TAOS Post.

LG Optimus Vu Heading To Europe This September

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 07:47:00 +0000

LG Optimus Vu

LG has finally revealed that its over-sized smartphone, the LG Optimus Vu, will be coming to Europe and other markets this September.
Originally announced and launched in Korea, the LG Optimus Vu is a beast of a phone, offering a 5-inch 4:3 aspect ratio display, Nvidia Tegra 3 performance and an Ice Cream Sandwich OS.
Here is a review of this amazing gadget.

Cnet: Top 5 Features You'll Want In Iphone 5

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 07:37:00 +0000

Here are the top must-have iPhone 5 features, as voted on by CNET readers.

Cholera Outbreak In Sierra Leone Hits Emergency Levels

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 07:24:00 +0000

Many dead as Cholera levels surge in Sierra Leone.

An outbreak of cholera in Sierra Leone has infected more than 10,000 people and killed at least 176, authorities said as they appealed for international assistance.

Underscoring the severity of the situation in the West African country, President Ernest Bai Koroma declared the outbreak an "emergency issue" on Thursday. Minister of Health and Sanitation Zainab Hawa Bangura told The Associated Press that Koroma has set up a task force to prepare a budget that will be needed to stem the outbreak.

"All of this is the aftermath of the 11 years rebel war when we had a huge rural-to-urban migration and a huge population clustered in the urban area where adequate provision has not been made for water and sanitation. This is what we have been witnessing today, " she said.

She said that in the capital, Freetown, there have been about 100 deaths during the past month, especially in congested areas where there is the problem of water and sanitation.

"It is important to request help from the international community in order to spread the mobilization of resources," she said.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said there has been a spike in reported cholera cases since mid-July and the onset of the rainy season. Over the past 5 weeks, 6,000 cases alone have been confirmed and many other cases might not been officially reported.

"This current outbreak of cholera has the potential to be devastating and is proving very difficult to control," said Amanda McClelland, IFRC Emergency Health Coordinator. "We are particularly concerned by the rising numbers in Freetown which suffers from overcrowding, poor sanitation and lack of safe water access — all factors which contribute to this deadly disease."

Cholera is an infection of the small intestine, contracted by eating or drinking contaminated food or liquids, that can cause acute diarrhea and vomiting and can kill within hours. Neighboring Guinea, parts of Mali and Niger have also been affected by the outbreak, the Red Cross said.

Via Global News

Teen Raises $115K With Lake Ontario Swim To Send Kids With Cancer To Camp

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 07:08:00 +0000

14-year-old Annaleise Carr swam across lake Ontario to raise funds for cancer kids.

As metre-high waves crashed down upon 14-year-old Annaleise Carr in the chilly waters of Lake Ontario in the middle of the night, the money she was raising to send kids with cancer to camp kept her going.

The Ontario teenager, believed to be the youngest person ever to swim across the lake, raised $115,000 with her 27-hour swim from Niagara-on-the-Lake to Toronto for Camp Trillium.

Less than 20 hours after she emerged from the water after her marathon swim, Carr stood before a bank of television cameras to talk about her feat.

"As I got into the water on Saturday I just kept thinking about Camp Trillium and what I was doing it for," she said.

"I didn't want to give up when I thought about how much the kids at Camp Trillium have been through and what they have to go through their entire lives."

Through the night the water started to become wavy and the swim got tougher and tougher, Carr said. When the morning light broke a pacer helped lift her spirits by making funny faces, she said.

"Then I started getting updates on how much money I'd raised and it was going up like crazy," Carr said.

"I got told $50,000 and I was already over my goal and I started swimming harder. I got told $60,000 and I didn't want to stop."

The tally kept climbing and Carr said she knew she couldn't stop.

"When I was about a kilometre away I could hear everyone and start seeing lights. At that time the current was really, really bad and it felt like I was going nowhere," she said.

"That's when I heard that I had gotten over $100,000. I was like really excited."

Donations for Carr's swim will send 115 children to camp for 10 days.

Carr, who is from the tiny community of Walsh in southern Ontario, said it took a while to convince her parents to let her do the 52-kilometre swim.

She wanted to help kids at Camp Trillium, but volunteers had to be 18 years old. The idea to swim across Lake Ontario started as a joke, but her parents got behind it once they saw how many rules and regulations were attached, she said.

Via Global News

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi Dies

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 06:57:00 +0000

Ethiopia's Deceased Prime Minister Meles Zenawi

Meles Zenawi, Ethiopia's long-time ruler who held tight control over this East African country but was a major U.S counter-terrorism ally, died of an undisclosed illness after not being seen in public for weeks, Ethiopian state television said Tuesday. He was 57.

Meles died Monday just before midnight after contracting an infection, state TV announced Tuesday. Hailemariam Desalegn, who was appointed deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs in 2010, is now in charge of the Cabinet, state TV said.

Meles hadn't been seen in public for about two months. In mid-July, after Meles did not attend a meeting of heads of state of the African Union in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital, speculation increased that his health problems were serious.

Ethiopian officials gave no details and said the prime minister was in "very good" health and would return to office soon, but international officials said quietly it was unlikely he would recover.

State TV on Tuesday showed pictures of Meles as classical music played in the background.

Born on May 8, 1955, Meles became president in 1991 and prime minister in 1995, a position that is both the head of the federal government and armed forces.

The U.S. has long viewed Meles as a strong security partner and has given hundreds of millions of dollars in aid over the years. U.S. military drones that patrol East Africa — especially over Somalia — are stationed in Ethiopia.

Though a U.S. ally, Ethiopia has long been criticized by human rights groups for the government's strict control. Dissent is met with a strict government response.

