Canon earnings outlook falters, president steps down (Reuters)

TOKYO (Reuters) ? Canon Inc's 76-year-old chairman and CEO will take on the additional role of president after the $60 billion Japanese camera and printer maker forecast weak earnings growth and said its current president was stepping down.

Like other export-focused Japanese manufacturers, Canon, which makes 80 percent of its revenue overseas, has been hit by a strong yen and a weak economy, on top of last year's floods in Thailand that closed a printer plant and ruptured supply lines.

Canon said Tuneji Uchida, 70, will resign as of March 29, and be replaced by Fujio Mitarai, who served as president from 1995-2006 and has since held the post of chairman.

"Mitarai was at the centre of management, so I don't think there will be any sudden changes," said Naoki Fujiwara, a fund manager at Shinkin Asset Management, which manages about 500 billion yen ($6.5 billion) in assets.

"They do need to hand over to the next generation at some stage, so we're interested to see when that will happen."

Canon forecast 2012 operating profit of 390 billion yen ($5.1 billion), up from last year's 378.1 billion yen, but some way below the average forecast of 470 billion yen from 20 analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Profit in 2010 was 387.5 billion yen.

Chief Financial Officer Toshizo Tanaka told reporters on Monday the company would work towards handing over to the next generation over the next three years. For now, given the uncertain economy, choosing a company veteran to replace Uchida, who had asked to step down, was the best option, he said.

Mitarai stepped down as president when he was appointed head of Japan's biggest business lobby, Nippon Keidanren, but he continued to play an active role and was named among the world's 30 best CEOs by Barron's magazine every year between 2008 and 2011.

A nephew of Takeshi Mitarai, among the first executives to head the company, Mitarai joined in 1961 after graduating from law school.

CAUTIOUS OUTLOOK

Canon posted a 14 percent increase in fourth-quarter operating profit, to 94.6 billion yen, in line with consensus estimates, after a fresh round of cost-cutting.

"They're forecasting a rise in 2012 earnings, but given the impact of exchange rates, they're taking a harsh outlook on profits," said Mizuho Research Institute senior economist Koji Takeuchi. "It's not negative overall, but Canon's indication of a cautious view will not be lost on the market."

Canon, which made its first camera in 1933 and now has its IXUS and PowerShot cameras competing against Nikon and Sony Corp, aims to sell 22 million compact cameras and 9.2 million interchangeable lens cameras this year, up from 18.7 million and 7.2 million, respectively, last year.

Nikon said in November it expected to sell 16 million compact cameras in the year to end-March, and 4.7 million digital SLR cameras.

Canon also competes with Xerox in printers.

Xerox lowered its 2012 outlook this month, predicting its business would feel the impact from the European debt crisis.

Canon shares have fallen about 18 percent since the start of last year, slightly underperforming the benchmark Nikkei average's 14 percent decline. The stock closed down 1 percent at 3,435 yen on Monday ahead of the earnings.

($1 = 76.67 yen)

(Reporting by Isabel Reynolds and Takeshi Yoshiike; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman, Edwina Gibbs and Ian Geoghegan)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/earnings/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120130/bs_nm/us_canon_results

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Fla. highway open after chain crashes kill 10 (AP)

GAINESVILLE, Fla. ? Fog and brushfire smoke cleared enough Monday to reopen all lanes of a Florida interstate where 10 people died in a mass pileup that tossed wreckage across the asphalt and left rescuers to search for survivors in the dark by listening for their screams.

Another 18 people were hospitalized after a long line of cars and trucks collided early Sunday on a stretch of Interstate 75 south of Gainesville.

Steven R. Camps and some friends were driving home hours before dawn Sunday when they were drawn into the massive wreck.

"You could hear cars hitting each other. People were crying. People were screaming. It was crazy," the Gainesville man said hours later. "If I could give you an idea of what it looked like, I would say it looked like the end of the world."

The interstate had been closed for a time before the accidents because of a mixture of fog and heavy smoke from a brush fire that may have been intentionally set. The decision to reopen it early Sunday will certainly be a focus of investigators, as will the question of how the fire may have started.

The National Transportation Safety Board is among the agencies that have sent investigators to the scene. The NTSB said it is assessing whether it wants to formally join the probe, which is being led by the Florida Highway Patrol.

The pileups happened around 3:45 a.m. Sunday on both sides of I-75. When rescuers first arrived, they could only listen for screams and moans because the poor visibility made it difficult to find victims in wreckage that was strewn for nearly a mile.

At least a dozen cars and six tractor-trailers were involved, and some burst into flames.

Hours later, twisted, burned-out vehicles were scattered across the pavement, with smoke still rising from the wreckage. Cars appeared to have smashed into the big rigs and, in one case, a motor home. Some cars were crushed beneath the heavier trucks.

Reporters who were allowed to view the site saw bodies still inside a burned-out Grand Prix. One tractor-trailer was burned down to its skeleton, charred pages of books and magazines in its cargo area. And the tires of every vehicle had burned away, leaving only steel belts.

Before Camps hit the fog bank, a friend who was driving ahead of him in a separate vehicle called to warn of the road conditions. The friend said he had just seen an accident and urged Camps to be careful as he approached the Paynes Prairie area, just south of Gainesville.

A short time later, Camps said, traffic stopped along the northbound lanes.

"You couldn't see anything. People were pulling off the road," he said.

Camps said he began talking about the road conditions to a man in the car stopped next to him when another vehicle hit that man's car.

The man's vehicle was crushed under a semi-truck stopped in front of them. Camps said his car was hit twice, but he and another friend were able to jump out. They took cover in the grass on the shoulder of the road.

All around them, cars and trucks were on fire, and they could hear explosions as the vehicles burned.

"It was happening on both sides of the road, so there was nowhere to go. It blew my mind," he said, explaining that the scene "looked like someone was picking up cars and throwing them."

Authorities had not released the names of victims Sunday evening, but said one passenger car had four fatalities. A "tour bus-like" vehicle also was involved in the pileup, police said.

All six lanes of the interstate were closed most of Sunday as investigators surveyed the site and firefighters put out the last of the flames. Some traffic was being diverted onto U.S. 301 and State Road 27, said Lt. Patrick Riordan, a Florida Highway Patrol spokesman. The northbound lanes were reopened at about 5:30 p.m.

At some point before the pileup, police briefly closed the highway because of fog and smoke. The road was reopened when visibility improved, police said. Riordan said he was not sure how much time passed between the reopening of the highway and the first crash.

