Home Blog Page 458

Wenjian Liu funeral: Hundreds of officers turn their backs on New York Mayor Bill de Blasio

The funeral of Wenjian Liu, the second of two officers shot dead last month, has been held in New York.

Wenjian Liu, a son of Chinese migrants, was killed with his partner Rafael Ramos on 20 December by a gunman with a grievance against the police.

Speakers lined up to pay tribute at the service in a Brooklyn funeral home.

In the street outside, hundreds turned their backs to a video screen when Mayor Bill de Blasio spoke.

Many rank-and-file members of the New York Police Department (NYPD) resent Bill de Blasio’s expressions of sympathy for anti-police protesters in recent months.

The double murder by 28-year-old African American gunman Ismaaiyl Brinsley, who claimed to be avenging black men killed by white police stunned the city.

New York police commissioner Bill Bratton had urged officers to refrain from any further “act of disrespect”, saying in a memo: “A hero’s funeral is about grieving, not grievance.”

Mayor Bill de Blasio told the funeral service: “All of our city is heartbroken today.”

Wenjian Liu, 32, had lost his life while fighting for “all that is decent and good”, he said. He paid tribute to a “young man who came here from China at the age of 12 in search of the American dream”.Wenjian Liu funeral

Outside the funeral home, many uniformed officers could be seen turning their backs as the speech was relayed.

Shortly after the policemen were shot, the head of the city’s largest police union, Patrick Lynch, had lashed out at the liberal mayor, saying there was “blood on many hands”.

More than 20,000 officers attended Rafael Ramos’ funeral on December 27, and the sight of lines of police turning their backs marred the event for some.

“The mayor has no respect for us,” retired NYPD detective Camille Sanfilippo told the Associated Press news agency at Wenjian Liu’s funeral.

“Why should we have respect for him?”

Patrick Yoes, a national secretary with the 328,000-member Fraternal Order of Police, said before the new funeral: “Across this country, we seem to be under attack in the law enforcement profession, and the message to take away from this is: We are public servants. We are not public enemies.”

The two policemen were shot following a wave of demonstrations over killings of unarmed black men by white police officers, beginning in the Missouri town of Ferguson last summer.

There was anger in New York after a grand jury decided not to press charges against a white police officer over the death of unarmed black man Eric Garner, who was placed in a chokehold while being restrained by police officers.

Mayor Bill de Blasio had expressed solidarity with the protesters and had publicly wondered if his son, who is mixed-race, was safe from police.

Some argue that such rhetoric helped to create an environment that encouraged violence against police.

Funeral arrangements had been delayed so relatives from China could travel to New York.

Wenjian Liu’s widow, Pei Xia Chen, said she had lost her “soul mate” and a “wonderful husband”.

His father broke down at the funeral as he described how his only child would telephone after every shift during his seven years in the force to reassure his parents he was safe.

“You are the best son, you are the best husband,” he said.

“We are very proud of you, we love you forever.”

A vigil was held on January 3 in Chinatown where community members gathered to burn pieces of paper in honor of Wenjian Liu, in keeping with Chinese tradition.

Ismaaiyl Brinsley killed himself in a subway station as police were closing in.

The gunman had a history of violence and mental instability. On the day of the shooting, Ismaaiyl Brinsley went on social media to say he was planning to kill police officers.

[youtube SCGJLOkXBwQ 650]

Pope Francis names twenty new cardinals from 14 countries

Twenty new cardinals have been named by Pope Francis, including churchmen from Tonga, Ethiopia and Myanmar.

Fifteen of the new appointees are under 80, making them eligible to enter a conclave to elect the Pope’s successor.

The pontiff said the appointment of cardinals from 14 countries from every continent in the world showed the Vatican’s “inseparable link” with Catholic Churches around the world.

They will be formally installed on February 14.

Pope Francis also announced on January 4 that he would lead of meeting of all cardinals to discuss reform of the Roman Curia, the Vatican’s administrative body, on February 12 and 13.

The list of names includes five retired bishops who will join the College of Cardinals but are over 80 and so cannot take part in a papal election.

It is the second time Pope Francis has announced the appointment of new cardinals from a wide variety of countries.

Last January Pope Francis named 19 new additions, including churchmen from Haiti and Burkina Faso, which a Vatican spokesman said reflected his commitment to the poor.

He has now chosen over a quarter of all cardinals able to vote for the next Pope.

With his appointments, Pope Francis appears to be trying to reflect the diversity and growth of the Church in developing nations.

In his a pre-Christmas address to cardinals, Pope Francis sharply criticized the Vatican bureaucracy, complaining of “spiritual Alzheimer’s” and “the terrorism of gossip”.

Pope Francis wants to see an overhaul of the Church, bringing it closer to ordinary people.Pope Francis names new cardinals

List of new cardinals:

Archbishop Dominique Mamberti (France)

Archbishop Manuel Jose Macario do Nascimento Clemente (Portugal)

Archbishop Berhaneyesus Demerew Souraphiel (Ethiopia)

Archbishop John Atcherley Dew (New Zealand)

Archbishop Edoardo Menichelli (Italy)

Archbishop Pierre Nguyen Van Nhon (Vietnam)

Archbishop Alberto Suarez Inda (Mexico)

Archbishop Charles Maung Bo (Myanmar)

Archbishop Francis Xavier Kriengsak Kovithavanij (Thailand)

Archbishop Francesco Montenegro (Italy).

