BEIJING (Reuters) ? Chinese state media denounced the Dalai Lama on Monday for his views on reincarnation, saying that the exiled Buddhist monk was trying to revise history, compounding his crimes as a separatist.
The Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Tibetan spiritual leader in September said he or other Tibetan leaders should be the ones to decide on his reincarnation, not Beijing.
"The Dalai Lama not only is attempting to bury long established historical tenets of Tibetan Buddhism with him when he dies, but is adding another criminal charge to his teachings of separatism, which damages Tibet and Buddhism," the People's Daily, the mouthpiece of the ruling Communist Party, said in a commentary.
China contends that it has the final say in all reincarnations of living Buddhas, or senior religious figures in Tibetan Buddhism, and that it has to sign off on the selection of the next Dalai Lama.
In 1995, after the Dalai Lama named a boy in Tibet as the reincarnation of the previous Panchen Lama, the second highest figure in Tibetan Buddhism, the Chinese government put that boy under house arrest and installed another in his place.
Now 75, the Dalai Lama, a regular target of Chinese denunciations, has said he will not be reborn in China if Tibet is not free.
"The Dalai Lama's goal in denouncing the Chinese government's right to supervise reincarnation is to preserve his clique's grasp on the symbol of the next reincarnation and serve his political separatist aims," the commentary said.
To help make its point, the commentary borrowed from recent American history, when U.S. federal agents raided the headquarters of David Koresh's Branch Davidian religious sect in Waco, Texas, amid allegations of child abuse, statutory rape and underage marriage.
"At that time, David Koresh called himself Jesus, ensnared large groups of followers, publicly opposed national law, and in 1993 he was eliminated by federal agents who even used tanks," the paper said.
The Dalai Lama rejects allegations that he seeks to split from China, insisting that he wants only real autonomy for his homeland, which Beijing calls the "Tibet Autonomous Region."
China has ruled Tibet since Communist troops seized control in 1950. The Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959 following a failed uprising, and sporadic unrest has continued since.
China's Foreign Ministry has said the government would take tough measures to ensure stability after a spate of self-immolations in protest at Chinese controls in a restive, heavily Tibetan part of Sichuan province, which borders Tibet.
Ten people have set fire to themselves in Tibetan parts of China in recent months, mostly in Aba in Sichuan, in protest against Chinese rule and what they say are restrictions on their culture and faith.
Tibetan leaders in exile have blamed China's hard-line position for forcing Tibetans to take such desperate steps.
(Reporting by Michael Martina; Editing by Ken Wills and Nick Macfie)
Georgia Tech running back Orwin Smith (17) gets past Clemson's Jonathan Willard, bottom, and Xavier Brewer, right, to score a touchdown in the second quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
Georgia Tech running back Orwin Smith (17) gets past Clemson's Jonathan Willard, bottom, and Xavier Brewer, right, to score a touchdown in the second quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
Georgia Tech quarterback Tevin Washington, center, celebrates with running back Roddy Jones (20) and offensive lineman Shaquille Mason (70) after scoring a touchdown in the second quarter of an NCAA college football game against Clemson Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
Clemson's Sammy Watkins (2) gets away from Georgia Tech safety Isaiah Johnson (1) as he returns a kick-off in the second quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
Georgia Tech wide receiver Stephen Hill (5) makes a catch as Clemson cornerback Darius Robinson (21) defends in the second quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
Clemson quarterback Tajh Boyd (10) drops back to pass as Clemson long snapper Jim Brown (53) blocks Georgia Tech defensive tackle T.J. Barnes (90) and Clemson guard Antoine McClain (74) protects in the first quarter of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 29, 2011, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)
ATLANTA (AP) ? After all the big plays, Tevin Washington finally had it easy.
He dropped to his knee a couple of times, then celebrated with thousands of Georgia Tech students who stormed the field.
Washington rushed for 176 yards ? the most ever by a Yellow Jackets quarterback ? and broke the two longest runs of his career, leading a 31-17 upset of No. 6 Clemson that likely snuffed out the Tigers' national title hopes Saturday night.
The Yellow Jackets (7-2, 4-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) raced to a 24-3 halftime lead and held off Clemson (8-1, 5-1) which was off to its best start since 2000, The Tigers had climbed to fifth in the BCS standings, but they figure to take a tumble and are unlikely to have enough games left to re-enter the national race.
"It's a very disappointed locker room. I'm disappointed in the turnovers in particular," coach Dabo Swinney said.
The Yellow Jackets snapped a two-game losing streak behind their junior quarterback, who had runs of 46 and 56 yards and touchdown among his 27 carries. He broke the school quarterback mark of 151 yards rushing, set by Joshua Nesbitt in 2008. Overall, Georgia Tech finished with 383 yards on the ground, compared to 95 for Clemson.
"I had some real big holes," Washington said. "Anybody could've run through 'em. I'm just lucky to have my number called."
Clemson, which had scored 115 points in its two previous games, turned it over four times. Tajh Boyd threw for 295 yards, and freshman Sammy Watkins had 10 catches for 159 yards and a touchdown. But starting back Andre Ellington didn't play because of a sprained ankle, and his replacements ? freshmen D.J. Howard and Mike Bellamy ? each lost a fumble.
Now, the Tigers have to adjust their goals.
They still lead their division. They still have the inside track to play in the ACC championship game.
Swinney told his players "too get your heads up. We're an 8-1 football team."
No one could've seen this coming. These were teams headed in opposite directions.
