Ford expects to play vs. Chargers

PC: Oakland Raiders' Jacoby Ford returns a kick 101-yards for a touchdown against the Cleveland Browns during their game in Oakland on Sunday, October 16, 2011. The Raiders defeated the Browns 24-17.

CHRISTOPHER CHUNG / PD

Published: Friday, December 30, 2011 at 3:00 a.m.

Last Modified: Friday, December 30, 2011 at 10:11 p.m.

ALAMEDA ? Raiders wide receiver Jacoby Ford made it through a third straight practice without any setbacks and expects to play in Oakland's regular-season finale against San Diego.

That would be a big boost to the Raiders, who need to beat the Chargers on Sunday to keep their playoff hopes alive. Oakland can get in either as the AFC West champion or as a wild card, though it would need help from other teams for that to happen.

It's a game Ford doesn't plan to miss.

?We know what type of game it is, it's a big game,? Ford said Friday. ?But we're not looking at it as something to put pressure on ourselves. Then you'll be uptight and you won't play loose and relaxed. We're just going to go out there and play the game the way we need to go out there and play.?

Ford hasn't played since injuring his left foot after making a catch in the first quarter of Oakland's 24-17 win in San Diego on Nov. 10. The 5-foot-9, 185-pound receiver was averaging 15.3 yards a catch before getting hurt and has been one of the Raiders' two deep threats with rookie Denarius Moore.

Moore, who is averaging a team-high 17.2 yards per catch, also recently returned to Oakland's lineup after missing three games with a foot injury.

The Raiders went 3-3 without Ford, who was hurt after he made a 41-yard reception and was tackled by San Diego cornerback Dante Hughes.

Ford had to wear a protective boot and was cleared to resume running only recently. He's still listed as questionable on the injury report, though the indication is that he'll play.

The biggest hurdle was to make it through a full week of practice after being sidelined for so long.

The prognosis? So far, so good.

?I was able to do some things in practice just to see if I'll be able to do them in the game,? Ford said. ?It was definitely a positive week for me so I feel good going into the game. If I practiced this much this week and I'm not out there, I'd be mad.?

Ford also doubles as the Raiders' primary kick returner on special teams, though coach Hue Jackson is likely to keep him limited to offense on Sunday.

?I don't want to put him in a situation where he can't do what he's accustomed to doing,? Jackson said. ?I don't know that he's totally there yet, but he's close. The guys that have been returning for us have done a great job, so I'll kind of probably stay in that direction until we get him back totally healthy.?

Oakland's defense also may get back one of its key defensive backs.

Safety Michael Huff, who has been out two games with a groin injury, also practiced this week without any significant setbacks. Having Huff would significantly alter how the Raiders defend Chargers tight end Antonio Gates, who has nine career touchdowns in the series between the division rivals.

Jackson sounded optimistic that both Huff and Ford will play.

?It's been three good days for the (and) we'll see where they are tomorrow,? the coach said. ?But I feel very strong about those guys having an opportunity to contribute to our football team.?

Source: http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20111230/sports/111239941

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Faculty Union Sues New York Over Health-Insurance Hike - The ...

December 28, 2011, 6:24 pm

United University Professions, the union that represents State University of New York faculty members, was among a number of unions that sued the state Wednesday in federal court in hopes of reversing a state-mandated 2-percent increase in health-insurance rates for retirees. The unions said the increase was imposed unilaterally, was arbitrary and capricious, and amounted to a breach of contract. About 4,000 retired faculty members are affected, the union said.

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Source: http://chronicle.com/blogs/ticker/faculty-union-sues-new-york-over-health-insurance-hike/39423

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Rescue group in crisis mode after cat euthanized (AP)

PHOENIX ? Animal lovers threatened to pull donations to an animal rescue group and the public flooded the agency with scathing comments and calls after a man's cat was euthanized when he couldn't afford its medical care, prompting the Arizona Humane Society to go into damage-control mode Wednesday.

The group has hired a publicist, removed dozens of comments on its Facebook page and directed a team of five volunteers to respond to the overwhelming calls and emails it has received since The Arizona Republic published a weekend story about Daniel Dockery and his 9-month-old cat, Scruffy.

Dockery, a 49-year-old recovering heroin addict, told the Phoenix newspaper that he took Scruffy to a Humane Society center on Dec. 8 because she had a cut from a barbed-wire fence, an injury that he described as non-life-threatening. The agency said it would cost $400 to treat Scruffy, money he didn't have.

The Humane Society cited policy when it declined to accept a credit card over the phone from Dockery's mother in Michigan or to wait for her to wire the money. The staff said if he signed papers surrendering the cat, Scruffy would be treated and put in foster care, he said.

Instead, Scruffy was euthanized several hours later.

Dockery told the Republic that he was devastated.

"Now I've got to think about how I failed that beautiful animal," Dockery said. "I failed her. ... That's so wrong. There was no reason for her not to be treated."

He described the cat as helping him stay off drugs for more than a year, the longest he had ever been clean. He hand-fed the feline before she opened her eyes at 4 days old, giving her fresh tuna and letting her sleep on his pillow.

Stacy Pearson, who was hired by the agency specifically to deal with media questions about the cat, said Dockery's case has led to two changes. The Arizona Humane Society has set up an account, funded through donations, that would cover the costs of emergency treatment of animals whose owners need a day or two to come up with money for payments. And the group is now accepting credit card payments by phone, Pearson said.

Dozens of scathing comments have since inundated the group's Facebook page, with animal lovers demanding to know why the cat was put down. Pearson said angry comments were removed because of their content: One called for the staff to be euthanized, while another said what happened to Scruffy was murder.

Pearson said Scruffy was put down over a number of reasons, including Dockery's lack of immediate funds, a lack of veterinarians to treat her and what Pearson described as a very serious cut on Scruffy from her abdomen to her knee that went to the muscle.

She said the Arizona Humane Society at the time didn't accept credit card payments over the phone because of possible fraud and can't treat pets with only a promise from owners that they can pay the next day. She said staff had every intention of getting Scruffy the help she needed but the number of animals requiring help at the group's second-chance clinic was too much for the resources available.

If Dockery had been able to pay, Scruffy would have been treated at the facility where he brought her, Pearson said.

"There was no malicious intent to take Scruffy away from her father," Pearson said. "Pulling funding is only going to make a problem like this worse."

