the flying reindeer
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Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
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Post by the flying reindeer on Mar 27, 2012 13:47:57 GMT -5
Fly a Kite Day Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 87th day of 2012 with 278 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 1:02 p.m., it's fair , temp 37ºF [Feels like 34ºF], winds NNW @ 5 mph, humidity 35%, pressure 30.35 in and falling, dew point 9ºF, chance of precipitation 10%.
World News Capsules: 1. Afghan sldiers arrested in suspected attack against government. ....The Afghan Defense Ministry went into a lockdown after the discovery of 10 suicide vests. a. Support in the US for Afghan war drops sharply, poll finds.
....A New York Times/CBS News poll found that 69% of Americans surveyed think that the US should not be at war in Afghanistan. 2. Across Africa, steady steps toward democracy.
....Despite continuing setbacks, such as the recent coup in Mali, democratic rule is gaining a firmer foothold across Africa. 3. Brazil's unique culture group stays busy sharing the wealth.
....Brazil's most active culture organization, SESC, finances not just arts programs but also books, CDs, courses, recreation and health clinics, and it is raising the country's global profile. 4. Bo Xilai's China crime crackdown adds to scandal.
....Disturbing new details are emerging about an anticrime initiative led by the ousted party official Bo Xilai. 5. Raúl Castro greets Pope Benedict at start of closely watched visit. ....Pope Benedict XVI arrived in Cuba on Monday, welcomed by President Raúl Castro, who gripped the pontiff's hands in greeting but did not kiss his ring. 6. Al Jazeera will not air French rampage video. ....Al Jazeera received a video of the murderous rampage in southwest France but said that it would not air the gruesome footage amid strong objections from Pres. Nicolas Sarkozy. 7. German leader agrees to more bailout oney for Euro Zone nations. ....Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany said a new 500 billion euro fund could operate in tandem with a temporary one that still has money. 8. Syria reportedly accepts peace plan as clashes erupt near Lebanon. ....Fighting was reported to have broken out on the border of northeast Lebanon on Tuesday between Syrian government troops and rebels who have taken refuge there, reports said. 9. Tunisia says constitution will not cite Islamic law. ....Ennahda, the ruling Islamist party, said the decision was an effort to unify a nation with disparate political factions.
US News Capsules: 1. Surgery for diabetes may be better than standard treatment. ....Bariatric surgery, in which the stomach is stapled and the small intestine rerouted, puts the disease into remission far more often than drugs, diet and exercise, researchers say. 2. US agency seeks tougher consumer privacy rules. ....The Federal Trade Commission asked for legislation that would allow consumers to have access to the information collected on them by so-called data brokers. 3. Silencing the guns. ....In response to the shooting of Gabrielle Giffords, Congress demonstrates the worst kind of bipartisanship: paralysis and inaction on assault weapons. 4. Vindication for challenger of health care law. ....Randy E. Barnett, a Georgetown law professor, has argued long and loud that the requirement to buy health insurance is unconstitutional. a. Most oppose at least part of overhaul, poll finds.
....A New York Times/CBS News poll finds the individual mandate at the heart of opposition to the law. b. Awaiting health law ruling, and preparing Plan B.
....State officials and insurance executives are devising possible alternatives to the coming federal requirement that most Americans buy health insurance. 5. Supervising priest goes on trial in abuse case. ....Msgr. William J. Lynn is the first supervisor of priests to be tried on charges of endangering children and conspiracy, in a landmark trial in Philadelphia 6. New ideas on pensions: use states. ....Some state officials are considering a novel proposal to rebuild America's ailing retirement system: having state pension funds run retirement plans for companies. 7. Learning to drive with A.D.H.D..
....Jillian Serpa, 21, of Ringwood, N.J., with her mother after failing on her fourth attempt to acquire a driver's license. Learning to drive is hard and scary for many teenagers, but the challenges are significantly greater for adolescents who have attention problems. 8. Gunman's account of beating by teenager is detailed. ....Thousands expressed support for Trayvon Martin as a police report detailed an account by George Zimmerman, the neighborhood watch volunteer who shot him. 9. Colorado revisits law that gives prosecutors wide power to try youths as adults. ....A bill that cleared the state House would limit the ability of district attorneys to bypass judges and file adult charges against youths accused of certain crimes.
Today's Headlines of Interest:
Thought for Today "Fear grows in darkness; if you think there's a bogeyman around, turn on the light." -—Dorothy Thompson (1894-1961), American journalist
Today's flower: Monarda or petit delight bee balm
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Mar 28, 2012 12:49:51 GMT -5
Today in History: 1774--British Parliament adopted the Coercive Acts that closed the port of Boston. 1776--Juan Bautista de Anza, one of the great western pathfinders of the 18th century, arrived at the future site of San Francisco with 247 colonists. 1797--Nathaniel Briggs of New Hampshire patented a washing machine. 1834--the US Senate voted to censure Pres. Jackson for the removal of federal deposits from the Bank of the United States. 1854--during the Crimean War, Britain and France declared war on Russia. 1862--Union forces stop the Confederate invasion of New Mexico Territory when they turn the Rebels back at Glorieta Pass. 1898--the US Supreme Court, in US v. Wong Kim Ark, ruled that a child born in the US to Chinese immigrants was a US citizen.[/b] 1899--August Busch, the businessman who built Anheuser-Busch into the world's largest brewery, was born; died 1989 at age 90. 1915--Leon Thrasher, a mining engineer from Massachusetts, drowned when a German U-boat torpedoed a cargo-passenger ship off the coast of England, becoing the first American killed in World War I. 1930--the names of the Turkish cities of Constantinople and Angora were changed to Istanbul and Ankara. 1935--the notorious Nazi propaganda film Triumph des Willens (Triumph of the Will), directed by Leni Riefenstahl, premiered in Berlin with Adolf Hitler present. 1939--the Spanish Civil War effectively ended as Madrid fell to the forces of Francisco Franco. 1941--land was cleared for Ford's Willow Run plant. 1941--the British Royal Navy destroyed three major Italian cruisers and two destroyers in the Battle of Cape Matapan in the Mediterranean, effectively ending an possible threat to the British Navy. 1942--British naval forces staged a successful raid on the Nazi-occupied French port of St. Nazaire in Operation Chariot, destroying the only dry dock on the Atlantic coast capable of repairing the German battleship [/i]Tirpitz . 1979--America's worst commercial nuclear accident occurred inside the Unit 2 reactor at the Three Mile Island plant near Middletown, Pa. 1984, Bob Irsay (1923-1997), owner of the once-mighty Baltimore Colts, without any sort of public announcement, hired movers to pack up the team’s offices in Owings Mills, Md., in the middle of the night, while the city of Baltimore slept. 2001--Pres. Bush publicly rejected the 1997 Kyoto Protocol on climate, a pact never ratified by the US Senate. 2002--the Arab League, meeting in Beirut, Lebanon, agreed on a peace plan that offered Israel normal relations in exchange for a full withdrawal from war-won lands and a Palestinian state. 2002--Archbishop Juliusz Paetz of Poznan, Poland, announced his resignation, but also protested his innocence, following accusations he'd made sexual advances toward young clerics. 2002--US Air Force Staff Sgt. Timothy Woodland was convicted in a Japanese court and sentenced to nearly three years in prison for raping a woman on the southern island of Okinawa. 2006--the Duke University lacrosse team was suspended following sexual assault allegations. 2006--more than 1 million people poured into streets across France and strikers disrupted air, rail and bus travel in the largest nationwide protest over a youth labor law. 2007--Iran aired a video of 15 captured British sailors and marines; the lone female captive, shown in a white tunic and a black head scarf, said the British boats had "trespassed." 2007--in the Philippines, dozens of children were taken hostage on a bus by a day-care center owner armed with grenades and guns; the crisis ended peacefully 10 hours later with the hostage-taker's surrender. 2011--vigorously defending American attacks in Libya, Pres. Obama declared that the US intervened to prevent a slaughter of civilians. RADIO CAROLINE DAY
blocked due to malware/_hk_cayNIONo/Sa8efoJVRvI/AAAAAAAAP5s/7fGjc3TmmGY/s400/Pirate_BBC_Essex.jpg[/img] Radio Caroline debuted as the first pirate radio station to broadcast off the coast of England. On March 29th in 1964, the combination of rock music and lively disk jockey patter played to a huge audience in Great Britain; but well out of reach of British authorities. However, that didn’t stop them from trying, albeit unsuccessfully, to shut down the radio station ship. Radio Caroline had become competition to the staid and usually dull British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC). Today, all that is different, as there is licensed radio competition throughout Great Britain. The BBC and the giant, government-owned network has caught up with the times by offering five different services to appeal to wide audiences. They are simply known as ‘Radio 1’ through ‘Radio 5’ ... No ‘Zees’, ‘Qs’ or ‘Bees’, just numbers that include a rock channel, a talk channel, a nostalgia/easy listening channel, a classical/fine arts channel and a news channel. [/i][/size][/color]
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Mar 28, 2012 15:42:47 GMT -5
Respect Your Cat Day Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 88th day of 2012 with 277 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 3:57 p.m., it's partlyc loudy , temp 71ºF [Feels like 71ºF], winds W @ 18 mph, humidity 34%, pressure 29.52 in and falling, dew point 41ºF, chance of precipitation 10%.
World News Capsules: 1. Report finds continued jailing for Afghan girls running from abuse. ....The report comes from Human Rights Watch, which interviewed 58 women and girls in prison and found that more than half of them were there for acts that in most countries would not be considered crimes. a. Report of bomb plot puts Afghan defense ministry in lockdown. ....The Afghan Defense Ministry went on high alert after the discovery of 10 suicide vests. 2. Murdoch's News Ltd. rejects TV piracy claim in Australia. ....An Australian newspaper’s report that Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation had sabotaged competitors in the 1990s was dismissed by the company’s Australian media wing as “laughable" 3. Cuban official rules out reforms urged by Pope. ....A top government minister made clear that the sweeping economic changes under way in Cuba would not be accompanied by political reforms that Pope Benedict XVI had urged. a. Pope calls for 'authentic freedom' in Cuba. ....Ending a three-day visit to Cuba, Pope Benedict XVI called for “the exercise of authentic freedom” in what is consistently ranked as one of the most repressive nations on earth. 4. After killings in France, Muslims fear a culture of diversity is at risk. ....Long known as a place of welcome, Toulouse may see lasting tensions after the killings by Mohamed Merah, a professed jihadi. a. Gas Leak on offshore platform forces evacuation in North Sea. ....French oil company Total said that the situation was “stable” but that it was still examining how to stop the gas leak. Ships and aircraft were ordered to stay away because of the risk of explosion. The leak developed as workers tried to cap a well 150 miles east of Scotland. 5. India tightens New Delhi's Tibetan districts on eve of summit. ....With Chinese Pres. Hu Jintao arriving for a diplomatic summit meeting, Indian authorities sought to prevent Tibetans from staging anti-China protests. 6. Iranian official cites April 13 as date for nuclear talks. ....Comments by Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi represented one more step in a diplomatic minuet playing out against a backdrop of speculation about a possible military strike by Israel. 7. 2 Israeli leaders make the Iran issue their own.
....Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak have formed an unexpected bond on the matter of Iran's threat and in considering what must be done about it. a. Israel group adds a softer voice to debate on Iran. ....Outnumbered by the hawkish and better-known American Israel Public Affairs Committee, some 700 members of J Street reminded their Congress members that the Jewish vote is not monolithic. b. Kadina Party in Israel replaces Livimi as leader. ....Tzipi Livni lost the leadership of her centrist Kadima Party by a large margin to an archrival, according to results of the primary election. 8. Malaysian mosque is also a methadone clinic. ....Doctors in Malaysia have succeeded in getting the religious authorities on board in what the World Health Organization says is the world’s first methadone program operating out of a mosque. 9. North Korea reaffirms plan to launch satellite. ....North Korea said that it would press ahead with a plan to launch a satellite next month, rebuffing world leaders who threatened sanctions over the plan. 10. US and Pakistan take steps to mend relations. ....Pres. Obama and the Pakistani prime minister met briefly in Seoul, in the highest level contact between the two countries since November. 11. Polish ex-official charged with aiding CIA. ....The former head of Poland's intelligence service has been charged with aiding the CIA in setting up a secret prison to detain suspected members of Al Qaida.\ 12. Assad accepts cease-fire; opponents are skeptical.
....The acceptance by Pres. Assad of Syria of a UN envoy's cease-fire proposal belied a new outbreak of bloodlettin.g on the Syria-Lebanon border. 13. Asylum claims rose 20% last year, UN refugee agency says. ....The agency’s annual report attributed the increase to new uprisings in the Middle East and Africa, combined with a rising tide of people fleeing chronic conflicts like those in Afghanistan and Iraq.
US News Capsules: 1. Brace yourself for split decision on mandate.
....In the final day of arguments on 2010 law, justices wrestle with what happens to the law without the provision that requires uninsured to buy insurance. a. In Massadhusetts, insurance mandate stirs some dissent.
....As the Supreme Court hears arguments on the requirement that most Americans be insured or pay a penalty, Massachusetts offers an example of how such a mandate might work. b. Contingency plans are few if Court strikes down insurance requirement. ....On Wednesday, the Supreme Court will examine how much of the 2010 health care law might survive if the justices strike down the requirement that Americans buy insurance. c. On street, crowd gives louder side of health law argument. ....Shouts and chants for and against the Affordable Care Act turned the block between the steps of the Supreme Court and First Street into a cross section of American politics. 2. SAT and ACT to tighten rules after cheating scandal ....Stung by cases of cheating among Long Island high school students, the college entrance exams will now require students to upload photos when they register. 3. Iraqi immigrants in California town fear a hate crime in a woman's killing. ....Iraqi immigrants in El Cajon, Calif., say the death of Shaima Alawadi, 32, has exposed long-simmering cultural tensions and distrust. 4. Knowing cost, the customer sets the price. ....As power shifts to consumers, propelled by the Internet and apps, many stores are scrambling to move beyond the time-worn cycle of markups and discounts - and still make money, 5. FDA approves new anemia drug. ....The Food and Drug Administration approved a new anemia drug called Omontys for dialysis patients, which will end Amgen's 24-year monopoly led by its Epogen drug. 6. Group led by Magic Johnson wins auction to buy Dodgers for 2.15 billion. ....A group headed by Magic Johnson and financed largely by Guggenheim Partners was named the winning bidder of the Los Angeles Dodgers. 7. TV: This year, it's 'Idol" chasing the Voice. ....American Idol and The Voice seem to have switched philosophies in choosing finalists this year. 8. Justices rule against pilot in privacy case. ....The court found that Congress had not allowed compensation for mental anguish when violations of the Privacy Act of 1974 inflicted no actual damage, like a loss of income. 9. Language deemed offensive is removed from FBI training manual. ....The passages suggesting that agents could bend the law was contained in 876 pages of training materials about Muslims and Arab-Americans. 10. US judge in Michigan acquits militia members of sedition. ....A federal judge said the government could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that members of the Hutaree militia were taking concrete steps to use force against the United States. 11. For new generation of power plants, a new emission rule from the EPA. ....The new rules on how much carbon dioxide power plants can give off come as market forces are moving the industry from coal to natural gas. POLITICS: 1. Florida's new election law blunts voter drives. ....New restrictions have led groups like Rock the Vote and the League of Women Voters to curb their efforts. 2. With bank teetering, a bet on the GOP backfires.
....Big business groups helped Republicans win the House in 2010, but the Export-Import Bank, which finances business exports, is in the cross hairs of the conservative representatives. Without Export-Import Bank financing, business owners like David Ickert, vice president of finance at Air Tractor in Texas, could find themselves struggling to complete contracts with overseas buyers. 3. Strength and weakness in the campaign of Ron Paul. ....Not even Rep. Ron Paul can entirely explain why the passion he generated in the Republican primary season did not translate into more votes. 4. [u.Final approval by House sends jobs bill to Prs. Obama for signature][/u]. ....The package of measures is an effort to ease access to capital and investments for entrepreneurs and to hasten a labor market recovery. 5. Re[resemtatove bppted frp, Jpise fpr wearomg jppdoe. ....A congressman was removed from the House floor today after giving a speech about Trayvon Martin while wearing a hoodie. Thought for Today"You cannot find peace by avoiding life." —-[/i]Virginia Woolf (1882-1941), English author.
Today's flower: Stokesia laevis or Stokes' blue aster
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Mar 29, 2012 17:05:41 GMT -5
Baseball Pitchers Day Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 89th day of 2012 with 276 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 3:17 p.m., it's cloudy , temp 37ºF [Feels like 31ºF], winds NW @ 8 mph, humidity 86%, pressure 29.99 in and steady, dew point 33ºF, chance of precipitation 30%.
World News Capsules: 1. NATO convoy hit by major attack in Afghanistan. ....A NATO supply convoy came under heavy attack by Taliban insurgents in western Afghanistan, with 37 dead reported in the firefight and NATO air strikes that ensued, Afghan officials said. a. Moral 'crimes' land Afghan women in jail. ....Human Rights Watch called for the government to release about 400 women and girls imprisoned for so-called moral crimes. 2. For group of 5 nations, acronym is easy, but common ground is hard. ....The group known as BRICS - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - has had difficulty finding common ground on how to exert collective geopolitical influence since forming three years ago. 3. Billionaire brothers arrested in Hong Kong corruption inquiry. ....An anti-corruption regulator said it had arrested Raymond and Thomas Kwok, who run the biggest real estate company in the city, accusing them of suspected corruption. 4. In Congo, self-defense can offer its own risk. ....At the very least, relief officials say, self-defense militias have worsened an already grave humanitarian crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo, one of the world’s poorest countries. 5. Pope calls for 'authentic freedom' in Cuba. ....Ending a three-day visit to Cuba, Pope Benedict XVI called for "the exercise of authentic freedom" in one of the world's most authoritarian nations. 6. In Ethiopia, fossil foot indicates new prehuman species. ....3.4-million-year-old bones appear to settle the question of whether Australopithecus afarensis was the only line of hominins, or prehumans, living then, 7. In Europe, the World Bank presidency draws competition .
....Two candidates from developing nations , José Antonio Ocampo, the former Colombian finance minister, and Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the current Nigerian finance minister,,are challenging the American nominee, in a move that reflects the fast-growing clout of emerging economies. a. 2 studies point to pesticide as a culprit in bees' decline.
...Experiments in Britain and France found that colonies of bumblebees and honeybees were harmed by common pesticides in a class known as neonicotinoids. 8. Personal angst powered killer's arsenal in France. ....Early investigations suggest that Mohammed Merah's personal angst was at least as important to his evolution into a self-styled jihadist as any terrorist network that might have been available to him.. 9. Hard line on Iran places White House in a bind. ....The White House is trying to convince Iran that it is serious about military action without leaving a sense that war is inevitable. 10. Arab leaders gather for meeting in Baghdad. ....Arab League leaders arrived in Baghdad for a meeting billed as a show of unity but underscoring divisions among Arab nations about the bloody crisis in Syria. 11. Japan admits nuclear plant still poses dangers. ....The damage to the core of at least one of the meltdown-stricken reactors at Fukushima could be far worse than previously thought. 12. Brutality jolts Russia into action on police. ....A death in custody in Tatarstan, a republic known for tolerance, has prompted the federal government to investigate other reports of abuse there. 13. Spanish trade unions start general strike. ....A strike called to protest a recent overhaul of labor rules disrupted heavy industry and large parts of Spain’s transportation network. 14. Clashes raise global worries over Sudan and South Sudan. ....A European Union warning of “a dangerous escalation” of border tensions was the latest international statement expressing fears of a renewed conflict. 15. Neighbors said to be at violent odds is Syrian crackdown.
....Refugees who have fled to Lebanon offered a rare firsthand account of the unfolding tumult in western Syria as an intensive bombardment of communities continues. a. Diplomatic moves increase pressure on Assad. ....Analysts suggested that Pres. Assad of Syria was following a strategy used to great effect by Iran: pledging sincerity to diplomacy as a way to stall for time.
US News Capsules: 1. Tense lull and legislative limbo as nation waits for high court to rule on 'Obamacare.
....With three days of Supreme Court oral argument in the challenges to the 2010 health care law now over, a tense lull has settled over Washington. Health care reform “cannot wait, it must not wait, and it will not wait another year,” President Barack Obama said on Feb. 23, 2009. But Obama and everyone else must wait at least several more weeks to learn the fate of the health care overhaul he signed into law in 2010. a. Justices weigh what-ifs of health ruling. ....The Supreme Court considered several possible approaches if the individual mandate is removed from the law and also examined an expansion of Medicaid. b. Few minds are changed by arguments in court. ....Three days of debate over the health care overhaul seemed to reinforce what many Americans believed about it, but with an extra dose of repulsion or delight. 2. Weather runs hot and cold, so scientists look to the ice. ....Amid seesawing temperatures, suspicion is focused on the decline of sea ice in the Arctic, believed to be a consequence of the human release of greenhouse gases. 3. Facelift project for Hollywood stirs divisions. ....A rezoning plan that would turn parts of Hollywood into a mini-city has won the support of key Los Angeles officials and set off a storm of opposition from residents. 4. Fracas on JetBlue flight shows gap in screening.
....After a captain acted erratically on a flight, some pilots said annual medical exams were not thorough and did not typically include psychological evaluations. 5. A poet of unswerving vision at the forefront of feminism.
....Adrienne Rich, 1929-2012,one of the most influential and widely read writers of the feminist movement, took on sexism and racial oppression in her poems and prose, died Tuesday at age 82 at home in Santa Cruz, Calif. 6. REALITY TV: Silent partners no longer. ....The women of VH1 reality-TV show Mob Wives, have violated the mafia's code of silence to offer a glimpse into what is euphemistically called "the lifestyle." 7. Some like it hotter.
....For many religious exercisers, only sweltering temperatures produce adequate workouts, so gyms are trying to lure them with ever hotter, harder classes. 8. $7 billion public-private plan in Chicago aims to fix transit, schools and parks.
....Mayor Rahm Emanuel said that instead of waiting on federal financing, the city would form public-private partnerships to handle projects to transform the city’s infrastructure. 9. For Skittles, death brings both profit and risk. ....Many people are buying Skittles, the candy Trayvon Martin was carrying when he was killed, to commemorate his death, putting the company that makes them in a delicate position. POLITICS: 1. Business bets on the GOP may be backfiring. ....Big business groups spent millions to help Republicans win control of the House in 2010, but the return has not always met expectations. 2. Mr. health care mandate. ....Jonathan Gruber, a professor at M.I.T., helped persuade the Obama administration that everyone should be required to get health insurance. 3. Congress extends highway funding with stopgap bill. ....With lawmakers unable to agree on a broader transportation measure, a 90-day extension averted a halt in financing for road and infrastructure projects. 4. Romney delicate in challenging Obama's foreign policy.
