Canada wins at Davos; Happy's hosting Alaska

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Canada jumped out to a big early lead en route to a 7-1 win over HC Vitkovice Steel in the opener for both teams Monday at the Spengler Cup in Davos, Switzerland.

Brett McLean of Comox, Joel Kwiatkowski, Domenic Pittis, Mark Hartigan and Rico Fata scored in the first period for the Canadians, who completely outplayed their Czech opponents. Defenceman Shawn Heins picked up two assists.

McLean, who is playing for Rockford of the AHL (Chicago Blackhawks affiliate) this season, made it 4-0 with a pretty deflection on a two-man advantage off a point shot from Heins at 10:08 and Fata stretched the lead with a backhand deke on a breakaway at 17:15.

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Canada played the host Davos team Wednesday in their final preliminary round game and suffered an 8-1 setback. Canada took on Wolfsburg in Thursday's quarter-finals, with result unavailable at press time. Semifinals go today with the championship at 6 a.m. PT Saturday. Fans can follow the games and The Royston Rocket on TSN or TSN2.

The Spengler Cup, which organizers say is the oldest professional international hockey tournament in the world, has been held in the picturesque mountain town of Davos since 1923. The competition features five European club teams and a Canadian entry comprised largely of European-based pros.

Canada has appeared in nine of the last 11 Spengler Cup finals, last winning the tournament in 2007.

The format offers little margin for error. After opening with two round-robin games, the tournament shifts into a sudden-death playoff round. The championship game will be played on New Year's Eve.

Home Game

For those who prefer to see their international hockey live instead of on the television, a New Year's Eve treat awatis.

At 9:45 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 31 Happy?s Source for Sports Chiefs Midget Tier 1 team is taking on a visiting squad from Alaska.

"We would love to fill the stands for this exciting game of hockey," a Comox Valley Minor Hockey Association spokesperson said.

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Source: http://www.comoxvalleyrecord.com/sports/136401723.html

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Most Rented Redbox Films of 2011 [INFOGRAPHIC] (Mashable)

Redbox, the kiosk rental company that has outpaced traditional retail rental shops, has shared its most rented films of 2011. With Netflix making the controversial decision to increase its prices, Redbox's value proposition for movie and video game rentals has only increased -- even after a modest price increase of its own.

[More from Mashable: 2011: Tech?s Biggest Winners and Losers]

Redbox has revealed the winners of its 2011 Movie Awards, showcasing the actors and movies that topped Redbox rental charts in 2011.

Additionally, Redbox gave actor Kevin James the first "Redbox Lifetime Achievement Award." James gets the honor, thanks to the Redbox success of titles like Grown Ups, Zookeeper and The Dilemma.

[More from Mashable: Redbox Raises DVD Prices: We?ve Seen This Movie Before]

Academy Award winner Natalie Portman got the title of "Most-Rented Actress" for 2011, thanks to her work in Black Swan, Thor and No Strings Attached. Owen Wilson was named "Most-Rented Actor" of 2011, thanks to Little Fockers, Cars 2 and How Do You Know.

Looking at the list of most-rented titles, it's interesting to note that the majority were not runaway successes at the box office. What was your favorite film rental of 2011? Let us know.

This story originally published on Mashable here.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/videogames/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/mashable/20111229/tc_mashable/most_rented_redbox_films_of_2011_infographic

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Wall St rises, on track for slim gains in 2011 (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) ? U.S. stocks rallied on Thursday, moving the S&P 500 back in positive territory for 2011 ahead of the last trading day of the year, on more positive signals on the U.S. economy.

The S&P 500 edged above its 200-day moving average, a key measure of the market's long-term momentum, but scant volume increased volatility, and made the gains harder to trust.

Europe's sovereign debt crisis has been the primary concern for U.S. investors in 2011. Mixed results on an auction of long-term Italian bonds was another sign bond markets remain worried about the euro zone.

With trading thin, the only bit of suspense left for U.S. investors is whether the S&P 500 will end positive for 2011 or not. It is now up 0.4 percent for the year, the closest it has been to unchanged for a year since 1970.

"Equities are gravitating towards that 1,260 mark on the S&P to get the end of the year in the green," said Joe Cusick, senior market analyst at optionsXpress.com in Chicago.

The Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) shot up 135.63 points, or 1.12 percent, to 12,287.04 at the close. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index (.SPX) gained 13.38 points, or 1.07 percent, to 1,263.02. The Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC) advanced 23.76 points, or 0.92 percent, to 2,613.74.

Banks were the biggest gainers along with commodity-related sectors, which sold off hard on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) gained 2.4 percent to $33.42. The S&P financial index (.GSPF) rose 1.6 percent, while the capital goods sector (.GSPIC) added 1.3 percent. Shares of Dow component Caterpillar (CAT.N) advanced 1.4 percent to $90.58 while Alcoa (AA.N), another Dow stock, rose 1.3 percent to $8.63.

Cusick added that strength in offensive sectors like banks, materials and industrials "could be a catalyst for stocks to end the year higher."

Italian bond yields, which helped break a five-day rally with a sharp selloff in the last session, eased on Thursday after a debt auction.

Stocks added to gains after the euro erased losses against the dollar, rebounding from a 15-month low in thin trading.

But the yield on 10-year Italian bonds hovered near 7 percent, a level markets see as a danger zone for Italy's government debt.

Pending sales of existing U.S. homes surged to a 1-1/2 year high in November, offering more signs of a tentative housing recovery. That report drove the Dow Jones home builders index (.DJUSHB) up 4.3 percent.

In addition, factory activity kept growing in the U.S. Midwest in December, as purchasing managers reported rising prices and employment, even though production eased slightly.

On the down side, initial claims for jobless benefits rose more than expected, giving a mixed labor picture, but investors said the trend was still lower.

Recent economic data, including reports on housing, have been largely positive, contributing to stocks' gains over the past month and bolstering the view that economic growth is picking up steam.

"We have seen a pretty encouraging trend in the U.S. economic data over the last two months," said Peter Jankovskis, co-chief investment officer of OakBrook Investments in Lisle, Illinois. "If that trend continues, that will provide good support and perhaps some upward momentum."

The next big test for markets in terms of U.S. economic data will be the December payrolls report at the end of next week.

For the year, the Dow is up 6.1 percent and the S&P 500 is up 0.4 percent, while the Nasdaq is down 1.5 percent.

<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

For a graphic on markets' performance in 2011:

http://r.reuters.com/xut75s

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Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) shares dipped 0.02 percent to $173.86. Goldman Sachs said the online retailer's sales growth in the current holiday quarter could miss expectations.

Diamond Foods Inc (DMND.O) shares rose 7.2 percent to $31.51 after CNBC reported rumors that high-profile investor David Einhorn may have invested in the company.

About 4.16 billion shares exchanged hands on the New York Stock Exchange, NYSE Amex and the Nasdaq, well below the year's daily average of about 7.9 billion shares. On the NYSE, four stocks rose for every one that fell. On the Nasdaq, advancers beat decliners by a ratio of more than 2 to 1.