On Facebook, where only the agency's executive director is allowed to post comments now, Guy Collison wrote that "Scruffy's story is heartbreaking, and underscores the worst-case-scenario of need eclipsing resources available." He said that his agency has always done what's best for animals.

In less than an hour after his statement was posted, more than 100 people responded, with most slamming the agency and some defending it as doing the best it can with available resources.

Pearson said the group told Dockery on Tuesday that when he's ready for another pet, he could come in and pick one out, but he declined, telling them: "No thanks."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/weather/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111229/ap_on_re_us/us_euthanized_cat_outrage

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Singer, actress Kaye Stevens dies in Florida (AP)

THE VILLAGES, Fla. ? Singer and actress Kaye Stevens, who performed with the Rat Pack and was a frequent guest on Johnny Carson's "The Tonight Show," has died at a central Florida hospital. She was 79.

Close friend Gerry Schweitzer confirmed that Stevens died Wednesday at the Villages Hospital north of Orlando following a battle with breast cancer and blood clots.

Stevens, a longtime South Florida resident, performed with Rat Pack members including Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. and Joey Bishop. She also sang solo at venues like Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas and the Plaza Hotel's Persian Room in New York City.

During the Vietnam War era, Stevens performed for American soldiers in the war zone with Bob Hope's USO tour.

According to a handout from friend Rhonda Glenn, Stevens was born Catherine Louise Stephens in Pittsburgh. Her family eventually moved to Cleveland, where a teenage Stevens got her start as a drummer and singer. She later married now deceased bandleader and trumpet player Tommy Amato, and the couple performed throughout the eastern U.S.

During a gig in New Jersey, Stevens was discovered by Ed McMahon, Carson's longtime sidekick, which led to new bookings. Her big break came when she was playing a lounge at The Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas. Debbie Reynolds became ill and was unable to perform in the main room. Stevens filled in and was an instant hit.

Besides singing, Stevens also acted in film and television. She appeared in six movies, earning a Golden Globe nomination in 1964 for "The New Interns." She was a regular celebrity player on game shows and appeared as a regular on "Days of Our Lives" from 1974-79.

During the past two decades, Stevens started her own ministry and began performing only Christian and patriotic music. She staged benefits to help build St. Vincent Catholic Church in her longtime home of Margate, Fla., where city officials named a park in her honor.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/obits/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111230/ap_en_mu/us_obit_kaye_stevens

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Yifat Oren: I'm A Celebrity Wedding Planner, Get Me Out Of Here

Sometimes the thing you're known for is not at all how you imagine yourself.

In my case, being described as a "celebrity" wedding planner always leaves me bemused. I'm certainly not a celebrity, and though some of my clients have achieved fame, most go out of their way to remove themselves from the limelight. I would gladly name drop, but I find it to be a big bore, especially in Los Angeles, where so many deem themselves a "celebrity" of sorts, even wedding planners. If you really want to know who my famous clients are, I am more than sure you can easily find that out through Google and a myriad of search engines and blogs.

For my part, I prefer to view myself as a seasoned professional, providing impeccable service to the world's most discerning clientele. I pride myself in the team caliber I have built, the creativity of our design and our ability to execute couture celebrations. To earn a top spot in my field, I have overcome many challenges over the nearly 15 years I have been in this business. And during this time, I cannot think of one moment when celebrity mongering came into play. My goal is to do work that inspires me, not aggressively hunt down a celebrity clientele, which turns out is not so uncommon in my field of work.

As a descriptor, the word "celebrity" can cause plenty of excitement, but its over-use renders the term about as meaningful and specific as the word "supergreat." Look up "wedding planner" in any state and you'll get lists of thousands of "celebrity" wedding planners. Anyone who has ever read an issue of US Weekly, it seems, can adopt the moniker and claim they can deliver Hollywood magic to an Omaha bride. This usually involves heavy doses of sparkle, shiny fabrics, and complicated up-dos.

Likewise, television programs dedicated to weddings tell stories of women who want to be like their favorite "star" on their big day, or worse, morph into divas or bridezillas who feel entitled to devastate their family's finances in service of their "dream wedding." I am mystified by the idea of spending money you don't have on a wedding just to keep up with people you've never actually met.

I think the constant media coverage of Hollywood is a huge disservice to our sense of self. We compare our lives to manufactured, professionally styled images of people and events, not real people. Just like those angular, pore-less models you see in magazines who have been air brushed, so too are the reporting of celebrity weddings worked over by professionals. You can read all about the gorgeous items featured in Kim Kardashian's wedding, but chances are, those were paid sponsorships.

Perhaps that is what I object to the most, the idea of a wedding as a product commercial or illusion-fueled fantasy. I understand how the economics work - celebrities beget press coverage and if your bracelet/watch/car/wedding dress is wrapped around the celebrity, your bracelet/watch/car/wedding dress is going to become more sought after. Having been behind the scenes, might I suggest that much of the frenzy surrounding celebrity weddings is a fabrication and trying to emulate it is an exercise in futility?

I remember vividly the day of Kevin Costner and his bride Christine's wedding at their ranch in Aspen, Colorado. I was busy running around with my team putting out the usual fires, and calming a few frayed nerves. I was so consumed with my work on the ranch that I wasn't really aware of the media frenzy that the wedding was causing in this small mountain town. It was not until I was getting ready to line up the wedding party that I looked up at the hillside overlooking the property and my mouth nearly dropped open to see it covered with photographers and many many long lenses. And I thought to myself, what is it these people are trying to capture? What story are they trying to tell? Having witnessed celebrity nuptials several times since that day, I can attest to the following; there is no special story, celebrity weddings are like all other weddings, they have snafus, annoying family members, bouquets that need to be fixed, toasts you could have lived a lifetime without. It's a wedding, that's it, no more nor less. If you are still vested in fairytales, may I suggest the Brothers Grimm, they were my favorite. When I was eight.

Hollywood doesn't hold a monopoly on magic or creativity or perfection. Authentic, magical moments happen when people express who they really are at their weddings. It happens when a child interrupts the ceremony to scream that they love the bride, making everyone laugh. Sometimes it happens when no one is watching, and the father of the groom hugs his son for the first time in years. Weddings, no matter how lavish, are intimate and personal and ought to be low on show and high on warmth. I have no interest in weddings that serve to imitate someone else's life. What I am passionate about is celebrating the real life of my clients and would rather be known for my lack of illusions than my celebrity roster.

