UK military uses modded video games for soldier training

Ministry of Defense adapting battle video games

The British Ministry of Defense is turning to technology in order to train its soldiers. One such example is the virtual trainer called Virtual Battlespace 2, which is a modified version of a popular commercial video game. The need stems from hopeful soldiers who are used to popular and appealing video games for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 gaming consoles.

Also, the Ministry is looking at supplying fighter pilots with iPads that can house training and flight manuals and save them money, as paper manuals can cost thousands of dollars and need to be updated.

The Ministry of Defense representatives say the gaming industry and each game developer have a much bigger budget than they do to develop battlefield simulators. The Ministry may buy game code from the publishers and adapt it for their purposes. Virtual Battlespace 2 was based on tech licensed from the developers of Operation Flashpoint, for example.

The changes include making more realistic weapons that behave as they would in the real world, with realistic range. This is to boost the level of immersion and boost realism at the cost of entertainment. [via The Guardian]

By Electronista Staff

Source: http://feeds.electronista.com/click.phdo?i=835fb8d56eac7259e324c8fdd0a1a5b4

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Romney tries to come across as a man of the people (AP)

MASON CITY, Iowa ? Dressed in jeans, shirt sleeves rolled up, Mitt Romney reminisced before a noontime crowd about the long car trips his family took when he was a boy. "My dad made Ramblers, so we had one," the Republican presidential hopeful said.

In fact, Romney's father didn't just make cars. He was chairman and president of American Motors, the company that made Ramblers, and a highly successful businessman before he entered politics. It's a detail the son omitted as he sought to establish a bond with Iowans he hopes will support him in next week's presidential caucuses.

An oversight, perhaps ? he sometimes mentions George Romney's titles ? but Romney's effort to come across as a man of the people has been anything but a smooth transition.

One woman recently told him that she had to endure a five-hour commute to work because her company moved out of state. How could he help keep good jobs in Iowa, she asked.

"Sometimes it's counterintuitive," replied Romney, a former businessman, explaining that businesses often invent new, more efficient ways to compete.

"The term is called productivity. Output per person," he said. "Our productivity equals our income."

In the final stretch of the Iowa caucus campaign, Romney has stepped out from behind the curtain of private fundraising events that for months shielded him from unscripted encounters with voters.

During two bus tours through Iowa and New Hampshire, he has overhauled his campaign style. He has done interview after interview. He's knocked on doors and spent hours taking questions from voters in town hall meetings.

His wife, Ann, introduces him at almost every stop, as she did in Mason City on Thursday when she said, "It was Mitt who brought me through my darkest hour" ? an apparent reference to how her husband stood by her through a diagnosis of multiple sclerosis.

She's sat next to him during TV interviews. In a rare display of public emotion, Romney's voice nearly caught as he talked about her struggle with MS on a Sunday news show.

"We're finding that as we run ads that talk about our personal background, our personal beliefs, that that increased support for my campaign," he told reporters who followed his New Hampshire bus tour the week before Christmas. He was explaining his latest TV ads in Iowa ? one highlighted his background as a man of "steadiness and constancy," the other featured his wife talking directly to the camera about his character.

Yet he can still struggle to connect with people on a personal level.

When one retired firefighter in New Hampshire said he was drawing a reduced Social Security check because he also had a state pension, the former Massachusetts governor was less than sympathetic. "If there's a competition for who will give you the most free stuff, go vote for that guy."

When the man said he wasn't asking for any handouts, Romney said, "You knew what you were getting into. ... I wish you well, but I'm not going to promise you more bucks."

He's not always distant. At an earlier stop in New Hampshire, Romney explained how he lived on a careful budget as a Mormon missionary, using crude toilets and living in modest apartments. He also talked about his time as a lay pastor in Boston's Mormon church, when he says he counseled struggling families.

"When people don't have a job and they don't feel like they're contributing to the betterment of their family and their future, they get pretty depressed," he told the crowd. "Being out of work for a long time is real tough and it's not the fault of the person's that out of work."

When a voter in Bethlehem, N.H., asked him how her elderly friends would get through the winter with the price of heating fuel so high, Romney didn't hesitate.

"You're finding throughout this country that it's harder and harder on middle-income families," he said. "The costs of oil, the costs of food, and health care have all gone up."

But when he's trying to connect one-on-one, he sometimes hits notes that sound jarring.

As he stood at the cash register at a Concord, N.H., toy store, picking up a few gifts for charity, a patron asked him what he gave his family for Christmas. Earlier in the day, he had bought his wife a $285 North Face jacket as a gift, he said.

For his sons?

"We sent them checks," said Romney, a multimillionaire. "Cash is always good."

___

Follow Kasie Hunt on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/kasie.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politics/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111230/ap_on_el_pr/us_romney_personal_side

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First Meteor Shower of 2012 Arrives Next Week (SPACE.com)

In 2011, most of the best meteor showers occurred when the moon was close to full. This natural "light pollution" made the fainter meteors impossible to see.

But 2012 starts out with a fine meteor shower, the Quadrantids, with absolutely no moon to interfere with the viewing. The?Quadrantid meteor shower ?will peak on Jan. 4 at about 2 a.m. EST (0700 GMT).

Meteor showers occur when the Earth passes through fields of debris left behind by comets or asteroids in the past. The result is that, instead of the handful of meteors, or "shooting stars," which can be seen any clear night, we get a "shower" of meteors: dozens or even hundreds of meteors over the course of an evening.

The best known meteor shower of the year is the Perseids, which normally occurs in the second week of August. The other two most reliable meteor showers are the Geminids in mid-December and the Quadrantids in early January. [Amazing Perseid meteor photos]

Most meteor showers are named for the constellations in which their "radiants" are located. These are the points in the sky from which the meteors appear to streak. When we look at the radiant of a meteor shower, we are essentially looking up the track upon which the meteors arrive at Earth, just as we would watch a train coming down a railroad track.

But after what constellation is the Quadrantid meteor shower named?

