Romney leads as Florida votes in high-stakes (Reuters)

ORLANDO/TAMPA, Florida (Reuters) ? Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney held a comfortable double-digit lead in polls over struggling rival Newt Gingrich as Florida's Republican voters cast ballots on Tuesday in a high-stakes presidential primary election.

Florida is by far the largest state to hold a primary so far this year and a Romney victory would give him a big boost in the state-by-state battle to decide who will face Democratic U.S. President Barack Obama in the November general election.

Gingrich, a former speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, was riding high just 10 days ago after an upset win in South Carolina's primary and led in Florida polls as recently as early last week.

But the well-funded and well-organized Romney took back the lead after two strong debate performances and a blizzard of television advertisements attacking Gingrich.

By Monday, Romney's support in Florida was at 43 percent versus Gingrich's 28 percent, according to Reuters/Ipsos online poll data. Former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum and Texas Representative Ron Paul, who are no longer campaigning in Florida, were at 12 percent and 5 percent, respectively.

Many conservative Republicans, however, remain concerned that Romney is too moderate. The former governor has failed to electrify a party that has reluctantly embraced him while continuing to encourage his more conservative rivals.

Despite his edge in Florida, Romney still narrowly trails Gingrich in national polls. Many analysts say he needs a double-digit victory in the "Sunshine State" to cement his status as front-runner as the national Republican nomination contest continues.

Romney and his allies spent more than four times as much as Gingrich in Florida.

"So for me, Florida's big. But New Hampshire's big too. And I'm hoping as I go to Nevada and Minnesota and Missouri and Colorado and Arizona - and the list goes on and on - that I'll be able to get a lot of support in part because of the response here of people in Florida," Romney told reporters in Tampa.

If Romney wins the nomination but does not catch fire with the Republican base, some party leaders worry that a third-party candidate could emerge and take votes away from him, boosting Obama.

They also fear a continued lukewarm performance could mean no candidate will win enough to take the nomination outright and delegates pledged to minority candidates could make the difference at the convention.

RAISING MONEY

The campaigns and allied Super PAC fundraising groups have until the end of Tuesday to report whose money they are spending, and how, in an increasingly expensive campaign. Campaign finance filings to the Federal Election Commission will for the first time officially show who contributed money to the Super PACs and fueled their multimillion-dollar spending sprees.

A spokesman for Gingrich's campaign said on Twitter that he had raised $10 million in the fourth quarter of 2011 and $5 million in January.

If Romney wins in Florida, he would be the first candidate this year to capture more than one of the state-by-state nominating contests. Santorum narrowly won Iowa's caucuses on January 3, Romney won New Hampshire's January 10 primary and Gingrich won in South Carolina on January 21.

Gingrich said Republicans needed to unite behind him and shun Romney if they wanted to defeat Obama on November 6.

"If they want to beat President Obama, I believe a conservative has a much better chance," he said in Orlando.

Romney's attacks have focused on Gingrich's work for troubled mortgage giant Freddie Mac, an ethics probe and his resignation as speaker in 1999. They have also mocked Gingrich's attempt to ride the coattails of former President Ronald Reagan, a conservative hero.

Gingrich has derided Romney as a "Massachusetts moderate" who raised taxes and fees as governor, enforced a healthcare mandate, and will not provide a sharp enough contrast to Obama.

Florida is a stronghold for the small-government Tea Party, and the movement has been backing Gingrich in the state.

But other major voting blocs, including Hispanics, who account for 11.1 percent of Florida's Republicans, seem to be heavily favoring Romney. Crucially, in a state where two-thirds of voters are over 65, a Public Policy Polling poll gave Romney a 12-point lead among older voters.

The fight could go on at least until "Super Tuesday" on March 6, when Gingrich, a Georgia native, could launch a concerted campaign for the several southern states that will be up for grabs.

But a big Romney victory on Tuesday could leave Gingrich scrambling. "Double digits could really scare away potential donors who are looking to replenish Gingrich's coffers," Republican strategist Ford O'Connell said.

As Gingrich vows to keep fighting until the nominating convention in August, some voters worry that a nasty, prolonged primary fight would hurt the eventual nominee.

"I don't like any of the candidates, to be honest," said Robert White, 51, a power plant operator in Orlando, who said he had voted for Gingrich, but not enthusiastically. "I just kinda like what he stands for. I think Romney has a good chance, but he's running a smear campaign right now."

Florida allows early voting at polling stations and by mail. Thirty-five percent of respondents in the Reuters/Ipsos poll said they had already voted by Monday. They favored Romney by a 22-point margin, the poll showed.

The last polling stations, in Florida's western panhandle, close at 8 p.m. EST (0100 GMT on Wednesday), an hour later than in most of the state. Polls opened at 7 a.m. EST (1200 GMT).

(Additional Reporting by Jane Sutton in Miami Beach, Ben Gruber in Miami, Michael Connor in Hollywood, Barbara Liston in Orlando, Robert Green in Tampa, Irene Klotz in Melbourne and Michael Haskins in Key West, Florida, and Paul Simao and Patricia Zengerle in Washington; writing by Patricia Zengerle; Editing by Paul Simao and Mohammad Zargham)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/gop/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120131/ts_nm/us_usa_campaign

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Jak of all trades? Not of leukaemia therapy!

Monday, January 30, 2012

About one in five or six cases of adult leukaemia in Western populations relates to so-called chronic myeloid leukaemia, or CML. Treatment of CML usually relies on inhibitors of the abnormal protein that causes the condition but some patients do not respond to treatment and efforts are underway to develop a supplementary approach, targeting the so-called JAK2 kinase. Recent results from the groups of Veronika Sexl at the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna (Vetmeduni Vienna) and Giulio Superti-Furga at the Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (CeMM) have called this strategy into question. The work is published in the current issue of the prestigious journal Nature Chemical Biology and is of immediate relevance to leukaemia treatment.

The cause of CML has been known since 1960, when two scientists in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania showed that the disease was associated with a particular genetic abnormality, the "Philadelphia chromosome". Philadelphia chromosomes represent the result of an incorrect crossing-over between two chromosomes, through which part of the Bcr ("breakpoint cluster region") gene from chromosome 22 fuses with the Abl gene on chromosome 9. The fusion gene product is a tyrosine kinase, i.e. it can phosphorylate other proteins on tyrosine residues. When it does so, it incorrectly activates several signal pathways controlling cell division in white blood cells and leads to leukaemia. Thankfully, drugs have been developed that prevent the kinase activity of the BCR-ABL fusion protein and the majority of patients treated with such tyrosine kinase inhibitors (e.g. imatinib) show no further signs of leukaemia.

Unfortunately, however, patients may develop resistance to the therapy so an alternative approach is required. Recent developments have focused on the use of drugs targeting another kinase involved in CML, the JAK2 kinase. In normal white blood cells, JAK2 is known to activate a further molecule, known as STAT5, which is absolutely required for the development of CML. The argument runs that if JAK2 could be specifically inhibited ? and thus STAT5 not activated ? it would bring fresh hope to patients who do not respond to treatment with imatinib. Several potential inhibitors of JAK2 are currently undergoing clinical trials and may shortly be available for treating patients.