Georgia Tech got off to a dynamic start, winning the first six games for its best start since 1966. But Washington slumped and the triple-option bogged down badly, leading to losses at Virginia and Miami.
"We know what we can do as a team," Washington said. "It's not about falling down. It's about getting back up."
Clemson got off to a sluggish start with lackluster wins against Troy and Wofford. But a victory over defending national champion Auburn seemed to ignite the Tigers, who took command of the ACC race and arrived in Atlanta having put up more than 50 points the two previous weeks in wins over Maryland and North Carolina.
They couldn't keep it up.
"Give all the credit to Georgia Tech. They just flat-out whipped us," Swinney said. "The biggest problem was the quarterback. They kept running the quarterback follow."
Clemson drove right down the field on its first possession, settling for Chandler Catanzaro's 34-yard field goal. It was all Georgia Tech the rest of the first half.
"I know a lot of people are disappointed that wrote us off," coach Paul Johnson said sarcastically. "Let us finish the season before you do our tombstone."
The tide swung toward the Yellow Jackets when Howard caught a pass out of the backfield, but lost the ball just before he hit the ground. The officials initially ruled him down, but changed the call after a video review. Rod Sweeting was credited with a recovery at the Clemson 19, and Orwin Smith scored the first of his two TDs on a fourth-down run from the 1.
Washington broke off the 46-yard run down the sideline ? the longest of his career, though that mark wouldn't last long ? to set up Justin Moore's 23-yard field goal for a 10-3 lead. The Yellow Jackets followed by going 80 yards in 10 plays, making it 17-3 on Smith's 3-yard TD run.
Stephen Hill, who had earlier dropped a long pass that might've gone for a touchdown, made up for it ? and then some. The 6-foot-5 receiver stretched out with both arms to make a diving catch, pulling the ball into his body with the left hand before slamming into the turf. He rolled over and did a little dance with his arms, celebrating the 44-yard completion.
Two plays later, Washington ran it in from the 3 to push the lead to 24-3 with just 37 seconds left in the half.
The Tigers have been a great second-half team, and they came out of the locker room looking to pull off their biggest comeback yet. They took the kickoff and needed only four plays to reach the end zone for the first time. Boyd hooked up with Watkins on a 48-yard touchdown pass to make it 24-10.
But Georgia Tech quickly answered. Again, it was Washington with the big run. With Georgia Tech facing third-and-6 and the Clemson defense waving their arms to rev up a sizable contingent of orange-clad fans, the quarterback spotted a hole up the middle and took off for the 56-yard gain.
David Sims finished the drive with an 11-yard touchdown run, restoring Georgia Tech's 21-point lead.
After Clemson's second fumble of the game, this one by Bellamy, the Yellow Jackets were on the verge of putting the game away. They drove to a first down at the Tigers 1 and were back there on third down after a delay of game. Then, a break for the visiting team.
Defensive tackle Rennie Moore shot through a gap ahead of the snap, appearing on the replay to be clearly offsides. But the officials didn't catch it, and Moore snatched the ball away from Washington just as he was taking the snap. It was ruled a fumble, and Clemson took over at the 3.
The Tigers took advantage of their good fortune, driving 97 yards in 10 plays. Boyd tried to sneak it over, fumbled in the pile of bodies and 300-pound Brandon Thomas fell on it for the first touchdown by a Clemson offensive lineman since 1966, cutting the deficit to 31-17.
Clemson had one more chance to make a game of it. Rashard Hall picked off Washington and returned to the Georgia Tech 9 with about 10? minutes to go. But Clemson gave it right back with Jemea Thomas making an uncontested pick in the corner of the end zone.
Washington's reaction when Thomas pulled it down?
"I was happiest guy on the field," he said, breaking into a big smile.
It was time to celebrate.
___
Follow AP Sports Writer Paul Newberry on Twitter at www.twitter.com/pnewberry1963
Marie Osmond had a scare Wednesday night, and not of the Halloween variety.
The singer was rushed to the hospital following her and brother Donny Osmond's variety show at the Flamingo Las Vegas, her rep confirmed to E! News.
Marie knew something was up when her voice started to give out during the musical revue, in which she and her brother both sing together and trade solos.
But Osmond is going to be OK, right?
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She's already back home, having only spent a few hours getting checked out.
Marie's rep, Greg Sperry, told the Las Vegas Sun that, after a series of X-rays and tests at St. Rose Dominican Hospital Sienna Campus Emergency Room, the veteran performer was diagnosed with a bad case of bronchitis and given the go-ahead to return to the stage. No performances have been canceled at this time, Sperry says, though a few numbers might be cut or shortened to give Marie a chance to rest her voice.
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Sure enough, tickets for Donny & Marie's Thursday night show are still available via the Flamingo website.
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NAPERVILLE, Ill (Reuters) ? When Matthew Burrell left the Army after eight years of service, he landed a job as a public relations contractor in Iraq. With a salary of $170,000, he figured military experience had finally paid off.
But five months after returning home to Chicago, 33-year old Burrell is unemployed and said his job search has been strange. Despite having six years experience as a public relations officer in the Army, companies treat him as if he just graduated from college.
"I can tell you for a fact that definitely in my field in public relations and marketing, private sector companies do not value (military experience)," Burrell said.
Burrell feels he is more than qualified for a job in the corporate PR world. But Burrell, along with many of what the Department of Labor says are 235,000 unemployed veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, has run into a frustrating problem.
Many U.S. companies, and sometimes veterans themselves, do not know how to translate military experience into civilian job skills. There is a disconnect between companies demanding a college degree and veterans' giving confusing descriptions of their military experience to civilian employers.
