Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/313242474?client_source=feed&format=rss
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Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Cancer Survivor Melissa Etheridge On Angelina Jolie Mastectomy: 'I ...
Angelina Jolie shocked the world when she chose to undergo a double mastectomy after confirming that she carried the BRCA-1 gene, which gave her an 87 percent chance of developing breast cancer. Brad Pitt has raved of her bravery, calling her a ?bada**.?
But now, cancer survivor Melissa Etheridge has come forward to say that she?s anything but.
PHOTOS:? Angelina Jolie Hits The Red Carpet For First Appearance Since Revealing Surgery
?I have to say, I feel a little differently,? the lesbian rocker told gay newspaper The Washington Blade. ?I have that gene mutation too, and [a preventative double mastectomy is] not something I would believe in for myself.?
Melissa, who successfully underwent five rounds of chemo for breast cancer in 2005, said, ?I wouldn?t call [having a preventative mastectomy] a brave choice. I actually think it?s the most fearful choice you can make when confronting anything with cancer.?
PHOTOS: Brad Pitt Shows Off A Different Side In Interview Magazine
What?s more, Melissa believes cancer is simply a matter of mind over matter. ?My belief is that cancer comes from inside you, and so much of it has to do with the environment of your body,? she claims.
?It?s the stress that will turn that gene on or not. Plenty of people have the gene mutation and everything, but it never comes to cancer, so I would say to anybody faced with that, that choice is way down the line on the spectrum of what you can do and to really consider the advancements we?ve made in things like nutrition and stress levels.?
PHOTOS: Stars Rub Elbows Backstage At The Grammys
?I?ve been cancer free for nine years now, ?she says, ?and looking back, I completely understand why I got cancer. There was so much acidity in everything. I really encourage people to go a lot longer and further before coming to that conclusion.?
Angelina, however, is more than happy with her choice, and is already back to ?business as usual,? Brad said on Good Morning America Monday.
Next, she plans to have her ovaries removed within the next two years, as she also faces an elevated risk of ovarian cancer.
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Lowe's offers to buy Orchard Supply for $205M
MOORESVILLE, N.C. (AP) ? Lowe's plans to expand its California presence with an acquisition of Sears spinoff Orchard Supply Hardware Stores for about $205 million in cash.
Orchard Supply filed a voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition on Monday, so the offer from Lowe's will become the "stalking horse" bid for an auction of Orchard's assets. Such a bid sets the floor for an auction process that lets competitors make better offers.
The California market is key since it has been a strong market for home improvement retailers recently. In its most recent earnings report Lowe's reported net income that rose 3 percent but missed expectations, hurt by a rainy and cool spring. However its larger rival Home Depot Inc., with a bigger presence in California, reported better-than-expected results.
"This transaction is about the convenience deficit that Lowe's currently has relative to Home Depot in key metro markets around the U.S.," said Janney Capital Markets analyst David Strasser. "This acquisition would help immediately in California, and possibly set up a strategy for other key metro markets."
The Lowe's bid must survive the auction and receive bankruptcy court approval. The companies expect the deal to close in about three months.
Orchard Supply filed its bankruptcy petition in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.
Mooresville, N.C.-based Lowe's Cos. Inc. said Monday it will acquire at least 60 of Orchard's 91 stores, and alternative bids must top Lowe's offer by at least $12 million. Lowe's also will assume responsibility for money owed to nearly all of Orchard's suppliers.
Orchard stores are smaller than Lowe's locations, with about 36,000 square feet of selling space compared with 113,000 square feet for Lowe's. The San Jose, Calif., company was spun off from Sears Holdings Corp. in January 2012, and most of its locations are in densely populated California markets.
Lowe's already runs 110 stores in California. It plans to have Orchard operate as a separate, standalone business, retaining the Orchard brand. Lowe's Chairman and CEO Robert A. Niblock said in a statement that Orchard's business has potential but also has been burdened with high debt.
"Strategically, the acquisition will provide us with immediate access to Orchard's high density, prime locations in attractive markets in California, where Lowe's is currently underpenetrated, and will enable us to participate more fully in California's economic recovery," Niblock said.
