Mark Udall, a champion of government transparency, urged the president today to publicly support the fullest declassification possible of the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence's exhausti...

 Mark Udall, a champion of government transparency, urged the president today to publicly support the fullest declassification possible of the U.S. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence's exhaustive study of the CIA's detention and interrogation program. Udall, who serves on the committee, said anything less will not set the record straight on this dark chapter of the CIA's history. Udall also said without significant progress on his previous requests and on removing obstacles to committee oversight of the CIA's detention and interrogation program, he will be unable to support advancing Caroline Krass's nomination to be CIA general counsel. ||||| — The CIA Inspector Generals Office has asked the Justice Department to investigate allegations of malfeasance at the spy agency in connection with a yet-to-be released Senate Intelligence Committee report into the CIAs secret detention and interrogation program, McClatchy has learned.

 The criminal referral may be related to what several knowledgeable people said was CIA monitoring of computers used by Senate aides to prepare the study. The monitoring may have violated an agreement between the committee and the agency.

 The development marks an unprecedented breakdown in relations between the CIA and its congressional overseers amid an extraordinary closed-door battle over the 6,300-page report on the agencys use of waterboarding and harsh interrogation techniques on suspected terrorists held in secret overseas prisons. The report is said to be a searing indictment of the program. The CIA has disputed some of the reports findings.

 White House officials have closely tracked the bitter struggle, a McClatchy investigation has found. But they havent directly intervened, perhaps because they are embroiled in their own feud with the committee, resisting surrendering top-secret documents that the CIA asserted were covered by executive privilege and sent to the White House.

 McClatchys findings are based on information found in official documents and provided by people with knowledge of the dispute being fought in the seventh-floor executive offices of the CIAs headquarters in Langley, Va., and the committees high-security work spaces on Capitol Hill.

 The people who spoke to McClatchy asked not to be identified because the feud involves highly classified matters and carries enormous consequences for congressional oversight over the executive branch.

 The CIA and the committee declined to comment.

 Caitlin Hayden, a spokeswoman for the National Security Council, declined to discuss the matter and referred questions to the CIA and the Justice Department.

 In question now is whether any part of the committees report, which took some four years to compose and cost $40 million, will ever see the light of day.

 The report details how the CIA misled the Bush administration and Congress about the use of interrogation techniques that many experts consider torture, according to public statements by committee members. It also shows, members have said, how the techniques didnt provide the intelligence that led the CIA to the hideout in Pakistan where Osama bin Laden was killed in a 2011 raid by Navy SEALs.

 The committee determined earlier this year that the CIA monitored computers  in possible violation of an agreement against doing so  that the agency had provided to intelligence committee staff in a secure room at CIA headquarters that the agency insisted they use to review millions of pages of top-secret reports, cables and other documents, according to people with knowledge.

 Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, a panel member, apparently was referring to the monitoring when he asked CIA Director John Brennan at a Jan. 29 hearing if provisions of the Federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act apply to the CIA? Seems to me thats a yes or no answer.

 Brennan replied that hed have to get back to Wyden after looking into what the act actually calls for and its applicability to CIAs authorities.

 The law makes it a criminal act for someone to intentionally access a computer without authorization or to go beyond what theyre allowed to access.

 People familiar with the issue said it wasnt clear whether the monitoring violated any law or administrative regulations.

 Sen. Mark Udall, D-Colo., who has led calls for the CIA to allow the release of the report, also appeared to be referring to the monitoring in a letter he sent Tuesday to President Barack Obama.

 As you are aware, the CIA has recently taken unprecedented action against the committee in relation to the internal CIA review and I find these actions to be incredibly troubling for the committees oversight responsibilities and for our democracy, Udall wrote. It is essential that the committee be able to do its oversight work  consistent with our constitutional principle of the separation of powers  without the CIA posing impediments or obstacles as it is today.

 Udall also called on Obama to strip the CIA of control over how much of the Senate report should be made public. The report remains classified nearly 15 months after the panel approved the document and turned it over to the agency for vetting.

 It is my belief that the declassification of the Committee Study is of paramount importance and that decisions about what should or should not be declassified regarding this issue should not be delegated to the CIA, but directly handled by the White House, Udall wrote.

 Udall has led a handful of lawmakers in pressing for the release of the reports conclusions, which committee members have publicly said show that the CIA misled the Bush administration and Congress about the intelligence gained from using water-boarding and other interrogation techniques. On Tuesday, Hayden said For some time, the White House has made clear to the chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence that a summary of the findings and conclusions of the final report should be declassified, with any appropriate redactions necessary to protect national security.

 The conflict over the committees investigation heightened late last year when the committee discovered that a CIA internal review confirming some of the committees findings had been withheld from Senate investigators.

 In his letter to Obama, Udall said the internal report not only corroborates aspects of the committees investigation, but acknowledges significant mistakes and errors made during the course of the CIA program.

 It is vital that we understand how and why the content of the CIAs internal review contradicts the CIAs official June 27, 2013, response to the Committee, he added.

 The agency has downplayed the importance of the document, characterizing it as a compilation of summaries of classified documents, rather than an analytical report.

 CORRECTION: An earlier version of this story contained an incorrect date for the hearing at which Sen. Wyden asked CIA director Brennan whether federal computer fraud law applied to the CIA.

 Email: jlanday@mcclatchydc.com; mtaylor@mcclatchydc.com; awatkins@mcclatchydc.com; Twitter: @jonathanlanday, @marisaataylor, @alimariewatkins |||||
What is a one-paragraph summary of the above article?

– The CIA's Inspector General is calling for the Justice Department to look into allegations that the agency illegally spied on aides to the Senate Intelligence Committee as they gathered information for a potentially contentious report on the CIA's torture program, McClatchy reports. The CIA had insisted that the Intelligence Committee staffers use computers at Agency headquarters to review millions of documents related to its interrogation program. The committee believes the CIA monitored those computers, despite a specific agreement not to, according to McClatchy sources. The 6,000-page report remains classified, but the New York Times notes that it is a "withering indictment" of CIA tactics and results. Mark Udall yesterday sent President Obama a letter saying that, "As you are aware, the CIA has recently taken unprecedented action against the committee," without specifying what that action was. Committee chair Dianne Feinstein would confirm only that "there is an IG investigation." The committee has been battling to release its unflattering report, which the agency wants to keep classified. Udall accused the agency in December of withholding an internal review from the committee—and that apparently led the CIA to accuse the committee of gaining unauthorized access to agency databases, leading to this current dispute.


News article:

By Phil Williams

 Chief Investigative Reporter

 NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Are leaders of a for-profit public school trying to hide the fact their students are failing?

 That's the question that some are asking tonight as a result of an email uncovered by NewsChannel 5 Investigates.

 At the center of the controversy is the Tennessee Virtual Academy -- a for-profit, online public school that Republican lawmakers touted as a way to improve education in Tennessee. Two years ago, state lawmakers voted to let K12 Inc. open the school, using millions of taxpayer dollars.

 But, now, those lawmakers are concerned about standardized test results that put it among the worst schools in the state.

 In fact, the email suggests that even school leaders are becoming increasingly concerned by how their students' grades may look to parents and the public.

 "That is not something I would ever be told in my school -- I mean, it's just not acceptable," said state Rep. Gloria Johnson, a Knoxville Democrat who is also a career teacher. "Quite honestly, I was horrified."

 The email -- labeled "important -- was written in December by the Tennessee Virtual Academy's vice principal to middle school teachers.

 "After ... looking at so many failing grades, we need to make some changes before the holidays," the email begins.

 Among the changes: Each teacher "needs to take out the October and September progress [reports]; delete it so that all that is showing is November progress."

 "Does it talk about we need to make changes in curriculum? Does it talk about we need to make changes in our teaching strategy? No," Rep. Johnson observed. "Those changes we need to make are deleting grades from the computer system."

 "And that's cheating in your mind?" NewsChannel 5 Investigates asked.

 "In my mind, sure. I mean, yes."

 The email adds, "This cannot be late!"

 "To come in and say 'everybody who made failing grades the first two months, we need to delete those grades,' to me that's a huge issue," Johnson added.

 And the suggestions from K12 leaders don't end there.

 In traditional classrooms, if students score a 60 on one test and a 90 on a second test, they're stuck with a 75 average. But the email suggests that teachers erase the bad grades, leaving students with just the good grades.

 The email continues, "If you have given an assignment and most of your students failed that assignment, then you need to take that grade out."

 Read the TNVA email, response

 "This doesn't say give them a second chance," we noted.

 "No, it does not," the lawmaker agreed. "It just says take that out. To me, this appears like it's grade fixing."

 K12 officials refused to sit down to answer our questions, but the Tennessee Virtual Academy's principal said in an email that the goal was to "more accurately recognize students' current progress."

 "By going back into our school's electronic grading system and recording students' most recent progress score (instead of taking the average throughout the semester) we could more accurately recognize students' current progress in their individualized learning program," principal Josh Williams said in the statement.

 "This also helped differentiate those and identify those who needed instructional intervention and remediation."

 Williams compared K12's grade deletions to the "common practice in traditional schools" of allowing "make-up tests, alternative assessments and extra credit opportunities."

 Yet, the internal email also suggests that Virtual Academy teachers had already attempted those sorts of efforts to boost student grades.

 "In early December, all teachers gave their students an opportunity to improve their grades by giving additional assignments," it says.

 "Yet, we are still seeing failing grades."

 As to K12's explanation, Mitchell Johnson, interim director of the Tennessee Education Association, questioned how deleting data helps K12 to better understand students' needs.

 "They're probably changing the grades to make themselves look better," he speculated.

 It's a practice that the TEA official suggested would not sit well with privatization advocates if they saw a "delete it" email from a traditional public school.

 "I think that they would be incensed, and I'm hoping that the reformers will be as incensed about what has happened here -- as they would be if it had happened within a public school setting," he added.

 In the email, teachers were also told that their main focus is on reading and math -- and that they are not as concerned about students making F's in history and science.

