News Headlines (101) 21 December 2012

► Mayan Ceremony Marks End of Calendar Cycle. Published on Dec 20, 2012 :: A traditional Mayan ceremony at Guatemala's Temple of the Giant Jaguar marked the end of a cycle on the ancient Mayan calendar. The calendar has sparked numerous doomsday theories, although other Mayan calendars stretch far into the future. (Dec. 21)



► Boston Student Wins Miss Universe.  Published on Dec 20, 2012 ::  Boston University student Olivia Culpo was crowned Miss Universe Wednesday night in Las Vegas. She talks about almost tripping in her evening gown, the question she was asked by the judges, and comments on the Newtown tragedy. (Dec. 20)


► Biden: 'We Have to Take Action' on Gun Control.  Published on Dec 20, 2012 :: Vice President Joe Biden says the Obama administration is 'absolutely committed' to curbing gun violence in the United States and will push to tighten gun laws in response to last week's schoolhouse massacre in Connecticut. (Dec. 20) (VIDEO) 

► Boehner: Obama Not Standing Up to Democrats.  Published on Dec 20, 2012 :: House Speaker John Boehner says President Barack Obama is not standing up to his fellow Democrats as the clock ticks down on the dispute over the "fiscal cliff." (Dec. 20) (VIDEO)

► Susan Rice 'political liability for US administration'. Published on Dec 13, 2012 :: Susan Rice, the US ambassador to the UN, has withdrawn her name for consideration for the position of US secretary of state. Rice was in the running to replace current Hillary Clinton who will step down from her post in January. The envoy, who is close to US President Barack Obama, had been the target of Republican attacks on the administration's handling of the raid on the US consulate in Benghazi, Libya on September 11 this year. Al Jazeera's Rosiland Jordan, reporting from Washington, said Rice has become "a huge political liability for the Obama administration" since the US consulate attack in Benghazi. 


► Putin held presidential End of Year Q& A Press Conference with 1,000+ journalists in Moscow. Published on Dec 20, 2012 by WestEndNews :: Moscow, Russia | December 20, 2012 :: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday held his traditional presidential end-of-year Q&A press conference with more than 1,000 journalists in Moscow. In a wide-ranging, four-hour discussion, the Russian president touched on topics both serious and silly, from Syria to doomsday.

Putin spoke about the Russian bill banning US citizens from adopting Russian children, which comes in response to the US Magnitsky Act that targets Russians accused of human rights violations. Vladimir Putin said, "I understand that this response from the State Duma is an emotionally-charged one, but I believe it is an adequate response."

He added,"The problem is that [the US] replaced one anti-Soviet law [the Jackson--Vanik amendment] with another one. They can't live without it... This certainly poisons our relationship."

Commenting on retiring and his future successor, Putin said it is the job of the citizens to choose the right person to lead. "I want future leaders of the country, including the president, to be even more successful. I believe though that if we compare this period with other periods of Russia's development, this period has been far from the worst. Perhaps it has been one of the best. I want though for future leaders of the country to be even more successful, luckier, because I love Russia."

On being asked to comment on the reduction of former tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky's prison term, he said that there were certain amendments to the law, and probably grounds for taking the decision. He also added that the attempts to present it as a political case have nothing to do with the truth.

Commenting on Russia's entrance to the WTO, he said: "Are there challenges? Yes, there are. Are there advantages? There certainly are, particularly the systemic benefits related to the task of providing an investment-friendly environment, which we keep addressing today. It is very important for a prospective investor whether a host country is a member of the WTO or not. We have been the world's 157th nation to join the organization. Practically every fairly-developed market in the world is already there."

During his four-hour press conference, Putin also spoke on the Syrian crisis, corruption in the defense ministry, on his daughters' futures, as well as on doomsday and the French actor Gerard Depardieu's possible Russian citizenship.


► Keeping Traditional Russian Crafts Alive. Published on Dec 2, 2012 :: The Kursk Woodcrafts company was founded in the 1970s and its artists are preserving the Russian folk art of hand-painted wares. This video shows the processes that each decorated souvenir undergoes.

