BAGHDAD ? Iraq's parliament reconvened on Tuesday as Sunni-backed lawmakers ended their boycott to protest alleged persecution of Sunni officials, a development that could restore some stability to the turbulent political processes in the war-ravaged country.
The Sunni-backed Iraqiya bloc had banned lawmakers and government ministers from parliament and Cabinet sessions last month after the Shiite-led government issued an arrest warrant for the Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi on terrorism charges.
The boycott brought government work to a standstill and plunged the country into a political crisis just days after the U.S. completed its military withdrawal in December. The sectarian fight in the Shiite-led government has been accompanied by a surge in attacks that have killed more than 200 people this month.
Iraqiya leaders lifted the parliament ban on Sunday, but said the bloc's nine ministers, serving in the government of the Shiite Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki will stay away from a weekly Cabinet meeting, also set for Tuesday.
"We hope that this will be a good start to solve the problems in Iraq," said Iraqiya lawmaker, Zuhair al-Araji before the parliament session began.
Nahida al-Dayini, another Iraqiya lawmaker, said most of the block's 76 lawmakers attended Tuesday's session during which parliament members have discussed the nation's budget.
Iraqiya leaders accuse al-Maliki of efforts to marginalize the Sunni minority and cement his own grip on power.
Al-Maliki's security forces have launched a widespread crackdown against Sunnis, detaining hundreds for alleged ties to the deposed Baath Party of Saddam Hussein. Iraqiya said 89 of its members have been detained in the past three months.
Al-Hashemi, the Sunni vice president, denied the charges of running death squads and fled to the autonomous Kurdish region in Iraq, out of reach of authorities in Baghdad. He is refusing to return for trial in Baghdad.
The political battle coincides with a wave of bombing attacks, most of them targeting Shiites.
The twin crises have raised fears of a reprise of a conflict five years ago, when heavily armed Shiite and Sunni militias battled each other and brought the nation to the brink of civil war.
On Monday evening, three Iraqi soldiers were killed when a parked car bomb detonated near a military patrol in Baqouba, a former al-Qaida stronghold, 35 miles (60 kilometers) northeast of Baghdad. Three soldiers were also wounded in the bombing, said Maj. Ghalib al-Karkhi, a police spokesman in Diyala province,
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Associated Press writer Barbara Surk in Baghdad contributed to this report.
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) ? Survival story "The Grey" starring Liam Neeson topped the weekend movie box office charts with an estimated $20 million in U.S. and Canadian ticket sales, according to studio estimates released on Sunday.
"The Grey" knocked last weekend's winner, "Underworld: Awakening," to second place. The vampire and werewolf sequel starring Kate Beckinsale brought in $12.5 million from Friday through Sunday.
New Katherine Heigl comedy "One for the Money" finished third with $11.8 million.
Open Road Films, a joint venture between theater owners Regal Entertainment Group and AMC Entertainment Inc, released "The Grey." The film unit of Sony Corp distributed "Underworld: Awakening." "One for the Money" was released by Lions Gate Entertainment.
(Reporting By Lisa Richwine; Editing by Xavier Briand)
BAGHDAD (Reuters) ? Iraq's Sunni-backed Iraqiya political bloc said Sunday it would end a boycott of parliament, easing the worst political crisis in Shi'ite Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's power-sharing government in a year.
The decision by Iraqiya clears the way for talks among fractious Shi'ite, Kurdish and Sunni blocs, but deep disputes over power-sharing remain unresolved, keeping alive the risk that Iraq could fall back into widespread sectarian violence.
The crisis erupted days after the last U.S. troops left Iraq in December, when Maliki's government sought the arrest of Sunni Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi and moved to sideline one of his Sunni deputies who branded Maliki a dictator.
The political blocs are planning a national conference to try to ease the turmoil.
"As a goodwill gesture, Iraqiya announces its return to parliament meetings to create a healthy atmosphere to help the national conference, and to ... defuse the political crisis," Iraqiya spokeswoman Maysoon al-Damluji told a news conference.
Damluji's announcement followed a meeting of Iraqiya's top officials including bloc leader Iyad Allawi, Parliament Speaker Osama al-Nujaifi, Finance Minister Rafie al-Esawi and Saleh al-Mutlaq, the deputy prime minister Maliki had tried to oust.
She said the leaders would meet again to decide whether Iraqiya ministers would return to cabinet meetings.
Iraqiya's return to parliament could shore up Maliki's position for now, but the Sunni-backed bloc is deeply divided over whether to stay in the fragile power-sharing arrangement.
Maliki says his initiative against Hashemi was judicial and not political, but his moves against two key Iraqiya figures have compounded fears among Iraqi Sunnis that he wants to consolidate Shi'ite control and his own power.
Hashemi remains in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdistan region where his immediate arrest is unlikely.
BIDEN CALLS
U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has spoken to Allawi and Nujaifi by phone over the past days to discuss "the importance of resolving outstanding issues through the political process," Biden's office said.
Saleem al-Jubouri, an Iraqiya leader, said the bloc had come under international pressure to end the boycott, which he said had forced other countries to recognize the crisis in Iraq.
"The problem still exists and it could blow up again at any minute," Jubouri said.
A senior Iraqiya Sunni leader who asked not to be named said ending the boycott was the only way to keep the bloc together.
"Many factions within Iraqiya would split off if the leaders
insisted on going into opposition or continuing the boycott," the official said.
Since the U.S. invasion toppled Saddam Hussein, a Sunni, in 2003, the Shi'ite majority has ascended, leaving Sunni Muslims feeling sidelined from power. Kurdish political blocs have more often reached political deals with Shi'ite parties.
