Tunisia frees man held over attack on U.S. consulate in Libya


Tunis (Reuters) - Tunisia has freed, for lack of evidence, a Tunisian man who had been suspected of involvement in an Islamist militant attack in Libya last year in which the U.S. ambassador was killed, his lawyer said on Tuesday.


Ali Harzi was one of two Tunisians named in October by the Daily Beast website as having been detained in Turkey over the violence in which Christopher Stevens, the U.S. ambassador to Libya, and three other American officials were killed.


"The judge decided to free Harzi and he is free now," lawyer Anouar Awled Ali told Reuters. "The release came in response to our request to free him for lack of evidence and after he underwent the hearing with American investigators as a witness in the case."


A Tunisian justice ministry spokesman confirmed the release of Harzi but declined to elaborate.


A month ago, Harzi refused to be interviewed by visiting U.S. FBI investigators over the September 11 assault on the U.S. consulate in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi.


The Daily Beast reported that shortly after the attacks began, Harzi posted an update on an unspecified social media site about the fighting.


It said Harzi was on his way to Syria when he was detained in Turkey at the behest of U.S. authorities, and that he was affiliated with a militant group in North Africa.


(Reporting by Tarek Amara; Editing by Mark Heinrich)



Read More..

Conn. lawmaker apologizes over Facebook post






HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A Connecticut lawmaker has apologized after saying in a Facebook post that shooting victim and former Arizona U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords should “stay out of my towns.”


Giffords last week visited Newtown, Conn., where a gunman killed 20 young children and six adults at an elementary school last month. The Democrat, who met with families of the victims, was critically wounded two years ago in a deadly mass shooting in Tucson, Ariz.






The Hartford Courant posted images Sunday showing Republican state Rep. DebraLee Hovey‘s Facebook comments. In one dated Friday she says, “Gabby Giffords stay out of my towns!!”


Hovey released a statement Monday saying her comments were insensitive and that she apologizes if she offended anyone.


Hovey had said in another post that the visit was political.


Social Media News Headlines – Yahoo! News





Title Post: Conn. lawmaker apologizes over Facebook post
Url Post: http://www.news.fluser.com/conn-lawmaker-apologizes-over-facebook-post/
Link To Post : Conn. lawmaker apologizes over Facebook post
Rating:
100%

based on 99998 ratings.
5 user reviews.
Author: Fluser SeoLink
Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment




Read More..

Jessica Alba: Cash Warren and I Are 'Kindred Spirits'

Jack Osbourne Respectfully Declines More Baby Gifts
Courtesy InStyle


Love may not have struck at first sight for Jessica Alba and Cash Warren, but the pair’s instant connection was enough to last a lifetime.


“I just knew when I met him that I was going to know him forever. It was weird; He instantly felt like family,” the actress, 31, says in InStyle‘s February issue.


“I’d never felt like that with anyone. We got each other. We’re kindred spirits.”


Following their “very, very, very short” run as friends, the couple began dating and eventually tied the knot in 2008 before welcoming daughters Honor Marie, 4½, and Haven Garner, 16 months.

The spark between the sweethearts is still going strong, although Alba admits their idea of romance has certainly undergone changes over the years.


“On a weekend Cash might say, ‘Go get your nails done with a girlfriend. Haven is down for a nap and Honor and I will play. I know you work hard. You deserve some time for yourself,’” she says.


“That, to me, is romantic. He’s saying, ‘You matter,’ and that I’m more than just the mother of the kids or the wife who goes out to events with him.”


Blending their ethnically diverse backgrounds under one roof, the parents have made their home a true family affair, highlighting — and celebrating! — their ancestral roots.


“When Cash and I moved into our family house, we collected hundreds of pictures of our aunties, great aunties, moms and dads, grandmas and grandpas, and sisters and brothers,” Alba shares. “Then we mounted them in the foyer of our home, covering the wall from top to bottom. Our daughters are continually reminded of where they come from.”


Life’s not all play for the mom-of-two; In addition to her acting career and taking care of her girls, the multi-talented mama is also the mastermind behind The Honest Company, her eco-friendly line of home goods she cofounded with Christopher Gavigan.


With such a full plate to balance, the actress has been known to take on a bit more than she can handle.


“Sometimes I can take multitasking to a level of insanity,” Alba explains. “Then all of a sudden the bath is too high and I’ve forgotten to give my daughter the thing she needs for school.”


Fortunately, her family of four has taught Alba how to worry less about the mess-making and more about making the memories.


“Before I had kids, I was very responsible and serious. I used to be all about controlling my environment; Everything had to be just so,” she says. ”Now my idea of perfection is different. You can label bins and have a place for stuff, but when the kids go into the playroom, you’re not going to say, ‘We can’t paint because how are we going to clean it up?’”


