– When covering the story four years ago, Newser's headline read, "$7.5M Bitcoin Fortune Buried in Landfill." That fortune ended up in a Welsh landfill after James Howells threw out a hard drive over that summer while cleaning up his workspace. On it was the cryptographic "private key" he needed to access his 7,500 Bitcoins—which are now worth far, far more. With bitcoin valued at roughly $17,000 as of Wednesday, those 7,500 lost bitcoins are worth more than $127 million, reports CNBC. He tells the Telegraph that he hasn't "sat here crying about it, accidents happen." But that hasn't deterred him from hoping he'll one day get to go searching at the Newport landfill, something the Newport City Council currently won't allow. It would be a novel undertaking: "A landfill has never been excavated in the UK before" for non-criminal reasons, he says, "so we’re in uncharted territory with regards to regulations, local authorities and environmental agencies." And there are plenty of risks, from deadly gases to the possibility of landfill fires, not to mention the cost. But "the higher the value goes, the more chance I have to recover it," he says. Wired spoke with a rep from the city council, and the upshot isn't too optimistic, with the rep citing the huge costs of doing the excavating and storing the waste, plus the "huge environmental impact on the surrounding area"—and after all that, the hard drive might not be found or usable, though Howells has brushed off naysayers who argue the drive would be destroyed by corrosion at this point. (Read about a bitcoin crime.)

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James Howells, an IT worker living in the United Kingdom, knows exactly where his misplaced 7,500 bitcoins are but the city council where he lives won't let him retrieve them. They say it's against the law.

 According to a report published in The Telegraph, Howells began mining bitcoin on his personal laptop in 2009. In 2013, though, "after I had stopped mining, the laptop I had used was broken into parts and sold on eBay," Howells tells The Telegraph.

 He kept the drive he used to collect the bitcoins, "so if bitcoin did become valuable one day, I would still have the coins I mined."

 But, while cleaning his home in 2013, he mistakenly put it into a waste bin at his local landfill site in Newport, South Wales, where it got buried.

 Now, with bitcoin's value hovering just above $17,000 Wednesday, according to digital-currency website CoinDesk, Howells' 7,500 lost bitcoins are worth more than $127 million. CoinDesk's Bitcoin Price Index tracks prices from digital currency exchanges Bitfinex, Bitstamp, Coinbase and itBit.

 More than four years' worth of garbage have poured into the dump since his mistake, which would make any recovery effort a significant undertaking. "A modern landfill is a complex engineering project and digging one up brings up all sorts of environmental issues, such as dangerous gasses and potential landfill fires," Howells says. "It's a big, expensive and risky project." ||||| Newscast/UIG via Getty Images

 What does it feel like to lose $75,000,000 in bitcoin? James Howells tries not to let it get to him. And strictly speaking, he knows where his coins are — they're under 200,000 tonnes of garbage at a landfill in Newport, South Wales.

 Back in 2009, Howells set an old laptop to mining bitcoin – back before you needed specialised hardware – eventually totting up 7,500 coins. He later broke up the Dell M1710 into parts to sell on eBay, but kept the hard drive tucked away in a drawer in case bitcoin ever did take off. Four years later, he'd forgotten about his horde, and during a clean out, the hard drive was accidentally binned, presumably landing in Newport landfill.

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 At that time, his bitcoin stash was already worth millions. Thanks to the digital currency's value skyrocketing from between $300 and $1,000 in 2013 to more than $10,000 this week, his pile is now worth $75 million.

 Why isn't he frantically digging through refuse? For that matter, why aren't you? The council won't allow it – it's dangerous and difficult. "I haven’t actually tried to search for the hard drive yet as I haven’t been given permission to look despite having financial backing in place and engaging the local council a number of times," Howells tells me via email. "Digging up a landfill is not as easy as just digging a hole in the ground." It would require diggers, plenty of specialist help, and, Howells says, be the first such excavation that wasn't related to a criminal investigation in the UK – though such an effort has been done in the US to retrieve dumped ET Atari cartridges.

 Read next Another week, another bitcoin hack, another huge price drop Another week, another bitcoin hack, another huge price drop

 A spokesperson for Newport City Council said it has been "contacted in the past about the possibility of retrieving a piece of IT hardware said to contain bitcoins". But the costs of digging up the landfill, and storing and treating the waste, would run into the millions and cause a "huge environmental impact on the surrounding area". And there's no guarantee the drive would be found or still work.

 The landfill contains around 350,000 tonnes of waste, with 50,000 added annually, the spokesperson said. "It is likely that the hardware would have suffered significant galvanic corrosion due to the presence of landfill leachates and gases," they added.

 Millions in costs, dangerous conditions, no promise of a reward... but what a reward if found. Newport City Council has faced budgetary concerns this year – the head of the council has warned that council tax will increase amid services cuts – and Howells believes bitcoin will eventually be worth so much they will have no choice but to let him search. "And obviously they would get a nice percentage as a gift or donation."

 If this all makes you want to hop a train to Newport with a shovel in hand, be warned that aside from being dangerous, the landfill is not open to the public and "any potential treasure hunters" would be committing a criminal offence, the council spokesperson noted. And the effort required to search for the drive means you're sure to be noticed.

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 Howells still has the public address, so he can check that his coins haven't moved; if you do find the hard drive, note that the data is encrypted, so you'll need his help either way. "If they ever moved I would know," he says. "It's a little like looking at your bank account containing millions of dollars but not being able to spend it." If you doubt his good humour about the whole story, he follows that statement with a "lol".

 Howells is always aware of the bitcoin price, but not because of his missing treasure. "I have multiple tickers running with prices in different fiat currencies, but that's not because I’m obsessed with the price because of my lost coins," he said. "I’m still active in the bitcoin space and still involved with bitcoin and cryptocurrencies on a day-to-day basis promoting, tweeting, trading, development, research, learning." His interests now lie in Bitcoin Cash, the result of a hard fork in August, and he has plenty more to say about the post-fork discussion and the future of digital currencies than he does the lost coins.

 If he had access to his digital fortune, he believes he'd have sold up some of it by now anyway, partially to invest in rival currencies. "Who knows for sure... honestly I probably would have sold 30 per cent or 40 per cent at around $1,000 in 2013 to invest in property and other cryptocurrencies such as Ethereum and kept the rest in bitcoin," he says. "I know for sure I would not have sold them all because I believe the bitcoin price will be much higher than $10,000 long term. Even $100,000 is a conservative figure." If that ever happens, his missing bitcoin will be worth $750m – which may well be enough to get Newport Council's attention. |||||


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– A woman on a Norwegian Cruise Line ship got way more exposure to the ocean than she intended, but lived to tell the tale. The 46-year-old British passenger fell off the back of the Norwegian Star ship about 60 miles off the coast of Croatia around midnight Saturday, reports the Guardian. The woman, identified only as Kay, managed to stay afloat for 10 hours in the Adriatic Sea, long enough to be rescued by a Croatian cruise ship that scrambled into action upon getting a coast guard alert, per Sky News. “I am very lucky to be alive," the smiling woman told a Croatian news channel before leaving in an ambulance. "These wonderful guys rescued me." The woman said she "was sitting at the back of the deck," but it's not clear yet exactly how she fell in. She was listed in stable condition and expected to be fine. Norwegian has launched an investigation into the incident. The rescue comes just weeks after a man fell off a different ship operated by Norwegian Cruise Line, and he managed to survive nearly a full day in the water before being rescued.

A British woman who fell from a cruise ship sang to stay alive while she spent 10 hours in the Adriatic Sea, her rescuers said.

 The passenger, named as Kay Longstaff, was taken to hospital in the city of Pula and said she feels "very lucky" to have been rescued.

 She fell from an aft deck of the Norwegian Star cruise ship about 60 miles (95km) off Croatia's coast late on Saturday night.

 A Croatian rescue ship was scrambled and found her swimming not far from where Ms Longstaff was believed to have fallen.

 Image: She told how she spent 10 hours in the sea after falling off the back of the ship. Pic: MORH/Coast Guard

 "Luckily for her we saw her immediately because she raised and waved her hands when she saw us," said the vessel's captain Lovro Oreskovic.

 Mr Oreskovic added that she told the crew that she practices yoga and sang while floating to stay awake, but was exhausted when she was found.

 "It is a real miracle that she is alive," Mr Oreskovic said. "On the cruiser ship they thought she is not. It's obvious that she's very fit."

 Image: Kay Longstaff said she felt lucky to have survived

 The 46-year-old, understood to be from Brighton, gave an interview to the Croatia news service HRT saying she felt "very lucky" to have survived.

 "I was in the water for 10 hours, so these wonderful guys rescued me," she said.

 "I am very lucky to be alive. I was sitting at the back of the deck."