MILITARY JARGON
That disconnect has contributed to veterans having an unemployment rate 2.6 percent higher than the general population, according to September's Bureau of Labor Statistics unemployment report. As U.S. involvement in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars winds down, lawmakers and organizations of all stripes have launched efforts to help veterans find work.
President Barack Obama this week announced measures, including $120 million in total tax breaks to companies that hire veterans.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce said it hopes to get 15,000 veterans hired through 100 job fairs around the country for veterans this year. One of those job fairs was held recently in Naperville, a Chicago suburb, giving 86 companies the chance to meet more than 600 veterans.
One problem is that veterans need to articulate more clearly to companies their experience, said Kevin Schmiegel, vice president of veteran's employment programs at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Hiring managers who have not served in the military are often bewildered by the jargon used by soldiers and weapons specialists, said Becky Brillon, who directs a program at the Community Career Center in Naperville.
A military job title might be listed like this: "25 Romeo visual and media equipment operator and maintainer."
"If somebody was artillery, or a sharpshooter or a sniper, you have to tone that down in the civilian world. It's more about being detail-oriented, precise and focused," Brillon said.
CREDIT FOR SKILLS
But on the other side of that coin, private employers should give more credit to the experience and skills veterans acquire in the military, Schmiegel said.
Veteran unemployment could fall dramatically if companies were willing to give jobs that normally require credentialing or a college diploma to veterans with military experience in the same role, Schmiegel said. He also said companies should offer training to veterans to help connect military experience to workplace skills.
Some military jobs, like a mechanic or technician, are more easily transferred to a private sector job than others.
David Berry served as a medic in the Army 25 years ago, but did not enter the private-sector medical field because of how much extra training he would need, he said.
Berry said he was performing a range of medical treatments in the military that would have required at least an associate college degree to get a similar job in the private sector.
"The private sector has its own set of rules and they don't all correspond with what the military says," Berry said. "I didn't get anything from the military saying, 'He's qualified, and we back this person up for this position because he's done this, this and that.'"
The credentials and certificates that the military does give out for certain forms of training still do not seem to carry much weight.
Rick Combs, a 27-year old who retired as a Sergeant in the Army, says he was given management training in the military as part of becoming a Sergeant. So far, that training has not translated into a comparable private-sector job.
"You can come in, and slap something down that says, 'Here, the military says I can lead people. Give me a department and I will make it dance for you,'" Combs said. "I haven't had the opportunity on the civilian side yet."
Combs said he's going back to school to become a network technician, an area he worked in for the Army.
Schmiegel, from the Chamber of Commerce, said something must be done for veterans to find jobs or the country's voluntary armed forces will not find as many willing recruits.
"We are telling (recruits) right now that when they leave the service four years from now that they're going to be better off. That they're going to have a better job. That they're going to be more marketable. And the fact is, right now they're not," Schmiegel said.
Forum rules This forum is for OOC discussion about existing roleplays.
Please post all "Players Wanted" threads in the Roleplayers Wanted forum!
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Forum for completely Out of Character (OOC) discussion, based around whatever is happening In Character (IC). Discuss plans, storylines, and events; Recruit for your roleplaying game, or find a GM for your playergroup.
You know, I could kiss people who tell others to have good grammar. Anyway, my real question. Is there possibly a skelly? ^ 3^
Aixulram
Member for 0 years
I'll have one up in just a minute, and I LOVE your icon btw, Rainbow Dash is the best!
Salroka
Member for 0 years
I would like to create an airbender. I'll get to work right away.
Am I crazy? Well, that depends. Define crazy.
MotherDragons
Member for 0 years
Hells yeah! Sonic Rainboom FTW! Anyway, thanks! I'll be spying till then!
Aixulram
Member for 0 years
I never really got into the Avatar series. But I'd love to learn through a well built roleplay. I do understand the basics. I'm not clueless... so... hopefully I can have a character up in a little while.
Vio-Lance
Member for 1 years
EVERYONE! The skelly has been posted on the introduction page of the roleplay forum, edit as you see fit!
@Aixulram: *Fluttershy voice* You rock..! Woo-hoo..!
@Vio-Lance: No problem, if you need any help, just ask. :)
@MotherDragons: Great! I look forward to seeing them!
Salroka
Member for 0 years
Question: Can I create the Fire Lord's (I'm assuming it's still Zuko) daughter?
TwiliXDragon
Member for 1 years
@TwiliXDragon: Actually, this takes place way before Zuko is even born, this is right before the great war comes around, with Sozin being the Fire Lord at the time. However, you may create Sozin's daughter, since his offspring were never really named or confirmed.
Salroka
Member for 0 years
Wow, I feel stupid now...I totaly read that...either way, one Fire Lord's daughter, coming up. :) I added a few things to my character shee as well, and am going to cover everything you want ^^ I like making ym profiles look nice. Now if I can just find a decent picture...
TwiliXDragon
Member for 1 years
I might submit a character ^^
There are three kinds of people, those who can count and those who can't.
Gryazi
Member for 0 years
@TwiliXDragon: Great, I look forward to seeing her. :)
@Gryazi: I look forward to seeing your character, if you so choose to submit one. ...I love your picture, btw. XD
Salroka
Member for 0 years
Can I create a Fire Nation rebel? It's implied that Sozin went away with many Fire Nation traditions and subjugated the Fire Sages. Not everyone could have liked that. Even Nazi Germany had the White Rose.
almostinsane
Member for 3 years
I think I will. I'm going to try to play around with a female air nomad since they weren't really featured in the show. And thank you! xD Looove Trollestia.
