NEW YORK: Two firefighters were shot dead and two others wounded in New York state on Monday when at least one gunman opened fire as the emergency personnel responded to a blaze, local media reported.
The incident -- which comes as debate rages in the United States about gun control following the Newtown school massacre -- happened in Webster, a suburb of Rochester, the Democrat and Chronicle newspaper reported, citing officials.
- AFP/xq
Nokia House in Espoo, Finland.
Nokia's rumored
tablet looks closer to coming to fruition.
Nokia plans to launch its Windows RT-powered tablet early next year, according to the Verge, which has a few details on the rumored device.
The tablet will be paired up with a special keyboard cover that will have its own battery, allowing it to run as an auxiliary power supply. The keyboard cover will also come with a kickstand for the tablet, and will envelop the device like a book, according to the report. The tablet will have HDMI and USB ports, a cellular connection, and boasts a 10.1-inch display like the Microsoft Surface. AT&T will reportedly be the first carrier partner to sell the device.
CNET contacted Nokia for comment, and we'll update the story when we get a response. AT&T declined to comment on the story.
A tablet would mark a significant expansion for Nokia, which has pared down many of its side projects and focused largely on its core smartphone business and the development of its Windows Phone-powered Lumia product line. The company has seen its market share in the business tumble as it works to turn itself around.
Windows RT, a stripped down version of
Windows 8 capable of utilizing more power efficient chips used in other smartphones and tablets, hasn't shown to be that popular with consumers. Surface has been the most notable product to use that version of Microsoft's new operating system, but it likewise has seem limited demand.
It's unclear what Nokia can really bring to the table to get consumers to start looking at Windows-powered tablets. Consumers have so far flocked to Apple's iPad, or the array of lower-priced
Android tablets from Amazon and Google.
Nokia is reportedly building a small number of tablets to start, and may debut the product at Mobile World Congress in late February. In November, a Nokia executive said the company would have a tablet running on Windows 8.
Even as Indian Prime Minster Manmohan Singh appealed for calm after violent weekend protests over the brutal gang rape of a 23-year-old woman in New Delhi, police in the nation's capital were enforcing a complete clampdown.
Prime Minister Singh urged calm and vowed to protect women as police struggled Monday to quell increasing outrage over sex crimes, following the gang-rape of a student on a bus on Dec. 16.
"There is genuine and justified anger and anguish at this ghastly incident," Singh said in a televised speech."
"We are constantly monitoring her medical condition. Let us all pray for her and her loved ones during this critical time" Singh added.
In light of the protests, the venue of the meeting between Singh and visiting Russian President Vladimar Putin was shifted to the prime minister's residence.
Usually, such meetings are held in Hyderabad House, which is close to India Gate, the scene of protests in the last two days.
The entire central square of India Gate circle and Raisina Hill was cordoned off and a heavy police presence was being maintained on all roads leading to India Gate and other areas of central New Delhi, in an effort to keep protestors away.
Media members have been asked to keep away from the area, to try to stop relentless coverage of the protests.
Earlier in the morning, a number of protesters who had stayed put at India Gate were cleared out. The young demonstrators, who spent a chilly night in the open after they fought a pitched battle with police throughout Sunday, were put on a bus by police.
The government also announced the establishment of a special committee made up of former judges to look into possible changes in the law to provide for quicker trials for suspects and enhanced punishment for those convicted of sexual assault of an extreme nature against women.
Meanwhile, the victim was put back on the ventilator as she battled for her life at a local hospital. Her condition remained critical, though she was conscious and communicating. Her platelet condition has dipped further -- an indication of infection.
Dec 23, 2012 11:23am
(ABC News)
National Rifle Association board member and president of Americans for Tax Reform Grover Norquist said on Sunday that President Obama and Democrats are politicizing the Newtown tragedy by pushing for gun control.
“We ought to calm down and not take tragedies like this, crimes like this, and use them for political purposes,” Norquist told me on “This Week.” “President Obama has been president for four years. If he thought some gun control could solve this problem, he should have been pushing it years ago.”