The power-sharing agreement took almost a year to cobble together and has struggled to work when considering key laws such as a national hydrocarbons bill.
The political turmoil has been accompanied by a string of attacks on Shi'ite targets that have stirred worries Iraq could slide back in the kind of sectarian slaughter that killed tens of thousands of Iraqis a few years after the invasion.
(Writing by Patrick Markey; Editing by Jim Loney and Alessandra Rizzo)
OTTAWA ? Marian Gaborik staked his claim to NHL All-Star game MVP honors.
The high-scoring Rangers forward scored twice in the first period against New York teammate Henrik Lundqvist, completed his hat trick in the second period with another goal, and added an assist in the third to carry Team Chara over Team Alfredsson 12-9 on Sunday.
Gaborik, who made his third All-Star appearance, became the 16th player to record a hat trick in the midseason showcase. The previous one was in 2008 by Columbus' Rick Nash, Gaborik's Western Conference teammate in that game.
It has already been a stellar season for Gaborik, who has a team-high 25 goals and 39 points for the Eastern Conference-leading Rangers.
KANO, Nigeria ? Police say gunmen from a radical Islamist sect have attacked another police station, killing one officer in a north Nigeria city where they killed 185 people last week.
Kano state police spokesman Magaji Musa Majiya said the shooting happened Friday in the capital Kano, a city of more than 9 million people already under siege by the sect known as Boko Haram. He said officers killed three sect members in the attack, but others dragged the bodies away.
The spokesman blamed the attack on Boko Haram, which carried out a massive attack Jan. 20 in Kano.
In the northeast Nigeria city of Maiduguri, authorities also blamed gunmen from the sect for shooting and killing a youth leader of the All Nigeria People's Party on Friday night.
WASHINGTON (AP) ? The federal government's plan to expand computer security protections into critical parts of private industry is raising concerns that the move will threaten Americans' civil liberties.
In a report for release Friday, The Constitution Project warns that as the Obama administration partners more with the energy, financial, communications and health care industries to monitor and protect networks, sensitive personal information of people who work for or communicate with those companies could be improperly or inadvertently disclosed.
While the government may have good intentions, it "runs the risk of establishing a program akin to wiretapping all network users' communications," the nonpartisan legal think tank says. The Associated Press obtained a copy of the report in advance.
Cybersecurity has become a rapidly expanding priority for the government as federal agencies, private companies and everyday people come under persistent and increasingly sophisticated computer attacks. The threat is diverse, ranging from computer hackers going after banking and financial accounts to terrorists or other nations breaching government networks to steal sensitive data or sabotage critical systems such as the electrical grid, nuclear plants or Wall Street.
Privacy has been a hotly debated issue, particularly as the Pentagon broadens its pilot program to help defense contractors protect their networks and systems. Several companies, including critical jet fighter and drone programs, have been attacked, although the Pentagon has said that no classified information was lost.
And there are plans for the Homeland Security Department to use the defense program as a model to prevent hackers and hostile nations from breaching critical infrastructure. Officials have suggested that Congress needs to craft legislation that would protect companies from certain privacy and other laws in order to share information with the government for cybersecurity purposes.
DHS spokesman Matt Chandler said the legislative proposals reflect the administration's commitment to privacy protections and contain standards to minimize contact with personal information while dealing with cybersecurity threats. "DHS builds strong privacy protections into the core of all cybersecurity programs and initiatives," Chandler said, adding that the agency realizes that providing assistance to private companies is a sensitive task that requires "trust and strict confidentiality."
The Constitution Project report recommends that officials limit the amount and nature of personal information shared between the public and private sectors. And it calls for strict oversight of the cyber programs by Congress and independent audits, to ensure that privacy rights have not been violated.
"The government should not be permitted to conduct an end-run around Fourth Amendment safeguards by relying upon private companies to monitor networks," it said.
In addition, the report raised concerns about the ongoing development of the Einstein 3 program, a government network monitoring system that would both detect and take action against cyberattacks on federal systems. DHS officials have said that extensive privacy protections are in place.
But the report expressed concerns that as DHS and the secretive National Security Agency share information about potential computer-based threats, the NSA could review communications from U.S. individuals without setting up privacy safeguards.
"With more and more people needing to share sensitive personal and financial data over the Internet, it is absolutely vital that, while we are looking to protect our networks against cyberattack, we also preserve our constitutionally guaranteed rights to privacy," said Constitution Project committee member Asa Hutchinson, a former DHS undersecretary who also served as a GOP congressman from Arkansas.
Lawmakers who have been wrestling with these issues over the past several years have several bills in the works, and most include some privacy provisions.
The Appalachian State football program, which has lost seven assistant coaches in the last two months, has hired three new assistants. Justin Stepp, a graduate assistant at Clemson in 2011, will
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ATLANTA -- He's an ardent supporter of Israel. A megabillionaire casino mogul whose Las Vegas Sands Corp. is under federal investigation. And the self-proclaimed "richest Jew in the world."
Sheldon Adelson is also, far and away, the biggest patron of Newt Gingrich's surging Republican presidential bid. Adelson and his wife, Miriam, have pumped $10 million into a political action committee backing Gingrich that is run by the former House speaker's onetime aides. Campaign finance experts say the two $5 million contributions are among the largest known political donations in U.S. history.
No other candidate in the race for president appears to be relying so heavily on the fortune of a single donor. It's been made possible by last year's Supreme Court rulings ? known as Citizens United ? that recast the political landscape by stripping away restrictions on contributions and how outside groups can spend their money.
