Call for Limits on Web Data of Customers

<blockquote class="tr_bq">The White House, hoping to move the national debate over privacy beyond the National Security Agency’s surveillance activities to the practices of companies like Google and Facebook, released a long-anticipated report on Thursday that recommends developing government limits on how private companies make use of the torrent of information they gather from their customers online.</blockquote><br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img alt="http://static01.nyt.com/images/2014/05/02/business/Data/Data-master675.jpg" class="decoded" height="334" src="http://static01.nyt.com/images/2014/05/02/business/Data/Data-master675.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="640" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">John Podesta, left, the White House senior adviser who wrote the report, and Denis McDonough, the chief of staff.</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">The report, whose chief author is John D. Podesta, a senior White House adviser, is the next step in the administration’s response to the disclosures by Edward J. Snowden, the former N.S.A. contractor, that began the debate.</blockquote><br />Because the effort goes so far beyond information collected by intelligence agencies, the report was viewed warily in Silicon Valley, where companies see it as the start of a government effort to regulate how they can profit from the data they collect from email and web surfing habits.<br />Continue reading the main story<br />Related Coverage<br /><br />    document Document: ‘Big Data: Seizing Opportunities, Preserving Values’ (PDF)<br />    Big Data Means Big Questions on How That Information Is Used<br /><br />Mr. Podesta, in an interview, said President Obama was surprised during his review of the N.S.A.’s activities that “the same technologies are not only used by the intelligence community, but far more broadly in the public and private spheres because there is so much collection” from the web, smartphones and other sensors.<br /><br />“You are shedding data everywhere,” Mr. Podesta said.<br /><br />The report makes six policy recommendations. They include passing a national data breach law that would require companies to report major losses of personal and credit card data, after attacks like the one on Target that exposed credit card information on roughly 70 million customers. It seeks legislation that would define consumer rights regarding how data about their activities was used. It suggests extending privacy protections to individuals who are not citizens of the United States and argues for action to ensure that data collected about students is used only for educational purposes.<br /><br />But the most significant findings in the report focus on the recognition that data can be used in subtle ways to create forms of discrimination — and to make judgments, sometimes in error, about who is likely to show up at work, pay their mortgage on time or require expensive treatment. The report states that the same technology that is often so useful in predicting places that would be struck by floods or diagnosing hard-to-find illnesses in infants also has “the potential to eclipse longstanding civil rights protections in how personal information is used in housing, credit, employment, health, education and the marketplace.”<br /><br />The report focuses particularly on “learning algorithms” that are frequently used to determine what kind of online ad to display on someone’s computer screen, or to predict their buying habits when searching for a car or in making travel plans. Those same algorithms can create a digital picture of person, Mr. Podesta noted, that can infer race, gender or sexual orientation, even if that is not the intent of the software.<br /><br />“The final computer-generated product or decision — used for everything from predicting behavior to denying opportunity — can mask prejudices while maintaining a patina of scientific objectivity,” the report concludes.<br /><br />Mr. Podesta said the concern — he suggested the federal government might have to update laws — was that those software judgments could affect access to bank loans or job offers. They “may seem like neutral factors,” he said, “but they aren’t so neutral” when put together. The potential problem, he added, is that “you are exacerbating inequality rather than opening up opportunity.”<br />Continue reading the main story<br />Continue reading the main story<br />Advertisement<br /><br />Edward W. Felten, a computer scientist at Princeton and former chief technologist of the Federal Trade Commission, said the goal would be for both the government and industry to address the risk of discrimination based on data analysis.<br /><br />“There is a role for government to hold companies accountable and establish incentives,” Mr. Felten said. “There needs to be enough incentive for companies to do the hard work.”<br /><br />Some major companies, including Google, Facebook and Microsoft, declined to comment on the report. But Michael Beckerman, president of the Internet Association, whose members include Google, Facebook, Amazon and Twitter, called the report a “useful examination” of big data technology.<br /><br />Now that the report has been issued, Mr. Beckerman said, the administration should “turn its attention to the most pressing privacy priorities facing American consumers” — to update the Electronic Communications Privacy Act and to “reform the government’s surveillance laws and practices.”<br />Continue reading the main story<br />Recent Comments<br />BB<br />12 minutes ago<br /><br />It comes down to one word: disclosure.<br />RichardinPas<br />12 minutes ago<br /><br />The die was cast in about 1981 when the first IBM PC rolled off the assembly line and the concept of 'op-out' was born. If there had been...<br />Rob Campbell<br />17 minutes ago<br /><br />This is all disingenuous, and in reporting it the NYT is just being used to promulgate spin to influence a desired outcome. Our Government...<br /><br />    See All Comments<br />    Write a comment<br /><br />Other companies, including Mozilla, the maker of a popular web browser, also urged the government to focus on surveillance issues, reflecting Silicon Valley’s concern that the biggest threat they face today is the suspicion around the world that the N.S.A. has built “back doors” into American products.<br /><br />Google has said it will work to build encryption systems that can defeat N.S.A. spying, and several companies have revised their policies in recent months to say they will warn customers, whenever they legally can, if the government tries to subpoena data stored in their emails, in the cloud or in social media accounts. The notification would not apply in cases where a search was authorized by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, which prohibits warning targets of such searches, but the firms are clearly trying to deter the government from regularly mining their data.<br /><br />In one area, the report appears to side, at least in part, with critics of the N.S.A. who argued with the intelligence agency’s contention that it is far less intrusive to collect “metadata” about a phone call or email than to collect its content.<br /><br />The former director of the N.S.A., Gen. Keith B. Alexander, often noted that because the agency maintained a database only of the phone numbers that Americans called and the durations of the calls, it was not violating their privacy. But the report notes that there is a “profound question” about whether that kind of metadata “should be accorded stronger privacy protections than they are currently” because they can be revealing of a person’s movements and habits. “This review recommends that the government should broaden” the examination of how intelligence agencies use such data and consider whether the test should be “how much it reveals about individuals.”<br /><br />Mr. Podesta, in briefing reporters on Thursday, also singled out the shortcomings of the “Terms of Service” that consumers click on, almost always without reading them, when they sign up for free email accounts or download apps for their smartphones. He asked whether that process “still allows us to control and protect our privacy as the data is used and reused.”<br /><br />That is bound to prove contentious in the information industry, where the clicking on the terms of service is viewed as a license to use the data for a variety of highly profitable purposes.<br /><br />The report also recommends extending Americans’ privacy rights to foreigners, on the theory that there are no boundaries when it comes to the data collected online. Mr. Obama declared in January that the government would do the same in the treatment of data it collects through the National Security Agency and other sources.<br /><br />Marc Rotenberg, executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center, said that the report identified the key issues and that its policy recommendations addressed privacy groups’ major concerns. “The implementation of those proposals,” Mr. Rotenberg said, “is the big challenge now, what happens next.”

Call for Limits on Web Data of Customers

The White House, hoping to move the national debate over privacy beyond the National Security Agency’s surveillance activities to the practi...

The Worst Possible Facebook Status

<br /><blockquote class="tr_bq">At 8:33 A.M. yesterday-(4-27-14), a 32-year-old woman driving to work in High Point, North Carolina, took out her phone and posted to Facebook:</blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX0pWuyBIuBiq_nVOqCfNska37yF0OqsoUVN4DElqUpOXNDxp35QJHAaHgsNb6ef_s9I5x5sNM9mvogNbxW9IxXnAHnhXTpmxM0oXw0yyzbdEAQ8bn8Ig2IccXAy0DpMkgup8hRypr-zc/s1600/geeks-facebook.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhX0pWuyBIuBiq_nVOqCfNska37yF0OqsoUVN4DElqUpOXNDxp35QJHAaHgsNb6ef_s9I5x5sNM9mvogNbxW9IxXnAHnhXTpmxM0oXw0yyzbdEAQ8bn8Ig2IccXAy0DpMkgup8hRypr-zc/s1600/geeks-facebook.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />"The Happy Song makes me so HAPPY."<br /><br />At 8:34 A.M., police were notified of the crash.<br /><br />In the moment she posted the message, the woman crossed over the median of Interstate 85 and collided head-on with an oncoming recycling truck. She is dead.<br /><br />Seventy-one percent of young Americans say they have written a message while driving.<br /><br /><h4>In 2012, an estimated 3,328 Americans died in crashes related to distracted driving.</h4>

The Worst Possible Facebook Status

At 8:33 A.M. yesterday-(4-27-14), a 32-year-old woman driving to work in High Point, North Carolina, took out her phone and posted to Facebo...

