New models predict drastically greener Arctic in coming decades

Mar. 31, 2013 ? New research predicts that rising temperatures will lead to a massive "greening," or increase in plant cover, in the Arctic. In a paper published on March 31 in Nature Climate Change, scientists reveal new models projecting that wooded areas in the Arctic could increase by as much as 50 percent over the next few decades. The researchers also show that this dramatic greening will accelerate climate warming at a rate greater than previously expected.

"Such widespread redistribution of Arctic vegetation would have impacts that reverberate through the global ecosystem," said Richard Pearson, lead author on the paper and a research scientist at the American Museum of Natural History's Center for Biodiversity and Conservation.

Plant growth in Arctic ecosystems has increased over the past few decades, a trend that coincides with increases in temperatures, which are rising at about twice the global rate. The research team -- which includes scientists from the Museum, AT&T Labs-Research, Woods Hole Research Center, Colgate University, Cornell University, and the University of York -- used climate scenarios for the 2050s to explore how this trend is likely to continue in the future. The scientists developed models that statistically predict the types of plants that could grow under certain temperatures and precipitation. Although it comes with some uncertainty, this type of modeling is a robust way to study the Arctic because the harsh climate limits the range of plants that can grow, making this system simpler to model compared to other regions such as the tropics.

The models reveal the potential for massive redistribution of vegetation across the Arctic under future climate, with about half of all vegetation switching to a different class and a massive increase in tree cover. What might this look like? In Siberia, for instance, trees could grow hundreds of miles north of the present tree line.

"These impacts would extend far beyond the Arctic region," Pearson said. "For example, some species of birds seasonally migrate from lower latitudes and rely on finding particular polar habitats, such as open space for ground-nesting."

In addition, the researchers investigated the multiple climate change feedbacks that greening would produce. They found that a phenomenon called the albedo effect, based on the reflectivity of Earth's surface, would have the greatest impact on the Arctic's climate. When the sun hits snow, most of the radiation is reflected back to space. But when it hits an area that's "dark," or covered in trees or shrubs, more sunlight is absorbed in the area and temperature increases. This has a positive feedback to climate warming: the more vegetation there is, the more warming will occur.

"By incorporating observed relationships between plants and albedo, we show that vegetation distribution shifts will result in an overall positive feedback to climate that is likely to cause greater warming than has previously been predicted," said co-author Scott Goetz, of the Woods Hole Research Center.

This work was funded by the National Science Foundation, grants IPY 0732948, IPY 0732954, and Expeditions 0832782. Other authors involved in this study include Steven Phillips (AT&T Labs-Research), Michael Loranty (Woods Hole Research Center and Colgate University), Pieter Beck (Woods Hole Research Center), Theodoros Damoulas (Cornell University), and Sarah Knight (American Museum of Natural History and University of York).

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by American Museum of Natural History, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

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

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Journal Reference:

1. Richard G. Pearson, Steven J. Phillips, Michael M. Loranty, Pieter S. A. Beck, Theodoros Damoulas, Sarah J. Knight, Scott J. Goetz. Shifts in Arctic vegetation and associated feedbacks under climate change. Nature Climate Change, 2013; DOI: 10.1038/nclimate1858

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/_-wyLznOOuE/130331165603.htm

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Amazon Instant Video Suffered Long, Unexplained Outage Last Night

At the end of last year, Netflix suffered a prolonged outage because Amazon’s cloud services, which Netflix uses to host most of its infrastructure, went down. At the time, Amazon’s own video services continued to function without any issues. Last night, it was Amazon’s turn to suffer from a multi-hour outage. According to a number of tips we received, as well as a number of reports on Twitter and other social networks, Amazon’s Instant Video service and Prime Instant Video went down sometime in the late afternoon yesterday and remained offline for a large part of the evening. So far, Amazon hasn’t publicly acknowledged last night’s outage and its @amazonvideo account has remained silent since the first reports came in. Amazon Web Services, which powers Amazon’s Video Services, continued to work without issues last night. One of our readers provided us with a boilerplate email he received from Amazon last night after he complained about the outage: Hello, We’re sorry for the trouble you had while trying to connect to Amazon Instant Video. If you try again, you should be able to connect without encountering further problems. We look forward to seeing you again soon. We have contacted Amazon for more details about this outage and will update this post once we hear back from them. Hey @AmazonVideo maybe mention VOD is down right now. It's nice when the marketing tweets come with useful info between them.— Ry4an Brase (@Ry4an) March 30, 2013 Seriously, I get emails from @amazon every day, you'd think they could use one of those to let us know why @AmazonVideo is down.— Aaron Gardner (@Aaron_RS) March 30, 2013 @amazonvideo #fail. A little notice of when you're going to do maintenance would be nice. I expect a credit, or will cancel Amazon Prime.—   (@djdeedle) March 30, 2013

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PFT: Raiders close to Flynn trade, cutting Palmer

Getty Images

Given Friday?s events, it?s clear that the suggestion that the Cowboys couldn?t have used the franchise tag on Tony Romo in 2014 came from the Romo camp as part of an effort to break whatever final hurdle(s) existed between the team and the player.

Per a source with knowledge of the situation, it never was going to be issue.

The glitch that would have resulted in the final years of Romo?s contract voiding after the window for using the franchise tag had closed came, we?re told, from a deal that was done in 2011 to help create cap space.? At that time, Romo, the Cowboys, and his agents agreed to commence the process to make Romo a Cowboy for life, and to get it done before the start of the final season of his current contract.

In the end, Romo was never going to leave the Cowboys.? So it didn?t matter if there was no franchise tag to be used.

?Tony has a special relationship with Jerry [Jones], Stephen [Jones], and the Cowboys organization.? The parties truly view it as a long-term partnership and they truly trust each other,? the source said.? ?Tony values being a Cowboy for life.?

Moreover, the guaranteed money in the new Romo deal ($55.5 million) hints that the franchise-tag formula was a factor in the negotiations.? With a salary of $11.5 million in 2013 and franchise-tag numbers of $20.16 million and $24.19 million, respectively, in 2014 and 2015, Romo would have made $55.85 million over the next three years, if he had gone one year at a time under the franchise tag.

Either way, the Cowboys have gone all in with Romo.? Today?s deal simply puts even more chips in the middle of the table.