Sheldon Adelson is Citizens United come to life.
"The bottom line is that it creates that potential for one person to have far more influence than any one person should have," said Fred Wertheimer, president of the campaign finance watchdog group Democracy 21.
When any candidate is beholden to a single donor for so much money, Wertheimer said, "it opens the door to corruption and influence peddling." Wertheimer said the infusion of cash would raise questions about any decision Gingrich would make that touches on gambling, for example. And similar questions could be raised about Gingrich's Mideast policies.
Indeed, without recent disclosures by news organizations, voters would not have even known about the large contributions until campaign filings due Feb. 20. That would be long after a number of key primaries.
The outsized contributions are stirring some unease among the evangelical voters whom Gingrich is counting on to help him defeat Mitt Romney. Richard Land, head of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, called the gambling cash fueling Gingrich's bid "discomforting."
Land said Gingrich should make clear what his views are on legalized gambling.
Gingrich spokesman R.C. Hammond said the candidate believes it is a states' rights issue and does not gamble.
Friends say Adelson and Gingrich met when Gingrich was House speaker and Adelson was lobbying to move the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Gingrich backed the legislation and the two bonded over a shared hardline stance on Israel.
In Cocoa, Fla., Gingrich on Wednesday called Adelson "very deeply concerned about the survival of Israel" and the threat of a nuclear Iran. Asked if he had promised Adelson anything, Gingrich replied that he pledged "that I would seek to defend the United States and United States allies."
Those who have followed Gingrich's career say he has long staked out a tough stance on Israel that predated his friendship with Adelson.
Gingrich "has been one of the few politicians who has had the courage to tell the truth about Israel," said Morton Klein, head of the Zionist Organization of America. "I think that is why they became such good friends."
In December, Gingrich proclaimed the Palestinians "an invented people." Israel's Haaretz daily reported later that month that Adelson approved of the remarks. And Gingrich has said that one of the first executive orders he would sign if elected president would move the American Embassy to Jerusalem.
Through a spokesman, Adelson declined an interview request from The Associated Press.
His rags-to-riches story as the son of poor Ukrainian immigrants in Dorchester, Mass., is well-known lore in the pro-Israeli circles he inhabits and where his philanthropy is legendary.
Adelson entered the business world as a 12-year-old selling newspapers. He began to make his fortune when he founded Comdex, a trade show that became a staple for the computer industry. He then moved into the casino industry. His gambling empire stretches from Las Vegas to Macau and Singapore and includes the Venetian and Palazzo casinos in Las Vegas.
The FBI and the Securities and Exchange Commission are investigating Adelson for possible violation of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, according to a filing with the SEC. The company denies any wrongdoing and says the investigation stems from the allegation of a disgruntled employee.
The son of a cab driver, Adelson now ranks as the eighth wealthiest person in America, according to Forbes Magazine, which places his net worth at $21.5 billion.
Last year, Yad Vashem, the Holocaust memorial in Israel, said it received its largest private donation ever ? a $25 million gift ? from Adelson. Since 2007, he has donated more than $100 million to Birthright Israel, a group that sends young adult Jews from the United States and other countries on 10-day trips to Israel.
Adelson is an outspoken supporter of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and owns a widely read, right-wing Israeli newspaper, Israel Hayom, which is distributed at no cost throughout Israel and is supportive of Netanyahu.
The hefty donations to Gingrich's presidential bid aren't the first checks he's written to help the former Georgia congressman. He ponied up more than $7 million to help get Gingrich's conservative political group American Solutions for Winning the Future off the ground.
The first $5 million donation from Adelson came at a critical juncture for Gingrich as he entered South Carolina, stung by a humbling fifth-place finish in New Hampshire's Republican primary. The Adelson money to Winning Our Future, a pro-Gingrich PAC led by former Gingrich aide Rick Tyler, helped finance a 28-minute movie bashing Mitt Romney's tenure at the helm of the private equity firm Bain Capital.
Gingrich was able to leverage the support into a double-digit win in South Carolina over Romney.
Presumably pleased with his investment, Adelson doubled down in Florida, where the next Republican contest will take place Jan. 31. This week, Adelson's wife chipped in another $5 million. The money is quickly going right back out the door.
Tyler told the AP that Winning Our Future had made a $6 million ad buy in Florida. A spot is planned to take aim at Romney's health care plan as governor of Massachusetts and its connection to President Barack Obama's health care overhaul, Tyler said.
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Associated Press writers Ian Deitch in Jerusalem, Brian Bakst in Cocoa, Fla., and Jack Gillum in Washington contributed to this report.
Mitch Daniels was seen as a potential challenger to President Obama until he opted out of running last year. After his rebuttal of Obama's State of the Union address Tuesday, some GOP elites are openly longing for a Mitch Daniels candidacy.
Mitch Daniels, Republican presidential nominee?
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Once upon a time, that was a key Republican Party strategy to win back the White House from President Obama. The two-term Indiana governor decided early last year to not seek the party's nomination, but the wishful thinking has only deepened after Mr. Daniels' concise and reasoned GOP rebuttal Tuesday night to Mr. Obama's State of the Union address.
?I could hear sighs all over the country from Republicans [about] what might have been,? conservative columnist Charles Krauthammer told Fox News late Tuesday. ?That was one of the best speeches I?ve heard ? and I think it was one of the best presentations of the conservative idea against the larger government of Obama.?
Such accolades have not yet been heaped upon the two front-runners in the Republican presidential race: former House speaker Newt Gingrich and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.?
