Doctors Say Kennedy Has a Brain Tumor

A cancerous brain tumor caused the seizure Sen. Edward M. Kennedy suffered over the weekend, doctors said Tuesday in a grim diagnosis for one of American politics' most enduring figures. The Massachusetts Democrat as a malignant glioma in the left parietal-lobe, according to doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital, where Kennedy, 76, has been undergoing tests since Saturday after having a seizure at his Cape Cod home.

The usual course of treatment includes combinations of radiation and chemotherapy, but Kennedy's treatment will be decided after more tests.

"He has had no further seizures, remains in good overall condition, and is up and walking around the hospital," said a joint statement issued by Dr. Lee Schwamm, vice chairman of the Department of Neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital and Dr. Larry Ronan, Kennedy's primary care physician.

The doctors said Kennedy will remain in the hospital "for the next couple of days according to routine protocol."

"He remains in good spirits and full of energy," they said.

Kennedy's wife and children have been with him each day since he was hospitalized. Senator Kennedy's son, Rep. Patrick Kennedy, D-R.I., plans to stay at the hospital for the time being.

"Obviously it's tough news for any son to hear," said spokeswoman Robin Costello. "He's comforted by the fact that his dad is such a fighter, and if anyone can get through something as challenging as this, it would be his father. So he's optimistic, he's hopeful, but obviously he's concerned."

President Bush was notified by his staff of Kennedy's diagnosis at 1:20 p.m.

"He said he was deeply saddened and would keep Sen. Kennedy in his prayers," spokeswoman Dana Perino said.

Malignant gliomas are a type of brain cancer diagnosed in about 9,000 Americans a year — and the most common type among adults. It's a starting diagnosis: How well patients fare depends on what specific tumor type is determined by further testing.

Average survival can range from less than a year for very advanced and aggressive types — such as glioblastomas — or to about five years for different types that are slower growing.

Surgery can be an option for some types, especially to reduce symptoms as a tumor enlarges and puts pressure on the rest of the brain. Many gliomas infiltrate normal brain tissue instead of forming a solid mass, making it hard to remove much of the tumor.

Senate Democratic and Republican leaders both interrupted their parties' regularly scheduled party luncheons to announce the news about Kennedy. Republicans bowed their heads and said a prayer. Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., told colleagues that Kennedy is optimistic.

"I'm having a hard time remembering a day in my 34 years here I've felt this sadly," said Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt.

"We just hope for the best," said Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N.J. "Ted Kennedy makes the Senate the place that it is and has for so many years."

"I'm really sad. He's the one politician who brings tears to my eyes when he speaks," former Sen. Bob Kerrey, D-Neb., said when told in a Senate hallway about Kennedy's condition.

"I am so deeply saddened I have lost the words," Sen. John Warner, R-Va., said in a Senate hallway. Warner said he and Kennedy had been friends for 40 years. Both served on the Senate Armed Services Committee together.

Kennedy, the second-longest serving member of the Senate and a dominant figure in national Democratic Party politics, was elected in 1962, filling out the term won by his brother, John F. Kennedy.

Kennedy eldest brother, Joseph, was killed in a World War II airplane crash. President John Kennedy was assassinated in 1963 and his brother Robert was assassinated in 1968.

Kennedy is active for his age, maintaining an aggressive schedule on Capitol Hill and across Massachusetts. He has made several campaign appearances for the Illinois senator in February, and most recently another in April.

Kennedy, the senior senator from Massachusetts and the Senate's second-longest serving member, was re-elected in 2006 and is not up for election again until 2012.

Were he to resign or die in office, state law requires a special election for the seat no sooner than 145 days and no later than 160 days after the vacancy occurs.

The law was changed in 2004, when Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts became the Democratic presidential nominee and Republican Mitt Romney was the state's governor. Prior to the change, the governor would have appointed a replacement who would have served until the next general election.

That would created the opportunity to install a fellow Republican in office, something lawmakers in the vastly Democratic state wanted to avoid.

Among the potential candidates for a Senate vacancy would be Democrats Martha Coakley, the state's attorney general; Rep. Edward J. Markey, former U.S. Rep. Joseph P. Kennedy II and Kennedy's wife, Vicki.

Among the potential Republican candidates could be Romney or former Lt. Gov. Kerry Healey.


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Foreclosures mean opportunity for Habitat charity

The foreclosure crisis that has forced thousands of families from their homes has given something good to the nation's best-known housing charity: Cheap properties for sale in communities around the country.

Some Habitat for Humanity chapters have seized buying opportunities in neighborhoods affected by the mortgage meltdown, snapping up scores of empty lots and unoccupied homes — some for as little as half price.

"The down real estate market is a wonderful opportunity for all Habitats," said Gage Yager, executive director of Trinity Habitat for Humanity in Fort Worth, Texas. "As prices drop, we have the opportunity to acquire at prices that just weren't available a few years ago."

In the Minneapolis area and elsewhere, the charity that offers affordable housing to low-income families is buying foreclosed homes and using volunteers to renovate them. If that's not practical, the houses are torn down to make way for new dwellings. In some cities, Habitat is even buying parts of subdivisions that developers couldn't afford to finish.

Habitat officials don't see themselves as capitalizing on the misfortune of others. They say putting families into affordable Habitat homes is much better than allowing properties to remain vacant or letting slumlords grab them.

"We're stepping up to the plate to provide some viable solutions to the housing crisis," said Sharon Rolenc, a spokeswoman for Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity. She said vacant homes can drive up crime and reduce the value of neighboring property.