Lowe's shares rose 21 cents to close at $41.37, closer to the high end of the stock's 52-week range between $24.76 and $43.84. The stock has climbed 16 percent so far in 2013.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/lowes-offers-buy-orchard-supply-205m-104404778.html
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Monday, June 17, 2013
Rask too tough for Chicago in Boston's 2-1 OT win
Boston Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask (40) seals off the goal against the Chicago Blackhawks in the second period during Game 2 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Finals, Saturday, June 15, 2013, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Boston Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask (40) seals off the goal against the Chicago Blackhawks in the second period during Game 2 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Finals, Saturday, June 15, 2013, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Chicago Blackhawks center Jonathan Toews (19) shoots the puck wide against Boston Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask (40) as Boston Bruins defenseman Andrew Ference (21) defends in the third period during Game 2 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Finals, Saturday, June 15, 2013, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
Boston Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask (40) reacts as he watches play down the ice against the Chicago Blackhawks in the third period during Game 2 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Finals, Saturday, June 15, 2013, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Boston Bruins goalie Tuukka Rask (40) watches the rebound after blocking a shot against the Chicago Blackhawks in the first period during Game 2 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Finals, Saturday, June 15, 2013, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast)
CHICAGO (AP) ? A lesser goalie would have been flustered by the Chicago Blackhawks hot start.
Not Tuukka Rask.
After giving up a goal and withstanding another 18 shots in the first period Saturday night, the Boston Bruins goalie may as well have hung a "Not Open" sign on his net. While he stymied the Blackhawks, his teammates regrouped and found enough offense for a 2-1 overtime victory that sent the Stanley Cup finals to Boston tied at one game apiece.
"We definitely were in survival mode there for a bit," Rask said. "It looked like they had more guys out there than we did. They were bouncing on every single puck in front of net, had a lot of chances. We definitely played pretty bad. But it was good we were only down by one, and we regrouped after that."
Rask finished with 33 saves, including stopping Game 1 winner Andrew Shaw cold in OT.
Game 3 is Monday night in Boston.
"We had the perfect start to the game, then we stopped doing what made us successful," Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville said.
Well, Rask had a lot to do with that.
"He wasn't lucky, he's a good goalie," Chicago's Patrick Sharp said. "He doesn't do anything different. He stops the puck when he sees it."
Boston had the edge in goaltending coming into the series ? and not simply because Chicago is seemingly ready to replace Corey Crawford at the drop of a puck.
Rask was impressive enough last season that he made Stanley Cup winner Tim Thomas expendable, and the 26-year-old from Finland has taken his game to another level this postseason. He came into the series with the highest save percentage (.943) of the playoffs, and limited the high-octane Pittsburgh Penguins to a measly two goals in a four-game sweep by the Bruins in the Eastern Conference finals.
The Blackhawks made Rask look mortal in Game 1, tagging him for four goals ? more than he'd given up in Boston's previous five postseason games combined.
It wouldn't happen a second time.
Chicago came out flying Saturday night, peppering Rask with rapid-fire shots, trying to sneak up on him from behind and playing hot potato with the puck in front of the net in hopes of catching him off-guard and slipping one past. Boston coach Claude Julien called the effort "totally lopsided."
"The first period, we just weren't there. We were on our heels," Julien said. "They had total control of that period. Tuukka kept us in there."
Rask needed his head on a swivel to keep track of the traffic, and even that wasn't always enough.
At about 11 minutes into the first period, the Blackhawks blitzed Rask with a series of shots, two from Patrick Kane and one from Michal Handzus. Rask handled all of them, but the puck squirted out to the right side where Sharp was waiting.
With Rask still preoccupied with the scrum on the opposite side of the net, Sharp poked a goal past him, putting Chicago up 1-0.
"Every goal you let in you have a chance to save. I'm not going to blame myself for that," Rask said. "I think there were three or four saves before that goal. I couldn't find that puck until the last second. But you know, they had 19 shots and one goes by you. It happens sometimes."
It happened again shortly after when Marian Hossa appeared to score. But officials waved off the goal, saying play had been stopped.
When the first period finally ended, the Blackhawks had a 19-4 shot advantage.
"Not much needed to be said after that first period," Chris Kelly said. "I think Tuukka pointed out that was a pretty terrible period by our team. If it wasn't for Tuukka, it would have been a lot worse. To a guy in there, I think we all knew we had to go out and play better."
Boston's defense tightened up, and Rask easily handled the few remaining chances the Blackhawks had. Chicago had only 15 shots in the last two periods and overtime.
"That first period was extremely hard for (Rask)," Julien said. "But, thankfully, our guys rewarded him with that effort by being a lot better in front of him for the rest of the game."
