Comments are welcome, thoughts and ideas are also most welcome.
What I'm reading*:
Scared to Death, Christopher Booker & Richard North.
*I'm sure I'll finish it some day...
Good steak, great company.
Source: http://annoyancesandirritations.blogspot.com/2011/10/three-aussies-killed-in-kandahar-us.html
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TEHRAN (Reuters) ? Three separate explosions were reported on Iranian oil and gas infrastructure on Friday, with an oil field blast killing one person.
There was no apparent connection between the three incidents but they are likely to raise concerns about safety in Iran's vital energy sector, which has been deprived of foreign investments due to sanctions.
The fatal incident at the oil field at Bibi Hakimeh near the Gulf occurred during drilling, when workers unexpectedly encountered an "enormous volume of unknown accumulated gas" in the layers of a reservoir, the semi-official Mehr news agency reported. Three people were injured.
Mehr also reported a separate blast at the Shazand oil refinery in central Iran, but the plant's managing director later told state radio the incident had been exaggerated.
"Nothing special has happened there. There was no fire at all," Majid Rajabi said. "The refinery is functioning normally."
The third blast happened on a 26-inch pipeline carrying gas to an oilfield in Gachsaran in south-western Iran later on Friday, according to the official IRNA news agency.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad witnessed first hand a lethal explosion at a refinery when a blast happened in May at the major Abadan complex as he was opening a new plant.
Iran is pushing for a massive increase in gasoline output to counter international sanctions on imports. In the Abadan case, several politicians said the work had been rushed and safety standards were not observed, something officials denied.
Last year a scheme to develop the Shazand refinery was launched, with an investment of $3.3 billion to boost its initial refining capacity from 170,000 barrels per day to 250,000 bpd and increase Iran's gasoline production by 2 million liters per day.
(Reporting by Ramin Mostafavi and Hossein Jaseb; Editing by Jane Baird and Anthony Barker)
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WASHINGTON ? Two lawmakers who want the NFL to test players for human growth hormone say the players union might be stalling to avoid putting the test in place.
"Unfortunately, it appears that the players' union may be using stall tactics to avoid complying with the collective bargaining agreement," wrote California Republican Darrell Issa and Maryland Democrat Elijah Cummings in a letter to the union and league Friday. "For example, we have not received an adequate justification for refusing to allow the collection of blood samples while negotiations continue about the testing regimen."
Issa, chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, and Cummings, the panel's top Democrat, said after a meeting with the league and the union two weeks ago that there was a deal to begin collecting blood for testing. But the union didn't acknowledge any agreement, and has since told the NFL to hold off.
In their letter Friday, the congressmen said they had warned both sides at that meeting that if there wasn't progress within two weeks, the NFL and union would be brought back. Barring news of progress, they wrote, "we will be in touch with you shortly."
The congressmen said they were disappointed in the lack of movement, adding, "Every week of football played without a test endangers clean players and sends a message to young athletes that HGH is tolerated at the game's highest level."
The union issued a statement in response to the letter: "Players have made it clear that the only priority is getting a testing procedure that is right and fair. That is what we will do."
In a statement, NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said the league shares the lawmakers' disappointment.
"We are ready to begin immediately collecting samples and educating players on the testing program," he said.
The latest collective bargaining agreement between the NFL and union includes a provision to begin testing players for HGH ? contingent on the union agreeing to the testing methods. The NFL Players Association has asked for more scientific data to prove the most popular test is reliable.
The congressmen wrote that USADA, the U.S. anti-doping agency, last week offered an opportunity to tour its testing facility, where the union would be walked through every stage of the test. According to the letter, the union declined, which the lawmakers took as one of several signals that the union had a "lack of urgency" to live up to the terms of the CBA. A committee spokesman said that USADA told the committee about this offer.
Issa and Cummings said they appreciated the players' concerns that the testing not expose them to false positives, but said that both sides have an obligation to abide by the terms of the CBA.
The union is seeking data from the athletes who were used to originally set thresholds for what constitutes a positive test, so it can compare that data with a population study on football players. The union believes football players could have naturally higher HGH levels than those of other athletes.
Earlier this week, senior Democrats on the House Energy and Commerce Committee urged that panel's chairman to hold hearings on the HGH impasse.
___
AP Pro Football writer Barry Wilner in New York contributed to this story.
Follow Fred Frommer on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ffrommer
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New York ? The president offers debt relief to help struggling graduates cope. But critics say the proposal is so meager that it's meaningless
President Obama on Wednesday announced a plan to offer relief to millions of young people struggling to repay federal student loans.?The new rules will let borrowers cap monthly payments on federal loans (but not private loans) at 10 percent of their discretionary income. Obama?said the move would "make a difference," even if it isn't the sort of sweeping economic change America needs. Congress actually already approved this measure last year, eyeing a 2014 roll-out.?Obama plans to use an executive order to implement the new rules in 2012. Will this really help struggling graduates?
The savings are negligible:?The president's plan "sounds wonderful," says Matt Kiebus at Death and Taxes, "but even if those eligible take advantage, the savings are pretty modest." (Just a few dollars a month, by some estimates.) Besides, people with federal student loans would have received the same relief in 2014, anyway. This is "not nearly enough" to make a significant difference.
"Obama offers some student loan relief, but it's not nearly enough"
Every little bit helps: America's graduates have $1 trillion in outstanding loan debt, says Laura Clawson at Daily Kos. So?Obama knows "this move is a very small drop in the very large bucket of need." But 14 percent of recent college graduates are either unemployed or working only part-time, so every dollar they save is helpful. "It's good to see the Obama administration thinking creatively about how to get around congressional obstruction."
"Obama bypasses Congress to offer lower student loan payments for millions"
Obama is actually doing young Americans a disservice: Such subsidies encourage young people to go to colleges out of their price range, says Kevin Glass at?The American Spectator, even though their diplomas won't justify the investment. This only inflates the "massive bubble of debt" that made the economy so shaky in the first place.