Roger Schwierjohn, president and CEO of the Habitat chapter in Phoenix, said the local real estate market has long attracted outside investors who bid up land and home prices without adding any value.

"If they fall by the wayside, so be it," he said. "What we try to do is provide value and access to home ownership to families that would otherwise not be able to afford it."

An official with Americus, Ga.-based Habitat for Humanity International said the extent to which local affiliates take advantage of foreclosures depends on how much money they have.

In Fort Worth, for instance, the local chapter is negotiating to buy part of a 160-lot subdivision that a developer left unfinished. Yager said the plan is to purchase 50 of the remaining 100 vacant lots and put single-family homes on them.

Yager declined to say how much he expects to save because his group is still negotiating. But he said the Fort Worth market for such lots has dropped around 30 percent to 40 percent since the height of the real estate boom.

In nearby Dallas, another Habitat affiliate has picked up about 150 lots at a roughly 50 percent discount as developers dump inexpensive lots in the city's southern neighborhoods to focus on more profitable areas to the north.

The Habitat affiliate in Phoenix had struggled in recent years to find affordable land. But it is closing in on a deal to complete a 20-home development abandoned by a company that went bankrupt. Habitat expects to buy 14 unfinished lots for around half price.

In Milwaukee, the city is buying condo units in one large complex — many of them in foreclosure — and then selling them to Habitat for about $5,000. Habitat volunteers renovate them, and the group sells them to clients for $25,000.

Legislation working its way through Congress might help Habitat and nonprofit housing agencies take even greater advantage of bargains. One bill would send $15 billion to the hardest-hit states for the purchase and improvement of foreclosed property. States could then make those properties available to nonprofits such as Habitat. However, the Bush administration has threatened a veto.

Habitat's work makes a difference in the lives of people like Yenenes Tezgera and her family, who will move into a new home in St. Paul soon after putting in an estimated 400 hours of work on Habitat projects in the area. She and her husband have a 17-month-old boy and another child on the way.

Tezgera is an Ethiopian immigrant who works as a health care assistant. Her husband, a newer arrival who's still learning English, is a stay-at-home father. She said they couldn't afford a home without Habitat.

"This is a big deal for us," Tezgera said. "This is our dream come true in America."

___

On the Net:

Habitat for Humanity International: http://www.habitat.org



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US Military Holds 500 Youths in Iraq

The U.S. military is holding about 500 juveniles suspected of being "unlawful enemy combatants" in detention centers in Iraq and has about 10 detained in Afghanistan, the United States has told the United Nations.

A total of 2,500 youths under the age of 18 have been detained, almost all in Iraq, for periods up to a year or more in President Bush's anti-terrorism campaign since 2002, the United States reported last week to the U.N.'s Committee on the Rights of the Child.

Civil liberties groups such as the International Justice Network and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) denounced the detentions as abhorrent, and a violation of U.S. treaty obligations.

In the periodic report to the United Nations on U.S. compliance with the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the United States confirmed that "as of April 2008, the United States held about 500 juveniles in Iraq."

"The juveniles that the United States has detained have been captured engaging in anti-coalition activity, such as planting Improvised Explosive Devices, operating as lookouts for insurgents, or actively engaged in fighting against U.S. and Coalition forces," the U.S. report said.

The majority are believed to be 16 or 17 years old. In the United States a 17-year-old can enlist in the U.S. army, with parental consent. The report said that of the total of 2,500 juveniles jailed since 2002, all but 100 had been picked up in Iraq. Of the remainder, most were swept up in Afghanistan.

A total of eight juveniles have been held at the Guantanamo Bay detention facility, but all were released from 2004 to 2006.

"It remains uncertain the exact age of these individuals, as most of them did not know their date of birth or even the year they were born," the report says. But U.S. military doctors who evaluated them believed that three were under age 16.

In Afghanistan, "as of April 2008, there are approximately 10 juveniles being held at the Bagram Theater Internment Facility as unlawful enemy combatants," the report said.

In Bagram, a U.S. military spokesman, Marine 1st Lt. Richard K. Ulsh, told the AP on Sunday: "At any time there are up to 625 detainees being held at the Bagram Theater Internment Facility. There are no detainees being held under the age of 16 and, without getting into specifics due to the frequent fluctuation in the number of detainees being held, we can tell you that there are currently less than 10 detainees being held under the age of 18."

Civil liberties groups were outraged.

"It's shocking to me that the U.S. government has not figured out a way to keep children out of adult prisons. It's outrageous, and it is not making us any safer, I can say that about Afghanistan from personal experience," Tina M. Foster, the executive director of the International Justice Network, said Sunday.

Her group brought lawsuits on behalf of the Guantanamo detainees in 2006, and has taken on the cases of adult detainees in Bagram. She said the U.S. military does not release the names of juveniles it is holding in Bagram, so her group is trying to learn who they are by finding Afghan relatives.

"It is shocking to know that the U.S. is holding hundreds of juveniles in Iraq and Afghanistan, and even more disturbing that there is no comprehensive policy in place that will protect their rights as children," Jamil Dakwar, director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Human Rights Program, said in a statement. "Juveniles and former child soldiers should be treated first and foremost as candidates for rehabilitation and reintegration into society, not subjected to further victimization."

According to the ACLU, the lack of protections and consideration for the juvenile status of detainees violates the obligations of the U.S. under the Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict that the U.S. ratified in 2002, as well as universally accepted international norms.

The U.N. Committee on the Rights of the Child is scheduled to question the U.S. delegation on its compliance with its obligations on May 22 in Geneva.