GCHQ's interception and storage of Yahoo webcam images condemned

Critics react angrily to revelation that GCHQ intercepted and stored millions of images of people not suspected of wrongdoing.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf483uKniLn0kT3E_Ri3Fr6nWGz5Yo0z1RQM9KGsCmcyXsc_JzkwwJZPNEGwPZSpoiU13cuz09igBWpmEJGq0chYAYjQr0Rb2mBO7o1eJw_ERNklIGoziTj0mAft-Z35jMTYIKy6iDiCs/s1600/SheikhSabah.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="452" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf483uKniLn0kT3E_Ri3Fr6nWGz5Yo0z1RQM9KGsCmcyXsc_JzkwwJZPNEGwPZSpoiU13cuz09igBWpmEJGq0chYAYjQr0Rb2mBO7o1eJw_ERNklIGoziTj0mAft-Z35jMTYIKy6iDiCs/s1600/SheikhSabah.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><br />Politicians and human rights groups have reacted angrily to revelations that Britain's spy agency intercepted and stored webcam images of millions of people not suspected of any wrongdoing with the aid of its US counterpart.<br /><br />GCHQ files dating between 2008 and 2010 reveal that a surveillance program codenamed Optic Nerve collected images of Yahoo webcam chats in bulk and saved them to agency databases, regardless of whether individual users were an intelligence target or not.<br /><br />In one six-month period in 2008 alone, the agency collected webcam images, including substantial quantities of sexually explicit material, from more than 1.8 million Yahoo user accounts globally.<br /><br />The Tory MP David Davis said:<br /><br />"We now know that millions of Yahoo account holders were filmed without their knowledge through their webcams, the images of which were subsequently stored by GCHQ and the NSA. This is, frankly, creepy."<br /><br />Davis, said it was perfectly proper for the intelligence agencies to use any and all means to target those suspected of terrorism, kidnapping and other serious crimes, but that the indiscriminate nature of the programme was alarming.<br /><br />"It is entirely improper to extend such intrusive surveillance on a blanket scale to ordinary citizens," he said.<br /><br />The Liberal Democrat MP Julian Huppert said he was "absolutely shocked" at the revelation. "This seems like a very clear invasion of privacy, and I simply can not see what the justification is," he said.<br /><br />The Optic Nerve documents were provided by the NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. They show that the programme began as a prototype in 2008 and was still active in 2012.<br /><br />They chronicle GCHQ's sustained efforts to keep the large store of sexually explicit material Optic Nerve collected away from the eyes of its staff, though there is little discussion about the privacy implications of storing it in the first place.<br /><br />The system, eerily reminiscent of the telescreens evoked in George Orwell's 1984, was used for experiments in automated facial recognition to monitor GCHQ's existing targets, and to identity new ones.<br /><br />Nick Pickles, the director of the civil liberties campaign group Big Brother Watch, said intercepting and taking photographs from millions of people's webcam chats was "as creepy as it gets".<br /><br />"We have CCTV on our streets and now we have GCHQ in our homes. It is right that the security services can target people and tap their communications, but they should not be doing it to millions of people. This is an indiscriminate and intimate intrusion on people's privacy."<br /><br />Pickles said it was a further example of how the legal and oversight regimes for the security services had failed to keep pace with technological advances.<br /><br />"It is becoming increasingly obvious how badly the law has failed to keep pace with technology, and how urgently we need a comprehensive review of surveillance law and oversight structures.<br /><br />"As more people buy technology with built-in cameras, from Xbox Kinect to laptops and smart TVs, we need to be sure that the law does not allow for them to be routinely accessed when there is no suspicion of any wrongdoing. Orwell's 1984 was supposed to be a warning, not an instruction manual."<br /><br />Carly Nyst, Privacy International's legal director, said the revelation underlined the importance of democratic societies being able to limit the activities of intelligence agencies.<br /><br />"Today we've found out that the way we now use technology to stay in touch with friends, family and loved ones means many of our most private thoughts and experiences are available for viewing by GCHQ. How can collecting and storing these intimate moments possibly help protect national security?<br /><br />Alex Abdo, from the American Civil Liberties Union, described the revelations as "truly shocking".<br /><br />"[It] underscores the importance of the debate on privacy now taking place and the reforms being considered. In a world in which there is no technological barrier to pervasive surveillance, the scope of the government's surveillance activities must be decided by the public, not secretive spy agencies interpreting secret legal authorities." <a href="http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/feb/27/gchq-interception-storage-webcam-images-condemned" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">source</a>

GCHQ's interception and storage of Yahoo webcam images condemned

Critics react angrily to revelation that GCHQ intercepted and stored millions of images of people not suspected of wrongdoing. Politicians a...

Bill Gates has finally admitted "theControl-Alt-Delete was a mistake"

Bill Gates has finally admitted the puzzling Control-Alt-Delete key combination used to access the login screen on personal computers was a mistake.<br /><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglPA_5YABMCEBNC3eqJECa403YWsH2lwAfNhlVnCBIG8NlAhPYvYUeQBrxc_e0tWKqiqBjBi9W7w5m-mt4SFKcqqVDUZi7ftLeg9KByn6pGEMVxRD5zT6R5qdXJN_zthjo_ZWRdXL-DGQ/s1600/Bill-Gates.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglPA_5YABMCEBNC3eqJECa403YWsH2lwAfNhlVnCBIG8NlAhPYvYUeQBrxc_e0tWKqiqBjBi9W7w5m-mt4SFKcqqVDUZi7ftLeg9KByn6pGEMVxRD5zT6R5qdXJN_zthjo_ZWRdXL-DGQ/s1600/Bill-Gates.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br /><br /><br /><br />"It was a mistake," Gates, co-founder and former chairman of Microsoft, said during a recent appearance at Harvard University. "We could have had a single button, but the guy who did the IBM keyboard design didn't want to give us our single button.<br /><br />“You want to have something you do with the keyboard that is signaling to a very low level of the software — actually hard-coded in the hardware — that it really is bringing in the operating system you expect, instead of just a funny piece of software that puts up a screen that looks like a login screen, and then it listens to your password and then it’s able to do that,” the billionaire software mogul explained.<br /><br />The odd combination was originally designed to reboot a PC, but it became part of PC folklore as a login prompt in early versions of Windows. The IBM PC that Gates helped develop was introduced in the fall of 1981.<br /><br />Gates' admission came after years of debate over the origin of Control-Alt-Delete.<br /><br />"Finally," Taylor Soper wrote on GeekWire.com.<br /><br />In a 2001 interview marking the 20th anniversary of the IBM PC, David Bradley, the engineer who came up with the Control-Alt-Delete sequence, blamed the oddity on Gates.<br /><br />"I may have invented it," Bradley said, "but Bill made it famous."<br /><br />That left Gates "looking rather awkward" for more than a decade, TheVerge.com said.<br /><br />In 2011, Bradley said he still didn't know why Gates used the Control-Alt-Delete for the login screen.<br /><br />“Why they used it for the login also, I don’t know,” Bradley told CNET. “I guess it made sense for them.”<br /><br />While Windows 8 defaults to a new login screen, the Control-Alt-Delete requirement is still used in Windows XP and Windows 7, and it still works in Windows 8 as a shortcut for locking your PC or accessing the task manager. <iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="480" src="//www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/cBHJ-8Bch4E?rel=0" width="640"></iframe>

Bill Gates has finally admitted "theControl-Alt-Delete was a mistake"

Bill Gates has finally admitted the puzzling Control-Alt-Delete key combination used to access the login screen on personal computers was a ...

NSA can reportedly tap smartphone users' data

Intelligence-gathering agency has created working groups to access contacts lists, SMS, and user location on the three most popular mobile platforms, according to classified documents viewed by Spiegel.<br /><br /><img height="399" src="http://cdn.theatlanticwire.com/img/upload/2013/09/08/AP974898527700/large.jpg" width="640" /><br /><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased; background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.984375px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The National Security Agency has the ability to access user data on three of the most popular smartphone platforms, including BlackBerry's e-mail system, according to classified documents viewed by German news outlet <a href="http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/privacy-scandal-nsa-can-spy-on-smart-phone-data-a-920971.html" style="border: 0px; color: #2964bf; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Spiegel</a>.</div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased; background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.984375px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The US intelligence-gathering agency has created platform-specific working groups to tap the contact lists, SMS traffic, and user location information on the Apple iOS, Google <a href="http://www.cnet.com/android-atlas/" section="luke_topic" style="border: 0px; color: #2964bf; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Android</a>, and BlackBerry mobile operating systems, the documents indicate. NSA scripts allow the agency to access at least 38 iPhone features after the agency infiltrates the computer used to sync the device, Spiegel reported.</div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased; background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.984375px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The documents also indicate that the agency has succeeded at cracking the encryption for BlackBerry's e-mail system, previously considered very secure. The Canadian handset maker told the newspaper that it had not programmed a backdoor pipeline to provide access to data on the platform but decline to comment on the surveillance allegations.</div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased; background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.984375px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The alleged telecommunications surveillance has been a targeted activity that was performed without the smartphone makers' knowledge, the newspaper reported.</div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased; background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.984375px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-57601883-38/nsa-can-reportedly-tap-smartphone-users-data/" target="_blank">CNET </a>has contacted the NSA for comment and will update this report when we learn more.</div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased; background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.984375px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">The allegations emerge on the heels of a report last week that the NSA had created a program to circumvent encryption intended to protect digital communications. The agency <a href="http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-57601599-38/nsa-can-see-through-encryption-including-your-private-e-mails-says-report/" style="border: 0px; color: #2964bf; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;" title="NSA can see through encryption, including your private e-mail's, says report -- Thursday, Sep 5, 2013">bypassed common Interet encryption methods</a> in a number of ways, including hacking into the servers of private companies to steal encryption keys, collaborating with tech companies to build in back doors, and covertly introducing weaknesses into encryption standards, according to the New York Times.</div><div style="-webkit-font-smoothing: subpixel-antialiased; background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 19.984375px; margin-top: 10px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Earlier reports have indicated that the NSA has the ability to record nearly all domestic and international phone calls -- in case an analyst needed to access the recordings in the future. A <a href="http://www.wired.com/threatlevel/2012/03/ff_nsadatacenter/all/" style="border: 0px; color: #2964bf; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Wired magazine article</a> last year disclosed that the NSA has established "listening posts" that allow the agency to collect and sift through billions of phone calls.</div>

NSA can reportedly tap smartphone users' data

Intelligence-gathering agency has created working groups to access contacts lists, SMS, and user location on the three most popular mobile p...

