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July 2009

Contador cautious ahead of second Alpine stage (Reuters)

MARTIGNY, Switzerland (Reuters) –
Alberto Contador will be on his guard when the Tour de France resumes following a rest day with Tuesday's 16th stage taking riders on a 159-km trek in the Alps from Martigny to Bourg St Maurice.

The Spaniard, in a league of his own in Sunday's first Alpine stage when he took the overall leader's yellow jersey, leads Astana team mate Lance Armstrong by one minute 37 seconds and Briton Bradley Wiggins by 1:46.

Andy Schleck, Carlos Sastre and Cadel Evans are among those also hot on his heels and will be ready to jump on the opportunity should Contador have a bad day.

"I must make sure that I do everything correctly so that my rivals cannot have a chance," said Contador, who lost his Paris-Nice lead earlier this year when he cracked in the penultimate stage.

Tuesday's stage will take the bunch to the summit of this year's Tour with the long ascent to the Col du Grand St Bernard, culminating at 2,473 meters.

Attacks could come in the climb to the Col du Petit St Bernard, after which there is a 30-km descent to Bourg St Maurice.

(Reporting by Julien Pretot; Editing by Sonia Oxley)

Garden Tables

An open park bench in al-Mahdi Park, Tehran. the bench seat is a traditional seat installed in automobiles, featuring a continuous pad running the full width of the cabin. a punishment bench is used to have a punishee lie (and often be tied) down on for the administration of a corporal punishment, after which it may be specifically named, e.g. caning bench.

Various types of benches are specifically designed for and/or named after specific uses, such as a Bench (weight training) is used for fitness exercises, such as the bench press which is named after its use of a bench a Communion bench is not used as a seat Piano benches offer usually one person seating and are height adjustable. a spanking bench, such as a caning bench, is specifically designed for a spankee to lie upon, possibly strapped down, while submitting to paining of the posterior Swing seats are independently movable, suspended benches, used for play or as a relaxing porch swing. a courting bench (or kissing bench, or tête-à-tête): a two-seater with the seats pointing in opposite directions, thus almost facing each other. A friendship bench in a school playground is where a child can go when they want someone to talk to. The bench in a courtroom, behind which the judge is seated.

http://www.gardenbenches.net/tables.aspx

Babies Grasp Dog's Emotions (LiveScience.com)

Dogs may be man's best friend, but babies might also really understand Fido.

A new study found that 6-month-olds can match the sounds of an angry snarl or friendly yap with photos of dogs showing the corresponding body language.

The results, published in the July issue of the journal Developmental Psychology, suggest that babies can decipher emotions even before they learn how to talk.

"Emotion is one of the first things babies pick up on in their social world," said lead researcher Ross Flom, a psychology professor at Brigham Young University in Utah.

Barking dogs

The study involved 128 infants, with 32 from each of four age groups (6, 12, 18 and 24 months), who had little or no exposure to dogs. The babies first looked at two images of the same fluffy canine, one showing the dog in an aggressive posture and facial expression while the other showed the dog in a friendly stance. The researchers wanted to figure out whether infants had a preference for one expression over the other before including the dog barks. They didn't.

Then, the researchers played a 2-second sound clip of either a friendly or threatening dog bark while the child viewed the two images. In the next trial, the other sound clip (aggressive or friendly) was played.

The researchers videotaped the young participants as they looked at one or both of the dog images (or glanced around the room, at a parent, or elsewhere). The 6-month-old babies spent most of their time staring at the matching photograph, so a mean bark would garner a stare at the dog with the vicious facial expression.

"The six-month-olds would look in that direction and kept looking in that direction," Flom told LiveScience. "The older kids would glance at it and then kind of look away as if to say, 'Oh yeah, I get it, it goes with that face. The task is ridiculous. I'm going to move on and look somewhere else around the room.'"

Baby smarts

The results suggest both 6-month-olds and babies up to 2 years old could distinguish a rowdy bark from a benign one. But the older babies just showed their correct responses differently than the 6-month-olds.

