Pope: We await 2012 with trepidation (AP)

VATICAN CITY ? Pope Benedict XVI marked the end of 2011 with prayers of thanks and said humanity awaits the new year with apprehension but also with hope for a better future.

"Another year approaches its end, while we await a new one, with the trepidation, desires and expectations of always," Benedict said at the traditional New Year's Eve vespers service, as he delivered his homily from the central altar of St. Peter's Basilica on Saturday evening.

"With the spirit filled with gratitude, we prepare to cross the threshold of 2012, remembering that the Lord watches over us and takes care of us," Benedict said. "In him this evening we want to entrust the entire world. We put into his hands the tragedies of this world of ours and we also offer him the hopes for a better future."

Benedict, wearing gold-colored robes, arrived for the solemn ceremony standing aboard a raised, wheeled platform that ushers guided up the basilica's long center aisle.

The 84-year-old pontiff started using the device earlier in the year to reduce fatigue. Benedict nimbly navigated the platform's two steps and knelt, apparently without difficulty, at the foot of the altar area as a choir of men and boys sang hymns.

Immediately after the 90-minute prayer service, the pontiff shed his liturgical vestments, donned a full-length white topcoat and rode aboard the popemobile into St. Peter's Square, to the surprise of many tourists.

He stepped down to walk briskly to a spot before the life-sized Nativity scene, where he knelt in silent prayer. A towering Christmas tree, donated by Ukraine and twinkling with lights, sparkled in the center of the square.

Benedict then strode over to a contingent of the Swiss Guard band, which played "Silent Night" and other Christmas songs, and chatted in German with one of the guards in traditional colorful costume.

Benedict will return to the basilica Sunday morning to preside over New Year's Day Mass, an occasion the Vatican marks as world peace day.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111231/ap_on_re_eu/eu_vatican_new_year_s_eve

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Christmas bonanza decks streets, storefronts of New Delhi

The Christmas 'blitz' is a relatively new phenomenon in New Delhi, but it's a big one.?

After nearly four years living in India, I?m still amazed at what a huge celebration Christmas has become. From the gigantic reindeer that straddles the newly-constructed megamall near my house and hundreds of kids bargaining off light-up Santa hats on the street, to the roadside shops selling all things Christmas, signs of the holiday are everywhere. Though this ancient country of Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Parsis, Buddhists, and many other religions has a long history of celebrating each other?s festivals, the blitz of Christmas is still a relatively new phenomenon.

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?When I was a kid we used to sell real pine trees from the Himalayas and fruit cakes,? says Shareel Goyal, the third-generation owner of Kriti Creations, a magnificent gift shop that brims with human-sized Santa Claus statues and reindeer neck ties in Khan Market, a bustling shopping area. ?But after India opened up to foreign imports in the early 1990s, Christmas started booming. We now have everything from custom Christmas trees and nativity straw to every kind of ornament you can imagine.?

Shopping in Mr. Goyal?s little store feels like WalMart on Black Friday. The Christmas music is merry, but the murmurs from shoppers that the place is a "mad house" are hard to miss. However, what makes the scene so unique is that most of the clients are non-Christian Indians. Fascinated by why so many Indians would be interested in Christmas, I ask a mother and daughter who just bought a wreath and big golden horn why they celebrate the holiday.

?We just like to decorate our house for Christmas,? says the mother. ?More and more of our friends have been doing this in the last five years so we like to also.?

Outside, Megha Joneja, a bright-eyed mother of two, selects a four-foot-tall Christmas tree. ?Christmas is mostly a party for us,? says Ms. Joneja. ?But one of the reasons I feel it is so important to celebrate other people?s religious holidays is because I want my children to be exposed to as many different religion?s customs as possible.?

Though it appears the pandemonium so typical of Christmas in the states has now spread to India, essentially, the holiday is still an incredible example of religious understanding and cultural intelligence. Sometimes the spirit of Christmas finds you when you are least expecting it. Such was the case with me this week, when I got a visit from Mr. Singh, a jolly middle-aged Indian man who brings big jugs of drinking water to my house each week.

?This is for you, madam,? says Mr. Singh with a huge smile, handing me a tiny plastic Christmas tree. ?Merry Christmas.?

Thousands of miles away from the place I grew up, my family, and the traditions that are most familiar this time of year, Singh?s gift was a reminder of what Christmas is really about.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/csmonitor/globalnews/~3/zaoBOlw5rPY/Christmas-bonanza-decks-streets-storefronts-of-New-Delhi

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Russia submerges nuclear submarine to douse blaze (Reuters)

MURMANSK, Russia (Reuters) ? Russia said it had won the battle with a raging blaze aboard a nuclear submarine on Friday by submerging the stricken vessel at a navy shipyard after hours of dousing the flames with water from helicopters and tug boats.

There was no radiation leak, authorities said.

Television pictures showed a giant plume of smoke above the yard in the Murmansk region of northern Russia as over 100 firemen struggled to douse flames which witnesses said rose 10 metres (30 feet) above the Yekaterinburg submarine.

"The fire has been localized," Emergencies Minister Sergei Shoigu told officials who were leading the firefighting effort from an emergencies control room in Moscow more than nine hours after the blaze began at 1220 GMT (7:20 a.m. EDT) on Thursday.

Shoigu's comments indicate the fire was still burning but that efforts to partially sink the submarine at the dock had succeeded in reducing the intensity of the flames.

Russia said the nuclear reactor had been shut down and all weapons had been removed from the 167-metre (550 feet) Yekaterinburg, which launched an intercontinental ballistic missile from the Barents Sea at a firing range thousands of miles away in Kamchatka as recently as July.

"Radiation levels are normal," a spokeswoman for the Emergencies Ministry said. "No one was injured."

After hours of trying to put out the flames, officials decided to partially submerge the hull of the 18,200-tonne submarine at the Roslyakovo dock, one of the main dockyards of Russia's northern fleet 1,500 km (900 miles) north of Moscow.

Local media reports were vague, but the blaze was believed to have started when wooden scaffolding caught fire during welding repairs to the submarine, which had been hoisted into a dry dock.

The submarine can carry 16 ballistic missiles, each with four warheads. Its nuclear reactor was not damaged in the fire and Russian navy submarine reactors are built to withstand enormous shocks and high temperatures.

"The reactor has been shut down and does not pose any danger," Interfax news agency quoted a source at navy headquarters as saying.

Russia's worst post-Soviet submarine disaster occurred in August 2000 when the Kursk nuclear submarine sank in the Barents Sea killing all 118 crewmen aboard.

President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin have been informed about the incident, said Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin, who oversees the military.

(Writing by Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by Peter Graff)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111229/ts_nm/us_russia_submarine_fire

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My New Year's Is 62 Million Times Bigger Than Yours, Said The Man From Beijing

The New Year comes, of course, at midnight. But because we have different time zones, we have many different midnights and some are much more crowded than others.