(Reporting By Angela Moon; Editing by Jan Paschal)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/eurobiz/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111229/bs_nm/us_markets_stocks

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Abortion, immigration changes among new 2012 laws

In this Dec. 12, 2011 photo, Irvis Orozco, 24, a senior studying international relations at the University of California, Davis, poses on campus in Davis, Calif. A new law that will take effect Jan. 1, 2012, will allow Orozco, who was brought to the country illegally from Mexico when he was an infant, to receive private financial aid at California's public colleges. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

In this Dec. 12, 2011 photo, Irvis Orozco, 24, a senior studying international relations at the University of California, Davis, poses on campus in Davis, Calif. A new law that will take effect Jan. 1, 2012, will allow Orozco, who was brought to the country illegally from Mexico when he was an infant, to receive private financial aid at California's public colleges. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

In this Dec. 12, 2011 photo, Irvis Orozco, 24, a senior studying international relations at the University of California, Davis, poses for a photo on campus in Davis, Calif. A new law that will take effect Jan. 1, 2012, will allow Orozco, who was brought to the country illegally from Mexico when he was an infant, to receive private financial aid at California's public colleges. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

This Dec. 9, 2011 photo shows an open tanning booth at Amazing Tans in Sacramento, Calif. A new law taking effect Jan. 1, 2012, will make California the first state to make it illegal for people younger than 18 to use tanning beds. Before, using tanning beds was illegal for those 14 and under, but those ages 15-17 could tan with their parents' permission. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

Girls seeking abortions in New Hampshire must first tell their parents or a judge, employers in Alabama must verify new workers' U.S. residency, and California students will be the first in the country to receive mandatory lessons about the contributions of gays and lesbians under state laws set to take effect at the start of 2012.

Many laws reflect the nation's concerns over immigration, the cost of government and the best way to protect and benefit young people, including regulations on sports concussions.

Alabama, with the country's toughest immigration law, is enacting a key provision requiring all employers who do business with any government entity to use a federal system known as E-Verify to check that all new employees are in the country legally.

Georgia is putting a similar law into effect requiring any business with 500 or more employees to use E-Verify to check the employment eligibility of new hires. The requirement is being phased in, with all employers with more than 10 employees to be included by July 2013.

Supporters said they wanted to deter illegal immigrants from coming to Georgia by making it tougher for them to work. Critics said that changes to immigration law should come at the federal level and that portions of the law already in effect are already hurting Georgia.

"It is destroying Georgia's economy and it is destroying the fabric of our social network in South Georgia," Paul Bridges, mayor of the onion-farming town of Uvalda, said in November. He is part of a lawsuit challenging the new law.

Tennessee will also require businesses to ensure employees are legally authorized to work in the U.S. but exempts employers with five or fewer workers and allows them to keep a copy of the new hire's driver's license instead of using E-Verify.

A South Carolina law would allow officials to yank the operating licenses of businesses that don't check new hires' legal status through E-verify. A federal judge last week blocked parts of the law that would have required police to check the immigration status of criminal suspects or people stopped for traffic violations they think might be in the country illegally, and that would have made it a crime for illegal immigrants to transport or house themselves.

California is also addressing illegal immigration, but with a bill that allows students who entered the country illegally to receive private financial aid at public colleges.

Many laws aim to protect young people. In Colorado, coaches will be required to bench players as young as 11 when they're believed to have suffered a head injury. The young athletes will also need medical clearance to return to play.

The law also requires coaches in public and private schools and even volunteer Little League and Pop Warner football coaches to take free annual online training to recognize the symptoms of a concussion. At least a dozen other states have enacted similar laws with the support of the National Football League.

People 18 and under in Illinois will have to wear seat belts while riding in taxis for school-related purposes, and Illinois school boards can now suspend or expel students who make explicit threats on websites against other students or school employees.

Florida will take control of lunch and other school food programs from the federal government, allowing the state to put more Florida-grown fresh fruit and vegetables on school menus. Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam says the change will help children eat healthier.

A California law will add gays and lesbians and people with disabilities to the list of social and ethnic groups whose contributions must be taught in history lessons in public schools. The law also bans teaching materials that reflect poorly on gays or particular religions.

Opponents have filed five potential initiatives to repeal the requirement outright or let parents remove their children while gays' contributions are being taught.

In New Hampshire, a law requiring girls seeking abortions to tell their parents or a judge first was reinstated by conservative Republicans over a gubernatorial veto. The state enacted a similar law eight years ago, but it was never enforced following a series of lawsuits.

In Arkansas, facilities that perform 10 or more nonsurgical abortions a month must be licensed by the state Health Department and be subject to inspections by the department, the same requirements faced by facilities that offer surgical abortions in the state.

It affects two Planned Parenthood facilities that offer the abortion pill, though they're not singled out in the statute.

Among federal laws, a measure Congress passed last week to extend Social Security tax cuts and federal unemployment benefit programs raises insurance fees on new mortgages and refinancings backed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and the Federal Housing Administration by 0.1 percent beginning Jan. 1.

That covers about 90 percent of them and effectively makes a borrower's monthly payment on a new $200,000 mortgage or refinancing about $17 a month more than it would have been if obtained before the first of the year.

Nevada's 3-month old ban on texting while driving will get tougher, with tickets replacing the warnings that police have issued since the ban took effect Oct. 1. In Pennsylvania, police are preparing to enforce that state's recently enacted ban on texting, scheduled to take effect by spring.

Election law changes in Rhode Island and Tennessee will require voters to present photo ID, a measure that supporters say prevents fraud and that opponents say will make it harder for minorities and the elderly to cast ballots.

In Ohio, a measure that creates one primary in March, instead of two that would have cost the state an extra $15 million, goes into effect later in January.

Ohio is also one of eight states with automatic increases in the minimum wage taking effect Jan. 1. The others, with increases between 28 and 37 cents, are Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Montana, Oregon, Vermont and Washington.

A few laws try to address budget woes. In Delaware, new state employees will have to contribute more to their pensions, while state workers hired after Jan. 1 in Nevada will have to pony up for their own health care costs in retirement.

Jan. 1 is the effective date in many states for laws passed during this year's legislative sessions. In others, laws take effect July 1, or 90 days after passage.

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Welsh-Huggins reported from Columbus, Ohio, and can be reached at http://twitter.com/awhcolumbus.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2011-12-28-New%20Laws/id-313536fa9b6440cc89ae8b8e49ce2b3f

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Spartan football team honored

The Superior High School football team, coached by Bob DeMeyer, was named the Big Rivers Conference?s Sportsmanship winner for the 2011 football season.

This is the second straight year the Spartan football team has won this award.

Also nominated were Menomonie and River Falls.

Tags: sports,?spartans,?football,?updates

Source: http://www.superiortelegram.com/event/article/id/61273/

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Federal judge ends BP's probation for Alaska spill (AP)

ANCHORAGE, Alaska ? A federal judge on Tuesday dismissed prosecutors' argument that a BP subsidiary violated its probation after an oil spill because of another spill on Alaska's North Slope.

Judge Ralph Beistline also lifted BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc.'s probation altogether.