Past research in the field of baby smarts has relied on the proportion of time a baby looks in a certain direction or the proportion of time he or she exhibits some other signal of response to show a baby's skills in distinguishing facial expressions or intonations in speech patterns. These studies have suggested that while 6-month-olds are experts in verbal and facial perception even when it comes to monkeys, as they get older they lose this ability.

The idea is that babies are born with a full toolbox of broad abilities. Over time, as they experience the world, the toddlers refine their abilities and focus on what's really relevant, say, human faces rather than monkey or dog mugs.

But according to the new results, perhaps the little ones don't lose the ability, Flom said. They just show it differently. So instead of calculating the time spent looking in a certain direction, researchers could take into account a baby's first glance, he added.

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Original Story: Babies Grasp Dog's EmotionsLiveScience.com chronicles the daily advances and innovations made in science and technology. We take on the misconceptions that often pop up around scientific discoveries and deliver short, provocative explanations with a certain wit and style. Check out our science videos, Trivia & Quizzes and Top 10s. Join our community to debate hot-button issues like stem cells, climate change and evolution. You can also sign up for free newsletters, register for RSS feeds and get cool gadgets at the LiveScience Store.

Hard Money

This is the amount a lender could reasonably expect to realize from the sale of the property in the event that the loan defaults and the property must be sold in a one- to four-month timeframe. This value differs from a market value appraisal, which assumes an arms-length transaction in which neither buyer nor seller is acting under duress.

As an alternative to a potential shortage of equity beneath the minimum lender Loan To Value guidelines, many hard money lender programs will allow a "Cross Lien" on another of the borrowers properties. The cross collateralization of more than one property on a hard money loan transaction, is also referred to as a "blanket mortgage". Not all homeowners have additional property to cross collateralize. Cross collateralizing or blanket loans are more frequently used with investors on Commercial Hard Money Loan programs.

Hard Money

Delta Air Lines posts quarterly loss (Reuters)

ATLANTA (Reuters) –
Delta Air Lines Inc (DAL.N), the world's biggest carrier, reported a quarterly loss on Wednesday and said it was not planning for any meaningful rebound this year as the recession hurts air travel.

Delta, which became the leading airline when it acquired Northwest in October, said its second-quarter loss was $257 million, or 31 cents a share.

Excluding merger expenses of $58 million, Delta said it lost $199 million.

Operating revenue was $7 billion.

The airline industry is straining to cut capacity to adjust to lower demand. Delta has announced plans to cut international capacity by 15 percent starting in September.

Delta has said it might need to cut more jobs. In May it offered pilots a voluntary separation package in hopes of reducing expenses. But only 215 of the 9,400 pilots eligible for the package signed up, the union that represents them said last week.

(Reporting by Karen Jacobs; editing by John Wallace)

Senate to vote on concealed weapons measure (AP)