Strangely enough, it is named for a constellation which no longer exists, Quadrans Muralis, the wall quadrant. This was an instrument used by early astronomers to measure positions in the sky. If you've ever seen a picture of the famous Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe, you've probably seen his wall quadrant. This constellation was named in 1795 by French astronomer J?r?me Lalande, who had a wall quadrant of his own which he decided to immortalize in the sky.

Quadrans Muralis consisted of a faint group of stars between the top of Bootes and the handle of the Big Dipper, now completely forgotten except for its survival in the name of this meteor shower. The?sky map of the 2012 Quadrantid meteor shower ??included with this article shows where to look to see the shooting star display.?

The comet which created this meteor shower has not been identified for certain, but may have been a comet observed in 1490 by Chinese, Korean, and Japanese astronomers.

Observing a meteor shower is a naked-eye pursuit. The meteors move too fast to be tracked with telescopes or even binoculars. The best way to observe them is to dress warmly and lie back on a deck chair or chaise longue to get as wide a view of the sky as possible.

It?s not necessary to know where the radiant is located, as the meteors can be seen anywhere in the sky. The only important thing is that the radiant be above the horizon. This is not a problem for most observers in North America or Europe since the Quadrantid radiant is circumpolar: it circles the celestial pole and never sets.

You will see more meteors after midnight because of the motion of the Earth. Be sure to protect your eyes from direct light and give your eyes plenty of time to adapt to the darkness, at least 20 minutes.

You may see nothing for some time, but be patient and the meteors will come. Meteors often come in bunches so, if you see one, watch that area more carefully. If you've never observed meteors before, you may think you?re "seeing things" at first, because they often move very fast, and are gone before you can turn your eyes on them.

The Quadrantid shower is unusual for having a very sharp "peak" around 2 a.m. on Jan. 4. Thus it's important to try to observe on this particular date, as the next night will be too late.

Good luck!

This article was provided to SPACE.com by Starry Night Education, the leader in space science curriculum solutions. Follow Starry Night on Twitter @StarryNightEdu.?

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/science/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/space/20111228/sc_space/firstmeteorshowerof2012arrivesnextweek

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Targeted therapy extends progression-free survival of patients with advanced ovarian cancer

ScienceDaily (Dec. 29, 2011) ? Targeted drugs, which block or disrupt particular molecules involved in the growth of tumors, have been shown to be effective treatments against many types of cancer. A new phase 3 clinical trial conducted by the Gynecologic Oncology Group (GOG) showed that a targeted therapy called bevacizumab (Avastin) effectively delayed the progression of advanced ovarian cancer. Patients with newly diagnosed advanced ovarian cancer now typically undergo surgery and chemotherapy, but the new research suggests an additional avenue of treatment.

The results of the trial appear in the December 29 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

"This approach can be looked upon as a third major component of treatment for ovarian cancer and related malignancies," says Robert A. Burger, MD, lead investigator on the GOG study and director of the Women's Cancer Center at Fox Chase Cancer Center. "We've had the combination of surgical management and cytotoxic chemotherapy for many years, but we haven't really seen anything else in terms of a fundamental class of treatment. This represents a new way for us to control the disease."

The placebo-controlled study, which was sponsored by the National Cancer Institute, enrolled 1,873 patients with previously untreated advanced disease from 336 sites, primarily in the United States, but also in Canada, South Korea, and Japan. The patients either had stage III ovarian cancer that could not be entirely removed with surgery, or stage IV disease, and were randomly assigned to one of three groups. For patients who received bevacizumab with chemotherapy followed by bevacizumab for up to an additional 10 months, the median time until their cancer progressed was 14.1 months, compared to 10.3 months for patients in the control group, who received chemotherapy with a placebo and then continued with a placebo. The net effect was a 28% reduction in the risk of disease of ovarian cancer progression over time. Patients who received bevacizumab only with chemotherapy, but not afterward, had a median progression-free survival of 11.2 months.

The National Cancer Institute estimates that nearly 22,000 women were diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2011, and more than 15,000 died of the disease. For patients diagnosed before the cancer has spread, the five-year relative survival rate is about 93 percent (relative survival measures survival of cancer only, independent of other causes of death). But ovarian cancer is insidious -- early symptoms, like bloating, abdominal pain, and trouble eating, are typical of many illnesses and easily dismissed as non-threatening. Women often do not learn they have the disease until it's already spread. In 62 percent of new cases, the patient's cancer has metastasized to distant sites, and the five-year survival rate is just under 27 percent.

Bevacizumab is already FDA-approved for use against some types of colon, lung, kidney and brain cancers; its accelerated approval for metastatic breast cancer was recently revoked by the FDA. The drug acts by binding with vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), a protein produced by certain cancers that helps initiate the growth of new blood vessels that feed the tumor. The process of growing new blood vessels is called angiogenesis, and bevacizumab is an angiogenesis inhibitor.

"Bevacizumab blocks the growth factor VEGF, which is important in the process of ovarian cancer progression," says Burger, "and we've seen that this drug is also active in patients with recurrent disease."

Angiogenesis happens at the interface between the host and the disease, which makes it an appealing target for treatment, says Burger, who also led the Phase II GOG study on using bevacizumab in women with recurrent ovarian cancer. He says different ovarian cancers may appear identical under the microscope but differ biologically, which means they'll respond differently to treatment.

In the NEJM paper, Burger and his co-authors point out that another ovarian cancer trial conducted primarily in Europe called ICON7 demonstrated positive results in using becavizumab in combination with chemotherapy and then continued for up to 7 months.

Co-authors on the NEJM paper include Mark F. Brady, Roswell Park Cancer Institute; Michael A. Bookman, Arizona Cancer Center; Gini F. Fleming, University of Chicago; Bradley J. Monk, Creighton University School of Medicine; Helen Huang, Roswell Park; Robert S. Mannel, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City; Howard D. Homesley, Wake Forest University School of Medicine; Jeffrey Fowler, James Cancer Hospital at the Ohio State University, Hilliard; Benjamin E. Greer, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance; Matthew Boente, Minnesota Oncology and Hematology; Michael J. Birrer, Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital; and Sharon X. Liang, North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System.