....Mitt Romney has made a point of carefully picking the instances in which he challenges Pres. Obama's management of foreign policy, reflecting the delicacy the Republican faces in taking on a commander in chief whose foreign policy marks are relatively high. 5. House passes GOP budget; plan has no chance in Senate.
....The Republican-controlled House passed the leadership's 2013 budget plan, which creates a clear contrast between the two parties ahead of the general election,
Today's Headlines of Interest:
Thought for Today "A ship is safe in harbor, but that's not what ships are for." —-William G.T. Shedd (1820-1894), American theologian
Today's flower: Scabiosa caucasica or Isaac House scabiosa
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Mar 30, 2012 13:15:08 GMT -5
March 30th in History:
1135--Moses Maimonides, Spanish-born Jewish philosopher, jurist and physician, was born in Cordoba in present-day Spain; died 1204 at age 69. 1746--Francisco de Goya, Spanish painter; who depicted political tyranny in his works, was born; died 1828 at age 82. 1822--Florida became a U.S. territory. 1842--Dr. Crawford Long became the first physician to use anesthetic (ether) in surgery. 1853--Vincent Van Gogh, Dutch Post Impressionist artist, was born in Groot-Zundert in southern Netherlands; died 1890 at age 37. 1856--the Treaty of Paris was signed putting an end to the Crimean War. 1858--Hymen Lipman was credited with registering the first patent for a pencil with an attached eraser. 1863--George I of Greece was elected King following the deposition of King Otto. 1867--Secretary of State William H. Seward reached agreement with Russia to purchase Alaska for $7.2 million, a deal roundly ridiculed as "Seward's Folly." 1870--the 15th Amendment to the US Constitution, which prohibited denying citizens the right to vote and hold office on the basis of race, was declared in effect by Secretary of State Hamilton Fish. 1870--Texas was readmitted to the Union. 1880--Sean O'Casey, the noted Irish playwright, was born; died 1964 at age 84.
1909--the Queensboro Bridge (aka 59th St. Bridge), a cantilever bridge over the East River in New York City, opened after 6 years of construction ,$18 million and 50 lives. 1923--the Cunard liner Laconia arrived in New York City, becoming the first passenger ship to circumnavigate the world, a cruise of 130 days. 1945--the Soviet Union invaded Austria in World War II. 1959--a narrowly divided US Supreme Court, in Bartkus v. Illinois, ruled that a conviction in state court following an acquittal in federal court for the same crime did not constitute double jeopardy. 1964--the TV game show Jeopardy!, hosted by Art Fleming, premiered on NBC. 1970--1973 Triple Crown-winning thoroughbred, Secretariat, was born at Meadow Farm in Caroline County, Va. 1972--North Vietnamese forces launched their three-pronged Easter Offensive against South Vietnam, lasting till October. 1975--the South Vietnamese city of Da Nang fell to the North. 1981--Pres. Reagan suffered a punctured lung due to an assassination attempt by John Hinckley, Jr. Also wounded were White House news secretary James Brady, a Secret Service agent and a District of Columbia police officer. 1982--the 3rd space shuttle mission was completed when the Columbia successfully landed at the White Sands Space Harbor near Las Cruces, N.Mex. 1991--Patricia Bowman told authorities she'd been raped hours earlier by William Kennedy Smith, the nephew of Sen. Edward Kennedy, at the family's Palm Beach estate. 1995--the compromise "don't ask, don't tell, don't pursue" policy allowing homosexuals to serve in the military under certain conditions was struck down by a federal judge in New York as unconstitutional. 1995--Pope John Paul II issued an encyclical condemning abortion and euthanasia as crimes that no human laws could legitimize. 1999--a jury in Portland, Ore., ordered Philip Morris to pay $81 million to the family of a man who died of lung cancer after smoking Marlboros for four decades. 2002--the US joined other Security Council members in adopting a resolution calling on Israel to withdraw its troops from Palestinian cities, including Ramallah, where Yasser Arafat's headquarters was under siege. 2002--Elizabeth-Bowes-Lyon, Queen Mother to Elizabeth II, died in her sleep at Royal Lodge, outside London at age 101. 2004--Juliana, Queen of the Netherlands, was interred beside her mother, Wilhelmina, in the royal vaults under the Nieuwe Kerk in Delft. 2006--American reporter Jill Carroll, a freelancer for The Christian Science Monitor, was released after 82 days as a hostage in Iraq. 2007--Pres. Bush went to Walter Reed Army Medical Center, where he apologized to troops face to face for shoddy conditions in outpatient housing. 2007--the Food and Drug Administration said it had found melamine, a chemical used to make plastics, in samples of Menu Foods pet food. 2009--Pres. Obama asserted unprecedented government control over the auto industry, rejecting GM and Chrysler's restructuring plans and engineering the ouster of GM's chief executive, Rick Wagoner. 2011--Tilikum, the killer whale that drowned trainer Dawn Brancheau in 2010 at SeaWorld in Orlando, Fla., resumed performing for the first time since the woman's death. 2011--a top Libyan official, Foreign Minister Moussa Koussa, defected to Britain, dealing a blow to leader Moammar Gadhafi. DOCTOR, DOCTOR DAY
From March 30th on, surgery would no longer painful -- at least, while it was being performed. Dr. Crawford W. Long performed the first operation while a patient was anesthetized by ether on this day in 1842 as he removed a tumor from the neck of a boy. Crawford had been observing several party-goers under the influence of nitrous oxide and sulfuric ether. Those folks were feeling no pain. And Crawford’s patient literally felt no pain as the good doctor removed a tumor from the boy’s neck using the party concoction.
This event has been celebrated as Doctors’ Day since this day in 1933. The idea of setting aside a day to honor physicians was conceived by Eudora Brown Almond, wife of Dr. Charles B. Almond. Doctors throughout the United States celebrate in Dr. Crawford W. Long’s honor and, in honor of ether as an anesthetic.
Give a doctor a red carnation today. It’s the official, designated flower of Doctors’ Day.
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Mar 30, 2012 17:14:43 GMT -5
Frozen Food Day Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 90th day of 2012 with 275 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 6:02 p.m., it's fair , temp 44ºF [Feels like 44ºF], winds NE @ 6 mph, humidity 42%, pressure 29.95 in and falling, dew point 22ºF, chance of precipitation 20%.
World News Capsules: 1. As troops exit Afghanistan, businesses say they may, too.
....The business leaders that Afghanistan needs to succeed after allied forces withdraw their troops in 2014 are already making moves to leave the country. a. Militia member drugs and kills Afghan colleagues. ....A member of an Afghan militia promoted by the US military to protect rural villages drugged his colleagues and killed at least nine of them as they slept, the police chief of Paktika said. b. 2nd Afghan insurgent group suspends peace talks. ....The group Hezb-i-Islami in effect said that neither the Afghan nor the American government seemed ready to make the compromises needed to end the insurgency. 2. Electronic giant vowing reforms in China plants. ....Responding to a critical investigation of its factories, Foxconn, a top electronics supplier for Apple and other companies, pledged to curtail working hours and increase wages. a. Case based in China puts a face on persistent hacking. ....A breach of computers belonging to companies in Japan and India and to Tibetan activists has been linked to a former student at a Chinese university. b. China's hierarch strives to regain unity after Chongqing leader's ouster. ....For weeks, there has been frenzied politicking at the top of the Communist Party as it attempts to seal rifts in its leadership. c. In rural China, temples to past merchant wealth endure.
....Lavish villas built by merchants still endure across the Huizhou region of China, which was once synonymous with entrepreneurialism. Now tourism companies are trying to preserve them. 3. In Europe, Starbucks adjusts to a cafe culture.
....The coffeehouse chain is embarking on a multimillion-dollar campaign to win over Europe’s coffee aficionados with an upscale makeover of hundreds of stores. a. Europe agrees to bailout fund for euro of over $1 trillion. ....Finance ministers from the European countries that use the currency hope the new fund will show their determination to end the two-year-old euro crisis. 4. Toulouse killer's path to radicalization a bitter puzzle. ....Early investigations - and the impressions of many - suggest that Mohammed Merah's personal angst was at least as important to his evolution into a jihadist as any terrorist network. a. French police seize 17 in raids following killings in Toulouse
....Elite units conducted raids in several areas, arresting 17 people described as Islamic militants. 5. Tibetan exiles march for one of their own who died in flames
....Hundreds of people marched in mourning in Dharamsala, India, for a Tibetan exile who set himself on fire this week during a protest in New Delhi. 6. Obama to clear way to tighten Iranian oil sanctions. ....Pres. Obama has determined there is enough oil in world markets to allow countries to rely less on Iran’s oil imports, a step that could allow increased sanctions against Iran. a. Iran suspends Reuters over faulty headline. ....The erroneous title on a Reuters video, saying that female ninjas in Iran were being trained as assassins, resulted in the government’s suspending the news agency’s staff there. 7. Little talk of tough issues at Arab League meeting i Iraq. ....Arab leaders in Baghdad offered platitudes about democracy and reform, but did not address the unrest that has swept through their countries/. 8. Japan orders interception of North Korean rocket if it poses threat. ....Ahead of a planned launch of a long-range rocket next month, North Korea was said to have fired several short-range missile off its west coast earlier this week 9. Mexico's elections begin.
....Mexico's presidential campaign began at midnight with a campaign rally for the leading contender, Enrique Peña Nieto. 10. US and China joust for influence in Myanmar. ....As strategically placed Myanmar loosens the grip of dictatorship, each side is doing whatever it can to gain the country’s favor. a. Symbolic vote in Myanmar draws near. ....The leader of the democracy movement, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, emerged from a week of convalescence, saying that that the vote would be a modest step toward democracy. 11. On the run, Bin Laden had 4 children and 5 houses, a wife says. ....Testimony to Pakistani investigators by Osama Bin Laden's youngest wife offered the most detailed account yet of the family's life on the run preceding the raid in May 2011 that killed the al-Qaida leader. 12. Palestinians protest land seizure and control of Jerusalem. ....Palestinians protested against Israeli policies of land seizure and control of Jerusalem, leading to clashes with Israeli troops that left one dead and scores injured. 13. US envoy to Russia accuses TV station of hacking. ....Ambassador Michael A. McFaul confronted a camera crew from a state-controlled television station and suggested that they had accessed his schedule by hacking his e-mail or telephone. 14. Clinton, in Saudi Arabia, explores Syria crisis. ....US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton sought to work out a unified strategy on the crisis in Syria in talks with Saudi officials as violence continued in the north of Syria. 15. Syrian fighting flares ahead of talks. ....Fierce fighting continued in Syria’s north and center two days before the so-called Friends of Syria coalition was set to meet in Istanbul in an effort to end the crisis. 16. Outraged by fatal assault on young woman, Ukrainians force an investigation. ....After a woman was raped and set on fire, public protests and interventions from the president and prime minister led to two suspects being re-arrested.
US News Capsules: 1. 2-year college, squeezed, sets 2-tier tuition. ....Santa Monica College, in California, will offer some courses for a higher price, so that students who are eager to get into a particular class can do so if they pay more. 2. Pasadena police arrest 911 caller after unarmed suspect is killed. ....Oscar Carrillo was arrested on suspicion of involuntary manslaughter after he told a 911 dispatcher that 19-year-old Kendrec McDade, whom police fatally shot, was armed, 3. MOVIES: In Hollywood, an '80s moment. ....At a time of plunging DVD sales and an up-and-down box office, Hollywood is doubling back on past hits, like Dirty Dancing, and stars like Bette Midler and Arnold Schwarzenegger, a. Behind every harassed child? A whole lot of clueless adults.
....Lee Hirsch's documentary Bully arrives at a moment when bullying is being redefined as a social problem. b. Inside the 3-D convesion of Titanic[/u]. ....Using a frame from Titanic, James Cameron explains elements of the work that went into converting the film to 3-D. c. A brawler with a soft side. ....In Goon,”Seann William Scott plays a hockey enforcer in a minor-league team, a raging beast when dispatched onto the ice, but a shy, courtly lug outside the rink. d. Fisherman off to a mission in the underworld. ....In Wrath of the Titans, equel to the 2010 Clash of the Titans remake, Zeus asks his demigod son for help, as the battle for supremacy between the gods and the Titans goes on e. Who's the most self-absobed of them all? ....The Snow White character in Mirror Mirror deviates only a bit from the heroine of the classic tale. This time Lily Collins is armed and suited for action. 1) The better to entertain you with, my dear. ....The screen comedy Mirror Mirror reflects Hollywood’s preoccupation with fairy tales, as do the TV series Grimm and Once Upon a Time. f. How the West was filled with loss. ....John Ford’s Fort Apache (1948), one of the great achievements of American cinema, has been released in a magnificent Blu-ray edition by Warner Home Video. 4. Three major US banks prepare for possible credit downgrades. ....Moody's Investors Service will decide on banks' credit ratings in mid-May, and Morgan Stanley, Bank of America and Citigroup could be cut to a level just two notches above speculative grade. 5. The brightest of creataures. ....The American Museum of Natural History is opening an exhibition, "Creatures of Light," that looks at the strange world of bioluminesence. 6. MasterCard and Visa look into ossibledata attack. ....A breach at a third-party vendor may have exposed cardholders’ personal information. 7. In health case, appeals to a justice's idea of libery. ....In making their arguments to the Supreme Court about the health law, advocates tried to win over Justice Anthony M. Kennedy by invoking one of his most valued principles: liberty. 8. Netting tiny eels and big profits. ....With Asian demand for elver eels especially high — last year’s tsunami curbed supply in Japan, and Europe has cracked down on exporting eels — a gold rush of sorts is on in Maine. POLITICS: 1. House passes GOP budget plan, mostly along party lines
. ....A fierce two-day debate over a Republican budget plan portrayed as either a path to prosperity or a road to ruin ended. 2. Recall election for Wisconsin governor who battled unions
. ....Election officials said critics of Gov. Scott Walker had collected enough signatures for a recall election to be held in May. 3. Romney supporters yearning for the personal side. ....On the campaign trail, voters often speak frankly of their desire for Mitt Romney to make more of a human connection with them. Today's Headlines of Interest: Mega Millions prize hits $640 million - and could go higher. ....Record-shattering jackpot goes up again; hopeful future millionaires form long lines at stores across the 42 states, plus Washington, D.C. with the drawing for the fortune set for late Friday in Atlanta. Players pay $1 for a ticket and must pick five numbers from 1 to 56 plus a Mega number from 1 to 46 to win the jackpot. Ticket sales in California are expected to hit $333 million, with $189 million in New York and $94 million in Texas. In all, the lottery is expected to generate sales of $1.4 billion for this drawing. Based on U.S. averages, you're about 8,000 times more likely to be murdered than win the lottery and 20,000 times more likely to die in a vehicle crash. The largest Mega Millions jackpot ever won was $390 million in March 2007, when the prize was split between two tickets sold in Georgia and New Jersey. The largest Powerball jackpot was $365 million won in 2006 on one ticket held by eight workers at a Nebraska meatpacking plant. What to buy when you win the $640 million Mega Millions. If you're lucky enough to beat the 1-in-176 million odds and win, the bad news is you won’t be able to take home that full amount. That's because lottery officials will withhold 25% for federal gaming taxes, according to Arlen Harris of the Washington's Lottery, which participates in the Mega Millions. Still, you should be pretty well set for life. While you still might be on the hook for state taxes, you would have the kind of money to afford multiple homes, travel by private jet and take up a fancy hobby like collecting fine wine or antique cars, said Bruce Wallin, editorial director of the luxury goods magazine Robb Report."That kind of money affords the ability to pursue your passions to the kind of extreme that a lot of us dream of," he said. If you are ready to buy, here are some items to consider for your shopping list. - Your own island - but rent first before buying.
- Your own ranch
- A jet - take some advice from the other 1 percenters. Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway owns NetJets, which provides fractional ownership of jets and saves you the hassle of having to buy a whole jet all on your own, for %119,000 a year.
- Your dream car - the Porsche 918 Spyder, a plug-in gas-electric hybrid, costing $845,000.
- A sports team or a medium-sized company.
Personally, I'd get a financial planner and set up my family for the forseeable future, meaning generations to come. My oldest son has always had the dream of owning is own golf course - done. All debts paid off. My grandsons are starting to leave home for college in the coming years - trust funds to pay all college expenses with a generous living allowance. And I would buy myself a mnor league baseball team. I would give away funds to local charities - Mercy Flight, Food Bank, Salvation Army, Veteran's Memorial Cemetery, Lollipop Farm (Humane Society of Greater Rochester), are just a few. What would you do if you won - go on a mammoth spendnig spree, buy a few big items but save most of it, not change my present lifestyle much, give most of it to family and charities. Thought for Today"It is not enough to have a good mind. The main thing is to use it well." —-[/i]Rene Descartes (1596-1650), French philosopher
Today's flower: Paeonia or 'Kansas' peony
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Apr 1, 2012 19:12:39 GMT -5
PALM SUNDAY
Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 92nd day of 2012 with 273 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 4:56 p.m., it's rain , temp 37ºF [Feels like 34ºF], winds NE @ 5 mph, humidity 90%, pressure 29.69 in and falling, dew point 37ºF, chance of precipitation 90%.
World News Capsules: 1. Good deeds in Afghanistan interrupt the grim narrative. ....The story of Specialist Dennis Weichel, killed while rescuing an Afghan child, could easily be a counterpoint to the gruesome account of the American soldier charged with 17 counts of murder. 2. In Brazil cyclist's death, a clash between wealth and life on the fringes.
....The death of a cyclist in a car accident involving Thor Batista, the 20-year-old son of Brazil’s richest man, has awakened a debate over wealth, influence and traffic deaths. 3. Islamist group breaks pledge to stay out of race in Egypt
....The Muslim Brotherhood nominated its chief strategist and financier Khairat el-Shater to become Egypt's first president since Hosni Mubarak. 4. In rich Europe, more join ranks of working poor. ....A growing slice of the population is slipping through Europe’s long-vaunted social safety net. 5. Fighting terrorism, French style. ....The differences between the methods of France and the US for fighting terrorism are considerable. 6. Global failures on a Haitian epidemic. ....The world rallied to confront Haiti's cholera, but the mission was muddled by the UN' apparent role in setting off the epidemic and its unwillingness to acknowledge it. 7. Industry in India helps open a door to the world. ....A trade foray into Pakistan is evidence of the foreign policy role of India's private sector, which the government relies on to serve as an intermediary abroad. 8. Iraq casts a pall over CIA effort to fathom Iran. ....Faulty intelligence conclusions about Saddam Hussein's supposed weapons of mass destruction have cast a shadow over current efforts to evaluate Iran's nuclear capabilities. a. Iraq's fugitive vice president travels to Qatar.
....Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi’s office said he was in Qatar on a diplomatic visit, but the news angered officials in Baghdad, who said he was not authorized to leave Iraq. 9. Junta leader to Mali coup vows to keep fighting brief; resotres constitution.
....Heavy weapons fire broke out as Tuareg and Islamist rebels entered Gao, the main city of northeast Mali still under army control, local officials and witnesses said. 9. A wary Mexico sizes up contenders for the presidency. ....Still recovering from decades of single-party rule and facing many challenges, Mexico has scant faith that any of the candidates will confront its problems. 10. Suu Kyi wins parliament seat in historic Myanmar election.
....Many here were putting their faith – and vote – behind Aung San Suu Kyi, the Nobel Peace Prize winner and pro-democracy leader running for a seat in Myanmar’s parliament. 11. Protesters scuffle with forces. ....Thousands of Palestinians protested on Friday against Israeli policies of land seizure and control of Jerusalem, leading to clashes with Israeli troops in which a 20-year-old was killed and scores of others were injured. 12. At meeting, nations move to expand aid for Syrian rebels.
....Offers of money and communications equipment reflected a growing consensus that mediation efforts were failing to halt Syria’s violence and more forceful action was needed. a. Syria won't pull out of rebel centers. ....The US and six Arab countries called for setting a specific deadline for Syria to halt the violence against the opposition. 13. United Arab Emirates shutters US-backed group. ....On the eve of a meeting with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, the UAE announced that it had shut down an organization that promotes democracy.
US News Capsules: 1. New college grads see a job market that's improving.
....More robust campus hiring is just one of several signs that a recovery in the U.S. jobs market is gaining traction with hiring back in a big way on many campuses. 2. Many US cities see warmest March on record.
....In states from Colorado to Florida, at least 41 cities saw their warmest March on record, weather.com reported with a few cities in states as far west as Colorado and Wyoming seeing records but the vast majority were in the central U.S. and the South. Large cities on the list include Atlanta, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Pittsburgh, St. Louis and Washington D.C. 3. Two audio experts on Trayvon 911 calls: Cries for help are not Zimmerman's.
.... The voice heard crying for help on a 911 call just before Trayvon Martin was shot to death was not that of George Zimmerman, according to two forensic voice identification experts, one of whom told MSNBC on Sunday that he believes the evidence is strong enough to use in court. 4. Police are using phone tracking as a routine tool.
....Law enforcement tracking of cellphones is a convenient surveillance tool in many situations, but it is unclear if using such technology without a warrant violates the Constitution. 5. Less visible Occupy movement looks for staying power. ....Occupy needs to find new ways to gain attention or it will likely fade to the edges of the political discourse, supporters and critics said. 6. Brighter skies and a flying car too. ....With North American auto sales up significantly in the first quarter, there will be renewed optimism evident among automakers at this year's New York auto show. 7. Experts recommend single registry to oversee kidney transplant donations. ....Leaders of a conference in Herndon, Va., say that one registry should oversee the complex matching process needed to expand the use of kidney transplant chains and other forms of paired donation. 8. Fed may fine firms not part of foreclosure deeal. ....Federal regulators are poised to crack down on eight financial firms over practices involving sloppy, inaccurate or forged documents. POLITICS: 1. In Wisconsin, Romney nears the tipping point.
....If he wins the Wisconsin primary, Mitt Romney could take firm control of the Republican presidential nominating contest for the first time. a. Romney stays optimistic before Tuesday votes. ....While his rivals remain consistently defiant, they're doing little to hamper Mitt Romney's momentum ahead of nominating contests. 2. Rep. Paul Ryan: 'I really misspoke.' ....House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan said Sunday he misspoke earlier in the week when he accused military officials of not being honest about the Pentagon budget.Tthe Wisconsin congressman said senior military leaders had been misleading when they defended a decrease in Pentagon spending proposals. He argued that the generals were not “giving us their true advice” and accused them of toeing an administration line.