On Monday, FHP released an accident report showing there was three-way crash at 11:55 p.m. Saturday, involving a tractor-trailer and two SUVs. One person was seriously injured in the crash. Trooper M.J. Todd noted in his report that "there was heavy smoke in the area, causing low visibility." The highway was closed to traffic a short time later.

A spokeswoman for the Florida Forest Service, Ludie Bond, said the fire began Saturday, and investigators were trying to determine whether the blaze had been intentionally set. She said there were no controlled burns in the area and no lightning.

Bond also said the fire had burned 62 acres and was contained but still burning Sunday. A similar fire nearby has been burning since mid-November because the dried vegetation is so thick and deep. No homes are threatened.

Four years ago, heavy fog and smoke were blamed for another serious crash.

In January 2008, four people were killed and 38 injured in a series of similar crashes on Interstate 4 between Orlando and Tampa, about 125 miles south of Sunday's crash. More than 70 vehicles were involved in those crashes, including one pileup that involved 40 vehicles.

___

Associated Press writer Freida Frisaro in Miami contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120130/ap_on_re_us/us_deadly_interstate_crash

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Jordan's king receives Hamas leader (AP)

AMMAN, Jordan ? A senior Jordanian official says the country's king has received Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal, who is on his first official visit to the kingdom since his expulsion 13 years ago.

The official says talks with King Abdullah II opened in the presence of Qatar's crown prince, who mediated Mashaal's visit. He says the visit is meant to "break the ice" with the militant group banned in Jordan, Israel's closest Arab peace partner.

The official ? who spoke on condition of anonymity citing the visit's sensitivity ? said Sunday that Jordan will not allow Hamas to reopen offices in the kingdom.

Jordan is trying to engage with previously shunned Islamists, who have been gaining ground across the region amid the Arab Spring uprisings that toppled pro-Western dictators in Egypt and Tunisia.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120129/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_jordan_hamas

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Video: The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore (Little green footballs)

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At least 9 killed, 18 hurt?in Fla. highway pile-ups

GAINESVILLE, Fla.?? At least nine people died in crashes overnight apparently caused by fog and smoke from a wildfire along Interstate 75 in north Florida, authorities said Sunday.

A local hospital was treating 18 people for injuries. Their conditions were unclear.

At least four to five large commercial vehicles and 10 passenger vehicles were involved. Many were badly mangled.

"That's a very scary thing when you can't see anything and hear the squealing of tires and don't know if 2,000 pounds of metal is coming at you," The Gainesville Sun quoted Alachua County Sheriff's Sgt. Todd Kelly as saying.

"We just hit it, and you couldn't see anything," added Donna Henry, who was driving with friends when her car hit a guardrail and ended up sideways.

From the side of the road she heard more crashes. "Like 15 times somebody hit, from this side and that, north and south. It was bad."

In one crash, a pickup truck was left sitting atop a passenger car and both were up against the rear end of a FedEx tractor-trailer. All vehicles were burned out.

The pile-ups, on both north- and southbound lanes, happened around 3:45 a.m. Sunday on both sides of I-75 south of Gainesville.

All lanes of the interstate remained closed as investigators began their work examining the vehicles, many of them just burned shells.

The Florida Highway Patrol had closed the highway briefly earlier overnight because of a mixture of fog and smoke from a marsh fire in the Paynes Prairie area south of Gainesville.

The agency had several troopers driving along the stretch of I-75 to access the situation early Sunday.

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"When the visibility cleared, we reopened the road," said Florida Highway Patrol Lt. Patrick Riordan.

He said he was not sure how much time passed between the reopening of the highway and the first crash.

Riordan said this is the worst accident he's seen in his 27-year career with FHP.

Heavy fog and smoke were blamed for a deadly string of accidents four years ago. In January 2008, four people were killed and 38 injured similar crashes on Interstate 4 between Orlando and Tampa, about 125 miles south of Sunday's crash. More than 70 vehicles were involved in those crashes caused by fog and smoke, including one pile-up that involved 40 vehicles.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/46181122/ns/us_news-life/

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Heidi Klum's Marriage to Seal a "Private Hell"?

Hell is a strong word, but that's what Us chooses to describe Heidi Klum's marriage to Seal, which is coming to an end after nearly seven years of bliss together.

While reconciliation is still on the table, and the couple is still wearing their wedding rings, the tabloid tells a dramatically different story regarding the duo.

One focused on Seal's temper, apparently.

While jealousy over Heidi's career was reportedly a source of friction between the two, as well as the time they spent apart, "vicious fights" may be a stretch.

Clearly, things weren't perfect, otherwise they'd still be together, but that doesn't mean their split has to be this shocking, violent, combative affair, does it?

The couple says: "While we have enjoyed seven very loving, loyal and happy years of marriage, after much soul-searching we have decided to separate."

"This is an amicable process and while we have had the deepest respect for one another and continue to love each other very much, we have grown apart."

Could it be that's actually true? And that while it was certainly the most shocking celebrity divorce of the year, it isn't a contentious or scandalous battle?

Sure, but that doesn't sell magazines, right Us?

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2012/01/heidi-klums-marriage-to-seal-a-private-hell/

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Syria violence kills 37, U.N. Security Council to meet (Reuters)

AMMAN (Reuters) ? Security forces killed 37 people in Syria on Friday, activists and residents said, as people in Homs mourned 14 members of a family they said were slain by militiamen in one of the worst sectarian attacks in a revolt against President Bashar al-Assad.

The U.N. Security Council was to meet later in the day to discuss Syria before a possible vote next week on a new Western-Arab draft resolution aimed at halting 10 months of bloodshed.

Russia, which joined China in vetoing a previous Western draft resolution in October and which has since promoted its own draft, said the Western-Arab version was unacceptable and vowed to block any text calling for Assad's resignation.

There was no let-up in violence on Friday, when anti-Assad protests again erupted after weekly Muslim prayers.

Tank and mortar fire killed 15 people in Hama, a resident said, on the fourth day of an army assault on rebellious districts of the city, where Assad's father crushed an armed Islamist uprising in 1982, killing many thousands.

The opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported 22 people killed elsewhere in Syria, including 12 when security forces fired on a funeral march in the southern town of Nowa, five in the normally peaceful city of Aleppo, and four in Homs.

Machinegun fire wounded five people in the Qusour district of Homs, one activist there said, adding that the city was calmer than it was at the height of Thursday's violence, when 16 people were also killed by mortar fire from security forces.

The state news agency SANA said "terrorists" killed a security man in Homs on Friday and a bomb killed a child and wounded several civilians and security personnel in the Damascus district of Midan.

