Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- February 12, 2014

<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/YOil6Yh25_E" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Pakistan Kneels To The Taliban -- Myra MacDonald, War On The Rocks </b></span></div><br />Pakistan has been in a state of perpetual crisis for so long that it can be easy to miss the periodic lurches that bring it closer to state collapse. One such step-change is underway now, triggered by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s decision to hold talks with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). Even for a country that has history of pulling itself back from the brink, this particular lurch downwards is one of the more alarming in years.<br /><br />At issue is not the talks per se, but the form they are taking, which is legitimising and emboldening the TTP. It is also the context. Sharif’s approach to the talks has raised suspicions that he is interested only in protecting Punjab, Pakistan’s biggest province and his political heartland. That in turn has exacerbated ethnic divisions, undermining further the authority and the integrity of the state. The TTP and their allies – who are demanding the imposition of their form of sharia across Pakistan – are positioning themselves to fill the vacuum.<br /><br /><b><a href="http://warontherocks.com/2014/02/pakistan-kneels-to-the-taliban/">Read more </a></b>....<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials</b></span></div><br /><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/syria-39-homs-evacuee-tells-life-under-siege-193324080.html">Syria's Homs: Evacuee tells of life under siege</a> -- Diaa Hadid, AP<br /><br /><a href="http://www.centerforsecuritypolicy.org/2014/02/10/the-bitter-results-of-middle-east-failure/">The bitter results of Middle East failure</a> -- Adm. James "Ace" Lyons (Ret.), Center For Security Policy<br /><br /><a href="http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/02/hamid-karzai-afghanistan-103330.html?ml=m_t2_2h#.UvwAKYW0ykN">What Is Hamid Karzai Thinking?</a> -- Peter Tomsen, Politico<br /><br /><a href="http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2014/02/12/217913/hostilities-seen-as-unlikely-between.html">Hostilities seen as unlikely between China, Taiwan; agreement, too</a> -- Stuart Leavenworth, McClatchy<br /><br /><a href="http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Asia-Pacific/2014/0212/Rival-Koreas-are-talking-again.-What-are-they-saying">Rival Koreas are talking again. What are they saying?</a> -- Donald Kirk, Christian Science Monitor<br /><br /><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-japan-china-pr-idUSBREA1B24520140212">Japan on backfoot in global PR war with China after Abe shrine visit </a>-- Linda Sieg and Ben Blanchard, Reuters<br /><br /><a href="http://blogs.reuters.com/ian-bremmer/2014/02/11/is-the-china-japan-relationship-at-its-worst/">Is the China-Japan relationship ‘at its worst’?</a> -- Ian Bremmer, Reuters<br /><br /><a href="http://www.realclearworld.com/articles/2014/02/12/obama_turns_a_blind_eye_to_the_russian_rogue_state_110285.html">Obama Turns a Blind Eye to the Russian Rogue State</a> -- Rebeccah Heinrichs, Real Clear World<br /><br /><a href="http://www.thenation.com/article/178344/distorting-russia#">Distorting Russia: How the American media misrepresent Putin, Sochi and Ukraine.</a> -- Stephen F. Cohen, The Nation<br /><br /><a href="http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/yanukovych-waffles-as-ukraine-protests-continue-a-952586.html">Dithering in Kiev: Russia Begins to Lose Patience with Ukraine</a> -- Christian Neef, Spiegel Online<br /><br /><a href="http://www.smh.com.au/comment/poll-shock-as-swiss-vote-to-slam-the-door-shut-20140210-32cpx.html">Poll shock as Swiss vote to slam the door shut </a>-- Peter Hartcher, Sydney Morning Herald<br /><br /><a href="http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Europe/2014/0212/How-Greece-s-economic-crisis-filled-the-Athens-sky-with-smog">How Greece's economic crisis filled the Athens sky with smog</a> -- Nikolia Apostolou, Christian Science Monitor<br /><br /><a href="http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/ad524ca8-9031-11e3-a776-00144feab7de.html#axzz2t16M2Tgm">The Threat of Another Euro Crisis</a> -- Gideon Rachman, Financial Times<br /><br /><a href="http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2014/02/12/press-freedom-index-dose-of-reality/#more-841531">Press Freedom Index Dose of Reality </a>-- Michael Rubin, Commentary<br /><br /><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/feb/10/orwell-hero-terrorism-syria-british-fighters-damned">Orwell was hailed a hero for fighting in Spain. Today he'd be guilty of terrorism</a> -- George Monbiot, The Guardian

Commentaries, Opinions, And Editorials -- February 12, 2014

Pakistan Kneels To The Taliban -- Myra MacDonald, War On The Rocks Pakistan has been in a state of perpetual crisis for so long that it can ...

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This Plant Makes Music! (BLOG)

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIc2GAIj-oy5yIw8OBSQioQzDt1aUL7eE4f7Gc0qc-iPWp4MqLblbJi_psA0HhFgU88XR3GGZEg7bT09khpH8kKz9SqjSgzsFbILrYZhUlsV73hqpJ8Cd9hoQYnQ-tYQPQN8NIxE3Iwow/s1600/botanicus-sliding-gesture.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIc2GAIj-oy5yIw8OBSQioQzDt1aUL7eE4f7Gc0qc-iPWp4MqLblbJi_psA0HhFgU88XR3GGZEg7bT09khpH8kKz9SqjSgzsFbILrYZhUlsV73hqpJ8Cd9hoQYnQ-tYQPQN8NIxE3Iwow/s1600/botanicus-sliding-gesture.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_62776" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The Magic Kingdom is synonymous with Walt Disney World, but that name could easily stand in for Disney Research Pittsburgh, a Disney-owned research facility in -- you guessed it -- Pittsburgh.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_62815" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">To see why, look no further than one of the lab’s latest creations: a musical plant.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_62825" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Called the “Botanicus Interacticus,” this sonorous plant emits a harp-like melody when its petals are touched. How? By placing an electrode in the plant’s soil, engineers can map a hundred different frequencies around the plant.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_62835" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">When someone sweeps those frequencies by touching the plant, a computer connected to the electrode registers the touch and translates it into musical notes that play out from a speaker. This would also work on any conductive object, including a human being.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_62845" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Music just seemed like an appropriate output for this technology, explained Jessica Hodgins, Disney Lab Pittsburgh’s director: “It could be be triggering computer graphics, a light show, or any other kind of signal.”</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_62855" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Hodgins shrouded the lab’s mission in secrecy. She would only divulge that they conduct R&D for Disney’s amusement parks and its consumer products. Full disclosure: ABC News is owned by the Walt Disney Company.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_62888" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Regardless of its eventual use, the musical plan demands to be heard now. Watch the video above to hear its beautiful melodies. What would you play on its petals?</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_62888" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;"><br /></div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_62888" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">VIDEO: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/this-could-be-big-abc-news/plant-makes-music-003803746.html</div>

This Plant Makes Music! (BLOG)

The Magic Kingdom is synonymous with Walt Disney World, but that name could easily stand in for Disney Research Pittsburgh, a Disney-owned r...

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World News Briefs -- February 12, 2014 (Evening Edition)