"Obama's student loan bailout won't help anything"
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The rationale behind the recommendation is that the vaccine prevents genital warts and anal cancers in males, both of which can be caused by HPV
?| October 26, 2011?|
HPV ON PAP SMEAR: Image of normal squamous cells (left) and HPV-infected cells (right).
Image: Wikimedia Commons
A vaccine originally intended to prevent cervical cancer in girls should be given to boys as well, an advisory panel for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said today (Oct. 25).
The panel voted to recommend the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine be given to boys ages 11 to 12. The vaccine is already recommended for girls of this age.
The rationale behind the recommendation is that the vaccine prevents genital warts and anal cancers in males, both of which can be caused by HPV. The vaccine may also prevent head and neck cancer, which has been on the rise in recent years.
In addition, vaccinating boys may help reduce cervical cancer in women. If males do not acquire the infection, they cannot pass it to females.
The new recommendation "will be a hugely important step in cancer prevention in this country, both for girls and for boys; women as well as men," said Dr. William Schaffner, chairman of the department of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University, in an interview before the vote. Because rates of HPV vaccination in girls have been low, it's important to vaccinate boys as part of the public health strategy to prevent cervical cancer, Schaffner said.
Although the vaccine has been licensed by the Food and Drug Administration for boys ages 9 to 26, only about 1 percent of males in this age group have received it, said Dr. Paul Offit, chief of the director of the Vaccine Education Center at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. After this new recommendation, that percentage should increase dramatically, Offit said.
Boys and men ages 13 to 21 who have not been vaccinated, or haven't received all their shots should also be vaccinated, the committee said.
Benefit for boys and girls
Two of the most common strains of HPV (HPV 16 and 18) cause about 21,000 cancers per year in the United States. One-third of these cancers are in males, according to the CDC.
There are now studies showing the vaccine is effective at preventing genital warts and anal cancers caused by HPV. The recommendation is for the Gardasil vaccine, made by Merck & Co. Inc, which protects against four strains of HPV. The other available HPV vaccine, called Cervarix and made by GlaxoSmithKline, is not licensed for use in males.
And although the vaccine has not been proven to prevent head and neck cancers, which can also be caused by HPV, the recent rise in cases of these cancers likely factored into the panel's reasoning for the recommendation, Schaffner said. Between 1988 and 2004, there was a 28 percent increase in oropharyngeal cancer, a type of head and neck cancer, said Dr. Lauri Markowitz, a member of the CDC committee on HPV vaccines.
In addition, it wasn't previously clear whether vaccinating boys as a means to prevent cervical cancer in girls would be worth the cost. If every girl was vaccinated, the benefit of vaccinating boys would be minimal, and come at a high price, researchers reasoned.
However, new research shows only about 32 percent of U.S. girls receive all three shots of the HPV vaccine (three shots are thought to be optimal for HPV prevention). This low rate of vaccination rate in girls means "it becomes much more sensible to vaccinate the boys also," Schaffner said.
Schaffner also pointed out that the new recommendation will protect men who have sex with men ? a group that may not be protected from even a high rate of vaccinations among girls and women.
Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=275e8c1ce1e8f409a996f3653522f1b9
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LONDON (Reuters) ? A lawyer for Rupert Murdoch's News Group Newspapers earlier this year accused the British Broadcasting Corporation of pursuing an investigation of alleged computer and phone hacking to "undermine" Murdoch's bid to acquire full ownership of satellite broadcaster BSkyB.
Julian Pike of the London law firm Farrer & Co, which also represents Britain's Queen Elizabeth, sent a series of letters last March to the BBC expressing concerns at the British arm of Murdoch's News Corporation that the BBC might have transgressed its commitment to impartiality for commercial or political reasons. The BBC denied this was the case.
The letters, whose full contents have not previously been reported, were sent in response to requests by journalists from the BBC newsmagazine Panorama to News Group for comment regarding alleged phone and computer hacking conducted by journalists for the Sunday tabloid News of the World.
Murdoch shut the paper last July amid a torrent of allegations about alleged ethical and legal lapses by its staff.
The Panorama program, headlined "Tabloid Hacks Exposed" focused on the alleged role of Murdoch journalists in employing "dark arts" - Fleet Street jargon for dubious and potentially illegal reporting tactics - and in particular allegations of "blagging" (jargon for pretending to be someone else) and computer and phone hacking at the News of the World.
Pike laid out News Group's complaints about the BBC's investigation in letters sent to Panorama in early March headed
"NOT FOR PUBLICATION & NOT FOR BROADCAST: STRICTLY PRIVATE & CONFIDENTIAL."
In two letters, dated March 10 and 11, Pike suggested that the BBC might be pursuing the hacking story for business or political reasons rather than for journalistic motives.
Pike said that BBC Director General Mark Thompson had been "required to apologize" in November 2010 for adding his signature to a letter from a group of companies who were critical of News Corp's bid to acquire the balance of shares in BSkyB which it did not already own.
In his March 10 letter, Pike noted that the BBC was planning to broadcast Panorama's investigation at a time when the British government was actively considering Murdoch's bid for BSkyB's remaining shares. He noted that the BBC had an "obligation to avoid embroiling itself in a political and commercial battle that it should have nothing to do with."
BSkyB is a principal competitor with the BBC in Britain.
In a lengthy letter sent to the BBC the following day, Pike said it had "not gone unnoticed" that the BBC, along with "certain other media organizations," had been in "the vanguard of running a campaign against" News Corp regarding alleged News of the World phone hacking. Pike asserted that the BBC had "obvious political and commercial reasons" to use the phone hacking allegations "to attack our clients and undermine New (sic) Corp's Sky bid."
Pike said it was "quite apparent" that the program the BBC was preparing was "yet another attempt to undermine New Corp's bid for Sky" (sic).
In the letter, Pike also accused the BBC of planning to take out of context an investigation by Britain's Information Commissioner's Office which alleged that publications other than the News of the World, including The Observer, a Sunday newspaper which is affiliated with the Guardian daily, had also engaged in questionable or illegal reporting practices.
