An attack at a train station near Munich has killed one and injured three others. Investigators are questioning witnesses on reports that the attacker shouted “Allahu akbar” before the violence.

BERLIN — A 27-year-old German killed one man and injured three others with a knife while shouting “Allahu akbar” in a suburb of Munich early Tuesday, but hours later, after questioning him, the authorities said that he had no known links to Islamic extremism and that they believed he was mentally disturbed.

The attack, which occurred shortly before 5 a.m. on a commuter train and platform in the bucolic suburb of Grafing, nearly 20 miles east of Munich, shocked and unsettled many Germans who had already been on edge since the terrorist attacks in and around Paris on Nov. 13 and at an airport and a subway station in Brussels on March 22. The authorities responded swiftly to calls for help, and the man was arrested shortly after carrying out the attacks.

The lead investigator for the Bavarian state police, Lothar Köhler, told reporters on Tuesday afternoon that after initial questioning of the suspect, whom the authorities did not identify, officials had no “compelling evidence or plausible conclusions” as to a motive.

“We have no indication that he had any contact to Islamic or Salafist groups, individuals or organizations,” Mr. Köhler said. The investigator confirmed that witnesses had heard the attacker shouting “Allahu akbar” — “God is great” — and, in German, “You infidels must die,” but as the context emerged, the attack seemed less and less likely to be motivated by extremism.

Mr. Köhler said the attacker had undergone psychological treatment and used drugs on Sunday, though it was not clear whether he was under the influence of narcotics when he carried out the attack, which left a 56-year-old man dead and three other men — ages 43, 55 and 58 — injured, one of them severely.

The investigation will continue, Mr. Köhler said, and will include a search of the suspect’s home in Giessen, near Frankfurt, as well as further questioning.

The attacker traveled by train to Munich on Monday, Mr. Köhler said. Because he did not have enough money to stay in a hotel, he spent part of the night near the main train station, before heading to Grafing. The suspect had no police record, Mr. Köhler said, but had come to the attention of the authorities in Giessen for comments that Mr. Köhler described as “talking drivel.” The investigator did not elaborate.

Ken Heidenreich, a spokesman for prosecutors in Munich, who took over the investigation on suspicion that the attack might have been politically motivated, said the suspect had seemed confused during his interrogation. He said prosecutors would try to determine whether the man was criminally liable.

The attacker told investigators that he had taken off his shoes before the attack, because his feet had felt warm and because he had been afraid of blisters, the authorities said. He lunged at his first victim on the train, then at another on the platform when the train stopped at the station in Grafing. As he fled across the square outside the station, he stabbed two more men, who were riding bicycles.

Germany has so far managed to avoid large-scale terrorist attacks on the level of those suffered by Paris in 2015, London in 2005 and Madrid in 2004, but the authorities have remained on alert amid suspicion that the threat of an attack remains high, although not concrete.

In the days after the Paris attacks, security officials decided to call off an international soccer match in Hanover, following reports that it had been a possible target for terrorists. The authorities in Munich evacuated two of the city’s main train stations on New Year’s Eve and warned people to avoid large groups, despite the celebrations, amid warnings of a possible terrorist threat.

And in February, the head of Germany’s domestic intelligence agency, Hans-Georg Maassen, warned that the Islamic State was using the wave of newcomers to infiltrate Europe. The authorities in Europe have “seen repeatedly that terrorists are being smuggled in, camouflaged as refugees,” Mr. Maassen said on ZDF public television.

The authorities say they have foiled nearly a dozen plots to target the country since the turn of the millennium. But in 2011, a 21-year-old man from Kosovo, who said he was radicalized over the Internet, fatally shot two United States service members at the Frankfurt airport.

The Islamic State recently called on German Muslims to carry out Brussels-style attacks in Germany, posting images of the federal chancellery in Berlin, where Chancellor Angela Merkel works, and of the Cologne Bonn Airport, in Germany’s most populated state, North Rhine-Westphalia.

Travel on the rail line where the attack took place was briefly interrupted, then continued with some delays, because of the investigation. The line is one of the main commuter connections for people living southeast of Munich.

Summary: The assailant, 27, had no police record and had exhibited symptoms of mental illness, the authorities said.


The interview took place just weeks after Princess Diana and her boyfriend, Dodi Fayed were killed when their car crashed in a Paris tunnel in September 1997 as it was being pursued by paparazzi photographers on motorbikes.

The presidential contender made a similar declaration in a separate broadcast with the same interviewer recorded in 2000, but also said she was "crazy, but these are minor details."

“Would you have slept with her?” Stern asked in the latter interview.

“Without even hesitation,” replied Mr Trump, who has also built a reputation as a reality TV personality.

When a female contributor to the programme interjected “he wishes he’d had the opportunity.” Mr Trump, who had phoned the programme to discuss his personal list of the world’s top 10 most beautiful women, admitted: “There’s a truth to that.”

He added: “She was really beautiful and people don’t realise how beautiful she was. She was super-model beautiful, she had the height, she had the beauty, she had the skin, she had the whole thing.”

Both interviews were unearthed by Buzzfeed, which reported that it had listened to hours of Mr Trump’s appearances on Stern’s show to track down the comments.

Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks as his son's Donald Trump, Jr., left and Eric look on during a caucus night rally. Photo: AP/Jae C. Hong

In the earlier interview, Mr Trump claimed to have received a “really nice” letter from Princess Diana thanking him for a favour he had done her. He declined to say what the favour was.

He also described his familiarity with the tunnel where the princess met her death, saying: “I know that tunnel in Paris. It’s got like a 30-mile limit.

“If you look at this tunnel — and I really know that tunnel well, I’ve been through that tunnel many times — you can’t go more than like 30, 40 miles an hour. If you’re going 40 miles an hour through that tunnel you’re going fast. These people had to be going at 120-something miles an hour.”

Of Dodi Fayed, he added: “He was not good for her, it turned out.”

Summary: Republican candidate made the comment in interview recorded weeks after   princess's death and then repeated it three years later


Nigeria's information minister said on Tuesday that Boko Haram was "largely defeated" - despite two days of grisly attacks blamed on the armed group that killed dozens in the volatile northeast.

Lai Mohammed said the Nigerian government had greatly reduced Boko Haram's capacity to strike, adding it was on its last legs as a rebel force since launching an insurgency six years ago that has killed an estimated 20,000 people.

"Boko Haram has been largely defeated. They know they are on their way out," Mohammed told journalists in Lagos.

"They lack the capacity to launch horrendous attacks they used to do in the past. We have succeeded in dislodging them. Our problem now is how to resettle the internally displaced people."

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari set aÂ self-imposed deadline to stamp out the group on December 31, and he said recently Boko Haram had been "technically" defeated.

However, it is believed Boko Haram was responsible for a series of attacks last weekend on towns in the north of Africa's most populous nation, calling into question the government's claims.Â

RELATED: Nigeria marks 500 days since Chibok girls' abduction

At leastÂ 30 people were killed after bombersÂ struck a market in the town of Madagali in Adamawa state.

In neighbouring Borno state, fighters opened fire and detonated explosives at a mosque in the city of Maiduguri.

No one claimed responsibility but Boko Haram is suspected to be behind theÂ latest wave of violence.

The group's six-year quest to create an independent Islamic state in northern Nigeria has killed and wounded thousands, and included the mass kidnapping of hundreds of young women.

According to the Global Terrorism Index - a report released by the New York-based Institute for Economics and Peace - Boko Haram "has become the most deadly terrorist group in the world".

While Nigeria's military has won back territory from the group in recent months, Boko Haram has expanded its network in neighbouring Chad, Cameroon and Niger.

Summary: Minister says armed group lacks capacity to launch further attacks - despite dozens dying in two-day killing spree.


Hewlett Packard’s long-awaited split into two separate companies has finally arrived, and Wall Street seems divided on the spawn.

HP Inc. HPQ , which sells personal computers and printers, outperformed the data center hardware and services company Hewlett Packard Enterprise HPE on Monday in their first day of trading. Shares of HP Inc. were up nearly 13% in late trading. Shares of HPE, on the other hand, were down 1.6%.

Although HPE had a rocky start, FBR Capital Markets analyst Daniel Ives told Fortune that investors shouldn’t jump to any hasty conclusions based on the company’s first day trading. Merely going through with the split is a coup considering how bloated its predecessor had become, he said.

“So far it’s a victory for technology investors that have advocated splits and divestitures across the technology space,” Ives said.

Ives said that HP Inc’s solid performance on Monday could be attributed to technology investors scouring for stocks they feel are undervalued. Cross Research analyst Shannon Cross echoed Ives’s comments by telling Reuters, “I think people see more opportunity for upside in HP Inc earnings and more aggressive return of cash to shareholders.”

Prior to the split, HP’s PC and printer business sales had suffered a 6% decline over the past nine months. Meanwhile, HP’s enterprise sales were flat during that period.

Credit Suisse analyst Kulbinder Garcha seemed confident about the new HP Inc. while acknowledging in a research note on Monday that the PC and printer market is declining. He was optimistic that a plan to sell more copier machines and business-friendly printers coupled with more people buying computers to replace their older machines would help lift revenue.

This notion of consumers replacing their personal computers because they want an upgrade contrasts with a recent Barclay’s report on business technology spending. They compared PCs and printers to refrigerators, which consumers typically don’t replace until they absolutely need to.

As for HPE, Garcha is less optimistic. He cited a continuing challenge in cloud computing, in which businesses buy computing resources on demand from vendors like Amazon and Microsoft.

To counter the decline, both Garcha and Ives believe that HPE will be scouting for companies to acquire to build up its technology. Considering H.P.’s history of questionable acquisitions, it will be interesting to see whether a smaller and presumably nimbler version will be able to make better acquisitions—and then successfully integrate them.

Subscribe to Data Sheet, Fortune’s daily newsletter on the business of technology.

For more on H.P., check out the following Fortune video:

Summary: HP's two newly independent companies had a mixed day in their first day of trading on Monday.


Before you go, we thought you'd like these...

Fighting a brain tumor obviously wasn't easy for 8-year-old Garbiel Marshall, what his surgery left behind presented him with a new battle.