The theory is appealing but to date we do not really understand exactly what happens when JAK2 is inactivated following the initiation of leukaemia by the Bcr-Abl oncogene. Sexl and her colleagues have used a transgenic mouse model to clarify the functions of these proteins in leukaemia. Their results were highly unexpected. The JAK2 kinase was found to be not required for the maintenance of the disease, i.e. inhibiting JAK2 in leukaemic cells had no therapeutic benefit. However, inhibition of STAT5 in leukaemia was sufficient to prevent cell proliferation. As Sexl says, "this means that the normal signalling pathway is completely rewired in CML cells: STAT5 activity no longer depends on JAK2." In support of this conclusion, the researchers were able to show that the BCR-ABL protein directly phosphorylates STAT5, thereby activating it.

As Superti-Furga notes, "The findings have extremely important consequences for CML therapy in humans," adding, "We are very happy that the collaboration between our two groups is so fruitful". Put bluntly, leukaemia patients that do not respond to imatinib will not be helped by inhibiting JAK2. Interestingly, some JAK2 inhibitors do slow the progression of leukaemic cells, although they must be given at very high levels. The "therapeutic" action is mediated by a secondary target of the JAK2 inhibitors, which Sexl and colleagues have shown to be the Bcr-Abl oncogene itself. Sexl concludes that, "at the moment there is simply no rationale for giving leukaemic patients JAK2 inhibitors. If we want to help patients who do not respond to imatinib, we should concentrate instead on developing inhibitors to STAT5."

###

University of Veterinary Medicine -- Vienna: http://www.vetmeduni.ac.at

Thanks to University of Veterinary Medicine -- Vienna for this article.

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Starbucks, Tata to open 50 Indian stores this year

John Culver, president of Starbucks China and Asia Pacific, attends a press conference in Mumbai, India, Monday, Jan. 30, 2012. Starbucks said it will open its first outlet in India by September, through a 50-50 joint venture with Tata Global Beverages. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)

John Culver, president of Starbucks China and Asia Pacific, attends a press conference in Mumbai, India, Monday, Jan. 30, 2012. Starbucks said it will open its first outlet in India by September, through a 50-50 joint venture with Tata Global Beverages. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)

R.K.Krishankumar, vice chairman Tata Global Beverages, left, shakes hands with John Culver, president Starbuck China and Asia Pacific, during a press conference in Mumbai, India, Monday, Jan. 30, 2012. Starbucks says it will open its first outlet in India by September, through a 50-50 joint venture with Tata Global Beverages. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)

MUMBAI, India (AP) ? Starbucks aims to open 50 outlets in India by year's end, through a 50-50 joint venture with Tata Global Beverages, the companies said Monday.

Tata Starbucks Ltd., as their venture is known, hopes to capitalize on the rising aspirations ? and fattening wallets ? of many Indians, who are eager to partake of the global latte life.

"What we are seeing is an evolution in lifestyles," said R.K. Krishnakumar, vice chairman of Tata Global Beverages. "In some ways the distinctions between the developed world and the developing world are blurring."

He said the partners would initially invest 4 billion rupees ($80 million), with the first outlet to open in Mumbai or New Delhi by September.

Long known as a nation of tea drinkers ? despite a rich tradition of coffee in the south ? India has embraced coffee house culture with a vengeance.

Last year, India had 1,600 cafes, up from just 700 in 2007, according to Technopak Advisors, which expects India's $170 million cafe market to grow 30 percent a year, adding up to 2,700 more outlets over the next five years.

"We're going to move as fast as possible in opening as many stores as we can so long as we are successful and so long as we are embraced by the Indian consumers," said John Culver, president of Starbucks China and Asia Pacific.

Unusually, the stores will be cobranded "Starbucks Coffee: A Tata Alliance."

The companies will also develop a tea for the Indian market under the Tata Tazo brand.

Last January, Starbucks signed an agreement with Tata Coffee, a unit of Tata Global Beverages, to source and roast coffee beans in India.

The alliance with Tata could help ease one of the main burdens for retailers in India: the high cost of real estate.

Krishnakumar said the joint venture would open outlets at properties owned by group companies, for example at the Taj chain of luxury hotels.

Culver said the company would also look at opening outlets in shopping malls, office parks, universities, airports and train stations.

The alliance will also help Tata Global Beverages expand its international footprint. All coffee beans for the cafes in India will be sourced from Tata Coffee, which also hopes to ramp up exports to regional Starbucks outlets, Krishnakumar said. He said other Tata Beverage brands, like Himalayan water, should also find their way into Starbucks outlets globally.

Culver said Starbucks did not consider trying to go it alone in India, despite the government's recent decision to allow foreign companies to operate single-brand retail outlets without a local partner. A storm of populist fury forced New Delhi to pull back a parallel proposal that would have allowed multi-brand retailers, like Wal-Mart, to open retail outlets with local partners.

"We never considered 51 percent," Culver said. "When we looked at the opportunity to enter India, understanding the complexities of the market and the uniqueness that is India, we wanted to find a local business partner."

Starbucks currently operates over 17,000 stores in 57 countries.

Its India venture will face competition from existing players like Cafe Coffee Day, which dominates the market.

Technopak founder Arvind Singhal said India's flourishing cafe culture has less to do with coffee than a social need for clean, safe gathering places for young and old alike, who often live in cramped quarters.

"India doesn't have too many places for people of any age to just go out," he said. "It's not about a coffee culture. It's a gathering place where people can sit and meet."

He added that Starbucks' entry, however much delayed, is likely to fan competition and speed the proliferation of coffee shops. It could also help boost flagging investor confidence in India. "It's almost like an endorsement that India's still a good story," he said.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-01-30-AS-India-Starbucks/id-ed3e109611f440f2869c41f6a441db2c

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EU leaders seek growth as Greece crisis looms (AP)

BRUSSELS ? With another recession looming, European leaders on Monday met in Brussels to discuss ways to stimulate growth and create badly needed jobs, even as they drew up tighter spending limits to avoid a repeat of the crippling debt crisis.

Europe's debt crisis has put the continent and its leaders in an almost impossible situation. While they have to slash their deficits to reassure investors reluctant to lend to them, the debt crisis has also hammered the so-called "real economy," sending unemployment soaring. Many think that only government spending can restart growth.

While the 27 EU leaders meeting in Brussels will focus on walking the fine line between reining in spending and stimulating growth, the elephant in room is Greece.

Greece and its bondholders have come closer to a deal to significantly reduce the country's debt and pave the way for it to receive a much-needed euro130 billion ($170 billion) bailout.

Negotiators for Greece's private creditors said Saturday that a debt-reduction deal could become final within the next week. If the agreement works as planned, it could help Greece avoid a catastrophic default, which would be a blow to Europe's already weak financial system.

But European officials are afraid that even that deal may not be enough to fix Greece's finances, with some blaming Athens for dithering in its austerity promises.

German officials over the weekend proposed that Athens temporarily cede control over tax and spending decisions to a powerful eurozone budget commissioner before it can secure further bailouts.

The idea proved immediately controversial ? both the European Commission and the Greek government refuted it ? to the point that German Chancellor Angela Merkel pulled back on the idea when she arrived in Brussels.

She said Europe had to support Greece in implementing promised austerity and reform measures, "but all that will only work if Greece and all other states discuss this together."

Luxembourg Prime Minister, and head of the group of eurozone finance ministers, Jean-Claude Juncker told reporters as he entered the summit that Greece couldn't be singled out.

"I'm strongly against the idea of imposing the debt commissioner only to Greece, that's just not acceptable" neither for Greece nor the rest of Europe, Juncker said.