<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/LkDj5X22Y9M" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Fighting Rages In Syria Despite Peace Talks -- Al Jazeera</b></span></div><br />Warplanes pound rebel-held town amid reports of death toll peaking on the ground as Geneva talks continue.<br /><br />Syrian warplanes have pounded a rebel-held town near the Lebanese border, as peace talks between the government and opposition continued in Geneva.<br /><br />The talks have been accompanied by a sharp rise in violence on the ground in Syria. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Wednesday that at least 4,959 people had died in Syria in the three-week period since January 22, when the first round of talks began in Switzerland.<br /><br />The group, which documents the fighting on the ground through a wide network of activists, say the period has seen the highest death toll since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad started in March 2011.<br /><br /><b><a href="http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2014/02/fighting-rages-syria-despite-peace-talks-201421215161928169.html">Read more</a></b> ....<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>MIDDLE EAST</b></span></div><br />Syrians die at record rate as leaders talk: <b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-syria-crisis-toll-idUSBREA1B19720140212">activist group</a></b>.<br /><br />Diplomacy is failing in Syria, <b><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/diplomacy-is-failing-in-syria-obama-acknowledges/2014/02/11/822065e6-935c-11e3-84e1-27626c5ef5fb_story.html">Obama acknowledges</a></b>.<br /><br />Syrian planes pound rebel town <b><a href="http://www.stripes.com/news/middle-east/syrian-planes-pound-rebel-town-near-lebanon-border-1.267201">near Lebanon border</a></b>.<br /><br />UN resumes evacuations <b><a href="http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2014/02/evacuation-from-syria-homs-set-resume-201421282113173158.html">from Syria's Homs</a></b>.<br /><br />Obama: Russia to blame if <b><a href="http://www.defensenews.com/article/20140211/DEFREG02/302110030/Obama-Russia-Blame-UN-Homs-Resolution-Fails">UN Homs resolution fails.</a></b><br /><br />Syria, al Qaeda: U.S. officials <b><a href="http://security.blogs.cnn.com/2014/02/11/syria-al-qaeda-u-s-officials-offer-grim-assessment/">offer grim assessment</a></b>.<br /><br />Bombs kill at least 17 across Iraq: <b><a href="http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2014/Feb-12/247140-bombings-kill-10-in-iraq.ashx#axzz2sxRrfc9B">police and medics</a></b>.<br /><br />Violence in Iraq's Anbar province <b><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-26150727">'displaces 300,000'</a></b>.<br /><br />Iran: We’re ready for ‘decisive battle’ <b><a href="http://www.timesofisrael.com/iran-were-ready-for-decisive-battle-with-israel-us/">with Israel, US</a></b>.<br /><br />Lebanon arrests top <b><a href="http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2014/02/lebanon-arrests-top-al-qaeda-linked-fighter-201421212285696407.html">al-Qaeda linked fighter</a></b>.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>ASIA</b></span></div><br />NATO expresses concern over <b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-italy-india-marines-nato-idUSBREA1B1DU20140212">Italian marines' case in India</a></b>.<br /><br />Pakistan pressed over <b><a href="http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia/2014/02/pakistan-pressed-over-missing-drone-activist-201421213182789530.html">missing drone activist.</a></b><br /><br />Kerry to take harder U.S. line on <b><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/kerry-harder-u-line-asia-maritime-disputes-china-162851329.html">Asia maritime disputes to China</a></b>.<br /><br />Philippines recovers $29 million <b><a href="http://www.bellinghamherald.com/2014/02/12/3472503/philippines-recovers-29-million.html">from Marcos' Swiss accounts</a></b>.<br /><br />US military condemns Afghan decision<b><a href="http://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/02/12/us-military-condemns-afghan-decision-to-release-dangerous-detainees/?intcmp=latestnews"> to release 'dangerous' detainees</a></b>.<br /><br />Koreas hold rare talks<b><a href="http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2014/02/koreas-hold-talks-boost-tense-relations-20142124459552869.html"> to ease tensions</a></b>.<br /><br />Gunmen kill nine at Pakistani policeman's home <b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-pakistan-attack-idUSBREA1B0D320140212">as peace talks proceed</a></b>.<br /><br />Afghanistan halts suspected reconstruction <b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-afghanistan-buddhas-idUSBREA1B13J20140212">of ancient Buddhas.</a></b><br /><br />China trade surplus<b><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-26148707"> jumps to $32bn</a></b>.<br /><br />US promises to reduce burden of <b><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/12/us-promises-reduce-military-okinawa-airbase-futenma">military presence in Okinawa</a></b>.<br /><br />Time running out for aging former<b><a href="http://www.stripes.com/news/pacific/time-running-out-for-aging-former-comfort-women-of-south-korea-1.267128"> 'comfort women' of South Korea</a></b>.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>AFRICA</b></span></div><br />Boko Haram gunmen attack <b><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/boko-haram-attack-nigeria-kills-39-175700892.html">Nigeria villages, kill 43</a></b>.<br /><br />Retired Algeria general urges <b><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/retired-algeria-general-urges-bouteflika-step-down-202553329.html">Bouteflika to step down</a></b>.<br /><br />Mass grave found in Central African Republic, <b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-central-african-idUSBREA1B18S20140212">U.N. warns of 'cleansing'</a></b>. UN chief warns CAR <b><a href="http://www.aljazeera.com/news/africa/2014/02/un-chief-warns-car-could-break-up-201421243833672163.html">could break up</a></b>. Central African Republic: <b><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-26150668">'Ethnic cleansing' of Muslims.</a></b><br /><br />Algeria mourns dozens killed <b><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-26148125">in military plane crash</a></b>.<br /><br />Kenya charges 70 with being <b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-kenya-violence-idUSBREA1B15F20140212">members of al Shabaab</a></b>.<br /><br />Ethnic power-sharing under threat in Burundi, <b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-burundi-crisis-idUSBREA1B0US20140212">says party</a></b>.<br /><br />Libyan TV station hit <b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-libya-attack-idUSBREA1B11Q20140212">with grenades: journalists</a></b>.<br /><br />South Africa police clash with ANC supporters <b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-safrica-march-idUSBREA1B1B020140212">at opposition march</a></b>.<br /><br />Mohamed Morsi calls protests 'useless' and says next Egyptian president <b><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/12/mohamed-morsi-protests-useless-president-coup-prison">could face coup</a></b>.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>EUROPE</b></span></div><br /><b><a href="http://winter-games.reuters.com/">Sochi 2014: Live</a></b><br /><br />With Olympian pride, Russia asks teachers <b><a href="http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Europe/2014/0212/With-Olympian-pride-Russia-asks-teachers-to-ease-up-on-homework">to ease up on homework</a></b>.<br /><br />French leader lands in California<b><a href="http://www.businessweek.com/ap/2014-02-12/french-leader-visits-silicon-valley-to-talk-tech"> for tech talks</a></b>.<br /><br />Judge who sentenced protesters <b><a href="http://en.ria.ru/world/20140212/187460252/Judge-Who-Sentenced-Protesters-Shot-Dead-in-Ukraine.html">shot dead in Ukraine</a></b>.<br /><br />Italy PM Letta in battle for survival<b><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-26152220"> with Matteo Renzi</a></b>.<br /><br />Spain moves to curb legal convention allowing trials <b><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/11/spain-end-judges-trials-foreign-human-rights-abuses">of foreign rights abuses.</a></b><br /><br />British court OKs investigation into assassination <b><a href="http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/feb/11/british-court-cites-evidence-russia-was-involved-l/">of Russian ex-spy Litvinenko</a></b>.<br /><br />Swiss govt will draft law on immigration curbs <b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/swiss-immigration-idUSL5N0LH2KO20140212">by year-end</a></b>.<br /><br />EU to approve new GM crop, ignoring <b><a href="http://rt.com/news/eu-approve-gm-crop-608/">majority members’ opposition</a></b>.<br /><br />UK storms: Met Office issues <b><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-26153889">'Red Warning' for wind</a></b>.<br /><br />Edward Snowden asylum demand dropped <b><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/12/edward-snowden-nsa-asylum-demand-european-parliament">by European parliament</a></b>.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>AMERICAS</b></span></div><br />U.S. Congress approves debt limit hike <b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-usa-fiscal-senate-idUSBREA1B1RB20140212">after Senate drama.</a></b><br /><br />Venezuelan anti-government protests <b><a href="http://www.chron.com/news/crime/article/Venezuelan-anti-government-protests-turn-violent-5227738.php">turn violent</a></b>. More arrests in Venezuela protests,<b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/11/us-venezuela-protests-idUSBREA1A19420140211"> Maduro slams 'coup-seekers'</a></b>.<br /><br />Ex-rebel leads in El Salvador presidential <b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-el-salvador-election-idUSBREA1B24S20140212">run-off: poll.</a></b><br /><br />Panama says freed North Korean ship <b><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/panama-says-freed-north-korean-ship-sail-later-193250335--sector.html">to sail later Wednesday</a></b>.<br /><br />Panama canal near deal on lock gates delivery, <b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-sacyr-panama-financing-idUSBREA1B1GM20140212">new money pending: source.</a></b><br /><br />Ex-New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin <b><a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/02/12/jury-reaches-verdict-in-ex-new-orleans-mayor-nagin-bribery-case/">found guilty of corruption</a></b>.<br /><br />Thousands of flights canceled as 'catastrophic' storm <b><a href="http://www.foxnews.com/weather/2014/02/12/millions-in-south-brace-for-potentially-catastrophic-winter-storm/">slams into U.S. South</a></b>.<br /><br />Francois Hollande honoured <b><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-26148561">at US state dinner</a></b>.<br /><br />Budget forces Canadian military to stow equipment shopping list <b><a href="http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/budget-forces-canadian-military-to-stow-equipment-shopping-list-until-2016-1.1681338">until 2016.</a></b><br /><br />Colombian president seen poised for <b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-colombia-election-poll-idUSBREA1B10W20140212">re-election: poll</a></b>.<br /><br />'Brazil is not a civilized country' says the country's<b><a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/andersonantunes/2014/02/10/brazil-is-not-a-civilized-country-says-the-countrys-most-controversial-news-anchor/"> most controversial news anchor</a></b>.<br /><br />Mexican drug lord: <b><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/06/world/americas/mexican-drug-lord-mansion/">Inside his abandoned mansion.</a></b><br /><br />Castaway turned celebrity Alvarenga returns<b><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/11/world/americas/castaway-comes-home/"> to native El Salvador</a></b>.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>TERRORISM/THE LONG WAR</b></span></div><br />U.S. mulls drone strike on <b><a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-mulls-drone-strike-on-america-al-qaeda-suspect-in-pakistan/">American al Qaeda suspect in Pakistan</a></b>.<br /><br />Nov. 3 trial date is 'fair' for Boston Marathon bomb suspect,<b><a href="http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Justice/2014/0212/Nov.-3-trial-date-is-fair-for-Boston-Marathon-bomb-suspect-judge-says"> judge says</a></b>.<br /><br />Official: Core Al Qaeda may now view Syria <b><a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/defcon-hill/policy-strategy/198129-official-core-al-qaeda-may-now-view-syria-as-primary">as primary battlefield</a></b>.<br /><br />Court OKs Guantánamo <b><a href="http://thehill.com/blogs/global-affairs/198096-court-rejects-guantanamo-hunger-strikers-appeal-but-leaves-opening">force-feeding detainees</a></b>.<br /><br />U.S. sets conditions for lawyers to <b><a href="http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/feb/12/us-sets-conditions-for-lawyers-to-interview-911-ma/">interview 9/11 mastermind</a></b>.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>ECONOMY/FINANCE/BUSINESS</b></span></div><br />Microsoft denies global censorship<b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-microsoft-bing-censorship-idUSBREA1B0CP20140212"> of China-related searches</a></b>.<br /><br />Toyota to recall <b><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-26148711">1.9 million Prius hybrids</a></b>.<br /><br />Bitcoin hit by denial of service attacks<b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-usa-bitcoin-idUSBREA1A20X20140212"> as regulators prepare clampdown</a></b>.<br /><br />OPEC sees <b><a href="http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304888404579378570315535340?mg=reno64-wsj&url=http%3A%2F%2Fonline.wsj.com%2Farticle%2FSB10001424052702304888404579378570315535340.html">oil demand rising.</a></b>

World News Briefs -- February 12, 2014 (Evening Edition)

Fighting Rages In Syria Despite Peace Talks -- Al Jazeera Warplanes pound rebel-held town amid reports of death toll peaking on the ground a...

