Mexico : Drug violence goes on[ 1149 ]

Mexican drug violence claims 24 lives in 24 hours

By Nick Valencia, CNN

May 2, 2010 11:09 p.m. EDT

Many of the recent drug-related slayings in the Mexican state of Chihuahua have occurred in public places.

(CNN) -- Drug violence in the Mexican state of Chihuahua left 24 people dead in the span of 24 hours this weekend, the state attorney general's office said Sunday.

The killings were scattered over four locations throughout the state, with eight dead in Juarez, 10 killed in the capital of Chihuahua, five killed in Cuauhtemuc and one killed in Parral.

All the slayings occurred in public places, with the killings in Cuauhtemuc occurring in a bar, said Carlos Gonzalez, a spokesman for the Chihuahua state attorney general.

The killings took place between Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning, Gonzalez said.

The victims -- all male -- ranged in age between 18 and 25 years old.

No other details about the killings or the victims were immediately available.

"This is an indicator of the incrementally increasing war between the two cartels battling for Juarez Plaza, the state's drug trafficking corridor," Gonzalez said, referring to an ongoing battle between the Sinaloa and Juarez cartels for dominance in the area. Juarez Plaza is a major thoroughfare through the area.

"I can't give you a reason why the violence is picking up the last week of April going into this month," Gonzalez added.

Some Mexican news organizations have reported that the Sinaloa Cartel had defeated the rival Juarez organization but Gonzalez said, "There is no winner to this war."

The spate of weekend killings followed another bloody week in the Ciudad Juarez area.

On Wednesday, at least 15 people were killed in drug-related violence in Juarez, authorities said.

The slayings included four people whose bodies were found at one location, another three -- one of them a woman -- who were found slain at a second location, and another eight victims who were killed at a bar, police spokesman Jacinto Seguro said.

On Tuesday, 10 people were killed, Seguro said, including three who were shot outside a supermarket. Another victim was killed outside a shopping mall.

In all, 25 people were killed between Tuesday and Wednesday, Seguro said.

Ciudad Juarez is the most violent city in Mexico, with more than 2,600 drug-related deaths in 2009. No official numbers are available for this year, but more than 500 killings have been reported by local media. Some reports have the figures as high as 810 in Juarez this year.

According to a report released in April by the Mexican government, Chihuahua state is Mexico's hardest-hit state by drug violence, with 6,757 people killed since the start of the drug war at the end of 2006.

Tennessee floods killed seven people...[ 1148 ]

Seven dead as record flooding engulfs Tennessee

By the CNN Wire Staff

May 2, 2010 7:54 p.m. EDT

Flood waters wash away property

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• More than 600 people were rescued from the water this weekend in Nashville
• Western two thirds of Tennessee has seen between 6 and 20 inches of rain since Saturday
• Flooding shut down portions of several interstates in Nashville
• Flood emergency issued Sunday for central Kentucky and south central Indiana

(CNN) -- Some of the worst flooding the mid-South has seen in decades has killed seven people in Tennessee, the state's emergency management agency said Sunday, with up to 20 inches of rain falling in parts of the state since Saturday and more expected Sunday evening.
The rains have washed out major roads, caused evacuations, and prompted dam failures. In Nashville, Tennessee, alone, more than 600 people were rescued from the water this weekend, Mayor Karl Dean said at a press conference Sunday afternoon.
iReport: Experiencing the Tennessee floods? Send photos, video
"All of our major creeks and the Cumberland River are near flood level, if not at flood level," Dean said, referring to the waterway that bisects Nashville. "The ground is entirely saturated, and the rain continues to fall. There's nowhere for the water to go."
The western two thirds of Tennessee has seen between 6 and 20 inches of rain since Saturday, with flooding spreading to Kentucky on Sunday.