The U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child was adopted by the General Assembly in 1989, with backing at the time from the U.S. government of President Bill Clinton, and with strong lobbying from then-first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton, who now is competing for the Democratic Party presidential nomination with Barack Obama.



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Vitamin D may help curb breast cancer, study finds

Breast cancer patients with low levels of vitamin D were much more likely to die of the disease or have it spread than patients getting enough of the nutrient, a study found — adding to evidence the "sunshine vitamin" has anti-cancer benefits. The results are sure to renew arguments about whether a little more sunshine is a good thing.

The skin makes vitamin D from ultraviolet light. Too much sunlight can raise the risk of skin cancer, but small amounts — 15 minutes or so a few times a week without sunscreen — may be beneficial, many doctors believe.

While the vitamin is found in certain foods and supplements, most don't contain the best form, D-3, and have only a modest effect on blood levels of the nutrient. That's what matters, the Canadian study found.

Only 24 percent of women in the study had sufficient blood levels of D at the time they were first diagnosed with breast cancer. Those who were deficient were nearly twice as likely to have their cancer recur or spread over the next 10 years, and 73 percent more likely to die of the disease.

"These are pretty big differences," said study leader Dr. Pamela Goodwin of Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto. "It's the first time that vitamin D has been linked to breast cancer progression."

But people shouldn't start downing supplements, she warned. Experts don't agree on how much vitamin D people need or the best way to get it, and too much can be harmful. They also don't know whether getting more vitamin D can help when someone already has cancer.

"We have no idea whether correcting a vitamin D deficiency will in any way alter these outcomes," said Dr. Julie Gralow, a cancer specialist at the University of Washington in Seattle.

The study was released Thursday by the American Society of Clinical Oncology and will be presented at the group's annual meeting later this month.

Lots of earlier research suggests vitamin D may help prevent prostate, breast and especially colon cancer. In lab and animal tests, vitamin D stifles abnormal cell growth, curbs formation of blood vessels that feed tumors and has many other anti-cancer effects.

Other evidence: People who live in northern regions of the world have higher cancer rates than those living closer to the equator, possibly because of less sunshine and vitamin D.

The Canadian researchers wanted to see whether it made a difference in survival. They took blood from 512 women at three University of Toronto hospitals between 1989 and 1995, when the women were first diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer.

A decade later, 83 percent of those who had had adequate vitamin D blood levels were alive without extensive spread of their cancer, versus 79 percent of those whose vitamin D levels were insufficient and 69 percent of those who were deficient, as defined by widely used medical standards for measuring intake.

One red flag: The few women with the very highest levels of vitamin D seemed to have worse survival.

Though the study was too small and those results were not conclusive, "there may be an optimal level of vitamin D in women with breast cancer and it may be possible to take too much," Goodwin said.

The federal government says up to 2,000 international units of vitamin D a day seems OK. Taking 800 units per day will, on average, raise blood levels to the middle of the range that seems best for bone and general health, Goodwin said.

Vitamin D is in salmon and other oily fish, and milk is routinely fortified with it, but dietary sources account for little of the amount of D circulating in the blood, experts say.

"It's very hard to make a recommendation" because how much difference a supplement makes depends on someone's baseline level, which also can be affected by sunlight, skin type and time of year, she explained.

Doctors do suggest breast cancer patients get their vitamin D levels checked to see whether they are deficient. The simple blood test is available in many hospitals and labs for about $25, Goodwin said.

Dr. Nancy Davidson, a Johns Hopkins University cancer specialist who is president of the oncology society, said those tests are growing in popularity, even in ordinary medical care.

"Rightly or wrongly, I'm increasingly seeing physicians who are measuring this," she said.

The Canadian study was paid for by the Breast Cancer Research Foundation in New York, established by cosmetics magnate Evelyn Lauder.

"It's a very provocative paper. It's confirmatory of a tremendous amount of evidence that vitamin D is an important component of health," said Dr. Larry Norton, chief of breast cancer programs at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York and a medical adviser to the foundation.

Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women. About 184,450 cases and 40,930 deaths from the disease are expected in the United States this year.

___

On the Net:

Government vitamin information:

http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp

Cancer conference: http://www.asco.org



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Housing posts surprising rebound in April

Construction of new homes posted the biggest increase in more than two years in April, a rare spot of good news amid the worst downturn in housing in more than two decades.

The Commerce Department reported Friday that housing construction rose by 8.2 percent in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.03 million units. Building of single-family homes continued to weaken, however. The growth came from a big jump in apartment construction.

Still, the overall gain represented recovery after a steep slump in March building pushed activity to the slowest pace in 17 years.

The surprising rebound was expected to be temporary given the headwinds builders are confronting, from slumping sales to soaring home foreclosures.

The strength in April came entirely from a huge increase in apartment construction, which can be extremely volatile from month to month. Apartment building, defined as two or more units, jumped by 36 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 340,000 units.

The larger single-family sector dropped by 1.7 percent to an annual rate of 692,000 units.

Applications for building permits, considered a good sign of future activity, also recorded an increase in April, rising by 4.9 percent to 978,000 units. It was the first gain in permits in five months.

But economists believe that housing construction will remain under pressure until builders have more success in reducing a huge backlog of unsold homes.

That effort is being made more difficult by a record wave of foreclosures as millions of borrowers lose their homes because they cannot keep up with escalating payments, particularly on subprime mortgages, loans extended to people with weak credit histories.

By region of the country, construction posted the largest gain in the Midwest, an increase of 24.4 percent when compared to March. Construction rose 18.5 percent in the West and was up 3.6 percent in the South. However, construction fell by 12.7 percent in the Northeast.