SANA also said a bomb wounded three civilians and three security men in the northeastern town of Albukamal and that a suicide bomber had wounded two security men at a checkpoint in the northwestern province of Idlib.

Arab League observers headed for the Damascus suburb of Douma, where government troops battled rebel fighters the previous day as the struggle to topple Assad rumbled close to the Syrian capital.

TRANSITION PLAN

The Arab League has demanded that the Syrian leader step down as part of a transition to democracy, a call rejected by Damascus. The government says it is fighting foreign-backed armed "terrorists" who have killed 2,000 soldiers and police.

"Any decision about a future political settlement in Syria must be made during the political process without ... preliminary conditions," Interfax news agency quoted Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov as saying.

He stopped short of saying Moscow would veto a Western-Arab draft if the call for Assad to hand over power was not removed.

The text calls for a "political transition," but not for United Nations sanctions against Assad's government, which Moscow, an old ally and arms supplier of Syria, opposes.

Russia and Iran are among Syria's few remaining allies.

In another sign of Assad's isolation, Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal has effectively abandoned his headquarters in Damascus, diplomatic and intelligence sources said.

"He's not going back to Syria," a regional intelligence source said of Meshaal, who has long been based in the Syrian capital. He heads the Palestinian Islamist group which rules Gaza and is an armed offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Analysts say Meshaal was embarrassed by Assad's crackdown, in which more than 5,000 people have been killed, many of them Sunni Muslim sympathisers of the Muslim Brotherhood.

Homs, a mostly Sunni city with minority Alawite enclaves, has become a battleground since protests against Assad began in March, inspired by pro-democracy revolts elsewhere in the Arab world. Armed rebels have joined the fray in recent months.

GRISLY FOOTAGE

Residents and activists said militiamen from Assad's Alawite sect had shot or hacked to death 14 members of the Sunni Bahader family in Homs's Karm al-Zaitoun district on Thursday, including eight children, aged eight months to nine years old.

YouTube video footage taken by activists, which could not be verified, showed the bodies of five children with wounds to the head and neck, three women and a man in a house.

There was no comment from Syrian authorities, which enforce tight restrictions on independent media.

At least 384 children have been killed since the uprising began in March and a similar number have been jailed, the U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) said on Friday.

The British-based Observatory said 43 civilians were killed on Thursday, including 33 in Homs, of whom nine were children.

Hamza, an activist in Homs, said the militiamen who attacked the Sunni family were avenging deaths inflicted on their ranks by army defectors loosely grouped in the rebel Free Syrian Army.

Tit-for-tat sectarian killings began in Homs four months ago. Assad's Alawite sect, an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam, has dominated the political and security apparatus in Syria, a mostly Sunni nation of 23 million, for five decades.

"The Assads are the dirtiest of families," shouted crowds in Deir Balba, on the edge of Homs, according to a YouTube clip that showed people waving pre-Baath party Syrian flags.

In the city's Bab Amro district, demonstrators carried the body of a youth who had been shot in the head. "Bashar, your mother will bury you," they chanted, YouTube footage showed.

It was not possible to verify the footage, which anti-Assad campaigners had posted on the Internet.

The opposition Local Coordination Committees said security forces had fired on an anti-Assad protest by refugees from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights who live in Thiabieh near Damascus. It said several protesters were wounded.

Activists in the Damascus suburb of Irbin said 15,000 people had turned out to demonstrate against Assad.

Several thousand also gathered in the rain in the ancient, eastern desert town of Palmyra, clapping to anti-Assad anthems. "Bashar, God is greater (than you)!" they sang.

(Additional reporting by Erika Solomon and Dominic Evans in Beirut, Steve Gutterman in Moscow, Stephanie Nebehay in Geneva, Nidal al-Mughrabi in Gaza and Louis Charbonneau at the United Nations; Writing by Alistair Lyon; Editing by Mark Heinrich)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120127/wl_nm/us_syria

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NM immigrant driver's license debate intensifies

In this Jan. 24, 2012 photo, immigrant advocates use an image of New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez on a mock state driver's license during a rally in Santa Fe to protest her proposal to repeal a state law that allows illegal immigrants to obtain driver's licenses.?An Associated Press investigation has found that found that a handful of addresses are being used over and over again by immigrants to get licenses in a pattern that suggests potential fraud.?(AP Photo/Russell Contreras)

In this Jan. 24, 2012 photo, immigrant advocates use an image of New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez on a mock state driver's license during a rally in Santa Fe to protest her proposal to repeal a state law that allows illegal immigrants to obtain driver's licenses.?An Associated Press investigation has found that found that a handful of addresses are being used over and over again by immigrants to get licenses in a pattern that suggests potential fraud.?(AP Photo/Russell Contreras)

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) ? Republican Gov. Susana Martinez's administration told lawmakers Thursday that New Mexico has become a magnet for illegal immigrants coming from other states to obtain a driver's license and officials urged repeal of the license law.

State law enforcement officials told a legislative committee that the New Mexico licensing law poses a security risk to the state and rest of the country.

"This has never been an immigration issue. It's not about immigration. It's simply about public safety and security," said Keith Gardner, the governor's chief of staff.

But church leaders and immigrant rights advocates disagreed, saying a driver's license is critical for immigrants living and working in New Mexico, many with U.S.-born children. The push to repeal New Mexico's law is stirring an anti-immigrant sentiment, they said.

"I think it is about immigration ... it is about divisiveness," said Santa Fe Mayor David Coss. "We should stop calling people in our community illegal aliens."

The House Labor and Human Resources Committee plans to vote later Thursday, and the governor's proposal faces strong opposition.

The panel's five Democrats, who account for a majority of the votes, opposed a similar bill last year that passed the House but failed later in the Senate.

The legislation will prohibit the state from granting licenses to illegal immigrants. However, it continues to allow licenses for foreign nationals in the country legally, such as students with visa.

New Mexico and Washington are the only states that allow illegal immigrants to obtain the same driver's license as a U.S. citizen. Utah grants immigrants a driving permit that can't be used for identification, unlike a driver's license that helps people open bank accounts and make financial transactions or board a commercial airliner.

Martinez contends that New Mexico's license system is subject to widespread fraud. The state has brought charges against several fraud rings, in which brokers were paid to supplement fraudulent documents for foreign nationals from Poland, China, Mexico and other countries.

A review of license data by The Associated Press found that dozens of addresses ? including some for businesses such as a smoke shop ? have been used over and over again by immigrants to get a driver's license. The pattern suggests people are abusing the state's licensing system.

