Inside the Wendy House: Planning A Baby Shower??

I'm thrilled to bits that in a few months time I'm going to be a granny to my son Joe's first baby with his lovely girlfriend Jade. ?It's an exciting time for our family and we fully intend to celebrate every step of the way.

Baby Showers are becoming really popular in the UK and it will be lovely for Jade to have one for our families and friends. ?Knowing my future daughter-in-law, who is very creative and loves a good party, she will want to be in charge of planning her own baby shower! ?However, the last thing she will want to do is spend hours trying to organise all the details of sending invitations, managing guest lists and sorting out a gift list. ?This is where the new Sudocrem Facebook App comes in, allowing you to do all your organising from one place in just minutes!

It's so easy to do! ?You simply enter the event details, filling in the time and place, then send invites to your friends and family via Facebook. ?The guests can RSVP directly and also can send messages on the useful comments board. ?Guests can also have access to a gift list, making sure that the mum-to-be does not end up getting ten of the same present!! ?I know that Jade has a wishlist of some beautiful, quirky baby clothes...this is a great way of letting those who want to buy a gift know exactly what she wants for Baby McD! ?The app let's you see all the events you have organised or have been invited to at a glance. ?It is very simple to navigate and nicely designed.

Use the Sudocrem App and You Could Win A Phil & Teds Verve Travel System

To make using the app even more attractive and to celebrate its launch, Sudocrem are giving away a Phil & Teds Verve Travel System worth a whopping ?650! ?What a wonderful prize for a mum-to-be! To be in with a chance of winning you simply have to arrange a shower using the app. ?The winner will be randomly selected from all users on August 20th 2012. ?Ten runners-up will also win a Sudocrem goody bag.

So if you are a mum-to-be or if you know a mum-to-be and want to throw a baby shower for them, it is definitely worth using this handy app and being in with a chance of winning the amazing prize! ? Good Luck!

Make Your Party One To Remember!

Source: http://insidethewendyhouse.blogspot.com/2012/06/planning-baby-shower.html

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Friday Night Jam: Crowded House Live, 'Don't Dream It's Over' (Little green footballs)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories News, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/236212644?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Foie gras defenders say California ban infringes trade law

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[ [ [['did not go as far his colleague', 8]], '29438204', '0' ], [ [[' the 28-year-old neighborhood watchman who shot and killed', 4]], '28924649', '0' ], [ [['because I know God protects me', 14], ['Brian Snow was at a nearby credit union', 5]], '28811216', '0' ], [ [['The state news agency RIA-Novosti quoted Rosaviatsiya', 6]], '28805461', '0' ], [ [['measure all but certain to fail in the face of bipartisan', 4]], '28771014', '0' ], [ [['matter what you do in this case', 5]], '28759848', '0' ], [ [['presume laws are constitutional', 7]], '28747556', '0' ], [ [['has destroyed 15 to 25 houses', 7]], '28744868', '0' ], [ [['short answer is yes', 7]], '28746030', '0' ], [ [['opportunity to tell the real story', 7]], '28731764', '0' ], [ [['entirely respectable way to put off the searing constitutional controversy', 7]], '28723797', '0' ], [ [['point of my campaign is that big ideas matter', 9]], '28712293', '0' ], [ [['As the standoff dragged into a second day', 7]], '28687424', '0' ], [ [['French police stepped up the search', 17]], '28667224', '0' ], [ [['Seeking to elevate his candidacy back to a general', 8]], '28660934', '0' ], [ [['The tragic story of Trayvon Martin', 4]], '28647343', '0' ], [ [['Karzai will get a chance soon to express', 8]], '28630306', '0' ], [ [['powerful storms stretching', 8]], '28493546', '0' ], [ [['basic norm that death is private', 6]], '28413590', '0' ], [ [['songwriter also saw a surge in sales for her debut album', 6]], '28413590', '1', 'Watch music videos from Whitney Houston ', 'on Yahoo! Music', 'http://music.yahoo.com' ], [ [['keyword', 99999999999999999999999]], 'videoID', '1', 'overwrite-pre-description', 'overwrite-link-string', 'overwrite-link-url' ] ]

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/foie-gras-defenders-california-ban-infringes-trade-law-122912511.html

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Sharapova, Serena Williams win at Wimbledon

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) ? On the verge of victory, Maria Sharapova briefly lost her bearings.

Sharapova's old serving problems resurfaced Thursday at Wimbledon, costing her the second set before she recovered to beat dangerous Tsvetana Pironkova, 7-6 (3), 6-7 (3), 6-0.

The Court 1 match took two days and ended three minutes after Serena Williams concluded her second-round victory on Centre Court, beating qualifier Melinda Czink 6-1, 6-4.

It was a good day for Americans ? Andy Roddick, Mardy Fish and No. 126-ranked Brian Baker also advanced, as did No. 28-seeded Christina McHale and Varvara Lepchenko.

The No. 1-ranked Sharapova saved five set points in the first set and led the second set 3-1 when play was halted Wednesday because of darkness. She lost the first two games when the match resumed, and double-faulted on her first three service points in the tiebreaker.

"It felt like two matches in a way," Sharapova said. "Today I wanted to start off really well because I knew I was up a break. Didn't go according to plan. Really served sloppy."

Sharapova underwent shoulder surgery in 2008 and has been prone to double-faults, but in the final set she had no trouble with her serve ? or anything else. She won 21 of the last 27 points and finished with just 11 unforced errors.

Sharapova said she didn't make any major changes down the stretch.

"We were playing with the same balls; I played with the same racket," she said. "I just started doing things a little bit better."

Pironkova, ranked 38th, beat Venus Williams at Wimbledon each of the past two years,

"If she played on grass 365 days a year, she'd be top five probably," Sharapova said. "She has the perfect game for it."

But Sharapova's at her best in winner-take-all sets. She improved her record in three-set matches to 9-0 this year and 21-1 since the beginning of 2011.

She has won 14 consecutive matches, including the French Open this month to complete a career Grand Slam.

While Sharapova battled an erratic serve, with eight aces and 10 double-faults, four-time champion Serena Williams had no such trouble. She won 27 of 28 points on her first serve, including 10 aces, and never faced a break point. Czink twice whiffed on returns.

"I love my serve," Williams said, "and I love feeling good when I serve."

The sixth-seeded Williams could meet Sharapova in the final next week. A 17-year-old Sharapova defeated Williams for the Wimbledon title in 2004.

Roddick advanced to the third round at a Grand Slam tournament for the first time in 2012 when he beat Bjorn Phau 6-3, 7-6 (1), 6-3. Roddick is seeded only 30th and fended off questions in recent months about retirement before he won his fifth grass-court title last week as a wild card at Eastbourne.

"The good patches and the bad patches are all between the ears," Roddick said. "I'm still enjoying myself on the tennis courts, so it's not for anybody else to say whether I can or can't play."

Fish, seeded 10th, needed more than four hours to beat British wild card James Ward, 6-3, 5-7, 6-4, 6-7 (3), 6-3. Fish is playing in his first tournament since undergoing a medical procedure in May for an accelerated heartbeat.