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Journal Reference:

1. Robert A. Burger, Mark F. Brady, Michael A. Bookman, Gini F. Fleming, Bradley J. Monk, Helen Huang, Robert S. Mannel, Howard D. Homesley, Jeffrey Fowler, Benjamin E. Greer, Matthew Boente, Michael J. Birrer, Sharon X. Liang. Incorporation of Bevacizumab in the Primary Treatment of Ovarian Cancer. New England Journal of Medicine, 2011; 365 (26): 2473 DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa1104390

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/6pQ7tkrjR1c/111229091841.htm

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China executes 12 people in single day (AP)

BEIJING ? China has executed 12 people in a single day, including a man who bombed a local tax office.

The official Xinhua News Agency says Liu Zhuiheng was convicted and sentenced to death for detonating explosives outside a tax office in Changsha city in Hunan province in July 2010. Four people were killed and 17 others wounded. Xinhua says the 52-year-old was venting anger over business losses.

Xinhua says China's supreme court approved the death sentence of Liu and 11 others Thursday. All death sentences are sent to the supreme court for review and are usually carried out immediately if approved.

The other 11 people were convicted of crimes including murder and robbery.

China executes more people than any other country ? around 4,000 people a year.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/china/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111229/ap_on_re_as/as_china_executions

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Struggling Perry looks to Texas Invasion in Iowa

By Mary Wisniewski

DES MOINES, Iowa | Thu Dec 29, 2011 9:30pm EST

DES MOINES, Iowa (Reuters) - Texas Governor Rick Perry, down in the polls and failing to find a winning campaign strategy, is relying on folks from back home to help lift his struggling presidential election bid in Iowa.

More than a dozen Texans stuffed boxes with Perry signs and T-shirts at a hotel conference room in West Des Moines, Iowa, chatting about their hometowns and sampling Texas-size muffins from a buffet table.

They were part of the first wave of what the Perry campaign hopes will be hundreds of Texans and supporters from other states who are volunteering to come to Iowa to boost Perry ahead of Tuesday's Republican caucus vote.

Perry could use the help. His campaign has flagged since he jumped into the race in August in the top tier of candidates, promoting his job creation record in Texas where he is the longest-serving governor.

But after poor debate performances, Perry lost ground. A CNN/Time Iowa poll this week showed him in fifth place with 11 percent, below Mitt Romney, Ron Paul, Rick Santorum, and Newt Gingrich.

The poor poll numbers come despite Perry trying to promote his social conservative credentials in a series of ads, including one in which he attacked gays in the military. He also has taken a harder line on abortion in a play to Iowa's large evangelical Christian constituency.

More pro-Perry Texans will be arriving to work phone banks, cheer at rallies and talk to voters, according to campaign representatives and volunteers. They will include several Republican state legislators, as well as the statewide officeholders.

"I felt that he needs to get some traction here," said Joe Hyde, 47, of San Angelo, Texas, who arrived in Des Moines Tuesday with his 18-year-old daughter Shelby.

A political science major on Christmas break, Shelby was inserting metal posts into Perry yard signs. Like other volunteers, she and her father spent their own money to get to Iowa.

Several Perry backers expressed concern that the debates did not show who Perry really is.

"The debates have become a reality TV show that have overshadowed executive experience," Hyde said.

SIGN OF WEAKNESS?

Dennis Goldford, a Drake University politics professor, said the Texas volunteer army looks like a sign of weakness. Perry's huge spending on Iowa television and radio ads - which the campaign confirmed at about $2.86 million for December - does not seem to be helping.

"They're well-done ads," Goldford said. "But how many times do you get a second chance to make a first impression?"

Goldford said Iowa conservatives are looking for someone who can "go slug it out toe to toe with President Obama," and that's why Perry's poor performance in the debates hurt him.

Goldford said it is hard to say how much the Texas volunteers will help.

"In terms of Iowans, you're going to respond more to somebody from your neighborhood," Goldford said. "Remember it's a local precinct caucus. You're going to respond to somebody local rather than to somebody from outside the state."

There are Texas-Iowa connections. Some volunteers have worked on previous Iowa campaigns, according to campaign spokesman Ray Sullivan, and some said they had family in Iowa. Some Iowans retire or spend winters in Texas.

Perry has in recent weeks pushed his campaign farther to the right on social issues. John Strong, 70, of West Des Moines, said Perry pushed it too much.

"He's a little too far to the right," said Strong, who supports Ron Paul. Strong said even though he himself does not like gay marriage, Perry seems "a little hateful" about it. "He went really far right, obviously far right, maybe falsely far right," Strong said. "I think people see through that."

Not every Texas Republican is on board with Perry. One Republican state lawmaker, when asked if he was planning to volunteer in Iowa, responded tartly, "Hell, no! Why would I waste my time and money on that BS?"

(Additional reporting by Karen Brooks in Austin, Texas; Editing by Alistair Bell and Bill Trott)

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Reuters/PoliticsNews/~3/XmqVljC7IgM/us-usa-campaign-perry-idUSTRE7BT03J20111230

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Study: Indoor Tanning Linked With Early Onset of Skin Cancer (Time.com)

Given that indoor tanning beds were officially classified as a human carcinogen in 2009 -- up there with cigarettes and asbestos -- it should be fairly obvious that frequent tanning-booth exposure would increase your risk of skin cancer.

Indeed, the evidence linking indoor tanning with melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, and squamous cell carcinoma, one of the more common forms of the disease, is "convincing," according to the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer. But the research concerning tanning beds and basal cell carcinoma, the third and most frequent major type of skin cancer -- which accounts for some 80% of all skin cancer cases in the U.S. -- has thus far been inconsistent. (See pictures of a photographer's intimate account of her mother's cancer ordeal.)

Basal cell carcinoma, a slow-growing cancer, has traditionally been a disease of middle age. But it's been appearing with increasing frequency in people under 40, especially in women -- a demographic that also happens to like indoor tanning -- suggesting a link. So researchers at the Yale School of Public Health sought to study the association.

The study included 376 people under 40, who had been diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma between 2006 and 2010. They were matched with a control group of 390 dermatology patients who were diagnosed with minor skin conditions like cysts and warts. All participants had skin biopsies, and all were drawn from a Yale University database.

