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Australian forces receiving Falcon radios MELBOURNE, Fla., Jan. 31 (UPI) -- Australia's Department of Defense has ordered Falcon radios from the Harris Corp. of Florida for its armed forces. The order is part of Australia's tactical radio modernization program for its armed forces and will provide service personnel with secure Type-1 voice and data communications. The value of the order is $235 million. "This order expands our ongoing collaboration with the Australian Department of Defense, which is working toward developing a networked Australian brigade in 2013," said Brendan O'Connell, president of Harris RF Communications' International Business unit. Our solutions and proven expertise in tactical communications are making a difference for (Australian forces) by delivering voice, video and data across the battlefield. We're also providing the (Australian military) with world-class field support, highlighted by the recent opening of our regional headquarters in Brisbane. Harris said that under the order it will mainly supply Falcon III AN/PRC-152 (C) multi-band, multi-mode handheld tactical radios featuring line-of-sight and beyond-line-of-sight communications. The units operate on 30-512 MHz frequency range. It is also supplying the Falcon II AN/PRC-150 (C) manpack, Type-1 certified HF radio, which covers the 1.6-60 MHz frequency range.

Romney offers robust defense of Bain tenure Jan 17 10:07 AM US/Eastern By Beth Fouhy Associated Press MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (AP) - Mitt Romney is offering a robust defense of his work at a venture capital fund. The former Massachusetts governor was grilled about his work at Bain Capital in a nationally televised Republican presidential debate Monday. Romney said Bain Capital did its best to grow companies and create jobs. He said venture capital is a major part of the economy, and he's proud to be part of it. Romney said Bain's investments weren't always successful and some of its companies went bankrupt. But he said the firm had a record of building strong businesses. Romney has come under attack by rivals including Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum for his work at Bain. Romney acknowledged President Barack Obama would probably criticize his record at Bain if Romney becomes the GOP nominee.

Chinese fire on Tibetan protesters, 1 dead: advocacy group BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese troops fired on thousands of Tibetans who staged a protest in southwestern Sichuan province Monday, killing one and wounding as many as 30 of the demonstrators, an overseas advocacy group said. Free Tibet, a London-based group that campaigns for Tibetan self-determination, said in an emailed statement that up to several thousand Tibetans gathered at an intersection in Luhuo, about 590 kilometers west of Sichuan's capital of Chengdu, and marched on the local government offices, where security forces opened fire about midday. The Tibetans were protesting the arrest earlier in the day of some Tibetans in connection with the distribution of pamphlets carrying the slogan, "Tibet needs Freedom," and stating that more Tibetans were ready to stage self-immolations. The report could not be immediately verified. A staff member of the county public security bureau said he was not aware of any incident. There's nothing happening. I don't know about anything," he said, before abruptly hanging up. Chinese security forces have been on edge after 16 incidents of self-immolation by ethnic Tibetans over the last year in response to growing resentment of Beijing's controls on religion. Some have called for the return of the Dalai Lama, their exiled Buddhist leader. The western edge of Sichuan province where the recent unrest has been concentrated is dominated by ethnic Tibetans, and lies next to the official Tibetan Autonomous Region. Free Tibet also said many Tibetans in the area decided not to celebrate the Lunar New Year, the most important Chinese holiday that began Monday, because of China's tight security grip on Tibet. China's Foreign Ministry has branded the self-immolators "terrorists" and has said the Dalai Lama, whom it condemns as a supporter of violent separatism, should take the blame. Reporting by Ken Wills and Chris Buckley; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani

Greece Publishes List of 4,000 Tax Scofflaws In a name-and-shame campaign aimed at getting tax evaders to pay up, the Greek government published a list of more than 4,000 people, including several household names, who owe a total of $19 billion to the cash-strapped state. The list published late Sunday includes the veteran crooner Tolis Voskopoulos with debts of nearly $650,000; Pavlos Psomiadis, the owner of a defunct insurance firm, with arrears of nearly $2 million; and Giorgos Batatoudis, a former soccer club president who owes more than $3 million. Greece is under pressure from foreign creditors to curb endemic tax evasion, a key barrier to its economic recovery.

Tweener Sunday provides some super fireworks Sunday was supposed to be the day the sports potatoes got off their couches. This is the NFL's contribution to society. No games - and no, the Pro Bowl is not a game. It is an exhibition. The kids down the block playing flag football hit harder. It is a day to be devoid of five guys, sitting at a table in a TV studio, making six-figure salaries to state the obvious for an audience that will nod in deep appreciation at being told that the Patriots need to establish their running game. On this annual blessed day in January, there weren't even any concussions. It was Tweener Sunday, the weekend day between the semifinal mayhem and the final mayhem, that football game with the Roman Numerals. Various reasons have been given for this pause in the action, including allowing teams more time to heal up from a season of mayhem. The real reason is that the NFL seeks another week for the media to get on its hands and knees and worship. One more five-column picture, one more TV interview with the extra-point-holder, and those 30-second commercials during the Roman Numeral Game will cost $10 million next year, up from $9.5 million. So, just because the NFL allows a Tweener Sunday doesn't mean we are supposed to lose focus, as Jimmy or Howie or Coach Cowher might say. But this time, two noncontact sports - tennis and golf - messed that up. First, there was this tennis tournament on the underside of the world, the Australian Open. If you were really into it you could have stayed up all night and watched the men's final. If not, there it was on a Sunday morning replay, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic, going at it in one of the more riveting tennis matches in recent memory. They played seven minutes short of six hours. Djokovic won in five spellbinding sets. They served for the entire time at speeds reaching 130 mph. Most of us, even in our youth and even with decent athletic skills, wouldn't be able to twitch before those were past us. They say that pro basketball players are the best-conditioned athletes. They say that major league baseball players have the best eyes and reflexes. You watch Nadal and Djokovic and you wonder about that. Men's tennis now has incredible three-headed star power - Djokovic, Nadal and Roger Federer. It also has a No. 4, Andy Murray, trying mightily to make it a Big Four and always putting up a great fight before falling short. The entertainment value is huge, and Southern California gets the next dose. The next big event on the tennis calendar, featuring all four of the Big-Three-Plus-One, will be at Indian Wells in mid-March. If that didn't keep you on the couch, the replay of the golf from Abu Dhabi did. Tiger Woods was contending, Rory McIlroy was looking as sharp as he did when he ran away with last year's U.S. Open, and a delightful new player was emerging. Robert Rock, with a playing style that mirrored his name, beat them both and won a tournament that had one of the better fields ever in a non-major. The bearded Rock, looking like a cross between Luke Wilson and Brad Pitt, was selling tees and golf gloves in a pro shop in England nine years ago. He was also hero-worshiping Woods, whom he beat Sunday and said afterward, "Just playing with Tiger is a special honor in itself." Rock, 34, was asked in his news conference what he thought he would be most remembered for, before this win. He smiled, thought about it, and said, "Not much." Handsome, self-effacing and able to putt. Meet golf's newest matinee idol. And then there was Brandt Snedeker, another budding star and kind of a Huck Finn character. He won the day at the San Diego Zoo, also known as the Farmers Insurance Open. For a while, this had everything Tweener Sunday is supposed to: a boring golf tournament with somebody holding a big lead going into the final round. That somebody was Kyle Stanley, a familiar name to dozens who had sports reporters writing their leads and planning dinner and sports editors making room on Page 6 when he still had six holes left. Going into No. 18, Stanley led by three shots and Snedeker, who was second and had finished, was already in the media tent, talking to reporters about how satisfying second place could be. Then Stanley hit a decent third shot onto the sloping, par-five 18th green and the ball spun back and rolled, agonizingly, down the slope and into the water. His next shot, his fifth, went too high onto the green to assure himself of the needed two putts to win. And when he, indeed, three-putted - for an eight! - they went and found Snedeker for a playoff, which he won on the second extra hole. It was a stunning reversal of fortune. Stanley hadn't even choked. He just got horribly unlucky. You could almost imagine fans who had walked in the gallery and watched Stanley dominate the entire tournament, turning to each other and doing their best Jim Mora imitation. Playoff? Playoff!! After their match in Australia, an exhausted Djokovic praised an exhausted Nadal and Nadal returned the favor. In Abu Dhabi, Rock talked about being in awe of Woods, and Woods praised Rock's unflappable play. At Torrey Pines, Snedeker repeatedly voiced empathy for Stanley's misfortune, and Stanley wept in the media room. It was great theater on Tweener Day - competition, sportsmanship, drama. The Roman Numeral Game will have to go some to match it. It might take five concussions.

Report: PSU Fired Paterno Over Lack of Action Penn State's trustees agonized over the future of legendary football coach Joe Paterno but ultimately decided to fire the Hall of Famer in part over what they said was his failure to go to authorities with a report of alleged sexual assault of a child by an assistant coach nearly a decade ago, according to a report published Thursday in The New York Times. Some of the 13 trustees interviewed by the Times (http://nyti.ms/AcHOxv) said they were also troubled by Paterno greeting fans and supporters on his front lawn - and leading them in school cheers - just after the release of a scathing grand jury report detailing child sex abuse allegations against retired assistant coach Jerry Sandusky. The trustees said they were also concerned about Paterno's ability to lead the team during the scandal that also resulted in the ouster of university President Graham Spanier, but most jarring was the feeling the coach had failed to do enough after learning of a 2002 incident involving Sandusky and a boy in an on-campus shower. "Every adult has a responsibility for every other child in our community. ...We have a responsibility for ensuring that we can take every effort that's within our power not only to prevent further harm to that child, but to every other child," said trustee Kenneth Frazier. The alleged 2002 shower assault ultimately resulted in charges against two university officials, athletic director Tim Curley and vice president Gary Schultz. They're charged with failing to report suspected child abuse and perjury related to their testimony before the grand jury. Paterno's attorney defended the coach's actions in a statement, saying Paterno passed on a report about an alleged assault to his superiors at the university believing they would investigate and act appropriately. Sandusky is charged with sexually assaulting 10 young boys he met through The Second Mile, a charity he founded in 1977. He denies the allegations.

Apple iCloud: will the cloud finally go mainstream? What Apple has brought, however, is its gift for simplicity. To use iCloud all you need to do is turn it on. Microsoft's solution is a little more complicated and spread over more services, though the company does promise "seamless" integration across all devices with Windows 8. Last November, Omar Shahine, Microsoft's group program manager for SkyDrive, wrote: "While mainstream users are only just starting to embrace personal cloud storage, we're seeing more demand as people buy and use more types of devices and need to access content across them." Apple's iCloud not only stores backups, it also syncs your files to all your devices. Take a photo with your iPhone and it will be pushed to the library on your Mac within seconds. Download an app on your iPad and a version will arrive on your iPhone simultaneously. The icing on the cake is iTunes Match, which will sync your music library with Apple's catalogue - even if you didn't buy those songs from Apple. While iCloud is free, iTunes Match charges £21.99 a year to store up to 25,000 songs. In addition to the back-up, you can re-download the songs as high quality files. Amazon and Google launched music storage services last year, though neither is available in Britain yet. The crucial difference is that Apple scans your library and simply notes which of the songs you own within its catalogue. Songs need to be manually uploaded only if they are not in the iTunes catalogue. Tim Cook, Apple's chief executive, said earlier this week: "I see it as a fundamental shift, recognizing that people had numerous devices, and they wanted the bulk of their content in the cloud, and easily accessible from all of the devices. I think we're seeing the response from that, and with 85 million customers in just three months, it is just not a product. It is a strategy for the next decade. This 'fundamental shift' is the end of the "digital hub" vision that Apple pursued for a decade from 2001. That assumed that your computer was the centre of your digital life where everything would be stored and with which every device, such as your camera and your iPod, would sync. Now, with so many different devices - smartphones, tablets, cameras, MP3 players, portable games consoles, set-top boxes and more - all capable of creating, storing and sharing content, the digital hub model no longer works. Enter the cloud. Apple doesn't want you to worry about where your files are. Just trust that they will be where they should be when you need them. While that rankles with savvy computer users, who like to retain control of these things themselves, it's the ideal pitch for mainstream users, for whom keeping these things in sync was always a chore. There were MP3 players before the iPod, touchscreen phones before the iPhone and tablet computers before the iPad. Likewise, there were cloud services before iCloud. Apple's pitch is to do what it always does: simplify the process, make it easy to use and sell it in a way that is easy to understand. If they get it right then 2012 will be the year that the cloud goes mainstream.

At Givenchy, Riccardo Tisci was inspired by the cool glamour of Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" and by early techno culture. The results were 10 long lean looks, encrusted with bugle beads, sequins and croc paillettes, that said red-carpet rebel, especially when finished with a jeweled nose ring (seen earlier this week at Givenchy men's) and massive chandelier earrings. One exquisite example of why his influences were so cleverly paired: an Erté-worthy silhouette, fully embroidered on the bias, worn over a ribbed muscle tank.

Fannie and Freddie don't deserve blame for bubble In other words, America's mortgage securitization machine was fundamentally broken. It created millions of mortgage loans that, even under reasonable economic assumptions, stood little chance of being repaid - and were not. As a result, hundreds of billions of dollars were lost as defaults and write-downs brought the financial system, and the wider economy, to the brink, requiring a massive government bailout. Also to blame, of course, were regulators, who gave the private mortgage market little, if any, oversight. The market's watchdogs were lulled to sleep by a misplaced view that self-interested private financial institutions would regulate themselves. This flawed thinking was most pervasive at the nation's most important financial regulatory agency, the Federal Reserve. Getting history right for this dark economic period is critical if we are to design a better mortgage finance system for the future. If Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are responsible for the debacle, then perhaps government's role in a future mortgage finance system should be minimal. But if private lenders deserve most of the blame, the case grows for giving government an important role in backstopping and overseeing the system. If it grows like a weed, it probably is a weed. This age-old banking adage aptly applies to the private mortgage lending business during the housing bubble. Between 2004 and 2007, private lenders originated three quarters of all subprime and alt-A mortgage loans. These were loans to financially fragile homeowners with credit scores under 660, well below the U.S. average, which is closer to 700. But only a fourth of such loans were originated by government agencies, including Fannie, Freddie and the Federal Housing Administration. The dollar amount of subprime and alt-A loans made during this period by the private sector was jaw-dropping, reaching nearly $600 billion at the height of the lending frenzy in 2006. For context, this is about equal to the total amount Americans currently owe on bank credit cards. By contrast, government lenders made just over $100 billion in subprime and alt-A loans in 2006. Even in 2007, when the housing market was beginning its free fall, private lenders still handed out more than $300 billion via these very shaky mortgage loans. All this can be seen in the share of total residential mortgage debt insured or owned by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. At the start of 2002, before the housing boom got going, the two agencies" market share accounted for almost 54 percent of all mortgage debt. By summer 2006, the bubble's apex, their share had fallen to only 40 percent. It is difficult to see how the agencies could have been responsible for inflating the housing bubble at a time when they were losing a full 14 percentage points of market share. Indeed, the opposite was true, as their position in the housing market rapidly diminished.

Many women can skip frequent bone scans ATLANTA (AP) - New research could mean millions of older women can skip frequent screening tests for osteoporosis: If an initial bone scan shows no big problems, many can safely wait 15 years to have another one, the study suggests. Government advisers and leading doctor groups urge osteoporosis screening, but no one has known how often that should happen. The findings offer the best information to date on that question, experts said. "This is landmark, in the sense that it could allow us to move on to more precise guidelines," said Dr. Heidi Nelson, a researcher at the Oregon Health & Science University who is an expert on the topic. At issues are bone mineral density tests, which usually are done through X-rays and cost around $250. It takes about 10 minutes and involves less radiation than what's emitted during a chest X-ray. Medicare pays for testing every two years. The new study feeds concerns that the tests are done too often, at least for some women. It's an expenditure of time, it's exposure to radiation, and it's cost. And there's no reason to expose yourself to any risks if there's going to be no benefit," explained Dr. Virginia Moyer, who heads the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force, a government panel that issues testing guidelines. The test measures how thick bones are in certain spots, usually focusing on the hip and lower spine. Doctors use it to gain early warning of osteoporosis, a bone-thinning disease that can be staved off with better diet and exercise and treated with bone-building drugs. Nearly half of all women older than 50 will break a bone because of osteoporosis, according to the National Osteoporosis Foundation. The government task force recommends that all women over 65 get a scan. The panel also recommends testing for younger postmenopausal women who seem at higher risk for fractures. But the task force has not said how often follow-up tests should be done, just that a couple years between tests are needed. There are no immediate plans to update the task force's advice for osteoporosis screenings, but the new study will be an important consideration when the panel acts again, Moyer said. The new, government-funded research involves nearly 5,000 women aged 67 years and older in a national health study that began in the 1980s. None had osteoporosis at the outset. The researchers looked at how the women did on bone density tests, and watched for who got osteoporosis and when. They were followed for 15 years. Based on that, the researchers concluded that women with a healthy initial test could wait as long as 15 years before getting a second screening. But women deemed at moderate risk should get tested about every five years. And women at high risk should get tested more often, perhaps even annually. The research, published in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine, was led by Dr. Margaret Gourlay of the University of North Carolina. She worries that her findings might be misinterpreted and cause some women to wait longer than they should for their next test. She cited earlier research suggesting not enough women get the recommended initial scan. The 15-year interval applies only to postmenopausal women judged to be at low risk for osteoporosis from the first screening, she noted, and perhaps fewer than half of U.S. women over 65 fall into that category. But she said even for those women, other risk factors have to be considered: smoking, slim build, prior broken bones and taking medication that has an eroding effect on bones. She also noted that osteoporosis becomes a greater risk in the oldest patients, so a woman with a moderate risk who is 85 or older might be better off getting tested every three years instead of every five. New England Journal: http://www.nejm.org Osteoporosis information: http://www.bones.nih.gov

COL BKB: Indiana 103, Iowa 89 BLOOMINGTON, Ind., Jan. 29 (UPI) -- Indiana's Cody Zeller went 11-of-12 from the field en route to 26 points Sunday and the 17th-ranked Hoosiers cruised to a 103-89 victory over Iowa. The Hoosiers (17-5, 5-5 Big Ten) also used 15 points from Christian Watford and 14 from Verdell Jones III to win for the second time in three games. Victor Oladipo contributed 12 points off the bench for Indiana. The Hawkeyes (11-11, 3-6) were led by Josh Oglesby's 24 points. Matt Gatens added 20 for Iowa.

Drought Dries Up Mexico's Marijuana Crop Drug growers in Mexico are feeling the heat, but not from enhanced government security. A harsh drought has reduced their crops of marijuana and opium poppies and is forcing cartels to ramp of their production of other, synthetic drugs. One effect of the lack of rains is that drug planting has "declined considerably," said Gen. Pedro Gurrola, commander of army forces in the state of Sinaloa, the cradle of the drug cartel by the same name. Gurrola said army surveillance flights have detected fewer plantations than in previous years. "We can see a lot less than in other years," Gurrola told reporters. It depends a lot on conditions. As you can see, everything is dry. Mexico's Drought Hurting Marijuana Growers He said planters were still trying to eke out crops. They try to adapt. Where there is a stream, a pit, they put pumps and hoses in there and try to produce as much as they can. But an army spokesman, Gen. Ricardo Trevilla, stressed that didn't mean a drop-off in the overall production of drug cartels. Trevilla, who was interviewed separately, said cartels have been increasingly turning to the production of synthetic drugs like methamphetamine, because they are easier to produce and are more profitable. He said synthetic drugs can be made faster, need less storage space and are harder to detect. Mexican authorities have been seizing increasing amounts of chemicals used in the manufacture of methamphetamine as well as finding increasingly large and sophisticated meth labs. Authorities seized 675 tons of a key precursor chemical in December alone, an amount that experts say was enough to produce an enormous amount of drugs.

WBA grant rematch claims Amir Khan promoter Amir Khan has been granted a rematch with Lamont Peterson by the World Boxing Association, according to his promoter. Richard Schaefer, chief executive of Golden Boy Promotions, reported overnight that the governing body have notified him of their "official decision" to order a rematch following the controversial bout last month. Khan lost both his WBA and IBF titles in a split decision defeat in Peterson's Washington DC hometown on December 10. The Englishman has vociferously complained about a number of issues since then, however, and has lobbied both governing bodies - and the Washington DC commission - to change the result to a no-contest and/or force the two men to fight again. Schaefer told RingTV they have got their wish. "I just received, half an hour ago, a letter from the WBA on their official decision that they are going to order an immediate rematch," Schaefer is reported as saying. I think that it's the right decision, and I hope that we can get the rematch done. Schaefer also told espn.com: "I'm thrilled that he's getting (the rematch) and hope we can start the negotiations and get the fight done. Amir and Lamont are both terrific young men and athletes who fought their hearts out in Washington in December and I'm sure this decision will get applause by fight fans around the world. The rematch will be one of the most anticipate fights of 2012 because both guys are exciting, young and I think it's exactly the kind of fight people want to see. Khan's advisors initially claimed Peterson's team voluntarily agreed to a rematch in the immediate aftermath of the bout only to apparently change their minds. And while the WBA have ordered the second fight, Peterson could still opt to relinquish that title rather than give Khan a second chance - particularly if the IBF, at a hearing on January 18, allow him to keep that belt without fighting Khan again.

Billionaire Roman Abramovich's $5M New Year's Bash Michael Regan/Getty Images How do rich and famous people usually spend New Year's Eve? Businessman Roman Abramovich, no. 53 on Forbes" list of billionaires, reportedly invited 400 of his closest friends and spent millions of dollars on a New Year's Eve bash at his estate in Gouverneur Bay of the French West Indies. Like last year's celebration in St. Barthelemy, this party also cost a reported $5 million and attracted a host of big-names including Rupert Murdoch, George Lucas, Marc Jacobs, Martha Stewart, Mischa Barton, Harvey Weinstein, Georgina Chapman and Jimmy Buffett, the New York Post reported. While some billionaires prefer celebrating in Dubai's Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, and others prefer exclusive parties in Monte Carlo, Abramovich seems to like his French Caribbean property. Abramovich, who built his wealth from oil, steel and mining, this year featured his 533-foot yacht, Eclipse, reported to have cost over $250 million. Forbes reported it was the world's largest yacht delivered in 2011. Last year performers at the bash were Beyonce, Prince and Gwen Stefani; this year the rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers counted down the new year. The owner of the U.K."s Chelsea soccer team, Abramovich reportedly hosted this year's party with his girlfriend, fashion designer Dasha Zhukova. Abramovich reportedly reached a divorce settlement with ex-wife Irina in 2007, leaving her with $300 million and at least four homes in the UK.

Tesla Teases Secret Model X Electric Crossover Tesla Motors The truth is out there, and it's coming February 9th. California electric carmaker Tesla Motors has released the first image of its secret Model X battery-powered crossover. The partial silhouette offering a hint of what's in store when the car is introduced in full at the company's design studio next week. The rendering, which appears on an invite to the event that was posted online by members of the Tesla Motor Club, shows the grille and the outline of the hood and the greenhouse. The styling of the vehicle appears to be consistent with the company's upcoming Model S sedan, the most notable difference being a more upright stance than the low-slung Model S. Read: Tesla Model S boasts 320 mile range, one-hour recharge time The Model X will be built on the same platform as the high-performance Model S, which begins deliveries later this year. The all-electric luxury sedan has a starting price of $57,400 and is available in three versions, with rages of 160, 230 and 320 miles per charge. The five-door hatchback is available with a pair of rear-facing jumpseats that allow it to carry up to seven passengers, said to be a personal request of Tesla founder Elon Musk, who has five children. All that Tesla has said about the size of the Model X so far is that it will be larger than the Audi Q7, which has three front-facing rows of seats. Estimated pricing for the Model X has not been mentioned, and it is not expected to go on sale until 2014. Both it and the Model S will be built at the company's factory in Fremont, CA, which was purchased from a now defunct Toyota-GM joint venture with the assistance of a $465 million loan from the Department of Energy. Will it live up to the hype being created around it? In a tweet announcing the webcast of the Feb 9th unveiling, Musk tweeted that "Most cars are pretty blah. This one is not. The world will see if he's telling the truth soon enough.

Moyes admits envy at pace of Spurs' progress Everton manager David Moyes admits it is "sad" his club have not been able to keep pace with the progress made by Tottenham Hotspur. The Scot believes Harry Redknapp's side are genuine title contenders, but remembers a time not so long ago when the two clubs were competing for European qualification. But while Tottenham have built on their Champions League debut last season and can move within three points of the Premier League leaders Manchester City with a win tonight at White Hart Lane, Everton are mid-table and 18 points behind their hosts. And Moyes knows his counterpart, Harry Redknapp, has benefited from having access to one thing he has not - money. "It is a little bit sad they are starting to pull away from us a little bit more than I would like," Moyes said. I think it was only three or four years ago us and Tottenham were competing neck-and-neck for European places. It is frustrating because all managers will tell you when you are close and competing with teams you never like to see them go away from you, but we are looking at them going away from us at this present time. They have continued to kick on and over the years they have got in some really good players. Rafael van der Vaart is one and Scott Parker another recently. Tottenham, arguably, might be the biggest spenders in the Premier League - they have always supported whoever the manager has been. We will work really hard and try to bring in players, produce our own players here, work with them, develop them and try to make them better. That is how we do it at Everton, we don't do it any other way. Moyes can only look on enviously at the resources which have been made available to Redknapp, who signed Parker from West Ham for £5m and brought in Manchester City striker Emmanuel Adebayor on loan. Moyes signed Royston Drenthe and the unknown Denis Stracqualursi on loan and added free agent Marcus Hahnemann as goalkeeping cover. However, he concedes that money is not solely responsible for Tottenham's success. They have a really good team and are title contenders. I think Harry mentioned it last season that he thought he was quite close," he added. I agreed with him because I thought he had a good chance last year of making the Champions League. Harry has come in and done a brilliant job with them and that is why, more than likely, it might see him become England manager. I think it would be great for England and deservedly so because he has a really exciting team, I think a team I would probably pay to go to watch, What they are doing and the way they are playing is terrific. Tonight's match was originally scheduled for the opening day of the season but had to be postponed because of the riots in London. Moyes would have much preferred to be playing Spurs in August instead of now, but having lost just once in their last five visits, the Everton manager remains positive. "By Harry's own recognition they were not in the best shape in the first few weeks," Moyes said. But it didn't happen so we have got the game now. Over the years the games have always been tight. Harry knows when he plays Everton his team have to play well to get a result and we will have to play really well because they are a very good side.

MoD to bolster Navy defences with £483m missile system Britain is to spend £483m on a cutting-edge air defence system designed to protect Royal Navy ships by blowing incoming missiles out of the air at more than 2,000mph. The Ministry of Defence will announce today it has awarded the contract to develop the Sea Ceptor to the British arm of European missile firm MBDA, which employs 500 people at its facilities in Hertfordshire, Gloucestershire and Greater Manchester. The missile system will reach speeds of up to Mach 3 and protect vessels over an area of about 500 square miles over land and sea by targeting and intercepting incoming projectiles. The missiles will replace the ageing Sea Wolf system due to be taken out of service by the Royal Navy in 2016 and comes as emerging powers, in particular China, begin to exert their naval power by building large naval fleets and offensive missile technology improves.