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Obama’s state dinners cost how much? (BLOG)

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuuiNddV9SMseSomrmz1VBOnij9_7d-juLZSP7YDw4vfLag6ZN2LmAwm7IuCPeDsrnhCUfSldDqeLguDman8-IxN6SgcgT2jhRQKFemzSlZSe8nI-NJxGwXTlSjj4WvOgGvLVJ7swoZT0/s1600/d.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuuiNddV9SMseSomrmz1VBOnij9_7d-juLZSP7YDw4vfLag6ZN2LmAwm7IuCPeDsrnhCUfSldDqeLguDman8-IxN6SgcgT2jhRQKFemzSlZSe8nI-NJxGwXTlSjj4WvOgGvLVJ7swoZT0/s1600/d.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_51196" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">President Barack Obama and visiting French President Francois Hollande will be joined by more than 300 notable guests in a tentlike heated pavilion on the South Lawn of the White House on Tuesday for a dinner whose menu includes caviar, rib-eye steak, chocolate cake and cotton candy.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_51221" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Here’s what Knoller squeezed out of the State Department’s Office of Protocol 13 months after submitting a Freedom of Information request:Who picks up the tab? Taxpayers, sure, but specifically a special fund overseen by the U.S. State Department’s chief of protocol. Now, <a data-rapid_p="9" href="http://www.cbsnews.com/news/how-much-do-state-dinners-cost-they-aint-cheap/" id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_51230" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">thanks to Mark Knoller of CBS News</a>, the peerless White House press corps' authority on presidential data<strong>, </strong>we for the first time have a sense of just how much such dinners cost.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The 300-guest November 2009 <a data-rapid_p="10" href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/files/documents/2009/november/state-dinner-press-preview.pdf" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">dinner for Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh</a> — best remembered for Michaele and Tariq Salahi’s ability to crash the party — cost $572,187.36.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">It was the president’s first state dinner and also the most expensive of the five state or official dinners Obama has given about which costs are now known. (The cost of the March 2012 dinner for British Prime Minister David Cameron remains shrouded in mystery, and the Hollande dinner was arranged after CBS made its request for the information.)</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The least expensive state dinner was the October 2011 one <a data-rapid_p="11" href="http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2011/10/13/south-korea-state-dinner-what-s-menu" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">for South Korean President Lee Myung-bak</a>, which cost $203,053.34 to entertain more than 220 guests.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The cost of state dinners — like the price tag for presidential vacations — is a frequent target of partisan criticism, usually under the guise of high-minded cost-cutting. But like embassy security, which often feels the slash of the congressional budget ax, the dinners amount to a drop in the bucket of federal spending, and partisans quickly forget their concerns when their party holds the White House.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Obama frequently draws inside-the-Beltway criticism according to which he does not do enough to schmooze with lawmakers. White House aides dismiss the charge, saying no amount of presidential cocktails and banter would win over Republicans.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_51279" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">When it comes to entertaining foreign heads of state or government, Obama’s total is in line with George W. Bush’s. Bush hosted just six state dinners over eight years. Bill Clinton? 23. George H.W. Bush hosted 21. And Ronald Reagan seemed to relish such events, hosting 35.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_51269" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The meals are often the most desirable invitation in Washington — and the guest lists are a blend of powerful D.C. figures and officials from the guest’s home country, celebrities, and campaign donors (and, later in a president’s term, folks who might open their wallets to fund a presidential library), as well as a small sprinkling of people from the media. The tradition dates to December 1874, when then-President Ulysses Grant hosted King David Kalakaua of Hawaii.</div>

Obama’s state dinners cost how much? (BLOG)

President Barack Obama and visiting French President Francois Hollande will be joined by more than 300 notable guests in a tentlike heated p...

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NASA says it may have discovered flowing water on Mars (BLOG)

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmciy3scLULikLFB1Tz_-7CAtpzhyphenhyphenHO1qe9pFe8j-rqlEH_oLtZ2amwdliorM8XMRaOahZYn185ir2vo-uU2S9RkYl9G4RVxed5RigG8gQcSw2zdZRGlnqxUte03DIgXd87WT4HC_mdjQ/s1600/mm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="175" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmciy3scLULikLFB1Tz_-7CAtpzhyphenhyphenHO1qe9pFe8j-rqlEH_oLtZ2amwdliorM8XMRaOahZYn185ir2vo-uU2S9RkYl9G4RVxed5RigG8gQcSw2zdZRGlnqxUte03DIgXd87WT4HC_mdjQ/s1600/mm.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_45614" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Scientists at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory say new images from the <a data-rapid_p="11" href="http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2014-042" id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_45628" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">surface of Mars may hold evidence that flowing water exists</a> on the planet.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_45646" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The potential discovery is noteworthy, since scientists have held on to the possibility of traces of water existing under the surface of Mars but had almost written off the <a data-rapid_p="12" href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/alexknapp/2014/02/10/nasa-finds-clues-that-theres-flowing-water-on-mars/" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">possibility of flowing water still existing on the planet’s surface</a>.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_45656" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Orbiting spacecraft captured the imagery, which appears to show liquid flowing down a slope on the planet’s surface during a seasonal change in which surface temperatures rise.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_45666" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">“We still don't have a smoking gun for existence of water in RSL, although we're not sure how this process would take place without water," said Lujendra Ojha, lead author of the new report and a graduate student at the Georgia Institute of Technology. RSL refers to recurring slope lineae, the techincal term for the potential water flow.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_45676" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">“The flow of water, even briny water, anywhere on Mars today would be a major discovery, impacting our understanding of present climate change on Mars and possibly indicating potential habitats for life near the surface on modern Mars," said JPL’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter project scientist <a data-rapid_p="13" href="http://science.jpl.nasa.gov/people/Zurek/" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">Richard Zurek</a>.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">In theory, that could mean previously frozen water was temporarily melting and moving downward.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_45836" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">But even “warm” temperatures on the red planet’s surface are still well below freezing. So, how could water move at all?</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_45752" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">NASA says iron-rich minerals on the planet’s surface, such as ferric sulfate, could act as a sort of antifreeze, allowing water to remain liquid despite freezing temperatures.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_45767" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The potential finding follows a <a data-rapid_p="14" href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/10/tech/innovation/mars-water-flows/" id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_45776" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">2011 study from Ojha that first pointed to potential saltwater flows</a> on the planet’s surface. In his new paper, Ojha said the water flows appear to continue for about two months' time.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_45787" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The results were published in the latest issue of the journal <a data-rapid_p="15" href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/%28ISSN%291944-8007/issues" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">Geophysical Research Letters</a>.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_45797" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;"><em id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_45808"><a data-rapid_p="16" href="https://twitter.com/ericpfeiffer" id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_45819" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">Follow Eric Pfeiffer on Twitter</a>.</em></div>

NASA says it may have discovered flowing water on Mars (BLOG)

Scientists at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory say new images from the  surface of Mars may hold evidence that flowing water exists  on the ...

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ZIRP: Great Depression vs. Great Recession

The following chart compares the 3-month treasury bill yield in the aftermath of the Great Depression to the 3-month treasury bill yield in the aftermath of the Great Recession.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqSNb8ShMxqCcUdzyoFDQkUa9Sld2sJF71vSLLARgBgP773c0aRql-xu9kx2PR_K_znebc_MSKDKOf6LNRB5kJrAl1I6bSmFuFvdOficPGbN0X7enYbKjKadfqJlm1BvGNAt3cNlf2Dx4/s1600/ZIRP+-+Great+Depression+vs.+Great+Recession.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqSNb8ShMxqCcUdzyoFDQkUa9Sld2sJF71vSLLARgBgP773c0aRql-xu9kx2PR_K_znebc_MSKDKOf6LNRB5kJrAl1I6bSmFuFvdOficPGbN0X7enYbKjKadfqJlm1BvGNAt3cNlf2Dx4/s320/ZIRP+-+Great+Depression+vs.+Great+Recession.jpg" /></a><br /><span style="font-size: x-small;">Click to enlarge.</span><br /><br />For the record, I am not predicting World War III (nor would I expect it to even remotely solve our long-term ZIRP problem as effectively as World War II did).<br /><br /><div style="color: red;"><i>I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones.</i> - Albert Einstein</div><br />I think you can see why I might be fond of ultra long-term inflation protected treasuries and I-Bonds. You might also understand why I might be somewhat skeptical of rising interest rate theories.<br /><br />I believe we are trapped in ZIRP much like Japan has been since their housing bubble popped in the early 1990s (which will become all too apparent when the next recession hits, whenever that is).<br /><br />We might temporarily escape from our padded cell at some point, but we'll never get the straight-jacket off, much less get past the search lights, the dogs, the barbed wire fences, and Janet Yellen, our trusted <a href="http://youtu.be/34ag4nkSh7Q">security guard</a>. That's just asking too much, lol. Sigh.<br /><br />Gallows humor.<br /><br /><b>February 11, 2014</b><br /><a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-02-11/janet-yellen-to-emerging-markets-good-luck.html">Janet Yellen to Emerging Markets: Good Luck</a><br /><br /><div style="color: red;"><i>Monetary policy is hard enough without having to worry about the spillover effects to other countries that should take care of themselves.</i></div><br />Contrary to the opinion of those who think the stock market continues to go up easily from here and that vast riches await those willing to swing for the fences at any price, monetary policy is hard. For what it is worth, that's what I'm reading into what she has to say anyway.<br /><br />This is not investment advice.<br /><br /><b>Source Data:</b><br /><a href="http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/TB3MS">St. Louis Fed: 3-Month Treasury Bill: Secondary Market Rate</a><br /><a href="http://www.nber.org/cycles.html">NBER: US Business Cycle Expansions and Contractions</a>

ZIRP: Great Depression vs. Great Recession

The following chart compares the 3-month treasury bill yield in the aftermath of the Great Depression to the 3-month treasury bill yield in...

