tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44966256322276854772024-03-18T03:21:08.867-04:00Politics - what I see and what I do not understandAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.comBlogger11142125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-54264078828466418992013-04-01T23:36:00.000-04:002013-04-01T23:36:09.404-04:00I have been procrastinating all day long, trying to tell all of my followers that this is the last entry of 'politics - what I see and what I do not understand.' I have been doing this for four years and have loved every minute of the experience. I am by all accounts, immersed in my blogging until all else around me does not exist. I have done this every day from the time I get up till I go to bed. <br />
<br />
My family, whom I love, they do not understand my passion nor do they share it. They have expressed their concern that I do not spend time with them, that I am married to my computer, I have fights with the television, yell at Congress when I watch cspan, and lately have been depressed and stressed out to the max. I confess to all of their complaints and to being stress depressed out. My doctor got involved about two weeks ago when it had gotten to the point that I had crashed and burned. Doctors have great little pills, that make you calm and start acting normal, if anyone knows what normal is. And it is not so radical for people to take medication for all sorts of malaise.As my doctor put it at least I came in[even though pushed], that is to my credit.<br />
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<b>I KNOW TMI</b> [too much information], but I have been honest in my blogging, and I am going to be honest about why I am ceasing this blog. <br />
<br />
I am taking a sabbatical, I am going to Miami in May and spend several months lying in the sun, riding bikes, taking long walks and clearing my head. who knows I might be back. I have grandchildren and a great grand baby, it is time for me to spend
time with them. I have three grandsons in Miami, and three
grand-daughters in Pa.<br />
<br />
I am not giving up blogging, just changing directions. My next great adventure will be '<a href="http://basicinstructionsbe4leavingearth.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">My personal journey through the Bible.' </a> Not as stressful, and it will be a learning adventure. And you can follow along with me. I hope that you do, again I thank you for allowing me to educate you and more important me.<br />
And this is not April Fools. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-24775719808726088312013-04-01T20:49:00.000-04:002013-04-01T21:58:40.973-04:00<h1 class="black bottom_hed_margin" id="storyHeadline">
House completes veto override on voter-ID bill
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By
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This article was published today at 2:26 p.m.
Updated today at 4:40 p.m.
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The Arkansas House completed an override of Senate Bill 2, concerning voter identification, on Monday, April 1, 2013.</div>
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<br />The Arkansas House on Monday completed an override of Gov. Mike
Beebe's veto of a bill that will require Arkansas voters to present
photo identification before casting ballots.<br />
The override passed the chamber, 52-45.<br />
<a href="http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2013/mar/28/bucking-veto-senate-votes-photo-ids-20130328/">The Arkansas Senate completed the first leg of defeating Beebe's veto</a>
of Senate Bill 2 on Wednesday, voting 21-12 to override the veto. Each
chamber, both Republican-controlled, needed a simple majority vote.<br />
<a href="http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2013/mar/28/ark-house-delays-override-try-voter-id-bill/">The Arkansas House delayed the override vote last week</a>, failing to bring up the matter before the House convened Monday.<br />
Rep. Stephen Meeks, R-Greenbrier, brought the override vote before the House.<br />
Meeks said the bill has been one of the more, if not the most debated
bill this session, and told his fellow lawmakers that their vote on
this legislation would come up during re-election campaigns.<br />
Meeks brought up concerns about voter fraud and said the legislation would answer some of those concerns.<br />
"Senate Bill 2 protects the integrity of the vote in Arkansas," Meeks said.<br />
Meeks told Democratic members of the House that he understood they
were in a position of having to support their party's leader, but asked
them to set aside their party affiliations in this vote.<br />
"We work for the citizens of Arkansas," Meeks said.<br />
Meeks was the only member to speak for the legislation. Rep. John
Walker, D-Little Rock, was the only member of the House to speak against
Senate Bill 2.<br />
Walker said Meeks' concerns with voter fraud were unfounded and that he supported Beebe's veto.<br />
Walker said the debate on voter identification goes back to the civil
rights movement and said, "you won't find any House members of my color
supporting this bill."<br />
<a href="http://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2013/mar/25/beebe-vetoes-senate-proposed-voter-id-bill/">Beebe vetoed the bill last Monday</a>
because it was "an expensive solution in search of a problem" and would
infringe on voters' rights. Senate Bill 2, sponsored by Sen. Bryan
King, R-Green Forest, will require the state to provide free photo IDs
to voters who do not have one. The estimated state cost is $300,000.<br />
Monday's vote by the House completed the third successful override of
a Beebe veto this session by Arkansas lawmakers. The previous two
overrides both dealt with abortion-ban legislation.<br />
In an interview with Arkansas Online following the override, Arkansas
American Civil Liberties Union Executive Director Rita Sklar said she
was disappointed with Arkansas lawmakers, as a whole.<br />
"It's been a very bad legilslative session for democracy in Arkansas," Sklar said.<br />
The Arkansas ACLU has said the legislation is unconstitutional and
said it would look at its options after a decision from lawmakers.<br />
"I think we're headed to court," Sklar said.<br />
Sklar said the greatest affect of Senate Bill 2 would be felt by senior citizens, minorities, immigrants and women.<br />
Sklar could not give a time table on when action would be taken
against Senate Bill 2, but said the ACLU attorneys would study the issue
and be prepared. Sklar said she was confident on the potential outcome
in court.<br />
"We don't undertake anything we think we can't win," she said.<br />
Poll workers are currently required to ask voters for identification,
but voters are still allowed to vote if they do not have an ID.<br />
The bill will take effect Jan. 1, 2014, but only if the state has the money to issue voter ID cards.<br />
Read more in Tuesday's <em>Arkansas Democrat-Gazette</em>.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-40570597800609262132013-04-01T20:45:00.000-04:002013-04-01T21:58:40.974-04:00<h1 class="black bottom_hed_margin" id="storyHeadline">
Exxon's Arkansas spill raises new scrutiny of Keystone pipeline
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By Bloomberg News
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An oil spill that polluted an Arkansas town is drawing new scrutiny
to the risks of transporting fuel across a national labyrinth of
pipelines as President Barack Obama weighs whether to approve Keystone
XL.<br />
Environmental groups point to the rupture of the Exxon Mobil Corp.
pipe Friday in Mayflower, about 22 miles northwest of Little Rock, as a
reason why Obama should reject Keystone. Industry groups contend that
pipelines remain the safest way to transport oil and other fuels, and
that existing regulations are adequate.<br />
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"Without question, this underscores the risks of transporting this
stuff," Jim Murphy, senior counsel at the National Wildlife Federation,
said in a phone interview.<br />
The U.S. State Department is weighing whether to recommend that Obama
approve the Keystone project. The agency is reviewing the plan because
it crosses an international border. White House press secretary Jay
Carney said Monday that the White House takes the safety of the pipeline
system "very seriously." He said the Environmental Protection Agency is
working with local officials and Exxon on the Arkansas spill.<br />
Republicans and some Democrats in Congress argue Keystone will create
thousands of jobs and improve U.S. energy security. The Senate on March
22 approved 62-37 a nonbinding resolution encouraging development of
the project. If built, the pipeline each day could carry more than
800,000 barrels of diluted bitumen, or dilbit, from Alberta to
refineries along the U.S. Gulf Coast.<br />
Exxon's pipeline, known as Pegasus, can carry 96,000 barrels a day.
The 20-inch line runs to Nederland, Texas, from Patoka, Illinois.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-39321779819831851722013-04-01T20:09:00.000-04:002013-04-01T22:16:21.075-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
Grandfather clause' in Connecticut gun bill angers Sandy Hook families</h1>
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Michelle McLoughlin/Reuters file<br />
Mark and Jackie Barden, parents of Daniel Barden, 6, a victim of the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary School, holding a picture of their son on Jan. 14. They spoke out against the compromise legislation Monday, April 1, in Hartford, Conn.</div>
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By M. Alex Johnson, staff writer, NBC News</div>
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Lawmakers
and families of the victims of the deadly shootings last year at a
Connecticut elementary school were divided Monday over compromise
legislation that would ban some but not all high-capacity ammunition
magazines in the state.<br />
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Lawmakers announced Monday afternoon that
they had reached a deal on a bipartisan measure designed to limit
high-powered weapons, 3½ months after 20 children and six other people
were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown.<br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/04/01/17557867-connecticut-lawmakers-reach-deal-on-most-comprehensive-gun-limits-in-us?lite" target="_blank">Related: Connecticut lawmakers reach deal on 'most comprehensive' gun limits in US</a></b><br />
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The Legislature will convene Wednesday, with a vote expected as early as this week.<br />
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The
would ban the sale of magazines able to handle more than 10
bullets. Adam Lanza, the gunman in the Dec. 14 shootings, used magazines
accommodating 30 bullets.<br />
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But in a compromise, the lawmakers
included a "grandfather clause" allowing people who already own such
magazines to keep them, subject to registration.<br />
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Families of the
Newtown victims objected, sending a letter to legislative leaders Monday
saying more children might have survived had Lanza been carrying
smaller magazines.<br />
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Lanza "fired 154 shots in approximately 4
minutes, killing 20 children and 6 educators. Miraculously, in the time
that it took him to reload in one of the classrooms, 11 children were
able to escape and are alive today," they said in the letter, which is
reprinted below.<br />
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"We are left to wonder, what if the Sandy Hook
shooter had been forced to reload not 6 times but 15 times. Would more
children, would our children, be alive today?"<br />
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Mark Barden, whose son Daniel died in the shootings, said at a
news conference Monday in Hartford: "The more times you have to reload,
the more opportunities there are to escape and to stop the shooting. In
the amount of time — it was somewhere around four minutes — he was able
to fire 154 rounds. I think that speaks volumes about reducing the size"
of magazines.<br />
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Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy sided with the parents.<br />
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"I
have been clear for weeks that a ban on the possession and sale of high
capacity magazines is an important part of our effort to prevent gun
violence — simply banning their sale moving forward would not be an
effective solution," Malloy said in a statement Monday.<br />
<br />
"This
morning, we heard from victims' families on that very point. They've
asked for an up or down vote on that provision and, whether it's in the
larger bill or as an amendment, the families, and every resident of our
state, deserve a vote."<br />
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<i>Following is the letter parents of the Sandy Hook victims sent Monday to Connecticut legislative leaders:</i><br />
<blockquote>
Dear Senators and State Representatives,<br />
We, the parents of children killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School
together with the parents and spouses of educators killed that day in
Newtown, are writing today regarding gun legislation currently under
consideration by Connecticut's legislature. We are grateful for your
leadership on this issue and for the efforts of the Bipartisan Task
Force on Gun Violence Prevention and Children's Safety to craft a
comprehensive package of legislation to keep our communities and
children safer from violence. We feel strongly, however, that the
current proposed action on large capacity ammunition magazines is
inadequate and must be strengthened.<br />
We feel a very personal connection to this issue. The Sandy Hook
shooter carried 10 magazines that held 30 bullets each. We now know that
he left many smaller magazines at home. He fired 154 shots in
approximately 4 minutes, killing 20 children and 6 educators.
Miraculously, in the time that it took him to reload in one of the
classrooms, 11 children were able to escape and are alive today.<br />
We are left to wonder, what if the Sandy Hook shooter had been forced
to reload not 6 times but 15 times. Would more children, would our
children, be alive today?<br />
The current proposal under consideration in Hartford would allow the
sale of magazines with a capacity of 10 bullets or fewer. The proposal,
however, grandfathers existing large capacity magazines leaving a gaping
loophole on, what we believe, is the most dangerous feature of an
assault weapon. Individuals will easily be able to purchase high
capacity magazines in other states, bring them to Connecticut and claim
to have owned them before the law took effect. Proving that the purchase
or transfer took place post-enactment will be difficult, if not
impossible.<br />
Additionally, the "grandfathered" possession of large capacity
magazines is not in the public interest and exposes our communities to
an unacceptable risk of additional mass shootings. We must do more. If
there is reason to stop the further sale of magazines that hold more
than 10 bullets, a principle with which we wholeheartedly agree, it
makes sense to take steps to prevent the potential damage that existing
magazines could cause. How can we not remove large capacity magazines
from Connecticut if we know that it might save even one more child or
teacher or parent?<br />
On behalf of the loved ones who were violently taken from us, please
reconsider your approach to large capacity magazines as part of the
comprehensive package of gun legislation. We are calling today for an up
or down vote on the issue. Thank you for your consideration of our
views.</blockquote>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-41362900404811230002013-04-01T19:23:00.000-04:002013-04-01T20:26:03.206-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
Clerical error set Colorado slaying suspect free nearly 4 years early</h1>
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By Andrew Rafferty and Gil Aegerter, NBC News</div>
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If it weren't for a clerical error, Colorado's state prisons chief might still be alive today.<br />
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Court
officials acknowledged in a statement Monday that a processing error
allowed the now-dead ex-con Evan Spencer Ebel to be released January 28 —
four years before he was supposed to be.<br />
Ebel is suspected of
killing Tom Clements, executive director of the state Department of
Corrections, on March 19. Clements was shot dead apparently after
answering the doorbell at his home outside Colorado Springs.<br />
Ebel
was later killed on March 21 in a shootout with cops in Texas after a
car chase. The bullets he used then matched those used in the Clements
killing, officials have said.<br />
But Ebel shouldn't have been a free man in the first place.<br />
In
2008, Ebel pleaded guilty to assaulting a prison guard while serving
time for breaking into a car, having an illegal gun and carjacking a
man. His four-year sentence was supposed to have been served
"consecutively" after the the eight-year sentence he had been serving.<br />
But
a court clerk entered the sentence as "concurrent" to the one he was
serving, which led to Ebel's January release, Colorado Department of
Corrections officials said Monday.<br />
Ebel is also suspected in the
March 17 killing of a Domino’s pizza delivery man outside Denver.
