop-shaped sculpture in the middle of a manmade lake in the early 1980s to commemorate Iraqis killed in the Iran-Iraq War. The names of hundreds of thousands of fallen Iraqi soldiers are inscribed in simple Arabic script around the base.

Today the monument stands as a memorial to a different sort of martyr. In recent years, the Shiite-led government has begun turning it into a museum honoring the overwhelmingly Shiite and Kurdish victims of Saddam's Sunni-dominated regime.

The transformation of the Martyr Monument and other Saddam-era sites highlights Iraq's effort to memorialize those persecuted by the former dictator and purge many symbols of his rule. Yet a decade on from the U.S.-led invasion, Iraqis still grapple with the country's postwar identity and how much should be done to cleanse Iraq of traces of the strongman.

It is a tricky balancing act that risks exacerbating Iraq's already strained sectarian tensions. Many Iraqi Sunnis today feel their sect has been marginalized and unfairly persecuted by Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's government. For Baghdad, the historical clean-up effort has the added benefit of ridding Iraq of many uncomfortable references to war with Shiite heavyweight Iran, an increasingly important ally.

The Martyr Monument now features mannequins striking gruesome, if not particularly convincing, poses to display firing-squad executions and the unearthing of mass graves. Also depicted here are the poison-gas killings of some 5,000 Kurds by Saddam's forces in the northern town of Halabja 25 years ago this month.

Kifah Haider, spokesman for the government-backed Establishment of Martyrs, which oversees the site, denied that the museum gives preference to certain victims over others.

"We wanted to document the crimes of the former regime," he said. "It's so this generation learns about the crimes they didn't have to live through."

The site plays up the majority Shiites' role in opposing Saddam's rule. Images of turbaned Shiite clerics, including many family members and political allies of Iraq's postwar political elite, gaze down upon visitors. One banner depicts al-Maliki signing Saddam's execution order. Posters show hellish fires superimposed on photos of the ousted leader.

The Martyr Monument is located some 2.5 miles (four kilometers) from Firdous Square, where 10 years ago on live television U.S. Marines memorably hauled down a Soviet-style statue of Saddam, symbolically ending his rule.

Today, that pedestal in central Baghdad stands empty. Bent iron beams sprout from the top, and posters of anti-American Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr in military fatigues are pasted on the sides.

But Saddam's grandiose creations live on elsewhere.

The crossed-sword archways he commissioned during Iraq's nearly eight-year war with Iran stand defiantly on a little-used parade ground inside the Green Zone, the fortified district that houses the sprawling U.S. Embassy and several government offices.

Iraqi officials began tearing down the archways in 2007 but quickly halted those plans and then started restoring the monument two years ago. Nevertheless, the hundreds of Iranian soldiers' helmets that once spilled from the base of the sculptures, suggesting an Iranian defeat that never actually happened, were removed.

Other insults to neighboring Iran, with which the postwar Iraqi government has increasingly close ties, have been scrapped too. A statue of a pilot who once stood atop the wreckage of an Iranian fighter jet recently disappeared from downtown Baghdad.

Some Shiites say more needs to be done to exorcise Saddam's specter and that of the now-outlawed Baath party he once led.

"The removal campaign should go on until we get rid of everything that reminds us of this criminal and his party," Shiite lawmaker Ali al-Alaq said.

But other Iraqis fear that too much of Saddam's larger-than-life legacy has already been lost.

Sinan al-Obeidi, a history professor at al-Mustansiriya University in Baghdad, argues that some Saddam statues and other works should have been kept so future generations can learn what his rule was like.

"If every ruler ... destroyed remnants of the previous era or civilization, then we would not have any antiquities or archaeological sites left to see," he said.

Baghdad-based artist Nassir al-Rubaie understands the desire to rid Iraq of Saddam's statues, but he fears things have gone too far.

"Unfortunately, some of the people who are handling the removal issue have no understanding of the meaning of art," he said.

It was easy to wipe away some traces of the dictator's legacy, like renaming Saddam International Airport ? now Baghdad International ? or Baghdad's double-decker Leader Bridge, now known as Hassanain Bridge in commemoration of two of the holiest Shiite saints. New banknotes without Saddam's portrait began circulating within months of the invasion.

