All happenings, news, stories from around the world

Wanna ride? Rihanna and Oprah Winfrey go for a spin together in Barbados

2012-08-12T01:53:00.000-07:00

Between the two of these powerful women lie a single monicker, incredible talent, two massive multimedia empires, and over $3billion in the bank. But earlier today they were just two girlfriends catching up in a truck as the 24-year-old pop star gave the 58-year-old talk show host a guided tour of her hometown of Barbados.

'Look who popped up in my Hometown BARBADOS #topnotch,' Rihanna tweeted tonight to her 23.6million followers.

Let's ride: Rihanna gave Oprah Winfrey a guided tour of her hometown Barbados for her talk show Oprah’s Next Chapter, which will air on August 19 on OWN

And in the same instant Oprah posted, 'Look who’s driving me around Barbados!' for her 13million followers.

Oprah is taping an exclusive interview with the provocative singer for her talk show Oprah’s Next Chapter, which will air on August 19 on OWN.

Rep. Paul Ryan named Mitt Romney's running mate

2012-08-12T01:51:00.003-07:00

NORFOLK, Va. -- Rep. Paul Ryan named Mitt Romney's running mate on Saturday, ending weeks of speculation about the No. 2 slot on the GOP ticket.
The Associated Press and several TV networks confirmed the news about the Wisconsin lawmaker. By about 2:35 a.m. ET, RomneyRyan.com went live as a website.

Ryan, 42, is best known as the chairman of the House Budget Committee and author of a dramatic plan to overhaul Medicare, the government-run health insurance program for senior citizens.

Romney is set to reveal his running mate at the U.S.S. Wisconsin, before setting out on a tour of key swing states to highlight his economic plans for the middle class. In an interview with NBC on Thursday, Romney said he was looking for someone with "a strength of character" and "a vision for the country that adds something to the political discourse about the direction of the country."

With Ryan as his running mate, Romney appears ready to have a national conversation about federal spending and the growth of entitlements with one of the GOP's leading budget authorities at his side.

Ryan, a House member since 1999, has proposed to overhaul both Medicare and Medicaid, the programs that have been a hallmark of the nation's compact to provide health care to senior citizens and the poor. Under his plan, Medicare would be run by private insurers while Medicaid would be turned over to the states.

His goal, he said, was to leave "a debt-free nation" to the next generation. "At stake is America," he said last year. Ryan's budget plan has been widely criticized by President Obama and his fellow Democrats, who contend it would "end Medicare as we know it." Obama has called Ryan's plan "thinly veiled social Darwinism."

With much speculation focused on Ohio Sen. Rob Portman and ex-Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty, the 42-year-old Ryan got a big boost from conservatives this week. The Wall Street Journal, whose editorial page holds sway among conservatives, said choosing Ryan would underscore "the nature and stakes of this election." "More than any other politician, the House Budget Chairman has defined those stakes well as a generational choice about the role of government and whether America will once again become a growth economy or sink into interest-group dominated decline," the Journal editorial said.

Virginia is the first stop in a four-day bus tour of swing states that will also include North Carolina, Florida and Ohio. Obama won all four states in the 2008 election.

Oops! American woman's tattoo to commemorate taking part in London 2012 torch relay is mis-spelled 'OYLMPIC'

2012-07-21T19:31:00.003-07:00

Jerri Paterson, 54, is keeping the tattoo because 'it is as unique as I am'
She originally paid $10 (£6.40) for the tattoo in her hometown Atlanta, US
She only realised the mistake when a friend pointed it out after the relay
Hotel worker carried the torch through Derby on June 30

When charity fundraiser Jerri Peterson was selected as an Olympic torch bearer, she wanted a permanent reminder of the honour.

The 54-year-old hotel worker, from Atlanta, Georgia, took the unusual step of inking the Olympic rings on to her arm along with the words 'Olympic Torch Bearer' above and 'London' underneath.

Unfortunately for Mrs Peterson, her pride soon turned to red-faced shame when the tattoo artist managed to misspell the event as 'Oylmpic' in the permanent memento.

Gaffe: Olympic torch bearer Jerri Peterson had a tattoo on her arm to commemorate her part in the relay, only to find out it was spelt incorrectly

Mrs Peterson, an overseas employee of the British-based Intercontinental Hotels Group, was chosen to take part in the relay for her charity work, along with 70 other international colleagues.

She paid $10 (£6.40) to a 'really good' tattooist for the words 'Olympic Torch Bearer' to be inked above a picture of the Olympic rings two months before her big moment.

Mrs Peterson was flown over to the East Midlands especially, where she triumphantly carried the torch through Derby on June 30.It was not until after she had successfully carried the flame through the city and sent a photograph of the artwork to a friend that she realised the gaffe.

Mrs Peterson, who lives in the Atlanta suburb of Roswell, told BBC News: 'I always wanted to have a tattoo but I never quite felt passionate about any one thing to have it put on my body permanently,” the charity fundraiser told BBC News.'So when I was selected for this wonderful honour, I thought "that's it - I'm ready to have my tattoo".'