Cyber Analysis:International norms needed to safeguard cyberspace:experts

<blockquote class="tr_bq">World, June 28 - Former U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden's revelations of widespread snooping by his country's security authorities have stirred a fresh round of finger-pointing on cyber issues on the world arena.</blockquote><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5ueFrpRzN0XHUR4Wu1AKFgY6WSelCRwcP2BLVxQRVbw6tDEXYb91mtL4vOyuPWifiC46faR8TxjQchZLfD9IbKeOE5XC7uBsEGIGiqg2F-tHExsOGbEp8N1w8VpHrJcmTnXzxAeoMzeo/s630/cle.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="358" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5ueFrpRzN0XHUR4Wu1AKFgY6WSelCRwcP2BLVxQRVbw6tDEXYb91mtL4vOyuPWifiC46faR8TxjQchZLfD9IbKeOE5XC7uBsEGIGiqg2F-tHExsOGbEp8N1w8VpHrJcmTnXzxAeoMzeo/s630/cle.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><br />The quarrels, like a fever, sometimes are not a bad thing. They raise the alarm bells towards the urgency to address the root cause of the problem -- in this case, a lack of international norms to govern the cyberspace, said experts participating in the World Peace Forum 2013 in Beijing on June 27-28.<br /><br />They also warned the scale of cyber theft is so large to the extent that it hurts national interests of many countries where the Internet has become an important infrastructure playing a significant role in such fields as economy, social development and national defense.<br /><br />Many countries are becoming increasingly vulnerable to cyber attacks, former U.S. ambassador to China J. Stapleton Roy said, noting the issue has become a focus of a large number of governments around the world.<br /><br />Besides, cyber security has become a major irritant in several bilateral relations, hurting mutual trust and friendship between countries, Roy said.<br /><br />Chen Xiaogong, a member of Foreign Affairs Committee of the National People's Congress, described cyber space as a new battle field, cautioning that if countries should allow cyber arms race to take place, it could cause consequences worse than a nuclear war.<br /><br />Acknowledging the urgency to contain the disordering of the cyberspace and set up relevant international norms, experts also expressed optimistic over the world community's ability to do so.<br /><br />Experts noted that China and the United States, the world's two largest economies, have put the issue of cyber security on top of their cooperation.<br /><br />Chinese President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama highlighted the importance of cyber security in their summit earlier this month in the U.S. state of California.<br /><br />In the meantime, the two countries have been preparing a working group specialized in cyber security and they have agreed to hold high-level talks in July.<br /><br />However, the surprising revelation by Snowden of widespread hacking by U.S. National Security Agency in China's Hong Kong has caused grave concerns from Beijing.<br /><br />"The United States wants a quick solution to the problem and minimize its negative influence on U.S.-China relations," international relations professor Jia Qingguo of Peking University told Xinhua.<br /><br />"But the key lies in how much progress the two countries will achieve in July's strategic and economic dialogue. If they can make notable progress, Snowden's adverse impact on bilateral relations will be repaired pretty soon."<br /><br />The Chinese expert suggested Beijing and Washington try to find broader common grounds on cyber cooperation. The two countries have many common interests in deterring cyber attacks on infrastructure, military and even nuclear facilities, which "could be as terrible as terrorism."<br /><br />On Internet spying programs, both countries may need to draw up a framework since there is a fine line between attacks and information collection, said the expert.<br /><br />Still, cyber security is rather a multilateral issue than a bilateral one, which cannot be realized by cooperation only between China and the United States, Chen said.<br /><br />He suggested countries use the United Nations and other global organizations as platforms to carry out multilateral talks on cyber security and devise rules.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM4wumT-QN3Nv5X8QXMMjlh8P7tKrWSJ7PCeylfMAAq0ce2LrkgIA5tadAcu3aifKoldaiqLRE_jS7e697qxFiaEto9Z3G-_1ugKzRY7XGDTllVVVrFoHynTVvvVOxcHIamZ885pV_jNM/s550/homelandsecurity.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="464" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM4wumT-QN3Nv5X8QXMMjlh8P7tKrWSJ7PCeylfMAAq0ce2LrkgIA5tadAcu3aifKoldaiqLRE_jS7e697qxFiaEto9Z3G-_1ugKzRY7XGDTllVVVrFoHynTVvvVOxcHIamZ885pV_jNM/s550/homelandsecurity.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div>

Cyber Analysis:International norms needed to safeguard cyberspace:experts

World, June 28 - Former U.S. spy agency contractor Edward Snowden's revelations of widespread snooping by his country's security aut...

Obama discusses trade, security with Mexican President

<br /><h4>U.S. President Obama has held talks with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto on trade barriers and border security in Mexico City.</h4><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjccA7M75FiurdoULD-pO0a1HJsfuOAY3WzF9mnNmLU9Mcqj9nmQG20tkzqSiZvyfKpNkwMFxT7UIeab_ChZQQ7-D5Ii6xEENnk_M-m_IWXUj53DHBuWtCiZqkrG4pC7F3ep24ZRBffr26C/s1600/1nx1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjccA7M75FiurdoULD-pO0a1HJsfuOAY3WzF9mnNmLU9Mcqj9nmQG20tkzqSiZvyfKpNkwMFxT7UIeab_ChZQQ7-D5Ii6xEENnk_M-m_IWXUj53DHBuWtCiZqkrG4pC7F3ep24ZRBffr26C/s1600/1nx1.jpg" width="570" /></a></div><br />Obama and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto held a joint news conference after their meeting. For Obama, trade, US immigration reform and the battle against drug cartels have been high on the agenda. He highlighted Mexico’s progress in moving up the economic ladder and emphasized that his own goal of reforming US immigration laws would not promote an exodus of Mexicans into the US.<br /><br />Pena Nieto is eager to underscore Mexico’s recent run of solid economic growth, fueled in part by its increasing attractiveness as a manufacturing hub. Discussions also covered Mexico’s new policy of restricting contracts with the US on drug trafficking and drug-related violence to a single point- the Interior Ministry. The "single-door" policy is an abrupt change from the wide scope the US government enjoyed in working with Mexican officials across various agencies under Pena Nieto’s predecessor, Felipe Calderon.<br /><br />Shortly after his arrival, US President Barack Obama held a joint news conference with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto. Pena Nieto highlighted the economic integrity of the US and Mexico and expressed his willingness to secure a safe border with the US. Obama echoed Pena Nieto's words, calling for economic cooperation and immigration reform.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8RsQZw0H6hP_lv_5g1ImbA20tPUVM8oTNa0MOh58ffZ_rk-7Fm_CVE5kk_oniiNs4ph_HnbCfYgWzDsM04YB1XN8WyoEygWE3FM9p9HOIXsvvQa21_bzhYU1KTTt5o_iYhULVjzzPsABZ/s1600/51n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="524" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8RsQZw0H6hP_lv_5g1ImbA20tPUVM8oTNa0MOh58ffZ_rk-7Fm_CVE5kk_oniiNs4ph_HnbCfYgWzDsM04YB1XN8WyoEygWE3FM9p9HOIXsvvQa21_bzhYU1KTTt5o_iYhULVjzzPsABZ/s1600/51n.jpg" width="640" /></a></div><div><br /></div>

Obama discusses trade, security with Mexican President

U.S. President Obama has held talks with Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto on trade barriers and border security in Mexico City. Obama an...

