Monday, October 31, 2011

Confident Cain plans to cut back campaign events

Republican Presidential candidate, Herman Cain campaigns in Talladega, Ala., Friday, Oct. 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

Republican Presidential candidate, Herman Cain campaigns in Talladega, Ala., Friday, Oct. 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

Republican Presidential candidate, Herman Cain campaigns in Talladega, Ala., Friday, Oct. 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Dave Martin)

(AP) ? Presidential candidate Herman Cain is full of confidence about his 2012 prospects.

It's been weeks since he's set foot in first-voting Iowa or New Hampshire, yet he said Saturday he said expects to finish first or second in each state.

He's also predicting victory in South Carolina, which will hold the South's first presidential contest in 2012.

"And then, look out," Cain said Saturday before plunging into a crowd of football tailgaters at Samford University, a Baptist-affiliated school in Alabama.

That win, he says, will set the stage for him to capture the GOP nomination.

Cain, however, said he plans to "dial back" his campaign and media appearances in order to avoid missteps. Since climbing in the polls, he has had a series of fumbles, forcing him to clarify comments on abortion, immigration and terrorism suspects.

Cain has chalked up the mistakes to a grueling campaign schedule jammed with media interviews. Such itineraries are standard fare on the presidential campaign trail and it is unclear how aggressively he will restrict his schedule.

A former pizza magnate who has never held elected office, Cain is adapting from a longshot candidate hustling for any media attention to a front-runner who must be more selective with his time and disciplined in his message.

"When you're too tired you're not on your 'A game,'" the 65-year-old Georgia businessman told a throng of reporters who greeted the arrival of his bus on the Samford campus.

He said it was a mistake to schedule interviews immediately following debates. Cain maintained he did not flip-flop on issues, but simply did not hear questions properly.

The blunt-spoken Cain has been more cautious lately. At a campaign stop at the Alabama Republican Party headquarters on Friday, Cain paused then asked a reporter to repeat a complicated two-part question on immigration.

"I don't want to have to clarify," he said with a laugh.

Not everyone thinks walking back a misstatement is a sign of weakness.

"I like that if he says something, he's not afraid to turn around and admit he's wrong," said Phil Andrews, of Birmingham, who tried without success to reach the candidate and have him sign his Cain t-shirt.

"He's human and that's just fine."

____

Follow Shannon McCaffrey at www.twitter.com(backslash)smccaffrey13

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2011-10-29-Cain/id-3d327ff87277492a8eafca85a5ba7ca2

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LIBT 2900: Library/Information Agency Internship

Please contact jennifer.sippel@minneapolis.edu if you plan to register for or have any questions about the Library Information Agency Internship for Spring 2012. 

MN Paid Internship Posting: Archive – Processing Clerk, MN Public Radio

JOB DESCRIPTION

Job Title:                                                        Archive – Processing Clerk              

Date Written/revised:                                     September 2011

Grade Level:                                                  N/A
                                   
FLSA Status:                                                 Full-time (40 hours/week), Non-Exempt
                                                                        Temporary: 2-4 months (max)
           
Reports to:                                                      Director, Archives
                                   
Department:                                                   Broadcast Ops

Location:                                                        St. Paul, MN

Position Summary:

Help build the creation of a collection inventory of MPR’s physical holdings of reels, DATs, CDs and other media.  This position is funded through a grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting as part of the American Archive initiative to build a comprehensive public broadcast inventory.

Position Responsibility: 

  • Pull media (reels, DATs, CDs) from the archive, enter the item’s information into a database, attaching any relevant scans and images to the record
  • Ensure information is captured with attention to detail and consistency
  • Understand various metadata standards (PB Core, Dublin Core)
  • Document  and report anomalies to Inventory Manager
  • Track your work and report your progress to the Inventory Manager
Required Education and Experience:

Computer competency with a comfort working in various databases, software and platforms.

Required Skills, Knowledge and Abilities:

  • Understanding of the importance of metadata application, the need for preservation of cultural heritage and a desire to accurately represent the item in an inventory
  • Demonstrated experience working in large collections
  • Experience processing collections, particularly data entry
Reporting To This Position:

N/A

Physical Demands and Working Conditions:

  • Must be able to perform the essential duties of the position with or without reasonable accommodation
  • Physical Demands: 
    • Required to move about in an office environment and sit for extended periods of time
    • Reach with hands and arms
    • Balance, stoop, kneel, or crouch
    • Frequent use of hands for data entry/keystrokes and simple grasping.  
  • Working Conditions: 
    • Moderate noise level
    • Occasional exposure to prevalent weather conditions.

Relocation allowance is not available.  Parking or bus pass reimbursed. More information about American Public Media is available online: www.americanpublicmedia.org

 Please contact Jenel Farrell jfarrell@mpr.org ASAP with your interest in this position.

Kaitlin Olson and Rob McElhenney: Expecting Baby #2!


Kaitlin Olson and Rob McElhenney of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia fame are expecting a baby - the second in as many years for the married couple!

Son Axel was born to the couple last September.

Soon he'll have a baby brother to play with!

Kaitlin Olson, Rob McElhenney

"We're having a boy! We're so happy that Axel gets to have a brother so close in age. And that I get to add another set of balls to my very, very male world," Kaitlin Olson said in a hilarious statement to TV Guide.

"We recently found out I was pregnant during my mom's birthday weekend in Ojai. I was instantly so proud of this baby for already knowing how to make someone else's special occasion all about him."