?

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/yifat-oren/im-a-celebrity-wedding-pl_b_1163448.html

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Training stepped up for Afghan special forces (AP)

CAMP SCORPION, Afghanistan ? "Attention! Attention! You are surrounded by Afghan forces. Come out with your hands up."

The order barked by an Afghan soldier launched a training exercise last week that pitted members of the nation's growing elite force against actors posing as Taliban fighters.

Afghanistan and the U.S.-led coalition have stepped up training of the Afghan special forces unit to fill the vacuum that will be left by foreign troops slated to end their combat mission in 2014. In the future, it will be Afghan special forces countering insurgents in villages across the country.

As the force expands, they will also lead more of the controversial house searches ? something that could mitigate Afghan President Hamid Karzai's intense opposition to the nighttime raids by international troops that Afghans have found culturally offensive.

Even though Afghan troops have been along for the more than 2,800 raids during the past year, Karzai has argued that the teams often treat innocent Afghans as if they were insurgents and violate citizens' privacy in the conservative Afghan society.

Karzai wants all raids halted. He wants foreign troops to stop entering Afghan homes. The thorny issue is being negotiated by U.S. and Afghan officials crafting a strategic agreement that will govern how remaining American forces operate in Afghanistan after 2014.

A recent national assembly of elders advised the Karzai government to allow the raids to continue as long as they are conducted solely by Afghans. If so, many more Afghan special forces soldiers need to be trained.

Neither NATO nor the Afghan Ministry of Defense would disclose how many Afghan special forces had been trained or how large the force will become. Jalaluddin Yaftali, a special forces team leader at the training site, said the force currently numbered 1,000 to 1,500.

"It takes time. It's like nation-building ? an endless task. It will take years, but the will is there and right now the force is growing," said Afghan army Col. Mohammad Farid Ahmadi.

"The program started two years ago, but now we are jointly working with the coalition forces to Afghanize as soon as possible. We have already started. It's growing."

So far, most have been recruited from the Afghan National Army Commandos, a quick reaction force regarded as the most professional unit in the Afghan army. Commandos receive 10 weeks of training on top of the roughly 10 weeks they completed to become an Afghan soldier. Moreover, Afghan soldiers usually serve about four years as commandos before being selected for special forces training.

Their training is further refined while partnered with American forces. Eventually, they will be tasked with a variety of operational missions, including night raids, throughout the country.

"It not only takes a long time to select the right people for the job, but also to bring them through a training program so they are capable of operating with other special forces or on their own," German Brig. Gen. Carsten Jacobson, a NATO spokesman, said at the training site on the outskirts of Kabul, the Afghan capital.

While some are already conducting solo operations, the Afghan special forces will continue to need coalition air power, intelligence and other support for years to come, he said.

Seth Jones, a RAND Corp. political scientist who advised the commander of U.S. Special Operations forces in Afghanistan, said it's hard to rush special forces training.

"The Afghan program, which was first conceptualized in 2009 and established in 2010, is relatively new. I remember participating in the brainstorming sessions as we helped build the Afghan special forces," Jones said.

"Focusing on numbers, rather than quality, and trying to mass produce Afghan special forces would be a serious mistake. I'm not suggesting anyone is doing this yet, but it should be monitored very closely."

The Afghan soldiers conducting the training exercise crouched in shadows at the foot of man-made hills surrounding the practice compound. The residential compound resembled a western cowboy movie set.

"Drop your weapons!" the Afghan soldier barked into a bullhorn. "Keep your hands raised and come out."

Trying to give the occupants time to cooperate, the more than 20-man Afghan special forces team waited patiently, their guns drawn. When nobody came out, they tossed two harmless grenades that made loud bangs when they landed in front of the house.

A few minutes later, an actress covered in a red shawl slowly emerged with her hands raised. The soldier with the bullhorn asked her to reveal her face so the troops could be sure she was a woman and not a man. When it was clear that she was female, she was led away to be searched by a female Afghan soldier.

Having male troops search females is taboo in Afghanistan. So is touching a family's Quran, the Muslim holy book, or entering a home without being invited ? things that foreign forces have learned in the decade-long war.

Soon after the woman left, two men walked from the house with their hands held high. Making sure they weren't armed, the troops ordered them to lift their shirts and pant legs. The would-be Afghan suspects then were cuffed and taken away.

"We are asking the Defense Ministry to make one special forces platoon of just female soldiers so they can go talk to the families, the children, the women," Yaftali said. "If you are a female, you can talk openly with the family."

It was clear to onlookers that the more than 20 Afghan special forces soldiers who conducted the house search and did a live ammunition training exercise with M4 rifles and 9mm pistols were the best of the elite force. With their dark glasses, night vision headsets, microphones and radios, they looked just like their U.S. Special Operations forces counterparts.

Jones said the first Afghan special forces soldiers trained were very competent because they were recruited directly from the Afghan National Army Commandos.

"In practical terms, this suggests that there will be some variation in the competence of Afghan special forces by 2014," Jones said. "Some will be fully capable ... but others may struggle."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111225/ap_on_re_as/as_afghanistan_elite_force

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Turkey angered by French bill to criminalize 'Armenian genocide denial'

The French parliament is expected to pass a bill Thursday dealing with the 1915 killing of Armenians in present-day Turkey.? Any denial could result in a one-year jail term and a $58,000 fine. Turkey is furious.

Nearly 100 years have elapsed since the killing of thousands of Armenians, but the wounds seem far from healed.

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The French parliament is to vote on a bill on Thursday making it illegal to deny that the 1915 killing of Armenians during World War I was genocide.? The bill, which is expected to pass, provides for a one-year prison term and a fine of $58,000 (45,000 euros) to anyone who publicly denies it was genocide.?

The vote in the French National Assembly has stirred a diplomatic frenzy and French and Turkish politicians are jumping into the fray.?

?This proposed law targets and is hostile to the Republic of Turkey, the Turkish nation and the Turkish community living in France,? Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish Prime Minister wrote in a letter to French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Reuters reports.?

During a Saturday news conference, Mr. Erdogan suggested that France ought to investigate her own role and actions in colonial Africa, including Rwanda.?

