Obama dials back drone strikes: 3 reasons why

Data collected by the media suggest that US drone strikes are declining. For President Obama, who has founded much of his counterterror strategy on drones, that's a significant development.

By Husna Haq,?Correspondent / May 22, 2013

An protester against US drone strikes in Yemen, who holds a banner with photos of people killed in drone attacks, stands outside the US embassy in Sanaa, Yemen, in April.

Khaled Abdullah/Reuters/File

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How's this for a paradox: US drone strikes are now declining under President Obama ? the man who made drone strikes a primary element of his counterterrorism strategy.

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President Obama has, in some ways, become known as the "drone president." His drone campaign started three days into the first term of his presidency. His national security policy has been defined, at least in part, by a penchant for targeted killings. And he has already authorized more than six times the number of strikes in Pakistan that President George W. Bush did in his entire presidency.

And yet, as the president prepares to make his case for drones in a Thursday address at the National Defense University in Washington, it turns out drone strikes are actually down considerably, according to an analysis in The New York Times.

In Pakistan, drone strikes plummeted nearly 61 percent from 2010 (117 strikes) to 2012 (46 strikes), and they?re still dropping, with a relatively scant 13 strikes so far this year, according to?data from Long War Journal, a website that tracks American drone strikes. In Yemen, strikes are down from 42 in 2012 to 10 in 2013. And in Somalia, no strikes have been reported in more than a year.?

Why the quiet drop-off in drone strikes? Here?s three reasons:

Fewer targets remain

That?s right, the program?s very success in efficiently eliminating scores of Al Qaeda operatives means there are, quite simply, fewer Al Qaeda targets left to kill.

?The [Obama] administration used the drone strikes aggressively and killed the top al Qaeda leaders,? an unnamed intelligence official told Pakistani news site The News International in December 2012. ?Now that we have taken out most of these guys, the usage of the drone strikes seems decreasing.?

In Pakistan, it appears so many Al Qaeda targets have been killed, the focus has quietly shifted to Taliban fighters. Taliban targets account for more than 50 percent of targeted killings, compared with just 8 percent for Al Qaeda figures, according to national security analyst Peter Bergen.

Diplomatic strains

No surprise, Mr. Obama?s drone program has alienated allies abroad, largely because of the number of civilian casualties incurred as a result of the strikes. Nowhere is that more true than in Pakistan, where anti-American sentiments are already high due to US actions such as the SEAL team operation to kill Osama bin Laden. ?

For a president who, upon taking office, vowed to improve relations with the Muslim world, the drone program is counterproductive. A Pew Research Center survey reveals that under Bush 43, a relatively unpopular president in the Muslim world, the US generated higher approval ratings (19 percent) than it does now (12 percent), under Obama.

?Globally these operations are hated,? Micah Zenko, a scholar at the Council on Foreign Relations, told The New York Times. ?It?s the face of American foreign policy, and it?s an ugly face.?

Recruitment

Al Qaeda has used the Obama administration?s drone program, and particularly its sad side effect of civilian casualties, as a central part of its recruitment propaganda. Wildly unpopular in the Muslim world, the strikes are leveraged by Al Qaeda to make a case that the US is at war with Islam and to drum up sympathy for its cause.

The drone program has also been mentioned by convicted terrorists as motivation for their crimes, as the Times points out, including ?underwear bomber? Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab who tried to bomb a Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas Day 2009, as well as Faisal Shahzad, whose attempted Times Square car bombing was foiled in 2010.

In other words, drone strikes may be creating as many would-be terrorists as it seeks to eliminate.?

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/dRh08cHG1Nk/Obama-dials-back-drone-strikes-3-reasons-why

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Foursquare on Android and iOS gets search filters for the extra picky

Foursquare knows that there's a lot more to a night on the town than a good search keyword. Accordingly, it just updated its Android and iOS apps with location search filters that narrow the results based on familiarity and price. At times, the terms can get very specific: if you want to try an expensive Korean barbecue that only your friends have visited so far, you can. While there isn't much more to the update than that, those prone to cravings (or just curiosity) should get their fill at the source links.

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The Daily Roundup for 05.21.2013

You might say the day is never really done in consumer technology news. Your workday, however, hopefully draws to a close at some point. This is the Daily Roundup on Engadget, a quick peek back at the top headlines for the past 24 hours -- all handpicked by the editors here at the site. Click on through the break, and enjoy.

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Goodie Mob Feat. Janelle Mon?e ?Special Education? - Miss Info

It?s a good time to be a Goodie Mob fan right now. After Cee-Lo announced that the group?s long-awaited Age Against the Machine album ? their first since 2004?s One Monkey Don?t Stop No Show ? will release August 27, the legendary Dungeon Family collective serve up a bass-heavy new single, ?Special Education,? featuring Janelle Mon?e. Still standing!

Listen to ?Special Education? after the jump?

(Spotted at HHNM)

Related:
Cee-Lo Green Announces Goodie Mob Album Release Date

Source: http://www.missinfo.tv/index.php/goodie-mob-special-education-feat-janelle-monae/

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Explosions kill 4 in Russia's restive Dagestan

MAKHACHKALA, Russia (AP) ? Two bombs exploded outside a court building in Russia's restive province of Dagestan on Monday, killing at least four people and wounding dozens of others, officials said.

The first bomb exploded in a parked car and the second went off in a trash bin about 15 minutes later after police had arrived on the scene in Makhachakala, the provincial capital, according to Interior Ministry spokesman Vyacheslav Gasanov. He said the second blast, which was much more powerful, caused all of the casualties and many of those killed and wounded were police.

Health officials in Dagestan said about 45 people were taken to various hospitals for treatment. The federal Health Ministry in Moscow later said 35 people were hospitalized.

Investigators said it appeared that both explosions were set off by remote control.

