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(CNN) -- The United Nations Security Council passed a resolution on Tuesday aimed at combating piracy along the Horn of Africa by allowing military forces to chase pirates onto land in cases of "hot pursuit." French troops on the lookout for pirates in the Gulf of Aden on November 25. Military forces from various countries, including the United States, are patrolling pirate-infested waters off Somalia, where attacks have surged this year. Nearly 100 vessels have come under fire, according to the International Maritime Bureau, and almost 40 vessels have been hijacked. The Security Council resolution, which passed unanimously, expands upon existing counter-piracy tools, including a stipulation that would allow for national and regional military forces to chase pirates onto land -- specifically into Somalia where many of the pirates are based. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was at the U.N. on Tuesday for a discussion of the piracy problem and the Security Council vote. "I wouldn't be here seeking authorization to go ashore if the U.S. government -- perhaps most importantly the president of the United States -- were not behind this resolution," Rice said after the vote. Asked if she thought U.S. troops would soon be on land chasing pirates, Rice would not speculate. "The United States is part of an international effort," she said. "We do have naval forces that have been involved in this effort. What this (resolution) does is to authorize that the boundary of the maritime cannot become a safe haven boundary for pirates. What we do -- or do not do -- in issues like hot pursuit, we'll have to see ... case by case." Earlier, in remarks to the Security Council, Rice described the growing problem of piracy off the coast of Somalia as "a symptom." "It's a symptom of the instability, the poverty, the lawlessness that have plagued Somalia for the past two decades," she said, adding that the Bush administration "does believe that the time has come for the United Nations to consider and authorize a peacekeeping operation." Asked about reports that two more ships were attacked by pirates this week, Rice said those show "the increasing problem that this is. The pirates are a threat to commerce, they are a threat to security and perhaps most importantly they are a threat to the principle of freedom of navigation on the seas." With increased patrols in the area by several countries, reports of exchanges of fire have become more frequent. In one of the most recent piracy attacks, Indian officials said Saturday they had captured 23 people suspected of trying to take over a merchant vessel in the Gulf of Aden. In addition to the 12 Somali and 11 Yemeni suspects, Indian navy officials also seized two small boats and "a substantial cache of arms and equipment," the Indian military said in a statement.

Military forces from various countries are patrolling pirate-infested waters off Somalia . Nearly 100 vessels have come under fire in the area, with almost 40 being hijacked . The resolution allows national, regional military forces to chase pirates into Somalia . U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Bush backed the move .

(CNN) -- The United States and other Western powers have "exacerbated Somalia's downward spiral" and must revise their policies in the east African country, a Human Rights Watch report has warned. Recent image of Islamist fighters at a camp in the northern outskirts of Mogadishu The report, released Monday, blames the policies under President George W. Bush for "breeding the very extremism that it is supposed to defeat." "The new administration of U.S. President Barack Obama should urgently review U.S. policy in Somalia and the broader Horn of Africa and break with the failed approach of his predecessor," the report said. It also cites key European governments for failing "to address the human rights dimensions of the crisis, with many officials hoping that somehow unfettered support to abusive TFG (Somali transitional government) forces will improve stability." Somalia's weak transitional government, backed by Ethiopian forces, continues to battle Islamic militias with the fighting concentrated in the capital, Mogadishu. Ethiopian forces have not withdrawn from the country, as required under a recent cease-fire agreement. Ethiopia invaded Somalia two years ago and successfully routed the Islamic militia that seized control of the capital. The HRW report states that the United States "directly backed Ethiopia's intervention." Since the 2006 overthrow of the Islamic Courts Union, Somalia has suffered from "unconstrained warfare and violent rights abuses" by all warring parties. "All sides have used indiscriminate force as a matter of routine, and in 2008 violence has taken on a new dimension with the targeted murders of aid workers and civil society activists," the report states. "The human rights and humanitarian catastrophe facing Somalia today threatens the lives and livelihoods of millions of Somalis on a scale not witnessed since the early 1990s." Heavy fighting in Mogadishu and across Somalia has driven more than a million people from their homes. The lawlessness has also spilled onto the seas off the Horn of Africa, where international vessels are routinely hijacked by suspected Somali pirates who demand large ransoms. Human Rights Watch offers specific recommendations to the Somali and Ethiopian governments, the main militias, and the international community to address the human rights abuses. It calls on the West to "insist upon an end to the impunity that has fueled the worst abuses - and the right place to start is by moving the U.N. Security Council to establish a Commission of Inquiry to document abuses and lay the groundwork for accountability." Journalist Abdinasir Mohamed Guled contributed to this report.

Bush policies blamed for "breeding the very extremism that it is supposed to defeat" Report: European govts failed to address "human rights dimensions of the crisis" Somalia's Ethiopian-backed transitional government battling Islamic militias . Fighting has driven more than a million people from their homes .

(CNN) -- The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill student body president who was killed this year was shot several times, including in her head, according to her autopsy report released Monday. Unsealed warrants show Eve Carson was abducted and then shot by both men. Eve Carson, 22, was found slain on March 5. Carson's autopsy report lists six gunshot wounds, but says two were probably from the same bullet, according to North Carolina's Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. Carson's death shocked the community and drew national attention. An estimated 10,000 people turned out for a service remembering her. Her autopsy -- released after a North Carolina newspaper filed a court motion to have it unsealed -- describes wounds to various parts of Carson's body. It says shotgun wounds to her head and hand "most likely represent a single shot with the hand acting as an intermediate target." One of the other four wounds was also a gunshot to her head. A separate, handwritten summary of the medical examiner's report says Carson was "shot multiple times" and found lying on her back, with one arm bent behind her head. The autopsy says sexual assault testing was done. It does not say whether any sign of sexual assault was found. Two suspects, Demario James Atwater, 22, and Lawrence Alvin Lovette, 17, have been charged with first-degree murder. Lovette's attorney said the warrants against the suspects rely on hearsay. Atwater's attorney cautioned against "any rush to judgment." Court documents released Friday say Carson was kidnapped from her apartment and forced to provide her abductors with ATM access to her bank account before she was shot to death in the early hours of March 5. The documents -- applications for search warrants -- say a confidential informant told police in the days after the death that Atwater had told her he and Lovette had entered Carson's home through an open door and forced Carson to accompany them in her car. The informant said she had talked with Atwater after a picture was displayed on television showing someone attempting to use Carson's ATM card at a convenience store two days after Carson's body was found. The informant said the two men drove Carson to an ATM, obtaining her PIN number from her. "The CW [informant] learned that Carson was forced into the back seat with Atwater, and Lovette drove Carson's vehicle," the court documents said. "That information is consistent with video footage taken from an ATM camera on that date." The witness told police Atwater said the two got about $1,400 from Carson's account. Bank records show that was approximately the amount taken from the account over a two-day period, the documents said. And the informant said that both suspects shot Carson, according to one of the affidavits. "This information was corroborated by crime scene search information that two separate weapons were used in the homicide," the documents said. The documents said police believe Carson was subjected to a sexual assault "of an unknown nature" and asked for a search warrant to collect DNA swabs from the suspects. But Orange County, North Carolina, District Attorney Jim Woodall told CNN Friday the collection and testing done on Carson's body was routine, and authorities do not believe she was sexually assaulted. Prosecutors had fought to keep her autopsy sealed. Following a motion by the Raleigh News & Observer newspaper, prosecutors agreed to allow the report's release. Carson, a native of Athens, Georgia, was a pre-medicine student double-majoring in political science and biology. She was a recipient of the university's prestigious Morehead Scholarship and a member of the Phi Beta Kappa honor society, UNC has said.

Autopsy: There were shotgun wounds to Carson's head and hand . Report lists six gunshot wounds, but it says two were probably from same bullet . Warrant shows she was kidnapped from her home and robbed .

(CNN) -- The Wisconsin man accused of poisoning his wife with antifreeze and convicted of murdering her was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison with no chance of parole. Mark Jensen's chin quivers as a letter from his sons is read in court Wednesday before his sentencing. Mark Jensen, 48, was found guilty Thursday in Elkhorn, Wisconsin, of killing his wife, Julie Jensen, in 1998. The prosecution said the murder culminated years of torment. "Your crime is so enormous, so monstrous, so unspeakably cruel that it overcomes all other considerations," Kenosha County Judge Bruce Schroeder said before pronouncing the sentence. Watch the judge lower the boom » Prosecutors contended that Jensen poisoned his 40-year-old wife with antifreeze and then suffocated her in 1998, but the defense argued that Julie Jensen was a depressed woman who killed herself and framed her husband. Julie Jensen had given a neighbor a letter pointing an accusing finger at her husband should anything happen to her. She also made foreboding comments to police and to her son's teacher, saying she suspected her husband was trying to kill her. Her letter, read aloud in court, said in part: "I pray I'm wrong + nothing happens ... but I am suspicious of Mark's suspicious behaviors + fear for my early demise." Read the letter » The case turned on the admissibility of the letter, which would have been considered unusable "hearsay" evidence if Schroeder had not ruled that it was a "dying declaration." In such cases, the defendant has no opportunity to face his accuser. After the verdict, jurors told reporters that the letter gave them "a clear road map" to conviction, as one female juror phrased it. Another female juror said he believed Mark Jensen was trying to push his wife over the edge. "He tortured Julie hoping she could be classically diagnosed as a nutcase," she said. Several of the jurors were in the court gallery for the sentencing hearing Wednesday. Jensen, dressed in blue jail fatigues, sat stoically while Julie Jensen's four brothers asked for the harshest possible sentence. "I hope the court shows the same mercy and compassion that the defendant showed our sister," Patrick Griffin, the victim's youngest brother, said. Watch brothers demand justice » But Jensen's chin quivered and his eyes watered when his attorney read a letter from Jensen's two sons, David and Douglas. "He never failed to support us throughout this ordeal," the sons wrote in requesting mercy for their father. "... If anyone in this world is the epitome of loyalty, it is our dad." E-mail to a friend CNN's Jim Kavanagh contributed to this report.

Mark Jensen sentenced for poisoning wife with antifreeze . Victim's posthumous letter led jurors to verdict . Defense portrayed victim as depressed wife who committed suicide .

(CNN) -- The World Health Organization cautioned that the swine flu outbreak could gain momentum in the months ahead, despite claims by the health secretary of Mexico -- the epicenter of the outbreak -- that the virus "is in its declining phase." The number of confimed cases of the H1N1 virus continue to multiply. As of early Monday, Mexican health officials reported 568 cases and 22 fatalities linked to the flu. WHO says it has confirmed 506 cases and 19 deaths in Mexico. The world has 985 confirmed cases of the virus, known to scientists H1N1 virus, in a total of 20 countries, WHO said Monday. The United States has reported 226 confirmed cases in 30 states. The U.S. cases include one death -- a Mexican toddler visiting relatives in the United States. According to WHO, Canada has 85 confirmed cases; Spain has 40; the United Kingdom has 15; Germany has 8; New Zealand has 4; Israel has 3; El Salvador has 2; France has 2; and Austria, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Denmark, Ireland, Netherlands, Italy, South Korea and Switzerland each have one. The outbreak is only about 10 days old, and even if the illness is declining, it could return, said Gregory Hartl, the WHO spokesman for epidemic and pandemic diseases, at a briefing Sunday. "I ... would like to remind people that in 1918 the Spanish flu showed a surge in the spring, and then disappeared in the summer months, only to return in the autumn of 1918 with a vengeance," Hartl said. "And we know that that eventually killed 40 million to 50 million people." Mexican authorities believe the most active period of the virus in Mexico was between April 23 and April 28, and Mexican Health Secretary Jose Cordova described the outbreak as being in decline in his country. In China, officials have quarantined 68 people, including 13 crew members, who were passengers of a Mexico City to Shanghai flight, which carried a passenger who tested positive for the virus, China's state-run Xinhua news agency reported Sunday. None of the other passengers has exhibited any flu-like symptoms, one health official said. About another 110 people who were on the Aeromexico plane went on to other destinations, and may face quarantines elsewhere, the news agency said. Fifteen have been quarantined at a Beijing hotel. Shanghai's airport is now barring other Aeromexico planes from landing there, a representative of the airline told CNN. Aeromexico is suspending flights to Shanghai until May 15, the representative said. The airline does not fly to Hong Kong or Beijing. In the United States, New York has the most confirmed cases, with 63, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Texas has 40; California has 26; Arizona 18; South Carolina 15; Delaware 10; Massachusetts and New Jersey each have seven; Colorado has four; Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Virginia, Wisconsin each have three; Connecticut, Kansas and Michigan each have two; Alabama, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Utah each have one. California officials suspended visitation and other "nonessential activities" at Centinela State Prison in Imperial County after an inmate was suspected of having swine flu. The case has yet to be confirmed with lab testing. On Sunday, health officials in North Carolina and Pennsylvania announced the first confirmed cases in those states, and Louisiana's governor said his state had seven confirmed cases. The cases from those three states were not immediately included in the CDC tally. In Washington, U.S. Secretary of Health Kathleen Sebelius, appearing on CNN's "State of the Union," warned that even if the flu outbreak wanes, "it could come back with greater force in the winter and fall, when we get into flu season." "So, this is no time for complacency," she said. "We want to stay out ahead of this." Dr. Anne Schuchat, the CDC's interim deputy director

WHO has confirmed 898 cases of H1N1 virus worldwide . Mexico says illness declining there; WHO warns it could return . Mexico has largest number of confirmed cases, followed by U.S., WHO says . Canadian officials claim pigs at farm have been affected by virus .

(CNN) -- The World Health Organization cautioned that the swine flu outbreak could gain momentum in the months ahead, despite claims by the health secretary of Mexico -- the epicenter of the outbreak -- that the virus "is in its declining phase." The number of confimed cases of the H1N1 virus continue to multiply. The outbreak is only about 10 days old, and even if the illness is declining, it could return, said Gregory Hartl, the WHO spokesman for epidemic and pandemic diseases, at a briefing Sunday. "I ... would like to remind people that in 1918 the Spanish flu showed a surge in the spring, and then disappeared in the summer months, only to return in the autumn of 1918 with a vengeance," Hartl said. "And we know that that eventually killed 40 million to 50 million people." Mexican authorities believe the virus's most active period in Mexico was between April 23 and April 28, and Mexican Health Secretary Jose Cordova described the outbreak as being in decline in his country. As of late Sunday, Mexican health officials reported 568 cases and 22 fatalities linked to the flu. WHO says it has confirmed 506 cases and 19 deaths in Mexico. The world has 898 confirmed cases of the virus, known to scientists H1N1 virus, in a total of 18 countries, WHO said Sunday. The United States has reported 226 confirmed cases in 30 states. The U.S. cases include one death -- a Mexican toddler visiting relatives in the United States. According to WHO, Canada has 70 confirmed cases; the United Kingdom has 15; Spain has 13; Germany has 6; New Zealand has 4; Israel has 3; France has 2; and Austria, China, South Korea, Denmark, Netherlands, Switzerland, Costa Rica and Ireland each have one. In China, officials have quarantined 68 people, including 13 crew members, who were passengers of a Mexico City to Shanghai flight, which carried a passenger who tested positive for the virus, China's state-run Xinhua news agency reported Sunday. None of the other passengers has exhibited any flu-like symptoms, one health official said. About another 110 people who were on the Aeromexico plane went on to other destinations, and may face quarantines elsewhere, the news agency said. Fifteen have been quarantined at a Beijing hotel. Shanghai's airport is now barring other Aeromexico planes from landing there, a representative of the airline told CNN. Aeromexico is suspending flights to Shanghai until May 15, the representative said. The airline does not fly to Hong Kong or Beijing. In the United States, New York has the most confirmed cases, with 63, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Texas has 40; California has 26; Arizona 18; South Carolina 15; Delaware 10; Massachusetts and New Jersey each have seven; Colorado has four; Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Virginia, Wisconsin each have three; Connecticut, Kansas and Michigan each have two; Alabama, Iowa, Kentucky, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Rhode Island, Tennessee and Utah each have one. California officials suspended visitation and other "nonessential activities" at Centinela State Prison in Imperial County after an inmate was suspected of having swine flu. The case has yet to be confirmed with lab testing. On Sunday, health officials in North Carolina and Pennsylvania announced the first confirmed cases in those states, and Louisiana's governor said his state had seven confirmed cases. The cases from those three states were not immediately included in the CDC tally. In Washington, U.S. Secretary of Health Kathleen Sebelius, appearing on CNN's "State of the Union," warned that even if the flu outbreak wanes, "it could come back with greater force in the winter and fall, when we get into flu season." "So, this is no time for complacency," she said. "We want to stay out ahead of this." Dr. Anne Schuchat, the CDC's interim deputy director for public health, told reporters Sunday that she was

WHO has confirmed 898 cases of H1N1 virus worldwide . Mexico says illness declining there; WHO warns it could return . Mexico has largest number of confirmed cases, followed by U.S., WHO says . Canadian officials claim pigs at farm have been affected by virus .

(CNN) -- The Wu-Tang Clan -- the New York hip-hop supergroup that spawned millions of album sales, nine solo acts and a few acting careers -- almost never was. If RZA, left, had been jailed or Method Man killed, Wu-Tang may have never formed, RZA says. Method Man, the group's most recognizable voice, was nearly killed before the band formed, Wu-Tang's chief producer, RZA, writes in his forthcoming memoir. Meth was walking to buy marijuana at 160 Park Hill Avenue in Staten Island -- the house in Wu-Tang's "Protect Ya Neck" video -- when RZA saw him across the street, he writes in the book. "Come over here, yo!" RZA beckoned, according to "The Tao of Wu" (Riverhead). "He stopped and came running over. A few seconds later -- pow-pow-pow-pow-pow! -- a guy started shooting up the front of 160. A buddy of ours, Poppy, an innocent, school-going, nice guy -- he was shot and killed right there." Interactive: Where's the Wu been? » It wasn't the only close call RZA said could have snuffed the band that rewrote the rule book for hip-hop acts. The year before the group formed in 1993, RZA was acquitted on an attempted murder charge that could have put him behind bars for eight years, he writes in "The Tao of Wu," out Thursday. Expanding on the book's anecdotes in an interview with CNN, RZA explained that if he had been imprisoned or if Method Man, aka Clifford Smith, had been killed, the band never would have come to fruition. RZA, whose real name is Robert Diggs and whose stage name is pronounced "Rizza," also talked about his role in the death of his cousin, Russell Jones, better known as Ol' Dirty Bastard or ODB. Two days before his 36th birthday in 2004, ODB died in a New York recording studio from an overdose of cocaine and painkillers. RZA writes in the book that he once witnessed ODB force his own son to watch him do drugs. RZA tried to leave, he writes, but ODB wouldn't let him. Now, RZA told CNN, he wishes he would've been tougher with ODB about his drug problem. Following are excerpts from the interview, which has been edited for language, flow and length: CNN: Could your imprisonment or Method Man's death have derailed Wu-Tang's formation? RZA: Either one of those incidents could definitely have derailed it. Of course, myself being the abbot, the one who came with the idea, if I wouldn't have made it out of that tumultuous time -- it seemed like I wasn't going to make it out of it; there was a lot of odds against me -- but we stood strong, and self-defense made sense to the jury. We beat that ... It was the victory over that incident that made me change my whole direction. In a way, it's double-edged in that incident. One, if I would've lost that, yeah, Wu-Tang wouldn't have happened, but also it's the victory of it that inspired me and gave me the drive also to go and really get serious about Wu-Tang and the things I was dealing with. Same thing with Meth, he always brings it up ... that that day saved his life. He actually said, if it was anybody else calling him, he wouldn't have came. CNN: In the book, you cite lessons from Eastern religions, Christianity, Islam, [Nation of Islam offshoot] Five Percent, numerology, comic books, kung fu, chess. What would you say to someone who says it's difficult to reconcile these dogmas? RZA: Like it says in the Bible, "In the beginning was the word, and the word became flesh" -- if we go to the root of the word,

Wu-Tang producer: Attempted murder conviction also could have derailed band . Rapper/producer/actor RZA talks of forming Wu-Tang Clan in upcoming memoir . RZA: Ol' Dirty Bastard made son watch him do drugs before 2004 fatal overdose . Book cites lessons from Christianity, Islam, numerology, kung fu, chess .

(CNN) -- The alleged leader of a firearms trafficking network believed to be smuggling guns into Mexico -- where police say they are used against law enforcement officers by members of Mexican drug cartels -- was arrested Thursday in Arizona, authorities said. Victor Varela was arrested by the ATF as part of the agency's ongoing Project Gunrunner. Victor Varela was arrested by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives as part of the agency's ongoing Project Gunrunner, according to an ATF release. He was in the custody of the Maricopa County, Arizona, sheriff. "Law enforcement officers disrupted a group of gun traffickers and recovered several weapons, including .50-caliber semiautomatic rifles and several handguns, allegedly intended to supply drug traffic organization members of the Juarez Cartel in Palomas, Mexico," the statement said. In state charges, prosecutors allege Varela and his co-defendants bought a number of guns in Arizona intending to supply the Mexican cartel members. The group allegedly transported the illegally purchased guns to New Mexico, and then into Mexico. A .50-caliber weapon is the largest that can legally be bought in the United States, and is illegal in Mexico. Authorities believe a .50-caliber weapon was used in recent months to kill Francisco Ledesma Salazar, a police commander in Juarez, Mexico. He is among five high-ranking Mexican police officials killed this year in what Mexico authorities describe as an escalating war between police and drug cartels. Last week, 2,000 troops were sent to Juarez by the Mexican government in an effort to quell the violence there, which has claimed some 200 lives since January. Guns are difficult to buy legally in Mexico, but can be obtained just north of the border at gun shows and gun shops. Project Gunrunner was launched as an effort to help Mexican police by cracking down on illegal smuggling of guns and ammunition, and has led to several arrests and seizures. Watch how the weapons fuel a little-known war » "This case was made one of our highest priorities because of the nature of the crime alleged to be committed by Varela," U.S. Marshal David Gonzales said in the ATF release. Guns featured in a CNN Special Investigations Unit report last week, confiscated by Juarez police, are believed to have been smuggled into Mexico by Varela, according to an ATF spokesman. Authorities said one recent discovery, in a storage locker in Yuma, Arizona, yielded 42 weapons and hundreds of rounds of .50-caliber bullets already belted to be fed into a machine gun-style weapon, as well as Fabrique Nationale pistols, semiautomatic handguns that fire a 5.7-by-28-millimeter round. "What's interesting about this gun, why it's in high demand, is the nickname that it has in Mexico," said William Newell, ATF special agent in charge, about the Fabrique National pistol. "It's called 'mata policias,' or 'cop killer.' " Charging documents allege that Varela was attempting to buy a fully automatic M-60 machine gun for a drug cartel associate in Palomas, authorities said. "Additionally, a number of firearms recovered by Mexico law enforcement ... allegedly were trafficked by Varela's gun smuggling network," the ATF statement said. U.S. authorities are sharing intelligence with their Mexican counterparts to assist in ongoing investigations, the ATF said. E-mail to a friend CNN's John Murgatroyd and Drew Griffin contributed to this report.

Suspect is alleged leader network believed to be smuggling guns into Mexico . Last week, 2,000 Mexican troops were sent to Juarez, Mexico, to quell violence . Mexican drug cartels blamed for killings of police officers . ATF: U.S. authorities sharing intelligence with their Mexican counterparts .

(CNN) -- The announced pregnancy of Jamie Lynn Spears -- the 16-year-old children's television star and younger sister of beleaguered pop star Britney Spears -- is casting new light on how states deal with the thorny issue of consensual sex among teens. Jamie Lynn Spears, shown in September, stars in the popular Nickelodeon series "Zoey 101." Spears, the star of Nickelodeon's "Zoey 101," told OK! Magazine that she's pregnant and that the father is her 18-year-old boyfriend. There has been no public talk of criminal prosecution in the case. Consensual sex between the two may well have been legal, depending on where and when it took place. But critics of the nation's statutory rape laws say that laws that are ignored in some cases can be used to put other teens in prison and land them on sex-offender registries. Watch CNN's Sunny Hostin on what the law says » "You have a disturbing disparity in how these laws are enforced," said Jonathan Turley, a law professor at George Washington University. "I have no problem at all with nailing adults who sleep with children, but I have a problem with the prosecution of teenagers in consensual relationships. "What this case should focus the nation on is having a more evenhanded approach to these cases." Watch a psychologist talk about how Spears' pregnancy could lead to parents talking to their kids about sex » In Louisiana, where Spears lives, it is a misdemeanor for someone age 17 to 19 to have consensual sex with someone age 15 to 17 if the difference between their ages is more than two years. In California, where she sometimes tapes her television show, it's a misdemeanor to have sex with someone younger than 18 if the offender is less than three years older. Someone more than three years older could be charged with a felony. According to OK! Magazine, which first reported the news Tuesday, Spears said the father of her baby is longtime boyfriend Casey Aldridge. Turley said most states have similar laws but rely on prosecutors to be selective in enforcing them. But that's a recipe for legal problems, he said. The issue drew international attention when a Georgia teen was sentenced to 10 years in prison for having consensual oral sex with a 15-year-old girl when he was 17. In 2005, Genarlow Wilson was tried for the rape of a 17-year-old girl at a hotel-room party. While he was found not guilty of that charge, he was convicted of aggravated child molestation for the act with the 15-year-old -- even though he was less than two years older. Georgia law, which has since been changed, required a mandatory 10-year sentence on the charge of aggravated child molestation and required Wilson to register as a sex offender when he was released. Under the revised Georgia law, the act now would be a misdemeanor. Now 21, Wilson was released from prison in October -- after serving more than two years -- when the state Supreme Court ruled his sentence was "grossly disproportionate to his crime." "The current laws leave too much to prosecutorial discretion," Turley said. "We saw in the Wilson case how prosecutorial discretion can lead to grotesque results." He said statutory rape prosecutions of teens are more common in Southern states and small towns than they are elsewhere in the country or in big cities. B.J. Bernstein, Wilson's attorney, argued throughout his case that Wilson was imprisoned for an act that, while perhaps morally questionable, probably is going on among teens everywhere. "If you prosecuted, even with misdemeanors, all those cases, you'd clog up the justice system with kids having sex," she said. "It's a social issue -- and it may be something that parents don't want to happen or wish wouldn't happen at that age -- but it shouldn't be a crime." Spears, who turned 16 on April 4 and says she is 12 weeks into her pregnancy, told the magazine she plans to raise her child in Louisiana,

Experts say there is a disparity in how statutory rape laws are applied . Jamie Lynn Spears is 16, and her boyfriend -- the father of her child -- is 18 . There has been no talk of criminal prosecution involving the couple . Experts: Attorneys choose when to prosecute, leading to unfairness .

(CNN) -- The assault began at dawn, as bullets and rockets peppered the remote outpost in eastern Afghanistan. Lt. Cason Shrode said that in less than two minutes, his team's generator was hit and they were out of power. The insurgency was so fierce, according to one soldier, that the troops couldn't get to their mortars to fire back. "They were under heavy enemy contact," Sgt. Jayson Souter said, describing the October 3 attack that pinned his comrades at Combat Outpost Keating, a remote base in Nuristan province. Four servicemen -- Souter, a fellow soldier, an Apache helicopter pilot, and a gunner -- talked to a military reporter about their roles during the Keating attack in an interview posted by the Department of Defense on Facebook and NATO's International Security Assistance Force YouTube Channel. The United States says about 200 insurgents -- mostly local fighters, with some Taliban organizers and leaders -- had been planning the attack for days, hiding mortars, rockets and heavy machine guns in the mountains. Watch more about their story » The battle started early on October 3 and lasted for 12 hours. At the end, eight American soldiers and more than 100 militants were killed and buildings at the outpost were destroyed. Fire support officer 1st Lt. Cason Shrode said the initial round "didn't seem like anything out of the ordinary." There was a lull and then there was a heavy attack. "We started receiving a heavy volley of fire. Probably 90 seconds into the fight they ended up hitting one of our generators so we lost all power," Shrode said in the interview posted online by the Defense Department. "At that point I knew that this was something bigger than normal." Troops called in air support. Helicopter gunner Chad Bardwell said he had to confirm the fighters he saw on ridgelines were the enemy because he had never seen such a large group of insurgents. "We tried to stop them as they were coming down the hill. ... We were taking fire pretty much the entire day," he said in the Defense Department interview. Chief Warrant Officer Ross Lewallen, the Apache pilot, said a few aircraft were damaged in what was a "time-consuming endeavor" governed by tough terrain. He said the morning battle was "significant," but later troops were able to identify targets and eliminate larger weapons. "One of the primary reasons for the fight taking so long is that it is an extreme terrain," he said in the same interview. Lewallen said the valley sits beneath mountains to the west and north. "There's a lot of cover so you really can't detect the enemy until they start moving again," he said, adding that it was tough for medical evacuation aircraft to land "because we were still trying to control" the outpost. The intense assault on Keating led to fires. There were five main buildings at the post and four of them burned. Soldiers eventually ended up going into one building. "The next morning it was pretty much ash besides that one building. I mean that's the way to describe it. Most of it had burned down. So we were pretty much at one building and the rest was just a shadow of what it used to be," Shrode said in the Defense Department interview. Lewallen said what came together was "air-ground integration." "All the training we've done before deploying here; it really clicked that day," he said in the interview. "We started realizing that the guys on the ground knew what they needed to tell us to get the job done. It made things that much easier." He disputed media reports suggesting that there weren't enough weapons and troops. He said 40 minutes into the fight, air power arrived. "We had everything we needed. It was just a big attack with a lot of people. Bad things happen -- but I think we did well, under the circumstances." Reflecting on the fight, Souter said, "

Soldiers describe October 3 attack at a remote base in Nuristan province . Their account posted by the Department of Defense on Facebook and YouTube . U.S.: Battle lasted 12 hours and eight American soldiers were killed .

(CNN) -- The attorney for a man whose wife's wrong-way accident killed eight people on New York's Taconic Parkway in July says he will ask authorities to exhume her body to prove she wasn't drinking at the time of the accident. On CNN's "Larry King Live" Tuesday night, Daniel Schuler said his wife, Diane, was not an alcoholic. Dominic Barbera, attorney for Daniel Schuler, told CNN's "Larry King Live" he believes Diane Schuler may have suffered stroke-like symptoms and that a fire after the accident could have turned blood sugar into alcohol. "I read from the medical autopsy report that there was charring of the body because there was a fire," Barbera said. "And I found -- my doctors found numerous cases where you can actually have sugar in the blood turn into alcohol." Barbera said Schuler may have had a Transient Ischemic Attack, which produces stroke-like symptoms but no lasting damage. Watch why husband believes wife wasn't drunk » The Westchester County medical examiner's office found that Schuler, 36, had a blood alcohol level of .19 percent -- more than twice the legal limit -- and had marijuana in her system when she drove a minivan the wrong way on the parkway and ran head-on into an SUV. Three adults in the SUV were killed in the July 26 crash, as were Schuler and four children she was carrying in the minivan -- her daughter and three nieces. A fifth child, Schuler's son, survived. A spokeswoman for the medical examiner's office, Donna Green, said that the office stands "by the findings of the medical examiner's report." But Daniel Schuler said he believed the report was wrong. "I know the truth, what happened, with my wife," he said. "She is not an alcoholic and doesn't drink. She is an outstanding mother." Barbera and Schuler said they wanted to have the body exhumed for further examinations to prove that the accident was not caused by a drunken driver. Attorneys for the family of Daniel Luongo, 73, one of the victims in the SUV, rejected the Schuler family's contention. "The scientific evidence indicates that Diane Schuler was intoxicated and under the influence of marijuana at the time of the crash," they said in a statement. "Any claims denying her responsibility for this tragedy are wholly unsubstantiated, and the Luongo family finds these claims appalling, offensive and hurtful. They have lost a loved one to a senseless tragedy, and these claims do nothing but add insult to injury."