“Democrats had a majority in the House and a supermajority in the House and the Senate for the first two years that they were in office. If they thought that this was really an important issue they might have done something then. They didn’t,” he added.
Read a full transcript of this week’s show HERE.
On Wednesday, Obama announced that Vice President Joe Biden would head a task force of leaders from across the country to evaluate solutions to reduce gun violence.
Norquist endorsed the recommendation made by NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre at a press conference on Friday to place armed guards in schools across the country.
Other members of the political roundtable pushed for what they called “common sense” gun laws.
Like “This Week” on Facebook here. You can also follow the show on Twitter here.
Newark, N.J. Mayor Cory Booker, who is a member of the pro-gun control group Mayors Against Illegal Guns, said that there is more agreement than disagreement on measures to stop the mentally ill and criminals from acquiring weapons.
“I don’t think anyone has seen someone shot—I have,” Booker said. “I don’t know if anybody here has had to put their hand in somebody’s chest, and try to stop the bleeding so that person doesn’t die—I have. What frustrates me about this debate is that it is a false debate.”
“Most of us in America including gun owners agree on things that would stop the kind of carnage that is going on in cities all across America,” Booker said, adding that loopholes that allow criminals to buy guns in “secondary markets” should be closed.
Get more pure politics at ABC News.com/Politics and a lighter take on the news at OTUSNews.com.
Wall Street Journal columnist Peggy Noonan said that LaPierre’s suggestion that the effect of a violent culture on the mentally ill has contributed to increased gun violence, but she believes that Congress should pursue some gun control measures.
“I am for the banning of the extended magazines and extended clips,” Noonan said.
Editor and Publisher of The Nation Katrina vanden Heuvel said that focusing on the mentally ill is a distraction from the issue of gun violence.
“The mental illness argument has been used to evade action,” vanden Huevel said. “More guns and bullets, more dead children.”
CAIRO (Reuters) - An Islamist-backed Egyptian constitution won approval in a referendum, rival camps said on Sunday, after a vote the opposition said would sow deep social divisions in the Arab world's most populous nation.
The Islamist Muslim Brotherhood, which propelled President Mohamed Mursi to power in a June election, said an unofficial tally showed 64 percent of voters backed the charter after two rounds of voting that ended with a final ballot on Saturday.
An opposition official also told Reuters their unofficial count showed the result was a "yes" vote, while party spokesmen said there had been a series of abuses during the voting.
The main opposition coalition, the National Salvation Front, responded to the defeat by saying it was moving towards forming a single political party to challenge the Islamists who have dominated the ballot box since strongman Hosni Mubarak was overthrown two years ago.
Members of the opposition, taking heart from a low turnout of about 30 percent of voters, pledged to keep up pressure on Mursi through peaceful protests and other democratic means.
"The referendum is not the end of the road," said Khaled Dawoud, a spokesman for the National Salvation Front. "It is only the beginning of a long struggle for Egypt's future."
The referendum committee may not declare official results for the two rounds until Monday, after hearing appeals. If the outcome is confirmed, a parliamentary election will follow in about two months.
Mursi's Islamist backers say the constitution is vital for the transition to democracy, nearly two years after Mubarak was ousted in a popular uprising. It will provide the stability needed to help a fragile economy, they say.
The constitution was "a historic opportunity to unite all national powers on the basis of mutual respect and honest dialogue for the sake of stabilizing the nation," the Brotherhood said in a statement.
RECIPE FOR UNREST
The opposition accuses Mursi of pushing through a text that favors Islamists and ignores the rights of Christians, who make up about 10 percent of the population, as well as women. They say it is a recipe for further unrest.
The opposition said voting in both rounds was marred by abuses. However, an official said the overall vote favored the charter.
"The majority is not big and the minority is not small," liberal politician Amr Hamzawy said, adding that the National Salvation Front would use "all peaceful, democratic means" such as protests to challenge the constitution.
The vote was split over two days as many judges had refused to supervise the ballot, making a single day of voting impossible.
During the build-up to the vote there were deadly protests, sparked by Mursi's decision to award himself extra powers in a November 22 decree and then to fast-track the constitutional vote.