Two separatist wars in Chechnya killed tens of thousands of people and spawned an Islamic insurgency that has engulfed the entire region, mainly neighboring Dagestan.

Deadly attacks on police and other officials occur almost daily.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-05-20-EU-Russia-Caucasus-Violence/id-0f87cdbf1e974b05b7c2ff7d0ba0f2f5

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Hezbollah suffers big losses in Syria battle: activists

By Khaled Yacoub Oweis and Dominic Evans

AMMAN/BEIRUT (Reuters) - About 30 Lebanese Hezbollah fighters and 20 Syrian soldiers and militiamen loyal to President Bashar al-Assad have been killed in the fiercest fighting this year in the rebel stronghold of Qusair, Syrian activists said on Monday.

Sunday's reported death toll was the highest for Hezbollah in a single day's conflict in Syria, highlighting the increasing intervention by the guerrilla group originally set up by Iran in the 1980s to fight Israeli occupation troops in south Lebanon.

If confirmed, the Hezbollah losses also reflect the extent to which Syria is becoming a proxy conflict between Shi'ite Iran and Gulf Arab states such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar, which back Assad's mostly Sunni enemies.

Western countries and Russia, an ally of Damascus, back opposing sides in this regional free-for-all which is also sucking in Israel. Three times this year Israeli planes have bombed presumed Iranian weapons destined for Hezbollah.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country was "preparing for every scenario" in Syria and held out the prospect of more Israeli strikes on Syria to stop Hezbollah and other opponents of Israel obtaining advanced weapons.

Israel has not confirmed or denied reports by Western and Israeli intelligence sources that its raids targeted Iranian missiles stored near Damascus that it believed were awaiting delivery to Hezbollah, which fought a war with Israel in 2006.

FOG OF WAR

Syrian opposition sources and state media gave widely differing accounts of Sunday's ferocious clashes in Qusair, long used by rebels as a supply route from the nearby Lebanese border to the provincial capital Homs.

Hezbollah has not commented but in Lebanon's Bekaa Valley on Monday several funeral processions could be seen. Pictures of dead fighters were plastered on to cars and mourners waved yellow Hezbollah flags.

Several ambulances were seen on the main Bekaa Valley highway and residents said hospitals had appealed for blood to treat the wounded brought back to Lebanon.

The air and tank assault on the strategic town of 30,000 people appeared to be part of a campaign by Assad's forces to consolidate their grip on Damascus and secure links between the capital and government strongholds in the Alawite coastal heartland via the contested central city of Homs.

The government campaign has coincided with efforts by the United States and Russia, despite their differences on Syria, to organize peace talks to end a conflict now in its third year in which more than 80,000 people have been killed.

A total of 100 combatants from both sides were killed in Sunday's offensive, according to opposition sources, including the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Troops have already retaken several villages around Qusair and have attacked increasingly isolated rebel units in Homs.

"If Qusair falls, God forbid, the opposition in Homs city will be in grave danger," said an activist who called himself Abu Jaafar al-Mugharbil.

State news agency SANA said the army had "restored security and stability to most Qusair neighborhoods" and was "chasing the remnants of the terrorists in the northern district".

Syrian television also showed footage of what it said was an Israeli military Jeep which it said the rebels had been using and which showed the extent of their foreign backing. An Israeli military spokeswoman said the vehicle was decommissioned a decade ago and dismissed the footage as "poor propaganda".

Opposition activists said rebels in Qusair, about 10 km (six miles) from the Lebanese border, had pushed back most of the attacking forces to their original positions in the east of the town and to the south on Sunday, destroying at least four Syrian army tanks and five light Hezbollah vehicles.

The Western-backed leadership of the Free Syrian Army, the loose umbrella group trying to oversee hundreds of disparate rebel brigades, said the Qusair fighters had thwarted Hezbollah with military operations it dubbed "Walls of Death".

Syrian government restrictions on access for independent media make it hard to verify such videos and accounts.

"NO DIALOGUE WITH TERRORISTS"

The fighting raged as Western nations are seeking to step up pressure on Assad - Britain and France want the European Union to allow arms deliveries to rebels - while preparing for the peace talks brokered by Russia and the United States next month.

British Foreign Secretary William Hague said "no option is off the table" over the possible arming of rebels if the Syrian government does not negotiate seriously at the proposed talks.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, whose country has shielded Syria from U.N. Security Council action, said Syrian opposition representatives must take part without precondition, apparently referring to their demands for Assad's exit before they come to the table.

Assad has scorned the idea that the conference expected to convene in Geneva could end a war that is fuelling instability and deepening Sunni-Shi'ite rifts across the Middle East.

"They think a political conference will halt terrorists in the country. That is unrealistic," he told the Argentine newspaper Clarin, in a reference to Syria's mainly Sunni rebels.

Assad ruled out "dialogue with terrorists", but it was not clear from his remarks whether he would agree to send delegates to a conference that may in any case falter before it starts due to disagreements between its two main sponsors and their allies.

The fractured Syrian opposition is to discuss the proposed peace conference at a meeting due to start in Istanbul on Thursday, during which it will also appoint a new leadership.

Attacks by troops and militias loyal to Assad, who inherited power in Syria from his father in 2000, have put rebels under pressure in several of their strongholds in recent weeks.

Assad, from Syria's minority Alawite sect, has been battling an uprising which began with peaceful protests in March 2011. His violent response eventually prompted rebels to take up arms.

Hezbollah has supported Assad throughout the crisis but for months denied reports it was fighting alongside Assad's troops.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights put the Hezbollah casualties on Sunday at 28 dead and more than 70 wounded, while 48 rebel fighters and four civilians were also killed.

Tareq Murei, an activist in Qusair, said six more people were killed on Monday as Syrian army artillery and Hezbollah rocket launchers bombarded rebel-held parts of the town.

Video footage purportedly showed a Syrian tank on fire at a street corner in the town. In another video a warplane was shown flying over the town amid the sound of explosions.