Scottish independence: Group calls for shift in referendum debate

No criminal charges for airmen who posed around casket Air Force Times In an August photo, airmen surround an open casket with another airman posed with a noose around his neck and chains across his body. The Air Force has concluded there was "no criminal conduct" by airmen who posed around an open casket with another airman inside pretending to be dead. The photo, which first came to light on Dec. 13 in the Air Force Times, drew outrage from military commanders, military wives, widows and others who saw it as mocking deceased service members. "Da Dumpt, Da Dumpt ... Sucks 2 Be U" was scribbled at the bottom of the photo. Rather than criminal charges, the airmen involved in the picture received administrative punishment because their conduct "brought discredit to both the military and themselves," Col. Gregory Reese, commander of the 37th Training Group, said in news release sent to msnbc.com. The Air Force said it does not disclose details of administrative actions due to privacy concerns. Read Monday's Air Force Times story "The investigation indicated that the photo was intended by those who took it to remind the students that they could be killed if they failed to pay attention while loading and unloading aircraft," Reese said. The service members in the picture were airmen with the 345th Training Squadron at Fort Lee, Va., where they learn to load and unload aircraft. Their unit is a detachment from a command at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio, Texas, which issued the news release about the punishment. The photo, it turned out, was a sort of unofficial class picture in which "creativity got ahead of common sense," Gerry Proctor, 37thTraining Wing spokesman, told msnbc.com. After the photo became public, Air Force Secretary Michael Donley, expressed concern that the photo might cause more turmoil for families of fallen troops. Such behavior is not consistent with our core values, and it is not representative of the Airmen I know. It saddens me that this may cause additional grief to the families of our fallen warriors," Donley told the Air Force Times. In response to the photo, 37th Training Wing commander, Col. Eric Axelbank issued a wing-wide policy that requires all class photography and memorabilia to be reviewed by squadron commanders. Proctor told msnbc.com that with the investigation complete and administrative punishment handed out, the Air Force considers the case closed.

Oprah talks endorsing Obama for second term

Ten ways to get cheaper flights While many of us consider holidays an integral part of our lives, this does not mean that we want to pay more for them than is necessary. With the vast majority of British tourists reaching their destinations via flights, finding cheap air travel has become a priority for many. Luckily there are a number of ways in which you can reduce the cost of your flights with just ten of them listed below: Consider your destination carefully and make sure you select an appropriate place for your holiday. Whilst you will naturally want to visit areas known for their thriving tourist industry and numerous attractions, some areas will be more expensive than others. Compare the prices offered by different flight providers to find the best deal. Flights to Tenerife, for example, will be offered by a vast number of operators and could therefore see you make hefty benefits. Travel in the early hours to get more competitive prices. Flights, like other forms of transport, have peak periods and late morning and afternoon flights will often be more expensive than those which depart late at night or early in the morning. Choose your airports carefully to find cheap flights. What city you fly to and depart from can influence the cost dramatically - for example London is typically more expensive than say Bristol, so always consider this when booking flights. Book your flights as part of a package deal. This will not only lower costs but will make it easier for you to plan and organise your trip away as well. Travel during off-peak months. Holidays are known for being more popular during school holidays and summer months so, if possible, avoid these times and take your holiday when it will be quieter and cheaper. Take an indirect flight. This will often be cheaper than a direct connection and may give you the chance to experience another country as well, thus adding to your holiday experience. Make sure you book your flights at the best time. Either booking far in advance or last minute is best for those after impressive savings - so make sure you are well prepared. If you intend to book your flights last minute then remember that there are risks involved and be prepared for every eventuality. Check what additional charges are incurred and take steps to address them. Things such as extra baggage allowances, in-flight meals and other services can all incur an extra cost so make sure you take a look at these and remove any which are not required. Also avoid purchasing food and drinks during the flight where possible as this will often incur a substantial cost. Review what class of travel you have selected. Whilst the vast majority of those looking for a cheap flight will opt for the lowest option it is important you consider all possibilities. Sometimes upgraded travel can be obtained at promotional prices, allowing you to enjoy increased comfort whilst still getting value for money.

Diamondback Avoids Criminal Charges in Insider Trading Case Diamondback Capital Management, one of the largest hedge funds ensnared by the government's insider trading crackdown, will not face criminal charges and will pay more than $9 million in civil fines to resolve its role in the investigation. The hedge fund has entered into a nonprosecution agreement with the United States attorney's office in Manhattan. The government agreed not to bring criminal charges against Diamondback, citing the fund's prompt cooperation and voluntary adoption of remedial measures. And under the terms of the proposed settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Diamondback will forfeit $6 million in ill-gotten gains. It will also pay a civil penalty of $3 million. In a departure from the S.E.C."s historical practices, Diamondback's pact with the S.E.C. does not include language that the fund "neither admits nor denies" any wrongdoing in the case. This month, the S.E.C. announced that it would no longer permit defendants to "neither admit nor deny" charges if the defendant admitted to or had been convicted of criminal violations. The new policy also applies to cases like the Diamondback one in which a company enters a nonprosecution agreement with criminal authorities. Diamondback, which is based in Stamford, Conn., was at the center of a big insider trading case brought by the government last week. Federal prosecutors announced criminal charges against seven individuals, accusing them of an insider trading scheme in which they earned a total of $62 million in illegal profits trading Dell stock while in possession of confidential information about the computer company. Two of the defendants were Diamondback employees. Federal authorities arrested Todd Newman, a former portfolio manager, and announced that a former analyst, Jesse Tortora, had pleaded guilty and was cooperating with the government. The S.E.C. filed parallel civil charges against the fund and the two former employees. "We believe that the proposed settlement appropriately sanctions the misconduct while giving due credit to Diamondback for its substantial assistance in the government's investigation and the pending actions against former employees and their co-defendants," George Canellos, the head of the S.E.C."s New York office, said in a statement. A lawyer for Mr. Newman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Diamondback was given little chance for survival when F.B.I. agents raided the fund in November 2010 in search of evidence of insider trading. The other three funds raided that fall - Level Global Investors, Loch Capital Management and Barai Capital - have shut down. Diamondback continues to operate after struggling with negative publicity from the investigation and investor withdrawals. Its assets under management have been cut in half, dropping to about $2.5 billion from more than $5 billion at the peak, according to people briefed on the fund. In a letter sent to its investors on Monday, Diamondback's co-founders, Richard Schimel and Larry Sapanski, said that an extensive internal review by the fund's outside counsel at WilmerHale found no evidence establishing improper trading by any Diamondback employees except for Mr. Newman and Mr. Tortora. Mr. Schimel and Mr. Sapanski, who both started their careers at SAC Capital Advisors, the giant Connecticut hedge fund run by the billionaire investor Steven A. Cohen, said the fund's principals, and not its investors, would bear all of the costs related to the investigation. "We are gratified finally to have reached closure on the government proceedings, and deeply regret the difficulties caused to our investors during the last 14 months," they wrote in a letter to the fund's investors on Monday. Everyone at Diamondback is looking forward to a successful 2012. An earlier version of this article misspelled the last name of Richard Schimel, one of Diamondback's co-founders.

Gas prices up 2 cents in past week AAA Mich.: Gas prices up 2 cents in past week Jan 30 12:24 PM US/Eastern (AP) - AAA Michigan said Monday that gasoline prices are up about 2 cents per gallon during the past week to a statewide average of $3.42. The auto club said the average is about 26 cents per gallon higher than last year at this time. Of the cities it surveys, AAA Michigan says the cheapest price for self-serve unleaded fuel is in the Flint area, where it's $3.38 a gallon. The highest average can be found in the Marquette area at $3.51. Dearborn-based AAA Michigan surveys 2,800 Michigan gas stations daily.

Black Sabbath guitarist has cancer By Ed Payne, CNN January 10, 2012 -- Updated 1311 GMT (2111 HKT) The original four members are working on a new album They last recorded together in 1978 (CNN) -- Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi has been diagnosed with cancer, a statement from the English heavy metal band said. In the early stages of lymphoma, "Iommi is currently working with his doctors to establish the best treatment plan," according to a statement released Monday. His bandmates would like everyone to send positive vibes to the guitarist at this time. The band said it will now travel to the United Kingdom to continue to work with Iommi. In November the four original members of Sabbath -- Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward -- announced they were recording a new album with producer Rick Rubin and would tour in the fall of 2012. The last album they recorded together was 1978's "Never Say Die!"

Roundup: Gingrich's moon-redistricting plan, rude Washington, Ron Paul's bike race Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich picked up an endorsement, our colleague Dan Eggen reports, but he might wish he hadn't. It came from a federal prison, where the former House speaker's old pal ex-Rep. Randy "Duke" Cunningham bides his time. Elsewhere, under Gingrich's space plan, moon colonists could eventually form a state, our colleague Joel Achenbach reports. Which, of course, means the state would have congressional representatives, which leads us to wonder what the AP style on that designation would be -- (R-Moon)? Also, our colleague Petula Dvorak tells us what anyone who's been around politics knows: Washington is pretty rude. And our favorite quote from last night's GOP debate came courtesy of Rep. Ron Paul (Tex.). The congressman is getting just a little testy about all these questions about his age (he's 76). I'm willing to challenge any if these gentlemen up here to a 25-mile bike ride any time of the day in the heat of Texas. Consider the gauntlet thrown.

Dead blackbirds fall again in Arkansas town (AP) - Blackbirds have fallen dead from the sky in Beebe, Ark., for the second New Year's Eve in a row. Television station KATV showed a radar image that it said showed a large mass over Beebe a few hours before midnight Saturday. The Little Rock station reported that hundreds of birds had died. Beebe animal control worker Hearst Taylor told KATV the reason for the bird deaths isn't known yet. Last year, fireworks were blamed for the deaths of thousands of birds. It wasn't immediately clear if year-end celebrations are again to blame. Beebe police imposed an impromptu fireworks ban Saturday night. Biologists said last year's kill was caused by the birds being rousted from their roosts and flying into homes, cars, telephone poles and each other.

There's more to politics than nice v nasty Newt Gingrich knows this. Rick Perry knows it too. They also know that the electoral fate of the Republican party relies on standing by this argument and bringing it home to American voters who are, in fact, extremely receptive to it already, being more inclined than Europeans to accept the need for a bit of ruthlessness in the pursuit of productive progress and long-term wellbeing. So why did they do it? There was more to this than Gingrich's longing for revenge, even though he certainly did want to retaliate for the blood-curdlingly negative campaign that Romney had run against him in Iowa. And there was more to it than mindless opportunism on Perry's part. What they were doing was what politicians often do when they are trading off their convictions for a momentary popularity grab - and here comes the British analogy. They were engaging in the nice v nasty game. In times of political crisis or confusion, there is always a category of people or forces which is regarded as incorrigibly wicked, against which the rest of the "nice" population is cast as blameless and in need of protection. In the Eighties, it was the trade unions who were the nasties and the put-upon strike victims who were blameless and "nice." Now it is the bankers and the hedge-fund managers who are the devils incarnate and whose pay David Cameron promises to limit - even though that is probably legislatively impossible. There is almost always some justification for these Manichean generalisations: the behaviour of a whole cohort of capitalist outriders over the past decade has been appalling and criminally irresponsible. But politicians here - and now, it would seem, in the US - have adopted a dangerously short-sighted formula: identifying themselves unfailingly with the indeterminate "blameless" others and joining in the demonising not just of a certain group of capitalist practitioners but implicitly of the entire system which those practitioners have abused. Certainly there is a need for free-market economics to be rescued from those who distort and discredit it, but that is the argument that must be made: that this system has delivered mass prosperity (and the self-determination that comes with it) on a scale unprecedented in human history, and that it deserves to be saved from the spoilers. The logic by which real wealth (the kind that can legitimately be spent either by individuals or governments) is created, and the conditions under which it grows and is made accessible to the largest number of people, needs to be explained and defended over and over again. If it is not then the grotesque mistakes of the past decade - which mistook debts for assets and borrowing for growth - will be repeated over and over again. Instead, the politicians play out their phoney duel with the pantomime villains of the moment. Mr Cameron and his Chancellor dare not repeal the 50p rate of income tax, even if it produces little revenue and drives wealth creators from the country, because they cannot risk being seen as friends of the "nasties." Republican presidential candidates repudiate the workings of the free market, which they know created miraculous opportunities for generations of immigrants to America, because they want to be on the side of the "nice" people who hate the banks - especially the ones that were bailed out with taxpayers" money. Indeed, most American voters would probably have preferred to take their chances with a wrecked economy than see institutions saved from the consequences of their own mistakes, which should make standing up for the virtues of self-reliance and freedom quite easy in America. So Romney will probably hold his nerve. Whether Cameron is up for the fight is an open question.

Strike Grips Belgium Ahead of European Union Summit BRUSSELS - Belgium was paralyzed by a national strike Monday as unions, angry at austerity measures, timed their protest to coincide with a one-day meeting of European Union leaders in the capital, Brussels. The rail network was shut down and flights were severely disrupted with the airport at Charleroi, which is a hub for low-cost carrier Ryanair, closed by the first general strike in Belgium since 1993. Trams, bus and metro services in Brussels were suspended, the transportation company said. High-speed international trains, such as the Eurostar from London and Thalys from Paris, were among those canceled. Belgian media reported that most government buildings and many schools were closed and that no postal services were operating. Many stores were also closed and striking workers erected barriers to block access to industrial zones. In central Brussels, traffic was light, however, as many workers stayed at home. Those who did venture out braved icy temperatures and light snow to walk to work. The country's main airport at Zaventem in Brussels remained open but canceled some flights and warned travelers to check with their airlines before coming to the airport. But some planes were taking off and landing and those were expected to include flights bringing European leaders who were due to start their one-day meeting Monday afternoon. The meeting, which will focus on efforts to contain Europe's debt crisis, is also expected to discuss ideas to stimulate growth and jobs. But Belgium is one of many European nations battling to control its budget and unions are angry over plans to cut spending and raise taxes.

Venus Williams out of Australian Open through illness

EBay Seller Seeks a Cool $1 Million for President Obama's Chrysler Cars with presidential provenance have been known to command hefty premiums at auction. One eBay seller is hoping to sell a 2005 Chrysler 300C that reportedly belonged to Barack Obama for a downright princely sum. The car's owner, who has chosen to remain anonymous, listed the car on the auction Web site this week with a starting bid of $1 million. In the interest of preserving that anonymity and putting a professional gloss on the listing, the owner engaged Lisa Czibor, an eBay veteran of 11,722 transactions with a 100 percent feedback rating from satisfied sellers and buyers, to sell the car. Ms. Czibor said in a telephone interview that the current owner purchased the car from the Chicago-area dealer who sold Mr. Obama a Ford Escape Hybrid when he began his run for the presidency. According to a September 2008 article in Newsweek, Mr. Obama was criticized for driving a Hemi-powered gas-guzzler while he was haranguing Detroit for not building fuel-efficient cars. According to the eBay listing, Mr. Obama drove the big Chrysler roughly 19,000 miles from the time he acquired it in 2004 until he sold it in 2007. The car now has 20,800 miles on the odometer, according to the listing, which also says the seller has paperwork supporting the claim that Mr. Obama had owned the car. The listing is set to expire on Wednesday night. Asked on Wednesday evening whether she had received any bids, Ms. Czibor said she had not, adding that knowledgeable eBay buyers tended to wait for the last minute to bid. When asked, she said she did not believe that the $1 million starting bid was excessively optimistic. "People paid a million for the Bartman ball, and then blew it up," she said, referring to the baseball touched by Steve Bartman during a 2003 Chicago Cubs playoff game at Wrigley Field. Mr. Bartman's interference was thought to have cost the Chicago Cubs a trip to the World Series. The Bartman ball, however, was sold for $106,000, according to Sports Illustrated. It was subsequently detonated. Ms. Czibor also cited a $2.1 million selling price for the 1977 Peugeot 504 owned by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of Iran. The sedan sold for £1.5 million, or about $2.2 million, according to The Daily Mail. In another recent sale of a vehicle with presidential ties, the hearse that carried President John F. Kennedy's body from Parkland Memorial Hospital to Love Field sold for $176,000 at Barrett-Jackson's auction in Scottsdale, Ariz., last weekend. One car Ms. Czibor did not mention was the 2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee said to have been owned by Mr. Obama, which was purchased for $26,437.50 at auction in May 2010. "I really feel it was a bargain," John Reznikoff, the auction winner, said in an interview days after claiming his prize. If bidding for the 300C even approaches $1 million, it would certainly make Mr. Reznikoff happy. Should the Chrysler fail to sell Wednesday night, it would probably be relisted, Ms. Czibor said.

Rupert Cornwell: Relaxed rules for wealthy backers has led to a new low in negative campaigning Money has always played a vital role in US elections. The rules were tightened after the 1972 election, in response to such abuses as Nixon's sinister slush fund CREEP, used among other things to pay off the Watergate burglars, by imposing limits on individual donations and introducing voluntary federal funding for campaigns. Further restrictions came in 2002, with bipartisan legislation limiting contributions of so-called "soft money," not directly linked to a candidate's specific campaign. But those changes had modest success at best. The 2008 presidential and Congressional elections cost an unprecedented $5.3bn (£3.5bn) - and that was before the January 2010 ruling by the US Supreme Court that limits on corporate (and thus in practice individual) funding of political broadcasts violated Americans' rights to free speech. The only proviso was that such broadcasts could not be directly co-ordinated with an individual campaign. Some hope. The cash floodgates opened, and the Super PAC was born. Under existing law, individual donations to a campaign cannot exceed $2,500 (£1,600), while ordinary political action committees are limited to $5,000. For the Super PAC however, the sky's the limit. Each Republican candidate has one. Technically they act independently of his campaign. In practice they are funded by wealthy backers or groups of backers, and run by former staffers of the candidate - who with or without formal contact know exactly what's required. The result has been a tidal wave of targeted negative advertising. Regrettable it may be, but negative advertising works. This truth has been demonstrated by many academic studies and by polling trends and results in actual elections, most recently last week's Iowa caucuses that began the 2012 primary season. In early December, Newt Gingrich, the former Speaker, was surging in the polls, and took a clear lead over the generally accepted frontrunner Mitt Romney. The Romney campaign saw Mr Gingrich as their most dangerous opponent, and hit back accordingly. Or rather "Restore Our Future," Mr Romney's Super PAC, hit back, with a $1m-plus blitz of TV advertising accusing Mr Gingrich of such grievous violations of conservative orthodoxy as supporting action to counter climate change and amnesty for illegal immigrants. Mr Gingrich sank steadily in the polls, and finished a disappointing fifth on 3 January. But he is now taking his revenge. "Winning Our Future," his Super PAC, last week received from Sheldon Adelson, a billionaire casino owner, a donation of $5m (2,000 times larger than the maximum permitted direct individual contribution to a campaign). Thus armed, "Winning Our Future" has booked $3.4m of TV time in South Carolina, a good chunk of which will be used to attack Mr Romney's controversial record at Bain Capital, the private equity firm he founded. Super PACs, however, are not a Republican monopoly. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, 264 of them now exist, including "Priorities USA Action," which backs Barack Obama. Nor are they confined to presidential politics. In 2010, more than 300 groups not affiliated with a political party spent $266m to influence the last mid-term elections.

FTC Sues to Block Omnicare's Bid to Buy Rival Pharmacy Provider PharMerica Deal Would Lead to Higher Costs for Medicare Patients and Taxpayers, Agency Alleges WASHINGTON, Jan. 27, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Federal Trade Commission issued a complaint to block Omnicare, Inc.'s hostile acquisition of rival long-term care pharmacy provider PharMerica Corporation, alleging that the combination of the two largest U.S. long-term care pharmacies would harm competition and enable Omnicare to raise the price of drugs for Medicare Part D consumers and others. In its complaint, the FTC charges that a deal combining Omnicare and PharMerica would significantly increase Omnicare's already substantial bargaining leverage by dramatically increasing the number of skilled nursing facilities, known as SNFs, that receive long-term care pharmacy services from the company. Due to its substantial market share, the FTC alleges that the combined firm likely would be a "must have" for Medicare Part D prescription drug plans, which are responsible for providing subsidized prescription drug benefit coverage for most SNF residents and other Medicare beneficiaries. According to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) of the Department of Health and Human Services, the proposed acquisition "appears likely to result in higher reimbursement rates . . . and thereby to increase the cost to CMS (and therefore the U.S. government and U.S. taxpayers) as well as any individuals who pay out-of-pocket costs in connection with such services." "If Omnicare is allowed to purchase its biggest and only national competitor, it will diminish competition and raise health care costs - leaving taxpayers and patients to foot the bill," said Richard Feinstein, Director of the FTC's Bureau of Competition. The Bureau will continue to be vigilant in our efforts to prevent these sorts of anticompetitive deals. The FTC's administrative complaint is part of the agency's ongoing efforts to maintain competition in the U.S. health care sector, which benefits consumers by keeping prices low and quality and choice of products and services high. This year, more than 1.6 million Part D Medicare beneficiaries are expected to require long-term care while living in an SNF, and about 1.1 billion prescriptions per year are processed under Part D on behalf of approximately 29 million beneficiaries. Long-term Care Pharmacies. Unlike traditional retail pharmacies, long-term care pharmacies do not provide medications directly to "walk-in" consumers from nearby homes. Instead, long-term pharmacies work with SNFs and other institutional providers to arrange for the delivery and administration of prescription medications to the SNF's residents. Most SNF residents need help with the ordering, delivery, and administration of their drugs, and a majority of them get prescription drug coverage from a Part D prescription drug plan. To protect this fragile population and ensure they receive the Part D benefits they are entitled to, CMS requires Part D plans to provide SNF residents with "convenient access" to a network of long-term care pharmacies, such as Omnicare and PharMerica. This ensures that SNF residents can get their prescription drugs from a long-term care pharmacy that contracts with the residents' chosen Part D health plan. Health plans that cannot provide their beneficiaries with "convenient access" to long-term care pharmacies risk being barred from offering Medicare Part D health plans. Omnicare, headquartered in Covington, Kentucky, owns and operates approximately 204 long-term care pharmacies in 44 states. In 2010, Omnicare had revenues totaling about $6.1 billion. PharMerica, headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, owns and operates approximately 97 long-term pharmacies in 43 states. In 2010, PharMerica had revenues of approximately $1.8 billion. The FTC's Complaint. According to the FTC's complaint, Omnicare's proposed acquisition of PharMerica, the second-largest long-term care pharmacy in the United States, would be illegal and in violation of Section 5 of the FTC Act and Section 7 of the Clayton Act. The acquisition would combine the largest and only two national long-term care pharmacies in the country. The FTC alleges that the combined firm would serve approximately 57 percent of all licensed SNF beds in the United States. Under the Merger Guidelines used by the FTC and Department of Justice, a transaction that leads to that much market concentration would be presumed illegal. After the acquisition, the merged firm's only competition for inclusion in Part D plans' long-term care pharmacy networks would come from small, regional and local long-term care pharmacies, none of which currently operates in more than a few states. The FTC charges that, even before the transaction, Omnicare has been able to use its size to exert bargaining leverage over Part D health plans, by threatening to terminate contracts if its terms are not met. A firm that combines the largest and second-largest long-term care pharmacies in the country would have the unique ability to exert even greater bargaining power to raise the price of drugs to Part D health plans. Due to its substantial market share, the combined firm likely would be a "must have" for Part D health plans, the FTC contends. Losing contracts with a combined Omnicare/PharMerica would put the Part D health plans at serious risk of failing to meet CMS's "convenient access" standard. This increased risk would provide the combined firm with an anticompetitive advantage in negotiating prices it charges Part D health plans for long-term care pharmacy services. The Commission vote to issue the administrative complaint against Omnicare was 3-1, with Commissioner J. Thomas Rosch voting no. The case will be heard before an administrative law judge at the FTC in June 2012. NOTE: The Commission issues an administrative complaint when it has "reason to believe" that the law has been or is being violated, and it appears to the Commission that a proceeding is in the public interest. The complaint is not a finding or ruling that the respondent has actually violated the law. The issuance of the administrative complaint marks the beginning of a proceeding in which the allegations will be tried in a formal hearing before an administrative law judge. The FTC's Bureau of Competition works with the Bureau of Economics to investigate alleged anticompetitive business practices and, when appropriate, recommends that the Commission take law enforcement action. To inform the Bureau about particular business practices, call 202-326-3300, send an e-mail to antitrust{at}ftc{dot}gov, or write to the Office of Policy and Coordination, Bureau of Competition, Federal Trade Commission, 601 New Jersey Ave., Room 7117, Washington, DC 20580. To learn more about the Bureau of Competition, read Competition Counts. Like the FTC on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. SOURCE Federal Trade Commission

Stephen Lawrence verdict could prompt fresh look at Scottish racist murder Lawyer Aamer Anwar and Manjit Sangha, Surjit Singh Chhokar's sister, arrive to make their public appeal at the Scottish parliament. Photograph: David Cheskin/PA Prosecutors are expected to reopen the unsolved racist murder of an Asian waiter who was repeatedly stabbed to death 13 years ago in North after Scotland's double jeopardy laws were scrapped. The murder of Surjit Singh Chhokar in November 1998, in Overtown near Motherwell, is regarded as Scotland's most infamous unsolved racist killing. Prosecutors failed to secure a conviction despite the arrest of three chief suspects, and two high court trials. Pressure on Frank Mulholland, the lord advocate, and police has intensified since the conviction of two of Stephen Lawrence's killers at the Old Bailey earlier this month. Anti-racism campaigners and the family believe there are strong parallels between the Lawrence case and the failure to convict Chhokar's killers. It is believed that Strathclyde police and prosecutors at the crown office have already begun unofficially reviewing the original productions and statements from the first two trials. New witnesses are understood to have come forward since a spate of publicity about the case last weekend. Aamer Anwar, the Chhokar family lawyer, has said he is optimistic that Mulholland will formally reopen the case and order a review of all the evidence. Anwar is due to meet the lord advocate and Lesley Thomson, the solicitor general, on Thursday next week. In an emotional press conference at the Scottish parliament, Manjit Sangha, Chhokar's sister, said: "People will have forgotten Surjit's name, yet the darkness of his murder still shadows our lives. All that we have ever asked for is justice. The recent changes in the law once again give us hope. Graeme Pearson, a Labour MSP and former senior detective at Strathclyde police, who helped led the force's formal inquiry into the botched prosecutions 10 years ago, said he regarded the Chhokar case as "unfinished business." Speaking after appearing at the press conference alongside Sangha and Anwar, Pearson said: "I see no reason not to be optimistic. The legislation has changed the rules vis-a-vis double jeopardy. The Chhokar case is universally acknowledged to be unfinished business. No one who has looked at the case felt it was well handled. Anwar said: "Just as in Stephen Lawrence's case, the killers of Surjit Singh Chhokar should not rest easy in their beds." The failure of the prosecutions led to a high-profile inquiry ordered by the then lord advocate, Colin Boyd, who admitted in 2001 that the prosecution had failed the family. That inquiry concluded the crown office was guilty of institutional racism. The dispute over the crown office's handling of the evidence, particularly its decision to charge just one of the three suspects with the murder, led to furious rows between senior judges and prosecutors. The trials collapsed in part because the crown office originally charged just one of the three suspects, Ronnie Coulter, 43, with the murder. Coulter was tried on his own for murder in the first trial, in 1999, but his charge was reduced to assault and he walked free after he blamed the killing on the other two suspects, his nephew Andrew Coulter, 30, and the third accused, David Montgomery A second trial, of Andrew Coulter and Montgomery in 2000, ended without a guilty verdict after the two men blamed Ronnie Coulter for the crime. Anwar said the family were now hoping that the most up-to-date forensic techniques, particularly those involving DNA and CCTV, a re-examination of the original testimony and witness evidence, and a new appeal for witnesses could produce enough evidence to lead to a retrial. "The lord advocate confirmed to me that any murder where justice is denied is a matter of real concern to him," Anwar said. This morning the lord advocate has given me his assurance that both he and the solicitor general will do their utmost to make full use of the powers under the new legislation.

Former England Under-20s wing Selorm Kuadey dies aged 24 after apparent suicide Dean Windass, the former Hull, Bradford and Middlesbrough footballer, yesterday revealed he tried to commit suicide after "hitting rock bottom" following the end of his playing career while former England cricket captain Andrew Flintoff last week revealed he had struggled with depression during his playing career. The physical trauma of injury is completely overshadowed by the psychological trauma if you have to stop playing and give up your sport prematurely. We don't know if that was the situation with Selorm or not, but we are all shocked to the core about this tragic news. He had made a great transition out of rugby and in so many ways he was a model professional. It is so important that young men look for advice and our remit is to try to provide as much support for the players as we can. Born in Odessa, Ukraine, Kuadey joined Sale straight from Lancaster Royal Grammar School in 2005 and made his debut for the Sharks against Llanelli Scarlets later that year. Following his retirement, Kuadey graduated with a first class honours in human biology and infectious diseases from the University of Manchester and was working as a business manager for an orthotics company before his death. Sale Sharks last night paid tribute to Kuadey. "Everyone at Sale Sharks passes their deepest sympathies to Selorm's family and friends at this very difficult and upsetting time," said chief executive Mick Hogan. Selorm was a very popular young man and a wonderfully talented rugby player. We are devastated to learn about his tragic death and the club is offering our full support to his family, friends and former team-mates during this deeply traumatic period. The Rugby Football Union and Premiership Rugby also paid tribute to Kuadey, who represented England Sevens in 2006/7.