 Mr Oreskovic said she fell from the back of the Norwegian Star cruise ship that was sailing towards Venice, Italy, shortly before midnight on Sunday.

 The ship launched a search mission in the area of her fall, but could not find her.

 Image: She used to work as an air steward

 She was eventually rescued 10 hours later by the Croatian coast guard and taken to a hospital for a 24-hour examination.

 Hospital director Irena Hristic said Ms Longstaff has suffered stress but was in good health overall.

 "The woman looks young, healthy and is a sports person," Ms Hristic said. "She said she swam all the time and was conscious."

 David Radas, a spokesman at Croatia's ministry of maritime affairs, said that by checking CCTV, rescuers knew the exact moment she fell in the water.

 Image: Kay Longstaff leaves a rescue ship after being saved from the water

 "Because they knew the time, they were able to know the exact position of the ship," he told The Sun.

 A Norwegian Cruise Line spokesperson said: "In the morning of 19 August, a guest went overboard as Norwegian Star made her way to Venice.

 "The Coast Guard was notified and a search and rescue operation ensued.

 "We are pleased to advise that the guest was found alive, is currently in stable condition, and has been taken ashore in Croatia for further treatment.

 "We are very happy that the individual, who is a UK resident, is now safe and will soon be reunited with friends and family."

 Image: Ms Longstaff fell from the Norwegian Star cruise ship. Pic: Norwegian Cruise Line

 The circumstances of the incident are being investigated and the British embassy in Croatia has been informed.

 Dolores Brenko Skerjanc of the Croatian port authority said that the Adriatic Sea is warm in the summer and could have contributed to Ms Longstaff's survival.

 "She spent a lot of time in the water, but the sea is now quite warm and the chances for survival are better," he told state broadcaster HRT. ||||| Woman taken to hospital in Pula, Croatia, after being found in sea

 A British woman has been rescued after spending 10 hours in the Adriatic Sea at night, having fallen from a cruise ship, according to Croatia’s coastguard.

 The 46-year-old, who gave her name as Kay to local media and was later named Kay Longstaff in UK reports, was taken to hospital in Pula, Croatia, and is understood to be out of danger.

 It is understood she fell from the Norwegian Star cruise ship about 60 miles (100km) off Croatia’s coast shortly before midnight on Saturday as the vessel was making its way from the port of Vergarola to Venice in Italy.

 Kay Longstaff. Photograph: Kay Longstaff/Facebook

 The liner raised the alarm and was joined by coastguard and civilian vessels, plus a PC-9 aircraft, at about 6.30am on Sunday. The woman was spotted at 9.40am and reached by a rescue swimmer from a patrol boat minutes later, Croatian media reported, saying she was about 1.3km away from the spot where she fell in.

 The rescued passenger told the Croatian news channel HRT: “I am very lucky to be alive. ... I fell off the back of the Norwegian Star and I was in the water for 10 hours, so these wonderful guys rescued me.

 “I was sitting at the back of the deck and, yeah ... it was bad,” she said before being taken into an ambulance.

 An unnamed rescuer told the Sun: “She said the fact that she practises yoga helped her as she was fit. And she said she was singing to not feel cold in the sea overnight.”

 David Radas, a spokesman for the Croatian ministry of maritime affairs, said that by checking CCTV rescuers knew the exact moment Longstaff fell in the water. “Because they knew the time, they were able to know the exact position of the ship,” he told the Sun.

 The rescue ship’s captain, Lovro Orešković, said the woman was exhausted, adding: “We were extremely happy for saving a human life.”

 Facebook Twitter Pinterest Longstaff after her rescue. Photograph: MORH/Coast guard

 A Norwegian Cruise Line spokesperson said: “On the morning of 19 August a guest went overboard as Norwegian Star made her way to Venice. The coastguard was notified and a search and rescue operation ensued.

 “We are pleased to advise that the guest was found alive, is currently in stable condition and has been taken ashore in Croatia for further treatment. We are very happy that the individual, who is a UK resident, is now safe and will soon be reunited with friends and family.”

 The circumstances of the incident are being investigated and the British embassy in Croatia has been informed.

 Facebook Twitter Pinterest British woman being rescued from the sea. Photograph: MORH/Coast guard

 It comes weeks after a cruise ship worker fell overboard while travelling on the Norwegian Getaway – also run by Norwegian Cruise Line – in the Gulf of Mexico. The 33-year-old man, believed to be from the Philippines, was rescued 22 hours later after being found 26 miles (42km) outside the coastguard search zone in July.

 A search was called off in May after an 80-year-old Australian man fell off the Sun Princess cruise ship while journeying from Indonesia to Malaysia. |||||


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Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption "A long life can pass by many milestones - my own is no exception"

 The Queen has thanked well-wishers at home and overseas for their "touching messages of kindness" as she becomes Britain's longest-reigning monarch.

 Speaking in the Scottish Borders, the 89-year-old monarch said the title was "not one to which I have ever aspired".

 At 17:30 BST she had reigned for 23,226 days, 16 hours and approximately 30 minutes - surpassing the reign of her great-great-grandmother Queen Victoria.

 David Cameron said the service the Queen had given was "truly humbling".

 Dressed in turquoise with her trusty black handbag at her side, the Queen spoke briefly to the gathered crowds earlier.

 "Inevitably a long life can pass by many milestones - my own is no exception - but I thank you all and the many others at home and overseas for your touching messages of great kindness," she said.

 In the day's main events:

 The Queen and Prince Philip travelled by steam train from Edinburgh to Tweedbank, where she formally opened the new £294m Scottish Borders Railway

 They were accompanied by Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who praised the Queen's "dedication, wisdom and exemplary sense of public service"

 In London, a flotilla of historic vessels, leisure cruisers and passenger boats took part in a procession along the Thames and HMS Belfast sounded a four-gun salute

 The exact moment the Queen became the longest-reigning sovereign is unknown. Her father, George VI, passed away in the early hours of 6 February 1952, but his time of death is not known.

 Her Majesty's Milestone

 Image copyright Buckingham Palace Image caption Newly released official photographs show the Queen with her official red box, containing the day's policy papers, cabinet documents, Foreign Office papers and other letters

 Business in the Commons was postponed for half an hour so that MPs, led by Mr Cameron, could pay tribute to the Queen.

 The prime minster said she had been a "rock of stability" in an era when so much had changed, and her reign had been the "golden thread running through three post-war generations".

 He said it was "typical of the Queen's selfless sense of service" that she thought today should be a normal day.

 Acting Labour leader Harriet Harman said it was "no exaggeration" to say the Queen was "admired by billions of people all around the world".

 Ministers are to present the Queen with a bound copy of cabinet papers from the meeting in 1952 when Sir Winston Churchill's government approved the content of her first Queen's Speech.

 In the House of Lords, leader Baroness Stowell said the Queen had served the country with "unerring grace, dignity and decency", adding: "And long may she continue to do so".

 Image copyright Reuters

 Analysis: BBC royal correspondent Peter Hunt

 There have been glowing tributes and much talk about the significance of this moment. No such words were uttered by the subject of all the attention.

 She undertook a run-of-the-mill engagement on a far from run-of-the-mill day. And in her brief remarks - her lengthy reign hasn't lessened her aversion to making speeches - she displayed some classic British understatement.

 Overtaking her great-great-grandmother wasn't something she'd ever aspired to, she said. She was simply the beneficiary of a long life.

 In Scotland - and indeed in other parts of the United Kingdom - that life and her reign have been celebrated very publicly.

 Privately, later, the Queen will mark the moment she enters the record books. Prince Philip will be with her - her husband of 67 years has been the one constant in a reign of sometimes dizzying change.

 Image copyright PA Image caption In London, a flotilla of vessels, including Havengore and Gloriana, took part in a procession along the Thames

 Image copyright PA Image caption Meanwhile, in Edinburgh, the Royal Party were welcomed by a traditional pipe band

 Image copyright AFP Image caption The Queen and the Duke stopped off at Newtongrange station where she unveiled a plaque

 Image copyright PA Image caption Children from Busy Bees Nursery turned out to see the Queen in Tweedbank

 Buckingham Palace has released two official photographs to mark the occasion, taken by Mary McCartney in the Queen's private audience room.

 This is where she holds weekly audiences with prime ministers of the day, and receives visiting heads of state and government.

 The Queen is taking her traditional summer break at this time of year at her private Scottish home, Balmoral.

 The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are in Scotland on holiday and are expected to have dinner with the Queen at Balmoral later.