 But the principal of the Tennessee Virtual Academy noted that, ultimately, the school's success or failure will be judged based on the standardized tests that students take at the end of the year -- not on individual grades.

 Because of concerns about the Tennessee Virtual Academy's performance, Gov. Bill Haslam has proposed legislation that would cap the number of students who could enroll at 5,000. It's at about 3,200 right now.

 There is also a bill up in a House subcommittee Tuesday that would essentially shut it down.

 E-mail: pwilliams@newschannel5.com ||||| Humphrey on the Hill Tom Humphrey's blog on politics and legislative news in Tennessee

 NASHVILLE — A House committee killed legislation that would have closed Union County-based Tennessee Virtual Academy on Tuesday after one Knoxville legislator effectively blocked another from talking to the committee about allegations that the for-profit school altered the bad grades of some students.

 Instead, the House Education Subcommittee approved a bill pushed by Gov. Bill Haslam's administration that puts some new restrictions on virtual schools, but only after eliminating — with the governor's approval — a proposed 5,000-student enrollment cap that was originally part of House Bill 151.

 Democratic Rep. Mike Stewart of Nashville sponsored the bill (HB728) that would have effectively repealed the law passed in 2011 that allowed for-profit virtual schools to operate in Tennessee.

 The 2011 bill was sponsored by Rep. Harry Brooks, R-Knoxville, who is now chairman of the House Education Committee and sponsor of the Haslam administration bill changing some rules for running virtual schools.

 Stewart told the committee that Tennessee Virtual Academy, part of a system of virtual schools operated around the nation by K12 Inc., has proved itself in a year of operation a "bad idea" for both its students, who have had low scores in testing, and for taxpayers.

 "The only people that are benefiting are in K12, a Virginia corporation that is rising statewide to siphon off millions of dollars every year ... for enormous profits," said Stewart, adding that K12 CEO Ronald Packard was paid $3.9 million last year and $5 million the year before.

 Rep. Roger Kane, R-Knoxville, told Stewart his talk of Packard's salary was a "red herring" and otherwise criticized the Nashville lawmaker's statements — drawing applause from perhaps 25 Virtual Academy teachers, students and parents of students in the audience.

 One Virtual Academy teacher, Summer Shelton of Knoxville, told the panel she had taught in Knox County and elsewhere — including Europe — and considered the academy as having "the most dynamic curriculum" and the best overall, especially beneficial to children with special problems, such as feeling stressed in regular schools.

 Legislative staff found that Tennessee Virtual Academy is receiving $7.5 million in state funding this year.

 Stewart told the committee that the company receives $5,300 per student "essential to turn on a website" and has refused to give any information on how much it spends — which he estimated at $1,000 to $2,000 per student. He challenged K12 to provide the information, though there was no response during the session.

 After the meeting, Ken Meyer, director of government relations for K12, told reporters that Stewart's figures are wrong and K12 has lost money in its first year of operation.

 Actually, he said the Tennessee operation gets $4,700 per student, gives Union County about $300 in accordance with its contract, and thus receives only about $4,400 per student. Meyer said the company's costs are about $6,600 per student, adding he was going by memory and would give more precise figures later.

 Stewart also cited an email sent to Virtual Academy teachers in December that says they should "take out the October and September progress (reports); delete it so that all that is showing is November progress reports."

 He distributed the email, which was provided by Rep. Gloria Johnson, D-Knoxville, to him and to WTVF-TV in Nashville, which aired a report on the matter Monday evening. Johnson, a Knox County schoolteacher, said she had been given the email by a Virtual Academy teacher.

 Stewart asked that Johnson be allowed to speak to the committee. Brooks objected, saying the email had nothing to do with the Stewart bill under discussion. The committee chairman made a motion to end all discussion and proceed immediately to a vote on the bill.

 Rep. Mark White, R-Memphis, presiding at the subcommittee meeting, promptly declared Brooks' motion approved by voice vote, then immediately called for a vote on the bill. It was declared defeated on voice vote.

 Afterward, Johnson and Shelton spent several minutes discussing the email, which Shelton said had been misunderstood. She said the school had a new "grade book" for teachers to report student progress. Some teachers were averaging grades while others were using the most recent grade, Shelton said. The email was to clarify that the most recent grade — as a measure of progress — should be used, she said. In many situations, she said the student had taken a test twice, in which case the second grade is used.

 After hearing out Shelton, Johnson said she understood much of the lengthy explanation, but overall "it's not quite jiving 100 percent." She also questioned why K12 or Virtual Academy executives had not testified or answered questions.

 The Haslam administration bill, sponsored by Brooks, was approved on a 6-3 vote.

 As amended, it imposes a 1,500-student cap on new virtual schools launched in the state, but not on those already operating. The original bill would have covered Tennessee Virtual Academy — which now has about 3,200 students — with a 5,000 cap. That was dropped by an amendment.

 The bill has other provisions that declare a virtual school that has below-standard student performance for two consecutive years can be closed by the state's education commission.

 The commissioner would also have the option to instead impose an enrollment cap. |||||
What is a shorter version of the above article?

– Tennessee Virtual Academy, a for-profit, online public school heavily supported by state Republicans, has found a novel way of boosting student performance—just delete bad grades, reports News Channel 5 in Nashville. A leaked December email from the school's VP appears to tell its middle-school teachers to erase some scores that don't measure up. "If you have given an assignment and most of your students failed that assignment, then you need to take that grade out," it reads. "To me, this appears like it's grade fixing," said one Democratic state representative. Virginia-based parent company K12 is refusing to talk, but the TVA principal said the deletions were intended to "more accurately recognize students' current progress." But as the two-year-old school will receive $7.5 million in funding from the state this year, many Tennessee lawmakers are outraged. The Knoxville News Sentinel reports that a House bill that proposed shutting the school altogether was killed yesterday; a second was passed by the House Education Subcommittee. It would allow the state to shutter a virtual school that records sub-standard student performance two years in a row. (Meanwhile, a Lehigh University student is suing over a bad grade.)


Summarize this article:

A Florida police officer last weekend bought a replacement engagement ring from J.C. Penney for an elderly woman suffering from Alzheimer's who apparently had hers stolen, WSVN.com reported.

 "I came in the morning, and I'm holding her hand, talking to her, and the ring is gone," Arthur Wagner, the woman's husband, told the police officer. Wagner, who spent $400 on the ring in 1946, said that the ring stayed on his wife's finger for 67 years.

 ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT

 Betty Wagner would wear two rings: her wedding ring and engagement ring. Judging by the bruises on her finger, it appears that someone pulled off the two rings, taking the engagement ring and leaving the wedding band.

 Plantation Police Officer Laurie Graber was sent to investigate, and learned the story about the couple's relationship.

 "After 67 years of that ring being on her finger, she still looked at him like he was her knight in shining armor," Graber told WSVN.com.

 She purchased the ring and told the nurses to deliver it.

 "A promise kept for 67 years is worth something," Graber said. Police are investigating the robbery.

 Click for more from WSVN.com ||||| Officer replaces elderly woman's engagement ring after theft at hospital Posted: Monday, June 23, 2014 11:03 PM EDT Updated: Monday, August 18, 2014 11:03 PM EDT

 PLANTATION, Fla. (WSVN) -- A police officer made a generous gesture and helped an elderly hospital patient who lost something dear to her in a heartless crime.

 When Arthur Wagner asked Betty to be his bride in the summer of 1946, he said, "She said, 'Yes.' I remember I bought it at Zales jewelry. I paid $400 for it," said Wagner.

 The engagement ring and wedding band was placed on Betty's left finger and has been there for 67 years, until last Saturday when her yellow gold diamond engagement ring went missing. "I came in the morning, and I'm holding her hand, talking to her, and the ring is gone," said Wagner.

 Weak with advancing Alzheimer's, Betty was sedated in a hospital bed at Westside Regional Medical Center in Plantation. "From the bruises on her finger that looked like both rings were pulled off, and the wedding band was put back on," said Wagner. "I just tear up. It was tough."

 Plantation Police sent over officer Laurie Graber to investigate the case. "After 67 years of that ring being on her finger, she still looked at him like he was her knight in shinning armor, and he looked at her like she was still his young bride," said Graber.

 Wagner and Graber felt helpless after Betty's ring was stolen and in the hands of a thief. "I just couldn't imagine what kind of depravity you would have to have to take something off of someone so vulnerable," said Graber.

 Graber felt something needed to be done so, "I went to J.C. Penney, and I bought a small ring, and I took it back to the hospital, and I left a little note."

 "The nurses at the nurse station they come and they said, 'The officer that was here yesterday, she left you this,'" said Wagner. "A promise kept for 67 years is worth something."

 Betty's original engagement ring is gone, but Wagner is still at her bedside along with her new ring.

 Wagner said the new ring has helped ease the pain.

 Plantation Police is checking the hospital's surveillance video to see if they can catch anyone in the act.

 If you have any information on this theft, call Broward County Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS. Remember, you can always remain anonymous, and you may be eligible for a reward. |||||

 A Florida police officer went above and beyond the call of duty after she met an elderly woman whose engagement ring had been snatched right off her hand in the hospital.

 7 PHOTOS Police officer replaces old woman's stolen ring See Gallery Police officer replaces elderly woman's stolen ring Up Next See Gallery Discover More Like This HIDE CAPTION SHOW CAPTION of SEE ALL BACK TO SLIDE A Florida police officer went above and beyond the call of duty after she met an elderly woman whose engagement ring had been snatched right off her hand in the hospital. Fox News reports, "With little hope of finding the ring, a Florida police officer took the matter into her own hands, replacing it with her own money."

 WPLG spoke with Arthur Wagner, whose wife, Betty, has advancing Alzheimer's and is currently being kept sedated in a hospital. "That ring went on there when she was a 20-year-old," says husband Arthur Wagner. He spent $400 on it years ago.

 Now, 67 years later, someone grabbed that engagement ring right off Betty's finger. And WOGX says she has the bruises on her finger to prove it. Her wedding band was still intact, though.

