ringol: মার্চ 2013

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Source: http://www.howtosignupforwebhosting.com/inmotion-coupon-codes-for-april-2013-promo-coupons/

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Rubio: Reports of immigration deal 'premature'

FILE - In this March 12, 2013 file photo, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla. is seen on Capitol Hill in Washington. The Republican Party?s search for a way back to presidential success in 2016 is drawing a striking array of personalities and policy options. It?s shaping up as a wide-open self-reassessment by the GOP. Some factions are trying to tug the party left or right. Others argue over pragmatism versus defiance. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., makes a point as he is joined by Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., and Sen. Michael Bennett, D-CO, during a news conference after their tour of the Mexico border with the United States on Wednesday, March 27, 2013, in Nogales, Ariz. A group of influential U.S. senators shaping and negotiating details of an immigration reform package vowed Wednesday to make the legislation public when Congress reconvenes next month. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Even with one of the largest hurdles to an immigration overhaul overcome, lawmakers on Sunday cautioned much work remains and that no final deal has been reached.

The AFL-CIO and the pro-business U.S. Chamber of Commerce reached a deal late Friday that would allow tens of thousands of low-skill workers into the country to fill jobs in construction, restaurants and hotels. Yet despite the unusual agreement between the two powerful lobbying groups, lawmakers from both parties tried to curb expectations that the negotiations were finished and an immigration bill was heading for a vote.

"Reports that the bipartisan group of eight senators have agreed on a legislative proposal are premature," said Sen. Marco Rubio, a Florida Republican who is among the lawmakers working on legislation.

Rubio, a Cuban-American who is weighing a presidential bid in 2016, is a leading figure inside his party. Lawmakers will be closely watching any deal for his approval and his skepticism about the process did little to encourage optimism.

"Eight senators from seven states have worked on this bill to serve as a starting point for discussion about fixing our broken immigration system," Rubio said. "But arriving at a final product will require it to be properly submitted for the American people's consideration, through the other 92 senators from 43 states that weren't part of this initial drafting process."

Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., helped negotiate the deal between AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka and Chamber of Commerce head Tom Donohue during a late-Friday phone call. Under the compromise, the government would create a new "W'' visa for low-skill workers who would earn wages paid to Americans or the prevailing wages for the industry they're working in, whichever is higher. The Labor Department would determine prevailing wage based on customary rates in specific localities, so that it would vary from city to city.

The detente between the nation's leading labor federation and the powerful business lobbying group still needs senators' approval, including a nod from Sen. John McCain, the Arizona Republican whose previous efforts came up short.

The measure also under serious discussion would secure the border, crack down on employers, improve legal immigration and create a 13-year pathway to citizenship for the millions of illegal immigrants already here.

Schumer acknowledged on Sunday that the lawmakers themselves had not settled on a final deal and said the senators have not yet finished writing a bill to address the 11 million illegal immigrants already in the United States.

"Business and labor have an agreement," Schumer said. "This is a major, major obstacle that is overcome."

Sen. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., also warned the negotiations were not complete despite the truce between labor and business.

"That doesn't mean we've crossed every 'i' or dotted every 't,' or vice versa," Flake said.

Big labor and big business were at a standoff over wages for low-skill workers and which industries would be included. Those disputes had led talks to break down a week ago, throwing into doubt whether Schumer and seven other senators crafting a comprehensive immigration bill would be able to complete their work as planned.

It's a major second-term priority of President Barack Obama's and would usher in the most dramatic changes to the faltering U.S. immigration system in more than two decades.

"This is a legacy item for him. There is no doubt in my mind that he wants to pass comprehensive immigration reform," said David Axelrod, a longtime political confidant of Obama.

During the last week, an immigration deal seemed doomed. But the breakthrough late Friday restarted the talks.

Ultimately the new "W Visa" program would be capped at 200,000 workers a year, but the number of visas would fluctuate, depending on unemployment rates, job openings, employer demand and data collected by a new federal bureau being pushed by the labor movement as an objective monitor of the market, according to an official involved with the talks who also spoke on condition of anonymity ahead of a formal announcement.

A "safety valve" would allow employers to exceed the cap, the official said, if they could show need and pay premium wages, but any additional workers brought in would be subtracted from the following year's cap.

The workers could move from employer to employer and would be able to petition for permanent residency and ultimately seek U.S. citizenship. Neither is possible for temporary workers now.

The new program would fill needs employers say they have that are not currently met by U.S. immigration programs. Most industries don't have a good way to hire a steady supply of foreign workers because there's one temporary visa program for low-wage nonagricultural workers but it's capped at 66,000 visas per year and is only supposed to be used for seasonal or temporary jobs.

Separately, the new immigration bill also is expected to offer many more visas for high-tech workers, new visas for agriculture workers, and provisions allowing some agriculture workers already in the U.S. a speedier path to citizenship than that provided to other illegal immigrants, in an effort to create a stable agricultural workforce.

Schumer, Flake and Axelrod appeared on NBC's "Meet the Press."

___

Associated Press writer Erica Werner contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-03-31-US-Immigration-1st-Ld-Writethru/id-a84ea5ea878b40bc983f71113887ec46

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Argentina challenges U.S. court with bond plan

By Nate Raymond and Hugh Bronstein

NEW YORK/BUENOS AIRES (Reuters) - Argentina challenged a U.S. court over the weekend by proposing that "holdout" bond investors be repaid only about one sixth the money federal judges hearing the case say they are owed, setting the stage for a legal showdown in New York.

The terms offered by Argentina are the same as those accepted by bondholders who chose to participate in the country's 2010 sovereign bond restructuring. The holdouts rejected that restructuring and are holding out for full repayment.

Aside from the implications the case has for Argentina's finances, it could also have wide ramifications for the way future sovereign restructurings are carried around the world.

Argentina defaulted on $100 billion in sovereign debt in 2002 at the height of a financial crisis in Latin America's third largest economy. The bonds now under dispute were issued in New York, which is why the case is being heard in U.S. court.

Elliott Management affiliate NML Capital Ltd, one of the lead plaintiffs, has said that it will not accept 2010 terms They and other holdouts are sure to argue that Argentina's proposal does not respond to the court's request.

"The court said 'You owe the holdouts $1.3 billion. Tell us how you are going to pay that to them,'" said Josh Rosner, managing director at research firm Graham Fisher & Co in New York.

"Instead of answering how they will pay the full amount, Argentina responded with a plan for paying a much smaller amount," he said. "Argentina is flirting with technical default, which would take a serious toll its economy."

The specter of technical defaults comes from the fact that a U.S. District Court in New York has said that until the holdouts start getting paid, Argentina cannot make payments to holders of the restructured bonds.

Elliott stands currently to receive $720 million from Argentina following a New York judge's order in November, according to Argentina.