Video: Nashville resident captures 'practically a class two rapids' on her neighborhood streets

Video: Flood washes away building

Video: Memphis streets under water

RELATED TOPICS

• Floods
• National Weather Service
• Tennessee

Dean said Sunday that more rain has fallen in Nashville in the last 24 hours than has ever been recorded in the city.
"We are still at this point in rescue stage and will be until the water begins to subside," he said.
Dean urged residents to stay home Sunday and, if they could, to skip work on Monday, when Nashville schools will be closed.
The floods shut down parts of several interstates around Nashville on Saturday and Sunday, including interstates 24, 40 and 65.
An emergency shelter set up at Nashville's Lipscomb University was at capacity with approximately 200 people, Dean said Sunday. The Red Cross reported approximately 400 people in 22 shelters throughout Tennessee.
The floods left 36,000 houses around Nashville without power on Sunday and led to the evacuation of three area nursing homes, affecting over 250 patients, Dean said.
While some streams around Nashville were starting to recede on Sunday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was planning to release dammed upstream water Sunday night, which could cause more flooding around Nashville, city emergency management chief Stephen Halford said.
The water needed to be released to keep the Army Corps equipment safe, Halford said.
The National Weather Service issued a civil emergency message Sunday to central and western Tennessee, telling people to stay off roads because too many are closed and people are getting stranded.
The National Weather Service also issued a flood emergency Sunday for much of central Kentucky -- where tens of thousands were trying to get home after this weekend's Kentucky Derby -- and in south central Indiana.
In Louisville, Kentucky, the National Turnpike and Gene Snyder Freeway were closed on Sunday.

In addition to flooding fatalities, one Tennessean died over the weekend in a tornado in Hardeman County, the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency said Sunday.

Home care to fight the " disorder"... [ 1147 ]

Kaleidoscope of the Heart: What we can learn from home care

Rika Kayama, Phsychiatrist

(Mainichi Japan) May 2, 2010

Imagine that one day you thought to yourself, "I'm not feeling well. Could it be depression?" and visited a psychiatrist. Imagine that the psychiatrist told you, "You'll need to stay at a hospital for treatment." What would you do?
Say you went along and entered the hospital, thinking to yourself, "Well, it will probably only be for a week or so," but instead you remain there for a half-year, then a year. You're let go from your job, your family complains, "We can't wait forever," and starts to drift away.
Though psychiatrists recommend hospitalization thinking it's for the good of their patients, the actual result can be that the patients' lives are changed dramatically for the worse.

In order to avoid such a tragic situation, there has been a large shift in recent times from inpatient-based care to outpatient-based care. Even today, however, many people being treated for psychological disorders remain in long-term hospital stays.

Against this background, one person, believing that care for psychological disorders ought to be done in the same place that we live our everyday lives, has started Japan's first treatment service specializing in at-home care. That person is Shunsuke Takagi, M.D., of Kyoto University.

Dr. Takagi has released a book describing the experiences of care staff who, attached to a local area, fight alongside families and patients to overcome psychological disorders. The name of the book is "Kokoro no Iryo, Takuhaibin" or "Treatment for the Heart, Home-Delivered."
In the home-care system, there is no hospitalization or even any hospital visits.

Caregivers visit the homes of patients, who needn't feel like "patients" at all. When doctors visit, they don't just ask the standard set of questions like in a hospital's examination room and leave; they stay for a chat. Of course, when necessary, patients may have to take prescribed drugs, but after the symptoms abate, caregivers, family, and patients continue spending time together.
They go for walks, shop together, and otherwise socialize. Patients can keep wearing the clothes they want and listening to the music they like. In recovery, "fighting the disorder" needn't be all-consuming.