His father, 28-year-old Josh Marshall, told BuzzFeed News that Gabriel sometimes felt like a "monster" because of the large scar on his head.

SEE ALSO: 7-year-old cancer survivor shows Cubs pride with prosthetic eye

"This broke my heart," Marshall said. "I told him if people wanted to stare, they could stare at both of us."

He took action by getting a tattoo of the same scar his son has on his own head.

For Father's Day, Marshall entered St. Baldrick's Foundation's #BestBaldDad competition -- a contest that takes submissions from dads, uncles and grandfathers who shave their heads in honor of a child who has or had cancer.

The father-son pair from Kansas won the competition with 5,000 votes.

Alison Sutton, St. Baldrick's Foundation's social media manager, told BuzzFeed News it was "the first time we've seen an entry where a dad went above and beyond shaving his head in solidarity with his child and got a tattoo to build his son's self-confidence."

More photos of the adorable duo:

Dad gets tattoo just like son's surgery scar

Gabriel is a big fan of his father's tattoo because it makes them "twins."

To find out more about Gabriel's journey, you can read more here.  RELATED: Latest cancer breakthroughs:

Summary: The 28-year-old father made a dramatic move to make sure his cancer survivor son feels good about himself.


Thanks to a surprising little English comedy called “Man Up,” we finally get to see the American comic actress Lake Bell at her delightful best.

A couple of years ago Ms. Bell was the writer, director and star of “In A World…”, a debut feature, set in Los Angeles, in which she played a voice-over artist trying to become a voice-over star. Her film was fine and she was very funny, though she didn’t give us enough of her brilliant gift for mimicry. This time she is Nancy, a 30-something Londoner—with a flawless English...

Summary: A man falls for a woman who’s given up on relationships after he mistakes her for his date in this comedy starring Simon Pegg and Lake Bell.


First Lady Michelle Obama and former President Bill Clinton

07/27/2016 AT 04:55 PM EDT

Your guess is as good ours what

's title will be if wife

becomes the first woman president of the United States. But even as it's a mystery what his next business card will read, it's clear that delegates at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia have some conventional – and not so conventional – ideas for how the former president should spend his time if he ends up back in the White House.

"I think he should pick the china, I think he should plan the first dinners," Heather Steinmiller, a Whip for the Hillary Clinton campaign from Pennsylvania tells PEOPLE. "I think we should break the stereotypes in this country that a first lady has to do one thing and a first male has to do another."

And the suggestions kept coming.

"Bill will be great at the Easter Egg Roll because he's been there a lot and he's great with the kids and you have the new grandkids. I don't know necessarily that he should pick the china. I don't know if that's a former president's duty."

"He should do them all. I think he should pick the china. I think he should plan the first dinners. I think he should do all of that. And I think we should break the stereotypes in this country that a first lady has to do one thing and a first male has to do another. We should be equal in all respects. I think he should do everything that a first lady has done in the past."

"I can't see him organizing the Easter Egg Roll, deciding who's gonna be the bunny, who's gonna be the entertainment. But ya know what, Bill just might have to step up. Hillary ain't got time to figure out who's gonna be at the Christmas party. I think it'll be interesting the see those roles change and maybe for us to see how much the first lady does have to do. Those things may come easy to us, but now that a man has to do them, Bill may be like, 'How does she find time?' "

"He'd be good at doing the turkey event, pardoning the turkey – and probably stay away from the cooking aspect of it."

"I don't think he should pick out the dishes. I'm not sure on his taste on dishes."

Perhaps an even more heated topic on the floor Tuesday night was whether Bill Clinton could fill the shoes left by First Lady

exclaiming, "When they go low, we go high."

"I couldn't imagine a first gentleman more qualified to fill those shoes," Chris Riker, a delegate from Florida gushed to PEOPLE.

"As a proud feminist, the disestablishment of gender roles, the distraction of gender roles is so empowering. Not only can girls look up and see Hillary Clinton as president and not on the sideline, but they can also see that it doesn't matter what is in your pants, but what is in your head and what is in your heart."

"I don't think anybody could exactly fill Michelle's shoes. I think they're a separate set of shoes. And we all know a man can't wear heels."

"They are big shoes, but Bill is a phenomenal person."

The Democratic National Convention festivities continue Wednesday night with speeches from President Obama, Vice President Joe Biden and vice-presidential nominee Tim Kaine.

Summary: Can Bill Clinton fill Michelle Obama's shoes? "They are big shoes," says one DNC delegate


Syrian jihadist group Jabhat al-Nusra, also known as the Nusra Front, has announced it has split from al-Qaeda.

Leader Abu Mohammed al-Julani, in his first recorded message, said its new name would be Jabhat Fateh al-Sham [Front for the Conquest of Syria/the Levant].

He said the move was intended to remove the pretext used by powers, including the US and Russia, to bomb Syrians.

The US responded by saying it saw no reason to change its view of the group as a terrorist organisation.

White House spokesman Josh Earnest said the US also had increasing concerns that the group intended to attack the West.

"The United States continues to assess that Nusra Front leaders maintain the intent to conduct eventual attacks in and against the West and there continues to be increasing concern about Nusra Front's growing capacity for external operations that could threaten both the United States and Europe," he said.

Al-Qaeda said earlier that it supported the split. Its second in command, Ahmed Hassan Abu al-Khayr, said the organisation had instructed "the leadership of the Nusra Front to go ahead with what protects the interests of Islam and Muslims and what protects jihad" in Syria.

The message included a brief comment from al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri saying: "The brotherhood of Islam is stronger than any organisational links that change and go away."

Why did Nusra detach from al-Qaeda?

In the recording aired by al-Jazeera's Arabic news channel, Mr al-Julani thanked the "commanders of al-Qaeda for having understood the need to break ties".

He said the decision was made to "expose the deception of the international community, namely the US and Russia, in their relentless bombardment and displacement of the Muslim masses of Syria under the pretext of bombing al-Nusra Front".

The new group "will have no links whatsoever with foreign parties", he added.

Analysts say the Nusra Front decided to rebrand itself after the US and Russia stepped up their military efforts against the group.

It is understood the group hopes to form closer alliances with other Islamist groups fighting in Syria.

Last week, US Secretary of State John Kerry and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov said they had agreed on "concrete steps" to tackle jihadist groups like the Nusra Front and the so-called Islamic State (IS).

Nusra Front was excluded from February's cessation of hostilities agreement.

Al-Nusra first announced its existence in a video posted online in early 2012, some months after the Syrian civil war began.

It has been claimed that Qatar has relatively close ties with the group, probably through intermediaries.

In April 2013, al-Nusra refused to join forces with IS and pledged allegiance instead to al-Qaeda.

Clashes broke out between the two groups and al-Nusra was pushed out of its base in Deir Ezzor, eastern Syria.

Observers say the group numbers between 5,000 and 10,000 fighters, the vast majority of them Syrian.

Summary: The Syrian jihadist group Jabhat al-Nusra announces it has split from al-Qaeda, but the US says it still views it as a terrorist organisation.


It's no secret that the stars of our favorite TV shows look amazing, but it is a mystery how they're able to stay in such great shape with hectic work schedules, frequent travel and personal lives to juggle. We wanted to know exactly how actors and actresses do it, so we called a few of them up to find out! Here's what we learned.

The professional ballroom dance champ and author of '

' is all about making her workouts fun. Dance-based workouts, which she writes about in her new book, are "so much fun you don't realize you're working out," she said when we chatted. The other secret to her fitness routine? Simply getting up every day and

her healthy habits. "5-6-7-8 in dance also means let's start, and that's the key to any diet or healthy living thing. Just

trying to live a healthy lifestyle," the dancing queen advised.

But what about all her travel, between publicity appearances for her book,

seasons and going back to Australia to see her family? "I spent most of my younger life traveling with a dance show," Johnson said, "so I had to adapt to that lifestyle quickly because I put on weight quickly." To combat weight gain that can come with eating lots of meals out, she recommends several exercises that can be done in a hotel room, like a three-minute ab workout or a five-minute upper body circuit. "They're quick workouts because I'm on the go all the time," Johnson admitted.

As far as diet is concerned, the dancer is a fan of "simple little things." "I love simple Greek yogurt with honey and some berries," she said, "and I make my own little trail mix, which I have in my bag and can take anywhere. Or if I'm at home, I like rice crackers." Johnson is also a big proponent of teas and warm drinks like hot water with lemon, which she says can help make you feel more full, especially if you're feeling hungry at night.

The final piece of Johnson's fitness puzzle is, of course, that she loves workout gear. "I'm sort of into some of the Australian designers," she said. "

, and they really actually fit well...You can't go wrong with

has really great stuff on their website, too."

The TV trainer, who saw a finalist and winning contestant through the last season of

, is all about efficiency when it comes to working out. "I am a big advocate of effective training," she said, "and what I mean by that is that you've got to maximize." Widerstrom preaches full body movements with weight -- what she calls 'big picture movements.' "Big picture movements equal big picture results," the trainer said, which she generally achieves through circuit training.

The other big thing for Widerstrom? Motivation -- and not just motivation to look good. She looks for clients who have motivation driven by more than just body image. "It's got to be about something deeper for them," she said. "It's got to be about being capable in your day or feeling a part of something in your day that's not about you...The workout has to be bigger than the waistline."

But the waistline, of course, is still important, which is why the weight loss guru is all about one-ingredient foods like almonds, chicken or broccoli. "If you grab a box of Lucky Charms, I would go so far as to say that there's more than one ingredient in there," Widerstrom laughed. "If you stick to one-ingredient foods as a guideline, you're putting food into your body that it asily identifies and can break down and store. One-ingredient foods are accessible for your body, easy to identify, easy to digest and really good fuel." The trainer's go-to healthy snacks include boiled eggs, edamame with salt, an apple, and tuna fish salad when on the go.

What's her favorite workout gear? "

is kicking ass these days," she said. "I love their tights, they're all crazy patterns that are fun, sit well and aren't too long."

