Mine!!

'Significant' water found on Moon

2009-11-14T02:55:00.000-08:00

Nasa's experiment last month to find water on the Moon was a major success, US scientists have announced.

The space agency smashed a rocket and a probe into a large crater at the lunar south pole, hoping to kick up ice.

Scientists who have studied the data now say instruments trained on the impact plume saw copious quantities of water-ice and water vapour.

One researcher described this as the equivalent of "a dozen two-gallon buckets" of water.

"We didn't just find a little bit; we found a significant amount," said Anthony Colaprete, chief scientist for the Lunar Crater Observation and Sensing Satellite (LCROSS) mission.

No doubt

October's experiment involved driving a 2,200kg Centaur rocket stage into the 100km-wide Cabeus Crater, a permanently shadowed depression at the Moon's far south.

At the time, scientists were hoping for a big plume of debris some 10km high which could be seen by Earth telescopes.

The following probe was designed to analyse the debris plume

The actual debris cloud was much smaller, about 1.6km high, but sufficiently large to betray the evidence researchers were seeking.

The near-infrared spectrometer on the LCROSS probe that followed the rocket into the crater detected water-ice and water vapour. The ultraviolet-visible spectrometer provided additional confirmation by identifying the hydroxyl (OH) molecule, which arises when water is broken apart in sunlight.READ MORE

Cleveland accused denies attack

2009-11-14T02:53:00.000-08:00

A convicted US sex offender from Cleveland has pleaded not guilty to an attack that led to a search of his house and the discovery of 11 bodies.

Anthony Sowell pleaded not guilty to charges of rape, kidnapping, attempted murder and felonious assault, the Associated Press reports.

The charges were made after Mr Sowell's arrest last month.

The 50-year-old suspect spent 15 years in prison after being convicted of attempted rape.

Judge John O'Donnell set a bond of $1m (£600,000) on the charges and continued Mr Sowell's $5m bond from last week, when he was charged with five counts of aggravated murder.

He also appointed a lawyer for Mr Sowell. The lawyer, Brian McGraw, had no immediate comment.READ MORE

Major fire at Russia arms depot

2009-11-14T02:51:00.000-08:00

At least two people have been killed after a series of explosions and fires at a weapons depot in central Russia, officials say.

The blasts ripped through the defence ministry navy depot on the outskirts of Ulyanovsk when soldiers attempted to decommission munitions.

The officials later said that 43 people who were feared dead had been found safe in a bomb shelter near the site.

Some 3,000 people were evacuated from the surrounding area.

The depot is about 900km (550 miles) south-east of the capital Moscow.

'Like fireworks'

Two fire-fighters died at the Arsenal 31 depot after the blasts and fires, Ulyanovsk Governor Sergei Morozov told the BBC.

Mr Morozov was earlier quoted in Russian media as saying that at least 10 people were taken to hospital.READ MORE

MoD probes new Iraq abuse claims

2009-11-14T02:49:00.000-08:00

The Ministry of Defence has said it is investigating new allegations of abuse by the UK military in Iraq.

Lawyers acting for former Iraqi detainees are calling for a full public inquiry into 33 abuse claims made during UK military involvement there.

One allegation is that two soldiers raped a 16-year-old boy in 2003.

Armed forces minister Bill Rammell said such claims were taken seriously but formal inquiries must be held "without judgements being made prematurely".

"Allegations of this nature are taken very seriously. However allegations must not be taken as fact," he said.

Mr Rammell told the BBC "about seven of them have come in within the last month".

"The rest of them are cases that date back significantly beyond that period and they are being investigated. Any allegation of abuse is taken with the utmost seriousness."READ MORE

Brazil proposes carbon cut target

2009-11-14T02:47:00.000-08:00

The Brazilian government has announced that it aims to achieve a reduction of at least 36% on its carbon emissions by the year 2020.

President Lula says climate change is the world's most challenging issue

If it meets its pledge, greenhouse gas emissions would be near 1994 levels.

The proposal, which is not a binding target, was revealed in advance of the major UN summit on climate change to be held in Copenhagen in December.

Brazil hopes to put pressure on richer nations to declare their intentions and break the deadlock in the negotiations.

Details of the government's proposals were unveiled following a meeting involving President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and some of his senior ministers.

'Ambitious' target

In common with other developing nations, Brazil is not setting a binding target for reducing carbon emissions, but is instead proposing to take voluntary action.READ MORE

Peru and Chile in 'spy' scandal

2009-11-14T02:45:00.000-08:00

A new diplomatic row has erupted between Peru and Chile after a Peruvian court ordered the arrest of two Chilean military officers over alleged spying.

The court accused the officers of paying a Peruvian air force officer to reveal national secrets.

The officer, Victor Ariza Mendoza, has been arrested and charged with spying.

Peru's President Alan Garcia said he was leaving the Asia-Pacific summit in Singapore a day early over the espionage row.

He also said he had cancelled planned talks with his Chilean counterpart, Michelle Bachelet, at the Apec summit.

"I am returning 24 hours earlier than scheduled so I can obtain complete and sufficient information (on the issue) and to be able to speak from Peru," Mr Garcia said, quoted by AFP new agency.

Reports in the Peruvian media said Lima had recalled its ambassador to Chile for talks.

Lima-based El Comercio reported that Mr Ariza had worked at the Peruvian embassy in Santiago in 2003.

Tensions are already strained between the two countries following a military exercise staged by Chile last month near its disputed border with Peru.READ MORE

New York 9/11 trial ignites row

2009-11-14T02:43:00.000-08:00

Senior US Republicans have condemned the Obama administration's move to try alleged 9/11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four others in New York.

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said bringing the suspects from Guantanamo into the US would put "Americans unnecessarily at risk".

The five will be tried in a civilian court near Ground Zero. The prosecution says it will seek the death penalty.

Democrats hailed the decision, while families of 9/11 victims are divided.

The move is part of US President Barack Obama's efforts to close the Guantanamo detention centre for terror suspects.

"The Department of Justice will pursue prosecution in federal court of the five individuals accused of conspiring to commit the 9/11 attacks," US Attorney General Eric Holder told a news conference.

"I fully expect to direct prosecutors to seek the death penalty against each of the alleged 9/11 conspirators."

But Republican leaders immediately criticised the move.READ MORE

Obama affirms commitment to Asia

2009-11-14T02:39:00.000-08:00

US President Barack Obama has welcomed a bigger role for China on the world stage and pledged to pursue greater co-operation with Asian countries.

Speaking in Tokyo, he said the US would not be "cowed" by North Korea's nuclear threats and that his commitment to the security of Asia was "unshakeable".

Mr Obama also called on Asian leaders to pursue balanced economic growth.

Early on Saturday, he flew to Singapore for an Asia-Pacific economic summit a few hours earlier than planned.

His trade representative Ron Kirk, who is already at the Apec meeting, says the US wants barriers to trade and investment removed to promote an open global trade system.Mr Obama will round off his week-long Asian tour with stops in China and South Korea.READ MORE

Asia offers Obama a warm welcome

2009-11-12T00:57:00.000-08:00

Asian leaders welcomed the election of Barack Obama as the next president of the United States - as did the region's financial markets.

Some regional leaders said Mr Obama's victory in the US poll was the start of a new, more hopeful era.

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said the victory represented a message of hope not just for America, but for the rest of the world as well.

Many regional stock markets rose sharply on the news.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng index initially increased by 5.2% and Japan's Nikkei 225 stock average jumped by 4.5%.

Indonesia's pride

The Australian prime minister's hope that Mr Obama's victory would help solve pressing global problems was shared by other leaders in the Asia-Pacific region.READ MORE

Obama seeks to reassure Asia allies

2009-11-12T00:56:00.000-08:00

There seems to be a "first" to everything that President Barack Obama is, or does.

The first black leader of the US is also the first American president who has lived in Asia as a child - the first president with an "Asia-Pacific orientation", as US officials put it.

President Obama will try to capitalise on this during his week-long trip to the region.

He wants to build on and improve crucial relationships with allies and rivals across the Pacific.

He will be tackling a broad range of issues - some of them thorny, like global trade, China's currency and US debt, and how to deal with countries like North Korea and Burma, not to mention climate change.

He will also be the first US president to attend a summit of the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) in Singapore.READ MORE

Storm blamed for Brazil power cut

2009-11-12T00:54:00.000-08:00

A severe storm has been blamed for widespread power cuts in Brazil which lasted more than five hours, the government said.

The strong winds, heavy rain and lightning brought down a power line in Brazil, cutting two other lines and ultimately shutting Itaipu dam.

In the worst blackout to hit Brazil in years, up to a fifth of the population was left without power on Tuesday.

Neighbouring Paraguay was also briefly left in the dark.

Initial suspicion had focused on the Itaipu hydroelectric plant, which supplies 20% of Brazil's power, but officials there said the facility was working normally.

Grid 'strong'

Energy Minister Edson Lobao said the bad weather cut the transmission lines in Sao Paulo state, leading the huge Itaipu dam to shut down automatically.

"Our grid is strong and resistant, but there are moments that the system simply can't withstand," he told reporters in the capital Brasilia.

The outage caused chaos on the streets of major Brazilian cities, including Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, which will showcase the 2014 World Cup and host the 2016 Olympics.READ MORE

Mexican purge axes corrupt police

2009-11-12T00:53:00.000-08:00

Mexican authorities have dismissed almost a quarter of all traffic police in the city of Monterrey for failing corruption and competence tests.

It is the latest move by the Mexican government to clean up its police forces, many of which are suspected of having links to organised crime.

At the end of last month all 1,142 traffic police in Monterrey were pulled off duty to undergo extensive tests.

The tests assessed their honesty, mental aptitude and medical condition.

Their living circumstances were also reviewed - to see whether any evidence of possibly unlawful additional income emerged.

The end results have not been good.

More than 270 officers failed the exams outright. They have been dismissed.

Another 500 have been sent for more training. And, in a final insult, over half have been told they are overweight.READ MORE

US envoy opposed to Afghan surgey

2009-11-12T00:51:00.000-08:00

US envoy opposed to Afghan surge

The US currently has some 68,000 troops in Afghanistan

The US ambassador in Kabul has written to the White House arguing against sending thousands more American troops to Afghanistan.

In a leaked cable, Karl Eikenberry said President Karzai's government should first prove it would tackle corruption.

The message arrived amid intense debate over strategy, with President Obama yet to make a decision on troop numbers.

This dramatic intervention would put the ambassador at odds with generals seeking reinforcements.

On Wednesday, President Obama held his eighth meeting to discuss the question of whether to send tens of thousands more troops to confront the Taliban.

Mr Eikenberry, a former American commander in Afghanistan, sent the secret cable in the past week, according to US media reports.

Expressing concern about corruption in Afghanistan, he said it was "not a good idea" to send more soldiers, the BBC has been told.READ MORE

Adobe lays off one in 10 workers

2009-11-11T05:32:00.000-08:00

US software company Adobe Systems has announced it is cutting 680 jobs, almost 10% of its workforce.

The software firm, best known for Photoshop, Flash and Acrobat, said the cuts were necessary to cut costs.

It added it that would be hit with pre-tax restructuring charges of between $65m (£39m) and $71m as a direct result of the cuts.

The lay-offs will not affect employees of web analytics firm Omniture, which was recently taken over by Adobe.

More than 7,000 people work for Adobe Systems.READ MORE

El Salvador facing food shortage

2009-11-11T05:20:00.000-08:00

About 10,000 people in El Salvador are in need of food aid after devastating floods washed away crops.

Three days of national mourning are being held following the deaths of at least 140 people in the floods.

Thousands are living in shelters as a result of the disaster and large parts of the country are without electricity and clean water.

The areas around the capital, San Salvador, and the central province of San Vicente were hit hardest.

President Mauricio Funes has declared a national emergency.

At least 49 of the dead are believed to be children.

The torrential rains washed away crops across the region, leaving thousands of survivors to face the dangerous lack of a stable food supply, the UN World Food Programme says.

It hopes to deliver 90 tonnes of aid to the area in the coming days.READ MORE

Brazil minidress woman readmitted

2009-11-11T05:17:00.000-08:00

A Brazilian student who was expelled from university for wearing a short dress has been readmitted.

Geisy Arruda was expelled after an incident on 22 October

Bandeirante University, a private college in a suburb of Sao Paulo, reversed its decision, following a public outcry and government criticism.

Videos of people jeering and swearing at the student, Geisy Arruda, have circulated widely on the internet.

They show the 20-year-old being led off by security guards on 22 October with a long, white coat covering her dress.

The university said in a statement on Monday it was reinstating Ms Arruda, without offering an explanation.

Earlier, it had said it had expelled her for disturbing classes through "a flagrant lack of respect for ethical principles, academic dignity and morality".READ MORE

FBI sued over Ethiopian jailing

2009-11-11T05:16:00.000-08:00

An American man is suing the FBI for mistreatment while he was held in jail in Kenya and Ethiopia in 2007.

Mr Meshal says his constitutional rights were violated by the interrogations

Amir Meshal was arrested on the Kenyan border as he fled Somalia after the ousting of the Islamist administration.

According to the lawsuit, FBI agents interrogated him there, saying he had received al-Qaeda training in Somalia.

Mr Meshal says he was then returned to Somalia and sent on to Ethiopia for three months where US agents threatened him with torture and death.

He repeatedly denied the allegations and was released in May 2007 and returned to the United States after media inquiries and protests from human rights groups.READ MORE

New PC to encourage older users

2009-11-11T05:15:00.000-08:00

A new computer aimed at people aged over 60 who are unfamiliar with PCs and the internet has been unveiled.

The simplified desktop - called SimplicITy - has just six buttons directing users to basic tasks such as e-mail and chat.

The computer comes pre-loaded with 17 video tutorials from television presenter Valerie Singleton

More than 6 million people over the age of 65 have never used the internet, according to government figures.

'Social benefit'

Each made-to-order computer takes two weeks from request to delivery and can be ordered by post.

The computer has been developed in partnership with Wessex Computers and a website aimed at older people called discount-age, set up by Ms Singleton.

She said she was shocked by the number of older people who do not have computers - a survey by the Office for National Statistics in August 2009 revealed that 6.4 million people over 65 have never used the internet.READ MORE

Microsoft disconnects Xbox gamers

2009-11-11T05:13:00.000-08:00

Thousands of gamers may have been cut off from Microsoft's online gaming service Xbox Live for modifying their consoles to play pirated games.

Xbox Live allows gamers to play against one another

Online reports suggest that as many as 600,000 gamers may have been affected.

Microsoft confirmed that it had banned a "small percentage" of the 20 million Xbox Live users worldwide.

Microsoft said that modifying an Xbox 360 console "violates" the service's "terms of use" and would result in a player being disconnected.

"All consumers should know that piracy is illegal and that modifying their Xbox 360 console to play pirated discs violates the Xbox Live terms of use, will void their warranty and result in a ban from Xbox Live," Microsoft has said in a statement."The health of the video game business depends on customers paying for the genuine products and services they receive from manufacturers, retailers, and the third parties that support them."READ MORE

Washington sniper is put to death

2009-11-11T05:11:00.000-08:00

The man behind the 2002 sniper attacks in and around Washington DC has been executed after a final appeal was thrown out.

John Allen Muhammad's lawyers say he was mentally ill, but Virginia Governor Tim Kaine rejected a plea for clemency.

On Monday, the US Supreme Court quashed an appeal for a stay of execution.

Muhammad, 48, was injected with a lethal drug for the murder of Dean Harold Meyers, one of 10 people killed during the attacks.

Muhammad's accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo, who was 17 at the time of the shootings, is serving a life sentence in jail.

The pair killed 10 people during three weeks of attacks in Maryland, Washington and Virginia.READ MORE

Obama in Afghan troop level talks

2009-11-11T05:09:00.000-08:00

US President Barack Obama is to discuss US policy in Afghanistan with his national security team, as speculation mounts over a decision on troop levels.

A White House spokesman said Mr Obama was considering four options as he headed into the meeting.

He denied reports that the president had already settled on a figure and said a decision was still weeks away.

The top US military commander in Afghanistan has asked for at least 40,000 more US troops there.

