A discussion on online community site Reddit has revealed a series of gripes, handy tips and confessions about things to look out for by hotel workers.
It followed a question posted by user Smadisond on Tuesday. The site user asked: “Hotel staff of Reddit, what is something that hotels keep from their guests?”
1. Whisky is yellow… but so is urine
Among the tales was a hotel worker in Sweden telling how she stumbled upon a guest’s sneaky attempt to dodge a minibar bill – by refilling an empty whisky bottle with urine.
Current and former hotel staffers from around the world contributed to the discussion on Reddit.
2. Suspect stains… gone with a quick wipe
One employee told how in training she was directed to simply “wipe” a suspicious white stain off the duvet with a “damp cloth, until you can’t see it anymore”.
The traumatized hotel trainee’s advice was steer clear of anything but the sheets.
3. Dirty hotel room glasses? Rinse in bathroom sink and dry with pillow case
One former housekeeper admitted to simply rinsing glasses in the bathroom sink then drying them with a clean pillow case – and that was only if they looked dirty.
A discussion on online community site Reddit has revealed a series of gripes, handy tips and confessions about things to look out for by hotel workers
4. Hair, hair, everywhere
A hotel maid said her major gripe is when guests leave behind an almost unimaginable amount of hair. Especially when it “just keep coming”.
5. You try completely cleaning a room in just 15 minutes
Also on the subject of cleaning, one user said the hotel where they worked allotted only 15 minutes per room so if things didn’t look as if they’d been cleaned it’s likely that they weren’t.
6. One room, one simple rule
An employee at a top hotel told Reddit that people wanting just one room should avoid online travel sites.
He said third parties often charge more than the hotel’s actual rate so people should book directly because if there are vacancies, they’re willing to bargain.
“If you are just reserving a room, you’re getting the short stick,” he said.
7. Need to cancel without paying a fee? Think ahead
Another useful tip was on how to avoid paying a cancellation fee when you have to ditch a reservation at the last minute.
A receptionist said a clever solution is to call the hotel and push your reservation forward a few weeks. Then, call back later that day and cancel.
8. The night-time credit card con
One thing to look out for is a scam used by hackers who pose as front-desk workers calling late at night to persuade half-awake guests that they suddenly need a credit card.
According to hotel workers, the front desk won’t ever call late at night.
9. Make friends with the all-powerful bellman
When it comes to getting perks at a hotel, one bellman at a Hilton in Arizona has also revealed all.
He said advised people to ask for everything from free water bottles to cigarettes, shuttle rides to pizza because bellmen might have the power to grant it.
10. Ritz-Carlton goes the extra mile
According to another former high-end employee, at a Ritz-Carlton hotel, the chain has a $1,500 “special employee allowance” to be used at their discretion for improving a guest’s stay.
The employee witnessed the purchase of a new Rolex for a guest whose own watch had gone missing days before.
Tameka Raymond, Usher’s ex-wife, suffered fresh heartache today after losing the custody battle over their two sons.
Usher, 33, was awarded primary care of 4-year-old Usher Raymond V and Naviyd, 3, after a ruling by Georgia judge, TMZ reports.
It comes just weeks after Tameka Raymond’s 11-year-old son Kile – from a previous relationship – tragically died following a freak jet ski accident last month.
The former couple was both giving evidence last week, with Tameka trying to prevent Usher from taking sole custody of their two young sons, while closing arguments were also delivered.
It was a messy battle which saw Tameka Raymond accuses Usher of being an absent father – while he branded her a bad mother who was unable to bond with their children.
Usher was awarded primary care of 4-year-old Usher Raymond V and Naviyd, 3, after a ruling by Georgia judge
Their two sons will no spend most of their time with their father – while it is unclear how much access Tameka will get to her boys.
Usher and Tameka Raymond, 41, previously had a co-parenting agreement in place.
According to Fox Atlanta, an attorney representing the singer said at an earlier hearing: “We believe the evidence is that Ms Raymond is incapable of being a proper parent to these children.
“That she does not have the emotional stability or capacity to bond with them, and therefore she is handicapped.”
However Tameka Raymond’s attorney Lisa West told the court the pop star is on the road all the time, and cannot rely on the “village” of his mother, grandmother and aunt, who all attended, to keep the children.
She added that he does not have a good relationship with his mother, and said Tameka is determined to fight for custody.
Usher and Tameka Raymond divorced in 2009 and both sides admitted the current co-parenting arrangement is not working.
They have been attending Fulton County for various hearings over the past several months, with both giving testimony.
Usher, whose surname is Raymond, told the court on Monday last week that he tries to focus on his children when they are with him, but sometimes he has to juggle other commitments.
According to the The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, he said: “I try to do all of my work when I don’t have the children, but there may be times when there’s an obligation of something that comes up.”
The United Nations refugee agency says that more than 200,000 Syrians have fled to neighboring countries as the conflict has intensified.
The UNHCR said the figure was already more than its projection of 185,000 for the end of this year.
About 30,000 arrived in Turkey, Iraq, Lebanon and Jordan in the past week.
Meanwhile, activists say Syrian army tanks have reached the centre of the Damascus suburb of Darayya, after shelling killed about 20 people.
The reported offensive is part of a government military campaign launched this week to regain control of outlying areas of the capital.
The United Nations refugee agency says that more than 200,000 Syrians have fled to neighboring countries as the conflict has intensified
The violence in Syria has taken a toll on civilians, with more than 200,000 registering with the UNHCR in neighboring countries since security forces began suppressing pro-democracy protests in March 2011.
“We are now at a much higher level of 202,512 refugees in the surrounding region,” UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards told a news conference in Geneva on Friday.
“In Jordan, a record 2,200 people crossed the border overnight and were received at Zaatari camp in the north,” he added.
The total reflects an increase of about 30,000 in the past week, but also takes into account a change in the way refugees are counted in Jordan.
Adrian Edwards said the deteriorating security situation in Lebanon, where 51,000 refugees are registered, was “hampering our work to help refugees fleeing Syria’s conflict, though operations are continuing”.
There are also thought to be more than 1.2 million internally displaced people in Syria, and 2.5 million in need of humanitarian assistance.
The main battle fronts are currently in the second city of Aleppo and in Damascus, where the government this week launched a fierce military offensive to crush rebel resistance on the outskirts of the capital.
Opposition activists said troops backed by tanks had entered the south-western suburb of Darayya on Friday afternoon, and had been seen on al-Thawra Street, in the centre.
“The rebels have mostly slipped away. The fear now is that the army will round up young men and summarily execute them, as it did in Muadhamiya,” activist Abu Kinan told the Reuters news agency, referring to a nearby suburb where the bodies of as many as 40 men shot at close range were reportedly found in buildings after troops pulled out.
Earlier, the army had used multiple rocket launchers located at the nearby Talat Qawqaba military base and artillery at Mezzeh military airport to bombard Darayya.
It has targeted the town for several days, shelling it from afar and clearing it with ground troops, trying to sweep it clear of rebels.
But rebel fighters are using classic guerrilla tactics, making it difficult for the army to defeat them despite its use of massive force.
Activists said at least 70 people had been killed in Darayya in the past 72 hours, most of them civilians.
Opposition sources also reported fighting on Friday in other suburbs of Damascus, as well as heavy shelling on several districts of Aleppo.
Jeffrey Johnson has been identified as the gunman responsible of this morning Empire State Building shooting.
Jeffrey Johnson, 53, a disgruntled employee, returned to his former workplace and fatally shot his ex-boss three times in the head, sparking early-morning chaos and multiple other injuries near the Empire State Building.
But he was scuppered in his plans to escape after a construction worker saw the killing, chased him down the street and alerted police, who shot the gunman dead.
In the rush-hour ruckus, nine passersby were injured, including four who suffered gunshot wounds. Two people – the gunman and his former boss – were killed.