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Ryan Hunter-Reay wins at Milwaukee again
WEST ALLIS, Wis. (AP) ? Ryan Hunter-Reay continued Andretti Autosport's domination at the Milwaukee Mile, winning the IndyCar event Saturday for the second year in a row.
Hunter-Reay became the first driver to win back-to-back races at the Mile since Tony Kanaan in 2006 and 2007 when he was driving for ? you guessed it, Andretti.
Andretti drivers have won five of the last nine races at the mile oval and nearly had a perfect day Saturday in a race that is promoted by Michael Andretti's marketing company. Hunter-Reay got the win, E.J. Viso finished fourth and James Hinchcliffe was fifth.
The only blemish was pole-sitter Marco Andretti, who led the first 62 laps before his day fell apart with a mechanical issue.
For Hunter-Reay, it was the second win of the season for the defending IndyCar Series champion. This one came at the site of the track he used to jumpstart last year's title run ? Hunter-Reay reeled off three consecutive wins starting with Milwaukee last season to climb into the championship race.
This year, though, he got to celebrate an early Father's Day gift with son, Ryden.
"Those last few laps I was thinking, 'Man, I've got to do this for him,' " Hunter-Reay said. "It's so special, he's 6-months-old, getting to have my little guy here in Victory Lane is the best Father's Day gift."
IndyCar Series points leader Helio Castroneves was second and followed by Penske Racing teammate Will Power as Chevrolet swept the podium. It was the first podium finish this season for Power, who hasn't won a race since Brazil last year.
He made a bold attempt to pass Castroneves for second in the closing laps before cautiously backing off a touch. Power said after the race he had to consider the big picture and that his teammate is the current points leader while racing for position.
Scott Dixon was sixth in the highest finishing Honda and was followed by Takuma Sato, who dominated the early section of the race but was shuffled out of contention because of pit cycles. Still, it was the best finish for an A.J. Foyt Racing entry at Milwaukee since Foyt himself was fifth in 1988.
Dario Franchitti, Justin Wilson and Kanaan rounded out the top 10.
Marco Andretti wound up 20th and was passed by teammate Hunter-Reay for second in the IndyCar standings.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ryan-hunter-reay-wins-milwaukee-again-224100378.html
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Afghans poised to take security lead from US, NATO
In this Thursday, June 13, 2013 photo, Afghan National Army soldiers march in Sangin district of Kandahar province southern Afghanistan. One of the most significant turning points in one of America's longest and costliest wars is imminent: Afghanistan's fledgling security forces are taking the lead for security nationwide, bringing the moment of truth on the question of whether they are ready to fight an insurgency that remains resilient after nearly 12 years of conflict. That question is especially pressing here in this border region where insurgents regularly ambush government forces and control parts of the countryside. (AP Photo/Allauddin Khan)
In this Thursday, June 13, 2013 photo, Afghan National Army soldiers march in Sangin district of Kandahar province southern Afghanistan. One of the most significant turning points in one of America's longest and costliest wars is imminent: Afghanistan's fledgling security forces are taking the lead for security nationwide, bringing the moment of truth on the question of whether they are ready to fight an insurgency that remains resilient after nearly 12 years of conflict. That question is especially pressing here in this border region where insurgents regularly ambush government forces and control parts of the countryside. (AP Photo/Allauddin Khan)
In this Thursday, June 13, 2013 photo, An Afghan National Army soldier aims his weapon, in Sangin district of Kandahar province southern Afghanistan. One of the most significant turning points in one of America's longest and costliest wars is imminent: Afghanistan's fledgling security forces are taking the lead for security nationwide, bringing the moment of truth on the question of whether they are ready to fight an insurgency that remains resilient after nearly 12 years of conflict. That question is especially pressing here in this border region where insurgents regularly ambush government forces and control parts of the countryside. (AP Photo/Allauddin Khan)
In this Thursday, June 13, 2013 photo, Afghan National Army soldiers stand in position, in the Sangin district of Kandahar province southern Afghanistan. One of the most significant turning points in one of America's longest and costliest wars is imminent: Afghanistan's fledgling security forces are taking the lead for security nationwide, bringing the moment of truth on the question of whether they are ready to fight an insurgency that remains resilient after nearly 12 years of conflict. That question is especially pressing here in this border region where insurgents regularly ambush government forces and control parts of the countryside. (AP Photo/Allauddin Khan)
In this Wednesday, June 12, 2013 photo, Al Hajj Malak Nazir, director of the provincial council, speaks during an interview in Jalalabad east of Kabul, Afghanistan. Nazir is convinced the Taliban will keep fighting after Afghanistan's army and police shortly take control for security around the country from the U.S.-led NATO coalition, but he is equally confident they will not get very far. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)
In this Saturday, June 15, 2013 photo, Afghan National Army soldiers attend their graduation ceremony in Kabul, Afghanistan. One of the most significant turning points in one of America's longest and costliest wars is imminent: Afghanistan's fledgling security forces are taking the lead for security nationwide, bringing the moment of truth on the question of whether they are ready to fight an insurgency that remains resilient after nearly 12 years of conflict. That question is especially pressing here in this border region where insurgents regularly ambush government forces and control parts of the countryside. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)
JALALABAD, Afghanistan (AP) ? One of the most significant turning points in one of America's longest and costliest wars is imminent: Afghanistan's fledgling security forces are taking the lead for security nationwide, bringing the moment of truth on the question of whether they are ready to fight an insurgency that remains resilient after nearly 12 years of conflict.