The first three GOP contests have not produced a definitive winner, and the Republican leadership, in picking Daniels to deliver the party's rebuttal on Tuesday, may be circling back to someone they perceive as able to ?bridge the gap? between the far right faction of their party and the more doctrinaire establishment, says Bruce Buchanan, who teaches presidential politics and public policy at the University of Texas in Austin.
Daniels ?strikes people clearly as a grownup ? [and] the fact [that the Republican Party] invited Daniels and he accepted most likely indicates some hopes of attracting him,? Mr. Buchanan says.
Mr. Romney, who has a record as a moderate governor and whose Mormon faith is worrisome to evangelical Christian conservatives, and Mr. Gingrich, who resigned as speaker and whose marital infidelities are no secret, are perceived in some quarters as flawed. Compared with them, Daniels is largely free of controversy, and he has a record of working with both parties and of taking pragmatic positions on fiscal and social issues. He is also ?more comfortable in his own skin? and ?pretty unflappable,? which makes him less prone to gaffes than Romney or Gingrich, says Buchanan.
Daniels also spent time in Washington, as director of the White House Office of Management and Budget in the George W. Bush administration.
The national Republican Party courted Daniels for the 2012 race, but he bowed out last spring. His wife, Cheri Daniels, is reported to have vetoed the idea, citing privacy concerns. Mrs. Daniels and her husband divorced in 1993 and remarried four years later. In the interim, she married and divorced another man in California and was subsequently criticized for not sharing the responsibility of raising the four daughters with Daniels, a charge the governor publically said was false.
Many of us don't learn in optimal ways. We know that we forget new material, neglect to review older material, and study in ways that elevate cramming and procrastination to art forms. But there is research about how to be more efficient in these things. For example, dating back to 1885, there is a rich literature that explores how timing our learning of new and old material can affect education. More »
Using Microsoft hardware to augment Android? Surely, you can't be serious? Well, confounding as this may be, it is indeed true... and don't call us Shirley. All fanboy-ism and Airplane! references aside, this Kinect hack (yes, another one) manages to move Ice Cream Sandwich out of its 4.65-inch confines and onto the big screen wall. The inventive and involved mod, borne from hacker Recursive Penguin's desire to demo in-development apps at business meetings, allows for gestures made on a projected interface to be deciphered by MS' famous add-on, resulting in real-time responses. While this particular pico-friendly bit looks simple (not to mention fun to use), it's actually a bit daunting: AOSP ROMs, TUIO protocol and multi-touch software, anyone? While there are, undoubtedly, some of you that could pull off such techie gee whizzery, we'll just sit and wait for Google to implement this in version 5.0. Check out the brief video after the break.
Sadly, the most frequent question I get when people find out that I, a non-runner, am running 322 miles across North Carolina to seed 1 million conversations about the harms of Amendment One on our May primary ballot is, "How's the training going?"
I say "sadly" because I'd rather they ask how our collective organizing efforts are going to convince hundreds of thousands of North Carolinians that a broad constitutional rewrite targeting protections for gay folks, but, in the end, impacting all of the state's unmarried couples, their children, their businesses, and their families, is bad for North Carolina.
Fortunately, it's not that hard.
And so, speaking for myself and, if I may be so bold, for my state, I'd like to say the training has "never been better."
But for those who believe finishing the equivalent of 13 marathons in five weeks should, in fact, be a piece of cake compared with the challenge of defeating anti-gay legislation in the South, well, let's just say you might be surprised come May.
After all, this is North Carolina we're talking about.
North Carolina is the only southeastern state without a constitutional amendment banning marriage equality. While 29 states have passed similar amendments over the last decade, for the past eight years, the Tar Heel state has successfully held off efforts to write discrimination into our state's founding document. And we can do so again. Why?
North Carolina faces this amendment at the very time when state and national public opinion has shifted against this type of discriminatory legislation. In 2011 America asked, "What's the big deal?" with no less than six national polls, from Gallup to CNN, showing majority support for marriage equality. Similarly, in our Southern state, polling consistently shows that the majority of North Carolinians support marriage equality or civil unions -- recognitions North Carolina's Amendment One would ban. As a result, time and time again we see that once our state's citizens actually learn the harms of this discriminatory measure, support plummets, and opposition to Amendment One grows by the day.
Check out the harms for yourself, from our campaign launch last week:
While families and their children -- straight and gay -- are under attack by this amendment, it's important to note that North Carolina has already recognized that its most vulnerable children need protection. North Carolina is the only state in the South that legally protects students from bullying and harassment on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. In 2009 North Carolina passed the School Violence Prevention Act and proudly became the first state in the South to pass any sort of protection for people based on their gender identity and gender expression, as well as the first to have anti-bullying protections on the basis of sexual orientation.
North Carolina is home to diverse, fair-minded voting blocs. Once home to agrarian endeavors and vast rural populations, North Carolina has transformed into a haven for progressive industries such as pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, with large populations living in major metropolitan areas and welcoming of diverse communities. As part of these changes, according to the 2010 census, same-gender couples represent one of the fastest-growing demographics in the state, adding to a enlightened voting bloc that not only opposes discriminatory legislation but supports legal rights and recognitions for all.
North Carolinians from all corners of the state have resolved to oppose this amendment. It's not just our major metropolitan areas that are leading the charge against Amendment One. Dozens of municipal, city, university, and statewide organizations have already passed resolutions against Amendment One -- many of which we'll profile during Race to the Ballot -- including cities and towns like Durham or Chapel Hill, two of nine municipalities that stand to be stripped of domestic partner benefits for their public employees if it were to pass.