But the bonds NML could take had a market value of just $186.8 million before a major decision in the case last October favoring the holdouts, or $120.6 million as of March 1, the filing said. Argentina estimates NML paid about $48.7 million in 2008 for its stake in the bonds.

"The Republic is prepared to fulfill the terms of this proposal promptly upon Order by the Court by submitting a bill to Congress that ensures its timely implementation," Jonathan Blackman, Argentina's U.S. lawyer, wrote.

Around 92 percent of Argentina's defaulted bonds were restructured in 2005 and 2010, with bondholders receiving 25 cents to 29 cents on the dollar.

But holdouts led by NML Capital and Aurelius Capital Management have fought for years for full payment. Argentina calls these funds "vultures."

In October, the 2nd Circuit upheld a trial judge's ruling by finding Argentina had violated a so-called pari passu clause in its bond documents requiring it to treat creditors equally.

U.S. District Judge Thomas Griesa in Manhattan subsequently ordered Argentina in November to pay the $1.33 billion owed to the bondholders into an escrow account by the time of its next interest payment to holders of the exchanged debt.

The 2nd Circuit heard an appeal of that order on February 27. Two days later, it directed Argentina to provide details of "the precise terms of any alternative payment formula and schedule to which it is prepared to commit."

BOND OPTIONS

In its 22-page submission late on Friday, Argentina said that under a so-called par bond option, the bondholders would receive new bonds due in 2038 with the same nominal face value of their current bonds. They would pay 2.5 percent to 5.25 percent a year, Argentina said.

Bondholders would also receive an immediate cash payment similar to what it provided under the 2010 debt swap, Argentina said. And they would receive derivative instruments that provide payments when the country's gross domestic product exceeds 3 percent a year.

The par option is restricted to small investors, unlike the discount option, the more applicable fit for big investors like NML and Aurelius.

Under the discount proposal, holdouts could receive new discount bonds due in 2033 that pay 8.28 percent annually. Argentina said the holdouts would also receive past due interest since 2003 in the form of bonds due in 2017 paying 8.75 percent a year, and GDP-linked derivative units.

Blackman, Argentina's lawyer, wrote that the proposal, unlike what he called the "100 cents on the dollar immediately" formula Griesa adopted, "is consistent with the pari passu clause, longstanding principles of equity, and the Republic's capacity to pay."

It was unclear on Saturday how the court might view Argentina's proposals. The same three-judge panel had said in October, though, that the holdouts "were completely within their rights" to reject prior debt swap offers.

Euginio Bruno, a lawyer and bond restructuring expert with the law firm Estudio Garrido Abogados in Buenos Aires, said the government's Friday proposal "was within expectations, considering the legal constraints on offering anything better than the terms of the 2010 restructuring."

Argentina has a "lock law" that keeps new governments from improving the terms of previous restructurings.

Earlier in the week, the holdouts scored a victory over Argentina when the 2nd Circuit denied a full court review of its October ruling on the equal treatment provision.

The United States had backed Argentina in seeking the review, contending the 2nd Circuit's decision ran "counter to longstanding U.S. efforts to promote orderly restructuring of sovereign debt.

Argentina and holders of its restructured bonds say granting the holdouts 100 cents on the dollar could complicate future sovereign restructurings around the world.

Argentine Vice President Amado Boudou repeated on Saturday that Argentina would continue repaying investors who participated in the restructuring no matter how the U.S. court case is resolved.

"One way or another, Argentina will pay," he said.

The case is NML Capital Ltd et al v. Republic of Argentina, 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 12-105.

(Reporting by Nate Raymond; Additional reporting by Helen Popper, Alejandro Lifschitz and Guido Nejamkis in Buenos Aires; Editing by Todd Eastham, Will Dunham and Eric Beech)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/argentina-challenges-u-court-bond-plan-011959470--sector.html

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US Patent And Trademark Office Denies Apple's iPad Mini Trademark Application, Deemed ?Merely Descriptive?

Right after it launched the iPad mini, Apple filed a trademark application for the name with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). As Patently Apple noticed earlier today, however, the USPTO has now refused Apple’s trademark filing because, the reviewer argues, “the applied-for mark merely describes a feature or characteristic of applicant?s goods.” The refusal was mailed to Apple on January 24, but only made public in the last few days. “The applied-for mark merely describes a feature or characteristic of applicant?s goods.” The word ‘mini,’ the reviewer argues, just describes that the iPad mini is indeed “a small sized handheld tablet computer” and just describes the mini’s features. It is not, the reviewing attorney says, “a unitary mark with a unique, incongruous, or otherwise nondescriptive meaning in relation to the goods and/or services.” The USPTO would only grant apple the trademark to the full iPad mini name if the company coulhow that the word ‘mini’ has now acquired a “distinctiveness.” In addition, Patently Apple also notes, the reviewer also denied the application because Apple should have provided the USPTO with a specimen other than its own product website, even though Apple always uses these for its trademark applications and this was never a reason for a denial before. The reviewer also believes that there is a “likelihood of confusion” between Apple’s existing iPad trademarks and this new iPad? mini application, which, to be honest, doesn’t make a lot of sense. Here is the letter the USPTO sent to Apple in January: USPTO Refuses Apple’s iPad mini Trademark Application

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/xL16BBltNvs/

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India's top court to deliver Novartis judgment

FILE ? In this Jan. 29, 2007 file photo, Indian police officers block demonstrators protesting against Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG's case against the Indian government on drug patents in New Delhi, India. India's Supreme Court is to rule Monday, April 1, 2013, whether to deny a patent to Novartis AG for its cancer treatment in a landmark case that would allow Indian companies to continue producing cheaper versions of many lifesaving medicines. (AP Photo/Saurabh Das, File)

FILE - In this Dec. 21, 2012 file photo, an Indian activist from a health group holds a placard while participating in a protest against Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG outside their office in Mumbai, India. India's Supreme Court is to rule Monday, April 1, 2013, whether to deny a patent to Novartis AG for its cancer treatment in a landmark case that would allow Indian companies to continue producing cheaper versions of many lifesaving medicines. (AP Photo/Rajanish Kakade, File)

NEW DELHI (AP) ? India's Supreme Court is to rule Monday on a landmark patent case involving Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG that focuses on demands by major companies that their investments be protected, against Indian companies that say they should be allowed to continue producing cheaper generic versions of many lifesaving medicines.

A decision in the seven-year legal battle is keenly awaited by the two most interested parties? big pharma companies and health aid groups ? with both sides saying the outcome will set a precedent with far-reaching consequences for the future availability of the drugs.

"Across the world, people rely on India for supplies of affordable versions of expensive patented medicines," said Leena Menghaney of Doctors Without Borders. "This case will have fundamental consequences."

The case goes back to 2006 when Novartis' application for a fresh patent in India for its cancer drug imatinib mesylate was rejected by the Indian patent office.