This morning I asked myself: who's got the biggest New Year's Eve on earth? By which I mean: which time zone has the most people in it. And the answer is clear.

If you look at this world time zone map, one zone, which we've highlighted it in yellow has, as you can see, all of China, all 1.3 billion of 'em, plus a hunk of Siberia, plus Taiwan, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, a chunk of Indonesia, Timor and a cut of Australia. Altogether, that's got to be at least 1.5 billion people who will greet 2012 at the very same moment.

Party-wise (assuming Confucian cultures pay our New Year's eve any mind, and I think they do), this is the hot and poppin' New Year's Eve Zone on our planet, bigger than the zone that transects Western Europe and Africa, bigger than anything in the Americas.

For Those Who Don't Go Out on New Year's...

But maybe you're the quiet type. Maybe you don't like a lot of noise and merry making on what is a purely odometer-like occasion. And maybe you are looking for a time zone that is next to empty where there's nobody around to irritate you. Well, I think we've got a zone for you.

This zone is two zones west of the Greenwich meridian. It is mostly empty ocean.

Yes, it does contain a hunk of Greenland, a bit of Brazil, and a few Atlantic islands (the Azores) but all those places have chosen ? and passed laws, attaching themselves to other time zones. They've opted out. So not a lot of people live in this zone's time. It's a vast stretch of uninhabited Atlantic, populated only by fish and whales who don't have, I presume, a special feel for Decembers or Januaries or clocks or midnights. It does, down near Antarctica, include two little dots of land: the South Georgia and the South Sandwich islands, but they don't, either of them, have many inhabitants. One website I looked at estimates a research population of about 24 people, in the summer months (which is around now).

No Need For Velvet Ropes

Meaning, if you invited everybody in this time zone (not including transient boat traffic, penguins or seals), the biggest crowd you could hope for is two dozen people.

So there you have it, two very different zones for different temperaments. And the differences aren't trivial: 1.5 billion people here, 24 people there.

That's the Chinese advantage over South Sandwich Island. Their zone has 62.5 million times more people. But here's the South Sandwich advantage (for shy people): their zone is 62.5 million times less crowded. Whichever way you like it, happy New Year!

Source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/krulwich/2011/12/28/144382515/my-new-year-s-is-62-million-times-bigger-than-yours-said-the-man-from-beijing?ft=1&f=1007

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HTC's Official Bootloader Tool Now Unlocks More HTC Phones, New and Old [Android Rooting]

HTC has updated its bootloader unlocking tool to support many new and old Verizon and AT&T devices, and has announced that they're working to support even more.

We were pretty excited when HTC announced that it would unlock its bootloaders for easy device rooting, but it was originally only available for brand new phones. HTC now says that all phones manufactured in the last few months should be compatible with the tool, as well as many older phones, too:

All HTC Android devices launched after September 2011 are unlockable. The website will be updated accordingly to reflect this in the coming weeks. We continue to work on models launched prior to September 2011, please check back often for the status of older devices.

XDA is reporting that the tool is working on older devices like the Thunderbolt and Rhyme, as well as new devices like the Rezound. We'll be adding this information to our always up-to-date rooting guide as HTC makes it more official in the coming weeks, but for now, try it out on your device and let us know if it works!

HTC Unlocks Its Verizon and AT&T Bootloaders | XDA Developers

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/hcSisuMqOvo/htcs-official-bootloader-tool-now-unlocks-more-htc-phones-new-and-old

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Delaware Civil Union Law Goes Into Effect in New Year

By Jason Carson Wilson

Some Delaware gay and lesbian couples will don wedding apparel soon. The state?s civil union law goes into effect Sunday morning. People can begin applying for licenses on Tuesday, according to the Associated Press.

Lisa Goodman, President of Equality Delaware, making her remarks to the crowd during the Civil Union bill filing.

However, some couples can start their new year with a legally recognized partner. New Castle County Clerk of Peace Ken Boulden Jr. will open his office New Year?s Day?and waive the 24-hour waiting period?for eight couples. But Boulden?s office won?t perform any ceremonies until Jan.5.

Attorney Lisa Goodman led Equality Delaware?s battle for the civil union law. Goodman and her partner, Delaware?s Criminal Justice Council head and former American Civil Liberties Union state chapter director Drewry Fennell, will be the first couple to receive a license.

Fennell and Goodman will head to downtown Wilmington?s Trinity Episcopal Church immediately after receiving the license?having a ceremony during the noon service.

"We'll have lots of family in for the day," Goodman said.

Delaware Gov. Jack Markell signed the civil union legislation in May. It?s among nearly 12 states which allow civil unions or same-sex marriage. Delaware, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, is among the top 10 states with recorded same-sex couples.

The Associated Press is also reporting that same-sex couples in Hawaii can also join as one?effective 12:01 a.m. New Year?s Day. Hawaii Health Department spokeswoman Janice Okubo said the Aloha state will recognize unions from other states. Both civil union and marriage license applications will be available online at www.hawaii.gov starting Jan. 1.

?

Photo: Delawarestonewall.com

Source: http://equallywed.com/headlines/951-delaware-civil-union-law-goes-into-effect-in-new-year.html

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Video: McFarland speaks to jailed lover Janos

Listen to the jailhouse conversation between Mary Ann McFarland and her lover Janos Kulcsar, who was also the man convicted of killing her husband in 1985.? This web exclusive is part of the Dateline report 'Deadly Triangle' from Friday, December 30th, 2011.

Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/dateline/45674409/

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Verizon to add $2 bill-pay charge (Reuters)

(Reuters) ? Verizon Wireless, which this month angered customers with three separate data service problems, said on Thursday it will add a $2 fee for one-time telephone and online bill payments.

The planned change, to take effect on January 15, was greeted by a storm of criticism.

Consumer blog Engadget said charging customers to pay was "downright ludicrous." Another tech website, cnet.com, said the move "made little sense."

"The fee is designed to address costs incurred by us for only those customers who choose to make one-time bill payments in alternate payment channels (online, mobile, telephone) and who choose not to use the other options available to them ...," Verizon Wireless spokesman Thomas Pica said in an email.

AT&T Inc said it does not charge fees to customers who pay online or who use its automated phone payment system. But AT&T does levy a $5 charge on people who ask for personal assistance to pay their bills, unless they need assistance due to a technical problem or billing error. Most subscribers of Sprint also do not pay fees, though it does require some customers with bad credit to pay a $5 fee per payment.

In addition, some customers complained on Verizon's online forum on Thursday about problems activating their new phones.

The episode followed reports of a problem with the company's high-speed network on Wednesday. Verizon said on Thursday that it had resolved that issue overnight.