BP had been convicted of negligent discharge of oil in 2007 for a 200,000-gallon spill on the North Slope a year earlier. There was another spill of 13,500 gallons in 2009.

Last month, government lawyers sought to have BP's probation revoked for the latest spill, meaning the probation period could have been lengthened or the company could have faced additional penalties.

In his ruling, Beistline said the government failed to prove the company committed criminal negligence.

"We are pleased with the decision and appreciate the court's attention," BP spokesman Steve Rinehart said in an email to The Associated Press. "We know that the privilege of working in Alaska comes with a responsibility to maintain high standards. We will continue our commitment to running safe and compliant operations."

Emails seeking comment from the U.S. attorney's office in Anchorage were not immediately returned.

Prosecutors said BP's history of environmental crimes in Alaska began in February 2001 when it pleaded guilty to releasing hazardous materials at its Endicott facility on the North Slope. The company was fined $500,000, placed on probation for five years and ordered to create a nationwide environmental management program, prosecutors said.

The March 2006 spill of 200,000 gallons of crude was caused by corrosion, and BP's leak detection system failed to notice it, they said.

The company's guilty plea to a misdemeanor violation of the Clean Water Act in 2007 resulted in three years' probation, a $12 million fine, and restitution and community service payments totaling $8 million to the state of Alaska and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

Prosecutors contended BP violated the conditions of its probation by allowing the 2009 spill from an 18-inch pipe that moved oil, water and gas from drill pads to BP's Lisburne Processing Center. That spill, prosecutors said, leaked 13,500 gallons of oil onto tundra and wetlands.

The government said it was similar to the 2006 spill because BP ignored alarms that warned of the pipe's eventual rupture and leak. The 2009 spill also came after a similar pipe froze and ruptured in 2001, they said, and BP failed to put in place preventative measures that their own experts recommended.

But in his ruling, Beistline wrote: "The investigation concluded, based on the metallurgy report, that the pipeline rupture was not caused by corrosion or improper maintenance, but was caused by a sequence of circumstances, including cooling and warming of ambient temperature after the flow stopped, which led to the freezing of both water and hydrates. This ultimately resulted in increased gas pressure within the pipeline that caused the rupture. Why the flow slowed initially remains a mystery to all."

Beistline said BP followed "accepted industry practices at all relevant times and could not have reasonably expected a blowout similar to the one that occurred on November 29, 2009. Further, the court concludes that once the freeze up was discovered, BP acted reasonably in addressing the problem."

He also said BP's efforts to return the spill site to pre-spill conditions were "impressive."

"An untrained observer would likely be unable to find any indication that a spill had occurred," he wrote, adding there was no evidence that contaminants reached any nearby lakes or Prudhoe Bay.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/environment/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111227/ap_on_re_us/us_bp_spills_probation

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Video: Porsche Police Cars on Parade in Qatar

Porsche, Qatar, Videos ? By Lawrence on December 28, 2011 at 11:26 am ? No Comments

We stumbled across a video today showing a procession of Porsche Panamera and Cayenne police cars in the sovereign Arab state of Qatar celebrating the 2011 Qatar National Day. We?re not sure whether these are all real police cars but it seems perfectly plausible. Qatar is a known investor in both Porsche and it?s parent company the Volkswagen group.

Every December 18th, Qatar celebrates their National Day in commemoration of the historic day in 1878 when Shaikh Jasim, the founder of the State of Qatar, succeeded his father, Shaikh Muhammad Bin Thani, as the ruler and led the country toward unity. December 18th is the day they remember how their national unity was achieved, and this impressive parade was part of it.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GTspirit/~3/maEOfh61fgk/

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Sony Sells Samsung Its Half of LCD Manufacturing Venture for $940 Million

Sony and Samsung have had a jointly owned LCD panel production planet for years, applying the economies of scale to benefit both companies? TV business. Since Sony?s TV business is not in the best of shape, they are even outsourcing some of the production to Chinese OEMs on the lower end of the scale. Since the TV business is rather flat at the moment, it?s not surprising that Sony is looking for ways to mitigate some of the losses they?ve probably experienced in 2011. Samsung in the meantime has plenty of reason to snag some extra capacity, as their mobile phone and tablet business enjoys some of the biggest volumes of sales in the industry. Of course, Samsung and Sony are not the only customers of the plant; Samsung panels are?found in a variety of other consumer products, from bargain TV brands, to even the Apple iPad

With increasing pressure inside Sony to get rid of the TV business all together, this fall?s reorganization and the divesting of the planet may be the first steps toward doing so. Of course, Sony also sold their CELL PS3 CPU manufacturing business to Toshiba, and then made a tidy profit buying it back a few years later when it didn?t turn out to be the miracle processor everyone thought it would be, so maybe there?s more to their plans than meets the eye here

Via: [Reuters]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/hometechtell/~3/r8Oxa-kMtZ4/

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Automotive Industry ? Pricol | Automotive Diagnosis

Automotive industry plays a responsible and worthy role in economy of a country.Present scenario indicates a stupendous growth in the industry across the globe.Affordability, increased purchasing power and a desire for better lives is driving people from all walks of life to own a four wheeler. It is no more restricted to be the luxury of rich and famous.If statistics are taken in to consideration, in India, cars manufacturing has grown from 7, 23,330 cars to 13, 08,913 cars in barely three years. This promises an undeniable growth and development of automotive parts manufacturing also.

Established in 1976, Pricol has been a premier and expert manufacturer of automotive parts.It is reckoned as market leader in automotive industry of India for uncompromising quality, profit productivity and time bound deliveries.

Any industry or trade flourishes exceedingly in favorable situations. It further boosts the sales and profitability when policies and regulations that are introduced promote business.Technology has made access to all relevant information instant, simple and easy.Government is formulating and introducing flexible rules that are export and import friendly.The most recent example of such an initiative is the launch of the Harley Davidson brand of motorcycles in India.Many such automotive giants are looking at India as potential market.Almost every quarter there is new product line launched; specific designs are being developed to cater to Asian and Indian market.

Pricol has delivered and is continually upgrades it systems to meet future demands of the automotive industry.The manufacturing and services units provide trustworthy and expert technical know-how of the vehicles of all segments.The product range offers spare parts for motorcycles, scooter, cars, SUVs, MU Vs, Trucks, trailers, tractors, bus, and fleet management equipments among others.

Launch or new product range also needs strong maintenance and support teams for ceaseless and efficient functioning of all the vehicles.The automotive industry is widespread sector .It involves aviation industry,land transportation and tools.The expert team of professionals at testing facilities located at various states of India; work hard and are involved at every stage of product development, engineering or services.Pricol has all the standard certifications (ISO /TS16949, ISO 14001 etc) accredited essential for meeting national and international standards of quality of production.

Pricol has state of art lab and testing facilities.It has manufacturing units in all major cities like Delhi, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Coimbatore etc. These facilities are well structured and fully functional to meet the demand of sophisticated machines.The International collaborators like Ceranaro Pricol India, Italy, Blue Ridge USA, Turbo tools has provided Pricol with an edge over others in advance technology. Virtual Prototyping technique used extensively in product engineering and development helps customer, manufacturer and support teams in powerful way. It reduces cost, risk factor and gives accurate perspective of fittings in accordance with style, design and actual mechanical requirements of the vehicle. Pricol limited is a major contributor in the growth of automotive Industry of India.