The patent authority cited a legal provision in India's 2005 patent law aimed at preventing companies from getting fresh patents for making only minor changes to existing medicines ? a practice known as "evergreening."

The drugmaker has argued that its leukemia drug Gleevec, known in Europe and India as Glivec, was a newer, more easily absorbed version that qualified for a fresh patent.

The company filed an appeal, but India's patent appeals office turned it down in 2009 on the grounds the company was unable to show significant increase in efficacy of the drug.

Novartis then approached the Supreme Court in August 2009, which heard arguments seeking to challenge the interpretation and application of India's patent law in the case.

Gleevec, used in treating chronic myeloid leukemia and some other cancers, costs a patient about $2,600 a month. Its generic version was available in India for around $175 per month.

"The difference in price was huge. The generic version makes it affordable to so many more poor people, not just in India, but across the world," said Y.K. Sapru, of the Mumbai-based Cancer Patients Aid Association.

The case once again pits big pharmaceutical companies against health activists and aid groups with both sections arguing that the judgment would be an important milestone for the future of the pharmaceutical industry worldwide.

"The Novartis verdict is important because it will determine whether India gets to limit patents to genuine new drugs, or whether drug companies get to "evergreen" their patents until eternity, simply by re-patenting a slightly modified version of a known substance," said Ellen 't Hoen, a pharmaceutical law and policy consultant.

Western pharmaceutical companies have warned that a rejection of Novartis' application would discourage investment in research and innovation, and would hobble drugmakers' efforts to refine and improve their products.

The international drug majors have been pushing for stronger patent protection in India to regulate the country's $26 billion generic drug industry, which they say often flouts intellectual property rights.

In a statement sent to The Associated Press late last year, Novartis said patent protection was important to ensure effective protection for innovation.

"Knowing we can rely on patents in India benefits government, industry and patients because research-based organizations will know if investing in the development of better medicines for India is a viable long-term option," the company said.

Groups such as Doctors Without Borders say cheaply made Indian generics are a lifesaver for millions of patients in poor countries who cannot afford to pay Western prices to treat diseases such as cancer, malaria and HIV.

India, which has emerged as the world's pharmacy for the poor, has come under intense scrutiny from pharmaceutical giants who say India's 2005 Patent Act fails to guarantee the rights of investors who finance drug research and development.

The country's recent decision to allow a local manufacturer to produce a generic version of Bayer's patented cancer drug Nexavar, to make the drug available to the public at a reasonably affordable price, has also not gone down well with Western pharmaceutical companies.

Health and aid groups were clearly nervous before the top court rules on the Novartis case.

"Generic companies depend on the freedom to operate. If there are too many intellectual property-related challenges, then the companies very quickly withdraw from making that drug," said Menghaney.

The groups fear that a ruling in favor of Novartis would lead to a proliferation of patents ? some based on a minor tweaking of formulation and dosages ?on dozens of other generic medicines that Indian companies have been producing and supplying to needy nations at far lower costs than those charged by Western drug manufacturers.

And the fallout of the judgment will be felt across the world, says Menghaney. "It's not just about India."

"If generic competition on many crucial medicines ends, then prices for these medicines will increase, both in India and across the developing world. This would be devastating for millions who rely on India for affordable medicines."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/bbd825583c8542898e6fa7d440b9febc/Article_2013-03-31-India-Patent%20Battle/id-9299251350894549ac0c2d134052ebb5

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James Holmes plea rejected: Are prosecutors prepping for death penalty?

James Holmes would have pleaded guilty had he been spared death, but the proposal was rejected by prosecutors ? another sign they might be preparing to seek the death penalty.

By Mark Guarino,?Staff writer / March 29, 2013

James Holmes, Aurora theater shooting suspect, sits in the courtroom during his arraignment in Centennial, Colo., earlier this month.

RJ Sangosti/Denver Post/AP/File

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Prosecutors are rejecting a plea agreement proposed by defense attorneys for James Holmes, the primary suspect in the mass shooting at a movie theater in Aurora, Colo., that killed 12 and injured 70 last July. The agreement proposes a guilty plea if Mr. Holmes does not receive the death penalty.

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Without a guilty plea from Holmes, his mental health would likely be the big question mark in a potential trial. Indeed, prosecutors said in court documents Thursday that the plea they rejected was ?a calculated attempt? by the defense to convince the public that the criminal insanity defense has merit.

At an August hearing immediately following the shooting, Holmes's attorneys told a judge that his client was mentally ill and time was needed to assess the extent and nature of his illness. There were also references to a notebook the former University of Colorado graduate student shared with a school psychiatrist, in which he portrayed violent acts.

Prosecutors have long argued the notebook should be made trial evidence, but the defense says it is protected by physician-patient privilege. In a court document filed Thursday in Denver, prosecutors are accusing the defense of refusing to cooperate with document requests.

?The defendant knows that he is guilty, the defense attorneys know that he is guilty, and that both of them know that he was not criminally insane? is the inevitable conclusion of his crimes, they said.

The insanity defense will make the trial difficult for the prosecution because, in contrast to the vast majority of states, Colorado puts the burden of proof on the prosecution, rather than on the defense. That means prosecutors will have to prove that Holmes is not insane, which could be an arduous task in a case involving so many unusual variables, such as Holmes? bomb-rigged apartment, his orange-dyed hair, reports he told the police he was the cartoon villain the Joker, his heavy reliance on a psychiatrist and prescription medicine, and so forth.

Even faced with that task, however, the prosecution will not have a difficult case in proving Holmes knew what he was doing, says Daniel Filler, a former public defender who teaches criminal law at Drexel University School of Law in Philadelphia.

?While formally the burden of proof is on the prosecution, the reality is that juries are not typically very sympathetic to insanity claims,? Professor Filler says. ?It is important to distinguish the formal rules of law and what the practical challenges are. The reality is the prosecution has the winds at its back in arguing [Holmes] is not insane because, after a horrible crime, juries are not looking for a way to absolve the defendant.?

The trial will ultimately come down to ?a battle of experts,? he adds.

Arapahoe County prosecutor George Brauchler has said he will announce Monday whether he intends to seek the death penalty. There are clues that suggest he might be leaning toward that option. Mr. Brauchler added a death penalty lawyer to the prosecution team last month, and all three people on Colorado's death row were tried and sentenced in Arapahoe County.

The Holmes case has come as Colorado debated becoming the 18th state to repeal the death penalty. Though polls suggest that 68 percent of Coloradans support the death penalty, the legislature apparently had the votes to pass a bill. At a recent legislative hearing, Mr. Brauchler argued against repealing the sanction, saying, ?repeal of the death penalty makes it harder to find justice for the worst-of-the-worst cases.?

Earlier this week, Gov. John Hickenlooper said he would veto a bill to repeal the death penalty and support for the bill fell apart. It failed to pass a committee vote Tuesday.

