Eiffel Tower evacuated after bomb threat

PARIS (AP) ? The Eiffel Tower was evacuated Saturday night after an anonymous caller phoned in a bomb threat, police said.

Nearly 1,400 people were sent away from the tourist attraction following a request from tower operators after the warning, a Paris police official said. Police then searched the monument with sniffer dogs, and set up a security perimeter.

No explosives were found and the site was to be reopened, the official said on condition of anonymity because she wasn't authorized to speak publicly.

French authorities have stepped up counterterrorism measures in recent weeks amid heightened concern about threats to France over its military campaign against al-Qaida-linked fighters in Mali which began more than two months ago.

The tower is occasionally evacuated because of such warnings ? at least once last year and twice in 2011. The 324-meter (1,063-foot) tower is one of the world's top tourist attractions, with millions of visitors a year.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/eiffel-tower-evacuated-bomb-threat-204807606.html

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Clanging Bell: Adventures in Home Improvement: Building a Short ...

I currently have several writing assignments that I am accumulating the research for. "Accumulating research" is code for "I'm woefully under-motivated to begin the actual writing."

In truth, I am putting together the research -- much of it is really being accumulated by other people on my behalf, but, hey, just because I'm delegating doesn't mean I'm not being productive. The old wheels are always turning.

In any event, I have plenty of money-making work built up in my in-box. That, however, is not deterring me from launching into a home-improvement project. I have a couple of semi-major projects I want to accomplish this year. The first is to construct a small 2-ft x 4-ft wall behind my TV and entertainment center. The goal is to hide all the wires and other assorted audio-video flotsam behind my TV from the dining area that borders it. The back of the TV is what people first see when they enter through my back door. I'm not trying to impress anyone, but it's just damn ugly.

For the past six months I've been looking for some sort of storage cabinet to place behind the TV to accomplish the same thing, but just haven't found anything I like that's reasonably priced. So, I decided to bite the bullet and build a short wall. It won't take up nearly as much space -- always a concern when you live in a 1,100 sq. ft house. And, I can complete the project for about $50. That, of course, doesn't include the cost of the paint I'll have to buy to paint the wall it will attach to, along with the rest of the main floor that didn't get new paint when I repaired the cracks in the drywall.

In fact, the painting will probably cost more and require more time than constructing the wall. Nothing is ever easy with an older home.

My other project will be to construct a closet in the second bedroom upstairs. It has a linen-like closet, but you can't hang anything in it. I'm going to add a closet that will be roughly 5-ft wide. I will drywall over the linen closet doorway, and then build a doorway in its other side, which will transform it into a linen closet for the upstairs bath.

I can probably do the closet project for $200 to $250.

So you see, I have plenty of job-jar chores to fall back on when I don't feel like really working.

I just hope the people I've asked to help with the research take their time.

Source: http://clanging-bell.blogspot.com/2013/03/adventures-in-home-improvement-building.html

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'Facebook phone' likely to put social network at front of Android

Rosa Golijan , NBC News ? ? ? 1 hr.

"Come See Our New Home on Android," the invitation sent to members of the press on Thursday declared. Does this mean the long-rumored Facebook phone is about to become official? What is the social network's next move? And does it stand a chance?

Facebook is intending to introduce a modified version of Google's Android operating system, according to sourcing from TechCrunch's Josh Constine, the New York Times' Nick Bilton and Brian X. Chen, and the Wall Street Journal's Evelyn M. Rusli and Amir Efrati. This version of Android will put Facebook front and center and "will debut on a handset made by HTC, according to a Facebook employee and another person who were briefed on the announcement," Chen and Bilton explain.

"Imagine Facebook?s integration with iOS 6, but on steroids, and built by Facebook itself," Constine adds. "It could have a heavy reliance on Facebook?s native apps like Messenger, easy social sharing from anywhere on the phone, and more."

?It?s putting Facebook first,? a person familiar with the matter emphasized to Wall Street Journal reporters. But unlike competitors such as Amazon and Google, it is not putting Facebook itself into the hardware game.

"With Amazon, it's pretty clear," mobile industry consultant Chetan Sharma told NBC News. "They want to sell their content and services. They're building their own devices, which is different from what Facebook is doing."

However, the idea of a modified version of Android may be viewed as an act of hostility directed at Facebook's frenemy, Google.

"The reaction from Google will be interesting to see," Sharma pointed out. "There's obviously overlap ... It seems to Google that it's underpinning their Google+ efforts. Longer term, I don't see them letting it go and letting other people do their work."

But even if Google lets Facebook's plans fly, there are other issues to consider, Sharma says. "If it's just a phone that's going to be pushed by HTC, its chances are going to be limited," he explains. "[HTC] doesn't have the marketing powers." To truly stand a shot, Facebook needs to join hands with carriers.

Of course, some might wonder whether any carriers would be game. After all, Facebook's VoIP efforts and its baked-in Messenger service might conflict with carriers' business agendas, right?

Not necessarily so, says Sharma. "In certain markets [VoIP and Messenger] would be challenging," he elaborates. "In markets where unlimited voice and messaging is already bundled in ? in those scenarios operators have less resistance to the idea. They already make money on voice and messaging and they'll also make money on the data used by Facebook."

Initial whispers don't suggest that "Facebook Home," as the social network's device/software combo is expected to be named, is going to be pitched by any carriers, so we'll have to see how things fare with merely HTC. (Of course, that's assuming all these rumors and reports pan out.)

Things will be official on Thursday, April 4, and we'll be in Menlo Park, Calif., to report live.

Want more tech news or interesting links? You'll get plenty of both if you keep up with Rosa Golijan, the writer of this post, by following her on Twitter, subscribing to her Facebook posts, or circling her on Google+.

Source: http://feeds.nbcnews.com/c/35002/f/653377/s/2a2435f1/l/0L0Snbcnews0N0Ctechnology0Ctechnolog0Cfacebook0Ephone0Elikely0Eput0Esocial0Enetwork0Efront0Eandroid0E1C9144291/story01.htm

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Weekend linkdown: Fukushima, drunken bets and Bruce Willis chuckling

By Rob Walker

As the work-week winds (or crawls) to an end, we?re all looking for ways to look busy, or kill time. As always, I?m here to help.

Armchair Traveler, Fukushima Edition: As a rule, Google Street View strikes me as a poor substitute for exploring the physical world. But I admit that since physically strolling around an area near a nuclear disaster isn?t a practical idea, the Google Street View tours of Namie-machi, a presently abandoned city in Japan?s Fukushima Prefecture, are better than the real thing. The Google Lat Long blog offers several starting points for wandering this now-haunting cityscape from afar, with context in a guest post written by Nami-machi?s mayor. Via Google Sightseeing.

Not a Tree: Wired?s Raw File finds cell phone towers disguised as trees, as documented by photographer Dillon Marsh, ?puzzling.? I think they?re kinda cool.