Archbishop Daniel Fernando Sturla Berhouet (Uruguay)

Archbishop Ricardo Blazquez Perez (Spain).

Bishop Jose Luis Lacunza Maestrojuan (Panama)

Bishop Arlindo Gomes Furtado, (Capo Verde).

Bishop Soane Patita Paini Mafia (Tonga)

Archbishop emeritus Jose de Jesus Pimiento Rodríguez (Colombia)*

Titular Archbishop Luigi De Magistris (Italy)*

Titular Archbishop Karl-Joseph Rauber (Germany)*

Archbishop emeritus Luis Hector Villalba (Argentina)*

Bishop emeritus Julio Duarte Langa (Mozambique)*

* Cardinal emeritus, without voting rights

[youtube BnuyYnFSFh4 650]

AirAsia plane crash: Four more bodies recovered from Java Sea

Four more bodies have been recovered from the Java Sea as the hunt to find the main wreckage of AirAsia flight QZ8501 enters a second week.

Indonesia search and rescue chief Bambang Soelistyo said 34 bodies have now been found, as well as five large objects.

Bad weather has forced divers to suspend their bid to find the plane’s fuselage, where most of the bodies are believed to be trapped.

The plane, which was carrying 162 people, crashed on December 28.

It was en route from Surabaya in Indonesia to Singapore.

Bad weather is believed to be the biggest factor in the crash although the Airbus A320’s “black boxes”, or flight data recorders, have yet to be located.

Bambang Soelistyo said on January 4 that Singapore navy vessel RSS Persistence had recovered one body, while US navy ship USS Sampson had brought three more back to the Indonesian town of Pangkalan Bun.AirAsia plane crash 2014

Nearly 30 ships are now involved in the search operation, as well as six planes and 14 helicopters.

There were hopes the weather would improve on Sunday, but conditions once again hampered efforts to find the plane’s main wreckage.

Search teams found four large objects thought to be debris from the plane on January 3, with the largest measuring 59ft.

A fifth object was located on the seabed on January 4, Bambang Soelistyo told reporters.

Dozens of divers from Indonesia and Russia have been deployed to the search area, which has been enlarged to allow for tides sweeping bodies and debris further afield.

They attempted to survey more of the seabed on Sunday but “visibility at the sea bottom was zero,” Bambang Soelistyo said.

Remotely operated cameras were being used to try to photograph the objects, but waves up to 16ft high and strong currents made their use difficult.

National Search and Rescue deputy chief Tatang Zainudin said: “We are racing with time and weather in running this mission.”

On January 3, Indonesian weather agency BMKG said initial analysis suggested icy conditions in the air had caused the engine to stall.

Officials have said the plane was travelling at 32,000ft when the pilot’s last communication was a request to climb to 38,000ft to avoid bad weather.

It has emerged that AirAsia did not have official permission to fly the Surabaya-Singapore route on the day of the crash, but was licensed on four other days of the week.

[youtube rGH8qVIv48M 650]

South Australia bushfires destroy more than 30 homes near Adelaide

The recent Australian bushfires have destroyed more than 30 homes near Adelaide as crews continue to battle out-of-control blazes.

More than 800 firefighters are tackling the blazes, which have been burning for several days in the hills around the city of Adelaide.

Officials say the fires are the worst in the area since the Ash Wednesday bushfires in 1983, which left 75 dead.

Cooler weather may help firefighters tame the flames, which have been fanned by high winds and temperatures.

But South Australia Premier Jay Weatherill said the situation remained critical.

He said 12 homes had been confirmed destroyed in the Adelaide Hills with another 20 also feared lost.South Australia bushfires 2015

Twenty-two people, mostly firefighters, are said to have suffered minor injuries.

More than 27,000 acres of land has been burned, according to reports.

People are being encouraged not to take any risks, and leave if their houses are in danger.

“Right at this moment, residents in the Adelaide Hills are being confronted by a fire which hasn’t been seen in the hills since the 1983 bushfires of Ash Wednesday,” South Australia fire chief Greg Nettleton said on Saturday.

The 1983 fires left 75 people dead and caused devastation across parts of Victoria and South Australia.

Australia faces such fires every year but environmentalists say global warning is making their occurrence more frequent.

[youtube mFYG38NZK-M 650]

Study: Two thirds of cancer types are due to bad luck

0

A new study has suggested that most types of cancer can be put down to bad luck rather than risk factors such as smoking.

The US research team was trying to explain why some tissues were millions of times more vulnerable to cancer than others.

The results, in the journal Science, showed two thirds of the cancer types analyzed were caused just by chance mutations rather than lifestyle.

However some of the most common and deadly cancers are still heavily influenced by lifestyle.

In the US, 6.9% of people develop lung cancer, 0.6% brain cancer and 0.00072% get tumors in their laryngeal cartilage at some point in their lifetime.

Toxins from cigarette smoke could explain why lung cancer is more common.

However, the digestive system is exposed to more environmental toxins than the brain, yet brain tumors are three times as common as those in the small intestine.

The team at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Bloomberg School of Public Health believe the way tissues regenerate is the answer.Most cancer cases due to bad luck, not unhealthy lifestyles

Old tired cells in the body are constantly being replaced with new ones made by dividing stem cells.

But with each division comes the risk of a dangerous mutation that moves the stem cell one step closer to being cancerous.

The pace of turnover varies throughout the body with rapid turnover in the lining of the gut and a slower pace in the brain.