Baker, a qualifier whose career was derailed for 6? years by injuries, is into the third round at a Grand Slam tournament for the first time. He beat Jarkko Nieminen 6-0, 6-2, 6-4.

"I was definitely not expecting to get through so easily," Baker said.

The 20-year-old McHale advanced to the third round at her fourth consecutive Grand Slam tournament when she beat Mathilde Johansson 7-5, 7-5. McHale next plays No. 8-seeded Kerber with a chance to reach the fourth round at a major for the first time.

"I am still not finding my best tennis consistently over the two matches I have played," McHale said. "I still feel I can be a lot more offensive."

Lepchenko, ranked 53rd, advanced to the third round at Wimbledon for the first time by beating No. 31 Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova 7-6 (4), 6-4.

No. 2-seeded Victoria Azarenka defeated Romina Oprandi 6-2, 6-0.

British hopeful Andy Murray faced only one break point and beat big-serving Ivo Karlovic 7-5, 6-7 (5), 6-2, 7-6 (4). Kei Nishikori became the first Japanese man in 17 years to reach the third round at Wimbledon by beating Florent Serra 6-3, 7-5, 6-2.

Sara Errani committed only five unforced errors and beat Anne Keothavong of Britain 6-1, 6-1. The 25-year-old Errani, an Italian who has blossomed in Grand Slam competition this year, matched her best Wimbledon showing by advancing to the third round.

She was the French Open runner-up this month to Sharapova, and she's 12-2 in major tournaments in 2012. She began this year with a career record of 15-17 at majors.

Playing the day's first match on Court 2, the 10th-seeded Errani erased all three break points she faced and won in 61 minutes. That was a grueling effort compared with Wednesday, when she played only one point to complete a victory suspended overnight because of rain.

No. 7 David Ferrer defeated Kenny de Schepper 7-6 (1), 6-2, 6-4 and will next play Roddick. No. 13 Gilles Simon, who stirred debate this week when he said men should be paid more than women at tennis tournaments, lost to Xavier Malisse 6-4, 6-4, 7-6 (5).

Kerber beat Ekaterina Makarova 7-5, 6-3.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/sharapova-serena-williams-win-wimbledon-140047996--spt.html

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Watch: 2 Clips From ?Killer Joe? Showcase Twisted Tone, Better Look At Thomas Haden Church and Juno Temple?s Characters

In a film as filled to the brim with deliciously nasty characters and dialogue as ?Killer Joe,? it?s been frustrating to see it marketed down through snatches of seemingly generic action beats and lines in the trailer. Luckily though, two new clips have appeared to give a better sense of the film?s tone overall, as well as a nice look at the scene-chewing from its excellent cast.

The first clip runs two minutes, and revolves around the Smith family as they let a failed insurance policy payout raise tensions even more, mostly from father Ansel (Thomas Haden Church) toward his son Chris (Emile Hirsch). Gina Gershon and Juno Temple portray the other members of the family, and if everything seems a bit arch and blackly comic, then the second clip with Temple confirms as much. As Temple cheerily explains her matricidal support later to Matthew McConaughey?s Killer Joe, the drolly terrifying assassin asked by Chris to off his mom for her insurance money, the enthusiasm from her and McConaughey over their twisted roles is crystal-clear and great to watch.

That goes for everyone in the film as well, and it?s a testament to director William Friedkin that it never falls too far into grindhouse schlock (although there are moments that toe the line). It?s an immensely dark, hilarious flick, and one that will need all the help it can get when the NC-17 thriller opens July 27 in the US for a limited run. Watch the first clip below, and head over to The Guardian for the non-embeddable second.? [Digital Spy/The Guardian]

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Attention Irritated Bowel Syndrome ? Discover 3 Natural Remedies ...

Article by lamargiancaspro

Attention Irritated Bowel Syndrome ? Discover 3 Natural Remedies You Can Use To Relieve The Symptoms Of Ibs ? Health ? Alternative Medicine

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The term ?acid and reflux? refers to one of two disorders ? gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) which occurs when stomach acid seeps into the esophagus and laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR) in which the contents of the stomach flow into the upper aero-digestive tract. The former is more likely to produce heartburn and so the latter form is often referred to as ?silent reflux.? If either type is not treated early the lining of the esophagus can erode.There are a lot of natural and effective heartburn remedies in the market today. Fortunately people do not have to search far and wide because some cures can easily be found in the kitchen. Heartburn is an uncomfortable feeling that can be a very painful experience.

As someone who suffered from anxiety and panic attacks for years before I cured myself I understand what it?s like to search for a cure that you don?t think even exists. Here are some of the best methods for curing anxiety that don?t require medication.

Gastro-esophageal reflux disease GERD or heartburn and acid and reflux disease is one of the biggest digestive health problems these days. If you are suffering from this problem you may be put on a special diet. Read on as this article discusses will teach you what food to avoid when you?re suffering from GERD.

STOP GETTING RIPPED OFF! LEARN THE SHOCKING TRUTH ABOUT ACID REFLUX HEARTBURN DRUGS AND ANTACIDS? To get the FACTS on exactly how to eliminate your acid reflux from the root 100% naturally and Permanently and achieve LASTING freedom from digestive disorders without spending your hard-earned money on drugs and over the counters?

Click Here End Heartburn >>

Heartburn is caused when the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) which is located between the esophagus and stomach is weakened or opens inappropriately. This allows acid and other stomach contents back into the esophagus causing irritation.

Ulcerative colitis can be a very nasty thing to deal with. The symptoms include diarrhea where the stools could be bloody and the process of passing the stools is painful. It also causes anemia in some people. Sometimes weight loss is also seen. Other symptoms consist of rectal bleeding lesions on the exterior skin of the anus pain in the joints and failure in the growth mechanism which primarily affects children.

If you suffer from acid and reflux you will understand how important your diet is to control the pain and suffering caused by this disease. When you suffer from acid and reflux you diet can be the best way to treat and live with this disease.

Simple Things You Can Do To Alleviate Pain Caused by acid and reflux Disease. acid and reflux Disease is the common term for Gastroesophageal reflux disease.

For those of us who suffer from chronic heartburn there isn?t much that we would rather do than just get some relief. Here are some suggestions to help you to get over the heartburn once and for all.

About the Author

STOP GETTING RIPPED OFF! LEARN THE SHOCKING TRUTH ABOUT ACID REFLUX HEARTBURN DRUGS AND ANTACIDS? To get the FACTS on exactly how to eliminate your acid reflux from the root 100% naturally and Permanently and achieve LASTING freedom from digestive disorders without spending your hard-earned money on drugs and over the counters?

Click Here End Heartburn >>

Heartburn is caused when the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) which is located between the esophagus and stomach is weakened or opens inappropriately. This allows acid and other stomach contents back into the esophagus causing irritation.