Wednesday's meeting comes as an exhaustive review of US strategy in Afghanistan, including troop levels, appears to be drawing to a close.

Reports citing anonymous officials have suggested that a figure somewhat below the 40,000 suggested by Gen Stanley McChrystal is likely to be chosen.READ MORE

Major power failures hit Brazil

2009-11-11T05:07:00.000-08:00

A power blackout in Brazil left tens of millions of people sitting by candlelight, after plunging its two largest cities into darkness.

Underground railways, traffic lights, street lamps, lifts and electric gates in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro were all affected.

It was several hours before the problem could be fixed.

The authorities believe it could have been caused by a fault at the giant Itaipu hydro-electric dam.

AT THE SCENE

Gary Duffy, Sao Paulo

Walking around on the streets near my home, there was absolute chaos, with drivers pulling over to the side of the road and asking what had happened, and did anyone know what was wrong.

The traffic lights were out of order, traffic wardens were trying to maintain the flow of traffic, radio stations were appealing to people to drive carefully.

There was chaos in the metro system as well, some reports that people had to walk along the tracks because trains had come to a halt, that bus drivers were being called in to provide an emergency service.

The night the lights went out

The underground railway systems in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo shut down when the power cuts hit soon after 2200 (0000 GMT), leaving many passengers stranded.

Thousands of rail passengers had to walk down underground tracks to reach stations.

No traffic lights or street lights were working, causing traffic to stop or slow to a crawl.

Extra police were put on the streets to prevent a surge in crime.

Electricity supplies in Paraguay, which shares power from Itaipu, were also disrupted for a short while.

The power system lost 17,000 megawatts after the massive plant went offline, possibly because of a storm.

The director of the dam said it had lost its entire hydro-electric output.READ MORE

Anglicans welcome offer from Rome

2009-11-10T03:33:00.000-08:00

The Vatican has published details of its plan to ease conversion for Church of England clergy unhappy about the ordination of women bishops.

The proposal offers them what amounts to their own dioceses within the Roman Catholic Church.

The Vatican also said they could continue with Anglican traditions, such as some church services.

Anglican clergy claim the rules set out in the document make the offer seem more generous than it first seemed.

Fr Geoffrey Kirk, the national secretary of Forward in Faith, which represents Anglicans sympathetic to Catholicism, said more clergy would probably convert as a result.

"Of the 450 parishes I knew would take it (the Pope's invitation) seriously, I said between 150 and 200 would convert. Now I think it'll be more than 200."

The details published today confirm that Church of England priests who are married will be allowed - on a case-by-case basis - to serve as Roman Catholic priests.

That could lead to an influx of married priests to a church where clergy have traditionally been celibate READ MORE

EU negotiates names for top jobs

2009-11-10T03:32:00.000-08:00

Sweden's prime minister, the current chair of EU summits, says he is half-way through consultations to determine a shortlist for the new EU top jobs.

Fredrik Reinfeldt said he expected to be ready soon to call a special EU summit to appoint the permanent EU president and foreign policy chief.

The Belgian Prime Minister, Herman van Rompuy, has emerged as a frontrunner for the post of EU president.

UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband is not seeking the foreign affairs job.

He had been seen as a frontrunner for the job - among the institutional changes created by the Lisbon Treaty - even though he had said he was not "available".

But, amid continuing speculation, the BBC understands Mr Miliband told the head of the European socialists' group he was not interested in the job.

Friends have indicated Mr Miliband "sees his future in British politics".READ MORE

Japan to boost aid to Afghanistan

2009-11-10T03:30:00.000-08:00

Japan's government has pledged $5bn (£3bn) in new aid to Afghanistan over the next five years.

The decision comes days before US President Barack Obama visits Tokyo.

Japan's centre-left government has said it will end a naval refuelling mission in support of US-led efforts in Afghanistan.

Since coming to power in September the government also said it was working on a plan to offer more civilian aid instead.

Japan's government has been working on a plan to offer more aid to Afghanistan since announcing it would end a mission by the Maritime Self Defence Force to supply fuel to assist US-led operations in the country.

Now there is a figure - $5bn (£3bn) over the next five years.READ MORE

Penis tissue replaced in the lab

2009-11-10T03:29:00.000-08:00

Tissue created in a laboratory has been used to completely replace the erectile tissue of the penis in animals.

The advance raises hopes of being able to restore full function to human penises that have been damaged by injury or disease.

Rabbits given the engineered tissue by the scientists from Wake Forest University in North Carolina had normal sexual function and produced offspring.

The study appears online in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Professor Anthony Atala said: "Further studies are required, of course, but our results are encouraging and suggest that the technology has considerable potential for patients who need penile reconstruction.

"Our hope is that patients with congenital abnormalities, penile cancer, traumatic injury and some cases of erectile dysfunction will benefit from this technology in the future."READ MORE

Russia to resume ISS construction

2009-11-10T03:27:00.000-08:00

Science reporter

Russia could eventually convert its modules into the core of a new station

After a hiatus of almost a decade, Russia is set to resume construction of its share in the International Space Station (ISS) with the launch of a new module this week.

A Poisk ("Quest") Mini-Research Module-2 (MIM-2 in the Russian abbreviation) is set for launch from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Tuesday at 1422 GMT.

The spacecraft is essentially a twin of another Russian module - the Pirs Docking Compartment - added to the outpost in September 2001.

In the intervening years, economic problems kept further Russian pieces of the station on the ground and forced a significant scaling down of the Russian segment in comparison to its originally conceived architecture.

The MIM-2 module is only the first of three long-term components which Russia plans to add to the station over the next three years.READ MORE

Last chance' for tuna authority

2009-11-10T03:26:00.000-08:00

Environment correspondent, BBC News website

Tsukiji market in Tokyo is the final destination for a large proportion of bluefin

The annual meeting of the body charged with conserving Atlantic tuna opens on Monday to warnings that this is its "last chance" to manage things well.

The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (Iccat) is criticised for setting high quotas and not tackling illegal fishing.

Stocks of bluefin tuna are at about 15% of pre-industrial fishing levels.

US Commissioner Rebecca Lent said her country and others feel this is Iccat's last chance to put things right.

"We think Iccat is the body that should be managing bluefin tuna, and this is its chance to prove it can do so effectively," she told BBC News from the meeting in Recife, Brazil.READ MORE

Live UK football for iPhone users

2009-11-10T03:25:00.000-08:00

Pay-TV provider BSkyB is to show live Premier League matches on Apple's iPhone.

Users can watch live sports on Sky Sports and ESPN as well as Sky News over a wi-fi connection for £6 a month.

Besides the Premier League, users can also watch Scottish football, cricket and golf via Sky's new application.

BSkyB, which is 39%-owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp, has been launching applications for news and sports to try to expand its reach on mobile devices.

To watch sports on a normal television, Sky charges from £26.50 a month for Sky Sports 1 or 2, or £35 for its total sports package - excluding ESPN.

Sky Mobile TV, the latest application, is free to download.READ MORE

US media on Fort Hood shootings

2009-11-10T03:23:00.000-08:00

Thirteen people have been killed and 30 injured in a shooting at a military base in Texas. News of the shooting has dominated the US media.

America has been mourning those who died in the shooting

Most newspapers focus their attention on the gunman and speculate about his possible motives for turning on his army colleagues. But the effects of the shootings on the military community in Fort Hood also feature prominently.

Ann Scott Tyson in The Washington Post looks at thegrowing strain multiple deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan have had on the men and women stationed in Fort Hood, with suicide rates and post-traumatic stress disorder hitting record highs.READ MORE

US major contacted radical cleric

2009-11-10T03:22:00.000-08:00

US authorities knew that an army major accused of killing 13 people at a military base had been in contact with a cleric sympathetic to al-Qaeda.

Intelligence agencies monitoring the e-mail of Yemen-based Anwar al-Awlaki said he had communicated with Maj Nidal Malik Hasan on 10 to 20 occasions.

However, it was decided that this did not merit further investigation.

US officials say Maj Hasan apparently acted alone in carrying out Thursday's massacre at Fort Hood base in Texas.

President Barack Obama is due to visit Fort Hood later on Tuesday for a memorial service for the 13 people who died in last week's shootings.READ MORE

Korean naval ships clash at sea

2009-11-10T03:20:00.000-08:00

A South Korean warship has exchanged fire with a North Korean naval vessel, reports from both countries say.

Officials in Seoul say the South Korean vessel opened fire when the Northern ship crossed a disputed sea border. The North Korean vessel then fired back.

North Korea insists its ship did not cross the border, and has demanded an apology, according to news agency KCNA.

The two navies have engaged in deadly exchanges twice along their western sea border in the past decade.

The incident comes days before US President Barack Obama visits Asia, with North Korea seeking direct talks on its nuclear programme.READ MORE

Corruption costs $1.6tn, UN says

2009-11-09T06:58:00.000-08:00

The United Nations (UN) has said political corruption costs governments about $1.6tn (£951bn) every year.

The money is lost in public assets moved across borders via money-laundering or undeclared holdings.

The figure comes as the UN, World Bank and other watchdog meet in Doha, Qatar, to try to give a four-year-old anti-corruption agreement some teeth.

But hopes are low of countries agreeing to independent reviews into countries' finances to look for missing money.

Countries such as China, Iran and Russia are resisting such measures.

Two previous summits have failed to expand the powers of the UN's anti-corruption convention.

"We hope to have a commitment to action," said Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, a former Nigerian finance minister who is now managing director of the World Bank. "We've had a lot of talk. Now we'd like to see some action."READ MORE

Can Microsoft make its future mobile?

2009-11-09T06:47:00.000-08:00

You want a phone that can do it all? Internet, music, photos, films, documents, texting, instant messaging, diary, contacts and ... err ... phone calls?

Then a smartphone is right for you. But as the market for high-end mobiles gets ever more crowded, which should you pick?

The global market leader, Symbian, makes the software that runs most of Nokia's smart phones (and a few others).

Research in Motion with its e-mail friendly Blackberry devices has cornered the corporate market and is pushing into the consumer space.

Apple is minting it with its sleek but expensive iPhone. And only a few months ago internet search giant Google entered the field with its Linux-based Android software, designed to power internet-savvy mobile phones.READ MORE

Worm attack bites at Apple iPhone

2009-11-09T06:44:00.000-08:00

The first worm to infect the Apple iPhone has been discovered spreading "in the wild" in Australia.

The worm changes the wallpaper of the phone

The self-propagating program changes the phone's wallpaper to a picture of 80s singer Rick Astley with the message "ikee is never going to give you up".

The worm, known as ikee, only affects "jail-broken" phones, where a user has removed Apple's protection mechanisms to allow the phone to run any software.

Experts say the worm is not harmful but more malicious variants could follow.

"The creator of the worm has released full source code of the four existing variants of this worm," wrote Mikko Hypponen of security firm F-secure.

"This means that there will quickly be more variants, and they might have nastier payload than just changing your wallpaper."READ MORE

Nine executed over Xinjiang riots

2009-11-09T06:42:00.000-08:00

Chinese authorities have executed nine people in connection with the ethnic riots in Xinjiang earlier this year, regional reports say.

Nearly 200 people were killed in July during unrest between ethnic Uighurs and members of China's Han majority in the regional capital, Urumqi.

The nine men were convicted of crimes including murder and arson, according to the state-owned China News Service.

The reports do not say whether those executed were Uighurs or Han.

But if the executions were in line with previous statements by the Xinjiang government, the group consisted of eight Uighurs and one Han.

A spokesman for the Xinjiang government said the executions had been carried out after a review by the Supreme Court.

Uighur activist Dilxat Raxit condemned the executions, saying they were motivated by politics and the need to appease Urumqi's Han community.READ MORE

PM apologises over soldier letter

2009-11-09T06:06:00.000-08:00

Gordon Brown has telephoned a bereaved mother to apologise after apparently misspelling the name of her dead soldier son in a letter of sympathy.

Guardsman Jamie Janes, 20, from Brighton, East Sussex, was killed in an explosion in Afghanistan in October.

In a video distributed by the Sun newspaper, his mother Jacqui called the letter a "hastily scrawled insult".

But Mr Brown said he was sorry "for any unintended mistake", adding that his writing could be "difficult to read".

Guardsman Janes, of 1st Battalion The Grenadier Guards, was killed in an explosion while on foot patrol in Helmand province.

'Personal sadness'

According to the Sun, his mother Jacqui was angry when she received the prime minister's letter of condolence in which he appeared to misspell Guardsman Janes's name as "James".

The paper has reproduced the handwritten letter.READ MORE

Berlin celebrates demise of Wall

2009-11-09T06:05:00.000-08:00

Celebrations to mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall are under way.

They began with a service at the Gethsemane Church in the east of the city, a centre of protest in the months leading to the opening of the Wall.

Later, world leaders will symbolically walk across the first East German border crossing to open in 1989.

The fall of the Wall led to the collapse of Communist power, German reunification and the Cold War's end.

Communist East Germany erected the 155-km (96-mile) concrete wall in 1961 to encircle West Berlin and prevent citizens from fleeing into the capitalist enclave. More than 100 people are believed to have been killed at the Wall while trying to escape.READ MORE

Bon Jovi: 'We're not supposed to be here'

2009-11-08T03:19:00.000-08:00

Backstage at New York's Madison Square Garden, Jon Bon Jovi gathers his bandmates together and makes a speech.

"Twenty-five years ago, almost to the week," he begins, referring to the group's first show at the venue, as a support act for ZZ Top.

"We are not supposed to still be here."

It's one of several moments of black humour in the band's new documentary, When We Were Beautiful.

Zip forward 13 months from that concert - the last date of the band's Lost Highway tour - and Jon Bon Jovi is in London to meet the press.

Where, then, does he think the band are supposed to be at this stage?

"I don't know!" he confesses. "I never envisioned what the road should look like 25 years later.

The group, formed in 1983, have played more than 2,600 gigs

"My vision only took me as far as the year 2000, when we were going to be living in space, and I'd be 38 years old.

"I thought life was going to end in 1999. To think that 10 years later, I'd be sitting here with another album is truly astounding."READ MORE

China pledges $10bn Africa loans

2009-11-08T03:06:00.000-08:00

China has pledged to give Africa $10bn (£6bn) in concessional loans over the next three years, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has said at a summit in Egypt.

The Chinese leader is attending a two-day forum on China-Africa cooperation in Sharm el-Sheikh, attended by officials from 50 nations.

"We will help Africa build up financing capacity," Mr Wen told the summit.

Several heads of state and government are attending the meeting, including the Presidents of Sudan and Zimbabwe.

Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak inaugurated the forum, the fourth of its kind, and spoke of "peace, security and growth," and of "boosting cooperation between China and Africa."READ MORE

Son says Obama father 'abusive'

2009-11-08T03:03:00.000-08:00

One of US President Barack Obama's half-brothers has spoken about their "abusive" father at the launch of his semi-autobiographical first novel.

Mark Ndesandjo told reporters: "My father beat me. He beat my mother."

The author is the son of Mr Obama's late father and his third wife. Barack Obama Sr split from Mr Obama's mother when the future president was aged two.

Mr Ndesandjo, who lives in China, had previously shunned the media since his link to Mr Obama emerged in 2008.

But in a news conference to promote the novel Nairobi to Shenzhen, he said a string of extraordinary events - including his brother being elected president - made him come to terms with his past.READ MORE

US launches 'Twin Towers' warship

2009-11-08T03:01:00.000-08:00

A warship built with steel salvaged from the World Trade Center has been put into service in New York.

Hundreds of US Navy officers and sailors and also families of 9/11 victims attended the commissioning of the USS New York in Manhattan.

"No matter how many times you attack us, we always come back," US Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus said.

The bow of amphibious assault ship has 7.5 tonnes of melted steel from the debris of the World Trade Center.

In pictures: USS New York

Secretary of State and former New York Senator Hillary Clinton, who spoke at the ceremony, described the ship as "a symbol of our unshakable resolve - this is a city built of steel".