Though the bill would not have affected the Holmes case ? it would have applied only to crimes committed after July 1, 2013 ? some experts suggest that it has? kept the issue before the public eye.

"The Holmes case is no doubt keeping the issue on the death penalty in Colorado because of his very visible prosecution," says Kyle Saunders, a political scientist at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, in an e-mail.

Colorado has not executed a person since 1977.

? Staff writer Patrik Jonsson contributed to this report.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/d_fiKFhHu3Q/James-Holmes-plea-rejected-Are-prosecutors-prepping-for-death-penalty

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Elite Eight Wraps With Rick Pitino vs. Coach K, Sizzling Trey Burke

Tom Izzo pitted against Mike Krzyzewski was sensational in the Sweet 16, but coach Rick Pitino's Louisville program may be the most relevant in the country right now, after narrowly losing the national title last year.

Pitino has made six trips to the Final Four and a seventh would tie him for fourth all-time with North Carolina's Roy Williams. Krzyzewski though, is gunning for his 12th, which would tie him with John Wooden for most all time. Don't forget that the last time the two met one another, this happened.

In our other tilt, the combination of speed and athleticism between Florida and Michigan should be incredible. Both teams love to get up and down, and both teams also feature premier head coaches. It will be interesting to see how the Wolverines -- fresh off a highly emotional come-from-behind victory over Kansas, will respond less than 48 hours after the fact.

Here are the can't miss matchups to watch in the Elite 8 games Sunday.

Duke SG Seth Curry vs. Louisville Guards Peyton Siva and Russ Smith

Duke's Seth Curry was lights out against Michigan State, totaling 29 points on 6-9 shooting from three. MSU's Spartans, though, do not feature the same elite quickness as Louisville with its stellar duo of guards. Nor do they trap in the half-court. Louisville's Russ Smith is an electric and hyperactive jitterbug who disrupts the rhythm of scorers with his hands and foot speed. Aside from peaking offensively right now -- he had a career high 31 Friday and is averaging 27 points per game in the tournament -- Smith will trail Curry on every staggered screen and fight over every ball screen. Lousiville's Peyton Siva will do the same thing, albeit not quite as well, but that combination along with the superior length of the Cardinals will make scoring a severe challenge for Curry.

Michigan PG Trey Burke vs. Florida PG Scottie Wilbekin

Amidst his struggles, I'm not sure if anybody has remained higher on Michigan's Trey Burke than myself. His ability to control a game even when he's not scoring is a rare trait and, now that he's rolling once again offensively, he's just a brutal matchup any way you dice it up.

Florida's Scottie Wilbekin though, while under the radar a bit, is a terrific defender who really fights through screens and understands how to play on the ball. He's far from the scoring threat of Burke, but the junior does average 9 points and 5 assists for the Gators while shooting a career high 46 percent from the floor. His No. 1 priority Sunday is to keep Burke out of the paint. However, even when he cannot manage to do so, his powerful teammate Patric Young will be waiting to disrupt and obstruct. The bottom line though, is that as good as Michigan's Tim Hardaway, Jr. and Mitch McGary have been, Burke is the engine and jet fuel that drives the Michigan offense. He has to be really good against the Gators.

Email me at jordan.schultz@huffingtonpost.com or ask me questions about anything sports-related at @Schultz_Report.

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/31/elite-8-sunday_n_2985075.html

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Veterans fight changes to disability payments

In this March 24, 2013 photo, former Marine Corps Cpl. Marshall Archer, left, a veterans' liaison for the city of Portland, Maine, speaks to a man on a street in Portland. Veterans groups are rallying to fight any proposal to change disability payments as the federal government attempts to address its long-term debt problem. They say they've sacrificed already. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

In this March 24, 2013 photo, veterans' liaison Marshall Archer, a former Marine Corps corporal, poses for a photo in Portland, Maine. Veterans groups are rallying to fight any proposal to change disability payments as the federal government attempts to address its long-term debt problem. They say they've sacrificed already. (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Veterans groups are rallying to fight any proposal to change disability payments as the federal government attempts to address its long-term debt problem. They say they've sacrificed already.

Government benefits are adjusted according to inflation, and President Barack Obama has endorsed using a slightly different measure of inflation to calculate Social Security benefits. Benefits would still grow but at a slower rate.

Advocates for the nation's 22 million veterans fear that the alternative inflation measure would also apply to disability payments to nearly 4 million veterans as well as pension payments for an additional 500,000 low-income veterans and surviving families.

"I think veterans have already paid their fair share to support this nation," said the American Legion's Louis Celli. "They've paid it in lower wages while serving, they've paid it through their wounds and sacrifices on the battlefield and they're paying it now as they try to recover from those wounds."

Economists generally agree that projected long-term debt increases stemming largely from the growth in federal health care programs pose a threat to the country's economic competitiveness. Addressing the threat means difficult decisions for lawmakers and pain for many constituents in the decades ahead.

But the veterans' groups point out that their members bore the burden of a decade of war in Iraq and Afghanistan. In the past month, they've held news conferences on Capitol Hill and raised the issue in meetings with lawmakers and their staffs. They'll be closely watching the unveiling of the president's budget next month to see whether he continues to recommend the change.

Obama and others support changing the benefit calculations to a variation of the Consumer Price Index, a measure called "chained CPI." The conventional CPI measures changes in retail prices of a constant marketbasket of goods and services. Chained CPI considers changes in the quantity of goods purchased as well as the prices of those goods. If the price of steak goes up, for example, many consumers will buy more chicken, a cheaper alternative to steak, rather than buying less steak or going without meat.

Supporters argue that chained CPI is a truer indication of inflation because it measures changes in consumer behavior. It also tends to be less than the conventional CPI, which would impact how cost-of-living raises are computed.

Under the current inflation update, monthly disability and pension payments increased 1.7 percent this year. Under chained CPI, those payments would have increased 1.4 percent.

The Congressional Budget Office projects that moving to chained CPI would trim the deficit by nearly $340 billion over the next decade. About two-thirds of the deficit closing would come from less spending and the other third would come from additional revenue because of adjustments that tax brackets would undergo.

Isabel Sawhill, a senior fellow in economic studies at The Brookings Institution, a Washington-based think tank, said she understands why veterans, senior citizens and others have come out against the change, but she believes it's necessary.

"We are in an era where benefits are going to be reduced and revenues are going to rise. There's just no way around that. We're on an unsustainable fiscal course," Sawhill said. "Dealing with it is going to be painful, and the American public has not yet accepted that. As long as every group keeps saying, 'I need a carve-out, I need an exception,' this is not going to work."

Sawhill argued that making changes now will actually make it easier for veterans in the long run.

"The longer we wait to make these changes, the worse the hole we'll be in and the more draconian the cuts will have to be," she said.

That's not the way Sen. Bernie Sanders sees it. The chairman of the Senate Committee on Veterans' Affairs said he recently warned Obama that every veterans group he knows of has come out strongly against changing the benefit calculations for disability benefits and pensions by using chained CPI.