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BlueStacks brings Android apps to OS X, wolves planning a rest with some lambs

BlueStacks is releasing the first public alpha of its Android App Player capable of running on OS X. The virtualization company's software is powered by its Layercake technology and includes a bundle of apps from its various partners. CEO Rosen Sharma hopes the move will encourage developers to build "retina-friendly" apps for Google's mobile OS that can then be sold to those on the other side of the technology divide. There's a sign-up sheet for developers itchy to get their hands on the goods on the company's website, but don't expect a response right away -- there's still a few more days of Google I/O to go first.

Continue reading BlueStacks brings Android apps to OS X, wolves planning a rest with some lambs

BlueStacks brings Android apps to OS X, wolves planning a rest with some lambs originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 27 Jun 2012 21:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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My blog ? Blog Archive ? Credit score Financial debt Relief Assist ...

brand new financial debt relief laws have addressed an extremely prolonged standing
debt reduction help that a lot of debtors would frequently complain about. The debtors are from the most susceptible placement with huge sum of excellent debts to shell out. The debt relief corporations would frequently get benefit of this situation and cost a non-refundable upfront price from your debtors. The federal authorities to place a test on that now has promulgated a law that bars them from charging any upfront charge. The federal government has beforehand also introduced a tax break legislation immediately after the debtors commenced complaining regarding the tax they?d to shell out even on the evaded quantity of financial debt.
The debtors now have a number of financial debt relief packages offered for settling their debts. Every single debt relief help is made to offer with particular debt complications that the debtors deal with. Individuals debtors who are getting bother paying their debts due to the high interest rate and their financial debt sum is less than $5K. They?re requested to choose for the debt consolidation program. According to this financial debt relief plan, the creditor lends cash on the debtor equivalent for the amount of whole debt on quite low interest rate. Then the debtor pays again debt using the high rate of interest. The financial debt shouldn?t be regarded as settled and it will be nonetheless in area but minus the higher rate of interest. Therefore the debtor gets rid in the large rate of interest plus the creditor is rest assured that the debtor won?t file for bankruptcy. The creditors after making an allowance for the financial situations in the debtors decide simply how much to lower the interest rate.
The debtors are always advisable to rent a financial debt relief business for settling debts. These corporations have educated and a settlement help experts who negotiate with the creditors on debtors? behalf. They consider to explain the details to collectors inside a proficient manner and persuade them to grant the maximum relief. According to your new laws the debtors can only decide to pay the moment the settlement is built and they show their contentment on the final result of the negotiations. For this reason these providers now set their complete weight and leave no stone unturned in acquiring the utmost relief for their consumer

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Cisco rolls its first Linksys 802.11ac WiFi router and bridge, kicks off Connect Cloud app platform (video)

Cisco won't be the fastest out of the gate with an 802.11ac WiFi router, but it's certainly one of the most ambitious. The dual-band Linksys EA6500 and a companion, single-band Universal Media Connector network bridge hike the bandwidth up to 802.11ac's 1.3Gbps peak, each of them carrying their own quartet of gigabit Ethernet jacks. A pair of USB ports on the EA6500 should make sharing storage that much faster as well. If you ask Cisco, however, the real highlight is the new Cisco Connect Cloud app platform. Not unlike Novatel's MiFi apps, the software helps either manage the router itself (think parental controls) or tap into other devices around the home, including AirPlay sharing and remote camera monitoring. There's even a new SimpleTap hardware integration platform that will pair third-party WiFi gear like Onkyo receivers to a router through Android and iOS smartphone apps. Eventually, that should include a gentle NFC-based nudge.

A Linksys Developer Community is starting now with six app developers already lined up, and support is due for any access point Cisco deems worthy of the Smart Wi-Fi Router name. That said, you'll have to wait awhile if you want the 802.11ac tag attached to that router at the same time. The currently-without-a-price EA6500 doesn't hit shops until early August; you'll have to wait until September for the equally priceless Universal Media Connector.

Gallery: Linksys EA6500, Universal Media Connector and Cisco Connect Cloud

Continue reading Cisco rolls its first Linksys 802.11ac WiFi router and bridge, kicks off Connect Cloud app platform (video)

Cisco rolls its first Linksys 802.11ac WiFi router and bridge, kicks off Connect Cloud app platform (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 26 Jun 2012 10:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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HBT: Ump blows double-switch, costs Cards

The Cardinals beat the Marlins in extras last night, but umpire Bob Davidson made it all the harder when he screwed up a double-switch made by Mike Matheny which cost the Cards Allen Craig.

The short version: when Matheny put reliever Victor Marte into the game, he signaled ?five? with his hands, meaning that he was taking over David Freese?s position in the lineup, with Freese being the third baseman or the five-position, defensively (he was batting seventh). After a batter had batted, however, Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen came out and said told Davidson that Matheny meant the five-hole in the lineup, which had been occupied by Allen Craig.

Davidson inexplicably agreed with Guillen regarding what Matheny meant, said that the pitcher was supposed to be batting fifth now and that Allen Craig had to leave the game. This later led to the Cardinals having to use a pitcher to pinch hit in extra innings. Which worked out ? he got an RBI ? but still.

Later the on-field mics picked up Davidson telling Ozzie that he ?f****d up,? and that Matheny had, in fact, told him that he wanted the pitcher in the seven-hole. Too late, of course.

Just another day in Mr. Davidson?s neighborhood.

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Most valuable movie poster could sell for $1M

Samuel Dietz / Getty Images

By Reuters

The film was silent, but the poster roared. When German artist Heinz Schulz-Neudamm created a poster for the Fritz Lang's 1927 German science-fiction dystopian "Metropolis," he probably didn't imagine it would fetch a record $690,000 nearly a century later.

The poster's selling price in 2005 is still a record. And it's slated to set a new one.

Earlier this year the illustration, with its jagged lettering, stoic skyscrapers and blank-faced femme-robot has been appraised at $250,000 in a bankruptcy filing by owner Kenneth Schacter, a collector.

But in March, it went up for sale with an $850,000 list price, and some appraisers estimate it could be the first poster to sell for $1 million.

The painting is centered around an animatronic woman, called the Robot, used by a mad scientist to seduce oppressed workers living in a futuristic city where the wealthy rule from chic, towering buildings. Filmed during the pre-Nazi period of the Weimar Republic, "Metropolis" was written by Lang and his wife Thea von Harbou.

Poster dealer Sean Linkenback told the Guardian that Schulz-Neudamm's poster is "the crown jewel of the poster world."

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Train in Okla. collision failed to take side track

Smoke rises from two cargo trains that collided two miles east of Goodwell, Okla. on Sunday, June 24, 2012. A total of four people were on the trains, and one was reportedly killed in the accident. (AP Photo/The Guymon Daily Herald, Trudy Hart)

Smoke rises from two cargo trains that collided two miles east of Goodwell, Okla. on Sunday, June 24, 2012. A total of four people were on the trains, and one was reportedly killed in the accident. (AP Photo/The Guymon Daily Herald, Trudy Hart)

National Transportation Safety Board member Mark Rosekind speaks during a news conference Monday, June 25, 2012, at the Texas County Activity Center in Guymon, Okla. Rosekind said the investigation into Sunday's train collision between two freight trains outside Goodwell, Okla., is in its early stages. (AP photo/The Guymon Daily Herald, Shawn Yorks)

TULSA, Okla. (AP) ? Two freight trains that collided in an Oklahoma wheat field weren't blowing their horns or flashing their lights as they hurtled toward each other, according to long-haul trucker who watched helplessly from a highway as the locomotives collided head-on.