Even with the improvement, housing construction nationwide was 30.6 percent below the level of activity a year ago.

The National Association of Home Builders reported Thursday that its monthly survey of builder sentiment edged down in May to a reading of 19, just above the all-time low of 18 set in December. The survey had held steady at the low level of 20 from February through April.

David Seiders, the group's chief economist, said that conditions in the industry have continued to deteriorate.


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Woman Indicted in MySpace Suicide Case

A Missouri woman was indicted Thursday for her alleged role in perpetrating a hoax on the online social network MySpace against a 13-year-old neighbor who committed suicide. Lori Drew, 49, of suburban St. Louis, who allegedly helped create a MySpace account in the name of someone who didn't exist to convince Megan Meier she was chatting with a 16-year-old boy named Josh Evans, was charged with conspiracy and fraudulently gaining access to someone else's computer.

Megan hanged herself at home in October 2006, allegedly after receiving a dozen or more cruel messages, including one stating the world would be better off without her.

Salvador Hernandez, assistant agent in charge of the Los Angeles FBI office, called the case heart-rending.

"The Internet is a world unto itself. People must know how far they can go before they must stop. They exploited a young girl's weaknesses," Hernandez said. "Whether the defendant could have foreseen the results, she's responsible for her actions."

Drew was indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of conspiracy and three counts of accessing protected computers without authorization to get information used to inflict emotional distress on the girl.

Drew has denied creating the account or sending messages to Megan.

Dean Steward, a lawyer representing Drew in the federal case, said a legal challenge to the charges was being planned. He characterized them as unusual and puzzling.

"We thought when prosecutors in St. Louis looked at the case and all the facts, it was clear no criminal acts occurred," Steward said.

A man who opened the door at the Drew family home in Dardenne Prairie, Mo., on Thursday said the family had no comment.

Megan's mother, Tina Meier, told The Associated Press she believed media reports and public outrage helped move the case forward for prosecution.

"I'm thrilled that this woman is going to face charges that she has needed to face since the day we found out what was going on, and since the day she decided to be a part of this entire ridiculous stunt," she said.

Megan's father, Ron Meier, 38, said he began to cry "tears of joy" when he heard of the indictment. The parents are now separated, which Tina Meier has said stemmed in part from the circumstances of their daughter's death.

Tina Meier has acknowledged Megan was too young to have a MySpace account under the Web site's guidelines, but she said she had been able to closely monitor the account. Meier's family has also acknowledged that Megan was also sending mean messages before her death.

Megan was being treated for attention deficit disorder and depression, her family has said. Meier has said Drew knew Megan was on medication.

MySpace issued a statement saying it "does not tolerate cyberbullying" and was cooperating fully with the U.S. attorney.

U.S. Attorney Thomas P. O'Brien said this was the first time the federal statute on accessing protected computers has been used in a social-networking case. It has been used in the past to address hacking.

"This was a tragedy that did not have to happen," O'Brien said at a Los Angeles press conference.

Both the girl and MySpace are named as victims in the case, he said.

Rebecca Lonergan, a former federal prosecutor who now teaches law at the University of Southern California, said use of the federal cyber crime statute may be open to challenge.

Lonergan, who used the statute in the past to file charges in computer hacking and trademark theft cases, said the crimes covered by the law involve obtaining information from a computer, not sending messages out to harrass someone.

"Here it is the flow of information away from the computer," she said. "It's a very creative, aggressive use of the statute. But they may have a legally tough time meeting the elements."

She said, however, that because "a very bad harm was done," the courts may grant some latitude.

MySpace is a subsidiary of Beverly Hills-based Fox Interactive Media Inc., which is owned by News Corp. The indictment noted that MySpace computer servers are located in Los Angeles County.

Due to juvenile privacy rules, the U.S. attorney's office said, the indictment refers to the girl as M.T.M.

FBI agents in St. Louis and Los Angeles investigated the case, Hernandez said.

Each of the four counts carries a maximum possible penalty of five years in prison.

Federal officials said Drew will be arraigned in St. Louis and moved to Los Angeles for trial. Her lawyer, however, said Drew did not have to surrender in Missouri but would be arraigned in early June in Los Angeles.

The indictment says MySpace members agree to abide by terms of service that include, among other things, not promoting information they know to be false or misleading; soliciting personal information from anyone under age 18 and not using information gathered from the Web site to "harass, abuse or harm other people."

Drew and others who were not named conspired to violate the service terms from about September 2006 to mid-October that year, according to the indictment. It alleges they registered as a MySpace member under a phony name and used the account to obtain information on the girl.

Drew and her coconspirators "used the information obtained over the MySpace computer system to torment, harass, humiliate, and embarrass the juvenile MySpace member," the indictment charged.

The indictment contends they committed or aided in a dozen "overt acts" that were illegal, including using a photograph of a boy that was posted without his knowledge or permission.

They used "Josh" to flirt with Megan, telling her she was "sexi," the indictment charged.

Around Oct. 7, 2006, Megan was told "Josh" was moving away, prompting the girl to write: "aww sexi josh ur so sweet if u moved back u could see me up close and personal lol."

Several days later, "Josh" urged the girl to call and added: "i love you so much."

But on or about Oct. 16, "Josh" wrote to the girl and told her "in substance, that the world would be a better place without M.T.M. in it," according to the indictment.

The girl hanged herself the same day, and Drew and the others deleted the information in the account, the indictment said.

Last month, an employee of Drew, 19-year-old Ashley Grills, told ABC's "Good Morning America" she created the false MySpace profile but Drew wrote some of the messages to Megan.