Husband wants to prove wife wasn't drinking at time of fatal New York collision . Eight killed on Taconic Parkway in July as Diane Schuler drove wrong way . Attorney says Schuler may have had stroke-like symptoms . Fire after accident could have turned Schuler's blood sugar into alcohol, attorney says .

(CNN) -- The body of a woman was found near her car Wednesday, the apparent victim of an ammonia leak from a nearby plant in Swansea, South Carolina, police said. The leak occurred at the Tanner Industries plant as a hose had been connected from a delivery trailer containing anhydrous ammonia (purified ammonia) to a storage tank in the facility, said David Binder, director of quality safety and regulatory affairs for Tanner Industries. "During that operation, a hole burst in the hose," he said. "That released ammonia gas." The leak from the plant, located about 24 miles south of Columbia, was reported to the Lexington County Sheriff's Department shortly before 8 a.m., said Maj. John Allard, a public information officer for the department. Firefighters arrived within 10 minutes at the plant, where they saw a large, light-colored, dense plume, and closed area roads to traffic, he said. The ammonia hovered first over U.S. 321, then moved into a wooded area, blackening its foliage, Allard said. Public safety personnel searched the vicinity for any people or animals affected by the leak, and -- at 9:30 a.m. -- found the woman's body next to her vehicle, which was parked on the side of U.S. 321, he said. Officials were speculating that the woman had been driving north when she encountered the plume and tried to turn around, but her car stalled. She apparently got out of the vehicle and was overcome by the fumes, Allard said. An autopsy has been ordered. The woman's name was not released pending notification of her family. Seven people were taken to Lexington County Medical Center in stable condition with respiratory problems, none of which was life-threatening, Allard said. Five were plant workers; the other two were nearby residents. The road was reopened at 2 p.m., after the plume had dissipated, he said. The U.S. Chemical Safety Board -- an independent agency charged with investigating industrial chemical accidents -- announced it is deploying an investigation team to the site of the ammonia release. Tanner's Binder described the occurrence as "tragic," adding that nothing similar had occurred in the plant's more than 13 years of existence. "This is just heart-wrenching," he said, adding that there were no immediate plans to reopen the plant. Ammonia, a strong irritant that affects the respiratory system, is used in a variety of industries, including the manufacture of fertilizers and in commercial refrigeration systems. CNN's Anna Rhett Cobb contributed to this story

Ammonia leak reported at Tanner Industries plant in Swansea, South Carolina . Public safety officials searching area found woman's body by car . Officials speculate woman turned car around when she encountered plume . She may have gotten out of car, inhaled fumes, officials say .

(CNN) -- The brief detention in Havana, Cuba, last week of a Portland, Oregon, church group comes on the heels of the detention of an American contractor and could indicate an increasingly chilly reception for some American visitors, according to the church travelers. The December 26 trip for 14 members of the First Unitarian Church of Portland is a reminder of the entrenched tensions between Cuba and the United States despite the Obama administration's loosening of previous restrictions. The church group was traveling on a U.S.-issued license and planned to do humanitarian work. The group was denied entry to Cuba. Part of the group spent the night detained inside the Havana airport before being put on a plane to Mexico, the church's social justice minister, the Rev. Kate Lore, told CNN. The most recent trip was under a religious license, but the bulk of the mission was to be devoted to projects such as an AIDS clinic and teaching women how to make baby clothes The church made three trips in November without incident, but things went sour almost immediately after the 14 volunteers exited the plane in December, one of the participants, Jacquie Jones, told CNN. Most of the group passed through customs without a problem, but five members of the group were stopped and had their passports and licenses checked, Jones said. Jones said she told the Cuban officials, "We love the Cubans. We have many friends here; there is no reason to keep us out of the country." The Cuban authorities told the five that they were not allowed inside Cuba because they were there for religious reasons and forced them to wait for almost an hour and a half before putting them on a commercial flight back to Mexico, from where they had traveled. Jones pointed out the U.S. gives travel permits to Cuba for religious work, but the island, at least in this case, rejected the group for the same reason. "It's a total Catch-22," she said. The reason for the brusque treatment is likely because of the detention of another American earlier this month, several church members said. The detained man, whose name has not been released, is a subcontractor for Development Alternatives Inc., an international development group on contract with the U.S. government to promote human rights in Cuba. Cuban leader Raul Castro said that the man was detained because he was distributing satellite communications equipment in order to destabilize Cuba. For nearly a half a century, the United States has maintained a trade embargo against Cuba that many on the island nation have blamed for their country's woes. "I don't blame the Cuban government, or our government, but I truly believe something has to be done to normalize relations," Jones said. The nine others who had already passed through customs faced additional questioning and were detained inside the airport overnight, Carol Slegers, who was part of that group, told CNN. Later, it was learned that Cuban authorities considered imprisoning them, she said. Instead, they were left to find a place to sleep on the floor of the airport. The group ended up sleeping underneath a staircase, using fabric they brought for the clothes-making project as sheets, Slegers said. The next morning, they were put on a plane to Mexico. The Cuban officials "were rude and cold and indifferent," Slegers said. "It was very psychologically disarming." But, Slegers and others made clear, they were not mistreated by the Cubans. "We're upset because of the treatment, but ultimately, we want the policy to change," she said. "I hope goodwill and improvement of relations will come out of this incident, moving the two countries beyond the my-belt-is-bigger-than-your-belt diplomacy of the last half century."

Incident could indicate an increasingly chilly reception for some American visitors . Group traveling on a U.S.-issued license, planned to do humanitarian work . Cuban authorities put five back on plane to Mexico; rest spend night on airport floor . In another recent incident, an American contractor was detained .

(CNN) -- The building in Amstetten, eastern Austria, seems innocuous enough. But it is underneath this family home --- now known as "the house of horror" -- that a woman was held for nearly 24 years by her father and repeatedly raped, giving birth to seven children as a result. The bathroom used by the woman, who was held captive for more than two decades, and her three children. Now the first images have begun to emerge of the series of rooms in which 73-year-old man Josef Fritzl says he imprisoned his daughter, and three of her surviving children, in a basement 50-60 meters square that he converted himself. Police and authorities who have been down into the cellar after Fritzl gave them the electronic combination -- say that the rooms are very low, less than five-and-a-half feet high. The rooms included a sleeping quarters, a kitchen and a bathroom, all of which are said to be "very dark, narrow and damp," reports CNN correspondent Fred Pleitgen. Watch a report on details of the case » Elisabeth Fritzl has told officers that conditions were "dire" and that she and her children had little food and clothing. None had seen the light of day during their entire time in captivity, she told police. One photograph shows the white-tiled walls and floors of the bathroom and some token attempts to introduce some semblance of normality. A small child-like cutout of a yellow snail has been stuck over the sink, while a large plastic elephant sits atop the green bathroom cabinet. Above that, as elsewhere in the bathroom, droops a small plastic plant. Other accoutrements of everyday life litter the scene, including a hot water bottle, a small wooden chair and a towel. What looks like a wooden glass-framed door has been painted red; through the doorway is the bath itself, crammed in next to a toilet with a green seat. Above the bath is what looks like a large image of a flower, aside other decorations that appear to have been put on the walls. But the overwhelming sense from the images is one of grimness. The only evident light in this windowless room comes from the small bulb set into the bathroom cabinet; despite the whiteness of the walls, floor and bathroom fittings, it is a room that cannot hide its oppression as one of the few rooms that the three children, if reports are correct, have ever known. Other pictures convey the grimness of the dungeon still further. A narrow corridor, just over the width of a floor tile, leads down from what seems to be a kitchen area to sleeping quarters. A table in the foreground appear to have a cloth over it; a dressing gown hangs from the hook. But the spartan conditions and cramped conditions cannot belie the rooms' true purpose. A third image shows a corner of the dungeon with a wooden wall and construction materials piled up in a heap. A set of tiles has been fixed to the wall in what seem to be two sides of a doorway, blocked by what looks like a white rectangular board. Police at a press conference Monday said that this image showed the exit from the dungeon, controlled on the other side by an electronic keyless lock. E-mail to a friend

Austrian father confesses he held daughter prisoner for nearly 24 years First images emerge of the cellar dungeon in which she, three children held The rooms include a sleeping quarters, a kitchen and a bathroom . Police are still trying to understand the purpose of all the rooms in the cellar .

(CNN) -- The chief justice of the Brazilian Supreme Court ruled Tuesday in favor of an American father in an international custody battle. The ruling by Chief Justice Gilmar Mendes will reunite a 9-year-old boy with his father, David Goldman, who has been locked in a custody battle with the family of the boy's deceased mother. Last week, a lower court unanimously upheld a decision ordering that Sean Goldman be returned to his father in New Jersey. David Goldman arrived in Rio de Janeiro to reunite with his son, but one Supreme Court justice issued a stay, ordering Sean to remain with his Brazilian relatives until the high court could consider the case. Mendes' decision lifted the stay, paving the way for Goldman to be reunited with his son. Sean's grandmother, Silvana Bianchi, was expected to immediately file appeals to Tuesday's ruling. In a letter to Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Bianchi said that the legal process was overlooking the boy's own desires. "I feel threatened by losing my grandson Sean because of international pressures that don't consider the interest of a 9-year-old child who passionately desires to remain among those that gave him comfort in the mother's death," the letter states in part. "They allege that the Hague Convention determined to hand him over immediately. I am not a lawyer. But what I know is that the Convention establishes as priority the interest of the child, and the child wasn't heard." The custody battle began in 2004, when Goldman's wife, Bruna Bianchi, took their then-4-year-old son from their home in New Jersey to Rio de Janeiro for what was to have been a two-week vacation. She never returned, instead remarrying there and retaining custody of Sean. She died last year in childbirth. Goldman has argued that as the sole surviving parent, he should be granted custody. The Bianchi family argues it would traumatize Sean to remove him from what has been his home for five years. The custody battle garnered much media attention and spilled over into the political arena as well. U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-New Jersey, had placed a hold on a trade bill that would have benefited Brazil to the tune of $2.75 billion, but he lifted it on the court's ruling, spokesman Caley Gray said. The bill in question, which sailed through the Senate after the senator dropped the hold, would provide export tariff relief to 130 countries, of which Brazil would be the fifth largest recipient, Gray said. Lautenberg's hold was designed to exert additional pressure on Brazilian authorities to abide by the court order to return Sean to his father, he said. While the chief justice was still studying the case, Brazilian Attorney General Luis Inacio Adams said the executive branch sides with Goldman. "Once we stop cooperating and start breaking our treaties and international obligations, Brazil risks the chance of not having its own requests in the matters regarding international judicial help granted, based on the principle of international reciprocity," Adams said Monday. "Not releasing the minor into the custody of his father could bring sanctions against Brazil," he added. "It could damage Brazil's image before the international community." CNN's Mariano Castillo and Adam Reiss contributed to this report.

Supreme court lifts restraining order keeping boy in Brazil . David Goldman has been locked in a legal battle over his 9-year-old son, Sean . Goldman's wife took Sean from New Jersey to Rio de Janeiro for two weeks, never returned . Bruna Bianchi remarried, later died in childbirth; Sean has lived with her family since 2004 .

(CNN) -- The commander of the nuclear-powered submarine USS Hampton has been relieved of his command amid an inquiry into misconduct by crew members, the U.S. Navy said Friday. The USS Hampton appears in an undated photograph. Cmdr. Michael B. Portland lost his post "due to a loss of confidence in his ability to command," the Navy said in a statement. Cmdr. William J. Houston will replace Portland. The crew neither maintained inspection records nor conducted the required inspection of chemical levels associated with the cooling system of the ship's nuclear reactor, Navy officials said. The crew then went back and falsified existing records to make it appear the work had been done. "There is not, and never was, any danger to the crew or the public," the Navy said. Portland's demotion brings to 10 the number of people relieved of duty on the submarine in the wake of the misconduct probe. Six personnel have been punished for forging inspection records for the cooling system, the Navy officials said Monday. Those six -- one officer and five enlisted personnel -- received a "nonjudicial punishment" after other Navy personnel discovered their actions, the officials said. The Navy said Friday that one officer and two enlisted crew members have been temporarily reassigned to Submarine Squadron 11. Portland also will be temporarily reassigned to that squadron. The misconduct was discovered September 17 but not made public until after completion of an initial inquiry. A fact-finding investigation is under way, and further action against Navy crew members is possible, a Navy official said. The Hampton remains in port in San Diego, California. In all, the $900 million vessel's crew includes 13 officers and 116 enlisted personnel. E-mail to a friend

Navy says it has lost confidence in officer's ability to command . Crew members on sub disciplined for faking inspection records, Navy says . Ten people have been relieved of duty; six received "nonjudicial punishment"

(CNN) -- The company that produced the peanut butter linked to a nationwide salmonella outbreak said late Tuesday that it was voluntarily recalling all products made in its Blakely, Georgia, plant. Salmonella bacteria are transmitted to humans by eating contaminated foods. The Peanut Corporation of America, a peanut processing company, made the peanut butter sold by King Nut company. Health officials in Minnesota have said that salmonella they linked to an open container of King Nut peanut butter was the same strain of bacteria responsible for the apparently ongoing outbreak, which has infected at least 434 people in 43 states. However, the King Nut product is unlikely to be responsible for the entire outbreak, since it distributes its peanut butter only to food service companies in just seven states: Ohio, Minnesota, Michigan, North Dakota, Arizona, Idaho and New Hampshire. So, the Peanut Corporation of America said it was voluntarily recalling all peanut butter produced in its Blakely plant "out of an abundance of caution." Some of it is distributed to another company. What you need to know about food poisoning » "We deeply regret that this has happened," company president Stewart Parnell said. Over the past few days, Food and Drug Administration inspectors visited the Blakely plant, where they took hundreds of samples for testing, Parnell said. The salmonella outbreak has been spreading across much of the country since September. Salmonella enterica serotype Typhimurium played a role in the deaths of an elderly person from southwestern Virginia and an adult from northern Virginia. The third death was a nursing home resident in her 70s in Minnesota. All three of the patients who died had underlying illnesses that could have contributed to their deaths, state officials said. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in a written statement, has called peanut butter "a likely source" of the infections. But it said that no association had been found with common brand names of peanut butter sold in grocery stores. The first cases of salmonella were reported September 3, but most occurred between October 1 and January 6, the CDC said. About 18 percent of cases were hospitalized as a result of their illness, and patients have ranged from 2 months to 98 years of age. CDC spokeswoman Lola Russell said a preliminary analysis suggests peanut butter as a likely source of the outbreak. No cases connected to the outbreak have been reported in Montana, New Mexico, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Florida or Alaska. Very young people, older people and those with compromised immune systems are most vulnerable to severe side effects of salmonella infection, including death, health officials have said. CNN's Miriam Falco contributed to this report.

The Peanut Corp. of America recalls all products made in Blakely, Georgia, plant . Peanut butter linked to salmonella outbreak has sickened 425 in 43 states . Three deaths possibly linked to the outbreak; two in Virginia, one in Minnesota .

(CNN) -- The day was supposed to be remembered as one filled with happiness. Their daughter, after all, had just turned 2 years old. Instead, Nikki Peterson remembers December 30, 2007 as the day her husband Billy got sick. Billy Anderson's undiagnosed condition has kept him in the hospital for more than a year. Billy Anderson was in fine health until that evening last winter. He woke up in pain and his wife rushed him to the emergency room. Over the next few days, he suffered a number of ailments, from a running fever and hives to swelling joints. Nikki says she knew there was something wrong when Billy was no longer able to walk around the house. "This is a 6-foot, 240-pound guy who doesn't usually complain about anything," she says. The couple, from Baxter Springs, Kansas, made three trips to the emergency room. On their third visit, Nikki refused to go home until doctors agreed to keep Billy in the hospital for further evaluation. Since then, Billy, age 29, has been in and out of intensive care. He's spent time on a ventilator and suffered kidney failure. His body isn't absorbing nutrients, and as a result, his 240-pound frame has been whittled down by 100 pounds. See photos of Billy and his family » One year and a battery of tests later, doctors still haven't pinpointed the cause of his condition. CNN's medical show "Vital Signs" recently asked viewers to tell their health stories on iReport.com. Nikki and her mom, Vicki Peterson, jumped at the opportunity. Tell your story with iReport.com They hope their story will reach someone who can help solve Billy's unexplained illness. Doctors have gone through at least 40 possible diagnoses, according to Nikki. "We've been told that this is 'Billy's Disease,' and that this will be written about in medical journals. We hope somebody has missed a test or overlooked something," she says. Billy, a father of two who dreams of opening up his own restaurant one day, appears to have some type of problem with B-cells, according to Nikki. B-cells play a critical role in keeping the immune system healthy. Dr. Jennifer Holter, who has been treating Billy at Oklahoma University Medical Center since the fall of 2008, says several immunologists have reviewed his case but the underlying reason for his immunodeficiency is still unclear. Early on, doctors thought he had Crohn's disease, an inflammatory bowel disease, but that turned out not to be the case. They also haven't been able to identify a typical gene disorder that may be the source. Most immunodeficiency disorders present themselves in childhood. Adult onset that isn't linked to a genetic event is even more uncommon, Dr. Holter says. "I think when you have close to 25 immunologists look at you and they can't figure out what's causing the problem, you can call that pretty rare," she says. The ordeal has taken an emotional toll on the family. "It's been devastating. It's traumatic for the children to have to watch someone who was once so strong suffer," says Nikki. Being uninsured has added financial stress. Billy had just started a new job training to be a kitchen manager when he first got sick. As a result, he didn't have insurance. He was able to apply for Medicaid, but his coverage was canceled once he started receiving disability assistance. Oklahoma University Medical Center has become the family's second home. Nikki has moved to nearby Tulsa in order to be able to spend half of the week by Billy's side. Billy is currently receiving treatment that helps him replace the cells his body isn't making. He's also receiving immunosuppressants to suppress aggravation in his gut. "This is a very unfortunate situation for a very nice 29-year-old and we will keep offering him the best clinical care we can," Dr. Holter says. Billy has cycled through five hospitals in the span of 12 months,

iReport.com: Viewers, readers share their health stories . Billy Anderson's mysterious illness has kept him in the hospital for over a year . Once the picture of health, Billy has lost 100 pounds due to his sickness . Doctors call his condition 'Billy's Disease', wife Nikki Peterson says .

(CNN) -- The death of a spectator overshadowed an intriguing 14th stage of the Tour de France which saw Rinaldo Nocentini desperately cling on to the leader's yellow jersey in cycling's premier event. George Hincapie, front, upstaged his compatriot and former teammate Lance Armstrong to take second place overall. A woman died after being hit by a police motorcycle on Saturday afternoon in Wittelsheim, a village in Alsace in northeastern France which is 40 kilometers from the start of the race's leg from Colmar to Besancon. French police told CNN that two other people were injured and taken to hospital. The Tour released a statement on its official Web site saying the 61-year-old woman was hit when she crossed the road after a group of cyclists passed, then the motorcycle slid and injured two other spectators. A 36-year-old is in hospital with neck pain, and a 61-year-old has a broken leg The incident marred an eventful day's racing in which George Hincapie leapt up into second place overall, five seconds behind Nocentini, following a 12-man breakaway. The American finished eighth in a group of eight who were all 16 seconds behind stage winner Serguei Ivanov of Russia, and had been ahead of Nocentini until the 143-strong peloton made up time at the end. The Columbia team rider's rise up the standings saw his compatriot and former teammate, seven-time champion Lance Armstrong, drop to fourth place overall. Armstrong was still eight seconds off the lead after finishing 49th, with Astana teammate Alberto Contador six seconds adrift in third following his classification of 37th. Nocentini was relieved to retain first place and was grateful to his AG2R teammates, with Nicolas Roche finishing second after powering past Hayden Roche in the final few hundred meters as Ivanov claimed his second stage victory eight years after his first. "It was a very difficult day today because we're getting tired from all the effort in the last week," the Italian, who finished 45th, told the race's official Web site. "We had a rider up front so we didn't have to ride but because Hincapie was in the move there was a big risk of losing the yellow jersey. "Eventually, with 50 kilometers to go, our directeur sportif Vincent Lavenu said, 'Okay, let's go! Let's catch the guys.' Okay this wasn't possible but we had to limit our losses and keep the jersey. "I told the guys, 'Listen, I don't mind. If you want to go for it and defend the jersey, that's great. But if you don't want to, that's okay. You've already worked so hard over the last few days so it doesn't really matter.' "Eventually I've kept the lead by just five seconds, so I'm really pleased with how this Tour has gone for me so far. And I'm really grateful for the commitment from my team." Thor Hushovd extended his lead in the green jersey sprint category as he finished at the head of the peloton in 13th place, while nearest rival Mark Cavendish finished right at the back of it in 154th after the two tussled in the closing stages. The riders will now head back into the mountains through the Swiss Alps for the 207.5km 15th stage from Pontarlier to Verbier, with the climbers expected to come to the fore again just a week ahead of the finish in Paris.

A woman dies after being hit by a police motorcycle during the 14th stage . Police say two other people were injured and taken to hospital on Saturday . Rinaldo Nocentini of Italy retains leader's yellow jersey after surviving big scare . George Hincapie moves up to second place, Lance Armstrong drops to fourth .

(CNN) -- The entire population of Taloga, Oklahoma, was evacuated Thursday because of a raging fire that has burned tens of thousands of acres, officials said Friday. Wildfire threatens a house in Edmond, Oklahoma, on Friday. All of the residents, about 400, left the Dewey County town, but have been allowed back in, said Bill Challis with the fire department in Clinton, Oklahoma, south of Taloga. Clinton is among dozens of fire departments helping battle the blaze. Wildfires have been burning in northwest and central Oklahoma since Thursday, according to the state Department of Emergency Management. A large wildfire also came within inches of homes north of Edmond late Friday morning and was still burning during the noon hour, CNN affiliate KOCO reported. Oklahoma Department of Public Safey officials also report that one to two city blocks of Weleetka, in Okfuskee County, were on fire, according to KOCO. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has approved the state's request for federal assistance for fighting the wildfire in Dewey County, where Taloga is located. The original call about the Taloga fire came in Thursday at about 12:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m. ET), Challis said. Officials don't know how the fire started. Brett Russell, also with the Clinton Fire Department, said about 60,000 acres have burned. There are no reports of anyone injured. As of about 11 a.m. Friday (12 p.m. ET), the Taloga fire was about 50 to 60 percent contained. About 80 fire departments helping battle the blaze, Russell told CNN. An Oklahoma Army National Guard Blackhawk helicopter was helping with aerial fire suppression, according to the state.

All residents of Taloga, Oklahoma, were evacuated because of fire . Entire population of about 400 people allowed back in . Wildfires have been burning in northwest and central Oklahoma since Thursday . Wildfire also burning near towns of Edmond, Waleeka .

(CNN) -- The entire population of Taloga, Oklahoma, was evacuated Thursday because of a raging fire that has burned tens of thousands of acres, officials said Friday. Wildfire threatens a house in Edmond, Oklahoma, on Friday. All of the residents, about 400, left the Dewey County town, but have been allowed back in, said Bill Challis with the fire department in Clinton, Oklahoma, south of Taloga. Clinton is among dozens of fire departments helping battle the blaze. Wildfires have been burning in northwest and central Oklahoma since Thursday, according to the state Department of Emergency Management. A large wildfire also came within inches of homes north of Edmond late Friday morning and was still burning during the noon hour, CNN affiliate KOCO reported. Oklahoma Department of Public Safey officials also report that one to two city blocks of Weleetka, in Okfuskee County, were on fire, according to KOCO. The Federal Emergency Management Agency has approved the state's request for federal assistance for fighting the wildfire in Dewey County, where Taloga is located. The original call about the Taloga fire came in Thursday at about 12:30 p.m. (1:30 p.m. ET), Challis said. Officials don't know how the fire started. Brett Russell, also with the Clinton Fire Department, said about 60,000 acres have burned. There are no reports of anyone injured. As of about 11 a.m. Friday (12 p.m. ET), the Taloga fire was about 50 to 60 percent contained. About 80 fire departments helping battle the blaze, Russell told CNN. An Oklahoma Army National Guard Blackhawk helicopter was helping with aerial fire suppression, according to the state.

All residents of Taloga, Oklahoma, were evacuated because of fire . Entire population of about 400 people allowed back in . Wildfires have been burning in northwest and central Oklahoma since Thursday . Wildfire also burning near towns of Edmond, Waleeka .

(CNN) -- The family of a Chicago teenager whose beating death was caught on video hope that the attention the incident has garnered will spur healing locally, a relative said at a news conference Wednesday evening. Derrion Albert, 16, was beaten to death last week. His death was captured on video. "It should've never happened, but it's never too late," said Rose Braxton, great-aunt of 16-year-old Derrion Albert. "It's time for healing to start getting our communities together so this won't happen to anyone else's child ever again." Four suspects have been charged with first-degree murder in the September 24 killing of Albert, and police say they are looking for three more people in connection with the beating captured on videotape. Prosecutors said that Albert, an honors student, was an innocent bystander who ended up in the middle of a street fight between two factions of students from Fenger High School. The incident caught the attention of the White House, too. The footage of the incident, which shows Albert being hit by a railroad tie, "is "chilling" and one of the most shocking things "you can ever see," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Wednesday. President Obama's concern over the killing didn't provide additional comfort to the family, "but I'm glad that it's out there so everyone can see it and they know that, yes, this is happening," Braxton said. "This was vicious. How do you just come out and decide that you're going to attack someone with a two-by-four?" Braxton said. She spoke to reporters together with area community and church leaders. "Maybe this will wake up and shake up people," the Rev. Jesse Jackson said at the press conference, noting that three teens were killed in Chicago this week. Braxton said her message to the White House was simply, "Do something." "We need to get to our children," she said. "Why are they so angry, so full of venom, that you would even consider doing something like that to another human being?" Albert's funeral was scheduled for Saturday at 10 a.m. at Greater Mount Hebron Baptist Church in Chicago. An amateur videotape shot by a witness, which has been broadcast widely, showed the attack unfolding. A local TV station that received the tape turned it over to police. When school let out at 2:50 p.m. on Thursday, Albert was on his way to a bus stop when two groups of students converged on the street, said Tandra Simonton, spokeswoman for the Cook County States Attorney. The factions, one that lived near the Altgeld Gardens housing development and one in an area known as "The Ville," began fighting after an earlier shooting that police called gang-related. According to Simonton, Albert was approached by two members of "The Ville" faction and struck in the head with a long wooden railroad tie, then punched in the face. After being briefly knocked unconscious, Albert regained consciousness and tried to move from the fight, but was then attacked by a second group of five members from the opposing faction, Simonton said. Albert was taken to Roseland Community Hospital and then to Advocate Christ Hospital and Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead. Chicago Police Superintendent Jody Weis said he asked the U.S. Secret Service to try to enhance the video so that others involved in the fight can be identified. Weis pleaded with anyone who may have information not to withhold it. "The culture of 'no-snitch' is unacceptable," he said. "On Thursday, a young man with a promising future lost his life to senseless violence, yet few have come forward." Authorities are also considering charging people who participated in the fight but did not come into contact with Albert, he said. Asked about the killing as Obama prepares to travel to Copenhagen, Denmark, to lobby the International Olympic Committee to award Chicago the 2016 Games, Gibbs described

Victim's great-aunt: Stop this from happening to "anyone else's child ever again" "Maybe this will wake up and shake up people," the Rev. Jesse Jackson says . Derrion Albert, 16, was beaten to death last week; beating was captured on video . Police still seeking other suspects related to Albert's death .

(CNN) -- The family of a Korean-American missionary believed held in North Korea said Tuesday they are working with U.S. officials to get him returned home. Robert Park told relatives before Christmas that he was trying to sneak into the isolated communist state to bring a message of "Christ's love and forgiveness" to North Korean leader Kim Jong Il. In a written statement issued Tuesday on the family's behalf, his brother, Paul Park, said Park's well-being "has been a source of ongoing concern and anxiety" since they received reports he had entered North Korea. "He is a very special member of our family. We miss having his love and compassion in our home," the family statement said. "I don't know where he's being held, but if he can receive this message, we want him to know we love him, we miss him and we are waiting anxiously for the opportunity to be reunited with him." Paul Park said his San Diego, California-area family is working with the U.S. State Department and members of Congress to bring about his "eventual safe return." North Korea announced Tuesday that it was holding an American who entered the country illegally from China on Christmas Eve. The state-run Korea Central News Agency did not identify the man, who it said was "now under investigation by a relevant organ." Monday, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said Washington was concerned by reports that Park had gone into North Korea but could not confirm them. Washington and Pyongyang have no diplomatic relations, but Kelly said the Swedish Embassy -- which looks after U.S. interests in North Korea -- has offered to try to find out more. A South Korean Web site last week posted a copy of the letter it said Park was trying to deliver to Kim, which urged the North Korean leader in the name of Jesus Christ to free political prisoners and "open your borders so that we may bring food, provisions, medicine, necessities, and assistance to those who are struggling to survive." North Korean authorities take a dim view of people who enter the country without authorization. Two American journalists who were arrested along the North Korean-Chinese border in March faced a 12-year sentence at hard labor, but were released after a meeting between Kim and former U.S. President Bill Clinton in Pyongyang. But Park's parents told CNN affiliate KFMB that their son was willing to risk his life to deliver his message to Kim.

Korean-American missionary Robert Park is believed to be held in North Korea . Park told relatives he was trying to sneak in to bring message of "Christ's love and forgiveness" Korea Central News Agency: American taken into custody after entering from China . U.S. State Department concerned by reports about Park but could not confirm them .