The couple's Always Sunny co-star Glenn Howerton, who plays Kaitlin's brother, and his wife welcomed their first child last month, while Charlie Day and Mary Elizabeth Ellis are expecting their first in December.

Olson and McElhenney have been married since 2008. Congrats to all!

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2011/10/kaitlin-olson-and-rob-mcelhenney-expecting-baby-no-2/

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Friday, October 28, 2011

Cinema Eye salutes documentaries, including Justin Bieber (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) ? "The Arbor," "Senna" and "The Interrupters" are among the top nominees for the fifth annual Cinema Eye Honors, one of the top awards given to nonfiction films.

And Justin Bieber, surprisingly, showed up on the list as well.

In nominations announced on Wednesday in London, those three films shared nominations for the top award, Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Feature Filmmaking, with "Position Among the Stars," "Nostalgia for the Light" and "Project Nim."

"The Arbor," "Senna," "Position Among the Stars," "Nostalgia for the Light," "The Interrupters," "Dragonslayer" and "Hell and Back Again" each received four nominations in the 10 categories.

Steve James, the director of "Hoop Dreams" and of this year's contender "The Interrupters," received four individual nominations, the most of any person.

Two 3D documentaries from noted German filmmakers, Werner Herzog's "Cave of Forgotten Dreams" and Wim Wenders' "Pina," each received nominations in the Outstanding Achievement in Production category. Herzog's film was also nominated for its music score and for the Audience Choice Prize.

One of the most unexpected nominations came in the Audience Choice category, where the concert film "Justin Bieber: Never Say Never" will go up against nine other films with more critical heft, including Errol Morris's "Tabloid," Cindy Meehl's "Buck" and Goran Olsson's "The Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975."

The late combat photographer and documentary filmmaker Tim Hetherington ("Restrepo") received a nomination in the short film category for his impressionistic, autobiographical film "Diary."

Over its first four years, the Cinema Eye Honors has twice given its top honor to the film that went on to win the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. James Marsh's "Man on Wire" won in 2009, and Louie Psihoyos' "The Cove" the following year.

Last year's Cinema Eye winner was Banksy's "Exit Through the Gift Shop," which was nominated for an Oscar but did not win.

Nominations for the awards are made by committees of documentary programmers from film festivals around the world.

The Cinema Eye Honors were launched in 2007 by filmmaker and journalist A.J. Schnack and documentary programer Thom Powers, who wanted to create documentary awards that would honor the entire creative team and all facets of nonfiction filmmaking.

The 2012 ceremony will take place on January 11, 2012 at the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria, Queens, New York.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/movies/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111027/film_nm/us_cinemaeye

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Bugs, Bugs Everywhere. Even On Your Dinner Plate?

A customer holds up a spoon of deep-fried water bug in a restaurant in Thailand. Insects are a popular food in Thailand and many other countries around the world. Enlarge Sakchai Lalit/ASSOCIATED PRESS

A customer holds up a spoon of deep-fried water bug in a restaurant in Thailand. Insects are a popular food in Thailand and many other countries around the world.

Sakchai Lalit/ASSOCIATED PRESS

A customer holds up a spoon of deep-fried water bug in a restaurant in Thailand. Insects are a popular food in Thailand and many other countries around the world.

Kudos to the SF Weekly, which devoted a cover story last week to eating bugs. Seems the City by the Bay has become a "hotbed of insect cuisine," David Gordon, a nationally renowned entomophagist (bug eater) and author of The Eat-A-Bug Cookbook, tells the alternative weekly.

But could it be that daring Bay Area foodies have run out of provocative ingredients for their elaborate meals? Or is this a legit movement with six legs? Reporter Peter Jamieson makes a fairly compelling case for the latter, interviewing many of the key players in the bug eating world, including the owner of a bug-focused food truck called Don Bugito, bug bloggers, bug cookbook authors and others.

?

Their arguments for why you should eat bugs consist of the following:

  • They're a great source of protein
  • They taste pretty good. Exhibit A: Fried wax moth larvae served inside a taco or canape. Exhibit B: Bee larvae, which taste like "nutty, mushroomy raisins."
  • They're not that different, biologically speaking, than shellfish
  • They could be the most "ecologically sound food there is," at least compared with the impact that livestock production has on land, water, air and human health.
  • They're nature's most efficient feed converters. For example, 10 pounds of plant matter feeds about seven or eight pounds of crickets, compared with 2 pounds of beef from 10 pounds of feed.

Besides the general cultural taboo against bugs, much less eating them, there are a few other obstacles for the entomophagists. Ready-made bugs for eating are actually pretty expensive, compared with meat. And there aren't a lot of people raising or distributing them, either.

Still, the advocates make some interesting points. "I like to point out that lobsters and crabs eat trash and feces and dead animals, and grasshoppers eat salad," David Gracer, a naturalist and entomophagist, tells the SF Weekly.

And cutting-edge San Francisco culinarians aren't the only ones pushing bugs for dinner.

Last year the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization said it may promote insect consumption over meat consumption as a way to improve nutrition and limit global warming. It helps that people around the world are already chomping on a lot of arthropods: 527 different insects are eaten across 36 countries in Africa, 29 countries in Asia and 23 countries in the Americas, says the FAO. Crickets, or chapulines, are a tasty snack for Mexicans, for example, while locusts are caught and eaten in African countries like Sudan.

The UN's interest in insect consumption as a way to tackle greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture was inspired by work by Arnold van Huis, a tropical entomologist at Wageningen University in Belgium. He wrote in a paper published last year in the journal PLoS One that locusts, crickets and meal worms ? all edible and nutritious ? emit 10 times less methane and 300 times less nitrous oxide than livestock.