The ship's crest includes images of the Twin Towers and features the colours of the city departments that first responded to the terrorist attacks in which nearly 3,000 people died.READ MORE

UN chief condemns Kabul killings

2009-11-08T02:58:00.000-08:00

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has condemned as "shocking and shameless" a Taliban raid which killed at least five UN workers in the Afghan capital Kabul.

Three Afghans also died when suicide bombers stormed a UN guesthouse in the city, but Mr Ban said the UN would not be deterred from its mission there.

The Taliban said the attack was the first step in its bid to disrupt next week's presidential run-off election.

But the White House said such attacks would not derail the vote.

In a separate attack, rockets were fired at the city's five-star Serena Hotel, but no-one was injured.READ MORE

Deadly suicide attack in Pakistan

2009-11-08T02:56:00.000-08:00

At least 10 people have been killed and about 20 injured in a suicide bomb attack near the north-western Pakistani city of Peshawar, police say.

The blast ripped through a busy cattle market on the outskirts of the city.

The bomber appeared to have targeted a local anti-Taliban mayor, who died in the attack.

Islamist militants have unleashed a campaign of attacks in Pakistan in recent weeks in retaliation for an army offensive in South Waziristan.

Cars destroyed

The Taliban said they carried out the latest attack.

It appeared to target the mayor of Adizai, Abdul Malik, who was a vocal opponent of the militants. His home village is close to tribal areas where militants are active.READ MORE

Swiss Muslims open mosque doors

2009-11-08T02:53:00.000-08:00

Muslims in many parts of Switzerland have invited the public into mosques - three weeks before a vote on whether to ban the construction of minarets.

Muslim organisations say they hope their open day will counter what they say are fears and prejudices.

The conservative group that initiated the vote - the largest party in the Swiss parliament - says minarets are a symbol of Muslim political power.

Opinion polls suggest the proposed ban will be rejected by voters.

A Muslim community leader in Zurich, Tamir Hadjipolu, said the proposal - launched by the right-wing Swiss People's Party (SVP) - was "open discrimination" READ MORE

Can Obama pass healthcare reform?

2009-11-08T02:51:00.000-08:00

President Obama's key domestic policy objective is to reform the US system of healthcare. And the next few weeks will be crucial in determining whether he can deliver the fundamental reform that has eluded his predecessors.

"I am going to keep pressing until we get this done," President Obama told a town hall meeting in Virginia in early July as he went on the offensive.

The rising cost of health care for individuals, which has made it unaffordable for an increasing number of Americans, was a key issue in Mr Obama's election campaign and crucial to his victory.

Now a number of bills are already making their way through the US Congress, and the President would like to sign a comprehensive plan this year, despite intense opposition from Republicans and lobby groups.

US House backs healthcare reforms

2009-11-08T02:40:00.000-08:00

The US House of Representatives has backed a healthcare bill in a step towards reforms promised by President Obama, despite strong opposition.

Passed in a narrow 220-215 vote, the bill aims to extend coverage to 36 million more Americans and provide affordable healthcare to 96%.

The Senate now has to pass its own bill and the two must then be reconciled before the programme can become law.

Mr Obama has made healthcare reform a central plank of his domestic agenda.

He described Saturday's vote in the House as "historic", saying he was "absolutely confident" the Senate would follow suit.

Correspondents say the legislation could lead to the biggest changes in American healthcare in decades.READ MORE

Head-to-head: What next for US economy?

2009-11-06T00:33:00.000-08:00

John Silvia (left) debates with fellow economist Mark Perry

Official data has indicated that the US economy has come out of recession, but analysts warn the continuing recovery will be slow.

Here we bring together two US economists with differing views to discuss what is likely to happen next.

John Silvia is chief economist at Wells Fargo in Charlotte, North Carolina. He sees disappointment ahead for US workers and consumers, with a long-term decline in living standards.

Mark Perry is professor of economics at the University of Michigan-Flint and currently visiting economist at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington. He is more optimistic, expecting a resilient economy to produce job growth by late 2010 and deliver low prices for consumers READ MORE

US consumer spending falls again

2009-11-06T00:31:00.000-08:00

US consumer spending fell for the first time in five months in September, coinciding with the end of the government's car scrappage scheme.

The US Commerce Department says spending dropped 0.5% in September, compared with a 1.4% rise in August.

The $3bn (£1.8bn) "cash-for-clunkers" programme offered customers $3,500 towards the cost of a new vehicle.

Car firms reported falling sales in September after the scheme ended. General Motors saw sales drop 45%.

Wages and salaries also dropped 0.2% in September, after a 0.2% gain the previous month.

The figures were released in the same week that it was announced that the US recession had ended.

Most economists think the figures show that the outlook is better than expected.READ MORE

US hits China pipes with tariffs

2009-11-06T00:30:00.000-08:00

The US Commerce Department has imposed anti-dumping tariffs of up to 99% on imports of Chinese tubular goods.

The department alleged China had been selling its oil well pipes at prices that were much lower than normal.

The announcement is the latest in a series of trade disputes between the US and China, which called the move an "abuse of protectionist measures".

The move comes 10 days before President Barack Obama is due to make his first visit to China since taking office.

He will be in China from 15-18 November.

In September, the United States announced it would impose duties on Chinese-made tyres to protect local US industry, sparking the first major trade dispute of Obama's presidency.READ MORE

Deadly shootings at US army base

2009-11-06T00:27:00.000-08:00

A US Army major has opened fire on fellow soldiers at the Fort Hood military base in Texas, killing 13 people and injuring 30, officials say.

Base commander Lt Gen Bob Cone said that the gunman had not been killed, as earlier stated, but was in custody.

It is not clear what motivated the attacker, named as 39 year-old military psychiatrist Major Nidal Malik Hasan.

But some reports said the US-born Muslim was unhappy about being sent to Iraq or Afghanistan.Lt Gen Cone said one of the dead was a policeman, others were soldiers.

MAJOR NIDAL MALIK HASAN

US-born Muslim raised in Virginia

Joined the army and trained to be a psychiatrist

Treated soldiers returning from combat zones

Described as a devout Muslim who attended prayers regularly

Said to have been unhappy about imminent overseas deployment

Profile: Major Nidal Malik Hasan

President Barack Obama described it as "a horrific outburst of violence".

Speaking at a press conference in Washington, he said: "It is difficult enough when we lose these brave men and women abroad, but it is horrifying that they should come under fire at an army base on US soil."READ MORE

India lose despite Tendulkar ton

2009-11-06T00:23:00.000-08:00

Fifth one-day international: India v Australia, Hyderabad: Australia 350-4 (50 overs) beat India 347 (49.4 overs) by 3 runs
Match scorecard

Tendulkar is the first batsman to score 17,000 runs in one-day internationals

Sachin Tendulkar hit 175 but it was not enough as India lost a dramatic fifth one-day international against Australia by three runs with two balls remaining.READ MORE

B.E.Fresher job opening in chennai

2009-11-03T09:25:00.001-08:00

click here and register on or before nov 25,

Http://becapex.com

Top Ten richest Football player in 2009

2009-11-03T08:34:00.000-08:00

his year, France Magazine has compiled a top 10 soccer player rich list based on annual income, which is topped by none other than David Beckham.

The full top 10 list is set out below:

1. David Beckham £24.7m ($49.4m)

2. Ronaldinho £19.2m ($38.4m)

3. Lionel Messi £18.3m ($36.6m)

4. Cristiano Ronaldo £15.5m ($31m)

5. Thierry Henry £13.4m ($26.8) 6,7,8...

Friday feeling not for Scotland

2009-11-03T08:30:00.000-08:00

Scotland will be disadvantaged by Fifa's decision to make Friday nights available for international fixtures, according to Gordon Smith.

With police against sanctioning matches at such a time, the Scottish FA chief executive thinks it will hamper preparation time between games.

The move comes with Fifa switching midweek ties from Wednesday to Tuesday."It leaves us playing Saturday then Tuesday, while our opponents might have an extra day to recover," said Smith.

Beckham signs AC Milan loan deal

2009-11-03T08:25:00.000-08:00

England midfielder David Beckham is to rejoin AC Milan on loan in January after the Italian club reached an agreement with Los Angeles Galaxy.

Beckham, 34, is keen to play for Milan to maximise his chances of making the England squad for the 2010 World Cup.

The Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder had a loan spell at Milan last season, during the Major League Soccer off-season.

"I need to give myself the best chance to make the World Cup squad - playing for Milan will help me," said Beckham.

"I'm committed to LA Galaxy and MLS in the long term and remain as passionate as ever about growing the game of soccer in America.

606: DEBATE

Will this move help guarantee Beckham a place in Capello's World Cup squad?

"I'm completely focused on ending this season on a high note with my club by winning the MLS Cup," added Beckham, referring to the MLS play-offs.

During his first Milan loan spell, Beckham scored two goals in 18 matches, helping the Serie A side qualify for the Champions League.

He joined Milan on an initial three-month deal in January 2009 that was extended to the end of the season.Video link

Elections test US voters' mood

2009-11-03T01:52:00.000-08:00

President Obama lent his support to Democrat Jon Corzine in New Jersey

Voters in the US states of New Jersey and Virginia will be going to the polls shortly to choose new state governors.

The results will be closely watched by Republicans and Democrats who see it as a test of their parties' standing one year after President Obama was elected.

Two Congressional seats are also up for grabs in New York and California. New York is among cities choosing a mayor.

While local issues have been paramount in these races, a win could boost party morale ahead of 2010 mid-term ballots.Read more

Mideast: Israel Divided Over 'Illegal' Children

2009-11-02T15:11:00.000-08:00

'Migrant workers bring with them a profusion of diseases - hepatitis, measles, tuberculosis, AIDS and drug addiction: Our critics can be as sanctimonious as they like, but unless we stop the wave of migrant workers, the whole character of the State of Israel, its Jewish character, will be under threat.'

The resort by Israel's Interior Minister Eli Yishai to a blatant racist stereotype is the latest outburst in an increasingly heated public debate about the fate of migrant workers whose permits have been revoked because they had children while working in Israel.Read more

Global Financial Crisis

2009-11-02T15:09:00.000-08:00

The global financial crisis, brewing for a while, really started to show its effects in the middle of 2007 and into 2008. Around the world stock markets have fallen, large financial institutions have collapsed or been bought out, and governments in even the wealthiest nations have had to come up with rescue packages to bail out their financial systems.

On the one hand many people are concerned that those responsible for the financial problems are the ones being bailed out, while on the other hand, a global financial meltdown will affect the livelihoods of almost everyone in an increasingly inter-connected world. The problem could have been avoided, if ideologues supporting the current economics models weren’t so vocal, influential and inconsiderate of others’ viewpoints and concerns.Read more

Politics: U.S. Mission to Burma Heralds Obama’s New Diplomatic Tack

2009-11-02T15:06:00.000-08:00

An upcoming mission by senior United States government officials to military- ruled Burma points to Washington’s commitment that engaging with oppressive regimes—than spurning them—is the way forward for change.

The two-day visit by Kurt Campbell, assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, and Scot Marciel, deputy assistant secretary, is being seen as a clear sign of the new diplomatic policy U.S. President Barak Obama wants to unveil in the South-east Asian nation, which is also called Myanmar.

This U.S. mission, from Nov. 3 to 4, marks a break from the tough line that the former U.S. administration, under George W. Bush, pursued. Campbell and Marciel, furthermore, will be the highest-ranking U.S. officials visiting Burma after 14 years. The last to do so, in 1995, was Madeline Albright, then U.S. ambassador to the United Nations.Read more

Egypt: A Big Catch Feed Millions

2009-11-02T15:04:00.000-08:00

As the sun rises over the Nile delta, workers at a fish farm in northern Egypt open a sluice gate and sort through the thousands of wriggling tilapia that pour out of a concrete holding tank. The fish are sorted, packed into crates and sent to supermarkets in Cairo and Alexandria, where they are sold as 'the catch of the day'.

Egypt has built the largest aquaculture industry in Africa, accounting for four out of every fish farmed on the continent. Egyptian fish farms produced over 650,000 tons of finfish last year, or about 60 percent of the country's total freshwater and marine fish production, providing a cheap source of protein for the country's 80 million people. read more

Afghanistan: Teenagers Enlist in Army, Police

2009-11-02T15:02:00.000-08:00

Niamatullah joined the Afghan National Police (ANP) for the same reasons that many Afghan men do.

'I am illiterate,' he says, sitting in the police barracks in Aghandab district, Kandahar, a Kalashnikov machine-gun hanging from a strap on his neck. 'I couldn't find a job, so I was compelled to join the police. There were only two ways. Join the police or beg.'

Niamatullah has something else in common with all too many Afghan police and army forces: he's only 16 years old.

On the record, government sources say that there are no underage soldiers or officers in the ANP and Afghanistan National Army (ANA). But speaking anonymously, many admit that in fact there are soldiers and police officers under the age of 18 serving in both security forces.

In interviews, these teen soldiers say that they need jobs to provide for their families and the police or army are more than happy to hire them, even providing the teens with fake National Identity Cards (NIC). In a matter of weeks, Afghanistan's boys can go from high school students, to uniformed soldiers.Read more

Climate Change: Jockeying for Position in Copenhagen

2009-11-02T14:58:00.000-08:00

The global climate change caravan has arrived in Barcelona for a last round of talks before the Copenhagen summit. What's at stake for Africa?

'I hold my fingers crossed, but to be realistic I don't see major things happening in Barcelona this week,' Peter Acquah, secretary of the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment (AMCEN), told IPS from Nairobi.

AMCEN met last week in Addis Ababa for a final conclave before African negotiators meet their counterparts from the rest of the world at the 15th Conference of Parties in the Danish capital on Dec. 7-18.

The result of the talks in the Ethiopian capital was an unambiguous 'No' to the present draft for a replacement of the Kyoto Protocol by a new climate agreement in Copenhagen.

Developing nations — jointly negotiating under the umbrella of the G77 plus China — are building up the pressure on the road to Copenhagen by playing their cards close to their chest.

'Of course rapid movement becomes all of a sudden possible if the Annex I countries are willing to put some numbers on the table in Barcelona that go past the current proposed cuts in emissions,' Acquah acknowledged. 'And if they come up with a realistic figure to finance the deal.'Read more

Benítez reignites 'small club' row after Everton frustrate Liverpool again

2009-01-26T18:04:00.000-08:00

The first Merseyside FA Cup derby for 18 years was not incentive enough for Tom Hicks or George Gillett to cross the Atlantic but two emotive figures still kept controversy alive in their predictable absence at Anfield: Rafael Benítez and David Moyes. Managers and not suits at the centre of the argument – exactly how it should be.

Benítez reacted to a second successive draw with Everton here by accusing his depleted rivals of negative tactics and insinuating that, in keeping with the criticism that followed a goalless draw here in 2007, the "small-club mentality" continues at Goodison Park. Moyes refused to be drawn into the debate saying, "Everton do things with dignity and style." Their spat took attention away from the Liverpool co-owners' continued attempts to secure new investment in the club and Benítez's treatment of Robbie Keane, who was omitted from the squad following his meagre display in Monday's league meeting.

"I am really pleased with my team. We deserved to win," said Benítez, after Steven Gerrard had equalised Joleon Lescott's first-half header. "To play like that against a team with 10 players behind the ball is not easy but we worked hard, created chances and reacted very positively after the disappointment of the other night."

Before the kick-off Everton's most creative outlet, Mikel Arteta, had joined the suspended Marouane Fellaini plus the injured Yakubu Ayegbeni, James Vaughan and Louis Saha on Moyes' absentee list with a rib problem. When asked if he appreciated the Everton manager's position, or had ever employed similar tactics himself, Benítez added: "It was more or less the same on Monday night [when Arteta played]. I am the Liverpool football club manager so I can only think about to win. It doesn't matter what they do. I never used those tactics at Valencia but sometimes I did with Extremadura."

Moyes' retort was equally loaded. "This [Liverpool] is a great football club but Everton do things with dignity and style." The Everton manager, who claimed his side merited a penalty for Alvaro Arbeloa's innocuous collision with Steven Pienaar, added: "We have been here twice this week and drawn twice. I didn't come looking for a draw, although I would have taken one in the end. We look after our own business at Everton. We do things with a bit of dignity at Everton."