Sherrod lawsuit tests bloggers' freedom of speech rights

Federal employee Shirley Sherrod sued the late blogger Andrew Breitbart and Larry O'Connor, one of his employees, after he posted an edited video that supposedly showed her making racist remarks. <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqRaE4SKHwo0iwJcKfZD6aByoXeyV6QBXJQK_BmvsFkY09jZwM47QgDV4eNn2Ndfh1AM_WMO-ftnN_OmdkGTV0uhMtTpv8vA4oRGR9D1PmG-wuAdwSAj9XPTB2T6R24YxwW6H-f92KdJhA/s1600/%2540publimetro.us.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqRaE4SKHwo0iwJcKfZD6aByoXeyV6QBXJQK_BmvsFkY09jZwM47QgDV4eNn2Ndfh1AM_WMO-ftnN_OmdkGTV0uhMtTpv8vA4oRGR9D1PmG-wuAdwSAj9XPTB2T6R24YxwW6H-f92KdJhA/s1600/%2540publimetro.us.gif" width="320" /></a></div><br />O'Connor is asking that the suit be tossed out.<br /><br />WASHINGTON — A colleague of the late conservative blogger Andrew Breitbart is asking a federal court of appeals to throw out a defamation case brought against him by former government employee Shirley Sherrod, saying the lawsuit violates the blogger's right to freedom of speech.<br />Sherrod was ousted from her job as an Agriculture Department rural development official in 2010 after Breitbart posted an edited video of Sherrod, who is black, supposedly making racist remarks. She sued Breitbart, his employee Larry O'Connor and an unnamed defendant for defamation and emotional distress after USDA officials asked her to resign and the video ignited a racial firestorm. Sherrod's lawyers say the unnamed defendant is the person whom they believe passed the video on to Breitbart, though the person's identity remains unknown.<br />Breitbart died unexpectedly a year ago, and his status in the case is unclear as his family does not appear to have notified the court of an estate that can be sued.<br />The case argued before the court of appeals Friday is one of the first high-profile federal lawsuits to test the freedom of speech rights of bloggers. Backed by large news organizations including the New York Times Co., Washington Post Co. and Dow Jones & Company, Inc., who have filed friend-of-the-court briefs in the case, O'Connor's lawyers argued to have the case dismissed under a District of Columbia statute that aims to prevent the silencing of critics through lawsuits. A federal district court judge rejected their motion to dismiss, citing timing and jurisdictional issues, prompting the appeal.<br />The lawyers told the court of appeals that O'Connor and Breitbart, before he died, stood by the content, saying the blog post was opinion.<br />"What happened here is what happens in journalism every day," said Bruce Brown, a lawyer for O'Connor.<br />Sherrod's lawyers disagree and say dismissal under the District of Columbia statute would violate their right to a trial. <br /><br /><u>The video on Breitbart's website turned out to be edited, and when Sherrod's full speech to an NAACP group earlier that year came to light, it became clear that her remarks about an initial reluctance to help a white farmer decades ago were not racist but an attempt at telling a story of racial reconciliation. Once that was obvious, Sherrod received public apologies from the administration — even from President Barack Obama himself — and an offer to return to the Agriculture Department, which she declined.</u><br /><br />Sherrod's 2011 lawsuit says the incident affected her sleep and caused her back pain. It contends that she was damaged by having her "integrity, impartiality and motivations questioned, making it difficult (if not impossible) for her to continue her life's work assisting poor farmers in rural areas" even though she was invited to return to the department.<br />The video was posted amid ongoing friction between the NAACP and the Tea Party movement, each of which were accusing the other of having racist elements among their ranks. Breitbart said at the time that the video showed the NAACP condoning racist comments from a government official.<br />The full video, however, shows Sherrod explaining to the audience how she eventually became friends with the farmer and helped him save his land from foreclosure.<br />Brown, the lawyer for O'Connor, defended the bloggers' actions and said the suit should be dismissed under the anti-SLAPP law, designed to prevent strategic lawsuits against public participation, because Breitbart's post was opinion. "She was a public official who saw the world through a racial prism," Brown said of Sherrod.<br />The case has been closely watched as a test of the District of Columbia's anti-SLAPP statute.<br />Brown asked the three judges to consider the precedent this case would have.<br />"It is in courts like this where First Amendment law is made," he said.

Sherrod lawsuit tests bloggers' freedom of speech rights

Federal employee Shirley Sherrod sued the late blogger Andrew Breitbart and Larry O'Connor, one of his employees, after he posted an edi...

Teen eyewitnesses testify at Ohio rape trial

Three teens testified Friday about the alleged sexual assault of a drunken girl after receiving immunity from prosecution.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-4ttdoC3SiTIvY42oZQS7j1xAAodHK4i77cuf2S9NohOV9fDcmLYWDEffX5iL6l8BI69G7XdsjGDdQjxIST6j5MNn8uPD8xX7-IkoEG0unsRj-7FI5_0sHY0pp60qadQFkvzeL8ix1IAs/s1600/case.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="157" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-4ttdoC3SiTIvY42oZQS7j1xAAodHK4i77cuf2S9NohOV9fDcmLYWDEffX5iL6l8BI69G7XdsjGDdQjxIST6j5MNn8uPD8xX7-IkoEG0unsRj-7FI5_0sHY0pp60qadQFkvzeL8ix1IAs/s1600/case.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />STEUBENVILLE, Ohio — A judge granted three teenagers immunity from prosecution Friday before they agreed to testify about the alleged sexual assault of a drunken 16-year-old girl after a party in eastern Ohio last summer.<br />Mark Cole, Evan Westlake and Anthony Craig invoked their Fifth Amendment right against testifying for fear of self-incrimination as the trial in Steubenville entered its third day. Testimony from the three is a crucial part of the state's evidence because the West Virginia girl says she doesn't remember what happened.<br />Trent Mays, 17, and Ma'Lik Richmond, 16, are charged with digitally penetrating the girl early in the morning of Aug. 12, first in a car and then in the basement of a house. Mays also is charged with illegal use of a minor in nudity-oriented material. The two maintain their innocence.<br />Cole testified Friday that he took a video of Mays and the girl in the car, then deleted it. Westlake testified he saw Richmond's encounter with the girl in the basement. The third boy, who has yet to testify, said at a hearing last fall that he took a photo of the alleged basement attack that he also deleted.<br />The case has riveted the small city of Steubenville amid allegations that more students should have been charged and led to questions about the influence of the local football team, a source of a pride in a community that suffered massive job losses with the collapse of the steel industry.<br />If convicted, Mays and Richmond could be held in a juvenile jail until they turn 21.<br />Cole, 17, testified that he filmed Mays digitally penetrate the girl in the car. A prosecutor asked him why he then deleted the video later that morning.<br />"It was one of those moments when you realize you did something stupid and wrong that night, so I deleted it," Cole replied.<br />Cole testified he saw Mays unsuccessfully try to have the girl perform oral sex on him later in the basement of Cole's house. Cole also testified that the alleged victim was intoxicated and slurring her words.<br />On cross-examination, defense attorney Walter Madison suggested that the alleged victim was behaving no differently than anyone else the night of the party.<br />Madison, who represents Richmond, suggested that Cole was remembering events differently because so much attention was now being paid to what happened. Cole agreed with Madison's suggestions.<br />Cole testified he saw Mays and the girl asleep under a blanket on the couch later in the morning.<br />"Did anybody behave in a way to make you think that something was wrong?" Madison asked.<br />"No," Cole said.<br />Related: Opening arguments in Ohio teen rape case<br />Westlake, the second witness granted immunity, testified that he saw Richmond digitally penetrate the girl in the basement of Cole's house.<br />"Was she moving?" special prosecutor Marianne Hemmeter asked.<br />"Not at this time," Westlake said.<br />"Was she talking?" Hemmeter asked.<br />"I didn't hear anything," Westlake said.<br />Westlake said the girl appeared to be "pretty drunk" after a large party earlier that night. But he also testified that before the alleged attack in the basement he saw Mays and the alleged victim cuddling, hugging and kissing in the back seat of Cole's car.<br />Westlake also confirmed that he filmed a 12-minute video — later passed around widely online — in which another student, Michael Nodianos, joked about the attack. Women's rights groups have demanded that Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine charge Nodianos with failure to report a crime. DeWine has so far refused to say what he'll do.<br />Westlake said he deeply regrets his actions that night.<br />Craig testified that he saw Richmond's hand in the "crotch region" of the alleged victim.<br />Craig also confirmed he received a text message from the alleged victim the next day in which she said "I remember hearing Trent's voice telling me to do something, but I said, 'No.'"<br />A 16-year-old Steubenville High School student testified that she tried to persuade the alleged victim to return with her and not stay with several students including the alleged defendants.<br />Farah Marcino said the girl brushed off her attempts. "She actually hit one of my friends and said she did not want to go back," Marcino said.<br />Also Friday, the superintendent of Steubenville city schools responded to evidence presented a day earlier that suggested Steubenville football coach Reno Saccoccia would let the players involved off lightly.<br />The coach "took care of it," Mays said in one text introduced by prosecutors.<br />"Like he was joking about it so I'm not worried," Mays said in another text.<br />McVey told The Associated Press on Friday that the district will wait until after the trial to comment. "We'll get everything down that comes out of trial, look at it and go from there," he said.<br />McVey said it's possible Saccoccia could testify at the trial since he was interviewed earlier by state investigators, who also spoke to other football coaches and McVey himself.<br />Special Judge Thomas Lipps is hearing the case without a jury.<br />The Press normally does not identify minors charged in juvenile court, but Mays and Richmond have been widely identified in news coverage, and their names have been used in open court.

Teen eyewitnesses testify at Ohio rape trial

Three teens testified Friday about the alleged sexual assault of a drunken girl after receiving immunity from prosecution. STEUBENVILLE, Ohi...