Sport's Headlines : 1. NCAABK: Kansas tops Ohio State 64-62 in tense stretch run. .....The Jayhawks trailed for most of the game, but a late rally and tough defense in the game's final minutes earned them their second appearance in the championship game in five years. a. Wildcats ae winners 69-61 in battle for Kentucky. ....With a dominant performance from freshman Anthony Davis, top-ranked Kentucky defeated in-state rival Louisville to advance to the national title game. b. The fire and the glow. ....Candid and intensely driven, Kim Mulkey, whose Baylor team plays Stanford Sunday, is the only woman to win an N.C.A.A. basketball championship as a player, as an assistant and as a head coach. 1) 40-0 in sight, Baylor turns focus to Stanford. ....No one has done what Baylor is two games from accomplishing: finishing perfect and winning an N.C.A.A.-record 40 games. 2. NBA: Knicks' push for playoffs will co on without Lin. /img] ....Shortly before the Knicks' 91-75 victory over Cleveland, the team announced that Jeremy Lin's knee injury would require surgery, sidelining him for the rest of the regular season. 3. NHL: Regular season supremacy not enough for NY Rangers. ....The Rangers can clinch the Eastern Conference title and the top playoff seed Sunday with a Pittsburgh loss to Philadelphia and a win against the visiting Bruins. a. Long, cold summer for Maple Leafs and Canadens. ....Montreal could be the first Canadian team to finish in last place since 1940, and Toronto will extend its Stanley Cup drought to 48 years.
Thought for Today "Life is short. Live it up." -- Nikita S. Khrushchev (1894-1971), Soviet leader.
Today's flower: Paeonia lactiflora Mons Jules Elie or pink peony.
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Apr 2, 2012 16:24:31 GMT -5
ALCOHOL AWARENESS MONTH Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 93rd day of 2012 with 272 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 3:45 p.m., it's fair , temp 48ºF [Feels like 48ºF], winds NW @ 9 mph, humidity 33%, pressure 29.94 in and falling, dew point 20ºF, chance of precipitation 0%.
World News Capsules: 1. China sees US as competitor and declining power, insider says. .....Wang Jisi, an influential Chinese policy analyst, writes that China believes Washington is trying to undermine its economic and military growth. a. Billionaire linked to toppled Chinese official is said to be under investigation. ....The founder and chairman of the Dalian Shide Group failed to appear as scheduled at the Bo’ao Forum for Asia, an annual gathering of leaders from business, government and academia. 2. In hard liner's surge, new worries for Brotherhood. ....Hazem Salah Abu Ismail's old-school Islamism conflicts with the pragmatic politics of the Muslim Brotherhood, which is fielding its own Egyptian presidential candidate. 3. Ranks of working poor grow in Europe. ....A growing slice of the population is slipping through Europe’s long-vaunted social safety net. 4. Britons protest government eavesdropping plans. ....Reported government plans to give intelligence services the ability to monitor the electronic communications of every person in the country drew fire on Monday. 5. Hungarian president resigns amid plagiarism scandal.
....Pal Schmitt resigned from his largely ceremonial post amid a storm of criticism over what he called “unfounded allegations” of plagiarism in his 1992 doctoral thesis. 6. Israel frees Palestinian detainee after hunger strike of weeks. ....Hana Shalabi, 30, went more than 40 days without eating to protest her administrative detention, a practice of being held without charge or trial. 7. Rebels take Timbuktu in Mali. ....Tuareg rebels overran the ancient desert crossroads of Timbuktu over the weekend, solidifying the rebels’ control of the northern half of the troubled West African nation. 8. /Myanmar opposition appears to sweep vote. ....The Nobel Peace Prize laureate and democracy advocate Daw Aung San Suu Kyi assumed a new role in her country's political transition. She is one of 43 candidates from the party believed to have won a seat in Parliament and spoke of the "beginningg of a new era." 9. Pakistan court orders deportation of Bin Laden's wives. ....A Pakistani court has ordered three wives and two adult daughters of Osama Bin Laden to serve six weeks in prison for illegally entering the country and ordered their deportation after the prison term. 10. Russian plane crash kills 31 people. ....A deadly plane crash in Siberia early on Monday was the latest in a string of accidents that has eroded confidence in Russia’s commitment to air safety. a. A real-life 'towering inferno' in Moscow.
....Firefighters and firefighting helicopters struggled to put out a massive blaze atop an under-construction skyscraper in Moscow. 11. US joins effort to equip and pay rebels in Syria. ....The US and dozens of other countries, meeting in Istanbul, moved closer to direct intervention in the Syrian conflict. a. Syria agrees to cease-fire on April 10, Annan says.
....Syria’s government has promised that its armed forces would stop shooting and withdraw from population centers by early April, Kofi Annan told the United Nations Security Council. 12. Jailed Ukrainian opposition leader is cleared for treatment. ....Yulia V. Tymoshenko can receive medical treatment outside the prison camp where she has been incarcerated since December, a step that may aim to quiet Western criticism of her treatment.
US News Capsules: 1. Public worker pensions find riskier funds fail to pay off. ....Pension funds that have increased expensive investments in private equity, real estate and hedge funds have been outperformed by stocks and bonds in the last five years. 2. Race, tragedy and outrage collide after a shot in Florida.
....The encounter between Trayvon Martin, a black youth who wanted to go to college, and George Zimmerman, a Hispanic man who wanted to be a judge, has polarized the nation. 3. Nobody minds dyeing the egg, but the chicken is another story. .....Farmers and other poultry experts say coloring chicks is harmless, but animal rights activists say it turns live birds into holiday playthings that are quickly discarded 4. To enroll more minority students, colleges work around the courts. ....History shows that when courts or new laws restrict affirmative action, colleges try to find other ways to increase minority admissions. 5. Too many small fish are caught, report says. ....Populations of aquatic life collapsed because of overfishing of sardines and other small fish that are used to feed larger ones, according to a report. 6. After a data breach, Visa removes a service provider. ....Visa removed Global Payments, an Atlanta company that helps the payment giant process transactions for merchants, from its list of "compliant service providers. 7. Talk radio face-off approaches. ....Cumulus Media is giving radio stations new alternatives to Clear Channel, like a show from Mike Huckabee, making for a turbulent time in the radio business. 8. Encyclopedia Britannica's last print edition has a sales boom. ....Encyclopaedia Britannica[/img] will no longer be printed, which has caused a rush to buy the remaining sets in stock. 9. Investors are looking to buy homes by the 1000s. ....With house prices still down, some large investors are creating huge portfolios by buying thousands of homes at deep discounts and then renting them out. 10. Sources: 5 dead in Oakland University shooting. ....A suspect was detained Monday in a shooting attack at a small Oakland Christian university that sources said has left at least five people dead. 11. Justices approve strip searches for an offense. ....The Supreme Court ruled 5-to-4 that people arrested for any offense, however minor, may be forced to strip before being jailed even if no reasonable suspicion of contraband exists. a. Justices' cerebral combativeness on display/ ....While the health law hearings revealed justices’ intellectual side, they also showed their humor and confidence in taking on the most urgent issues of the day. 12. Washington is first state to take on excort sites. ....Even as Washington State’s governor last week signed into law a bill intended to stop child sex trafficking, its supporters wondered how effective it would be. POLITICS: 1. For Santorum, hope that voters see message as pins go flying. ....Rick Santorum’s trips to the bowling alley appear to be part of a clear effort to drive home his working-class credentials. 2. A die-hard conservative, but not on immigrants. ....Mark L. Shurtleff, Utah’s Republican attorney general, opposes abortion and Obama’s health care law, but he championed a law that gives illegal immigrants state guest worker permits in Utah. Today's Headlines of Interest: Thought for Today"Living is a form of not being sure, not knowing what next or how. The moment you know how, you begin to die a little." —-[/I]Agnes de Mille (1905-1993), American dancer-choreographer
Today's flower: Lilium or Commander-in-Chief Asiatic lily
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Deleted
Joined: Apr 29, 2024 5:19:37 GMT -5
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Post by Deleted on Apr 2, 2012 16:36:27 GMT -5
PEG? is that what others call you...I feel like I am almost an intruder in your personal meditations and offerings.
Do you welcome others' input here?
Greek mythology is such a wondrous thing...Mount Olympus, Zeus...ah those where the days.
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mmhmm
Administrator
It's a great pity the right of free speech isn't based on the obligation to say something sensible.
Joined: Dec 25, 2010 18:13:34 GMT -5
Posts: 31,770
Today's Mood: Saddened by Events
Location: Memory Lane
Favorite Drink: Water
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Post by mmhmm on Apr 2, 2012 16:37:59 GMT -5
Knowing peg as I do, Robert, she'll always welcome others' input. Her "daily news" is something I look for and enjoy. I think many of us do. Welcome to the herd!
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Apr 3, 2012 18:47:26 GMT -5
CANCER AWARENESS MOTH Good evening from Tuxy and me This is the 94th day of 2012 with 271 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 7:31 p.m., it's mostly cloudy , temp 51ºF [Feels like 51ºF], winds ENE @ 6 mph, humidity 33%, pressure 29.86 in and falling, dew point 23ºF, chance of precipitation 20%.
World News Capsules: 1. How China steals our secrets. ....Foreign hackers are stealing America's corporate secrets, and Congress is doing nothing to stop them. a. Solar energy inspiration from butterflies. ....Researchers in China have studied the shinglelike structure of butterfly wings, which they say are especially efficient in absorbing sunlight, and have built a prototype based on it. b. China's Prime Minister says big banks should be broken up.
....The unusually bold remarks by Prime Minister Wen Jiabao appeared to be a challenge to others in the Communist Party leadership to speed up reforms of the financial system. c. Chinese insider offers rare glimpse of US-China frictions. ....Wang Jisi, an influential policy analyst, writes that China believes it will supplant the United States as the world’s most powerful country. 2. 'Milestone' as Colombia's FARC - frees captives after over a decade.
....Colombia's FARC rebels freed 10 members of the armed forces held hostage in jungle prison camps for more than a decade, the last of a group the drug-funded group had used as bargaining chips to pressure the government. The four soldiers and six policemen were released to a humanitarian mission led by the International Committee of the Red Cross in what the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia called a gesture of peace. 3. James Murdoch steps down ....James Murdoch steps down as Chairman of British satellite broadcaster BSkyB, which is partly owned by the Murdoch family a. Britons protest proposal to widen surveillance. ....Reported government plans to give intelligence services the ability to monitor the electronic communications of every person in the country drew fire. b. Here come the sons: Will Beatles' kids form own band?
From left: Zak Starkey, Dhani Harrison, James McCartney, Sean Lennon) ....James McCartney has reached out to Sean Lennon, Dhani Harrison and Zak Starkey to create the next generation of The Beatles, the BBC reports. In an interview Monday, the 34-year-old musician, who’s released three EPs on his own, said embracing the legacy of the Fab Four has worked to his advantage so far, thus he wouldn’t be opposed to a reincarnation of the ensemble. 4. As riots boil over, these guards don't budge. ....Protests over Greece's austerity measures have happened yards away from the Presidential Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, complicating the soldiers' ceremonial work. 5. Half of Irish homeowners join boycott of new tax that has symbolized fiscal woes. ....Austerity foes claim a victory as about 50% of Ireland's estimated 1.6 million homeowners fail to pay a new $133 property tax by the deadline. 6. Netanyahu slows eviction of settlers from a house. ....Prime Minister BNetanyahu delayed a scheduled eviction to allow Jewish settlers from a house in the volatile West Bank city of Hebron time to argue their legal case for tenancy. 7. Libyan militias turn to politics, a volatile mix. ....Local brigades claim the mantle of guardians, but many civilians worry that they could bully voters, suppress votes or otherwise dominate elections. 8. Lawmakers recommend changes to Malaysian electoral system. ....The committee was set up last year by Prime Minister Najib Razak following a rally that brought tens of thousands of people into the streets calling for greater transparency and fairness in elections 9. General turned presideent begins a transformation in Myanmar. ....Pres. U Thein Sein of Myanmar said that the weekend’s by-elections were “conducted in a very successful way. 10. Push for the right to die grows in the Netherlands. ....Right to Die-NL has created mobile teams to help patients die at home, and is now calling for legislation to make euthanasia available to anyone over age 70, sick or not. a. Law could hamper drug tourism in the Netherlands. ....The right-wing coalition government is pushing to prohibit the sale of marijuana to nonresidents, but some in the historically drug-tolerant nation fear that the move would alienate tourists. 11. Wamted by US for $10 million: Hafiz Saeed, Pakistan terror chief and mastermind of Mumbai attack.
....The US has offered a $10 million bounty for the founder of the Pakistani militant group blamed for the 2008 attacks in the Indian city of Mumbai that killed 166 people, a move that could complicate U.S.-Pakistan relations at a tense time. 12. Fire kills 17 in Moscow workers' dormitory. ....The building was cited for fire code violations a month ago, highlighting Russia’s problems with enforcing basic safety standards. a. Mayoral elections give Russian opposition a boost. ....Political dark horses and ruling-party defectors have run up a string of electoral victories lately, exposing weaknesses in Vladimir V. Putin’s near monopoly on power. 13. Aa taste of hope in Mogadishu, Somalia.
....Somalia’s capital had been reduced to rubble over 21 years of civil war, but the city is making a remarkable comeback. 14. Swiss seek arrest of 3 German tax officials over stolen banking data. ....A deal for Switzerland to tax and fine secret German accounts appears in jeopardy amid continuing tensions over tax issues and a CD of stolen data German officials bought in 2010. 15. Syria agreess to troop withdrawal, Annan says. ....The rebels say they will wait for the government forces to stop shooting before they agree to the cease-fire brokered by Kofi Annan, a UN-appointed emissary. a. Syrian leader accused of escalating attacks. ....Syria’s political opposition accused President Bashar al-Assad of escalating military assaults on four major urban centers
US News Capsules: 1. Police: California campus shooter targeted female administrator.
....One Goh, the former Oikos University student accused of killing seven people at the college's campus in Oakland, Calif., told authorities he was upset with being expelled and had sought out a female college official who was not present. 2. 'Horrific!': Experimental plane crashes into Florida grocery store. ....A small experimental plane crashed into a supermarket at a Florida shopping center Monday evening, injuring six people as fire shot through the roof and into the store, reports said. 3. 'Tremendous damage' as 3 tornadoes slam Dallas suburbs.
....Live video showed a huge tornado blasting through areas south of the city, throwing 18-wheel trailers like toys as power lines exploded in a shower of sparks. 4. White House and the FDA often at odds. ....Top officials with the Food and Drug Administration contend the agency's decisions should be divorced from politics and based solely on its own assessments of the science. 5. Where housing once boomed, recovery lags. ....The official statistics say that the national economy has been growing for almost three years, but there is scant evidence of renewed prosperity in places like Prince George's County, Md. a. Investors are looking to buy homes by the thousands. ....With house prices still down, some large investors are creating huge portfolios by buying 1000s of homes at deep discounts and then renting them out. 6. Small banks shift charters to avoid US as regulator. ....An increasing number of the nation's savings and loan associations are avoiding some federal oversight by becoming credit unions or switching to a state charter 7. Hosts as as weapons in mornng-show duel. ....Morning TV shows always compete, but usually it's over guests, not hosts. Now contracts are up, change is in the air, and viewers have a front-row seat. 8. Giving women the access code.
....Maria Klawe, president of Harvey Mudd College in California, has helped reverse the vexing trend toward fewer women in computer science, and others are following. 9. Mind games, sometimes a white coat isn't just a white coat. ....What we wear can affect not only what people think of us, but also the way our brains work, a study involving a doctor's coat shows. 10. New estimate raises Civil War death toll.
....Extrapolating from new data, a historian suggests that about 20 percent more died than previously thought. 11. Longevity up in US, but education creates disparity, study says. ....The study used government data to rank each American county by health indicators like obesity and premature death, and considered factors like the presence of fast-food restaurants. 12. Noncitizens sue over US gay marriage ban. ....Five couples challenged the Defense of Marriage Act because their legal marriages do not qualify the immigrant spouse for a green card. POLITICS: 1. Obama hits hard at GOP budget plan, embodies 'radical vision.'
....In what was billed a “big speech” by the White House, Pres. Obama hit hard at the budget put forward by House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, calling the plan, backed by the Republican-controlled House, a “Trojan horse.” 2. Budget bill defeat is lesson in difficulty of compromise. ....If Congress is to defuse a budgetary time bomb, the forces of conciliation will have to become far more organized than the bipartisan opposition.
Thought for Today "I didn't invent the world I write about — it's all true." —-[/i]Graham Greene (1904-1991), British author
Today's flower: Lilium 'Mango' or Mango Asiatic lily
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Apr 4, 2012 13:26:18 GMT -5
Hungarian Liberation Day Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 95 day of 2012 with 270 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 12:29 p.m., it's fair , temp 49ºF [Feels like 49ºF], winds W @ 10 mph, humidity 46%, pressure 29.75 in and falling, dew point 29ºF, chance of precipitation 10%.
World News Capsules: 1. Deal close on night raids, US and Afghan officials say. ....The deal would give Afghan authorities legal oversight of nighttime raids on Afghan homes, while allowing American forces to retain a guiding role. a. Taliban attacks kill 9 Afghan police officers. ....Fourteen officers are also missing after two days of insurgents' attacks, the deadliest of which happened Monday at a police post in Helmand Province. 2. As part of new pact, US Maarines arrive in Australia. ....A group of about 180 Marines arrived on Tuesday night under a deal that will boost the American military’s presence in China’s strategic backyard. 3. In China press, best coverage cash can buy. ....Though banned in China, paying for positive news coverage is so widespread that many publications and broadcasters have rate cards listing prices. 4. French police seize 1o suspected Islamic militants. ....The raids in at least five locations, including Marseille in the south and Roubaix in the north, came 18 days before the first round of voting in the French presidential elections. 5. In a new age of air travel, preferring the old. ....With Berlin Brandenburg Airport set to open, many air travelers say they will miss the convenience of Tegel, an airport designed in an era when vast shopping spaces were not paramount. 6. Impact of Iran sanctions widens. ....Leading oil companies in South Africa and Greece suspended imports of the country’s crude oil, further signs of emergency self-reliance emerging in Iran. 7. Battle between rival Libyan militias kills at least 22. ....Militias from rival towns in western Libya battled each other with tanks and artillery in fierce fighting that killed at least 22 people, local officials said. 8. Malaysian activists plan protest over electoral system. ....The activists said they would stage the protest because a parliamentary committee's recommendations for electoral reform were unlikely to eliminate voting fraud. 9. As Myanmar changes, so does its leader ....Pres. U Thein Sein, a once-loyal apparatchik of a brutal military junta, is chipping away at some of its worst legacies. a. Southeast Asian leaders call for end to Myanmar sanctions. ....Leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations said that the recent by-elections in Myanmar argued in favor of lifting sanctions. 10. Court rejects Palestinians in their bid for a tribunal ....For the Palestinian Authority, which had sought an investigation of an Israeli military offensive, the ruling was a setback to its effort to gain international recognition as a state. 11. Russia accuses group of undermining peace plan in Syria. ....Russia renewed its denunciation of the so-called “Friends of Syria” coalition, a day after rebels said government forces were escalating military assaults. a. Fire kills 17 in Moscow workers' dormitory. ....The building was cited for fire code violations a month ago, highlighting Russia’s problems with enforcing basic safety standards. 12. Somali Olympic committee chief killed in Mogadishu suicide blast.
....The president of Somalia's Olympic committee and the head of the country's soccer federation were among those people killed by a female suicide bomber at Mogadishu's newly reopened national theater. 13. African National Congress acts to silence a critic. ....Julius Malema, the polarizing leader of the party’s youth league, was fighting for his political life after accusing the South African president, Jacob Zuma, of becoming a dictator.
US News Capsules: 1. As Texas cleans up, Southeast braces for twisters.
....As experts assessed reports that up to 18 tornadoes hit the Dallas area, especially in Arlington and Lancaster, the cleanup and rebuilding began for 1000s of residents from the more than 800 homes destroyed or damaged. 2. Report: Oikos University shooting suspect 'can't deal with women.'
....The 43-year-old Korean-American, who had been expelled from Oikos University for "anger management" issues, had been cooperative since being taken into custody but was "not particularly remorseful," Oakland Police Chief Howard Jordan said. 3. Cops pepper spray 30 at Santa Monica College course fees protest. .....Up to 30 people were pepper-sprayed by police after students tried to storm a Santa Monica College trustee board meeting during a public comment period in protest over proposed higher course fees. 4. 'Pink slime' in your meat? Labels to tell you, USDA says.
....As consumers clamor for more transparency about the beef product dubbed “pink slime,” federal agriculture officials have agreed to allow several meat producers to list the stuff on package labels. 5. Detroit, staggering with debt, new struggles with a rescue plan. ....Detroit faces being assigned an emergency manager because of its $12 billion debt, and efforts to find an alternative solution were snarled in legal and political battles. 6. Agency trip to Las Vegas is the talk of Washington. ....Many in Washington are wondering how the General Services Administration could not have known that spending $822,000 on a luxury trip was going to cause an outcry. 7. Jurors told that church put off abuse complaints. ....A victim of alleged sexual abuse by a Roman Catholic priest at a summer camp testified in a Philadelphia court that church officials took more than 10 years to resolve his complaint. 8. Regulators expectd to penalize JPMorgan over Lehman collapse.
....The decision to penalize JPMorgan for actions tied to the collapse of Lehman Brothers is the first federal enforcement case to stem from Lehman's downfall. 9. Yahoo to cut 2,000 jobs. ....The Internet company said it would lay off 2,000 out of 14,000 employees as part of a broader restructuring effort under Scott Thompson, the new chief executive. POLITICS: 1. Romney sweeps Wisconsin, Maryland and D.C. and turns to Obama.
....Romney strengthened his grip on the GOP nomination by virtue of winning the three states, the most competitive of which was in Wisconsin, a state seen as necessary for Rick Santorum, the chief conservative rival to Romney, to retaining viable hopes of winning the nomination. 2. After Wisconsin, writing on wall for GOP contest. ....Unless the extraordinary occurs, Mitt Romney is going to be the Republican presidential nominee. 3. Obama, in talk, calls House GOP budget the work of rightist radicals. ....Pres. Obama said the Republican budget would deepen inequality in the US, part of an indictment of the party that included his likely opponent in the fall, Mitt Romney. 4. Romney says Obama hides his agenda. ....Mitt Romney said that Pres. Obama’s recent remarks call “his candor into serious question." 5. Gay rights bill appears to fail in Anchorage. ....With much of the vote counted, voters in Alaska’s largest city appeared to overwhelmingly reject Proposition 5. 6. Looking ahead, Republicans examine options in health care fight. ....Optimistic about a possible Supreme Court ruling against the law, lawmakers are giving past proposals a second look, with lowering health costs a priority.