The negotiations in Greece are crucial because it is clear that Athens will never be able to pay off all of its debts, especially as austerity measures take their toll on its anemic economy. Martin Schulz, president of the European Parliament, cautioned against punishing Greece too severely.

"Greece needs an economic relaunch today and not in 2016," he told reporters on the sidelines of the summit. "So why not put together a stimulus package today instead of discussing another time a reduction in spending in a country that's in an economic depression?

He said that there are European funds for that kind of stimulus, but unlocking them has always posed a challenge.

The European Commission has proposed to summit leaders that euro82 billion in existing development funds be redirected toward countries in dire need of help to fix their labor markets.

Greece is not alone in facing slow growth and high unemployment. In Spain, for example, unemployment has soared to nearly 23 percent and closed in on 50 percent for those under age 25, leaving more than 5 million people ? or almost one out of every four ? out of work as the country slides toward recession.

Even countries in the so-called European "core" ? which are generally better off ? are suffering. The French government was forced Monday to revise down its growth forecast for the year from 1 percent to just 0.5 percent.

In fact, many now fear that Europe is on the verge of another recession, and leaders gathering Brussels said that spurring growth would be the focus of their talks Monday.

A draft of the summit conclusions, obtained by The Associated Press, proposes reducing barriers to do business across the EU's 27 states and giving better training to young people, who are particularly hard-hit by unemployment.

But it does not contain any new financial stimulus to boost growth, even though turning around Europe's economy would likely require more stimulus from governments, which are currently under pressure to cut ? rather than increase ? spending.

"We have to have balanced budgets and at the same time focus on growth and jobs," said Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt of Denmark, which holds the rotating presidency of European Council. "It is possible to both at the same time and it is important to understand that these are two sides of the same coin."

The 27 heads of state and government got a taste of the popular frustration with austerity and high unemployment on their way to Monday's summit in a city paralyzed by strikes. Leaders had to fly into the military airport of Beauvechain 20 miles (30 kilometers) outside of Brussels after the city's main airport was shutdown by a 24-hour strike.

Belgium's three main unions joined forces in the walkout to protest national budgetary measures that have in part been imposed on the country by the EU. If the country hadn't met cost-cutting targets, financial sanctions would have been imposed.

Monday's strike has been mirrored in many other member states. Overall, 23 million people are jobless across the EU, 10 percent of the active population.

"Europe has to offer jobs, social protection and perspective for the future. Otherwise it risks losing the support of its citizens," said the strike manifesto of the ACV union.

___

Associated Press writers Don Melvin, Robert Wielaard and Raf Casert contributed to this story.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120130/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_europe_financial_crisis

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SUMO-snipping protein plays crucial role in T and B cell development

Saturday, January 28, 2012

When SUMO grips STAT5, a protein that activates genes, it blocks the healthy embryonic development of immune B cells and T cells unless its nemesis breaks the hold, a research team led by scientists at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center reports today in Molecular Cell.

"This research extends the activity of SUMO and the Sentrin/SUMO-specific protease 1 (SENP1) to the field of immunology, in particular the early lymphoid development of T and B cells," said the study's senior author, Edward T. H. Yeh, M.D., professor and chair of MD Anderson's Department of Cardiology.

SUMO proteins, also known as the small ubiquitin-like modifiers or Sentrin, attach to other proteins in cells to modify their function or to move them within a cell. SENP1 is one of a family of six proteins that snips SUMO off of SUMO-modified proteins. SUMOylation (SUMO modification) of proteins has been implicated in development of cancer, heart and neurodegenerative diseases, among others.

The team first analyzed the role of SENP1 in the development of lymphoids in mice and found it is heavily expressed in precursor cells, the early stages of B and T cell development.

Working with genetically modified mice they developed that lack SENP1 gene expression, Yeh and colleagues found the mouse embryos had severe defects in their T and B cells, white blood cell lymphocytes that identify and fight infection.

SUMO pins STAT5 in the nucleus

Subsequent experiments led them to STAT5, a transcription factor known to play critical roles in the development and function of immune cells. Transcription factors work in the cell nucleus, activating gene expression by connecting to a gene's promoter region.

"STAT5 works in a cycle, moving from the cytosol of a cell into the nucleus to activate genes and then back out to the cytosol," Yeh said. "We found that when STAT5 is SUMOylated in the nucleus it gets trapped there when there's no SENP1 to remove SUMO."

The team found that SUMO muscles in on two other signaling events that govern STAT5 activity - phosphorylation and acetylation.

SUMO inhibits STAT5 signaling

STAT5 is activated in the cell cytosol when the JAK tyrosine kinase attaches a phosphate group at a specific site on the STAT5 protein. This transformed STAT5 crosses the nuclear membrane into the nucleus to transcribe genes.

The team found that SUMO attaches to STAT5 close to its phosphorylation site and that cells lacking SENP1 have increased SUMOylation and decreased phosphorylation.

SUMOylation vs. acetylation

In addition to phosphorylation, acetylation of STAT5 has been shown to be essential for STAT5 to cross the nuclear membrane into the nucleus to enhance gene transcription. Yeh and colleagues found that SUMO competes directly with acetyl groups for the same binding site, inhibiting acetylation.

"Without SENP1 to remove SUMO, STAT5 can't be acetylated or phosphorylated and can't be recycled for use again," Yeh said. "We discovered that SENP1 controls lymphoid development through regulation of SUMOylation of STAT5."

Since Yeh's lab discovered SUMOylation in 1996, SUMO has been found to alter the function of thousands of proteins.

Yeh is hosting the 6th International Conference SUMO, Ubiquitin, UBL Proteins: Implications for Human Diseases Feb. 8-11 in the Dan L. Duncan Building at MD Anderson. Yeh organizes the meeting every other year.

"There used to be so little known about SUMO. Now, a protein is assumed to be SUMOylated until proved otherwise," Yeh said.

###

University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center: http://www.mdanderson.org

Thanks to University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center for this article.

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Etta James remembered as triumphant trailblazer

Stevie Wonder performs at the funeral of singer Etta James, Saturday, Jan. 28, 2012, at Greater Bethany Community Church City of Refuge in Gardena, Calif. James died last Friday at age 73 after battling leukemia and other ailments, including dementia. She was most famous for her classic "At Last," but over her decades-long career, she became revered for her passionate singing voice. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)

Stevie Wonder performs at the funeral of singer Etta James, Saturday, Jan. 28, 2012, at Greater Bethany Community Church City of Refuge in Gardena, Calif. James died last Friday at age 73 after battling leukemia and other ailments, including dementia. She was most famous for her classic "At Last," but over her decades-long career, she became revered for her passionate singing voice. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)

Stevie Wonder performs at the funeral of singer Etta James, Saturday, Jan. 28, 2012, at Greater Bethany Community Church City of Refuge in Gardena, Calif. James died last Friday at age 73 after battling leukemia and other ailments, including dementia. She was most famous for her classic "At Last," but over her decades-long career, she became revered for her passionate singing voice. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)

Donto James, son singer Etta James speaks at his mother's funeral, Saturday, Jan. 28, 2012, at Greater Bethany Community Church City of Refuge in Gardena, Calif. James died last Friday at age 73 after battling leukemia and other ailments, including dementia. She was most famous for her classic "At Last," but over her decades-long career, she became revered for her passionate singing voice. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)

Christina Aguilera performs at the funeral of singer Etta James, Saturday, Jan. 28, 2012, at Greater Bethany Community Church City of Refuge in Gardena, Calif. James died last Friday at age 73 after battling leukemia and other ailments, including dementia. She was most famous for her classic "At Last," but over her decades-long career, she became revered for her passionate singing voice. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)

Christina Aguilera performs at the funeral of singer Etta James, Saturday, Jan. 28, 2012, at Greater Bethany Community Church City of Refuge in Gardena, Calif. James died last Friday at age 73 after battling leukemia and other ailments, including dementia. She was most famous for her classic "At Last," but over her decades-long career, she became revered for her passionate singing voice. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu)

GARDENA, California (AP) ? Rhythm & blues legend Etta James was remembered at a service Saturday attended by hundreds of friends, family and fans as a woman who triumphed against all odds to break down cultural and musical barriers in a style that was unfailingly honest.