During Meles' election win in 2005, when it appeared the opposition was likely to make gains, Meles tightened security across the country, and on the night of the election he declared a state of emergency, outlawing any public gathering as his ruling party claimed a majority win. Opposition members accused Meles of rigging the election, and demonstrations broke out. Security forces moved in, killing hundreds of people and jailing thousands.

In 2010 Meles won another five years in office while receiving a reported 99 per cent of the vote. Meles is the longtime chairman of the Tigray People's Liberation Front and has always identified strongly with his party.

"I cannot separate my achievements from what can be considered as the achievements of the ruling party. Whatever achievement there might have been, it does not exist independent of that party," Meles once said when asked what he thought would be his legacy.

Meles grew up in the northern town of Adwa, where his father had 13 siblings from multiple women. He moved to the capital, Addis Ababa, on a scholarship after completing an eight-year elementary education in just five.

State TV said funeral arrangements would be announced soon.

Via Global News

Eight Killed In Turkish Car Bombing

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 06:49:00 +0000

Fire fighters work in Gaziantep where at least seven people were killed and dozens wounded when a car bomb blew up on August 20, 2012 in the centre of Turkey's south-eastern city of Gaziantep (AFP Photo / Ihlas News Agency)

Eight people have been reported killed and dozens wounded by a bomb attack close to a police station in southeastern Turkey.

Officials said the blast in the town of Gaziantep near the Syrian border on August 20 was caused by a remote-controlled car bomb.

Turkey’s minister of family and social policies, Fatma Sahin, said the bomb went off 25 meters away from a police station, wounding 66 people.

Sahin said the blast also damaged a bus and a shuttle for the local courthouse as well as two cars passing by.

Police officers were reported to be among the casualties.

Turkey has opened a center in Gaziantep to receive international aid for Syrian refugees fleeing the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.

But Omer Celik, deputy chairman of the ruling AK Party, blamed the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK).

He wrote in his Twitter account that the group was “trying to provoke our citizens by targeting the civilian population directly.”

The attack comes amid intensified fighting between the Kurdish rebels and Turkish troops in the country’s southeast, where the PKK launched a battle for autonomy nearly 30 years ago.

Earlier on August 20, authorities said two Turkish soldiers were killed by a landmine in the province of Hakkari bordering Iraq and Iran.

Turkish officials blamed the attack on the PKK.

Via rferl.org

U.S President Threatens To Attack Syria

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 06:45:00 +0000

US President Barack Obama

US President Barack Obama has a stern warning for the country of Syria. In an address made early Monday, the commander-in-chief confirmed that he has not ruled out an offensive strike on Bashar al-Assad and his regime.
Speaking from the White House, President Obama said that if Syria is able to procure chemical or biological weapons, the United States will follow through with its threat of launching an attack.

Responding to a question about America’s current attitudes towards Assad, Obama said that the United States will not tolerate any efforts to allow Syria or any other countries to come into possession of weapons of mass destruction.
“We have been very clear to the Assad regime but also to other players on the ground that a red line for us is we start seeing a whole bunch of chemical weapons moving around or being utilized,” the president said. “That would change my equation. . . . We’re monitoring that situation very carefully. We have put together a range of contingency plans.”
“We cannot have a situation in which chemical or biological weapons are falling into the hands of the wrong people,” Mr. Obama added. “We have put together a range of contingency plans. We have communicated in no uncertain terms with every player in the region that that’s a red line for us.”
Obama added to reporters that his warning doesn’t apply only to Syria, either, but that the United States could consider maneuver with or against any other country that is considering chemical warfare.
"It doesn't just include Syria. It would concern allies in the region, including Israel, and it would concern us,” President Obama said.
“At this point,” Mr. Obama said, “the likelihood of a soft landing seems pretty distant.”
Last month, Syrian Foreign Ministry spokesman Jihad Makdissi told reporters that his country will not use chemical weapons amid a months-long standoff with anti-Assad rebels. He did, however, admit that Syria has access to such warheads and could deploy them upon further developments.
"All of these types of weapons are in storage and under security and the direct supervision of the Syrian armed forces and will never be used unless Syria is exposed to external aggression," Makdissi said.

Via RT.com

Belarus Declared No Kite-Fly Zone

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 06:37:00 +0000

Reuters

Launching a handmade kite may get you in trouble today in Belarus, where it could be considered a national security threat by the military, which is on constant alert after the “teddy-bear assault” carried out by Swedish activists last month.

Teddy bears with anti-government messages flying over Belarus. Image from www.studiototal.se/teddybears

Viktor Emelyanenko, resident of the city of Grodno near the border with Poland and Lithuania, wanted to surprise his grandson with a handmade kite, but was unpleasantly surprised when, just 30 minutes after launching the toy, he got a visit from the military.
Emelyanenko said he had taken the kite to his yard to test it out. Less than half an hour later, his estate in near the border with Poland was swarming with anxious-looking men in uniform.
According to Emelyanenko, the military took several photographs of the kite, some of him and one of his car’s license plate.
“A major, one of the men who came to my house,” Emelyanenko told reporters, “looked really unhappy that my kite had managed to get so many military officials heated up. He said it wasn’t just the anti-missile defense division, but the border patrol and the air force that were on alert. All because of my tiny handmade kite!”
The military’s concerns were caused by an incident last month when two Swedes flying a small plane discharged a teddy-bear bombardment on Belarus. Hundreds of plush provocateurs were parachuted down with “Support freedom of speech!” messages as the plane flew over the capital, Minsk.
The “teddy-bear airdrop” has strained relations between Belarus and Sweden, with both sides expelling each other’s diplomats.

Via RT.com

Anonymous Hackers Take Down UK Government Websites In Assange Protest.