Still, it's hard to imagine that if given the choice, most Africans or Latin Americans would willingly choose bee larvae over bacon. That is, unless they're offered a bacon-flavored beetle.

Source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2011/10/24/141661332/bugs-bugs-everywhere-even-on-your-dinner-plate?ft=1&f=1007

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Thursday, October 27, 2011

Italy: Search for survivors in mud-filled villages

(AP) ? Soldiers and civilian rescue workers battled knee-deep mud Thursday as they searched for survivors after flash floods and mudslides inundated picturesque villages around coastal areas of Liguria and Tuscany.

Coast guard cutters were also called in following reports that some of the missing may have been swept into the sea by the fury of the storm. At least nine people died and six others are missing.

Many towns are still isolated nearly 48 hours after the storms hit. A military officer told Sky Italia that 500 soldiers were brought in to help in the search operation and to clear roads and bridges.

Villages like Aulla in Tuscany, where two people are confirmed dead and one is listed as missing, were covered by mud that swept into homes and stores and caked parked cars.

"In an hour the work of 10 years was lost," said the Rev. Giovanni Perrini as he inspected his parish church and nearby museum filled with mud.

In Borghetto Vara, a woman whose house was destroyed recovered her five kittens from the mud. "It is all that I have left, I have nothing else," the unidentified woman told the ANSA news agency.

Six of the victims came from Borghetto Vara, a village in Liguria known for its grapes, wines and chestnuts. Roiling waters and mud tore through the village, 45 miles (75 kilometers) from Genoa and near the Cinque Terre, a popular vacation area, which also suffered damage.

Schools, businesses and stores were closed in many villages, railroad service was interrupted and the highway linking Genoa and Livorno was blocked.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2011-10-27-EU-Italy-Floods/id-4ce1bffe252b4df2ba1caf8ccaa2eaa4

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NEW Program Elective: "Preserving History & Memory: Archives in Current Society" [LIBT 1400]

A new course is being offered in MCTC's Library Information Technology program, Spring, 2012.  The name of the course is "Preserving History & Memory: Archives in Current Society" [LIBT 1400].  This is an elective course in the program that examines the role of archives as powerful repositories of history and memory as well as the role of the archivist as an active agent in the process of shaping our knowledge of the past.  In this course, you will look at the traditional functions of archives, which are selection, preservation and access, as well as the roles of archivists and support staff, both in their institutional settings and within the context of the wider society which they serve.

If you are interested in taking this course, but are not enrolled in MCTC's Library Information Techology Program, you can apply to the college as a non-degree seeking student, and register for the course with permission of the instructor. Contact: Jane.Jurgens@minneapolis.edu

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Oakland tense after police, protesters clash (AP)

OAKLAND, Calif. ? The scene was calm but tense early Wednesday as a crowd of hundreds of protesters dwindled to just a few dozen at the site of several clashes between authorities and supporters of the Occupy Wall Street movement a night earlier.

Police in riot gear stood watch only a few yards away from a group of stalwart demonstrators in the aftermath of skirmishes in front of City Hall that resulted in five volleys of tear gas from police, in blasts that seemed to intensify with each round, over a roughly three-hour stretch of evening scuffles.

The conflict began much earlier in the day when police dismantled an encampment of Occupy Wall Street protesters that had dominated a plaza across the street from the government building for more than two weeks.

Police fired tear gas and beanbag rounds, clearing out the makeshift city in less than an hour.

Hours after nightfall Tuesday evening, protesters had gathered at a downtown library and began marching toward City Hall in an attempt to re-establish a presence in the area of the disbanded camp.

They were met by police officers in riot gear. Several small skirmishes broke out and officers cleared the area by firing tear gas.

The scene repeated itself several times just a few blocks away in front of the plaza, where police set up behind metal barricades, preventing protesters from gaining access to the site.

Tensions would build as protesters edged ever closer to the police line and reach a breaking point with a demonstrator hurling a bottle or rock, prompting police to respond with another round of gas.

The chemical haze hung in the air for hours, new blasts clouding the air before the previous fog could dissipate.

The number of protesters diminished with each round of tear gas. Police estimated that there were roughly 1,000 demonstrators at the first clash following the march. About 200 remained after the final conflict around 11:15 PDT, mostly young adults, some riding bicycles, protecting themselves from the noxious fumes with bandanas and scarves wrapped around their faces.

Police have denied reports that they used flash bang canisters to help break up the crowds, saying the loud noises came from large firecrackers thrown at police by protesters.

Helicopters scanned the area late Tuesday and scores of officers wearing helmets and carrying clubs patrolled the streets. Fire crews put out small blazes in trash containers.

Protesters moved about uneasily even as one used a bull horn to express his resolve.

"This movement is more than just the people versus the police," Mario Fernandez said. "It's about the people trying to have their rights to basic services."

He added, "This crowd isn't going anywhere anytime soon."

Acting Police Chief Howard Jordan told reporters at a late night news conference that authorities had no other choice, saying the protesters were throwing rocks and bottles at officers.

"We had to deploy gas to stop the crowd," he said, according to a KCBS report.

City officials say that two officers were injured. At least five protesters were arrested and several others injured in the evening clashes.

In the morning raid authorities removed about 170 demonstrators who had been staying in the area overnight after repeatedly being warned that such a camp was illegal and they faced arrest by remaining. City officials said 97 people were arrested.

Protesters promised to reconvene Wednesday morning. Police, meanwhile, remained in riot gear standing watch.