In response to a request for comment, the BBC told Reuters: "Panorama investigations always come from a point of public interest and operate within the BBC editorial guidelines and Ofcom's code. This program was no different and...details of the phone hacking scandal has been widely reported by numerous media organizations. Any suggestion it was made to further the BBC's own interests is utterly without foundation."
A spokesperson for News International, Murdoch's principal newspaper publishing company in Britain, said the company had no comment on Pike's accusation that the BBC had pursued the phone hacking inquiry for ulterior motives.
However, the spokesperson noted that the company on October 14 had issued a statement acknowledging that its Management and Standards committee, supervising News International's response to the phone hacking controversy, had agreed with Farrer & Co. that the law firm would "stand down" from representing Murdoch's News Group properties in "current or future" lawsuits filed by alleged News of the World phone hacking victims.
At a hearing before a British parliamentary committee which has been investigating phone hacking, Pike acknowledged that in 2008 he became aware of documentary evidence contradicting public statements by Murdoch aides that phone hacking at the News of the World had been the work of a "single rogue reporter."
Pike told the committee he did not believe he had an obligation as a lawyer "to go and report something that I see within a case where there might have been some criminal activity."
In a report on his testimony and other aspects of his letters to the BBC, the Guardian last week reported that Pike had admitted to parliament that he knew public statements by News of the World executives about the rogue reporter were misleading when he sent a letter to the BBC threatening "successful" litigation for defamation if the BBC accused News International executives of knowingly making untrue or misleading public statements.
The Guardian also reported that the BBC had referred Farrer & Co to a disciplinary authority for British lawyers because of this aspect of Pike's letter.
The BBC confirmed that it had "written to the Solicitors Regulation Authority. seeking advice in relation to their rules governing the conduct of solicitors."
In Britain, solicitors are lawyers who handle most out of court and pre-trial litigation, while barristers are lawyers who handle trials and appeal proceedings in higher courts.
Pike did not respond to an e-mail requesting comment. But a representative of Farrer & Co. disputed the Guardian's interpretation of Pike's letter and what Pike had said to Parliament. The firm had no further comment on its accusation that the BBC had acted for commercial or political motives.
The Solicitors Regulation Authority said that in July, it had launched a "formal investigation into the role of solicitors in events surrounding the News of the World phone hacking crisis," and that it could make no further comment while that inquiry was under way.
(Created by Simon Robinson)
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You may have noticed a trend recently -- pairing slightly less powerful cores that sip power, with more robust ones that can chug through demanding applications. NVIDIA's Tegra 3 will be packing an underclocked fifth core, while ARM's big.LITTLE initiative matches a highly efficient 28nm A7 with the beefy A15. Now Freescale is planning to use the same trick, but you won't find its asymmetrical CPUs in your next tablet or smartphone. Its platform, which marries a Cortex M4 to a Cortex A5, isn't meant to compete with the latest Snapdragon. These chips will find homes in factories and in-dash infotainment systems which have increasingly sophisticated UIs, but don't need to push thousands of polygons. Software development tools will land before this quarter is out and the first batch of silicon will be announced in Q1 of 2012. Looks like the era of "dual-core" meaning two identical cores has officially come to an end.Continue reading Freescale joins ARM A5 and M4 cores at the hip for performance and power savings
Freescale joins ARM A5 and M4 cores at the hip for performance and power savings originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 17:02:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Fans cheer as Texas Rangers pitcher Derek Holland leaves the game during the ninth inning of Game 4 of baseball's World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Fans cheer as Texas Rangers pitcher Derek Holland leaves the game during the ninth inning of Game 4 of baseball's World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals, Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Texas Rangers starting pitcher Derek Holland is congratulated in the dugout after being taken out of the game during the ninth inning of Game 4 of baseball's World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Texas Rangers manager Ron Washington talks to starting pitcher Derek Holland before taking him out of the game during the ninth inning of Game 4 of baseball's World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
St. Louis Cardinals' Albert Pujols reacts as he walks back to the dugout after flying out during the ninth inning of Game 4 of baseball's World Series against the Texas Rangers Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011, in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers won 4-0 to tie the series at 2-2. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)
Texas Rangers starting pitcher Derek Holland throws during the first inning of Game 4 of baseball's World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) ? Inning by inning, this World Series is getting more intriguing.
Derek Holland provided the latest twist, boosted by a pregame pep talk from his manager. The Texas lefty shut down the St. Louis Cardinals on two hits into the ninth inning, and the Rangers won 4-0 Sunday to even things at 2-all.
A day after the Cardinals, powered by Albert Pujols, scored a team record 16 runs in a postseason game, they never got close against Holland.
"When I came off the field, arm hairs are sticking up. It's not like I have much, but man, it was tingly," Holland said.
Rangers manager Ron Washington came to the mound after 8 1-3 innings following Holland's second walk of the game. So close to a shutout, and with the crowd chanting his name, Holland pleaded his case, trying to talk his way into staying in.
"He was begging," Washington said. Or, as Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler described it: "A lot of profanity, we sounded like sailors out there."
Washington listened, then signaled for closer Neftali Feliz. Holland had done his job in Game 4, and then some. He had kept Pujols in the ballpark and the Rangers in this Series.
"Now it's a best out of three," Pujols said. "See who can win two games. At the end, that's who is going to be raising the trophy."
Holland struck out seven and came within two outs of pitching the first complete-game shutout in the World Series since Josh Beckett's gem for Florida to clinch the 2003 title at Yankee Stadium.
"I was very focused. I knew this was a big game for us," said Holland, who was 16-5 with 3.95 ERA and four shutouts in the regular season. "I had to step up and make sure I was prepared."
Hobbled Josh Hamilton put Texas ahead with an RBI double in the first inning. Then Mike Napoli broke it open with a three-run homer in the sixth that set off a hearty high-five in the front row between team president Nolan Ryan and former President George W. Bush.
And just like that, for the first time since 2003, the World Series stood at two games apiece.
Game 5 is Monday night at Rangers Ballpark. It's a rematch of the opener, when Cardinals ace Chris Carpenter topped C.J. Wilson. After that, it's back to Busch Stadium to crown a champion.