Turkey maintains that the proposed bill is a political ploy by Sarkozy's political party to win the votes of 500,000 Armenians in France ahead of next year?s parliamentary and presidential elections. Sarkozy has also been an outspoken opponent of Turkey desire to join the European Union.

Jean Leonetti, the European Affairs Minister of France, dismisses such allegations and says that opposition Socialists will endorse the bill as well. ??It has been nearly 100 years since the Armenian genocide took place, those responsible are dead, it is simply a matter of recognizing a fact of history,? he told Radio Classique, The Telegraph in London reports.

Ersin Onulduran, chairman of the department of international relations at Ankara University, told Today's Zaman, a Turkish daily, that ?only historians and archival experts should pass judgment on the merits of historical events.?

Although there is little consensus, Armenians say that about 1.5 million people were killed during the mass deportations of 1915-16.

The Turkish government acknowledges the death of many Armenians, yet, it denies that Ottoman forces deliberately exterminated them.?? Turkey considers the numbers as inflated and says that Turks were also killed due to the upheaval that followed the disintegration of the Ottoman Empire. ?

Many Turks, disappointed and disillusioned by European delays over entry into the EU, are now embracing a more assertive rhetoric.

?I want to state clearly that such steps will have grave consequences for future relations between Turkey and France in political, economic, cultural and all areas,? Erdogan said according to Reuters.? While Turkey implicitly threatens to boycott French products if the bill passes, it has ruled out imposing trade sanctions.

So far this year, bilateral trade between Turkey and France is estimated at more than $13.5 billion.? About 1,000 French companies operate in Turkey.

"We have to remember international rules and with regard to Turkey it's a member of the WTO (World Trade Organization) and is linked to the European Union by a customs union and these two commitments mean a non-discriminatory policy towards all companies within the European Union," said French Foreign Ministry spokesman Bernard Valero, Reuters reports.

In 2006, a similar bill was introduced and approved by the French National Assembly but was later dropped by the Senate.? In France, any legislative initiative requires the endorsement of both parliament and the Senate to be enacted.?

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/csmonitor/globalnews/~3/RNn13R951rM/Turkey-angered-by-French-bill-to-criminalize-Armenian-genocide-denial

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Caution mutes US response to N. Korea

WASHINGTON?? The Obama administration's cautious response to the death of North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il reflects unease and uncertainty about the leadership transition in the reclusive country that has confounded U.S. presidents for 60 years.

1. The death of Kim Jong Il

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   10. Kim Jong Il remembered as 'Team America' star

North Korea, the "hermit kingdom," has vexed the United States and its allies with war, nuclear tests, missile launches, belligerence and bellicose bombast. But since he took office in 2009, President Barack Obama has had to deal with North Korea at perhaps its most secretive point: an unclear succession amid a time of deep concern about the stability of the regime.

Thus, the administration's carefully worded public messages have underscored its desire for better relations with the autocratic nation and its concern about the welfare of the North Korean people. They are also gentle reminders that Washington expects Pyongyang to follow through on denuclearization pledges and improve ties with its neighbors, particularly South Korea.

The kid-gloves treatment accorded to the North's youthful new leader, Kim's twenty-something son Kim Jong Un, has attracted criticism from some who see this is a moment to make a forceful case for dramatic reform and regime change.

But without solid intelligence on the opaque transition process and fearful of misunderstandings that could lead to provocations with the notoriously erratic North, U.S. officials have concluded the best course is to say little, wait and watch.

Indeed, the administration's initial reactions to Kim's death have contained little substance at all.

"All I can say is that we're monitoring the situation closely," White House press secretary Jay Carney said Wednesday as North Korean state media broadcast pictures of wailing mourners, apparently overcome with grief. "Kim Jong Il had designated Kim Jong Un as his official successor, and at this time we have no indication that that has changed."

Carney added: "We hope that the new North Korean leadership will take the steps necessary to support peace, prosperity and a better future for the North Korean people, including through acting on its commitments to denuclearization."

Those comments echoed words from Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. On Monday, more than 16 hours after Kim's death was announced, she was the first senior U.S. official to comment publicly, calling for "a peaceful and stable transition in North Korea" and expressing hope that it would not affect "regional peace and stability."

Ironically, it was Clinton who first stirred the pot about a possible succession crisis in North Korea.

Nearly three years ago, on her first trip to Asia as secretary of state, she stunned diplomatic circles with a frank appraisal of U.S. concerns amid speculation about the health of Kim Jong Il, who had suffered a stroke in 2008, and his choice of a successor.

"If there is a succession, even if it's a peaceful succession, that creates more uncertainty and it also may encourage behaviors that are even more provocative as a way to consolidate power within the society," Clinton told reporters on Feb. 20, 2009.

Her remarks on a previously taboo subject sparked great debate. In Seoul the next day, she expressed surprise at the uproar, noting that reports of Kim choosing his youngest son Kim Jung Un to succeed him had "been in the news for months."

"I don't think that it's a forbidden subject to talk about succession in the hermit kingdom," Clinton said. "In fact, it seems to me it's got to be factored into any policy review that one is undertaking."

That same month, U.S. diplomats were scrambling to collect any information they could about Kim Jong Un from South Korean, Chinese and Japanese officials and experts, according to leaked State Department cables published by WikiLeaks.

Unfortunately for the Americans, their interlocutors had sharply divided opinions, according to the cables. Some predicted the North Korean regime would collapse politically within two to three years of Kim Jong Il's death. Others foresaw a power struggle between the young and untested Kim Jong Un and rivals in the elite, but differed over who would prevail. Others believed there would be little change.

One apparent area of convergence, however, was that most South Korean experts believed the challenge for the younger Kim would come after his father's death.

Before Kim's passing, the U.S. administration had been expected this week to announce the resumption in food aid to North Korea and a potential bilateral meeting on nuclear disarmament. Although the State Department said there had been brief exchange with North Korean officials in New York on Monday, both initiatives are now in flux pending the end of the North's mourning period.

The administration says it is respecting that mourning period by understanding that North Korean officials will not be available for discussions. Yet it has steadfastly refused to express any sympathy for the death of Kim, whose Stalinist regime is accused of having one of the worst, if not the worst, human rights records in the world.