The deadly dispute horrified tourists and workers swarming the area around 34th street and Fifth Avenue which, at the height of summer, is experiencing its busiest few weeks.
Jeffrey Johnson had visited clothing retailers Hazan Imports, where he had been an accessories designer before he was fired as it downsized last year, on 33rd Street and Fifth Avenue at 9:00 a.m.
He was dressed in a smart grey suit and was carrying a briefcase, the New York Daily News reported.
Jeffrey Johnson returned to his former workplace and fatally shot his ex-boss three times in the head, sparking early-morning chaos and multiple other injuries near the Empire State Building
After his former boss, identified as 41-year-old Steven Ercolino, came out into the street to talk with him, Jeffrey Johnson shot him three times in the head and ran from the scene with his .45 caliber handgun hidden in a bag under his arm.
But he was followed a block north by a construction worker who had witnessed the deadly shooting and alerted two police officers on duty outside the Empire State Building.
When the gunman pulled out his firearm and aimed at them, they shot him dead.
During the gunfire, four people were shot and a total of nine people were injured. The seven men and two women were whisked away to nearby hospitals, where some are undergoing surgery.
In a press conference near the scene, Commissioner Ray Kelly and Mayor Michael Bloomberg said some of the nine people who were injured may have been hit or grazed by police gunfire.
The two officers fired a total of 14 rounds, AP reported. Jeffrey Johnson’s semi-automatic weapon was equipped to fire at least eight rounds; at least one round was left in the clip, police said.
It is “not likely” any of the victims will die, Commissioner Ray Kelly said. None are children or elderly.
When asked if the construction worker was the hero, Mayor Michael Bloomberg responded: “He did what he should have done. When he saw something, he said something and then turned it over to the professionals.”
Ray Kelly and Michael Bloomberg added that it was too early to say if Jeffrey Johnson was legally permitted to be carrying a gun, but early reports did not indicate he had a criminal record.
Witnesses recounted the chaotic scene during rush hour in an built-up area swarming with workers and tourists.
“The gunshots were like a movie scene, everybody running in every direction and you can hear the gunshots everywhere not knowing where to run,” witness Suzy El Ayoubi said on Twitter.
Aliyah Imam told Fox 5 News that she was standing at a red light when a woman next to her fell to the ground after being hit in the hip. She claimed the gunman was “shooting indiscriminately at people”.
Witness Kay Hudson, who said she was three feet away when a man was shot, said she heard seven shots then saw a man carrying an orange helmet lying on the ground.
Kay Hudson said she began shouting for people to run and started fleeing down 33rd Street.
Jill Greenwood, who works as an account supervisor at Prosek Partners in the Empire State Building, told the Wall Street Journal that she heard several gun shots beginning at 9:04 a.m.
She said that people inside the building began yelling because an echo from the shots made it sound like the shooting was happening inside the building.
“We heard these gunshots, it sounded like fireworks. So, we both got up and went to the window and looked down,” Jill Greenwood, 30, told the WSJ.
Helicopter footage apparently showed the gunman lying on a stretcher in handcuffs, before officers placed a white sheet over his body.
A fire department spokesman said it received a call about the shooting just after at 9:00 a.m. and that emergency units were on the scene within minutes. The FBI confirmed it was not terror related.
“What I want to do is assure everybody this is nothing to do with terrorism,” Michael Bloomberg said at the press conference.
“Thank God nobody else was seriously injured. Again, there’s an awful lot of guns out there,” the mayor, a staunch advocate of stricter gun laws, added.
Coincidentally, just minutes before the shooting, Michael Bloomberg had warned about the dangers of “too many guns on the streets” on his weekly radio show.
While discussing proposed tougher gun laws in Albany shortly before 9:00 a.m., he said: “The argument guns don’t kill people, people kill people is one of the most disingenuous things you can say.”
“It does take a person to pull the trigger, but if they didn’t have the gun… We are the only developed country in the world with this problem,” the mayor continued.
Actress Katie Holmes was awarded just $400,000 a year in child support payments in her divorce settlement from Tom Cruise, according to new reports.
Katie Holmes, 33, signed a prenuptial agreement when she married Tom Cruise, 50, in 2006 which excluded her from his $250 million fortune.
According toTMZ, Katie Holmes will receive no spousal support from Tom Cruise. However, he is required to pay over $33,000 a month in child support for their six-year-old daughter Suri until she turns 18.
Tom Cruise will also pay for Suri’s medical and dental expenses as well as her insurance, education costs and college tuition. The money will reportedly be paid by electronic transfer.
Katie Holmes was awarded just $400,000 a year in child support payments in her divorce settlement from Tom Cruise
The couple also agreed that their daughter will not attend boarding school, shooting down reports that Suri would be sent to a school which focused on Tom Cruise’s religion, Scientology.
Katie Holmes will have sole custody of Suri, however Cruise was granted “meaningful” visitation rights.
If their marriage had lasted more than 11 years, Katie Holmes, who earns a considerable amount less than her former husband, would have received half of Tom Cruises’ $250 million fortune.
“The case has been settled and the agreement has been signed,” her attorney told E! News recently.
“We are thrilled for Katie and her family and are excited to watch as she embarks on the next chapter of her life.
“We thank Tom’s counsel for their professionalism and diligence that helped bring about this speedy resolution.”
The settlement came just two months after Katie Holmes sensationally lodged the legal papers to end their five-year marriage.
Citing “irreconcilable differences” for the split, the actress requested sole legal custody and “primary residential custody” of Suri.
“We are committed to working together as parents to accomplish what is in our daughter Suri’s best interests,” the former couple said in a joint statement.
“We want to keep matters affecting our family private and express our respect for each other’s commitment to each of our respective beliefs and support each other’s roles as parents.”
Meanwhile it has been reported that Tom Cruise, who is currently filming the movie All You Need Is Kill in London, has thrown himself into work since the breakdown of his marriage.
Speaking to Grazia a source said: “Tom’s friends and family have urged him to take a break, but he has brushed off their concern.
“He is refusing to slow down and is trying to soldier on. He doesn’t seem to be himself. He hasn’t been working out like he normally does and doesn’t appear to be eating well at all. His clothes just hang off him.”
The source also told the magazine: “His way of dealing with this is to throw himself into his work, but as a result he’s not looking after himself, and he risks cutting himself off from people who care about him and want to make sure he’s OK.”
Tom Cruise has two other children Connor, 17, and Isabella, 20, from his marriage to actress Nicole Kidman.
Fashion designer John Galliano, who was convicted last year of making anti-Semitic remarks, has been stripped of France’s prestigious Legion d’Honneur.
The decision was published in a decree signed by French President Francois Hollande and published in the country’s official journal.
John Galliano lost his job as artistic director of fashion house Dior over the comments made in a Paris bar.
British fashion designer blamed his outbursts on addictions to drugs and alcohol.
Fashion designer John Galliano, who was convicted last year of making anti-Semitic remarks, has been stripped of France's prestigious Legion d'Honneur
John Galliano, who had been charged with “public insults based on origin, religious affiliation, race or ethnicity”, was given suspended fines totaling 6,000 euros ($7,500) over the incident.
The fines related to incidents on the evenings of 8 October 2010 and 24 February 2011 at La Perle cafe in the Marais district of the capital.
During the trial, the court heard how, during the February incident, John Galliano harangued museum curator Geraldine Bloch about being Jewish and hurled racist insults at her friend – of South Asian origin – before police came to break up the argument.
In a third incident, the court saw an amateur video of John Galliano, while drunk, declaring a love for Hitler.
Since the conviction, John Galliano has kept a low profile. Media reports suggest he is considering moving to Los Angeles.
The Legion d’Honneur, France’s highest award, is given to those who have served France or the ideals it upholds.
John Galliano took over the creative helm of Dior in 1996 and won British Fashion Designer of the Year on four occasions.
An extraordinary collection of items belonging to Greta Garbo is to go under the hammer at Julien’s Auctions in December.