Lebanese security sources said at least 12 Hezbollah fighters were killed in Qusair on Sunday. Seven were to be buried in the Lebanese town of Baalbek and nearby villages on Monday, they said.

(Additional reporting by Erika Solomon in Hermel and Dan Williams in Jerusalem; Writing by Dominic Evans,; Editing by Samia Nakhoul, Alistair Lyon and Giles Elgood)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/hezbollah-suffers-big-losses-syria-battle-activists-132000073.html

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Metro-North: Conn. train outage expected for days

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) ? Tens of thousands of commuters are bracing for a difficult trip around southwest Connecticut and to New York City beginning Monday as workers repair the Metro-North commuter rail line crippled by a derailment and crash.

Crews will spend days rebuilding 2,000 feet of track, overhead wires and signals following the collision between two trains Friday evening that injured 72 people, Metro-North President Howard Permut said Sunday. Nine remained hospitalized.

"This amounts to the wholesale reconstruction of a two-track electrified railroad," he said.

Several days of around-the-clock work will be required, including inspections and testing of the newly rebuilt system, Permut said. The damaged rail cars were removed from the tracks on Sunday, the first step toward making the repairs.

Service disruptions on the New Haven line between South Norwalk and New Haven are expected to continue "well into the coming week," Permut said.

Each day, approximately 30,000 Metro-North customers use the stations where service has been shut down, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which operates Metro-North.

Amtrak service between New York and New Haven also was suspended, and there was no estimate on service restoration. Limited service was available between New Haven and Boston.

Jim Cameron, chairman of the Connecticut Rail Commuter Council, said he's asked officials in numerous towns to suspend parking rules to accommodate what could be tens of thousands of motorists driving to unaffected train stations. Twelve stations are affected by the shutdown.

Starting with the Monday morning rush-hour, a shuttle train will operate about every 20 minutes between New Haven and Bridgeport and two shuttle buses will run between Bridgeport and Stamford stations, state transportation officials said.

For morning and evening peak commutes, limited train service will operate between Grand Central Terminal and Westport.

State officials say travel times will be significantly longer than normal and trains will be crowded. Commuters are advised to use the Harlem line in New York.

Cameron said he doubts many commuters will use three modes of transportation to get to work: driving their cars to catch a bus to get to a train station for the final leg.

Commuters will more likely rely on their cars, leading to massive traffic problems on highways that are already clogged on normal days, Cameron said. He suggested that local and regional officials post highway signs directing motorists to available parking so motorists "don't get off the highway and drive in circles looking for where to dump their cars."

About 700 people were on board the trains Friday evening when one heading east from New York City's Grand Central Terminal to New Haven derailed just outside Bridgeport. It was hit by a train heading west from New Haven.

Dan Solomon, a trauma surgeon who lives in Westport and was headed to work at Yale-New Haven Hospital in New Haven, was on the train that derailed. He said he treated several injured passengers, including a woman with severely broken ankles.

He said he was in a front car that was not as badly affected as cars in the rear of the train.

"I hardly lost my iced tea," Solomon said in an interview.

He said walls were torn off both trains and he quickly checked injured passengers to separate the most badly injured from others.

"When the EMS arrived, I was covered in everyone's blood," he said.

Investigators are looking at a broken section of rail to see if it is connected to the derailment and collision.

NTSB investigators arrived Saturday and are expected to be on site for seven to 10 days. They will look at the brakes and performance of the trains, the condition of the tracks, crew performance and train signal information, among other things.

The MTA operates the Metro-North Railroad, the second-largest commuter railroad in the nation. The Metro-North main lines ? the Hudson, Harlem, and New Haven ? run northward from New York City's Grand Central Terminal into suburban New York and Connecticut.

The last significant train collision involving Metro-North occurred in 1988 when a train engineer was killed in Mount Vernon, N.Y., when one train empty of passengers rear-ended another, railroad officials said.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/metro-north-conn-train-outage-expected-days-164538940.html

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Yahoo buying Tumblr for $1.1 billion, vows not to screw it up

(Reuters) - Yahoo Inc said it is acquiring blogging service Tumblr for $1.1 billion cash, a bold bet by Chief Executive Marissa Mayer to revitalize the struggling Internet pioneer by co-opting a Web property with strong visitor traffic but little revenue.

The deal, which will use about a fifth of Yahoo's $5.4 billion in cash and marketable securities, is the largest by far since Mayer took the reins in July seeking to reverse a multi-year decline in Yahoo's business and Web traffic.

"Per the agreement and our promise not to screw it up, Tumblr will be independently operated as a separate business," Yahoo said in a statement on Monday.

Tumblr is one of the Web's most popular hubs of so-called user-generated content. The deal will provide Yahoo with a much-needed platform in social media to reach a younger generation of users less tied to Yahoo's traditional Web portal and email services.

Analysts, contacted after the deal was reported on Sunday by the online publication All Things D, said Yahoo was paying a hefty premium. Media reports have pegged Tumblr's 2012 revenue at $13 million. The privately held company, based in Manhattan, does not disclose its financial results.

"Even if revenue was $100 million, it means Yahoo paid 10 times revenue," said BGC Financial analyst Colin Gillis. "Ten times is what you pay to date the belle of the ball. It's on the outer bands of M&A."

Yahoo could quickly boost Tumblr's revenue by combining the website with its own sales force, said Pivotal Research Group analyst Brian Wieser. But loading Tumblr up with banner ads risks alienating its users and probably wouldn't provide a significant lift to Yahoo's overall revenue, he said.

"It's not clear that this deal will be favorable from a return-on-capital perspective," Wieser said. "One billion (dollars) for one company is a big bet."

Shares of Yahoo fell 1.4 percent in premarket trade. They closed on Friday at $26.52.