The researchers interviewed each participant about their UV exposure -- both in tanning beds and outdoors. They also asked about their history of sunburns, sunscreen use, family history of melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancers, and their self-reported eye, skin and hair color.

The conclusion: people who had ever used a tanning booth were 69% more likely to develop early-onset basal cell carcinoma than never tanners. Those who used tanning booths more regularly -- for at least six years -- were more than twice a likely to develop basal cell carcinoma, compared with never tanners.

The study found that women were far more devoted than men to indoor tanning, which might help explain why 70% of all early onset basal cell carcinomas occur in females. The authors concluded that about 27% of cases of early onset disease -- including 43% of cases in women -- could be prevented if people simply stopped using tanning booths.

That's a tall order, considering that some 30 million Americans use indoor tanning beds each year. Policy changes, such as the recent California ban on teen tanning, may help, the authors suggest. So would behavioral interventions aimed at women -- at least one study in 2010 found that the best way to get young women to tan less was to warn them about the skin-wrinkling effects of tanning-bed exposure, not the risk of skin cancer.

"Importantly, indoor tanning is a behavior that individuals can change. In conjunction with the findings on melanoma, our results for [basal cell carcinoma] indicate that reducing indoor tanning could translate to a meaningful reduction in the incidence of these two types of skin cancer," said Leah M. Ferrucci, first author of the paper and a postdoctoral fellow at the Yale School of Public Health, in a statement.

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Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/health/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/time/20111228/hl_time/httphealthlandtimecom20111213studyindoortanninglinkedwithearlyonsetofskincancerixzz1gq9mdteqxidrssfullhealthsciyahoo

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Soszynski?s retirement on hold until doc says he can?t go on

Krzysztof Soszynski appeared to have retired following his fight at UFC 140 (4:00 mark). Now we're finding out there's more to the story.

Just minutes after losing to Igor Pokrajac, Soszynski made his statement made in front of a doctor during a postfight exam. Soszynski recently admitted he didn't even remember discussing the topic that night, but that doesn't mean retirement is out of the question for the 34-year-old veteran of 39 fights.

Aside from dealing with the negative effects of multiple slugfests, Soszynski says his knees are the real problem.

"I've been having knee problems since UFC 110 - the first fight with Stephan Bonnar. Ever since then, my knees just haven't been the same. We basically beat the crap out of each other, and ever since then I haven't been the same," Soszynski told The Province. "I've basically been fighting maybe 50-60-percent capacity. I've been fighting with these obstacles now for close to two years. I've had five knee surgeries in that time - three in the last seven months or so.

Soszynski sounds like he still has some fight left in him, but it'll be up to his doctor to decide if it's worth the risk.

"I possibly have to go under the knife again - I'll go see my doctor next week - so we'll see; depends on what the doctor says. If the doctor says I can get back to fighting, I would love to have at least one more fight, and go out the proper way, not the way I did against Igor. But if the doctor says that's about it, I'm going to respect that," Soszynski said.

Soszynski's been good for the sport. He represented it well by being one of the more mature characters on Season 8 of "The Ultimate Fighter."

Chances are, whether he's fighting or not, he'll contribute as a coach or nutritional expert in the future.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Soszynski-s-retirement-on-hold-until-doc-says-he?urn=mma-wp11212

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Wall St back at Square One, with S&P flat in 2011 (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) ? For the U.S. stock market, 2011 was a long wild ride to nowhere.

The broad S&P 500 endured huge daily swings but a year of drama left the index almost where it started. It lost a mere 0.003 percent, closest to unchanged since 1947, according to Standard & Poor's.

Global markets have been battered this year by the euro-zone debt crisis, upheaval in the Middle East, and U.S. political gridlock. Similar events probably await investors in 2012.

"The earnings and fundamentals were there for companies, but the political crisis and paralysis in Washington and Europe were too much," said Martin Sass, who founded and runs the $7.5 billion M.D. Sass hedge fund.

"They overwhelmed the fundamentals. I didn't think the euro- zone crisis would have been so protracted as it has become."

The Dow industrials gained 5.5 percent for the year as investors sought safety in large-cap, dividend-paying stocks. The Nasdaq lost 1.8 percent.

Investors took out their ire on the financials (.GSPF), which were the weakest group this year, falling more than 18 percent. Concerns about exposure to Europe and the threat of a renewed financial crisis hurt those shares.

Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) was the Dow's worst performer, tumbling 58.3 percent this year, and it was also one of the S&P 500's biggest losers. JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) slumped 21.6 percent in 2011.

Cabot Oil & Gas Corp (COG.N) was the only S&P component to double its stock price in 2011 - rising 100.5 percent - followed by another energy name, El Paso Corp (EP.N), which rose 93.1 percent. The S&P 500 's weakest stock was First Solar (FSLR.O), as shares of that company were hit by falling solar panel prices. For the year, the stock was off 74.1 percent.

Defensive sectors like utilities outperformed growth sectors, underscoring the view that investors were concerned about the economic outlook.

McDonald's Corp (MCD.N) advanced 31 percent this year, making it the Dow's biggest gainer.

Reflecting the wild market swings, the CBOE Volatility Index, or VIX (.VIX), rose about 32 percent for the year, the first increase since 2008. The S&P 500 climbed 9 percent at its peak, and dropped 14.5 percent to its bottom.

One potential silver lining headed into 2012 is that after relatively flat years, the market tends to bounce.

"The other times (the S&P 500) didn't change much during the year, it performed quite well during the next year," said Jason Goepfert, president of SentimenTrader.com in a report.

"Overall, the years after these small-change years did well, especially during the past 50 years."

Of those, the next year returned a median gain of 17.8 percent, according to Goepfert's data. The maximum loss averaged

a decline of only 1.6 percent versus a maximum gain that averaged 20.9 percent. He also noted the final session of the year has not had a great run lately, being positive only 34 percent of the time during the past 30 years.