The Rev. Al Sharpton, a civil rights activist, eulogized James in a rousing speech, describing her remarkable rise from poverty and pain to become a woman whose music became an enduring anthem for weddings and commercials.

Perhaps most famously, President Barack Obama and the first lady shared their first inaugural ball dance to a version of the song sung by Beyonce, who portrayed James in the film "Cadillac Records." Sharpton on Saturday opened his remarks by reading a statement from the president.

"Etta will be remembered for her legendary voice and her contributions to our nation's musical heritage," Obama's statement read.

The Grammy-winning singer died Jan. 20 after battling leukemia and other ailments, including dementia. She had retreated from public life in recent years, but on Saturday her legacy was on display as mourners of all ages and races converged on the City of Refuge church in Gardena, south of downtown Los Angeles.

Among the stars performing tributes to James were Stevie Wonder and Christina Aguilera, who told the gathering that she has included "At Last" in every concert she's performed as a tribute to her musical inspiration.

Wonder performed three songs, including "Shelter In the Rain" and a harmonica solo. James' rose-draped casket was on display, surrounded by wreaths and floral arrangements and pictures of the singer.

Sharpton, who met James when he was an up-and-coming preacher, credited her with helping break down racial barriers through her music.

"She was able to get us on the same rhythms and humming the same ballads and understanding each other's melodies way before we could even use the same hotels," Sharpton said, referring to the era when racial segregation was the law in many U.S. states.

He said James' fame and influence would have been unthinkable to a woman with James' background ? growing up in a broken home during segregation and at times battling her own demons.

"The genius of Etta James is she flipped the script," Sharpton said, alluding to her struggles with addiction, which she eventually overcame.

"She waited until she turned her pain into power," he said, adding that it turned her story away from being a tragic one into one of triumph.

"You beat 'em Etta," Sharpton said in concluding his eulogy. "At last. At last. At last!"

The assembly roared to their feet, and would again stand to applaud performances by Wonder and Aguilera, who filled the sanctuary with their voices.

"Out of all the singers that I've ever heard, she was the one that cut right to my soul and spoke to me," Aguilera said before her performance.

Throughout the service, a portrait of James as a woman who beat the odds in pursuit of her dreams repeatedly emerged.

"Etta is special to me and for me, because she represents the life, the triumphs, the tribulations of a lot of black women all over this world," said U.S. Rep Maxine Waters, a California Democrat.

"It does not matter who sang 'At Last' before or after Etta. It does not matter when it was sung, or where it was sung. 'At Last' was branded by Etta, the raunchy diva ? that's her signature and we will always remember her."

James won four Grammy Awards, including a lifetime achievement honor, and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993. In her decades-long career, she became revered for her passionate, soulful singing voice.

She scored her first hit when she was just a teenager with the suggestive "Roll With Me, Henry," which had to be changed to "The Wallflower" in order to get airplay. Her 1967 album, "Tell Mama," became one of the most highly regarded soul albums of all time, a mix of rock and gospel music.

She rebounded from a heroin addiction to see her career surge after performing the national anthem at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. She won her first Grammy Award a decade later, and two more in 2003 and 2004.

James is survived by her husband of 42 years, Artis Mills, and two sons, Donto and Sametto James.

"Mom, I love you," Donto James said during brief remarks. "When I get to the gates, can you please be there for me?"

___

Follow Anthony McCartney at http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2012-01-28-Etta%20James-Funeral/id-1d902050374c4cecb43a8f6b2fda27db

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Obama seeks to rally Democrats to election-year fight (Reuters)

CAMBRIDGE, Maryland (Reuters) ? President Barack Obama vowed on Friday to push back hard against Republicans who try to obstruct his election-year proposals on taxes and jobs, as he sought to rally congressional Democrats and move past a period of strained relations.

Wrapping up a cross-country tour to promote a populist agenda laid out in this week's State of the Union address, Obama hammered home a reelection campaign appeal for greater economic fairness and called on fellow Democrats to close ranks with him.

Obama, who must convince voters to give him a second term despite a fragile economy and high unemployment, used his speech to a Democratic lawmakers' retreat in Maryland to turn up the heat on their Republican opponents.

Republicans accuse him of pursuing the "politics of envy" and have assailed his State of the Union proposals, including higher taxes on wealthier Americans.

"Where they obstruct, where they're unwilling to act, where they're more interested in party than they are in country ... then we've got to call them out on it," Obama said to loud applause. "We've got to push them. We can't wait. We can't be held back."

The White House believes that by casting Obama as a champion of the middle class, he can tap into voter resentment over income inequality and Wall Street excess, while painting the Republicans as the party beholden to the rich.

But Obama's economic proposals are unlikely to make headway in a deeply divided Congress, where Republicans control the House of Representatives and the president's legislative agenda remains stalled.

Pledging to "push hard" for his proposal that people earning more than $1 million a year pay a minimum of 30 percent in tax, Obama dismissed Republican criticism this was class warfare.

"Nobody envies rich people. Everybody wants to be rich ... the question is, are we creating opportunity for everybody?"

Relations between Obama and Democratic lawmakers suffered after Republicans won the House in the 2010 congressional elections, with some Democrats complaining Obama had made too many concessions to his political opponents.

But ties have improved in recent months as Obama has taken a more combative line toward Republicans over taxes and jobs and has drawn a stark contrast with Republican presidential hopefuls vying to face him in the November election.

Starting his appearance with a standing ovation from the audience, Obama thanked the House Democrats for giving him a compact disc in which they all performed a rendition of Al Green's 'I'm So In Love With You.'"

(Additional reporting by Alister Bull and Matt Spetalnick in Washington and Thomas Ferraro in Cambridge, Maryland; Editing by Eric Walsh)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/uscongress/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120127/ts_nm/us_usa_campaign_obama

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Oil Portraits Investing Methods - Peruvian Embassy

Precisely what Are Your own Investing Restrictions?

As an oil portrait investor, what is your own maximum? Harry Callahan said, which a guy must learn his limitations.

Possibly you are not a guy? Does his strategy still apply in order to you?
Is This Particular Article For Us?

This particular article typically is for investors, who would definitely invest between $8 as well as $25,000, no more. Those, of you, who would definitely purchase established artworks, well-known paintings, must look for elsewhere, for tips.

Here Begin The Strategies
Here I will tell, in order to you, of some oil portraits artists, whose careers tend to be still growing, still who promise in order to be more celebrated, prior to too years will possess gone by.