Pujols produced arguably the greatest hitting show in postseason history in Game 3, tying Series records with three home runs, six RBIs and five hits during the Cardinals' romp. However, Holland has now emerged as the unlikely star.
Pujols finished 0 for 4 and hit the ball out of the infield only once.
"I wanted him to see my 'A' game," Holland said.
Feliz took over and closed. He walked Allen Craig, then retired Pujols on a fly ball and struck out Matt Holliday to end it.
Holland was in tune all evening with Napoli, his pal and catcher. Much better than the battery for the pregame ceremony ? Bush tossed a wild pitch that glanced off the catcher's mitt Ryan wore.
"I should've gone with the regular glove," Ryan said with a chuckle.
The bounce-back Rangers managed to avoid consecutive losses for the first time since Aug. 23-25, a streak that's kept them out of trouble in the postseason.
The Rangers also completed a Sunday sweep in the matchup of teams from St. Louis and the Dallas area. Earlier in the afternoon, the Cowboys beat the Rams 34-7 right across the parking lots. Hamilton and Lance Berkman served as honorary captains for the pregame coin toss, wearing their baseball uniforms.
Many fans might remember Holland from last year's World Series. He's the reliever who came in against San Francisco, walked his first three batters and promptly got pulled.
Maybe that guy was an impostor. Because this 25-year-old lefty with the sorry little mustache was completely poised, with pinpoint control. Perhaps it was the talk he got from Washington near the dugout shortly before taking the mound.
Washington put both hands on Holland's shoulders and talked to him tenderly, like a dad about to send his teenage son off to college. Holland kept nodding, and Washington finished up with a playful pat to Holland's cheek.
"It was just a general message that he's capable of going out there and keeping us in the ballgame. That's all it was," Washington said. "I talk with Derek like that all the time, it just happened to catch me on TV."
Added Holland: "He shows that he cares about all his players, and he definitely showed that when he talked to me."
After that, Holland was in total command in his first Series start, and improved to 3-0 lifetime in the postseason. The only hits he allowed were by Berkman: a double in the second and a single in the fifth. Holland got even later, getting Berkman to look at a strike three that left the St. Louis star discussing the call with plate umpire Ron Kulpa.
Cardinals starter Edwin Jackson kept his team close despite a wild night in which he walked seven in 5 1-3 innings. Jackson left after a pair of walks in the sixth and Napoli homered on the first pitch from reliever Mitchell Boggs.
"It's just a matter of time before they catch up with you," Jackson said.
NOTES: Napoli became the first catcher to hit two homers in a Series since Mike Piazza of the Mets in 2000. ... Kinsler and St. Louis C Yadier Molina played a little game of back-and-forth in the second. Kinsler robbed Molina of an RBI single with a nice stop up the middle to end the top half. In the bottom half, Molina made a snap throw that trapped Kinsler off first base for the last out.
Associated PressBAGHDAD ? A U.S. State Department program to train Iraqi police lacks focus, could become a "bottomless pit" of American money and may not even be wanted by the Iraqi department it's supposed to help, reports released Monday by a U.S. government watchdog show.
The findings by the U.S. Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction paint what is supposed to be the State Department's flagship program in Iraq in a harsh light.
The report comes at a crucial time for the State Department as it assumes sole responsibility for securing U.S.-Iraqi ties as American forces leave by the end of this year.
On Oct. 1, the State Department took over the job of training Iraqi police from the Defense Department. According to the inspector general's report, the training program faces many problems.
Only a small portion ? about 12 percent ? of the millions of dollars budgeted will actually go to helping the Iraqi police, the report said. The "vast preponderance of money" will pay for security and other items like living quarters for the people doing the training, the review found.
The audit also said that although the State Department has known since 2009 it would be taking over the training program, it failed to develop a comprehensive and detailed plan for the training.
"Without specific goals, objectives and performance measures, the PDP (Police Development Program) could become a 'bottomless pit' for U.S. dollars intended for mentoring, advising and training the Iraqi police forces," the report stated.
Few dispute, however, that Iraqi police are far from ready to fully protect their country ? or even themselves.
On Monday, police and health officials said three separate attacks against traffic police in Baghdad killed two policemen and three civilians. Ten people, including six police, were injured.
The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to release the information.
In the inspector general's report, the oversight agency also found that budget concerns led to the program being significantly downsized.
In 2009, the State Department agency in charge of the training, the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, estimated it would cost about $721 million to pay for a program with 350 police advisers. That averaged out to about $2.1 million per adviser, said SIGIR.
But in December 2010, the program was downsized to 190 advisers while costs had increased, the report stated. According to SIGIR calculations, the average cost per adviser jumped to $6.2 million per year.
By July of this year, the number of advisers had dropped to 115 for what the State Department described as Phase 1 of the program. If its budget request is approved for fiscal year 2012, the program could be beefed up again to 190 advisers, State Department officials told the oversight agency.
Despite the considerable outlay in U.S. taxpayer money, the Iraqi government has yet to sign off on the program and doesn't seem to want it. The official in the Iraqi Ministry of Interior (MOI) responsible for the ministry's day-to-day operations, Adnan al-Asadi, suggested to SIGIR that the U.S. should spend the money on something for the American people instead.
"What tangible benefit will Iraqis see from this police training program? With most of the money spent on lodging, security, support, all the MOI gets is a little expertise, and that is if the program materializes. It has yet to start," al-Asadi said.
The inspector general said the State Department did not fully cooperate with their audit.
"There were delays in gaining access to key officials and in obtaining documents. Moreover, the documents provided were incomplete," the audit read. One meeting in May was canceled an hour before it was to start because State Department officials needed additional "Department guidance," SIGIR wrote.
The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad did not respond to a request for comment.
In a letter to SIGIR, the State Department said it "generally agrees" with the report's recommendations but defended its efforts.
State Department Assistant Secretary William Brownfield wrote that because they were unsure of whether they would get all the money they'd requested, they decided to start with a smaller number of trainers, and they could ramp up to 190 trainers if the funds come through.