The new basic law sets a limit of two four-year presidential terms. It says the principles of sharia, Islamic law, remain the main source of legislation but adds an article to explain this. It also says Islamic authorities will be consulted on sharia - a source of concern to Christians and others.
ABUSES
Rights groups reported what they said were illegalities in voting procedures. They said some polling stations opened late, that Islamists illegally campaigned at some polling places, and complained of irregularities in voter registration.
But the committee overseeing the two-stage vote said its investigations showed no major irregularities in voting on December 15, which covered about half of Egypt's 51 million voters. About 25 million were eligible to vote in the second round.
The Brotherhood said turnout was about a third of voters.
The opposition says the constitution will stir up more trouble on the streets since it has not received sufficiently broad backing for a document that should be agreed by consensus, and raised questions about the fairness of the vote.
In the first round, the district covering most of Cairo voted "no," which opponents said showed the depth of division.
"I see more unrest," said Ahmed Said, head of the liberal Free Egyptians Party and a member of the opposition Front.
He cited "serious violations" on the first day of voting, and said anger against Mursi was growing. "People are not going to accept the way they are dealing with the situation."
At least eight people were killed in protests outside the presidential palace in Cairo this month. Islamists and rivals clashed in Alexandria, the second-biggest city, on the eves of both voting days.
(Writing by Edmund Blair and Giles Elgood; editing by Philippa Fletcher)
WASHINGTON: Tens of thousands of petitioners are calling for US President Barack Obama to escalate the diplomatic feud that led Moscow to propose a law barring Americans from adopting Russian children.
Two petitions on the White House web site are asking for US sanctions on the Russian lawmakers who help pass the law that one of the petitions says will "jeopardize lives and well-being of thousands of Russian orphans."
Moscow sees the ban on adoptions as retaliation for a US human rights law that allows the seizure of assets from Russian officials implicated in the 2009 death of a Russian lawyer who blew the whistle on a US$235 million police embezzlement scheme.
Under the US law -- dubbed the Magnitsky Act in tribute to the late lawyer -- those same officials would also be barred from entering the United States.
More than 37,000 people have signed one of the petitions saying they are "outraged with the actions of Russian law-makers."
According to the White House rules, there will be an official response if the petition reaches 25,000 signatures within 30 days.
These lawmakers "breached all imaginable boundaries of humanity, responsibility, or common sense and chose to jeopardize lives and well-being of thousands of Russian orphans, some of whom, the ill and the disabled ones, now might not have a chance of survival if the ban on international adoption is to be put in place," the petition continues.
The petitioners "urge this Administration to identify those involved in adopting such legislature responsible under 'Magnitsky Act' and thus included to the relevant list."
Likewise, a second petition, signed by more than 5,000 people, asks that the Magnitsky Act "be extended to supporters of this law in (the) Russian Duma."
The Duma passed the adoption ban without debate in a quick 420-7 vote on Friday as protesters picketed the building demanding the measure be voted down.
The Kremlin-dominated upper house is now expected to approve the bill next Wednesday before passing it on to President Vladimir Putin for his signature.
The Russian leader has indicated he is ready to put his name on the measure so that it could enter law on January 1.
The measure, which underscores the severity of the recent strain in Russia-US ties, would end about 1,000 adoptions a year.
Caregivers in particular fear the new rules will hit the most disadvantaged children because foreign adoptive parents are often ready to adopt kids rejected by Russian families.
- AFP/xq
Pro-Ject Stereo Box S
I've long admired Pro-Ject turntables, but I was only vaguely aware of their electronics line so it was high time to check out one of their amplifiers. I requested their baby amp, the Stereo Box S ($299). It's the smallest power amp I've ever seen, a mere 4.1 by 1.4 by 4.8 inches, and the build quality of its all-metal chassis felt robust. The amp is available in silver or black finishes. A remote control adjusts volume and switches between two RCA inputs. The gold-plated speaker binding posts are really pretty small, and so closely spaced it's nearly impossible to connect bare wires to the amp. I finally managed it, but it took a few minutes to squeeze my fingers into the space. If you have banana plugs, use them instead of bare wires.