While showering the late Czech democracy leader Vaclev Havel with effusive eulogies, American officials have refused to even utter the word "condolence" in relation to Kim.

EDITOR'S NOTE ? Matthew Lee covers international affairs and U.S. foreign policy for The Associated Press.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45787168/ns/world_news-asia_pacific/

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HP issues LaserJet firmware update, hopefully ends exploding printer saga

Some of you might remember the story that HP LaserJet printers might be open to hack attacks that could result in some not-so-spontaneous combustion? Now the company has issued a statement saying that no-one reported their printer exploding, but to be on the safe side, it's produced a firmware update (available at the source link) that'll close the hole and ensure your Holiday doesn't end with a visit from the fire department.

Continue reading HP issues LaserJet firmware update, hopefully ends exploding printer saga

HP issues LaserJet firmware update, hopefully ends exploding printer saga originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 23 Dec 2011 15:08:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pets also serve | InsideNova

Credit: Submitted photo

Marine 2nd Lt. Alisa Sieber-Johnson, who founded www.dogsondeployment.com with her husband, Navy Lt. Shawn Johnson, is pictured with their dog, JD.

By: Julia LeDoux | Inside NoVA
Published: December 23, 2011
Updated: December 24, 2011 - 9:15 AM

QUANTICO, Va --

In the days and weeks leading up to a deployment, service members have a lot on their minds and a lot to do.

They?ve got to make sure their family is taken care of; their finances are in order, and in some cases pack and store household items.?

But what happens to the beloved pets of those service members who may not have nearby family or friends available or willing to take care of the ?furry kids? being left temporarily behind as a result of a deployment?

Enter www.dogsondeployment.com, a web site founded by Second Lt. Alisa Sieber-Johnson and her husband, Shawn, a lieutenant in the Navy. The site assists service members in finding a loving foster home for their pets for the duration of their deployment.

Sieber-Johnson, who recently graduated Echo Company at The Basic School at Quantico, began the web site this summer. The couple has a dog, JD, and found themselves in a quandary about what to do with him when Alisa came to Quantico to attend TBS while Shawn had to prepare to deploy from San Diego.

?There was no chance we?d take JD to a shelter, but we didn?t have many options,? explained Alisa. They ultimately found a distant relative here in Virginia who agreed to take care of JD while she was training.

But that got Alisa to thinking about the challenges of pet ownership and being in the military. She soon realized that many of her colleagues face the same type of situation she had.

?A friend of ours was being deployed and ended up just having to get rid of his dog,? she said. ?We didn?t want that to happen to anybody else, so we came up with this program.?

With no experience in web programming or design, Sieber-Johnson bought a domain and taught herself how to design a web site.

?I?m passionate about this,? she said. ?I just kept working on the web site and then tried to find people who needed the service.?

So far, over a dozen pets have been placed in temporary foster homes as a result of dogsondeployment.com. Sieber-Johson said there are no prerequisites to become a boarder. However, all boarder applications are reviewed before they are posted on the web site. She stressed that it?s the owner who makes the decision about which home is the best fit for their pet.

?It?s completely up to the owner,? she said of placement.

Owners have the option of putting a photo of their pet on the web site. For Sieber-Johnson, the effort to match those willing to take in a pet being impacted by a deployment is truly a labor of love.

?This let?s me combine my love for dogs and serving my country,? she said.

Shawn took on the task of getting non-profit status for the group and is currently working on obtaining tax-exempt status for the organization.

Sieber-Johnson said the command at TBS was fully supportive of her efforts to publicize and grow the program, which she hopes will expand on a larger scale nationally.

?I?d love to have it mentioned at every Welcome Aboard and pre-deployment brief,? she said.

?

Source: http://www2.insidenova.com/news/2011/dec/23/1/pets-also-serve-ar-1564786/

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RIM gets kicked while down, sued over BBM trademark

It's been a long December for RIM, and there's reason to believe this year won't be any better than the last. This month, the company was sued for its use of the BBX trademark and was forced to change its name to BlackBerry 10; then, it all hit the fan when co-CEO Mike Lazaridis broke the news that phones running the aforementioned OS won't arrive until late in 2012. And let's not even get started on the quarterly earnings report. Sadly, it's not over: BBM Canada, a Toronto-based broadcast industry group that has used the BBM moniker in one way or another for six decades, wants to reclaim its name -- used and made popular by RIM's BlackBerry Messenger service -- and has filed a lawsuit against the phone maker for trademark infringement. BBM Canada CEO Jim MacLeod says he's made several attempts to resolve the matter with them in hopes of avoiding the courtroom -- even to the extent of offering to rebrand his own company as long as RIM footed the bill -- to no success.

MacLeod told The Globe and Mail that "I find it kind of amazing that this wouldn't have been thought about before they decided to use the name -- the same thing goes for BBX." And according to court documents, it actually was: in February 2010, RIM attempted to apply for the BBM trademark with the Canadian Intellectual Property Office, was told that it wasn't registerable, and still went ahead and used it for its BlackBerry Messenger service anyways. We'll see what kind of explanation the company has for going ahead and using the three-letter acronym in a couple weeks, since a hearing has been scheduled for January 11th.

Continue reading RIM gets kicked while down, sued over BBM trademark

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Job growth is lifting hopes for consumer spending

FILE - In this Nov. 25, 2011 file photo, shoppers scramble for door buster deals at Target, in Bowling Green, Ky. U.S. consumers spent at a lackluster rate in November as their incomes barely grew, suggesting that U.S. households may struggle to sustain their spending into 2012.(AP Photo/Daily News, Joe Imel, File)

FILE - In this Nov. 25, 2011 file photo, shoppers scramble for door buster deals at Target, in Bowling Green, Ky. U.S. consumers spent at a lackluster rate in November as their incomes barely grew, suggesting that U.S. households may struggle to sustain their spending into 2012.(AP Photo/Daily News, Joe Imel, File)

FILE - In this Feb. 14, 2011 file photo, the front of a Boeing 777 jet stands in a production line at the company's manufacturing plant, in Everett, Wash. U.S. business demand for long-lasting manufactured goods rose by the largest amount in four months in November, driven higher by a big jump in orders for airplanes. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, File)

FILE - This May 17, 2011 file photo, shows Boeing Co. workers underneath the tail section of a Boeing 737, at the Boeing assembly facility in Renton, Wash. U.S. business demand for long-lasting manufactured goods rose by the largest amount in four months in November, driven higher by a big jump in orders for airplanes. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Consumer spending and incomes barely rose last month. Business investment has slowed. New-home sales remain dismal.