Yahoo remains one of the Web's most popular destinations, with hundreds of millions of monthly users, but the company has seen its revenue shrink in recent years as consumers and advertisers favor rivals such as Google Inc and Facebook Inc.

Yahoo said the acquisition is expected to increase its audience by 50 percent to more than a billion monthly visitors.

David Karp, who founded Tumblr in 2007, will remain CEO.

(Reporting By Alexei Oreskovic; Writing by Ben Berkowitz; Editing by Gerald E. McCormick and John Wallace)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/yahoos-board-approves-1-1-billion-tumblr-acquisition-103611211.html

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Official: Va. driver likely had medical condition

Emergency personnel respond to one of the people hit by a car, at right, during the beginning of the Hikers Parade at the Trail Days festival in Damascus, Va., Saturday, May 18, 2013. Witnesses said the car drove into a crowd at the parade and hurt several people, but the nature of their injuries wasn't immediately known. (AP Photo/Bristol Herald Courier, Earl Neikirk)

Emergency personnel respond to one of the people hit by a car, at right, during the beginning of the Hikers Parade at the Trail Days festival in Damascus, Va., Saturday, May 18, 2013. Witnesses said the car drove into a crowd at the parade and hurt several people, but the nature of their injuries wasn't immediately known. (AP Photo/Bristol Herald Courier, Earl Neikirk)

Hiker "Quinoa" talks about being given credit for saving the lives of Carson Balckburn, Dalton Thomason, and Faith Ritchie after he ran them and others off the road with a water gun during a festival parade in Damascus, Va., Saturday, May 18, 2013. Just as the children ran off the street, a car came down the road and struck several people. (AP Photo/Bristol Herald Courier, Earl Neikirk)

People attend to a victim who was hit by a car during the Hikers Parade at the Trail Days festival in Damascus, Va., Saturday, May 18, 2013. Witnesses said the car drove into a crowd at the parade and hurt several people, but the nature of their injuries wasn't immediately known. (AP Photo/Republican-American, Bill O'Brien)

People attend to a victim who was hit by a car during the Hikers Parade at the Trail Days festival in Damascus, Va., Saturday, May 18, 2013. Witnesses said the car drove into a crowd at the parade and hurt several people, but the nature of their injuries wasn't immediately known. (AP Photo/Republican-American, Bill O'Brien)

DAMASCUS, Va. (AP) ? Authorities believe the driver who plowed into dozens of hikers marching in a Virginia mountain town parade suffered from a medical condition and did not cause the crash intentionally, an emergency official said Sunday.

Officials did not have a formal confirmation or any specifics on the condition, but based on the accounts of authorities and witnesses on the scene, they are confident the issue was medical, according to Pokey Harris, Washington County's director of emergency management. "There is no reason to believe this was intentional," she said.

In what witnesses called a frantic scene at the parade, about 50 to 60 people suffered injuries ranging from critical to superficial Saturday. No fatalities were reported. Three of the worst injured were flown by helicopter to area hospitals.

Two people were kept at hospitals overnight, but their injuries were not critical as of Sunday, Harris said. "For the most part, everyone was treated and released," she said.

The crash happened around 2:10 p.m. Saturday during the Hikers Parade at the Trail Days festival, an annual celebration of the Appalachian Trail in Damascus, near the Tennessee state line about a half-hour drive east of Bristol.

Damascus Police Chief Bill Nunley didn't release the driver's name or age but said he was participating in the parade and he had traversed the Appalachian Trail in the past. Several witnesses described him as an elderly man.

Nunley said the man's 1997 Cadillac was one of the last vehicles in the parade and the driver might have suffered an unspecified medical problem when his car accelerated to about 25 mph and struck the crowd on a two-lane bridge along the town's main road. The driver was among those taken to hospitals.

"It is under investigation, and charges may be placed," Nunley said Saturday.

On Sunday, festival events were continuing as scheduled, Harris said. Mayor Jack McCrady had encouraged people to attend the final day.

"In 27 years of this, we've never had anything of this magnitude, and is it our job to make sure it doesn't happen again," he said.

Harris said that the incident left a "sad heart and black cloud" over the event and that people were proceeding with "heightened awareness." But she emphasized the crash was an accident and said no additional security measures were taken.

On Saturday, Rudolph "Chip" Cenci, 64, of Minoa, N.Y., told The News-Item newspaper in Shamokin, Pa., that he heard people yelling "get out of the way" and turned around to find the car was about to hit him. He jumped onto the hood and held onto the gap at the base of the windshield near the wipers. He said the driver had a blank stare on his face.

"I bet you that man never realized someone was on his hood," Cenci said.

Cenci said he had a bump on his knee but was otherwise OK. He added that his wife, Susan, 63, narrowly missed being hit.

Amanda Puckett, who was watching the parade with her children, ran to the car, where she and others lifted the car off those pinned underneath.

"Everybody just threw our hands up on the car and we just lifted the car up," she said.

Keith Neumann, a hiker from South Carolina, said he was part of the group that scrambled around the car. They pushed the car backward to free a woman trapped underneath and lifted it off the ground to make sure no one else was trapped.

"There's no single heroes," he said. "We're talking about a group effort of everybody jumping in."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-05-19-US-Virginia-Parade-Crash/id-e773663bb06d4b30907db3a223ee0bb1

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Obama talks about jobs, skills and opportunity (Washington Bureau)

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Russia's Karjakin wins Norway chess tournament

STAVANGER, Norway (AP) ? Russia's Sergey Karjakin won the ?100,000 ($130,000) Norway chess championship on Saturday after drawing against Veselin Topalov of Bulgaria.

Karjakin needed only a draw against Topalov to take the top prize after the world No. 1 player Magnus Carlsen failed to win against Levon Aronian from Armenia, ranked No. 2.

Karjakin led the nine-day tournament from the beginning, winning his first four games and starting the day on 5.5 points, half a point ahead of Carlsen. He took over five hours to secure the draw.