Amendment One opposition has growing bipartisan support. Our state's moderate Democratic governor, U.S. Senator, NAACP Conference President, and conservative U.S. Representative have all come out against Amendment One, finding it to be an extreme act, not a conservative one, and the people impacted not wedge issues but, well, people. In fact, our Tea Party Congresswoman Renee Ellmers was one of the first public figures to say she will vote against Amendment One. In doing so, Ellmers spoke for many North Carolina conservatives who are still evolving on marriage equality but know a constitutional amendment banning it and every other relationship recognition available -- for straight and gay couples -- is an overreach no matter what party you belong to.
So, when I say the training has never been better... I mean it.
(Oh, and I started jogging a bit this week, too.)
For more information about "our little jog," visit racetotheballot.com.
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Follow Jen Jones on Twitter: www.twitter.com/followjenjones
BRUSSELS ? The Dutch finance minister says Greece's private creditors may be forced to take losses if they can't reach a deal to cut the country's massive debt pile voluntarily ? the first eurozone finance minister to do so.
Jan Kees de Jager said Monday that "we've never said it (the debt restructuring) must be voluntary. Our goal is a sustainable debt. It has our preference if it's voluntary, but it's not a precondition for us."
De Jager has become the first finance minister of the 17 countries that use the euro as their currency who has openly raised the prospect of forcing losses on banks and other investments firms.
Talks between Greece and private creditors to cut the country's debt pile by euro100 billion ($129 billion) have hit an impasse over disagreements over the interest rate on new, lower valued bonds.
WASHINGTON ? Vilified by the Republicans who want his job, President Barack Obama will stand before the nation Tuesday night determined to frame the election-year debate on his terms, using his State of the Union address to outline a lasting economic recovery that will "work for everyone, not just a wealthy few."
As his most powerful chance to make a case for a second term, the prime-time speech carries enormous political stakes for the Democratic incumbent who presides over a country divided about his performance and pessimistic about the nation's direction. He will try to offer a stark contrast with his opponents by offering a vision of fairness and opportunity for everyone.
In a preview Saturday, Obama said in a video to supporters that the speech will be an economic blueprint built around manufacturing, energy, education and American values.
He is expected to announce ideas to make college more affordable and to address the housing crisis still hampering the economy three years into his term, people familiar with the speech said. Obama will also propose fresh ideas to ensure that the wealthy pay more in taxes, reiterating what he considers a matter of basic fairness, the officials said.
His policy proposals will be less important than what Obama hopes they all add up to: a narrative of renewed American security with him at the center, leading the fight.
"We can go in two directions," Obama said in the campaign video. "One is toward less opportunity and less fairness. Or we can fight for where I think we need to go: building an economy that works for everyone, not just a wealthy few."
That line of argument is intended to tap directly into concerns of voters who think America has become a nation of income inequality, with rules rigged to help the rich. The degree to which Obama or his eventual Republican opponent can better connect with millions of hurting Americans is expected to determine November's presidential election.
Obama released his video hours ahead of the South Carolina primary, where Republican candidates fought in the latest fierce contest to become his general election rival.
The White House knows Obama is about to get his own stage to outline a re-election vision, but carefully. The speech is supposed to an American moment, not a campaign event.
Obama didn't mention national security or foreign policy in his preview, and he is not expected to break ground on either one in his speech.
He will focus on the economy and is expected to promote unfinished parts of his jobs plan, including the extension of a payroll tax cut that is soon to expire.
Whatever Obama proposes is likely to face long odds in a deeply divided Congress.
More people than not disapprove of Obama's handling of the economy, and he is showing real vulnerability among the independent voters who could swing the election. Yet he will step into the moment just as the economy is showing life. The unemployment rate is still at a troubling 8.5 percent, but at its lowest rate in nearly three years. Consumer confidence is up.
By giving a sneak peek to millions of supporters on his email list, Obama played to his Democratic base and sought to generate an even larger audience for Tuesday's address. He is unlikely to getter a bigger stage all year.
More people watched last year's State of the Union than tuned in to see Obama accept the Democratic presidential nomination in Denver in 2008.
The foundation of Obama's speech is the one he gave in Kansas last month, when he declared that the middle class was at a make-or-break moment and he railed against "you're on your own" economics of the Republican Party. His theme then was about a government that ensures people get a fair shot to succeed.
The State of the Union will be the details to back that up.
But even so, the speech will still be a framework ? part governing, part inspiration.
The details will be rolled out in full over the next several weeks, as part of Obama's next budget proposal and during his travels, which will allow him more media coverage.
On national security, Obama will ask the nation to reflect with him on a momentous year of change, including the end of the war in Iraq, the killing of al-Qaida terrorist leader Osama bin Laden and the Arab Spring protests, with people clamoring for freedom. He is expected to note the troubles posed by Iran and Syria without offering new positions about them.
Despite low expectations for legislation this year, Obama will offer short-term ideas that would require action from Congress. For now, the main looming to-do item is an extension of a payroll tax cut and unemployment benefits, both due to expire by March.
His travel schedule following his speech, to politically important regions, offers clues to the policies he was expected to unveil.
Both Phoenix and Las Vegas have been hard hit by foreclosures. Denver is where Obama outlined ways of helping college students deal with school loan debt. Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Detroit are home to a number of manufacturers. And Michigan was a major beneficiary of the president's decision to intervene to rescue the American auto industry.
Republican leaders in Congress say Obama has made the chances of cooperation even dimmer just over the last several days. He enraged Republicans by installing a consumer watchdog chief by going around the Senate, which had blocked him, and then rejected a major oil pipeline project the GOP has embraced.
Obama is likely, once again, to offer ways in which a broken Washington must work together. Yet that theme seems but a dream given the gridlock he has been unable to change.