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 06:31:00 +0000

AFP Photo / Joel Saget

Several British governmental websites, including the Ministry of Justice, have been attacked by hacktivists in retaliation for Britain’s handling of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.
Under the campaign, which was branded “#OpFreeAssange,” Anonymous undertook a mission to take down justice.gov.uk and number10.gov.uk, the official site of the British Prime Minister’s Office. The websites are now operating normally once again.

Several Twitter accounts associated with the loose-knit Anonymous collective have acknowledged that the UK Ministry of Justice and the PM Office's websites had been targeted with a distributed denial-of-service, or DDoS, attack.
“#OpFreeAssange: TANGO DOWN! http://www.justice.gov.uk/ [500 Internal Server Error] [#Anonymous #WikiLeaks],” reads one tweet sent from the @Anon_Central Twitter account.
The hackers also claim to have taken down the website of another British government department – the Department of Work and Pensions. “Gov. of UK Expect Us!” reads a related tweet by Anonymous.
Assange, the founder and editor of whistleblower website WikiLeaks, has been ordered by Swedish authorities to be extradited from the UK where he had been under house arrest. Two women from Sweden have accused Assange of sex crimes, although he has yet to be charged.
In fear of being sent to Sweden and then extradited to the US to be tried for his role with WikiLeaks, Assange applied for political asylum in Ecuador, which the Latin American country finally granted him last week after two months of waiting. Regardless, British authorities have refused to give Assange safe passage out of the Ecuadorian Embassy in London so that he may travel overseas.
Before Ecuador President Rafael Correa approved the asylum bid, British authorities threatened to storm the embassy last week, prompting supporters of Assange and WikiLeaks to surround the building overnight in hopes of deterring any attempt by the UK to follow through with the extradition.
“If the UK did not throw away the Vienna conventions the other night, it is because the world was watching. And the world was watching because you were watching,” Assange told his supporters during his Sunday afternoon speech from London.
“So, the next time somebody tells you that it is pointless to defend those rights that we hold dear, remind them of your vigil in the dark before the Embassy of Ecuador."
In addition to lambasting the British for coming close to violating international law, Assange asked for US President Barack Obama to “do the right thing” and end his war on whistleblowing, saluting accused WikiLeaks contributor Private First Class Bradley Manning as a hero whose release from prison must be made immediately.

Via RT.com

U.S Man Charged With Nearly Decapitating Brother With Sword, Laying With Brother's Dead Corpse For Two Days

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 06:26:00 +0000

Charles Masters charged for murder.

Charles Masters, a 33-year-old Nashville man was jailed Friday after he allegedly murdered his brother with a sword, then laid next to his brother's body for several days hoping that the brother would "wake up."

According to Metro Nashville Police, officers received a call from Masters around 10:30 p.m. stating that he had a dead body in his apartment.

When officers arrived on the scene, they found the body of 28-year-old Jordon Masters on the living room floor. His head was nearly severed off, and he had multiple lacerations on his body.

When officers spoke with Masters, he made several remarks that led police believe he was responsible for his brother's death. He stated that he had been laying with his brother's body for several nights, praying that he would miraculously wake up and everything would go back to normal.

Police believe Masters stabbed his brother to death with a sword during an argument. The sword was then removed from the apartment.

Masters was booked into the Metro Jail and charged with criminal homicide. He is being held in lieu of a $750,000 bond.

Via The Weekly Vice

Cnet: Top 5 Phones To Avoid.

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 05:31:00 +0000

Sneak Peek Video Of BlackBerry 10

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 04:51:00 +0000

Nasa's Curiosity Rover Prepares To Zap Martian Rocks

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 04:50:00 +0000

NASA's Curiosity rover.

In a BBC report, Nasa's Curiosity rover is getting ready to zap its first Martian rock.

A small stone lying just to the side of the vehicle at its landing site on the floor of Gale Crater has been selected as a test target for the ChemCam laser.

The brief but powerful burst of light from this instrument will vaporise the surface of the rock, revealing details of its basic chemistry.

Dubbed N165, the object is not expected to have any science value, but should show ChemCam is ready for serious work.

"I'd probably guess this is a typical Mars basalt - basaltic rocks making up a large fraction of all the igneous rocks on Mars," Roger Wiens, the instrument's principal investigator, told BBC News.

"A basalt, which is also common under the ocean on Earth, typically has 48% silicon dioxide and percent amounts of iron, calcium and magnesium, and sodium and potassium oxides as well. We're not expecting any surprises," said the Los Alamos National Laboratory researcher.

Curiosity touched down in its equatorial crater two weeks ago.

Its mission is to investigate the rocks at its landing site for evidence that past environments could have supported life.

The rover carries a suite of instruments for the purpose, but its Chemistry and Camera (ChemCam) experiment has probably garnered most attention because nothing like it has ever been flown to Mars before.

ChemCam sits high up on the rover's mast from where it directs a laser beam on to rocks up to 7m (23ft) away.

The spot hit by the infrared laser gets more than a million watts of power focused on it for five one-billionths of a second.

This produces a spark that the instrument observes with a telescope. The colours tell scientists which atomic elements are present in the rock.

ChemCam is going to be a key part of the process of selecting science targets during Curiosity's two-year mission.

If the laser shows up an interesting rock, the vehicle will move closer and deploy its other instruments for a more detailed investigation.

Assuming the test with the 7cm-wide N165 object goes well, ChemCam will move on to its first science target.

This will be rock exposed on the ground next to the rover by the rocket-powered crane used to lower the vehicle to the crater floor.

Exhaust from this descent stage scattered surface grit and pebbles to reveal a harder, compact material underneath.

The crane made four scour marks in the ground - two either side of Curiosity. These have been dubbed Burnside, Goulburn, Hepburn and Sleepy Dragon.