Don't think we've forgotten about the super-fit guys we love to see on television. Amir Arison, who plays Aram on the hot new hit series

, stays fit thanks to his trainer at

. "I see him twice a week when I can, and I try to work out at least one or two other days on my own, whether than be running or floor work," he said. Consistency is key for Arison, who considers exercise like therapy. With his trainer, he focuses on core work, cardio, calisthenics and free weights.

The actor has an awesome philosophy when it comes to food: "I try to listen to my body," he said. "I feel like when you get in better shape, you and your body get more in sync and you're more in control of your desires." Part of listening to his body means that he grazes throughout the day, rather than eating three big meals, and he snacks on nuts and trail mix, especially when he's shooting for

. Arison also sticks to a low-carb diet, stays away from dairy and cheese and avoids processed sugar, opting for Stevia or agave if he needs a little sweetener.

While exercise and nutrition are important principles of Arison's overall approach to healthy living, his third tenet is sleep. "Sleep is the thing I work the hardest at keeping regular," the actor said, which he believes helps keep your stress in check and makes everything else fall into place.

Navedo, who plays the amazing Xiomara on

, is another one of our fave TV stars with an enviable figure. "I work out at least three times a week," she said, "but I try to do more than that." The actress isn't one to keep her workouts boring, though. She does everything from hopping on the elliptical and taking exercise classes to salsa lessons and private pilates. She's also a big walker, which she says is how she learns her lines! "I'm a multi-tasker," she laughed.

Unlike most of us (ugh), Navedo is someone who just naturally doesn't crave unhealthy foods. What a concept, eh? "I'm not a junkfood person," the actress admitted. "Naturally I'm not drawn to sweets, and I won't eat McDonald's." She keeps an eye on her salt intake, "because otherwise I'll retain a ton of water and get high blood pressure," she said. To curb her sodium intake she avoids eating out frequently, which automatically eliminates a great deal of salt, fat and carbs. Navedo stressed that she needs to eat protein between meals, too, so she keeps jerky in her purse, and will also snack on raw almonds.

The actress, like most of us, likes to workout in

gear. "I love their pants," she said. "They suck everything in just around the mid-section and they last a long time -- I had a little sticker shock the first time I bought them, but the three pairs I have now I've had for two or three years, so to me it's worth it."

Her other favorite brand of workout gear?

. "I have these cheap leggings that wash well and are only $20. The brand is this female Latina entrepreneur, nothing fancy-shmancy. I love supporting her because this is her own venture, and I actually do love them and wear them. Gina [Rodriguez] wears them, too!"

It's safe to say that if we want to follow in the footsteps of these celebs, we need to keep our workouts exciting and frequent, start snacking on healthy foods like almonds and invest in some chic fitness apparel (although we may have that one covered already).

Summary: Find out how all your favorite TV stars from 'Dancing with the Stars,' 'The Biggest Loser,' Jane the Virgin' and more stay fit!


Attention, all red wine lovers: It turns out that glass of Merlot might not be as beneficial to your health as previously thought.

A new study released Monday found that low doses of resveratrol found in red wine and dark chocolate don’t lead to added health benefits. Resveratrol is a chemical with antioxidant properties found in a number of foods, including red wine, dark chocolate and berries. In the past, a number of studies have shown that consumption of these foods may reduce inflammation, leading researchers to speculate that their common chemical must have explained the phenomenon.

But the study finds otherwise. A team of researchers tracked the health of nearly 800 villagers from Tuscany, the region in Italy where the wine Chianty is made, to see if their drinking habits had any discernable impact on their well-being. They concluded that resveratrol concentration was not linked with cardiovascular disease or cancer rates.

It’s not all bad news, though. While you may have to cut down your wine consumption, you can still hold on to that bar of chocolate: There’s still pretty strong evidence that it may be good for your heart.

Summary: But you can still enjoy the health benefits of chocolate (in moderation)


After Barker's retirement, Corbett had many starring roles in the theatre, including The Seven Year Itch, Out of Order, The Dressmaker, and on TV, the sitcom, Sorry.

In 1996, Corbett appeared in John Cleese's follow-up to A Fish Called Wanda, Fierce Creatures. He played a sealion-keeper at a zoo, but he said his worst experience on the film was when he had to carry "a very smelly baby ostrich".

The following year he recorded An Audience With... for ITV. In 1998 he returned to his famous armchair in a new Ben Elton series for BBC1, as well as starring in a Pizza Hut commercial campaign.

Films he appeared in included Top of the Form, You're Only Young Once, Casino Royale, No Sex Please, We're British and Fierce Creatures.

His publications included: Ronnie Corbett's Armchair Golf, The Small Man's Guide To Life and his autobiography High Hopes. He was a keen and proficient golfer, and a member of the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers.

Corbett was awarded a CBE in the 2012 New Year Honours for his services to charity and the entertainment industry. At a celebration to mark the award, Corbett collapsed in a restaurant in January, but recovered.

He was presented with the award by the Queen at Buckingham Palace in February that year.

Afterwards he admired his medal - which matched his blue and pink striped tie - saying: "It's very pretty. It's a very lovely honour. I shall treasure it."

Summary: Ronnie Corbett, the veteran entertainer and one half of The Two Ronnies, has died at the age of 85.


Ken Livingstone, the Labour candidate for London mayor, has come under pressure to apologise after he claimed the Conservative party and other institutions had been "riddled" with suppressed homosexuality.

He also claimed he would have been prime minister but for his voice. In an interview for the New Statesman, he also claimed some bankers treated bonuses like penis extensions. His remarks drew calls for an apology from Conservative MPs.

Angie Bray and Mike Freer, Tory MPs in London, wrote to the Labour leader, Ed Miliband, urging him to ensure Livingstone's remarks were retracted. Bray said: "These are the sort of offensive remarks we hear all too often from Labour's candidate for mayor."

Labour officials said the suggestion that Livingstone's use of the word "riddled" was homophobic was inherently ridiculous since he was "perhaps the most avowedly pro-gay politician in the history of the world".

In his interview Livingstone said: "As soon as Blair got in, if you came out as lesbian or gay you immediately got a job. It was wonderful … you just knew the Tory party was riddled with it, like everywhere else is."

In his interview Livingstone asserts his right to say what he thinks between now and election day, saying: "I can't understand why anyone would want to live the life of a politician if you can't say pretty much what you think. You are not in it for the money: there's unremitting pressure on your life, you give up so much of your privacy. It can only be because of the things you want to do and the things you want to say."

Elsewhere in the interview, the BBC director general, Mark Thompson, is described as "a moral imbecile" for vetoing the word "Palestine" in a protest song.

Bankers' bonuses are "like penis extensions, among a small league of men – mine is bigger than yours". Margaret Thatcher was "clinically insane" while in power. The Daily Mail "has done an awful lot for making us a more embittered people". Henry Kissinger "wasn't going to get laid until he was powerful, you know".

Turning to the mayoral election, Livingstone says attitudes to Johnson are changing "because people are really hurting". "At a time when people are comfortably off, they are not too threatened, and the question of how you perform on TV is [important]. Now people focus on, 'how am I going to keep my family together?'"

He speaks highly, too, of his former mayoral rival, Steve Norris. "He is a joy. He is absolutely brutal, much more hard-working than Boris." He recalls how Norris once stood up at a gay and lesbian event and called the Daily Mail's editor, Paul Dacre, a "fuckwit".

Livingstone describes his own life as "messy". "Part of the problem is that my generation was postwar, born into great upheaval, and 50 years down the road people will be much better off. I've watched my oldest kids – they're 21 and 19 – make in their teens the sort of mistakes and learning in relationships that my generation made when we were married. This is a very difficult transition. We all went mad in the 70s and it was excessive."

Summary: Livingstone under pressure to apologise after saying Tory party had been 'riddled' with suppressed homosexuality


updated 08/05/2016 AT 02:50 PM EDT

•originally published 08/05/2016 AT 10:25 AM EDT

is standing by his parents

as they address the longtime infidelity that nearly destroyed their 33-year marriage.

"They're working on it," he said recently on SiriusXM's

. "You know, they're trying to rein it in. They've been together for so long and this isn't their first rodeo."

Jack acknowledged, "They don't have this picture-perfect marriage, and they've never claimed to, so they're just trying to figure it out, I guess."

"My take on it is, whatever happens, my parents are still my parents – it's not like they're going to be like, 'Well, do you want to go live with your dad or your mom?' " said Jack, 30, with a laugh.

"So you kind of just support where you can and focus on whatever you need to get done – I've got my own kids and my own marriage to work on."

this week about his years-long sex addiction and revealed he's undergoing "intensive therapy" to address the problem.

that, yes, her husband's infidelity has been "quite embarrassing," but affirmed, "I am proud [Ozzy] has come out and admitted it finally. It's very very hard."

: "Mom is good ... she's strong-willed, and we respect that."

He continued, "They're doing a lot of work and trying to figure out where the cards lie. They're in a good spot right now, and that's kind of all you can ask for today."

Echoing his earlier statements, he added, "Hey, listen, there's no perfect marriage in this world. I mean, look, we've got

, so need we say any more?"

Summary: "They don't have this picture-perfect marriage, and they've never claimed to," said Osbourne


Paul McCartney, one of the most famous musicians of all time, rose to prominence 50 years ago as part of the British pop sensation The Beatles.

From humble, working-class beginnings, McCartney, 70, is now one of the richest men in the world. He has even topped the bill at the White House, playing for Barack Obama, the US president.

He sits down with Sir David for a full hour to tell his own story of the band, and its break up; to discuss some of the highs - and a few lows - of his life; and to provide a glimpse into his world behind the headlines.

The Beatles - John, Paul, George and Ringo - helped to define the 1960s, transforming modern music. They played sell out concerts all over the world, in front of hysterical fans. At the height of "Beatle Mania", fans screamed so loud that the band said they could not hear their own music.

With more than 20 number one hits through the 1960s, they were seemingly unstoppable.

But the glory days did not last and the group split in 1970. However, the songs written byÂ McCartney and the late John Lennon continue to live on through the generations.