Source: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/03/29/raiders-appear-close-to-adding-matt-flynn-cutting-carson-palmer/related/

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Mandela spends second night in hospital

By Shafiek Tassiem

SOWETO, South Africa (Reuters) - Former South African President Nelson Mandela has made steady progress and is "in good spirits" after spending a second night in hospital under treatment for a lung infection, the country's government said on Friday.

The news came as a relief to South Africans who were anxiously praying and waiting for an update on the health of the 94-year-old anti-apartheid legend, who was undergoing his third hospital treatment in four months.

"The Presidency wishes to advise that former President Nelson Mandela is in good spirits and enjoyed a full breakfast this morning," President Jacob Zuma's office said in a statement.

"The doctors report that he is making steady progress. He remains under treatment and observation in hospital," the statement added.

Zuma's government had said previously Mandela was responding well to treatment after he was admitted to hospital before midnight on Wednesday. Zuma had sought to reassure the nation about his health.

Global leaders sent best wishes for the Nobel Peace Prize laureate and in churches across South Africa, Christians included him in their prayers on Good Friday.

"I hope this time God will have mercy on him to give him the strength and courage to continue to be an icon for our country," Father Benedict Mahlangu said at the Regina Mundi Catholic Church as it held services in the Soweto township outside Johannesburg where Mandela once lived.

Mandela became South Africa's first black president after winning the country's first all-race election in 1994.

A former lawyer, he is revered at home and abroad for leading the struggle against white minority rule - including spending 27 years in prison on Robben Island - and then promoting the cause of racial reconciliation.

(Additional reporting by Pascal Fletcher in Johannesburg; Writing by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Pascal Fletcher)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/south-africas-mandela-spends-second-night-hospital-092102547.html

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'Freakshow's' Armless Wonder threads a needle with his toes

By Drusilla Moorhouse, TODAY contributor

Jim, otherwise known as The Armless Wonder, was born without arms or hands, but there's nothing he can't do. Don't believe it? You'll change your mind after watching this exclusive "Freakshow" clip AMC shared with The Clicker.

The cameras follow Jim performing his morning routine -- shaving, brushing his teeth, sipping coffee while reading the newspaper, sewing?

Hold up!

Yes, while, most of us can barely thread a needle with 10 fingers, Jim does it effortlessly with his toes.

"I don't consider myself disabled," Jim said. And why should he? He also writes, drives, plays sports and goes fishing.

"If you find something I can't do," he added, "then we'll talk."

We don't expect to be having that conversation anytime soon.

"Freakshow" airs Thursdays at 9:30 p.m. on AMC.

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Joujouka Masters Musicians - Morocco World News

By Youssef El Kaidi

Morocco World News

Fez, March 27, 2013

The music festival of Joujouka is to be held from 14^th to 16^th June, 2013. Since its first edition in 2008, the festival annually takes place in June in the far-flung village of Joujouka (or Jahjouka) in the Ahl Srif tribal area near Laksar Lakbir south of the Rif in northern Morocco. The festival is very unique and not like any other festival in the world in regard to its organization and rites.

It?s all about offering a very small group of tourists the opportunity to experience the Moroccan authenticity in its minute details. In every edition of the festival, a group of people from around the world live in Jahjouka with the Masters as hosts, experience their Sufi trance music on a daily basis and enjoy the spectacular scenery of the Rif and the local food and traditions. This micro-festival was raved about by international press like The Guardian,?Liberation,?the?BBC,?Al?Jazeera?and?The Irish Times.

The remarkable Music played by the Joujouka Masters is said to be 4,000-year old. The America novelist and painter William Seward Burroughs described the Masters? music as the world?s oldest music and was the first person to call the musicians a ?4000-year-old rock and roll band.?

The music of the Joujouka Masters finds its roots in the legend of Beoujeloud who is the symbol of fertility and reproduction and who bestowed this music on the tribe of ?Jahjouka? thousands of years ago. The Master musicians? music is believed to have healing powers. In the 15th century, when the Sufi saint Sidi Ahmed Schiech arrived in the village, he wrote music for the Masters? ancestors which could heal. Today?s Masters are said to be blessed with the Baraka or spirit of their saint and the main purpose of their music is to heal.

The Master Musicians were first presented to the global audience by Brian Jones of the Rolling Stones in his album ?Brian Jones Presents the Pipes of Pan at Joujouka? released in 1971. They have also collaborated with the Jazz experimentalist Ornette Coleman. In fact, many are those who were seduced by the simplicity and the ethnographic value of Jahjouka and its music. Paul Bowls, William Burroughs, Brian Jones, Timothy Leary, and Brion Gysin all wrote about the Master Musicians of Jahjouka after being entranced by their Sufi music.

? Morocco World News. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, rewritten or redistributed

Source: http://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2013/03/84230/joujouka-masters-musicians-the-healing-power-of-a-4000-year-old-music/

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Sony Xperia Tablet Z to launch in the UK on May 20, priced at ?499

Sony's Xperia Tablet Z has been out in Japan for sometime, and now we've got the first details of the new Sony tab's UK arrival. British online retailer Clove has the tablet up for pre-order now priced at £499.20 including VAT, with a release slated for Monday, May 20.

The 10-inch, 1080p-screened Xperia Tablet Z is powered by a quad-core Snapdragon S4 Pro CPU, with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage, expandable via microSD. There's also an 8MP Sony Exmor R rear shooter and hexa-band 4G LTE connectivity, in addition to IP57-rated water and dust resistance. On the software side, it's running Sony's own UI atop Android 4.1.2 Jelly Bean.

We went hands-on with the Xperia Tablet Z at Mobile World Congress last month, and were quite impressed with the tablet's thin profile and sturdy build quality. At £500, though, it's going to be a tough sell -- even with 4G LTE support and a high-quality camera.

For more on the Sony Xperia Tablet Z, check out our hands-on preview.

Source: Clove

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The politics of same-sex marriage constitutional adjudication (Powerlineblog)

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Powerball jackpot winner says family first

PASSAIC, N.J. (AP) ? The winner of a $338 million Powerball jackpot told several media outlets Monday that his first priority will be helping his family.

Pedro Quezada, 44, entered Eagle Liquors store, where the ticket was sold, late Monday afternoon. The Passaic store owner ran Quezada's ticket through the lottery machine to validate that it was a winner as a newspaper and television outlets recorded the moment.

