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St. Petersburg , Florida -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill may have settled to the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico further east than previously suspected and at levels toxic to marine life , researchers reported Monday . Initial findings from a new survey of the Gulf conclude that dispersants may have sent the oil to the ocean floor , where it has turned up at the bottom of an undersea canyon within 40 miles of the Florida Panhandle . Plankton and other organisms showed a `` strong toxic response '' to the crude , according to researchers from the University of South Florida . `` The dispersant is moving the oil down out of the surface and into the deeper waters , where it can affect phytoplankton and other marine life , '' said John Paul , a marine microbiologist at USF . Results of the latest survey are scheduled to be released Tuesday , but CNN obtained a summary of the initial conclusions Monday night . Tests conducted offshore indicate the oil matches the 205-million-gallon Deepwater Horizon spill , which has been temporarily capped for a month , the summary states . Some of it has spread into the DeSoto Canyon , a channel on the ocean floor east of the ruptured well . That canyon comprises part of the spawning grounds for much of the Gulf 's commercial fish . `` To date , this is the easternmost location for the occurrence of subsurface oils , '' the report states . The oil is not `` draping '' across the bottom , but is spread out in `` small , unevenly distributed droplets , '' the report states . USF chemical oceanographer David Hollander said that when an ultraviolet light used to detect oil was turned onto the sea floor , `` All of a sudden , it turns out to be a constellation of little dots . '' And the oil could well up onto the continental shelf and resurface later , Paul said . Or it could be eaten by fish and other animals and accumulate in the food chain , Hollander said . `` It 's in such small droplets that you can see it -- you can filter it and see it , '' he said . `` But if you look at it , it 's transparent , and small larval fish see these droplets as food so they 're ingesting pure oil . '' The Environmental Protection Agency has previously reported some oil turning up in the sediment at the bottom of the Gulf , but has not determined whether it came from the Deepwater Horizon spill that erupted in April or whether it was already present . And on August 4 , the head of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration warned that oil could persist in the water even though the well has been temporarily capped . The oil company BP used more than 1.8 million gallons of chemical dispersants on the Deepwater Horizon spill between its eruption in late April and the time the well was capped in mid-July . BP says the chemicals allowed the oil to be broken up into droplets small enough that microbes can digest it , and the Environmental Protection Agency has said the dispersants were no more toxic than the oil itself . Critics warned the full effect of the dispersants on the food chain was not known and that their use in deep water effectively concealed the full extent of the spill . NOAA spokeswoman Mary Jane Schramm said on Monday that she had not seen the latest study and could n't comment on it . BP spokesman John Curry , meanwhile , said the company wants `` to know everything everyone wants to know . '' The company is responsible for capping , cleaning up and compensating victims of the oil spill , and it has committed to spending $ 500 million to research the spill 's impact over the next 10 years . The latest study will `` add another piece to the puzzle , '' Curry said . `` There will be others that 'll want to look at this study and want to look at doing some additional research , '' he said . `` There 's been extensive testing up to this point , and I 'm sure there will be much more going forward . '' CNN 's Vivian Kuo contributed to this report .
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South Florida researchers find oil traces in undersea Gulf canyon . Plankton showed `` strong toxic response '' to the crude , initial results show . Researchers say the oil could resurface later .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A federal appeals court in San Francisco , California , has blocked same-sex marriages in that state from resuming immediately , until the three-judge panel hears broader questions over the constitutionality of such marriages . The brief order from the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals late Monday set aside a federal judge 's decision earlier this month that would have permitted same-sex marriages to resume in California as early as Wednesday . That came after the judge ruled a voter-approved ban on same-sex marriage violated federal civil rights laws . The appeals court also set a fast schedule to hear the merits of the constitutional challenge to Proposition 8 , the 2008 initiative defining marriage as only between one man and one woman . Oral arguments will now be held the week of December 6 , meaning a decision on whether same-sex couples can legally wed likely will not be decided until sometime next year . Opponents of Proposition 8 seeking to overturn the voter-approved ban on same-sex marriages will not appeal Monday 's ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court , according to spokesman Yousef Robb with the American Foundation for Equal Rights . Opponents could ask the Supreme Court to intervene on the narrow question of whether to allow the stay to be lifted , but both sides of the debate agree the odds of the justices getting involved at this stage are very slim . The case has had an up-and-down series of rulings and referendums . The state 's high court had allowed same-sex marriage , but then the voter referendum two years ago passed with 52 percent of the vote . The California Supreme Court subsequently allowed that initiative to stand , saying it represented the will of the people . Opponents of the law next filed a federal challenge , saying the law violated 14th Amendment constitutional protections of due process and equal protection . Judge Vaughn Walker on August 4 agreed , issuing a 136-page opinion that concluded , `` Proposition 8 fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial of a marriage license . '' The Reagan-appointed judge added , `` Proposition 8 does nothing more than enshrine in the California Constitution the notion that opposite-sex couples are superior to same-sex couples . '' Same sex marriage is currently legal in five states and in the District of Columbia , while civil unions are permitted in New Jersey . The five states are Massachusetts , Connecticut , Vermont , Iowa , and New Hampshire . Walker 's landmark ruling assured a swift federal appeal that ultimately may reach the Supreme Court . One sticking point could be whether Proposition 8 supporters in court -- all private citizens and groups -- have legal `` standing '' to continue appealing the case . State officials , including the governor and attorney general , support individual same-sex couples challenging the law . Such state `` actors '' traditionally defend voter referendums and legislation . Some legal experts say if the appeals court eventually rules Proposition 8 backers can not bring their petition for relief , the Supreme Court may not seek to intervene further , giving no clear guidance on the larger question of the constitutionality of same-sex marriage nationwide . The high court , in a 1997 unrelated appeal , had expressed `` grave doubts '' about the ability of such private groups to challenge rulings that strike down ballot initiatives . Walker 's ruling had given the losing side a chance to appeal , and he held off allowing same-sex marriages from resuming until an emergency injunction request could be decided by the higher court . Among the federal appeals judges who agreed Monday to block same-sex marriages from resuming immediately was Sidney Thomas , a Montana native who was interviewed this spring by President Obama for the Supreme Court vacancy that eventually went to Elena Kagan . The case is Perry v. Schwarzenegger -LRB- 10-16696 -RRB- .
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California 's Proposition 8 defines marriage as only between one man and one woman . On August 4 , a federal judge ruled that Prop 8 violates federal civil rights laws . Monday 's appeals court ruling sets aside that ruling pending further hearings . Arguments will now be held before the appeals court in early December .
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Dallas , Texas -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A gunman who fired shots at a Texas police department near a college campus has been killed , the college said . Shots were fired Tuesday at the McKinney Police Department near Collin College 's Central Park Campus in McKinney , Texas , according to campus spokeswoman Lisa Vasquez . The incident took place shortly after 9 a.m. . The gunman parked his car at the McKinney Police Department before the shooting took place , Vasquez said . She said the shooter has been killed , but it is not known whether he was killed by police or if he killed himself . Vasquez said it does not appear that any students , faculty , or staff were injured in the incident . The college 's emergency alert system notified students and staff immediately about the shooting and the campus was on lockdown for two hours . Campus activities have since resumed , Vasquez said . The city was also put on lockdown briefly . CNN affiliate WFAA , quoting an eyewitness , reported that many shots were fired . The witness said the shooter was in an open field , firing randomly at vehicles driving by . The eyewitness saw only one shooter and eventually police shot toward him . Collin College is a two-year community college with an enrollment of 3,800 students . Classes begin there on Monday .
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NEW : The gunman is dead , a college spokeswoman says . The shooting incident took place near a police station and campus . It 's not clear whether police killed the gunman or if he shot himself . The campus of Collin College was locked down immediately .
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London , England -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Two U.S. senators from New Jersey intensified their calls for the British and Scottish governments -- and oil giant BP -- to provide information surrounding the circumstances of the convicted Lockerbie bomber 's release a year ago . The British government urged Libya on Friday not to celebrate the anniversary of the convicted bomber 's release , saying it would be `` offensive and deeply insensitive '' to the families of the 270 people killed in the 1988 bombing of a Pan Am flight over Scotland . Also Friday , the Obama administration again blasted the decision by Scotland to release Abdelbeset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi from prison exactly a year ago on compassionate grounds due to a diagnosis of terminal cancer . `` As we have expressed repeatedly to Scottish authorities , we maintain that al Megrahi should serve out the entirety of his sentence in prison in Scotland , '' Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a written statement . President Barack Obama 's assistant on homeland security and counterterrorism , John Brennan , called the release of al Megrahi `` unfortunate and inappropriate . '' Democratic Sens. Robert Menendez and Frank Lautenberg noted al Megrahi was only given three months to live when he released , but he is still alive today . Menendez noted that on August 20 , 2009 , al Megrahi stepped off a plane into the arms of a cheering throng in Libya . `` A mass murderer tasted freedom , experiencing joy , '' Menendez said . `` It was a scene that made the stomach turn ... that made old wounds fresh again in the hearts of those whose family members died at the hands of that man . '' Lautenberg said , `` It is the families of those victims who deserve compassion , not this terrorist . '' `` Al Megrahi ... is very much free , living in the lap of luxury by all accounts , '' Menendez said . Doctors who examined the convicted terrorist in prison now say he could live another 10 years , he said . The case has outraged many on both sides of the Atlantic , and led U.S. senators to demand answers from Scotland about the details of his release . Menendez said his office has sent letters to British Prime Minister David Cameron and Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond , `` laying out those areas where questions linger '' and asking for additional answers and documentation . Scottish authorities have defended their actions in the case , saying Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill relied on a medical report from the top doctor in the Scottish Prison Service , along with reports from the parole board and prison governor , in deciding to free al Megrahi , who had been serving a life sentence . `` We took the decision in good faith , '' Salmond told Sky News on Friday . `` We followed the judicial processes , the law of Scotland and the jurisdiction the Lockerbie atrocity has been governed -LSB- by -RSB- , not for the last year , but for the last 20 years . '' Under the Scotland Act of 1998 , Scotland has its own government that is responsible for most of the day-to-day issues there , including the justice system . It took charge of the case because the flight al Megrahi was convicted of bombing exploded over the Scottish town of Lockerbie . Scottish authorities have insisted that three doctors hired by Libya to assess al Megrahi 's condition last year played no part in the decision to release him . Menendez said he wants to know what was discussed when the doctors met with Libyan officials . Dr. Andrew Fraser , the director of health and care at the Scottish Prison Service , also said the three-month prognosis was a reasonable estimate . U.S. senators also have repeatedly voiced suspicions that Scotland released al Megrahi as part of a deal allowing BP to drill off the Libyan coast . Salmond has already shot down such concerns , saying `` there is no evidence whatsoever '' of any link . Menendez plans to chair a U.S. Senate hearing in September on the controversy surrounding al Megrahi 's release . Friday , Menendez said the senators have asked the British and Scottish governments to conduct an independent investigation in the United Kingdom , which he said Cameron supported before he became prime minister . Lautenberg called on British and Scottish officials to stop `` stonewalling and side-tracking . '' `` Help us clear the air ; help us give information to the families . '' Menendez also said letters are being sent to Libyan and Qatari leaders , inquiring whether `` commercial interests '' led them to pressure Britain and Scotland to release al Megrahi . Al Megrahi is the only person ever convicted in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 , which exploded over Lockerbie in December 1988 , killing 259 people on the plane and 11 on the ground . Most of the dead were Americans . The flight had been heading to New York from Frankfurt , Germany , via London , England , when it blew up . A special Scottish court in the Netherlands convicted al Megrahi in 2001 .
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NEW : Clinton , Brennan blast decision to release al Megrahi . Two U.S. senators call for the British and Scottish governments and BP to furnish information . UK : Celebrating bomber 's release would be `` offensive and deeply insensitive '' Al Megrahi was released a year ago on humanitarian grounds .
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Jerusalem -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A former Israeli soldier has posted photos of herself on Facebook posing in front of blindfolded Palestinian prisoners , prompting harsh reactions . The former soldier , identified online as `` Eden from Ashdod '' in Israel , is seen smiling sitting on a blast barrier next to a blindfolded man . In another picture she is sitting in front of three blindfolded Palestinians , one with his hands tied in front of him . The photos have since been taken down from her Facebook site , but Israeli media reports the photos were labeled `` IDF -- best time of my life . '' `` These photos are disgraceful ; in no way does the IDF condone this behaviour , '' said Israel Defense Forces spokesman Capt. Barak Raz in a written statement . `` In matters of information security aside , we are talking about a serious viloation of the IDF ethical code , and I imagine that if she was on active duty today she would no doubt be court martialled . '' Raz said Eden left the military a year ago , but , `` nevertheless her commanders have been informed . '' However , because Eden has left the IDF it is not clear if the military will be able to take any action against her . Jawad Amawi , director of legal affairs for the Palestinian government 's prisoners ministry , told CNN , `` She did this act while she was in military service , so in retrospect the Israeli occupation is responsible for her acts . This is a breach of international law , clearly a breach of human rights . '' Amawi says his department will try to take legal action against the former soldier . Israeli media reports one of the comments posted by a friend of Eden said , `` That looks really sexy for you . '' The photo shows Eden smiling in front of blindfolded prisoners . She posted this response : `` I wonder if he is on Facebook too -- I 'll have to tag him in the photo . ''
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`` Eden from Ashdod '' is seen in photos with blindfolded prisoners . Israeli military calls it `` shameful behavior '' by the soldier . It is not clear if the military can take any action against her .
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Jerusalem -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The former Israeli soldier who posted photos of herself on Facebook posing in front of blindfolded Palestinians waved off criticism of her actions , arguing that her behavior was no different than that of news outlets . `` This was just a military -LRB- service -RRB- experience , '' Eden Abergil said in an interview on Tuesday with Israeli Army Radio . `` The media does the same thing . '' Abergil , the former soldier identified online as `` Eden from Ashdod , '' is seen smiling sitting on a blast barrier next to a blindfolded man . In another picture she is sitting in front of three blindfolded Palestinians , one with his hands tied in front of him . `` I ask the media -- when you take pictures of handcuffed prisoners for TV , do you ask for their permission ? Do these Arab men agree to it ? I really do not understand what is wrong . `` I have already apologized to the people who were actually hurt by me . This picture was without any political saying , just a thing of military -LRB- service -RRB- experience and no more . '' Abergil was interviewed on Ilana Dayan 's Nachon Lehaboker show . The photos have since been taken down from her Facebook site , but Israeli media reports the photos were labeled `` IDF -- best time of my life . '' The photos have been slammed by Israelis and Palestinians . In another interview on Dayan 's show , a Channel 2 Army commentator , Roni Daniel , expressed anger over Abergil 's attitude . `` I deeply regret that she does n't even understand what is wrong with this . I regret that the commanders did not see this -LRB- when it happened -RRB- . It is unfitting , wrong and unethical , '' Daniel said . `` These photos are disgraceful ; in no way does the IDF condone this behavior , '' said Israel Defense Forces spokesman Capt. Barak Raz in a written statement . `` In matters of information security aside , we are talking about a serious violation of the IDF ethical code , and I imagine that if she was on active duty today she would no doubt be court martialed . '' Raz said Abergil left the military a year ago , but , `` nevertheless her commanders have been informed . '' However , because Abergil has left the IDF it is not clear if the military will be able to take any action against her . Jawad Amawi , director of legal affairs for the Palestinian government 's prisoners ministry , told CNN , `` She did this act while she was in military service , so in retrospect the Israeli occupation is responsible for her acts . This is a breach of international law , clearly a breach of human rights . '' Amawi said his department will try to take legal action against the former soldier . Israeli media reported one of the comments posted by a friend of Abergil said , `` That looks really sexy for you . '' The photo shows Abergil smiling in front of blindfolded prisoners . She posted this response : `` I wonder if he is on Facebook too -- I 'll have to tag him in the photo , '' an apparent reference to one of the prisoners in the photo .
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`` Eden from Ashdod '' says she has apologized to those she hurt . She said the pictures had no political message . One commentator regrets that she does n't understand what she did wrong .
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Chachran Sharif , Pakistan -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Imam Baksh used two cots as shelter over his head and a third to shield him from the drenched earth . The 80-year-old man was among thousands in Chachran Sharif who could see his home submerged under water -- about half of the Pakistani town looked more like a lake than a community of people . Even the mosque was under water and people were using boats to rescue their cows , goats and sheep , dragging the terrified animals onto dry -- or at least dryer -- land . Chachran Sharif , in Pakistan 's Punjab province , is one of many villages , towns and cities across Pakistan reeling from torrential monsoon rain and flooding that authorities now say have affected 12 million people and killed as many as 1,500 . Pakistan 's disaster management authority estimated that 650,000 houses have been damaged or destroyed . By comparison , the earthquake of 2005 affected 3.2 million people and damaged or destroyed 611,000 homes . And no relief is in sight as the bloated Indus River overflows its banks and more rain continues to fall . Pakistan 's Meteorological Department issued an alert for the southern province of Sindh , far away from the northern Swat Valley , where the crisis began . `` Pakistan has been hit by the worst flood of its history , '' said Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani in a televised speech Friday . `` As I speak , the flood is still engulfing new areas and adding to the scale of devastation . '' Gilani said a true assessment of the loss to life and infrastructure can be determined only after the water recedes . He appealed to the international community and to Pakistanis living abroad to dig deep into their pockets . Relief agencies said donations are needed urgently to alleviate suffering . Patrick Fuller has worked for the International Red Cross for 15 years and been involved in other disasters . Still , he said Friday he was shocked by what he saw . `` These people need help desperately and the world needs to wake up , '' Fuller told CNN . People ca n't go back to their homes . They are living in a precarious situation . '' He said there has been a conspicuous absence of aid in some areas , despite efforts by the Red Cross and other international aid groups . Parts of the Swat Valley remain inaccessible by road ; helicopters provide the only way in or out for people , food , clean water or medicine . At Chakdara , south of the valley 's largest city , Mingora , people queued for more than four hours to cross a rickety temporary suspension bridge above swirling brown water . With the main highway crossing destroyed , people trying to escape were using a decrepit British-built 19th century bridge that was damaged in the rain . Meanwhile , among the suffering , anger grew at the government for perceived lack of action . Pakistanis hurled stinging criticism at President Asif Ali Zardari , who was in England for talks with British Prime Minister David Cameron during the worst of the crisis . Advisor Farahnaz Ispahani said Zardari was simply doing his job as head of state and had ensured the crisis at home was being adequately addressed by the prime minister . In Chachran Sharif , there were few signs of aid for the flood-displaced and frustration mixed with drizzle in the air . `` We elected him , '' one man said about Zardari . `` Where is he ? '' U.S. emergency relief teams were continuing to arrive in Peshawar for distribution by Pakistan 's National Disaster Management Authority , the State Department said Friday . In all , the U.S. Agency for International Development has committed $ 35 million in aid to international organizations and non-governmental organizations , it said . CNN 's Reza Sayah , Dan Rivers and Moni Basu contributed to this story .
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NEW : U.S. still sending aid to Pakistan . An alert is issued for southern Sindh province . What were once villages and towns are now lakes . Pakistanis grow angry at the president for leaving the country .
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United Nations -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The United Nations estimates more than a billion dollars damage from the Pakistan flooding . In a phone conference to reporters in New York Friday , the United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in Pakistan said the cost to rebuild the affected parts of the country `` has to be measured in terms of hundreds of millions of dollars , if not more than a billion . '' Martin Mogwanja , the UN 's coordinator in Islamabad , Pakistan , said , `` There is going to be a tremendous cost in terms of repairing roads , bridges , telecommunications and electricity infrastructure , '' and most importantly , the farming and irrigation infrastructure . The United Nations is preparing an initial flood emergency response plan to address the immediate needs of Pakistan and the affected population , he said . Mogwanja said the response will cover 90 days initially and `` will address the most pressing needs in the area of food security , health care , sanitation and shelter . '' The U.N. plan and a flash appeal for funding will be introduced to the international community in the near future , he said . `` An estimated 1,400 people have been killed by the flood waters so far , but this number may rise as new bodies may be found , '' said Mogwanja . The terrain is so waterlogged that many families ca n't bury their loved ones at traditional burial grounds . Some people are traveling to higher ground to conduct burials , and others are waiting for family members and the appropriate time , Mogwanja said . `` It is indeed , a very , very sad occasion , '' he said . `` More than 250,000 homes have been badly damaged or destroyed , leaving at least 1.5 million people homeless , '' said Mogwanja . To help combat homelessness , the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees has provided more than 11,000 tents . Pakistan has reported that at least 12 million people are affected by the flood but Mogwanja said only 4 million have been affected and that the estimate could rise . `` These estimates that we are providing are based upon the figures that we are receiving from the disaster management authorities in different provinces , '' Mogwanja said . He said monsoon season could last two to four weeks and that the United Nations and its partners have been providing emergency assistance since the start of the flood . The priorities which have been provided for so far include : 500 metric tons of food from the World Food Programme , clean drinking water from UNICEF to more than 700,000 people , and 40 cholera kits from the World Health Organization to health centers in Pakistan . `` However , this is only a small fraction of what is required , given the scale of this disaster and also its geographic scope , spreading across the poor , large provinces of the country , '' Mogwanja said .
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U.N. estimates more than a billion dollars damage from the Pakistan flooding . U.N. preparing initial flood emergency response plan to address the immediate needs . U.N. estimates 1,400 people killed by the flood waters so far , but says number may rise .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The United States and its allies have plenty to worry about in Afghanistan and Pakistan , with al Qaeda , two Talibans , the Haqqani Network and a plethora of other militant groups active . But the United States and intelligence analysts believe another group , one of Pakistan 's most powerful and well-established , is also broadening its horizons . It is Lashkar-e-Tayyiba , which means `` Army of the Pure . '' It was blamed for the attack on Mumbai , India , hotels in November 2008 in which nearly 200 people were killed over three days . That attack `` shows the organization 's global ambitions , '' said Dan Benjamin , the U.S. State Department 's coordinator for counterterrorism . Bernjamin has been in Islamabad meeting Pakistani officials this week as part of a `` strategic dialogue '' between the United States and Pakistan . Lashkar-e-Tayyiba `` appears to have a very complex mix of indigenous and international targets , '' Benjamin said at a U.S. Embassy briefing Thursday . `` We are working with Pakistan 's civilian authorities to investigate further into this organization , but definitely -LSB- Lashkar-e-Tayyiba -RSB- maintains some level of connections with al Qaeda , '' Benjamin said at the briefing -LSB- WHEN added above -RSB- . Earlier this year , Benjamin said of the Mumbai attacks : `` The target was set directly out of -LSB- Osama -RSB- bin Laden 's book , filling the gap created by a diminished al Qaeda . '' Lashkar-e-Tayyiba claims it is focused on the same issue as it was when created : freeing the disputed territory of Kashmir from Indian rule , experts say . In a rare interview earlier this year , the man widely regarded as the organization lader , Hafiz Muhammad Saeed , told The Independent newspaper that the group was not involved in the Mumbai attacks , despite substantial evidence to the contrary . Lashkar-e-Tayyiba was allegedly behind several high-profile attacks in India . And it is precisely because it is aimed at India 's presence in Kashmir that the organization has been tolerated and even supported by Pakistani officials over the years -- even after it was banned there in 2002 , intelligence officials and some Pakistani officials say . The current Pakistani ambassador to Washington , Husain Haqqani , wrote three years ago that Lashkar-e-Tayyiba was `` backed by Saudi money and protected by Pakistani intelligence services . '' Saeed has been periodically put under house arrest when things have got a little overheated , but the group maintains an expansive compound near Lahore in Punjab and according to intelligence analysts remains well-connected to elements of Pakistan 's Inter-Services Intelligence or ISI . NATO in Afghanistan believes Lashkar is extensively involved with militant groups there . Friday , the International Security Assistance Force said it had detained a Taliban commander in the eastern Nangahar province who had `` assisted with the recent influx of -LSB- Lashkar-e-Tayyiba -RSB- insurgents into the province . '' They are believed to have worked with the Haqqani Network to carry out attacks on Indian targets in Kabul , including several this year . Much to Pakistan 's consternation , India has expanded its presence in Afghanistan , especially through Indian government-aided construction and training projects , since the overthrow of the Taliban . Lashkar-e-Tayyiba fighters are also believed to have joined the Taliban in attacks on U.S. Forward Operating Bases in eastern Afghanistan over the last couple of years . One scholar who has long studied Lashkar believes it is well placed to expand its activities . `` Evidence suggests Lashkar has support cells in the Persian Gulf , Britain , North America , mainland Europe , and possibly Australia , '' wrote Stephen Tankel this year in a paper for the New America Foundation . The case of David Headley suggests that is the case . The Pakistani-born American citizen confessed this year to a planning role in the Mumbai attacks and a conspiracy with senior figures in Lashkar-e-Tayyiba to attack the office in Copenhagen of the Danish newspaper that published cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed in 2005 . He said he visited Pakistan several times to meet with Lashkar leaders .
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Lashkar-e-Tayyiba blamed for attack on Mumbai , India , hotels in November 2008 . Organization has `` complex mix of indigenous and international targets , '' State Department says . Lashkar-e-Tayyiba says it is focused only on freeing Kashmir from Indian rule , experts say . Lashkar-e-Tayyiba joined Taliban in attacks on U.S. bases in Afghanistan , experts say .
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LONDON , England -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- An ill-tempered CONCACAF Gold Cup match between Mexico and Panama recently saw three players and Mexico coach Javier Aguirre sent off amid violent scenes in Houston , Texas . Newcastle teammates Lee Bowyer -LRB- left -RRB- and Kieron Dyer turn against one-another . The 1-1 draw , which saw the referee add on 10 minutes at the end for all the various stoppages , got Fanzone thinking about some of the most controversial match melees that have occurred . Do you agree with our worst 11 ? Post your comments in the Sound Off box below . 1 The Battle of Santiago , Chile v Italy , World Cup 1962 . Surely the most violent match in history . The tone was set when the first foul was committed after 12 seconds . Two Italian players were sent off as the teams spent the whole 90 minutes punching , spitting and scuffling with each other , with Chile managing to score two goals in-between the fighting . Police had to come onto the pitch three times to sort out the chaos while Italian Giorgio Ferrini had to be escorted off by armed officers when he refused to leave the pitch after his dismissal . Referee Ken Aston remarked : `` I was n't reffing a football match , I was acting as an umpire in military maneuvers . '' 2 Valencia v Inter Milan , Champions League 2007 . Six yellow cards were handed out during the game , but it was events that followed which marred Valencia 's passage through to the quarterfinals . On the final whistle , Inter midfielder Nicolas Burdisso came together with Valencia defender Carlos Marchena , sparking a brawl . Unused Valencia substitute David Navarro then ran onto the field , to join in - the result of which was a broken nose for Burdisso . Navarro , retreated to the sidelines chased and kicked by Inter players Julio Cruz , Ivan Cordoba . The melee continued in the tunnel , with the Spanish Civil Guard eventually needed to quell the problem . UEFA , European football 's governing body , subsequently fined Navarro $ 200,000 and banned the player for eight games , Burdisso was slapped with an eight-match suspension , Maicon for six , Córdoba for three games and Julio Cruz for two . 3 Turkey v Switzerland , World Cup play-off 2006 . Violence erupted after Turkey missed a place in the 2006 finals after going out on the away goals rule following a 4-2 win in Istanbul . Players and technical staff were seen throwing punches in the tunnel as the Swiss side ran for their lives against a torrent of Turkish anger . Turkey assistant-coach Mehmet Ozdilek was banned from all football for one year , while two Turkish players , and one Swiss , were handed six-match bans . Turkey were also ordered to play their next six competitive home matches behind closed doors at neutral venues . Have we missed a famous punch-up out ? Leave your suggestions below . 4 Manchester United v Arsenal , English Division One 1990 . These two rivals have been involved in some juicy encounters over the years , but this is one of the most infamous . Arsenal defender Nigel Winterburn went in late on Manchester United 's Denis Irwin prompting chaos , as 21 players , with Arsenal goalkeeper David Seaman proving the exception , joining in the fracas . Remarkably nobody was sent off but the English Football Association took a dim view and deducted Arsenal two league points and United one . Arsenal won the match 1-0 and still went on to lift the title . 5 France v Italy , World Cup final 2006 . The great Zinedine Zidane had led an unfancied and ageing French side to the World Cup final . With the match level in extra time , the attentions of notorious Italian hard-man and chief agitator Marco Materazzi finally proved too much for the France No. 10 - who responded to some choice words by the Inter Milan central defender by turning around and viciously head-butting his rival in the stomach . Zidane was sent off . France eventually lost on penalties and the Real Madrid playmaker bizarrely went on to be voted ` Player of the Tournament ' . 6 Kevin Keegan v Billy Bremner , Liverpool v Leeds Charity Shield 1974 . England striker Keegan blamed Bremner for `` taking him out '' in an off the ball . Bremner was not one for holding back and Wembley stadium , home of some famous boxing matches over the years , played host to another as these two diminutive players slugged it out like two featherweights challenging for the WBC world title . Unsurprisingly both were sent off and added to their charge list by hurling their tops to the ground and walking off the pitch bare-chested . Each player was fined # 500 -LRB- $ 810 -RRB- and banned for 11 games , although shirt-throwing accounted for eight of the matches ! 7 Rudi Voeller v Frank Rijkaard , Netherlands v Germany World Cup 1990 . Not the most violent , but certainly one of the funniest . The pair were sniping at each other throughout the match . Rijkaard came in late on Voeller , who later took his revenge with a lunge on goalkeeper Hans van Breukelen . Rijkaard took exception and , after a melee , the pair were sent off , with the Dutchman then notoriously spitting as hard as he could into the German 's curly perm as the disgraced pair left the pitch . 8 Lee Bowyer v Kieron Dyer , Newcastle v Aston Villa English Premier League 2005 . Punch-ups are rare in modern football , but between teammates they are non-existent . These two hot-heads got into a debate over Dyer 's refusal to pass Bowyer the ball . Both players had made news for their off-field activities in the past - but they took their behavior to a new low when they exchanged blows in the middle of the Newcastle half soon after Villa had gone 3-0 up . The pair later appeared alongside manager Graeme Souness to apologize for their conduct , but pointedly did not say sorry to each other . 9 LDU Quito v Barcelona , Ecuador league 2006 . A mass brawl at the end of the match on the final day of the season shocked Ecuador - and resulted in a host of suspensions being handed out . A total of 11 players were banned for between two and 12 months for taking part in the punch-up which saw four Barcelona players receive injuries . The incident started with a clash between former Ecuador striker Agustin Delgado and his marker Victor Montoya . 10 Cruzeiro v Atletico Mineiro Brazilian league 2007 . Atletico Mineiro defender Coelho did not take kindly to the seal dribble of talented teenager Kerlon - who collected the ball on the edge of the penalty area , flicked it up and performed his trademark dribble by bouncing the ball on his head as he ran towards goal . Coelho crashed into him and was given a straight red card and a four-month suspension . Other Atletico players remonstrated angrily with Kerlon , leading to an angry pushing match which interrupted the game for five minutes . Atletico coach Emerson Leao warned that Kerlon could get seriously injured if he tried the trick again . 11 Chelsea v Arsenal English League Cup final 2007 . With Chelsea winning 2-1 Arsenal defender Kolo Toure reacted angrily to a late challenge . Both sides had a number of African players in their line-ups and a mass brawl erupted which saw three of them , Arsenal 's Emmanuel Adebayor , Toure and Chelsea 's John Obi Mikel sent off . Adebayor refused to leave the pitch and it needed respective managers - the hot-headed pair of Arsene Wenger and Jose Mourinho - to stride onto the turf and defuse the situation .
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Football Fanzone presents a rundown of 11 infamous pitch punch-ups . The tension of competition has even seen teammates turn against one-another . Let us know what you think by commenting in the Sound Off box .
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Editor 's note : Zeyno Baran , a native of Turkey , is senior fellow for the Center for Islam , Democracy and the Future of the Muslim World at the Hudson Institute , a Washington-based think tank that says it is dedicated to `` global security , prosperity and freedom . '' From January 2003 until 2006 , Baran directed the International Security and Energy Programs at The Nixon Center . Zeyno Baran says the United States can learn much from Turkey 's expertise on Afghanistan and Pakistan . -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Turks greeted President Obama with huge excitement Monday . This was the first time a U.S. president visited Turkey at the start of his term , sending a clear signal that this administration recognizes the importance of Turkey and wants to engage with it from the start . His address in the Turkish parliament was one of the greatest speeches made by an American leader in such a setting : He not only showed his deep understanding of Turkey 's many complex issues and identities , but also handled tough issues with great skill . He framed his talk just right by underlining Turkey 's European identity as a secular democracy . That said , it is important to remember how good U.S.-Turkey relations were at the start of the Bush administration . President George W. Bush also considered Turkey an extremely valuable partner , but then came the Iraq war . The United States genuinely believed Turkey would be one of the most important allies going forward . Despite official channels and experts making clear the difficulties in allowing U.S. military to cross into Iraq via its lands , the administration chose to listen to those who sang music to its ears . As a result , they based a whole military strategy on the Turkish parliament voting yes and were shocked when they received a no . Bilateral relations then entered a downward spiral . With Obama 's election , there is renewed excitement in Turkey . Like most of the people of Turkey , he opposed the Iraq war and considered Afghanistan the `` good war . '' Going forward , as President Obama underscored in his speech , Turkey can play an important role in Afghanistan as a reliable NATO ally . The question is : How can Turkey best help ? Turkey is one of the few -- possibly the only -- NATO member that has deep religious , cultural and historic knowledge of both Afghanistan and Pakistan . In fact , the Turkish government has brought together the presidents of Afghanistan and Pakistan much before the United States began approaching them together . Reading the tea leaves , one may conclude that the Obama administration wants to cooperate with Turkey in engaging with the Taliban in Pakistan and Afghanistan . This would be the wrong kind of cooperation . Although Turkey has channels to the Taliban and has means to facilitate the talks , there can not be a morally acceptable deal reached with the Taliban , whose ultimate goal is to curb all individual freedoms and universal human rights , especially when it comes to women . No matter what the reasonable sounding arguments may be in favor of this strategy , pulling Turkey into any kind of engagement with the Taliban -- either as part of NATO or bilaterally -- would have much worse long-term consequences . Instead , the Obama administration needs to think of `` victory '' not only in the short term and from a purely anti-terrorism perspective , but also in consideration of the people who have lived and will continue to live in those lands . In other words , providing true safety , security , justice and development for Afghanistan and Pakistan -- not the kind of society the Taliban has been providing . Indeed , it is in providing the basic securities that Turkey can be a great partner . Turkey not only can and will continue to help provide safety and physical security , but also could further assist with the reconstruction projects , such as building hospitals , schools , sanitation facilities and investment projects that would have direct impact on the socioeconomic development of the Afghan and Pakistani societies . There are many Turkish companies that have undertaken successful construction projects in these fields since early 2002 . There are also military and civilian trainers , nongovernment organizations and even volunteer teachers who work in some of the most dangerous regions . Still , Turkey can possibly make the greatest contribution by helping the United States frame the challenges it is facing in a more accurate and honest way . Just as President Obama referred to his personal story and that of the United States to help Turks look deeper within , Turks can do the same for the United States . To start , Turkey can explain how the vast Eurasian region it belongs to is not just part of the `` Muslim world '' but has been at the crossroads of eastern and western cultures and ideas and witnessed many brutal wars and massacres over the millennia . Moreover , each country has its own spirit -- there are ancient cultures and tribal formations , and these do not move fast . It is important to stop and drink the tea . Turkey can also explain that it is only in recent decades that jihadism and extremism took root in these lands known for their Sufi teachings that talk about love , instead of hatred . As a true partner , it can also help the United States recognize its share , along with many others , in inadvertently contributing to the creation of the Taliban and al-Qaeda by making bad foreign policy choices . Anything short of recognition of the past catching up with us will leave us all unprepared for what may come in the future . In other words , we may be doomed to repeat the same mistakes until we learn our lesson . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Zeyno Baran .