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Source: http://www.riredistricting.org/automotive-industry-pricol.html

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Give troops a pass on airport security lines

WASHINGTON --?

With the holiday season upon us, many Americans are traveling through crowded airports. For our servicemen and women who are deployed overseas, reuniting with loved ones for the holidays likely has been their first thought each morning and the last thought each night. Many of these troops are traveling to or from multiple deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan.

As I travel back and forth from Texas to Washington, I have seen our military men and women in uniform waiting patiently in long airport security lines, watching as they must remove their combat boots, worn on the front lines of Afghanistan.

I think the vast majority of Americans would agree that our military men and women make sacrifices for our nation every day. The least we can do is make their lives - and the lives of their family members - easier when they travel on official orders around the country they defend. Our nation's military have earned the right from a grateful nation to go to the front of the line.

That's why I introduced The Trust Our Troops Act, a bill that requires the Transportation Security Administration to work with the Department of Defense to develop a program to expedite security screening procedures for our military personnel and their families who accompany them.

After I spoke on the floor of the Senate about this legislation, I was stopped in the hall by a young man who just happened to be in the Senate Gallery that evening during my remarks. As an Army Special Forces sergeant, he told me about his own experience at airport screening while in uniform carrying a military radio as part of official courier duty between bases. TSA agents took his radio apart to test for explosives. Such examples occur every day to our men and women in uniform at airports across our nation. That's what drove me to introduce this legislation.

The Trust Our Troops Act has bipartisan support and is co-sponsored by Sens. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., and Richard Burr, R-N.C. It passed the Senate unanimously. The House of Representatives is expected to pass our legislation soon.

And although the bill will not affect this year's holiday travel season, it will require the TSA and Defense Department to work together to implement a more common-sense process for military personnel's travel.

Members of our military and their families, traveling on orders and in uniform, will benefit from these new rules. It will also expedite the process for all air travelers.

In a time of increasing fiscal constraints, the establishment of procedures to expedite the screening of a pool of travelers who are certainly our most "trusted travelers" will better allow TSA to focus its attention on areas of real threat.

More than 1.4 million brave men and women comprise our nation's armed forces. While many of these servicemen and women will be traveling through our airports over the next few weeks for long-awaited reunions with their families, still many others will be deployed in harm's way during the holidays. We are grateful to each of them as we enjoy our time with our loved ones at this special time of year.

Source: http://www.heraldonline.com/2011/12/19/3608382/give-troops-a-pass-on-airport.html

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New sign of rising power for new North Korean leader's uncle (Reuters)

SEOUL (Reuters) ? North Korean state TV footage on Sunday showed Jang Song-thaek, the power behind the communist state's throne, wearing a military uniform with the insignia of a general, another sign of his rising influence after the death of Kim Jong-il.

The footage, which state TV said was taken on Saturday, showed Jang at the front of rows of top military officers who accompanied Kim Jong-un, the youngest son of Kim Jong-il and his anointed successor, paying their respects in front of Kim's body.

North Korea announced on Monday Kim Jong-il had died of a heart attack on December 17. His body is lying in state in a mausoleum in Pyongyang. He was believed to be 69.

His death sparked fears about succession in the reclusive communist state, which has been ruled by Kim's family since shortly after World War Two.

It also unnerved neighbors Japan and South Korea, as well as Seoul's key ally, the United States, as they wait to see how the succession plays out in the unpredictable hermit state.

Kim Jong-un was hailed by state media on Saturday as "supreme commander" of the North's 1.1 million-strong armed forces, the title held by his father.

While the younger Kim has been described as the "Great Successor," a senior source told Reuters this week Pyongyang will shift from a strongman dictatorship to a coterie of rulers including the military and Jang, Kim Jong-un's uncle.

Kim Jong-un, in his late 20s, has also been called by his official title of vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission of the North's ruling party.

Jang married the daughter of the country's autocratic founder, Kim Il-sung, in 1972, to join the ruling family.

A Seoul official familiar with North Korea affairs said it was the first time Jang has been shown on state TV wearing a military uniform. His appearance was interpreted as meaning he has secured a key role in the North's powerful military, which has pledged its allegiance to Kim Jong-un.

POWER BEHIND THE THRONE

Sources with close ties to North Korea and China have said Jang is the real power behind Pyongyang's succession process.

North Korea's state media have geared up their propaganda machine since Saturday in an apparent bid to smooth the untested Kim Jong-un's succession and show his grip on the military, which is trying to develop a nuclear arsenal.

The Japanese government will hold consultations with the governments of prefectures along the coast of the Sea of Japan to seek their support in accommodating North Koreans in case of a possible flood of refugees, Kyodo News said on Saturday.

Japan has already picked several public facilities in prefectures such as Niigata, Ishikawa and Fukuoka to serve as temporary shelters for North Korean refugees, Kyodo said, but the government needs to expand the list.

Experts say Tokyo has made contingency plans for possibly tens of thousands of refugees arriving at its ports but has not obtained local agreement to the plans, a potential headache.

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda instructed government officials on Monday to make preparations for all possible contingencies. Noda is due to arrive in Beijing later on Sunday for talks with Chinese leaders, with North Korea expected to be high on the agenda.

China has been the North's major backer during decades of isolation and Noda will meet President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao during a two-day trip. They are expected to agree to work together TO maintain stability on the Korean peninsula.

The two Koreas are still technically at war after the 1950-53 Korean War ended with a ceasefire rather than an armistice.

(Additional reporting by Mari Saito in TOKYO; Editing by Paul Tait)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/asia/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111225/wl_nm/us_korea_north_power

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xantheose: Death Sentence - Help Roni - California (by...

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Florida Looks for Curbs on Some Snake Species

[unable to retrieve full-text content]Florida?s Congressional lawmakers are pushing for approval of a Fish and Wildlife Service rule that would list nine kinds of large constrictor snakes as an ?injurious species.?

Source: http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=4a57529dea0d623c96c18a5bad3b2aff

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Students Help School Janitor After Cancer Diagnosis, Job Loss ...

Andy Barela gets hugs from Niwot students (credit: CBS)

NIWOT, Colo. (CBS4) ? He was diagnosed with cancer, lost his job, and couldn?t afford a family Christmas. Then a group of students he didn?t know came to the rescue.

It would be pretty easy to miss Andy Barela in the halls of Niwot High School. He was an after hours janitor and loved it.

?It?s a family-type school and they?ve been there for me,? Barela said.

But in March, his world crashed. Barela was diagnosed with colon cancer. He lost his job and the insurance that came with it because he had to go through treatment.

?I?ve got friends, family; they?re there. They tell me, ?Keep it going, Andy.? And I do. I won?t let it take me down,? Barela said.

Mentally, Barela was set, but money was a different story. He was $15,000 in debt and 5 months behind on his rent.

