Video: Beautiful rainbow dazzles DC

After a cloudy, stormy day, a burst of color. A glorious rainbow was captured on camera before it disappeared in Washington D.C. NBC?s Lester Holt reports.

>>> look at the show that nature put on yesterday in the skies above the washington, d.c. area. after a cloudy, stormy day a burst of color, a glorious rainbow captured on camera before it disappeared.

Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/nightly-news/45809984/

brandon mcinerney black friday 2011 deals nfl power rankings week 12 nfl power rankings week 12 brine turkey brine turkey uc davis

Breastfeeding moms protest at Target stores, but US public is real mark (The Christian Science Monitor)

Atlanta ? For hundreds of moms who gathered in some 250 Target stores across the US on Wednesday, their decision to collectively breastfeed their babies in public was an act of solidarity, a reaffirmation of a natural right.

One of the largest such nurse-ins ever, the protests produced a few dirty glares, protesters reported. But overall, the largely convivial nurse-ins raised few eyebrows, as many women used blankets to cover their bare breasts and their nursing babies' heads.

Forty-five states protect mothers' rights to breastfeed in public, but the practice still stirs enough discomfort to dramatically curb breastfeeding rates, research shows.

In the United States, only 14 percent of moms are exclusively breastfeeding by the time their babies are six months old (though that's up from 10 percent in 2008), according to the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Breastfeeding Report Card 2011. Part of the reason, sociologists say, is that the nature of breastfeeding ? lower fat content in mother's milk equals more frequent feedings ? means that women who feel uncomfortable breastfeeding in public are less likely to sustain the practice over time.

RECOMMENDED: For 2012, 12 trivia questions about all things 'twelve'

With health officials increasingly emphasizing the importance of breastfeeding to children's well-being, resistance to it in public is becoming a public health concern, say many breastfeeding proponents.

That clash of attitudes sparked Wednesday's protest, a Facebook campaign started after a Target employee repeatedly asked a Houston mom, Michelle Hickman, to retire to a dressing room instead of breastfeeding in an aisle.

Target's official policy is to allow breastfeeding in public areas of the store. But the message from corporate headquarters to Hickman's complaint about the Nov. 29 incident apparently had a different nuance. ?Just because it?s a woman?s legal right to nurse a baby in public doesn?t mean she should walk around the store flaunting it,? Ms. Hickman says she was told.

Attitudes about public breastfeeding vary widely across the globe. In America, breasts have at least as much sexual significance as they do practical significance as a means to nourish babies.

Moreover, US attitudes toward breastfeeding vary by region: In Western, Midwestern, and New England states, 70 to 80 percent of babies have been breastfed at some time in their lives, while the rate is lower for babies in most Southern states. The highest rate is in Oregon, where 91 percent of babies have been breastfed. The lowest is Louisiana, where 48 percent of babies have ever received mother's milk.

?We are all affected by our culture's sexual emphasis on breasts and our consequent discomfort with breastfeeding in public,? Ohio University Prof. Jacqueline Wolf wrote in a 2008 editorial in the International Breastfeeding Journal. ?While people from other cultures often find this controversy inexplicable, the reasons for the controversy are obvious to Americans ? even those of us who fully support breastfeeding in public. We understand that many equate public breastfeeding with lewd behavior.?

On Tuesday, a day before the protest, NASCAR driver Kasey Kahne summed up that unease in a Twitter post. ?Just walking through supermarket. See a mom breast feeding a little kid. Took second look because obviously I was seeing things. I wasn't!? he tweeted. He later apologized for his reaction.

It's not just men who are squeamish about public breastfeeding. After the magazine BabyTalk featured a cover of a mom breastfeeding in 2006, one mom wrote to the magazine to say, ?Gross, I am sick of seeing a baby attached to a boob.? A subsequent survey found that one-quarter of the publication's readers found the cover distasteful. "There's a huge Puritanical streak in Americans," BabyTalk editor Susan Kane concluded at the time.

Wednesday's nurse-in protesters said they hope to steer their campaign toward changing not just attitudes, but laws. They plan to lobby Congress for a federal law to enshrine public breastfeeding as a right. Currently, US law protects only the right of women to breastfeed publicly in federal buildings.

RECOMMENDED: Top 10 banned fashions 

Get daily or weekly updates from CSMonitor.com delivered to your inbox. Sign up today.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/parenting/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20111229/ts_csm/442624

droid razr oklahoma news atomic clock earthquake map geoffrey mutai wes welker brandon jacobs

Busloads of ski-bound teens turn pot over to Nevada police

LAS VEGAS?? Five busloads of students who stopped in Nevada en route to a ski trip were given a break on Thursday when police let them to go free in exchange for turning over large quantities of marijuana and alcohol stashed in their luggage.

Elko Police Chief Don Zumwalt said the decision to release some 250 teenagers and their young-adult chaperons with a warning, rather than arrest them, hinged in part on a lack of jail space for detaining such a large group in the small northeastern Nevada town.

According to Zumwalt, the majority of the high school students, all of them on their way from California to a ski resort in Utah, were grateful for his generosity.

"Most kids thanked me when we were done," he said. "There were a few who weren't very happy, but for the most part I'm gonna say they were respectful."

The buses were inspected by police after a convenience store clerk called authorities to report that the youths appeared to have been smoking drugs in the parking lot of his store just off Interstate 80.

Although the teens were accompanied by chaperons, Elko police said no one present appeared to be older than 20.

Three of the town's four police patrol units were sent to the scene.

Zumwalt said that had the students declined to voluntarily give up their pot, alcohol and drug paraphernalia stowed in baggage compartments, police would have been forced to obtain a search warrant, impound the buses and place the entire group in custody.

Knowing that the nearest juvenile detention center and local jail lacked sufficient space to accommodate everyone was a factor in how police chose to handle the situation, he said.

"I don't know how many beds are over in juvenile, but we would've overwhelmed the juvenile department as well as the jail," he said. "We wouldn't have had room for all of them."

Zumwalt said Elko police have not yet weighed the marijuana they seized -- it was roughly enough to fill two large kitchen trash bags, he said -- but no one appeared under the influence at the time the buses were stopped.

He said he was trying to contact officials with the tour group, Summer Winter Action Tours, to inform them of the incident.

Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45822328/ns/us_news/

being human being human the closer michael turner split pea soup land of the lost cleveland cavaliers

Kindle Fire Challenges iPad in Tablet Market

Posted on Monday, December 26, 2011 by ? Karthick

Do you like this story?

iPad kept dominating the tablet market in the third quarter of the year, but Kindle Fire is expected to light up the fourth.

A new study from the research company IDC shows Apple?s iPad continued to dominate worldwide tablet shipments in the third quarter. iPad accounted for 61% of the third quarter market, but its market share fell from 68% in the previous quarter. Android tablets too fell marginally from 33.2% in the second quarter to 32.4%. However, IDC expects the Android tablets sales to be boosted over 40% in the current fourth quarter by strong sales of Kindle Fire.