Today's Headlines of Interest:
Doctors call for end to 45 common medical tests. Nine medical societies, including the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the American College of Cardiology, representing nearly 375,000 physicians are challenging the widely held perception that more health care is better, releasing lists Wednesday of tests and treatments their members should no longer automatically order. The 45 items listed include most repeat colonoscopies within 10 years of a first such test, early imaging for most back pain, brain scans for patients who fainted but didn't have seizures, and antibiotics for mild- to-moderate sinus distress. Also on the list: heart imaging stress tests for patients without coronary symptoms. And a particularly sobering recommendation calls for cancer doctors to stop treating tumors in end-stage patients who have not responded to multiple therapies and are ineligible for experimental treatments. Dr. Christine Cassel, president of the American Board of Internal Medicine, said the goal is to reduce wasteful spending without harming patients. She suggested some may benefit by avoiding known risks associated with medical tests, such as exposure to radiation. "We're doing this because we think we don't need to ration health care if we get rid of waste." Her group sets standards and oversees board certification for many medical specialties. The recommendations come at a time when American health care is undergoing far-reaching changes. No matter what the Supreme Court decides on President Barack Obama's health overhaul, employers, lawmakers, insurers and many doctors are questioning how the United States spends far more on medical care than any other economically advanced country and still produces mediocre results overall. One recommendation likely to stir controversy, and even revive charges of "death panels," is to not use chemotherapy and other treatments in patients with advanced solid-tumor cancers such as colorectal or lung who are in poor health and did not benefit from previous chemo. Such treatment is widespread but it is unlikely to extend their life or improve its quality. Dr. James Fasules of the American College of Cardiology said the goal is to begin changing attitudes among patients and doctors."We kind of have a general feeling that if you don't get a test, you haven't been cared for well," said Fasules. "That has permeated American culture now." The new advice isn't meant to override a doctor's judgment, Fasules added, but to inform and support decisions. The recommendations will be circulated to consumers and doctors by a coalition calling itself Choosing Wisely, which includes employer groups, unions, AARP and Consumer Reports. Neither the insurance industry nor the federal government was involved in process. The medical groups that participated are: American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology; American Academy of Family Physicians, American College of Cardiology, American College of Physicians, American College of Radiology, American Gastroenterological Association, American Society of Clinical Oncology, American Society of Nephrology, and American Society of Nuclear Cardiology.
Thought for Today "I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." --Maya Angelou (b. 1928), American poet.
Today's flower: Lilium or Loreto Asiatic lily
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Apr 6, 2012 15:34:46 GMT -5
GOOD FRIDAY Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 97th day of 2012 with 268 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 12:52 p.m., it's fair , temp 43ºF [Feels like 36ºF], winds NW @ 15 mph, humidity 45%, pressure 30.11 in and steady, dew point 23ºF, chance of precipitation 0%.
World News Capsules: 1. Karzai orders prosecutor and tribunal in scandal over Kabul bank's losses. .....The Afghan president ordered that hundreds of millions of dollars in outstanding loans by the bank be repaid within two months. 2. Police descend on Bahrain rally for hunger striker. ....Bahraini security forces fired tear gas and water cannons at 1000s of protesters marching in support of a jailed human rights activist whose nearly two-month hunger strike has become a powerful rallying point for the tiny nation's Shiite-led uprising against the Sunni monarchy. 3. "Line of blood": 11,541 red chairs symbolize the victims of the siege of Sarajevo.
.... With a line of 11,541 red chairs, one for each victim of the siege of Sarajevo, Bosnia remembered when war broke out 20 years ago and the West dithered in the face of the worst atrocities in Europe since World War II. 4. China says wanted militants use nearby countries to stage attacks. ....Chinese security officials have issued a wanted list of six suspected members of a militant group that they said is using a number of Asian nations as staging grounds for terror attacks. 5. Will France stomach a leader who won't eat cheese?
....It’s a matter of (spurious) debate if France’s president is a “surrender monkey,” but one thing seems clear: He is no longer cheese-eating. Pres. Sarkozy decided to stop savoring "le fromage" after meals, preferring healthier"light, balanced meals and poultry to red meat," a. Sarkozy and his rivals trade attacks as vote nears. ....With less than three weeks before the first voting round, Pres. Sarkozy and his Socialist rival, François Hollande, raised sharp accusations about one another. 6. From philanthropist to public enemy in Georgia. ....Georgia’s richest man, Bidzina Ivanishvili, announced his opposition to the president in October, and the government’s subsequent revocation of his citizenship was upheld this week. 7. British broadcaster with Murdoch link admits to hacking. ....Great Britain's hacking scandal spilled into television as Sky News, whose parent company is controlled by Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, said a reporter had accessed e-mail.s 8. Italian populist party leader who one backed Berlusconi quits, ending an era. ....Umberto Bossi - who founded the conservative, anti-immigrant Northern League - was famous for his cigars, white tank-tops and salty language. 9. US concerned about Malawi after reported death of president.
....Malawian Pres. Bingu wa Mutharika, once hailed as a positive steward for the southern African country, has died after a heart attack, government officials said. 10. Mali rebels proclaim independent state to north. ....Tuareg rebels who overran much of northern Mali after disaffected soldiers toppled the government in the south declared an independent state called Azawad. 11. Pakistani lawmakers criticize US reward for militant leader. ....During a heated session of Parliament, government and opposition officials rejected the $10 million bounty for a militant leader linked to the 2008 attacks in Mumbai, India. 12. Russia rages after US jails notorioius arms dealer.
....Moscow slammed the 25-year prison sentenced imposed on Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout by a US court, saying repatriating the man known as the “Merchant of Death” would be “one of our top priorities in Russian-American relations.” Bout was caught in an undercover sting in Bangkok in 2008 by U.S. agents posing as Colombian guerrillas seeking weapons and later extradited to New York. a. $30,000 watch vanishes up church leader's sleeve.
....An opulent watch — a source of public embarrassment — disappeared from the wrist of Kirill I, patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church, in a doctored photo. The Breguet watch.s reflection remained on the table. The Russian Orthodox Church Web site later restored it. 13. Loyalty to Syrian president could isolate Hezbollah.
....Though it remains strong, Hezbollah could find itself caught up in a sectarian war between Iran, the region's Shiite power, and Saudi Arabia, a protector of Sunni interests. a. New clashes fuel UN skepticism of promises by Syria.
....The Syrian government said it was following a special envoy's cease-fire plan, but the leader of the United Nations said the conflict was getting worse. 14. Tunisia jails 2 for posting cartoons on Facebook. ....The two Tunisian men were sentenced to seven years in prison for posting cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad on Facebook, the Justice Ministry said. 15. "Jesus...do not take me yet," weeps cancer-stricken Chavez.
....Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez wept and asked God to spare his life during a pre-Easter Mass after returning from his latest session of cancer treatment in Cuba. a. Ramp? Mall? Ship? No, a Titan's new tomb.
....The 17-story-tall white-tiled mausoleum being built in Caracas to hold the remains of Simón Bolívar looks to many people here like, among other things, the world’s biggest skateboard ramp.
US News Capsules: 1. US hiring rate slows, raising worries about recovery.
....The nation's unemployment rate dipped slightly in March, but the economy's job-creating engine slowed, raising concerns about the strength of the recovery. a. Jobs report tempers hopes of accelerating US recovery.
....The United States economy added a disappointing 120,000 jobs in March, the Labor Department reported on Friday, about half the gains posted in each of the preceding three months 2. New treatments to save a pet, but questions about the cost. ....A long list of diseases that were once terminal can now be treated, but people must consider: Save a life or extend it? At what quality? At what price? 3. US Navy jet crashes into Virginia neighborhood; homes ablaze.
....Emergency crews were searching for victims among the wreckage at a cluster of apartments in Virginia Beach, Va., after a Navy F/A-18 jet crashed into the complex, setting a number of buildings on fire,. 4. Catholic fund cuts off aid over groups' affiliations. ....The Catholic Campaign for Human Development is under pressure from conservative Catholics to ensure that it is not helping organizations that run afoul of church positions. 5. For Detroit, a path to recovery under state oversight. ....Detroit, the capital of America's auto industry and once its fourth-largest city, just became the most striking test case for a key question: Can a city that has fallen so far be saved? 6. Microsoft is writing checks to fill out its app store. ....In an effort to challenge the dominance of Apple and Google, Microsoft has increased incentives for developers to create brand-name apps for its Windows Phone app store. 7. For two food giants, defining fresh fruit is not cut and dried. ....Fresh Del Monte and Del Monte Foods are in a legal struggle over whether some fruit sold in refrigerated plastic containers is fresh or processed. 8. Spring in the air and on the racks, helps retailers. ....A range of retailers said their sales last month were better than expected, particularly in the trendy apparel sector, suggesting that shoppers are snapping up spring fashions. 9. ART" You can almost hear him sigh.
....A self-portrait by Rembrandt, never before exhibited in this country, is on view at the Metropolitan Museum for the next several weeks. POLITICS: 1. Santorum's daugher Bella is taken to hospital.
....Rick Santorum's daughter, Bella, afflicted with a chromosomal disorder, was taken to the hospital for the second time during this campaign. Santorum is home in Virginia for the Easter holiday. 2. Republican committee makes big turnaound on fund-raising . ....Once teetering on the edge of bankruptcy, the Republican National Committee has accumulated large cash reserves that could give Mitt Romney a critical boost. 3. On jobs, Obama and Romney argue over fullness of the glass. ....Pres. Obama emphasized the last three months of job creation while Mitt Romney argued that Mr. Obama has been a failed economic steward. 4. Fighting to repeal an execution law they once championed .
....Two men behind Proposition 7, a tough death penalty initiative passed in 1978, now see it as one of the biggest mistakes they ever made. 5. Obama signs bill to promote start-up nvestments. ....Pres. Obama was eager to highlight his administration’s efforts to revive the job market on the eve of another politically significant employment report. 6. Opinion: Appeals Court insults Obama.
....Laurence H. Tribe says it is appeals court Judge Jerry Smith, not Pres. Obama, who overstepped when it comes to the health care law.
Thought for Today "If you don't know where you are going, any road will get you there." ..Lewis Carroll (1832-1898), English logician, mathematician and novelist.
Today's flower: Dahlia or 'Momentum' Dahlia
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Don Perignon
Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2, 2011 18:46:42 GMT -5
Posts: 2,024
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Post by Don Perignon on Apr 6, 2012 17:45:22 GMT -5
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Apr 7, 2012 13:14:23 GMT -5
PASSOVER Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 98th day of 2012 with 267 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 1:39 p.m., it's fair , temp 50ºF [Feels like 50ºF], winds NW @ 20 mph, humidity 22%, pressure 30.17 in and falling, dew point 12ºF, chance of precipitation 0%.
World News Capsules: 1. A populist's downfall exposes ideoloical divisions in China's ruling party. ....The ouster of Bo Xilai, the party chief in Chongqing, points to possibly the most serious division in the party elite since the leadership upheavals during the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. 2. Mubarak ally enters Egypt's presidential race, setting up a contest with Islamists. ....Omar Suleiman, a former deputy of the ousted Pres. Mubarak, announced his presidential candidacy, shaking up an already heated race.. 3. France serial killer fears grow after 4 shootings.
....Investigators in France are hunting for a suspected serial killer after four fatal shootings with the same weapon in a Paris suburb in the past five months. 4. Storm continues after German writer's poem aginst Israel. ....The controversy over a poem by Günter Grass showed no signs of subsiding, even after he said that he meant to criticize the government and not Israel as a whole. 5. Greek statistician under scutiny for budget estimates before euro crisis. ....Andreas Georgiou, who was recruited in 2010 to help get Greece’s famously unreliable public accounting in order, has become the target of a criminal investigation. 6. As nuclear talks near, Iran softens criticism of Turkey. ....A veiled apology was offered after the Turkish prime minister, a crucial mediator, chastised Iran’s leaders for seeking to move talks from Turkey to Iraq or Syria. 7. For rebels in Mali, odds of establishing a nation are slim.
....Rebel fighters in the ancient crossroads of Timbuktu, Mali, announced the birth of a country called Azawad. But the declaration is unlikely to be embraced by anyone. 8. Avalanche buries scores of Pakistani soliders. ....An avalanche buried more than 100 Pakistani soldiers near the Siachen glacier on the border with India, officials said. Hectic efforts were being made to dig out the troops with other soldiers, sniffer dogs and helicopters all involved in the search. 9. In Spain, women nslaved by a boom in brothel tourism.
....While the rest of Spain's economy struggles, prostitution - almost all of it involving the ruthless trafficking of foreign women - is exploding into public view in small towns and big cities. . 10. Tunisia after the revolution.
....Yes, there are magnificent Roman ruins and lovely seaside villages, but a visit to this newly healing country also offers a chance to witness a pivotal moment in history 11. Turkey raises alarm to UN over worsening violence in Syria. ....Turkey’s foreign minister reported increased Syrian military attacks near the border and a relentless influx of refugees from Syria.
US News Capsules: 1. Kansan claims $218.6 million Mega Millions jackpot.
....The holder of one of three winning tickets in last week's record $656 million Mega Millions drawing came forward Friday to claim a share and chooses to remain anonymous. 2. California college postpones plan to charge much more for some popular courses. ....Santa Monica College met with vigorous student objections, and some people at a recent protest were hurt by pepper spray from the campus police. 3, Mixed reviews on program fo rimmigrants with records. ....An effort to identify illegal immigrants who committed crimes led to confusion among authorities before it started to yield results, according to two reports from the inspector general. 4. Pressed from all sides, Toys 'R' Us fights to reinvent itself.
....The last of the big toy stores struggles to revamp its business as management defects, sales decline, all the while debt and competition mount. 5. Troubling flaws in a heart device shake implant makers. ....A problem with wires in a heart defibrillator is the industry's third highly visible safety episode in seven years, inviting discussion of a greater role for the F.D.A. 6. Architecture's ugly ducklings may not get time to be swans.
....A Brutalist building faces demolition in Goshen, N.Y., raising questions about the future of unfashionably Modern midcentury structures. 7. A Taos field evokes the extraordinary.
....A field outside Taos, with Taos Mountain in the background. The earth here has been tended for at least a thousand years, and the setting may have inspired notable 20th-century art. 8. Texan teen set to be first US graduate of premier Russian ballet school.
....Joy Womack keeps an Internet blog and chats with her family on Skype, devours books on Kindle, listens to music and stresses about end-of-year exams. But this is where the similarities end. By the end of May she will become the first American to graduate from the Bolshoi Ballet Academy, arguably the most enviable and demanding choreography school in the world. 9. California nuclear plant shut indeinitely.
....A large Southern California nuclear plant is out of commission indefinitely, and will remain so until there is an understanding of what caused problems at two of its generators and an effective plan to address the issues, the nation's top nuclear regulator said. 10. 100 years later, Titanic's allure still strong[/u]. ....The Titanic Memorial Cruise will follow the route the Titanic took, and is scheduled to be in the exact spot at the exact time the Titanic struck an iceberg close to midnight on April 14, 1912, sending it to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean a little less than three hours later. More than 1,500 people lost their lives, and about 700 -- mostly women and children -- survived. POLITICS: 1. Obama embraces national security as campaign issue. ....Pres. Obama is preparing to emphasize an issue that has long been the domain of the Republican Party. 2. Starting the day, and ending it, at Romney's side. ....Garrett Jackson is Mitt Romney's "body man," seeing to his every need and helping to keep him on time. 3. Alabama may revise new policies on migrants. ....Some of the more controversial sections of the law may be altered or eliminated. 4. Democrats ready to pressure GOP on 'Buffett Rule.' ....Pres.t Obama and Senate Democrats will kick off a coordinated push for a requirement that the rich pay at least 30% of their income in taxes. Thought for Today"Each of us is meant to have a character all our own, to be what no other can exactly be, and do what no other can exactly do." --[/i]William Ellery Channing (1780-1842), Unitarian clergyman.
Today's flower: Veronica spicata 'Rotfuchs' syn. Red Fox or Red fox veronica
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Apr 8, 2012 15:15:48 GMT -5
EASTER Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 99th day of 2012 with 266 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 4:09 p.m., it's fair , temp 61ºF [Feels like 61ºF], winds W @ 16 mph, humidity 19%, pressure 29.80 in and falling, dew point 18ºF, chance of precipitation 0%.
World News Capsules: 1. Christians mark Easter Sunday at ancient site.
....1000s of Christians gathered in Jerusalem for Easter Sunday to commemorate Jesus Christ's resurrection, crowding into one of Christianity's holiest churches, worshipping, singing and praying. Catholics and Protestants took in turns to hold ceremonies within the ancient Church of the Holy Sepulcher, built on the site where many Christians believe Jesus was crucified and buried. a. Pope calls for peace in Syria.
....Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Mass in sun-drenched, flower-adorned St. Peter's Square, before tens of thousands of people. He urged the Syrian regime to heed international calls to end bloodshed and commit to dialogue and prayed for peace in coup-struck Mali. b. Worshippers hold candles during an Easter Mass in a church in Lahore, Pakistan, on Saturday
c. A Christian devotee re-enacts Jesus' path to his crucifixion during a performance in Seoul, South Korea, on Sunday.
d. Fishermen dressed as Roman soldiers collapse as they re-enact a scene from the Bible as part of the Easter tradition at a church in Sumartin, Croatia, on Saturday.
2. Afghanistan gets veto power over NATO night raids.
....Afghanistan and NATO reached a deal to curb night raids on Afghan homes, giving Kabul a veto over the operations despised by most local people and clearing the way for a wider pact securing a US presence. 3. At the end of the Earth, seeking clues to the universe.
....High in the Chilean desert, scientists have installed one of the world's largest ground-based astronomical projects to look for clues to the origins of the universe. 4. US alert as China's cash buys inroads in Caribbean. ....A brand new $35 million stadium opened in the Bahamas a few weeks ago, a gift from the Chinese government. 'They are buying loyalty and taking up the vacuum left by the United States, Canada and other countries,' former diplomat says. a. China said to detain returning Tibetan pilgrims. ....The detainees are being interrogated and ordered to denounce the Dalai Lama, according to groups who have conducted interviews with family members. 5. Tuna again? In fault-finding Britain, it's a cause for divorce ....Excessive servings of tuna casserole is just one example of marital distress from the divorce dockets of Britain, which does not have no-fault divorce. 6. India and Pakistan leaders meet and look to improve ties . ....India’s prime minister, the host, said he would visit Pakistan, a trip that many analysts regard as instrumental to any major diplomatic breakthroughs between the countries. 7. US defines opening move in new talks with Iran.
....The Obama administration and its European allies plan to open new negotiations with Iran by demanding the immediate closing and ultimate dismantling of a recently completed nuclear facility deep under a mountain. 8. A friendship dating to 1976 resonates in 2012. ....The friendship between Mitt Romney and Benjamin Netanyahu, little known to outsiders, is now rich with political intrigue/ 9. In mourning, Malawi swears in a new president. ....After Pres. Bingu wa Mutharika’s death was announced, his vice president, Joyce Banda, was sworn in as his successor. 10. Malaysian expatriates seek oversees voting rights. ....Current law allows only some of the 700,000 Malaysians living overseas to cast absentee ballots, leaving others feeling disenfranchised. 11. Junta in Mali to step down. ....The agreement by the coup leaders to yield power should free Mali to focus on its other big problem: a rebellion in the north. 12. Inside North Korea: Closely watched launch poses risks. ....North Korea will launch what is being described as a small observation satellite within days. A successful mission could raise Pyongyang's status, but the quest is - what would failure do? 13- Syria demands guarantees before a troop pullback. ....The new conditions by the Syrian government cast new doubt on a truce that was scheduled to begin this week.
US News Capsules: 1. 2 arrested in connection with Tulsa shooting spree.
....Cops investigate whether deadly Good Friday shootings in predominantly black area were racially motivated. After 24-hour manhunt, police arrested white men charged with killing three and wounding two others. 2. In Chicago, the boys (and girls) of winter. ....Hockey is popular among adults in Chicago, where new students in their middle years hold so many games that some have to play past midnight. 3. Packing up, moving on and selling the town, ....Buford, Wyo., which has billed itself as the nation's smallest town, was auctioned off by its sole resident. 4. Welfare limits left poor adrift as recession hit.
....In Arizona and other states, some recipients of the Clinton-era Temporary Assistance for Needy Families have taken desperate measures to make ends meet. a. Rurak dustruct us stryggkubg ti naje unorivenebts, ....The 570-student Premont Independent School District in the South Texas district has made drastic moves to improve its finances — including cutting high school sports. 5. New rules seek to prevent invasive stowaways. ....A federal rule will require oceangoing freighters entering American waters to install onboard treatment systems to filter and disinfect their ballast water. 6. Spam invades a last refuge, the cellphone. ....Cellphone customers received roughly 4.5 billion spam texts last year, twice as many as in 2009, and remedies to the growing menace are few. a. To stop cellphone cramming, don't let it start. ....Cramming — the act of tacking on an unrequested service fee to a phone bill. Why can’t cellphone carriers do more to thwart it? 7. In executive pay, a rich game of thrones.
(Lawrence Ellison of Oracle, Ronald Johnson of J. C. Penney and Philippe Dauman of Viacom) ....Although the growth in C.E.O. compensation slowed last year, the pay numbers are still eye-popping POLITICS: 1. Sen. Grassley calls the president 'stupid.' ....Iowa's senior senator and prolific Tweeter, Republican Chuck Grassley, sent a harshly worded message Saturday that intentionally slighted the president. Aides say Grassley personally Tweeted: "Constituents askd why i am not outraged at PresO attack on supreme court independence. Bcause Am ppl r not stupid as this x prof of con law."
Thought for Today "The very least you can do in your life is to figure out what you hope for. And the most you can do is live inside that hope." --Barbara Kingsolver/u] (b. 1955), author & activist.
Today's flower: Thalictrum aquilegifolium or cloud meadow rue
www.site blocked due to malware warnings/d/easter/easter_041.jpg[/img] [/i][/size][/color]
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Apr 9, 2012 16:59:25 GMT -5
ASTRONAUT DAY Good evening from Tuxy and me This is the 100th day of 2012 with 265 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 5:29 p.m., it's mostly cloudy , temp 54ºF [Feels like 54ºF], winds W @ 21 mph, humidity 28%, pressure 29.65 in and falling, dew point 21ºF, chance of precipitation 20%.
World News Capsules: 1. US transfers control of night raids to Afghanistan/
....An agreement on raids that are deeply unpopular in Afghanistan would give legal oversight to Afghan forces, putting American troops in a supporting role. 2. Food prices push rate of inflatin up in China. ....Unlike in Europe and the US, where inflation is subdued, China and other emerging economies have seen that prices have been pushed up by robust growth and rising costs. 3. Egyptian presidential candidate carries banner of the old order. ....Omar Suleiman, former Pres. Mubarak's intelligence chief and vice president, filed to run for president in Egypt, but his entry is unlikely to shake up the race. 4. Indian and Pakistani leaders excourage ties in a rare visit. ....India's prime minister, the host, said he would visit Pakistan, a trip that many analysts regard as instrumental to any major diplomatic breakthroughs between the countries. 5. Iran sends mixed signals ahead of nuclear talks.