Three of the four crew members assigned to the trains were still missing Monday, and investigators feared they couldn't have survived the Sunday crash and tremendous fire. One crew member jumped from the slower-moving train before the accident and survived with scrapes and bruises.

The National Transportation Safety Board determined that one of the trains failed to take a side track and give the other locomotive the right of way, NTSB spokesman Mark Rosekind said Monday night. He declined to say which train was on the wrong track, but said no malfunction was found in the signals that guide the trains.

The collision happened Sunday morning just after an eastbound Union Pacific train carrying mixed goods from Los Angeles to Chicago passed through Goodwell at a good clip. A mile east of town, it hit a westbound Union Pacific train hauling cars and trucks.

The resulting diesel fireball merged tons of steel and spewed black smoke that could be seen for miles across the flat, arid landscape that makes up the Oklahoma Panhandle.

Long-distance truck driver Gary Mathews, hauling freight from Phoenix to Missouri along U.S. 54, had been running evenly with the eastbound train at 68 mph outside of Goodwell and looked ahead to see another train approaching on the same track.

"I was thinking, I'm going to see a train crash unless somebody does something," Mathews, of Independence, Mo., said Monday in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "They're not blowing the horn to each other, blinking lights or whatever. I kept thinking, 'This cannot happen, it cannot happen.'"

The Union Pacific railroad has sidings at Guymon and Goodwell, but only a single track runs between the two communities about 300 miles northwest of Oklahoma City.

"One train had the right of way. We're still getting the data to figure out what was scheduled to happen. There was a side track and we're trying to figure out what was supposed to be where, and when," Rosekind said.

Mathews said he often will travel evenly with trains to see how fast they are going. "I like to run with the trains," he said.

Mathews said the westbound train slowed considerably before the crash, but the eastbound train was still traveling "65 or better" when the trains hit about 50 yards away from him.

"A blast of hot air came through the side glass, and it put a burn on you like you step out of an air-conditioned bar into 110 degrees, through the glass," he said. "There was a 'thud' and it was over. Smoke was rolling. Smoke went up so high it was like a foundry on fire, and it was barreling straight up," he recalled.

"After I seen it, the feeling went through me, it scared the tar out of me, and I didn't stop until I reached Emporia" in Kansas, about 350 miles away. He was interviewed Sunday by the Guymon Daily Herald newspaper and reached Monday by the AP.

"I didn't even stop," Mathews said, as he recalled watching the unfolding seconds immediately after the crash in his rearview mirror.

Freight train speeds are governed by the Federal Railroad Administration and depend on how a section of track is rated. The highest class of track allows speeds up to 80 mph. It wasn't immediately known how the track near Goodwell was rated.

Investigators hadn't yet been able to search the wreckage for any bodies.

"They have to let the metal cool ... to see if they can get in there and find the bodies of the missing, and that may never happen," said Betsy Randolph, a trooper with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.

Firefighters did what they could to cool the freight cars, and a crew was dispatched from Fort Worth, Texas, to smother the flames with foam. The trains' engines seemed to merge in the collision.

"It was a tangled, mangled burning mess," Randolph said.

The United Transportation Union identified those aboard the trains as conductor Brian L. Stone, 50, of Dalhart, Texas; engineers Dan Hall and John Hall; and conductor Juan Zurita, who escaped virtually uninjured. The Halls are not related.

The track will likely need to be rebuilt before the line reopens.

"It will be a slight inconvenience," said Scott Robertson, the superintendent at Farmers Elevator Inc. "The wheat harvest is nearly done and I haven't seen anything at any of the elevators around here sending (wheat) out. It's going to delay some deliveries, but it's not going to have that much of an impact."

U.S. 54, which runs alongside the track, was closed for a time. Eastbound lanes reopened Monday morning, but westbound traffic was diverted for a few miles, Randolph said. Boxcars littered wheat fields surrounding the site.

Rosekind, the NTSB spokesman, said at a news conference Monday morning that investigators would be on the scene the rest of the week.

"Our mission is not only to determine what happened, but why. It's that why that allows us to make safety recommendations to prevent these kinds of accidents from occurring in the future," he said.

Union Pacific spokesman Tom Lange said the trains were equipped with data recorders, similar to those recovered following aircraft accidents.

Many freight lines don't run on a set schedule and the number of trains through an area can vary from day to day, said Rob Kulat, a spokesman with the railroad administration. He and railroad officials referred questions to the NTSB.

___

Associated Press writer Ken Miller contributed to this report from Oklahoma City.

Associated Press

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Fantasy sleepers and busts

Every year at this time Rotoworld constructs a deep list of ?sleepers? and ?busts? for the Rotoworld Fantasy Football Draft Guide magazine. Below is a sample of the 50+ picks for undervalued, sleepers, overvalued, and busts that can already be found in the 2012 online Draft Guide, which will be live on July 5.

Undervalued

Michael Vick, Eagles, QB - Vick was in the discussion for the No. 1 overall fantasy pick at this time a year ago. Nothing has changed this year except the offensive line has solidified and both starting receivers are poised for bounce-back seasons. As evidenced by the trophies he almost single-handedly put on the mantle two years ago, Vick still has the highest ceiling in fantasy.

Current ADP: 4.04, 41st overall, QB6

Carson Palmer, Raiders, QB - Yards per attempt is arguably the most important statistic for a quarterback. Only Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, and Matt Schaub bested Palmer?s 8.4 figure with the Raiders last year. Palmer?s 275 yards per in 10 games last season project to 4,400 over a full schedule.

Current ADP: 11.04, 128th overall, QB16

Trent Richardson, Browns, RB - The local media and the Browns? GM expect Richardson to be a workhorse right out of the gates. Widely viewed as the best back to enter the NFL since Adrian Peterson, Richardson is a candidate to lead the NFL in carries as a rookie. Forget about the lack of surrounding talent; Peyton Hillis finished as fantasy No. 2 back in a weaker offense two years ago.

Current ADP: 2.02, 14th overall, RB10

Jonathan Stewart, Panthers, RB - The Panthers boast three superstar offensive talents, but this one continues to fly under the radar. Only LeSean McCoy, Adrian Peterson, and Maurice Jones-Drew earned a higher running grade from Pro Football Focus, and Stewart forced more missed tackles in the passing game than any other NFL back. Stewart led the backfield in snaps and was more productive than DeAngelo Williams, but he?s still being drafted as Williams? backup. Should Williams miss time, Stewart is a must-start RB1 option.