It is not only designer clothes and shoes worn by the classic film star who dazzled on screen between the 1920s and 1940s that are up for grabs.
A multitude of more obscure items – including a huge inflatable brightly colored plastic snowman, a vintage waffle iron, salt and pepper sellers shaped like geese and a mechanical chef toy that fries eggs – feature in the eye-opening lot.
A “yoga costume”, an old passport, a massage table, several pairs of silk pyjamas and a papier mache cat made in Mexico will go under the hammer in Los Angeles, with prices ranging from $25 for some little toys, to $8,000 for her Louis Vuitton steamer trunk.
The estate – comprising the contents of Greta Garbo’s New York apartment and Swedish mansion – reveals a playful, funny and eccentric side to the actress who died in New York in 1990, aged 84, of pneumonia and renal failure, without ever having married or had any children.
An extraordinary collection of items belonging to Greta Garbo is to go under the hammer at Julien's Auctions in December
Calling Greta Garbo “extremely funny”, “a comedienne”, and “a magical presence in our lives”, the screen icon’s great-nephew Derek Reisfield has written a revealing foreword about the sale of the estate.
Of his great-aunt, Derek Reisfield says: “She taught us how to do cartwheels in our backyard by the pool on hot summer afternoons when she was in her sixties…Garbo loved jokes and wordplay. She could do subtle or slapstick with equal facility.”
He explains how Greta Garbo’s “wry sense of humor and her playfulness can be seen in the toys and gadgets she didn’t let go of – the snowman she kept in her living room to the delight of all of us children and the Swedish trolls she left for us to find in her seat cushions”.
The mechanical chimpanzee with cymbals used to be wheeled out to entertain the children – always accompanied by funny story.
As well as more left-field items such as a vintage waffle iron and recipe, a lamp shaped like a pineapple, a pencil case full of used pens and a fit-to-bursting collection of buttons, the lot features Greta Garbo’s enormous wardrobe.
Clothes, shoes, hats, handbags, coats, jewellery, gloves, eye glasses and a number of silk pyjamas made by designers including Gucci, Valentino, Emilio Pucci, Louis Vuitton, Givenchy and Salvatore Ferragamo are being auctioned for prices between $100 and over $1,200.
Greta Garbo’s vanity items – including a box of mascara brushes, hair accessories and a vintage Gillette razor – will be sold alongside plenty of smoking paraphernalia, such as ashtrays, matchbooks and boxes and cigarette lighters and cases.
Home furnishings including silverware, glassware, furniture and kitchen utensils will appear on the lot beside traditional collectors items including signed scripts, film stills and photographs.
Born Greta Louisa Gustafson in 1905 in Stockholm to a homemaker and a butcher, Greta Garbo’s career began as a hat model.
She was nominated four times for the Best Actress Academy Award – for her roles in Anna Christie, Romance, Camille and Ninotchka – but never won.
Of her estate, the Beverly Hills-based auctioneers said the very personal collection “has never been previously available and (is) rarely seen by others”.
Scientists have developed a forensic test that can predict both the hair and eye color of a possible suspect using DNA left at a crime scene.
The team that developed the test says it could provide valuable leads in cases where perpetrators cannot be identified through DNA profiling.
The Hirisplex system could allow investigators to narrow down a large group of possible suspects.
Details appear in the journal Forensic Science International: Genetics.
Scientists have developed Hirisplex, a forensic test that can predict both the hair and eye color of a possible suspect using DNA left at a crime scene
Predicting phenotypes – outward traits such as hair color or eye color – from DNA information is an emerging field in forensics.
An important current approach, known as genetic profiling, involves comparing crime scene DNA with that from a suspect or with a profile stored in a database.
But this relies on the person either being among a pool of suspects identified by the police or having their profile in a DNA database.
Tools such as Hirisplex could be useful in those cases where the perpetrator is completely unknown to the authorities, said Prof. Manfred Kayser, who led the study.
He said the test “includes the 24 currently best eye and hair color predictive DNA markers. In its design we took care that the test can cope with the challenges of forensic DNA analysis such as low amounts of material.”
Prof. Manfred Kayser, from Erasmus University Medical Center in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, added: “The test is very sensitive and produces complete results on even smaller DNA amounts than usually used for forensic DNA profiling.”
He said the journal article described everything needed to establish the test in a forensic lab, but that the team was also in touch with industry regarding their knowledge about hair and eye color prediction.
The test system includes the six DNA markers previously used in a test for eye color known as Irisplex, combining them with predictive markers for hair.
In the study, the authors used Hirisplex to predict hair color phenotypes in a sample drawn from three European populations.
On average, their prediction accuracy was 69.5% for blonde hair, 78.5% for brown, 80% for red and 87.5% for black hair color.
Analysis on worldwide DNA samples suggested the results were similar regardless of a person’s geographic ancestry.
The team was also able to determine, with a prediction accuracy of about 86%, whether a brown-eyed, black haired person was of non-European versus European origin (excluding some nearby areas such as the Middle East).
The findings were also outlined at the sixth European Academy of Forensic Science conference in The Hague this week.
A ceremonial cauldron has been lit in London’s Trafalgar Square to launch the Paralympic torch relay.
Claire Lomas, who was paralyzed in a horse riding accident, lit the cauldron from the English national flame kindled on Scafell Pike.
British Prime Minister David Cameron, London Mayor Boris Johnson and London 2012 chairman Lord Sebastian Coe attended the ceremony.
The relay travels from Stoke Mandeville to London overnight on Tuesday for the Games opening ceremony on Wednesday.
David Cameron marked the occasion by wishing Paralympic Games competitors good luck.
“After a fortnight of Olympics withdrawal symptoms, it’s time to dust off the GB flags and get ready for two more weeks of spectacular sport,” he said.
“Over these next two weeks, we’re going to have more of those moments that will bring us together and make us proud.
“We are going to show the whole world that when it comes to putting on a show, there is no country like Britain and no city like London.”
A ceremonial cauldron has been lit in London's Trafalgar Square to launch the Paralympic torch relay
Claire Lomas, who completed this year’s London Marathon in 16 days wearing a “bionic suit”, was left paralyzed from the chest down in a riding accident.
Using a Paralympic torch she lit the cauldron which will stand on the north terrace of the square outside the National Gallery.
She said: “It’s an amazing opportunity and I feel very proud and privileged to be asked.
“I wish everyone competing in the Paralympics loads of luck.”
During the event, 26 flame ambassadors from across England collected a flame in a lantern to take back to their local celebrations.
Lord Sebastian Coe said: “The national flame in England will help to light the way to the Paralympic Games.
“It will also give people the chance to celebrate the amazing achievements of the inspirational Torchbearers who all embody the Paralympic values of courage, determination, inspiration and equality.”
Later, he insisted that organizers strive to fill any untaken accredited seats during the Paralympic Games but denied there had been empty seats at Olympic venues.
“We didn’t have any empty seats, every venue was absolutely full to the gunwhales.
“What you’re talking about is the unscientific nature of accredited seats which happens at every Games.
“We will do what we can during the Paralympic Games to make sure that, for most of the time, those accredited seats are used.”
Mayor Boris Johnson said: “1948 was an amazing year for this country. The NHS, the first Land Rover, the first Routemaster bus was planned, Shakin’ Stevens was born somewhere in Wales and the Paralympic movement, which is something that’s grown massively now.
“The success of the Paralympics tells us something about Britain and the way the country has changed.
“The Olympics showed what we can do and I think the Paralympics will show what kind of people we are, what’s going on in our hearts.”
Before the cauldron lighting the flame visited the Royal Opera House. Later in the day it will be carried in front of performers from the Notting Hill Carnival, visit the Houses of Parliament and be taken on the Docklands Light Railway.
A giant Paralympic Agitos logo, the symbol of the Paralympic Games, has been suspended from Tower Bridge to herald the coming event.