The address remains an old-fashioned moment of national attention; 43 million people watched it on TV last year. The White House website will offer a live stream of the speech, promising extra wrinkles for people who watch it there, and then invite people to send in questions to administration officials through social media such as Twitter and Facebook.
Obama's campaign is also organizing and promoting parties around the nation for people to watch the speech.
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AP deputy director of polling Jennifer Agiesta and Associated Press writer Ken Thomas contributed to this report.
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Online:
White House: http://www.whitehouse.gov
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Follow Ben Feller at http://twitter.com/BenFellerDC
There are games we really want on the iPhone but we know we'll probably never get. Actually anything Nintendo makes would be great as an iPhone app. But there is one app in particular that would really make me happy: Mario Kart. Lucky for me, there's a complete ripoff of the game in the App Store right now. Plus, another tower defense game and a way to organize all those business cards, all in today's app deals. More »
LOS ANGELES ? Kevin Love hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer after Ricky Rubio's tying 3 with 20 seconds to play, lifting the Minnesota Timberwolves to a pulsating 101-98 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Friday night.
Darko Milicic had 22 points and seven rebounds for Minnesota before fouling out with 1:01 left, and Love had 17 points and 14 rebounds.
The Timberwolves, coming off consecutive home wins over Sacramento and Detroit, have won three straight for the first time since a four-game stretch from Jan. 29 to Feb. 6, 2010. After that, they lost 29 of their final 31 games.
Rubio, Minnesota's rookie point guard, missed his first 10 field goal attempts before draining a clutch 3 from in front of the Clippers' bench.
Chauncey Billups missed a driving layup against Rubio coming out of a timeout, and Love got the rebound before Minnesota called a timeout with 1.5 seconds on the clock.
Luke Ridnour inbounded the ball in front of the midcourt line to a wide-open Love, whose only option was to catch and shoot from a few feet beyond the arc. The ball hit nothing but net as the sellout crowd groaned.
The victory snapped a seven-game home winning streak for the Clippers.
Mo Williams scored 21 of his 25 points off the bench in the first half for the Clippers before getting ejected midway through the fourth quarter. Blake Griffin had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Billups finished with 20 points after getting into early foul trouble. Point guard Chris Paul missed his fourth straight game because of a left hamstring strain.
Williams received his second technical foul with 6:21 remaining, after he was called for fouling Rubio on a drive to the basket as Rubio lost his footing. The Timberwolves closed to 91-90 with 4:37 remaining after four consecutive free throws by Rubio. Billups responded with a 3-pointer and two free throws for a 98-94 Clippers lead.
Clippers starting forward Caron Butler, who shot a career-worst 1 for 12 on Wednesday night in a 91-89 win over Dallas after hyperextending his right knee the previous night at Utah, did not play against the Timberwolves.
Michael Beasley, whose game-winning jumper with 2.3 seconds to go capped a 33-point effort in the Timberwolves' first meeting with the Clippers last season, missed his eighth straight game due to a sprained right foot. Reserve guard JJ Barea was back in Minnesota nursing a sprained ankle that also will keep him out of Saturday night's game at Utah. Center Brad Miller and guard Martell Webster, both of whom resumed practice this week, also didn't dress.
The Timberwolves, whose only other lead came after Milicic's game-opening basket, opened the third quarter with a 12-1 run that sliced an 11-point deficit to 62-60. But that was as close as they got. Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro tried to stall Minnesota's momentum with a timeout after Milicic's slam dunk, and Billups responded with a 16-footer and a 3-pointer.
Billups, who hit clutch 3-pointers to nail down each of the Clippers' previous two wins against New Jersey and Dallas, got off to an inauspicious start against the Timberwolves with two fouls in the first 4:38 ? and a technical foul for complaining about the second one after he was called for a charge against Ridnour.
Williams replaced Billups and got a technical foul with 1:12 left in the opening quarter, after picking up his second personal on a charge against Ridnour and slamming the ball in disgust. Williams quickly regained his focus, making back-to-back 3-pointers and a driving layup in the final 51 seconds of the period to give the Clippers a 31-22 lead.
It was the second straight game in which Williams ? the Clippers' starting point guard last season before the acquisitions of Paul and Billups in December ? started out 7 for 7 from the field. Williams also made his first seven shots Wednesday night against the Mavericks, finishing with 26 points in a game the Clippers won on Billups' 3-pointer with 1 second on the clock.
Notes: Billups overtook Peja Stojakovic for fourth place in career 3-pointers (1,762). Ahead of him are Ray Allen, Reggie Miller and Jason Kidd. ... An MRI taken Thursday on Butler's knee revealed no structural damage. It was the same knee he had surgery on last January, which sidelined him for the rest of the season, but Del Negro said this injury was not related. ... The Clippers and Timberwolves have gone the longest of any NBA teams without a playoff berth. Los Angeles last made it during the 2006 season, and Minnesota hasn't qualified since 2004. ... The Clippers won three of four against Minnesota last season. Griffin averaged 26.5 points and 10.8 rebounds, while Love averaged 20 points and 13.3 boards. ... Minnesota coach Rick Adelman's teams are 61-20 against the Clippers, his best mark against any club.
Well that didn't take long. Shortly after getting our grubby mitts on the AT&T variant of Samsung's Galaxy Note at CES, the jumbo phone has made its way into the loving arms of Uncle Sam at the FCC. Naturally, it's not advertised as such, but test documents reveal that a model SGH-i717 handset packing UMTS/HSPA+ (21Mbps) and GSM/EDGE world radios, plus Ma Bell-friendly bands 4 and 17 LTE has passed the FCC's emissions tests with flying colors. So, now that it's got the governmental stamp of approval, all that's left is to find out when we can make with the S Pen action on AT&T's newly minted high speed network. Don't keep us waiting, guys.