The researchers compared how often stem cells divided in 31 tissues in the body over a lifetime with the odds of a cancer in those tissues.

They concluded that two thirds of cancer types were “due to bad luck” from dividing stem cells picking up mutations that could not be prevented.

These cancer types included Glioblastoma (brain cancers), small intestine cancers and pancreatic cancers.

Cristian Tomasetti, an assistant professor of oncology and one of the researchers, said a focus on prevention would not prevent such cancers.

“If two thirds of cancer incidence across tissues is explained by random DNA mutations that occur when stem cells divide, then changing our lifestyle and habits will be a huge help in preventing certain cancers, but this may not be as effective for a variety of others.

“We should focus more resources on finding ways to detect such cancers at early, curable stages.”

The remaining third of cancer types, which are affected by lifestyle factors, viruses or a heightened family risk, include some of the most common:

  • Basal cell carcinoma – a type of skin cancer made more common by too much UV exposure
  • Lung cancer – strongly linked to smoking
  • Colon cancer – increased by poor diet and family risk genes

Two common types of cancer – breast and prostate – were not analyzed as the researchers could not find a consistent rate of stem cell division in those tissues.

[youtube mt0n8prl_wI 650]

[youtube 9EaNnneEQoA 650]

Sailor Gutzler: 7-year-old Kentucky plane crash survivor praised for her courage

Sailor Gutzler, the 7-year-old girl who survived a plane crash in Kentucky and walked barefoot to find help, has been praised for her courage.

In an interview with BBC, Larry Wilkins, 71, said that he answered the door to the “brave girl” on January 2 and that she told him her parents were dead.

The plane was later found along with the bodies of the girl’s parents, her sister and a cousin.

Sailor Gutzler is from Nashville, Illinois.

Kentucky State Police said those killed were Marty Gutzler, 49, and Kimberly Gutzler, 45, their 9-year-old daughter, Piper Gutzler, and Piper’s 14-year-old cousin, Sierra Walder.Sailor Gutzler, 7, survived Kentucky plane crash

Larry Wilkins said Sailor Gutzler had walked almost a mile through a dark, dense wood in temperatures of about 40F to reach his house in Lyon County.

He added that she had been crying and bleeding when she arrived and had obviously “been through hell”.

“She had a bloody nose, her legs were scratched terribly bad,” he said.

Larry Wilkins thought that she had followed the light from his house to get to safety.

Sailor Gutzler is reported to have been released from hospital on January 3 after receiving treatment for minor injuries.

Kentucky State Police Lt Brent White said: “I’ve got an 8-year-old child myself. And when I saw this – what appeared to be a 7-year-old child that walked through this dense forest through some really tough terrain. Awful poor weather conditions – and survive this, it’s just really a miracle.”

The plane was found on January 2, about 30 miles east of Paducah city.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said air traffic controllers lost contact with the Piper PA-34 aircraft after the pilot reported engine problems.

[youtube kv56LD3h-tg 650]

The Interview: North Korea attacks new US sanctions

North Korea has attacked new US sanctions in response to a major cyber-attack against Sony Pictures.

The US placed sanctions on three North Korean organizations and 10 individuals after the FBI blamed Pyongyang for the cyber-attack.

North Korea praised the attack on Sony but denied any involvement in it.

It came as Sony Pictures was about to release The Interview, a comedy about a plot to assassinate North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

Sony initially cancelled plans to screen The Interview, before deciding to release it online and at a limited number of cinemas.

The sanctions imposed on January 2 are believed to be the first time the US has moved to punish any country for cyber-attacks on an American company.

Announcing them, White House officials told reporters the move was in response to the Sony hack, but the targets of the sanctions were not directly involved.

In response, North Korea’s state-run KCNA news agency on January 4 quoted a foreign ministry spokesman as saying: “The policy persistently pursued by the US to stifle the DPRK [North Korea], groundlessly stirring up bad blood towards it, would only harden its will and resolution to defend the sovereignty of the country.

“The persistent and unilateral action taken by the White House to slap <<sanctions>> against the DPRK patently proves that it is still not away from inveterate repugnancy and hostility toward the DPRK.”

US sanctions were already in place over North Korea’s nuclear program but analysts said the new sanctions were designed to further isolate the country’s defense industry.

[youtube 1CI_j3aGMEg 650]

 

Mexico missing students: Further 10 municipal police officers arrested

Further ten municipal police officers have been arrested by Mexican authorities investigating the disappearance of 43 student teachers in Guerrero state.

Around 90 people in total, including 58 police officer, have been detained so far.

The students disappeared in September 2014 after clashes with police in the city of Iguala.

National prosecutors say police handed them to criminal gangs who murdered them and burnt their bodies.

Parents of the students dispute this, arguing the authorities are hiding what happened to them.

Photo EPA
Photo EPA

The remains of only one student, Alexander Mora, have been identified so far.

They were found near a rubbish dump where criminal gang members say the students were taken to be shot and their bodies burnt.

Members of the gang said they killed the 43 and burned their bodies after they were told the students belonged to a rival gang.

The relatives of the other 42 missing students say they will not give up hope of finding them alive until forensic evidence proves they are dead.

The slow pace of the initial investigation into their disappearance and the collusion it has highlighted between local authorities and drug gangs has led to mass protests across Mexico.