When people find out they have psychological disorders, even serious ones, they shouldn't have to leave their home for a hospital away from their loved ones, nor should they have to live shut away in their home, an outcast from the world. As much as possible, they should be able to live just as they always have and receive the understanding and acceptance of their community. To bring this about, a tremendous amount of patience is required on the part of caregivers, but a society where those with psychological disorders can live normal lives is, surely, also a society that will give a sense of security and hope to those of us fortunate enough not to have disorders.
When I introduced Dr. Takagi's ideas at a university lecture, I saw the students' eyes light up with enthusiasm.
"It's hard work for the caregivers, but if I were to need help, I'd definitely want to try this kind of care."
"We should tell more and more people about this idea and spread it around the country!"
Already, there are young people who have been so inspired. Home care will help in moving away from the traditional "patient-and-doctor" relationship to one where those receiving treatment are respected as individuals with names, personalities and lives. There are many things we people of the current age should learn from that.

(By Rika Kayama, psychiatrist)

Iranian President, "persona non grata " [ 1146 ]

Persona non grata: NY prepares for Ahmadinejad

Iranian president provokes West once again, insists on making speech at nuclear NPT conference.
Republicans, Jews, other groups make effort to prevent his visit, boycott his speech

Yitzhak Benhorin
Published:     05.02.10, 20:22 / Israel News

WASHINGTON – The Iranian President's visits to New York are always a cause for tension.
Before arriving at the Big Apple for the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference, questions of who will agree to host him, who will remain in the event hall during his speech and how many protestors will gather outside begin to pop.
 
One of the organizations spearheading the public campaign to boycott Ahmadinejad's visit is United
Against Nuclear Iran (UANI), which has put pressure on 35 luxury hotels in New York to refuse to host the president and his entourage.

During Ahmadinejad's previous visit in September, several hotels refused to accommodate the Iranian delegation, and the president was forced to conduct all of his activities in one hotel.  

Ahmadinejad leaves for New York (Photo:AFP)

 UANI President Mark Wallace wrote a letter addressed to the owners of New York's largest hotels, in which he said no American body should host an illegal regime, and called to isolate and condemn the Iranian government. UANI has already recorded several successes when it managed to convince large companies to cut trade ties with Iran.

Meanwhile, several Republican senators appealed to the White House and demanded to prevent Ahmadinejad from landing in New York. 
However, the American administration – like its predecessor – is obliged to allow all UN member-states' representatives to visit the organization's headquarters and roam freely in a radius of up to 40 km (about 24 miles) from the UN building.
 'Visit will cause confusion'
The Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations was already preparing for Ahmadinejad's appearance at the UN plenum, and has requested UN ambassadors to leave the hall during the president's speech.
The organization will publish ads in major American newspapers, which urge UN ambassadors to boycott the speech.

The Christian Evangelistic organization, which is known to support Israel, published a statement calling on US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who is heading the American delegation at the conference, to also boycott Ahmadinejad's speech.

 
Despite the calls, the Iranian president is expected to address the conference Monday morning.
 
Earlier, Clinton commented on Ahmadinejad's visit and said it's clear that Iran is in violation of a treaty designed to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons. Clinton told NBC's "Meet the Press" that his trip is an effort to divert attention and confuse people about Iran's violation of the treaty.

 
She further said she did not see Iran's purpose in attending the NPT conference and expressed concern that Ahmadinejad would "somehow divert attention from this very important global effort or cause confusion that might possibly throw into doubt what Iran has been up to... I don't believe he will have a particularly receptive audience."

Παναθηναϊκός, γιορτή για το 8ο νταμπλ [ 1144 ]

ΠΑΝΑΘΗΝΑΪΚΟΣ: Γιορτή και χάπενινγκ για το 8ο νταμπλ

σχολιάστε και εσείς

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ΟΑΚΑ Κυριακη 2-5-2010,,

Φαντασμαγορία, χάπενινγκ, ωραίες θύμησες και βέβαια πολλά χαμόγελα. Ο Παναθηναϊκός γιόρτασε την Κυριακή στο κατάμεστο και καταπράσινο ΟΑΚΑ την κατάκτηση του 8ου νταμπλ στην ιστορία του, ολοκληρώνοντας με τον καλύτερο τρόπο μια σεζόν που τον έφερε ξανά στην πρωτοκαθεδρία μετά από έξι σεζόν. 