Proud: Jerri (in white, right), from Atlanta in the US, carried the torch through Derby on 30 June after she was selected for her charity work by the hotel chain she worked for

She was initially delighted with the tattoo until she noticed the mistake in the photograph.'I looked at it and I was so disappointed. I called my husband and he giggled a little bit. Then I started laughing about it and I've laughed ever since.'Amazingly, Mrs Peterson has decided to keep the wrongly spelt tattoo on her arm - despite offers from the tattoo artist to remove it - as she says it is 'as unique as I am'.

Controversial artist Tracey Emin carried the Olympic Flame on the Torch Relay leg between Margate and Westgate-On-Sea in Kent today

Photo of James Holmes, the Colorado theatre shooting suspect

2012-07-21T19:30:00.003-07:00

24 year old James Holmes was a Neuroscience PHD candidate at the University Colorado. He was in the process of withdrawing from the school before the shooting. He's yet to tell police why he carried out this sickening act. He had no criminal record prior to this.

Police named the suspected attacker as 24-year-old San Diego student James Holmes, thought to be a "lone wolf" but not on US terrorist watch lists.

The massacre at the screening of The Dark Knight Rises in Aurora, near Denver, Colorado is said to have erupted during a shooting scene in the film.

Reports said a black-clad gunman wearing a gas mask entered the sold-out showing through a fire exit before letting off a gas canister and mowing down terrified cinema-goers as they fled.

The suspect was arrested soon afterwards in a car park outside the multiplex. He had an assault rifle, a shotgun and two pistols with him.Survivors spoke of seeing a "silhouette" emerge from smoke at the front of rows of seats, before a person pointed a gun at the audience.

Eyewitness Jennifer Seeger said: “There were bullet (casings) just falling on my head. They were burning my forehead."

Steve Nash join LA Lakers

2012-07-04T19:03:00.001-07:00

In an unforeseen twist that could thrust the Los Angeles Lakers straight back into title contention, two-time NBA MVP Steve Nash has successfully negotiated a sign-and-trade deal from the Phoenix Suns to the Lakers that will team him up with Kobe Bryant, according to sources with knowledge of the deal. Sources told ESPN.com that Nash, with the New York Knicks also pressing hard to complete a similar sign-and-trade deal, was swayed to join the Lakers after a determined push from Bryant and because the move keeps him in the title hunt and allows him to stay in close proximity to his three children in Phoenix.

Nash will receive a three-year deal in excess of $25 million, sources said, because the Suns ultimately agreed to sign-and-trade him to the Lakers, who can absorb Nash via the trade exception they created by dealing Lamar Odom to the Dallas Mavericks in December.

The Suns will receive 2013 and 2015 first-round picks and 2013 and 2014 second-round picks from the Lakers, according to the Arizona Republic.

"After talking with (owner) Robert (Sarver) and (president of basketball operations) Lon (Babby) we've agreed that it's time for both of us to move in new directions," Nash told ESPN.com. "I approached them and asked if they would be willing to do a sign and trade deal with L.A. because it is very important to me to stay near my children and family.

Gina Rinehart: Queen of the Pilbara

2012-06-27T12:28:00.003-07:00

GINA Rinehart was revealed yesterday as the richest woman in the world, almost tripling her wealth by pulling off two big international deals in iron ore and coal.
The deals, which in the past year have lifted her wealth to $29.17 billion, according to the BRW Rich 200 List, make her the eighth-richest person in the world.
They also take her a step closer to fulfilling a lifelong family dream to have Hancock Prospecting, the family company, build and operate an iron ore mine in the Pilbara. The $18.87 billion increase in her wealth is equivalent to earning almost $600 a second, the average annual wage every 2½ minutes, or $51.7 million a day. Another ambition is to win two seats on the Fairfax Media board after becoming the largest single shareholder earlier this year. That was dealt a blow yesterday when the Fairfax board announced board changes that did not include Mrs Rinehart. The news of her estimated wealth will not go unnoticed by her three estranged children, John, Bianca and Hope, who have taken legal action to remove her as trustee of the family trust. Based on the BRW valuation, the children's shares in Hancock Prospecting are now worth more than $9 billion. But they cannot sell or leverage against them, due to a clause in the company constitution that says they can be sold only to lineal descendants of their grandfather, Lang Hancock.
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The mining boom has turned the BRW Rich List on its head, as traditional operators such as Westfield's Frank Lowy, the cardboard box making Pratt family, retailer Solomon Lew, James Packer and GerryHarvey have had to rub shoulders with mining entrepreneurs such as Andrew Forrest and Mrs Rinehart.
It has also had huge ramifications for the Australian economy, creating deep structural changes. BRW says if the resources boom continues, Mrs Rinehart's wealth could rise to $100 billion, which would make her the richest person in the world, unprecedented for any Australian.
Rich List editor Andrew Heathcote says: "The $18.87 billion increase in her wealth is unparalleled. It is a product of foreign investment in new projects, increased production and a recovery in the iron ore price over the past six months."
The BRW valuation is far higher than the valuation of Forbes, which in February estimated her wealth at $US18 billion. The difference between the two figures is due partly to a rise in iron ore prices over the past few months. But mostly it shows that valuations of private companies are subjective and based on numerous assumptions, including debt. Mrs Rinehart's $29.17 billion fortune leapfrogs her to the richest woman in the world, deposing Christy Walton ($26 billion), who as the widow of John Walton has a major stake in US retail giant Wal-Mart.
Mrs Rinehart's wealth makes her the eighth-richest person in the world, the three richest being Carlos Slim, Bill Gates and Warren Buffett.
Adele Ferguson's unauthorised biography of Gina Rinehart will be released on June 26.

