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oldnews2011

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Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu described the situation in the Middle East as "moving backward" on Wednesday, recalling a Knesset speech earlier this year when he predicted the Arab Spring would result in an anti-American, anti-Israel, anti-democratic Islamist wave. Netanyahu says Israel must be careful giving up land because it is impossible to know who will control it next; addressing new laws, says "democracy will be healthier, stronger" when we're done. That moving reality, the prime minister said, is why he didn't heed calls to rush into a peace agreement with the Palestinians amid the Arab Spring, explaining that it is impossible to know who will eventually control any territory given up by Israel. "We want a peace treaty with the Palestinians that will stand the test of time and won't just crash immediately after it is signed," he explained. "We must design our own reality." Addressing the opposition, he quipped, "If you don't see it, your head is in the sand." But the prime minister also said that Israel must maintain its relations with the only two neighbors it has peace with - Egypt and Jordan. "It is important to keep peace with a stable Egypt," he said.
"We will also continue to act to strengthen Jordan," Netanyahu told the Knesset plenum. "We have an interest in our neighbor remaining strong and independent."
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Statement today from Jack Layton's wife and two children: "We deeply regret to inform you that The Honourable Jack Layton, leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada, passed away at 4:45 am today, Monday August 22. He passed away peacefully at his home surrounded by family and loved ones. Details of Mr. Layton’s funeral arrangements will be forthcoming." In a statement from Jack Layton's wife and two children: "We deeply regret to inform you that The Honourable Jack Layton, leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada, passed away at 4:45 am today, Monday August 22. He passed away peacefully at his home surrounded by family and loved ones."
Over his political career, Layton evolved from campus activist to rabble-rousing left-wing municipal councillor to the most electorally successful leader of the federal New Democrats in history, leading the party to a record 103 seats in the May election. Over his political career, Layton evolved from campus activist to rabble-rousing left-wing municipal councillor to the most electorally successful leader of the federal New Democrats in history, leading the party to a record 103 seats in the May election.

Jack Layton lying-in-state in the foyer of the House of CommonsJack Layton in state LIVE11:059:59  Olivia Chow struggled to keep her composure as dozens of cameras whirred. She was joined by Layton’s family and Prime Minister Stephen Harper.    to all Canadians: Canada is a great country, one of the hopes of the world. We can be a better one – a country of greater equality, justice, and opportunity. We can build a prosperous economy and a society that shares its benefits more fairly. We can look after our seniors. We can offer better futures for our children. We can do our part to save the world’s environment. We can restore our good name in the world. We can do all of these things because we finally have a party system at the national level where there are real choices; where your vote matters; where working for change can actually bring about change. In the months and years to come, New Democrats will put a compelling new alternative to you. My colleagues in our party are an impressive, committed team. Give them a careful hearing; consider the alternatives; and consider that we can be a better, fairer, more equal country by working together. Don’t let them tell you it can’t be done.   My friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic. And we’ll change the world.      All my very best, Jack Layton

 

Former Prime Minister Paul Martin (right to left) sits next to Conservative Leader Stephen Harper, Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe and NDP Leader Jack Layton days before the opposition parties brought down the government in 2005. Layton sits with wife Olivia Chow, NDP Member of Parliament for the federal riding of Trinity-Spadina, inside their Toronto home on May 10, 2011. Layton sits with wife Olivia Chow, NDP Member of Parliament for the federal riding of Trinity-Spadina, inside their Toronto home on May 10, 2011.Former Prime Minister Paul Martin (right to left) sits next to Conservative Leader Stephen Harper, Bloc Quebecois Leader Gilles Duceppe and NDP Leader Jack Layton days before the opposition parties brought down the government in 2005.
FINALLY SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL TO SHARE...
Filipino Fiesta is here... The culinary and cultural delights of Philippines are yours for taking as the 2nd annual Filipino Fiesta comes to town at the Garden Square, Sunday, June 12.
The fiesta–to commemorate the 113th anniversary of the Philippine Independence –will be held from 12 noon to 9 p.m. Last year, the event attracted some to 1,800 people and 200 performers including some from the home country. “This year, the Federation promises to exceed last year's success,” said Rodriguez. “The full-day of family fun will start with a ceremonial parade, followed by opening ceremonies and feature seven hours of non-stop entertainment.” Some half-a-dozen food vendors will sell traditional delicacies such as: pancit, noodles cooked in a mixture of cabbage, chicken, shrimp and Chinese sausage, pork barbecue comprising of succulent pieces of pork marinated with soy sauce, garlic, vinegar and grilled over charcoal. Additionally, 25 vendors selling arts, artifacts and other traditional goods and items will also pitch their tents at the event, explained Rodriguez. The day will kick-off with a ceremonial parade featuring an array of people dressed in different and colourful costumes from different provinces of Philippines. Besides the parade, visitors can participate in a silent auction, face painting and other activities. “There is no excuse not to be part of this exciting day,” said Rodriguez. “Bring your family, bring all your friends and experience Filipino hospitality.”
Governor General David Johnston delivering the Speech from the Throne in the Senate Chamber on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, June 2011Governor General David Johnston delivers the Speech from the Throne in the Senate Chamber on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Friday June 3, 2011. (Sean Kilpatrick / THE CANADIAN PRESS)The government has introduced Senate reform legislation, making good on one of Prime Minister Stephen Harper's long-time political promises. The Act, which sets out a nine-year term limit for Senators as well as a means for voters to have a say in their appointment, was tabled in the House of Commons Tuesday morning. "After receiving a strong mandate from Canadians, our Government is taking action on our commitment to make the Senate more democratic, accountable, and representative of Canadians," Minister of State Tim Uppal said .
In this image taken Saturday, June 18, 2011, Amy Winehouse performs on stage during her concert in Belgrade Serbia. Winehouse was booed and jeered during a concert in Serbia's capital as she stumbled onto the stage, mumbled through her songs and wandered off. (AP Photo)
In this image taken Saturday, June 18, 2011, Amy Winehouse performs on stage during her concert in Belgrade Serbia. Winehouse was booed and jeered during a concert in Serbia's capital as she stumbled onto the stage, mumbled through her songs and wandered off.  Winehouse's show on Saturday kicked off what was supposed to be a 12-stop European tour. But she was jeered and booed as she stumbled around the stage, unable to remember the lyrics to her songs. Serbian media called the concert a "scandal," with the Blic daily labeling it "the worst in the history of Belgrade." The next day, Winehouse's management cancelled this week's shows in Istanbul and Athens. Further dates in Spain, Switzerland, Italy, Austria, Poland, Hungary and Romania have now also been scrapped.

Winehouse's breakthrough album, 2006's "Back to Black," won her five Grammy Awards and brought her worldwide stardom. The album included the hit single, "Rehab," on which she sang: "They tried to make me go to rehab. I said 'No, no, no."' The song was prophetic: Winehouse's music has been overshadowed by alcohol and drug use and run-ins with the law, as well as a tempestuous marriage. The 27-year-old British singer has, in fact, sought rehab therapy in the past. In October, Winehouse said she had been drug-free for three years, but her public behaviour has continued to appear erratic. Last month she spent a week in London's Priory clinic, which offers treatment for psychiatric problems, drug and alcohol addiction. In addition to her stage troubles, Winehouse's recording career has also been put on hold. There have long been plans for a follow up to "Back to Black," but new material has not been released.

Revellers dance during the summer solstice at Stonehenge, near Salisbury in England, Tuesday, June 21, 2011. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham) 
Revellers dance during the summer solstice at Stonehenge, near Salisbury in England, Tuesday, June 21, 2011. Around 18,000 neo-pagans, new agers and curious visitors gathered Tuesday in heavy rain to watch the sun rise over the ancient stone circle on the Salisbury Plain about 80 miles (130 kilometers) southwest of London.
Police officers wearing riot gear fill an alley during a protest ahead of the G20 Summit in downtown Toronto June 25, 2010.

TORONTO – Forty Ottawa police officers were paid $2,860 each for one day of work at the G20 summit in Toronto, according to RCMP documents about the cost of summit security. The documents show that the summit was an overtime bonanza for police officers from across the country. Montreal’s officers – 278 of them – submitted an invoice to the RCMP to have all their hours paid at double time. Their total bill for work performed between June 19 and June 29 was $3,342,578.