– Anya Leon


Read More..

Report: Death rates from cancer still inching down


WASHINGTON (AP) — Death rates from cancer are continuing to inch down, researchers reported Monday.


Now the question is how to hold onto those gains, and do even better, even as the population gets older and fatter, both risks for developing cancer.


"There has been clear progress," said Dr. Otis Brawley of the American Cancer Society, which compiled the annual cancer report with government and cancer advocacy groups.


But bad diets, lack of physical activity and obesity together wield "incredible forces against this decline in mortality," Brawley said. He warned that over the next decade, that trio could surpass tobacco as the leading cause of cancer in the U.S.


Overall, deaths from cancer began slowly dropping in the 1990s, and Monday's report shows the trend holding. Among men, cancer death rates dropped by 1.8 percent a year between 2000 and 2009, and by 1.4 percent a year among women. The drops are thanks mostly to gains against some of the leading types — lung, colorectal, breast and prostate cancers — because of treatment advances and better screening.


The news isn't all good. Deaths still are rising for certain cancer types including liver, pancreatic and, among men, melanoma, the most serious kind of skin cancer.


Preventing cancer is better than treating it, but when it comes to new cases of cancer, the picture is more complicated.


Cancer incidence is dropping slightly among men, by just over half a percent a year, said the report published by the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Prostate, lung and colorectal cancers all saw declines.


But for women, earlier drops have leveled off, the report found. That may be due in part to breast cancer. There were decreases in new breast cancer cases about a decade ago, as many women quit using hormone therapy after menopause. Since then, overall breast cancer incidence has plateaued, and rates have increased among black women.


Another problem area: Oral and anal cancers caused by HPV, the sexually transmitted human papillomavirus, are on the rise among both genders. HPV is better known for causing cervical cancer, and a protective vaccine is available. Government figures show just 32 percent of teen girls have received all three doses, fewer than in Canada, Britain and Australia. The vaccine was recommended for U.S. boys about a year ago.


Among children, overall cancer death rates are dropping by 1.8 percent a year, but incidence is continuing to increase by just over half a percent a year. Brawley said it's not clear why.


Read More..

Stock futures flat as earnings season begins


NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stock index futures were little changed in low volume on Tuesday before the unofficial start of the earnings season, which is expected to show sluggish corporate growth.


Profits in the fourth quarter were expected to top the previous quarter's lackluster results, but analysts' current estimates are down sharply from where they were in October. Quarterly earnings are expected to grow by 2.8 percent, according to Thomson Reuters data.


German data showed industrial orders fell more than forecast in November due to a sharp drop in demand from abroad, reinforcing concerns that Europe's largest economy may have contracted in the fourth quarter of 2012.


"I'm surprised futures are holding up, given the relative disappointment that German data showed, but I think all eyes are on the beginning of earnings season," said Kim Forrest, senior equity research analyst at Fort Pitt Capital Group in Pittsburgh.


Monsanto Co , Apollo Group and Dow component Alcoa Inc start the quarterly season.


Monsanto shares rose 3.2 percent to $99 after announcing first-quarter results and the company's outlook.


"Alcoa is not a huge bellwether," Forrest said. Investors are now focused more on companies' performance than on macroeconomic factors, so "we should be kind of flat until we get some company-oriented news," she said.


S&P 500 futures were off 0.8 point and slightly below fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures were unchanged, and Nasdaq 100 futures fell half a point.


Shares of Yum Brands Inc fell 5 percent to $64.50 in premarket trading a day after the KFC parent warned sales in China shrank more than expected in the fourth quarter.


Sears Holdings shares rose 5.5 percent to $45.27 in light premarket trading a day after the company said its chief executive will step down for family health reasons. The U.S. retailer also reported a 1.8 percent decline in quarter-to-date sales at stores open at least a year.


ConAgra Foods Inc priced a public offering of 8.1 million common shares at $29.75 per share, the foodmaker said on Monday. ConAgra closed at $30.17 during regular Monday trading.


(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe and Kenneth Barry)



Read More..

Five accused of rape in India appear in court for charges


NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Five men accused of the rape and murder of an Indian student appeared in court on Monday to hear charges against them after two of them offered evidence possibly in return for a lighter sentence in the case that has provoked widespread anger.


The five men, along with a teenager, are accused of raping the 23-year-old physiotherapy student after she boarded their bus on the way home from a movie in New Delhi on December 16. She died two weeks later in a Singapore hospital.