Playing white, Karjakin handed an early initiative to his opponent with a passive bishop move to e3, giving Topalov hope of a first victory in this tournament.

"I got into a bad position, but I knew if I could get a draw I was in with a good chance of winning," Karjakin said. "O.K. I didn't play very well here today, but I thought that I would still have huge chances for first place."

There had been high hopes for Carlsen, playing on home ground, but the 22-year-old Norwegian said he had not played his best chess since the event began here on May 7.

"I think my play was a little off. In general, the positions I got from white openings weren't that bad. I just made some mistakes later on," Calsen said. "Karjakin deserves to win."

Carlsen faces India's five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand in November in the holder's home town of Chennai.

The pair met earlier in the tournament, neither securing a victory which would have handed one of them the psychological advantage going into the final few months of their preparation.

The Norway tournament attracted eight of the world's top 10 players.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/russias-karjakin-wins-norway-chess-tournament-185426958.html

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Assad Says He Will Not Step Down (Voice Of America)

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Apple iTunes 11.0.3

Apple's iTunes has long been an unparalleled source and player of music and video. The application had remained largely the same for over two years until the arrival of iTunes 11 (free), which marked a major rebuilding in features, interface, and underlying code. Not only does the iTunes 11 player have a clean new look and improved features, but so does the embedded iTunes Store. A big thrust of iTunes 11 is the inclusion of more iCloud features, jibing with Apple's iOS-and-Mac cloud syncing service. The latest minor update brings improvements to the recently redesigned and more powerful mini-player and a couple of other tweaks.

Here's what Apple has to say about what's new in the iTunes 11.0.3 update:

• New MiniPlayer.?MiniPlayer now includes a beautiful new view that showcases your album artwork. In addition, a progress bar is now built right into MiniPlayer.
• Improved Songs View.?You can now enjoy your album artwork while?in Songs view.
• Multi-Disc Albums.?Albums with multiple discs now appear as a single album.

Hardly as earth-shattering as some recent updates, but desirable stuff nevertheless. Let's take a look at these along with all the other music and video goodness Apple's player and store has to offer.

iTunes still has all those extras we've gotten used to over the years, including iTunes U, podcast playing, Genius, Home Sharing, the equalizer, the visualizer, a book store, and movie and TV show rentals as well as purchases. Another recent minor update adds something classical and jazz fans have been waiting for forever: a Composers View. One thing iTunes no longer shows any sign of is Apple's ill-fated music social network, Ping.

Installing
You can get iTunes for Windows XP, Vista, Windows 7, or Windows 8 in addition to Macintosh OS X version 10.6.8 or later. I tested the new iTunes on both Windows and Mac OS X. It's an 83MB download for Windows?slightly larger than version 10, which was already on the portly side. By comparison, Windows Media Player weighs in at just 12MB, and WinAmp is 11MB. (The Mac installer for iTunes is even larger, at 198MB.) The installer makes iTunes your default player for music files, but you can uncheck the box for this if you prefer an alternative like Windows Media Player or WinAmp. I had to close Outlook for some reason for the installation to proceed.

On first run of the updated app, after agreeing to the updated license agreement, I was offered tutorial videos explaining new features. A privacy option asked me to share details with Apple so it could display album covers and even artist photos from concerts and studio sessions. This choice also enables iTunes' new store recommendations, since poor old Apple really needs you to buy more and more content.

Interface
The interface seems even more trimmed down and muted than before, if that's possible?and it looks great. Even the standard app menu is gone in the Windows version (not Mac though), replacing it with a square icon in the extreme top left. (You can re-enable it if you like from the newfangled menu, however.) The AirPlay button is still there, so you can throw whatever you're playing to a home entertainment system attached to an Apple TV or one that supports AirPlay natively. You also get basic play/pause, fast-forward, and reverse controls, as well as a volume slider, and a search box along the top of the program window.

The left-hand sidebar is gone, but you won't miss it at all. Switching among Music, Movies, TV Shows is faster than before using the button at top left. It drops down choices for these media types. To get the new Classical choice in the Music view, you'll have to go into the Preferences dialog's Views section, and tick the first option, Composers. Switching between your library and the iTunes Store is no done using a button on the right. Next to the dropdown is a cloud icon for iCloud that's merely an indicator of whether iCloud is connected or actively downloading.

Clicking on an album drops down a panel the full width of the program window showing tracks, timings, album art, and play options (shuffle, repeat, and so on). You can also add album tracks to any play list or to Up Next (see next section) from here. In a slick design touch, the color of this panel is based on the album cover, so each will usually have a different shade. A button in this tinted area also lets you see related music available on the iTunes Store.

Up Next
A key new feature in iTunes 11 is Up Next. Accessible from a bullet-list icon next to the top-center song information area, it shows you a list of songs are on deck to be played. You can move or remove upcoming songs with the cursor. A clock icon takes you in the other direction chronologically, showing the list of songs you've already listened to. A new context menu next to song entries includes choices for Add to Up Next, as well as simply Play Next, and adding to playlists. Unfortunately, the Play Next and history lists didn't work for Internet radio stations such as SomaFm in my testing.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/U9po12iTxl4/0,2817,2368917,00.asp

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Foot Care: How to Prevent and Heal Cracked Heel | Healthy Living ...

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Walking barefoot may be liberating but it can cause cracked heels. Whether it is at home or outdoors, walking barefoot or in chappals or flip flops can cause fissures around the heel. If you feel that your skin around the heel is hardening, then here?s what you need to know on what causes cracked heels, how to prevent it and remedies to cure it.

Causes of cracked heels:

In summer, we tend to walk around barefoot at home or the beach, which makes your skin prone to dry air. This causes callus which leads to fissures or cracked heel. If you continue to engage in activities without any precautions and remedies, the cracks will widen and grow deeper. Lack of care can be painful and can lead to bleeding and infection. Inactive sweat glands are also one of the reasons for causing cracked heel.