Brownfield also said an independent organization was supposed to do a detailed assessment of Iraqi law enforcement capabilities but did not have access to people on the Iraqi side to finish the assessment in time. He said it would be done by November.
The fact that Iraq still does not have a permanent in interior minister has hampered efforts to come up with an agreement on implementing the training program, Brownfield wrote. But he said the MOI was committed to the program. He also wrote that the State Department hoped to reduce costs in the coming years and to hire more Iraqi support employees.
__
Online:
http://www.sigir.mil/directorates/audits/auditReports.html
__
Rebecca Santana can be reached at http://twitter.com/@ruskygal
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KABUL, Afghanistan?? Afghan and NATO coalition forces killed or captured about 200 insurgents in eastern Afghanistan during two operations targeting the lethal Haqqani network, which has links to al-Qaida and the Taliban, the U.S.-led coalition said Monday.
At least 20 insurgents with ties to the Haqqani group were among those killed or captured in the operations conducted during the past week by Afghan security forces with the support of coalition troops, said German Brig. Gen. Carsten Jacobson, a coalition spokesman in Afghanistan.
About half of the Haqqani fighters were identified as leaders and the other half were bomb makers or individuals who help militants in various ways, such as distributing weapons and supplies, running safe houses or preparing areas for attack.
"Removal of the midlevel cell leaders with their expertise and leadership has significantly disrupted insurgent operations and degrades the Haqqani network's ability to coordinate and execute future attacks against combined team forces and the people of Afghanistan," Jacobson said.
The joint force also seized more than 400 kilograms of explosives, weapons, munitions and computers.
The two operations have ended, but the coalition is continuing its work to disrupt the Haqqani network, he said.
On Sunday, NATO reported that a heavily armed group of Haqqani fighters was the target of an airstrike in Wuza Jadran district of Paktia province. The coalition said several insurgents were killed in the attack, but did not specify how many.
The Haqqani network is based in Pakistan, but operates primarily in Paktia, Paktika and Khost provinces and is blamed for most of the recent high-profile attacks in the Afghan capital.
"Haqqani is not only a terrorist organization, it is a family clan, a criminal patronage network and a terrorist organization," Jacobson said. He said that the Haqqanis aim to have maximum control over eastern Afghanistan and access to Kabul from the south.
"Though their family roots are in Paktika, they are operating on either side of the border. ... Their business is to smuggle drugs, murder and insurgency and their path is extremely bloody."
At the same time as coalition and Afghan forces have stepped up their operations in areas along the Pakistani border in eastern Afghanistan, the U.S. and Afghanistan have urged Pakistan to act against the militants on its side of the border. U.S. officials recently visited Islamabad and Kabul to pressure Pakistan to do more to eliminate militant sanctuaries on its territory.
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While NATO presses ahead with its campaigns, several hundred people including students demonstrated at Kabul University against a proposed U.S.-Afghan strategic security agreement that many in the country interpret as affording foreign forces long-term bases in Afghanistan.
The U.S. has said that it is not seeking permanent bases in Afghanistan. Afghan and U.S. officials are still working on the details of the plan that will govern the American troop presence in the country after the international forces' combat mission ends in 2014.
The protest against the plan highlighted the growing frustration felt by many Afghans toward NATO forces who, they argue, have brought little in the way of security or development to the country since the start of the decade-long war that toppled the Taliban. Many of the protesters alleged that the international community wants to exploit Afghanistan's mineral wealth and use the country as a springboard to other nations in the region.
"The fighting is not for bringing peace or stability or security," said 26-year-old university student Sayed Abdullah. "This is only to allow them (NATO forces) to place their feet firmer in our country and then, from here, (they) want to occupy all the central Asian Muslim nations."
The demonstrators, with about 200 to 300 Afghan police looking on warily, hoisted banners that made clear their antipathy for NATO's presence and the proposed agreement.
"We don't want international forces at all. To sit together is the only way to peace," read one. Another said: "Our unity is our strength."
Separately, the coalition reported that a NATO service member died Monday in a roadside bombing in southern Afghanistan. No other details were released.
So far this year, 475 coalition troops have died in Afghanistan.
___
Associated Press writers Tarek El-Tablawy, Amir Shah and Massieh Aryan in Kabul contributed to this report.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45011114/ns/world_news-south_and_central_asia/
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Ohio is one of seven states with no restrictions on exotic pets. There are fresh calls for restrictions on owning exotic animals, but strong opposition too.
Animal welfare groups pleaded on Thursday for tighter restrictions or a ban on private ownership of exotic animals after a panic in Ohio this week when scores of dangerous beasts were set loose.
Skip to next paragraphPolice hunted down and killed dozens of lions, tigers, bears, and primates set loose from a private menagerie on Tuesday by owner Terry Thompson, who then killed himself.
"This latest incident simply puts an exclamation point on our call to stop the private ownership of dangerous, wild animals as pets or roadside attractions," Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of The Humane Society of the United States, said in a conference call.
"These animals do not belong in people's backyards or bedrooms or basements," Pacelle said.
Seven states, including Ohio, have no ban on owning exotic animals. The others are Alabama, Nevada, North Carolina, West Virginia, South Carolina and Wisconsin.
Federal law regulates the interstate transport of big cats, but states regulate their ownership. A similar federal law on the transport of primates failed to pass Congress. A U.S. government agency is drafting a proposal on the transport of some snakes.
The animals involved in the Ohio incident might have been taken away earlier if Ohio authorities had enforced a lapsed rule put in place in January by former Democratic Governor Ted Strickland. The rule banned private breeding or purchase of exotic animals and stripped ownership rights from someone such as Thompson convicted of animal cruelty, Pacelle said.
The rule was allowed to expire after 90 days by Republican Governor John Kasich amid doubts whether the state could restrict ownership of any non-native wild animals.
Pacelle said the emergency in Zanesville, Ohio, in which schools were closed and residents told to remain inside, showed the necessity for the emergency rule or similar legislation.
The rule was correct in principle but it was "sloppy" and not enforceable, Kasich spokesman Rob Nichols said on Thursday. The rule made no provision for what to do with any seized animals.