A DOWNBEAT FRIDAY

On Friday, the Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) fell 69.48 points, or 0.57 percent, to 12,217.56 at the close. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index (.SPX) slipped 5.42 points, or 0.43 percent, to 1,257.60. The Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC) dropped 8.59 points, or 0.33 percent, to 2,605.15.

Daily volume this week has been running about half of the average, with many traders away for the Christmas and New Year's holidays. The anemic action amplified moves in both directions.

European shares closed up on Friday, but recorded their biggest annual drop in three years as debt tensions in the euro zone strained the financial sector and threatened to derail a fragile economic recovery. (.EU)

Some believe investors may have become too panic-stricken about Europe, an issue that will dominate headlines in coming months.

"Most of the Italian debt gets rolled over in the first quarter ... Once that debt's rolled, if it's rolled successfully, then there isn't any more to talk about this subject we've beaten to death for over a year now," said Ken Fisher, chief executive of Fisher Investments.

<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

For a graphic on 2011 market performance, see:

http://r.reuters.com/xut75s

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>

Composite volume was 4.07 billion shares on the New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq and Amex, well below this year's daily average of about 7.84 billion shares.

Decliners led advancers on the New York Stock Exchange by about 4 to 3, while on the Nasdaq, about three stocks fell for every two that rose.

(Reporting By Angela Moon; Additional reporting by Daniel Bases in New York and Doris Frankel in Chicago; Editing by Jan Paschal)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/stocks/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111230/bs_nm/us_markets_stocks

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Pay off holiday debt

You know that feeling of dread that sinks in during January?

It's that moment when you wince a bit while opening the mailbox because you just know the credit-card bills are going to look and feel heavier than usual. We're all broke in January, and it stinks.

The worst part about having no cash during this time is the fact that all those fabulous, impossible-to-find gifts that our kids just had to have already are broken, discarded or lost. So unfair.

This is usually when we all start swearing that we will never again wait outside Best Buy or the local mall at 2 a.m. on Black Friday.

We promise ourselves that our kids will not get an over-the-top Christmas ever again and that going forward we will make all our own gifts by hand. Period.

What can we do now that Mr. Credit Card Bill is almost due, and we know we've overspent, and we know we're going to be feeling this punishment for some time? Here's are some suggestions:

1. Face it and move on. We splurged, and now the bill is due. The best thing we can do is pay off that credit-card debt as fast as possible. If that means canceling cable for six months, do it.

There's interest in those credit card bills, and that can add up to quite a significant amount more than what you initially paid for the items. Face the debt, find the money and pay it off fast.

2. Consider having a January garage sale and selling off some items to raise some quick cash. If the thought of opening the garage door in January makes your shiver, use eBay to sell things.

3. Offer your services to family, friends and the neighborhood for some spare dough. You could sell your computer set-up skills, help clueless folks navigate the world of Facebook, tutor students in math, teach piano lessons or use whatever other talents you possess. Every bit helps, and every bit should be sent directly to the credit card company.

The goal is to get to February with a paid-off credit card balance and a goal to not go so crazy next year. Good luck!

Paula Sirois is a Florida-based writer who specializes in family life and frugal living for www.RetailMeNot.com.

Source: http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2011/dec/30/pay-off-holiday-debt/

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The American Cancer Society Has a Message for American Women ...

(3BL?Media / theCSRfeed) Atlanta, GA ? December 29, 2011 ? Can putting yourself first be considered an unselfish decision? When it comes to your health, the answer is yes. By putting your health first, you?re not only staying well for you, but also for your loved ones.

One in three women will develop cancer in her lifetime, but about 50 percent of cancer deaths could be prevented if women maintained a healthy weight through diet and regular exercise, avoided tobacco products and got recommended cancer screenings, according to the American Cancer Society. Yet, women are often so busy taking care of others that they struggle to make their own health a priority. In fact, a recent survey by the American Cancer Society showed that while 95 percent of women feel the need to improve their health, approximately three out of five admit they put others? health before their own.

In the constant struggle between family, work and self, how can you put yourself first? Whether sticking to your New Year?s resolution, preparing for swimsuit season or simply wanting to live a healthier lifestyle, here are six tips to help reach your wellness goals:

• Eat right. Healthy eating is difficult in today?s busy world. To help you meet your goals, take time to record your intake in a food journal. A diet that is low in fat, high in fiber, with lots of fruits and vegetables, has been shown to help reduce the risk of developing cancer.

• Get active. Exercise often gets neglected, but just 150 minutes of moderate physical activity each week can reduce your risk of cancer, heart disease, even diabetes. If possible, exercise before work or during lunch, so you can spend time with your family or indulge in ?me-time? once you get home.

• Get recommended health screenings. Prevention and early detection are two of the most powerful tools you have for your health. Make visiting a doctor for preventative care a regular part of your health regimen, and set reminders to schedule important appointments and screenings.

• Quit smoking. Smoking causes one in five deaths in the United States, and a myriad of health problems. There are many tools and resources available online that can help distract you from your cravings and show you just how much those packs of cigarettes cost you over time.

• ?Protect your skin. A majority of skin cancer cases diagnosed in the U.S. are considered to be sun-related. When in the sun, wear protective clothing, sunscreen with an SPF rating of 15 or higher and sunglasses that block UV rays.

Choose You. Commit to making healthy living and early detection a priority by making a Choose You Commitment, a movement developed by the American Cancer Society to help women put their health first to help reduce cancer risk. This online program provides tools and support to enable women to commit to, and achieve their personal health and wellness goals.

ACS19875

Source: http://3blmedia.com/theCSRfeed/American-Cancer-Society-Has-Message-American-Women-%E2%80%9CChoose-You%E2%80%9D

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Second rice shipment to Japan leaves central Taiwan

A shipment of Taiwanese rice bound for Tokyo departed central Taiwan yesterday, the second in a series of three deliveries of the biggest rice order received from Japan in eight years.

A ceremony was held in Changhua County?s Pitou Township (??), where the rice supplier, Union Rice Co, is based, to mark the shipment and the success of Changhua rice in entering Japan?s market.