How to prevent and cure cracked heels:

1) Moisturise your feet regularly so that they remain soft and avoid a build up of dry skin.

2) Before you hit the bed, moisturise your feet and put on a pair of socks to nourish the skin on your feet.

3) You can also scrub off the dry skin with pumice, but gently. This will decrease the occurrence of dead cells and dry skin and reduce the thickness of the dry skin around the heel.

4) Choose a good pair shoes:
- Avoid thin soles
- Avoid open back shoes
- Avoid walking barefoot

5) Maintain the hygiene of your feet at all times to prevent infection.

6) Do not walk in an open pair of shoes if you have cracked heels. Also wear socks to avoid infection.

7) Drink water to keep your skin hydrated.

Prevent cracked heels before it is too late. Timely measure is the way to prevent cracked heels. Moisturising, scrubbing and a proper pair of shoes can help you maintain the hygiene of your feet.

Reference:

Foot.com

*Images courtesy: ? Thinkstock photos/ Getty Images

?

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Tim McGraw recasts ACM's TV special, airing Sunday

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) ? When the producers of the Academy of Country Music's annual television special approached Tim McGraw about the 2013 edition, the country music star immediately flashed on the program's format.

"They were tribute shows and I certainly didn't want anything to do with that," the 46-year-old McGraw said with a laugh. "I wasn't ready for that yet."

Instead, McGraw decided to take the show in a new direction, recasting it as a summer tour preview for fans. "ACM Presents: Tim McGraw's Superstar Summer Night," taped one day after the ACM Awards last month in Las Vegas, will air Sunday on CBS (9 p.m. EDT).

McGraw invited top country stars like his wife, Faith Hill, Taylor Swift, Lady Antebellum, Keith Urban, Jason Aldean, Luke Bryan and The Band Perry to perform, but said he was most excited by appearances from pop- and rock-world acts like Ne-Yo, Pitbull and John Fogerty.

"There were a lot of great country artists there, but I see those guys all the time," he joked.

McGraw serves as host, sings some of his own songs and joins his fellow artists for others. Most of the invited stars perform one of their own songs during the show.

He and Ne-Yo team up on "She Is." McGraw joins Pitbull on "Felt Good on My Lips," and he teams up with Swift and Urban on "Highway Don't Care."

The moment that really sticks with him, though, was joining Fogerty, Aldean, Urban and Bryan for Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Born on the Bayou."

"We were completely floored when he opened his mouth and started singing," McGraw said of Fogerty. "We're all Fogerty fans, CCR fans, all the stuff that he did that was fantastic. But when he started playing guitar and started singing 'Born on the Bayou' in that voice ? I think he's in his mid-60s, if I'm not mistaken. He can flat ... sing. We just sort of stepped back and looked at each other and said, 'Are you kidding me?'"

___

Online:

http://timmcgraw.com

http://www.acmcountry.com/

___

Follow AP Music Writer Chris Talbott: http://twitter.com/Chris_Talbott .

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2013-05-17-Music-Tim%20McGraw/id-10d7ebca1b5a41f28be489501dddd15e

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Today in business: 5 things you need to know

1. WALMART EARNINGS MISS THE MARK
Walmart announced revenue of $114.2 billion for the first quarter, missing analysts' expectations of $116.3 billion. Same-store sales fell 1.4 percent, and visits dropped 1.8 percent, while shares rose?4.6 percent to $1.14 per share, a penny below expectations. Walmart blamed the weaker-than-expected numbers on "challenging weather conditions," the payroll tax increase, and late tax refunds. [New York Times]

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2. DISH RAISES $2.6 BILLION FOR SPRINT DEAL
To back a $25.5 billion takeover bid for Sprint Nextel, Dish raised $2.6 billion selling junk bonds Wednesday, accounting for roughly one-fourth of the $9 billion Dish plans to borrow for the purchase. The move was somewhat unusual. While many companies raise money for a takeover before the deal is done, they usually have at least a tentative agreement and financing plan with the takeover target before they sell securities ? something Dish didn't do.?[Wall Street Journal]

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3. AIRLINES BANK $6 BILLION ON RESERVATION CHANGE AND BAGGAGE FEES
United States' airlines raked in $6 billion in reservation change and baggage fees, the highest since the add-ons became popular five years ago. The 15 largest airlines collected a combined $3.5 billion in bag fees in 2012, up 3.8 percent from 2011, and reservation change fees reached $2.6 billion, up 7.3 percent. Airlines made $159.5 billion in revenue last year, against expenses of $153.6 billion. That means that 3.7 profit margin came entirely from the two fees. [CBC]

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4. BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY DOWNGRADED TO AA
Standard & Poors downgraded Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway's overall rating one click, to AA, on Thursday, while keeping its insurance financial strength rating at AA+. The reason, according to S&P: Over-reliance on the company's insurance, which generates the majority of dividends. [MarketWatch]

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5. OBAMA RELEASES FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
President Obama and Vice President Biden released financial statements for last year, meaning they filled out an eight-page form about their wealth that asked questions in ranges. For example, Obama checked the box saying his total assets are between $1.8 million to nearly $7 million for the year 2012, while Biden checked the one that said $120,000 to $550,000. The Obamas' only liability is the $500,001 to $1 million mortgage on their home in Chicago. [USA Today]

Source: http://theweek.com/article/index/244329/today-in-business-5-things-you-need-to-know

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Beckham to retire, ending riveting soccer journey

FILE - In this Jan. 19, 2012 file photo, Los Angeles Galaxy's David Beckham fixes his tie during a news conference in Los Angeles. Beckham says he is retiring from soccer at the end of the season. The 38-year-old Beckham recently won a league title in a fourth country with Paris Saint-Germain. He has become a global superstar since starting his career at Manchester United. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