 Queens of the modern age

 Image copyright Getty Images Image caption Elizabeth II has reigned for 63 years and seven months, beating Queen Victoria's record

 Victoria became queen at 18, while Elizabeth was 25

 Elizabeth II rides in the same coach as Victoria did for the annual State Opening of Parliament

 Both queens were shot at by lone gunmen while out riding near Buckingham Palace

 Elizabeth loves the private royal estate at Balmoral, which was bought by Victoria

 Victoria ruled over an empire of 400 million people. Elizabeth is head of state for 138 million people

 Elizabeth and Victoria in numbers

 Elizabeth II: Britain's Diamond Queen

 Woman who redefined the monarchy

 Queen Victoria became queen at the age of 18 and ruled for 63 years, seven months and two days.

 Queen Elizabeth's reign has included 12 prime ministers, two more than served under Victoria.

 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Duke of York: "From her perspective it is business as usual"

 One of those prime ministers, Conservative Sir John Major, rejected any suggestion the Queen had been too passive as head of state: "The monarchy wouldn't be as popular if they were part of politics - they're above and beyond it.

 "But when the Queen meets her prime minister she has the opportunity to question, to ask, to counsel. Nobody knows and no prime minister is going to tell you exactly what happens at those meetings. So those who say she's been too passive, how can they possibly know?"

 'Genuinely exceptional'

 The Queen is Head of the Commonwealth and sovereign of 15 Commonwealth realms in addition to the UK, and the organisation's Secretary-General, Kamalesh Sharma, sent his congratulations.

 "As a symbol of continuity during decades of unprecedented change, and by drawing our people together in their rich diversity, Her Majesty has embodied all that is best in the Commonwealth," he said.

 "With vision and dedication her example has encouraged successive generations of leaders and citizens to embrace the promise of the future."

 Media playback is unsupported on your device Media caption Graham Smith: "I don't think that keeping a job for life, for life, is something to get excited about"

 Anti-monarchist group Republic said the Queen's long reign was a reason for reform not celebration.

 Chief executive Graham Smith said: "It is now time for the country to look to the future and to choose a successor through free and fair elections, someone who can genuinely represent the nation." ||||| On Sept. 23, 1896, Queen Victoria marked a momentous day in her journal: “Today is the day on which I have reigned longer by a day than any English sovereign.” Churches rang their bells and bonfires were lit on the hills of Balmoral, where Victoria was living when she overtook her grandfather, King George III, who had reigned for 59 years, 96 days.

 In September, her great-great-granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II, will surpass Victoria as the longest-reigning British monarch in history. Yet, until recently, no one could decide on when exactly Her Majesty would make history. Dates ranging from Sept. 9 to Sept. 11 were posited. The calculations themselves give different results, depending on whether days alone are counted, or years and days, or years, months and days.

 When Martin Willis, a professor of Victorian literature at the University of Westminster in London put his own extensive calculations online—he went for Sept. 10—he was stunned to realize his post was being read, and commented on, by people around the world. In late November, he got an email out of the blue from Buckingham Palace. They’d seen his work and were emailing to notify him that the Royal Archives had done its own more exhaustive investigation, using the number of days and, yes, hours for both queens.

 When contacted by Maclean’s, the palace confirmed the information given Willis. Victoria’s reign lasted 23,226 days, 16 hours and 23 minutes. Elizabeth II is expected to pass that record on Sept. 9, 2015, at around 5:30 p.m., local time in Britain. As Willis says, “They’ve got first dibs on this. I’m quite willing to accept that.”

 Like her predecessor, Elizabeth II is expected to be at Balmoral. Victoria didn’t want Empire-wide celebrations to mark the event. The current monarch seems to agree. (As a palace official noted, her reign started with the death of her beloved father, King George VI.) The event is important and unprecedented; just don’t expect a big party. |||||

– Queen Elizabeth II is now the longest-tenured monarch in British history, surpassing her great-great-grandmother Victoria's 23,226 days, 16 hours, and 23 minutes as queen sometime around 5:30pm local time, reports the BBC. The time is approximate because no one is actually sure when regular Elizabeth became Queen Elizabeth. There are no gaps between British monarchs, so Elizabeth became queen as soon as her father King George VI died. However, he died in his sleep, and no one is quite sure exactly when he passed, explains Time. Maclean's reports Britain rang church bells and lit bonfires to celebrate Queen Victoria's record-setting reign, but Elizabeth's day is being celebrated in more low-key fashion. "The event is important and unprecedented; just don't expect a big party," Maclean's states. Still, a flotilla of boats on the Thames was marking the occasion, and crowds cheered the queen when she appeared in public.


Article:

In a setback to Johnson & Johnson, a Philadelphia jury decided the health care giant must pay $2.5 million in damages for failing to warn that its Risperdal antipsychotic could cause gynecomastia, which is abnormal development of breasts in males. The lawsuit was brought by the family of an autistic boy who took the drug in 2002 and later developed size 46 DD breasts, according to a lawyer for the family.

 The case has drawn attention for a few reasons. For one, this was the first lawsuit claiming J&J hid the risks of gynecomastia to go to trial after a handful of cases were settled. The trial also served as a reminder that J&J paid $2.2 billion two years ago to resolve criminal and civil allegations of illegally marketing Risperdal to children and the elderly. Moreover, former FDA commissioner David Kessler served as a paid expert witness for the family and testified that J&J knew about the risks. ||||| Gynecomastia, enlargement of breast tissue in males, was an adverse effect of using the antipsychotic drug Risperdal, OKd for schizophrenic adults in 1993.

 AN ALABAMA man who grew enormous breasts after taking an antipsychotic drug as a boy was awarded $2.5 million in damages in a Philadelphia court yesterday against the Johnson & Johnson subsidiary that makes the pill. A Common Pleas jury concluded that Austin Pledger, now 20, "was not adequately warned" that he would grow size 46DD breasts as a side effect of using Risperdal, produced by Janssen Pharmaceuticals, according to his lawyer, Thomas Kline. "This trial is important publicly," Kline told the Daily News yesterday, "because it provided for the first time a public window into the real risks of this drug." A spokeswoman for Janssen, located in Titusville, N.J., said the firm is "disappointed" and "believes this verdict should be overturned," claiming that Risperdal's side effects were clearly communicated to Pledger, his family and the prescribing doctor.

 Pledger, a native of Thorsby, Ala., was first prescribed the drug in 2002 by his family physician, Kline said.

 At the time, Risperdal was not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use in children - Pledger, who has autism, was 8 years old when the prescription was written - and its label reported that the risk of gynecomastia, a condition that causes men to grow female breasts, was low, according to Kline.

 However, in 2006, the FDA approved Risperdal's use as a schizophrenic aid for children and issued new label information that said the drug contained high levels of prolactin, a hormone that promotes breast growth, Kline said.

 By that time, Pledger already had begun to develop breasts. To this day, Pledger has female-like breasts that can only be removed through a mastectomy, Kline said.

 Robyn Reed Frenze, Janssen's director of product communication, said that the firm rejects these claims and that the FDA-approved label "properly warned" the boy's family "of the medication's potential side effects."

 She added that Pledger's "quality of life was significantly improved during the time he was taking Risperdal."

 The jurors apparently disagreed.

 Pledger's case is the first of more than 1,200 filed in Philly over Risperdal to be settled, according to Kline.

 On Twitter: @Vellastrations ||||| Alabama Man Awarded $2.5 Million in Damages After a Drug Allegedly Gave Him Breasts

 A Philadelphia Common Pleas jury Tuesday awarded $2.5 million in damages to an Alabama man with autism who took the anti-psychotic drug Risperdal as a teen and grew size 46DD breasts, according to Thomas Kline , the man's attorney."This trial is important publicly because it provided for the first time a window into the real risks of the drug," Kline told the Philadelphia Daily News It is the first of thousands of such cases nationwide – 1,200 are pending in the Philadelphia court alone – to get a jury verdict, Kline tells PEOPLE.His client, Austin Pledger, now 20, of Thorsby, Alabama, was ruled incapacitated by the courts, so his mother, Benita Pledger, testified about the impact instead, he says."The testimony of his mother before the jury is he would smash them on a table," he says. "And that when he gets out of the shower he covers himself in a towel before he looks at himself in a mirror."A spokeswoman for the drug's manufacturer, Janssen, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, sent PEOPLE a news release saying the company is "disappointed" in the decision and is considering all its options, including appeals."We firmly believe this verdict should be overturned," the statement said. "Risperdal has improved the lives of countless children and adults throughout the world."Furthermore, the company says the drug has labels that detail the side effects, and Pledger's physician was aware of them as well.But Kline says Pledger's mother did not know about the risks when he began taking it in 2002 at age 8 to deal with the irritability associated with autism. The drug was not approved for children and adolescents until late 2006."She had no idea that it was associated with the growing of female breasts," he says. "Austin is among the most vulnerable and precious in our world."Austin's doctor, Jay Mathisen, testified he was unaware gynecomastia, the name of the condition, could result from use of the drug, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer Austin can only get rid of his breasts with a mastectomy, Kline says, which he has not yet done."He has only now been through his teenage years," he says. "These decisions are difficult and even more so when the child is frail, like Austin, so his mom has been very slow and patient."Meanwhile, Austin is "most proud of his facial hair" because he wants to be like his dad, Kline says, though every day he sees "that he is like his mom." |||||
What is a summary?