Anatomy of a G20 investigation The investigation has already been opened and closed twice because the SIU hasn't been able to adequately identify the Toronto police officer who allegedly broke Dorian Barton's arm during last summer's G20 summit.BARTON One of the police officers who could not name a colleague accused of beating Dorian Barton during last June’s G20 summit was the suspect officer’s roommate, according to the head of the Special Investigations Unit. Furthermore, two of the other so-called witness officers to Barton’s arrest were supervisors, Ian Scott told the Star.

“I’m not here to pass judgment,” said a clearly frustrated Scott. “I’m just telling you what happened.”

The SIU has been under fire after it concluded a week ago there was insufficient evidence to lay charges against any police officers, even though a photographer witnessed the takedown and identified an officer he said struck Barton. He provided a photo of the officer to the SIU.

The SIU asked 11 officers to identify the cop in the photograph. Eight of them were within the direct vicinity of the aggressive takedown near Queen’s Park, in which Barton, 30, suffered a broken right arm, black eye, swollen limbs and bruised back.

One of the witness officers was a G20 roommate of the officer in the photo, Scott said.

“I don’t know if they’re telling the truth or not,” he said. “I really don’t know.”

That controversy is merely the tip of the SIU’s criticism of police cooperation with its investigation into Barton’s arrest.

In January, the police service gave the SIU the name of the officer in the photo, which they say was obtained by zooming in on the picture.

However, the SIU was unable to view the badge number in the photo, despite using investigative technology from the provincial revenue ministry, Scott said.

“We have some big questions to ask about that,” he said. “We couldn’t do it. Why can they do it?”

The SIU has asked Toronto police several times for the name of the officer who identified the badge number, but has not received it, Scott said.

For the case to stand up in court, it’s essential for an individual witness to clearly demonstrate how the link between the badge number and the image in the photograph was made, Scott explained.

Barton’s lawyer, Clayton Ruby, argues that the first-hand testimony of Andrew Wallace, the photographer, should be enough evidence to lay charges. Charges are laid based on the first-hand accounts of strangers every day, he said.

Meanwhile, police spokesman Mark Pugash was exasperated by suggestions they have not fully cooperated.

“We told (the SIU) on three occasions how we identified the person they’ve designated as the subject officer,” he said.

“We’ve told them, we’ve told them, we’ve told them, we’ve told them —I’m not sure what else we can do.”

Scott replied in an equally firm tone.

“I am specifically asking them now for the name of the person who identified the badge number,” he repeated.

“I can’t look into their heads, but they’ve got some smart people there, and they’ve got people that understand the criminal justice system. They know that you need a live body to identify people in court. They know that.”

Generally, the SIU and Toronto police communicate through a designated liaison officer, by email or phone.

“With the greatest respect to the Star, are you the intermediary here?” Pugash asked a reporter, as the two sides went back and forth Wednesday afternoon.

“If Mr. Scott wants things from us, by all means . . . we’re not going to negotiate by the Toronto Star’s news pages.”

The SIU has been asking police for the name of the officer who identified the badge number since January, Scott later replied. Once it receives that information and finds it to be credible, the SIU will reopen the investigation into Barton’s arrest, he said.

Late Wednesday afternoon, a police source contacted the Star to say that the Toronto Police Service had just received a written request from the SIU to speak with the officer who extracted the badge number from the photo.

“This is the first time we were asked,” the source said. “And the police will comply.”

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An Ontario Superior Court judge on Tuesday gave Jaggi Singh a 60-day suspended sentence and 12 months of probation, and ordered him to complete 75 hours of community service for urging followers to tear down a security fence. Jaggi Singh is a well-known Montreal activist. Jaggi Singh is a well-known Montreal activist. (Patrick Morrell/CBC)The suspended sentence was given because of the time Singh spent in pretrail custody and house arrest. It means he won't have to spend any time in jail, provided he fulfils the terms of the probation. Singh, who pleaded guilty to counselling to commit mischief over $5,000, was also facing conspiracy charges but that was withdrawn by the Crown. Singh is a community organizer with the Anti-Capitalist Convergence as well as the group No One Is Illegal-Montreal. 

This young Antarctic emperor penguin took a rare wrong turn, but will need to head back to Antarctica to survive. This young Antarctic emperor penguin took a rare wrong turn, but will need to head back to Antarctica to survive. A young emperor penguin took a rare wrong turn from the Antarctic and ended up stranded in New Zealand. Its the first time in 44 years the aquatic bird has been sighted on the Paekakeriki beach. Local resident Christine Wilton was taking her miniature schnauzer dog Millie for a walk on Peka Peka Beach on the North Island's western coast when she discovered the bird Monday evening.
   Letter carrier Marc Dionne, delivering federal pension and social assistance cheques in Halifax on Monday. The Conservative government tabled legislation Monday that could send locked-out Canada Post employees back to work. The move came just hours after the union and management returned to the negotiating table. Canada Post announced late last Tuesday that it was locking out employees after nearly two weeks of rotating strikes by the union. Labour Minister Lisa Raitt introduced the bill in the House of Commons after question period at 3 p.m. ET. Little else could be done on the bill Monday, which is an "opposition day" in the House with debate controlled by the NDP.
The Toronto Maple Leafs rank poorly when it comes to bang for the buck, fan relations, affordability, stadium experience, and overall franchise performance, says ESPN. The Toronto Maple Leafs rank poorly when it comes to bang for the buck, fan relations, affordability, stadium experience, and overall franchise performance, says ESPN. Of the 122 North American pro sports teams, Toronto's top teams ranked among the lowest, with the Maple Leafs placing 120th, the Raptors placing 116th, and the Blue Jays placing 63rd. Significantly outscoring the Toronto Teams were the Super Bowl-winning Green Bay Packers (1) and the National Hockey League's Tampa Bay Lightning (2). The Toronto Maple Leafs, one of the most lucrative sports franchises in the world, placed 22nd in the 30-team NHL this year with 85 points, while the NBA's Raptors, also owned by Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment, placed 27th in the league out of 30 teams. Brian Burke, the president and general manager of the Maple Leafs, called the rankings "absurd." I don't think ESPN knows a whole hell of a lot about hockey!
MORE GOOD NEWS...
To the rescue. Young heroes rush to senior’s aid.. from left, Blaine Pacheco, Racheal Rossetti, Olivia Fairclough, Ronelle Bonikowsky, and Tyler Blakeley with Ada Pile, 83.  A Mrs. Ada Pile had her purse stolen as she sat in Garden Square last week. Two teenage best friends and three City of Brampton gardeners teamed up to catch a purse snatcher who victimized an 83-year-old woman as she sat in Garden Square enjoying an ice cream cone. After a two-block foot chase in Brampton’s downtown core Monday afternoon, the five heroes recovered Ada Pile’s purse, all of her money, and something far more valuable than mere possessions. “If they hadn’t done what they did, I would have had a hard time,” said Pile, an energetic octogenarian who was shaken up by the ordeal. “For the rest of my life, I would never have gotten over it.
SO MUCH TURMOIL

Libya's Revolution

Protests are echos of those in Egypt, Tunisia that ended with leaders stepping down

Residents stand on a tank holding a pre-Gadhafi era national flag inside a security forces compound in Benghazi, Libya, February 21, 2011

Demonstrations in Yemen

Thousands of protesters call for President Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down

Yemeni anti-government demonstrators shout slogans during a demonstration demanding the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in Sana'a, February 21, 2011

Civil Unrest in Bahrain

Inspired by  uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt, demonstrators call for regime change

Bahraini protesters chant slogans at the Pearl roundabout soon after the military and police pulled out in   Manama, February 19, 2011

Syrian Unrest

Experts are concerned about repercussion of protests - whether successful or not - within this tightly-ruled and critical country

A Syrian man reacts in dispair to his brother's condition: seriously wounded during violence between security forces and armed groups in Latakia, northwest of Damascus, March 27, 2011

Upheaval in Egypt

After toppling President Hosni Mubarak, citizens wonder about their future

After 18 days of protests, Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak, who ruled the country for 30 years, steps down

Cries for Reforms in Oman

Protests began in January with demands for more jobs, higher salaries, democratic reforms in Gulf state

An injured protester during demonstrations in the northern industrial town of Sohar in Oman, February 28, 2011

Jordan's Monarchy Has its Troubles

Protests in a relatively open political environment largely triggered by high food, fuel prices

Jordanian supporters of the Islamic Action Front carry a giant Jordanian flag as they demand for political reforms during a protest in Amman, March 4, 2011

Protests in Saudi Arabia

Defying government, religious bans on protests, demonstrators rally around variety of causes

Saudi Shi'ite protesters hold Saudi   flags and portraits of unidentified prisoners during a demonstration in Qatif, Saudi Arabia, March 9, 2011

Uprising in Algeria

Sporadic protests have Algerians in streets demanding President Bouteflika leave office

An Algerian protester holds a poster reading 'Get out, All for the change' in front of riot police officers during a protest in Algiers, February 19, 2011

Turmoil in Tunisia

A fragile process to create a new government has its problems

Demonstrators shout slogans against President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in Tunis, 14 Jan 2011

 

 
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Vancouver Canucks  head into Stanely Cup final game 4.....ahead 2-1 in the series.Monday: Vancouver Canucks fans wave their white towels during a semifinal playoff game against the San Jose Sharks.  Still....Monday night was a nightmare and an embarrassment for Vancouver's supporters and players. Their game was ugly, of course. That’s bound to happen when a team lays an 8-1 beat-down on you in the Stanley Cup final.
 