....A senior official in Tehran was reported to hint at a modest compromise ahead of planned nuclear talks, while another official rejected preconditions for the discussions. 6. Israel bars German Nobel Laureate Grass over poem. ....Israel’s interior minister said that Günter Grass, a well-known German author, was not welcome in the country because of his controversial poem about the region’s nuclear crisis. 7. After suicide, new focus on Pakistain's acid attacks. ....Ten years after a vengeful man doused her face in acid, Fakhra Younas jumped to her death in Rome. 8. In Russia, charges are dropped in jail death. ....Investigators ruled that the statute of limitations had run out in the case of a physician charged with negligence after a lawyer under her care died in custody in 2009. 9. South Korea suspects that North may test nuclear device as well as rocket.
....A spokesman for the Seoul government said satellite images of a growing pile of earth outside a tunnel might signal plans for an underground blast. 10. Police clash with anti-government protesters in Central Tunis. ....Police clashed with 1000s of anti-government protesters in Habib Bourguiba Ave. in Tunis, defying a ban on demonstrations in the area — a focal point of the revolt that ousted Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali more than a year ago. 11. Turkey says Syria killed refugees on its side of border. ....Prospects for a peaceful solution to Syria’s conflict appeared to recede further as Turkish officials accused the Syrian military of shooting at refugees inside Turkey for the first time.
US News Capsules: 1. Federal funds to train the jobless are drying up. .....Money for the primary training program for dislocated workers is 18% lower than it was in 2006, even though there are six million more people looking for work now. 2. Tightening the lid on pain prescriptions. ....Experts say that doctors, despite the dangers, often keep patients on high-strength painkillers known as opioids for years without properly checking to see if their conditions improve. 3. Protecting face-to-face protest. ....Security is no excuse for disregarding the right to present petitions. 4. At Texas schools, making do on a shoestring.
....Budget cuts have increased class sizes, reduced services and supplies and thinned the ranks of teachers. 5. Comedy timing is bad as news and film collide. ....Twentieth Century Fox is changing its marketing strategy for the film Neighborhood Watch in the wake of the killing of a teenager by a community watch participant. 6. TV: Supremacy in jeopardy for "Today".
[/img]...."Good Morning America" is coming up fast in the ratings behind the consistently top-rated "Today" show. 7. Apps take positions in the Topps baseball lineup. ....The Topps Company, the leading baseball card manufacturer, is trying to breathe digital life into a once-cherished hobby with apps aimed at a techcentric youth market. 8. Grand jury won't be convened in Flria teenager's killing. ....State Attorney Angela Corey, who is investigating the shooting of the unarmed 17-year-old, said her decision “should not be considered a factor in the final determination of the case." 9. Bail set at $9.1 million for suspects in Tulsa killing spree, ....Alvin Watts, 32, and Jacob C. England, 19, were facing three counts of first-degree murder and two counts of shooting with the intent to kill. POLITICS: 1. 'Super PAC,' eyeing general election, aims blitz at Ovama
. ....Amid a growing perception that Mitt Romney will be the party’s nominee, the biggest of the Republican “super PACs” is set to begin its first major anti-Obama advertising campaign. 2. NRA expands its role from fight for gun rights to conservtive causes. ....This week, Coca-Cola and Kraft announced they are pulling their corporate memberships from the American Legislative Executive Council (ALEC), a conservative group that was behind the spread of "stand your ground" laws like the one highlighted in Florida by the Trayvon Martin case. The National Rifle Association worked with ALEC to spread similar laws that are on the books in at least 25 states. Less well known is that the NRA has also helped ALEC spread other conservative laws that have nothing to do with gun rights. Thought for Today"The main goal of the future is to stop violence. The world is addicted to it." --[/i]Bill Cosby (b. 1937), comedian, actor, producer & writer.
Today's flower: Lavandula angustifolia 'Rosea or pink lavender
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Apr 10, 2012 15:16:04 GMT -5
Happy Golfers or Siblings Day Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 101st day of 2012 with 264 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 1:52 p.m., it's fair , temp 47ºF [Feels like 47ºF], winds W @ 9 mph, humidity 42%, pressure 29.67 in and steady, dew point 25ºF, chance of precipitation 10%.
World News Capsules: 1. Multiple bombings strike Aghanistan. ....Suicide bombers struck in busy areas of Herat and Helmand, killing as many 18 people, according to local police officials. 2. Killing of Bangladeshi labor organizer signals an escalation in violence. ....Aminul Islam, who was found murdered outside Dhaka last week, was a leader who had fought against low wages in the country’s garment industry. a. Success in a land known for disasters. ....When it comes to the position of women, Bangladesh has made progress that would be unthinkable in many other Muslim societies. 3. Murder at center of Chinese scandl that tarred official. ....Bo Xilai, a Communist Party official, was stripped of his most powerful titles, and his wife was held in connection with the suspected murder of a British businessman. a. Rights advocate given prison term in China. ....A Beijing court sentenced Ni Yulan and her husband on charges of creating a disturbance, an advocacy group said. 4. In French vote, sound and fury from the left. ....Jean-Luc Mélenchon draws large, passionate crowds, and with a field of 10, candidates of both the far right and left gain clout. 5. Hook-handed radical Muslim Abu Hamza can be sent to US with 4 others from Britain, court rules.
....A radical Muslim preacher can be lawfully extradited from Britain to the US to face charges that he helped set up an al-Qaida terrorist training camp in Oregon, a court in Europe ruled. a. A fragile tourist attraction on the ocean floor.
....The US and the International Maritime Organization are drawing up recommendations for the operation of the mini-submarines that ferry visitors to the Titanic. 6. Despite warning, old handouts die hard for Greek politicians facing voters soon. ....With elections looming, lawmakers are scrambling to push through costly amendments to bills intended to meet the demands of foreign creditors. 7. [u[Tsunami projections offer bleak fate for many Japanese towns/u]. ....An updated hazard map detailing the damage that could be unleashed by another quake of a similar magnitude has been met with alarm across the country. 8. Lush walls rise to fight a blanket of pollution/
....Eco-sculptures are the latest indication that Mexico City has become a leader in environmental efforts for the developing world. 9. North Korea: Our rocket is ready to launch. ....Space officials in North Korea told NBC Tuesday that all assembly and preparations for its new satellite and rocket have been completed, saying it will be launched sometime between Thursday and Monday. 10. In South Korea scandal, echoes of Watergate. ....The arrest of several presidential aides in a case involving accusations of illegal surveillance of citizens has given the opposition an opening ahead of parliamentary elections. 11. Sudans' dispute leaves southerners stranded at airport . ....Hundreds of South Sudanese were stranded at the Khartoum airport after Sudan denied them permission to board, escalating tension between the two countries. 12. Syrian troops fire across Turkish border in clsh near refugee camp. ....The shooting, which killed 2 refugees and injured at least 23 people, including a Turkish officer inside a border camp, darkened prospects for a cease-fire. 9. Tunisia cracks down again on protesers defying a ban. ....In Tunisia and other countries that toppled governments in the Arab Spring, new regimes are struggling to impose order on the chaos left behind.
US News Capsules: 1. 7th graders save bus as driver passes out.
....When a school bus driver in Milton, Wash. lost consciousness on the way to school Monday morning, two seventh-grade boys jumped to action, Footage from the bus’s surveillance camera shows the driver suddenly seizing and a student started pushing on his chest to resuscitate him. From the back of the bus, Jeremy Wuitschick ran down the aisle. The 13-year-old later told KING that he has some driving experience because his mother allows him to drive down the driveway of their home. 2. Prosecutor in Martin case will alone determine its merits.
....Angela B. Corey, who was appointed special prosecutor in the killing of Trayvon Martin, must alone determine whether to charge the man who shot the unarmed teenager. 3. School workers split Maryland Mega Millions jackpot.
....Maryland Lottery officials announced that the record-breaking Mega Millions winning ticket was actually purchased by three people, all of whom have chosen to remain anonymous. The three friends -- a woman in her 20s, a woman in her 50s and a man in his 40s -- work in Maryland’s public education system. 4. A weight loss surgery sends some to Canada. ....Americans are heading north of the border for a weight-loss procedure not available here: the gastric balloon 5. Clicker shock: Cable TV bills rising by average 6% a year. ....Study finds that average monthly rate for pay TV has hit $86 a month while household income has hardly budged. 6. Family finds 1917 stock certificate, says Coke owes it $130 million. ....The family of Tony Marohn in California is in a legal battle with Coca-Cola, saying a stock certificate he bought at an estate sale in 2008 is worth $130 million in stock of the soft-drink maker, Reuters reported. The certificate, issued in 1917, for stock in the long-defunct Palmer Union Oil Co., should translate into 1.8 million shares of Coke, the family contends. The relationship of Coke to Palmer Union is murky at best, according to Coke documents. It appears Palmer Union merged with a company that then merged with Coke, though the soft drink maker said in a court filing "to the best of the company's knowledge shares of Palmer Union Oil were never convertible for shares of The Coca-Cola Company." 7. 2 Tulsa shooting suspects confess, police say. ....Alvin L. Watts, 32, and Jacob C. England, 19, are accused of killing three black people and wounding two others in a shooting spree that terrified the Oklahoma city over the Easter weekend. 8. Food stamps helped reduce poverty rate, study finds. ....A study by the Agriculture Department found that food stamps, one of the country's largest social safety net programs, reduced the poverty rate substantially during the recession. 9. Microsolft's AOL deal intensifies patent wars. ....The lofty price Microsoft paid AOL for 800 patents - $1.3 million each - reflects the crucial role patents are playing in the business and legal strategies of technology companies. POLITICS: 1. A lie races across Twitter before the truth can boot up. ....An unfounded blog report claiming that Gov. Nikki R. Haley was about to be indicted rocketed into national circulation, the latest lesson in the perils of the instantaneous news culture. 2. Raising the floor on pay.
....Dan Cantor, of the New York State Working Families Party, has called for a living wage for all. The federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour, or $15,080 a year for a person working full time at a minimum wage job, leading some to call for increasing it. 3. Obama to make case for 'Buffett Rule.' ....In a string of visits to Florida this week, the president will push his proposal to ensure the wealthiest Americans pay at least 30% of their income in federal taxes. 4. Santorum suspends run for president.
....The decision abruptly ends Rick Santorum’s quest for the Republican presidential nomination after weeks in which he has struggled to compete with Mitt Romney’s well-financed campaign apparatus. 5. Some explaining to do for Republican leader. ....It came as a shock when House Republicans learned that a PAC affiliated with Rep. Eric Cantor of Virginia had donated $25,000 to a group devoted to taking out incumbents. 6. A shift in strategy in Pennsylvania for Romney. ....The Romney campaign removed ads critical of Rick Santorum after Mr. Santorum’s disabled daughter, Bella, was hospitalized.
Today's Headlines of Interest:
More police officers being killed despite drop in violent crime.
According to statistics compiled by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 72 officers were killed by perpetrators in 2011, a 25% increase from the previous year and a 75% increase from 2008. The 2011 deaths were the first time that more officers were killed by suspects than car accidents, according to data compiled by the International Association of Chiefs of Police. The number was the highest in nearly two decades, excluding those who died in the Sept. 11 attacks in 2001 and the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995. While the F.B.I. and other law enforcement officials cannot fully explain the reasons for the rise in officer homicides, they are clear about the devastating consequences. “In this law enforcement job, when you pin this badge on and go out on calls, when you leave home, you ain’t got a promise that you will come back,” said Sheriff Ray Foster of Buchanan County, Va. Two of his deputies were killed in March 2011 and two wounded — one of them paralyzed — by a man with a high-powered rifle. “That was 80% of my day shift,” he said. The F.B.I., which has tracked officer deaths since 1937, paid for a study conducted by John Jay College that found that in many cases the officers were trying to arrest or stop a suspect who had previously been arrested for a violent crime. That prompted the F.B.I. to change what information it will provide to local police departments, the officials said. Starting this year, when police officers stop a car and call its license plate into the F.B.I.’s database, they will be told whether the owner of the vehicle has a violent history. Through the first three months of this year, the number of police fatalities has dropped, though it is unclear why. Some argue that the rise in violence is linked to the tough economy. With less money, some states are releasing prisoners earlier; police departments, after years of staffing increases, have been forced to make cutbacks. The police chief in Camden, N.J., J. Scott Thomson, whose force of 400 was cut by nearly half last year because of financing issues, said that having fewer officers on the street “makes it that much more difficult to create an environment in which criminals do not feel as emboldened to assault another person, let alone a law enforcement officer.” As part of the F.B.I.’s efforts to prevent officer deaths, the bureau trains thousands of officers each year, highlighting shootings like the one in Chattanooga to teach officers about situations in which they are most vulnerable. Those situations are typically pursuits, traffic stops and arrests, said Michelle S. Klimt, a top F.B.I. official at its Criminal Justice Information Services Center in Clarksburg, W.Va., who oversees officer training. “Every stop can be potentially fatal, so we are trying to make sure the officers are ready and prepared every single day they go out,” Ms. Klimt said. “We try and teach that every day you go out, you are going to be encountered with deadly force by someone trying to kill you.”
Thought for Today "They say women talk too much. If you have worked in Congress you know that the filibuster was invented by men." --Claire Booth Luce (1903-1987), politician, diplomat and playwright.
Today's flower: Clematis or wildfire clematis
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Apr 30, 2012 14:00:09 GMT -5
Hairstylist or Oatmeal Cookie Day Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 121st day of 2012 with 244 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 2:48 p.m., it's mostly cloudy , temp 57ºF [Feels like 58ºF], winds ESE @ 9 mph, humidity 30%, pressure 30.15 in and falling, dew point 26ºF, chance of precipitation 45%.
Today in History: 1789--George Washington took office in New York as the first president of the United States. 1803--the US purchased the Louisiana Territory from France for 60 million francs, the equivalent of about $15 million. 1812--Louisiana (formerly the Territory of Orleans) became the 18th state of the Union. 1900--engineer John Luther "Casey" Jones of the Illinois Central Railroad died in a train wreck near Vaughan, Miss., after staying at the controls in a successful effort to save the passengers. 1911--a fire broke out in Bangor, Me, destroying much of the downtown area before it was brought under control the next morning; two deaths were blamed on the blaze. 1912--Universal Studios had its beginnings as papers were filed and recorded in New York State. 1926--Actress Cloris Leachman turned 86 today. 1932--Willie Nelson, country singer, is 79 today. 1939--the New York World's Fair officially opened with an address by Pres. Roosevelt. 1945--as Russian troops approached his Berlin bunker, Adolf Hitler committed suicide along with his wife of one day, Eva Braun. 1958--the American Association of Retired Persons (later simply AARP) was founded in Washington, D.C. 1968--New York City police forcibly removed student demonstrators occupying five buildings at Columbia University. 1973--Pres. Nixon announced the resignations of top aides H.R. Haldeman and John Ehrlichman, along with Attorney General Richard G. Kleindienst and White House counsel John Dean. 1980--Queen Juliana of the Netherlands abdicated and was succeeded by her daughter, Princess Beatrix. 1997--ABC-TV aired the "coming out" episode of the situation comedy Ellen in which the title character, played by Ellen DeGeneres, acknowledged her homosexuality. 2002--.Benevolence International Foundation, an Islamic charity based in suburban Chicago, and its director were charged with perjury; later pleaded guilty to racketeering, admitting he'd defrauded donors by diverting some of the money to Islamic military groups in Bosnia and Chechnya. 2007--a British judge sentenced five al-Qaida-linked men, all British citizens, to life in prison for plotting to attack London targets, including a nightclub, power plants and shopping mall with bombs. 2007--an Israeli government probe faulted Prime Minister Ehud Olmert for what it called "very severe failures" in Israel's war with Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. 2011--in Moscow, Japan's Miki Ando defeated Olympic champion Kim Yu-na of South Korea at the world figure skating championships originally scheduled for Japan, which had been devastated by an earthquake and tsunami.
World News Capsules: 1. Bahrain court orders retrial for jailed activists.
....A political activist who has been on a hunger strike for nearly three months and 20 others convicted of protesting the ruling monarchy will remain in prison pending new trials. 2. In crisis over dissident, US sends official to Beijing.
....Days before scheduled talks between the US and China, the Obama administration sought to contain the matter of an escaped blind activist who is said to be in the US embassy. 3. In vast jungle, US troops aid in search for Kony.
....A hundred of America's elite Special Operations troops are helping African forces find a wig-wearing, gibberish-speaking rebel commander named Joseph Kony. 4. In Great Britain, scandal and scrutiny hem in Murdoch's empire. ....The phone-hacking scandal is taking a toll on Rupert Murdoch’s broader holdings, prompting worry at News Corporation that years of business dealings could draw new attention. 5. Experts believe Iran conflict is less likely. ....With the revival of talks - which went unexpectedly well - and domestic differences arising in Israel, the odds of imminent conflict have decreased, experts and American officials say. 6. Former Israeli premier assails Netanyahu on Iran. ....In a wide-ranging critique of Benjamin Netanyahu that drew boos at a New York conference, Ehud Olmert urged him not to rush into military action against Iran. 7. In Italy, fake euros that even the authorities admire. ....Counterfeiting is a cottage industry in the Campania region, accounting for more than half of the 550,000 to 800,000 fake euro notes pulled from circulation annually by the central bank. 7. In Mexico, a race recast by YouTube and Twitter. ....A law passed in 2007 that was intended to keep campaigning orderly and clean has been undercut by the unpredictable and uncontrollable Web. 8. Malaysian police to investigate violence at protest. ....A rally supporting free elections over the weekend spiraled out of control when protesters broke through barricades in central Kuala Lumpur. 9. Myanmar opposition yields in oath dispute.
....The party of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi backed down in a dispute over Myanmar’s oath of office, agreeing to enter Parliament for the first time 10. US drone strike underlines clash of interests in Pakistan. ....With officials from the two countries trying to reset badly stalled relations, an American attack killed three suspected militants in Pakistan’s tribal belt. 11. Peru investigates mystery pelican deaths.
....This environmental investigation of the death of over 580 pelicans comes on the heels of an incident earlier in April when 877 dolphins washed up dead on the same stretch of coast. 12. Philippines role may expand as US adjusts Asia strategy.
....The American military presence in the Philippines has grown recently amid fear of a rising China, and top American and Philippine officials are meeting to discuss further buildup. 13. Sudan declares state of emergency as clashes continue.
....Sudanese authorities along the border with South Sudan will have wide powers to make arrests and set up special courts. 14. Attackers fire rockets at Syrian Central Bank. ....Despite efforts to implant a cease-fire, Syrian authorities said that attackers had fired anti-tank rockets at the office of the Central Bank in Damascus.
US News Capsules: 1. Big purses, sore horses and deaath - Casino cash fuels use of injured horsss at racetracks.
....Large payouts to owners make it profitable for owners to field thoroughbreds that are past their prime, sometimes with fatal results. 2. Amid rural decay, threes take root in silos.
....Many decrepit silos have through happenstance transformed into unlikely nurseries for trees. 3. Obesity-linked diabetes in children resists treatment. ....Not only are more children developing type 2 diabetes, but the disease progresses more quickly and is more difficult to control, a new study has found. 4. Wal-Mart's US expansion plans complicated by bribery scandal. ....A scandal involving Wal-Mart's Mexican subsidiary is giving critics of the company new reasons to push to block its expansion into big American cities. 5. Start-ups look to the crowd. ....The Pebble, a watch being developed to work with smartphones, has raised more than $7 million in financing on Kickstarter, a case that has signified the site’s coming of age. 6. Energy Transfer to buy Sunoco for $5.3 billion. ....Energy Transfer agreed to buy the energy transportation and distribution company Sunoco for $5.3 billion, marking the latest deal in America’s fast-expanding oil and natural gas industry. 7. Microsoft to take stake in Nook unit of Barnes & Noble. ....Microsoft announced that it would invest $300 million in Barnes & Noble’s Nook division for a 17.6% stake. The deal values the e-reader business at $1.7 billion. 8. THEATER: Follish mortals, naughty fairies: The usual mischief .
....A modern-dress production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the Classic Stage Company, with Taylor Mac as Puck, is a feast of arresting imagery. 9. MOVIES: Humphrey Bogart's boat 'African Queen' saved from scrapheap.
....The historic vessel which provided the setting for Humphrey Bogart's only Oscar winning performance has been resurrected from the scrapheap by a movie loving Florida couple. 10. SUV flips, and falls 60 feet; 7 die near Bronx Zoo.
....Seven people, including three children, died when a vehicle flipped over a guardrail and plunged nearly 60 feet to the ground, landing upside down in an area of the Bronx Zoo that is closed to the public, officials said. 11. Tornado shelters being built across South, Midwest.
....When deadly twisters chewed through the South and Midwest in 2011, thousands of people in the killers' paths had nowhere to hide. Now many of those families are taking an unusual extra step to be ready next time: adding tornado shelters to their homes. POLITICS: 1. Ryan's rise from follower to GOP trailblazer.
....Rep/ Paul D. Ryan, the Republican Party's de facto head of economic policy, may be its most influential policy maker. 2. Hardly a close ally, Clinton teams with Obama to raise cash and votes.
....Pres. Obama is embracing the former Pres, Clinton as a wise man who can reassure both the public and well-heeled benefactors. 3. Wife of 3x-aide to resume in Edwards trial.
....Cheri Young, the wife of Andrew Young, the star witness against former Sen. John Edwards, was to take the stand again in his federal corruption trial. 4. Obama campaign grapples with new voter ID laws. ....Advisers to Pres. Obama’s re-election bid say many new laws put a heavy burden on the voter registration process.
Today's Headlines of Interest:
'Slaughtered for their ivory': Up to 35,000 elephants slain in one year, charity says.
In a scene of inconceivable horror, these slaughtered elephant carcasses show the barbaric lengths poachers will go to in their hunt for nature's grim booty. The bodies were among a herd of 22 animals massacred in a helicopter-borne attack by professionals who swooped over their quarry. The scene beneath the rotor blades would have been chilling - panicked mothers shielding their young, hair-raising screeches and a mad scramble through the blood-stained bush as bullets rained down from the sky. When the shooting was over, all of the herd lay dead, one of the worst such killings in northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo in living memory. Up to 35,000 elephants were killed last year for their tusks, Charlie Mayhew, the chief executive of Tusk Trust, said: "What we have witnessed over the last 18 months or two years has been a significant escalation in the poaching of both rhino for rhino horn and elephant for ivory, fueled by sort of a dramatic increase in demand from consumers in the Far East. Poachers have slaughtered half of the elephant population in a Cameroon park. Mayhew added. "South Africa lost 434 rhino last year. This year we know that they've lost more than 170 rhino. That's more than an average of one every 15 hours and that is just South Africa alone." Britain's Prince William and Princess Katherine have thrown their star power behind the organization. Speaking at the London premiere of documentary African Cats, which was held in aid of Tusk Trust, the price said: "We must act now, coherently and together if the situation is to be reversed and our legacy -- our global, natural legacy -- preserved. Tomorrow will be too late."