The rice is being delivered to major Japanese rice importer Kitoku Shinryo Co, which ordered 360 tonnes earlier this year, the largest purchase of rice since exports to Japan were resumed in October 2004.

The rice will be distributed directly to Japanese retailers, the first time Taiwanese rice will be sold to Japanese consumers. In the past, it was mostly sold to wholesalers supplying restaurants or food processors.

Agriculture and Food Agency Director Li Tsang-lang (???) said rice exports have long been constrained by high costs of production, which make Taiwanese rice more expensive than that grown in the US, Thailand and Australia.

Kitoku Shinryo decided to place an order due to the high quality of Taiwan?s rice, he said.

?After the rice passed all tests, they placed an order with us. The success represents positive recognition of the quality of Taiwanese rice and the technology used to process it,? Li said.

The Council of Agriculture said rice exported to Japan must pass 591 pesticide residue tests before being given the green light.

Makoto Hirayama, president of Kitoku Shinryo Co, visited Taiwan last month to inspect paddy fields, barns and processing plants and tasted the rice himself before placing the order.

The order has been partly motivated by the food shortages faced in Japan recently. Radiation contamination of farms from the damaged Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant and flooding in Niigata, a famous rice production district, have combined to limit Japan?s food output, the council said.

The council was confident that Japanese importers would continue to order rice from Taiwan even after the shortages pass because of the high quality of Taiwanese rice.

Yesterday?s shipment, like the first one, weighed 108 tonnes, with the rice packed in 30kg bags. Upon arrival in Tokyo it was to be repacked before being distributed.

Source: http://libertytimes.feedsportal.com/c/33098/f/535599/s/1b4ec0b0/l/0L0Staipeitimes0N0CNews0Ctaiwan0Carchives0C20A110C120C280C20A0A3521825/story01.htm

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$30 billion fighter jet deal with Saudi Arabia to bring thousands of jobs to St. Louis

KMOV.com

Posted on December 29, 2011 at 1:27 PM

Updated today at 6:48 PM

HAZELWOOD, Mo. (KMOV) ? It will be a very happy New Year for Boeing workers in St. Louis as Saudi Arabia has signed a nearly $30 billion deal for St. Louis-made fighter jets.

The contract calls for 84 new F-15 fighter jets and upgrades to 70 more.

Boeing says the agreement between the United States and Saudi Arabia will create and sustain more than 50,000 jobs through the end of the decade. It will help families for years, and will be a huge boost for St. Louis.

Congressman Russ Carnahan says the jobs will be high paying ones that will help people long-term.

The federal government said it believes the sale of the jets will help to stabilize and build relationships in the Middle East. ?

Source: http://www.kmov.com/news/local/US-signs-30-billion-dollar-deal-to-manufacture-Saudi-Arabia-fighter-jets-136386898.html

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See in the New Year with the official Times Square New Year?s Eve Ball app

If you want to celebrate the beginning of the New Year, Times Square is an awesome place to do it. Unfortunately for most, it is not possible...

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/58Vm4UzTVLc/story01.htm

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Wall Street ends 5-day rally on renewed concerns about Europe (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) ? U.S. stocks fell more than 1 percent on Wednesday after a hefty year-end rally and the S&P 500 erased gains for the year on renewed concerns about the euro zone's financial health.

The selloff followed the euro's slide to an 11-month low against the U.S. dollar as regional debt worries prompted a wave of selling, with thin trading exacerbating volatility.

"It seems like the weakness in euro, breaking that $1.30 level, really made investors push that 'sell' button," said Ryan Detrick, senior technical strategist with Schaeffer's Investment Research in Cincinnati.

"But it's somewhat of an exaggerated move, considering that there isn't much volume, and this could end in a one-day selloff."

A recent rally on Wall Street had been supported by a series of positive U.S. economic data that encouraged investors to shift their focus from fears about Europe's debt crisis sparking a global recession to optimism that the U.S. economy was on track to recovery.

But "with no domestic economic news to guide the action, much of the focus was on Europe," WhatsTrading.com options strategist Frederic Ruffy said.

U.S. stock index futures had advanced earlier in the session after an Italian debt auction where short-term borrowing costs were halved, potentially a good sign for a sale of longer-dated bonds on Thursday.

But those gains were short-lived, as the euro fell to a session low of $1.2938, its lowest since January, before rising back to trade at $1.2949.

The Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) fell 139.94 points, or 1.14 percent, to end at 12,151.41. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index (.SPX) dropped 15.79 points, or 1.25 percent, to 1,249.64. The Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC) lost 35.22 points, or 1.34 percent, to 2,589.98.

S&P UP 10.5 PCT IN QUARTER

After a 5 percent rally last week that helped Wall Street add to what has been the best quarter in over a year, the S&P 500 pulled back below its 200-day moving average, a closely watched indicator of market strength it has struggled to hold this year.

For the quarter, the S&P 500 is up 10.5 percent.

For the year, the Dow is up 5 percent, while the S&P 500 is down 0.6 percent, and the Nasdaq is off 2.4 percent.

In Wednesday's session, investors concentrated on 2012 with Europe's debt crisis as well as a slowdown in Asia and the impact of Europe's recession on a U.S. recovery on the agenda.

"There are clearly some major hurdles on the horizon," said Peter Kenny, managing director at Knight Capital in Jersey City, New Jersey. "Looking into next year, there is more apprehension about the risks associated with the current climate."

The biggest gaining sectors over the last five days, in cyclical areas like materials and energy, led the market lower on Wednesday, sparked by a drop in commodity prices. The S&P materials sector index (.GSPM) fell 2.2 percent.

Gold sank, tracking industrial metals, on concerns about the prospects for global economic growth next year. It was gold's biggest one-day drop in two weeks.

Medicis Pharmaceutical Corp (MRX.N) fell 1.2 percent to $33.35 a day after cutting its fourth-quarter earnings outlook.

Citigroup Inc (C.N) shed 2.9 percent to $26.13 after U.S. regulators won a delay in a securities fraud lawsuit against the bank. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is seeking to appeal a judge's decision to reject its $285 million settlement with the bank.