Despite all that, some economists say a brightening job market is lifting their hopes for 2012. More aggressive hiring, the thinking goes, would fuel enough spending to boost the economy.

Economists point to another drop reported this week in applications for unemployment benefits, the third straight decline. Applications are now at their lowest level since April 2008. The trend is signaling that layoffs have all but stalled and that employers may be ready to step up hiring.

Unemployment, after hovering around 9 percent for more than two years, dropped in November to 8.6 percent. Employers have added at least 100,000 jobs each month from July through November. It's the best such streak since 2006.

Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics, said he expects the economy to grow at a 2.5 percent annual rate in the current October-December quarter. That would be the best performance in a year.

More jobs would mean more income. More pay tends to raise consumer spending, which makes up about 70 percent of the economy. Companies then have reason to increase hiring to meet stronger demand.

"We are hopeful that the plunge in jobless claims signals exactly that," Shepherdson said in a research note Friday.

Chris G. Christopher Jr., senior economist at IHS Global Insight, noted that many households are still struggling with slight or no pay increases.

"But gasoline prices have been falling, and that is giving them more money to spend on other items," he said.

The government said Friday that consumer spending rose just 0.1 percent in November, matching the increase in October. Incomes also rose a scant 0.1 percent.

Modest as they were, economists said the figures at least signaled that incomes and spending aren't stalling.

Healthier economic data in recent weeks have helped make the prospect of another U.S. recession seem more remote ? as long as Europe's debt crisis doesn't trigger a catastrophe that infects the global economy.

Some economists trimmed their forecasts for growth based on the weaker-than-expected consumer spending data for November. But they said they still expected the economy to expand at a solid annual rate of 3 percent in the current October-December quarter. It would be the best showing since the spring of 2010.

"We are seeing some momentum going into the new year," said Stuart Hoffman, chief economist at PNC Financial. "At least we are not in a tight spot where we are still worried about relapsing into recession."

Hoffman said that a major source of uncertainty for 2012 was removed this week with Congress' agreement to extend a Social Security tax cut for 160 million workers ? for two months, anyway.

As part of the deal, Congress also renewed benefits for the long-term unemployed. If that hadn't happened, millions of unemployed people would have begun to lose weekly checks averaging about $300 ? the main source of income for most of them.

And if the payroll tax cut and the long-term unemployment benefits hadn't been renewed for 2012, economists said the modest growth of around 2.5 percent they expect next year would have been a full percentage point lower.

On Friday, the government also released a cautionary report on U.S. manufacturing. Companies' demand for long-lasting manufactured goods rose by the most in four months in November. But so-called core capital goods, a gauge of business investment spending, dropped for a second straight month.

Still, analysts said that with demand for items such as autos still strong, they expect further gains in factory orders and production.

In a third report, sales of new homes rose 1.6 percent in November to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 315,000. Even with that small gain, 2011 is likely to end up as the worst year for new-home sales on records dating to 1963.

More significant for the economy was Friday's report on incomes and spending in November. The scant income gain reflected a decline in wages and salaries. They are the biggest component of incomes.

The sluggish rise in spending was held back by a 0.3 percent drop in spending on non-durable goods such as food, clothing and gasoline. Spending on durable goods rose 0.8 percent. The gain reflected solid auto sales in November.

Spending on services rose a modest 0.1 percent. This category includes such items as medical treatments and rent, The consumer spending report covers all items that households buy, including services, which make up about two-thirds of spending.

After-tax incomes showed no growth in November. The savings rate dipped to 3.5 percent of after-tax incomes, the lowest rate since late 2007. That shows consumers are having to tap their savings to finance their spending because of the weak income growth.

The best antidote for that would be an increase in hiring now that fewer people are being laid off.

"The jobless claims data point to stronger jobs growth emerging," said John Ryding, an economist at RDQ Economics.

___

AP Economics Writer Derek Kravitz contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2011-12-23-Economy/id-3a7ba77b11134097ab7b906f99f0ffb0

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How India?s ?untouchable? entrepreneurs use capital to fight caste

When Prashant Tambe sought a loan to expand his private college last year, the bank didn?t turn him down outright. ?It was just red-tape-ism,? the young entrepreneur said, using a popular Indian expression for business death by a thousand bureaucratic hurdles.

His brother, Avinash Tambe, had an identical experience seeking funds to build his coal import firm. They have no illusions about the source of the banks? reluctance: It began when they wrote their surname on their loan applications.

More related to this story

The name Tambe identifies them as Dalits ? the people once known as ?untouchables,? at the bottom of the Hindu caste system. And so despite the fact that the brothers have eight post-graduate degrees and two successful businesses between them, they struggle to get access to capital and chafe at the opportunities they are missing.

They recently had an opportunity to share that frustration, and to seek out new partners, at a first-ever trade fair organized by the Dalit Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

?It?s a strange irony and it tells you a lot about the ground reality of India,? Prashant Tambe mused as they set up their stall in a vast Mumbai exhibition hall ? it?s popular wisdom in the country today that the booming economy will end the influence of caste, but the best way they can find to be part of that economy is to join a caste-based business association.

The Dalit business lobby, founded in 2005, has 1,000 members; 180 of them came from across the country to exhibit and network at the three-day fair. There were companies making solar-power systems, military uniforms, car parts, pharmaceuticals, pesticides and industrial piping; there were also small financial-service companies and construction firms.

The DICCI slogan is ?fighting caste with capital.? But many business owners at the fair said they share one key problem: They can?t get their hands on that capital.

As the Tambes and others described, Dalit business owners struggle to obtain conventional bank loans. Sometimes it?s malice from dominant-caste bank employees who do not want to see a Dalit business succeed, said Prashant Tambe; other times it?s simply that the bankers doubt that a first-generation Dalit business owner will have the acumen to be a safe loan risk.

Almost always, they lack collateral ? while Dalits are a sixth of India?s population, they control only an estimated 1 per cent of the country?s wealth. The vast bulk of the population continues to be landless labourers working for occasional daily wages of one or two dollars.