The New Jersey Lottery confirmed that the winning ticket was validated at the store at 4:30 p.m. Monday, but officials said they didn't yet know the winner's name.

Quezada, an immigrant from the Dominican Republic, told reporters in Spanish that he was "very happy" and that he intends to help his family.

His wife, Ines Sanchez, told the Bergen Record that Quezada called her with the news Monday afternoon.

"I still can't believe it," she said. "We never expected it but thank God."

The numbers drawn Saturday were 17, 29, 31, 52, 53 and Powerball 31. A lump sum payout would be $221 million, or about $152 million after taxes. It's the fourth-largest jackpot in Powerball history.

The family's apartment sits at the end of a short dead end block that abuts a highway in Passaic, 15 miles northwest of New York City. Neighbors stood out in the rain Monday night and spoke with pride that one of their own had struck it rich.

Eladia Vazquez has lived across the street from Quezada's building for the past 25 years. The block has a half-dozen three-story brick apartment buildings on each side, and Vazquez says it's a neighborhood where everyone knows everyone, including what car they drive and what parking space they use.

Vazquez described Quezada and his wife as "quiet and not overly talkative" but sensed that they seemed to be working all the time.

"This is super for all of us on this block," she said. "They deserve it because they are hardworking people."

Richard Delgado, who lives down the block from Quezada's building, said the man was "a hard worker, like all of us here. We all get up in the morning and go to work."

Delgado said he got up Sunday morning and was going to take his dog for a walk when he heard the radio announce the Powerball results.

"When I heard there was one winner and it was in New Jersey, I immediately went and checked my tickets," Delgado said. "I wanted to be that guy."

When asked what it would be like to suddenly win such a large amount, Delgado said a person would have to set priorities.

"No. 1 is your health, because if you don't have that, the rest doesn't matter," he said. "No. 2 is your family. You take care of your own and live the rest of your life in peace. That's all anyone can do."

No one had won the Powerball jackpot since early February, when Dave Honeywell in Virginia bought the winning ticket and elected a cash lump sum for his $217 million jackpot.

The largest Powerball jackpot ever came in at $587.5 million in November. The winning numbers were picked on two different tickets ? one by a couple in Missouri and the other by an Arizona man ? and the jackpot was split.

Nebraska still holds the record for the largest Powerball jackpot won on a single ticket ? $365 million ? by eight workers at a Lincoln meatpacking plant in February 2006.

Powerball is played in 42 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The chance of matching all five numbers and the Powerball number is about 1 in 175 million.

___

Associated Press writer Angela Delli Santi contributed to this report from Lawrenceville, N.J.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/338m-nj-powerball-winner-says-hell-help-family-005457915.html

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'Amazing Race' producers apologize for offending Vietnam veterans

CBS

The cast of "The Amazing Race's" 22nd season.

By The Hollywood Reporter

CBS and the producers of "The Amazing Race" have apologized for last week's episode, which came under fire for using a B-52 memorial in Hanoi, Vietnam, as a key part of the leg.

The episode saw contestants go to the memorial -- which depicts the wreckage of an downed American bomber plane during the Vietnam war -- to find their next clue. The Veterans of Foreign Wars, along with several Fox News anchors and viewers, complained about the usage of the memorial.

PHOTOS: "The Amazing Race" Season 22: Meet the teams

?The B-52 scene, as well as the young people singing a propaganda song, was totally unnecessary to the show?s plot, which speaks volumes about naive producers who think they?re in charge when they are not,? VFW national commander John Hamilton said wrote in a nearly 500-word letter to CBS Corp. chief Leslie Moonves.

Sunday night's episode kicked off with the apology, read by "Amazing Race" host Phil Keoghan.

"Parts of last Sunday's episode, filmed in Vietnam, were insensitive to a group that is very important to us -- our nation's veterans," the statement read. "We want to apologize to veterans, particularly those who served in Vietnam, as well as to their families and any viewers who were offended by the broadcast. All of us here have the most profound respect for the men and women who fight for our country."

CBS had declined to comment on the controversy earlier in the week.

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Why it?s so annoying to overhear someone?s cellphone conversation

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Police: No sign of 3rd party in Berezovsky death

LONDON (AP) -- There was no evidence to suggest anyone else was involved in the death of Boris Berezovsky, the self-exiled Russian tycoon who went from Kremlin kingmaker to fiery critic, British police said Sunday.

With an investigation under way, police are treating the death of Berezovsky ? who fled to Britain in the early 2000s after a bitter falling out with Russian President Vladimir Putin ? as unexplained. But the former oligarch survived assassination attempts and recently faced financial difficulties, prompting speculation as to whether his death was part of a conspiracy ? or suicide.

Police said Sunday it would be wrong to speculate on Berezovsky's cause of death pending the results of an autopsy, but said they had no evidence to suggest anyone else was involved.

"We are at the early stages of the investigation and we are retaining an open mind as we progress," said Detective Chief Inspector Kevin Brown. "The investigation team is building a picture of the last days of Mr. Berezovsky's life, speaking to close friends and family to gain a better understanding of his state of mind."

Police released some details on the circumstances that triggered their investigation into his demise and a subsequent check for hazardous materials at a home he stayed at in Ascot, a town 40 kilometers (25 miles) west of London where Berezovsky's body was found on Saturday.

A call came into police from the local ambulance service at 3:23 p.m. GMT (11:23 a.m. EDT) Saturday saying a man had been found dead, Thames Valley Police said in a statement on Sunday.

The police said an employee of Berezovsky told how he had called an ambulance after becoming concerned for Berezovsky's welfare and forced open a bathroom door locked from the inside to find the tycoon's body on the floor.

The employee was the only person in the house when Berezovsky's body was discovered, police said. Members of the ex-oligarch's family arrived at the home while the paramedic was on scene.

After a paramedic declared Berezovsky dead and left the scene, a device measuring the paramedic's exposure to radiation was triggered, police said. This is why chemical and radiations experts were called to examine the home, they said.

"Officers found nothing of concern in the property and we are now progressing the investigation as normal," a statement from police said earlier, adding that the majority of the cordon put in place around the property has now been lifted.

Berezovsky ? who had survived a number of assassination attempts ? amassed a fortune through oil and automobiles during Russia's chaotic privatization of state assets following the collapse of the Soviet Union in the early 1990s.