A replay at Goodison on February 4, Benítez admitted, was a headache he could do without, as Liverpool chase the title, and his omission of Keane, who was not injured and not present to witness the stalemate, ensured the soap opera at Anfield continued unabated. "Robbie wasn't selected," confirmed Benítez. "We have a very good squad."

In the background, in spirit if not body, lurked the club's American owners as Liverpool attempt to proceed on three fronts – league, Champions League and FA Cup – with uncertainty all around. Benítez used his programme notes to appeal for a unity that does not exist among those leading the club. The Liverpool manager wrote: "This is the kind of position we have been striving to be in for the past 10 to 15 years. Now we are here it's important we all work hard to move forward together." That may be true on the playing side, with Benítez making the changes he promised for this FA Cup tie but not to the detriment of the team, but the Americans' hard work is concentrated on their own interests and restricted by personal disputes.

Again the division between Hicks and Gillett has created a cloud over Liverpool's campaign. Unless there is a drop in their £600m asking price or their intransigent stance that one will not walk away from the club without the other, there is little prospect it will disperse soon.

The Kuwaiti billionaire, Nasser al-Kharafi, has not seized the approach he received from Hicks' representatives last week due to the Texan's insistence on retaining a stake in Liverpool should a deal proceed. Gillett, for his part, is reluctant to sell his 50% interest should his business partner remain involved. The latter is, however, keen for both to sell up at the right price and has employed Rothschilds, the bankers, to flush out investors (Hicks has tasked Merrill Lynch with the same goal) and they have interest from several suitors, including one from Dubai. Not that widespread interest encourages the thought of a swift resolution to a saga that has plagued Anfield since late 2007.

Prospective owners are aware of the Americans' need to refinance a £350m package in July and the pressure that will increasingly bring on their asking price. Along with Benítez's and Moyes' wildly contrasting opinions on what constitutes a creditable return at Anfield, there appears no resolution on the immediate horizon.

Tories regain lost ground as ICM poll shows faith in Gordon Brown waning

2009-01-26T17:59:00.000-08:00

Voters think that Gordon Brown's high-profile battle to turn around the economy is doomed, according to a new Guardian/ICM poll. Only 31% think the prime minister's strategy will make things better. Most, 64%, think it will either achieve nothing or even make the situation worse.

Even Labour's supporters are doubtful: only 48% of people who voted for the party in 2005 believe that the government's measures will work.

The deepening crisis has left the party facing heavy defeat. Overall Conservative support is up six points since last month's Guardian/ICM survey. At 44% it is only one point below its 25-year ICM high. Labour is on 32% and the Liberal Democrats are on 16%.

Today's poll, carried out after last week's second round of bank bail-outs and subsequent sharp falls in the share value of those banks, shows that public attitudes are hardening against the government. The Conservatives, advancing strongly, have regained their lead as the most trusted party on the economy.

A key factor seems to be public opposition to bank bail-outs. There is strong support for some recession-beating measures such as the VAT cut and a programme of new public works. But only 43% back the government's decision to purchase large stakes in some banks, and only 40% think outright nationalisation would be a good idea.

Voters are only slightly more enthusiastic about attempts by the government to underwrite bank lending, supported by 52%.

By contrast, backing for a job-creating scheme of public construction is near universal, at 85%, and 63% approve of the VAT cut.

The result is that public confidence in Labour's economic team has dropped by 11% since November.

Across the poll, Labour is flatlining – the charge once thrown at struggling Conservative leaders who could not lift their party's support below the low 30s. Labour has been on 31%, plus or minus two points, since August in ICM polls.

The prime minister can draw comfort from the fact that this new support has come almost entirely from the Lib Dems and smaller parties. Labour support is down only one point, and at 32% is well above the low points in the mid-20s it hit in the early summer last year.

But that simply suggests the party is on course for a big defeat rather than a calamity. One estimate suggests that the Conservatives would win around 360 seats on today's figures, a majority of about 70. Labour could expect to win around 240, 30 more than it did at its nadir under Michael Foot in 1983.

Meanwhile the Lib Dems will be disturbed by their sharp fall in support of three points. Today's 16% is the lowest in any ICM poll since August. The Lib Dems, who normally perform better in ICM polls than in those from some other companies, enter 2009 four points below their rating at the start of 2008, when Nick Clegg had just become leader.

Support for other parties, at 8%, is down by two points.

Asked who they trust most on the economy – Brown and Alistair Darling, or David Cameron and George Osborne – voters now give the Conservatives a narrow two point lead.

The big shift involves Labour, down 11 points in two months to 35%. The Conservatives have not been making headway at the government's expense: 37% of voters think the Tory team is best, unchanged from November.

Confidence in the Conservative team is still three points lower than it was in March last year, just after the budget and the 10p tax row. Labour is still five points up on that spring Tory high point.

Over the year as a whole, however, Labour is the loser. In January 2008 it led by seven points as the best party on the economy, against today's deficit of two.

• ICM interviewed a random sample of 1,003 adults aged 18+ by telephone between 23 and 25 January 2009. Interviews were conducted across the country and the results have been weighted to the profile of all adults. Percentages may not add to 100 because of rounding. ICM is a member of the British Polling Council and abides by its rules.

DREAM TEMPLATE

2009-01-23T22:58:00.000-08:00

DreamTemplate.com offers exclusive premium web content solutions for web developers and webmasters. Our service lets you access a large collection of professionally designed website template files. Designing for the web has never been easier, with DreamTemplate you can rapidly create and deploy professional looking website's quickly. The templates available on DreamTemplate go through an extensive quality control department before they are available for download and generally have immense visual appeal. In addition to website templates, we also offer other web content solutions such as CSS templates, Flash templates, logo templates, photoshop web designs, company form designs, newsletter templates and abstract images.

Goal & Focus
Our focus is on providing premium website templates at one extremely affordable price. Unlike many other template providers, you only pay a one-time membership fee to access our entire range of professionally designed template collection. Our aim is to save you both time and money. Our creative graphic designers and web designers spend hours on each template, letting you focus on what matters, your business and content! Now, you can deploy rapid online presence at a fraction of typical web development costs.

The Team
DreamTemplate operates a global team of professional website designers and talented graphic artists who work all over the world, together they deliver our customers with premium quality designs on a regular basis.

The Difference
Our exclusive templates, unlike most other template membership sites, have the quality of individually sold web templates.

The way we approach each template development phase is as follows:
1. Creative graphic artist visualizes and then proceeds to design the layout (5-10 hours)
2. The template is then sent to our Quality Control team to inspect, if it fails to spark our interest, it is sent back for re-work. If it passes quality control, then it sent to next phase.
3. Website designer cuts the Photoshop graphic file into HTML compatible pages (2-3 hours)
4. The template is again sent to our Quality Control team who analyzes the HTML design quality, if it passes then it is available for download, otherwise it is sent back for adjustments.

The average template takes about 7-15 hours to produce. Our goal as a design studio is to provide our customers with not only a vast quantity of templates, but to have each of them backed up with exceptional quality that will make your visitors coming back time and time again, just to see your visually stunning website!

When you become a DreamTemplate member, you are not just purchasing what you see. We regularly add more templates, ensuring that you are getting much more than you ever expected. We strive to add new template almost every week, making sure that our customers are happy.

Why Website Templates?
Web design templates are growing in popularity as it is now much more affordable and quicker to use than hiring a web development team to design a website for you. The cost of hiring a web development team can cost 1000x more than a simple template membership pass. By purchasing pre-made website templates you avoid having to hire web designers and graphic artists to create your website.

With DreamTemplate.com, you finally have the chance to have the impressive website design you've always dreamed about! Or even for the professional web designer, you can utilize our site to stimulate ideas to create your own designs for your clients. By using DreamTemplate.com's pre-made web templates, web designers can reduce the amount of time designing website layouts and frontends. Instead they are able to spend time customizing to their clients needs and demands.

Watching Obama's Inauguration with Twitter

2009-01-20T18:03:00.000-08:00

We are following the inauguration on Twitter where millions of people in Washington and around the world are sharing Barack Obama's inauguration. Here is a range of what people are saying.

Troy Harlan in Portland Oregon summed it up this way:

Dear Sam Cooke, a change has come. A change has come. #inaug09

It was an emotional moment for many on Twitter. Beth in Santa Cruz California said:

#inaug09: I love that Obama is nervous and not perfect....yay! The crowd roars and I am still crying here.

Duarte Da Silva in Toronto had one word during Obama's speech: Goosebumps! A woman in Chicago said on Twitter:

#inaug09 It's a good thing I am wearing water-proof mascara.

From Michigan, Twitterer paulina1 said:

"I think im gonna cry..never thought i would get to experience this in my life time..#inaug09" ... "I got a tissue. It is a an experience. I am not a complete Obama fan, I am excited for the change."

James Robertson, who lives in Washington DC and might be used to these events, was still wowed.

#inaug09 The wide shots from the Capitol are just staggering. Solid people from the Capitol to the Washington Monument. Truly amazing

Separation of Church and State

There was some upset about the invocation, not only that conservative Pastor Rick Warren gave it, but the fact that it was given at all. However, a Gallup Poll showed that only 10% of Democrats objected to his participation. Twitter users did object.

Wesley Williams in Milton Keynes in England said:

Seperation of church and state people! Stop with the frickin' prayers! #inaug09

Alex Hew said: "There is so much wrong with praying at a presidential inauguration #inaug09"

Amy Zimmerman said: "never like the invocation. i still hold to separation of church and state. no place for religion here for this obama fan #inaug09"

However, many Twitter users took note that Obama described the United States as "a nation of Christians, Muslims, Jews and Hindus, and non-beleievers". It was a notable statement for their inclusion and recognition of non-believers or atheists.

Millions inspired, hope for healing

After Obama's speech, Amy seemed inspired:

for the first time since those awful days post 911 we witness a love and pride of country. let this carry over! #inaug09

There was cautious optimism, even amongst those who might not be Obama supporters or members of his party. Gregg Smith said:

As a life long Republican I must say I am excited about the future for our country

Lisa in Oklahoma noted the anger by Bush supporters towards Obama on Twitter and said:

#inaug09 We need to put aside our differences. Obama is going to be our president in just moments. We should stand behind him.

Thanks for sharing your comments with us, and thanks for following GuardianUS on Twitter during the elections and the inauguration.

"shock collar" and "bark collar"

2009-01-20T01:28:00.000-08:00

Dog Training Shock Collars allow you to control your dog's behavior from a distance

RadioFence.com offers a complete selection of Dog Training Shock Collars. Whether you are the average dog owner who needs to correct your dog's unwanted behavior or an experienced hunting professional, we have the shock collar that is right for you. Electronic shock collars will not harm your dog. Dog Training Shock Collars can be used to deter unwanted behavior such as digging, chewing on furniture, jumping on guests, or barking. They can also be used for basic obedience training such as teaching the "come" command. Your dog will only need a few training sessions to begin to behave the way you want him to. Before you buy a Dog Training Collar from a competitor.We guarantee the Lowest Price on all PetSafe, Innotek and SportDog Shock Collars. We will meet or beat our competitor's shock collar prices even if already ordered a Remote Training Collar from us before you found a better Dog Training Collar price from a competitor.

Anchor Text : Shock Collar
Link Url : http://www.radiofence.com/dog-training-collars/

Bark Collars

A Bark Collar is the most humane device that you can rely on to stop your dog's excessive barking. A Bark Control Collar is an effective way to stop annoying, barking dogs safely, humanely and quickly. We offer various kinds of no bark collars that will fit your budget and your dog's training needs. We guarantee the Lowest Prices on Bark Collars. If you ever find a lower bark collar price on any of our Dog Bark Collars, we will meet or beat our competitors prices on these Bark Collars. We have the best Anti Bark Collars available and always have the lowest prices on Bark Control Collars.

Anchor Text : Bark Collar
Link Url : http://www.radiofence.com/bark-collars/

BUY BLOGGER REVIEWS

2009-01-01T05:23:00.000-08:00

The 10 Dopiest Business and Economy Leaders of 2008

2008-12-20T17:49:00.000-08:00

1) Bernard Madoff. If the federal government's accusations prove correct, Madoff also belongs on a list of America's most active and energetic senior citizens. The 70-year-old money manager was arrested by the FBI for allegedly running the largest Ponzi scheme this side of Social Security, losing an estimated $50 billion in client money. Investigators say Madoff told them that his business was just "one big lie." Terrible news for numerous wealthy individuals, banks, and charitable foundations. A perfect way to cap off a perfectly terrible year on Wall Street.

2) The bailout trio. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, and New York Federal Reserve President Timothy Geithner decided to let Lehman Brothers fail in September, triggering a global collapse of financial confidence, as well as wrecking the money and commercial paper markets. The move also led to massive hedge fund redemptions, which forced them to liquidate stocks. And don't forget the ever evolving $700 billion Paulson plan to bail out the banks. Buying assets one day, injecting capital the next. And the crisis rolls on ....

3) Alan Greenspan. Now when people call Greenspan "the Maestro," it's with more than a hint of sarcasm. Many economists and financial analysts give the former Federal Reserve chairman a large share of the blame for the current financial crisis by keeping interest rates too low for too long during the first part of this decade. They also say the Ayn Rand disciple shirked his responsibility to ensure the safety and soundness of the financial system by resisting calls for tighter regulation of risky bank lending.

4) Angelo Mozilo. The nattily dressed former CEO of Countrywide Financial has become the tanned face of the subprime mortgage meltdown. Mozilo built Countrywide into the nation's largest mortgage lender and enriched himself to the tune of more than $400 million in the process. But as it turns out, lots of those borrowers should have stayed renters. Not that it mattered to Countrywide, since it could sell those soon-to-be-toxic mortgages to Wall Street and beyond.

5) Robert Rubin. It has been a bad run for the heroes of the 1990s boom. Now it's Rubin's turn for criticism, thanks to the unfolding financial disaster that is Citigroup. It looks as if all the company got from Rubin for some $115 million was a strategy for taking on heaps more risk in the collapsing debt markets. The former treasury secretary probably doesn't have to worry about deciding whether to give up his fat private-sector compensation package if eventually nominated by Barack Obama to be the next Fed chair. Doesn't look as if that call will be coming.

6) Richard Fuld. Not only did CEO Fuld watch Lehman Brothers, the 158-year-old investment bank, go down the tubes, but he reportedly got punched in the face in the company gym and was viciously mocked on Saturday Night Live. Under Fuld, Lehman became the single biggest Wall Street underwriter of mortgage debt right into the teeth of the mortgage debt collapse. But in the end, there was no lifeline from Uncle Sam. That was the knockout blow and worse than a punch in the kisser.

7) Barney Frank. This is a quote, from 2003, that the Massachusetts Democrat would like to have back: "These two entities—Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac—are not facing any kind of financial crisis. The more people exaggerate these problems, the more pressure there is on these companies, the less we will see in terms of affordable housing.'' Turns out that the two government-sponsored entities were walking farther and farther out onto thin financial ice. And as late as last year, Frank wanted Fannie and Freddie to take on even more subprime risk. Washington and Wall Street have to share the blame for the financial crisis.

8) John McCain. At times during the presidential campaign, it seemed as if McCain was going out of his way to prove to voters that he really meant it when he said he didn't understand economics too well. He constantly misspoke about the details of his healthcare plan, let Barack Obama steal the tax-cut issue, and talked more passionately about earmarks than about dealing with the imploding housing market.

9) Barack Obama. If there is one piece of policy advice that economists agree on, it is this: You don't raise taxes during an economic downturn. Doing so would be right out of the Great Depression playbook. Yet even as the economy obviously weakened in the latter half of the year, Obama stuck to his campaign pledge to reverse the 2001 and 2003 tax cuts on income and capital gains for wealthier Americans. Indeed, Obama's transition website still holds out that possibility. And while there are signs that he might instead let the tax cuts expire at the end of 2010, that is not for sure yet.

10) Big Three CEOs and unions. It takes a special kind of incompetence to completely drain away the goodwill of a car-crazy nation like America. Yet polls show that most Americans don't want to bail out the automakers. As with the credit crisis, there is plenty of blame to go around, from poorly designed cars to fat union benefits and complicated work rules. Bottom line: Thousands of workers seem destined for the unemployment line.