Four national flames were kindled at the summit of the highest peaks in Scotland, Northern Ireland, England and Wales on Wednesday.
Following on from the event in London, the national flames will be used to light cauldrons outside Stormont in Northern Ireland on Saturday, at The Mound in Edinburgh on Sunday and outside City Hall in Cardiff on Monday.
Next Tuesday the four flames will be brought together in Stoke Mandeville where they will create the Paralympic flame, signalling the start of the relay.
Starting out from Stoke Mandeville Stadium at 20:00 BST, the Paralympic flame will be carried 92 miles by 580 torchbearers, working in teams of five, through Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and London to the Olympic Stadium in Stratford.
There it will be used to light the cauldron at the opening ceremony of the Games on the evening of 29 August.
Two people have been killed, including a gunman, and ten others are wounded in a shootout near New York’s Empire State Building, officials say.
The gunman was reportedly killed by police, and officials said ten others were wounded in the rush-hour incident in the heart of Manhattan.
Law enforcement officials said a shop worker sacked at the iconic tower shot dead a former colleague.
The incident took place shortly after 09:00 local time.
Two people have been killed, including a gunman, and ten others are wounded in a shootout near New York's Empire State Building
Some of those hit by bullets may have been accidentally hit by police, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said in a news conference.
But he said their injuries were not life-threatening and they were expected to make a full recovery.
Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said the suspect had been fired about a year ago from his job designing women’s accessories at a business in the skyscraper.
He said the “disgruntled” worker had been armed with a .45 calibre pistol, and he fatally shot a former colleague in the head.
The shooter was 53 years old and his victim was 41 years old, Commissioner Ray Kelly said.
There was a heavy police presence at the scene on 34th Street and Fifth Avenue, and the FBI also attended.
Federal officials said the shooting was not related to terrorism.
Fifth Avenue, a major traffic artery in the city, was closed from 42nd street.
Witnesses describe people running away from the scene of the shooting.
An eyewitness told the New York Daily News that the gunman had been wearing a business suit and carrying a briefcase.
One woman, Aliyah Imam, told TV station Fox 5 News that the gunman was “shooting indiscriminately at people”.
She said a young woman standing next to her fell to the ground after being shot.
One of New York’s most popular tourist attractions, the Empire State Building is a 1,453-ft (442-metre) skyscraper, which attracts nearly four million visitors a year.
The tower also has offices and the area is bustling with workers on weekday mornings.
Soli Brug Gallery in Greaaker in Norway has admitted losing a Rembrandt etching worth up to $8,500 in the post, after trying to save money on a courier and insurance.
The art gallery, 80 km south of Oslo, bought the Dutch master’s Lieven Willemsz van Coppenol, Writing-Master, from a British dealer.
The etching, made around 1658, is now lost in the Norwegian postal system.
The gallery’s chairman Ole Derje said they had used regular mail as couriers and insurance were “quite expensive”.
Rembrandt's etching of Lieven Willemsz van Coppenol, Writing-Master, is made around 1658
Ole Derje said he received notice to collect the piece. When he arrived, though, it was nowhere to be found.
“It is worth around 40,000 to 50,000 crowns,” he said, claiming that the postal service was only offering compensation of between 500 and 1,000 crowns.
Ole Derje declined to name the seller, citing confidentiality concerns. The Soli Brug Gallery already displays works by Rembrandt, Goya, Munch and Dali.
“We are sorry that this has happened,” said Hilde Ebeltoft-Skaugrud, a spokesman for the Norwegian postal service.
“We have advised him to use a more appropriate form of mail when sending items that are worth as much as this with the appropriate insurance connected.”
A section of a multi-million dollar bridge in China that opened in November has collapsed, killing three people and injuring other five, state media say.
Four lorries fell off the Yangmingtan Bridge in Harbin City, Heilongjiang province, when part of it collapsed, Xinhua news agency said.
Shoddy construction and over-loading have been blamed for the incident, it added.
Officials said they will investigate to see if the lorries were overloaded.
A section of a multi-million dollar bridge in China that opened in November has collapsed, killing three people and injuring other five
The bridge, which spans the Songhua river and is 15.42 km (9.58 miles) long, was finished nine months ago and cost 1.88 billion yuan ($286 million), Xinhua said.
A 100 m (328 ft) ramp section collapsed, causing the lorries to plummet to the ground.
Sun Qingde, an official on Harbin’s construction committee, was quoted by Xinhua as saying that the ramp “tilted to one side and crashed onto the ground”.
This is the sixth major bridge collapse in China since July 2011, the agency said.
The lorries were carrying feed and stones, officials from the Harbin municipal government was quoted by People’s Daily Online newspaper as saying at a press conference.
They added that the bridge and other city roads will be checked.
Kim Kardashian took to Twitter yesterday to post an image of herself as none other than Diana Ross.
Kim Kardashian, 31, who has previously emulated Sophia Loren and Marilyn Monroe, bared little resemblance to the legendary singer.
But perhaps photographer Hype Williams, who also shot the music video for Kim Kardashian’s 2011 chart flop Jam (Turn It Up), has something different in mind from the raw images his model posted on Twitter today.
Still, taking to the micro-blogging website, Kim Kardashian seemed ecstatic with the results, writing: “Love this hair!!!”
Kim Kardashian took to Twitter yesterday to post an image of herself as none other than Diana Ross
The style certainly made a statement, Kim Kardashian’s curls teased several inches from either side of her face.
The make-up team accentuated her features with inches of product, bronzing her glossy complexion and topping it with rosy circles of rouge, slashes of pastel pink lipstick and heavy blue eyeshadow.
Her eyelashes appeared longer than their usual extreme length, spidering around her brown eyes, which were heavily lined in black.
Hoop earrings, studded thigh high boots and a black blazer completed the styling.
Elaborating on her Celebuzz blog, Kim Kardashian wrote: “[W]e went for a fun, crazy look, channeling Diana Ross. Definitely a new look for me.”
It was not known at press time where the final images would be featured.
The reality star meanwhile released the snaps in tandem with a shot by Nick Knight which showed the star looking much more like herself.
The black-and-white image, shot for V magazine, features the Keeping Up with the Kardashians star sweeping back her mane to reveal chiseled cheeks and her trademark pout.
Clearly proud of the shot she promoted on Twitter, she thanked the fashion photographer.
“LOVE U NICK KNIGHT!” Kim Kardashian wrote, telling fans she “can’t wait” for them to see the full editorial.
A South Korean court has ruled that tech giants Apple and Samsung both infringed each other’s patents on mobile devices.
The court imposed a limited ban on national sales of products by both companies covered by the ruling.
It ruled that Apple had infringed two patents held by Samsung, while Samsung had violated one of Apple’s patents.
The decision comes as a jury in California is deliberating on a patent trial between the two firms in the US.
A South Korean court has ruled that tech giants Apple and Samsung both infringed each other's patents on mobile devices
The sales ban will apply to Apple’s iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4 and its tablets the iPad and iPad 2.
Samsung products affected by the ban include its smartphone models Galaxy SI and SII and its Galaxy Tab and the Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet PCs.
The court ordered Apple to pay 40 million won ($35,000) in damages to its South Korean rival, while Samsung was told to pay Apple 25 million won.
The awards are dwarfed by the damages being sought by Apple in its case in California. It is seeking more than $2.5 billion from Samsung, for allegedly violating its patented designs and features in the iPad and iPhone.
A Samsung spokesperson said the court had found the South Korean firm guilty of violating Apple’s patent relating to the “bounce back” function.
The function lets users know that they have reached the end of a screen that they may be scrolling through on their devices.
Meanwhile, Apple has been found guilty of violating patents relating to telecom standards held by Samsung, including technology that makes the transfer and transmission of data between devices more efficient.
However, the court ruled against Apple’s claims that Samsung had copied the designs of its products.