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Zeyno Baran : Obama 's speech shows deep understanding of Turkey . She says administration needs to make good use of Turkey 's role in region . Baran : Using Turkey to make peace with Taliban would be a mistake . She says Turkey can help rebuild Afghanistan and provide security .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Soccer City , once the venue of South Africa 's most significant black freedom rallies , will next month host a sport that was open only to whites in the country 's apartheid-rule era . Rugby officials announced on Wednesday that South Africa 's Springboks will take on New Zealand 's All Blacks at the Johannesburg soccer stadium , which stages the 2010 World Cup final this weekend . The rebuilt ground , scene of Nelson Mandela 's first speech in the city after his release from prison in 1990 , is situated near the predominantly black township of Soweto . `` This is an historic day and one in which the whole of South Africa can celebrate , '' South African Rugby Union president Oregan Hoskins said in a statement on the ruling body 's website . `` Taking the Springboks to what is already an iconic world venue gives our players and supporters the best stage on which to enjoy rugby . But it also allows us to continue the nation building through sport that we have enjoyed throughout the FIFA World Cup . '' Check out a 360-degree panorama of Soccer City . While South African rugby was once dominated by whites , the game has become more mixed there -- especially since hosting the 1995 World Cup -- and players such as Chester Williams and Bryan Habana have become household names . The Blue Bulls rugby team also played a Super 14 match at Soweto 's Orlando Stadium in May this year as their home venue in Pretoria was unavailable due to the World Cup . The August 21 fixture will be South Africa 's first home match of the 2010 Tri-Nations tournament , which also features Australia . Soccer City , which is also known as National Stadium , has a capacity of 88,791 . The SARU has made some tickets available at reduced prices in order to get near the previous best crowd for a home rugby international -- 95,000 at Johannesburg 's Ellis Park when the British Lions visited in 1955 . More than 9,000 of the available tickets will be sold at 350 Rand -LRB- $ 45 -RRB- and 5,000 for just 100 rand -LRB- $ 13 -RRB- . The match had originally been scheduled for Ellis Park , but host province Golden Lions agreed to make the switch . `` The only thing that surprised us was the near unanimity of our stakeholders in embracing this decision , '' Lions chairman Kevin De Klerk said . `` The reaction has been overwhelmingly positive and as much as we love Ellis Park , there was widespread agreement that we must take such a significant rugby match to one of the best stadiums not just in South Africa but in the world . `` I 'd particularly like to thank -LSB- our -RSB- key sponsors ... They have had to make major sacrifices on some of their contractual rights but the way they have supported us in recognizing the potential benefits of this move -- not just for rugby , but for South Africa -- has been magnificent . '' The Springboks will begin the defense of their Tri-Nations crown in New Zealand on Saturday , the first of two clashes with the Kiwis before heading to Australia for a match in Brisbane on July 24 .
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Soccer City will host a rugby union international between South Africa and New Zealand . Johannesburg stadium was the scene of South Africa 's most famous freedom rallies . Rugby in the country has traditionally been dominated by whites . The August 21 fixture will be Springboks ' first home game of 2010 Tri-Nations series .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The average American woman can live long enough to celebrate her 80th birthday , so if a woman is able to become pregnant using in vitro fertilization with a donor egg at 56 , she could still watch her child grow into an adult . But just because it 's possible , does that mean she should ? Some feel that having children after 45 is unfair because the parents might not live to see the kids become adults . The death of 69-year-old Maria del Carmen Bousada of Spain , who used in vitro fertilization with a donor egg to have twin boys at 66 , has the fertility treatment community bracing for a backlash . It could rival the fallout from octuplet mom Nadya Suleman -- and it seems to have already started . In a national online survey about fertility conducted in May by Johnson & Johnson 's Babycenter.com , 7 out of 10 moms who responded wanted tougher regulation laws for IVF treatments , and half of the 1,095 respondents thought it was bad for the children if a parent conceived past 45 . Fertility specialists understand those concerns , but they say it 's not that simple . Although it 's rare for anyone older than 55 to get the go-ahead for IVF , that guideline is peer-enforced rather than mandated , and decisions typically are made on a case-by-case basis . Georgia Dardick , an advertising executive in Boynton Beach , Florida , was one of those cases . Dardick tried to conceive via IVF six times and seriously considered adoption , but at 51 , she was n't ready to let go of her desire to have a baby . `` Fifty was the cutoff for my doctor , but they agreed to give us one more try , '' she said . She had her daughter in January . Dardick said she never planned to have a baby at 51 , but feels that she made the right decision , despite the judgments others may have . `` The word selfish has come into my mind . But for any parent , having a child is selfish . No matter what your age is , once you have that child , you owe that child everything . I live the best , healthiest life I can . '' Doctors say society 's views of aging needs to change . `` The 40 and 45-year-old of today is not the 40-year-old of the past ; the 50-year-old -LSB- today -RSB- is not the same of the past , '' said Dr. John Jain , a physician at the Santa Monica -LRB- California -RRB- Fertility Clinic who has treated age-related infertility for 15 years . `` They 're eating healthy . A woman who is 45 is barely halfway through -LSB- her -RSB- life . '' Healthy or not , having a child at that age can cause tremendous stress on the body . Candidates for IVF after 45 use either an egg donor or their own frozen embryos from a prior cycle and are screened for underlying medical problems , such as diabetes , obesity , hypertension or lung disease , said Dr. Charles Coddington of the Mayo Clinic 's reproductive endocrinology department in Rochester , Minnesota . Still , `` if somebody were in good health , it would be hard to say , ` you should n't have a baby , ' '' he said . `` One has to judge where they are , health-wise and financially . '' But if a woman who claims to be 55 is actually in her mid-60s -- as Bousada reportedly did -- what 's a doctor to do ? Not much , physicians say . Watch report on death of 69-year-old mother '' `` The truth may get dimmed to fit into the realm of a patient that may be acceptable . I do n't sit there and say , ` Go get your birth certificate . ' If someone 's coming in and they 're saying they 're 52 or 55 , I take it at face value , '' Coddington said , who does refer questionable cases to the fertility center 's ethics board . Even for those who choose to use it , the availability of this technology can be a double-edged sword . Dardick said she would n't change anything , but if she did have to do it all over again , she said she may have considered adoption earlier . `` In a way , there 's this hope always out there for you , and once you get into it , it 's harder to break away , '' she said . It 's the intense desire to have a biological child that Manhattan-based psychotherapist Joan Winograd , who specializes in fertility issues for women 40 and older , has been treating for 20 years . `` I work with women who 've been very successful . They went to the right schools , got married and they feel that everything comes to you if you work hard . But then they realize pregnancy does n't happen that way , '' said Winograd . She helps her clients find balance -- and limits -- by creating a plan : How long should they try IVF ? How long until they consider adoption or child-free living ? `` They need that . '' Winograd said , `` because many times a doctor will say , ` Look , this is your money , this is your dream ; who am I to say that you ca n't do it anymore . ' '' While doctors do help women try to reach their dream , Jain said he is n't afraid to tell a patient `` no '' if they simply are n't healthy enough -- or are just too old . But , Jain said , it 's all based on his judgment as a trained physician . `` Ninety-five percent of us do a great job about regulating ourselves . I personally do n't want to see more regulation , because it becomes problematic , and it can be more costly . Someone who 's failed three cycles and -LSB- has already spent -RSB- $ 50,000 -- with the next cycle , will I be more aggressive ? Certainly , '' Jain said . `` But maybe there 's a middle ground , if the rule is that donor IVF will not be offered for women over 55 years of age . Regulations at the extremes might be useful . '' Even though Dardick plans on living her life as a new mom for quite some time , she said having a baby at her age is n't ideal . She and her husband are taking careful precautions by adjusting their financial planning to make sure their daughter will be financially secure . They 're also tightening bonds with extended family and friends , should anything happen to her or her husband -- a decision Bousada may have made as well , as her twin boys are now in the custody of a relative . Those , Dardick said , are the decisions one has to make when having a child later in life . '' `` People feel that it 's not fair to the child because you may not live long enough , '' Dardick said . But as someone who lost a father as a teenager , she knows `` there are no guarantees in life . ''
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If a woman is in good health , she can conceive and give birth into her 50s . Most fertility centers stop treating after 55 , but there are n't any laws to enforce this . Doctors say tougher regulations would hinder their ability to treat patients . Florida woman was able to have her miracle baby at 51 .
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[[5402, 5481]]
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The White House Press Office accidentally e-mailed a draft version of President Obama 's Thursday schedule on Wednesday night that included the back-and-forth between White House staffers . Members of the media got a behind-the-scenes look at what goes into President Obama 's schedule . The e-mail , sent on a daily basis to inform the media of the next day 's events , at first appeared to be like any other press schedule . But at the bottom of the e-mail , there was a series of exchanges from the press team , as well as a draft of the schedule . The first section of the schedule noted that in the morning , Obama planned to talk with homeowners who have refinanced their homes and benefited from lower mortgage payments . One staffer , recommending changes to that line , wrote to `` put more emphasis on the real people aspect of this . '' The draft version said Obama will talk `` with his economic team , '' and also attending the meeting `` will be a handful of households . '' The final version took the emphasis off the economic team and said `` Attending the meeting will be a handful of homeowners ... as well as members of President Obama 's economic team . '' The draft schedule also showed the president hosting Seder to celebrate Passover . The dinner was marked `` closed press , '' meaning no reporters allowed . One staffer asked , `` Can we remove the dinner at the end of the day ? '' `` We put it on yesterday 's deal -- so folks already know that it 's happening . They 'll wonder why it 's not listed if we do n't include it on there , '' another staffer replied . The staffer who asked to remove the dinner from the schedule replied , `` Apparently Jewish here and in neighboring states are now calling wondering why they have not been invited . '' The dinner was not listed on the final schedule . In another exchange , one staffer recommended nixing a line about Obama meeting with leaders from the Veterans Service Organizations and Military Service Organizations since the president was now meeting with them before his remarks in an event closed to the media . `` Can we keep it and just change it to say before . Its good for us to say we are meeting with them , '' another replied . The final copy kept the line , noting that the VSO and MSO leaders would meet with Obama before his remarks . The White House says the error was made by a sleep-deprived staffer , adding that the staffer will not suffer repercussions for the mistake .
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E-mail of President Obama 's schedule includes back-and-forth between staffers . Staffers suggest changes to `` put more emphasis on the real people aspect '' White House blames slip-up on a sleep-deprived staffer .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Intan Suci Nurhati was on her way to a religious gathering when her sisters called to say they were under attack . `` They were running for their safety as they called , '' she said . `` When I heard , I realized how far it was to the main compound , and I was like , ` Oh , my God . ' '' Nurhati and her family are members of a Muslim minority sect called the Ahmadi , who hold annual gatherings in each country where they have a community . It was in July 2005 that the Indonesian gathering came under attack by -- Nurhati estimates -- 10,000 people throwing stones . The protesters outnumbered the Ahmadi by 100 to 1 . Nurhati was on her way to the gathering in Parung , West Java province , from the capital Jakarta with a member of the Indonesian Parliament when the attack happened . By the time she arrived , houses and books had been burned , she said . `` No one was killed , but there were some minor injuries from the throwing of rocks . We decided to call off the conference . It was unsafe to go on with the gathering , '' said Nurhati , 27 , a graduate student studying climate change at Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta , Georgia . `` There was so much anger in their faces , '' said Nurhati , a native of Indonesia who has been living in the United States for 10 years . Police provided buses to get the Ahmadi community to safety , but Nurhati does not know of any arrests or prosecutions as a result of the attack . `` It was really disappointing . We have the right to be there . But the police were trying to minimize the clashes , rather than trying to say we have the right to be there , '' she said . Indonesia -- the most populous Muslim country in the world -- is often touted as an example of tolerance and democracy in the Islamic world . But a huge new study suggests it 's actually among the most restrictive countries in the world when it comes to religion . The study charted publicly reported incidents of religious violence , intolerance , intimidation and discrimination in 198 countries and territories from mid-2006 to mid-2008 , its authors said . Brian Grim , the lead researcher on the project , said he worked on the study for more than three years . The report looks not only at legal restrictions , but also at how laws are implemented and how social tensions restrict freedom of religion , even where there is no official or legal bar against the practice . Indonesia has both . In fact , more than two out of three people around the world live in countries with high or very high restrictions on religion , according to the report , which claims to be the first to systematically measure religious discrimination . It produced some surprising findings and makes it possible to compare countries in ways that could not be done before , its authors say . `` Most reports do n't try to quantify , '' Grim said . `` What you are left with is studies that do n't allow you to see patterns . '' The study , `` Global Restrictions on Religion , '' found some interesting ones . For example , `` religion-related violence happens in the majority of countries , but only in one in 10 does that escalate '' to terrorism causing casualties , Grim said . The study tracked violence between religious groups in 126 countries -- 64 percent of the countries in the survey . But there was religion-related terrorism leading to injury or death in only 17 countries -- 9 percent of those in the study . In about a quarter of all countries , majority groups use force or threat of force against minority religions , according to the study , from the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life in Washington . Nearly half of all countries restrict the activities of foreign missionaries or prohibit them altogether . Ninety percent have some requirement that religious groups register with the government , usually in return for some benefit such as a tax exemption . But in 40 percent of countries , those registration requirements result in major problems for those groups . `` Others often focus on naming and shaming , but this one is looking more in depth at what goes on on the street in countries -- what affects a person 's ability to freely practice religion in society , '' Grim said . `` Sometimes , one incident of violence can affect a whole country . '' The report also makes it possible to compare what kinds of restrictions are placed on religious practices in different countries . China , for example , has tight legal controls on the practice of religion , but has has relatively little social conflict over faith . India , by contrast , has only moderate government restrictions on religious observance , but very high levels of social hostility -- primarily between Muslims and Hindus . Brazil has the lowest ratings in both categories among the 25 largest countries in the world , while Pakistan has the highest , followed closely by Indonesia . Egypt , Iran and Bangladesh also rate poorly for religious freedom , while Japan , the United States , South Africa , Italy and the United Kingdom score well . European governments place more restrictions on religion than do governments in sub-Saharan Africa or South America , the survey concluded . While the U.S. has a low level of government restriction on religion , it does experience a moderate amount of social tension , the report found . `` The test is not whether someone who belongs to the majority faith and is affluent and is socially advanced feels restrictions , but whether religious minorities do , '' said Alan Cooperman , associate director of research at the Pew Forum . `` So in the United States , what does a Muslim woman who wears a hijab in a small city feel ? '' Religious discrimination in the United States is not simply a matter of people feeling uncomfortable , he added . `` Law enforcement officials report to the FBI every year on hate crimes , including religious bias , '' he said . `` There were about 1,400 each year -LSB- in the study -RSB- , and they were reported in nearly all 50 states . Those crimes run the gamut , but they include arsons . '' The U.S. was also marked down because of the Bush administration 's `` global war on terror , '' Grim said . `` The fact -LSB- is -RSB- that we have detainees from a war that at least one side is calling religion-related -- the Guantanamo detainees , '' he said . Neither the September 11 , 2001 , attacks and their aftermath , nor the shootings at Fort Hood in Texas this year were included in the time period covered by the study , he said , but both could have increased the U.S. score for social hostilities based on religion , Grim said . `` Scores are not fixed . Situations can change , which is why we are looking at this as an over-time study , '' he said . `` Countries and societies will change in how they respond to the situations they face . '' In fact , the authors plan to revisit the question of religious restrictions regularly , so they can track changes over time , and the U.S. might rank differently when the Fort Hood shootings are included -- if investigators rule that they were motivated at least partly by religion . The study authors do not assign motives to incidents of discrimination , instead relying on local sources to determine the causes . The study does not rank countries from `` best '' to `` worst '' -- saying such a list would not be meaningful -- but instead groups them into those with very high restrictions , high restrictions , moderate or low . It does not include North Korea , because there is not enough reliable data from the reclusive communist state , the authors said . CNN 's Tricia Escobedo in Atlanta , Georgia , contributed to this report .
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Study charts discrimination , violence , intimidation in 198 countries , territories . It looks at how legal restrictions , social tensions restrict freedom of religion . Brazil rates lowest in religious legal controls , social conflict among 25 largest nations . Japan , U.S. , S. Africa , Italy , UK score well in religious freedom ; Egypt , Iran , Bangladesh do n't .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Amber Lemna says studying `` The Secret '' is changing her life for the better . The 2006 book and film discusses the law of attraction , something adherents say allows people to attract what they want by envisioning it and believing it will come . Lemna says she 's used it to kick-start a business idea : attaching decorated tabs to credit cards so people can easily pull the cards from wallets . Thanks to `` The Secret , '' she says , she 's attracted people and resources to help her and already is selling the tabs in 10 local stores . `` Nothing has been the same since I 've listened to the CD -LSB- of the book -RSB- , '' said Lemna , 29 . `` I can control how my day goes . '' So the Minneapolis , Minnesota-area insurance agent bristles when she hears people using the troubles of self-help entrepreneur James Arthur Ray , who appears in but did not create `` The Secret '' film , to bash the attraction principles . Ray integrates the law of attraction into his teachings on obtaining spiritual , financial , mental and physical wealth . He postponed all his scheduled events through the end of the year after three people died after spending time in a sweat lodge session he led near Sedona , Arizona , in October . Police are investigating the deaths , and Ray has said his organization is working with authorities to determine what happened ; no charges have been filed . `` It works with or without him , '' Lemna said of the book and film -- both works of Australian TV producer Rhonda Byrne . '' -LSB- Ray is -RSB- just an advocate . '' Self-help is a multibillion-dollar-a-year unregulated industry in the United States , according to John C. Norcross , professor of psychology at the University of Scranton . Norcross says hundreds of quality , research-supported self-help programs on career growth , health and self-esteem exist . But he and other critics say some gurus , promising secrets to greater happiness and wealth , offer advice that at best is n't proven effective and at worst could send someone down a poorly suited or dangerous path . `` You can publish anything making the most outrageous claims as long as it 's not libelous , '' said Norcross , co-author of `` Authoritative Guide to Self-Help Resources in Mental Health . '' Norcross takes particular umbrage at Ray and law of attraction advocates , saying they generally offer anecdotal evidence that their way works , but do n't offer scientific evidence to support the claims . Ray , who has written books and holds seminars and other events , says on his Web site that he blends `` the practical and mystical into a usable and easy-to-access formula for achieving true wealth across all aspects of life . '' His six-step Journey of Power series of events costs participants thousands of dollars . One of the steps , the Spiritual Warrior retreat , which was under way when the October sweat lodge deaths happened , costs $ 9,695 per person . `` When people are pursuing a program of undocumented effectiveness , they are not spending time and money pursuing a program they know works , '' Norcross said . A media representative for Ray declined to comment about the criticism . Dave Orton , who has attended several of Ray 's programs , says Ray 's techniques have helped him break habits and thoughts that hindered him and have given him tools to achieve goals `` in a more elegant and rapid manner . '' The 33-year-old technology-company program manager from Boise , Idaho , says Ray 's and other self-help programs helped him get his professional certification in project management . Orton , who was n't at the event near Sedona , says the deaths were tragic and unacceptable . But he says he is n't turned off to the self-help industry or Ray 's teachings , and he may be interested in attending another Ray event in the future . `` The results in my own life , that 's what I 'd trust more than a third-party study , '' Orton said . `` My -LSB- project management -RSB- certificate is hanging on the wall right now . It 's not just a dream . '' Psychologists : How to choose . Several people trained in psychology , however , told CNN that too many self-help authors and presenters offer little scientific evidence that backs up their claims . Gerald Rosen , a clinical psychologist in Seattle , Washington , says he believes more self-help books should undergo pre-publication testing -- especially those written by psychologists , who he says should be held to a high professional standard . `` When you look at a book for depression , there probably is n't a blurb on the back that says this book has been shown in studies to help 65 percent of those who have been diagnosed with this . There 's just a claim that this can happen for you , '' said Rosen , a former chairman of the American Psychological Association 's task force on self-help therapies . Norcross says that a lack of scientific evidence is n't the only thing to look out for . Other characteristics that should make consumers wary , he says : . • Authors or speakers who do n't have formal training in the featured topic . `` They should look for someone with rigorous training at an accredited university and who has spent years investigating and conducting these treatments , '' Norcross said . • Programs that do n't screen consumers for problems . For example , Norcross says , certain programs might be harmful for a person with bipolar disorder . • People who reject conventional knowledge and instead imply a revolutionary secret . `` It 's marketing , essentially , '' Norcross said . • People who propose solutions for all problems instead of particular problems . Michael Shermer , executive director of the Skeptics Society , said consumers should be wary of programs that cost a lot of money but teach no hands-on skills . `` It 's one thing to pay a trade school . It 's another to pay the same kind of money to ... seek a mystical effect on your prosperity , '' said Shermer , who holds a master 's degree in experimental psychology and a doctorate in the history of science . He also warns that the effects can be fleeting . `` Corporate America has wasted millions '' on motivational seminars , Shermer said . `` The marketing and sales guys get fired up , but the effects of those types of seminars are weeks at minimum , months at best . That 's why a lot of them do corporate retreats every six months , because the effects fade . '' Shermer suggests that consumers try out a self-help adviser 's book or tape before committing to an expensive getaway `` to see if there 's a connection for you . '' People interested in a program also should talk to previous participants at least six months after they used it , he said . `` If you talked a day after , they would have to rationalize it to a certain extent -LSB- even if it were no good -RSB- because they just paid a lot of money , '' Shermer said . As for Lemna , she says the changes in her life are all the proof she needs that `` The Secret '' is working . `` I 'm sure there are people who need -LSB- scientific evidence -RSB- , fine . Then find something that works for you , '' she said .
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Psychologists : Look for authors , teachers backed by research and formal training . Some programs do n't screen for conditions that might make someone ill-suited , expert says . `` The Secret '' user : Changes in my life are all the proof I need that it works .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Federal officials have given the go-ahead for a motorcycle race in California 's Johnson Valley Open Area , where a truck race turned deadly Saturday , killing eight and injuring nine , officials said Friday . The Bureau of Land Management issued a statement announcing it has granted the American Motorcycle Association approval to proceed with its scheduled off-road race in the Southern California desert area this weekend after assessing the association 's safety and crowd control requirements . `` As part of an overall increased oversight of permit activities , the BLM has closely coordinated this weekend 's event with the race promoter to ensure that the safety of the spectators and participants is of the highest priority , '' the statement said . `` Race coordinators have put in place additional safeguards at the start/finish line , pit row areas , and have increased security and medical presence to ensure safe racing conditions . '' Bureau officials said they are working with enforcement agencies in the ongoing investigation into Saturday 's deadly crash . For now , events promoted by Mojave Desert Racing remain suspended , it added . That organization was the promoter of last Saturday 's race . Mojave Desert Racing was barred by the bureau Thursday . In last week 's deadly crash , a truck taking part in a 200-mile off-road race crashed into a crowd of spectators .
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Bureau of Land Management OKs motorcycle race in the Johnson Valley Open Area . That 's where eight died when a truck crashed into a crowd during an event , killing eight . Mohave Desert Racing events remain suspended , the bureau says .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The African American woman who called Dr. Laura Schlessinger for advice and heard the radio talk show host use the N-word 11 times said Thursday that she was confused and hurt by the call . `` I was calling her to get some help , '' Nita Hanson told CNN 's `` American Morning . '' `` I did not expect to hear the things that she said to me . '' Hanson called Schlessinger August 11 , seeking advice on how to deal with racist comments from her white husband 's friends and relatives . The conversation evolved into a discussion on whether it 's appropriate to ever use the N-word , with Schlessinger arguing it 's used on HBO and by black comedians . National furor erupted after Schlessinger ended up using the word 11 times during the five-minute call with Hanson . `` It 's never OK to use that word , '' Hanson said . `` I have a problem with Dr. Laura because she 's old enough to know better . She knows where that word came from . '' Join the discussion about disparaging words . The embattled Schlessinger , 63 , announced Tuesday she will not renew her contract that is up at the end of the year , telling CNN 's `` Larry King Live '' she wants to `` regain my First Amendment rights . '' Schlessinger apologized for her remarks but Hanson said that was not good enough . `` I think she apologized because she got caught , to be honest with you , '' Hanson told CNN . `` At this point , there 's nothing she can do for me . '' In announcing her decision `` not to do radio anymore '' after being in the business for more than 30 years , Schlessinger said , `` I want to be able to say what 's on my mind and in my heart and what I think is helpful and useful without somebody getting angry or some special-interest group deciding this is a time to silence a voice of dissent . '' Hanson said Schlessinger 's offense went beyond using a derogatory word . `` She said I should n't marry outside my race , '' Hanson said . Hanson has been married three years and called Schlessinger for advice after she kept hearing her husband 's friends make comments about black people . She listened to Schlessinger 's show all the time and trusted her , Hanson said . `` It 's very hurtful , '' Hanson said . Schlessinger told CNN Tuesday that while she was still `` regretful '' over the incident , she feels her freedom of speech rights `` have been usurped by angry , hateful groups who do n't want to debate -- they want to eliminate . '' `` I decided it was time to move on to other venues where I could say my peace and not have to live in fear anymore , '' she said .
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Nita Hanson called Laura Schlessinger for advice on racial comments . The radio talk-show host ended up using the N-word repeatedly . Schlessinger apologized but Hanson says she ought to have known better . Schlessinger , 63 , came under fire and said she would end her show .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The former mayor of Hoboken , New Jersey , was sentenced Thursday to two years in federal prison for accepting bribes in one of the state 's largest political corruption scandals , according to the U.S. attorney 's office in New Jersey . Peter Cammarano III , 33 , was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Jose L. Linares to spend twenty-four months in prison for illegally accepting $ 25,000 in bribes -- all of which he must repay to the government . The judge also ordered Cammarano to two years of supervised release upon completion of his jail term . In April , the ex-mayor pleaded guilty before a federal judge to conspiracy and extortion , following his arrest just three weeks after becoming Hoboken 's youngest mayor . The U.S. attorney 's office said that Cammarano took bribes from a government witness who posed as a real estate developer in exchange for promised future assistance in Hoboken 's government matters . Prosecutors said that at his plea hearing , Cammarano said that he accepted three illegal cash payments from the government witness . Two payments , totaling $ 15,000 , were received while he was a councilman at-large for Hoboken . He further admitted that he accepted an added $ 10,000 after being elected and sworn in as mayor . Shortly after his arrest , Cammarano stepped down as mayor of Hoboken . In a statement to the city clerk 's office at the time , he denied all criminal wrongdoing , but said the charges had disrupted the city government and his ability to perform his duties as mayor . The U.S. attorney 's statement said that Cammarano 's sentencing resulted from an undercover FBI investigation into public corruption and money-laundering . Cammarano was one of 44 civic leaders and public officials nabbed in an investigation called `` Operation Bid Rig . '' In a statement to CNN , Cammarano 's attorney , Joseph A Hayden , said , `` Peter Cammarano made a catastrophic mistake with respect to his conduct . He has accepted responsibility and pleaded guilty . He will serve his sentence . He is a young man and will rebuild his life . In the future he will once again make positive contributions to society . '' Cammarano is free on bond and is scheduled surrender to authorities on September 20 , 2010 , to being his prison term .
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Peter Cammarano III was Hoboken 's youngest mayor . He was arrested after just three weeks in office . Cammarano pleaded guilty in April to conspiracy and extortion .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- `` This can be yours , '' the black-and-white newspaper advertisement promised above an image of a tree-lined ranch home in Pontchartrain Park . At the bottom , it said `` Available to Negroes . '' It was the 1950s in segregated New Orleans , Louisiana , and the promise of a slice of suburbia for black Americans lured hundreds to the new community . That included Meldon Woods , an Air Force corporal who had been given a home loan for his military service through the GI Bill . He and his wife , Audrey , a schoolteacher at the time , purchased a two-story home in 1957 where they raised their four children . Fifty years later , he was forced to evacuate that home as Hurricane Katrina bore down on New Orleans on August 29 , 2005 . `` My husband said , no , he was not leaving , because he was upstairs and if the water came , he 'd be upstairs , '' Audrey Woods recalled . `` I never would have left him . So my youngest son , he came and said , ` Mama , get in the car . Daddy get in the car . ' '' Meldon Woods eventually relented and left his home and the neighborhood he helped turn into a strong , solid African-American community . Katrina whipped up 15-foot waves on Lake Pontchartrain , flooding the London Canal levee that lies west of Pontchartrain Park . As much as 20 feet of water flooded the neighborhood . Not a single home in Pontchartrain Park was left unscathed . Water rose nearly to the rooftop of the Woods ' home , where Meldon had planned to ride out the storm . A few weeks later , they returned to utter devastation . `` I did n't know whether to cry , scream . I did n't really know what to do , '' Audrey Woods said . `` But my knees kind of buckled when I looked in here and I was , ` Oh my God . ' '' The elderly couple did n't waste any time reflecting : They immediately focused on rebuilding . `` They had on these white suits with white masks ... and they 're hauling out pieces of sheet rock , '' said Justin Woods , the youngest of the Woods ' four children . `` My father with a cane , carrying a piece of sheet rock out . And I remember calling Rhea and saying , ` Do you know what your parents are doing ? They 're gutting the house ... by themselves . ' '' It was the same spirit and determination that helped create Pontchartrain Park where , according to many locals , children were raised with a sense of community and family . All four of the Woods ' children went on to become successful in their careers -- a common theme for the children of Pontchartrain Park such as Lisa Jackson , the current head of the Environmental Protection Agency ; jazz musician Terence Blanchard ; former mayors Ernest and Mark Morial ; and actor Wendell Pierce from HBO 's `` The Wire . '' Interactive : Meet the residents of Pontchartrain Park . Even BP vice president and spokesman Darryl Willis , originally from Louisiana , is rebuilding his home in Pontchartrain Park as he continues to manage the Gulf oil disaster . Those successes were built on the sacrifices of the men and women who settled in Pontchartrain Park , says Pierce , who now spends his time in New Orleans starring in the new HBO series `` Treme '' about post-Katrina New Orleans . `` My parents ' generation took something ugly like segregation and turned it into ... one of the most stable American neighborhoods , not only in this city , but around the country , '' he said . `` It was -LSB- a -RSB- dogged fight by these young parents who had this opportunity to build a life for their families in one of the most difficult times in modern history : Jim Crow segregation , Deep South , New Orleans . '' That fight to create a better future for their kids instilled a deep sense of commitment to the neighborhood in Pierce . And that is why the actor has committed the past two years to rebuilding Pontchartrain Park . Pierce staged a massive effort to get the city of New Orleans to start rebuilding the neighborhood 's blighted and abandoned properties . Only 30 percent of the neighborhood 's residents had returned two years after Katrina -- the second slowest rate of return in New Orleans behind the city 's devastated and impoverished Ninth Ward , according to Pierce . Opinion : Russel Honoré on New Orleans today . With the help of Troy Henry , a management consultant and boyhood friend , Pierce formed a nonprofit community corporation to get the city to sell back some of the houses so they could be rebuilt and resold at an affordable price . It has not all been smooth sailing -- some locals have criticized his involvement . `` I got a lot of pushback that I was , you know , a local kid come home with some success and trying to do a land grab myself , '' Pierce told CNN 's Soledad O'Brien . `` It was hurtful . '' In November 2008 , New Orleans signed a deal with Pierce 's Pontchartrain Park Community Development Corporation to rebuild 400 homes . It was a huge success , but the start of a slow process : A year-and-a-half after the agreement , the city had turned over only four plots . Today , Pierce is credited with raising the return rate in The Park from about 33 percent to more than 50 percent . But not every former resident wants to return . Lisa Oubre wants nothing to do with her husband 's plan to rebuild their home in Pontchartrain Park , where they raised their son before Katrina . Hurby Oubre wants Jacques , who was 10 years old when Katrina struck , to enjoy the same childhood he experienced growing up in Pontchartrain Park . `` It was a real neighborhood . Everyone knew who you were , '' Hurby said . `` Everyone looked out for you . Your neighbors , they 'd chastise you -LSB- if -RSB- they saw you doing something wrong . '' Since 2005 , the Oubre family has been split between two cities : Hurby works in New Orleans as a mail carrier , while Lisa is employed in Baton Rouge , where she lives with Jacques who is now in high school . She has no plans to return to Pontchartrain Park . `` I ca n't go back there , I ca n't do that again , '' Lisa said . `` God knows we 've lost enough . We lost every single thing we 've ever owned up to that day in 2005 . ... When is the ripple effect going to stop rolling over our lives ? '' Hurby still holds out hope that one day his family will be reunited in Pontchartrain Park . `` That 's my home . ... I was n't going to let it die , and I knew that . I always felt that . I always said I 'd go back , '' he said . `` You ca n't really get frustrated or angry with anybody for going through that traumatic experience and not wanting to come back . '' When asked who he 's building his home for , he responds , `` Hopefully I 'm building it for my family . ''
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African-Americans could buy houses in Pontchartrain Park in the 1950s . Residents established a strong middle-class community , despite the limits of segregation . Hurricane Katrina uprooted the community , damaging every home . Today , more than half of Pontchartrain Park 's residents have returned .
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London , England -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Singer George Michael has been charged with possession of cannabis and driving while unfit through drink or drugs , London 's Metropolitan Police Service said Thursday . Michael , 47 , was released on bail and told to appear at Highbury Corner Magistrates Court in north London on August 24 , police said . Police did not say what led to the arrest , but Michael -- whose real name is Georgios Panayiotou -- was widely reported to have been involved in an accident in the early hours of July 4 , in which he allegedly crashed his car into a north London photo shop . Michael was found guilty in 2007 of unfit driving through tiredness and prescription medication and received a two-year driving ban , according to British media . He was arrested again the following year near Hampstead Heath park in north London and cautioned for possession of a controlled substance , according to news reports .
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Singer George Michael has been charged for possessing cannabis . He was also charged for driving while unfit through drink or drugs . It follows reports that he crashed his car into a shop in July .
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Los Angeles , California -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Federal officials Thursday barred the promoters of last week 's deadly off-road race in Southern California from holding future races on public land while an investigation is under way . Saturday night 's crash in the desert east of Los Angeles left eight people dead and nine injured when a truck taking part in the 200-mile event crashed into a crowd of spectators along the track . The driver wo n't face charges in the accident , the California Highway Patrol announced Monday , but the federal Bureau of Land Management is investigating whether sanctioning body Mojave Desert Racing violated any safety regulations . According to its permit , Mojave Desert Racing had five more races scheduled for 2010 . The company has not responded to repeated calls for comment since Saturday 's fatal crash . `` BLM has suspended any future permitted events of MDR Productions while the investigation is underway , '' the agency announced Thursday . In addition , another promoter 's upcoming motorcycle race is under new scrutiny , and future events `` are being reviewed on a case-by-case basis , '' BLM said in a written statement . The agency said that off-highway races are a popular activity and that its investigation `` will be aimed at ensuring the public safety remains our first priority . '' Last weekend 's race was part of an amateur series on a course in the Lucerne Valley area of San Bernardino County , east of Los Angeles . Mojave Desert Racing urges spectators to stay back 100 feet from the 50-mile course , but a California Highway Patrol spokesman said there were `` no delineations '' for the course . Images from the night of the crash show trucks speeding within feet of spectators . Brett Sloppy , the driver of the out-of-control truck , did not respond to repeated requests for comment but announced in a post on his Facebook page that he was devastated by what happened . `` My thoughts and prayers go out to all the familys and friends involved , '' he wrote . `` Thank you too all my friends for sticking with me even thru these tragic times I love you all . '' Keith Carty , a friend of one of the victims in the California crash , told CNN 's HLN that races attract a certain type of person : someone who wants to participate as much as watch an event . `` It 's not anybody 's turn to baby-sit us . We 're out there . We understand the risk . Everybody that was there understood the risk : the drivers , the spectators , everybody , '' he said . CNN 's Stan Wilson contributed to this report .
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Organizers of a race that turned deadly are barred from racing on public land . The California Highway Patrol says it will not file criminal charges against the driver . The driver says he is devastated by the incident . Saturday night 's crash left eight people dead .
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BINGHAMTON , New York -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- People who knew the suspected gunman in Friday 's shooting at an immigration services center were not surprised by his actions , the police chief in Binghamton , New York , said Saturday . Police tape cordons off the crime scene in Binghamton , New York , on Saturday . `` From the people close to him , the actions that he took were not a surprise to them , '' Chief Joseph Zikuski told reporters at a noon news conference . The police chief said that `` some of this behavior on his part was n't a total shock , '' but did not elaborate what , if any , previous behavior he meant . A federal law enforcement source identified the suspected gunman as Jiverly Wong . Zikuski said Wong , who was from Vietnam , was 41 and had changed his last name to Voong . `` Apparently people were making fun of him . He felt he was being degraded because of his inability to speak English , and he was upset about that , '' Zikuski said . Watch police question whether teasing led to shooting rampage '' Wong also was upset about recently losing a job , Zikuski said . He had been taking English language classes at the American Civic Association , the site of Friday 's shooting rampage , until dropping out the first week in March , the police chief said . Watch investigators struggle to make sense of shooting '' Thirteen people were slain in the association , which helps refugees and immigrants , before Wong apparently turned the gun on himself , authorities said . Four others were wounded and are in local hospitals . They are all expected to survive , Zikuski said . Angela Leach , a representative of the American Civic Association , read a statement through tears at the news conference . View photos from the scene in Binghamton '' `` Whatever drove this individual to do what he did I can not possibly fathom , '' she said . `` But we will come out of our grief and sadness more resolute in our mission and more dedicated than ever to help people realize the dream of American citizenship . '' Zikuski said Wong was wearing body armor , possibly indicating that he had prepared for a confrontation with police . Zikuski said the suspect was heavily armed and that the victims had `` multiple gunshot '' wounds from Friday 's massacre . Watch the latest news from Binghamton '' `` He must have been a coward , he decided to end his own life , '' when he heard police sirens , Zikuski said . By late Saturday , police had begun the grim work of notifying the family members of the victims . Omri Yigal said one of Voong 's victims was his wife , Dolores , who was taking English classes at the center to better herself . Yigal said he had no anger for the shooter . `` My thoughts are on my wife . I do n't have time for that now , '' he said . Yigal said he felt `` grief for my wife and that 's it . '' `` She 's come so far , '' he said haltingly , his arms crossed and his eyes to the ground . `` So much . '' President Obama , speaking in Strasbourg , France , after a NATO summit , said his administration is in communication with law enforcement officials in Binghamton . `` I am heartbroken for the families who survived this tragedy and it just underscores the degree to which in each of our countries we have to guard against the kind of senseless violence that the tragedy represents , '' Obama said . Authorities received a 911 phone call at 10:31 a.m. Friday from a receptionist hiding under a desk alerting them to the shooting . The receptionist , who had pretended to be dead before crawling under a desk , said she was shot in the stomach , Zikuski said . Watch Zikuski give a timeline of the shooting '' '' -LSB- She 's a -RSB- very brave lady , '' the police chief said . Police arrived on the scene minutes after the phone call ; by that time , the shooting had stopped . The woman is among the four wounded , he said ; she is in serious condition . Before entering the building 's front door , Wong had apparently used his father 's car to barricade the building 's door , Binghamton Mayor Matthew Ryan said . Wong then entered the building front door armed with two handguns , and without saying a word , began shooting , police said . Ryan said two semi-automatic handguns -- a .45 - caliber and a 9-millimeter -- found at the center were licensed to Wong . Authorities executed a search warrant at Wong 's home in Johnson City , just outside Binghamton , where he lived with his family , Ryan said . `` They took a computer hard drive -- they took an empty long gun case , and some other bags , '' he said . State police received a tip in 1999 from a confidential informant who told them Wong was planning a bank robbery , Zikuski said . The information indicated Wong had a crack or cocaine habit and owned handguns , Zikuski said , and he did not provide additional information . Binghamton , a city of about 50,000 people , is close to the Pennsylvania state line and about 140 miles northwest of New York City . CNN 's Allan Chernoff and Susan Candiotti contributed to this report .