 Local police sent over Officer Laurie Graber to talk to Arthur about the stolen ring. She says her heart broke when she heard what happened. WOFL says, "She still looked at him like he was her knight in shining armor ... he looked at her like she was still his young bride. I went to JCPenney, and I bought a small ring."

 Graber purchased this heart-shaped diamond ring for Betty and went back to the hospital and left it with the nursing staff, leaving behind only a signed note: "It's not much, it's not the same. But 67 years of a promise kept should be recognized."

 Graber says she purchased the ring because it was right thing to do, not because she wanted any attention. Police are still searching for Betty's missing ring, which is now valued at around $4,500 in today's economy.

 Related stories on AOL:

 Explorer says Griffin shipwreck may be found

 Sons cost parents more money in the long run |||||

– A classy move by a Florida cop is making headlines: Laurie Graber, an officer in Plantation, got the call for a particularly low-level crime—someone had ripped the engagement ring off the finger of an 87-year-old woman bedridden with Alzheimer's in a hospital, reports Fox News. By the bruises on Betty Wagner's finger, it wasn't an easy job, and no wonder—the ring had been there for 67 years. "I just couldn't imagine what kind of depravity you would have to have to take something off of someone so vulnerable," Graber tells WSVN. Upon leaving the hospital, Graber went to JCPenney and shelled out for a replacement ring with her own money. She brought it back to the nurses' station with a note, reports AOL.com: "It's not much, it's not the same. But 67 years of a promise kept should be recognized." Husband Arthur, who placed the original on his soon-to-be wife's hand in 1946, says the gesture has helped him deal with the theft. (Another Florida officer bought groceries for a mom caught shoplifting.)


Article:
Image copyright PA Image caption Russian fighter jets were intercepted by Canadian and American planes on Wednesday

 Six Russian fighter jets were intercepted by American and Canadian planes off the coast of Alaska on Wednesday, US defence officials have confirmed.

 They entered what is known as the Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ), but did not enter US air space.

 The planes, two of which were MiG 31 jets, left the area without incident.

 Officials said this type of incident was not uncommon, and happens up to 10 times a year.

 The ADIZ is a zone of airspace which extends out approximately 200 miles from the coastline and is mainly within international airspace.

 US sovereign air space extends 12 nautical miles from land.

 Two Alaskan-based F-22 fighter jets and two Canadian CF-18 fighter jets were scrambled to intercept the Russian planes in two separate incidents on Wednesday evening and Thursday morning.

 Also on Wednesday, the Swedish Foreign Ministry said two Russian military aircraft had crossed into Swedish air space south of the Baltic Sea island of Oland.

 The ministry called it a "serious violation".

 Sweden has said it has summoned the Russian ambassador over the incident. ||||| Story highlights U.S. official: Incident related to visit by Ukraine President

 NORAD says six Russian aircraft flew about 55 nautical miles from Alaska coastline

 Two Russian planes flew about 40 miles off Canadian coastline, NORAD says

 (CNN) Two U.S. jets this week intercepted six Russian planes that neared U.S. airspace off Alaska and Canadian planes intercepted two Russian bombers that approached Canadian airspace, NORAD reported.

 A U.S. official told CNN's Barbara Starr that officials in Washington think the incidents were related to the visit by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, who talked to Canadian officials Wednesday and President Barack Obama on Thursday. The United States promised Ukraine $46 million in nonlethal aid for its battle with pro-Russian militants.

 On Wednesday evening, two Alaskan-based F-22 fighter jets intercepted two Russian IL-78 refueling tankers, two Russian Mig-31 fighter jets and two Russian Bear long-range bombers, according to Capt. Jeff Davis of the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD).

 More than six hours later, early Thursday morning, two Canadian CF-18 fighter jets intercepted two Russian Bear long-range bombers in the Beaufort Sea, Davis said. Those Russian planes came within about 40 nautical miles of the Canadian coastline, he said.

 Though the planes did not enter sovereign territory, the statement said, they did enter the U.S. Air Defense Identification Zone west of Alaska and the Canadian ADIZ, according to a statement.

 Read More ||||| COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — Two F-22 fighter jets intercepted six Russian military airplanes that neared the western coast of Alaska, military officials said Friday.

 Lt. Col. Michael Jazdyk, a spokesman for the North American Aerospace Defense Command, or NORAD, said the U.S. jets intercepted the planes about 55 nautical miles from the Alaskan coast at about 7 p.m. Pacific time Wednesday.

 The Russian planes were identified as two IL-78 refueling tankers, two Mig-31 fighter jets and two Bear long-range bombers. They looped south and returned to their base in Russia after the U.S. jets were scrambled.

 At about 1:30 a.m. Thursday, two Canadian CF-18 fighter jets intercepted two of the long-range bombers about 40 nautical miles off the Canadian coastline in the Beaufort Sea.

 In both cases, the Russian planes entered the Air Defense Identification Zone, which extends about 200 miles from the coastline. They did not enter sovereign airspace of the United States or Canada.

 Jazdyk said the fighter jets were scrambled "basically to let those aircraft know that we see them, and in case of a threat, to let them know we are there to protect our sovereign airspace."

 In the past five years, jets under NORAD's command have intercepted more than 50 Russian bombers approaching North American airspace.

 NORAD is a binational American and Canadian command responsible for air defense in North America. |||||Summary:

– Russian military pilots seem to be getting a little adventurous these days. A pair of US military jets intercepted six Russian aircraft near the coast of Alaska Wednesday evening, reports AP. The Russian pilots never entered US airspace, but instead remained in something called the Air Defense Identification Zone, which extends about 200 miles from the coast. Still, NORAD sent up two US jets "basically to let those aircraft know that we see them, and in case of a threat, to let them know we are there to protect our sovereign airspace," says a spokesperson. The six Russian planes—two fighter jets, two long-range bombers, and two refueling tankers—eventually looped back toward Russia. Hours later, Canadian fighter jets intercepted two Russian long-range bombers over the Beaufort Sea, near the Canadian coast but again in the international zone. While such incidents aren't all that uncommon, one US official tells CNN that Moscow was likely expressing its displeasure about a visit by Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko to the US and Canada. Elsewhere, two Russian military aircraft entered Swedish air space without authorization, reports the BBC. Sweden's foreign ministry called it a "serious violation" and has summoned the Russian ambassador to complain. (Russia doesn't think Scotland's independence vote was up to snuff.)


Here is a news article: These crawls are part of an effort to archive pages as they are created and archive the pages that they refer to. That way, as the pages that are referenced are changed or taken from the web, a link to the version that was live when the page was written will be preserved.Then the Internet Archive hopes that references to these archived pages will be put in place of a link that would be otherwise be broken, or a companion link to allow people to see what was originally intended by a page's authors.The goal is to fix all broken links on the web . Crawls of supported "No More 404" sites. ||||| IKEA is investigating a claim that one of its bowls has the ability to set things on fire.

 A Swedish man says he was eating grapes from an IKEA "Blanda Blank" stainless steel serving bowl this weekend when he began to smell smoke, the Swedish tabloid Aftonbladet reported, according to a translation by The Local.

 "I saw it was burning in the grape bowl. How is that possible, I thought. Then I saw there was one intense point where (the sun) hit the twigs, and that's where it started," Richard Walter told Aftonbladet.

 To demonstrate what had happened, Walter recorded a video showing the bowl setting fire to a piece of paper. The video has been viewed more than 16,000 times.

 Check it out:

 The bowl, which comes in a variety of sizes, costs between $1.99 and $11.99.

 IKEA is reportedly now investigating the claim that sunlight reflecting off the bowl's surface can start fires.

 "We take this information very seriously and will now investigate what happened," an Ikea spokesperson told Aftonbladet.

 On IKEA's US website, users say the bowl is a "great size for serving or prep cooking." There is no mention of fires caused by the bowl.

 IKEA did not respond to Business Insider's request for comment. ||||| -The serving bowls in the BLANDA series are available in several different materials and sizes to mix and match according to your tastes and needs.

 -Stack the smaller sizes inside the larger of the same range, to save space when not in use. ||||| Richard Walter told the Aftonbladet tabloid he was eating grapes out of his Ikea 'Blanda blank' metal bowl in the sunshine during Sweden's weekend heatwave when he suddenly noticed a peculiar smell of smoke.

 He first thought it came from the neighbours' barbecue party, but then looked at the bowl.

 "I saw it was burning in the grape bowl. How is that possible, I thought. Then I saw there was one intense point where (the sun) hit the twigs, and that's where it started," Walter told the Aftonbladet tabloid.

 It appears the fire started when the bowl's shape caused the strong sunlight to reflect off its surface and concentrate the heat to one particular point. To prove to his friends that it really had happened, Walter then posted a video on Facebook using the bowl to burn a scrap piece of paper.

 Watch the video below:

 Ikea said it would look into the reports and carry out its own tests on the bowl.

 "We take this information very seriously and will now investigate what happened," Ikea spokesperson Emil Eriksson told Aftonbladet.

 On Wednesday he added in a written comment to The Local: "Product safety is always a top priority at Ikea and Ikea products are always tested to comply with applicable standards and legislations. In risk assessment for the bowl Blanda it has been established that many different parameters would have to converge for the content of the bowl to overheat and that the risk for this to happen is very low. The round design of the bowl further contributes to a very low risk of spreading, in case of any overheated material in the bowl."

 READ ALSO: Man gets his meatball stuck in an Ikea stool |||||
A summary of this is?

– A man found himself in the middle of an unexpected science experiment in Sweden after he set his bowl of grapes in the sun. Richard Walter says he was outside near his Blanda Blank stainless steel serving bowl from IKEA when he noticed his grapes were on fire. "'How is that possible?' I thought. Then I saw there was one intense point where [the sun] hit the twigs, and that's where it started." His friends wanted proof, so Walter posted a video on Facebook of a piece of paper starting to burn after he placed it in the bowl in direct sunlight. For its part, IKEA tells the Swedish tabloid Aftonbladet that it's taking the information "very seriously" and investigating how this could happen. But a statement to The Local suggests that the fiery mishap is indeed possible, with an IKEA rep saying "it has been established that many different parameters would have to converge" for fire to occur, and the risk is "very low. The round design of the bowl further contributes to a very low risk of spreading, in case of any overheated material in the bowl." Business Insider notes that no one has made any fire-related complaints on the US product page, where the bowl is described as a "great size for serving or prep cooking." (IKEA is also doing its best to preserve marital bliss.)