“There are lots of external design similarities between the iPhone and Galaxy S, such as rounded corners and large screens… but these similarities had been documented in previous products,” a judge at the Seoul Central District Court was quoted as saying by the Reuters news agency.
“Given that it’s very limited to make big design changes in touchscreen based mobile products in general… and the defendant [Samsung] differentiated its products with three buttons in the front and adopted different designs in camera and [on the] side, the two products have a different look,” the judge said.
Mass killer Anders Behring Breivik is sane and he is sentenced to 21 years in prison, a Norwegian court has ruled today.
Anders Behring Breivik admitted killing 77 people and wounding more than 240 others when he bombed central Oslo and then opened fire at an island youth camp last year.
Mass killer Anders Behring Breivik is sane and he is sentenced to 21 years in prison, a Norwegian court has ruled today
The killer insisted he was sane and refused to plead guilty, seeking to justify his attacks by saying they were necessary to stop the “Islamisation” of Norway.
Prosecutors had called for him to be considered insane.
The five judges were unanimous in ruling that Anders Behring Breivik was sane.
They gave him the maximum sentence of 21 years, but that can be prolonged at a later if he is deemed to remain a danger to society.
Court-appointed psychiatrists disagreed on Anders Breivik’s sanity. A first team which examined him declared him to be a paranoid schizophrenic, but the second found he was sane.
Before the verdict, Anders Breivik said psychiatric care would be “worse than death”.
Anders Behring Breivik carried out the meticulously planned attack in July 2011, wearing a fake police uniform, and methodically hunted down his victims.
He accused the Labour Party of promoting multiculturalism and endangering Norway’s identity.
Some victims at the Labour Party youth camp on Utoeya island were shot in the head at point-blank range.
Ahead of the verdict, security barriers were put up outside the district court in Oslo.
A glass partition separates Anders Behring Breivik from relatives of victims in a courtroom custom-built for the trial.
Remote-controlled cameras are filming the proceedings, sending the images to courtrooms around Norway where other relatives can watch the hearing live.
Anders Breivik’s trial, which began in March, heard graphic testimony from some of the survivors of his attacks.
Mohamad Hadi Hamed, 21, who is now in a wheelchair, told the court how his left arm and his left leg were amputated after he was shot by Anders Breivik.
Another survivor, Einar Bardal, 17, described how he was trying to escape when he heard a loud bang, followed by a loud beeping noise in his head.
More than 16,000 dried seahorses which were to be exported illegally to Asian countries have been seized by police in Peru.
Seahorse powder is used in China, Japan and elsewhere in traditional medicine and for its alleged aphrodisiac uses.
Peruvian authorities say the traffickers ran away and abandoned their illicit cargo on a street in the capital, Lima.
More than 16,000 dried seahorses which were to be exported illegally to Asian countries have been seized by police in Peru
Police chief Victor Fernandez said the cargo could have fetched up to $250,000 abroad.
Seahorse fishing is illegal in Peru, but the high prices paid for seahorse powder abroad make it difficult for the authorities to enforce the ban.
Victor Fernandez said the cargo – three cases weighing 27.5 kg (60 pounds) – was left behind following a police operation near the Lima’s airport.
“They are sent to Asian countries and used as aphrodisiacs. In China this product is also used to cure asthma,” he said.
The marine fish, which finds northern Peru’s warmer waters a perfect breeding ground, is protected by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (Cites).
But Victor Fernandez said that last year a total of 20 tons of dried seahorses were seized across the world – half a ton in Peru alone.
When Gu Kailai was given a suspended death sentence for the murder of British businessman Neil Heywood, speculation began that the woman in court was a body double.
So what do these kinds of suspicions tell us about modern China?
As soon as footage of Gu Kailai appeared in the official report of the trial, rumors began to circulate on the internet about the identity of the woman in the dock.
Several posts and re-posts surfaced on Chinese social media sites on the same day, with a screen grab of the courtroom scene, suggesting that the woman – who appeared plumper than Gu Kailai- was a body double.
One internet user posted some “before and after” photos and asked: “Are we looking at the same woman? There are rumors that the woman who appeared in the court room is a body double, because whether you are thin or fat, your bone structure shouldn’t change.”
Another user said: “Please note the corner of the mouth, the bags under the eyes and the ears, especially the ears. You might flatten the bags, but you can’t change the shape of your ears.”
When Gu Kailai was given a suspended death sentence for the murder of British businessman Neil Heywood, speculation began that the woman in court was a body double
This kind of speculation continued through the verdict and sentencing on 20 August and then newspapers joined the fray. One Hong Kong paper – Apple Daily – even reported rumors on 21 August that the stand-in was named Zhao Tianyun, who had been hand-picked by the wife of premier Wen Jiabao.
But the paper also quotes journalist Jiang Weiping, who was in contact with Gu Kailai and her husband Bo Xilai for a number of years, as saying that judging by the face and the gestures, it was really Gu.
The speculation also extended overseas – Britain’s Financial Times went as far as to consult two security experts familiar with facial recognition software who concluded that the person shown in state television footage of the trial was not Gu Kailai.
So do Chinese netizens really believe that a body double was used to shield Gu Kailai, or do they simply want to express their mistrust of the judicial system and of the authorities in general?
The answer perhaps lies in another microblog post by the famous Chinese writer Zhang Yihe.
“There are a lot of questions: did Chinese hurdler Liu Xiang put on a show during the Olympics? Did swimmer Ye Shiwen take drugs? Did Gu Kailai herself attend the trial?” she asked.
“All this reminds us of an ancient fable – crying wolf. In the story the boy only lied once, and nobody believed him afterwards and he was eaten by a wolf.
“The Chinese propaganda machine is luckier – they have been telling lies for over 60 years, and now, everything they say is doubted.”
In fact, Chinese netizens are skeptical about many other aspects of the trial as well. Many think it was overtly political, with no judicial independence and the verdict was a foregone conclusion.
Others are not convinced about the motive presented in the courtroom for killing Neil Heywood, and it is not clear what role, if any, Gu Kailai’s husband – a former high-flying politician – had in the dispute between his wife and the British businessman.
This is also not the first time in China that questions have been raised about the identity of the person in the dock.
In 2009, wealthy 20-year-old Hu Bin killed a pedestrian on the streets of Hangzhou. When the court passed a three-year sentence, allegations surfaced that the man who appeared in court and served the sentence was a hired body double. The authorities had to robustly refute such claims.
Underlying such allegations is a deeply-rooted mistrust of the authorities, the unfairness of the justice system and a perception that the wealthy can escape justice. People tend to err on the side of doubting than believing the official version of anything.
Gu Kailai’s trial was over in seven hours, with only a selected few to witness the proceedings, and both Chinese and foreign journalists were turned away at the door.
There has been very little media coverage about the trial except some standard pieces by Xinhua, the state news agency, that all media outlets dutifully carry. There have been few editorials or commentaries, compared with the extensive coverage over other issues such as the ongoing territorial dispute with Japan.
It is only natural that Weibo, the Chinese version of Twitter, has become one of the few places where ordinary people talk about the trial and express their concerns. Now the phrase “body double” is blocked, however.
As to whether the real Gu Kailai or a stand-in appeared in court, one can say that the only pictures available from before the trial were taken several years ago, and show a successful lawyer at the peak of her career with a seemingly happy family. So it is possible that time and events have caught up with her.
One should also consider the enormous risks the authorities would have to take for a body double to appear, and wonder what benefit they would gain.
Still, those in power can learn a lot from these episodes on how they can build up public confidence and stop the “crying wolf” vicious circle.
Cyclist Lance Armstrong announces he will no longer fight drug charges from the US anti-doping agency, ahead of a Friday deadline.
In a statement, Lance Armstrong, 40, maintains he is innocent, but says he is weary of the “nonsense” accusations.
The US anti-doping agency (USADA) now says it will ban Lance Armstrong from cycling for life and strip him of his seven Tour de France titles.