?IDC expects Android to make dramatic share gains in 4Q11 growing to 40.3%. That increase is due mostly to the entrance of Amazon?s Kindle Fire, and to a lesser extent the Barnes & Noble Nook Tablet, into the market. The share increase comes at the expense of Blackberry (slipping from 1.1% to 0.7%), iOS (slipping from 61.5% to 59.0%), and webOS (slipping from 5% to 0%),? the company said in the press release.

Kindle Fire has also started allowing users to browse Android Market to get apps.

Dot Com Infoway is an Android application development company with many popular apps to its credit. To know more about our services, visit our Android app development page and Mobile app development page.

Popularity: 1%

Source: http://www.dotcominfoway.com/blog/kindle-fire-challenges-ipad-in-tablet-market

andy cohen andy cohen pro bowl voting kindle fire update college board pasco county rooney mara

Family 'devastated' by Conn. Christmas house fire

Stamford firefighter Nick Tamburro pays respect outside the home of Madonna Badger in Stamford, Conn., Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2011. A fire at the home on Christmas morning killed Badger's three daughters and parents. The Christmas Day fire that killed three children and their grandparents was a tragic accident related to a fireplace in the home, not the result of foul play, Stamford Mayor Michael Pavia said Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2011. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)

Stamford firefighter Nick Tamburro pays respect outside the home of Madonna Badger in Stamford, Conn., Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2011. A fire at the home on Christmas morning killed Badger's three daughters and parents. The Christmas Day fire that killed three children and their grandparents was a tragic accident related to a fireplace in the home, not the result of foul play, Stamford Mayor Michael Pavia said Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2011. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)

A section of a house where an early morning fire left five people dead is seen Sunday, Dec. 25, 2011 in Stamford, Conn. Officials said the fire, which was reported shortly before 5 a.m., killed two adults and three children. Two others escaped. Their names have not been released. (AP Photo/Tina Fineberg)

STAMFORD, Conn. (AP) ? An uncle of three girls killed with their grandparents in a Christmas morning house fire said Wednesday family members are devastated by the tragedy but comforted by each other and an outpouring of public sympathy.

Campbell Badger said that his brother Matthew Badger was devoted to his daughters. He says their family appreciates the prayers and support it has received.

"Matthew is devastated," Campbell Badger said Wednesday. "He's doing as best as can be expected under the circumstances."

Matthew Badger hasn't commented publicly since 10-year-old Lily and 7-year-old twins Grace and Sarah died of smoke inhalation along with their mother's parents, Lomer and Pauline Johnson.

Lomer Johnson also suffered a blunt head and neck trauma, which could have resulted from a fall or being hit by an object, according to the medical examiner.

Matthew Badger and the girls' mother, Madonna Badger, are divorcing, and he was not at the home when it was engulfed by flames.

Authorities say embers in a bag of discarded fireplace ashes started the blaze.

Madonna Badger, an advertising executive and the home's owner, escaped from the fire, as did Michael Borcina, a friend and contractor working on the house. Borcina was released from a hospital on Wednesday morning, a spokeswoman said.

As flames shot from the three-story home, Madonna Badger climbed out a window onto scaffolding, screaming for her children and pointing to the third floor.

Firefighters went into the house twice trying to rescue the victims but were forced out by the blaze's intensity.

Borcina and Lomer Johnson, a department store Santa Claus who spent a long career as safety and security director for a Louisville, Ky.-based liquor company, tried to save them, as well. One of the girls, found dead just inside a window, had been placed on a pile of books, apparently so Johnson could reach in and grab her after he jumped out.

Instead, authorities say, Johnson fell through the roof outside the window and was found dead in the rear of the house. He and his wife, both of Southbury, had been visiting their daughter for the holidays.

A Badger family and Johnson family statement issued by Madonna Badger's brother on Wednesday night said they wanted to express their thoughts and prayers for the people who've been "so deeply impacted by the tragedy on Christmas morning."

"We also want to say thank you for all of the prayers and well wishes that have come in from around the country and the world," said the families' statement, released by Wade Johnson. "We can feel the warmth of your prayers surrounding us as we struggle to cope with the tragic loss of our family members."

The Department of Consumer Protection said its records show neither Borcina nor his company, Tiberias Construction Inc., is currently registered to perform home improvement work in Connecticut. Registration is required by state law and provides certain contractual rights to the consumer, according to the department.

"We do not yet have enough information about what work was being done or had been completed," the agency said. "We will address the pertinent regulatory issues in due course."

Repeated attempts to contact Borcina by telephone since the fire killed the children and their grandparents have been unsuccessful.

Campbell Badger said his nieces were "wonderful, delightful energetic children."

"They were loved tremendously by their mother and their father, who always put their kids first," he said.

He said his brother, a television commercial director who lives in New York, was involved in all aspects of his daughters' lives and played all types of games and activities with them, including soccer, rollerblading and painting.

He said the Johnson and Badger families are grateful for the public support, which has included floral bouquets, stuffed animals and candles left by passers-by at the site of the torn-down Victorian home.

"We are really touched," he said. "Everyone wants to help in any way they can. We feel it, and it's remarkable."

___

Associated Press writer Stephen Singer contributed to this report from Hartford.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2011-12-28-Fire-Five%20Dead/id-df4a1c575a49451489a76d0cf4edd3e2

alec baldwin alec baldwin rock and roll hall of fame erin andrews erin andrews blagojevich sentence mythbusters cannonball

Gang sets fire to newspaper office in Mexico (AP)

VERACRUZ, Mexico ? More than a dozen people barged into the offices of a newspaper in central Mexico on Sunday, dousing it with gasoline and setting it aflame.

Veracruz state Deputy Attorney General Enoch Maldonado said no injuries have been reported following the attack on the newspaper El Buen Tono in Cordoba, about 125 miles (210 kilometers) east of Mexico City. About 20 employees were inside the building at the time.

The newspaper, which began publishing a month ago, has sharply criticized some local authorities, but the motive for the attack is unclear and the state Attorney General's Office announced it was investigating the incident.

Veracruz state has seen an upsurge in violence recently as gangs battle over smuggling routes and extortion revenues.

The newspaper's telephone numbers rang busy Sunday and its website made no mention of the attack.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mexico/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111106/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_mexico_newspaper_attacked

the prisoner gene simmons my bloody valentine mario manningham mario manningham holes houston texans

Penn St ex-coach, others charged in child sex case

In this photo provided by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, former Penn State football defensive coordinator Gerald "Jerry" Sandusky, center, is placed in a police car in Boalsburg, Pa., to be taken to the office of Centre County Magisterial District Judge Leslie A. Dutchcot on Saturday, Nov. 5, 2011. Sandusky is charged with sexually abusing eight young men. Also, Penn State athletic director Tim Curley and Penn State vice president for finance and business Gary Schultz, 62, are expected to turn themselves in on Monday in Harrisburg, Pa., on charges of perjury and failure to report under Pennsylvania?s child protective services law in connection with the investigation into the abuse allegations against Sandusky. (AP Photo/Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General via Commonwealth Media Services)