Gryazi
Member for 0 years
@almostinsane: Of course! That's a good idea! :)
@Gryazi: Trollestia is the best Celestia. XD
Salroka
Member for 0 years
I would love to get involved in this.
Itneedstobeabout20% Cooler.
Looking for that one, awesome, sci-fi role-play.
ShadeYuka
Member for 2 years
I would like to be a water bender please. Also, I would like to reserve finding Soka's boomy (boomerang) (best weapon ever no matter what anyone says, it's the best in my eyes)(It's like my trademark in all Avatar RPs to find it in my first post). (and it works since I could make it before he found it)
POWER TO THE ROLE PLAYERS
i am 33% evil, 33% insane, 33% role player, and 1% other (Note: Insane and Brilliant are the same thing!)
My test:
My Brothers Test: [CENTER]
Mr. Baneling Squishy
Member for 1 years
@Mr. Baneling Squishy: Actually, this roleplay takes place long before Sokka's born, before the start of the War, where Sozin was the current Fire Lord. If you want to though, you'll have to make it tie in some way that it'll be Sokka's. XD
Salroka
Member for 0 years
I'll be making a firebender, though she will be different from others...
Aixulram
Member for 0 years
Salroka wrote:@Mr. Baneling Squishy: Actually, this roleplay takes place long before Sokka's born, before the start of the War, where Sozin was the current Fire Lord. If you want to though, you'll have to make it tie in some way that it'll be Sokka's. XD
I know, if we manage to get to the end of the RP, I could somehow make it end up at the south pole!
But like I said, it's my trademark in Avatar RPs
Mr. Baneling Squishy
Member for 1 years
Return to Out of Character
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It's been two days since Maksim Chmerkovskiy sent shock waves through the "Dancing With the Stars" set after exploding at head judgeLen Goodman over a "disrespectful" critique, and the show's pros are taking sides.
"I've been in this business for 50 years," Goodman argued after declaring Chmerkovskiy's rumba with soccer star Hope Solo their "worst dance of the season."
VIDEO: Watch their fiery exchange
"Then maybe it's time to go!" Chmerkovskiy barked back amid their verbal battle.
Going on to declare "DWTS" "my show," and arguing that he "helped make it what it is," Chmerkovskiy later explained himself to The Hollywood Reporter. "Len is the only one who comes from a ballroom background, and I really respect his opinion," he said. "I've danced for 27 years, and I've won more titles than Len ever even participated in."
VIDEO: Maks compares being partners with Hope to being partners with Kirstie Alley
Read on for what Chmerkovskiy's costars and colleagues have to say ? and if they're on Team Maks or Team Len:
Derek Hough, partnered with Ricki Lake: "As a seasoned professional, [he] should know not to do that. There's a certain amount of self control you should have. Last week, I knew going in it wasn't going to be our best dance. I don't get upset about it, I expect it and then I take it with grace and move on.
Maks: 'DWTS' rant wasn't selfish
Lacey Schwimmer, just eliminated with partner Chaz Bono: "Regardless of what Maks said, and if he hurt people's feelings, he had the courage to stand up for his partner, and I think that is amazing. It's hard to hear your friend bullied by three people who we're supposed to respect. It's unnecessary and rude, especially with all the bullying going on in the world."
VIDEO: Watch Lacey dance with Chaz
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Tristan McManus, partnered with Nancy Grace: "People have reactions to things and everyone has their own opinion. That was his opinion and he felt like he had to verbalize it. Fair enough. That was his opinion. What he said was what he said."
Story: Move over, Maks! Cher blasts 'Dancing' judges
Former "DWTS" pro Louis van Amstel: "As a pro, if you talk back to the judges it always makes you look like the bad guy, even if you're right. I?m not saying I agree with Maks, because I actually don't. Len never really explained why he said Maks was part of the problem, because he cut Len off. These discussions, in my opinion, are good because this was real. But, often times, Len blurts out statements that are so fabricated. I wish it was always real."
Chmerkovskiy's former partner, Kirstie Alley: "Maximus Aureius, hear you went all Gladiator at The Coliseum last night. Protected the Queen at all costs. Thumbs Up!! I Salute you!! xo"
PHOTOS: Remember when these celebs competed on DWTS?
Chmerkovskiy's brother, Val, eliminated with partner Elisabetta Canalis: "[Maks is] the most generous person I have ever met, and I don't mean towards me! Cowards say what people like to hear... Remember that he might be the only person that actually exposes his real emotions on this show."
Do you agree with Maks or Len? Tell us what you think on the Facebook page for our TV blog, The Clicker!
STOCKHOLM ? Facebook will build a new server farm on the edge of the Arctic Circle ? its first outside the U.S. ? that will improve performance for European users of the social networking site, officials said Thursday.
After reviewing potential locations across Europe, Facebook confirmed it had picked the northern Swedish city of Lulea for the data center partly because of the cold climate ? crucial for keeping the servers cool ? and access to renewable energy from nearby hydropower facilities.
The move reflects the growing international presence of the California-based site, which counts 800 million users worldwide.
"Facebook has more users outside the U.S. than inside," Facebook director of site operations Tom Furlong told The Associated Press. "It was time for us to expand in Europe."
He said European users would get better performance from having a node for data traffic closer to them. Facebook currently stores data at sites in California, Virginia and Oregon and is building another facility in North Carolina.