The Oakland site was among numerous camps that have sprung up around the country as protesters rally against what they see as corporate greed and a wide range of other economic issues. The protests have attracted a wide range of people, including college students looking for work and the homeless.

In Oakland, tensions between the city and protesters have been escalating since last week as officials complained about what they described as deteriorating safety, sanitation and health issues at the site of the dismantled camp.

____

Associated Press reporter Marcus Wohlsen contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111026/ap_on_re_us/us_occupy_wall_street_oakland

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Mexico sets day care reform after fire killed 49 (AP)

MEXICO CITY ? Mexican President Felipe Calderon has signed a decree tightening regulations on day care centers, two years after a fire at a center in northern Mexico killed 49 children and injured 70.

Calderon says the new rules will not allow centers within 50 yards (meters) of any business or facility that presents a fire risk or other hazard.

The rules strengthen oversight and require centers to have emergency and disaster plans. It does not prohibit privately run centers, but requires them to be registered.

Calderon said Sunday the decree aims to prevent a recurrence of "the most terrible of tragedies" ? the fire at a center in the northern state of Sonora on June 5, 2009. The fire started in a neighboring state government warehouse.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/latam/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111023/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_mexico_daycare_reform

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Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Dostana 2 back on track

For all those who are eagerly awaiting the sequel of 2008 hit rom- com ?Dostana?, here is some scoop. Reports are zooming in from high quarters that the director of the movie Tarun Mansukhani has finally penned down an ideal script for ?Dostana 2?. It is now ready and the film will roll out some [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/newslatest/~3/ggBeIE3vLGE/3374.html

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German satellite crashed over Asia's Bay of Bengal (AP)

BERLIN ? Heavily populated Asian cities avoided a dangerous collision with space junk last weekend as a defunct German satellite crashed into the sea somewhere between India and Myanmar.

The ROSAT satellite re-entered the atmosphere at 0150 GMT Sunday (9:50 p.m. Saturday EDT) above South Asia's Bay of Bengal, but it remains unclear how much, if any, of its debris actually reached the sea's surface, the German Aerospace Center said Tuesday.

Most of the 21-year-old satellite was expected to burn up as it hit the atmosphere, but up to 30 fragments weighing a total of 1.87 tons (1.7 metric tons) may have splashed into the sea.

Scientists could no longer communicate with the defunct satellite, let alone control it.

Two Chinese cities with millions of residents each, Chongqing and Chengdu, were only minutes further northeast along the satellite's projected path, according to Jonathan McDowell of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

The 2.69-ton (2.4 metric ton) scientific ROSAT satellite was launched in Cape Canaveral, Florida, in 1990 and retired in 1999 after being used for research on black holes and neutron stars.

A dead NASA satellite fell into the southern Pacific Ocean last month, causing no damage but spreading debris over a 500-mile (800-kilometer) area.

Since 1991, space agencies have adopted new procedures to lessen space junk. NASA says it has no more large satellites that will fall back to Earth uncontrolled in the next 25 years.

___

Online:

The German space agency on ROSAT: http://tinyurl.com/645k8hj

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tech/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111025/ap_on_hi_te/falling_satellite

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HCL Preservation Department Volunteer Opportunity


One of our LIT program graduates is volunteering at the Preservation Department in the downtown Central Library and tells me there are volunteer opportunities to work on various projects under the direction of Frank Hurley, the head of Preservation.

She writes:
"I have been volunteering there since June, and I really like it. There is a wide variety of tasks, from bookbinding to replacing plastic covers on books. Some of the projects we're focusing on right now are organizing certain periodicals to be sent to a bindery (I worked on issues of Glamour yesterday from 1965-1980 - fascinating stuff), and putting together new folders of sheet music (as a preservation method, a lot of pieces of sheet music in the library collection that were damaged were sent to the U of M for preservation photocopies to be made. Now that we have the photocopies, we have to fold them and put them in new folders, then attach new labels. We end up recycling the original pieces of sheet music, so if anyone is particularly interested in music, they could definitely take some sheet music home). Other projects include gluing loose pages of books back in, replacing the endsheets of books, binding books through handsewing and other methods, and something I'm working on is encapsulating very old sheet music (from the 1860s to the early 1900s), i.e. making plastic cases for pieces of sheet music to better protect the music. There are a lot of really interesting old artifacts that come through the Preservation department.
If anyone is interested in volunteering, Please contact:

Barb McKenzie
Volunteer and Intern Coordinator
Hennepin County Library
12601 Ridgedale Drive
Minnetonka, MN 55305
bamckenzie@hclib.org
612-543-8579

92% Point Blank

"A desperate man is a dangerous thing."Samuel Pierret (Gilles Lellouche) is a nurse who saves the wrong guy -- a thief (Roschdy Zem) whose henchmen take Samuel's pregnant wife (Elena Anaya) hostage to force him to spring their boss from the hospital. A race through the subways and streets of Paris ensues, and the body count rises. Can Samuel evade the cops and the criminal underground and deliver his beloved to safety?REVIEWSamuel, a nurse-in-training at a Parisian hospital is suddenly in the middle of a conspiracy, and he has no way out until he can get his wife back. Simple enough? Not quite, but here is a movie that is like "The Fugitive" on steroids, powered by dynamic direction, and a very charismatic couple of lead actors. Samuel, find himself, avoiding bullets, thugs, cops, killers, cars, trains, security cameras, and that's just the background. He is also dealing with a very personal crisis, and there are a couple of sensational scenes that take place in the middle of a very busy train station, and if you have ever been in one of those European transportation hubs, you can almost feel his pain, as he is trying to avoid being captured and killed. The second scene involves a hectic police station, and some very creative plot twists.Here is a film many should see in its original version (I'm already thinking it will probably go through a least creative American reworking), but it is perfectly enjoyable the way it is; actually it's quite a thrill to see that in addition to films like "Tell No One", French filmmakers are producing some very interesting films, with non-stop action. You will feel your heart beating almost out of your chest.