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CISCO: The Internet of Everything

<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><b>CSCO </b></span><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJPcGRXmYg8EnN-vxFoZosAB1pcIur5iCp6wYXvjATEbb6HBocWTa49UwEghs-x2ou82IMa8UyZed6hrdH-ETrfzfuVkRhE0CWXJav3IrSGzmaW98wizSDmJcs9KFw3p9fKFiuf2eJatI/s1600/CISCOlogo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJPcGRXmYg8EnN-vxFoZosAB1pcIur5iCp6wYXvjATEbb6HBocWTa49UwEghs-x2ou82IMa8UyZed6hrdH-ETrfzfuVkRhE0CWXJav3IrSGzmaW98wizSDmJcs9KFw3p9fKFiuf2eJatI/s1600/CISCOlogo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><b><a href="http://www.marketwatch.com/story/will-the-real-cisco-please-stand-up-2014-02-11" style="color: red;">http://www.marketwatch.com/story/will-the-real-cisco-please-stand-up-2014-02-11</a> </b><br /><br /><b>What happened to "the internet of everything" company that has all these commercials about the whole world uniting together with transhumanism technology?</b><br /><b><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-internet-of-everything.html" style="color: red;">http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2013/10/the-internet-of-everything.html</a> </b><br /><br /><b><a href="http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2014/01/expanding-social-media-and-internet-of.html" style="color: red;">http://news-these-days.blogspot.com/2014/01/expanding-social-media-and-internet-of.html</a> </b><br /><br /><b>Is this a SLEEPING GIANT? </b></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><!-- Start FreeStockCharts.com Chart Widget --> <br /><div align="center" width="100%"><iframe frameborder="0" height="390" scrolling="no" src="http://widgets.freestockcharts.com/WidgetServer/InteractiveChartWidget.aspx?guid=1195c1fc-77ab-4d74-ba6f-10d85d2efb0b&w=500&h=390" style="border: none;" width="500"></iframe></div><!-- End FreeStockCharts.com Chart Widget --></div><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/4U2WsS9WLk8?feature=player_detailpage" width="640"></iframe><br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/5Jxo7AGZmMw?feature=player_detailpage" width="640"></iframe><br /><br /><b>...developing...</b>

CISCO: The Internet of Everything

CSCO http://www.marketwatch.com/story/will-the-real-cisco-please-stand-up-2014-02-11   What happened to "the internet of everything&quo...

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High school outlaws yoga pants and leggings (BLOG)

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvtr-B7tmNZPpxOYZjwCDt091OChwN2vPxnT-lLRj7T-t5EQ8h4uiwx_qiEo7BnjIwnfsWz7wKJ2kanUKS71Fm7-21yDGJUeS-wO_LwzR4z3XlMlKvscoxb-9HzpSUakx45XRP3ks5oAE/s1600/yoga-pants-collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="137" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvtr-B7tmNZPpxOYZjwCDt091OChwN2vPxnT-lLRj7T-t5EQ8h4uiwx_qiEo7BnjIwnfsWz7wKJ2kanUKS71Fm7-21yDGJUeS-wO_LwzR4z3XlMlKvscoxb-9HzpSUakx45XRP3ks5oAE/s1600/yoga-pants-collage.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_41580" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">A recently enforced ban on yoga pants and leggings by a high school in Rockport, Massachusetts, has some students and parents saying the policy goes too far. Rockport High School’s dress code states that students are not to wear the offending pants however, students say the policy was not enforced until recently.</div><div class="yom-fig-frame" id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_41603" style="margin: auto; text-align: center; width: 714.125px;"><span id="schemaorg"><div class="yom-figure yom-fig-middle" id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_41602" style="float: none; margin: 0px auto 15px; max-width: 100%; overflow: hidden; width: 630px;"><figure class="cover get-lbdata-from-dom go-to-slideshow-lightbox" data-orig-index="0" id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_41601" style="cursor: pointer; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; position: relative;"><a class="cover-anchor" data-rapid_p="9" href="" id="cover-621dae6769d7b56cf726a3daa02cdd6a" name="cover-621dae6769d7b56cf726a3daa02cdd6a" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; position: absolute; top: -100px;"></a><div class="cta-overlay" id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_41600" style="-webkit-transition: background-color 0.24s linear; font-size: 13px; height: 476px; left: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: background-color 0.24s linear; width: 630px;"><span class="clearfix title cta-text medium" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; color: white; font-size: 16px; left: 5px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; text-align: left; top: 5px; transition: opacity 0.24s linear; white-space: pre-wrap; width: 567px; zoom: 1;"></span><div class="cta-text large" id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_41622" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; color: white; font-size: 16px; margin-top: 35px; opacity: 0; position: relative; top: 238px; transition: opacity 0.24s linear;">View photo</div><span class="icon-slideshow icon-white-slideshow" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.16s linear; background-color: #324fe1; background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; background-size: cover; border-bottom-left-radius: 7px; border-bottom-right-radius: 7px; border-top-left-radius: 7px; border-top-right-radius: 7px; cursor: pointer; height: 54px; left: 315px; line-height: 0; margin-left: -38px; margin-top: -27px; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-indent: -1000em; top: 238px; transition: opacity 0.16s linear; width: 76px; z-index: 1;">.</span></div><img alt="" class="editorial " data-preembed="image" src="http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/GfI8G8UBeYpXdml_NLyjlw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7cT04NTt3PTYzMA--/http://l.yimg.com/os/publish-images/news/2014-02-11/71f684c0-9343-11e3-8cd5-a93cc28bfa81_dress-code-WHDH.png" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; display: inline; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; min-height: 1px; opacity: 1 !important; transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; vertical-align: bottom; visibility: visible !important; width: 630px;" title="The Rockport High School dress code illustrating what not to wear. (Rockport High School via WHDH)" width="630" /></figure><div class="legend" style="background-image: none; color: grey; font-size: 12px; font-style: italic; max-width: 100%; padding: 5px; text-align: left;">The Rockport High School dress code illustrating what not to wear. (Rockport High School via WHDH)</div></div></span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">After school faculty expressed concern that students were not following the dress code, the principal took the opportunity during an assembly last week, to remind the kids about the policy.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">20 female students protested by wearing the body hugging pants on Friday. They were sent home and told to change their clothes and some received a write up, warning them not to wear the outlawed pants to school. Thomas Boucher a sophomore at Rockport high told <a data-rapid_p="10" href="http://www.myfoxboston.com/story/24668375/rockport-high-school-bans-yoga-pants%29" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">WFXT Fox 25</a>, “Taking kids out of classes, missing school work and time to learn just because of material clothing does not make sense at all.”</div><div class="yom-fig-frame" style="margin: auto; text-align: center; width: 714.125px;"><span id="schemaorg"><div class="yom-figure yom-fig-middle" style="float: none; margin: 0px auto 15px; max-width: 100%; overflow: hidden; width: 630px;"><img alt="" class="editorial " src="http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/oG5Zb7hYmwledOvCOGHWAQ--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7cT04NTt3PTYzMA--/http://l.yimg.com/os/publish-images/news/2014-02-11/72526060-9343-11e3-a200-3d1a63f899ac_HS-leggings-WFXT.png" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; display: inline; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1 !important; transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; vertical-align: bottom; visibility: visible !important;" title="Rockport High School students opposed to the yoga pants and leggings ban. (WFXT)" width="630" /><div class="legend" style="background-image: none; color: grey; font-size: 12px; font-style: italic; max-width: 100%; padding: 5px; text-align: left;">Rockport High School students opposed to the yoga pants and leggings ban. (WFXT)</div></div></span></div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_41626" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">"It's called attention to something that no one even thought about," said senior Aidan Wright to the station. The administration seems to disagree, saying that the ban is in place because the form fitting pants are “distracting” and not acceptable in the classroom environment. Wright responded telling <a data-rapid_p="11" href="http://www.whdh.com/story/24677067/rockport-high-wont-allow-yoga-pants-leggings" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">WHDH 7</a>, "I don't appreciate having to be responsible for a boy paying attention or even being told that it's my responsibility to not distract someone with my body. I don't like being objectified in that way." Parent Janine Boucher agrees, "I just think it's absolutely ridiculous. There's no reason for this to have been blown out of proportion. This is crazy, these poor kids."</div><div class="yom-fig-frame" style="margin: auto; text-align: center; width: 714.125px;"><span id="schemaorg"><div class="yom-figure yom-fig-middle" style="float: none; margin: 0px auto 15px; max-width: 100%; overflow: hidden; width: 630px;"><img alt="" class="editorial " src="http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/2ABE6H1uNvwt_GLzgIPjUw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7cT04NTt3PTYzMA--/http://l.yimg.com/os/publish-images/news/2014-02-11/722535e0-9343-11e3-8cd5-a93cc28bfa81_Aidan-Wright-WHDH.png" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; display: inline; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1 !important; transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; vertical-align: bottom; visibility: visible !important;" title="Aidan Wright, a senior at Rockport High School opposed to the school's no yoga pants and leggings policy. (WHDH)" width="630" /><div class="legend" style="background-image: none; color: grey; font-size: 12px; font-style: italic; max-width: 100%; padding: 5px; text-align: left;">Aidan Wright, a senior at Rockport High School opposed to the school's no yoga pants and leggings policy. (WHD …</div></div></span></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">According to the Superintendent of Rockport Public Schools, Rockport High’s principal will be reviewing the dress code along with a newly formed committee.</div><div class="yom-fig-frame" id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_41657" style="margin: auto; text-align: center; width: 714.125px;"><span id="schemaorg"><div class="yom-figure yom-fig-middle" id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_41656" style="float: none; margin: 0px auto 15px; max-width: 100%; overflow: hidden; width: 630px;"><img alt="" class="editorial " src="http://l2.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/QYVLvalCCIc2NdEMbtv1mA--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7cT04NTt3PTYzMA--/http://l.yimg.com/os/publish-images/news/2014-02-11/72a00b30-9343-11e3-8701-0917f8b5e43c_Rockport-High-School-WFXT.png" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; display: inline; height: auto; margin: 0px; max-width: 100%; opacity: 1 !important; transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; vertical-align: bottom; visibility: visible !important;" title="Rockport High School (WFXT)" width="630" /><div class="legend" id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_41655" style="background-image: none; color: grey; font-size: 12px; font-style: italic; max-width: 100%; padding: 5px; text-align: left;">Rockport High School (WFXT)</div></div></span></div><span class="yui-editorial-embed" id="yui_3_0_0-2-1392140668704" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px;"></span><span class="yui-editorial-embed" id="yui_3_0_0-2-1392140668708" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px;"></span><span class="yui-editorial-embed" id="yui_3_0_0-2-1392140668711" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px;"></span><span class="yui-editorial-embed" id="yui_3_0_0-2-1392140668715" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px;"></span><br /><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_41645" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Videos and more info: <a data-rapid_p="12" href="http://www.myfoxboston.com/story/24668375/rockport-high-school-bans-yoga-pants%29" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">WFXT</a>, <a data-rapid_p="13" href="http://www.whdh.com/story/24677067/rockport-high-wont-allow-yoga-pants-leggings" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">WHDH</a></div>