Authorities have speculated that Ebel used the man's uniform to get
Clements to come to the door. Following the deadly shootout in Texas, a
Domino's uniform was found in the car Ebel was driving.<br />
Denver NBC station KUSA <a href="http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/29/17522395-report-suspect-in-colorado-prison-chief-slaying-may-have-been-released-too-early">first reported on Friday</a> that Ebel may have been released too early.</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-7412876598970634762013-04-01T19:18:00.000-04:002013-04-01T20:26:03.209-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
First Thoughts: April's shower of activity on Capitol Hill</h1>
<i>Brace
yourselves for April’s shower of activity on Capitol Hill… Waiting on
Marco Rubio on immigration reform… Two paths for Obama’s upcoming
budget… Will SCOTUS gay-marriage cases unleash chaos?... Boehner, RNC
blast Young, forcing him to apologize for slur… But as the GOP tries to
improve its standing with Latinos, is it the tone or the policy?... SC-1
GOP run-off takes place tomorrow… And our second round of SENATE
MADNESS begins!!!</i><br />
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NBC's
Mark Murray and Domenico Montanaro highlight the stories that will
shape political news in April, including immigration, the gun control
debate and the release of President Obama's budget.</div>
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By Chuck Todd, Mark Murray, Domenico Montanaro, and Brooke Brower</div>
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*** <b>April’s shower of activity on Capitol Hill</b>:
This month is shaping up to be a busy -- and consequential -- month in
Washington. When Congress returns from its Easter/Passover break next
week, the Senate is expected to consider the Democrat-backed gun
legislation that a handful of GOP senators have threatened to filibuster
(and that’s still missing Republican support). Also around the same
time, the eight bipartisan senators working on immigration reform are on
track to announce an agreement on the bill they’re drafting. “I am
very, very optimistic that we will have an agreement among the eight of
us next week,” Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) said on “Meet the Press”
yesterday. Added Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ): “We've still got a ways to go
in terms of looking at the language and making sure that it's everything
we thought it would be. But we're closer, certainly.” And on April 10,
President Obama is scheduled <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2013/03/28/obama-budget-april-10-boehner/2028239/">to finally send his budget to Congress</a>.
Yet of these three different moving parts, the one we bet we’re still
talking about come May and the summer is immigration reform. How April
goes could very well determine if Obama signs that reform into law in
the next few months.<br />
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Sen.
Marco Rubio voices tempered optimism, but the Gang of 8 on Capitol Hill
seems to be making progress on a guest worker plan. NBC's Tracie Potts
reports.</div>
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*** <b>Waiting on Marco Rubio</b>: And that brings us to Sen. Marco
Rubio (R-FL), another member of the bipartisan group of senators working
on immigration reform. As Schumer and Flake expressed optimism about
its prospects, especially after organized labor and the Chamber of
Commerce reached an important agreement on guest workers as part of the
package, Rubio tapped the brakes. “I’m encouraged by reports of an
agreement between business groups and unions on the issue of guest
workers. However, reports that the bipartisan group of eight senators
have agreed on a legislative proposal are premature,” he said in a
statement issued yesterday. “We will need a healthy public debate that
includes committee hearings and the opportunity for other senators to
improve our legislation with their own amendments... In order to
succeed, this process cannot be rushed or done in secret.” It’s a
legitimate question to ask: What is Rubio up to here? If his role is to
sell the legislation to conservatives, he can’t afford to be seen as
rushing it through, so his tapping of the brakes is smart. On the other
hand, if you’re an immigration-reform advocate, you have to be a bit
concerned about the totality of the statements coming from him and
office. (Remember, Rubio is a recent convert on comprehensive
immigration reform.) Make no mistake: Rubio is the difference between
the Senate bill getting 60 votes or 75 votes. And if it gets 75 votes,
it has a MUCH better chance of clearing the House with a path to
citizenship.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=10,0,0,0" height="346" id="msnbc8ee6ab" width="592"><param name="movie" value="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" /><param name="FlashVars" value="launch=51394017&width=592&height=346" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><embed name="msnbc8ee6ab" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" width="592" height="346" FlashVars="launch=51394017&width=592&height=346" allowscriptaccess="always" allowFullScreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object></div>
<br />
***<b> Two paths for Obama’s upcoming budget</b>: As
Obama is set to unveil his budget next week, it raises these two
questions: Will it simply reaffirm what Senate Democrats recently
passed? Or will it lay out a potential path to compromise with House
Republicans? After all, White House budgets typically come BEFORE the
Senate and House act on theirs. But Obama’s budget is coming AFTER the
two chambers already passed their respective budgets. And it puts the
White House in a bind. If it lays out a potential path to compromise
(offering “chained CPI” on Social Security, for example), then that
could tick off Senate Democrats who could wonder why they had to take
the vote they did. But if it simply reaffirms what Senate Democrats
produced, then that would open up the White House to criticism that it’s
not trying to find a way forward in resolving Washington’s budget
impasse. We’ll find out what message the White House is trying to send
on April 10.<br />
<br />
***<b> Supreme Chaos?</b> On Sunday, LA Times columnist Doyle McManus <a href="http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-mcmanus-column-gay-marriage-chaos-20130331,0,7749021.column">made a smart point</a>
analyzing last week’s Supreme Court oral arguments on gay marriage. “If
the Supreme Court decides the two gay marriage cases it heard last week
the way most court watchers believe it will, expect legal and political
chaos,” he writes assuming that the court essentially punts Prop. 8
back to California. McManus then asks, “What happens to two gay men who
marry in New York and then move to Salt Lake City? Will they still be
married? If they have children, will the kids have two parents under
Utah law? And will their federal benefits, such as survivors' Social
Security benefits, travel with them, even though they've moved to a
state where their marriage isn't valid? Will they file their federal tax
returns jointly but state returns separately? And don't even think
about the issue of divorce. This kind of legal patchwork virtually
guarantees that politicians in states that don't recognize gay marriage
will be debating and legislating the issue for years, making for an even
more confusing situation. The ensuing chaos could harm more than just
gay couples; the Republican Party stands to lose too.”<br />
<br />
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<a href="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130109_cap-hill-dome_4x3.380;380;7;70;0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="301" id="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130109_cap-hill-dome_4x3.jpg" src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130109_cap-hill-dome_4x3.380;380;7;70;0.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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</div>
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Larry Downing / Reuters</div>
<div class="photo_credit_container">
The Capitol Dome is seen on Capitol Hill, Nov. 9, 2012. To the left is the U.S. House of Representatives.</div>
</div>
<br />
<br />
*** <b>Boehner, RNC blast Young, forcing him to apologize</b>: After
Rep. Don Young (R-AK) referred to immigrant laborers as “wetbacks” and
after his non-apology for those remarks (“I meant no disrespect”),
Republican leaders denounced Young on Friday. “Congressman Young’s
remarks were offensive and beneath the dignity of the office he holds,”
House Speaker John Boehner said in a statement. “I don’t care why he
said it – there’s no excuse and it warrants an immediate apology.” RNC
Chairman Reince Priebus added, “The words used by Representative Young
emphatically do not represent the beliefs of the Republican Party…
Offensive language and ethnic slurs have no place in our public
discourse.” Those statements prompted Young to offer an apology. "I
apologize for the insensitive term I used during an interview in
Ketchikan, Alaska. There was no malice in my heart or intent to offend;
it was a poor choice of words,” he said. The GOP criticism of Young,
especially from the RNC, deserves a lot credit for a party trying to
improve its standing with Latinos and minority voters. The rebuke was
swift, and Young took a while to get the message. Perhaps he realized if
he hadn’t issued the second -- and more complete -- apology there would
have been calls for resignation? <br />
<br />
*** <b>But is it the tone or the policy?</b> Yet as Republicans try to improve their standing with Latinos, this <a href="http://www.latimes.com/health/la-na-latinos-healthcare-20130401,0,4843950.story">LA Times</a>
piece is a sobering reminder for them. “Latinos, who have the lowest
rates of health coverage in the country, are among the strongest backers
of President Obama's healthcare law. In a recent national poll,
supporters outnumbered detractors by more than 2 to 1. Latinos also
overwhelmingly see guaranteeing healthcare as a core government
responsibility, surveys show. Yet congressional Republicans continue to
make repeal of the 2010 Affordable Care Act a top agenda item and have
renewed calls for deep cuts in health programs such as Medicaid, which
are very popular with Latinos.” And that raises this important question
to consider: What’s more important for Republicans as they try to win
over minority voters -- tone or policy?<br />
<br />
*** <b>SC-1 run-off takes place tomorrow</b>:
Tomorrow brings us the special GOP congressional primary run-off in
South Carolina featuring former Gov. Mark Sanford vs. Curtis Bostic. And
more and more, it looks like Sanford is well on his way toward winning
the run-off. But does Sanford winning give Democrats a
better-than-expected chance in the May 7 general? That’s a question that
both Democrats and Republicans are asking themselves.<br />
<br />
*** <b>Senate Madness -- the 2<sup>nd</sup> round begins</b>: Our Senate Madness contest continues, this time with second-round match-ups from our 19<sup>th</sup> Century and Mixed Era brackets. <a href="http://firstread.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/04/01/17551548-senate-madness-second-round-19th-century-era?lite">In the 19<sup>th</sup> Century</a>,
it’s #1 Daniel Webster vs. #8 William Seward, #4 Stephen Douglas vs. #5
Sam Houston, #3 Charles Sumner vs. #11 James Buchanan, and #2 John C.
Calhoun vs. #7 Thomas Hart Benton… <a href="http://firstread.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/04/01/17551634-senate-madness-round-two-mixed-era?lite">In the Mixed Era</a>,
it’s #1 Henry Clay vs. #9 Sam Ervin, #4 Robert La Follette vs. #12
George Norris, #6 William Borah vs. #14 Scoop Jackson, and #2 Henry
Cabot Lodge vs. #7 Arthur Vandenberg. Tomorrow, we’ll feature the 2<sup>nd</sup>-round match-ups from the 20<sup>th</sup> Century and Modern Era brackets.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-41724937071853499092013-04-01T19:14:00.000-04:002013-04-01T22:16:33.215-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
Connecticut lawmakers reach deal on 'most comprehensive' gun limits in US</h1>
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<img alt="" height="443" id="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130401-newtown-parent-945p.jpg" src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130401-newtown-parent-945p.photoblog600.jpg" width="640" /></div>
<br />
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<div class="photo_credit">
Jessica Hill / AP file</div>
<div class="photo_credit_container">
David
Wheeler, father of Sandy Hook School shooting victim Benjamin, listens
to a legislative hearing of a task force on gun violence and children's
safety at Newtown High School in Newtown, Conn., on Jan. 30, 2013.</div>
</div>
<div class="byline">
<br />
By M. Alex Johnson, staff writer, NBC News</div>
<br />
Connecticut
lawmakers on Monday said they had reached an agreement on compromise
gun control legislation that they said would be one of the toughest in
the nation, 3½ months after 20 children and six other people were killed
in a mass shooting at an elementary school.<br />
The bill includes a
ban on large-capacity ammunition magazines like those Adam Lanza used to
fire 154 shots in four 4 minutes Dec. 14 at Sandy Hook Elementary
School in Newtown, a new registry for existing high-capacity magazines
and background checks for private gun sales, NBC Connecticut reported.<br />
While the measure would ban the sale of ammunition magazines able to
handle more than 10 bullets, Gov. Dannell Malloy and parents of the
Sandy Hook victims <a href="http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/04/01/17555966-grandfather-clause-in-connecticut-gun-bill-angers-sandy-hook-families?lite" target="_blank">objected to a "grandfather clause"</a> that will allow current owners of such magazines to keep them.<br />
But state Rep. Gary Holder-Winfield, a Democrat representing New Haven, told <a href="http://www.nbcconnecticut.com/news/local/Vote-on-Gun-Control-Could-Come-Soon-Reports-200872451.html">NBC Connecticut</a>
that the bill, which could be voted on as early as Wednesday, would
still impose some of the nation's toughest gun control laws on
Connecticut residents.<br />
At a news conference Monday, Senate
Minority Leader John McKinney, a Republican whose district includes
Newtown, agreed that the deal was "the most comprehensive package in the
country because of its breadth," The Associated Press reported.<br />
In
what was being described as a first in the U.S., gun owners would have
to register current magazines accommodating more than 10 rounds with the
state by January, <a href="http://www.nhregister.com/articles/2013/04/01/news/doc5159b160b4f3b844023258.txt" target="_blank">The New Haven Register reported</a>.<br />
The
measure would also require universal background checks for all firearm
sales — many states don't require them for private sales, such as those
between family members or collectors — and would add 34 more weapons to
the state's list of banned semi-automatic assault-style weapons.<br />
The
Register reported that the bill would also strengthen penalties for gun
trafficking and would expand the Board of Firearms Permit Examiners to
include a mental health professional and a retired judge.<br />
House
Speaker Brendan Sharkey, a Democrat representing Hamden, told reporters
the measure was meant to send a message to Washington that "this is the
way to get this job done."Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-36350594370521790812013-04-01T18:58:00.000-04:002013-04-01T20:26:03.205-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
The fortress island fixed in North Korea's sights</h1>
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<img alt="" height="426" id="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130401-south-korea-island-01-hmed-12p.jpg" src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130401-south-korea-island-01-hmed-12p.photoblog600.jpg" width="640" /></div>
<br />
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<div class="photo_credit">
Ian Williams/ NBC News</div>
<div class="photo_credit_container">
Shell-encrusted
beach defenses - large metal spikes embedded in concrete to obstruct
landings – stand on the beaches of South Korea's Baengnyeong Island.