News article:

Buy Photo Beekeeper Lloyd Cunniff said his hive boxes are typically filled "wall-to-wall." Since the stolen hives have been recovered, the bee populations have been failing. (Photo: (TRIBUNE PHOTO/SEABORN LARSON))Buy Photo

 When a Choteau beekeeper lost his hives to bee rustlers in California in January, he expected he’d never see them again. What he did expect, after speaking with the California beekeeping community, was that Ukrainian-Russians may have been behind the bee heist.

 And they were right. A pair of Ukranian-Russians have been charged with possession of stolen property – over $150,000 in beekeeping equipment, his hives included – in an agriculture law enforcement sting that could draw attention from federal authorities.

 Choteau beekeeper Lloyd Cunniff reported his bees stolen in mid-January, after his 488 hives vanished from a property in California. Cunniff, and many more beekeepers during this time of year, had transported his bees to California for the almond pollination season.

 On Sunday following the work of an agriculture crime task force and the local beekeepers community, most of Cunniff’s equipment had returned to the Treasure State.

 “We got about two-thirds of the equipment back,” he told the Tribune on Thursday.

 Cunniff's honey bee operations is about six miles north of Choteau, within eyeshot of the Rocky Mountain Front. But he's keeping his recovered bees in a fresh green field a ways south of town, in case they are infected with disease or mites. He said determining whether or not the recovered hives and bees can still be used will take time and he won't know for sure until fall. For now, he’s quarantined the bees away from his new hives and will continue to monitor the bees’ health as he sprints to recover the lost income he had planned on from almond season in California.

 In January, Cunniff, owner of Beeline Honey in Choteau, was one of about 10 victims across seven California counties in which Fresno County law enforcement believes Ukrainian-Russians have turned to agriculture thefts, particularly bees, to fund organized crime rings.

 “For us, it’s kind of new to us, too,” said Fresno County Detective Anders Solis, a member of the county’s agriculture crimes task force that handled Cunniff’s case. “This has been going on for about three years.”

 Most of the bee rustling has reportedly occurred north, in Sacramento County, Solis said. Cunniff’s bees were stolen from a property even further north, in Yuba City, California. An ongoing investigation by the Ag Task Force reportedly found that Ukrainian-Russians were often stealing bees from each other.

 “Usually they’ll steal from each other, then if they steal a large amount, they’ll steal from American companies and people like Lloyd,” Solis said during a phone interview Thursday. “There were victims that were Russian-Ukrainian, also.”

 There are plenty of Ukrainian-Russians running legitimate bee operations, Solis said. So, naturally, much of the Ukrainian-Russian community is angry with those who make them look bad in the overall farming and ranching community.

 “From talking to a lot of the Russian beekeepers, they say (the alleged Ukrainian-Russian thefts) give them a bad name and farmers won’t trust them,” Solis said. “All of the (Russian) victims we’ve dealt with have been pretty forthcoming.”

 Solis said for years, these theft numbers have gone up around January right before the almond tree pollination, and mostly around Sacramento, where Cunniff’s bees disappeared.

 When Cunniff’s bees vanished into the night back in January, he believed the rustlers were organized based on the two sets of 2-ton semi-trailer truck tracks pointed away from the scene. He also feared he’d never see them again. The hives and equipment were brand new and not marked by any identifying images, like his business name, phone number or address.

 “Once I saw what they do down there, don’t make any difference if they’re stenciled (with identifying marks) or not,” Cunniff said. “They take it and paint over it.”

 Then, a couple weeks ago, the Fresno County Ag Task Force caught a break. One of the American hired hands on one of the Ukrainian-Russian bee farms noticed one of the hives matched the description of the hives reported by a friend in Missouri. The Missouri beekeeper flew over to California, contacted local law enforcement with matching photos of his stolen hives, and the investigation picked up quickly.

 Law enforcement officials found three locations connected to the alleged thieves: a bee nursery space the suspects had reportedly rented, a cow pasture owned by a person not related to the suspects (“They were basically out there trespassing,” Solis said) and a third property along a freeway, where the hives had been hidden in a drainage.

 Fresno county detectives uncovered hives from 10 different victims on the properties and made two arrests, charging two men with possession of stolen property. More arrests and charges may be coming, as the investigation is still ongoing, Solis said.

 “As it develops we may be have to get to the theft charges,” Solis said. “There’s a few things we need to get with the original agencies. Federal has interest in the case because of the monetary value, the fact that it may be organized crime and there’s been some leads that the suspects were contacted in North Dakota and there were hives in that location.”

 Of the $224,000 worth of bees and equipment reported stolen, about $170,000 worth was recovered, about consistent with the two-thirds return Cunniff estimated. While some parts were never found, many hives were simply so damaged that they’ve become unusable.

 “I think it really affected Lloyd in particular,” Solis said.

 Much of the equipment is mixed-and-matched with different pieces, Cunniff said. Some of the hives aren’t even fully assembled anymore.

 “It’s just totally mixed up,” Cunniff said. “It’s the biggest mess you’ve ever seen.”

 Cunniff last week received a photo from a California beekeeper who was working with law enforcement. Although Cunniff’s hives were not marked, he said he recognized the nearly new equipment and custom-built handles he had fashioned onto the hives. So he flew down on May 2 and identified the hives as his. They had been found in all three locations. After hiring a few trucking operations to get the bees back to Montana, Cunniff’s hives were back in Choteau on Sunday.

 Cunniff and Solis said the bee thieves used his bees in the almond tree pollination, like Cunniff had planned. Cunniff estimates the bee thieves earned about $100,000 in the process.

 So despite having his bees back, he feels like the score isn’t yet settled.

 “I don’t feel any justice until the guy ends up in jail,” he said, looking for a conviction. “But it is nice to get the equipment back. We put a lot of time and money into it.”

 Since his things were stolen, Cunniff’s insurance company had covered the costs for him to get his operation started again, providing the funds to get more bees from California, as well as a semi-truck load of new bees, about 508 new hives in total. So when Cunniff told the insurance company his bees had been found, they actually told him to leave them in California. But since more than half of his hives were recovered, Cunniff decided to see what he could do.

 “It just ended up being so much stuff, we couldn’t leave it down there,” he said.

 Cunniff still plans to truck his bees down to California for the almond pollination next summer, although he said he’ll be more cautious about leaving the bees there for extended periods of time. Cunniff said he’ll have to wait and see if his recovered bees will still be able to produce honey, which he won’t know until fall. By then, the bees will have died off if they are in fact diseased. If the bees survive, he’ll negotiate with the insurance company, who technically owns the recovered bees, to buy them back.

 “They left it up to us,” he said. “If it’s not worth anything, then we’ll walk away from it.”

 He has hardly been able to monitor the recovered bees anyway; he’s busy feeding the new colonies, preparing for a honey crop this year. He has to split hives accordingly, making sure enough queens are appropriated to certain colonies, which he feeds with a mixture of liquid sugar and water.

 Coming off a winter with more snowfall than the two years before, Cunniff said conditions are ripe for a healthy, hearty honey crop this year. All in all, Cunniff said it looks like his business should have a pretty sweet summer.

 "We've been getting spring rain, a bit at a time," he said. "Things are looking really good."

 Read or Share this story: http://gftrib.com/2qBV4Hz ||||| GREAT FALLS, Montana (AP) — A Montana beekeeper has recovered hives that were stolen from him in California, thanks to an agricultural sting operation.

 Lloyd Cunniff of Choteau reported 488 hives stolen in January, after he had transported them to California for the almond pollination season.

 A tip led Fresno County authorities to find stolen hives worth $170,000 in a rented bee nursery space, a cow pasture and hidden in a drainage along a freeway.

 Fresno County Detective Anders Solis, member of the county's agriculture crimes task force, says there were 10 victims in seven California counties in all.

 The Great Falls Tribune reports (http://gftrib.com/2pvUzhM ) Cunniff got most of his bees back last Sunday. He says he is keeping the recovered hives in a separate field in case they are infected with disease or mites.

 ___

 Information from: Great Falls Tribune, http://www.greatfallstribune.com |||||
What is a shorter version of the above article?

– A Montana beekeeper has recovered hives that were stolen from him in California, thanks to what the AP is calling an agricultural "sting" operation. Lloyd Cunniff of Choteau reported 488 hives stolen in January, after he had transported them to California for the almond pollination season. A tip led Fresno County authorities to find stolen hives worth $170,000 in a rented bee nursery space, a cow pasture, and hidden in a drainage along a freeway. Fresno County Detective Anders Solis, a member of the county's agriculture crimes task force, says there were 10 victims in seven California counties in all. Bee theft is "kind of new to us, too. This has been going on for about three years," he says. Cunniff got most of his bees back last Sunday, reports the Great Falls Tribune. He says he is keeping the recovered hives in a separate field in case they are infected with disease or mites. (Yes, stealing thousands of dollars worth of bees is apparently a thing.)


Article:

In his first interview since his "conscious uncoupling" with Gwyneth Paltrow last month, Chris Martin shed new insight into the demise of their marriage. The Coldplay frontman addressed their surprising separation—and touched on his own personal issues—while speaking to BBC Radio 1's Zane Lowe.

 Did his relationship breakdown with Paltrow inspire the band's new album, Ghost Stories?