If it turns out we need to save really more whenever shopping online try utilizing barnes and noble coupon codes as well as barnes and noble promo code.

Statement Of Innocence
Initially permit me personally state, I possess no relationship alongside many of these artists. I do not attain paid in order to tell, in order to you, about them.
What exactly is within it for me personally, typically is in order to establish my reputation because a tipster.

Daniel Gerhartz
Daniel Gerhartz has been painting within Kewaskum, Wisconsin. A superior cause, for you in order to be excited, about his artistic career, is the fact that his function has been sold at Sotheby?s, still he continues to be comparatively uncelebrated.

Reasons With Come with Self-confidence With regard to Daniel?s Career
Daniel typically is a young bloke, he wasn?t even born, until eventually 1965. He can possess an advantageous 30 yrs left, in order to awaken the particular art-public in order to his presence. A great deal can be performed, within which amount of time.

I foretell which he will become a celebrity within the art planet, as well as which his paintings, as well as the prints of them, will rise within value, at an advantageous rate.

Daniel Does Commission Portraits
He said, which he typically is ready, in order to do custom portraiture. Should you want in order to contact him, do thus from his web?s site: .

Virgil Elliott
The upcoming oil portrait musician, whereof I desire to tell you, typically is called, ?Virgil Elliott?. His atelier, or simply painting-stead, typically is within Penngrove, about the grounds, of an aged winery, within northern California.

Virgil?s Networks, And also Honors, Vow Growth
Virgil was born within 1944, as well as has gotten multiple honors.

Realist Organizations Are Growing With regard to Clout, Due to the fact They Are Proactive And also Protective

Unlike ?modernist? institutions, which, until eventually in the recent past, seemed in order to possess had infinite funding as well as publicity, the particular associations, as well as the media, which promote realism, though their energy typically is about the rise, possess still in order to attain the particular amount, of clout, erst shown by the particular foe.

Thereby, the particular organizations, which possess honored Virgil, even though they tend to be the particular foremost groups within their field, possess been place down, by the particular foe, in order to the particular extent, they possess not been contained within wikipedia.

Specifics Of Virgil?s Honors
Virgil?s career, or simply, shall you state, his recognition, appears in order to be growing. He typically is listed within ?Who?s Who With regard to The World?, as well as within ?Who?s Who With regard to America?.
Virgil?s Book

Virgil?s book, ?Conventional Oil Painting: Advanced Techniques And also Concepts From The Renaissance With The Present?, typically is in order to be found, within the top booksellers of the U.S. of an., in order to wit, Barnes And also Noble, as well as Borders.

Honors And also Networks Which Support The Growth Of Virgil?s Career Celebrity
Virgil typically is you, of just 24, portraitists, in order to possess been given certification, by the particular American Portrait Society.

He was elected, in order to be an associate guild associate, of the American Society of Classical Realism. He typically is a signature associate of the American Society of Portrait Artists. He claimed a competition within the Artist?s Magazine?s portrait competition.

Indeed there is much more, but yet I do not wish to extend this particular article any further, alongside the reasons, for expecting the particular career, of Virgil Elliott, to develop.

My reasoning typically is, which, because a member of those top networks, within the field of realism, generally there typically is an advantageous chance of increasing publicity as well as celebrity for Virgil, alongside the passage of time.

Virgil Does Commission Portraits, Sells A Print
Virgil does commissioned portraits. Should you contact him, from his website, you are able to get a print of you of his paintings, ?Nocturne?, directly from him. Here typically is the particular url: .

Source: http://www.peruvian-embassy.com/oil-portraits-investing-methods/

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Paradigm Shift e3m

Paradigm is well known in the hi-fi audio realm for making some of the most affordable, excellent-sounding speakers under $1000, the Mini Monitors. Recently, Paradigm announced a more affordable line of speakers and?in a first for the company?earphones. The line is called Paradigm Shift, and the e3m, at $129.99 (direct), is the most expensive of the three earphone pairs the company unveiled at CES 2012. Fans of the signature smooth bass response of Paradigm speakers will not be disappointed, as the e3m offers plenty of clean, robust low-end that never distorts, even at top volume. Some listeners might prefer a bit more brightness or high frequency presence, but the response is not so muted in the highs that it could be called muffled. Overall, the e3m is a strong debut for Paradigm in the earphone realm.

Design
Offered in white or black (ours was black), the e3m features earpieces with aluminum housings for the 8-mm super-neodymium drivers. They're metallic-covered at the base, where the ear tips slide on, and black on the ends, with the Paradigm Shift logo emblazoned in silver on each earpiece. Red plastic, hidden by the eartips, marks the right earpiece. One tip in each ear tip pair?there are three differently-sized pairs included?also has red on it to keep things straight. The earpieces provide a secure seal and decent passive noise reduction, with the cable extending straight down from the ear. (Paradigm will also offer earhooks as an accessory for the Shift earphone line?rubberized sleeves for the cable that fit over the top of the ear, for those who prefer to wear the earphones upside down, with the cable shooting up and behind the ear.) The cable is covered in black, tangle-resistant cloth. It's not tangle-proof, but it should be easier to keep the e3m's cable more tidy than a typical earphone cable.

Along the right ear's cable, there is a small compartment housing a microphone and a single-button control system for answering calls. It works with most modern, popular phones, including the iPhone, but since it's not designed for one phone in particular, it doesn't handle any of them particularly gracefully. On the iPhone 4S, for instance, the single button needs to be tapped rapidly twice to skip a song, and three times to accomplish other tasks. The three-button iPhone controls included on most earphone pairs these days are far more efficient. The trade-off is that Paradigm's earphones will also work with most smartphones. Still, it feels like a control system from a few years back, and will likely annoy iPhone users who are familiar with the modern controls on other earphones. The 3.5mm connection is straight and narrow, which makes it ideal for mobile phones with bulkier cases. The e3m also comes with a compact, padded travel case.

Performance
One thing newcomers to the earphone realm often get wrong is bass performance?not just how much or how little bass to include in the earphones' sound signature, but also how well the drivers will handle deep bass at higher volumes. It's refreshing to see Paradigm get this right on the first try. Not only does the e3m offer exemplary bass response with articulate but powerful lows, but there is never any distortion. Even on tracks with seriously deep bass, like The Knife's "Silent Shout," and even at maximum volume, the e3m's remain clean.

Bass response isn't everything, though, and one thing audiophiles might find lacking is the high frequency response. When bass is intense and the higher frequencies lack the same amount of presence in the overall response, the result is often described as muddy or muffled. I wouldn't go so far as to say that the e3m sounds muffled, but there is less of an emphasis on the higher frequencies and crispness of vocals and percussion than you will find in similarly priced-models, like the Shure SE215 (4 stars, $119) and the Bowers & Wilkins C5 In-Ear Headphones (4.5 stars, $179.95). Both of those pairs won Editors' Choice awards and offer a much crisper high frequency response without sacrificing the low end. The e3m, however, sounds almost refreshing for dialing back the highs a bit?a sound sometimes attributed to vinyl and referred to as "warmth." If you're seeking the opposite of warmth, the Etymotic ER-4PT (4.5, $299)?another Editors' Choice?though far more expensive, is an industry standard for flat response, and has a distinctive crisp response with subtle, less intense low-end.