The small island is South Korea's northernmost island and sits quite
literally in North Korea's crosshairs.</div>
</div>
<br />
BAENGNYEONG
ISLAND, South Korea -- On the face of it there's nothing particularly
exceptional about the Harmony Flower, a black and yellow 565-seat ferry
that leaves the South Korean port of Incheon at 8.50 a.m. every day,
heading northwest into the Yellow Sea.<br />
Hikers in bright windproof
jackets sit amid school children returning to their island home after a
field trip to the mainland. A group of elderly Koreans settles in a
circle on the floor for a game of cards.<br />
Yet this must be one of
the most precarious ferry routes in the world, plying the waters between
two states still technically at war, and where the rhetoric from North
Korea has raised tensions to levels not seen in years.<br />
The Harmony Flower skirts North Korean territory, cruising beside
disputed waters on its four-hour journey from Incheon to Baengnyeong,
South Korea’s northernmost and most isolated island.<br />
It's a sunny
day, but cold, and with a bitter wind. A few hardy travelers brave the
outside deck as the craggy outline of Baengnyeong comes into view
through the early afternoon haze.<br />
Baengnyeong, a 20-square-mile island, sits quite literally in North Korea’s crosshairs.<br />
<br />
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Baengnyeong
is South Korea's northernmost and most isolated island. Since 1999, the
island has been the scene of the most military incidents between the
two Koreas. NBC News' Ian Williams takes viewers on a tour of the
island. </div>
Since 1999, this area has been the scene of most
military incidents between the two Koreas. The North’s mainland looms to
the east and north of Baengnyeong. At its closest point, it is just ten
miles away.<br />
Some 5,000 people live on Baengnyeong with roughly the same number of South Korean soldiers.<br />
“The
soldiers are quite tense at the moment,” said Hong Sang Chul, a driver,
fishermen, shop owner and occasional tour guide, from high in one of
the island’s watchtowers.<br />
Local people have been told to keep off
the beach after dark, but at low tide during daylight hours they take
tunnels through the wall to collect mussels off the shell-encrusted
beach defenses – large metal spikes embedded in concrete to obstruct
landings.<br />
<strong>Sea of fire</strong><br />The disputed waters used
to be a popular fishing ground, naturally replenished during times of
tension when the fishermen stayed at home. Recently Chinese boats have
been coming in growing numbers.<br />
“There are usually around two to
three hundred Chinese fishing boats out there,” Hong said. “But a week
ago they all left. They decided it was too dangerous to fish here.”<br />
Baengnyeong
is like a fortress, the coast lined with tall concrete walls, 30 feet
thick in places and topped by layers of razor wire. It’s punctuated with
watch towers every few hundred feet.<br />
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<img alt="" height="426" id="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130401-south-korea-island-03-hmed-12p.jpg" src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130401-south-korea-island-03-hmed-12p.photoblog600.jpg" width="640" /></div>
<br />
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<div class="photo_credit">
Ian Williams / NBC News </div>
<div class="photo_credit_container">
Baengnyeong
is like a fortress, the coast lined with tall concrete walls, thirty
feet thick in places and topped by layers of razor wire. It's punctuated
with watch towers every few hundred feet.</div>
</div>
Radar
stations sit on top of the hills to give early warning of any North
Korean attack, and red signs warn of coastal mine fields.<br />
On top
of one hill is a vantage point overlooking North Korea, beside which sit
a decommissioned tank and a gun emplacement. A sign beside the gun
informs that it has a range of 15 miles.<br />
These weapons are for the benefit of visitors; the serious and more modern weaponry is hidden.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=10,0,0,0" height="346" id="msnbc161660" width="592"><param name="movie" value="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" /><param name="FlashVars" value="launch=51366834&width=592&height=346" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><embed name="msnbc161660" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" width="592" height="346" FlashVars="launch=51366834&width=592&height=346" allowscriptaccess="always" allowFullScreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object> </div>
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North
Korea's young leader Kim Jong-un has issued almost daily threats,
including the threat of nuclear strikes on Washington, D.C., and Seoul.
In addition, Pyongyang has put its troops on combat readiness, warning
that war "may break out at any moment." NBC's Ian Williams reports. </div>
Earlier
this month, the North Korean dictator was shown on television
inspecting a missile base, and peering through binoculars at
Baengnyeong. He threatened to turn it into a sea of fire.<br />
“He was
over there, that’s where Kim Jong Un was standing,” said Hong, pointing a
small island, just off the main North Korean coast.<br />
A little further round the coast is a large memorial to 46 sailors who died three years ago in<a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/id/36052055/ns/world_news-asiapacific/#.UVmbBRyR9Zo"> the sinking of a South Korean patrol boat, the Cheonan</a>, a little over a mile from the coast here, the apparent victim of a North Korean torpedo attack.<br />
Another island, Yeonpyeong, to the south of here, was attacked that same year<a href="http://photoblog.nbcnews.com/_news/2010/12/02/5565621-s-koreas-ghost-town-yeonpyeong-island-following-n-koreas-attack?lite"> with a sudden barrage of artillery</a> from the North that killed four people and injured 44 others. Both attacks came without warning.<br />
South
Korea, with a new and more hard-line president, has vowed to hit back
hard and is unlikely show the same restraint as last time.<br />
Hong has lived through years of threats and theatrics. But this ratcheting up of tensions feels new.<br />
“Of course it worries me,” he said. "I am worried."Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-76882910437422771322013-04-01T18:57:00.000-04:002013-04-01T20:26:03.211-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
US Navy shifts destroyer in wake of North Korea missile threats</h1>
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As
North Korean state TV shows constant images of the army bombarding
South Korea, North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un is saying his missiles are
at the ready and has cut off emergency communications. NBC's Richard
Engel reports. </div>
<div class="byline">
</div>
<div class="byline">
By Jim Miklaszewski, and Courtney Kube, NBC News</div>
<br />
The U.S. Navy is shifting a guided-missile destroyer in the Pacific
to waters off the Korean peninsula in the wake of ongoing rhetoric from
North Korea, U.S. defense officials said.<br />
The USS McCain is
capable of intercepting and destroying a missile, should North Korea
decide to fire one off, the officials said.<br />
Still, U.S. defense officials insist that there is nothing to indicate that North Korea is on the verge of another launch.<br />
The
White House on Monday said the United States hasn’t seen large-scale
movements from North Korean military forces in the aftermath of harsh
rhetoric from the reclusive government.<br />
<br />
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<object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=10,0,0,0" height="346" id="msnbc83fc69" width="592"><param name="movie" value="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" /><param name="FlashVars" value="launch=51391028&width=592&height=346" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><embed name="msnbc83fc69" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" width="592" height="346" FlashVars="launch=51391028&width=592&height=346" allowscriptaccess="always" allowFullScreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object> </div>
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As
North Korean state TV shows constant images of the army bombarding
South Korea, North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un is saying his missiles are
at the ready and has cut off emergency communications. NBC's Richard
Engel reports. </div>
"I would note that despite the harsh
rhetoric we are hearing from Pyongyang, we are not seeing changes to the
North Korean military posture, such as large-scale mobilizations and
positioning of forces," Carney said<br />
The McCain in December 2012 was moved to be in position to defend against a impending North Korean rocket launch.<br />
On
Sunday, The United States sent F-22 stealth fighter jets to South Korea
as part of military exercises in a move aimed at further deterring
threats from North Korea against its neighbor.<br />
It was unclear if the McCain was also part of the ongoing military drills.<br />
It
was earlier reported that the USS Fitzgerald, another guided missile
destroyer, would be moved to the area, though it was only among the
ships under consideration for the deployment.<br />
Also Monday, South
Korean President Park Geun-hye appeared to give her country's military
permission to strike back at any attack from the North without further
word from Seoul, saying she took the North's escalating threats "very
seriously," South Korean news agency <a href="http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/national/2013/04/01/84/0301000000AEN20130401006852315F.HTML" target="_blank">Yonhap</a> reported.<br />
"As
commander-in-chief of the armed forces, I will trust the military's
judgment on abrupt and surprise provocations by North Korea," she said,
according to Yonhap.<br />
<br />
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<div class="photo_credit">
Master Sgt. Kevin J. Gruenwald / U.S. Air Force via Reuters, file</div>
<div class="photo_credit_container">
Two
U.S. Air Force F-22 Raptor stealth jet fighters fly near Andersen Air
Force Base in Guam in this handout photo dated August 4, 2010. </div>
</div>
<br />
<br />
The deployments and Park's remarks came as tensions approached an all-time high between Pyongyang and Washington. <br />
Kim
Jong Un has ratcheted up the rhetoric against both South Korea and the
United States in recent months, and in February violated U.N. sanctions
by ordering a nuclear weapons test.<br />
On Saturday, North Korea said
it had entered a "state of war" against South Korea, according to a
statement reported by the North's official news agency, KCNA.<br />
In
an interview on CNBC Monday, former Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said
the United States needs to be "very concerned" by North Korea’s recent
weapons test and "level of bellicosity" and do everything necessary to
defend U.S. allies and interests.<br />
Panetta said while Kim Jung Un’s
actions appear aimed at his internal situation the U.S. should “take
nothing for granted” and be prepared. The greatest danger right now, he
said, appears to be the possibility of a miscalculation.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
NBC's Jim Maceda reports on U.S. Navy movements of destroyers into the Pacific amid threats from North Korea. </div>
<br />
"The reality is we don’t have as much insight as we should," Panetta said of Kim's motives.<br />
The
stealth aircraft – two F-22 Raptors -- were deployed from Japan to the
Osan Air Base in South Korea from Japan where they will remain on
“static display” as part of the military drills, Pentagon spokesman
George Little said. The F-22s are not expected to actively participate
in any exercises, however.<br />
This is the fifth time F-22s have
deployed to South Korea. Exercise Foal Eagle began on March 1 and will
continue until the end of April.<br />
Kim has also recently threatened
to "settle accounts" with the U.S. and posed near a chart that appeared
to detail bombings of American cities.<br />
<div class="inlineCode photo_align_right" data-contentid="17544126" id="vine-inlineCode__17544126">
<a class="twitter-follow-button" href="http://twitter.com/NBCNewsWorld"></a> </div>
The
F-22 jets' arrival follows other recent displays of air power by the
U.S. in South Korea. Last week B-52 bombers and B-2 stealth bombers were
sent to the country for the annual exercise.<br />
In North Korea,
meanwhile, KCNA reported on an Easter service at which it said "the
participants renewed the firm resolution to put the warmongers [the US
and South Korea] into the red hot iron-pot of hell as early as
possible."<br />
North Korea's stance, however, can be notoriously difficult to interpret.<br />
In
a later release Monday on KCNA, Pyongyang announced the adoption of a
law "consolidating" its position as a nuclear power that would use its
weapons only “to repel invasion or attack from a hostile nuclear weapons
state and make retaliatory strikes.”<br />
Among the law's pledges were
that North Korea would store its weapons responsibly, that it would not
use them against non-nuclear nations, and that it would participate in
nonproliferation talks -- though the last clause came with the condition
that there was “improvement of relations with hostile nuclear weapons
states.”Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-86196304552571075002013-04-01T18:07:00.000-04:002013-04-01T21:43:34.873-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
Jessica Lynch: Iraq still haunts my dreams 10 years after rescue</h1>
<div class="inlineVideo photo_align_block" data-contentid="17551688" id="vine-inlineVideo__17551688">
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
Former
prisoner of war Jessica Lynch reflects on the decade since her rescue
in Iraq, saying she still has nightmares about her ordeal and revealing
she feels "the most pride" about being a mother. </div>
</div>
<div class="byline">
</div>
<div class="byline">
By Scott Stump, TODAY contributor</div>
<div class="byline">
</div>
Ten
years after her dramatic rescue as a prisoner of war in Iraq made
headlines, Jessica Lynch continues to persevere in the face of injuries
and survivor’s guilt related to her ordeal.<br />
<br />
“About every night I
have some kind of dream where there’s someone chasing me,’’ she told
TODAY’s Janet Shamlian on Monday. “It’s hard. It really is mentally and
physically draining. I’m very blessed and happy to be here, and I think
that’s what counts the most, and if I tell myself that I’m OK, I
eventually I start (thinking), ‘You know what? I can do this.’’’<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=10,0,0,0" height="346" id="msnbc96e6cf" width="592"><param name="movie" value="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" /><param name="FlashVars" value="launch=51397441&width=592&height=346" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><embed name="msnbc96e6cf" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" width="592" height="346" FlashVars="launch=51397441&width=592&height=346" allowscriptaccess="always" allowFullScreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object></div>
Lynch, now 29, became a household name in 2003 when she became the
first American POW to be rescued since the Vietnam War. The Army private
and her 507th Maintenance Company were ambushed in Nasiriya only days
into the Iraq War, and she was captured and held by Iraqi soldiers at a
hospital there before being rescued by U.S. Special Forces troops who
stormed the facility. Lynch is now a mother, teacher and motivational
speaker in her hometown of Charleston, W.V., and is working on a
master’s degree.<br />
<br />
“Every day I wake up, I have that ‘never give up’
attitude,’’ she told Savannah Guthrie on TODAY Monday. “As much as I
have the up and down days, it doesn’t matter as long as you keep it in
your mind that you can do anything, that’s what it’s all about is
perseverance.’’<br />
<br />
Lynch suffered several broken bones during her
capture and has undergone countless hours of physical rehabilitation for
her legs and arms. She has had 21 surgeries since her rescue and told
Guthrie she still wears a brace on her left leg and experiences pain in
her right foot.<br />
<br />
“I do the best that I can, and I’m just thankful that I’m here,’’ she told Guthrie.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/2013/March/130214/130314-iraq-where-before-lynch.380;380;7;70;0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="253" id="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Components/Photo/2013/March/130214/130314-iraq-where-before-lynch.jpg" src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/2013/March/130214/130314-iraq-where-before-lynch.380;380;7;70;0.jpg" width="380" /></a><br />
<div class="photo_credit">
REUTERS file</div>
<div class="photo_credit_container">
Undated footage from a combat camera video shows U.S. PFC Jessica Lynch on a stretcher during her rescue from Iraq. </div>
<br />
In
the aftermath of her rescue, there were numerous extravagant media
reports that painted her as a hero and had incorrect details of her
capture and rescue. She worked to set the record straight, testifying
before Congress that she never fired her weapon during the firefight
because her M-16 rifle jammed and that she was knocked unconscious when
her vehicle flipped.<br />
<br />
“I know that there was a lot of fabricated,
misconstrued stories, but I did what I had to do,’’ Lynch told Guthrie.