"GROWING PAINS" WITH 4G NETWORK

Verizon, the biggest U.S. mobile service provider, admitted on Thursday it was having "growing pains" with its new fourth generation, 4G, high-speed wireless network and had suffered several separate technical problems that caused service outages.

After saying earlier in the day that services on its older third generation, 3G, network were not affected, the company admitted Thursday night that 3G customers were also affected.

Verizon said it had proactively "moved" its fourth-generation (4G) wireless users onto its third-generation (3G) network to ensure all would have a data connection.

However, Verizon admitted that for brief periods, such as on Wednesday, 4G customers could not connect to the 3G Network as quickly as the company would have liked.

The company also said that it is working closely with its network suppliers to ensure smooth functioning of its 4G network, while estimating that connectivity has been available at about 99 percent of the time this year.

Verizon Wireless statement is available at:

http://r.reuters.com/wav75s

Some customers had earlier complained that they were having 3G service problems, while others said their 4G service was being restored on Thursday morning. One person complained about the lack of a public announcement.

"At least acknowledge there is a problem, do you really expect your paying customers to not notice??" one person wrote on Verizon's online message board.

Verizon Wireless spokesman Thomas Pica told Reuters that the company does not plan to compensate its customers who had experienced service problems.

Earlier this month the company, which has long boasted that its service is "most reliable," faced two data service problems.

On December 8 some Verizon customers were unable to access the Internet on their wireless devices for about 24 hours. The company had to fix another problem on December 21.

Verizon Wireless is a venture of Verizon Communications and Vodafone Group Plc.

(Reporting by Sinead Carew and Sakthi Prasad; Editing by Matthew Lewis, Steve Orlofsky and Ed Lane)

(This story corrects the 5th paragraph after AT&T and Sprint revise comments on bill pay charges. Sprint and AT&T both said they charge fees in some cases)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/internet/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111230/wr_nm/us_verizon

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Best videos of 2011: Magnet turns off speech

Caitlin Stier, video intern

At number 5 in our countdown, watch a mind-controlling magnet have a powerful effect on speech.

This super magnet produces a freaky speech glitch. The technique, known as transcranial magnetic stimulation, changes neural activity in the brain by turning off some neurons and activating others. Variations of the technique are being investigated for treating migraine and stroke.

For more about the technique, check out our feature about how it's being used to treat depression or read the original blog post, How a magnet can turn off speech.

If you liked this video, watch a magnetic ferrofluid perform a spiny ballet.

Source: http://feeds.newscientist.com/c/749/f/10897/s/1b56ceba/l/0L0Snewscientist0N0Cblogs0Cnstv0C20A110C120Cbest0Evideos0Eof0E20A110Emagnet0Eturns0Eoff0Espeech0Bhtml0DDCMP0FOTC0Erss0Gnsref0Fonline0Enews/story01.htm

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In This Chinese Killing Machine Beats An American Heart (The Truth About Cars)

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Source: http://wik.io/info/US/306667719

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Romney machine rights ship after Gingrich bump (Reuters)

TILTON, New Hampshire (Reuters) - ? Ten days before the first votes in the 2012 Republican presidential race, Mitt Romney's well-funded campaign machine has held off the most serious challenge to his White House bid and is keeping him near the top of the pack.

The denting of his main rival, Newt Gingrich, endorsements from respected Republicans and a series of well-received media interviews over the past couple of weeks have boosted the former Massachusetts governor's campaign.

The usually buttoned-down Romney also showed a lighter side with an appearance on Monday on comedian David Letterman's late-night talk show.

Gingrich had overtaken Romney in some Iowa polls earlier this month, but a wave of negative television ads by the Romney campaign and his political allies on the former U.S. House of Representatives speaker has righted the ship.

Restore Our Future, a super political action committee (PAC) fundraising committee formed in large part by close associates of Romney, has spent $2.6 million in the past two weeks on advertisements opposing Gingrich, whose lead in the polls in Iowa has melted.

Romney's failure to move above the 25 percent mark in national opinion polls throughout the year is a problem. But if Gingrich's support collapses in Iowa, which holds its nominating contest on January 3, Romney could have a respectable showing and pick up momentum going into the January 10 New Hampshire primary.

Texas Congressman Ron Paul holds a narrow lead over Romney in most Iowa polls, with Gingrich having slipped to third.

"Wonder why Gingrich's numbers are falling in Iowa? Romney (and Super PACs supporting him) are outspending Gingrich 34:1 this week," noted the Democratic strategy firm Anzalone Liszt Research.

Long-time Romney adviser Eric Fehrnstrom told Reuters that Romney's campaign, by far the best-funded among the Republican candidates, had been ready for a tough December.

"We always thought it would be more competitive and more intense as voting approaches," he said. "But we like the state of the race right now. Momentum is on our side."

Romney largely side-stepped a political capitulation by House Republicans this week over a two-month extension of a payroll tax cut, describing it as part of the "Congressional sausage-making process." And after looking shaky against Gingrich and Texas Governor Rick Perry in debates, Romney has refocused his attacks on President Barack Obama's economic record.

But some voters are starting to take issue with Romney's persistently bleak assessment of the U.S. economy, especially in New Hampshire where conditions are improving. Several small business people enthusiastically volunteered upbeat assessments of their companies this week.

"I think he used facts selectively," said Ken Allen, a restaurant manager from Northfield.

Morey Stettner of Portsmouth pointed out at a townhall meeting with Romney in Conway that the unemployment rate was falling. "The news every day is of a turnaround," Stettner said.

IOWA PUSH

Romney's team has been ambivalent all year toward Iowa. It did not, for example, participate in a straw poll in August that took the Republican presidential pulse of the conservative Midwest state.

However, an endorsement from Iowa's statewide newspaper, the Des Moines Register, has increased the incentive to go for a win there, while publicly keeping expectations low.

Romney has a solid organizational structure in the state that has held together since his first presidential bid in 2008 and he will campaign in some eight cities there over four days next week.

When Gingrich on Wednesday announced the support of House speakers from Iowa and New Hampshire, Romney's campaign fired back with endorsements from no less than seven former House speakers from the two states. He also won the backing of former President George H. W. Bush.

As much as Iowa seems a toss-up, New Hampshire is Romney's state to lose, and he needs to post a big win there to silence his critics and build momentum for other contests.

Polls in the New England state consistently show Romney up by double digits over Gingrich, Paul and former Utah Governor Jon Huntsman. A narrow victory for Romney, who owns a home in New Hampshire, could be spun by opponents as a defeat for him as the campaigns head to South Carolina.

"There have been elections in the past where a candidate has been a distance second, but won a moral victory," said Christopher Galdieri, a politics professor at Saint Anselm College in Manchester.