"I don't believe the American people want to see our budget balanced on the backs of disabled veterans. It's especially absurd for the White House, which has been quite generous in terms of funding for the VA," said Sanders, I-Vt. "Why they now want to do this, I just don't understand."

Sanders succeeded in getting the Senate to approve an amendment last week against changing how the cost-of-living increases are calculated, but the vote was largely symbolic. Lawmakers would still have a decision to make if moving to chained CPI were to be included as part of a bargain on taxes and spending.

Sanders' counterpart on the House side, Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., the chairman of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs, appears at least open to the idea of going to chained CPI.

"My first priority is ensuring that America's more than 20 million veterans receive the care and benefits they have earned, but with a national debt fast approaching $17 trillion, Washington's fiscal irresponsibility may threaten the very provision of veterans' benefits," Miller said. "Achieving a balanced budget and reducing our national debt will help us keep the promises America has made to those who have worn the uniform, and I am committed to working with Democrats and Republicans to do just that."

Marshall Archer, 30, a former Marine Corps corporal who served two stints in Iraq, has a unique perspective about the impact of slowing the growth of veterans' benefits. He collects disability payments to compensate him for damaged knees and shoulders as well as post-traumatic stress disorder. He also works as a veterans' liaison for the city of Portland, Maine, helping some 200 low-income veterans find housing.

Archer notes that on a personal level, the reduction in future disability payments would also be accompanied down the road by a smaller Social Security check when he retires. That means he would take a double hit to his income.

"We all volunteered to serve, so we all volunteered to sacrifice," he said. "I don't believe that you should ever ask those who have already volunteered to sacrifice to then sacrifice again."

That said, Archer indicated he would be willing to "chip in" if he believes that everyone is required to give as well.

He said he's more worried about the veterans he's trying to help find a place to sleep. About a third of his clients rely on VA pension payments averaging just over $1,000 a month. He said their VA pension allows them to pay rent, heat their home and buy groceries, but that's about it.

"This policy, if it ever went into effect, would actually place those already in poverty in even more poverty," Archer said.

The changes that would occur by using the slower inflation calculation seem modest at first. For a veteran with no dependents who has a 60 percent disability rating, the use of chained CPI this year would have lowered the veteran's monthly payments by $3 a month. Instead of getting $1,026 a month, the veteran would have received $1,023.

Raymond Kelly, legislative director for Veterans of Foreign Wars, acknowledged that veterans would see little change in their income during the first few years of the change. But even a $36 hit over the course of a year is "huge" for many of the disabled veterans living on the edge, he said.

The amount lost over time becomes more substantial as the years go by. Sanders said that a veteran with a 100 percent disability rating who begins getting payments at age 30 would see their annual payments trimmed by more than $2,300 a year when they turn 55.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2013-03-30-Budget%20Battle-Veterans/id-b9c15cb1e32e4b0a8fbe3cc49bdeff51

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'Walking Dead' pics: Rick, others prep for battle

By Drusilla Moorhouse, TODAY contributor

We know "The Walking Dead's" third-season finale will be a bloodbath. The only question is how many main characters will be lost in the battle between The Governor's Woodbury forces and Rick Grimes' new democracy.

Gene Page / AMC

Will Michonne embrace the prison gang's all-for-one-and-one-for-all fightin' spirit? In one of several shots from "Welcome to the Tombs," exclusive to The Clicker, the sword fighter has returned to the prison, and clearly she and Rick have a lot to chat about. Although we bet he'll do most of the talking -- Ricky has some 'splainin' to do after nearly sacrificing her to the gubernatorial torture chamber.?

Gene Page / AMC

And even as the Walkers roam the prison yard, Carl draws strength from the family picture he fought so desperately to retrieve from the Grimes' old house (with help from Michonne).

Gene Page / AMC

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Navy identifies SEAL killed in Arizona training accident

PHOENIX (Reuters) - The U.S. military on Saturday identified the elite Navy SEAL who died in a parachute training accident in southern Arizona that also injured another SEAL.

Navy officials said Special Warfare Operator Chief Brett Shadle, 31, of Elizabethville, Pennsylvania, was killed in the free-fall training accident near Pinal Airpark, northeast of Tucson, on Thursday.

Shadle was assigned to an East Coast-based Naval Special Warfare unit, the Navy said in a statement. The second SEAL, who has not been identified, remains hospitalized in stable condition.

The office of Arizona Governor Jan Brewer said Shadle was a highly decorated member of SEAL Team 6 and had served in Iraq and Afghanistan. Members of SEAL Team 6 carried out the raid that killed al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden in May 2011.

The cause of the accident is under investigation. Brewer said in a statement that Shadle died after colliding with another SEAL in midair. She ordered flags at all state buildings be flown at half-staff on Saturday.

SEAL is an acronym for sea, air, land.

(Reporting by Tim Gaynor, Editing by Alex Dobuzinskis and Eric Beech)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/u-navy-seal-dies-parachute-training-accident-010402231.html

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Decimation of critically endangered forest elephant detailed

Mar. 28, 2013 ? African forest elephants are being poached out of existence. A study just published in the online journal PLOS ONE and supported in part by San Diego Zoo Global shows that a staggering 62% of all forest elephants have been killed across their range in central Africa, for their ivory over the past decade. The severe decline indicates what researchers fear is the eminent extinction of this species.

"Saving the species requires a coordinated global effort in the countries where elephants occur, all along the ivory smuggling routes and at the final destination in the Far East. We don't have much time," say Wildlife Conservation Society conservationists Fiona Maisels, PhD, and Samantha Strindberg, PhD, the lead authors.

The study -- the largest ever conducted on the African forest elephant -- includes the work of more than 60 scientists between 2002 and 2011, and an immense effort by national conservation staff who spent a combined 91,600 days surveying elephants in 5 countries (Cameroon, Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon and the Republic of Congo), walking over 13,000 kilometers (more than 8,000 miles) and recording over 11,000 elephant dung piles for the analysis.

The paper also shows that almost a third of the land where African forest elephants were able to live 10 years ago has become too dangerous for them. Results show clearly that forest elephants were increasingly uncommon in places with high human density, high infrastructure density such as roads, high hunting intensity, and poor governance as indicated by levels of corruption and absence of law enforcement.

Bethan Morgan, PhD, head of San Diego Zoo Global's Central Africa Program, stressed the importance of this study. "This is the largest collaborative study of its kind across the whole of Central Africa and really highlights the plight of this ecologically important species. Forest elephants are integral to a functioning forest in Africa, opening up the forest floor and acting as a vital part of the life cycle of many plant species through their role as seed dispersers. We have increasing evidence of a decline in certain tree species as a result of the local extinction of forest elephants."

Distinct from the African savanna elephant, the African forest elephant is slightly smaller than its better-known relative and is considered by many to be a separate species.