"John and I wrote together something like 300 songs, just short of 300. We would meet up, sit down to write and three hours later we would have a song. And never, never did we have a dry session, we always wrote a song .... It was a great thing. Looking back on it I really feel blessed to be the guy who wrote with John. Because he was pretty hot stuff. And writing with me, I was pretty hot stuff too, so the two of us gelled," McCartney says.

Recalling the break-up of The Beatles, McCartney says: "I think it was time for John certainly to leave. It was a bit of a shock to all of us, he just announced 'oh I am leaving the group'. We all said 'are you sure aboutÂ this?' We tried to keep it together but he was definitely going to leave, so that was basically what did it.

"But I think, in a way, then we realised that we had come full circle, we had kind of done everything we wanted to do ... So in actual fact it wasn't that bad a thing."Â

On Yoko Ono, Lennon's then-wife who is often blamed for the break-up of The Beatles, McCartney says: "She certainly didn't break the group up."

"The group was breaking up and I think she attracted John so much to another way of life that he then went on to, very successfully, add a sort of second part to his career, writing things like 'Imagine' and 'Give Peace a Chance'. I don't think he would have done that without Yoko."

On his own enduring career in music, McCartney says: "I saw something the other day whereÂ I was quoted as saying 'It will be pretty sad to be prancing around on a stage at 40'.

"But no, I am still prancing," he laughs. "And enjoying it."

The Frost Interview can be seen each week at the following times GMT: Friday: 2000; Saturday: 1200; Sunday: 0100; Monday: 0600.

Click here for more The Frost Interview

Summary: The famous Beatles songwriter and musician speaks to Sir David Frost about his life in the spotlight.


LONDON—Egyptian officials on Saturday said repairs were successfully carried out on EgyptAir Flight 804’s cockpit voice recorder, bringing investigators closer to being able to determine what onboard problems pilots were battling before the plane crashed,

Data analyzed from the other black box, the flight data recorder, and wreckage from the Airbus Group SE jetliner that crashed May 19 suggest a fire had broken out on board. Soot was...

Summary: Repairs were successfully carried out on EgyptAir Flight 804’s cockpit voice recorder, bringing investigators closer to being able to determine what problems pilots were battling before the plane crashed.


International Business Machines Corp.'s chairman told analysts the Internet will play an increasingly large role in the company's future -- even as he threw brickbats at highflying Internet-only companies.

Louis V. Gerstner Jr. said a quarter of IBM's revenue -- or about $20 billion -- is related to "e-business," including sales over the Internet, computer consulting and installation and software products that manage data and transactions. The Internet has become the "ultimate medium of business," Mr....

Summary: IBM's chairman said the Internet will play an increasingly large role in his company's future even as Internet-only companies drew his skepticism. IBM shares surged 9.1% to a record close Thursday.


The notion that anything natural must be wholesome and good is, to be honest, idiotic. Polygamy is a natural behavior for some species. Infanticide is natural. Turning your mate into a post-coital snack is not only natural, it’s a strategy for reproductive success.

We are not those species, fortunately, and “Cheats and Deceits” is not a how-to book for humans. The subtitle is “How Animals and Plants Exploit and Mislead.” Martin Stevens is an evolutionary ecologist at the University of Exeter and also a sensory...

Summary: Richard Conniff reviews “Cheats and Deceits: How Animals and Plants Exploit and Mislead” by Martin Stevens.


Before you go, we thought you'd like these...

Fourth of July is rolling around, which means barbecues, get-togethers, and food, food, food.

Even better is the plethora of food desserts that seem to accompany every meal. And while sweets are definitely a staple for this holiday, so are red, white and blue creations.

Behold, the red, white, and blue pizza. Easy to make, even easier to eat. It's healthy, fresh, and pretty, too.

It's sure to be a hit at your Fourth of July party.

Scroll through for some more inspiration for July 4th:

More in lifestyle Make sure you're star spangled-out with these cute finds Perfectly patriotic style for the 4th of July (that will also become closet staples) This watermelon keg DIY will take your barbecues to a new level

Summary: July 4th weekend is all about those themed foods, and pizza is no exception. Up your July 4th BBQ with this simple yet delicious recipe


A small town police department is getting a huge wave of attention from its newfound Facebook fame, thanks to a viral post warning residents to please not "lurk" around officers while playing

"If you feel the need to run around playing Pokemon Go this summer, that's cool. Just be smart about it," the Duvall, Washington, police

, of the "augmented reality" mobile app which encourages people to explore outdoors to catch the creatures.

"One way of NOT playing smart is to go creeping around the Duvall PD. We have had some people playing the game behind the PD, in the dark, popping out of bushes, etc. This is high on our list of things that are not cool right now," the department wrote, adding:

"DO NOT LURK AROUND THE PD AT ANY HOUR WHILE YOU ARE PLAYING POKEMON GO – it makes an unsafe situation for you and our Officers. If you feel the need to use the PD as part of your game, just use common sense: Come on in to the lobby during [business] hours and say hi and let someone behind the counter or an officer know you are looking for an imaginary critter thing and make sure that your presence is well-known."

The post continues, "An Officer should not be placed in a position where people are hiding in the dark when he needs to get to his patrol car a few feet away."

The advisory has now been shared more than 3,800 times, with hundreds of comments.

Duvall police Sgt. Lori Batiot, who runs the department's Facebook and who wrote the post, tells PEOPLE she was addressing a real problem.

Others in the department had reached out to her describing people doing just what the post warns against. Their department is surrounded by thick woods and wetlands, she says, and people were coming at all hours, thanks to the game's incentive to catch Pokémon sun up or sun down.

"This was going on night and day," she says.

Batiot says that after she learned about the issue, she spent a brief time studying up on the game before knocking out the post. It gained traction quickly – aided by Batiot's active participation in the comments, on behalf of the Duvall police, writing in a regular-person voice that was half amused and half sensible.

, about players who felt they really had to get inside the building, "I guess the player will just have to sit outside and wait until the Pikachu makes Bond."

In fact, the top comment on the thread is

: "When I started in this profession never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that there would come a day when I would have to ask the public not to chase imaginary creatures behind the station at night."

As one user wrote, "Reading this thread is almost as fun as playing the game, and sort of makes me want to move to Duvall."

The post seemed to work, too, Batiot said later on Facebook. She tells PEOPLE that sometimes people need a little reminder about what's important, when it comes down to your Pokémon or your community.

Duvall is hardly alone: Since Pokémon Go's release and subsequent immense popularity, there have been reports nationwide of distracted players

"I think some people really do lose sight of, as fun as this is and as awesome as it is a game to play, it's not real and humans are," Batiot says. She compared it to other previous giant fads, such as all of the people who started riding hoverboards (and all the people who got hurt riding hoverboards).

Batiot says she doesn't hold it against them, though, and thinks the game itself is "a blast." She got into it thanks to her daughter, who previously got her into Farmville.

"Use common sense," Batiot advises players. "And even if you don't have common sense, default to civility."

Summary: The July 10 advisory has now been shared more than 3,800 times, with hundreds of comments


A walk in the park for this Florida family turned deadly when an alligator appeared and turned their pup into lunch.

Read: Another Boy Photographed Playing in the Same Spot at Lane Graves 30 Minutes Prior to Alligator Attack

Sue Fortenbery from St. Petersburg told InsideEdition.com that she and her 18-year-old grandson, Kevin, were taking a walk at Joe's Creek Greenwood Park when suddenly, their dog Bolt took off after a rabbit.

The Jack Russell Terrier followed the rabbit under a hole in the fence, where Fortenbery said, "a gator was laying on the bank waiting for him."

Then Fortenbery said she heard two screams--one from her grandson, followed closely by a scream from her dog.

A family's walk in the park turns into fatal alligator attack

Moments later, little Bolt was dead.

"I knew there was a gator out there, but I didn't know it came to the bank like that," the devastated grandmother said. "What a way to find out, huh?"

Even though Fortenbery said she has been frequenting the park several times a week for the past year, "I just don't think it's safe anymore," she said.

She reported the incident to the park ranger, who said the only thing they would be able to do is to keep an eye out for future incidents.

"That's the stupidest thing I've heard in my life," she said.

Read: Cop Who Left Police Dog in Hot Patrol Car Also Investigated in Fatal Shooting of Previous K9 Partner

Fortenbery is now pleading with the park to fix holes at the bottom of the fence, and remove the alligator.

"There are people out there walking dogs, pushing strollers with little kids," she said.

InsideEdition.com reached out to Pinellas County park rangers and Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, but initial calls were not returned.

"I am thankful Kevin didn't go in the water," Fortenbery said, "or he wouldn't be here either."

Watch: Hear The 911 Call After Alligator Attacks Swimmer: 'It Completely Bit Her Arm Off!'

Summary: Sue Fortenbery said she was taking a walk with her grandson when an alligator suddenly appeared out of nowhere.


Yesterday we had a mischievous thought: What if Donald Trump, on the eve of the Iowa caucuses, were to announce (or merely suggest) that if elected, he would nominate Ted Cruz to the next vacancy on the U.S. Supreme Court? Such a move would give some Cruz supporters a reason to switch while reassuring other conservatives nervous about the soundness of a President Trump’s judicial nominees.

Trump could even use the occasion to reinforce his current Cruz-directed mischief. After all, nobody can claim that Cruz’s Canadian...

Summary: Best of the Web: A deceptive attack on the former solicitor general.


A week after quarterback Colin Kaepernick said he’ll donate $1 million, his team will match it.

The 49ers have pledged $1 million to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation and the San Francisco Foundation to address social inequities, the team announced. The news comes a week after Kaepernick pledged to donate the first $1 million he earned this season to charities to assist underserved communities.

“Today, I am committing that the 49ers Foundation will contribute $1 million to the cause of improving racial and economic inequality and fostering communication and collaboration between law enforcement and the communities they serve here in the Bay Area,” CEO Jed York said in a statement. “... We have chosen to work with these two organizations because they have proven track records of affecting change in the face of challenging problems and have the collective reach to make the greatest impact.”