Once a member of Russian President Boris Yeltsin's inner circle, Berezovsky fell out with Yeltsin's successor, Putin, and fled Britain in the early 2000s to escape fraud charges that he said were politically motivated.

He became a strident and frequent critic of Putin, accusing the leader of ushering in a dictatorship, and accused the security services of organizing 1999 apartment house bombings in Moscow and two other Russian cities that became a pretext for Russian troops to sweep into Chechnya for the second war there in half a decade.

Putin's spokesman acknowledged Sunday that the Russian president considered Berezovsky an enemy.

"We know for certain that he spared no expense in support of processes, within Russia and beyond, that could be said to have been directed against Russia and Putin," spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on the independent cable television channel Rain. "He definitely was Putin's opponent, and unfortunately not only his political opponent, but most likely in other dimensions as well."

In recent years, Berezovsky fended off legal attacks that often bore political undertones ? and others that bit into his fortune.

Russia repeatedly sought to extradite Berezovksy on a wide variety of criminal charges, and the tycoon vehemently rejected allegations over the years that he was linked to several deaths, including that of slain journalist Anna Politkovskaya and ex-KGB agent Alexander Litvinenko.

Berezovsky won a libel case in 2010 against a Kremlin-owned broadcaster that aired a show in which it was suggested he was behind the poisoning of Litvinenko, who had fled Russia with Berezovsky's help after accusing officials there of plotting to assassinate political opponents.

He took a hit with his divorce from Galina Besharova in 2010, paying what was at the time Britain's largest divorce settlement. The figure beat a previous record of 48 million pounds ($73.1 million) and was estimated as high as 100 million pounds, though the exact figure was never confirmed.

Last year, Berezovsky lost a multibillion-pound High Court case against fellow Russian Roman Abramovich and was ordered to pay 35 million pounds ($53.3 million) in legal costs.

Berezovsky had claimed that Abramovich, the billionaire owner of Chelsea Football Club, cheated him out of his stakes in the oil group Sibneft, arguing that he blackmailed him into selling the stakes vastly beneath their true worth after he fell from Putin's good graces.

But a judge threw out the case in August, ruling that Berezovsky was a dishonest and unreliable witness, and rejected Berezovsky's claims that he was threatened by Putin and Alexander Voloshin, a Putin ally, to coerce him to sell his Sibneft stake.

It also recently emerged that Berezovsky ran up legal bills totaling more than 250,000 pounds in just two months of a case against his former partner, Elena Gorbunova, with whom he had two children and who claimed the businessman owed her millions.

Earlier this week, The Times of London newspaper reported that Berezovsky was selling property ? including an Andy Warhol portrait of the former Soviet Union leader Vladimir Lenin ? to settle his debts and pay expenses owed to lawyers.

News of Berezovsky's death has prompted conspiracy theories along with speculation as to his state of mind, given his recent financial setbacks.

Ilya Zhegulev, a journalist with the Russian edition of Forbes magazine, said he spoke with Berezovsky the day before he died and discussed the tycoon's decision to flee Russia in 2000.

The journalist quoted Berezovsky as saying that during his years in London life had lost meaning.

"I no longer want to be involved in politics," Zhegulev quoted Berezovsky as saying in a story published Saturday on the Forbes.ru website.

He said Berezovsky told him that he wanted nothing more than to return to Russia. The former oligarch said he had changed his views on Russia, saying he now understood that it should not look to Europe as a model.

"I had absolutely, idealistically imagined that it was possible to build a democratic Russia. And idealistically imagined what democracy was in the center of Europe. I underestimated the inertia of Russia and greatly overestimated the West. This took place gradually. I changed my understanding of Russia's path," he quoted Berezovsky as having said.

___

AP writer Lynn Berry in Moscow contributed to this report. Cassandra Vinograd can be reached at http://twitter.com/CassVinograd

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/police-no-sign-3rd-party-160914806.html

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Kerry in Iraq to press on Iran flights to Syria

BAGHDAD (AP) ? U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry is in Iraq on an unannounced visit to urge Iraqi leaders to stop Iranian overflights of arms and fighters heading to Syria and to overcome sectarian differences that still threaten Iraqi stability 10 years after the American-led invasion that toppled dictator Saddam Hussein.

Kerry flew into Baghdad on Sunday from Amman after accompanying President Barack Obama to Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Jordan.

Officials traveling with him said Kerry would press Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and other senior officials on democratic reforms and directly urge them to stop overflights of Iranian aircraft carrying military personnel and equipment to support the Syrian government as it battles rebels. Iran and Iraq both say the flights are laden with humanitarian supplies, but the U.S. and others believe they are filled with weapons and fighters to help the Assad regime.

The overflights have long been a source of contention between the U.S. and Iraq and Kerry will tell the Iraqis that allowing them to continue will make the situation in Syria worse and ultimately threaten Iraq's stability.

A senior U.S. official said the sheer number of overflights, which occur "close to daily," as well as overland shipments to Syria through Iraq from Iran, was inconsistent with claims they are only carrying humanitarian supplies. The official said it was in Iraq's interest to prevent the situation in Syria from deteriorating further, particularly as there are fears that al-Qaida-linked extremists may gain a foothold in the country as the Assad regime falters.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because she was not authorized to publicly preview Kerry's meetings, said there are clear links between al-Qaida linked extremists operating in Syria and militants who are carrying out terrorist attacks in Iraqi territory with increasing regularity.

A group of fighters in Syria known as Jabhat al-Nusra, a powerful offshoot of al-Qaida in Iraq, has claimed responsibility for most of the deadliest suicide bombings against regime and military facilities and, as a result, has gained popularity among some rebels.

However, the group has alienated secular-minded fighters, which is one reason the U.S. has not equipped the rebels with weapons. The Obama administration designated al-Nusra as a terrorist organization last December

Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton secured a pledge from Iraq to inspect the flights last year, but the official said that since then only two aircraft have been checked by Iraqi authorities.

Kerry will tell al-Maliki, a Shiite with close ties to Iran, that Iraq cannot be part of the political discussion about Syria's future until it clamps down on the Iranian shipments, the official said.

As Iraq approaches provincial elections next month, Kerry will also stress the importance of ensuring that all elements of society feel enfranchised, the official said. A recent decision to delay the polls in Anbar and Nineveh provinces is a "serious setback" to Iraq's democratic institutions and should be revisited, the official said.