EU sees January decision on wider Iran sanctions BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union expects to reach a decision by the end of January on expanding sanctions against Iran, an EU spokesman said on Sunday. U.S. President Barack Obama signed new sanctions against Tehran into law on Saturday, shortly after Iran signaled it was ready for fresh talks with the West on its nuclear program and said it had delayed long-range missile tests in the Gulf. "We expect a decision (on EU sanctions) to be ready at the latest by the next foreign affairs council on 30 January," EU foreign policy spokesman Michael Mann said in an email to Reuters. The prospect of wider sanctions led Tehran to threaten to shut the Strait of Hormuz, through which 40 percent of the world's oil passes, if restrictions were imposed on its oil exports. In turn, the U.S. Fifth Fleet said it would not allow shipping to be disrupted in the Strait. The latest U.S. sanctions have a measure of flexibility and officials said Washington was trying to ensure they would not harm global energy markets, where oil prices are above $100 a barrel. Both the European Union and the United States have said they are willing to hold talks with Iran on its controversial nuclear program, provided they are meaningful and without preconditions. So far talks between Iran and the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council - the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France - plus Germany (P5+1) have been stalled for a year. Reporting by Barbara Lewis; Editing by Tim Pearce

Germany pays record low at short-term debt sale Germany paid a record low rate at an auction of two-year bonds Wednesday amid solid demand, suggesting investors are still snapping up the lower-risk debt issued by Europe's top economy. Germany received bids for 7.6 billion euros' ($9.7 billion) worth of two-year paper and placed only 3.44 billion euros, suggesting the auction was oversubscribed twice over. The average yield, or rate of return on the bond, was a record low 0.17 percent, showing investors are prepared to earn almost nothing for parking their money in the safe haven offered by Germany amid market uncertainty. A previous auction of two-year bonds produced an average rate of 0.29 percent. The strong auction was the latest in a series of positive debt sales in the crisis-wracked eurozone that has given investors cheer despite Friday's downgrade of several nations' credit rating by Standard and Poor's. Germany is one of only four eurozone countries -- the others being Finland, Luxembourg and the Netherlands -- that continue to enjoy a top triple-A rating from S&P after the downgrades. But Germany's safe-haven status was called into question in November, when an auction of 10-year debt attracted minimal demand, sending markets into tailspin. At that time, Germany received bids for only 3.9 billion euros' worth of Bunds, despite offering 6.0 billion euros. Since then, Germany has enjoyed strong demand for debt of all maturities. In January, the rate paid to investors for a six-month bond turned negative for the first time ever, meaning they were effectively paying Germany to stash their money in a safe place.

4th Annual Top Ten Dubious Polling Awards NEW YORK, Jan. 24, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The 2012 Top Ten Dubious Polling Awards highlight the ten most dubious polling moments of the past year - a gallery of inaccuracy, bias, condescension and confusion. The Dubious Polling Awards are part of a media ethics project by the Art Science Research Laboratory in New York, and compiled by its resident expert on polling, David W. Moore, a former Gallup pollster. For the fourth consecutive year, Moore had plenty of dodgy polls and media coverage to sift through to arrive at these suspect honorees. Take, for example, the 10th place finisher, POLITICO's chief political columnist Roger Simon, whose "jaw-dropping" dismissal of polling set Moore's wayback machine to 1936, when Literary Digest polled 10 million American voters and concluded that Alf Landon would defeat Franklin Delano Roosevelt (in fact, FDR went on to win what was then the largest landslide presidential victory in American history). Simon rejected the notion that scientifically-chosen samples can measure public opinion. In this case, Simon played dumb in order to buttress his pot shots at an ABC/Washington Post poll on the state of the U.S. economy: "Is this how 'most Americans' - based on a survey of 1,005 of them - really feel? Dunno. This disingenuous lapse by a veteran political columnist earned Simon the "Golly Gee Willikers, Batman! Polls Are Like Magic! Award from Moore. Then there was Dubious Polling Awards' top finisher: "All the Pollsters, Pundits and People of the Press." This un-coveted honor, which Moore named "The Rudy Giuliani Frontrunner Award," recognizes the pack mentality in reporting on frontrunners for the GOP presidential nomination. As Moore notes, "First it was Donald Trump, then Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, Herman Cain, still Herman Cain, and finally Newt Gingrich, who were identified as frontrunners for the GOP nomination. The polls told us so. However, Moore continued, "As we learned four years ago, the national polls survey the wrong electorate - a national electorate that doesn't exist. It's the state electorates, namely in Iowa and New Hampshire and most recently South Carolina, which really count and set the stage for the rest of the states. Read the full report on iMediaEthics.org. Alexa ranks iMediaEthics as the 12th most visited news media watchdog. iMediaEthics is published by Art Science Research Laboratory (ARSL), a not-for-profit, co-founded by its director, Rhonda Roland Shearer, an adjunct lecturer at the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, University of Iowa, and her late husband, Harvard professor and scientist, Stephen Jay Gould. iMediaEthics, formerly known as StinkyJournalism.org, is a non-partisan journalism ethics program in which students and young journalists work with professional researchers to promote the media's use of scientific methods and experts before publication. David W. Moore is a Senior Fellow with the Carsey Institute at the University of New Hampshire. He is a former Vice President of the Gallup Organization and was a senior editor with the Gallup Poll for thirteen years. He is author of The Opinion Makers: An Insider Exposes the Truth Behind the Polls (Beacon, 2008; trade paperback edition, 2009). SOURCE iMediaEthics

New Pentagon Plan Focuses On Drones, Special Ops, Cuts Traditional Forces WASHINGTON - The Pentagon plans to expand its global network of drones and special-operations bases in a fundamental realignment meant to project U.S. power, even as it cuts back conventional forces. The plan, to be unveiled by Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on Thursday and in budget documents next month, calls for a 30% increase in the U.S. fleet of armed unmanned aircraft in the coming years, defense officials said. It also foresees the deployment of more special-operations teams at a growing number of small "lily pad" bases across the globe where they can mentor local allies and launch missions. The utility of such tools was evident on Wednesday after an elite team - including members of Navy SEAL Team Six, the unit that killed Osama bin Laden - parachuted into Somalia and freed an American woman and Danish man held hostage for months. The strategy reflects the Obama administration's increasing focus on small, secret operations in place of larger wars. The shift follows the U.S. troop pullout from Iraq in December, and comes alongside the gradual U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, where a troop-intensive strategy is giving way to an emphasis on training Afghan forces and on hunt-and-kill missions. Defense officials said the U.S. Army plans to eliminate at least eight brigades while reducing the size of the active duty Army from 570,000 to 490,000, cuts that are likely to hit armored and heavy infantry units the hardest. But drone and special-operations deployments would continue to grow as they have in recent years. At the same time, the Army aims to accentuate the importance of special operations by preserving light, rapidly deployable units such as the 82nd and the 101st Airborne divisions. "What we really want is to see the Army adopt the mentality of special forces," said a military officer who advises Pentagon leaders. The new strategy would assign specific U.S.-based Army brigades and Marine Expeditionary units to different regions of the world, where they would travel regularly for joint exercises and other missions, using permanent facilities and the forward-staging bases that some advisers call lily pads. Marines, for example, will use a new base in Darwin, Australia, as a launch pad for Southeast Asia, while the U.S. is in talks to expand the U.S. presence in the Philippines - potential signals to China that the U.S. has quick-response capability in its backyard, defense officials said. Yet many of the proposed bases will be secret and could temporarily house small commando teams, the officials said. "There are going to be times when action is called upon, like Tuesday night, when it will be clearly advantageous to be forward deployed," a military official said, referring to the Somalia operation. On the other hand, most of the time it will help you to be there to develop host nation or regional security. Republican presidential contenders have seized on planned cuts to accuse President Barack Obama of weakening the U.S. military. While national-security issues aren't seen as a weakness for Mr. Obama in the coming presidential campaign, lawmakers could try to block his proposals on Capitol Hill. Mr. Obama often emphasizes the value of special-operations raids like the one that killed bin Laden to fend off criticism. The Pentagon, meanwhile, sees the bases and drones as part of an effort to offset cutbacks that some critics say will undercut the U.S.'s global dominance. The Pentagon says it will have more than enough force to fight at least one major troop-intensive ground war. The Pentagon still will invest in some big-ticket items, including the F-35 stealth fighter, as a counterweight to rising powers, including China - although the department is poised to announce this week that it is going to slow procurement of the new plane, said defense officials. Many Obama administration officials see last year's international military intervention in Libya as a model for future conflicts, with the U.S. using its air power up front while also relying on its allies, and on local forces to fight on the ground. You are looking at the military try to find new ways to stay globally engaged. When you are smaller, you have to be smarter," said a U.S. official. Mr. Panetta alluded in a speech on Friday to plans to invest more heavily in drones and special forces, saying the U.S. wanted to develop an "innovative rotational presence" in Latin America, Africa and elsewhere. Mr. Panetta is scheduled to outline elements of the department's $525 billion budget for fiscal 2013, including the first of $487 billion in cuts over 10 years, at the Pentagon Thursday. The plan, however, envisions a 10% increase in special-operations forces over the next four years, from 63,750 this year to 70,000 by 2015, U.S. officials said. Mr. Panetta also will announce a buildup in the drone fleet in the coming years, U.S. officials said, following growth under predecessor Robert Gates. The Air Force now operates 61 drone combat air patrols around the clock, with up to four drones in each patrol. Mr. Panetta's plan calls for the military to have enough drones to comfortably operate 65 combat air patrols constantly with the ability to temporarily surge to 85 combat air patrols, officials said. The new emphasis represents a victory for Vice President Joe Biden and others in the White House who argued for reducing troops in Afghanistan and relying more on special-operations forces and local allies. The strategy is similar to ideas that circulated through the military in the years before the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and were championed by former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. Mr. Rumsfeld advocated building facilities in Eastern Europe and other locations as he pushed to remake the Army into a lighter, more expeditionary force. Mr. Rumsfeld declined a request for an interview. The use of secretive commando teams and small, low-profile bases is appealing to the Obama administration because of the reduced costs, said a U.S. official briefed on the plans. They also risk less apprehension by host governments. Military leaders are looking into the creation of new special-operations bases in Turkey and eastern Jordan, near the border with Iraq. U.S. officials said. Those will supplement a network of airstrips and other facilities in the region that house drones and operatives used for missions in Yemen, Somalia and beyond.

UK plastic surgery statistics: breasts up, stomachs in Plastic surgery is big business in the UK - and despite the recession, it's a growing one. Breast augmentations are still by far the most popular cosmetic surgery procedure for women and have risen year on year - although these figures take no account of the breast implant scandal, which recently led plastic surgeons to call for a ban on advertising it. Plastic surgery statistics in the UK show a record number of male 'tummy tuck' operations as the rise in demand outstrips that for all other procedures - including women's breast enlargement. Figures published by the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPs) - that really is its acronym - showed abdominoplasty operations grew by 15%, while overall male cosmetic surgery grew by 5.6%. The association represents one in three plastic surgeons. Patient with Surgical Markers for Plastic Surgery drawn on her face. Photograph: ER Productions/© ER Productions/CORBIS The figures are only surgical procedures. They do not include non-surgical "lunchtime" plastic procedures, such as botox injections. Roll over the bars for the numbers. Download the spreadsheet for more charts We're certainly not at US levels though. Overall, 43,069 procedures were done by association members for men and women in 2011, compared with 38,274 in 2010, a rise of 5.8%. Women accounted for 38,771. The key findings are: Women Breast implants are in the news - the French government has told over 30,000 women they are at risk from defective implants made of non-medical silicone filler. Over 70,000 women in Britain and France are estimated to have the implants created by the Poly Implant Prothese (PIP) company which was shut down last year. Its head was recently arrested. In the UK, women had 90% of all cosmetic procedures in 2011, the same percentage of total procedures as in 2011. The top ones were: Breast augmentation - up 6.2% from last year slightly less than last year's 10% rise • Blepharoplasty (eyelids) were up 4.8% to become the second biggest procedure for women • Face/Neck Lifts were third place for the second year running, with 4,700 procedures Men Men had 10% of all cosmetic procedures in 2011 (4,298). The big ops were: 'Man boob' ops or Gynaecomastia kept its place as the second most common male procedure, rising by 7% from 741 to 790 • Male liposuction went up by 8% • Rhinoplasty or nose jobs, up by 5%, much less than last year's 13.2% • Blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery): up 5% to 684 We have the BAAPs data for you to download going back to 2008. Can you do anything with it? Data summary Plastic surgery statistics, UK Surgical procedures. Click heading to sort table. Download this spreadsheet % change, 2010- 2011 Breast augmentation Blepharoplasty (eyelid surgery) Face/Neck Lift Breast Reduction Abdominoplasty (tummy tuck) Liposuction Rhinoplasty Fat transfer Otoplasty (ear correction) Brow lifts Download the data DATA: download the full datasheet More open data Data journalism and data visualisations from the Guardian World government data Search the world's government data with our gateway Development and aid data Search the world's global development data with our gateway Can you do something with this data? Flickr Please post your visualisations and mash-ups on our Flickr group • Contact us at [email protected] Get the A-Z of data • More at the Datastore directory • Follow us on Twitter • Like us on Facebook

Congressman calls for review of all 131 U.S. military cemeteries The chairman of the House Committee on Veterans" Affairs called Thursday for a complete review of all of 131 military cemeteries run by the Department of Veterans Affairs, where more than 3.7 million service members and their families are buried. The move by Rep. Jeff Miller (R-Fla.) comes two days after the VA revealed that it had found more than 100 misplaced headstones and at least eight cases of people buried in the wrong places at several of its cemeteries across the country. The VA is in the process of returning those remains to the proper grave sites. The problems, which were reported by The Post on Monday, largely occurred when workers temporarily removed headstones and markers from the ground during renovation projects and then reinserted them in the wrong places, VA officials said. In his statement, Miller said the committee would be investigating "the extent of these problems." He also said that the VA must "put in place the proper oversight and procedures while renovations are taking place at its cemeteries around the country to ensure further graves are not disturbed. Irrevocable pain has been caused to the families of our veterans affected by these mistakes, and I don't want one more family to have to endure a second burial again. The VA's audit, which was ordered in October, included only sections of cemeteries that had undergone renovations in the past decade. In all, the VA is checking 1.3 million grave sites in 85 of its 131 cemeteries. After the review is completed, VA officials had said they would conduct a more thorough audit of all of its cemeteries. The most serious problems were found at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, where 47 grave markers were put one place over from where they were supposed to be and, as a result, four people were buried in the wrong spots. There were similar problems found at Houston National Cemetery.

Magic mushrooms point to new depression drugs Magic mushrooms point to new depression drugs - Mental health LONDON - The brains of people tripping on magic mushrooms have given the best picture yet of how psychedelic drugs work and British scientists say the findings suggest such drugs could be used to treat depression. Two separate studies into the effects of psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, showed that contrary to scientists' expectations, it does not increase but rather suppresses activity in areas of the brain that are also dampened with other anti-depressant treatments. "Psychedelics are thought of as 'mind-expanding' drugs so it has commonly been assumed that they work by increasing brain activity," said David Nutt of Imperial College London, who gave a briefing about the studies on Monday. But, surprisingly, we found that psilocybin actually caused activity to decrease in areas that have the densest connections with other areas. These so-called "hub" regions of the brain are known to play a role in constraining our experience of the world and keeping it orderly, he said. We now know that deactivating these regions leads to a state in which the world is experienced as strange. In the first study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) journal, 30 volunteers had psilocybin infused into their blood while they were inside magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners, which measure changes in brain activity. It found activity decreased in "hub" regions and many volunteers described a feeling of the cogs being loosened and their sense of self being altered. The second study, due to be published in the British Journal of Psychiatry on Thursday, involved 10 volunteers and found that psilocybin enhanced their recollections of personal memories. Robin Carhart Harris from Imperial's department of medicine, who worked on both studies, said the results suggest psilocybin could be useful as an adjunct to psychotherapy. Nutt cautioned that the new research was very preliminary and involved only small numbers of people. "We're not saying go out there and eat magic mushrooms," he said. But...this drug has such a fundamental impact on the brain that it's got to be meaningful -- it's got to be telling us something about how the brain works. So we should be studying it and optimizing it if there's a therapeutic benefit. The key areas of the brain identified -- one called the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and another called the posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) -- are the subject of debate among neuroscientists, but the PCC is thought by many to have a role in consciousness and self-identity. The mPFC is known to be hyperactive in depression, and the researchers pointed out that other key treatments for depression including medicines like Prozac, as well as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and deep brain stimulation, also appear to suppress mPFC activity. Psilocybin's dampening action on this area may make it a useful and potentially long-acting antidepressant, Carhart-Harris said. The studies also showed that psilocybin reduced blood flow in the hypothalamus - a part of the brain where people who suffer from a condition known as cluster headaches often have increased blood flow. This could explain why some cluster headache sufferers have said their symptoms improved after taking the psychedelic drug, the researcher said. The studies, which are among only a handful conducted into psychedelic substances since the 1960s and 1970s, revive a promising field of study into mind-altering drugs which some experts say can offer powerful and sustained mood improvement and relief from anxiety. Other experts echoed Nott's caution: "These findings are very interesting from the research viewpoint, but a great deal more work would be needed before most psychiatrists would think that psilocybin was a safe, effective and acceptable adjunct to psychotherapy," said Nick Craddock, a psychiatry professor from Cardiff University. Kevin Healy, chair of the Royal College of Psychiatrists' faculty of medical psychotherapy said it was interesting research "but we are clearly nowhere near seeing psilocybin used regularly and widely in psychotherapy practice."

Canada will look to China to sell its oil January 18, 2012 -- Updated 2240 GMT (0640 HKT) Canada's prime minister will travel to China in February The trip comes as Canada looks to diversify its oil exports markets PM Harper is pushing a Canadian pipeline called the Northern Gateway project The project in western Canada would make oil exports to China faster and cheaper OTTAWAY (CNN) -- In a phone conversation that came as little surprise, President Barack Obama called Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper Wednesday afternoon to explain why he had rejected the Keystone oil sands pipeline project. In a statement released by Harper's office, the president is quoted as saying that the decision was not a decision based on the "merits of the project" and that TransCanada, the company looking to build the pipeline, could reapply for permission after a new route had been developed. The statement went on to say that Prime Minister Harper ..."expressed his profound disappointment with the news. He indicated to President Obama that he hoped that this project would continue given the significant contribution it would make to jobs and economic growth both in Canada and the United States of America. But crucially, the statement also said that the prime minister reiterated to President Obama that Canada will continue to work to diversify its energy exports. In fact, in a sign of warming relations, Harper is scheduled to make a high-profile trip to China in February. Canada is proposing to build a pipeline of its own through western Canada that would make oil exports to China faster and cheaper. In recent months, Harper has pushed more forcefully for the Northern Gateway pipeline project to get underway, calling it in the country's "national interest" as it works to develop markets other than the United States for its crude oil exports. The Gateway project, like the Keystone Pipeline proposal, is facing significant protests from environmental and community groups.

Queens Park Rangers fail in bid to sign Brazil defender Alex from Chelsea

Tortured Afghan girl suffering in hospital, aid worker says Sahar Gul is found by police locked in the basement of her in-laws' house The teenager is starved, beaten and her nails are pulled out Her in-laws abused her after she refused to be forced into prostitution, aid workers say Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) -- A 15-year-old girl allegedly tortured by her in-laws in Afghanistan after she refused to be forced into prostitution is not doing well in hospital, aid workers say. Sahar Gul was rescued by police last month in the country's northern Baghlan province after she was locked in the basement of her in-laws' house, starved and her nails pulled out. She is safe, but signs of the abuse she's suffered remain all too clear, said Wazhma Frogh of the Afghan Women's Network. Sahar is too weak to move her body, which has black bruise marks all over from being beaten, and the nurses gave her diapers because she can't get to the toilet, Frogh said. The girl's eyes are bruised and she can't speak. Her hair was also cut short by her in-laws as a punishment after she refused to sleep with other men. A photograph provided by the Afghan Women's Network shows her asleep in a hospital bed, the bruising on her face obvious and her head bandaged. The mental trauma she suffered is also affecting her, and is under medication to help her deal with it, Frogh said. "We've also provided her with a trauma counselor because she is very traumatized and even when I wanted to take her hand, she resisted," despite being unconscious, Frogh said. Because the teenager was beaten and assaulted, she added, "now she doesn't want anyone to even touch her." Last month, authorities in Baghlan said they rescued the girl after hearing reports that she was tortured after she refused to be forced into prostitution. Meanwhile, Sahar's father-in-law, mother-in-law and sister-in-law have been arrested but her husband -- who Frogh said is thought to be a soldier serving in Helmand province -- has not been caught. The Women's Network is determined to do its best to ensure she gets the care she needs -- but Frogh warned that her recovery won't be easy. "She needs proper food, proper care that our government's hospitals don't have, therefore we have been collecting donations to provide to the hospital to buy her good food, clothing and other basic needs," she said. We also have to think of her shelter once she is back into normal life, which is going to take some months. At the same time, the Women's Network has found a lawyer for Sahar and has persuaded the Afghan authorities to move the investigation to Kabul, where there will be less influence from the local community, Frogh said. It has also contacted the attorney general to appeal for a faster investigation before the girl's in-laws are released from custody. Afghan President Hamid Karzai has called for the abuse to be "seriously investigated," his office said in a statement Sunday. CNN's Masoud Popalzai contributed to this report.

Upper crust: Mark Hix takes inspiration from Giuseppe Mascoli's gourmet pizzas I thought I had my fingers in lots of pies - but my friend Giuseppe Mascoli seems to be outdoing me somewhat. As well as being one of the brains behind the lovely Soho club, Blacks, Giuseppe also runs a thriving wine supply business and his successful pizza joints, Franco Manca in Brixton market, Chiswick and Westfield, where he creates his famously delicious sourdough-based pizzas with pretty much all-British produce. Giuseppe's pizza is baked in a special wood-burning oven created on site by artisans from Naples. When I joined him for a pizza back in December, our feet never touched the ground, as Giuseppe whisked me off to show me his amazing new unit that makes bread in traditionally-built brick ovens. Making pizzas at home, however, is unfortunately never going to be quite as good as when you cook them in one of those professional, red-hot pizza ovens. Quite a few people are installing pizza ovens in their gardens these days - and in fact I have a great example down at my place in Devon that comes from Bernito (bernitopizzaovens.co.uk). If you're not lucky enough to have a pizza oven, you can still create delicious home-baked pizzas either on a pizza stone (available at all good kitchen shops) or on a heavy baking tray. A pizza baked at home will need to be rolled out or shaped a bit thicker than the pizza that you get in shops, and as you will need to cook it for a little longer in a domestic oven, the base will probably be slightly harder and more biscuit-like in consistency. Here is Giuseppe's simple recipe for pizza dough that you can make at home, along with some inspired ideas for different filling and toppings. Giuseppe's pizza dough Makes 6 pizzas on a 32cm pizza stone or using two large baking trays 1ltr of lukewarm water 1kg strong flour A further 650g of strong flour 12g dried yeast 40g salt 30ml olive oil With a spoon mix 1 kilo of the flour with 1 litre of lukewarm water and 3g of the dried yeast. Transfer this batter to a sealed container and refrigerate it for about 12-16 hours. Remove the batter from the fridge and leave at room temperature for one hour. Add the salt and the remainder of the dried yeast, then add the 650g of flour and knead by hand for 4-5 minutes, adding the olive oil towards the end. Cover with a damp cloth and leave in a warm room for one hour. Cut the dough into 6 even-sized pieces and mould into balls on a lightly floured table. Place the balls on a tray leaving a space of 6-7cm in between each one. Then cover the tray again with the damp cloth. After one hour the balls will be ready to be shaped. Roll them out on a floured board or table to about 25-30cm in diameter using a floured rolling pin and then finally leave them to rise for about 10 minutes. Preheat your oven to its maximum heat and place your pizza stone or baking tray inside to heat up for about 20 minutes. Take however many pieces of pizza dough you want to cook, add your desired topping from the selection and slide on to your stone or tray and bake for about 10 minutes or less. Tomato and mozzarella topping Blend a tin of good-quality tomatoes in a food processor and add a little salt. Spread the tomato mixture thinly over the pizza bases, adding 100g sliced buffalo mozzarella, a little olive or cold pressed rapeseed oil, basil and a little grated Parmesan Reggiano or mature sheep's cheese to each one. Black pudding topping Make the tomato and mozzarella topping as above, scattering 30g of black pudding and 40g of chopped cooking chorizo to each pizza before cooking. Calzone stuffed with pork scratchings Place 100g of mozzarella, some black pepper, 40g of ricotta, 30g of Parmesan and 30g of pork scratchings that have been soaked in milk for 3 hours over half the pizza (Giuseppe recommends Tom Parker Bowles's new pork scratchings, available at Selfridges and Harvey Nichols). Fold the pizza in half before sliding on to the hot stone or tray and bake for 6-10 minutes, depending on the heat of your oven. You can top this with a bit of tomato sauce once out of the oven. Home-made pork sausage pizza Mix together 250g of coarsely minced belly pork, 250g of coarsely minced pork shoulder, 2tsp of salt, 100ml of cider, 1tsp of crushed fennel seeds, and half a tsp of ground black pepper and leave in a sealed container in the fridge for two days. Using the sausage meat, make small balls or discs which are about half an inch in diameter, using about 50g of the mixture per pizza. Place on top of the mozzarella and tomato base recipe given above. I asked Giuseppe for other ideas for toppings and he suggested a blue cheese version, using 40g of blue cheese such as Colston Basset or Stilcheton, 70g of mozzarella, 1 tbsp of fresh, chopped, peeled tomato and 3-4 rashes of streaky bacon per pizza. Or try this fish version, using fresh sardines or herrings. Take 4 sardine fillets tossed in salt and oregano, 2tsp of fresh, chopped, peeled tomato, olive oil, garlic and oregano. Spread the tomato on the pizza base and lay the fish over, adding a bit more garlic, oil and oregano as you wish. For more information about Franco Manca, see francomanca.co.uk

Peterhead 0 - 3 Celtic: Slick Celtic extinguish the northern lights - League Cup - Scotsman.com Published on Monday 9 January 2012 02:43 THE top team in Scotland against the side currently ranked second lowest was not the complete mismatch that had been feared, although Celtic stuck with the theme of the weekend and comfortably warded off the threat of a shock. The fact that the scoreline was closer than many had expected is down to Anthony Stokes" profligacy. The striker scored one hat-trick and could have had another. If the visitors were concerned that they might have an aversion to a place known as the Blue Toon, it wasn't borne out by the evidence. Celtic took advantage of the relatively clement conditions and played some slick football, although they were robust when they had to be against their fired-up opponents. Teams from Scotland's fourth tier do not often beat those from the top division. Such a seismic occurrence would have been entirely out of keeping with a weekend of ties which went largely as expected. This was another encounter when hopes of a shock were quickly extinguished although Peterhead did manage to leave some blood on the tracks. Joe Ledley had to be substituted just before the hour mark by Victor Wanyama, after a clash with Peterhead midfielder Jamie Redman which left him with a gash in his head. Neil Lennon, the Celtic manager, later suggested that the victim had been struck by a flying elbow although if he had been, it appeared accidental. It was an at-times fiery encounter. However, it stopped short of becoming nasty. The sum total was three bookings, all earned by players from the home team as they set about trying to harass their distinguished guests. The closest Peterhead got to a replay was when one of the temporary floodlight systems suddenly stopped working with 15 minutes remaining. The home side's hopes rested on a complete black-out. The lights flickered back on again minutes later and the game was played out in the required level of brightness. It was already plain to see that there was no way back for the hosts, who had given a good account of themselves in the first half after surprising their opponents by lining up in what was, initially, a 3-4-3 formation. Peterhead were the first to gain a corner and, indeed, threatened in the opening seconds, before Lukasz Zaluska, the recalled Celtic goalkeeper, had the opportunity to settle back into place. Kelvin Wilson tangled with David Ross amid weak shouts for a penalty. Zaluska quickly got his bearings and discovered he was far, far north and that this clash, Peterhead's first against Celtic, would require the visitors to show their mettle in virgin territory. It could have been more inhospitable, however. The rain relented and the corner flags gently shook from side to side rather than being bent double by a North Sea gale. The hosts were admirably quick to take the game to Celtic, who handed Emilio Izaguirre his first start since breaking an ankle in August. Gary Hooper dropped out as Lennon had suggested he would following last Monday's victory over Dunfermline. Paddy McCourt, meanwhile, was drafted in, as was Wilson at centre-half. McCourt's guile provided an obvious contrast to the industrious exertions of the Peterhead players. The wet, heavy pitch helped spice up challenges. Peterhead were certainly not intending to stand on ceremony. Celtic, to their credit, took the dunts without too much complaint, although Scott Brown, almost inevitably, was at the centre of a couple of snarl-ups in midfield. If this tactic was designed to put Celtic off their stride, then it seemed to work at first. Stokes, who was taking the heaviest punishment, spurned two clear opportunities to put Celtic ahead in the opening half an hour, though redeemed himself later. His first chance was a weak effort blocked by the boot of Callum McDonald while his second saw him blaze high over after an intelligent cut-back by the lively Cha Du-Ri. Brown let him know about both wasted efforts. The skipper knew Celtic had to give the best of themselves. When he wasn't snapping at his team-mates, he could be seen engaging in a running battle with Redman. Perhaps it was a sign of frustration on Celtic's part. The half-hour mark arrived and the scores remained level, although this was thanks to the crossbar. Charlie Mulgrew instigated a training ground manoeuvre in which he cut back a corner kick to the edge of the box, where Ki was waiting. The midfielder had time to tee it up, but his drive cracked back off the bar. Some idea of the power of the shot could be gauged from the fact that the ball rebounded back as far as Ki again. The bar had hardly stopped shaking when Celtic finally went in front five minutes later. The intensity of attacks had been building and Peterhead finally buckled, though it took skill and vision by McCourt to send Samaras on his way via a 40-yard crossfield pass to the right flank. Samaras took the ball in his stride before squaring for Stokes, who stroked it into the unguarded net. Peterhead struggled to contain Celtic down their left, where Cha Du Ri was being allowed to wreak havoc. Stokes had a second goal ruled out for offside after another Samaras run, but he was rewarded for hi persistence and willingness to keep taking shots at goal, in the second half. After 57 minutes, an exchange of passes with Izaguirre set Stokes up with another chance to take aim and he drove an angled drive into the far corner of Paul Jarvie's net from the edge of the box. Stokes" hat-trick, the third of his career, was completed with eight minutes remaining following an impressive burst of action by Dylan McGeouch, who had just come on as a substitute. The youngster's cutback was eventually funnelled out to Stokes by Brown, and the Irish striker completed the scoring with another well-struck drive into the corner. Rory McAllister had a late chance to reduce the margin, but he headed wide when he should have set up Dennis Wyness with an easy chance to score. Sadly, then, the home team failed to conjure up even a goal for their fans in the record attendance to cheer.

