Pro basketball resumes on Christmas Day; college football will begin staging its major postseason contests eight days later. This has, perhaps unintentionally, engendered competing five-game simulations from 2K Sports and EA Sports, makers of NBA 2K12 and NCAA Football 12. Want to know who wins the big matchups? We've got the results predicted by these two video games, with highlights!
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LEE -- Citizen opposition has flared up over a Boston company's plan for a solar energy/recreational project they claim will lower property values and increase traffic on a heavily traveled town road.
Broadway Electric wants to install solar panels on roughly three acres of a 175-acre parcel off Stockbridge Road -- a major secondary route between Lee and Stockbridge. The town property was once targeted for a municipal golf course nearly 20 years ago.
In addition, the energy firm would build three playing fields, primarily for the youth soccer and football programs in Lee. The proposal also includes setting aside two acres for a citizens group that would privately fund, build and maintain a dog park.
The solar array is one of four Broadway Electric plans to install and maintain. They would generate a total of three megawatts of electricity to power all of Lee's municipal buildings. According to town officials, the other three include one each at the water and sewer treatment facilities and the former town landfill. Company officials haven't said what the overall project would cost.
However, several neighbors feel the Stockbridge Road aspect of the project would aesthetically have the greatest impact on the town.
"Anybody take into consideration what [the project] would do to my property if I wanted to sell it," questioned Bob Bartini of Fairview Street. "I sure as heck don't want it in my backyard."
Bartini
and others who spoke during Tuesday night's Board of Selectmen meeting also cited how the athletic fields will generate more traffic, especially on weekends and be costly to maintain.The recreational area would replace the two youth soccer fields being displaced by the solar array at the sewer plant on Route 102 and create a third field for youth football and possibly lacrosse.
The board emphasized it has just begun reviewing the project and will seek more public input before presenting a final plan to a town meeting for approval.
"We're going slowly and want to know more about what [the solar arrays] will look like," said Selectman Patricia Carlino. "We as a board must entertain the information and present it to the public for discussion."
Town officials are considering the project in an effort to reduce the $500,000 annual electric bill it pays Western Massachusetts Electric Co.; the two public schools and wastewater treatment plant accounting for two-thirds of the cost.
"The point of all this is we're trying to save money for the [taxpayers]," said board chairman David Consolati.
If town meeting voters approve the project, Lee would enter into a 20-year purchase agreement for electricity with Broadway at 7 cents per kilowatt hour, compared to the current 12-cent rate the town pays to WMECO. The projected savings for Lee taxpayers would be between $1 million and $2.5 million over a 20-year period.
Nevertheless, some local proponents of alternate energy sources are also skeptical about the Stockbridge Road, as well as Route 102 sites, both exposed to residential neighborhoods.
"I'm for green energy, solar energy, but I'm concerned about aesthetics," said Monica Ryan.
Thomas Wickham, a member of the town's ad hoc energy committee, cited how the solar panels will have minimal impact with the greatest return for the town.
"They are dark, they are low to the ground and produce clean electricity," said Wickham, who also chairs the Lee Planning Board.
The Selectmen plan to have further updates on the solar energy project in January.
To reach Dick Lindsay:
rlindsay@berkshireeagle.com,
or (413) 496-6233.
Source: http://www.berkshireeagle.com/local/ci_19597721?source=rss
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Vanessa Bryant, the wife of NBA star Kobe Bryant, filed for divorce Friday afternoon, citing "irreconcilable differences." They were married 10 and a half years.
Sources say that Vanessa decided to end the marriage because she thinks the Los Angeles Lakers guard has been unfaithful ... and not for the first time.
As one source close to Vanessa put it, "She's been dealing with these incidents for a long time and has been a faithful wife, but she's finally had enough."
"This one is the straw that broke the camel's back."
Vanessa Bryant famously stuck by Kobe after he was charged with sexually assaulting a Colorado woman in 2003 (he was acquitted of all charges).
Apparently the cheating didn't end there, though, and while Kobe "desperately" wants to win her back and will do "whatever it takes" ... good luck.
Vanessa is asking for joint custody of their two daughters, Natalia, 8, and Gianna, 5, but is asking that the basketball superstar get visitation rights
There is no prenup, so 29-year-old Vanessa is entitled to half the empire built over the last decade by NBA MVP and five-time champion Kobe, 33.
She's also requesting spousal support, which Kobe will pay. The Bryants released a joint statement saying they have "resolved all issues" privately.
No word on whether Kobe plans on changing his uniform number yet again or if Vanessa plans on joining the new season of VH1's Basketball Wives.
SIDE NOTE: That $4 million ring Kobe gave Vanessa after the 2003 scandal - later referred to as "the Kobe special" by Tiger Woods - all hers. Gift, babe.
[Photos: WENN.com]
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A newfound comet defied long odds Thursday, surviving a suicidal dive through the sun's hellishly hot atmosphere, according to NASA scientists.
Comet Lovejoy plunged through the sun's corona at about 7 p.m. ET, coming within 87,000 miles of our star's surface. Temperatures in the corona can reach 2 million degrees Fahrenheit, so most researchers expected the icy wanderer to be completely destroyed.
But Lovejoy proved to be made of tough stuff. A video taken by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory spacecraft, or SDO, showed the icy object emerging from behind the sun and zipping back off into space.