– A 20-year-old autistic man won a $2.5 million lawsuit against a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson Tuesday after his family and doctor say he developed 46DD breasts after taking an antipsychotic drug, the Philadelphia Daily News reports. Austin Pledger, from Thorsby, Ala., was first prescribed Risperdal, manufactured by Janssen Pharmaceuticals, in 2002 when he was 8; at the time, the drug wasn't FDA-approved for kids, and its label said risk was "low" for gynecomastia (the condition in which men's breasts grow larger), Thomas Kline, one of Pledger's attorneys, tells the Daily News. But when the FDA gave the green light in 2006 for the drug to be used as a schizophrenic aid for kids, new labels said the drug contained high levels of the hormone prolactin, which spurs breast growth, Kline adds. Pledger had started growing breasts by then—and now, the only way he can get rid of them is through a mastectomy, Kline says. A Janssen spokeswoman sent a statement to People noting the company is "disappointed" in the decision and that the drug's side effects were clearly spelled out for Pledger's family and prescribing physician. The spokeswoman also argued that Pledger's "quality of life was significantly improved during the time he was taking Risperdal," per the Daily News. But Stephen Sheller, another Pledger attorney, says "there was grave mistreatment of children" and that Johnson & Johnson "hid data from the FDA, prescribing doctors, and parents. Documents showed they knew there was much [a] higher percentage of children getting gynecomastia than they admitted," reports the Wall Street Journal. Still waiting to be settled in the Philly court system: more than 1,200 other cases against Risperdal, says Kline. (Another strange medical lawsuit: This man says his insurer is responsible for ruining his penis.)


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Tweet with a location

 You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| NEW YORK (Reuters) - A majority of Americans say Democrat Hillary Clinton won Monday night’s presidential debate, but her performance doesn’t appear to have immediately boosted her support among likely voters, according to a Reuters/Ipsos national tracking poll released on Wednesday.

 The online poll, which gathered responses from more than 2,000 people on Tuesday, found 56 percent of American adults felt that Clinton did a better job than Trump in the first of their three televised debates, compared with 26 percent who felt that Trump did better.

 Of those who thought Clinton emerged the victor, 85 percent were Democrats and 22 percent were Republicans.

 U.S. presidential debates have historically been seen as a crucial test of candidates’ poise and policies. Monday’s was watched by a record 84 million viewers and was billed as a rare prime-time opportunity for two unpopular candidates to convince millions of undecided voters to back them.

 Afterward, both candidates claimed victory.

 ““Every single online poll had me winning,” Trump said at a campaign stop in Council Bluffs, Iowa on Wednesday. “You sit back and you hear how well she did in the debate. I don’t think she did well at all.”

 Clinton campaign spokesman Jesse Ferguson said the Democrat clearly won the debate as Trump “was unprepared, became unhinged and was incoherent throughout.”

 Among those who are expected to take part in the Nov. 8 general election, 34 percent said they felt that the debate changed their view of Clinton in a positive way, compared with 19 percent who said the same of Trump.

 DELAYED REACTION

 Some 31 percent of likely voters said the debate improved Clinton’s chances of winning the White House, while 16 percent said the debate benefited Trump.

 Even so, Clinton’s performance seemed to have little impact on her support among America’s likely voters. The poll showed 42 percent supported Clinton while 38 percent supported Trump. Over the past few weeks Clinton has maintained a lead of between 4 and 6 points over Trump.

 Narrowing the focus to likely voters who watched the debate, Clinton led Trump 44 percent to 39 percent.

 One possible reason for the lack of movement in her support is that it usually takes several days to measure the full impact of a single event, like a debate, said Donald Green, a political scientist at Columbia University.

 The Reuters/Ipsos poll is conducted every day in English in all 50 states. Monday’s sample of 2,036 American adults included 1,336 people who were considered to be likely voters from their voting record, registration status and stated intention to vote in the election. Among those likely voters, 1,026 said they watched some portion of the debate on live TV, online or in media clips that were circulated after the debate.

 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speaks as Democratic U.S. presidential nominee Hillary Clinton listens during their first presidential debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York, September 26, 2016. REUTERS/Pool

 The poll has a credibility interval, a measure of accuracy, of 3 percentage points for the entire sample and the sample of likely voters. It has a credibility interval of 4 percentage points for the likely voters who watched the debate.

 National opinion polls have differed this year in how they measure support for Clinton and Trump. Some polls, like Reuters/Ipsos, try to include only likely voters, while others include all registered voters. The Reuters/Ipsos tracking poll gathers responses every day and reports results twice a week, so it often detects trends in sentiment before most other polls.

 Polling aggregators, which calculate averages of major polls, have shown that Clinton’s lead over Trump has been shrinking this month to about 2 percentage points. |||||

– Donald Trump was pretty pleased with his performance against Hillary Clinton at Monday's debate, even though scientific polls—not the easily manipulated online polls that Trump is citing—show most Americans pick Clinton as the clear victor. Even some of his own campaign advisers don't feel he was on point enough during the head-to-head, though they're framing it as "missed opportunities" rather than total failure. And so the strategy for Oct. 9's debate is reportedly getting an overhaul, with more role-playing practice, facts study, and even rehearsing how to move around the stage for the town-hall-style event, per the New York Times. What these advisers, who spoke anonymously to the paper, are worried about, however, is whether Trump will agree to this prep. Complicating things: Some say he actually was drilled on how to combat Clinton on certain issues and that he just chose not to. Others point the finger at Trump's extremely busy schedule in the days before the debate and too many people (up to a dozen, some with not much political acumen) giving him conflicting suggestions. Sources say his debate training was "unconventional," with Trump unable to concentrate during more traditional sessions and preferring to simply dish with advisers rather than have mock debates. Trump himself told Fox News he found it hard to segue into some of those challenges against Clinton on the debate stage, such as the subject of Benghazi. Trump's pulling back—he stopped attacking Clinton and even grew "subdued" as the debate proceeded—has got to change the next time around, frustrated aides say. Instead, he has to set Clinton's vulnerabilities in his sights and stick to his plan for the whole night. "It clearly looked like he ran out of gas after 30 minutes [in the New York debate], and that came through loud and clear," a senior political strategist tells the Times.


The timing was so perfect it felt like a comedy skit.

 Jason Rudge, an editor with the Weather Channel, set up on Monday to film the planned destruction of the Georgia Dome, the former home of the Atlanta Falcons and where two Super Bowls were once played. Atlanta now has a new, modern center for its sports: the $1.6 billion Mercedes-Benz Stadium erected next door to the old dome.

 After finding what seemed like the perfect spot across the street from the stadium, he live-streamed the crowd gathering for the big moment for 40 minutes.

 The dome’s destruction promised to be a powerful sight. The explosives wired inside would go off for 12 seconds. Three seconds after that, the entire entire 71,250-seat stadium would be on the ground as a pile of smoking rubble, according to the Associated Press.

 A man counted down to the implosion on a loud speaker to prepare the crowds.

 Five. Four. Three. Two. One.

 The moment finally arrived. A small explosion ripped through the dome’s roof and began felling the 25-year-old stadium. Rudge filmed a puff of black smoke shooting out of the building, as a tiny bit of rubble cascaded down its side.

 That’s when things when south for the Weather Channel.

 A public bus glided in front of the camera, while a symphony of explosions filled the air.

 “No bus, get out of the way,” Rudge shouted in an exasperated tone. “Bus!”

 The bus did not acquiesce. Instead, it stopped right in front of the camera, blocking most of the view.

 Rudge’s cries, now laden with expletives, grew louder.

 “Get of the way, bus,” he angrily implored. “Are you …”

 The bus did still not move. The dome crumbled to an enormous pile of ash. Rudge screamed in what sounded like anguish.

 Then, as quickly as it arrived, the bus glided off the moment the spectacle ended.

 Showing a sense of humor, the Weather Channel posted the video to YouTube — with the profanity bleeped out — and titled it “Bus Photobombs The Weather Channel’s Stream of Georgia Dome Implosion.”

 A Weather Channel editor even joked about the moment on Twitter, posting a gif of the bus-blocked implosion with a crying-laughing emoji and the word “noooo.”

 TFW you stream the #GAdome being demolished for 40 minutes and a bus stops in front of the camera at the exact moment it implodes 😂 nooooo pic.twitter.com/lUL9tqyCST — James Crugnale (@jamescrugnale) November 20, 2017

 And naturally, quicker than a bus can block a camera, the video became a meme.