Nowhere is that question more pressing than in this city near the Pakistani border, which is the capital of Nangarhar province. In the province, which has a predominantly Pashtun population, the ethnic group that makes up the Taliban, insurgents regularly ambush government forces, blow up the offices of humanitarian organizations, and control parts of a countryside that has seen a spike in opium poppy cultivation.
Nangarhar is considered so dangerous that foreign military forces still handle security in more than half of its 22 districts.
That will change, after Afghan President Hamid Karzai declares ? in an announcement expected soon ? that Afghan forces are taking over security around the country and U.S. and other foreign forces will move entirely into a supporting, backseat role. At that point, the remaining districts in Nangarhar, along with other hotspots still in the hands of the U.S.-led International Security Assistance Force, will become the Afghan troops' full responsibility.
Residents of Jalalabad, a bustling trading hub and agricultural center on the junction of two rivers, worry about whether the Afghan forces can keep them safe from an insurgency that they say is equipped and trained in neighboring Pakistan. They also fear that the Afghan forces still don't have enough heavy weapons or firepower.
"Our main concern is that for more than 10 years the international community managed to do nothing and that they are now trying to make us strong. It's too little too late," said Lal Mohammad Durrani, a member of the Nangarhar provincial council. "We need more weapons."
NATO training since 2009 has dramatically ramped up the Afghan National Security Forces, bringing it up from 40,000 men and women six years ago to about 352, 000 today. Once the transition is announced, coalition troops will move entirely into a supporting role ? training and mentoring, and in emergency situations providing the Afghans backup in combat, mainly in the form of airstrikes and medevac.
That is to pave the way for international forces ? currently numbering about 100,000 troops, including 66,000 Americans ? to leave. By the end of the year, the NATO force will be halved. At the end of 2014, all combat troops will have left and will replaced, if approved by the Afghan government, by a much smaller force that will only train and advise. President Barack Obama has not yet said how many soldiers he will leave in Afghanistan along with NATO forces, but it is thought that it would be about 9,000 U.S. troops and about 6,000 from its allies.
In a series of wide-ranging interviews with Afghan and western military officials, experts and analysts, opinions are mixed as to the state of readiness of the Afghan forces ? although nearly all agree they are far better now than they were when the NATO training mission began.
British Lt. Gen. Nick Carter, the deputy commander of coalition forces, said the transition to take the lead in security "represents a significant achievement for the Afghan security forces." But, he added, "That said we will require and need to deliver for the Afghans some fairly significant support for a while to come."
Already, Afghans now carry out 90 percent of military operations around the country. They are in the lead in security in 312 districts nationwide, where 80 percent of Afghanistan's population of nearly 30 million lives ? and only 91 districts remain for them to take over ? including 12 in Nangarhar.
The transition comes at a time when violence is at levels matching the worst in 12 years, fueling some Afghans' concerns the forces aren't ready.
"We thought this summer would not be easy for the Afghan security forces, but it was not expected to be like this. We have roadside bombs, we have suicide attacks, organized attacks," said Jawed Kohistani, an Afghan political and military analyst. "It is a mistake to transition this quickly."
Jalalabad's relatively peaceful tree-lined streets are crowded with checkpoints, manned by often edgy Afghan army and police worried about car bombs. Insurgents use the province's mountain passes and valleys to sneak in from neighboring Pakistan, where they retain safe havens in that country's lawless Pashtun-dominated tribal belt. Jalalabad is also just a 3-hour drive through craggy passes and gorges to Kabul, which has seen a spate of spectacular suicide attacks in recent weeks.