August 29, 2011

Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/point_blank/

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Monday, October 24, 2011

The 2012 Olympic surveillance legacy

The 2012 Olympic surveillance legacy [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 24-Oct-2011
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Pressoffice
Pressoffice@esrc.ac.uk
Economic & Social Research Council

The Olympic and Paralympic Games are one of the most prestigious events in the world and in 2012 all eyes will be on London. The well published post - 2012 Games legacy includes world class sports facilities, a woodland park, new homes, shops and restaurants. What isn't clear is what will happen to the high level security measures that will be left behind after the Games.

Criminologist Dr Pete Fussey believes that there will be a significant use of surveillance during the games, such as fixed and mobile video cameras. In addition, new structures such as bollards and barriers are being introduced to aid security which will have an impact on the urban environment.

Dr Fussey will talk about these issues and invite public discussion at the first of three events on the Olympics to be held during the Economic and Social Research Council's (ESRC) Festival of Social Science 2011. He believes that there is an important debate to be had about the impact that increased surveillance and security measures could have on the communities of East London once the games have finished.

"Given the amount of terrorist threats on recent large sporting events, security requirements have become increasingly central to Olympic planning. This has led to the construction of a range of highly equipped units monitored by a range of surveillance technologies. This in turn, raises questions of what will become of these spaces once the Games are finished and the site is transformed into urban parkland," said Dr Fussey. "Further questions exist over the revival and renewal of the area, which could be seen as upsetting the traditional urban balance."

As an expert in security and counter-terrorism, Dr Fussey believes that these issues of the legacy of the Olympics need to be more widely debated. "For example during the Seoul and Tokyo Olympics, private security guards were seen for the first time in those countries and they remained once the Olympics had gone. This sort of thing raises questions about what is needed to police a global event and what happens afterwards. How many of these security measures will remain in place and what impact will they have on these communities long after the Olympics has ended?"

The talk is the first of three given by Essex University experts on aspects of the Olympics on successive evenings. Psychologist, Dr Dominic Mickelwright will talk about how Olympic athletes achieve feats of exceptional performance, and Dr Marjana Johansson, a lecturer in management, will discuss the Olympics as a global brand, and the association of the games with other global brands.

###

For further information contact

Dr Gary Williams
Email: gcwill@essex.ac.uk
Telephone: 01206-874070

ESRC Press Office:

Danielle Moore
Email: danielle.moore@esrc.ac.uk
Telephone 01793-413122

Jeanine Woolley
Email: jeanine.woolley@esrc.ac.uk
Telephone 01793-413119

Notes for editors:

1. The 2012 Olympic experience
Organiser: Dr Pete Fussey, University of Essex
Date: 31 October 2011 18.00-19.30
Venue: The Minories Bistro, Colchester
Audience: Suitable for a general audience
For more information: The 2012 Olympic experience

2. Press release is based on research by Dr Pete Fussey, Living in surveillance societies. His main research interests focus on surveillance and security with particular reference to counter-terrorism and, also, major events. For more information see Dr Pete Fussey.

3. The Festival of Social Science is run by the Economic and Social Research Council which runs from 29 October to 5 November 2011. With events from some of the country's leading social scientists, the Festival celebrates the very best of British social science research and how it influences our social, economic and political lives - both now and in the future. This year's Festival of Social Science has over 130 creative and exciting events aimed at encouraging businesses, charities, government agencies; and schools or college students to discuss, discover and debate topical social science issues. Press releases detailing some of the varied events are available at the Festival website. You can now follow updates from the Festival on twitter using #esrcfestival

4. The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) is the UK's largest organisation for funding research on economic and social issues. It supports independent, high quality research which has an impact on business, the public sector and the third sector. The ESRC's total budget for 2011/12 is 203 million. At any one time the ESRC supports over 4,000 researchers and postgraduate students in academic institutions and independent research institutes. More at http://www.esrc.ac.uk



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?


AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.


The 2012 Olympic surveillance legacy [ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 24-Oct-2011
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Pressoffice
Pressoffice@esrc.ac.uk
Economic & Social Research Council

The Olympic and Paralympic Games are one of the most prestigious events in the world and in 2012 all eyes will be on London. The well published post - 2012 Games legacy includes world class sports facilities, a woodland park, new homes, shops and restaurants. What isn't clear is what will happen to the high level security measures that will be left behind after the Games.

Criminologist Dr Pete Fussey believes that there will be a significant use of surveillance during the games, such as fixed and mobile video cameras. In addition, new structures such as bollards and barriers are being introduced to aid security which will have an impact on the urban environment.

Dr Fussey will talk about these issues and invite public discussion at the first of three events on the Olympics to be held during the Economic and Social Research Council's (ESRC) Festival of Social Science 2011. He believes that there is an important debate to be had about the impact that increased surveillance and security measures could have on the communities of East London once the games have finished.

"Given the amount of terrorist threats on recent large sporting events, security requirements have become increasingly central to Olympic planning. This has led to the construction of a range of highly equipped units monitored by a range of surveillance technologies. This in turn, raises questions of what will become of these spaces once the Games are finished and the site is transformed into urban parkland," said Dr Fussey. "Further questions exist over the revival and renewal of the area, which could be seen as upsetting the traditional urban balance."

