Russia to delay space mission due to technical problems (Reuters)
MOSCOW (Reuters) ? Russia plans to delay the next mission carrying U.S. and Russian astronauts to the International Space Station by several weeks due to problems with the spaceship’s descent vehicle, Interfax news agency quoted an industry source as saying Friday.
The expected delay follows a series of technical mishaps that marred Russia’s celebration of 50 years last year since Yuri Gagarin’s pioneering first human space flight.
The space industry source told Interfax that the launch, originally set for March 30, would be delayed by several weeks, possibly until May.
The source added the shell of the descent vehicle, used to carry astronauts to the surface of Earth or other celestial bodies, broke during testing ahead of the take-off.
“This descent vehicle can no longer be used in a manned flight,” said the source. “Therefore the launch of the Soyuz TMA-04M will have to be rescheduled until the second half of April or the first half of May.”
The Soyuz was meant to carry Russian cosmonauts Gennady Padalka and Sergei Revin as well as U.S. astronaut Joseph Acaba to the ISS, a $100 billion research complex that orbits about 240 miles above Earth.
Alexei Krasnov, in charge of manned flights at Russian state space agency Roskosmos, told Itar-Tass there was a defective element in the descent vehicle. He said a decision might be made as soon as next week to push back the launch date.
Separately a space industry source told Itar-Tass that Saturday’s launch of Dutch telecommunications satellite NSS-14 would also be delayed for the second time because of problems with the Proton-M carrier rocket.
It had first been planned for December 26, but was rescheduled for January 28. The new launch date has not yet been set.
The Proton-M has failed in the past and it was temporarily suspended after one of the rockets proved to be the cause behind the loss of a $265 million satellite last year.
(Reporting By Thomas Grove)
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Pakistan accuses Iran of killing 6 on border (AP)
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QUETTA, Pakistan ? Iranian security forces on Thursday killed six Pakistani traders taking goats into Iran, a Pakistani official said.
Iranian authorities were not immediately available for comment.
The incident happened Thursday on the Iranian side of the border near the Pakistani town of Gwadar, said its deputy commissioner Abdur Rehman.
Rehman said Iranian authorities were not releasing the bodies. He gave no more details.
Earlier this month, Iranian security personnel allegedly crossed into southwest Pakistan and killed one man.
There is occasional violence along the poorly marked border, where smuggling, banditry and terrorism are rife.
The incidents do not appear to have affected Islamabad’s relations with Tehran, which are based on larger regional interests.
Pakistan’s ties with Iran have ebbed and flowed over the last 20 years, dependent largely on developments elsewhere in a turbulent region, where Iran’s archrivals Saudi Arabia and the United States have also sought influence. Sunni-Shia tensions within Pakistan have also been a factor.
Relations have been stable since the downfall of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan in 2002.
Pakistan is battling an Islamist militant insurgency along its border with Afghanistan in the northwest of the country.
Earlier Thursday, security forces killed at least 20 militants in the northwestern Kurram tribal region after coming under attack, said local government official Wajid Khan. He said 22 troops were also wounded in the attack.
The death toll could not be independently confirmed as the fighting was in a remote area off-limits to journalists.
Kurram is considered a main base for the Pakistani Taliban. Scores of insurgents are believed to hiding there after escaping military operations in the nearby tribal regions in recent years.
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Obama State Of The Union Prompts Reaction From GOP Candidates (PHOTOS)
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Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich released the following statement on Obama’s address.