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NEW : Suspected gunman 's action `` not a surprise '' to those who knew him , police say . Mayor : Suspect spoke poor English , `` felt people were looking down on him '' President Obama : `` I am heartbroken for the families '' Fourteen people , including gunman , died Friday in N.Y. immigration center shootings .
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Baghdad , Iraq -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The number of U.S. troops remaining in Iraq is about 52,000 , the U.S. military said Thursday . That puts U.S. Forces-Iraq on track to draw down to 50,000 troops by September 1 , when Operation New Dawn is to begin and forces are to switch to an advise-and-assist role . The Pentagon on Wednesday had estimated the number of U.S. forces in Iraq at 56,000 , which reflected the last calculation conducted August 17 , the military said in a news release . The 4,000-member 4th Stryker Brigade Combat Team departed to Kuwait on Wednesday and Thursday . The brigade 's departure comes more than seven years after U.S. combat forces entered Iraq , though it does not signify the end of all U.S. combat forces in the country . In all , the number of U.S. troops in Iraq has decreased by more than 90,000 in the past 18 months and Obama has promised that all U.S. forces will be out by the end of 2011 . But there is plenty of work left to do , former U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker said Wednesday . `` Iraq is still at the beginning of the story of its evolution since 2003 , '' he said , referring to the date of the U.S.-led invasion of the country . In fact , Iraq has been without a functioning government for more than five months , electricity and other utilities are available only sporadically in the capital , and violence appears to be increasing . At least 48 people were killed Tuesday in an attack outside a military recruiting center in Baghdad . `` We 're going to have to leave a large footprint behind , and this is not going away for us as an issue , '' Crocker said . The State Department is preparing to make up much of that footprint . It will handle many of the responsibilities currently shouldered by the military , increasing its security contractors from 2,700 to nearly 7,000 , sources said . They are expected to work with diplomats and police trainers in some facilities . The State Department has asked for an additional $ 400 million to cover the costs , though it was not clear it would get it . The State Department has asked the U.S. military to leave behind surveillance systems , about 50 bomb-resistant vehicles and a few dozen UH-60 helicopters , a military official said . Although the department got a lot of what it wanted , the Pentagon said it could not give them all the helicopters because they are needed in Afghanistan , the official said . According to the Pentagon , 4,419 U.S. troops have died in Iraq . CNN 's Jomana Karadsheh and Adam Levine contributed to this story .
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Military had estimated troop strength at 56,000 on Wednesday . Obama has promised to draw down to 50,000 by September 1 . More than 90,000 U.S. troops have left Iraq in the past 18 months . All troops are to be out by the end of 2011 .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The mayor of a small Louisiana town was indicted on several charges for allegedly accepting bribes from businesspeople , federal prosecutors said Thursday . Thomas A. Nelson Jr. , 40 , the mayor of New Roads , Louisiana , is charged with violating the Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organizations Act , the U.S. Attorney 's Office in the Middle District of Louisiana said in a statement . Nelson also is charged with wire fraud , using an interstate facility in aid of racketeering , making false statements to the FBI and forfeiture , prosecutors said . If convicted , Nelson faces up to 65 years in prison and a $ 1.75 million fine , authorities said . His indictment came as part of an ongoing investigation known as `` Operation Blighted Officials . '' According to a superseding indictment , Nelson allegedly obtained `` thousands of dollars in cash and other things of value , such as tickets to sporting events , luxury hotel rooms and meals from businesspeople in exchange for using his position as mayor for the benefit of the businesspeople in connection with transactions Nelson believed were worth millions of dollars , '' the statement said . `` The superseding indictment further alleges that Nelson deprived the citizens of New Roads of his honest services as mayor and lied to the Federal Bureau of Investigation , '' authorities said . New Roads is about 35 miles northwest of Baton Rouge . Its population was nearly 5,000 in the 2000 Census .
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Louisiana mayor faces up to 65 years in prison . He 's accused of accepting bribes .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Residents in Seattle , Washington , were shaken Tuesday afternoon by what sounded like explosions after two F-15s were dispatched in response to a report of a small plane that entered restricted airspace where President Barack Obama was campaigning for Sen. Patty Murray . The rumblings -- caused by sonic booms from the jets -- rattled buildings , windows and nerves in the Puget Sound region , according to CNN affiliate KIRO . Viewers of the affiliate from as far away as Tacoma -- about 40 miles south of Seattle -- reported hearing the booms . Dozens of residents called the city 's 911 system , causing it to shut down in some areas for about an hour due to the flood of calls , Ed Troyer , a spokesman for the Pierce County Sheriff 's Department told KIRO . `` Many house and car alarms have been set off that we will not be able to respond to , '' Troyer told the affiliate . The jets were launched out of Portland , Oregon , and `` were on afterburners the whole time , '' Allen Kenitzer of the Federal Aviation Administration told CNN . The plane in question -- identified by the FAA as a Cessna 180 -- left the temporarily restricted airspace before the jets intercepted it , said John Cornelio of the North American Aerospace Defense Command -LRB- NORAD -RRB- . The pilot of the plane later landed it near Lake Washington , Kenitzer said . The incident is under investigation . CNN 's Patrick Oppmann and Adam Levine contributed to this report .
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Dozens of western Washington residents reported feeling the rumblings . The jets were scrambled in response to a plane that entered restricted airspace . President Barack Obama was in the region Tuesday . The plane left the restricted airspace before it was intercepted .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Wildlife researchers in Sri Lanka have photographed one of the world 's most reclusive primates for the first time . Sightings of the Horton Plains slender loris -- a small nocturnal primate with extremely thin arms and legs and huge round eyes -- are so rare that the creature has only been seen four times since 1937 . Conservationists feared the species had become extinct during a 63-year gap between sightings from 1939 to 2002 . Populations of all types of slender loris , which are native to the rainforests of Sri Lanka and southern India , have been in decline in recent years because of destruction of their forest habitat by logging , agriculture and development . That prompted an 18-month study of the creatures led by researchers working for the Zoological Society of London 's Edge project -- a conservation initiative dedicated to raising awareness about the plight of animals on the brink of extinction . Researchers from the University of Colombo and the Open University of Sri Lanka also took part . Research leader Saman Gamage said more than 1,000 nocturnal studies in 120 different forest areas had been conducted as part of the study . `` This discovery is a great reward for the ongoing field research we undertake across much of south-western Sri Lanka , '' Gamage said . ZSL Conservation biologist Dr. Craig Turner said the study was the first close examination of a Horton Plains slender loris ever conducted . The pictures show a 20-centimeter long male adult sitting on a forest branch forest . Conservationists have discovered it appears to have shorter and sturdier limbs than other loris ; a possible adaptation for the cooler , high-altitude montane -- or cloud -- forest in which it lives . That could mean the Horton Plains slender loris is a distinct species in its own right , said Gamage . Results of the study are published in the latest edition of the journal Primate Conservation . `` We are thrilled to have captured the first ever photographs and prove its continued existence -- especially after its 65 year disappearing act , '' said Turner . `` The discovery improves our knowledge of this species , but we need to focus our efforts on the conservation and restoration of the remaining montane forest where this species still exists . Currently this accounts for less than one percent of the land area of Sri Lanka . ''
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Horton Plains slender loris only seen four times since 1937 . Conservationists have photographed endangered primate for the first time . Loris is native to Sri Lanka but threatened by deforestation . Researchers believe Horton Plains slender loris could be a distinct species .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Alberto Contador was crowned Tour de France champion for the third time on Sunday as Mark Cavendish won the final stage of cycling 's premier event , which was delayed after seven-time winner Lance Armstrong 's team were ordered to change their jerseys . Contador had the customary winner 's cruise into the Champs-Elysees in Paris , having taken a 39-second lead over Andy Schleck in what is the traditionally decisive penultimate stage on Saturday . He was 81st in a 161-strong peloton behind Cavendish -- all credited with the same time of two hours , 42 minutes and 21 seconds -- with Armstrong 106th as he completed his final Tour in 23rd overall . The 38-year-old finished more than 39 minutes behind Contador , his teammate at Astana last year , after suffering from crashes early on in the grueling 21-stage race . Armstrong team removes special jerseys for cancer survivors . Russia 's Denis Menchov was third overall ahead of Contador 's fellow Spaniard Samuel Sanchez . `` It is a Tour in which I had a lot of pressure , especially physically as I was not at my best level . It took a lot of confidence to face difficult situations , '' the 27-year-old Contador told the race 's official website . `` Today is therefore a great relief for me , it is a moment that I feel like I 've been liberated from all the pressure . `` The three wins are all very different . The first , in 2007 , had something special , precisely because that was the first . Last year , the context was difficult and this made it difficult . And this year I have had difficult moments , but I could count on a strong team . `` I realize that each year I gain in experience . I know better manage a team throughout the race . Now I am happy to enjoy this victory and I 'll take a good vacation . '' British rider Cavendish triumphed in the closing leg of the three-week event for the second year in a row , his fifth stage win of 2010 , but his late burst was not enough to deny Alessandro Petacchi the sprinters ' title . Petacchi finished second ahead of New Zealand 's Julian Dean to become only the second Italian to win the green jersey . `` I 'm disappointed this year not to win the green jersey . I set out to do so -- it was a target for this year -- but I had some bad luck in the first days and was out of the running , '' Cavendish said . `` But the team fought back , did our best and I lost it by 11 points . But we won five stages and we 've got to be happy with this year 's Tour . '' Armstrong 's Radioshack claimed the overall team prize as Christopher Horner was 10th overall , Levi Leipheimer 13th and Andreas Kloeden 14th . They were made to take off special black jerseys worn to promote Armstrong 's cancer charity during the neutral zone run ahead of the official start of the 102-kilometer stage from Longjumeau . The peloton , which set a slow pace anyway , waited as the American and his teammates changed back into their regulation jerseys . France 's Anthony Chartreau claimed the climbers ' title , while Saxo Bank 's Schleck was the top young rider .
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Spanish cyclist Alberto Contador wins Tour de France for the third time in four years . Astana rider enjoys customary winner 's cruise into Paris on Sunday with 39-second lead . British rider Mark Cavendish wins final stage for the second year in a row . Stage was delayed as Lance Armstrong 's team had to change out of special jerseys .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Presidents need a break . Really . President Bush , shown playing horseshoes in 2004 , also enjoys mountain biking . In long days scheduled in 15-minute increments , presidents are asked to make decisions affecting millions -- sometimes life-or-death decisions . `` When you get to the Oval Office , there are no easy decisions , '' says Kenneth Duberstein , who was chief of staff to President Ronald Reagan . `` Any decision that reaches the president 's desk is a close call . It 's not black and white . It 's shades of gray . '' Presidents work best when they take regular respites from the burdens of the presidency , according to Duberstein and other White House insiders from the Nixon presidency through the current administration . `` The time off at the ranch or at Camp David was more than an escape , '' Duberstein says . `` It was good for his physical and mental well-being . '' `` The daily routine of a president is really grueling , '' says Ron Nessen , press secretary to President Gerald Ford . `` It 's hard to get thinking time . Ford talked about how when he was swimming laps , it gave him time to think about things . '' See what presidents have enjoyed doing in their free time '' Anecdotal evidence from the previous seven administrations jibes with research into decision making . Keith Sawyer , a professor of psychology , education and business at Washington University in St. Louis , Missouri , says good ideas come from a combination of hard work and down time . `` Creativity researchers have discovered that there is a cycle . It is very difficult to have a good idea when you 're working all out . It typically happens when you take time away , '' says Sawyer , author of `` Group Genius : The Creative Power of Collaboration . '' `` The unconscious mind is really good at bouncing different ideas together , '' he says . `` That 's where creative insight comes from . When you 're working hard , you 're basically blocking the unconscious mind from doing that work . '' No wonder then , that the most recent presidents have turned to sports as a diversion from what 's been called the toughest job in the world . Presidents have enjoyed mountain biking -LRB- George W. Bush -RRB- , golf -LRB- Bill Clinton , Ford , Dwight D. Eisenhower -RRB- , tennis -LRB- Ford , Jimmy Carter , George H.W. Bush -RRB- , jogging -LRB- Clinton , Carter and both Bushes -RRB- , swimming -LRB- Ford -RRB- , bowling -LRB- Richard Nixon -RRB- , horseshoes -LRB- George H.W. Bush -RRB- and horseback riding -LRB- Reagan -RRB- . `` Exercise was a huge part of his life , '' says Jody Powell , Carter 's press secretary . `` He enjoyed tennis very much . He ran just about every day . '' To blow off steam , Clinton would go to the putting green outside the White House . `` Everyone knew to leave him alone , '' says Clinton press secretary Joe Lockhart . `` It had to be a national security crisis to go out and interrupt him . '' Even presidents who were not particularly athletic made a point of taking a break . Coming this weekend : Fit to Lead '' President Nixon had an office with a comfortable sofa in the Old Executive Office Building -LRB- now the Eisenhower Executive Office Building -RRB- , next door to the White House , says John Dean , former White House counsel . `` He would go over there and stretch out and get a couple hours reading or taking a nap if he was inclined , and that was built into the schedule , '' Dean says . Early in his administration , Clinton worked too hard and his decision making suffered as a result , according to Lockhart . `` The first term , particularly the first couple of years , the president kind of set his own schedule and he worked from very early in the morning until very late at night . And he wore himself out , and I would argue , his decision-making ability was not nearly as good as it was in his second term , '' Lockhart says . When Ford came down with the flu , he was forced to take four days in the residence . `` His workload was cut way back so he had more time to think , and he came back and decided to make some major , major changes to his staff , '' Nessen says . An avid runner , mountain biker and fisherman , `` President Bush is good at finding ways to separate -LSB- from the job -RSB- , '' says Ari Fleischer , his former press secretary . `` But even so , you never have an uninterrupted day as president . Every day , you have a National Security Council meeting . Every day you get interrupted by an intelligence briefing . '' No matter how the president chooses to unwind , the enormous burdens of the job are never far away . `` Even in moments when you 're physically trying to relax in whatever outlet you have , you have a member of the military within 15 feet with nuclear codes , '' Lockhart said . `` That kind of takes the fun out of whatever sport you 're into . ''
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Experts : Presidents work best when they take regular breaks from the job . Press secretary : When Clinton worked too hard , decision-making suffered . Ford said he could think about things while swimming , his press secretary says .
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HONG KONG , China -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Setting one species up to scare off or even kill another is nothing new . One of the world 's most fearsome killers ? Me ? The heart-stoppingly infamous cane toad . Toads , bees , mongoose and even moths have all been utilized with varying degrees of success over the years in the hope that they could do the job humans could n't . Sometimes it works , frequently it does n't , and in some cases we are still waiting to find out . If any of these following examples teaches us anything at all , it is that if you are going to play with Nature , you do so at your own peril . Click here for gallery '' The Cane Toad . Who would have thought a humble toad could end up as the killer of one of the world 's most fearsome creatures , the crocodile ? It all started off so innocently , too . Introduced to Australia in 1935 from Hawaii , the cane toad , which is native to Central and South America , was supposed to kill off the scarab beetles that were decimating Australian sugarcane crops . Unfortunately , the toads failed to go after the beetles and decided to multiply at a very fast rate instead -LRB- they can lay between 8,000 and 30,000 eggs in one go -RRB- ending up as another pest the Australians were keen to see the back of . According to the Australian Department of the Environment and Heritage -LRB- DEH -RRB- , the cane toad `` expanded through Australia 's northern landscape at 27-50 kilometers a year '' and is now heading south at a rate of 1.3 kilometers a year . Cane toads not only eat pretty much anything that can fit in their mouths , but as of yet , no known predators or diseases have been identified that can take them on . The problem is that they are extremely toxic , with the DEH stating `` almost anything that eats the toad dies rapidly from heart failure '' . And that includes crocodiles . According to the University of Sydney , crocodile populations that have come across these new pests have been dropping like flies , in some places by as much as 77 percent . Small Indian mongoose . The risk with hired killers is that sometimes they can be a bit too good at their job . Such is the case with the small Indian mongoose , which was introduced into Hawaii and some of its surrounding islands in 1883 . The idea was the mongoose , a `` voracious and opportunistic predator , '' according to Columbia University , would keep rats out of the sugarcane fields , where they had been feasting on what was on offer . The mongooses came in and missed out on the rats , as the former happened to be day-lovers , while the latter was nocturnal . So they turned their attention to other species instead , including birds -LRB- specifically ground nesters -RRB- , small mammals and reptiles -LRB- they particularly liked snakes and iguanas -RRB- . Little did the Hawaiians know at the time , but the small Indian mongoose is one of the world 's most fearsome killers , now listed by the World Conservation Union in the top 100 of the world 's worst invaders . These tiny creatures have hunted several species to extinction , including , says Columbia University , at least seven types of amphibians and reptiles in the West Indies ; and in Jamaica alone it has been responsible for the extinction of a lizard , a snake , a rat and two birds . In Hawaii , the endangered Hawaiian crow , the endangered dark-rumped petrel and the nene goose are now all at risk , thanks to the appetite of this tiny , furry creature . And to make matters worse , this particular mongoose is a vector for rabies too . The English sparrow . The early bird catches the worm , but if that bird is an English sparrow , it does a little more than that , as the Americans found out in 1850 . It was then that the bird was intentionally introduced to the U.S. as a means of protecting trees from canker worms . But according to Cornell University , the sparrow also set about feasting on crops as well . The sparrow had a very varied appetite , feeding on wheat , oats , corn and barley , pretty much any vegetable or fruit it laid its eyes on and it had a taste for chicken feed too . Surprisingly for its size , the sparrow is also a fairly aggressive creature and proved a bit of a bully to the locals , `` displacing some native birds and harassing others '' , says Cornell . To add insult to injury , it carried 29 diseases that infected both humans and livestock . While U.S. populations are now largely on the decline , according to the Global Invasive Species Database , Australia meanwhile is on high alert , with the bird now having been assigned as `` an extreme threat category '' there . The red Fox . Australia has an unenviable claim to fame : it is home to the most number of mammal extinctions in the world . According to the World Wildlife Fund -LRB- WWF -RRB- , nearly half of all mammals that have gone extinct in the last 200 years , have been Australian . And much of the responsibility for these extinctions rests on the shoulders of introduced predators like the red fox . Just on its own the red fox could be responsible for `` dozens of small mammal extinctions '' in the country , according to Columbia University . The English brought the red fox with them to the country in 1855 , not only introducing it for a spot of hunting , but also , it is thought , to control the brown hare populations . Unfortunately , the red fox was an excellent predator but it liked chasing after more types of creatures than just the brown hare . It had a ball , as Australian wildlife just was n't equipped to deal with it . As a result , it freely preyed on birds , mammals of varying sizes and reptiles . It particularly seemed to like newborn lambs , goat kids and chickens , creating an economic headache for local farmers . And it did n't take them too long to spread either -- according to Australia 's DEH , it took the red fox just 100 years to inhabit almost the entire continent . A natural scavenger , the red fox is incredibly adaptable too , which has meant not only has it proliferated on a massive scale , but with the absence of any real predators to speak of , they have proven very difficult indeed to kill . The European red fox is often described as Australia 's number one predator ; and as its also a `` key carrier of rabies '' , says Columbia , the red fox is up there amongst Australia 's most unwelcome guests . -LRB- Sources : Discover Magazine ; Mongabay.com ; Australian Department of Environment and Heritage ; University of Sydney ; WWF ; Columbia University ; ScienceDaily ; University of Washington College of Forest Resources ; Global Invasive Species Database ; National Geographic ; Cornell University -RRB- .
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Cane toads have been blamed for mass crocodile deaths in Australia . Small Indian mongoose one of the world 's `` worst invaders '' Red fox responsible for `` dozens of mammal extinctions ''
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The Cameroon Football Federation has appointed veteran Spaniard Javier Clemente as the coach of the African country 's national team . The 60-year-old , who has previous international experience with Spain and Serbia , returns to management after a short stint at relegated La Liga club Real Valladolid at the end of last season . He replaces Frenchman Paul Le Guen , who stepped down from the role after Cameroon lost all three matches at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa . Clemente becomes Cameroon 's fourth coach since May 2009 , with German Otto Pfister and Thomas Nkono having also been charge in that time , and will sign a two-year contract . `` Javier Clemente is the new coach of Cameroon . The signing of the contract will take place in Yaounde on August 28 , '' read a statement on the Cameroon federation 's official website on Tuesday . `` In his role , he will also be assisted by Francois Omam-Biyik . The former Indomitable Lion will serve as assistant coach . `` Jacques Songo'o , who served alongside Paul Le Guen as assistant coach in charge of goalkeepers during the World Cup , keeps his post . '' Clemente , whose playing career was cut short by injury in 1971 , started coaching four years later and has been in charge of clubs such as Athletic Bilbao -LRB- three times -RRB- , Espanyol -LRB- twice -RRB- , Marseille , Real Sociedad and Real Betis . He coached Spain between 1992-98 , going to two World Cups and Euro 96 , but lasted less than two years with Serbia . His first task will be to help the Indomitable Lions to qualify for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea . Four-times champions Cameroon 's first game is next month away to Mauritius , with Senegal and Congo Democratic Republic also in Group E.
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Former Spain coach Javier Clemente will take charge of Cameroon 's national team . The 60-year-old will replace Paul Le Guen when he signs a two-year contract next week . Cameroon lost all three matches at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa . Clemente returns to management after short stint at relegated Real Valladolid .
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New York -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A team of prosecutors and a panel of law enforcement , legal and social science experts are being assembled to reinvestigate the case of a man convicted in 1988 of sexually abusing children , according to a statement issued on Tuesday by the Nassau County District Attorney 's office . `` A prosecutor 's job is not to obtain convictions , but to obtain justice . I can not predict whether or not our investigation will corroborate the criminal case brought against Mr. -LSB- Jesse -RSB- Friedman more than two decades ago . What I can guarantee is that my investigation will be thorough andit will be fair , '' Nassau County District Attorney Kathleen Rice said in a statement . Nassau County is on Long Island . The announcement to reopen the case comes in response to a federal appeals court decision that suggested prosecutors had an `` ethical obligation '' to reopen the 1988 child molestation case of Friedman . He was the focus of a 2003 Oscar-nominated documentary , `` Capturing the Friedmans . '' Friedman shared his reaction with CNN Tuesday night in an e-mail : `` I am concerned , given my history with the Nassau County prosecutor 's office , of their ability to conduct a fair review of their colleagues . However , taking Kathleen Rice at her word , I am optimistic and hopeful for the first time in more years then I care to admit . '' The 31-page decision , released Monday , questioned `` the process by which the petitioner 's conviction was obtained '' and suggested that because of the `` vast moral panic '' about child sexual abuse that was prevalent in the late 1980s and early '90s might have led police officials to cut corners in their investigation . In unusually strong language , the 2nd Circuit Court decision stated that '' ... the police , prosecutors and the judge did everything they could to coerce a guilty plea and avoid a trial '' and said there was a `` reasonable likelihood '' Friedman was `` wrongfully convicted '' of sexually abusing children . Friedman , 41 , served 13 years in prison and another five on parole . He said he was still digesting the court 's decision on Tuesday . `` If the charges went away , that would be wonderful , '' he said . Friedman said he has tried for 20 years to revoke his guilty plea , saying that at the time there was `` no other viable option , the system was in place . '' He said he was offered a guaranteed six - to 18-year sentence in exchange for not pursuing a trial and feared the judge would give him 1,000 years if he did n't plead guilty . `` If I went to trial , I was doomed , '' he said . The court decision stated that although by law the court could not overturn Friedman ` sconviction as it was filed too late , it suggested that the Nassau County prosecutor 's office reinvestigate the case . The decision cited New York law , which states that it was a prosecutor 's duty to `` take reasonable remedial measures when it appears likely that an innocent person was wrongly convicted . '' Friedman was 19 when he pleaded guilty to sexually abusing over a dozen children with his father , Arnold Friedman . His father committed suicide in 1995 in prison . Friedman and his father held computer classes in the basement of their suburban home in Great Neck , New York , where the attacks allegedly took place . In 2003 , while watching the documentary `` Capturing the Friedmans , '' he found out that many of the children who accused Friedman of sexually abusing them had been put through hypnotic therapy sessions to recall the attacks . Friedman 's attorney , Ronald Kuby , said that it was an opportunity for the prosecutor 's office to `` cure an injustice '' and hoped it would end with a decision that Friedman was wrongfully convicted . Friedman , who was paroled in 2001 , said he was n't sure how much it would really change his day-to-day life at this point . `` I do n't get those years back , but it would be nice to have my innocence declared , I am not a child molester . '' He said he has an online book business selling popular fiction , which he runs from his home on the U.S. East Coast , where he lives with his wife . `` My focus is on tomorrow , '' he said .
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NEW : `` I am optimistic and hopeful for the first time '' in years , Jesse Friedman says . In 1988 , Friedman pleaded guilty to sexually abusing children . Team of New York prosecutors to work with panel of experts . 2nd Circuit Court : Officials `` did everything they could to coerce a guilty plea ''
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The imprisoned former mayor of Detroit , Kwame Kilpatrick , was charged with sexual misconduct during a visit by his wife on July Fourth , according to a report released by the Michigan Bureau of Prisons . `` A correctional officer observed him touch the wife on her breast , '' said Russ Marlan , a spokesman for the bureau . `` All prisoners know it 's against the rules , '' Marlan said of such contact . The report states that a correctional officer observed via a prison video feed Kilpatrick touch his wife , Carlita Kilpatrick , on her breast with his right hand in the prison visiting room at Oaks Correctional Facility in Manistee . If found guilty of the misconduct Kilpatrick could lose certain privileges , including a loss of visitations from his wife . According to Marlan , the incident also will be discussed during a parole hearing for Kilpatrick in a year . Prisoners are allowed one kiss with visitors and are allowed to hold hands in photographs . Anything else is considered to be misconduct , the prison spokesman said . `` To many it may seem like not a big deal , but we do have people passing contraband back and forth , as well as children in that room , '' said Marlan . Kilpatrick currently is serving a maximum five-year sentence in Michigan for violating probation in a 2008 case against him . That case involved two felony counts of obstruction of justice stemming from Kilpatrick 's efforts to cover up an extramarital affair . He also pleaded no contest to charges of assaulting a police officer attempting to serve a subpoena on one of his friends in that case . On Tuesday , the former mayor was arraigned in federal court on 19 counts of felony fraud and tax charges . He is accused of using the Kilpatrick Civic Fund -- a tax-exempt fund meant to pay for voter education -- to make cash payments to himself , his family and friends .
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Kwame Kilpatrick is serving 5-year sentence in Michigan . His wife visited him in prison on July Fourth . Prison officials say he touched his wife on her breast . The sexual misconduct charge could lead to a reduction in privileges .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Researchers have made an unexpected discovery among the items a member of the Donner Party kept in a carpetbag on the group 's ill-fated journey to California : a military document with Abraham Lincoln 's handwriting on it . Donner Party member James Reed and his family carried muster rolls with Lincoln 's name on them among their treasured heirlooms , the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library and Museum said in a statement released Monday . A team of librarians , historians and handwriting experts combined forces to confirm that Lincoln 's writing was on one of the documents , which list Lincoln and volunteer soldiers who fought in the 1832 Black Hawk War . `` We often find documents that detail fascinating stories about Abraham Lincoln 's life and times , but it is rare indeed for the document to have such an intriguing history after it was written , '' said Daniel Stowell , director of the Papers of Abraham Lincoln . `` That these documents detail part of Lincoln 's military service and that they accompanied the Donner Party to California makes them doubly significant . '' All four of the muster rolls include `` Private Abraham Lincoln '' among the list of soldiers . On one of them , experts say two-and-a-half lines are clearly written in Lincoln 's hand . And the documents reveal that Lincoln had a horse worth $ 85 and equipment valued at $ 15 , noting that Lincoln received one tent that was United States property to be returned at the end of his service . The lines Lincoln wrote said : `` Muster Roll of Captain Jacob M. Earleys Company of Mounted Volunteers Mustered out of the service of the United States By order of Brigadier General Atkinson of the United States army on White Water Rivers of Rock River on the 10th day of July 1832 . '' The documents are part of the James Frazier Reed Collection at the California State Library . Reed 's name appears just beneath Lincoln 's on the list . He was one of the organizing members of the Donner Party , the group of pioneers known for resorting to cannibalism while enduring a harsh winter in the Sierra Nevada mountains . He likely inherited the papers from the military company 's commander and took them with him when he left Springfield , Illinois , in April 1846 because they were part of his personal history , the Lincoln Presidential Library said . While historians believe the papers accompanied the Donner Party for their entire journey , Reed did not . He was banished from the group after fighting with a teamster and stabbing him to death , Monday 's library statement said . He left the papers with his wife after being expelled from the party , and `` she brought them safely in her bosom to California when helped by the first relief party which went to their assistance , '' daughter Martha Jane `` Patty '' Reed recalled .
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Experts say military list includes Abraham Lincoln 's handwriting . The list , from the Black Hawk War , says Lincoln had an $ 85 horse and $ 15 of equipment . Historians say an organizing member of the Donner Party carried the documents . They are part of a collection at the California State Library .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A former Alabama assistant district attorney who specialized in prosecuting sex crimes against minors is accused of enticing what he thought was a teenage girl online for sexual purposes , authorities said . Steven Giardini was indicted on charges of enticement and solicitation crimes over the computer with the intent to produce child pornography , the Alabama Attorney General 's Office said in a statement . Giardini , a former prosecutor in Mobile County , was arrested Tuesday . The charges stem from the suspect 's alleged communication with what he thought was a 15-year-girl , Alabama Attorney General Troy King said in a statement Tuesday . But instead he was communicating with an agent from the FBI 's Internet Crimes Against Children division . The Attorney General 's Family Protection Unit presented evidence to a Mobile County , Alabama , grand jury August 13 , which handed up the indictment . `` The crimes alleged in this indictment are all the more horrifying in that the defendant was a prosecutor entrusted to protect citizens from evil and criminal wrongdoing , '' King said . `` The people of Alabama should be reassured , however , that no one is above the law , and that those who seek to harm and exploit our children will be punished , whoever they are . '' Giardini is charged with one count of acting with the intent to entice a child under the age of 16 for intercourse , sodomy or sexual purposes ; one count of acting with the intent to criminally solicit the production of child pornography ; and one count of acting with the intent to entice a child for sexual purposes by means of computer , telephone , personal digital assistant , or other electronic means of communication or information storage . All three charges are felonies . The first is punishable upon conviction by a prison sentence of one to 10 years , with the last two punishable by a two-to-20-year sentence , according to the attorney general 's office . Giardini resigned from the district attorney 's office in April 2009 after FBI agents searched his Mobile home , CNN affiliate WALA-TV reported . It is not known what they were looking for , the station reported ; the search warrant was sealed by a federal judge . Giardini 's attorney , Dennis Knizley , noted it has been 16 months since that search , WALA said . `` And of course , his life has been on hold since then , '' Knizley told the station . `` The facts of the case will turn out to be interesting and -LRB- we will -RRB- address those when we go to trial . '' Knizley denied that Giardini was trying to manufacture child pornography . Giardini was booked into the Mobile County Metro Jail and released on $ 250,000 bond , WALA said . CNN 's Lateef Mungin contributed to this report .
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Authorities say Steven Giardini thought he was communicating with a 15-year-old girl . But , they say , he was really communicating with the FBI . NEW : Giardini resigned as a prosecutor after his home was searched last year .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A Chicago , Illinois , police officer was shot and killed Sunday morning after finishing his shift , police said . Officer Michael Bailey , a decorated 20-year veteran of the department , had returned to his home on the south side of Chicago . He was shot outside his personal vehicle about 6 a.m. -LRB- 7 a.m. ET -RRB- , police said . Bailey was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital , where he was pronounced dead at 6:40 a.m. , police said . Police had no one in custody as of Sunday afternoon , but suspect more than one attacker , spokesman John Mirabelli said . Watch announcement of officer 's death . Bailey , 62 , was assigned to the central business district of Chicago , Mirabelli said . He was the third Chicago officer killed since May , police said in a statement . The most recent was July 7 , when an officer was shot and killed during a struggle with a suspect in a police facility parking lot .
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A decorated Chicago police veteran was shot and killed Sunday morning . The officer had just finished his shift and was at his home . Police have no suspects in custody .
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Washington -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- U.S. President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron on Tuesday blasted Scottish authorities ' decision to release the convicted Lockerbie bomber last year and agreed on the need to push for a more transparent disclosure of the circumstances surrounding Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi 's release . Cameron , however , said he is opposed to a British government investigation into the release . The two leaders also said they addressed a range of issues in talks at the White House , including the war in Afghanistan , sanctions against Iran , the state of the global economy and the responsibilities of BP -- a British company -- after the oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico . `` We can never say it enough . The United States and the United Kingdom enjoy a truly special relationship , '' Obama said . `` We celebrate a common heritage . We cherish common values . ... -LRB- And -RRB- above all , our alliance thrives because it advances our common interests . '' The meeting was part of Cameron 's first U.S. visit as Britain 's leader . The two men met with reporters shortly after huddling behind closed doors . Cameron said the release of al Megrahi , who had been sentenced to life for his role in the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie , Scotland , was `` wholly wrong . '' Al Megrahi , he said , was `` the biggest mass murder in British history . '' The 1988 bombing killed 270 people . Cameron promised that the British government will cooperate with a congressional investigation into the controversy , though he stressed that the decision to release al Megrahi was made by the Scottish government without any involvement from BP . `` There is absolutely no harm to be done in giving the fullest possible explanation '' regarding the decision to release al Megrahi , Cameron said . `` But I do n't think there 's any great mystery here . It was simply a `` misguided decision '' by Scottish authorities . The Scottish government freed al Megrahi last August on compassionate grounds after doctors said he had terminal prostate cancer and just three months to live . Al Megrahi is still alive nearly a year later , and news reports in recent days have questioned whether he was as sick as depicted . Questions also have been raised about whether a deal was cut to release him to protect British business interests in Libya , with oil giant BP exerting influence in the case . The Scottish government has insisted that BP never lobbied to free al Megrahi . Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and four U.S. senators from New York and New Jersey have called for Britain to revisit the case , even though there is little chance that al Megrahi will be returned to custody from his native Libya . Cameron was scheduled to meet with the senators during his visit to Washington . Obama said most Americans were `` surprised , disappointed and angry '' about the decision to let al Megrahi go . `` We should have all the facts , '' he added . `` They should be laid out there . '' The decision `` ran contrary to how we should be treating terrorists . '' Turning to BP 's responsibilities after the Gulf oil spill , Cameron said he `` completely understands '' the anger that exists `` across America . '' `` It is BP 's role to cap the leak , to clean up the mess , and to pay appropriate compensation , '' he said . `` I 'm in regular touch with senior management at BP , and the president is , too , to make sure that happens . '' The two men said they were united in their goals for the Afghanistan war and in terms of preventing Tehran 's acquisition of nuclear weapons . Cameron , however , remains under pressure at home to end the British involvement in the Afghan campaign . Britain is the second-largest contributor of troops to the military coalition fighting Taliban insurgents , behind only the United States . Obama also indicated they had both reaffirmed their commitment to fiscal responsibility in light of spiraling deficits in the major Western economies . At the same time , the president stressed that different countries are taking slightly different approaches , depending on their specific circumstances . Obama has pushed for the need for greater stimulus spending in the short term while addressing deficits as more of a long-term issue ; Cameron entered office pledging the enactment of immediate austerity measures . In keeping with those measures , his office said earlier , the prime minister flew on a commercial flight to Washington . While their different approaches to the economic crisis underscore their different political orientations , Obama and Cameron , according to many observers , also have a great deal in common . Among other things , they 're a similar age -- Cameron is 43 and Obama is 48 -- and they both campaigned on the slogan of hope and change . Cameron came to power in May in a historic change of government in the United Kingdom , about 18 months after Obama made history with his own election as the United States ' first African-American president . The two men bet a bottle of beer on the outcome of the USA-England soccer match in the first round of the World Cup , and exchanged bottles in a lighthearted event when the teams tied 1-1 in June . CNN 's Alan Silverleib contributed to this report .