And they have no access to the other key source of funding for Indian entrepreneurs; loans from extended family or their caste community ? ?internal funding,? as it?s known here. The Tambes? father was the kind of general labourer called a ?peon? here and their mother was a nursing assistant with a primary-school education; the cousin who is a co-owner of the coal business is the son of a cycle rickshaw driver. They pushed their sons to seek education, but they had no funds to bankroll their good ideas.

The Indian government has attempted to address the issue through a Dalit-focused national finance-development corporation, but it provides only small loans of up to $5,000 ? enough, as DICCI chairperson Milind Kamble put it, to buy a large photocopier and set a family up as a corner copy shop, but not enough to bankroll an entrepreneur whose ambitions stretch beyond that.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheGlobeAndMail-Front/~3/LSyU09OxrvU/

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All-Area Football - Caldwell is defensive player of the year

North Brunswick?s Jaron Smyre (left) is the Star News offensive football player of the year and Hoggard?s Terry Caldwell is the Star News defensive player of the year. (Photo by Photo by Matt Born)

The 2011 football season was tabbed as the year of the linebacker, and none were better than Hoggard?s Terry Caldwell.
Caldwell?s play was a large reason for the Vikings? resurgence in 2011 as they won their first six games of the season and cracked the AP top 10 rankings.
?My senior year, I really felt this team was more of a family,? the StarNews All-Area defensive player of the year said. ?Being the captain and being able to play a big role in the winning aspect, that?s what I like.?
He registered 101 tackles and was a force off the edge for Hoggard, but his versatility was what made him the backbone of the defense.
?He was our jack of all trades,? Hoggard linebackers coach Craig Underwood said. ?He did a lot of everything for us.?
At 6-foot-3, 210, Caldwell?s intimidating size, combined with his 4.62 40-yard dash time, made him a terror for opposing offenses. Of his 101 tackles, 13 went for loss, including two sacks. He also forced three fumbles.
?I think he?s everything you?re looking for in a linebacker,? Hoggard head coach Scott Braswell said. ?He?s a big-framed kid, he?s got size. He moves well. He?s got a real tough, physical disposition about him, and I think that?s critical for playing linebacker.?
But Hoggard used Caldwell in every facet of the game. He frequently blitzed and just as often fell back into coverage. He had two interceptions, one returned for a touchdown. Against Laney this year, Caldwell had 14 tackles and also played in man coverage most of the game ? and the Vikings won 14-7.
?I love blitzing, making interceptions, Just making plays in general,? Caldwell said. ?Just hearing my name on the intercom.?
He even contributed on offense, rushing for two touchdowns against New Bern in the Vikings? 35-34 overtime loss to New Bern. Caldwell threw in 13 tackles and was also named homecoming king.
?We knew the kid?s kind of a beast, if we just gave him the ball, he?s probably going to have some success and he did,? Braswell said.
Braswell may be more thankful for the turnaround which Caldwell helped to inspire. Following eight straight conference championships, Hoggard fell on hard times in 2010, falling to 4-8. According to Braswell, Caldwell was a large part of the Vikings? rebound to a 7-5 season.
?He had a great group of seniors, and Terry was obviously one of the top leaders,? Braswell said. ?He?s got just a great work ethic, great leadership.?
Before the season, Underwood took the linebacker aside and told him: As you go, the rest of the defense goes. Caldwell took the message to heart and embraced his leadership role both on the field and off of it.
?He really bought into that and became a true leader at practice,? Underwood said. ?On Friday nights, he and Shomari Jones were our two locker room leaders.?
Caldwell struggled to garner scholarship offers following his junior year, but following his senior performance, Braswell said the recruiting has picked up. Caldwell earned a scholarship offer from Western Carolina during the season and his coaches say he?s received interest from Furman, Elon and Charlotte.
?As soon as his senior film got out there, the offers started coming in,? Braswell said. ?He had a great senior year.?

Powell Latimer: 343-2261
On Twitter: @StarNewsOnline.com

Source: http://www.starnewsvarsity.com/news/article/28660/all-area-football-caldwell-is-defensive-player-of-the-year/

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Fish oil may hold key to leukemia cure

Public release date: 22-Dec-2011
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Matt Swayne
mls29@psu.edu
814-865-9481
Penn State

A compound produced from fish oil that appears to target leukemia stem cells could lead to a cure for the disease, according to Penn State researchers. The compound -- delta-12-protaglandin J3, or D12-PGJ3 -- targeted and killed the stem cells of chronic myelogenous leukemia, or CML, in mice, said Sandeep Prabhu, associate professor of immunology and molecular toxicology in the Department of Veterinary and Medical Sciences. The compound is produced from EPA -- Eicosapentaenoic Acid -- an Omega-3 fatty acid found in fish and in fish oil, he said.

"Research in the past on fatty acids has shown the health benefits of fatty acids on cardiovascular system and brain development, particularly in infants, but we have shown that some metabolites of Omega-3 have the ability to selectively kill the leukemia-causing stem cells in mice," said Prabhu. "The important thing is that the mice were completely cured of leukemia with no relapse."

The researchers, who released their findings in the current issue of Blood, said the compound kills cancer-causing stem cells in the mice's spleen and bone marrow. Specifically, it activates a gene -- p53 -- in the leukemia stem cell that programs the cell's own death. "p53 is a tumor suppressor gene that regulates the response to DNA damage and maintains genomic stability," Prabhu said.

Killing the stem cells in leukemia, a cancer of the white blood cells, is important because stem cells can divide and produce more cancer cells, as well as create more stem cells, Prabhu said.

The current therapy for CML extends the patient's life by keeping the number of leukemia cells low, but the drugs fail to completely cure the disease because they do not target leukemia stem cells, said Robert Paulson, associate professor of veterinary and biomedical sciences, who co-directed this research with Prabhu.

"The patients must take the drugs continuously," said Paulson. "If they stop, the disease relapses because the leukemia stem cells are resistant to the drugs."

Current treatments are unable to kill the leukemia stem cells, Paulson noted. "These stem cells can hide from the treatment, and a small population of stem cells give rise to more leukemia cells," said Paulson. "So, targeting the stem cells is essential if you want to cure leukemia."

During the experiments, the researchers injected each mouse with about 600 nanograms of D12-PGJ3 each day for a week. Tests showed that the mice were completely cured of the disease. The blood count was normal, and the spleen returned to normal size. The disease did not relapse.