(CNN) -- The first pictures from NASA's Mars Phoenix Lander, which successfully touched down near Mars' north pole Sunday, showed a pattern of brown polygons as far as the camera could see. The Mars Phoenix Lander took this image of the planet's surface at its landing site Sunday. "It's surprisingly close to what we expected and that's what surprises me most," said Peter Smith, the mission's principal investigator. "I expected a bigger surprise." The landing on the Red Planet's arctic plains -- which ended a 296-day journey -- was right on target, a feat NASA's Ed Weiler compared to landing a hole-in-one with a golf ball from 10,000 miles. The landing -- dubbed the "seven minutes of terror" -- was a nerve-wracking experience for mission managers, who have witnessed the failure of similar missions. In mission control at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, they celebrated the lander's much-anticipated entry. "It was better than we could have imagined," Barry Goldstein, project manager for the Phoenix mission, told CNN. Watch the celebration at mission control » The Phoenix's 90-day mission is to analyze the soils and permafrost of Mars' arctic tundra for signs of past or present life. The lander is equipped with a robotic arm capable of scooping up ice and dirt to look for organic evidence that life once existed there, or even exists now. "We are not going to be able to answer the final question of is there life on Mars," said principal investigator Peter Smith, an optical scientist with the University of Arizona. "We will take the next important step. We'll find out if there's organic material associated with this ice in the polar regions. Ice is a preserver, and if there ever were organics on Mars and they got into that ice, they will still be there today." The twin to the Mars Polar Lander spacecraft, Phoenix was supposed to travel to Mars in 2001 as the Mars Surveyor spacecraft. They were originally part of the "better, faster, cheaper" program, formulated by then-NASA Administrator Dan Goldin to beef up planetary exploration on a lean budget. But Polar malfunctioned during its descent into Mars' atmosphere in 1999 and crashed. An investigation concluded that as many as a dozen design flaws or malfunctions doomed the spacecraft. The failure of that mission, as well as another spacecraft called the Mars Climate Orbiter the same year, led to NASA to put future missions on hold and rethink the "better, faster, cheaper" approach. Mars Surveyor went to the warehouse. Watch the challenges the mission faced » But all was not lost. In 2003, Smith proposed a plan to re-engineer the Mars Surveyor and fly it on a mission to look for signatures of life in the ice and dirt of Mars far North. Mars Phoenix, literally and figuratively, rose from the ashes of Surveyor. Engineers set to work, testing and retesting the onboard system to ferret out and fix all the flaws they could find. iReport.com: Send your photos, video of space "We always have to be scared to death," Goldstein said. "The minute we lose fear is the minute that we stop looking for the next problem." The team was concerned about the Phoenix landing system. NASA had not successfully landed a probe on Mars using landing legs and stabilizing thrusters since the Viking missions in the late 1970s. The other three successful Mars landings -- Pathfinder in 1997 and the Spirit and Opportunity rovers in 2004 -- used massive airbags that inflated around the landing craft just before landing to cushion the impact. Learn about NASA's past missions to Mars » The Phoenix doesn't have airbags because the lander is too big and heavy for them to work properly. Its landing site was targeted for the far northern plains of Mars, near the northern polar ice cap. Data from the Mars Odyssey spacecraft indicate large quantities of ice there, likely in the form of permafrost, either on the surface

The Mars Phoenix Lander landed on Mars on Sunday . Phoenix mission is to analyze planet's soils to find signs of life . Experts weren't optimistic about a smooth landing . Getting lander on Mars was dubbed the "7 minutes of terror"

(CNN) -- The former Utah state trooper suspected in a series of roadway shootings earlier this week died Wednesday, the Dallas County Medical Examiner's Office said. CNN affiliate KSL in Salt Lake City, Utah, provided this file photo of the Dallas suspect, Brian Smith. Police said Tuesday that Brian Smith attempted suicide after Monday's shootings. Smith was brought to a local hospital in serious condition, officials said At 7 p.m. Wednesday Smith died at Parkland Hospital, the medical examiner's office said. An autopsy is slated for Thursday. Two people were killed in the shootings along a three-mile stretch on and near the LBJ Freeway, about 10 miles northeast of downtown Dallas. Police used ballistic tests to link Smith, a 12-year veteran of the Utah state police, to three of the four shootings, Dallas Police Lt. Craig Miller said Tuesday. Miller said Smith was a suspect in both nonfatal shootings and one of the fatal shootings. He said it was unclear if Smith was a suspect in the fatal shooting that occurred first. The first attack occurred in the city of Garland at about 5:41 p.m. Victim Jorge Lopez, 20, was sitting in his Nissan at a traffic light in Garland when a man in a pickup pulled alongside him and fired shots into his car, killing him, Officer Joe Harn of the Garland police said. A few minutes later and two miles away on the LBJ Freeway, a gunman fired at two tractor-trailers. While one driver escaped injuries, William Scott Miller, 42, of Frankfort, Kentucky, was shot to death behind the wheel of a United Van Lines truck, police said. "He was going to be traveling home," Lt. Miller said. "He was about to park his rig. He was going to get on a plane to fly to be with his wife and children for the Christmas season and then come back to this location." Miller called the truck driver a hero because he was able to control his rig before he died -- preventing other motorists from being hurt. The fourth attack came a mile west on LBJ Freeway, where gunfire shattered the windshield of another tractor-trailer. The bullets missed the driver, but flying glass caused minor cuts, police said. Smith, 37, left his trooper job in Utah after he was caught abusing alcohol and drugs, CNN affiliate WFAA reported, citing an official report. The sergeant began using drugs and alcohol after his patrol car was rear-ended while he was writing a ticket, according to the report by Utah Peace Officers Standards and Training. He moved to Texas shortly afterward, the station said. Harn told WFAA that Smith's wife had phoned police Monday to say her husband was suicidal and driving around with a gun. Police were able to locate him using cell phone transmission towers. A three-hour stand-off followed, ending when Smith shot himself in the head, Harn said.

Police say ex-Utah officer was tied to at least three of four Dallas shootings . Police: Brian Smith was hospitalized in serious condition after a suicide attempt . Two drivers were shot and killed, another wounded in Dallas rush hour Monday .

(CNN) -- The head of Pakistan's ruling coalition announced Thursday that the government will move to impeach President Pervez Musharraf. President Pervez Musharraf took control of Pakistan in a military coup in 1999. "The coalition reaffirmed the resolve of democracy and democratic forces will work jointly to make a transition to genuine democracy," the head of Pakistan People's Party Asif Ali Zardari said, reading a joint communique with his coalition partners. Before pursuing impeachment proceedings, Pakistani lawmakers will demand Musharraf take a vote of confidence in the newly elected parliament, which he had vowed to do last year, Zardari said. "The people of Pakistan gave a clear mandate in favor of democracy and democratic forces and voted for the change to oust Gen. Musharraf by defeating his ... party," Zardari added. "In spite of his clear commitment that if his party was defeated in the election he would resign, he continues to cling to the office of the president." Watch an expert talk about the impact of a possible impeachment » If Musharraf does not request a vote of confidence, the National Assembly will meet on Monday to consider impeachment proceedings, PPP spokesman Capt. Wasif Syed told CNN. Speaking a short time before Thursday's announcement, Syed said there are enough votes in parliament right now to impeach the president. But Musharraf may still have one card up his sleeve: he could move to dissolve parliament and dismiss the prime minister. Amid the political upheaval, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani will replace Musharraf at the opening ceremony of the Olympics on Friday in Beijing, Pakistan's state-run news agency reported. Musharraf, who seized power in a 1999 bloodless military coup, has seen his power erode significantly since he stepped down as the country's military ruler last year and since the opposition parties' victory in February's parliamentary elections. The new civilian government is under a lot of pressure to control Taliban and al Qaeda militants in its tribal region along the Afghan border. The CIA recently accused Pakistan's intelligence service of providing support for the militants who bombed India's embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan last month. Fighting on Thursday between Pakistani paramilitary troops and Taliban forces killed 25 Taliban and five soldiers along the Afghan border, an army spokesman told CNN. Asked about the situation, Dr. Ishtiaq Ahmad -- an Islamabad-based political analyst -- told CNN on Wednesday that he believes Musharraf "will fight back" against any attempt to remove him from power. "Before they impeach the president, he might pre-empt them by using article 58(2b)," he said, referring to the constitutional article that gives the president power to dissolve parliament and dismiss the prime minister. Ahmad, a professor of international relations at Islamabad's Quaid-i-Azam University, said any attempt to remove Musharraf would be a "next to an impossible task" because the president still has support. "The army doesn't want him to be eliminated. The Americans are still favoring him," he noted. CNN's Reza Sayah contributed to this report

Pakistan's government confirms move to impeach President Pervez Musharraf . Musharraf may still move to dissolve parliament and dismiss the PM . PM Yousaf Raza Gilani will replace Musharraf at the Olympic opening ceremony . Musharraf seized power in a 1999 military coup .

(CNN) -- The head of the U.N. Children's Fund has expressed concern over a Saudi judge's refusal for a second time to annul a marriage between an 8-year-old girl and a 47-year-old man. UNICEF's Ann Veneman said consent cannot be free if either party is too young to make an informed decision. "Irrespective of circumstances or the legal framework, the marriage of a child is a violation of that child's rights," said Ann Veneman, executive director of UNICEF. "The right to free and full consent to marriage is recognized in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Consent cannot be free and full when either party to a marriage is too young to make an informed decision." The most recent ruling, in which the judge upheld his original verdict, was handed down Saturday in the Saudi city of Onaiza, where late last year the same judge rejected a petition from the girl's mother, seeking a divorce for her daughter. Have your say by clicking here A relative said the judge, Sheikh Habib al-Habib, "stuck by his earlier verdict and insisted that the girl could petition the court for a divorce once she reached puberty." The family member, who requested anonymity, added that the mother will continue to pursue a divorce for her daughter. The case, which has drawn criticism from local and international rights groups, came to light in December when al-Habib declined to annul the marriage on a legal technicality. The judge ruled that the girl's mother -- who is separated from her father -- was not the girl's legal guardian and therefore could not represent her in court, Abdullah al-Jutaili, the mother's attorney, told CNN at the time. The girl's father, according to the lawyer, arranged the marriage in order to settle his debts with the man, who is a close friend of his. At the time of the initial verdict, the judge required the girl's husband to sign a pledge that he would not have sex with her until she reaches puberty, al-Jutaili told CNN. The judge ruled that when the girl reaches puberty, she will have the right to request a divorce by filing a petition with the court, the lawyer said. Last month, an appeals court in the Saudi capital of Riyadh declined to certify the original ruling, in essence rejecting al-Habib's verdict, and sent the case back to him for reconsideration. Under the complicated Saudi legal process, the appeals court ruling meant that the marriage was still in effect, but that a challenge to the marriage was still ongoing. The appeals court in Riyadh will now take up the case again and a hearing is scheduled for next month, according to the relative. The issue of child marriage has been a hot-button topic in the deeply conservative kingdom recently. While rights groups have petitioned the government for laws to protect children from such marriages, the kingdom's top cleric has said that it's OK for girls as young as 10 to wed. "It is incorrect to say that it's not permitted to marry off girls who are 15 and younger," Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Sheikh, the kingdom's grand mufti, said in remarks last January, according to the regional Al-Hayat newspaper. "A girl aged 10 or 12 can be married. Those who think she's too young are wrong, and they are being unfair to her." Al-Sheikh reportedly made the remarks when he was asked during a lecture about parents forcing their underage daughters to marry. "We hear a lot in the media about the marriage of underage girls," he said, according to the newspaper. "We should know that sharia law has not brought injustice to women." Sharia law is Islamic law. Saudi Arabia follows a strict interpretation of Islam called Wahhabism. CNN was unable to reach government officials for comment. Christoph Wilcke, a Saudi Arabia researcher for Human Rights Watch, told CNN in December that his organization has heard of many other cases of child marriages.

UNICEF: Marriage of a child is a violation of that child's rights . Judge said girl could petition "once she reaches puberty," relative tells CNN . Girl's father arranged her marriage to a 47-year-old to settle debts, lawyer says . Girl's mother says she will continue to seek daughter's divorce .

(CNN) -- The last of six Texas A&M University mariners who went missing in the Gulf of Mexico was found dead Sunday afternoon, the Coast Guard said. The other five crewmates were rescued earlier in the day. Members of the Texas A&M Offshore Sailing Team are shown in this photo from the team's Web site. The deceased mariner was identified by the university as Roger Stone, the vessel's second safety officer. The survivors -- four university students and a safety officer -- told the Coast Guard they were forced off their sailboat after it took on water and capsized. "The flooding was so fast that the thing flipped over," Coast Guard Capt. William Diehl told CNN. The sailboat, named Cynthia Woods, was one of about two dozen boats heading from Galveston, Texas, to Veracruz, Mexico, for the annual Veracruz Regatta race, which began on Friday. Diehl said the boat was well-stocked with safety equipment -- including emergency radio beacons, life rafts and ring buoys -- but the crew could only manage to find four life jackets after the boat tipped over. "The survivors told us that [when] they went into the water, they had four life jackets among the five, and they huddled together and they exchanged the life jackets among them so that they could stay afloat," Diehl said. Communication with the boat was lost about midnight Friday, and the boat missed its 8 a.m. radio check the next morning, the Coast Guard reported. A sailboat matching the description of the missing 38-foot boat was found overturned about 5:15 p.m. Saturday, authorities said. The five survivors were found several hours later about 23 miles south of Freeport, Texas, according to the Coast Guard's press release. They were lifted to safety by a U.S. Coast Guard helicopter around 2 a.m. local time and taken to University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston for treatment. The search for the missing crew member involved two Coast Guard helicopters, a Falcon jet, a Marine Corps C-130 -- which has night-vision capabilities -- and the Coast Guard cutter Manowar. All of those on board the capsized sailboat were experienced sailors, Diehl said. "They were very well trained," Diehl said. "Obviously [they were] the more senior cadets at the university here, and they had very experienced safety people on board." When rescuers retrieved the capsized boat's hull, Diehl said the keel was missing. "That's the part that keeps the sailboat balanced in the water," he said. "And from talking to the survivors this morning, that's where the flooding started for them." The 725-mile Veracruz regatta began on Friday and boats are expected to arrive in Veracruz on Wednesday and Thursday.

Deceased mariner identified by the university as Roger Stone . Coast Guard rescues five sailors reported missing . Texas A&M sailboat was taking part in regatta from Galveston to Veracruz, Mexico . Boat's six-person crew missed 8 a.m. radio check Saturday .

(CNN) -- The long-running Carlos Tevez affair was finally brought to a close on Monday as West Ham and Sheffield United reached an out-of-court settlement. Tevez scored a crucial winning goal at Manchester United on last day of the 2006-07 season. West Ham will be paying United an undisclosed compensation fee to settle the dispute, meaning an independent tribunal chaired Lord Griffiths will not reconvene to rule on the controversy. A statement from Blades chairman Kevin McCabe and West Ham chief executive Scott Duxbury released to the Press Association said: "Both clubs are pleased to announce that a satisfactory settlement for compensation has been reached which brings the dispute between Sheffield United and West Ham to an end. "The tribunal will not be resuming." The Tevez controversy began in 2006 when the Argentina international and his fellow-countryman Javier Mascherano were signed by West Ham under third party ownership deals which contravened Premier League rules. Mascherano was later loaned to Liverpool, but Tevez stayed at Upton Park and played a crucial role as West Ham narrowly avoided relegation. He scored the winning goal as the Hammers beat Manchester United on the last day of the season to send Sheffield United down. Tevez later joined Premier League champions Manchester United, but the row lingered on with Sheffield United continuing to insist that West Ham had gained an unfair advantage. The affair has sparked three separate inquiries, the first of which led to a $8 million fine for West Ham, but crucially no points deduction. But United refused to give up and in September 2008 an independent arbitration ruled in their favor in a claim for compensation from West Ham. The Premier League and the Football Association promptly announced another fresh inquiry, but the out-of court settlement looks set to bring the affair to an amicable conclusion. West Ham, whose Icelandic owner Bjorgolfur Gudmundsson has been hard hit by the global economic downturn, were reported by Sky Sports News to be paying the compensation fee, which could rise to $35 million, in installments. The money will certainly be welcomed by Sheffield United, who are pressing for promotion from the Championship to the Premier League. "We are two clubs with a fantastic footballing history who now want to move on and focus on the business of playing football -- hopefully for us against the Hammers in the Premier League next season," said McCabe.

Carlos Tevez now starring for Premier League champions Manchester United . Tevez scored crucial goal as West Ham avoided the drop in the 06-07 season . Relegated Sheffield United claimed West Ham had gained an unfair advantage .

(CNN) -- The man arrested for the videotaped rape of a toddler in Las Vegas, Nevada, will make his initial appearance in court Friday, a Clark County, Nevada, court official told CNN Tuesday. Authorities have not yet decided if Chester Arthur Stiles will appear in person or via video link. The judge will set a date for the arraignment at that hearing. Stiles, 37, was taken into custody Monday night after a Henderson, Nevada, police officer pulled over the white Buick Century he was driving. A former girlfriend of Stiles' said that, before the arrest, she lived in fear after going to police to identify the suspect after seeing enhanced photos from the videotape on the local news. "I've had my share of nightmares," Elaine Thomas told CNN's Nancy Grace. Thomas said she screamed when she recognized the photos on television and had no choice but to contact police about the man she had thought was a "weapons enthusiast" with only a minor criminal record. Watch Thomas say how she felt when she saw the photos » "How could I not tell them who that man was? That little girl suffered unimaginable things, and I knew for a fact it was him," Thomas said. The judge in the case will hold an administrative hearing Wednesday, but Stiles will not be present, Clark County court spokesman Michael Sommermeyer said. Stiles was already being sought on an unrelated 2004 charge of felony lewdness with a child under 14, Sommermeyer said, adding that authorities amended that earlier filing on October 4 to include 20 counts related to the videotaped rape, including sexual assault and attempted sexual assault. Jerry T. Donohue, the attorney for the girl's mother, told CNN that the child on the videotape was younger than 3 when the abuse occurred. Henderson Police Officer Mike Dye said he pulled over Stiles' car Monday night because it did not have a license plate and became suspicious when the driver gave him an expired California driver's license with a photo that did not look like him. Dye said he and another officer, Mike Gower, questioned Stiles until he admitted his identity. "He finally told us, 'Hey, I'm Chester Stiles. I'm the guy you're looking for,'" Dye said. "At that time, he said, 'I'm sick of running.'" Dye said Stiles was calm and cooperative. Stiles, a resident of Pahrump, Nevada, was turned over to Las Vegas Metropolitan Police and booked into the jail in Clark County, where he had been sought in connection with the videotape, which shows a girl being sexually assaulted. The girl, who is now 7, was found last month after a nationwide search. The tape was given to authorities by Darren Tuck, who told police he had found it in the desert five months before handing it over. Because of the delay, during which Tuck allegedly showed the tape to others, he faces charges of exhibiting pornography and possession of child pornography. He turned himself in to authorities in Nye County, Nevada, earlier this month. Professionals have evaluated the girl in the videotape since she was found, and she appears to be "healthy and fine and happy," her mother's attorney said this month. The mother had not known her daughter had ever been victimized and was apparently oblivious to efforts to find her until late last month, Donohue said. "A family friend called her and said, 'My God, you need to turn on the TV. I believe that is your daughter,' " Donohue said. Donohue said the mother recognized Stiles, a former animal trainer. The alleged abuse most likely occurred while the mother -- a single woman working six days a week -- was at work, Donohue said. Another former girlfriend of Stiles', Tina Allen, said this month she thinks she is the reason Stiles came in contact with the girl and is "mortified" by the allegations against him. "He said he'd been in the Navy and,

NEW: Suspect's ex-girlfriend: "I've had my share of nightmares" Chester Arthur Stiles to make his initial court appearance Friday . Stiles, 37, arrested following a routine traffic stop . Suspect said "I'm Chester Stiles. ... I'm sick of running," according to officer .

(CNN) -- The mayor of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, is asking Mexican federal authorities not to pull military units out of the region for at least another six months. A Mexican soldier controls traffic at the Mexico-U.S. border customs post in Ciudad Juarez on August 16. A decision on whether to withdraw the troops is expected before September 15. The troops were sent to the city across from El Paso, Texas, in the spring of 2008 to help quell violence involving warring drug cartels. An additional surge of troops was sent this spring. That surge appeared to work at first, cutting the homicide rate in Juarez drastically. But murders in the city spiked over the summer. Figures provided by the city show that in August. more than 300 people were killed, the deadliest month so far this year. In July, 260 died and in June, 220. Those numbers were in stark contrast to 16 homicides in March, 42 in April and 60 in May. The mayor, Jose Reyes Ferriz, attributed the summer spike in violence to wars between cartels over the control of street drug-sale points. The cartels are hiring mostly youths to handle retail drug sales, he said, and that has resulted in most of the murder victims being between the ages of 14 and 25. The mayor said Juarez is not ready for the army's full withdrawal, even though he is aware the troops' presence was meant to be a temporary solution to give the city time to get rid of corrupt police officers, hire new ones and train its new force. "We have accomplished the part that has to do with strengthening the police, but the city is in a very difficult situation. We are asking part of the army to stay and help us," Reyes Ferriz said. In September, 750 newly graduated police cadets are expected to join Ciudad Juarez Police Department, and another 400 in October, bringing the force to a total of about 3,000 officers. According to figures provided by the military, more than 6,000 soldiers are serving in Joint Operation Chihuahua in Juarez, of which 3,600 have been assigned to narco-traffic operations. The rest have been assigned to traffic duties and street patrols. The operation's spokesman, Enrique Torres, said the military is "evaluating the security situation" in the city and will be "implementing a gradual withdrawal."

Mayor Jose Reyes Ferriz would like federal army troops to stay six more months . Troops were sent to Ciudad Juarez to quell drug-fueled murders . Murders down in spring, but spike in summer; more than 300 killed in August . Decision on whether to withdraw the troops is expected before September 15 .

(CNN) -- The mayor of a small town in the state of Chihuahua in northern Mexico was found shot dead Tuesday, apparently among the latest victims in the fight against organized crime in the region. Hector Ariel Meixueiro Munoz, 53, was mayor of Namiquipa, a small town in the state of Chihuahua. The body of Hector Ariel Meixueiro Munoz, 53, mayor of Namiquipa, was found inside his SUV on the side of a road on the outskirts of the rural town of 20,000, said Eduardo Esparza, spokesman for the attorney general in the state of Chihuahua. "He was on his way to work in the morning," said Esparza. "We are still trying to confirm if there was a police escort with him at the time." The incident has put other officials in the region on alert. Ciudad Juarez Mayor Jose Reyes Ferriz told CNN during a phone interview that death threats are common in his town on the other side of the Rio Grande from El Paso, Texas. "It's very sad," he said. "This mayor was fighting crime, he had received several threats, but he was brave. Several of the mayors have received threats and we take them seriously." Reyes Ferriz said the mayors of the state's large cities have the resources to take sufficient precautions, but for the mayors of smaller towns like Namiquipa, such security is a luxury they often cannot afford. The mayor of Juarez and his family are protected by a 24-hour security detail and are driven in bulletproof vehicles. "Sadly, this has become part of the process in the fight to regain security in the cities," Reyes Ferriz said. Asked whether he feared for his life or those of his family, he would not say. "All the fears of a public servant are private," he answered.

Hector Ariel Meixueiro Munoz, 53, was mayor of Namiquipa in northern Mexico . Fellow mayor: He "was fighting crime, he had received several threats" Unlike mayors of bigger cities, mayors of smaller towns often can't afford security . The incident has put other officials state of Chihuahua on alert .

(CNN) -- The mother of a woman who gave birth on Monday to octuplets said her daughter already has six children at home and was undergoing fertility treatment. Dr. Karen Maples is part of the large team of doctors and nurses that helped deliver the octuplets. The Los Angeles Times reported on Thursday that Angela Suleman said her daughter had the embryos implanted last year, resulting in the eight births. "They all happened to take," Suleman told the Times. "I looked at those babies. They are so tiny and so beautiful." The woman declined to have the number of embryos reduced when she discovered she was carrying multiples, the Times reported. The six older siblings range from ages 7 to 2, according to the newspaper. Suleman said she was concerned about her daughter's homecoming because her husband, a contract worker, is due to return to Iraq. In the meantime, the mother, who remains unidentified, appealed for privacy while she recovers from giving birth, medical officials said Thursday. In her written statement delivered by Dr. Karen Maples of the Kaiser Permanente Bellflower Medical Center in California, the woman who delivered eight babies in five minutes said she would soon make public the details of her "miraculous experience." "We understand that you are all curious about the arrival of the octuplets, and we appreciate your respect for our family's privacy," she said. "The babies continue to grow strong every day and make good progress. My family and I are ecstatic about all of their arrivals." "Needless to say, the eighth was a surprise to us all, but a blessing as well," she added. The six boys and two girls -- ranging in weight from 1 pound, 8 ounces to 3 pounds, 4 ounces -- are doing well following their Caesarean-section delivery at the Bellflower hospital, doctors said. They were born nine weeks premature. Dr. Mandhir Gupta, a neonatalist, said all but one of the octuplets are now breathing on their own. That baby might be taken off breathing equipment Friday. Caring for eight premature babies is a challenge. Duties are being shared by a large team of hospital nurses and doctors for the time being. Two nurses have been assigned to each child, and all the babies are receiving fluids, proteins and vitamins intravenously, Gupta said. "We feed them. ... We change diapers. ... When they cry, we console them," Gupta said. "When the mom comes and touches the babies, you can definitely see their expression on their faces and body. They are very happy." The babies, who are being referred to by letters of the alphabet, will remain in the hospital for at least seven more weeks. Baby H made headlines for its surprise appearance during the delivery, which took months of preparation by a team of doctors, nurses and respiratory therapists. Watch a report on babies' progress » The mother will not be able to hold her babies for another week, Gupta said. They are still fragile, developing intestines, he said. Doctors initially thought the mother was pregnant with seven fetuses. She was hospitalized seven weeks ago and ordered to bed rest. During the seven weeks, a team of 46 physicians, nurses and other staff members prepared for the births. When they started the delivery Monday, they were in for a surprise. "After the seventh baby was born, we were taking a sigh of relief," Maples said. "It was a surprise of our life when we in fact discovered there was an eighth baby," she said. "We never had an assignment for baby H nurse or baby H doctor. We just had to go on the fly and figure out what to do." "Baby G nurse stepped up. We handed off the baby to baby G nurse. She then delivered that last baby to the neonatologist of the baby F." "It was all wonderful because of the teamwork and the training we did before," Maples said.

Grandmother of the eight babies: 'They are so tiny and so beautiful' The father, a contract worker, is due to return to Iraq, mother-in-law says . Mother of babies appeals for privacy while she recovers from giving birth . Large medical team monitoring babies; each infant has two devoted nurses .

(CNN) -- The mother of an 8-year-old boy suspected in the shooting deaths of his father and another man said Monday that the youngster "loved his dad" and had a strong relationship with him. "He's a very good little boy," Eryn Bloomfield said on ABC's "Good Morning America." "What happened to being innocent until proven guilty?" For legal reasons, Bloomfield -- who is identified in court papers as Eryn Thomas -- could not discuss details of the case. She said she is not even allowed to discuss the case with her son. Prosecutors in Apache County, Arizona, filed a motion Friday to dismiss one of the two murder charges against the boy -- the charge involving the death of his father. The filing gave no explanation, saying only, "The state believes the interest of justice will be served by such a dismissal." Authorities last week released a videotape of the boy's police interview in which he initially denied any involvement in the shootings, but later said he had shot his already-wounded father "because he was suffering." Watch the boy talk to police » Legal questions surround the interview. One of the boy's defense attorneys said he was not read his rights and had no attorney or parent present. Police have not responded publicly to those complaints. Asked what she heard on the interview tape, Bloomfield responded, "A scared little boy, that's what I hear -- someone who's very afraid of what's going on." "He had a very good relationship with his father. He did a lot with him," she said. "They did everything together. He loved his dad." She described her son as "very outgoing. He loves animals. He likes to ride his dirt bike, skateboarding, you know, outdoor things." Asked if he's ever been in trouble at school, she replied, "No. Not at all. I mean, acting out as far as not raising your hand when he needs to speak -- you know, just normal stuff like that." The boy lived with his father, Vincent Romero, 29, in St. Johns, Arizona. Bloomfield lives in Mississippi. The Apache County Superior Court clerk's office said the latest legal agreement between the boy's parents was from April 2006. The mother had weekly visitation rights and had the boy on some weekends and holidays, according to court documents. Romero and Tim Romans, who rented a room in Romero's home, were found dead inside the house November 5. Police said the next day that the boy had confessed to shooting the men with a .22-caliber weapon. Watch why observers find the interrogation troubling » The killings shook the town of about 4,000 residents near the New Mexico border. Trying to hold back tears, Bloomfield told ABC that her son is scared and living alone at a juvenile detention center. The other children were removed so that older juveniles could not influence him "in the wrong way," she said. "So he's in there by himself, in his cell by himself," she said. Authorities have said the boy is attending school at the detention facility. Apache County Court Administrator Betty Smith said earlier this month, "Every effort is being made to see that he's comfortable." Bloomfield described heart-wrenching visits -- 30 minutes each day -- when she can speak to her son through a glass partition. "I get two visits with him that are physical visits -- to where we sit in a room and he will come and sit in my lap pretty much the whole time and hold onto me," she added. She will be allowed 48 hours with him at home over the Thanksgiving holiday, she said. "We're going to watch movies, play games, try to keep things normal as possible," she said, adding that the boy had picked out the movie "Kung Fu Panda." Officials from the juvenile detention center and a court-appointed guardian will be

Mother: Son rarely in trouble outside of incidents like speaking out of turn in class . Boy will be allowed home for holidays, has asked to watch "Kung Fu Panda" movie . Boy is suspected in two shooting deaths, but prosecutors look to drop one charge . The 8-year-old is scared, in "cell by himself" but visits often with mother, she says .

(CNN) -- The murder of rapper Dolla reverberated throughout the music industry on Tuesday as police sought a motive for the brazen killing. Rap artist Dolla was known as a nice guy who survived a rough childhood. The aspiring Southern hip-hop artist, whose real name was Roderick Anthony Burton II, was gunned down in the busy parking lot of the upscale Beverly Center mall in Los Angeles, California, on Monday afternoon. Police later arrested Aubrey Louis Berry, 23, at Los Angeles International Airport, a Los Angeles Police statement said. No other details were given about Berry. The 21-year-old rapper was based in Atlanta, Georgia. He was in Los Angeles to work on his debut album. Those who knew him said that despite coming from a rough background, Burton was extremely gracious and polite. "Everything with Dolla was 'please' and 'thank you,' " said Ant Rich, manager of A&R for Jive Records, who discovered the rapper for the label when Burton was 17 and helped sign him a year later. "The streets did not define him at all. He was bigger than that." Dolla was a protégé of singer Akon, who collaborated with him on his first single, "Who the F--- is That?" which also featured another high-profile artist, T-Pain. Another Dolla song, "Feelin' Myself," appeared on the soundtrack to the 2006 movie "Step Up." According to his official MySpace page, Dolla was born in Chicago, Illinois, and his family relocated to Los Angeles soon after. He was 5 years old when he and his older sister, Divinity, witnessed their father committing suicide. After that incident, their mother moved the family to Atlanta, according to his biography. The Burton family released the following statement on Tuesday: "First and foremost we, the family, would like to thank everyone for all their kind thoughts and prayers. Furthermore, the family would like to note that rumored details of the shooting on popular Web/blog sites are false. "Due to the circumstances of the situation, no other information will be released at this time. We are grateful for your continuous support and would be very appreciative if we could mourn this loss in private. "Additionally, information released before and after this official statement are not confirmed nor should they be considered accurate." Rich said Dolla, who also did some modeling for P. Diddy's Sean John label, loved his family deeply. He was the guy with the great smile who would do things like offer to pick up the bill after a meeting with music executives, Rich said. "You would tell him 'Look Dolla, you don't have to do that because we get reimbursed for this' and he would say 'No, no you got it last time, let me,' " Rich said. "The world lost a really good kid and he had the biggest heart." DeAngelo Jones books talent for BET and got to know Dolla after he performed at the network's "Spring Bling" event last year. He said the artist was humbled and grateful for the success he was starting to find in the industry. "That energy was what drew me to him," said Jones, who stayed in touch with Dolla after the show and often ran into him at other events. "A lot of times there are negative associations that go along with being a rapper, but he was not at all what the image of a rapper is portrayed to be." Jones said he was at the Beverly Center only a short time before the shooting occurred. Jones said it was unfortunate that Dolla's slaying is yet another incident that will link hip-hop with violence. "Hip-hop gets such a bad rap, ever since the deaths of Biggie and Tupac," Jones said. "[Dolla] just wanted to be successful, help other people and do the right thing. What's so hard for me is to see where his life was heading,

Those who knew rapper Dolla mourn his loss . The Atlanta-based rapper was killed at the Beverly Center mall in Los Angeles . Family releases a statement asking for privacy to mourn . Dolla, whose real name was Roderick Anthony Burton II, was 21 .