"Only two states in the country offer a driver's license to illegal immigrants, and this has generated an industry of fraud, trafficking, and organized crime in New Mexico, as people from all throughout the world have come to our state for the purpose of fraudulently obtaining our government-issued ID and leaving the state ? to places, and for purposes, that are unknown," Scott Darnell, a spokesman for the governor, said before the hearing.

Supporters of the current policy contend the state doesn't need to repeal its law to deal with potential fraud and they say a driver's license is vital to the immigrant community living and working in New Mexico, some of whom have been here for years and have U.S.-born children.

"It is important the state is enforcing the law. When the law is enforced, the law works," said Allen Sanchez, executive director of the New Mexico Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The AP identified 170 addresses in New Mexico at which 10 or more licenses have been issued to different foreign nationals from 2003 through August 2011. Those account for 2,662 licenses ? representing nearly 3 percent of the total issued to foreign nationals during that period. The AP limited its analysis to addresses with a high number of licenses to try to get an indication of the extent of possible fraud. Large families or frequent tenant turnover at rental property are among the legitimate reasons why there are addresses with fewer than 10 licenses over a period of time.

Democrats who oppose the governor's proposal are pushing alternatives. The Senate approved a Democratic-backed measure last year that would have increased penalties on license fraud, required fingerprinting of immigrants seeking a license and canceled current licenses of foreign nationals that weren't renewed within two years ? allowing the state to verify whether a foreign national remained a New Mexico resident.

New Mexico changed its law in 2003 to grant driver's licenses to anyone without a Social Security number, which are unavailable to people living illegally in the country. More than 90,000 licenses have been issued to immigrants, and state officials speculate that most of those have gone to illegal immigrants. However, it's impossible to know for certain because license applicants aren't asked about their immigration status.

___

Follow Barry Massey on Twitter at http://twitter.com/bmasseyAP

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-01-26-Immigrant%20Licenses/id-8e04d89a34104ab3922b27b53bed1ce9

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NYPD commish's son, a Fox anchor, in rape probe

NEW YORK -- The son of New York City's police commissioner Raymond Kelly is under investigation after a woman accused him of rape, sources tell NBC New York.

A source confirms a woman filed a sexual assault complaint against Greg Kelly, co-host of Fox 5?s "Good Day New York," with authorities at the 13th Precinct.

Details of her complaint are unknown at this time, but?Greg Kelly has not been arrested or charged with any crime.

For more, visit NBCNewYork.com

Kelly's attorney, Andrew Lankler, said that his client was aware of the investigation and strongly denied any wrongdoing.

"Mr. Kelly is aware that the New York County District Attorney's office is conducting an investigation. Mr. Kelly strenuously denies any wrongdoing of any kind, and is cooperating fully with the district attorney's investigation," Lankler said in a statement. "We know the district attorney's investigation will prove Mr. Kelly's innocence."

The District Attorney's office declined comment. An NYPD spokesman also declined comment, referring all questions to the district attorney.

The New York Times, quoting an anonymous law enforcement official, said the woman is in her late 20s or early 30s. She walked into the 13th Precinct with her sister after 8 p.m. on Tuesday and made her complaint, according to the Times.

The woman told police she met Kelly on the street, and the two had drinks together on Oct. 8, the paper reported. They then moved on to her office at a Lower Manhattan law firm. According to the Times, the woman told the cops that the rape occurred at the office. The two continued to keep in touch by phone and text message after the encounter.

Sources tell NBC New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly was approached by an unknown individual at a public event who told him that his son had ?ruined my girlfriend?s life.?

The police commissioner asked him to explain, but the man said he didn?t want to discuss the issue there. Ray Kelly told him to put it in writing and send it to him.

It wasn't clear if the letter was ever sent.

Greg Kelly, 43, joined Fox News Channel in 2002 and was the White House correspondent from 2005-2007, according to his biography on WNYW's website. A Marine Corps veteran and reservist, he also covered the Iraq War, including four assignments in Baghdad. ??? ?

Before that, he covered politics for local cable news channel New York 1 and was an anchor and reporter for NewsChannel 34, an ABC and NBC affiliate in Binghamton, N.Y., his bio said. ??? ?

He also served for nearly a decade in the Marine Corps and is now a lieutenant colonel in its reserves.?

More content from msnbc.com and NBC News

Source: http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/26/10241910-nypd-commishs-son-a-fox-anchor-in-rape-probe

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School lunches to have more veggies, whole grains (AP)

ALEXANDRIA, Va. ? The first major nutritional overhaul of school meals in more than 15 years means most offerings, including popular pizza, will come with less sodium and more whole grains, with a wider selection of fruits and vegetables on the side, first lady Michelle Obama and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced during a visit Wednesday with elementary students.

Pizza won't disappear from lunch lines, but will be made with healthier ingredients.

Mrs. Obama, also joined by celebrity chef Rachael Ray, said youngsters will learn better if they don't have growling stomachs at school.

"We have a right to expect the food (our kids) get at school is the same kind of food we want to serve at our own kitchen tables," she said.

After the announcement, the three went through the line with students and ate turkey tacos with brown rice, black bean and corn salad and fruit ? all Ray's recipes ? with children in the Parklawn Elementary lunchroom.

The new rules aren't as aggressive as the Obama administration had hoped. Congress last year blocked the Agriculture Department from making some of the desired changes, including limiting french fries and pizzas.

A bill passed in November would require the department to allow tomato paste on pizzas to be counted as a vegetable, as it is now. The initial draft of the department's guidelines, released a year ago, would have prevented that. Congress also blocked the department from limiting servings of potatoes to two servings a week. The final rules have incorporated those directions from Congress.

Among those who had sought the changes were potato growers and food companies that produce frozen pizzas for schools. Conservatives in Congress called the guidelines an overreach and said the government shouldn't tell children what to eat. School districts also objected to some of the requirements, saying they go too far and would cost too much.

The new guidelines apply to lunches subsidized by the federal government. A child nutrition bill signed by President Barack Obama in 2010 will help school districts pay for some of the increased costs. Some of the changes will take place as soon as this September; others will be phased in over time.

The guidelines will limit the total number of calories in an individual meal and require that milk be low in fat. Flavored milks will have to be nonfat.

While many schools are improving meals already, others still serve children meals high in fat, salt and calories. The guidelines are designed to combat childhood obesity and are based on 2009 recommendations by the Institute of Medicine, the health arm of the National Academy of Sciences.

Vilsack said food companies are reformulating many of the foods they sell to schools in anticipation of the changes.

"The food industry is already responding," he said. "This is a movement that has started, it's gaining momentum."