The names, all related to fire, are taken from ancient rock formations in Canadian North America.

Goulburn Scour will be zapped by ChemCam.

"There's bedrock exposed beneath the soil with interesting patterns of colour," said John Grotzinger, Curiosity's project scientist.

"There're lighter parts; there're darker parts, and the team is busy deliberating over how this rock unit may have formed and what it's composed of. We'll aim the ChemCam [at Goulburn Scour], as well as taking even higher resolution images."

Curiosity has not moved since landing on 6 August (GMT). That is about to change.

The rover is going to roll forward briefly to test its locomotion system in the next few days. A reverse manoeuvre is planned, also.

Researchers want eventually to drive several kilometres to the base of the big mountain at the centre of Gale Crater to study sediments that look from satellite pictures to have been laid down in the presence of abundant water.

This journey to the foothills of Mount Sharp is going to have to wait a few months, however, because the science team intends first to go in the opposite direction.

Several hundred metres to the east of Curiosity's present position is an intersection of three geological terrains.

Again, this location has been given a name - Glenelg. And, again, it is taken from the geology of North America.

The intersection is intriguing and a good place to compare and contrast with the bedrock exposed in Goulburn Scour.

In addition, it may provide access to older, harder rocks. These could make for a first opportunity for Curiosity to use its drill.

"Even though it is in the opposite direction from the path to Mount Sharp, it's the one place we can go to to capture a lot of the information that's persevered in our landing [location]," Prof Grotzinger told BBC News.

U.S President Barack Obama Considers Releasing From US s Oil Reserves

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 04:43:00 +0000

U.S strategic oil reserves.

The US is studying plans for a potential release of oil reserves to dampen rising gasoline prices and avoid the negative effect from its sanctions against Iran.
An report from Reuters cites "a source with knowledge of the situation " who says that the president is "dusting off old plans " to release crude oil from the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
The US officials will be monitoring market conditions to see if gasoline prices go down after the September 3 Labor Day holiday, as they historically do, said the source.

In July Brent crude was trading at $90 a barrel but prices have surged in recent weeks, reaching a $120 a barrel.
The United States and other EU countries studied a potential oil release in the spring but suspended the plans until oil prices dropped.
A few months ago Britain, France,Germany and other partner nations in the Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA) were receptive to a potential release.
They were concerned about the impact the high oil prices would have on the global economy and Iran.
However, Germany and EU nations have generally resisted the use of government-held oil inventories unless there was a sharp and deep disruption in supplies.
Although the loss of over half of Iran's oil exports is about equivalent to the drop in Libyan shipments that prompted IEA action last year the decline has been relatively gradual and global commercial oil inventories remain relatively well-supplied for this time of year.
Tapping reserves could cause problems in the US itself, writes Reuters. The decision could spark criticism from Republicans who may see this as a political move to boost the chances of Democratic President Barack Obama in the November 6 election.
“I doubt there would be any moves to release oil supplies before the November Presidential elections. This is normally done in case of a military conflict and it is not in Obama’s interest to have a military conflict before the elections as it will have a negative impact on his ratings” Sergey Vahromeev, senior analyst from Metropol told RT.
The current US strategic reserves amount to 727 million barrels-enough for 37 days of the country’s current oil consumption.
“The US has plenty oil used for commercial purposes. If it releases its strategic oil reserves they will not last long but in normal circumstances they are more than enough.”said Sergey Vahromeev.

Egypt's President Accused Of News Censorship

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 04:38:00 +0000

Egypt's President Mohamed Morsi slammed for censorship.

Egypt’s president has come under fire for censoring news outlets over charges of 'fueling sedition.' The ruling Muslim Brotherhood party’s move to stifle critics has sparked fears they are adopting the repressive tactics they pledged to abolish.
State prosecutors filed lawsuits against two journalists this week, and an entire issue of opposition newspaper al-Doustour was pulled by state censors.

NGO The Appropriate Communication Techniques for Development Group decried the move as a “severe blow to public freedoms that strike warning bells about the rights and freedoms in light of the choice of chief editors of national newspapers,” the group said in a report released on Friday.
Critics argue that the censorship is reminiscent of the press repression employed by ousted President Hosni Mubarak.
The NGO report evaluated President Mohammed Morsi’s overall performance since assuming the presidency, and slammed his policies that “crack down on the freedom of opinion and expression” as a reversal of his pledge to improve freedom of speech in Egypt.
Victoria Nuland, spokesperson for the US State Department, said on Thursday that Washington was "concerned by reports that the Egyptian government is moving to restrict media freedom and criticism in Egypt."
Morsi’s government rebuffed critics, arguing that the move was aimed at suppressing media reports that incite violence, lead to a disruption of public order and personally insult the newly-elected president.
"Those who filed the complaints against the journalists with the public prosecutor are not all from the Brotherhood. There were also ordinary people upset about the disgusting insults that some media have been publicizing," Muslim Brotherhood spokesperson Mahmoud Ghozlan told Reuters.
Charges were brought against al-Dostour editor Islam Afifi for allegedly insulting President Mursi inciting readers to attack Egypt’s new government. The second journalist implicated in the crackdown was al-Faraeen TV presenter Tawfiq Okasha, who was accused of insulting Morsi and calling on viewers to kill him. Al-Faraeen was taken off the air at the behest of the prosecutor.
Same old story?
Many lost hope for greater press freedom under the Muslim Brotherhood control when Salah Abdul Maqsoud, a Brotherhood party member, was made head of the Ministry of Information. The Ministry closely monitors Egyptian state media outlets, and many had hoped the new government would dissolve the ministry and replace it with an independent body.
Following Maqsoud’s appointment, a selection committee tasked with choosing new editors for state-owned media was established, and was widely criticized as being controlled by Muslim Brotherhood affiliates. None of the new editors are Brotherhood party members, but Egyptian journalists allege they are sympathetic to the ruling party.
Some newspaper journalists left the spaces for their columns blank to protest the instatement of the new editors.
"This white space… is in protest against the Muslim Brotherhood's conquest over the newspapers and media outlets that belong to the Egyptian people," a columnist wrote on August 9 in the al-Tahrir newspaper.