We have a crisis of work in this country and tonight President Obama proposed nothing in the way of policy changes that will get us to robust job creation and dramatic economic growth. Instead, the president described his conviction that his big government is built to last and should be paid for with higher taxes. But bigger government and higher taxes will not lead to jobs and growth. Bigger government and higher taxes will instead lead to more people on food stamps, a situation which the President and his party defend as a fair outcome. Here we have to confront the truth about President Obama. Economic growth and prosperity is not really at the top of his agenda. He will always prefer a food stamp economy to a paycheck economy and call it fair. For the president and a large part of the political class, it’s about their power, their right to rule. They just want to take money from Joe the Plumber – the small business people who makes over 90 per cent of the new jobs — and redistribute it to the government bureaucracy and their political friends and allies. That’s why so much of that nearly trillion-dollar stimulus didn’t create jobs but just went into the pockets of special interests who support President Obama and the leadership of the Democratic Party. No better example of this exists than in the crisis of American energy. President Obama and his political allies – not of few of whom love living in energy inefficient houses or driving gas-guzzling luxury vehicles – openly admit they want gas prices to remain high so that the rest of America will learn to live more modestly. They think it’s good for rest of us. Only recently, the president canceled the Keystone XL Pipeline that would have created countless new jobs and helped America on the way to energy independence because he wanted to appease the far left of his party. And yet not a single word on the Keystone XL pipeline tonight. To create jobs and growth in this country, we must start with dramatic tax reform that lowers taxes and maximizes capital investment and job creation. We must return to a dollar as good as gold whose purchasing power is the same in thirty years as it is today. We must dramatically expand American energy production. We must have smarter regulation at the same time we abolish destructive and costly regulatory systems beginning with Obamacare,Dodd-Franks, and Sarbanes-Oxley. And finally, unlike the current administration, we must have faith in job creators. With these policies the state of the union will be much better. They will create an explosion in job creation and lead to robust economic growth and a return to prosperity. Furthermore, a paycheck economy will put us on a path to balanced budgets and paying down our national debt.
Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/25/obama-state-of-the-union-_n_1228475.html
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Hospital must pay Garth Brooks $1 million
By Justin Juozapavicius, The Associated Press
Updated at 6:30 p.m. PT
An Oklahoma hospital in Garth Brooks’ hometown must pay $1 million to the country singer because it failed to build a women’s health center in honor of his late mother, jurors ruled Tuesday evening.
Jurors ruled that the hospital must return a $500,000 donation to Brooks plus pay him $500,000 in punitive damages in Brooks’ breach-of-contract lawsuit against IntegrisCanadian Valley Regional Hospital in Yukon. Brooks said he thought he’d reached a deal in 2005 with the hospital’s president, James Moore, but sued after learning the hospital wanted to use the money for other construction projects.
The hospital argued that Brooks gave it unrestricted access to the money and only later asked that it build a women’s center and name it after his mother, Colleen Brooks, who died of cancer in 1999.
“Obviously we are disappointed, particularly with the jury’s decision to award damages above and beyond the $500,000,” Integris spokesman Hardy Watkins said. “We’re just glad to see the case come to a resolution.”
Brooks called the jurors “heroes” and said he felt vindicated by their verdict.
“I no longer feel like I’m crazy,” he said.
Jury member Beverly Lacy said she voted in favor of Brooks because she thought the hospital went back on its word. As far as the punitive damages, she said: “We wanted to show them not to do that anymore to anyone else.”
During the trial, Brooks testified that he thought he had a solid agreement with Moore. Brooks said the hospital president initially suggested putting his mother’s name on an intensive care unit, and when Brooks said that wouldn’t fit her image, Moore suggested a women’s center.
“I jumped all over it,” Brooks told jurors in tearful testimony. “It’s my mom. My mom was pregnant as a teenager. She had a rough start. She wanted to help every kid out there.”
His attorney told the jury during closing arguments that Brooks kept his end of the agreement.
“This case is about promises: promises made and promises broken,” lawyer John Hickey told jurors shortly before they started deliberating. “Mr. Brooks kept his promise. Integris never intended to keep their promise and never built a new women’s center.”
But hospital attorney Terry Thomas said Brooks’ gift initially came in anonymously and unrestricted in 2005. He also noted that Brooks couldn’t remember key details of negotiations with the hospital’s president ? including what he’d been promised ? when questioned during a deposition after filing his lawsuit in 2009.
“At most, it was a misunderstanding between these two,” Thomas told jurors during his closing argument. “Am I calling Mr. Brooks a liar? Absolutely not. It’s perfectly understandable that he does not remember these events.”
The jury began deliberating Tuesday afternoon in Rogers County District Court, and the judge told jurors she wanted them to work as late as midnight to come to a decision.
Before the verdict was read, Brooks said the day had been emotional. The country music star said he was simply trying to honor his mother.
“This little pistol, she deserves nothing but good,” Brooks said.