Multiple partners not the only way for corals to stay cool Public release date: 20-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Emily Howells em.howells@gmail.com 61-747-534-203 ARC Centre of Excellence in Coral Reef Studies
Recent experiments conducted at the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) produced striking results, showing for the first time that corals hosting a single type of "zooxanthellae" can have different levels of thermal tolerance a feature that was only known previously for corals with a mix of zooxanthellae.
Zooxanthellae are algal cells that live within the tissue of living coral and provide the coral host with energy; the relationship is crucial for the coral's survival. Rising ocean temperatures can lead to the loss of zooxanthellae from the coral host, as a consequence the coral loses its tissue colour and its primary source of energy, a process known as 'coral bleaching'. Globally, coral bleaching has led to significant loss of coral, and with rising ocean temperatures, poses a major threat to coral reefs.
It was previously known that corals hosting more than one type of zooxanthellae could better cope with temperature changes by favouring types of zooxanthellae that have greater thermal tolerance. However, until now it was not known if corals hosting a single type of zooxanthellae could have different levels of thermal tolerance.
Results recently published in the prestigious scientific journal, Nature Climate Change, showed corals that only host a single type of zooxanthellae may in fact differ in their thermal tolerance. This finding is important because many species of coral are dominated by a single type of zooxanthellae.
PhD student, Ms Emily Howells from the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies (CoECRS) at James Cook University, Townsville, together with scientists from AIMS and CoECRS, collected two populations of a single type of zooxanthellae (known as C1) from two locations on the Great Barrier Reef. The population collected from Magnetic Island near Townsville experiences average ocean temperatures 2C higher than the population collected from the Whitsunday Islands. In experiments at AIMS, young corals were treated with one or other of the two different populations of zooxanthellae, and exposed to elevated water temperatures, as might occur during bleaching events.
The results were striking. Corals with zooxanthellae from the warmer region coped well with higher temperatures, staying healthy and growing rapidly, whilst corals with zooxanthellae from the cooler region suffered severe bleaching (loss of the zooxanthellae) and actually reduced in size as they partly died off.
Madeleine van Oppen, ARC Future Fellow at AIMS, says the research results will likely have a major impact on the field, as until now corals associating with the same type of zooxanthellae have been viewed as physiologically similar, irrespective of their geographical location.
"Our research suggests that populations of a single type of zooxanthellae have adapted to local conditions as can be seen from the remarkably different results of the two populations used in this study. If zooxanthellae populations are able to further adapt to increases in temperature at the pace at which oceans warm, they may assist corals to increase their thermal tolerance and survive into the future." says Emily Howells.
"However, we do not yet know how fast zooxanthellae can adapt, highlighting an important area of future research", says Bette Willis, Professor from the CoECRS at James Cook University.
Research at AIMS is therefore currently assessing whether zooxanthellae can continue to adapt to increasing temperatures and at what rate. This work in progress will provide insights into the capacity of zooxanthellae to adapt to future climate change.
The ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies are proud sponsors of the 12th International Coral Reef Symposium, Cairns: 9-13 July 2012.
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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.
Multiple partners not the only way for corals to stay cool Public release date: 20-Jan-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Emily Howells em.howells@gmail.com 61-747-534-203 ARC Centre of Excellence in Coral Reef Studies
Recent experiments conducted at the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) produced striking results, showing for the first time that corals hosting a single type of "zooxanthellae" can have different levels of thermal tolerance a feature that was only known previously for corals with a mix of zooxanthellae.
Zooxanthellae are algal cells that live within the tissue of living coral and provide the coral host with energy; the relationship is crucial for the coral's survival. Rising ocean temperatures can lead to the loss of zooxanthellae from the coral host, as a consequence the coral loses its tissue colour and its primary source of energy, a process known as 'coral bleaching'. Globally, coral bleaching has led to significant loss of coral, and with rising ocean temperatures, poses a major threat to coral reefs.
It was previously known that corals hosting more than one type of zooxanthellae could better cope with temperature changes by favouring types of zooxanthellae that have greater thermal tolerance. However, until now it was not known if corals hosting a single type of zooxanthellae could have different levels of thermal tolerance.
Results recently published in the prestigious scientific journal, Nature Climate Change, showed corals that only host a single type of zooxanthellae may in fact differ in their thermal tolerance. This finding is important because many species of coral are dominated by a single type of zooxanthellae.
PhD student, Ms Emily Howells from the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies (CoECRS) at James Cook University, Townsville, together with scientists from AIMS and CoECRS, collected two populations of a single type of zooxanthellae (known as C1) from two locations on the Great Barrier Reef. The population collected from Magnetic Island near Townsville experiences average ocean temperatures 2C higher than the population collected from the Whitsunday Islands. In experiments at AIMS, young corals were treated with one or other of the two different populations of zooxanthellae, and exposed to elevated water temperatures, as might occur during bleaching events.
The results were striking. Corals with zooxanthellae from the warmer region coped well with higher temperatures, staying healthy and growing rapidly, whilst corals with zooxanthellae from the cooler region suffered severe bleaching (loss of the zooxanthellae) and actually reduced in size as they partly died off.
Madeleine van Oppen, ARC Future Fellow at AIMS, says the research results will likely have a major impact on the field, as until now corals associating with the same type of zooxanthellae have been viewed as physiologically similar, irrespective of their geographical location.