Former New Hampshire Governor John H. Sununu, a close Romney associate, often says that "Iowa picks corn. New Hampshire picks presidents." Sununu was constantly at Romney's side during this week's campaign swing through the Granite State.

"Yes, I am confident," Sununu told Reuters, referring to Romney's chances winning the state and continuing on to the nomination. "It all starts here. The numbers we are seeing are good numbers."

Even though no votes have been cast, pundits argue about what would benefit Romney most: quickly locking up the nomination so he can concentrate on the November election against Obama, or enduring a longer, bruising race that would battle-harden him.

Political observers have noted that Romney has bristled at times in television interviews, and can lose focus when challenged.

On Thursday night, at a town meeting in Conway, he sounded irritated and made a sweeping and risky promise to college student Kallie Durkit, who questioned whether Romney had answers for young Americans worried about the job market.

"What I can promise you is this - when you get out of college, if I'm president you'll have a job. If President Obama is re-elected, you will not be able to get a job," Romney said.

(Editing by Alistair Bell and Paul Simao)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/gop/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111227/pl_nm/us_usa_campaign_romney

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Now or never for workers as "Elvis" the croc strikes again (Reuters)

SYDNEY (Reuters) ? Two workers at a reptile park near Sydney were all shook up Wednesday, running for their lives when a 500 kg crocodile named Elvis suddenly lunged at them, making off with their lawnmower.

Five-meter long Elvis was already not exactly a hunk of burning love, having eaten two girlfriends at another crocodile park where he lived.

He struck again Wednesday, surging out of the water while the workers performed routine maintenance nearby.

"Elvis is quite a dangerous croc, he's a real firecracker," said Tim Faulkner, operations manager at the Australian Reptile Park at Gosford, about an hour's drive north of Sydney.

"He came flying out and before we knew it he had the mower in his mouth and he's taken it back into the water, dropping a couple of teeth in the process."

The cantankerous croc is believed to be between 40 and 60 years old -- more or less in his prime. He was captured near Darwin, in Australia's north, for attacking fishing boats.

Faulkner said it was not unknown for Elvis to chase workers around and that the lawnmower had become an important piece of equipment.

"We have a golden rule -- keep the mower between you and the croc," he said.

While the park workers were safe, the mower was damaged beyond repair, with puncture marks and a torn throttle. Lawrence said Elvis was likely to be hard to handle for a while.

"Crocodiles are real primitive creatures, they've got a real basic set of principles, and he's beaten us today," he said.

"For him, today, he's king of the jungle."

(Reporting by Pauline Askin; Editing by Elaine Lies and Paul Tait)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oceania/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111228/lf_nm_life/us_australia_crocodile

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Will Sandusky and wife talk to Oprah?

Mario Anzuoni / Reuters file

Will Oprah Winfrey land an interview with Jerry Sandusky and his wife?

By Gael Fashingbauer Cooper

Many observers were shocked when Jerry Sandusky, the retired Penn State football coach charged with dozens of counts of child sexual abuse, spoke to Bob Costas on NBC's "Rock Center" in November.

Jon Stewart even did a "Daily Show" segment questioning what Sandusky's lawyer, Joe Amendola, could have been thinking. "It seems to me when you're accused of one of the most heinous crimes imaginable, you may not want to literally phone in your defense on national television," Stewart wryly pointed out.

But Sandusky may not be done speaking to famous reporters. The Harrisburg Patriot-News reported that Amendola told them that Sandusky and his wife Dottie may do another interview after the new year, and that they're considering speaking to talk queen Oprah Winfrey, returning to "Rock Center," or speaking with Barbara Walters or "60 Minutes."

Winfrey especially would be an interesting choice, as she's famous for celebrity interviews. Although her famed self-titled talk show ended in May, the interview would be a coup for her lesser-known OWN channel. Winfrey is debuting a new primetime talk show, "Oprah's Next Chapter," on?Jan. 1, with Aerosmith rocker Steven Tyler as her first guest. What better way to get the show's name known than to land a guest who's all over the news, even if for the wrong reasons?

Sandusky's wife has staunchly defended her husband, saying Dec. 8 that "I continue to believe in Jerry?s innocence and all the good things he has done."

In one recent indictment, Dottie Sandusky was specifically mentioned. According to the Patriot-News, one victim claims he screamed for help while being assaulted in the Sanduskys' basement, knowing that Dottie was upstairs, but no help came. Dottie Sandusky responded to those claims in a statement, saying "I have been devastated by these accusations. I am also angry about these false accusations that such a terrible incident ever occurred in my home."

Costas told Willie Geist that the "Rock Center" interview was supposed to be just with Amendola, but that at the last minute, the attorney asked if Costas would like to speak to his client directly.

Perhaps the oddest part of the interview came when Sandusky was asked if he was sexually attracted to young boys. First Sandusky repeated the question, then gave a rambling answer, saying "Sexually attracted? You know, I enjoy young people. I love to be around them. I ... but, no, I am not sexually attracted to young boys."

Joked Stewart?about that answer: "?"Everyone knows the only time when you answer with a question is when you're guilty. You can't even bring yourself to lie emphatically. It's like in that phone conversation you're fighting the urge to come clean."

?Should Sandusky and his wife speak out in another national interview? Who should they speak to? Tell us on Facebook.

Related content:

Also in The Clicker:

Source: http://theclicker.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/12/28/9768565-will-sandusky-and-wife-talk-to-oprah

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All eyes on German renewable energy efforts (AP)

FELDHEIM, Germany ? This tiny village of 37 gray homes and farm buildings clustered along the main road in a wind-swept corner of rural eastern Germany seems an unlikely place for a revolution.

Yet environmentalists, experts and politicians from El Salvador to Japan to South Africa have flocked here in the past year to learn how Feldheim, a village of just 145 people, is already putting into practice Germany's vision of a future powered entirely by renewable energy.

Chancellor Angela Merkel's government passed legislation in June setting the country on course to generate a third of its power through renewable sources ? such as wind, solar, geothermal and bioenergy ? within a decade, reaching 80 percent by 2050, while creating jobs, increasing energy security and reducing harmful emissions.

The goals are among the world's most ambitious, and expensive, and other industrialized nations from the U.S. to Japan are watching to see whether transforming into a nation powered by renewable energy sources can really work.

"Germany can't afford to fail, because the whole world is looking at the German model and asking, can Germany move us to new business models, new infrastructure?," said Jeremy Rifkin, a U.S. economist who has advised the European Union and Merkel.

In June, the nation passed the 20 percent mark for drawing electric power from a mix of wind, solar and other renewables. That compares with about 9 percent in the United States or Japan ? both of which rely heavily on hydroelectric power, an energy source that has long been used.