The attack on the student has ignited protests against the government and anger towards the police for their perceived failure to protect women. It has also provoked a rare national debate about rising violence against women.


A police guard said the men had their faces covered when they entered the courtroom, which had been closed to the public minutes earlier.


The five had already been charged with murder, rape and abduction along with other offences and the magistrate gave them copies of the charges, a prosecutor in the case told Reuters.


The court has yet to assign them defense lawyers or legal aid, said public prosecutor Rajiv Mohan. Most lawyers are unwilling to defend them because of the brutality of the crime.


Reuters video images showed the men stepping out of a blue police van that brought them from Tihar jail, and walking through a metal detector into the South Delhi court, across the street from the cinema where the victim watched a film before boarding the bus with a male friend on December 16.


Following shouting and angry scenes in the packed court, the magistrate, Namrita Aggarwal, closed the hearing to the media and the public. The court was cleared and police were posted at its doors before the accused were brought in.


"Keeping in view the sensitivity of this case that has risen, the proceedings including the inquiry and trial are to be held in camera," Aggarwal said, before ordering people not connected with the case out of the courtroom.


Aggarwal said the next hearing would be on January 10. She did not say when the case would go to trial in a separate, fast-track court, set up after the attack on the woman.


Two of the accused, Vinay Sharma and Pawan Gupta, moved an application on Saturday requesting they be made "approvers", or informers, against the other accused, Mukesh Kumar, Ram Singh and Akshay Thakura, prosecutor Mohan said.


Mohan said he was seeking the death sentence given the "heinous" crime.


"The five accused persons deserve not less than the death penalty," he said, echoing public sentiment and calls from the victim's family.


Most members of the bar association in Saket district, where the case is being heard, have vowed not to represent the accused.


GROUNDS FOR APPEAL?


But on Monday, lawyers Manohar Lal Sharma and V. K. Anand stood up to offer representation to the men. They were heckled by other lawyers who said the accused did not deserve representation.


"We are living in a modern society. We all are educated. Every accused, including those in brutal offences like this, has the legal right to represent his or her case to defend themselves," Lal Sharma said.


The court asked Anand to get the approval of the accused to represent them. If the men, most of them from a slum neighborhood, cannot arrange their own lawyers, the court will offer them legal aid before the trial begins.


Police have conducted extensive interrogations and say they have recorded confessions, even though the five have no lawyers.


Legal experts say their lack of representation could give grounds for appeal should they be found guilty. Similar cases have resulted in acquittals years after convictions.


Last week, chief justice Altamas Kabir inaugurated six fast-track courts to help reduce a backlog of sex crime cases in Delhi.


But some legal experts have warned that previous attempts to fast-track justice in India in some cases led to imperfect convictions that were later challenged.


The sixth member of the gang that lured the student and a male friend into the private bus is under 18 and will be tried in a separate juvenile court.


The government is aiming to lower the age teenagers can be tried as an adult, given widespread public anger that the boy will face a maximum three-year sentence.


The victim, who died on December 29 in hospital in Singapore, where she had been taken for treatment, was identified by a British newspaper on the weekend but Reuters has opted not to name her.


Indian law generally prohibits the identification of victims of sex crimes. The law is intended to protect victims' privacy and keep them from the media glare in a country where the social stigma associated with rape can be devastating.


But her father repeated on Monday his wish that she be identified and said he would be happy to release a photograph of her.


"We don't want to hide her identity, there is no reason for that. The only condition is it should not be misused," he told Reuters.


He said he was confident the trial would be quick and reiterated a call that those responsible be hanged.


(Writing by Frank Jack Daniel; Editing by Robert Birsel)



Read More..

Alcatel One Touch readies U.S. invasion with world’s thinnest smartphone and a colorful 5-inch phablet






TCL Communication’s (2618) Alcatel One Touch brand is ostensibly unknown in the United States, but the company is looking to make a name for itself at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show. Alcatel One Touch has a number of new devices debuting at CES 2013 and to start things off, the China-based firm has unveiled a trio of intriguing new Android phones.


[More from BGR: ‘iPhone 5S’ to reportedly launch by June with multiple color options and two different display sizes]






While the show doesn’t officially begin until Tuesday, Alcatel One Touch got an early start on Monday — likely in order to ensure that it can lay claim to “the world’s thinnest smartphone” for at least a few hours.


[More from BGR: Next-generation LTE chips to reduce power consumption by 50%]


The first of three smartphones debuting at CES 2013 is the One Touch Idol Ultra, a sleek Android-powered handset that is just 6.45 millimeters thick. To put that dimension in perspective, the phone is 15% thinner than Apple’s (AAPL) iPhone 5.