“I came out and tried to tell the world what really happened. I set the
record straight as much as I can and what people still want to believe
or not believe, that’s on them, but I felt it was important to just let
the truth be known. I did Congress and testified to really just let
everyone know none of this happened, this is the real story.’’<br />
<br />
Lynch
has also dealt with the survivor’s guilt. During the 90-minute
firefight in Nasiriya in which she was captured, 11 members of her
company were killed. One of them was her best friend, Lori Piestewa, who
was taken to the Iraqi hospital with Lynch after being captured and
died on the bed next to her.<br />
<br />
“It’s so hard to continue every day
knowing that Lori didn’t make it home with me,’’ Lynch said. “The reason
that she went over there was to be with me and our other comrades, and
sadly she didn’t get to come back home, so (I’m) just having to deal
with the fact that my best friend didn’t get to come back and I did. She
had two beautiful kids. It’s just really hard to know they’re going to
have to grow up without their mom.’’<br />
<br />
Fortunately for Lynch, it was not long before she had a couple of new
loves in her life – first a new fiancé, Wes Robinson, and on Jan. 9,
2007, a 7-pound, 10-ounce baby girl.<br />
<br />
The couple named the baby
Dakota Ann in honor of Army Spc. Lori Piestewa, Lynch’s tentmate and
former Fort Bliss roommate, who was killed in the attack that injured
Lynch. Ann was Piestewa’s middle name and Dakota came from the fact that
Piestewa was part Native American.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: right;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: right;">
<a href="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/2013/March/130214/130314-iraq-where-now-lynch.380;380;7;70;0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" height="380" id="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Components/Photo/2013/March/130214/130314-iraq-where-now-lynch.jpg" src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/2013/March/130214/130314-iraq-where-now-lynch.380;380;7;70;0.jpg" width="254" /></a></div>
<div class="photo_credit" style="text-align: left;">
Bob Bird/AP file</div>
<div class="photo_credit_container" style="text-align: left;">
Jessica Lynch with her<br />
daughter Dakota following<br />
the South Charleston,Va.<br />
Christmas Parade on<br />
Dec. 10, 2011.</div>
<br />
<br />
“There I’m not Jessica Lynch, I’m not prisoner of war Jessica Lynch, I’m Dakota’s mommy,’’ she told Shamlian.<br />
<br />
Now that it’s been a decade since the ordeal that has become part of her story, Lynch is looking to move forward with her life.<br />
“I’m kind of happy that we’re finally to this 10-year mark so that I
can finally put Iraq in the past,’’ she told Guthrie. “I know that it
will always be with me. It’s nice to make that mark of ‘I’ve made it
this far.’<br />
<br />
It’s always going to be with my life, waking up every day and
dealing with the injuries. I go on and I strive and I do the best that I
can.’’<br />
<br />
<b>THEN</b><br />
On March 23, 2003, just three days after the start of the
invasion of Iraq, a U.S. Army supply convoy took a wrong turn and was
attacked in Nasiriyah, a key town on the road to Baghdad. Eleven U.S.
soldiers were killed and six captured, including Private First Class
Jessica Lynch, a 19-year-old from West Virginia. She suffered spinal
fractures, nerve damage and a shattered right arm, right foot and left
leg when her Humvee crashed.<br />
<br />
<b>IRAQ TEN YEARS LATER: WHERE ARE THEY NOW?</b><br />
<ul>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17373606-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-jessica-lynch?lite">Jessica Lynch</a></li>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17374226-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-hans-blix-un-weapons-inspector?lite">Hans Blix (UN arms inspector)</a></li>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17374212-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-colin-powell?lite">Colin Powell</a></li>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17374192-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-tariq-aziz?lite">Tariq Aziz (Saddam Hussein’s foreign minister)</a></li>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17374117-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-ahmed-chalabi-iraqi-exile-leader?lite">Ahmed Chalabi (Iraqi exile leader)</a></li>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17374093-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-tony-blair-uk-prime-minister?lite">Tony Blair</a></li>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17374059-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-gen-tommy-franks-invasion-commander?lite">Gen. Tommy Franks</a></li>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17373979-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-josh-rushing-us-marines-spokesman?lite">Josh Rushing (Marines spokesman)</a></li>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17373956-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-brig-gen-vincent-brooks-us-army-spokesman?lite">Brig. Gen. Vincent Brooks (Army spokesman)</a></li>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17373886-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-paul-bremer-iraq-administrator?lite">Paul Bremer (Iraq administrator)</a></li>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17373828-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-farris-hassan?lite">Farris Hassan (teen journalist)</a></li>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17373769-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-lynndie-england-abu-ghraib?lite">Lynndie England (Abu Ghraib)</a></li>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17373689-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-mohammed-al-rehaief-aided-jessica-lynch?lite">Mohammed Al-Rehaief (aided Jessica Lynch)</a></li>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17373861-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-ali-hassan-al-majid-chemical-ali?lite">Ali Hassan Al-Majid (‘Chemical Ali’)</a></li>
<li><a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17374006-iraq-war-10-years-later-where-are-they-now-mohammed-saeed-al-sahaf-baghdad-bob?lite">Mohammed Saeed Al-Sahaf (‘Baghdad Bob’)</a></li>
</ul>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-68970329687322933772013-04-01T16:55:00.000-04:002013-04-01T18:36:38.951-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
'Buckwild' star Shain Gandee dead at 21</h1>
<div class="byline">
By Ree Hines, TODAY contributor</div>
<em><strong>Updated at 5:06 p.m. ET: </strong></em>Shain Gandee, a star on the MTV reality program "Buckwild," has died, NBC affiliate WSAZ confirmed on Monday.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;">
<img alt="" height="375" id="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/tdy-130401-ent-shain-gandee.jpg" src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/tdy-130401-ent-shain-gandee.photoblog500.jpg" width="500" /></div>
<br />
<div class="inlinePhoto photo_landscape photo_align_block " data-contentid="17554633" id="vine-inlinePhoto__17554633" style="width: 500px;">
<div class="photo_credit">
MTV</div>
<div class="photo_credit_container">
Shain Gandee.</div>
</div>
The
21-year-old and his uncle, David Gandee, were reported missing on
Sunday, according to the Kanawha County Sheriff's Office. The two were
said to have been last seen at a Sissonville, W.Va., bar around 3 a.m.,
and they then planned to go four-wheeling.<br />
According to Kanawha County Commission President Ken Carper, the
bodies of Shain and two others were found in a truck in Sissonville on
Monday.<br />
The Kanawha County Sheriff's Office has identified the second
person as 48-year-old David. There's no word yet on the identity of the
third person.<br />
Family members began to search for Shain and his uncle on Sunday before officially reporting them missing.<br />
Shain,
along with "Buckwild" co-star Shae Bradley, appeared on TODAY in
January, to defend their then-new show from critics who feared their
on-screen antics would reinforce negative stereotypes about West
Virginians.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=10,0,0,0" height="346" id="msnbc958b1d" width="592"><param name="movie" value="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" /><param name="FlashVars" value="launch=50353910&width=592&height=346" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><embed name="msnbc958b1d" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" width="592" height="346" FlashVars="launch=50353910&width=592&height=346" allowscriptaccess="always" allowFullScreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object></div>
Shain's defense of the show now strikes a sad tone. "You only live once, so live it up," he said.<br />
Last
month, MTV renewed the show for a second season. However, in the wake
of Shain's death, production on the show has been suspended, a network
spokesperson told The Clicker. No further details were available.<br />
In
a statement to TODAY, MTV said, "We are shocked and saddened by the
terrible news about Shain Gandee, and those involved in this tragic
incident. We are waiting for more information but at this time, our main
concern is for the Gandee family and their friends. Our thoughts and
prayers are with them. Shain had a magnetic personality, with a passion
for life that touched everyone he met and we will miss him dearly."Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-91324559275451796022013-04-01T15:26:00.000-04:002013-04-01T18:36:38.957-04:00<div class="top_headline" style="min-height: 80px; padding-bottom: 5px;">
<h1 class="pagetitle">
Immigration Reform for Thanksgiving
</h1>
<div class="social-buttons">
</div>
</div>
<div class="ad-rs-container">
<span id="sponsoredbylogo1"><span id="_fw_container_sponsoredbylogo1"></span></span></div>
<div class="headline-author">
<span> By </span><a href="http://abcnews.go.com/author/jim_avila" rel="author">Jim Avila</a><br /></div>
<div class="date">
Apr 1, 2013 1:31pm</div>
<div class="date">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;">
<img alt="ap schumer mccain kb 130401 wblog Immigration Reform for Thanksgiving" height="360" src="http://a.abcnews.go.com/images/Politics/ap_schumer_mccain_kb_130401_wblog.jpg" title="Immigration Reform for Thanksgiving" width="640" /></div>
<br />
<div class="wp-caption alignnone" style="width: 488px;">
<div class="wp-caption-text">
Ross D. Franklin/AP Photo</div>
</div>
Analysis by ABC News Senior National Correspondent Jim Avila:<br />
<br />
The <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/senators-tour-arizona-mexico-border-gain-perspective-immigration/story?id=18826824#.UVm37yeG1qU">Senate Gang of 8</a>
led by Arizona Sen. John McCain and New York Sen. Charles Schumer is
poised to introduce a comprehensive immigration bill as soon as next
Monday, April 8, according to sources briefed on the timetable. As
Schumer, a Democrat, said over the weekend <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2013/03/schumer-gang-of-8-has-substantive-agreement-on-immigration-issues/">the big moving parts of a bill</a> have been agreed to in principle and details are being worked out this week.<br />
Labor and business have agreed on <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/ABC_Univision/Politics/business-labor-strike-deal-immigration-reform/story?id=18846531#.UVm4oSeG1qU">a guest worker plan</a>, and the senators in the Gang of 8 from the right and left have agreed on how “<a href="http://abcnews.go.com/ThisWeek/video/week-roundtable-week-politics-18849703">border security</a>”
will be defined. Although Schumer did not reveal the metrics involved,
sources tell ABC News the definition of a secure border will largely
entail how much money will be spent on new equipment from drones to
planes to vehicles, and how many new border patrol agents will be hired
before “a path to citizenship” is agreed upon.<br />
<strong></strong><strong><br /></strong>
<a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/rubio-reports-immigration-deal-premature-18850305"> Sen. Marco Rubio</a>,
R-Fla., warned over the weekend that after the bill is introduced there
still have to be hearings and an opportunity for members of the entire
Senate to add amendments. Sources close to Rubio tell ABC News he has
not changed his mind on the principles of a secure border and path to
citizenship <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/ABC_Univision/obama-rubio-immigration-plans-difference/story?id=18212543">agreed to in January</a>.<br />
The current timetable according to Hill sources is the Senate
introduces its bill next Monday, holds hearings and votes by July. The
House version will likely be introduced the week of April 14. The House
Gang of 8 is still waiting to hear if leadership will endorse its bill.
Sources close to the House members working on its version tell ABC News
its version is likely to be “a couple inches to the right of the
Senate’s” and voted upon in the fall.<br />
A realistic timetable for a bill emerging from the House and Senate conference would then be Thanksgiving.<br />
That may seem like a long time for those not versed in the ways of
Capitol Hill. But that is actually lightning speed. It’s quite unusual
for legislation to be introduced and passed in the same calendar yearAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-9982525027724688072013-04-01T15:11:00.000-04:002013-04-01T18:36:38.959-04:00
<br />
<h2>
Watch Live and Follow Online: The 2013 Easter Egg Roll</h2>
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<a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/imagecache/blog_author_post/kasie_01.jpg?itok=yO8iBnor" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a class="author-name" href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/author/Kasie%20Coccaro">Kasie Coccaro</a><div class="blog-info-created">
April 01, 2013 <br /> 07:40 AM EDT</div>
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Today, the President and First Lady will host more than 30,000 people
from all 50 states on the South Lawn of the White House for the 135th
annual Easter Egg Roll. The curated live stream (above) is new this
year, and features historic facts about egg rolls past and will
highlight select events throughout the day.<br />
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Check out the <a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/03/29/complete-2013-easter-egg-roll-program-and-talent-line-0"><span class="s2">complete Easter Egg Roll line-up</span></a>, and go to <span class="s2"><a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/live">WH.gov/live</a> to </span>watch
additional live streams, including a feed from the Storytime Stage,
where this year's readers include NASCAR’s Danica Patrick, Minnesota
Viking Adrian Peterson, Elmo, Abby, Gordon and Rosita from Sesame
Street, the full cast of Super Sprowtz, The Wanted, and actress
Quvenzhané Wallis, or you can tune in to the Rocking Egg Roll Stage to
see performances from Jordin Sparks, Austin Mahone, Coco Jones, Sesame
Street, and The Wanted. You can also watch cooking demonstrations of
healthy family favorites from top chefs at the Play with Your Food
station, and of course you can follow all the day's action on social
media using the hashtag <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23EasterEggRoll&src=typd"><span class="s2">#EasterEggRoll</span></a> or on <span class="s2"><a href="http://storify.com/letsmove/the-2013-eastereggroll-be-healthy-be-active-be-you">Storify</a>, below</span>.<br />
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<span class="s3"><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=f1OHJUc2QTU#%21">Kids Dancing, Eggs Rolling</a></span><span class="s4">, <a href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/live"><span class="s3">Tune in</span></a>! </span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-65169683989790602012013-04-01T14:20:00.000-04:002013-04-01T18:36:38.949-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
Why we get pleasure from pranking</h1>
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By Bill Briggs, NBC News contributor</div>
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Reading this story will totally change your freaking life.</span></b></div>
<i><b>Ha. (Gotcha.) </b></i><br />
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The
rascally antics of April Fools' Day are exploiting yet again a realm
that, somehow, has not been fully pranked-out by practical jokesters —
the Internet, where today you may spot certain trending tomfoolery weeks
in the planning. (And they say we have less free time.)<br />
Like hundreds (thousands?) of <a href="https://twitter.com/BelieberToronto/status/317650650496385024/photo/1">fake Justin Biebers</a> simultaneously tweeting via The Bieb’s icon and name.<br />
Or,
maybe (though highly, highly doubtful) Facebook will take the playful
advice of many fans who suggest that, for one day, the site <a href="https://twitter.com/_thatkiddan/status/317018110337114112/photo/1">swap its status and search boxes</a> so that all your friends can see who you’re about to stalk.<br />
And, of course, there was loads of online chatter late last week about the upcoming launch of a sweet, new <a href="http://creativity-online.com/news/pgs-bacon-mouthwash-sounds-like-an-april-fools-gag/240626">bacon-flavored Scope</a>.<br />
Why
do we do these silly things? Why — and not just on April 1 — do we find
such pleasure in punking our pals? According to Jonathan Wynn, a
cultural sociologist at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, many of
us get a swift psychological kick out of being the fooler and, for
some, even the fool.<br />
“Within a group, the jokester has always held
a kind of magical status. I think of court jesters who were able to
tease the king. These are people who gain an element of status as having
a key role as being a prankster,” Wynn said.<br />
On the painful end
of the gag, (otherwise known as "the butt"), some victims of community
trickeration may grow immediately uncomfortable because they realize
they're so susceptible to being duped — or, more broadly, that they are
just plain vulnerable, according to a <a href="http://www.carlsonschool.umn.edu/assets/93665.pdf">2007 pape</a>r
authored by three college professors and published in the Review of
General Psychology, a journal of the American Psychological Association.<br />
For many caper casualties, however, there is a sort of charm that comes with being targeted by well-schemed hijinks.<br />
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When hierarchical groups such as law enforcement agencies or
frat houses use certain tried-and-true shenanigans to momentarily
embarrass newbies, the rough-housing is ultimately meant to bust down
social boundaries and welcome fresh people into the group. In other
words, it's meant to be flattering.<br />
"It's about how well you
respond. It’s clearly a test," Wynn said. "If you can respond graciously
to a prank, you become initiated as a member of the group."<br />
Just
remember that as you're pulling up your pants and wiping the whipped
cream out of your ear holes. Or, simply utter the immortal words of
Kevin Bacon in "Animal House" - "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdFLPn30dvQ">Thank you, sir! May I have anothe</a>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-14825955992548134142013-04-01T14:03:00.000-04:002013-04-01T18:36:38.942-04:00<div class="top_headline" style="min-height: 80px; padding-bottom: 5px;">
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White House April Fools’ Day Prank</h1>
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<a href="http://abcnews.go.com/search?searchtext=byline%3A%22mary%20bruce%22#0_date" rel="author"><img alt="Mary Bruce" height="65" src="http://a.abcnews.com/images/Site/Bruce_cutout.png" width="65" /></a><span> By </span><a href="http://abcnews.go.com/search?searchtext=byline%3A%22mary%20bruce%22#0_date" rel="author">Mary Bruce</a><br /></div>
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Apr 1, 2013 12:41pm</div>
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<img alt="ht kid whitehouse mi 130401 wblog White House April Fools Day Prank" height="360" src="http://a.abcnews.go.com/images/Politics/ht_kid_whitehouse_mi_130401_wblog.jpg" title="Kid President" width="640" /></div>
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The White House had a little April Fools’ Day fun this morning, with the help of Kid President.<br />
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It all began with a tweet from the official White House twitter feed
telling everyone to be on the lookout. ”At 10:00 a.m. ET, the White
House will release a special video message from the President,” it read.<br />
When viewers tuned in online, they saw the White House briefing room and heard “Hail to the Chief.”<br />
And then…<br />
Kid President popped up from behind the podium.<br />
“It looks like you were expecting somebody else,” the 9-year old
YouTube sensation said, as he leaned on the podium. “Well April Fools’
on all y’all.”<br />
“I’m Kid President and I hope everyone has an awesome day!” he said.<br />
Robby Novak, a.k.a. the Kid President, is a special guest at today’s
White House Easter Egg Roll. “I made it to the White House! I’m here!