What?s New With Robot Snakes? According to The Verge, they now have ?the ability to hug things.? This brief video from the Carnegie Mellon Biorobotics Lab demonstrates ?snake robot perching?: Robot snakes are tossed at lampposts, trees, and goalposts, which they coil about and grasp. Thanks for that, Science.

Dumb, Officially: Next time you make some foolish, drunken boast about how many McRibs you can eat in one sitting or some such, you can define the terms and conditions for your regrettable wager, thanks to SpitShake.com. This helps you ?make your ridiculous idea a reality,? a promo video promises. I bet. Via BoingBoing.

Idealized Scenes, From Prison: A fascinating photo project by Alyse Emdur documents painted optimistic backdrops created by prisoners for portraits intended for family and friends. The always surprising Venue project, devoted to exploring overlooked features of the American landscape, interviews Emdur and shares a number of her images.

Bruce Willis: Survivor: Footage from 39 movies gets diced into a 10-minute supercut quasi-narrative video called "Everybody Wants To Kill Bruce Willis." There?s no dialogue but?spoiler alert?Bruce is still chuckling manically at the end.

Non pet Sounds: On a more soothing note, here is a pleasant collection of field recordings of whales and elephants on SoundCloud, courtesy of "On Being." Have a relaxing weekend.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/weekend-linkdown---fukushima--drunken-bets-and-bruce-willis-chuckling-maniacally-171206139.html

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Amazon acquires Goodreads, aims to make better recommendations for Kindle users

So, Amazon has a reading platform called Kindle. Goodreads has a platform that makes fairly excellent suggestions when it comes to reading materials. You probably see where this is going. This evening, Amazon announced that it was acquiring one of the more popular reading recommendation engines, and while the outfit isn't making clear what it plans to do with the technology, it shouldn't take a scholar to see how it'd bolster Amazon's Kindle reader line as well as its array of Kindle apps. (What'll happen to Shelfari, however, is perhaps a bigger mystery.)

Russ Grandinetti, Amazon's vice president of Kindle Content noted that "Goodreads has helped change how we discover and discuss books and, with Kindle, Amazon has helped expand reading around the world -- together, we intend to build many new ways to delight readers and authors alike." It's entirely likely that this will add another social angle to the Kindle framework, further establishing an ecosystem where friends could see suggestions based on what they're independently reading through their own Kindle accounts. The companies are expecting the deal to be finalized in Q2, which suggests that we'll see a proper integration just as back-to-school season begins. Right, guys?

Filed under: Amazon

Comments

Source: Amazon, Goodreads

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

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Ryan Gosling Wears Velvet Suit to Movie Premiere!

Hey girl, swoon over Ryan Gosling's velvet suit at The Place Beyond The Pines premiere! Plus, check out more pics of your favorite stars on the scene!

Source: http://www.ivillage.com/star-snapshots-celebrity-photo-gallery-2012/1-b-450006?dst=iv%3AiVillage%3Astar-snapshots-celebrity-photo-gallery-2012-450006

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Design the Driveway of Your Dreams | Zillow Blog

By Bob Vila

The driveway does more than lead your car from the garage to the curb and back again. Whether it?s a straight shot paved with asphalt or a curved course laid in brick, a visitor?s positive first impression of your home depends on smart driveway design.

Plan ahead

Unlike some other ?curb appeal? elements ? outdoor lighting, for instance ? the driveway is a long-term investment that deserves careful consideration and thoughtful planning. Soil type, drainage and local climate must all be taken into account, no matter what type of driveway you plan to install?? be it brick, gravel, pea stone or concrete pavers.

Maintenance matters

It may be tempting to choose a driveway material on the basis of aesthetics alone, or with your eye only on the price tag. But since you?ll be living with your decision for years, it?s wise to compare different materials? maintenance requirements. For example, asphalt, poured concrete and concrete pavers must be resealed every couple of years to protect the driveway?s color and finish. The look of gravel driveways, by comparison, remains consistent over time, though every five years or so their stones must be replenished. My advice, in short: Before deciding on a driveway material, ask yourself how much effort ? and how much money ? you feel comfortable committing to its upkeep.

Pavers and permeability

More and more popular are paver driveways. These carry a relatively high upfront cost of installation, but maintenance demands and costs are relatively low. Composed of interlocking cement pavers, a driveway of this type typically performs better than asphalt or concrete under cold and wet conditions. Even if pavers shift, crack or chip, they?re easy and inexpensive to replace. But don?t count out asphalt and concrete, both of which have seen advancements in recent years. Nowadays you can get versions of these materials that are permeable and less vulnerable to cracking in areas with tough winters.

Stormwater management

No matter what material you choose, minimizing your driveway?s area and designing it thoughtfully can help control issues of pollution, erosion and flash flooding. Crown the surface and plant rain gardens in low areas to catch and filter water runoff. Avoid draining gutters into your driveway and to keep your basement dry, be sure to slope any paved areas away from the house.

Brick is beautiful but expensive, so many homeowners don?t consider it. Of all those mentioned here, however, a brick driveway is the option most likely to improve a home?s resale value. So when designing your new driveway, consider not only immediate factors ? looks and cost ? but also lasting concerns, such as maintenance, the environment and the question of when or if you?ll move.

Related:

Bob Vila is the home improvement expert widely known as host of TV?s This Old House, Bob Vila?s Home Again, and Bob Vila. Today, Bob continues his mission to help people upgrade their homes and improve their lives with advice online at BobVila.com. His video-rich site offers a full range of fresh, authoritative content ? practical tips, inspirational ideas, and more than 1,000 videos from Bob Vila television.

Note: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinion or position of Zillow.

Source: http://www.zillowblog.com/2013-03-28/design-the-driveway-of-your-dreams/

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Judge Judy's Son Accused of Interfering in Child Rape Investigation

Source:

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Is Michael Bloomberg the Right Person to Lead the Gun-Control Fight?

During the last major push for gun-control legislation, Jim Brady, the former White House press secretary who was shot during an assassination attempt on President Reagan, led the charge. Today, it?s New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who might have a tougher time connecting with voters across the country.

While Gabrielle Giffords, the former representative who was shot in Tucson two years ago, has been one of the leading voices in the current debate, her group, Americans for Responsible Solutions, has lacked the funding and high profile to match the National Rifle Association?s reach.

Enter Bloomberg and the gun-control group he cofounded, Mayors Against Illegal Guns. He has pledged millions of dollars in an effort to sway public opinion toward stricter gun laws. The aim is to boost momentum for a Senate bill that would require background checks on all gun purchases and impose harsher penalties on illegal gun trafficking. This week, the group launched a 13-state, $12 million ad blitz aimed at putting a spotlight on the issue in the states while senators are back home for a recess. Congress returns to Washington next month.