Expanding renewables depends on the right mix of resources, as well as government subsidies and investment incentive ? and a willingness by taxpayers to shoulder their share of the burden. Germans currently pay a 3.5 euro cent per kilowatt-hour tax, roughly euro157 ($205) per year for a typical family of four, to support research and investment in and subsidize the production and consumption of energy from renewable sources.

That allows for homeowners who install solar panels on their rooftops, or communities like Feldheim that build their own biogas plants, to be paid above-market prices for selling back to the grid, to ensure that their investment at least breaks even.

Critics, like the Institute for Energy Research, based in Washington, D.C., maintain such tariffs put an unfair burden of expanding renewables squarely on the taxpayer. At the same time, to make renewable energy work on the larger scale, Germany will have to pour billions into infrastructure, including updating its grid.

Key to success of the transformation will be getting the nation's powerful industries on board, to drive innovation in technology and create jobs. According to the Environment Ministry, overall investment in renewable energy production equipment more than doubled to euro29.4 billion ($38.44 billion) in 2011. Solid growth in the sector is projected through the next decade.

Some 370,000 people in Germany now have jobs in the renewable sector, more than double the number in 2004, a point used as proof that tax payers' investment is paying off.

Feldheim has zero unemployment ? despite its tiny size ? compared with roughly 30 percent in other villages in the economically depressed state of Brandenburg, which views investments in renewables as a ticket for a brighter future. Most residents work in the plant that produces biogas ? fuel made by the breakdown of organic material such as plants or food waste ? or maintain the wind and solar parks that provide the village's electricity.

"The energy revolution is already taking place right here," says Werner Frohwitter, spokesman for the Energiequelle company that helped set up and run Feldheim's energy concept.

But it's not only in the country. Earlier this month in Berlin, officials unveiled a prototype of a self-sustaining, energy-efficient home, built from recycled materials and complete with electric vehicles that can be charged in its garage.

The aim of the prototype home is to produce twice as much energy as is used by a family of four ? chosen from a willing pool of volunteers who will be selected to live in the home for 15 months ? through a combination of solar photovoltaics and energy management technology, in order to show the technology already exists to allow people to be energy self-sufficient.

"We want to show people that already today it is possible to live completely from renewable energy," said German Transport Minister Peter Ramsauer as the project, dubbed "Efficiency House Plus," was unveiled. The house is part of a wider euro1.2 million ($1.57 million) project investing in energy-efficient buildings.

"The Efficiency House Plus will set standards that can be adopted by the majority in the short term," Ramsauer told The Associated Press. "The basic principle is that the house produces more energy than needed to live. The extra energy is then used to charge electric-powered cars and bicycles or sold back to the public grid."

Germany's four leading car makers are also participating in the project with BMW AG, Daimler AG, Volkswagen AG and Opel, which is part of Buick's parent company, General Motors Co., each making an E-car for use by in the home.

Such strong cooperation between Germany's industrial sector coupled with a political landscape that emphasizes stability and a heightened public ecological sensibility makes Germany fertile ground to lead the way in the transformation from a post-carbon economy to one run on renewable energy.

"Germany has the most robust industrial economy per capita. When you talk about industrial revolution, that's Germany. It's German technology, it's German IT, it's German commutation," said Rifkin, who outlines what he calls the "The Third Industrial Revolution," in a newly released book of the same title that explains how the economies in the future could swap fossil fuels for renewable energies and still maintain growth.

Robert Pottmann, an asset manager with Munich Re, one of the world's biggest reinsurers, says the company seeks to invest about euro2.5 billion ($3.27 billion) in the next few years in renewable energy assets such as "wind farms, solar projects or maybe new electricity grids."

Alan Simpson, an independent energy and climate adviser from Britain who visited Feldheim as part of a wider tour of Germany last month to see what the renewable revolution looks like up close said it was inspiring to view what is being accomplished on the ground.

"It's great to think about Germany delivering on everything that we are being told in Great Britain is impossible," Simpson said.

Amid the excitement, there is also an awareness of the real need for the German experiment to succeed.

"If Germany can't pull this off," said Rifkin. "We don't have a plan B."

___

Associated Press writer Juergen Baetz contributed to this story from Berlin.

___

On the Internet:

Feldheim: http://www.neue-energien-forum-feldheim.de/

German Renewable Energy Agency: http://www.unendlich-viel-energie.de/en/homepage.html

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111229/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_germany_making_renewables_work

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North Africa: Ambassador - Egypt, Algeria Keen to Settle Syrian Crisis

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Egypt State Information Service (Cairo)

23 December 2011

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Egypt and Algeria are very aware of the dangers besetting Syria and the entire world and that is why they are trying to find a way-out that would cause the least possible damage to Syria, Egypt's Ambassador to Algeria Ezzel Din Fahmi said.

Fahmi told El-Bilad newspaper on Thursday 22/12/2011 that Algeria and Egypt are trying to convince the Assad regime of the importance of giving the Arab League a chance to reach a solution to the crisis.

He warned that any military interference in Syria would have more serious effects than that of Libya "because all Libyans were against the Gaddafi regime but in Syria we have different denominations and any military action would inflame the entire region".

As for Egypt, he denied there was any disagreement between the military council and the Muslim Brotherhood as regards the formation of the advisory council, saying both are working for the sake of Egypt.

AllAfrica - All the Time

More News on allAfrica.com

---

Source: http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?r5668080537

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'Prometheus' Trailer's 'Alien' Mystery Is Intentional, Says Damon Lindelof

The "Prometheus" trailer didn't exactly clear up the question of whether or not this is an "Alien" prequel ? no direct sightings of the Xenomorph, no, but the Space Jockey is very clearly involved and the "Alien"-esque arrival of the "Prometheus" logo practically oozes acid for blood.

That continued confusion won't be going away anytime [...]

Source: http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2011/12/27/prometheus-trailer-damon-lindelof/

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Wacky rules complicate race for GOP delegates

This frame grab from video shows Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaking during a campaign stop at Elly's Tea and Coffee in Muscatine, Iowa, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Robert Ray)

This frame grab from video shows Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaking during a campaign stop at Elly's Tea and Coffee in Muscatine, Iowa, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Robert Ray)

Republican Presidential candidate, Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn. waves after making a campaign stop at the Nodaway Diner, Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2011, in Greenfield, Iowa. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

Republican presidential candidate, Texas Gov. Rick Perry laughs during a campaign stop at the Westside Conservative Club breakfast,Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2011, in Urbandale, Iowa. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Look out for some whacky results in the race for delegates in the Republican presidential primaries and caucuses. There might even be a state or two where the second-place candidate gets the most delegates, starting with Tuesday's caucuses in Iowa.

New GOP rules require states that hold nominating contests before April to award delegates proportionally. That usually means a candidate who gets 40 percent of the vote gets 40 percent of the delegates. But not always.