Thought for Today "There's a difference between a philosophy and a bumper sticker." —Charles M. Schulz, Acartoonist (1922-2000).
Today's flower: Clematis 'Bieszczady' orearthquake clematis that quickly covers fences, trellises and walls in a sea of large, vibrant, colorful flowers. Prolific blooms last several weeks each summer.
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on May 1, 2012 18:06:32 GMT -5
MAY DAY Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 122nd day of 2012 with 243 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 2:23 p.m., it's cloudy , temp 59ºF [Feels like 59ºF], winds WNW @ 6 mph, humidity 77%, pressure 30.01 in and steady, dew point 52ºF, chance of precipitation 25%.
Today in History: 1786--Mozart's opera, Le nozze di Figaro, premieree in Vienna. 1851--the Great Exhibition opened to wide acclaim in the Crystal Palace in London. 1863--the Battle of Chancellorsville began. 1898-- at Manila Bay in the Philippines, the US Asiatic Squadron destroyed the Spanish Pacific fleet in the first battle of the Spanish-American War. 1915--in The Hague, Netherlands, the International Congress of Women adopts its resolutions on peace and women's suffrage. 1926--Ford factory workers got the 40-hour work week. 1931--Pres. Hoover officially dedicated the Empire State Building, pressing a button from the White House that turned on the building's lights. 1941--the Orson Welles classic movie Citizen Kane was released to theaters. 1958--Pres. Eisenhower proclaimed Law Day. 1960--an American U-2 spy plane was shot down by the USSR. 1972--North Vietnamese troops captured Quang Tri. 1997--the Labour party returns to power in Britain after 18 years, led by Tony Blair. 2003--a record-breaking wave of tornadoes began across the southern and midwestern US.
World News Capsules: 1. Obama visits Afghanistan, signs partnership.
....Pres. Obama spoke to U.S. troops and signed an accord with Afghanistan's president.. 2. Details are refuted in tale of Bo Guagua's red Ferrari. ....Accounts of Bo Guagua's reportedly lavish arrival at Jon M. Huntsman Jr.'s home in China last spring have been disputed by several people involved. a. Unease mounting, China and US to open military talks. ....Despite escalating tensions in the Asia and Pacific region, the two nations have been unable to agree on a serious agenda for the talks that open Wednesday. b. On a tightrope, Pres. Obama prods China on human rights. ....Pres. Obama pressed China to improve its record on human rights, while declining to discuss Chen Guangcheng, the blind lawyer who escaped house arrest. 2. u]Fpr the leader of France's far right, neither Sarkozy nor Hollande will do[/u]. ....The head of France’s National Front party refused to endorse either remaining candidate, and instead urged her supporters to “vote according to your conscience.”. 3. British panels finds Murdoch unfit to lead media empire/ ....After months of investigation into the hacking scandal at Rupert Murdoch’s newspapers in Britain, a panel concluded that Mr. Murdoch was “not a fit person” to run a huge international company. a. Cameron stands to lose much as scandal wears on. ....Politicians and media commentators are asking whether Prime Minister David Cameron can survive any further revelations about his close ties with the Murdochs and with two former Murdoch executives. b. European leaders to weigh new capital requirements on banks. ....Britain is among the countries likely to press for the right to require its banks to hold more capital than the European Union minimum. 3. Scores missing in fatal ferry sinking in India. ....Rescuers in eastern India searched for survivors on Tuesday after a ferry with more than 300 passengers capsized during a severe storm. 4. A tiny island is where Iran makes a stand. ....Pres. Ahmadinejad is enjoying a surge of support and nationalism in a feud with the United Arab Emirates over Abu Musa, a four-square-mile spit of sand with about 2,000 inhabitants. 5. Israeli defense minister keeps all options open on Iran. ....Ehud Barak offered a dim view of talks on Iran's nuclear program and said all options, including a military strike, remained on the table despite weeks of criticism over the stance. a. After leadership defeat, Livni resigns from Israeli parliament
. ...Tzipi Livni, who recently lost the leadership of her centrist Kadima Party and her position as leader of the opposition, resigned from the Israeli Parliament but said that she was not quitting public life. 6. Malaysian police to investigate violence at protest. ....A rally supporting free elections over the weekend spiraled out of control when protesters broke through barricades in central Kuala Lumpur. 7. Loyalists of Mali's overthrown leader appear to be attempting countercoup. ....Those loyal to the president, who was overthrown in March, fired guns in what appeared to be an attempt to gain control from the ruling military junta. 8. Euro stress crosses border into the Netherlands. ....With their economy in recession and facing new belt-tightening measures, the Dutch are showing grim determination. 9. To US security official says 'Rigorous standards' are used for Pakistani drone strikes. ....John O. Brennan, Pres. Obama’s top counterterrorism adviser, said strikes targeting suspected militants always come after extensive deliberations. 10. US reaffirms defense of Philippines in standoff with China
. ....The standoff under way in a disputed corner of the South China Sea began April 8. 11. Violence heavy in Syria despite monitors, UN says. ....The head of the UN peacekeeping efforts reported an “appalling” level of violence in the country nearly three weeks into the first deployment of cease-fire monitors there. US News Capsules: 1. Obama, silent on dissident, urges freedom in China. ....Pres. Obama pressed China to improve its record on human rights, while declining to discuss Chen Guangcheng, the blind lawyer who escaped house arrest. 2. With Green Beret tactics, combating gang warfare. ....Two state troopers who were deployed in Iraq are using their counterinsurgency training for a program to combat drug and gang violence back home. 3. Clouds' effect on climate change is last bastion for dissenters. ....In recent years, climate change skeptics have seized on one last argument that cannot be so readily dismissed. Their theory is that clouds will save us. 4. This prom has everything, except for boys. ....A dream to take part in an American rite of passage came true for girls whose faith forbids them to date or dance with boys. Tharima Ahmed, 17, is a senior at Hamtramck High School, who organized an all-girls prom there so that Muslim girls could attend while abiding by their religious beliefs. 5. Insights from the youngest minds. ....Elizabeth S. Spelke studies infants and toddlers to understand how the brain works by determining what, if anything, humans are born knowing. 6. Five men arrested in Ohio bridge plot. ....The men had planned to blow up a bridge, but had considered landmarks in the Cleveland area, too. 7. California chefs to wild their spatulas in fight over foie gras ban. ....Some of California’s best-known chefs, such as Thomas Keller, began a full-course press on the state’s legislators, hoping to prevent the ban from taking effect. 8. HEALTH NEWS: Tasers pose risk to heart, a study warns. ....An analysis of eight people who went into cardiac arrest after receiving shocks from the devices highlights the risks they carry and the importance of using them properly. a. ER doctors face quandary on painkillers. ....Overuse of narcotics and addiction are an issue, but emergency physicians often lack the training and tools to effectively help patients complaining of tooth pain and seeking prescription painkillers. b. Should young athletes be screened for heart risk? ....Sudden cardiac death is far more prevalent among young athletes than previously believed, recent research has shown 9. A word heard often, except at the US Supreme Court.. ....The justices do not want to hear the most versatile of the Anglo-Saxon swear words even when the case before them turns on it 10. Facebook is urging members to add organ donor status. ....In a rare foray into social engineering, Facebook announced a plan to encourage users to list their donor status on their pages, a move that organ transplant experts are calling historic. 11. Wall Street rallies on factory index. ....Shares rose after data on the manufacturing sector offered evidence of a faster economic recovery. 12. Wal-Mart's good-citizen efforts face a test. ....With controversy building over its role in a Mexican bribery scandal, Wal-Mart's desire to stay out of the limelight grows. a. New York pension funds to challenge Wal-Mart.. ....Concerned about Wal-Mart's reported cover-up of bribery, leaders of New York City's pension funds said they would vote their 4.7 million company shares against five directors standing for re-election. 12. SCIENCE: In birds' pursuit of love, new plant life blooms
. ....Male bowerbirds, through the extravagant structures they build to woo females, actually cultivate plant life, a study has found.. a. Best case scenario: two chances to mate. ....A study of mating behavior in one species of orb-web spiders, who can mate at most twice in one lifetime, has revealed interesting patterns of male monogamy. b. Life in the sea found its fate in a paroxysm of extinction. ....Painstaking analyses of fossils from the Permian extinction, 252 million years ago, are providing startling new clues to the behavior of modern marine life and its future. c. An underground fossil forest offers clues on climate change. ....A vast expanse of fossilized trees more than 300 million years old — called a “botanical Pompeii” — could extend as much as 100 miles underneath southern Illinois. 13. ARTS: [/iOnce leads the 2012 Tony Awards nominations. ....[/i]Once received 11 nods, including for best musical, director, actor, and actress, while Peter and the Starcatcher led the unusually strong pack of plays. a. Seacrest assembles TV empire. ....Ryan Seacrest, the host of American Idol, is also working more behind the scenes as he tries to build an entertainment empire. 14. Living with fracking voolations. i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/120309024651-no-to-fracking-2010-c1-main.jpg/img] ....Pennsylvanians with natural gas wells on their land don't have to be told about safety violations. And for many landowners the royalties outweigh the potential dangers, POLITICS: 1. Ties to Romney '08 helped fuel an equity firm. ....Tagg Romney, Mitt Romney's eldest son, and Spencer Zwick, a Romney campaign fund-raiser, turned to wealthy campaign donors for investments in their firm. 2. Wife of Edwards aide says she tried to document money trail . ...Cheri Young says her efforts were an attempt to protect her and her husband from legal action. 3. Candidate for Senate defends past and genealogist finds record of Warren's American-Indian ancestry. ....Elizabeth Warren, who is running for the Senate in Massachusetts, was accused of claiming American Indian ancestry to advance her career. An 1894 marriage record reportedly lists Elizabeth Warren’s great-great-great grandmother as Cherokee, another twist in a dispute in the Massachusetts Senate race. 4. Providence mayor moves financial woes to fore. ....Mayor Angel Taveras of Providence, R.I., said the only way the city could avoid bankruptcy was by scaling back pension benefits..
Thought for Today "Anyone who is satisfied to stand still should not complain when others pass him." — Italian proverb .
Today's flower: Sauromatum venosum or Voodoo lily with a jungle like appearance with its dark, intense colors. A single slender, purple-brown flower spike is surrounded by a speckled spathe.
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on May 2, 2012 15:11:03 GMT -5
BIG BROTHERS & SISTERS DAY Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 123rd day of 2012 with 242 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 1:52 p.m., it's partly cloudy , temp 69ºF [Feels like 69ºF], winds NE @ 8 mph, humidity 69%, pressure 30.0. in and falling, dew point 58ºF, chance of precipitation 30%.
World News Capsules: 1. A visit well-timed to future uncertainties in Afghanistan.
....Pres. Obama's visit to Afghanistan for the first time in 17 months was a chance to make the most of a brief window when relations between the two governments are improving after months of crisis. a. 6 Aghans die as suicide attacker strikes in Kabul. ....Less than two hours after Pres. Obama left Afghanistan, a large bomb exploded at the gates of the Green Village, a compound used by foreigners. 2. Dissident exits embassy after talkes between US and China.
....Following intensive negotiations, US officials say the Chinese government promised that Chen Guangcheng and his family would remain safe and could relocate to the port city of Tianjin. a. Activist now wants to leave China. ....The blind Chinese activist at the center of a six-day diplomatic tussle between the U.S. and China said he fears for his family's lives and wants to leave China, hours after American officials announced an agreement with Beijing that was to guarantee his safety. 3. Baseball in their veins, but a new ball at their feet.
....Even with a less storied past than baseball, which has long been considered as Cuban as hand-rolled cigars, soccer has made inroads in Cuba in recent years. 4. 0 killed as fierce clashes erupt in Egypt ahead of vote.
....The violence followed days of a simmering standoff, and threw the upcoming presidential election into disarray as several candidates announced the suspension of their campaigns. 5. Austerity pain fills Europe with protests on May Day. ....Urging alternatives for economic growth, tens of thousands of demonstrators rallied in Spain, Britain, France, Greece, Germany and beyond. a. Unemployment reaches record hgh in Euro Zone.
....Unemployment rose to 10.9% in March, the 11th monthly increase in row, and is likely to add to tension ahead of national elections in Greece and France. 6. Broadcaster distances itself from News Corp. ....A day after a British parliamentary panel castigated Rupert Murdoch, BSkYB insisted that it was a “fit and proper” company to hold a broadcasting license. a. With report, a tabloid editor is again part of the story. ....Colin Myler, editor of The Daily News and former editor of The News of the World, was targeted in a British parliamentary panel’s report on the phone-hacking scandal. 7. Group seeks suspension of Iran from IMF. ....An American advocacy group is seeking to pressure the International Monetary Fund to withdraw all its holdings in Iran’s central bank or to suspend Iranian membership. 8. Irish cardinal rejects new accusations on pedophile priest. ....The leader of the Catholic Church in Ireland said he would not step down despite new accusations he allowed a serial pedophile priest to keep his job, allowing the abuse to continue. a. European financial treaty faces skeptical Irish voters in tough referendum fight. ....Advocates say a “no” vote on the treaty could hurt Ireland’s ability to borrow internationally, while opponents say the pact’s limits on deficits and debt could prolong Ireland’s slump. 9. Israel army closes probe into deaths of 21 Gazns. ....The Israeli military said Wednesday it would not file any charges in what was one of the gravest incidents in the 2009 war in the Gaza Strip. 10. Mali uprising proves no threat to junta leder's vision of authority. ....Capt. Amadou Haya Sanogo, who led a coup in March, spoke of a continuing role in public life for the junta, which he called “the committee. 11. An extra-official touch for Russia's May Day. ....Russia’s leaders took part in a trade union parade with an estimated crowd of 150,000, as a nation re-enacted celebrations from the Soviet era. 12. Seoul says North Korea tries to disrupt air navigation. ....North Korea has sent out jamming signals since Saturday in an apparent attempt to disrupt civilian and military air and ground traffic in South Korea, officials said. 13. UN seeks more recruits to monitor truce in Syria. ....Only about half of the 300 people sought to monitor the cease-fire have made commitments to do so, the top United Nations peacekeeping official said.
US News Capsules: 1. Complacency and concerns as St. Louis faces vulnerability in deadly storms.
....A fast-moving storm that raced through downtown St. Louis raised questions about how seriously people in the area heed bad-weather warnings. 2. 13 charged in Florida A&M drum major's hazing death,
....The Orange County Sheriff's Office said charges would be brought against members of the school band involved in the death of Robert Champion. 3. Army will reshape training, with lessons from Special Forces. ....The changes institutionalize tactics adopted ad hoc in Iraq and Afghanistan, including putting some conventional units under Special Operations command. 4. Change in LAPD policy has immigrants hoping for more. ....Los Angeles’s decision to stop impounding the cars of all unlicensed drivers has heartened supporters of legislation granting drivers’ licenses to illegal immigrants. 5. Harvard and MIT team up to offer free online courses. ....The universities announced a new nonprofit partnership, known as edX, that will offer vast new learning opportunities for students around the world. 6. HEALTH: US lags in global measure of preterm births. ....The US is similar to developing countries in the percentage of mothers who give birth before their child is due, according to the World Health Organization and other agencies. a. Debate over who should be allowed to administer anesthesia moves to courts. ....The dispute pits nurse anesthetists, who specialize in administering anesthesia and maintain that they are well equipped to treat patients on their own, against anesthesiologists (who cost more). 7. Fate of Postal Service awaits action in House. ....The House lags behind the Senate on legislation to help the debt-ridden Postal Service, which could begin closing post offices in two weeks. 8. Pfizer races to reinvent itself. ....With its best-selling drugs losing patent protection, Pfizer is shedding money-making but noncore businesses to focus on pharmaceutical sciences. 9. SPORTS: $ Saints players suspended.
....Four current or former Saints players (Scott Fujita, Anthony Hargrove, Will Smith and Jonathan Vilma) have been suspended without pay for varying length of times for their roles in a bounty program to try to injure opposing players. POLITICS: 1. In pursuit of Mayor Bloomberg, the reluctant endorser. ....Though President Obama and Mitt Romney publicly disagree with New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg on a range of issues, they are both determined to score his endorsement. 2. Romney foreign policy spokesman quits. ....Richard Grenell, an openly gay foreign policy spokesman for Mitt Romney’s campaign, quit amid pressure by some Republicans who criticized his appointment. 3. Gingrich to suspend campaign.
(A picture's worth a thousand words) ....Newt Gingrich will briefly mention presumptive nominee Mitt Romney and signal support for his candidacy when the former House speaker suspends his campaign for the GOP presidential nomination, Gingrich's spokesman R.C. Hammond said..
Thought for Today "What experience and history teach is this: that people and governments have never learned anything from history." —-[/i]Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel , German philosopher (1770-1831
Today's flower: Aster ericoides or snowdrift aster - shimmers like a freshly fallen mountain snow with its countless tiny,white daisies with bright yellow centers.Butterflies and bees love this low mounding ground cover.
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on May 3, 2012 17:43:02 GMT -5
National Day of Prayer Good evening from Tuxy and me This is the 124th day of 2012 with 241 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 4:28 p.m., it's fair, temp 74ºF [Feels like 75ºF], winds Variable @ 5 mph, humidity 71%, pressure 30.02 in and falling, dew point 64ºF, chance of precipitation 10%.
World News Capsules: 1. A car chase, secret talks and second thoughts. ....New details of intrigue, heroics and ultimately what some people involved called a betrayal emerged from the 10-day saga of dissident Chen Guangcheng. a. Activist asks to leave China, deepening US predicament.
....An American official said that Chen Guangcheng had reversed his position and now wanted to leave China, injecting new uncertainty into a tense diplomatic situation, overshadowing Secretaries Clinton and Geithner in their ecibinuc talks with China, 2. Dubai finesses ease of luxury shopping for Chinese, ....Some 214,000 Chinese tourists came to Dubai last year, a nine-fold increase from 25,000 visitors a decade earlier, and stores are responding with incentives and brand names. 3. Egypt's military rulers deny role in fatal clashes.
....The generals also defended their tenure, and said they were “committed” to handing over power to a civil authority by the end of June. 4. France approaches the end of a presidential campaign with a bitter debate. ....Pres. Sarkozy and his Socialist challenger, François Hollande, clashed on Wednesday night in their only televised debate before Sunday’s election. 5. Britons vote in bellwether midterm ballot. ....At a time of austerity and fallout from the phone hacking scandal, Britons were expected to use mayoral and local council elections as a rebuke of their country’ s coalition government. a. Britain's biggest satellite broadcaster distances itself from Murdoch. ....Following a scathing British parliamentary report declaring Rupert Murdoch unfit to run a media empire, BSkyB insisted that its own track record should determine fitness to hold a broadcasting license. 6. Corruption case hits hard in a tough time for Greece. ....The case of the former defense minister, Akis Tsochatzopoulos, has raised emotional issues in a political culture widely seen as rife with corruption. 7. Sitting around, having a drink, joking about sex, on Iraqi TV.
....There Is Someone is a show that has attracted a huge following with the sort of talk that is popular with young men everywhere, but censors and religious groups are not laughing. 8. Pressure in Ireland grows on Catholic leader to resign. ....Abuse survivors, senior government ministers, serving priests, canon lawyers, newspaper editorials, police officials, human rights groups were among those calling on the primate to step down. 9. Israel military clears soldiers in deaths of Gaza civiliams. ....The Israeli military said that it had closed its inquiry into the deaths of at least 21 Palestinian family members during the 2009 Gaza war, and denied charges that forces deliberately attacked civilians. 10. UN committee puts 3 North Korean companies on a blacklist. ....The North Korean state companies were put on a blacklist of firms banned from international trade in response to the country’s launching of a rocket last month. 11. Fallout of Bin Laden raid: aid groups in Pakistan are suspect,
....Humanitarian work that helped millions of Pakistanis was compromised after it emerged that Dr. Shakil Afridi ran a vaccination scheme to help the C.I.A. locate Osama bin Laden, a. Qaida rifts seen in documents found in Bin Laden hideout
....Al Qaida’s senior leadership was split by debates on tactics, strategy and even marketing in the months leading up to the raid that killed Osama bin Laden. 12. Palestinian resistance shifts to hunger strikes. ....With the peace process stalled, analysts see nonviolent resistance as a critical tactic for the Palestinian national movement. 13. Russian general threatens 'pre-emptive' attacks on missile-defense sites, ....Russian officials have said previously that the anti-missile sites could become targets in the event of war, but the threat of a pre-emptive attack on sites in Eastern Europe was new. 14. Deadly crackdown reported at university in Syria.
....Syrian security forces raided the public university in Aleppo after antigovernment protests there, killing at least four students, activist groups reported. a. Chess leader visits Syria under cloud of ambiguity. ....Kirsan N. Ilyumzhinov held a three-hour meeting with Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, but it was unclear whether he was acting on his own or unofficially on Moscow’s behalf. 15. European politics dims Ukraine's chance to shine. ....Ukraine’s hosting of the European soccer championships next month has become one of the most serious diplomatic disputes in its post-Soviet history.
US News Capsules: 1. US lags in global measure of premature births. ....The US is similar to developing countries in the percentage of mothers who give birth before their child is due, according to the World Health Organization and other agencies. 2. Flying between smalller cities is becoming a marathon. ....Even with the demand for seats increasing, the big airlines have not restored many of their flights, particularly on routes to small airports. 3. "The Scream" is auctioned for a record $119.9 million.
.... A version of Edvard Munch's "The Scream," one of the most recognizable images in art history, sold at Sotheby's for the most ever paid for artwork at auction. 4. Facebook sets stock target putting value at $86 billion.
....At the midpoint of its offering range, the social networking company is on track to raise $10.6 billion, with trading expected to begin May 17 or 18. 5. Border vigilante leader seen as gunman as 5 die in murder-suicide.
....The police believe that Jason Ready, a well-known opponent of illegal immigration, was the gunman in the attack. 6. Methodists vote not to change outlook on homosexuality. ....Church members will keep long-contested wording in “Book of Discipline” that calls homosexuality “incompatible with Christian teaching." 7. Stumbling across a rarity, even for the rare book room. ....A drawing, tucked into an old medical text, was signed “P. Revere Sculp,” and the librarian who found it knew it might be big. 8. Study finds concerns on readiness for cyberattacks. ....“While a great deal of work has been done” on cybersecurity, an official said, “more efforts need to be taken, and there needs to be further action." 9. California man's "drug holiday" becomes 4-day nightmare in holding cell. ....Daniel Chong, a University of California student, was swept up in a DEA raid and placed in a holding cell, where he said he was forgotten for four days, without food or water. 10. Signs of decision on accused Philadelphia priests. ....Priests from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia met Wednesday with Archbishop Charles J. Chaput ahead of an announcement about results of an investigation into claims of sexual abuse against 27 priests. POLITICS: 1. Edwards lawyers try to chip away at main witness's credibility. ....In their questioning of several former aides, lawyers for John Edwards tried to cast doubt on the honesty of the lead witness in the federal government’s corruption trial. 2. Romney camp stirred storm over gay aide. ....Richard Grenell, a foreign policy spokesman for Mitt Romney, resigned after an unexpectedly messy and public dispute over his role and reputation. 3. A delicate new balance on national security. ....For Pres. Obama, the days leading up to his re-election kickoff have been spent straddling the precarious line between hawk and dove, and possibly redefining his party for years to come.