The Stereo Box S was designed in Vienna, Austria and built in the Czech Republic, with audiophiles in mind. That's a different mindset from what I see with most budget amps. The Stereo Box S actually sounds pretty good, like a mini-audiophile amp should. The Stereo Box line includes tuners, power amps, headphone amps, digital-to-analog converters,
iPod docs, media players, and so on.
I did the bulk of my listening on my desktop, with the Pro-Ject Speaker Box 5 (speakers). The tonal balance is pretty flat, not bumped up or hyped in any way. That's another way of saying the amp and speakers sound crisp and clear with a wide range of music genres, but the bass was lightweight. If you crave a big, bassy sound, plan on adding a sub. The Stereo Box S amp is rated at 30 watts per channel, but it definitely doesn't sound that powerful. On the desktop, sitting 30 inches from the speakers, their power was adequate, but when I moved the amp out into the room with the same speakers, the sound didn't impress. Back on the desktop volume wasn't an issue. I think the amp is better than the Pro-Ject speakers, and if desktop space is really limited the Stereo Box S is a no-brainer.
(CBS News) 'Tis the Season for "A Christmas Story," the 1983 film whose memorable story is being re-told on Broadway. Mo Rocca sets the stage:
If "Miracle on 34th Street" and "It's a Wonderful Life" are the frankinscense and myrrh of Christmas movies, then the gold may very well be 1983's "A Christmas Story."
If you haven't seen "A Christmas Story," well, it's the tale of 12-year-old Ralphie Parker. Set in 1940s Indiana, it's something of a cockeyed look at Christmas.
Peter Billingsley, as Ralphie, can't get a break in expressing his Christmas wish for a Red Ryder BB gun - not even from Santa! - in the 1983 movie "A Christmas Story."
Ralphie's dad obsesses over a leg lamp he won in a contest. ("It reminds me of the Fourth of July!") A pack of dogs makes off with Christmas dinner. And Santa is anything but jolly.
"I've read where you've called it the 'Seinfeld' of Christmas movies - what do you mean by that?" asked Rocca.
"Well, in some ways it's the commitment to the mundane," said 41-year-old Peter Billingsley. If he looks familiar, that's because he played Ralphie.
"It's those simple little things that drive you crazy around Christmas. It's not the big ideas. It's, you know, trying to get the tree and trying to get your little brother to eat, trying to cook a turkey, all those things."
Now Billingsley is one of the producers of "A Christmas Story" - the Broadway musical.
Twelve-year-old Johnny Rabe plays Ralphie, and 10-year old Zac Ballard is Ralphie's younger brother Randy - the one who memorably pigged out on mashed potatoes.
"I never want a stunt man to do that," Ballard said.
"What's your motivation?" Rocca asked.
"What do you mean by 'motivation'?"
"I don't even know what I'm asking," he replied. "Whatever you're doing, it's great."
This family favorite was originally a series of stories by radio commentator Jean Shepherd in, of all places, Playboy magazine.
The stories became a book, which then became a movie.
When asked what the number one thing is people say when they come up, Billingsley said, "'That's my family' or 'You were me' or 'That's my mom,' 'That was my dad.' And it seems like that Midwest area is relatable to everyone in the country. It feels kind of like everyone's street."
The movie wasn't a box office hit, but then cable TV turned it into one of the greatest comeback stories ever told. A 24-hour marathon on TBS, watched by almost 50 million people last year, has been playing since 1997 - making it the yule log of Christmas movies.
Fans of the film, known as "Ralphies," include Brian Jones.
In 2004 he found on eBay the Cleveland house used as Ralphie's home. He bought it sight unseen. He did not tell his wife.
The "Christmas Story House & Museum" in Cleveland Ohio, where the 1983 movie was filmed.
"How long did it take for your wife to forgive you?" Rocca asked.
"The day I opened it" as a museum, Jones said. "When she saw we had a line down the block, like four or five people wide. Then she realized I wasn't as crazy as I seemed."
Open to the public since 2006, the home is a shrine to Ralphie, with pilgrims lining up around the block to visit.
There's a leg lamp in the window, and a kitchen sink visitors can hide under, just like Randy did.