Lance Armstrong retired from professional sport in 2011.
USADA alleges he used banned substances as far back as 1996, including the blood-booster EPO, steroid and blood transfusions.
USADA says it will ban Lance Armstrong from cycling for life and strip him of his seven Tour de France titles
Lance Armstrong sued in federal court to block the charges but lost.
“There comes a point in every man’s life when he has to say, <<Enough is enough>>. For me, that time is now,” Lance Armstrong said in the statement.
“I have been dealing with claims that I cheated and had an unfair advantage in winning my seven Tours since 1999.
“Over the past three years, I have been subjected to a two-year federal criminal investigation followed by Travis Tygart’s [USADA’s chief executive] unconstitutional witch hunt.
“The toll this has taken on my family, and my work for our foundation and on me leads me to where I am today – finished with this nonsense.”
Lance Armstrong had been given until 06:00 GMT on Friday to decide whether to continue fighting the USADA charges.
The agency has said that 10 of Lance Armstrong’s former teammates are prepared to testify against him.
The cyclist has accused USADA of offering “corrupt inducements” to other riders.
USADA also accuses Armstrong of being a “ring-leader” of systematic doping on his Tour de France winning teams.
Travis Tygart said shortly after Armstrong’s statement that his agency would ban Lance Armstrong from cycling for life and strip him of his titles, according to AP.
The chief executive described the case as a “heartbreaking” example of a win-at-all costs approach to sports.
However, Lance Armstrong disputed that the USADA has the power to take away his titles.
“USADA lacks jurisdiction even to bring these charges,” his statement said.
The cycling governing body the International Cycling Union (UCI) – which had backed Armstrong’s challenge to challenge USADA’s authority – has so far made no public comments on the latest developments.
Lance Armstrong, who survived testicular cancer prior to his record-breaking Tour wins, retired after the 2005 Tour de France but made a comeback in 2009.
He retired for a second time in February 2011.
Lance Armstrong now says he will be focusing on the work with his cancer charity.
A team of doctors claim that “super-fertility” may explain why some women have multiple miscarriages.
They say the wombs of some women are too good at letting embryos implant, even those of poor quality which should be rejected.
The UK-Dutch study published in the journal PLoS ONE said the resulting pregnancies would then fail.
One expert welcomed the findings and hoped a test could be developed for identifying the condition in women.
A team of doctors claim that "super-fertility" may explain why some women have multiple miscarriages
Recurrent miscarriages – losing three or more pregnancies in a row – affect one in 100 women in the UK.
Doctors at Princess Anne Hospital in Southampton and the University Medical Center Utrecht, took samples from the wombs of six women who had normal fertility and six who had had recurrent miscarriages.
High or low-quality embryos were placed in a channel created between two strips of the womb cells.
Cells from women with normal fertility started to grow and reach out towards the high-quality embryos. Poor-quality embryos were ignored.
However, the cells of women who had recurrent miscarriages started to grow towards both kinds of embryo.
Prof. Nick Macklon, a consultant at the Princess Anne Hospital, said: “Many affected women feel guilty that they are simply rejecting their pregnancy.
“But we have discovered it may not be because they cannot carry, [but] it is because they may simply be super-fertile, as they allow embryos which would normally not survive to implant.”
He added: “When poorer embryos are allowed to implant, they may last long enough in cases of recurrent miscarriage to give a positive pregnancy test.”
This theory still needs further testing and will not explain all miscarriages.
Depositors in Vietnam have withdrawn hundreds of millions of dollars from Asia Commercial Bank, one of the country’s largest banks, after the arrest of tycoon Nguyen Duc Kien, one of its founders.
Nguyen Duc Kien, one of Vietnam’s richest businessmen, was arrested in Hanoi on Monday on suspicion of “economic violations”.
Shares in Asia Commercial Bank (ACB) slid as a result, causing depositors to panic.
The Central Bank has pumped millions into the bank to reassure depositors.
Large crowds of customers have gathered outside branches of ACB in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi.
Depositors in Vietnam have withdrawn hundreds of millions of dollars from Asia Commercial Bank after the arrest of tycoon Nguyen Duc Kien
The government has said that Nguyen Duc Kien, who owns just under a 5% stake in ACB, is not involved in the day-to-day running of the bank.
Nguyen Duc Kien, whose family is the fifth richest in Vietnam, co-founded ACB in the 1990s. He is seen as a politically well-connected tycoon.
The allegations against him concern other investment companies that he owns, but there is also concern about the whereabouts of ACB’s chief executive officer Ly Xuan Hai.
Some reports say it is widely believed that Ly Xuan Hai is also under arrest or may have resigned.
Ly Xuan Hai’s deputy, Do Minh Toan, has been quoted as telling state media that depositors withdrew about 5 trillion dong ($240 million) from ACB on Wednesday.
The bank run has also put pressure on the dong and has led to an increase in the price of gold – traditionally seen as a safe-haven investment at times of economic instability.
Since Wednesday the Central Bank has injected 17 trillion dong into Vietnam’s commercial banking sector in an effort to mollify depositors and the market.
Nguyen Duc Kien’s sudden arrest has prompted speculation about a power struggle in communist-run Vietnam, and a suspected plot to curb the power of Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung, to whom Kien has close ties.
ACB faced a run on its deposits in 2003 after rumors, which were later proved false, spread about the arrest of one of its executives at the time.
Nguyen Duc Kien is also a shareholder in other commercial banks, including Kien Long Commercial Joint Stock Bank and the Vietnam Export-Import Commercial Joint Stock Bank
He has also invested heavily in Vietnam’s professional football league.
A model which has foretold the correct results of the Electoral College selections in U.S. Presidential elections since 1980, has predicted a loss for Barack Obama and the Democratic Party.
The forecast was made by two professors at the University of Colorado who used economic data and unemployment figures from each state to predict a Republican win come November.
Political science professors Kenneth Bickers and Michael Berry’s study predicts 218 electoral votes for Barack Obama and 320 for Mitt Romney with the Republican candidate winning every seat currently considered to be on the fence.
The prediction model uses economic data from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, including income per capita and both state and national unemployment figures.
The research concluded that U.S. voters blame Democrats for high unemployment rates but hold Republicans more responsible for low per capita income.
It also showed that the advantage of holding the White House disappears for Democratic candidates when the national unemployment rate hits 5.6%.
“Based on our forecasting model, it becomes clear that the president is in electoral trouble,” Prof. Kenneth Bickers said.
The professors’ analysis concluded that Mitt Romney would take home all swing states including Florida, Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Minnesota, New Hampshire and Colorado.
Political science professors Kenneth Bickers and Michael Berry’s study predicts 218 electoral votes for Barack Obama and 320 for Mitt Romney with the Republican candidate winning every seat currently considered to be on the fence
Colorado voted for Barack Obama in 2008 but the current president is predicted a marginal loss at 48.1% against Mitt Romney’s 51.9%, although with the caveat that only the two major parties were considered.
Although the economy has improved under Barack Obama, Prof. Michael Berry said in a statement that it remains to be seen whether voters will consider the economy in relative or absolute terms.
“If it’s the former, the president may receive credit for the economy’s trajectory and win a second term. In the latter case, Romney should pick up a number of states Obama won in 2008,” Prof. Michael Berry said.
Although the model devised by Prof. Michael Berry and Prof. Kenneth Bickers has predicted the correct results of eight consecutive presidential elections, the data used for analysis was collected in June.
An update with figures from September is due next month which the team said could have a completely different outcome.
The results of the model’s calculations are in stark contrast to current polling data. The New York Times’ latest figures for the Electoral College selections forecasts a blue win with 282.6 electoral votes for Barack Obama and 255.4 for Mitt Romney.
Although the figure is well above the 270 electoral votes President Barack Obama needs to hold on to his presidency, it is a decrease by 12.8 seats since the last figures on August 15.