 
Previously in Game 1....Former Brampton Battalion sniper Raffi Torres played the role of hero...Torres scored the lone goal of the game with less than 20 seconds remaining as his Vancouver Canucks took game one of the Stanley Cup final 1-0.
 
The crews of space shuttle Endeavour and the space station gather for a joint news conference from the station on May 26.The crews of space shuttle Endeavour and the space station gather for a joint news conference....Endeavour and its crew of six departed the International Space Station late Sunday and headed home to wrap up NASA's next-to-last shuttle flight. The space shuttle undocked — for the last time — close to midnight as the two spacecraft soared more than 300 kilometres above Bolivia. "Fair winds and following seas, guys," space station resident Ronald Garan Jr. called out as he rang the ship's bell.

Indian superbug spreads to Canada  A superbug that is drug resistant has spread globally from New Delhi, India. Two Toronto-area people have contracted the infection known as NDM-1. A drug-resistant superbug that first emerged in New Delhi and is now spreading globally.

 
boo the bear
Boo the grizzly at Kicking Horse Mountain Resort, B.C.  Fugitive bear Boo isn't about to let a little soil, stone and steel get between him and his honey. The eight-year-old, 295-kilogram grizzly escaped from his home at the Kicking Horse resort, north of Golden, B.C., some time overnight June 4 or early June 5 and resort staff believe the beast is looking for love.A female grizzly was sighted in the area just a few days before Boo dug under his fence and went on the lam. He made a similar break for it in June 2006.

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 SPRING ELECTION
How is it that the Conservatives are ahead in the polls. Don't people pay attention to what is going on? Did we not dissolve parliament because they were found to be in contempt. Kickbacks, slush money, altered documents. What does it take to wake Canadians to reality? End the tyranny. (NOT)?

Fukushima: As bad as Chernobyl?

The Chernobyl (l) and Fukushima (r) plants  A working reactor caught fire, explosively. Radioactive debris was sent 30,000 feet into the air - the height at which airliners conventionally fly.Some of that debris came down thousands of kilometres away, in concentrations strong enough to prohibit the eating of meat and the drinking of milk produced locally.

The upgrading of Japan's Fukushima incident to a level seven - the maximum - on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale (INES) puts it on a par with Chernobyl.

And a spokesman for Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco), which runs the plant, suggested it could even end up being worse than Chernobyl.

World's worst nuclear incidents

  • Level 7: Chernobyl, Ukraine, 1986 - explosion and fire in operational reactor, fallout over thousands of square kilometres, possible 4,000 cancer cases
  • Level 7: Fukushima, 2011 - tsunami and possibly earthquake damage from seismic activity beyond plant design. Long-term effects unknown
  • Level 6: Kyshtym, Russia, 1957 - explosion in waste tank leading to hundreds of cancer cases, contamination over hundreds of square kilometres
  • Level 5: Windscale, UK, 1957 - fire in operating reactor, release of contamination in local area, possible 240 cancer cases
  • Level 5: Three Mile Island, US, 1979 - instrument fault leading to large-scale meltdown, severe damage to reactor core
GREENPEACE International

 
Our radiation monitoring team is on the ground in Fukushima province, Japan, researching fallout from the ongoing nuclear disaster and its impact on local communities. The government has been publishing raw data from its own field monitoring. However, its assessment is far from comprehensive. Measurements taken by our radiation team in several parts of Minamisoma city show levels of up to 4.5 microSievert per hour, as opposed to  the relatively low levels of 0.7 microSievert per hour recorded at the only official monitoring point in Minamisoma City.
Radiation monitoring team at work.

The Japanese government has been publishing raw data from its own field monitoring. However, its assessment is far from comprehensive. Measurements taken by our radiation team in several parts of Minamisoma city show levels of up to 4.5 microSievert per hour, as opposed to  the relatively low levels of 0.7 microSievert per hour recorded at the only official monitoring point in Minamisoma City.

 

File:Babylonlion.JPGMultiple filaments and sheaths embedded in this meteorite could point to extraterrestrial life, says NASA scienist Richard Hoover. Multiple filaments and sheaths embedded in this meteorite could point to extraterrestrial life, says NASA scienist Richard Hoover. (Richard Hoover/The Journal of Cosmology) A NASA scientist says he has found fossilized evidence of alien life in the remains of a meteorite, which if confirmed would bolster the theory that life is not restricted to Earth. 

Bizarre Friction-Free 'Superfluid' Found in Neutron Star's Core

ScienceDaily (Feb. 23, 2011) — NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory has discovered the first direct evidence for a superfluid, a bizarre, friction-free state of matter, at the core of a neutron star. Superfluids created in laboratories on Earth exhibit remarkable properties, such as the ability to climb upward and escape airtight containers. The finding has important implications for understanding nuclear interactions in matter at the highest known densities.

Neutron stars contain the densest known matter that is directly observable. One teaspoon of neutron star material weighs six billion tons. The pressure in the star's core is so high that most of the charged particles, electrons and protons, merge resulting in a star composed mostly of uncharged particles called neutrons.

Two independent research teams studied the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A, or Cas A for short, the remains of a massive star 11,000 light years away that would have appeared to explode about 330 years ago as observed from Earth. Chandra data found a rapid decline in the temperature of the ultra-dense neutron star that remained after the supernova, showing that it had cooled by about four percent over a 10-year period.

"This drop in temperature, although it sounds small, was really dramatic and surprising to see," said Dany Page of the National Autonomous University in Mexico, leader of a team with a paper published in the February 25, 2011 issue of the journal Physical Review Letters. "This means that something unusual is happening within this neutron star."

Superfluids containing charged particles are also superconductors, meaning they act as perfect electrical conductors and never lose energy. The new results strongly suggest that the remaining protons in the star's core are in a superfluid state and, because they carry a charge, also form a superconductor.

"The rapid cooling in Cas A's neutron star, seen with Chandra, is the first direct evidence that the cores of these neutron stars are, in fact, made of superfluid and superconducting material," said Peter Shternin of the Ioffe Institute in St Petersburg, Russia, leader of a team with a paper accepted in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.

Both teams show that this rapid cooling is explained by the formation of a neutron superfluid in the core of the neutron star within about the last 100 years as seen from Earth. The rapid cooling is expected to continue for a few decades and then it should slow down.

"It turns out that Cas A may be a gift from the Universe because we would have to catch a very young neutron star at just the right point in time," said Page's co-author Madappa Prakash, from Ohio University. "Sometimes a little good fortune can go a long way in science."

The onset of superfluidity in materials on Earth occurs at extremely low temperatures near absolute zero, but in neutron stars, it can occur at temperatures near a billion degrees Celsius. Until now there was a very large uncertainty in estimates of this critical temperature. This new research constrains the critical temperature to between one half a billion to just under a billion degrees.

Cas A will allow researchers to test models of how the strong nuclear force, which binds subatomic particles, behaves in ultradense matter. These results are also important for understanding a range of behavior in neutron stars, including "glitches," neutron star precession and pulsation, magnetar outbursts and the evolution of neutron star magnetic fields.

Small sudden changes in the spin rate of rotating neutron stars, called glitches, have previously given evidence for superfluid neutrons in the crust of a neutron star, where densities are much lower than seen in the core of the star. This latest news from Cas A unveils new information about the ultra-dense inner region of the neutron star.

"Previously we had no idea how extended superconductivity of protons was in a neutron star," said Shternin's co-author Dmitry Yakovlev, also from the Ioffe Institute.

The cooling in the Cas A neutron star was first discovered by co-author Craig Heinke, from the University of Alberta, Canada, and Wynn Ho from the University of Southampton, UK, in 2010. It was the first time that astronomers have measured the rate of cooling of a young neutron star.