In addition to al-Maliki, Kerry was seeing Iraqi parliament speaker parliament speaker Osama al-Nujaifi, a Sunni, whose faction is at odds with Maliki's Shiia. Kerry also plans to speak by phone with Massoud Barzani, the head of the Kurdish Regional Government based in Irbil to encourage the Kurds not go ahead with unilateral actions - especially involving oil, like a pipeline deal with Turkey.

He will stress the "importance of maintaining the unity of Iraq," say that "separate efforts undercut the unity of the country" and that "the Kurdish republic cannot survive financially without the support of Baghdad," the official said.

Kerry's visit to Iraq is the first by a U.S. secretary of state since Clinton went in 2009. During Obama's first term, the Iraq portfolio was largely delegated to Vice President Joe Biden.

Kerry's arrival came just three days after the anniversary of the U.S.-led war that began on March 20, 2003, with an airstrike on Dora Farms in southern Baghdad in a failed attempt to kill Hussein.

The invasion and toppling of Hussein sparked years of bloodshed as Sunni and Shiite militants battled U.S. forces and each other, leaving nearly 4,500 U.S. soldiers and more than 100,000 Iraqis dead.

Violence has ebbed sharply since the peak of Sunni-Shiite fighting that pushed the country to the brink of civil war in 2006 and 2007. But insurgents are still able to stage high-profile attacks, and sectarian and ethnic rivalries remain threats to the country's long-term stability.

Earlier this week, an al-Qaida in Iraq front group claimed responsibility nearly 20 attacks that killed 65 people across the country on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The Islamic State of Iraq said it unleashed the car bombs and other explosions to avenge the executions and "massacres" of convicted Sunni inmates held in Iraqi prisons. Its claim came on the 10th anniversary of the start of the war, although it made no reference to the significance of the date.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-03-24-Mideast-Kerry/id-4965828ca3884bd09390aa45d9ee1d28

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The Senate's Punchy, All-Night Budget Vote-A-Rama

The Senate?s vote-a-rama began shortly before 4 p.m., as former pre-school teacher Patty Murray warned her senatorial pupils about wandering off the floor.

?You leave at your own peril,? she said, the chairman of the Senate Budget Committee and master of these ceremonies.

Plenty wandered off anyway. The marathon voting session came, after all, on the eve of a two-week congressional recess and in the midst of the second night of March Madness basketball.

Even Sen. Mitch McConnell, the GOP leader who has mercilessly chastised Democrats for failing to put a budget on the floor for four years, admitted to splitting his attention between the floor proceedings and his home-state Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. ?Sen. McConnell cheering on #WKU from the U.S. Capitol tonight in between #budget votes. #GoTopps!? his office tweeted during the game. (They lost 57-64 to No. 1-ranked Kansas.)

Senators? shoulders slumped, tempers flared and Harry Potter even made a cameo in the congressional record as the voting dragged into the early Saturday hours.

As each roll call vote was taken, senators streamed from the sanctuary of their separate cloakrooms to cast votes for nonbinding budget amendments that ranged from the Keystone pipeline (backed by 62 senators, including 17 Democrats) to a carbon tax (overwhelmingly defeated) to instituting stricter sales tax collections on Internet purchases (it, too, passed).

By 6:30 in the evening, the second floor of the Capitol smelled of barbeque. A buffet was dished out in McConnell?s office, as Republican senators traipsed back and forth from the floor holding paper plates piled high with meat, cornbread, baked beans and salad.

For a while, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., decamped to a quiet hallway off the floor, whipping out her laptop to catch up on work. She was sure to return to the floor as the Senate took up a measure to express the chamber?s displeasure with federal subsidies for ?too big to fail? banks. There was no opposition but members wanted a recorded vote anyway.

It passed 99-0 and clapping erupted -- a big Senate no-no -- in the well of the chamber. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., pointed blame at Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Missouri. ?It was Schumer,? McCaskill pleaded innocently. (Both she and Schumer had clapped.)

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, thumbed through an iPad on the floor during one of many recorded tallies, perhaps unaware that one of Senate Republicans? favorite talking points in recent months has been that the iPad didn?t exist the last time Senate Democrats passed a budget.

At least he wasn?t making any noise. The volume on the floor kept steadily growing as Murray asked the chair to restore order. Around 10 p.m., Murray declared, ?I know there is alot of March Madness going on but I?d like to keep calm on the floor.? The chamber quieted briefly before returning to the mood and noise level of a cocktail party, befitting the late Friday night hour.

Even the leaders of the Senate budget warring -- Republican Sen. Jeff Sessions of Alabama and Murray -- stood together and laughed, at times. Just weeks earlier, Sessions had accused Murray of insinuating that he disliked poor people during a budget ?hearing related to welfare and food stamps.

Gillibrand was spotted showing off Friday?s New York Times, which featured a front-page story about the growing clout of women in the Senate. She flipped and pointed her colleagues to the story?s jump page, which just so happened to feature a prominent color photo of her. Meanwhile, Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, sat in his chair, reading a hardcover book in his newish black-framed hipster glasses.

Around 11 p.m., Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid came to the floor to praise the evening?s progress. ?We?re doing fine,? he said. ?We?re not at carnival stage yet. Let?s proceed and try to reach this with a lot of dignity.?

None of these late-night votes had any chance of making it into law. Instead, this marathon session was all about setting policy precedents and scoring political points ahead of the 2014 mid-term elections, when the Republicans hope to take back the Senate.

Senators loosened further as the clock ticked past midnight. Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, rose to oppose an amendment that defunded, in some way, a part of the president?s health care law, likening the GOP effort to tossing ?Harry Potter?s invisibility cloak? over the legislation. The amendment, one of multiple attempts to chip away at the health care?law during the vote-a-rama, failed by a voice vote.

Good humor was in shorter-supply around 1:30 a.m., as Republicans continued to demand more votes. ?Reid pulled off his glasses and rubbed his eyes during one exchange between Murray and Sessions. Murray pleaded with Republicans to consider the Senate?s ?elderly? members.

The amendments continued unabated.

By 3 a.m., Reid and Murray demanded that senators, like unruly schoolchildren, stay seated in their desks to speed up the process.

Republicans obliged, happy to be having their say on the floor, no matter the time.