Grills said Drew suggested talking to Megan via the Internet to find out what Megan was saying about Drew's daughter, who was a former friend.

Grills also said she wrote the message to Megan about the world being a better place without her. The message was supposed to end the online relationship with "Josh" because Grills felt the joke had gone too far.

"I was trying to get her angry so she would leave him alone and I could get rid of the whole MySpace," Grills told the morning show.

Megan's death was investigated by Missouri authorities, but no state charges were filed because no laws appeared to apply to the case.



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9-year-old girl's twin is found inside her stomach

A 9-year-old girl who went to hospital in central Greece suffering from stomach pains was found to be carrying her embryonic twin, doctors said Thursday.

Doctors at Larissa General Hospital examined the girl and surgically removed a growth they later discovered was an embryo more than two inches long.

"They could see on the right side that her belly was swollen, but they couldn't suspect that this tumor would hide an embryo," hospital director Iakovos Brouskelis said.

The girl has made a full recovery, he said.

Andreas Markou, head of the hospital's pediatric department, said the embryo was a formed fetus with a head, hair and eyes, but no brain or umbilical cord.

Markou said cases where one of a set of twins absorbs the other in the womb occurs in one of 500,000 live births.

The girl's family did not want to be identified, hospital officials said.



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FBI Probes Mom's Fall From Cruise Ship

Two hours after boarding a cruise ship in New York on Sunday, Mindy Jordan was overboard and lost at sea. The cruise line said the initial indication was that the slight 46-year-old nurse fell as she tried to reach from one balcony to another on a windy night, and by Tuesday the Coast Guard had given up its search for her in the Atlantic Ocean off the New Jersey coast.

The ship, which disembarked in New York, continued on to Bermuda.

Jordan's family fears, though, that her fall was not only tragic but also criminal. And the FBI is now trying to sort it out.

Jim Margolin, a spokesman for the FBI's New York office, said agents were in Bermuda on Wednesday to interview witnesses aboard The Norwegian Dawn as the cruise ship arrived there.

"Among the things we're going to try to determine is whether a crime occurred," Margolin said, adding that it was not clear how long it might take to determine that. He also said that if no one was charged in the matter, the agency might not make its findings public.

Jordan's family has been asking authorities for a full investigation - rather than simply relying on the early word from Miami-based Norwegian Cruise Line.
"Our interest is to understand what happened," said Jordan's brother, Steve Lynn, who traveled from his home in Kentucky to be with his and Jordan's mother, Louise Horton, in her Bordentown home.

Lynn said the FBI also interviewed his mother Tuesday night and took some possible evidence - including photos of bruises on his sister.

Horton has said that Jordan's relationship with boyfriend Jorge Caputo was abusive. The two of them went on the cruise with another couple.

Jordan, the mother of two teenagers, had been involved with Caputo for about 2 1/2 years and lived with him in the Philadelphia suburb of Pine Hill for most of that time, her brother said.

Lynn said relatives had encouraged Jordan to contact authorities about the way Caputo treated her. "She was reluctant to do that and did not," he said.

Caputo remained on the cruise ship and was not available for comment. He has not been charged with any crime.

Jordan's family members say it was Caputo who called Horton to tell her that Jordan was missing. They said the call came about 15 hours after she went overboard.

"For this to happen on Mother's Day is even more tragic," Lynn said Wednesday.



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911 Operator Who Cursed at Caller Fired

A Nashville 911 operator has been fired after saying during a call that he didn't "give a s---" about what happened to a woman whose ex-boyfriend was threatening her. Nashville TV station WTVF reports Sheila Jones called 911 after her ex-boyfriend held her at knifepoint. She said he eventually left her home, but kept calling and threatening her.

Emergency officials did not show up until nearly three hours after her initial call.

Jones called 911 again two-and-half-hours into the incident to say she was afraid. A recording of the call has operator Frank Roth promising police would be there soon. After Jones hangs up, he says, "I really just don't give a s--- what happens to you."

Emergency Communications Center spokeswoman Amanda Sluss said Wednesday Roth was in training at the time of the February incident and was dismissed the next month.

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China Quake Death Toll Could Hit 50,000

China warned the death toll from this week's earthquake could soar to some 50,000, while the government issued a rare public appeal Thursday for rescue equipment as it struggled to cope with the disaster. Rescue workers broke through key roads to the epicenter in the race to find survivors.

More than 72 hours after the quake rattled central China, rescuers appeared to shift from poring through downed buildings for survivors to the grim duty of searching for bodies — with 10 million directly affected by Monday's temblor.

The official death toll reached at least 19,500 in Sichuan province alone where Monday's quake was centered, vice governor Li Chengyun told a news conference in the provincial capital of Chengdu. The figure was up from nearly 15,000 confirmed dead the day before. But the State Council, the country's Cabinet, said the number could rise to some 50,000, state TV reported.

In Luoshui town — on the road to an industrial zone in Shifang city where two chemical plants collapsed, burying hundreds of people — troops used a mechanical shovel to dig a pit on a hilltop to bury the dead. Two bodies wrapped in white sheets lie near the pit.

Police and militia in Dujiangyan pulverized rubble with cranes and backhoes while crews used shovels to pick around larger pieces of debris. On one sidestreet, about a dozen bodies were laid on a sidewalk, while incense sticks placed in a pile of sand sent smoke into the air as a tribute and to dull the stench of death.

