Lance Armstrong doping case closed

Lance Armstrong was gratified to learn that the investigation?into his alleged doping has been closed.

The case against?Lance?Armstrong?is closed. His legacy as a seven-time Tour de France champion endures.

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Federal prosecutors dropped their investigation of?Armstrong?on Friday, ending a nearly two-year effort aimed at determining whether the world's most famous cyclist and his teammates joined in a doping program during his greatest years.

Armstrong?steadfastly has denied he doped during his unparalleled career, but the possibility of criminal charges threatened to stain not only his accomplishments, but his cancer charity work as well. Instead, another attempt to prove a star athlete used performance-enhancing drugs has fallen short, despite years of evidence gathering across two continents.

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"I am gratified to learn that the U.S. Attorney's Office is closing its investigation,"?Armstrong?said in a statement. "It is the right decision and I commend them for reaching it. I look forward to continuing my life as a father, a competitor, and an advocate in the fight against cancer without this distraction."

The probe, anchored in Los Angeles where a grand jury was presented evidence by federal prosecutors and heard testimony from?Armstrong'sformer teammates and associates, began with a separate investigation of Rock Racing, a cycling team owned by fashion entrepreneur Michael Ball.

U.S. Attorney Andr? Birotte Jr. announced in a press release that his office "is closing an investigation into allegations of federal criminal conduct by members and associates of a professional bicycle racing team owned in part by?Lance?Armstrong."

He didn't disclose the reason for the decision, though Birotte has used discretion in pursing high-profile criminal cases before. Last February, his office closed an investigation of mortgage giant Countrywide Financial Corp.

The pronouncement comes after a pair of less-than-successful cases against top sports figures accused of doping. Home run king Barry Bonds was found guilty of obstruction of justice and sentenced in December to 30 days' home detention ? a conviction he's appealing ? but prosecutors were unable to convince a jury he lied about using steroids. Roger Clemens' steroid trial is slated for April 17 after a judge declared a mistrial last summer when prosecutors showed jurors inadmissible evidence.

Investigators looked at whether a doping program was established forArmstrong's?team while, at least part of the time, it received government sponsorship from the U.S. Postal Service. Authorities also examined whether?Armstrong?encouraged or facilitated doping on the team. He won the Tour de France every year from 1999-2005.

The hurdle for prosecutors wasn't so much to prove whether any particular cyclist used drugs, but to determine if?Armstrong?and other team members violated federal conspiracy, fraud or racketeering charges. Unlike Bonds and Clemens, who testified before a federal grand jury and Congress, respectively, and were accused of lying under oath,?Armstrongwas not questioned in front of the grand jury.

Betsy Andreu, who with her husband and former?Armstrong?teammate, Frank, accused the cycling champion of doping, said she was shocked by Birotte's decision.

"Our legal system failed us," she said. "This is what happens when you have a lot of money and you can buy attorneys who have people in high places in the Department of Justice."

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/nwN8m1xKL0Q/Lance-Armstrong-doping-case-closed

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Surprises about Planned Parenthood cancer testing

A crowd waits to attend the Planned Parenthood of North Texas' 2012 annual luncheon at the Omni Hotel in Fort Worth, Texas Friday, Feb. 3, 2012. The Susan G. Komen for the Cure breast-cancer charity on Friday abandoned plans to deny funding to Planned Parenthood. The startling decision came after three days of virulent criticism that resounded across the Internet, jeopardizing Komen's iconic image. (AP Photo/The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, David Kent) MAGS OUT

A crowd waits to attend the Planned Parenthood of North Texas' 2012 annual luncheon at the Omni Hotel in Fort Worth, Texas Friday, Feb. 3, 2012. The Susan G. Komen for the Cure breast-cancer charity on Friday abandoned plans to deny funding to Planned Parenthood. The startling decision came after three days of virulent criticism that resounded across the Internet, jeopardizing Komen's iconic image. (AP Photo/The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, David Kent) MAGS OUT

Sue Laux, of Keller, pickets with other opponents of abortion outside Planned Parenthood of North Texas' 2012 annual luncheon at the Omni Hotel in Fort Worth, Texas Friday, Feb. 3, 2012. The Susan G. Komen for the Cure breast-cancer charity on Friday abandoned plans to deny funding to Planned Parenthood. The startling decision came after three days of virulent criticism that resounded across the Internet, jeopardizing Komen's iconic image. (AP Photo/The Fort Worth Star-Telegram, David Kent) MAGS OUT

To many people, breast cancer screening means a mammogram. But for millions of poor women who visit Planned Parenthood, it's usually just a physical exam by the only health professional they may ever see.

The way Planned Parenthood does cancer screening is one of many surprises emerging from this week's dispute with the Susan G. Komen for the Cure charity. On Friday, Komen reversed itself and said it would keep funding Planned Parenthood after all.

The organization mostly provides birth control and testing and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases. Cancer screenings account for 15 percent of its work, and abortions are only 3 percent. The government gives Planned Parenthood money for cancer screening, too.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/bbd825583c8542898e6fa7d440b9febc/Article_2012-02-03-US-MED-Planned-Parenthood-Who-It-Helps/id-46b491fc9a1d40fa91a491801ed501b5

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Fireplace Equipment Stands - Home Improvement Products, Kitchen ...

Fashionable beautification for the home are glossy and stylish even as using simple matters such as wood and iron. The modern shaped fireplace equipments are simple in their design. The metal is not scratched, as mainly shaped iron may be, so the equipments are elegant and polished after being knocked out to take away the dimples. The grips of the fireplace equipments are curved to simply slide onto an efficiently made fashioned iron fireplace equipment stand.

