How We See The World

Triple-digit torture leaves millions in misery Soaring temperatures blamed in dozens of deaths NEW YORK (AP) -- As if another day of triple-digit temperatures wasn't bad enough, Queens grocer Salm Ali had another problem: a power outage forced him to pitch about $5,000 worth of withered produce. His Liberty Deli and Grocery was just one of thousands of energy customers across the eastern United States that experienced scattered blackouts Wednesday as the oppressive heat and humidity prompted record-setting demand. "This is the life," Ali said sarcastically. "Even the fan isn't working." The region was in for another day of steamy weather Thursday. The hea…

i prefer Kaspersky ! ithink that it is the effective one ! since i use this antivirus ! my PC has never been infected ! :) what about u.... which one do u use ?

Dont waste your time, it was a horrible movie.

AFTER being paraded around the Beverly Hills Hotel with William Gallas’s No 13 squad number yesterday, Michael Ballack cast himself in the role of peacemaker as he sought to reassure Frank Lampard that there is no reason for the England midfield player to get shirty with Chelsea’s high-profile German recruit. Ballack has been the leading man in every team he has played for since joining Bayer Leverkusen seven years ago, inspiring the unfancied German side to the 2002 Champions League final before leading Bayern Munich to Bundesliga titles in three of his four years at the club, but he appears content to accept more of a supporting role at Stamford Bridge. The 29-y…

Teachers should stop calling bright pupils "clever" for fear they might not be considered "cool" by classmates, a union has been told. Instead they should refer to academic high-achievers as "successful", the Professional Association of Teachers' conference in Oxford heard. Simon Smith, a teacher from Essex, said it was important to avoid a culture which "mocks being clever". A government spokesman said it was "not the brightest idea we have heard". 'Semantic debates' He added: "The education system is about ensuring that every child is supported and also challenged to achieve the very best that they can. Semantic debates will not achieve this." Last…

Paul McKenna v The Daily Mail. Sadie Frost v The Mail on Sunday. Kate Hudson v the National Enquirer. Ashley Cole, Gordon Ramsay, Sir Elton John. If it seems celebrities have become keener in recent months to acquaint themselves with Britain's top libel lawyers, it is because they have — twice as keen. According to a survey by Sweet & Maxwell, the legal information provider, the number of reported defamation cases brought by celebrities against newspapers has more than doubled in the past year, from nine to twenty. Overall, there were 74 recorded cases of defamation between May 2005 and May 2006, the period of the survey, up from 66 during the previous 12 mont…

After initial discouragement, counterfeiters have cracked the code of the euro and continental countries - especially France - face a rising tide of fake bank notes and coins. In the first half of this year, 300,000 dud euro notes were withdrawn from circulation. About 30 per cent of them, 90,000 notes, were discovered in France. Most - 80 per cent - were printed in other countries. After the introduction of the euro in 12 countries on 1 January 2002, police detected a fall in the amount of counterfeit notes and coins in circulation in euroland. The notes were claimed to be the most advanced in the world, incorporating anti-faking devices from holograms to special …

Viewers who are offended by jokes on motoring show Top Gear must accept such remarks will remain "an integral part of the programme", the BBC has said. The corporation has issued a statement on its complaints website after receiving 500 objections in six months. "Provocative comments" by hosts Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May must not be taken seriously, it said. The BBC said the audience should be "familiar enough" with Top Gear's tone to be able to cope with the jibes. Sarcasm was part of Top Gear's appeal, the statement stressed, and members of the public and participants were never immune "from the team's acerbic comments and observations".…

Starbucks has blamed a rise in the popularity of frozen drinks for disappointing July sales figures. The firm said July sales missed targets because in the hot weather more chilled drinks, such as Frappuccinos, were ordered which take longer to prepare. As a result, its sales in stores open more than a year rose by just 4% during the month, below the 6% expected by Wall Street and last year's 7% growth. The news saw Starbuck's shares fall 9% in after-hours trading on Wednesday. Starbuck's chief executive Jim Donald said the company was working to solve the problem of the extra time it takes to make frozen drinks compared with standard hot coffees by bringing…