► Maya "end of days" fever reaches climax in Mexico - By Alexandra Alper

► Mass Hysteria? Strange Mayan Apocalypse Freakouts 

► Mayan Apocalypse Prep: Inside Extreme Bunkers 

► Hollywood spent 2012 proving the Mayans right - By NEKESA MUMBI MOODY | Associated Press 

► Apocalypse How: Plausible Ways the World Could End - By Jason Koebler | U.S.News & World Report LP

► Russia's Putin warns of endless conflict in Syria - By Alexei Anishchuk and Gabriela Baczynska 

► 10 Things to Know for Friday - By The Associated Pres 

► Miss USA Olivia Culpo is crowned Miss Universe - Rhode Island's Olivia Culpo crowned Miss Universe, marking Miss USA's 1st win since 1997. By Hannah Dreier and Michelle Rindels, Associated Press 

► 7 awful Christmas movies that flopped 

► The happiest and saddest countries in the world 

► Judge: La. woman can flip finger in holiday lights 

► Believers ready for 'apocalypse'

Thousands of people have gathered at ancient Mayan ruins in Mexico and Central America in anticipation of what they believe will be the end of the world. 111
* Crowds gather for 'end of world' - VIDEO
* World's end, or new beginning?

► Tsunami survivor's impossible story hits the big screen. 21 December 2012  - Naomi Watts and Ewan McGregor star in The Impossible, a film based on the true story of one family who were caught in the deadly Boxing Day tsunami eight years ago. On December 26 2004 a powerful earthquake off the Indonesian coast triggered a tsunami that devastated countries around the Indian Ocean, killing more than 230,000 people. The film - directed by Juan Antonio Bayona - is based on a story from one of the survivors, Maria Belon, a Spanish tourist who was lounging by a pool in Thailand along with her husband and three young sons when the tsunami hit. (VIDEO)

► A novel twist on space launches

► X-47B stealth drone targets new frontiers

  ► Driving from the top to the tip of Baja California

► Pocket-sized guides to flyer's rights

►
Putin: I know when world will end, not afraid of apocalypse. Published on Dec 20, 2012 :: As frenzied doomsayers around the world prepare for the apocalypse on December, 21, Russian President Vladimir Putin put his trust in science, saying at a yearly Q&A that the earth won't end for another 4.5 billion years, when the sun goes out  || NEWS


►
Pressing President: Putin grilled by journalists in Q&A marathon.  Published on Dec 20, 2012 :: Vladimir Putin has slammed America's human rights record, citing indefinite detention and sanctioned torture in overseas prisons. While speaking to journalists, the President also defended Moscow's response to Washington's decision to sanction Russian officials || NEWS 


► War or prosperity? UK announces higher price tag for Afghan war while cutting vital social services  || VIDEO

► House Republicans cancel 'fiscal cliff' vote, leaving decision to Obama and Senate 

► Google starts watching what you do off the Internet too 

► 'End of the road' for ACTA in Europe as EC withdraws court appeal over treaty 

► Greece abuses refugees, violates their human rights and EU law - Amnesty International 

► Citizen drone warfare coming to the streets?

► Air Force asks sports network to help analyze drone intelligence

► Yes, Ma'am? United Russia deputy supports military draft for women

► L a v r o v  to RT: "We are not in the business of regime change"

►
The G20, Russia and Syria, Nuclear Talks, Arms Sales, Missile Defense, Job Growth (2012). Published on Jul 20, 2012 by thefilmarchived



► Ban on US adoptions is 'adequate reaction' - Putin 

► New era in Russia-US trade relations : Obama scraps Jackson-Vanik amendment ( = The Jackson-Vanik amendment (Section 401, Title IV of the Trade Act of 1974, P.L. 93-618) affects U.S. trade relations with communist or former communist countries that restrict freedom of emigration and other human rights. It was a response to the Soviet Union's "diploma taxes" levied on Jews attempting to emigrate. It was signed into law on January 3, 1975 by President Gerald Ford following a unanimous Congressional vote and continues to influence trade relations with a number of states. || english.ruvr.ru 