Maria Sharapova wins French Open at Roland Garros

2012-06-09T21:08:00.002-07:00

Maria Sharapova defeats Sarah Errani 6-3 6-2 to win her first major since 2008 as she now joins M. Court, C. Evert, M. Navratilova, S. Graf & Serena Williams as players to have won all 4 Grand Slams in Open Era."

Infostrada Sports on Twitter: "Maria Sharapova can become the 3rd Russian to win the Women's Singles title at Roland Garros after Myskina (2004) & Kuznetsova (2009)."

A VERY Big Mac! World's biggest McDonald's with 1,500 seats to be built for games.

2012-04-22T16:19:00.002-07:00

The biggest McDonald's restaurant in the world will open for six weeks during the London 2012 Olympic games. More than 50,000 Big Mac burgers and 180,000 portions of fries will be served from the outlet in Stratford, east London. The huge temporary branch will have seating for 1,500 customers and will employ more than 2,000 staff.

Dining: An artist impression of how the huge 1,500 seat McDonald's in east London will look

While the world's top athletes compete at the Olympics and Paralymics from July 27 to September 9 three million people are expected to visit the McDonald's branch. The 3,000 square-metre restaurant built from recyclable materials will stretch over two floors and is equivalent to half the length of an American football field. The 12,000 people who applied to work at the huge branch and three others planned for the Olympic site have been put through X Factor style auditions across the country.

Interior: The huge McDonald's branch will have a bright and colourful design featuring nutritional advice

They were judged on politeness and how well they flipped burgers, served ice cream and cooked the French fries. McDonald's began its involvement with the Olympics in 1968 when the company airlifted hamburgers to U.S. athletes competing in Grenoble, France. The firm first became an official sponsor at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal and in 1984 McDonald's footed the bill for the Olympic swimming stadium in Los Angeles. The London Olympics will be the ninth games where McDonald's has acted as the event's official restaurant and the only branded food retailer feeding the athletes. Usain Bolt, the world's fastest man who won gold at the 100 metres in Beijing in 2008, claimed that chicken McNuggets were key to his success.

Mike Tyson reveals he got a prison official pregnant while in jail,'

2012-04-20T09:10:00.001-07:00

Shamed boxer Mike Tyson has claimed he got a prison worker pregnant while serving a jail sentence.The former world heavyweight champion also revealed the official in question never had the child, though he never divulged if this was because she had an abortion or miscarried.

The shocking revelation came during an interview with ESPN's Rick Reilly, who asked him what stories he had left out of his one man show Mike Tyson: Undisputed Truth. He said: 'I didn’t talk about getting a prison official pregnant.'Oh yeah. In prison, stuff happens. But she had no baby.' While he did not discuss when exactly the incident occurred, his longest stint behind bars was when he was convicted of raping 18-year-old beauty queen Desiree Washington in 1992.

Tyson was handed a 10 year sentence, six in jail and four on probation, though he was eventually released after serving just three. He served his sentence at the Indiana Youth Center, which later was named the North Plainfield Correctional Facility.

The hard-hitting athlete regained his WBC heavyweight title soon after being released, scoring an easy victory over champion Frank Bruno in March 1996, and added the WBA strap months later. However his comeback was short-lived as he was knocked out by unfancied former champion Evander Holyfield in November that year.A road rage conviction in 1998 sent him to the Montgomery County Detention Center in Maryland for nine months.

El Gorgeous :Photos of the Alleged Secret Service Hooker in Colombia

2012-04-20T09:09:00.000-07:00

Here she is ... the 24-year-old Colombian prostitute who took down the Secret Service ...

The paper claims the woman is a single mother named Dania ... who argued with a Secret Service agent about the price of sex during an alleged encounter in Cartagena last week.Dania reportedly claims she demanded $800 for a night of boom boom ... but the agent only wanted to pay $30 ... and a massive argument ensued.

The agents are now under investigation ... and their lives and careers are in shambles ... buuuuuuut she is pretty hot

Really!!! Instagram founders wanted $2B from Mark .... Its an app Zuck

2012-04-18T07:33:00.001-07:00

While shock abounded at the $1 billion price tage for Instagram it turns out the photo-app's owners actually wanted $2 billion. That is the reported amount that Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom demanded from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg during their feverish negotiations earlier this month.