But the criticism for this new effort goes beyond just the policy. NRA head Wayne LaPierre took to the Sunday talk shows to criticize the man behind the ads.

Bloomberg "can?t spend enough of his $27 billion to try to impose his will on the American public,? LaPierre said on NBC?s Meet the Press. ?They don?t want him in their restaurants, they don?t want him in their homes, they don?t want him telling what food to eat. They sure don?t want him telling what self-defense firearms to own. He can?t buy America.?

Fresh off a court setback in his controversial ban on large soda drinks in New York City, a move that has been mocked by conservatives, a bruised Bloomberg might not be the best person to carry the mantel for gun-control advocates. The blunt-spoken billionaire mayor may be popular in Washington and New York, but that popularity might not extend to other areas of the country.

?He has zero effectiveness, he has none,? said one Republican strategist who asked to remain anonymous because of his ties to Bloomberg. ?It?s a twofer: He?s a big-city mayor?and not just any big-city mayor, New York?and you have the nanny-in-chief of America.... He is so antagonistic that he?s probably displacing Dianne Feinstein amongst NRA loyalists.?

Billionaires financing initiatives aren?t new to the national political scene. From the Koch brothers to Sheldon Adelson, billionaires have been able to wield influence among voters for years. But that doesn?t mean their actions are popular.

?It?s always potentially impactful when a person threatens to spend $12 million, but I?ve noticed that Americans seem to be a bit resistant to these billionaires who think they can buy whatever they want, think they can purchase the direction of America to suit their own needs,? said Curt Anderson, a Republican strategist in Washington.

Mark Glaze, executive director of the mayors' coalition, Bloomberg?s group, said personality should not be relevant to the debate. The argument should not be about the mayor but about gun violence in the United States.

?If the NRA wants to make this about Mike Bloomberg, that?s their right,? Glaze said. ?If they want to talk about politics and tactics, that?s their business. But it seems like a waste of the moment.?

While a better-funded Giffords or possibly a former law-enforcement official might have more success connecting with voters across the country, Thomas Mann, a congressional scholar at the Brookings Institution, believes voters will react to the policies and not the man pushing them.

?In the end, these activities will occur without everything being seen as Bloomberg,? Mann said. ?In any case, it?s less trying to pressure a member of Congress to change his vote than it is making it easier for someone who?d like to vote this way to do so.?

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/michael-bloomberg-person-lead-gun-control-fight-162710662--politics.html

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Police reports in Tucson shooting rampage released

PHOENIX (AP) ? Hundreds of pages of police reports in the investigation of the Tucson shooting rampage that wounded former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords are being released Wednesday, marking the public's first glimpse into documents that authorities have kept private since the attack more than two years ago.

The Pima County sheriff's department will release an estimated 2,700 pages of records from the January 2011 shooting at a meet-and-greet event outside a grocery store that killed six people and wounded Giffords and 11 others. The documents include transcribed interviews with witnesses, various police reports and other records, and could provide new insight into how the shooting occurred.

News organizations seeking the records were repeatedly denied the documents in the months after the shooting and the arrest of 24-year-old Jared Lee Loughner, who was sentenced in November to seven consecutive life sentences, plus 140 years, after he pleaded guilty to 19 federal charges.

U.S. District Judge Larry Burns had prevented the sheriff's department from releasing the records in response to a request from The Washington Post, ruling in March 2011 that Loughner's right to a fair trial outweighed whatever disclosures might be authorized under state law.

Last month, Burns cleared the way for the release of the records after Star Publishing Company, which publishes the Arizona Daily Star in Tucson, had sought their release. The judge said Loughner's fair-trial rights are no longer on the line now that his criminal case has resolved.

Loughner's guilty plea enabled him to avoid the death sentence. He is serving his sentence at a federal prison medical facility in Springfield, Mo., where he was diagnosed with schizophrenia and forcibly given psychotropic drug treatments.

Arizona's chief federal judge and a 9-year-old girl were among those killed in the rampage. Giffords was left partially blind, with a paralyzed right arm and brain injury. She resigned from Congress last year and has since started, along with her husband, a gun control advocacy group.

The Star said it wanted the records because they contain information about how a mass shooting occurs, including how long it took Loughner to fire gunshots ? an issue raised by some advocates in the debate over high-capacity pistol magazines.

The Tucson newspaper argued that the records are critical in the national debate over whether such shootings could be prevented by armed resistance, whether a mass shooting occurs too quickly to be stopped and whether people with mental illnesses should be prohibited from getting guns.

Phoenix Newspapers Inc., which publishes The Arizona Republic, and KPNX-TV had joined Star Publishing in the latest effort to get the records released.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/police-reports-tucson-shooting-rampage-released-082126898.html

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David Petraeus apologizes for conduct, affair

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? David Petraeus apologized Tuesday night to an audience of many veterans for the conduct that led to his resignation as head of the CIA following the disclosure of an extramarital affair.

"Needless to say, I join you keenly aware that I am regarded in a different light now than I was a year ago," Petraeus said. "I am also keenly aware that the reason for my recent journey was my own doing. So please allow me to begin my remarks this evening by reiterating how deeply I regret ? and apologize for ? the circumstances that led me to resign from the CIA and caused such pain for my family, friends and supporters."

He made the comments during his first public speech after his resignation, to a group of about 600 people, including many veterans at the University of Southern California's annual ROTC dinner. The hero of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars has remained largely in seclusion since resigning.

His lawyer, Robert B. Barnett, has said that Petraeus has spent much of that time with his family.

Petraeus received applause and a standing ovation before he began the evening's program by cutting a cake, a task reserved for the highest ranking person in the room.

His affair with the retired four-star general's biographer, Paula Broadwell, was discovered during an FBI investigation into emails she sent to another woman she viewed as a rival for his attention.

At the time, Petraeus told his staff he was guilty of "extremely poor judgment."

"Such behavior is unacceptable, both as a husband and as the leader of an organization such as ours," he said.

As the military leader credited with reshaping the nation's counterinsurgency strategy, turning the tide in the U.S. favor in both Iraq and Afghanistan and making the U.S. safer from terrorism, Petraeus expected a friendly audience at the ROTC dinner.

At least one expert in crisis communications said that if his apology comes across as heartfelt and sincere, the public will indeed be seeing much more of him.

"America is a very forgiving nation," said Michael Levine who, among dozens of other celebrity clients, represented Michael Jackson during his first child molestation investigation.

"If he follows the path of humility, personal responsibility and contrition, I submit to you that he will be very successful in his ability to rehabilitate his image," he said.

Another longtime crisis communications expert, Howard Bragman, said Petraeus has handled the situation perfectly so far and he expects he'll continue to do so. He noted that unlike former President Bill Clinton, former U.S. Sen. John Edwards and other public figures caught in extramarital affairs, Petraeus didn't try to lie his way out of it, immediately took responsibility and moved on.