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Leaders of the U.S. and Britain condemn the release of the Lockerbie bomber . Cameron says the Scottish government released al Megrahi without BP influence . He pledges to cooperate with a congressional inquiry into the release . Cameron says he `` understands '' American anger over the BP oil spill .
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Seoul , South Korea -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A much-anticipated meeting Tuesday between military officers of the U.S.-led U.N. Command and North Korea in the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea has been postponed , the command said . A new meeting time was not immediately proposed , the command said . They planned to discuss the March 26 sinking of a South Korean warship , the Cheonan . The U.N. officers were slated to be U.S. colonels , as the United States holds responsibility for U.N. security forces in Korea . North Korea had accepted a U.N. proposal for the meeting of colonel-level leaders to be a precursor to talks between generals on the contentious naval incident . The demilitarized zone was created as part of the armistice signed between North and South Korea in 1953 that halted the Korean War , but the war has never officially ended . The United Nations and North Korea began occasional meetings between generals -- `` General Officer Talks '' -- at Panmunjom in 1998 to lessen tensions . There have been 16 such meetings to date , the last one in March 2009 , the United Nations said . On Friday , the United Nations formally condemned the sinking of the Cheonan but did not specifically name North Korea , which an international joint civilian-military investigation deemed culpable . Australia , Britain , the United States , Sweden and South Korea provided experts for the inquiry . `` The Security Council deplores the attack , '' the 15-member council said Friday in what is known as a presidential statement . It urged that `` appropriate and peaceful measures be taken against those responsible for the incident aimed at the peaceful settlement of the issue . '' It also called for full adherence to the 1953 Korean Armistice Agreement , which ended hostilities in the Korean War . Despite the absence of North Korea 's name in the condemnation , Susan Rice , U.S. ambassador to the United Nations , said the message to the communist nation is `` unmistakable . '' `` This statement is notable and it is clear , '' Rice said after its approval at a Friday session . `` It uses the term ` attack ' repeatedly , which you do n't have to be a scholar of the English language to understand is not a neutral term . '' South Korea welcomed the statement . `` I think it 's crystal clear that -LSB- the -RSB- Security Council made it clear that North Korea -LSB- is -RSB- to be blamed and to be condemned , '' said Park In-kook , South Korea 's ambassador to the United Nations . A presidential statement , unlike a Security Council resolution , is not legally binding , though it requires approval of the council 's five permanent members : China , Russia , France , the United Kingdom and United States . The Security Council expressed `` deep sympathy and condolences '' for the deaths of 46 sailors aboard the Cheonan . The isolated North has maintained its innocence , rejecting the investigation findings outright , questioning the validity of the experts involved , asking to conduct its own inquiry and telling the Security Council that North Korea is the true victim of a conspiracy . A spokesman for the Foreign Ministry of North Korea , officially the Democratic People 's Republic of Korea , called the presidential statement `` devoid of any proper judgment , '' according to the state-run Korean Central News Agency on Friday . He added the case `` should have been settled between the North and the South without referring it to the U.N. . The DPRK remains unchanged in its stand to probe the truth about the case to the last . ''
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Officers were to discuss sinking of South Korean warship . United Nations says meeting could be precursor to higher-level meetings . North Korea maintains its innocence in the incident .
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Dallas , Texas -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Financial troubles and despair over her husband 's death were weighing heavily on the mayor of a Texas city who apparently killed herself and her daughter last week , her close friend told CNN . `` I think that the weight of it all became too much for her , '' said Doug Stover , who preceded Jayne Peters as mayor of Coppell , Texas . `` She felt unfortunately , for her , this was the only option she had . '' Police in Coppell said last week that Peters shot and killed her 19-year-old daughter before turning the gun on herself . In an interview with CNN 's Don Lemon on Saturday , Stover described Peters as `` a very anti-gun person '' and said she had borrowed the gun from a friend , claiming she needed it for a self-defense class . `` The way she died and the ways she behaved in the last days of her life were not characteristic of the way she lived , '' he said . CNN affiliate KTXA reported that Peters faced foreclosure on her home at least twice this year . Ultimately , according to the Foreclosure Listing Service , the home was not foreclosed on , KTXA said . Coppell City Manager Clay Phillips told the affiliate that the city was looking into expenditures charged to Peters ' city-issued credit card to see if there were any financial improprieties . Stover said close friends only learned of Peters ' financial struggles after her death . `` She never opened up to anybody about her own problems , '' he said . The Dallas County Medical Examiner 's Officer ruled Wednesday that the mayor 's death was a suicide and her daughter 's a homicide . Police found Peters , 55 , and her daughter Mary Corinne Peters , 19 , Tuesday evening after city officials asked them to check on the family 's welfare when the mayor did not show up for a scheduled council meeting . An envelope containing a note and a key to the two-story house had been left on the front door . Three other notes were found inside the house . The outside note warned officers of what they would find inside , The Dallas Morning News reported . One of the suicide notes said that her 19-year-old daughter hid her pain from her friends , according to The Dallas Morning News , and that mother and daughter `` were lost , alone and afraid . '' Police told the News the notes gave no clues as to what led to the shooting , but rather provided instructions on , among other things , how to care for the family 's pets . Two dogs were found in the house , the newspaper reported . Peters was elected mayor in May 2009 and had been a member of the city council since 1998 . Her husband died of cancer in January 2008 . Coppell , 16 miles northwest of Dallas , has a population of 39,000 . CNN 's Don Lemon contributed to this report .
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Friend says pressure of financial problems was too much for Mayor Jayne Peters . Doug Stover , her predecessor as mayor , says Peters was anti-gun . Her behavior before she died was `` not characteristic of the way she lived , '' he says . Police say it appears that Peters killed herself and her 19-year-old daughter .
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-LRB- Mashable -RRB- -- It takes longer to read books on a Kindle 2 or an iPad versus a printed book , Jakob Nielsen of product development consultancy Nielsen Norman Group discovered in a recent usability survey . The study found that reading speeds declined by 6.2 percent on the iPad and 10.7 percent on theKindle compared to print . However , Nielsen conceded that the differences in reading speed between the two devices were not `` statistically significant because of the data 's fairly high variability '' -- in other words , the study did not prove that the iPad allowed for faster reading than the Kindle . A total of 24 participants -LRB- 10 is about average for a usability survey -RRB- were given short stories by Ernest Hemingway to read in print and oniPads , Kindles and desktop PCs . Hemingway was chosen because his work utilizes simple language and is `` pleasant and engaging to read . '' The narratives took an average of 17 minutes and 20 seconds from start to finish -- enough time to get readers fully `` immersed '' in the stories , Nielsen explained . After reading , participants filled out a brief comprehension questionnaire to make sure no one had skimmed through a story . Users rated their satisfaction with each device ; the iPad , Kindle and printed book scored 5.8 , 5.7 and 5.6 , on a scale of 7 , respectively , while the PC received an average score of 3.6 -- due , in part , because reading on a PC reminded readers of work . Participants also complained about the weight of the iPad and the Kindle 's weak contrast . As Nielsen notes , the satisfaction ratings on the survey are promising for the future of e-readers and tablet devices . However , I can see universities and businesses taking less kindly to e-readers if further studies prove that they handicap reading speed . What do you think of the results ? Do you prefer to read on an e-reader , tablet or in print -- and why ? © 2010 MASHABLE.com . All rights reserved .
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It takes longer to read books on a Kindle or an iPad versus a printed book , a study found . Reading speeds declined by 6.2 percent on the iPad and 10.7 percent on the Kindle . Some people might shy away from e-readers if further studies prove they affect reading speed .
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Walnut Creek , California -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Dueling rallies took place Monday involving a former Bay Area Rapid Transit police officer who was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the shooting death of an unarmed passenger . Several hundred people gathered in this suburban community , some 25 miles northeast of San Francisco , with supporters of former officer Johannes Mehserle joined by critics , who said they were calling for justice for his victim , Oscar Grant . The Walnut Creek branch of the Contra Costa County Superior Court closed early Monday because of the rallies , and all cases that were scheduled to be heard Monday afternoon were postponed . Some gas stations and a restaurant in the area also opted to close down for the day . From the air , the crowd appeared to be mostly peaceful , although banners revealed a sharp divide . `` Jail All Racist Killer Cops , '' proclaimed one large banner , held aloft by several people . Other banners proclaimed support for police . `` Free Mehserle , '' some said . The Justice for Oscar Grant supporters started their demonstration across the street but then moved onto the sidewalk in front the courthouse where the Mehserle supporters were demonstrating . There was some shouting between the two sides . Police in riot gear placed metal barriers to keep the two sides apart . The two groups appeared evenly matched in size . Police said at its peak , there appeared to be about 300 people at the event . They said there were no arrests . `` The crowd has been vocal but very cooperative , '' Walnut Creek police Lt. Steve Skinner said . `` There were no acts of violence . It actually went very well on both sides . '' The crowds dispersed after about four hours . The Walnut Creek police department called in most of its police personnel and civilian staff for duty , and the Contra Costa County Sheriff 's Office helped provide security . Some area departments helped direct traffic . Mehserle , who is white , was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the 2009 shooting death of Grant , an unarmed black man who was on a train platform at the Fruitvale station in nearby Oakland . The area gets its name from the apricot and cherry orchards that abounded there more than a century ago . Supporters of Mehserle say the killing was a `` tragic mistake '' and say they called the rally to show support for police . They helped spread word for the rally through Facebook . `` Anyone who supports Johannes and our Law Enforcement Officers may attend , '' said a post on the Facebook page . `` This is a PEACEFUL rally to show our support for Johannes , his family and our law enforcement officers . '' It added , `` This rally is NOT about inciting violence , destruction , intolerance , hatred , racism , riots or to upset the Grant family . '' But organizers of the counter-rally say they were standing up for justice for Grant and against racism . They said in a news release they want to make clear that `` justice means that Grant 's killer , Mehserle , stays in jail and they throw away the key . '' The website for the Justice for Oscar Grant Committee added , `` Oscar Grant was a young Black man returning home by way of the Fruitvale BART station after celebrating the New Year . This was the only excuse the cop needed to end Grant 's life execution-style . Maybe Oscar was too loud , too proud , too Black . Maybe he was too calm during the taunts of the police . Or maybe it was for nothing at all . '' Mehserle faces two to four years in prison at his scheduled August 6 sentencing . He remains in the Los Angles County jail . The judge could also impose an additional term of three , four or 10 years because a firearm was used in the crime . Although police said they were prepared for possible clashes , some people in this normally placid town were not unduly concerned that the rallies might get out of control , even though protests after the verdict in nearby Oakland led to the arrest of 78 people . `` Even though I do n't think it 's the best idea , because I think it 's inflammatory , it 's people 's right , '' said Sue Klingler . `` I work across the street from the Superior Court , and I 'm not concerned at all . '' Another man , who did n't give his name to CNN affiliate KRON-TV , said that Walnut Creek `` is not known for getting outrageous types of demonstrations . '' The January 1 , 2009 , shooting of the 22-year-old Grant was captured on a bystander 's cell phone video camera . The video was widely circulated on the internet and on news broadcasts . The video showed Mehserle pulling his gun and fatally shooting Grant in the back as another officer knelt on the unarmed man . Mehserle testified that the shooting was an accident and that he had mistakenly used his handgun instead of his Taser . Mehserle and other Bay Area Rapid Transit police had been called to the Fruitvale station after passengers complained about fights on a train . Officers pulled several men , including Grant , off the train when it arrived at Fruitvale . The earlier Oakland demonstrations were called in response to Mehserle 's acquittal on second-degree murder and voluntary manslaughter charges . The Oakland demonstrations began peacefully but were followed by some violence , including vandalism .
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NEW : Police Lt. says crowds were vocal but orderly . No arrests as opposing groups demonstrate over transit killing . Groups demonstrate about a transit officer who shot and killed an unarmed black man . Officer was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the shooting of Oscar Grant .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The boyfriend of a missing Arizona woman is being held without bond on fraud and other charges while police seek additional information into his girlfriend 's disappearance , Chandler police said Tuesday . Jamie Laiaddee went missing from the home she shares with her boyfriend in the early morning hours of March 18 , police said . At first , friends and family did n't think too much about the lapse in communication with their loved one -- the 32-year-old Laiaddee usually got in touch with them every few weeks and it was not uncommon for her to go months without calling her parents , according to Chandler police spokesman Sgt. Joe Favazzo . It was n't until 10 weeks later , on May 28 , that Laiaddee 's father officially reported her missing to police after learning of his daughter 's disappearance from her boyfriend of three years -- identified by Chandler police and friends as Bryan Stewart . Upon searching the couple 's home , authorities found Laiaddee 's car , purse , keys and other personal effects . As part of their investigation , authorities also discovered that Stewart had been living under a false name for the past eight years . His real name is Rick Wayne Valentini and he is 41 , Favazzo said . Court documents refer to Valentini by his assumed name . Stewart was apprehended by police at a Scottsdale apartment after investigators learned he had an outstanding traffic-related arrest warrant . When he was found , he was `` in possession of a vehicle owned by Jamie , '' according to police . Stewart , who police said is the last person to see Laiaddee , told investigators that he and Laiaddee had an argument on March 17 and broke up after she told him she was taking a new job in Denver , Colorado , Favazzo said . `` At this point we have no evidence whatsoever to indicate Jamie '' planned to leave , `` and certainly not to Colorado , '' Favazzo said . Police said Stewart had been driving Laiaddee 's car and using her credit cards in the weeks after her disappearance . He is being held without bond in the Maricopa County jail on charges of credit card fraud , theft of credit cards , probation violation , identity theft , weapons violations and an outstanding warrant , according to police . `` Investigators are now focusing on Stewart/Valentini as a person of interest in the disappearance of Jamie Laiaddee , '' according to a Chandler Police Department news release about the case . Favazzo said Tuesday that police `` do n't believe Jamie just dropped off the grid . '' `` We suspect foul play at this point and we fear that she could be dead , '' he said , adding that authorities are imploring the public for any leads to Laiaddee 's whereabouts . Friends of Laiaddee 's who have set up a Facebook page to raise awareness about her disappearance describe the 1999 University of Michigan graduate as `` bubbly , '' `` outgoing '' and `` fiercely loyal . '' `` We are devastated by the news , '' friend Sheila Dubs told HLN 's `` Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell '' on Tuesday . CNN 's Sarah Aarthun contributed to this report .
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Jamie Laiaddee last seen March 18 . Disappearance not reported for 10 weeks . Boyfriend found driving Laiaddee 's car , using her credit cards , police say . `` We fear that she could be dead , '' police spokesman says .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Police have identified the body of a missing mother found Sunday in a vacant lot in Camden , New Jersey . A family member found the body of Jenna Lord , 23 , of Collingdale , Pennsylvania , on Sunday in a vacant lot in Camden , according to Jason Laughlin , a spokesman for the Camden County Prosecutor 's Office . Family members and police had been searching the area . Lord , described as a formerly troubled young woman who had recently begun to turn her life around , went missing over the July Fourth weekend . She was last seen the morning of July 5 , waiting for a train home to Pennsylvania at the Walter Rand Transportation Center in Camden after attending a Fourth of July gathering the night before , according to her mother , Desiree Caruso . Her body was dressed in the same clothes she was wearing when she went missing , Laughlin reported . Caruso told HLN 's `` Issues with Jane Velez-Mitchell '' that her daughter 's cell phone had died sometime over the weekend , and she used a man 's phone at the train station to call her mother . Caruso said she missed the phone call , but talked with the man afterward , who told her that her daughter `` looked a little scared . '' The man told Caruso that he helped Lord buy a train ticket and waited with her until his train arrived . `` His train came a minute before hers , and he got on his train and I guess he figured she would get on her train , but she never got home , '' Caruso said . The man also said that Lord had been approached by another man , who told him he would make sure she got on her train , saying , `` I got this , '' according to Caruso . Surveillance video apparently shows Lord walking around the train station with two men following `` about 5 feet '' behind her , according to Caruso , who had seen the footage . `` It looked like they were saying something to her , '' Caruso said of the tape . `` She looked back and then she just kept walking , and that 's the end -LSB- of the tape -RSB- . '' The Camden , Gloucester and Salem County medical examiner said the cause of death is undetermined due to the body 's heavy state of decomposition , but there 's no evidence of foul play , Laughlin said in a written statement . Investigators are n't able to conduct toxicology tests but are looking into whether other tests could determine how Lord died , Laughlin said . Collingdale , Pennsylvania , Police Chief Robert Adams said Lord was reported missing from his town . Adams said the young mother attended a party in New Jersey and never returned home . The family has said police were not helpful in searching for Lord . But Adams disputes that and said the case involved four jurisdictions and two states . Adams said Lord , who has a young son , was scheduled to appear in court this week on charges of aggravated assault and theft in a neighboring town . She had not gone missing before , he said . `` This is not the conclusion I was not hoping for . I was hoping she 'd be found in rehab or found alive and well , '' he added . Lord 's family has said police were hesitant to get involved because of her criminal past : She was arrested in 2006 for possession of marijuana and was arrested on assault charges earlier this year , Delaware County court records show . But Caruso said Lord has been clean for six months , and had been reading the Bible daily and concentrating on being a mother to her 3-year-old son . Camden Police Chief John Scott Thomson said in a statement Monday that his department `` worked closely '' with Lord 's family in the search for Lord . `` In addition to investigative efforts and continuous radio police broadcasts , Camden City police officers were on foot , distributing flyers and searching with family members during yesterday 's discovery , '' Thomson said . `` The Camden Police Department is assisting the Camden County Prosecutor 's Office with the investigation into Jenna 's cause of death . ''
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Jenna Lord , 23 , of Pennsylvania , was missing for two weeks . Police said her body was found Sunday in a vacant lot in Camden . Authorities are still working to determine the cause of her death .
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[[125, 244]]
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Paris , France -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Some of the Roma deported from France said Friday they plan to return as soon as possible . They flew Thursday to Romania on a French flight , the first of several scheduled to take Roma out of France in the coming days . The French government says the deportations are part of a crackdown on illegal immigration . They follow the government 's dismantling in the past three weeks of 51 Roma camps that it called illegal . Roma in Europe : Persecuted and misunderstood . `` Over there , they were giving us food , money ... salary . Life is much better out there -- happier , '' Mariana Serban , a mother of four , told Romania 's Realitatea TV . She told the reporter she did not work in France , and smiled when the reporter pointed out France would not give them any more money . `` That 's what they say now , but they will give us money again , '' Serban said . Serban 's oldest son , Alexandru , 12 , spoke in French as he told the TV station , `` It 's much better in France . I 'm here now for a visit , and I will leave again . I 'm staying here for two days only . '' The Thursday flight carried 79 Roma out of the country , French officials said . Friday 's flight , due to land in the Romanian city of Timisoara in the afternoon , had 132 Roma aboard , according to the office of Valentin Mocanu , Romania 's secretary of state for Roma integration . French officials earlier said the third flight would happen Saturday , but the Romanian Foreign Ministry said it would take place August 26 and carry 159 Roma . The ministry said there will also be two flights next month , carrying 27 Roma from France to Romania . France offered 300 euros -LRB- $ 384 -RRB- to each Roma adult and 100 euros -LRB- $ 128 -RRB- to each Roma child who accepted the offer for a `` voluntary return . '' The comments by the returning Roma may dash any French hopes that they will resume their former lives in Romania . `` They will go and meet their parents and other relatives , and after that they will return to France , I 'm telling you , '' Adrian Edu , an expert on Roma issues with the Bucharest City Hall , told PRO TV . Roma are a group of people who live mainly in southern and eastern Europe , often in poverty . Commonly referred to as Gypsies , they tend to live in camps , caravans , or informal settlements and have been the target of persecution throughout history . Romanian President Traian Basescu said in a statement Thursday that his country would try to find a solution to the French situation . `` We understand the problems Roma camps create around French cities , and we will work with France to find suitable solutions , '' he said . Roma from Romania and Bulgaria are allowed free passage into France if they are European Union citizens . After that , however , they must find work , start studies , or find some other way of becoming established in France or risk deportation . The French government said those Roma being deported this week have overstayed the three-month limit . Two Romanian secretaries of state plan to be in Paris on August 30 to discuss the integration of Roma populations , the French Foreign Ministry said . It said Paris favors the social integration of the Roma in Romania . Mocanu 's office said local authorities try to integrate the returning Roma into the workforce , offering jobs to those who come back . Roma are not obligated to accept the job offers , however , and most of the time they do n't , resulting in their return to the country from where they came , the office said . CNN 's Sarah Goddard in Paris , France , and Journalist Cosmin Stan in Bucharest , Romania , contributed to this report .
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Roma deported to Romania say they will return to France . 132 Roma are on Friday 's flight , Romanian officials say . France offered $ 384 to each Roma adult who got on the flight . France put 79 Roma on a charter flight out of the country Thursday .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A Michigan man and woman were convicted Thursday of trying to extort $ 680,000 from `` Full House '' actor John Stamos by threatening to sell compromising photos that prosecutors say were never found . Scott Edward Sippola , 31 , and Allison Lenore Coss , 24 , could face up to nine years in prison for convictions of conspiracy and interstate communications to extort money , said assistant U.S. Attorney Maarten Vermaat . Sentencing is set for October 8 . `` The case was made by the fact that these defendants made threats to damage his -LSB- Stamos ' -RSB- reputation in order to have him pay them , '' Vermaat said after the verdict in Marquette , Michigan . Jurors deliberated for about five hours Thursday . According to CNN affiliate WLUC , prosecutors said that Coss and Sippola demanded $ 680,000 from the television actor or they would sell embarrassing pictures to tabloid publications of Stamos allegedly using drugs . Vermaat said the defendants sent about 40 e-mails to Stamos threatening to sell the photos . FBI agents got involved and started monitoring Stamos ' e-mail account and `` eventually communicated by cellular telephone with the defendants pretending to be Mr. Stamos ' business manager . '' Sippola and Coss were arrested in December 2009 at an airport , a pre-arranged drop off spot for the money . Defense attorney Sarah Henderson alleged at trial that Stamos had a fling with Coss when she was a 17-year-old vacationing on spring break in 2004 . Prosecutors said Stamos met Coss during a trip to Disney World in Orlando , Florida . They developed a friendship and the two communicated by e-mail occasionally until November 2009 , when the actor turned the photos matter over to the FBI . According to WLUC , Coss testified there were several photos depicting Stamos using cocaine . She claimed the actor seemed interested in buying the photos . The actor testified that nothing inappropriate happened at a 2004 spring-break party and , accordingly , he did n't believe compromising photos existed . Stamos said Thursday he wants to get back to work . `` I would like to thank the court , the FBI and the U.S . Attorney 's office for their swift and efficient dealings in connection with this case , '' Stamos said in a statement Thursday afternoon . `` I am shocked and perplexed how individuals could fabricate so many false stories in an effort to defend a crime . I agreed to be a witness for a federal criminal prosecution and endured countless false accusations about my behavior and appropriateness . The allegations made regarding an inappropriate relationship are completely untrue . These slanderous allegations to smear my reputation were part of their defense to redirect attention away from the federal crime of extortion . There was no hot tub , no drugs , no nudity and nothing sexual in nature involved in my friendship with this woman . They lied about everything from a pregnancy to compromising photos . '' A call by CNN to defense attorney Sarah Henderson was not immediately returned .
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Michigan woman , man convicted of trying to extort money from actor John Stamos . Defendants accused of threatening to sell what they said were compromising photos . Prosecutors say the compromising photos were never found .
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Washington -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The top lawyer for the Pentagon tried to talk to an attorney who said he represented the WikiLeaks website on Sunday , August 15 , but the attorney never showed for the 10 a.m. telephone call , according to a Defense Department spokesman . Late Wednesday , the Pentagon released a letter from Defense Department General Counsel Jeh Johnson to Timothy J. Matusheski , an attorney in Hattiesburg , Mississippi . Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said the letter was being released because of inaccurate public statements by WikiLeaks that the Pentagon had contact with the website . `` Today because of the misrepresentations that have been made public , we have released this letter that we sent to this individual , '' Whitman said . WikiLeaks told some news outlets that the Army is willing to consider working with WikiLeaks to review classified documents that were leaked and will soon be posted online by the website . Whitman insisted that direct contact had not been made . `` We do n't consider that there has been any direct contact . We came across an individual that purported -- I 'm not going to get into details -- to be an attorney for WikiLeaks . We arranged for a conversation to take place that he was a no-show . '' But the attorney told CNN that 's a lie . `` I never agreed to that , '' Matusheski said . `` This guy -- Jeh Charles Johnson -- he 's never called me ever . I never agreed to be available by telephone on the morning of Sunday . August 15th . If they had asked me I would have made myself available , I was sleeping . '' In the August 16 letter , Johnson said , `` I understand that you represent yourself to be an attorney for Wikileaks and that you , on behalf of that organization , sought a conversation with someone in the US government to discuss ` harm minimization '' with respect to some 15,000 classified documents that Wikileaks is holding and is threatening to make public . In response , I was prepared to speak with you , yesterday at 10:00 a.m. EDT and convey the position of the Department of Defense . Despite your agreement to be available by telephone yesterday morning , we could not reach you at that time . '' When reached by phone , Matusheski told CNN he received phone calls from a man who said he was an Army investigator . That man , according to Matusheski , did suggest a conversation about WikiLeaks but that was in a voice mail message that Matuskeski said he did not hear until well after 10 a.m. Sunday . He said he has not heard from the man since . CNN attempted to talk to the individual in question who referred CNN to the Army investigation unit media spokesman . Matusheski said he contacted the FBI a few weeks ago when he learned they were looking for WikiLeaks editor Julian Assange because Matusheski was concerned his name would come up and he would get a `` surprise visit '' from the bureau . He said he did get a phone call back from the FBI but that all subsequent contact has been with the man who said he was an Army investigator . Matusheski told CNN he has done pro bono work for WikiLeaks since 2007 , and he considers himself an attorney for the website . Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said the government 's position remains firm that it will not negotiate with WikiLeaks . He could not explain what the Pentagon was in fact prepared to discuss with the attorney .
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WikiLeaks has said it plans to post thousands more leaked documents . A Pentagon official countered reports that the Pentagon had contact with the website . A phone call was planned but the WikiLeaks attorney was a no-show , the Pentagon says . That lawyer says he never agreed to a call .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- As the mosque debate dominates the summer spin cycle , a new Pew Research Poll shows that an increasing number of Americans believe that Barack Obama is a Muslim -- now up to 18 percent from 11 percent in March 2009 . At the same time , only a third of Americans say Obama is a Christian , down from nearly 50 percent last year . And while the biggest jumps in believing Obama is Muslim come from self-described conservative Republicans -- from 18 percent to 34 percent -- the number of Democrats who describe Obama as Christian fell from 55 percent to 46 percent . Independents -- while being the group least likely to want professions of religious beliefs from politicians -- have also fallen in with the drift . I believe the American people are smart . So what can account for this slippage from common sense to conspiracy theory ? Obama made the story of his increasing commitment to Christianity a central tenet of his campaign character narrative ; whole chapters were devoted to matters of faith in his book `` The Audacity of Hope . '' But in the radioactive wake of the Rev. Jeremiah Wright , Obama left his longstanding church and has not yet found a new congregation . The absence of Obama attending Sunday services regularly has been a repeated `` just askin ' ... '' talking point on right wing news and radio -- and indeed , the Pew poll shows that most respondents got their `` views '' about Obama 's religion from `` the media . '' The meticulous attention that some liberals paid to George Bush 's golf game is now directed at Obama hitting the links -- with the added subtext that he 's playing when he should be praying . In the eyes of his opponents , Obama is an elitist silently laughing at those bitter Americans who cling to their guns and religion . The fact that an icon of the religious right like Ronald Reagan rarely attended Sunday services is ignored . But these poll numbers are also an ugly proxy for the campaign to convince the American people that their president is somehow `` other '' -- an `` Alien in the White House , '' as a Wall Street Journal editorial page headline called him recently . The birther myths build off this sense of Obama as a sinister fraud , casting Obama as not just anti-American in his beliefs but actually un-American and therefore not constitutionally eligible to be president . These conspiracy theories in turn build off chain e-mails that have been circulating since at least 2008 , portraying Obama as a Muslim Marxist Manchurian Candidate determined to undermine the Republic from within -- a fright wing fantasy that has proliferated via the internet . Depressingly , a CNN poll earlier this month found that 27 percent of all Americans believe that Obama was either definitely or probably not born in the USA -- a belief shared by 41 percent of Republicans . `` Everyone is entitled to their own opinion , '' the late Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan famously said , `` but not their own facts . '' But the rise of partisan media means that Americans are self-segregating themselves into separate political realities where we ca n't even agree on basic facts like the president 's religion and birthplace . While no responsible Republican would ever explicitly encourage these beliefs , there are plenty who delight in these poll findings because it presumably points to partisan gain . Truth is not as important as the pursuit of power in professional partisans ' eyes , and dividing to conquer is a time-honored trick . Each president since at least Nixon has faced a concerted effort to de-legitimize the duly elected president of the opposing party from day one . But with Barack Obama , the fact that he is the first African-American president with a middle name Hussein has led to a new level of ugliness and suspicion . Attacks that demonize the president are poisoning the civic well from which we all drink . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of John Avlon .
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John Avlon says Pew poll found 18 percent of Americans believe Obama is Muslim . The misconception ranges across political spectrum . Why is this happening , he asks ? Political opponents are smart enough to know the truth , but like the controversy , he says .
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Washington -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The Rolling Stone magazine journalist whose article about Gen. Stanley McChrystal helped end the Afghanistan commander 's career has been denied permission to embed with a military unit in Afghanistan , a Pentagon spokesman told CNN Wednesday . `` Embeds are a privilege , not a right . The unit decided they did n't feel the trust necessary for an embed . They declined , '' Pentagon spokesman Col. David Lapan said , not specifying which unit was involved . Michael Hastings , the reporter , said via Twitter that his embed had earlier been approved , then was `` disapproved . '' McChrystal 's illustrious career came to an abrupt end when he resigned after he and his staff were quoted in a Hastings article criticizing and mocking key Obama administration officials . The Army is investigating the circumstances that led to the article , an Army spokesman told CNN Wednesday . `` A four-star commander was relieved ultimately due to this article . We want to understand what happened here , '' Col. Tom Collins said . The Army Inspector General , the service 's independent investigative arm , began the investigation shortly after President Barack Obama fired the general in June , Collins said Wednesday . He declined to answer questions about the scope of the review or who was being interviewed , because the investigation is ongoing . It is widely believed that McChrystal , as well as his closest aides , either may have already been interviewed or will be by the inspector general regarding comments in the article that could be considered denigrating to the president . McChrystal himself , however , is not expected to be a target of the investigation as the president has already said he did not fire the general `` out of any sense of personal insult . '' Obama said he was making the decision because the tone of the remarks made in the article `` undermines the civilian control of the military that is at the core of our democratic system . '' Under the code of military justice , it is illegal to make disrespectful remarks about the president , but the inspector general 's investigation is not a criminal one . The investigation was formally ordered by Army Vice Chief of Staff General Peter Chiarelli , who is responsible for disciplinary matters in the Army . Several Defense Department officials contacted by CNN said they had been unaware of the investigation until it was reported this week by the Associated Press . Hastings , the Rolling Stone reporter , is not cooperating with the investigation . He said on Twitter he `` refused to participate . '' Obama tapped McChrystal in June 2009 to be the top commander in Afghanistan . The general was known for his discretion and keeping the media at arm 's length , a perception that was shattered when the infamous Rolling Stone article came out in June . McChrystal did not directly criticize Obama in the article , but reporter Hastings writes that the general and Obama `` failed from the outset to connect '' after the president took office . Sources familiar with their first meeting said McChrystal thought Obama looked `` uncomfortable and intimidated '' by the room full of top military officials , according to the article . The journalist wrote that an unnamed aide to McChrystal mocked Vice President Joe Biden . McChrystal did not deny the article 's accuracy . In a statement , he called the comments `` a mistake '' and apologized for `` poor judgment . '' He retired June 23 and was replaced by Gen. David Petraeus , who was previously the top commander in Iraq . CNN Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr contributed to this report .
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Travel with a military unit was approved , then `` disapproved , '' the reporter says . Embedding is a `` privilege , not a right , '' a Pentagon spokesman tells CNN . Michael Hastings ' article helped end McChrystal 's career . McChrystal did not dispute the accuracy of the piece .
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NEW YORK -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The Great Depression is in full swing . Gangster Al Capone is sentenced to 11 years behind bars for tax evasion . Dick Tracy debuts in the comics . The George Washington Bridge opens . The old subway cars have concrete floors , overhead fans and open windows . The year is 1931 . And New Yorkers are stepping onto the brand new R-1 model subway car , built by the American Car & Foundry factory in Berwick , Pennsylvania . Fast-forward 77 years . New Yorkers and tourists are once again boarding these 84,000-pound , 60-foot-long behemoths constructed of riveted steel , with some featuring wicker seats , dangling emergency brake cords , incandescent light bulbs , big exposed overhead fans , and open windows . `` I really thought I was getting on the wrong train until the conductor told me it 's going to 23rd -LSB- Street -RSB- , exactly where I 'm going , '' said Joseph Salmond , who had never seen a subway car quite this old . `` It was like , what 's that movie , ` Back to the Future ' ? '' Watch the ride back in time '' A legendary workhorse of the transit system until the model was put out to pasture in 1977 , the R-1 is temporarily back in action as part of New York City Transit 's holiday `` Nostalgia Train '' on Sundays in December . The R-1 and other rehabilitated subway cars from the 1930s to the 1970s are making the rounds from Manhattan 's Lower East Side to the borough of Queens along the `` V '' line . Passengers love to ride on this special occasion , even though the ride is bumpier and noisier than they have grown accustomed to on today 's gleaming stainless steel subways . Would New Yorkers want to ride these trains on a daily basis ? `` Absolutely not , '' says Chuck Falkowitz , who remembers the R-1 from his childhood in the 1950s . He prefers today 's cleaner seats , improved lighting , heating and air conditioning . `` But it is fun to ride them , '' Falkowitz says . `` Once a year 's more than enough '' Bill Wall , a New York City Transit service supervisor working aboard the R-1 on a recent Sunday , said the train has a special effect on riders and subway employees alike . `` You come on a New York City subway , people are there , they read their papers , they 're going about their business , '' he said . `` On this train , you see people smiling and talking to one another and saying , ` Oh , God , this is a great thing , ' '' said Wall , proudly calling it `` transportainment . '' Built like a battleship with steel body and concrete floors , the R-1 was simple and reliable . State of the art in its day , each car cost just under $ 40,000 , according to Wall . Today 's subway cars run the city about $ 1.5 million apiece . In the 1930s , the R-1 's ceiling fans were a major improvement over relying solely on the motion of the train and open windows to move air around . But as time went on , people thought , '' Overhead fans that close to people 's heads -- that may not be such a great idea , '' Wall said . In the 1940s , the system began switching to enclosed fans . Later , cooling and heating systems became the norm , which is why today 's subway cars have lower ceilings . The R-1s were also the first trains in New York to have four sets of doors on the sides for rapid loading and unloading , a big boost to New York City subways ' ability to accommodate the growing post-World War I population . With the R-1 in mind , Billy Strayhorn composed his 1939 classic tune , `` Take the A Train . '' Given its historical legacy , what 's an R-1 worth now ? `` It 's what you make it to be in terms of worth , '' Wall said . `` Some people look at it and say it 's an old train worth whatever the scrap value is . Some people will look at it and say it 's an heirloom . '' `` You really ca n't even put a price on something like this , '' he says . To put things into perspective : In the 1970s the R-1s were being sold to scrap dealers for less than $ 1,000 each . If you think you 'll get one for that price today , someone in Brooklyn has a bridge to sell you .