Al Hajj Malak Nazir ? the local head of the Afghan High Peace Council, a body created in an attempt to reach out to the Taliban ? said that even though he considers Afghan forces to be under-equipped, he believes they will eventually prevail over the insurgency.
"The Taliban can't take all of Afghanistan. After transition they could take a district, but they won't be able to keep it," he said. That. He added, is why he has been trying to convince the Taliban to enter negotiations.
"This is a very good opportunity for the Taliban to say they will stop fighting. But they won't," he said. "The Americans are now saying they are leaving, but the Taliban never say they are leaving."
Few believe the Taliban will keep promises they have made in the past to stop fighting when foreign military forces are gone. They have not stopped in any province where Afghan forces have taken the lead.
They have also rebuffed numerous attempts to start peace talks in the past year and have instead intensified a campaign that mostly targets urban centers and government installations.
There is overall agreement, however, they don't have much support outside their traditional areas and can't win militarily against the Afghan forces.
"I think, if the Taliban tried to come back, it would have to come back in a very different way. It would have to come back and participate politically," Lt. Gen. Carter said. "It is my sense that civil society, which is the future of this country, absolutely would not put up with sorts of standards that were here 15 years ago. And, therefore, my sense is that ultimately it is the politics that will determine this, and not the violence that determines this."
On battlefields around the country, Afghan forces plan and carry out operations on their own, with little help from coalition forces. They are often effective, but still need work on logistics and effectively using the weapons they have.
Casualty figures are indicative of the fight. More than 330 Afghan army soldiers have died so far this year, according to a tally by the Associated Press.
Last year, more than 1,200 Afghan soldiers died, compared to more than 550 in 2011, according to data compiled by the Washington-based Brookings Institution. By comparison, coalition casualties have declined as they take forces off the battlefield ? 81 so far this year, 394 in 2012 and 543 in 2011.
About 1,481 militants were reported to have been killed by coalition and Afghan forces so far this year, compared with close to 3,000 militants for all of last year. The NATO command does not issue reports on the number of insurgents its troops have killed, and Afghan military figures, from which the AP compiles its data, cannot be independently verified.
"There is no doubt about the ability of the Afghan national army and police. The nation should trust them, and they do," said the Afghan Army Chief of Staff Gen. Sher Mohammad Karimi.
The veteran commander rattled off a series of recent victories over insurgents, including kicking them out of parts of eastern Nuristan that they had controlled for about two years.
"There wasn't a single bit of support from the international community. Only the Afghan national army and national police were able to do that and they did it," he said.
But he grudgingly agreed Afghan troops still need help. That includes the use of coalition air power ? including medical evacuations ? help with locating roadside bombs and further developing the armed forces. They also need to bring down an attrition rate of 3 to 4 percent a month, which means NATO now has to help train 50,000 new recruits a year.
The U.S. has said that Afghanistan will get the weapons it requires to fight an insurgency, including a large fleet of MI-17 transport helicopters, cargo planes and ground support airplanes. The heaviest weapon the Afghan army will have is a howitzer.
"The force is designed according to the threat, and the threat here is an insurgency. The design of the ANSF is appropriate to counter that threat," said German Gen. Hans-Lothar Domrose, the commander of the NATO force that oversees ISAF.
The Afghans, on the other hand, want battle tanks and modern fighter jets ? which they are unlikely to get given their cost and the training required to use them.
The war has already proven very costly
Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction John Sopko last April estimated that the ANSF has so far cost the American taxpayer $54 billion. The overall cost of the war is more difficult to estimate, but for America alone the Center for Strategic and International Studies put the price at about $650 billion through the end of 2013.
____
Follow Patrick Quinn on Twitter at: http://www.twitter.com/PatrickAQuinn
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Archaeologists Discover Lost City In Cambodian Jungle
First time accepted submitter steve_mark66 writes "Australian archaeologists using remote-sensing technology have uncovered an ancient city in Cambodia that has remained hidden for more than a millennium under dense jungle undergrowth. The discovery of Mahendraparvata, a 1,200-year-old lost city that predates Cambodia's famous Angkor Wat temple complex by 350 years, was part of the Hindu-Buddhist Khmer Empire that ruled much of Southeast Asia from about 800 to 1400 A.D., during a time that coincided with Europe's Middle Ages" The Age has a story of its own, with video.
Source: http://rss.slashdot.org/~r/Slashdot/slashdotScience/~3/g0B9pYQQyOk/story01.htm
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