(CNN) -- The new seven wonders of the world were named Saturday following an online vote that generated server-crushing traffic in its final hours. The Great Wall of China was among the top vote-getters of the "New 7 Wonders of the World" project. The final tally produced this list of the world's top human-built wonders: • The Great Wall of China • Petra in Jordan • Brazil's statue of Christ the Redeemer • Peru's Machu Picchu • Mexico's Chichen Itza pyramid • The Colosseum in Rome • India's Taj Mahal Before the vote ended Friday, organizers said more than 90 million votes had been cast for 21 sites. Watch the contenders and controversy surrounding the 'new' seven wonders » Voting at the Web site, www.new7wonders.com, ended at 6 p.m. ET Friday. Traffic was so heavy Friday that the site was crashing at times. One message urged voters to use text messages as an alternative form of voting. "Keep on voting, as it is your votes that decide the New 7 Wonders of the World," the message said. "We have traffic that is simply off the scale," Tia Vering, spokeswoman for the "New 7 Wonders of the World" campaign, told CNN.com. "Things are just going ballistic." The new wonders were announced at a star-studded event Saturday in Lisbon, Portugal, that featured performances by Jennifer Lopez and Chaka Khan. The event was hosted by Oscar winners Hilary Swank and Ben Kingsley as well as Bollywood star Bipasha Basu. Send CNN.com photos and video of your favorite "wonder" The top contenders for the seven wonders were last made public in early June. The oldest candidate was Britain's Stonehenge; the newest was Australia's Sydney Opera House. The U.S. Statue of Liberty also was among the choices. Voting nearly doubled after the June results, when organizers said about 50 million votes had been cast. A single user can cast multiple votes. To be considered for the competition, all structures had to be built or discovered before 2000. All are among top tourist attractions around the world. Of the seven ancient wonders of the world, only one remains standing today, the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt. Some nations have enthusiastically endorsed the new wonders campaign. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Jordan's Queen Rania actively promoted their countries' hopefuls. But the new wonders campaign hasn't been universally recognized. The United Nations' cultural organization, UNESCO, issued a statement saying it has "no link whatsoever" to the vote. Egypt's top antiquities expert also objected to the list. He said Egypt's pyramids are a "symbol of the genius of the ancient people" -- and are above any sort of online poll. As a result, the organizers struck up a compromise. The pyramids have been assured honorary status, in addition to the new seven wonders. The new wonders project was the brainchild of Swiss businessman Bernard Weber. He said he wanted to invite the people of the world to take part in selecting the world's greatest wonders. "So that everybody can decide what the new seven wonders should be and not some government, not some individuals, not some institutions," he said. Vering said she believes the vote has accomplished that goal. "We've managed to bring culture out of the museum -- out of the dusty, dry academic corners -- and have people talk about it," she said. "That, we feel, is the greatest achievement of this campaign." E-mail to a friend

NEW: . Star-studded event in Lisbon, Portugal, unveils the new wonders . Voting in the final hours so intense the Web site crashed at times . Pyramids of Giza given honorary status as a "wonders" member .

(CNN) -- The often scathing critic Simon Cowell called Susan Boyle -- the breakout singing sensation from "Britain's Got Talent" -- a "little tiger." Judge Piers Morgan admits that he expected Susan Boyle's audition to be a joke before she began singing. On CNN's "Larry King Live," she showed she's no one-trick pony. During a taping of the show Friday, she nailed a verse of Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On" after King asked her to sing. "Amazing. That was just absolutely stunning," said "Britain's Got Talent" judge Piers Morgan, who was also a guest. "To sing that with no musical backing is unbelievable. You have the voice of an angel, Susan." The 47-year-old Boyle's frumpy attire and awkward mannerisms drew snickers and eye-rolling from her audience before she belted out a pitch-perfect number from "Les Miserables" at an audition for the talent contest, making her an overnight sensation. Watch Boyle sing on Larry King » An unemployed charity worker who lives alone with her cat in Scotland, Boyle has inspired millions with a performance that flies in the face of pop music's penchant for pre-processed princesses. A clip of her audition had more than 19 million views on YouTube by Friday evening. Boyle, who did a repeat performance of "I Dreamed a Dream" via satellite on CNN's "Anderson Cooper 360" Thursday night, told King she was aware of the snickers her appearance prompted at the audition. "That doesn't bother me because I knew I had to get on with my act ... ," said Boyle, again speaking by satellite. "I wasn't sure how I would be received, so I just thought I'd give it a whirl." Watch Larry King interview Susan Boyle » Morgan, too, acknowledged the laughter, including his own. "I sort of feel like apologizing to Susan," he said. "I'm sorry, because we did not give you anything like the respect we should have done when you first came out." He said the judges had been through a long day with "lots of terrible auditions." "And then you came out and we thought you were going to be a bit of a joke act, to be honest with you," he said. "And then I can remember ... that second when you had begun to sing, and I had never heard a more surprising, extraordinary voice coming out of somebody so unexpected." To win the show, which would give her the chance to sing in front of Queen Elizabeth II, Boyle must survive a live semifinal next month and then a final performance if she gets through that. Watch how things have changed in Boyle's hometown » "She's the most odds-on favorite ever on 'Britain's Got Talent' at this stage of the competition," Morgan said. "But Susan knows there are two big hurdles left. Anything can happen in a live show." There's already been talk of a recording contract and world tours for Boyle. But she said she's staying focused on the competition for now. She said she has no plans to get a makeover or alter her wardrobe -- "Why should I? Why should I change?" -- but did predict one big lifestyle change. "I won't be lonely," she said. "I certainly won't be lonely anymore."

Susan Boyle sings Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On" for Larry King . Asked if she's considering a makeover, Boyle says "Why should I change?" "Britain's Got Talent" judge Piers Morgan apologizes for initial reactions . Boyle says she predicts one big change: "I certainly won't be lonely anymore"

(CNN) -- The recent emergence in the United States of "K2," sometimes called synthetic marijuana, is testing lawmakers to see if they've been paying attention to the failures of marijuana prohibition and will respond to K2 with enlightened policy. The first stories on K2, or "Spice," broke out with headlines labeling the mixture of herbs and spices, which are treated with a synthetic compound, as "fake pot." K2 was virtually unknown until the media hyped up its presence at tobacco and novelty shops. Under U.S. law, and in all 50 states, the herbal product is legal, and also unregulated. People who have tried K2 often report psychoactive effects that are comparable to marijuana, but notably less pleasurable. When lawmakers consider regulating K2, they should keep in mind that the government has waged a futile war against marijuana and people who use the drug for decades. For another opinion, click here Elected officials have burned through billions of taxpayer dollars chasing marijuana sellers, bagging marijuana plants and jailing marijuana users. Government-funded media campaigns have sought to scare children and adults away from marijuana with grossly exaggerated claims that using the drug will lead to death and mayhem. Despite all of these efforts, the public has largely dismissed the myths and hysteria around marijuana and recognized that the drug has important medicinal benefits. Moreover, public opinion is leaning in favor of a regulated and taxed market for marijuana. Researchers who have tested K2 identified synthetic chemicals that are thought to mimic the psychoactive component in marijuana. These chemicals are thought to act on the cannabinoid receptors in the brain much the way that THC -- the principal psychoactive component in marijuana -- operates. What's notable about these synthetic chemicals is that very little is known about them, and this legal alternative designed to deliver an experience like marijuana may actually carry more risk. Thus we have a supreme irony of drug prohibition: The government continues to criminalize marijuana -- a drug with established medical value that has undergone exhaustive study -- and entrepreneurs introduce a legal alternative to marijuana with ingredients scientists know little about. Given this potential for harm, and the growing volume of sensational media portrayals of K2, some lawmakers have ignored the lessons learned from marijuana prohibition and moved to criminalize possession and sales of K2. Lawmakers in Kansas, Kentucky and Missouri have already written legislation to ban the herbal mix. It seems that a reporter need only write an article about an obscure bag of twigs to spur a lawmaker to criminalize more chemicals and the people who use them. Time and time again, elected officials have dropped the ball when it comes to regulating drugs. Lawmakers have preferred to lazily pass the responsibility of controlling a drug on to law enforcement and the criminal justice system. The problem is, we know from marijuana prohibition that law enforcement has no control over the drug market and the criminals who run it. Criminalizing K2 will only worsen the devastating harm our society already suffers under drug prohibition. Rather than regulation of the supply and ingredients of K2, criminalization leaves the question of what goes into the product up to drug dealers. Rather than passing regulations that bar K2 sales to minors, criminalizing K2 will essentially give dealers the green light to sell the product to whomever they please. By choosing to ban K2 outright, lawmakers will also forfeit badly needed state revenue from K2 sales and instead commit millions of taxpayer dollars to investigate, prosecute and jail K2 users. Plus, researchers point out that hundreds of other known synthetic chemicals will easily reach store shelves once K2 is banned. The sensible legislative response to K2 is to create effective regulatory controls on sale and possession. California and Maine have passed model legislation that formally regulates and taxes adult sales of salvia divinorium -- another product with psychoactive properties -- and criminalizes salvia sales to minors. Lawmakers should deliver a knockout to prohibition and pass laws that will actually regulate and control K2. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Grant Smith.

Grant Smith: "K2," sometimes called synthetic marijuana, should be regulated for safety . But, he says, lawmakers must not duplicate costly, futile war against marijuana . Criminalizing the treated herbal mix K2 will turn trade over to drug dealers, Smith writes . Smith: Regulating K2 generates revenue, saves millions on prosecution of users .

(CNN) -- The recession means competition in pro football this year isn't restricted to the gridiron. The National Football League and its 32 teams also are battling for the consumer's discretionary spending dollars. Less-established NFL teams, such as the Jacksonville Jaguars, face special challenges in the recession. And just like on the playing field, some teams are having an easier time scoring an economic touchdown than others. "Overall ticket sales are very positive but difficult in these challenging times," NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said in a statement. He did not provide overall ticket sales numbers for the current season. The league is coming off a year that saw overall attendance drop slightly, 0.7 percent, from 2007 amid the start of the economic slowdown. Bill Prescott, a Jacksonville Jaguars vice president and the team's chief financial officer, said the team started to see the impact of the recession last year, when single-game ticket sales and concession revenue dropped as the season progressed. Heading into this season, he said, sales are off even more than the team expected -- new ticket sales are down 75 percent from last year and season ticket renewals are down 10 percent. No Jaguar games are sold out, despite a recent survey by The Media Audit that found 76 percent of adults in Jacksonville, Florida, regularly follow the Jaguars -- the fifth-best percentage of any NFL market. "The economy is having that impact on us," Prescott said. "As a very small market, I think we're feeling it more than some of the other teams in the league." The Minnesota Vikings also have yet to sell out any of their games, though the team expects that could change with the recent high-profile signing of quarterback Brett Favre. Within a day of Favre's signing, the Vikings had sold an additional 3,000 season tickets and 10,000 single-game tickets. "The economy's affecting all professional sports teams," said Steve LaCroix, the Vikings' vice president of sales and marketing. "We're not only competing for people's time and money, but trying to keep the fans in the stadium on game day as opposed to watching on TV." LaCroix said there weren't a large number of cancellations in season ticket holder accounts. However, some fans did trim down the number of seats in their respective accounts. LaCroix added some are coming back on board as the season approaches. The Cincinnati Bengals are getting nationwide exposure through the HBO reality series "Hard Knocks," which chronicles the team's training camp and preparation for the upcoming season. However, the Bengals' streak of 44 straight sellouts, a franchise record, is at risk, according to spokesman Jim Brennan. The Bengals' September 13 home opener against Denver is not sold out yet. Some teams, however, are more than holding their own as far as ticket sales go despite the nation's fiscal woes. The Denver Broncos are sold out for the 40th straight year -- dating back to the first game of the 1970 season, according to spokesman Jim Saccomano. And Chicago Bears spokesman Scott Hagel says the team is sold out for the 25th straight season. He adds the season ticket renewal rate is well over 90 percent, on par with the prior decade. According to league spokesman McCarthy, 24 of the NFL's 32 teams did not raise ticket prices from last year. One of the teams that did is the Indianapolis Colts, which bumped up the cost of 10 percent of its season ticket holder seats, according to team spokesman Craig Kelley. All games are sold out. Two factors working in the Colts' favor -- they have a new stadium that opened last season and the team has been a perennial contender for the past decade. In order to try and offset the impact the economy has on the game, McCarthy said teams have created more options and flexibility for fans in order to help them afford tickets. Among those options are half-season ticket plans, such as the ones offered by the Jaguars and the New York Jets. "We knew some season ticket

For Jacksonville Jaguars, ticket sales off more than expected . Cincinnati Bengals and Minnesota Vikings also looking to score more sales . Denver Broncos and Chicago Bears holding the line despite recession . Sports expert says NFL's best weapon would be exemplary customer service .

(CNN) -- The sagging economy is taking a bite out of federal school-meal subsidies as more students take advantage of free or low-price breakfasts and lunches, nutritionists say in a report released Thursday. About 425,000 more students are participating in the National School Lunch Program, a group reports. The School Nutrition Association surveyed more than 130 school nutrition directors from 38 states to produce its report, "Saved by the Lunch Bell: As Economy Sinks, School Nutrition Program Participation Rises." The nonprofit organization said that about 425,000 more students are participating in the National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program in 2008-09 than in the previous school year. That represents an average increase of 2.5 percent from 2007-08, the report says. These numbers hold true despite a slight decline in the number of students enrolled in public schools this school year, according to the study. More than three-quarters of the districts surveyed reported a rise in the number of students eating free meals under the U.S. Department of Agriculture program, the report says. Many of the school district employees who monitor the food programs complain that the federal subsidies fall far short of the rising costs. According to the association, the estimated average cost to prepare a school meal is $2.90, but the federal reimbursement is $2.57. School lunch programs are experiencing a potential loss of at least $4.5 million per school day, based on 30 million school lunches provided, the group says. The good news, according to association President Katie Wilson, is that "this year, when hunger is more common, more students are able to eat a balanced, nutritious meal at school." Meals served under the USDA programs must meet nutrition guidelines based on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. For lunches, that means no more than 30 percent of calories can come from fat and fewer than 10 percent from saturated fat.

Number of students eating subsidized meals rises 2.5 percent, nonprofit says . Use of USDA programs rises even as enrollment falls, report notes . Schools complain that USDA doesn't cover full cost of meals . School Nutrition Association surveyed 130 school food directors in 38 states .

(CNN) -- The same day a cease-fire agreement was to go into effect, a high-ranking Yemeni official accused rebels of trying to assassinate him. Deputy Interior Minister Gen. Mohammed Bin Abdullah al-Qawsi told Almotamar, the newspaper of the ruling party, Friday that "his car came under intensive fire shots in an attempt to assassinate him." He added that he was in the northwestern city of Saada to inspect security forces and accused Houthi rebels of carrying out the attack, according to the state-run Saba News Agency. Also in Saada Friday, troops and rebels exchanged fire, killing one and injuring others, Saba reported. The rebels did not immediately respond to the reports, which followed the announcement of an end to a six-year battle between the government and Shiite Muslim Houthi rebels. Despite the reports of violence, the truce deal was still intact, said a Yemeni government official who is not authorized to speak to the media. A "few skirmishes" occurred, including an attack on a security official's motorcade, he said. He would not say whether that official was al-Qawsi. Such violence is common in the early stages of peace deals, he said. "There are many reasons why this happened, and they were expected," the source said. "One, some of the militia fighters have not been informed yet that the truce was executed. Two, there were revenge killings -- some of the Houthi tribesmen carried out attacks against government forces. These could be considered tribal revenge killings." The government agreed to end all military operations against the Houthis beginning midnight Friday, an apparent end to violence that even tumbled into Saudi Arabia. Houthi rebel leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi earlier signed off on the cease-fire and took to his Web site to order his followers to respect the agreement. The cease-fire conditions include clearing mines, not interfering with elected local officials, releasing civilians and military personnel, abiding by Yemeni law, returning looted items, and ending attacks within the country's northern neighbor, Saudi Arabia. The Yemeni government official said rebels were expected to free seven captured Saudi soldiers Saturday. The revolt by the Houthis in northern Yemen began in 2004. The conflict is believed to be both separatist -- over who will have power in the area -- and sectarian -- whether Shiite Islam will dominate, even though the majority of Yemenis are Sunni. The rebels are supporters of slain Shiite cleric Hussein al-Houthi. CNN's Mohammed Jamjoom contributed to this report.

NEW: Truce deal still intact, a Yemeni government official says . NEW: Official cites revenge, truce info not yet reaching militia fighters as reasons . Yemeni Interior official tells newspaper that Houthi rebels fired on his car . Troops and rebels exchange fire, killing one, state-run media reported .

(CNN) -- The search continued Tuesday for as many as 67 people missing after a boat carrying about 200 Haitians capsized, the U.S. Coast Guard said. The U.S. Coast Guard intercepted this crowded boat last week and repatriated its occupants to Haiti. The boat overturned Monday off Turks and Caicos, a British territory about 550 miles southeast of Miami, Florida. Searchers aboard boats and aircraft have rescued 118 passengers and found 15 bodies, said Petty Officer Jennifer Johnson, a Coast Guard spokeswoman, on Tuesday morning. The Coast Guard described the boat's occupants as migrants from Haiti. The overcrowded vessel was believed to have set sail from the Haitian port of Cap Haitien, the Turks and Caicos Sun newspaper reported. The search resumed at dawn Tuesday after being suspended because of darkness Monday night, Johnson said. The Coast Guard is contributing one boat, the 210-foot cutter Valiant, and three aircraft to the search, Johnson said. The aircraft are a Falcon jet out of Miami, an HH-60 helicopter and a slow-flying C-130 cargo plane out of Clearwater, Florida. Watch Coast Guard rescue Haitians after boat capsizes » "If the weather and conditions are right, [the C-130] can fly really low," Johnson said. "It makes a fantastic search aircraft." Turks and Caicos authorities are using small boats in the search, she said. About 70 people were plucked Monday from a reef near the island group, authorities said. Four other bodies were found, though it was unclear which authorities located them. A nurse at Myrtle Rigby Hospital in the Turks and Caicos said that about 70 people were brought there, including four who had died. Five people were admitted to the hospital, and the others had minor injuries, the nurse said. The Coast Guard said it intercepted another "grossly overloaded" boat, with 124 Haitians aboard, late last week in the same region. Those migrants were returned to Cap Haitien on Monday. Overloaded vessels can quickly lose stability and capsize, sending migrants into the water, a Coast Guard release said. CNN's Jim Kavanagh and Lateef Mungin contributed to this report.

NEW: 15 confirmed dead after boat capsizes; as many as 67 missing . Boat with about 200 Haitians capsized Monday near Turks and Caicos Islands . Coast Guard intercepted another boat overloaded with Haitians late last week .

(CNN) -- The second-highest ranking official in Iraqi President Jalal Talabani's political party resigned Saturday, along with four other high-ranking Kurdish politicians, officials said. Iraqi President Jalal Talabani could be jeopardized by the resignations of five key members of his party. Khosrat Rasul, the vice president of the Kurdistan Regional Government, resigned, along with four other members of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), according to Kurdish lawmakers. Rasul is a battle-scarred veteran of Kurdish rebellions against former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. Kurdish members of the Iraqi Parliament say the resignations threaten the delicate balance of power in Iraqi Kurdistan, a semi-autonomous region in northern Iraq. It has been the most stable part of the country since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion. "It looks very serious," said Ala Talabani, the president's niece and a PUK member, as well as a member of Parliament. She spoke by phone from the Iraqi Kurdish city of Sulaimaniya, long a stronghold of the PUK. "It's about corruption," Ala Talabani said of the resignations. "They are asking about the resources and the money. Who is spending it. And who is in charge of the income of the party." "It's not good," said Mahmoud Othman, a member of the Iraqi Parliament and an independent Kurdish politician. "The PUK is one of the main two [Kurdish] players," he added. "A problem like this will upset the whole situation." Iraqi Kurdistan broke free from Baghdad's control after the 1991 Gulf War. Since then, the region has been divided between two rival Kurdish factions, Talabani's PUK and the Kurdistan Democratic Party, led by Massoud Barzani. For several years throughout the 1990s, the groups battled each other in the mountains and valleys of northern Iraq. Those historic divisions faded somewhat following the United States' overthrow of Hussein. For the past five years, the Kurds have worked together in Baghdad to enhance the Kurdish region's position in Iraq. Kurdish politicians deftly took advantage of divisions between Sunni and Shi'a Arab factions. They successfully lobbied to maintain Kurdistan's militia of pesh merga fighters. Demands to expand the Kurdish zone of control and win the right to exploit oil deposits in Kurdish territory have increased tensions between Kurdish and Arab politicians. The resignation of Rasul and his allies threatens the power base of Talabani, the first Kurdish president in Iraqi history. "If it is not fixed by Talabani by tomorrow, this could change the entire landscape of Kurdish politics," said Hiwa Osman, the Iraq country director of the Institute for War and Peace Reporting. Iraq's three northern Kurdish provinces are scheduled to hold regional elections in May. Talabani is expected to travel to Kurdistan to hold emergency meetings with Rasul and his other former comrades-in-arms. This is not the first time the stout Kurdish leader has faced a rebellion from within the ranks of his followers. Kurdish observers say these disputes usually stem from disagreements over money and power.

5 politicians in Kurdish Iraqi President Talabani's PUK party resign . PUK and Kurdistan Democratic Party rivals for power in Kurdistan . Official says resignations are over corruption, questions of where money goes . Resignations could threaten power base of Talabani, first Kurdish president .

(CNN) -- The small Baltic nation of Estonia is ending its nearly six-year military operation in Iraq by not replacing its platoon of 34 troops. Estonian soldiers on patrol near Baghdad in 2004. Estonia's Defense Minister Jaak Aaviksoo said the country will not deploy its next infantry platoon to Iraq, according to a statement from the ministry. Platoon ESTPLA-18 was ready to replace the previous 34-man platoon which returned to Estonia from Iraq in late December, The Baltic Times reported. The Estonian defense ministry announced Thursday it had failed to reach an agreement with Iraq's government about the troops' legal status. Aaviksoo said the absence of a legal agreement "specifying the legal status of our soldiers" was one of three reasons Estonia ended its military operation in Iraq. He said the other two reasons were the improving security situation in Iraq and the Iraqi government's desire to "continue bilateral cooperation in forms other than battle units." A bilateral agreement spelling out future defense-related cooperation between Iraq and Estonia is still being hammered out, Aaviksoo said. Estonia will continue to participate in a NATO-led training mission in Iraq, with three staff officers, he said. The Estonian defense ministry said Aaviksoo will soon visit Iraq to formally terminate the Estonian Defense Forces' operation and discuss future defense-related cooperation with his Iraqi counterpart, Abdul Al-Qadir Jassam. In late December, Iraq's Presidency Council approved a resolution allowing non-U.S. troops to remain in the country after a U.N. mandate expired at the end of 2008. The resolution authorized Iraq to negotiate bilateral agreements with the countries, including Estonia. If that resolution had not been approved by the end of the year, those countries would have been in Iraq illegally. The United States concluded a separate agreement in November with the Iraqi government authorizing the continued presence of its troops. U.S. combat forces plan to pull back from population centers in Iraq by July 2009 and to withdraw from Iraq by the end of 2011. The British government says its forces will complete their mission of training Iraqi troops by May 31, 2009, and withdraw from the country by July 31, 2009. Britain has 4,100 troops in Iraq, the second-largest contingent after the United States with 142,500. Australian troops also plan to be out of the country by the end of July.

Estonia not replacing its platoon in Iraq . Previous 34-strong platoon left Iraq in December . Defense minister blames lack of new legal agreement on status of troops . Australia, UK also expect their troops to be out by the end of July .

(CNN) -- The suspect in the death of a 20-year-old pregnant Marine will be returned to North Carolina to face charges in her slaying, a Mexican judge ruled Thursday, according to North Carolina authorities. U.S. Marine Cpl. Cesar Laurean was arrested in Mexico in April. U.S. Marine Cpl. Cesar Laurean, 21, who was arrested in Mexico in April, could be returned to Onslow County, North Carolina, within a week, the county sheriff's office said in a statement issued Thursday. Federal authorities will handle his transportation to the North Carolina jail. Laurean has been indicted on first-degree murder and other charges in the death of Marine Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach. Her charred body and that of her fetus were found beneath a fire pit in Laurean's backyard near Camp Lejeune, where both were stationed, in January, a month after she was last seen. Prosecutors allege that Laurean killed Lauterbach on December 14 and used her ATM card 10 days later before fleeing to Mexico to avoid prosecution. Laurean was arrested in April in San Juan Vina, in the Mexican state of Michoacan. Because he holds citizenship in the United States and Mexico, he could not be immediately deported and had to go through the extradition process, authorities said. Asked by a Mexican reporter at the time of his arrest whether he killed Lauterbach, Laurean said, "I loved her." As part of the effort to apprehend Laurean, authorities seized a computer belonging to his sister-in-law that Laurean's wife, Christina, was using to communicate with him, a law enforcement official had said. If convicted, Onslow County prosecutors said, Laurean would face a maximum sentence of life in prison without parole. Mexico's extradition policy prohibits U.S. authorities from seeking the death penalty against fugitives it hands over. Authorities found Lauterbach's body after Christina Laurean produced a note her husband had written claiming that the 20-year-old woman slit her own throat during an argument, according to officials. Although a gaping 4-inch wound was found on the left side of Lauterbach's neck, autopsy results indicate that the wound itself would not have been fatal. Prosecutors have said there was no evidence that Christina Laurean was involved in or aware of Lauterbach's slaying before she gave the note to authorities. Lauterbach had accused Laurean of raping her, and it is unclear whether he was the father of her fetus, although her relatives have said they believe him to be. He had denied the rape allegation and said he had had no sexual contact with her. Mary Lauterbach, the young woman's mother, has said she's unconvinced that the Marine Corps took her daughter's rape allegation and other allegations of "harassment" seriously. Her daughter's car was keyed, she said, and she was assaulted. "Those particular actions should have been taken much more seriously because the Marines were aware of them," she said Friday. In a statement issued after her death, the Marine Corps said Laurean's denial "was believed to be significant evidence."

Cpl. Cesar Laurean is suspected in death of pregnant Lance Cpl. Maria Lauterbach . Laurean was arrested in Mexico in April . He could be back in North Carolina within a week, sheriff's office said . Laurean said Lauterbach slit her own throat after an argument .

(CNN) -- The torch for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics was lit in a ceremony at the ancient Greek site of Olympia on Thursday, less than four months ahead of the games' opening ceremony. Actress Maria Nafpliotou, as a high priestess, lights the flame for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics on Thursday. The torch will be carried on an eight-day trip through Greece, the birthplace of the Olympics, before being transported to Canada for what will be the longest domestic torch relay in the games' history, officials said. Women dressed in white togas performed a ceremony on the green hillside at Olympia, the home of the Olympic flame and the place where the ancient Olympics took place. A woman playing the role of a high priestess lit the flame by sunlight focused on a mirror, the only way by tradition it can be lit. That fire then was used to light the Vancouver Olympic Torch, which Greek skier and three-time Olympian Vassilis Dimitriadis then carried on the first leg of its journey through Greece. "The Olympic torch and flame are the symbols of the values and ideals which lie at the heart of the Olympic Games," International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge said before the ceremony. The torch will carry a message of peace throughout the world, he said -- words echoed by Vancouver 2010 Chief Executive John Furlong. "Today we build a bridge between ancient Olympia and young Canada," he said. "Canada is a country with a welcoming spirit and a glowing heart. ... We will do all we can to be a shining example of the ideas and values that were first kindled here in this hallowed place." After its 1,351-mile (2,180-kilometer) trip through Greece, the torch will be taken to Canada. On October 30, the first of 12,000 torchbearers will begin carrying it through Canada on what will be a 106-day, 27,900-mile (45,000-kilometer) relay. "It will be the longest domestic relay in Olympic history, just to be sure every Canadian will be given the right to dream and celebrate," Furlong said. The torch relay is derived from ancient rituals in Olympia, where torch and relay races were popular festival events and where heralds traveled throughout Greece to announce the games. The torch for the 2010 Winter Games was designed by transportation and aerospace company Bombardier, a Vancouver Olympic sponsor. The lean curves of the white torch were inspired by the lines carved in the snow by winter sports and by the "undulating beauty of the Canadian landscape," the company said. The torch's special construction will allow it to burn through a range of winter weather, including snow, rain, sleet, wind and subzero temperatures, Bombardier said. It weighs 3.5 pounds (1.6 kilograms) fully fueled, the company said. The flame is due to arrive in Vancouver, British Columbia, on February 12 when the opening ceremony of the 2010 Winter Games will be held at the domed BC Place Stadium.

Olympic flame due to arrive in Vancouver, British Columbia, in February . Vancouver Olympic Torch lit in ceremony in Greece's ancient Olympia . Torchbearers will begin carrying flame through Canada next week on 106-day relay . Vancouver Olympics official: "It will be the longest domestic relay in Olympic history"

(CNN) -- The torch for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics was lit in a ceremony at the ancient Greek site of Olympia on Thursday, less than four months ahead of the games' opening ceremony. Actress Maria Nafpliotou, as a high priestess, lights the flame for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics on Thursday. The torch will be carried on an eight-day trip through Greece, the birthplace of the Olympics, before being transported to Canada for what will be the longest domestic torch relay in the games' history, officials said. Women dressed in white togas performed a ceremony on the green hillside at Olympia, the home of the Olympic flame and the place where the ancient Olympics took place. A woman playing the role of a high priestess lit the flame by sunlight focused on a mirror, the only way by tradition it can be lit. That fire then was used to light the Vancouver Olympic Torch, which Greek skier and three-time Olympian Vassilis Dimitriadis then carried on the first leg of its journey through Greece. "The Olympic torch and flame are the symbols of the values and ideals which lie at the heart of the Olympic Games," International Olympic Committee President Jacques Rogge said before the ceremony. The torch will carry a message of peace throughout the world, he said -- words echoed by Vancouver 2010 Chief Executive John Furlong. "Today we build a bridge between ancient Olympia and young Canada," he said. "Canada is a country with a welcoming spirit and a glowing heart. ... We will do all we can to be a shining example of the ideas and values that were first kindled here in this hallowed place." After its 1,351-mile (2,180-kilometer) trip through Greece, the torch will be taken to Canada. On October 30, the first of 12,000 torchbearers will begin carrying it through Canada on what will be a 106-day, 27,900-mile (45,000-kilometer) relay. "It will be the longest domestic relay in Olympic history, just to be sure every Canadian will be given the right to dream and celebrate," Furlong said. The torch relay is derived from ancient rituals in Olympia, where torch and relay races were popular festival events and where heralds traveled throughout Greece to announce the games. The torch for the 2010 Winter Games was designed by transportation and aerospace company Bombardier, a Vancouver Olympic sponsor. The lean curves of the white torch were inspired by the lines carved in the snow by winter sports and by the "undulating beauty of the Canadian landscape," the company said. The torch's special construction will allow it to burn through a range of winter weather, including snow, rain, sleet, wind and subzero temperatures, Bombardier said. It weighs 3.5 pounds (1.6 kilograms) fully fueled, the company said. The flame is due to arrive in Vancouver, British Columbia, on February 12 when the opening ceremony of the 2010 Winter Games will be held at the domed BC Place Stadium.

Olympic flame due to arrive in Vancouver, British Columbia, in February . Vancouver Olympic Torch lit in ceremony in Greece's ancient Olympia . Torchbearers will begin carrying flame through Canada next week on 106-day relay . Vancouver Olympics official: "It will be the longest domestic relay in Olympic history"

(CNN) -- The widow of an Internal Revenue Service employee killed when a disgruntled taxpayer flew his plane into a seven-story building in Austin, Texas, last week is suing the pilot's wife, according to court documents. Valerie Hunter, the wife of Vernon Hunter, is accusing Sheryl Stack, wife of Andrew Joseph "Joe" Stack III, of negligence, alleging she knew or should have known that her husband was a threat to others and, thus, could have prevented the attack, according to the lawsuit filed Monday in Travis County District Court. "Stack was threatened enough by Joseph Stack that she took her daughter and stayed at a hotel the night before the plane crash. [She] owed a duty to exercise reasonable care to avoid a foreseeable risk of injury to others including [Vernon Hunter]," the suit says. The lawsuit also seeks to bar the release of Vernon Hunter's autopsy report, saying that, if made public, it would cause Hunter's family to suffer "severe and irreparable emotional distress." Hunter was killed February 18 when, authorities say, Stack flew his Piper Cherokee PA-28 into a northwest Austin building that housed nearly 200 IRS employees. Authorities say Stack set fire to his $230,000 home in Austin before embarking on his fatal flight. Police have said Sheryl Stack spent the previous night in an Austin-area hotel but did not say why. Police said they had received no calls of domestic violence from the house. The only calls to police were made a couple of years ago and concerned barking dogs, officials said said. A 3,000-word message on a Web site registered to Stack railed against the government, particularly the IRS. "I saw it written once that the definition of insanity is repeating the same process over and over and expecting the outcome to suddenly be different," the online message said. "I am finally ready to stop this insanity. Well, Mr. Big Brother IRS man, let's try something different; take my pound of flesh and sleep well." Sheryl Stack issued a statement after the attack expressing "sincere sympathy to the victims and their families."