The Lulea data center, which will consist of three 300,000-square foot (28,000-square meter) server buildings, is scheduled for completion by 2014. The site will need 120 MW of energy, fully derived from hydropower.
Located 60 miles (100 kilometers), south of the Arctic Cicle, Lulea lies near hydropower stations on a river that generates twice as much electricity as the Hoover Dam on the border of Nevada and Arizona, Facebook said.
In case of a blackout, construction designs call for each building to have 14 backup diesel generators with a total output of 40 MW.
Facebook didn't give the price of its investment, but Lulea officials have previously projected construction costs of up to 5 billion kronor ($760 million). The Swedish government said it was ready to pitch in with 103 million kronor ($16 million).
"We knocked on doors at Facebook's head office (in Palo Alto, California) and today they're moving in to Lulea ? this is huge, really huge," said Matz Engman, who heads the Lulea Business Agency, a public-private partnership working to attract businesses to the region.
With winter temperatures well below freezing and summertime highs that rarely climb above 80F (25 degrees Celcius), Lulea has used its frigid climate as a selling point in its efforts to establish itself as a hub for server farms. Other Nordic cities have adopted similar strategies.
In 2009 Google purchased a paper mill in Hamina, southern Finland, and turned it into a data center, using seawater from the Baltic Sea for its cooling system.
Servers inside data centers are the backbone of Internet services such as Facebook. The servers store and transmit billions of status updates, links, photos and all the outside apps used by Facebook's members.
___
Associated Press writer Malin Rising contributed to this report.
A European flag flies near the glass dome of the Reichtag building, which host the German parliament Bundestag in Berlin on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2011. German Chancellor Angela Merkel will face a voting about the European Financial Stability Fund on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
A European flag flies near the glass dome of the Reichtag building, which host the German parliament Bundestag in Berlin on Tuesday, Oct. 25, 2011. German Chancellor Angela Merkel will face a voting about the European Financial Stability Fund on Wednesday. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
BERLIN (AP) ? Chancellor Angela Merkel looks set to receive wide German parliamentary backing for plans to increase the eurozone rescue fund's firepower before she heads to a high-stakes European summit on Wednesday.
Following a speech by the chancellor, parliament's lower house is to vote on a resolution thrashed out by Merkel's governing coalition and the main opposition parties.
The EU summit will consider plans to boost the euro440 billion ($600 billion) bailout fund by offering government bond buyers insurance against possible losses and attracting capital from private investors and sovereign wealth funds.
Government and opposition leaders have stressed that Germany's liability will remain unchanged, with Berlin still guaranteeing loans to the tune of up to euro211 billion and no more.
However, the parliamentary resolution says that the fund, the so-called European Financial Stability Facility, "should be used as efficiently as possible to support the stability of the eurozone."
It states that lawmakers are aware that "the risk of losses can change" as a result of leveraging the EFSF to increase its firepower.
The resolution also underlines the German parliament's expectations that, once the changes are implemented, the European Central Bank will no longer need to buy government bonds, as it has since last year. It calls on the government to preserve the ECB's independence.
With the 17-nation eurozone's politicians struggling to agree on ways to calm the debt crisis, the ECB has been taking on the role of firefighter by buying the bonds of financially weakened governments on the open market.
That keeps the bond prices up and the interest rates down, allowing the countries to borrow on financial markets at lower rates than they otherwise could.
The German resolution also urges the government to ensure that there is a quick decision on European proposals to introduce a tax on financial transactions.
Merkel's party decided Monday to hold a full parliamentary vote on the eurozone fund changes, although it would have been enough for parliament's budget committee to approve them. The resolution was drawn up by Merkel's center-right coalition and two of the three opposition parties.
Parliament speaker Norbert Lammert said "the significance can't be overstated" of sending Merkel to Brussels with wide support.
Germany's highest court ruled last month that parliament must vet future rescue efforts, and lawmakers from both government and opposition also were keen to secure a greater say ? a potentially cumbersome demand in this fast-moving crisis.
"So far, there has not been a single decision that has been delayed by parliament," Lammert insisted on ARD television.
NEW YORK ? Muslims who change their names to sound more traditionally American, as immigrants have done for generations, or who adopt Arabic names as a sign of their faith are often investigated and catalogued in secret New York Police Department intelligence files, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press.
The NYPD monitors everyone in the city who changes his or her name, according to internal police documents and interviews. For those whose names sound Arabic or might be from Muslim countries, police run comprehensive background checks that include reviewing travel records, criminal histories, business licenses and immigration documents. All this is recorded in police databases for supervisors, who review the names and select a handful of people for police to visit.
The program was conceived as a tripwire for police in the difficult hunt for homegrown terrorists, where there are no widely agreed upon warning signs. Like other NYPD intelligence programs created in the past decade, this one involved monitoring behavior protected by the First Amendment.
Since August, an Associated Press investigation has revealed a vast NYPD intelligence-collecting effort targeting Muslims following the terror attacks of September 2001. Police have conducted surveillance of entire Muslim neighborhoods, chronicling every aspect of daily life, including where people eat, pray and get their hair cut. Police infiltrated dozens of mosques and Muslim student groups and investigated hundreds more.
Monitoring name changes illustrates how the threat of terrorism now casts suspicion over what historically has been part of America's story. For centuries, immigrants have Americanized their names in New York. The Roosevelts were once the van Rosenvelts. Fashion designer Ralph Lauren was born Ralph Lifshitz. Donald Trump's grandfather changed the family name from Drumpf.