"I think the world is open to him now," said Bragman, vice chairman of the image-building company Reputation.com. "I think he can do whatever he wants. Realistically, he can even run for public office, although I don't think he'd want to because he can make more money privately."

Ahead of the speech, Petraeus drew lavish praise from USC's president, C. L. Max Nikias, who called him "arguably the most effective military commander since Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower."

"In our post 9/11 world, Gen. Petraeus' influence on our military is unmatched, and his contributions to the CIA are far-reaching," Nikias said. "

While at USC, Petraeus also planned to visit faculty and students at the Price School of Public Policy, which administers the ROTC program, and USC's School of Social Work, which trains social workers in how to best help veterans returning from war.

___

Associated Press writer Pauline Jelinek in Washington, D.C., contributed to this story.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/david-petraeus-apologizes-conduct-affair-050721900--politics.html

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Curve Appeal: Do Men Know Something About Women's Bodies ...

I?ll be the first to admit it: I am sort of a sucker for consumer-friendly psychology magazines. Publications like Psychology Today are full of articles I either enjoy reading or using as fire kindling. Or, when I am really irritated by the content, writing articles on the topic. Like this one.

The article, published in Psychology Today, is titled ?Ahead of the Curves? and the brilliant tagline? ?Men know something vital about women?s body shapes that women don?t. Plus: How big hips make wise women.?

It is six pages long and features illustrations of women who look more like playmates than the women who have the aforementioned ?big hips? and are ?wise? because of it. One of the illustrations boasts a sexy blonde wearing a pastel-pretty bra and tight briefs. She is pursing her red lips ? ready to kiss! She is rather revolting and her hips, well, they certainly are not wise.

That alone is irritating but this is the part that really makes me question my taste in literature: This lengthy article is written by two men.

Their respective names and impressive education are listed in very small font. I wondered: How can these two men possibly educate and enlighten women on their sex appeal and bodies? Well, they certainly gave it a good shot. But not good enough.

The first paragraph states that ?American males, it has been calculated, spend some $3 billion a year to gaze at women with hourglass figures, those whose small waists blossom into sinuously curvy hips.?

My first thought? Where does this ?calculation? come from? Furthermore, how does gazing at women connect to ?$3 billion a year?? They don?t explain this. Maybe men take time off work to gawk at women? Unlikely.

I have to give credit where credit is due: They do include research done by the late Deborah Sing ? 20 years ago. This is the only mention of a female contribution to the piece and does not extend past one measly paragraph which tells the eager reader: ?. . .Men all around the world. . .Prefer a similar shape.?

We are then told that when men view a curvy woman their brains respond in a similar fashion to cocaine and heroin. Hmm. That?s a strange statement with no research provided to the reader.

Even so, the following paragraph takes the cake:

Even a thin woman carries an astonishing amount of fat in her legs and hips?about a third of her body weight. Men everywhere admire the fat located here. . .Only bears ready to hibernate, penguins facing a sunless winter without food, or whales swimming in the arctic waters have fat percentages that approach those in normal, healthy, trim young women.

Well, that?s lovely! Female readers have now been compared to bears, penguins and whales. Furthermore, the word ?astonishing? used in relation to our apparent ?fat? probably does not make us smile. I am currently grimacing.

For diversity?s sake (or perhaps the editor was concerned about backlash from readers) a few paragraphs are devoted to explaining that American women are in dire need of more omega-3s.

Unfortunately, I believe more women have read this article than men. The pages are laced with bright pink script. I kid you not. Literature like this confuses both genders and, in my humble and currently sarcastic opinion, the size of my hips does not make me ?wise.? And neither did reading this article.

Reference

Lassek, W. & Gaulin, S. (2012, August). Ahead of the curves. Psychology Today, 45(4), 74-77.

?

Natalie Jeanne Champagne is the author of The Third Sunrise: A Memoir of Madness. You can learn about Natalie and the book on her website at www.thethirdsunrise.com

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????Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 25 Mar 2013
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APA Reference
Champagne, N. (2013). Curve Appeal: Do Men Know Something About Women?s Bodies That Women Do Not?. Psych Central. Retrieved on March 25, 2013, from http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/03/25/curve-appeal-do-men-know-something-about-womens-bodies-that-women-do-not/

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Source: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2013/03/25/curve-appeal-do-men-know-something-about-womens-bodies-that-women-do-not/

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Pa. minor-league team installs 'urinal gaming system'

Lehigh Valley IronPigs

A urinal gaming system is coming to the men's rooms of Coca-Cola Park in the Lehigh Valley.

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By Vince Lattanzio, NBCPhiladelphia.com

PHILADELPHIA ? A steady stream will help Lehigh Valley IronPig fans stay entertained and learn about prostate health while answering nature?s call at the ballpark.

The Phillies? AAA-minor league team will introduce the first ?urinal gaming system? when the season kicks off at Coca-Cola Park next week.

Screens installed above urinals will display the game, which is a downhill snowmobile competition. The user?s flow controls the virtual snowmobiler as he tries to hit penguins on the route ? directing the stream left or right will move the driver in that direction.

?It?s just like a joystick on a video game,? said Brian Downs, Director of Media Relations for Lehigh Valley Health Network. The health system will be advertising on the game?s screens.

Downs says his team had a few laughs when they were approached to be a sponsor, but quickly decided it would be a great way to educate men about prostate health.

?You kind of have a built-in audience and an opportunity to create an awareness about the importance of prostate health,? he said.

The game screens will display information from the health system when the urinal is not in use. When a guy walks up to use the urinal, the information will go away and switch into game mode.

?There?s a lot of ways you can market different programs and healthcare. In this case, it made a lot of sense,? Downs says.

A urinal gaming system is coming to the men's rooms in a minor league baseball stadium in Pennsylvania.

In the U.S., prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths among men, behind lung cancer. One in six men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime, according to the American Cancer Society.

IronPigs spokesman Jon Schaeffer says the "pee" game will be installed in four men?s rooms inside the 10,100-seat ballpark ? one per restroom. Anyone using the urinal can play the game and it doesn't cost extra.

Players will be given a score at the end of their game. The high scorers will be displayed in real-time on video boards inside the ballpark. Players will also be ranked and recognized on the team's website.

"Our fans are always looking for the next big thing and these 'X-Stream Games' are another example of our commitment to providing an unparalleled entertainment experience in all aspects of Coca-Cola Park, including our restrooms," IronPigs General Manager Kurt Landes said in a statement.

The urinal gaming system is already in use at bars in the United Kingdom, but has never been installed in a sporting venue.

Related: You can now enjoy 'Toylet' at home

The system will debut with the downhill snowmobile game, but that six to 12 others will be swapped in as the season progresses. Schaeffer says the team has gotten a huge response from fans so far ? even before the system's debut.

?The feedback that we?ve gotten, it?s been overwhelmingly positive," Schaeffer said. He added that the team's Twitter feed has been blowing up over the announcement.