Via RT.com

U.S Woman Faces Charges For Feeding Poor Children

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 04:29:00 +0000

Angela Prattis may be fined $600 for each day she provided free food to poor children.

A woman may be fined $600 for each day she provided free food to children in a poor Philadelphia neighborhood for the past few months.
Angela Prattis, 41, of Chester Township has been distributing free healthy lunches in a neighborhood that has a per capita income of $19,000 a year.
Prattis made no money from the meal distribution, and gave out food provided by the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. The “lunch lady” ran the charity out of her garage, to which about 60 children came, five days a week.

After the city council was alerted of the free lunches, it ruled that she would have to acquire a variance to give away food next summer – or pay a fine of $600 a day. The council considers Prattis’ deed a zoning violation. Three months of distributing food would instigate a fine of more than $50,000.
“It’s not like I’m selling food,” she objected.
“These kids are hungry. I’m not tearing down the community. I’m keeping the children out of harm’s way,” she said in a Fox News interview.
But a variance to distribute food would also be costly. Administrative fees for a variance would cost up to $1,000.
“You have houses here. The roofs are falling in, and they could be focused on a lot more serious issues than me feeding children,” Prattis said in response to the city council’s ruling.
The woman has three children of her own, takes care of a foster child and runs a neighborhood basketball program .
The township intitally threatened Prattis with fines for this summer’s food distribution, but withdrew them after news organizations began asking questions. Now, the township is allowing the woman to keep distributing food cost-free until August 24 – but next summer will be a lot more costly. Prattis told local news crews that she will continue helping her community.
“Tell me this program isn’t needed,” she said.

Via RT.com

Police To Track Cell Phones In US Without Court Warrants

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 04:25:00 +0000

Police allowed to track cell phones in US without court warrants. Image credit RT

The US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Americans have no reasonable expectation of privacy when carrying cell phones, allowing police to track GPS signals without a warrant or probable cause.
The decision came the court ruled in United States v. Skinner that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) abided by the Constitution by using a drug runner’s cellphone data to track his location and determine his identity.

Melvin Skinner, also known by his false name as “Big Foot,” was a drug mule with more than 1,100 pounds of marijuana in his Texas motorhome.
The throwaway mobile phone he was using was registered under a false name, so agents did not know the identity of the drug trafficker.
By using GPS data from his disposable phone, police learned that “Big Foot” was planning to deliver a large shipment of marijuana from Arizona to Tennessee in his mobile home.
In 2006, agents obtained a court order – but not a warrant – to track the disposable phone’s location using its GPS.
After tracing the phone’s exact location, police dogs discovered the mobile home and indicated a presence of drugs. “Big Foot” was arrested and charged for drug trafficking and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
But on appeal, the defendant argued that his cell phone data could not be used because the DEA failed to obtain a warrant for it, thereby violating the Fourth Amendment.
The Fourth Amendment protects against “unreasonable searches and seizures” without the issuance of a warrant obtained due to probable cause.
The Court considers cell phone use to be a public – not private – action, thereby being ineligible for the protections of the Fourth Amendment. A court brief of the case states that “a suspect’s presence in a publicly observable place is not information subject to Fourth Amendment protection.”
Additionally, Judge John M. Rogers, writing for the majority, said Skinner “did not have a reasonable expectation of privacy in the data given off by his voluntarily procured pay-as-you-go cell phone. If a tool used to transport contraband gives off a signal that can be tracked for location, certainly the police can track the signal.”
While any US cell phone can now be tracked by police without probable cause or a warrant, the Supreme Court ruled earlier this year that police must obtain a warrant before secretly attacking a GPS tracking device to a suspect’s car.
That ruling is currently being contested, leaving the possibility for police to secretly track vehicles without permission. Without the requirement of a warrant to access cell phone data, US authorities are gaining increasing power over what some would consider “private” rights of individuals – but what the Courts call “public.”

Via RT.com

eBay Bans Sales Of Potions, Spells And Curses

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 04:22:00 +0000

Spell book on sale at ebay.

Cursing an enemy with a hex or finding a charm to make your lover forever faithful has just become a little harder, as eBay has banned the sale of all forms of 'magic' through the online auction site, beginning in September.
“eBay regularly reviews categories and updates our policies based on customer feedback. We are discontinuing a small number of categories within the larger metaphysical subcategory, as buyers and sellers have told us that transactions in these categories often result in issues that can be difficult to resolve,” the company announced in a statement.
Still, eBay has plenty to offer buyers with unusual tastes, with users hawking everything from vintage sneakers to fossil bones. Even the weirdest items up for auction often find buyers who are willing to pay out huge sums for strange finds.
Earlier this year, a blob of glue slightly resembling the head of cartoon character Homer Simpson sold for $235,000 on eBay.

Record Producer Carl Davis, Dies At The Age of 77

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 04:17:00 +0000

Davis produced the Chi-lites 1972 hit Oh Girl and Are You My Woman? (Tell Me So), sampled by Beyonce.

Record producer Carl Davis, who helped shape the sound of Chicago soul, died last week at the age of 77.

Davis, who produced the legendary chart-topper Duke of Earl, was at the centre of the Chicago music scene during the 1960s and 70s.