► 'If Depardieu wants Russian passport - it’s settled' - P u t i n

► Facebook makes you fat

► Merry Christmas from Nazi soldiers: Holiday letters reach their destinations 71 years late

► Inside Story Americas - The mental health versus gun control debate. Published on Dec 19, 2012 :: In the wake of the Newtown shooting, is the discourse on gun control being sidelined by a focus on mental healthcare? Shihab Rattansi on Inside Story Americas discusses with Ari Ne'eman, president and co-founder of the Autistic Self Advocacy Network; David Hemenway, and professor of Health Policy at Harvard University; Richard Friedman, professor of Clinical Psychiatry at Weill Cornell Medical College. (VIDEO)

►
Inside Story - South Korea: Which way forward? Published on Dec 20, 2012 :: It was a hard-fought contest between the conservative daughter of a former military ruler and the liberal son of North Korean refugees. What are the challenges ahead for South Korea? Guests: Kwang Ho-chun, John Swenson-Wright, Doug Bandow.


► The Stream : America after Newtown. Published on Dec 20, 2012 ::  Could Newtown unite a country deeply divided over gun control and mental health care? We look at reactions to the shooting at Sandy Hook. (VIDEO) 

► US gun control contends with state laws. Published on Dec 20, 2012 :: As more victims of the Newtown school shooting are laid to rest, there's been an increase in gun sales in some parts of the United States. President Barack Obama is promising stricter gun laws by early next year, but any federal effort could be at odds with laws in each state. Al Jazeera's John Hendren reports from Chicago. (VIDEO)

►
Fighters arriving in Syria from abroad. Published on Dec 20, 2012 :: The Syrian crisis may have begun simply as a battle to push President Assad out - but the two sides are increasingly split along sectarian lines. That is the assessment from UN investigators, who say fighters from around the world are arriving in Syria to take up arms for both sides. Al Jazeera's Zeina Khodr reports.



► The Stream : Apocalypse No? Published on Dec 20, 2012 :: Will December 21st bring an end to the world? We look at why some insist on believing in apocalyptic scenarios. (VIDEO)

►
Russia's Putin backs US adoption ban. Published on Dec 20, 2012 :: Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that a draft bill banning US adoptions of Russian children is a legitimate response to a new US law that calls for sanctions on Russians deemed to be human rights violators. But he has not committed to signing it. At his annual marathon news conference on Thursday he said that the measure, which has received preliminary approval in parliament, is also a response to an alleged US failure to protect the rights of adopted Russian children. Many Russians have been angered by cases of adopted children who have died or suffered abuse at the hands of their adopted parents. They also complain that US courts have been lax about punishing abusers. Robin Forestier Walker reports from Moscow.

Putin's character have a class, that's all. The Americans intended by Putin's definitely the white people, right? Well, it means, his basic emotions is not racist. He is just - in my opinion --- the type that if you slap somebody one time, then be prepared to be slapped once from somebody.

► 101 East - Indonesia's Killing Fields.  Published on Dec 20, 2012 :: Executioners from Indonesia's dark past speak out for the first time to reveal a chilling and bloody truth the country now has to face. 101 East speaks exclusively to some of those who participated in the systematic murder of millions. (VIDEO)

Latest Headlines

■ Malala Asks Pakistan Not to Rename College for Her
■ Japan's Next Leader Wants Freer Rein for Military
■ Palestinians Aim to Isolate Israel
■ House Approves $633 Billion Defense Bill
■ NYC Marathon Runners Can Get Refund of Entry Fee
■ Bernard Madoff's Brother Gets 10-Year Sentence
■ Benefactor Buys Wright-Designed Home in Phoenix
■ U.N. OKs Military Action to Oust al-Qaeda in Mali
■ Iraq Finance Minister Says Staff Members Kidnapped
■ Cory Booker to Explore 2014 U.S. Senate Run
■ Pakistani Polio Workers Get Police Protection
■ South African President Says Mandela Improving
■ New Tensions in Egypt over Top Prosecutor
■ CNN: Blizzard Blasts Midwest, Plains States
■ CNN: Ex-Rwanda Minister Jailed for Genocide