Valerie Hunter is accusing Sheryl Stack of negligence . Hunter's husband died when Andrew Joseph "Joe Stack III flew a plane into a building . Lawsuit: Sheryl Stack "owed a duty to exercise reasonable care" for others' safety . Sheryl Stack had issued statement offering sympathy to victim's family .

(CNN) -- The woman and children held captive in a cellar for years by their incestuous father will take years to recover from their disturbing ordeal, doctors warned Wednesday as the family at the center of the case remained in psychiatric care. The bathroom used by Elizabeth Fritzl, who was held captive for more than two decades, and her three children. Members of the Fritzl family will also be offered the chance to adopt new identities in an effort to help them lead normal lives, officials said. Hans-Heinz Lenze, the head of local social services said the family was "doing as well as can be expected in the circumstances" and said any change of identity would be the family's decision. Elizabeth Fritzl -- now 42 -- spent more than two decades in the windowless basement after being drugged, handcuffed and locked up by her father, Josef Fritzl, as an 18-year-old. Repeatedly raped, she gave birth to seven children by Fritzl, one of whom died as an infant. Three of the children -- Kerstin, 19; Stefan, 18; and Felix, 5 -- remained imprisoned underground with their mother. The other three lived in an apartment upstairs with Fritzl and his wife who believed Elizabeth had abandoned them after running away from home. Elizabeth and five of the children were continuing to receive treatment at a local clinic near Amstetten after being reunited on Sunday. Kerstin, whose hospitalization at the weekend finally brought the family's plight to the attention of authorities, remained in a coma at a nearby hospital. "It is astonishing how easy it worked that the children came together, and also it was astonishing how easy it happened that the grandmother and the mother came together," clinic director Berthold Kepplinger said. But Kepplinger warned that the family would require extensive counseling. "We're talking of 20 years of darkness, incest and its effects and other illnesses they might have suffered from." Kepplinger said the two sets of children were tentatively getting to know one another, adding that the two boys who had lived underground had an unusual way of communicating with each other. A policeman who had accompanied the boys to hospital after their discovery on Sunday said the pair had "screamed with excitement" during the car journey as they experienced the outside world for the first time. "The two boys appeared overawed by the daylight they had never experienced before," said Chief Inspector Leopold Etz. "The real world was completely alien to them... We had to drive very slowly with them because they cringed at every car light and every bump. It was as if we had just landed on the moon." In an interview with the Austrian newspaper, Oesterreich, psychiatrist Max Friedrich, who treated the abducted teenager Natascha Kampusch, estimated it would take "between five and eight years" for the children to recover from their experiences. Another psychologist, Bernd Prosser, told Austrian television that it would be impossible for the four held prisoner underground to lead normal lives. "I am afraid it is too late for that." Kampusch, the Austrian girl abducted as a 10-year-old and held captive in a basement for more than eight years until she escaped in 2007, also offered her help to the family on Tuesday, but questioned the decision to move them from the cellar into psychiatric care. "Pulling them abruptly out of this situation, without transition, to hold them and isolating them to some extent, it can't be good for them," said Kampusch, now 20, in an interview with Austrian TV station Puls 4. "I believe it might have been even better to leave them where they were, but that was probably impossible. This case is not like mine, where that was not my environment. They were born there and I can imagine that there is a strong attachment to that place." E-mail to a friend

Austrian family held captive in a cellar will take years to recover, doctors say . Family are undergoing treatment at a local psychiatric clinic . Children kept underground may never lead normal lives, psychiatrist warns . Family have been offered opportunity to adopt new identities .

(CNN) -- The woman and children held captive in a cellar for years by their incestuous father will take years to recover from their disturbing ordeal, doctors warned Wednesday as the family at the center of the case remained in psychiatric care. The bathroom used by Elizabeth Fritzl, who was held captive for more than two decades, and her three children. Members of the Fritzl family will also be offered the chance to adopt new identities in an effort to help them lead normal lives, officials said. Hans-Heinz Lenze, the head of local social services said the family was "doing as well as can be expected in the circumstances" and said any change of identity would be the family's decision. Elizabeth Fritzl -- now 42 -- spent more than two decades in the windowless basement after being drugged, handcuffed and locked up by her father, Josef Fritzl, as an 18-year-old. Repeatedly raped, she gave birth to seven children by Fritzl, one of whom died as an infant. Three of the children -- Kerstin, 19; Stefan, 18; and Felix, 5 -- remained imprisoned underground with their mother. The other three lived in an apartment upstairs with Fritzl and his wife who believed Elizabeth had abandoned them after running away from home. Elizabeth and five of the children were continuing to receive treatment at a local clinic near Amstetten after being reunited on Sunday. Kerstin, whose hospitalization at the weekend finally brought the family's plight to the attention of authorities, remained in a coma at a nearby hospital. "It is astonishing how easy it worked that the children came together, and also it was astonishing how easy it happened that the grandmother and the mother came together," clinic director Berthold Kepplinger said. But Kepplinger warned that the family would require extensive counseling. "We're talking of 20 years of darkness, incest and its effects and other illnesses they might have suffered from." Kepplinger said the two sets of children were tentatively getting to know one another, adding that the two boys who had lived underground had an unusual way of communicating with each other. A policeman who had accompanied the boys to hospital after their discovery on Sunday said the pair had "screamed with excitement" during the car journey as they experienced the outside world for the first time. "The two boys appeared overawed by the daylight they had never experienced before," said Chief Inspector Leopold Etz. "The real world was completely alien to them... We had to drive very slowly with them because they cringed at every car light and every bump. It was as if we had just landed on the moon." In an interview with the Austrian newspaper, Oesterreich, psychiatrist Max Friedrich, who treated the abducted teenager Natascha Kampusch, estimated it would take "between five and eight years" for the children to recover from their experiences. Another psychologist, Bernd Prosser, told Austrian television that it would be impossible for the four held prisoner underground to lead normal lives. "I am afraid it is too late for that." Kampusch, the Austrian girl abducted as a 10-year-old and held captive in a basement for more than eight years until she escaped in 2007, also offered her help to the family on Tuesday, but questioned the decision to move them from the cellar into psychiatric care. "Pulling them abruptly out of this situation, without transition, to hold them and isolating them to some extent, it can't be good for them," said Kampusch, now 20, in an interview with Austrian TV station Puls 4. "I believe it might have been even better to leave them where they were, but that was probably impossible. This case is not like mine, where that was not my environment. They were born there and I can imagine that there is a strong attachment to that place." E-mail to a friend

Austrian family held captive in a cellar will take years to recover, doctors say . Family are undergoing treatment at a local psychiatric clinic . Children kept underground may never lead normal lives, psychiatrist warns . Family have been offered opportunity to adopt new identities .

(CNN) -- There was no mistaking the target: the eight huge cooling towers at Ratcliffe-on-Soar power station, sending plumes of steam high into the watery blue sky of the English Midlands. A mix of peaceful protest and direct action took place at Ratcliffe-on-Soar, England. Instead the question in the minds of an estimated 1,000 protestors gathered in the surrounding woods and scrubland was how could they get in and shut it down. Surrounded by electrified fences, coils of razor wire and hundreds of police, this coal-fired power station run by German energy firm E.On was the target of environmental activists campaigning to stop climate change. Organizers of the protest, an amorphous group called the Camp for Climate Action, claim the plant is one of the UK's largest sources of CO2 emissions and had named last weekend's protest, "The Great Climate Swoop". "Climate change is one of the most important and urgent problems facing us," one protestor called Emma, told CNN. "Our politicians are not doing enough. We have to take action." "We need to increase the pressure on [UK prime minister] Gordon Brown until he changes his mind about coal," said another called Magoo. "I wouldn't be here if I thought we couldn't make a difference today." Many protestors were upbeat following a recent decision by E.On to shelve plans for a new coal powered power station at Kingsnorth, in southern England, and the site of a similar protest in 2008. E.On told CNN that the decision was "purely economic", and "due to a marked fall in demand for electricity during the recession", although many activists were claiming it as a victory for them. Determination to act There was no doubting the activists' dedication. The weekend began peacefully enough with a procession snaking up from the East Midlands Parkway train station accompanied by a pedal-powered sound-system and a band. Several officers told CNN they were glad to be policing this event rather than a local football derby on the same day. Yet over 24-hours police say 57 protestors were arrested and both police and activists were injured in violent scuffles. The protest at Ratcliffe-on-Soar was the latest from a movement that has quickly come to define environmental activism in Britain, mixing elements of the mid-1990s road protest movement with the more targeted, professional approach of groups like Greenpeace and the mass civil disobedience modeled by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament. Although leaderless and non-hierarchical it has shown determination, organization and direction. There were several families with young children at the protests, as well as individuals of all ages, although the bulk were twenty- and thirty-somethings. While some wore bandanas to hide their faces, others were in dressed as clowns or scarecrows and seemed content to picnic within sight of the plant. Peaceful protest and police In the spring James Hansen a climate modeler for NASA and prominent scientist lent his support for direct action, telling The Guardian newspaper: "The democratic process doesn't quite seem to be working... I think that peaceful demonstration is not out of order, because we're running out of time." The first action by Climate Camp for Climate Action was at Drax coal power station in 2006, followed by Heathrow airport in 2007 and Kingsnorth coal power station in 2008. In 2009 there have already been three events: a protest at the European Climate Exchange in London, to coincide with the G20; a camp on Blackheath, London, in August -- the site of the 1381 Peasant's Revolt - and now the protests at Ratcliffe. All have been characterized by a mix of peaceful protest around a "camp" that is intended to model low-carbon living, alongside militant direct action - and an increasingly tense relationship with police. At Kingsnorth a huge police presence carried out over 8,000 searches according to an official report by the National Policing Improvement Agency, which also criticized tactics as "disproportionate and counterproductive". The death of Ian Tomlinson after being pushed to the ground by an officer at the G20

Eco activists gathered at power station in UK to protest against climate change . Called "The Great Climate Swoop" it was latest direct action by UK eco activists . Protestors camped out over weekend, some tried to break into power station . Event revealed difference between peaceful protestors and more militant element .

(CNN) -- They have titles like "El Secreto de Sus Ojos," "No Puedo Vivir sin Ti" and "Casanegra." They're directed by auteurs with names like Paresh Mokashi and Giuseppe Tornatore. They've been selected from hundreds, sometimes thousands, of entries from countries like South Korea, Venezuela and Bangladesh. And some experts say they don't have the slightest chance of winning the Oscar for best picture. Certainly not this year. No foreign language films were nominated in the best picture category. The foreign language film category at the Academy Awards is one of the most respected worldwide, Academy executive director Bruce Davis said. The category was launched in the late 1940s, when it became clear that European and Asian nations were creating incredible films. Every year, each of more than 60 countries around the world selects one film to send to the Academy for consideration -- kind of like the Olympics for filmmakers. The Oscar is then awarded, not to the filmmakers, but to the winning country. "A better analogy is [soccer's] World Cup," Davis said. "You only get to submit one team to the World Cup and filmmakers have to decide within countries what they're going to send. Even India, which makes thousands of films a year, can only send one." See list of Oscar nominees -- including foreign language films Richard Brody, a film critic for The New Yorker, thinks the nomination process is peculiar and leads to some strange films being selected by certain governments. For example, "We're not likely to see the best of Chinese cinema because it tends to be critical of Chinese government," he said. A film must have predominantly non-English dialogue to be included in the foreign language film category. Yet any film submitted is also eligible for other categories, as long as it has been shown in a Los Angeles, California, theater for one week. The French film "Z" won an Oscar for film editing in 1969; it was also nominated for best picture, directing and writing. In 1972 the Swedish film "The Emigrants" was nominated for best picture, best actress, directing and writing. In 2000, the best picture nominee "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" from China won for art direction, cinematography and best score. Yet no foreign language film has ever won best picture. "I do understand why the Academy is looking first to American films," Brody said. "It's an Academy that's centered around Hollywood." Davis equates it with any other country's film awards -- if you watch the British Film Awards you'll see mostly British films win; if you watch France's Cesar Awards, you'll see mostly French films win. The Academy chose 10 nominees in the best picture category, up from five in past years. Foreign film lovers had hoped it would open up the category to their favorite picks. "I'm a great fan of many foreign filmmakers," Davis said. "There have been years that, if they only counted my ballot, ... a foreign film would have won." David Wallechinsky has a good grasp on the foreign language film nominees for this year -- he's already seen 47 of the 65 submitted. With a DVD collection including films from 105 countries, he's watched the gamut of foreign films from artsy to action-packed. And his pick this year wasn't the nominated German film, "The White Ribbon." It's the French film "Un Prophete," by director Jacques Audiard -- which also was nominated. "The 'Prophete' is way better than most of the movies in the U.S.," Wallechinsky said. "It's definitely better than 'Inglourious Basterds.' Even a film that was good like 'The Hurt Locker' -- that was a good film, I have no problem with that film -- 'Prophete' is still a better film." Brody believes a film's Oscar win has less to do with its superior quality than with its commercial success.

No foreign language film has ever won the Oscar for best picture . Sixty-five nations submitted foreign language films for consideration this year . Best picture nominees expanded from five to 10, increasing chances for foreign films . Film fan: "Slumdog Millionaire" wouldn't have won last year if it hadn't been in English .

(CNN) -- Thierry Henry could face FIFA disciplinary action over his handball which helped France to qualify for the finals of the 2010 World Cup at the expense of Ireland. FIFA president Sepp Blatter told reporters in Cape Town that the Barcelona striker's "blatant unfair play" could land him in hot water. "The FIFA disciplinary committee will open an investigation ... concerning the behavior of the player Thierry Henry," he said. "It was blatant unfair play and was seen all around the world. I don't know the outcome of the disciplinary committee, let them make the decision. "Fair play must be maintained in our game." Blatter was speaking after an extraordinary meeting of the FIFA executive committee, which was convened to consider the refereeing controversy in the France - Ireland match, incidents surrounding the Algeria - Egypt playoff tie and matchfixing in Europe. It had been widely trailed that the FIFA executive would sanction the use of two extra officials behind both goal lines in World Cup. But Blatter said that the finals in South Africa was too soon to introduce the system which has been used in the second-tier European club tournament this year. "The experiments with the Europa League shall go on into the knockout stages next year but it has been decided, for the World Cup 2010, there is no change in the refereeing: one referee, two assistants and a fourth official." He went on to say that there would be further investigation into both video technology and additional referees. "We shall have a look at technology or additional persons and this shall be done by a committee but not the referees committee alone, it will be done by the football, technical and medical committees, too," he added. Ireland were denied a place in the finals by a goal that should have been disallowed because Henry used his hand to control the ball before setting up William Gallas to score the aggregate decider in the second leg in the Stade de France. Ireland subsequently launched two appeals, the first for the match to be replayed, the second for them to be added to the line-up for the finals as the 33rd team. Both have been rejected, but Blatter was forced to apologize to the Irish for making public their supposedly private bid to be included as an extra team. Blatter put their request into the public domain in light-hearted comments made in Johannesburg, which left Irish football officials infuriated and insulted. "I would like to express my regrets for the wrong interpretation of what I said. I regret what I have created and I'm sorry to the Ireland football confederation for these headlines going around the world," he said. "It's a pity I communicated in this way. Sorry again."

Thierry Henry face disciplinary action over his handball in World Cup playoff match . FIFA president Sepp Blatter says their disciplinary committee will investigate . FIFA rules out use of extra officials or video technology at the finals . Blatter apologizes to Irish officials for comments made over their request to be 33rd team .

(CNN) -- This Twitter thing has been coming on like gangbusters. The messaging site has been around for a couple of years, but its popularity seems to have exploded just recently. A self-admitted tech geek, Chris Pirillo is president of Lockergnome.com, a blogging network. Everyone from BarackObama to John Cleese to NASA to the consulate of Israel has a Twitter account. Heck, even yours truly does! Do you? Follow me and I'll follow you back. Twitter is really more of a social commons than a full-blown social network like MySpace or Facebook. It pretty much does one thing: allows people to "tweet" what they're up to (or what they're thinking about) in 140 characters or less. Call it micro-blogging, if you will, but it's about as close to the "Keep It Simple, Stupid" (K.I.S.S.) ideal as it gets. People can follow your tweets and you can follow theirs -- that's pretty much it. There are some third-party apps out there that can help you organize and seek out the information flying around out there in the Twittersphere, but it all pretty much stays in the nutshell. With the overwhelming amount of widgets and gadgets and gizmos and doohickeys and whatnots attached to every other social network out there, isn't it nice to be able to get away with plain ol' simple every now and again? Since we're sticking with the "less is more" aesthetic, I'm just going to give you 10 Twitter tips instead of the 20 I could have stretched this into. You're welcome! 1. Be yourself, but beware. Say whatever you feel like saying, but remember that whatever you write could exist in the digital universe forever. Proceed with extreme caution. 2. Don't be afraid to interact with others. If you like something they say, reply by clicking the little grey arrow that appears when you hover over one of their tweets. You can also simply type in @username (replacing "username" with whatever their username happens to be on Twitter). This is the formal way to address someone on Twitter. iReport.com: Do you agree with these tips? Share some of yours 3. Follow celebrities. They may never interact with you, but at least you can interact with them. It's no longer a question of who is on Twitter -- but who ISN'T on Twitter. 4. Use Twitter from your desktop. Twitter has something called an API (Application Programming Interface), which allows programmers to create experiences around Twitter for the community. Because of this, there have been an amazing array of applications released that will allow you to manage your Twitter account easily. There's Twitterrific, TweetDeck, and Twhirl -- just to name a few. 5. Find friends fast. If you're looking for new friends, a quick search for some of your favorite things on search.twitter.com will quickly reveal who you should be friending on Twitter. Maybe they'll follow you back? 6. Follow government officials. If your elected official isn't on http://tweetcongress.org, then they're behind the times. Heck, even the Library of Congress is on Twitter! 7. Crowdsource. If you have an idea, or a question, don't hold it in -- let it be known to all! Who knows -- someone just may answer your call for help. 8. Tweetups. Keep your eye out for these things. They're meetups for people on Twitter, and there's likely one happening regularly in your neck of the woods. I've taken to hosting one monthly in the Seattle area, as a matter of fact. Meet Twitter people -- tweeps, tweeple -- in meatspace! 9. Retweet. If you like something that someone else has tweeted, you can "RT" (retweet) it. This gives the original person credit, and also lets your followers know what you like. That's community! 10. Go with the flow. If you think you know better than everybody else, you're wrong -- the

CNN tech columnist Chris Pirillo offers 10 tips on how to be a good Twitterer . Say whatever you feel, but also remember that it could exist on the Web forever . Crowdsource. If you have an idea, or a question, don't hold it in -- let it be known! Keep your eye out for Tweetups, which are meetups for people on Twitter .

(CNN) -- Thomas Sawyer, a cancer survivor, has worn a urostomy bag for the past three years. Yet, he says, little could have prepared him for his recent airport pat down, when an officer broke the bag's seal and urine spilled out "onto my shirt and down my pants." "I'm a good American. I know why we're doing this, and I understand it," Sawyer told CNN. "But this was extremely embarrassing, and it didn't have to happen. With educated TSA workers, it wouldn't have happened." With the height of Thanksgiving holiday travel the next two days, the Transportation Security Administration is trying to strike a delicate balance between ensuring the safety of the traveling public and not invading people's privacy rights. But the screening raises an array of questions from health-care professionals: • Are TSA officers trained to deal with patients like Sawyer who may have medical conditions? • What about the elderly and others with hip replacements and similar ailments? • Will cancer patients have to take off wigs? • How is the TSA dealing with pat downs of children? • What about people with mental illness? The TSA says it has taken all of these concerns into account -- that children are not to be separated from their parents if pat downs are deemed necessary and that travelers with medical conditions should be treated with "the dignity, respect and courtesy they deserve." Watch: Cancer survivor accepts TSA apology "Our program covers all categories of disabilities -- mobility, hearing, visual and hidden," the TSA says on its website. "As part of that program, we established a coalition of over 70 disability-related groups and organizations to help us understand the concerns of persons with disabilities and medical conditions." Jonathan Bricker, a psychologist at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Washington state, says he advises anyone traveling right now to come mentally prepared for the unexpected. "Go in with an expectation that this is going to happen, and go in with the expectation that you're going to be the one singled out to go through a pat down," Bricker says. By doing that, people "can take more control of the situation." He says people with medical conditions should also carry notes from their doctors. If a tense situation does arise while being screened, passengers should think about the big picture, he says. "There is a larger purpose to this trip that has nothing to do with the TSA and nothing to do with the government. And the purpose is: You're visiting people you love." The TSA has said the ramped-up use of pat downs and full-body scanning is necessary to prevent weapons and explosives from getting aboard planes. The White House on Monday said the process is evolving and that the government is taking into account the public's concerns. "The evolution of the security will be done with the input of those who go through the security," White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said. Recent polls have shown most Americans support the measures, and a periphery glance at airports nationwide shows that the vast majority of travelers are dealing well with the extra scrutiny, even if it makes them uneasy at times. Dr. Gina Villani, the head of oncology at The Brooklyn Hospital Center, says the extra scrutiny raises concerns for cancer patients, who could have metallic dishes for chemo placed under their skin, external catheters or other necessary medical devices on their bodies. "You can imagine during a pat down, you're feeling this piece of metal under somebody's skin. If you don't know what it is, then it's going to create a lot of problems for people," she said. Doctors must be more aware of when their patients are traveling and write notes explaining their conditions, she says. Most of the time, though, "patients only think about it after they've had a terrible experience." A doctor's note also carries a demoralizing stigma. "You want to go

TSA says pat downs, full-body scans are necessary to prevent weapons from getting on planes . TSA trying to balance safety concerns and travelers' right to privacy . Doctors say extra scrutiny raises concerns for cancer patients, elderly, children . The process is evolving, and concerns are being taken into account, White House says .

(CNN) -- Those who were in AC Milan's San Siro stadium Saturday night for the Italian club's Serie A clash with Fiorentina say the atmosphere felt like a long "good bye." Kaka waves to supporters during Milan's match with Fiorentina on Saturday. As Kaka entered the pitch he took a long look around and then beat his fist on his chest -- a gesture commonly used by footballers to display their loyalty to supporters. Was he saying Milan will always be in his heart? Or was he simply giving everyone a heartfelt "saludo"? Kaka, Milan's Brazilian superstar and a former world footballer of the year, is reported to be the subject of a $150 million bid from super-rich English club Manchester City that would smash football's transfer word record. Milan's supporters are on Kaka's side, because they believe it is club officials who want to sell him. Silvio Berlusconi, no longer the club's president but the man in charge when it comes to make major decisions, said this week that it was difficult to ask someone who earns 10 million euros a year to turn down an offer of 15 million euros, adding "It's a difficult offer to refuse." Berlusconi is counting his own money. Italy's prime minister is also the country's richest man and he remains businessman at heart. He purchased Kaka in 2003 for $7.5 million (roughly 8 million euros at the time). Selling him on would generate a massive profit on his investment -- in cash and paid up front. Privately, most Milan supporters would probably agree with Berlusconi's reasoning. After all, when so much money is at stake, your head as much as your heart must decide, and the ball at this point is with Kaka rather than club officials. Still supporters displayed a mix of anger and sarcasm on Saturday evening. "Hands off Kaka" read one banner, while another said: "I thought the devil could not sell its soul, but I was wrong," referring to Milan's devil's head logo. "Berlusconi, Interista" read another one, referring to Inter, the city's other top team and AC Milan's archrivals. In a choreographed protest 30 minutes into Saturday's match, hundreds of supporters occupying a section of the central stand waved 50-euro notes towards AC Milan President Adriano Galliani, sitting just above them. Galliani didn't react, but perhaps thought to himself that the money wasn't even enough to pay Kaka's wages for a day. The 26-year-old will reportedly earn around $500,000 a week at Manchester City. Likewise, the 5,000 supporters who signed a petition to keep the Brazilian star in Milan would have to pay $100 a week each to match the offer. A single banner criticized the player. "I belong to money" it read, referring to the "I belong to Jesus" t-shirt Kaka has displayed occasionally after scoring a goal. The banner stayed up only a few minutes but then mysteriously disappeared. Even on this emotional evening at the San Siro there was no room for criticism of the fans' Brazilian hero. At the end of the game Kaka's teammates hugged him and he waved again towards the supporters. Was he saying goodbye to them -- or to a $150 million move to Manchester?

Milan fans express anger over Kaka's rumored $150M move to Manchester City . Fans wave banknotes at club officials, display "Hands off Kaka" banners . Brazilian waved to fans, beat chest with fist, at start and end of match . Milan have admitted 26-year-old could leave club in a world record deal .

(CNN) -- Thousands of fans, many weeping, packed a Hannover, Germany, stadium Sunday to pay their last respects to Robert Enke, captain of the Hannover 96 soccer club, who died last week in what police believe was a suicide. Footage from the event showed Enke's flower-bedecked coffin carried through the stadium to the accompaniment of Bette Midler's song "The Rose" as the crowd cheered. Many of the spectators waved Hannover 96 banners as they wiped tears from their eyes. Enke, 32, was the goalkeeper for both Hannover 96 and the German national soccer team. He died Tuesday about 6:25 p.m. after he apparently stepped in front of a train. He had played in eight games for the team and was widely expected to be the German team's goalkeeper in the 2010 World Cup. "Preliminary police investigations indicate a suicide," Hannover 96 spokesman Stefan Wittke said last week. The stadium funeral service followed another memorial in a church and a mourning march through Hannover initiated by fans, the team said in a statement on its Web site. "Robert's wife Teresa has expressed the wish to have all his friends and fans of her deceased husband bid farewell to him in the AWD Arena," the statement said. "Hannover 96 supports Teresa Enke in her wish to have Robert and his friends, fans and teammates part with one another in an appropriate and worthy setting." "A few days have passed since Robert's tragic death, but our inner shock remains," the team said. "One thing is certain: We are not alone in our sadness. Robert Enke was not only perceived by you as a successful football player but above all as a special human being." Funeral speakers included German football league president Theo Zwanziger, the team said, as well as team chairman Martin Kind and other dignitaries. Afterward, the team said Enke would be laid to rest "in the presence of (his) closest family members." Teresa Enke told reporters following Enke's death that her husband had been battling depression for six years, but had kept his condition from being public knowledge. He left a suicide note, she said. The Enkes' biological daughter, Lara, died in 2006 at the age of 2 from a heart condition. The couple recently had adopted an 18-month-old girl they named Leila. "I tried to be there for him, said that football is not everything," Teresa Enke said. "There are many beautiful things in life. It is not hopeless. "We had Lara, we have Leila," she said. "I always wanted to help him get through it. He didn't want (the depression) to come out because of fear. He was scared of losing Leila." Have you lost a loved-one to suicide? Share your story Fellow players said they knew Enke had been struggling. "He was unstable," Kind said just after his death. "But he kept it under wraps. In the wake of Enke's death, the German national soccer team canceled its friendly match with Chile on Saturday. Hannover 96 is currently 10th in Germany's Bundesliga top division. Enke had been capped by his national side eight times since making his debut at age 29. The shot-stopper had also appeared for teams including Carl Zeiss Jena, Borussia Monchengladbach, Benfica, Barcelona, Fenerbahce and Tenerife in Spain. --CNN's Frederik Pleitgen contributed to this report.

Thousands flock to Hannover 96 football stadium to play tribute to goalkeeper . Stadium service followed another memorial in church, mourning march through Hannover . Robert Enke, 32, was expected to start for Germany in 2010 World Cup . Enke's wife says he suffered from depression for six years .

(CNN) -- Thousands of people around the globe may find the payoff Thursday for the countless hours they have spent perfecting the most ridiculous of feats. Chefs in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, try in September to set a record with a tub of Quaker soup, made with Quaker oats. More than 200,000 people in 18 countries hope to make it into the "Guinness World Records" book with a variety of rather odd achievements on this day. Students at the University of Bournemouth in the United Kingdom plan to round up more than 100 participants to set a record for the Most People Dressed as Superheroes. Several Germans will vie to set a record for the Most Juice Extracted from Grapes by Treading. And in New Zealand, would-be record-holders will chase glory in a race to set the Fastest Time to Peel and Eat -- what else? -- a Kiwi Fruit. The unusual pursuits unfold worldwide as part of Guinness World Records Day. The editors of "Guinness World Records" -- universally recognized as the foremost authority on record-breaking achievement -- began celebrating the day in 2004, a year after the book sold its 100 millionth copy. "We are very happy to see that people are still passionate and eager to achieve their goals in the midst of the global market turmoil," Editor-in-Chief Craig Glenday said in a prepared statement. Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, shows its studious side Thursday in an effort to enter the record books for Most People Reading Simultaneously. Brazil will try to break the record for World's Largest Bread, and Japan hopes to clock the Fastest Time to Run 100 Meters On All Fours. Various places in the United States are also getting in on the act. New York will try for the Most Grains of Rice Eaten with Chopsticks in a Minute and Oak Park, Illinois, will host the Largest Dog Wedding. Sports network ESPN will televise attempts at the Fastest Egg and Spoon Mile and the Most Apples Cut in the Air with a Sword. Roll your eyes if you must. But keep count of the rotations: You could be a contender next year.

Guinness World Records Day efforts range from the ridiculous to the absurd . Largest Dog Wedding, Most Apples Cut in the Air with a Sword among categories . Record book's editor praises pursuit of goals in spite of economic turmoil .

(CNN) -- Three aid workers have been shot over the last day in Somalia, two of them fatally, Somali media reports said. Somalis prepare Monday to bury murdered Osman Ali Ahmed, the head of the U.N. Development Program. The first fatality was a Somali, Mohamed Mohamud Qeyre. He was the deputy director of the group Daryeel Bulasho Guud (DBG), funded by a German company and affiliated with the group Bread for the World. Qeyre was shot in the Somali capital of Mogadishu Friday night in what appeared to be a targeted attack, the reports said. He was shot by three gunmen outside the facility where aid distribution is coordinated. The gunmen may have been staking out the facility waiting for Qeyre to exit. The head of DBG, in Nairobi, Kenya, said he will suspend all aid operations in Somalia for the time being. The second fatality was a member of the Sodra nongovernmental organization, which is helping with humanitarian efforts in Somalia. Officials said it appears that Ali Baashi was also specifically targeted by gunmen. Earlier this week, the World Food Program said a truck driver carrying its relief supplies was killed -- the fourth WFP driver killed in Somalia this year. Ahmed Saalim was shot when fighting broke out between convoy escorts and militiamen at a checkpoint, the U.N. aid agency said. A growing percentage of the Somali population has become dependent on humanitarian aid. A severe famine swept the nation in 1991-1993, devastating crops, killing up to 280,000 people and displacing up to 2 million, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. The situation has been exacerbated by drought, continual armed conflicts in central and southern Somalia and high inflation on food and fuel. Journalist Mohamed Amin contributed to this report.

Three aid workers have been shot over the last day in Somalia, two of them fatally . One victim worked for aid agency, DBG, which has suspended operations . Four World Food Program drivers of relief supplies killed this year . Somalis dependent on humanitarian aid since 1993 famine, ongoing war, drought .