The bodies were later lifted onto a flatbed truck, joining some half-dozen corpses. Ambulances sped past, sirens wailing, filled with survivors. Workers asked those left homeless to sign up for temporary housing, although it was unclear where they would live.

Some key roads to other towns in the worst affected areas were cleared Thursday, and rescue workers were able to begin moving heavy equipment in for the first time. Previously, soldiers riding to isolated mountain villages on helicopters and small boats had been forced to dig for survivors with their hands.

Plans for the Defense Ministry to deploy 101 more helicopters underscored worries that the death toll would continue to skyrocket as time runs out to find survivors. Nearly 26,000 people remained buried in collapsed buildings.

Not all hope of finding survivors was lost. After more than three days trapped under debris, a 22-year-old woman was pulled to safety in Dujiangyan. Covered in dust and peering out through a small opening, she was shown waving on state television shortly before being rescued. "I was confident that you were coming to rescue me. I'm alive. I'm so happy," the unnamed woman said on CCTV.

One earthquake expert said the time for rescues was growing short.

"Within 72 hours after the disaster is the critical period. Generally, the sooner the rescue of the buried, the better," the chief engineer of Shijiazhuang Bureau of Seismology, Liang Guiping, told state TV.

The government issued a rare appeal to the Chinese public calling for donations of rescue equipment including hammers, shovels, demolition tools and rubber boats. The plea on the Ministry of Information Industry's Web Site said, for example, that 100 cranes were needed.

The public request is emblematic of China's relative openness in dealing with the tragedy, as compared to past crises.

"This is only a beginning of this battle, and a long way lies ahead of us," Vice Health Minister Gao Qiang told reporters in Beijing.

No outbreaks of disease had struck refugees, who were being immunized against some illnesses, Gao said. Workers were seeking to ensure safety of drinking water and removing corpses to prevent the spread of bacteria.

After days of refusing foreign relief workers, China accepted an offer from Japan to send a rescue team, Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said in an announcement posted on the ministry Web site. Tawan's Red Cross said rival China also agreed to accept a 20-person emergency relief team from the island.

Taiwan is also sending a cargo plane to Chengdu with tents and medical supplies. The Air Macau plane will make a brief stop in Macau.

Taiwan and China, which split during civil war in 1949, have banned regular direct links and other formal contacts as political disputes persist.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies also issued an emergency appeal for medical help, food, water and tents.

Gu Qinghui, the federation's disaster management director for East Asia who visited Beichuan county near the epicenter, said more than 4 million homes were shattered across the quake area.

"The whole county has been destroyed. Basically there is no Beichuan county anymore," Gu said in Beijing, adding the death toll was sure to rise.

Forty-four counties and districts in Sichuan were severely hit, with about half of the 20 million people living there directly affected, Xinhua said.

Roads were cleared to two key areas that bore the brunt of the quake's force, with workers making it to the border of Wenchuan county at the epicenter and also through to hard-hit Beichuan county, Xinhua reported. Communication cables were also reconnected to Wenchuan.

The Chengdu Military Area Command also planned to airdrop 50,000 packets of food, 5,000 cotton-padded quilts and clothes there, part of the military rescue operation that has grown to include more than 116,000 soldiers and police.

Dujiangyan city was clogged with buses and trucks decked out with banners from companies saying they were offering aid to disaster victims. One tour bus was stuffed full of water bottles, cartons of biscuits and instant noodles.

Public donations so far have totaled $125 million in both cash and goods.

NBA star Yao Ming, China's most famous athlete, was planning to donate $285,000 to the relief effort, agent Erik Zhang said.

"My thoughts are with everyone back in my home country of China during this very dark and emotional time," Yao said in a statement from Houston, where he is recovering from a broken left foot with hopes of competing in the Beijing Olympics this August.

As the rescue effort gathered momentum, the depth of the problem of tens of thousands homeless stretched government resources.

North of Chengdu in Deyang, the largest town near the devastated areas of Hanwang and Mianyang, thousands of people have streamed into the city hospital since Monday, mostly with head or bone injuries.

Patients heavily wrapped in bandages and with cuts and bruises were huddled in canvas tents in the hospital's parking lot.

"Our doctors have worked continuously since Monday and people keep coming in. We have to keep strengthening our measures to keep up," said Luo Mingxuan, the Communist Party secretary of the hospital.

There were piles of donated clothing for survivors at the hospital and stands for them to make free telephone calls. Handwritten notes with names of the injured were posted on a board in front of the hospital's emergency section, where ambulances arrived every few minutes.

A group of 33 American, British and French tourists were airlifted from Wolong, site of the world's most famous panda preserve, to the provincial capital of Chengdu on Thursday morning, Xinhua reported. All were in good health, Xinhua said.



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Anything Goes & General News (23rd Edition) - May 14, 2008

Welcome to the May 14, 2008 edition of Anything Goes & General News.

Charles Kentster presents Cornhole posted at Stuff White D-Bags Like, saying, "A satire on a popular blog."

Davexplorer presents Five Most Unusual Buildings posted at 5 Most Unusual, saying, "Thank you for hosting the carnival, and if your interested in working on a project together feel free to let me now.

Cheers,
David"

Business News

Gwen C presents Marketing Audit for Nike posted at Gwendolyn Cuizon.

Entertainment

Creep Colony presents StarCraft - General Tips » StarCraft / StarCraft 2 / Starcraft II Strategies, Bots, Maps, Downloads, Cheats, & News posted at Starcraft II Information, saying, "Remarks: The #1 StarCraft & Starcraft 2 tips/tricks source, providing the latest news, downloads, maps, bots, strategies & cheats."