Arizona woman reviled for son's murder may go free

Debra Milke was one of the most reviled mothers around, convicted in the murder of her 4-year-old son. <br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBox0pamJWhBXIhMRyINSOvpFdDxZ9LT4dbIfqLld_MlWv5hef-1Gs1AuaFsooi8__AKYqCJh5tjfbOg1SPO_ZX55BrVQm8Zr5Aogf3RZlnrVFDamAVtjanMqGrih2XeE32iWGRDkNPU_I/s1600/Debra+Milke.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBox0pamJWhBXIhMRyINSOvpFdDxZ9LT4dbIfqLld_MlWv5hef-1Gs1AuaFsooi8__AKYqCJh5tjfbOg1SPO_ZX55BrVQm8Zr5Aogf3RZlnrVFDamAVtjanMqGrih2XeE32iWGRDkNPU_I/s1600/Debra+Milke.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />But now the Arizona woman, who has maintained her innocence from death row, could walk free after an appeals court threw out her conviction.<br /><br />PHOENIX  — Debra Milke was once one of the most reviled mothers around, convicted of dressing her 4-year-old son in his favorite outfit and sending him off to visit a mall Santa Claus with two men who shot the boy execution-style in the Arizona desert.<br />Milke said she had nothing to do with Christopher's death, but a detective testified at her 1990 trial that she had confessed to him — and him alone — in a closed interrogation room. Prosecutors said she killed her son to collect on a $50,000 insurance policy.<br />Now, Milke could walk free, leaving death row behind after a federal appeals court threw out her conviction Thursday because prosecutors had not turned over evidence of the detective's history of misconduct, including lying under oath in other cases.<br />The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel concluded that prosecutors' failure to turn over the evidence deprived Milke's attorneys of the chance to question Phoenix Police Detective Armando Saldate Jr.'s credibility before jurors.<br />And because it was the only direct evidence tying her to the killing, that fact could have swayed the jury, the panel ruled.<br />"No civilized system of justice should have to depend on such flimsy evidence, quite possibly tainted by dishonesty or overzealousness, to decide whether to take someone's life or liberty," according to the opinion by Chief Judge Alex Kozinski.<br />The ruling has raised questions about other cases in which the now-retired Saldate gave testimony.<br />The court noted four cases where judges threw out confessions or indictments because Saldate lied under oath and four instances where cases were tossed or confessions excluded because Saldate violated the suspect's constitutional rights.<br />He was also suspended for accepting sexual favors from a female motorist he stopped and then lying about the encounter, it said.<br />Saldate, who was elected to a county constable post after retiring but has now left that post, could not be reached for comment Friday.<br /><br />Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne said he intends to appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court and will argue it himself if they accept the case, saying the decision was the first to raise the issue after decades of court hearings.<br />"This is an outrageous crime," Horne said. "Ms. Milke was convicted of arranging for the death of her own child to improve her social life, and I hope to be able to convince the U.S. Supreme court to reverse this 9th Circuit decision."<br />Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery, who will be charged with deciding whether to retry Milke if the ruling stands, said Friday that he will have to review the available evidence and Saldate's credibility himself before deciding how to proceed.<br />He said there may be more evidence that wasn't used at the 1990 trial. "I want to know what the hell happened, after reading the opinion," Montgomery said. "I want to be able to review the available information and understand for myself."<br />But Montgomery said changes in the way rogue officers are monitored had changed greatly since 1990. Now, officers with credibility problems are tracked in a database so that those issues are caught early and disclosed to defense lawyers when necessary.<br />"The basic concerns that are raised in the 9th Circuit opinion, I do not believe that is anywhere near a systemic issue today," Montgomery said. "This is an instance where I need to make sure what we do is what's right rather than what's expedient."<br />Milke's appellate lawyers, Mike Kimerer and Lori Voepel, said the appeals court's decision sends a clear message to police and prosecutors who don't reveal evidence that could help people accused of crimes defend themselves.<br />"It's one of the most scathing opinions I've ever seen the 9th Circuit write, in terms of talking about the credibility of a police officer or a law enforcement official," Kimerer said. "It almost sets the standard in terms of what we need to expect from law enforcement."<br />For Milke, who has always maintained her innocence, the ruling after 23 years on death row came as a shock, Voepel said.<br />"I said, 'Debra, we have good news. We won,'" Voepel said, recalling a phone call Thursday. "And she said, 'you're kidding, you're kidding," and I tried to explain it to her and she said just give me a minute here to feel this. She's elated, to say the least."<br />Milke, 48, is one of three women on death row in the state.<br />The two men convicted in the Milke case, Roger Scott and former Milke roommate James Styers, are also on death row. Scott confessed during a police interrogation and led detectives to the boy's body. Neither Scott nor Styers testified against Milke.<br />The county attorney at the time, Rick Romley, was not so happy. "If she walks, it's a travesty of justice," Romley told KPHO-TV.<br />Christopher Milke's father, Arizona Mark Milke, was just as adamant.<br />"And they let her walk, the most guilty of the three, uh-uh," he told KPNX-TV in Phoenix. "I know she's guilty, I don't think nothing, I know. I've always known. I'm just ready to get back in that saddle, and ride back into court and let's do it again."

Arizona woman reviled for son's murder may go free

Debra Milke was one of the most reviled mothers around, convicted in the murder of her 4-year-old son. But now the Arizona woman, who has ma...

11 dead, dozens hurt in Mexico fireworks explosion

Mexican authorities report that at least 11 people died when a pickup truck carrying fireworks exploded during a village festival.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhnkXbY9qAKdnbzJnzPw0aSkHKdulIIV_EwPGVFeQ-Qmwf9ezMBNgSwSRZ5qLkU2hG0ZWakAc2QRHr_gvK-yiNl_Md6y9Qrqp854TMM4yjmi3zCPrbOjwUFoJvmXWCsdsLv9xKQr30HBJh/s1600/seopublimetro.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhnkXbY9qAKdnbzJnzPw0aSkHKdulIIV_EwPGVFeQ-Qmwf9ezMBNgSwSRZ5qLkU2hG0ZWakAc2QRHr_gvK-yiNl_Md6y9Qrqp854TMM4yjmi3zCPrbOjwUFoJvmXWCsdsLv9xKQr30HBJh/s1600/seopublimetro.jpg" /></a></div><br /><br />MEXICO CITY – A truck loaded with fireworks exploded during a religious procession in a rural village in central Mexico on Friday, killing at least 11 people and injuring dozens more, authorities said.<br />The blast was set off when a firework malfunctioned and landed on the truck, igniting the fireworks it carried, officials said. Seventy people were burned or had other injuries, and at least 45 were taken to hospitals, authorities in the neighboring states of Tlaxcala and Puebla said.<br />"They were in a procession, they were shooting off rockets and it exploded and fell onto the other ones," said Jose Mateo Morales, director of the Tlaxcala state civil protection department. "It was very serious."<br />Human remains and burned clothes were spread around a 100-yard radius, including on rooftops, a photographer at the scene said.<br />The victims were marching in an annual procession in honor of Jesus Christ, the patron saint of Jesus Tepactepec, a village of about 1,000 people, Mateo Morales said.<br />At least one child was among the victims, Tlaxcala Gov. Mariano Gonzalez said.<br />Helicopters, dozens of ambulances and soldiers from the area's military base rushed to the village, about 70 miles east of Mexico City.<br />Tlaxcala Bishop Francisco Moreno said he toured the scene of the blast and went to hospitals to visit the wounded. "I blessed all who died and said a prayer for them," the bishop said in his Twitter account.<br />Fireworks are a typical feature of Mexican holidays and religious celebrations but they often are manufactured, stored and transported under unsafe conditions, and the country sees periodic fatal explosions.<br />Jesus Tepactepec is known for its handicrafts manufacturing, including baskets and wood figures, and its annual religious celebration draws artisans from nearby towns who come to sell their wares.

11 dead, dozens hurt in Mexico fireworks explosion

Mexican authorities report that at least 11 people died when a pickup truck carrying fireworks exploded during a village festival. MEXICO CI...

US senator reverses gay-marriage stance after son’s coming out

Conservative US senator Rob Portman of Ohio said in an opinion piece published Friday that he had dropped his opposition to gay marriage after finding out that his own son was gay. <br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbg15YOSQUVb1E2-hxrvgD2bQ44TXY2fVvncO3wiYkWlnNp8yjWnwj-xrJj3EF06bw7nFrLQIs37cf4KsrcYNN-ClaRXSOnUOH-siKGluFfCI7nkUvq_EZdtmdoblYskRXCdRiF-TnkSpk/s1600/a1.jpg" width="640" /></div><br />Portman is now the only Senate Republican supporting gay marriage.<br /><br />A conservative U.S. Senator once opposed to gay marriage is now supporting it after learning one of his sons is gay.<br />Sen. Rob Portman disclosed his change of heart in interviews with several Ohio newspapers and CNN. In an op-ed published Friday in The Columbus Dispatch he said the decision came after a lot of thought.<br />“I have come to believe that if two people are prepared to make a lifetime commitment to love and care for each other in good times and in bad, the government shouldn’t deny them the opportunity to get married,” he wrote.<br />As a member of the House in 1996, Portman voted in favor of the Defense of Marriage Act, which defines marriage as between a man and a woman and bars federal recognition of same-sex marriage.<br />Portman’s reversal makes him the only Senate Republican to back gay marriage.<br />Portman said his views on gay marriage began changing in 2011 when his son, Will, then a freshman at Yale University, told his parents he was gay and that it wasn’t a choice but “part of who he was.” Portman said he and his wife, Jane, were very surprised but also supportive.<br />He said it prompted him to reconsider gay marriage from a different perspective, that of a father who wants all three of his children to have happy lives with people they love.<br />Portman told reporters Thursday that his previous views on marriage were rooted in his Methodist faith.<br />“Ultimately, for me, it came down to the Bible’s overarching themes of love and compassion and my belief that we are all children of God,” he wrote.<br />The well-known Ohio conservative, a former U.S. trade representative and White House budget chief, was considered but not chosen as Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney’s running mate. Portman told the newspapers Romney was informed about Will’s sexuality last year.<br />Portman’s reversal comes as the U.S. Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments this month in a challenge to a provision of the Defense of Marriage Act.