The subsidized meals that would fall under the guidelines are served as free and low-cost meals to low-income children and long have been subject to government nutrition standards. The 2010 law will extend, for the first time, nutrition standards to other foods sold in schools that aren't subsidized by the federal government. That includes "a la carte" foods on the lunch line and snacks in vending machines.

Those standards, while expected to be similar, will be written separately and have not yet been proposed by the department.

___

Online:

Agriculture Department: http://tinyurl.com/7r2cj6b

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/education/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120125/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_healthier_school_lunches

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Apple's Packaging Is So Good Because It Employs a Dedicated Box Opener [Apple]

Anyone who's purchased anything from Apple in the last decade knows how beautiful an experience unboxing their products is. In fact, there's a small team at Apple who take the subject very, very seriously. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/zV4piXmvap0/apple-packing-is-so-good-because-they-employ-a-dedicated-box-opener

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Obama to 'hang out' in live video chat room (AP)

NEW YORK ? President Barack Obama plans to "hang out" in a video chat room to answer questions about his State of the Union address, part of a White House effort to test new social networking tools and the latest evidence of the growing intersection of social media and politics.

Google announced Monday that Obama will participate in a 45-minute live video chat room known as a "Hangout," part of the online search giant's social networking site Google Plus. The chat will take place Monday afternoon, Jan. 30, capping a week of social media engagement the White House is planning around the State of the Union speech.

Obama speaks to Congress and the nation on Tuesday.

Google Plus will solicit questions over the video sharing site YouTube, and users will then vote on their favorites. The president will answer some video questions, and will also chat directly with a group of the questioners.

The exchange will appear on the White House Google Plus page, and will be live streamed on the whitehouse.gov website.

Obama participated in YouTube town halls after his last two State of The Union speeches, taking questions submitted to the video sharing site. The planned Hangout goes a step further, offering some of those questioners a chance to interact directly with the president.

Macon Phillips, White House director of digital strategy, said the White House would have no role in choosing the questions or participants in the Hangout.

"For online engagement to be interesting, it has to be honest," Phillips said. "We want to give Americans more control over this conversation and the chance to ask questions they care about."

Google has hosted Hangouts with other political figures, including Republican presidential candidates Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich. But Obama's planned Hangout will be a presidential first and is certain to draw more attention to Google Plus, which has battled to catch up with social networking giant Facebook in membership and influence.

The Hangout element "will make for really personal conversation with the president that's never really happened before," said Steve Grove, head of community partnerships for Google Plus. "Whether it's good for Google Plus or not, I guess viewers will decide by how well we pull it off."

Google, Facebook and other social media sites have been steadily boosting their presence in electoral politics.

Facebook cosponsored a Republican primary debate with NBC News earlier this month, and last year Obama visited Facebook's headquarters in California, where he took questions submitted to the site.

Google sponsored a Republican debate with Fox News in September and has been a go-to hub for online political advertising.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/obama/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120123/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_obama_social_media

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Late-night 'Idol' guest? Jim Carrey's daughter

By Craig Berman

RECAP

Michael Becker / Fox

Jim Carrey's daughter, Jane, auditioned for "Idol" in San Diego.

The NFL is a harsh boss. It can offer opportunities for huge successes?... and also take those opportunities away with its innate unpredictability.

?American Idol? had to be hoping for more lenient treatment than it got from the Lords of Football, but its rare Sunday Night showcase turned into a late-night talk show thanks to the NFC Championship Game going into overtime. By the time the New York Giants slipped past the San Francisco 49ers and the postgame discussions were completed, it was 10:57 p.m. on the East Coast and the audience was bleary-eyed and likely headed for bed.

If they were, not much on "Idol" would have kept them awake.?

The highlight of the night was Jane Carrey, if for no other reason than it made Jennifer Lopez feel old. Carrey?s the daughter of Jim Carrey, the comedian who was a star of ?In Living Color? when J.Lo danced as one of the Fly Girls.?

?I remember you when you were little!? the judge said. ?When did this happen!?

Fortunately, J.Lo was able to interrupt the getting-old montage in her head to pass Carrey to the next round, proving that it?s never too late and it?s never too soon to get a big break. Expect more ?In Living Color? theme lyrics if Carrey lasts in the competition.?

Also noteworthy was Kyle Crews, a University of California-Berkeley student and fraternity member who will totally steal your girlfriend if you let her out of your sight. Don?t say you weren?t warned. He was the top male voice of the night, though he did have the indignity of having Steven Tyler tell him to lose his shirt. This is the same Steven Tyler who showed up last week in a purple hat best suited to a streetwalker and was in an old-school aviator hat with goggles in this USS Midway episode. It would be like Ryan Seacrest telling someone to relax every now and then and not work so many jobs.?

Speaking of jobs, don?t forget about Ashley Robles. Robles, who works at approximately five different gigs while raising her daughter, became the first contestant in recent memory to sing ?I Will Always Love You? and not cause all three judges to leap from the their seats into the ocean to make the bad noise stop. How she?ll get the time off from all of those tasks to keep auditioning is anyone?s guess.

Among the other 53 to make it was Ali Shields, who parlayed a homemade video into a chance to sing for Ellen DeGeneres on her talk show, a trip to the American Music Awards where she got her first kiss courtesy of Mike Posner and her second from Usher, and now a golden ticket to Hollywood. She?s the early favorite to be this season?s wacky comic relief who lasts much longer than expected but doesn?t make the final group. And that, my friends, is why there are so many random singing videos on YouTube.

Jason ?Wolf? Hamlin would also be a great bet to last, since he has an old-school voice and isn?t afraid to take chances, but he also has the looks and mannerisms that would scare small children. He did get to close the show, however, which is usually a good sign for long-term success.

In sadder news, there won?t be a Bikini Girl II, or at least not one from the San Diego auditions, as Jennifer Diley?s outfit got her some leers from Ryan but no love from the judges. Maybe they, like much of the sleepy ?Idol? audience, spent the preceding few hours looking at all the NFL cheerleaders and were too jaded to be impressed.

Did you stay up to watch the San Diego auditions??Tell us on Facebook!

Want more 'Idol' during 'Idol'? Follow @CraigBerman as he live tweets each show!