"Our research suggests that populations of a single type of zooxanthellae have adapted to local conditions as can be seen from the remarkably different results of the two populations used in this study. If zooxanthellae populations are able to further adapt to increases in temperature at the pace at which oceans warm, they may assist corals to increase their thermal tolerance and survive into the future." says Emily Howells.
"However, we do not yet know how fast zooxanthellae can adapt, highlighting an important area of future research", says Bette Willis, Professor from the CoECRS at James Cook University.
Research at AIMS is therefore currently assessing whether zooxanthellae can continue to adapt to increasing temperatures and at what rate. This work in progress will provide insights into the capacity of zooxanthellae to adapt to future climate change.
The ARC Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies are proud sponsors of the 12th International Coral Reef Symposium, Cairns: 9-13 July 2012.
[ | 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.
The infamous file-sharing website is looking to help promote worthy bands and political causes
Do you have a band, video, or cause that you'd like to draw more attention to? If you're offering your work for free, then infamous?file-sharing website?The Pirate Bay wants to help promote you.
The Pirate Bay recently launched?The Promo Bay, which it describes as a "promotional apparatus." Participants are asked to design a new front page image for the site.?If an artist's work is selected, The Pirate Bay will offer a high-profile link to their site in return. Just about any type of content is fair game, from music to a political cause, so long as the site offers something to the world for free.
The program appears to be a way of legitimizing the?SOPA-threatened website's tenet that creative media and information should be shared without limitation. Participation in the program is a win-win situation for all involved ? exposure on the popular site means an artist's work will be seen by exponentially more people than otherwise possible, which might lead to increased sales and other forms of revenue. In exchange, The Pirate Bay gets to prove that there is indeed a real-world benefit to offering artistic work for free.
The Pirate Bay, originally a Swedish site, is the largest file-sharing website currently in operation. Though the number of people who engage in illegal?file sharing is on the decline, it's still a way of life in Sweden. The country recognizes?file sharing as a religion and as a?political party. In 2009, voters in the country sent a member of the?Pirate Party to the European Parliament.
(Source)
This article was written by Fox Van Allen and originally appeared on Tecca
Things seem to be changing for Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino on "Jersey Shore."
By Bruna Nessif, E! Online
Still trying to get over last week's unfortunate news? Us, too.
Seeing Vinny leave the shore and Pauly D so upset about losing his bromance partner was a hard pill to swallow, and let's not forget, the other roommates had no idea because they were all out raging at the club.
And as you might have already guessed, they didn't take it too well, either.
After regretfully watching his man drive away in a cab, Pauly headed to the club to find everyone else and break the news. No one was happy to hear what happened, but no one took it as hard as Deena, who started sobbing the second she heard and continued crying after leaving Karma, getting back to the house, seeing Vin's stuff gone and venting to JWoww as the sun came up. (Yes, through all of that, there was runny mascara.)
In honor of their departed roomie and "meatball day," Deena and Snooki went off on their own adventure to get "wastey-pants." Mission accomplished! Snooks got so "mad drunk" she couldn't walk, even with the help of their new gay friends (of whom Deena looooves). Then it was time for a dance battle....
MORE: "Jersey Shore's" Snooki Without Makeup: Hot or Not?
The dangerous duo started showing off their best "veteran" moves to a group of guy noobs who thought they were the ish on the dance floor, and they were holding their own -- until both fell on the ground. Battle fail. And if you missed our exclusive clip, take a look to see what dancing so hard could do to a guidette's extensions (not pretty).
Everyone had their own little things that they did in memory of Vinny, including Ronnie wearing skinny jeans out to the club and Pauly bringing home girls that were DTF (not sure how that is different from any other night, but we'll go with it).
Then it was on to some drama with Mike and his boy The Unit, who wanted to play a little game of "Gym, Tan, The Truth Will Set You Free."
MORE: "Jersey Shore's" Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino Gets Sued by Serious Pimp
Just kidding! The Sitch's attempt to get at Snooki and Jionni was interrupted by a random fight that broke out involving Unit, who then got kicked out of the club. Wah-wah.
Everyone in the house gave Vinny a call to see how he's holding up, and although he said he was feeling better, it doesn't seem like he'll be returning to the shore house anytime soon. But there was no time to mope around, because it was Pauly and Mike's birthday weekend.
A Bosnian beauty who seemed down to give Pauly some birthday sex was a false alarm and instead tried to get with Mike (what?!), except The Situation was already preoccupied with his usual hookup Paula, who might become more than just a friend with benefits. Mike wifed up?! Possibly.
MORE: "Jersey Shore" Recap: Vinny's "Funk" Gets Too Strong to Ignore, MVP Loses a Member
Surprise! Pauly's whole family stopped by to celebrate with their boy, and his mom (who clearly knows best) gave her son the greatest gift of all: She brought his barber from Rhode Island along and he gave Pauly D a clean cut making him fresh to death.
During dinner, Mike got a little depressed since it was his birthday, too, and all the attention was on Pauly. So he decided to take a little nap at the restaurant. Don't worry, he got woken up with frosting to the face. But his pity party didn't end there.
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Once the guys got back to the house, they noticed that the girls made a cake for Pauly and not Mike. Ay-yi-yi. What gives? "That's what you get for being a douche bag," explained Snooki.
Don't get him wrong, guys. Mike's an "emotional dude" and sick of always being "the bad guy." So much so that he dipped out. Possibly forever.
And then there were six.
Do you think The Situation will leave the "Shore"? Sound off on our Facebook page.
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Public release date: 20-Jan-2012
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