Kasich earlier set up a task force on the issue which will make recommendations in about a month, his spokesman said.
"This is much bigger than Ohio," Pacelle said. "I would hazard to guess that we're talking about tens of thousands of dangerous exotic animals in our communities."
He and other animal welfare experts said Ohio was one of the centers for the lucrative U.S. trade in exotic animals that is largely an American phenomenon. There are thousands of captive tigers in Texas alone, more than live in the wild.
Lobbying by groups espousing private ownership, and by the pet trade that fears restrictions will be placed on purchases of animals like geckos, has often succeeded in blocking efforts to pass such laws, Pacelle said.
The Ohio Association of Animal Owners Inc said on its web site that supporters should be prepared to block legislation as they have for the past 20 years. A message left with the group was not returned.
Joe Maynard, a board member of the Zoological Association of America, a group that accredits private breeders and some government-operated zoos, said people like Thompson should be barred from owning exotic animals because he violated animal cruelty laws.
"We recognize regulations are needed. I don't think a ban is necessary," Maynard said. "A knee-jerk response to this incident may hurt everyone, not just us."
(Additional reporting by Lily Kuo in Washington and Jim Leckrone in Columbus; Editing by Greg McCune)
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BRUSSELS (Reuters) ? Private holders of Greek debt may need to accept losses of up to 60 percent on their investments if Greece's debt mountain is to be made more sustainable in the long-term, a downbeat analysis by the EU and IMF showed on Friday.
Euro zone finance ministers threw Greece a lifeline on Friday by agreeing to approve an 8 billion euro loan tranche that Athens needs next month to pay its bills.
But the European Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund -- the so-called troika -- issued a gloomy report on Greece's ability to pay its debts.
Among three scenarios it examined, the only one that would reduce Greece's debt pile to 110 percent of GDP -- a level still regarded as high -- was one in which private bond holders agreed to a 60 percent haircut.
"To reduce debt below 110 percent of GDP by 2020 would require a face value reduction of at least 60 percent and/or more concessional official sector financing terms," the debt sustainability report, obtained by Reuters, showed.
A footnote explained that the ECB disagreed with including the scenarios in the report, concerned that private sector lenders would refuse to agree to such a steep writedown voluntarily, effectively leading to a fullscale Greek default.
The report also said Greece's debt pile could peak at 186 percent of GDP, from around 160 percent currently.
The euro zone finance ministers said the 8 billion euro tranche, the sixth installment of 110 billion euros of EU/IMF loans agreed last year, would be paid in the first half of November, pending the IMF's sign-off. That should allow Greece to avoid defaulting on its debt this year.
Meeting ahead of a summit of EU leaders on Sunday, finance ministers also indicated that deep divisions between France and Germany over how best to scale up the euro zone's bailout facility to give it more firepower may have been overcome.
France believes the most efficient leverage method would be to turn the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) into a bank, allowing it to access ECB liquidity. Germany and others opposed this, and France's finance minister said he was not going to be unnecessarily confrontational over the issue.
"We will not make it a point for definitive confrontation," he told reporters as he left the meeting late on Friday. "What matters is what will work. And what will work is something that is dissuasive and an effective firewall."
Austria's finance minister, Maria Fekter, who arrived at the meeting saying there were seven options on the table for leveraging the EFSF, left the meeting saying there were now two, indicating that some progress had been made.
If France does ultimately drop its insistence on the EFSF being turned into a bank, then the most likely method for scaling up the EFSF is expected to be some form of insurance program aimed at restoring confidence in euro zone debt.
A group of 10 major financial companies, including banks, insurers and global bond fund giant PIMCO, wrote to EFSF chief Klaus Regling on Friday saying partial insurance of sovereign bonds could be a viable means to secure private funding for euro zone states "if implemented in size."
"The ability of the EFSF to potentially write significant amounts of such 'insurance' without any further increase to the existing commitments should be an important element in any comprehensive plan by the European government to address the crisis," the letter, seen by Reuters, said.
By guaranteeing only a portion, perhaps a third or a fifth, of each debt issue, the available EFSF funds could stretch 3-5 times further, increasing it to around 1 trillion euros.
However, analysts are concerned that such a plan could create a two-tier bond market, with bonds that have guarantees trading at a premium to the secondary market -- an outcome that could exacerbate market turmoil. Some analysts believe choosing such an option would be the worst outcome of the summit.
BLIZZARD OF MEETINGS
In a related set of discussions, EU finance ministers will on Saturday meet to discuss the requirements for recapitalizing the European banking system, with the aim of making it more resilient to the possibility of a default in Greece and any wider contagion across the continent.
EU leaders will then meet on Sunday to see if they can agree a comprehensive plan to resolve the two-year-old debt crisis, with another summit scheduled for Wednesday, October 26, because no breakthrough is expected on Sunday.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Europe's top two officials, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, will also meet late on Saturday to try to break the deadlock before Sunday's summit.
Sarkozy appeared isolated after an acrimonious meeting in Frankfurt on Wednesday, when he pushed the idea of turning the EFSF, a 440-billion-euro ($600 billion) fund, into a bank.
Germany, the ECB and the European Commission all argued that the move would violate an EU treaty prohibition on monetary financing of governments.
"The path is closed for using the ECB to ease liquidity problems," Merkel told conservative lawmakers in Berlin, according to participants at the private meeting.
The outcome of the Sunday and Wednesday summits will determine whether investor confidence in the euro area can be restored. It will also influence whether an expected Greek debt write-down triggers a chain reaction of financial turmoil across Europe, hitting French, German and other banks -- and potentially pushing Italy and Spain deeper into the mire.
EU officials say the total amount required to shore up the region's banking system is just short of 100 billion euros. Those banks that cannot raise money on the markets will have to turn to national governments, and finally to the EFSF.
European banks will be required to increase their core tier one capital ratio to 9 percent to help them withstand losses on sovereign debt, banking sources said.