?I had to tell my kids, ?This is going to be a Christmas we?re not going to have,? he said.

Barela never knew a lot of the students at school, but that doesn?t mean they don?t care.

?I started listening and I was like, ?Is somebody outside?? ?

It was carolers ? a group spearheaded by Niwot students like Katelin Soocee. And they came bearing gifts ? $6,000 from donations. The story even made the local paper, the Longmont Times-Call.

?It was killer; it started making me shake ? like, ?Wow.? ?

?I definitely wanted to help. I didn?t want it to be a bad Christmas,? Soocee said. ?He helped out our school and made our experience better. I knew I had to help out.?

It just may have help save Barela?s home, health, and his family?s Christmas.

?Wow, that girl. I know her but I really never talked to her, and she did this,? Barela said.

Barela?s doctors tell him he will likely beat his cancer.

Niwot High School says Barella can return to his job whenever he feels ready.

Andy Barela Fund

Donations for Andy Barela and his family can be sent to or dropped off at Niwot High School, 8989 Niwot Road, attention of Debbie Hauck. Checks can be made out to Andy Barela. All proceeds will go directly to the family.

Source: http://denver.cbslocal.com/2011/12/24/students-help-school-janitor-after-cancer-diagnosis-job-loss/

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Bengals beat Cardinals 23-16, stay in chase (AP)

CINCINNATI ? Andy Dalton threw a pair of touchdown passes, and Cincinnati withstood yet another fourth-quarter comeback by Arizona, holding on for a 23-16 victory Saturday that kept the Bengals in playoff contention.

Another small crowd at Paul Brown Stadium saw the Bengals (9-6) secure only their third winning record in the last 21 years and stay in the running for the final AFC wild card.

Dalton threw an 11-yard touchdown pass to Jermaine Gresham and a 19-yarder to Jerome Simpson, who did a somersault over a defender and landed on both feet in the end zone. Dalton joined Peyton Manning (26), Charlie Conerly (22) and Dan Marino (20) as the only NFL rookies to throw 20 touchdowns.

Arizona (7-8) rallied from a 23-0 deficit and had a chance to tie. Receiver Early Doucet was uncovered at the goal line but tripped as he ran, letting a fourth-down pass fall incomplete with 1:11 left.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/sports/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111224/ap_on_sp_fo_ga_su/fbn_cardinals_bengals

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Leukemia patients at greatest risk of listeriosis (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) ? People with certain conditions, including leukemia, other cancers and pregnancy, are at the greatest risk of getting sick from the food-borne bacterium Listeria, French researchers report in a new study.

Doctors and public health officials have known that these conditions make people more vulnerable to listeriosis, but this study is the first to rank the size of the risk for people with each condition.

The results "will help focus risk communication for the medical community," said Ramon Guevara, an epidemiologist for the County of Los Angeles Department of Public Health, who was not involved in the study.

"If you do have an outbreak you want to say who are the high-risk people," he added.

Earlier this year, 30 people died in the Unites States in an outbreak of listeriosis, spread by contaminated cantaloupe.

Deli meat, raw cheese, produce and smoked seafood are also thought to potentially harbor Listeria, but it's uncommon that people actually get sick from it.

The study looked at nearly 2,000 cases of listeriosis in France -- affecting 39 out of every 10 million people -- from 2001 to 2008.

Despite its rarity, listeriosis is still considered an important public health concern because it's relatively deadly compared to other food-borne illnesses, lead author Dr. V?ronique Goulet at the Institut de Veille Sanitaire in Saint-Maurice wrote in an email to Reuters Health.

More than 400 of the 2,000 people who developed listeriosis died.

None of the cases involved an outbreak.

About one in six of the listeriosis cases in France affected pregnant women.

Among the remaining cases, 65 percent of the people involved had an underlying health condition, and 41 percent were undergoing treatment that suppressed their immune systems.

Goulet and her team determined that people with chronic lymphocytic leukemia were at the greatest risk of developing listeriosis -- more than 1,000 times higher than the general French population.

Fifty-five out of every 100,000 people with this leukemia developed listeriosis.

People with other cancers, such as myeloma, lymphoma, and esophageal and liver cancers, were also at a much higher risk of getting sick from Listeria, as were people undergoing dialysis.

Anywhere from 13 to 17 out of every 100,000 people with one of these conditions fell ill with listeriosis, according to findings published in Clinical Infectious Diseases.

Goulet pointed out that even though diabetics and the elderly also have a greater chance of developing listeriosis than the general population, the number of cases among these groups is very small.

"I would like to target recommendations for prevention to persons with hematological malignancy (blood, bone marrow and lymph cancers), especially those undergoing immunosuppressive treatment," Goulet said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advise people to wash produce before eating, including scrubbing the outside of firm fruits and vegetables such as melons and cucumbers.

In addition, keep the refrigerator colder than 40 degrees Fahrenheit, thoroughly cook meat and toss freshly-sliced deli meats after three to five days.

Depending on the level of risk, Goulet said, some people should avoid eating certain foods, but it's not necessary for everyone.

"For example, as the incidence is very low in the elderly population with no concomitant underlying disease, it is perhaps not advisable to make general recommendations such as to avoid eating deli-meat or cheeses such as feta or camembert, or smoked fish," Goulet wrote.

The cantaloupe outbreak earlier this year, which was one of the most deadly food-borne outbreaks in the United States, was traced back to unsanitary conditions at a packing plant in Colorado.

SOURCE: http://bit.ly/slBfx7 Clinical Infectious Diseases, online December 9, 2011.

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Scary Moments at Eureka College

Scary Moments at Eureka College

? A bit of a scare for staff at Eureka College Thursday afternoon as the college was put on lockdown for a time when someone reported a person with a gun on campus. Eureka Police say area police agencies surrounded the campus on that report, but as it turns out, it would simply a juvenile with a toy gun, who was walking through campus to a friend's house. There were no students on campus as they had left last week for the holiday period.

Source: http://centralillinoisproud.com/fulltext/?nxd_id=218547

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2011 Nobel Laureate Ralph Steinman Explains Discovery of Cells Used for Cancer Treatment [Video]

Web Exclusives | Health

Announced as a prize winner just after his death from pancreatic cancer, Steinman conducted research on dendritic cells that formed the foundation of his own personalized therapies

By Katherine Harmon ?| December 20, 2011?|

Image: Roberto Parada

In the quest to cure cancer, many researchers have started looking beyond toxic chemicals and harsh radiation and instead are trying to harness the body's immune system.

Ralph Steinman made a landmark discovery about the immune system in the 1970s when he first described dendritic cells with the help of his mentor Zanvil Cohn at Rockefeller University. More than 30 years later, when Steinman was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, these cells served as the basis of his experimental treatments.

He won the 2011 Nobel Prize for Medicine or Physiology for his early-career discovery but died just three days before the official announcement. In the January 2012 issue, Scientific American chronicles Steinman's early find and how the cells became an integral part of his unconventional battle with pancreatic cancer.

In the following video, filmed when he won the 2007 Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research, Steinman recounts his discovery of biology?and of the amazing cells that likely helped to keep him alive years longer than expected.