The rules give states a lot of leeway to define proportional, and some states have been pretty creative. For example, in Ohio, the candidate who gets the most votes in each congressional district wins three delegates. Ohio has 16 congressional districts based on the latest census, so 48 delegates will be awarded this way.

An additional 15 delegates will be awarded proportionally, based on statewide results. Candidates must get at least 20 percent of the statewide vote to qualify for these delegates. Under this system, it is possible in a close race for a candidate to narrowly win the most congressional districts ? and the most delegates ? but come in second in the overall statewide vote, said Bob Bennett, a member of the Republican National Committee from Ohio.

Early on, battles over small numbers of delegates won't get much attention because candidates are more concerned about winning contests and building momentum. But if the race continues into late spring, like the 2008 battle between Democrats Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton, delegate totals become much more important.

A tight race could draw a lot of scrutiny over obscure issues like this: If you qualify for 7.5 delegates under a proportional allocation, do you round up to eight or round down to seven? (In Ohio and other states you round up to eight. In Nevada, which is holding GOP caucuses Feb. 4, party officials are still working on those details.)

"All these rules are important in close races," Bennett said. "If you have a blowout, a sure winner, they don't matter as much."

In most national polls, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich are the front-runners for the GOP nomination. In Iowa, Rep. Ron Paul of Texas also is polling well, raising the possibility of a split vote.

The Iowa caucuses on Tuesday begin the process in that state that will result in 25 delegates being selected for the national convention. At the caucuses, voters will cast ballots in a presidential straw poll, and those results will get the most attention on election night.

Caucus-goers also will elect delegates to county conventions, who in turn will elect delegates to congressional district conventions and the state party convention in June. These are the conventions where delegates to the GOP national convention in Tampa, Fla., are selected.

Each of the four congressional districts will elect three delegates to the national convention. They will also appoint two members to a slate committee, which will choose 13 additional delegates. The slate is voted on at the party's state convention in June.

The system puts a premium on getting the most votes in individual congressional districts. If a candidate's supporters can control a congressional district convention, they can choose national delegates and slate committee members who support their candidate.

In a tight, three-way race, it is possible for a candidate to narrowly win two of the four congressional districts ? putting him or her in position to win the most delegates ? but come in second in overall votes statewide.

"The delegates are going to reflect the division within the party itself," said John Ryder, a member of the Republican National Committee from Tennessee who chaired the panel that wrote the new proportional rule. "The end result is nobody comes out of a proportional state with a clear mandate, unless of course they do, which would only happen if a candidate generates commanding support among Republican voters."

A total of 2,286 delegates are slated to attend the Republican National Convention in August, and 1,144 will be needed to claim the nomination, according to the Republican National Committee. No candidate can reach that total before April, though a dominant front-runner could build a commanding lead by then.

In the meantime, the primary calendar is full of quirks. South Carolina (Jan. 21), and Florida (Jan. 31), will award all their delegates to the candidate who gets the most votes, even though they are holding their contests before April. Both states already lost half their delegates for holding early contests, so the state parties decided to make them winner-take-all. The RNC says there are no additional penalties for violating the proportional rules.

Michigan's plan for awarding delegates is very similar to Ohio's. But Michigan, which holds its primary Feb. 28, lost half its delegates because it scheduled its primary before March 6, also known as Super Tuesday. GOP rules allow only four states to hold nominating contests before Super Tuesday: Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina. And those states weren't supposed to schedule contests before February.

Michigan started with 59 delegates, but now has only 30. Nevertheless, party officials plan to award 56 delegates based on the primary (the other three will be the state's RNC members), and simply reduce each candidate's total by half. That poses several problems: Half of 56 isn't quite 30, and what if a candidate wins 25 delegates? Do they get 12 or 13? GOP rules don't allow fractions of delegates.

"We'll work that out once we get closer to choosing the delegates who will go," said Matt Frendewey, spokesman for the Michigan Republican Party.

___

Lauren Johnert, Associated Press deputy manager for election research and quality control, contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2011-12-28-GOP%20Delegates/id-919743dcb05c4d0f92fb48e7ace53538

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Emile Faurie Lecture Demonstration at Bishop Burton College

Wednesday 21 December 2011

Top International Dressage Rider and Trainer Emile Faurie will be holding a lecture demonstration evening at Bishop Burton College on Friday 3rd February 2012.?

Tickets cost ?25 in advance or ?30 on the door (subject to availability).

Doors open at 6.30pm and performance starts at 7.00pm.

Refreshments available.

comments:

Source: http://www.horsemart.co.uk/news.php?id=2872

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[OOC] Day By Day

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I've roamed the wild country
My beautiful blue eyes,
Side by side we've hunted
Shadows dancing on northern skies.

The wolf is a symbol,
a sister, a friend.
it?s time now for action
before her existence comes to an end.

Moonbow

Member for 0 years

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Readers Write (Dec. 27): Troops, nature, Mark Trail

TROOPS COMING HOME

Help is available if they should need it

?

Our troops are coming home! Let's hope they can find jobs in this perilous economy. The evidence suggests that many will return with emotional problems, some diagnosed but many not.

An example may be the recent story of Alan Sylte, who, according to court documents, shot a Lake City, Minn., police officer following an altercation with a woman ("Shooter was Iraq vet facing discharge," Dec. 21).

There have already been many examples of psychological stress in Minnesota, and there will be more, as the loyal and capable young men and women we've paid to defend (and kill for) our country come home to a lifestyle far different from what they've become accustomed to.

Some will adjust quickly; for others, the memories will haunt them to their graves, as has happened with Vietnam, Korea and World War II vets.

Can anything be done to ease the nightmares, the anxiety, the sense of futility which results from spending years of your life "on edge," not knowing whether you shall be alive the next day?

The Veterans Administration appears to be doing the best it can, but it will soon be overwhelmed by numbers -- there is always money to build the machines, train the soldiers and fight the war, but money seems always lacking to care properly for the physically and emotionally wounded as they return from battle.

The problem is made more difficult by the reluctance of our warriors to seek help for their emotional issues, lest they be considered weak by their comrades and superior officers.

Men and women of the military, it is possible to resume a normal civilian life, if you are willing to risk, take courage in hand and seek quality help.

You do not need to live the rest of your life as though you were still in battle. Check your VA office; call a therapist. There is help available. You owe it to your family and loved ones.

CHARLES REINERT, TRACY, MINN.

*?*?*

BIRDS AND WIND FARMS

Nature in its raw form is no picnic, either

?

It is amazing to me that so many uninformed well-meaning people want to protect all of the wildlife on the planet. Even a short course in ecology would help these people see that nature does a much better job of taking care of its own.

The controversy surrounding a Goodhue County wind farm is a classic example ("Wind farm tensions flare over eagle study," Dec. 17).