High school outlaws yoga pants and leggings (BLOG)

A recently enforced ban on yoga pants and leggings by a high school in Rockport, Massachusetts, has some students and parents saying the pol...

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Smile At The Camera

They can watch an entire city and focus one of 65 cameras down to the point they can see the cell phone in your hand, 24/7, from 3 miles up.<br /><br />I wonder if one of the former Soviet Union countries has any spare <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surface-to-air_missile">SAM missiles</a> on Craigslist?<br /><br />One new drone with the ARGUS technology has the capabilities of 100 Predator drones and you can guaran-fucking-tee there is one coming to a city near you.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.sott.net/article/273546-New-drone-technology-equivalent-to-the-capabilities-of-100-Predator-drones"><blockquote><b>New drone technology "equivalent to the capabilities of 100 Predator drones"</b></blockquote></a><br /><br />snip<br /><blockquote>As DARPA describes the project:<br /><br /> The Autonomous Real-time Ground Ubiquitous Surveillance (ARGUS) program developed airborne sensor systems that provide a persistent, real-time, high-resolution, wide-area, day-night video surveillance capability. The ARGUS Infrared System (ARGUS-IR) uses an advanced infrared (IR) composite focal plane array (FPA) sensor. The nighttime persistent capability provided by ARGUS-IR combined with the daytime capability provided by the ARGUS Imaging System (ARGUS-IS) enables 24-hour day/night surveillance. ARGUS-IR's wide-area, high-update-rate, high-resolution imaging capability enables detection and tracking of dismounts as well as vehicles. <br /><br />The ARGUS system can simultaneously view an area of 15 square miles from an altitude of 17,500 ft. While never losing track of the greater image, ARGUS can allow users to open up dozens of zoomable sub-windows and track individual vehicles and people anywhere in the city-wide field of view. It can spot objects as small as six-inches wide.<br /><br />"There's actually enough resolution to be able to see the people waving their arms or walking around; what kind of clothes they are wearing," said Antonaides, pointing out a bird flying in the air several miles below the camera.<br /><br />The system is capable of streaming a million terabytes of HD video every day, which is the equivalent of 5,000 hours of high definition footage. This immense trove of data is capable of being stored in perpetuity, so that the government can "rewind" the video and view things that have gone on under the drone days or weeks earlier.<br /><br />"If we had our choice, we would like ARGUS to be over the same area, 24 hours per day, 7 days a week," said Antonaides.<br /><br />The technology is intended for unmanned drones, but has also been outfitted on Blackhawk helicopters. </blockquote><br />snip<br /><br /><blockquote>What to Expect from ARGUS<br /><br />The government remains tight-lipped about where ARGUS is deployed. It has certainly been applied overseas in America's unending global war against people who don't like foreign governments intervening in their countries. As we have witnessed, most wartime gadgets are perfected on foreign populations, and ultimately make their way back to the USA to be used against the citizens.<br /><br />The government has big plans for its nearly billion dollar project. It continues to pour money into the system to integrate things like infrared vision and other advanced imaging features.<br /><br />In the near future - as more of these platforms are deployed - it would be a fair assumption that every major U.S. city could be monitored and recorded from above nearly continuously, by ARGUS and other varieties of drones. </blockquote><br />snip<br /><br /><blockquote>ARGUS, with the capability of opening up 65 independent close-up surveillance windows within its greater image, gives the government the potential to set up a formidable surveillance dragnet from above. The drone operators could set-up dedicated windows to monitor a targeted individual's home, workplace, all his friends' homes, all his relatives' homes, and all of his favorite hangouts, if so desired.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYtd_UEfMAWUifh7bf10DYtva176KAPaMDck7wUT-zyE66-UIHDiA4Z1of7XhtToCKc2yHSvtn-TcMONywveGhfUKyv2hghV5tK-V-L0-2-0qZR0mz91sqQhOCSJj3C_AV0hCSFL7T9Yea/s1600/Drone_argus_mosaic_map.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYtd_UEfMAWUifh7bf10DYtva176KAPaMDck7wUT-zyE66-UIHDiA4Z1of7XhtToCKc2yHSvtn-TcMONywveGhfUKyv2hghV5tK-V-L0-2-0qZR0mz91sqQhOCSJj3C_AV0hCSFL7T9Yea/s640/Drone_argus_mosaic_map.jpg" /></a></div>(Click to embigify)<br /><br />Besides simply spying on Americans' every movement, the drones may take on other roles in law enforcement, with many dangerous implications. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder says that it would be legal for an armed government to target and kill Americans on U.S. soil in an "extraordinary circumstance."</blockquote><br />In case you have been living in a cave without news for the last ten years, they have been practicing these capabilities in places like Pakistan and Yemen for years now.<br /><a href="http://www.sott.net/article/273546-New-drone-technology-equivalent-to-the-capabilities-of-100-Predator-drones"><br />Go read the whole article.</a><br />

Smile At The Camera

They can watch an entire city and focus one of 65 cameras down to the point they can see the cell phone in your hand, 24/7, from 3 miles up....

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World's Largest Trees Help Explain California Forests' Bald Spots (BLOG)