 
Wednesday, Apr 6 
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SPRING ELECTION
How is it that the Conservatives are ahead in the polls. Don't people pay attention to what is going on? Did we not dissolve parliament because they were found to be in contempt. Kickbacks, slush money, altered documents. What does it take to wake Canadians to reality? End the tyranny. (NOT)?
A spokesperson for Prime Minister Stephen Harper offered an apology Monday to a local teen who claims she was turfed from a Tory rally here over her Facebook picture with Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper greets supporters during a campaign rally in Guelph on April 4, 2011.
Harper’s fear: 70s-style Liberal-NDP governmentNDP keeps fighting in London
Awish Aslam, a 19-year-old University of Western Ontario student, said she wept after getting the boot. "I've never voted in a federal election before," she said. "We just repeated we were only there to listen." Aslam and a friend registered online to attend Harper's Sunday rally - part of the restrictions the Conservatives place on such events. About 30 minutes after arriving and signing in, the two girls were asked by a man to follow him out of the rally, Aslam said. Though confused, they complied. In a back room, Aslam said he ripped off their name tags, tore them up and ordered them out. "We were confused. He said, 'We know you guys have ties to the Liberal party through Facebook'. He said ... 'You are no longer welcome here.'" Another attendee, Ali Aref Hamadi, said he was asked by an organizer to leave the same rally because of an NDP bumper sticker on his vehicle. 

F**K THE POOR....This year’s Ontario Liberal budget, unveiled on Tuesday, March 29th, reveals nothing but a continuation of Liberal policies on poverty, deepening the crisis of income inadequacy for 840 000 people on social assistance (OW and ODSP). In last year’s budget, the Liberals announced a cut to the Special Diet Allowance. Since that time, they have instead overhauled the program, and as of April 1st will be bringing in a ‘new’ program that’s key change is to greatly limit access to the vital benefit through the medical release of information and other intrusive measures. The City of Toronto, under Rob Ford, is anticipating ‘saving’ $10million dollars in 2011 alone in what was previously spent on Special Diet claims. All those no longer eligible will be cut off by July 31, 2011. In this years budget the Liberals announced a 1% raise to social assistance, and boasted at length about their upcoming ‘review’ of the system. What most people fail to realize, is that 1% does not even account for inflation (it will mean about an extra $6/month), let alone come anywhere near addressing the 55% that is needed to bring rates back to pre-Harris levels. A 1% ‘raise’, and the gutting of access to the Special Diet, comes at a time when the newest figures show an increase of food bank reliance up by 28% since the 2008 economic crisis. As well, food prices have risen a staggering 30% since 2000. Not surprisingly, McGuinty and his cronies are using their usual ‘poverty reduction’ language in building up the 18month long social assistance review as a clear distraction from the real issues at hand. There should be no question - the Liberal government is no friend or ally to the poor in this province. They have gutted the special diet, they have failed to reverse the Harris cuts and raise social assistance rates. The reality is that people are worse off today than they were in 1994. This is a matter of life and death; people are hungry, people are getting sick, people are being forced in to homelessness. We do not need another Provincial Review to tell us we are hungry. We demand: Raise OW/ODSP rates NOW to where people can live with health and dignity! On top of this, the 2011 Provincial budget includes a continued attack on Public Sector workers and the beginning of a ‘public sector review’ headed up by TD banker, Don Drummond – a man who’s clear objective will be moves towards privatization. At the same time, the Liberals re-affirmed their multi billion dollar tax break for corporations. A transfer of wealth from poor and working class communities to the hands of rich corporations. As is happening around the world, cuts are being made to the public sector as part of broader austerity measures. The ontario Coalition Against Poverty has called on citizens to challenge the extreme poverty of people living on social assistance in Ontario.  April 1 was the day when the McGuinty Government bring in the new, greatly reduced, Special Diet. It is a day on which the Liberals in Ontario impose a huge cut on tens of thousands of the poorest people in the Province.

TOKYO - The operator of Japan’s crippled nuclear power plant said on Tuesday it had found water with 5 million times the legal limit of radioactivity inside a reactor as it struggles for a fourth week to contain the world’s biggest nuclear disaster in quarter of a century.
Radioactive water five million times legal limit
Underlining the concern over spreading radiation, the government said it was considering imposing radioactivity restrictions on seafood for the first time in the crisis after contaminated fish were found in seas well south of the damaged nuclear reactors. The plant’s operator Tokyo Electric Power Co (TEPCO) offered token “condolence””money to those affected in the Fukushima region where the plant is based, but the local mayors who came to Tokyo to meet Prime Minister Naoto Kan made clear they expected far more help. “We have borne the risks, co-existed and flourished with TEPCO for more than 40 years, and all these years, we have fully trusted the myth that nuclear plants are absolutely safe,” said Katsuya Endo, the mayor of Tomioka town. He was one of eight Fukushima prefecture mayors who went to Kan to demand compensation and support for employment, housing and education for the tens of thousands of people evacuated as a result of the radiation crisis . In desperation, engineers at the Fukushima Daiichi plant have turned to what are little more than home remedies to stem the flow of contaminated water. On Tuesday, they used “liquid glass””in the hope of plugging cracks in a leaking concrete pit. “We tried pouring sawdust, newspaper and concrete mixtures into the side of the pit (leading to tunnels outside reactor No.2), but the mixture does not seem to be entering the cracks,” said Hidehiko Nishiyama, deputy director-general of Japan’s Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (NISA).


This picture taken on November 13, 2010 in Milan shows Karima El Mahroug.

ROME - In the dry wording of prosecution documents, sex parties at Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s palatial villa followed a well scripted routine drawing in erotic dancers and underage prostitutes.

First, as judges will hear when Berlusconi faces trial on Wednesday, came dinner; a meal often composed of foods in the red, white and green of Italy’s tricolour flag. Then followed what has become known as the “bunga bunga“ session, “which took place in a disco-like room where the female participants engaged in dressing up, striptease and erotic dances, touching each other or touching and being touched in their intimate parts by Silvio Berlusconi.” Finally, at the end of the evening, 74-year-old Berlusconi would choose “one or more women with whom he spent the night in an intimate relationship,” in exchange for money, expensive gifts or rent-free apartments. The scandal has eaten away at the popularity of the media billionaire and cast a shadow on a political system dogged by corruption scandals throughout the post-war era. But he is in little danger of being forced from office before a verdict which may take years or may never come. Prosecution documents list the names of 33 young women, mostly would-be starlets hoping to break into showbusiness on one of Berlusconi’s television channels, who prosecutors say were paid to have sex

Tibetan monk burns to death in China protest
A Tibetan Buddhist monk burned himself to death in western China on Wednesday, triggering a street protest against government controls on the restive region, a group campaigning for Tibetan self-rule said. The monk “immolated himself today in protest against the crackdown”, said Kate Saunders of the International Campaign for Tibet, a London-based organization. “He shouted some slogans about freedom when he did it,” said Zorgyi, a researcher for the organization, who is based in northern India, where many exiled Tibetans live. “We’ve also received widespread information about a protest with nearly one thousand monks and lay people that came after,” Zorgyi said. Chinese police immediately arrived at the scene, doused the fire, and beat Phuntsok, said the source. As the police were trying to take him away in a waiting police van scores of Tibetans rushed to the scene and protected Phuntsok. The crowd later grew in numbers, and took Phuntsok to his monastery making sure the Chinese police did not take him away.
 According to unconfirmed information from Ngaba, Phuntsok has succumbed to his burns, and that his body is lying in a chapel of the monastery.
Hundreds of angry Tibetans immediately gathered at the main market and carried out protests against the Chinese government. They walked almost a mile from the main market chanting anti-government slogans before being dispersed by Chinese security forces. Troops have been brought in from neighboring areas to quell the protests. Hundreds of Tibetans were arrested, and several others sustained injuries from electric baton and iron rods used by Chinese soldiers on the protesters. Repeated calls to police and government offices in Aba were not answered. One officer who answered the phone said, “Nothing is wrong.” In March 2008, Tibetan protests led by monks in Lhasa, the regional capital of Tibet proper, were suppressed by police and turned violent. Rioters torched shops and turned on residents, especially Han Chinese, who many Tibetans see as intruders threatening their culture.
Capitals forward Alexander Ovechkin, right, eludes defenceman Luke Schenn in a 4-1 victory over the Leafs on Jan. 22. Capitals Alexander Ovechkin, right, eludes defenceman Luke Schenn
WITH MY CLAIRVOYANT MIND I SEE TORONTO LOSING.....