Aside from the fun, Downs hopes the system will remind men to get a checkup and hopefully save lives by catching cancer early.

?The idea is that you see the health network and remember to talk with your doctor, especially if you have issues. And at least keep it in the back of their mind.?

Source: http://feeds.nbcnews.com/c/35002/f/653381/s/2a063183/l/0Lusnews0Bnbcnews0N0C0Inews0C20A130C0A30C260C174771730Epa0Eminor0Eleague0Eteam0Einstalls0Eurinal0Egaming0Esystem0Dlite/story01.htm

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Timberlake's '20/20' album sells 968K in 1st week

FILE - This Feb. 20, 2013 file photo shows Justin Timberlake during the BRIT Awards 2013 in London. Nielsen SoundScan announced Tuesday, March 26, 2013, that the singer?s third album, ?The 20/20 Experience,? has moved 968,000 units. It?s the 19th album in Nielsen?s 12-year history that has sold more than 900,000 albums in a single week. (Photo by Joel Ryan/Invision/AP, file)

FILE - This Feb. 20, 2013 file photo shows Justin Timberlake during the BRIT Awards 2013 in London. Nielsen SoundScan announced Tuesday, March 26, 2013, that the singer?s third album, ?The 20/20 Experience,? has moved 968,000 units. It?s the 19th album in Nielsen?s 12-year history that has sold more than 900,000 albums in a single week. (Photo by Joel Ryan/Invision/AP, file)

FILE - In this Feb. 20, 2013 file photo, Justin Timberlake performs on stage during the BRIT Awards 2013 at the o2 Arena in London. Nielsen SoundScan announced Tuesday, March 26, 2013, that the singer?s third album, ?The 20/20 Experience,? has moved 968,000 units. It?s the 19th album in Nielsen?s 12-year history that has sold more than 900,000 albums in a single week. (Photo by John Marshall/Invision/AP, File)

NEW YORK (AP) ? Justin Timberlake's comeback album has sold nearly 1 million units its first week out.

Nielsen SoundScan announced Tuesday that the singer's third album, "The 20/20 Experience," has moved 968,000 units. It's the 19th album in Nielsen's 22-year history that has sold more than 900,000 albums in its debut week.

"20/20" is Timberlake's third album and the follow-up to his multiplatinum, Grammy-winning 2006 album, "FutureSex/LoveSounds." The new CD features the pop hit "Suit & Tie."

"The numbers are pleasantly surprising," said Tom Corson, the president and chief operating officer of RCA Records, which released Timberlake's album.

The label had projected that "20/20" would sell 500,000 to 600,000 units, Corson said.

Timberlake, 31, was strategic about promoting his comeback effort: He performed at the Grammy Awards, hosted and hit the stage at "Saturday Night Live" and spent an entire week on "Late Night with Jimmy Fallon." The singer also partnered with Target for the album's deluxe edition and "20/20" streamed on iTunes a week before it was released.

Timberlake came up with the idea of a weeklong stint himself, Fallon said.

"I think he mentioned it to me like a year ago that he's working on something and wanted to do a week on our show," Fallon said Tuesday.

"20/20" is an unconventional album that features a mesh of R&B, soul, pop and futuristic sounds. The 10 tracks average seven minutes each.

Corson believes Timberlake's key to promoting the album was "less is more."

"While it felt like he was everywhere, he didn't do a lot of things because he didn't have to. But he did big things," he said.

Fallon even joked that other celebrities are trying to follow in Timberlake's footsteps with a weeklong stay on his show.

"We're getting a lot of phone calls now to do themed-weeks for people," said Fallon, who added that the show's writers and producers developed a load of material for "Timberweek."

"We have enough for another month," he said. "We could have 'Timbermonth.' Trust me, NBC is already pitching it to me."

Of the 19 albums to sell more than 900,000 in their debut week, Timberlake holds three slots. His albums with 'N Sync, 2000's "No Strings Attached" and 2001's "Celebrity," sold 2.4 million and 1.9 million in their first week, respectively. Backstreet Boys, Lil Wayne and Taylor Swift have two albums each that have hit that level.

The excitement over the new album has also boosted sales of Timberlake's other solo albums, Nielsen Co. said. Last year, "FutureSex/LoveSounds" and 2002's "Justified" sold 39,000 and 21,000 copies each, but this year they've already sold 29,000 and 17,000, respectively.

"As the marketing sort of picks up for the new record and the single goes to radio ... you definitely start to see interest," said David Bakula, Nielsen's senior vice president of client development and analytics for entertainment.

Bakula said 'N Sync sales are up, too.

"20/20" was streamed 7.73 million times on Spotify in its first week, putting it second behind the 8 million streams set by Mumford & Sons' "Babel" last year. Steve Savoca, Spotify's head of content, said Timberlake's colossal first-week numbers are another example of how streaming music helps artists sell albums.

Fallon said Timberlake worked tirelessly ahead of the five shows and he's proud of his friend's success.

"Justin was here till 11 o'clock most nights choreographing dance moves so he nailed it the next night," he said. "And he was sick at the time."

Corson said this week's success could change the expectation of Timberlake's follow-up to "20/20," which will likely be released later this year.

"It sure should," he said with a laugh. "Part two is now even more anticipated."

Timberlake could even show up for a stint on Fallon again.

"We are already talking about it," Fallon said.

___

Online:

http://twentytwenty.justintimberlake.com/

http://http://www.latenightwithjimmyfallon.com/

___

Follow Mesfin Fekadu at http://twitter.com/MusicMesfin

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2013-03-26-US-Music-Justin-Timberlake/id-56b5c5825095401282fe59650a165da2

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Cyprus bank shutdown enters second week

A man passes a sprayed entrance of a store that buys gold which reads in Greek " thieves" in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Monday, March 25, 2013. Cyprus secured what its politicians described as a ?painful? solution to avert imminent bankruptcy, agreeing early Monday to slash its oversize banking sector and make large account holders take losses to help pay to secure a last-minute euro10 billion (US$13 billion) bailout. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

A man passes a sprayed entrance of a store that buys gold which reads in Greek " thieves" in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, Monday, March 25, 2013. Cyprus secured what its politicians described as a ?painful? solution to avert imminent bankruptcy, agreeing early Monday to slash its oversize banking sector and make large account holders take losses to help pay to secure a last-minute euro10 billion (US$13 billion) bailout. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) ? Banks across Cyprus remain locked Tuesday after financial authorities extended the country's bank closure, fearing worried depositors will rush to drain their accounts. The shut-down is hammering businesses, which have been without access to their funds for more than a week.

All but two of the country's largest lenders had been due to reopen Tuesday, after being shut since March 16 while politicians figured out how to raise the funds necessary for Cyprus to qualify for an international bailout. Under the deal for a 10 billion euro ($12.94 billion) rescue clinched in Brussels early Monday, Cyprus agreed to slash its oversized banking sector and inflict hefty losses on large depositors in troubled banks.