If Gas Talks Fail, Europe Has a Backup Plan BERLIN - For the past several winters, companies and households, especially in Eastern Europe, have had to brace themselves for the annual energy spat between Russia and Ukraine. This year is no exception. Gazprom, Russia's state-owned energy giant, begins talks with Ukraine this month over what it will charge for its energy. Already they are disagreeing. But this time Europeans are well prepared. Storage facilities in some countries are full. The weather is mild. Europe has access to natural gas from other sources. "Europe has a lot of access to relatively cheap spot market gas," said Graham Freedman, a gas expert at Wood MacKenzie, the energy consultants. No wonder then that the Russia-Ukraine energy negotiations have a special significance. Both countries enter them at a disadvantage, analysts say. Ukraine has always had one crucial card to play: its gas transmission pipeline. Because Russia needs Ukraine's extensive pipeline for transporting its gas to Europe, Ukraine has had a strong negotiating hand. In order to pressure Russia to sell gas at a discount to Kiev, Ukraine could switch off, as it did in 2006, the transmission tap, thus preventing Russian gas from reaching Europe. Gazprom could retaliate by stopping the flow of gas destined for Ukraine. The few times that this happened, everyone lost. The Europeans, especially countries completely dependent on Gazprom, suffered serious shortages. Russia's credibility as a reliable supplier of gas to Europe was weakened. Ukraine's reputation for guaranteeing the flow of gas to Europe plummeted. This time around, the dynamics are different - and to Europe's advantage, if it plays its cards astutely. "Russia now faces real competition from L.N.G. and from shale gas, which the Europeans have access to," Mr. Freedman said, referring to liquefied natural gas. It should be worried. Europe imports a third of its gas from Russia and accounts for 65 percent of Gazprom's total exports. But the big energy companies that have signed long-term gas contracts with Russia are winning more flexible pricing arrangements. Some German companies argue that it is now a buyer's market. This is because increasingly, the price of natural gas is no longer fixed to the cost of a barrel of oil, as it was in the past. There is competition from liquefied natural gas, which is transported by ship, and shale, an unconventional natural gas extracted from sedimentary rocks that already makes up 14 percent of the U.S. natural gas supply, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The availability of liquefied natural gas and the discovery of shale resources in Europe have rattled Gazprom's position, especially in Eastern Europe. Poland, which imports two-thirds of its gas from Russia, plans to reduce its dependence on Moscow by extracting shale and buying liquefied natural gas. Waldemar Pawlak, the deputy prime minister and energy minister, said that having access to alternative supplies gave Warsaw leverage in negotiations. "We can either buy cheaper conventional gas or move quicker on shale gas extraction," he said. This changing gas market in Europe is the backdrop to the latest energy talks between Russia and Ukraine. But Ukraine's hand is weaker too. Russia can now divert some gas from the Ukraine transmission gas pipeline to Nord Stream, a Russian-German venture that was inaugurated last November. It allows Russia for the first time to send natural gas directly to Europe through pipes built under the Baltic Sea. "Nord Stream is part of Russia's grand strategy to rid itself of its dependence on Ukraine's gas transmission pipeline and other transit pipelines it does not own," said Jonathan P. Stern, a gas expert at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. Russia already owns the transmission pipelines of Belarus and Moldova. But from Russia's standpoint, Ukraine's transmission pipeline is the ultimate prize. Acquiring that, analysts say, would end Russia's dependence on Ukraine. Ukraine will not sell. It is too much of an economic and political asset, according to Ukrainian officials. Rebuffed so often, Gazprom is changing tactics. With liquefied natural gas now part of the European market and shale gas a potential contender, Russia is in a hurry. It needs to lock in European markets before it is too late. Alexei Miller, chairman of Gazprom's management committee, and Prime Minister Vladimir V. Putin of Russia said last month that Ukraine's gas transmission system would cost $28 billion to buy and upgrade. It would cost substantially less than building South Stream, another alternative route, they added. South Stream, to be built under the Black Sea, would supply Southeastern Europe with Russian gas just as Nord Stream delivers gas to parts of Western Europe. Mr. Miller, regarded by energy experts as a cool negotiator, said South Stream would cost €16.5 billion, or nearly $21 billion - making it cheaper than buying the Ukraine pipeline. And construction would begin this year instead of in 2013. Turkey, which has ambitions to be the regional gas hub, has bolstered Gazprom's ambitions. Last month, Ankara dropped its objections to Russia's building South Stream in Turkish territorial waters of the Black Sea. "It is a very nice present for the New Year," Mr. Miller said. By speeding up construction of South Stream, analysts say, Russia is hoping to tie up markets in Southeastern Europe before liquefied natural gas and shale enter them. That could weaken the viability of Nabucco, the E.U.-backed pipeline that is supposed to transmit gas from Central Asia to Europe so as to reduce Europe's dependence on Russian energy. But Nabucco has yet to line up suppliers to fill the pipeline. Until then, investors will remain reluctant to finance the project, which will cost €12 billion to €15 billion. These developments mean that Russia is still determined to retain its hold on Europe's energy market and is still is a very crafty player. But its grip is not as tight as it used to be. That has little to do with European strategy, despite the many E.U. meetings devoted to energy security and the construction of Nabucco. It is the effect of competition, analysts say, that is finally penetrating the gas market.

Mali says several killed in Tuareg attack By Adama Diarra and Tiemoko Diallo KIDAL, Mali (Reuters) - At least one Malian soldier and several assailants were killed on Tuesday when Tuareg rebels and former soldiers from Libya attacked a town in northern Mali and were pushed back by the army, the government said. Tuareg nomads, who have fought several rebellions for a sovereign homeland in the Sahara desert, are believed by Malian authorities and other regional leaders to have received an influx of weapons and men in the aftermath of Libya's war. The Defence Ministry said in a statement read on national television that the former Libyan soldiers and Tuareg rebels under the name the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) attacked Menaka in the Gao region of the West African nation. "The army, backed by a squadron of the combat helicopters were able to push them back," said the statement signed by Colonel Idrissa Traore, the ministry spokesman. Six of the assailants vehicles were destroyed, several of them were killed; some were wounded while many were arrested. One Malian soldier was killed," it said. A statement on a website purporting to be that of the separatist MNLA said the group launched the attacks and blamed their action on what they said was the Malian government's refusal to engage in dialogue. The statement said the government had instead chosen to built up troops in the region. "To protect and progressively re-occupy Azawad territory and also respond to Bamako's provocation, the men of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad have chosen to act," the statement said. "It is in this context that military action started in Menaka this morning," it said. President Amadou Toumani Toure has been holding talks with Tuareg groups to defuse rising tensions in the remote desert north, where ex-combatants from Libya have been massing. Mali has also tightened security in its cities, especially in the north, after the abduction of five Westerners and the killing of a sixth. In two separate incidents in northern Mali in November, two Frenchmen were kidnapped from a hotel while a Dutchman, a South African and a Swede were abducted in the historic trading town of Timbuktu. A German citizen was killed after resisting in the second attack. Mali, like other countries in the Sahel region, is struggling to contain the rising treat of posed by Islamist militants, rebel groups and contraband traffickers operating across West Africa's remote desert regions. A resident of Menaka, a bastion of the MNLA, said fighters began attacking the town late on Monday. Additional reporting Bate Felix in Dakar; Writing by Richard Valdmanis and Bate Felix

FT Alphaville " When a derivatives counterparty leaves the euro... Law firm Clifford Chance must be tired of fielding questions about what would happen to derivatives contracts should one's eurozone counterparty exit the single-currency. So much so that they've put a document together covering 20 of what we imagine have been the most frequently asked questions. FT Alphaville has waded through the legal mists, guided by Clifford Chance, to give you a bit more pedantic detail than "it depends." Question 1: If the Departing State were to leave and establish its own currency, would I still be entitled, and my counterparty still be obliged, to make payments in Euro? The answer to this hinges in part on how the country in question goes about exiting and redenominating, e.g. whether they leave the EU too. We all know we're are beyond EU Treatyland here, and that we should perhaps be more worried about tinned food if this actually were to go down, but bear with us... Isda industry gonna work together? Now, in all likelihood, trade body Isda will likely step in and issue a protocol for participants to sign that dictates how to address at least some of the problems that arise with euro-exit, where possible. That is, however, likely to take time and not preclude counterparties taking the matter to the courts, if only out of what their lawyers will tell them is an abundance of caution. Ashes, ashes, we all file suit While the Isda Master Agreements that govern derivatives contracts will specify what the relevant governing law is - most commonly New York or English law - it may well be that the counterparty in the de-euroed country tries to lodge a case in their home jurisdiction (too). That would throw a spanner in the works, and may in some cases result in the redenomination being upheld. Who files first may influence the outcome, so expect a rush of cases. Get out the dictionary Once accepted by an English or New York court though, the subsequent ruling will in part hinge on how the "euro" is defined in the contract, e.g. " (i) the single European currency or (ii) the currency for the Departing State." Clifford Chance think it's likely that the courts will go for (i) but it's hard to predict and derivatives that are designed to hedge changes in the FX rate of the Departing State versus another currency may prove even more tricky. Pay you where? All of this gets especially interesting when the "place of payment" to be made under the derivative is taken into consideration. If said place was the departing country, would an English court rule that payment should be made in euro in the Departing State when it may well be illegal by that country's laws (enacted to affect redenomination)? Maybe... but maybe not. Clifford Chance thinks it will in part hinge on whether said new laws are "contrary to English public policy." New York courts, meanwhile, are likely, but by no means guaranteed, to be more respectful: The Act of State Doctrine requires that the acts of foreign sovereigns taken within their own jurisdiction shall be deemed valid. Accordingly, if the contract were by its terms payable in the Departing State, a New York court might apply the legislation of the Departing State even if the contract is otherwise governed by New York law. Just to keep everyone on their toes, Isda Master Agreements allow counterparties to change the accounts where they receive payment, i.e. they can be moved into and out of jurisdictions, with five days" notice. That is unless the non-account-moving counterparty raises a "reasonable objection." FT Alphaville's crystal ball tells us that what constitutes a "reasonable objection" may well be challenged in the courts in the future. It's against the law A country leaving the euro isn't itself a Termination Event or Event of Default, hence contracts don't automatically close out because of it. However, there is a concept of "illegality" in derivatives agreements that might give rise to such an ending. Basically if laws are enacted in the Departing Country that make it illegal to make payments or deliveries as specified in the derivative contract, that may result in a termination. "May" because some contracts expect one or both parties to try to find a workaround, e.g. by transferring to the contract to another office or affiliate that won't experience the illegality. Next to the illegality question, expect fights concerning: Whether parties are required to continue to perform under the contracts while the illegality exists, and whether such obligations are merely deferred or extinguished. How contracts are valued upon a termination event, should it not be possible to get around the illegality. Events of default If the company fails to pay, then it's obviously an Event of Default. The slightly more subtle point is that it isn't necessarily a default if the counterparty makes a payment in the new currency that can be converted to an amount of euros that does cover the full payment. The obligations of counterparties when one of them is experiencing an Event of Default of Potential Event of Default is something that has been challenged in courts with some frequency. So much so that Isda is looking at redrafting it. Basically this concerns how much you can get away with, in terms of acting to your own maximum advantage, if your counterparty has defaulted. Quickfire round Good luck getting a remedy if the counterparty in question doesn't have assets outside the Departing State... If the counterparty is the sovereign state itself, they may have immunity. Oh, and you can forget about being able to net payments. There may also be changes to calculations involving "local business days" since the Departing State may well need a few extra bank holidays to get the redomination ball rolling. Additional legislation may be passed by the Departing State to manage the anticipated wave of insolvencies, which may involve unfavourable exchange rates being applied to claims. Some collateral posted according to support agreements may cease to be eligible if subject to redenomination. Uncertainty reigns Are we having fun yet? Clifford Chance concludes with some understatement... The accompanying economic difficulties would give rise to severe and untested eventualities. Followed by something that clearly comforts them more than it comforts us: However, understanding the applicable contractual framework for financing and derivatives transactions provides greater certainty at a time of market turmoil. Well, we're "certain" that this will be a legal train wreck, and that's about all we're confident about. Related links: The Eurozone Crisis and Derivatives - Clifford Chance Clifford Chance Advises Swaps Users On Possible Euro Break-Up - WSJ Guest post: Thinking the unfolding - the break-up of monetary union - FT Alphaville The legal aspects and abstractions of a euro redenomination - FT Alphaville Mechanics of a euro breakdown - FT Alphaville This entry was posted by Lisa Pollack on Monday, January 23rd, 2012 at 12:54 and is filed under Capital markets. Tagged with derivatives, euro, Euro redenomination, eurozone sovereign debt crisis, isda, swaps.

Charges weigh on Procter & Gamble profit Fri Jan 27, 2012 8:07am EST (Reuters) - Procter & Gamble Co's (PG.N) quarterly profit plunged 49 percent, as the world's largest household products maker wrote down the value of its appliance and salon professional products businesses, and it said this year's profit would come in lower than previously expected due to the strong dollar. Excluding charges, core earnings per share fell 3 percent to $1.10, as sales growth and cost cuts were not enough to offset double-digit increases in commodity costs. The profit came in ahead of analysts' average forecast of $1.08 per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. P&G earned $1.69 billion, or 57 cents per share, in the second quarter ended in December, down from $3.33 billion, or $1.11 per share, a year earlier. Sales rose 4 percent to $22.14 billion. Organic sales, which strip out the impact of acquisitions, asset sales and currency fluctuations, rose in each business unit and were up 4 percent overall. The volume of goods sold rose 1 percent, with strong growth in developing markets overtaking a decline in volume in developed regions. For the fiscal year ending in June, P&G forecast core earnings of $4.00 to $4.10 per share, down from a prior forecast of $4.15 to $4.33 per share due largely to foreign exchange. It said fiscal 2012 sales should rise 3 percent to 4 percent on a net basis and 4 percent to 5 percent on an organic basis. Its shares were down 5 cents at $64.75 in premarket trading, after closing at $64.80 on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday. Reporting by Jessica Wohl in Chicago; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn and Derek Caney

Etta James Dies at 73 Blues singer Etta James At last, / My love has come along. / My lonely days are over/ And life is like a song. Etta James sang professionally nearly her whole life, and could stock a long shelf full of memorable records: gritty blues songs in the 1950s, hits in a broad range of styles in the "60s. But "At Last," the soaring ballad she first committed to wax in 1960, was her signature number, the one that followed her like a sweet lost child for a half-century. It secured her niche in 1993 as the third solo female singer voted into the Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame, after Janis Joplin and LaVern Baker. She could be heard singing her anthem in movies (Rain Man, Pleasantville, American Pie) and on The Simpsons. In April 2009 she showed how it could still be sung on Dancing With the Stars. And three years ago today, on his first evening as President, Barack Obama cuddled up to Michelle and danced to the tune at each of their 10 Inaugural Balls. MORE: Etta James in Pictures, 1938-2012 But the woman chosen to sing "At Last" for the Obamas was Beyoncé Knowles, who, the year before, had played the role of Etta James in the musical bio-pic Cadillac Records. That White House snub hurt the real Etta James, and unleashed a temper almost as legendary as her vocal artistry. Not long after the Inauguration, the furious James told a Seattle audience, "You know, your President, the one with the big ears - he ain't my President - that woman he had singing for him, singing my song - she's going to get her ass whipped!" In 73 years of achievement and heartache, which ended today in a Riverside, Cal., hospital after long sieges of leukemia and dementia, Etta James saw love come along and walk away. On lonely days her sole companion was often heroin. And her life was a song, all right: the dirty lowdown blues. MORE: the all-TIME 100 Songs list Blues is the music of the church and the roadhouse, sanctity and sin; and this soul survivor sang with intimate knowledge of both. ""I had two mothers, two childhoods, lived two different lives in two different cities," she says in David Ritz's exemplary first-person biography Rage to Survive: The Etta James Story. Maybe that's why I became two different people. The first one was Jamesetta. She was born Jamesetta Hawkins to 14-year-old Dorothy, who never identified the father. Years later, the light-skinned James was told, and believed, that Rudy Wanderone, the Swiss-American pool hustler known as Minnesota Fats, was her father. Dorothy did not possess a maternal disposition; she would disappear with some new beau for months at a time. Caring for the child fell to her aunt and uncle, Cozetta and James, for whom she was named; at times they would sneak the infant into hotels "and put me to sleep in a drawer." Jamesetta found stability and love from another couple, Jesse Rogers and his wife Lula. "I called her Mama," James says in the book. She was the woman who wound up raising me while Dorothy ran in and out of my life like a crazy nightmare. Jamesetta was just five, in 1943, when she found her vocation, religion and lifeline. Professor James Earle Hines, musical director of the Echoes of Eden Choir at Saint Paul Baptist Church in Los Angeles, heard the child sing: "this chubby little Jamesetta," as James describes herself, "with her high-yellow complexion and her light-colored Shirley Temple curls cascading down below her waist." Soon enough, she says, "Word got out that a girlchild in the St. Paul Baptist could sing like a full-grown woman, with grown-up feelings and strength." The church pastor, Rev. Branham, asked his flock, "Have you ever heard a child sing like this? Is she blessed? Is God a miracle worker? She was a local sensation, but Dorothy never came to hear her. From Professor Hines, Jamesetta learned not just vocal technique but the reason for singing. He had one of those great classical gospel voices, a go-tell-it-on-the-mountain voice of glass-shattering force and hell-to-heaven range. In awe of and in homage of her mentor, the bright child naturally imitated his style: "Didn't make no difference that Professor Hines was a man. I didn't know any better but to imitate a man. He taught her to sing from her gut, not her throat. Vocal variety - that's what I learned at the tender age of five - vocal fire. Sing like your life depends on it. Well, turns out mine did. In 1950, when Mama Lu Rogers died, Dorothy took Jamesetta to live in San Francisco. Just entering her teens, the girl formed a vocal trio called the Creolettes, for the singers" light skin. While performing back in Los Angeles, they met the R&B impresario Johnny Otis (who died Tuesday, also in L.A., at the age of 90). Changing the group's name to The Peaches, and Jamesetta's to Etta James, Otis signed the girls to Modern Records and produced an answer song to Hank Ballard's raunchy blues hit "Work With Me Annie." Officially titled "The Wallflower," but known for its chorus "Roll With Me Henry," the record landed The Peaches at the top of the "race" charts in early 1955. Georgia Gibbs had a milder version that scored on the pop charts; music was still largely segregated, but that would change within the year, as Fats Domino and Little Richard broke through as the idols of white kids too. MORE: see Corliss" memorial tribute to Johnny Otis The early records display James" vocal passion in its weird precocity. She doesn't sound like a teen; her voice carries the remembered pain of a strong woman, an enslaved people. Billed as Etta "Miss Peaches" James on "Tough Lover" (recorded at the New Orleans studio where Domino and Richard cut their primal sides), she emits growls that explode into whoops. Numbers like "Good Rockin" Daddy" and "W.O.M.A.N.," to which James lent her authoritative eroticism, were too raw to cross over into pop; they would have been seized by the cultural Border Patrol. The fact remains that, while many African-American singers were being embraced by both black and white listeners, James was still making race music - as if she were a ballplayer stuck in the Negro Leagues years after Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier. When her Modern contract expired, James moved to Chicago's Chess Records, owned by Leonard Chess (inspiration for the character played by Adrian Brody in Cadillac Records). First she performed duets with her man of the moment, Harvey Fuqua, founder and lead singer of the seminal doo-wop group The Moonglows. Etta & Harvey's "If I Can't Have You" is a simultaneous orgasm in the making ("The way you hug me... squeeze me ... kiss me") and a showcase for their odd-couple harmonic symbiosis: his slyness, her supernal power. Finally, James found her indelible solo groove with the album At Last. It featured a wide spectrum of standards: blues testimonies like Willie Dixon's "I Just Want to Make Love to You" and more lilting tunes like Louis Prima's "A Sunday Kind of Love"; both would give James enduring singles. But the title song was the lifelong keeper. Lyricist Mack Gordon and composer Harry Warren, Hollywood's most prolific hitmaker, had written the number for the 1941 Glenn Miller movie Sun Valley Serenade, but it was held for the following year's Miller film, Orchestra Wives. Performed as a duet by Lynn Bari (who mouthed the words to Pat Friday's vocal) and Ray Eberle, the piece has middling-to-good words and a stroke of genius in the opening few bars: Warren flattens "love" ("At last, my love has come along") from a major to a minor chord. That one note darkens the tone from ecstasy to assonance, from the choir to the blues. Harnessing her vocal in a way that would have made Professor Hines proud, James ran with that poignant tone. The emphasis was no longer on I've-just-fallen-in-love but on What-took-so-long?, and Will "at last" last? An abandoned child has to be suspicious of success when she reaches womanhood. James paid for her stardom, and severely tested her talent, by becoming a drunk and a drug addict. In the mid-"60s she was detoxing at the U.S.C. County Hospital, and served a bunch of 90-day "under the influence" sentences at Sybil Brand, the women's prison in L.A. When released, she would flop on friends" couches. As she tried to sleep off the drugs, she would hear the whispers, "That's Etta James on our couch... Etta James, the singer... oh yeah, everyone knows she's a junkie." She married Artis Mills in 1969; when they were arrested together on a heroin possession charge, Mills took the rap and served 10 years in jail. By the early "70s she was back at Chess Records - this time behind a desk, promoting other singers" singles. Leonard Chess paid her $170 a week, plus $50 for her methadone. In 1973 she got a Christmas-New Year's gig at the Burning Spear in Chicago. "I'd sing some old blues and some new R&B," she recalled in A Rage to Survive. I'd sing my heart out and afterward I'd look for the dopeman and come back to the hotel to crash. As her vagabond mother Dorothy had taken Jamesetta in when Mama Lu died, she now cared for James's and Mills" son Donto. The singer was doing time at New York City's Riker's Island. No blues song can last forever, and in her 50s and 60s James, started piling up the career accolades: not just admission to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame but a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. It helped that she was still singing magnificently, on her 1989 proto-blues album The Seven Year Itch and the deftly jazzy Mystery Lady, a tribute to Billie Holiday. She won a Grammy for lifetime achievement in 2003 and a Best Contemporary Blues Album statuette for her final CD, Let's Roll, in 2005. Connoisseurs noted her significance as a crucial bridge between Bessie Smith and Holiday before her and the glam generation of Mariahs and Christinas that followed. Adele, the platinum-selling blues-pop vocalist, has cited James as her favorite singer. "Le7els," the current chart-topping pastiche by Avicil, samples James" rendition of "Something's Got a Hold on Me." Yet James" troubles lasted almost to the end of her life - longer, in fact, than she knew. As she slipped into dementia, and leukemia gnawed at her, a dispute rose between her husband Artis and their sons Donto and Sametto, both of whom had played in James's touring band. The sons sued the father for trusteeship of the singer's approximately $1 million estate, much of which was funneled into her medical bills. The suit was resolved last month, when James was long past understanding its import. At her passing, we have to recall Pastor Branham's rhetorical questions, back when Etta James was Jamesetta Hawkins. Have you ever heard a woman sing like this? Lord, no. Was her life blessed? God, no. A voice that profoundly touched its listeners is silent; a life that rose to the highest accomplishments and sank to the saddest depths is over. And Jamesetta has found her rest. At last. MORE: Corliss" review of Cadillac Records

Maldives - Ban Is Quickly Lifted on Massage Parlors and Spas - NYTimes.com A ban on luxury spas at hotels and massage parlors in the Maldives was lifted on Wednesday under pressure from the country's key tourism industry a week after it was imposed as part of an effort to curb perceived vice. "We have lifted the ban, and all the services will available for tourists," President Mohamed Nasheed told Reuters by telephone from the capital, Male. We wanted to give confidence to tourists. Mr. Nasheed said he ordered the ban in response to calls by the main opposition party, which claimed the spas and parlors were fronts for prostitution and led to the spread of drugs and alcohol to local residents in the mainly Sunni Muslim nation. But the opposition coalition said it had never asked for the ban.