Current ADP: 8.04, 89th overall, RB36

Percy Harvin, Vikings, WR - ?From late November on, Harvin was utilized as a double-threat on the ground and through the air, turning back the clock to his Gator days as the most explosive player on the field. Harvin averaged 103.3 scrimmage yards and a touchdown on 11.3 touches per game from Weeks 10-17 while easily establishing career-highs in receptions (87), receiving yards (967), and rushing yards (345) in a 7th-place fantasy finish. With that workload, he?s essentially slump-proof in fantasy terms.

Current ADP: 5.02, 50th overall, WR20

Brandon Lloyd, Patriots, WR - Lloyd finished 25th in fantasy points, getting open at will, despite catching passes from A.J. Feeley and Kellen Clemens for half the season. The star of offseason practices, Lloyd has made a seamless transition in his former coordinator?s offense, establishing a rapport with Tom Brady. Lloyd should be a lock for double-digit scores as the outside threat Brady has craved since losing Randy Moss.

Current ADP: 5.05, 54th overall, WR21

Sleepers

Jake Locker, Titans, QB - Locker followed up an impressive preseason with a 99.4 passer rating, 8.2 YPA, 4:0 TD-to-INT ratio and dazzling rushing ability in three second-half relief appearances. If his obvious talent edge wins out over Matt Hasselbeck, the Titans have the young offensive playmakers to scorch opposing defenses this season.

Current ADP: Undrafted out of 24 QBs

Bernard Scott, Bengals, RB - Scott never seriously challenged Cedric Benson for carries, but he?s expected to be utilized in a committee attack with newly signed BenJarvus Green-Ellis. It won?t take long for the coaching staff to realize Scott offers far more explosiveness as a runner as well as a receiver. By mid-season, Scott should have the reins as the lead back.

Current ADP: Undrafted out of 58 RBs.

Kevin Smith, Lions, RB - An intriguing fantasy wildcard with two question marks in front of him in the Detroit backfield, Smith played as well as he ever has after signing in Week 10 last season. Versatile enough to play all three downs as long as his body holds up, Smith is an ideal roster stash as a RB3/4.

Current ADP: 12.10, 149th overall, RB53

Eric Decker, Broncos, WR - Decker ran more routes and caught more passes from Peyton Manning than any Denver receiver this offseason, quickly earning the veteran?s trust. Decker is a good route runner and an underrated athlete with size and special ball skills. Anointed by Kyle Orton as the ?ideal? slot receiver last year, Decker is more talented than Manning?s former slot machines, Austin Collie and Brandon Stokley.

Current ADP: 6.06, 69th overall, WR28

Brian Hartline, Dolphins, WR - By default, Hartline is set to take over as the No. 1 receiver in Miami following the Brandon Marshall trade. A complementary receiver to date, Hartline is more athletic than commonly believed -- similar to Jordy Nelson, who broke out with Joe Philbin?s Packers in 2011.

Current ADP: Undrafted out of 63 WRs.

Every year at this time Rotoworld constructs a deep list of ?sleepers? and ?busts? for the Rotoworld Fantasy Football Draft Guide magazine. Below is a sample of the 50+ picks for undervalued, sleepers, overvalued, and busts that can already be found in the 2012 online Draft Guide, which will be live on July 5.

Undervalued

Michael Vick, Eagles, QB - Vick was in the discussion for the No. 1 overall fantasy pick at this time a year ago. Nothing has changed this year except the offensive line has solidified and both starting receivers are poised for bounce-back seasons. As evidenced by the trophies he almost single-handedly put on the mantle two years ago, Vick still has the highest ceiling in fantasy.

Current ADP: 4.04, 41st overall, QB6

Carson Palmer, Raiders, QB - Yards per attempt is arguably the most important statistic for a quarterback. Only Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, and Matt Schaub bested Palmer?s 8.4 figure with the Raiders last year. Palmer?s 275 yards per in 10 games last season project to 4,400 over a full schedule.

Current ADP: 11.04, 128th overall, QB16

Trent Richardson, Browns, RB - The local media and the Browns? GM expect Richardson to be a workhorse right out of the gates. Widely viewed as the best back to enter the NFL since Adrian Peterson, Richardson is a candidate to lead the NFL in carries as a rookie. Forget about the lack of surrounding talent; Peyton Hillis finished as fantasy No. 2 back in a weaker offense two years ago.

Current ADP: 2.02, 14th overall, RB10

Jonathan Stewart, Panthers, RB - The Panthers boast three superstar offensive talents, but this one continues to fly under the radar. Only LeSean McCoy, Adrian Peterson, and Maurice Jones-Drew earned a higher running grade from Pro Football Focus, and Stewart forced more missed tackles in the passing game than any other NFL back. Stewart led the backfield in snaps and was more productive than DeAngelo Williams, but he?s still being drafted as Williams? backup. Should Williams miss time, Stewart is a must-start RB1 option.

Current ADP: 8.04, 89th overall, RB36

Percy Harvin, Vikings, WR - ?From late November on, Harvin was utilized as a double-threat on the ground and through the air, turning back the clock to his Gator days as the most explosive player on the field. Harvin averaged 103.3 scrimmage yards and a touchdown on 11.3 touches per game from Weeks 10-17 while easily establishing career-highs in receptions (87), receiving yards (967), and rushing yards (345) in a 7th-place fantasy finish. With that workload, he?s essentially slump-proof in fantasy terms.

Current ADP: 5.02, 50th overall, WR20

Brandon Lloyd, Patriots, WR - Lloyd finished 25th in fantasy points, getting open at will, despite catching passes from A.J. Feeley and Kellen Clemens for half the season. The star of offseason practices, Lloyd has made a seamless transition in his former coordinator?s offense, establishing a rapport with Tom Brady. Lloyd should be a lock for double-digit scores as the outside threat Brady has craved since losing Randy Moss.

Current ADP: 5.05, 54th overall, WR21

Sleepers

Jake Locker, Titans, QB - Locker followed up an impressive preseason with a 99.4 passer rating, 8.2 YPA, 4:0 TD-to-INT ratio and dazzling rushing ability in three second-half relief appearances. If his obvious talent edge wins out over Matt Hasselbeck, the Titans have the young offensive playmakers to scorch opposing defenses this season.

Current ADP: Undrafted out of 24 QBs

Bernard Scott, Bengals, RB - Scott never seriously challenged Cedric Benson for carries, but he?s expected to be utilized in a committee attack with newly signed BenJarvus Green-Ellis. It won?t take long for the coaching staff to realize Scott offers far more explosiveness as a runner as well as a receiver. By mid-season, Scott should have the reins as the lead back.

Current ADP: Undrafted out of 58 RBs.

Kevin Smith, Lions, RB - An intriguing fantasy wildcard with two question marks in front of him in the Detroit backfield, Smith played as well as he ever has after signing in Week 10 last season. Versatile enough to play all three downs as long as his body holds up, Smith is an ideal roster stash as a RB3/4.