US senator reverses gay-marriage stance after son’s coming out

Conservative US senator Rob Portman of Ohio said in an opinion piece published Friday that he had dropped his opposition to gay marriage aft...

Carnegie Mellon, NSA seek high school computer hackers

Carnegie Mellon and the government are having an online game competition to look for the next generation’s great computer minds.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFacODcK0H9TWBF8QaIIlfJj-gL0PqbA5Zw4IN6rFzxkDfJofn-z29PrCZ5uR-1_XWUUhsxkjj8Y-X1uovXD_sjJT3Uy3NmPDBMvUcPqiBrlZwOIWaqBGOro_1E2RTwOFX1oTj4VHQb4Tg/s1600/%2540Publimetro.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFacODcK0H9TWBF8QaIIlfJj-gL0PqbA5Zw4IN6rFzxkDfJofn-z29PrCZ5uR-1_XWUUhsxkjj8Y-X1uovXD_sjJT3Uy3NmPDBMvUcPqiBrlZwOIWaqBGOro_1E2RTwOFX1oTj4VHQb4Tg/s1600/%2540Publimetro.jpg" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;">PITTSBURGH — Bored with classes? Carnegie Mellon University and one of the government's top spy agencies want to interest high school students in a game of computer hacking.</div><div style="text-align: left;">Their goal with "Toaster Wars" is to cultivate the nation's next generation of cyber warriors in offensive and defensive strategies. The free, online "high school hacking competition" is scheduled to run from April 26 to May 6, and any U.S. student or team in grades six through 12 can apply and participate.</div><div style="text-align: left;">David Brumley, professor of computer science at Carnegie Mellon, said the game is designed to be fun and challenging, but he hopes participants come to see computer security as an excellent career choice.</div><div style="text-align: left;">At a glance of its webpage, the contest seems lightweight.</div><div style="text-align: left;">"When a robot from space crash lands in your backyard, it's up to your hacking skills to fix him and uncover the secrets he carries," the webpage says. But, it adds, students "will learn how to identify security vulnerabilities and perform real-world attacks" on computer. And there is the small tag that reads: "Sponsorship provided by the NSA."</div><div style="text-align: left;">National Security Agency representative Vanee Vines said the U.S. has a great need for cyber security professionals.</div><div style="text-align: left;">"America increasingly needs professionals with highly technical cyber skills to help keep the country safe today — and to help the country meet future challenges and adapt with greater agility," Vines said in an email to The Associated Press.</div><div style="text-align: left;">"When it comes to national security, there is no substitute for a dedicated, immensely talented workforce. We need the best and brightest to help us outthink and defeat our adversaries' new ideas."<br />The NSA, based in Maryland and part of the Defense Department, is responsible for code breaking, monitoring overseas communications, and protecting the U.S. from cyberattacks. Last month, then-Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said cyberattacks are "the battlefield of the future," and security experts said massive amounts of data and corporate trade secrets, likely worth hundreds of millions of dollars, were being stolen from government and corporate computers.</div><div style="text-align: left;">"The government has a huge number of concerns," Brumley said. "Computer security isn't growing fast enough to keep up with all the threats. If you call any business, they're going to say we can't hire enough security people."</div><div style="text-align: left;">Carnegie Mellon released news of the hacker contest just days after the Obama administration's national security adviser called for China to take "serious steps" to stop cyber theft and after a top officer at the U.S. Cyber Command warned that the federal government and the private sector need to be more aggressive in building the country's cyber defenses.</div><div style="text-align: left;">"Toaster Wars" organizers acknowledge that world-class computer hackers don't get such skills just by going to class, but they also note that getting such know-how on one's own carries some legal concerns.</div><div style="text-align: left;">"Computer security is a difficult field to get into," the webpage says. "Those who are interested may find it hard to hone their skills legally."</div><div style="text-align: left;">Brumley described the contest as a capture-the-flag-type game. Pieces of information, called flags, are encrypted or hidden somewhere difficult to find. The game includes computer forensics, cryptography, web exploitation and binary exploitation, described as "the art of bending a computer program to your will."</div><div style="text-align: left;">Organizers say aspiring young hackers probably don't want to sit around and protect a server from outside attacks so the contest was developed to keep their interest.</div><div style="text-align: left;">"We do both offense and defense. We think that brings an additional level of excitement," Brumley said. "That's how you get intuition on how to solve problems."</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgauYf3LupDh5KFJP8V5R1KG1dQrmkjpdejfpjd5FHEDpJYLxfpmeD5KBnXdKvh4KYsEx6X_vVgslXi4a2UNOpMngBgkvCo0h31MlBrfgKJUO0LJ_s8xbTGssa6wx7yMFdtOoTaZZZUyH55/s1600/%2540publimetro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="40" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgauYf3LupDh5KFJP8V5R1KG1dQrmkjpdejfpjd5FHEDpJYLxfpmeD5KBnXdKvh4KYsEx6X_vVgslXi4a2UNOpMngBgkvCo0h31MlBrfgKJUO0LJ_s8xbTGssa6wx7yMFdtOoTaZZZUyH55/s1600/%2540publimetro.png" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: left;">Brumley said he is seeking corporate sponsors and hopes to offer a cash prize to the winners.</div>

Carnegie Mellon, NSA seek high school computer hackers

Carnegie Mellon and the government are having an online game competition to look for the next generation’s great computer minds. PITTSBURGH ...

NRA chief attacks gun background checks

<div class="abs">The NRA's Wayne LaPierre argues that background checks for gun buyers would let the government tax gun owners or take their weapons. </div><div class="abs"> </div><section><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3MuDysjmiNMb3iEq5R3UZcDg84JYN1hh8DRwk070PRtrrKwsCTn904lZw-1qrowT5oeYsjO_NmnAwvPDpZLNGWtXYnpkfo75fWgHAJKk1NisUNK-Kg6UD2Ly7jBs_KLt_biZCl1BUV98i/s1600/nra.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3MuDysjmiNMb3iEq5R3UZcDg84JYN1hh8DRwk070PRtrrKwsCTn904lZw-1qrowT5oeYsjO_NmnAwvPDpZLNGWtXYnpkfo75fWgHAJKk1NisUNK-Kg6UD2Ly7jBs_KLt_biZCl1BUV98i/s1600/nra.jpg" width="640" /></a><br />OXON HILL, Md. — The head of the National Rifle Association is attacking President Barack Obama's call for mandatory background checks for gun owners.<br />The NRA's Wayne LaPierre says those who favor mandatory background checks may be, in his word, "insane."<br />LaPierre says background checks won't make schools safer. Instead, he says, the checks will let the government tax gun owners or take their weapons. He spoke to activists at the Conservative Political Action Conference Friday in suburban Washington.<br />Obama has called on Congress to tighten gun laws following the Connecticut school shooting that killed 26 children and educators. The president supports a series of reforms, including mandatory background checks and a renewal of the assault weapons ban.<br />Conservatives say they are increasingly confident Congress will reject any reforms.</section><br /><!-- Blogger automated replacement: "https://images-blogger-opensocial.googleusercontent.com/gadgets/proxy?url=http%3A%2F%2F2.bp.blogspot.com%2F-XwsyFH0y_s0%2FUUOq29UQLfI%2FAAAAAAAAAr4%2F6Uak_e7hjJs%2Fs1600%2Fnra.jpg&container=blogger&gadget=a&rewriteMime=image%2F*" with "https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3MuDysjmiNMb3iEq5R3UZcDg84JYN1hh8DRwk070PRtrrKwsCTn904lZw-1qrowT5oeYsjO_NmnAwvPDpZLNGWtXYnpkfo75fWgHAJKk1NisUNK-Kg6UD2Ly7jBs_KLt_biZCl1BUV98i/s1600/nra.jpg" -->

NRA chief attacks gun background checks

The NRA's Wayne LaPierre argues that background checks for gun buyers would let the government tax gun owners or take their weapons.   O...