Winter weather blasts nation from end to end

2008-12-20T17:08:00.000-08:00

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) -- Successive waves of wintry weather gripped much of the country Saturday, frustrating holiday travelers from coast to coast and keeping the lights off for thousands of people who lost power after ice storms just days ago.

Iowa public safety officials urged motorists not to travel as heavy snow began to fall in the morning. The state expected winds up to 35 miles per hour and wind chills of minus 25 just two days after being slammed with sleet, ice and snow.

Washington state braced for hurricane-force winds as a storm blew in from the Pacific. The temperature dipped to minus 18 Saturday in Spokane, which expected up to 6 inches of snow on top of the 25 that fell over the past three days, said Johnny Burg, a National Weather Service meteorologist.

In the Northeast, the aftermath of snow that fell Friday continued to snarl air traffic. And residents who still lacked power after an ice storm last week grew frustrated as officials warned that the storm battering the Midwest would blow in Sunday, the official first day of winter.

But the wintry conditions weren't unwelcome everywhere. Megan Zarbano, manager of Kratz Hardware in Valley City, N.D., noted that the snow was helping to clear inventory from years of mild winters.

"We haven't had a blizzard-type storm in almost 10 years," she said. "A good storm really shakes people up; they freak out and realize they're not prepared for winter."

North Dakota's snowfall total for December nearly matches the 19.3 inches that fell all last winter, said meteorologist Joshua Scheck at the National Weather Service office in Bismarck.

"And it's not even the first day of winter yet," he said Saturday.

The cold was the major concern in Illinois, where the Weather Service canceled a storm watch in the north but warned that freezing temperatures could cause flooding from ice jams on rivers near the Quad Cities and Rockford.

Meteorologists also said the weekend's temperatures, expected to hit minus 5 by late Sunday with wind gusts of 30 mph, could again damage power lines serving those plunged into darkness by ice earlier in the week.

More than 77,000 customers in northern Indiana still had no power Saturday after Thursday night's ice storm, and Indiana Michigan Power said the power failures could last beyond Wednesday. The Weather Service warned that winds as high as 40 mph would "create havoc with trees and power lines" already covered or weakened by ice.

In New Hampshire, more than 20,000 homes and businesses awaited restoration of power after an ice storm last week but feared the worst as the next storm approached.

"The utilities have made significant progress in restoring power in what is an unprecedented outage," New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch said Saturday. "However, I continue to hear frustration from the local communities regarding communication with the utilities, and I share their frustration."

Sunday's storm could bring more power failures to southern New Hampshire, which was expected to get 10 to 16 inches of snow, forecasters said.

Boston's Logan International Airport reported about 60 canceled flights and about 215 delays Saturday as effects lingered from a storm the day before. In the New York City area, some arrivals were three hours late to Newark airport, and arrival delays at Kennedy Airport averaged 90 minutes, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

Blizzard warnings were posted for parts of Washington as high winds, snow and freezing rain began coating the state Saturday. Western Washington, including the Seattle area, could see wind gusts as high as 90 mph, meteorologist Burg said.

"The storm has arrived," Burg said.

Up to 10 inches of snow was expected all along Interstate 5 in Oregon, the state's main north-south route, including Portland. The state braced for wind gusts up to 60 mph.

Freezing rain clattered to the ground Saturday in the agricultural Willamette Valley, meteorologist Jonathan Wolfe said.

"It'll be nasty well into Sunday evening," he said.

---

Contributing to this report were Associated Press writers Jim Cour in Seattle, Michael Tarm in Chicago, James MacPherson in Bismarck, N.D., David Tirrell-Wysocki in Concord, N.H., and David B. Caruso in New York.

Afghanistan could get up to 30,000 new US troops

2008-12-20T16:51:00.000-08:00

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- The top U.S. military officer said Saturday that the Pentagon could double the number of American forces in Afghanistan by next summer to 60,000 - the largest estimate of potential reinforcements ever publicly suggested.

Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that between 20,000 and 30,000 additional U.S. troops could be sent to Afghanistan to bolster the 31,000 already there.

This year has been the deadliest for U.S. forces in Afghanistan since the 2001 invasion to oust the Taliban for hosting al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden. Suicide attacks and roadside bombs have become more dangerous, and Taliban fighters have infiltrated wide swaths of countryside and now roam in provinces on Kabul's doorstep.

U.S. commanders have long requested an additional 20,000 troops to aid Canadian and British forces in two provinces just outside Kabul and in the south. But the high end of Mullen's range is the largest number any top U.S. military official has said could be sent to Afghanistan.

Mullen said that increase would include combat forces but also aviation, medical and civilian affairs support troops.

"So some 20,000 to 30,000 is the window of overall increase from where we are right now," he told a news conference at a U.S. base in Kabul. "We certainly have enough forces to be successful in combat, but we haven't had enough forces to hold the territory that we clear."

Overall, there are more than 60,000 foreign troops in Afghanistan. Mullen said any increased U.S. deployment would be directly tied to force levels in Iraq, where U.S. commanders are drawing down troops.

"The Taliban and extremists are more sophisticated and effective," Mullen said. "They haven't won any battles but they certainly have increased the level of violence, and we're very focused on that. That's why the additional forces are so important, to be able to provide security for the Afghan people so these other areas can be developed."

U.S. officials already have plans to send four ground brigades and an aviation brigade to Afghanistan. Defense Secretary Robert Gates has approved the deployment of the aviation brigade, defense officials told The Associated Press. And 10th Mountain Division forces will deploy next month to two provinces that neighbor Kabul - Wardak and Logar, which have seen an influx of militants over the last year.

Mullen said that after the additional U.S. troops are added over the next eight months, only improvements in Afghanistan's governance and economic situation will affect the strength of the insurgency.

But the chairman conceded that the U.S. may have misjudged the central government's ability "to have the kind of impact that we wanted."

Afghanistan, Mullen said, has never been run by a strong central government, and the U.S. may look to communities and tribes in the country's provinces to take on a greater role in future strategy.

He called U.S. goals in Afghanistan "moderate," and said the long-term U.S. vision is for a country that can govern itself while respecting international law, while providing both material and economic security for its people.

TERROR IN INDIA ,Obama's First Test

2008-12-18T18:09:00.000-08:00

The series of terror attacks in Mumbai comes at a sensitive time for the US. President Bush is no longer in a position to lead, and President-elect Barack Obama has not yet been given the reins. Still, the attacks represent Obama's first foreign policy test.

The mood was a festive one on Wednesday in Washington D.C. Just like every year before Thanksgiving, US President George W. Bush "pardoned" a turkey -- this year's version was named Pumpkin. President-elect Barack Obama and his wife Michelle, for their part, joined TV legend Barbara Walters for a chat. The atmosphere was relaxed -- they talked, for example, about how the Obama daughters would be in charge of making their own beds when they moved into the White House in January.

PHOTO GALLERY: MASSACRE IN MUMBAI

Click on a picture to launch the image gallery (18 Photos)

But then the images from the terror attacks in Mumbai began flickering across the television screen. And suddenly, the pre-holiday calm in Washington and Chicago, where Obama's transition team is headquartered, came to an abrupt end.

Bush and Obama quickly issued statements. "President Bush offers his condolences to the Indian people and the families of the innocent civilians killed and injured in the attacks in Mumbai," the White House statement said. "The US government continues to monitor the situation…and stands by ready to assist and support the Indian government." Terror experts from the State Department and the Defense Department quickly began analyzing the situation.

The Obama statement was in a similar vein. "These coordinated attacks on innocent civilians demonstrate the grave and urgent threat of terrorism," Obama spokesman Brooke Anderson said. "The United States must continue to strengthen our partnerships with India and nations around the world to root out and destroy terrorist networks."

SPIEGEL ONLINE; Google Earth

Where the attacks took place.

A Previously Unknown Terror Group

Obama also quickly got on the phone with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who briefed him on the situation. But the exact circumstances of the series of attacks, which killed over 100 people and injured some 250, were unclear on Wednesday evening in Washington. A previously unknown group calling itself Deccan Mujahideen sent out e-mails to media organizations claiming responsibility for the attack. But there are a number of groups in India that could be behind the Deccan Mujahideen, including groups from neighboring Pakistan.

This much is certain: If it is indeed confirmed that Americans and Britons were targeted and that the attacks were inspired by al-Qaida's radical ideology, then the difficult transition phase in Washington has become even more complicated. "If the terror threat spreads from Pakistan and Afghanistan to the important American ally India, that's an enormous problem for the United States," ex-presidential advisor David Gergan said on CNN Wednesday night.

ATTACKS IN INDIA

October 29, 2005

At least 60 people were killed and more than 250 people injured in a series of bombs in the Indian capital New Delhi just three days before the popular Hindu festival of lights Diwali.

September 8, 2006

July 11, 2006

February 19, 2007

August 25, 2007

May 13, 2008

July 26, 2008

October 30, 2008

November 26, 2008

The crisis could be Obama's first big foreign policy test. The world is going to dissect his response. The president-elect has already been in the spotlight for days because of the worsening financial crisis. Given the extent of the economic catastrophe, the January 20th inauguration date seems too far in the future for an ever-growing number of Americans. For three straight days, Obama has held press conferences in order to introduce economics experts who will advise him and stimulus programs that should help the country out of the crisis. His message was clear: "Help is on the way."

Now, Obama may also be forced into taking responsibility for foreign policy earlier than expected. Indeed, the attacks could be seen as a personal warning directed against him. During the campaign, his vice-presidential nominee Joe Biden attracted attention for announcing that, in the first six months of his presidency, Obama would be tested on the international stage.

The list of challenges keeps getting longer for US President-elect Barack Obama.

Forcing Obama's Hand?

Al-Qaida may have a special interest in providing such a test. Obama's middle name "Hussein" and his popularity in Arab countries could pose a serious threat to the organization. Contrary to Bush, Obama is difficult to portray as an American infidel. Al-Qaida lieutenant Ayman al-Zawahiri in his remarks on the American election was forced to provide more creative criticism, calling Obama a "house negro." Terrorists may in fact be trying to force Obama into reacting harshly, so that he appears to the world as war-minded as Bush.

But the events have not caught the team unprepared. The US security forces have repeatedly outlined the possibility of a terrorist attack during the transitional phase. American Secretary for Homeland Security Michael Chertoff has long warned of the dangers of handing over power in times of war -- and gave a reminder that former presidents like Bill Clinton and George W. Bush had to react to terror attacks early on.

For that reason, ever since the election, Obama has received the same secret service briefings as the president. The FBI has also started unusually early with their security checks on potential white house employees -- in contrast to Bush's first time in office. Back then, many of his closest security advisors had not completed their checks by the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington.

And the Democratic president-elect has also moved with caution when selecting his cabinet. He asked Secretary of Defense Robert Gates -- a Republican with close links to the Bush family -- to stay in office for at least another year. That provoked grumbling among the left wing of the Democrats. But Obama found it more important to avoid an abrupt change in the global security policy given the two US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the ongoing terror threat. The Wednesday attacks have validated his approach.

Still, despite the early chorus of praise, Obama remains a novice in foreign affairs -- and he will need advice from old hands. "There are a lot of things that keep me up at night," Obama said in the interview with Barbara Walters: the financial crisis, the US auto industry's decline and the energy crisis. Now he knows all too well that foreign crises too can rob a president of his sleep.

India unveils $4bn stimulus plan

2008-12-18T18:00:00.001-08:00

India has announced $4bn (£2.72bn) in extra spending to boost its economy as the global financial crisis unfolds

Growth is slowing in India as the economic slowdown spreads

The government said it was also planning a substantial spending increase in next year's budget.

The move came as the Reserve Bank of India cut its key interest rate by one percentage point, from 7.5% to 6.5%, on Saturday to encourage spending.

It is the third time since October the central bank has cut rates, which are now at their lowest since June 2006.

As well as the global financial situation, business confidence in India has also fallen in the wake of the Mumbai attacks that left at least 170 dead.

Growth stimulus

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's office said in a statement: "The government has decided to seek authorisation for additional planned expenditure of up to 200bn rupees ($4bn) in the current year."

The prime minister's office said the government was keeping a close watch on the economic situation and would take any additional needed to "maintain the pace of economic activity".

Under the plan, various categories of value-added tax will be cut by up to 4 percentage points to encourage consumer spending.

The package also includes measures to boost infrastructure spending, help businesses, and aid labour-intensive export sectors such as textiles and handicrafts.

Mr Singh, who recently took control of the finance ministry, last week forecast that India's economy would grow by 7.5% in the year to March 2009.

However, economists say growth could be as low as 6.8% this financial year, and 5.5% the following year.

Business leaders had hoped the government would do more.

Amit Mitra, secretary general of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, said the package was pointing in the right direction, but "could have done even more" to help boost growth.

India's rising budget deficit means it can do far less than a country like China - which last month announced a $586bn stimulus package - to spend its way out of economic problems.

Until now, India has focused on using monetary policy to counter the effects of the global slowdown.

Since mid-September, the Reserve Bank of India has injected $60.2bn into the financial system to boost liquidity.

Cheap car firm to sponsor Ferrari

2008-12-18T17:56:00.000-08:00

Tata, the Indian company which produces the world's cheapest car, will sponsor Ferrari from next season.

The Nano was made to be "smaller, lighter, cheaper"

"For the first time an Indian brand will appear on a Ferrari," Ferrari chief Luca di Montezemolo said. "It's a historic event."

Tata and Ferrari's parent company Fiat already have a joint venture to produce cars in India.

Tata is most famous for producing the Nano which, at £1,325, is believed to be the cheapest car in the world.

The sponsorship deal comes at a time when Formula One has announced a series of cutbacks to ease financial pressures, which were highlighted by Honda pulling out from the sport earlier in December.

From next season, savings equating to at least 30% of total budgets will be made on engines, training and staff numbers. Further cuts will then be made for the 2010 season, including an end to refuelling in races.

Cancer: The facts

2008-12-18T17:38:00.000-08:00

One in three of us will be diagnosed with cancer during our life.

The disease tends to affect older people - but can strike at any time.

Excluding certain skin cancers, there were more than 270,000 new cases of the disease in 2001 - and the rate is increasing by about 1% a year.

Some cancer, such as breast, are becoming more common, while new cases of lung cancer fall away due to the drop in the number of smokers.

However, while the overall number of new cancers is not falling, the good news is that successful treatment rates for many of the most common types are improving rapidly.

BBC News Online has produced, in conjunction with Cancer Research UK, a guide to some of the most common forms of cancer and the treatments used to tackle them.

To learn more about different types of cancer, and to read the experiences of patients, click on the links to the right.

Madonna and Guy 'happy' with deal

2008-12-18T17:25:00.000-08:00

Madonna and Guy Ritchie are both "happy" with their divorce agreement, they have said in a joint statement issued by Ritchie's publicist.

The couple were granted a divorce at the High Court in November

But an earlier statement released to the press suggesting the singer paid Ritchie £50m was "misleading and inaccurate", they added.

The Associated Press news agency had quoted Madonna's US spokeswoman Liz Rosenberg on Monday.

The new statement said settlement details would "remain private".

Ms Rosenberg had told AP on Monday that Ritchie had been given £50-£60m ($76m-$92m) and that the figure included the value of the couple's Ashcombe House estate, on the Wiltshire/Dorset border.

Custody of the couple's children had yet to be worked out, she added.

A misleading and inaccurate statement, specifically in relation to the sums of money involved, was wrongly issued to AP this week

Joint statement issued on Wednesday

She told AP: "I'd assume it's one of the largest payouts ever in a divorce."

But in the new statement released by Ritchie's representatives on Wednesday, the couple said: "We have tried to maintain a dignified silence regarding the details of our divorce for the last few months whilst accepting the obvious media interest.

"A misleading and inaccurate statement, specifically in relation to the sums of money involved, was wrongly issued to AP this week.

"The financial details of the settlement will remain private, save to say that both of us are happy with our agreement."

Their primary concern was "the care and wellbeing of our children", it added.

A London representative of Madonna confirmed to BBC news that it was a joint statement.