Peace,” he exclaimed as he flashed two peace signs.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/5byDhm-E-YE?feature=player_embedded" width="640"></iframe><br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-85229582652612448642013-04-01T13:34:00.000-04:002013-04-01T18:36:38.954-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
How the US oil, gas boom could shake up global order</h1>
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">As energy production in North America climbs, NBC News' Chief Foreign Correspondent Richard Engel explores what it will mean to oil-producing countries in the Middle East.<br /> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">By Richard Engel and Robert Windrem, NBC News<br /><br />Without fanfare, China passed the United States in December to become the world's leading importer of oil – the first time in nearly 40 years that the U.S. didn’t own that dubious distinction. That same month, North Dakota, Ohio and Pennsylvania together produced 1.5 million barrels of oil a day -- more than Iran exported.</span><br />
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<a href="http://msnbcmedia4.msn.com/j/streams/2013/March/130321/1C6552502-powershift-logo-big-standard.streams_desktop_small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://msnbcmedia4.msn.com/j/streams/2013/March/130321/1C6552502-powershift-logo-big-standard.streams_desktop_small.jpg" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/id/3033676">America’s drive for energy independence</a><br /><br />As those data points demonstrate, a dramatic shift is occurring in how energy is being produced and consumed around the world – one that could lead to far-reaching changes in the geopolitical order.<br /><br />U.S. policy makers, intelligence analysts and other experts are beginning to grapple with the ramifications of such a change, which could bring with it both great benefits for the U.S. and potentially dangerous consequences, including the risk of upheaval in countries and regions heavily dependent on oil exports. <br /><br />But many experts say the U.S. would be the big winner, in position to reshape its foreign policy and boost its global influence. <br /><br />"People already are looking at the U.S. differently, seeing the U.S. as much more competitive in the world,” said energy analyst and author Dan Yergin, saying that he first noticed the change in the world view of the U.S. at the World Economic Forum in January in Davos, Switzerland.<br /></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><a href="http://slideshow.nbcnews.com/id/51165747/displaymode/1247/?wbSlideShowId=51165747&wbSection=news&wbSlideShowTeaseId=51165760">Slideshow: Drilling down and out in Texas </a></span><br />
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<a href="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/ss-oil-tease.380;380;7;70;0.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/ss-oil-tease.380;380;7;70;0.jpg" /></a><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Jim Seida / NBC News<br /> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">Watch a drilling crew at work near the small town of Garden City, Texas, as they drill an oil well that eventually will extend more than a mile deep and a mile sideways in the Permian Basin.<br /><br /><br />As detailed in the first two installments of <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/id/3033676">Power Shift, an NBC News/CNBC special report</a>, the United States is reaping the benefits of an energy boom created by new drilling technologies that have unlocked vast domestic oil and natural gas reserves. Coupled with decreasing demand due to energy efficiency and continued cultivation of alternative energy sources, an increasing number of experts believe the U.S. could achieve energy independence by the end of the decade – realizing a dream born during the gas crisis of 1973.<br /><br />But who would be the global winners and losers in such a scenario?<br /><br />Most U.S. policy makers and experts agree that the U.S. and its allies – particularly its North American neighbors -- would be the biggest beneficiaries.<br /><br /><i><b>Boom helps Iran sanctions stick</b></i><br />In fact, they say, the West already has realized one major benefit: the success of international sanctions against Iran over its nuclear program.<br /><br />Carlos Pascual, the State Department’s coordinator for international energy affairs, noted last month at the CERAWEEK energy conference in Houston that increased U.S. oil production, coupled with a boost in exports from Iraq and Libya, has kept oil prices stable despite the loss, because of sanctions, of up to 1.5 million barrels a day in Iranian exports.<br /><br />“What this has taught us, and helped underscore, is that within the world we live in today, hard security issues and energy policy issues have become fundamentally intertwined,” he said.</span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><br /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><br />
<a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/id/51181011" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Interactives/_swf/US_News/PowerShift/interactiveMap/Tease_USEnergyProduction.380;380;7;70;0.jpg" /></a><br /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/id/51181011">Where US energy is produced</a><br /><br /> NBC News<br /> Interactive map: Where the US produces its energy. Click to enlarge.<br /><br />Yergin, who also is a CNBC energy consultant and author of the energy-focused nonfiction best-sellers "The Quest" and "The Prize," put it this way: "People talk of the future impact. The increase in U.S oil production has already had an impact: Sanctions wouldn't have been effective without U.S. oil production. … We've added (within the last year) almost as much as Iran was exporting before sanctions.” <br /><br />Hossein Moussavian, a former Iranian ambassador to Germany and nuclear negotiator who's now a fellow at the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton University, said "the radicals" in Tehran failed to foresee the changing energy picture, believing that sanctions wouldn't be imposed and that, if they were, they wouldn't work because oil prices would surge.<br /><br />"The Iranian mistake was to believe … the threats of referring Iran to the United Nations Security Council, imposing sanctions, was just a bluff," he said.<br /><br />In the longer term, observers say that the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and many of its member nations are likely to be the biggest losers if the U.S. continues to cut oil imports, likely decreasing oil prices in the process.<br /><br />"A dramatic expansion of U.S. production could … push global spare capacity to exceed 8 million barrels per day, at which point OPEC could lose price control and crude oil prices would drop, possibly sharply," the U.S. intelligence community's internal think tank, the National Intelligence Council, said in its<a href="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/msnbc/sections/news/global-trends-2030.pdf"> “Global Trends 2030” report</a> in December. "Such a drop would take a heavy toll on many energy producers who are increasingly dependent on relatively high energy prices to balance their budgets."<br /><br />With some analysts predicting that oil prices could drop as low as $70 to $90 a barrel – down from the current price of nearly $110 per barrel of Brent crude oil – a “scramble” among OPEC members for market share could ensue, said Edward Morse, an energy analyst with Citigroup and co-author of a recent report on titled <a href="https://ir.citi.com/VAT4yRRlLsXqULXdMQYD7n1LgHn7SHeqddE5csJk8UTDUFNistp%2BLQ%3D%3D">“Energy 2020: Independence Day.”</a><br /><br />An International Monetary Fund analysis indicates that many major oil-producing states need more than that lowest price level to meet their budgets and would be forced to increase output or reduce spending, which could trigger unrest. Among them, according to the report: Iran, Libya and Russia, at $117 a barrel; Iraq, $112; Yemen, $237; and the UAE, $84.<br /><br />Iraq, which has had production from its rich oil fields curtailed by war or sanctions for half of the 53 years of OPEC’s existence, poses another challenge to the organization. <br /><br />Now that it’s finally free of such interference, its production is increasing by between 500,000 and 900,000 barrels a year, making it the second fastest growing oil-producing country in the world after the U.S. <br /><br />“And, by God, no one’s going to impose any quota limitations on them,” said Morse, referring to Iraq’s OPEC partners. “So part of the challenge to OPEC is internal as well as external.”<br /><br /><i><b>Can Saudis maintain market-maker role?</b></i><br />Analysts say OPEC heavyweight Saudi Arabia, which controls vast reserves of oil and needs $71 a barrel to meet its budget, according to the IMF, will do everything it can to remain the market-maker. But in that role, it will face new challenges, they say.<br /><br />“Over time, it should become increasingly challenging for Saudi Arabia to ‘overproduce’ and bring down prices to punish wayward OPEC members; without this disciplinary mechanism, it is unclear whether OPEC can remain cohesive,” according to the Citigroup report.<br /><br />For its part, OPEC professes to be not unduly alarmed by the U.S. oil and natural gas boom. It highlights the "considerable uncertainties" surrounding wells drilled using hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” and associated technologies.<br /><br />Yergin said he believes that the Saudis will be able to withstand the turbulence, and that they will provide a buffer for the organization’s lesser producers.<br /><br />“It's too quick to write the obit for OPEC,” he said. “… The Saudis will figure it out. They are re-orientated to Asian markets, turning left instead of right.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">New technology is creating a boom in energy extraction in the Permian Basin. For most residents, it's a welcome boost to the economy.</span><br /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"></span><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;"><br />But some members of the oil cartel -- particularly Nigeria and Angola -- already are feeling the impact of the U.S. production surge, according to the Citigroup report. U.S. imports from the two countries dropped to 700,000 barrels a day at the end of 2012, down from 1.6 million barrels in 2007. That’s because U.S. production of light, sweet crude -- the kind of oil the West African nations produce -- has burgeoned in recent years. Citigroup forecasts that by the end of 2013, the market for Nigerian oil at Gulf Coast refineries could entirely dry up.<br /><br />Longer term, say by 2020, cheaper heavy oil from Canada, freed from the so-called oil sands by new recovery technologies, could push similar oil from Venezuela out of the U.S. Gulf Coast market, (assuming the Obama administration approves construction of the Keystone XL pipeline to carry it), according to forecasts. <br /><br />Mexico also is expected to increase production, offering the U.S. access to another convenient and friendly provider.<br /><br />"The Eagle Ford formation in Texas extends into Mexico and if you look at the Gulf, you'll see thousands of black dots marking oil platforms on the U.S. side but nothing on the Mexican side,” said Yergin. “That's changing. There is a political consensus among the three major parties on energy. You will see less immigration from Mexico. Mexico could become more of a BRIC (the term used for fast-developing economies like Brazil, Russia, India and China) than Brazil."<br /><br />Besides guaranteeing a stable domestic energy supply, those energy resources add tools to the U.S. diplomatic toolbox, said David L. Phillips, director of the Peace-building and Human Rights Program at Columbia University.<br /><br />"Why permit ourselves to be held hostage to regimes hostile to our national interests and who give safe harbor to those who would do us harm?" he asked. "… The glaring example is Venezuela. (Hugo) Chavez was so strongly anti-American and he was providing energy to our enemies. They should pay the price for non-cooperation."<br /><br />Current and former diplomats note that the U.S. also could use its increased natural gas production to weaken rival Russia’s near monopoly on natural gas exports to Europe, via its state-controlled energy giant Gazprom. Already, declining prices fueled by the U.S. boom have benefited the European market.<br /><br />"What has emerged is a competitive market that allowed the utilities of Western Europe to renegotiate their contract with Gazprom, affecting both prices and financing terms," said the State Department’s Pascual.<br /><br />Adding to the pressure, the U.S. firm Cheniere Energy last month signed <a href="http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/03/25/uk-centrica-idUKBRE92O0PT20130325">a 20-year deal</a> to export enough liquefied natural gas to the British utility Centrica PLC to heat 1.8 million homes starting in 2018 – the first pact of its kind.<br /><br /><i><b>Growth slowing in China, India</b></i><br />As for China and India, both of which are expected to import increasing amounts of energy for years to come, analysts see indications that economic growth is slowing in both countries.<br /><br />“In a pattern similar to the abrupt slowdown in demand growth seen in the Asian Tigers in the 1990s, Chinese demand growth has slowed to a more tepid 3 (percent) to 5 percent rate as compared to the double-digit growth seen in the early 2000s,” said a Citigroup report by analyst Seth Kleinman released last week. <br /><br />That slowdown is in part due to the diminishing competitive edge that China enjoys over the U.S., Yergin said.<br /><br />“Chinese wages are going up 20 percent a year. U.S. energy efficiency and increased production helps the U.S. in the mix on the global competitive landscape, he said, noting that Dow Chemical recently announced it will invest $4 billion in U.S. petrochemical production. “…That doesn’t happen without the U.S. advantage in energy.”<br /><br />Citigroup's Morse and other analysts said the slowing Chinese economy and energy insecurity could prompt China to more militarization in the Far East -- a dangerous development in a region already beset by nationalist disputes and where the U.S. is expected to focus increasing attention. But none suggests that the Chinese are likely to challenge the United States as a global power, saying Beijing has neither the military assets nor the desire. Its strategy remains regional and attuned to "short-range engagements," Morse wrote.<br /><br />The impact of the rebalancing of global energy production could be more severe in other nations.<br /><br />Trevor Houser, a former energy analyst in the Obama administration State Department, worries about the prospect of failed states.<br /><br />"If you look at the consequences of more U.S. production and reduced sales from OPEC, some would see that as a benefit," said Houser, now a partner with New York-based Rhodium Group, a global market analysis firm. "But starving those economies of oil revenue will surely have disruptive effects. It is not necessarily a good development for U.S. foreign policy and geopolitical stability in general."<br /></span><br /><img height="394" src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130329-persian-gulf-patrols-bcol-12p.photoblog600.jpg" width="640" /><br /><span style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">AP file/Hassan Ammar <br />A U.S. F-18 fighter jet, left, lands on the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln as a U.S. destroyer sails alongside during exercises in the Persian Gulf in 2012.<br /><br />Houser also said that U.S. energy independence could lead to isolationist policies, but will not insulate Americans from global price disruptions.<br /><br />"The price Americans pay at the pump will still be determined by events in the global oil market, yet falling U.S. oil imports (are) going to reduce political support for safeguarding those global markets, and no one is willing or able to step up to the plate to replace us,” he said. “... The U.S. economy will still be vulnerable if someone blows up a Saudi port."<br /><br /><a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/id/3033676">More from Power Shift, an NBC News/CNBC special report:</a><br /><br /><a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/business/power-shift-energy-boom-dawning-america-1C8830306">Part 1: Energy boom dawning in America</a> <br /><br /><a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/business/economywatch/energy-boom-begins-ripple-through-us-economy-1C8877092">Part 2: Oil, gas sector fuels US economy</a><br /><br />That issue – specifically, “Do we leave the Middle East once our energy needs are secure?” – came up at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in January, said Yergin, recalling that “an oil minister came up to me and said, ‘Please don’t leave us.’”<br /><br />Pascual, the State Department official, argues that such fears are overblown.<br /><br />"These changes in no way change the U.S. commitment to global security, to peace and stability in the Middle East and to security in the transit lanes,” he said, referring to oil shipping routes. “Some people have asked is the United States going to become disinterested. The answer is no. It is absolutely in our self-interest to stay engaged.”<br /><br />Richard Engel is NBC News' chief foreign correspondent; Robert Windrem is a senior investigative producer. <br /><br />Coming next Monday: Digging into the environmental consequences of 'fracking' </span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-73249652717555856992013-04-01T12:25:00.000-04:002013-04-01T18:36:38.953-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
Texas community in 'shock' over slaying of DA, wife</h1>
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Texas
district attorney Mike McClelland and his wife Cynthia were found dead,
just two months after McClelland's top assistant was also shot dead.