In this photo provided by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, former Penn State football defensive coordinator Gerald "Jerry" Sandusky, center, is placed in a police car in Boalsburg, Pa., to be taken to the office of Centre County Magisterial District Judge Leslie A. Dutchcot on Saturday, Nov. 5, 2011. Sandusky is charged with sexually abusing eight young men. Also, Penn State athletic director Tim Curley and Penn State vice president for finance and business Gary Schultz, 62, are expected to turn themselves in on Monday in Harrisburg, Pa., on charges of perjury and failure to report under Pennsylvania?s child protective services law in connection with the investigation into the abuse allegations against Sandusky. (AP Photo/Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General via Commonwealth Media Services)

This Saturday, Nov. 5, 2011 photo provided by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General shows former Penn State football defensive coordinator Gerald "Jerry" Sandusky. Sandusky is charged with sexually abusing eight young men. Also, Penn State athletic director Tim Curley and Penn State vice president for finance and business Gary Schultz, 62, are expected to turn themselves in on Monday in Harrisburg, Pa., on charges of perjury and failure to report under Pennsylvania?s child protective services law in connection with the investigation into the abuse allegations against Sandusky. (AP Photo/Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General)

A sign for The Second Mile charity is seen outside the organization's headquarters in State College, Pa., on Saturday Nov. 2, 2011. The charity's founder, former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky, was charged Saturday with 40 criminal counts for allegedly molesting eight boys. (AP Photo/Genaro C. Armas)

In this photo provided by the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, former Penn State football defensive coordinator Gerald "Jerry" Sandusky, center, walks to the office of Centre County Magisterial District Judge Leslie A. Dutchcot while being escorted by Pennsylvania State Police and Attorney General's Office officials on Saturday, Nov. 5, 2011, in State College, Pa. Sandusky is charged with sexually abusing eight young men. Also, Penn State athletic director Tim Curley and Penn State vice president for finance and business Gary Schultz, 62, are expected to turn themselves in on Monday in Harrisburg, Pa., on charges of perjury and failure to report under Pennsylvania?s child protective services law in connection with the investigation into the abuse allegations against Sandusky. (AP Photo/Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General via Commonwealth Media Services)

Former Penn State football defensive coordinator Gerald "Jerry" Sandusky, right, walks with his attorney Joseph L. Amendola as they leave the office of Centre County Magisterial District Judge Leslie A. Dutchcot on Saturday, Nov. 5, 2011, in State College, Pa. Sandusky is charged with sexually abusing eight young men. Also, Penn State athletic director Tim Curley and Penn State vice president for finance and business Gary Schultz, 62, are expected to turn themselves in on Monday in Harrisburg, Pa., on charges of perjury and failure to report under Pennsylvania?s child protective services law in connection with the investigation into the abuse allegations against Sandusky. (AP Photo/Centre Daily Times, Teresa Bonner) MAGS OUT

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. (AP) ? An explosive sex abuse scandal and possible cover-up rocked "Happy Valley" on Saturday when former Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky, once considered Joe Paterno's heir apparent, was charged with sexual assaulting eight boys over a 15-year period. Among the allegations was a 2002 incident in which a graduate assistant for the team said he saw Sandusky assault a boy in the shower at the Nittany Lions' practice center.

Sandusky retired in 1999 but continued to use the school's facilities for his work with The Second Mile, a foundation he established to help at-risk kids. The state grand jury investigation also resulted in perjury charges against Tim Curley, Penn State's athletic director, and Gary Schultz, vice president for finance and business. The two administrators were accused of failing to alert police ? as required by state law ? of their investigation of the allegations.

Paterno, who last week became the winningest coach in Division I football, was not charged, and the grand jury report did not appear to implicate him in wrongdoing.

"This is a case about a sexual predator who used his position within the university and community to repeatedly prey on young boys," Pennsylvania Attorney General Linda Kelly said in a statement.

Under Paterno's four-decades-and-counting stewardship, the Nittany Lions became a bedrock in the college game and fans packed the stadium in State College, a campus town routinely ranked among America's best places to live and nicknamed "Happy Valley." Paterno's teams were revered both for winning games ? including two national championships ? and largely steering clear of trouble. Sandusky, whose defenses were usually anchored by tough-guy linebackers ? hence the moniker, "Linebacker U" ? spent three decades at the school. The charges against him cover the period between 1994 and 2009.

Sandusky, 67, was arrested Saturday and released on $100,000 bail after being arraigned on 40 criminal counts. Curley, 57, and Schultz, 62, were expected to turn themselves in on Monday in Harrisburg.

The allegations against Sandusky, who started The Second Mile in 1977, range from sexual touching to oral and anal sex. The young men testified before a state grand jury that they were in their early teens when some of the abuse occurred; there is evidence even younger children may have been victimized. Defense attorney Joe Amendola said Sandusky has been aware of the accusations for about three years and has maintained his innocence.

"He's shaky, as you can expect," Amendola told WJAC-TV after Sandusky was arraigned. "Being 67 years old, never having faced criminal charges in his life, and having the distinguished career that he's had, these are very serious allegations."

A preliminary hearing scheduled for Wednesday would likely be delayed, Amendola said. Sandusky is charged with multiple counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, corruption of minors, endangering the welfare of a child, indecent assault and unlawful contact with a minor, as well as single counts of aggravated indecent assault and attempted indecent assault.

No one answered a knock at the door Saturday at Sandusky's modest, two-story brick home at the end of a dead-end road in State College. A man who answered the door at The Second Mile office in State College declined to give his name and said the organization had no comment.

The grand jury said eight boys were targets of sexual advances or assaults by Sandusky. None was named, and in at least one case, the jury said the child's identity remains unknown to authorities.

One accuser, now 27, testified that Sandusky initiated contact with a "soap battle" in the shower that led to multiple instances of involuntary sexual intercourse and indecent assault at Sandusky's hands, the grand jury report said.

He said he traveled to charity functions and Penn State games with Sandusky, even being listed as a member of the Sandusky family party for the 1998 Outback Bowl and 1999 Alamo Bowl. But when the boy resisted his advances, Sandusky threatened to send him home from the Alamo Bowl, the report said.

Sandusky also gave him clothes, shoes, a snowboard, golf clubs, hockey gear and football jerseys, and even guaranteed that he could walk on to the football team, the grand jury said, and the boy also appeared with Sandusky in a photo in Sports Illustrated. He testified that Sandusky once gave him $50 to buy marijuana, drove him to purchase it and then drove him home as the boy smoked the drug.

The first case to come to light was a boy who met Sandusky when he was 11 or 12, the grand jury said. The boy received expensive gifts and trips to sports events from Sandusky, and physical contact began during his overnight stays at Sandusky's home, jurors said. Eventually, the boy's mother reported the allegations of sexual assault to his high school, and Sandusky was banned from the child's school district in Clinton County in 2009. That triggered the state investigation that culminated in charges Saturday.

But the report also alleges much earlier instances of abuse, and details failed efforts to stop it by some who became aware of what was happening.

Another child, known only as a boy about 11 to 13, was seen by a janitor pinned against a wall while Sandusky performed oral sex on him in fall 2000, the grand jury said.

And in 2002, Kelly said, a graduate assistant saw Sandusky sexually assault a naked boy, estimated to be about 10 years old, in a team locker room shower. The grad student and his father reported what he saw to Paterno, who immediately told Curley, prosecutors said.

Curley and Schultz met with the graduate assistant about a week and a half later, Kelly said.