?

For more videos of Steinman discussing dendritic cells and their role in the immune system, visit the collection of his interviews on the Lasker Foundation's website.

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=e9c08db251533930cebdb5fc8bd191a7

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Childhood Obesity at Age 8 Linked to Asthma, Allergies (ContributorNetwork)

Children who are overweight by 8 years old were found to have higher incidence of asthma and allergic sensitivity, according to a study published in the American Academy of Pediatrics. Here are specifics on study findings and how they impact parent decisions.

Asthma and childhood obesity studies

In October, Science Daily reported obese children are twice as likely to have asthma as nonobese children. In the Pediatrics study, pediatric allergy and asthma researchers from Norway and Sweden looked at how changes in a child's weight status may affect his predisposition to asthma allergy.

Weight gain in 7-, 8-year-olds linked to asthma problems

The study revealed those with over-85 percent body mass indexes were no more prone to asthma at 12 to 18 months or when they were tested at age 4. By age 8, children with a high BMI were at greater risk for asthma regardless of whether they had been overweight in the earlier years or not. Children were more at risk for wheezing or other problems with inhalant allergies if they were overweight at age 8.

Childhood obesity, asthma parenting implications

Study authors conclude parents should be mindful of asthma in children who have a number of risk factors in combination: BMIs over 85 percent, exposure to secondhand smoke, maternal history of obesity or parents history of asthma or allergy. Weight problems at or after ages 8 to 10 seem to predispose children to other problems as well. In 2008, Science Daily reported on a study by Kansas State University that found children with sedentary lives and high body fat had more asthma-like symptoms after exercise. In 2010, a study from West Virginia University found children of normal weight who don't get a balanced diet or proper exercise are at greater risk for asthma. Study authors recommended parents improve nutrition and boost fitness levels, especially in school years to reduce asthma risk.

Ages 8 to 10 critical for obesity, asthma prevention

A Pediatrics study underscored the concern for obesity at age 8. Forty percent of kids begin school in the 85th percentile. Significant weight gain after ages 8 to 10, especially if not accompanied by equally significant height gain, is an indicator of lifelong obesity problems. Study authors concluded parents should build good nutrition habits early and monitor weight gain at all ages but the time for teaching good nutrition and fitness was in the early school years.

Marilisa Kinney Sachteleben writes about parenting from 23 years raising four children and 25 years teaching K-8, special needs, adult education and home-school.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/weightloss/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20111221/us_ac/10717793_childhood_obesity_at_age_8_linked_to_asthma_allergies

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Samsung Series 7 Slate PC review

All quiet on the Windows 7 tablet front? Well, no, but we haven't exactly seen many shots fired lately. Sure, HP recently refreshed the Slate 500 with the Slate 2, but for the most part, products like this have been eclipsed by excitement around Windows 8. Of course, Redmond's tablet-friendly OS won't ship for another year, so for now tablet makers are releasing Windows slates with little fanfare. Not Samsung, though. While its mobile team has dug its heels into the consumer tablet market with devices like the Galaxy Tabs 10.1, 8.9 and 7.0 Plus, its PC division is taking a different tack. The Series 7 Slate PC was built by the same team behind the striking Series 9 laptop, making it one of the slickest business tablets we've ever beheld. It rocks an 11.6-inch display that handily dwarfs pretty much everything else out there. It runs a Core i5, not Atom, processor, and is offered with a custom dock and Bluetooth keyboard. The Series 7 Slate isn't just a rare Windows 7 tablet; it's also one of the most memorable. But are all of those things worth the $1,099 starting price? Could be, but we can think of a few caveats. Allow us to explain.

Gallery: Samsung Series 7 Slate PC review

Continue reading Samsung Series 7 Slate PC review

Samsung Series 7 Slate PC review originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 16 Dec 2011 15:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fed's Fisher says further monetary easing is "wrong path" (Reuters)

AUSTIN (Reuters) ? Europe's debt crisis threatens to throw a strengthening economy off track, but more monetary accommodation from the U.S. Federal Reserve is not the answer, a top Fed official known for his hawkish views on inflation said on Friday.

In a speech to the Austin Chamber of Commerce, Dallas Fed President Richard Fisher reiterated his long-held view that it is the overhang from the U.S. national debt and uncertainty over tax and regulatory policy that is holding back U.S. businesses, not insufficiently loose monetary policy.

And, he said, it is up to Congress and the President -- not the U.S. central bank -- to clean up the "yucky mess" that is the country's debt and fiscal problems.

"The Federal Reserve has done everything it can, and more, to reduce unemployment without forsaking our sacred commitment to maintaining price stability, or crossing over the monetary river Styx into full-blown debt monetization," Fisher said in remarks prepared for delivery in the Texas capital. "From my standpoint, resorting to further monetary accommodation to clean out the sink, clogged by the flotsam and jetsam of a jolly, drunken fiscal and financial party that has gone on far too long, is the wrong path to follow."

The U.S. central bank stood pat on policy at its meeting Tuesday, leaving interest rates near zero, and continuing to signal that it will keep them there through at least mid-2013. One policymaker, Chicago Fed President Charles Evans, dissented, calling for further easing.

Fisher, along with fellow hawks Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota and Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser, were the dissenters earlier this year as the Fed eased policy to jumpstart a slowing recovery.

Fisher on Friday said his votes were driven not by a fear that easing would stoke inflation but on concern it would not help on employment.

Inflation, he said, is headed back down toward the Fed's 2 percent target. Recent economic indicators suggest domestic demand is strengthening, he added.

Unemployment fell to 8.6 percent in November, the lowest in two and a half years, and regional factory activity has picked up, bolstering what has been a stop-and-start recovery from the worst downturn since the Depression.

But souring conditions in Europe and slowing growth in emerging economies like China and Brazil threaten to knock the U.S. recovery off course again, Fisher said, adding there is little U.S. policymakers can do but "pray that fiscal and monetary authorities abroad get it right."

On the home front, though, the fix is within reach, he said.

Comparing the nation's problems with a clogged sink, Fisher warned against the Fed opening the spigots of liquidity further to flush out the detritus.

"It may provide immediate relief but risks destroying the plumbing of the entire house," said Fisher, who often uses colorful metaphors and literary references to enliven his speeches. "Better that the Congress and the president -- the makers of fiscal policy and regulation -- roll up their sleeves and get on with the yucky task of cleaning out the clogged drain."

Fisher and his fellow hawkish dissenters rotate off the Fed's policy-setting panel next year, and only one policy hawk -- Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker -- will rotate in.

The change in voting line-up means the panel will lean more dovish than it did last year, suggesting Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke may have more support for further easing in the New Year.