The Facebook chief apparently phoned Systrom on Thursday April 5 and informed the Instagram CEO he wanted to buy the two-year-old mobile phone app.

Kevin Systrom, the chief executive of Instagram, (right), with Mike Krieger, both Instagram co-founders, at the company offices in San Francisco

Multi-billionaire Zuckerberg had been shaken by projections of Instagrams future performance after the app increased its user numbers by several million after becoming available on the Android operating system.This indicated to the social-network giant that Instagram wasn't an exclusive product that only wealthy Apple iPhone users would pick up but that it had wider appeal to the public.

Inviting Systrom to travel to his $7 million Palo Alto home in the three days after April 5, the two thrashed out a deal for Facebook's take-over of Instagram.

Demanding an honest appraisal from Zuckerberg as to what he believed Facebook would one day be worth, Systrom was told $200 billion.

While that placed Facebook into Google sized territory, Systrom made it known to Zuckerberg that he wanted $2 billion, 'If he believed Facebook would one day be worth as much as a company like Google at $200 billion or more, then the equivalent of 1% of Facebook would be sufficient to meet his price, Mr. Zuckerberg told Mr. Systrom.'

What is also incredible about the Instagram deal is the level of corporate scrutiny that Zuckerberg subjected it to with the Facebook board.

Valet in trouble for parking wrongly costing $400k ... Geez

2012-04-17T14:05:00.001-07:00

Let's hope this parking valet isn't expecting a tip...
Perhaps when he got behind the wheel of a Jeep Grand Cherokee, his lack of familiarity with the powerful machine meant his foot was a bit heavier than is necessary.
Or the problem could be that he wasn't used to being so high up in an SUV and simply didn't see the other cars in the parking lot outside the Epic Hotel, a luxury stopover in downtown Miami. Whatever happened, the consequences were not just extremely embarrassing for the driver, but also very costly for four car owners.

Cringe-worthy: A Jeep Grand Cherokee hopped over a Mini Cooper to land on top of a Maserati GranTurismo and a vintage Porsche 356 in Miami on Friday

The Cherokee appears to have landed on top of a Maserati Grand Turismo and pranged a vintage Porsche 356.
Another theory according to news channel Local 10 was that it was not the fault of the valet driving the Cherokee, but the Maserati driver leaving a parking lot ramp too quickly and driving it underneath the 4x4.

The front of a Mini Cooper was also clipped taking the estimate cost of the carnage to an eye-watering $400,000. the valet lost control over the vehicle, which hopped over the Mini Cooper and crashed into the Maserati and the Porsche outside the Epic Hotel downtown.As the website reports, the value of the Porsche, if authentic, could be worth as much as $200,000; tallies on the Grand Cherokee, GranTurismo S and Mini Cooper Countryman S come in at approximately $30,000, $120,000 and $28,000, respectively.

Ouch that hurts !!!!! Kanye West (umm uhm) dumps Kim K ... Holy smokesup in flames already

2012-04-16T19:07:00.000-07:00

How long have I been sleeping?? I didn’t even know that these two even dated!!..
Well it’s probably not news to you but apparently Kim Kardashian and Kanye West dated for a few seconds, and yeah this whole thing started when she was married, but according to West he didn’t make his move because she was with another man, oh how respectful of him.
Well the few seconds of dating just ended according to a close friend of Kanye, and Kanye is the one who did the dumping, wait wait , it gets better, SHE WAS DUMPED VIA TEXT MESSAGE… loool..
Yeah I know it’s very mean to laugh at these things, but come on, she deserved it, after what she did to her ex-husband, that’s the least that could happen…. I think I might start to like Kanye again…
Here’s what happened, Kanye decided to take Kim with him on His Jay Z’s European tour, because she’s his girlfriend and all, but what he didn’t know that Kim wanted to cash in as well so she decided to have her reality show cameras go with her without even asking for permission… Funny thing Kanye found out that his girlfriend will do absolutely anything for money so he simply told her that she can’t come along, and yeah he dumped her…How awesome is that?? Finally Kanye doing something respectable… I really like this dude now… He didn’t feel happy for her, and he didn’t even let her finish … loool… Taylor Swift mistake forgiven Kanye.

EWWWWW!!!!!! Filthy rag in meat pie .. Yuk !!!

2012-04-12T16:47:00.000-07:00

Dishcloth of the day: Hungry Leigh Sylvester got a very nasty shock

when he tucked into a beef and onion pie only to discover this

filthy rag cooked inside

Hungry Leigh Sylvester got a nasty shock when he tucked into a shop bought beef and onion pie and discovered it had a filthy dishcloth baked inside.

Wife Vicky served up the pie with chips and beans and 39-year-old Leigh had already eaten a quarter of it when he chomped into something that definitely wasn’t meat.

'He cut a bit more of the pie open with his knife and fork and found a dirty-looking blue and white dishcloth,' said wife Vicky.