While the race remains a dead heat, a new AP/GfK poll out today says that most Americans expect Barack Obama to retain the presidency.
Overall, registered voters are about evenly split, with 47% saying they plan to back Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden and 46% favoring Mitt Romney and Republican Paul Ryan of Wisconsin.
About one in four voters say they are undecided or could change their minds between now and November 6.
The contours of the race are little changed from June, when an AP-GfK survey showed 47% of voters backing Barack Obama and 44% siding with Mitt Romney, suggesting Romney’s decision earlier in August to tap Paul Ryan as his running mate was not the game-changing event he may have desired.
Both campaigns have been competing fiercely for a small sweet spot in the middle of the electorate: Independent voters who say they don’t lean toward either party.
Mitt Romney holds a narrow lead among that group with 41%, compared to 30% for Barack Obama.
But few think the Romney-Ryan ticket will win in the end.
Asked to predict the race’s outcome, 58% of adults say they expect Barack Obama to be re-elected, whereas just 32% say he will be voted out of office.
Even among those who say they have a great deal of interest in following the campaigns’ bitter back and forth, a majority expect Barack Obama to win.
Partisans generally expect their own candidate to win, though Republicans are less sure about Mitt Romney than Democrats are about Barack Obama – 83% of Democrats say Barack Obama will be re-elected while 57% of Republicans think he’ll be voted out of office.
Among those Republicans who think Barack Obama may pull out a victory is Catherine Shappard, a 78-year-old from Dallas.
Catherine Shappard said all of her friends agree that Mitt Romney would be a better president, yet she’s alarmed to hear even conservative commenters say Barack Obama has a good shot at re-election.
“I think it’s close,” Catherine Shappard said.
“A lot closer than I’d like it to be.”
The perception that Barack Obama has the advantage could cut both ways.
On the one hand, people like to vote for a winner, so if voters think Barack Obama will win, they may be more inclined to cast their lot with him.
On the other hand, it could backfire for Barack Obama and help Mitt Romney if it drives down turnout among Democrats.
If Barack Obama’s supporters think the race is in the bag and their vote isn’t necessary, they may stay home.
But if, like Catherine Shappard, voters suspect the race is close, they’ll be more likely to cast a ballot, said Patrick Murray, a political analyst at Monmouth University.
“It’s less important who people think will win than if they think it’s a close race,” said Patrick Murray.
After just over one week on the campaign trail, Mitt Romney’s running mate remains unknown to about a quarter of voters.
Paul Ryan is viewed favorably by 40% of registered voters, while 34% see him unfavorably.
Barack Obama’s running mate and current Vice President Joe Biden, has come under scrutiny in recent weeks for a string of gaffes he made during campaign stops.
On August 14, Joe Biden told a Danville, Virginia, audience that included hundreds of black people: “[Romney] said in the first 100 days he’s going to let the big banks write their own rules, unchain Wall Street. They’re going to put y’all back in chains.”
Less than 24 hours later, Joe Biden appeared to be off by 100 years when he asked another Virginia crowd: “Folks, where’s it written we cannot lead the world in the 20th century in making automobiles?”
While Mitt Romney’s campaign strategy has been to hammer at Barack Obama on job creation and his fiscal policy, Obama has been going demographic by demographic in an effort to woo voters.
The president has alternately tailored his campaign speeches and his ad campaigns to women, older voters and, most recently, new young voters who may not have been old enough to cast a ballot four years ago.
In each case, Barack Obama has used Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan as foils, arguing that their policies would limit women’s health care choices, force seniors to pay more for Medicare and cut back on student loans.
Barack Obama’s appeal to female voters got an unexpected boost by the eruption of dismay over Missouri Senate candidate Todd Akin’s remarks about rape and abortion, prompting an unexpected debate on that social issue.
The president’s campaign also enlisted the help of former President Bill Clinton with a TV ad blitz on the economy.
In the ad, Bill Clinton speaks directly to the camera and says voters face a “clear choice” over which candidate will return the nation to full employment.
“We need to keep going with his plan,” Bill Clinton says of Barack Obama in the ad, which will run in eight battleground states.
Authorities in New York have for the seventh time denied parole to Mark David Chapman, the man who shot dead musician John Lennon in 1980.
Mark David Chapman, now 57, was sentenced to 20 years to life in 1981 after pleading guilty to second-degree murder.
He shot John Lennon four times outside a Manhattan apartment block. He can reapply for parole in two years.
Authorities in New York have for the seventh time denied parole to Mark David Chapman, the man who shot dead musician John Lennon in 1980
The board said on Wednesday that Mark David Chapman’s release would risk trivializing John Lennon’s murder.
“Despite your positive efforts while incarcerated, your release at this time would greatly undermine respect for the law,” the New York State Board of Parole said in its decision.
Mark David Chapman, a former security guard, was recently transferred to the maximum security Wende Correctional Facility in western New York state.
A scientist who will be monitoring athletes at the Paralympic Games says a third of competitors with spinal injuries may be harming themselves to boost their performance.
The practice, called “boosting”, is designed to increase blood pressure and enhance performance.
It’s banned by the International Paralympics Committee (IPC), but some researchers say these are the desperate acts of athletes trying to compete on a level playing field.
“There have been times where I would specifically give my leg or my toe a couple of really good electric shocks” says Brad Zdanivsky, a 36-year-old Canadian quadriplegic climber who has experimented with boosting in the gym.
“That would make my blood pressure jump up and I could do more weights and cycle harder – it is effective.”
One British journalist with years of experience covering the Paralympics says he has heard of athletes using small hammers to crack or break a toe.
The point of these activities is to raise the athlete’s blood pressure and heart rate.
When able-bodied competitors engage in hard physical activities like running or swimming, blood pressure and heart rate increase automatically. Athletes with spinal injuries do not get that response. “Boosting” is a short cut to higher blood pressure and the improved performance that comes with it.
In medical terms it’s defined as the deliberate induction of a dangerous condition common to quadriplegics called autonomic dysreflexia (AD). Many everyday activities that cause discomfort, even something as trivial as sunburn, can set off the condition naturally.
A scientist who will be monitoring athletes at the Paralympic Games says a third of competitors with spinal injuries may be harming themselves to boost their performance
Brad Zdanivsky turned to boosting when his spine was crushed in a car accident in 1994, because he didn’t want the injury to curb his passion for mountain climbing.
“I tried several different ways of doing it. You can allow your bladder to fill, basically don’t go to the bathroom for a few hours and let that pain from your bladder do it.
“Some people do that in sports by clipping off a catheter to let the bladder fill – that’s the easiest and the most common – and you can quickly get rid of that pain stimulus by letting the urine drain out.
“I took it a notch further by using an electrical stimulus on my leg, my toe and even my testicles.”
But boosting comes at a price.
“You are getting a blood pressure spike that could quite easily blow a vessel behind your eye or cause a stroke in your brain,” says Brad Zdanivsky
“It can actually stop your heart. It’s very unpleasant, but the results are hard to deny. The saying is that winners always want the ball, so it doesn’t matter if it’s unpleasant, it gets results.”
The IPC has been aware of the problem for many years. Boosting has been banned since 1994.
But remarkably little scientific research has been done to assess how many athletes are willing to take these extreme measures to improve their performance.
A survey carried out by the IPC during the Beijing Paralympics indicated that around 17% of those who responded had used boosting. Some experts believe the real figure could be higher.
Could it be as high as 30%?
Dr. Andrei Krassioukov, an associate professor at the University of British Columbia and an experienced researcher into spinal injuries replied: “Correct. It is possible.”
“I will tell you right now as a physician people want to feel better, first of all – they feel better with their blood pressure higher. But a second thing driving it is the desire to win, to have a fair playing field with other paralympic athletes who have higher blood pressure.”
While many athletes with spinal injuries will suffer from low blood pressure, there is considerable variation from one individual to the next.