 Sports Illustrated tweeted a film clip titled, “Today’s Georgia Dome implosion isn’t the first time the MARTA bus had terrible timing,” in which video of the bus gliding in front of cameras was spliced with shots of various sports.

 In one, for example, the bus pulls up just as a batter swings at a pitch. In another, the bus parks just in time to block a nail-biting shot in basketball.

 Today's Georgia Dome implosion isn't the first time the MARTA bus had terrible timing pic.twitter.com/pNSyY5fPQf — Sports Illustrated (@SInow) November 21, 2017

 Other organizations got in on the action. The Atlanta Hawks posted it final score on Twitter — with the bus edited in to obscure it.

 Final from San Antonio: pic.twitter.com/WaGJIU1Ins — Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) November 21, 2017

 It even inspired a bit of lyricism. Slate’s Matthew Dessem penned a six-stanza poem about the moment. Its best verse was arguably the forth, which read:

 Blocked off the Dome from view,

 Blocked as the charges blew,

 Angering the camera crew,

 Ruining their TV show,

 Timely arriver.

 Plunged in the stadium-smoke,

 Right through the frame he broke;

 Pulled off a masterstroke,

 One four four fiver.

 Steered by America’s

 Favorite bus driver.

 In the end, neither the Weather Channel nor Rudge caught what they wanted to on film. But, as one Twitter user opined, “Years from now, this will still be what today will be remembered for.”

 Correction: An earlier version of this post stated that James Crugnale was the cameraman filming the implosion. He is an editor for the network, but Jason Rudge was the cameraman.

 More from Morning Mix:

 ‘How’d he help?’ LaVar Ball tells CNN he still won’t thank President Trump.

 Tenn. judge reprimanded for offering reduced jail time in exchange for sterilization

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What is a one-paragraph summary of the above article?

– "I am CRYING." That was just one online reaction to an ill-fated photo shoot that was meant to capture a planned stadium implosion. Photographers gathered near the Georgia Dome in downtown Atlanta on Monday, waiting to snap a shot of the controlled destruction of the 71,000-seat structure, and among them was the Weather Channel's James Crugnale, who arrived nearly an hour ahead of time to nab his "perfect" vantage point across the street and livestream the gathering crowd, per the Washington Post. Except that it was also the perfect pull-over spot for a city bus, which pulled up right in front of Crugnale at the exact moment black smoke started to spew from the top of the dome to mark the beginning of the implosion. "Get out of the way, bus! What the f---?!" an incredulous Crugnale can be heard saying, in between frustrated yells, in the now-viral video of his experience. The bus lingered for less than 20 seconds, but by the time it pulled away, the dome had already disappeared into a massive cloud of white dust. "TFW you stream the #GAdome being demolished for 40 minutes and a bus stops in front of the camera at the exact moment it implodes," Crugnale lamented on Twitter.


News article:

Image copyright AFP Image caption Robert Mugabe's eyes are sensitive to bright lights, his spokesman said

 Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe is not asleep when he closes his eyes for long periods during meetings but is resting his eyes, his spokesman says.

 "The president cannot suffer bright lights," George Charamba was quoted as saying by the state-run Herald newspaper.

 Mr Mugabe, 93, has been seen apparently sleeping at several events, leading to speculation about his fitness.

 He intends to stand in presidential elections next year.

 The president is currently receiving specialised medical treatment for his eyes in Singapore.

 Africa Live: More on this and other stories

 Mr Mugabe most recently appeared to fall asleep during a discussion panel about "fragile states" at a World Economic Forum meeting in South Africa earlier this month.

 There he stated that Zimbabwe was 'one of the most developed countries in Africa'

 "I feel like a failure when there is this reading that the president is sleeping in conferences - no," Mr Charamba said.

 He then compared Mr Mugabe to the anti-apartheid icon Nelson Mandela, whose eyes were affected by years of working in a limestone quarry while imprisoned on Robben Island.

 "You were not allowed to even use flashes whenever he was in the room," Mr Charamba said. ||||| The 93-year-old president of Zimbabwe is having eye problems. So says his spokesman, George Charamba, who tells local media that he feels “very, very pained” when he hears reports that Robert Mugabe, the world’s oldest head of state, is falling asleep during conferences.

 “At 93, there is something that happens to the eyes and the president cannot suffer bright lights If you look at his poise, he looks down, avoids direct lighting,” Charamba reportedly told CapiTalk, a radio station in Harare, in an interview about Mugabe’s recent medical trip to Singapore.

 According to the state-owned daily newspaper The Herald, the spokesman compared Mugabe’s condition to eye troubles suffered by Nelson Mandela. The former South African president was reported to have been highly sensitive to flashlight. “In the case of Mandela, if you remember, you were not allowed to even use flashes whenever he was in the room,” Charamba said. “That is what happens at 93, and Mandela, I do not think lived as long as the president did. Let us disabuse ourselves.” Mandela died in 2013 at the age of 95.

 In any case, the photographic evidence that shows Mugabe sleeping through conferences in Africa and across the world are nothing new. Some date back more than a decade, to when Mugabe would have been in his early 80s.

 Here he is closing his eyes during the Africa Union meeting in Sirte, Libya, in July 2005.

 At the Africa Union meeting in Sirte, Libya, in July 2005. (Reuters/Radu Sigheti)

 Later that year, he looked to be napping during the opening ceremony of the Africa-France summit in Bamako, Mali. (To his left is Omar Bongo, then-president of Gabon, who also seems to have had trouble keeping his eyes open during the meeting.)

 Bongo and Mugabe at the Africa-France summit in Bamako, Mali, in December 2005. (Reuters/Luc Gnago)

 Mugabe’s closed eyes continued to be a familiar sight to photographers in subsequent years.

 At a plenary session for the Africa-EU Summit in Tripoli, Libya, in November 2010. (AP Photo/Geert Vanden Wijngaert)

 Mugabe’s recent health trips have been a source of concern in Zimbabwe, which is preparing for elections next year in which Mugabe is expected to run. Critics have questioned Mugabe’s fitness to rule the southern Africa nation, especially at a time when the country’s economy is in free-fall, with Zimbabweans desperate for cash sleeping outside banks. But Mugabe refutes the notion that his country is a fragile state, and refers to Zimbabwe as “one of the most highly developed countries in Africa.”

 Sign up for the Quartz Africa Weekly Brief — the most important and interesting news from across the continent, in your inbox. |||||
What is a shorter version of the above article?

– Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe has become well-known for appearing to sleep through conferences and meetings, but his spokesperson insists the 93-year-old is not actually asleep when he's pictured in repose. "At 93, there is something that happens to the eyes and the president cannot suffer bright lights," the rep explained to a local radio station, per Quartz. "If you look at his poise, he looks down, avoids direct lighting." The aide noted that Nelson Mandela suffered from a similar problem and that photographers were not allowed to use camera flashes around him. Quartz has a series of photographs showing Mugabe "not sleeping" that date back more than a decade. Per the BBC, Mugabe is reportedly getting medical treatment for his eyes in Singapore. (Mugabe's wife says he should still lead the country even after he's dead.)


Pope Francis' fascination with the devil took on remarkable new twists Tuesday, with a well-known exorcist insisting Francis helped "liberate" a Mexican man possessed by four different demons despite the Vatican's insistence that no such papal exorcism took place.

 In this image made from video provided by APTN, Pope Francis lays his hands on the head of a young man on Sunday, May 19, 2013, after celebrating Mass in St. Peter’s Square. The young man heaved deeply... (Associated Press)

 In this image made from video provided by APTN, Pope Francis lays his hands on the head of a young man on Sunday, May 19, 2013, after celebrating Mass in St. Peter’s Square. The young man heaved deeply... (Associated Press)

 The case concerns a 43-year-old husband and father who traveled to Rome from Mexico to attend Francis' Mass on Sunday in St. Peter's Square. At the end of the Mass, Francis blessed several wheelchair-bound faithful as he always does, including a man possessed by the devil, according to the priest who brought him, the Rev. Juan Rivas.

 Francis laid his hands on the man's head and recited a prayer. The man heaved deeply a half-dozen times, shook, then slumped in his wheelchair.

 The images, broadcast worldwide, prompted the television station of the Italian bishops' conference to declare that according to several exorcists, there was "no doubt" that Francis either performed an exorcism or a simpler prayer to free the man from the devil.

 The Vatican was more cautious. In a statement Tuesday, it said Francis "didn't intend to perform any exorcism. But as he often does for the sick or suffering, he simply intended to pray for someone who was suffering who was presented to him."

 The Rev. Gabriele Amorth, a leading exorcist for the diocese of Rome, said he performed a lengthy exorcism of his own on the man Tuesday morning and ascertained he was possessed by four separate demons. The case was related to the legalization of abortion in Mexico City, he said.