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Source: http://theclicker.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/23/10213396-late-night-idol-guest-jim-carreys-daughter

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PSU editor quits after erroneous Paterno report

David Marselles a senior at Penn State from Allentown, Pa., stands with a cardboard cutout of Joe Paterno near a statue of Joe Paterno outside Beaver Stadium on the Penn State University campus Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

David Marselles a senior at Penn State from Allentown, Pa., stands with a cardboard cutout of Joe Paterno near a statue of Joe Paterno outside Beaver Stadium on the Penn State University campus Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

This is the Mount Nittany Medical Center main entrance in State College, Pa., where former Penn State footbal coach Joe Paterno is in serious condition Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

PHILADELPHIA (AP) ? The managing editor of a student-run news organization that covers Penn State resigned Saturday after the publication's Twitter account sent messages saying former coach Joe Paterno had died, according to a letter on the publication's website.

Paterno's sons refuted accounts of their 85-year-old father's death in Twitter messages posted after those by Onward State.

"I appreciate the support & prayers. Joe is continuing to fight," Jay Paterno tweeted.

Paterno has lung cancer and has been in a hospital since Jan. 13. His doctors say recent complications have made his condition "serious."

Onward State recanted is posts, but not before the erroneous information was reported and amplified by many media organizations across the country and retweeted uncounted times. The Associated Press did not publish the report.

Devon Edwards said in the letter that he takes responsibility for the misinformation. He said the publication retracted its tweets after "the mountain of evidence stacked opposite that report became too much to ignore." He also apologized to apologized to the Paterno family and the Penn State community.

"I never, in a million years, would have thought that Onward State might be cited by the national media," his letter said. "Today, I sincerely wish it never had been."

The incorrect information found its way into media websites, including CBSSports.com, People.com and the Huffington Post.

CBSSports.com had run a photo of Paterno with a caption saying the longtime Penn State Coach "loses his battle with lung cancer at 85." The blurb did not include the source of the information.

In an apology on its site, CBSSports.com said the mistake "was the result of a failure to verify the original report. CBSSports.com holds itself to high journalistic standards, and in this circumstance tonight, we fell well short of those expectations."

Last January, several media organizations erroneously reported that U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords had died after being shot in the head during a public event in Arizona.

Edwards did not explain in his letter how the error occurred but hinted that the pressure to get the story first may have been a factor.

"In this day and age, getting it first often conflicts with getting it right, but our intention was never to fall into that chasm," the letter said. "All I can do now is promise that in the future, we will exercise caution, restraint, and humility."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-01-22-Penn%20State-Paterno-Editor%20Resigns/id-cc9f03ea8ba34b6bb0db54dc32df58af

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Make way for cyclists in Tel Aviv

The 'Amsterdam of the Middle East,' Tel Aviv has miles of urban cycling paths and a new bike-share program.

? A local, slice-of-life story from a Monitor correspondent.

Skip to next paragraph

Back in the 1990s, Tel Aviv?s bicycles were pushed to the margins of the urban landscape, which lacked bike lanes or bike racks.

In the past decade, however, Israel?s cosmopolitan capital has reimagined itself as an Amsterdam of the Middle East with miles of bike paths on sidewalks, boulevards, and in the streets.

With its generally flat terrain and temperate climate, Tel Aviv is an ideal city to navigate on two wheels. The network, marked with bicycle stencils, runs the length of the city?s Mediterranean seacoast, reaches down leafy historical avenues, and sweeps through the commercial center. The city also inaugurated a bike rental system, the Tel-O-Fun, with some 150 rental stations throughout the city. Usage has exceeded expectations, and the distinctive green and gray bikes with upright seating have become ubiquitous. A leading enthusiast is Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai, who test-drove one of the Tel-O-Fun bikes and christened a bike traffic light.

Let?s be clear: Tel Aviv is no Amsterdam ? most of the bike lanes are on sidewalks. On trendy Rothschild Boulevard, the cyclists must dodge cafe tables, and on Ibn Gavirol, the bike path is interrupted by trees, benches, and building columns. But in a country where the volatile Israeli driver dominates the roads, some of that turf is being retaken by cyclists.

Think you know the Middle East? Take our geography quiz.

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Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/csmonitor/globalnews/~3/J-6g-6HQtwI/Make-way-for-cyclists-in-Tel-Aviv

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Reno wildfire that destroyed 29 homes contained

Chris Watts cries after pulling his grandmother's coffee mug out of the rubble of her home Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012, in Pleasant Valley, south of Reno, Nev. Authorities confirmed that the body of June Hargis, 93, was found in the aftermath of Thursday's brush fire, but her cause of death has not been established, so it's not known if it was fire related. The Watts family also lost their home, barn and three horses. (AP Photo/Cathleen Allison)

Chris Watts cries after pulling his grandmother's coffee mug out of the rubble of her home Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012, in Pleasant Valley, south of Reno, Nev. Authorities confirmed that the body of June Hargis, 93, was found in the aftermath of Thursday's brush fire, but her cause of death has not been established, so it's not known if it was fire related. The Watts family also lost their home, barn and three horses. (AP Photo/Cathleen Allison)

Jeannie Watts, left, looks through the rubble of her barn for the bodies of her three horses on Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012, after her home in Pleasant Valley, south of Reno, Nev., was destroyed in Thursday's brush fire. Family friend Brenda Moore is at right. (AP Photo/Cathleen Allison)

Comforted by neighbors, Jeannie Watts, left, stands Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012, outside the rubble where her mother, June Hargis, 93, died in Thursday's brush fire in Pleasant Valley, south of Reno, Nev. The family also lost their home, their barn and three horses. Authorities confirmed that Hargis' body was found in the fire's aftermath, but her cause of death has not been established, so it's not known if it was fire related. (AP Photo/Cathleen Allison)

Standing in front of the rubble of her home Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012, Jeannie Watts holds a picture of herself and her mother, June Hargis, who died Thursday as a wind-driven brush fire burned through Pleasant Valley, south of Reno, Nev. Authorities confirmed that the body of Hargis, 93, was found in the fire's aftermath, but her cause of death has not been established, so it's not known if it was fire related. (AP Photo/Cathleen Allison)

Patrick, left, and Jeannie Watts, center, are consoled by neighbors at their Pleasant Valley home, south of Reno, Nev., on Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. Their home was one of 29 destroyed by a wind-driven brush fire that raced through the area on Thursday. Authorities confirmed that the body of Jeannie Watts' mother, June Hargis, 93, was found in the fire's aftermath, but her cause of death has not been established, so it's not known if it was fire related. (AP Photo/Cathleen Allison)

RENO, Nev. (AP) ? The wildfire that destroyed 29 homes near Reno is contained. Thousands of evacuees are back home. And the family of the woman found dead says there's no point in prosecuting the remorseful man who accidentally started it.

Fire officials declared the blaze contained Saturday after a storm brought precipitation that the region hasn't seen in months. All evacuations were lifted and U.S. 395 reopened through the 3,200-acre fire zone.