Colorado Legislature OKs expansion of firearms checks

<div class="abs" style="text-align: left;">Colorado's Gov. John Hickenlooper is expected to sign legislation expanding background checks for private and online gun purchases in the state after it passed the state House Friday.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqRaE4SKHwo0iwJcKfZD6aByoXeyV6QBXJQK_BmvsFkY09jZwM47QgDV4eNn2Ndfh1AM_WMO-ftnN_OmdkGTV0uhMtTpv8vA4oRGR9D1PmG-wuAdwSAj9XPTB2T6R24YxwW6H-f92KdJhA/s1600/%2540publimetro.us.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqRaE4SKHwo0iwJcKfZD6aByoXeyV6QBXJQK_BmvsFkY09jZwM47QgDV4eNn2Ndfh1AM_WMO-ftnN_OmdkGTV0uhMtTpv8vA4oRGR9D1PmG-wuAdwSAj9XPTB2T6R24YxwW6H-f92KdJhA/s1600/%2540publimetro.us.gif" width="320" /></a></div><div class="abs" style="text-align: left;"> </div><ul><li><section>DENVER — Colorado lawmakers have passed expanded background checks for private and online firearm purchases and sent the bill to the governor's desk for his expected approval.</section></li><li><section>The bill was passed Friday in the Democratic-controlled House by a 36-27 vote, with only one Democrat opposing.</section></li><li><section>The bill came in response to the mass shootings last year at a suburban Denver movie theater and Connecticut elementary school.</section></li><li><section>Democrats in the Senate approved the bill earlier.</section></li><li><section>Democratic Gov. John Hickenlooper called for the checks during this State of the State address in January. He's expected to sign the bill within two weeks.</section></li><li><section>Republicans say the background-check requirement can't be enforced without universal gun registration, which they oppose.</section></li><li><section>Democrats insist that growing online gun sales and sales outside stores and gun shows have created a big loophole in gun transfers without background checks.</section></li></ul><br />

Colorado Legislature OKs expansion of firearms checks

Colorado's Gov. John Hickenlooper is expected to sign legislation expanding background checks for private and online gun purchases in th...

Number of dead pigs in Shanghai river rises to 8,354

<div class="abs">The increasing total of dead pigs tossed into a river that delivers water to Shanghai shines a light on a Chinese pork industry with few controls.</div><div class="abs"> </div><section><div class="first" data-class="float1"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiV1LWr_AsB-9t401hLrqu0f1dOktqx1D3s-kOwZ0BAfqmno_zi32IGunk5OsVXOc8wYRKa18Po0y2LkSrFXuNbjvlCV3C2QtxpvWwjaxR8_qegWFOIEzoMsaRMfnM-eqrxiHIgjori6OH8/s1600/shangai.jpg" width="640" /></div><br /></div>SHANGHAI/BEIJING – The number of dead pigs found in a Shanghai river that provides drinking water to the Chinese financial hub has risen to 8,354, after local authorities pulled 809 more pigs out of the river on Friday.<br />The Shanghai municipal government has repeatedly assured the city's 23 million residents that tap water is safe. Shanghai locals, however, remain worried about water contamination from the swollen and rotting pig carcasses in the river.<br />The dead pigs are believed to be from hog farms in the upstream Jiaxing area in neighboring Zhejiang province. A surge in pig dumping has followed police campaigns against the sale of pork products made from diseased pigs.<br />Chinese state media say one Jiaxing hog farmer has admitted to pig dumping and is under investigation.<br /><strong>COMMON PROBLEM</strong><br />The rotting pig bodies in a river that supplies tap water to Shanghai has drawn attention to an ugly truth – China's pig farms are often riddled with disease and one way or another, sick animals often end up in the food chain.<br />Authorities have found traces of a common pig virus in some of the animals floating in the Huangpu River this week, and industry insiders say farmers likely dumped them, common in an industry which has no system of compensation for losses from disease.<br />"There is no mechanism by which, whenever diseases are found among pigs, the government compensates pig breeders so as to control the spread of diseases or compensate pig breeders for losses," said Feng Yonghui, general manager at pig-industry research organization Soozhu.com.<br />To make matters worse, Feng said insurance companies were unwilling to insure pig breeders because the risks were so high.<br />Workers on barges and on the riverbank used pitchforks to drag bloated dead pigs out of the river.<br />Pork is China's staple meat and the swine population is the world's largest at 475 million head at the end of last year.<br />At market, margins on pork are thin and for hog farmers unwilling to spend money to incinerate or bury dead animals, the Huangpu River may have offered a tempting alternative.<br />While there was no proof any sick animals had been butchered and sold for meat in this case, media have reported several scandals involving sick or dead livestock being butchered and sold for meat.<br />Early this year, state media accused a supplier of chicken to KFC and McDonald's of selling them sick poultry. The supplier denied it.<br />While authorities have not confirmed a disease, or the death of unusually large numbers of pigs, talk of pigs dying would seem to suggest an outbreak of some sort.<br />One farmer in the Jiaxing area near Shanghai, 69-year-old Jiang Lie, said about 30 percent of his pigs had died of disease since January.<br /><br /><strong>TOUGH JOB</strong><br /><br />Dumping dead pigs in a river is not unheard of.<br />"We don't think it is individual case. Many similar cases were just not reported," said Wang Xiaoyue, an analyst with Beijing Orient Agri-business Consultant Co Ltd.<br />An unidentified Jiaxing farmer had admitted to dumping dead pigs, the Xinhua state news agency said in a report on xinhuanet.com. The news agency also cited a pollution control official as saying some 7,000 to 8,000 pigs had died every month over the past few months in a pig-raising village.<br />Villager Yan Lan'e said there were always pigs in the Huangpu, and aside from the number, the only difference this week was that authorities were clearing them out along with the trash.<br />"Before, they just cleared out the garbage," she said.<br />Rather than blaming the farmers, Lin Rongquan, a veterinary health expert in Shanghai, pointed the finger of blame at the local government, a major link in the chain of agencies overseeing farms.<br />"It's definitely the problem of the local government, which should bear the main responsibility. They do not regulate the pig business well," he said.<br />On Sunday, the central government unveiled restructuring plans aimed at improving efficiency and cutting out graft. The changes came as parliament sat in Beijing for a session at which complaints of corruption and red tape were common.<br />The restructuring included bundling the responsibilities of several agencies into a ministerial-level General Administration of Food and Drug in response to the scandals.<br />Analyst Wang said that should help but it would not change things overnight given the problems from feed additives, the use of antibiotics and pollution.<br />"It's a tough job to improve things," he said.<br />Many people took to the internet to complain. Others sought solace in grim humour.<br />In one joke posted online, a Beijing resident boasts about the air pollution in the capital, saying if he wanted a smoke, he just had to open the window.<br />A Shanghai resident retorts: "That's nothing, when we turn on the tap, we get free rib soup."</section>

Number of dead pigs in Shanghai river rises to 8,354

The increasing total of dead pigs tossed into a river that delivers water to Shanghai shines a light on a Chinese pork industry with few con...

France finds horse meat in beef imported via Netherlands

<div class="abs">After several weeks of relative quiet in the European horse meat scandal, Horse meat has been discovered in a shipment from Eastern Europe to France through the Netherlands.</div><div class="abs"> </div><section><div class="first" data-class="float1"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img height="384" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJgjueeFC1ZpzF7Js18AUXTa95Bkj2xZx8pYVzY-L6-Devq6l8q66xthRkwJa1lpVh4H9vW7JLSBfS7Q56khBmr4ZouEeIJmrlxoVPHR-5mJrz8xOdYzymR-RF4rjtUwIdVn8DhSd6Hdv6/s1600/france.jpg" width="640" /></div><br /></div>MARSEILLE, France – Horse meat has been found in France in a shipment of 320 tons of meat labeled "pure beef" that was imported from Eastern Europe via the Netherlands, a local prosecutor said on Friday.<br />The horse meat, found during tests in the southeastern city of Cavaillon in meat intended for use in ready-made meals, was the latest in a scandal that has spread across Europe since equine DNA was found in beef products in Ireland in January.<br />"The tests, carried out three weeks ago, have shown the presence of horsemeat in most batches," Vaucluse prosecutor Yannick Blanc told Reuters.<br />The meat came from various eastern European countries and transited through the warehouses of Dutch companies Draap Trading and Windmeijer Meat Trading, the prosecutor said.<br />The firms could not immediately be reached for comment.<br />Last month, after a senior Romanian food safety official identified Draap Trading as a buyer of horsemeat from Romania, a lawyer for Draap official Jan Fasen denied all allegations, including of being a major player in a fraud network.<br />No horse meat was found in one batch that came directly from Romania without going through the Netherlands, Blanc said.<br />A spokesman from the Dutch food safety authority declined to comment about the specific case but said there was a continuing investigation to trace the supply chain for beef potentially containing horsemeat, imported to the Netherlands and then re-exported to France.<br />French President Francois Hollande called last month for compulsory labeling and traceability of meat used in processed foods in Europe to prevent a repeat of the horsemeat scandal.</section>

France finds horse meat in beef imported via Netherlands

After several weeks of relative quiet in the European horse meat scandal, Horse meat has been discovered in a shipment from Eastern Europe t...