 Amorth told RAI state radio that even a short prayer, without the full rite of exorcism being performed, is in itself a type of exorcism.

 "That was a true exorcism," he said of Francis' prayer. "Exorcisms aren't just done according to the rules of the ritual."

 Rivas took the Vatican line, saying it was no exorcism but that Francis merely said a prayer to free the man from the devil.

 "Since no one heard what he said, including me who was right there, you can say he did a prayer for liberation but nothing more," Rivas wrote on his Facebook page, which was confirmed by his religious order, the Legionaries of Christ.

 Fueling the speculation that Francis did indeed perform an exorcism is his frequent reference to Satan in his homilies _ as well as an apparent surge in demand for exorcisms among the faithful despite the irreverent treatment the rite often receives from Hollywood.

 Who can forget the green vomit and the spinning head of the possessed girl in the 1973 cult classic "The Exorcist"?

 In his very first homily as pope on March 14, Francis warned cardinals gathered in the Sistine Chapel the day after he was elected that "he who doesn't pray to the Lord prays to the devil."

 He has since mentioned the devil on a handful of occasions, most recently in a May 4 homily when in his morning Mass in the Vatican hotel chapel he spoke of the need for dialogue _ except with Satan.

 "With the prince of this world you can't have dialogue: Let this be clear!" he warned.

 Experts said Francis' frequent invocation of the devil is a reflection both of his Jesuit spirituality and his Latin American roots, as well as a reflection of a Catholic Church weakened by secularization.

 "The devil's influence and presence in the world seems to fluctuate in quantity inversely proportionate to the presence of Christian faith," said the Rev. Robert Gahl, a moral theologian at Rome's Pontifical Holy Cross University. "So, one would expect an upswing in his malicious activity in the wake of de-Christianization and secularization" in the world and a surge in things like drug use, pornography and superstition.

 In recent years, Rome's pontifical universities have hosted several courses for would-be exorcists on the rite, updated in 1998 and contained in a little red leather-bound booklet. The rite is relatively brief, consisting of blessings with holy water, prayers and an interrogation of the devil in which the exorcist demands to know the devil's name, how many are present and when they will leave the victim.

 Only a priest authorized by a bishop can perform an exorcism, and canon law specifies that the exorcist must be "endowed with piety, knowledge, prudence and integrity of life."

 While belief in the devil is consistent with church teaching, the Holy See does urge prudence, particularly to ensure that the victim isn't merely psychologically ill.

 The Rev. Giulio Maspero, a Rome-based systematic theologian who has witnessed or participated in more than a dozen exorcisms, says he's fairly certain that Francis' prayer on Sunday was either a full-fledged exorcism or a more simple prayer to "liberate" the young man from demonic possession.

 He noted that the placement of the pope's hands on the man's head was the "typical position" for an exorcist to use.

 "When you witness something like that _ for me it was shocking _ I could feel the power of prayer," he said in a phone interview, speaking of his own previous experiences.

 The Vatican spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, sought to temper speculation that what occurred was a full-fledged exorcism. While he didn't deny it outright _ he said Francis hadn't "intended" to perform one _ he stressed that the intention of the person praying is quite important.

 Late Tuesday, the director of TV2000, the television of the Italian bishops' conference, went on the air to apologize for the earlier report.

 "I don't want to attribute to him a gesture that he didn't intend to perform," said the director, Dino Boffo.

 That said, Francis' actions and attitude toward the devil are not new: As archbishop of Buenos Aires, the former Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio frequently spoke about the devil in our midst.

 In the book "Heaven and Earth," Bergoglio devoted the second chapter to "The Devil" and said in no uncertain terms that he believes in the devil and that Satan's fruits are "destruction, division, hatred and calumny."

 "Perhaps its greatest success in these times has been to make us think that it doesn't exist, that everything can be traced to a purely human plan," he wrote.

 Italian newspapers noted that the late Pope John Paul II performed an exorcism in 1982 _ near the same spot where Francis prayed over the young disabled man Sunday.

 _____

 Follow Nicole Winfield at http://www.twitter.com/nwinfield ||||| Image copyright AP Image caption The young man opened his mouth as the Pope laid his hands on his head, then convulsed and slumped in his wheelchair

 The Vatican has denied claims that Pope Francis performed an exorcism, after TV images showed a man apparently reacting to him putting his hands on his head.

 The encounter - during Sunday Mass - was shown on a TV channel owned by the Italian bishops' conference.

 The station quoted exorcists as saying there was "no doubt" the Pope had either performed an exorcism or a prayer to free the man from the devil.

 Its director later apologised for "having altered the truth".

 The Pope's spokesman said he "did not intend to perform any exorcism".

 "Rather as he frequently does with the sick or suffering who come his way, he simply intended to pray for a suffering person," said Federico Lombardi in a statement.

 The footage shows a young man, who is in a wheelchair, opening his mouth and either screaming or breathing deeply as the Pope puts his hands on his head and prays for him during the Mass in St Peter's Square.

 The man then convulses and slumps in his chair.

 On Tuesday, the director of the TV station which broadcast the pictures, TV 2000, apologised for the report, saying: "I don't want to attribute to him a gesture that he didn't intend to perform."

 "I apologise for having altered the truth of the facts and for the people who are involved, in particular I apologise to the Holy Father," said Dino Boffo.

 Religious figures in Rome had insisted the act had been an exorcism.

 They included the Vatican's former chief exorcist, Gabriele Amorth, who was quoted by Italian media as saying the act "was an exorcism alright" and that he had since performed his own exorcism on the young man, who he said was called Angelo.

 Exorcism is the ancient practice of driving out demons or evil spirits from a person or place they are thought to possess. It is practised by some Roman Catholics but treated with deep scepticism by others. |||||

Write a summary.

– Pope Francis was merely praying in a video that some claim shows him performing an exorcism on a Mexican pilgrim, the Vatican says. In the video—broadcast on a TV station owned by the Italian Bishops' Conference—the man convulses and then goes limp after the stern-faced pontiff places his hands on his head, the BBC reports. Exorcists say that no matter what the Vatican claims, the pope was clearly expelling the forces of evil from the man. "The Pope is also the Bishop of Rome, and like any bishop he is also an exorcist," says Father Gabriele Amorth, the Vatican's former chief exorcist. "It was a real exorcism," he says, claiming that the pilgrim was possessed by no fewer than four demons. The pope's frequent references to Satan have fueled suspicion that the incident was an exorcism, but a Vatican spokesman says it was at most a "prayer for liberation," the AP notes.


Story highlights A woman in an SUV hits a 300-pound black bear

 Three people in one car pull over to help

 Another car plows into the three good Samaritans, killing them

 A rare car crash involving a black bear and a chain reaction left three people dead and eight injured in Florida, authorities said.

 A woman in an SUV hit the 300-pound black bear in a dark, remote road Sunday night, leaving her stranded at Big Cypress Seminole Reservation in the Everglades.

 A group of three people in a separate car pulled over to help, said Gary Bitner, a spokesman for the Seminole Police Department.

 Once they got out of their vehicle, a third car plowed into the disabled SUV then hit the three good Samaritans, authorities said.

 All three died, Bitner said.

 The three cars had a total of 13 passengers; eight were injured and an additional two were not hurt, including the woman in the SUV.

 "I have never heard of a case of a bear being in a traffic accident," Bitner said. "We have had cases of Florida panthers being involved in car accident, but not a Florida black bear."

 The identities of the victims were not immediately released.

 The bear died when it was struck by the SUV. ||||| Follow CBSMIAMI.COM: Facebook | Twitter

 MIAMI (CBSMiami) – Three people were killed and eight others were hospitalized after a SUV hit and killed a black bear, resulting in a chain reaction crash with two other cars in Florida’s Everglades Sunday evening.

 The first crash happened along Snake Road in Alligator Alley on the Big Cypress Seminole reservation, said Seminole Tribe Spokesman Gary Bitner. Snake Road is near mile marker 49 on Alligator Alley.

 Broward Sheriff’s spokesman Mike Jachles described the first vehicle as a Cadillac SUV, possibly an Escalade. Jachles said there were at least three people in the SUV with injures.

 WATCH MaryAnn Martinez’ report, click here.

 According to Seminole police, a second car stopped to help the passengers inside the SUV. That’s when a third car, a Mercedes, crashed into the second car. The three people from car number two were killed.

 The passengers from the Mercedes have various degrees of injures.

 “There was an 45-year-old man, a 14-year-old son, a daughter, and a grandchild in that third vehicle.” said Jachles.

 Six patients were transported to Broward Health Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale. Two others were taken to Memorial Regional Hospital in Hollywood.

 Of the 13 passengers in all three cars, two walked away uninjured including the driver of the SUV that hit the bear. Jachles said the driver walked away without a scratch, even though the SUV was practically totaled after hitting and killing the black bear.