“Silicon Valley Community Foundation is the largest community foundation in the world, managing $7.3 billion in assets and more than 1,800 philanthropic funds globally. The San Francisco Foundation has served the people of the Bay Area since 1948, almost as long as the 49ers franchise. We are excited to work with these two renowned foundations over the coming months to develop a giving plan to help our community find unifying solutions to these pressing issues."

On Wednesday, Kaepernick said he’ll also donate the proceeds he receives from his top-selling jersey. Kaepernick’s jersey sales have soared since his decision to not stand during the national anthem became a national story that inspired reaction from President Barack Obama and caused other athletes to follow him.

Kaepernick is aiming to raise awareness for issues such as racial inequality and police brutality.

“It was something that, the jersey sales jumped because people’s belief that there can be change, and we can make this country better, and that they believe that I was someone that could help that change,” Kaepernick said Wednesday. “And, for me, that support is something I have to give back to the communities for that cause, because that’s what their belief is, that’s what my belief is. And we can work towards a common goal.”

Last week, 49ers safety Eric Reid joined Kaepernick in kneeling for the national anthem. Seahawks cornerback Jeremy Lane and professional soccer player Megan Rapinoe have also followed Kaepernick, and three West Virginia Tech volleyball players knelt for the national anthem Wednesday night.

Summary: The news comes a week after Kaepernick pledged to donate the first $1 million he earned this season to charities to assist underserved communities.  “Today, I am committing that the 49ers Foundation will contribute $1 million to the cause of improving racial and economic inequality and fostering communication and collaboration between law enforcement and the communities they serve here in the Bay Area,” CEO Jed York said in a statement. ...  Kaepernick’s jersey sales have soared since his decision to not stand during the national anthem became a national story that inspired reaction from President Barack Obama and caused other athletes to follow him.  Kaepernick is aiming to raise awareness for issues such as racial inequality and police brutality.  Seahawks cornerback Jeremy Lane and professional soccer player Megan Rapinoe have also followed Kaepernick, and three West Virginia Tech volleyball players knelt for the national anthem Wednesday night.


Malcolm Turnbull says a bill to ban boat-arriving asylum seekers from ever coming to Australia will be a test for the Labor opposition.

The government will bring the Migration Legislation Amendment (Regional Processing Cohort) Bill to parliament next week.

Labor says it can't make a firm commitment on the bill until the full text is released for scrutiny by caucus.

The prime minister said it was an opportunity for Labor to correct a "tragic policy failure" by the Rudd government and a test for Labor leader Bill Shorten who had said he was on a "unity ticket" on stopping people smuggling.

"Now is the opportunity to see if they really are," Mr Turnbull told reporters in Hobart on Friday.

Asked whether the United States and Canada had offered to take asylum seekers from Nauru and Papua New Guinea, he said: "We are working all the time with the countries in the Bali process."

He said there were options available including Cambodia, Papua New Guinea or returning to home countries.

Labor frontbencher Anthony Albanese said the coalition had boasted during the election campaign that the asylum seeker issue had been solved and the policy was right.

"It's just another pathetic attempt at playing politics," Mr Albanese told the Nine Network.

"The government have not put forward any reason for, any rationale for, this policy."

Summary: Labor is still waiting to see draft laws banning asylum seekers from Australia, which Christopher Pyne says will be released when it's ready to be introduced.


A Victorian man who let two dogs suffer painful deaths by dehydration during a heatwave has been fined and banned from having a dog for a year.

The Anatolian Shepherd dogs were left in the sun without water and would have suffered severely as they died in a heatwave in 2014, RSPCA prosecutor Daniel Bode said in a statement.

Senior Inspector Bode said the man was found guilty on Monday in the Frankston Magistrates' Court of five counts of animal cruelty, fined $1000 , disqualified from dog ownership for 12 months, and ordered to pay costs of $53,000.

Summary: A Victorian man has been fined and banned from owning a dog for a year after letting two dogs die of thirst in the sun during a heatwave.


Investigators are hoping CCTV footage of a man will lead to a break in a case where a man was left unconscious after being punched in the back of the head in Melbourne's CBD.

The offender approached the 26-year-old victim, who was with his relatives on Bourke Street, and asked for a cigarette lighter at 3.30am on November 6.

The victim offered the man a drink of water and joked with him before walking away, only for the man to punch him in the back of the head, causing cuts and abrasions to the victim's face.

Police on Friday released CCTV footage of a man walking on a CBD street, who is then followed by a woman running after him, and are calling for the man to come forward.

Summary: Police hope CCTV footage of a man will help break a case after a man was punched in the back of the head in Melbourne's CBD.


The Saudi visual artist Ms Saffaa is a petite woman with cropped hair framing a pixie face. Her mural, plastered on a studio wall at Sydney University’s College of the Arts almost dwarfs her.

It is a riotous mix of calligraphy, graffiti and portraits featuring the women’s rights activists Manal Al-Sharif and Samar Badawi, both part of a nascent movement protesting Saudi Arabia’s guardianship laws.

The protest gained steam after the July release of a Human Rights Watch report, which was critical of the laws prohibiting a woman from travelling, marrying or even leaving prison without the permission of a male guardian.

The movement gave birth to a hashtag, #iammyownguardian, and a petition signed by thousands, part of a growing online campaign protesting against the laws.

The 39-year-old artist, who moved to Sydney to study at the SCA in 2009, says the inspiration for her art came from continuous run-ins with Saudi authorities over her visa.

A condition of Saffaa’s now lapsed government scholarship required her brothers to fly in to Australia to vouch for her. But it was the hours of humiliating pleading with Saudi bureaucrats in Canberra that fuelled the rage behind her protest art.

“You have to play their game,” she says. “You have to act like the weak woman and say, ‘Thank you for doing this for me, it’s a huge favour.’ You have to play that role in order to get your shit done.”

Saffaa’s posters, featuring a face shrouded in the Saudi shemagh and the hashtag #iammyownguardian, became emblematic of the movement. They were plastered on Saudi streets, retweeted and sold online.

It led Saffaa into a thriving underground online protest scene filled with local and expat Saudi women. Many were housewives, sharing stories of life in the regime. Saffaa says Saudi women defending the laws were generally from the ruling class with ties to the government.

“Those who have really good jobs, really good pay and connections to government have a lot to lose,” she says. “They will tell you we’re content.”

For Saffaa, speaking up has its costs. The artist, who uses only her first name, has suffered harassment and been reported to Saudi authorities by trolls.

“[They say], ‘Let’s all report her, let her rot in jail, let’s see her make art behind prison bars.’ I thought I was immune to online bullying and harassment but it got to me.”

At an exhibition at Melbourne’s Islamic Museum of Australia, the artist was accosted by a man demanding to know why she was exposing Saudi’s dirty laundry to the west.

I was thinking, ‘That’s exactly why I make this art, because of people like you.’

“Before I could even speak I could feel the anger inside me,” she says. “I was sweating. I felt the heat coming out of my face ... a man comes with all his privilege and entitlement, and asks me why am I airing our dirty laundry to the west?

“First of all you’re admitting that it’s shameful, there’s shame behind the question. But you’re coming to me and telling me not to do something, trying to censor me.

“I was thinking, ‘That’s exactly why I make this art, because of people like you.’”

The sneakers-wearing activist uses street art and social media to promote millennial-style political protest that is transnational and cyber-driven but still rooted in the street.

This Sunday, Saffaa will unveil a new street mural in Melbourne’s Brunswick East, a collaboration with several female artists as a tribute to Saudi women. The launch will be hosted by Moroccan Deli-cacy cafe owner and community activist Hana Assafiri, known for hosting public salon-style conversations at her Melbourne restaurants, including the hit speed-date-a-Muslim series.

Saffaa says her work is motivated not only by political injustice but a visceral need for self-expression.

“What the role of the artist is goes back to the question of, what is the role of art?” she says. “It goes beyond trying to raise awareness.”

Part of her activism is borne out of subverting the western framing of Saudi women as victims, rather than as agents of their own liberation. This co-opting, she says, only furthers the infantilisation they were fighting against, with women used as pawns in a cultural battleground of rising Islamophobia.

“Don’t say Saudi women don’t have a voice. We have a voice. You just haven’t been paying attention.”

Saffaa says the fight for women’s rights in Saudi Arabia is part of broader struggle against state authoritarianism, for the rights of all minorities. As a believer, she questions the way the kingdom sought legitimacy through a hardline Wahhabi interpretation of religion.

“There’s so much policing of women’s bodies and even men,” she says. “I think faith is a personal thing and in Saudi they make it a public thing. You have to display your faith everywhere you go.”

• A new work by Ms Saffaa and several other female artists – in tribute to Saudi women and women in conflict zones – will be launched on 4 December at Moroccan Deli-cacy in Brunswick East, Melbourne

Summary: The Australia-based artist’s work is emblematic of the movement protesting against Saudi Arabia’s guardianship laws


More than 81,000 people in Los Angeles County have newly signed up for Obamacare coverage ahead of the Sunday deadline for open enrollment.

The pace of enrollment in the L.A. area has slowed considerably from a year ago when 400,889 people signed up during the first six-month enrollment period under the Affordable Care Act.

That high turnout surpassed enrollment in most other states last year.

However, as predicted by many experts, persuading the remaining uninsured to buy coverage has been more difficult in year two of the health law after such a strong response initially.

Surveys have shown that many of the uninsured feel health insurance is still too expensive or they might not be aware they qualify for federal subsidies to lower their premiums.

New state figures show that 81,321 people in L.A. County have enrolled through the Covered California insurance exchange from Nov. 15 to Feb. 2.

That represents 28% of the 288,558 people newly enrolled statewide. Those numbers don't include nearly 1 million policyholder renewals, which haven't been released on a county level.

For new enrollment, San Diego County has overtaken Orange County for second place statewide with 28,394 enrollees. Orange County had 27,653 as of Feb. 2, according to state data.

Riverside County is next at 15,029 new policyholders, followed by Alameda County with 13,266.

Covered California saw a surge of applicants at last year's deadline, and officials are hoping for another big turnout to reach their goal of 1.7 million people enrolled.

That might be a tall order with one week to go and Covered California sitting at about 1.2 million renewals and newly insured overall.

Details on enrollment events across the state can be found at www.coveredca.com.