Current ADP: 12.10, 149th overall, RB53

Eric Decker, Broncos, WR - Decker ran more routes and caught more passes from Peyton Manning than any Denver receiver this offseason, quickly earning the veteran?s trust. Decker is a good route runner and an underrated athlete with size and special ball skills. Anointed by Kyle Orton as the ?ideal? slot receiver last year, Decker is more talented than Manning?s former slot machines, Austin Collie and Brandon Stokley.

Current ADP: 6.06, 69th overall, WR28

Brian Hartline, Dolphins, WR - By default, Hartline is set to take over as the No. 1 receiver in Miami following the Brandon Marshall trade. A complementary receiver to date, Hartline is more athletic than commonly believed -- similar to Jordy Nelson, who broke out with Joe Philbin?s Packers in 2011.

Current ADP: Undrafted out of 63 WRs.

Overvalued

Peyton Manning, Broncos, QB - Arm-strength questions aside, Manning figures to suffer early-season growing pains while developing a rapport with his offensive line, wide receivers, and play caller. Throw in a brutal non-divisional schedule, and the obvious move is to let another owner risk a fifth or sixth-round draft pick on Manning.

Current ADP: 6.02, 63rd overall, QB8

Michael Turner, Falcons, RB - The patron saint of volume runners, Turner was already headed for a reduced workload after fading down the stretch for a second straight season. New coordinator Dirk Koetter plans to operate a more pass-heavy offense, diminishing Turner?s role even further. Heavily dependent on short-yardage scores, Turner is on a crash-course with a season out of LenDale White?s career.

Current ADP: 3.06, 31st overall, RB16

Wes Welker, Patriots, WR - Welker averaged an unsustainable 8.25/120/0.75 line in the first eight games compared to 6.8/71/0.36 the rest of the way -- including 7-of-11 games in which he failed to crack 60 yards. Most troublesome, Welker?s targets didn?t drop in the second half even though his per-play production did. With Brandon Lloyd on board, those targets do figure to go down this season.

Current ADP: 3.04, 28th overall, WR6

Jordy Nelson, Packers, WR - Nelson closed out the season as a top-three fantasy WR due to single coverage, refined route running, explosive run-after-catch ability, increased trust from his QB, Greg Jennings? late-season knee injury, and -- last but not least -- unsustainable good luck with the deep ball. Pro Football Focus notes that Nelson accrued half of his yards and scores on passes thrown 20+ yards beyond the line of scrimmage. That?s simply not sustainable year-in and year-out.

Current ADP: 4.03, 40th overall, WR14

Jason Witten, Cowboys, TE - On the way to his least productive season since 2007, Witten averaged just 5.8 targets in the second half of the season after seeing 8.9 in the first half. Over the final five games, Witten finished 19th among fantasy tight ends -- behind the likes of Dennis Pitta and Jeremy Shockey. Now a lower-tier TE1, Witten is no longer worth elite tight end price tag.

Current ADP: 6.11, 74th overall, TE7

Busts

Frank Gore, 49ers, RB - The Niners ran Gore into the ground last October, and he paid for it with a 3.2 yards per carry average while playing through multiple injuries in the second half of the season. Gore no longer has a major role in the passing game, and the 49ers brought in Brandon Jacobs as a short-yardage hammer. Where is the fantasy upside?

Current ADP: 4.02, 39th overall, RB19

BenJarvus Green-Ellis, Bengals, RB - ?A timeshare back about to be exposed outside of the Patriots? offense. The dictionary definition of a plodder, Green-Ellis didn't have a run over 18 yards last season. If you take away the game where the Jets played seven defensive backs throughout, Green-Ellis? per-carry average falls below 3.5 yards. You can find backs like this on the waiver wire throughout the season.

Current ADP: 5.05, 53rd overall, RB24

Sidney Rice, Seahawks, WR - How would you feel about taking on the risk of Jahvid Best if he was coming off twin labrum surgeries in his shoulders? If Best is wearing a red flag as an injury risk, Rice is sporting fluorescent hazmat tape after his third concussion in 12 months ended his season prematurely last year.

Current ADP: 8.11, 96th overall, WR37

Brent Celek, Eagles, TE - Celek erupted for 542 of his 811 yards in the second half of the season with Jeremy Maclin injured and DeSean Jackson in the doghouse. With both receivers healthy and poised for bounce-back seasons, Celek will fall back to the third or fourth option in the passing attack.

Current ADP: 13.04, 155th overall, TE15

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Air India victims remembered in Vancouver

Jagit Grewal shows her two-year-old grandson Devin Grewal where her husband, Daljit Singh Grewal, and his grandfather's name is on a monument honouring those who died, during a memorial marking the 25th anniversary of the Air India bombing in Vancouver on June 23, 2010. (Darryl Dyck/Canadian Press)

Families of the victims of the 1985 Air India bombing are expected to gather at the memorial site in Vancouver's Stanley Park on Saturday evening.

Every year, family members hold a special ceremony to remember loved ones who died when a bomb aboard the plane exploded over the coast of Ireland, killing 329 people.

Only one man has ever been convicted for his role in the tragedy which has widely been believed to be the work of Sikh extremists.

"Some of these people have forgiven the bombers and some of them have found a purpose in their lives," said journalist Gurpreet Singh. "They're trying to help others by running free schools and hospitals for people in India."

Singh recently wrote a book highlighting how some families have channelled their grief into charity work abroad and in Canada.

"Some people are doing the same thing by living in Canada like sending sponsorships to baby children, whether in Ireland or anywhere in India," he said.

"Either way, it's very difficult for those people to do it. They're trying to overcome the hatred and anger, and ... [it's] a kind of pursuit for a positive energy, so something that's very inspiring."

The memorial is slated to begin at 6:30 p.m. PT at the Air India Memorial in Ceperley Playground in Stanley Park.

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Take a fascinating archaeological journey through the Holy Land. This rare exhibit features the famed Dead Sea Scrolls, a stone from the Western Wall from the Second Temple in Jerusalem and more than 500 never-before-seen artifacts from biblical times. Experience firsthand the traditions, beliefs and iconic objects of ancient Israel that impact world religions today.

Sunday, June 24 ? 9:30 AM to 8:30 PM ?

Franklin Institute, The ? 222 N. 20th St., Philadelphia, PA

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Catholic Monsignor convicted in Philly abuse case (Americablog)

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GOP leader fires back at newspaper over First Amendment protections

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) has fired a salvo at The Washington Post after two of its columnists wrote that he has been inconsistent on First Amendment issues.

McConnell, who considers himself an ardent defender of First Amendment freedoms, pushed back in an op-ed published in The Post Saturday.

The battle started June 17 when editorial page editor Fred Hiatt wrote that Republican leaders have changed their position on campaign finance disclosure because the flood of anonymous money to campaigns helps their party.

He cited McConnell?s statement on NBC?s ?Meet the Press? in 2000 that ?Republicans are in favor of disclosure? and a lot of disclosure at that: ?Why would a little disclosure be better than a lot of disclosure??