Research carried out by the CITES-MIKE program has shown that the increase in poaching levels across Africa since 2006 is strongly correlated with trends in consumer demand in the Far East and that poaching levels are also strongly linked with governance at the national level and poverty at the local level. This has resulted in escalating elephant massacres in areas previously thought to be safe.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Zoological Society of San Diego, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

Journal Reference:

Fiona Maisels, Samantha Strindberg, Stephen Blake, George Wittemyer, John Hart, Elizabeth A. Williamson, Rostand Aba?a, Gaspard Abitsi, Ruffin D. Ambahe, Fid?l Amsini, Parfait C. Bakabana, Thurston Cleveland Hicks, Rosine E. Bayogo, Martha Bechem, Rene L. Beyers, Anicet N. Bezangoye, Patrick Boundja, Nicolas Bout, Marc Ella Akou, Lambert Bene Bene, Bernard Fosso, Elizabeth Greengrass, Falk Grossmann, Clement Ikamba-Nkulu, Omari Ilambu, Bila-Isia Inogwabini, Fortune Iyenguet, Franck Kiminou, Max Kokangoye, Deo Kujirakwinja, Stephanie Latour, Innocent Liengola, Quevain Mackaya, Jacob Madidi, Bola Madzoke, Calixte Makoumbou, Guy-Aim? Malanda, Richard Malonga, Olivier Mbani, Valentin A. Mbendzo, Edgar Ambassa, Albert Ekinde, Yves Mihindou, Bethan J. Morgan, Prosper Motsaba, Gabin Moukala, Anselme Mounguengui, Brice S. Mowawa, Christian Ndzai, Stuart Nixon, Pele Nkumu, Fabian Nzolani, Lilian Pintea, Andrew Plumptre, Hugo Rainey, Bruno Bokoto de Semboli, Adeline Serckx, Emma Stokes, Andrea Turkalo, Hilde Vanleeuwe, Ashley Vosper, Ymke Warren. Devastating Decline of Forest Elephants in Central Africa. PLoS ONE, 2013; 8 (3): e59469 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0059469

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/nZ7F7Ebz8jc/130329125303.htm

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Panasonic explains how its color splitter sensor works in a vividly detailed video

You'd be forgiven if you weren't entirely on the same page with Panasonic regarding its micro color splitter sensor: it's a big break from the traditional Bayer filter approach on digital cameras, and the deluge of text doesn't do much to simplify the concept. Much to our relief, DigInfo TV has grilled Panasonic in a video that provides a more easily digestible (if still deep) interpretation. As the technology's creator says, it's all about the math. To let in so much light through the splitters requires processing the light in four mixed colors, and that processing requires studying the light's behavior in 3D. Panasonic's new method (Babinet-BPM) makes that feasible by finishing tasks 325 times faster than usual, all while chewing up just a 16th of the memory. The company isn't much closer to having production examples, but it's clarifying that future development will be specialized -- it wants to fine-tune the splitter behavior for everything from smartphone cameras through to security systems. Catch the full outline after the break.

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Source: DigInfo TV

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/03/31/video-explains-how-panasonics-color-splitter-sensor-works/

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Patients of Oklahoma doctor line up for tests

About 150 to 200 patients of Dr. W. Scott Harrington, who's accused of unsanitary practices, line up outside the Tulsa Health Department North Regional Health and Wellness Center to be screened for hepatitis and the virus that causes AIDS, Saturday, March 30, 2013, in Tulsa, Okla. Oklahoma officials say 7,000 patients of Harrington's in the past six years will receive letters that warn that poor hygiene at Harrington's two clinics created a public health hazard. (AP Photo/Tulsa World, James Gibbard) ONLINE OUT; TV OUT; TULSA OUT

This Thursday, March 28, 2013 photo shows the dental offices of Dr. Scott Harrington at 2111 S. Atlanta Place in Tulsa, Okla. Health officials on Thursday, March 28, 2013 urged thousands of patients of an Oklahoma oral surgeon to undergo hepatitis and HIV testing, saying unsanitary conditions behind his office's spiffy facade posed a threat to his clients and made him a "menace to the public health." (AP Photo/Tulsa World, Michael Wyke) ONLINE OUT; TV OUT; TULSA OUT

This 1977 license picture provided by the Oklahoma Board of Dentistry shows Dr. Scott Harrington. Health officials urged thousands of patients of Harrington, an oral surgeon, to undergo hepatitis and HIV testing, saying unsanitary conditions behind his office's spiffy facade posed a threat to his clients and made him a "menace to the public health." (AP Photo/Oklahoma Board of Dentistry)

TULSA, Okla. (AP) ? Hundreds of patients of an Oklahoma oral surgeon accused of unsanitary practices showed up at a health clinic Saturday, looking to find out whether they were exposed to hepatitis or the virus that causes AIDS.

Letters began going out Friday to 7,000 patients who had seen Dr. W. Scott Harrington during the past six years, warning them that poor hygiene at his clinics created a public health hazard. The one-page letter said how and where to seek treatment but couldn't explain why Harrington's allegedly unsafe practices went on for so long.

Testing for hepatitis B, hepatitis C and the virus that causes AIDS began at 10 a.m. Saturday, but many arrived early and stood through torrential downpours. The Tulsa Health Department said 420 people were tested Saturday at its North Regional Health and Wellness Center. Screenings resume Monday morning.

Kari Childress, 38, showed up at 8:30 a.m., mainly because she was nervous.

"I just hope I don't have anything," said Childress, who had a tooth extracted at one of Harrington's two clinics five months ago. "You trust and believe in doctors to follow the rules, and that's the scariest part."

Inspectors found a number of problems at the doctor's clinics in Tulsa and suburban Owasso, according to the state Dentistry Board, which filed a 17-count complaint against Harrington pending an April 19 license revocation hearing. According to the complaint, needles were reinserted into drug vials after being used on patients, expired drugs were found in a medicine cabinet and dental assistants, not the doctor, administered sedatives to patients.

One patient, Orville Marshall, said he didn't meet Harrington until after he had two wisdom teeth pulled about five years ago at the Owasso clinic. A nurse inserted the IV for his anesthesia; Harrington was there when Marshall came to.

"It's just really scary. It makes you doubt the whole system, especially with how good his place looked," said Marshall, 37.

An instrument set reserved for use on patients with infectious diseases was rusty, preventing its effective sterilization, and the office autoclave ? a pressurized cleaner ? was used improperly and hadn't been certified as effective in at least six years, according to the complaint.

Dr. Matt Messina, a Cleveland dentist and a consumer adviser for the American Dental Association, said creating a safe and hygienic environment is "one of the fundamental requirements" before any dental procedure can be performed.

"It's not hard. It just takes effort," he said.

Weekly autoclave testing can be performed for less than $400 annually, according to the website of the Autoclave Testing Services of Pearl River, New York.