Volume was light in the post-Christmas period and ahead of the New Year's Day holiday. Composite volume on the New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq and Amex was 4.31 billion shares, well below the year's daily average of around 7.9 billion shares.

On both the NYSE and the Nasdaq, about four stocks fell for every one that rose.

(Reporting By Angela Moon; Editing by Jan Paschal)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111228/bs_nm/us_markets_stocks

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Guantanamo leader signs order opposed by lawyers (AP)

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico ? The commander of the Guantanamo Bay prison has signed an order that would require a security review of legal mail to prisoners facing war crimes charges, a spokeswoman said Wednesday, rejecting arguments the new rule would violate attorney-client privilege and undermine long-delayed tribunals for five men charged in the Sept. 11 attacks.

Rear Adm. David Woods considered the arguments of defense lawyers and made some modifications, said Navy Cmdr. Tamsen Reese, a spokeswoman for the detention center on the U.S. base in Cuba.

Critics said the changes were minor and did not address the central complaints.

Woods retained a provision that would require the creation of a "privilege team," which would include law enforcement or intelligence officials as well as Defense Department attorneys, to review legal communications between lawyers and their clients, according to a copy of the order obtained by The Associated Press.

In issuing the order, the commander is seeking to prevent prisoners from receiving prohibited material without placing the burden for deciding what is appropriate on guards or other detention center staff, Reese said.

"He's trying to strike a balance," she said in a telephone interview. "He's got responsibilities. He's got to keep security and good order and force protection. And he's got to allow proper procedures for legal meetings between defense counsel and detainees and here's the way we're going to do it."

The order directs members of the privilege team to preserve attorney-client privilege "to the fullest extent possible," and sets guidelines for when they can disclose information from legal mail to other officials such as when they encounter what they suspect as "unauthorized information."

Those limits do not go far enough to avoid violating attorney-client privilege or making the order legal, said Bryan Broyles, the deputy chief defense counsel for the military commissions.

"What they keep wanting to do is to have their intelligence employees promise not to tell anybody about our communications and say that's good enough," Broyles said. "And as a matter of law it's not."

Broyles and the chief defense counsel, Marine Corps. Col. Jeffrey Colwell, said they were still doing a line-by-line analysis of the signed order that it appears that no substantive changes were made.

"They certainly didn't take anything we said into account," Broyles said.

Lawyers representing the five prisoners facing war crimes charges for helping to plan and carry out the Sept. 11 attacks had sent a memo to Woods opposing the order and calling for substantial changes.

Their memo said the new rules would deprive the prisoners of their constitutional right to counsel and make it impossible for lawyers, because of their professional and military codes of professional conduct, to participate in their long-delayed war crimes tribunal.

The five prisoners accused of helping to organize the Sept. 11 case are expected to be arraigned at the base in 2012 in what would be the most high-profile U.S. war crimes tribunal since the World War II era. The five, including the self-proclaimed mastermind of the attacks, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, are facing charges that include murder and could be sentenced to death if convicted.

They are represented by teams of civilian and military attorneys, all of whom have security clearances required to visit prisoners who are kept under such tight security that the location of their cells on the base is considered secret and everything they say is considered presumptively classified.

Reese said Woods, who took command of the base on Aug. 24, softened language in the order that apparently added restrictions on attorney visits to their clients. "The orders doesn't impede defense counsel from personally visiting or communicating with their clients, which was never the intent but some of the language may have led them to believe that that was going to be the case."

The order still limits legal mail to only letters from lawyers to their clients, barring supporting documents such as legal motions or articles about their case. Such material may be sent through standard mail but would also be subject to review.

Broyles said that the defense believes that, for now, these new rules would only apply to the five prisoners who have been accused of helping to plan and carry out the Sept. 11 attacks. That's because a military judge has already rejected the creation of a similar review process in the only other active case at Guantanamo, the trial of Abd al-Rahim al-Nashiri, who is charged with orchestrating the attack on the USS Cole in 2000.

"They will have to go back to the judge to have this process in place" in the Nashiri case, Broyles said. "I think that will be an interesting conversation."

There is no judge yet in the Sept. 11 case because the charges against the five prisoners accused of helping to plan and carry out the attacks, including self-proclaimed mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, have not been finalized. They are expected to be arraigned in 2012.

The U.S holds 171 prisoners at Guantanamo and officials have said several dozen could be tried before a military tribunal.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/terrorism/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111228/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/cb_guantanamo_sept11_trial

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John E. Lawson, Washington, New Jersey

John E. Lawson, Jr., on December 26, 2011, of Washington Twp. Age 62. Beloved husband of Pam (nee Connors). Devoted father of Shawn (Janneen Padlo), Josh and Katie "Davy" Lawson (Steven). Dear brother of James. Loving pop-pop of Shawn Jr., Richie, Lee Lee, Spencer and Lex. Also survived by his faithful granddogs Shamus, Chipper and Skeeter. At the request of John, services will be private. "A Life Well Lived Is Worth Remembering"

Source: http://wnep.tributes.com/show/John-E.-Lawson-93016303

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ACTION ALERT: Virginia GOP Changed Ballot Access Rules Last Month; Here's How to Contact Them and Demand Changes

Based upon several reliable reports at RedState, it would appear that Virginia's GOP establishment changed the rules of ballot access just last month. Front-runner Newt Gingrich, for one, saw his campaign hurt badly by reports that it bungled the Virginia ballot process. He and Rick Perry were excluded despite each turning in over 10,000 signatures. But if the new reports are true, the state GOP has a hell of a lot to account for.

Moe Lane provides the introduction:

...the very short version is that the VA GOP only certified Mitt Romney and Ron Paul for its primary ballot. Rick Perry and Newt Gingrich both had too many signatures tossed; Jon Huntsman, Rick Santorum, and Michele Bachmann didn?t even try. Of the seven candidates, one (Romney) had more than enough signatures (15K) to bypass the verification process entirely. All of this has caused a lot of agitation among Republicans following the primary process, of course; and not just from people who disapprove of what the VA GOP has done...

...There has been a good deal of defending of the outcome; and one argument heavily used in this defense has been that the campaigns all knew the rules and that previous Republican campaigns were able to get on the ballot, so clearly a competent current Republican campaign should have done so.