Enrollment in Medi-Cal, the state's Medicaid program for low-income residents, remains open year round.

People who fail to get health insurance face a steeper fine for 2015.

For the 2014 tax year, the penalty is $95 per adult or 1% of modified adjusted gross income, whichever is higher. Those penalties increase for 2015 to $325 per adult or 2% of income.

People can seek exemptions to the federal fines because of financial hardship or other reasons.


After four decades of battling suburban sprawl and Balkanized government, Long Island's master planner is resigning as executive director of its regional planning board.

Colleagues described the planner, Lee E. Koppelman, 78, as a visionary who conceived Nassau and Suffolk Counties, and their nearly three million residents, as a region with needs transcending its hundreds of local governments. With mixed success, he championed mass transportation, diverse housing, economic development and the environment.

"Lee occupies a unique and really extraordinary place in the modern history of the region," said James L. Larocca, chairman of the Long Island Regional Planning Board, as it became "the first agency to officially bridge both counties and articulate a regional perspective." Mitchell Pally, vice president of the Long Island Association, a business and civic group, said, "There's been no one more significant to Long Island in the last 40 years."

Mr. Koppelman's departure, reported yesterday in Newsday, came on a sour note. Nassau and Suffolk officials sought to revitalize the board and critics questioned its financial controls and his compensation, though he insisted "every penny is accounted for." He continues as the director of the Center for Regional Policy at Stony Brook University.

A major achievement during his tenure was Suffolk's preservation of thousands of acres of the Pine Barrens, farmland and parks. Mr. Koppelman also worked to safeguard the groundwater, wetlands, shoreline and wildlife. "This idea of open-space preservation was pioneering in the 1970's," the Suffolk County executive, Steve Levy, said.

But Mr. Koppelman, who conceived the job that he is leaving, also promoted developments like the Hauppauge industrial park and the Route 110 commercial corridor in western Suffolk, said Desmond Ryan, director of the Association for a Better Long Island, a developers' group.

Mr. Koppelman often adopted a professorial style and cited voluminous staff reports, but sometimes annoyed critics. Some called for his removal, said a former Suffolk County executive, John V. N. Klein, who backed Mr. Koppelman and praised his "enormous legacy."

The planning board is advisory, with no power to impose policies. Mr. Koppelman was frustrated that his pleas for housing for people of limited income were ignored, or worse.

On transportation, Mr. Koppelman campaigned for extending the Long Island Rail Road's electric service eastward and pushed Suffolk to build major north-south roads like the William Floyd Parkway, said a former county executive, Patrick Halpin. The master planner feuded with the master builder, Robert Moses, by advocating a rail line along the Long Island Expressway. According to Mr. Koppelman, Moses refused.

Summary: After four decades of battling suburban sprawl and Balkanized government on Long Island, Lee E. Koppelman is resigning.


BY GEORGE RUSH AND JOANNA MOLLOY

Thursday, October 12th 1995, 4:23AM

The seats in the Walter Kerr Theatre must be awfully close together. Why else would Whoopi Goldberg and Frank Langella have their hands on one another's thighs during the performance?

Finished with filming "Eddie" for the day, the Disney co-stars took in a preview show of "Patti LuPone on Broadway" together Friday night. The two did more touching than Hands Across America, according to our spies.

"First his arm was around her," said one theatergoer who struggled to concentrate on LuPone. "Then their hands were touching, then his hand was touching her side, then their hands were high up on each other's legs. There was way too much rubbing going on for comfort." The pair was utterly surrounded by showbiz cognoscenti.

A supermarket tabloid recently reported that Goldberg and recent hubbie Lyle Trachtenberg may be reevaluating the "till death due us part" clause of their ceremony. The married Langella was said to have had a touching relationship with Ellen Barkin during the filming of "Bad Company."

Goldie Hawn, who's moved into a N.Y. apartment while working on Woody Allen's film, looked up her old "Private Benjamin" flame Yves Renica while on location last month in Paris. Kurt Russell shouldn't worry: They just did lunch. . . . Michael Jackson, an extroverted chatterbox at Bill Hong's on E. 56th St . . . and Keenen Ivory Wayans keeping all to himself at Cafe Beulah. . . .

Steven Seagal, Bill Murray, Oliver Stone, Carolina Herrera and David Salle, at assorted tables inside Bowery Bar the night Robert De Niro allegedly engaged in fisticuffs outside. Salle, the film-making artist, joked to Seagal that highbrow cineastes James Ivory and Ismail Merchant wanted him to play spindly French playwright Jean Cocteau. Seagal said he was game. But did Cocteau travel with three bodyguards? . . .

Pat Kluge, celebrating her 46th birthday at the Cub Room. Among the celebrants: Ahmet Ertegun, Marty and Cornelia Bregman, and billionaire David Koch, who came with ex-girlfriend Julie Hyack. This aroused whispers that Koch may have split with his current flame, Julia Flesher. But Koch, who's doing well after recent prostate surgery, assures us, "Julia was in London inteviewing decorators." Presumably for Koch's Fifth Ave. apartment, formerly owned by Jackie O. . . .

Spike Lee checked out Rickwood Field, the Birmingham, Ala., field where Jackie Robinson once played, for a movie on one of baseball's greatest players. Locals claim it's the oldest continuously operated baseball field in the U.S. . . .

Julia Ormond tells us she plans to "cover myself in Neutrogena" to keep her porcelain skin from chapping when she goes to Denmark to play a glacier expert in "Smilla's Sense of Snow." For now, you can find Ormond warming up New York. She acquired such an appetite for the Apple while shooting "Sabrina" that she's decided to live here.

Andy Garcia was among the stars who said, "Hello, neighbor," at the Tribeca Film Center party for Miramax' "Blue in the Face." Among the weirder moments in the ad-libbed six-day film by Wayne Wang and Paul Auster: Harvey Keitel slapping Roseanne on the bottom, Lily Tomlin panhandling for a Belgian waffle, a wrung-out Madonna delivering a singing telegram, Michael J. Fox reflecting on his bowel movements, and Mel Gorham grabbing Keitel's crotch while asking, "Is this for me?" Malik Youba tormented Giancarlo Esposito for being a black man with an Italian last name, and Lou Reed called cigarets a "health tool" because "at least that's 15 minutes when I'm not downing a bottle of Scotch."

Unbeknownst to the 300 people partying above, Simpson lawyer Barry Scheck dined undisturbed in the Tribeca Grill.

Star magazine, which reportedly paid $1 million for exclusive photos of O.J. Simpson after his acquittal, may have another deal in the works with The Ungloved One. A source says the tab wants to lock up rights to O.J.'s wedding to Paula Barbieri if and when it happens. Then again, Simpson may want to sell Star an interview with himself now that his pay-per-view and NBC "Dateline" options have fizzled. . . .

Robert Sam Anson has stepped down as editor of Los Angeles magazine after a stormy six months. The prize-winning investigative journalist is telling friends that publisher Joan McCraw fired him. McCraw is claiming that Anson quit last Friday after a shouting match. .

Though Anson came back to work on Monday, McCraw decided it was time for a "parting of the ways," as she put it in a statement yesterday. Anson may talk to lawyers, and will certainly go back to writing his unflattering book about Disney chief Michael Eisner, who was about to become Anson's uber-boss but who now won't have the pleasure of firing him.

Hugh Grant and Liz Hurley were all smiles at the Versace show in Milan Monday. Perhaps soon-to-be-Catholic Hurley didn't know Grant recently told an interviewer Liz was "too vain" to have a baby. She'd have one only if "she could snap her fingers and there would be a child just there . . . but she quite likes her figure," said Grant-the-champ. . . .

Vanessa Regrave had Miramax send a print of her new film, "A Month by the Lake," to Christopher Reeve. The two've been friends since "The Bostonians." . . .

Chazz and Gianna Palminteri welcomed first child Dante Lorenzo Palminteri yesterday at 8:21 a.m. Chazz loves his son's name. "Dante and the Debutante" is the title of his new script, which he'll direct and star in. It's about a reluctant wiseguy who falls for the daughter of the millionaire he's supposed to rob.

Summary: The seats in the Walter Kerr Theatre must be awfully close together. Why else would Whoopi Goldberg and Frank Langella have their hands on one another's thighs during the performance? Finished with filming "Eddie"for the day, the Disney co-stars took in a preview show of "Patti LuPone on Broadway"together Friday night. The two did more touching than Hands Across America, according to our spies. "First his arm was around her,"said


Best-selling novelist Debbie Macomber, known for her Cedar Cove romance novels, which often feature holiday themes, loves Christmas. And we mean LOVES Christmas. She has been known to set up five Christmas trees and 37 Nativity scenes. "What I love most about the Christmas holidays is the traditions with family and friends," says the author of Debbie Macomber's Christmas Cookbook (Harlequin, $29.95). USA TODAY caught up with her by phone from her home on Puget Sound.

Best-selling author Debbie Macomber has written a cookbook containing her favorite recipes and traditions.

Best-selling author Debbie Macomber has written a cookbook containing her favorite recipes and traditions.

Q: So what it is about you and Christmas?

A: You can't even go to the guest bathroom without Jesus watching every move you make! I just love the idea of giving gifts and being festive. Having an excuse to get people together. I take advantage of that.

Q: And now a Christmas cookbook.

A: I'm a frequent eater, and so when I write my books, I'll mention that I had macaroni and cheese the night before. Every time I do, I get such a response from my readers: "Send me the recipe!" It was the readers who prompted the first cookbook (Debbie Macomber's Cedar Cove Cookbook), and because of the success of that, my publisher wanted to know if I wanted to do another. It was natural to build it around Christmas.

Q: You spend Christmas mornings in truck stops now?

A: Well, we did. Last year was the last year that we drove to Florida over Christmas. It became important for our children to set their own traditions at their homes, so we were on the road. Many, many years we did that. There's a lot of holiday spirit there in those diners. It was just fun. But we're flying this year.

Q: Have you really made your husband a fruitcake fan?