More on msnbc Entertainment:
‘Alcatraz’: Child Killer Finds Out The Boy He’s Abducted Is More Resourceful Than He Thought (VIDEO)
The latest returnee from The Rock proved to be the worst kind of criminal on “Alcatraz” (Mon., 9 p.m. EST on Fox). Kit Nelson had a pattern of abducting 11-year old boys on Fridays and then returning them home on Sunday night dead. When Doc Soto heard over the police scanner that an 11-year old boy had been abducted now, he knew instinctively that they were dealing with another Alcatraz returnee.
He corralled Madsen and Hauser, still at the hospital looking over Banerjee, to take on the case. Through flashbacks to 1960s Alcatraz, it was shown that Nelson wasn’t well treated by the other inmates — child killers are considered the worst offenders even by other criminals — or the warden. Ultimately, he put Nelson in pitch black solitary confinement and forced a confession that he’d killed his own brother.
The story Nelson kept holding to for his father was the on his mother had told; that his brother had died of scarlet fever, but the father knew that wasn’t the full story. Nelson finally revealed that he’d killed his brother, and the sensation had made him realize he needed to do it again.
With Dylan as his latest victim, Nelson found a boy more resourceful than he’d anticipated, and with a great arm. While Nelson was distracted in his bomb shelter hideout, Dylan slipped off his shoe, threw it and shattered the light. The distraction allowed him to slip out and run away. Nelson caught up to him, but not before he found himself staring down Madsen’s gun.
It was Hauser who took him down, the first Alcatraz inmate so far he’s killed outright rather than capture and take to his new Alcatraz. Nevertheless, he returned with the body to his white version of The Rock and presented him to the staff doctor, who just happened to be one of the returnees as well — the same doctor seen in flashbacks to 1960s Alcatraz.
Watch the mysteries unfold on “Alcatraz” every Monday at 9 p.m. EST on Fox.
TV Replay scours the vast television landscape to find the most interesting, amusing, and, on a good day, amazing moments, and delivers them right to your browser.
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MONDAY, JANUARY 23: “Gossip Girl”
1? of ?19
“Gossip Girl” (8 p.m. EST, The CW) “Clueless” writer/director Amy Heckerling makes her first foray into TV directing since 2005 for Blair’s bachelorette party, as others scheme behind Queen B’s back to make it a night to remember. After discovering the truth behind Chuck and Blair’s car accident, Nate joins forces with a surprising ally to gather the evidence, while Serena and Dan pretend to be dating again to protect Blair’s secret. “Gossip Girl” (8 p.m. EST, The CW)
“Clueless” writer/director Amy Heckerling makes her first foray into TV directing since 2005 for Blair’s bachelorette party, as others scheme behind Queen B’s back to make it a night to remember. After discovering the truth behind Chuck and Blair’s car accident, Nate joins forces with a surprising ally to gather the evidence, while Serena and Dan pretend to be dating again to protect Blair’s secret.
MONDAY, JANUARY 23: “Gossip Girl”
“Gossip Girl” (8 p.m. EST, The CW) “Clueless” writer/director Amy Heckerling makes her first foray into TV directing since 2005 for Blair’s bachelorette party, as others scheme behind Queen B’s back to make it a night to remember. After discovering the truth behind Chuck and Blair’s car accident, Nate joins forces with a surprising ally to gather the evidence, while Serena and Dan pretend to be dating again to protect Blair’s secret. “; var coords = [-5, -72]; // display fb-bubble FloatingPrompt.embed(this, html, undefined, ‘top’, {fp_intersects:1, timeout_remove:2000,ignore_arrow: true, width:236, add_xy:coords, class_name: ‘clear-overlay’}); });
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Reaction to Academy Awards nominations (AP)
Reaction to the nominations announced Tuesday for the 84th annual Academy Awards:
___
“I was pleasantly sleeping and someone had the audacity to wake me up.” ? Christopher Plummer, joking about learning about best supporting actor nomination for “Beginners.”
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“I thought it may elude me. I’ve always wondered what it was like. I’ve always peered through the curtain to the front cabin. I feel like I’ve been invited up. It’s a great thing.” ? Gary Oldman, who received his first Oscar nomination for his lead role in “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.”