9 dead, dozens hurt in Mexico fireworks explosion

<div class="abs">Mexican authorities report that at least 9 people died when a pickup truck carrying fireworks exploded during a village festival.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrky7ZUImKQKym9O9HZeqHYloJr4B5G4JjJq5gWCRVwBj9hRfBnh6x5dmQc2r7XfGUAnGZXk1X_qOSHzReQSSDBXA81lkosRrIQl7CLQYuFQ4BybBf5qihaFPkDRDFSPKzDVb3TpVctf92/s1600/%2540publimetro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrky7ZUImKQKym9O9HZeqHYloJr4B5G4JjJq5gWCRVwBj9hRfBnh6x5dmQc2r7XfGUAnGZXk1X_qOSHzReQSSDBXA81lkosRrIQl7CLQYuFQ4BybBf5qihaFPkDRDFSPKzDVb3TpVctf92/s1600/%2540publimetro.png" /></a></div><div class="abs"> </div><section>MEXICO CITY – Authorities in central Mexico say at least nine people were killed and dozens injured when a pickup truck carrying fireworks caught fire and blew up during a religious celebration at a small village.<br />Tlaxcala state Civil Protection director Jose Morales says the explosion in Jesus Tepactepec happened as people were in a procession and a firework malfunctioned and landed on the truck carrying the rest of the fireworks.<br />Morales says nine people are known dead and adds that there are also injuries but he doesn't know how many. Authorities in neighboring Puebla state say 45 injured people have been taken to regional hospitals.</section>

9 dead, dozens hurt in Mexico fireworks explosion

Mexican authorities report that at least 9 people died when a pickup truck carrying fireworks exploded during a village festival.   MEXICO C...

Woman killed, child raped in NY mall carjacking

Police say 29-year-old David Renz raped a 10-year-old girl and killed her mother in a Syracuse suburb.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFacODcK0H9TWBF8QaIIlfJj-gL0PqbA5Zw4IN6rFzxkDfJofn-z29PrCZ5uR-1_XWUUhsxkjj8Y-X1uovXD_sjJT3Uy3NmPDBMvUcPqiBrlZwOIWaqBGOro_1E2RTwOFX1oTj4VHQb4Tg/s1600/%2540Publimetro.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFacODcK0H9TWBF8QaIIlfJj-gL0PqbA5Zw4IN6rFzxkDfJofn-z29PrCZ5uR-1_XWUUhsxkjj8Y-X1uovXD_sjJT3Uy3NmPDBMvUcPqiBrlZwOIWaqBGOro_1E2RTwOFX1oTj4VHQb4Tg/s1600/%2540Publimetro.jpg" /></a></div><br />CLAY, N.Y. — Police have accused a man of fatally stabbing a school librarian and raping her child after carjacking them at a central New York mall.<br />They say the woman was leaving a gymnastics class with her 10-year-old daughter when the attacker stopped them at the mall in Clay at about 9 p.m. Thursday.<br />Troopers say 29-year-old David Renz raped the girl and killed the woman in the Syracuse suburb. The girl managed to escape.<br />The woman died Thursday night, and the child is hospitalized, Trooper Jack Keller said Friday.<br />Renz, of Cicero, has been charged with murder, rape and kidnapping. It wasn't initially known if he has a lawyer.<br />The Press doesn't publish information that could identify potential sex-crime victims and isn't naming the woman to protect the child's identity.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgauYf3LupDh5KFJP8V5R1KG1dQrmkjpdejfpjd5FHEDpJYLxfpmeD5KBnXdKvh4KYsEx6X_vVgslXi4a2UNOpMngBgkvCo0h31MlBrfgKJUO0LJ_s8xbTGssa6wx7yMFdtOoTaZZZUyH55/s1600/%2540publimetro.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="40" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgauYf3LupDh5KFJP8V5R1KG1dQrmkjpdejfpjd5FHEDpJYLxfpmeD5KBnXdKvh4KYsEx6X_vVgslXi4a2UNOpMngBgkvCo0h31MlBrfgKJUO0LJ_s8xbTGssa6wx7yMFdtOoTaZZZUyH55/s1600/%2540publimetro.png" width="320" /></a></div>

Woman killed, child raped in NY mall carjacking

Police say 29-year-old David Renz raped a 10-year-old girl and killed her mother in a Syracuse suburb. CLAY, N.Y. — Police have accused a ma...

US to beef up missile defense against North Korea

The Pentagon will add interceptors to U.S. missile defenses in California and Alaska, reflecting concern about North Korea's focus on developing nuclear weapons. <br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><img height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrDNvsc0lvOlpS_JqBB4i2B9oVc1fibzjmpUt0Lhen3ULRUQFt3YJHX6_rXWQ3Eds0GZrcriOxX5c_P2hHUo-qd6DwI86ojWX21lTNXh783W7tQ2sFnEV3_zTIpYUmWKZvcx3naXDFpN1s/s1600/inter.jpg" width="640" /></div><br />WASHINGTON — The Pentagon announced Friday it will spend $1 billion to add 14 interceptors to a West Coast-based missile defense system, responding to what it called faster than anticipated North Korean progress on nuclear weapons and missiles.<br />In announcing the decision, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said he is determined to ensure protection of the U.S. homeland and stay ahead of the North Korean missile threat. He acknowledged that the interceptors already in place to defend against potential North Korean missile launches have had poor test performances.<br />"We will strengthen our homeland defense, maintain our commitment to our allies and partners, and make clear to the world that the United States stands firm against aggression," Hagel told a Pentagon news conference.<br />The Pentagon intends to add the 14 interceptors to 26 already in place in Alaska. That will expand the system's ability to shoot down long-range missiles in flight before they can reach U.S. territory. In addition to those in Alaska, the U.S. has four missile interceptors in California.<br />Hagel said the 14 extras should be in place by September 2017 but will not be deployed until they have been adequately tested.<br />James Miller, the undersecretary of defense for policy, said the project would cost about $1 billion.<br />Miller and Hagel said the U.S. will conduct environmental studies on three additional potential locations for interceptors in the United States, including on the East Coast, as required by Congress. Hagel said no decision on a particular site has been made, but the studies would shorten the timeline should a decision be made.<br />Miller said that would provide options for building an interceptor base on the East Coast or adding more interceptors in Alaska, should either approach become necessary due to further future increases in the threat from Iran and North Korea.<br />The threat of a missile strike from North Korea was the rationale for building the missile defense sites in Alaska and California during the administration of President George W. Bush. Technical difficulties with the interceptors slowed the pace at which they were installed in Alaska and California.<br />"Our policy is to stay ahead of the threat — and to continue to ensure that we are ahead of any potential future Iranian or North Korean ICBM (intercontinental ballistic missile) capability," Miller said in a speech Tuesday at the Atlantic Council.<br />Miller noted that last December North Korea launched a satellite into space, demonstrating its mastery of some of the same technologies required for development of an intercontinental ballistic missile.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb84OyH3c-CoQPKDcySFS1A4UQ-Ec2yFNrXp8a3_n4MGDSL1KM0jCXNt7JMomUnBtvmeZdsV5VmihpSVRZMY6JtuJv3aAgMdjcLhDLhyphenhyphent9dbQAkt53SJ9jejEuqMlXoTDGxox8mr5yGHgE/s1600/pentagono.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb84OyH3c-CoQPKDcySFS1A4UQ-Ec2yFNrXp8a3_n4MGDSL1KM0jCXNt7JMomUnBtvmeZdsV5VmihpSVRZMY6JtuJv3aAgMdjcLhDLhyphenhyphent9dbQAkt53SJ9jejEuqMlXoTDGxox8mr5yGHgE/s1600/pentagono.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />"Our concern about Pyongyang's potential ICBM capability is compounded by the regime's focus on developing nuclear weapons," he said. "North Korea's third nuclear test last month is obviously a serious concern for all nations."<br />North Korea recently threatened to reduce Seoul to a "sea of fire" and stage pre-emptive nuclear attacks on Washington.<br />"North Korea's shrill public pronouncements underscore the need for the U.S. to continue to take prudent steps to defeat any future North Korean ICBM," Miller said in his speech Tuesday.<br /><br /><!-- Blogger automated replacement: "https://images-blogger-opensocial.googleusercontent.com/gadgets/proxy?url=http%3A%2F%2F2.bp.blogspot.com%2F-RuW9IinH4a4%2FUUOh3UpLptI%2FAAAAAAAAArg%2F3sOYX8_c35c%2Fs1600%2Fpentagono.jpg&container=blogger&gadget=a&rewriteMime=image%2F*" with "https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjb84OyH3c-CoQPKDcySFS1A4UQ-Ec2yFNrXp8a3_n4MGDSL1KM0jCXNt7JMomUnBtvmeZdsV5VmihpSVRZMY6JtuJv3aAgMdjcLhDLhyphenhyphent9dbQAkt53SJ9jejEuqMlXoTDGxox8mr5yGHgE/s1600/pentagono.jpg" -->

US to beef up missile defense against North Korea

The Pentagon will add interceptors to U.S. missile defenses in California and Alaska, reflecting concern about North Korea's focus on de...