A: Well, yeah, yeah. I love fruitcake. He helps me cook it. I use a Julia Child recipe that has all kinds of booze in it, so that helps. I wrote a Christmas book once that featured a fruitcake contest in it, so just recently I was asked to be a fruitcake judge. It wasn't bad. In fact, it was pretty good.

Q: You not only include recipes, but decorating tips and homemade gift-giving ideas. We're behind on our shopping. Tell us an easy homemade gift. Quick!

A: Sure. Soup in a jar. Just use any jar and put the ingredients in it and plop a bow on it, and there you go. And everyone enjoys soup! It's easy to do.

Q: Just curious. Aren't you exhausted by all this?

A: I spread myself out so I plan everything in advance. This morning caught me unaware, however. I got up at 4, but I lay back down and went back to sleep. You just woke me up!

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Summary: Novelist Debbie Macomber is out with a new cookbook based on her favorite holiday. Christmas.


Mashable’s Spark of Genius series highlights a unique feature of startups. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, see details here. The series is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark. Name: groubal

Quick Pitch: Consumer Reports meets Yelp for the purpose of creating buying alliances on behalf of the consumer.

Genius Idea: Groubal is an advocacy platform that enables U.S. consumers to create online petitions and recruit others to their causes.

Find your bank’s late payment fees unfair, or upset that you weren’t compensated by an airline for a three-hour flight delay? Create a post on groubal and leverage your networks on Facebook, Twitter and elsewhere to build support and demand action.

Each month, groubal picks the highest-ranked petitions and brings them to the attention of corporations and industry leaders in the hopes of creating effective group buying alliances. It’s the site’s willingness to champion its users’ causes that sets it apart from other online petition sites. It’s not just a tool for formalizing complaints; instead, it helps users carry those complaints to achieve reform and develops a site community in the process.

What do you think of the platform? How do you generate support for your causes and complaints online?

BizSpark is a startup program that gives you three-year access to the latest Microsoft development tools, as well as connecting you to a nationwide network of investors and incubators. There are no upfront costs, so if your business is privately owned, less than three years old, and generates less than U.S.$1 million in annual revenue, you can sign up today.

Summary: Groubal is a advocacy platform that enables U.S. consumers to create online petitions and recruit others to their cause.


Mashable’s Spark of Genius series highlights a unique feature of startups. If you would like to have your startup considered for inclusion, see details here. The series is made possible by Microsoft BizSpark.

Quick Pitch: Globetrooper is a social travel platform, where people build trips and travel the globe together.

Genius Idea: Coordinating trips with friends can be a difficult endeavor, given conflicts in work schedules, budgets and destination preferences. But if you’re not too particular about who you travel with — or if you’d like to make some new friends — you might want to check out Globetrooper while planning your next trip.

Globetrooper is a social platform for aspiring travelers to design trips and find others to travel with them. You can post a trip outlining your dates and preferences for others to join, or browse the roughly 100 trips already listed on the site. Users can also leave comments on each others’ trips with suggestions for places to stay and sites to see. Trips are ranked by Difficulty, Culture Shock, Remoteness and Risk on a scale of 1-5.

The site also sports great browsing and search functionality. You can search for trips by keyword, or browse trips by region or activity, from “Overland & Safari” to “Scuba & Snorkeling” and “Food/Wine Touring.”

Unsurprisingly, the site seems to attract serious adventuring enthusiasts (want to climb Mount Everest, anyone?) by and large, although there are plenty of Aussies seeking traveling mates on their European tours as well. If you’re looking to discover a remote region with knowledgable and resourceful people, Globetrooper should prove a great resource.

What do you think of the platform? Would you ever use a service like Globetrooper to find and meet a travel buddy?

BizSpark is a startup program that gives you three-year access to the latest Microsoft development tools, as well as connecting you to a nationwide network of investors and incubators. There are no upfront costs, so if your business is privately owned, less than three years old, and generates less than U.S.$1 million in annual revenue, you can sign up today.

Summary: Globetrooper is a social travel platform where people build trips and travel the globe together.


The drug laetrile has produced ''no therapeutic benefit'' against cancer, according to the final report of a Government-sponsored study.

The report also described laetrile as a potentially hazardous substance, although it said none of the patients in the study experienced grave side effects.

The report, published in today's issue of The New England Journal of Medicine, said that 90 percent of the patients' cancers became worse within three months after treatment started and fewer than 20 percent of the patients were still alive after a year.

The study was sponsored by the National Cancer Institute and approved by the Food and Drug Administration under considerable public pressure. It was intended to give the drug what some specialists viewed as a final chance to demonstrate its value against cancer. Legalized in 27 States

Few cancer specialists believed the drug had any merit, but its use had been legalized in 27 states, it was given to thousands of patients in the last 25 years and had some strong supporters in the medical profession.

The study was conducted by the Mayo Clinic, the University of California at Los Angeles, the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, the University of Arizona Cancer Center and the National Cancer Institute.

The report involved 171 patients whose experience with laetrile was fully documented, and three others for whom there was partial documentation. All suffered from cancers of types not considered curable by conventional means. All the patients were judged to be ''in good general condition'' at the start of the study.

Few laetrile supporters were expected to be convinced by the report. They have already criticized the study for limiting the test to otherwise untreatable cancers. Some continued to say they had favorable responses in patients after the study's main conclusion was made public last spring.

The essential ingredient of laetrile is a natural compound called amygdalin found in bitter almonds and apricot pits. The researchers found it to be not only ineffective against cancers, but also potentially dangerous. The use of amygdalin releases cyanide into the blood, the report said, sometimes producing concentrations as high as some that have been reported in fatal poisonings.


The two authors writing about the sinking of Titanic cover a similar topic: who was on board that fateful night. But while one deals only with those living the high life in First Class, the other covers everyone aboard, right down to the cobblers and tailors far below, their only wish to find a better life in America. Let's start there and work our way up.

Voyagers of the Titanic:Passengers, Sailors, Shipbuilders, Aristocrats,and the Worlds They Came FromBy Richard Davenport-HinesWilliam Morrow, 307 pp., $26.99; *** out of four

Davenport-Hines' Voyagers of the Titanic is impressive in both its writing and reporting, beginning with what was known as the "black gang," the stokers and trimmers — men who stoked the ship's furnaces to make steam — and who drank up a storm right before the ship's departure, then didn't make it back in time, thus saving their own lives.

From there it's a romp, from the valets — there were 31 personal maids or valets on board — to the dressmaker Lady Duff Gordon ("a pioneer of sexy underwear") to Joseph Laroche, the only black man onboard and husband of a Frenchwoman, mother of his two daughters. He was fleeing to Haiti from the bigotry of France.

And so it goes. That's what's so fun about this book. You don't know who will be strolling down the deck next. The ship holds a million stories.

Davenport-Hines even covers the politics involved in the building of the ship with Titanic's owner, J.P. Morgan, and Lord Pirrie, the ship's builder, butting egos that evidently were as large as Titanic.

Gilded Loves, Fatal Voyage:The Titanic's First-ClassPassengers and Their WorldBy Hugh BrewsterCrown, 290 pp., $26; *** out of four

Brewster's Gilded Lives, Fatal Voyage rarely ventures below. He stays in First Class, with its Champagne flutes, fur coats and well-appointed cabins.

Among the top of the heap are millionaires John Jacob Astor IV, the richest man on board; Benjamin Guggenheim (art collector Peggy Guggenheim's father); and the no-nonsense Countess of Rothes, who was put at the tiller of lifeboat No. 8 because of her "take-charge manner."

There's even a chapter dedicated to who might have been gay among these elite passengers.

And then there was then-famed movie actress Dorothy Gibson, who continued to wear the white silk evening dress she had donned for dinner on that fateful Sunday night. She also wore a large diamond, an engagement ring given to her by Jules Brulatour, the head of Eastman Kodak who was planning to marry her once he got rid of his wife.

The book is filled with such detail, including what President Taft did once he learned that his trusted adviser, Archie Butt, had drowned in the disaster. He broke down giving his eulogy.

A bonus is the 20-page Postscript section, filled with mini-bios of some of the 712 survivors. Five lived to be 100 or more, and a dozen lived into their 90s. At least seven killed themselves.

Their hearts did not go on.

Summary: 'Gilded Lives' deals with those living the high-seas high life. 'Voyagers' covers everyone aboard, right down to the cobblers and tailors.


That sound you heard was Fireman Ed falling out of his seat. One day after Gang Green’s 34-0 home loss to San Francisco, Jets owner Woody Johnson was asked on Bloomberg TV Monday if he would rather have a winning Jets season or a victorious presidential election for Mitt Romney. His answer only added to the suffering of a tortured fan base. “Well I think you always have to put country first,” Johnson said. “So I think it’s very, very important that for - not only us - but in particular for our kids and grandkids that this election come off with Mitt Romney and (Paul) Ryan as President and vice president.” While Johnson’s words could leave Jet fans with faces redder than any red state, the way things are looking right now, Johnson may not get either wish. The Jets are 2-2, but have lost cornerback Darrelle Revis for the season and Monday Rex Ryan announced that injured wideout Santonio Holmes would miss at least a few weeks with a foot injury. Add to that Mark Sanchez’s dismal QB play and the ever-growing call for Tim Tebow to step in and you have a Jet recipe for disaster. Romney, meanwhile, is struggling worse than Sanchez. Some polls have him 5% behind President Obama heading into Wednesday’s first debate.

Still, when it comes to picking one or the other, Johnson, who has owned the Jets since 2000, clearly pulls for Paul Ryan over Rex Ryan. The Jet owner is the chairman of Romney’s campaign in New York and is in the middle of an aggressive fund-raising schedule for the Romney-Ryan ticket. Following the loss Sunday, Johnson attended a dinner that evening and two breakfasts on Monday. After pumping up Romney for about eight minutes in the interview, Johnson was asked about the Jets. “The coach and the coaches and I are not happy with what happened,” he said. “And the players aren’t, either. That performance is absolutely unacceptable.” After being asked about Tebow’s prospects as a starting quarterback, the owner deferred to Ryan’s decision to keep Sanchez in the starting job. “No, it doesn’t mean Tim Tebow’s starting next week,” Johnson said. “But it’s a question that’s going to be asked more frequently if this progresses.” This comes after Johnson said at the Republican National Convention that you can “never have too much Tebow,” a comment he later said was intended as a joke. “There’s going to be more pressure. This quarterback can get the job done. He had a bad day and the team had a bad day,” the owner added. (But) it wasn’t all Mark Sanchez." VIDEO: WOODY PICKS MITT OVER JETS Twitter.com/SethWalderNYDN

Summary: Woody Johnson says if he was forced to choose, the Jets would be his No. 2 priority.