FRENCH RATING IN SPOTLIGHT
An EU source said France, which has presidential and parliamentary elections from April to June and is desperate to keep its top-notch AAA credit rating, was pressing for banks to be given at least nine months to meet the target.
France fears its credit rating could come under threat if the wrong method is chosen to scale up the bailout fund to prevent contagion spreading to Italy and Spain, the euro zone's third and fourth largest economies.
Ratings agency Standard & Poor's said on Friday it was likely to downgrade France and four other states if Europe slips into recession. It was the second agency this week to cast doubt on France's rating after Moody's on Tuesday.
Underlining the threat the euro zone crisis poses to the global economy, U.S. President Barack Obama held a video conference with Merkel and Sarkozy on Thursday, reiterating that he hopes a solution will be in place in time for a summit of G20 leaders in Cannes, France on November 3-4.
(Additional reporting by Andreas Rinke and Madeline Chambers in Berlin, John O'Donnell, Julien Toyer, Jan Strupczewski, Robin Emmott and Luke Baker in Brussels; Writing by Luke Baker; Editing by Janet McBride, Mike Peacock and Peter Graff)
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As reported by Seeking Alpha, this week saw the latest iteration of the Value Investing Congress.
Following is a summary of some of the major presenters? investment theses, along with a quick look at how these companies have fared.
David Einhorn
Einhorn is short Green Mountain Coffee (NASDAQ:GMCR).? The shares recently traded at $71.50, up $3.30, or 4.85%, on the day.? The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $29.55 to $115.98 and its market capitalization is $10.95 billion.? About the company: Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc. roasts Arabica coffees and offers various coffee selections.? The Company?s products include single-origin, estate, certified organic, Fair Trade, signature blends, and flavored coffees sold under the Green Mountain Coffee Roasters brand.? Green Mountain serves offices, supermarkets, and convenience stores, and operates a direct mail business.
Jim Chanos
Jim Chanos warned about value traps, specifically, the oil companies.? He highlighted Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM) as one, but mentioned that its peers, such as Chevron (NYSE:CVX) and Total S.A. (NYSE:TOT), are also potential value traps.? Shares of Exxon Mobil recently traded at $79.98, up $1.25, or 1.59%, on the day.? The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $65.08 to $88.23 and its market capitalization is $388.87 billion.? Shares of Chevron recently traded at $105.22, up $1.83, or 1.76%, on the day.? The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $80.41 to $109.94 and its market capitalization is $210.75 billion.? Shares of Total S.A. recently traded at $52.73, up $0.94, or 1.82%, on the day.? The shares have traded in a 52-week range of $40 to $64.44 and its market capitalization is $118.58 billion.
Other value traps he highlighted include GameStop (NYSE:GME), ITT Education Services (NYSE:ESI), and Vale (NYSE:VALE).
Alexander Roepers
Roepers highlighted a number of potential takeover targets, including Energizer Holdings (NYSE:ENR).? He places a value of $102 per share on the company, a significant increase from the company?s recent price of $75.26.? The shares are up $1.3, or 1.77%, on the day and have traded in a 52-week range of $61.60 to $84.94.? Its market capitalization is $5.18 billion.? About the company:Energizer Holdings, Inc. manufactures dry cell batteries and flashlights.? The Company offers a full line of products, including alkaline, carbon zinc, miniature, and rechargeable batteries, as well as lighting products.? Energizer also manufactures and markets a range of razor and shave related products on a global basis.
Whitney Tilson
Tilson is a fan of Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE:BRKA) and JC Penney (NYSE:JCP).? He thinks that Berkshire Hathaway is a buy because the stock is at its cheapest level in more than a decade and that JC Penney, which recently traded at $32, is worth north of $75 per share.
(Note: Selected financial data are sourced from Google Finance.? All data are assumed to be accurate.)
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Source: http://wallstcheatsheet.com/trading/review-of-the-value-investing-congress.html/
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Carla Bruni gave birth to the first baby ever born to a French presidential couple in office. What did Carla Bruni and Nicolas Sarkozy name their daughter?
French President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Thursday he and first lady Carla Bruni were deeply happy over their baby daughter, the first official confirmation of the birth, but added he would leave it to his wife to reveal the girl's name.
Skip to next paragraphSpeaking to reporters during a trip to the town of Mayenne in northwestern France, following two lightening visits to see his wife and baby, Sarkozy said they wanted to keep the arrival of their first child together a private matter.
"All of you who are parents can understand the very deep joy that Carla and I feel. Each one of you can also understand that it's an even deeper joy because it is private," he said.
"We have been lucky to have a very happy event take place," he said. "I will just keep to these few brief words to say to you that they are doing very well."
Sarkozy and his office have kept silent throughout Bruni's pregnancy, despite high interest in what is the first baby ever born to a French presidential couple in office, with Sarkozy intent on repairing an image many see as too brash and informal.
Many in France had found his high-speed courtship of Bruni, a former supermodel and singer, distasteful coming shortly after his 2007 election as president and on the heels of his divorce from his second wife, Cecilia.
Sarkozy's office refused to confirm the birth -- which French media said took place at around 8 pm Paris time on Wednesday while Sarkozy was in Frankfurt debating possible solutions to the euro zone crisis -- saying it did not comment on private matters.
Sarkozy's father, Pal Sarkozy, spoke to France's BFM television however, saying the family was "thrilled" and that Bruni was tired but "doing very well".
"We are thrilled to have a 14th grandchild, who is a little girl. Everybody is doing well. Carla is doing very well, I have had news from her, she is a bit tired but that's completely normal," Pal Sarkozy told BFM.
Pollsters say the birth could give a brief boost to Sarkozy as he grapples with dismal popularity ratings of around 30 percent six months before a presidential election that left-wing challenger Francois Hollande is in a strong position to win.
Sarkozy may have raised eyebrows among family-minded voters, however, for jumping on a plane to Frankfurt while Bruni was in labor, returning later in the evening and briefly visiting her and the baby in the maternity clinic.
He returned on Thursday morning, but for less than an hour and did not appear to have flowers or other gifts.