So, we'll call this a matter of taste. If you favor crisp, super-articulate highs, the e3m is probably not for you. If you're looking for a warmer sound, favoring the bass frequencies without getting muddy, the e3m may be just what you're looking for. If all the aforementioned options are all out of your budget, perhaps you should check out another PCMag Editors' Choice, the AKG K 325 (4 stars, $79.95)?at about $50 less, it's a steal, and still delivers laudable bass response and overall clarity.

?More Headphone Reviews:
??? Paradigm Shift e3m
??? Altec Lansing A1 Custom Single Driver Earphone
??? Phiaton PS 20 BT
??? Polk Audio UltraFit3000
??? Klipsch Image ONE Headphones
?? more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/L-TSMkvpe2c/0,2817,2399165,00.asp

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[OOC] NPC List

Forum rules
This forum is for OOC discussion about existing roleplays.

Please post all "Players Wanted" threads in the Roleplayers Wanted forum!

This topic is an Out Of Character part of the roleplay, ?Through the Looking Glass?. Anything posted here will also show up there.

Topic Tags:

Forum for completely Out of Character (OOC) discussion, based around whatever is happening In Character (IC). Discuss plans, storylines, and events; Recruit for your roleplaying game, or find a GM for your playergroup.
This is where we will keep a maintained list of fantasy characters in the roleplay. Any fantasy character that is not currently claimed by a player will also be listed here.

Sir Percival - A member of Queen Wilster's royal court.
Prince Ring- Queen Wilster's son and future heir to the throne.
Princess Signy- Niece of Queen Grimhild, married to Prince Ring.
Prince Asmund- Nephew of Queen Grimhild and brother to Signy. Asmund is under the care and protection of Queen Wilster.

LSunday

Member for 1 years

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User-friendly health plan summaries at risk (AP)

WASHINGTON ? Consumer groups are scrambling to salvage a popular provision of President Barack Obama's health care overhaul that suddenly seems to be in question.

This time it's not Republican opposition they're worried about, but the White House itself.

At issue is a requirement that health plans provide simple, standard summaries of coverage and costs to help consumers pick benefits that are right for them ? a sort of "CliffsNotes" version of cryptic insurance company jargon.

Consumer advocates say they fear the administration may heed industry complaints that the regulation as proposed last summer is too costly, burdensome and intrusive. The rule is due to take effect this year and is undergoing final review by the White House. It would apply to all private and employer health plans, covering an estimated 180 million Americans.

"There is concern that the consumer protections we were hoping to see may not be in the final rule," said Dr. LaShawn McIver, policy director for the American Diabetes Association. "Ultimately, we are looking for a consumer-friendly product that gives people the information they need about what levels of coverage they can expect."

Her organization and four others ? the American Cancer Society, the American Heart Association, AARP and Consumers Union ? wrote Obama this week urging him not to water down the requirements.

"The information available to Americans today is wholly inadequate for consumers to choose and understand the insurance coverage options available to them," their letter said.

Simple-to-understand health plan summaries are the most popular provision of the health care law, which otherwise continues to divide the public. That's according to a poll last November by the nonpartisan Kaiser Family Foundation, which found the summaries garnered support from 84 percent of Americans compared with 37 percent who viewed the overall law favorably.

Administration officials said they can't comment on the specifics of regulations under review, but they sought to reassure the consumer groups, which were among the major backers of the health care law as it was being debated in Congress.

"Giving consumers the information they need and making the health care system more transparent is a top priority," said Erin Shields, a spokeswoman for the Health and Human Services Department. "We're confident the final rules ... will meet that goal."

A proposed template released by the department last summer included such basic details as information on premiums, deductibles and copays for doctor visits and hospitalization. Such information is now generally the norm in health plan summaries that most companies voluntarily provide their employees during annual open enrollment.

But the federal template also included so-called coverage examples of the cost of care for a typical individual for three common health conditions: normal childbirth, treating breast cancer and managing diabetes. Because all health plans would have to follow the same rules in compiling the information, it would allow consumers to directly compare insurance in ways they can't now.

America's Health Insurance Plans, a trade group representing the industry, complained that the timeline for introducing the comparisons this year is unrealistic, and the cost would be more than double what the government estimated, or $382 million for the first two years alone. That would drive up costs for employers and health plans, the industry said, at a time when many companies are struggling in a difficult economy.

Lynn Quincy, a senior policy analyst for Consumers Union, said the advocacy groups have learned that the requirement for employer plans to provide the comparisons may be delayed or weakened. Additionally, two of the coverage examples may be omitted at least initially, leaving only a comparison of maternity costs.

"We are very concerned that compared to the proposed rule that was released in August, the final rule we are expecting shortly will be weakened," she said. "That would be very bad for consumers."

___

Online:

Proposed template for health plan comparisons: http://tinyurl.com/6ryq8rl

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120126/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_health_overhaul_consumers

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Netflix customers return in 4Q; stock soars 16 pct (AP)

SAN FRANCISCO ? Netflix has regained almost as many customers as it lost following an unpopular price increase, signaling that the video subscription service is healing from its self-inflicted wounds.

Fourth-quarter figures released Wednesday show Netflix Inc. ended December with 24.4 million subscribers in the U.S., up from 23.8 million at the end of September. That gain of about 600,000 customers compares with the loss of 800,000 subscribers last summer after it raised its U.S. prices as much as 60 percent.

The uptick is a positive sign for Netflix after several months of upheaval battered its stock. The shares reversed course Wednesday, surging nearly 16 percent.

The fourth-quarter performance should help bolster confidence in Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, who was skewered in Internet forums and analyst notes for miscalculating how subscribers would react to higher prices.

A contrite Hastings had promised that Netflix would lure back customers, and so far it has been even more successful than he forecast.

"You are never as smart or dumb as they say," Hastings said in a Wednesday interview. "We know we are just beginning to climb back in terms of consumer trust and affection."

The fallout from the earlier customer defections contributed to a 14 percent decrease in Netflix's fourth-quarter earnings.

Netflix made $40.7 million, or 73 cents per share, in the final three months of last year. That compares with income of $47.1 million, or 87 cents per share, a year earlier.

Investors had been bracing for a bigger drop-off. Analysts polled by FactSet had forecast fourth earnings of 54 cents per share.

Revenue climbed 47 percent from the previous year to $876 million ? $19 million above analyst projections.

Netflix's stock soared $15.08, or nearly 16 percent, to $110.12 in extended trading. It had ended regular trading up $2.37, or 2.6 percent, at $95.04. If the rally carries over into Thursday's trading, Netflix's stock could close at its highest level in three months.

The stock still has a long way to go to return to its peak of nearly $305, which was reached in July, about the same time that Netflix announced the price increase that outraged customers.

"It's still too early to know how much success Netflix is going to have this year, but seeing those gains in customers makes investors feel safer," said Frost & Sullivan analyst Dan Rayburn.

Now that the backlash over the higher prices has eased, Netflix's biggest challenge may be fending off competitive challenges to its primary business of streaming video over high-speed Internet connections.

Amazon.com Inc. is rapidly expanding a streaming service it started last year while many analysts are expecting Verizon Communications to get into video streaming later this year, possibly in a partnership with Coinstar Inc.'s Redbox, whose kiosks already compete against Netflix in DVD rentals. Google Inc.'s YouTube also is supplementing the amateur video on its site with more content from movie and TV studios.

Netflix, which is based in Los Gatos, Calif., also must navigate an international expansion that will saddle the company with a loss this year.