(CNN) -- Three inmates who escaped from prison in Indiana last week then allegedly stole a truck, money and guns were captured Thursday in Nebraska after a high-speed car chase, authorities said. The three escapees, (from left) Jerry Sargent, Christopher Marshall and Bobby Cockerell, were captured in Nebraska. Nebraska State Patrol spokesman Mike Meyer said officers apprehended Christopher Marshall, Jerry Sargent and Bobby Cockerell in Alliance, Nebraska, after a nearly 60-mile chase with speeds reaching up to 100 mph. According to Meyer, law enforcement officers tried twice to spike the tires of the minivan the men were traveling in. They succeeded on the second try about five miles east of Alliance, but the suspects kept driving on flat tires until they were inside the city limits. The men started running when the vehicle stopped. Two were caught, but the third tried to carjack a vehicle at gunpoint before being arrested by an Alliance Police officer, according to Meyer. It is not yet known which escapee tried to take the vehicle at gunpoint. No shots were fired and no one was seriously injured, Meyer said. The three men broke out of the Branchville Correctional Facility near Tell City, Indiana, last week, authorities said. Tell City is about 80 miles west of Louisville, Kentucky. Police believe the three stole guns during a home-invasion robbery in Sanders, Kentucky, earlier this week. New arrest warrants charge them with possessing stolen firearms as well as felony possession of firearms, said George Huffman, spokesman for the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Because they were convicted of violent crimes, he said, they are not allowed to possess firearms at all. Police suspect the three of stealing a truck from a town near the prison and robbing three brothers in Sanders, about 65 miles east of Louisville, early Monday. The brothers were attacked, bound and held in their home for about an hour and a half while their assailants made off with guns and money, according to the Kentucky State Police. One of the three brothers was hospitalized after the attack, while the other two were treated and released. CNN's Melissa Roberts contributed to this report.

The men were captured in Alliance, Nebraska, after a car chase . Kentucky State police say men assaulted three brothers, took guns, cash and clothes . The suspects broke out of Branchville Correctional Facility near Tell City, Indiana .

(CNN) -- Three protesters scaled the Golden Gate Bridge Monday and unfurled a "Free Tibet" banner, a likely precursor to large protests when the Olympic torch arrives Wednesday in San Francisco, California. Members of Students for a Free Tibet climbed the bridge to place these banners, said the group's spokesman. The banner read, "One World. One Dream. Free Tibet." Those who climbed cables from which the bridge is suspended are members of Students for a Free Tibet, said group spokesman Tenzin Dasang. The three were arrested along with four others at the site. All seven were charged with felony conspiracy and misdemeanor nuisance, said California Highway Patrol Officer Mary Ziegenbein. The climbers also were charged with misdemeanor trespassing. Watch protesters and banner hung from bridge » The incident forced the closure of one northbound lane of the bridge. The climbers -- who were on the bridge for about three hours -- came down voluntarily about 1:15 p.m. (4:15 p.m. ET) after workers with the Golden Gate Bridge District began cutting down their banner, Ziegenbein said. Dasang said he has heard of many people planning to protest in San Francisco against China's human rights record. "We want it to be peaceful. But it will be large," said Dasang, 22, during a phone interview in which he said he was near the bridge. "I heard from Tibetans that now live all over the U.S. and even abroad who are coming here." The Olympic flame is on a 130-day journey that will take it through 23 cities on five continents and then throughout China, culminating at the Olympics opening ceremony in Beijing August 8. The San Francisco protest comes the same day as a demonstration in Paris, France, disrupted the torch relay many times. In Paris, police had to cut the Olympic torch relay short Monday amid protests against China's human rights record, French police said. The torch was scheduled to travel 17 miles, past Paris City Hall, but that stop and others were called off after the protests. The torch made it through about 10 miles of its scheduled journey. It was then driven by bus to its final destination, where it was displayed again during a public ceremony at a stadium. Authorities had to play hide-and-seek with the Olympic torch during much of the route, placing it on a bus at least twice during a sometimes chaotic relay route. China has come under international criticism because of its crackdown last month on protesters calling for democratic freedoms and self-rule in Tibet and neighboring Chinese provinces. Protesters have said more than 100 people have died in the crackdown, but Beijing denies that and has accused supporters of the Dalai Lama of orchestrating the violence. U.S. and other Western leaders have called on China to provide civil rights and freedoms to those in Tibet and to enter peaceful discussions aimed at resolving the crisis. E-mail to a friend

Protesters arrested after hanging "Free Tibet" banner from bridge . The climbers come down voluntarily after three hours . Earlier in day, protests in Paris, France, cut short Olympic torch relay . China faces international criticism over crackdown on protests seeking Tibet self-rule .

(CNN) -- Three runners died Sunday during the Detroit Free Press/Flagstar Marathon in Detroit, Michigan, police told CNN. An EMT vehicle is at the scene Sunday in Detroit after three runners collapsed at a marathon. All three deaths occurred between 9 and 9:20 a.m. ET, Second Deputy Chief John Roach said. A man in his 60s fell and hit his head, Roach said. The cause of the fall was unknown. The man was transported to Detroit Receiving Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Two other men, ages 36 and 26, also collapsed during the race and were pronounced dead at the hospital, Roach said. All three collapsed near the end of the race, he said. Witnesses describe scene » The weather at the time was overcast, Roach said, with temperatures in the low 40s. CNN's Chuck Johnston contributed to this report.

Second Deputy Chief John Roach: All three deaths occurred between 9 and 9:20 a.m. Man in his 60s fell hit his head; Two men others, ages 36 and 26, collapsed . Race was Detroit Free Press/Flagstar Marathon in Detroit, Michigan .

(CNN) -- Three scientists won the Nobel Prize in physics on Tuesday for two breakthroughs that led to two major underpinnings of the digital age -- fiber optics and digital photography, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said. Willard Boyle, left, and George Smith handle a charge-coupled device in 1974. Charles K. Kao, a British and U.S. citizen, won for "groundbreaking achievements concerning the transmission of light in fibers for optical communication." Willard S. Boyle, a Canadian and U.S. citizen, and George E. Smith, a U.S. citizen, "invented the first successful imaging technology using a digital sensor, a CCD (Charge-Coupled Device)." Kao in 1966 "made a discovery that led to a breakthrough in fiber optics. He carefully calculated how to transmit light over long distances via optical glass fibers," the academy said in a press release. Today, "optical fibers make up the circulatory system that nourishes our communication society" and "facilitate broadband communication such as the Internet," the academy said. Boyle and Smith's Charge-Coupled Device -- invented in 1969 -- "is the digital camera's electronic eye" and paved the way for digital photography. "It revolutionized photography, as light could now be captured electronically instead of on film. The digital form facilitates the processing and distribution of these images. CCD technology is also used in many medical applications, e.g. imaging the inside of the human body, both for diagnostics and for microsurgery." The Nobel Prizes are being awarded this week and next. The medicine award was handed out on Monday. The prizes for chemistry and literature will be awarded Wednesday and Thursday. The Nobel Peace Prize winner will be named on Friday, and the award in economics will be issued on Monday.

Breakthroughs led to fiber optics, digital photography . Optical fibers facilitate broadband communication such as the Internet . Scientists made it possible to capture light electronically instead of on film . Nobel Prizes handed out this week .

(CNN) -- Tiger Woods apologized on Wednesday for "transgressions" that "let his family down." "I have let my family down and I regret those transgressions with all of my heart. I have not been true to my values and the behavior my family deserves," he said in a statement on his official Web site. "I am not without faults and I am far short of perfect. I am dealing with my behavior and personal failings behind closed doors with my family. Those feelings should be shared by us alone." Woods made the comments in a statement posted on his Web site the same day that a gossip magazine published a story alleging that Woods had an affair with a 24-year-old New York cocktail waitress. The nightclub hostess, identified by a supermarket tabloid as Tiger Woods' mistress had called allegations that she is romantically involved with the golf superstar false and "ridiculous." In an interview published Tuesday, Rachel Uchitel told The New York Post that a disgruntled acquaintance sold the story to the National Enquirer and that "not a word of it is true." "I work in clubs, and I am a businesswoman," Uchitel said. "I do not have sex with celebrities, and I have not had an affair with Tiger Woods." Speculation has swirled around Woods since a wreck outside his Florida home early Friday left him with minor injuries and a citation for careless driving. The Florida Highway Patrol said Tuesday that its citation closes its investigation of the crash. Woods was not required to talk to state police about the wreck and did not sit for an interview with investigators. He issued a statement Sunday saying he alone was responsible for the crash and denouncing "the many false, unfounded and malicious rumors that are currently circulating about my family and me." Opinion: Woods is only human The 33-year-old golf phenomenon has won the Masters tournament and the PGA tournament each four times, as well as three U.S. Open titles. Investigators have said they don't have details on why Woods was driving away from his home at such an early hour. A police report says the wreck was not alcohol-related. Uchitel said she has met Woods twice, once in her capacity as the VIP director at a club in Manhattan's trendy Meatpacking District and another time through a mutual friend. "That's my job: to know these people, to have a relationship with them, to hang out with them," she told the Post. "It doesn't mean I am having sex with them or an affair with them." She said the allegations "must feel horrible" to Woods' wife, Elin Nordegren. "The worst part of it, it's not true," Uchitel said.

NEW: Tiger Woods apologizes for "transgressions" that let his family down . Woods tells his personal Web site that he is "far from perfect" Statement follows allegations of an affair in tabloid publications in the U.S.

(CNN) -- Tillakaratne Dilshan scored his sixth Test century of a remarkable year to give Sri Lanka a fine start to the third match of their series against India in Mumbai on Wednesday. Dilshan made 109 as Sri Lanka, seeking a win to level the series at 1-1, closed on 366 for eight wickets on the opening day. All-rounder Angelo Mathews was closing on his first Test century with an unbeaten 86 on a wicket offering turn and bounce, but was rapidly running out of partners to the second new ball. India, who won the second Test in Kanpur last week by a crushing innings and 144 runs, will take over from South Africa as the top-ranked Test team in the world if they can win the series 2-0. Off-spinner Harbhajan Singh claimed four victims and slow left-armer Pragyan Ojha two but Dilshan proved a formidable opponent. He continued his superb 2009 with 10 boundaries and two sixes to reach three figures for the 11th time in Tests. He made 112 in the high-scoring draw in the first Test in Ahmedabad. Dilshan put on 93 in 20 overs for the first wicket with Tharanga Paranavitana, who made 53.before becoming Harbhajan's first victim just before lunch. India claimed three wickets in the afternoon as Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara went cheaply with Mahela Jayawardene adding 59 for the third wicket before falling victim to paceman Shanthakumaran Sreesanth. Harbhajan had Thilan Samaraweera caught in the leg-trap for one just before the tea interval. Mathews and Dilshan put Sri Lanka back on top again in the final session with a 74 stand which was ended when the opener was given out caught at short-leg off Harbhajan, with TV replays indicating he was unlucky. Prasanna Jayawardene made 43 in a sixth-wicket stand of 67 with Mathews, but he Nuwan Kulasekara and Rangana Herath fell in quick succession as India hit back again.

Tillakaratne Dilshan scores sixth Test century of 2009 for Sri Lanka . Opener helps his side to 366 for eight on first day against India in Mumbai . Harbhajan Singh takes four wickets to lead Indian attack on helpful wicket .

(CNN) -- To guard against public indifference to climate change the United Nations has enlisted a coalition of the world's leading advertising agencies. The world in their hands: New campaign aims to empower public. Leading up to the U.N. Climate Change Conference (COP15) in Copenhagen in December, the global "Hopenhagen" campaign has been unveiled. The initiative is aiming to generate active interest and persuade the public into believing they have a say in the negotiations between world leaders that will ratify a new global climate treaty. "Climate change is one of the epic challenges facing this and future generations. World leaders will come together for the Copenhagen climate change conference in December, and every citizen of the world has a stake in the outcome. It is time to seal a deal. We need a global movement that mobilizes real change," said U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in a press statement. "It is about global action for a global climate treaty and a better future for humankind." The campaign is a collaboration between a number of the world's largest communications companies. The strategy and creative concept for the Hopenhagen idea came from WPP's Ogilvy & Mather team; digital framework and direction were developed by MDC Partners' Colle+McVoy; and the global PR and messaging plans are spearheaded by Omnicom Group's Ketchum. Michael Lee, executive director of the International Advertising Association called the coalition of media companies involved "unprecedented," adding that it was "testament to the significance the industry places on the need for action to address climate change." According to the campaign brief, the aim is to change from the idea that we are just "coping" with global climate challenges to "hoping" and ultimately acting to combat the perils of climate change. The Hopenhagen Web site will be the center of an open source campaign where the public can send messages to the delegates of the UN summit meeting as well as raise awareness and debate issues. While the Web site will be developed as the months go by, the IAA also hopes that businesses, governments and NGOs engage in the campaign as well to create a broad global community with shared goals. Unveiled at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival this week, the first elements of the campaign can be seen at New York's JFK International, LA International and London Heathrow airports. From September a more "aggressive" consumer launch of the campaign will commence until the conference begins on December 7. What do you think? Does climate change need to be branded to keep us engaged? Are we in danger of "climate change" fatigue? Have your say in the Sound Off box below.

U.N. launches climate change awareness campaign ahead of Copenhagen summit . U.N. enlists broad coalition of communications companies across media platforms . Ban Ki-moon: "We need a global movement that mobilizes real change"

(CNN) -- Top Republican lawmakers Sunday called on President Obama to change his political strategy, arguing that the passage of a massive stimulus bill on a party-line vote showed he has failed to deliver the "change" he promised. Sen. John McCain says the Obama administration is off to a "bad beginning." "If this is going to be bipartisanship, the country's screwed," Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, told ABC's "This Week." "I know bipartisanship when I see it." Sen. John McCain, R-Arizona, said Obama was off to "a bad beginning," out of step with the vow of bipartisanship both men made after Obama beat out the Republican presidential nominee for the White House in November. "It was a bad beginning because it wasn't what we promised the American people, what President Obama promised the American people, that we would sit down together," McCain told CNN's "State of the Union With John King." The $787 billion bill made it through Congress with the support of three Republicans -- Sens. Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe of Maine and Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania. Obama is expected to sign the bill Tuesday in Denver, Colorado. Watch Democratic and GOP analysts debate bipartisanship » "This is not 'change we can believe in,' " Graham, a member of the Senate Banking Committee, told ABC. He said Democrats "rammed it through the House" after starting out "with the idea, 'We won -- we write the bill.' " But Obama's spokesman insisted the stimulus is a bipartisan success. Speaking to CBS' "Face the Nation," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said, "We're happy that Congress, in a bipartisan way, took steps to make whatever happens in this recession easier to take for the American people." iReport.com: Share your thoughts on the stimulus plan And on CNN's "State of the Union," Gibbs said, "I think what you saw from this president was an unprecedented effort to reach out to Republicans. Not just in meetings at the White House, but you had the president drive up to Capitol Hill to meet with Republicans where they work." McCain fired back. "Look, I appreciate the fact that the president came over and talked to Republicans," he said. "That's not how you negotiate a result. You sit down together in a room with competing proposals. Almost all of our proposals went down on a party-line vote." When the next major piece of legislation aimed at helping the economy recover reaches Congress, McCain said that he hopes "we will sit down together and conduct truly bipartisan negotiations. This was not a bipartisan bill." iReport.com: McCain's actions "totally reprehensible" McCain added, "Republicans were guilty of this kind of behavior. I'm not saying that we did things different. But Americans want us to do things differently, and they want us to work together." Gibbs described things differently. "This president has always worked in a bipartisan fashion," he told King. "He will continue to reach out to Republicans. John, we hope that Republicans will decide they want to reach back."

Sens. John McCain, Lindsey Graham say stimulus bill wasn't bipartisan . Spokesman: President made "unprecedented effort to reach out to Republicans" Congress passes $787 billion stimulus bill with support of three Republicans . President Obama expected to sign bill on Tuesday .

(CNN) -- Tough economic times are taking a toll across the spectrum of business and individual activity -- and the country's institutions of higher learning are no exception. Andy Warhol is one of the artists in Brandeis University's acclaimed Rose Art Museum. Brandeis University, in Waltham, Massachusetts, will be taking an extraordinary step to preserve its educational mission -- the school's board of trustees voted Monday to close its acclaimed Rose Art Museum. The university will sell every one of the approximately 6,000 items in the museum, opened in 1961. "These are extraordinary times, we cannot control or fix the nation's economic problems," university president Jehuda Reinharz said. "We can only do what we have been entrusted to do -- act responsibly with the best interests of our students and their futures foremost in mind." University spokesman Dennis Nealon said that the move to sell off the museum's exhibits was "a very hard and painful decision" but a necessary one for the school's survival. He said the decision, which calls for the museum to close in the summer, will not affect the university's "commitment to the arts and the teaching of the arts." The facility will become a fine arts teaching center with an exhibition gallery and studio space, he said. The museum's collection includes iconic paintings by such luminaries of American art as Andy Warhol, James Rosenquist, Robert Rauschenberg, Jasper Johns, Alex Katz and Roy Lichtenstein. Nealon said most of the museum's acquisitions are paintings and sculptures. The school has not undertaken a recent appraisal of the works, Nealon said, adding that the process may take as much as two years to complete. Brandeis, founded in 1948, is the only non-sectarian, Jewish-sponsored university in the country.

Brandeis trustees vote to close Rose Art Museum, sell collection . University spokesman says "painful decision" necessary for school's survival . Collection includes iconic paintings by Warhol, Johns and Lichtenstein . Brandeis is the only nonsectarian, Jewish-sponsored university in nation .

(CNN) -- Toyota Motor Corp. has recently been in the hot seat after issuing massive recalls because of problems related to the accelerator pedal in several of its auto models. To date, 8.1 million vehicles worldwide have been recalled by the manufacturer, with the possibility of more to come after Thursday's announcement by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration of a formal investigation into brake problems with the 2010 Prius. As the company's woes continue to mount, there has been some speculation from critics such as Rep. Henry Waxman, D-California, as to whether Toyota's recent problems with sudden unintended acceleration go beyond the problems already identified. Speaking on Wednesday to CNN's Campbell Brown, Larry Webster of Popular Mechanics magazine spoke at length on the problem, saying that "in the last decade, there have been tens of thousands of reports of sudden unintended acceleration in cars made by all the manufacturers." Is this true? The CNN Fact Check Desk wondered: Which other car manufacturers have had a problem with sudden unintended acceleration? • Sudden unintended acceleration occurs when a car continues to move forward, often at increasing speeds, without the driver pressing on the accelerator pedal. • While Toyota is basing its current recall on the possibility of floor mat entrapment and sticky accelerator pedals, many factors can contribute to the problem of sudden unintended acceleration in vehicles. Reports from the NHTSA have blamed it on many other factors, including frayed throttle cables and cracked cruise-control computers. • The top five manufacturers of cars driven in the United States are General Motors, Toyota, Ford, Honda and Chrysler. • The NHTSA's online database indicates that every one of these five has received numerous consumer complaints of sudden unintended acceleration in more than one of its models. Each manufacturer has faced a formal investigation into these complaints by the NHTSA and as a result has had to recall vehicles to fix various conditions that led to the problem. • Recalls due to incidents of sudden unintended acceleration are not limited to the big five manufacturers. According to the NHTSA database, recalls have also been issued for vehicles made by Nissan, BMW, Volkswagen, Mitsubishi, Subaru, Mercedes-Benz, Kia, Mazda, Land Rover, Suzuki and Volvo. • In December 2009, Consumer Reports published an article that said 41 percent of the sudden acceleration complaints received by the NHTSA in 2008 pertained to Toyota and its luxury brand, Lexus. Ford came in second behind Toyota with 28 percent of the complaints relating to U.S. models. • Bottom Line: Sudden unintended acceleration is not a problem limited to Toyota. Many car manufacturers, including the other four with the largest shares of the U.S. market, have had to recall vehicles because of this issue.

8.1 million vehicles worldwide have been recalled by Toyota . Popular Mechanics expert says thousands of cars have had similar problems . Fact Check investigates to see if that's true .

(CNN) -- Two former Blackwater employees have made statements against Blackwater Worldwide and its founder Erik Prince, accusing the security company and its former CEO of murder and other serious crimes in Iraq, according to court documents filed this week. Blackwater founder Erik Prince, shown here before a congressional panel in 2007, recently left the company. The sworn affidavits by an ex-Marine who joined Blackwater and another employee -- listed in the documents as "John Doe No. 1" and "John Doe No. 2" -- are part of a civil lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Virginia against Prince on behalf of Iraqi families who say they lost loved ones at the hands of his company. Blackwater, recently renamed Xe, issued a statement Tuesday, saying it would respond "to the anonymous unsubstantiated and offensive assertions put forward by the plaintiffs," in a brief to be filed August 17. The company had a security contract for operations in Iraq under the U.S. State Department until May, when the federal government declined to renew the contract. The decision did not affect other contracts Blackwater has with the State Department, a senior State department official told CNN earlier this year. Several of the plaintiffs are connected to a September 2007 shooting incident in Baghdad in which the Iraqi government says security guards, then employed by Blackwater, fired upon and killed 17 Iraqi civilians. The affidavits by the two witnesses, who did not want to be identified in the court documents filed Monday for fear of retaliatory "violence," paint a menacing portrait of Prince, who recently resigned from his company. "First, he views himself as a Christian crusader tasked with eliminating Muslims and the Islamic faith from the globe. ... Second, Mr. Prince is motivated by greed," says John Doe No. 2. "He sought every opportunity to deploy men to Iraq in order to earn more money from the United States government." He refers to another incident when he "first arrived in Baghdad" in which he saw fellow employees pulling weapons out of a shipment of dog food -- the allegation being smuggling. John Doe No. 1 describes witnessing one incident in Baquba, where a Blackwater employee allegedly fired into a passing single-passenger vehicle without provocation. He says he's heard of similar instances of excessive or deadly force from other Blackwater employees. However, neither gives clear details about the incidents they describe, such as specific dates or locations. The court documents filed Tuesday are in response to a defense motion to dismiss the suit. The suit says the affidavits were also submitted to the Justice Department, which is engaged in an ongoing investigation into the Blackwater case. No criminal charges have been filed against Prince. "It is obvious that Plaintiffs have chosen to slander Mr. Prince rather than raise legal arguments or actual facts that will be considered by a court of law. We are happy to engage them there," the company statement said. "We question the judgment of anyone who relies upon and [reiterates] anonymous declarations." Earlier this year, five former Blackwater security guards pleaded not guilty to federal charges of manslaughter and other serious crimes stemming from a September 16, 2007, shooting. Their trial is set for February 2010.

Statements are part of civil suit brought by Iraqi families who've lost loved ones . The witnesses -- "John Doe No. 1" and "John Doe No. 2" -- fear retaliatory "violence" Affidavits say founder Erik Prince "views himself as a Christian crusader" Company statement says plaintiffs ignore "actual facts" and "slander" Prince .

(CNN) -- Two former presidents reflected on their greatest regrets in office Monday, each looking back to issues that continue to plague the nation years later. Former presidents and political rivals Bill Clinton and George H.W. Bush now share philanthropic efforts. Former Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton appeared together at a question-and-answer forum before the National Automobile Dealers Association in New Orleans, Louisiana. Asked his biggest regret after leaving office, Bush said he now wonders whether he should have tried to get Saddam Hussein to leave office at the end of the first Gulf War in 1991. He told the gathering, "I've thought a lot about it, but at the end of Desert Storm, the question was should we have kind of kept going on that road to death and all this slaughter until Saddam Hussein showed up and laid his sword on the table, surrendered. And the common wisdom was he wouldn't do that." But he said a conversation with an FBI agent who interrogated Saddam after he was captured has made him reconsider. Bush recalled their talk, "I said, 'What if we just say he has to come to surrender, would he have done it?' And this guy said, 'I'm absolutely convinced he would have.' My experts tell me he wouldn't have." Bush said, "We ended it the way we said we would" as a military success, but noted a cleaner ending "would have been perfect." He added, "If we had tried to get Saddam Hussein to come and literally surrender and put his sword on the table, I think it might have been avoided some of the problems that we did have in the future from him." On a day that President Barack Obama dispatched George Mitchell to the Middle East as the latest U.S. envoy, Clinton discussed the failure to achieve peace between Israelis and Palestinians. "My No. 1 regret is that I was not able to persuade Yasser Arafat to accept the peace plan I offered at the end of my presidency that the Israelis accepted. "If he had done that ... we had had seven years of progress toward peace. We had one year in 1998, the only year in the history of Israel where not a single soul was killed in a terrorist act. The Palestinians had more control over West Bank then than they do today," Clinton said. "And if he had taken that deal, we would have a Palestinian state and we would have had, I think now, normal peaceful relations with Israel and all of its Arab neighbors." Clinton said a deal would have helped the U.S. handle other issues in the region, saying, "We'd be much better positioned to deal with the problem of Iran, and we would have taken away about half the arguments of terrorists around the world by giving the Palestinians their state and creating a cooperative, positive interdependence in the Middle East, not a negative one. And so, I think that would have done more good to save more lives and help more people, and I wish I had been able to do that. " Clinton also said he regretted not doing more to "stop the Rwandan genocide," and succeeding on a new health care plan. He said "presidents should share freely ... the mistakes they made" with historians, because it teaches lessons. He said he shared problems during the lunch with Obama and the four living presidents, saying, "You want each new president to make new mistakes, not the same ones." Clinton added, "all of us know if you make enough decisions, you're going to make a few of them aren't right."

Middle East leaves George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton with some regrets . Bush wonders whether he should have pressed harder for Saddam's surrender . Clinton looks back at Palestinian-Israeli peace process with some remorse . Presidents should share their mistakes as a learning tool, Clinton says .

(CNN) -- Two former presidents reflected on their greatest regrets in office Monday, each looking back to issues that continue to plague the nation years later. Former presidents and political rivals Bill Clinton and George H.W. Bush now share philanthropic efforts. Former Presidents George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton appeared together at a question-and-answer forum before the National Automobile Dealers Association in New Orleans, Louisiana. Asked his biggest regret after leaving office, Bush said he now wonders whether he should have tried to get Saddam Hussein to leave office at the end of the first Gulf War in 1991. He told the gathering, "I've thought a lot about it, but at the end of Desert Storm, the question was should we have kind of kept going on that road to death and all this slaughter until Saddam Hussein showed up and laid his sword on the table, surrendered. And the common wisdom was he wouldn't do that." But he said a conversation with an FBI agent who interrogated Saddam after he was captured has made him reconsider. Bush recalled their talk, "I said, 'What if we just say he has to come to surrender, would he have done it?' And this guy said, 'I'm absolutely convinced he would have.' My experts tell me he wouldn't have." Bush said, "We ended it the way we said we would" as a military success, but noted a cleaner ending "would have been perfect." He added, "If we had tried to get Saddam Hussein to come and literally surrender and put his sword on the table, I think it might have been avoided some of the problems that we did have in the future from him." On a day that President Barack Obama dispatched George Mitchell to the Middle East as the latest U.S. envoy, Clinton discussed the failure to achieve peace between Israelis and Palestinians. "My No. 1 regret is that I was not able to persuade Yasser Arafat to accept the peace plan I offered at the end of my presidency that the Israelis accepted. "If he had done that ... we had had seven years of progress toward peace. We had one year in 1998, the only year in the history of Israel where not a single soul was killed in a terrorist act. The Palestinians had more control over West Bank then than they do today," Clinton said. "And if he had taken that deal, we would have a Palestinian state and we would have had, I think now, normal peaceful relations with Israel and all of its Arab neighbors." Clinton said a deal would have helped the U.S. handle other issues in the region, saying, "We'd be much better positioned to deal with the problem of Iran, and we would have taken away about half the arguments of terrorists around the world by giving the Palestinians their state and creating a cooperative, positive interdependence in the Middle East, not a negative one. And so, I think that would have done more good to save more lives and help more people, and I wish I had been able to do that. " Clinton also said he regretted not doing more to "stop the Rwandan genocide," and succeeding on a new health care plan. He said "presidents should share freely ... the mistakes they made" with historians, because it teaches lessons. He said he shared problems during the lunch with Obama and the four living presidents, saying, "You want each new president to make new mistakes, not the same ones." Clinton added, "all of us know if you make enough decisions, you're going to make a few of them aren't right."

Middle East leaves George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton with some regrets . Bush wonders whether he should have pressed harder for Saddam's surrender . Clinton looks back at Palestinian-Israeli peace process with some remorse . Presidents should share their mistakes as a learning tool, Clinton says .

(CNN) -- Two men were in custody and a third was still on the run Friday after the shooting of two police officers in Indiana sparked a manhunt across the Ohio River into Kentucky, authorities said. One of the injured officers is taken out of an ambulance and rushed into the University of Louisville Hospital. Vincent Windell, 22, and another man whose name was not released were in custody in connection with Thursday's shooting, Jeffersonville, Indiana, Chief Detective Charlie Thompson told CNN. A third suspect, Robert Dattilo, 37, fled into Kentucky, where Louisville police were pursuing him, according to Louisville Metro Police spokeswoman Alicia Smiley. The incident began Thursday when Jeffersonville Police Cpl. Dan Lawhorn, 39, and Patrolman Keith Broady, 32, responded to a call from a Motel 6 employee about possible drug activity, Thompson said. The two were apparently ambushed when they arrived, Indiana State Police told the Louisville Courier-Journal. Lawhorn, an 11-year veteran, was shot in the leg, and Broady, a 4-year veteran, was shot in the upper body, Thompson said. The two officers returned fire, but it wasn't clear whether the suspects were hit. Lawhorn and Broady were able to reach their patrol cars and call for help after the shooting. They were rushed to the University of Louisville Hospital for surgery and are both listed in serious but stable condition, hospital spokesman David McArthur told CNN.

Vincent Windell, 22, and another man in custody for Thursday's shooting . Third suspect, identified as Robert Dattilo, 37, fled into Kentucky, still on run . Police say incident started when cops were ambushed responding to drug call . Both officers who were shot are listed in serious but stable condition .

(CNN) -- Two of the biggest stars in the NBA will be team-mates next season after a blockbuster trade which sees Shaquille O'Neal move from the Phoenix Suns to the Cleveland Cavaliers -- the home of league MVP LeBron James. Shaquille O'Neal is hoping his arrival will put a smile on the faces of Cleveland fans. The 37-year-old O'Neal is one of the all-time greats of basketball, winning four NBA championships, three straight with the Los Angeles Lakers and the other with Miami Heat. James is widely recognized as the sport's current superstar, but the 24-year-old has been left frustrated by Cleveland's failure to win the title. He stormed off the court after their loss to the Orlando Magic in the Eastern Conference finals, not even shaking hands with 2008 Olympic teammate Dwight Howard. The trade, which sees Phoenix get center Ben Wallace and guard Sasha Pavlovic, has been talked about since February but finalized on Thursday night. "I was elated about the trade because I get to play with one of the greatest players to ever play the game in LeBron James," O'Neal was quoted on the NBA's official Web site www.nba.com. O'Neal averaged 17.8 points and 8.4 rebounds in 75 games for the Suns last season and believes he still has much to offer the NBA. "My numbers are not good enough to retire. Three more years left," O'Neal wrote on his Twitter blog. His career averages are 24.7 points, 11.3 rebounds and 2.4 blocked shots, with his peak seasons coming as he led the Lakers to three straight titles from 2000-02. The Lakers traded him to Miami where he spent three seasons, helping them to the NBA Championship three years ago. He has played in Phoenix for the past two years, restricted by injuries in his first season. The Cavs, powered by James, won 66 regular season games and their first eight in the playoffs before coming unstuck against the Magic. They will be hoping that O'Neal will be the final piece in the jigsaw to land the first American sports championship for Cleveland in 45 years.