'It was shocking and looked like it had been well-used for wiping machinery or something. It was heavily stained and made all our stomachs heave,' she added.

OMG!!! New Born baby fighting for his life after being accidentally flushed down the toilet.

2012-04-11T07:06:00.001-07:00

Toilet trauma ... emergency worker in bathroom.It took emergency workers 15 minutes to finally find the child whose mother accidentally gave birth on the loo.The hole was big enough for the tot to slip through as water eased the way. Crews broke through sewage pipes in a frantic bid to pluck the baby to safety. The youngster was eventually recovered and rushed to hospital in a critical condition.
The drama in the Zhaoyang District of Beijing, China, unfolded after she asked her husband to wait for her outside.A similar thing happened to a 19-year-old mum in 2006 in the country's Jiang Su province. The baby made a full recovery.

Chris Brown buys $200k 2012 Porsche S Sedan for girlfriend

2012-04-01T04:41:00.001-07:00

Chris Brown just bought a 2012 Panamera Turbo Porsche S sedan worth a whooping $200, 000 for his girlfriend, Karrueche Tran. Karrueche posted a pic of herself and the car on her Twitter page. #betterboyfriend!

Ronan Keating and wife Yvonne have ended their 14-year marriage

2012-04-01T04:25:00.002-07:00

Ronan Keating and wife Yvonne have ended their 14-year marriage, it was claimed today.
The Boyzone star, 35, failed to get his relationship back on track after his extramarital affair with Francine Cornell was revealed in 2010.
Yvonne, 37, had tried for the last two-and-a-half years to work through her husband's infidelity, but the strain proved too much for the pair.According to reports the couple had mainly tried to save their marriage for their children but their efforts were in vain.
A close friend told The Sun newspaper: 'Although Ronan and Yvonne couldn't patch things up, they are both determined to be there for their kids.'They still love each other and wanted to tell their children and then their friends first, before everyone found out.'

VISA, MasterCard suffer 'massive' US data breach

2012-03-31T19:06:00.002-07:00

Under attack ... Visa and MasterCard. Photo: AFP

Up to 10 million credit cards could be affected.
VISA and MasterCard are alerting banks across the US about a recent major breach at a credit card processor. Sources in the financial sector are calling the breach “massive,” and say it may involve more than 10 million compromised card numbers.

In separate non-public alerts sent late last week, VISA and MasterCard began warning banks about specific cards that may have been compromised. The card associations stated that the breached credit card processor was compromised between January 21 and February 25, 2012. The alerts also said that full Track 1 and Track 2 data was taken – meaning that the information could be used to counterfeit new cards. Australians in the United States are being warned to check their credit card statements carefully. A small number of Australian card holders are thought to have been affected by the theft of data.
"Visa has notified Australian card issuers of the affected account numbers so they can take steps to protect consumers, either through independent fraud monitoring or reissuing cards if necessary," spokeswoman Judy Shaw told Fairfax."If you have any concerns please contact your bank and you will not be out of pocket."

Mastercard spokesman David Masters said Australian credit card holders were protected from liability. "People should check their statements," he said. "If their card has been compromised and used fraudulently it means they don't pay for it. If you didn't contribute to the fraud you're not responsible for it."
Atlanta-based processor Global Payments has confirmed that they discovered a breach in early March. It issued a statement saying it identified and self-reported unauthorised access into a portion of its processing system. Organisations must disclose such breaches in line with US regularion.
"In early March 2012, the company determined card data may have been accessed. It immediately engaged external experts in information technology forensics and contacted federal law enforcement. The company promptly notified appropriate industry parties to allow them to minimise potential cardholder impact. The company is continuing its investigation into this matter," the statement said.
"It is reassuring that our security processes detected an intrusion. It is crucial to understand that this incident does not involve our merchants or their relationships with their customers," said Chairman and CEO Paul R. Garcia in the statement.

Lin-sanity on hold as injury halts NBA gun

2012-03-31T19:04:00.000-07:00

Jeremy Lin's astonishing break-out campaign with the New York Knicks has been cut short by a left knee injury that needs surgery, the NBA team said on Saturday.
The Knicks said Lin would be sidelined some six weeks "after an MRI revealed a small chronic meniscus tear" for which he will undergo an arthroscopic procedure.That would have him missing the rest of the NBA regular season, which ends on April 26, and perhaps the first round of the playoffs - if indeed the Knicks reach the post-season.
"When I come back I'll be stronger than I ever was and a better player," Lin said at a press conference prior to the Knicks' game Saturday against Cleveland. However, he added that it was a bitter blow to be sidelined as the lockout-shortened season draws to a close."To not be there when it matters most is hard," Lin said.
The 23-year-old Lin was an NBA unknown when he shot to prominence in February, getting the starting nod from then-coach Mike D'Antoni and energising a flagging Knicks team.
Lin, who was born in California to parents from Taiwan, became an international sensation as the first American of Chinese or Taiwanese descent to play in the NBA.He said last week that he'd felt pain in his knee after the Knicks played a stretch of four games in five nights and had missed three games before Saturday's announcement. Lin, who graduated from academically oriented Harvard University, rather than one of America's college basketball powerhouses, was cut by two NBA clubs before getting his chance with the Knicks.
He produced the most points and assists of any NBA player in their first 10 starts since 1976.His high-scoring games, last-second heroics and precise passing helped the Knicks win seven games in a row upon his arrival, sparking the phenomenon dubbed "Lin-sanity".The Knicks progress since has not been smooth, however. Another slump cost D'Antoni his job, with Mike Woodson stepping in as interim coach for the remainder of the season.In 35 games this season, Lin averaged 14.6 points and 6.1 assists.
"I had an MRI after the Detroit game on Monday and it showed I had a lateral meniscus tear, so our goal was to give it about five to seven days to see how it would react and to see if I could play on it for the rest of the season," Lin said.