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Some 1930s-era subway cars are back in service this month in New York . Some feature wicker seats , overhead fans and old advertising posters . Rehabilitated subway cars from 1930s to 1970s go from Manhattan to Queens . Transit official : Old cars make riders smile , talk with each other .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- After being an avid iPhone user for two years , I finally gave up . A couple of weeks ago I picked up my first Android phone : an HTC Droid Incredible , offered through Verizon Wireless . I 'd owned my iPhone for two years and for the most part liked it . Having a smartphone improved my life and work in several ways . But my contract was up and I 'd moved to the Bay Area -- where I 've found AT&T 's 3G network to be ridiculously spotty and slow . -LRB- Each month I felt like I was paying for the emperor 's new clothes . -RRB- . As I considered my phone options , the unicorn of a non-AT & T iPhone continued to waver maddeningly in the mists of the uncertain future . Furthermore , even legal iPhone jailbreaking looks like more of a headache than I would want to deal with . It was definitely time for a change . Over the last year I 'd been demoing various Android phones , to see what I 'd be in for if I switched . With Android 2.1 , I felt like the OS had finally reached a level of usability and stability I could get comfortable with on a daily basis . I 'm not averse to learning a new mobile operating system -- but it 's definitely not on my top-10 list of fun stuff to do . As I expected , there was a considerable learning curve , many decisions and tradeoffs , occasional confusion and frustration , and some things about my Android phone I just do n't like but will have to tolerate . -LRB- That 's pretty much the experience I had when I first got my iPhone , by the way . -RRB- . Here are some lessons from my iPhone-to-Android switch , which might be useful to others contemplating a similar move : . Set aside a day to learn your phone If your smartphone is an integral part of how you conduct your life and work , take some time up front to focus . Even if you 've demoed Android phones before , configuring it for your personal use and figuring out which new habits you should adopt requires time and focus . Do n't expect to dive in and in an hour be as comfortable with your Android phone as you were with your iPhone . Get your apps through AppBrain.com This site , and its Android app , helps you discover apps in the Android Market and manage them on your phone . It also makes it easier to update and restore all your apps . -LRB- These tasks are easy on the iPhone via iTunes , but tedious if you get your apps straight from the Android Market . -RRB- AppBrain will only update , sync , and restore apps you 've listed with your AppBrain account . So if you 've already started getting crucial apps elsewhere , be sure to list them with your AppBrain account too . If you rely on iCal , you do n't have to switch to Google Calendar It 's enough to learn a new phone -- but it 's even harder if you feel like this change means you also have to abandon lots of other tools you 've come to rely on . I 'm a heavy iCal user , and -LRB- after trying for a couple of hours -RRB- simply could not successfully import my iCal data into Google Calendar . So I found a solution to sync iCal up with my Droid Incredible . Instead of using the calendar app that came with my phone , I use a toolset from MarkSpace : Missing Sync -LRB- $ 40 for Mac software , free Android app -RRB- and Fliq Calendar -LRB- free Android app -RRB- . In AndroidForums.com there 's a useful review by Krischik of this toolset . Missing Sync will also sync contacts , photos , music , and more . Missing Sync is not perfect , however . I found it created many duplicate contacts on my phone , and it was unbearably slow for syncing media files -- but your mileage may vary . For me , Doubletwist works better for syncing music between my Mac and Droid Incredible . Carry a charger or spare battery All smartphones , but especially multitasking Android phones , can drain a battery fast . It 's a good idea to learn tricks for minimizing power consumption on your phone . But until you learn those tricks , expect that your new phone could run out of power surprisingly fast . Charge your phone whenever your get a chance . The Kensington Portable Power Pack that I used for two years with my iPhone works just fine with my Droid Incredible -- which is good , since I 've been getting lousy battery life from the Incredible , even worse than on my iPhone 3G . Accept that you 'll have to let go of some treasured tools For years my main productivity tool has been OmniFocus -- pricey but excellent task-management software with a pricey but excellent iPhone app . Unfortunately , OmniFocus syncs only via Apple 's MobileMe service , which really only plays nice with Apple devices . After trying several options , I decided to switch to the Web-based service Toodledo , which syncs with a pretty good free Android app , Got To Do Lite . This does n't replace all the functionality of OmniFocus -- but for me , it will suffice . Again , your mileage may vary . ... All in all , after about three days of using my Droid Incredible I felt I was back up to a comparable level of mobile comfort and productivity . I 'm still stumbling here and there , but for me the switching process was not especially daunting or stressful . Plus , it 's really nice to finally get the high-speed mobile access I 'm paying for . I expect someday Verizon 's network will get bogged down here too -- but for me , for now , it 's working great .
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Take a day to learn your phone , because configuring it for your personal use requires time . If you rely on iCal , you do n't have to switch to Google Calendar . Accept that you 'll have to let go of some treasured tools .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A surprise appearance by WikiLeaks.org founder Julian Assange at the TED Global conference in Oxford , England , has cast new light on the activities of the site and its mysterious leader . Assange 's site , which released video of a U.S. air strike in Iraq that killed a dozen civilians , claims to have revealed more classified intelligence documents than the rest of the world 's media combined . Explaining during his appearance Friday why WikiLeaks has been keeping a lower profile since releasing the video , Assange said it was working on raising funds and strengthening its technical infrastructure to handle more traffic while accumulating `` an enormous quantity of whistle-blower disclosures . '' He later told reporters that `` there are many things which are very explosive . '' Assange , 39 , said the site operates from several countries , including Sweden and Belgium , where laws provide more protection for its disclosures . He said he canceled plans to travel to the United States for three public appearances , citing what he described as indications that U.S. officials might not follow the `` rule of law '' in dealing with him . He also mentioned advice from investigative journalist Seymour Hersh to be cautious . He said U.S. officials have since adopted a more `` reasonable '' stance . TED Global is an annual conference hosted by the nonprofit organization TED , named after the three subjects it first began discussing in the 1980s : technology , entertainment and design . It has expanded its scope in the years since and its website now hosts more than 700 talks on a wide range of topics . Learn more about speakers at the TED Global conference . In an onstage discussion with TED curator Chris Anderson , Assange was asked whether is was true he had attended 37 schools as a child . He explained it was a consequence of two things : his parents were in the movie business and were later `` on the run from a cult . '' Assange said he became a `` journalist activist '' in his teenage years and was prosecuted for it . According to political magazine Mother Jones : `` As a teenager in Melbourne , he belonged to a hacker collective called the International Subversives . He eventually pled guilty to 24 counts of breaking into Australian government and commercial websites to test their security gaps , but was released on bond for good behavior . '' Asked about his core values , Assange said , `` Capable , generous men do not create victims , they nurture victims , '' attributing the thought to his father and others . `` I 'm a combative person , so I 'm not actually so big on the nurture , but there is another way of nurturing victims , which is to police perpetrators of crimes . And so that is something that has been in my character for a long time . '' Read more about Assange and his site . Assange said the organization gets material from whistle-blowers in a variety of ways -- including postal mail . He said WikiLeaks vets it , releases it to the public and then defends itself against `` political or legal attack . '' He said the organization rarely knows the identity of the source of the leak . `` If we find out at some stage , we destroy that information as soon as possible , '' he said . Pfc. Bradley E. Manning , 22 , of Potomac , Maryland , has been charged with eight violations of the U.S. Criminal Code for allegedly illegally transferring classified data , including the video that wound up on WikiLeaks . He has been accused of `` wrongfully introducing a classified video of a military operation filmed at or near Baghdad , Iraq '' around July 12 , 2007 , `` onto his personal computer , a nonsecure information system . '' Watch the video of the airstrike . Assange said at a news conference after his appearance Friday that Manning `` is a political prisoner being held in the nation of Kuwait , effectively keeping him away from the press and effective legal representation . '' He said WikiLeaks is providing legal assistance to Manning without saying whether he was the source of the video . `` Obviously , we can not pick and choose , '' said Assange , adding the site has to defend everyone who faces serious charges as a result of material posted on WikiLeaks . The video shows aerial footage of an attack by a U.S. Apache helicopter that killed civilians , including two journalists from the Reuters news service . WikiLeaks posted it in April . The site said the video `` clearly shows the unprovoked slaying of a wounded Reuters employee and his rescuers . '' Asked to respond to Assange 's assertion that Manning is a political prisoner , Pentagon spokesman Col. David Lapan told CNN last week that Manning is `` accused of committing serious offenses . He has been charged under the Uniform Code of Military Justice and will be processed by normal procedures through the military justice system . '' U.S. military authorities have warned that the publication of classified documents on WikiLeaks could aid in the planning of terrorist attacks and harm national security . Assange denied reports that WikiLeaks had received hundreds of thousands of classified U.S. cables in addition to the Iraq video . He said the site would have released the cables if it had received them . Some information , such as private medical records , should be kept secret , Assange said , but he did not extend that view to classified documents . The fact that governments spend money to keep such information secret , Assange said , is a good indication that releasing the information can achieve reform . Anderson asked the audience for a show of hands as to whether he was a hero or a dangerous troublemaker . The vast majority signaled that they viewed him as a hero . CNN 's Mike Mount and Alan Silverleib contributed to this report .
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WikiLeaks.org founder Julian Assange makes rare public appearance . He says the site has been overwhelmed by disclosures from whistle-blowers . Assange said site has disclosed more classified documents than rest of world 's media combined . He said WikiLeaks will defend Army private accused of leaks but site wo n't name source .
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PUERTO MONTT , Chile -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Nearly a week after a volcano erupted in Chaiten , Chile , disgorging its contents across a wide area of the Andes Mountains , authorities finished evacuating the area most affected . Though the eruption has been continuous , it increased at midnight Wednesday , powered by a massive explosion , then returned to its steady discharge of ash , officials said . Overnight , authorities armed with a court order evacuated the last of the holdouts -- many of whom had sought to remain to care for their cattle -- among the approximately 5,000 residents inside the 30-kilometer -LRB- 18-mile -RRB- exclusion zone , said Carmen Fernandez , director of Chile 's Office of Emergency . By Thursday morning , about 100 people -- primarily police , military and journalists -- remained in the immediate vicinity of the volcano , she said . In Bariloche , 300 kilometers -LRB- 186 miles -RRB- from the volcano , Chilean Minister of Defense Jose Goni met Thursday with Argentine Vice President Julio Cobos to coordinate the transfer of the cows in the affected zone to Argentine territory , 60 kilometers -LRB- 37 miles -RRB- away . Many of Bariloche 's residents clutched handkerchiefs to their faces or wore cloth masks -- handed out by the government -- as they went about their business . Even with the masks , breathing could be difficult . Thick layers of ash covered everything like freshly fallen snow . Bariloche 's airport and other regional airports were shut Thursday after satellite photos revealed that the air over the provinces of Buenos Aires , La Pampa , Rio Negro , Neuquen and Chubut was filled with ash . The most dense clouds of the material were seen over Chubut and Rio Negro , with lesser amounts in the other provinces . In all , clouds of ash covered nearly a third of Argentina , the country 's meteorological service said . As of noon Thursday , ash could be seen in the sky above Buenos Aires and its suburbs , it said . `` The sky appears gray , products of the presence of ashes that are moving from west to east at an altitude of about 3,500 meters , '' the service said . Watch volcano eruption '' `` Fortunately , the composition of the ash , air and smoke that is coming out of the volcano is n't highly toxic , '' said Mirta Roses , director of the Pan American Health Organization . But , she said , children , older people and people with allergies or asthma are at highest risk and should make extra efforts to avoid it . Many of the evacuees were taken to Puerto Montt , a port city in southern Chile about 200 kilometers -LRB- 124 miles -RRB- north of Chaiten . The volcano , which is about 1210 kilometers -LRB- 752 miles -RRB- south of the Chilean capital , Santiago , began erupting early Friday , raining gray ash onto Chaiten . The small city is on the Corcovado Gulf , in southern Chile . The volcano last erupted around 7,420 B.C. , according to the Smithsonian 's Global Volcanism Project . Chile contains a large number of active volcanoes , including Llaima , which erupted in January , sending lava and smoke down a snow-covered mountain . CNN en Espanol 's Alberto Pando contributed to this story .
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Approximately 5,000 residents are evacuated , some by court order , officials say . Authorities coordinate the 60-kilometer transfer of cows out of the affected zone . Regional airports are shut Thursday after satellite photos show the air full of ash . Clouds of ash cover nearly a third of Argentina , the meteorological service says .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A Colorado company is recalling about 66,000 pounds of ground and tenderized steak bison meat that may be contaminated with a potentially deadly strain of E. coli , according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture 's Food Safety and Inspection Service . Five cases of E. coli O157 : H7 illnesses in Colorado from June 4 to June 9 are believed to be associated with the products , officials said Friday . The meat was distributed to retail establishments nationwide and to food service distributors in Utah and Arizona . The products , produced between May 21 and May 27 , are being recalled by Rocky Mountain Natural Meats of Henderson , Colorado . Although the sell-by dates on the products have passed , the Food Safety and Inspection Service said some consumers might have frozen the meat before using it , `` and there is concern that some product may still be frozen and in consumers ' freezers . '' The recalled products include : . • 16-ounce packages of Great Range All Natural Ground Bison with a sell - or freeze-by date of June 21 , 22 , or 24 . • 16-ounce packages of Nature 's Rancher Ground Buffalo with a sell - or freeze-by date of June 22 . • 16-ounce packages of The Buffalo Guys All Natural Ground Buffalo 90 Percent Lean with a lot number of 0147 . • 12-ounce packages of Great Range Brand All Natural Bison Steak Medallions with a sell - or freeze-by date of June 23 and 24 . • 12-ounce packages of Great Range Brand All Natural Bison Sirloin Steaks with a sell - or freeze-by date of June 20 , 23 and 24 . • 15-pound boxes of Rocky Mountain Natural Meats Inc. . Bison 10 oz . Sirloin Steaks , which went to restaurants and bear a Julian Code of 0141 . E. coli O157 : H7 is a bacterium that can cause bloody diarrhea , dehydration and , in severe cases , kidney failure . It can be fatal . `` The very young , seniors and persons with weak immune systems are the most susceptible to foodborne illness , '' the agency said .
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5 cases of E. coli contamination may be linked to bison meat . Some consumers may have frozen meat . Meat distributed to retail establishments and food distributors in Utah and Arizona .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A black Agriculture Department employee who resigned after a video clip surfaced of her talking about a white farmer said Tuesday her remarks were taken out of context . Shirley Sherrod , the department 's former state director of rural development for Georgia , told CNN the incident she discusses in the clip took place more than two decades ago -- and that she recounted it to an audience to make the point that people should move beyond race . `` I was speaking to that group , like I 've done many groups , and I tell them about a time when I thought the issue was race and race only , '' Sherrod told CNN 's `` American Morning '' from her home in Albany , Georgia . The incident took place in 1986 , while she worked for a nonprofit and before she worked for the USDA , she said . `` I was telling the story of how working with him helped me to see the issue is not about race . It 's about those who have versus those who do not have . '' Sherrod resigned Monday after conservative media outlets aired the video , in which she says she did not give the white farmer `` the full force of what I could do '' to help him avoid foreclosure . Conservative website publisher Andrew Breitbart originally posted the video , which was quickly picked up by Fox News . The video claims Sherrod 's remarks were delivered March 27 to an NAACP Freedom Fund banquet , but it is not clear that is the case , nor is it clear where the event was held or how many people were in attendance . The poor-quality video shows Sherrod telling her audience that the farmer she was working with `` took a long time ... trying to show me he was superior to me . '' As a result , she said , she `` did n't give him the full force of what I could do . I did enough . '' To prove she had done her job , she said , she took him to a white lawyer . `` I figured that if I take him to one of them , that his own kind would take care of him , '' she said . Sherrod mentioned that the lawyer would help the farmer with a bankruptcy filing but did not say in the clip whether his farm was saved . She told CNN that at the time , she was working with a nonprofit association aimed at assisting farmers in Georgia and the Southeast . In the end , she said , the lawyer did not help the farmer and she `` had to frantically find a lawyer who would file a Chapter 11 to stop the foreclosure . '' She said she , the farmer and his wife wound up being friends . Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said Monday he had accepted Sherrod 's resignation . `` There is zero tolerance for discrimination at USDA , and I strongly condemn any act of discrimination against any person , '' Vilsack said . `` We have been working hard through the past 18 months to reverse the checkered civil rights history at the department and take the issue of fairness and equality very seriously . '' Sherrod told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution there were white people , including a mayor , at the banquet where she spoke . `` Why would I do something racist if they were there ? '' The NAACP issued a statement late Monday backing Vilsack 's decision . `` Racism is about the abuse of power . Sherrod had it in her position at USDA . According to her remarks , she mistreated a white farmer in need of assistance because of his race , '' said Benjamin Todd Jealous , president and CEO of the civil rights group . `` We are appalled by her actions , just as we are with abuses of power against farmers of color and female farmers . '' `` Her actions were shameful , '' Jealous continued . `` While she went on to explain in the story that she ultimately realized her mistake , as well as the common predicament of working people of all races , she gave no indication she had attempted to right the wrong she had done to this man . '' Sherrod said it was `` unfortunate that the NAACP would make a statement without even checking to see what happened . This was 24 years ago , and I 'm telling a story to try to unite people . '' She said she tried to explain to USDA officials , `` but for some reason , the stuff Fox and the Tea Party does is scaring the administration . I told them to get the whole tape and look at the whole tape and see how I tell people we have to get beyond race and work together . '' Asked why did she resigned instead of fought , Sherrod said , `` I did n't have any support from USDA . What would I do ? '' James Peterson , assistant professor of English and Africana studies at Bucknell University in Lewisburg , Pennsylvania , called the clip `` a textbook case of institutional racism . Historically , it 's been white against black , or white against whatever person of color is in question , but this is still institutional racism . We ca n't endorse it . '' But he said , given later remarks made by Sherrod in the clip , `` it 's clear that this is an anecdote ... It is clear she is using this as an anecdote to talk about how she 's progressed from this moment , and we ca n't let the weight of historical issues with race shape our individual issues . `` I think she is using this an anecdote to work through her own issues but also to show the audience we can move beyond and transcend some of these circumstances , '' he said . The conservative media outlets tied the video to the NAACP 's recent resolution calling on the Tea Party movement to repudiate racist elements within it that have displayed such items as images of President Barack Obama with a bone through his nose and the White House with a lawn full of watermelons . The controversy has led one Tea Party group to oust another because of a blog posting by the second group 's leader . Tea Party Express leader Mark Williams posted on his blog a faux letter from NAACP president Benjamin Jealous to President Abraham Lincoln in which Williams ridicules the organization 's use of `` colored '' in its historic name and uses multiple other stereotypes to bolster his point . The National Tea Party Foundation expelled Williams ' organization from its coalition as a result .
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Shirley Sherrod says her remarks were taken out of context . Sherrod says the point of her story was to unite people . NAACP backs agriculture secretary 's decision to accept resignation of Shirley Sherrod . Sherrod says she did n't use `` the full force '' to help white farmer while at nonprofit .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Reality TV star Snooki must prove in court next month that she was not annoying to people when she was on a beach in Seaside Heights , New Jersey , last month . Police charged the 22-year-old star of MTV 's `` Jersey Shore '' with disorderly conduct and creating a public nuisance when they arrested her on July 30 . But a prosecutor added a municipal ordinance violation of annoying people on the beach during a court hearing Wednesday . Snooki , whose real name is Nicole Polizzi , did not attend Wednesday 's hearing . Her lawyer , Raymond Raya , appeared on her behalf to enter a `` not guilty '' plea on all charges , according to a Seaside Heights Municipal Court spokesman . Polizzi faces up to $ 3,200 in fines if found guilty of all charges . The disorderly conduct charge could also carry a 30-day jail sentence . A trial date was set for September 8 . In Session correspondent Jean Casarez contributed to this report .
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A charge of annoying beach-goers was added Wednesday . Snooki also faces disorderly conduct and public nuisance charges . Her lawyer entered `` not guilty '' pleas on all counts .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A 20-year-old man waiting in line for a ride at Disney 's California Adventure Park fell 25 to 30 feet Wednesday night , Anaheim police spokesman Sgt. Rick Martinez said Thursday . The man was in the building housing the queue for the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror , when he put his leg over the railing and fell , Martinez said . `` The guest was standing in line with friends on a second-floor platform when he climbed over a barrier to the area below and lost his balance and fell approximately 25 feet , '' Disneyland spokeswoman Suzi Brown said in a statement . Paramedics on site treated the man , Martinez said . A dispatcher for Metro Cities Fire Authority , which serves seven Orange County cities , said the man was brought to University of California Irvine Medical Center . `` The guest was transported by ambulance to the hospital . We understand his injuries were minor and he has been treated and released , '' Brown said . The incident happened around 10:30 p.m. , the Metro Cities dispatcher said . It caused Disney to shut down the ride briefly while paramedics attended to the fallen park-goer , Martinez said , adding that the ride reopened soon thereafter . The Twilight Zone Tower of Terror is a ride that brings visitors to the top of an elevator shaft , then drops them . The Disneyland website says , `` Join thrill-seekers at the mysterious Hollywood Tower Hotel for the ultimate adrenaline rush . For the longest 2 minutes of your life , rise and fall at terrifying speeds in the hotel 's haunted elevator . '' The California Adventure Park is adjacent to Disneyland in Anaheim . CNN 's Samuel Gardner and Rosalina Nieves contributed to this report .
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The 20-year-old man was in line for the Twilight Zone Tower of Terror . He was not badly injured and was treated and released from a hospital . The incident temporarily shut down the ride .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Many Zune owners successfully revived their failed music players Thursday morning , while others were still unable to overcome a leap year-related glitch that caused thousands of the devices to simultaneously stop working on New Year 's Eve . Microsoft issued the first Zune portable music player in 2006 to compete with the iPod . `` Mine is back up and working as of a minute ago ! Thanks Zune Team , '' a user named `` blcknwhte '' posted at 9:19 a.m. ET on the Zune Web site 's forum . `` I 'm glad things are back to normal but this was a major inconvenience , '' posted someone named JaximFlash . `` I have 2 Zune 30s and I had made a playlist of songs to play during a New Year 's Eve party . '' Microsoft Corp. , maker of the Zune , said a bug in the internal clock driver , related to the way the device handles a leap year , caused the malfunction in older Zune 30GB models . Matt Akers of the Zune Product Team wrote Wednesday on Zune.net that the problem should resolve itself after 7 a.m. ET Thursday . The Zune support page says users should allow the internal battery to fully drain , then recharge by connecting the Zune to a computer or AC power after noon GMT -LRB- 7 a.m. ET -RRB- on New Year 's Day . `` Once the battery has sufficient power , the player should start normally . No other action is required -- you can go back to using your Zune ! '' the site says . But some Zune owners still reported problems rebooting their MP3 players Thursday . `` It 's 9:15 a.m. -LSB- ET -RSB- and my Zune is looking just like it did yesterday , '' posted one user . `` Went through the proper steps and still no go . Anybody have any ideas ? '' `` Mine does n't work either , and yes , I can read and follow instructions . I did so three times , '' posted another Zune owner at 10:17 a.m. ET . `` I then called tech support , they told me to charge it for 3 hours , and if that did n't work to call them back . '' The mysterious problem surfaced late Tuesday and early Wednesday as Internet message boards were flooded with complaints about Zunes freezing , prompting Y2K-like speculation about end-of-year hardware or software problems . `` It seems that every Zune on the planet has just frozen up and will not work , '' posted a Mountain Home , Idaho , user on CNN 's iReport.com . `` I have 3 and they all in the same night stopped working . '' Another iReporter said he was working the night shift at a Toys R Us store in Puerto Rico when his Zune player and the Zunes of four co-workers all failed about 1:30 a.m. ET Wednesday . iReport.com : They all froze up . `` It froze and there was no way to turn it off so you just have to wait until the batteries went dead . You ca n't push any buttons or anything , '' Carlos Colon told CNN . Some Zune users dubbed the crisis `` Y2K9 '' or `` Z2K9 , '' a reference to New Year 's Eve and concerns over potential widespread computer failures on January 1 , 2000 -- fears that proved unfounded . Microsoft says it will keep users posted via the tech-support page on http://www.zune.net/en-us/support/zune30.htm . Microsoft released its first Zune 30GB music player , a competitor to Apple 's popular iPod , in 2006 . No widespread glitches have been reported this week in its second-generation 80GB or 120GB models .
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NEW : Some owners were able to restart their Zune music players Thursday morning . Microsoft on Wednesday said problem should resolve itself after 7 a.m. ET Thursday . Users should allow internal battery to fully drain , then recharge , Web site says . Thousands of older 30GB Zune players froze simultaneously late Tuesday .
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New York -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- For one New Yorker , the journey to the Pearly Gates involved a detour to the city 's car pound . On Monday , the New York City Police Department towed an illegally parked van carrying a body . The van , parked outside Redden 's Funeral Home on West 14th Street , was to transport the body to Newark for a flight . Calls and e-mails Friday about the towing to funeral director Paul DeNigris yielded no response . But according to the New York Daily News , DeNigris said he went inside the funeral home to get paperwork and answer a phone call . When he returned , the van was gone -- along with the body that was in a white cardboard box , the newspaper said . `` I was just a wreck , '' he told the newspaper . `` I was frantic . When something like that happens , you go into panic mode . '' DeNigris recovered the van about 90 minutes later , stuck in vehicular purgatory -- the city 's pound . The police waived the towing fee , $ 185 , to expedite the vehicle 's release , said Paul Browne , deputy commissioner of public information for the police . Police described the van as an unmarked 2002 Dodge with tinted windows . The first ticket was issued at 9:22 a.m. Three hours later , it was towed , police officials said . Browne said DeNigris should ask himself why he left a body unattended in an unmarked van , parked illegally for nearly three hours . `` What if the van had had been stolen instead of towed ? '' he asked in an e-mail to CNN . `` Should n't he or someone from the funeral home staff have stayed with the body ? '' Randy McCullough , deputy director of the New York State Funeral Directors Association , said the state has no rule in place that requires signage to indicate a funeral van . Hearses may be synonymous with funerals , but minivans and sport utility vehicles often transport bodies , too , said Jessica A. Koth , public relations manager for the National Funeral Directors Association . She called the situation in New York `` exceedingly rare . ''
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Van parked illegally outside funeral home for three hours , police say . Funeral director tells newspaper he left to get paperwork , make phone call . Body was to be transported to Newark for an airplane flight .
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Atlanta , Georgia -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A Georgia Capitol police corporal was grazed by a bullet Wednesday afternoon during an exchange of gunfire with a man suspected of being part of a chop shop ring , authorities said . Three suspects , one of them wounded , were in custody , said Georgia Bureau of Investigation spokesman John Bankhead . The wounded officer was assisting a state trooper tracking a LoJack device in a suspected stolen motorcycle a few blocks from the Georgia Capitol in downtown Atlanta , Bankhead said . Several motorcycles were in a trailer attached to an SUV in an alley and the suspects were unloading them . The two officers approached one of the suspects shortly before 2 p.m. at an alleyway . One suspect brandished a weapon and a gun battle ensued , authorities said . The corporal was wounded by gunfire . CNN affiliates WSB-TV and WXIA reported the trooper wounded the suspected shooter shortly afterward . The police officer suffered a flesh wound in the head and was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital . WSB-TV reported he was released from the hospital . The injured suspect was taken to the same hospital and underwent surgery , Bankhead said . His condition was not available . Witnesses recalled a wild scene as swarms of officers looked for the two other suspects , who were found in a building by SWAT officers . Charges were pending Wednesday evening . The GBI and Atlanta Police Department will determine whether all of the motorcycles were stolen , Bankhead said . One of the suspects has an uspecified outstanding warrant in Fayette County , south of Atlanta , the GBI said . CNN 's Vivian Kuo contributed to this article .
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NEW : Three suspects , one of them wounded , are in custody . Officer wounded while looking into stolen motorcycles report . The Georgia Capitol police officer was grazed in the shooting .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- All hail to the king and queen -- of catfish . Greg Bernal of Florissant , Missouri , and girlfriend Janet Momphard of St. Charles , Missouri , on Tuesday hauled what is believed to be a world record catfish into their boat while fishing on the Missouri River . The monster blue catfish weighed in at 130 pounds and was 45 inches in girth and 57 inches long , Dan Zarlenga , a spokesman for the Missouri Department of Conservation , said Tuesday . `` It has n't hit me yet . ... I 'm still in shock , '' Bernal said Tuesday . Bernal , 47 , said he was about to call it a day when he decided to give it one last shot . `` We threw the rod in , and about 30 minutes later , that rod took off , '' he said . `` I just put the pressure on him and tried to work him up towards the surface . His head broke the water and man , that was it , I knew I had a record breaker , '' Bernal said . Jim Blair , who keeps a state-certified scale at his feed store in New Melle , was notified Tuesday morning by the Missouri Department of Conservation that a couple may have caught a state record catfish and they needed to use his scale to get an official weight . `` My scale is inspected every year , it 's certified by the state , '' said Blair . Before the catfish was put on the scale , Momphard said it had to at least weigh more than 120 pounds , because it weighed more than the generator Bernal kept in the back of his truck . `` Him and his girlfriend were jumping up and down because when it went over 100 pounds , they knew they had a state record , but when it went up to 130 pounds , they was really excited , '' said Blair . `` He 'll be considered royalty in the fishing world . '' Although several official witnesses were on site when the scale read 130 pounds , the International Game and Fish association still has to sign off on whether a world record has been broken . Tim Pruitt of Godfrey , Missouri , holds the official world record . He reeled in a 124-pound catfish in May 2005 , in the same general area of the Missouri River , according to Zarlenga . And for those of you curious about the so-called honey hole where Bernal caught this monster fish ? Sorry , he is n't talking . `` Back in 1995 , I caught the Illinois state record catfish -- a blue that weighed 79.12 pounds , '' said Bernal . After that , he said , everybody knew who he was and started tracking his every move . `` I had to cut the running lights on my boat one time because I had boats following me . '' Zarlenga says Bernal 's keeping quiet about the exact location is understandable , but he expects to see more people fishing the general area along the Missouri River for their dream catch . Bernal is keeping the catfish , for the time being , in a friend 's deep freezer . `` I 'd like to see if one of the stores is interested in making a replication of it , like Bass Pro Shops or Cabela 's , '' said Bernal . Meanwhile , he 's catching up on sleep and hopes to celebrate soon with a couple of cold beers . `` I 've been fishing for the monster my whole life ... by chance , he came by to my hook and I actually got him . I was just lucky , but I 'm not going to argue with it , that 's a world record , '' Bernal said .
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The 130-pound blue catfish beats the world record by 6 pounds , an official says . `` It has n't hit me yet , I 'm still in shock , '' fisherman Greg Bernal says . Only some paperwork stands in the way of an official world record . `` He 'll be considered royalty in the fishing world , '' store manager says .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Baskin-Robbins is putting five of its signature 31 flavors in the deep freeze . The company , which has thousands of outlets around the globe , is replacing some old flavors with new ones to celebrate National Ice Cream Day in the U.S. on Sunday , and Baskin-Robbin 's 65th anniversary . Caramel Praline Cheesecake , Campfire S'mores , Apple Pie a La Mode and Superfudge Truffle are leaving the list . French Vanilla , a staple since 1945 , is out , too . Srinivas Kumar , chief brand officer at the company , said `` over the decades we have retired some of our iconic flavors into our deep freeze -- like ` Miami Ice ' from the 1980s and ` Beatlenut ' in the 1960s -- but never before have five flavors gone into the deep freeze at one time . '' That 's cold . And it 's ice cream lovers in the United States who 'll likely miss the flavors most . The Illinois-based National Ice Cream Retailer 's Association says the U.S is the world 's top ice cream-consuming nation . The U.S. ice cream industry generates more than $ 21 billion in annual sales , and about 9 percent of all the milk produced by U.S. dairy farmers is used to produce ice cream , according to the International Dairy Foods Association . There 's no word yet on what the new Baskin-Robbins flavors will be . And as for the old ones -- get them while you can . They 'll only be available as supplies last .
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Baskin-Robbins is retiring five of its 31 flavors of ice cream . The flavor purge marks the company 's 65th anniversary . French Vanilla and Caramel Praline Cheesecake are out . Sunday is National Ice Cream Day in the U.S.
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TOKYO , Japan -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- They are young , earn little and spend little , and take a keen interest in fashion and personal appearance -- meet the `` herbivore men '' of Japan . Former CNN intern Junichiro Hori is a self-described ` herbivore . ' Author and pop culture columnist Maki Fukasawa coined the term in 2006 in a series of articles on marketing to a younger generation of Japanese men . She used it to describe some men who she said were changing the country 's ideas about just what is -- and is n't -- masculine . `` In Japan , sex is translated as ` relationship in flesh , ' '' she said , `` so I named those boys ` herbivorous boys ' since they are not interested in flesh . '' Typically , `` herbivore men '' are in their 20s and 30s , and believe that friendship without sex can exist between men and women , Fukasawa said . The term has become a buzzword in Japan . Many people in Tokyo 's Harajuku neighborhood were familiar with `` herbivore men '' -- and had opinions about them . Shigeyuki Nagayama said such men were not eager to find girlfriends and tend to be clumsy in love , and he admitted he seemed to fit the mold himself . `` My father always asks me if I got a girlfriend . He tells me I 'm no good because I ca n't get a girlfriend . '' Midori Saida , a 24-year-old woman sporting oversized aviators and her dyed brown hair in long ringlets , said `` herbivore men '' were `` flaky and weak . '' `` We like manly men , '' she said . `` We are not interested in those boys -- at all . '' Takahito Kaji , 21 , said he has been told he is `` totally herbivorous . '' `` Herbivorous boys are fragile , do not have a stocky body -- skinny . '' Fukasawa said Japanese men from the baby boomer generation were typically aggressive and proactive when it came to romance and sex . But as a result of growing up during Japan 's troubled economy in the 1990s , their children 's generation was not as assertive and goal-oriented . Their outlook came , in part , from seeing their fathers ' model of masculinity falter even as Japanese women gained more lifestyle options . Former CNN intern Junichiro Hori , a self-described herbivore , said the idea goes beyond looks and attitudes toward sex . `` Some guys still try to be manly and try to be like strong and stuff , but you know personally I 'm not afraid to show my vulnerability because being vulnerable or being sensitive is not a weakness . '' Older generations of Japanese men are not happy about the changes . At a bar frequented by businessmen after work , one man said : `` You need to be carnivorous when you make decisions in your life . You should be proactive , not passive . '' Fukasawa said the group does not care so much about making money -- a quality tied to the fact that there are fewer jobs available during the current global economic recession . Japan 's economy recently saw its largest-ever recorded contraction and has shrunk for four straight quarters . Blue chip companies Sony , Panasonic , Toyota and Nissan all reported losses in May , and most are forecasting the same for the current fiscal year . Though still low by international standards , Japan 's reported 5 percent unemployment is the highest since 2003 . Hori agreed economics has played a role . When he finished university , `` a lot of my friends were trying to work for a big company that pays well and I was n't interested in that . I am kind of struggling financially and my father is not very happy about it , '' he said . Fukasawa estimated some 20 percent of men are what she would call `` herbivorous '' and said their attitudes were influencing others . Indeed , she said , it was a return to the norm for Japanese men , rather than a departure . `` It was after World War II and the post-war economic growth that Japanese men gained the reputation as a sex animal through the competition with the West . Looking back beyond that time , older literature talks a lot about men with the kind of character we see in the herbivorous boys . '' Will these men simply grow out of this ? Fukasawa said it was anyone 's guess . Some of them may , but Japan 's image of masculinity is nonetheless changing . `` The men in dark suits are changing , too , '' she said . `` Today 's young people in dark suits are different from the baby boomers in dark suits . They are evolving , too . ''
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Author and pop culture columnist Maki Fukasawa coins the term ` herbivore men ' She says these men are changing the country 's ideas about what is masculine . These men are less interested in making money , sex . Fukasawa says the trend may indeed be a return to the norm for Japanese men .
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-LRB- Rolling Stone -RRB- -- When Kanye West suggested a remix , with Raekwon , of Justin Bieber 's `` Runaway Love '' to Bieber over Twitter this past weekend , few would have guessed the collaboration might actually happen . But Raekwon has told XXL that the remix is already in the works , and Kanye tweeted that he was hitting the studio with Raekwon today . `` It 's definitely gon na happen , '' Raekwon said . `` When you got these kinda talents merging together to do something exciting , I think it 's something that 's gon na make the fans check it out . I 'm a big fan of both of these guys . I think , at the end of the day , shorty -LSB- Bieber -RSB- is a sensation . And -LSB- for him -RSB- to acknowledge me it makes me feel good that the young generation is checkin ' me out like that . And at the same time it gives me a position to play a big brother in the game . He wants my assistance or whatever , he can get it . I respect him , I like his style . '' Kanye , meanwhile , has taken to Twitter to sing Wu Tang Clan 's praises . `` Wu mixed education , originality , reality and general fresh as hellness . We can only pray to make music on that level every time we create , '' Kanye wrote . `` Respect to the whole Wu Tang for being the most influential movement in my life ... I think about Ghost Face every time I look at jewelry ... Who remember the purple tape -LSB- Only Built 4 Cuban Linx on cassette version -RSB- ?! Raekwon album not only changed my life it dictated it and yes I spent my first check on a Cuban link chain . '' Copyright © 2010 Rolling Stone .