His reputation as a talent spotter saw him work with Curtis Mayfield, Major Lance and Jackie Wilson, with whom he recorded the hit (Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher.

He died at his home in South Carolina.

"Like Berry Gordy, he understood the modern recording industry of the 60s and 70s, and really understood how to make hit records," said Robert Pruter, music journalist and author of Doowop: The Chicago Scene.

Davis was born in Chicago on 19 September 1934, but in spite of the fact that most of his family were musically gifted, Davis "couldn't play a note" - according to his brother, George.

But his gift for recognising hits quickly became apparent when he took a job alongside the DJ Al Benson in the mid-1950s.

His defining success came with Duke of Earl, whose vocal riff he first heard during a rehearsal session by the Dukays. The Gene Chandler hit went on to top the charts in 1962 for five weeks and sold more than one million copies.

In the same year, Davis was offered a job at Columbia Records subsidiary Okeh, where he worked with Major Lance on popular hits including The Monkey Time and Hey Little Girl.

In 1965, he moved to the Brunswick label where he once again collaborated with Gene Chandler and found further chart success with Wilson's Higher and Higher.

He also produced the Chi-Lites' 1972 hit Oh Girl and Are You My Woman? (Tell Me So), which was more recently sampled in Beyonce's Crazy in Love.

Latterly he founded two labels: Dakar and Chi-Sound, but the success of Chicago soul began to falter in the 1980s.

In later years, he found himself variously working as a security guard and a chauffeur - although Chi-Sound was revived in 2007.

He is survived by his wife, Dedra, and seven children.

Via BBC.co.uk

Air France Flight Beg Passengers For Gas Money At Landing In Damascus

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 04:13:00 +0000

A plane of French company Air France.

An awkward emergency landing in Syria was bad enough, but the crew of Air France Flight 562 was forced to beg passengers for money to buy more fuel.
The plane, heading from Paris to the Lebanese capital with 185 people on board, was diverted over tensions near the Beirut International Airport. Low on fuel, the flight made an emergency landing in Damascus.
Sanctions against Syria increased the cost of the refueling, an Air France spokesperson said. The asked passengers for cash only as a "precautionary measure" because of the "very unusual circumstances," they said.

"The pilot asked the passengers in first class to get their cash together. Everyone started to collect money, and they managed to collect 17,000, but the pilot in the end didn't take anything. They resolved the problems with the Damascus airport," a passenger identified as May Bsat said in an interview with France-Info radio.
Air France managed to pay for the refueling without tapping their customers' pockets, and apologized for the inconvenience. It is not known how much the company paid.
The layover proved awkward for Air France, the flagship carrier of a country whose government has taken a hardline stance against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The French government has warned its citizens to leave and avoid traveling to Syria. Air France operated regular flights to Damascus until suspending earlier this year over the ongoing violence in the country. France has also championed sanctions against Syrian national airline Syria Air.
This was the first time Air France had resorted to requesting passengers foot the bill for fuel, but it isn't the first airline to do so. Hundreds of passengers traveling from India to Britain were stranded for six hours in Vienna last year when their Comtel Air flight stopped for fuel, and the charter service asked them to kick in more than 20,000 UK Pounds ($31,000) to fund the rest of the flight to Birmingham, UK.

Via RT.com

Taliban Claim Infiltration Of Afghan Forces

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 04:09:00 +0000

Members of terrorist group, Taliban.

The spiritual leader of the Taliban said the group's insurgents have succeeded in foisting the ranks of the Afghan security forces, allowing them to attack their fellow NATO service members. The admission comes amidst a rise in friendly fire attacks.
“Mujahideen have cleverly infiltrated the ranks of the enemy according to the plan given to them last year,”
Mullah Mohammed Omar, the one-time de facto leader of Afghanistan, who is now believed to have taken refuge in Pakistan, said in a statement Thursday. “They are able to [safely] enter bases, offices and intelligence centers of the enemy. Then, they easily carry out decisive and coordinated attacks.”
Rogue shootings of foreign troops claimed lives of nearly 40 soldiers in several dozen attacks in 2012.
The latest instance of Afghan security forces turning their weapons against US troops came in two separate attacks on Friday. In one of the attacks, an Afghan man who had been recruited to a the Afghan Local Police (ALP), a special security force for villages, shot and killed two US service members in the western province of Farah. He was later shot dead by other US troops. Just hours later, an Afghan soldier turned his gun on foreign troops in the southern Kandahar province, wounding two of them before being gunned down himself.
The so-called “green-on-blue” or "insider incidents" shootings are responsible for 13 per cent of foreign troop deaths in Afghanistan, the Long War Journal website reported.
ISAF command insists the friendly-fire shootings have nothing to do with the Taliban infiltrating Afghan police, but are rather the result of stress and personal disagreements between NATO service members training Afghan forces.
Pentagon chief Leon Panetta admitted that the Taliban had been behind at least some of the attacks, but downplayed their overall significance.
“The Taliban has not been able to regain any territory lost, so they're resorting to these kinds of attacks to create havoc," Panetta said, adding that the Taliban’s new tactic does not "reflect any kind of broad pattern."
Mullah Omar urged Afghan nationals serving in the police, army and government to cease supporting the occupying forces and back the Taliban as the 2014 deadline for NATO troop withdrawal approaches.
The Taliban is creating a shadow Afghan government called the Department of Call and Guidance, Luring and Integration, successfully setting up branches across Afghanistan, Mullah Omar said.
And as the Taliban readies itself to return to the realms of power, fellow militants have also been told to become more civilian-friendly – literally.
In a seven-page statement issued Thursday ahead of the Eid al-Fitr festival that marks the end of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, the usually reclusive Omar urged insurgents to "employ tactics that do not cause harm to life and property of the common countrymen," Reuters reported.
"The instructions given to you for the protection of civilian losses are, on you, a religious obligation to observe," Mullah Omar said in a message that has been translated into five languages.
The Taliban commander is likely attempting to improve the organization's image in Afghanistan, where it has been blamed for 80 per cent of civilian casualties in the country in a recent UN report ‘US training Taliban to kill American soldiers’.
The fact that Afghan security forces, who are meant to serve as a bulwark against the Taliban, have been infiltrated by the militant group is only a blaring illustration of the “miserable failure of the war,” John Glaser, assistant editor at Antiwar.com, told RT.
“There has been a significant rise in so-called 'green-on-blue' attacks, and a number of current and former US officials have revealed to the press their belief that both the Taliban and Pakistan's secret service have infiltrated the Afghan security personnel,” he noted. “This essentially means the US is training their own Taliban enemies to kill US soldiers.”
This means peace is probably not in the cards in Afghanistan's future.
“Since much of those forces have been infiltrated by the Taliban, and considering the insurgency is as strong as ever, the Taliban could very well rule Afghanistan following the US withdrawal,” Glaser remarked. “What is probably more likely, is that Afghanistan will descend into all-out civil war, with various warlord groups all vying for local power and autonomy.”
But in vying for power in a post-ISAF Afghanistan, the Taliban doesn’t want to make the mistake al-Qaeda made in Iraq by killing civilians, alienating the majority of the population in the process.
“They have probably learned their lesson from earlier in the war, that killing too many civilians harms their own chances at a return to power once NATO troops withdraw,” Glaser said. “A similar story occurred with al-Qaeda, whose insurgents in Iraq brutalized many innocents, which eventually turned their Iraqi insurgents against them in the Sunni Awakening.”