?I?m glad we?re voting,? Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, had said a few hours earlier. ?It?s what the Senate should be doing every day.?

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/senates-punchy-night-budget-vote-rama-044418332--politics.html

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Obama ending Israel visit with symbolic stops

JERUSALEM (AP) ? Wrapping up a three day visit to Israel, President Barack Obama paid respects to its heroes and to victims of the Holocaust, solemnly reaffirming the Jewish state's right to exist.

Accompanied by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Shimon Peres, Obama laid wreaths at the graves of Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern Zionism who died in 1904 before realizing his dream of a Jewish homeland, and former Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, who was assassinated in 1995.

He also toured the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial, declaring after that the memorial illustrates the depravity to which man can sink but also serves as a reminder of the "righteous among the nations who refused to be bystanders."

Friday's stop at Herzl's grave, together with Thursday's visit to see the Dead Sea Scrolls, the ancient Hebrew texts, were symbolic stops for Obama that acknowledged that the rationale for Israel's existence rests with its historical ties to the region and with a vision that predated the Holocaust. Obama was criticized in Israel for his 2009 Cairo speech in which he gave only the example of the Holocaust as reason for justifying Israel's existence.

"Here on your ancient land, let it be said for all the world to hear," Obama said at Yad Vashem Friday, in a clear response to that criticism. "The state of Israel does not exist because of the Holocaust, but with the survival of a strong Jewish state of Israel, such a holocaust will never happen again."

Later in the day, Obama was traveling to Jordan where he planned to meet with King Abdullah II. Among the topics is Jordan's struggle with the influx of a half-million refugees from the Syrian civil war. Abdullah has voiced fears that extremists and terrorists could create a regional base in Jordan.

Before leaving for Jordan, Obama had lunch with Netanyahu and then took his motorcade to Bethlehem to visit the Church of the Nativity.

Obama had been scheduled to take a helicopter to Bethlehem but had to change plans due to unusually high winds.

About 300 Palestinians and international pilgrims gathered near the Nativity Church, awaiting Obama's arrival. But about 50 Palestinian demonstrators gathered on the main road with signs saying "Free Palestine."

At a nearby mosque, Mohammed Ayesh, a Muslim religious official in Bethlehem, issued a plea to Obama in a speech to worshippers: "America, where are your values? Where are the human rights? Isn't it time that you interfere to make it stop?"

Obama and his Israeli hosts arrived at the somber Herzl grave site under cloudless skies. Obama approached Herzl's resting place alone and bowed his head in silence. He turned briefly to ask Netanyahu where to place a small stone in the Jewish custom, then laid the stone atop the grave.

"It is humbling and inspiring to visit and remember the visionary who began the remarkable establishment of the State of Israel," Obama wrote in the Mt. Herzl guestbook. "May our two countries possess the same vision and will to secure peace and prosperity for future generations."

At Rabin's grave a short walk away, Obama was greeted by members of Rabin's family. He initially placed a stone on Rabin's wife's side of the grave, then returned to place one atop Rabin's side. In a gesture linking the U.S. and Israel, the stone placed on Rabin's grave was from the grounds of the Martin Luther King memorial in Washington, the White House said.

Rabin, Obama told family members, was "a great man."

Chatting with the family, Obama joked that "Bibi arranged for perfect weather," using Netanyahu's familiar name. He then added that "Shimon plied me with wine" at the official state dinner Thursday evening. At one point the talk turned to the singer who performed at the dinner, and Obama pointed out that he was known to sing, too. "They had me on YouTube," he said with a laugh. "Check it out -- Obama singing Al Green."

At Yad Vashem, Obama donned a skull cap and was accompanied by Rabbi Israel Meir Lau, a survivor of the Buchenwald Concentration camp who lost both parents in the Holocaust. Among his stops was Yad Vashem's Hall of Names, a circular chamber that contains original testimony documenting every Holocaust victim ever identified.

"Nothing could be more powerful," Obama said.

----

Associated Press writers Dalia Nammari in Bethlehem and Daniel Estrin contributed.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-ending-israel-visit-symbolic-stops-071847533--politics.html

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Lohan won't be charged for New York bar fight

By Alyssa Toomey, Baker Machado and Ken Baker, E! Online

Valerie Macon / Getty Images

Lindsay Lohan is off the hook for an alleged altercation with a woman in New York.

Lindsay Lohan may soon be headed to locked-down rehab, but she's legally off the hook for her New York City bar fight.

A source tells E! News the Manhattan D.A.'s office is dismissing its case against the embattled actress, and she will not face charges for her arrest stemming from her New York City nightclub brawl with Tiffany Mitchell back in November.?

Sources close to the investigation say the Manhattan D.A.'s Office will not prosecute LiLo because witnesses close to Mitchell failed to cooperate with the investigation. Specifically, they failed to speak with investigators.?

All the details on Lindsay's nightclub arrest?

In addition, sources say a surveillance video on the night of the fight was inconclusive. The video did not show Lindsay strike Mitchell, and the alleged victim tripped and fell when she was being escorted out of the club, so it is unclear as to what caused her injury.?

After Lohan's arrest, the psychic and apparent assault victim lawyered up with celebrity attorney Gloria Allred.?

Allred tells E! News, "Tiffany is very disappointed that the District Attorney has not decided to prosecute Lindsay."?

Lindsay Lohan (almost) returns to the scene of her 2011 necklace heist case?

She claims Tiffany had "two witnesses who spoke to the D.A. and corroborated what Tiffany alleged to have occurred."?

"The District Attorney has never told us that there was any issue about Tiffany's credibility," Allred said. "Nor did the District Attorney indicate that their office believed that what Tiffany reported was 'unfounded.'"?

Allred says her client is considering "all her legal options in the civil justice system because of what she suffered that night."?

LiLo has a new love interest?

"Tiffany has also been unfairly and inaccurately portrayed in the press," she told E! News. "She looks forward to responding in the future and to making sure that the full and accurate story of what happened that night is told."?

As for Lindsay's lawyer's response??

Her attorney Mark Heller tells E! News, "An alleged gypsy fortune teller tried to grasp her 15 minutes of fame by claiming that Lindsay Lohan assaulted her. Unfortunately, she was unable to see in her crystal ball that I would come to Lindsay's defense and present exculpatory evidence to the New York District Attorney's Office, which would facilitate and result in a determination by them to decline to prosecute Lindsay Lohan."?