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`` It 's definitely gon na happen , '' Raekwon says of the remix . `` I think , at the end of the day , shorty -LSB- Bieber -RSB- is a sensation , '' Raekwon says . Kanye has taken to Twitter to sing Wu Tang Clan 's praises .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Even as Facebook titles like `` FrontierVille '' and `` Restaurant City '' continue to attract millions of players , interest in social games may be waning . A rise of tongue-in-cheek parody games that poke fun at these popular outings points to rising discontent amongst both gaming fans and industry insiders . `` There 's a general feeling of discomfort and bafflement with all of the FarmWhatever and MobsterBoss notifications you see on Facebook and other social networks , '' said Persuasive Games founder Ian Bogost . `` It 's become almost absurdist . '' Witness Bogost 's new social gaming spoof , `` Cow Clicker , '' a Facebook game in which you click on cows to earn the right to click on more cows . It 's a form of biting interactive satire . `` Any cultural force that we do n't grasp but that seems to overtake us becomes ripe for parody , '' Bogost added . `` I created ` Cow Clicker ' in part to give myself and others a second look at ` FarmVille ' and its ilk and force social-network games players to ask themselves what these -LSB- titles -RSB- are and why they 're so compelling . '' From social-gaming protest groups to fake `` FarmVille '' commercials , there are plenty of signs that other social networkers share similar sentiments . This year has also brought `` Progress Wars , '' a game in which players repeatedly click to complete random missions such as `` ambush silk traders '' or `` slay dealers . '' Creator Jakob Skjerning 's blog said he analyzed popular Facebook games and distilled their gameplay into core game mechanics `` to point out the pointlessness of many casual games . '' Some gaming experts claim that social-network games put business concerns before artistic ones and are specifically designed to prompt base Pavlovian responses and keep players clicking away . According to New York University games researcher and theorist Jesper Juul , social games are `` brain hacks that exploit human psychology in order to make money . '' `` There are forces that compel us humans to do incredibly counterintuitive things , '' concurred Bogost . '' ` Cow Clicker ' is a game in which you click a cow , and yet that simple act can still swallow us whole . We like to think of ourselves as rational beings with control over our faculties , but far more often , we are at the whim of things rather than master over them . '' Some professional game makers even accuse social network titles of promoting addictiveness and using shame as a motivator . For example , `` FrontierVille '' players who fail to accept requests from friends or upkeep their virtual homesteads may be subject to public mockery . Social networks like Facebook offer gamers the ability to interact easily with millions of other users and rally support for positive causes , Bogost says . But he believes that their potential is being underutilized by Silicon Valley tech entrepreneurs . `` It 's not the idea of social games that are the problem . -LSB- It 's that -RSB- nobody 's talking about what would make them good art but only what would make them immensely profitable , '' he said . Naturally , social game makers beg to differ . Brian Reynolds , chief designer for `` FarmVille '' creator Zynga , whose games also include such Facebook hits as `` Mafia Wars , '' believes that social games `` tend to be vastly underrated by many of gaming 's opinion leaders . '' `` This is partially I think because they 're so simple , '' he suggested , `` and partially because people just are n't used to the business model or games being able to speak to such a large mass market audience . '' Reynolds , the former head of Big Huge Games and a strategy game designer whose credited work includes contributions to the `` Civilization '' franchise , thinks social network titles are a major positive for the field . `` Working in social games feels more like the games industry did when I started 20 years ago , '' he says . `` Small , scrappy teams working on games that emphasize fun and playability , and not so much huge technology , 3-D engines and full-motion video . For designers , it 's a really fertile space to be creative . '' Despite a steep drop off in popularity since Facebook shut off social games ' ability to spam user profiles with messages and updates this year , Reynolds argues that the market for social gaming has n't peaked . He cautions that some user attrition is inevitable and that an ongoing evolution in social gaming is needed to stave off player boredom , and he believes that the fundamental multiplayer context of these games will ensure their survival . `` That 's the real nuclear bomb for me , '' he said . `` Unlike previous games , you 're playing light games with real friends that you have actual ` real-world ' social connections with , not meeting strangers online . '' Bogost believes traditional game developers are `` stuck in a strange no-man 's - land '' between the entertainment industry and the high-tech industry . `` At the same time , traditional developers are understandably startled and even jealous of the massive and sudden success of social games , '' he said . `` So there 's a good deal of self-loathing at work . ''
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Interest in social games , such as Facebook 's `` FarmVille , '' may be waning . Some experts claim social-network games put business concerns before artistic ones . Zynga designer : Social games `` emphasize fun and playability '' over complex technology .
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Paris , France -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- This week , France began deporting members of the Roma population as part of what it says is a crackdown on illegal immigration . It has put the focus back on the Roma , who remain widely misunderstood despite being one of Europe 's largest minorities . France begins controversial Roma expulsion . Who are the Roma ? Roma , also called Gypsies or Romany , are a group of people marked by poverty who live mainly in southern and eastern Europe , though they live throughout the continent . They tend to live in camps , caravans , or informal settlements and have been persecuted throughout history . Some are Christian and some are Muslim , having converted while migrating through Persia and the Balkans , according to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum . Most Roma speak dialects of a language called Romani , which is based on Sanskrit , the classical language of India , the museum says . The language is largely unwritten , however , because of the high rates of illiteracy in most Roma communities , according to information from Minnesota State University . Where did the Roma come from ? Roma originated in the Punjab region of northern India as a nomadic people and entered Europe between the 8th and 10th centuries , according to the Holocaust museum . They were called Gypsies because Europeans mistakenly believed they came from Egypt . Many Roma traditionally worked as craftsmen and were blacksmiths , cobblers , tinsmiths , horse dealers , and toolmakers , according to the museum . Others were performers like musicians , circus animal trainers , and dancers . By the 1920s , some were also working as shopkeepers or civil servants . The number of nomadic Roma was on the decline in many places by the early 1900s , though many `` sedentary '' Roma often moved seasonally , depending on their occupations , the museum says . Where did the Roma go in Europe ? Roma were living in Spain , France , England , and large parts of what is today Russia and Eastern Europe by the late 1400s . They suffered persecution in those countries ranging from laws against their language and dress to expulsion , according to Minnesota State . In the beginning of the 15th century , many Roma were forced into slavery by Hungarian and Romanian nobles who needed laborers for their large estates , according to the university . Roma suffered persecution during World War II . The Nazis judged Roma to be `` racially inferior , '' according to the Holocaust museum . `` Their fate in some ways paralleled that of the Jews , '' the museum said . The Nazis subjected Roma to internment , forced labor , and murder . `` While exact figures or percentages can not be ascertained , historians estimate that the Germans and their allies killed around 25 percent of all European Roma , '' the museum says . `` Of slightly less than 1 million Roma believed to have been living in Europe before the war , the Germans and their Axis partners killed up to 220,000 . '' What is the situation for Roma in Europe today ? Many Roma live on the edges of communities or are transient . They suffer massive discrimination throughout Europe , according to Amnesty International , and are often the victims of forced evictions , racist attacks and ill-treatment by police , and are often denied their rights to housing , employment , health care and education . In Slovakia , thousands of Roma children are placed in special schools and classes designed for pupils with `` mild mental disabilities '' or in ethnically segregated mainstream schools and classes that provide a substandard education , Amnesty says . Human Rights Watch expressed concern last year about a wave of attacks on Roma in Kosovo , and the United Nations pointed to mounting racial violence in Russia in 2008 that targeted Roma and other ethnic and religious minorities . In June 2009 , there was a series of attacks on Roma families in Northern Ireland , where the Roma had gone for work . In Bosnia , Roma are barred from running for president or the upper chamber of Parliament . The Budapest , Hungary-based European Roma Rights Center sent a letter of concern to Danish authorities last month about the recent mass arrest and deportation of 23 Roma in Copenhagen . They said Danish officials , including the mayor of Copenhagen and the country 's justice minister , had made comments blaming the Roma for crimes . A U.N. report last year cited the cost of deprivation among the Roma . In Bulgaria , it said , their life expectancy is five to six years below the rest of the population and their infant mortality rate is six times the national average . In Hungary , infant mortality among the Roma is nearly four times the country 's average , and in Romania it is two and a half times greater , according to the report .
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Roma are also called Gypsies or Romany . They live mainly in southern and eastern Europe . They have suffered persecution throughout their history .
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Atlanta , Georgia -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- When I was a little boy , my dad and I would sit on the floor next to his old reel-to-reel tape deck , taking turns talking into it and playing our voices back -- the same reel-to-reel he unwittingly used to gain his 15 minutes of fame . It was October 3 , 1951 , when Larry Goldberg , a 26-year-old travel agent living with his parents in Brooklyn , set up the deck next to a radio before setting off to work in Manhattan . He asked his mom to record the 9th inning of the third game of the Brooklyn Dodgers-New York Giants playoffs . What he and my grandmother captured turned out to be the only known recording at the time of Russ Hodges ' famous call of Bobby Thomson 's game-winning home run , `` The Giants win the pennant ! The Giants win the pennant ! '' SI.com : Thomson tops list of 10 most memorable home runs . My dad 's reward was a tape cartridge , $ 100 and access to box seats at the Polo Grounds the next season -- a pittance for which my mom often needled him . Those memories came flooding back this week when I heard the news that Thomson had died at his Savannah , Georgia , home at age 86 . Thomson 's `` Shot Heard ` Round The World '' was heard often at our home , each time I asked my dad to tell me once more how he saved the call . He kept the original tape safely boxed up , instead playing one of the Chesterfield records of the call that Hodges ' sponsor pressed as gifts to its dealers . For a long time , no one but a handful of friends and family knew the real story of my dad 's role in helping immortalize a bit of baseball history . Then , on the 50th anniversary of the game , the New York Times ran an interview with Dad . His local paper , the Atlanta Journal-Constitution , did a similar story . Accounts of his recording later appeared in books such as `` The Golden Voices of Baseball '' and Joshua Prager 's `` The Echoing Green . '' Don DeLillo even captured the event in his 1997 novel , `` Underworld , '' referring to Dad only as `` a man on 12th Street in Brooklyn . '' Here 's how Dad and The New York Times told the story : . '' ' I knew I would n't be able to listen to the broadcast , and I knew something was going to happen , ' said Goldberg . ... ` It was the third game of the playoffs . That kind of game had to be climactic , even if it was a blowout . ' `` Was Goldberg 's mother , Sylvia , a baseball fan ? No . Was she paying strict attention to the game ? No , he said , ` she was paying attention to her only son . ' ... From the SI vault : The Day Bobby Hit The Home Run . `` The night after the game , Goldberg wrote Hodges to ask if anyone at WMCA had recorded the game ; if not , he would lend him his . Hodges replied quickly , and used the tape to make records as Christmas gifts . ... `` In later years , when Hodges related the tale of the tape , he would refer to Goldberg as a Dodger fan who made the tape so he could hear the voice of the Giants weep when Brooklyn won . A good yarn , but untrue . '' ' I was a Giant fan from 1933 on , when I was 8 , ' Goldberg said . '' I 'd been thinking about Bobby Thomson , Russ Hodges and Dad just the other day when my son and I went to our first Braves game of the season -- our first game since Dad died a year ago in April . It was a little before 7 p.m. at Atlanta 's Turner Field , and the Braves were about to face the Giants -- now long since relocated to San Francisco . My son and I were sitting down to eat on the stadium 's terrace when the matrix board began playing a video introducing the visitors . Images of past pennants were flashing on the screen when it suddenly hit me -- these are the same Giants that once called New York 's Polo Grounds home . And before I knew it , they were playing the call I 've come to know so well -- Bobby Thomson hitting his `` long fly ... into the lower deck of the left-field stands . '' Once more , `` The Giants win the pennant ! The Giants win the pennant ! The Giants win the pennant ! The Giants win the pennant ! ... The Giants win the pennant ! And they 're going crazy . They 're going crazy ! '' I wanted to phone Dad and tell him about it , at the same time realizing I could n't -- that I 'd even told the story about the call at his funeral . And then I knew he was with us there in the stadium , smiling down on a perfect summer evening of baseball .
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Bobby Thomson , who hit one of baseball 's most memorable home runs , died this week at 86 . Russ Hodges ' call , `` The Giants win the pennant ! '' is part of baseball legend . Larry Goldberg of Brooklyn captured the only known recording at the time of the call . His son , a CNN.com producer , remembers his late father 's story of how the recording was made .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- CNN International 's four week-long series on modern Islam running throughout Ramadan . The series will look at what it means to be Muslim and how people live as Muslims in the 21st century . Watch Muslim in 2010 every day on TV by tuning in to CNN 's prime time show , Prism , with Stan Grant , which comes out of Abu Dhabi . Online you can catch up on anything you 've missed by going to cnn.com/ime . We hit the streets and ask Muslims across the globe for their take on Islam and modern life . Plus correspondents from Indonesia to Turkey and Islamabad to Atlanta dig into some of the issues that Muslims are facing in the modern world . Atika Shubert reports from Europe on integration issues , the headscarf debate and more . Plus , Ivan Watson reports on eastern ideas meeting the western ideas in Turkey . Shasta Darlington meets some of Cuba 's 1,500-strong Muslim population and discovers some of the challenges they face living in a country without a mosque . Online , CNN asks some of today 's most influential Muslim thinkers to give their opinions on some of the crucial debates and issues around faith . And there will be much more as CNN travels the world capturing the debates and the issues -- and profiling Muslims who are embracing their faith in 2010 .
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For four weeks during Ramadan CNN looks at what it means to be Muslim today . Correspondents all over the world will be telling compelling stories about modern Muslims . Online we ask some of the top thinkers in the Islamic world to comment on tough issues .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Hollywood producers could n't have written Colton Harris-Moore 's story better if they had dreamed it up themselves . No one was surprised to hear that 20th Century Fox jumped at the chance to purchase the rights for a film based on the 19-year-old Washington native 's exploits . Harris-Moore , suspected of stealing automobiles , boats and airplanes , as well as committing a number of other thefts , earned his nickname -- the Barefoot Bandit -- by committing some of his crimes without shoes . In 2009 , police found footprints in an Iowa airport hangar . Harris-Moore was apprehended on July 11 after a high-speed boat chase in the Bahamas . He has since been moved to Miami , Florida , where he appeared before a federal judge at an identity hearing . He is being transferred to a federal prison in Seattle , Washington . His story , which mirrors 2002 's `` Catch Me If You Can '' -- based on the true story of con-artist Frank Abagnale Jr. -- has people talking , although details of the `` Barefoot '' film are still under lock and key . `` I wrote when he first started running that he would get a movie deal , '' CNN commenter SICKBOY70 wrote . `` They offered him a reward to come in that was nowhere near what the movie people would offer . '' Another CNN.com commenter , BostonChuck , wrote : `` It 's a good thing he was caught , he was breaking the law . However ... this all seems like something out of Hollywood . It 's going to make a heck of a movie ! '' The prospect of a film version also has Hollywood casting directors talking about which young actor might play the role of the barefoot bandit . `` Crash '' and `` Iron Man '' casting director Randi Hiller did n't hesitate when asked which young Hollywood star would make a good barefoot bandit . '' -LSB- ` Percy Jackson ' star -RSB- Logan Lerman . ... He 's young , he 's charming and he 's a really good actor , '' Hiller said . Lerman 's charm could come in handy , too . Hiller said It 's important to cast a likable young man because , while the Barefoot Bandit may be in the wrong , he 's also the protagonist . `` You kind of root for him , even though he 's done something really , really wrong , '' she added . Regardless of who nabs the role , Hiller said the film is sure to do well . `` Everybody wants more information . '' The movie will most likely follow the tone of `` Catch Me If You Can , '' Hiller said . `` It 's not laugh out loud funny , but there 's definitely amusing bits . '' Casting director Tammara Billik , who also made the connection between the Barefoot Bandit and Leonardo DiCaprio 's `` Catch Me If You Can , '' said the movie will be a success , whether it 's on the big screen or the flat screen . When casting a role like this one , it 's important to choose an actor who resembles the other person , she said . However , Billik added , it 's important to remember that `` his story is more familiar than his face . '' `` You do n't want somebody who ca n't act , but looks exactly like the guy , '' she added , noting that it might be difficult to find an actor with Harris-Moore 's 6-foot-5 frame -- which is why she suggests taller actors like `` Friday Night Lights ' '' Zach Gilford and `` The Last Song 's '' Liam Hemsworth .
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Source : It 's important to choose an actor who resembles the bandit . One casting director says `` Percy Jackson '' star Logan Lerman should play the role . The movie will most likely follow the tone of `` Catch Me If You Can , '' a source says .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Lava and ash from Ecuador 's Tungurahua volcano forced the closure of Guayaquil Airport until Saturday afternoon , an airport spokesman said Friday . The glacier-capped , 16,478-foot -LRB- 5,023-meter -RRB- volcano has erupted periodically since 1999 , with major eruptions occurring in August 2006 and February 2008 , the government 's emergency management agency said . Officials evacuated the towns of Cusua and Juive Grande in central Ecuador , the emergency agency said , but no injuries or fatalities had been reported . No further evacuations were planned , the agency said . Death toll climbs from Guatemala eruption . The eruption sent a large ash cloud into the air , the Geophysical Institute of Peru said . The height could not be determined because of cloudiness in the area . Are you in Ecuador ? Share your volcanic activity images . Before the long-term eruption beginning in 1999 that caused the temporary evacuation of the city of Banos at the foot of the volcano , the last major eruption had occurred from 1916 to 1918 , and minor activity continued until 1925 , the Smithsonian Institution said on its volcano Web site . The volcano is 87 miles -LRB- 140 km -RRB- south of Quito , the nation 's capital . Tungurahua means `` throat of fire '' in the native Quechua language . It was the second volcanic eruption reported in Latin America in the past few days . The Pacaya volcano erupted Thursday in Guatemala , killing at least three people .
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NEW : Guayaquil Airport closed until Saturday afternoon . Emergency agency : No deaths , injuries reported , no more evacuations planned . Tungurahua volcano has erupted periodically since 1999 .
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-LRB- OPRAH.com -RRB- -- In Jackson , Mississippi , Ceara Sturgis has grown up with her classmates for the past 12 years . Day in day out , she was a well-liked , self-described `` tomboy , '' an academically gifted student . Yet , when her senior picture and any mention of her went missing from the yearbook , it became clear she 'd been removed because of her status as an out lesbian . Big deal ? To many , the answer is yes . How would you feel if someone you love told you he or she was gay ? How would your view evolve in that moment or over time ? Could it change ? Why would it change ? `` Do n't tramp on my rights , '' my brother Robert recently told me at my nephew Ian 's wedding in Oregon . Robert was commenting on gay people who want marriage rights . Somehow , it had become all about him , rather than about them . I asked how letting gays marry would infringe on his rights ? `` I love the sinner , '' he said . `` The thief , the alcoholic , the adulterer , the homosexual need God 's restoration , not our approval . '' He is a believer that the `` gay can be prayed away , '' and that it is , bottom line , a defect caused by the devil . Oprah.com : Get the answers to all your questions about prayer . This yearbook deletion goes to the heart of the larger issue : how , as a nation , we 're split on this notion of sexual identity and tolerance . We are still split as a nation on what we believe , though it 's more evenly divided today than ever . It 's one part belief , another part feeling . Oprah.com : Is there a conflict between homosexuality and spirituality ? Gallup released its annual findings on sexuality that tell how we have changed . As of a couple weeks ago , more than 50 percent of Americans now accept gay relationships . What 's more , 78 percent of Americans now believe gay Americans should be allowed to serve in the military , while 48 percent believe gay Americans should have the right to marry . These are the facts . How are the feelings ? How does this conversation make you feel ? My own parents believed they could cast demons of homosexuality out of people . The joke in my family today is one of the demons slithered out the family room window and came in through my bedroom window while I was sleeping . Truth was , I knew I was gay when I was 4 years old . My mom knew I was gay around the same time , as I was smooching on other boys , yet it caused a commotion and distress when I came out in my late teens just the same , and my parents promptly sent me to a `` pray away the gay '' therapist . Oprah.com : What it 's like to be gay around the world . My brother , who I mentioned earlier , is this kind of therapist . Every few weeks , I get an email or a call from a family -LRB- usually it 's a mom who reaches out -RRB- asking for my help in doing a `` gay intervention '' on their kid . Even as the sexual myths have gone the way of flat Earth theories , the way we feel , and the ways we believe sexuality to be , are more often than not based on the biases and beliefs we grew up with . I was raised being taught white folks -LRB- us -RRB- should n't date or marry a person of another race or even religion . `` It 's not God 's ideal for us , '' my mother would warn . Oprah.com : Let 's get real about sexuality . It 's important to note that in 1968 , only 28 percent of Americans supported the legalization of interracial marriage even as Loving vs. Virginia , legalized the very union across the nation that same year . It would take until 1991 until Americans ' support for it crossed the 50 percent threshold . But gay ? Is it really all that good ? Look , it took me awhile to get used to it being okay , having grown up in a place where what I was , was preached on and spoken of as an abomination . I expected my parents to get hip to the trip really quick , and it was n't that way . It took years for them to come to some new understanding on gay -- and frankly , it 's still up in the air what my mom would say if you asked her if gays should marry . It depends on the day . Oprah.com : Country singer Chely Wright on coming out . On the other hand , as we have these hard conversations about who we are and who we believe others to be , it 's critical that myths not be counted as fact . A human being comes to grips with his or her sexual orientation , finally comes out to the family and then is furious when the family does n't get `` hip to the trip '' right away ? It happens . `` I 'm embarrassed to admit that it took me 27 years to get comfortable with the gay thing , and then I expected my family to find acceptance in a minute , '' a friend told me recently . Homosexual creatures are found throughout God 's wild and wonderful animal kingdom . It 's not unnatural , I think , just not the norm . In Mississippi , the stir was caused by a masculine version of a yearbook photo that said with one look that she was not likely the norm . When I came out , my mom was devastated . For my whole family , this issue brought them right up against how they felt about what they had been taught . They came face-to-face with a bias created in a vacuum . But what did they know ? Oprah says , `` I know what I know . '' I would ask you , is what you know is informed by flat Earth theology or feelings based on others ' prejudices ? If the answer is yes , maybe it 's time to pull out your own yearbook and see who made you feel uncomfortable and why ? Then , pray on it and come up with your own answer that 's loving and kind , no matter where it falls . Oprah.com : What prayer really means . Brad Lamm is a board-registered interventionist . He is the author of `` How to Change Someone You Love '' . His group offers free training and support groups at BradLamm.com . Subscribe to O , The Oprah Magazine for up to 75 % off the newsstand price . That 's like getting 18 issues FREE . Subscribe now ! TM & © 2010 Harpo Productions , Inc. . All Rights Reserved .
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One writer recalls his childhood experience praying he was n't gay . His parents struggled to understand and accept his sexuality . Gallup : More than 50 percent of Americans now accept gay relationships . Study says 78 percent of Americans now believe gays should be allowed to serve in the military .
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San Francisco -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Walter Hawkins , a Grammy Award-winning gospel singer , composer and pastor , has died of pancreatic cancer , his church said Monday on its website . He was 61 . Born in Oakland , California. , Hawkins ' musical career began at a young age as a member of the Northern California State Youth Choir . He later helped found The Edwin Hawkins Singers , a collaboration that resulted in the Grammy-winning song `` Oh Happy Day , '' one of the first gospel songs to become popular on mainstream music charts . It was also named one of the Recording Industry Association of America 's Songs of the Century . Hawkins recorded his first solo album , `` Do Your Best , '' in 1972 . He later founded the Love Center Church in Oakland , where he created the Love Center Choir . With the choir he recorded a series of albums , titled `` Love Alive , '' that topped the Billboard Gospel Album charts and sold more than 1 million copies from the 1970s to the 1990s , according to the church 's website . Hawkins was nominated for a total of nine Grammy Awards throughout his career , and won one . He earned three Dove Awards from the Gospel Music Association and was inducted into the Christian Music Hall of Fame . He was also responsible for more than 100 hit gospel songs , according to MTV News . Members of the gospel community continue to express their grief about Hawkins ' death on Twitter . `` Gon na miss my dear friend and mentor Bishop Walter Hawkins ... one of the greatest singer/songwriters gospel will ever experience , '' award-winning gospel singer and composer Donald Lawrence said . Singer Greg O'Quin described Hawkins as `` truly the most musically inspiring figure in my life ... Bishop Walter Hawkins . Certainly heaven 's choir has a major upgrade tonight . Thanks WH . '' Hawkins was ordained as a bishop in October of 1992 . At the time of his death Sunday he was working on a new `` Love Alive '' album , scheduled to be released in the fall . Hawkins is survived by five siblings , two children and two grandchildren .
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Hawkins was part of collaboration that recorded `` Oh Happy Day '' Had fought pancreatic cancer . Grammy winner 's albums sold more than 1 million copies .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A 12-year-old girl died Tuesday after falling into floodwaters near Flagstaff , Arizona , authorities said . Shaelyn Wilson had gone to see runoff from a flash flood around 2 p.m. , according to the Coconino Sheriff 's Department . A younger sister ran back to tell the father that Shaelyn had fallen into a wash . The family searched the area near where the girl fell and several agencies also took part in the search , according to Kelli Most , administrative specialist with the sheriff 's department . The girl was found about a third of a mile from where she went into the water , and her father performed CPR until paramedics arrived . She was pronounced dead at Flagstaff Medical Center . A massive wildfire last month made the area susceptible to flooding , said Most . `` There 's just no greenery there '' to prevent runoff , she said . The blaze charred 15,000 acres . Several small streams pushed over their banks , and flash floods were threatening homes , according to CNN affiliate KPHO .
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Girl , 12 , dies in flooding near Flagstaff , Arizona . Her younger sister ran to get help . The area lost vegetation in a recent large fire .
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United Nations -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- U.N. officials are pleading for immediate economic assistance for four African countries where people are facing malnutrition in the wake of a drought last year . The coming weeks ahead will be the toughest for these countries in the Sahel -- the stretch of African countries including Niger , Chad , Mali and Mauritania -- as they make their way into the rainy season and scrape by with the little food they have since last year 's harvest , officials said . Humanitarian agencies and relief organizations pushed for continued economic support from the international community on behalf of the drought-ridden African countries at the United Nations on Tuesday . `` The levels of food insecurity have begun to spiral out of control and affect a number of countries across the region , '' U.N. Under-Secretary-General John Holmes said . `` Niger is the center of this crisis , it is a country by far the worst affected , some 7 million people are suffering from severe or moderate food insecurity and that 's almost fifty percent of the country 's population , '' Holmes said . Over 10 million people in the Sahel are at risk for food shortages , according to the U.N. , and their situation is unlikely to improve until the coming harvest in October . `` We 're in the long stretch between last year 's harvest and the one coming up , '' said Josette Sheeran , executive director of the World Food Programme , via telephone from Niger . `` We have now six weeks until it is agreed we will be out of the severe danger zone and the ramp-up has to happen not in a few weeks but now , before this very difficult time , '' Sheeran said . In Chad , thousands of children are suffering from severe acute malnutrition . The number of severely malnourished children doubled from 2,900 in 2009 to 6,508 this year . `` At the end of the day , what kills children suffering from malnutrition is disease of some kind affecting them in their weakened states . And we 're particularly concerned that as the rainy season is starting now , diseases like malaria , diarrhea and respiratory diseases will spread as they always do at this time of year and the death rates for the affected children will go up rapidly , '' Holmes said . The World Food Programme is expected to increase the number of health centers from 52 to around 140 in the coming weeks . The centers `` will be placed strategically in the most vulnerable areas where we 're seeing the highest rates of acute malnutrition , '' said Sheeran . As the Sahel enters the rainy season , many of the roads will become impassable . Sheeran said the aim of the assistance is to `` go into the most severely affected areas to ensure that we have adequate distribution and can reach those families that are cut off on the roads that are becoming much more difficult . '' Leaders from the relief organizations urged the international community to step up its economic support for the people in the Sahel . Eveline Rooijmans , a policy adviser with the aid organization Oxfam , said the assistance is needed now . `` What we need now is urgent action from international leaders and donors to make sure that people have access to food now and in the future , '' Rooijmans said . `` While for the future we should indeed invest in long-term measure to avoid this type of crisis from happening again , at this very moment it is about urgent short-term action . ''
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People in four African countries are facing malnutrition after a drought last year . The coming weeks will be difficult for Niger , Chad , Mali and Mauritania . The drought left a weak harvest , the coming rainy season will make transportation difficult .
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Washington -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Global financial reform topped the agenda Tuesday as President Obama huddled with Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou , whose country is at the center of Europe 's debt crisis . The White House meeting marks the conclusion of a four-country financial relief tour for the beleaguered Greek leader . Beginning Friday , he visited Germany , France and Luxembourg seeking support for his government 's new austerity measures to counteract skyrocketing budget deficits . Greece had one of the worst budget deficits in the developed world last year , at 12.7 percent of gross domestic product , more than three times higher than previously declared due to accounting irregularities -- or what some call outright fraud . It also has a public-sector debt equivalent to 113 percent of its entire economy . Athens recently unveiled a package of budget reductions to try to bring its deficit down to the 3 percent level allowed under the rules for the eurozone -- the European Union countries that have adopted the euro currency . Finance ministers from those 16 countries met in Brussels last month to try to find a way to end the crisis that some analysts say could spread to other heavily indebted European nations , such as Portugal , Spain and Italy . Greece 's `` deficit is more a credibility deficit than a financial deficit , and we need to bring back the sense of credibility , '' Papandreou said recently . His unpopular budget cutbacks have met with stiff political resistance and strikes at home . Overseas , the Greek prime minister is trying to win support for greater regulation over certain forms of financial speculation that analysts say have made his country 's debt crisis worse . Among other things , Papandreou is asking U.S. and other leaders to restrict the use of credit default swaps , which are insurance contracts -- the same kind of contracts that pushed insurance giant American International Group -LRB- AIG -RRB- to the brink of collapse . Two weeks ago , Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said the Federal Reserve is looking into actions taken by Goldman Sachs and other Wall Street firms that may have contributed to Greece 's debt problems . Bernanke 's comment came in response to a question posed by Senate Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd , D-Connecticut , who asked about U.S. banks and hedge funds making financial bets that the Greek government will default on its loans . Goldman Sachs and other banks have been in the news over reports they secretly helped raise $ 1 billion in credit for Greece in a way that was off the balance sheet , and that they helped hide the country 's debt woes from European Union regulators . The New York Times reported recently that some of these same banks also were making side bets that Greece would default on loans it owes American banks and hedge funds . By betting in favor of default , the U.S. banks and hedge funds would win whether Greece pays off its loans or not . Dodd asked whether Bernanke thought there should be limits on the use of these types of bets to prevent firms from creating intentional runs against governments . `` The rising price of these contracts contribute to an atmosphere of crisis , making it even more difficult for the Greek government , in my opinion , to borrow , '' Dodd said . Bernanke noted the similarity of the situation of banks making bets to hedge against Greek debt to banks that made bets to hedge against real estate debt , which imploded AIG . `` The poster child for that would be the capital arrangements that banks took out for AIG , '' he said . `` Derivatives have a legitimate purpose , but if they 're used to distort accounting results or regulatory ratios , that needs to be addressed . '' Congress is considering legislation to make such financial bets more transparent . Papandreou has asked American and European authorities to crack down on financial speculators who benefited from taxpayer bailouts only to turn around and profit by exacerbating his country 's debt crisis . `` Enough is enough , '' he told an audience at the Brookings Institution on Monday . CNN 's Jennifer Liberto , Christine Theodorou and Alan Silverleib contributed to this report .
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President Obama met Tuesday with Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou . The meeting is the last on a four-country tour centering on the nation 's financial crisis . He hopes to win support for more regulation of speculative practices . Papandreou is asking U.S. and other leaders to restrict use of credit default swaps .
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New York -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- If saving money in 2010 is on top of your list , we have some simple ways you can cut costs . 1 . Your cell phone . Cell phones are a big expense for a lot of folks . The cost of an average plan is $ 65 per month or $ 780 a year , according to Myvalidas.com . Chances are you 're overpaying . Consumer Reports says about two thirds of people did n't use half the minutes they had available . So make sure you take a look at the minutes and texts you 've used in the past six months and compare that to your plan 's limits . If you 're not even close to maxing out , it makes sense to shop around for other plans . Switching could save you up to $ 300 a year . Billshrink and Myvalidas.com are two Web sites that analyze your current bill for errors , help you recover money from overcharges and compare your current plan with other plans that may help save you money , depending on your usage . And here 's something you may not think about . Let 's say you have an unexpected life event ... maybe a birth , a death or an illness . Your cell phone usage is likely to spike . But rather than pay an exorbitant overcharge for a single month of use , ask your carrier about letting you switch temporarily to a higher minute plan . Then switch back when your usage abates . 2 . Car insurance . The average premium on car insurance is about $ 1,800 per year , according to Insurance.com . But there are ways you can whittle down that bill . First , auto insurance companies want to know how safe you are . It 's not only how safe you are on the roads . They also want to know how stable you are as a person . The longer you 've held the same job , the higher your education level , the fact that you own a home -- that all counts toward what kind of risk you represent . The safer you are , the less money you 'll pay in premiums . So , if you 've bought a home , gotten your master 's degree , if you 've found a job you 've been with for over a year , make sure you let your insurance company know -- and ask to be repriced . You could save up to $ 750 a year , according to Insurance.com . Here are some other discounts you do n't want to leave on the table : A low mileage discount could save you $ 100 a year . This is a great option if you drive less than 10,000 miles a year . If you have a good student , cut down on those insurance costs with a good student discount . That could save you $ 300 a year . Raising your deductible can yield you $ 200 to $ 400 a year . And shopping around before your current insurance policy expires can save you $ 250 a year , according to Insurance.com . 3 . Entertainment . If you have old CDs or DVDs or books you do n't want anymore , trade them for new stuff online . Check out swapadvd.com and paperbackswap.com . If you 're looking for cheaper seats to a concert or sports event , check out zebratickets.com . This site aggregates prices from different ticket retailers . Did you know that your AAA membership can get you more than roadside assistance ? You can get discounts at retailers like Target.com , Pearle Vision or Sears.com . CNN 's Jen Haley contributed to this report .
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Consumer Reports says many people do n't use half their phone minutes . Car insurance can go down if you 've made life changes that make you safer . Internet sites allow you to swap CDs and DVDs instead of buying new ones .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- `` I hate my dreams . They 're so ... infantile . '' Heaven knows what artist Laurie Anderson would make of Christopher Nolan 's first film since `` The Dark Knight , '' but if audiences do n't go for it , we 're more likely to hear a different complaint : It 's just too darned complex . A spectacular fantasy thriller based on Nolan 's own original screenplay , `` Inception '' is the smartest CGI head-trip since `` The Matrix . '' The premise is so out-there , it requires not just a leap of faith but also too much screen time to explain , so do yourself a favor and pay attention . Leonardo DiCaprio is Cobb , an `` excavator , '' who digs around in people 's subconscious while they 're catching some zzzzs . This act of infiltration is `` not strictly legal '' ; the motive is not therapeutic but espionage and theft . It 's also not a solo operation . To do the job properly requires an `` architect , '' basically someone to design an appropriate dreamscape , something vivid and detailed enough to keep the dreamer 's defenses down . Depending on the complexity of the project , it might also require a `` burglar , '' a `` chemist '' and preferably someone on the outside to administer a well-timed wake up call . Cobb 's partners include Arthur -LRB- Joseph Gordon-Levitt -RRB- ; a newbie , Ariadne -LRB- Ellen Page -RRB- ; Yusuf -LRB- Dileep Rao -RRB- ; and Eames -LRB- Tom Hardy -RRB- . Their client , Saito -LRB- Ken Watanabe -RRB- , wants more than access to a rival industrialist 's grey matter ; he requires Cobb to plant an idea in there that will dismantle an entire conglomerate . As if that were n't hard enough , Cobb is also plagued with keeping his own demons at bay , in the form of an angry dead wife -LRB- Marion Cotillard -RRB- . DiCaprio evidently has n't got `` Shutter Island '' out of his system yet . A kind of meta-heist movie , `` Inception '' evokes Philip K. Dick 's cerebral sci-fi , the exploration of alternate states of consciousness , memory and fantasy . But these are also Nolan 's themes , familiar from the amnesiac noir of `` Memento '' and the many , varied mind-games practiced by the warring magicians in `` The Prestige '' as well as the psychological warfare between Batman and his adversaries -LRB- fans of that series will recognize several familiar faces popping up here -RRB- . `` An idea is like a virus , '' says Cobb , and that idea too might have been born in Gotham City or in the rabid enthusiasm that greeted `` The Dark Knight . '' Like `` Memento '' and `` The Prestige , '' `` Inception '' is constructed as a box of tricks . Ariadne -LRB- who helped Theseus slay the minotaur in Greek mythology -RRB- devises labyrinths that are also escape hatches , and that metaphor of the maze runs through `` Inception , '' which is itself a puzzle to be navigated by filmmaker and audience alike . In the course of probing his subject 's subconscious , Cobb escorts him into a dream-within-a-dream-within-a-dream . If it 's a little disappointing that each level plays out as a straight-up action thriller -LRB- this guy really should get out more -RRB- , the rules of this game are delightfully devious . iReport : Share your review of `` Inception '' He has a tendency to over-complicate , but nobody bends time more ingeniously than Nolan . Three minutes in one dream might correspond to an hour in the next , and both transpire in a matter of seconds up in the real world . Gloriously , real world physics are refracted in the dream zones -- gravity just drops out like a faulty signal -- and if the dreamer starts to stir , the universe crumbles . -LRB- The Big One : the ultimate Angeleno nightmare . -RRB- . It certainly has n't escaped Nolan 's attention that this dream life functions as a metaphor for the movies . Ariadne is a production designer , Cobb an actor-director . Extras in the dream -- ordinary passers-by -- are known as `` projections , '' and they become hostile if they suspect that someone is messing with their reality . `` Inception '' only dabbles in the art of perception . For all its layering , the movie 's depth remains on the surface . But with its grand , clanging Hans Zimmer score , its immense , dazzling effects and audacious storytelling , it 's the summer 's best bet to bust the blocks .