David Cohen, the NYPD's intelligence chief, worried that would-be terrorists could use their new names to lie low in New York, current and former officials recalled. Reviewing name changes was intended to identify people who either Americanized their names or took Arabic names for the first time, said the officials, who insisted on anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the program.
NYPD spokesman Paul Browne did not respond to messages left over two days asking about the legal justification for the program and whether it had identified any terrorists.
The goal was to find a way to spot terrorists like Daood Gilani and Carlos Bledsoe before they attacked.
Gilani, a Chicago man, changed his name to the unremarkable David Coleman Headley to avoid suspicion as he helped plan the 2008 terrorist shooting spree in Mumbai, India. Bledsoe, of Tennessee, changed his name to Abdulhakim Mujahid Muhammad in 2007 and, two years later, killed one soldier and wounded another in a shooting at a recruiting station in Little Rock, Ark.
Sometime around 2008, state court officials began sending the NYPD information about new name changes, said Ron Younkins, the court's chief of operations. The court regularly sends updates to police, he said. The information is all public, and he said the court was not aware of how police used it.
The NYPD program began as a purely analytical exercise, according to documents and interviews. Police reviewed the names received from the court and selected some for background checks that included city, state and federal criminal databases as well as federal immigration and Treasury Department databases that identified foreign travel.
Early on, police added people with American names to the list so that if details of the program ever leaked out, the department would not be accused of profiling, according to one person briefed on the program.
On one police document from that period, 2 out of every 3 people who were investigated had changed their names to or from something that could be read as Arabic-sounding.
All the names that were investigated, even those whose background checks came up empty, were cataloged so police could refer to them in the future.
The legal justification for the program is unclear from the documents obtained by the AP. Because of its history of spying on anti-war protesters and political activists, the NYPD has long been required to follow a federal court order when gathering intelligence. That order allows the department to conduct background checks only when police have information about possible criminal activity, and only as part of "prompt and extremely limited" checking of leads.
The NYPD's rules also prohibit opening investigations based solely on activities protected by the First Amendment. Federal courts have held that people have a right to change their names and, in the case of religious conversion, that right is protected by the First Amendment.
The NYPD is not alone in its monitoring of Muslim neighborhoods. The FBI has its own ethnic mapping program that singled out Muslim communities and agents have been criticized for targeting mosques.
The name change program is an example of how, while the NYPD says it operates under the same rules as the FBI, police have at times gone beyond what is allowed by the federal government. The FBI would not be allowed to run a similar program because of First Amendment and privacy concerns and because the goal is too vague and the program too broad, according to FBI rules and interviews with federal officials.
Police expanded their efforts in late 2009, according to documents and interviews. After analysts ran background checks, police began selecting a handful of people to visit and interview.
Internally, some police groused about the program. Many people who were approached didn't want to talk and police couldn't force them to.
A Pakistani cab driver, for instance, told police he did not want to talk to them about why he took Sheikh as a new last name, documents show.
Police also knew that a would-be terrorist who Americanized his name in hopes of lying low was unlikely to confess as much to detectives. In fact, of those who agreed to talk at all, many said they Americanized their names because they were being harassed or were having problems getting a job and thought a new name would help.
But as with other intelligence programs at the NYPD, Cohen hoped it would send a message to would-be bombers that police were watching, current and former officials said.
As it expanded, the program began to target Muslims even more directly, drawing criticism from Stuart Parker, an in-house NYPD lawyer, who said there had to be standards for who was being interviewed, a person involved in the discussions recalled. In response, police interviewed people with Arabic-sounding names but only if their background checks matched specific criteria.
The names of those who were interviewed, even those who chose not to speak with police, were recorded in police reports storied in the department's database, according to documents and interviews, while names of those who received only background checks were kept in a separate file in the Intelligence Division.
Donna Gabaccia, director of the Immigration History Research Center at the University of Minnesota, said that for many families, name changes are important aspects of the American story. Despite the myth that officials at Ellis Island Americanized the names of people arriving in the U.S., most immigrants changed their names themselves to avoid ridicule and discrimination or just to fit in, she said.
The NYPD program, she said, turned that story on its head.
"In the past, you changed your name in response to stigmatization," she said. "And now, you change your name and you are stigmatized. There's just something very sad about this."
As for converts to Islam, the religion does not require them to take Arabic names but many do as a way to publicly identify their faith, said Jonathan Brown, a Georgetown University professor of Islamic studies.
Taking an Arabic name might be a sign that someone is more religious, Brown said, but it doesn't necessarily suggest someone is more radical. He said law enforcement nationwide has often confused the two points in the fight against terrorism.
"It's just an example of the silly, conveyor-belt approach they have, where anyone who gets more religious is by definition more dangerous," Brown said.
Sarah Feinstein-Borenstein, a 75-year-old Jewish woman who lives on Manhattan's Upper West Side, was surprised to learn that she was among the Americans drawn into the NYPD program in its infancy. She hyphenated her last name in 2009. Police investigated and recorded her information in a police intelligence file because of it.
"It's rather shocking to me," she said. "I think they would have better things to do. It's is a waste of my tax money."
Feinstein-Borenstein was born in Egypt and lived there until the Suez Crisis in 1956. With a French mother and a Jewish religion, she and her family were labeled "undesirable" and were kicked out. She came to the U.S. in 1963.
"If you live long enough," she said, "you see everything."
___
Contact the Washington investigative team at DCInvestigations(at)ap.org
Read AP's previous stories and documents about the NYPD at: http://www.ap.org/nypd
Follow Apuzzo and Goldman at http://twitter.org/mattapuzzo and http://twitter.org/goldmandc
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NEW YORK (Reuters) ? Eight New York City police officers were arrested on Tuesday on suspicion they helped run a gun-smuggling ring in the city.