► Egypt: As Second Vote Nears, National Unity Nowhere in Sight

By Ashraf Khalil
* Women's Rights at Odds in Egypt's Constitution Wars
* Egypt Divided: The Brotherhood Fails to Find Common Ground
* Exclusive: Egypt's Morsi Tells TIME, 'We're Learning How to Be Free'

► House GOP Puts Off Vote on Tax Bill

* Opinion: Where Republicans Went Wrong on the Fiscal Cliff 

► Is Narendra Modi a Step Closer to Being India's Next Prime Minister?

* Can India's Fight Against Corruption Be Won at the Ballot Box?

► Tenacity Trumps Merriment in English Soccer's Holiday Season

► The New Louvre Brings Hope to an Ailing Region

► What's Behind Those Stealthy Afghan Talks in Paris?

► Moscow Moves to Ban American Adoption of Russian Orphans

► Unbreathable: Air Pollution Becomes a Major Global Killer

► The Story Behind the Iconic Photograph from Sandy Hook

► Marco Longari: TIME Picks 2012′s Best Photographer on the Wires 

► Let It Snow: Photos From the Set of 'It's a Wonderful Life'


► 48 Hours with Obama: TIME's Person of the Year 2012 by Callie Shell

► Gun Control 

* Homicides drop with gun laws abroad
* Opinion: A conservative case for an assault weapons ban 
* Obama makes gun control top priority
* Gun lobby's grip on Congress threatened
* More: Full coverage of the Newtown shooting

► More or fewer guns? The experts are divided

► Forget the 'fiscal cliff' - We don't need across-the-board tax increases or spending cuts. We need policies that will create more jobs.

► Boehner cancels House vote as 'Plan B' falls short of GOP support

► House Republicans call off vote on 'Plan B' fiscal cliff plan

► Boehner rejects Democrats' push for immediate vote on gun bill

► White House defends possible Defense nominee Chuck Hagel

► Movie review: 'This Is 40' finds truth amid midlife crisis, laughs

► Video: Meet the L.A. Times Holiday Cookie Bake-Off winners 

► Pictures in the News | Dec. 20, 2012

► Fans turn out en masse for Jenni Rivera memorial - Posted By: Marc Martin

There is no harm if we try to understand a quite behaviour from Susan Rice. A few days ago, Rice had shot her conscience about how dignity was upheld. She was unwilling to be nominated by Barack Obama to be the United States Secretary of State because it would threaten her dignity. Whereas, in fact, Rice is the strongest candidate to replace Hillary Clinton who will retire.

Rice might have imagined if she held the post, then it would be a bad precedent on her. She would be attacked by her political opponents, the Republican politician in the senate. Actually, it's just a normal thing in politics world. But, well, that is, Rice has behaved.

Republican resistance to Rice started from the statement which was considered problematic. Her comments about the armed attack to the U.S. Embassy in Benghazi, Libya -- which has killed Ambassador Chris Stevens as an action spontaneity after the release of anti-Muslim video -- was rated wrong.

Thus, rather than raise tensions about her candidacy, she asked Obama to cancel his intention. Rice did not want Obama to waste the energy to argue in implementing his agenda.

In terms of personality, Rice apparently trying to find a solution to the herself problem based on the truth of her belief. And, what she has decided was perceived as a reassuring resolution.

I can see her decision is truly sublime. Whereas in the U.S., the foreign minister is the most prestigious position, after the president/vice president. Rice puts her prestige on the most valuable position in her life.

She did not want her dignity was pawned and torn apart, just because the office or position. She chose --- if she was still trusted by Obama --- to remain in her old post, as the U.S. ambassador to the UN.