"Despite a powerful eyewitness statement about the sexual assault of a child, this incident was not reported to any law enforcement or child protective agency, as required by Pennsylvania law," Kelly said.

There's no indication that anyone at school attempted to find the boy, or follow up with the witness, she said.

Curley denied that the assistant had reported anything of a sexual nature, calling it "merely 'horsing around,'" the 23-page grand jury report said. But he also testified that he barred Sandusky from bringing children onto campus and that he advised Penn State president Graham Spanier of the matter.

The grand jury said Curley was lying, Kelly said, adding that it also deemed portions of Schultz's testimony not to be credible.

Schultz told the jurors he also knew of a 1998 investigation involving sexually inappropriate behavior by Sandusky with a boy in the showers the football team used.

But despite his job overseeing campus police, he never reported the 2002 allegations to any authorities, "never sought or received a police report on the 1998 incident and never attempted to learn the identity of the child in the shower in 2002," the jurors wrote. "No one from the university did so."

Lawyers for both Curley and Schultz issued statements saying they are innocent of all charges.

In response to a request for comment from Paterno, a spokesman for the athletic department said all such questions would be referred to university representatives, who released a statement from Spanier calling the allegations against Sandusky "troubling" and adding Curley and Schultz had his unconditional support.

He predicted they will be exonerated.

"I have known and worked daily with Tim and Gary for more than 16 years," Spanier said. "I have complete confidence in how they handled the allegations about a former university employee."

Sandusky, once considered a potential successor to Paterno, drew up the defenses for the Nittany Lions' national-title teams in 1982 and 1986. The team is enjoying another successful run this season; at 8-1, Penn State is ranked No. 16 in the AP Top 25 and is the last undefeated squad in Big Ten play. The Nittany Lions were off Saturday.

As the head football coach, Paterno has spent years cultivating a reputation for putting integrity ahead of modern college-sports economics. It's a notion that has benefited Penn State's marketing and recruiting efforts over the decades and one that the Big Ten school's alumni proudly tout years after they leave.

"We're supposed to be one of the universities to follow after, someone to look up to," said sophomore Brian Prewitt of Poughkeepsie, N.Y. "Now that people on the top are involved, it's going to be bad."

___

Scolforo reported from Harrisburg.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2011-11-05-Penn%20State%20Ex-Coach-Allegations/id-7c09dab8ad7d41b5af1ece1055a39f5a

lego man cheryl hines john lackey john lackey ed lee ed lee garmin nuvi 1450

Herman Cain's accusers: Should they be allowed to tell their side? (The Week)

New York ? Confidentiality agreements bar the women who say the GOP frontrunner harassed them in the '90s from going public. Time to wave the gag order?

The list of sexual harassment allegations leveled at Republican presidential frontrunner Herman Cain has grown, with new accusations from a third unidentified women who worked at the National Restaurant Association during his tenure. Right-wing radio host Steve Deace and GOP pollster Chris Wilson have supplied fresh details about other alleged harrassment incidents. Meanwhile, Joel Bennet, the lawyer for one of the two original NRA accusers ? who'd lamented for days that a?confidentiality clause in his client's severance deal has prevented her from going public with her side of the story ? publicly pointed out that Cain breached the agreement first by saying disparaging things about the women. Nevertheless, Bennet announced Wednesday night that his client probably wouldn't talk to the press, after all. But if she changes her mind, should she be allowed to talk?

Yes. Let these women tell their side: Gag orders generally shouldn't be broken "without careful deliberation and without the consent of both sides," says The Washington Post in an editorial. But in this case, now that the basic shape of the accusations and payouts have surfaced, "voters are entitled to know the facts.... And they can learn them only if both sides are allowed their say." Cain may not like this airing of dirty laundry, but it's part of playing in the big leagues.
"Let Herman Cain and his accusers talk"

To be fair to Cain, these women must come forward: "If you believe Herman Cain's denial of these accusations," as I do, says Robert Stacy McCain at?The Other McCain, then you should demand that we "hear the whole story ? the sooner, the better ? directly from the accusers." It's "grossly unfair" that Cain has to defend himself against vague, second-hand accusations from anonymous women. We can't judge the credibility of the charges until we can judge the credibility of these women.
"Let her speak: Cain accuser seeks release from confidentiality agreement"

But these women can already talk if they really want to: If Cain's accusers want to tell their side of the story, they can go right ahead, says Jennifer Rubin at The Washington Post. Sure, it would mean breaking the agreements, but "there is no confidentiality jail," and these women could easily argue that Cain violated the deal first. The worst that could happen is that they'd be sued by the NRA. But the NRA may very well elect not to sue ? and even if it does, the case hardly looks airtight.
"Who can say what about Cain's sexual harassment cases"

View this article on TheWeek.com
Get 4 Free Issues of The Week

Other stories from this topic:

Like on Facebook?-?Follow on Twitter?-?Sign-up for Daily Newsletter

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politicsopinion/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/theweek/20111103/cm_theweek/220998

cyclops zanesville google ice cream sandwich google ice cream sandwich soulja boy jason campbell android ice cream sandwich

HTC Rezound for Verizon unveiled: Beats Audio, Ice Cream Sandwich-ready, 4.3-inch 720p display available November 14th for $299

HTC's Rezound first leaked its way into our gadget-lusting hearts in late summer. Then bearing the virile Vigor codename, we suspected a heartily specced, Beats Audio-branded destiny for the device. And today's official unveiling doesn't disappoint, setting this 4.3-inch handset on a 4G course for Verizon's LTE airwaves.

Thanks to the company's financial handshake with Dr. Dre, the Rezound's inbuilt Beats Audio integration gets its first stateside debut. Of course, that's not all that lies beneath the red and black tinged surface. Living up to the machissimo of its in-development moniker, the Rezound boasts a 4.3-inch 720p display and packs a dual-core 1.5GHz processor underneath, with 1GB RAM, 16GB of internal storage / 16GB on microSD card, WiFi and Bluetooth in tow. And for you Android fanatics, HTC's shipping the handset Ice Cream Sandwich-ready, but it comes out of the box with Sense 3.5 skinned atop Gingerbread 2.3.4. As for the phone's front-facing / 8 megapixel camera with f/2.2 sensor (capable of 1080p video capture), the suite of scene modes we've seen ship on the Amaze 4G is making an appearance here with panorama, action burst and instant capture. Those familiar custom-made Beats headphones will also come bundled with the device.

The Rezound's Verizon-bound on November 14th and if this audio-enhanced affair is your bag, expect to snag it for $299 on contract. Until then, enjoy the official PR after the break.

Continue reading HTC Rezound for Verizon unveiled: Beats Audio, Ice Cream Sandwich-ready, 4.3-inch 720p display available November 14th for $299

HTC Rezound for Verizon unveiled: Beats Audio, Ice Cream Sandwich-ready, 4.3-inch 720p display available November 14th for $299 originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 03 Nov 2011 15:40:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |   | Email this | Comments

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/03/htc-rezound-unveiled/

james ray act williston nd williston nd mists of pandaria mists of pandaria 20 20

Birds Show Price Humans Pay For Good Clotting

60-Second Science | More Science

Birds have different clotting proteins than humans, which explains our better clotting in trauma, but their avoidance of certain cardiovascular problems. Karen Hopkin reports.