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`` Inception '' is a spectacular fantasy thriller based on director Christopher Nolan 's screenplay . Leonardo DiCaprio digs around in people 's subconscious while they dream . `` Inception '' is the summer 's best bet to bust the blocks .
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New York -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A leading opponent of a proposed mosque and community center near Ground Zero is asking a question that looms as large as the towers that stood nearby less than nine years ago : `` Why there ? '' Pamela Geller , a conservative blogger who leads a group called Stop the Islamicization of America , posed the question on CNN 's `` American Morning '' Wednesday . `` We feel that it is a cemetery and sacred ground and the dead should be honored , '' Geller said . `` To build a 13-story mega mosque on the cemetery , on the site of the largest attack in American history , I think , is incredibly insensitive . '' Those for and against the proposed mosque butted heads during a passionate three-hour hearing of New York 's Landmarks Preservation Commission Tuesday night . Officially , the hearing was a forum for testimony on whether the building at 45-47 Park Place , near Ground Zero , is worth preserving . The structure dates back to the late 1850s . Preservation Commission spokeswoman Elisabeth de Bourbon said the building housed the headquarters of the Merck pharmaceutical company in the 1920s and in more recent years served as a discount clothing store . She said she was not sure what the current owner -- the Muslim outreach group the Cordoba Initiative -- has been doing with the building , but people attending Tuesday night 's meeting said it was being used for prayer services . The commission is expected to vote in August on whether to grant the structure landmark status , even though the Community Board of lower Manhattan said earlier this month the building was n't architecturally significant enough to merit the designation . De Bourbon said landmark status alone would not prevent the Cordoba Initative from making alterations to the existing structure or making it into an Islamic cultural center . While the designation is designed to preserve the exterior appearance of a building in New York , it does not restrict the use of a building , nor does it prevent a property owner from adding on floors , she said . Even if the building on Park Place is declared a landmark , `` changes can be made to a landmark building with approval from the Landmark Preservation Commission , '' de Bourbon said . In fact , there are examples in New York where buildings with landmark status were drastically altered . The Hearst Magazine building , a modern 46-story skyscraper in Manhattan , rises out of a six-story Depression-era , Art Deco facade with landmark status . The original design was for a skyscraper , but construction came to a halt when the Great Depression hit . In the latter half of the 20th century , the Landmark Preservation Commission approved a plan to add on the modern skyscraper while preserving the original facade . Supporters of the Park Place preservation are opposed to a project by the Cordoba Initiative and the American Society for Muslim Advancement to build their mosque and community center so close to the site where the twin towers of the World Trade Center were destroyed by Islamist hijackers on September 11 , 2001 . The contentious nature of the hearing was expected , because if the commission rules the structure now at the site does n't deserve the landmark status , the groups behind the project wo n't need any additional city permission to demolish the old building and move ahead with the mosque construction . Voices opposing the mosque dominated the hearing . `` It would be a terrible mistake to destroy a 154-year-old building in order to build a monument to terrorism , '' one woman said . Some at the hearing , including Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Lazio , expressed suspicion about Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf , who heads the Cordoba Initiative . Feisal was out of the country and did not attend the hearing . Lazio called for an investigation into its funding . `` We 're asking for a delay in the process to get some answers , '' Lazio said . The heckling and intense nature of the hearing got to be too much for some participants . `` I 'm ashamed to be an American today , '' said Rakif Gathwari , a Muslim-American , who reminded the crowd that people from many countries and religions died on September 11 . `` I want to prove to this hall that I am a citizen , '' Gathwari said , holding up his passport . Some Muslim community leaders say the mosque could provide an opportunity for improving interfaith relations . `` We 're saying Muslims have a legitimate role to play in the social fabric of this country , '' said Ibrahim Ramey , the director of the Human and Civil Rights Division of the Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation , on CNN 's `` American Morning '' Wednesday . `` We are part of the interfaith mosaic of the United States . But more than that , I think this particular group of people in the Cordoba Institute can do a huge amount of good not only for Muslims in New York but also for interfaith relations throughout the country , '' Ramey added . The Cordoba Initiative says it aims to improve relations between Muslims and the West . `` The Cordoba Initiative hopes to build a $ 100 million , 13-story community center with Islamic , interfaith and secular programming , similar to the 92nd Street Y , '' its website says , referring to the cultural institution on the upper east side of Manhattan . The project calls for a mosque , a performing arts center , gym , swimming pool and other public spaces . CNN 's Deb Feyerick , Julian Cummings , Ed Payne , Mark Morgenstein and Steve Kastenbaum contributed to this report .
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Emotions flare during a meeting of the Landmarks Preservation Commission . The commission 's vote is expected in August . If the commission rules that the building is not worth saving , the mosque project can proceed . The mosque is to be built near the site of the destroyed twin towers .
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-LRB- CareerBuilder.com -RRB- -- We all have our childhood icons . Some never seem to leave the spotlight and continue their careers in the public eye for decades , but others seem to disappear . Here are 10 examples of the latter , and how they 've been making a living , post-stardom . 1 . Dominique Moceanu . Famous for : Her Olympic gold medal as part of the 1996 `` Magnificent Seven '' U.S. gymnastics team . What 's she doing now ? Moceanu , 28 , has maintained her involvement with the sport that made her famous . According to her website , Moceanu teaches various gymnastics camps and is writing a series of children 's books on the sport . Moceanu graduated from John Carroll University in Ohio in 2009 with a bachelor 's degree in business administration . 2 . Brittany Daniel . Famous for : Starring as one-half of the Wakefield twins on the television series `` Sweet Valley High . '' What 's she doing now ? Daniel , 34 , has maintained a relatively low-profile acting career since her days as Jessica Wakefield , making appearances in the film `` Joe Dirt '' and the TV series `` That 70s Show . '' Currently , she is an executive producer on the Style Network 's popular reality series `` Ruby , '' which chronicles the weight-loss struggles of a Georgia woman . Daniel is a close friend of the show 's star , Ruby Gettinger , and was a driving force behind the show 's creation . 3 . Sean Duffy . Famous for : His role on MTV 's `` Real World : Boston '' in 1997 . What 's he doing now ? Duffy , 38 , is running for U.S. Congress as a representative from Wisconsin 's 7th Congressional District . The lawyer and district attorney for Ashland County , Wisconsin , also has six children with fellow Real World alum , San Francisco cast member Rachel Campos . 4 . Justin Guarini . Famous for : His second-place finish on the first season of `` American Idol . '' What 's he doing now ? Guarini , 31 , was signed to RCA Records , but was dropped in 2003 after disappointing sales of his debut album , `` Justin Guarini . '' Since then , he has released two follow-up albums through his production company , Justice Entertainment . Guarini has been involved with various specials for `` American Idol '' and had a long-term stint hosting TV Guide Channel 's `` Idol Tonight . '' 5 . Willie Aames . Famous for : His roles in '70s and '80s sitcoms such as `` Eight is Enough '' and `` Charles in Charge . '' What 's he doing now ? In the mid-90s , Aames , 49 , found religion in a 12-step program and became a Christian minister . He spent the next eight years producing `` Bibleman , '' a faith-based video series . After filing for bankruptcy in 2008 , Aames became a certified financial adviser in 2009 and began working at a Kansas City money-management fund in January 2010 . His career as a CFA did n't last long . Aames reportedly took a job as part of Oceania Cruiseline 's entertainment staff in March 2010 . 6 . Evan Marriott . Famous for : Pretending to be a millionaire on the Fox network 's 2003 dating series `` Joe Millionaire . '' What 's he doing now ? Marriott , 35 , unsuccessfully attempted to stretch his 15 minutes of fame with a variety of low-budget film roles and appearances on TV shows such as `` Hollywood Squares '' and `` Battle of The Network Reality Stars . '' After withdrawing from the spotlight , Marriott returned to his real-life role as a construction worker . 7 . Rider Strong . Famous for : Playing Shawn Hunter in the '90s sitcom `` Boy Meets World . '' What 's he doing now ? After his role ended in 2000 , Strong , 30 , entered academia . In 2004 , he graduated magna cum laude from Columbia University with a degree in English , and in 2009 he received a master of fine arts degree from Bennington College in Vermont . He is currently pursuing a directing career with older brother Shiloh . In 2008 , their short film `` Irish Twins '' appeared at film festivals including TriBeCa , Radiance , Los Angeles International and St. Louis and won various awards . 8 . Vincent Angelo LaRusso . Famous for : His role as hockey player Adam Banks in `` The Mighty Ducks '' trilogy . What 's he doing now ? LaRusso , 31 , graduated with a business degree from Boston University 's school of management in 2000 . Since then , he 's had minor roles in independent films and is reported to have been seen working as a waiter and bartender in both Boston and Los Angeles . 9 . Kellie Martin . Famous for : Starring as Becca on the television series `` Life Goes On . '' What 's she doing now ? Martin , 34 , had a stint on `` ER '' from 1998-2000 , but left to finish her studies at Yale University . In 2001 , Martin graduated from Yale with a degree in art history . Since then , she has appeared in various Lifetime network and made-for-TV movies . In 2009 , she made a guest appearance on `` Grey 's Anatomy '' and recently had a cameo appearance on ABC 's `` Private Practice . '' 10 . Jonathan Knight . Famous for : His part in the singing group New Kids on The Block . What 's he doing now ? Knight , 36 , was never one for the spotlight , and after New Kids on The Block broke up , he left the entertainment industry to pursue a real-estate career in Massachusetts . Although he initially resisted , in 2008 Knight joined the rest of his former band-mates to announce a reunion . They have since released a comeback album and have national tour dates scheduled throughout the summer , though Knight continues to work in real-estate . & copy CareerBuilder.com 2010 . All rights reserved . The information contained in this article may not be published , broadcast or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority .
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How some childhood icons are now making a living . Brittany Daniel of `` Sweet Valley High '' TV show is producing `` Ruby '' -- about woman 's weight loss . New Kids on the Block 's Jonathan Knight still sings , but also sells real-estate . Joe Millionaire 's Evan Marriott has left TV and returned to job in construction .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Eight more employees from the Utah Department of Workforce Services are being questioned in connection with a leaked list containing personal information of 1,300 alleged illegal immigrants , Dave Lewis , a department spokesman , said Monday afternoon . He said that makes a total of 10 employees questioned , including the two placed on administrative leave last week . Investigators are interviewing employees who have had access to certain cases `` for legitimate business reasons , '' he said . `` We want to give them the opportunity to explain work they 're doing . '' Utah Attorney General Mark Shurtleff said on CNN 's `` American Morning '' on Monday that he expects to launch a formal investigation into the data leak very soon . He said he was awaiting the names of at least two suspects from the state 's executive branch . Lewis said the investigators ' goal is to get all the interviews done Monday and he believed the suspects ' names would be delivered to the attorney general later in the day . By early Monday afternoon , the Department of Workforce Services ' general counsel had been in touch with the attorney general 's office to bring lawyers there up to speed , Lewis said . Earlier Shurtleff said , `` It 's important we get to the bottom of it immediately . We have condemned ... the dissemination , the use , the purpose of the list in the strongest possible terms and we do believe that action needs to be swift . '' `` People have to have confidence in their government that those records will be protected . '' he said . The list was anonymously distributed last week to media and government offices across the state , CNN affiliate KSTU-TV reported . An accompanying letter from `` Concerned Citizens of the United States '' insisted that those on the list should be deported immediately . Utah Gov. Gary Herbert told CNN 's John King on Friday night that the 1,300 people have Hispanic names . Shurtleff said the alleged crimes may have broken both state and federal privacy laws , and some may have been felonies , so if appropriate , it could be a multi-level investigation . He added that crimes may have been committed not only in generating and preparing the list , but also in how the list was used . Some of the alleged illegal immigrants listed have reported harassment since their names appeared on the list . `` Clearly , it 's not even meant as a blacklist . It 's more like a hit list . It is , I think , to put people at fear , to terrorize , to get people mobilized to do things . The fact is , the names on that list are also innocent until proven guilty and we 're finding that some of those names ... are here legally , '' Shurtleff said . The Utah Department of Workforce Services said Friday it had identified at least two employees believed to be involved in creating the 29-page list . `` At this point we do n't think it was a very large conspiracy . We think it was two , maybe . We have suspicion of a couple of more people , a very small group , '' said Kristen Cox , the department 's executive director . The state focused on the Department of Workforce Services , Herbert 's office said Thursday , because all of the information on the list -- including contact information , Social Security numbers and pregnancy due dates -- is contained within that agency 's database . Those named on the list are even more frightened , Jesus Ramos with the Utah Coalition of La Raza said last week . `` For these 1,300 people , unfortunately , that fear has escalated , '' he said . `` There 's an arrest warrant out , essentially . That fear never goes away . '' Herbert said Friday , `` Some are scared and apprehensive . I understand that . I expect that comes with the status of being illegal . If I was in the country illegally , I would probably have fear and apprehension , too . '' Shurtleff said Monday it 's time to put aside rhetoric and work on a solution to the immigration issue . Herbert has plans to bring together what he called a `` spectrum '' of viewpoints , some `` diametrically opposed , '' for a round-table discussion on immigration reform in Utah on Tuesday . `` We see what 's happened in Arizona , '' he said Friday . `` So Utah , like other states right now , are saying if the federal government is not going to do something , we will take steps to do something ourselves within the parameters of the law . It may mean creating -LRB- a -RRB- new law . '' CNN 's Mark Morgenstein contributed to this report .
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NEW : Utah questioning eight more Dept. of Workforce Services employees . AG Mark Shurtleff says the investigation into potential crimes `` needs to be swift '' He says the list is `` like a hit list ... to put people at fear , to terrorize '' Utah Gov. Gary Herbert plans immigration round-table meeting for Tuesday .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Frigid temperatures threatened Florida citrus crops as much of the Southeast into plunged into the teens Monday morning . State capital Tallahassee had plunged to 16 degrees by 5:25 a.m. ET , while temperatures in the 30s or below could be found well south of Orlando . The cold made Florida cities like Winter Haven anything but . The National Weather Service issued a hard freeze warning that extended as far south as Lake Okeechobee . Normally immune to the cold of winter , temperatures in Miami barely got into the 40s on Sunday ; normally , they 'd be in the 70s . Share your cold weather stories , photos . But the biggest news about the big chill is coming from the northern part of Florida , where a hard freeze watch is in effect , CNN 's meteorologist Bonnie Schneider said . That could be bad news for citrus trees that rarely survive when temperatures remain in the mid-20s or below for four hours or longer , according to Kristen Gunter , a spokeswoman for the association of companies that pick and process the oranges . Some groves in the northern part of the growing area sustained substantial damage Saturday night and Sunday morning , when temperatures dipped to 28 degrees or lower for at least six hours , said Andrew Meadows , spokesman for Florida Citrus Mutual , a group representing about 8,000 citrus growers in the state . It will take about five weeks to quantify the losses , he said . Florida citrus is a $ 9.3 billion industry . The state produces three-quarters of the United States ' orange crop and 40 percent of the world 's orange juice supply . '' -LSB- Sunday night -RSB- will be the night to watch , because if things do n't go well , the entire economy will be affected , jobs could be lost if fruit on the ground can not be harvested , workers will go elsewhere in the U.S. , and Florida will lose , '' Gunter said . The citrus harvest is at its peak right now , she said , and workers are already grinding away seven days a week as it is . `` I 'm not sure we can work any faster , '' Gunter said .
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Temperature in Tallahassee drops to 18 on Monday morning . Crops may have been damaged by 28-degree cold overnight Saturday and Sunday . Florida produces 40 percent of world 's orange juice .
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Washington -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Like a couple renewing their vows , U.S. President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron once again reaffirmed the `` special relationship '' between the United States and the United Kingdom during a joint press conference at the White House on Tuesday . Calling it an `` opportunity to renew the relationship with my partner , Prime Minister Cameron , '' Obama also claimed the U.S. has `` no closer ally , no stronger partner . '' `` We can never say it enough , the United States and the United Kingdom enjoy a truly special relationship , '' Obama said at that the start of the press conference calling the meeting a `` brilliant start as partners who see eye-to-eye on virtually every challenge before us . '' Cameron , on his first visit to the White House , had similar sentiments , saying the relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom is not just `` an extraordinary special relationship . `` To me , it is also an absolutely essential relationship if we are going to deliver the security and the prosperity that our people need . '' The two men appear serious about this commitment . In fact , Obama has used the term `` special relationship '' with only one other country , Israel . In addition to the formalities of the day , the president and first lady presented gifts to the prime minister and wife , Samantha , and their children . According to the White House , `` President and Mrs. Obama gave the Prime Minister and Mrs. Cameron a framed and signed color lithograph by Edward Ruscha titled ` Column with Speed Lines . ' The First Lady gave Mrs. Cameron a gift basket including a baby blanket . Gifts for the children are a silver charm necklace featuring 8 White House charms for -LSB- Cameron 's daughter -RSB- Nancy and a custom D.C. United Soccer jersey for -LSB- Cameron 's son -RSB- Elwen . ''
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Obama : `` The United States and the United Kingdom enjoy a truly special relationship '' Obama has used the term `` special relationship '' with only one other country , Israel . Cameron describes the U.S.-U.K. link similarly , calling it `` an absolutely essential relationship ''
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London , England -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Turkey has reacted angrily to a U.S. congressional panel decision to pass a resolution calling the 1915 killing of Armenians in Ottoman Turkey a genocide . Turkey recalled its envoy to the United States and condemned the narrow 23-22 vote in favor by the House Foreign Affairs Committee recommending that the US recognize the killings as genocide . Here two experts on Turkey -- Dr Katerina Dalacoura , lecturer in International Relations at the London School of Economics and Fadi Hakura , Turkey Analyst at Chatham House , a London-based think tank -- explain why this is such an emotional issue for the country . Why is this a sensitive issue for Turkey ? Dalacoura : It has always been a sensitive issue ... Turkey has always refused to accept that it was a planned event . They argue that genocide only applies if it was a plan to exterminate people . Hakura : Turkey says `` yes , Armenians did die , '' but disputes the historical definition as a genocide ... It says they died in war , of disease , from the general chaos at the time , but the deaths were not part of a deliberate systematic plan to eliminate the Armenians . They say that intention is an important part of genocide . Why did the House Foreign Affairs Committee vote on this now ? Hakura : On April 24 each year the president of the U.S. makes a traditional statement commemorating the 1915 killings and I suspect the timing of this is related to that . Could this harm US-Turkey relations ? Hakura : If the resolution was passed then it could cause lasting damage ... although this is not the first time the two countries have been through this . In 2007 the recommendation vote was 27-21 so the vote has narrowed this time . Hillary Clinton -LRB- U.S. secretary of state -RRB- says that passing the resolution would damage U.S. / Turkey relations , although I think this is a fig leaf and the real reason is U.S. national security . Turkey is militarily important to the U.S. ... it has a military base at Incirlik and in February several senior defense staff signed a letter asking for the resolution to be withdrawn . Dalacoura : U.S.-Turkey relations have been going through a relative low in the last few years ... there is less warmth in the relationship , but the relationship has been strong for a decade and is very strong on a variety of issues and Turkey will deal with it now . Do any countries recognize the killing of Armenians in Ottoman Turkey in 1915 as genocide ? Hakura : Twenty countries do , including France , Germany , Sweden and Canada . Ronald Reagan in 1981 is the only U.S. president who asked for the killings to be called a genocide . What is the public opinion in Turkey regarding the Armenian massacre ? Dalacoura : Relations between the military and the government is the key issue for many Turks , I think this -LRB- Armenia massacre -RRB- is a secondary issue . Hakura : Turkey is becoming more and more liberal ... genocide is no longer a taboo word when it comes to talking about Armenia and things have been progressing , but the population does not like foreign powers defining their history , it generates a lot of misgivings . Could this reverse the tentative measures Turkey and Armenia have taken to normalize relations ? Dalacoura : It depends on how profound the event is ... although it is one of many events . The relationship with Turkey is a new one and the Turkish government has invested in it .
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Analysts explain why 1915 killing of Armenians remains emotive issue . `` Turkey has always refused to accept that it was a planned event , '' says Katerina Dalacoura . `` Turkey is becoming more liberal ... genocide is no longer a taboo word , '' said Fadi Hakura .
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Washington -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The Obama administration is preparing to announce new rules allowing some travel to Cuba , along with an expanded ability for Americans to send economic assistance , a senior U.S. official and congressional sources said Wednesday . According to two congressional aides briefed informally on the plans , the administration is expected to announce `` soon '' that it will essentially reinstate measures that were in place under the Clinton administration . Both aides stressed that the administration is still working through the details and legal language . `` It 's a return to Clinton , plus some , '' one aide said , noting that President George W. Bush tightened restrictions on travel and cultural exchanges . The central component of the policy involves `` people to people '' exchanges that would allow academics , corporations , humanitarian groups and athletic teams to travel to Cuba . The administration is not lifting tourist travel limits or the strict trade restrictions currently in place but would promote cultural exchanges and programs with universities or allow U.S. farms to send assistance to Cuban farmers as part of the new rules . One of the aides who supports the changes stressed that the goal is to allow travel for people to help Cubans build their own economy and culture . The policy is `` to go down there , give a message of hope , to help the Cuban people forge their own future as they want , not necessarily as the way another government wants . '' In addition , the administration is planning to expand the policy it announced last year that allowed Cuban-Americans to send `` remittances '' or economic support to family members in Cuba . The new regulations would allow any U.S. citizen , as well as universities , churches and businesses , to send money or sponsor a partner in Cuba . There would be a cap on the amount of money that could be sent . The new policy would make it easier for universities , sports teams and businesses to set up exchanges . The State Department would shift its current policy , which now denies visas for Cubans to travel to the U.S. , to one that gives a `` presumption of approval '' unless a review discovers a problem with the request . Although the administration can not change current travel restrictions without congressional approval , it does have the authority to loosen visa rules . The congressional aides expected the administration to unveil the changes through a statement by the president or the secretary of state , along with text of the new regulations . State Department spokesman Mark Toner said Tuesday that although he had nothing to announce , `` our overarching goal here is to encourage a more open environment in Cuba and increased respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms . And , consistent with that objective , we 've promoted measures to encourage the free flow of information and humanitarian items to the Cuban people . '' Likewise , White House Deputy Press Secretary Bill Burton gave no details in response to reporters ' questions Tuesday but added , `` the president is going to continue to do things that are in the best interest of the United States and that help to create a more democratic environment and expand freedoms for the Cuban people . '' CNN Senior State Department Producer Elise Labott contributed to this report .
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Sources say the administration will soon loosen rules regarding Cuba . The changes will affect some travel and Americans ' ability to send economic assistance . The Bush administration tightened regulations that had been set by Clinton . One aide says , `` It 's a return to Clinton , plus some ''
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A body found near where a California teen vanished last week on her way home from summer school was confirmed Wednesday to be that of 17-year-old Norma Lopez , a Riverside County Sheriff 's Department spokesman said . The identification was made through dental records , according to Sgt. Joe Barja . Authorities are now treating the case as a homicide investigation , and are searching for any witnesses or information leading to a suspect . Barja declined to reveal the cause of death or reveal any injuries Lopez may have sustained . Lopez was last seen Thursday leaving summer class at Valley View High School in Moreno Valley , about 70 miles east of Los Angeles . She had planned to meet her younger sister and a friend at home . It is believed Lopez , who would have been a senior in the fall , took a short cut through a dirt field to reach the family 's residence . Her sister contacted the police when Lopez never returned home . The body was discovered around 3 p.m. Tuesday , said Deputy Melissa Nieburger of the Riverside County Sheriff 's Department . Nieburger said the body was found about two miles from where Lopez vanished . Police are looking for a green `` SUV type vehicle '' that was seen driving away from the area at the time of Lopez 's disappearance . CNN 's Gabriel Falcon contributed to this report .
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Norma Lopez , 17 , disappeared last Thursday . A body found Tuesday afternoon was confirmed Wednesday to be the missing teen . Police are now treating the case as a homicide investigation .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The Nevada State Board of Nursing has suspended the licenses of two nurses named by police in a criminal investigation of `` disrupted '' catheter lines at a hospital neonatal intensive care unit , the board 's executive director said Wednesday . The two nurses , identified in board documents as Jessica May Rice and Sharon Ochoa-Reyes , have not been arrested or charged with a crime , but the nursing board found that the results of the ongoing police investigation warranted the license suspensions . Nursing board director Debra Scott said that Rice , a nurse for four years , and Ochoa-Reyes , a nurse for 19 years , worked at Las Vegas ' Sunrise Hospital , where hospital officials and police had been investigating several incidents in which catheters had been `` disrupted . '' The incidents involved peripherally inserted central catheters , or PICC lines , Sunrise Hospital said in a statement last week . The specialized catheters provide long-term access to a vein and are used to provide nutrition , give medication or draw blood , the statement said . The hospital launched an internal review in February , concentrating on `` product performance and staff education , '' the statement said , and no disruptions were reported for several weeks . After another one occurred , the hospital retained a plastics engineer with an independent lab to evaluate the lines . The facility then discovered that another kind of catheter , an umbilical arterial catheter , also had been disrupted . Such catheters have a low failure rate , the hospital said . Hospital officials increased security and installed cameras as part of their review . They also contacted Las Vegas Metropolitan Police and regulatory agencies , including the Nevada State Board of Nursing and the state Department of Health and Human Services . There were two `` unexpected outcomes '' involving the infant patients at the unit , the hospital statement said . `` One patient required an additional procedure and is currently doing well , '' the statement said . `` The second patient remains in critical condition in the neonatal intensive care unit . '' Law enforcement officials notified the nursing board last month that Ochoa-Reyes and Rice were part of their investigation into the problems at Sunrise , Scott said . The board took quick action to suspend the women 's licenses . According to the legal summary suspension of license documents , police found that the Sunrise incidents involved `` intentional patient harm . '' The documents for each nurse say the board found in both cases that the nurse violated the Nevada Nurse Practice Act , with those violations including engaging `` in conduct likely to deceive , defraud or endanger a patient or the general public . '' The board found that it `` would be a danger to the public health , safety or welfare '' for the nurses to have unrestricted licenses and that suspension of the licenses required emergency action . Accordingly , the board suspended the licenses . Attempts to reach Ochoa-Reyes and Rice Wednesday evening were unsuccessful . In all , 14 catheters were `` disrupted '' at the neonatal intensive care unit , the hospital said . A hospital spokeswoman would not provide further comment Wednesday . Police were referring questions to the hospital .
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NEW : 1 baby is critical after catheters were `` disrupted '' in neonatal intensive care unit . NEW : Hospital conducted an internal review in February . NEW : Police have determined the incidents involved `` intentional patient harm '' Hospital says 14 catheter `` disruptions '' are reported in unit .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The mother of a missing Shreveport , Louisiana , girl said Tuesday that one of two men suspected in her daughter 's disappearance spent time at their home , playing video games and hanging out with their family . Henry Lee was `` always very polite , very nice . We thought he was a very decent person , '' Karen White , the mother of missing 12-year-old Amber White , told HLN 's `` Prime News . '' `` We would have never ever expected that he would have done something like this . '' Lee , 24 , was arrested Monday on aggravated kidnapping charges , according to Shreveport police . A second man , Brandon Player , 19 , was also arrested Monday in the case and charged with contributing to the delinquency of a juvenile . White said Tuesday that Lee was an `` associate '' of one of her family 's good friends . Police are searching for any clues into the whereabouts of Amber , who was last seen Sunday after she went to the neighborhood pool . However , it started raining shortly after she left her house , her mother said . `` My husband realized it was raining and he went down to get her and she was gone , '' Karen White said . Two witnesses told police they had seen her get into an Oldsmobile Cutlass , according to Shreveport police Sgt. Bill Goodin . The witnesses were able to provide authorities with a license plate number , and police tracked the car to Player . `` Through interviews and other information gathering , that ultimately led us to Henry Lee , '' Goodin told `` Prime News . '' Goodin said police do n't believe an `` abduction '' occurred , but added that investigators are n't ruling anything out as they search for Amber . Karen White described her daughter as a good kid who never fails to check in with her parents . `` I think she was coerced to get into a car , '' White said . `` I do n't think she did it on her own . The daughter that I know would not do something like this . '' Player has been released from police custody on bond . Lee remained in jail Tuesday night .
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Amber White , 12 , was last seen Sunday heading to her neighborhood pool . Police in Shreveport , Louisiana , have arrested two men in her disappearance . One of the men knew White 's family and spent time at Amber 's home , mom says .
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Porter Holder vividly remembers the day in 1998 when he left a U.S. Department of Agriculture loan office in Oklahoma empty-handed . He had applied for a low-interest USDA loan to help keep a farm in family ownership . He says he expected his application to be accepted . He had kept his debt at a minimum and developed a plan for supplementing his income . He believes he was turned down because he 's Native American , a member of the Choctaw tribe . `` The day I walked out of there , I knew why he denied me , '' Holder said . In 1999 , He joined other Native Americans in a class-action lawsuit that accused the USDA of discriminatory lending over a 25-year period . USDA loans can be used for purchasing land , livestock , equipment and other operational items . The lending practices of USDA regional offices have cost Native American farmers hundreds of millions of dollars in potential revenue , their lawyers said , although they added that it 's a hard number to estimate because of how many farmers may have been affected . The attorneys say their expert witness , agricultural economist Patrick O'Brien , estimated that over 18 years , Native American farmers received only half the loans they could have expected to obtain . As a result , many saw their farms foreclosed on and their fields lying fallow . A recent settlement on behalf of African-American farmers gave Native Americans hope that their case will also be resolved in their favor . Individual black farmers could receive $ 50,000 each as a result of the case , known as Pigford II . According to the 2007 Census of Agriculture , there are about 60,000 Native American farmers in the United States -- double the number of African-American farmers . The vast majority of Native American farmers work on family-operated farms . Holder lives on 320 gently rolling acres in Oklahoma , where he raises cattle . His primary source of income is work as a blacksmith , shoeing horses in his community . With the right amount of financial help , he said , his life could have been different . `` I could have been a rancher , '' he said . `` That 's what I wanted to do . '' Holder said regional USDA offices repeatedly denied him access to loans . In one instance , he said he was told to `` go see -LSB- his -RSB- tribe . '' After the regional office denied him a loan at 4 percent interest , Porter said he received an 8 percent interest loan through a private bank . He purchased the acres he lives on now , but he said the high interest has put a strain on his finances . `` If it was fair , I would be in a different place , '' he said . `` I am thankful to be where I am , do n't get me wrong , but I would be in a different place . '' The Native Americans ' lead counsel , Joseph Sellers , said the USDA loans are vital to the existence of Native American farmers . `` The precondition to getting these kinds of loans is the USDA is regarded as the lender of last resort , '' he said . `` So the people who get these loans have already demonstrated that they ca n't get loans at two commercial lending institutions . So if they do n't get credit from the USDA , they get credit from no one . '' O'Brien , formerly with the USDA research service , agreed , saying that USDA loan programs were `` limited to operators who can not obtain sufficient credit at reasonable rates elsewhere but who would be able to operate viable farm businesses if USDA made the loan -LRB- s -RRB- in question . '' Claryca Mandan says farming is in her blood . Her family was named its county 's Farming Family of the Year in 1968 . She says credit became almost impossible to get around the time she married her husband , Keith , in 1979 . Like Holder , she is Native American and said she remembers when the loan practices of her local USDA office took what she called `` an aggressive stance . '' Mandan , who was a borrower from the USDA for years , is now a plaintiff in the lawsuit against it . `` It became apparent we were receiving different treatment , '' she said . `` We were given loan amounts that were lesser than we already requested , and we were encouraged to buy the oldest machinery instead of stuff adequate and -LSB- the -RSB- equivalent to white farmers . We started to receive a lot of resistance from the local county staff . '' Mandan said the regional office 's stance toward lending was aimed not only at putting Native American farmers at a disadvantage , but at benefiting their non-Native American counterparts . Many Native American farms are on land -- usually in reservations -- that the federal government holds in trusts for the benefit of future generations . The land falls under tribal government authority , but Mandan charged that as more Native American farms defaulted on loans from the government , more farms were offered by the federal government for purchase to farmers who were not Native Americans . A 1997 report from a civil rights action team to the USDA on the treatment of minority farmers generally , cited in the lawsuit , said that as minority farmers were unable to afford their lands , `` The land is lost finally and sold at auction , where it is bought by someone else at half the price being asked of the minority farmer . Often it is alleged that the person was a friend or relative of one of -LSB- the USDA 's Farm Service Administration -RSB- county officials . '' The Mandans are members of the Mandan , Hidatsa and Arikara Nation , also known as Three Affiliated Tribes . The couple still resides on land that was allocated by the Dawes General Allotment Act of 1887 , which aimed at settling Native American tribes and turning them into farmers and ranchers . Mandan , who now works as a Native American credit outreach counselor , said she and her family struggled without access to affordable credit . After she failed to secure a USDA loan , the Mandans raised four children in a two-bedroom mobile home for 12 years . Without proper loans , she said , she could n't afford a larger home . It was n't until 2007 that she moved her family into what she felt was adequate housing , purchased through a local housing authority . Ultimately , Mandan said , they wo n't be able to hand down working farms to their children . `` We are n't able to pass on farms with buildings and irrigation . A lot of us just have the bare land with fences . Many of us do n't even have buildings , '' she said . `` Many of us just finally achieved standard housing . For this to be happening in the U.S. today , with an agency that was supposed to fund us equally , is just wrong . '' Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in a recent statement to CNN that the USDA is `` committed to resolving allegations of past discrimination because we are intent on ensuring every farmer and rancher is treated equally and fairly . We have made significant progress on addressing USDA 's civil rights record to close this chapter in the department 's history . '' USDA officials told CNN that they are in settlement discussions with Native American farmers and that they are putting the final touches on a plan that would turn the page on the discrimination claims by Hispanic and women farmers , as well . `` We want to put this behind us and focus on the future , '' a USDA official said . `` We want to make sure we have a strong foundation moving forward . '' Farmers such as George Keepseagle , for whom the case is named , have seen the years pass since the lawsuit was filed . In the 12 years that he and his wife , Marilyn , have been plaintiffs in the case , his health has deteriorated significantly because of stress , he said . Keepseagle , who is 70 , was forced to sell his farm years ago . The couple now lives on the Standing Rock Reservation in North Dakota and said they want to change the way the USDA services loans to minority communities . They said they are optimistic , but Marilyn admits that George has misgivings . `` He worries a lot . He worries more than I do , '' she said . `` I support him , I encourage him , I tell him it 's not the end of the world and something good should come out of this . '' For Porter Holder , the lawsuit is n't about the money ; it 's about the future for his four young daughters . `` I hope to see fairness in Oklahoma , '' he said . `` I hope to see that it does n't matter , the color of your skin , or nationality , if you 're trying to make a productive living . This goes back to 1700 ; some things just do n't change -- it 's time . ''
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Native American farmers say USDA loan practices were discriminatory . Recent African-American farmers ' settlement gives them hope their lawsuit will be settled . Lawyers say Native American farmers need government loans to sustain their businesses . USDA official : `` We want to put this behind us and focus on the future ''
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- NASA said Wednesday that it is collaborating with recording artist Mary J. Blige to encourage girls and young women to pursue careers by studying science , technology , engineering and mathematics -- collectively known as STEM . A public service announcement featuring shuttle astronaut Leland Melvin and Blige will begin running this week on NASA TV and on the agency 's website . The campaign is part of NASA 's Summer of Innovation program , which also is working with Blige 's Foundation for the Advancement of Women Now , the space agency said . The NASA program , part of the president 's Educate to Innovate Campaign , started this summer with the aim of engaging middle school students in science-related activities during the summer break . Working with Blige 's foundation provides `` a rare opportunity '' for it to reach `` communities not always readily accessible to us , '' Melvin said in a news release . `` Mary 's presence can help NASA make the STEM message more appealing to these communities and increase the pipeline of underrepresented students going into these disciplines , '' he said . High school participants in Blige 's foundation are working with the NASA Science , Engineering , Mathematics and Aerospace Academy project at York College of the City University of New York , the space agency said . In addition to being prepared to deliver NASA content to middle school students this summer , they will have the opportunity to support the NASA academy 's fall academic session as student aides for grades one through nine , it said .
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NASA collaborating with recording artist Mary J. Blige . A public service announcement begins running this week on NASA TV . The collaboration encourages women to reach for the stars .