The U.S. Attorney's office confirmed the Tuesday morning arrests, saying the cops also helped smuggle other items such as cigarettes and slot machines.
Altogether, 12 people were expected to be charged in connection with the illicit operation.
The New York City police department and one of its employee unions declined to comment on the charges, which were expected to be unveiled by the U.S. Attorney's office later Tuesday.
Of the eight officers charged in the federal crime, five are active duty officers and three are retired, the U.S. Attorney's office said.
(Reporting by Aman Ali; Editing by Barbara Goldberg and Jerry Norton)
Informatics professionals meet in DC at AMIA's 35th Annual SymposiumPublic release date: 24-Oct-2011 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Nancy Light nlight@amia.org 301-275-1203 American Medical Informatics Association
Meeting agenda reflects Informatics' leadership in delivering health care
Washington, DC -- The 35th Annual Symposium on Biomedical and Health Informatics opened this week with keynote speaker Dr. Francis S. Collins, Director of the National Institutes of Health, addressing a crowd of more than two thousand professionals who are engaged in translational bioinformatics, clinical research informatics, clinical informatics, public health informatics, and consumer health informatics.
The Symposium's theme, "Improving Health: Informatics and IT Changing the World," highlights the herculean agenda informatics professionals have assumed in enabling translational science through the use of information technology, electronic health records, on-the-spot clinical decision support, and methods that include data mining, interactive systems, biosurveillance, simulation and modeling, and development of standardized terminologies for specific applications and designs. Energized by the recent decision of the American Board of Medical Specialties to recognize Clinical Informatics as a board-certified medical subspecialty, the informatics community is gaining momentum in several key areas: growing its workforce through new and strengthened training programs at federally funded universities and community colleges, sharing informatics knowledge, experience, and expertise in a broad array of topics related to information technology and informatics applications, and reaching out across disciplines to health-related professionals in industry, research, clinical care, health policy, and education.
In his opening keynote, Dr. Collins provided a summary of the enabling role of informatics and computation in the evolution of genomics and DNA sequencing. He discussed the basic pillars of research and advancing medical science, identifying computational biology and bioinformatics as major supports to advancements in biomedical research and combating cancer and other life-threatening diseases and chronic conditions. He also discussed the planned National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), designed to speed up the process of "rescuing and repurposing" drug therapies out of the lab and into advanced clinical trials. The expectation, Dr. Collins said, is for NCATS to continue the work of the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) -- all of which are required to leverage informatics as a core component of their scientific structure.
"In the ten years since the genome sequence was completed," said Dr. Collins, "the economic return resulted in a return on investment of 141:1 -- a $3 billion investment led to $790 billion of economic growth. We should not be shy to point out that medical research is not only a wonderful way to plan for a revolutionizing of medicine that is more effective and gives people a change to live healthy lives, but also is one of the best things we can do to nurture the American economy."
In his remarks during the opening session, Scientific Program Committee Chair R. Scott Evans, PhD, of Intermountain Healthcare, University of Utah, indicated that informatics had captured the imagination of mainstream America during the past year, when Watson of Jeopardy! fame triumphed over the human intellect of two long-running champions. An example of computer-assimilated intelligence, Watson is a robotic expression of how computerized health systems and informatics could one day support quality healthcare delivery. A panel composed of the Watson strategy team from IBM (Watson's creator), and clinical experts from Columbia University and University of Maryland School of Medicine is scheduled to take place Tuesday morning at 8:30 a.m. to examine how Watson might succeed as a clinical decision support tool, once he is tutored through medical school!
In remarks about the growth of Symposium attendance and the burgeoning field of informatics, AMIA President and CEO Edward H. Shortliffe, MD, PhD, FACMI, said, "The informatics community has a vision of remarkable ingenuity and impact: to improve health locally, nationally, and globally by connecting, collecting, and making available for exchange the vast stores of research data and evidence that are available; and mining that knowledge to benefit patients and populations everywhere. The implications are enormous," he noted, "health equity for all, standard quality care across communities and borders, and a cooperative, collegial community in terms of knowledge resources and tools." He added, "The transformation is underway -- AMIA is where this collective vision and know-how come together."
This morning's keynote speaker Gregory Abowd, PhD, Distinguished Professor, School of Interactive Computing, Georgia Tech, discussed his research that focuses on using "ubiquitous computing technology" to promote better health outcomes and health management. Dr. Abowd described living labs instrumented with body sensors, cameras, microphones, and sensors embedded in objects to support judgment of human behavior, and the use of mobile phones and text messaging to extend health surveys that support better health management of chronic illnesses. The latter health management intervention resulted in a response rate of 87% among children with asthma, ages 8-16. Dr. Abowd projected that "within five years, the majority of clinically relevant data will be collected in non-clinical settings." Along with the use of mobile phones, which are ubiquitous among many households, his goal, he said, "is to tap into a home's infrastructure to sense and infer about human activity." Ultimately, Dr. Abowd suggested, such information could answer questions like 'What does a healthy lifestyle look like?'
A late-breaking session held yesterday examined Sorrell vs. IMS Health, a legal case that went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court for a decision that challenged Vermont legislation, which attempted to limit the ability of pharmaceutical companies to use analysis of large clinical datasets to support marketing activities with physicians. The case underscores the ethical considerations inherent to secondary uses of health information -- an issue of critical importance in the informatics community.