Defence Minister Gerard Longuet told i>Tele Sarkozy was "very happy" and this could only be a good thing for both the ruling conservatives and the country.
"A president who feels good in his skin, good in his head, good in his life, that's a gift for our country," Longuet told iTele.
Sarkozy has three children from two earlier marriages and Bruni has a son from a prior relationship. (
Reporting by Emmanuel Jarry and Alexandria Sage; Writing by Catherine Bremer; editing by Elizabeth Piper)
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Public release date: 20-Oct-2011
Share ] Contact: Ashley Loar
ashley.loar@sagepub.com
805-410-7111
SAGE Publications
Los Angeles, CA (October 20, 2011)- Partners in Wall Street law firms write equally nice things about the work of their male and female junior lawyers, but when they use hard numbers, they rate the men higher, according to a study in the current Social Psychological and Personality Science (published by SAGE).
The use of positive language may be to soften the blow of low evaluations or they may be based on lower expectations of female performance based on stereotypes, write Monica Biernat, of the University of Kansas, M.J. Tocci of Fulcrum Advisors and Joan Williams of Hastings College of the Law of the University of California.
The researchers looked at the performance evaluations of junior attorneys working in a Wall Street law firm. The mostly male senior lawyers rated more than 230 junior attorneys35% womenusing both number ratings and writing about one single-spaced page of text.
The numbers are what matter for raises; partnership and promotions go only to those with the highest numbersthe written text simply "explains" the numbers. By the numbers, men significantly outscored the women; the authors estimated about 14% of men and 5% of women were on track for promotion by this standard.
The written evaluations tell a different story. Independent experts, who did not know the gender of the person being written about, rated the competence communicated in writing; men and women equally received generally positive evaluations. When they counted the number of "positive performance words" such as "excellent," "awesome," or "stellar,' women received significantly more of this positive feedback. The men with more positive words had higher numbers, but for women receiving positive words was completely uncorrelated with their numerical ratings.
Because of this inconsistency, the firm was either biased in favor of men in the numerical ratings, or misinforming the women in the written explanations. Because even the very best womenmentioned as partner materialhad lower numbers than comparable men, the authors suggest that there was a male favoritism when using numbers.
"Although the difference in numerical ratings may not seem large," said the authors, "stereotypes led to pro-male bias when it mattered. The firm's reliance numbers for partnership consideration made it three times more likely that men will be promoted to partner."
###
The article "The Language of Performance Evaluations: Gender-Based Shifts in Content and Consistency of Judgment" in Social Psychological and Personality Science is available free for a limited time at http://spp.sagepub.com/content/early/2011/07/15/1948550611415693.full.pdf+html
Social Psychological and Personality Science is a cutting-edge journal of succinct reports of research in social and personality psychology. SPPS is sponsored by a consortium of the world's leading organizations in social and personality psychology representing over 7,000 scholars on six continents worldwide. http://spps.sagepub.com
SAGE is a leading international publisher of journals, books, and electronic media for academic, educational, and professional markets. Since 1965, SAGE has helped inform and educate a global community of scholars, practitioners, researchers, and students spanning a wide range of subject areas including business, humanities, social sciences, and science, technology, and medicine. An independent company, SAGE has principal offices in Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore and Washington DC. www.sagepublications.com
[ | 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: 20-Oct-2011 Share ] Contact: Ashley Loar
ashley.loar@sagepub.com
805-410-7111
SAGE Publications
Los Angeles, CA (October 20, 2011)- Partners in Wall Street law firms write equally nice things about the work of their male and female junior lawyers, but when they use hard numbers, they rate the men higher, according to a study in the current Social Psychological and Personality Science (published by SAGE).
The use of positive language may be to soften the blow of low evaluations or they may be based on lower expectations of female performance based on stereotypes, write Monica Biernat, of the University of Kansas, M.J. Tocci of Fulcrum Advisors and Joan Williams of Hastings College of the Law of the University of California.
The researchers looked at the performance evaluations of junior attorneys working in a Wall Street law firm. The mostly male senior lawyers rated more than 230 junior attorneys35% womenusing both number ratings and writing about one single-spaced page of text.
The numbers are what matter for raises; partnership and promotions go only to those with the highest numbersthe written text simply "explains" the numbers. By the numbers, men significantly outscored the women; the authors estimated about 14% of men and 5% of women were on track for promotion by this standard.
The written evaluations tell a different story. Independent experts, who did not know the gender of the person being written about, rated the competence communicated in writing; men and women equally received generally positive evaluations. When they counted the number of "positive performance words" such as "excellent," "awesome," or "stellar,' women received significantly more of this positive feedback. The men with more positive words had higher numbers, but for women receiving positive words was completely uncorrelated with their numerical ratings.
Because of this inconsistency, the firm was either biased in favor of men in the numerical ratings, or misinforming the women in the written explanations. Because even the very best womenmentioned as partner materialhad lower numbers than comparable men, the authors suggest that there was a male favoritism when using numbers.
"Although the difference in numerical ratings may not seem large," said the authors, "stereotypes led to pro-male bias when it mattered. The firm's reliance numbers for partnership consideration made it three times more likely that men will be promoted to partner."
###
The article "The Language of Performance Evaluations: Gender-Based Shifts in Content and Consistency of Judgment" in Social Psychological and Personality Science is available free for a limited time at http://spp.sagepub.com/content/early/2011/07/15/1948550611415693.full.pdf+html
Social Psychological and Personality Science is a cutting-edge journal of succinct reports of research in social and personality psychology. SPPS is sponsored by a consortium of the world's leading organizations in social and personality psychology representing over 7,000 scholars on six continents worldwide. http://spps.sagepub.com
SAGE is a leading international publisher of journals, books, and electronic media for academic, educational, and professional markets. Since 1965, SAGE has helped inform and educate a global community of scholars, practitioners, researchers, and students spanning a wide range of subject areas including business, humanities, social sciences, and science, technology, and medicine. An independent company, SAGE has principal offices in Los Angeles, London, New Delhi, Singapore and Washington DC. www.sagepublications.com
[ | 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/2011-10/sp-iem102011.php
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