One small problem with that: as Winger argues, the rules were allegedly drastically changed. In November of this year.

So what changed?

...prior to the 2012 elections it was Republican party policy in Virginia to simply deem any candidate that brought in ten thousand raw signatures as having met the primary ballot requirements under Virginian state election law.

Under these rules, of course, both Newt Gingrich and Rick Perry would have qualified easily.

And why did the rules change?

...On October 24th independent state delegate candidate Michael Osborne filed suit against the Republican party of Virginia [challenging the signature review process and who performs it] ... according to Winger the VA GOP decided in response to bump up from 10K to 15K the threshold for simply deeming the requirements as being met.

...I think that John Fund?s general comment is correct: this is going to go to the courts. John was not discussing this specific wrinkle, but his larger point that Virginia?s ballot access policies have systemic problems gets a big boost when it turns out that the state party can effectively increase by fifty percent the practical threshold for ballot access ? in a day, and in the middle of an existing campaign.

...If it is true that the Republican party of Virginia decided in November of 2011 to increase the threshold for automatic certification from 10K to 15K, then it is reasonable to suggest that this was a change that unfairly rewarded candidates who had previously run for President in Virginia.

Lane asserts that the state GOP has ultimate control of the ballot and could, if pressed, decide to certify Gingrich and Perry.

Either way, the issue is going to the courts.

And, either way, the Virginia GOP looks incompetent... or ill-intentioned against conservative candidates.

Action Alert: I urge you to contact the Virginia GOP and demand that they include Gingrich and Perry on the ballot. Be polite, but firm. There's no excuse for issuing new rules at the last minute that just happen to exclude the leading candidates. In fact, it's an outrage.

? Email: Contact Form
? Phone: 804-780-0111
? Fax: 804-343-1060
? Facebook: www.facebook.com/VirginiaGOP
? Twitter: @va_gop

Make contact now. Time is growing short.

Source: http://directorblue.blogspot.com/2011/12/action-alert-virginia-gop-changed.html

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Philippine floods death toll jumps to nearly 1,500

A Philippine army medic wearing a Santa hat prepares to examine a baby during a medical mission for flash flood victims at an evacuation center in Cagayan de Oro city, southern Philippines on Christmas day Sunday Dec. 25, 2011. Thousands of residents continue to be housed in evacuation centers after flash floods brought about by tropical storm Washi, that washed away their homes and killed more than a thousand people. The government disaster agency NDRRMC said more than a thousand others remain missing. (AP Photo/Froilan Gallardo)

A Philippine army medic wearing a Santa hat prepares to examine a baby during a medical mission for flash flood victims at an evacuation center in Cagayan de Oro city, southern Philippines on Christmas day Sunday Dec. 25, 2011. Thousands of residents continue to be housed in evacuation centers after flash floods brought about by tropical storm Washi, that washed away their homes and killed more than a thousand people. The government disaster agency NDRRMC said more than a thousand others remain missing. (AP Photo/Froilan Gallardo)

Flash flood victims walk back to their temporary shelter with relief goods in Iligan city, southern Philippines on Christmas day Sunday Dec. 25, 2011. Thousands of residents continue to be housed in evacuation centers after flash floods triggered by tropical storm Washi, that washed away their homes and killed more than a thousand people. The government disaster agency NDRRMC said more than a thousand others remain missing. (AP Photo)

Flash flood victims cross a river after receiving relief goods in Iligan city, southern Philippines on Christmas day Sunday Dec. 25, 2011. Thousands of residents continue to be housed in evacuation centers after flash floods triggered by tropical storm Washi, that washed away their homes and killed more than a thousand people. The government disaster agency NDRRMC said more than a thousand others remain missing. (AP Photo)

MANILA, Philippines (AP) ? The death toll from flash floods that swept away entire villages in the southern Philippines climbed to nearly 1,500 on Tuesday, as authorities widened their search for bodies.

The Office of Civil Defense's latest tally listed 891 dead in Cagayan de Oro and an additional 451 in nearby Iligan city. The rest came from several other provinces. Most of the dead are unidentified.

"The search will continue as long as we are recovering bodies," said Civil Defense head Benito Ramos.

He said that decomposing remains were retrieved floating in the sea as far as 60 miles (100 kilometers) from the two cities where a Dec. 16 tropical storm unleashed more than a month's worth of rainfall in 12 hours, sending walls of water gushing into homes.

One of the dead was a headless girl who appeared to have been hit by logs that were carried by flash floods, Ramos said. She was among 13 bodies retrieved by a team of navy sailors.

Navy and coast guard divers were initially sent to find more bodies believed to be pinned down by logs scattered in the sea and along riverbanks, but Ramos said the operation had to be called off because waters were too murky. "It's useless to dive when you can see nothing," he said.

It was not clear how many more are missing.

More than 60,000 homeless from hundreds of flood-ravaged villages spent a miserable Christmas in jam-packed schools and gymnasiums, while the United Nations launched an urgent appeal for $28 million to help the displaced ? more than half the population of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan, which are in the southern Philippines' Mindanao region.

More rains Tuesday prompted evacuations of nearly 2,000 people on the opposite side of Mindanao Island, where a child was reported missing in floods in Surigao city, the civil defense reported.

President Benigno Aquino III, who banned logging in February following previous flooding deaths that experts say were caused partly by deforestation and soil erosion, has ordered an investigation.

Communist guerrillas in the south, meanwhile, threatened to punish multinational companies they blame for environmental destruction.

Rebel spokesman Jorge Madlos told The Associated Press by telephone that they sought funds for victims from huge pineapple and banana plantations and other companies.

"Some were lukewarm to our call," Madlos said. "That'll be a factor when we decide which ones to punish first for this destruction."

Another factor in the staggering death toll was illegal settlements along Cagayan rivers. Thousands of people lived in shanties on the banks and islands directly along the water's path.

___

Associated Press writer Jim Gomez contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2011-12-26-AS-Philippines-Storm/id-0364f671ddc84cc3b3711f74940edc96

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