Via RT.com

France Bandits Rob ATMs Of Millions Using Forks.

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 04:01:00 +0000

Million stolen in cash from ATM using forks. Image credit RT.

French police are searching for an organized crime ring that has stolen more than 1,000,000 Euros in cash from ATM machines, using only a fork.
Investigators were shocked by the simplicity and ingenuity of the countrywide rash of ATM heists: The gang managed to make the thefts by jamming a fork into the machines' cash dispensers, exploiting a previously unknown security flaw.

The mass robberies were discovered when dozens of fake ATM withdrawals, mainly from Caisse d'Epargne machines, were caught on camera.
The Caisse d'Epargne group, which includes the Natixis bank, filed a case with the police in early August after noticing balance discrepancies in many of their ATMs. After examining CCTV footage from the machines, French law enforcement concluded that the gang used prepaid bank cards to conduct the thefts.
“After making one transaction with their bank cards they insert a small fork with the teeth bent back into the cash distributor,” police said to Le Parisien. “Then the thieves attempt a much bigger second withdrawal, which they cancel before the transaction is finish. By then the cash is prepared in the distributor, which they pull out with the help of the fork.”

French police have made four arrests in connection with the thefts, all of whom are thought to be Romanian nationals. Police are searching for another dozen gang members believed to be involved in the crimes.
The bandits are believed to have begun operating in Belgium at the start of the summer. The banks are now scrambling to develop methods to enhance ATM security.

Via RT.com

South Africans Protest 'Apartheid'-like Violence

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 03:57:00 +0000

Strikers near the South African Marikana platinum mine. Image credit Reuters, RT/Siphiwe Sibeko

Thousands of protesters gathered at the South African Marikana platinum mine to demand justice after police shot and killed 34 miners. Many demonstrators said the shootings recalled violence from the country's Apartheid era.
The protesters demanded an explanation for why police fired automatic rifles, pistols and shotguns at striking miners on Thursday. Relatives of those killed also complained that police and the mine's management failed to produce a notarized list of those killed.

Political parties and labor unions in the country are demanding an investigation into the bloodshed, with President Jacob Zuma vowing to conduct an official inquiry into the shootings. Police claim the killings were done in self-defense.
National Police Chief Mangwashi Victoria Phiyega attempted to defuse tensions, saying the Thursday killings marked a dark day for South Africa, but that the protesters should refrain from hastily assigning blame.
Mass strikes began last week in Marikana, northwest of Johannesburg, with thousands of miners massing outside the facility to demand higher wages and better working conditions. As violence escalated, some 3,000 police equipped with riot gear and supported by helicopters were deployed to the area on Wednesday.
At least 10 people had been killed prior to Thursday clashes, including two police officers beaten to death and two mine security officers burnt in their car by striking protesters.
The mass killings occurred on Thursday after police were outflanked by a crowd of demonstrators armed with machetes and spears, according to some reports. Others allege that the protesters were attempting to flee clouds of tear gas, and had no intention of attacking police.
At least 34 strikers were killed in the clashes, with 80 wounded. Police arrested some 200 protesters. Lonmin PLC, the company that owns the mine, claimed that the violence was due to a dispute between rival unions.

Via RT.com

Band Member's Husband Condemns Pussy Riot Prison Sentences

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 03:49:00 +0000

The seven members of the Rock band, Pussy Riot.

The husband of one of the members of Russian punk rock band Pussy Riot imprisoned for hooliganism in Moscow is leading a chorus of condemnation after a conviction decried as an attack on free speech.
Three young women, Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, Maria Alyokhina and Yekaterina Samutsevich, were sentenced to two years in prison Friday after being convicted of hooliganism motivated by religious hatred.
They were arrested after performing a song critical of President Vladimir Putin in one of the Russian Orthodox Church's most important cathedrals in February, a flash mob-style act that outraged many of the country's faithful.