The Toronto Maple Leafs' margin for error is down to zero. In order to qualify for the playoffs, they must win their three remaining games in regulation or overtime and have Buffalo fail to record a point in any of its three games. If either scenario fails to play out, Toronto's playoff drought will reach a franchise-record six seasons. The playoff push could end as soon as Tuesday night with the Maple Leafs hosting Washington at Air Canada Centre. Buffalo is home to Tampa Bay.

Toronto's playoff hopes took a big hit Monday night when the New York Rangers erased a three-goal deficit and beat the Boston Bruins 5-3. That put the Rangers out of reach for the Leafs and ensured the highest they can finish in the Eastern Conference is eighth. The team can't even afford to win another game in a shootout. The NHL's tiebreaking format was altered this season to include only wins in regulation and overtime and Toronto needs three more of those to match Buffalo in the standings.
 

The archive of Albert Einstein will be digitized and made accessible online within a year, the Hebrew University of Jerusalem said on Monday. Einstein, who died in 1955, bequeathed his papers to the university, which he co-founded. The archive holds more than 80,000 documents of the Jewish, German-born scientist regarded as the father of modern physics. “It is the most important collection of his papers and an important collection for 20th century history,” said Roni Grosz, Hebrew University’s director of the Albert Einstein Archive. The university said the collection, which includes research notebooks, correspondence with colleagues and friends and papers Einstein wrote on science, philosophy and politics, would be available on a public website it is setting up.
 
Thursday, Mar 17 
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SPIN DOCTORS MAKE ME SICK
Okay so one week later we dont know if there was a meltdown or not. We are getting two different sources of information. The Japanese government said everything was okay even while reactors were exploding. I am no nuclear physicist but exploding reactors are in my list of things that are bad. Now we hear that water supplies in Tokyo are contaminated with radiation. To me it spells meltdown without having to actually say the words. So when is someone going to tell the true story? Over in Libya we are told 110 or 118 or 128 missles were precision guided into the heart of Tripoli. Several entere Gadafis home. We are not however trying to kill him we are just trying to help the unknown souls of Eastern Libya. Okay so some of the missles were the awesome cruise missles. What do these things cost per unit? What if we just gave the value of these to the poor. That would ease a lot of suffering. Why such overkill of bombing?
  Canadian Forces Air Command CF-18 fighter jets File photo of Canadian Forces Air Command CF-18 fighter jets performing a fly-by in EdmontonBattle for Libya
 A coalition air campaign over Libya is not aimed at removing Moammar Gadhafi from power, despite U.S. policy that the Libyan ruler "needs to go," U.S. President Barack Obama says ...Forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi attacked two Libyan towns on Tuesday after a third night of air raids on Tripoli, but the Western campaign faced questions over the future of its command structure. With anti-Gadhafi rebels struggling to create a command structure than can capitalize on the air strikes against Libyan tanks and air defences, Western nations have still to decide who will run the operation once Washington pulls back. The United States will cede control of the air assault in days, President Barack Obama said, even as divisions in Europe fuelled speculation that Washington would be forced to continue leadership of air patrols to replace the initial bombardment. “We anticipate this transition to take place in a matter of days and not in a matter of weeks,” Obama, facing questions at home about the U.S. military getting bogged down in a third Muslim country, told a news conference on a visit to Chile. A U.S. Air Force F-15E crashed in Libya overnight and one crewman had been recovered and the other was “in the process of recovery,” the U.S. military said. The crash was likely caused by mechancial failure and not hostile fire, it said. In the latest fighting on Tuesday, Gadhafi forces used tanks to shell the rebel-held western city of Misrata
Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper smiles while speaking at a luncheon in Brampton
Harper government found in contempt of Parliament OTTAWA - A House of Commons committee has passed a report recommending the Harper government be found in contempt. the content of the reports may prove embarrassing to the government, the real political damage may come from what the Opposition does with them. The findings of either report could be used to bolster a make-or-break vote in the House, he said. …meanwhile, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty will table a budget Tuesday that directly addresses some key NDP demands, including more money for senior citizens, setting up the possibility that the NDP could save the Harper government from losing a series of non-confidence votes this week.

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty holds up his 'budget' shoes after having them resoled in Ottawa March 21, 2011.
A government source said Flaherty will announce Tuesday the guaranteed income supplement paid to seniors will jump by $600 per year for single seniors and $840 per year for couples. One of the key requests NDP Leader Jack Layton has been making in recent weeks is for a budget that addresses seniors' poverty.

Crisis at nuclear plant deepens in JapanThe Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power complex (Reuters/NTV via Reuters)A handout photo shows Tokyo Electric Power Co. Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant reactor no.4 and no. 3 in northern Japan Reactor on the Edge  Japan's crisis appeared to be spinning out of control on Wednesday after workers withdrew because of surging radiation levels. A helicopter failed to drop water on the most troubled reactor.  Police will try to cool spent nuclear fuel at one of the facility's reactors with water cannon.  Another fire broke out at the earthquake-crippled facility, which has sent radiation wafting into Tokyo in the past 24 hours, triggering fear in the capital and international alarm. Japan's government said radiation levels outside the plant's gates were stable but, in a sign of being overwhelmed, appealed to private companies to help deliver supplies to tens of thousands of people evacuated from around the complex.

The plant operator described No. 3 as the "priority." No more information was available, but that reactor is the only one at Daiichi which uses plutonium in its fuel mix. Plutonium is very toxic to humans and, once absorbed in the bloodstream, can linger for years in bone marrow or liver and can lead to cancer. The situation at No. 4 reactor, where the fire broke out, was "not so good," the plant operator added, while water was being poured into reactors No. 5 and 6, indicating the entire six-reactor facility was now at risk of overheating. Nuclear experts said the solutions being proposed to quell radiation leaks at the complex were last-ditch efforts to stem what could well be remembered as one of the world's worst industrial disasters. "This is a slow-moving nightmare," said Dr Thomas Neff, a physicist and uranium-industry analyst at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Japanese Emperor Akihito, delivering a rare video message to his people, said he was deeply worried by the country's nuclear crisis which was "unprecedented in scale." The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said the overall situation remained serious at the Fukushima plant and that it was concerned it had not received some information from the Japanese authorities about one of the nuclear reactors. “We have not received validated information for some time related to the containment integrity of unit 1. So we are concerned that we do not know its exact status,” Graham Andrew, a senior official of the IAEA told a news conference in Vienna. The IAEA also lacks data on the temperatures of the spent fuel pools of reactors 1, 3 and 4, he said, though Japan was supplying other updates. Reuters earlier reported that the Fukushima plant was storing more uranium than it was originally designed to hold, and that it had repeatedly missed mandatory safety checks over the past decade, according to company documents and outside experts. Questions have also been raised about whether TEPCO officials waited too long to pump sea water into the reactors and abandon hope of saving the equipment in the aftermath of the earthquake and tsunami.

Before and after Natori, JapanJapan's Emperor Akihito speaks during a televised address to the nation in TokyoEmperor Akihito made an unprecedented televised address to his disaster-stricken nation on Wednesday, expressing deep worry about the crisis at damaged nuclear reactors and urging people to lend each other a helping hand in difficult times. Looking somber and stoic, the 77-year-old Akihito said the problems at Japan's nuclear-power reactors, where authorities are battling to prevent a catastrophe, were unpredictable after an earthquake he described as "unprecedented in scale."TV stations interrupted coverage to carry the emperor's first public appearance since last week's massive earthquake and tsunami that killed thousands of people."I am deeply hurt by the grievous situation in the affected areas. The number of deceased and missing increases by the day and we cannot know how many victims there will be. My hope is that as many people possible are found safe," Akihito said.

By all accounts, young escort Kera Freeland was living a life on the margins when she died. The 20-year-old's remains were found Thursday in a ditch in Caledon, Ont., west of Toronto, just a few months after she had moved to Toronto to work as a call girl for an escort agency. A friend recalled that in 2007 she was a pregnant teen living at a youth shelter in her home province of Alberta. "She couldn't wait for the baby to be born," said Danzell McNeilly, who met Freeland at the Avenue 15 shelter in Calgary in the summer of 2007. Freeland worked for Cachet Ladies escort service last Dec. 4 to Dec. 20, said Gregory Leslie, a lawyer for Cachet. Freeland left Cachet a short time after joining the agency to return to Alberta for cancer treatment, said Leslie. "She told Cachet Ladies that she was going back to Calgary to get treatment for her cervical cancer," he said, adding Freeland vowed to return when she was well. On the Cachet Ladies website, the woman is described as a "top model" whose daily rate started at $4,000. "Gentlemen" would find themselves intoxicated by her "beautiful body and facial features," says the site. OPP investigators, who have notified Freeland's family, are considering her death suspicious and have appealed to the public for information on her final days. "Our primary concern is how she ended up on that stretch on Heart Lake Rd.," said Const. Peter Leon.