 "I wouldn't use the word breakdown," Martin said. "This was more a realization about trying to grow up basically. Like I said, if you can't open yourself up, you can't appreciate the wonder inside. So you can be with someone very wonderful, but because of your own issues you cannot let that be celebrated in the right way. What changed for me was—I don't want to go through life being scared of it, being scared of love, being scared of rejection, being scared of failure. Ever since our band came out, we have been a very polarizing group because we do a certain thing very well...About two years ago I was a mess really because I can't enjoy the thing that we are good at and I can't enjoy the great things around me because I'm burdened by this—I've got to not blame anyone else and make some changes." ||||| Singer Chris Martin is taking the blame for his split from wife Gwyneth Paltrow, saying his own demons ruined their 10-year marriage.

 The “Coldplay” frontman broke his silence on his marital woes in an interview with BBC Radio 1.

 “About two years ago I was a mess, really, because I can’t enjoy the things that we are good at and I can’t enjoy the great things around me because I’m burdened by this,” Martin said in the interview to be broadcast Monday in Britain.

 “I’ve got to not blame anyone else and make some changes,” he said.

 Paltrow, 41, and Martin, 37, who have two young children, announced in March that they were separating, or as they put it, “conscious uncoupling.”

 I’ve got to not blame anyone else and make some changes.

 Martin said his personal issues caused him and Paltrow to grow apart.

 “I wouldn’t use the word breakdown — this was more a realization about trying to grow up, basically,” Martin said.

 “If you can’t open yourself up, you can’t appreciate the wonder inside. So you can be with someone very wonderful, but because of your own issues you cannot let that be celebrated in the right way,” he said.

 He said his band’s new album, “Ghost Stories,” allowed him to be honest and get to the root of his problems.

 “I think in life everyone needs to be broken in some way. I think everyone in their life goes through challenges, whether it’s love or money, kids or illness,” Martin said.

 “You have to really not run away from that stuff,” he said. “Life throws these colorful challenges at you ... what we decided to do on 'Ghost Stories' was to really be honest about it and say, this is what’s been happening.”

 He said he now realizes what he needs to work on in life to make himself a better person, although it’s likely too late to salvage his marriage to Paltrow.

 “If you don’t let love really in, then you can’t really give it back,” he said. “You’ve got to open yourself up to love and if you really do, of course, it will be painful at some times, but then it will be great at some point.”

 Chris Martin broke his silence on the split, telling BBC Radio 1 that his personal issues ended their marriage. (Kevin Mazur/WireImage) Paltrow, 41, and Martin, 37, married 10 years ago and have two young children. (Craig Barritt/Getty Images)

 Besides getting himself in mental shape, Martin has taken up boxing to improve his physical condition.

 He recently hired a $215-an-hour personal trainer recommended by rapper Jay Z to whip him into shape, the Sunday Mirror reported.

 “Chris is a big fan of boxing and loves nothing better than working out with a punch bag,” a source told the Mirror.

 On a mobile device? Click to watch the video.

 Sign up for BREAKING NEWS Emails privacy policy Thanks for subscribing! ||||| Chris Martin says his break-up with Gwyneth Paltrow inspired the writing process for Coldplay's latest studio album.

 In an interview with Radio 1's Zane Lowe, the singer also admitted he was feeling hopeful despite the split.

 "I think in life everyone needs to be broken in some way," he said.

 "I think everyone in their life goes through challenges, whether it's love or money, kids or illness. You have to really not run away from that stuff."

 Martin and Paltrow separated last month after a decade of marriage.

 The singer says the issues the pair were having influenced the writing on Ghost Stories, which is due out in May.

 "Up to a certain point in my life I wasn't completely vulnerable and it caused some problems," he said. "If you don't let love in then you can't really give it back.

 "So what Ghost Stories means to me is like, you've got to open yourself up to love and if you really do, of course it will be painful at times, but then it will be great at some point."

 I think everyone in their life goes through challenges, whether it's love or money, kids, or illness. You have to really not run away from that stuff Chris Martin

 Paltrow, 41, and 37-year-old Martin announced their break-up in March on her blog in a post titled Conscious Uncoupling.

 "It is with hearts full of sadness that we have decided to separate," the couple wrote.

 The band's lead single, Magic, was released in March and was one of the tracks played on their Radio 1 Live Lounge set last week.

 Describing the song, Martin said: "It's not a question of you either really love someone or you really hate someone, it's more nuanced than that - especially with the modern world's complications - like travelling and all the stuff that comes to life, and illness and addiction and all that sort of thing.

 "It's just saying - ultimately - there is magic between two people no matter what anyone else thinks."

 The pair, who married in December 2003, have two children - Apple, nine, and Moses, seven.

 I'm saying One Direction are brilliant and I'm not kidding. You know why? Because their songs are really good Chris Martin

 In the message on Paltrow's Goop.com website, the couple said they had "come to the conclusion that while we love each other very much, we will remain separate".

 Speaking about the break-up, he said: "I wouldn't use the word breakdown, this was more a realisation about trying to grow up.

 "If you can't open yourself up, you can't appreciate the wonder inside.

 "You can be with someone wonderful, but because of your issues you can't let that be celebrated in the right way."

 The musician also explained his decision to go on Zane Lowe's radio show.

 "The reason I wanted to do this was because I love your Kanye interview," said Martin.

 "That guy is amazing and I think he is misunderstood by people who only look on the surface. I understand what he is talking about and I understand what he means."

 Last week the band appeared on Fearne Cotton's Radio 1 show to reveal they would be headlining the Saturday night at Radio 1's Big Weekend in Glasgow.

 Earlier today Nick Grimshaw confirmed One Direction would be opening the main stage that day.

 "I think One Direction are the biggest band in the world, their songs are great," said Martin.

 "I'm saying One Direction are brilliant and I'm not kidding. You know why? Because their songs are really good and I don't think that any of them are going to go solo.

 "Harry has come to a couple of our shows. I was too enamoured with his hair cut. I was having a hot flush."

 Meanwhile, Coldplay are to reveal the lyrics for all nine songs from their upcoming Ghost Stories album by hiding Chris Martin's handwritten lyric sheets in libraries across the world.

 The lyrics will be hidden in ghost story books in libraries in nine countries.

 Clues to the exact locations of the lyrics will be posted from Monday on the band's Twitter account using the hashtag #lyricshunt.

 One of the hidden envelopes will contain a special golden ticket, giving the finder and a guest a free trip to London to see Coldplay perform at the Royal Albert Hall on 1 July.

 The full hour-long interview with Chris Martin will be broadcast at 20:00 BST on Monday night on Zane Lowe's BBC Radio 1 show.

 You can listen live on BBC Radio 1, via mobile and the BBC iPlayer radio app and you will also be able to watch the interview on Radio 1's YouTube channel after 21:00 BST on Monday.

 Follow @BBCNewsbeat on Twitter ||||| 'I've got to not blame anyone else': Chris Martin reveals how his own personal issues contributed to 'conscious uncoupling' from Gwyneth Paltrow

 Singer hinted his personal issues and insecurities played a big part in breakdown of marriage

 Said everyone goes through 'challenges' in their lives 'whether it’s love or money, kids, or illness'

 New album Ghost Stories is about is his attempt at being 'honest' about everything that is happening

 Chris Martin has spoken about how his personal issues played a part in his marital split from Gwyneth Paltrow.

 In a revealing interview with BBC Radio 1's Zane Lowe, the Coldplay frontman gave the first real insight into troubles within his ten-year marriage to the actress.

 ' About two years ago I was a mess really because I can't enjoy the thing that we are good at and I can't enjoy the great things around me because I'm burdened by this,' the 38-year old said.

 'I've got to not blame anyone else and make some changes.'

 Scroll down for video

 Ready to talk: Coldplay frontman Chris Martin - seen outside his hotel in Germany on Saturday - has spoken about his split from Gwyneth Paltrow in a new interview

 Brave face: Gwyneth Paltrow showed off her slim pins in patterned shorts as she posed with Paris Photo Director Julien Frydman at his exhibition on Sunday He continued: 'I wouldn’t use the word breakdown, this was more a realisation about trying to grow up basically.

 'If you can’t open yourself up, you can’t appreciate the wonder inside. So you can be with someone very wonderful, but because of your own issues you cannot let that be celebrated in the right way.

 'What changed for me was - I don’t want to go through life being scared of it, being scared of love, being scared of rejection, being scared of failure.'

 Moving on: Gwyneth was spotted stepping into her car after apparently getting her chakras balanced in Los Angeles on Friday

 It's getting real: Removal men were seen at the London home of Gywneth and Chris earlier this week

 Chris appeared to be shouldering the blame for how the couple's troubles began. He said: 'Up to a certain point in my life I wasn’t completely vulnerable and it caused some problems.'

 He added: 'If you don’t let love really in then you can’t really give it back.

 'So what Ghost Story means to me is like you’ve got to open yourself up to love and if you really do, of course it will be painful at times, but then it will be great at some point.

 '

 Happier times: The musician spoke exclusively to BBC Radio 1's Zane Lowe about how the 'breakdown' of his ten-year-marriage inspired his new album, Ghost Stories

 The musician took part in an hour long interview, which will air on Monday evening, and while he did not mention his estranged wife by name, he spoke about candidly about his love and life.

 Chris mused: 'I think in life everyone needs to be broken in some way.

 'I think everyone in their life goes through challenges, whether it’s love or money, kids, or illness... You have to really not run away from that stuff.

 'Life throws these colorful challenges at you … what we decided to do on Ghost Stories was to really be honest about it and say, this is what’s been happening.'

 Hard to love: Chris revealed that his inability to let in love has caused problems in his life

 Speaking about his new single Magic, Chris explained: 'It’s about saying this person is really awesome and is magic, and of course certain parts of it have to change because that’s life but not everything has to be black or white or clear cut and that’s okay.

 'It’s not a question of you either really love someone or you really hate someone, its more nuanced than that - especially with the modern world’s complications – like travelling and all the stuff that come to life, and illness and addiction and all that sort of thing.

 While the video sees Chris saving a damsel from an unhappy relationship, Chris said: 'It’s just saying - ultimately there is magic between two people no matter what anyone else thinks.'