Yes, there is always a chance that a bird such as an eagle will be hit by a turbine blade, but the notion that stopping the project will somehow further protect the bald eagle from extinction is ludicrous.

In the 1960s, eagles were near extinction from another man-made product that no one was protesting, DDT. It took a well-researched and beautifully written book by Rachel Carson to draw attention to the connection between DDT and predatory birds' poor hatching success.

Today, bald eagles are thriving and in many areas are actually too numerous, because in our efforts to bring them back from the brink, we humans have overprotected them.

I would ask the protesters who are dragging animal carcasses to the Goodhue site in the hope of attracting eagles to come with me to northern Wisconsin and witness an adult bald eagle attacking, drowning, then eating an adult loon on the shore of a lake.

Or, if that's not evidence enough, we'll visit the site of a downed tree containing a years-old eagle's nest littered with the collars of small dogs and cats.

BOB GIBBS, MINNETONKA

*?*?*

SPEAKING OF WILDLIFE ...

In letter, 'Mark Trail' was misunderstood

?

I was puzzled by the Dec. 17 letter writer who questioned "continued inaccuracies in the portrayal of wildlife" in the comic strip "Mark Trail." The strip has never been as simple as this literal interpretation.

Each day readers are commissioned to reflect on its multidimensional meaning. "Mark Trail" is America's story -- one of intense philosophical searching (Lost Forest), one of temptation and lust (Kelly Welly), and one of purity and ultimate redemption (Trail's companions Cherry, Doc, Rusty and, most important, his dog and best friend, Andy).

Were the wolves in the strip referred to by the letter writer wrongly portrayed as hungry, vicious killers? A thousand times no! Are angry wolves a metaphor for the conflict and strife that resides in all of us?

Perhaps they are to be seen as Mother Nature beating the tar out of a domesticated bear, who attempts to exploit her womb? Perhaps the meaning is Old Testament: Paradise Valley in jeopardy from the lecherous Eve-figure Kelly Welly's quest for fame.

These are struggles we all must face. The writer belittles "Mark Trail" with his narrow analysis. I say go back to the strip and look again. Find the wilderness that you have misplaced.

MARTY SCRIBBLE, MINNEAPOLIS

? ? ?

Really? The letter writer is getting tired of "Mark Trail" due to its continued inaccuracies in the portrayal of wildlife?

Perhaps the writer doesn't fully understand that a comic strip, by definition, is a cartoon telling a humorous or adventurous story. If the writer doesn't enjoy a certain comic strip, one might suggest reading only the ones that provide personal amusement.

Looking at a recent comics page, there were four talking dogs, a talking spider, a talking pig, talking birds and two talking cats, not to mention a newborn with a mustache and glasses.

RANDY JENSEN, MINNETONKA

Source: http://www.startribune.com/opinion/letters/136164313.html

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Oil Dispute Illustrates Risks of Work in Iraq Fields

The turmoil in Iraq after the U.S, troop withdrawal is extending to its vital petroleum industry.

The U.S. oil giant Exxon Mobil and its partners are embroiled in a $50 million payment dispute with the Iraqi government over an oil field in southeastern Iraq that the companies are improving and modernizing. The Shiite-led government of Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki is also unhappy with Exxon over a separate development deal that the company struck with the leaders of the semiautonomous Kurdistan region in northern Iraq.

The Iraqi government's failure to pay Exxon, the only American oil company operating in southern Iraq, for nearly two years of work underscores the perils for Western companies seeking to do business there. The government has not explained why it has withheld the payments.

A perception that the Iraqi government will not honor its oil contracts could also send ripples beyond Iraq to international markets worried about disruptions in petroleum supplies. Iraq is expected to increase oil production faster than any other country in the next 25 years, reaching a capacity of five million barrels of oil a day by 2035, more than traditional leaders like Saudi Arabia, according to the International Energy Agency.

''The international oil companies are putting in the capital and expertise,'' said Alex Munton, a Middle East analyst for Wood Mackenzie, a research and consulting firm based in Edinburgh. ''They need to recover their costs and get a profit margin on top. For it to work, they have to be paid what they are due.

''It would certainly serve Iraq's interests well to have that contract working smoothly,'' he added.

Exxon's 2009 deal with the Iraqi government to improve production in the West Qurna 1 field was never expected to be lucrative under the best of circumstances. The government had agreed to pay Exxon and its partners $1.90 for each additional barrel of oil they pumped after refurbishing the already producing field. The fees would barely be enough to cover the companies' costs. Other deals between Iraq and foreign oil companies had similar terms.

International oil contracts are more typically structured to compensate companies with a percentage from sales or a share of production that takes into account the fluctuating price of oil, so that they can be more profitable for the companies when prices rise.

Western oil companies, shut out of Iraq's oil fields for decades under the government of Saddam Hussein, were willing to do the low-profit, technical service deals to get a foot in the door with the new government that was put in place after the American-led invasion in 2003. Only a few dozen of Iraq's 80 or so discovered fields are in production, and the government has suggested that it would give more lucrative agreements later to companies that helped the country early on.

For most of the nearly nine-year war, American government advisers aided Iraqi ministries in negotiating and fulfilling contracts. That activity tapered off as Iraq assumed more sovereignty. President Barack Obama, during a meeting this month with Mr. Maliki in Washington, said Iraq was now a country ''sovereign, self-reliant and democratic.''

Exxon and its minority partners in the project - which include the English-Dutch oil giant Royal Dutch Shell - increased output in the West Qurna 1 field by more than 10 percent by last March. That was the trigger point for the Iraqi government to begin paying the companies for their work.

But the payments have not been made, according to Hans Nijkamp, Shell's country manager for Iraq.

''There are a lot of admin-type issues that we're working through with the government,'' Mr. Nijkamp said during an interview.

He said Shell did not believe that the delays were deliberate and that the issues would eventually be resolved.

An Exxon Mobil spokesman declined to comment, saying the company had a policy of not discussing commercial matters.

The Iraqi government awarded 11 oil and natural gas contracts for fields at auctions beginning in 2008. Two other consortiums that won deals and have since raised output more than 10 percent - those led by BP of Britain and Eni of Italy - have been compensated.

BP said that, together with partners, it had been paid in kind in oil. Eni is also taking crude as payment.

Western oil service companies, including the U.S. giants Halliburton and Baker Hughes, have also made substantial profits working in Iraqi oil fields.

Mr. Nijkamp said that Shell was working to smooth over the flaws in its Iraqi technical service contracts before another field it was developing, Majnoon, entered commercial production by the end of next year.

''We're working with South Oil Co. and the Oil Ministry to get the invoicing process up to scratch until then,'' he said.

Faisal Abdullah, a spokesman for the deputy prime minister of Iraq in charge of energy, Hussain al-Shahristani, confirmed during an interview in Baghdad in November that the government owed a payment to the Exxon-led consortium, but he did not characterize it as late.