Other notable specs include a 4.7-inch HD AMOLED display, a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, an 8-megapixel camera, 1GB of RAM and Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.


Next up is the One Touch Idol, an entry-level version of the Idol Ultra. Measuring a slightly thicker 8.15 millimeters, the One Touch Idol includes a 4.7-inch qHD IPS display, a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, an 8-megapixel camera, 512MB of RAM and the same Jelly Bean OS as the Ultra model.


Finally, Alcatel One Touch has unveiled its first entry into the “phablet” market with the One Touch Scribe HD. This stylus-ready device features a 5-inch HD IPS display, the 1.2GHz quad-core MediaTek MT6589 chipset, an 8-megapixel camera, 1GB of RAM, a microSD slot and Android 4.1. The One Touch Scribe HD also comes in a variety of colors including black, white, red and yellow.


Each of the three smartphones Alcatel One Touch debuted on Monday will launch in China later this month. The One Touch Scribe HD will then be released in the U.S. some time in the second quarter for a surprisingly affordable $ 397 before taxes and subsidies, and both the One Touch Idol and One Touch Idol Ultra will launch at a later point in time. The latter will cost $ 444 before taxes and subsidies, while pricing for the One Touch Idol has not yet been announced.


No carrier partners have been revealed at this point in the U.S. or in China.


This article was originally published by BGR


Wireless News Headlines – Yahoo! News




Read More..

Heidi Klum: It's Good to Be Experimental in Bed















01/07/2013 at 09:00 AM EST



Heidi Klum believes in letting out her wild side in between the sheets.

"It's good to make an effort to dress up sometimes – to do things outside of the norm," the fashion mogul, who is currently courting bodyguard Martin Kirsten, tells Marie Claire in its February issue.

"Some people are more experimental in bed and others are more boring. If you are wild and crazy, bring it on so the other person is well aware that you have little devil horns that come out every once in a while."

Klum, 39, who filed for divorce from Seal last April, doesn't understand why people call her split "devastating."

"Did I wish for this to happen to my family? No," she says. "But everyone is healthy. We're moving on with our lives. If someone got [very sick] – god forbid – that would be a real problem. It's not what I wanted. It's not what anyone wanted. Butit's not a real problem."

Although Klum does not seem scarred by her split, she doesn't intend to say, "I do" again.

“I don't think [I'll get married again], no, no," she says. "I wanted to keep the memory of [mine and Seal's] wedding alive every year. That's why I thought it would be fun to get married over and over. But now I don't think it's that important. I'm not angry about anything, but I don’t think I will. Maybe if I'm with someone for 15 or 20 years, and we do it in our old age as a fun thing to do. … But I don't have the urgency anymore."

Heidi Klum: It's Good to Be Experimental in Bed| Project Runway, Heidi Klum

Heidi Klum

Courtesy of Marie Claire

Another thing the mother of four knows she doesn't want is to become a cougar.

"I can understand why a woman finds a young man attractive, because the truth is that when men get older, their shape changes," Klum says.

"Younger men train more, and when the clothes come off, it is nice to look at a sexy, ripped body. But I am realistic. I'm turning 40 next year. I don't think I could deal with waking up next to a 25-year-old."

Read More..

Your medical chart could include exercise minutes


CHICAGO (AP) — Roll up a sleeve for the blood pressure cuff. Stick out a wrist for the pulse-taking. Lift your tongue for the thermometer. Report how many minutes you are active or getting exercise.


Wait, what?


If the last item isn't part of the usual drill at your doctor's office, a movement is afoot to change that. One recent national survey indicated only a third of Americans said their doctors asked about or prescribed physical activity.


Kaiser Permanente, one of the nation's largest nonprofit health insurance plans, made a big push a few years ago to get its southern California doctors to ask patients about exercise. Since then, Kaiser has expanded the program across California and to several other states. Now almost 9 million patients are asked at every visit, and some other medical systems are doing it, too.


Here's how it works: During any routine check of vital signs, a nurse or medical assistant asks how many days a week the patient exercises and for how long. The number of minutes per week is posted along with other vitals at the top the medical chart. So it's among the first things the doctor sees.


"All we ask our physicians to do is to make a comment on it, like, 'Hey, good job,' or 'I noticed today that your blood pressure is too high and you're not doing any exercise. There's a connection there. We really need to start you walking 30 minutes a day,'" said Dr. Robert Sallis, a Kaiser family doctor. He hatched the vital sign idea as part of a larger initiative by doctors groups.


He said Kaiser doctors generally prescribe exercise first, instead of medication, and for many patients who follow through that's often all it takes.


It's a challenge to make progress. A study looking at the first year of Kaiser's effort showed more than a third of patients said they never exercise.