November 3, 2011

More 60-Second Science

Subscribe via iTunes

They say what doesn?t kill you makes you stronger. But sometimes what makes you stronger can kill you, at least when it comes to blood-clotting. Because the stickiness that allow platelets to heal your wounds also raises your risk of heart attack.

All mammals use platelets to help prevent blood loss after traumatic injury. But birds don?t have ?em, nor do reptiles or fish. Instead, these critters have blood cells called thrombocytes, which are about twice the size of platelets. But is bigger necessarily better when it comes to clotting? Scientists took thrombocytes from parakeets and put them to the test. The work appears in the journal Blood. [Alec A. Schmaier et al, Occlusive thrombi arise in mammals but not birds in response to arterial injury: evolutionary insight into human cardiovascular disease]

They focused their attention on birds because our feathered friends have a cardiovascular system much like our own, in that blood exerts pressure on walls of blood vessels.

The results: parakeet thrombocytes don?t stick together like platelets do. They also don?t block blood flow in the birds? arteries the same way that platelets do when they form clots in mice.

Which means that mice may be more likely to survive a bloodletting-pecking. But birds are far less likely to suffer from the clot formation called economy class syndrome?despite being frequent fliers.

?Karen Hopkin

[The above text is a transcript of this podcast]

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=3c6975171342adf5715218b70fc81035

the island mcdonalds beating dreamcatcher georgia tech big east expansion big east expansion michigan football

Sponsored By:

We were unable to forward you to the advertisement you clicked on.

The likely cause for this is that your browser, feed reader, or email application is configured to not accept cookies, or your reader may launch an external browser to view links without sharing cookies.

• If you're using Internet Explorer, make sure your privacy setting is at medium or below.
  • Select 'Internet Options' from the 'Tools' menu in your browser window
  • Click the Privacy tab
  • Adjust your privacy setting if necessary
    ?
• If you're using a reader that embeds Internet Explorer (examples: Microsoft Outlook, Outlook Express, Feed Demon), you'll also need to select Internet Explorer as your default web browser.
  • Open Internet Explorer
  • Select 'Internet Options' from the 'Tools' menu in your browser window
  • Click the 'Programs' tab and check the box for Internet Explorer to check if it is the default browser and save your change
  • Close your browser, re-open it, and when prompted, select Internet Explorer as your default
  • You can then click on an ad in your newsletter and visit the site you wish to view

Source: http://ads.pheedo.com/click.phdo?s=4db48f30b2b6030b306c0bffbdabff8b&p=4

ricky gervais golden globes real housewives of new york justified mildred pierce cam newton emmy awards nick collins

Brit accused of faking death arrested in Australia (AP)

SYDNEY ? A British man accused of faking his own death as part of a life insurance scam was arrested in Australia after a six-year hunt by authorities, police said Thursday.

Hugo Sanchez, who also went by the first name Alfredo, was arrested in Sydney on Wednesday, a spokeswoman for the Australian Federal Police said. She had no further details.

Sanchez and his wife, Sophie, had been living in Surrey when they found themselves in deep debt, according to a statement on Britain's Crown Prosecution Service website. Sanchez is accused of convincing Sophie to tell authorities and his employer that he died while overseas, so that she could collect his life insurance.

Sophie began claiming on the life insurance policies ? but suspicions arose when Sanchez's own fingerprints were found on his death certificate, the prosecution service said.

Sophie, 43, was arrested and admitted her husband was still alive, the prosecution service said. She pleaded guilty to six fraud offenses and was sentenced to two years in jail in December.

Sanchez appeared briefly in a Sydney court on Thursday. His lawyer, Jim Nicopoulos, told the court Sanchez would not contest extradition to the UK, Sydney's Daily Telegraph reported.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/asia/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111103/ap_on_re_as/as_australia_fake_death_arrest

nfl scores nfl scores world series tickets world series tickets nelson cruz nelson cruz michael young

Tritton AX Pro

The surround sound experience typically requires five speakers and one subwoofer to produce a field of sound that completely surrounds you. This is a very difficult thing to get just right, because it requires optimal speaker placement and acoustics to make the sound reflect correctly. It's also nearly impossible with headphones, but Tritton is trying hard with the AX Pro ($169.99 list), a gaming headset with multiple drivers in each ear to replicate the surround sound experience. While the headset technically handles 5.1 channels, it simply doesn't produce the imaging expected of a surround sound installation. Overall, audio quality is very good, but between underwhelming surround sound and the mind-boggling number of cords and connectors you need to get it to work, this headset is too expensive and complicated.

Design
Calling the AX Pro complicated is actually an understatement. To get the headset running with any device, you need to assemble at least three parts. There are the headphones, the microphone, the headphone cable, the Dolby digital box, the power cable, and the audio cable. What pushes the AX Pro into ridiculous territory is that the power cable has two plugs: one for the Dolby box and one for the headset itself; that's too much.

The Dolby box is a 0.8-by-2.5-by-5.7-inch (HWD) device that processes all incoming audio and optionally employs Dolby Digital Pro Logic to turn 2.1-channel audio into simulated 5.1-channel.?The box has optical and 3.5mm inputs for front, surround, and center/subwoofer channels, a USB input for a microphone when using a PlayStation 3, a power plug, and two 9-pin headphone outputs, if you want to use a second headset. There are also Volume, Pro Logic, and Power buttons, and switches for surround/center channel time delay and volume control in different modes. The headphone cable has its own separate set of switches located on an attached remote, and includes controls for volume, microphone volume, microphone muting, and individual channel (front, rear, center, and subwoofer) selection buttons, switches, and wheels. It also has a 3.5mm jack for a microphone connection with the Xbox 360.

The headset itself consists of a large, silver pair of headphones and a detachable mic that plugs under the left ear cup. The headphones have large, comfortable over-the-ear cups, and are highlighted by a glowing orange double-T logo on either side. A thin black band runs the length of the headphones, with a molded Tritton logo on the top. The headset feels comfortable, and the orange logo makes it easy to find in a dark room.

If you want to use this headset on your PC, you're going to need a 5.1-channel sound card and an open USB port, or you'll need to make some compromises. While you can use it for a PC headset with an optical audio connection for the sound and a USB cable for the microphone, the AX Pro is designed for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360. That said, if you have a 5.1-channel sound card, the headset works just as well on a PC. It can even work with a stereo sound card or your computer's built-in headphone output if you have a 3.5mm audio cable, but that approach only supports stereo audio, converted to processed 5.1-channel with Dolby Digital Pro Logic (which isn't as good as dedicated 5.1-channel and doesn't offer nearly as accurate imaging, which can be useful in action games). If you have 5.1-channel analog outputs, you can use the headset without the Dolby box, through the included audio connections that can plug directly into the headset cable.