3 winners, over 100 million losers

2012-03-31T19:02:00.003-07:00

The Mega Millions winners - at least three of them - stayed out of sight. The losers, who could number 100 million, had plenty to say Saturday about losing out on the world's largest-ever lottery jackpot and their dashed dreams of colossal wealth.
Journalists descended on convenience stores in Illinois and Maryland, and lottery officials there and in Kansas proudly proclaimed they sold winning tickets in the $640 million world record-breaking Mega Millions jackpot. The winners will earn $213 million before taxes. Three other ticket holders became millionaires.
But on the street, online and outside the stores where the winners had purchased their tickets, Americans grumbled about hopes that were raised, and then vanished. And they mused about what they would have done with the money.
"What do I do with this useless lottery ticket now?" Laurel Ashton Brooks of Greensboro, N.C., asked on Twitter.
As the jackpot got bigger by the hour on Thursday and Friday, Americans had snapped up tickets while dreaming of quitting jobs, paying off debts, building hospitals, buying an island.
On Saturday, they took to Twitter and Facebook to bemoan their lost, razor-thin chance at millions.
"I knew that when I bought the ticket, that I wouldn't win. But I did it anyhow," said Sean Flaherty, a video game tester in New York City. "The whole notion of 'what if' still has some currency with me."
All told, Americans spent nearly $1.5 billion for a chance to hit the jackpot, which amounts to a $462 million lump sum and around $347 million after federal tax withholding. With the jackpot odds at 1 in 176 million, it would cost $176 million to buy up every combination. Under that scenario, the strategy would win $171 million less if your state also withholds taxes.
Illinois' winner used a quick pick — an automatically generated set of digits — to select the winning numbers at a convenience store in the small town of Red Bud, south of St. Louis, Illinois Lottery spokesman Mike Lang said. The winning numbers also were purchased at a 7-Eleven in Milford Mill, Md., north of Baltimore, and somewhere in northeast Kansas.
"It's just unbelievable. Everyone is wanting to know who it is," said Denise Metzger, manager of the MotoMart where Illinois' winning ticket was sold.
"All day yesterday I was selling tickets and I was hoping someone from Red Bud would win. Never in my wildest dreams did I think this. I'm just tickled pink," added Metzger, whose store will receive $500,000 for selling the winning ticket, lottery officials said.
Paramedic Dan Parrott walked away from the store with $5 in winnings after checking numbers on his $40 worth of tickets. That won't pay for the new house, new car and the new ambulances he'd decided the jackpot would help him buy in this farming community of 3,700 about 40 miles south of St. Louis.
"I'd love to have all that money, but with all of that money comes responsibility," he said outside the store. "But it'd still be awesome."
James Sitzes emerged from the MotoMart where his check of his six plays flopped. "I bought them at the right place," he shrugged. "I just didn't have the right numbers."
"I've been thinking for years what I'd do with all that money," said Sitzes, 70. He'd pay off the house, invest the rest and give away his small plating shop.
In Maryland, TV cameras descended upon the 7-Eleven where the state's winning ticket was purchased. The harried manager repeatedly said "No interviews" to reporters pressing for details as customers pushed through the media crush for their morning coffee.
Nyeri Murphy, holding two scratch-off tickets, said she normally plays Powerball but drove to a nearby county to buy $70 worth of Mega Millions tickets this week. "I should have bought them here," she said.
Maryland does not require lottery winners to be identified; the Mega Millions winner can claim the prize anonymously. The store will receive a $100,000 bonus for selling the winning ticket, which was purchased Friday night.
The third winning ticket was purchased in northeast Kansas, but no other information would be released by the Kansas Lottery until the winner comes forward, spokeswoman Cara S. Sloan-Ramos said. The Kansas location that sold the ticket will receive $10,000.
No winner had contacted the agency by Saturday morning, Kansas Lottery Director Dennis Wilson said. "We sure want to meet the winner, but we want to tell them, sign the back of the ticket and secure it."
Kansas law also allows lottery winners to remain anonymous, though lottery winners in Illinois are identified.
The winning numbers in Friday night's drawing were 02-04-23-38-46, and the Mega Ball 23.
Maryland Lottery spokeswoman Carole Everett said the last time a ticket from the state won a major national jackpot was in 2008, when a ticket won for $24 million.
"We're thrilled," she said. "We're due and excited."
The holder of the winning ticket in Maryland has 182 days to come forward and claim the prize. Winners in Kansas and Illinois have up to one year; but if the Illinois winner wants to be paid in a lump sum, they have to come forward in 60 days, Lang said.
Even though just three tickets matched all the winning numbers, the jackpot made a millionaire of at least three other winners and gave a windfall to more than 100 others. Three ticket-holders won $1 million each, and 158 won $250,000 for matching the first five numbers drawn, said Chuck Strutt, executive director of the Multi-State Lottery Association in Urbandale, Iowa.
The estimated jackpot dwarfs the previous $390 million record, which was split in 2007 by two winners who bought tickets in Georgia and New Jersey.
For some, the dreams were enough. Katie Kapczynski bought her first-ever lottery ticket with a roommate at a Washington, D.C., gas station. The attendant had to show her how to buy one.
"We kind of went more for the experience than the 'what if'," she said.
On Saturday morning, Kapczynski, a visitor services manager at the Newseum who was in New York on vacation, had left her $6 in tickets behind at home.
She still doesn't know if she won.