Sallis said some patients may not be aware that research shows physical inactivity is riskier than high blood pressure, obesity and other health risks people know they should avoid. As recently as November a government-led study concluded that people who routinely exercise live longer than others, even if they're overweight.


Zendi Solano, who works for Kaiser as a research assistant in Pasadena, Calif., says she always knew exercise was a good thing. But until about a year ago, when her Kaiser doctor started routinely measuring it, she "really didn't take it seriously."


She was obese, and in a family of diabetics, had elevated blood sugar. She sometimes did push-ups and other strength training but not anything very sustained or strenuous.


Solano, 34, decided to take up running and after a couple of months she was doing three miles. Then she began training for a half marathon — and ran that 13-mile race in May in less than three hours. She formed a running club with co-workers and now runs several miles a week. She also started eating smaller portions and buying more fruits and vegetables.


She is still overweight but has lost 30 pounds and her blood sugar is normal.


Her doctor praised the improvement at her last physical in June and Solano says the routine exercise checks are "a great reminder."


Kaiser began the program about three years ago after 2008 government guidelines recommended at least 2 1/2 hours of moderately vigorous exercise each week. That includes brisk walking, cycling, lawn-mowing — anything that gets you breathing a little harder than normal for at least 10 minutes at a time.


A recently published study of nearly 2 million people in Kaiser's southern California network found that less than a third met physical activity guidelines during the program's first year ending in March 2011. That's worse than results from national studies. But promoters of the vital signs effort think Kaiser's numbers are more realistic because people are more likely to tell their own doctors the truth.


Dr. Elizabeth Joy of Salt Lake City has created a nearly identical program and she expects 300 physicians in her Intermountain Healthcare network to be involved early this year.


"There are some real opportunities there to kind of shift patients' expectations about the value of physical activity on health," Joy said.


NorthShore University HealthSystem in Chicago's northern suburbs plans to start an exercise vital sign program this month, eventually involving about 200 primary care doctors.


Dr. Carrie Jaworski, a NorthShore family and sports medicine specialist, already asks patients about exercise. She said some of her diabetic patients have been able to cut back on their medicines after getting active.


Dr. William Dietz, an obesity expert who retired last year from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said measuring a patient's exercise regardless of method is essential, but that "naming it as a vital sign kind of elevates it."


Figuring out how to get people to be more active is the important next step, he said, and could have a big effect in reducing medical costs.


___


Online:


Exercise: http://1.usa.gov/b6AkMa


___


AP Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/LindseyTanner


Read More..

Stock futures slip after five-year high, fourth-quarter earnings in focus


NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks were set to fall at the open on Monday as markets are seen consolidating after the S&P 500 closed Friday at a five-year high and before this week's start of earnings season.


Last week was the best for U.S. stocks in more than a year as a budget deal and economic data boosted investor confidence.


Investors will likely turn their attention to the fourth-quarter earnings season that kicks off this week. Earnings are expected to be only slightly better than the third-quarter's lackluster results and analysts' current estimates are down sharply from what they were in October.


"We have a cautious market entering fourth-quarter earnings season," said Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Rockwell Global Capital in New York. "I think it's going to be a disappointing one this time around."


Financial shares will be in focus a day after global regulators known as the Basel Committee gave banks four more years and greater flexibility to build up cash buffers, scaling back moves that aimed to help prevent another financial crisis.


By spurring credit, the easing of the bank rules may help support growth, potentially boosting investments in equities and other relatively risky assets.


"Basel giving banks four more years to get their act together will be good" for stocks, Cardillo said.


Separately, Bank of America shares added more than 2 percent before the market opened after it reached a settlement with Fannie Mae to resolve agency mortgage repurchase claims.


S&P 500 futures dipped 2.5 points and were below fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures fell 17 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures fell 4 points.


Walt Disney Co started an internal cost cutting review several weeks ago that may include layoffs at its studio and other units, three people with knowledge of the effort told Reuters.


Video-streaming service Netflix Inc said it will carry previous seasons of some popular shows produced by Time Warner's Warner Bros Television.


Major U.S. technology companies could miss estimates for fourth-quarter earnings as budget worries likely led some corporate clients to tighten their belts last month.


Amazon shares rose 1.8 percent $263.70 in premarket trading after Morgan Stanley raised its rating on the stock to "overweight" from "equal weight."


Roche's chairman was quoted saying the Swiss pharmaceutical group is no longer considering a bid for the U.S. gene-sequencing company Illumina . Illumina shares were off 8 percent at $50.20 in premarket trading.


(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Editing by Kenneth Barry)



Read More..