'Unreasonable behaviour'

The couple were granted a divorce at the High Court in London at the end of November.

Madonna's Sticky and Sweet tour is due to end in Brazil on Sunday

Ritchie had told the Daily Mirror that a discussion over the terms of their divorce was "never, ever about money".

"It dragged on much too long and that had nothing to do with me. But it was never, ever about money," he was said to have told the newspaper.

The decree nisi was granted just a month after the couple, who were married at Skibo Castle in Scotland in December 2000, declared their marriage was over.

The pop star had petitioned for divorce on the grounds of Ritchie's unreasonable behaviour.

At that time, it was reported that they had agreed to share custody of their two sons - three-year-old adopted David Banda and Rocco, eight.

It was also reported that Madonna's daughter from a previous relationship, 12-year-old Lourdes, would stay with the singer.

Madonna is currently in Brazil on her Sticky and Sweet tour, which is due to come to an end in Sao Paolo on Sunday.

Medical students get iPod tutors

2008-12-18T17:21:00.000-08:00

University students are being given iPods loaded with useful tutorials.

The University of Derby has given 35 devices - costing £99 each - to radiography students, to provide them with "different ways to learn".

They contain pre-loaded video lessons about how to position patients for X-rays.

It is hoped the portable video demonstrations will be more useful than traditional text books.

Senior lecturer Ruth Chester said: "They (iPods) are not gadgets, they are things of the future that are here to stay.

"Students want different ways of learning."

The iPods have been supplied to first-year students, who will be expected to return them after two years.

Students can upload their own music to the devices, however the university will check they are still using the pre-loaded tutorials.

Radiographer Sue Errett was involved in creating the lessons and said they would be useful for students on placements.

However iPods would be banned from the X-Ray room.

"I don't feel it would be professional to use it directly in front of a patient," she said.

Ms Errett was particularly worried older patients would be unfamiliar with iPods and think the students were simply listening to music.

Nasa set to launch 'CO2 hunter'

2008-12-18T16:50:00.000-08:00

Science reporter, BBC News, San Francisco

The US space agency is set to launch a satellite that can map in detail where carbon dioxide is in the atmosphere.

Nasa's Orbiting Carbon Observatory (OCO) will pinpoint the key locations on the Earth's surface where CO2 is being emitted and absorbed.

CO2 from human activities is thought to be driving climate changes, but important facts about its movement through the atmosphere remain elusive.

The agency believes the technology on OCO can end some of the mysteries.

If you look at the rest of the carbon dioxide that's introduced into the atmosphere by our activities, it's uncertain by 100%

David Crisp

"This is Nasa's first spacecraft specifically dedicated to mapping carbon dioxide," principal investigator David Crisp told BBC News.

"The objective of the OCO mission is to make measurements that are so precise that they can be used to look for surface 'sources' and 'sinks' of CO2."

Dr Crisp has been presenting details of the mission here at the American Geophysical Union's (AGU) Fall Meeting.

As he did so, OCO's launch on a Taurus XL rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California was booked for 23 February.

CO2 in the atmosphere has seen a steady rise in recent years

Nasa already has a CO2 detection instrument on its Aqua satellite but this looks at the greenhouse gas some five to 10km above the surface.

OCO, on the other hand, will detail the concentration of carbon dioxide close to the ground where its warming effect is most keenly felt.

The observatory will be engaged in what amounts to carbon accountancy. Its fortnightly global maps of CO2 concentration will help the mission team work out where the gas is entering the atmosphere and where it is being absorbed by land plants and the oceans.

OCO weighs just under half a tonne

Scientists have calculated that nature cycles about 330 billion tonnes of carbon every year.

Human activities put about 7.5 billion tonnes into the atmosphere - a tiny sum in comparison but enough, say researchers, to imbalance the system and raise the global mean surface temperature of Earth.

"We know where most of the fossil fuel emissions are coming from; we also know where things like cement manufacturing are producing large CO2 emissions," explained Dr Crisp, who works at Nasa's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

"But there are other things such as biomass (forest) burning and clearing; and we don't have a good quantification of the CO2 released by those processes.

"If you take out the fossil fuels - for which we understand the CO2 source to within 10% - and look at the rest of the carbon dioxide that's introduced into the atmosphere by our activities, it's uncertain by 100%.

"The idea is that OCO will help us to constrain that a whole lot better."

Location, location

The sinks for CO2 - the places where it is absorbed - also have many mysteries associated with them.

The Earth is thought to be absorbing about 50% of the carbon dioxide we put out - the majority of it going into the oceans. But science's description of the other major absorbers is poor, commented UK Earth-observation scientist Shaun Quegan.

"There's a bunch of atmospheric collection flasks dotted around the planet and when we apply the models to their data, the models all show there is a carbon sink in northern mid-latitudes," he said.

"But whether that's in North America, in Siberia, or wherever and what's causing it is a big debate."

Since science does not have a good handle on where the CO2 is being absorbed, researchers can have only limited understanding of how CO2 sinks are likely to evolve as the climate changes.

"Let's say we found that the boreal forests in Canada and Siberia were the primary sinks of CO2 because of their incredibly rapid growth during summer months when the Sun is up," speculated Dr Crisp.

"Well those environments are changing dramatically right now.

"Will they still be the primary absorbers of CO2 as time goes on? We don't really know how big an impact they're having right now.

"This is why OCO is so essential."

Reflected glory

The observatory carries a single instrument - a spectrometer that breaks the sunlight reflected off the Earth's surface into its constituent colours, and then analyses the spectrum to determine how much carbon dioxide and molecular oxygen is present.

The data can be used to work out atmospheric concentrations.

OCO will map carbon dioxide over 1,600-sq-km (620 sq miles) regions of the Earth's surface to an accuracy of just fractions of 1%.

However, to locate the sources and sinks, scientists will need to combine the information with models that estimate how CO2 is being moved and mixed through the air.

NASA'S A-TRAIN SATELLITE CONSTELLATION

1. OCO will head the 'train' of satellites when it gets into orbit. It will measure the concentration of carbon dioxide in the lower atmosphere

2. Aqua will lag OCO by 15 minutes. It is collecting information about the Earth's water cycle - water in the oceans, the air and on the land

3. Cloudsat will allow for the most detailed study of clouds to date. It should better characterise their role in regulating the climate

4. Calipso views clouds just moments after Cloudsat has looked at them. Its primary interest is the way aerosols interact with clouds

5. Parasol is a French satellite that can distinguish natural from human-produced aerosols. It makes polarised light measurements

6. Glory will join the train in June. One task will be to measure the 'energy budget' of Earth, to determine accurately global temperature

7. Aura also has a big European investment. It looks at atmospheric chemistry, and is producing remarkable global pollution maps

Once in orbit, OCO will join a fleet of other satellites - known as the A-Train - which carry a range of instrumentation to give a rounded picture of Earth's atmospheric and water systems.

The spacecraft cross the equator in the early afternoon on a path that takes them over broadly the same observation point in quick succession.

OCO will be followed into orbit next year by a Japanese carbon mission known as the Greenhouse gases Observing SATellite (GOSAT).

Europe is considering two carbon observatories - A-SCOPE (Advanced Space Carbon and Climate Observation of Planet Earth) and a mission called BIOMASS - which could fly in 2016.

Professor Quegan, from the UK's University of Sheffield, is working on the BIOMASS proposal.

"The spacecraft would measure global forest biomass at scales of about one hectare," he said.

"It's a crucial natural resource and ecosystem service - for materials, for energy, for biodiversity - there's a good correlation between how much biomass you've got and how much biodiversity you've got - and for climate and water protection."

"So from a carbon cycle science aspect, forests have some critical parameters that need to be pinned down."

In the carbon cycle, natural fluxes are the biggest, accounting for about 330 gigatonnes per year, and are in near equilibrium

The roughly 7.5 gigatonnes coming from all human sources may be sufficient to tip this system out of balance, warming the Earth

RACISM AGAINST BLACKS IS A GROWING TREND IN EUROPE

2008-12-17T16:30:00.000-08:00

From Russia to Germany to Denmark and Austria, and from France to Britain, people of color are facing increasing trends in racism that make life far more difficult and hazardous than for the average citizen in any of these countries.

Russia

In Russia, dark-skinned people, especially blacks and people of African origin face a growing trend in race-based violence.

According to some recent AP news reports Africans in Russian cities are often afraid to go out in public for fear of being attacked or killed.

The situation began to go bad for non-Caucasians in post-Soviet Russia in the mid 1990s.

Late last year several African students were attacked on the streets of St Petersburg by people described as "a group of youths." On the same night, in the same street on two separate occasions, two students were attacked. One was killed and the other escaped with serious injuries.

Survival for non-white people in Russia means that they must learn how to behave themselves in order not to become casualties of the raging wave of racism in the nation's cities. For Africans in Russian cities this has come to mean knowing where they can go and when it is safe to go there.

Gabriel Anicet Kochotfa, who came to Russia 25 years ago as a student from Benin in West Africa, is an academic and professor at the Gubkin Oil and Gas Institute. Staying alive in Russia for him means never using public transit and always making sure he is home by 9 p.m. Kochotfa's wife is a Russian, but they must often appear separately in public in order to avoid the verbal abuses that are thrown at them whenever the bi-racial couple goes out together.

"Sometimes I even go to the shop with my wife and we go separately, so nobody knows that we are together... I'm a very lucky person. I have never been aggressed, because I know where to go, when to go and how to behave myself," Kochotfa is quoted by the AP.

In 2005, more than 15 people were killed in racially motivated attacks. A year before that there were 44 such slayings, according to the Moscow Bureau of Human Rights.

Germany

The situation in Germany is not very different. In April 2006, a 37-year-old Ethiopian engineer was beaten into a coma in Potsdam. News reports described his injuries from the beating as "unusual in their severity."

Such attacks are increasingly common in Germany. In recent weeks police have made arrests in connection with such brutal attacks on Africans and other dark-skinned people in Berlin, Wisner and other cities. Africans know certain areas in the eastern part of Berlin, such as Marzahn and Hellersdorf, as "no-go" areas where they are certain to be attacked or killed.

Police statistics show a 19 percent increase in racist violence by people described as members of the far right. Last year, there were 958 such acts recorded, up from 776 in 2004.

The bad situation is compounded by the fact that Germans, in general, seem unwilling to accept the depth of racism in their society. As a result, those who should are not very eager to speak very frankly about it. The situation is so bad that many Africans who spoke to the press about racism in Germany refused to give their full names for fear of reprisals.

These fears were highlighted last month when Uwe-Karsten Heye, a former government minister, lamented the fact -- in a radio interview -- that people with dark skin "might not make it out alive" if they dared set foot in certain towns, especially in the Bradenburg region around Berlin. About the same time an African-German organization offered to publish a list of "no-go" areas for the benefit of World Cup visitors. Public response, both to Heye's statement and the African group's offer, was highly critical and disfavorable, to say the least.

The tendency to downplay racism directed at blacks and other people of color while highlighting threats represented by neo-Nazism and right-wing violence is not only a German phenomenon. All across Europe, the emphasis seems always to be on the right-wing as a fringe non-representative element, and on that basis officials make their explanations of incidents of racism in society. People of color all over Europe are saying, as strongly as they can, that such responses are not adequate.

United Kingdom and The Netherlands

In Britain where a black teen was killed last July with an ax embedded in his skull by white men "shouting racist taunts," the focus of media and government is -- as in other European centers -- not on endemic racism in society, but on right wing extremism.

The tendency to downplay racism against blacks in society is belied by the way officialdom reacts when immigrant minorities are caught on the wrong side of the law.

Take the case of Hirsi Ali, the prominent Somali-born former Dutch lawmaker who was stripped of her citizenship for admittedly lying in her immigration application. Her conviction and loss of citizenship led to a copycat case in Germany last month when a Nigerian was stripped of his German citizenship -- held since 2000 -- for allegedly lying about his employment record during immigration application.

Africans and other dark-skinned minorities in Europe know too well how deeply rooted the racism in society is. They are also aware of how difficult it is to penetrate the consciousness of the average European with this fact.

"All we hear is right wing, right wing, right wing," says Eritrean-German Jonas Endrias, vice president of the International League of Human Rights. "The Germans won't admit there is racism in society."

World Cup Soccer

Germany is hosting the World Cup Soccer Games beginning this month and there are fears that racist may use that opportunity to attack non-white visitors, or even players, during the games.

Over the last few years, as African soccer stars increasingly play for European clubs, making racial taunts at them has become a favorite thing for fans in Europe.

In February this year, Samuel Eto'o, the Barcelona striker from Cameroon threatened to walk off the field at the 77th minute after enduring racial taunts from Spanish soccer fans for much of the game. He was persuaded to play on by teammates as Barcelona went on to beat opponent, Zaragoza, 2-0 in their Madrid game.

African-German groups and other anti-racism campaigners see the World Cup games as an opportunity to bring world attention to an issue most Europe seem eager to downplay.

Germany's Chancellor, Angela Merkel, defended her country's preparedness for the World Cup at the same time as she downplayed concerns about racism in Germany. Merkel, in a statement, described the racist attacks as not typical. "The overwhelming majority of people in our country are open to foreigners," she said.

That may be so. But so long as those 'foreigners' are unable to live peacefully and safely in Germany as native Germans do, there is a big problem.

Top 10 Richest Football Players and Owners in England

2008-12-17T16:27:00.000-08:00

By now you might have heard that Liverpool might be bought by a Dubai sheikh who happens to be one of the richest men in the world. Indeed, the money is flowing into the English Premiership, a league with overseas investors with a net worth of about £13 billion. But what about the players? Are they getting their fair share? You bet they are. FourFourTwo magazine recently released a top ten list of footballers in England with the greatest net worth and none of the players on the list are going hungry.

It is no surprise that the wealthiest English footballer is one who plies his trade in Spain. David Beckham dwarfs the competition with a figure of £87million, more than twice that of second-placed Michael Owen who is said to be worth £32m. Imagine how much each of those guys is making per minute played this season!

You might be surprised to see Robbie Fowler’s name so high on the list of millionaires. The Liverpool striker has apparently parlayed his playing money into a small fortune in the UK property market. Would you rent a flat from him?

Here is the complete list:

1. David Beckham, Real Madrid, £87m
2. Michael Owen, Newcastle Utd, £32m
3. Robbie Fowler, Liverpool, £28m
4. Sol Campbell, Portsmouth, £27m
5. Rio Ferdinand, Man Utd, £22m
6. Ryan Giggs, Man Utd, £22m
7. Andriy Shevchenko, Chelsea, £22m
8. Thierry Henry, Arsenal, £21m
9. Wayne Rooney, Man Utd, £20m
10. Michael Ballack, Chelsea, £18m

As for the owners, you know who is currently number one, but if the Dubai sheikh has his way, that won’t last for too much longer. Presumably the egg shaped dude from West Ham will be on this list next year. By the way, interesting to see the owners of the two Scottish powers on this list. Remember that next time you hear them bemoaning the money they make playing in the SPL.

1. Roman Abramovich, Chelsea, £10.8bn
2. Joe Lewis, Tottenham, £2.1bn
3. Dermot Desmond, Celtic, £1.25bn
4. Malcolm Glazer, Man Utd, £1.05bn
5. Trevor Hemmings, Charlton and Preston NE, £900m
6. Sir Alan Sugar, Tottenham, £790m
7. Randy Lerner, Aston Villa, £789m
8. David Murray, Rangers, £650m
9. Simon Keswick & family, Cheltenham Town, £644m
10. David Sullivan, Birmingham City, £595m

Innovation in the midst of the downturn

2008-12-17T16:09:00.000-08:00

In the run up to the holiday season I’d like to pause my usually curmudgeonly posts to strike a note of optimism. This week I was in Paris at LeWeb. Despite the crappy wifi, food shortage and heating problems over which the organizers had no control, the mood was generally upbeat. Heck even SAP Ventures people turned up. That was a surprise.