Shaquille O'Neal is traded from the Phoenix Suns to the Cleveland Cavaliers . 7 foot one inch O'Neal has been named in the NBA's All Star team 15 times . O'Neal, 37, will now pair up with 2009 NBA MVP LeBron James at Cleveland .

(CNN) -- Two people were found dead and a third person is still believed missing in a North Carolina food plant heavily damaged in a morning explosion, police said Tuesday night. Part of a collapsed ConAgra Foods plant lies atop parked cars Tuesday in Garner, North Carolina. Four people were in critical condition after the explosion at the ConAgra Foods plant in the town of Garner, CNN affiliate WRAL-TV reported. The explosion, reported about 11:30 a.m. Tuesday, caused sections of the roof to collapse. Search efforts for those missing were slowed by ammonia leaks and a fire that was not extinguished until afternoon. "There was no warnings, no signs," Garner Mayor Ronnie Williams said. "It all happened very abruptly." At least 38 people were transported to area hospitals, said Jeff Hammerstein, district chief for Wake County Emergency Medical Services. Four burn victims -- two males and two females -- were undergoing critical care at the North Carolina Jaycees Burn Center, said Dr. Charles Cairns, director of emergency medicine for UNC Hospitals. The patients suffered burns that covered from 40 to 60 percent of their bodies, Cairns said. Police said recovery workers still were trying to get the two bodies out of the plant, which makes Slim Jim food products. The victims' names weren't immediately available. More than 300 people were in the plant when the explosion happened, authorities said. The cause of the blast was unknown, according to Garner police spokesman Joe Binns. Rescuers were crawling into the rubble -- sometimes in pockets of space less than 30 inches tall -- in attempts to access the two bodies and find the missing person, officials said at a news conference Tuesday night. The search crews were moving slowly in part because the building is very unstable, officials said. Video from the scene showed holes in sections of the roof of the 425,000 square-foot plant. First responders set up a makeshift triage area near the building. A section of the roof was collapsed, and pipes could be seen spewing liquid believed to be ammonia. Watch liquid spew from building » ConAgra Foods' brands include Healthy Choice, Chef Boyardee and Orville Redenbacher, among others. The Garner plant is known for producing Slim Jim beef jerky products. The company was "working with authorities on the ground to ensure that their employees are getting all of the support that they need," said Stephanie Childs, ConAgra director of corporate communication. "The employees' health is their only real concern at this time." Gail Ruffin, a ConAgra worker who was in the plant when the explosion happened, told WRAL she heard a boom. "The ceiling start coming down, and we all start running," Ruffin, who wasn't injured, told WRAL. "Everyone was trying to get to the exit door. ... I was just trying to get out, and then we just [saw] people that [were] burned -- blood all over them." Garner is seven miles south of Raleigh.

NEW: Police: Teams looking for missing person, trying to recover two bodies . Part of roof collapses in explosion at ConAgra Foods plant in North Carolina . At least 38 taken to hospitals; four said to be in critical condition . Officials don't know cause of blast .

(CNN) -- Two people were killed and three others were in critical condition Saturday when a truck carrying fireworks on North Carolina's Outer Banks exploded, officials said. Smoke from the explosion of a truck carrying fireworks rises over Ocracoke Island, North Carolina, Saturday. Jamie Tunnell, Hyde County spokeswoman, said the fireworks were to be used for the annual Fourth of July show on Ocracoke Island, and the five people were members of the crew setting up the display. The truck exploded at the Ocracoke Island docks. One person was killed at the scene, while another died at a hospital from injuries sustained in the blast, Tunnell said. Emergency crews and firefighters arrived. Tunnell said two volunteer firefighters were being treated for smoke inhalation and exhaustion. Joseph Chestnut, 16, was working at the Ride the Wind kayak-rental stand in Ocracoke when he heard the explosion across the harbor. He thought a home under construction had collapsed, he told CNN's iReport. iReport.com: Smoke rises from explosion site "I saw all these fireworks blowing up," he said. "They were low, and I knew that something was wrong." Watch images from the scene » "It was just really scary. There's never been an accident like that before that I've seen here," Chestnut added. The Hatteras Island ferry service was temporarily suspended, but had reopened by midday, and Highway 12 was clear, she said. The island, which is part of the Cape Hatteras National Seashore, can be reached only by ferry, private boat or plane. The FBI and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were going to investigate on Saturday, she said.

Two killed, three critically injured when truck carrying fireworks exploded . The five were to set up Fourth of July show on Ocracoke Island in Outer Banks . Truck blew up at the Ocracoke Island docks . Hatteras Island ferry service suspended; reopened midday .

(CNN) -- Two sheriff's deputies responding to a domestic dispute between a pair of brothers Monday night were shot and badly injured in the same Washington county where four officers were killed last month, authorities said. The Pierce County deputies were wounded while responding to a domestic violence incident at home near the town of Eatonville, south of Seattle, said Hunter George, a county spokesman. They killed the gunman, identified as David E. Crable, in an exchange of fire, authorities said. Sgt. Nick Hausner, 43, a 20-year veteran of the Pierce County Sheriff's Department, was transported to Madigan Army Medical Center where he was in serious condition, the department said. He is married and has children who are 14 and 12 years old. Deputy Kent Mundell, 44, a nine-year veteran, was airlifted to the trauma center at Harborview Medical Center where he was in critical condition with life-threatening injuries, the sheriff's department said. He also is married and has two children, a 16-year-old and a 10-year-old. Pierce County prosecutor Mark Lindquist said Crable had a history of protection orders sought by family members. Earlier this year, Crable pleaded guilty to malicious mischief and brandishing a knife in an incident involving his brother, Lindquist said, and protection orders were imposed afterward, telling him to stay away from his brother and a female minor. Both counts were misdemeanors. Lindquist said Crable had no felony convictions. The protective orders were not in effect during the Monday night shooting, Lindquist said. The prosecutor said other protection orders that emerged were not the result of charges filed. "They are a result of people saying this guy is a danger to me," Lindquist said. "I think you can reasonably infer from his history, he had an alcohol problem." Crable went to his brother's house Monday night and there was a domestic dispute, said Sheriff's detective Ed Troyer. One of the men invited the officers inside the house, while the other man went upstairs. He returned with a weapon and shot at the deputies, striking them several times, Troyer said. Local coverage from CNN affiliate KIRO The deputies returned fire, killing the alleged shooter, he said. "There were a lot of rounds fired," Troyer said. Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire issued a statement saying, "My thoughts and prayers are with the two wounded Pierce County deputies, their families, friends, and the entire law enforcement community." This incident comes in the aftermath of two other recent cop shootings in the Seattle area. Since October 31, eight police officers or deputies have been shot. Five have died in the attacks. On Halloween night, Seattle police Officer Timothy Brenton was fatally shot while sitting in his patrol car. Brenton, 39, was reviewing paperwork from a traffic stop when someone fired into his patrol car. An officer Brenton was training was wounded in the shooting. A suspect in that case was arrested and pleaded not guilty. On November 29, four officers from Lakewood, Washington, were killed in an ambush-style shooting at a coffee shop. Police shot and killed the suspect in that attack after a two-day manhunt. Troyer said it was "surreal" to be responding to another shooting that involved officers. His department has led the investigation into the shooting of the four Lakewood officers. "I am deeply troubled by the recent series of attacks on our law enforcement officers," Gregoire said in the statement. "I ask that all Washington citizens join me in sending a clear message that these assaults on law enforcement officers will not be tolerated. "The people of Washington and across America know that those who wear a badge show us the true meaning of service. They sacrifice their safety for ours. We owe them and their families our gratitude, respect and support." CNN's Patrick Oppmann contributed to this report

Two Pierce County sheriff's deputies shot while responding to domestic violence incident . One is in critical condition, other is stable, officials say . Suspected shooter shot and killed, officials say . Four officers were killed last month in the same county .

(CNN) -- Typhoon Morakot bore down on Taiwan Friday, packing 89 mph (143 kph) winds and threatening to soak the entire island when it makes landfall Saturday morning, Taiwan's Central Weather Bureau said. A man fights against strong winds in Hsintien, Taipei county, Taiwan, on Friday. As of 10 a.m. Friday (2 a.m. GMT), wind gusts were reaching 112 mph, and Morakot, a medium-strength typhoon, was moving west-northwest at 14 mph en route to landfall, the agency said. Already, mudslides and landslides were occurring on the land, as airlines canceled flights, and government offices, schools and the Taiwan Stock Exchange closed for the day, according to Taiwan's Central News Agency. The storm was centered about 124 miles (200 km) southeast of Taipei and could wind up directly over the capital, said CNN meteorologist Kevin Corriveau. He predicted its impact would be massive. "This storm has already dumped about 400 millimeters (16 inches) of rain in the central and southern part of the island, and they're still expecting another 500 (20 inches) to 800 millimeters (32 inches) of rain over the next 24 to 48 hours," he said. Watch how the storm is affecting life on the island » Drought in recent months has severely affected the area, leaving the ground so hard that it cannot absorb the rainfall, Corriveau said. However, the island tends to prepare well for typhoons, Corriveau added. "They take it very seriously," Corriveau said. "Just like Cuba is very good at handling hurricanes, Taiwan is very good at handling typhoons." On Thursday, Taiwanese Premier Liu Chao-shiuan examined the island's emergency operation center and asked all personnel to stay on high alert over the next day, with the typhoon forecast to "affect all regions of Taiwan," according to CNA. Taiwan and eastern China are particularly vulnerable to flash flooding and mudslides because of the proximity of the mountains to the sea. Once it hits land, Morakot is expected to weaken to tropical storm strength, the Central Weather Bureau reported.

NEW: Storm about 200 km (124 miles) southeast of Taipei, CNN meteorologist says . NEW: Mudslides and landslides occur already Friday morning . NEW: Airlines cancel flights; schools, government offices, stock exchange closed . Taiwan is vulnerable to flash flooding, mudslides because mountains are near sea .

(CNN) -- Typhoon Morakot dumped heavy rain on Taiwan early Saturday and threatened to further soak the recently drought-stricken island. A man fights against strong winds in Hsintien, Taipei county, Taiwan, on Friday. As of 3 a.m. local time, the storm's eye was over the northern part of the island, CNN forecaster Kevin Corriveau reported, although he noted that slow-moving Morakot is so large it encompassed the entire island. Journalist Andrew Lee in Taipei, citing local media, said the storm had blown off roofs and washed out some bridges. Corriveau said the island has received more than 39 inches (99 centimeters) of rain from the storm, which he said was expected to dump another 39 to 47 inches (99 to 119 centimeters) of rain on Taiwan. The storm made landfall carrying winds of up to 92 mph (148 km/h), with gusts up to 115 mph (185 km/h), the Joint Typhoon Warning Center said. iReport.com: See balcony view of heavy rains Corriveau said the storm was expected to linger over the island for several more hours, and the southern portion of Morakot would likely be passing over Taiwan for hours after that. The storm's impact had already been felt by Friday morning, with mudslides and landslides occurring on the island. The area has been severely affected by drought in recent months, leaving the ground so hard that it does not absorb the rainfall, Corriveau said. Taiwan's Central News Agency, acknowledging the drought, cited the Water Resources Agency as saying that the storm had replenished the island's reservoirs and would put an end to water rationing in several areas. Watch more about the typhoon's impact » The storm prompted airlines to cancel flights. Schools and government offices were closed ahead of Morakot's arrival, according to Taiwan's Central News Agency. Trading at the Taiwan Stock Exchange was also postponed until Monday, the news agency reported. In China, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported that governments in coastal provinces were readying themselves for the storm and had ordered fishing boats to seek shelter before Thursday night. In Fujian province, about 8.4 million text messages had been sent to citizens warning them to prepare for the typhoon, Xinhua reported. More than 900 people, including Chinese and foreign tourists, have been evacuated from the resort of Nanji Island off east China, the news agency reported. CNN's Brandon Miller contributed to this report.

Island gets more than 39 inches of rain; 47 inches more possible . Airlines cancel flights; schools, government offices, stock exchange closed . More than 900 people evacuated from resort of Nanji Island off east China .

(CNN) -- U.S. and NATO forces are engaged in a futile war against the Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan, Canada's prime minister said. Canadian leader Stephen Harper says he backs President Obama's "renewed commitment to Afghanistan." "We are not going to ever defeat the insurgency," Stephen Harper told CNN's Fareed Zakaria in an interview that aired Sunday. "Afghanistan has probably had -- my reading of Afghanistan history -- it's probably had an insurgency forever, of some kind." Harper's blunt assessment comes as nearly 2,800 Canadian forces are fighting in Afghanistan. The country's parliament has voted to pull them out by 2011. Harper spoke with Zakaria last week after a visit by President Obama, who made Canada his first foreign trip since taking office in January. Obama has said Afghanistan is the central front to the U.S.-led war on terror. The Pentagon is in the process of sending an additional 17,000 troops to Afghanistan, bringing the total there to 55,000. Harper told CNN that he supports Obama's "renewed commitment to Afghanistan" but said he would not recommit any more Canadian troops until there is a clear plan for leaving Afghanistan. "What has to happen in Afghanistan is, we have to have an Afghan government that is capable of managing that insurgency and improving its own governance," Harper said. "If President Obama wants anybody to do more, I would ask very hard questions about what is the strategy for success and for an eventual departure."

Prime Minister Stephen Harper: "We are not going to ever defeat the insurgency" Canada's parliament has voted to pull its troops from Afghanistan by 2011 . Harper says he supports President Obama's "renewed commitment to Afghanistan" But Harper says he won't recommit more troops until there's a clear plan for leaving .

(CNN) -- Ukraine's Security Service launched a raid on the country's state-run gas company Wednesday, searching for documents related to a gas deal with Russia, a spokesman for the company said. Ukrainian security service agents let employees leave a room at Naftogaz's headquarters. A group of about 30 gunmen wearing masks and carrying machine guns entered the offices of Naftogaz and took control of every floor of the company's building in the capital of Kiev, Naftogaz spokesman Valentyn Zemlyansky said. Operatives from the security service then began a search for various company documents, including those pertaining to the Russia-Ukraine gas deal signed in January to end a weeks-long gas dispute, Zemlyansky told journalists, according to Russia's Interfax news agency. The Security Service opened a criminal case on Monday into alleged misappropriation of 6.3 billion cubic meters of transit gas worth over 7.4 billion hryvnia ($880 million) by a group of Naftogaz officers, Interfax reported. Taras Shepitko, a deputy chief of an Energy Regional Customs division under the State Customs Service, was detained as part of the case. Ukrainian Security Service operatives confirmed to Interfax that the operation was related to that criminal case. The armed troops were there simply to protect the investigators, the service told Interfax, citing attempts to hinder the investigation. Naftogaz called police when the armed men stormed in but the police retreated soon after they arrived, Zemlyansky said. CNN's Maxim Tkachenko in Moscow, Russia, contributed to this report.

Ukraine's Security Service raids country's state-run gas company . Naftogaz: Raid was to search for documents related to gas deal with Russia . Security Service investigating alleged theft of gas by Naftogaz officers .

(CNN) -- Utah is the nation's fastest growing state, increasing 2.5 percent from July 2007 to July 2008, according to new population estimates from the Census Bureau. Barack Obama greets one of the newest members of the U.S. population this year on the campaign trail. The main reason for Utah's growth is a "natural increase" -- births minus deaths -- said Census Bureau demographer Greg Harper. "Utah has a strong rate of natural increase and domestic migration, where more people move into the state and [are] not moving out," he said. "Second is Arizona," Harper said. "It grew by 2.3 percent, and the increase is due to domestic migration, meaning more people are moving into the state than moving out. Also, it's a natural increase, more people were born there than died." Arizona is followed by Texas, North Carolina and Colorado, each with a 2.0 percent growth rate. Texas added more people than any other state -- about 500,000 -- making it the third-fastest growing state. Because it has a larger population size, its percentage growth was less than Utah. "Nevada was last year's fastest-growing state, but it fell to eighth," said Harper. "Overall, that state had been among the four fastest-growing states each of the past 23 years." Only two states lost population: Michigan and Rhode Island, losing 0.5 and 0.2 percent respectively. Overall, Northeastern states are not growing as fast as other parts of the country, but they have been on the increase since 2005. The South added the most people during the period, 1.4 million. But Western states, with a 1.4 percent increase, saw the fastest growth rate. One state that has reversed its course of growth is Florida. A few years ago more than 250,000 people per year were moving there. But for 2007-2008, the state's 0.7 percent increase was below the nation's 0.9 percent overall increase. According to the estimates, the United States had a net gain of just over 2.7 million people from July 2007 to July 2008.

Utah population grows 2.5 percent by "natural increase," Census Bureau says . Texas adds more people than any other state -- about 500,000 . Two states lose population: Michigan and Rhode Island . Figures are Census estimates for growth from July 2007 to July 2008 .

(CNN) -- Video of a fresh-faced Susan Boyle confidently singing a Barbra Streisand track to a room full of football fans in 1984 has been unearthed. Susan Boyle as she looked during a performance filmed at a Scottish football club in 1984. The "Britain's Got Talent" singing sensation, looking trim and a bit like Abba's Anni-Frid Lyngstad, is invited on to the stage at Motherwell FC's Fir Park Social Club to take part in a singing competition between rival fans by a man wearing a checked coat and bow tie. Boyle, who had to wait 25 more years to be catapulted into the spotlight via her television appearance in front of Simon Cowell last month, quickly chats with the band before they launch into a low-key, lounge-style version of Streisand's "The Way We Were." Boyle, her hair style a classic 1980s perm, confidently looks down the barrel of the camera, giving meaningful expressions as she moves slowly round the stage. Watch latest Boyle video At one point she even takes the hand of a pearl-necklace wearing middle-aged woman in the front row and sings directly to her. Watch how things have changed in Boyle's hometown » When she finishes, the crowd breaks into rapturous applause and Boyle gets a peck on the cheek from the MC before slipping quietly back to her table in the smoke-tinged room. The video became public Friday after it was handed to Scotland's Daily Record newspaper. Gerry McGuinness, 61, who watched Susan sing live that night and kept the video, told the Record that he remembered the evening clearly. Watch Boyle sing on Larry King » "I can remember that she was a shy young girl, but also very attractive back then -- she turned a few heads when she came into the club. "Even back then, I don't think anyone expected too much from her because she was so shy, but when she began singing people took notice." The 47-year-old Boyle's appearance on "Britain's Got Talent," where she sang "I Dreamed a Dream" from the musical "Les Miserables," has now been viewed more than a 100 million times on YouTube. Watch Larry King interview Susan Boyle » She famously told the show's hosts that she had never been kissed and lived alone with her cat in Blackburn, West Lothian, Scotland. The world's media beat a path to her home, from where she even appeared on CNN's "Larry King Live." Boyle has been installed by bookmakers as the favorite to win the show which, as part of the first prize, includes the right to perform in front of the queen.

New video of Susan Boyle singing to room full of football fans unearthed . 25-year-old footage taken at Motherwell FC's social club . Boyle, sporting a perm and looking trim, belts out Barbra Streisand track . Singing sensation was catapulted into spotlight after TV appearance last month .

(CNN) -- Virgin has secured a partnership with the Brawn Grand Prix team in Formula One racing, Virgin chief Richard Branson announced Saturday. Virgin's sponsorship mark's Richard Branson's first foray into Formula One racing. The move, which had been the subject of speculation, marks Virgin's first foray into F1. Branson made the announcement from Melbourne, where he is attending Saturday's Australian Grand Prix. He announced the news just before the Brawn team secured the first two grid positions after qualifying, with Jenson Button in pole position. "I have always said I would love to have a Virgin car on the circuit," Branson wrote on his blog. "I am thrilled to be involved with people as skilled as Ross Brawn and his team." Branson added, "We are very confident that the Virgin Car driven by Jenson Button and Reubens Barrichello will go from strength to strength this season and look forward to a great future for the Brawn GP team." Brawn Grand Prix is a newcomer to the F1 world. Run by former Ferrari technical guru Ross Brawn, the group was formed after Honda pulled out of Formula One because of the global economic downturn. Brawn kept the same driver line-up of Brazil's Barrichello, the most experienced driver on the grid, and Button, who has had to play second fiddle following the emergence of world champion and fellow-Briton Lewis Hamilton. Saturday's qualifying positions marked the first time a new team have started their first race from the front row since the 70s, according to Formula1.com. Billionaire Branson is famous for his Virgin brand, which began with music shops and record label now includes airlines and interests in publishing, nightclubs, hotels, and a makeup line. Flight testing is under way for a new Virgin venture, Virgin Galactic, which will launch space tourists into sub orbit. Branson says the service could be ready within two years. Branson, who received a knighthood in 1999, is famous for his daredevil feats, including round-the-world balloon attempts and transatlantic boat races.

Virgin boss Richard Branson announces F1 sponsorship deal with Brawn GP . The sponsorship deal is Branson's first foray into the world of Formula One . Brawn driver Jenson Button has pole position for season-opener in Melbourne .

(CNN) -- Walk into any sleek West Elm store, and the first thing you're likely to see is a giant red banner emblazoned with a white peace symbol. Peace is pretty. Browse Pottery Barn Teen, and you'll be dazzled by backlit peace signs and multicolored peace-sign bedding. Peace is cool. Visit the ubiquitous Gap store and find peace within reach on T-shirts and bracelets. Peace is accessible, at least as an accessory. Where are the protesters passionately waving hand-drawn peace signs at marches, calling for an end to war? What happened to "Give peace a chance" rather than "Give peace a place in your wardrobe"? The notion of peace has been corroded to the point that it's as fragile as a Christmas ornament. Or as dubious as a prize doled out to a president at war. Fittingly, President Obama's Nobel speech acknowledged the paradox of being honored for contributing to world peace while sending more young Americans to kill and die in Afghanistan. Rationalizing the contradiction, he apologetically characterized humanity as caught in the throes of our own evolution, from who we are to who we ought to be. But what will spark that progress, from waging war to living peace? It's difficult to expect peace to take root beyond symbols and words if the symbols lose their meaning and the words ring hollow. How will we ever evolve if we always choose pragmatism and fear over idealism and hope? When will peace truly have its season? For starters, we must know what peace is and what it's worth. And we must practice it rather than wait for its miraculous arrival. We must stop viewing "peace" as the cry of the weak and "war" as the act of the strong. We must not envision peace as isolationist inaction or the mere absence of conflict. Peace is a proactive choice we make in our personal lives every day. We must do the same as a nation. In order to embrace peace, we must believe it's worth doing so. Ponder all the lives lost at war. Consider the sacrifice endured by our brave soldiers and their families. Weigh the enormous cost to our struggling economy. Not only would thousands of lives be spared by peace, but millions more would benefit by the constructive use of the vast resources squandered on war. Diseases might be cured. World hunger might be eliminated. Prosperity and fulfillment might replace poverty and suffering around the globe. Peace is worth it. And it's certainly not for the weak but rather for those courageous enough to take a risk. Evolution begins with one mutation that turns out to be better, higher, smarter, stronger. Making the leap requires faith in our own ability to lead the world by example through this evolutionary process. Peace is a bold but calculated risk, a brave and noble choice. Gandhi said, "Each one has to find his peace from within. And peace to be real must be unaffected by outside circumstances." Pacifist A.J. Muste once declared, "There is no way to peace. Peace is the way." Martin Luther King Jr. said, "Peace is not merely a distant goal that we seek but a means by which we arrive at that goal." What I take from these wise thinkers is that peace starts with us and our actions. Peace is not passive. It's not something we can put off forever. We must practice peace in order to attain it. As citizens, we must demand it. Only then will elected officials -- and others around the world -- follow our lead. So when we purchase peace signs, let's honor their meaning: The peace symbol, created in 1958 by designer Gerald Holtom, combines the signals in semaphore for the letters "N" and "D," standing for nuclear disarmament. By the 1960s, it was adopted by anti-war protesters of the baby boom generation, perhaps explaining its now nostalgic allure in boomer-frequented retail establishments, where the only conflict is whether to pick a throw pillow

Rudy Ruiz writes that "peace" has been reduced to meaningless symbol . Peace is not for weak; not just isolationist inaction or absence of conflict, Ruiz says . He writes that peace is noble, contagious action practiced by those with higher purpose . Ruiz says Americans must stand for peace in actions, in expectations of leaders, in votes .

(CNN) -- We are often asked to declare our identity for documents, applications, bank loans and even social networking sites. But how much of our identity is lost when we select "female," "African-American" or "Muslim?" I think much of my own identity is lost when I fill in those boxes. I am technically a white, male, heterosexual, Christian, upper-class Ph.D. student. But I am more than meets the eye. I'm covered in tattoos and piercings, and this often leads to assumptions about my character. "Is he a drug addict? Is he a skinhead? Does he play music for a band?" I am none of these things. The lesson I hope to teach others through my life is that it's important to see past appearances. My sociopolitical views are a large part of my identity, and I incorporate these into what I wear; whether it's T-shirts emblazoned with the images of activists whom I admire or deliberately manipulating my demeanor to reflect the "professorial" role I assume in the classroom, I am continually aware that others are reading my presentation as a measure of my character. And it is to this end that I deliberately try to throw people off. I hope to debunk some of the myths surrounding tattoos and piercings. And I know that everyone who interacts with me is left wondering how someone so "deviant-looking" can be kind, courteous and hospitable. My body is also a billboard for my life, and my tattoos tell the story of my identity. My earliest tattoos were direct quotes and Bible verses and captured my identity as an outspoken social-justice advocate. I began to display my political views more directly in later tattoos. I have the "female" sign behind my left ear to reflect my commitment to feminism and women everywhere; I have the Human Rights Campaign logo behind my right ear to reflect my commitment to LGBT struggles. The tattoos on my arms capture my commitment to "faith," "family" and "mom and dad." I also have a bald eagle on my forearm to reflect my commitment to making this country a better place and a skull wearing a graduation cap to reflect my lifelong commitment to teaching. I know that my appearance is misleading, and I know that many people would disagree with what I see as efficacious inscriptions. But one thing is for certain: I will not blend in with the crowd. I will be noticed, for better or worse. The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of David Paul Strohecker.

David Strohecker is technically a white, male, heterosexual, Christian Ph.D. student . Strohecker: My tattoos and piercings lead to assumptions about my character . Sociopolitical views are a large part of identity, and tattoos tell story, he says . "I hope to teach others ... it's important to see past appearances"

(CNN) -- We have met the enemy, and he is us. Debate on health care reform has once again become a miserable exhibition of seemingly irreconcilable differences, which President Obama is trying to address in his health care summit. There is a path forward, and it starts with understanding that waiting for the government to lead an uncertain reform effort isn't necessary. Prepaid integrated health systems like Kaiser Permanente, Geisinger Health System, Group Health Cooperative and HealthPartners are succeeding and innovative. It's no coincidence that these organizations are often mentioned when describing health care providers that offer high quality care while staying affordable. Legislators should encourage such proven successes and make them available to all Americans. Integrated health systems simply assume responsibility for both the financing and delivery of care, so they try to keep patients healthy and avoid costlier illnesses and hospitalizations down the road. They are more likely to provide preventative care, such as vaccinations and cancer screening. Basically, the system we are all accustomed to in the United States separates insurance from the provision of care. That is, your doctor and hospital and your health insurance company are different institutions. This pits them against one another, because one wants to cut care whenever possible, while the other wants to provide as much care as possible, with little incentive to keep costs down. Integrated systems are simply both -- they are either insurance companies who own their own hospitals and hire their own doctors or hospital and physician groups that offer a health plan. Other innovations routinely seen in integrated systems include digital medical records, direct electronic messaging with providers, instant access to health records and test results, telehealth and home-based medical services and affordable access to primary care. Many people are determined that the United States should emulate the rest of the industrialized world and adopt a publicly subsidized system of universal coverage. Admirers of these foreign systems point to their low costs and accessible primary care services, but they may be surprised to find that successful integrated health systems in this country are organized very similarly to the most admired state-sponsored systems found overseas. Whether taxpayers help fund an institution is not the main factor for success; rather, it is the integration between delivery and payment that creates an incentive to provide high-value care that keeps members healthy and out of hospitals. This is the mantra that guides care delivery in both the best-performing systems overseas and in prepaid integrated systems in the United States. Meanwhile, there are, of course, publicly supported health programs in the United States, including Medicare and Medicaid. Yet the same people who lament that a state-subsidized health care system would lay an unrelenting path to outright socialism hardly ever call for a dismantling of Medicare. Whether that's because of political expediency or simple hypocrisy can be left to conjecture. What's important is that a high-performing, state-sponsored health institution already operates in the United States -- the Veterans Health Administration. Unlike Medicare and Medicaid, however, the VA has a tightly integrated health care system that has managed to dramatically improve quality and introduce innovations, all while keeping costs in check. Killing off all state-sponsorship of health care in this country in a shortsighted resistance against progressivism would be a grave mistake. The bottom line is that we've been arguing over the wrong question. The best health care system isn't a matter of private vs. public, or us vs. them. The debate should be about how to foster a system that is organized in a way such that its utmost concern is providing value to its patients. There is no need to import a foreign system; we already have many similar systems in existence. The biggest hurdle is that, despite their advantages, integrated systems only serve about 5 percent of the population. Entrenched players in the health care industry stand opposed to integrated care. If legislators truly want to make health care better, they will encourage the development of more integrated systems so that everyone has access to multiple options in a competitive marketplace. Maintaining a vibrant, innovative private sector is critical, but we also

Jason Hwang touts integrated health systems, which handle finances and care . Hwang: They have incentive to keep patients healthy and avoid costly illnesses . He writes that the best health care isn't a matter of private vs. public, but how it's organized . Hwang says VA has a tightly integrated, high-quality health care system .

(CNN) -- Werder Bremen continued their continued their domination of SV Hamburg with a 2-0 win which dents their northern neighbors' hopes of Champions League football next season. A dejected Paolo Guerrero and Ivica Olic walk off after Hamburg's defeat. The defeat leaves Martin Jol's men sixth in the Bundesliga, five points behind leaders Wolfsburg with only three games remaining and four adrift of third-placed Hertha Berlin. It was the second meeting of the two teams in four days, with Werder winning a thrilling second leg 3-2 to go through to the UEFA Cup final on Thursday on away goals. Werder also put Hamburg out of the German Cup and their win came after a pair of goals by Hugo Almeira. In Sunday's other match, Borussia Moenchengladbach boosted their Bundesliga survival hopes with a 1-0 win at home to Schalke 04. Substitute Roberto Colautti scored in the last minute to spare the blushes of teammate Marko Marin, who had seen a penalty saved by Manuel Neuer in the first half. The win lifted Borussia out of the relegation zone into 15th place, but it is still tight with Arminia Bielefeld and Energie Cottbus only below them on goal difference. Schalke, who will have current Wolfsburg boss Felix Magath in charge next season, were suffering a second straight defeat to stay seventh. Wolfsburg were beaten 4-1 by Stuttgart on Saturday to throw open the title race with champions Bayern Munich joining them on 60 points with Hertha one point back and Stuttgart on 58.

Werder Bremen beat SV Hamburg 2-0 with Hugo Almeira scoring twice . Hamburg stay in sixth as defeat wrecks Bundesliga title chances . Borussia Moenchengladbach beat Schalke 1-0 to boost survival hopes .