"People will try and squeeze there. I can fit under there. I'm 6'3", about 200 pounds. So I still fit."
That is what you call a super fan.
Jones helped pay for the house by selling - you guessed it - leg lamps.
Of course, the leg lamp also made it into the Broadway musical, along with a show-stopping tap-dance number.
And if the young cast of the musical is any indication, "A Christmas Story" still has legs.
When asked who had seen the movie before they appeared in the musical,many members of the kids' ensemble raised their hands.
Mo Rocca meets members of the cast of "A Christmas Story" on Broadway.
"Tell the truth - was there anyone here who really wasn't a fan of the movie?" Rocca asked.
Jeremy raised his hand: "I'm Jewish!"
When asked what he thought the message of the movie was, Luke said, "It's one big family that's crazy and then at the end, and they all say it's crazy, but it comes to one thing called love."
Zach offered another take: "It's also a heartwarming story. I think it's the best Christmas story ever!"
For more info:
John Boehner is a bloodied House speaker following the startling setback that his own fractious Republican troops dealt him in their "fiscal cliff" struggle against President Barack Obama.
There's plenty of internal grumbling about the Ohio Republican, especially among conservatives, and lots of buzzing about whether his leadership post is in jeopardy. But it's uncertain whether any other House Republican has the broad appeal to seize the job from Boehner or whether his embarrassing inability to pass his own bill preventing tax increases on everyone but millionaires is enough to topple him.
"No one will be challenging John Boehner as speaker," predicted John Feehery, a consultant and former aide to House GOP leaders. "No one else can right now do the job of bringing everyone together" and unifying House Republicans.
The morning after he yanked the tax-cutting bill from the House floor to prevent certain defeat, Boehner told reporters he wasn't worried about losing his job when the new Congress convenes Jan. 3.
"They weren't taking that out on me," he said Friday of rank-and-file GOP lawmakers, who despite pleading from Boehner and his lieutenants were shy of providing the 217 votes needed for passage. "They were dealing with the perception that somebody might accuse them of raising taxes."
Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo
That "somebody" was a number of outside conservative groups such as the Club for Growth and Heritage Action for America, which openly pressured lawmakers to reject Boehner's bill. Such organizations often oppose GOP lawmakers they consider too moderate and have been headaches for Boehner in the past.
This time, his retreat on the tax measure was an unmistakable blow to the clout of the 22-year House veteran known for an amiable style, a willingness to make deals and a perpetual tan.
Congressional leaders amass power partly by their ability to command votes, especially in showdowns. His failure to do so Thursday stands to weaken his muscle with Obama and among House Republicans.
"It's very hard for him to negotiate now," said Sarah Binder, a George Washington University political scientist, adding that it's premature to judge if Boehner's hold on the speakership is in peril. "No one can trust him because it's very hard for him to produce votes."
She said the loss weakens his ability to summon support in the future because "you know the last time he came to you like this, others didn't step in line."
Boehner, 63, faces unvarnished hostility from some conservatives.
"We clearly can't have a speaker operate well outside" what Republicans want to do, said freshman Rep. Tim Huelskamp, R-Kan.
Huelskamp is one of four GOP lawmakers who lost prized committee assignments following previous clashes with party leaders. That punishment was an anomaly for Boehner, who is known more for friendly persuasion than arm-twisting.
He said Boehner's job would depend on whether the speaker is "willing to sit and listen to Republicans first, or march off" and negotiate with Obama.
Conservative Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, said one of the tea party's lasting impacts would be if Boehner struggled to retain his speakership due to the fight over the fiscal cliff, which is the combination of deep tax increases and spending cuts that start in early January without a bipartisan deal to avert them.
"If there's a major defeat delivered here, it could make it tough on him," King said. "He's in a tough spot."
CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt extended voting by four hours on Saturday in the second and decisive round of a referendum that was expected to approve the country's new Islamist-drafted constitution after weeks of protests and violence.
Islamist supporters of President Mohamed Mursi, who was elected in June, say the charter is vital to move Egypt towards democracy, nearly two years after an Arab Spring revolution overthrew authoritarian ruler Hosni Mubarak.