Here in Europe, innovation is alive and well with many startups prepared to put themselves under the spotlight. Even the VCs were prepared to admit that Europe has some of the smartest minds on the planet. Who else brought you http:// for instance than our very own Sir Tim Berners-Lee? Or Kazaa and then Skype other than Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom? Let’s not forget my good friends (sic) in Walldorf, SAP or the Large Hadron Collider built by CERN. Enough chest thumping. But seriously…

Earlier today I see that Lloyds TSB, a British bank has created an internal innovation market:

Gardner [head of innovation] says the bank has had to put in controls to counter hyper inflation of the Bank bean, but conversely is encouraging insider trading since it makes people want to be on the inside so they can speculate successfully. As Gardner observes, to get on the inside you have to work on the team making the idea happen.

“The idea, we hope, is that with this coupling of ideation and innovation we’ll make it possible to accelerate our pipeline of interesting things,” he says. “Instead of being scale-limited with headcount constraints in the central innovation team, anyone can be an innovator.”

I don’t know whether they have gone for a packaged approach or DIY but that is of lesser importance than the fact that a bank no less is prepared to innovate to innovate. Elsewhere and in similar vein:

India’s ICICI Bank is set to launch an interactive online service that aims to emulate the branch banking experience, complete with virtual staff.

For me, the really good news is that Chris Shipley is bringing back Innovate!Europe to Zaragoza Spain after a one year hiatus. Innovate!Europe will have a different format from the past with workshops leading up to the main event in May 2009 as a way of selecting and coaching competitors for the main event:

The new Innovate!Europe will begin with a series of complimentary Going Global workshops where entrepreneurs will compete while they sharpen their market position and strengthen their presentation skills with the help of Guidewire Group’s renowned team of analysts who’ve heard and honed thousands of company pitches.

It’s good to see Chris and her team re-inventing the format so that startups get more than a show at which to do the dog and pony thing but also get sustained, real help. Too many startups fail because the pitch doesn’t pass the 30 second elevator pitch when they could so easily do better. As an aside, this was the show where I first met an as yet unmonetized Mike Arrington for the first time. Aaah - how times have changed.

And now back to normal programming.

SAP: “We made a mistake”

2008-12-17T16:07:00.000-08:00

Bill Wohl, Vice President, Field Communications SAP, spoke with me today to clarify the price issues I raised yesterday. According to Wohl, there were specific legal issues in Germany and Austria. These required the company to tear up the existing contract and issue afresh so that it could impose the price increase. Wohl said this created an emotional response from the German and Austrian customers: “They saw it as a breach of trust and that’s something we had to fix.”

SAP now says it is giving those customers choice whether it takes up the new enterprise support offering or sticks with existing - at least for the next year or so. However, Wohl warns that most existing contracts allow for a cost increase that may see some support costs rising to 21% rather than the 19.3% if they take enterprise support. “It’s clear we made a mistake in the way in which we communicated the manner in which we needed to legally take this step and we’re now trying to fix it. We are giving them choice but they need to evaluate the best option for themselves.”

However, Wohl is clear this is an exception that will not apply to other territories. Even so, it will create a complex environment for multi-national companies that have different contracts signed in different countries. These will be faced with multi-step cost increases. It also means a multi-national that has signed its contract in Germany will be able to take global advantage of the new arrangements.

As I said to Wohl, SAP is running the risk of building up resentment for the future. That opens the door for consideration of alternate offerings. Wohl says the company is not noticing any change in the commitment existing customers are making to SAP solutions. He also pointed out that different markets display different conditions and cultures. That may be true but resentment is a common issue and potentially dangerous to future business. Wohl conceded that some spending may be deferred, although he attributed that more to economic conditions than any competitive issues.

Wohl was keen to stress that SAP is not seeing the levels of unrest I am seeing among the customer base. That doesn’t surprise me. Customers often do not feel they have the power to tough it out with their software suppliers, relying instead on their user groups to do the fighting for them. It is however telling that SAP recently agreed with SUGEN that they will jointly develop KPIs against which enterprise support and the price rise will be evaluated.

Broadband Britain - slowly getting faster?

2008-12-17T15:54:00.000-08:00

Back in June, we toured "Broadband Britain" - and discovered that speed was an issue of real interest and concern to internet users around the country.

Since then, the debate about building a next generation broadband network has only got hotter, with reports from government and Ofcom stressing the need for speed.

Now we've repeated the study of speed test data we commissioned in June from thinkbroadband.com. Then, it showed that the average speed across the UK was 3.2Mbps, but that there was a big gap between rural and urban areas. What's surprising - in a year when it seemed that suppliers were competing to offer us faster broadband - is how little has changed. The average speed, calculated by analysing 188,000 speed tests conducted by users across Britain between June and November, is now 3.6 Mbps.

"We have plateaued" was the assessment of thinkbroadband's Sebastian Lahtinen. Sure, the gap between the cities and the rural areas has closed a little - but at a time when "up to 8Mbps" has become the norm in broadband packages, it is still pretty rare for that kind of speed to be achieved. Indeed, even in the fastest region in our survey, London, only around 15% were achieving speeds of 8Mbps and above, and the average connection speed had barely changed over the last six months.

If we are to build a network that can deliver much higher speeds, it's probably up to two companies to do it: BT and Virgin Media. Today, Virgin launches its 50Mbps service to cable customers, which will be the fastest residential broadband available to more than a handful of households. BT has started putting 100Mbps broadband into a huge new housing development at Ebbsfleet in Kent - but that accounts for just a couple of dozen homes. Next year, it's promising a pilot of fibre-to-the-cabinet, with 35,000 homes offered up to 40Mbps.

But there are questions - both technical and financial - about each company's approach. Virgin isn't laying miles of new fibre - it's relying on a software fix to its network to deliver higher speeds, and not everyone is convinced that's a future-proof strategy. BT is starting down the fibre route - but is still pretty anxious about the scale of its investment, and jousting with the regulators about the return it gets from offering rivals access to its network. As the recession bites, any large-scale investment in fibre is going to get ever harder to justify to shareholders.

In any case, most of us are probably reasonably happy with the kind of speeds that are on offer right now. Unless you are in a household which contains a hardcore gamer and a couple of heavy video downloaders, you will struggle to justify laying out the money for 40 or 50Mbps broadband. But that could change quickly. This has been the year in which internet video - the BBC iPlayer and other services - has exploded, with some grumbling from the ISPs about the strain on their infrastructure. Sooner or later, the iPlayer will go HD, and just imagine the pressure that will put on bandwidth. History has shown that when you build it, people come, and businesses will find ways of delivering them new web services. But right now, Britain seems in no hurry to build faster broadband.

Facebook - back to the kids?

2008-12-17T15:42:00.000-08:00

Facebook - it's so over. That's been the tenor of most of the commentary since Thursday's figures showing a slight dip in Facebook's UK users. The general feeling is that the kids, with their minute attention spans, have already tired of the social networking site and moved on to something more hip and happening. I think the opposite is true - that Facebook's new wave of older users have decided it is just not worth the bother and are now leaving it to the kids.

Facebook was already well established on every student campus in Spring 2007, when it grabbed the attention of the London media. Suddenly every national newspaper and broadcaster was desperate to write about it - and I was one of the worst offenders. Stories I did for the Radio 4 Today programme and for this website asked whether people like me were too old for social networking. They got a bigger response than just about anything I have ever written, with over a thousand people getting in touch to assure me that socialising online was not just for students. I soon found myself connecting with hundreds of people on Facebook - many of whom I did not know from Adam - and rather enjoyed this new virtual social life.

I suspect the same thing was happening in newsrooms - and other workplaces - across Britain, as an older generation decided that if the kids were finding it impossible to run their lives without Facebook, it must be worth trying. That all helped propel Mark Zuckerberg's company to the top of the social networking league in the UK, with 8.9 million users by the end of 2007. But by then I was already finding that many of my wrinklier Facebook friends had tired of the ceaseless vampire-biting, hugging, poking and other daft aspects of the increasingly cluttered and annoying site. Their status updates started to say "...falling out of love with Facebook" and then they disappeared altogether.

But I see no signs that on the campuses where it all started Facebook fatigue has set in. A few weeks ago I did a story with a student who was having trouble deleting his MySpace account - but when I suggested that he delete his Facebook profile too, he was not keen. For him, and hundreds of thousands like him, a student social life was still dependent on Facebook.

I'm still using Facebook - though less compulsively than before - but I suspect that most of the over-25 age group will now find they can live without it. That still leaves a large core audience, but one that Facebook may find slightly harder to sell to the advertisers on whom its future depends. And that means that $15bn valuation that Microsoft put on the business when it bought a small stake last year looks more fanciful than ever.

Manchester United vs Gamba Osaka Preview, Live Score: 18 December 2008

2008-12-15T17:47:00.000-08:00

Manchester United has arrived Japan on Monday to take on AFC champion Gamba Osaka on 18 December 2008 in Yokohama in the semi final of FIFA Club World Cup 2008. So, this is a match between European and Asian champions and there is no doubt, Manchester United is definitely favorite against the Japanese club. Gamba Osaka was the champion of AFC Champions League 2008 and thus qualified for the tournament. Manchester United, in the same way, got the ticket of this tournament thanks to their Champions League title of last season.

Match: Gamba Osaka vs Manchester United; Semi Final, FIFA Club World Cup 2008

Date: 18 December 2008, Thursday

Venue: Yokohama

Live TV: Fox Soccer Channel

Many people may think that this is a distracting tournament for the English champions as the tournament may take Manchester United’s focus away from premier league where they are currently at the third place with 32 points from 16 matches. However, the title of FIFA Club World Cup 2008 could lure the Manchester United players, considering the fact that no other English team could ever win this title. Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is also desperate to win the Club World Cup title.

NDTV reported:

“This is a very difficult tournament, different from what we were used to last time, but hopefully we can handle it,” he said before United’s departure.
“It’s a good opportunity for us to get the team together in a serious competition because no British team has ever won it and it’s a big challenge to us.”

“You only get there by invitation if you win the Champions League and that’s how prestigious it is for us. It’s a fantastic tournament to be involved in.”

Japanese club Gamba Osaka defeated Adelaide United 1-0 in the quarter final on Sunday and set up a semi final encounter with Manchester United. However, they lost their recent J League match away at Albirex Niigata 3-2. Interestingly, Manchester United could not win their recent premier league encounter too as they drew with Tottenham Hotspur. Manchester United goalkeeper Van der Sar has recently been handed a contract extension and veteran goalkeeper is now hoping to win the FIFA Club World Cup 2008 title with Manchester United.

manutd reported:

Van der Sar and his United colleagues have now switched their sights to world domination, and the Dutchman is keen to bring the Club World Cup trophy back to Manchester before Christmas.
“I won it with Ajax but that was just one game and now you play a semi-final as well, so it’s going to be different,” he said. “We’re there a little longer than normal, so we’ll do our best and hopefully bring another trophy home.”

Japanese club Gamba Osaka will try their best to win the match. In fact, they have nothing to lose against Manchester United. No doubt, they will play for a win, but even a loss despite an inspirational performance would not disappoint their fans. Manchester United, on the other hand, can not think of anything except a win. In fact, Manchester United is most favorite team in the tournament.

Online Live Score and Updates

The match will be telecast live on Fox Soccer Channel. However, if you can not manage your time to stick to your television set, then visit the following live score and update websites to get the live score and updates of the match:

Live Score

Goalzz

Live Football Scores

Goal.com

Footie Scorez

Manchester United has already had their sights on the tournament title. So, anything less than a victory would not satisfy them. Rather, they might look for a big margin victory. For Gamba Osaka, they will try to show their best against the European champions and they will have home advantage too. If Gamba Osaka can play at their best, then football fans can experience a hard-fought match.

Research towards building better golf balls

2008-12-15T17:45:00.000-08:00

The United States Golf Association (USGA) have many rules and regulations regarding the golf ball including defining the number of dimples on the surface of the ball. Whether a ball would reach the expected distance or not depends on three things: air flow, skill of the golfer and dimples on the golf. Golfers try to look for the perfect ball that would land at the right spot but the fact is there is none. One can neither control the weather nor the golfer’s skill. So there is one feature that has been left out to manipulate and that is the pimples. Now, engineers of the Arizona State University and the University of Maryland have come together to find out how the ball works. New York Times reports:

But now a team of mechanical engineers has constructed a computer model of a golf ball’s surface. The model simulates a golf ball moving through air, and allows the engineers to solve equations that describe air flow at more than a billion points across the ball’s surface. Running a typical simulation requires a supercomputer — the equivalent of more than 500 networked desktop computers running in parallel for more than 300 hours. The result is a vast amount of data about the local speed and pressure of the air around each dimple and around the ball.

The results found out through the procedure would help manufacturers to build better quality golf balls and even solving problems in airplanes, gas turbines and hosts of other devices.

Top Ten Russian Female Players of 2008

2008-12-15T17:44:00.000-08:00

n female Tennis, Russian players are doing very well. Maria Sharapova is the number 2 player now. She was the number one until French Open. Here, I have written about top ten Russian Female Tennis players of 2008. I have made this list according to WTA ranking. You may agree or disagree with my list but I have
compiled the list purely on the basis of current ranking. So, here are they:

Maria Sharapova

Maria Sharapova is Russia’s top ranked female tennis player who is currently ranked 2^nd in the WTA ranking. The three Grand Slam titles winner has already reached the zenith of fame thanks to her excellent talent and skill. Turned professional in 2001 at the age of 14, the Russian tennis star began her grand slam campaign from 2003. Her first Grand Slam success came in Wimbledon 2004 as she defeated Serena Williams 6–1, 6–4 in the final to clinch her first grand slam title. Though Sharapova did not get any other Grand Slam success in 2005, she reached at the top of the ranking for the first time in August 2005. Two years after Sharapova had won her first grand slam title. She got the second success in grand slam in US Open 2006 and in Austrian Open 2008, she won her third grand slam title. Thus, Maria Sharapova now needs to win the title of French Open in order to achieve the career grand slam. Overall Sharapova has 19 singles titles so far in her career.

Sharapova is also a familiar face out of the court thanks to her immense beauty. Tennis skill mingled with her beauty has earned her a handful of offers for television commercial. Thus, the 21-year old Russian has already become a global sports celebrity. In fact, she is the world’s highest paid female athlete. So, success came in both ways for the Russian star, but even her die heard fans would also admit that Maria Sharapova lacks consistency. However, whatever she achieved at this age, it is phenomenal and she has a long career ahead of her.

Svetlana Kuznetsova

Kuznetsova is ranked 4^th according to WTA ranking. However, among the Russian female singles tennis players, Svetlana Kuznetsova stands second after Maria Sharapova. The 23-year old Russian turned professional in 2000 and started to participate in the grand slam singles tournaments since 2002 at the age of 17. She won her only grand slam title in US Open 2004 defeating fellow Russian Elena Dementieva in the final. Besides that, Kuznetsova appeared in the final of French Open 2006 and US Open 2007. She also has a Grand Slam women’s doubles title to her credit. Kuznetsova partnered with Alicia Molik won the Austrian Open 2005 women’s doubles title. Her best ever ranking in singles is 2 which she achieved in September 2007. Overall, Kuznetsova has 24 singles titles in her career till date.

Elena Dementieva

The 26 year old Russian stands fifth in the WTA ranking now. Elena Dementieva could not win any grand slam singles title in her career yet, but thanks to the consistency, she has been in and around the top ten for the last few years. At the age of 17, she started playing professional tennis and gave her first shot at a grand slam tournament in US Open 1999, but failed to get into the final competition being ruled out from qualifying round. However, Elena Dementieva has been a familiar face in grand slam tournaments since Austrian Open 1999. So far, she appeared in two grand slam singles finals; the first being in French Open 2004 and the last one in US Open 2004. She has 13 WTA singles titles to her credit so far in her career. Dementieva has 13 WTA titles to her credit so far in her career. The Russain tennis star accomplished her highest ranking in October 2004 when she reached at the fourth place in WTA ranking. Elena Dementieva also won a silver medal in 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.

Anna Chakvetadze

Anna Chakvetadze is the fourth highest ranked female tennis players from Russia. In WTA ranking, she stands eighth, but she does not have any grand slam success to her credit till date. The 21-year old Russian reached the semi final of US Open 2007 which is her best ever Grand Slam success since she started playing in grand slam tournament in 2004, a year after becoming professional. In 2003, she reached the final of Wimbledon Junior Championship. Chakvetadze experienced her best ever ranking in September 2007.