Two Israelis held in alleged drug deal ISTANBUL, Turkey, Jan. 24 (UPI) -- A retired police officer and two Israeli men were arrested in Turkey after police allegedly intercepted a heroin shipment, Turkish officials said Tuesday. Today's Zaman said the drugs were allegedly headed to Israel. Police say they were tipped to the deal and followed the suspects from Istanbul's Bakirkoy district about 30 miles east to Gebze, on the Sea of Marmara. Two bags of heroin, totaling about 33 pounds, were allegedly seized in the arrest, Ynetnews.com reported Monday.

Valencia threat to end grand prix The future of the European Grand Prix in Valencia is in doubt after the city's council indicated that it wants to renegotiate its race fee. Jose Ciscar, vice-president of the Generalitat Valenciana, said he was embarking on a "complete and thorough review" of the major events budget. Valencia has a contract to host the race on a street circuit on the city's waterfront until 2014. Ciscar does not rule out cancelling the race: "We do not discount anything." He also said he would be contacting Formula One executive Bernie Ecclestone to discuss the city's wishes. The move makes Valencia, which is reputed to pay in the region of £20.6m a year to host the Grand Prix, the second race to ask Ecclestone to reduce F1's fees.

Democrats Move Last Night Of Convention To Charlotte Stadium CHARLOTTE, N.C. - President Barack Obama plans to accept the Democratic presidential nomination in the open air of Bank of America Stadium on the final day of his party's convention here next summer, repeating a page from his 2008 convention playbook. Democrats also announced Tuesday that the convention will be shortened from the traditional four days to three to have a day to celebrate the Carolinas, Virginia and the South. That celebration would take place on Monday, Sept. 3, which is Labor Day, at Charlotte Motor Speedway. The convention would run Tuesday through Thursday at the Time Warner Arena. Obama will deliver his acceptance speech on Thursday, Sept. Moving the speech to the 74,000-seat stadium, which is home to the NFL's Carolina Panthers, will allow thousands more activists and others to attend, officials said. In 2008, Obama accepted the Democratic nomination under the open skies of Denver's Invesco Field. "From the start, this convention has been about engaging more people in the process," said Democratic Party Chairman Debbie Wasserman Schultz. We saw in Denver in 2008 how holding the president's acceptance speech at Invesco Field allowed more American's to be part of the process and part of this experience. These people didn't donate any money. They weren't delegates. They were supporters from across the West who received community passes to attend. And we want to replicate that experience right here in Charlotte," said Wasserman Schultz, a Florida congresswoman. Wasserman Schultz and other Democratic officials said they hope the changes create enough excitement to boost Obama's chances of winning North Carolina again. Obama won the state by 14,000 votes in 2008, the slimmest margin of all the states he carried, becoming the first Democrat since Jimmy Carter to carry the state.

Google Is Watching: Morning Business Memo Google is about to overhaul the way it treats data from its users - combining nearly all the information it has across its array of email video and social networking services. Privacy critics don't like this. There will be one main policy covering Gmail, YouTube, Google searches and Google Plus. Information the firm gathers from users on one site can be used by others. The investment community has never seen a company like this, inside or outside technology. That description of Apple by ISI Group analyst Brian Marshall after the company released blow out quarterly earnings. Apple shares jumped 7 percent after quarterly profits jumped 118 percent from on a year ago. Sales rose 73 percent in the last three months of 2011. Apple sold 37 million iPhones - far more than expected. For the first time the iPhone accounts for more than half of Apple's sales. President Obama wants to allow homeowners to refinance their mortgages at lower interest rates. His proposal in the State of the Union address would cover both loans issued by government-controlled mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and private mortgage lenders. But Congress is unlikely to approve the change this year. Saying he would "not go back to the days when Wall Street was allowed to play by its own set of rules," the president announced a new "Financial Crimes Unit" made up of "highly trained investigators to crack down on large-scale fraud and protect people's investments." For 13 straight sessions the Dow Jones index has moved fewer than a hundred points. That's the longest period of calm on the markets since April of last year. Stock averages have made strong gains since last month. The Dow Jones industrial index dropped 33 points yesterday. The S&P index lost a point Germany's closely watched Ifo index of business optimism rose for the third month in a row in a positive sign for the largest economy in the eurozone. No deal yet on reducing Greece's debt burden. Representatives of private sector bondholders are expected to discuss today how and whether to continue talks on a bond swap after the EU toughened its demands. Banks, hedge funds and other investment firms that hold a large part of Greece's debt and are being asked to swap their existing bonds with new ones of a reduced value, longer maturity and lower interest rate.

Haiti Judge: Try Duvalier on Corruption Charges A Haitian judge said Monday that former dictator Jean-Claude Duvalier should face trial for corruption, but not the more serious charges of human rights violations committed during his rule. Investigative Magistrate Carves Jean said the statute of limitations had run out on the human rights charges but not on the accusations of misappropriation of public funds. He did not explain his reasoning, but the once-feared ruler known as "Baby Doc" is widely believe to have used money from the Haitian treasury to finance his life in exile. Jean did not release the verdict, based on a yearlong investigation, saying it must first be reviewed by the attorney general as well as by Duvalier and the victims of his regime who filed complaints against him. The judge said he recommended that the case be heard by a special court that handles relatively minor crimes. Duvalier, who has been free to roam about the capital since his surprise return from exile last year, would face no more than five years in prison. Duvalier attorney Reynolds Georges, who had argued that the case should be dismissed in its entirety because the statute of limitations had expired on all the charges, said he would appeal the decision as soon as he received the paperwork. "We're going to appeal that decision ... and throw it in the garbage can," Georges told The Associated Press. Duvalier has posed a challenge to Haiti since his return home from 25 years in exile, most of which he spent in France. Haiti has a weak judicial system, with little history of successfully prosecuting even simple crimes, and the government is preoccupied with reconstruction from the devastating January 2010 earthquake.

Talks take place amid fears of Ulster Bank job losses

Canon's president steps down as earnings outlook falters TOKYO (Reuters) - Canon Inc said on Monday its president Tsuneji Uchida would step down and his role would be taken on by chairman and chief executive Fujio Mitarai after the camera and printer maker forecast much weaker-than-expected earnings growth for this year. Like other Japanese exporters, Canon, which makes 80 percent of its revenue overseas, has been buffeted by the strong yen, a weak economic outlook and the floods in Thailand, although it has been quite aggressive in countering these challenges by cutting costs and increasing automation. "Owing to the historically high valuation of the yen combined with the effects of the earthquake and floods, all of Canon's businesses faced extremely demanding conditions throughout the year," the company said in a statement. Canon said Uchida would resign effective March 29, to be replaced by Mitarai, who served as president from 1995 to 2006 but has since held the post of chairman. Canon forecast a full-year operating profit of 390 billion yen ($5.1 billion) for the current year to December 2012, below expectations of a 470 billion yen profit based on the average of 20 estimates by analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. The company also posted a slightly better-than-forecast 14 percent rise in fourth-quarter operating profit to 94.6 billion yen, in line with consensus expectations. Operating profit for the full year to December was 378.1 billion yen, down from 387.5 billion yen in the previous year but beating the average of 20 analyst forecasts for a profit of 372 billion yen. Canon, which competes with Xerox in printers and Nikon and Sony Corp in cameras, aims to sell 9.2 million interchangeable lens cameras and 22 million compact cameras in the year to December, compared with 7.2 million and 18.7 million, respectively, last year. Its shares have fallen about 18 percent since the start of last year, slightly worse than the benchmark Nikkei average's 14 percent drop. Xerox lowered its outlook for 2012 this month, on expectations that the debt crisis in Europe would hurt its business. $1 = 76.67 yen Reporting by Isabel Reynolds; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Edwina Gibbs

Ski Champ Sarah Burke in Critical Condition After Surgery Canadian freestyle skier Sarah Burke was in critical condition Thursday after undergoing a successful operation to repair a torn vertebral artery that had caused bleeding to her brain. Burke, 29, sustained "serious injuries" after an accident Tuesday in which she crashed on a half-pipe ramp in Park City, Utah. "With injuries of this type, we need to observe the course of her brain function before making definitive pronouncements about Sarah's prognosis for recovery," Dr. William Couldwell, the neurosurgeon at the University of Utah who performed Burke's surgery, said in a press release from Burke's publicist. Our Neuro Critical Care team will be monitoring her condition and response continuously over the coming hours and days. Burke, who is not only one of the best female skiers in the world but a red carpet regular and fashion plate who was once named one of FHM's 100 sexiest women alive, hit her head after a faulty landing while on a training run in the Eagle Superpipe at Park City Mountain Resort. During the accident, Burke injured a vertebral artery, a set of major arteries in the neck which supply blood to the brain, and resulted in an intracranial hemorrhage, according to a release from her publicist. Disrupting the blood flow to the brain can result in brain damage or death depending on the severity of the case, the Associated Press reported. "What I've heard, relatively directly, is that she landed a trick down in the bottom end of the pipe, and kind of bounced, from her feet to her head," Peter Judge, CEO of the Canadian freestyle team, told the Associated Press. Burke was admitted and treated at University Hospital in Salt Lake, a spokeswoman for the hospital had confirmed. "She remains in critical care, intubated and under sedation to allow her brain and body to heal," her publicist told ABC News. In recent days, Burke has been training for the upcoming X Games in Aspen, Colo., in which she has already won the gold four times.

Bournemouth council leader Peter Charon loses confidence vote

NHL: New York Rangers 3, Toronto 0 TORONTO, Jan. 14 (UPI) -- Martin Biron posted his second shutout of the season Saturday, turning aside 19 shots to carry the New York Rangers to a 3-0 win over Toronto. Derek Stepan added a goal and an assist, while Brian Boyle and Mike Rupp also scored as New York stayed hot with its sixth win in seven games. The Rangers notched a victory for the 10th time in 12 road contests, including their fourth straight away from home. Jonas Gustavsson made 27 saves for the Maple Leafs, who dropped a second straight game following four consecutive wins.

Nigeria's EFCC in raids over fuel importation probe

RBS plan puts 10,000 jobs at risk As many as 10,000 bankers at Royal Bank of Scotland face the prospect of losing their jobs, as the state-owned UK bank draws up detailed plans to retreat from investment banking. The job cuts - combined with an expected £1bn-2bn of restructuring costs - are the worst-case scenario in plans being considered by Stephen Hester, RBS's chief executive, who finally accepted in November that the investment bank that has propped up the group's profits since he arrived in the job three years ago, has outlived its usefulness. RBS's investment bank has failed to become a credible force in several areas of investment banking, particularly equities, and the combination of the European downturn and more costly regulatory capital requirements will make life tougher still. "Investment banking was never really understood by management," said one person familiar with the business. Stephen has grown very cynical about it over the years. Pressure mounted just before Christmas, when George Osborne, the chancellor, said the bank, which is 83 per cent-owned by the government, should "scale back [its] risky activities." The cuts are expected to focus on RBS's equities business, which has failed to compete in the upper rankings of the industry. This division generated just £623m of the £5bn of revenue produced by the investment bank in the first nine months of last year. One person familiar with the bank's plan said it was preparing to exit the cash equities business entirely and may also withdraw from equity derivatives, mergers and acquisitions advisory and shrink its structured credit and interest rates business. That would leave RBS's investment bank - which employs 19,000 staff - barely half its current size, with remaining strengths in debt capital markets, foreign exchange and interest rates, albeit in shrunk form. In an attempt to avoid mass closure of the business, RBS recently appointed Lazard to hunt down buyers for its equities business, which includes Hoare Govett, one of the City's oldest stockbrokers, as well as large operations in Australia and the US. But analysts question the feasibility of finding a buyer for the sub-scale UK division, which they say would simply burden the new owner with lacklustre earnings and inflated costs. Even if RBS did manage to sell this business, analysts say it would unlikely generate much of a profit, although it would save the bank the pain of a costly restructuring. One London-based banker said: "This is the worst timing imaginable. Nobody has clear visibility about the future of investment banking. You will either end up with a fire sale or simply a closure of the business. Royal Bank of Canada has been rumoured as a prospective buyer of RBS's Hoare Govett corporate broking franchise, inherited through the acquisition of ABN Amro in 2008, though two people close to the situation said an approach from RBC was "unlikely." A management buy-out is also seen as "not feasible." Optimists cited the likes of Nomura and Canaccord as alternative buyers, though most dismiss those prospects. RBS's Asian business might attract the interest of Standard Chartered, Barclays or JPMorgan, bankers said. RBS is also poised to withdraw from the bulk of its European investment banking business - abandoning Spain, Italy, Russia, the Nordic region and the Middle East to leave an operation focused on London, Paris and Frankfurt. The bank could have the best chance of selling its US investment banking operations, RBS Greenwich Capital. Based in Connecticut, this business is heavily skewed towards treasury services and US mortgage-backed securities. Analysts estimate that the US business could be worth in the low billions of pounds, although they warn that a large chunk of its revenues come from RBS clients who would not necessarily transfer their business to a buyer. The rump of the investment bank is expected to be merged into the bank's corporate and "global transaction services" business - the unit that comprises run-of-the-mill client services such as cash management, custody and trade finance. RBS is preparing to lay out a strategy detailing which businesses it plans to sell or wind down ahead of its annual results presentation at the end of February, and possibly as early as this month. It wants to make quick progress selling - or closing - the businesses that are easiest to exit, although the full restructuring could take two to three years. Bankers pointed to the risks of that long-drawn-out approach. "The operational risk of winding these things down is huge," one banker said. If you're going to lose your job at the end of it, the level of attention you pay and the quality of risk management is going to be compromised. Once the restructuring is complete, RBS will return to its roots as a UK retail and corporate financing bank - its home market is likely to account for about three-quarters of its balance sheet in the future, up from about two-thirds - according to people familiar with its plans. While Mr Hester has repeatedly insisted that he was also right to hold on to the investment bank when he outlined plans to shrink the group balance sheet three years ago - he points out the business has since delivered £10bn of profit - critics say he should have taken a harder line following the financial crisis.

PARIS - The countries of the European Union have taken their boldest step so far in the increasingly tense standoff with Iran over its nuclear program, agreeing in principle to impose an embargo on Iranian oil, French and European diplomats said on Wednesday. A final decision by the European Union will not come before the end of January and would be implemented in stages to avoid major disruptions in global oil supplies. But the move by some of Iran's most important oil customers appears to underscore the resolve of Western allies to impose toughest round of sanctions on Iran to date, increasing pressure on Tehran to stop enriching uranium and negotiate an end to what Western leaders argue is an accelerating program to build a nuclear bomb. Tehran denies any military intent and refuses to stop enrichment of uranium for what it describes as civilian purposes. But it has responded to the threat of new American and European sanctions by a series of military and diplomatic threats. It has test-fired new missiles, threatened to shut the Strait of Hormuz to shipping, held naval war games, announced the production of its first nuclear-fuel rod and, on Tuesday, warned an American aircraft carrier not to return to the Persian Gulf. It also said that it wanted to reopen talks with the West on the nuclear issue, which was interpreted in Paris as an effort to buy time. The threats from Tehran, aimed both at the West and at Israel, combined with a recent assessment by the International Atomic Energy Agency that Tehran's nuclear program has a military objective, is becoming an important issue in the American presidential campaign. Republican presidential candidates are urging stronger measures against Tehran, including some urging the use of military force, to stop the Islamic government from getting nuclear weaponry and to better protect Israel. Israel itself has warned that time was running out to stop Iran from developing a nuclear weapon, given that Tehran has been moving its enrichment facilities deep into mountains, making it much harder to attack them militarily. Israel has called on Washington and the West to enhance sanctions to a more punishing level in order to get Iran to negotiate seriously and make the development of a nuclear weapon more costly for an economy already suffering from an array of financial and trade sanctions. Last weekend, President Obama signed legislation aimed at sanctioning foreign companies that do business with Iran, which could reduce Iran's ability to sell its oil and other exports. Iran's first vice president, Mohammad-Reza Rahimi, then declared that if sanctions are imposed on Iranian oil exports, Iran would block shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. While American officials discounted the threat as self-defeating for Iran, at the same time they said they had plans to keep the Strait open. Iran has its own domestic politics, with parliamentary elections in March, and the government wants to show that it will protect Iran's interests, both economic and military. The increasingly shrill tone from Tehran seemed a direct response, diplomats suggested, to economic sanctions that are finally biting hard and threaten to damage Iran's ability to export oil. Oil represents some 60 percent of Iran's economy, and oil exports are a vital source of foreign currency. So a European oil embargo would have a limited but significant effect on Iran, which depends heavily on its oil exports for cash to buy needed imports. The United States and France has been pushing hard for an embargo and sanctions targeting Iran's central bank. But some European nations depend heavily on Iranian oil and have been reluctant to cut off their imports during a severe economic slump. At the end of December, lower-ranking diplomats agreed in Brussels to the shape of a European oil embargo on Iran, vowing to meet objections by some states that have significant oil imports from Iran, including Italy, Spain and Greece. James Kanter contributed reporting from Brussels.

Finnish Presidential Election Headed for Runoff Finns are voting for a new president as polls indicate declining support for the front-runner, making a second round next month increasingly likely. Ex-finance minister Sauli Niinisto still holds a clear lead in a field of eight candidates but surveys indicate he will not capture the required majority to win Sunday's ballot. The vote comes as the Nordic country braces for cutbacks amid a European financial crisis that threatens the economy and the top credit rating of the eurozone member. The new president will replace Tarja Halonen, one of Finland's most popular heads of state, who has served two six-year terms.

Colts Lose Finale, Win Luck Sweepstakes Peyton Manning might be welcoming Andrew Luck to the Indianapolis Colts in four months. The Colts locked up the top pick in April's NFL draft, setting the stage to select the Stanford quarterback. They fell to 2-14 when Maurice Jones-Drew ran for a season-high 169 yards, clinching the NFL rushing title and breaking Fred Taylor's single-season franchise record in the Jacksonville Jaguars' 19-13 victory Sunday. The Jaguars (5-11) became the first AFC South opponent to sweep Indianapolis since 2002 and gave outgoing owner Wayne Weaver a victory in his final game. The Colts may have been the big winners, though. Indy would have dropped to the No. 2 spot in the draft with a victory in Jacksonville. Instead, owner Jim Irsay will have the choice to draft Luck to join four-time MVP Manning. Manning was on the sideline all season after neck surgery and had a front-row spot for the Jones-Drew Show. Jones-Drew started the day with a comfortable lead in the rushing race. And when Philadelphia's LeSean McCoy and Houston's Arian Foster were inactive, it pretty much locked up the rushing title for Jacksonville's stocky star. But Jones-Drew wanted more. He talked earlier in the week about how special it would be to break Taylor's franchise mark of 1,572 yards set in 2003. He did it in style, taking a third-quarter handoff around the left side, breaking a tackle near the line of scrimmage and picking up 56 yards. It was his longest run in more than two years. Jacksonville Jaguars owner Wayne Weaver waves to the crowd after being honored at halftime during an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts, Sunday, Jan. 1, 2012, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/Stephen Morton) Close Teammates patted him on the helmet and shoulder pads. Two plays later, fans gave him a standing ovation as his achievement was announced over the public address system. "As long as Mo stays healthy, he'll break every single record I ever set," Taylor said in a text message to The Associated Press. He's a special talent with great work habits and deserves to be rewarded as such. Jones-Drew also sealed the victory by picking up a first down in the closing minutes, sending many of the 60,000 on hand to the exits on New Year's Day. The biggest applause of the day was for the Weavers. Wayne and his wife, Delores, were honored at halftime. Wayne Weaver almost singlehandedly brought the team to Jacksonville in 1993. After 18 years, 352 games and six playoff appearances, he is walking away from an exclusive club. Weaver sold the team to Illinois businessman Shahid Khan last month for $770 million. The team honored Weaver and his wife with a video montage, gold-plated helmets and a spot in the Pride of the Jaguars, the team's Hall of Fame. They joined left tackle Tony Boselli as the only ones in the Pride. Khan officially takes over Wednesday. His biggest task is hiring a new coach. The Colts could be in for changes, too. Irsay must decide whether to pay Manning a $28 million bonus, let him become a free agent or work out a new deal with the franchise quarterback. Irsay has said that if Manning recovers from neck issues, he will be back in Indy, no matter the cost. Questions also surround coach Jim Caldwell, team vice chairman Bill Polian and general manager Chris Polian. So Luck seems to be the only lock. The Colts, who lost their first 13 games, did little to sway public opinion in the finale. Dan Orlovsky completed 27 of 40 passes for 264 yards, with a late touchdown pass to Austin Collie. He threw two interceptions and was sacked three times, twice by Jeremy Mincey. The Colts had just 56 yards on the ground and settled for two field goals until the late touchdown .

Ford recalls 525,000 cars - UPI.com WASHINGTON, Jan. 11 (UPI) -- U.S. auto giant Ford Motor Co. announced recalls involving 274,368 Ford Escapes and 251,065 Ford Freestar and Mercury Monterey vehicles. The recall of Ford Escapes involves model year 2001-02 vehicles that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said pose a fire risk. Escapes made between Oct. 22, 1999, and July 19, 2002, have brake master reservoir caps that could leak, allowing flammable brake fluid to come in contact with the anti-lock brake system module wiring harness connector. Should that occur, corrosion of the harness could ensue, leading to an overheating electrical connector and, possibly, a fire. Ford said it would notify owners of the recall starting Jan. 23, but that "due to a parts delay," repairs might not be scheduled right away. Separately, Ford is recalling model year 2004-05 Ford Freestar and Mercury Monterey vehicles due to torque converter output shafts that "may fail," the NHTSA said. The torque converter is a component of the automatic transmission system. If it fails, the vehicle could lose power "with no warning, increasing the risk of a crash," the regulator said. Ford will begin its recall for Freestar and Monterey vehicles after March. For information, the company can be reached at 1-866-436-7332.

Philipp Hildebrand: At the heart of a Swiss storm When Philipp Hildebrand was appointed chairman of the Swiss central bank two years ago, eyebrows were raised in some central banks. Never mind that Hildebrand, then 46, was young by central bank standards; he also cut an unusually debonair figure in the stolid Swiss bureaucratic world. He is suave, eloquent and international, a testament to his time abroad, including a stint at Moore Capital, the US hedge fund. Now those eyebrows have been raised again, and not for positive reasons. For a master of the universe, accustomed to rising effortlessly to global prominence, the past three weeks have been a nightmare for the 48-year-old. In recent days, it has emerged that his wife, Kashya, a former foreign exchange trader and also a former employee of Moore, sold Swiss francs to buy about $500,000 last summer, shortly before the SNB intervened massively to weaken the franc. Less than two months later an almost equivalent amount was sold back into francs, netting a handsome profit. FROM Person in the news This week the SNB revealed it had cleared him of breaking internal rules: he apparently did not know of the trades in advance, reported them to the SNB when he learnt of them, and subsequently donated the profits to charity. He has also batted off calls for him to resign; instead he is threatening legal action against the bank employer who leaked details of his family's financial details to right-wing politicians who oppose him. Nevertheless, the event is - at best - extremely embarrassing. It comes against the backdrop of a bigger tussle in Zurich. While it is his wife's dealings that have drawn attention, he has been attracting controversy for several years. That partly reflects bold decisions, but friends suggest it is also the cost of being an "outsider" who has dared to rock the boat. His background and mindset are unusual for a European bureaucrat. While as the son of a senior IBM manager, he grew up in comfortable surroundings in Zurich's so-called "Gold Coast," the lakeside villages where many bankers live, after an undergraduate degree in Toronto and a D.Phil at Oxford, in the 1990s he joined Moore Capital. A strategist not a trader, he became a partner in his six years at the firm, due not just to his intellect and formidable networking skills but also to a charm that sometimes borders on the manipulative. There he gained considerable wealth and met his wife. He also learnt a more subtle, but crucial, skill: embracing risk. For unlike most career bureaucrats, Mr Hildebrand has never been risk averse in career or policy choices. Despite his success at Moore's, he says he always intended to return home and had dreams of public service. In the late 1990s he returned as chief investment officer of private banks Vontobel and then Geneva-based Union Bancaire Privé. Then, in 2003, he was appointed junior member of the central bank's three-person governing body. The surprise appointment was poorly received by some SNB insiders, given the bank's traditions of internal promotion, and his youth and background. However, the step was seen as a deliberate attempt to inject more private sector savvy and dynamism into a highly respected, but musty, institution. Mr Hildebrand lived up to expectations, diversifying the bank's investment strategy to improve returns and - ironically - pushing for its first code of conduct for top executives. Then, in 2007, after being appointed deputy governor, he took his first big policy gamble, becoming the first western central banker to publicly demand tougher capital standards for banks. That infuriated powerful figures in the Swiss banking industry. Some started discreetly agitating for his removal. But Mr Hildebrand intensified his reform demands and the Lehman Brothers crisis in 2008 strengthened his position, enabling him in 2010 to become chairman. Since then, his policy calls have been bolder still. In 2010, the SNB intervened heavily to weaken the franc. But this failed to stem its rise. When it emerged that the gambit had created huge losses for the bank, rightwing politicians called for his head. Unrepentant, he launched a fresh intervention this year, with a currency peg and a wave of radical quantitative easing. This has stemmed the franc's rise. Yet the controversy remains. Many Swiss have been proud to see a compatriot making a name for his country - particularly at a time when there is concern that it is losing influence in world affairs. Many economists and policymakers argue that his bold moves and non-bureaucratic mindset are just what is needed amid the economic turmoil. However, detractors retort that his policies remain a gamble; having lost money for the SNB with the failed intervention, the longer-term impact of his quantitative easing is unclear, as is his ability to defend the new currency peg. And - as ever - there is the controversy over style. In a damage-limitation exercise, Mr Hildebrand revealed more background to the affair this week: his wife's trades apparently occurred after the family decided last year to sell a ski chalet they owned near the fashionable resort of Gstaad, because it was hardly used, for more than SFr3m. In November, they bought instead a smaller flat in Klosters, a ski resort much closer to Zurich, for a lower sum. Mrs Hildebrand - who has owned an art gallery and dealership since coming to Switzerland - then decided to buy dollars with that money, since she considered the currency "ridiculously cheap." The media have seized on remarks this week, such as when Mr Hildebrand said his wife "has always been a strong personality." He told the FT last night that his wife and their daughter have been "absolutely amazing." The couple enjoy holidays skiing. But there is little prospect of them enjoying that Klosters flat any time soon: he will need every ounce of his political skill and charm to emerge unscathed from the fallout from these trades. The writers are the FT's Switzerland Correspondent and US Managing Editor

Hard-up Scots students stump up whopping £3.8m in library fines CASH-strapped students in Scotland have paid more than £3.8 million in fines after failing to return library books on time, new figures have revealed. Edinburgh University topped the league of shame with charges of £592,000 issued from 2007 to January this year. That included one student who racked up fines of £1,050. The figures, provided under the Freedom of Information Act, show students at Glasgow's Strathclyde University were second worst, after running up £576,300 of library fines. More than 500,000 books were never returned. Overdue fines have cost some students their degrees and left others having to wait to graduate. At least 1,800 students were told they had to pay off library fines before they could graduate. The University of the West of Scotland, which has campuses at Ayr, Dumfries, Hamilton and Paisley, said 214 students had not graduated for failing to pay up. Eben Wilson, director of Taxpayer Scotland, which campaigns for lower taxes, said students should take a more responsible attitude to returning textbooks, at a time when fees have become such a contentious issue. "Students need to take a bit more care of the money being provided to them by Scottish taxpayers before they ask for more," she said. Racking up thousands of pounds on fines due to their own tardiness isn't helping themselves or their universities in times of austerity. In fact, it's likely that the money wasted in fines will not be recoverable, and in the end it will be paid by other more disciplined students in lower bursaries and higher costs for their universities. Liz Smith, MSP, Scottish Conservative education spokeswoman, added: "The loss of revenue from so many unpaid fines puts into sharp focus how much extra money could be in the system if people acted responsibly." Although library fines are not large they are intended to provide an incentive to return books and borrowers should always be public-spirited and adhere to them. A spokesman for the University of Edinburgh said: "We feel that our fines are fair and set at a level that encourages students to return books on time for the benefit of all library users. We always send notices to warn students books are overdue prior to charges being incurred. The FoI request also revealed Glasgow Caledonian University students racked up £524,000 in fines, while those at Glasgow University face a £496,700 bill. Aberdeen University collected £482,500, but Robert Gordon University, in the same city, took only £71,545 in fines since 2008. The National Unions of Students in Scotland declined to comment. THE library books most frequently stolen from Scottish universities over the past five years include: University of Edinburgh: Positive Teaching in the Primary School by Frank Merret, which was targeted by future teachers. University of the West of Scotland: Taxation: Finance Act 2009 by Alan Melville. Strategic Management, Awareness and Change, by John Thompson Industrial Organisation: competitive, strategy, policy by John Lipczynski.