Robonaut 2, NASA's new humanoid robot
 Robonaut 2, NASA’s first human-like robotic astronaut, which was launched into space aboard Space Shuttle Discovery. A joint project of NASA and General Motors, the $2.5 million robot — fondly called R2 — is designed to assist human astronauts aboard the International Space Station. Although its primary task on this flight is to demonstrate to engineers on the ground how humanoid robots behave in space, an upgraded version of R2 may someday venture outside the space station and help spacewalkers perform routine maintenance and emergency repair work, and even conduct scientific observations.  Robonaut 2 measures 3 feet, 4inches from waist to head, and weighs 330 pounds. It’s made primarily of aluminum, with some steel and nonmetallic components, and has 38 PowerPC processors and more than 350 sensors. There are no plans to bring R2 home. It will become a permanent resident of the space station.Imelda and Space Shuttle Discovery
 Discovery, ready for its last trip to space. STS 133 is the first shuttle mission for 2011 and the 35th shuttle flight to the space station. Only two other flights remain this year before the shuttle fleet finally retires after three decades of service — STS 134 (Endeavour), tentatively set for launch on April 19th, and STS-135 (Atlantis), which is slated for liftoff on June 28th.

PETERBOROUGH, Ont. — A teenage boy who drove the getaway car following two convenience store robberies was handed a 90-day sentence Monday.“Even though you weren’t the main player, your role makes you an equal partner,” Judge Esther Rosenberg said.“The charges are serious charges and you knew what was going on.”The boy, who was 14 at the time and can’t be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, had previously pleaded guilty to two counts of being a party to robbery with a weapon and pleaded guilty Monday to a second offence of breaching his bail conditions since his arrest. On Oct. 19 around 3:30 a.m. the boy and an 18-year-old robbed a Mac’s Convenience and then, 30 minutes later, robbed a Pioneer Gas Bar Snack Express. McMurray, armed with a butcher knife and a scarf covering his face, made off with $110 from Mac’s and $300 from the gas bar.The boy, who isn’t even old enough to drive, was the “wheelman,” court heard when the older boy pleaded guilty to his involvement earlier this month

Europa Jupiter System Mission
Europa Jupiter System Mission artist concept.jpg See Explanation.  Clicking on the picture will download 
 the highest resolution version available. 
As a part of the Europa Jupiter System Mission (EJSM), the Jupiter Europa Orbiter (JEO) is a proposed orbiter probe planned for detailed studies of Jupiter's moons Europa and Io as well as the Jovian magnetosphere.[1] Among other things, its main goal is to look for evidence of a possible subsurface ocean which many scientists suspect could hold extraterrestrial life. The objective is to determine whether the Jupiter system harbors habitable environments. The fundamental theme for EJSM can be further focused into science objectives relating to habitability (focusing on Europa and Ganymede). The main science objectives supporting this goal are:Characterize sub-surface oceans, Characterize the ice shells and any subsurface water, Characterize the deep internal structure for Ganymede and the intrinsic magnetic field, Compare the exospheres, plasma environments, and magnetospheric interactions. Determine global surface compositions and chemistry. Understand the formation of surface features, including sites of recent or current activity, and identify and characterize candidate sites for future in situ exploration. 
 
 
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The Dunstan Times  Winter 2011 

This newspaper was founded in 1862 by George Fache, a French Heughenot after sailing to New Zealand

In 2012, join our Sesquicentennial Anniversary celebrations @ Clyde (formerly Dunstan), New Zealand   Explore the Times' world   Our website is @ dunstan-times000.tripod.com had 61 page views yesterday and 1562 page views so far this month. .Our goal is to enlighten, educate, inspire, inform and even entertain. We will not titillate nor run 'shock journalism'. Brampton edition by his great-great grandson Mike MilneEmailUs@ spacermike007@yahoo.ca 

 Demonstrators take to streets in Libyan capitalAnti-Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi protesters wave the old Libyan flag as they celebrate the freedom of the Libyan city of Benghazi, Libya, on Monday, Feb. 28, 2011. (AP / Hussein Malla)U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gestures while delivering her speech during the opening of the 16th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council focusing on deadly repression in Libya on February 28, 2011 in Geneva. Clinton said today that backing political transitions in the Arab world was not just a matter of ideals, but a "strategic imperative".

The U.S. military is repositioning its naval and air forces around Libya to provide "flexibility once decisions are made," a Pentagon spokesman said. Col. David Lapan told Reuters also said there are "various contingency plans" in place for the North African country, where longtime leader Moammar Ghadafi's forces and rebels in the east remain locked in a tense standoff. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton kept up pressure for Gadhafi to step down, and told the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland, on Monday that "nothing is off the table" as long as Gadhafi threatens Libya's citizens."Gadhafi and those around him must be held accountable for these acts, which violate international legal obligations and common decency," Clinton said.

 Libyan sanctions came just in time; GENEVA - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton accused Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi on Monday of using "mercenaries and thugs" to suppress a popular uprising as world leaders discussed new steps to oust him. "We have seen Colonel Gadhafi's security forces open fire on peaceful protesters. They have used heavy weapons on unarmed civilians. Mercenaries and thugs have been turned loose to attack demonstrators," Clinton said in a speech to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. "Through their actions, they have lost the legitimacy to govern. And the people of Libya have made themselves clear: It is time for Gadhafi to go — now, without further violence or delay."

PEEL   Poverty   Action   Group    Meeting 10 a.m. Thursday, 10th March, 2011  Four Corners Library, 65 Queen Street East, Brampton  Phone: (905) 826-5041   E-mail: ppagactiongroup@gmail.com

 
Heidi, Germany’s cross-eyed celebrity opossum, came up one pick short of perfectly predicting top awards at the Oscars, incorrectly tipping “127 Hours” to win best picture, which instead went to “The King’s Speech.”The 2-1/2-year-old opossum correctly predicted Natalie Portman (“Black Swan“) to win best actress and Colin Firth (“The King’s Speech“) as best actor     An undated handout picture shows Opossum Heidi in Leipzig zoo  'The King's Speech' wins best-picture Oscar

'The King's Speech' wins best-picture Oscar, while "Black Swan's" Natalie Portman and Colin Firth have taken top acting awards at the 83rd annual Academy Awards Sunday night.

Blackhawks extended their winning streak to a season-high eight games with a 5-3 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs on Saturday......
 I was a leaf fan till they gave me an ulcer ...its always 3min left in third up 2 goals but lose anyway over and over...Toronto Maple Leafs ' Mikhail Grabovski , left, reacts after having his shootout-attempt stopped by Chicago Blackhawks goaltender Corey Crawford during third-period NHL hockey game action in Toronto, Saturday, March 5, 2011. The Blackhawks won 5-3. The streaking Chicago Blackhawks made quick work of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Jonathan Toews scored a goal to extend his points streak to nine games and the Blackhawks won their eighth straight game, beating the Maple Leafs 5-3 on Saturday night. Marian Hossa, Michael Frolik, Viktor Stalberg and Bryan Bickell also scored for Chicago. The defending Stanley Cup champions took a 3-0 lead in the first period, a night after a 5-2 home victory over Carolina.We have an expectation to win” and get the two points and I think it’s showing in the way we’re starting games,” Chicago defenseman Duncan Keith  said. Added coach Joel Quenneville: “I thought we had a great start. It’s nice to see all four lines, everybody contributing.” Joffrey Lupul, Joey Crabb& Luke Schenn replied for Toronto, 10-3-4 since the All-Star break. The Maple Leafs had earned at least a point in nine straight games. Coming off a victory over Eastern Conference-leading Philadelphia, Toronto remained four points behind eighth-place Carolina.