“There is still a disadvantage between paralympians who have normal blood pressure and those who don’t and this puts a significant number of athletes at a disadvantage,” Dr. Andrei Krassioukov says.
“As a physician I totally understand why these Olympians are doing this, but as a scientist I am horrified with these events.”
He believes that changes to the system of classification would help – for example by changing the points system that aims to ensure that teams with a roughly equal level of overall disability compete against one another in wheelchair rugby and basketball.
Currently, the system takes no account of blood pressure and heart rate.
IPC Chief Medical Officer Peter Van de Vliet says he has no data that would support or disprove Andrei Krassioukov’s estimate that up to 30% of paralympians with spinal injuries engage in boosting.
It’s an unacceptable practice, he says, and the IPC has no sympathy with the idea that it levels the field of play.
The IPC has no plans to add physiological characteristics into their classification systems, he adds.
“Paralympic qualification for athletes with physical impairment is on the basis of a neuro-muscular-skeletal impairment rather than a physiological one,” he says.
During the Beijing games, the IPC carried out about 20 blood pressure checks on athletes before events. They didn’t find any clear evidence of people boosting.
The IPC says it will continue to monitor athletes closely before events at the London games.
Anyone they suspect is boosting – symptoms include sweating, skin blotchiness and goose bumps – will be subjected to blood pressure checks.
If athletes are found to have a systolic blood pressure of 180 mm of mercury or above, they will not be allowed to compete in “the particular competition in question”. But they will not receive a long-term ban.
Brad Zdanivsky argues that checks like this will not be effective in cutting out boosting. He says you would need to test an athlete’s blood pressure regularly over a sustained period to be able to know for sure whether any given reading was natural or “boosted”.
“There is no real solution, it is an ugly can of worms that no-one wants to open it and talk about,” says Brad Zdanivsky.
He believes that only a tragic event will bring the problem out into the open.
“What’s going to happen one day is that someone is going to have a stroke right on the court and then they are going to have to talk about it.”
Common boosting techniques
• Overfilling the bladder, by clamping a catheter
• Sitting on a drawing pin
• Use of tight leg straps
• Twisting and/or sitting on the scrotum
• Cracking or breaking a bone
IPC rules on boosting
• The IPC forbids athletes to compete in a hazardous dysreflexic state
• A hazardous dysreflexic state is considered to be present when the systolic blood pressure is 180 mm Hg or above
• An examination may be undertaken by physicians or paramedical staff… at any time
• Any deliberate attempt to induce Autonomic Dysreflexia is forbidden… the athlete will be disqualified from the particular competition
Mohammed Salmodin, a Nepali farmer who was bitten by a cobra in his rice paddy field, has killed the snake by repeatedly biting it in return.
“A snake charmer told me that if a snake bites you, bite it until it is dead and nothing will happen to you,” said Mohammed Salmodin.
He has now been discharged from hospital where he was being treated for the snake bite.
Officials say he will not be charged because the reptile was not endangered.
“When I realized that a snake had bit me, I went home to get a torch and saw that it was a cobra. So I bit it to death,” he said.
Mohammed Salmodin, a Nepali farmer who was bitten by a cobra in his rice paddy field, has killed the snake by repeatedly biting it in return
After he bit the snake to death, Mohammed Salmodin said that he went about his daily business as if nothing had happened. He says he finally agreed to go to hospital after pressure from family, neighbours and police.
The incident took place on Tuesday in a village 200 km (125 miles) south-east of Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu.
The snake he killed is reported to have been the common cobra. Nepal has a wide variety of snakes, many of which are venomous – such as the cobra.
Estimates suggest that there are 20,000 cases of snake bite in Nepal a year, most of them in the Terai southern plains, causing about 1,000 deaths, the AFP news agency reports.
Advice for victims of snake bite can vary, partly because different snakes have different types of venom.
How to react in case of snake bite:
• Remain calm
• Try to remember the snake’s shape, size and colour
• Keep the bitten part of your body as still as possible to prevent the venom spreading
• Remove any jewellery or watches from the bitten limb as it may swell
• Do not attempt to remove any clothing, such as trousers
• Seek immediate medical attention
Widely known treatments, such as the application of a tourniquet or trying to suck out the venom, are not recommended.
South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma has given details of the commission that will investigate the circumstances around the deaths of 44 people at Lonmin Marikana platinum mine.
The actions of mining company Lonmin, the government, police, unions, and individuals will all be examined.
Thousands of people, some crying uncontrollably, earlier attended a memorial service for the dead.
Thirty-four were shot dead by police during a strike over pay last week.
Previously 10 people, two of them police officers, had died in violent clashes.
Reports of worker action at two other platinum mines have added to industry fears that the unrest is spreading.
The price of platinum has jumped amid concerns about disruptions to supply.
South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma has given details of the commission that will investigate the circumstances around the deaths of 44 people at Lonmin Marikana platinum mine
The commission “has been directed to investigate matters of public, national and international concern rising out of the events in Marikana which led to the deaths of approximately 44 people, the injury of more than 70 persons and the arrest of more than 250 people,” Jacob Zuma said in a televised statement.
He said the commission would have the power to enter premises, compel witnesses to appear and demand documents. Not only security issues but issues surrounding labor policies and working conditions would also come under its remit, he added.
Retired appeals court judge Ian Farlam will head the three-person commission, along with two other senior advocates who are also former judges, reported Agence France-Presse.
The commission should complete its work within four months, Jacob Zuma said, and submit a final report a month afterwards.
Rob Davies, South Africa’s trade and industry minister, said the actions of the police would be investigated with “considerable depth”.
“The inquiry will have to establish the chain of responsibility, who did what wrong and hold anybody who did wrong to account. I think that is a correct process in a democratic society – that if actions are taken against people they have to be on the basis of evidence,” said Rob Davies.
The deadly clashes have thrown South Africa into a frenzy of outrage and grief, say correspondents.
Many relatives have asked how the police – faced with strikers wielding machetes and clubs – could have killed so many in response.
There has been a strong police presence around the mine since the dispute erupted but they were noticeably absent for Thursday’s memorial service, correspondents said, probably due to fears that violence could erupt.
But speaker after speaker also turned their ire on the government, they said, amid a perception that some politicians have been trying to make political capital out of the affair – and a suspicion among some that government has been complicit in the killings.
Church leaders from a range of denominations, politicians and thousands of mourners attended the emotional, hymn-filled service. Hundreds crammed inside the memorial marquee and hundreds more outside.
At one point the service was disrupted by green-clad members of the militant Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union (AMCU), who walked to the front of the marquee brandishing sticks and machetes, but the service soon resumed.
With his government under fire for allegedly putting corporate interests above worker rights, Jacob Zuma has expressed sympathy with some of the grievances expressed by the Marikana miners.
He has argued the mining sector can afford to increase wages and threatened companies that fail to raise workers’ housing standards with the cancellation of their mining licences.
Visiting the mine on Wednesday, Jacob Zuma told workers he “felt their pain” and promised a speedy and thorough investigation of the shootings.
But fears expressed by analysts and industry executives that unrest could spread to other parts of the mining sector were given weight with reports of worker action at two other platinum mines.
The world’s top platinum producer, Anglo American Platinum, said it had received a broad list of demands from its South African workers.
Meanwhile, some 500 workers at a shaft in the nearby Royal Bafokeng Platinum Mine downed tools on Wednesday, demanding a pay increase and reportedly blocking fellow miners from going to work.
Religious leaders have brokered talks between the Lonmin management and workers in an attempt to break the deadlock in the dispute over pay.
No unions were involved because “they already failed us”, said Zolisa Bodlain, one of five workers who met managers – but the workers vow that they will not back down even without the unions’ help.
Part of the background to this complex dispute is the rivalry between two unions – the long-established National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) and the newly-formed AMCU, which is more militant.
Both will come under scrutiny under the terms of the commission of inquiry set out by the president.