In previous experiments, the compound also killed the stem cells of Friend Virus-induced leukemia, an experimental model for human leukemia.

The researchers focused on D12-PGJ3 because it killed the leukemia stem cells, but had the least number of side effects. The researchers currently are working to determine whether the compound can be used to treat the terminal stage of CML, referred to as Blast Crisis. There are currently no drugs available that can treat the disease when it progresses to this stage.

###

The researchers, who applied for a patent, are also preparing to test the compound in human trials.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

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

Public release date: 22-Dec-2011
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Matt Swayne
mls29@psu.edu
814-865-9481
Penn State

A compound produced from fish oil that appears to target leukemia stem cells could lead to a cure for the disease, according to Penn State researchers. The compound -- delta-12-protaglandin J3, or D12-PGJ3 -- targeted and killed the stem cells of chronic myelogenous leukemia, or CML, in mice, said Sandeep Prabhu, associate professor of immunology and molecular toxicology in the Department of Veterinary and Medical Sciences. The compound is produced from EPA -- Eicosapentaenoic Acid -- an Omega-3 fatty acid found in fish and in fish oil, he said.

"Research in the past on fatty acids has shown the health benefits of fatty acids on cardiovascular system and brain development, particularly in infants, but we have shown that some metabolites of Omega-3 have the ability to selectively kill the leukemia-causing stem cells in mice," said Prabhu. "The important thing is that the mice were completely cured of leukemia with no relapse."

The researchers, who released their findings in the current issue of Blood, said the compound kills cancer-causing stem cells in the mice's spleen and bone marrow. Specifically, it activates a gene -- p53 -- in the leukemia stem cell that programs the cell's own death. "p53 is a tumor suppressor gene that regulates the response to DNA damage and maintains genomic stability," Prabhu said.

Killing the stem cells in leukemia, a cancer of the white blood cells, is important because stem cells can divide and produce more cancer cells, as well as create more stem cells, Prabhu said.

The current therapy for CML extends the patient's life by keeping the number of leukemia cells low, but the drugs fail to completely cure the disease because they do not target leukemia stem cells, said Robert Paulson, associate professor of veterinary and biomedical sciences, who co-directed this research with Prabhu.

"The patients must take the drugs continuously," said Paulson. "If they stop, the disease relapses because the leukemia stem cells are resistant to the drugs."

Current treatments are unable to kill the leukemia stem cells, Paulson noted. "These stem cells can hide from the treatment, and a small population of stem cells give rise to more leukemia cells," said Paulson. "So, targeting the stem cells is essential if you want to cure leukemia."

During the experiments, the researchers injected each mouse with about 600 nanograms of D12-PGJ3 each day for a week. Tests showed that the mice were completely cured of the disease. The blood count was normal, and the spleen returned to normal size. The disease did not relapse.

In previous experiments, the compound also killed the stem cells of Friend Virus-induced leukemia, an experimental model for human leukemia.

The researchers focused on D12-PGJ3 because it killed the leukemia stem cells, but had the least number of side effects. The researchers currently are working to determine whether the compound can be used to treat the terminal stage of CML, referred to as Blast Crisis. There are currently no drugs available that can treat the disease when it progresses to this stage.

###

The researchers, who applied for a patent, are also preparing to test the compound in human trials.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

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

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-12/ps-fom122211.php

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Weekly US oil and gas rig count down by 11 (AP)

HOUSTON ? The number of rigs actively exploring for oil and natural gas in the U.S. decreased by 11 this week to 2,008.

Houston-based drilling product provider Baker Hughes Inc. reported Thursday that 1,201 rigs were exploring for oil and 802 for natural gas. Five were listed as miscellaneous. A year ago this week Baker Hughes reported 1,714 active rigs.

Of the major oil- and gas-producing states, New Mexico added four rigs, Wyoming added three and Texas added one.

North Dakota lost seven rigs, Colorado, Louisiana and Oklahoma each lost three and Alaska, Arkansas, Pennsylvania and West Virginia each lost one. California was unchanged.

The rig count peaked at 4,530 in 1981. A low of 488 was recorded in 1999.

The weekly report, normally released Fridays, moved early because of Christmas.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/energy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111223/ap_on_bi_ge/us_rig_count

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Apple publica la lista de pa?ses en donde se lanza iTunes Match

Varios d?as despu?s del lanzamiento de iTunes Match, Apple ha publicado en su web de soporte al usuario la lista de pa?ses en donde el servicio se ha lanzado, y al mismo tiempo muestra la lista de contenidos que se pueden descargar de iCloud en cada uno de estos pa?ses; Es bastante extra?o que la publicaci?n oficial de esta lista llegue ahora y que no se hiciera cuando el servicio se lanz?. Tambi?n es raro que en la lista de pa?ses que dan, muchos de los iconos con la bandera de cada naci?n no est?n disponibles.

Esta lista es necesaria porque hay pa?ses en donde, suponemos, Apple no ha llegado a un acuerdo de distribuci?n con las compa??as que proveen el contenido que hay en iTunes, aunque podr?a haber otras razones; En ella, se puede comprobar si en tu pa?s tienes disponible la descarga de video, m?sica, Apps, libros o programas de televisi?n.

Al mismo tiempo, es curioso ver que Brasil, un pa?s en donde iTunes Match parece estar disponible incluso antes que en el resto de pa?ses del primer lanzamiento ?internacional?, no est? en esa lista. Cuando hablamos de pa?ses, en este caso, no nos referimos a si puedes usar iTunes Match o no en donde est?s f?sicamente, sino al pa?s al que pertenece la cuenta que utilizas en iTunes. Esto quieres decir que si usas una cuenta espa?ola, aunque est?s en Argentina, podr?s usar la App Store, bajar libros, comprar m?sica o usar iTunes Match sin problemas.

Source: http://iphoneros.com/19419/apple-publica-la-lista-de-paises-en-donde-se-lanza-itunes-match

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PHOTO ONLY - Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada

Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada

December 21, 2011 14:38 ET

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Dec. 21, 2011) -

Editors Note: This photo will be available on the Canadian Press picture wire via Marketwire.

Source: http://www.marketwire.com/mw/release.do?id=1601227&sourceType=3

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