More space news from msnbc.com
Science editor Alan Boyle's blog: Budget uncertainties have led NASA to change its policy on funding the development of commercial spaceships, shifting to a process that provides more flexibility but also more risk for the space agency.
"Breaking News! Lovejoy lives! The comet Lovejoy has survived its journey around the sun to reemerge on the other side," SDO researchers tweeted.
SDO is one of many instruments that scientists ? eager to record and study the comet's presumed demise ? trained on Lovejoy as it streaked toward the sun.
"We have here an exceptionally rare opportunity to observe the complete vaporization of a relatively large comet, and we have approximately 18 instruments on five different satellites that are trying to do just that," Karl Battams, a scientist at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, wrote on the Sungrazing Comets website before Lovejoy's closest solar approach.
Battams runs the website, which is devoted to comets discovered by two different spacecraft: NASA's Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) and the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), which is operated jointly by NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). [Death of a Comet: Photos of Sungrazing Comet Lovejoy]
Preparing for the end
Lovejoy has a core about 660 feet wide. It belongs to a class of comets known as Kreutz sungrazers, whose orbits bring them very close to the sun.
All Kreutz sungrazers are thought to be the remnants of a single giant comet that broke apart several centuries ago. They're named after the 19th-century German astronomer Heinrich Kreutz, who first showed that such comets are related.
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Comets plunge into the sun on a regular basis, but they rarely give much advance notice of their suicidal intentions. That's why scientists were so excited about Lovejoy. Australian amateur astronomer Terry Lovejoy discovered the icy wanderer on Nov. 27, giving researchers plenty of time to map out their observation campaign.
And that campaign has been intense, involving five different spacecraft. In addition to SDO, SOHO and STEREO, scientists planned to use Japan's Hinode satellite and ESA's Proba spacecraft to track Lovejoy's movements, Battams wrote.
NASA also created a website providing updates about the comet's pass through the corona, as well as images of the event beamed down by SDO. It can be found here: http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/lovejoy.php
For his part, Terry Lovejoy said he was happy to have made a contribution, and he marveled a bit at all the attention the comet has been getting.
"It's been tremendous," Lovejoy told Space.com. "Apparently it's all over Facebook, and I don't use Facebook. But there's a lot of interest. I think a lot of people like the name ? the Lovejoy name seems to strike a chord with people."
A dramatic escape
Lovejoy is quite large for a sungrazing comet, and experts expected it to die an impressive death. The website Spaceweather.com, for example, predicted Lovejoy would blaze as brightly as Jupiter or Venus in the sky as it neared the sun.
Battams also expected a good show, saying the comet might even be visible from the ground around sunset today in the Northern Hemisphere.?
"I do think that it will put on a spectacular show for us and will be the brightest Kreutz-group comet that SOHO has ever observed," Battams wrote last week.
Though the early returns are just starting to come in, those forecasts appear to be on the money. Observations from various spacecraft do indeed show Lovejoy flaring up significantly as it neared our star.
Researchers will keep analyzing the images to better understand the comet's daring solar approach. And now skywatchers apparently have another shot to catch a glimpse of the resilient Lovejoy on Friday morning.
For observers in North America, the comet will rise approximately 5 to 10 minutes before dawn and will be situated to the upper right of the sun. If Lovejoy is still shining at least as brightly as Venus, it may be visible, experts say.?
You could also try to spot Lovejoy after the sun comes up, if you're exceedingly careful. Block the rising sun behind a distant building and focus on the part of the sky 3 to 4 degrees above and to the right of the sun (your clenched fist held at arm's length is equal to roughly 10 degrees).
CAUTION: Never point binoculars or a telescope at or near the sun, and never look directly at the sun with the naked eye. Serious eye damage can result.
And don't get your hopes up, either. The comet may well be too faint to see, experts say.
Note: If you take any good pictures of Comet Lovejoy and would like them to be considered for a future story or image gallery, contact Space.com managing editor Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com.
Space.com assistant managing editor Clara Moskowitz (@ ClaraMoskowitz ) contributed to this story. You can follow Space.com senior writer Mike Wall on Twitter:@michaeldwall. Follow Space.com for the latest in space science and exploration news on Twitter @Spacedotcom??and on Facebook.
? 2011 Space.com. All rights reserved. More from Space.com.
Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45691807/ns/technology_and_science-space/
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FORT MEADE, Md. ? The military court case against the young soldier blamed for the largest leak of classified material in American history resumed Saturday after an Army appeals court rejected a defense effort to remove the presiding officer.
Army Pfc. Bradley Manning was back in a military courtroom Saturday, his 24th birthday, to hear prosecutors begin presenting their case against him as the source for the WikiLeaks website's collection of U.S. military and diplomatic secrets.
The purpose of the hearing is to determine whether prosecutors have enough evidence to bring Manning to trial. Manning's lawyers tried to oust Lt. Col. Paul Almanza as the presiding officer because of alleged bias, but an Army appeals court rejected their request late Friday.
Separately, lawyers for WikiLeaks and founder Julian Assange are asking the Army Court of Criminal Appeals to guarantee them two seats in the courtroom at Fort Meade.
Manning, a one-time intelligence analyst stationed in Baghdad, is accused of leaking hundreds of thousands of sensitive items including Iraq and Afghanistan war logs, State Department cables and a classified military video of a 2007 American helicopter attack in Iraq that killed 11 men, including a Reuters news photographer and his driver.