Terumo Americas Holding Acquires Onset Medical Corporation, a Leader in Innovative Sheath Technology Designed for Multiple, Minimally Invasive Clinical Applications SOMERSET, N.J., Jan. 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Terumo Americas Holding, Inc. (TAH), a U.S. subsidiary of Japan's Terumo Corporation, one of the world's leading medical device manufacturers with $4 billion in sales and operations in more than 160 nations, today announced that it has acquired Onset Medical Corporation ("Onset"), an innovative medical device company located in Irvine, CA, that focuses on developing first-in-class access sheath technology designed for multiple, minimally invasive clinical applications in cardiology and urology. Using its proprietary Controlled Deployment Technology (CDT) platform, Onset has developed the smallest sheath profiles with the largest internal diameters of any available access sheath to protect against unnecessary access site or arterial trauma for the patient. Onset's Associates will join with TAH subsidiary Terumo Medical Corporation as part of its Terumo Interventional Systems (TIS) business unit, where the CDT platform will complement TIS' complete product line of industry leading entry site management and lesion access technologies. Terumo customers will have access to Onset's complete product lines. The SoloPath™ Balloon Expandable Transfemoral and Transseptal Catheters' expandable and collapsable sheath technology allows TIS to enter the global structural heart and aneurysmal repair markets, providing an access platform for complex, large-bore procedures including Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation (TAVI), Thoracic Endovascular Aortic/Aneurysm Repair (TVAR) and Endovascular Aneurysm/Aortic Repair (EVAR). The Pathway™ Balloon Expandable PCNL Sheath and Pathway™ Balloon Expandable Ureteral Access Sheath provide physicians with a one-step option for performing procedures such as Percutaneous Nephrolithotomy in the removal of large renal calculi (kidney stones). "We welcome Onset to the Terumo family and look forward to providing our customers with current and future products based on the exciting CDT platform, which represents a tremendous complement to our overall value proposition as the leaders in entry site management and lesion access," said James Rushworth, Senior Vice President and General Manager, Terumo Medical Corporation and President, Onset Medical Corporation. CDT literally changes the way physicians enter the vascular system and manage the access site, while allowing them to achieve easier, safer access to the target lesion in a variety of clinical applications. This strategic acquisition reinforces our commitment to pursuing unique technologies that meet the specialized needs of our customers and contribute to better outcomes for their patients. As a global leader in vascular access management, TIS can effectively maximize the potential of the CDT-based platform when compared with competitors who do not specialize in entry site management. "When Terumo approached us, it quickly became clear that they were the established leader in entry site management and the best company to commercialize our sheath technology on a global scale," said Joseph Bishop, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Onset Medical Corporation. It is gratifying to know that our unique devices will immediately strengthen their core capability and will be featured prominently among other class-leading technologies that drive better patient outcomes. For more information, contact Robert Murphy, The Storch-Murphy Group, 908.276.0777. Terumo Interventional Systems Terumo Interventional Systems (TIS), a strategic business unit of Terumo Medical Corporation, directly markets a full line of guidewires, catheters, introducer sheaths, guiding sheaths and embolization products for use in a multitude of different interventional procedures. Interventional Radiologists, Interventional Neuroradiologists, Interventional Cardiologists, and Vascular Surgeons are among the medical professionals that depend upon TIS products to access and cross difficult-to-reach lesions, thereby allowing therapeutic intervention in previously unreachable vascular beds. Terumo Medical Corporation Founded in 1972 as a Terumo Corporation subsidiary, Terumo Medical Corporation (TMC) develops, manufactures, and markets high-quality medical devices used in a broad range of applications in numerous healthcare markets. TMC manufactures a broad portfolio of needles and syringes, entry-site management products, and a line of sterile connection devices used in hospitals and blood banks worldwide. Terumo Corporation Tokyo-based Terumo Corporation is one of the world's leading medical device manufacturers with $4.0 billion in sales and operations in more than 160 nations. Founded in 1921, the company develops, manufactures, and distributes world-class medical devices including products for use in cardiothoracic surgery, interventional procedures, and transfusion medicine; the company also manufactures a broad array of syringe and hypodermic needle products for hospital and physician office use. Terumo contributes to society by providing valued products and services to the healthcare market and by responding to the needs of healthcare providers and the people they serve. Terumo Corporation's shares are listed on the first section of the Tokyo Stock Exchange (No. 4543, Reuters symbol <4543.T>, or Bloomberg 4543: JP) and is a component of the Nikkei 225, Japan's leading stock index. SOURCE Terumo Americas Holding, Inc.

Subsidised theatres see audience slump since 2009

Michael Kinsley: The coddled American voter A mere week ago, the Rick Santorum boom seemed a distant possibility. In a Des Moines Register poll published the weekend before the Iowa caucuses, 41% of respondents said they weren't sure whom they were going to support. And these were people who expressed an intention to attend a caucus. Some of them had inclinations, certainly. But, like diners poring over the menu at a fancy restaurant, they might yet change their minds. Indeed, if the polls are to be believed, many Iowa voters changed their preferences multiple times over the last few months. The electorate (to lower the tone of the metaphor) seemed to pick up one cantaloupe after another, always looking for perfection, never finding it, putting the melon back and reaching for another. The fruit that started at the bottom of the bin - Santorum - got a big squeeze at the end. There is at least one difference, of course, between choosing what to eat from the bounty of this country and choosing among politicians clamoring for your vote: In the restaurant, or with cantaloupes, you are probably looking for the best among a variety of appealing options. At the caucuses, or in the voting booth, you are probably seeking the least objectionable among a group of undesirables. At least that's how Iowa Republican voters apparently saw it. To a non-Iowa non-Republican, it doesn't look that way. It looks as if Iowa Republicans had an embarrassment of riches to choose from, including every variety of right-wing fruitcake, from libertarian through evangelical; every degree of Washington experience, from a former House speaker to a fellow who can't remember the names of Cabinet departments he intends to eliminate; and all sorts of family values, from the candidate who took in 23 foster children to the one who has had three wives. All these options, sandwiched in the polls between two reasonably normal moderate Republicans - throwbacks to the days when primaries were a road test for candidates, looking for one who might win, rather than loyalty exams sponsored by the various tendencies of modern conservatism. All of these candidates pushed their positions and arguments, and offered their physical presence, to the people of Iowa for the better part of a year. They spent tens of millions of dollars broadcasting their positions. Yet almost half of the Iowans who intended to participate in a caucus said, just a few days before the voting started, that they might still change their minds. What more information could they need? What did they think might happen on Monday or Tuesday to clarify the choice for them? Why the furrowed brows, the pulled chins? It was partly, I'd guess, a form of preening encouraged by political polls. Being undecided makes you seem interesting. Being decided makes you seem dull. You are no longer of any interest to the campaigns and candidates - even the candidate you support. Is there any other democracy where the voters are as spoiled as they are in the United States? Especially, of course, in certain states, such as Iowa and New Hampshire, where the old joke is literally true about the citizens who say they haven't yet formed an opinion about a candidate because they've only met the fellow a few times. But even voters in the rest of the country - if their votes have any relevance at all after the residents of Iowa and New Hampshire have their say - are coddled in many ways. Consider just a couple. The conventions of political rhetoric in other nations don't ordinarily require candidates to assure their audiences that they are the greatest people on Earth, or possibly the greatest people in all of history, as every politician seeking national office in the U.S. must. There have been nations, of course, whose politicians have used this kind of talk and meant it - often with tragic results. I'm not worried about a slide into fascism. For Americans, all this talk of greatness is more of a tic or a habit than a guide to action. Still, it's unattractive. The U.S. is a pretty great place, where billions of people around the globe would probably move in three seconds if they could. But the more we go on and on about this, the less true it is, and the harder it becomes to make it more true. More generally, modern American politicians almost never use their campaign rhetoric to deliver bad news or to challenge the citizenry. Every problem we have - to the extent that such a wonderful nation as ours can have any problems - could be solved by a tax cut for you or a tax increase for someone else. America's problems today are not all that different from those of Europe. But the rhetoric is completely different. Chancellor Angela Merkel told Germans on New Year's Eve that Europeans faced the "harshest test in decades." And 2012, she said, "will no doubt be more difficult than 2011." "Austerity" is what every European politician says is necessary. Have any of this year's Republican presidential candidates (save Ron Paul) used this word, except dismissively or with a sneer? Has President Obama? This is partly because of a legitimate debate in the U.S. about how much austerity is needed, if any. But if and when a dose is needed, the American politician will have a hard time administering it - and the American voter will be completely unprepared for the sting. Michael Kinsley, a former editorial page editor of The Times, is a Bloomberg View columnist.

Beijing to release hourly updates on smog Beijing is to release more detailed data on pollution in the smoggy capital city, after public outcry from residents, underlining the growing influence of environmental concerns in the world's second-largest economy. Pollution has become a rallying point for public protest in China as the health costs of living in polluted surroundings have become increasingly apparent and many believe the government has obscured the true magnitude of the problem with fuzzy numbers. On Friday, Beijing's environmental bureau said that it would begin posting hourly updates this month from its pollution monitoring system, including updates for small particles known as PM 2.5 that are particularly harmful to public health. It currently measures for particles four times that size. "The public outcry had a huge impact in making this come about," said Ma Jun, an environmentalist. Before this the government was not willing to publish [the PM 2.5 data], perhaps because they were apprehensive about how it would look. According to a World Bank report, 750,000 people die in China prematurely each year, primarily from air pollution in major cities. Protests over pollution have previously forced the hand of the government, most notably in Dalian last year when officials promised to shut down a petrochemical plant after thousands took to the streets. Beijing's air pollution data struck a nerve in the city because of the obvious difference between the official pollution reports - which recorded 286 "blue sky" days last year - and the visible quality of Beijing's air, which is often hazy with a slight metallic flavour. The discrepancy is highlighted by a Twitter feed from the US embassy in Beijing, which publishes hourly readings for PM 2.5 levels from a monitoring machine on the embassy roof. The data from the US embassy routinely shows pollution levels that are more severe than the Beijing city data because of differences in what is measured. On one particularly polluted day in 2010, the embassy's reading went off the charts, prompting the Twitter feed to temporarily display a pollution measurement of "crazy bad." Chinese officials have in the past asked the embassy to stop publishing the pollution data because it makes the environmental bureau look bad, according to a cable published on WikiLeaks. Last year, Beijing's environmental authorities were caught off guard by public outrage - including in the state-run media - over the discrepancies between their data and that of the embassy. That appears to have forced Beijing's environmental authorities to move forward the planned release of the PM 2.5 data, originally due to happen before 2016, to now happen before Chinese New Year, which begins on Jan 23. Scientists say that with the inclusion of PM 2.5, Beijing's official air quality is likely to appear worse than under the previous standard, which measured larger particles known as PM 10 that had been declining in concentration in recent years. The accuracy of Beijing's air quality data has been questioned in the past. In the run-up to the Olympic Games there in 2008, statistical analysis showed Beijing's public pollution data were manipulated to make air quality improvements seem greater than they actually were.

Who will replace Alesha Dixon? With Alesha Dixon's defection to ITV, there is a vacant gold chair behind the Strictly Come Dancing judging table. A set of spare scoring paddles to be wielded with a flourish. A squidgy space on Claudia Winkelman's Sunday night banqette. Speculation is already rife on who will replace Dixon, so let's examine the runners and riders. With three men already on the panel (barring any other departures or Len Goodman taking retirement), the newcomer is bound to be female. This rules out the likes of Jason Gardiner, who until this year has played the panto villain role on Dancing On Ice, or one of the male professionals, notably Anton Du Beke. There will be an inevitable campaign to bring back Arlene Philips, but she'd surely have more pride than that. Her return would also be a tacit admission that the producers made a mistake three years ago. Ballerina Darcey Bussell and Dirty Dancing star Jennifer Grey have both been guest judges before. Grey is a hit on the US version, Dancing with The Stars, but fell flat when she filled in for Len Goodman here in November. Bussell would be the better full-time choice but not exactly a populist name - she's more BBC Two than primetime BBC One. Other names being touted include former ladette, Zoe Ball, a finalist in 2005 and current host of weeknight spin-off show It Takes Two, and 2010 champion Kara Tointon - but either would face the same problems as Dixon. Tointon's boyfriend Artem Chigvintsev is also one of the professional dancers, so there is conflict of interest. Monica Mason retires from the Royal Ballet next year, but would be an even more highbrow option than Bussell. Hip-hop choreographer Kate Prince and dancer-cum-actress Nicole Sherwin are being tipped for big things, but likely to start lower down the TV ladder. This all means that my tip, and the early favourite of many bookmakers, is Karen Hardy. The 41-year-old is an ex-professional who now runs her own dance school - like a mini-Goodman. She provided the red button commentary during the recent series, a sign that she's being groomed for a bigger role. Her appearances on It Takes Two have also impressed, as she picks apart the previous weekend's routines with wit and insight. However, Hardy is hardly a household name. The Beeb may yet opt for someone younger or bigger-profile to deliver glamour and headlines. With Strictly on a high after a hit year, it's a tough call. As Craig Revel Horwood might put it: "One word, three syllables, darling: diff-i-cult."

Wahlberg apologizes for Sept. 11 remarks LOS ANGELES, Jan. 19 (UPI) -- Mark Wahlberg acknowledges his recent remarks about how he thinks he would have acted during the 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States were "insensitive." The star of "Contraband" and "The Departed" told Men's Journal he had been scheduled to fly on one of the planes that were hijacked and crashed into New York's World Trade Center. If I was on that plane with my kids, it wouldn't have went down like it did. There would have been a lot of blood in that first-class cabin and then me saying, 'OK, we're going to land somewhere safely, don't worry,'" he told the magazine. After he was criticized for the comments, the actor promptly clarified them, insisting he meant no disrespect to those who died in the terror attacks or their families, the Los Angeles Times reported. "I deeply apologize to the families of the victims that my answer came off as insensitive, it was certainly not my intention," he told TMZ. To suggest I would have done anything differently than the passengers on that plane was irresponsible.

The Pipe & Glass Inn, West End, South Dalton, Beverley, East Yorkshire The flotilla of nightlights on the tables outside the Pipe & Glass - a welcome sight after much peering at the map and several U-turns on dark, narrow lanes - formed an infinitesimal reflection of the glittering constellations arching over rural East Yorkshire. Coincidentally, many of the customers, who pretty much filled the car park on a wintry Tuesday night, were lured by a single star of a distinctly non-celestial nature, being bestowed by a tyre company based in Clermont-Ferrand. Less than four years after taking over a "tired and unloved" pub in the village of South Dalton, local boy James Mackenzie was awarded his county's first and only Michelin star in 2010. This glory was further burnished when the Pipe & Glass was named Michelin's Pub of the Year for 2012. Mackenzie's ambition is indicated by the menus from stellar figures of the culinary world - Paul Bocuse, Thomas Keller, Fergus Henderson - that line the walls of his comfortable bar. The proceeds of his stardom have been ploughed back in the form of a large, gleaming kitchen, a conservatory, two bedrooms and a sexy salon privé. The main dining rooms are spacious and retain an idiosyncratic décor. Our table was flanked by a dressmaker's dummy and a Gerald Scarfe poster of local bard Alan Ayckbourn. While mulling over a wine list that oddly classified wine under "Poultry & Game" and "Cow, Pig & Sheep" rather than price or provenance (our Beaune at £26.95 was fine), we were joined at the next table by an Anglo-Dutch party of six poultry entrepreneurs. It did not require Holmesian powers to deduce their occupation since for the next two hours they talked about battery farming without deviation or hesitation but with much repetition. Going by their choice of eatery, mass-volume eggmen prefer not to eat their own output. While our neighbours expressed unity in tutting about the iniquitous cost of complying with European legislation on larger hen cages, the Hirst party was riven on the topic of my cauliflower soup. The creamy bowlful was topped with foam and a little archipelago of chestnut bits. Despite the elaborate finish, it struck me as being distinctly underpowered in flavour. My wife maintained that it was "subtle" (a quality I'm rarely prone to applaud, especially in soup). "Maybe it's just a tiny bit underseasoned," she conceded after a second spoon. But it tastes of really fresh cauliflower. Her starter of rabbit rissoles, which took the form of two little breadcrumbed discs of flaked meat, was also sparing of salt. A well-balanced cockle and caper vinaigrette added piquancy. Evidently Mackenzie is no great addict of kitchen heroin, which makes him a great rarity in the culinary world. The same inventive correction was evident in our main courses. My fillet of beef from Sykes House Farm, Wetherby, was juicy and a textbook rendition of "medium rare" but somewhat bland. Savour was delivered in a finger of salt beef fritter poised on top of the trapezoid-shaped steak. The accompaniments of (excellent) chips, pickled red onion salad and mustard hollandaise came in teensy pots and pans. "A bit like a dolly's tea party," remarked my wife. How strange that this emasculation of steak and chips should take place in, of all places, no-nonsense Yorkshire. Still, the locals don't seem to object. At £24.95, the dish is the Pipe & Glass's top-seller. My wife's "slow-cooked crispy lamb" was a tender, flaky cylinder. In this case, piquancy was added by a mutton and kidney faggot wrapped in caul fat (an ingredient often required in recipes but scarcely ever seen in butchers) that formed a little turban on the lamb. "I like all of it," my wife announced. But particularly the top. She was equally keen on our side order of mixed greens - courgette, broccoli, kale and Savoy cabbage - in walnut-infused butter. A fabulous idea. I thought that the al dente broccoli could have benefited from another minute or two in the pot. We shared two desserts. A small, oval Welsh rarebit had a layer of tomato chutney under a topping made from the excellent unpasteurised cheese Lincolnshire Poacher. Rarebit purists, of whom I am one, will regard this as an uncalled-for elaboration (and we call it rabbit). Once again, I was pooh-poohed by my partner. Adds a sweet dimension. Part two of the desserts produced a rare unanimity. Lemon and thyme posset with honey-roast plums was a richly pleasurable combination. The velvety citric cream was enlivened by the honeyed fruit, while the thyme introduced a very English, almost medieval note. The inventive Mackenzie merits his plaudits though he may want to keep a closer eye on the seasoning of his ingenious dishes. He deserves commendation for a tempting vegetarian menu. And he hasn't forgotten that he's running a pub. Next time, I intend trying the pork sausages with bubble and squeak (£9.95) though I hope it doesn't come with a non-stop accompaniment of eggs. The Pipe & Glass Inn, West End, South Dalton, Beverley, East Yorkshire (01430 810246) About £140 for two, with drinks Food **** Ambience **** Service **** Tipping policy: "The amount of the tip is entirely up to the customer. All tips go to the staff Side orders: Yorkshire's finest The Black Swan The only new Michelin star restaurant in the north; the food here is traditional cuisine at its best - try the slow-roast belly pork. Black Swan, Oldstead, York, North Yorkshire (01347 868387) Prashad Try the sublime Guajarati aubergine and potato curry at this award-winning Indian veggie restaurant. 86 Horton Grange Road, Bradford, West Yorkshire (01274 575893) The Burlington Cumbrian venison with black pudding bonbon and chestnut cannelloni is typical of the imaginative food at this restaurant at the Devonshire Arms Hotel. Bolton Abbey, Skipton, North Yorks (01756 718111)

LSU vs. Alabama: Home sweet dome for Tigers NEW ORLEANS - Jordan Jefferson remembers nearly every second of the last time he played in the Superdome. He was the starting quarterback for Destrehan High School, and like so many kids growing up in Louisiana, was awed to be playing in New Orleans' football palace. By the end of the night, he'd led his school to its first state championship in 34 years. "I've been in the Superdome quite often," said Jefferson, who will try to wrap up his college career with another title Monday night, when he leads top-ranked LSU against No. 2 Alabama in the BCS title game. I mean, it's something that I would call a sanctuary for me. CBSSports.com: What you may not know about LSU-'Bama CBS This Morning: BCS sacked by critics as the "great lie" There's a bunch of Tigers who would say that. The landmark structure just an hour's drive down Interstate 10 from the LSU campus in Baton Rouge is tantamount to a home-field advantage, even though it's supposed to be a neutral venue. LSU players are hoping that 90 percent of the seats are filled with purple and gold, while the Crimson Tide would be content with a 60-40 split in favor of the SEC champs. Alabama offensive coordinator Jim McElwain went so far as to say he's treating it like a road game. "I mean, I think it's going to be really loud in there," McElwain said. Obviously we're a little on their home turf, so yes, it's an approach like we're on the road. The Tigers are 13-4 all-time in the Superdome, winning their last nine games dating to a 30-15 loss to Nebraska in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1, 1987. Along the way, a team led by current Alabama coach Nick Saban knocked off Oklahoma to win the 2003 national championship, and another led by Les Miles beat Ohio State to win the 2007 title. "I think that our players need to understand that any time you play at a neutral site or any time you play on the road it's very challenging," Saban said earlier this week. It's not just the Superdome that's been home sweet dome, though. The Tigers beat then-No. 2 Oregon at Cowboys Stadium to open the season, and then ran their record to 9-1 at the Georgia Dome when they romped to a 42-10 win over Georgia in the SEC title game. But the famous, saucer-shaped stadium in New Orleans, just a short walk from the French Quarter and the craziness of Bourbon Street, holds special meaning to so many on the LSU roster. It depends a little on how you count, but some 74 players list their hometowns from Louisiana. Nine of them are from New Orleans, including Heisman Trophy finalist Tyrann Mathieu, tight end Deangelo Peterson, wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. and offensive lineman P.J. Lonergan. It's surreal feeling for me. It's everything I've hoped and dreamed of, and it's finally here," Beckham said. The feeling, I can't even explain it. The BCS system attempts to level the playing field. Each team receives 17,000 tickets to the game, with the roughly 38,000 remaining divided among Sugar Bowl season-ticket holders, corporate sponsors and the 125-person Sugar Bowl committee. But there's no way to know how many tickets LSU faithful have snapped up on the secondary market - at least, until Monday night comes, and an expected crowd of 72,000 filters through the turnstiles. "They probably feel like it's a home advantage for them," conceded Alabama safety Mark Barron, "because it's their home state." Several of the Tigers besides Jefferson played high school games on the floor of the 36-year-old arena, where state titles are bestowed each December. Others remember it as a makeshift refuge during Hurricane Katrina, while their parents and grandparents remember it hosting Super Bowls, Final Fours and Pope John Paul II, who addressed some 80,000 children there in 1987. "It means a lot," said cornerback Morris Claiborne, LSU's Thorpe Award winner from Shreveport. As a kid, you just dream about these type of things, of going and playing for a big-time school and playing good opponents. And this point here, where you play for a national championship, some people never get this moment in a lifetime. LSU offensive lineman T-Bob Hebert has special memories of the Superdome, even though he's from Georgia. He's the affable son of Bobby Hebert, who had some of his best years as an NFL quarterback leading the Saints during the late 1980s and early `90s. When I was younger, I used to pop in those old game tapes, the old broadcasts. Sometimes I'd turn down the volume and commentate on it, and sometimes I'd have a pen and paper and keep track of the stats," Hebert said. I feel like I got a good sense of how it is. The home-field advantage for LSU isn't just in the stadium for LSU, but also in the fact its players can experience all that New Orleans has to offer - the clubs and restaurants, the hot spots and cool places - any time they want. Trips to the Big Easy are a novelty for the boys from `Bama, who have been forced to keep their focus on the game Monday night while a never-ending party swirls around them. "We've played in some tough circumstances," Saban said, "and I don't think that that's something that you have to look to as a challenge. We know we're going to have to overcome adversity in this game, and the circumstance that we play in here is just one of the adversities that we'll have to have the mental toughness to deal with.

Updated Interim Phase 1 Trial Results for AEZS-108 in Prostate Cancer To Be Presented at Upcoming ASCO GCS Meeting in San Francisco QUÉBEC CITY, Jan. 26, 2012 /PRNewswire/ - Aeterna Zentaris Inc. (NASDAQ: AEZS) (TSX: AEZ) (the "Company") today announced that Jacek Pinski, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Medicine at the Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center of the University of Southern California, will present updated interim results from a Phase 1 clinical trial in prostate cancer with AEZS-108 (zoptarelin doxorubicin), the Company's targeted cytotoxic luteinizing hormone releasing hormone ("LHRH") analog. The presentation will take place on Thursday, February 2, 2012, during the American Society of Clinical Oncology Genitourinary Cancers Symposium which will be held February 2-4, 2012 in San Francisco. Poster D3: "A Phase 1 trial of AEZS-108 in castration - and taxane-resistant prostate cancer ," S.V. Liu, A.V. Schally, T.B. Dorff, D.D. Tsao-Wei, S.G. Groshen, S. Xiong, D. Hawes, D.I. Quinn, Y.C. Tai, N.L. Block, J. Engel, J. K. Pinski Presenter: Jacek Pinski, MD, PhD Session: General Poster Session A: Prostate Cancer Date and time: Thursday, February 2, 2012, 11:45 a.m. - 1:15 p.m. Pacific Venue: Golden Gate Hall, San Francisco Marriot Marquis AEZS-108 (zoptarelin doxorubicin) represents a new targeting concept in oncology using a hybrid molecule composed of a synthetic peptide carrier and a well-known chemotherapy agent, doxorubicin. AEZS-108 is the first intravenous drug in a clinical study that directs the chemotherapy agent specifically to LHRH-receptor expressing tumors, resulting in more targeted treatment with less damage to healthy tissue. The product has successfully completed Phase 2 studies for the treatment of endometrial and ovarian cancer, and is also in Phase 1/2 trials in prostate and bladder cancer. AEZS-108 has been granted orphan-drug designation by the FDA and orphan medicinal product designation from the EMA for the treatment of ovarian cancer. Aeterna Zentaris owns the worldwide rights to AEZS-108. About Aeterna Zentaris Inc. Aeterna Zentaris is a late-stage oncology drug development company currently investigating potential treatments for various cancers including colorectal, multiple myeloma, endometrial, ovarian, prostate and bladder cancer. The Company's innovative approach of "personalized medicine" means tailoring treatments to a patient's specific condition and to unmet medical needs. Aeterna Zentaris' deep pipeline is drawn from its proprietary discovery unit providing the Company with constant and long-term access to state-of-the-art therapeutic options. For more information please visit www.aezsinc.com

Survey: 81 percent of teachers think tablets help students PBS LearningMedia Since Apple announced that it's getting into the digital textbook business, there's been a lot of talk about tablets in the classroom. Do they belong there - and can they help students? According to one survey, the answer might just be a loud "yes." PBS LearningMedia, an media-on-demand service for educators, recently surveyed teachers across the United States about the use of technology in classrooms. The results of that survey were revealed on Monday. It seems that 81 percent of teachers surveyed believe that tablets can enrich classroom experiences (while 93 percent believe the same about interactive whiteboards). Additionally, 91 percent of teachers surveyed reported that they had access to computers in their classrooms. That's great news, right? Most of the teachers surveyed are very much interested in bringing technology into their classrooms and incorporating it in their lesson plans. Unfortunately there is some bad news as well: Only about 22 percent of the teachers said that they have access to the right level of technology. Nearly two-thirds - about 63 percent - explained that budget issues are the "biggest barrier to accessing tech in the classroom." In low-income communities, that statistic jumped to 70 percent.