Edward Brooke: First black senator elected by popular vote dies aged 95

The first black senator popularly elected in the US, Edward Brooke, has died aged 95, Republican Party officials say.

Edward Brooke was elected to Congress in 1966 by voters in Massachusetts at a time of widespread racial unrest.First black senator Edward Brooke

A former lawyer, Edward Brooke had also been the first African-American to hold the post of attorney general in any state when he was elected senator.

Two black senators before Edward Brooke were both picked by state legislatures.

[youtube dKprtt2lKYU 650]

AirAsia flight QZ8501 crash blamed on bad weather

According to the Indonesian weather agency (BMKG), bad weather was the biggest factor in the crash of AirAsia flight QZ8501.

The BMKG agency said initial analysis suggested icy conditions in the air had caused the engine to stall.

The Airbus A320 vanished with 162 people aboard en route from Surabaya in Indonesia to Singapore on December 28.

The discovery of four large objects believed to be plane debris has raised hopes of finding the fuselage, where most bodies are believed to be trapped.

Just 30 bodies had been recovered from the Java Sea as of January 3.

The plane’s black boxes, its flight data and cockpit voice recorders, have yet to be located.

BMKG found conditions at the time of the plane’s disappearance suggested it had probably flown into a storm.

“From our data it looks like the last location of the plane had very bad weather and it was the biggest factor behind the crash,” said Edvin Aldrian, head of research at BMKG.AirAsia Flight QZ8501 crash

“These icy conditions can stall the engines of the plane and freeze and damage the planes machinery.”

Officials have said the plane was travelling at 32,000ft when the pilot’s last communication was a request to climb to 38,000ft to avoid bad weather.

Search chief Bambang Soelistyo said four large objects as well as oil slicks had been detected by sonar.

The biggest object is 59ft long and 18ft wide, he was quoted as saying by the Associated Press news agency, adding he believed the objects were parts of the plane. Another object is said to be 32ft long.

Bambang Soelistyo said an ROV (remotely operated underwater vehicle) was being lowered into the water to get an actual picture of the objects, which were at a depth of 98ft.

But he warned that waves up to 17ft high were hampering the search effort.

A flotilla of ships, including two from the US navy, are converging on the site where the objects were located and preparing to put divers into the water.

A Russian search team, including 22 deep water divers and a remotely operated submersible vessel, is expected to join the hunt for the black boxes after arriving in Pangkalan Bun on January 3.

It has emerged that AirAsia did not have official permission to fly the Surabaya-Singapore route on the day of the crash but was licensed on four other days of the week.

The Indonesian authorities suspended the company’s flights on this route pending an investigation. AirAsia said it would “fully co-operate”.

[youtube eASfVxJI48Y 650]

Israel withholds Palestinian tax revenues following bid to join ICC

Israel has frozen the transfer of tax revenues to the Palestinians following their bid to join the International Criminal Court (ICC), Israeli officials say.

They said $127 million collected on behalf of the Palestinian Authority last month would be held back.

The Palestinians submitted documents to join the ICC on January 2 in a move opposed by both Israel and the US.

Senior Palestinian official Saeb Erekat condemned the Israeli measure, calling it a “new war crime”.

“Israel is once again responding to our legal steps with further illegal collective punishments,” Saeb Erekat said.

Israel collects taxes on behalf of the Palestinians, and transfers about $100 million per month, accounting for two-thirds of the authority’s budget.

It is not the first time Israel has halted the monthly transfers. It imposed a similar sanction in April 2014 after Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas applied to join a series of international treaties and conventions.

Joining the ICC could see Palestinians pursue Israel on war-crime charges.

An unnamed Israeli official who announced the new freeze said Israel would defend itself against any Palestinian claims in the “international arena”.

He told Haaretz newspaper that “when it comes to war crimes, we have quite a bit of ammunition”.

Earlier this week Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said: “It is the Palestinian Authority – which is in a unity government with Hamas, an avowed terrorist organization that, like ISIS [Islamic State], perpetrates war crimes – that needs to be concerned about the [ICC].”

On December 31, Mahmoud Abbas signed the Rome Statute, the ICC’s founding treaty.

Under the terms of the statute, it will take about 60 days for the Palestinians to join the ICC after they file the documents.

Neither Israel nor the US is a member of the ICC.

The Palestinians’ chances of joining were improved in 2012 after the UN General Assembly voted to upgrade their status to that of a “non-member observer state”.

ICC chief prosecutor Fatou Bensouda has previously said the upgrade means Palestine now qualifies to join the Rome Statute.

Based in The Hague, the ICC can prosecute individuals accused of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes committed since July 1, 2002, when the Rome Statute came into force.

Little Jimmy Dickens dies of cardiac arrest at 94

Country legend Little Jimmy Dickens has died aged 94.

Jimmy Dickens’ spokeswoman Jessie Schmidt said the singer died on January 2 of cardiac arrest after suffering a stroke on Christmas Day.

His novelty songs, including May the Bird of Paradise Fly Up Your Nose, earned him a spot in the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1983.

Jimmy Dickens is also credited with introducing rhinestone suits to country music.Little Jimmy Dickens dead at 94

He was the oldest member of the Grand Ole Opry, a weekly music concert broadcast live on radio from Nashville, Tennessee.

Little Jimmy Dickens had performed almost continuously on the show since 1948, making his last performance on December 20 to celebrate his 94th birthday.

Pete Fisher, vice-president of the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, said the show “did not have a better friend than Little Jimmy Dickens”.