She upheld the dignity and resolved her problems with the approach of conscience. Solution with a conscience would be more transparent and closer to the truth than the settlement by logic and power of words or arguments.

Salute to you, ma'am.
***

News Headlines (100) 20 December 2012

► A Three-Mile-Long Asteroid Buzzes the Earth 

► Beyond 2012: Why the World Won't End - NASA

► Q: Is NASA predicting a "total blackout" of Earth on Dec. 23 to Dec. 25? A: Absolutely not. Neither NASA nor any other scientific organization is predicting such a blackout. The false reports on this issue claim that some sort of "alignment of the Universe" will cause a blackout. There is no such alignment (see next question). Some versions of this rumor cite an emergency preparedness message from NASA Administrator Charles Bolden. This is simply a message encouraging people to be prepared for emergencies, recorded as part of a wider government preparedness campaign. It never mentions a blackout. (VIDEO)




► Bullying leaves its mark on mood gene, study finds - By karen seidman, GAZETTE universities reporter December 18, 2012
► 18 December 2012  - King Ramesses III's throat was slit, analysis reveals By Michelle Roberts Health editor, BBC News online
► Politicians Breaking Ranks, Meaningful Gun Control Gaining Momentum - Major Defections Stun Lawmakers; Sources: President Soliciting Proposals | December 18, 2012 
► For Immediate Release - December 19, 2012 | Remarks by the President in a Press Conference - James S. Brady | Press Briefing Room
►The Politics Of Gun Control On Capitol Hill - December 19, 2012 | NPR
► Gun control movement tries to shed election losing reputation 
► Democrats vow to push for gun control measures in Congress
► After shooting, some Republicans more open to gun controls

► Utah sixth grader placed .22-caliber handgun to classmate’s head after 'encouraged by his PARENTS to carry a gun after Sandy Hook' || LATIMES - Utah sixth-grader brings gun to school, fearing another Newtown
► Gunman released hours before murder suicide in Longmont, Colorado 
► Grimm brothers' celebration awakens saga of fairy tale link to German culture -Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel and roots of Nazism on agenda at Kassel congress for 200th anniversary of brothers' classic tales | Kate Connolly in Berlin - Wednesday 19 December 2012

►
A Decade of Injustice - UK. Published on Sep 10, 2012 by journeymanpictures :: Shaker Aamer has been held in Guantanamo Bay since 2002. He's a legal UK resident, married to a British national, with four children. He's also yet to face trial or be charged. So why is he still behind bars? Through conversations with activists and former detainees, this film paints a picture of Aamer and his extraordinary situation; from the injustices he has endured to what his life has involved for the last decade. From Bagram to Guantanamo Bay, his story illustrates the "unlawful" measures that the US and UK governments continue to use to justify their War on Terror, "ignoring international law, Geneva conventions, and their own Constitution." - Spectacle


►
Entretien Islam&Info - Alexandre Douguine (Géopolitique, Islam, Tradition, Occident. Published on Dec 6, 2012 by IslametInfo. Islam&Info est heureux de vous présenter son entretien avec Alexandre Douguine, penseur et géostratège russe de renommée. Partisan d'un monde multipolaire respectueux de leurs différences, Alexandre Douguine nous donne ici sa vision de son monde, l'Eurasia. Il s'entretient également de sa vision des autres grands espaces, de l'Islam, de l'Occident et des partis dissidents européens ... Et évidemment du NWO américain.

Face à un nouvel ordre mondial global porté par le libéralisme, le messianisme, la finance cosmopolite et l'armée américaine, seul un réveil des anciennes civilisations paraît à la hauteur de cette menace ultime. Le stratège esquisse ici, avec nous, les contours de ce futur front commun des mondes qui viendra à bout de l'anticivilisation US. Ces paroles et cette échange pourraient paraître déconnectés et désuets si Alexandre Douguine n'était pas écouté jusqu'aux plus hautes sphères du pouvoir russe. Alors entrez vous aussi dans l'ère de la jihadocroisade multidimensionnelle.