After initially saying most financial institutions would reopen Tuesday, the country's Central Bank made a surprise reversal just before midnight, announcing all banks would remain closed until Thursday.

ATMs have been operating throughout the closure, but many have quickly run out of money. A daily withdrawal limit of 100 euros has been imposed on ATMs of the two largest lenders, Bank of Cyprus and Laiki. An increasing number of businesses have stopped accepting credit or check payments, insisting on cash only.

The bank closures have hammered businesses, who have found themselves unable to pay suppliers or fulfill orders. The retail market is sharply down too, shop owners say, with customers unwilling to spend on anything but the basics while they have limited access to cash.

"The continuation of this uncertainty is pushing the economy deeper into recession, some businesses could possibly lose their clients, but we're hopeful once this situation is sorted out, the market can rebound quickly," said Michalis Pilikos, head of the Cyprus Employers and Industrialists Federation.

Scores of angry students from a left-wing student union gathered outside Parliament, screaming "People, fight back, they're sucking your blood."

Under the new Cyprus bailout plan, the bulk of the funds will be raised by forcing losses on accounts of more than 100,000 euros in the country's second- largest lender, Laiki, with the remainder coming from tax increases and privatizations.

The bank will be dissolved immediately into a so-called bad bank containing its uninsured deposits and toxic assets, with the guaranteed deposits being transferred to the nation's biggest lender, Bank of Cyprus.

Deposits at Bank of Cyprus above 100,000 euros will be frozen until it becomes clear whether or to what extent they will also be forced to take losses. Those funds will eventually be converted into bank shares.

It's not yet clear how severe the losses will be to Laiki's large bank deposit holders, but the euro finance ministers noted the restructure expected to yield 4.2 billion euros overall. Analysts have estimated investors might lose up to 40 percent of their money.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-03-26-Cyprus-Financial%20Crisis/id-7eba41c65b72424b9b38e189dd0b93ed

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Zimbabwe court frees rights lawyer

HARARE, Zimbabwe (AP) ? Zimbabwe's top rights lawyer, Beatrice Mtetwa, released by a court after eight days in jail for allegedly obstructing justice, said Monday her arrest was a ploy to intimidate human rights activists and pro-democracy groups ahead of upcoming elections expected in July.

A visibly tired Beatrice Mtetwa walked from the High Court in Harare in the company of two colleagues and her lawyer after her release papers took several hours to complete.?

She told reporters she believed she had been targeted by police.

"It is a personal attack on all human rights lawyers but I was just made the first example. There will be many more arrests to follow as we near elections," Mtetwa said. "The police were all out to get me. They wanted me to feel their might and power because I call myself a human rights lawyer and I felt it."

Mtetwa was arrested on March 17 along with four officials from Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai's party. The officials are accused of illegally compiling information on high level corruption and are schedule to appeal for bail on Tuesday. Mtetwa was accused of shouting at police officers who were conducting a search at Tsvangirai's staff offices when she demanded to see a search warrant.

Mtetwa and the four officials deny any wrongdoing. ?She said she merely told the police that "what they were doing is illegal, unlawful and undemocratic."

High Court Judge Joseph Musakwa ruled early Monday that Mtetwa was following professional legal procedures when she demanded to see a search warrant from police at the offices of the four officials.

"She was entitled to be appraised of the legality of the search," Musakwa said.

After her release, Mtetwa said she was not well-treated while in police custody. She wasn't allowed to take a bath and was denied access to her lawyers and family.

But she said she will not give up the fight for human rights.

"I will not be cowed," Mtetwa said. "There has to be mutual respect between police and lawyers because we will all be doing our job."

Critics have cited Mtetwa's prolonged jailing as the start of a fresh wave of political intimidation against opponents of President Robert Mugabe by loyalist police and judicial officials ahead of elections.

The European Union said in a statement Monday that European governments were "deeply concerned" by Mtetwa's arrest and the onslaught against civic groups as Zimbabwe prepares for elections to end the shaky and dispute-ridden coalition government.

The European bloc conceded that a referendum vote on March 16 on a new constitution was "credible" and reflected the free will of about 3 million voters who cast their ballots and overwhelmingly accepted the reformed constitution, EU spokesman Carl Skau said Monday.

As a result the EU suspended with immediate effect travel and banking bans on 81 leaders of Mugabe's party. But Mugabe, his wife, military, police and security chiefs and several others key loyalists remain on the ban list.

The restrictions were imposed in 2002 to protest the human rights record, violence, corruption and allegations of vote-rigging by Mugabe's party in past elections.

Regional mediators forged the coalition government between Mugabe and Tsvangirai after the disputed and violent elections in 2008.

So far this year, four rights and advocacy groups have been raided by police searching for alleged subversive materials relating to their activities campaigning for free elections and an end to political intimidation and human rights abuses that have dominated past elections.

Mtetwa had been scheduled to act as lead defense attorney in the trial, resuming Monday, of 29 supporters of Tsvangirai's party charged in the murder of a police inspector in an impoverished township suburb in western Harare.

Most of those suspects were denied bail for more than a year. Defending them, Mtetwa noted that six police officers charged in the assault and murder of a theft suspect received bail within a month of their detention. The officers are still to go to trial in that case nine months ago.

Swaziland-born Mtetwa moved to Zimbabwe in 1983. She has represented key leaders in Tsvangirai's party including its treasurer Roy Bennett, now in self-imposed exile after repeated threats. She has also defended journalists and prominent rights workers, some of whom were tortured, according to evidence in court, and held incommunicado without charge for several weeks late in 2008.

Last week police ignored an earlier High Court order to free Mtetwa and on Wednesday the lower Harare magistrate's court ordered her held in custody to reappear in that court on April 3.

Charges of obstructing justice carry a maximum of two years imprisonment.

The judge said Mtetwa should not have been denied bail because of her "professional standing." He said the police officers conducting the search could have "easily subdued her because she is a woman" if they felt she was hindering them from doing their job.

"She is a lawyer of many years, with a forceful, combative and at times aggressive personality but she remains professional and dignified" when doing her job, the judge said.

Mtetwa is a recipient of an array of awards from international jurists' groups including the American Bar Association over a distinguished career of three decades.

Mtetwa is known for her feisty and outspoken style and for quickly responding to calls for representation around the clock by activists and journalists held by police.

Media freedom groups said her detention, the first time she has been jailed, left independent reporters and rights campaigners fearful of being left without her voice.

The state's Sunday Mail newspaper criticized Mtetwa for thinking she was "untouchable" and said her "stage-managed antics in and outside the courts" earned her "dubious awards" from African and international lawyers groups.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/zimbabwe-court-frees-rights-lawyer-173536426.html

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Five Easy Pieces of Energy Legislation

After half a decade in which the energy debate in Washington has been dominated by political posturing and produced almost no legislative action, both Democrats and Republicans who work on energy policy say they?re optimistic about prospects for a number of single-issue energy bills in this Congress.