Authorities are exploring a link between the two crimes and a possible
link to a white supremacist group. NBC's Gabe Gutierrez reports. </div>
<div class="byline">
By Erin McClam and John Newland, NBC News</div>
An
official in the Texas county where a prosecutor and his wife were shot
to death over the weekend said Monday that the ordeal was “surreal” and
that authorities there were on alert.<br />
“We’re still in shock,” Kaufman County Judge Bruce Wood told reporters.<br />
District
Attorney Mike McLelland and his wife, Cynthia, were gunned down at
their home outside Dallas on Saturday two months after another
prosecutor there was shot to death.<br />
A white supremacist group has
been thought to be planning retaliation after indictments in a
racketeering case, and the state has recently warned about Mexican drug
cartels.<br />
But authorities have not said the killings of the two
prosecutors are linked and have not announced any leads in the
McLellands’ deaths.<br />
“We are very much on alert,” Wood said. “We have some folks out there that intend to do harm to public officials.”<br />
He said that the county was open for business.<br />
McLelland
had vowed to catch the killer of the other prosecutor, Assistant
District Attorney Mark Hasse, who was gunned down near the county
courthouse on his way to work Jan. 31.<br />
McLelland told reporters
that day: “I hope the people that did this are watching. Because we're
very confident that we're going to find you, pull you out of whatever
hole you're in, bring you back and let the people of Kaufman County
prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law.”<br />
Mayor Darren
Rozell of Forney, which is in Kaufman County, told NBC News after
McLelland’s killing that it appeared to be targeted and that civilians
probably were not at risk.<br />
Asked about suggestions that a white
supremacist group may have been involved, Rozell said he had seen media
reports to that effect but “really couldn’t comment.”<br />
On the day
Hasse was killed, the Justice Department announced that the Kaufman
County DA’s office was among investigative bodies involved in a
racketeering case against the white supremacist group Aryan Brotherhood
of Texas.<br />
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A
district attorney and his wife were found shot dead in their Texas home
on Saturday, a chilling crime that has become a murder mystery. NBC's
Gabe Gutierrez reports.</div>
The hate group was suspected of
“actively planning retaliation” against police and prosecutors who
helped gain indictments in Houston against dozens of its members, <a href="http://www.dallasnews.com/news/local-news/20130219-aryan-brotherhood-of-texas-is-focus-as-clues-sought-in-kaufman-prosecutors-slaying.ece">the Dallas Morning News reported in February</a>.<br />
In
February, the state's Department of Public Safety issued a report
highlighting the threat of Mexican drug cartels operating in Texas.<br />
The
FBI and the Texas Rangers were leading the investigations, which at one
point examined possible ties to the March 19 shooting death of Colorado
prisons director Tom Clements, Reuters reported, adding that no
connection had been found.<br />
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The McLellands were “deeply in love,” Tonya Ratcliff, the county tax assessor and a longtime friend of the couple, <a href="http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/local/Friends-Mourn-Slain-Kaufman-Co-DA-Wife-200814441.html">told NBCDFW.com</a>.<br />
“You
would never hear one of them say an ugly word about the other one,” she
said. "They were just a wonderful couple, and it was a pleasure to be
around them — and I will miss them.”<br />
A tip line has been set up
for the investigation. Anyone with information to share with
investigators is asked to call 1-877-847-7522.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-12960573358964739292013-04-01T12:03:00.000-04:002013-04-01T18:36:38.941-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
‘Justice for James Holmes is death’: Prosecutors seek execution for alleged Batman shooter</h1>
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Prosecutors
in Colorado are expected to announce whether they will seek the death
penalty in the case against James Holmes, the accused gunman in the
Aurora theater massacre that left 12 people dead and 70 others injured
last July. NBC's LeAnne Gregg reports.</div>
<div class="byline">
</div>
<div class="byline">
By Erin McClam, Staff Writer, NBC News</div>
<br />
Prosecutors
said Monday that they will seek the death penalty for James Holmes, the
man accused of gunning down 12 people and wounding 70 at a Batman movie
last summer in Colorado.<br />
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George
Brauchler, the district attorney for Arapahoe County, said he made the
decision after speaking with more than 800 victims and family members.<br />
“Given
all the input I considered and all the information available, it is my
intent that justice for James Holmes is death,” he said at a hearing.<br />
Brauchler had already rejected an offer from the defense to let Holmes plead guilty and serve a life sentence.<br />
Judge
William Sylvester of the Colorado circuit court entered a plea of not
guilty for Holmes last month after his lawyers said they were not ready
to plead. The judge left the door open for lawyers to mount an insanity
defense.<br />
The two cases in the legal case fought in public last week. After the
defense made its offer, Brauchler said in a filing that Holmes’ lawyers
were only trying to generate sympathy for their client.<br />
The only
conclusion, the prosecutor wrote, “is that the defendant knows he is
guilty, the defense attorneys know he is guilty and that both of them
know that he was not criminally insane.”<br />
Brauchler <a href="http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_22895409/death-penalty-is-tool-justice">wrote an Op-Ed in The Denver Post</a>
over the weekend defending the death penalty. Colorado legislators have
considered banning it. He did not name Holmes but wrote of capital
punishment as an important tool of justice.<br />
“Repealing the death
penalty would result in acts similar to those in Newtown, Conn., or the
acts of Tim McVeigh being punished no differently than a single
murder of one gang member by another,” the prosecutor wrote. “Each
murder after the first would be a freebie.”<br />
<br />
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<img alt="" height="278" id="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130401-james-holmes-jsw-755a.jpg" src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130401-james-holmes-jsw-755a.380;380;7;70;0.jpg" width="400" /></div>
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R.J. Sangosti / Pool</div>
<div class="photo_credit_container">
Aurora theater shooting suspect James Holmes listens at his arraignment March 12.</div>
</div>
Holmes’
lawyers have said that jailers determined he was a danger to himself
and needed a mental evaluation, and that he was held for several days in
a psychiatric ward, sometimes in restraints.<br />
He surrendered to
police within minutes of the July 12 shooting rampage at a midnight
screening of the movie “The Dark Knight Rises” in Aurora, Colo., a
suburb of Denver.<br />
At his first court appearance, Holmes had stark,
red-orange hair and wore a blank stare. He has since appeared more
stable and natural-looking. He showed up in court last month with a
bushy beard.<br />
The hearing Monday was set to begin at 11 a.m. EDT.
Legal observers have pointed out that the two sides could still reach a
plea deal later, even as prosecutors seek to put Holmes to death.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-29314529050573465282013-04-01T11:56:00.000-04:002013-04-01T18:36:38.944-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
Gruesome basketball injury a 'freak accident,' doc says</h1>
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<img alt="" height="640" id="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130401-kevin-ware-louisville-vmed-615a.jpg" src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/130401-kevin-ware-louisville-vmed-615a.photoblog600.jpg" width="565" /></div>
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Darron Cummings / AP</div>
<div class="photo_credit_container">
Louisville
head coach Rick Pitino and trainers tend to injured guard Kevin Ware
during the first half of the Midwest Regional final in the NCAA college
basketball tournament against Duke, on March 31, 2013, in Indianapolis.
Ware badly injured his lower right leg and had to be taken off the court
on a stretcher.</div>
</div>
<div class="byline">
By JoNel Aleccia, Senior Writer, NBC News</div>
<div align="left">
The
gruesome break that shattered Louisville Cardinals guard Kevin Ware’s
right lower leg during Sunday’s Elite Eight playoff game was a “freak
accident” rare outside of car accidents or other high-velocity trauma, a
sports medicine expert said.</div>
<div align="left">
The 20-year-old
sophomore from the Bronx apparently landed awkwardly in the heat of the
NCAA Midwest Final game against the Duke Blue Devils, perhaps
exacerbating an undetected stress fracture, said Dr. Frederick Azar, a
vice president and spokesman for the American Academy of Orthopaedic
Surgeons and chief of staff at Campbell Clinic in Germantown, Tenn., who
consults for the Memphis Grizzlies NBA basketball team.</div>
<div align="left">
<br /></div>
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<div id="watch-uploader-info">
<b>Published on <span class="watch-video-date" id="eow-date">Mar 31, 2013</span>
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Sophomore guard Kevin Ware suffered
one of the most gruesome we have ever seen in the sport of basketball.
In the first half Ware contested a shot from Duke's Tyler Thornton. CBS
cameras showed how he landed awkwardly on his right leg, which we later
learned was broken. <i><b>**WARNING: VERY, VERY GRAPHIC.**</b></i><br />
Watch more sports -<br />
<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: small;"><span class="watch-title long-title yt-uix-expander-head" dir="ltr" id="eow-title" title="Kevin Ware Leg Broken | Worst Basketball Injury Ever | Louisville Versus Duke | 2013 March Madness">Kevin Ware Leg Broken | Worst Basketball Injury Ever | Louisville Versus Duke | 2013 March Madness </span></span></b></div>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<div id="watch-uploader-info">
<strong>Published on <span class="watch-video-date" id="eow-date">Mar 31, 2013</span>
</strong>
</div>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
<div id="watch-description-text">
<blockquote>
<blockquote>
<div id="eow-description">
Kevin Ware's horrific leg injury
during Louisville's (1) game versus Duke (2) of the 2013 NCAA Tournament
Elite Eight Regional Final. <br /><br />This is the worst injury I've ever
seen in any sport much less college basketball. Louisville's Kevin
Ware (#5) lands and rolls awkwardly on his right foot and leg which
procedes to crumble underneath him as he falls to the floor. Siva,
Blackshear, and Behanan all crumble to the floor at the sight of Ware's
injury, visibly shaken and emotionally distraught.<br /><br />He was
medically assessed on the court and take to the hospital for surgery.