FILE - In this Jan. 19, 2012 file photo, Los Angeles Galaxy's David Beckham fixes his tie during a news conference in Los Angeles. Beckham says he is retiring from soccer at the end of the season. The 38-year-old Beckham recently won a league title in a fourth country with Paris Saint-Germain. He has become a global superstar since starting his career at Manchester United. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

FILE - In this June 2, 2012 file photo, England's David Beckham gestures during a ceremony to honor the five players that have played for England over 100 times each during the international friendly soccer match between England and Belgium at Wembley Stadium in London. Beckham says he is retiring from soccer at the end of the season. The 38-year-old Beckham recently won a league title in a fourth country with Paris Saint-Germain. He has become a global superstar since starting his career at Manchester United.(AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)

FILE - In this June 25, 2006 file photo, England's David Beckham celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the Round of 16 World Cup soccer match against Ecuador in Stuttgart, Germany. Beckham says he is retiring from soccer at the end of the season. The 38-year-old Beckham recently won a league title in a fourth country with Paris Saint-Germain. He has become a global superstar since starting his career at Manchester United. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham, FIle)

FILE - This is a May 25, 1999 file photo of Manchester United's midfielder David Beckham holding the winner's cup, after his side defeated Bayern Munich in their Champions League final football match, at the Nou Camp stadium. David Beckham is retiring from soccer after the season, ending a career in which he become a global superstar since starting his career at Manchester United. The 38-year-old Englishman recently won a league title in a fourth country with Paris Saint-Germain. He said in a statement Thursday May 16, 2013 he is "thankful to PSG for giving me the opportunity to continue but I feel now is the right time to finish my career, playing at the highest level." (AP Photo/Phil Noble/PA, File) UNITED KINGDOM OUT

FILE - This is a Sunday, Jan. 15, 2006 file photo of Real Madrid's David Beckham, left, as he congratulates goalscorer Zinedine Zidane during their Spanish league soccer match against Sevilla at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium in Madrid, Spain. David Beckham is retiring from soccer after the season, ending a career in which he become a global superstar since starting his career at Manchester United. The 38-year-old Englishman recently won a league title in a fourth country with Paris Saint-Germain. He said in a statement Thursday May 16, 2013 he is "thankful to PSG for giving me the opportunity to continue but I feel now is the right time to finish my career, playing at the highest level." (AP Photo/Bernat Armangue, File)

LONDON (AP) ? David Beckham is retiring from soccer, ending a career in which he transcended the sport with forays into fashion and a marriage to a pop star that made him a global celebrity.

The 38-year-old former England captain, who recently won a league title in a fourth country with Paris Saint-Germain, said Thursday he will quit after the season.

"It's a good way to go out," Beckham said in Paris. "It's every athlete's dream, every footballer's dream to go out on the top ? on top form or winning a trophy ... leaving as a champion."

Beckham, whose curling free kicks and pinpoint crosses became his signature as a player, has two more matches left at PSG ? against Brest on Saturday and at Lorient on May 26. He has been giving his salary to a children's charity.

Asked what led to his decision, Beckham replied with a laugh: "Probably when (Lionel) Messi was running past me in that home game," referring to PSG's Champions League match against Barcelona last month.

Beckham started his career with Manchester United and also played for Real Madrid and the Los Angeles Galaxy, winning titles with all those clubs. He played on loan with AC Milan and made 115 appearance for his country, a record in England for someone other than a goalkeeper.

FIFA President Sepp Blatter described the midfielder as "one of the most iconic figures in global football."

"It's the end of a chapter of an amazing story," Blatter wrote on Twitter. "David grew up as a football loving child & achieved his dreams, and unquestionably inspired millions of boys & girls to try & do the same.

"Whatever he chooses to do next I'm sure he'll approach with the same dedication & good grace he displayed the last 21 years."

Beckham's fame went beyond the field, with his haircuts and clothing scrutinized as often as his play, earning him a string of lucrative sponsorship deals.

"Sometimes that has overshadowed what I have done on the pitch or what I have achieved on the pitch," Beckham said in a television interview conducted by former United teammate Gary Neville. "And as much as I say that doesn't hurt me, of course it does.

"I am a footballer that has played for some of the biggest clubs in the world and played with some of the best players in the world, played under some of the biggest and best managers and achieved almost everything in football."

Beckham was immortalized with the 2002 movie "Bend it Like Beckham," which told the story of a British teenage girl of south Asian heritage struggling with family pressures and cultural expectations to play the sport she loves. Beckham's retirement led to a flood of tweets dubbing the day "End it Like Beckham."

"If you had told me as a young boy I would have played for and won trophies with my boyhood club Manchester United, proudly captained and played for my country over one hundred times and lined up for some of the biggest clubs in the world, I would have told you it was a fantasy," Beckham said. "I'm fortunate to have realized those dreams."

It was his appearances with England's national team that raised his profile internationally.

"To this day, one of my proudest achievements is captaining my country," Beckham said. "I knew every time I wore the Three Lions shirt, I was not only following in a long line of great players, I was also representing every fan that cared passionately about their country. I'm honored to represent England both on and off the pitch."

Beckham is now living in London with wife Victoria, a former "Spice Girls" singer, and their four children.

"I wouldn't have achieved what I have done today without my family. I'm grateful for my parents' sacrifice, which made me realize my dreams," he said. "I owe everything to Victoria and the kids, who have given me the inspiration and support to play at the highest level for such a long period."

Victoria Beckham said the couple is "excited about the next chapter in our lives."

"The children and I are so proud of David. It's been an incredible journey for us all as we have watched him play at clubs all over the world throughout the last 15 years," she said.

"Myself and the children have cheered him from the stands, as he has held high trophies ... this was not an easy decision to make, and to me and the children he will always be an amazing sportsman and a devoted husband and father."