The Obama administration says the released information has threatened valuable military and diplomatic sources and strained America's relations with other governments.
Friday was Manning's first appearance in public after 19 months in detention. He appeared slight but serious in his Army camouflage fatigues and dark-rimmed glasses, taking notes during the proceedings and answering straightforwardly when called upon by Almanza.
Manning, a native of Crescent, Okla., is relying on a defense that will argue much of the classified information posed no risk.
In addition to claims of partiality, his lawyer, David Coombs, argued that Almanza wrongly denied the defense's request to call as witnesses the officials who marked as secret the material WikiLeaks later published. Instead, the officer accepted unsworn statements from those people, Coombs said.
Friday's tangling, however, centered primarily on Almanza's Justice Department job. "I don't believe I'm biased," Almanza said, explaining that his government work concerns child exploitation and obscenity. He said he hasn't talked about WikiLeaks or Manning with anyone in the department or FBI.
The Justice Department has a separate criminal investigation into Assange. A U.S. grand jury is weighing whether to indict Assange on espionage charges, even as he is in Britain fighting a Swedish request that he be extradited because of rape allegations.
Manning's hearing at this Army post outside Washington is open to the public, with limited seating. Assange's lawyer filed a request Friday with the Army appeals court seeking two guaranteed seats in the Fort Meade courtroom, one for the attorney representing the Wikileaks organization and the other for Assange's non-U.S. attorney.
Inside the courtroom, no civilian recording equipment is allowed. Instead of a judge, a presiding officer delivers a recommendation as to whether prosecutors have enough evidence to bring a suspect to trial. A military commander then makes the final decision.
The case has spawned an international support network of people who believe the U.S. government has gone too far in seeking to punish Manning, and a few dozen showed up outside Fort Meade on Friday to rally on his behalf.
"I plan to march all night tonight and bring as much attention as I can to put the entire country on notice that we have a hero who's standing trial for nothing more than telling the truth," said Dan Choi, a gay West Point graduate discharged from the military for revealing his sexual orientation. He wore a bright orange "Bradley Manning Support Network" sticker on the lapel of his uniform jacket.
Others were less supportive.
"That man did something very wrong," said Mandie Stanley, a 19-year-old who lives on the Army post with her husband, a member of the Air Force. She spotted the protesters and decided to come out with a sign that said: "Don't leak classified information, stupid!"
___
Associated Press writers Sarah Brumfield and Mark Sherman contributed to this report.
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CANBERRA, Australia ? South Korea and Australia have signed an agreement to deepen military cooperation through increased joint exercises.
South Korean Defense Minister Gen. Kim Kwan-jin and his Australian counterpart, Stephen Smith, agreed during Wednesday's inaugural bilateral meeting to stage a regular new naval exercise starting next year.
The move comes after the United States announced last month that it will increase its military presence in Australia and conduct more joint exercises across the northern Australian Outback as it counters a growing China as well as the threat posed by North Korea to security in the Asia-Pacific region.
The two ministers said in a joint statement that Australia and South Korea are "like-minded middle powers" and "natural security partners."
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WASHINGTON ? Over and over, the Iraq war is over.
President Barack Obama, who opposed the war all the way to the White House, can't remind people enough that he is the one ending the conflict and getting every last troop home.
He is not just commander in chief intent on lauding the valor of the military. He is a president seeking re-election and soaking up every chance to mark a promise kept.
On Wednesday at Fort Bragg in North Carolina, a post that sent thousands of troops to Iraq and saw more than 200 of them die there, Obama summoned glory and gravity. In a speech full of pride in American fighting forces, Obama declared to soldiers that the "war in Iraq will soon belong to history, and your service belongs to the ages."
If the thought sounded familiar, it was because Obama has essentially been declaring an end since the start of his term.
Every milestone allows him to reach all those voters who opposed the unpopular war, including liberals in his party, whose enthusiasm he must reignite to win a second term.
There was the speech in Camp Lejeune, N.C., way back in February 2009, when he said: "Let me say this as plainly as I can: By Aug. 31, 2010, our combat mission in Iraq will end."
When that mission did end, Obama held a rare Oval Office address to the nation to celebrate the moment and declare: "It's time to turn the page."
In the last two months, Obama has taken three more swings at it, all of them commanding the attention the White House wanted.
In October, from the press briefing room: "As promised, the rest of our troops in Iraq will come home by the end of the year." On Monday with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki at his side: "This is a historic moment. A war is ending." On Wednesday to troops: "Iraq's future will be in the hands of its people. America's war in Iraq will be over."
He also made time this week to speak about Iraq to regional television stations serving military communities, most of them in states targeted by his re-election campaign.
Without question, the ending of a war is moment for any president to reflect with the country. Yet even Obama noted people have seen this one coming for a while.
Since George W. Bush was president, in fact.
Bush was the one who struck a deal with Iraq to set Dec. 31, 2011, as the final day of the war. Yet it was Obama who accelerated the end of the U.S. combat mission when he took office, shifted attention to Afghanistan, and decided to leave no troops behind in Iraq after this year.
The final U.S. forces will be out in days.
This, in essence, is Obama's mission accomplished: Getting out of Iraq as promised under solid enough circumstances and making sure to remind voters that he did what he said.
It is harder to remember now, with joblessness dominating the presidential debate and souring the public mood, but it was not long ago that the Iraq war consumed about everything.