Autoclaves typically can be purchased for $1,000 to $8,000, depending on their size and features. And an average dental practice can expect to pay more than $40,000 a year in equipment, tools and supplies alone, according to several dental organizations.

Attempts to reach Harrington have been unsuccessful. No one answered the door Thursday at his Oklahoma home, which property records show is worth more than $1 million. His practice a few miles away, in a tony section of Tulsa where plastic surgeons operate and locals congregate at bistros and stores such as Saks Fifth Avenue, has a fair-market value of around $851,000.

Property and tax records show Harrington owns another residence in Carefree, Ariz., in an area of upscale homes tucked into in the boulder-strewn mountains north of Phoenix.

Nobody was at home Saturday at the low-slung, 1950s-style vacation home, across from the Boulders Resort. Neighbors said they had seen a lot of activity at the home in recent weeks.

Harrington's malpractice lawyer, Jim Secrest II, did not respond to phone messages left Thursday or Friday. A message at Harrington's Tulsa office said it was closed and an answering service referred callers to the Tulsa Health Department.

Suzy Horton, an old friend of Harrington's, said she can't believe the allegations about the man who removed two of her teeth in the early '90s. Horton's ex-husband sold Harrington his home in Carefree ? a home where she once lived.

"I've been to dentists my whole life, so I know what a professional office looks like," Horton, who now lives in Phoenix, said in a telephone interview. "His was just as professional as anybody."

Horton hasn't seen Harrington in years, but she said he has sent her a Christmas card and wreath every year since her 1999 divorce.

"It was a long time ago, so I suppose anything can change, but the kind of person they're portraying in the news is not the kind of person who sends you a Christmas" card, she said.

___

Associated Press writers Traci Carl in Carefree, Ariz., and Jeannie Nuss in Little Rock, Ark., contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-03-30-Dentist%20Investigation-Testing/id-19d4d577670640b3b74a2ce8f44643ef

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Worst Allergy Season Ever?

Marlene Cimons writes for?Climate Nexus, a nonprofit that aims to tell the climate story in innovative ways that raise awareness of, dispel misinformation about, and showcase solutions to climate change and energy issues in the United States.? She contributed this article to LiveScience's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.

This spring could be the most miserable one ever for those of us with allergies, and we can blame it on climate change.?

People in the Northeast, in particular, will be among the hardest hit in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy and this winter's record-setting blizzard, both of which dumped massive amounts of precipitation over the region.??

"[This] promises a robust allergy season,'' said Leonard Bielory, an allergy and immunology specialist with the Rutgers Center for Environmental Prediction in New Jersey, a state which suffered widespread destruction from Sandy.?

"The first airborne tree pollen has been measured in recent days, and while the count is still low, some allergy sufferers are showing comparatively severe symptoms,'' he added. "I expect more tree pollen than ever to be released this spring, and the reaction to the early pollen to be unusually strong.''

The planet is getting warmer, and human behavior is responsible. The changing climate has brought early spring, late-ending fall, and large amounts of rain and snow.? All of that, combined with historically high levels of carbon dioxide in the air, nourishes the trees and plants that make pollen, and encourages more fungal growth, such as mold, and the release of spores.?

We will be paying a wretched price in the coming months for the behavior fueling the explosion of pollen, which are the tiny reproductive cells found in trees, weeds, plants and grasses.? By all accounts, there will be more pollen this year than ever before.

"The trees are going to burst in the next week or two, and we will get a burst of pollen higher than in past years,'' said Bielory, who predicts that pollen counts will increase by 30 percent by 2020 and, "in a perfect test-tube world, will double by 2040 because of climate change.'' [Study: Pollen Counts To More Than Double By 2040]

Most trees release their pollen in the early spring, while grasses do so in late spring and early summer. Ragweed makes its pollen in the late summer and early fall.

And pollen production is only part of the impact that global warming is going to have on allergies and asthma ? and our health overall.

In areas of the country experiencing prolonged heat and drought, dust will worsen air pollution, exacerbating asthma and other respiratory diseases. In other regions, climate change will affect the insect population ? their stings and bites can provoke fatal allergic reactions in sensitive individuals ? as well as the proliferation of such vines as poison ivy. Poison ivy thrives with increased carbon dioxide, and as a result, now makes a far more potent urushiol ? the oil that causes poison-ivy-triggered rashes ? than in the past. [8 Ways Global Warming Is Already Changing the World]

Current evidence also suggests that climate change will increase the concentration of ground-level ozone, particularly in Northeastern, Midwestern and Western cities, causing an increase in respiratory diseases.

In short, if you have allergies or asthma, climate change is going to make you a lot sicker now and in the coming years.?

Allergic diseases are the sixth leading cause of chronic disease in the United States, with an annual cost of $18 billion, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. More than 50 million Americans suffer from allergies annually. ???????????

Asthma afflicts about 20 million Americans, and is rising around the world, according to the CDC. Moreover, some public health experts regard the global increase of asthma as an early health effect of climate change, and a harbinger of more health dangers to come.

In fact, one study published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology called climate change "potentially the largest global threat to human health ever encountered,'' predicting more injury, disease and death from natural disasters, heat waves, infections and widespread malnutrition, as well as more allergic and air-pollution illnesses and death.

If you are lucky enough to be free from allergies, don't make the mistake of dismissing them as nothing more than a minor annoyance. Allergies can have a serious impact on the quality of life, and in some circumstances ? a bee sting, for example, or if they trigger an asthma attack ? they can kill.

"This is not just a matter of having a runny nose,'' said Jeffrey Demain, director of the Allergy, Asthma and Immunology Center of Alaska.? "Allergies affect the ability to go to work and go to school, and they affect school and work performance. They interfere with playing sports, social opportunities, how well you sleep, your relationships and your overall general happiness.''

On average, someone with allergic disorders experiences a quality of life 35 percent less than the general population, Demain said. "It really is quite dramatic,'' he said.

Allergies occur when the body's immune system overreacts to a substance that generally doesn't bother other people. The allergens can prompt sneezing, coughing, watery eyes and itching. In the years between 1970 and 2000, allergic rhinitis among Americans has risen from 10 percent to 30 percent, which correlates to similar increases in positive allergy skin-test results, according to Bielory.

Most experts believe the impact of climate change on allergic diseases will vary by region, depending on latitude, altitude, rainfall and storms, land-use patterns, urbanization, transportation and energy production. Drought, for example, will contribute to increasing air pollution, while heavy rain will wash the pollution away, but encourage the growth of mold.

Bielory and his colleagues, reporting in a 2011 study, showed that the ragweed-pollen season has become longer in northern areas of the country in recent years, and points to climate change as the reason this is happening.?