US car firm Ford is to recall 1.2 million trucks, sport utility vehicles (SUVs) and vans over concerns about potential engine fires. The recall, one of the largest ever, is over fears about the speed control deactivation switch system, which could corrode over time, overheat and ignite. It followed "exhaustive investigations" by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). And it comes after Ford announced second quarter losses of $254m (£135m). The group blamed the losses on an increase in pension curtailment costs related to job cuts. Ford also said that its luxury division will not be profitable this year. Models affected The…

Princess Kiko, whose pregnancy could be the answer to Japan's imperial succession dilemma, has performed a ceremony to pray for a safe delivery. The princess, who is due to give birth in September, wore a red and white silk outfit for the traditional ceremony in the capital, Tokyo. The pregnancy is attracting enormous attention from the Japanese public, many of whom are hoping for a boy. Current law allows only males to ascend the throne, but there is no male heir. Crown Prince Naruhito and his wife, Princess Masako, have a daughter, Aiko. The Emperor's third child, Princess Sayako, married a commoner and so her children would not be able to ascend the thron…

The European Union has brushed off a call from the Polish president for a Europe-wide debate on reinstating the death penalty. "The death penalty is not compatible with European values," European Commission spokesman Steffan de Rynck told reporters. Last Friday, Polish President Lech Kaczynski urged the organisation to review its policy on the issue. The abolition of the death penalty is one of the conditions of EU membership. Mr Kaczynski said countries which had abandoned capital punishment had "given an unimaginable advantage to the perpetrator over the victim". It was "the advantage of life over death", he told Polish public radio. Call for a rev…

A hospital has lost £2.5m in funding for treating patients too quickly. Ipswich Hospital, in Suffolk, which is more than £16m in the red, accidentally breached an agreement to ensure all patients had similar waiting times. Ipswich Hospital agreed with the East Suffolk Primary Care Trusts, which fund treatment, that patients should wait at least four months for treatment. However, doctors had treated patients inside that time and the trust refused to pay the £2.5m cost of treatment. This will now have to come from the hospital's own budget, adding to its financial difficulties. An Ipswich Hospital spokeswoman described the incident as a "local glitch". …

Afghanistan says it will deport hundreds of South Korean evangelical Christians amid fears for their safety. They have been accused by Islamic clerics of preaching Christianity. Afghanistan bans attempts to convert people to non-Islamic faiths. Around 1,500 South Koreans arrived this week for a "peace festival", and education and entertainment programme. On Wednesday, hundreds of Afghans held a protest rally against them at a mosque in the city of Mazar-e-Sharif. 'Highly sensitive' "They were given tourist visas and now it seems they are misusing their tourist visas," a government official told the AFP news agency. "The risk of them becoming a target…

The Queen has turned out to be the new owner of a run-down, rat-infested house in a deprived area of east Manchester. The mid-terraced house in Parkdale Avenue, Gorton, is thought to be worth about £35,000 but has been left derelict for the last 10 years. Housing officers at Manchester City Council traced its owners, but they have no interest in reclaiming it. The property therefore falls to the Duchy of Lancaster, which is controlled by the Queen. The council has written to the Queen's solicitors Farrar & Co in London asking them to take ownership of the property with a view to selling it. The house was owned by a company which had since closed down…

Manchester United's Ryan Giggs has been appointed as an ambassador for the children's charity Unicef. The Welsh international has spent six years working with the charity through the club's "United for Unicef" partnership. He has recently returned from a trip to Soweto, South Africa, where he met young people affected by HIV as part of the Unicef Children and Aids campaign. Mr Giggs said: "As a father, the future of my child is always on my mind." He added: "To be asked to become a Unicef Ambassador, and to have the opportunity to help other children, who so desperately need it, is a great honour and one that I am proud to accept. "HIV and Aids is having…