Check out LiLo's latest mug shot!?

"This was the final legal hurdle to overcome and clear the path for Lindsay's freedom," he added. "Accordingly, no formal charges will be brought against Lindsay and her record will be cleared."?

Well, sort of.?

Check out the many mug shots of Lindsay Lohan?

Related content:

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Source: http://todayentertainment.today.com/_news/2013/03/22/17420464-lindsay-lohan-wont-be-charged-for-new-york-bar-fight?lite

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Universe is older than previously thought, new study shows

By Irene Klotz

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida | Thu Mar 21, 2013 4:08pm EDT

CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (Reuters) - Closer scrutiny of radiation left over from the creation of the universe shows the Big Bang took place about 13.8 billion years ago, 100 million years earlier than previous estimates, scientists said on Thursday.

The findings are among the first results from analysis of data collected by the European Space Agency's Planck spacecraft, which is providing the most detailed look to date at the remnant microwave radiation that permeates the universe.

This relic radiation was first detected in 1964 and later mapped by two NASA spacecraft - COBE, launched in 1989, and WMAP, which followed two years later. With even greater sensitivity, Planck has picked out details of tiny temperature variations in the so-called cosmic microwave background.

The fluctuations, which differ by only about 100-millionths of a degree, correspond to slightly more dense regions of space, places that later gave rise to the stars and galaxies that fill the universe.

"It's as if we've gone from a standard television to a high-definition television. New and important details have become crystal clear," Paul Hertz, NASA's director of astrophysics, told reporters on a conference call.

Overall, the new data fits well with existing models of how the universe evolved, but it presents some new puzzles as well.

"The variations from place to place in the map that Planck has made tell us new things about what happened just 10 nano-nano-nano-nano seconds after the Big Bang when the universe expanded by 100 trillion, trillion times," said Charles Lawrence, Planck project scientist with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif.

"We can see the subtle effects of gravitational pulls from literally everything in the universe."

Compared to the previous best measurements, the universe is a little older and, surprisingly, is expanding a little more slowly than currently accepted standards.

Plank's data also shows that ordinary matter - the stuff that makes up stars, galaxies, planets and everything visible - accounts for a relatively tiny 4.9 percent of the universe.

Dark matter, which does not interact with light but can be detected by its gravitational pull, comprises 26.8 percent of the universe, nearly one-fifth more than previous estimates.

The rest of the universe is dark energy, a mysterious and recently discovered force that defies gravity and is responsible for speeding up the universe's rate of expansion. New results from Planck show dark energy accounting for 69 percent of the universe, slightly less than previously estimated.

The research is the fruit of Planck's first 15 months on orbit. Additional information, including details of how the universe's early light was polarized, are expected next year.

(Editing by Kevin Gray and Todd Eastham)

Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/reuters/scienceNews/~3/xbI3UD2gxHk/story01.htm

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House approves resolution to keep government running; bill heads to White House (Washington Post)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories News, RSS and RSS Feed via Feedzilla.

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7 killed as explosion rocks Army depot in Nevada

A mortar explosion during a live-fire training exercise at an Army ammunitions depot in the Nevada desert has left at least six marines dead and others injured. NBC's Jim Miklaszewski reports.

By Jim Miklaszewski and Erin McClam, NBC News

Seven U.S. Marines were killed and at least seven wounded when a mortar exploded during a live-fire training exercise overnight at an Army munitions depot in the Nevada desert, military officials told NBC News.

There were conflicting reports about what happened. According to one account, a 60-millimeter mortar shell exploded in a tube as Marines were preparing to fire it. Another account said that the shell exploded as Marines were picking it up to load it.

The accident happened just before 10 p.m. Monday at Hawthorne Army Depot, a 230-square-mile ammunition storage and training facility just east of the California line.

The injured were taken to two hospitals. Stacy Kendall, a spokeswoman for Renown Regional Medical Center, a trauma center about 100 miles away in Reno, said the injuries included traumas and fractures.

The Marines were part of the 2nd Marine Division, a ground combat force based at Camp Lejeune, N.C.

The depot?s website says it is a training facility for the Army, Navy and Marines, including Special Operations forces preparing to deploy to the Middle East. The site says that the facility offers a ?realistic simulation of the situation in Afghanistan? because of the mountainous desert terrain.

A Marines spokesman said that the dead would be identified publicly 24 hours after their next of kin were notified.

?We send our prayers and condolences to the families of Marines involved in this tragic incident. We remain focused on ensuring that they are supported through this difficult time,? said Maj. Gen. Raymond C. Fox, commanding general of the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force, which includes the 2nd Division. ?We mourn their loss, and it is with heavy hearts we remember their courage and sacrifice.?

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who represents Nevada, offered condolences on the Senate floor. Nevada Sen. Dean Heller, a Republican, said on Twitter that ?thoughts and prayers are with the families who lost a loved one in the Hawthorne Army Depot explosion. Grateful for their service.?

Google Earth / Reuters

Hawthorne Army Depot in western Nevada is seen in this Aug. 30, 2010, satellite image courtesy of Google Earth.

This story was originally published on Tue Mar 19, 2013 8:13 AM EDT

Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/19/17370716-7-marines-killed-in-explosion-during-training-exercise-at-army-depot-in-nevada?lite

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Korg iPolysix (for iPad)

Korg saw the writing on the wall for virtual plug-in synthesizers early. While other manufacturers steadfastly held to manufacturing physical instruments, Korg branched off and began creating virtual emulations of its most popular models, including the MS-20, the Wavestation, and the venerable M1 workstation?of which I owned an actual example way back in 1988 when it was released. Like Arturia's iMini, Korg iPolysix ($29.99) is an emulation of a specific analog synthesizer?in this case, the popular six-voice Polysix from 1981, which was the first relatively affordable polyphonic synthesizer. Korg iPolysix brings almost all of the real Polysix's goodness to an iPad near you?and for far less than its original list price.

User Interface and Sound Quality
For this review, I tested Korg iPolysix version 1.1 on a 16GB, Wi-Fi-only Apple iPad 3; Korg recommends an iPad 2 or later, and says it's optimized to work well on an iPad mini. The main interface looks a lot like the original's front panel, albeit in a condensed form. ?There's a key difference, though: When you turn a dial, an overlay appears above it in amber that shows the exact value down to two decimal places, which is quite useful and makes precise adjustments easy.