At 38 Robbie Williams is expecting a baby with wife Ayda

2012-03-31T18:51:00.000-07:00

Robbie Williams has announced that he is to become a father for the first time.

In a typically comical announcement posted today on his website, the singer, 38, revealed that his wife Ayda Field, 32, is pregnant.

He wrote: 'Hey friendlies, I've been keeping a secret from you all. Me and Ayda are going to be a Mummy and Daddy this year!!!!!!!!

'We've seen scans and cried... looked at babies in commercials and teared up... the nursery is already planned.

'Basically I'm in love with a little person growing in mummy's belly... and can't wait to be a daddy. Crying now.

'Much love, much joy. Roberto, Mum and Little Bump. xxx'

The exciting news caused such a large number of fans flock to see Williams' announcement that the site temporarily crashed.He added: 'We had sex! It works

Robbie and Ayda married at their Los Angeles home in August 2010, after a four-year relationship.

The couple played coy with the media over reports the status of their relationship, with Robbie often confusing reporters by referring to Field as his 'wife' in interviews.

The Angels singer even proposed to his girlfriend live on an Australian radio programme. The stunt was laughed off a joke by Williams' spokesperson, but the pair married just seven months later.

Ayda said shortly after their wedding that she couldn't wait to have kids, but, according to the Daily Mirror at the time, jokingly added: 'I hope they are not minging.

'Some people at my school had the ugliest parents, and they came out pretty. I hope ours gets all the best bits, but it’s pot luck who gets the minging ones. Hmmm, I’ll love them any way, I guess.'

That's one way to beat the traffic! China opens recordbreaking 4,000ft-long bridge

2012-03-31T18:44:00.002-07:00

If you're behind the wheel and you aren't great with heights it's probably best not to look down.
This record-breaking bridge has opened allowing motorists to cross over a canyon - at 1,102ft. Named the Aizhai Extra Large Suspension Bridge, it's now the world's highest and longest tunnel-to-tunnel bridge.

Don't look down! The Aizhai bridge in China is the world's highest tunnel to tunnel bridge at 1,102 feet and is almost 4,000 feet long

Work started on the feat of engineering in October 2007 and the bulk of the work finished at the end of last year.
It is designed to ease traffic in the Jishou area of Hunan province and officially opened to motorists today.

Drivers can take in the views of the Dehang Canyon as they steer their way across all 3,858ft of the new sky-high road which links two tunnels.
The bridge, which is lit up at night with 1,888 lights, is the fourth suspension bridge to cross a valley so wide it seems to be connecting two mountain ranges.

Drivers can take in the views of the Dehang Canyon as they steer their way across all 3,858ft of the new sky-high road which links two tunnels

Once on the bridge cars and lorries can motor along a two-way, four-lane motorway at about 50mph. Pedestrians can also walk along it on a special walkway under the road.

The bridge is a key part of the Jishou-Chadong Expressway, a 64-kilometre road which has 18 different tunnels which cover about half of its length.

It is hoped the bridge will help ease traffic jams which are common in the mountainous area which has narrow, steep and winding roads. The structure is supported by a base 78ft wide.

China is has the longest bridge in the world, the Danyang Kunshan Grand Bridge which is just over 100miles long and was built two years ago to carry the Beijing–Shanghai high-speed railway.