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7kzXyCZQI8SrQ2FWyTLcv4M1OZ2yjJdowm5SUs_xSVFj63sqrcDuveh4MdLwIq9STdTKCWviFds5plOTIY0TPCHk0uZ3J9eI3hH7JhhxX4N8wvMm9_qsv2ZkAsrzSvUm5T0Q71PiqZcw/s1600/cc.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7kzXyCZQI8SrQ2FWyTLcv4M1OZ2yjJdowm5SUs_xSVFj63sqrcDuveh4MdLwIq9STdTKCWviFds5plOTIY0TPCHk0uZ3J9eI3hH7JhhxX4N8wvMm9_qsv2ZkAsrzSvUm5T0Q71PiqZcw/s1600/cc.jpg" width="212" /></a></div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_36115" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Trees in California's Sierra Nevada mountains, including giant sequoias, need sunlight, water and just the right kind of granite to grow, a new study finds.</div><div class="body-slot-mod" style="background-color: white; clear: right; float: right; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.307693481445313px; margin: 0px 0px 1.1em 10px; max-width: 300px;"><div class="yom-remote"><div class="" id="mediacontentrelatedstory_container"></div></div></div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_36138" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The findings help explain the surprisingly patchy growth patterns in one of the most productive forests in the world. Visitors to the western Sierra's lower elevations may find themselves abruptly stepping from a lush <a data-rapid_p="8" href="http://www.livescience.com/39461-sequoias-redwood-trees.html" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">redwood</a> grove onto sun-lashed bedrock.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_36148" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">"Bedrock can be just as strong as climate in controlling where vegetation does and doesn't appear in the Sierra Nevada," said Jesse Hahm, a geologist at the University of Wyoming and lead study author. "These trees have had thousands and thousands of years to colonize this elevation band in the western Sierra, and the fact they have not done so already suggests there's something about the bedrock," influencing the growth patterns, Hahm said.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_36158" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The findings also revealed that the soil-covered forest groves were eroding more quickly than nearby bare <a data-rapid_p="9" href="http://www.livescience.com/31108-granite-earth-bedrock-mountains.html" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">granite</a>. This suggests the soil is speeding up the weathering processes that wear down the rock.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;"><strong>Plugs of rock</strong></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The new research may not surprise anyone with a green thumb. Gardeners know plants require the right combination of soil nutrients, such as nitrogen and phosphorus, to thrive.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">But until now, scientists didn't realize how strongly rock type controlled forest growth patterns in the Sierras. Though the mountains may look like one massive granite blob, sharp boundaries mark chemical variations within the range. It turns out that even California's famed giant sequoias, the largest living trees on Earth, grow only in soil topping rocks with the right chemical composition, according to the study, published today (Feb. 10) in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. [<a data-rapid_p="10" href="http://www.ouramazingplanet.com/3309-giant-sequoias-redwoods-pictures.html" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">Nature’s Giants: Tallest Trees on Earth</a>]</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">"Subtle differences in geochemistry that arose more than 100 million years ago are now affecting life on the mountain range," said Hahm.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Long ago, the molten rock that formed the <a data-rapid_p="11" href="http://www.livescience.com/20091-sierra-nevada-mountain-range-rises-rapidly.html" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">Sierra Nevada</a> granite was the feeder system for a massive volcanic mountain chain similar to the Andes in South America. The granite's chemical boundaries mark different plutons, or plugs of magma that cooled underground. Each pluton has a slightly different chemical composition. The plutons have been brought to the surface by millions of years of erosion, along with uplift from tectonic forces at the boundary between the North American and Pacific plates.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Hahm and his co-authors linked the pluton boundaries to the Sierra's patchy forest cover by comparing satellite forest cover data with geologic maps and collecting hundreds of rock samples. They focused on the western Sierra between about 6,000 and 8,000 feet (1,800 and 2,400 meters) above sea level, where glaciers did not remove soil during the last ice age.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;"><strong>Shifting climate</strong></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">While temperature and precipitation are still important factors in controlling the elevation at which the western Sierra's trees grow, the scientists showed that the plutons caused the starts and stops in the forest network.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">"What was shocking was that within an area of similar climate, the forest varied wildly," Hahm said. "A natural grove of sequoia was right next door to almost nothing at all."</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">One key ingredient in the forest patterns was phosphorus, which varied widely between plutons. In some cases, the trees revealed fine-scale pluton boundaries overlooked by earlier geologic mappers, Hahm said.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The "Goldilocks" zone inhabited by western Sierra <a data-rapid_p="12" href="http://www.livescience.com/13852-map-reveals-size-forests.html" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">forests</a> is predicted to move to higher elevations in the coming centuries, as climate change shifts California's temperature and precipitation bands. The new study suggests the trees will also march upward according to where they find the best food.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_36210" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">"As the forests move under changing climate, they will also be restricted by rock type," Hahm said.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_36180" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;"><em>Email </em><em><a data-rapid_p="13" href="mailto:boskin@techmedianetwork.com" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">Becky Oskin</a> </em><em>or follow her </em><a data-rapid_p="14" href="https://twitter.com/beckyoskin" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;"><em>@beckyoskin</em></a><em id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_36179">. Follow us </em><a data-rapid_p="15" href="https://twitter.com/LiveScience" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;"><em>@livescience</em></a><em>, </em><em><a data-rapid_p="16" href="http://www.facebook.com/#!/livescience" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">Facebook</a> </em><em>& </em><a data-rapid_p="17" href="https://plus.google.com/101164570444913213957/posts" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;"><em>Google+</em></a><em>. Original article on </em><em><a data-rapid_p="18" href="http://www.livescience.com/43249-forest-growth-patterns-rock-chemistry.html" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; text-decoration: none;">Live Science</a></em><em id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_36199">.</em></div>

World's Largest Trees Help Explain California Forests' Bald Spots (BLOG)

Trees in California's Sierra Nevada mountains, including giant sequoias, need sunlight, water and just the right kind of granite to grow...

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Syria's Second Front (Video)

<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/mk6f4Qw48D8" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Frontline Looks At Rebel Fight Against Jihadists In Syria -- Frontline</b></span></div><br />Syrian rebels engulfed in a three-year-old civil war against President Bashar al-Assad’s regime found themselves facing a new foe this winter: jihadists looking to turn the Middle Eastern country into a strict Islamic state.<br /><br />At first the rebels tried to avoid the jihadists but about seven weeks ago, they decided to fight back, said Syrian-born Frontline correspondent Muhammad Ali. He reports on their efforts in a new Frontline documentary, “Syria’s Second Front”, which airs Tuesday at 10 p.m. EST on most PBS stations (check local listings).<br /><br />Ali, who was born in Syria’s capital Damascus and now lives in London, made three trips back to his home country from mid-October until January to track the rebels’ progress. He spent time filming the Free Syrian Army and other rebels as they joined forces to battle the al-Qaida-inspired Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), who some rebels consider even more brutal than the Assad regime.<br /><br /><b><a href="http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/frontline-looks-rebel-fight-jihadists-syria/">Read more</a></b> ....<br /><br /><b>My Comment:</b> This Frontline Report is captivating to watch. I cannot embed the videos, but all of them are a must see. Go here for the first video <b><a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/syrias-second-front/#a">"Syria's Second Front"</a></b>.

Syria's Second Front (Video)

Frontline Looks At Rebel Fight Against Jihadists In Syria -- Frontline Syrian rebels engulfed in a three-year-old civil war against Presiden...

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Gisin, Maze dead heat for women's downhill gold (BLOG)

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU4HRaO60V3dyU-GQGlKLdmBdxF6rKyqc_l463MdEYxPYEGQCgvMJFk2S4tW3PKOjoiIocT1-Wl_PLz26z12s0avIXcYezWwDXwwifyUp0GEEAI4j52Y7geKeZqHNuQcmATDvTiFwJUkI/s1600/gg.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU4HRaO60V3dyU-GQGlKLdmBdxF6rKyqc_l463MdEYxPYEGQCgvMJFk2S4tW3PKOjoiIocT1-Wl_PLz26z12s0avIXcYezWwDXwwifyUp0GEEAI4j52Y7geKeZqHNuQcmATDvTiFwJUkI/s1600/gg.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_31067" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Rosa Khutor (Russia) (AFP) - Switzerland's Dominique Gisin and Slovenian Tina Maze finished in a dead heat to share gold in the women's Olympic downhill at Rosa Khutor on Wednesday.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_31077" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">But Gisin had not counted on Maze, the 2013 super-G world champion and proven big-stage performer.Swiss racer Gisin, wearing bib number eight, first clocked 1min 41.57sec down the 2.7km-long course and in brilliant sunshine it looked to have been enough for outright victory.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_31097" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Starting 13 runners after Gisin on a course that had not broken up, the Slovenian led all the splits but lost a little time after the final jump to come charging through the finish line in a dead heat.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Maze has had a relatively poor season, which was only partially rescued by a first downhill win in Cortina d'Ampezzo in January, but her third place finish in the downhill run of the super-combined was a reminder of her speed abilities.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Swiss racer Lara Gut, who has so far this season won three super-G and one downhill World Cup race and finished second in the combined's downhill, claimed bronze, a further 0.10sec adrift.</div><div class="body-related" style="background-color: white; clear: right; float: right; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 10px; position: relative;"><a class="body-related-link body-related-image go-to-slideshow-lightbox rapid-noclick-resp portrait onesize get-lbdata-from-dom" data-rapid_p="8" data-uuid="7b739239-f0ce-3c5b-9c44-dbde05b3194f" href="http://news.yahoo.com/photos/slovenia-39-tina-maze-celebrates-taking-joint-first-photo-084551528--oly.html" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; display: block; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 300px; position: relative; text-decoration: none;" title="Slovenia&#39;s Tina Maze celebrates after taking joint&nbsp;&hellip;"><div class="img-wrap" style="position: relative;"><div class="cta-overlay" style="-webkit-transition: background-color 0.24s linear; font-size: 13px; height: 384px; left: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: background-color 0.24s linear; width: 300px;"><span class="clearfix title cta-text medium" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; color: white; font-size: 16px; left: 5px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; top: 5px; transition: opacity 0.24s linear; white-space: pre-wrap; width: 270px; zoom: 1;"></span><span class="cta-text xsmall" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; bottom: 5px; color: white; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 42px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; transition: opacity 0.24s linear;">View gallery</span><span class="icon-slideshow icon-white-slideshow-xsmall" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.16s linear; background-color: #324fe1; background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; background-size: cover; border-bottom-left-radius: 4px; border-bottom-right-radius: 4px; border-top-left-radius: 4px; border-top-right-radius: 4px; bottom: 5px; cursor: pointer; height: 23px; left: 5px; line-height: 0; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-indent: -1000em; transition: opacity 0.16s linear; width: 32px; z-index: 1;"></span></div><img alt="Slovenia&#39;s Tina Maze celebrates after taking joint&nbsp;&hellip;" class="body-related-thumb" data-src-2x="" height="384" src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/zugHc6zumFkrsdJaaMsXFw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTM4NDtxPTc1O3c9MzAw/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/afp.com/8529819aba5c0fbc4bb82dab1fdcf7dd35ba0315.jpg" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; display: block; opacity: 1 !important; transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; vertical-align: baseline; visibility: visible !important;" width="300" /></div></a><div class="body-related-title photo-caption" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: grey; font-size: 11px; line-height: 16.5px; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; padding: 5px 5px 0px 0px; position: relative; width: 300px;">Slovenia's Tina Maze celebrates after taking joint first place in the women's Alpine Skiing  …</div></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">There was no silver awarded in the race marked by the absence through injury of defending champion and media darling Lindsey Vonn of the United States.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Germany's Maria Hoefl-Riesch, the winner of Monday's super-combined, could only finish 13th at 1.17sec, and Austrian silver medallist Nicole Hosp ninth at 1.05sec.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">It meant Hoefl-Riesch, who stands atop the World Cup overall and downhill standings so far this season, missed out on drawing level with now-retired Croatian Janica Kostelic's record of four Olympic golds.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">But the 29-year-old German will have other opportunities as she races in all five disciplines.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Other rivals for the downhill crown included a couple of racers who disappointed on Monday, including Austrian pin-up Anna Fenninger.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Fenninger finished eighth in the super-combined and suffered more woe on the Rosa Khutor course when she skied out after losing control in the middle section.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_31105" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">American Julia Mancuso, who had snatched bronze in the combined thanks to a fastest downhill run and won silver in the discipline in Vancouver four years ago, finished eighth at 0.99sec.</div>

Gisin, Maze dead heat for women's downhill gold (BLOG)

Rosa Khutor (Russia) (AFP) - Switzerland's Dominique Gisin and Slovenian Tina Maze finished in a dead heat to share gold in the women...