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 Egyptians celebrate the news of the resignation of President Hosni Mubarak, who handed control of the country to the military, at night in Tahrir Square in downtown Cairo, Egypt Friday, Feb. 11, 2011. (AP Photo/Tara Todras-Whitehill) Egypt explodes in celebration after democracy protests bring down Mubarak Thousands of Egyptian state employees, from ambulance drivers to policemen and transport workers, protested Monday in Cairo to demand better pay and conditions in a wave of labour unrest unleashed by the uprising that ousted President Hosni Mubarak. Outside the Nile-side TV and state radio building, hundreds of public transport workers demonstrated to demand better pay.Military police surround remaining protestors as they try to clear Tahir square in Cairo, Egypt, on Feb. 14. Several hundred protesters from the state Youth and Sports Organization also protested Monday in Tahrir, or Liberation, Square with similar demands. Across the Nile River in the Giza district, hundreds of ambulance drivers staged a protest, also to demand better pay and permanent jobs. They parked at least 70 ambulances on a roadside along the river, but did not block the main road where they protested. In downtown Cairo, some 200 policemen demonstrated for better pay for a second day. They also want to clear the name of the hated police, further tarnished by the deadly clashes between protesters and security forces. Some carried portraits of policemen killed in the clashes.

THE GRAMMYS.......Album Of The Year
The Suburbs.... by Arcade FireArcade Fire

Canada's Arcade Fire  claim the Album of the Year prize. There was an extended pause as presenter Barbra Streisand stuttered over the album title, "The Ssssss-uburbs!". The shocked Montrealers showed love to Quebec in a short and sweet acceptance speech and then picked up their instruments to triumphantly encore with "Ready To Start". EDITORS NOTE: saw this band in Quebec City in July 2010, they were awesome possibly the best live show I have ever seen. Whats odd is no-one except locals had heard of them, then they appeared on Saturday Night Live in October, then the nomination for the grammys and now wow album of the year ...Congrats kids, good job!   

      Arcade Fire accept their Grammy for Album of the Year for "The Suburbs" at the 53rd annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, Feb. 13, 2011.     

HOLY HEAVENS BATMAN....A 10-year-old girl from New Brunswick has become the youngest person ever to discover a supernova. Kathryn Aurora Gray, an amateur astronomer from Fredericton, made the hallmark discovery Sunday night, under the watch of astronomers Paul Gray - her father- and David Lane, according to the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada. Supernovas occur when stars more massive than the sun explode and die. The explosion releases chemicals that can spark the formation of entire planets. They also give astronomers a means by which to measure the size and age of the universe. They are a very rare phenomenon. The last one in this galaxy happened hundreds of years ago, before telescopes were even invented. Kathryn discovered hers in the constellation of Camelopardalis in galaxy UCG 3378.

 

SUPERBOWL!!!

 HIPPIE HAMMERS OLD FARTor STEELERS WELDED TO GRIDIRON TURF or ROETHS MINCED INTO HAMBURGER or SHIELDS DOWN BUT CLAY COMES THROUGH  which ever title you prefer it was sweet revenge against the Pittsburg Perv. Unless you just came out of a lengthy coma, the Pittsburgh Steelers  played against the Green Bay Packers at Cowboys Stadium for the NFL title last Sunday night...Christina Aguilera sucked ruining the American national anthem. The five-time Grammy award winning singer should have rehearsed or used a teleprompter if she had issues with the lyrics.Green Bay won the coin toss and for the Steelers it was all downhill from there. They seemed stunned and did nothing with their first possession. After half time Roeths seemed to have injured his leg as he hobbled about and made a big show of the injury. Ben’s limp was a fake (maybe he can use that defence in upcoming court cases) however, as he immediately started running down field gaining valuable yardage. All to little avail; however I am surprised he was able to fool the Packers with  this childish prank. My favourite moment was when Clay Matthews(55)aka the golden haired boy pummeled the perv in the turf causing a fumble/interception/touchdown. Maybe the flasher was stunned by the gorgeous hair of the kid, for just the briefest moment thinking it was time another inappropriate come-on was in order, stung by his own deluded desires. I pefer to think of it as “hippie takes out perv redneck”! "Wow! It's a great day to be great, baby," said Greg Jenninngs(85), who caught two of Rodgers' three touchdown passes.Rodgers threw for 304 yards, including a 29-yard touchdown to Jordy Nelson(57) to make up for three big drops. For a while it looked like he was playing for the other team. He dropped some perfect throws at perfect moments for greatness.He was so bad he couldn’t even catch a cold. I would have benched the guy, but Rodgers had faith, found him finally and also Jennings, normally his favorite target for big scores.The NFL says roughly 400 fans denied seats were at least in the stadium to watch the game. These fans will each receive a refund of triple the cost of the face value of their ticket. The face value of these tickets are $900,” the NFL said in a statement.

 

. ARE AMERICANS FANATICS...A car salesman in suburban Chicago has been fired for refusing to remove a Green Bay Packers tie that he wore to work the day after the Packers beat the Chicago Bears to advance to the Super Bowl. John Stone says he wore the Packers tie to work Monday at Webb Chevrolet in Oak Lawn to honour his late grandmother, who was a big Green Bay fan. The sentimental gesture did not impress his boss, Jerry Roberts. Roberts says the dealership has done promotions involving the Bears and he was afraid the tie could alienate the team's fans and make it harder to sell cars. Roberts adds that Stone was offered five chances to take off the tie but he refused.

 Harold Schwartz still lives alone in his own home near Desboro, Ont., a rural area about 190 km northwest of Toronto, where he still tends to his garden and lawn in the summer and shovels his driveway in the winter. CHESLEY, Ont. – What’s the secret to longevity? Peanut butter and an ounce of brandy every night before bed, according to Harold Schwartz, a southern Ontario man who turns 100 years old on Friday. Schwartz still lives alone in his own home near Desboro, Ont., a rural area about 190 km northwest of Toronto, where he still tends to his garden and lawn in the summer and shovels his driveway in the winter. “I don’t get tired. It doesn’t bother me at all,” he says. The home he retired to 30 years ago is part of his family's original farmstead – built by his great-grandfather in 1876. He quit school at 13 years old to run the family farm. “We had 200 acres and there was a lot of work to do,” he remembers.       
Two British seniors landed in hospital in southern Germany after their car’s global positioning system directed them to drive into a church. While driving their Renault in the evening on a back road near the Austrian border, the navigation system instructed the couple to turn right where there was no road. “They were confused and didn’t notice that the navigation system was faulty,” a police spokeswoman said. The 76-year-old driver then ploughed into the side of the village church, writing off the car, knocking a picture off the wall and damaging the building’s foundations. Total damages were some 25,000 euros, police in the nearby town of Immenstadt said.
 

Homeless Vets....Dozens of largely middle-aged veterans in Southwestern Ontario are battling homelessness after years of valiantly fighting to stay off the streets, a first-of-its-kind study in Canada finds. Nationwide, the number of homeless vets may number in the hundreds or thousands. And despite improvements in care over the past decade, a London, Ont., researcher leading the study warns new veterans may face the same challenges. "Veterans Affairs is getting better, but many could still slip through the cracks," said Susan Ray, an assistant nursing professor at the University of Western Ontario (UWO). "A lot of the veterans I spoke to said, 'I don't know if anything can help me, but maybe it could help somebody now'." Her more immediate concern is the group of vets, average age 52, who find themselves homeless several years after leaving the military structure.

 AND YET MORE MISGUIDED VISION Pakistani governor opposing blasphemy law killed The governor of Pakistan's Punjab province was shot dead in the capital by one of his own guards, who later told interrogators that he was angry about the politician's stance against the country's blasphemy law.

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Myanmar soldiers on parade in Naypyidaw. About half a million people are internally displaced by conflict in eastern Myanmar, where both the state army and rebels continue to recruit child soldiers, a top rights group said MondayMyanmar soldiers on parade in Naypyidaw. Human Rights Watch (HRW), in its annual report, said the army was responsible for direct attacks and abuses against civilians in conflict areas, some of which have been wracked by civil war since independence in 1948. Among the abuses listed were widespread forced labour, extrajudicial killings, forced expulsion of the population, the widespread use of anti-personnel landmines and sexual violence against women and girls. The group also listed torture, beatings and the targeting of food production as well as confiscation of land and property in the ethnic areas where fighting continues. The report comes as Myanmar, military ruled since 1962, prepares to open a new parliament this month following an election in November, which was slammed by the West as a sham aimed at shoring up military power. "The Burmese military continues to direct attacks on civilians in ethnic areas, particularly in Karen, Karenni, and Shan states of eastern Burma, and parts of western Burma in China and Arakan states," the report said. It said about 500,000 were internally displaced owing to conflict in the east, while more than 140,000 refugees are in camps in Thailand.
Shiite pilgrims pray at the Imam Abbas shrine in Karbala, 80 kilometers (50 miles) south of Baghdad, Iraq, Sunday, Jan. 23, 2011, as faithful flock to the holy city for Arbaeen, marking the end of the forty-day mourning period after the anniversary of the 7th century martyrdom of Imam Hussein, the Prophet Muhammad's grandson. (AP Photo/Ahmed al-Husseini) Shiite pilgrims Imam Abbas shrine in Karbala Defying fears of violence, Shiite pilgrims thronged an Iraqi holy city Tuesday for a final day of rituals to commemorate the seventh century death of one of the Islamic sect's most beloved saints. City officials said a total of more than 13 million pilgrims made the trek to observe the 40-day mourning period for Imam Hussein, the Prophet Muhammad's grandson whose death in battle near Karbala sealed Islam's historic Sunni-Shiite split. Men and women chanted and beat their chests as they packed the area surrounding the golden-domed mosques of Imam Hussein and his half brother Imam Abbas. Security was tight after a spate of bombings targeting the pilgrims killed more than 80 people, including 56 in a Jan. 20 triple suicide attack on highways leading to the shrine city.