Coach Rick Pitino stated that Ware had broken his leg in 2 places, "the
same injury that Michael Bush had" and should make a full recovery in a
year's time.<br /><br />Still, that means Ware will be out for the rest of
the tournament this year that has brought top seeded lousville to their
2nd consecutive Final Four appearance. Many say the Cards are due the
coveted NCAA tournament title that was swatted away by last year's
champion, UK, in a epic game between the life-long rivals in the Final
Four.<br /><br />Louisville turned the tight scoring game around to finish
with a 22 point lead over the Blue Devils. During an interview after
the game, Pitino said they won the game for Ware. It definitely seemed
to bring many members of the Cardnials team alive especially Peyton Siva
who started sinking almost every shot he put up.<br /><br />This year
Louisville will face the suprise candidate from the West region,
Witchita St in the Final Four match up to see who will take the spot in
the championship game. Witchita St has ponied up so far during the
tourney shocking Gonzanga (1) in the second round.<br /><br />Will it be
enough to drop another #1 seeded team during March Madness? Not with
the way Louisville is playing. After destroying a strong Duke team
tonight, it seems like no NCAA team can stop their run. The Cardnials
are on an 11 game winning streak.</div>
</blockquote>
</blockquote>
</div>
<br />
<div align="left">
“He may have just landed funny and torqued his tibia,” said Azar, who was watching the game. “It was a freak accident.”</div>
<div align="left">
Such
injuries, don’t often happen at the low velocity of even high-level
basketball, which raises the possibility that Ware had a preexisting
stress fracture, Azar said.</div>
<div align="left">
The bone in Ware’s lower
right leg apparently broke in two places and could be seen sticking out
through Ware’s skin, observers said.</div>
<div align="left">
“To actually see it happen like that is rare,” Azar said. “A bone sticking out of the skin is really, really unusual.”</div>
<div align="left">
The
injury, which occurred with 6:33 minutes left in the first half of the
game, sent 6-foot-2 Ware to floor, stunned his teammates into sickened
sobs and silenced the crowd at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.</div>
<div align="left">
The Cardinals went on to win the game 85-63.</div>
<div align="left">
Known
as a compound fracture or open fracture, the injury occurs when the
bone protrudes through the skin, Azar said. Doctors likely washed out
the injury to prevent infection and then quickly performed surgery to
place a titanium or stainless steel rod in Ware’s leg.</div>
<div align="left">
“They’ll get him up and get him going by tomorrow,” Azar said. “You would hope he gets fixed tonight.”</div>
<div align="left">
Cardinals
coach Rick Pitino told reporters that Ware would be out of commission
for a year, but Azar said that if surgery went well and there were no
nerve complications or infections, the young, healthy player could be
back on the court in time for next season, or within six months.</div>
<div align="left">
“That’s the good news: We have the technology to fix this,” said Azar.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-52628444012176674662013-04-01T11:04:00.000-04:002013-04-01T18:36:38.948-04:00<div class="entry_header">
<h1 class="entry_title">
<a href="http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/03/31/louisvilles-kevin-ware-suffers-a-gruesome-compound-fracture-vs-duke/">Louisville’s Kevin Ware suffers a gruesome compound fracture vs. Duke</a></h1>
<div class="name_date">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://a.abcnews.com/images/US/ht_kevin_ware_hospital_bed_nt_130401_xwide.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://a.abcnews.com/images/US/ht_kevin_ware_hospital_bed_nt_130401_xwide.jpg" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"> <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/Health/kevin-wares-broken-leg-possibly-caused-undetected-stress/story?id=18854412" name="lpos=widget[ABTop_1_spev4m_4380645_homepage]&lid=link[Headline]">Stress Fractures May Be Cause of Ware's Broken Leg</a></span></span></div>
<br />
<a href="http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/author/robdauster/" rel="author" title="Posts by Rob Dauster">Rob Dauster</a></div>
<div class="image_item_date">
Mar 31, 2013, 6:04 PM EDT</div>
</div>
<div class="comment_count">
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<span class="enclosure" style="width: 320px;"><span class="caption">Getty Images</span></span>
<br />
Louisville guard Kevin Ware was taken off the court on a stretcher
in the first half of Louisville’s Regional Final against Duke on Sunday
afternoon after suffering the worst injury I’ve ever seen in a sporting
event. (<a href="http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/03/31/dominant-second-half-punches-louisvilles-ticket-to-atlanta/related">The Cardinals eventually won the game for a Final Four spot</a>.)<br />
After challenging a three that Tyler Thornton took from the wing, <a href="http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/51388626/">he landed wrong on his right leg and suffered a compound fracture</a>. His shin bone was protruding from his skin.<br />
I’m not going to embed or link any pictures or video of the injury itself. If you really want to see it, it won’t be difficult.<br />
<br />
<div style="padding-left: 30px;">
<i><a href="http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/03/31/twitter-tells-the-story-of-kevin-wares-injury/related">MORE: Twitter reaction tells the story best</a></i></div>
<div style="padding-left: 30px;">
<br /></div>
But we’ll turn to the <a href="http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/51388626/">AP for some on-scene color</a>:<br />
<blockquote>
The injury happened in front of the Louisville bench, and the Cardinals were overcome with emotion.<br />
Louisville forward Wayne Blackshear fell to the floor, crying, and
Chane Behanan looked as if he was going to be sick on the court,
kneeling on his hands and feet. Peyton Siva sat a few feet away, a hand
covering his mouth.<br />
Luke Hancock patted Ware’s chest as doctors worked on the sophomore
and Russ Smith – who is from New York City like Ware – walked away,
pulling his jersey over his eyes.<br />
Someone finally pulled Behanan to his feet, but he doubled over and
needed a few seconds to gather himself. As Ware was being loaded onto a
stretcher, the Cardinals gathered at midcourt until coach Rick Pitino
called them over, saying that Ware wanted to talk to them before he
left.</blockquote>
The players on the Louisville team were reportedly <a href="https://twitter.com/zschonbrun/status/318478479777751041">vomiting on the bench</a>.
The Louisville team was in tears on the court. Coach Rick Pitino was as
well. Ware, however, seemed to be the most calm member of the
Louisville team. It was reported on the CBS broadcast that he told the
team while laying on the floor, “Don’t worry about me. I’ll be OK. You
guys go win this thing.”<br />
<a href="http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/03/31/louisvilles-kevin-ware-suffers-a-gruesome-compound-fracture-vs-duke/bgt4balcqaahs8k/" rel="attachment wp-att-362355"><img alt="source: " class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-362355" height="518" src="http://nbccollegebasketballtalk.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/bgt4balcqaahs8k.png?w=640&h=518" width="640" /></a><br />
<a href="http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/03/31/louisvilles-kevin-ware-suffers-a-gruesome-compound-fracture-vs-duke/bgt31saciae-ehh/" rel="attachment wp-att-362356"><img alt="source: " class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-362356" height="360" src="http://nbccollegebasketballtalk.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/bgt31saciae-ehh.jpeg?w=640&h=360" width="640" /></a><br />
On the CBS broadcast, Tracy Wolfson said that Ware had his leg
immobilized and he was being taken directly to the emergency room. His
girlfriend was with him and his family back home had been contacted.<br />
Thoughts and prayers go out to Ware. We wish him a speedy recovery.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-4765919550062935162013-04-01T10:57:00.000-04:002013-04-01T18:36:38.946-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
Louisville player after horrific injury: 'Don't worry about me. I'll be OK. You guys go win this thing'</h1>
<div class="inlinePhoto photo_landscape photo_align_block " data-contentid="17550155" id="vine-inlinePhoto__17550155" style="width: 900px;">
<img alt="" height="606" id="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/pb-130401-kevin-ware-nj-01.jpg" src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/pb-130401-kevin-ware-nj-01.photoblog900.jpg" width="900" /><br />
<div class="photo_credit">
Jeff Haynes / Reuters</div>
<div class="photo_credit_container">
Louisville
Cardinals head coach Rick Pitino calls to the referees to stop the game
as Cardinals guard Kevin Ware lays on the court with a broken leg in
the first half against the Duke Blue Devils during their Midwest
Regional NCAA men's basketball game in Indianapolis, Indiana, on March
31, 2013.</div>
</div>
<div class="inlinePhoto photo_portrait photo_align_block " data-contentid="17542644" id="vine-inlinePhoto__17542644" style="width: 688px !important;">
<img alt="" height="900" id="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/pb-130331-ware-cannon.jpg" src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/pb-130331-ware-cannon.photoblog900.jpg" width="688" /><br />
<div class="photo_credit" style="width: 688px !important;">
Darron Cummings / AP</div>
<div class="photo_credit_container" style="width: 688px !important;">
<div style="width: 688px !important;">
Louisville
players talk to guard Kevin Ware after Ware's injury during the first
half of the Midwest Regional Final against Duke in the NCAA basketball
tournament March 31 in Indianapolis, Ind.</div>
</div>
</div>
<br />
<i><b>By Rob Dauster, <a href="http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/" target="_self" title="CBT">CollegeBasketballTalk</a> on <a href="http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/" target="_self" title="NBCSports.com">NBCSports.com</a></b></i><br />
Kevin
Ware was taken off the court on a stretcher in the first half of
Louisville’s regional final against Duke on Sunday afternoon after
suffering the worst injury I’ve ever seen in a sporting event.<br />
After
challenging a three that Tyler Thornton took from the wing, he landed
wrong on his right leg and suffered a compound fracture. His shin bone
was protruding through his skin.<br />
<i><a href="http://collegebasketballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/03/31/louisvilles-kevin-ware-suffers-a-gruesome-compound-fracture-vs-duke/related/" target="_self" title="Full story">Read the full story.</a></i><br />
<img alt="" height="579" id="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/i/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/pb-130401-kevin-ware-nj-02.jpg" src="http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/MSNBC/Components/Photo/_new/pb-130401-kevin-ware-nj-02.photoblog900.jpg" width="900" /><br />
<div class="photo_credit">
Andy Lyons / Getty Images</div>
<div class="photo_credit_container">
Wayne
Blackshear #20 and Chane Behanan #21 of the Louisville Cardinals react
after Kevin Ware #5 suffered a compound fracture to his leg in the first
half against the Duke Blue Devils during the Midwest Regional Final
round of the 2013 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Lucas Oil Stadium
on March 31, 2013 in Indianapolis, Indiana.</div>
<input id="triggerLogout" type="hidden" /><input id="signupTrigger" type="hidden" />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-10982283891657388602013-03-31T20:42:00.000-04:002013-04-01T00:02:48.110-04:00
<h1>
Crude oil leaks in Arkansas suburb after ExxonMobil pipeline ruptures</h1>
<div class="byline">
<span class="byline-name">Isolde Raftery</span>
<span class="affiliation">, NBC News</span>
<span class="dash"> – </span>
<span class="time">
<span class="value">6</span> hrs.
</span>
</div>
<br />
<br />
An ExxonMobil pipeline rupture near Little Rock, Ark., Friday
evening has resulted in a “major oil spill,” according to the
Environmental Protection Agency <strong>-- </strong><strong></strong>and ignited further debate over the transportation of crude oil in the U.S. <br />
Up
to 10,000 barrels sprang from the pipeline, according to an incident
report filed to the National Response Center by ExxonMobil early
Saturday morning. Twenty-two residents were evacuated from their homes,
according to a statement on the ExxonMobil website. <br />
<div class="ad_label">
<span class="adarrow"></span></div>
Mayflower, Ark.<strong>, </strong>Chief of Police Bob Satkowski<a href="http://www.katv.com/story/21831082/authorities-oil-spill-in-mayflower-contained-lake-residents-safe-for-now" target="_blank"> told Channel 7 News in Little Rock </a>that those residents had to leave their homes because of health risks from the crude oil fumes and possible fires. <br />
In
a statement on the company website, ExxonMobil downplayed the
environmental concerns, saying that the air quality doesn’t likely
present a human health risk, “with the exception of high-pooling areas.”<br />
KARK, <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/business/Arkansasmatters.com/fulltext?nxd_id=649842" target="_blank">an NBC affiliate station in Little Rock, reported that part of the pipeline runs through a water source</a>
that provides drinking water to nearly 400,000 residents in central
Arkansas. The 20-inch wide pipeline goes through Lake Maumelle.<br />
The
pipeline, officially known as the Pegasus pipeline, transports heavy
Canadian crude oil from Patoka, Ill. down to the Sunoco Logistics
Nederland terminal in Texas, which feeds into Houston area refiners, <a href="http://www.exxonmobil.com/Images/EMPCo/central_north_crude2.pdf" target="_blank">according to the Exxon website</a>. The pipeline, which can carry more than 90,000 barrels a day, was stopped Friday. ExxonMobil did not say when it would reopen.<br />
EPA
officials said the cleanup would be long and expensive, according to
KARK. It was not reported who would pay for the cleanup.<br />
The
leak was first reported at 5 p.m. Friday, when someone called the
National Response Center to report a drop in pipeline pressure.<br />
Two
hours later, a caller reported that there was a “significant amount of
material release.” The caller said the oil leak lasted about three
hours. <br />
An updated report early Saturday said up to 10,000 barrels
were discharged and that the product had been released “into flume
pipes and into a pond, a tributary of Lake Conway.” <br />
Friday’s spill prompted immediate response from critics of the <strong>proposed </strong>Keystone
XL pipeline, which would transport about 800,000 barrels per day of
Canadian crude oil to the Gulf Coast for refining. <br />
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/notes/edward-j-markey/markey-statement-on-arkansas-canadian-tar-sands-spill/550229755017874" target="_blank">Massachusetts Rep. Ed Markey took to Facebook</a> to lash out against Canadian crude oil. <br />
“This
latest pipeline incident is a troubling reminder that oil companies
still have not proven that they can safely transport Canadian tar sands
oil across the United States without creating risks to our citizens and
our environment,” Markey said. He is the top Democrat on the Natural
Resources Committee.<br />
“Tar sands oil is already the dirtiest,
riskiest oil around, and should not be getting a free ride across
America,” he continued. “It’s time that we recognize the real effects
producing and burning this oil will have on our climate, and the real
world damage it can cause when it is spilled in our neighborhoods.” <br />
This
has been a bad week for crude oil public relations. On Wednesday,
according to Reuters, a train carrying crude oil derailed in Minnesota
and spilled up to 30,000 gallons. <br />
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Last week, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration<a href="http://phmsa.dot.gov/portal/site/PHMSA/menuitem.ebdc7a8a7e39f2e55cf2031050248a0c/?vgnextoid=df3b5c7ea789d310VgnVCM100000d2c97898RCRD&vgnextchannel=623b143389d8c010VgnVCM1000008049a8c0RCRD&vgnextfmt=print" target="_blank"> recommended fining ExxonMobil Pipeline Company $1.7 million</a> for how the company responded to a crude oil pipeline failure in the Yellowstone River in Montana. <br />
The Mayflower spill may be 10 times more significant than the Montana spill, which leaked 1,509 barrels.<br />
The 1989 Exxon Valdez spill poured 260,000 to 750,000 gallons into Alaskan waters. <br />
These spills pale in comparison, however,<strong></strong>to
the 2010 Deep Water Horizon oil spill, the most significant oil spill