Tap the lower left lever, and a larger keyboard pops up that lets you adjust the width of the keys and the octave positioning. You can also tap "Kaoss Pad," which switches the instrument keyboard out for a pair of X-Y trackpads similar to what Animoog and iMini offer, plus the ability to choose from 35 types of scales and modes. Under the hood is Korg's electronic circuit modeling technology, most of which is dedicated to emulating a real Polysix. The iPad version adds a velocity controlled high-pass filter and a few other niceties the original synth didn't have. There are also 28 different internal effects.

In practice, iPolysix sounds great. The real one wasn't the world's fattest-sounding analog synth to begin with, but it was certainly versatile and fun to program, and iPolysix captures the feel of the instrument nicely. That said, presets are a little stingy; you get just fifty, and, while many sound great, the overall selection isn't particularly inspired. To be sure, iPolysix is designed for people to get down and dirty with all of the on-screen knobs and buttons, but another 50 or 100 patches would have given new users more jump-off points with which to create their own sounds.

Production Environment and Conclusions
What really makes this app interesting, though, is that you also get more than a Polysix emulation. For starters, you actually get two Polysixes; you can load sounds into two separate instances of the Polysix, and then play or record from both simultaneously. Korg iPolysix also contains a miniature composition environment; in addition to the two synths, you get a six-track drum machine and an eight-channel mixer with virtual VU meters. There's also Polyseq, a step sequencer that's part of each Polysix instance, and is great for electronic-music-style pattern composition. You can string up to 32 patterns together per song, with tap tempo and swing quantization.

In practice, this is a fun environment to compose beats and hash out song ideas, as long as you're thinking electronic music and not, say, a blues band or orchestral film score?which is perfect given iPolysix's target audience.

The latest version 1.1 adds some new features, the biggest of which is Audiobus support, which lets you stack audio from multiple apps, or stream audio from one app to another for recording. The new version also supports virtual MIDI, another between-app synchronization protocol, plus Retina screens and iCloud backup. Finally, online sharing options include Polystage, Korg's SoundCloud-based online platform for sharing and remixing songs with other iPolysix users; it requires a SoundCloud account. You can also export .WAV files, sync up with other WIST (Wireless Sync-Start Technology) apps, and control iPolysix with a USB MIDI keyboard like the Samson Carbon 49.

Korg iPolysix is a great way to get a "real" analog synth in a portable package. While the app is expensive by iPad standards, it's unbelievably cheap when compared to buying a real Polysix off of the used market?not to mention keeping it in tune and in proper working order. It's also a heck of a lot lighter to carry, and that certainly counts for something. If you do want the fattest-sounding synth, you may want to look at Arturia iMini instead, although that app lacks iPolySix's multiple-synth functionality, as well as its step sequencers, mixer, and drum machine.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/0ZjCnrIZdNU/0,2817,2416661,00.asp

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CPAC: Why Marco Rubio could be the real winner (+video)

Marco Rubio came in a close second to Rand Paul in CPAC's presidential straw poll. But Florida's junior senator has a lot going for him as he?has morphed into a mainstream Republican favorite.

By Linda Feldmann,?Staff writer / March 17, 2013

Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at National Harbor, Md., March 14. Senator Rubio?s speech got the packed ballroom to its feet with an approach that was more inspirational than hard-edged.

Kevin Lamarque/REUTERS

Enlarge

Marco Rubio, the junior senator from Florida, came in second Saturday to Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul in the presidential straw poll at the big annual Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC.

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A brief review of CPAC speakers

But just barely. Senator Rubio got 23 percent to Senator Paul?s 25 ? the only two people to score in double digits of the 23 potential candidates on the ballot (plus 44 write-ins).

There are two big reasons to discount the poll: It?s unscientific and the 2016 presidential election is far away.

Some attendees didn?t bother to vote, they said, because they?re more focused on the 2014 midterms. And more than half (52 percent) of the 2,390 people who did vote were between the ages of 18 and 25 ? hardly typical of the Republican electorate, though reflective of CPAC?s success in attracting young people. Many of today?s college Republicans lean libertarian like Paul.

Still, Rubio can take heart from his performance in the first cattle call of the 2016 cycle. Though elected to the Senate in 2010 as a tea party darling (like Paul), he has morphed into a mainstream GOP favorite. Rubio?s CPAC speech wasn?t as pungent as Paul?s ? ?The GOP of old has grown stale and moss-covered,? the Kentuckyian said ? but he still got the packed ballroom to its feet Thursday with an approach that was more inspirational than hard-edged.

?We don't need a new idea,? Rubio said. ?There is an idea. The idea is called America, and it still works.?

Rubio also tossed in some red meat to social conservatives, defending traditional marriage, opposition to abortion, and skepticism on climate change. But he didn?t dwell on those topics, and on gay marriage, he occupied a middle ground, allowing that states have the right to define marriage how they wish.??

Rubio?s speech was mostly focused on the economy, and he sounded almost Obama-esque in his discussion of the middle class and education. He spoke of a family he knows that wants to reach the middle class, but with parents who lack the training for jobs that would get them there.

?They're not freeloaders. They're not liberals,? Rubio said, winning some laughs. ?They're just everyday people that want what everybody else wants?. They want a better life for themselves and an even better life for their children.?

Except for the slap at liberals, that could have been President Obama speaking. Rubio also played it safe on immigration, making no mention of the issue, his new support for a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, or his role in the Senate trying to forge a bipartisan consensus.

Paul?s posture was more that of an outsider, attacking Obama and the Washington establishment (of both parties), highlighting his recent 13-hour filibuster over drones, and issuing populist appeals to the young and libertarian-minded.

?Ask the Facebook generation whether we should put a kid in jail for the nonviolent crime of drug use, and you'll hear a resounding no,? Paul said. ?Ask the Facebook generation if they want to bail out too-big-to-fail banks with their tax dollars, and you'll hear a ?Hell no.? ?

He also tried to outdo House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, calling for a budget that reaches balance in five years. (Congressman Ryan?s budget gets there in 10.) And he called for elimination of the Department of Education, echoing President Ronald Reagan from 30 years ago.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/iOV1XMvtvAw/CPAC-Why-Marco-Rubio-could-be-the-real-winner-video

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