(CNN) -- What's a July Fourth celebration without fireworks? Many cities across the United States will find out Saturday. Milwaukee holds its lakefront show on July 3, so as not to compete with surrounding communities. As municipalities grope for ways to shore up budgets, expensive pyrotechnics displays are becoming the latest victims of the economic downturn. "They need to have things in the community like that to keep things going. So I'm sad to see it going," said Seth Stolz, of Flint, Michigan, which will go without its traditional July Fourth explosions in the sky this year, according to CNN affiliate WJRT. He was accustomed to watching the show from his home. The Greater Flint Arts Council puts on the show every year, and when the city and county said they couldn't afford the $40,000 for the Flint Fireworks Festival, it was canceled last month. Private donors tried to save it, but the mayor expressed concerns that safety measures might be overlooked if the event was hastily organized, WJRT reported. Watch how town brings bikinis into the mix » "Yeah, a very hard decision to make," Greg Fiedler with the arts council, told the station. In Florida, Miami-Dade County canceled one of its two shows to save about $40,000, CNN affiliate WPLG reported. The Monterey, California, City Council in April also nixed its show and accompanying lawn party to save about $150,000 "Although the 4th of July festivities are a very popular community-wide event, we cannot recommend continuation of this costly one-day event during a fiscal downturn," a city staff report said. In Illinois, CNN affiliate WLS-TV reported that Harvey, Berwyn, Elgin, Gurnee and North Riverside had canceled their shows. Blue Springs, Missouri, a suburb of Kansas City, also 86'ed the pyrotechnics to give the city "some immediate budget relief," city officials told CNN affiliate KCTV. The American Pyrotechnics Association says that despite the economic challenges, fireworks display companies are working with their clients to make sure the shows go on. Communities are also finding alternative funding or cutting back to make sure the sky rockets light up their July Fourth sky. The nation hosts about 14,000 fireworks shows each Independence Day, according to the association, and the majority of shows will prevail because communities "realize the importance of continuing this annual tradition of providing their citizens with free entertainment to celebrate our freedom and independence," Julie Heckman, the group's director, said in a statement. "The industry has been tested time after time and each challenge unites the industry, makes it stronger, and ensures that communities do not go dark on Independence Day," Heckman said. iReport.com: How are you celebrating the Fourth of July? The Illinois towns of Elmhurst and Wooddale couldn't foot their own shows, so they chipped in funds for the show in nearby Bensenville, WLS reported. Evanston, Illinois, had to shorten its show, and North Aurora forewent its own show in favor of bolstering the celebration in neighboring Aurora, CNN affiliate WGN reported. Tucson, Arizona, canceled it's $55,000 fireworks display to save money, but CNN affiliate KGUN reported Friday that private donors stepped in to save the celebration. Joliet, Illinois, almost canceled its 63rd annual skyrocket display because businesses weren't able to send their customary donations. The show had a $23,000 price tag, but local businesses could muster only about $14,000, according to WGN. City residents were not content to go without fireworks Saturday. "It's a tradition in Joliet. It's an American tradition. You can't give up on that," said Robert Svarz, who has been attending fireworks shows in Joliet for 50 years, according to WLS. Residents scraped together the remaining $9,000 to make sure the city staged its show, which draws thousands to Joliet Memorial Stadium and the surrounding parking lots each year. "Not only did they send in contributions, but they all sent notes on how important it was to keep this thing alive,

The nation hosts about 14,000 fireworks shows each Independence Day . Many shows have been canceled or downsized because of frail city budgets . Joliet, Illinois, residents chipped in money to put on show, station reports . Mississippi town gets mixed reaction to tripling its fireworks budget, station reports .

(CNN) -- When Charles Wolf watched President Obama's speech on Afghanistan, he nearly broke down in tears. He doesn't have a son or daughter headed off to war. But to him, his wife of 12 years was a war casualty: She was killed on September 11. When Obama described the attacks "and he described how the whole world was with us, it emotionally took me right back to that moment," Wolf said. "It was all I could do to keep from totally losing it." Wolf's wife, Katherine, worked as an executive assistant for Marsh & McLennan on the 97th floor of the North Tower of the World Trade Center's Twin Towers. She sent an e-mail just two minutes before the first plane hit. "Her office took a direct hit by the plane, and she was vaporized. There was nothing ever found of her," Wolf said. It's been eight years since the attacks of September 11 killed 2,976 people. A lot of memories have faded, Wolf said, but he still thinks of the little things: "holding her hand, falling asleep next to her, waking up next to her, the companionship, the partnership." "She was great." And so Wolf was glued to his television Tuesday for Obama's speech. He wanted to hear from the president how the nation is going to finish the job in what Wolf calls "the womb of 9/11." "To address these issues," Obama said, "it is important to recall why America and our allies were compelled to fight a war in Afghanistan in the first place. We did not ask for this fight. On September 11, 2001, 19 men hijacked four airplanes and used them to murder nearly 3,000 people. "They struck at our military and economic nerve centers. They took the lives of innocent men, women and children without regard to their faith or race or station. Were it not for the heroic actions of the passengers on board one of those flights, they could have also struck at one of the great symbols of our democracy in Washington and killed many more." Those words brought it all home: the memories of his wife with the beautiful smile and short-cropped red hair. "I was biting my lip," he said. That said, Wolf is critical of the president's strategy, mostly his announcement to begin withdrawing the American contingent in July 2011. "That is a tactical and strategic mistake," he said. "If you're playing chess, do you tell your opponent your next move? "To broadcast that for the sake of politics, to me, that is very wrong." And so he was divided: pleased about the renewed commitment to the Afghanistan war but upset by the planned pullout date. iReport: Share your views on Afghanistan Veteran New York firefighter Lee Ielpi lost his son, Jonathan, a fellow firefighter, on September 11. "I support President Obama's decision to send more troops to Afghanistan and the war against al Qaeda and the Taliban," he said. A combat veteran of Vietnam, Ielpi added, "The president and Congress need to ensure America has a clear strategy for our military in order to not repeat the strategic mistakes of Vietnam. I also strongly believe our country needs to do more to support returning veterans." The office of Joe Daniels overlooks ground zero, an every-day reminder of what happened on September 11, 2001. He was standing outside the Twin Towers when they were hit. Daniels is now the president of the National September 11 Memorial & Museum, charged with the monumental task of building a living tribute to those who perished that day. "In the aftermath of 9/11, there were a lot of citizens who signed up to do what they felt was a patriotic duty to respond to what happened, and many of them went to Afghanistan," Daniels said. "So I think it's important that we don't forget that the history of 9/11 is still being

Time to go after "womb of 9/11," says man who lost his wife . Charles Wolf says he's pleased by Afghan focus, upset by withdrawal plan . Firefighter who lost son on 9/11: Nation must not repeat Vietnam . Head of 9/11 memorial says nation can't fall back into isolation .

(CNN) -- When I first joined the Navy, I had no idea that I was gay. I was well into my career when I realized this fact, but I was doing well as evidenced by the awards and promotions I was receiving. In addition, I really enjoyed what I was doing and felt I was making a difference. So I opted to continue to serve, even though I knew that I would have to hide my true identity. For most of my career in the Navy, I lived two lives and went to work each day wondering if that would be my last. Whenever the admiral would call me to his office, 99.9 percent of me was certain that it was to discuss an operational issue. But there was always that fear in the back of my mind that somehow I had been "outed," and he was calling me to his office to tell me that I was fired. So many simple things that straight people take for granted could have ended my career, even a comment such as "My partner and I went to the movies last night." Do you think "don't ask, don't tell" should be reversed? In spite of the stress of living under "don't ask, don't tell" and the constant fear of losing my job, somehow my partner, Lynne Kennedy, an openly gay reference librarian at the Library of Congress, and I had learned to deal with the policy and make the requisite sacrifices. I had pretended to be straight and played the games most gays in the military are all too familiar with -- not daring to have a picture of Lynne on my desk, being reluctant to go out to dinner with her, telling her not to call me at work except in a real emergency, not going to church together, avoiding shopping for groceries together and generally staying out of sight of anyone I knew when we were together. I didn't want to have to lie about who Lynne was or have someone conclude that we were more than casual friends. But it was the events of September 11, 2001, that caused me to appreciate fully the true impact of "don't ask, don't tell" on our lives. At 8:30 a.m. on September 11, I went to a meeting in the Pentagon. At 9:30 a.m. I left that meeting. At 9:37 a.m., American Airlines Flight No. 77 slammed into the Pentagon and destroyed the exact space I had left less than eight minutes earlier, killing seven of my colleagues. In the days and weeks that followed, I went to several funerals and memorial services for shipmates who had been killed. Most of my co-workers attended these services with their spouses whose support was critical at this difficult time, yet I was forced to go alone. As the numbness began to wear off, it hit me how incredibly alone Lynne would have been had I been killed. The military is known for how it pulls together and helps people; we talk of the "military family," which is a way of saying we always look after each other, especially in times of need. But none of that support would have been available for Lynne, because under "don't ask, don't tell," she couldn't exist. In fact, Lynne would have been one of the last people to know had I been killed, because nowhere in my paperwork or emergency contact information had I dared to list her name. This realization caused us to stop and reassess exactly what was most important in our lives. During that process, we realized that the "don't ask, don't tell" policy was causing us to make a much bigger sacrifice than either of us had ever admitted. Eight months later, in June 2002, I retired after more than 29 years in the U.S. Navy, an organization I will always love and respect. We are now committed to doing everything we possibly can to get rid of "don't ask, don't tell" so that our military can finally be open to all qualified and motivated individuals who want

Joan E. Darrah says she lived two lives in the Navy, wondering if each day was the last . Darrah says she pretended her partner didn't exist, that she was straight, avoided people . She says a close brush with death on 9/11 caused her to reassess life under policy . Darrah: "I know we can do better than 'don't ask, don't tell' "

(CNN) -- When Kellogg's dumped its endorsement of Michael Phelps after a photograph surfaced of the Olympic gold medalist using a bong, the company was stuck with thousands of boxes of cereal featuring the swimmer's image. Kellogg's ended its Michael Phelps endorsement, so it sent two tons of cereal with his face on it to a food bank. No problem. The company, based in Battle Creek, Michigan, made short order of the already-printed and filled boxes, donating two tons of cereal to the San Francisco Food Bank late last month. With food banks across the country reporting shortages of food, the donation was a welcome one, said the food bank's director of development, Christopher Wiley. It took only two weeks for about 3,000 boxes to move through warehouse. "Thousands of families benefited from the donation" Wiley said. "It was a surprise to us. We were lacking a lot of cereal. It is a great product many low-income families really need." "The real story for us was not the box but what's inside the box. The food is so valuable for the community. It's making good from bad," Wiley said. The food bank has seen a 6 percent increase in its customer base since the beginning of the year, he said. Phelps, 23, won a record eight gold medals at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. He admitted "regrettable behavior" after a British newspaper published the controversial photograph in early February. The tabloid News of the World showed Phelps using the bong during what it said was a November party at the University of South Carolina in Columbia. A bong is a device commonly used to smoke marijuana. The Phelps box attracted considerable attention to the food bank. Administrators received several calls from people wanting to get the box as a novelty item. But, said Wiley, all the cereal went to food bank customers. Kellogg's was the only one of Phelps sponsors to drop the athlete, although U.S.A. Swimming, the nation's governing body for competitive swimming, suspended him for three months, withdrew financial support and barred him from competition during the period of his "reprimand." CNN's Jackie Castillo and Mayra Cuevas contributed to this report.

Kellogg's donated two tons of cereal to the San Francisco Food Bank . Company dumped the cereal boxes with Michael Phelps' face after bong incident . Food bank director: Helpful donation is "making good from bad" More than 3,000 boxes of cereal went to help those who were hungry .

(CNN) -- When Kellogg's dumped its endorsement of Michael Phelps after a photograph surfaced of the Olympic gold medalist using a bong, the company was stuck with thousands of boxes of cereal featuring the swimmer's image. Kellogg's ended its Michael Phelps endorsement, so it sent two tons of cereal with his face on it to a food bank. No problem. The company, based in Battle Creek, Michigan, made short order of the already-printed and filled boxes, donating two tons of cereal to the San Francisco Food Bank late last month. With food banks across the country reporting shortages of food, the donation was a welcome one, said the food bank's director of development, Christopher Wiley. It took only two weeks for about 3,000 boxes to move through warehouse. "Thousands of families benefited from the donation" Wiley said. "It was a surprise to us. We were lacking a lot of cereal. It is a great product many low-income families really need." "The real story for us was not the box but what's inside the box. The food is so valuable for the community. It's making good from bad," Wiley said. The food bank has seen a 6 percent increase in its customer base since the beginning of the year, he said. Phelps, 23, won a record eight gold medals at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, China. He admitted "regrettable behavior" after a British newspaper published the controversial photograph in early February. The tabloid News of the World showed Phelps using the bong during what it said was a November party at the University of South Carolina in Columbia. A bong is a device commonly used to smoke marijuana. The Phelps box attracted considerable attention to the food bank. Administrators received several calls from people wanting to get the box as a novelty item. But, said Wiley, all the cereal went to food bank customers. Kellogg's was the only one of Phelps sponsors to drop the athlete, although U.S.A. Swimming, the nation's governing body for competitive swimming, suspended him for three months, withdrew financial support and barred him from competition during the period of his "reprimand." CNN's Jackie Castillo and Mayra Cuevas contributed to this report.

Kellogg's donated two tons of cereal to the San Francisco Food Bank . Company dumped the cereal boxes with Michael Phelps' face after bong incident . Food bank director: Helpful donation is "making good from bad" More than 3,000 boxes of cereal went to help those who were hungry .

(CNN) -- When film director Kevin Smith tweeted about getting kicked off a Southwest Airlines flight on Saturday, the airline responded in less than 20 minutes. "Dear @SouthwestAir - I know I'm fat, but was Captain Leysath really justified in throwing me off a flight for which I was already seated?" Smith tweeted at 6:52 p.m. "@ThatKevinSmith hey Kevin! I'm so sorry for your experience tonight! Hopefully we can make things right, please follow so we may [direct message]!" the airline responded at 7:08 p.m. The airline contacted Smith personally to apologize for bumping the director of "Clerks" off a standby flight, accommodated him on a later flight, and sent him a $100 travel voucher for his inconvenience. Southwest did not immediately return calls or a Twitter message for comment but posted a statement on its blog apologizing to Smith and explaining its "Customer of Size" policy, which "requires passengers that can not fit safely and comfortably in one seat to purchase an additional seat while traveling." Kevin Smith 'too fat' to fly Southwest But if Kevin Smith were, say, John Smith, who worked in Muncie, Indiana, instead of Hollywood, California, would he have gotten the same response to his tweets? "If the company is actively using social media -- and I think that most companies are using social media -- I think the consumer stands a great chance of hearing directly from the company and being engaged and having their issues resolved," said Steve Loucks, vice president of communications for Travel Leaders, a large travel agency network. Southwest has more than a million followers on Twitter. Loucks believes the majority of travel companies now are using sites including Twitter and Facebook to get feedback from their consumers. "If someone feels they are not being heard, social media is a very visible way to tell your friends, the people that follow you, that you're not happy and hopefully the company will be paying attention," Loucks said. Adam Ostrow, editor-in-chief of social media site Mashable.com, says many big brands are starting to dedicate entire teams to social media monitoring, because they know it's important to respond quickly to negative comments before they become a public relations nightmare. Yet there's a difference, Ostrow said, between responding and being able to fix the problem. "For example, if you tweet that your plane has been stuck on the runway for four hours, JetBlue can respond to you, but they're likely not in a position to do anything about getting your plane off the ground," Ostrow said. JetBlue, which wasn't involved in the Kevin Smith incident, is one of the most followed airlines, with more than 1.6 million followers on Twitter. JetBlue has six people who watch the airline's social media presence. The team rarely handles issues personally -- instead directing customers to the right resource for their complaints or questions. "We consider ourselves more of an information booth rather than a customer service counter," public communications manager Morgan Johnston said. Johnston says all JetBlue customers are equally important, but someone with a larger voice may get noticed, and responded to by the team, faster. Ostrow recommends using the company's Twitter name in your complaint to get noticed, as most teams are set up to monitor for these mentions. He also suggests keeping your character count short so that others can easily retweet and share their own thoughts on the issue. In her Mashable article "HOW TO: Get Your Feedback Heard on Social Networks," media director Mollie Vandor offers additional tips. "First, always remember that the person on the other end of Twitter is, well, a person," Vandor writes. "Patience is key. You will get a better response if you give your recipient some time to look into the issue before they respond." She also suggests avoiding people at the top of the company, instead looking for people who mention user experience, community or support on their Twitter profiles. Most of all, it's important to hit

Kevin Smith gets quick response to his complaint about Southwest Airlines . Travel experts say other customers can get the same response . Use replies on Twitter to get better feedback, industry insiders say .

(CNN) -- When the late Sen. Edward Kennedy was growing up, there was a family edict: Kennedy men don't cry. Rep. Patrick Kennedy, left, and Ted Kennedy Jr. appear on "Larry King Live" on Monday evening. On "Larry King Live" Monday night, the senator's sons -- Ted Kennedy Jr. and Rep. Patrick Kennedy -- said times have changed, and that includes the no-tears rule of an earlier generation. In a wide-ranging interview, they also discussed the moment of their father's passing, how their mother, Joan, was handling her ex-husband's death, the legacy of Chappaquiddick, the Kennedy "curse" and their impressions of their dad's memoir, "True Compass." The 77-year-old senator died August 25 after a battle with brain cancer. "You know my father was very good at overcoming his own kind of old, traditional sense of not talking about your feelings, not really expressing a lot of emotions," Patrick Kennedy told King. The family has had plenty of moments over which to shed tears. King asked Ted Kennedy Jr. if there was crying when he lost his leg to cancer as a boy. "Absolutely," he replied. Ted Kennedy Jr. said his father's memoirs explore his father's emotional tribulations. "[It talks] about the very difficult things that he had to do, for example telling my grandfather that my uncle Jack had been killed." Both sons said their father's last year was a gift to them and the family. His brothers -- President John F. Kennedy and Robert Kennedy -- had their lives cut short by assassinations in the 1960s. Watch sons tell of their last year with their father » "He also was able to enjoy a lot of accolades, not just from obviously his natural constituencies in the Democratic Party, but ... quite moving testaments from many of his Republican colleagues," Teddy Kennedy Jr. said. "It was really wonderful to see my father actually be able to revel in a lot of those compliments that people had to say about my dad." "The really beautiful part about having that extra year with him where he didn't have to traipse all around the world and all around the country was that he was able to spend time with us, and we were able to be there for him emotionally and physically," Patrick Kennedy said. Despite their many family tragedies, they debunked the so-called "Kennedy curse." "You don't buy the idea of a curse?" King asked. "No. No. Obviously my dad had a sense of spirituality that transcended his ability to face these problems, you know, in a way that would have otherwise paralyzed the normal person," Patrick Kennedy said. Ted Kennedy Jr. added, "The Kennedy family has had to endure these things in a very open way. But our family is just like ... every other family in America in many ways." He also described the moment of his father's passing. "I was there, Larry. It was very peaceful. ... He was suffering in those last few weeks [so] it really did take the sting out of his final passing. ... And it was a very peaceful, extremely spiritual thing." The sons elaborated on how their mother, Joan, has handled being divorced, her ex-husband's death and their thoughts on their stepmother. "My dad was and remains a central figure in her life. Obviously, they both shared so much of their lives together," Patrick Kennedy said. "The fact is that my dad and Vicki [Sen. Edward Kennedy's second wife] were so gracious. In all of the holidays, my mom was included. There wasn't any of this bitterness and everything. ... And I really am so grateful to Vicki for that, to my dad for that. "Vicki was such a great sense of support to my dad at the end. "My mom has been such an inspiration

Sons of late Sen. Edward Kennedy say dad learned to embrace emotional side . They say they don't believe in the so-called "Kennedy curse" Ted Kennedy Jr. says moment of his father's passing was peaceful, spiritual . On Chappaquiddick: He accepted responsibility for what happened, sons say .

(CNN) -- Wimbledon have confirmed plans to hold an exhibition event on Centre Court to test conditions under the new roof ahead of next year's tennis championships. Wimbledon first unveiled plans for a retractable roof over Centre Court in 2004 with capacity increased to 15,000. The special one-off event has been scheduled for Sunday, May 17, just over a month ahead of next year's Championships where Rafael Nadal defends the title for the first time. Former British number one Tim Henman, four times a semifinalist at the grass-court grand slam and a member of the All England Club, has been lined up to play. The club's chief executive, Ian Ritchie, explained the need for a pre-tournament event: "The key thing for the new roof is the atmospherics and humidity conditions, " he told BBC Radio Four on Tuesday. "We need to get 15,000 people inside to test the humidity. It's a roof over a grass court and it's not like a football or rugby pitch, we need it to be absolutely bone dry. "We have to test the air conditioning and playing surface as well." Former champion John McEnroe is also being lined up to make a sentimental return to Centre Court. "We are looking to put together a good raft of people to come and play. "We will probably put several matches on as we want to put on a day of entertainment and enjoyment to try to get a maximum crowd to come and see it," said Ritchie. Wimbledon first announced plans for a retractable roof over Centre Court in 2004, with the redevelopment increasing the capacity to 15,000. It will mean an end, on Centre Court at least, to the famous Wimbledon rain delays, which have frustrated spectators and players alike over the years, arguably costing Henman his best chance of Wimbledon glory in 2001 when he lost a protracted semifinal to eventual winner Goran Ivanisevic.

Wimbledon to test new roof over Centre Court with special event in May . Former British number one Tim Henman and John McEnroe lined up to play . New roof will house increased 15,000 capacity on most famous court in tennis .

(CNN) -- With his hands and feet shackled and his face obscured by his long hair, Chester Arthur Stiles made his initial court appearance in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Wednesday morning on charges stemming from the videotaped rape of a 2-year-old girl. Chester Stiles appears Wednesday in a Las Vegas, Nevada, courtroom. Stiles, 37, was taken into custody Monday night after a Henderson, Nevada, police officer pulled over the white Buick Century he was driving. Prosecutors added a couple more charges before Wednesday's hearing, bringing the total to 23 felony counts, including a charge of lewdness with a minor, sexual assault and the use of a child in the production of pornography, according to a statement issued by the Clark County, Nevada, court. One of the lewdness charges stems from a 2004 incident, while the others are related to the videotape, the court said. Judge Deborah Lippis set November 19 as the date for the preliminary hearing. After the hearing, Stiles' court-appointed attorney said his client was overwhelmed by the public opinion in the case. "I think he's a little out of it," public defender Jeff Banks said. Jerry T. Donohue, the attorney for the girl's mother, told CNN that the child on the videotape was younger than 3 when the abuse occurred. The girl, who is now 7, was found last month after a nationwide search. The girl's mother said on "The Dr. Phil Show" Wednesday that she was "relieved" about Stiles' arrest, although it would have been "better if they found him dead." The woman said she will testify against Stiles if the case goes to court. She told Phil McGraw that her daughter remembers nothing about the videotaped assault and that she recently had a conversation with the girl about inappropriate touching. She said her daughter told her that if someone touched her inappropriately, the girl would scream and tell her mother. But, she told McGraw, "I don't trust anybody now." Although she is in a relationship with a man her daughter calls "Dad," she said, "I don't feel comfortable leaving her with him, nor with anybody else. ... I just cry and blame it on myself." Eight-and-a-half months pregnant, she said the incident has placed a lot of strain on her. Asked if she would rather not have known about the assault, she said, "Yes, I could have lived without knowing it." A former girlfriend of Stiles' said that, before the arrest, she lived in fear after going to police to identify the suspect after seeing enhanced photos from the videotape on the local news. "I've had my share of nightmares," Elaine Thomas told CNN's Nancy Grace. Thomas said she screamed when she recognized the photos on television and had no choice but to contact police about the man she had thought was a "weapons enthusiast" with only a minor criminal record. Watch Thomas say how she felt when she saw the photos » "How could I not tell them who that man was? That little girl suffered unimaginable things, and I knew for a fact it was him," Thomas said. Another former girlfriend of Stiles', Tina Allen, said this month she thinks she is the reason Stiles came in contact with the girl and is "mortified" by the allegations against him. "He said he'd been in the Navy and, you know, I was looking for a strong guy to represent to my sons what I thought they needed to be," Allen said. Allen said she took Stiles to a crowded apartment where her son and daughter lived. Also living in the apartment were a family friend and her daughter, the alleged assault victim. Todd Allen, Tina Allen's son, said he recognized his old apartment from scenes in the video. E-mail to a friend CNN's Ed Payne and Ted Rowlands contributed to this report.

NEW: Accused pedophile Chester Arthur Stiles gets additional charges . NEW: "I think he's a little out of it," his attorney says . Suspect's ex-girlfriend: "I've had my share of nightmares" Stiles, 37, arrested following a routine traffic stop .

(CNN) -- Within the last month, our country has witnessed two senseless, high-profile acts of criminal violence that would have been labeled terrorism if brown-skinned Arab Muslim men with foreign-sounding names had committed them. Because two white men committed these acts of violence, however, our political and media chattering class never used the word "terrorism" in its discussions. Most recently, John Patrick Bedell, a 36-year-old man from California, walked up to two security guards outside the Pentagon Metro station in suburban Washington and started shooting. He was then shot and killed. According to The Christian Science Monitor, Bedell appeared "to have been a right-wing extremist with virulent anti-government feelings" and also battled mental illness before his shooting rampage. A few weeks ago, on February 18, another white anti-government extremist named Joseph Stack flew his small airplane into an Internal Revenue Service building in Austin, Texas, killing two people and injuring 13 others. According to media reports, Stack had left behind a disjointed suicide letter in which he expressed his hatred of our American government and outlined grievances with the IRS, chillingly stating that "violence not only is the answer; it is the only answer." Both the Pentagon Metro and IRS attacks come at a time of "explosive growth in [domestic] extremist-group activism across the United States," according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. A recently released law center report showed so-called patriot groups -- steeped in anti-government conspiracy theories -- grew from 149 in 2008 to 512 in 2009 -- a 244 percent increase that the Southern Poverty Law Center report judged to be an "astonishing" rise in the one-year period since President Obama took the oath of office. The number of these groups that are domestic extremist paramilitary militias grew from 42 in 2008 to 127 in 2009, the report said. Even so, for any reasonable observer who is still skeptical about labeling the recent Pentagon area shooting and IRS attack terrorism, keep one thing in mind: Let us imagine that these Pentagon and IRS attacks had been committed by an olive-skinned Arab Muslim man named Ali Muhammad. Our national media and political commentators would have wasted little time in calling both of these acts terrorism, and some might have also called for the closings of other IRS and federal government office buildings around the country as a necessary counter-terrorism safety precaution. Instead, shortly after the IRS plane attack, some prominent media commentators immediately asked why people -- especially conservatives on the right -- were not calling the IRS attacker a terrorist. "If this had been done by a brownish-looking Muslim guy whose suicide note paralleled Islamist political themes," wrote media commentator Matthew Yglesias, then right-wingers would "demand that anyone who refused to label the attack 'terrorism' be put up on treason charges." In a recent piece, Robert Wright, of the New America Foundation, wrote: "In common usage, a 'terrorist' is someone who attacks in the name of a political cause and aims to spread terror -- to foster fear that such attacks will be repeated until grievances are addressed." Following suit, the IRS attacker's suicide manifesto before his aerial kamikaze attack reads in part: "I know there have been countless before me and there are sure to be as many after ... I can only hope that the numbers quickly get too big to be whitewashed and ignored" -- at which point, God willing, -- "the American zombies wake up and revolt." If this same above-mentioned suicide letter had been instead written by an Arab Muslim man named Ali Muhammad right before crashing his airplane into an IRS building, most of the right-wing blogosphere would instantaneously erupt with screaming headlines of another act of Muslim terrorism. Because Theodore Kaczynski, the Unabomber; Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh; Atlanta, Georgia, Olympic bomber Eric Rudolph; the Pentagon shooter and IRS attacker were all white men motivated by their respective ideologies, surprisingly, the term "terrorism" has never seemed to

Arsalan Iftikhar: Imagine if recent violent acts had been committed by Arab Muslim men . White man Joseph Stack flew plane into IRS building; another shot Pentagon guards, he writes . Iftikhar: Outcry would ensue if Muslim left note calling violence "the only answer," as Stack did . Terrorism is terrorism, whether it is committed by a white, black or brown person, he says .

(CNN) -- Women were dismissed from the military for being gay at a greater rate than men last year, according to new statistics obtained by a California research group. Women were dismissed from the military for being gay at a greater rate than men last year. All the services kicked out a disproportionate number of women under the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, according to Department of Defense data obtained by the Palm Center at the University of California, Santa Barbara. The center studies gender and sexuality in the military. The "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, implemented in 1994, bans troops who are openly gay from serving in the military. In the Air Force, a majority of those removed were women, the first time a service has had such a record since the implementation of the controversial law in 1994, according to Palm Center senior research fellow Nathaniel Frank. Watch CNN's Randi Kaye report on Obama's promises » In fiscal year 2008, the Air Force dismissed 56 women and 34 men. In addition, the Army removed more women under the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy at a greater rate than men when compared with the ratio of women to men in each service. Of those discharged under the policy, 36 percent were women, although women make up only 14 percent of troops in the Army, the data showed.

New statistics obtained by a California research group, the Palm Center . Services kicked out disproportionate number of women under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" In the Air Force, a majority of those removed for being gay were women .

(CNN) -- Workers at a Texas state school for mentally handicapped adults are believed to have been staging a "fight club" among residents, encouraging them to physically battle one another, police told CNN Tuesday. A cell phone containing videos of the alleged abuse at the Corpus Christi State School in Corpus Christi, Texas, was turned over to police last week, and authorities are expecting to file arrest warrants this week, Corpus Christi police Capt. Tim Wilson told CNN. The incidents are believed to have taken place in a school dormitory, Wilson said. "This has been going on for some time," Wilson said. "That is what makes this an exceptional case. It is not the workers abusing the clients, so to speak. The workers are not hitting them, but they are allowing these clients to fight with each other, thereby endangering their well-being." "These people are charged with the care and custody of these clients, and they are exploiting (them)," he said. Those involved will likely face charges of injury of a disabled person, Wilson said. The charge's severity can range up to a third-class felony, depending on the extent of a person's involvement, he said. The actual charges, however are left up to the Nueces County District Attorney, which is participating in the investigation along with the Texas Inspector General's Office, he said. Seven school employees have been placed on paid emergency leave by the Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services, according to spokeswoman Cecilia Fedorov. Some former workers also will be interviewed, authorities said. Fedorov said the agency received a phone call Friday from the state Department of Family and Protective Services, saying they had been alerted to the situation by police and were opening an investigation into possible abuse or neglect. The employees on leave cannot come on to campus, but must sign in at the gate every day they are on leave, Fedorov said. State officials are awaiting the outcome of the investigation to determine whether they should take further action, she said. Wilson said Corpus Christi police received the cell phone a week ago, when a citizen found it and gave it to an officer working security at a hospital. The officer looked at several of the videos, then gave the phone to the police's forensic unit for analysis. More videos were found in the phone's memory. "It appears it was some sort of a fight club," Wilson said. Twenty videos were found on the phone, with dates going back about a year. All the videos featured the school's "clients," who are severely mentally handicapped, he said. On the videos, "they (the clients) are not upset like they are being forced," Wilson said. "They are being more goaded into it. There's a lot of voices on there from workers ... saying, 'Look at that, ha ha' ... laughing, stuff like that." No clients are seen crying, upset or injured on the videos, he said, but no workers are seen stopping the fighting. "The fighting entails pushing, wrestling and some shoving," Wilson said. Police do not believe anyone was seriously injured, he said, but the investigation is ongoing. "Four or five clients have been identified and at least five workers, possibly as many as 10," he said. "Some are more active in staging the fights, and some others passively stand around not doing anything." The clients are all adult males, ranging in age from their late teens into their 30s, he said. As part of the investigation, the Inspector General's office has interviewed some of the clients, Wilson said. Asked whether the school had previously been investigated for abuse, he said, "This is the exception. Over the years, we have had isolated instances of abuse we have investigated. Every once in a while, the school itself would report a case, but this appears to be organized." Police believe, based on

Cell phone videos of alleged abuse at Corpus Christi State School given to police . The Texas school serves adults who are severely mentally handicapped . Seven school employees placed on leave; arrest warrants are pending . No clients are seen crying, upset or injured on the videos, police say .