Performance
General audio quality is very good, with lots of bass force and excellent stereo imaging. Unfortunately, the headset's main appeal of 5.1-surround sound is less than satisfying. While it does have multiple drivers in each ear to reproduce the experience of a 5.1-surround system, it simply doesn't offer the same level of spacial awareness that a speaker system does. I watched The Mechanic on Blu-ray, and while the thumping, tense soundtrack and acts of ballistic violence carried a lot of weight, the 5.1 mix didn't carry a lot of depth. Even discrete drivers can't offer a great 5.1-channel experience when they're so close to each other; any surround sound imaging sounds like an only slight enhancement to the standard stereo imaging of most headphones. Don't expect the AX Pro to give you an edge against sneak attacks in video games or a tense, someone's-creeping-up-behind-you sense of fear in horror movies more than the average stereo speaker setup or other quality stereo headphones.

The Tritton AX Pro is a solid pair of headphones with great sound for gaming, but it's complicated to set up and it lacks the 5.1 surround imaging that would justify its steep price tag. Our Editors' Choice headset, the Logitech Wireless Gaming Headset G930 ($159.99, 4 stars) cuts the cords and costs less. If you're ok with a wired headset, but want to save considerable coin, check out the Tt eSports Shock ($59.99, 3.5 stars), or even the?Tritton AX 180 ($69.99, 3 stars). Both provide decent gaming audio with much easier setup.

More Headphone reviews:

??? Tritton AX 180
??? Tritton AX Pro
??? Bose OE2i
??? Grado GR8
??? SOL Republic Tracks
?? more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/p_BbZTyps1M/0,2817,2394864,00.asp

bluebeard blue angels weather miami ohio state angus t. jones belgian malinois honey badger

The Detonator brings electric biking to bots, looks pretty bomb

Parker Brothers Choppers, responsible for one of several Tron Light Cycle replicas seen recently, is continuing to prove that electric bikes aren't all weedy-looking augmented pedal-powered affairs. This time, it tackled the Detonator concept created by Daniel Simon, a former VW designer who was also in charge of vehicle design for the Tron remake. Wired reports that the $100,000 bike charges in an hour and has an estimated range of around 80-100 miles on a full battery. According to the operations manager at Parker Brothers Choppers, it's "not the easiest bike to ride," though that could have something to do with Simon's original design, geared for non-human droids able to rotate their legs all the way around. Human riders, on the other hand, would likely face some chafing issues.

The Detonator brings electric biking to bots, looks pretty bomb originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 Nov 2011 07:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Wired  | Email this | Comments

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/aDN5JoivwUM/

wedding crashers jacqueline laurita carson palmer mcfadden mcfadden ponder ponder

Italy under pressure as bond yields climb (Reuters)

ROME (Reuters) ? Italian bond yields rose on Monday nearly to levels seen in August when the ECB intervened to shore up debt markets, indicating new concerns that problems in the euro zone's third largest economy could threaten the entire bloc.

With Italy now firmly at the heart of the euro zone debt crisis, yields on its 10 year, fixed-rate bonds known as BTPs jumped to 6.1 percent from 5.9 last week, piling pressure on Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's government as it faces fresh criticism over its handling of the economy.

The new bond yield was just shy of the level reached in August when the European Central Bank stepped in to cap Rome's borrowing costs by buying its bonds.

As the premium investors demand to hold Italian bonds rather than benchmark German Bunds climbed to 410 basis points, Italian bank leaders said that tensions on sovereign bond markets risked hitting the wider economy.

Giovanni Bazoli, chairman of Italy's biggest retail bank Intesa San Paolo, told a conference in Rome that risk of a credit crunch was "inevitable" if tensions on the sovereign debt market continued.

Berlusconi, mired in scandal and struggling to contain tensions in his divided center-right coalition, faced a fresh call to resign, when Luca Cordero di Montezemolo, one of Italy's most prominent businessmen, urged him to make way for a government of national unity.

In a letter to the daily La Repubblica, Montezemolo, chairman of sports car maker Ferrari, said that Italy had reached "the point of no return."

"There is not a minute to lose. The savings of Italian people, social cohesion and Italy's membership of the euro are all at risk," he said.

"We do not have time to wait for the natural evolution of the political situation," he said. "The prime minister has to realize that the only way to save the country is through a government of public safety."

Italy's sluggish economy, weighed down by a public debt equivalent to 120 percent of gross domestic product faces a growing risk of recession next year, which could derail the government's target of a balanced budget by 2013.

Data on Monday showed unemployment in September climbing to 8.3 percent, its highest in almost a year, while the main domestic inflation indicator hit its highest level in three years.

Last week, Italy paid a yield of 6.06 percent at an auction of 10 year bonds, the highest since the introduction of the euro more than a decade ago.

SPRING ELECTIONS

Berlusconi, facing four separate trials over prostitution and tax fraud charges, has rejected calls to step down, repeating on Friday that he would serve out his term until 2013.

However there is growing speculation that the government will fall early in 2012, taking the country to the polls in the spring, the period when Italian elections are traditionally held.

Berlusconi has survived numerous confidence votes in parliament this year, but his coalition partners in the Northern League have expressed increasingly open doubts about whether the government can continue.

They have insisted that the only option would be new elections, rejecting the idea of an interim "technical government" led by an independent outsider which would be charged with passing reforms.

If the government did fall after losing a confidence vote in parliament, it would be up to President Giorgio Napolitano to decide whether to call new elections or appoint another prime minister to try to form a new majority.

Senior political figures on both the government and opposition sides say Berlusconi appears to want to keep going until at least the end of the year.

The letter from Montezemolo adds to a growing chorus of criticism of the Berlusconi government from sections of the Italian establishment, ranging from the main employers federation Confindustria to leading daily newspapers and the Catholic church.

Montezemolo, who has no formal party allegiance, said a package of reforms promised to the EU last week, including rules to make it easier for employers to lay off staff and make civil servants redundant, were "manifestly insufficient given the gravity of the situation."

He proposed a five-point reform program to cut the cost of politics, reform labor laws, shift the tax burden from labor costs to assets, overhaul the pension system and open up protected sectors to competition.

(Additional reporting by Catherine Hornby, writing by James Mackenzie; Editing by Roger Atwood)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/economy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111031/ts_nm/us_italy_berlusconi

jules verne als puppies miss universe 2011 contestants hells angels hells angels las vegas weather

Girl Scouts of Colorado Flip-Flops on Allowing Boy to Join (Time.com)

Seven-year-old Bobby Montoya likes to play with dolls and wear girls' clothes. But it's his "boy parts" that led a Colorado Girl Scouts leader to deny him entry to the group, despite the fact that he identifies as a girl.

Three weeks ago, Bobby's mother Felisha Archuleta took her son to a Girl Scout troop meeting and asked a leader if he could join. While she expected the leader to be understanding, Archuleta told ABC News that the woman instead "humiliated" Bobby, driving him to tears.

"I said, 'Well, what's the big deal?' She said 'It doesn't matter how he looks, he has boy parts, he can't be in Girl Scouts,'" Archuleta told Denver's 9NEWS, which originally reported the story.

According to Archuleta, Bobby has been identifying as a girl since he was about 2 years old. He likes to dress and behave as a girl, even though it's caused him to be bullied at school. And here's the tearjerker quote of the day: "It's hurting my heart. It hurts me and my mom both," Bobby told 9NEWS of the bullying. (Watch the full story above.)