With United between 1992 and 2003, Beckham won six Premier League titles, the Champions League, two FA Cups and the Intercontinental Cup.

Beckham left United in 2003 shortly after manager Alex Ferguson accidentally struck Beckham's eye with a soccer boot. Ferguson announced his retirement from Manchester United last week.

Beckham spent four years in Madrid ? winning the 2007 Spanish title before making the surprise move to Major League Soccer, where he won the title twice.

"I just want people to see me as a hardworking footballer," Beckham said. "Someone who is passionate about the game, somebody who every time I have stepped on the pitch I have given everything that I have."

There were highs and lows in Beckham's international career. He was blamed for England's elimination from the 1998 World Cup for his red card against Argentina, but scored the winning goal against the same team at the World Cup four years later.

Beckham responded to jeering at the 2000 European Championship with an obscene hand gesture to England fans, but was lauded by the same supporters little more than a year later when his last-minute free kick against Greece secured a place at the 2002 World Cup.

England dropped Beckham in 2006 in an effort to renew the team with younger players after a quarterfinal exit at that year's World Cup. England coach Steve McClaren recalled him the following year after a poor run of form, and he returned for the remainder of England's unsuccessful attempt to qualify for the 2008 European Championship.

His last England appearance came against Belarus in October 2009, and he missed the 2010 World Cup because of an Achilles tendon injury. He still went to South Africa as part of Fabio Capello's staff.

"I want to thank all my teammates, the great managers that I had the pleasure of learning from," Beckham said. "I also want to thank the fans who have all supported me and given me the strength to succeed."

Beckham had already started planning for his post-playing career earlier in the season, becoming an ambassador for Chinese soccer.

"Nothing will ever completely replace playing the game I love, however I feel like I'm starting a new adventure and I'm genuinely excited about what lies ahead," Beckham said. "I'm fortunate to have been given many opportunities throughout my career and now I feel it's my time to give back."

Beckham played a key role in helping London win the bid to host the 2012 Olympics. He also was involved in England's unsuccessful bid to host the 2018 World Cup, and the English Football Association wants to draw on his influence and star power in the future.

"He is an iconic figure in the game and produced wonderful performances for his clubs, particularly Manchester United," FA chairman David Bernstein said. "When you look at his playing and work for England, no one would ever accuse him of being unpatriotic and not giving everything for his country.

"He is a real loss to the game and I am sure the FA will want to embrace him and to get him closely associated with the organization."

Beckham's retirement comes a week after the 71-year-old Ferguson ended his managerial career.

"In the week following Sir Alex Ferguson retiring, which came as a bit of a shock, now we have the iconic David Beckham coming out of the game," Bernstein said.

___

Rob Harris can be reached at http://twitter.com/RobHarris

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2013-05-16-Beckham%20Retires/id-68a658596996405280a05e42ee091885

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Redcar student guilty in computer games case - Local News - News ...

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What Kind of Wallet Do You Carry? Sleek and Slim or Over-Stuffed?

Zippo, a brand long associated with smokers and arsonists, has now decided to use its expertise in stainless steel to help those burdened with a giant Costanza wallet as it's come to be known. The company's new wallet is just under half an-inch thick, and its stainless steel housing will help block wireless signals if you're worried about ID theft.

Read more...

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/cScEK7qu0v8/what-kind-of-wallet-do-you-carry-sleek-and-slim-or-ove-507654354

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Give tax-smart gifts to charity ? Business Management Daily: Free ...

Now that charitable deductions are being reduced for upper-income taxpayers by the new American Taxpayer Relief Act (ATRA), you may be pickier about giving to charity. There?s a way you can make your donations count while keeping the maximum tax benefits allowed under law.

Strategy: Set up a donor-advised fund. As the name implies, you?as the donor?do more than just put up the cash. You?re also able to dole out the money as you see fit.

According to the National Philanthropic Trust, donor advised funds are the fastest-growing? charitable vehicle in the United States with an estimated $43 billion in assets at the end of 2012.

Here?s the whole story: With a donor-advised fund, you generally donate a lump sum to a branch of a financial institution, which manages the fund. In return, you can claim a current charitable deduction. Then you designate those charities you deem to be worthy of your generosity. Although the fund legally controls the money, you essentially decide who gets what, when, where and how.

Typically, the fund will require an up-front gift of at least $5,000, although the minimum may be as high as $25,000. It will also charge a fee?typically equal to 0.5% to 1% of the assets?to pay for administration and investment.

All the usual rules for charitable donations still apply. For instance, if you donate property that you?ve held longer than one year, you can generally deduct the fair market value of the property, rather than its initial cost.

Fly in the ointment: ATRA has reinstated the ?Pease rule,? beginning in 2013. Under the Pease rule (named for the Congressman who initially championed it), the most common itemized deductions?including deductions for charitable donations (as well as mortgage interest, and state and local income and property taxes)?are reduced by 3% of the taxpayer?s excess adjusted gross income (AGI) over the applicable threshold of $250,000 for single filers or $300,000 for joint filers. However, affected deductions cannot be reduced by more than 80% under this rule.

Suppose you?re a joint filer with an AGI of $400,000 in 2013. If you?re entitled to a charitable deduction and other affected itemized deductions that total $50,000 this year, your deductions will be reduced to $47,000 [$50,000 ? (3% of $100,000)]. That?s a factor to consider for all charitable gifts.

Also, be aware that you?re not allowed to benefit from your own donations in any way. For example, you can?t authorize a fund to pay for tickets to a charity?s fundraising event. Nor can the money be used to contribute to a political party or candidate. There are hundreds of sponsors of donor-advised funds across the country. The list includes financial giants such as Fidelity, Charles Schwab and Vanguard, as well as organizations that specialize in this area, like the National Philanthropic Trust.

Tip: Before you choose a sponsor, review its policies regarding grant recommendations, minimum contributions, investment options, donor services and fees.

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