WASHINGTON – Gun control and gun rights advocates are heading for another clash with a Senate vote on a measure that would allow people with concealed weapons permits to carry those hidden weapons into other states.
Backers, led by Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., say truckers and others with concealed weapons permits should be able to protect themselves when they cross into other states. Opponents say the measure would force states with strict procedures for getting permits to accept permits from states with more lax laws.
The Senate has scheduled a vote Wednesday on the measure, which Thune offered as an amendment to a major defense policy bill. Under an agreement reached among Senate leaders, 60 votes will be needed to approve the amendment.
The vote comes a day after the Senate completed what is probably the most controversial issue connected to the defense bill, voting 58-40 to eliminate $1.75 billion in the $680 billion bill that had been set aside for building more F-22 fighters. President Barack Obama and Defense Secretary Robert Gates campaigned hard for removing the money, saying the Pentagon had enough F-22s and the money could be spent on more pressing defense needs.
The gun proposal would make concealed weapons permits from one state valid in other states as long as the person obeys the laws of other states, such as weapons bans in certain localities. It does not establish national standards for concealed weapons permits and would not allow those with permits to carry weapons into Wisconsin and Illinois, the two states that do not have concealed weapons laws.
"Law-abiding South Dakotans should be able to exercise the right to bear arms in states with similar regulations on concealed firearms," Thune said. "My legislation enables citizens to protect themselves while respecting individual state firearms laws."
National Rifle Association chief lobbyist Chris W. Cox said the last two decades have shown a strong shift toward gun rights laws. "We believe it's time for Congress to acknowledge these changes and respect the right of self-defense, and the right of self-defense does not stop at state lines," he said.
Gun control groups were strongly in opposition.
Concealed handgun permit holders killed at least seven police officers and 44 private citizens during a two-year period ending in April, according to a study by the Violence Policy Center. "It is beyond irrational for Congress to vote to expand the reach of these deadly laws," said the center's legislative director, Kristen Rand.
Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said the bill would "incite a dangerous race to the bottom in our nation's gun laws." He said his own state, which has strict gun control laws, would have to accept concealed weapons permits from states such as Arizona, which issues permits to people with drinking problems, or Alaska, where people with violent misdemeanor convictions can get permits.
"Folks in Minot, N.D., and New York are going to have different conceptions about what's right for their locality," said Jim Kessler, vice president for policy at Third Way, a centrist think tank that supports gun rights. "In some states you have to show a real need" to get a permit, he said. "In other states you have to show that you can stand on two feet."
So far this year gun rights advocates have had the clear advantage in Congress. They managed to attach a provision to a credit card bill signed into law that restores the right to carry loaded firearms in national parks, and coupled a Senate vote giving the District of Columbia a vote in the House with a provision effectively ending the district's tough gun control laws.
House Democratic leaders, unable to detach the two issues without losing the support of pro-gun Democrats, abandoned attempts to pass the D.C. vote bill.
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On the Net:
Congress: http://thomas.loc.gov

Joe Jackson Is the World's Best Dad (E! Online)

Los Angeles (E! Online) –
So, this happened.

Last night, Joe Jackson was back where he's most comfortable—in the glare of the media spotlight—and after touching on the requisite talking points of drug addiction and potential foul play in his son's death, he dropped a bombshell and a half on Larry King Live.

During the interview, Jackson was twice asked about allegations—proffered in great detail by Michael himself—that he physically abused his children, and while he brushed off the first question by claiming any such reports are "a bunch of bull s," he was not quite as succinct the second time around.

What started off as a denial quickly and bizarrely morphed into a claim that he "didn't make no mistakes" at all as a parent and ended, after brief asides into parental spanking and since-passed neighborhood kids, as a passionate if incomplete rant on the history of slavery in America.

On the bright side, at least he didn't try to shoehorn in a plug for his new record label this time.

··· THEY SAID WHAT? Get today's most commented stories now at www.eonline.com

Afghanistan's Deadly Export: How the War Is Spilling Over into Central Asia (Time.com)