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Civil War In Syria -- News Updates February 12, 2014

<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/L7tXTcoNKvQ" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Battle On Lebanese Border As Syria Talks Falter -- Reuters</b></span></div><br />(Reuters) - President Bashar al-Assad's forces and fighters from Lebanese ally Hezbollah pounded Syria's strategic border town of Yabroud on Wednesday, activists said, in apparent preparation for a new offensive to flush out rebels.<br /><br />The assault is the latest step in Assad and Hezbollah's campaign to assert control over the Lebanese-Syrian border region and fortify the president's hold on central Syria, from the capital Damascus to his stronghold on the coast.<br /><br />Syrian state media said the army had seized the nearby village al-Jarajeer, while rebels said Assad's forces had advanced on the area but had not completely taken it.<br /><br /><b><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-syria-crisis-talks-idUSBREA1B0TX20140212">Read more</a></b> ....<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>More News On Syria's Civil War</b></span></div><br /><a href="http://www.voanews.com/content/brahimi-to-consult-us-russia-as-syrian-peace-talks-continue/1849666.html">No Progress at Syria Talks</a> -- Voice of America<br /><a href="http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/afp/140212/syria-foes-start-third-day-talks">Syria foes start third day of talks</a> -- Global Post/AFP<br /><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/syrian-opposition-seeks-russian-help-in-talks/2014/02/12/bce20b2a-93ee-11e3-9e13-770265cf4962_story.html">Syrian opposition seeks Russian help in talks</a> -- Washington Post/AP<br /><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-syria-crisis-opposition-transition-idUSBREA1B14720140212">Exclusive: Opposition plan for post-war Syria ignores Assad</a> -- Reuters<br /><a href="http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/syria-crisis-talks-brahimi-idINDEEA1B08I20140212">Brahimi to meet senior U.S., Russian officials over Syria on Thursday - U.N.</a> -- Reuters<br /><a href="http://www.voanews.com/content/russia-plans-veto-of-security-council-resolution-on-syria/1849606.html">Russia Plans Veto of Security Council Resolution on Syria </a>-- Voice of America<br /><br /><a href="http://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2014/02/fighting-rages-syria-despite-peace-talks-201421215161928169.html">Fighting rages in Syria despite peace talks</a> -- Al Jazeera<br /><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-syria-crisis-yabroud-idUSBREA1B0HZ20140212">Syrian forces press assault near Lebanon border: activists</a> -- Reuters<br /><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/syrian-planes-pound-rebel-town-near-lebanon-border/2014/02/12/2e18a6c4-93c6-11e3-9e13-770265cf4962_story.html">Syrian planes pound rebel town near Lebanon border</a> -- AP<br /><a href="http://www.euronews.com/2014/02/12/syrian-forces-step-up-offensives-in-yabroud-and-aleppo/">Syrian forces step up offensives in Yabroud and Aleppo</a> -- Euronews<br /><a href="http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Lebanon-News/2014/Feb-12/247102-syrian-forces-step-up-assault-near-lebanon-border-activists.ashx#axzz2sxRrfc9B">Syria warplanes hit Yabrud near Damascus: activists</a> -- Daily Star/AFP<br /><a href="http://www.voanews.com/content/more-suffering-for-syria-as-jihadists-battle/1849430.html">More Suffering For Syria as Jihadists Battle</a> -- Voice of America<br /><a href="http://www.kansascity.com/2014/02/11/4812744/in-recent-months-isis-targeted.html">In recent months, ISIS targeted hospitals, doctors, journalists</a> -- Kansas City/McClatchy News<br /><br /><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-26156533">UK suicide bomber in Syria named as Abdul Waheed Majid</a> -- BBC<br /><a href="http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2556616/British-jihadists-fighting-Syria-post-Facebook-torture-footage-caption-Cant-wait-feeling-U-just-killed-some1.html">British jihadist fighting in Syria posts Twitter 'torture' footage with caption: ‘Can’t wait for feeling you get when U just killed some1'</a> -- Daily Mail<br /><a href="http://news.sky.com/story/1209106/brits-involved-in-syria-executions-and-torture">Brits 'Involved In Syria Executions And Torture'</a> -- SKY News<br /><br /><a href="http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304888404579378671046867760?mg=reno64-wsj&url=http%3A%2F%2Fonline.wsj.com%2Farticle%2FSB10001424052702304888404579378671046867760.html">U.N. Resumes Aid Mission in Homs</a> -- Wall Street Journal<br /><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-26148194">Syria conflict: Aid and evacuations continue in Homs</a> -- BBC<br /><a href="http://www.latimes.com/world/worldnow/la-fg-wn-syria-homs-evacuations-20140212,0,5479876.story#axzz2t41LE47C">Syria: Evacuation in besieged Homs continues amid cease-fire</a> -- L.A. Times<br /><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2014/02/12/world/meast/syria-civil-war/">Evacuees try to flee Homs as Syria talks move slowly</a> -- CNN<br /><a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/us-syria-crisis-homs-idUSBREA1B0WU20140212">Ceasefire in Syria's Homs could be extended again: governor</a> -- Reuters<br /><a href="http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303874504579377250947171122?mg=reno64-wsj&url=http%3A%2F%2Fonline.wsj.com%2Farticle%2FSB10001424052702303874504579377250947171122.html">Fate of Hundreds of Men Evacuated From Homs and Detained in Doubt</a> -- Wall Street Journal

Civil War In Syria -- News Updates February 12, 2014

Battle On Lebanese Border As Syria Talks Falter -- Reuters (Reuters) - President Bashar al-Assad's forces and fighters from Lebanese all...

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US bans commercial ivory trade (BLOG)