Source: http://home-improvements-guide.blogspot.com/2012/02/fireplace-equipment-stands.html

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Assange appeals extradition to UK's top court (Reuters)

LONDON (Reuters) ? WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange appealed to Britain's Supreme Court Wednesday not to extradite him to Sweden over accusations of sex crimes, a move that could push his anti-secrecy website further toward oblivion.

Australian-born Assange, 40, became a worldwide celebrity and infuriated the U.S. government in 2010 when WikiLeaks released secret video footage and thousands of U.S. diplomatic cables about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Since then, the scoops have dried up and WikiLeaks has faded from the news headlines, starved of cash by major credit card companies that are refusing to process online donations to it, and bogged down by Assange's protracted legal troubles.

Assange was detained in Britain in December 2010 on a European arrest warrant issued by a Swedish prosecutor after two female former WikiLeaks volunteers accused him of sexual assault.

His lawyers argue that the warrant is invalid because it was issued by a prosecutor rather than a neutral judge or court. He has not been charged in Sweden but is wanted for questioning.

If the Supreme Court in London rejects the argument, he may take his case to the European Court of Human Rights but it is unclear whether that would stop his extradition to Sweden.

"HE SPEAKS TRUTH TO POWER"

A small group of demonstrators gathered outside, braving a freezing morning to show support for Assange, who looked relaxed in a dark grey suit and purple tie as he entered court.

They carried banners with slogans such as "The system punishes whistleblowers to protect its own" and "Free Assange."

"He speaks truth to power. He should be considered a national hero," said Scott Albrecht, a former U.S. soldier turned peace activist.

The Supreme Court hearings will last two days and the court is expected to announce its decision some weeks later.

Assange denies any wrongdoing and has said that the sex accusations, which surfaced at the height of the international furor over WikiLeaks, were an attempt to silence him.

He is convinced that U.S. authorities are looking for a way to go after him in retaliation for WikiLeaks' revelations.

Washington is divided over Assange, with some officials calling for tough action against him to deter would-be leakers and others saying a prosecution would be legally problematic and would give him a boost when he appears headed for irrelevance.

Bradley Manning, a U.S. army intelligence analyst suspected of passing thousands of classified documents to WikiLeaks, is facing a court-martial on 22 charges including aiding the enemy and wrongfully causing intelligence to be published online.

Meanwhile, Assange has been holed up under house arrest for over a year, mostly at the English country mansion of a wealthy supporter.

He has made some unexpected career moves, including a guest appearance in an episode of the satirical U.S. animated series "The Simpsons" due to be aired on February 19.

In another TV first, Kremlin-funded station Russia Today announced last week that it had hired Assange to host a political talk show called "The World Tomorrow."

(Editing by Mark Heinrich)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120201/wl_nm/us_britain_assange

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Nate Silver: "The military is now the most trusted major institution in the country" (Americablog)

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NJ city turns down 'Jersey Shore' spinoff (AP)

HOBOKEN, N.J. ? The city of Frank Sinatra's birth has denied a request for a spinoff of MTV's "Jersey Shore" reality show to film in the city.

Hoboken Mayor Dawn Zimmer says the Film Commission's decision was made based on safety and quality of life concerns for residents of the city along the Hudson River.

Hoboken officials say 495 Productions was seeking a 24-hour filming permit to follow two "well-known reality television celebrities" who would live in the city.

It's not clear who the personalities would be. But The Jersey Journal reported last month that MTV was scouting locations for Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi and Jenni "JWoww" Farley.

The company, which has filmed "Jersey Shore" in Seaside Heights, Miami and Italy, can appeal the decision to the Hoboken City Council.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tv/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120201/ap_en_tv/us_jersey_shore_spinoff

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Twitter CEO says blocking policy over-distilled

DANA POINT, California (AP) ? Twitter CEO Dick Costolo sought to calm the global outrage over the company's new country-by-country censorship policy, complaining in part that the issue is being treated with the same kind of shorthand that has made Twitter popular.

Speaking at the All Things D conference on Monday, Costolo repeated the company's justification for the policy change it announced last week: By taking down tweets only in the country where Twitter believes they may have violated local laws, it is making sure the maximum 140-character-long messages are still available to the rest of the world.

Twitter's reasoning has been mostly lost in a barrage of comments ? many from Twitter users themselves ? that the company is caving into attacks on free speech, especially in countries with repressive regimes.

"It's a super complex issue," Costolo said. "When the news came out, people tried to distill it down to, 'What did they just say?' It's easy to distill it down to 'Twitter is endorsing XYZ.'"

"It takes a while for the scholars and the people who study these matters to weigh in and start to say, 'Wait, this is actually a thoughtful and honest approach to doing this and it's in fact being done in a way that's forward-looking.' So we wait for that to happen," he added.

The complaint about knee-jerk responses to complex issues is somewhat ironic given that the company's meteoric growth has been fueled often by buzz-worthy but flippant comments.

Costolo also emphasized that if Twitter reacts to take-down requests, it will make public the reasons a tweet is being removed. The company already has 45 people who respond to such requests, including those from copyright holders of music or movies in the United States.

He said the policy wouldn't affect its stance toward China or Iran, where the service is already blocked completely.

"I don't think the current environment in China is one in which we think we could operate," he said.

Costolo spoke just days before Facebook is expected to file the paperwork necessary for an initial public offering of stock, a move that is likely to make initial investors and employees in the company rich.

San Francisco-based Twitter also faces the same securities regulations that are forcing Facebook to go public ? a rule that says companies with more than $10 million in assets and more than 500 shareholders of a certain class of stock must disclose their financial results and other details.

Twitter, which was founded in 2006, will bump up against the rule "at some point," Costolo said. But he added he would rather spend time building value at the company than dealing with such issues.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-01-31-Twitter-Censorship/id-08750a5ce8694333a7a1a857741bde84

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