###
About AMIA
AMIA, the leading professional association for informatics professionals, serves as the voice of the nation's top biomedical and health informatics professionals and plays an important role in medicine, health care, and science, encouraging the use of data, information and knowledge to improve both human health and delivery of healthcare services.
For more information, contact:
Nancy Light
301-275-1203
nlight@amia.org
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Informatics professionals meet in DC at AMIA's 35th Annual SymposiumPublic release date: 24-Oct-2011 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Nancy Light nlight@amia.org 301-275-1203 American Medical Informatics Association
Meeting agenda reflects Informatics' leadership in delivering health care
Washington, DC -- The 35th Annual Symposium on Biomedical and Health Informatics opened this week with keynote speaker Dr. Francis S. Collins, Director of the National Institutes of Health, addressing a crowd of more than two thousand professionals who are engaged in translational bioinformatics, clinical research informatics, clinical informatics, public health informatics, and consumer health informatics.
The Symposium's theme, "Improving Health: Informatics and IT Changing the World," highlights the herculean agenda informatics professionals have assumed in enabling translational science through the use of information technology, electronic health records, on-the-spot clinical decision support, and methods that include data mining, interactive systems, biosurveillance, simulation and modeling, and development of standardized terminologies for specific applications and designs. Energized by the recent decision of the American Board of Medical Specialties to recognize Clinical Informatics as a board-certified medical subspecialty, the informatics community is gaining momentum in several key areas: growing its workforce through new and strengthened training programs at federally funded universities and community colleges, sharing informatics knowledge, experience, and expertise in a broad array of topics related to information technology and informatics applications, and reaching out across disciplines to health-related professionals in industry, research, clinical care, health policy, and education.
In his opening keynote, Dr. Collins provided a summary of the enabling role of informatics and computation in the evolution of genomics and DNA sequencing. He discussed the basic pillars of research and advancing medical science, identifying computational biology and bioinformatics as major supports to advancements in biomedical research and combating cancer and other life-threatening diseases and chronic conditions. He also discussed the planned National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), designed to speed up the process of "rescuing and repurposing" drug therapies out of the lab and into advanced clinical trials. The expectation, Dr. Collins said, is for NCATS to continue the work of the Clinical and Translational Science Awards (CTSA) -- all of which are required to leverage informatics as a core component of their scientific structure.
"In the ten years since the genome sequence was completed," said Dr. Collins, "the economic return resulted in a return on investment of 141:1 -- a $3 billion investment led to $790 billion of economic growth. We should not be shy to point out that medical research is not only a wonderful way to plan for a revolutionizing of medicine that is more effective and gives people a change to live healthy lives, but also is one of the best things we can do to nurture the American economy."
In his remarks during the opening session, Scientific Program Committee Chair R. Scott Evans, PhD, of Intermountain Healthcare, University of Utah, indicated that informatics had captured the imagination of mainstream America during the past year, when Watson of Jeopardy! fame triumphed over the human intellect of two long-running champions. An example of computer-assimilated intelligence, Watson is a robotic expression of how computerized health systems and informatics could one day support quality healthcare delivery. A panel composed of the Watson strategy team from IBM (Watson's creator), and clinical experts from Columbia University and University of Maryland School of Medicine is scheduled to take place Tuesday morning at 8:30 a.m. to examine how Watson might succeed as a clinical decision support tool, once he is tutored through medical school!
In remarks about the growth of Symposium attendance and the burgeoning field of informatics, AMIA President and CEO Edward H. Shortliffe, MD, PhD, FACMI, said, "The informatics community has a vision of remarkable ingenuity and impact: to improve health locally, nationally, and globally by connecting, collecting, and making available for exchange the vast stores of research data and evidence that are available; and mining that knowledge to benefit patients and populations everywhere. The implications are enormous," he noted, "health equity for all, standard quality care across communities and borders, and a cooperative, collegial community in terms of knowledge resources and tools." He added, "The transformation is underway -- AMIA is where this collective vision and know-how come together."
This morning's keynote speaker Gregory Abowd, PhD, Distinguished Professor, School of Interactive Computing, Georgia Tech, discussed his research that focuses on using "ubiquitous computing technology" to promote better health outcomes and health management. Dr. Abowd described living labs instrumented with body sensors, cameras, microphones, and sensors embedded in objects to support judgment of human behavior, and the use of mobile phones and text messaging to extend health surveys that support better health management of chronic illnesses. The latter health management intervention resulted in a response rate of 87% among children with asthma, ages 8-16. Dr. Abowd projected that "within five years, the majority of clinically relevant data will be collected in non-clinical settings." Along with the use of mobile phones, which are ubiquitous among many households, his goal, he said, "is to tap into a home's infrastructure to sense and infer about human activity." Ultimately, Dr. Abowd suggested, such information could answer questions like 'What does a healthy lifestyle look like?'
A late-breaking session held yesterday examined Sorrell vs. IMS Health, a legal case that went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court for a decision that challenged Vermont legislation, which attempted to limit the ability of pharmaceutical companies to use analysis of large clinical datasets to support marketing activities with physicians. The case underscores the ethical considerations inherent to secondary uses of health information -- an issue of critical importance in the informatics community.
###
About AMIA
AMIA, the leading professional association for informatics professionals, serves as the voice of the nation's top biomedical and health informatics professionals and plays an important role in medicine, health care, and science, encouraging the use of data, information and knowledge to improve both human health and delivery of healthcare services.
For more information, contact:
Nancy Light
301-275-1203
nlight@amia.org
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
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