In a new Associated Press-GfK poll, about half of those surveyed called the Iraq war highly important to them. It placed lower in importance than all but one of 14 current issues.
"It's understandable that he's trying to bring it back to the forefront of the public consciousness," said Ole Holsti, a retired Duke University professor who has written a book about American public opinion of the Iraq war.
"From a purely domestic political viewpoint, this is something that the president can bank on ? most Americans are eager to bring it to an end," he said. "I think after all this time, there's probably a kind of overriding sense of relief: `This is when we'll have the boys home.'"
Obama's approval rating on handling the situation in Iraq has been above 50 percent since last fall. In the new AP-GfK poll, he has ticked up four points since October to 55 percent.
Twice now, Obama has delivered we're-ending-the-war speeches in North Carolina, a state he barely won in 2008 and that is integral to his re-election prospects.
This is hardly a moment of national unity. About every issue seems politically toxic now.
As troops leave Iraq, 77 percent of Democrats approve of Obama's handling of the war compared to 33 percent of Republicans, an enormous gap. Independents are in the middle.
Obama's challenge has been to get out of the war without leaving Iraq in mess, to be consistent in his opposition without undermining the military under his command.
Nearly 4,500 Americans have been killed in the war. More than 1.5 million Americans have served in Iraq. The toll stretches in all directions.
So Obama was effusive in heralding the troops and their families. With no mention of victory, he called their service toward a self-reliant Iraq an extraordinary achievement.
"Americans expect the valor of the troops to be lauded no matter what they thought of the war itself, and Obama is very sensitive to that," said Cal Jillson, a professor of political science at Southern Methodist University. "That's one big part of what he's doing."
The other parts, Jillson said, have been to check the box of his campaign promise kept, and to close out the war as best as possible.
"Saying the troops performed nobly is easy," Jillson said. "The more difficult task is to make the case that the resources were well expended and the future of Iraq looks bright."
Especially for a president who called the war dumb and rash before it even began.
Obama has, though, been offering pronouncements of better days ahead in Iraq. Bush used to talk of Iraq becoming a beacon of hope in a region desperate for it. For those who caught it, Obama this week sure sounded plenty similar, arguing that "a successful, democratic Iraq can be a model for the entire region."
But mainly, Obama's message has been that it's all over, on his terms, just like he said. Again and again.
___
EDITOR'S NOTE ? AP White House Correspondent Ben Feller has covered the Obama and Bush presidencies.
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Egypt's Islamists appeared to sweep the vote in the mostly poor and rural areas of Egypt that voted on Wednesday and Thursday in the second round of a three stage parliamentary election. But the country's minority Christians, motivated by a desire to see checks on the Islamists' power in the legislature, also turned out to vote -- mostly for liberal parties -- in the districts of Upper Egypt where the sectarian divide often runs deepest.
Even before the overthrow of President Hosni Mubarak, Christians -- who comprise roughly 10% of Egypt's 85 million citizens -- had complained of heightened discrimination and sectarian violence in recent years. Then, last winter's uprising unleashed a wave of radical Islamism into an unstable security environment fraught with economic despair, producing a dramatic spike in sectarian violence in the months since Mubarak's ouster. And Christians complain that the ruling military has done little to stop it. In at least one case, the security forces have actually joined in attacks on Christians. That was in October, when soldiers attacked a Christian protest in downtown Cairo, killing 24 people, some of whom were run over by army vehicles. (See photos of Christians under attack in Cairo.)
Many Christian voters canvassed by TIME at the polls in the country's rural center said they had voted for the liberal groups that emerged strongest after the first round of voting -- often sacrificing a vote for their preferred party in favor of backing the one most likely to succeed in preventing an Islamist sweep. "I wanted to vote for the Continuous Revolution party, but they only got 7% in the first round," said Ibram Faris, a 22-year-old Christian resident of Tizment al-Gharbia, a predominantly Muslim village about 70 miles south of Cairo. Instead, Faris gave his vote to the more popular liberal Wafd party.
The region known as "Upper Egypt," which encompasses the villages south of Cairo and stretches along the Nile all the way to the Sudanese border, has long been plagued by sectarian tensions. Here, the competition for jobs and resources, coupled with a growing religious conservatism and a largely absent government, has fueled escalating outbreaks of violence in recent years. Bloody riots have most frequently erupted over religious conversions, and the construction churches and mosques -- a process far more onerous for Christians than it is for Muslims. In the months since the uprising, the region has been rocked by church burnings, small-scale riots, and an Islamist sit-in that ultimately ousted the Christian governor of Qena.
With Islamists predicted to win a landslide majority in parliament, Christians fear a system even more rigidly fundamentalist and neglectful of their rights than the last one. "They'll make [Egypt] an Islamic state and they will force us to wear certain things," said Selwa Gaber, a Christian housewife who cast her vote in the Upper Egyptian city of Beni Suef. Her daughter, Marina Magdy, said "[The Christians] will vote for the Wafd and the stairs and the fish," added her daughter, Marina Magdy, citing two candidates' electoral symbols, (a system used to provide guidance to illiterate voters). Neither Magdy nor her mother knew who the stairs or the fish represented, but what mattered, they said, is that they were anti-Islamist. (See video of Islamists in Tahrir Square.)