Now Republican lawmakers oppose the Democrats? Disclose Act, which would require groups spending millions of dollars to influence campaigns to reveal their biggest donors.

?What?s changed? Sadly, only one thing, and it?s not the merits of the argument. The playing field has tilted toward Republicans, and they?re in no hurry to tilt it back,? Hiatt wrote.

Two days later, Post columnist Ruth Marcus, weighing the arguments for amending the constitution to limit independent expenditures, noted that McConnell once supported such an amendment.

She quoted McConnell?s argument: ?These are constitutional problems ? demanding constitutional answers.?

The Post columns were published shortly after McConnell delivered a major speech at the American Enterprise Institute urging conservatives to do all in their power to protect the First Amendment?s speech protections.

McConnell scolded The Post Saturday for questioning his motives and overlooking what he sees as the serious threat government intimidation poses to free speech.

?Unfortunately, many journalists have been less concerned about a president using his powers to silence critics than in drawing false inferences about the motives of those blowing the whistle,? he wrote.

?Post columnist Ruth Marcus went back to 1987, to my introduction of a constitutional amendment to allow limits on self-funding millionaires as evidence of my supposed hypocrisy,? he added.

McConnell said he quickly realized he was wrong to propose such an amendment and publicly testified against the idea nine months after proposing it.

?Not only have I voted against this idea every time it?s come up but I have also led the opposition,? he wrote.

McConnell argued that he has not changed his position on disclosure.

?Some, including Hiatt, have pointed to a 12-year-old quote in which I expressed support for disclosure not just for politicians and parties but maybe even for certain outside groups. This supposedly proved that I now oppose disclosure measures I used to support,? he wrote.

McConnell said Hiatt omitted concerns he raised at the time about the possibility of donors to controversial advocacy groups receiving harassment.

?My concern remains what it was in 2000: Selective disclosure would be used to harass people who have participated in the political process or to scare others from doing so,? McConnell wrote.

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Pecan Corner: Barbarian Days: A Family Doctor's Home in the ...

A couple of weeks ago, we went to Cross Plains, Texas, and toured the Robert E Howard home as part of their "Barbarian Days Festival".? Howard's father was Dr. Isaac M. Howard. This simple frame house served as the family home, and, also, sometimes, doubled as Dr Howard's office where patients were seen. The home was continually in use as a place to live for various families from the time Dr Howard sold it until Cross Plains' Operation Pride recovered it for preservation in 1989.
?Since that time, they have worked to furnish it with period furnishings and house those artifacts they can obtain (such as the camel inkwell that stood on Howard's desk - a gift from Cecil Lotief, local Cross Plains? dry goods merchant - and first Texas legislator who had been born in Lebanon. He was first elected in 1932). Other furnishings are close copies of items either known to have been there, or true to the period.? Below is a photo of Bob Howard in front of this house, circa 1925.

My main interest was that I enjoy touring simple historical homes: the kind of house in which ordinary citizens lived a hundred years ago. In this case, the home of an ordinary small-town family physician. During that epoch in American history, there were similarities among all Americans of frugality, economy of space and furnishings, and natural closeness of proximity to household members and neighbors, that is readily apparent when we walk through such a home and consider how life would be lived in it.

?By today's standards, the author's cell-like bedroom/study (below) is tiny, cramped, and simple. But by the standards of the day (continuing even up into the 1970s in most of the country), it was probably much like the rooms of Howard's own unmarried peers. The room offered simple comfort, privacy, a bright and airy place in which to write and attend to the voluminous correspondence an author would keep up in that era when postcards and letters would be mailed daily for the same purposes email and messaging would serve today.?

The bare bulb was a common feature of most homes until new homes built in the prosperous 1950s and 60s popularized inexpensive, built-in light fixtures. My grandmother's house had several while I was growing up.? Our current house still had bare bulbs in the mid-1940s during WWII, when Rita's family first moved here, and it was the first time they had electricity. This house at that time had 4 rooms - and her family rented one of them out to a soldier and his wife, who kept all their household goods in that one small bedroom, brought pots out to cook and went back into their room to eat their meals! This gives an idea of how economically indoor space was used during these earlier eras.

?Porches were converted into bedrooms more often than not - and existing windows and doors were just left intact. During pre-electric times, such windows and doors still had use for ventilation and light, just like the transoms found above interior doors in so many old homes. If not needed to carry daylight and breezes, these unused windows and doors were often covered permanently with a heavy curtain or drape to block light and drafts, and furniture would be placed in front of it as though it were a solid wall.

My mother's house, of similar or slightly earlier vintage as this one, has two such converted porches: one very similar to this one resulted in her kitchen having a window-to-nowhere (well, technically, a window-into-the-next-room). Her kitchen also has another window that faces into the remaining screened "sleeping porch" that could have been, if needed, similarly converted. The other converted porch left a door-to-nowhere behind the sofa in her living room (but alas, there is no "door into summer"!).

Not only were bedrooms added to accommodate growing families, but also young adults tended to live at home until they married, and were given their own space by adding a room or converting a porch. Our house has a converted porch that we now use as the laundry room. but which once turned a crowded 4-room house into a three-bedroom home? and housed a family's sons, who had previously slept in the living room.

From the back, it is each to see the flat roof of the addition - also very common for what is known as "lean-to" add-ons. Our house has a similar flat roof over the portion added in the 1970s.
?

?I was particularly interested to see the plate block for Dr. Howard's original bookplate (or Ex Libris as some call them). It is a linoleum cut and bears the doctor's own signature. A corresponding print from it is framed with it, but I couldn't tell whether the plate was designed to make prints onto gummed paper for application, or to print directly onto a book's fore-leaf.
?The docents at the museum, all members of Cross Plains' Project Pride, were wonderful, and I appreciated their friendly guidance through the tour. Here is one of these nice ladies with the Cross Plains Centennial Quilt, displayed in Mr and Mrs Howard's bedroom of the home, to which she had contributed a square. Each block was made by local women to celebrate the town's history, and its recovery from the devastating wild fires that burned 130 homes and killed two people in 2005.
?We wrapped up the day with the Barbarian Festival in a lovely, oak-shaded park, complete with live music, free watermelon (courtesy of AMA-Techtel), Conan the Barbarian artwork, and fabulous food. There was even a car show. This is an annual event and it was a lot of fun. I hope we will be able to go again from time to time!

Much more about Howard, his writing, his family, and life can be found at various places, including REH: Two-Gun Raconteur, REHupa (the Robert E Howard United Press Association), and the Robert E Howard Foundation.

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Law forces sex offenders to identify themselves on social networks

22 hrs.

Rosa Golijan

"Now that we are in the digital age, people get access to us not just by living near us,"?Louisiana State Representative Jeff Thompson explained when I asked him about a law he'd authored recently. The law forces registered sex offenders to identify themselves ? and explain the nature of their crimes???on social networks. ?A $1,000 fine and at least two years of prison (with hard labor) await those who fail to comply.