''Exxon has increased output and a small amount of money has not been paid,'' Mr. Abdullah said. He said the government had not paid Exxon about $50 million, a figure that roughly conforms with estimates by Western oil analysts.

Mr. Abdullah described the delay in paying the largest oil company of America as bureaucratic and unrelated to the dispute over exploration contracts in Kurdistan that Exxon signed in November.

But that deal has caused great consternation. The central government considers deals in Kurdistan illegal. Without an oil law to split petroleum wealth, these agreements are worsening an already poisonous ethnic divide between Kurds and Arabs, officials in Baghdad said.

Mr. Abdullah said that Exxon executives had expressed concerns to officials in Baghdad about the profitability of the West Qurna 1 contract before striking the deal in Kurdistan, suggesting that the company, based in Texas, was dissatisfied with the deal.

Iraqi officials say they cautioned Exxon not to sign the deal in Kurdistan, even as they were apparently withholding payment for the work in the south.

Ali al-Fayadh, the deputy chairman of the oil committee in the Iraqi Parliament, said during an interview in his Baghdad office that the government was considering banning Exxon from working in southern Iraq because the company had signed the deal in Kurdistan.

A decision has not yet been made, Mr. Fayadh said. The government could prohibit Exxon from participating in future auctions or end its contract for West Qurna 1, he said.

If that happened, it would mean the only major U.S. oil company operating in Iraq would be expelled on the heels of the U.S. military's departure.

Oil companies are expected to invest $150 billion in Iraq in the next decade. The payment delay to the Exxon coalition highlights the quandary they face. Though eager to gain access to reserves estimated at 115 billion barrels, among the largest in the world, companies are required to invest large sums with only tiny early returns and major risks.

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Source: http://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=113647&rss=true

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Adam Lambert Celebrates Christmas with Sauli Koskinen

Drunken fight and arrest? What drunken fight and arrest?!?

A few days after Adam Lambert and Sauli Koskinen were both arrested in Finland due to a brawl on the street, the singer - who has expressed embarrassment and regret over the incident - and his boyfriend appear to be on great terms again.

Just consider this photo on Lambert's Who Says page:

Adam included the following caption with the pic:

“Xmas Eve with the Koskinens! Just had a huge traditional Finnish feast and now opening gifts! Merry and bright! Hyvää ja rauhallista joulua!”

And Hyvää ja rauhallista joulua to you, as well.

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2011/12/adam-lambert-celebrates-christmas-with-sauli-koskinen/

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FBI joins search for missing Indiana girl

This undated photo provided by the Allen County Sheriff's Department shows Aliahna Lemmon. Numerous police officers and others are searching in Fort Wayne, Ind., for Lemmon, 9, who was last seen the morning of Friday, Dec. 23, 2011. Allen County Sheriff's Department Cpl. Jeremy Tinkel says investigators have no indication that Lemmon was abducted or what might have happened to her. (AP Photo/Allen County Sheriff's Department)

This undated photo provided by the Allen County Sheriff's Department shows Aliahna Lemmon. Numerous police officers and others are searching in Fort Wayne, Ind., for Lemmon, 9, who was last seen the morning of Friday, Dec. 23, 2011. Allen County Sheriff's Department Cpl. Jeremy Tinkel says investigators have no indication that Lemmon was abducted or what might have happened to her. (AP Photo/Allen County Sheriff's Department)

During an interview Sunday, Dec. 25, 2011 Amber Story, left, Tarah's mom, and Tarah Souders talk about Tarah's daughter Aliahna Lemmon, 9, who is missing since Friday in Fort Wayne, Ind. (AP Photo/The Journal Gazette, Cathie Rowand)

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (AP) ? The FBI joined the search for a missing 9-year-old Indiana girl with physical and emotional problems Monday as agents descended on the mobile home park where she lived and that's a known haven for registered sex offenders.

About a half-dozen people in black windbreakers, several of whom identified themselves as FBI agents, were at the mobile home park Monday where Aliahna Lemmon went missing from a family friend's home on Friday. Some with search dogs were seen at a nearby storage facility.

Monday's renewed search came a day after local police declined to search Sunday. Allen County sheriff's department officials also originally had not planned to search Monday either, unless new leads arose through tips from the public or interviews, Cpl. Jeremy Tinkel, a department spokesman, said earlier in the day.

Local police haven't said what they think happened to Aliahna.

Meanwhile, agents at the scene Monday wouldn't say why the FBI was involved. An agency spokesman didn't immediately return phone calls and e-mails seeking comment.

More than 100 emergency workers conducted an extensive search Saturday for Aliahna around the rundown mobile home park on Fort Wayne's north side where she was last seen. No active search was done Sunday for the girl.

According to a state website, 15 registered sex offenders live at the mobile home park that numbers about two dozen homes.

Elizabeth Watkins, 52, who has lived at the park for six months with her 4-year-old granddaughter, said it's well-known that several sex offenders live in the neighborhood.

"It's scary," she said. "I don't know how a parent could leave their child alone."

Aliahna's mother, Tarah Souders, 28, told The Journal Gazette her daughter has vision and hearing problems and suffers from attention deficit disorder and emotional problems. She also has a history of sleepwalking, family members said.

Aliahna and her sisters were staying at a family friend's nearby home because their mother had been sick with the flu and Aliahna's stepfather works at night and sleeps during the day, The Journal Gazette reported Monday.

Mike Plumadore, 39, told the newspaper Sunday that he left the three girls in his mobile home about 6 a.m. Friday and went to a gas station about a mile away to buy a cigar. Authorities have said the store's surveillance video shows him there about that time.

"I had deadbolted the door," he said. "When I got back, all the girls was here."

He said he smoked his cigar and went back to sleep, then woke up about 10 a.m. when Aliahna's mother called. After that call, he realized the door to the home was unlocked and that Aliahna was gone. He said Aliahna's sisters, both 6 years old, told him that Aliahna had left with her mom.

Plumadore said it wasn't until he talked with Aliahna's mom about 8:30 p.m. that they realized she was missing and police were notified.

Plumadore is not listed on the state's website that lists registered sex offenders.

Tarah Souders said miscommunication between the two of them caused the delay in determining that Aliahna had vanished.

"She's never wandered off," Souders said. "She's never done anything like this before."

But Aliahna does have a history of sleepwalking, even unlocking doors and going outside while sleeping, said her grandmother, Amber Story.

"I just hope that she's not suffering or in pain," Story said.

Souders said her daughter also has vision and hearing problems and suffers from attention deficit disorder and emotional problems.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/apdefault/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2011-12-26-Indiana-Missing%20Girl/id-dcbd46e60aea49b395436975ac4ebd08

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