As an expert in security and counter-terrorism, Dr Fussey believes that these issues of the legacy of the Olympics need to be more widely debated. "For example during the Seoul and Tokyo Olympics, private security guards were seen for the first time in those countries and they remained once the Olympics had gone. This sort of thing raises questions about what is needed to police a global event and what happens afterwards. How many of these security measures will remain in place and what impact will they have on these communities long after the Olympics has ended?"

The talk is the first of three given by Essex University experts on aspects of the Olympics on successive evenings. Psychologist, Dr Dominic Mickelwright will talk about how Olympic athletes achieve feats of exceptional performance, and Dr Marjana Johansson, a lecturer in management, will discuss the Olympics as a global brand, and the association of the games with other global brands.

###

For further information contact

Dr Gary Williams
Email: gcwill@essex.ac.uk
Telephone: 01206-874070

ESRC Press Office:

Danielle Moore
Email: danielle.moore@esrc.ac.uk
Telephone 01793-413122

Jeanine Woolley
Email: jeanine.woolley@esrc.ac.uk
Telephone 01793-413119

Notes for editors:

1. The 2012 Olympic experience
Organiser: Dr Pete Fussey, University of Essex
Date: 31 October 2011 18.00-19.30
Venue: The Minories Bistro, Colchester
Audience: Suitable for a general audience
For more information: The 2012 Olympic experience

2. Press release is based on research by Dr Pete Fussey, Living in surveillance societies. His main research interests focus on surveillance and security with particular reference to counter-terrorism and, also, major events. For more information see Dr Pete Fussey.

3. The Festival of Social Science is run by the Economic and Social Research Council which runs from 29 October to 5 November 2011. With events from some of the country's leading social scientists, the Festival celebrates the very best of British social science research and how it influences our social, economic and political lives - both now and in the future. This year's Festival of Social Science has over 130 creative and exciting events aimed at encouraging businesses, charities, government agencies; and schools or college students to discuss, discover and debate topical social science issues. Press releases detailing some of the varied events are available at the Festival website. You can now follow updates from the Festival on twitter using #esrcfestival

4. The Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) is the UK's largest organisation for funding research on economic and social issues. It supports independent, high quality research which has an impact on business, the public sector and the third sector. The ESRC's total budget for 2011/12 is 203 million. At any one time the ESRC supports over 4,000 researchers and postgraduate students in academic institutions and independent research institutes. More at http://www.esrc.ac.uk



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Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-10/esr-t2o102411.php

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Sunday, October 23, 2011

European leaders keep expectations low for summit

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, left. arrives for an EU summit in Brussels on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011. Big banks find themselves under pressure in Europe's debt crisis with finance chiefs pushing to raise billions of euros in capital and accept huge losses on Greek bonds they hold. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, left. arrives for an EU summit in Brussels on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011. Big banks find themselves under pressure in Europe's debt crisis with finance chiefs pushing to raise billions of euros in capital and accept huge losses on Greek bonds they hold. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel arrives for an EU summit in Brussels on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011. Big banks find themselves under pressure in Europe's debt crisis with finance chiefs pushing to raise billions of euros in capital and accept huge losses on Greek bonds they hold. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou, left, speaks with Latvian Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis during a round table meeting at an EU summit in Brussels on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011. Greece's prime minister is pleading with European leaders in Brussels to act decisively to solve the continent's debt crisis. At a summit Sunday, the leaders are expected to ask banks to accept huge losses on Greek bonds to ease the pressure on the country, and to raise billions more in capital to weather those losses. (AP Photo/Yves Logghe)

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou, left, speaks with Luxembourg's Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker during a round table meeting at an EU summit in Brussels on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011. Greece's prime minister is pleading with European leaders in Brussels to act decisively to solve the continent's debt crisis. At a summit Sunday, the leaders are expected to ask banks to accept huge losses on Greek bonds to ease the pressure on the country, and to raise billions more in capital to weather those losses. (AP Photo/Yves Logghe)

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, left, speaks with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte during a round table meeting at an EU summit in Brussels on Sunday, Oct. 23, 2011. Greece's prime minister is pleading with European leaders in Brussels to act decisively to solve the continent's debt crisis. At a summit Sunday, the leaders are expected to ask banks to accept huge losses on Greek bonds to ease the pressure on the country, and to raise billions more in capital to weather those losses. (AP Photo/Yves Logghe)

(AP) ? Greece's prime minister pleaded Sunday for a comprehensive solution to the European debt crisis that has swallowed his country and is threatening to suck in larger economies, but the continent's leaders warned the world may have to wait a few more days.

The search for a comprehensive solution to its escalating debt troubles has divided the continent. Increasingly it is pitting not only the poorer countries in the eurozone against their richer neighbors that are tired of bailing them out, but also sparking anger from governments outside the 17-state currency union, who fear being dragged into the mess.

"The crisis in the eurozone is having a chilling effect on all our economies, Britain included. ... We have to deal with this issue," British Prime Minister David Cameron said on his way into the meeting of the 27-country EU. Britain does not use the euro. Later in the day, the leaders of countries the 17 that use the euro will meet on their own.

Cameron's eurozone counterparts, meanwhile, tried to lower expectations for Sunday's meetings, saying the real decisions will be made Wednesday at another emergency summit.

"Let's put the expectations in context: Don't count on decisions today," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said.

Leaders are in the difficult position of not being able to decide on anything until everything is in place, since each piece of the crisis puzzle affects the others.