The hope, they say, is that progress on some smaller-scale bills could restore the trust and relationships needed to build momentum for action on bigger bills.

Signs that something may be breaking loose in the energy deadlock come as members of Congress surprised even themselves last week by reaching bipartisan agreement on a stopgap budget bill absent the dramatic brinksmanship that has, until recently, dominated fiscal debate.

Democratic Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon, the new Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee chairman, told National Journal Daily?he?s optimistic that, with the bitter politics of the presidential election behind them, lawmakers are now interested in actually passing legislation.

?What?s different now?beyond the fact that elections are a renewal?is that a very significant group of senators are coming up and saying, ?We?ve just got to find a way to move ahead on energy,? ? Wyden said. ?Energy can?t just be an ongoing polarized bickerfest where everyone sits around and throws rotten fruit at each other.?

There?s a growing urgency among lawmakers to take on energy policy, in particular, since energy?where it comes from, how much it costs, how many jobs it generates?is central to the health of the economy. Also growing is the desire to address the fossil-fuel pollution that contributes to global warming.

Congress last passed a major energy law in 2007, but the provisions of that law don?t do much to address today?s most pressing issues, including high oil prices, greenhouse-gas emissions, and surging energy?demand in countries such as China and India.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., has said he?d like to prioritize movement of energy bills in his chamber. And the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee has become a surprising oasis of bipartisan cooperation. Wyden and the panel?s top Republican, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, have developed what both senators call a warm, productive friendship, and the two are focused on forging bills that could gain enough support to pass the Senate with a 60-vote, filibuster-proof majority.

Wyden and Murkowski have also met in recent weeks with their House counterparts: House Energy and Commerce Chairman Fred Upton, R-Mich.; his top lieutenant on energy issues, Rep. Ed Whitfield, R-Ky.; and staff from the office of House Energy and Commerce ranking member Henry Waxman, D-Calif. Such a meeting may sound like it should be commonplace on Capitol Hill, but participants said they couldn?t recall the last time they?d been in a serious policy meeting with members of both parties and both chambers.

For the past two years, House Republicans have focused on energy chiefly as a political-messaging issue. Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., has spearheaded those efforts. Before the election, that meant moving a nonstop parade of bills focused on aggressively expanding oil drilling while handcuffing the authority of the Environmental Protection Agency. The point, at the time, wasn?t to actually pass legislation (none of the bills had any chance of success in the Senate). It was to create talking points aimed at attacking Democrats running for office?particularly President Obama.

But now that the election is over, McCarthy is taking a different tack. His office has taken pains to point out that the first two energy bills that Republicans brought to the floor this year were not typical GOP ?drill, baby, drill? measures; they were renewable energy bills. The intention, McCarthy said, was to send a message that, on this issue, Republicans are prepared to work with Democrats.

?If we lead with something else, like drilling, and were criticized, they wouldn?t listen to the rest of our energy policy,? McCarthy said. ?Let?s first enter the places that we?re more united on. You crawl before you walk and you walk before your run. If you start out and build coalitions and build trust on both sides, we can keep doing the harder bills as we grow.?

Leaders in both parties and both chambers are quick to clarify that they don?t expect to see a major energy bill anytime soon?and that even single-issue energy proposals will meet plenty of obstacles. But they pointed to these five proposals as ideas that have legs.

Energy Efficiency

The House has started a bipartisan caucus aimed at passing energy efficiency legislation?bills that would require buildings that provide the same amount of light and heat with less fuel, for example. The leaders of the caucus have serious political chops: Republican Cory Gardner of Colorado has been designated by House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, to serve as a point man for the GOP on energy issues. Democrat Peter Welch of Vermont is a staunch liberal with close ties to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. And in the Senate, a bipartisan bill sponsored by Democrat Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire and Republican Rob Portman of Ohio is gaining traction. ?People are tired of gridlock,? Gardner told NJ Daily. ?You?re starting to see that frustration that members don?t have something to go home and show people. These energy bills are opportunities to show our constituents that we not only talk about it, we bring something home to show for it.?

Offshore Drilling

This issue is gaining traction thanks in part to the retirement of Sen. Jeff Bingaman, D-N.M., former chairman of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. Bingaman did not oppose offshore drilling, but he did oppose the idea that coastal states should share a portion of the revenue generated by drilling in federal waters. The new Energy chairman, Wyden of Oregon, isn?t a big fan of offshore drilling, but he doesn?t object to proposals that send more money to coastal states. Murkowski, the panel?s ranking Republican, has introduced a bill with Democrat Mary Landrieu of Louisiana?that would expand offshore drilling, give coastal states a taste of the profit, and require some of the money to go toward development of renewable energy. The multi-pronged bill is drawing a mix of supporters?and is being taken seriously by leadership on both sides of the aisle.

Nuclear Waste Storage

This is another issue that?s gaining traction thanks to the push of local politics. The nation still has no solution for nuclear waste, which today is kept in temporary storage facilities at nuclear power plants across the country?a situation that?s viewed as dangerous and also expensive. The federal government, by law, was to have taken title to the waste in 1998, and every year that it doesn?t, it pays millions of dollars to nuclear power companies. An old proposal to build a federally run nuclear-waste dump at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, was killed by Obama and will likely remain on ice as long as Nevadan Harry Reid retains seniority in the Senate. Proposals to build an interim ?medium-term? nuclear-waste dump were also stalled until this year, as the most likely site for such a facility is New Mexico. But Bingaman, the New Mexican who chaired Senate Energy and Natural Resources, was not a fan. Now that he?s retired and been replaced by Wyden?whose state has a closed nuclear-power plant that still stores radioactive waste?plans for a ?medium-term? nuclear-waste storage dump are suddenly on the move.

Ethanol Reform

For the first time since Obama won the White House in 2008, the top Republican and top Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee are working collaboratively on a controversial piece of energy policy: the renewable-fuels standard. There?s growing opposition to the provisions of a 2005 law mandating that oil refiners blend an increasing share of plant-based ethanol into the nation?s gasoline mix. Oil companies complain it raises their costs, and the use of corn to produce ethanol has also contributed to rising food prices in the wake of last year?s drought. Meanwhile, the technology to produce ethanol affordably from nonfood crops still isn?t commercialized. Given those pressures, there?s a growing coalition of strange bedfellows?the oil industry, environmentalists, food manufacturers, and antipoverty groups?pushing for the law to be reformed. To that end, Upton and Waxman are working on a series of white papers aimed at opening up the issue for debate and, they hope, legislative action.