Magic Johnson and group buys LA Dodgers for almost $2Billion

2012-03-31T18:33:00.002-07:00

LOS ANGELES (AP)—The Los Angeles Dodgers could be ready for a little Magic.
Magic Johnson has joined a group bidding to buy the beleaguered Dodgers, hoping to restore the luster of a once-glamorous franchise that has been sullied during owner Frank McCourt’s messy tenure.
Johnson, the longtime Los Angeles Lakers superstar and former part-owner of the NBA club, is partnering with former Atlanta Braves executive Stan Kasten and wealthy investor Mark Walter in the upcoming auction for the Dodgers, who filed for bankruptcy protection in June. McCourt finally agreed last month to auction the team at an undetermined future date.
“I’m excited to have the opportunity to be part of the Dodgers legacy & bring a World Series championship back to LA,” Johnson tweeted Friday.
Johnson has joined a heavyweight group in what’s expected to be a tough competition for the Dodgers: Kasten is the former president of the Braves and Washington Nationals, while Walter is the CEO of a global financial services firm managing more than $125 billion in assets. Their organization will be called Guggenheim Baseball Management, and Walter’s vast financial resources could put the group up front in the bidding.
The Los Angeles Times first reported Johnson’s interest in the Dodgers. The news was greeted with enthusiasm across Los Angeles from fans who count Magic among the most popular athletes in Southern California sports history.
The three-time NBA Most Valuable Player has become a successful businessman since his second retirement in 1996, with investments in several sectors of commercial real estate. But Johnson’s passion still is sports, and he has spent several years looking for an ownership role in a pro franchise, most recently expressing his interest in returning the NFL to Los Angeles.
Johnson amicably left his ownership position with the Lakers in October 2010, selling his 4.5 percent equity stake to Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong in what’s widely thought to be a wildly lucrative transaction for the former Lakers point guard.
The Lakers would love to see Johnson with a large ownership role in the Dodgers. Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak regularly speaks with Johnson, who has said he’ll never leave his influential role behind the scenes with the Lakers and the Buss family.
“I know he’s sitting on a pile of cash, which is maybe why I take his calls as often as I do,” Kupchak said Friday. “He’s been incredibly supportive as an owner. Never once did he say, `Mitch, this is what you should do.’ He would be a great owner (of the Dodgers).

EXCLUSIVE: Wenger plans mass clearout to fund spending spree

2012-03-31T18:32:00.003-07:00

Arsenal want to clear out fringe players currently costing the club £23million a year in wages as Arsene Wenger prepares for a summer spending splurge.

Wenger wants to add at least two big-name signings to his squad and reward a clutch of players - chiefly Robin van Persie - with improved contracts.

Key man: Arsenal are prepared to break the bank to keep Van Persie

The Gunners will embark on a summer cull designed to give Wenger as much leeway as possible with regards to offering competitive salaries.

And some of the club's biggest earners will be put up for sale as Arsenal look to utilise their wage budget more effectively.

Andrey Arshavin, who earns £75,000 per week, Marouane Chamakh, who gets £60,000 per week, and Sebastien Squillaci, Nicklas Bendtner, Denilson and Carlos Vela, who are paid £50,000 per week, can all leave.

Exit: Chamakh is one of the big earners set to leave in the summer

Goalkeeper Manuel Almunia, who is on £60,000 per week, will definitely go in the summer when his deal expires.

Recent club accounts have shown the wage bill has increased by £20m - despite the sales of Cesc Fabregas, Samir Nasri and Gael Clichy.

And freeing up the budget for wages is a top priority this summer, though the club may encounter difficulties in shifting the aforementioned players, given their hefty salaries.

Getting talisman Van Persie to sign a new long-term deal is top of the club's summer to-do list, with Arsenal willing to burst through their wage ceiling to offer the striker £120,000 per week.

End of the road: Arshavin, on loan at Zenit, has one year to run on his Arsenal deal

And Sportsmail can reveal Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is also in line for a new and improved contract, despite only joining from Southampton last summer.

Oxlade-Chamberlain, 18, earns in the region of £20,000 per week but Arsenal will look to reward him with a pay rise this summer following his promising first season.

New deal: Wenger is keen to reward Oxlade-Chamberlain

Sportsmail revealed on Tuesday that influential midfielder Alex Song is also in line for a pay hike that would take his earnings to around £75,000 per week, while talks over a new deal for England forward Theo Walcott are ongoing, despite uncertainty over his future.

In addition to tying down the club's existing stars, Wenger is eager to add new faces as he plots a title tilt next season.

Lille forward Eden Hazard, Rennes midfielder Yann M'Vila and Borussia Dortmund starlet Mario Gotze - who extended his contract to 2016 yesterday - are all targets.

Chelsea forward Daniel Sturridge and Blackburn midfielder Steven Nzonzi have also been mentioned by Wenger.

Trimming the club's wage bill will give Arsenal the best chance possible to put together competitive pay-packages and lure their top targets.

Jarome Iginla of the Calgary Flames achieves 30 -30 per season

2012-03-31T18:31:00.003-07:00

Congrats Jarome Adekunle Arthur-Leigh Iginla Calgary Flames on your milestone as one of the top snipers of the NHL .
Celebrating one of the most consistent player to ever grace the NHL with 30goals & 30 assists a season in the last 11NHL seasons and also became the 60th on d all time career pts list with 1067 pts in 1176games .I really do hope you win a Stanley Cup before you retire to confirm your legendary status .Take a bow son