..........SUPERBOWL!!! ...Christina Aguilera will sing the national anthem at the Super Bowl in Texas on Feb. 6. The five-time Grammy award winning singer will be making an encore at the NFL championship. She was part of the halftime show during the 2000 Super Bowl. The NFL and Fox made the announcement Monday. Other stars to have sung the national anthem at the Super Bowl include Carrie Underwood, Billy Joel, Diana Ross, Neil Diamond, Mariah Carey and Beyonce Knowles. The previously announced halftime show will feature The Black Eyed Peas. The Pittsburgh Steelers will play the Green Bay Packers at Cowboys Stadium for the NFL title.

 Green Bay Packers linebacker Clay Matthews Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau
Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coordinator Dick LeBeau isn't under contract next season, fueling retirement rumors.
Packers linebacker Clay Matthews is looking forward to participating in the "Hair Bowl."


 The retractable roof at $1.3 billion Cowboys Stadium will be closed for the Super Bowl. NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said Monday the decision was made well in advance of the Feb. 6 game so the league could have a "singular focus" on logistics.The weather in Dallas-Fort Worth could be good enough for an open-air game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers. But there's also a risk of freezing temperatures. The Cowboys opened the roof when they had 105,121 for the first regular season game at their new stadium in 2009. Attendance could surpass 100,000 for the Super Bowl, but only about 93,000 will be inside the stadium.... ARE AMERICANS FANATICS...A car salesman in suburban Chicago has been fired for refusing to remove a Green Bay Packers tie that he wore to work the day after the Packers beat the Chicago Bears to advance to the Super Bowl. John Stone says he wore the Packers tie to work Monday at Webb Chevrolet in Oak Lawn to honour his late grandmother, who was a big Green Bay fan. The sentimental gesture did not impress his boss, Jerry Roberts. Roberts says the dealership has done promotions involving the Bears and he was afraid the tie could alienate the team's fans and make it harder to sell cars. Roberts adds that Stone was offered five chances to take off the tie but he refused.

 Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin shakes hands with a victim of a bomb explosion at Domodedovo airport at a hospital in Moscow January 25, 2011.Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin vowed revenge on Tuesday for a deadly suicide bomb attack at a Moscow airport that killed at least 35 people and injured more than 100. “This was an abominable crime in both its senselessness and its cruelty,” Putin told a meeting of ministers in Moscow. “I do not doubt that this crime will be solved and that retribution is inevitable. The task of the government is to extend support to the families of the dead and injured.” President Dmitry Medvedev ordered investigators on Tuesday to root out the culprits behind a deadly bombing at Russia’s busiest airport and threatened sackings over security lapses he said had aided the attack.

EDMONTON — Lead-footed motorists in the city have caught a $13-million break in a move officials fear could spell the death of the speed-on-green program. Steven Bilodeau, chief Crown prosecutor, said everyone who's paid an intersection safety camera speeding ticket since November 2009 in Edmonton is eligible for a refund. This comes on the heels of a previous announcement that all outstanding tickets would be cancelled. Bilodeau said "it's just a matter of fairness" that there also be full refunds to those who have already paid. It's the result of a technical glitch that saw tickets issued with ridiculously high speeds indicated. He said about 140,000 speed-on-green tickets have been issued since November 2009, worth about $13 million. "This is all about public confidence. This is about the reliability of the intersection safety cameras," Bilodeau said.

TORONTO -- A former principal and four other people face fraud charges for allegedly misappropriating $700,000 from a school for disabled children. Four of those charged are former employees of the Bloorview School Authority, located on Kilgour Rd. in the Bayview-Eglinton Aves. area. "In September 2008, the Bloorview School Authority hired a Toronto forensic audit firm to conduct a financial review on the school's finances between July 2006 and September 2008," said Det. Adkin Holder of the Toronto police fraud unit. The audit revealed that about $700,000 had been "misappropriated" from the school for children and youth with special needs, he added. Holder said the charges -- laid after a nine-month investigation -- have to do with over payments, the use of school credit cards, payments for work that was never done and expenditures on vacations. Linda LaRocque, 63, of Vernon, B.C. -- the former principal and director of the school -- is charged with fraud over $5,000 and laundering the proceeds of crime. She is also a former superintendent with the Toronto District School Board. Paula Gerolimon, 49, of Richmond Hill, Ont. -- the former business and finance manager at the school -- is charged with fraud over $5,000, falsification of books or documents and laundering proceeds of crime. Bo-Reum Han, 38, of Mississauga, Ont. -- a former administrative assistant at the school -- is charged with fraud over $5,000. Former school secretary Rose Hudson, 37, of Brampton, Ont., is charged with fraud over $5,000. Sandra Charles, 36, of Toronto, is charged with fraud over $5,000. All five will make an appearance Tuesday in a Toronto court

 
 

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Canada Satellite 
Toronto CEOs pocket the equivalent of the average Canadians annual wage by 2:30 pm on Jan. 3, the first working day of the year.
Canada's CEO wages recession-proof: study HAPPY  NEW  YEAR!

 Canada's best-paid 100 CEOs are sitting on previously granted stock options already worth $1.3 billion at the time their companies reported to shareholders in 2009.  their capital gains windfall — is taxed at half the rate paid on wage and salary income. Mackenzie said that tax subsidy is worth an average of $467,000 on their 2009 income, or roughly 10 times the pay of the average Canadian worker.

Colts quarterback Peyton Manning makes a throw during Sunday's win over Tennessee, which returned Indianapolis to the playoffs as the AFC South champion.Colts quarterback Peyton Manning makes a throw during Sunday's win over Tennessee, which returned Indianapolis to the playoffs as the AFC South champion. (Andy Lyons/Getty Images) Peyton Manning threw two touchdown passes and Adam Vinatieri made a 43-yard field goal as time expired, giving the Colts a 23-20 home victory Sunday afternoon and their seventh AFC South title in eight years!

Bring it on! Russia and Canada go at it for the gold  The showdown with the United States turned into a one-sided win for Canada, but an old and dangerous rival awaits in the final of the world junior hockey championship: Russia. The game airs Wednesday.

One Daley brother helped give rise to the political career of Barack Obama, and now another could have the chance to sustain it in troubled times. The highest floating trial balloon was launched in this morning’s New York Times, which reports that Obama discussed the chief of staff job with William Daley, former commerce secretary under Bill Clinton and younger brother of six-term Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, “around the holidays.”The reaction to the Daley leaks has been interesting to watch. William Daley is a pro-business Democrat who has been critical of his party’s efforts on health care and other issues. He has been a fixture on corporate boards since leaving government in 2000 and currently holds the title of “Midwest chairman” for megabank J.P. Morgan Chase.
 The Canadian dollar kicked off the new year above parity with the U.S. dollar as oil prices hit a two year high. The loonie gained 0.13 cents to 100.67 cents US. Recent strength in the Canadian dollar has been fuelled by higher crude prices, which sit at a two year high. The February crude contract was unchanged at US$91.54 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Meanwhile, the February gold contract slipped $25.10 to US$1,397.80. The March copper contract on the Nymex lost one cent to US$4.44. The Canadian dollar closed above parity against the American currency Friday, up 0.54 to 100.54 cents U.S., its highest close since May 2008. The U.S. dollar lost ground against most G7 currencies on thin trading over the holiday. Investors are looking toward North American employment data set to be released Friday,which will impact the direction of the Canadian and U.S. Good news will help the Canadian dollar gain further traction and bad news could see it slip.

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