Those losses can be pared if Netflix can keep accelerating its customer growth.

The company forecast that it will add 1.7 million U.S. subscribers to its Internet video streaming service. That would be in line with how many streaming subscribers signed up in last year's first quarter.

Netflix ended 2011 with 21.7 million streaming subscribers in the U.S. and another 1.9 million in Canada and Latin America. This month, Netflix introduced streaming plans in the United Kingdom and Ireland, too.

Most of the streaming gains will be offset by cancellations of DVD-by-mail rental plans, which Netflix is gradually phasing out. Hastings believes discs are becoming increasingly antiquated as technology advances. Netflix predicted its DVD subscriptions will fall from 11.2 million in December to 9.7 million in March. The company lost 2.8 million DVD subscribers in the fourth quarter.

"We expect DVD subscribers to decline every quarter forever," Hastings told analysts during a Wednesday conference call.

About 8.4 million Netflix customers subscribe to both Internet streaming and DVD rentals.

While Netflix sees its emphasis on streaming as a smart long-term strategy, the DVD attrition will hurt the company's full-year performance because Netflix's recent price increases made delivering discs through the mail more profitable ? for now.

Netflix is paying higher fees for the streaming rights to exclusive programming, as well as video already available in other outlets and formats. At the end of December, its video licensing commitments totaled $3.9 billion.

Netflix expects to produce an annual loss this year, for the first time in a decade. The company gave the first inkling of how big the setback will be with its projection for a first-quarter loss of 16 cents to 49 cents per share.

Analysts on average expect a first-quarter loss of 29 cents per share.

Netflix projected first-quarter revenue of $842 million to $877 million, compared with a forecast for $849 million from analysts.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tech/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120126/ap_on_hi_te/us_earns_netflix

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Theatrhythm Final Fantasy box points to first paid DLC for Nintendo 3DS

3DS owners have been waiting (and waiting) for a chance to take advantage of a downloadable content market, and while Nintendo already accomplished the tough part (read: launching it) a few days back, there's still been no word on when paid content would make an appearance. Pushing those freebies aside is Theatrhythm Final Fantasy, which is seemingly destined to be the first 3DS title in existence to offer up enhancements in exchange for a few yen. The box here is actually an "early retail dummy unit," though the verbiage on the back makes quite clear that downloadable material will be available at a cost. Furthermore, there's a heretofore unseen Nintendo Network badge on the front, which may be a new look for the existing Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. At any rate, the game is scheduled to ship on February 16th in Japan, after which all of this will-it-won't-it drama will presumably be cleared up.

Theatrhythm Final Fantasy box points to first paid DLC for Nintendo 3DS originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 22 Jan 2012 23:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Computer and Video Games  |  Joshua_X (Twitter), Andriasang  | Email this | Comments

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/Xy4hG5_o2iE/

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Russian liberal says Kremlin bars him from vote (AP)

MOSCOW ? The leader of Russia's leading liberal party said Monday that election officials' refusal to clear his candidacy for March's presidential election reflects the government's fear of genuine competition.

Grigory Yavlinsky, the leader of Yabloko party, said authorities want to prevent him from challenging Prime Minister Vladimir Putin's bid to extend his 12-year rule by reclaiming the presidency. He said other contenders are only nominal rivals who are following the Kremlin's guidance.

"They aren't letting me to join the race, because they don't want to allow an alternative ? political, economic and moral," Yavlinsky said at a news conference.

The Central Election Commission said Monday that more than 20 percent of signatures collected in support of Yavlinsky's candidacy were found to be invalid. It said it would make the final decision on Yavlinsky's candidacy after checking another sample of more than 2 million signatures required by law for a candidate to qualify for the race.

Putin's presidential bid has been challenged by massive protests against vote-rigging in favor of his party in December's parliamentary election that drew tens of thousands in the largest show of public anger since the Soviet collapse two decades ago.

Yavlinsky's party, which failed to clear a 7-percent threshold required to win seats in parliament, fielded thousands of observers, who documented evidence of official fraud in favor of Putin's United Russia in December's vote.

Under the law, observers at the polls can only be named by participants in the race. Yavlinsky charged that a decision to bar him from running also was rooted in the authorities reluctance to allow strong monitoring of the presidential vote.

The election commission already has registered Putin and three other contenders: Communist Party chief Gennady Zyuganov, ultranationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky and socialist Just Russia leader Sergei Mironov. Since their parties are represented in the parliament, their registration is easier than for other potential candidates.

Election officials also signaled Monday they would register billionaire tycoon Mikhail Prokhorov, saying that a preliminary check of lists of signatures in his support had shown they correspond to legal norms.

Yavlinsky said that all these candidates represent "different faces of the government" and warned that the refusal to allow him to join the race would undermine the vote's legitimacy and could foment unrest in the future.

"The refusal to allow an alternative, a choice would erode trust in the vote and deal a blow to its legitimacy," he said. "The less trust and legitimacy are there, the more unpredictable and violent the situation in the country will be."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120123/ap_on_re_eu/eu_russia_election

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Private Rocket Builder Has High Hopes for 'Year of the Dragon' (SPACE.com)

This story was updated at 4:47 p.m. ET.

The lunar New Year ushered in the "Year of the Dragon" today (Jan. 23), according to the Chinese calendar, with one U.S. rocket company hoping to celebrate with a big fireworks display of its own soon.

The Hawthorne, Calif.-based company Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) is putting the finishing touches on its first private spaceship to visit the International Space Station, with the launch now aimed for late March. The gumdrop-shaped capsule is called Dragon and the company has taken a stylized depiction of the mythical beast as a logo.

The company celebrated the Chinese New Year by releasing an interactive panorama of the Dragon space capsule's interior and a digital vehicle and space station above Earth.

"Today marks the start of the Year of the Dragon in the Chinese calendar and this year, SpaceX's Dragon will become the first privately developed spacecraft to visit the International Space Station," SpaceX officials wrote in a statement today. "Space travel is one of the most difficult of all human endeavors, and success is never a guarantee. This flight introduces a series of new challenges and new magnitudes of complexity; if even the smallest thing goes wrong, we will be forced to abort the mission."

Led by veteran entrepreneur Elon Musk, SpaceX is one of two companies contracted by NASA to provide robotic cargo ships to haul supplies to the International Space Station. Musk has said he named the spacecraft "Dragon" after the fictional "Puff the Magic Dragon" in the song by the music group Peter, Paul and Mary because many critics considered the idea impossible when he founded the company in 2002.

Today, SpaceX has a $1.6 billion deal to provide 12 unmanned cargo flights for NASA. The other company ? Orbital Sciences Corp., in Virginia ? is also planning its first launch to the orbiting lab later this year.

SpaceX launched its first Dragon capsule on a short test flight in December 2010 in a historic milestone that marked the first flight and retrieval of a private space capsule. But that flight, which orbited Earth twice before splashing down in the Pacific Ocean, was only a trial run.

The real test will come in March or shortly thereafter, when the first Dragon capsule pulls up to the International Space Station and astronauts aboard the outpost grab it using a robotic arm. [Photos: Dragon, SpaceX's Private Spaceship]

"There will be challenges along the way, but SpaceX will again make history and become the first private company to send a spacecraft to the Space Station," SpaceX officials wrote. "We take this responsibility very seriously and will not stop until we succeed."