The biggest sticking point is how to most effectively use Europe's bailout fund to make sure Italy and Spain don't see their borrowing costs spiral out of control as happened with Greece, Portugal and Ireland. Europe doesn't have enough money to rescue Italy and Spain as it did the other three countries; analysts say it must act now to eliminate the possibility of their collapse.

Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy urged Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi at a meeting on Sunday morning to reform the country's economy before it's too late, according to a German official. He spoke on condition of anonymity to describe private discussions.

While the German and French leaders presented a united front to Italy, their disagreements over how best to use the bailout fund, which is called the European Financial Stability Facility, are causing delays.

France wants the fund to be allowed to tap the massive cash reserves of the European Central Bank ? an option Germany rejects. And weaker economies are wary of agreeing to the other two parts of the grand plan ? bigger bank capital and cuts to Greece's debt ? without assurance that the bailout fund is ready to provide support.

Until it does, the continuing uncertainty will roil markets and slow growth across Europe and even the world.

Worst off, of course, is Greece, which reeling from several rounds of budget cuts that have sparked a series of strikes and riots.

"Greece has proven again and again that we are making the necessary decisions to make our economy sustainable, and make our economy more just," Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou told reporters as he headed into Sunday's meetings. "We are doing what we need from our side ... but it's been proven now that the crisis is not a Greek crisis. The crisis is a European crisis, so now is the time that we as Europeans need to act decisively and effectively."

To ease the pressure on the country, banks will be asked to accept much bigger losses on the country's bonds.

Austria's chancellor said the cut in the value of Greek government bond will likely be raised "in the direction of 40 to 50 percent."

"A cut in the debt is the right step," Werner Faymann told Austrian newspaper Wiener Kurier. The comments were confirmed by one of his aides.

Despite massive budget cuts and reforms, a new report has said that Greece's economic situation is still dire and that worsening economic conditions mean it could take the country decades to emerge from the crisis.

The report from debt inspectors said the eurozone and the International Monetary Fund would likely have to lend Athens more money unless the banks accept a 60 percent writedown of the bonds they hold. That would be on top of the euro110 billion ($300 billion) in rescue loans that have been propping up with country since May 2010.

Another rescue of a similar size was agreed to in July, but it's now clear that deal did not go far enough. For instance, it called for only a 21 percent cut in Greek bond holdings; leaders are now discussing a much more significant reduction, though an exact percentage has not yet emerged.

The near-consensus among eurozone countries that Greece's debt will have to be slashed is one of the reasons banks across Europe ? not only in the 17-country eurozone ? will be forced to shore up their capital buffers in the coming months.

A European official said Saturday that new rules agreed by EU finance ministers would see banks having to raise just over euro100 billion ($140 billion). The official was speaking on condition of anonymity because the rules were pending approval from EU leaders.

However, on Sunday it was uncertain whether EU leaders would even be able to sign off on the bank capital rules before a second summit Wednesday. A draft of summit conclusions from Sunday morning only welcomed the progress made by finance ministers, adding that the final decision would be made by yet another finance ministers' meeting on Wednesday ahead of the second summit.

___

Associated Press writers Raf Casert, Elena Becatoros, Slobodan Lekic and Don Melvin contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2011-10-23-EU-Europe-Financial-Crisis/id-31b9094811b9449c88fb42cd8157f707

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Iraq war over, US troops coming home, Obama says

President Barack Obama speaks in the briefing room of the White House in Washington, Friday, Oct. 21, 2011, where he declared an end to the Iraq war, one of the longest and most divisive conflicts in U.S. history, announcing that all U.S. troops would be withdrawn from the country by year's end. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

President Barack Obama speaks in the briefing room of the White House in Washington, Friday, Oct. 21, 2011, where he declared an end to the Iraq war, one of the longest and most divisive conflicts in U.S. history, announcing that all U.S. troops would be withdrawn from the country by year's end. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

FILE - In this Nov. 30, 2010 file photo, members of 1st Brigade, 3rd Infantry Division, based at Fort Stewart, Ga., walk toward a C-17 aircraft at Sather Air Base in Baghdad as they begin their journey home after a year in Baghdad, Iraq. President Barack Obama on Friday Oct. 21, 2011 declared an end to the Iraq war, one of the longest and most divisive conflicts in U.S. history, announcing that all American troops would be withdrawn from the country by year's end.(AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo, File)

Graphic shows U.S. troop levels in Iraq

President Barack Obama speaks in the briefing room of the White House in Washington, Friday, Oct. 21, 2011, where he declared an end to the Iraq war, one of the longest and most divisive conflicts in U.S. history, announcing that all U.S. troops would be withdrawn from the country by year's end. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

President Barack Obama concludes his remarks in the briefing room of the White House in Washington, Friday, Oct. 21, 2011, where he declared an end to the Iraq war, one of the longest and most divisive conflicts in U.S. history, announcing that all U.S. troops would be withdrawn from the country by year's end. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

(AP) ? America's long and deeply unpopular war in Iraq will be over by year's end, and all U.S. troops "will definitely be home for the holidays," President Barack Obama declared Friday.

Stretching more than eight years, the war cost the United States heavily: More than 4,400 members of the military have been killed, and more than 32,000 have been wounded.

The final exit date was sealed after months of intensive talks between Washington and Baghdad failed to forge an agreement on conditions for leaving several thousand U.S. troops in Iraq as a training force. The U.S. also had been interested in keeping a small force to help the Iraqis deal with possible Iranian meddling.