“He was a one-of-a-kind entertainer and a great soul whose spirit will live on for years to come,” he added.

Despite being just 4ft 11in tall, Jimmy Dickens said he had never been self-conscious about his height.

“It’s been very good for me. I’ve made fun of it, and get a laugh here and there,” he said in a 2009 interview.

[youtube tp_76aG7LPc 650]

John Hinckley Jr. will not face new murder charges in James Brady case

John Hinckley Jr., the man who shot White House aide James Brady in a 1981 assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan, will not face new murder charges, federal prosecutors say.

A medical examiner had ruled James Brady’s death in August a homicide as he died of injuries related to the shooting.

Prosecutors say they cannot charge John Hinckley Jr. as he had already been found not guilty by reason of insanity.

John Hinckley, 59, has been confined to a psychiatric hospital since the verdict.

James Brady, who had suffered brain damage and partial paralysis, died in August at the age of 73.

Police said “an autopsy was conducted and revealed the cause of death to be a gunshot wound and consequences thereof, and the manner of death was ruled a homicide”.

On January 2, the prosecutors said the original verdict ruled out new charges.James Hinckley Jr

They added that Washington DC courts ruled at the time that a homicide prosecution could only be brought if a victim died within “a year and a day” of the attack.

“In summary, any further prosecution of Hinckley premised on his March 1981 shooting of Mr. Brady would be precluded,” the US attorney’s office said.

Barry Levine, John Hinckley’s lawyer, said he was not surprised at the latest decision, adding: “Mr. Hinckley is haunted by the tragedy that his conduct, more than 30 years ago, created.”

A lifelong Republican, James Brady had served in the Nixon and Ford administrations and as a Senate aide before joining Ronald Reagan’s 1980 presidential campaign.

On March 30, 1981, John Hinckley opened fire on the president’s party outside the Washington DC Hilton Hotel, striking four people, including James Brady and Ronald Reagan.

James Brady was shot in the head and was the most seriously wounded. Ronald Reagan was shot in one lung. A Secret Service agent and a police officer suffered lesser wounds.

Photos and video of the incident show the wounded press secretary sprawled on the ground as Secret Service agents rushed the president into his vehicle and others wrestled John Hinckley to the ground.

Since the trial John Hinckley has been committed to a Washington DC psychiatric hospital, but has been allowed to spend limited time at his mother’s home.

James Brady, who served in three Republican administrations, became an advocate for stricter gun control.

He lobbied for legislation to require background checks for handgun sales.

The so-called Brady Bill was signed into law by President Bill Clinton in 1993.

[youtube 3Bj6aOgfcJU 650]

AirAsia plane crash: Two large objects found in Java Sea

Two large objects have been found by search teams scouring the Java Sea for the wreckage of AirAsia flight QZ 8501, Indonesian officials say.

A remotely operated underwater vehicle was being lowered to take pictures, search and rescue agency chief Bambang Soelistyo said.

However, bad weather and heavy seas continue to hamper operations.

The jet disappeared with 162 people on board while flying from Surabaya in Indonesia to Singapore on December 28, 2014.

So far 30 bodies have been recovered in the search. No survivors have been found and the main sections of the Airbus A320 have not been retrieved.

Most bodies are thought to have been trapped in the plane’s fuselage.

Photo EPA
Photo EPA

Bambang Soelistyo said on January 3 that the large objects had been detected by sonar from an Indonesian navy ship.

“We found oil slicks and huge objects at 23:40 last night. I am confident these are parts of the missing AirAsia plane that we are looking for,” he said.

He said the larger of the objects was 32ft by 16ft but that strong currents made operating the underwater vehicle difficult.

A flotilla of ships, including two from the US navy, are converging on the site where the objects were located and preparing to put divers into the water.

The cause of the crash is not yet known. Specialist equipment has arrived to the search for the plane’s “black box” flight recorders, though officials say no signals have been picked up yet.

In another development, it has emerged that AirAsia did not have official permission to fly the Surabaya-Singapore route on December 28 – the day of the crash – but was licensed on four other days of the week.

The Indonesian authorities are suspending the company’s flights on this route with immediate effect pending an investigation, a transport ministry statement said.

Officials have said the plane was travelling at 32,000ft when it requested to climb to 38,000ft to avoid bad weather.

Some investigators are reported to believe that the plane may have gone into an aerodynamic stall as the pilot climbed steeply.

There were 137 adult passengers, 17 children and one infant, along with two pilots and five crew, on the plane – the majority Indonesian.

Four people have been identified so far: Hayati Lutfiah Hamid, Grayson Herbert Linaksita, Kevin Alexander Soetjipto and Khairunisa Haidar Fauzi.

[youtube NXCEZanrIJY 650]

Girl, 7, survives fatal plane crash in Kentucky

A 7-year-old girl has walked to a home in Kentucky to report that her plane had crashed, police say.

The plane was found later with the pilot and three other passengers dead.

The girl was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Associated Press quoted the Federal Aviation Administration as saying air traffic controllers had lost contact with the Piper PA-34 after the pilot reported engine problems.Girl survived Kentucky plane crash

About 30 minutes after the plane lost contact, a resident of Lyon County called police to say the girl had walked to his home to report the crash.

Sgt. Dean Patterson of the Kentucky state police told Associated Press: “This girl came out of the wreckage herself and found the closest residence and reported the plane crash. It’s a miracle in a sense that she survived it, but it’s tragic that four others didn’t.”