(SPECIAL: What You Need to Know About Bullying)

Archuleta has supported Bobby in letting him dress and behave as he likes, telling ABC News, "I believe he was born in the wrong body." She even threw him a Rapunzel-themed party for his seventh birthday.

But what Bobby really wanted was to join the Girl Scouts, just like his older sister. Since the incident with the troop leader, the Girl Scouts of Colorado released the following statement saying that they welcome Bobby and other children who may be transgendered:

"Girl Scouts is an inclusive organization and we accept all girls in Kindergarten through 12th grade as members. If a child identifies as a girl and the child's family presents her as a girl, Girl Scouts of Colorado welcomes her as a Girl Scout. Our requests for support of transgender kids have grown, and Girl Scouts of Colorado is working to best support these children, their families and the volunteers who serve them. In this case, an associate delivering our program was not aware of our approach. She contacted her supervisor, who immediately began working with the family to get the child involved and supported in Girl Scouts."

But after the family's initial experience, Archuleta isn't rushing to sign Bobby up just yet.

(MORE: Etiquette for Gays, Lesbians and Their Straight Friends)

"They haven't called me directly," Archuleta told ABC News on Thursday. "When I talked to the top [person], I said Bobby wants to be in the Girl Scouts, but have a different leader. She never called me back and only said they would give [the local leader who rejected him] sensitivity classes."

While there are no exact statistics on how many children experience gender-identity issues, according to the nonprofit Gender Spectrum, individuals become conscious of their sex between the ages of 18 months and 3 years, which is why many children who experience gender confusion say they've felt that way for as long as they can remember. And despite differing opinions on the subject, Gender Spectrum notes that gender confusion is not caused by anything and is not curable. Research has shown that gender is to an extent "hardwired" in the brain from birth.

Whatever way the Girl Scout cookie crumbles, it's refreshing to see a parent who supports her child, no matter what.

Erin Skarda is a reporter at TIME. Find her on Twitter at @ErinLeighSkarda. You can also continue the discussion on TIME's Facebook page and on Twitter at @TIME.

MORE: A Separate Peace?

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/external/time_rss/rss_time_us/httpnewsfeedtimecom20111028girlscoutsofcoloradoflipflopsonallowingboytojoinxidrssnationyahoo/43431425/SIG=13m34pgp5/*http%3A//newsfeed.time.com/2011/10/28/girl-scouts-of-colorado-flip-flops-on-allowing-boy-to-join/?xid=rss-nation-yahoo

the new girl miami hurricanes football miami hurricanes football emmy winners emmy winners sportsbook sportsbook

UFC 137 press conference video: ?Cro Cop? says this might be it

The 2011 version of Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic is a different fighter in and out of the cage than we saw in the early 2000's. Whether that will lead to one final win tomorrow night is anyone's guess, but? Cro Cop is at peace with whatever happens.

"I'm relaxed, there's no pressure on me. I will do best to beat Roy, who I respect a lot. I don't want to underestimate him,"Cro Cop said during the UFC 137 press conference. "But if you ask me, this is the most important fight in my career. This will be the most important fight in my career and that's why I trained so hard for Saturday evening. I'm just looking forward to it."

Cro Cop's lost two straight and 3-of-5. More importantly, he was the victim of terrible knockout at UFC 128 at the hands of Brendan Schaub. He faces another fighter badly in need of a win in Roy Nelson. Cro Cop doesn't want to go out with three straight losses.

"[...] this could easily be my last fight in the UFC. It has nothing to do with the result, if I win or lose. Especially if I lose, but even if I win it could be my last fight in the UFC. And I'll really give my best and hope this will be an attractive fight. I cannot afford anymore, especially in this fight, that it's declared as the most boring fight of the evening like the fight with Frank Mir. I think me and Roy will perform a good fight and the fans will be satisfied and excited," said Cro Cop.

If he sounds too relaxed, don't be fooled because Cro Cop told the media on Wednesday he has some extra motivation, he wants to avoid ridicule in his home country.

"People in my country will say, 'If you beat him, you beat a fat guy', and if you lost to him they start laughing to me, 'You lost against him', but he's a super dangerous guy who can knock out anyone. Some people might be tricked by his body, but he's a dangerous guy," said Cro Cop.

Nelson is a minus-275 favorite in Las Vegas sportsbooks. A Cro Cop bet brings back plus-235.

Watch UFC 137 right here on Yahoo! Sports

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/UFC-137-press-conference-video-Cro-Cop-says-t?urn=mma-wp8634

best iphone 4 case sonic youth sonic youth make your mark make your mark stop loss stop loss

Top Cain aide has checkered past

Presidental candidate Herman Cain speaks during the Washington County Republican Committee's annual Lincoln Day Dinner on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2011, in Springdale, Ark. (AP Photo/Beth Hall)

Presidental candidate Herman Cain speaks during the Washington County Republican Committee's annual Lincoln Day Dinner on Thursday, Oct. 27, 2011, in Springdale, Ark. (AP Photo/Beth Hall)

ATLANTA (AP) ? He is the man with the mustache who takes a rebellious drag on a cigarette in the Herman Cain Internet ad gone viral.

"We've run a campaign like nobody's ever seen," he says before taking a puff. "But then America's never seen a candidate like Herman Cain."

Meet Mark Block, Cain's unorthodox campaign manager. Perhaps no one is more responsible for the Georgia businessman's meteoric rise in the presidential polls than Block, a Republican strategist and tea party leader who's left a trail of questionable campaign work behind him.

Block has been accused of voter suppression and was banned from running Wisconsin political campaigns for three years to settle accusations he coordinated a judge's re-election campaign with a special interest group.

Records show Block has faced foreclosure on his home, a tax warrant by the Internal Revenue Service and a lawsuit for an unpaid bill. He also acknowledges he was arrested twice for drunken driving.

On the presidential trail, some former Cain staffers say Block broke promises. Traditional GOP strategists have been scratching their heads at his renegade tactics to win the White House, all but ignoring some early states in favor of a book tour and swings through states without early primaries.

Those who know Block say he's long been a maverick who isn't afraid to reset boundaries.

"Mark doesn't go to the how-to-run a campaign guidebook when deciding how to do things," said Jared Thomas, who was a state director for the anti-tax group Americans for Prosperity Georgia when Block led the Wisconsin chapter. "He's all about advancing conservative ideals and conservative goals, and he really doesn't mind stepping on toes in the process."

In an interview with The Associated Press at Cain's campaign headquarters south of Atlanta, Block acknowledged ruffling some feathers because he ? and the Cain campaign ? don't "fit the mold."

"Can you imagine Karl Rove doing what I did with that cigarette?" he said with a laugh, referring to George W. Bush's straight-laced political guru.

"It's a joke around here, 'Let Block be Block," he says. He had been doing just that moments earlier, smoking his now signature cigarette on an office balcony overlooking a golf course.

The Web video has now been spoofed on just about every comedy show imaginable. And he seems both pleased and appalled at the attention it's received.

"This country is going to hell in a handbasket and that is what we're talking about?" he says.

Block's entry into politics came early. In 1974, he became the first 18-year-old elected to office in Wisconsin, capturing a seat on the Winnebago County Board of Supervisors.