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“There was an excitement to do a film that’s a bit forbidden because in 2011, nobody does a silent, black and white film: `It doesn’t fit the economy, it’s not possible.’ Well yes, it is possible. Apparently it’s possible.” ? Jean Dujardin, who received a best actor nomination for “The Artist,” which collected 10 nominations.
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“A nomination helps. I feel a lot better already.” ? Demi?n Bichir, who went to bed with the flu and woke up as a best actor nominee for “A Better Life.”
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“I was slightly surprised, I confess. I bounced. Gently.” ? Janet McTeer, who was nominated for best supporting actress for “Albert Nobbs.”
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“I know I’ve made pictures in the past that are tougher. So, despite my name on the picture, believe me, it’s OK to come in the theater I think. Bring the kids! Bring the grandparents ? it’s OK. I’ll be good. I’m not kidding.” ? Martin Scorsese, whose film “Hugo” was nominated for 11 awards, including best film and director.
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“I don’t care how sugared up they get for school.” ? Brad Pitt, who learned about his best actor nomination for “Moneyball” before fixing a pancake breakfast with all the fixings for his children.
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“I don’t think I’ve processed it. It probably won’t hit me until next week. Last year at this time, I was asleep.” ? Best Supporting Actress nominee Octavia Spencer, who celebrated with co-stars the night before Oscar nominations in case the film wasn’t nominated. It received four nominations.
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“I wasn’t nervous until people started asking me if I was nervous.” ? best supporting actor nominee Jonah Hill, who couldn’t’ sleep the night before nominations were announced
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“It’s great, especially at this age to still be in the ballgame playing. I don’t want to retire, anyway. Never have. I don’t know what the hell I’d do. There’s not much I can do. I’ve been at this for 50 years.” ? Nick Nolte, who was nominated for best supporting actor in “Warrior.” Just don’t expect too much celebration from Nolte. “I’m 70. I’m going to go to bed.”
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“I feel very honored and special really. You can’t imagine, to arrive at the Oscars when you arrive so low, and you can’t go further than the Oscars.” ? Berenice Bejo, who received a supporting actress nomination for her role in “The Artist.”
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“I’m so talked out. There’s just so many ways to describe real happiness.” ? “Footnote” director Joseph Cedar, who learned about his nomination while in Israel on a break from helping his son with his homework.
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“People of the world, no matter what language they speak, it seems like art has become the common language all over the world.” ? Writer-director Asghar Farhadi, whose Iranian film “A Separation” was nominated for best foreign film and original screenplay.
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“It almost feels like movie production because we seem to be working nights instead of early mornings. You think you’re just going to go have a chicken dinner, but you end up talking to people until 1 a.m.” ? “The Help” producer Brunson Green.
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“We’ve emailed. It’s too damn early (to talk on the phone). There’s a lot of emailing and texting going on.” ? “The Descendants” producer Jim Burke on communicating with best actor nominee George Clooney and other collaborators.
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AP Entertainment Writers Anthony McCartney, Derrik J. Lang, Mark Kennedy in New York and Jamey Keaten in Paris contributed to this package.
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As health goes, so go Phillies
Team will likely make the playoffs, but they’ll need all their stars healthy for a World Series shot
Reuters
Phillies star Chase Utley missed 59 games with injury last season.
updated 4:23 p.m. ET Jan. 24, 2012
|
Baseball Expert Tony DeMarco has been covering the big leagues since 1987, and been casting Hall of Fame ballots for the last 12 years. He answers questions weekly here:
Q. The Phillies seem extremely passive this off-season, given their woeful playoff performances the last three seasons. Are they in denial about their poor hitting?
? Bob Silin, Horsham, Pa.
A. The Phillies finished seventh in the National League in runs scored last season, but that is a bit misleading, as they were only 22 runs short of the second-place finisher, Cincinnati. So only the Cardinals, who scored 49 more runs, were significantly more productive than the Phillies in 2011 ? and as you may have heard, they don’t have Albert Pujols any more.
The problem the Phillies have had is keeping their top veterans ? all now in their 30s ? in the lineup. Jimmy Rollins (19 games), Placido Polanco (40 games) and Chase Utley (59 games) missed extensive time last season, and now they’ll have to do without Ryan Howard for a couple of months as he recovers from left Achilles surgery.