Blue Sunshine presents Grand Theft Auto 4 Already Causing Controversy posted at MiscGarbage.com, saying, "GTA4 is already under fire from one columnist, claiming that it deserves an "X rating" (not AO mind you). However, his willingness to jump to conclusions is unjustified due to the fact that he hasn't even played the game. Also a humorous look at others who may complain about the game in the future."

Davexplorer presents Smart Politicians posted at laughinglemons, saying, "Thank you for hosting the carnival, and if your interested in working on a project together feel free to let me now.

Cheers,
David"

Davexplorer presents The Five Most Unusual Travel Destinations posted at 5 Most Unusual, saying, "Thank you for hosting the carnival, and if your interested in working on a project together feel free to let me now.

Cheers,
David"

First Lady Of Poker presents The Art Of Checking posted at Shopping and Poker Blog, saying, "Sometimes, the best move in a hand is to just check and wait to see what others do."

Gwen C presents Alice Walker: Everyday Use posted at Gwendolyn Cuizon.

Finance

Value Seeker presents Stock Investment Resource: Stock Market Investing Tips - Is Small Cap Value The Key For 2008? posted at Stock Investing, saying, "Small cap value stocks performed poorly in 2007. Will 2008 see a resurgence of small cap value?"

Finance Tips 101 presents The Pros And Cons Of Personal Loans posted at Finance Tips 101.

Larry Russell presents The Financial Services Industry is Still the Largest S&P 500 Sector - Even after the Collapse of its Stock Values posted at THE SKILLED INVESTOR Blog.

The Fund investor presents Why Invest In Mutual Funds? posted at Mutual Fund Investing Tips, saying, "Many people invest in mutual funds without really understanding the benefits of this type of investment vehicle."

Wenchypoo presents Three Little Words Limit Severe Consequences posted at Wisdom From Wenchypoo's Mental Wastebasket.

Christine presents Eating in France on 10 Euro per Day for 2 People posted at Me, My Kid and Life: An American Single Mom Living in France.

News

SEO Ninja presents Being a Ninja Does Not Pay As Well as it used to posted at SEO Ninja News, saying, "Being a Ninja just does not pay as well as it used to. I am considering the idea of switching over to piracy. Somali and Kenyan officials confirmed to SEO Ninja that a ransom of $1.2 million was paid to pirates to release a Spanish fishing boat and its crew of 26 hijacked off the coast of Somalia last week."

Webmaster presents Living with Pancreatitis posted at Alcoholic Pancreatitis.

David Cassell presents Online Degree Fallacies posted at selectcoursesblog.com.

Mark Schauss presents Smog and Premature Death - Science Has Linked Them, The White House Denies It posted at Toxic World Blog - Detoxify and Heal Your Body.

MCA presents Health Effects Of Caffeine My Caffeine Addiction posted at Caffeine Addiction, saying, "If you are not aware of the health effects of caffeine, you should learn about them before you pour that next cup of coffee."

Odd News

Aparna presents Can laser hair removal scar you for life? posted at Beauty and Personality Grooming, saying, "If you are thinking of going in for laser hair removal to get rid of your unwanted hair permanently, be aware of the pros and cons of the treatment as well as the risks involved. Lasers can be extremely dangerous in wrong hands. Getting a laser treatment at an unlicensed clinic and under people with no medical training can be very risky."

Politics

Holly Ord presents Anti-Choice Oklahoma posted at Menstrual Poetry.

Technology

Sam Carrara presents 24 Hour Special- Top Search Terms posted at Sam Carrara's Marketing Education.

Top Stories

Sagar presents Make sure you choose an accredited online university posted at Online University Reviews.

The Push Up Coach presents Common Push-Up Mistakes posted at The 1000 Push Ups Club, saying, "People often make mistakes when doing push ups that detract from their fitness goals."

Vacation Locations presents Florida Vacation Rentals posted at Vacation Locations.

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of Anything Goes & General News using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

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anything goes & general news, blog carnival.

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Remy Ma Gets 8 Years in Prison

Remy Ma has been sentenced to eight years in prison in the shooting a woman outside a Manhattan nightclub.

The state Supreme Court sentence was handed Tuesday to the 26-year-old rapper, whose real name is Remy Smith, for assault, weapon possession and attempted coercion. Remy Ma, who could have faced up to 25 years in prison, was teary-eyed as she heard the sentence.

She says last summer's shooting was an accident; an appeal is planned.

Correction officials say they called off her weekend wedding at the Rikers Island jail after the groom - fellow rapper Papoose - showed up with a handcuff key.

Remy Ma's lawyer, Ivan Fisher, denies the key could be used to unlock handcuffs. Papoose isn't charged.

Fisher says the two still plan to wed.



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Three Jurors Picked for R. Kelly Porn Trial

The wife of a Baptist preacher from R. Kelly's hometown, a business executive and a telecommunications company employee were the first three jurors chosen Monday for the R&B superstar's child pornography trial. The executive, a middle-aged man, called child pornography "the lowest of the low" during questioning by the judge and attorneys. But he said he felt he could give a fair trial to the 41-year-old Kelly, who is accused of videotaping himself having sex with a girl as young as 13.

At one point, Cook County Circuit Judge Vincent Gaughan said nobody in the room condoned child pornography and Kelly appeared to nod his head in agreement.

Kelly, known for sexually charged hits like "Bump N' Grind," has pleaded not guilty. The alleged victim, now 23, says it wasn't her on the videotape.

Dressed in a dark silver-gray suit and matching tie, Kelly remained mostly pokerfaced Monday, sometimes appearing to study the faces of would-be jurors across the long conference table.