He said the plane had been heading for Illinois from Florida and had crashed in a wooded area near a lake.

The girl’s relationship with those on the plane was not immediately known.

[youtube 8hdlPBhYdCs 650]

Donna Douglas dies at the age of 81

The Beverly Hillbillies star Donna Douglas has died at the age of 81, according to a report by CBS affiliate WAFB-TV in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

According to WAFB, Donna Douglas died on January 2 at her home in Zachary, Louisiana.

Donna Douglas starred as Elly May Clampett, the naive only daughter of oil-rich Clampett clan, in the CBS sitcom that ran from 1962 to 1971. Buddy Ebsen played patriarch Jed Clampett, who moves his family from the Ozarks to Beverly Hills after stumbling into oil riches.

Elly May was known for her love of all kinds of “critters,” as well as for her shapely figure, form-fitting jeans and cascade of blond curls. She was a series regular through the run of the top-rated show, which was the first in a triptych of corny countrified sitcoms from creator Paul Henning that included Petticoat Junction and Green Acres.

The character’s love of “critters” was inspired by Donna Douglas’ real-life affection for animals, having grown up on her grandparents’ farm in rural Louisiana.

As a teenager, Donna Douglas moved into acting after winning several beauty pageants in her home state. She was crowned Miss Baton Rouge and Miss New Orleans in 1957, according to WAFB. She moved to New York to pursue acting and landed work as a model, in TV commercials and finally bit parts on The Perry Como Show and The Steve Allen Show.Donna Douglas in The Beverly Hillbillies

Donna Douglas logged a slew of TV guest shots in the late 1950s and early ’60s before landing on Beverly Hillbillies.

During the run of The Beverly Hillbillies, Donna Douglas had a guest shot on the gritty CBS legal drama The Defenders. She co-starred with Elvis Presley in the 1966 movie Frankie and Johnny.

Donna Douglas’ acting career was on the wane by the mid-1970s. She turned her focus to music and the Christian media marketplace, recording several gospel albums and writing children’s books.

In recent decades Donna Douglas’ mostly been seen on screen in Beverly Hillbillies revival projects, including the 1981 telepic The Return of the Beverly Hillbillies, and in vintage TV retrospectives and events.

Donna Douglas made an appearance as herself on the CBS’ sitcom The Nanny in 1999.

[youtube _E-tj4_oXVY 650]

Prince Andrew named in US lawsuit against Jeffrey Epstein

Queen Elizabeth’s son, Prince Andrew, was named this week in an ongoing US lawsuit brought by a group of women who claim they were trafficked to the world’s rich and powerful as part of an alleged underage “s** slave” ring run by American investment banker Jeffrey Epstein.

The allegation, found in a court filing this week, prompted Buckingham Palace to issue an unusual statement to the Guardian, noting that the allegation surfaced in “long-running and ongoing civil proceedings in the US to which the Duke of York is not a party”.

The statement continues: “As such we would not comment in detail. However, for the avoidance of doubt, any suggestion of impropriety with underage minors is categorically untrue.”

As part of a 2008 plea deal with prosecutors, Jeffrey Epstein spent 13 months in prison on a state charge of soliciting prostitutes. According to unsealed documents pertaining to that deal, Jeffrey Epstein was the subject of a federal investigation probing allegations that the powerful figure abused dozens of underage girls at his Palm Beach mansion. The deal effectively allowed him to avoid potential federal charges stemming from the investigation.

The lawsuit, filed by two anonymous alleged victims, charges federal prosecutors with violating a statute by not consulting with them before finalizing the plea deal. The latest filing is a motion to expand that existing case to include the allegations of two more women.

The two women named Prince Andrew, Alan Dershowitz and other powerful associates of Jeffrey Epstein as participants in the alleged abuse ring.

It’s the first time Prince Andrew’s name has appeared in a court document alleging that he abused Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged victims.

According to the Guardian, this isn’t the first time Prince Andrew’s name has been linked publicly to the allegations against Jeffrey Epstein.

Prince Andrew and Jeffrey Epstein were friends for years — before, during and after the banker served time in prison.

[youtube CD9dit6FSPU 650]

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia suffers from pneumonia

King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia is suffering from pneumonia and has been breathing with the aid of a tube, Saudi officials have said.

The King, who is said to be aged about 90, was admitted to hospital on December 31 for medical checks.

King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, who came to the throne in 2005, has suffered frequent bouts of ill health in recent years.King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia hospitalized

His age and condition has led to increasing focus on the issue of the Saudi royal succession.

Crown Prince Salman, who is in his late 70s, is next in line to succeed the king, though questions remain over who will follow.

The crown has passed between the sons of Saudi Arabia’s founding father Ibn Saud, but few are still alive.

Last year, King Abdullah took the unprecedented step of appointing a deputy crown prince, his younger half-brother Prince Muqrin, to try to ensure a smooth succession.

[youtube oaqBxfpi8fs 650]

The Interview: US imposes new sanctions on North Korea in response to Sony attack

On January 2, 2015, the White House has announced new sanctions on North Korea in response to a cyber-attack against Sony Pictures Entertainment.

President Barack Obama signed an executive order allowing sanctions on three North Korean organizations and 10 individuals.

The White House said the move was a response to North Korea’s “provocative, destabilizing, and repressive actions”.

US sanctions are already in place over North Korea’s nuclear program.