It will be up to the platoon of Ty Wigginton and Jim Thome to fill in at first base for Howard, and for John Mayberry Jr. and/or Domonic Brown to settle in as a productive left fielder and replace Raul Ibanez. I like the chances of success for the left-field situation much more than at first base, as one of those two young players figures to step up ? or at the very least, the two should form a productive platoon.
But you really have to wonder how much Thome can play defensively, since he hasn’t played first base regularly since 2005. So there will be pressure on Wigginton until Howard returns. The Phillies also will get a full season from Hunter Pence, and their run production ticked up to 4.47 per game after he was acquired from Houston.
None of this should have much affect on the Phillies’ playoff chances ? not with their rotation, and the addition of Jonathan Papelbon at the back end of the bullpen. And don’t forget there will be an added wildcard spot this season, so it’s very likely the Phillies will stretch their consecutive post-season appearances streak to six.
But going deep into October is another question, and they really will need everybody to be healthy and having high-level seasons. If not, you’ll see them adding another bat mid-season. After all, as you mention, the Phillies are trending in the wrong direction in the post-season since winning the 2008 World Series: Losing the 2009 World Series, the 2010 NLCS and a 2011 division series.
Q. Hey, Tony, please tell me I’m not crazy. Shouldn’t the Giants be going after Manny Ramirez? They need the offense, and clearly, Bay Area fans don’t mind when outfield sluggers dabble in PEDs. And they could get him cheap.
? Curtis Hettich, Sacramento
A. Sorry, Curtis, but you’re crazy. Manny is finished. He’ll turn 40 in May, didn’t play after April 8th last season, and his last stretch of high-level hitting came in the first half of the 2009 season with the Dodgers.
His 2010 stretch run with the White Sox was embarrassing ? a .261 batting average with one homer, two extra-base hits, two RBI and a .319 slugging percentage in 88 plate appearances. The only thing he did well was draw walks.
It took the Rays only five games and 17 at-bats early last season to realize they made a rare bad decision in signing Ramirez, who retired at that point rather than face a second suspension, and needs to just walk away at this point.
If Ramirez does sign, he won’t be eligible to play until he serves a 50-game suspension. And even if he still could produce enough offensively, the last thing you’d want is for him to be playing left field. It’s DH or nothing at this point, so the Giants should have no interest whatsoever.
I’ll be very surprised if Manny makes any significant contribution to whatever American League team ? Oakland? ? decides to take a flier on him.
Q. What’s in store for Ryan Spilborghs?
? Bill Oliphant, Santa Barbara, Calif.
A. A question from a hometown fan of Spilborghs, who had a nice run with the Rockies before a subpar 2011 season that was interrupted by two trips to the disabled list due to plantar fasciitis.
Spilborghs, 32, has signed a minor-league deal with the Indians, and will compete in spring training for a spot as a backup outfielder. The field is crowded, but a right-handed bat is needed, as the projected starting outfield includes left-handed hitters Grady Sizemore, Michael Brantley and Shin-Soo Choo ? all of whom missed extensive time in 2011 due to injuries.
In building outfield depth, the Indians also have acquired Aaron Cunningham in a deal with San Diego, and signed free-agents Fred Lewis and Felix Pie to minor-league deals. Shelley Duncan and Chad Huffman are other possibilities for manager Manny Acta.
Spilborghs will have to show he’s over the plantar fasciitis that limited him to 98 games, and recapture the form that made him a valuable platoon player from 2006-’10 in Colorado. He also can play all three outfield positions ? a needed skill in a fourth outfielder.
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As health goes, so go Phillies
DeMarco’s Mailbag: Team will likely make the playoffs, but they’ll need all their stars healthy for a World Series shot.
Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/46118256/ns/sports-baseball/
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Worvey? Err, Warby Parker Takes A Look Back At Its 2011
Warby Parker ? the New York-based startup that sells prescription, designer glasses for a relatively modest $95 a pop ??has just released its annual year in review, outlining some key stats and factoids from the past twelve months.?My favorite section: most popular?misspellings?people search for when they’re trying to find the site, with the leaders including “Worvey Parkers” and “Warmby Parker” (Warmby? Really?). Oh, and there’s some more serious stuff too.
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/x7l11eO2LVk/
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