The best things to do in London this week, from Chinese New Year festivities to comedy festivals Prepare for the inevitable at Death: Southbank Centre's Festival for the Living One of the two inevitabilities of life, death waits for all of us but is addressed by few of us. Tackling the taboo and confronting this uncomfortable certainty head on, Death: Southbank Centre's Festival for the Living is a four-day consideration of all things to do with our dissolution. Serious in places - the programme includes Chris Larner's play An Instinct for Kindness, about his wife's trip to Dignitas, and featuring talks on assisted dying led by Jon Snow - the festival more generally takes a matter-of-fact and at times almost celebratory view of death and the rituals that surround it. A display of bespoke coffins, shaped like cars or guitars or canal barges, shows how the containers that hold our corpses can reflect our earthly passions and status; talks consider the art of obituary writing and Sandi Toksvig presents her own memorial lecture. When: Jan 27-30 Where: venues throughout the Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London SE1 8XX Tube: Waterloo How much: some events are free, but others are ticketed. Day passes are available on both Saturday and Sunday for £12 per day, and grant admission to a range of talks, debates and events Get out at Walk London Epping Forest: routes cover central London and beyond. If New Year resolutions to keep fit have already fallen by the wayside, Walk London gives you an opportunity to make amends and see the best of the city, gratis. Over Saturday and Sunday, a series of guide-led, themed tours navigate major walking routes and lesser-known side streets, revealing unexpected facets and fascinating facts about London's districts and inhabitants. Impressively, the Westminster tour covers 1000 years of history in about two hours, while walks through Camden, Oscar Wilde's London and the city's hidden alleyways and courtyards are of a similar duration. More demanding walks explore the Lea Valley and Epping Forest - a full list of routes is shown on the Walk London website. When: Jan 28-29 Where: throughout London. How much: free Cheer up at the London Comedy Film Festival For four days this week, the LoCo London Comedy Film Festival sees BFI's screening schedule dedicated to all things funny. As you'd expect, humorous full-length comedies and well-pitched shorts, featuring established titans of comedy including Charlie Chaplin and The Muppets, are a focal point but there are also premieres of independent films and foreign-language favourites. A series of master classes, talks and parties round out the programme and if you're struggling to find a way to keep younger charges entertained, consider registering for the festival's LoCo's School of Slapstick on Sunday. Designed to alert a new generation to the beauty of well-crafted comedy, the session invites kids aged 8-12 to make their own funny silent films. When: Jan 26-29 Where: BFI, Belvedere Road, South Bank, Waterloo, London SE1 8XT Tube: Waterloo How much: prices vary Enjoy adults-only entertainment at Museum Lates It's an adults-only evening at the Natural History Museum this Friday. If, during Saturday and holiday-time visits, you find South Kensington's museums more akin to oversized crèches than world-class cultural institutions you might like to know about this week's series of late events, for adults only. On Wednesday, the Science Museum stays open until 10pm and features a special display dedicated to Bridget, an Astrium prototype Mars-rover, expert talks and a special speed dating event to give singletons some options for romance in advance of Valentine's Day. On Friday, both the V&A and Natural History Museum extend their opening hours until 10pm and 10.30pm respectively. To celebrate next month's Carnival, "Brazil" is the theme of the V&A's programme so expect Latin music, dance and cultural events, and caipirinhas. Next door, the Natural History Museum's Wildlife Photographer of the Year and the new Scott's Last Expedition exhibitions stay open late, while a live jazz band provide the soundtrack in the Central Hall and Gold Bar. When: Jan 25 (Science Museum); Jan 27 (V&A and Natural History Museum) Where: entrances for each venue on Exhibition Road, London SW7 Tube: South Kensington How much: entry to the museums is free but there may be a charge for special events and exhibitions

Mopar® Introduces Dodge Charger Redline Infused With New High Output 426 HEMI® Aluminum Crate Engine and More Aggressive Style New 2012 Dodge Charger Redline features three available Mopar® stage kits for factory-tuned performance Stage One features aerodynamic exterior components and interior accents Stage Two features bolt-on performance parts for improved power, handling and braking Stage Three features new high-output version of the powerful aluminum-block Gen III 426 HEMI® V-8 crate engine, delivers 590 horsepower Dodge Charger Redline will debut at 2012 North American International Auto Show Delivering performance and an even more aggressive look, the 2012 Dodge Charger Redline is a 426 HEMI®-powered showcase of new Mopar® performance kits that will arrive later this year. The Dodge Charger Redline vehicle with all three Mopar performance stage kits will debut at the 2012 North American International Auto Show. Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20120102/DE28184 "Since the 1960s, the Mopar Brand has built a long history of adding power and performance to the Dodge Charger -- and with the Redline, we Moparized the new Charger with modern-day performance and style while giving a nod to our storied past," said Pietro Gorlier, President and CEO of Mopar, Chrysler Group LLC's service, parts and customer-care brand. With three kits, Mopar offers a tailored choice for every customer. Stage I: Aerodynamic Carbon Fiber Exterior Components and Interior Accents Based on the 2012 Dodge Charger R/T model, Mopar's list of Stage I modifications includes a full-width Mopar carbon fiber chin spoiler to give the Charger Redline a more aggressive appearance. Matching the Redline Tri-coat paint, the two-piece grille features a body-color painted-grille surround with black signature "crosshair" insert. Large 20 x 8-inch Mopar Black Envy Wheels feature a Pitch Black-painted wheel face with polished accents. Mopar carbon fiber door scoops highlight Dodge Charger Redline's signature body-side scallops and include heritage "R/T" badging to pay homage to the historic 1970 Charger model. A three-piece Mopar carbon fiber rear spoiler adds additional down force and provides an even more dynamic look. Emphasizing Dodge Charger Redline's fastback silhouette is Mopar's vinyl roof graphic in matte black. The Dodge Charger Redline's cockpit design features premium materials and is further enhanced with a Mopar aluminum shift bezel and aluminum instrument panel bezel with Redline perimeter accent. For a more enthusiast-desired look, Mopar pedal covers are made from stainless steel and feature a rubberized pattern for improved traction. Stage II: Mopar Bolt-on Performance Parts Deliver Improved Power, Handling and Braking Designed and tested straight from the factory, the Dodge Charger Redline features Mopar's Stage II performance kit to enhance its already world-class power, handling and braking. Allowing the Dodge Charger Redline's legendary HEMI® V-8 engine to perform at its optimal level, Mopar's cat-back performance exhaust system delivers an increase in horsepower and a menacing "throaty" sound. Under the hood, a front-tower cross-brace and front tower brace caps provide increased structural stability for improved handling dynamics. For ultimate braking capability, high-performance Mopar brake linings are track tested and deliver fade-resistance during hard braking use. Stage III: Mopar's Gen III High Output 426 HEMI V-8 engine, with 590 Horsepower on Tap Delivering 220 more horsepower than the 2012 Dodge Charger R/T, the Charger Redline features the new high-output version of the powerful and lightweight Gen III 426 HEMI V-8 crate engine (for race/off-road use only). With its legendary 426 cubic-inch "Elephant Motor," the Dodge Charger Redline delivers 590 horsepower via a lightweight aluminum V-8 engine block that shaves more than 100 lbs. from the traditional cast-iron crate version. The new Gen III High Output 426 HEMI engine is professionally built and includes a stout, balanced lower reciprocating assembly that features a forged-steel crankshaft with six-bolt mains at 2, 3 and 4, and cross-bolted 4-bolt mains at 1 and 5. H-beam style rods are made from forged steel and coupled to forged 11:1 compression ratio aluminum pistons. Included is a revised windage tray to provide excellent oil dispersion and prevents oil aeration by the crankshaft. The Gen III High Output 426 HEMI engine's valvetrain starts with a more aggressive roller camshaft with .639 intake and .628 exhaust lift and cylinder heads that feature the latest designs for exceptional flow characteristics. To help stabilize the valvetrain at high engine rpm, tie bars are available. Mopar cast-aluminum valve covers and billet fuel rails are also included in the Dodge Charger Redline's Stage III performance kit. About Dodge Brand For nearly 100 years, Dodge has defined passionate and innovative vehicles that stand apart in performance and in style. Building upon its rich heritage of muscle cars, racing technology and ingenious engineering, Dodge offers a full-line of cars, crossovers, minivans and SUVs built for top performance - from power off the line and handling in the corners, to high-quality vehicles that deliver unmatched versatility and excellent fuel efficiency. Only Dodge offers such innovative functionality combined with class-leading performance, exceptional value and distinctive design. With the all-new 2013 Dodge Dart, the all-new Dodge Charger paired with the ZF eight-speed transmission that achieves a class-leading 31 miles per gallon on the highway, the new Durango and the significantly revamped Grand Caravan - inventor of the minivan - Journey, Avenger and iconic Challenger, Dodge now has one of the youngest dealer showrooms in the United States. Mopar-First Features Mopar has introduced numerous industry-first features including: Vehicle-information apps: first to introduce smartphone vehicle-information applications, a new channel of communication with consumers Electronic owner manuals: first to introduce traditional owner manuals in a DVD and brief user-guide format Wi-Fi: first to offer customers the ability to make their vehicle a wireless hot spot Electronic Vehicle Tracking System (EVTS): first to market with a new interactive vehicle tracking device that sends owner a text when vehicle is driven too fast or too far based on pre-set parameters 2011 Mopar Challenger Drag Pak: first to introduce a 500-plus cubic-inch V-10 drag-race package car Camper trailers: first to introduce off-road camper trailers WiTECH: first to support vehicle diagnosis and software updates leveraging off-the-shelf personal computers and a dedicated wireless tool network About the Mopar Brand Mopar is Chrysler Group LLC's service, parts and customer-care brand and distributes 280,000 parts and accessories. With the creation of the Chrysler Group and Fiat S.p.A. partnership, Mopar is extending its global reach, integrating service, parts and customer-care operations in order to enhance dealer and customer support worldwide. Combined with Fiat S.p.A., Mopar's global portfolio includes more than 500,000 parts and accessories which are distributed in more than 120 countries. Mopar is the source for all genuine parts and accessories for Chrysler Group and Fiat S.p.A. brands. Mopar parts are unique in that they are engineered with the same teams that create factory-authorized vehicle specifications for Chrysler Group and Fiat S.p.A.vehicles -- a direct connection that no other aftermarket parts company can provide. A complete list of Mopar accessories and performance parts is available at http://www.mopar.com. 75 Years of Mopar Mopar (a simple contraction of the words MOtor and PARts) was trademarked for a line of antifreeze products in 1937. The Mopar brand made its mark in the 1960s -- the muscle-car era. The Chrysler Corporation built race-ready Dodge and Plymouth "package cars" equipped with special high-performance parts. Mopar carried a line of "special parts" for super-stock drag racers and developed its racing parts division called Mopar Performance Parts to enhance speed and handling for both road and racing use. SOURCE Chrysler Group LLC

Chavez's Socialist Housing Communes - NYTimes.com CARACAS, Venezuela - Cacique Tiuna, the Socialist housing commune being built here shows just how the government is planning to leverage housing to its advantage ahead of the presidential election in October. Over a thousand families have been settled in apartments over the last few months - for many, it's the first time living outside a self-built shack in a shantytown. The housing project is something of a flagship for President Hugo Chávez's plans to resettle the more than 120,000 people who lost their shanties to flooding in 2010. Construction on 22 such housing developments began in 2011, with 4 more being started this year, as part of a sprawling building program at the center of Chávez's re-election plans. The apartments are basic but comfortable: 775 square feet, with two or three bedrooms, concrete floors, a washing machine, and a stove, a refrigerator and a sink in each kitchen. Best of all, they're free. As in free, free. The catch is that the apartments never really become yours. All units are "communal property," and the people who live in them cannot sell, rent, sublet or divide them. With no clear title and often no paperwork of any kind to prove their right to remain, residents here live at the community's pleasure. This breeds remarkable ideological consistency. Every resident I met on a visit last week expressed gratitude and support for Chávez. I didn't hear the jittery, coerced support of a North Korean; I heard what sounded like deep personal affection for our leader - coupled, I soon realized, with generalized disdain for the government he leads. When Chávez came they showed him the apartments down there. His ministers took him to see only the first few buildings, which are really nice," one resident told me. "They didn't bring him up here," she said, pointing out the water damage that's already started to crack the walls in her three-month-old apartment. The president was deceived. Residents heap scorn on the middle-managers of Chávez's socialist experiment: everyone from ministers on down is fair game. Shoddy construction, flood-prone sewers, poor coordination between the local authorities and the shelters that assign apartments - all are pegged on Chávez's underlings. Chávez, you see, must have been deceived. In Cacique Tiuna, the comandante presidente has built a powerful cult of personality, one made stronger because it allows for venting. Heavy, even strident, criticism of the government is O.K., so long as it doesn't put a dent into the man himself and is couched in terms supporting the revolutionary project. But, hanging, say, a poster supporting one of the opposition candidates from an apartment window is strictly verboten. More than verboten: it's unthinkable. Walk less than a mile from the commune to La Rinconada, Caracas's main horse-racing track, and you get a sense of why. The stands have been turned into a massive, semi-permanent shelter for some of the 100,000 Venezuelans who are still homeless after the 2010 floods. With commune apartments scarce, no one in a shelter would risk setting back her chances for a new home with an ill-advised remark about the president. Heading into the October election, Chávez has engineered a way to give voters no option but to support him if they want to maintain access to the basics of a decent life: an apartment, a job, a sense of belonging. To be sure, many of them support him proudly. But in the final analysis, none really has a real choice. Chávez, you see, is not deceived at all.

Syrian opposition group, rebel army join forces A Syrian opposition group says it is now coordinating with leaders of the rebel army The group, the Syrian National Council, says it plans to open a liaison office Thousands of protesters are set to take to the streets to support the rebel force (CNN) -- A Syrian opposition group demanding the end of President Bashar al-Assad's reign announced Friday that it has begun coordinating with the rebel Free Syria Army, while thousands of anti-government protesters were set to take to the streets to support the breakaway army. The announcement by the Syrian National Council and the planned protests across the country in support of the rebel army appears to signal a shift in the anti-government movement, an effort to solidify coordination between the groups who say have been the target of a brutal crackdown by al-Assad's forces. The move coincides with reports of increased violence against demonstrators by security forces despite the ongoing efforts of an Arab League fact-finding mission to determine whether the Syrian government is abiding by an agreement to end the crackdown. Al-Assad, who has characterized the anti-government protesters as "armed gangs," has insisted his security forces are battling terrorists intent on targeting civilians and fomenting unrest. The United States, the European Union and a number of Arab countries have called on al-Assad to end the violence and step down. The Syrian National Council -- an umbrella organization for a number of opposition groups -- plans to establish a liaison office with the Free Syria Army "to maintain direct communications around the clock," the group said in a statement. The council also is opening a direct channel of communication with the rebel force to ensure effective communication between the two groups "in order to achieve optimal service to the Syrian revolution," the statement said. Additionally, the Syrian National Council and the Free Syria Army -- composed of military defectors -- agreed to reorganize the rebel military units and create a plan to accommodate additional soldiers, according to the statement. The plan was hammered out Thursday during a meeting between members of the council and the rebel army, the statement said. It was unclear where the liaison office would be situated. Meanwhile, Syrian activists and opposition groups used Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to urge thousands to take to the streets Friday in support of the rebel army. More than 5,000 people have died since mid-March, when al-Assad began the crackdown on anti-government protesters calling for his ouster, the United Nations has said. But opposition groups put the toll at more than 6,000. CNN can not confirm the claims by opposition groups of violence and deaths as Syria's government has limited access to foreign journalists, though a number of journalists have been allowed in to the country in recent weeks to travel with Arab League monitors. France 2 TV journalist Gilles Jacquier was killed this week after a mortar shell struck the pro-government rally he was attending as part of a government-authorized tour of the flashpoint city of Homs, his network said. The state-run Syrian Arab News Agency said Jacquier was among a delegation of international journalists visiting the city to document the damage by "terrorists." But the Syrian Revolution General Commission, an opposition force, disputed that description of events. It said security forces fired two shells at journalists from an infantry vehicle. French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe has demanded Syrian authorities divulge details surrounding the killing of Jacquier, saying the government should have ensured the safety of journalists invited to carry out the visit. The Arab League has called on Damascus to stop violence against civilians, free political detainees, remove tanks and weapons from cities and allow outsiders, including members of the international news media, to travel freely around Syria. The fact-finding mission, which began December 26, will continue until January 19, said Ambassador Adnan Al Khudeir, head of the operations room to which the Arab monitors report. He put the number of monitors at 163 in 16 teams. One has left because of sickness and another because of personal reasons, he said. Meanwhile, the Local Coordination Committees of Syria -- an opposition group that organizes and documents anti-government demonstrations -- said a 13-year-old girl from a village in Aleppo was shot and killed by government security forces Friday. The girl was traveling with her family when their vehicle was fired upon at a checkpoint, and she was hit three times, the LCC said. Security forces forbade the family from taking the girl to a nearby hospital, and she died at the scene, the group said. The LCC said earlier that 25 people in five provinces were killed Thursday: 10 in Homs, nine in Idlib, four in Deir Ezzor, and one each in Hama and the Damascus suburb of Douma. Two of those killed were military recruits who had defected, the group said. CNN's Salma Abdelaziz, Joe Sterling and Journalist Mohamed Fadel Fahmy in Cairo, Egypt, contributed to this report.

Police given more time to question male nurse Police have been given more time to question a male nurse arrested on suspicion of tampering with medical records at Stepping Hill Hospital. Victorino Chua, 46, was arrested on Thursday by police probing the poisoning of patients at the hospital in Stockport, Cheshire. Detectives have obtained a warrant of further extension that is due to expire at 10.10am tomorrow, Greater Manchester Police said. Mr Chua was arrested at his Stockport home on suspicion of unlawfully administering or causing a person to take a noxious substance, or poison, after it was found that medical records were tampered with on Monday and a patient given incorrect medicine. Police stressed the suspect continued to be questioned only in relation to reports from hospital staff on Tuesday that medical forms had been altered overnight and a patient was given additional medicine. The suspect was held as it emerged a fourth death was being investigated. The family of Glasgow-born William Dickson, 82, a former journalist, of Cheadle Hulme, Cheshire, who died on New Year's Eve, have paid tribute to him. In a statement, they said: "Bill was a very kind and generous man with a great sense of humour. Police are investigating whether the poisoning Mr Dickson suffered at the hospital during the summer was a factor in his death. His is the latest death to be examined by officers investigating the contamination of saline drips in June and July last year, causing patients' blood sugar to fall in "hypoglycaemic episodes."

Make a date for a couples cooking class At Cookology, couples can hone their kitchen skills together. (Evy Mages for The Washington Post) With Valentine's Day on the horizon, we're finding lots of events with romance themes, including several dinners and parties perfect for date night. We'll post about those here in the coming weeks. First up is a way to spice up your culinary skills: a look at the couples cooking classes at Cookology at Dulles Town Center. After the jump: learning how to slice, dice and to not be afraid of the fire. Brad Spates stands before a cutting board, his chef's knife at the ready. "We have a lot to do in a short amount of time so stay with me," says the executive chef at Cookology. Just after 7 p.m. on a Saturday, the bearded 33-year-old is teaching a date-night class at the cooking school in Dulles Town Center. Seven couples - from their 20s to their 50s - stop taking pictures of one another in chef's hats and stand at the ready around a large stainless steel prep table. It's time to get down to business . . . delicious business. After rattling off the night's menu - grilled lamp chops, potato and parsnip puree, arugula salad with a coconut Thai dressing and baked pears - Spates dives into instruction. He wasn't kidding. The next hour and a half goes fast. Spates gestures to one of many bowls heaping with tonight's ingredients in the middle of the table. "There's a bowl of basil over there," he says. Can you pass that in this direction? I do everything family style, so that means I'll demonstrate first and then everyone will follow after me. He teaches proper slicing technique, then passes the basil-filled bowl to the couple to his left. They take two leaves needed for their lamb-chop marinade before passing it to the next pair, and so on. The class continues in this refreshingly informal fashion. When Spates chops what look like white carrots, Will Kinton, 21, turns to girlfriend Katie Hazelton, also 21, and says, "I don't think I've ever seen a parsnip in my life." When Spates mixes his salad with his bare hands, 45-year-old Rick Lonto of Leesburg gets wide-eyed when the chef adds a large finger-full of Parmesan cheese. "That's a pinch?" he asks, incredulous. Spates looks at Lonto, smirks and tosses in more. The highlight of the class comes when Spates instructs his pupils to wrap around the kitchen's large gas grill. The objective is to char the lamb chops - purchased from a nearby farm - on high heat for two minutes per side. "What you call burnt," he says, "I call delicious." One-half of each cooking pair, which happens to be all of the guys, step up to place their two pieces of meat on the sweltering surface. Moments later, foot-high flames shoot up from the grill. It's thrilling and exciting, the stuff of "Top Chef" and "Hell's Kitchen." Visions of singed hair also come to mind, but Spates says not to fret. "It's going to flare," he says, pouring red wine over the grill surface, making the flames rise even higher. Don't panic. It's only fire. It will be fine. Go for it. Then just as quickly as it began, the cooking component of the evening has concluded. At 8:30 p.m., it's time to dig in. A table with wooden benches is set in an adjacent room, a glass of red wine is poured for each student. It's only after taking a seat that one remembers Cookology is inside a shopping center: Two glass walls enable the indoor foot traffic to sneak a peek at the dining scene. "It's interesting eating in a mall," Carol Chaikin says to Mark, her husband of 35 years. You feel really exposed. The spectators are quickly forgotten, however, once everyone looks at the plate set before them. The lamb is beautifully placed atop the potato and parsnip puree, next to a salad speckled with beets and the surprisingly sweet and savory pear dessert that has been baked with brown sugar, Gorgonzola and a dash of heavy cream. Across the table, Bardia Khoshnoodi, 33, and his wife, Sara Hashemi, 32, are calling each other "chef" and "sous chef." Both are in awe of what they've just accomplished. "We make good food, but it doesn't look good," Hashemi says. This is looking very good. Where: 21100 Dulles Town Cir., Sterling How to do it: Date-night classes run weekly. Register for upcoming classes at www.cookologyonline.com, 703-433-1909. Cost: $59-$75 per person.

14% rise in British members of Dignitas MPs will debate the issue for the first time in more than a decade in March, while on Monday the High Court is due to rule on whether or not a man with "locked-in syndrome," Tony Nicklinson, can be given a lethal lose of drugs by his wife without her facing murder charges. Dignitas itself is controversial even among supporters of the right to die. Some say it is unfair that only the wealthy and those with carers can afford to travel to Zurich, where volunteers supply them with the barbiturates that will end their lives, while others have criticised the way it operates. Anyone of "legal age" and with "full capacity of discernment" can sign up as a member of the not-for-profit organisation for a joining fee of £138 (200 Swiss Francs) and an annual subscription of £55. If they then get a doctor to provide evidence that they are terminally ill, and pay up to £7,875, they will be given everything they need for an "accompanied suicide." Campaigners say the recent increase in British Dignitas members suggests that many people fear reaching a stage where they want to end their lives but are unable to do so without support. Michael Irwin, a former doctor who has accompanied several British people to Switzerland and is himself a member of Dignitas, told The Daily Telegraph: "Because the law will not change in the UK for at least another three or four years, more and more people living here will keep on joining Dignitas - it is an "insurance policy" for those who can afford to make the trip to Switzerland. "And, for them, it is a "good thing" as it gives them "choice" - although, as you know, from my own experience with having accompanied four people to Switzerland, I am sure that all those who join Dignitas would much prefer to have the possibility of a doctor-assisted suicide here, in their own homes." He added that the programme presented by Sir Terry Pratchett broadcast by the BBC last year, which showed the last moments of a millionaire hotelier with motor neurone disease who died with the help of Dignitas, "certainly seemed to impress many people in the UK." Mr Irwin also pointed out that more people may feel emboldened to consider assisted suicide abroad now that their relatives are less likely to be prosecuted upon return home. Sarah Wootton, Chief Executive of Dignity in Dying said: "Contrary to the claims of opponents to a change in the law, the Director of Public Prosecution guidelines have not opened the floodgates and we have not seen an increase in assisted deaths abroad. Yet the lack of choice in this country does mean that more Britons are joining Dignitas, perhaps as a safety net. If the choice of assisted dying were available in the UK, people would have that comfort of knowing that they could choose an assisted death should they end up suffering unbearably at the end of their lives. These figures reflect the evidence from jurisdictions where assisted dying is legal - the numbers of people who would choose an assisted death are small, but the numbers of people who would gain comfort from such a law change are huge. Ultimately, there must be an end to this unfair and unsafe outsourcing of a British problem to Switzerland. Last year 22 people were forced to travel abroad to achieve the death they wanted, and as far as I am concerned that is 22 too many.

Carlos Tevez transfer expected to go down to the wire after agent has talks with Paris St-Germain The talks, first revealed by The Telegraph, were delayed 24 hours because Joorabchian was central to Taye Taiwo's loan move from AC Milan to Queens Park Rangers and therefore had to remain in London on Thursday to complete that deal. However Joorabchian spoke extensively on the telephone to Leonardo that day and it is understood that the financial package proposed by PSG for Tévez is far greater than the offers that have been made for the Argentine international by both Milan clubs. That is not Tévez's major consideration and it is expected that the player's future will go down to the wire and he may not reach an agreement to leave Manchester City City until the final hours of Jan 31. There is no way back for Tévez at City and the player is determined to leave this month. However he is concerned that if he joins PSG there is a danger of a rerun of his time at City where he was the club's most important player but was then isolated, he felt, under a new regime. PSG have offered higher wages than either of the Milan clubs and will also come closest to City's valuation for Tévez but they need to convince him that having missed out on the likes of David Beckham, who has re-signed for LA Galaxy, that they are intent on acquiring the players to propel them into being a significant force in European football. Tévez has already agreed personal terms with AC Milan and would appear to favour a move there, although the club had hoped for a loan deal with an option for a permanent transfer, with Inter also in the reckoning despite having had a £21 million bid rejected by City.

Twin Births in the U.S., Like Never Before More twins are being born in the United States than ever before. From 1980 to 2009, according to a recent report by the National Center for Health Statistics, the rate of twin births rose 76 percent. Now about one in 30 babies born in the United States is a twin. Two-thirds of the increase is probably explained by the growing use of fertility drugs and assisted reproductive technology. The remainder is mainly attributable to a rise in the average age at which women give birth. Older women are more likely to produce more than one egg in a cycle, and 35 percent of births in 2009 were to women over age 30, up from 20 percent in 1980. This age-induced increase applies only to fraternal twins, though; the rate of identical twin births does not change with the age of the mother. From 1980 through 2004, increases in twin birth rates averaged more than 2 percent a year, but from 2004 to 2009, the increase slowed to 1 percent annually. Joyce A. Martin, the lead author of the report, suggested that better techniques in fertility enhancement procedures may have made multiple births less likely. Twin births have historically been more common among non-Hispanic black women, but rates among white women have risen faster. In 2009, twin birth rates were similar in the two groups: 38 per 1,000 births for black women and 37 for white women. Hispanic women had twins at a rate of 22.5 per 1,000 births. In 2009, American women had 137,217 babies born as twins, 5,905 as triplets, 355 as quadruplets, and 80 in births of five or more. Ms. Martin, an epidemiologist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said multiple births can be problematic. "Babies in twin deliveries tend to be born earlier," she said. They're more likely to need hospitalization and more likely not to survive their first year. But she added, "It is important to note that although twins are at higher risk, most twins do fine in the long term."