 The couple, who were considered one of Hollywood's most solid partnerships, stunned the showbiz world when they confirmed their split less than two months ago on March 25.

 Conscious uncoupling: Gwyneth and Chris are parents to Apple, eight, and Moses, six

 The interview also saw Chris reveal his admiration for pop boyband One Direction.

 Chris admitted: 'I think One Direction are the biggest band in the world, their songs are great.

 'I’m saying One Direction are brilliant and I’m not kidding. You know why? Because their songs are really good and I don’t think that any of them are going to go solo. I think they appreciate their chemistry from watching their movie.

 He spoke candidly about his appreciation of Harry Styles as he added: 'Harry has come to a couple of our shows, I think I probably said the same thing about chemistry.

 'I can’t remember - I was too enamored with his hair cut. I was like this: ‘I was pretty sure I was a straight guy before’ - I was having a hot flush.'

 He also shared his admiration for Kanye West.

 'That guy is amazing and I think he is misunderstood by people who only look on the surface. I understand what he is talking about and I understand what he means.'

  ||||| One month after his dramatic split from actress Gwyneth Paltrow, singer Chris Martin is opening up about the end of his marriage.

 The Coldplay frontman, 37, sat down with BBC Radio 1's Zane Lowe for an extended interview about his band's new album, his thoughts on One Direction, and his very public private life.

 PHOTOS: Biggest splits of 2014

 "I wouldn't use the word breakdown," Martin told Lowe about the dissolution of his marriage. "This was more a realization about trying to grow up basically… if you can't open yourself up, you can't appreciate the wonder inside. So you can be with someone very wonderful, but because of your own issues you cannot let that be celebrated in the right way."

 Martin and Paltrow, 41, announced the end of their 11-year marriage in a blog post on Paltrow's lifestyle website, Goop, on March 25. The pair titled the post "Conscious Uncoupling," and wrote, "It is with hearts full of sadness that we have decided to separate." Sources told Us Weekly that the end of the marriage was sparked by clashes over parenting strategies, disagreements over plans for the family, and even the strain of Paltrow's strict dietary rules. Tensions also escalated over ongoing rumors of infidelity.

 PHOTOS: Chris and Gwyneth through the years

 The Grammy winner, who is the father to two children with Paltrow, continued to Lowe: "What changed for me was, I don't want to go through life being scared of it, being scared of love, being scared of rejection, being scared of failure… About two years ago I was a mess really because I can't enjoy the thing that we are good at and I can't enjoy the great things around me because I'm burdened by this -- I've got to not blame anyone else and make some changes."

 Martin went on to elaborate on his own issues, saying, "Up to a certain point in my life I wasn't completely vulnerable and it caused some problems. If you don't let love really in then you can't really give it back."

 PHOTOS: Gwyneth's bikini body

 The sit-down was also a chance for the musician to plug Coldplay's latest album Ghost Stories. The project is due out May 19. |||||
What is a summary?

– A few quotes from Chris Martin's new interview with BBC's Radio 1, airing tonight, are being touted as his first public explanation of his "conscious uncoupling" from Gwyneth Paltrow ... but we really have no clue what he's saying. (E!, for example, points out that he doesn't directly mention Gwyneth, but it's "easy to read between the lines.") Want to try and decipher it yourself? Here are the relevant lines: "About two years ago I was a mess really because I can't enjoy the thing that we are good at and I can't enjoy the great things around me because I'm burdened by this. I've got to not blame anyone else and make some changes. I wouldn’t use the word breakdown, this was more a realization about trying to grow up basically." "If you can't open yourself up, you can’t appreciate the wonder inside. So you can be with someone very wonderful, but because of your own issues you cannot let that be celebrated in the right way. What changed for me was—I don't want to go through life being scared of it, being scared of love, being scared of rejection, being scared of failure. Up to a certain point in my life I wasn't completely vulnerable and it caused some problems. If you don’t let love really in then you can’t really give it back." "[The single 'Magic' is] about saying this person is really awesome and is magic, and of course certain parts of it have to change because that's life but not everything has to be black or white or clear cut and that’s OK. It’s not a question of you either really love someone or you really hate someone, it's more nuanced than that." The consensus seems to be that Martin is taking the blame. Sample headlines: Daily Mail: "Chris Martin reveals how his own personal issues contributed to 'conscious uncoupling' from Gwyneth Paltrow" New York Daily News: "Chris Martin says he's to blame for separation from Gwyneth Paltrow" Jezebel: "Chris Martin Says Conscious Uncoupling From Gwyneth Was All His Fault" PopSugar: "Chris Martin Blames His 'Own Issues' For Gwyneth Paltrow Split" Us: "Chris Martin on Gwyneth Paltrow Split: My 'Own Issues' Contributed to End of Marriage"


Here is a news article: Starting in 1996, Alexa Internet has been donating their crawl data to the Internet Archive. Flowing in every day, these data are added to the Wayback Machine after an embargo period. ||||| Image caption The duke launched his Twitter career by welcoming people to his account

 The Duke of York has become the first member of the Royal Family to join Twitter.

 Prince Andrew chose @TheDukeOfYork as his handle for the micro-blogging site.

 But his arrival prompted mixed reactions from other tweeters, as some pointed to his friendship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and others pretended to confuse him with a pub.

 The prince served for 22 years in the Royal Navy as a helicopter pilot, and until 2011 was the UK's trade envoy.

 His first tweet was "Welcome to my Twitter account - AY". If the tweets are signed AY, they will have been written by Prince Andrew himself.

 The sign-off led one user to ask if his account had been hacked by Ali G, Sacha Baron Cohen's comedy character, who used a similar sounding catchphrase.

 Another tweeted: "Yo how's Jeffrey Epstein?", a reference to the American billionaire and friend of the duke who was convicted of soliciting a minor for prostitution.

 The duke is a champion of free speech. For him it's about telling people what he's doing Royal spokesman

 But there were well-wishers and some friendly advice among those welcoming the royal to Twitter, a site where users communicate with their followers using 140 characters or less.

 Television presenter Eamonn Holmes suggested "in a caring way" that Prince Andrew's account needed "a more personal touch to be effective".

 BBC royal correspondent Peter Hunt said after the Royal Family first went on Facebook, an extra layer of security had to be used to block some of the abuse some people wanted to post.

 The duke's decision to start tweeting coincided with the launch of the Duke of York Award for Technical Education as he visited the Black Country University Technical College - a new school offering year 10 and year 12 students the opportunity to focus on science and engineering subjects in a specialist environment.

 A spokesman for Prince Andrew said he had long been someone who embraced new technology.

 "He was in fact the first member of the British Royal Family to tweet on the British Monarchy (account) when he visited Tech City. The logical next step was to tweet individually."

 Asked about the derogatory tweets, the spokesman added: "The duke is a champion of free speech. For him it's about telling people what he's doing."

 Two golf clubs and two official Royal Family accounts - @BritishMonarchy and @ClarenceHouse - are among the organisations he is already following.

 Within two hours of going online, the duke's account had amassed more than 3,000 followers. |||||
A summary of this is?

– According to the rumor mill, Kate Middleton could be popping out a royal baby any day now, so of course the gossip pages are already filled with "news" of the as-yet-unborn heir to the throne. You're not going to find out anything really interesting, like the sex or the name, but we do have the baby's official title for you: He or she will be the Prince or Princess of Cambridge, the Daily Mail reports. The first Prince or Princess of Cambridge, in fact, which the mayor of the city says is a "great honor." And there's another royal baby on the way, too: Prince William's cousin, Zara Phillips, who married Mike Tindall in 2011, is expecting her first baby, the Telegraph reports. That little bundle of joy will be 16th in line to the throne. (So, we can apparently assume that whole groping-another-woman thing ended satisfactorily for the couple.) More royal news: Prince Andrew has become the first British royal to start a personal Twitter account, the BBC reports.


By Alexis Tereszcuk – Radar Senior Reporter

 Lindsay Lohan‘s on-again-off-again girlfriend Samantha Ronson was arrested on suspicion of DUI Monday morning, RadarOnline.com has confirmed.

 The 33-year-old DJ was pulled over near Baker, Calif. at 10:30 am for speeding and after she refused to submit to a breathalyzer test on the scene, she was arrested and taken to the Barstow jail.

 Once at the jail, however, she changed her mind and did take a breathalyzer, authorities tell us.

 She was released from the jail several hours later.

 The District Attorney’s office tells us it will be a day or two until it decides whether to file charges against her.

 PHOTOS: Lindsay Lohan Poses As Vampire In Photo Shoot

 Ronson was traveling back from Las Vegas where she spun at the Lavo nightclub in the Palazzo Sunday night.

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 Lindsay Lohan’s Inner Circle Concerned About Her Partying

 PHOTOS: Lindsay Lohan At Women’s Center For Community Service

 Lindsay Lohan Denies She Owns A Gun — �?No Idea Why Someone Would Say That’ ||||| Sam Ronson ARRESTED FOR DUI

 Sam Ronson Arrested for DUI

 was arrested this morning for DUI outside Baker, California -- home of the world's biggest thermometer --TMZ has learned.According to the booking sheet, 33-year-old Ronson is listed as 5'7" and 102 pounds.Law enforcement sources tell TMZ, Lindsay Lohan 's ex-girlfriend was driving home from Las Vegas at 10:30AM in her black Porsche when she was pulled over for speeding.We're told she was given a field sobriety test and didn't perform well. According to our sources, she refused to take what is commonly called a "roadside blow" -- a less-scientific breathalyzer, which is not a mandatory test. She was arrested at the scene.Ronson was transported to the Baker substation, where we're told she blew over the legal limit. According to sources, she was cooperative the entire time.Sam DJ'd last night at the Lavo nightclub in the Palazzo hotel in Vegas.Thanks to our friends at SpyOnVegas.com for the pic. |||||
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– Bad: Getting arrested on suspicion of DUI. Worse: Getting arrested on suspicion of DUI at 10:30 in the morning. That's what happened yesterday to Samantha Ronson, DJ and Lindsay Lohan ex extraordinaire. Ronson was pulled over on her way home from Las Vegas, where she DJed Sunday night, when cops spotted her speeding in her black Porsche at 10:30am. Sources tell TMZ she didn't do well on her field sobriety test, then refused to take a breathalyzer and was arrested. At the station, she allegedly was found to be over the legal limit. Radar notes that she was released from jail last night.