Anna Chakvetadze won seven WTA titles so far in her short career. She is still 21 and has a lot more years left ahead of her. So, if she can continue improving her skill and flourishing her potential then I think, Anna Chakvetadze has a successful career ahead of her.

Dinara Safina

Dinara Safina has been one of the familiar faces of major tennis tournaments now-a-days. She is currently ranking 9^th in WTA ranking and one of the five Russian female tennis players in the top ten ranking. At 22, she has not won any grand slam titles, but has six WTA singles titles to her credit.

Following the feet of elder brother Marat Safin, the former world no. 1 of men’s tennis, she turned professional in 2001, she started taking part in grand slam tournament since 2002. She reached the final of French Open 2008, which is the best ever grand slam success of Dinara Safina. She accomplished her highest ranking 9 in May 2007.

Vera Zvonareva

I liked the official website of Vera Zvonareva. In fact, it is one of the most beautiful websites about any player. In this September, Vera Zvonareva is going to become 24 years old. So, you can easily imagine that she has passed her best years already. Her height is 1.72 m and this is attractive height for a European girl. Her current ranking is 14. She is beautiful and she even became one of the top 10 ranked female players in August 2004. In her career, she has earned $3,935,193 of prize money so far. That is not bad amount considering the fact she was never impressive in any Grand Slam Tournament. By the way, I could only enter into the home page of her official website but I could not enter inside. So, check if there is any problem.

Nadia Petrova

Nadia Petrova has been playing professional tennis since 1999. So, next year, it will be one decade of pro-tennis for her. She is now 26 years old. In the last 9 years, Nadia Petrova has seen ups and downs in her ranking and career. Right now, she is the number 18^th ranked female tennis player in the world. That should surprise you to know that she was ranked 3 in 2006 when she defeated the mighty Justine Henin. In this year’s Wimbledon, she is still going on and she is the 4^th round now. Nadia Petrova is quite tall (5 feet 10 inches). Her career prize money earning is $6,262,810. She has 7 WTA singles titles and 12 doubles titles. This shows that she has impressive record.

Maria Kirilenko

At the age of 5, did you have any idea what you would want to become in life? Perhaps, Maria Kirilenko had some idea and she became a fan of tennis at a very early age. She is now 21 years old and she was born in Moscow. I liked her official website and it contains a decent number of her pictures. She even encourages her fans to send beautiful pictures of hers. Since, the official website in a blog platform, anyone can write comments in the entries. Maria Kirilenko is now 19^th ranked player and this is her best ranking. She is improving a lot recently. Her beautiful face has attracted Addidas and became a professional player in 2001. She has become matured now and hopefully, she will do better in the coming months.

Alisa Kleybanova

Alisa Kleybanova is a young player and she is just 19 years old. In fact, she is going to celebrate her 19^th birthday on this 15^th July. She became a professional tennis player in 2003 at the age of just 14 and she is improving all the time. I could not find any official website of Alisa Kleybanova and I would strongly recommend her to have one. That way, we can more information about her. Right now, Alisa Kleybanova’s ranking is 42. She is playing in Wimbledon 2008 now and she has advanced to the fourth round. Alisa Kleybanova is a beautiful girl and she is almost 6 feet tall. I think that she has the shadow of Maria Sharapova in her. She is a star of tomorrow.

Elena Vesnina

Elena Vesnina is 21 years old and she was born in Ukraine. She has been in pro-tennis since 2002. She has not been able to win any WTA singles title but she has won 3 doubles titles so far. She is famous for being patient and a baseline player. Her best perforimacne in any Grand Slam Tournament was in Australian Open Tennis 2006 where she went to the 4^th round. She has a lovely official website and it contains a number of beautiful pictures. Her current WTA ranking is 46. In her career, Elena Vesnina has earned $858,915 of prize money so far.

Parvathy Omanakuttan has it all to become Miss World 2008.

2008-12-15T17:40:00.000-08:00

Year 2000 is a memorable year in the history of Indian beauty pageant. Not only the country won its last Miss World title that year but Indian beauties won three major beauty pageants. Famous model turned actress, Lara Dutta, won Miss Universe 2000. Model turned actress, Priyanka Chopra, also won Miss World 2000. Finally, actress Diya Mirza, won Miss Asia Pacific 2000. Over the years, India sent some of the most beautiful women but none of them could win Miss World. This year, Parvathy Omanakuttan is participating in Miss World contest and expectation is very high as usual.

Twenty one year old, 5 feet 9 inches tall, Parvathy Omanakuttan is a resident of Mumbai. An arts graduate, Parvathy majored in Sociology, Psychology and English Literature. Her future plan is to pursue higher degree in Psychology. The experts who groomed Parvathy are very much hopeful about her. Sabira Merchant, diction expert, said:

“She has the ‘X’ factor that sets apart a supermodel from the models. It’s her vivacity and warmth that make her instantly likeable. She is a perfect mix of beauty with brains,”

According to Subi Samuel, famous photographer, Parvathy exudes class and confidence which can give her major advantages over other Miss World contestants. Sandeep Soparrkar, another reputed photographer, said that people can not take their eyes off her even in a room full of gorgeous women which is the hallmark of a beauty queen. Fitness expert, Deanne Pandey is also feels that Parvathy has it all to be Miss World 2008. She said:

“She is an ideal blend of panache and poise. Her face just lights up each time she smiles.”

Now let us turn our eyes at the fast track events of Miss World. Parvathy Omanakuttan did not win any of the five fast track events including: Beach Beauty, Top Model, Sports, Talent, and Beauty with a purpose. In Miss World Beach Beauty, Parvathy Omanakuttan made it to the semi-finals. In Top Model section, Parvathy Omanakuttan was the second runner up. Now, the billion dollar question is: Will Parvathy Omanakuttan win Miss World 2008? In order to get the answer, you have to tune into Zee Café on December 13, 8.30 p.m.

Brazil may face backlash at Latin American summit

2008-12-15T17:34:00.001-08:00

COSTA DO SAUIPE, Brazil (AP) - Brazil's role as a benevolent continental superpower may be put to the test at a two-day summit of Latin American and Caribbean leaders aimed at strengthening political and economic ties, analysts said Monday.

A spate of recent bilateral disputes has put South America's largest economic power on the defensive on the eve of the summit, which gets under way on Tuesday.

The meeting ``will be a real test to Brazil's leadership,'' said Mauricio Cardenas, director of the Latin America Initiative at the Brookings Institution think tank in Washington and Colombia's former minister of economic development.

``At the end of the day, Latin America will emerge as a much-divided region, with Brazil unable to play the role of a unifying force,'' Cardenas said.

Ecuador has been engaged in a weekslong fight with Brazil over debt payments for a problematic hydroelectric project. Paraguay is angry about recent Brazilian military exercises conducted near the two nations' border and Venezuela has challenged Brazil's idea for a regional defense council by inviting the Russian Navy to visit.

The disputes add up to potential problems for summit host President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a center-leftist seen by the United States as an effective counterbalance to the region's strident socialists.

Cuban President Raul Castro told reporters after arriving at the summit's headquarters in the beachside resort of Costa Do Sauipe on Monday night that he's willing to meet with President-elect Barack Obama to discuss the 50-year U.S. economic blockade of Cuba.

``If Mr. Obama wants to discuss it, we'll discuss it,'' Castro said. ``If he doesn't want to discuss it, we won't discuss it.''

Compounding Brazil's problems is the world financial crisis, which is hitting the region hard because of lower global demand for Latin America's raw materials. Brazil's strong finances make it better prepared to weather the crisis, which is a source of envy for other nations.

One summit goal self-destructed Monday before the leaders even arrived when ministers of South America's Mercosur nations - Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay - failed to agree on a key summit goal of ending a double tariff on goods imported from outside the trade bloc.

Some analysts say Latin American leaders are unlikely to openly criticize Brazil, which during the past five years has become an undisputed regional heavyweight based on the size of its economy.

``No government is likely to rebuff Brazil's initiative, given the country's enormous economic and political weight and the fact that it is at the ideological center in Latin America,'' said Michael Shifter, director of the Andean program at the Inter-American Dialogue think tank in Washington.

``Whatever frustration and resentments Brazil's neighbors feel will be held in check,'' Shifter said.

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said the meeting marks an important step for the region to break free of U.S. influence.

``There's no doubt that a new historic era is beginning,'' Chavez said.

Tiger on the prowl near Lucknow eludes officials

2008-12-15T17:33:00.001-08:00

Lucknow, Dec 15 (IANS) A tiger that strayed from the forests and has been on the prowl for almost a month near the Uttar Pradesh capital, continues to elude wildlife officials even after the animal was spotted close to the city.

Even when a team of armed wildlife officials spotted the feline at a fairly close range, in the vicinity of Lucknow Monday afternoon, they were unable to tranquilise the animal.

'We were unable to get close enough to the tiger to use our tranquiliser guns,' Senior Forest Research Officer Ajit Narain Singh told IANS.

Evidently, the tiger, which is estimated to be around two-and-a-half years old, had come within 10 km of Lucknow.

Singh, who is heading the tiger rescue team and is known for his expertise in tranquilising tigers said: 'The tiger kept hiding behind bushes or trees and we just could not get a clear view to hit the animal straight with a tranquilser dart.'

'The animal had strayed out of the forests of Pilibhit to come close to Lucknow after crossing Shahjahanpur, Sitapur and Barabanki districts. It bypassed Lucknow city by moving along the banks of the Gomati river sometime late last night and was now heading towards Haidergarh (about 45 km from the state capital),' Singh added.

Asked why he did not use his normal rifle to shoot down the wild cat that had left thousands of people panic-stricken he said: 'We have taken a decision not to kill the tiger, otherwise, it was well within the range and sight of the normal rifle.'

Singh is confident of capturing the tiger alive.

'Either we will get him alive or we will manage to drive him back into the wild,' he said.

Palin's fashion needs cost party $150,000 last month

2008-12-15T17:26:00.000-08:00

Washington, Oct 23 (Xinhua) The US Republican party has spent about $150,000 over the last one month to meet vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin's fashion needs, an online report has said.

According to the political website Politico, the Republican National Committee used campaign donations to pay for the Alaskan governor's clothing, hair styling, makeup and other 'campaign accessories' during the month of September, following her nomination as John McCain's running mate.

Among the expenses, $75,062 were spent at Neiman Marcus in Minneapolis and $41,850 in St Louis in early September. It also included $4,100 for Palin's makeup and hair styling, the report said.

However, the Republican party said in its defence the clothing would go to charity after the end of election campaign.

'With all of the important issues facing the country right now, it's remarkable that we're spending time talking about pantsuits and blouses,' said Republican presidential candidate John McCain spokeswoman Tracey Schmitt. 'It was always the intent that the clothing goes to a charitable purpose after the campaign.'

McCain, an Arizona Senator, was exceeded by his Democratic presidential rival Barack Obama in campaign funds.

The Republican party has been helping McCain's bid for the White House financially and is allowed to spend up to $19 million dollars in the campaign.

Snake gives Rock a shock at Leopard's Creek

2008-12-15T17:22:00.000-08:00

MALELANE, South Africa (Reuters) – Briton Robert Rock chased the birdies but gave a dangerous snake the slip on his way to a six-under 66 in the first round of the Dunhill Championship at Leopard's Creek Thursday.

"There was a black mamba out there," Rock said of his close encounter with one of Africa's most venomous reptiles on the course adjacent to Kruger National Park. "There were a couple of people poking around after it.

"It was between the seventh green and the eighth tee. I gave that a bit of a wide berth. Scared me off a bit," said Rock, who sank seven birdies.

(Reporting by Lali Stander, editing by Rex Gowar)

Miss Congeniality, make way for Miss Constitution

2008-12-15T17:19:00.000-08:00

beauty contest are seen covered with artificial snow at the end of …

MOSCOW (Reuters) – The winner of a new Russian beauty contest must be attractive, talented and witty.

But never mind wanting to help children. She should also symbolize Russia's constitution.

Russia's main pro-government youth group, Nashi, is to stage the "Miss Constitution 2008" contest as the Kremlin is pushing for changes to the constitution that critics say aims to let Prime Minister Vladimir Putin become president again.

"This constitution is a state brand and today we want to choose a girl worthy of its image," a Nashi spokeswoman.

Nashi will crown Miss Constitution on December 12 to celebrate the document's 15th anniversary. Other Russian youth groups will also take part.

"The girls must prove they are gifted in many ways," the spokeswoman said. "Talented, clever, erudite, artistic, witty, graceful, flexible and most important of all not without sparkle."

The Kremlin wants to extend the Russian presidential term to six years from four, a change critics say could be designed to allow Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to reclaim the top job.

Parliament has already approved the changes which now must be approved by Russia's regional legislatures.

Last year thousands of Nashi protesters marched to support Putin in parliamentary elections and demonstrate against his opponents but in 2008 the group has adopted a far lower profile.

(Writing by James Kilner; Editing by Angus MacSwan)

"Shrek" pits Dreamworks against Disney on Broadway

2008-12-15T17:18:00.001-08:00

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Hollywood studio DreamWorks received warm reviews on Monday for its Broadway debut "Shrek the Musical," which pits it against rival Walt Disney Co. on the Great White Way as theaters ride out the financial crisis.

Based on the 1990 book about a green ogre and a princess and the 2001 Oscar-winning animated film -- the first of the DreamWorks trilogy -- "Shrek the Musical" takes on Disney shows "The Lion King," "Mary Poppins" and "The Little Mermaid."

"The maiden Broadway venture of DreamWorks Theatricals ... is definitely a cut above the most recent offerings from its creators' direct competitor in cartoon-inspired musicals, Walt Disney," wrote The New York Times' Ben Brantley.

"Unlike that company's 'Tarzan' and 'Little Mermaid,' 'Shrek' has the virtues of a comprehensible plot and identifiable characters," he said. "But it seems to me that if 'Shrek' had more generally heeded its own advice about substance versus surface, it might have come closer to casting the spell that lets Broadway shows live happily ever after."

"Tarzan" lasted just 14 months due to poor reviews and ticket sales, and "The Little Mermaid" opened in January to replace the 13-year-old "Beauty and the Beast." "Mary Poppins" has grossed more than $100 million since opening in 2006 and "The Lion King" has made $600 million in 11 years on Broadway.

But as the financial crisis grips the world and productions prepare to compete for the fewer discretionary dollars, Disney is offering a free ticket to children under the age of 18 with the sale of an adult ticket for shows between January 6 and March 13.

Disney said it generated more than $2 million in sales in the past two weeks and on Monday announced that it would extend the offer for another week.

AUDIENCES FLAT

However, according to trade group The Broadway League, productions are grossing more than last year, although attendance is flat.

It said nearly 12.3 million Broadway tickets were sold in the 12 months to the end of May, producing $937 million in gross revenues -- a figure dampened by a 19-day stagehands strike in late 2007.

The strike has made it difficult to compare ticket sales, but the league said gross sales have totaled $518.9 million from the June 1 beginning of the season through mid-December, compared to a league "guesstimate" -- as if there had been no strike -- of $493.4 million for the same period in 2007.

"Shrek the Musical" is also competing for younger audiences against the recently opened "Billy Elliot the Musical," based on 2000 Oscar nominated film about a British boy from a coal-mining town who dreams of becoming a ballet dancer. "Billy Elliot" received rave reviews that boosted ticket sales to more than $1 million a week.

The New York Post and the Daily News both gave "Shrek the Musical" three stars out of five.

Joe Dziemianowicz of the Daily News described the show as "fine, not great," while Barbara Hoffman of the Post wrote: "It takes nearly all of Act 1 before 'Shrek the Musical' starts to sing. And when it does, it truly comes alive."

USA Today's Elysa Gardner praises "Shrek's" lyrics and leading actors, but says: "All these assets do not add up to a great musical: That, by definition, would require great music. But Shrek is pretty grand entertainment, and to these eyes, it looks like a big, fat hit."

(Editing by Mohammad Zargham)