Yemen should reject Saleh immunity law: HRW DUBAI (Reuters) - A Yemeni government proposal to grant President Ali Abdullah Saleh amnesty in return for his speedy exit is an affront to thousands who suffered under his rule and should be rejected by the parliament, U.S.-based Human Rights Watch group said. Yemen's cabinet proposed the immunity law for Saleh on Sunday to encourage him to step down under a Gulf-brokered plan to end protests that have paralyzed the country over the past year. Washington-based Human Rights Watch said in a statement late on Tuesday that the measure could result in impunity for serious crimes such as deadly attacks on anti-government demonstrators in 2011. "Passing this law would be an affront to thousands of victims of Saleh's repressive rule, including the relatives of peaceful protesters shot dead last year," said Sarah Leah Whitson, the group's executive Middle East director. Yemeni authorities should be locking up those responsible for serious crimes, not rewarding them with a license to kill. U.N. human rights commissioner Navi Pillay has also voiced objections to the draft. However, the United States has defended it, saying the immunity provisions were negotiated as part of the Gulf Cooperation Council deal to get Saleh to leave power. Under the arrangement, Saleh's General People's Congress party (GPC) and the opposition Joint Meeting Parties (JMP) agreed to divide up cabinet posts between them, forming a national unity government to lead the country towards presidential elections in February. The United States and Saudi Arabia are keen for the plan to work, fearing that a power vacuum in Yemen is benefiting militants alongside the Red Sea, an important shipping channel. The draft law, which parliament is expected to debate as early as Wednesday, violates Yemen's obligations under international law to investigate and prosecute serious crimes such as torture, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, HRW said. HRW also said immunity would not prevent courts in other countries from prosecuting serious human rights crimes in Yemen under universal jurisdiction laws. "Even if the Yemeni parliament grants immunity, the law will not hold water abroad," Whitson said. HRW said there had been a total of 270 confirmed deaths of protesters and bystanders in 2011 during attacks by government security forces and gangs on largely peaceful demonstrations, mainly in Sanaa. "From north to south to central Sanaa, the Saleh government has violated the basic rights of the Yemeni people," Whitson said. Without accountability for these crimes, there can be no genuine break from the past in a post-Saleh Yemen. Yemeni prime minister Mohammed Basindwa visited Saudi Arabia on Tuesday and is scheduled to meet other Gulf Arab leaders this week to discuss the transition of power in a country that has become a base for a branch of al Qaeda. Reporting by Martina Fuchs; Editing by Ben Harding

News Analysis - For Romney, Challenges Await on Ideology and Faith - NYTimes.com MANCHESTER, N.H. - Mitt Romney has now defied a generation of political gravity, doing what no non-incumbent Republican has done since 1976, winning the one-two states of Iowa and New Hampshire in his quest for the party's presidential nomination. But on Wednesday, Mr. Romney's plane will deliver him to the tougher proving ground of South Carolina for what could be a crucial test. It will be there - a place famous for surfacing the dark undercurrents of American politics - that he has the opportunity to show he can overcome doubts among evangelicals and Tea Party adherents about his ideological commitment and assume leadership of a party that has spent the last two years under the sway of a conservative insurgency. If he succeeds, it will be a triumph of political rebranding, a long effort by Mr. Romney to leave behind a past that includes former support for abortion rights and authorship of a health care plan that helped inspire President Obama's. A Republican Party whose more energetic precincts have been gripped throughout the Obama presidency by a desire to expel moderates and upend the establishment will have put itself in the hands of a candidate who, more than anyone in the race, comes out of a moderate, establishment Republican tradition. But to get there - or get there without a protracted battle - he will have to fend off efforts by his rivals in South Carolina to emerge as the singular anti-Romney candidate. With little left to lose, Newt Gingrich and Gov. Rick Perry of Texas are already assailing him as a heartless job killer in South Carolina, a state hit far harder by the economic downturn than Iowa and New Hampshire were. But just fending off that attack may not be enough. He is also heading smack into an issue that has followed him through his national political career: his Mormon faith and the suspicion many evangelical Christians have of it. "It's going to be difficult for Romney as a Mormon with the evangelical community," said Franklin Graham, the evangelical leader, who is based in North Carolina. For most Christians, Mormonism is an issue and he has a hurdle here that he's going to have to jump over and navigate around if he can. But the barely hidden glee of the Romney campaign when Mr. Perry decided to stay in the race after performing badly in Iowa, to fight another day in South Carolina, betrayed another lucky factor that has helped give the Romney team confidence in the state: In the absence of a successful effort by any of his rivals to rally evangelical voters behind just one of them, the cast of candidates vying for the anti-Romney religious vote is promising to carve it up into smaller pieces. Mr. Perry made a point of appealing to evangelical voters with a giant prayer rally in Texas shortly before he announced his presidential campaign and has shown crosses in his advertisements; Mr. Gingrich, who is on his third marriage and third religion, has visited with pastors to ensure them of his new but deep Roman Catholicism and his apologies to God. And, now Rick Santorum is planning to campaign hard in the northern part of South Carolina because "that's where much of the evangelical vote is," said former Representative J. Gresham Barrett of South Carolina, a supporter and adviser. So it is with acute interest that Mr. Romney's aides are keeping their eye on a planned meeting of major evangelical leaders to be held this weekend in Texas, where there has been some talk of a move to coalesce around a single conservative alternative to Mr. Romney. Gary L. Bauer, president of American Values and one of the organizers, said Tuesday in an interview, "We're not forming some alliance to stop somebody else that's competing for the nomination," adding, "the only person in that room the people want to stop is Barack Obama from having a second term." Mr. Bauer, it happens, will be supporting Mr. Santorum, whom he endorsed and campaigned with last week. But Mr. Bauer said the meeting would include advocates "for all of the candidates, including Romney." Mr. Romney's advocates are expected to be working the room aggressively. Jennifer Steinhauer contributed reporting from Washington.

Mark Wahlberg apologizes for 9/11 comments LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Actor Mark Wahlberg apologized on Wednesday for saying events may have turned out differently had he been on one of the planes that crashed on 9/11, after incurring the wrath of critics and one victim's widow. If I was on that plane with my kids, it wouldn't have went down like it did. There would have been a lot of blood in that first-class cabin and then me saying, 'OK, we're going to land somewhere safely, don't worry,'" the actor said in an interview with Men's Journal magazine that was released one day earlier. "The Fighter" star, 44, was scheduled to be on one of the planes that crashed into the World Trade Center on September 11, 2011 and made the comments in that context, but after media outlets reported that a widow of one 9/11 victim called his comments "disrespectful," the actor issued a formal apology. To speculate about such a situation is ridiculous to begin with, and to suggest I would have done anything differently than the passengers on that plane was irresponsible. I deeply apologize to the families of the victims that my answer came off as insensitive, it was certainly not my intention," Wahlberg said in a statement. The Oscar-nominated actor, who started his career in music as rapper Marky Mark, transitioned into film and is currently promoting "Contraband," a high-octane action movie in which he plays a former smuggler forced to protect his brother-in-law. Reporting By Piya Sinha-Roy, Editing by Bob Tourtellotte

Voting in Plain Sight - NYTimes.com Of all the domestic policy differences between the Bush and Obama administrations, just about the sharpest and most telling may be their opposite responses to the drive by Republican-dominated states to require voters to present photo identification at the polls. The Bush administration thought photo ID was a dandy idea. The Obama administration recognizes it for what it is: a cynical effort to insure that fewer young people and members of minority groups (read, likely Democratic voters) are able to cast a ballot. Progressives who are frustrated by President Obama's failure to close the prison at Guantánamo, or who are seething over the administration's surrender to the religious right on the question of emergency contraception for teen-aged girls, have something to cheer in the resurrection of the Justice Department's previously moribund Civil Rights Division. The decision late last month by Thomas E. Perez, the division's head, to block South Carolina's new voter identification law is important both symbolically and practically. It has been underestimated so far in both dimensions. A bit of historical context: In 2008, the Bush administration joined the state of Indiana in the Supreme Court in a successful defense of that state's voter ID law, the country's first. At the leading edge of what has since become a national movement, Indiana enacted its law in 2005 with the support of every Republican in the state Legislature; no Democrat voted for it. While rejecting the challenge to the statute, the Supreme Court was nonetheless constrained to note that while the law was aimed preventing "in-person voter impersonation at polling places," the record of the case "contains no evidence of any such fraud actually occurring in Indiana at any time in its history." Ineligible voters just don't seem to be flocking to the polls claiming to be someone else. (Unfortunately for the plaintiffs in the Indiana case, the record also failed to identify any particular individual on whom the new law had placed a burden - not surprisingly because, seeking to block enforcement, the lawsuit challenged the statute "on its face," before it took effect. To the Bush administration, this was the lawsuit's fatal flaw; the plaintiffs "have utterly failed to show that the Voter ID law has had a discriminatory impact on any segment of society," Paul D. Clement, then the solicitor general, told the justices in his brief.) Fast forward to December 23, 2011, when Assistant Attorney General Perez invoked the Voting Rights Act to block South Carolina's new voter ID law from taking effect. As a state with a history of obstructing efforts by its black citizens to exercise their right to vote, South Carolina is covered by the Voting Rights Act's Section 5, which requires the state to receive the approval of the Justice Department or the Federal District Court in Washington, D.C. before making a change to any voting procedure. For a "covered" jurisdiction to receive the necessary "preclearance" under Section 5, it has to show that its proposed change has neither the purpose nor the likely effect of denying or abridging the right to vote on account of race or language ability. South Carolina had not met its burden of proof, Mr. Perez told the state, adding pointedly that "the state's submission did not include any evidence or instance of either in-person voter impersonation or any other type of fraud" that justified the change. As is typical, South Carolina's new law requires either a driver's license or a non-driver photo ID card issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles. Mr. Perez's letter asserted that minority voters in the state were nearly 20 percent more likely than white voters to lack these forms of identification - a "significant racial disparity" that the state "has failed entirely to address." The state's own statistics, he said, showed that "there are 81,938 minority citizens who are already registered to vote and who lack DMV-issued identification," and who thus risk being "effectively disenfranchised" by the new law. South Carolina's governor, Nikki Haley, called the Justice Department action a "terrible, clearly political decision" and vowed to fight it, presumably in court. One election law expert, Richard L. Hasen of the University of California Law School at Irvine, predicted that a South Carolina appeal could produce the next major challenge to the constitutionality of Section 5. Three years ago, in a case brought by a Texas sewer district, the Supreme Court appeared on the verge of declaring Section 5 to be an unconstitutional intrusion by Congress on state sovereignty. One or more of the conservative justices blinked then, but their concerns have hardly been allayed, as was evident in a Supreme Court argument on Monday in a complicated redistricting case from Texas. A photo ID-based challenge to Section 5, if one did make its way onto the court's docket, would mark an odd convergence. The court is due this term to decide the constitutionality of Arizona's anti-immigrant law, SB 1070. The architect of that law, and a growing number of other laws around the country designed to make life untenable for undocumented immigrants, is a former law professor and the current Kansas secretary of state, Kris W. Kobach. Mr. Kobach, who describes himself on his web site as "the intellectual architect of the fight against illegal immigration," is also the leader of the photo ID campaign. One of his arguments is that photo ID is necessary to prevent illegal immigrants from voting ("My office already has found 67 aliens illegally registered to vote in Kansas," he declared in a Wall Street Journal op-ed last spring.) The notion that undocumented immigrants are showing up at the polls to cast illegal votes is laughably implausible, so terrified is this population of emerging from the shadows even for the necessities of life. A friend in Tucson told me recently about her neighbor, an undocumented woman who no longer drives to pick up her children from soccer practice because she is so afraid of committing a traffic violation that could send her into deportation. Neighbors have pitched in to help her. In any event, photo ID is not about illegal immigrants. It's about people with a clear right to vote, one they have perhaps exercised for many years. The federal government has never suggested that photo ID is desirable. Under the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (HAVA), a bank check, paycheck, or the last four digits of a Social Security number can suffice under various circumstances. The new brand of state laws requires an unexpired driver's license of passport, military photo ID, or a state-issued non-driver photo ID. The South Carolina law also provides that a voter registration card with a photograph is acceptable, but the state does not actually issue such a card. While no photo ID requirements existed before Indiana's, bills were introduced last year to require them in 34 states, according to New York University Law School's Brennan Center for Justice, which tracks the issue comprehensively. The bills were signed into law in seven states, including South Carolina and Kansas. The others were Alabama, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas and Wisconsin. Alabama and Texas also require preclearance under the Voting Rights Act. Governors vetoed bills in Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Hampshire, and North Carolina. Mississippi adopted its photo ID law by voter referendum in November as an amendment to the state Constitution. The disparity in the black and white vote in Mississippi shows how polarizing this issue has become, as well as how thoroughly African American voters understand what game is afoot. While 83 percent of white Mississippians voted for the amendment, it got the support of fewer than one-quarter of the black voters. This is such a busy election season, both at the polls and in court, that it will be easy to lose sight of the photo ID issue, a problematic solution to a non-problem. The administration's intervention in South Carolina is most likely not the end of the matter. But it's a necessary beginning and a refreshing change.

More delays to fuel pumping from cruise ship Concordia Work to pump fuel from the capsized cruise ship Concordia has once again been suspended due to bad weather conditions. The sea remains too rough for an environmental clean-up operation predicted to take between three weeks and a month. Two companies will be involved in safely removing more than 2,300 tonnes of fuel from the vessel. On Sunday afternoon, the ship was relatively stable in the water according to Professor Riccardo Fanti of the University of Florence. The maximum speed recorded was one centimetre per hour in the area of the prow. The average speed throughout the period, meaning from 1am early Sunday morning, until now is about 5-6 millimetres per hour," Fanti said. Slow movements, but not slow to be safe for the divers who have been exploring the wreckage. They too were prevented from going near the ship on Sunday. A 17th body discovered on Saturday has now been identified as a female member of the crew. Fifteen people are still missing. The captain Francesco Schettino is facing multiple charges of manslaughter. More about: Costa Concordia, Italy, Pollution, Shipwrecks

Cameron's 50p tax u-turn a Lib Dem victory - Chris Huhne But the Liberal Democrats warned that it should not be reduced unless other taxes on wealth were introduced. Interviewed on the Pienaar's Politics programme on BBC Radio 5 Live, Mr Huhne indicated that the 50p rate was set to stay, remarking: "I think we've won that argument." He said that this was "partly, I think, because people simply realise that this is not an appropriate moment to send out a signal that we're going to tax well off people less." While insisting it had been a collective decision, he nevertheless suggested that pressure from the Liberal Demoracts had forced Mr Osborne's hand. "The Conservatives don't have an overall majority, so they need, if they want to get a finance bill through, if they want to get anything else through, they need to have Liberal Democrat support in the House of Commons and that's absolutely crucial," he said. Last year more than 30 business leaders wrote to The Daily Telegraph arguing that the removal of the levy would help the economy and support employment. Mr Cameron has previously voiced scepticism that the top rate is effective at raising money. But a report by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC), due to be delivered next month, is expected to show a "surge" in revenues totalling hundreds of millions of pounds from the first year. It is expected to defy predictions that top earners would find ways to avoid paying the 50p rate. However Mr Huhne was less forthright about the prospects of the Liberal Democrat call for a "mansion tax" being accepted as Government policy. He told John Pienaar, the presenter: "Well we'll have to see, because obviously we're in the process where we're only just beginning budget preparations and discussions. We've got quite a way to go before we get there. He argued that it was "crazy" that Russian oligarchs in multi million pound homes "pay no more council tax than maybe you or I."

Mitt Romney joke on Jay Leno angers Indian Sikhs Jay Leno's "Tonight Show" meant to poke fun at Mitt Romney's tax issues but ended up sparking an international diplomatic crisis. A joke in Jay Leno's opening monologue last Thursday angered Indian Sikhs when a video montage replaced Mitt Romney's summer home with the Golden Temple in Amritsar, the most valuable shrine in the Sikh religion. Indian Sikh devotees pay their respects at the illuminated Golden Temple. Narinder Nanu/AFP/Getty Images The Golden Temple, also called the Sri Darbar Sahib, houses the holy scripture of the Sikh religion and is the foremost pilgrimmage spot for Sikhs. It was also the location of a deadly stand-off between Sikhs and the Indian military in 1984. The Press Trust of India reports that the Indian Embassy will contact the U.S. State Department over the joke. "This is not acceptable to us and we take a very strong objection for such a display," Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Vayalar Ravi said to the BBC. An online petition started by U.S. Sikhs said that the First Amendment does not protect Leno's remarks as they spread hate. It also accuses Leno of a history of derogatory comments about the Sikh religion. However, not everyone in India agrees with the outrage. Indian media criticized the Jay Leno kerfuffle on Twitter. Read about Jay Leno joke. Next mass movement should be over largescale disappearance of India's sense of humour," Abhijit Majumder, an editor at the Hindustan Times, wrote.

Restoring the worst movie ever made - GeekOut For years, many have feared seeing it in its unvarnished form. Now, Ben Solovey wants to restore it back to its ... well, maybe "original glory" isn't the right term. "Manos: the Hands of Fate" is considered by many to be the worst movie ever made (though it has fallen to third place in recent years on IMDb). Nearly 19 years ago, it got the "Mystery Science Theater 3000" treatment, with Joel and the 'Bots on the cult cable series riffing on it - and at times, having something of a nervous breakdown over its awfulness (involving, among other things, a cult leader called the Master and his extremely creepy underling, Torgo). Over the years, whether viewed with the "MST3K" commentary or not, it's grown a cult following all its own of people fascinated by its odd, so-bad-it-went-to-good-and-back-to-bad-again qualities. In recent weeks, film school grad Solovey (who said he has collected 16-millimeter film prints since he was a child) has used Kickstarter to raise more than $22,000 to preserve "Manos." So, why restore the worst movie ever and possibly even release it on Blu-Ray? CNN Geek Out asked Solovey just that. CNN Geek Out: Why "Manos"? Solovey: I think it's important to maintain and exhibit every movie in as good a shape as possible, because you never know what will be relevant in the future. "Manos" can tell you a lot about independent film in the '60s, especially independent horror. 45 years later, it really provides a great window into a specific time and place: 1966 in El Paso, with a bunch of community theater friends making a movie. I find it very fascinating to look at, and studying the work print in particular you can find out a lot of things about how it was made, and made cheaply. My end goal is to print the restoration to film so it can be shown in repertory theaters and the negative can be stored in a vault. Preserving it digitally would be dangerous- if it only existed in digital format, a bad hard drive could be the end of it. I also wanted to send a message that all films deserve preservation regardless of their perceived merits. CNN Geek Out: What's your history with the movie? Solovey: Like many people, I first saw it on "Mystery Science Theater 3000," and that was the only way you could see it for a very long time. Eventually, you could buy an awful public domain video transfer of it on a bargain-bin DVD, and without the restoration that would have been all that's left. The movie, in fact, looks a lot better than we've ever seen it. CNN Geek Out: Have you had any contact with people who worked on "Manos"? Solovey: I've been making friends with quite a few, actually. The woman who plays the little girl, Jackey Neyman Jones, lives in the Pacific Northwest and she's been very nice to me. Her father who did production design for the movie and also played the Master, Tom Neyman, is also still around. I've had a phone conversation with the son of Harold P. Warren, the director, and I'm hoping he will trust my intentions and assist in the restoration. CNN Geek Out: What kind of response have you received otherwise? Solovey: I've had a tremendous outpouring of support from people who love "Manos," some of whom are in the motion picture industry and will be helping with the restoration. I thought I would get a lot of people telling me I was wasting my time. In fact, that's been pretty minimal. A lot of people seem to "get" it, especially independent filmmakers. It kind of reminds them of the pitfalls that arise in filmmaking. We can all relate to picking up a camcorder for the first time back in high school and making fun bits of junk with our friends. "Manos" feels kind of like that, but it actually got in theaters... to a point. It's got a charm in that way. Something about "Manos" just resonates with people, probably because it's so unsual and comes from place very far removed from Hollywood. CNN Geek Out: And what about the "MST3K" crew? Solovey: I have heard from some of them, actually. Let's just say they have been encouraging.

Probe "maps" Big Bang's echo A European space observatory that's surveying the light left over from the birth of the universe has wrapped up a big part of its mission. The High Frequency Instrument (HFI), one of two sensors aboard the European Space Agency's Planck spacecraft, ran out of its vital coolant as planned Saturday (Jan. 14), ESA officials announced. Without the coolant, the instrument can't detect the faint cosmic microwave background (CMB) - the remnant radiation left over from the Big Bang 13.7 billion years ago. The instrument did its job, researchers said, completing five full-sky surveys of the CMB since the spacecraft's May 2009 launch. Planck's mission called for a minimum of two such surveys, researchers said. "Planck has been a wonderful mission; spacecraft and instruments have been performing outstandingly well, creating a treasure trove of scientific data for us to work with," said Jan Tauber, ESA's Planck project scientist, in a statement. Photos: Planck Sees Big Bang Relics Surveying the universe's early light The CMB is an "echo" of the Big Bang, the dramatic event that gave birth to our universe. This radiation is a remnant of the first light emitted after the universe had cooled enough to allow light to travel freely. By studying patterns imprinted in the CMB today, scientists hope to better understand the Big Bang and the very early universe. Planck has been measuring these patterns by surveying the whole sky with its two instruments, the HFI and the Low Frequency Instrument (LFI). These sensors require incredibly cold temperatures to detect the faint CMB, so Planck cooled them down to minus 459.49 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 273.05 Celsius) - just 0.1 degree Celsius above absolute zero, the coldest temperature theoretically possible in our universe. While HFI's work is done, LFI will continue surveying the sky for much of 2012, gathering calibration data that will help improve Planck's final results. Researchers said they're happy with how long HFI lasted. "This gives us even better data than we were expecting from the mission," said HFI principal investigator Jean-Loup Puget of the Université Paris Sud in Orsay, France. Results coming next year In addition to primordial microwaves from the Big Bang, Planck also sees emissions from cold dust scattered throughout the universe. Researchers have already announced some initial results from the Planck mission. These include a catalog of galaxy clusters in the distant universe, many of which had not been seen before, and the best measurement yet of an infrared background covering the sky, researchers said. This infrared background was likely produced by stars forming in the early universe, showing that some of the first galaxies created stars at a rate 1,000 times greater than our own Milky Way galaxy does today. However, the first Planck findings about the Big Bang and CMB are not expected for another year, researchers said. More time is needed to tease the faint and subtle CMB signals out from a sea of other emissions. Planck's results could shed a great deal of light on the Big Bang and its aftermath, an ancient epoch that is well-understood only in its basic outlines. "Planck's data will kill off whole families of models; we just don't know which ones yet," Puget said. The Big Bang data will be released in two stages. The first 15 1/2-months' worth of observations will be published in early 2013, and the full data release from the entire mission will come a year after that, researchers said. Images: Peering Back to the Big Bang & Early Universe Top 10 Strangest Things in Space Planck 'Time Machine' to Study Big Bang

Tea partyers, Romney is your missing hero Dear Tea Party Movement, For the last few months, the world has been fascinated by your frenzied search for a presidential candidate who is not Mitt Romney. Because you found the man inauthentic, you buoyed up a string of anti-Mitts - Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich. But they were buffoons all, preposterous figures whom you rightfully changed your minds about as soon as you got to know them. It was quite a spectacle, your quest for the non-Romney, and we all know why you undertook it. In ways that matter, Romney is clearly a problem for you. His views on abortion, for example, change with the winds. Ditto, gay rights. He designed the Massachusetts health insurance system that was the model for "Obamacare." And he's even said that he approved of the TARP bank bailout, the abomination that helped ignite the tea party uprising in the first place. Still, my advice to you idealists of the right is this: Get over it. Not for sellout reasons, like Romney has the best chance of beating President Obama. You should get behind him because, in a certain paradoxical way, he may turn out to be the truest to the spirit of your movement of all the candidates. If nothing else, you in the tea party movement have spent the last three years teaching Americans that we are in a battle for the very soul of capitalism. And here comes Romney, the soul of American capitalism in the flesh. Look back over his career as a predator drone at Bain Capital: Isn't it the exact sort of background you always insist politicians ought to have as you wave your copy of "Atlas Shrugged" in the air? It's true that Romney said that the bank bailouts of 2008-09 were necessary, while you regard them as a mortal sin against free-market principles. But you shouldn't hold this against him. Any study of bank history reveals that free-marketeers have no problem doling out, or grabbing for, government money when the chips are down. After all, President Herbert Hoover himself distributed bank bailouts in the early years of the Depression. Calvin Coolidge's vice president, Charles Dawes, helped out in Hoover's bailout operation, later changing hats and grabbing a big slice of the bailout pie for his own bank. Ronald Reagan's administration rescued Continental Illinois from what was then the largest bank failure in our history. The reason they did these things should be as obvious as it is simple: "free market" has always been a high-minded way of saying "gimme," and when the heat rises, the "market" is invariably replaced by more direct methods, like demanding bailouts from the government you hate. Banks get bailouts for the simple reason that they want bailouts and have the power to insist on them - the same circumstances that got them deregulated in wave after wave in the 1980s, '90s and '00s. In this sense, Romney, who is loud and proud when it comes to the need for further deregulation, has actually been more consistent than you. He's the gimme candidate of 2012, so he should really be your guy. You say Romney is an unprincipled faker. Fair enough - he is. He's so plastic he's almost animatronic. But aren't you the ones who fall for it every time Fox News wheels out some Washington hack to confuse this or that corporate issue with the sacred cause of freedom? Aren't you the ones who thought that Glenn Beck's tears were markers of emotional sincerity? I know, I know: For almost three years now you've dazzled the world with your proclamations that we're being dragged into "tyranny," that the country is being "destroyed," that America needs to be "saved" - and now here comes Mitt, with his fondness for workaday compromise, ruining your carefully contrived atmosphere of panic. But give the man credit: He has tried. He's no stranger to the core tea party myth of the noble businessman persecuted by big government. Indeed, at the Conservative Political Action Conference in 2009, he opened his talk this way: "I gotta get through this speech before federal officials come here and arrest me for practicing capitalism." With Romney, a centimillionaire venture capitalist, carrying your banner in 2012, you will finally get to submit your capsized vision of social class to the verdict of the people - the actual flesh-and-blood people, that is, not the corporate "people" who make up the S&P 500. You will get to explain your peculiar conviction that the way to react to a gigantic slump brought on by frenzied finance is to further unshackle Wall Street. You will get to line up behind a heroic businessman, like those rugged, resourceful fellows in the Ayn Rand novels you love. You will get to go into battle for the job creators, which is what all capitalists are, right? OK, maybe not the guys at Bain Capital, the particular outfit where Romney made his pile, but the theory is all that really matters, isn't it? Indeed, your leadership cadre has already come to terms with Romney's Bain years. When Gingrich criticized Romney a few weeks ago for his career as a venture capitalist, your media heroes exploded with outrage. "This is the kind of risk-taking, free-market capitalism that most people who call themselves conservatives applaud," intoned Brit Hume on Fox News. Washington Post columnist George Will declared that what Romney did in his venture-capitalist days was an "essential social function" and that his company was "indispensable for wealth creation." And Suzy Welch, wife of Jack, appeared on Fox Business to wonder why Romney wasn't defending himself aggressively against criticism of his business career. Romney, she announced, was "an American hero to people who believe in free enterprise, or he should be." And that heroism, my friends, is why you will soon be signing up for the Romney juggernaut. Social issues be damned! Romney will ensure that we get the one thing that this country can't do without on its path to hell: further deregulation of Wall Street. The nation's all-powerful elitist socialists will, of course, disagree, and you'll have a field day, raging and weeping at the way they are going to set out to persecute this noble, wealth-creating soul. Pity the billionaire: It will be a powerful rallying cry for 2012. Yours in petulant individualism, Tom Thomas Frank's most recent book is "Pity the Billionaire: The Hard-Times Swindle and the Unlikely Comeback of the Right." He is the "Easy Chair" columnist for Harper's Magazine and founding editor of "The Baffler." A longer version of this piece can be found at tomdispatch.com.

Romanian Prosecutors Probe Man Who Hacked Pentagon Organized crime prosecutors say they are investigating a 20-year-old Romanian suspected of hacking into several Pentagon and NASA servers. Prosecutors said that Razvan Manole Cernaianu posted confidential data he retrieved from those servers on his blog. They say Cernaianu, reportedly an IT student, was also offering to sell an application that showed how he accessed the servers. Prosecutors said in a statement Tuesday they are cooperating with FBI and NASA representatives.