 The Florida Fish and Wild-life Commission said the Everglades is the natural habitat of black bears.

 RELATED CONTENT: |||||

Write a summary.

– It's not uncommon to spot a black bear roaming the Florida Everglades, but it is uncommon to actually hit one on the road. Three people died last night and eight were injured in a three-car wreck in the Big Cypress Seminole Reservation that began when the first car hit a bear, the Sun-Sentinel reports. The SUV driver's collision with the 300-pound bear set off a chaotic chain reaction. A second car with three people pulled over to help out the SUV passengers—the bear was dead, the SUV was totaled, and passengers were hurt, though the driver herself wasn't injured. That's when a Mercedes smashed into the second car, killing the three good Samaritans who had stopped to help, CBS Miami reports. The Mercedes passengers and at least three of the SUV's passengers suffered various injuries ranging from serious to critical and were brought to two local hospitals by airlift and ambulance. "I have never heard of a case of a bear being in a traffic accident," a Seminole Police Department spokesman tells CNN. "We have had cases of Florida panthers being involved in car accident[s], but not a Florida black bear." One other person wasn't injured in the accident, which involved a total of 13 people and took place close to 7pm on desolate Snake Road. (Another recent tragic crash involved a 16-year-old driving his family to Disney World.)


The thought of having Jewish settler homes demolished on his watch has propelled Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to promise a radical _ some say ludicrous _ way to sidestep a Supreme Court order to raze 30 apartments built illegally in the West Bank.

 Jewish settlers have a last photo taken in their empty house after it was evacuated by movers employed by the Israeli Defense Ministry, in the Ulpana neighborhood in the West bank Jewish settlement of... (Associated Press)

 Jewish settlers and movers employed by the Israeli Defense Ministry carry out belongings from settler's apartment in the Ulpana neighborhood in the West bank Jewish settlement of Beit El, near Ramallah,... (Associated Press)

 Jewish settlers pray in front of their houses in the Ulpana neighborhood in the West bank Jewish settlement of Beit El, near Ramallah, Tuesday, June. 26, 2012. Israel has started on Tuesday to evacuate... (Associated Press)

 Two Jewish settlers watch as movers, not seen, employed by the Israeli Defense Ministry carry out furniture from an apartment in the Ulpana neighborhood in the West Bank Jewish settlement of Bet El, near... (Associated Press)

 Jewish settlers watch as movers employed by the Israeli Defense Ministry carry out belongings from settler's apartment in the Ulpana neighborhood in the West bank Jewish settlement of Beit El, near Ramallah,... (Associated Press)

 After it evacuates settlers from five apartment buildings in the Ulpana outpost this week, the government has promised to slice the structures from their foundations and move them to a West Bank site nearby, where they will be reassembled.

 Construction specialists say transplanting the buildings _ three-story concrete structures faced with stone and topped with red tile roofs _ would squander huge sums of money and be infinitely more complicated than destroying and rebuilding them.

 Netanyahu came up with the plan after the government was ordered to dismantle the outpost. People close to the prime minister say he believes that preserving the homes will ease the pain for the families.

 The Israeli Supreme Court ordered the government earlier this year to destroy Ulpana after determining it was built on privately owned Palestinian land.

 "By the first of July, the plan is to have the buildings vacated and sealed," a government official said this week, speaking on condition of anonymity about a project whose details have not been finalized. "The prime minister said he wanted these buildings relocated, not destroyed."

 The Palestinians claim all of the West Bank, which Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast war, as part of a future state. The Palestinians, along with virtually all of the international community, consider all Israeli settlements to be illegal or illegitimate.

 In Israel, any talk of uprooting settlements, now home to more than 500,000 Israelis, is contentious. The government divides the settlements into two categories _ those it authorized and those it did not. There are more than 100 authorized settlements and another 100 or so unauthorized outposts, some little more than a few trailers on a hilltop and others, like Ulpana, made up of concrete apartment houses.

 Most settlers do not make that distinction, opposing demolition of any Israeli structure in the West Bank.

 The unusual Ulpana arrangement is an attempt by the pro-settler Netanyahu to avert the prospect of destroying a settlement and battling its residents, who started packing their belongings and moving out of the buildings on Tuesday.

 Transplanting the buildings would solve that problem, but at a staggering cost, experts say.

 Specialists familiar with this type of operation say it would require slicing the buildings with huge circular blades, chopping them into smaller pieces, transferring them by crane to massive flatbed trucks and hauling them to their new location, where they would be reassembled like a puzzle. The sawing alone would take a week for each building and cost $125,000 for apiece for the five structures, said one of the specialists, speaking on condition of anonymity because final plans for the project have not yet been set.

 That expense would just be the starter.

 "Sawing is not the problem. The problem is how to put them together again," because the slicing would cut through electrical wires, plumbing, structural rods and other parts of the apartment, forcing a large-scale reconstruction, said Israel David, vice chairman of the Israeli Association of Construction and Infrastructure Engineers.

 "It's absurd," he said, estimating that total costs could go as high as $25 million to relocate 30 apartments that could be rebuilt for $150,000 apiece.

 The technique has been used in Israel before. In 2005, Israel moved five historic homes in the center of Tel Aviv to widen a road.

 Shay Tzadik, a 20-year veteran of the sawing business, said he appreciates the sentiment behind what Netanyahu is trying to do, but thinks it's beside the point.

 "If it was an archaeological site, it would be worth the investment," Tzadik said. "But why do it?"

 ___

 Blake Sobczak contributed reporting from Ulpana. ||||| “This is a black day for us,” said Amir Dana, a father of five, as cranes lifted furniture out of the homes. “This is a moral and legal injustice, but we’re peaceful people. None of us wanted a fight among brothers and a confrontation with police and soldiers.”

 Like the other evacuees, he wore a black T-shirt that said, “Expelled from my home. We’ll be back.”

 The scenes contrasted sharply with previous evictions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip in which settlers put up passive or active resistance. The Ulpana settlers, who are religiously observant, said they complied with the directive of a prominent rabbi at Beit El, Zalman Melamed, who counseled them to avoid a violent confrontation.

 Militant settlers who have violently resisted other evictions were not in evidence at Beit El on Tuesday, although vandals torched a mosque in a Palestinian village this month, leaving behind graffiti promising “war” over the Ulpana evictions. Some families said they would have to be carried out when their turn for evacuation comes later this week.

 Netanyahu, who reluctantly complied with the court order and blocked a bill sponsored by right-wing legislators to retroactively legalize building on private Palestinian land, has promised to construct 300 more homes in Beit El to compensate for the evacuation. He has also pledged to dismantle and relocate the five emptied apartment buildings, rather than raze them.

 That process cannot be completed by July 1, the deadline set by the court for demolishing the buildings, and the government on Tuesday requested an extension until mid-November.

 Michael Sfard, an attorney for the Israeli human rights group Yesh Din who represented the Palestinian landowners, said that despite the evacuation, the government was defying the court ruling, because the buildings would not be removed in time.

 “The government doesn’t think it’s subject to the law,” Sfard said. “They are creating a fait accompli and spitting in the face of the Supreme Court.”

 The Palestinian landowners, from the village of Dura al-Qara, next to Beit El, are unlikely to gain access to their property anytime soon, because the area remains fenced off as part of the settlement. Other homes in the Ulpana neighborhood are built on land not covered by the court decision and will remain in place.

 Banners and graffiti near the evacuated buildings denounced Netanyahu and echoed the slogan of settlers evacuated from the Gaza Strip when Israel withdrew from the territory in 2005: “A Jew does not expel a Jew.” A handmade sign left on the door of an empty apartment said: “The Shimshi family lived here, until it was expelled.”

 Carrying her child as she walked by the buildings, Yiska Fattal said she and other evacuees were worried that their removal might set a precedent for evictions at other settlements.

 “There’s a danger that other homes will be destroyed in the same way; that’s our biggest fear,” she said.

 Two other settler outposts built on private Palestinian land also are slated for removal in the coming weeks under similar court orders.

 Unpacking as workers moved boxes and furniture into her new prefab home, Tehiya Ahituv said the state-funded accommodations were cold comfort. “It’s like someone takes your child and says, ‘You have another one,’ ” she said. “What’s hard is that they’re evacuating part of the Land of Israel.” |||||

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– In stark contrast to earlier evictions, dozens of Jewish settlers ordered to leave their homes in the West Bank yesterday did so peacefully. Israel is in the process of evacuating the Ulpana outpost on the orders of its Supreme Court, which determined that five apartment blocks had been illegally built on private Palestinian land, reports the Washington Post. The Ulpana settlers, who were moved to prefabricated homes on a nearby military outpost, said a prominent rabbi had advised them to avoid confrontation with the military. "This is not a happy day for Israel," one departing resident said. "To leave a house is very simple, but to leave a home is very difficult." Several other evictions based on similar court orders are expected to take place over the next few weeks. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu responded to the court order by vowing to build 850 new apartments in the West Bank to replace the 30 emptied units. He has also promised to uproot the five apartment blocks from their foundations and move them to another location, although engineers say doing so would be expensive and impractical, AP notes.