in the U.S., which leaked 4.9 million barrels into the Gulf Coast. Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-24855651921965267122013-03-31T20:28:00.000-04:002013-04-01T00:02:48.112-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
Big depositors in Cyprus could lose up to 60 percent of savings</h1>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">By Karolina Tagaris, Reuters<br /><br />Major depositors in Cyprus's biggest bank will lose around 60 percent of savings over 100,000 euros, its central bank confirmed on Saturday, sharpening the terms of a bailout that has shaken European banks and saved the island from bankruptcy. <br /><br />Initial signs that big depositors in Bank of Cyprus would take a hit of 30 to 40 percent - the first time the euro zone has made bank customers contribute to a bailout - had already unnerved investors in European lenders this week. <br /><br />But the official decree published on Saturday confirmed a Reuters report a day earlier that the bank would give depositors shares worth just 37.5 percent of savings over 100,000 euros. The rest of such holdings might never be paid back. The toughening of the terms will send a clear signal that the bailout means the end of Cyprus as a hub for offshore finance and could accelerate economic decline on the island and bring steeper job losses. <br /><br />Banks reopened to relative calm on Thursday after an almost two-week shutdown and the imposition of capital controls. The streets of Nicosia were calm on Saturday, filled with crowds relaxing in its cafes and bars. <br /><br />There is no sign for now that ordinary customers in other struggling euro zone countries like Greece, Italy or Spain are taking fright at the precedent set by the bailout. <br /><br />"Cyprus is and will remain a special one-off case," German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, one of the architects of the euro zone's response to a debt crisis now in its fourth year, told German mass-selling daily Bild. <br /><br />"The savings accounts in Europe are safe." <br /><br />European officials have worked hard this week to stress that the island's bailout was a unique case - after a suggestion by Eurogroup chairman Jeroen Dijsselbloem that the rescue would serve as a model for future crises rattled European financial markets. <br /><br />"Together in the Eurogroup we decided to have the owners and creditors take part in the costs of the rescue - in other words those who helped cause the crisis," said Schaeuble. <br /><br />"Cyprus's economy will now go through a long and painful period of adjustment. But then it will pay back the loan when it is on a solid economic foundation." <br /><br />Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades said on Friday that the 10-billion euro ($13 billion) bailout had contained the risk of national bankruptcy and would prevent it from leaving the euro. <br /><br />Cypriots, however, are angry at the price attached to the rescue - the winding down of the island's second-largest bank, Cyprus Popular Bank, also known as Laiki, and an unprecedented raid on deposits over 100,000 euros. <br /><br />Etyk, a bank worker's union, called a rally outside parliament for Thursday to protest against potential job cuts and a hit on their pension funds.</span><input id="triggerLogout" type="hidden" /><input id="signupTrigger" type="hidden" />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-77555246324694446572013-03-31T19:34:00.000-04:002013-04-01T00:02:48.120-04:00<h1 class="gl_headline">
North Korea: Nukes are our country's 'life'</h1>
<div class="inlineVideo photo_align_block" data-contentid="17542948" id="vine-inlineVideo__17542948">
<div style="text-align: center;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
NBC's Ian Williams reports on the latest tensions emanating from North Korea.</div>
</div>
<div class="byline">
By Alastair Jamieson, Staff writer, NBC News</div>
One
of North Korea's top decision-making bodies is setting guidelines that
call nuclear weapons "the nation's life" that won't be traded even for
"billions of dollars,” The Associated Press reported.<br />
The
statement Sunday came after a plenary meeting of the central committee
of the ruling Workers' Party attended by leader Kim Jong Un and other
officials, the AP said.<br />
It also followed <a href="http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/30/17527380-north-korea-says-it-is-entering-state-of-war-with-south?lite" target="_blank">a declaration on Saturday that it was entering a "state of war" with South Korea</a>, the latest in a string of increasingly belligerent outbursts from the isolated state.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=10,0,0,0" height="346" id="msnbc63f37f" width="592"><param name="movie" value="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" /><param name="FlashVars" value="launch=51387569&width=592&height=346" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><embed name="msnbc63f37f" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" width="592" height="346" FlashVars="launch=51387569&width=592&height=346" allowscriptaccess="always" allowFullScreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object></div>
Sunday’s statement says nuclear weapons aren't "goods for getting
U.S. dollars" or a "political bargaining chip." Outside analysts have
said Pyongyang raises worries over its nuclear ambitions to spur
nuclear-disarmament-for-aid talks, the AP said.<br />
<div class="inlinePhoto photo_landscape photo_align_right slideshow" data-contentid="17516244" id="vine-inlinePhoto__17516244" style="width: 380px;">
<div class="slideshow_title">
<h1>
<span class="photo_icon"></span><a class="slideshow_link" href="http://slideshow.nbcnews.com/id/51277335/displaymode/1247/?wbSlideShowId=51277335&wbSection=news&wbSlideShowTeaseId=51277809"></a></h1>
</div>
</div>
It said Pyongyang will also increase work to build up the economy. Kim has made fixing the moribund economy a focus.<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=10,0,0,0" height="346" id="msnbc3ae0e" width="592"><param name="movie" value="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" /><param name="FlashVars" value="launch=51383044&width=592&height=346" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><embed name="msnbc3ae0e" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" width="592" height="346" FlashVars="launch=51383044&width=592&height=346" allowscriptaccess="always" allowFullScreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object></div>
On
Thursday the U.S. sent two nuclear-capable bombers to South Korea,
where they dropped inert munitions in a military exercise. The flight
sparked an angry response from the North, which declared on Friday that
it was preparing rockets aimed at American bases in South Korea and the
Pacific.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" codebase="http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=10,0,0,0" height="346" id="msnbc7b5f41" width="592"><param name="movie" value="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" /><param name="FlashVars" value="launch=51381261&width=592&height=346" /><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always" /><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true" /><param name="wmode" value="transparent" /><embed name="msnbc7b5f41" src="http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32545640" width="592" height="346" FlashVars="launch=51381261&width=592&height=346" allowscriptaccess="always" allowFullScreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.adobe.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash"></embed></object></div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07782471570068273329noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4496625632227685477.post-36873232738260634152013-03-31T19:21:00.000-04:002013-03-31T22:52:10.634-04:00<div class="entry-content">
<div class="title-block hammer-stack">
<h1>
Tucson shooting: Major findings in Loughner files</h1>
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<img alt="Records provide new look at Ariz. shooting spree " height="412" id="image-index-1" src="http://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/azstarnet.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/8/d4/8d44538f-6e48-5291-942e-2f5f515b1aaf/51537c978e521.preview-620.jpg" width="640" /></div>
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James Palka</div>
FILE
- In this Jan. 8, 2011 file photo, emergency personnel attend to a
shooting victim outside a shopping center in Tucson, Ariz., where U.S.
Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., and others were shot as the
congresswoman was meeting with constituents. Hundreds of pages of police
reports in the investigation of the Tucson shooting rampage that
wounded former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords were released Wednesday, March
27, 2013 marking the public's first glimpse into documents that
authorities have kept private since the attack more than two years ago.
(AP Photo/James Palka, File)</div>
</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span class="pubdate">March 27, 2013 9:58 am</span></div>
<br />
<br />
Documents
released Wednesday provide new insight into how the Tucson shooting
rampage occurred and the motivations behind gunman Jared Loughner.<br />
One
of the main themes to emerge was the increasingly erratic behavior of
Loughner, perhaps summed up best by his father as he told investigators:
He “just doesn’t seem right lately.”<br />
<br />
A look at some of the major findings so far today:<br />
<br />
<b>LOUGHNER</b><br />
<br />
The
gunman was polite and cooperative with authorities who were holding him
the afternoon following his morning shooting rampage. The conversation
as Loughner sat in restraints in an interview room was mainly small
talk. Little was said over the four hours. Loughner asks at one point if
he can please use the restroom and says “Thank you” when allowed. At
another point he complained that “I’m about ready to fall over.”<br />
<br />
<b>GUNMAN’S MOTHER</b><br />
<br />
Loughner’s
mother, Amy, described his run-ins with authorities, his use of
marijuana and cocaine, his journals and his increasingly erratic
behavior. She also says the parents took a shotgun away from Loughner
after he was kicked out of a community college and tested him for drugs
because his behavior was so strange.<br />
<br />
<b>GUNMAN’S FATHER</b><br />
<br />
Randy
Loughner said his son became increasingly difficult, and it was a
challenge to have a rational conversation with him. “I tried to talk to
him. But you can’t, he wouldn’t let you,” he said “Lost, lost, and just
didn’t want to communicate with me no more.”<br />
<br />
<b>MENTAL ILLNESS</b><br />
<br />
Despite
their son’s increasingly bizarre behavior, Loughner’s parents never
sent him to get help. Randy Loughner said that his son had never been
diagnosed with a mental illness. Had he seen a doctor, the detective
asked. “No,” replied the father. The parents were also asked about any
journals or writings that Loughner kept. The father said they were
written in an indecipherable script.<br />
<br />
<b>DISABLING HIS CAR</b><br />
<br />
Loughner’s
parents “noticed that Jared was not acting quite right … and believed
it was to have started when he was kicked out of Pima Community College
for a YouTube video he had created.”<br />
Randy Loughner said his son
had become “more and more distant from them and he would not communicate
with Mr. Loughner about much of anything.”<br />
Randy Loughner became
so concerned about his son’s behavior that he “began to disable Jared’s
Nova … to prevent Jarred from being able to drive anywhere at night.”<br />
However,
the night before the shooting, Randy Loughner did not disable the car
and heard his son drive away at 6 a.m. Jared Loughner returned home an
hour or two.<br />
When Randy Loughner heard his son pull up, “he looked
outside of his front window and saw Jared take what appeared to be a
black backpack out of the trunk of his Nova.”<br />
<br />
<b>CHRISTINA’S BELONGINGS</b><br />
<br />
Christina-Taylor
Green’s parents asked for their daughter’s clothing, earrings and iPod
Touch to be returned. Deputies returned the earrings as well as images
from the iPod Touch. They gave the family a disc with the electronic
files and 8x10 printouts of the photos.<br />
<br />
<b>GOING TO THE SCENE</b><br />
<br />
Loughner
went to a convenience store immediately before the shooting and had the
clerk call a cab for him. As he waited for the car, he was pacing
inside and outside the store and went to the bathroom three or four
times. The employee said that as Loughner was waiting for the cab, he
looked up at a clock and said, “nine twenty-five, I still got time.”<br />
<br />
<b>TRAFFIC STOP</b><br />
<br />
Loughner
was pulled over earlier in the day for a traffic violation by a
wildlife agent. He inched toward the intersection, then drove through
the red light while making eye contact with the agent in the rearview
mirror. He cried and said, “I’ve just had a rough time,” and then
composed himself, thanked the agent and shook his hand after he was let
go with a warning. The agent asked Loughner again if he was OK, and
Loughner said he was going home.<br />
<br />
<b>THE SCENE</b><br />
<br />
Giffords intern
Daniel Hernandez helped tend to his boss after she was shot in the head.
In an interview, he described the chaos: “She couldn’t open her eyes. I
tried to get any responses for her. Um, it looked like her left side
was the only side that was still mobile. Um, she couldn’t speak. It was
mumbled. She was squeezing my hand.<br />
“I did some training as a
Certified Nursing Assistant and as a phlebotomist, um, when I was in
high school. So I knew that we need to see if she’s got a pulse. She was
still breathing. Her breathing was getting shallower. Uh, I then lifted
her up so that she wasn’t flat on the ground against the wall,” he
said.<br />
<br />
<b>GUNS</b><br />
<br />
Loughner bought a 12-gauge shotgun in 2008, but
his parents took it away from him after he was expelled from college and
administrators recommended that any firearms be taken away. The shotgun
was the only gun his parents knew Loughner owned.<br />
<br />
<b>AMMUNITION</b><br />
<br />
On
the day of the mass shooting, Loughner tried to buy ammunition at a
Walmart on La Cholla Boulevard.A store clerk thought he was acting so
odd and erratic that he decided to lie and tell Loughner the store was
out of stock.<br />
Loughner bought the ammunition he wanted at another Walmart store on Cortaro Road.<br />
Earlier
that week, Loughner had told a Walmart employee that he tried to enlist
in the Army and that he believed Americans are brainwashed by the
government.<br />
<br />
<b>CARING FOR GIFFORDS</b><br />
<br />
A firefighter described how
he cared for Giffords after arriving at the scene. “You’d ask her to
grab your hand and she would grab your hand,” he said. He and paramedics
rushed her to the hospital in an ambulance, giving her oxygen and an
IV.<br />
<br />
<b>THE ENCOUNTER</b><br />
<br />
Hernandez described how constituents and
other people were lining up to see Giffords, and he was helping people
sign in. He recalled handing Loughner a clipboard. “The next thing I
hear is someone yell, ‘gun,’” he said.<br />
<br />
<b>LOUGHNER FRIEND</b><br />
<br />
One-time
Loughner friend Zachary Osler was an employee at a store where Loughner
later bought a Glock handgun before the shooting. Osler was questioned
about seeing Loughner shopping inside, sometime before Thanksgiving. He
describes an awkward encounter with his former friend. “His response is
nothing. Just a mute facial expression. And just like he, he didn’t
care.” Osler told investigators he had grown uncomfortable with
Loughner’s personality, “He would say he could dream and then control
what he was doing while he was dreaming.” Osler says Loughner never
mentioned Giffords to him.Osler talking about Loughner in high school:
“Weird kid. He'd say weird things. Talk about weird things like how he
consciously dreams while he’s awake.”<br />
“I do know he tried to join the Army at one point. And they did mental evaluations on him. And they didn’t accept him.”<br />
Osler
said when he learned that Loughner was the suspect in the shooting, “my
jaw just dropped. And I was like I know this person. Why he would do
it? What would his motive be? If he had people help him? I do not know.”<br />
<br />
<b>POSSESSIONS</b><br />
<br />
In
Loughner’s left front pocket were two magazines for a Glock, both fully
loaded. In his other front pocket was a foldable knife with about a
4-inch blade. In his back right pocket, he had a baggie with some money,
a Visa credit card and his Arizona driver’s license. He was wearing a
black beanie, a black hoodie-type sweatshirt, khaki pants and Sketchers
shoes, reports show.<br />
<br />
<b>WITNESS</b><br />
<br />
A witness described seeing an
ominous-looking man in his early 20s wearing a backpack near the
shooting scene. The witness later described recognizing Loughner as the
same person from photos on the news.</div>
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