SpaceX and NASA originally aimed to launch the Dragon capsule test flight on Feb. 7, but the need for some final tests and checks forced the latest delay, SpaceX officials said.

SpaceX's Dragon capsules can carry about 13,228 pounds (6,000 kilograms) of cargo to low-Earth orbit and are designed to launch atop the company's Falcon 9 rockets. While the capsules can rendezvous with the space station, they are built to be grappled by the space station's robotic arm and attached to an available parking spot on one of the outpost's modules.

SpaceX is also hoping to modify the Dragon capsule to carry up to seven astronauts on trips to and from low-Earth orbit. The company is one of several private spacecraft firms to receive some NASA funds to develop private space taxies capable of ferrying astronauts to and from the space station.

"Dragon is a spacecraft unlike any other," SpaceX officials wrote. "Not only is it the first privately developed spacecraft to successfully return from Earth orbit, but it is also the only reusable spacecraft designed for human transport in operation today."

Like the mythical dragon, SpaceX's capsule does have a pair of wings, but only to generate power. The twin solar arrays are designed to unfold from the capsule after it reaches orbit.

But the spacecraft's solar arrays form just one part of the complicated spacecraft and SpaceX officials pledged to take a closer look at many other systems in the space capsule in the days ahead.

"In the coming days, we'll take a closer look at some of Dragon's advanced technologies in celebration of the Year of the Dragon and the opening of a new era in space travel," they said.

Follow SPACE.com for the latest in space science and exploration news on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/space/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/space/20120123/sc_space/privaterocketbuilderhashighhopesforyearofthedragon

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Merkel, Sarkozy meet amid new year of euro gloom (AP)

BERLIN ? The leaders of Germany and France are holding their first meeting of the year as the eurozone's weaker countries worry about high borrowing costs and Europe works to hammer out a treaty enshrining tougher budget rules.

Monday's meeting of Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Nicolas Sarkozy comes ahead of new Italian Premier Mario Monti's first visit to Berlin Wednesday.

Merkel and Sarkozy will travel to Italy Jan. 20 before a European summit at the end of the month.

Italy is a key focus of the crisis because of its size, huge debt load and need to borrow heavily in the first quarter. The yield on its 10-year bonds rose back above the 7 percent level that is considered a danger mark late last week.

Meanwhile, Greece's prime minister has warned of possible default if details of a second bailout aren't finalized.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/eurobiz/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120109/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_europe_financial_crisis

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Screws tighten on Iran as big buyers shun its oil

TEHRAN?? Iran faced the prospect on Thursday of cutbacks in its oil sales to China and Japan as new measures to cut off Tehran's crude exports appeared to be driving its economy to the wall.

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The developments in Asia follow news on Wednesday that EU leaders had agreed to halt European purchases of Iranian crude.

China, Iran's biggest trade partner, has already cut its purchases of Iranian oil by more than half this month and will extend the cuts to February, a Beijing-based trader who deals with Iranian oil said.

Japan will consider cutbacks in its Iranian oil purchases to secure a waiver from new U.S. sanctions signed into law on New Year's Eve by President Barack Obama, a government source said.

Between them, China, the EU and Japan buy about half of Iran's exports of 2.6 million barrels of oil per day.

Iranians rush to buy dollars
International sanctions that for years had little effect are for the first time having a real impact on day-to-day life in Iran, where the rial currency has tumbled and people have rushed to convert savings into dollars.

Most oil traders still expect Iran will be able to find buyers for its crude, but it will have to offer steeper discounts that will cut the hard currency revenue it needs to import food and other basic supplies for its 74 million people.

Iran warns US carrier to stay out of Persian Gulf

Iran has put on a brave face. Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi said on Thursday Iran would "weather the storm."

"Iran, with divine assistance, has always been ready to counter such hostile actions and we are not concerned at all about the sanctions," he told a news conference.

The economic hardship comes just two months before a parliamentary election, the country's first since a disputed presidential vote in 2009 led to massive public demonstrations across the country.

Will Iran make good on its threat against US?

The authorities put those protests down by force, but since then the Arab Spring has revealed the vulnerability of authoritarian governments in the region to public anger driven by economic hardship.

Iran's leaders have responded to the sanctions with military saber-rattling, including a threat to blockade the Middle East's oil by shutting the Strait of Hormuz that leads to the Gulf, and even challenging a U.S. aircraft carrier if it sails the strait.

U.S., U.K. ships to keep strait open
Britain's defense secretary Philip Hammond warned Iran that any attempt to block the key global oil passageway would be illegal and unsuccessful ? hinting at a robust international response.

Hammond told the Atlantic Council in Washington on Thursday that the presence of British and American naval ships in the Persian Gulf would keep the route open for trade.

Story: Israel, US to stage major defense drill

However, Hammond ? holding his first talks at the Pentagon with U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta ? did not specifically threaten Iran with a military response.

About one-sixth of the world's oil passes on tankers through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has threatened to close the route in possible retaliation to new U.S. and European sanctions.

Washington says it will sail the strait at will and will guarantee free passage through the international waterway.

Video: U.S.-Iran tension escalates (on this page)

European diplomats said this week they had agreed in principle to impose an EU oil embargo. The bloc ? particularly Italy, Spain and Greece ? has collectively bought about 500,000 barrels per day of Iran's oil, making it Iran's second biggest customer after China.

EU leaders have yet to agree when the embargo will take effect, but are expected to announce it at a foreign ministers meeting at the end of this month.

China, the largest buyer, which imported about 550,000 bpd of Iran's oil last year, has cut its purchases by more than half for this month and would now extend that cut to February, according to the Beijing-based trader.

China is seeking deeper discounts for continuing to do business with Iran in spite of Western sanctions.

Video: Iran makes big claims (on this page)

The new U.S. measures, if implemented fully, would make it impossible for most countries' refineries to buy Iranian crude, marking a qualitative change in the West's approach to Tehran, which it accuses of seeking a nuclear weapon.

Iran says its nuclear program is peaceful. That standoff had led to four rounds of economic sanctions from the U.N. security council and a range of U.S. and European measures, but none of these directly hurt its ability to sell oil in the past.

Western resolve appears to have stiffened in recent months, especially after a U.N. report in November suggested Iran had taken concrete steps to develop a bomb. The storming of Britain's embassy by an Iranian crowd galvanized support among European countries for measures with more teeth.

'No trade'
In Iran's bazaars, prices for basic foodstuffs and other goods have been rising fast in recent months.

Much of that inflation has been caused by President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's policy of cutting back on government subsidies for staples that held prices down, a policy that has been praised by the International Monetary Fund.

The government has tried to ease the pain by giving cash payments to families. But the fall in the rial currency has slashed the value of those payments in dollar terms from about $45 a month to $27.

There are signs that some Iranians may blame the authorities for charting a foreign policy course that brought on sanctions.

"They give us some subsidy cash but it doesn't compensate for anything," said Saeed, a 33-year-old Tehran taxi driver, complaining that his imported cigarettes had doubled in price. "When I ask people why things are becoming more expensive, they all say it's the sanctions."

Clothes merchant Mohammad, 34, said there was "no trade" despite the usual crowds swarming the shops and stalls in the maze of vaulted tunnels.

"We have to make the products more expensive because we have to pay more for dollars. We shopkeepers are putting pressure on people but we have no choice," he added.

Reuters and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45886834/ns/world_news-mideast_n_africa/

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