But in addition to two inches of rain, the storm also brought another challenge for emergency workers. Officials fear its potential for causing flooding in burned areas, after one of the driest winters in Reno history.

"I'm confident we'll be able to respond successfully if necessary," Washoe County Manager Katy Simon said, adding that hydrologists and officials were monitoring the situation.

The blaze erupted shortly after noon on Thursday and raced quickly through the dry countryside, propelled by wind gusts of 82 mph. At its height, the fire forced evacuation calls for some 10,000 people.

The blaze was very similar to a wildfire that destroyed 30 homes in Reno in mid-November.

June Hargis, 93, was found dead in a studio apartment next to her daughter's home in Washoe Valley, where the fire started. Washoe County Sheriff Mike Haley said her cause of death has not been established, so it's not known if it was fire related. No other fatalities or major injuries were reported.

Her family said Saturday that there was no point in prosecuting the man who admitted accidentally starting it by improperly discarding fireplace ashes outside his home.

Authorities have described man, whose name was not released, as being extremely remorseful.

Haley said that prosecutors will have to give the case a lot of deliberation. "The fact he came forward and admitted it plays a role. But so does the massive damage and loss of life," he said Friday. "It's a balancing act."

Hargis's son, Jim Blueberg, 68, told The Associated Press Saturday that he didn't think filing criminal charges against the elderly man "would do any good."

"The man had the courage to come up and say he did this. He's remorseful. I think he's punished himself enough. It was a silly, stupid mistake to make, there's no doubt about that. But I just want him to know I forgive him, and my heart goes out to him," he said.

His sister, Jeannie Watts, 70, had returned home from an errand to find the apartment next door and a barn with three horses inside engulfed in flames. She agreed that there was probably no need to file charges against the man.

"What good is that going to do? Everything is already gone," Watts said.

"He'll pay the rest of his life for that," she added.

Watts said it took only about 15 minutes for her three-bedroom farmhouse to burn down, though the fire reached her mother's apartment and the barn first. She said her mother appeared to be mentally alert when she last saw her.

"Before I got home, my son told her, 'Get your stuff and get out of here,'" Watts told the AP. "She said to him, 'Well, I can smell smoke but I can't see any fire,' and she went back inside. She probably suffocated from the smoke because it was so thick."

She said that when she got home, she shouted: "Where's my mom? Where's my mom?"

"The firefighters didn't know," she said. "Later, an official came to me and said, 'Yes, she was in (the burned studio).' Then they called the coroner. I was just crying and screaming. I still can't believe it."

Blueberg said the death of their mother comes after his sister had been through "one hard knock after another" in recent years.

The fire left her financially strapped, with virtually no earthly possessions, he said. "She told me the other day, 'All I have is my purse, that's all I have,'" he said.

She and her husband, Pat, met with an insurance agent on the property. In addition to the destroyed buildings, three horses in her barn died, though firefighters rescued all five dogs from her home.

"My stomach is up in the air," Watts said. "I want to cry and I can't. I want to say, 'Why us? Why anybody? Why does anything like this have to happen to anybody?"

___

Associated Press writers Scott Sonner in Reno, Michelle Rindels in Las Vegas and Sandra Chereb in Carson City contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-01-22-Reno%20Brush%20Fire/id-fa593dafb33d49fcb9752c9d4573a895

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Brooks chokes up testifying about hospital gift (AP)

CLAREMORE, Okla. ? Country singer Garth Brooks told jurors Friday that he believed he had a "done deal" to honor his late mother with a women's health center in his Oklahoma hometown, and said he still doesn't understand how he received nothing for a $500,000 gift.

Brooks is suing Integris Canadian Valley Regional Hospital in Yukon, accusing it and its president of reneging on a pledge to build the center and name it after his mother, Colleen, who died of cancer in 1999. The center was never built, and Brooks wants his money back, plus punitive damages.

In tearful testimony, Brooks said he thought he had a solid agreement with the hospital's president, James Moore. Brooks said Moore initially suggested putting his mother's name on an intensive care unit, and when Brooks said that wouldn't fit her image, Moore suggested a women's center.

"I jumped all over it," Brooks told jurors. "It's my mom. My mom was pregnant as a teenager. She had a rough start. She wanted to help every kid out there."

Brooks said he gave $500,000 to the hospital anonymously, which he said was his custom when giving to charities. The singer said he, his family and the hospital wanted to keep things quiet until a ribbon-cutting ceremony to announce the center.

He was eventually shown architectural drawings of a proposed center bearing his mother's name. "That's why I thought it was a win-win for everybody," Brooks said.

But nothing happened. The center was never build and his mother's name wasn't attached to anything.

"How this thing went wrong, I don't know," Brooks testified.

"I'm the last of six kids. I was her favorite," Brooks added. "She was my buddy. I was her biggest fan. She was a pistol. All of the parties were at her house. She was just a doll. If anybody met her, (they) would have gotten to love her."

Moore testified earlier this week that a women's center was not among the hospital's plans, though Brooks testified Friday that Moore never told him that while they were negotiating a gift.

The singer donated the money in 2005. Three years later, he exchanged emails with Moore after the hospital president wrote saying the money would be used to help fund new construction, Brooks said.

"As nicely as I can, I'm trying to give him an opportunity to say why he's spending the money and there's no women's center going up," Brooks testified.

Brooks said he sent his accountant to investigate, but that nothing came from the ongoing correspondence.

By March 2009, he'd asked the hospital to either refund his money or give it to another charity. In September 2009, Brooks sued.

"I thought this was going to be mom's chance to bring a women's center to my hometown," Brooks testified.