It will help restore the stability needed to fix an economy that is on the ropes, they say.
But the opposition says the document is divisive and has accused Mursi of pushing through a text that favors his Islamist allies while ignoring the rights of Christians, who make up about 10 percent of the population, as well as women.
"I'm voting 'no' because Egypt can't be ruled by one faction," said Karim Nahas, 35, a stockbroker, heading to a polling station in Giza, a province included in this round of voting which covers parts of greater Cairo.
At another polling station, some voters said they were more interested in ending Egypt's long period of political instability than in the Islamist aspects of the charter.
"We have to extend our hands to Mursi to help fix the country," said Hisham Kamal, an accountant.
Queues formed at some polling stations around the country and voting was extended by four hours to 11 p.m. (2100 GMT).
Unofficial tallies are likely to emerge within hours of the close, but the referendum committee may not declare an official result for the two rounds until Monday, after hearing appeals.
CHEATING ALLEGED
As polling opened on Saturday, a coalition of Egyptian rights groups reported a number of alleged irregularities.
They said some polling stations had opened late, that Islamists urging a "yes" vote had illegally campaigned at some stations, and complained of irregularities in voter registration irregularities, including the listing of one dead person.
The first round of voting last week resulted in a 57 percent vote in favor of the constitution, according to unofficial figures.
Analysts expect another "yes" on Saturday because the vote covers rural and other areas seen as having more Islamist sympathizers. Islamists may also be able to count on many Egyptians who are simply exhausted by two years of upheaval.
Among the provisions of the new basic law are a limit of two four-year presidential terms. It says the principles of sharia law remain the main source of legislation but adds an article to explain this further. It also says Islamic authorities will be consulted on sharia - a source of concern to Christians and other non-Muslims.
If the constitution is passed, a parliamentary election will be held in about two months. If not, an assembly will have to be set up to draft a new one.
After the first round of voting, the opposition said a litany of alleged abuses meant the first stage of the referendum should be re-run.
But the committee overseeing the two-stage vote said its investigations showed no major irregularities in voting on December 15, which covered about half of Egypt's 51 million voters.
There was no indication on Saturday that the alleged abuses were any worse than those claimed during the first round.
MORE UNREST
Even if the charter is approved, the opposition say it is a recipe for trouble since it has not received broad consensus backing from the population. They say the result may go in Mursi's favor but it will not be the result of a fair vote.
"I see more unrest," said Ahmed Said, head of the liberal Free Egyptians Party and a member of the National Salvation Front, an opposition coalition formed after Mursi expanded his powers on November 22 and then pushed the constitution to a vote.
Protesters accused the president of acting like a pharaoh, and he was forced to issue a second decree two weeks ago that amended a provision putting all his decisions above legal challenge.
Said cited "serious violations" on the first day of voting, and said anger against Mursi and his Islamist allies was growing. "People are not going to accept the way they are dealing with the situation."
At least eight people were killed in protests outside the presidential palace in Cairo this month. Islamists and rivals clashed on Friday in the second biggest city of Alexandria, hurling stones at each other. Two buses were torched.
The head of the Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist group that represents Mursi's power base, said the vote was an opportunity for Egypt to move on.
"After the constitution is settled by the people, the wheels in all areas will turn, even if there are differences here and there," the Brotherhood's supreme guide, Mohamed Badie, said as he went to vote in Beni Suef, south of Cairo.
"After choosing a constitution, all Egyptians will be moving in the same direction," he said.
The vote was staggered after many judges refused to supervise the ballot, meaning there were not enough to hold the referendum on a single day nationwide.
The first round was won by a slim enough margin to buttress opposition arguments that the text was divisive. Opponents who include liberals, leftists, Christians and more moderate-minded Muslims accuse Islamists of using religion to sway voters.
Islamists, who have won successive ballots since Mubarak's overthrow, albeit by narrowing margins, dismiss charges that they are exploiting religion and say the document reflects the will of a majority in the country where most people are Muslim.
(Additional reporting by Tamim Elyan; Writing by Edmund Blair and Giles Elgood; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)
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