However, today’s actions are believed to be the first time the US has moved to punish any country for cyber-attacks on an American company.

Among those named in the sanctions were:US sanctions on North Korea after Sony attack

  • The Reconnaissance General Bureau, North Korea’s primary intelligence organization.
  • North Korea’s primary arms dealer, the Korea Mining Development Trading Corporation (Komid).
  • Korea Tangun Trading Corporation, which supports North Korea’s defense research.
  • Jang Song-chol: Named by the US Treasury as a Komid representative in Russia and a government official.
  • Kim Yong- chol: An official of the North Korean government, according to the US, and a Komid representative in Iran.
  • Ryu Jin and Kang Ryong: Komid officials and members of the North Korean government who are operating in Syria, according to the US.

White House officials told reporters the move was in response to the Sony hack, but the targets of the sanctions were not directly involved.

Instead, the sanctions are designed to further isolate North Korea’s defense industry as deterrent for future cyber-attacks.

The FBI and President Barack Obama have previously said they believe North Korea was behind the cyber-attack.

North Korea denies involvement in the hack, and some cyber-security experts have also cast doubt on its guilt.

However, a senior White House official said it was extremely rare for the US to attribute cyber-attacks, and it was only done so because of the destructive nature of the attack, and because the White House saw it as “crossing a threshold”.

Sony was embarrassed after a group calling itself Guardians of Peace leaked data from its computers, exposing emails and personal details.

The group later threatened cinema chains planning to screen Sony’s North Korea comedy, The Interview.

References to the 9/11 terror attacks prompted the cancellation of The Interview‘s nationwide release. A small number of independent cinemas did screen the film, and it was released online.

Announcing the new sanctions, the US said the apparent effort to stifle The Interview release was part of the justification for the new restrictions.

“We take seriously North Korea’s attack that aimed to create destructive financial effects on a US company and to threaten artists and other individuals with the goal of restricting their right to free expression,” the White House said in a statement.

“Today’s actions are the first aspect of our response.”

North Korea has blamed the US for lengthy internet outages in the country last week.

[youtube _j5RPADeQNs 650]

Elvis Presley’s private jets Lisa Marie and Hound Dog II going up for auction

Elvis Presley’s private jets – the Lisa Marie and Hound Dog II – are going up for auction.

The Lisa Marie, named after his daughter, was bought by Elvis Presley in 1975 and refurbished to include a master suite with full-size bed and conference room.

Neither plane is airworthy but has been on display at Graceland for more than 30 years for fans to tour.

They are being auctioned off by Julien’s by sealed bids.

Elvis Presley bought the Convair 880 jet in 1975, two years before his death, and spent about $300,000, refitting it and renaming the Lisa Marie. It also features a bathroom with gold taps and a stereo system with 50 speakers.Elvis Presley's private jet Lisa Marie

The tail is adorned with Elvis Presley’s trademark TCB for Taking Care of Business.

The last flight it took was to transport his former wife Priscilla Presley and actor George Hamilton to his funeral.

It was sold by his father, Vernon, in 1978, and had two owners before being bought by a consortium in a joint venture with the owners of Graceland to allow it to be displayed at the tourist hotspot.

The agreement with the owners and Graceland expires in 2015.

The Hound Dog II, a Lockheed JetStar, was bought in 1975 as a stopgap while the Lisa Marie was being prepared. It arrived at Graceland in 1984.

The planes are being sold as one lot, with the option to buy land next to Graceland to display them, independent of the Presley Museum.

[youtube X1yCDLuj8YQ 650]

Edward Herrmann dies from brain cancer at 71

Gilmore Girls’ Edward Herrmann has died at the age of 71.

The 6ft 5in star had been diagnosed with brain cancer and was in intensive care in New York before his death on December 31.

Edward Herrmann’s son Rory said in a statement: “He was full of knowledge and kindness and goodness.

“He always wanted to share the great and beautiful things in life.”

Edward Herrmann played the beloved grandfather Richard Gilmore on Gilmore Girls, a waspish family drama set in a storybook Connecticut town.

The actor, who trained at London’s Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, was singled out for praise when Entertainment Weekly picked Gilmore Girls as one of its “new TV classics” in 2009.Edward Herrmann dies from brain cancer at 71

However, his son Rory, said his father’s favorite role had been President Franklin D. Roosevelt, whom he played in the TV movies Eleanor and Franklin and Eleanor and Franklin: The Whitehouse Years in 1976 and 1977.

Edward Herrmann reprised the role in the 1982 movie musical Annie, and provided the voice for FDR in Ken Burns’ documentary series The Roosevelts: An Intimate History, last year.

He also starred in Joel Schumacher’s teen vampire film, The Lost Boys, alongside Kiefer Sutherland, where he played Max; and won a primetime Emmy in 1999 for his guest role in the Boston-based legal series The Practice.

His Broadway credits included the original run of Love Letters in 1989, The Deep Blue Sea with Blythe Danner in 1998 and George Bernard Shaw’s Mrs. Warren’s Profession, for which he won a Tony Award in 1976.

Edward Herrmann often appeared on the big screen in major films including The Wolf of Wall Street, The Aviator and Reds, and recently appeared on shows such as Grey’s Anatomy, How I Met Your Mother and The Good Wife.

[youtube 06j0q3Tg5fA 650]

Ebola outbreak will be ended in 2015

0

The current Ebola outbreak will be ended in 2015, Anthony Banbury, the head of the UN team fighting the disease, has said.