The task now is to speed the pullout of the remaining U.S. forces, nearly 40,000 in number.

Staying behind in Iraq, where bombings and other violence still occur, will be some 150-200 U.S. military troops as part of the U.S. Embassy's security force, defense attache's office and office of security cooperation. That is common practice but still a danger to American forces.

Obama, an opponent of the war since before he took office, nevertheless praised the efforts of U.S. troops in Iraq. He said American soldiers would leave "with their heads held high, proud of their success."

For Obama, Friday's announcement capped a remarkable two days of national security successes, although there is no indication how much they will matter to re-election voters more concerned with economic problems at home.

On Thursday, the president heralded the death of Libyan dictator Moammar Gadhafi and a day later the end to one of the most divisive conflicts in U.S. history.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have cost the U.S. more than $1.3 trillion.

Obama did not declare victory.

He did speak, though, about the string of wins on his watch, none bigger than the killing of Osama bin Laden, the al-Qaida leader behind the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The Afghanistan war still rages, but there, too, Obama has moved to end the combat mission by the end of 2014.

This was, in essence, the third time Obama had pronounced an end to the war, allowing him to remind the nation he had opposed it all along, a position that helped his White House bid in 2008.

Shortly after taking office, Obama declared in February 2009 that the combat mission in Iraq would end by Aug. 31, 2010. And when that milestone arrived, he said it was "time to turn the page" on Iraq and put the focus back on building up the United States. On Friday, he said: "After nearly nine years, America's war in Iraq will be over."

The U.S.-led invasion of Iraq was launched in March 2003 after reports, later discredited, that the country was developing weapons of mass destruction. By early April, American Marines were helping Iraqis pull down a statue of Saddam Hussein in Baghdad. Saddam was captured in December of that year and executed in 2006, but the war dragged on.

The ending was set in motion before Obama took office. In 2008, President George W. Bush approved a deal calling for all U.S. forces to withdraw by Dec. 31, 2011.

At issue was whether that deal would be renegotiated to keep thousands of U.S. forces in Iraq. The Obama administration and Iraqi government spent months debating whether the United States would keep troops to maintain a training force, to provide added stability in a country where spectacular attacks still occur, and to serve as a hedge against Iran.

Throughout the talks, Iraqi leaders refused to give U.S. troops immunity from prosecution in Iraqi courts, and the Americans refused to stay without that guarantee.

Obama never mentioned that issue on Friday.

He said that after speaking with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, both were in agreement on how to move forward. Obama said the two nations will now deal with each other in the normal fashion of sovereign countries and will keep open the idea of how the United States might help train and equip Iraqi forces.

"Over the next two months, our troops in Iraq, tens of thousands of them, will pack up their gear and board convoys for the journey home," Obama said. "The last American soldier will cross the border out of Iraq with their heads held high, proud of their success, and knowing the American people stand united in our support for our troops."

The Associated Press first reported last week that the United States would not keep troops in Iraq past the year-end withdrawal deadline, except for some soldiers attached to the U.S. Embassy.

"Both countries achieved their goals," said Iraqi government spokesman, Ali al-Moussawi. "Iraq wanted full sovereignty while the United States wanted its soldiers back home, and both goals are achieved."

In addition to remaining military forces, Denis McDonough, White House deputy national security adviser, said the U.S. will have 4,000 to 5,000 contractors to provide security for American diplomats.

Obama's announcement was praised by congressional Democrats, including Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who called it "the right decision at the right time."

Republicans were more skeptical. Many praised the gains made in Iraq and gave Obama at least partial credit but expressed concern that getting troops out would bring that progress into question.

Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham said he feared that "all we have worked for, fought for and sacrificed for is very much in jeopardy by today's announcement. I hope I am wrong and the president is right, but I fear this decision has set in motion events that will come back to haunt our country."

Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney accused Obama of an "astonishing failure" to secure an orderly transition in Iraq and said, "The unavoidable question is whether this decision is the result of a naked political calculation or simply sheer ineptitude in negotiations with the Iraqi government."

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said that negotiations with the Iraqis on the possible assignment of U.S. troops for training the Iraqi military will begin after the U.S. fighting forces have left. Speaking aboard a military plane taking him to a conference in Bali, Panetta said negotiations would cover training Iraq's land and air forces.

Panetta said the two sides have yet to determine even how many U.S. military personnel would be assigned to protect the embassy in Baghdad, to facilitate Iraqi arms purchases and to conduct initial training.

The U.S. said repeatedly this year that it would entertain an offer from the Iraqis to have a small force stay behind, and the Iraqis said they would like American military help. But as the year wore on and the number of American troops that Washington was suggesting could stay behind dropped, it became increasingly clear that a U.S. troop presence was not a sure thing.

The issue of legal protection for the Americans was the deal-breaker.

But administration officials said they feel confident that Iraqi security forces are well prepared to take the lead in their country.

McDonough said that one assessment after another of the preparedness of Iraqi forces concluded that "these guys are ready; these guys are capable; these guys are proven; importantly, they're proven because they've been tested in a lot of the kinds of threats that they're going to see going forward."

The president used the war statement to once again turn attention back to the economy, the domestic concern that is expected to determine whether he wins re-election.

"After a decade of war," he said, "the nation that we need to build and the nation that we will build is our own."

__

Associated Press writers Sameer N. Yacoub in Baghdad and Jim Kuhnhenn, Erica Werner and Lolita C. Baldor in Washington contributed to this story.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2011-10-21-US-Iraq/id-253192a2d9a34178b2d8d9e86bf49fa5

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