A six-year-old girl died after being burnt during a fire-eating display while on holiday at a Turkish hotel. Eden Galvani-Skeete, thought to be from Ilford, east London, was hurt watching the show at the Gemini Resort in Didim. The father of another child injured in the show said fireballs flew into the audience when entertainers created a "wall of flame" on the dance floor. Eden was taken to hospital on Saturday but died later. Six other Britons, including three children, were hurt. Mark Hunter, from Carlisle, the father of 13-year-old Sarah Hunter, who suffered burns during the display, described what he saw. He said: "There's a record at the minut…

A series of hidden texts written by the ancient Greek mathematician Archimedes are being revealed by US scientists. Until now, the pages have remained obscured by paintings and texts laid down on top of the original writings. Using a non-destructive technique known as X-ray fluorescence, the researchers are able to peer through these later additions to read the underlying text. The goatskin parchment records key details of Archimedes' work, considered the foundation of modern mathematics. The writings include the only Greek version of On Floating Bodies known to exist, and the only surviving ancient copies of The Method of Mechanical Theorems and the Stoma…

Marie Osmond has been in hospital following a bad reaction to medication, a spokeswoman has said, denying reports that the singer attempted suicide. Publicist Amy Hawkes said the 1970s star spent a few days in hospital after the incident but was now "doing fine". She told the Associated Press: "She's vacationing with her family right now." US magazine National Enquirer reported that Osmond was in hospital as a result of a failed suicide attempt. 'Blacked out' Marie Osmond's manager Karl Engemann said: "We deal with those tabloids all the time. You get tired of responding. It's like punching Jell-O." The singer spent a few days recovering at Timpanogo…

There's a CSI thread already but I think this should get a special one. CSI LV was a bit boring this season and I kinda like NY, but Miami is the coolest. I :heart: Horatio

I love it,Do you?

© WireImage.com Lance Bass Lance Bass of 'N Sync Reveals He's Gay Jul 26, 10:37 AM EST The Associated Press Lance Bass, band member of 'N Sync, says he's gay and in a "very stable" relationship with a reality show star. Bass, who formed 'N Sync with Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez, Joey Fatone and Chris Kirkpatrick, tells People magazine that he didn't earlier disclose his sexuality because he didn't want to affect the group's popularity. "I knew that I was in this popular band and I had four other guys' careers in my hand, and I knew that if I ever acted on it or even said (that I was gay), it would overpower everything," he tells the magazine. 'N Sync is…

Singer James Blunt has beaten traffic wardens and noisy neighbours in a list of the things Brits find most annoying, a new poll has revealed. Blunt, who came fourth in the list of 100 most intolerable things, has been a phenomenal success since he burst on to the music scene last year. However, the former Army officer has faced a backlash recently, and was banned by radio station Essex FM last month following what it claimed was listener pressure. The singer had defended his music at an awards ceremony in May by telling his critics to switch over if they did not like his songs. However, the new poll of 2,000 people places Blunt ahead of the likes of traffic wa…

Tuesday, July 25, 2006 This is not another Katrina A lot of times I wake up and have no idea where I am. The blinds are drawn, the room is nondescript. It happened again just a few minutes ago. I lay there, looking at the ceiling, trying to remember. A few seconds passed, then the sirens sounded. Haifa. If there are sirens, I must be in Haifa. It's easy to get confused. We've been traveling around a lot, trying to see this story from as many different angles as possible. We were in Beirut yesterday, then Haifa, and we're about to move again. We are heading back to the border with Lebanon to focus on Israeli military actions in southern Lebanon. Yesterday, I had…

Source: Haditha evidence implicates Marines Investigators reportedly finish initial review in deaths of 24 civilians The Associated Press Updated: 12:23 a.m. ET Aug 2, 2006 WASHINGTON - Evidence collected on the deaths of 24 Iraqis in Haditha supports accusations that U.S. Marines deliberately shot the civilians, including unarmed women and children, a Pentagon official said Wednesday. Agents of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service have completed their initial work on the incident last November, but may be asked to probe further as Marine Corps and Navy prosecutors review the evidence and determine whether to recommend criminal charges, according to two Pe…