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– A wedding planned for Saturday in Sweden was called off after the groom was arrested for assaulting and threatening to kill his bride-to-be. The engaged couple joined the wedding party at a pub for a few drinks Friday evening...and that's when the trouble began. A disagreement turned into an argument that continued at home, leading the bride to call the police, reports The Local. The groom allegedly punched the bruised-not-blushing bride and threatened to kill her in front of police officers, who intervened and took him into custody. He was arrested and charged with multiple offenses. Officers said they were most surprised at what they found in his pocket, a first in their professional police careers; click here to find out what that was.

The trouble started at a pub in Örebro in central Sweden where the couple went to enjoy a few drinks with friends the night before their nuptials were scheduled to take place.An argument that began at the Swedish watering hole continued at the couple’s home in the nearby village of Vintrosa and then turned to physical violence between the loving pair.Twelve hours before her wedding, the woman called the police to report her partner,33, for assault reports Swedish newspaper Nerikes Allehandra When the police arrived at the scene, the man allegedly hit his fiancée again a number of times and threatened to kill her. Police intervened and arrested the Groom.Upon searching him for weapons the police Sergeant Anders Wallin was quoted as saying, “It’s the first time we’ve searched somebody and found two wedding rings in their pocket.:A prosecutor issued a temporary detention order after questioning the suspect on Saturday morning.The 33-year-old, who is suspected of assault, issuing illegal threats and resisting arrest, was released from police custody on Saturday afternoon, hours after the designated time of his wedding.“It’s not yet certain whether there will be a wedding. It defintely won’t be today in any case,” sergeant Torbjörn Roos told The Local , Sweden's English news agency.Guest of the couple were disappointed they had traveled quite a distance to attend the wedding that never took place. Although the details of the fight were sketchy most of the guests were busy trying to uncover who the second wedding ring was purchased for and why he had it with him the night before what was to be his one and only wedding to the woman he dated for years reported Nerikes Allehanda ||||| A wedding ceremony had to be cancelled on Saturday after the 33-year-old would-be groom threatened to kill his wife-to-be on the eve of their big day.

 The trouble started at a pub in Örebro in central Sweden where the couple went to share a few drinks on Friday night. An argument that began at the watering hole continued at the couple’s home in the nearby village of Vintrosa. Twelve hours before her wedding, the woman called the police to report her partner for assault.When the police arrived at the scene, the man again hit his fiancée and threatened to kill her, local newspaper Nerikes Allehanda reports.“It’s the first time we’ve searched somebody and found two wedding rings in their pocket,” police sergeant Anders Wallin told the newspaper.A prosecutor issued a temporary detention order after questioning the suspect on Saturday morning. The 33-year-old, who is suspected of assault, issuing illegal threats and resisting arrest, was released from police custody on Saturday afternoon, hours after the designated time of his wedding.“It’s not yet certain whether there will be a wedding. It won’t be today in any case,” sergeant Torbjörn Roos told Nerikes Allehanda. |||||


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Instagram posts give friends a peek into your personal life, but new research shows they may also provide a snapshot of your mental health.

 Photos taken, edited, and shared to Instagram can show signs of depression through filters, faces, and colors, according to Harvard University’s Andrew Reece and Christopher Danforth from the University of Vermont.

 Computers trained on signals like hue, facial recognition, and saturation were also better at predicting depression than average humans who analyzed photo attributes like happiness, sadness, and likability. Further results show that through this method, depression can be predicted even before an individual receives a diagnosis. Algorithmically generated results had a more successful diagnostic success rate for depression than that of general practitioners.

 Predictive markers of depression in Instagram photos wouldn’t be used for treatment; rather, they could potentially become part of procedures to catch symptoms of depression early and prompt people to get care sooner.

 “We foresee a more mature version of this tool being used more in the context of screening and assessment, rather than treatment,” Danforth and Reece explained in an email. “The algorithm we used looks for complex, systemic patterns across many data points to infer clues about individual psychology. If someone posts a dark, bluish photo to Instagram, it shouldn’t necessarily be a red flag for their therapist—that person could just like photos of whales, or blueberries.”

 The research, a pre-print study published on arxiv.org that has not yet been peer-reviewed, analyzed almost 44,000 Instagram photos from 166 individuals. Surveys were assigned to depressed and healthy individuals; depressed people were asked to share their mental health history, including the date of their diagnosis.

 Once connected to Instagram, researchers analyzed photos in two different ways: Workers on Mechanical Turk were asked to rate images on a scale of zero to five based on how likable, happy, interesting, and sad they were. Then a computer program analyzed pictures based on the number of faces in each photo, colorization, vividness, and brightness of images to find out what image qualities apply to photos shared by depressed individuals.

 Researchers found darker, bluer, and more faded images predicted depression, and the more comments a post received increased the likelihood of being posted by a depressed person; more likes, however, signified the opposite. The “Inkwell” filter was the most common filter used by depressed participants, who were also less likely to apply filters at all, while healthy individuals favored “Valencia” and warmer tones.

 Andrew Reece, Christopher Danforth

 In the comparison below, the image on the right contains the type of photo features exhibited by someone with depression—darker, grayer, and bluer, researchers explained.

 Andrew Reece, Christopher Danforth

 While computers could pick up on the markers of depression, you probably won’t be able to recognize symptoms in a similar way while scrolling through your friends’ Instagram accounts. In the study, human raters (who were unaware of whether or not a person was depressed) exhibited a markedly different photo analysis.

 “Human ratings exhibited extremely low correlation with computational features,” like hues and facial presence, researchers said. “In other words, the bluer, darker, grayer photos weren’t the sad photos, according to the people we asked. So while our computational approach is capable of screening for depression, it uses different information signals than those captured by human judgments of what makes a photo sad.”

 Surprisingly, the study found depressed participants posted more photos with faces, but the number of people in each photo was lower. Danforth said they’re still considering what this finding suggests, but it might indicate smaller social activities.

 Machine learning is increasingly used in clinical settings, and researchers continue to investigate how artificial intelligence can impact mental health. For instances, therapy bots are used to diagnose, assess, and comfort patients with mental disorders. Early tests showed that some people feel more comfortable talking to a screen about mental health, post-traumatic stress disorder, and anxiety as opposed to human therapists. AI is in development that detects physical ailments, too. Doctors are reportedly using Watson, IBM’s cognitive system, to predict cancer in patients.

 However, researchers cautioned against making a formal comparison to human physicians, or thinking that machine learning will replace your therapist. The computer’s findings were not directly tested against clinicians analyzing the same photos of depressed patients.

 “The intuition and experience of human physicians are still very important, especially in mental health care settings, and machine learning methods seem to work best when they complement, rather than replace, human knowledge,” they said. “In that sense, ‘augmenting’, rather than ‘displacing,’ might be a better way to describe the new approaches to human-computer interaction that are advancing health care.”

 So perhaps in the future, a computer might analyze your mental health before you visit a doctor’s office, and once markers are recognized, a real human being can begin treatment. ||||| Instagram can be a good indicator of a person’s mental health.

 At least that’s what two researchers, Harvard University’s Andrew Reece and the University of Vermont’s Chris Danforth, have written in a recent report. The study was based on 166 volunteers who were recruited from Amazon Mechanical Turk, where you can make money by completing “Human Intelligence Tasks,” and it looked at their entire Instagram histories, which came out to about 43,950 photos.

 Participants’ levels of depression were determined using a standardized clinical depression survey. They were then asked about their social media habits and history of depression diagnosis. The researchers then analyzed their Instagram photos by looking at colors, brightness, and faces.

 Those who were depressed tended to post photos with increased hue, decreased brightness, and decreased color saturation. Overall, their photos were “bluer, grayer, and darker.” They also tended to post more frequently and use more Instagram filters, the most popular one for depressed participants being Inkwell, which turns a photo black and white. The most popular filter for volunteers who weren’t depressed was Valencia.

 The depressed participants were more likely to post photos that include faces, but their pictures tended to have fewer faces than Instagram users who weren’t depressed. Reece and Danforth write that this could be an indiction that depressed people generally have smaller social circles.

 The study also asked participants to rank others’ photos based on four subjective elements: happiness, sadness, likability, and “interestingness.” The latter two didn’t appear to be significant indicators of depression and, predictably, depressed participants’ photos were ranked higher on the “sadness” scale.

 “These findings suggest new avenues for early screening and detection of mental illness,” Reece and Danforth write, though they don’t elaborate on exactly how that would be implemented. Reece added in an email to Fortune that this is “just a first step, and a lot of work needs to be done before we can get to the point where an algorithm can reliably augment professional diagnostic decision-making.”

 It’s notable that this study was posted to arXiv, Cornell University’s open access website that lets researchers publish findings before they appear in a formal publication. Reece told Fortune that the study has been submitted for publication and it is currently undergoing peer review. He added that feedback from both fellow researchers and medical professionals has been “generally positive.” ||||| Your Instagram filter may reveal more than you realize about your mental health.

 Researchers from Harvard and the University of Vermont have found that Instagram photos can be analyzed to screen for depression. The scientists used the photos' attributes, including brightness and color, to correctly identify which participants suffered from depression at a better rate than the typical physician.

 Photos with decreased brightness, decreased saturation and increased hue indicated depression. The computer correctly identified 70% of the instances of depression.

 Valencia was the most popular filter with users who were not depressed, whereas depressed users were most likely to use Inkwell. Valencia lightens photos whereas Inkwell converts images to black and white.

 The findings point to an unobtrusive, inexpensive way to use social media to detect health issues.

 "It's all a good thing," said Michael Thase, the director of the Mood and Anxiety Program at the University of Pennsylvania. "It's only not a good thing when the information would be sold to somebody who might make a buck from interfacing with depressed people."