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV2dNo0ZKorQ_aDYkKqSUhLuUV4rZpBCELuWSGOb4tD9630VdUJjBkVUf0tZBxBvpXR3To6om007rrFMUFzZTeB5XITDiD2tXi5-XU-SJtf3Qo7QolXY3dpa4ptlmLZZwuNFcrBmoQS1U/s1600/oo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjV2dNo0ZKorQ_aDYkKqSUhLuUV4rZpBCELuWSGOb4tD9630VdUJjBkVUf0tZBxBvpXR3To6om007rrFMUFzZTeB5XITDiD2tXi5-XU-SJtf3Qo7QolXY3dpa4ptlmLZZwuNFcrBmoQS1U/s1600/oo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_26248" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Washington (AFP) - The United States banned the domestic trade of elephant ivory as part of a new drive to help African countries stem the rising threat to wildlife from poachers.</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_26258" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The outlawed ivory trade is mostly fueled by demand in Asia and the Middle East, where elephant tusks and rhinoceros horns are used in traditional medicine and to make ornaments.The White House administrative action prohibits all commercial imports of African elephant ivory, including antiques, and all commercial exports, -- except for bona fide antiques and certain other items.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Poaching has risen sharply in Africa in recent years where, besides targeting rhinos, gangs have slaughtered whole herds of elephants for their tusks.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">"This ban is the best way to help ensure that US markets do not contribute to the further decline of African elephants in the wild," the White House said in a statement.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">It said federal departments and agencies would immediately take actions to, among other things, clarify what constitutes an antique.</div><div class="body-related" style="background-color: white; clear: right; float: right; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 10px; position: relative;"><a class="body-related-link body-related-image go-to-slideshow-lightbox rapid-noclick-resp landscape onesize get-lbdata-from-dom" data-rapid_p="8" data-uuid="6e02ffad-f8cb-3c84-ba1a-89b5ba32f8f5" href="http://news.yahoo.com/photos/file-picture-shows-kenya-wildlife-services-kws-ranger-photo-030140313.html" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; display: block; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 300px; position: relative; text-decoration: none;" title="File picture shows a Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS)&nbsp;&hellip;"><div class="img-wrap" style="position: relative;"><div class="cta-overlay" style="-webkit-transition: background-color 0.24s linear; font-size: 13px; height: 212px; left: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: background-color 0.24s linear; width: 300px;"><span class="clearfix title cta-text medium" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; color: white; font-size: 16px; left: 5px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; top: 5px; transition: opacity 0.24s linear; white-space: pre-wrap; width: 270px; zoom: 1;"></span><span class="cta-text xsmall" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; bottom: 5px; color: white; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 42px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; transition: opacity 0.24s linear;">View gallery</span><span class="icon-slideshow icon-white-slideshow-xsmall" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.16s linear; background-color: #324fe1; background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; background-size: cover; border-bottom-left-radius: 4px; border-bottom-right-radius: 4px; border-top-left-radius: 4px; border-top-right-radius: 4px; bottom: 5px; cursor: pointer; height: 23px; left: 5px; line-height: 0; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-indent: -1000em; transition: opacity 0.16s linear; width: 32px; z-index: 1;"></span></div><img alt="File picture shows a Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS)&nbsp;&hellip;" class="body-related-thumb" data-src-2x="" height="212" src="http://l3.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/PjlCMsKQ1bF3vWEygeCe0Q--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTIxMjtxPTc1O3c9MzAw/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/afp.com/f75c26cd39c83f13784f22ad5ac7444d231ebe20.jpg" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; display: block; opacity: 1 !important; transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; vertical-align: baseline; visibility: visible !important;" width="300" /></div></a><div class="body-related-title photo-caption" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: grey; font-size: 11px; line-height: 16.5px; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; padding: 5px 5px 0px 0px; position: relative; width: 300px;">File picture shows a Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) ranger standing guard over an ivory haul seized a …</div></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">"To qualify as an antique, an item must be more than 100 years old and meet other requirements under the Endangered Species Act."</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">"The onus will now fall on the importer, exporter, or seller to demonstrate that an item meets these criteria."</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Other measures include limiting to two the number of African elephant sport-hunted trophies that can be imported by an individual each year.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The crackdown on ivory is a key aspect of a new national strategy for combating wildlife trafficking, also unveiled Tuesday, that has been in the works for some time.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">During a trip to Tanzania last year, President Barack Obama signed an executive order for a $10 million program to reduce the practice in Africa.</div><div class="body-related" style="background-color: white; clear: right; float: right; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 10px; position: relative;"><a class="body-related-link body-related-image go-to-slideshow-lightbox rapid-noclick-resp landscape onesize get-lbdata-from-dom" data-rapid_p="9" data-uuid="32bfd542-5899-3a90-bc0b-7f4fcb30263b" href="http://news.yahoo.com/photos/three-tonnes-illegal-ivory-displayed-february-6-2014-photo-203240868.html" style="color: #324fe1; cursor: pointer; display: block; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 300px; position: relative; text-decoration: none;" title="Three tonnes of illegal ivory are displayed on February&nbsp;&hellip;"><div class="img-wrap" style="position: relative;"><div class="cta-overlay" style="-webkit-transition: background-color 0.24s linear; font-size: 13px; height: 200px; left: 0px; position: absolute; top: 0px; transition: background-color 0.24s linear; width: 300px;"><span class="clearfix title cta-text medium" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; color: white; font-size: 16px; left: 5px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; top: 5px; transition: opacity 0.24s linear; white-space: pre-wrap; width: 270px; zoom: 1;"></span><span class="cta-text xsmall" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.24s linear; bottom: 5px; color: white; font-size: 16px; margin-left: 42px; opacity: 0; position: absolute; transition: opacity 0.24s linear;">View gallery</span><span class="icon-slideshow icon-white-slideshow-xsmall" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.16s linear; background-color: #324fe1; background-image: url(data:image/svg+xml; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; background-size: cover; border-bottom-left-radius: 4px; border-bottom-right-radius: 4px; border-top-left-radius: 4px; border-top-right-radius: 4px; bottom: 5px; cursor: pointer; height: 23px; left: 5px; line-height: 0; opacity: 0; padding: 0px; position: absolute; text-indent: -1000em; transition: opacity 0.16s linear; width: 32px; z-index: 1;"></span></div><img alt="Three tonnes of illegal ivory are displayed on February&nbsp;&hellip;" class="body-related-thumb" data-src-2x="" height="200" src="http://l.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/cG0fvXPgRaVv9DYmYiKdXw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTIwMDtxPTc1O3c9MzAw/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/afp.com/4ef477d5802d394b77c05a9f940d0786eb2b98f9.jpg" style="-webkit-transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; background-repeat: no-repeat no-repeat; border: 0px; display: block; opacity: 1 !important; transition: opacity 0.3333s ease 0ms; vertical-align: baseline; visibility: visible !important;" width="300" /></div></a><div class="body-related-title photo-caption" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: grey; font-size: 11px; line-height: 16.5px; margin: 0px auto; max-width: 100%; padding: 5px 5px 0px 0px; position: relative; width: 300px;">Three tonnes of illegal ivory are displayed on February 6, 2014 in front of the Eiffel tower in Pari …</div></div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">That led to the setting up of a task force to develop the strategy to crack down on the lucrative trade -- estimated to be worth between $7 and $10 billion a year.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">"The United States will continue to lead global efforts to protect the world's iconic animals and preserve our planet's natural beauty for future generations," the White House said.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Senior administration officials said the United States is one of the world's largest markets for wildlife products, both legal and illegal.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">"Much of the trafficking in ivory and other wildlife products either passes through or ends up in the United States and so we are committed to putting an end to the illegal trade in elephant ivory and also other wildlife products," one official told reporters on a conference all.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">Another said that, under the ban, it would be legal to own items made from ivory and gift these to your children or children -- but it would not be legal to sell them.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">"We are facing a situation where rhino horn is worth more than its weight in gold. Elephant ivory is going for as much as $1,500 a pound," the official said.</div><div style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">"So we believe that an outright ban on domestic trade in ivory and rhino horn is appropriate because it will help us be more effective in law enforcement and it will demonstrate a US leadership worldwide."</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_26318" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">"We can't ask other consumer nations to crack down on their domestic trade and markets unless we're prepared to the same here at home."</div><div id="yui_3_9_1_1_1392198034882_26308" style="background-color: white; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', HelveticaNeue, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 24.000001907348633px; margin-bottom: 1.1em;">The official said there are less than half a million elephants on the African continent today and "estimates are that we are losing as many as 35,000 elephants per year."</div>

US bans commercial ivory trade (BLOG)

Washington (AFP) - The United States banned the domestic trade of elephant ivory as part of a new drive to help African countries stem the r...

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Who's paying for the USPS ammunition?

<div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">We the taxpayer pays </span></b></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLpwyUHZUvjJ0Xd-UWCldbw59S8ehXwcVTQgvgbpAr0R8v5D8PD6LgWNxoYo-uW0Mxr8l5EUXrtEObvRTBcgjITVOaHACm1AcxH_LNkI7ua8IV9xcoi4Q77KoLeGgCeYWxHNr_CKH4zKo/s1600/usps-300x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLpwyUHZUvjJ0Xd-UWCldbw59S8ehXwcVTQgvgbpAr0R8v5D8PD6LgWNxoYo-uW0Mxr8l5EUXrtEObvRTBcgjITVOaHACm1AcxH_LNkI7ua8IV9xcoi4Q77KoLeGgCeYWxHNr_CKH4zKo/s1600/usps-300x300.jpg" width="200" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">...and then they shoot us?</span></b></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="360" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/Xtb-hlxA7Xc?feature=player_detailpage" width="640"></iframe> <br /><b>...developing...</b></div>

Who's paying for the USPS ammunition?

We the taxpayer pays  ...and then they shoot us? ...developing...

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North And South Korea Officials Meet For The First Time In 7 Years

<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/oN6z85FUTlM" width="560"></iframe><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>North And South Korea Seek Better Ties At Rare High-Level Talks -- Reuters</b></span></div><br />(Reuters) - North and South Korea held their first high-level talks in seven years on their fortified border on Wednesday, exploring ways to improve ties while the South and the United States geared up for military exercises that have angered the North.<br /><br />The meeting was set up with unusual speed and great secrecy at the North's suggestion last week, the latest example of conflicting signals coming from North Korea that included an abrupt cancellation of an invitation for a U.S. envoy to visit.<br /><br />The two sides met at the Panmunjom truce village on the border with no pre-arranged agenda and discussed a range of issues including reunions of families separated during their 1950-53 Korean War, a South Korean official said.<br /><br /><b><a href="http://in.reuters.com/article/2014/02/12/korea-north-talks-idINDEEA1B08E20140212">Read more</a></b> ....<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>More News On Today's North - South Korea Meeting</b></span></div><br /><a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia_pacific/seoul-rival-koreas-hold-senior-level-meeting/2014/02/11/c0243a98-938e-11e3-9e13-770265cf4962_story.html">Seoul: Rival Koreas end senior-level meeting </a>-- Washington Post/AP<br /><a href="http://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/02/12/north-south-korea-hold-high-level-meeting-at-border-village/">North, South Korea hold high-level meeting at border village</a> -- FOX News<br /><a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-26131487">North and South Korea hold rare high-level talks</a> -- BBC<br /><a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/12/north-and-south-korea-hold-high-level-meeting-at-border">North and South Korea hold high-level meeting at border</a> -- The Guardian<br /><a href="http://www.voanews.com/content/north-south-korea-hold-highlevel-meeting/1849664.html">North, South Korea Hold High-Level Meeting</a> -- Voice of America<br /><a href="http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/kyodo-news-international/140212/2-koreas-hold-high-level-talks-1st-7-years">2 Koreas hold high-level talks, 1st in 7 years </a>-- Global Post/Kyodo News<br /><a href="http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/yonhap-news-agency/140212/koreas-hold-first-high-level-talks-2007-0">Koreas hold first high-level talks since 2007</a> -- Global Post/Yonhap News Agency<br /><a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2014/02/12/koreas-peace-talks/5417035/">Two Koreas hold first high-level talks in 7 years</a> -- USA Today<br /><a href="http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asiapacific/north-south-korea-hold/995348.html">North, South Korea hold rare high-level talks</a> -- Channel News Agency<br /><a href="http://www.arirang.co.kr/News/News_View.asp?nseq=157307">Cross-over:Koreas hold high-level talks on inter-Korean issues</a> -- Arirang

North And South Korea Officials Meet For The First Time In 7 Years

North And South Korea Seek Better Ties At Rare High-Level Talks -- Reuters (Reuters) - North and South Korea held their first high-level tal...

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