"We drew a line from Texas to Canada,'' he explained. "The pollen count duration remained the same in Texas, but changed as you moved north. Even though you are heading north to Canada, the pollen started earlier and ended later ? and it should have been shortening. This was due to earlier springs and the later onset of fall. Frost wasn't occurring as early as it used to, so ragweed was pollinating later.''

Pollen levels per plant are increasing as a result of escalating concentrations of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, and the plants themselves are growing bigger, experts say.

"The increased pollen is probably a way for the plant to adapt,'' said Demain, who also is an associate clinical professor at the University of Washington. "They become larger and produce much more pollen. More people are going to develop asthma and allergies, and it's going to be severe.''

Stopping human activities that contribute to climate change might help future generations avoid these risks, but the rest of us ? like the plants themselves ? will have to adapt. We also can hope for a new medical breakthrough that will turn off the allergic response.?

In the meantime, stay inside and keep your windows closed.

The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/worst-allergy-season-ever-132723585.html

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Little Cyprus thumbs its nose at EU 'bullies'

Two men walk in the old city of the capital Nicosia, on Friday, March 29, 2013. Banks in Cyprus are open for normal business for the second day, but with strict restrictions on how much money their clients can access, after being shut for nearly two weeks.(AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

A man walks past graffiti in capital Nicosia, on Friday, March 29, 2013. Banks in Cyprus are open for normal business for the second day, but with strict restrictions on how much money their clients can access, after being shut for nearly two weeks.(AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

A Greek Cypriot soldier walks at the old town of the capital Nicosia, on Friday, March 29, 2013. Banks in Cyprus are open for normal business for the second day, but with strict restrictions on how much money their clients can access, after being shut for nearly two weeks.(AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris)

A man with shopping bags and a tourist pass at the old city the capital Nicosia, Cyprus, on Friday, March 29, 2013. Banks in Cyprus are open for normal business for the second day, but with strict restrictions on how much money their clients can access, after being shut for nearly two weeks to prevent people from draining their accounts as the country's politicians sought a way out of an acute financial crisis. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

Private security officers stand at a main door of a bank as people wait outside of a cooperative bank in capital Nicosia, Cyprus, on Friday, March 29, 2013. Banks in Cyprus are open for normal business for the second day, but with strict restrictions on how much money their clients can access, after being shut for nearly two weeks to prevent people from draining their accounts as the country's politicians sought a way out of an acute financial crisis. (AP Photo/Petros Karadjias)

NICOSIA, Cyprus (AP) ? The moment word broke that Cypriot lawmakers in Parliament had voted down a bailout deal that would have raided everyone's savings to prop up a collapsing banking sector, a huge cheer rose up from hundreds of demonstrators gathered outside that echoed through the building's corridors.

Many relished it as a kind of David-against-Goliath moment ? a country of barely a million people standing up to the will of Europe's behemoths who wanted it to swallow a very bitter pill to fix its broken-down economy.

"Shame on Europe for trying to snatch people's savings. It's a mistaken decision that will have repercussions on other economies and banking systems," said protester Panayiotis Violettis. "People have stopped trusting the EU which should be our protector."

Fighting back is not a new experience for Cypriots. From the 1950s guerrilla war against British rule to Greek Cypriots' defiant refusal in 2004 to accept a U.N.-backed peace plan to reunite the island, they are used to holding their own against big opponents.

Just as quickly as Cyprus' euro area partners decided that a deposit grab was the only way out, so Cypriots decided their tiny island was ground zero in Europe's new financial scorched earth policy and that it had to be resisted at all costs.

"Better die on your feet than live on your knees," one placard among the throngs of protesters read. Another said: "It starts with us, it ends with you" as a warning to other Europeans that their savings were no longer safe.

Politicians seized on the public mood. "This is another form of colonization," Greens lawmaker Giorgos Perdikis spouted in Parliament. "We won't allow passage of something that essentially subjugates the Cypriot people for many, many generations.

"Unfortunately, instead of support and solidarity, our partners offered blackmail and bitterness," said Parliamentary Speaker Yiannakis Omirou. The indignant leader of the country's Orthodox Christian Church, Archbishop Chrysostomos II, added: "This isn't the Europe that we believed in when we joined. We believed we would receive some kind of help, some support."

The country's foreign minister, Ioannis Kasoulides, even acknowledged that Cypriot negotiators had contemplated exiting the euro instead of accepting their euro area partners' terms.

In the end, Cyprus accepted a deal that would safeguard small savers but where depositors with more than 100,000 euros in the country's two most troubled banks would lose a big chunk of their money.

Nonetheless, Europe was stunned at the sheer brazenness. How could a pipsqueak country on Europe's fringes thumb its nose to continental juggernauts Germany and France and dare to turn down a deal meant to save it from economic chaos?

It's not the first time the country has pushed back in defiance, even against what many would consider as insurmountable odds. The island's majority Greek Cypriots fought former colonial ruler Britain to a draw in a four-year guerrilla campaign in the 1950s that aimed for union with Greece. That conflict ended in the country's independence in 1960.

Just 14 years later, a Turkish invasion prompted by an abortive coup by supporters of union with Greece resulted in the island's division into an internationally recognized, Greek-speaking south and a breakaway, Turkish-speaking north.

The invasion and its fallout remains an existential matter in the minds of Cypriots and it still informs many of the political and economic decisions the country and its people make.

"Greek Cypriots lost nearly everything during the 1974 invasion," said University of Cyprus History Professor Petros Papapolyviou. "So they reason, what else do we have to lose? Why accept another injustice?"

In 2004, Greek Cypriots again defied international expectations when they voted down a United Nations-backed reunification plan they believed was unfairly weighted against them.

A few days later, the island joined the European Union and some EU leaders were left fuming at what they saw as Greek Cypriot deceit for promising to sign up to a peace deal in exchange for EU membership.

Nearly a decade later and European acrimony at the Cypriot "no" hasn't entirely dissipated. German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaueble told the Sunday edition of German newspaper Welt am Sonntag that "Cyprus was admitted to the EU in hopes that the plan of then-U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan to overcome the (island's) divide would be honored."

"I interpret (that) as indicating a sense of vindictiveness rather than rational, result-oriented thinking." said University of Cyprus Associate Professor Yiannis Papadakis.

Were the tough bailout terms some sort of belated punishment? Whether that's true or not, such notions only feed a Cypriot proclivity for conspiracy theories. As in other small, insular societies, threats ? real or imagined ? sharpen a sense of collective victimhood.

Papadakis said Cypriots see their political culture as underpinned by personal relationships. Hence their reference to "friends" instead of "allies," which implies a more pragmatic relationship.

"That's why Greek Cypriots often complain of a 'betrayal from our friends'," he said. But it's wrong for the EU to foist all the blame on Cypriots when things go awry, Papadakis added.

"I believe that the rest of the EU has made a large share of mistakes during this arduous process."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2013-03-30-Defiant%20Cyprus/id-754f946538bb4441803bc67a2ee5b359

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