Other relics from Saddam's cult of personality have proved trickier to address.

Religious officials from Saddam's Sunni sect are reluctant to discuss the fate of a Quran allegedly written in blood donated by the leader during the 1990s. The book was once held in a Baghdad mosque previously named "The Mother of All Battles" that has minarets said to resemble Kalashnikov barrels and Scud missiles.

Mahmoud al-Sumaidaie, the deputy head of Iraq's Sunni Endowment, which oversees the sect's holy sites, said it's no longer there. But he was cagey about its current location. He would confirm only that the book is in Iraq and declined a request by The Associated Press to see it.

"We are working hard not to provoke anyone," he said. "A day might come when the country is totally stable and we can show it."

Modern bricks stamped with Saddam's name that were used in heavy-handed reconstruction efforts during his rule still mar the ancient site of Babylon, long associated with the legendary hanging gardens and the Tower of Babel.

One of the few remaining public images of Saddam, in bas relief, stands inside the rarely visited archaeological site ? defaced with graffiti and bullet holes.

Elsewhere in Iraq, some parts of Saddam's legacy have been literally painted over.

In the central square of Baghdad's Sadr City, the sprawling Shiite stronghold once named Saddam City, a large outdoor image of the ousted leader commanding his troops has been replaced with a painting of al-Sadr's father and father-in-law, both ayatollahs.

Iraq is of course not the only country that has had to figure out how to deal with an uncomfortable political past.

Germany outlaws displays of Nazi symbols such as the swastika and SS runic insignia. In post-Soviet Russia and Hungary, officials turned old Communist relics into tourist attractions by gathering them into statue parks. Still, Russians remain divided on whether Vladimir Lenin's mummified corpse, on display in Moscow's Red Square, should be finally laid to rest.

Back at the turquoise-tiled Martyr Monument in Baghdad, visitors said they were moved by the exhibits, which include a graphic film depicting Saddam's crimes. Many were just happy to have a chance to take cell-phone snapshots of themselves with the towering sculpture.

"It's a big contradiction here. He built this monument, and now it's being used to show his crimes," said Abeer Ali, a student at Baghdad's Institute of Applied Arts. But, she added, perhaps the monument's new use is fitting. "Saddam is now giving his victims immortality," she said.

___

Associated Press writers Sameer N. Yacoub in Baghdad contributed reporting.

___

Follow Adam Schreck on Twitter at http://twitter.com/adamschreck

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-03-18-Iraq-Saddam's%20Specter/id-eb543991e6e94768bee1d952db30e742

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Newsbytes: Climate Scientists Turn Skeptical As Climate Predictions ...

?From The GWPF by Dr. Benny Peiser

British Government Abandons Climate Change Education For Young Children

The Mail on Sunday today presents irrefutable evidence that official predictions of global climate warming have been catastrophically flawed.The graph on this page blows apart the ?scientific basis? for Britain reshaping its entire economy and spending billions in taxes and subsidies in order to cut emissions of greenhouse gases. The graph shows in incontrovertible detail how the speed of global warming has been massively overestimated. Yet those forecasts have had a ruinous impact on the bills we pay, from heating to car fuel to huge sums paid by councils to reduce carbon emissions. The eco-debate was, in effect, hijacked by false data. ?David Rose, Mail on Sunday, 17 March 2013

global warming graph

Academics are revising their views after acknowledging the miscalculation. Last night Myles Allen, Oxford University?s Professor of Geosystem Science, said that until recently he believed the world might be on course for a catastrophic temperature rise of more than five degrees this century. But he now says: ?The odds have come down,? ? adding that warming is likely to be significantly lower. Prof Allen says higher estimates are now ?looking iffy?. ?David Rose, Mail on Sunday, 17 March 2013

Many scientists say the pause, and new research into factors such as smoke particles and ocean cycles, has made them rethink what is termed ?climate sensitivity? ? how much the world will warm for a given level of CO2. Yesterday Piers Forster, Climate Change Professor at Leeds University, said: ?The fact that global surface temperatures haven?t risen in the last 15 years, combined with good knowledge of the terms changing climate, make the high estimates unlikely.? ?David Rose, Mail on Sunday, 17 March 2013