Mohamed Shehata, a poll monitor for the ultra-conservative Salafist Nour party insisted that such fears were overblown: "We're all one. We're not separated by religion." He said that even though the Nour party would seek an Islamic state, it had no plans to alter the legal rights of Christians. Supporters of both the Nour party and the more moderate and popular Islamist group, the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), claimed many Christians had even voted for them.
But Christian voters disputed that claim. "There are very few Christians here, but I'm sure they will all vote like me," said Faris. "Christians will reject the concept of parties based on religion."
Religious tolerance is one reason Egypt's Christians and liberals fear an Islamist government, but another is the economy. Egypt's tourism revenues have already dropped by one third this year, Reuters reported on Tuesday. The country's ancient heritage sites -- many of them located in Upper Egypt -- have fared worse in the tourist trade than have Egypt's picturesque beach resorts.
But Christians and liberals fear that it's the beach resorts that an Islamist government would target first. A number of candidates from the Nour party and at least one from FJP have promised to ban alcohol and revealing clothing. "I personally am worried about tourism because the Salafis want to close the beaches," said Mohamed Heggo, a Muslim salesman in the town of Beni Suef south of Cairo. Heggo said that he had once visited Ras Mohamed, a marine nature reserve on Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, and one of the world's prime dive locations. Though he doesn't work in tourism, Heggo said he could appreciate the spot's value. "A place like Ras Mohamed is 80% of the tourism revenue," he added, and for that reason, he would vote for a liberal party.
See photos of Egyptians heading to the polls.
See TIME's 2011 Person of the Year.
View this article on Time.com
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'I have the name for it,' Gaga reveals to MTV News, while producer Fernando Garibay says they're hoping to 'outdo' Born This Way.
By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Matt Elias and Vanessa WhiteWolf
Lady Gaga
Photo: MTV News
Lady Gaga is perhaps the busiest monster of them all. Just six months after dropping her chart-topping Born This Way, the Mother Monster is already hard at work on its follow-up.
"I've started writing it and I have the name for it and all the concepts are beginning to flourish and take place," she told MTV News at Jingle Ball in Los Angeles, where she also talked about her Grammy nods and "Marry the Night" video. "I'm excited to put it out, but it's not done yet. So I'll put it out when it's done."
BTW contributor Fernando Garibay recently stopped by the MTV News offices in Santa Monica, California, and shared the vision he has in mind for Gaga's next release.
"I get a little bit of anxiety thinking about that right now," the producer said of plans for the album. "I wanna just always try to outdo ourselves, our songs.
"They're already incredible songs. But I feel like she's so young," he said, adding that the record is in its early stages and that "there's a lot of room to grow."
While Gaga will hit the road on the Born This Way Tour next year, Garibay said that won't halt the recording process. "The last record we made in bus stops and hotel rooms," he said. "Wherever she's at, we'll make it."
However the recording schedule pans out, Garibay knows he and Gaga will continue experimenting with new sounds. "She's the perfect platform for me to express myself," he said. "You can do stuff with her that you can't do with anybody else. It's amazing."
What are you expecting from Gaga's next album? Share your ideas in the comments!
Related Videos Related ArtistsSource: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1675458/lady-gaga-next-album.jhtml
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We asked her: Which startup is getting all the best people these days?
We expected her to say Facebook, Twitter, or Zynga.
But her answer was Square, the startup that lets small merchants accept credit cards using a dongle attached to an iPhone or an iPad.
This recruiter ? who does not work for Square and has not been hiring people for it ? says that Square keeps hiring people she's been targeting.
She supposes this is for 3 reasons?
Our recruiter does not give Square perfect grades for its recruiting, however. She insists the company is making a big mistake hiring so many Ruby on Rails developers, who tend to be "hipsters with neckbeards."
We asked a source close to Square for his reaction to this concern, and he said, "LOL."
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PARIS ? French President Nicolas Sarkozy says a jointly issued bond by all the countries that use the euro is not the solution to the continent's debt crisis.
Many analysts have said that only by issuing bonds backed by the whole eurozone will Europe be able to save its shared currency.
Stronger countries, like Germany and France, have resisted those calls, but some thought that as the crisis worsens they might be forced to relent. Sarkozy reiterated Monday, however, that a common bond was "in no way" the solution to the crisis.
He spoke after a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the start of a crucial week for the eurozone. Markets cheered their comments, with the euro and stocks and bond yields edging lower.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.
PARIS (AP) ? The leaders of Germany and France are calling for a new European Union treaty to ensure that the region's debt crisis never happens again.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy said Monday after a meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel that they would prefer a treaty agreed by all 27 members of the European Union but would also accept a treaty among just the 17 countries that use the euro.
The new treaty should include automatic sanctions for countries that violate rules meant to keep government deficits in check.
The meeting comes at the start of a crucial week for the eurozone, as it struggles to convince markets that it is able to solve its debt crisis.
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MOSCOW (Reuters) ? Two exit polls showed that Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's ruling party suffered a big decline in support in a parliamentary election on Sunday, winning less than half of votes cast.
Following are reactions to the exit polls:
VLADIMIR PUTIN, PRIME MINISTER
"Despite all the difficulties and responsibility placed on the (United Russia) party's shoulders, our voters, our citizens have preserved it as the leading political party.
"This is an optimal result which reflects the real situation in the country... Based on this result we can guarantee stable development of our country."