There were some moments of levity during the eight hours of questioning.

When one man mentioned that someone stole his car a decade ago, Gaughan leaned forward and said, "You know Mr. Kelly had nothing to do with that, right?"

Kelly, who was seated near a men's restroom, frequently held a tissue over his nose during the proceedings, and prosecutors complained about the odor coming from the room.

The preacher's wife from Olympia Fields, where Kelly lives, said her religious beliefs would not affect her service as a juror. The judge reminded her that the trial involved "laws of man, not the laws of God," and she said she understood.

The telecommunications worker, a man in his 50s, said he'd didn't like seeing what he considered pornographic magazines at convenience stores, but he told the judge that wouldn't influence how he assessed the facts in Kelly's case. He added that the only song he knew of Kelly's was the 1997 hit, "I Believe I Can Fly."

Potential jurors who were dismissed included a man in his 50s who prosecutors said clearly was awe-struck by Kelly's celebrity and a security guard who said Kelly would have "some explaining to do" if he was on the video.

About 15 potential jurors were questioned Monday; 20 others out of an initial pool of 150 were scheduled to face questions on Tuesday. Sixteen jurors, four of them alternates, are to be chosen for the trial. Court officials have said questioning and selection from the 150 potential jurors is expected to take about a week.

The alleged victim's denial that she is on the videotape will present prosecutors with a unique challenge once the trial is under way. And Kelly's lawyers - including prominent Chicago attorney Ed Genson - haven't admitted it's Kelly in the video.

Prosecutors say the videotape was made between Jan. 1, 1998, and Nov. 1 2000, and that the alleged victim was born in September 1984. Kelly was indicted on pornography charges June 5, 2002, after the tape surfaced.

If jurors find the Grammy-winning artist guilty, he could go to prison for up to 15 years.

Kelly's lawyers had argued any jury pool has been irrevocably tainted because of pretrial publicity.

But Gaughan denied a defense motion to postpone the trial, which had already been delayed for six years, suggesting jury selection could weed out any tainted jurors.

Although Kelly won a Grammy in 1997 for the gospel-like song "I Believe I Can Fly," his biggest hits are bawdy ballads like "Ignition" and his current single, "Hair Braider." He is due to release a new album in July.



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Man Says JetBlue Seated Him on Toilet

A New York City man is suing JetBlue Airways Corp. for more than $2 million because he says a pilot made him give up his seat to a flight attendant and sit on the toilet for more than three hours on a flight from California. Gokhan Mutlu, of Manhattan's Inwood section, says in court papers the pilot told him to "go 'hang out' in the bathroom" about 90 minutes into the San Diego to New York flight because the flight attendant complained that the "jump seat" she was assigned was uncomfortable, the lawsuit said.

Mutlu was traveling on a "buddy pass," a standby travel voucher that JetBlue employees give to friends, from New York to San Diego on Feb. 16, and returned to New York on Feb. 23, the lawsuit said.

Initially, Mutlu was told a flight attendant had taken the last seat on the plane, but then he was advised she would sit in the employee "jump seat," meaning he could have the last seat, the lawsuit said.

The pilot told him 1 1/2 hours into the five-hour flight that he would have to relinquish the seat to the flight attendant, court papers say. But the pilot said that Mutlu could not sit in the jump seat because only JetBlue employees were permitted to sit there, the lawsuit said.

When Mutlu expressed reluctance to go sit in the bathroom, the pilot, who was not named in the lawsuit, told him that "he was the pilot, that this was his plane, under his command that (Mutlu) should be grateful for being on board," the lawsuit said.

The aircraft hit turbulence and passengers were directed to return to their seats, but "the plaintiff had no seat to return to, sitting on a toilet stool with no seat belts," court papers say.

Some time later, a male flight attendant knocked on the restroom door and told Mutlu he could return to his original seat, court papers say.

Mutlu's lawsuit, filed Friday in Manhattan's state Supreme Court, says JetBlue negligently endangered him by not providing him with a seat with a safety belt or harness, in violation of federal law.

A JetBlue spokesman declined comment on the lawsuit Monday.



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Nearly 12,000 Perish in China Quake

Rescue workers are digging through flattened homes and schools in a desperate search for victims of China's worst earthquake in three decades. Authorities say nearly 12,000 people were killed and more than 18,000 are missing. The official Xinhua News Agency says Chinese rescue workers report that 18,645 people remain buried under debris in Mianyang city. Mianyang neighbors the epicenter of Monday's massive, 7.9-magnitude quake.

But hope that many survivors would be found was fleeting. Buildings were knocked down on every block in some cities, and corpses were laid out in the street and in schoolyards.

Only 58 people were extricated from demolished buildings across the quake area so far, China Seismological Bureau spokesman Zhang Hongwei told the official Xinhua.

"Survivors can hold on for some time. Now it's not time to give up," said Wang Zhenyao, disaster relief division director at the Ministry of Civil Affairs, adding that rescue efforts could take a week.

A day after the powerful 7.9 magnitude quake struck, state media said rescue workers had only just reached the epicenter in Wenchuan county - cut off by the disaster and where the number of casualties was unknown. China said it would welcome international aid but would not yet allow foreign relief workers into the affected area.

Heavy rain, which had contributed to the difficulty of reaching the epicenter, continued to impede efforts and a group of paratroopers called off a mission to the area, Xinhua said.

The death toll rose to 11,921, Wang said. At least 4,800 people remained buried in Mianzhu, 60 miles from the epicenter, Xinhua said, citing local authorities.