Το κλου στη σημερινή βραδιά ήταν ο τρόπος με τον οποίο έκανε την εμφάνιση της η κούπα του πρωταθλητή στην ειδικά διαμορφωμένη εξέδρα στο κέντρο του γηπέδου. Ενώ σύσσωμη η ομάδα του Παναθηναϊκού είχε πάρει την θέση της στην εξέδρα και ο κόσμος αδημονούσε να δει στα χέρια του Γιώργου Καραγκούνη το βαρύτιμο τρόπαιο, αυτό εμφανίστηκε με ειδικό μηχανισμό μέσα από το κέντρο της εξέδρας. 

Η απονομή ήταν το κορυφαίο γεγονός της βραδιάς και μετά ακολούθησε ο γύρος του θριάμβου, με τους οπαδούς των «πράσινων» να στέκονται στο ύψος των περιστάσεων και να μην μπαίνουν στο αγωνιστικό χώρο, σεβόμενοι την επιθυμία των παικτών να πανηγυρίσουν με την ψυχή τους την κατάκτηση του νταμπλ. Ο γύρος του θριάμβου ολοκληρώθηκε μπροστά από την θύρα 13, με τους παίκτες και τον πρόεδρο του Παναθηναϊκού να επιδίδονται στα γνωστά όλε.

Νωρίτερα, ο Τζιμπρίλ Σισέ είχε παραλάβει το βραβείο του πρώτου σκόρερ του πρωταθλήματος, γνωρίζοντας, όπως ήταν φυσικό, την αποθέωση από τους 55.000 χιλιάδες περίπου που βρέθηκαν στο ΟΑΚΑ. Στη συνέχεια ακολούθησε το φιλικό ανάμεσα στους «πράσινους»και τους άσπρους», με τους πρώτους να αναδεικνύονται νικητές με 2-1. Οι οπαδοί των «πρασίνων» είχαν την ευκαιρία να δουν ξανά αγωνιζόμενους παλιές δόξες της ομάδας και να τους χειροκροτήσουν θερμά.

Διαβάστε λεπτό προς λεπτό τι έγινε στην πράσινη φιέστα:
 