(Reporting by Ann Saphir)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/economy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111216/bs_nm/us_usa_fed_fisher

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Battle Zombies with Guns and Plants, Play Tennis, and Play Sudoku with Letters [App Deals Of The Day]

It's getting too cold to play tennis at the local courts. Running around in those tiny shorts hitting a ball isn't nearly as fun when there's a foot of snow on the ground. For the low price of nothing, you can play tennis on your iPhone and leave the courts to the snowmen. Plus, you can take on zombies with guns or plants for a buck. And sudoku and crossword puzzle had a baby, all in today's best app deals. More »

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Remembering Christopher Hitchens (The Week)

New York ? The vaunted intellectual and contrarian charmer has died at the age of 62 after battling esophageal cancer

On Thursday, prolific polemicist Christopher Hitchens died from complications of esophageal cancer. He was 62. A Vanity Fair contributing editor, Slate columnist, and regular essayist for The Atlantic, Hitchens was the author of numerous books, including the 2007 bestseller God Is Not Great. He was known for his sharp wit, avowed atheism, love of the drink, and contrarian stance on subjects ranging from Mother Theresa (against) to the Iraq war (for). Today, colleagues, friends, fellow writers, and world leaders are remembering the late great. Here, a sampling:

His editors
"He was a man of insatiable appetites ? for cigarettes, for scotch, for company, for great writing, and, above all, for conversation," says Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter. "That he had an output to equal what he took in was the miracle in the man. You'd be hard-pressed to find a writer who could match the volume of exquisitely crafted columns, essays, articles, and books he produced over the past four decades."

SEE ALSO: The Korean apartments that look like exploding Twin Towers

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"Editing Christopher Hitchens... was the easiest job in journalism," says June Thomas at Slate. "He had a prodigious memory... Shortly after the news of Sen. Larry Craig's arrest in an airport men's room broke, Hitchens filed the piece that for me best exemplifies the breadth of his interests and the completeness of his recall ? it contained quotes from an obscure academic work, recollections of hilariously profane bathroom graffiti, remembered conversations with British politicians, and lines of satirical verse published decades earlier."

"Like his hero, Orwell, Christopher prized bravery above all other qualities ? and in particular the bravery required for unflinching honesty," says Benjamin Schwarz at The Atlantic. "This most intellectual of men valued intelligence, but valued courage far more ? or rather, he believed that true intellect was inseparable from courage."

SEE ALSO: The 'most expensive car crash in history': By the numbers

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His friends and contemporaries
"Lunch ? dinner, drinks, any occasion ? with Christopher always was [bracing]," says Christopher Buckley in The New Yorker. "One of our lunches, at Caf? Milano, the Rick's Caf? of Washington, began at 1 P.M., and ended at 11:30 P.M. At about nine o?clock (though my memory is somewhat hazy), he said, 'Should we order more food?' I somehow crawled home, where I remained under medical supervision for several weeks, packed in ice with a morphine drip. Christopher probably went home that night and wrote a biography of Orwell. His stamina was as epic as his erudition and wit."

"Goodbye, my beloved friend," says novelist Salman Rushdie via Twitter. "A great voice falls silent. A great heart stops."

SEE ALSO: Queen Elizabeth's royal pay cut: By the numbers

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He was the "finest orator of our time" and a "valiant fighter against all tyrants including God," says writer Richard Dawkins, a vocal atheist like Hitchens.

The press
"I knew Hitchens only by reading him. To read him was to be deeply impressed ? envious, if you were a writer yourself ? and at some point to have been deeply pissed off by him," says James Poniewozik at TIME. "Hitchens knew when to care greatly about the larger world, and when, therefore, not to give a rat's ass what the larger world thought of him. It's one thing for a writer to be principled, and it's one thing for a writer to be a jerk; it?s a rare thing to be a principled jerk, and that's what Hitchens was."

SEE ALSO: Should the U.S. use foreign aid to promote gay rights?

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"Religion, he wrote is 'violent, irrational, intolerant, allied to racism, tribalism, and bigotry, invested in ignorance and hostile to free inquiry, contemptuous of women and coercive towards children,'" says Roy Greenslade at The Guardian. "Thinking back to the 1970s, I can hear him saying that, with many adjectives and expletives thrown in for good measure. And that's how I wish to remember him."

"The world has lost one of its most outstanding and prolific journalists and a wonderful polemicist, orator and bon vivant," says George Eaton at New Statesman. "In his later years, Hitchens was fond of quoting his late mother's assertion that 'the one unforgivable sin is to be boring'. Today, as I realise I will never hear that resonant baritone again, that Hitchens' mighty pen is still, I feel certain in saying that the world has become a more boring place."

Politicians
"Christopher Hitchens was a complete one-off, an amazing mixture of writer, journalist, polemicist, and unique character," said former British Prime Minister Tony Blair. "He was fearless in the pursuit of truth and any cause in which he believed. And there was no belief he held that he did not advocate with passion, commitment and brilliance."

"Christopher Hitchens was everything a great essayist should be: infuriating, brilliant, highly provocative and yet intensely serious," says Britain's Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg, who interned for Hitchens years ago and was charged with fact-checking his articles. "He had a photographic memory and an encyclopedic mind," he recalls. "It was the easiest job I've ever done."

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South Africa gallows site becomes museum, memorial (AP)

PRETORIA, South Africa ? Martha Mahlangu can't bear to visit the prison where her son, an anti-apartheid guerrilla, was hanged. But she says it's important that other South Africans see the gallows the government opened as a monument Thursday, and contemplate the example her son set.

"Solomon only thought of freedom, to free the black man," she said in an interview in her Pretoria home. "He never thought of himself, only about seeing the black man free."

The 87-year-old former maid's voice faltered when she tried speak about being invited to take part in a series of events this week at the gallows at Pretoria Central Prison. She sat on her porch in a neighborhood set aside for blacks under apartheid that today remains predominantly black and poor.

She said she was instead sending her eldest son and a nephew to Thursday's inauguration by President Jacob Zuma of the gallows and the death row block housing it as a national memorial and museum. She also sent her son and nephew to a traditional ceremony Wednesday during which relatives of those hanged offered prayers and burned incense in remembrance. Zuma toured the building Thursday morning at the start of the ceremony to open the site, accompanied by several Cabinet ministers and George Bizos, a prominent campaigner against the death penalty who was also former President Nelson Mandela's lawyer.

Death row was in a low, brick building with imposing oak doors just outside the main block of Pretoria Central Prison. The gallows were abandoned after the death penalty was abolished in 1995. Thursday, a sign on a freshly painted wall along a hallway leading to the gallows told visitors some 3,500 South Africans were hanged over the last century. "Of these," it said, "130 were patriots whose only crime was fighting oppression."

Not all those hanged were executed in Pretoria, but many of the most prominent were.

South Africa's highest court ruled in 1995 that the death penalty was a cruel, inhuman and degrading violation of the country's post-apartheid constitution. Executions had been on hold since 1989, as a debate raged that touched on the executions of anti-apartheid militants and on whether there could be a fair or just way of deciding who would be hanged.

Solomon Mahlangu was among the class of 1976, young South Africans radicalized by a student uprising in Soweto that year that was met by a brutal police crackdown. He was 20 when he left South Africa to train in Mozambique and Angola with Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing of the African National Congress, which celebrates its 50th anniversary Friday.