DMITRY MEDVEDEV, PRESIDENT AND HEAD OF UNITED RUSSIA PARTY LIST
"We need to get a functional Duma which will not be swamped with controversies . for that we need a powerful, strong United Russia faction and we need to have friendly relations with our partners in the State Duma."
"In any case, taken the more complicated configuration of the Duma, we will have to enter in to coalitions and agreements (with other parties) on certain issues. This is normal, this is what parliamentarianism and democracy are about."
BORIS GRYZLOV, HEAD OF THE RULING COUNCIL OF UNITED RUSSIA
"We are watching and hope that we shall get a majority of the mandates in the Duma."
"We received support from the electorate... We can say that United Russia remains the ruling party."
"I congratulate you all and thank the electorate again."
GENNADY ZYUGANOV, COMMUNIST PARTY LEADER
"Despite their efforts to break public opinion, the country has refused to support United Russia."
"The country has never seen such a dirty election, even during the depth of the collapse under President Boris Yeltsin."
SERGEI OBUKHOV, COMMUNIST LAWMAKER
"Russia has a new political reality even if they rewrite everything."
VLADIMIR RYZHKOV, LIBERAL OPPOSITION LEADER
"I think the real percentage of votes United Russia received was from 35 to 45 percent.
"These elections are unprecedented because were carried out against the background of a collapse in trust in Putin, Medvedev and the ruling party. This is the most important political circumstance. I think that the March (presidential) election will turn into an even bigger political crisis, disappointment, frustration, with even more dirt and disenchantment, and an even bigger protest vote."
ANDREI PIONTKOVSKY, POLITICAL ANALYST
"It's the beginning of the end.
"It shows a loss of prestige for the party and the country's leaders. They are more despised mow than respected.
"People are fed up."
SERGEI BELANOVSKY, POLITICAL ANALYST
"I think there is a trend of the authorities' legitimacy falling, primarily Putin's.
"Although the people are not inclined to aggressive and violent behaviour, can the "new old" authorities run the country with a slump in ratings and not being ready to shoot? I do not know if it is possible to run a country where everyone hates you."
(Reporting by Maria Tsvetkova, Jennifer Rankin, Alexei Anishchuk and Gleb Bryanski, Editing by Timothy Heritage)
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BAGHDAD ? An explosion earlier this week in the Green Zone, a protected area in the center of the Iraqi capital, was an assassination attempt against the Iraqi prime minister, an Iraqi spokesman said.
That assailants were able to get a bomb inside what is supposed to be the most heavily fortified area in the country raises serious doubts about the abilities of Iraq's security forces at a crucial time when American troops are leaving the country.
The Baghdad military spokesman, Qassim al-Moussawi, said an attacker was able to get a vehicle carrying about 44 pounds (20 kilograms) of explosives into the Green Zone and then tried to join a convoy of other vehicles going into the parliament grounds.
But at a checkpoint leading into the parliament compound, guards prevented the driver from going any farther because he did not have proper authorization. The driver then drove to the parking lot just opposite the parliament entrance where many lawmakers or their staff park, and the vehicle exploded seconds later.
At the time, officials had said they did not know if the explosion was the result of rocket or mortar fire into the Green Zone, whether a bomber managed to get inside or whether a bomb had been attached to a vehicle that then drove into the Green Zone.
Al-Moussawi said the new information was based on confessions from members of a terrorist group. They revealed that the bomb was supposed to go off when Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki visited the parliament during an upcoming session, he said. But al-Moussawi declined to give further details.
He added that security officials already had information leading them to believe that al-Maliki might be targeted during his parliament trip. Al-Maliki was expected to address the legislative body soon but no date had been set.
A security official with knowledge of the investigation said police found a charred body near the mangled vehicle and were still trying to determine the identity of the person through DNA tests. The official said no one had come forward to claim the body, and it was not clear whether it was an innocent bystander or a suicide bomber.
Al-Maliki was in his office in another area of the Green Zone when the bomb went off, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to journalists.
No one else was killed in the blast, though two people were wounded.
The vast area in central Baghdad dubbed the Green Zone is the most protected area in Iraq and houses the U.S. Embassy, the Iraqi parliament and the homes of many Iraqi government officials. People going into the area must go through a checkpoint and show identification. Guards check for bombs or use dogs to search for explosives.
Inside the Green Zone there are often more checkpoints to access certain areas, including the parliament.
___
Associated Press writer Sameer N. Yacoub contributed to this report.
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Public release date: 2-Dec-2011
Share ] Contact: Press Office
Pressoffice@esrc.ac.uk
Economic & Social Research Council
Many disabled children fail to reach their full potential because they continue to be marginalised in schools, health and social care, according to new research funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).
"We found that disabled children often experience discrimination, exclusion and even violence," say Professor Dan Goodley and Dr Katherine Runswick-Cole, who implemented the study at the Manchester Metropolitan University. "The biggest barriers they meet are the attitudes of other people and widespread forms of institutional discrimination."
"Disabled children are seldom allowed to play and act like other children because of concerns about their 'leaky and unruly' bodies. But our study shows that many children who don't fit the narrow definition of 'normal' have untapped reserves of potential and high aspirations which can be fulfilled when their families receive effective support. There are also many amazing families who should be celebrated for the way they fight for their children." continues Professor Goodley.