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Mosul , Iraq -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The last U.S. brigade combat team in Iraq has left the country , a move that helps U.S. President Barack Obama reach his goal of 50,000 troops in the country by September 1 . Their departure leaves about 56,000 U.S. troops in the country , according to the U.S. military . Capt. Christopher Ophardt , spokesman for the 4th Stryker Brigade , 2nd Infantry Division , said the last of the 4,000 members of the unit crossed the border into Kuwait early Thursday . A few hundred members stayed behind to finish administrative and logistical duties but will fly out of Baghdad later Thursday , Ophardt said . Much of the brigade departed more than a day ago , but the announcement was delayed for security reasons . Tell us how the Iraq War has affected your life . Their departure comes more than seven years after U.S. combat forces entered , though their departure does not signify the end of all U.S. combat forces in the country . Another 6,000 U.S. troops must leave Iraq to meet Obama 's deadline for the end of U.S. combat operations in the country and the beginning of Operation New Dawn , in which the remaining U.S. forces are expected to switch to an advise-and-assist role . A public information officer at Joint Base Lewis-McChord , Washington , said it will take a few weeks for all of the 4-2 's members to return home . `` It is one flight at a time , '' she said . `` We are expecting most of them to be home by mid-September . '' As they prepared to depart , some soldiers laughed and some expressed relief at having survived multiple deployments . A few reminisced about having endured firefights and helping carry the bodies of buddies off the field of battle . Many said they would never forget the war . `` The first time you get shot at , it 's just , I mean , it wakes you up , '' said Sgt. Terry Wetzel , the company 's senior sniper . `` You think , before you come here , that you 're an adult , that you 're a grown man . But this place will change you . '' Wetzel said he was ready to go home . `` I feel like we have done as much as we can do here now . It 's pretty much up to the Iraqi army and Iraqi police and their government , '' he said . `` We have helped them out as much as we can . '' `` We put our blood , sweat and tears since we 've been here for 12 months and we know we did our job and we know it 's not going to be in vain , but there 's a lot of excitement right now , '' said Spc. Don Lanpher as he prepared to depart . `` We 're keeping the promise that we 've made when I began my campaign for the presidency , '' Obama said Wednesday in Columbus , Ohio , where he was attending a Democratic fundraiser . `` By the end of this month ... our combat mission will be over in Iraq . '' Obama said that more than 90,000 U.S. troops have left Iraq in the past 18 months . `` And , consistent with our agreement with the Iraqi government , all of our troops will be out of Iraq by the end of next year , '' he said . Former U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker told CNN that the United States has plenty of work left to do in Iraq . `` Iraq is still at the beginning of the story of its evolution since 2003 , '' he said , referring to the date of the U.S.-led invasion of the country . `` As tired as many Americans may be , this process is still just at its beginning . '' In fact , Iraq remains without a functioning government , electricity and other utilities are available only sporadically in the capital , and violence appears to be increasing . At least 48 people were killed Tuesday outside a military recruiting center in Baghdad . `` We 're going to have to leave a large footprint behind , and this is not going away for us as an issue , '' he said . The State Department is preparing to leave much of that footprint . It will handle many of the responsibilities currently shouldered by the military , increasing its security contractors from 2,700 to nearly 7,000 , sources said . They are expected to work with diplomats and police trainers in some facilities . The State Department has asked for an additional $ 400 million to cover the costs , though it was not clear they would get it . The State Department has asked the U.S. military to leave behind surveillance systems , about 50 bomb-resistant vehicles and a few dozen UH-60 helicopters , a military official said . Though they got a lot of what they wanted , the Pentagon said it could not give them all the helicopters because they are needed in Afghanistan , the official said . According to the Pentagon , 4,419 U.S. troops have died in Iraq . CNN 's Jomana Karadsheh , Mohammed Tawfeeq , Adam Levine and Chris Lawrence contributed to this story .
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The last U.S. brigade combat team has left Iraq . That leaves 56,000 U.S. troops in the country . Another 6,000 troops are slated to leave by September 1 . 4th Stryker Brigade , 2nd Infantry Division crossed border into Kuwait .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- If masculinity could take the form of a 2-inch frosted cupcake , David Arrick would have the recipe . His New York cupcake company , Butch Bakery , is an anomaly in a world seemingly dominated by all things dainty and cute . Arrick refuses to serve the `` frilly , pink-frosted , sprinkles-and-unicorns '' variety . Instead , customers can proclaim their machismo with cakes made with beer , whiskey , bacon and crushed pretzels . `` It was born out of necessity and a love of buttercream , '' Arrick said of his 9-month-old business . Each Butch cupcake sits under a generous layer of frosting and a chocolate disc with a camouflage , wood grain , plaid , houndstooth or other `` manly '' pattern . Like a mixed-martial arts fight , Arrick 's cupcakes can pack a serious punch . Six of his 12 varieties feature alcohol -- and customers feel the hit . `` The ones with alcohol are actually pretty potent , '' said David Barrineau , who ordered Butch cupcakes as a joke for the men and women in his advertising agency . `` The first one I tried ... it had wood grain on it . It definitely had whiskey in it , '' Barrineau said . `` I think we all got a buzz from these -- it was pretty strong ! '' But can whiskey-infused cupcakes disguised in camo really transform cupcakes into macho fare ? `` I think if you try them , you would n't have to ask , '' Barrineau said . Arrick said he does n't think the average man would necessarily turn down a pastel , ladylike cupcake . `` Men like to eat , '' he said . `` I 'm not saying I 'm not going to go for a cupcake with a peony on it . '' But , if given the option , `` a guy is going to go for the one that has camo or plaid on it . '' The flour-and-frosting world seems a far cry from Wall Street , home to a major law firm where Arrick worked as an asset-backed securities attorney . But like many in 2007 and 2008 , Arrick 's career caved unexpectedly . `` I was laid off . I did n't know what I was going to do , '' he said . `` I 'm 40 years old , I have student loans out the wazoo . What am I going to do ? '' As Arrick looked around the streets of New York and mulled his options , he marveled how the city 's vast array of bakeries and cupcake shops kept growing and making money during a recession . But all the cupcakes seemed too cookie-cutter . `` There 's been a vacancy in the market with marketing toward men , '' he noticed . That 's when the epiphany hit . Arrick liquidated his 401 -LRB- k -RRB- and gambled $ 25,000 on the macho bakery of his dreams . Butch Bakery went from selling 40 cupcakes a week to 400 cupcakes a week -- all without a storefront . The bakery operates out of a commercial kitchen shared with other businesses and sells its manly confections online . While most cupcakes are , stereotypically , feminine or frilly , Arrick is keenly aware that he himself is playing on stereotypes with his use of bacon , beer and in-your-face manly advertising . `` It 's so tongue-in-cheek , '' Arrick said . Ironically , 95 percent of Butch Bakery 's customers are women . Arrick said many are searching for creative gifts after exhausting cliche ideas such as neckties . Arrick has received order requests from around the world , including from troops in Iraq and Afghanistan . Kathryn Donaldson tried to place an order for her husband , who is stationed in South Korea . Donaldson said the Butch baked goods would be the perfect pick-me-up for soldiers overseas . `` The stuff we send them , it means a lot to them , '' Donaldson said . `` We can send them care packages and everything , but something like that is so much more special because it 's so unique . We ca n't do the flavorings like rum and coke . We ca n't figure out how to make them taste like rum and coke . '' Butch Bakery delivers to Manhattan , Queens and Brooklyn , but does not ship out-of-state . Arrick said his growth is limited by storage and oven space , but he hopes to start shipping orders outside New York by the end of this year . Arrick does n't have a target date for setting up a storefront . But Barrineau , a loyal fan of the `` Tailgate '' cupcake , says he can already forecast the entrepreneur 's future : . `` I think he would see a line of big , hairy men waiting in line for cupcakes . ''
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Butch Bakery features flavors such as mojito , beer run and jackhammer . Founder David Arrick was an attorney for a Wall Street law firm before he was laid off . Most of Butch 's customers are women .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Using high-tech robotic cameras , a team of scientists is getting a rare first glimpse of marine life in the North Atlantic that could shed light on the ocean 's ecosystem and climate to as far back as 1,000 years . Images of tulip-shaped sponges , brightly colored corals , delicate pink stars and feathery organisms were among the breathtaking marine life beamed up by a submersible robot that scoured the ocean bed at a depth of some 9,800 feet -LSB- 3,000 meters -RSB- off the Atlantic coast of Newfoundland . The team , led by Fisheries and Oceans , Canada and including scientists from three Canadian universities and the Spanish Institute of Oceanography , is in the midst of a 20-day expedition to study 11 areas under the protection of the Northwest Atlantic Fisheries Organization . Exploring these areas is important because they contain the `` trees of the ocean , '' said Ellen Kenchington , research scientist with the Fisheries Department of Canada . She is among the lead scientists in the expedition . `` It 's been really spectacular , '' she told CNN affiliate CTV from her office at the institute as pictures from the robot streamed on her computer . `` It 's really changing our perception of the diversity that 's out there . ... We 're seeing new species in deeper waters . '' Kenchington told the Montreal Gazette that scientists potentially can look at the coral 's chemical composition and determine the temperature of the water and other data from 1,000 years ago . `` That 's how we are able to say if there is warming or a change in climate direction , '' she said . `` In order to understand the present , we need to put it into context . '' Corals have been a highly successful life form for 250 million years . They are tiny animals and polyps that exist as genetically identical individuals and can eat , defend themselves and kill plankton for food . In the process they also secrete calcium carbonate , which becomes the basis for an external skeleton on which they sit . These calcified deposits can grow to enormous sizes over a long period of time and form coral reefs . The reefs are among the world 's most productive ecosystems and can harbor more than 4,000 species of fish and many other marine life forms . Some estimates have suggested 20 percent of the world 's coral reefs are already dead and an additional 24 percent are gravely threatened . In the week they have left in the expedition , Kenchington and her team hope to collect samples and video from the depths of the ocean to gain a new understanding of these corals as well as other marine life . The underwater robot , operated by crew aboard the Canadian Coast Guard ship Hudson , is enabling the crew to go about 500 meters deeper than they have before . Kenchington told CTV the research will also help them evaluate areas that are still too deep for current fishing technologies but could be accessible in years to come . `` This will enable us to give advice in the future about what types of organisms are in these areas before they 're fished , '' she said .
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The scientists discovered deep-sea marine life that could shed light on the ocean 's climate . Robotic cameras scoured the ocean bed at a depth of 9,800 feet off the Canadian coast . The research will also help evaluate if the protected areas should be further conserved .
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Jakarta , Indonesia -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Indonesian Muslims have been praying in the wrong direction , the country 's highest Islamic authority has said . The Indonesian Ulema Council told the country 's Muslim populace in March to turn west when they offered their daily prayers . Muslims are supposed to face the Kaaba , the religion 's most sacred site in the city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia . At the time , the council said that the direction of Kaaba from Indonesia laid to the west . Turns out , it did n't . Africa did . So , on Friday , the council issued a new edict : face northwest . `` After the first fatwa -LRB- edict -RRB- a few months ago that stated that the praying direction is west , we have announced that the correct direction for praying is indeed northwest , and we have issued a new fatwa -LRB- edict -RRB- to correct it , '' said Ma ` ruf Amin , the head of fatwa division in the Indonesian Ulema Council . `` This is important because facing west will mean that people were facing Africa when they pray , '' he said . Amin said the new edict does not mean that mosques in the country will need to be torn down . `` They -LRB- those praying inside -RRB- just need to adjust their praying direction slightly , '' he said . Some residents of the world 's most populous Muslim country took the change in stride . `` I do n't really worry about the praying direction , '' said Riza Irwansyah , an office worker in Jakarta . `` The important thing is I prayed to Allah and I believe He will listen , no matter which way I 'm facing . ''
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Earlier edict from Islamic council had Muslims facing west , where Africa lays . New edict corrects direction to northwest . Muslims are supposed to face the Kaaba in Saudi Arabia when they pray .
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LAHORE , Pakistan -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Angry protests are a common sight in Pakistan . Crowds often gather to denounce the United States or the Pakistani government , which critics accuse of being an American puppet . AntiTaliban protesters in Lahore . But in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore this week , several hundred protesters gathered on a scorching day to take on a very different target : the Taliban . `` I will fight them to my last breath and the last drop of my blood in my body . I 'm not scared , '' vowed newspaper publisher Jugnu Mohsin . She was leading a crowd of several hundred students , artists , writers and others , chanting `` the Taliban is the enemy of Islam '' in Urdu . Public protests against the Taliban started cropping up in various Pakistani cities after a video emerged showing militants publicly flogging a teenage girl . The Taliban 's recent declaration that the Pakistani government and judicial system are `` unIslamic '' has also outraged many educated Pakistanis . Neha Mehdi moved to Lahore to study . Now , she fears her way of life is being threatened by the Taliban . `` I can not give up my education , and I can not give up the way I 'm living , '' the 23-year-old student said . `` These Talibans have ruined the reputation of Islam . '' `` There were threats here also from the Taliban that if we gather they might just bomb us , '' Mehdi said . Watch how the anti-Taliban movement is growing '' More than 250 miles away , Pakistan 's military continued its assault against Taliban militants who want to impose a radical interpretation of Islamic law in the country 's northwestern tribal regions . Pakistan 's government recently signed a deal that would allow Islamic law , or sharia , in the tribal belt as long as the law was imposed in accordance with the country 's constitution . Mehdi and others in Lahore fear that the Taliban 's version of sharia -- which forbids girls from attending school , as well as music , poetry and dance -- is slowly creeping into Lahore , the center of Pakistani culture . `` Our way of life is being threatened , '' said Kamiar Rokni , a fashion designer who took part in the protest . `` And if we do n't do anything about it , then you 're just going to be sitting around and one day the way you live and what this country 's all about is going to stand for nothing . '' Rokni said he fears the Taliban `` want to change the way we exist . '' Lahore may be hundreds of miles away from the Taliban-held areas outside Islamabad , but it is no stranger to militant attacks . `` Last year we lost 39 people in acts of terrorism and this year we have lost 17 people in Lahore alone , '' Lahore police Chief Parvez Rathore said . As he speaks , a heavily armed escort is one step behind the police chief even as he walks outside the walls of the city 's police headquarters . In March , gunmen attacked a bus carrying the Sri Lankan national cricket team in Lahore , killing six Pakistani police officers and the team 's driver . Weeks later , militants dressed in police uniforms stormed a police training center in the city , prompting an eight-hour stand-off with police . Eight cadets were killed during the March 30 siege , which the government blamed on Pakistan 's Taliban . Police in Lahore said the attacks would not have been possible without local support . Residents say there is no doubt that the Taliban have support in Pakistan 's second largest city . `` They 're here in Lahore , this is the thing , '' said Jamal Rahman , who plays guitar for the Lahore-based band , `` Lal '' which means `` Red . '' `` Little groups of the Taliban are going around and intimidating people , causing fear , telling women to cover up and if they do n't they 'll shoot them . '' Rahman and his cousin , Aider -- who plays flute for `` Lal '' -- are using their music to rally society against what he says is a growing threat by the Taliban . `` We want to try to get people aware , and try to get people activated and motivated to fight against this militancy , '' he said . It is unclear if the protests and rallying cries from Rahman and the others in Lahore are the start of a mass movement or simply the swan song of Pakistan 's wealthy , urban elite who could be the first to leave if the suicide bombers and insurgents succeed in further destabilizing the country . Either way , their message is a sign that more Pakistanis believe the Taliban 's threat is directed at them , and not just a reaction to the so-called U.S.-led `` war on terror . '' Mehdi said she fears her life as a student could come to a violent end if the people of Lahore do not stand up to Islamic extremists . `` If the Taliban take over then I 'll be on the road being flogged by one of them like they did in Swat and I do n't want that , '' she said . Some Pakistanis are resorting to violence to defend their turf . More than 30 people were killed in the southern port city of Karachi this week as members of the city 's Mahajir ethnic majority group engaged in deadly clashes with ethnic Pashtuns . The Taliban is a mostly Pashtun movement . The government in Karachi has issued a `` shoot on sight '' order to security forces , to try to maintain calm in the city . A week before the clashes erupted , a leader of the MQM political party , which represents the Mahajir community in Karachi , said his supporters would fight back against what he called the `` Talibanization '' of his city . `` You have to take the nasty decisions now , '' Haider Abbas Rizvi told CNN last week . `` You have to take effective measures to control these Taliban ... otherwise the Taliban will take over . ''
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Protests in Lahore , Pakistan , against Taliban . Lahore residents say the Taliban has support in the Pakistan 's second city . Students , artists , musicians fear their way of life at threat . Taliban is exerting influence in parts of Pakistan .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- President Barack Obama and his family begin a week-long vacation in Martha 's Vineyard on Friday -- the president 's second time on the island off the coast of Massachusetts . In 2009 , Obama spent time there golfing and hanging out with family and friends . `` It 's a beautiful part of the country . It has really nice beaches and the folks are really great , '' Deputy Press Secretary Bill Burton told reporters Thursday . `` The food is terrific . And it 's some place that the president went before he was president and likes to go back because it 's a comfortable place where he can rest and recharge the batteries a little bit . '' Some have questioned why the Obamas have chosen to go to an elite holiday spot in Massachusetts instead of the Gulf Coast , as Obama had encouraged Americans to help bolster tourism there . The first family -- minus eldest daughter Malia -- did visit Panama City , Florida , August 14-15 , however . There , the Obamas swam in the Gulf of Mexico and played miniature golf , and the president met with business leaders about the BP oil spill and its effect on the region . Burton said this vacation , which will last 10 days , will also include some work . `` Well , he 'll continue to get his intelligence briefings , and he 'll also be getting briefings on the economy and other issues as they come up , '' he said . `` But as any of you guys who have covered these vacations before know , there 's other things that come up and he 'll obviously attend to those as necessary . '' The island , a vacation spot of the rich and famous , was a favorite getaway for another Democratic president as well : Bill Clinton , who spent plenty of time there . George W. Bush , however , preferred to unwind at his ranch in Crawford , Texas .
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Critics question why Obama did not choose the Gulf Coast . White House says the getaway will be a working vacation . Clinton too preferred the island ; Bush opted for his Texas ranch .
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Washington -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The companies that have recalled more than half a billion eggs following a salmonella outbreak fell short of safety standards at their farms , FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg said Sunday . `` There 's no question these farms involved in the recall were not operating with the standards of practice we consider responsible , '' Hamburg told CNN . She said `` about 1,000 '' people have been sickened by a salmonella outbreak that federal regulators have traced back to two Iowa egg producers . One of those companies said Sunday it is `` devastated '' by the possible connection between its product and salmonella . Hillandale Farms of Iowa announced Friday it was recalling more than 170 million eggs . Another 380 million have been recalled by another Iowa producer , Wright County Egg , after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration linked the eggs to an outbreak of salmonella that has sickened hundreds of people nationwide . `` We are devastated that our eggs have been implicated in making people sick , '' Hillandale Farms , one of the largest U.S. producers , said in a statement issued Sunday . `` We have never had a product recall in our 45-year history , and it flies in the face of our mission to provide wholesome , nutritious food for the American public . We regret that anyone might have become ill , and the concern and disruption this has caused our customers . '' The eggs were shipped to 17 states across the country . The company said it would work with the FDA to review its `` every phase of our operation '' and fix any problems . Hillandale Farms said it shared `` a number of common suppliers '' with Wright County Egg , including a company called Quality Egg , which provided feed and young birds . Both Wright County and Quality Egg are owned by the DeCoster family , which has a string of agribusiness interests in the Midwest and Northeast . Those companies ' records have come under new scrutiny since the recalls were announced earlier this month . In June , company owner Jack DeCoster admitted to 10 civil counts of animal cruelty in Maine after a nonprofit animal welfare group conducted an undercover video investigation and forwarded its findings to Maine animal welfare officials . Dr. Donald E. Hoenig , the Maine state veterinarian , said the allegations included keeping too many birds in case , failing to treat injured chickens or promptly remove dead animals and improper euthanization . Hoenig said DeCoster and his company agreed to a $ 25,000 fine and made a $ 100,000 payment to reimburse the state for future monitoring of the facility . In 1996 , the Labor Department accused DeCoster of maintaining `` sweatshop conditions '' for migrant workers at its Turner , Maine , chicken farm , where then-Labor Secretary Robert Reich said workers risked salmonella by handling dead chickens and manure with their bare hands . The Occupational Safety and Health Administration fined it $ 3.6 million . In January 2002 , the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission hit another DeCoster company with allegations that its supervisors sexually assaulted and harassed female employees , including some of whom were in the country illegally , and threatened to retaliate against them if they complained . The managers were fired for `` unrelated reasons , '' the EEOC said , and DeCoster agreed to pay a settlement of more than $ 1.5 million . And in 2000 , Iowa 's attorney general declared DeCoster a `` habitual violator '' of state environmental laws after a series of discharges of manure from his hog-farming operations . He paid a $ 150,000 penalty , had to build six concrete storage structures and his company was barred from expanding those operations . In a statement issued Sunday night , Wright County Egg said it was working with the FDA on the current recalls and defended its record . `` When issues have been raised about our farms , our management team has addressed them swiftly and effectively , working with recognized outside experts to identify and establish corrective measures for our operations , '' it said . `` We are approaching our work with FDA in the same forthright manner . '' While the recall involves hundreds of millions of eggs , they represent less than 1 percent of the 80 billion eggs produced in the United States each year , said Krista Eberle , director of the food safety program at the trade association Egg Safety Institute . `` This is one of the larger recalls that have happened , '' Eberle said . But she added , `` This is an extremely rare occurrence . '' CNN 's Don Lemon , Sandra Endo and Matt Smith contributed to this report .
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FDA commissioner says `` about 1,000 '' sickened by salmonella . Producer says it 's `` devastated '' by outbreak . Hillandale Farms says it shared supplier with Wright County Egg . Wright County says managers addressed problems `` swiftly and effectively ''
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ATLANTA , Georgia -LRB- CNN -RRB- -- U.S. cities are racing to cope with ever-increasing demand on public transportation as gas prices remain at record levels . High gas prices in recent months have had a considerable impact on commuters using public transportation , statistics show . Even regions that have traditionally resisted giving up cars and have limited access to mass transit are reporting a surge in public transportation use . From trains and trolleys to subways and buses , the growth encompasses all modes of travel , according to the American Public Transportation Association , a Washington D.C.-based industry group . Cities are using a variety of measures to meet that demand , according to an informal APTA survey of some transit systems . For example , the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority , which is currently operating at capacity during peak periods , ordered more subway cars , buses and coaches for its commuter rail . In North Carolina , the Charlotte Area Transit System has increased the frequency of light rail service on the weekends , ordered new buses and is taking a look at low-performing routes to cut down on costs . And the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority , which serves Philadelphia and has seen about 20,000 new daily customers since last July , has ordered 400 new hybrid buses and 120 new rail cars . Other measures being used or considered by transit systems include changing schedules to increase frequency of buses and trains , creating bus-only lanes and taking out seats on trains to make more room for commuters . ` The paradox of public transportation ' While the rise in ridership has been a relatively easy adjustment for some systems , others are facing difficulties in meeting operating costs , which hampers their ability to ramp up service or maintain normal levels . Cal Marsella , the head of Denver , Colorado 's transit system , calls it the `` paradox of public transportation . '' Denver 's system , like many U.S. cities , is partly funded by revenues from sales taxes . As consumers spend less because of high fuel costs and a sour economy , the city earns less revenue . Consequently , funding for the transit system is decreasing just when their operating costs are higher than ever before . `` Just when our demand is highest , our ability to provide is being undermined by the whole crunch , '' Marsella said . `` The last thing we want to do is curtail service but there is not a lot you can do when revenues are down and fuel prices are up . '' The Denver Regional Transit District , however , saw the high prices coming and was able to lock in the price of diesel fuel earlier this year at $ 3.20 a gallon -- a price far cheaper than what the market is right now . That contract expires at the end of this year . See a map of gas prices across the country '' Marsella is pessimistic prices will drop much by the end of the year . `` I 'm budgeting next year for $ 4.55 a gallon , '' he said . `` Everybody is hurting , and I have real concerns about our ability to sustain services and maintain infrastructure . '' A sharp rise in ridership . Americans used public transportation in record numbers the first three months of this year , according to the APTA . They took 2.6 billion trips on public transportation during that period , an increase of 85 million more trips compared with the same period last year . Meanwhile , the number behind the wheel dropped . Americans drove 1.4 billion fewer highway miles from April 2007 through April 2008 , according to figures released by the Department of Transportation in June . The numbers represented the sixth consecutive monthly drop . In some places , the growing embrace of public transportation has been an ongoing trend for the past few years , reflecting a steady and gradual change in commuter behavior . iReport : Show us your commute . For instance , ridership increased during a period of high fuel prices from 2005 through 2006 in Tulsa , but did not decline after fuel prices went back down , said Cynthia Stabb of Tulsa Transit . `` Once people get a chance to try public transit and they find it works for them , they stick with it , '' she said via e-mail . Asked about the current high levels , she responded , `` We believe the demand is here to stay . '' Turning point ? Some observers such as Dr. Robert Lang , an expert on urban affairs and planning at Virginia Tech University , say the gas crunch could be a turning point in perceptions of public transportation and how cities plan development . Consumers are beginning to believe the high prices are a result of structural changes in the global economy , not the result of a single event like Hurricane Katrina , which produced a period of high fuel prices earlier this decade , Lang said . That change in perception is providing more momentum for some cities that were already moving away from six-lane highways and suburbs dozens of miles apart , to a series of urban centers connected by light rail and other mass transit systems . He cited cities like Denver and Phoenix , Arizona , where residents , motivated by traffic frustrations and the promise of economic development , approved massive transportation projects during the past few years despite the costs to their pocketbooks . Marsella said Denver 's suburban and exurban commuters were as enthusiastic as its urban residents in approving the multibillion dollar project in 2004 . `` People want to drive their cars a mile or two to a park-and-ride , and then take the rail in on the most congested part of the trip , '' he said . Other cities , like Atlanta , Georgia , for instance , are struggling to make the pivot . Often cited in discussions about urban sprawl , Atlanta has been bedeviled for years by a lack of consensus among city and regional leaders on the need to expand its transit system . `` Some of it is just the fear of change , '' Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin said . `` People acted as if transit was a dirty word and the only thing that would be successful in Atlanta would be to build more roads , but we can see from the congestion that you need an integrated transport system . '' Watch Mayor Franklin talk about Atlanta 's transit system '' `` Unfortunately , there 's no quick answer for the problems that we have . '' Roads , and the cars on them , will not likely disappear anytime soon , Lang said . `` We 're a settler nation . And people had to get moving to do that , '' he said . `` There 's something deep within the American psyche about the freedom of movement . '' But the current environment may lead to a future where hybrid cars coexist with denser transit systems . `` 2007 , for all we know , might be the peak use of gas in the United States , '' he said . CNN 's Mike Senzon and Jarrett Bellini contributed to this report .
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Statistics suggest Americans are driving less and using mass transit more . Some transit systems labor to meet the new and rising demand . They are hampered by high operating costs , spurred by high fuel prices . iReport : Show us your commute .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- An Arizona prison escapee and his alleged accomplice appeared in court Friday afternoon after a tip from an observant forest service staffer led to the pair 's arrests , ending a three-week manhunt . An Apache County judge read a lengthy list of felony charges to a quiet John McCluskey , 45 , who was wearing an orange-and-white striped jail uniform and was flanked by sheriff 's deputies . He faces three counts of kidnapping , two counts of escape in the second degree , two counts of armed robbery , two counts of aggravated assault with a dangerous/deadly weapon and two counts of misconduct involving weapons . McCluskey 's brief , initial court appearance was immediately followed by one for Casslyn Mae Welch , 44 , who faces similar but fewer charges . Welch sat before the judge in a bright green uniform , barely audible in the virtually empty courtroom . Bail was set at $ 1 million for each , and the next set of hearings was scheduled for August 27 . McCluskey and Welch were arrested late Thursday at a campground on the edge of Apache and Sitgreaves National Forests in Springerville , Arizona , U.S. Marshal David Gonzales said Friday . They have been linked to a supremacist group , Gonzales said . Welch , who allegedly helped McCluskey escape , had agreed to be a police informant but failed to stick to her agreement , Gonzales said . A forest service employee noticed an unattended fire at a campsite and spotted a suspicious car backed into some trees , authorities said . The U.S. Forest Service is not identifying the employee , said Apache County Sheriff 's Deputy Brannon Eager . A license plate check determined it matched the description of one recently stolen in New Mexico , near where a couple was murdered . McCluskey and Welch are suspected in the killings of the couple , whose bodies were found in their burned camper this month , according to authorities . A SWAT team from the Apache County Sheriff 's Department was called to the campground site , where they arrested McCluskey and Welch , Gonzales said . `` Once they felt they had the opportunity , they rushed in very quickly ... so they could n't get to their weapons , '' Gonzales said . Authorities said Welch attempted to pull out a gun tucked in the small of her back , but SWAT members were able to stop her before the weapon was fired . McCluskey was lying down outside a dome tent and said later he should have fired at the deputies and the park ranger , Gonzales said . `` We were convinced that this would go down in a bloody shootout , '' Gonzales said of how law enforcement officials had anticipated the apprehension of the couple would take place . Apache County Sheriff Joe Dedman called the forest service staffer a `` true hero . '' `` He was out there doing his job , '' Dedman said at morning news conference . McCluskey , 45 , was serving a 15-year sentence for attempted second-degree murder and other charges when he and fellow convicts Tracy Province and Daniel Renwick broke out of the prison July 30 , allegedly with Welch 's help . Province and Renwick are already in custody . Welch , who was on the visitation list for one of the inmates , threw cutting tools over a prison fence to help the men escape , corrections officials said earlier this month . The hunt for McCluskey and Welch ranged from the Southwest to western Montana , and along the border with Canada , marshals said . Renwick , 36 , was captured August 1 in a shootout with police in Rifle , Colorado . He was serving 22 years for second-degree murder when he escaped . Province , 42 , was caught August 9 in Meeteetse , Wyoming , near Yellowstone National Park after authorities were notified by a local resident who sat and talked with Province a day earlier on the steps of a church in town . He was serving a life sentence for murder and armed robbery . Renwick remains in the Garfield County , Colorado , jail on charges of attempted first-degree murder and eluding police , the U.S. Marshals Service said Sunday . Authorities are working to coordinate the transport of Province back to Arizona from Wyoming -- expected to occur within the next month , the marshals service said . Last week , a warden and a security official resigned their posts at the Arizona state prison where the three inmates escaped , a spokesman for the private company that runs the facility said Sunday . CNN 's Ninette Sosa and Melanie Whitley contributed to this report .
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Judge sets bail at $ 1 million for each . Authorities said the pair had links to white supremacists . The suspects were arrested at an Arizona campground . McCluskey and Welch had been on the run since the end of July .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- King Nut Companies issued a total recall of peanut butter that it distributes Saturday amid fears of a salmonella outbreak that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said has infected 399 people in 42 states . Salmonella bacteria are transmitted to humans by eating contaminated foods . Ohio-based King Nut acknowledged in a statement that salmonella had been found in an open 5-pound tub of King Nut peanut butter . `` We are very sorry this happened , '' Martin Kanan , president of King Nut Companies , said in the statement . `` We are taking immediate and voluntary action because the health and safety of those who use our products is always our highest priority . '' King Nut peanut butter was identified as the source of an outbreak that may have contributed to one death in Minnesota , state public health officials said Friday . King Nut said Saturday that peanut butter sold under its label was manufactured by Peanut Corporation of America . The release gave no other details on the manufacturer , but Peanut Corporation of America 's Web site lists its headquarters as Lynchburg , Virginia , and says it has processing operations in Virginia , Georgia and Texas . Peanut Corporation of America could not be immediately reached for comment . The CDC is working with public health officials in the 42 affected states to determine the cause of the outbreak of a type of salmonella called Typhimurium . Learn more about salmonella '' The first cases were reported September 3 , but most cases occurred between October 1 and December 31 , the CDC said . About 18 percent of victims were hospitalized as a result of their illness , and patients ' ages have ranged from 2 months to 98 years . California is reporting the highest case count , with 55 , followed by Ohio with 53 cases , Massachusetts with 39 , Minnesota with 30 and Michigan with 20 . The other 37 states are each reporting fewer than 20 cases . Eight states have reported no cases connected to the outbreak . They are Montana , New Mexico , Louisiana , Mississippi , South Carolina , Florida , Alaska and Hawaii . In its statement , King Nut said it distributes peanut butter `` only through food service accounts . It is not sold directly to consumers . '' The statement added , `` King Nut does not supply any of the ingredients for the peanut butter distributed under its label . All other King Nut products are safe and not included in this voluntary recall . '' Strains of salmonella linked to previous outbreaks have been traced to contaminated eggs , meat , poultry , vegetables , pet food and peanut butter . Salmonella infections can be treated with antibiotics , though some strains are resistant to these drugs , according to the CDC . Most people infected develop diarrhea , fever and abdominal cramps within a few days of infection , and their illness can last up to a week . Most recover without treatment , but some may suffer dehydration and , in severe cases , require hospitalization . Children , senior citizens , people with chronic illnesses and those with weak immune systems tend to be at highest risk for complications , according to the National Institutes of Health .
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King Nut says salmonella found in 5-pound tub of peanut butter . At least 399 people have been infected in 42 states . CDC , public health officials working to determine source of outbreak . California has most cases at 55 ; outbreak may have killed Minnesotan .
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- A police chase through central Dallas , Texas , ended on the runways of Love Field after a man driving a stolen pickup truck crashed through the airport 's gates Thursday afternoon , officials said . Police had tried to stop the truck on a nearby street after they realized it was taken during an aggravated robbery in Fort Worth , Texas , on Wednesday , Dallas police said in a statement . The driver refused to stop and the chase began shortly after 2:30 p.m. . The man drove the silver Chevrolet through an airport gate and down one runway , drove across the taxiway to another and back in the opposite direction . `` Air traffic was suspended on that runway , however there were several plane -LSB- s -RSB- at the opposite end of the runway that the suspect began driving towards , '' the statement said . `` Supervisors monitoring the pursuit made the decision to terminate the pursuit by whatever means necessary so as to preserve the safety of the occupants of the planes . Officers were able to strike the suspect vehicle with their police car , causing it to spin out and ultimately come to a stop . The suspect was taken into custody shortly after that . '' A knife believed to have been used in the Fort Worth robbery was recovered in the truck , police said . The suspect was identified as Michael Laurence Brown , 46 . Police said the suspect may be linked to other crimes . Charges in the airport incident will follow an initial investigation , police said . `` Although all major incidents such as this are reviewed to ensure all proper procedures were followed , it appears all the officers involved did an outstanding job to bring a dangerous pursuit to a safe end while getting a violent criminal off the streets , '' according to the police statement . Four commercial carriers and several general aviation companies use the airport , located just north of downtown Dallas . The chase shut down operations for about 10 minutes , forcing one arriving aircraft to delay its landing and holding departing planes on the ground , FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen said .
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NEW : Police were worried suspect would try to drive into planes . Man crashes airport gates in Texas car chase . Chase shut down Love Field for about 10 minutes .
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[[122, 199], [1913, 1964]]
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-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- The death toll from massive floods in Pakistan rose to 1,497 on Friday as U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon said the crisis is a `` slow-motion tsunami '' that is expected to grow . The number of homeless as a result of flooding has doubled to 4 million . Ban urged the international community to give more aid during a special fundraising meeting Thursday night . `` Make no mistake , '' he said . `` This is a global disaster , a global challenge . It is one of the greatest tests of global solidarity in our times . '' The U.N. secretary-general , who traveled to Pakistan last weekend to visit sites devastated by the disaster , said almost 20 million people need shelter , food and emergency care . `` That is more than the entire population hit by the Indian Ocean tsunami , the Kashmir earthquake , Cyclone Nargis , and the earthquake in Haiti -- combined , '' he said . Are you there ? Share your photos and videos . The United Nations has already appealed for $ 460 million over the next three months , Ban said , and although donors delivered more than a half , the available resources are not sufficient to meet the needs on the ground . The European Commission has pledged 40 million euros -LRB- $ 51 million -RRB- since July 31 for the flood victims . It said it will mobilize an additional 30 million euros -LRB- about $ 38 million -RRB- . `` This disaster is like few the world has ever seen . It requires a response to match , '' Ban said . `` Pakistan needs a flood of support . '' Secretary of State Hillary Clinton , who also attended the General Assembly meeting , announced an additional $ 60 million in U.S. aid . The funds bring to $ 150 million the amount pledged to Pakistan by the United States . `` I want the people of Pakistan to know : The United States will be with you through this crisis , '' she said . `` We will be with you as the rivers rise and fall . We will be with you as you replant your fields and repair your roads . And we will be with you as you meet the long-term challenge to build a stronger nation and a better future for your families . '' Clinton urged other nations to help the nation meet its funding goals . Analysts have blamed `` donor fatigue '' for the delay in aid . Pakistan has been on a seemingly constant round of donor needs -- to revive its feeble economy , to fight the Taliban and to recover from the 2005 Kashmir earthquake and the 2009 refugee crisis .
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U.N. chief calls Pakistan floods `` a global disaster '' The number of homeless doubles to 4 million . Almost 20 million people need shelter , food and emergency care .
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[[407, 435], [190, 263], [530, 556], [641, 711]]
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