Fri Nov 5, 2010 3:25am EDT

(Reuters) - Myanmar will hold its first election in two decades on Sunday as part of a process critics say has been carefully crafted to ensure the military retains its five-decade grip on power.

Below are details about Myanmar's stop-start journey to the election and how the country will choose a president and form civilian-led legislatures, a judiciary and a new central government, according to its 2008 constitution.

-- The National League for Democracy party, led by Aung San Suu Kyi, won a 1990 election with a landslide, securing 392 of the 485 parliamentary seats in the first multi-party general election in 30 years. The military refused to hand over power, saying a new constitution first had to be drafted.

-- A National Convention was formed in 1993 to draft a constitution, made up mostly of people hand-picked by the military, but the process was fraught with adjournments, walkouts, bickering and cries of foul play.

-- Then Prime Minister Khin Nyunt announced a 7-step "roadmap to democracy" in 2003 but gave no timetable. The junta appointed a 54-member constitution-drafting commission in 2007.

-- The government announced in 2008 that it would hold an election in 2010. A constitutional referendum was held in May 2008, during which 92.48 percent of people voted in favor of the charter, with a voter turnout of 98.1 percent, the junta said.

-- Election laws were announced in March 2010. The timing of the poll was not announced until August 13, when the regime set the November 7 date, giving parties little time to prepare.

-- Polls will be held nationwide to elect civilian representatives for legislative assemblies, or "Hluttaws," at national and regional level, for five-year terms. At least 28 million of Myanmar's estimated 50 million people are eligible to vote.

-- A lower house of parliament, known as the Pyithu Hluttaw, will have 440 seats with representatives elected in 330 constituencies. A senate, or Amyotha Hluttaw, will have 224 representatives. There will be up to 665 seats in 14 regional assemblies of varying sizes.

-- Voters will cast three ballots, one for the lower house, one for the senate and one for a regional assembly. Seats in each constituency will be contested on a first-past-the-post basis, with voters allowed to choose one candidate for each chamber.

-- The role of the assemblies will be to pass and debate legislation, although not all presidential decisions will require legislative approval. The Hluttaws will choose their own house speakers and committee members. Parliamentarians are guaranteed freedom of speech and voting.

-- A quarter of the seats in the lower house, the senate and the seven state and seven regional assemblies have been reserved for serving military officers, appointed by the armed forces chief.

-- Former military personnel are allowed to become lawmakers upon resignation from the armed forces. Scores of soldiers, among them some 27 government ministers, have recently retired to join pro-junta political parties to contest the polls.

-- Serving military officers will be nominated by the commander-in-chief of Defence Services and placed in charge of the defense, interior and border affairs ministries. The president can also select military officers to head other ministries.

-- The president would grant the commander-in-chief full control of the country during a state of emergency, including complete legislative, executive and judicial power.

-- With a threat of "disintegration of the union, disintegration of national solidarity or loss of sovereign power" the commander-in-chief can seize control without the president's blessing.

-- The head of state of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, as the country has been renamed, will be a president, not elected by the people but chosen by a Presidential Electoral College consisting of members of both the lower house and senate.

-- The president's term will be five years, with a maximum two terms. Two vice presidents will be selected from among unsuccessful presidential candidates.

-- The president, who must be a civilian, will appoint government ministers, the attorney general and chief justice. The lower house can only challenge the president's appointments if nominees are not deemed qualified.

-- The president or his office is not answerable to parliament or judicial courts, provided he acts within the constitution. The president has the power to grant pardons and amnesties, offer honorary titles, appoint and remove state officials and sign or revoke international treaties.

-- The constitution has not stipulated a timeframe for the handover of power and the junta will remain in charge until it takes place.

-- Hluttaws are likely to formalized, a president chosen and a government appointed within a few weeks of the election, perhaps as long as three months. Parliament must convene its first regular session within 90 days of the polls.

(Compiled by Martin Petty; Editing by Robert Birsel)

Summary: (Reuters) - Myanmar will hold its first election in two decades on Sunday as part of a process critics say has been carefully crafted to ensure the military retains its five-decade grip on power.Below


oscow swam in color. Hazy floodlights of Red Square mixed with the neon of casinos in Revolution Square. Light wormed its way from the underground mall in the Manezh. Spotlights crowned new towers of glass and polished stone, each tower capped by a spire. Gilded domes still floated around the Garden Ring, but all night earthmovers tore at the old city and dug widening pools of light to raise a modern, vertical Moscow more like Houston or Dubai. It was a Moscow that Pasha Ivanov had helped to create, a shifting landscape of tectonic plates and lava flows and fatal missteps.

Senior Investigator Arkady Renko leaned out a window the better to see Ivanov on the pavement ten floors below. Ivanov was dead but not particularly bloody, arms and legs at odd angles. Two black Mercedeses were at the curb, Ivanov's car and an SUV for his bodyguards. It sometimes seemed to Arkady that every successful businessman and Mafia hood in Moscow had been issued two Nazi-black Mercedeses.

Ivanov had arrived at 9:28 p.m., gone directly up to the safest apartment in Moscow and at 9:48 p.m. plunged to the sidewalk. Arkady had measured Ivanov's distance from the building. Homicides generally hit close, having expended their energy in trying not to fall. Suicides were single-minded and landed farther out. Ivanov had almost reached the street.

Behind Arkady, Prosecutor Zurin had brought drinks from the wet bar to a NoviRus senior vice president named Timofeyev and a young blonde in the living room. Zurin was as fussy as a maître d'; he had survived six Kremlin regimes by recognizing his best customers and smoothing out their problems. Timofeyev had the shakes and the girl was drunk. Arkady thought the gathering was a little like a party where the host had suddenly and inexplicably dived through the window. After the shock the guests carried on.

The odd man out was Bobby Hoffman, Ivanov's American assistant. Although he was worth millions of dollars, his loafers were split, his fingers were smudged with ink and his suede jacket was worn to a shine. Arkady wondered how much more time Hoffman had at NoviRus. An assistant to a dead man? That didn't sound promising.

Hoffman joined Arkady at the window. "Why are there plastic bags around Pasha's hands?"

"I was looking for signs of resistance, maybe cuts on the fingers."

Prosecutor Zurin rocked forward on the sofa. "There is no investigation. We do not investigate suicides. There are no signs of violence in the apartment. Ivanov came up alone. He left alone. That, my friends, is a suicide in spades."

The girl lifted a dazed expression. Arkady had learned from the file he had on Pasha Ivanov that Rina Shevchenko was his personal interior designer, a twenty-year-old in a red leather pantsuit and high-heeled boots.

Timofeyev was known as a robust sportsman, but he could have been his father, he had shrunk so much within his suit. "Suicides are a personal tragedy. It's enough to suffer the death of a friend. Colonel Ozhogin - the head of NoviRus Security - is already flying back." He added to Arkady, "Ozhogin wants nothing done until he arrives."

Arkady said, "We don't leave a body on the sidewalk like a rug, even for the colonel."

"Pay no attention to Investigator Renko," Zurin said. "He's the office fanatic. He's like a narcotics dog; he sniffs every bag."

There won't be much left to sniff here, Arkady thought. Just out of curiosity, he wondered if he could protect the bloody prints on the windowsill.

Timofeyev pressed a handkerchief against his nose. Arkady saw spots of red.

Opposite Ivanov's apartment was a dark office building. A man walked out of the lobby, waved to Arkady and gave a thumbs-down.

"One of your men?" Hoffman asked.

"A detective, in case someone over there was working late and might have witnessed something."

"I do whatever the prosecutor says."

"So you think it was suicide."

Summary: "Moscow swam in color. Hazy floodlights of Red Square mixed with the neon of casinos in Revolution Square."


I received a letter the other day. If my surprise and interest in the letter are any indication of how others might react to what has become an unusual event, perhaps more of us should consider sending real letters more often in order for that message to stand out.

The letter itself was very complimentary about “Essential Manners for Men, 2nd Edition.” As I read the letter, I was reminded about the power of the compliment. I spend a lot of time talking about rudeness and the destructive nature of negative messages, but not much time talking about positives. And compliments are a great form of the positive.

Things to consider when giving a compliment:

■ Sincerity matters. Compliments should be heartfelt as they are delivered. A monotone “Nice job” doesn’t cut it. But an enthusiastic “Nice job. I know you worked hard on the project,” does.

■ Better yet, focus on something specific. “I really appreciate your effort” is pretty nebulous. “The extra hours and care you took with the XYZ contract really made a difference. Great work,” is much better. It shows you really noticed.

■ You can offer your boss a compliment once in a while, too. Just be careful: Too often and it can look like you’re brownnosing. Focus your compliment on how the boss’s actions helped you understand how to handle a situation better. “Mr. Smith, the way you resolved that problem in the meeting was impressive. I learned something.”

■ As a boss, if you give a compliment orally, consider putting it in writing as well so the recipient has a record of it and can bring it up at the next review.

■ Don’t overuse compliments by giving too many. They should be parceled out carefully. Give them too freely and too frequently and you lose the sincerity that is so important to a good compliment.

Many times when people receive a compliment, they don’t know how to respond. So they end up diminishing it: “It was nothing.” Or, in their embarrassment they may actually say nothing. The best response to a compliment is a sincere “Thank you.”

Summary: I received a letter in the mail the other day. That in itself was a moment to relish. The letter itself was very complimentary about “Essential Manners for Men, 2nd Edition.” As I read and reread the letter, I was reminded about the power of the compliment. I spend a lot of time talking about rudeness and the destructive nature of negative messages, but not much time talking about positives. And compliments are a great form of the positive.