Anthony Banbury said the number of Ebola cases would be brought down to zero by the close of this year, but admitted that the end was “not close”.

“We are engaged in an epic battle,” he said.

The Ebola virus has killed nearly 8,000 people, mostly in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea, where the disease started in December 2013.

Photo Getty Images
Photo Getty Images

What is Ebola virus disease (EVD)?

  • Symptoms include high fever, bleeding and central nervous system damage
  • Spread by body fluids, such as blood and saliva
  • Fatality rate can reach 90% – but current outbreak has mortality rate of about 70%
  • Incubation period is two to 21 days
  • There is no proven vaccine or cure
  • Supportive care such as rehydrating patients who have diarrhea and vomiting can help recovery
  • Fruit bats, a delicacy for some West Africans, are considered to be virus’ natural host

iOS 8: Apple sued for not telling users about memory required by operating system

Two iOS 8 users are suing Apple for not telling about the amount of memory required by its flagship operating system.

The legal complaint revolves around iOS 8 and the amount of memory it reserves for itself on iPods, iPhones and iPads.

The complaint alleges that it takes up so much space that far less than advertised is left for people to store their own data.

Apple has yet to issue any official comment on the lawsuit.

The complaint has been filed in California by Miami residents Paul Orshan and Christopher Endara who say that iOS 8 can occupy up to 23.1% of the memory available on some Apple devices.

In addition, upgrading devices from the earlier iOS 7 to 8 can cause people to lose up to 1.3 gigabytes of memory, said papers filed in support of the legal action.iOS 8 too big for iPhone or iPad

The amount of memory taken up by iOS 8 can mean users run out of storage and, Paul Orshan and Christopher Endara allege, this is helping Apple force people to sign up for its fee-based iCloud storage system.

The lawsuit is seeking millions of dollars in damages for those using Apple devices facing the storage squeeze.

So far, Apple has not responded to requests for comment on the lawsuit.

The latest upgrade to iOS 8 was released in late September but Apple was forced to withdraw and then re-issue it because the first version meant a lot of iPhone 6 and Plus handsets could no longer make calls.

Apple issued a public apology over the botched update but said only 40,000 people were affected by it.

Bono may never play guitar again following bike accident

Bono says he fears that he may never play guitar again following a bike accident in November 2014.

The U2 frontman made the comment in his A to Z of 2014, published on the band’s website.

Bono broke his arm in six places and fractured his eye socket, hand and shoulder blade in what he called a “freak accident” in New York.

In the letter to his fans, Bono said he was unable to move around physically and would have to “concentrate hard” to be fit for U2’s next tour.

At the time, the hospital where Bono was being treated said he had been involved in “a high-energy bicycle accident when he attempted to avoid another rider”.

The 54-year-old rocker spoke this week about being on painkillers for weeks and said he had a “massive injury, I can’t blame on anyone but myself”.

Bono also revealed he now had a titanium elbow.

The wide-ranging, sometimes tongue-in-cheek, A-Z letter covers topics ranging from the iTunes release of the Songs of Innocence album, to an update on his family.

Bono talked about learning from his mistakes adding “the first of which is the discovery that I am not an armored vehicle”.

He says the letter will be his only communication for the first part of this year.

“The consequences of this freak accident are significant enough that I will have to concentrate hard to be ready for the U2 tour in fitness terms,” he said.

Bono added: “As a result I have cancelled every public appearance and decided this missive is all the communication I can manage for the first half of 2015, beyond muttering and singing to myself of course.”

[youtube 45t78_-ujGs 650]

AirAsia plane crash: Search moves underwater

The underwater search for AirAsia flight QZ8501 which crashed into the sea on December 28 is set to begin with the arrival of specialist equipment.

A French crash investigation team will use sensitive acoustic detection devices to try locate the plane’s “black box” flight recorder.

The Airbus A320-200 was flying from Surabaya in Indonesia to Singapore with 162 people on board when it vanished.

No survivors have been found and the cause of the crash remains unknown.

Several more bodies were located on January 2, bringing the total found to 16.

One person has been identified as passenger Hayati Lutfiah Hamid – her funeral was held in Surabaya on January 1.

The plane is almost certainly at the bottom of the relatively shallow Java Sea.

Several pieces of debris have been recovered, including what is thought to be part of a wing flap.

Despite a massive five-day search the fuselage is still missing. Officials say most of the passengers could still be inside.

Locating the fuselage and the flight recorder will help answer the mystery of what happened to make the plane fall from the sky.

The head of Indonesia’s search and rescue agency, Bambang Soelistyo, said on January 2 that wreckage and bodies are spread over a 3-mile area of the Java Sea.

The search was now focusing on an area of 1,575 nautical square miles of the Java Sea off Borneo, he told reporters.

“Divers are already on standby at the navy ship Banda Aceh to dive on that priority area to locate the body of the plane,” he said.

“I hope we’ll get a significant result today.”

There were 137 adult passengers, 17 children and one infant, along with two pilots and five crew, on the plane. The majority of those on board were Indonesians.

Some investigators are reported to believe that the plane may have gone into an aerodynamic stall as the pilot climbed steeply to avoid a storm.

A source quoted by Reuters said that radar data appeared to show that the aircraft’s “unbelievably” steep climb may have been beyond the Airbus A320’s limits.

[youtube 9SSHzFXtCyE 650]