 Thase suggested that in the future we may opt in to receive screening feedback from social media. A user who gave consent would have their photos scanned for signs of potential illnesses.

 Related: Instagram Stories is Facebook's latest Snapchat clone

 "Did you know your choice of hues and colors go along with people who are prone to depression. Would you like to know more?" Thase suggested as a possible private message that could be sent to users who appeared depressed.

 To reach their conclusions, the researchers analyzed roughly 13,000 photos from 166 Instagram users, some of whom were clinically depressed.

 A computer system was trained by looking at the photos' brightness, vividness, hue and whether an Instagram filter was used. The computer learned to make predictions of depression after comparing the photos of depressed individuals, and those who are not depressed.

 Related: Health care will cost you $260,000 in retirement

 The research is the latest example of how useful insights can be gleaned from the digital footprints we leave online. Tech companies will increasingly have opportunities to assist patients and their health care providers, according to Thase.

 So how would such a program appear in the real world? It would likely start with a tech company inviting users to participate, and encouraging the traditional medical community to endorse it. Information could potentially be automatically shared with a patient's physician, provided the patient opts in.

 Earlier this year, Microsoft (MSFT, Tech30) researchers showed that a person's Web search history could sometimes predict an upcoming diagnosis of pancreatic cancer. |||||

– Your Instagram account may know you're depressed before you do, according to a new study out of Harvard and the University of Vermont. The Daily Dot reports researchers taught a computer to analyze aspects of Instagram photos, such as colors, brightness, and faces, then set in to analyzing nearly 44,000 posts from 166 people. The Instagram users in the study took a clinical depression survey and were asked about any history of depression, according to Fortune. CNN reports the computer program was able to correctly detect depression from a person's Instagram account 70% of the time. That's better than humans looking at Instagram photos and better than the success rate of general practitioners diagnosing depression. Researchers found the Instagram posts of depressed people tended to be less saturated, darker, and more blue. Depressed people tended to use the Inkwell filter most often (non-depressed people preferred Valencia) and got more comments on their posts (non-depressed people got more likes). Depressed people also posted more photos of faces but had fewer faces per photo. Because the computer program was able to detect depression in Instagram users before the were even diagnosed with it, researchers believe it could be a new way to screen people for depression before they start showing more serious symptoms and get them help earlier. (This party drug may soon treat depression.)


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AP The sale of Nelson Mandela's handprints has long been at the centre of a wrangle over who has the right to sell them. The companies formed to channel the proceeds into reportedly hold more than R15 million. Photo: AP

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 Johannesburg - Nelson Mandela’s children have launched a major assault against prominent South Africans known to be directors in two companies worth millions.

 As the nation prays for the ailing former president to get well, The Star can reveal that Mandela’s daughters Makaziwe and Zenani Mandela, supported by Mandela’s grandchildren, have made a court application to have advocate George Bizos, businessman Tokyo Sexwale and lawyer Bally Chuene removed from Harmonieux Investment Holdings and Magnifique Investment Holdings.

 The companies, according to court documents and a source, were established by Mandela’s former lawyer, Ismail Ayob.

 Their main purpose was to channel “proceeds of Madiba’s handprints” into the accounts of the companies for Mandela and his children’s benefit.

 The proceeds are estimated at more than R15 million. The handprints have been a subject of controversy involving businessman Ross Calder, Ayob and many others over who holds the rights to sell them.

 Makaziwe and Zenani claim that Bizos, Sexwale and Chuene were never appointed by Mandela as major shareholders or directors, court papers say.

 Nelson Mandela. File photo: Reuters Reuters

 In their application before the Johannesburg High Court on Monday, the pair argued that Bizos and Chuene were not properly appointed and should thus be removed.

 Makaziwe says in her affidavit: “All three – Bizos, Chuene and Sexwale – were invited to resign as directors, which invitation they declined. Bizos, Chuene and Sexwale were not formally appointed by the shareholder (Mandela) of the companies by way of any resolution.

 “Neither Zenani nor I, in our capacity as directors or in any other capacity, have ever received any notice to pass a resolution appointing, or have ever appointed, advocate Bizos, Chuene and Sexwale directors of Magnifique or Harmonieux.”

 She added that the trio had been appointed after the filing of relevant forms with the companies registry.

 Makaziwe added that the three did not enjoy the support of “almost all” of Mandela’s children and grandchildren.

 “The continual refusal of Bizos, Chuene and Sexwale to resign is not in the best interest of beneficiaries of the shareholder (Mandela’s children and grandchildren).

 “There are also allegations that Bizos, Chuene and Sexwale – including Judge Clement Temba Sangoni – failed to carry out their duties as directors with due care, skill and diligence,” the court papers read.

 The beneficiaries – including Zindzi Mandela, and grandchildren Chief Zwelivelile (Mandla Mandela), Mbuso, Ndileka, controversial businessman Zondwa Mandela, Ndaba, Bambata and Zoleka Mandela – made sworn affidavits supporting Zenani’s and Makaziwe’s application.

 Bizos said the allegations were completely false. The two women (Zenani and Makaziwe) “wanted to get their hands on things that should not be sold and the money in the companies”.

 He added: “There is no basis to the allegations. We are not hijackers. We don’t hijack things.

 “The public should ask themselves why five years later these allegations are being laid. We are confident we were regularly appointed at the wish of Mr Mandela five years ago.”

 Bizos said Makaziwe and Zenani had brought the court application “in order to further their interests and get their hands on the money”.

 They were going to challenge the court application, Bizos said, and their attorneys were currently preparing their response.

 He would not be drawn into divulging how much was involved, saying: “We will give that information to the court. It is a private matter.”

 Sexwale agreed with Bizos, but Chuene said he would be able to comment only once he had seen the court documents. His cellphone was on voicemail when he was contacted again.

 In the court papers, Makaziwe and Zenani launch scathing attacks on the three – particularly Chuene, alleging that he was “criminally conducting himself” when he allegedly appointed himself as director of companies.

 Makaziwe says her lawyer wrote to Chuene on August 12 last year to call upon him to resign, but he failed to do so.

 “Chuene appears to be making a habit of serially appointing himself (and others) unlawfully, as directors of companies, where he has no authority whatsoever. Such conduct borders on criminal conduct, but such conduct does not appear to deter him at all.”

 Makaziwe says there were two instances when Chuene appointed himself as a director.

 She alleges that Chuene had admitted in the 2005 case which Mandela lodged against Ayob that he had personally gone to the registrar of companies and registered himself as director of Harmonieux and Magnifique.

 “As is evident, Chuene does not hesitate to mislead the court by conveniently suppressing the fact that he also at the same time attended to the unlawful appointment of himself, Adv Bizos, William Henry Trengove and Dikgang Ernest Moseneke as directors of a company which is the registered owner of Zenani’s home, the shares of which are owned by a private trust for the benefit of herself and her immediate family, as well as a company which is beneficially owned by Zenani’s attorney of record (Ismail Ayob),” Makaziwe alleges in her affidavit.

 She claims Bizos was “quite happy to participate in this unlawful conduct, as is evident from his acceptance of the sham directorship” in the two disputed companies.

 Makaziwe and Zenani say they also made a formal request to Sexwale to resign, but he had failed to do so.

 They claim that their lawyer had tried to organise private meetings with the minister of human settlements to avoid embarrassing him, but he had not co-operated.

 The sisters are asking the High Court to remove the three as directors.

 Nelson Mandela Foundation spokesman Sello Hatang said he was not aware of the court application.

 solly.maphumulo@inl.co.za

 baldwin.ndaba@inl.co.za

 The Star ||||| Nelson Mandela's children have launched a court case against several longtime associates of the former president in a dispute over the control of two companies, a South African newspaper reported Wednesday.

 FILE - In this June 17, 2010 file photo, former South African President Nelson Mandela leaves the chapel after attending the funeral of his great-granddaughter Zenani Mandela in Johannesburg, South Africa.... (Associated Press)

 The case was filed Monday in the Johannesburg High Court by Mandela's daughters, Makaziwe and Zenani Mandela, reported The Star, and was supported by the grandchildren of the anti-apartheid leader, who recently left a hospital after treatment for pneumonia.

 The main purpose of the companies was to channel funds from the sale of 94-year-old Nelson Mandela's handprints for the benefit of the Mandela family. The proceeds are estimated to be worth about $1.7 million, reported The Star, without citing sources.

 The court papers said lawyers George Bizos and Bally Chuene, and businessman Tokyo Sexwale, have no right to remain as directors of Harmonieux Investment Holdings and Magnifique Investment Holdings because they were not properly appointed.

 "All three _ Bizos, Chuene and Sexwale _ were invited to resign as directors, which invitation they declined. Bizos, Chuene and Sexwale were not formally appointed by the shareholder (Mandela) of the companies by way of any resolution," Makaziwe Mandela said in an affidavit, according to The Star.

 Makaziwe Mandela declined to comment on the newspaper report when contacted by The Associated Press.

 The court papers also referred to allegations that the three men had failed to perform their duties at the companies with "due care, skill and diligence," the newspaper reported.

 Bizos, who defended Mandela during the apartheid years, denied the allegations and said he and his associates were appointed on the wishes of the former president five years ago, reported the newspaper. |||||

– Nelson Mandela is out of the hospital and recuperating at home after his latest health scare, but that doesn't mean the fight over the 94-year-old's money can't begin in earnest. Daughters Makaziwe and Zenani Mandela have sued to oust the directors of two companies that pull in boatloads of money from the sale of Mandela's handprints, reports the Star of South Africa. (Headline: "War over Madiba millions.") The daughters say the three men controlling the companies—including Mandela attorney George Bizos—were never properly appointed but have refused to step down. Bizos, though, who defended Mandela in court during the apartheid era, says that Mandela himself appointed them five years ago, reports AP. The daughters are just trying to "get their hands on the money," he said, which is a little confusing because the companies were set up to funnel money to Mandela's family in the first place.