Professor Judith Curry, head of climate science at the prestigious Georgia Institute of Technology, said: ?The models are running too hot. The flat trend in global surface temperatures may continue for another decade or two.? Avowed climate sceptics are more? unequivocal. Dr David Whitehouse, author of a new report on the pause published on Friday by Lord Lawson?s Global Warming Policy Foundation, said: ?This changes everything. It means we have much longer to work things out. Global warming should no longer be the main determinant of anyone?s economic or energy policy.? ?David Rose, Mail on Sunday, 17 March 2013
The implications of the inconvenient truth we publish today are profound. Since the Kyoto Treaty in 1997, Britain has been impoverishing itself in a lonely quest to cut its CO2 emissions ? even though the world?s powerhouse economies, such as China and America, have refused to set any limits. It is clear that the science, supposedly ?settled?, is deeply uncertain, while growing numbers of experts now say that the effects of greenhouse gases are much less bad than they feared: any warming is going to happen much more slowly than they thought a few years ago. ?Editorial, Mail on Sunday, 17 March 2013

The Met Office figures come as a report by the Global Warming Policy Foundation claims there been no ?statistically significant increase? in global temperatures in 16 years. Dr Benny Peiser, director of the foundation, said: ?The biggest surprise for climate scientists is the discrepancy between the predictions and the reality of ongoing warming standing still. It suggests that the climate models on which these predictions are based are flawed. Scientists are beginning to reconsider whether their previous, more doom-laden predictions, were overegged. We should reconsider all policies that may turn out to be hugely wasteful and potentially economically disastrous.? ?Daily Express, 18 March 2013

Mysteriously, anything can be produced as evidence of global warming ? hot weather, cold weather, wet weather and dry. Climate change has become a religion and any diversion from the orthodox view is pounced on as evidence of heretical wickedness. Those who beg to differ about the global warming creed are held up as wicked rather than merely sceptical. But now new data from the Met Office is at odds with the doomy computer predictions from the United Nations? Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The new data show that the pace of climate change has been wildly overestimated. ?-Editorial, Daily Express, 18 March 2013

De rigueur though it may be to describe Sir David Attenborough as a ?national treasure? and our ?greatest living naturalist?, it really is time he was called to account for the shameless way in which he has allowed himself to be made the front-man for one particular propaganda campaign that has stood all genuine scientific evidence on its head. Last week yet another report picked up on the part Sir David has played in promoting what the facts show to have been no more than a colossal scare story. . ?Christopher Booker, The Sunday Telegraph, 17 March 2013

A man with a conviction is a hard man to change. Tell him you disagree and he turns away. Show him facts or figures and he questions your sources. Appeal to logic and he fails to see your point. We have all experienced the futility of trying to change a strong conviction, especially if the convinced person has some investment in his belief. We are familiar with the variety of ingenious defenses with which people protect their convictions, managing to keep them unscathed through the most devastating attacks. But man?s resourcefulness goes beyond simply protecting a belief. Suppose an individual believes something with his whole heart; suppose further that he has a commitment to this belief, that he has taken irrevocable actions because of it; finally, suppose that he is presented with evidence, unequivocal and undeniable evidence, that his belief is wrong: what will happen? The individual will frequently emerge, not only unshaken, but even more convinced of the truth of his beliefs than ever before. Indeed, he may even show a new fervor about convincing and converting other people to his view. ?Leon Festinger, When Prophecy Fails 1956

Debate about climate change has been cut out of the national curriculum for children under 14, prompting claims of political interference in the syllabus by the government that has failed ?our duty to future generations?. The latest draft guidelines for children in key stages 1 to 3 have no mention of climate change under geography teaching and a single reference to how carbon dioxide produced by humans impacts on the climate in the chemistry section. There is also no reference to sustainable development, only to the ?efficacy of recycling?, again as a chemistry subject. The move has caused alarm among climate campaigners and scientists who say teaching about climate change in schools has helped mobilise young people to be the most vociferous advocates of action by governments, business and society to tackle the issue. ?Juliette Jowit, The Guardian, 18 March 2013

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Source: http://wattsupwiththat.com/2013/03/18/newsbytes-climate-scientists-turn-skeptical-as-climate-predictions-fail/

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