Brooks' accountant, Cheryl Harris, testified earlier Friday that she wasn't aware of any conditions on Brooks' donation, which was listed as a tax deduction. Asked by Integris lawyer Terry Thomas how she believed the money would be used, she said, "He didn't receive anything physical."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/crime/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120120/ap_en_mu/us_people_garth_brooks

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Yemen officials: Saleh to depart for Oman

FILE - In this Friday, April 8, 2011 file photo, Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh reacts while looking at his supporters, not pictured, during a rally supporting him, in Sanaa,Yemen. Yemeni officials say outgoing President Ali Abdullah Saleh will leave soon to Oman, en route to medical treatment in the United States. Washington has been trying to get Saleh out of Yemen _ though not to settle in the U.S. _ to allow a peaceful transition from his rule. However, there appear to be differences whether Saleh would remain in exile. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen, File)

FILE - In this Friday, April 8, 2011 file photo, Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh reacts while looking at his supporters, not pictured, during a rally supporting him, in Sanaa,Yemen. Yemeni officials say outgoing President Ali Abdullah Saleh will leave soon to Oman, en route to medical treatment in the United States. Washington has been trying to get Saleh out of Yemen _ though not to settle in the U.S. _ to allow a peaceful transition from his rule. However, there appear to be differences whether Saleh would remain in exile. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen, File)

Members of Yemen's parliament raise their hands to vote on the immunity law for Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh at the House of Representatives in Sanaa, Yemen, Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. Yemen's parliament approved on Saturday a law that it said would limit immunity for officials who worked under President Ali Abdullah Saleh to "political" crimes they committed in an official capacity. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

Members of Yemen's parliament raise their hands to vote on the immunity law for Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh at the House of Representatives in Sanaa, Yemen, Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. Yemen's parliament approved on Saturday a law that it said would limit immunity for officials who worked under President Ali Abdullah Saleh to "political" crimes they committed in an official capacity. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

Yemen Minister of Defense Mohammed Nasser Ali, center, attends a session on an immunity law for President Ali Abdullah Saleh at the House of Representatives in Sanaa, Yemen, Saturday, Jan. 21, 2012. Yemen's parliament approved on Saturday a law that it said would limit immunity for officials who worked under President Ali Abdullah Saleh to "political" crimes they committed in an official capacity. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

FILE - In this Saturday, Oct. 8, 2011 file image made from video, Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh speaks on Yemen State Television. Yemeni officials say outgoing President Ali Abdullah Saleh will leave soon to Oman, en route to medical treatment in the United States. Washington has been trying to get Saleh out of Yemen _ though not to settle in the U.S. _ to allow a peaceful transition from his rule. However, there appear to be differences whether Saleh would remain in exile.(AP Photo/Yemen State TV, File)

SANAA, Yemen (AP) ? Outgoing President Ali Abdullah Saleh will leave soon to Oman, en route to medical treatment in the United States, Yemeni officials said on Saturday, part of an American effort to get the embattled strongman out of the country to allow a peaceful transition from his rule.

Washington has been trying for weeks to find a country where Saleh can live in exile, since it does not want him to settle permanently in the United States. The mercurial president, who has ruled for more than 33 years, has repeatedly gone back and forth on whether he would leave.

The officials' comments Saturday suggested Oman, Yemen's neighbor, could be a potential home for him. Three officials said he would go, but they were divided on whether he would remain in exile in Oman or return to Yemen after treatment. His return, even if he no longer holds the post of president, could mean continued turmoil for the impoverished nation at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula.

After nearly a year of protests demanding his ouster, Saleh in November handed his powers over to his vice president and agreed to step down. A unity government between his party and the opposition has since been created. However, Saleh ? still formally the president ? has continued to influence politics from behind the scenes through his family and loyalists in power positions.

The U.S. does not want to take him in, concerned it would be seen by Yemenis as harboring a leader they say has blood on his hands for the killings of protesters. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates already have rejected Saleh, American officials said.

Senior ruling party figure Mohammed al-Shayef told The Associated Press that Saleh would travel "in the coming days" to Oman, then head to the United States for treatment of wounds he suffered in an June assassination attempt.

After treatment, Saleh would return to Yemen to head his People's Congress Party, said al-Shayef, who is also a prominent tribal leader. Another top party official, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk of the plans, gave the same itinerary, though he said Saleh would pass through Ethiopia en route from Oman to the U.S.

Saleh himself has spoken in recent weeks of working as an opposition politician after he leaves the presidency.

However, an official in the prime minister's office said Saleh "is supposed" to return to Oman to stay after his U.S. treatment is completed.

The official said Saleh's powerful son Ahmed was currently in Oman, arranging a residence for his father. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk the press. It did not seem that Ahmed, who commands the elite Republican Guard that has been at the forefront of the crackdown on protests, would remain in Oman.

The unity government has been struggling to establish its authority in the face of Saleh's continuing strength in the country. Like Saleh's son Ahmed, Saleh's nephew also commands one of Yemen's best trained and equipped security forces, and the president's loyalists remain in place in the government and bureaucracy.

Saleh agreed to step down under a U.S.-approved and Gulf-mediated accord with the opposition in return for immunity for prosecution.

Yemen's parliament on Saturday approved the immunity law, a key step toward Saleh's formal retirement from his post.

The law grants Saleh complete immunity for any crimes committed during his rule, including the killing of protesters during the uprising against his regime. However parliament limited to scope of immunity for other officials in regime.

Initially, the law would have similarly given complete immunity to everyone who served Saleh's governments throughout his rule, sparking a public outcry and a new wave of protests. In response, the law was changed to grant them immunity only on "politically motivated" criminal acts. That apparently would not cover corruption charges.

Most protesters have rejected the accord entirely, saying Saleh should not be given immunity and demanding he be prosecuted.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-01-21-ML-Yemen/id-8ea99ac84fee48e2b2c4bb25e1ee302a

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Genetic diversity of HA1 domain of hemagglutinin gene of pandemic influenza H1N1pdm09 viruses in New Delhi, India

Authors contributions: M.A.M. carried out the molecular characterization, sequence alignment, and data analysis. W.S. and R.G. participated in the sequence alignment and participated in drafting and editing of article. A.K. participated in editing of the article. Y.S. carried out the tissue culture and HA of the isolates. S.B. and R.B.L. participated in the overall design, implementation, data analysis, and final drafting of the article. All authors read and approved the final review. The findings and conclusions in this study are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Source: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jmv.23205

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RIM's BlackBerry Porsche Design P'9981 gets splayed by the FCC

Thus far, the Waterloo-Stuttgart wünderchild's been scooped, made official and even toyed with back at this year's CES. What hasn't happened yet, is a proper review, but until that joyous day comes we'll take what we can get in the form of this quasi-teardown, courtesy of the FCC. Those with stellar memory and a keen eye will recall we'd seen it pass through governmental annals once before, yet at that time any revealing imagery of its internals were strictly verboten. That's changed, as that once barren page now houses a PDF titled "Temp Confid_Internal Photos" which conveniently splays three snaps of the teutonic device's interior. Sure, it isn't a proper iFixit dissection -- ripe with details and color -- but it'll probably be the closest anyone will get to the innards of the $2,000 BlackBerry for quite a while. Read this far? Go on, don't be shy, espy the governmental shakedown at the source link below.

RIM's BlackBerry Porsche Design P'9981 gets splayed by the FCC originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 20 Jan 2012 13:09:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/MjKl5py75F8/

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