21:36- Ο γύρος του θριάμβου τελείωσε με τους παίκτες του παίκτες του Παναθηναϊκού, μαζί με τον Νικόλα Πατέρα να επιδίδονται στα καθιερωμένα όλε μπροστά από την θύρα 13. 
21:30- Οι παίκτες του νταμπλούχου Παναθηναϊκού πραγματοποιούν τον γύρο του θριάμβου στο ΟΑΚΑ υπό τους ήχους του ύμνου των «πράσινων». Οι οπαδοί της ομάδας σεβάστηκαν την επιθυμία των ποδοσφαιριστών και παρέμειναν στην θέση τους, χειροκροτώντας θερμά τους θριαμβευτές της φετινής χρονιάς. 
21:27- Ο αρχηγός του Παναθηναϊκού, Γιώργος Καραγκούνης σηκώνει στον ουρανό το πρωτάθλημα. Η κούπα εμφανίστηκε μπροστά στους παίκτες μέσω ενός ειδικού μηχανισμού που υπήρχε κάτω από την σκηνή. Οι παίκτες πανηγυρίζουν δεόντως την κατάκτηση του πρωταθλήματος και του κυπέλλου μετά από έξι χρόνια. 
21:25- Ο πρόεδρος του Παναθηναϊκού και της Σούπερ Λίγκα, Νίκος Πατέρας παίρνει κι αυτός τη θέση του στην εξέδρα.21:22- Σύσσωμη η ομάδα του Παναθηναϊκού, το τεχνικό και ιατρικό επιτελείο της ομάδας έχει ανέβει στην ειδική εξέδρα, με τελευταίους να ανεβαίνουν τον Νίκο Νιόπλια και τον Γιώργο Καραγκούνη. 
21:05- Οι παίκτες του Παναθηναϊκού ανεβαίνουν ένας ένας στην ειδικά διαμορφωμένη εξέδρα για την απονομή του πρωταθλήματος. Πρώτος έκανε την εμφάνισή του ο Αλέξανδρος Τζόρβας.  
20:47- Τα φώτα σβήνουν στο ΟΑΚΑ και στα μάτριξ προβάλλονται στιγμιότυπα από την φετινή σεζόν. Όλοι στο γήπεδο περιμένουν την απονομή του πρωταθλήματος. Οι οπαδοί του Παναθηναϊκού δημιουργούν μια εντυπωσιακή ατμόσφαιρα στις εξέδρες. 
20:42- Τελείωσε το φιλικό με νικητές τους «πράσινους». Στο δεύτερο ημίχρονο δεν σημειώθηκε κάποιο τέρμα.  
20:09- Ο Τζιμπρίλ Σισέ μειώνει σε 2-1 για τους «άσπρους» στο 18'. 
20:01- Ο Δημήτρης Σαραβάκος έγραψε το 2-0 στο 10' για τους «πράσινους».  
19:52- Ανοιξε το σκορ στο φιλικό για την ομάδα των «πράσινων» ο Αντώνης Πετρόπουλος στο 3'. 
19:50- Ξεκίνησε το φιλικό ανάμεσα σε «πράσινους» και «λευκούς». 
19:42- Από τα μάτριξ του γηπέδου προβάλλονται βίντεο από την καριέρα των παλιών άσων του Παναθηναϊκού κατά την διάρκεια της παρουσίασης των «άσπρων» και των «πράσινων».  
19:39 - Η γυναικεία ομάδα του βόλεϊ που κατέκτησε το νταμπλ κάνει την εμφάνισή της στον αγωνιστικό χώρο μαζί με τον Θανάση Γιαννακόπουλο και κάνει τον γύρο του θριάμβου με το φετινό Κύπελλο και το περσινό πρωτάθλημα(το φετινό δεν έχει ακόμη απονεμηθεί). Τα κορίτσια του Τάκη Φλώρου γνώρισαν την αποθέωση από τους 55.000 περίπου φίλους του Παναθηναϊκού.

19:36 - Ο Τζιμπρίλ Σισέ αποθεώθηκε από τον κόσμο κατά την διάρκεια της απονομής του βραβείου του πρώτου σκόρερ του πρωταθλήματος από την Adidas. «Δεν το περίμενα, είμαι πολύ συγκινημένος», τόνισε ο Γάλλος επιθετικός στην κάμερα της Nova.

Οι συνθέσεις των δύο επίλεκτων ομάδων:
ΑΣΠΡΟΙ (Μίμης Δομάζος): Τζόρβας, Οικονομόπουλος, Γκαλίνοβιτς, Βονόρτας, Βύντρα, Καντέ, Σεϊταρίδης, Δάρλας, Μπιάρσμιρ, Πατσιαβούρας, Αθανασόπουλος, Σιμάο, Μαραγκός, Κλέιτον, Λιβαθηνός, Μαρίνος, Αντωνίου, Σισέ, Λέτο, Σαλπιγγίδης, Ρουκάβινα, Ζιλμπέρτο Σίλβα, Ρότσα.

ΠΡΑΣΙΝΟΙ (Γιώργος Καραγκούνης): Καρνέζης, Κωνσταντίνου, Βάντσικ, Ταράσης, Σαριέγκι, Αποστολάκης, Χένρικσεν Σπυρόπουλος, Γκάμπριελ, Καψής, Γονιός, Ζάετς, Νίνης, Κατσουράνης, Φραντζέσκος, Φυλακούρης, Νιόπλιας, Μαρίνος, Μαυρίδης, Πετρόπουλος, Χριστοδουλόπουλος, Βαζέχα, Σαραβάκος.