Hydropower

In January, House Republicans brought to the floor a bill to speed construction of small hydropower plants in the Pacific Northwest. The bill, sponsored by Republican Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington, was meant as a signal that the GOP was ready to work with Democrats on at least some form of renewable-energy legislation. It worked. Wyden has introduced a companion measure in the Senate. Members of both parties in both chambers are optimistic about its prospects.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/five-easy-pieces-energy-legislation-195106235--politics.html

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Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri supports gay marriage | Planet ...

Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill announced same sex marriage Sunday on the social media site Tumblr.

"I have come to the conclusion that our government should not limit the right to marry based on who you love," McCaskill wrote. "While churches should never be required to conduct marriages outside of their religious beliefs, neither should the government tell people who they have a right to marry."

McCaskill, a Democrat who won a tough reelection battle last year in a conservative state, previously had expressed support for civil unions, but not gay marriage. She said last year that states should take the lead in determining marriage equality.

The Senator wrote on Sunday that her views have changed over time.

"(A)s many of my gay and lesbian friends, colleagues and staff embrace long term committed relationships, I find myself unable to look them in the eye without honestly confronting this uncomfortable inequality," she wrote. "Supporting marriage equality for gay and lesbian couples is simply the right thing to do for our country, a country founded on the principals of liberty and equality.

She acknowledged that good people will disagree with her. "On the other hand, my children have a hard time understanding why this is even controversial. I think history will agree with my children."

McCaskill's announcement comes as the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to hear two cases on gay marriage this week. Several other prominent politicians have backed marriage equality in recent weeks, including Republican Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Source: http://blogs.mcclatchydc.com/washington/2013/03/sen-claire-mccaskill-of-missouri-supports-gay-marriage.html

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Israelis get kosher cigarettes for Passover

JERUSALEM (AP) ? Observant Jews in Israel craving a smoke during the week-long Passover holiday that starts at sundown Monday can now enjoy a rabbi-approved puff.

It's the first time cigarettes have joined the long list of goods stringently checked to ensure they comply with Passover rules on what items are allowed, or kosher for the holiday ? meaning they have not come in contact with grains or other forbidden ingredients.

The stamp of approval came from the Beit Yosef private rabbinic group, which certifies foods as compliant with Jewish dietary restrictions. Last month, Beit Yosef approved three local cigarette brands for smoking during Passover. The chief rabbinate in Israel, however, disapproved of the measure, saying cigarettes are life-threatening and should not be approved by rabbis.

"Poison is not kosher. For all days of the year, not just Passover," said the chief rabbinate's spokesman, Ziv Maor.

But Rabbi Igal Ben Ezra, Beit Yosef's chief supervisor, said the certification was meant for Israeli smokers who only buy products marked as "kosher for Passover" and who might be concerned about buying cigarettes without such a label. It's "mostly for people who have doubts on this subject," said Ben Ezra.

The Jewish holiday of Passover celebrates the biblical Exodus story of the Israelites' escape from slavery in Egypt to the Promised Land. According to tradition, the Israelites were in a rush and had no time to let their bread rise as they fled. To commemorate the hasty Exodus, Jews eat matzo, or flat wheat crackers that symbolize unleavened bread, and refrain from foods containing leavening such as pasta during Passover.

During the holiday, Jewish law forbids chametz ? anything consisting of grains that may have come in contact with water, starting the process of fermentation.

Jews, including many who are not religiously observant the rest of the year, spend weeks ahead of Passover cleaning their homes and belongings to rid them of any morsel of food considered to be chametz.

The week-long Passover diet is in addition to the year-round kosher regulations that ban pork and shellfish, require meat to be ritually slaughtered and forbid the mixing of meat and dairy.

And even though only about 20 percent of Israeli Jews identify themselves as Orthodox, statistics suggest almost everyone attends the traditional Passover meal and most Israeli Jews refrain from eating foods that contain forbidden grains throughout the holiday.

To accommodate them, the Israeli food industry transforms ahead of Passover.

Manufacturers of popular snacks substitute their regular recipes with ingredients approved for Passover. Cows eat corn and alfalfa instead of grain-based hay so that observant Jews can drink their milk because religious practice forbids deriving benefit from an animal that has eaten banned grains. Kosher restaurants, including kosher branches of McDonalds, serve buns made of alternative ingredients, such as potato flour.

Determining what exactly is permitted during Passover has become more complicated in the modern age, as rabbis have pondered what to do with products like pet food and pills. Many industries have adapted and as a result, there are now pet products and medicines that are labeled kosher-for-Passover.

This is the first time, however, that cigarettes in Israel are carrying such a label for the holiday.

Ben Ezra, the Kosher supervisor, said the local cigarette company, Dubek contacted him to help settle the kosher debate.

After an inspection of the company's factory a month ago, he concluded that Noblesse, Time and Golf cigarettes could be deemed kosher for smoking on Passover ? as long as the factory used ingredients that had not come in contact with leavened products. He would not specify those ingredients, saying he was sworn to secrecy.

Ben Ezra said he himself quit smoking eight months ago but used to smoke during Passover even without such a thing as "kosher cigarettes."

Maor, the spokesman for Israel's chief rabbis who oversee kosher supervision of foods, said they do not approve of labeling cigarettes as kosher and permitted for Passover, but were unable to prevent it because they only regulate the food market.

"There are some communities who consider it important that everything they bring home has a kosher stamp on it," said Maor.

Cigarettes have not been alone in the debate over what's kosher for Passover.

In the 1990s, some particularly devout officials asked the national water authority to stop pumping water on Passover from the country's sole freshwater lake, the Sea of Galilee. They were concerned that Jews could break Passover rules by drinking tap water possibly "contaminated" by fishermen who may have thrown grain-based fish food into the lake or picnicking Israelis who may have tossed breadcrumbs into it.

As a result, Israel's water authority began plugging the pipe from the Sea of Galilee three days before Passover and pumping water from underground aquifers and water reservoirs instead ? though most rabbis, even from the strictest streams of ultra-Orthodox Judaism, say this is unnecessary.

"No one feels the difference," said Uri Schor, spokesman of the water authority. "Whenever you open the faucet, you have water."

Hours ahead of Passover, many Israelis were finishing cleaning their homes Monday of every last bread crumb, feverishly cooking and swarming supermarkets to stock up on food for the Seder, the traditional Passover meal.

In Jerusalem, smoke filled the air as some religious Jews burned the last of their bread crumbs while others dunked their plates in large vats of hot water set up around the city, so their dishes would be completely free of bread products.

The airport was busier than usual with travelers taking advantage of the holiday to travel abroad, and local TV stations gave Israelis advice on avoiding traffic jams when driving to their relatives for the Seder.

The military announced a two-day closure on the West Bank to keep Palestinians out of Israel at the start of the holiday, with exemptions for medical emergencies and other humanitarian reasons. The army imposes such security closures during Jewish and Israeli holidays.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/israelis-kosher-cigarettes-passover-144411923.html

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