One of Solomon Mahlangu's trio got away. Another, the only one accused of firing a gun, was so badly beaten in custody he was judged unfit to stand trial. Prosecutors did not dispute that Solomon Mahlangu never fired a gun, but he was convicted of sharing his comrade's deadly purpose. He was hanged on April 6, 1979. The next day, his mother was brought to Pretoria Central and shown her son's plain wooden coffin. She remembers thinking it looked very small.

The gallows was destroyed in a smelter after the death penalty was abolished. Visitors to the site will see a replica: Seven nooses dangling from iron loops over a trap door.

A prison employee who said he had been a death row guard helped ensure the new museum's details are correct, down to the thickness of the ropes. He refused to give his name, saying he feared reprisals from South Africans who might consider him a murderer. But he said he was just doing a job.

The guard said the political prisoners were disciplined, never struggling, sometimes singing anti-apartheid songs as they climbed the stairs.

David Kutumela, a 56-year-old anti-apartheid activist who like Solomon Mahlangu began his fight after the 1976 uprisings, helped campaign to create the gallows memorial. He and other activists visited the gallows often as it was transformed into a museum.

"Walking up those 52 steps, we all think, `It might have been us instead of Solomon,'" he said.

Kutumela said the museum is for South Africans as young as or younger than he and Solomon Mahlangu were when they became militants. He said he worries today's children "don't even understand how this freedom came about."

In another sign of how far South Africa has come, the top spokeswoman for the prison department is an ANC veteran who trained as a teenager in the same Angolan camp where Solomon Mahlangu became a guerrilla.

Sibongile Promise Khumalo has a hug for everyone she meets, including the white guards at Pretoria Central who once escorted ANC fighters to their deaths.

Khumalo said she embraced the museum project, speaking with the families of those hanged instead of delegating the emotional job.

"I cried with those people," Khumalo said. "We were reopening wounds for them."

She said the goal was to offer closure to the families, and to society a chance to confront the wounds of the past and then move on.

"I know South Africans are forgiving," she said. "We need to help each other carry out this journey of remembrance."

____

Online:

Donna Bryson can be reached on http://twitter.com/dbrysonAP

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From Russia with hate: aluminium wars spill over into London court

Although the pistols and snow shovels have long since been downed, the pens of top lawyers have been taken up in their place. The first notable case is the ongoing battle between the Chelsea Football Club owner Roman Abramovich and his former mentor Boris Berezovsky.

The other, which has just got under way, involves two so-called oligarchs who amassed great personal fortunes from Russia's vast aluminium resources. One of them is Russian, one Israeli, and they are slugging it out over the small matter of ?2bn one claims he is owed by the other.

The claimant, the Uzbek-born Israeli billionaire Michael Cherney, 59, fought hard to have his case heard in the UK, where he has no significant links. It is going ahead even though Interpol have issued him with an arrest warrant from Spanish authorities over money laundering allegations, and he is therefore unable to travel here.

The defendant, Oleg Deripaska, 43, is the richest of them all, whose connection to the UK came to the fore in 2008 when details emerged of social engagements on his yacht off the coast of Corfu, attended by Lord Mandelson and the Chancellor George Osborne.

It has predictable though nonetheless extraordinary parallels with the Abramovich-Berezovsky case, which is still playing out in a courtroom on the floor above at the Rolls Building. Mr Cherney claims the two men were business partners, and that he had a legitimate, if unwritten, ownership stake in vastly profitable aluminium assets, for which he never received payment when the business was merged with another.

It is Mr Deripaska's claim that Mr Cherney was never a business partner, rather someone to whom he had to pay protection money, or krysha, the Russian word for roof, and that the relationship was forced upon him, a consequence of attempting to do business in a particular commodity, at a particular time, in a particular place where scores of people were murdered as workers rioted in the streets.

Mr Cherney has also been accused of owing $270m (?174m) to another businessman after signing an agreement for a Russian coal-producing organisation. He claims to have signed mistakenly after "consuming a tremendous amount of vodka" during a drinking session in Vienna in 2003.

At a case-management hearing yesterday, Mr Deripaska's legal team sought to portray Mr Cherney as a notorious figure, well connected to the criminal underworld. Paul Stanley QC described how he was sent back to Switzerland from the UK in 1994, carrying an invalid passport.

When the trial begins next April, leaked US diplomatic cables that describe Mr Cherney as a "notorious Russian crime figure" as well as a "Russian mobster" may feature. Mr Cherney will be likely to appear only via video link from his home in Israel.

The case's only other significant connection to the UK are two dramatically different versions of what happened when the two men met at London's Lanesborough Hotel in March 2001, when what would happen to the assets was supposedly discussed. Almost every fact is disputed.

Mr Deripaska's net worth is estimated at ?11bn. Mr Cherney's wealth is not known.

Oligarchs at war

Michael Cherney: Industrialist now wanted by Interpol

Born in Tashkent, Mr Cherney, together with his brother and other associates, formed TransWorld Group, which held a near monopoly on the Russian aluminium industry in the early 1990s. His close ties with a Yeltsin-era deputy prime minister, Oleg Soskovets, right, gave them the political protection needed during the murderous "aluminium wars".

Little is known about how Mr Cherney operated his businesses and the opaque deals done at the time, and it is expected the court case will shed some light on the most secretive business deals.

Mr Deripaska denies that Mr Cherney was ever his official business partner, and was instead simply someone whom he paid protection money to, given the chaotic state of Russia at the time.

With an Interpol warrant out against him, and multiple allegations of links to organised crime, all of which he denies, Mr Cherney is not able to travel much out of Israel, where he now resides. In May 1994 he was detained at Heathrow Airport and denied entry to Britain after authorities suspected his Polish passport was invalid. In Israel, Mr Cherney has attempted to rebrand himself as a philanthropist.

Oleg Deripaska: Survivor of Russia's brutal 'metal wars'

The 43-year-old is perhaps the archetypal oligarch. He rarely gives interviews, is uncomfortable speaking in public and has a controversial past that has led to his involvement in more than one lawsuit. And he has an enormous amount of money ? around $28bn in 2008, according to Forbes magazine.

Mr Deripaska was the big survivor of the ruthless "aluminium wars" of the 1990s, during which several of his rivals were killed. He was the hardest-hit oligarch during the global financial crisis, and in 2009, it looked like his business might disappear. But he restructured around ?10bn of debts with Kremlin help, and an IPO of his Rusal empire. At one stage during the crisis, he was humiliated on state television by Vladimir Putin, who gave him a public dressing down and forced him to sign a contract after workers in a factory controlled by him went on strike. But, in the end, it was the Russian state which bailed out Mr Deripaska with billions of dollars of loans, a reward for his loyalty and abstinence from Russian politics.

Shaun Walker

Litigation capital: Why are so many cases heard here?

It would not be altogether inappropriate to fly the Russian flag over London's Commercial Court these days, where the blacked-out Bentleys of oligarchs are so often parked. Each case has its own reasons for being heard here. In some cases the participants are political exiles; in others parties claim that the disputed assets are governed by English law trusts. But the sympathy of the British judiciary, and its willingness to hear the cases, is on the whole a consequence of a general acceptance that Russia's court system will not offer a fair trial.

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