But Block's reputation was marred when he was accused of illegally coordinating state Supreme Court Justice Jon Wilcox's 1997 re-election campaign with a special interest group that favored school vouchers. In 2001, he agreed to pay $15,000 and was banned from running Wisconsin political campaigns for three years to settle the case. Block made no admission of wrongdoing in the settlement. Block told the AP that he had not coordinated with the group and called the charges "ridiculous."

Unable to make a living in politics, Block paid the bills stocking shelves at a Target. He has the "Mark" nametag mounted on his desk at Cain headquarters.

Block said it was during those tough times that his home went into foreclosure and his personal life unraveled, resulting in two arrests for drinking and driving.

"That's why I don't drink anymore," he said.

But Block engineered a comeback when he was hired in 2005 as the Wisconsin director of Americans for Prosperity, the group founded by billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch. He also helped organize the tea party in Wisconsin and in that role met Cain, the former Godfather's Pizza chief executive who'd come aboard as a speaker after a failed U.S. Senate campaign in Georgia.

In Cain's new memoir, he writes that he and Block bonded when they were paired in a car for a whirlwind eight-stop, day-and-a half tour to launch new Americans for Prosperity chapters.

Still, it wasn't long before Block's campaign work again was being questioned.

In 2007, a local prosecutor investigated the group's robo-calls against a proposed $119 million school building referendum that would have raised property taxes. The prosecutor concluded that although the calls were misleading and distorted the impact of the referendum on taxpayers, the case was not strong enough to bring charges.

In 2010, a liberal group, One Wisconsin Now, said it had obtained an audio recording of a tea party meeting that indicated Block was involved in an effort to try to prevent legal voters from casting ballots in Democratic-leaning neighborhoods. A tea party organizer says on the audio that Americans for Prosperity had agreed to pay for sending a mailer to mostly Democratic-leaning minority and student voters and then use any of them returned as undeliverable to support their challenges at the polls on Election Day. One Wisconsin Now called it a notorious voter suppression scheme known as "caging," but law enforcement officials did not investigate.

Block also denied any wrongdoing in those instances, calling them baseless claims made by liberals who disagreed with his political views.

Working for Cain, Block has been accused by former Iowa staffer Kevin Hall of trying to cover up Cain's employment of Scott D. Toomey. Toomey was at the center of a financial scandal when he was part of a gay pride group in Madison, Wis., but later became a top adviser to Cain. Hall said Block told him to tell supporters that Toomey was not involved in the campaign and that they simply had Toomey continue working as an outside consultant, not a paid staffer.

Hall also complained that Block told him Cain would not spend as much time and money competing in the Iowa straw poll in August as Hall was promised when he was hired.

"There's a reason some people are former staffers," Block observes dryly.

In "This is Herman Cain!" the GOP presidential candidate writes that Block thinks outside the box.

"In my case, thinking way out of the box. And that's one of the reasons we have a great relationship," Cain wrote.

___

Follow Shannon McCaffrey at www.twitter.com/smccaffrey13

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2011-10-28-Cain-Campaign%20Manager/id-16664afdb1194b8daee1df5a70019f28

social security social security adderall muskingum county muskingum county barometer barometer

Insurgents attack US-run base in Afghanistan (AP)

KABUL, Afghanistan ? An Afghan official says insurgents have launched an attack on a U.S.-run civilian and military base in the southern city of Kandahar.

Kandahar provincial police chief, Gen. Abdul Razzaq says at least three insurgents had taken over an office in front of the base on Thursday afternoon and started shooting. The base is home to NATO troops, including Americans, and a provincial reconstruction team.

Razzaq says he was at the base for a meeting when the attack started.

Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqi says two of the attackers have been killed, but he had no other details.

A hospital in Kandahar said at least one civilian was killed and at least two others and a member of the Afghan security forces have been wounded.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/usmilitary/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111027/ap_on_re_as/as_afghanistan

devin hester devin hester dan wheldon walking dead weldon weldon danica patrick

Obama administration announces desert 'solar energy zones'

The Obama administration on Thursday unveiled its road map for solar energy development, directing large-scale industrial projects to 285,000 acres of desert land in the western U.S. while opening 20 million acres of the Mojave for new development.

The Bureau of Land Management's long-awaited "solar energy zones" are intended to make some of the desert's most sensitive landscapes less desirable for solar prospecting by identifying "sweet spots" that have already passed environmental requirements and therefore promise expedited permitting, U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said.

"These 445 square miles of zones are ? where development will be driven," Salazar said on a conference call with reporters.

The 17 solar energy zones in six western states ? including two extensive areas in California ? were identified by their absence of major environmental or cultural conflicts. But nothing prevents a developer from requesting permission to build on federal land outside the preferred areas.

The policy, which is expected to be finalized sometime next year, would not apply to the 13 solar projects already under construction across the West, nor the 79 pending applications that would occupy 685,000 acres of public land. There are 20 utility-scale solar applications awaiting approval in California.

Industry and environmental groups have eagerly anticipated release of the plan, with both sides saying much is at stake. Solar developers need to site projects ahead of deadlines for billions of dollars in federal and state subsides. Conservation groups contend that the desert ? home to scores of endangered plants and animals ? is not capable of absorbing industrial-scale change.

The solar industry, which had a hand in crafting the proposed regulations, applauded the additional clarity they provide but bridled at the zone approach.

"While we are still reviewing all of the details in this proposal, there are some significant areas of concern," said Rhone Resch, president of the Solar Energy Industry Assn. "Siting flexibility and access to transmission are key to the financing and development of utility-scale solar power plants. Both aspects must be reflected in the final" plan.

And the Bureau of Land Management's failure to make vast swaths of the desert off-limits to development irked some environmentalists.

The bureau "never will close the door on anything; that's the only thing that has been consistent in this whole process," said Janine Blaeloch, director of the Western Lands Project. "They won't put their foot down."

Critics contend that the policies are too late, coming after three years of free-for-all leasing that encouraged rampant speculation. Since the leasing began, the Bureau of Land Management has been working to process more than 300 solar applications. Many are in California's Mojave Desert, where the state's eastern counties have seen the cost of private land soar and desert given over to what will be hundreds of square miles of mirrors.

Renewable energy is a centerpiece of President Obama's energy policy, which aims to reduce American dependence on foreign oil while developing domestic clean energy that creates jobs.

The government has spent millions of dollars to develop a framework to regulate solar operations on public lands, electing to write new protocols rather than apply existing leasing rules for oil and gas.

The first draft of the Bureau of Land Management plan that was released Thursday cost the agency more than $13 million to prepare. Additionally, as of last year, the bureau had spent more than $18 million to more accurately map federal land holdings.

Combined, those projects consumed nearly 80% of the Recovery Act funding set aside for the bureau's entire renewables program, according to an analysis by the Interior Department's inspector general.

julie.cart@latimes.com

Source: http://feeds.latimes.com/~r/latimes/news/science/~3/hVE9rbR4OTs/la-me-solar-desert-20111028,0,2484642.story

elizabeth warren coptic church steve bartman columbus day columbus day mark davis bank holidays