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– In case you've somehow managed to erase this detail from memory, USA Today reminds us that exactly one year ago, Dennis Rodman was singing "Happy Birthday" to "best friend" Kim Jong Un. Today is indeed believed to be the North Korean leader's birthday, but it's unclear whether he's 31, 32, or 33. Kim's birth year, per the South Korean government, was likely 1982, 1983, or 1984. And while Yonhap reports that China sent him birthday wishes, USA Today notes there is no elaborate public celebration to mark the day, as was the case with his father's and grandfather's birthdays. "There's a lot of speculation why that's the case," a South Korean professor tells CNN. "Kim could be trying to put out this image as a humble guy," or he could just be trying to downplay the fact that he's young. "When you start marking his birthday, then the whole North Korean people will start to wonder, then what's his age?" USA Today speculates that when his age is finally revealed, 1982 will be the year named, perhaps regardless of whether that's the truth: His grandfather was born in 1912, and his father 30 years later. Forty years after that is ... 1982. (Meanwhile, Kim's eyebrows are shrinking.)

Former NBA All-Star Dennis Rodman sang 'Happy Birthday' to North Korean leader Kim Jung Un and proceeds to play half a game with an ex-NBA squad against a North Korean team. (Jan. 8) AP

 North Korean leader Kim Jong Un delivers a New Year's address in Pyongyang on Jan. 1, 2015. (Photo: Korean Central News Agency)

 BEIJING — A year ago Thursday when Dennis Rodman sang Happy Birthday to North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, the Pyongyang crowd at the ex-NBA star's controversial "basketball diplomacy" game hesitated to join in, then clapped with him to the end.

 Their confusion was understandable. Besides the language barrier, most North Koreans didn't know it was Kim's birthday. This year, they still don't know the age of the young "marshal" — Kim's official rank and title in North Korea.

 The third generation of the Kim dynasty to dominate the isolated northeast Asian state, Kim may have been born in 1982, 1983 or 1984, according to the South Korean government.

 Such is the secrecy surrounding his repressive regime that the birth of Kim's first child — and her name, Ju Ae — was only revealed by Rodman in a 2013 interview.

 Yet for a secretive leader who never travels abroad and rarely meets foreign visitors, Kim's global profile has leaped ever higher during the past year. The portly Kim, whose striking haircut and swelling waistline recall his grandfather, regime founder Kim Il Sung, disappeared from public view for weeks in the fall. The absence was later blamed on a leg injury.

 In recent weeks Kim has again dominated headlines as a result of the Hollywood comedy The Interview, which the U.S. government says sparked a North Korean cyberattack on the film's makers, Sony Pictures. Threats against movie theaters disrupted its distribution.

 Nobody knows exactly how old Kim is, but the mystery reflects how his regime operates, said Park Young Ho, a researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification in the South Korean capital of Seoul.

 When his age is finally publicized, authorities are likely to pick 1982, Park said. Kim Il Sung was born in 1912, and Kim Jong Il, father of Kim Jong Un, was born in 1942. A 40-year gap to the current Kim offers a neater number and stronger symbolic connection with the former leaders, Park said.

 Unlike his predecessors' birthdays, Jan. 8 is not yet a national holiday in North Korea. Sweets are distributed as well as some basic necessities — a tradition begun by the earlier Kims — but large celebrations are unlikely, Park said.

 "He wants to show the people he keeps his birthday simple by showing affection to ordinary people and filial piety to his father and grandfather," he said.

 The "Day of the Sun" for Kim Il Sung's birthday, and the "Day of the Shining Star" for Kim Jong Il, are major events in North Korea, said Simon Cockerell, managing director of Koryo Tours, who has experienced both festivals during 140 trips to North Korea since 2002.

 For Kim Jong Il's fete in February expect mass dances featuring thousands of people, "highly politicized synchronized swimming", ice skating and children's performances, plus the Kim Jongilia flower show, featuring the begonia named after Kim, Cockerell said.

 Such commemorations reinforce the family personality cult that dominates North Korean life.

 While Thursday remains a working day in North Korea, the "marshal" will be uppermost in many minds as a nationwide campaign continues to praise and study his New Year speech.

 Kim's rambling address contained "some promising signs," but reflected "a reactive, tentative and conditional frame of mind, and a hesitant leader," analyst Moon Chung-in wrote on the U.S.-based website 38 North, which provides analysis of the reclusive nation.

 "(His) power grip is relatively secure, and he's been very successful in consolidating his power for the past three years" since Kim Jong Il's death in 2011, Park said.

 Since the three-year mourning period ended in December, 2015 marks "the real beginning" of Kim Jong Un's era, when he may move to break the deadlock on dialogue with South Korea, Park said.

 Regardless of whether Rodman returns, expect plenty more Kim headlines before his next birthday.

 Read or Share this story: http://usat.ly/1IuWSzr ||||| Dennis Rodman belted out "Happy Birthday" -- not far from Marilyn Monroe's rendition -- as the Pyongyang crowd clapped in unison during a basketball game.

 This year's birthday affairs are less likely to be bizarre -- Rodman is not in town.

 Kim's birthday is believed to fall on January 8, but like most affairs of North Korea, his personal details are opaque. North Korean state media has not acknowledged the exact date of Kim's birth in either of its Korean and English-language archives.

 "There is a lot of debate about the year he was born," said Cheong Seong-chang, a senior research fellow at the Sejong Institute, a Korean think tank. "Some say it is 1984 while others say is '83 or '82."

 In previous years, Kim has distributed sweets to children on January 7 which was a tradition held by his grandfather and father during their birthdays.

 The birthday of Kim Il Sung, the founder of the country, is considered the Day of the Sun and falls on April 15. Kim Jong Il's birthday, on February 16, is known as the Day of the Shining Star. These are the days when residents received goods from the state and children got sweets. The days are marked with pomp and circumstance, including military parades, patriotic chants and oaths of loyalty to the leaders.

 But the current leader Kim's birthday has been decidedly more low-key during his three years in power.

 "There's a lot of speculation why that's the case," said Lee Jung Hoon, professor of international relations at Yonsei University in South Korea. "Kim could be trying to put out this image as a humble guy, that he's not extravagant. Then there's sort of negative take on this issue, as to he's still very young, 29, 30 or 31. When you start marking his birthday, then the whole North Korean people will start to wonder, then what's his age?"

 And revealing his age raises questions about experience. "It could be because he is a young leader. Being young could have its advantage and disadvantage, but it appears as though he doesn't want to make it public yet," said Cheong.

 Unlike his predecessors, there's little sign that Kim's birthday is a major national holiday.

 The Kyodo News reported last year that the current North Korean leader's birthday is not likely to be celebrated as a national holiday this year, after it reviewed five North Korean calendars for 2015.

 And North Korean workers at the joint Kaesong Industrial Complex never have asked for a holiday on January 8 in the past two years, according to the South Korean Unification Ministry, the agency which handles North Korean affairs.

 His birth date was first revealed by Kenji Fujimoto, the former sushi chef of Kim's father, Kim Jong Il.

 "The date is known as accurate, but North Korea never officially confirmed it," said Cheong.

 The Unification Ministry recorded Kim's birthday as January 8, although the exact year of birth is marked as 1982, 1983 or 1984.

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 In Kim's three years in power, he's largely followed the legacies of his father and grandfather, said Lee.

 A South Korean report that released this week indicated that North Korea could be closer to miniaturizing a nuclear warhead indicating that Kim has continued with the focus on nuclear weapons.

 And his regime has also been marked by the purge of Kim's uncle, Jang Song Thaek, who was executed after being branded a traitor in December 2013.

 "Unfortunately, there were some hopes because he was educated in Switzerland and that he's young, people hoped that there might be some change. None of that has happened. It might be worse, because he's less experienced than his father and grandfather, and very rash and impatient as we've seen with the cyberattacks," Lee said, referring to a Sony hacking scandal in which the FBI blamed North Korea. ||||| 2015/01/08 17:27

 (ATTN: UPDATES throughout with quotes, details; AMENDS headline)

 BEIJING, Jan. 8 (Yonhap) -- China said Thursday that it has sent a message of congratulations to North Korea on the birthday of its young leader Kim Jong-un, expressing its hope Kim can oversee a "new achievement" in socialism.

 Kim, who inherited power after the death of his father in late 2011, was born on Jan. 8 and is believed to be in his early 30s, but his age has not been officially confirmed. |||||