When five militants, all Russian citizens, were shot and killed in a gun battle at a remote military checkpoint near Tajikistan's border with Afghanistan, the Tajik government was quick to label the dead as "members of an organized terrorist group." The group has not been named, but the shootings highlight the grim irony of the struggle against terrorism in Afghanistan. With the U.S. increasing military pressure in Afghanistan and Pakistan mounting security operations along its border with the country, fighters from Russia and the ex-Soviet republics of the Caucasus and Central Asia are returning home. And while that trend decreases the number of foreigners fighting American soldiers in Afghanistan, authorities fear it could export the violence into Central Asia, upsetting the fragile peace in the region's poorest republics.
The July 16 battle was just another recent example of the growing instability along Tajikistan's 830-mile (1,335 km) border with Afghanistan. Two weeks ago, members of a narcotics-smuggling ring - which included a former Tajik government minister and rebel commander - were killed after a skirmish with security forces in the Tavildara Valley, a strategic east-west transit route through Tajikistan and an Islamic stronghold opposed to the government. "The group included several Russian citizens ... aiming to transport large amounts of money through Tajikistan to support terrorist groups in Afghanistan and Pakistan," the government told the press, claiming that the ring was part of an "international terrorist" network with links to the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, which the U.S. government has designated a terrorist organization. (See pictures of Afghanistan's dangerous Korengal Valley.)
The spate of bombings, mass arrests and gunfights in Tajikistan over the past few months connected to militants fleeing the increased fighting in Afghanistan and Pakistan has caught the attention of the international community. "The European Union is highly concerned about the situation in Pakistan and its reflection on Tajikistan," said Ambassador Pierre Morel, the E.U.'s special representative in Central Asia, at a news conference in the Tajik capital Dushanbe on July 14. "We support the current politics of [Tajikistan] directed towards the eradication of armed terrorist groups and drug traffic to [the country]."
Earlier this year, the Tajik military launched the Poppy-2009 operation, which the government says is aimed at combating the smuggling of drugs from Afghanistan across Tajikistan's porous, mountainous borders into the Rasht Valley and Badakhshan regions. Some believe that Poppy-2009 is actually a front for operations against Tajik opposition leaders. The government has publicly denied the charge, but observers say that if Dushanbe is indeed trying to put down suspected opposition forces under the cover of an anti-drug-smuggling operation, it only confirms that Central Asian militants are leaving Afghanistan and returning home, since many of the fighters are former opposition commanders or soldiers who fled Tajikistan after losing in the civil war between 1992 and 1997. (Read "Afghanistan's Great Film Hope.")
In an attempt to bring calm back to the border, Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari, Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai, Russian President Dimitri Medvedev and Tajik President Emomali Rahmon will meet in Dushanbe on July 28 to discuss plans to increase regional cooperation on trade and counterterrorism. Russia, which sees Central Asia as its backyard, is especially worried about the uptick in violence along its borders. In the meantime, the Russian government announced early in July that it would be basing rapid-deployment forces in the south of Kyrgyzstan. From there, the forces would be able to respond quickly to any unrest in the entire region, including along Tajikistan's border with Afghanistan. (Read "Tajikistan's President: No Photos, Please.")
But Central Asia faces a complex and potent mix of religious conflict, political corruption, ideological violence and increasing poverty - not to mention factionalism within the governments of the region and the countries' distrust of one another. Add to all that fighters returning home to escape the war in Afghanistan, and it's unlikely that declarations of concern from Western diplomats or the presence of the Russian military will soon slow the rising tide of violence.
Read "Could Central Asia Be the Next Flash Point?"
See TIME's Pictures of the Week.
View this article on Time.com

Chinese worker commits suicide over missing iPhone (AP)

GUANGZHOU, China – An employee at a factory that makes iPhones in China killed himself after a prototype went missing, and Apple Inc. responded Wednesday by saying its suppliers are required to treat workers with dignity and respect.
The dead worker, Sun Danyong, 25, worked in product communications at Foxconn Technology Group, a Taiwanese firm that makes many Apple products at a massive factory in the southern city of Shenzhen, near Hong Kong.
Although Apple and Foxconn have confirmed Sun's suicide, they have not provided details about the death's circumstances, which have been reported by the state-run Southern Metropolis Daily, one of the region's most popular papers.
There's tremendous pressure on employees dealing with Apple's new products to maintain a high-level secrecy over the gadgets, traditionally launch amid great suspense and a big marketing buzz. Apple is also a constant target of prying journalists, rabidly faithful customers and competitors who make great efforts to try to steal a peek at its latest gadgets.
Sun was responsible for sending iPhone prototypes to Apple, and on July 13 he reported that he was missing one of the 16 units in his possession, the newspaper reported. His friends said company security guards searched his apartment, detained him and beat him, the paper reported.
In the early morning of July 16, Sun jumped from the 12th floor of his apartment building, the paper said.
Jill Tan, an Apple spokeswoman in Hong Kong, issued only a brief statement about the incident.
"We are saddened by the tragic loss of this young employee, and we are awaiting results of the investigations into his death," Tan said. "We require our suppliers to treat all workers with dignity and respect."
Foxconn said in a statement that its security chief has been suspended and turned over to the police.
The security official, Gu Qinming, was quoted by the Southern Metropolis Daily as saying he never hit Sun. Gu reportedly said that after three security personnel searched Sun's apartment and did not find the phone, the employee was ordered to go to Gu's office on July 15.
The security chief said he didn't think Sun was being truthful about the phone, the paper reported.
"I got a bit agitated. I pointed my finger at him and said that he was trying to shift the blame," Gu was quoted as saying.
He added, "I was a little angry and I pulled his right shoulder once to get him to tell me what happened. It (the beating) couldn't have happened," the paper reported.
Local police declined to respond to questions from The Associated Press.
Foxconn executive Li Jinming said in a statement that Sun's death showed that the company needed to do a better job helping its employees with psychological pressures.
"Sun Danyong graduated from a good school. He joined the company in 2008. He had an extremely bright future. The group and I feel deep pain and regret when a young person dies like this."