Thompson's law will be effective Aug. 1, and is basically an addition to existing sex offender notification laws.?Under current law, Thompson pointed out, sex offenders are required to give notice to certain individuals and organizations based on their geographic proximity. (For example, they have to notify those who reside near them, the local school district, local parks, and other places where there may be children.)

The new law?additions stipulate that any registered sex offender, "who is otherwise not prohibited from using a networking website, and who creates a profile or uses the functionality of a networking website to contact or attempt to contact other networking website users shall include in his profile for the networking website an indication that he is a sex offender or child predator and shall include notice of the crime for which he was convicted, the jurisdiction of confiction, a description of his physical characteristics as required by [the relevant laws], and his residential address."?This information must be made visible to users and visitors of the site.

The definition of a "networking website," in this context, is reasonably broad. Any site which focuses on social interaction and includes profile pages, photos, and the ability to send messages or leave comments appears to be included. This would suggest that Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and many other popular websites are covered by it. (Though the law is moot when it comes to Facebook, as?its terms of use prohibit convicted sex offenders from using the social network.)

While discussing the law with me, Thompson emphasized that it is simply a way of bringing existing laws up to date with current technology. The information sex offenders will have to provide on social networks matches the details which are printed in local papers upon conviction.

For that reason, the penalties are equal.?Failure to comply with the law leads to a $1,000 fine and at least two ??but no more than ten ??years of inprisonment (with hard labor). A second violation would bring a?$3,000 fine and at least five ??but no more than twenty ??years of inprisonment (with hard labor).

"It may not be the perfect solution," Thompson acknowledges, but says?he has a responsibility to his constituents. And this is theoretically?more reasonable than attempting to ban some folks from the Internet entirely.

Want more tech news, silly puns, or amusing links? You'll get plenty of all three if you keep up with Rosa Golijan, the writer of this post, by following her on?Twitter, subscribing to her?Facebook?posts,?or circling her?on?Google+.

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Fee disputes: Which banks are stingiest?

By Bob Sullivan

Which bank is the stingiest at handing out refunds to consumers who complain?? Wouldn't you like to know?

This story offers some insight into?the first question, based on complaints filed with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau during the past year.

This week, the bureau began offering consumers the chance to look into its massive database of complaints -- albeit in limited fashion. Only complaints filed since about June 1 ? or 173 of the total of 42,000 -- are currently available for public viewing at the agency's website.

But msnbc.com obtained the full database of complaints under a Freedom of Information Act request and has done some crunching of the numbers.?

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The data on the bureau's website were limited, in part, because the agency is still tinkering with the way it logs complaints.? It has several times refined the way it describes complaint resolution, for example. That means data codified under the old system are of limited value to researchers, and to the public.

Still, with 42,000 entries, there are things to learn from the data.? For now, we're focusing on resolution involving consumers who complained they were hit with an unfair fee. There are 1,458 such complaints in the data.? Most of these complaints involved credit card accounts (a few involve student loans).?

Squeaky wheel
Of these fee-related complaints, 204 were labeled "closed without relief," meaning the bank gave no monetary compensation to the complainer, and another 45 were labeled "no resolution provided," for a total of 17 percent.? On the other hand, 424 were "closed with relief," and another 365 cases were designated "full resolution provided" ? a winning percentage of 51 percent.? That shows the value of being a squeaky wheel, at least when it comes to fees.?

Various other designations, such as "misdirected," or "In progress" round out the results.

When considering data like this, it's of little use to count up totals and compare. It should be no surprise that really large banks like Bank of America attracted more complaints than medium-sized institutions like PNC Bank, for example.? But in the case of relief granted, a percentage of success or failure by consumers offers a little more information.

It turns out the J.P. Morgan Chase customers who complained were turned down least often among the 10 banks with the most fee-related complaints -- only about 10 percent were rejected, and conversely, 83 percent were granted relief and/or resolution.? GE Capital customers actually did a little better on the relief side, with 85 percent winning. Barclays, Capital One and Bank of America customers all got some kind of relief more than 70 percent of the time.

On the other side other side of the spectrum, US Bank customers fared the worst. Only 40 percent got relief; the same percentage were rejected by the bank (the data doesn't say what happened to the middle 20 percent). Also faring badly -- Citibank, Discover and American Express customers, who were rejected more than 25 percent of the time.? Capital One customers, despite their 70 percent success rate, were rejected 25 percent of the time.

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These results should be taken with a huge grain of salt. At this level of granularity the sample size is quite small -- with some banks, there were fewer than 50 fee-related complaints.? And the banking industry has valid concerns about the accuracy of the complaints. Nessa Feddis, spokeswoman for the American Bankers Association, correctly points out that a bank that has a particularly effective internal complaint resolution program could be wrongly portrayed as a bad actor by the CFPB data.?

"Maybe internally they have a 99 percent success rate and the only people who file with the bureau don't have a legitimate complaint, and that bank might look worst," she said.? "It would skew the percentages."

She also said banks with high ?no relief? scores could simply be ?(getting) it right the first time? when it comes to billing issues.

Feddis also complained more broadly about the idea that consumer complaints were being released to the public without vetting by a bureau official for legitimacy.

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"Some people file complaints about a fee that they understood and agreed to and simply don?t want to pay, or they misremember,? she said. ?There is simply no way to tell whether the complaint is valid or reasonable and the issuer doesn?t get to provide its side of the story. Hardly American due process."

Msnbc.com chose fee-related complaints for a reason. The chief criticism of the CFPB complaint database by the banking industry has surrounded the various designations for resolution. Initially, only consumers who received monetary compensation were designated as having obtained relief. When the banking industry complained that banks often offer non-monetary relief -- such as taking steps to improve a consumer?s credit score -- the bureau agreed and changed its coding system.

Fee-related complaints, however, offer a more clear data point for inspection: Consumers complaining about late fees, cash advance fees and balance transfer fees generally either get their money back, or they don't. ?By limiting this analysis to fee-related complaints, the resolution data is still informative, with this?caveat, provided on background by a person familiar with how the bureau?s database works: ?A small percentage of consumers who were granted a fee waiver ? as opposed to a refund ? by their credit card issuer may have had their complaints coded as ?without relief.? ?The person said the number of entries impacted by that distinction wouldn?t skew the overall results.

Jen Howard, spokeswoman for the bureau, said it wouldn't comment on the msnbc.com results.

Here?s the top 10 list of most generous and most stingy banks, presented with the above caveats:?

Granted fee relief

1	GE Capital	85%
2	J.P M. Chase	83%
3	Barclays	78%
4	Wells Fargo	72%
5	Capital One	70%
6	Bank of America	70%
7	Citi	66%
8	Discover	60%
9	Amex	53%
10	USBank	41%

Denied fee relief

1	J.P. M. Chase	10%
2	Barclays	10%
3	GE Capital	12%
4	Bank of America	18%
5	Wells Fargo	22%
6	Capital One	25%
7	Citi	25%
8	Discover	27%
9	Amex	31%
10	USBank	41%

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