The aim of the Does Every Child Matter, post Blair? project was to find out what life is like for disabled children and young people in the context of policy changes set in motion by the New Labour Government after 1997. The Aiming High for Disabled Children policy agenda was intended to enable disabled children to be 'healthy', 'stay safe', 'enjoy and achieve', 'make a positive contribution' and 'achieve economic well-being'.
The findings, which are based on a series of interviews with disabled children and their families, reveal numerous barriers to these goals, for example:
The researchers call for a change of attitude towards disability so that diversity is not only valued, but promoted. "There is an 'epidemic' of labelling children as disabled," Professor Goodley and Dr Runswick-Cole warn. "Parents are repeatedly under pressure to talk about what their children can't do in order to access services and support, but sometimes the label can obscure the individual. Families should be asked what support their child requires, not what is the 'matter' with him or her."
Their report recommends that policy should prioritise enabling disabled children to break down barriers by supporting their participation in education, the arts, leisure and their communities and by meeting their communication requirements. "We need to re-think the culture of individualism and performance which pushes disabled children out" continue the researchers. "Pressures on schools are getting worse. We found a case where parents of non-disabled children petitioned to exclude a disabled child. What does this say about the meaning of education and community?"
The study found that bullying is often accepted as inevitable when disabled children are perceived as vulnerable. There were several layers of violence, from manhandling in school to psychological bullying, which often goes unnoticed by adults. Some children do however stand up to bullies and refuse to be limited by labels that are imposed upon them.
One young person insisted on attending Brownies meetings alone, despite health and safety rules that required her mother to accompany her. "Kids seem to enjoy challenging people's expectations about their limitations," the researchers commented.
###
For further information contact
Professor Dan Goodley
Email: d.goodley@mmu.ac.uk
Telephone: 0161 247 2526
Dr Katherine Runswick-Cole
Email: K.Runswick-Cole@mmu.ac.uk
ESRC Press Office:
Danielle Moore
Email: danielle.moore@esrc.ac.uk
Telephone 01793 413122
Jeanine Woolley
Email: jeanine.woolley@esrc.ac.uk
Telephone 01793 413119
Notes for editors:
1. This release is based on the findings from 'Does every child matter, post-Blair? The interconnections of disabled childhoods' funded by the Economic and Social Research Council and carried out by Professor Dan Goodley and Katherine Runswick-Cole at the Manchester Metropolitan University.
2. The project employed a variety of innovative methods including interviews with groups of children and parents, focus group interviews with professionals, longitudinal case studies and 50 days of ethnography involving observation in nurseries, schools, children's parties and other social activities over a period of 18 months.
3. The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) is the UK's largest organisation for funding research on economic and social issues. It supports independent, high quality research which has an impact on business, the public sector and the third sector. The ESRC's total budget for 2011/12 is 203 million. At any one time the ESRC supports over 4,000 researchers and postgraduate students in academic institutions and independent research institutes. More at www.esrc.ac.uk
[ | E-mail | Share ] ?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Public release date: 2-Dec-2011 Share ] Contact: Press Office
Pressoffice@esrc.ac.uk
Economic & Social Research Council
Many disabled children fail to reach their full potential because they continue to be marginalised in schools, health and social care, according to new research funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).
"We found that disabled children often experience discrimination, exclusion and even violence," say Professor Dan Goodley and Dr Katherine Runswick-Cole, who implemented the study at the Manchester Metropolitan University. "The biggest barriers they meet are the attitudes of other people and widespread forms of institutional discrimination."
"Disabled children are seldom allowed to play and act like other children because of concerns about their 'leaky and unruly' bodies. But our study shows that many children who don't fit the narrow definition of 'normal' have untapped reserves of potential and high aspirations which can be fulfilled when their families receive effective support. There are also many amazing families who should be celebrated for the way they fight for their children." continues Professor Goodley.
The aim of the Does Every Child Matter, post Blair? project was to find out what life is like for disabled children and young people in the context of policy changes set in motion by the New Labour Government after 1997. The Aiming High for Disabled Children policy agenda was intended to enable disabled children to be 'healthy', 'stay safe', 'enjoy and achieve', 'make a positive contribution' and 'achieve economic well-being'.
The findings, which are based on a series of interviews with disabled children and their families, reveal numerous barriers to these goals, for example:
The researchers call for a change of attitude towards disability so that diversity is not only valued, but promoted. "There is an 'epidemic' of labelling children as disabled," Professor Goodley and Dr Runswick-Cole warn. "Parents are repeatedly under pressure to talk about what their children can't do in order to access services and support, but sometimes the label can obscure the individual. Families should be asked what support their child requires, not what is the 'matter' with him or her."
Their report recommends that policy should prioritise enabling disabled children to break down barriers by supporting their participation in education, the arts, leisure and their communities and by meeting their communication requirements. "We need to re-think the culture of individualism and performance which pushes disabled children out" continue the researchers. "Pressures on schools are getting worse. We found a case where parents of non-disabled children petitioned to exclude a disabled child. What does this say about the meaning of education and community?"
The study found that bullying is often accepted as inevitable when disabled children are perceived as vulnerable. There were several layers of violence, from manhandling in school to psychological bullying, which often goes unnoticed by adults. Some children do however stand up to bullies and refuse to be limited by labels that are imposed upon them.
One young person insisted on attending Brownies meetings alone, despite health and safety rules that required her mother to accompany her. "Kids seem to enjoy challenging people's expectations about their limitations," the researchers commented.