Bingo mogul key figure in latest US-Israel spat (AP)

JERUSALEM – A Jewish-American bingo mogul with a penchant for buying up land in politically explosive areas of Jerusalem is the key figure in the latest dispute between Israel and the United States.
Israeli officials confirmed that the State Department called in the Israeli ambassador to demand that Israel halt plans to build 20 apartments for Jews in east Jerusalem, the section Palestinians claim for their capital.
The land, it turns out, belongs to Irving Moskowitz, an observant Jew with deep pockets and a hand that has generously doled out funds to settlers determined to cement Israel's hold on disputed areas of the holy city.
Moskowitz's land purchases over the past two decades have made him a household name in Israel and the bane of Palestinians.
"The holy city faces today a real threat with the continued attempts to Judaize it and change its Islamic and Christian features," Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said Sunday.
Israel claims it carefully protects the holy sites of the three religions, but the hawkish government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has revoked the hints of compromise from previous governments, insisting that Israel must remain in control of the whole city.
Israel captured east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war. Unlike the West Bank and Gaza, Israel annexed east Jerusalem. Though no other country recognizes the annexation, Israel claims that construction there is not the same as building settlements. About 180,000 Israelis live in the east Jerusalem neighborhoods built over the past 40 years.
Moskowitz has been a key, if shadowy, figure in the drive by some to cement Israeli rule in all of Jerusalem.
"For more than 20 years now, he has been bankrolling and supporting settler activity," primarily in east Jerusalem, said Danny Seidemann, a lawyer for Ir Amim, an Israeli group that supports coexistence in Jerusalem.
"This is Netanyahu and Moskowitz coming back for a repeat performance," Seidemann added.
Also, he was involved in the restoration of an ancient tunnel in Jerusalem's Old City in 1996, during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's first tenure. That touched off Palestinian riots in which 80 people were killed.
Attempts to contact Moskowitz or representatives through his foundation were unsuccessful. His lawyer in Jerusalem declined to comment.
In the past, Moskowitz has been quoted as saying that Israeli-Palestinian peace talks represented "a slide toward concessions, surrender and Israeli suicide."
Moskowitz, a former physician, made his fortune selling hospitals, then augmented his wealth with bingo and casino operations in the Los Angeles area.
Several months ago, he received a permit from Jerusalem city hall to build 20 apartments on the site of the abandoned Shepherd Hotel, which he bought in 1985.
This project has raised the ire of the Obama administration, which is trying to pressure a resistant Israel into announcing a total settlement freeze.
On Sunday, Netanyahu rejected the U.S. criticism of Moskowitz's Shepherd Hotel project.
"We cannot accept the fact that Jews wouldn't be entitled to live and buy anywhere in Jerusalem," Netanyahu declared, calling Israeli sovereignty over the entire city "indisputable."

Moskowitz also has varying degrees of ownership in plans to build hundreds of apartments in other neighborhoods around east Jerusalem.

The projects, while all permitted under Israeli law, are extremely contentious because they are in the middle of Palestinian neighborhoods that surround the most volatile site in the walled Old City of Jerusalem — a shrine known to Jews as the Temple Mount and to Muslims as the Noble Sanctuary and distinguished by its well-known golden dome.

Jerusalem was divided between 1948 and 1967, when Jordan ruled east Jerusalem. During those 19 years the city was divided, Jews were cut off from the Western Wall and other Jewish holy sites.