Footage of the brief but provocative protest action, in which the band members clad in balaclavas screamed "Mother Mary, please drive Putin away," inside Christ Savior Cathedral attracted wide attention after it was posted online.
The sentence handed down to the trio was widely condemned by rights groups and senior international figures as disproportionate, although polling suggests many in Russia believe they had a fair trial.
Pyotr Verzilov, husband of Tolokonnikova, told CNN's Connect the World that legal experts had assured him while the women might have been arrested for their action elsewhere in the world, they would not have gone to prison for it.
"This would never happen in any Western country, it's just not possible," he said.

Verzilov said the authorities had crossed "a certain line" in arresting the women for a nonviolent protest act -- and that this was the reason for the international outcry over the case, with celebrities including Madonna backing their cause.
"Everyone was amazed that Putin decided to give this brutal sentence to girls for singing a protest song inside a church -- no one was expecting that," he said.
He said there had been no time to say goodbye as his wife -- who is also mother to their young child -- was taken from the courtroom to start her prison term.

"Right after the girls heard the verdict, we only had a couple of glances, for five seconds, and that was it. She was led away by all these numerous guards in the court room and we couldn't speak to each other," he said.
Verzilov's criticisms echo international concern that the sentence, although handed down by a court, may have been politically motivated and reflects a recent crackdown on free speech by Russia's authorities.
White House spokesman Josh Earnest also said the United States was "disappointed" by the verdict and sentence.
"While we understand the group's behavior was offensive to some, we have serious concerns about the way that these young women have been treated by the Russian judicial system," he said.
European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton condemned the court's decision as "deeply troubling."
"Together with the reports of the band members' mistreatment during their pre-trial detention and the reported irregularities of the trial, it puts a serious question mark over Russia's respect for international obligations of fair, transparent and independent legal process," she said. "It also runs counter to Russia's international obligations as regards to respect for freedom of expression."
Urging Russia to reverse the sentence, Ashton said the case "adds to the recent upsurge in politically motivated intimidation and prosecution of opposition activists in the Russian Federation, a trend that is of growing concern to the European Union."
Rights group Amnesty International said that the court's decision was "a bitter blow for freedom of expression in the country" and that the women were now "prisoners of conscience."
Amnesty believes that the women's conduct "was politically motivated, and that they were wrongfully prosecuted for what was a legitimate -- if potentially offensive -- protest action," it said in a statement.
Human Rights Watch also said the women should never have been prosecuted for a hate crime.
Inside the courtroom, Judge Marina Sirovaya found the three Pussy Riot members guilty of offending the churchgoers present -- through their actions, obscene language and their clothing -- and showing a lack of respect for the rules of the Orthodox Church.
Polling by the Levada Center indicates that many people within Russia support the legal proceedings against the three women.
Its poll, conducted before the sentence was handed down, found that 44% of people surveyed thought the trial was fair, while 17% thought it wasn't fair and 39% said they didn't know.
Verzilov said the survey's findings reflect the dominance of state media, particularly in areas of Russia where access to the Internet is limited.
This made it easy to turn people against the band by portraying it as anti-Orthodox Christian, anti-Russian values and revolutionary, he said.
Tolokonnikova, Alyokhina and Samutsevich have spent five months in pre-trial detention, which counts toward their two-year term.
They are expected to appeal the court's decision -- but Verzilov said he did not think they would request a presidential pardon.
"My wife has already answered this question -- 'it's not us who should be asking Putin for pardon, it's Putin who should be asking for a pardon from us and the whole country,'" he cites her as saying.

Via CNN.com

Russia Maintains Stand On Gay Pride Events

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sun, 19 Aug 2012 03:43:00 +0000

A participant attends an unauthorized rally staged by LGBT activists on Moscow's Tverskaya Street. (RIA Novosti/Andrey Stenin

Russia's highest Court, The Moscow City Court has confirmed for the second time its ruling banning all LGBT pride events in the Russian capital for the next century.
The court rejected a cassation appeal filed by Nikolai Alekseyev, the leader of a Russian gay rights community and the organizer of previous gay pride events. Alekseyev wanted the case to be passed to the Presidium of the Moscow City Court for reconsideration.

“In the nearest future we will contest the authorities’ actions over the 100-year ban on gay pride events in the European Court of Human Rights. Through this we will eventually achieve that the bans are recognized as unlawful, not only for the past, but for the future gay parades in the Russian capital,” the Interfax news agency quoted Alekseyev as saying.
The activist said he would report about the ruling to the Ministers’ Committee of the Council of Europe, which in September will consider the legality of the Alekseyev vs. Russia case that banned LGBT pride events in 2006, 2007 and 2008.
Earlier, the Tverskoy district court ruled in favor of the Moscow municipal government's March 2012 to May 2112 ban on public LGBT parades. The ruling came after LGBT rights campaigners discovered a loophole in Russian legislation, and submitted requests for 102 LGBT pride parades to the Moscow Mayor’s office.
In response, they received a letter with a quote from the legal regulations prohibiting the parades. Current law requires city authorities to either allow or ban the planned event within 15 days of the request.
After the initial ruling, Alekseyev said that he and his group did not believe they would receive a license for the parade, but rather wanted a formal reason to take their case to the European Court of Human Rights.
The Russian government began a legal campaign this year against alleged homosexual propaganda. A law against promotion of homosexuality and pedophilia was approved and enacted in St. Petersburg, prompting a group of parliamentarians to suggest approving a similar national law.
Two individuals in St. Petersburg were recently sentenced under the law for displaying a poster reading 'Being gay is normal' on a street near a kindergarten.
The bill has been widely criticized by Russian LGBT and human rights activists, as well as international human rights groups. Protest rallies outside of Russian consulates took place in several countries throughout the world.

Via RT.com