###
For further information contact
Professor Dan Goodley
Email: d.goodley@mmu.ac.uk
Telephone: 0161 247 2526
Dr Katherine Runswick-Cole
Email: K.Runswick-Cole@mmu.ac.uk
ESRC Press Office:
Danielle Moore
Email: danielle.moore@esrc.ac.uk
Telephone 01793 413122
Jeanine Woolley
Email: jeanine.woolley@esrc.ac.uk
Telephone 01793 413119
Notes for editors:
1. This release is based on the findings from 'Does every child matter, post-Blair? The interconnections of disabled childhoods' funded by the Economic and Social Research Council and carried out by Professor Dan Goodley and Katherine Runswick-Cole at the Manchester Metropolitan University.
2. The project employed a variety of innovative methods including interviews with groups of children and parents, focus group interviews with professionals, longitudinal case studies and 50 days of ethnography involving observation in nurseries, schools, children's parties and other social activities over a period of 18 months.
3. The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) is the UK's largest organisation for funding research on economic and social issues. It supports independent, high quality research which has an impact on business, the public sector and the third sector. The ESRC's total budget for 2011/12 is 203 million. At any one time the ESRC supports over 4,000 researchers and postgraduate students in academic institutions and independent research institutes. More at www.esrc.ac.uk
[ | E-mail | Share ] ?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-12/esr-dcd120211.php
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They hang out in the Starlight Room, play shuffleboard, and achieve Operating Thetan Level VIII. To an outsider, the Freewinds looks just like any other cruise ship. In fact, it was an ordinary cruise ship called the MS Boh?me before the Church of Scientology bought it from Commodore Cruise Line in 1985. It has a shuffleboard court on the top deck, a couple of restaurants, swimming pools, hot tubs, and a night club that features either the regular band or a local group from the ship?s current port. (Tom Cruise once took the microphone in the Starlight Room for a pitchy birthday rendition of ?Old Time Rock and Roll.?) But a trip on the Freewinds is nothing like a Carnival cruise. Scientologists board the ship to progress in their spiritual studies, and their activities are tightly scheduled. Most days, they are in lecture halls or counseling sessions from 9 a.m. until 10 p.m., with one-hour breaks for lunch and dinner. Playing hooky to bum around the pool is not an option. Supervisors take roll call at the beginning of each session, and tardy students are sent to ethics officers. The Freewinds? biggest draw is that it is the only place where an adherent can complete the coursework to achieve Operating Thetan Level VIII, the highest degree of spiritual achievement currently available in Scientology.
Source: http://feeds.slate.com/click.phdo?i=002abdec138692bcb81a2651ac2da97b
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The holiday season is fast approaching, and again parents are asking themselves, "What should I get my kid?" The Light Strike Assault Striker D.C.R-012 ($39.99 list) is the at-home consumer version of laser tag. It comes with one gun and a plastic orb for target practice?and batteries are not included. Playing with this high-tech toy is fun, but parents be warned if you have no intention of joining in the fire-fight: This toy is noisy.
The Assault Striker D.C.R-012 has a bright sci-fi pattern on the exterior, and from the box image you may think you're getting a dynamically molded gun, but it's just a bunch of stickers on a flat surface, which may leave the gun prone to looking weathered quickly if the stickers start to peel. The gun has a lot of touch-sensitive buttons, the most important one parents and stealth shooters will want to take note of is the volume button. You can't completely mute the gun, but you can install ear buds into the headphone jack to silence the weapon.
Setting up the Assault Striker D.C.R-012 will require a Phillips head screwdriver and four AA batteries for the gun, and three AAA batteries for the Strike Target.
The Laser Strike isn't that heavy, and it's pretty accurate. It has a range of 30 feet, and when I took the orb out for target practice, the further away I went, the more challenging it was to hit the target, which I thought was well within reason. Booting up the gun, requires only to flip a switch and press the "fingerprint reader" touch button. You can have up to 4 players in an all-out deathmatch and up to 4 teams in a team deathmatch. The features on the gun remind me of a certain sci-fi first-person shooter game (Halo). There's a shield button, which halves any damage that you may take when activated, and the built-in health meter tracks how much damage you've taken (the gun also functions as the tag sensor). There's also a weapon selection button that allows you to switch between several "weapon" modes to help you with your strategy?unless you just like to run-and-gun.
Laser: It's the default weapon mode that doesn't offer a lot of firepower, but you'll be able to get your shots off quicker.
Stealth: This option allows you to shoot with the same power and frequency as the Laser Strike, but your shots will be muffled.
Pulse: This mode with use up your ammo faster and has a longer delay between blasts, but it packs a lot more damage per shot.
Rail: This weapon mode offers even more firepower, but also goes through ammo fast and there's a longer delay between shots.
Sonic: This mode is the biggest "weapon" in your arsenal, packing the largest amount of damage, but you'll go through ammo quickly and there's a long delay between blasts.
The Assault Striker D.C.R-012 also has room for expansion options, like the Enemy Scanner, Scope, Rapid Fire System, and Refractor Launch System that may give wealthier children an edge against their competition.
If there are a lot of kids in your neighborhood, this gift is definitely a good buy especially if it's a coordinated effort among the other parents. I had a lot of fun playing with it, running around the office (after work hours) and essentially skeet-shooting with the plastic orb.
More Toy Reviews:Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/2gaFo7SRrBw/0,2817,2396716,00.asp
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