Thought for Today "Each day, and the living of it, has to be a conscious creation in which discipline and order are relieved with some play and pure foolishness." —-May Sarton, poet (1912-1995)
Today's flower: Clematis or Ernest Markham clematis - this midsummer charmer ambles elegantly around a garden trellis, fence or pergola.
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on May 5, 2012 13:16:42 GMT -5
CINCO DE MAYO Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 126th day of 2012 with 239 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 12:48 p.m., it's partly cloudy , temp 55ºF [Feels like 55ºF], winds variable @ 7 mph, humidity 67%, pressure 30.09 in and steady, dew point 45ºF, chance of precipitation 15%.
World News Capsules: 1. Clinton to push tolerance in Bangladesh. ....As Hillary Rodham Clinton arrived in tumultuous Dhaka, she was expected to emphasize democracy and development in one of the world’s most impoverished nations. 2. Amid Brazil's rush to develop, workers resist.
....Brazil is leading a rush among South American nations to build hydroelectric dams in the Amazon, but workers demanding better pay and benefits are disrupting the projects. 3. For China, a dissident in exile is one less headache back home. ....Once exiled, nettlesome prisoners of conscience, like Chen Guangcheng, almost invariably lose their ability to grab headlines in the West and to command widespread sympathy both in China and abroad. 4. Faltering German party, a coalition partner to Merkel, faces an electoral test.. ....The pro-business Free Democrats, also known as the F.D.P., have failed to even reach the 5% threshold for representation in five out of the last six state elections. 5. London's mayor aside, Conservatives fare poorly in British races. ....At a time of deepening austerity, Britons seem to have turned against their national leaders in bellwether mayoral and local council elections. a. British government seeks special status at hacking inquiry. ....The government applied for the status of a core participant, given to those with a special interest in the hearings’ outcome, days before two key figures in the scandal were set to testify. 6. In elections, Greeks are expected to make old guard pay for turmoil. ....Along with French elections, and with a rising tide of anti-austerity sentiment across Europe, Greece’s vote is expected to have a clear impact on the future of the euro. 7. Iranians vote in a runoff for parliament. ....Conservative factions that already dominate the Parliament seemed to be cruising to victory in a second round of elections to the 290-member assembly. 8. Officials: US drone strike kills 8 in Pakistan. ....An American drone fired a volley of missiles into a house close to the Afghan border, killing eight suspected militants, officials said. a. Suicide bomber attacks market in Pakistan, killing at least 25. ....An apparent Taliban suicide attack in a tribal district along the Afghan border killed 26 people and wounded 75, hospital and government officials said. 9. Serbs losing fervor for European Union accession. ....With the Serbian economy lagging, voters are expected on Sunday to show their disenchantment with the government of Boris Tadic, which has advocated for membership to the bloc. a. Serbia, at a crossroads, prepares for elections. ....Facing a challenge from the right, the pro-Western president, Boris Tadic, will ask Serbian voters for a fresh mandate in voting. 10. In Sudan, give war a chance. ....An all-out civil war in Sudan may be the best way to permanently oust Omar Hassan al-Bashir and his brutal, corrupt government. 11. Explosions hit major Syrian cities, leaving at least 3 dead. ....Explosions in two major cities are further signs that rebels fighting to topple Pres. Assad are shifting tactics.
US News Capsules: 1. Reasons abound for ebb in job growth. ....Economists cited various possible factors behind the addition of only 115,000 jobs in April, but none are likely to comfort 13.7 million jobless workers. 2. Family battle offers look inside lavish TV ministry.
(The Holy Land Experience theme park in Orlando, Fla.,) ....A granddaughter of the couple that founded the Trinity Broadcasting Network has gone public with accusations of financial impropriety and excess, which TBN denies. 3. A repository for eagles finds itself in demand. ....American Indians, who use dead eagles for traditional ceremonies, face long waits for the animals when they submit applications to the National Eagle Repository outside Denver. 4. 9/11 Defendants disrupt hearing at Guantanamo.
....The hearing for Khalid Shaikh Mohammed and four other detainees descended quickly into chaos, as the defendants refused to answer the judge’s questions. 5. Connecticut passes marijuana bill. ....The Connecticut Senate passed a bill legalizing the use of marijuana for medical purposes, with tight restrictions. 6. An economic lifeline of barley and hops. ....In Bend, Ore. — with no Interstate, no university and the closest major city 160 miles away across steep and snowy mountains — beer has had room to make a difference. POLITICS: 1. On Sundays, tight Obama circle sizes up election. ....At the gatherings, the president, who will formally open his re-election campaign on Saturday, and a tight circle of advisers gird for the coming battle with Mitt Romney
Thought for Today "Read, every day, something no one else is reading. Think, everyday, something no one else is thinking. Do, every day, something no one else would be silly enough to do. It is bad for the mind to continually be part of unanimity." --[/i]Christopher Morley , writer & editor (1890-1087)
Today's flower: Verbena peruviana or Peruvian red verbena
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on May 10, 2012 15:59:28 GMT -5
Blood Pressure Day Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 131st day of 2012 with 134 days left in the year. #Connie_windowtongue#Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 2:14 p.m., it's cloudy , temp 51ºF [Feels like 51ºF], winds NW @ 17 mph, humidity 50%, pressure 129.70 in and steady, dew point 33ºF, chance of precipitation 40%.
World News Capsules: 1. Parents of POW reveal US talks on Taliban swap.
....Frustrated by stalled negotiations, the parents of an Army sergeant abruptly disclosed that he was the subject of secret negotiations. a. Afghan ploice forces deflect Taliban attack on governor. ....Fighting that killed three police officers put the spotlight on the local Afghan police forces that are seen as a critical hedge against the Taliban as Western forces begin their withdrawal. b. Afghan refugee children perish in harsh winter. ....A new study by a French aid agency said the cold claimed more lives than originally thought. 2. Family and lawyers of Chinese activist ace harassment, they say. ....A cousin of Chen Guangcheng is being investigated, according to lawyers and activists, and those aiding him have been put under various forms of detention. a. China-Philippine dispute over island gets more heated. ....China escalated its quarrel with the Philippines over an island in the South China Sea, halting Filipino bananas at customs for longer inspections. b. Data signals economic trouble in China. ....Growth in both imports and exports slowed notably in China last month and was well below forecasts, raising concerns over weakness in the world's second biggest economy. 3. Egypt court suspends vote, but ruling is disputed. ....An administrative court determined that the election’s May 23 starting date had been wrongly set, but legal experts said the ruling was expected to have little effect. 4. British hacking panel questioned former Cameron aide. ....Andy Coulson, a former editor of The News of the World Sunday tabloid who later became Prime Minister David Cameron’s communications director, testified. 5. Can anyone govern Greece: Greeks look to Socialist to form government.
....The Socialist leader, Evangelos Venizelos, the third party chief to try to form a coalition, said he might be able to establish common ground. 6. New Russian aircraft chashes during a promotional flight in Indonesia.
....The wreckage of a demonstration airplane for a Russian-made jet that vanished over Indonesia was found, and there were no signs of survivors among 50 people aboard the plane. 7. [u[Group sees sign of Iran cleanup at nuclear site[/u]. ....The Institute for Science and International Security said satellite imagery showed activity that may be related to cleaning at a suspected explosives testing chamber. 8. Via e-mails, Italians give full voice to frustration. ....Italians are taking full advantage of an opportunity to strike back at an ill-regarded privileged class. 9. Japan to nationalize Fukushim utility. ....A 10-year, $12.6 billion bailout plan for Tokyo Electric Power, operator of the nuclear plant damaged in the 2011 tsunami, includes replacing top executives and board members. 10. Slivers of hope amid the melancholy in a Mexican border town. ....Ciudad Juárez is still a violent city, but homicide rates have decreased significantly from their peak in 2010, and young people in particular are stepping out. 11. Morocco struggles to rein in soccer hooligans. ....The beating death of a fan during riots has put the spotlight on the nation's systemic youth problems. 12. Model West Bank city loses a crime fighter. ....The death of a respected West Bank governor, Qadoura Moussa, is the latest sign that lawlessness is creeping back into Jenin, a beacon of Palestinian self-rule. 13. Putin to skip Group of 8 session, delaying post-election meeting with Obama. ....Russia's newly inaugurated president, Vladimir V. Putin, will not attend a summit meeting of world leaders next week, the White House said. a. Protesters in Moscow alter approach to avoid arrests. ....Police have been arresting anyone they think is an antigovernment demonstrator, so protesters have adopted new tactics, such as using flash mobs and practicing yoga in public parks. 14. Long-running antiterrorism work with Saudis led to airline plot's failure. ....Saudi Arabia and the US have worked closely together against a militant network in Yemen, most recently foiling an effort to smuggle a bomb onto a jetliner. 15. In Spain, debt crisis built on corporate borrowing. ....The debt load of Grupo A.C.S., a giant construction company based in Spain, reflects the country's severe financial struggle. a. Spain takes control of its top real estate lender. ....The Economics Ministry described the Bankia intervention as "a first step to guarantee its solvency," suggesting that it would follow up with a capital injection. 16. Two Sudans brace for a war boththought was over. ....Years of fighting were supposed to be over when South Sudan won its independence from Sudan last July, but instead both countries are once again mobilizing for war. 16. Explosions kill dozens in Damascus, Syria. ....The two powerful explosions outside an intelligence headquarters in the capital Thursday peeled open a new, more treacherous front in the struggle for Syria. a. Though disparate, Syria rebels tenacious against crackdown
. ....Those who have taken up arms in the Syrian uprising acknowledge that they lack a workable chain of command to coordinate operations, even as they ask for international help.\ b. Though disparate, Syria rebeels tenacious against crackdown. ....Those who have taken up arms in the Syrian uprising acknowledge that they lack a workable chain of command to coordinate operations, even as they ask for international help. 17. Pious Turks push for labor justice. ....Young Muslims have been congregating to critique the reign of the mildly Islamist government of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan as "capitalism with ablutions.". US News Capsules: 1. New cautions about long-term use of bone drugs. ....The Food and Drug Administration published an analysis that suggested caution against long-term use of the drugs, but fell short of issuing specific recommendations. 2. Solar installers offer deals, gaining converts. ....Installers, often working through big-box chains, are taking advantage of hefty tax breaks, creative financing and cheap Chinese-made panels to make solar power accessible to the mass market. 3. Bing to be revamped in war for search engine supremacy. ....A Microsoft-Facebook alliance plans an overhaul of Bing in an effort to loosen Google’s grip on the search engine market. Qi Lu, president of Microsoft’s online services division, said Bing's new search would mine people’s online social connections to provide personal results. 4. MOVIE: Dark Shadows - A vampire thirsty and bewildered. ....Johnny Depp plays Barnabas Collins in this comedy from Tim Burton (their eighth movie together), based on the soap opera from the 1960s and ’70s. 5. ART: $44.8 million, going twice at Sotheby's. ....Classic images by Roy Lichtenstein ("Sleeping Girl") and Francis Bacon brought identical prices of $44.8 million at Sotheby’s contemporary art sale. "Sleeping Girl" has been exhibited only once before — at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles in 1989-90. It's among a series of sexy comic book-inspired images Lichtenstein created in the 1960s. 6. Justice Department sues Arizona sheriff. ....Federal officials sued Joe Arpaio, a prominent Arizona sheriff known for his crackdowns against illegal immigration, accusing him of discrimination and retaliating against his critics. POLITICS: 1. Obama says same-sex marriage shouold be legal. ....By publicly endorsing same-sex marriage in a television interview, the president took a definitive stand on one of the most contentious and politically charged social issues of the day. 2. Romney reaffirms opposition to marriage, or unions. ....The question of precisely what legal status and protections should be granted to gay couples is emerging as an issue of the sharpest possible contrast between the two presidential candidates. 3 Cal for legislature to revive Colorado's civil union bill. ....A call for a special legislative session by Gov. John W. Hickenlooper could revive a bill that would have allowed civil unions for same-sex couples in Colorado. 4. With primary over, a new battle for Indiana Senate seat begins. ....Democratic leaders see a chance to win against Richard E. Mourdock, the Indiana Republican Senate nominee, whom they will likely paint as too conservative. 5. Report casts harsh light on lawmaker's fund-raising. ....Ethics investigators said that Rep. Vern Buchanan appeared to have tried to illegally influence the testimony of an ex-business partner regarding allegations of campaign finance violations. #1056048gfr2ahr4mi# Today's Headlines of Interest: The gay marriage windfall. If more states legalize gay marriage, all of that pent-up demand could trigger a wedding boom, sparking economic activity as more couples book venues, buy wedding cakes, jewelry and marriage licenses, and secure hotel rooms for guests. Gay marriage is currently legal in seven spots, including Massachusetts, Connecticut, Iowa, Vermont, New Hampshire, New York and D.C. Already those economies have benefited as a result. "In New York, we saw what legalizing gay marriage could do for a city," said Kristin Koch, TheKnot.com's senior editor. "Weddings mean more business for hotels, wedding venues, caterers, airlines, bakeries, photographers and videographers." The city's comptroller's office estimated that the economic impact of marriage equality would add $142 million to New York City's economy from wedding-related purchases and tourism revenue in the three years after its law passed in 2011, and another $184 million in spending to the state's economy. In Massachusetts, the Williams Institute estimated that marriage equality added $111 million to the state's economy in the first five years after legalizing same-sex marriages in 2004. That's thanks to wedding spending by same-sex couples who live there, in addition to an influx of same-sex couples coming from elsewhere to say "I do." Other states that give same-sex couples the right to marry will experience a similar boon, said Lee Badgett, the Williams Institute's research director and professor of economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. "There's nothing bad that's going to happen to local economies; in fact, there's a positive business effect," Badgett said. Pres. Obama's support of marriage equality for same-sex couples could spur more states to allow gay couples to legally marry and the eventual repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act, a 1996 federal law that reserves marriage for a man and a woman. If same-sex marriage rights were granted nationwide, same-sex weddings would generate a net $1 billion each year for the Federal budget over the next 10 years, according to a 2004 report by Congressional Budget Office. That's after taking into account lower income and estate tax revenues as well as increased spending for health-care benefits and Social Security. Thought for Today"Joy is the simplest form of gratitude." --[/i]Karl Barth , Swiss theologian (1886-1968)
Today's flower: Dahlia or sea urchin dahlia - The deep maroon color of Sea Urchin resembles rich velvet and is spectacularly showy and uncommonly beautiful.
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Jun 6, 2012 14:27:57 GMT -5
68th Anniversary of D-Day Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 158th day of 2012 with 207 days left in the year.
Today's Headlines of Interest:
Post offices, Ellis Island join endangered list. Hundreds of historic post offices nationwide face uncertain futures as the Postal Service downsizes, so preservationists have added these American institutions to the list of the country's most endangered historic places. The National Trust for Historic Preservation is citing the bureaucratic process for disposing of 1000s of post offices, saying developers and community groups interested in rehabilitating the historic buildings end up walking away when they don't get timely or clear answers from the Postal Service. The group also said New York's Ellis Island hospital complex is threatened, even though it's a popular historic destination, because the facility where thousands of immigrants received medical treatment upon their arrival has been left open to the elements. This is the 25th anniversary of the listing of endangered places. Over that time 242 historic sites have been added to the listing. Only 10 sites of those have been lost, while others are still endangered, officials said. Princeton Battlefield, the site of a pivotal American Revolution episode in New Jersey, also is facing imminent danger from housing development that would change the landscape, preservationists said. "This isn't about taking on the post office," she said. "Of course we don't quibble with the post office having to do what they have to do to manage their business, but we do want to make sure there's a thoughtful process in place for managing the historic resources." The Postal Service on Wednesday said its plans have changed for many post offices since a study last summer. As of May 2012, the agency plans to consolidate about 460 mail processing centers in phases. Of more than 31,500 post offices nationwide, only 55 are officially listed on the National Register of Historic Places, agency spokeswoman Sue Brennan said. If the Postal Service seeks to sell any historic property, Brennan said the agency follows State Historic Preservation Office guidelines to identify historic elements that must be saved.
Other sites are facing even more imminent threats. 1. President Theodore Roosevelt's Elkhorn Ranch in North Dakota's Badlands, which inspired his views on conservation, is facing development of a road and bridge project that would "mar" the landscape and "stain Roosevelt's legacy of conservation," the group said. 2, Joe Frazier's gym in Philadelphia where he trained to take on Muhammad Ali. 3. The boyhood home of Malcolm X in Boston . 4. Atlanta's Sweet Auburn Historic District, where Martin Luther King Jr. was born and later preached. Diverse communities are often underrepresented in the preservation of cultural resources. Only 3% of the sites listed on the National Register of Historic Places represent diverse communities, Meeks said.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation is one of my favorite charities, one a contributed to on a monthly basis. Too often developers destroy places of historic significance in their desire to "modernize"/"upgrade" an area. We are too quick to dismiss anything that isn't representative of the latest trend. I'm not advocating that every single post office building be preserved, but at least let each be evaluated for its significance before being destroyed forever.
HEALTH: Morning-after pill labels may be wrong about implantation. Labels inside every box of morning-after pills, drugs widely used to prevent pregnancy after sex, say they may work by blocking fertilized eggs from implanting in a woman’s uterus. Respected medical authorities, including the National Institutes of Health and the Mayo Clinic, have said the same thing on their Web sites. Such descriptions have become kindling in the fiery debate over abortion and contraception. Based on the belief that a fertilized egg is a person, some religious groups and conservative politicians say disrupting a fertilized egg’s ability to attach to the uterus is abortion, “the moral equivalent of homicide,” as Dr. Donna Harrison, who directs research for the American Association of Pro-life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, put it. Mitt Romney recently called emergency contraceptives “abortive pills.” And two former Republican presidential candidates, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum, have made similar statements.
But an examination by The New York Times[/u] has found that the federally approved labels and medical Web sites do not reflect what the science shows. Studies have not established that emergency contraceptive pills prevent fertilized eggs from implanting in the womb, leading scientists say. Rather, the pills delay ovulation, the release of eggs from ovaries that occurs before eggs are fertilized, and some pills also thicken cervical mucus so sperm have trouble swimming. It turns out that the politically charged debate over morning-after pills and abortion, a divisive issue in this election year, is probably rooted in outdated or incorrect scientific guesses about how the pills work. Because they block creation of fertilized eggs, they would not meet abortion opponents’ definition of abortion-inducing drugs. In contrast, RU-486, a medication prescribed for terminating pregnancies, destroys implanted embryos. The notion that morning-after pills prevent eggs from implanting stems from the Food and Drug Administration’s decision during the drug-approval process to mention that possibility on the label — despite lack of scientific proof, scientists say, and objections by the manufacturer of Plan B, the pill on the market the longest. Leading scientists say studies since then provide strong evidence that Plan B does not prevent implantation, and no proof that a newer type of pill, Ella, does. Some abortion opponents said they remain unconvinced. The medical editor in chief of the Web site for the Mayo Clinic, Dr. Roger W. Harms, said “we are champing at the bit” to revise the entry if the Food and Drug Administration changes labels or other agencies make official pronouncements. “These medications are there to prevent or delay ovulation,” said Dr. Petra M. Casey, an obstetrician-gynecologist at Mayo. “They don’t act after fertilization.” Scientists say the pills work up to five days after sex, primarily stalling an egg’s release until sperm can no longer fertilize it. Although many people think sperm and egg unite immediately after sex, sperm need time to position themselves. 99%of the emergency contraception market in the United States consists of Plan B (approved in 1999 and now sold as Plan B One-Step) and its generic versions, Next Choice and levonorgestrel tablets. They are available without prescription for women ages 17 and older. The other pill, Ella, became available by prescription only in the United States in late 2010. Emergency contraceptive use has steadily increased, with about 12 million packages sold last year, according to IMS Health and the SymphonyIRI Group, health information and market research companies. Sport Headlines of Interest: ( Mario Gutierrez rides I'll Have Another past Mike Smith and Bodemeister to win the 137th Preakness Stakes at Pimlico Race Course on May 19) BELMONT STAKES: Outside post isn't bad for I'll Have AnotherKentucky Derby and Preakness winner I’ll Have Another will begin his 1 1/2-mile journey toward the Triple Crown by breaking from post 11 in Saturday’s $1 million Belmont Stakes and will be able to stalk the competition for the final stretch. A field of 12 has been entered for the 3rd jewel of Thoroughbred racing’s Triple Crown, which covers one lap of the sweeping Belmont Park oval in New York. I’ll Have Another was made the 4-5 morning-line favorite, and the outside draw should cause few problems for the son of Flower Alley. All the speed is to the colt’s inside, and with nearly a quarter-mile run to the turn, I’ll Have Another has the early foot to get in decent stalking position while avoiding a wide journey around the first bend. The key to I’ll Have Another’s performance is what happens on the long journey down the backside. If able to stay in the clear while avoiding a wide trip, I’ll Have Another should have every chance to show what he has when called upon by jockey Mario Gutierrez. The two horses expected to show early speed are Unstoppable U and Paynter. Allowance winner Unstoppable U will break from post 2, and will likely hug the rail while trying to go as far as he can. A more dangerous rival with speed is Paynter, who breaks from post 9. He’s trained by Bob Baffert, who’s had Triple Crown prospects foiled three times with the likes of Silver Charm, Real Quiet and War Emblem. Paynter was light on experience when fourth to I’ll Have Another in the Santa Anita Derby in only his second career start. However, the colt enters on a major upswing following a strong Pimlico allowance score on the Preakness undercard. Union Rags, the 6-1 3rd choice on the morning line, has some tactical speed and will break from post 3. Dullahan, the 5-1 2nd choice on the morning line, is a deep closer so post position was not much of a factor for him. He’ll break from post 5. Most of the other longshots in the Belmont field are closers and their post position draws were not of critical importance. So join me Saturday to see if we'll get the first Triple Crown winner in three plus decades, I'll be rooting for I'll Take Another. How about you? BELMONT STAKES - Saturday @ 4:30 p.m. EST on NBC. Thought for Today"We can live without religion and meditation, but we cannot survive without human affection." --[/i]Dalai Lama , 1989 Nobel Peace Prize winner as Head of the Dge-lugs-pa order of Tibetan Buddhists (b. 1935).
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 6, 2012 18:54:20 GMT -5
Hi, Peg!! Good to see you still posting your news.
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Jun 8, 2012 16:08:02 GMT -5
Krickitt--How are you? It's been months since we've talked.
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Jun 8, 2012 16:09:02 GMT -5
National Rose Month Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 160th day of 2012 with 205 days left in the year.
Today's Headlines of Interest:
Oil boom brings wealth and waste to North Dakota
Oil drilling has sparked a frenzied prosperity in this formerly quiet corner of western North Dakota in recent years, bringing an infusion of jobs and reviving moribund local businesses.But Jeff Keller, a natural resource manager for the Army Corps of Engineers, has seen a more ominous effect of the boom, too: Oil companies are spilling and dumping drilling waste onto the region's land and into its waterways with increasing regularity. Hydraulic fracturing — the controversial process behind the spread of natural gas drilling — is enabling oil companies to reach previously inaccessible reserves in North Dakota, triggering a turnaround not only in the state's fortunes, but also in domestic energy production. North Dakota now ranks second behind only Texas in oil output nationwide. The downside is waste — lots of it. Companies produce millions of gallons of salty, chemical-infused wastewater, known as brine, as part of drilling and fracking each well. Drillers are supposed to inject this material thousands of feet underground into disposal wells, but some of it isn't making it that far. Oil companies in North Dakota reported more than 1,000 accidental releases of oil, drilling wastewater or other fluids in 2011, about as many as in the previous two years combined. Many more illicit releases went unreported, state regulators acknowledge, when companies dumped truckloads of toxic fluid along the road or drained waste pits illegally. Releases of brine, which is often laced with carcinogenic chemicals and heavy metals, have wiped out aquatic life in streams and wetlands and sterilized farmland. The effects on land can last for years, or even decades. Kris Roberts, who responds to spills for the Health Department, which protects state waters, acknowledged that the state does not have the manpower to prevent or respond to illegal dumping." It's happening often enough that we see it as a significant problem," he said. "What's the solution? Catching them. What's the problem? Catching them." Why am I not surprised at the oil spills, dumping of waster products illegally, etc. by rillers. After teh BP disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, nothing that they do surprise me in their ongoing search for profits. The natural gas drillers have been trying for over a year to get permission to drill in my area, but so far have been held at bay. It's too bad that they weren't hindered from drilling in North Dakota until they proved that they were responsible citizens. But their lack of civic responsibility has gone on for years and shows no signs of changing.
ENTERTAINMENT: Click and Clack retiring from "Car Talk", but revamped shows will still air. After 25 years, Click and Clack are putting "Car Talk" in park. Tom and Ray Magliozzi, hosts of the nationally broadcast radio show "Car Talk," announced Friday that as of October, they won't make any more new shows. While the hosts won't be as involved, NPR will continue to air a program that combines old material and a few updates from the Magliozzis. In a statement from NPR, Ray Magliozzi, 63, jokes, "My brother has always been 'work-averse,' Now, apparently, even the one hour a week is killing him!" "It's brutal," Tom Magliozzi, 74, was quoted as saying. The show will celebrate its 25th anniversary on NPR stations before the brothers retire. The brothers actually have been doing the show for 35 years, with 10 of those in Boston before hooking up with NPR. They will continue to write "Dear Tom & Ray," their twice-weekly car-advice column. If you aren't familiar with their show, on the next Saturday morning around 10 a.m. find your closest NPR radio statio and listen to them. Advice on solving listenes' car problems with a strong leavening of humor.
Sport Headlines of Interest:
I'll Have Another pulled from Triple Crown bid and retired.
I'll Have Another's bid for the first Triple Crown in 34 years ended shockingly in the barn and not on the racetrack when the colt was scratched the day before the Belmont Stakes and retired with a swollen tendon. "It's been an incredible ride, an incredible run," trainer Doug O'Neill said. "It's a bummer. It's not tragic, but it's a huge disappointment." I'll Have Another, who won the Kentucky Derby and the Preakness Stakes with stirring stretch drives, was the 4-5 favorite to win the Belmont and become the 12th Triple Crown winner and first since 1978. Instead, he becomes the 12th horse since Affirmed, the last Triple champion, to win the first two legs but not the Belmont. The scratch marks the first time since Bold Venture in 1936 that the Derby and Preakness winner didn't run in the Belmont. Burgoo King skipped the race in 1932. "Could he run and compete? Yes. Would it be in his best interest? No," O'Neill said. He said the swollen left front tendon was the beginning of tendinitis, which could have taken six months to treat, and so the popular horse was retired. O'Neill said he conferred with owner J. Paul Reddam and they contacted Dr. Jim Hunt, who examined the horse. Reddam confirmed that, saying: "We're all a bit shocked, but we have to do what's best for the horse. And if he can't compete at the top level, he's done enough." Larry Bramlage, Belmont's on-call veterinarian, called it a "slow-healing injury" for this horse, it would probably take a year to recover. He added that a tendon in a race horse is "more highly evolved" than anything in a human. "It's an early injury," Bramlage said. "If you went on and had he raced, the danger would have been a bowed tendon, meaning a significant number of fibers injured." And so there will be no Triple Crow winner this year. I'm beginning to believe that there will never again be a horse capable of winning these three races that are run between the first Saturday in May and the first Saturday in July. When the Triple Crown races were first run, it was the normal racing plan for 3-year-olds at that time. That no longer is the case. They no longer ae trained fro running races that close together. There has been discussion concerning changing the time between the Triple Crown races. But then would it still be the Triple Crown?
Thought for Today "I don't excercise. If God had wanted me to bend over, he would have put diamonds on the floor." --Joan Rivers, comedienne (b. 1933)
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Jul 26, 2012 14:20:40 GMT -5
National Hot Dog Month Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 207th day of 2012 with 158 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 3:07 p.m., it's cloudy , temp 81ºF [Feels like 83ºF], winds SSW @ 12 mph, humidity 76%, pressure 29.68 in and falling, dew point 68ºF, chance of precipitation 60%.
Today in History: 1775--Benjamin Franklin became America's first postmaster general. 1788--New York became the 11th state to ratify the U.S. Constitution. 1856--George Bernard Shaw, Anglo-Irish playwright, was born; died 1950 at age 94. 1875--Carl (Gustav) Jung , one of the founders of analytic psychology, was born; died 1961 at age 86. 1882--the Richard Wagner opera Parsifal premiered in Bayreuth, Germany. 1894--Aldous Huxley, British philosopher, satirist and author, was born; died 1963 at age 69. 1908--U.S. Attorney General Charles J. Bonaparte ordered creation of a force of special agents that was a forerunner of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. 1943--British rock icon Mick Japper was born. 1945--Winston Churchill resigned as Britain's prime minister after his Conservatives were soundly defeated by the Labor Party. 1947--Pres. Truman signed the National Security Act, which established the National Military Establishment (later renamed the Department of Defense). 1948--Pres. Truman signed executive orders prohibiting discrimination in the US armed forces and federal employment. 1952--Adlai E. Stevenson was nominated for president by the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. 1952--Argentina's first lady, Eva Peron, died in Buenos Aires at age 33. 1952--King Farouk I of Egypt abdicated in the wake of a coup led by Gamal Abdel Nasser. 1953---Fidel Castro began his revolution with an unsuccessful attack on an army barracks in eastern Cuba. 1956--Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser nationalized the Suez Canal. 1964--Teamsters president Jimmy Hoffa and six others were convicted of fraud and conspiracy in the handling of a union pension fund. 1971--Apollo 15 was launched on the US fourth manned mission to the moon. 1990--Pres. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act. 2000--a federal judge approved a $1.25 billion settlement between Swiss banks and more than a half million plaintiffs who alleged the banks had hoarded money deposited by Holocaust victims. 2002--the Republican-led House voted, 295-132, to create an enormous Homeland Security Department in the biggest government reorganization in decades. 2006--a jury in Houston found Andrea Yates not guilty by reason of insanity in the drowning of her children in a bathtub in the second trial she faced on the charges.
World News Capsules: 1. China charges wife of ousted party leader in Briton's death.
....Gu Kailai, the wife of the disgraced political leader Bo Xilai, has been indicted for intentional homicide, in a crime that has triggered China’s most serious political crisis in decades. a. In meetings, US presses Beijing on rights. ....The department released its diagnosis after an annual meeting in which the US discussed human rights concerns with China. 2. On gay marriage, Europe strains to square 27 interests. [imghttp://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2012/07/26/world/marriage/marriage-sfSpan-v2.jpg][/img] ....Europe prides itself on its open borders, but many gay couples leave their rights behind when they cross them because of the continent's lingering differences on family law. a. 'Pay-for-Delay' drug case moves forward. ....The European Commission said smaller companies agreed to keep generics temporarily off the market in exchange for money from makers like Lundbeck.. 3. London cheers Olympic torch as opening ceremony nears. ....The torch is being carried past London's historic landmarks -- Buckingham Palace, St. Paul's Cathedral and Big Ben -- hours ahead of the opening ceremony. 4. Twitter comment costs Greek athlete spot in Olympics. ...A triple jump athlete was removed from Greece’s Olympic team for posting a comment on Twitter that was disparaging of African immigrants in Greece. 4. 9u]Wave of violent repression plagues capital of Mali[/u]. ....Journalists and soldiers who oppose the military junta are reported to have been victims of abuse and intimidation 5. That mystery women in North Korea? Turnsout she's the 1st Lady. ....The appearance of Kim Jong-un's wife is a sign that he is breaking from the style of his father, who was known for marrying beautiful performers but never introduced them to his people. 6. From Russian health official, food criticism with a dash of politics. ....Gennady Onishenko seized on a public complaint about McDonald’s saying that burgers “are not a sensible dietary choice for the population of Moscow and Russia. 7. Residents of Aleppo fleeing as opposing forces take positions. ....Government forces maintained their shelling of key Syrian cities on Thursday, with Aleppo in particular bracing for an anticipated showdown. a. Syrian refugees find safety,with restrictions, in Jordan. ....Jordan has received praise for accepting Syrian refugees, but the evidence of the government’s uneasy relationship with the exiles is not hard to come by. US News Capsules: 1. More weather extremes leave parts of US grid buckling. ....From highways to power plants, the concrete, steel and engineering that undergird the nation's infrastructure are being dangerously taxed by heat, drought and storms. a. Severe drought seen as driving cost of food up. ....The Agriculture Department said the cost of beef would increase the most, up to 5%, because of the weather and rising prices for animal feed. 2. Retailers' idea: think smaaller in urban push. ....With little room to expand in the suburbs, retailers like Office Depot, Wal-Mart and Target have aimed their expansion plans at cities, overhauling store sizes, packages and signs. 3. Medicaid expansion may lower death rates, study says. ....The study reflects an effort to sidestep difficulty in gauging the health effects of covering more people, and comes as states consider expanding Medicaid under the health care law. 4. Weill calls for splitting up big banks. ....Sanford I. Weill, a former Citigroup chief, helped to dismantle the Glass-Steagall regulation that separated commercial banking from investment banking. Now he says banks should be broken up. 5. Chick-fil-A thrust back into spotlight on gay rights. ....An executive’s statements have reignited opposition to, as well as support for, a chain that gives millions of dollars to groups fighting same-sex marriage. 6 Amtrak plans for upgrades in bid to push faster system. ....A $151 billion expansion plan includes a major revamping of Union Station in Washington, along with makeovers for Amtrak hubs in New York and Boston. 7. How to make peace with a monster. ....They're members of a grim fraternity: People who narrowly missed being killed by a mass murderer. Their advice for those who survived the theater shooting: Don't be quick to forgive. POLITICS: 1. Eye on election, Senate passes tax cut measure, rejects GOP version. ....The Senate narrowly approved legislation to extend Bush-era tax cuts for the middle class but to let them lapse on more affluent households. 2. G.O.P. edge as dynamics shift in House races. ....With no partisan surge this year, the overall dynamic favors Republicans, who look poised to maintain their hold on the House. 3. Negative ads hit at identity to shape race. ....Two candidates who can have trouble connecting with voters on a personal level are trying to define each other as detached from mainstream American life. Today's Headlines of Interest: Millionaire medalists: Will London 2012 remain true to Olympic spirit?Amid the glorification of multi-millionaires competing in sports including basketball, tennis and soccer, the sea of corporate sponsorship and fortress-style security -- has the Olympic spirit been forgotten? What would previous Olympians make of today’s event? Would the Ancient Greeks -- who staged the first Olympic Games in 776 B.C. -- give their blessing or call down the wrath of Zeus? And what would the founder of the modern Games, French aristocrat Pierre de Coubertin, make of the demise of the amateur ethos? The founder of the modern games, Pierre de Coubertin, probably would be appalled by today's commerciliaztion of the Olympics and the professionalism of the athletes, but not the ancient Greeks. They were the original professional athletes and used success in the games to propel themselves to greater wealth. Armand D’Angour, a fellow and tutor in classics at Jesus College, Oxford University, explained that athletes were sponsored by their cities and spent years in training. “And of course if they won, they were feted, celebrated and odes were written for them – an expensive business. They would be fed at public expense for the remainder of their lives. There was a lot of money in it,” he added. The amateur ideal or so-called “Corinthian spirit” was “a bit of an invention really,” D’Angour said. Other modern inventions include the Olympic flame – “that’s nothing to do with Ancient Greece, it comes from the idea of the eternal flame in Rome” – and the Olympic rings, he added. In other words, the ancient Greek Olympian would feel right at home in today's games. Thought for Today"One brave deed makes no hero." —[/i]John Greenleaf Whittier , poet and essayist (1807-1892).
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the flying reindeer
Senior Member
Rest in Peace, Peg
Joined: Mar 3, 2012 10:30:57 GMT -5
Posts: 3,083
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Post by the flying reindeer on Jul 27, 2012 16:34:13 GMT -5
National Baked Bean Month Good afternoon from Tuxy and me This is the 208th day of 2012 with 157 days left in the year. Today in NY's Finger Lakes at 3:01 p.m., it's cloudy , temp 75ºF [Feels like 76ºF], winds calm, humidity 65%, pressure 29.88 in and rising, dew point 63ºF, chance of precipitation 40%.
Today in History: 1694--the Bank of England received a royal charter as a commercial institution. 1776--Silas Deane writes Congress of sucess in negotiations with the French government for military supplies and give the colonies credit up to one million French lires. 1789--the US Congress established the Department of Foreign Affairs, the forerunner of the State Department. 1794--Maximilien Robespierre, the architect of the French Revolution's Reign of Terror, was overthrown and arrested by the Natio--al Convention. (and executed on the 28th). 1861--Union Gen. George B. McClellan was put in command of the Army of the Potomac. 1866--Cyrus W. Field finished laying out the first successful underwater telegraph cable between North America and Europe. 1909--during the first official test of the US Army's first airplane, Orville Wright flew himself and a passenger, Lt. Frank Lahm, above Fort Myer, Va., for one hour and 12 minutes. 1921--at the University of Toronto, Canadian scientists Frederick Banting and Charles Best successfully isolate insulin. 1922--Norman Lear, 90-year-old Emmy-winning TV producer ("All in the Family"), was born. 1940--Bugs Bunny made his debut in the Warner Bros. animated cartoon "A Wild Hare." 1942--the First Battle of El Alamein in Egypt ended in a draw as Allied forces stalled the progress of Axis invaders. (The Allies went on to win a clear victory over the Axis in the Second Battle of El Alamein later that year.) 1948--Peggy Fleming, Iktnouc gikd nedak0wubbubg figure skater, was born. 1949--the first jet airplane makes its test flight. 1953-- the People's Republic of China, North Korea, and South Korea agreed to an armistice, bringing the Korean War to an end. 1964--the Pentagon annouced that 5,000 more troops were to be sent to Vietnam. 1967--in the wake of urban rioting, Pres. Johnson appointed the Kerner Commission to assess the causes of the violence. 1974--the US House Judiciary Committee voted 27-11 to recommend Pres. Nixon's impeachment on a charge that he had personally engaged in a "course of conduct" designed to obstruct justice in the Watergate case. 1981--Adam John Walsh, age six, is abducted from a mall in Hollywood, Florida, and later found murdered. His father, John Walsh, became a leading victims' rights activist and host of the long-running television show America's Most Wanted. 1990--the last Citren 2CV rolled off the line in Portugal. 1995--the Korean War Veterans Memorial was dedicated in Washington, D.C 1996--a pipi bomb exploded at Centennial Olympic Part in Atlanta, Ga., killing one and injuring more than 100. 2002--a Ukrainian fighter jet crashed during an air show in Lviv, killing 77 people. 2003--Lance Armstrong won a record-tying fifth straight Tour de France title. 2005--Ahmed Ressam, an Algerian who'd plotted to bomb the Los Angeles airport on the eve of the millennium, was sentenced to 22 years in prison. 2007--the US House sent Pres. Bush legislation to intensify anti-terror efforts in the U.S., carrying out major recommendations of the independent 9/11 Commission. 2007--former Qwest Communications chief Joe Nacchio was sentenced to six years in prison for illegally selling $52 million in stock while not telling investors that his telecommunications company faced serious financial risks. 2007--two Phoenix news helicopters collided and crashed while covering a police chase on live television, killing four people on board. 2011--Vitaly Davydov, a Russian space official, said that once the mammoth International Space Station was no longer needed, it would be sent into the Pacific Ocean, probably in 2015.
World News Capsules: 1. An epic downpour wipes away a capital's sheen.
....A rainstorm, the heaviest to hit Beijing in decades, has prompted tough questions about the management of the city after flooding left at least 77 people dead. a. In charage for wife of Chinese ex-leader, sign of an old tactic. ....In formally accusing her in a poisoning death, the government put Gu Kailai in a well-worn Chinese framework: the conniving vixen whose greed derailed her husband's career. 2. Assurances on Euro by Central Bank Chief in London lift stocks. ....Markets and the euro rose after Mario Draghi told a conference that the central bank was prepared to "do whatever it takes to preserve" the currency 3. 15 Iraqi officials quite in protest over Qaeda threat. ....In Baquba, the neighborhood officials, or mukhtars, complained that the government was unable to protect them and their families from Al Qaeda infiltrators. 4. Once told he'd never walk again, Irish gymnast is now Olympian.
....Kieran Behan has overcome a botched leg operation and a brain injury that kept him from doing even the simplest things, like sitting or eating, to compete in three Olympic events. 5. In Singapore, vitriol against Chinese.
....Tensions over immigration bedevil many nations, but what makes the clash here particularly striking is that most of Singapore’s population was already ethnic Chinese. 6. Spain's coal miners feel the pain of budget slashes. ....Nowhere is the campaign to cut state subsidies felt as keenly as in places like Ciñera, in the coal-mining north, whose very survival is bound to government support. 7. Syrian helicopters fire on Aleppo as army prepares for possible assault. ....A member of the Syrian Parliament defected and crossed into Turkey, according to opposition figures and a Turkish official. a. Two journalists freed by Syrian rebels after weeklong ordeal. ....Dutch freelance photographer Jeroen Oerlemans and British photographer John Cantlie, both captured by Islamic extremists on July 19, were rescued by mainstream rebel fighters. 8. Uganda taking team to Little League World Series. ....Africa will be represented at the Little League World Series for the first time, after travel issues kept Uganda out in 2011. 9. Cocaine's flow is unchecked in Venezuela.
....Venezuela's government has trumpeted one major blow after another against drug traffickers, but a visit to its remote western plains shows that its claims are greatly overstated,
US News Capsules: 1. Army's plans to relocate gear offer roadmap to future roles.
....The new stores would be designed for smaller-scale conflict, training missions and humanitarian assistance, to name a few, reflecting the changing nature of the mission after the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan 2. Hospitals worry over cut in fund for uninsured. ....The Affordable Care Act will trim government aid that facilities use in part to cover treatment for illegal immigrants. 3. Storms threaten ozone layer over US, study says. ....The risk of damage may increase as the climate warms and storms grow more intense and more frequent, the study said. 4. Rise is seen in cyberattacks targeting US infrastructures. ....Gen. Keith B. Alexander of the National Security Agency said that the nation was not fully prepared for the attacks on electricity grids, water supplies and other targets. 5. For big drug companies, a headache looms. ....Going against a decade of rulings, a federal appeals court said payments aimed at holding back generics were anticompetitive, setting up possible review by the Supreme Court. 6. Proponents of arms trade treaty urge final approval. ....A number of United Nations members are still balking at the idea of regulating the estimated $60 billion global arms trade business, and the Obama administration has said it may need more time to study it. 7. Updating vacation bible school from its rote roots.
....A Houston evangelical pastor has revamped a summer tradition for the 21st century, combining Christian rock, humorous skits, Broadway-style musicals. 8. How eBay defied convention and turned itself around.
....The Internet company’s surprise earnings report was the result of technological innovation, a management overhaul and an embrace of new opportunities. POLITICS: 1. Strip clubs in Tampa are ready to cash in on GOP convention . ....Preparing for the biggest party Tampa has ever held, the city and its businesses are primping and polishing for the August arrival of tens of thousands of visitors. 2. Major bill delayed, House works on short-trm farm measure. ....After delaying action on a sweeping agriculture measure, lawmakers are seeking a way to aid farmers devastated by the drought. 3. Deficits for 2012 and beyond will be lower, White House says. ....Though revenues have fallen, federal spending has reduced as well, leading to a projected deficit of $1.2 trillion in fiscal 2012 rather than $1.3 trillion, the midyear budget report says 4. Once a rebel, McCain now walks the party line. ....Sen. John McCain of Arizona appears to have entered Version 3 of his long and multipronged career in the upper chamber — partisan warrior and party stalwart. 5. Head Start fears impact of potential budget cuts. ....Supporters of Head Start say the cuts would put more children at a disadvantage, but critics say the cuts would help rein in an overpriced program whose benefits have not been proven.
Today's Headlines of Interest: Cleanup continues following storms
Strong thunderstorms and a reported tornado resulted in a great deal of damage in the Elmira area late Thursday afternoon. There were reports of trees and power lines down, and people trapped in buildings and cars after the storm went through. The Chemung Co. Emergency Management Office is reporting a tornado touched down, but there has been no confirmation from the National Weather Service. A State of Emergency has been declared for the City of Elmira, where cleanup continues across the region. Power lines and trees were toppled and hospitals were placed on disaster alert in the city of Elmira. A state of emergency and curfew are in effect, with only emergency vehicles allowed on the streets while fallen trees and power lines are cleared. Fire companies from Dundee, Watkins Glen, Montour, Bath Hammondsport and Savona have all sent crews to the Elmi,ra area. The afternoon storms knocked power out for more than 200.000 customers in New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. The storms also moved through Corning. Utility crews from across Western New York were called down to those areas to help restore power. In Genesee County, lightning struck a tree and broke it into several pieces. The homeowner in Batavia says it happened during the first round of storms early Friday morning and that parts of the tree were found up to 40 feet away. No one was injured.
Thought for Today "There comes a point when a man must refuse to answer to his leader if he is also to answer to his own conscience." --Hartley Shawcross (1902-2003), prosecutor at Nuremberg War Crimes tribunal.
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