► by VICE
Suicide Forest in Japan. Published on May 9, 2012 :: The Aokigahara Forest is the most popular site for suicides in Japan. After the novel Kuroi Jukai was published, in which a young lover commits suicide in the forest, people started taking their own lives there at a rate of 50 to 100 deaths a year. The site holds so many bodies that the Yakuza pays homeless people to sneak into the forest and rob the corpses. The authorities sweep for bodies only on an annual basis, as the forest sits at the base of Mt. Fuji and is too dense to patrol more frequently.



► Interview with a Cannibal. Published on Jun 29, 2012 :: Issei Sagawa murdered an innocent woman and spent three days eating her flesh. Due to loopholes in the law, Issei is a free man to this day.

On the afternoon of June 13, 1981, a Japanese man named Issei Sagawa walked to the Bois de Boulogne, a park on the outskirts of Paris, carrying two suitcases. The contents of those suitcases, to the lament of a nearby jogger, was the dismembered body of a fellow student -- a Dutch woman named Renée Hartevelt, whom Sagawa had shot three days prior and had spent the days since eating various parts of her body. He was soon arrested. According to reports, Issei uttered, "I killed her to eat her flesh," when they raided his home, whereupon they found bits of Renne still in his fridge.

Sagawa was declared insane and unfit for trial and was institutionalized in Paris. His incarceration was to be short, however, as the French public soon grew weary of their hard-earned francs going to support this evil woman-eater, and Issei was promptly deported. Herein followed a bizarre and seemingly too convenient set of legal loopholes and psychiatric reports that led doctors in Japan declaring him "sane, but evil."

On August 12, 1986, Sagawa checked himself out of Tokyo's Matsuzawa Psychiatric hospital, and has been a free man ever since.

► Funerals become a routine in shattered Newtown -By DAVID KLEPPER | Associated Press 
► Shooting renews argument over video-game violence  By LOU KESTEN | Associated Press 
► Obama to send Congress gun proposals in January - By JULIE PACE | Associated Press
  ► Obama: Give Me Gun Proposals by January. Published on Dec 19, 2012 by AssociatedPress :: President Barack Obama is asking a team led by Vice President Joe Biden to offer "concrete proposals" to curb gun violence no later than January, in the aftermath of the horrific massacre at a Connecticut elementary school. (Dec. 19)



► Latin Americans rank as happiest people on planet - By MICHAEL WEISSENSTEIN 
► Fear slows Libyan probe into attack on U.S. mission in Benghazi - By Marie-Louise Gumuchian, Hadeel Al Shalchi and Ghaith Shennib
► US hits Israel hard on settlement plans - By MATTHEW LEE | Associated Press –  Tue, Dec 18, 2012 
► 10 Scientists Who Mattered in 2012 - By Tia Ghose and Jeanna Bryner, LiveScience 
► Alan Alda: Scientists Should Learn to Talk to KidsBy Stephanie Pappas, LiveScience Senior Writer 
► Venezuela VP hopes Chavez can be sworn in Jan. 10 -By VIVIAN SEQUERA | Associated Press 

► Miss USA Olivia Culpo is crowned Miss Universe - By HANNAH DREIER and MICHELLE RINDELS 

► Official quits over Libya attack

A senior US official quits and others are suspended following a damning report into their handling of September's killing of the US envoy to Libya.
* Envoy admits Benghazi error 
* US security in Libya 'was cut'
* 'No warning' of attack
* Timeline: Benghazi attack 

► Obama calls for 'action' on guns 

US President Barack Obama calls for "concrete proposals" on gun control by the end of January, saying "words need to lead to action". || VIDEO - Newtown shootings: Obama 'backs assault weapons ban'
* 'Words need to lead to action' - VIDEO
* Mardell: Obama's gun control fight 

► 20 December 2012 - S Korea faces 'grave' North test New

South Korea's President-elect Park Geun-hye highlights a "grave" security challenge from the North, a day after her election win.
* Park wins election - VIDEO
    * Profile: Park Geun-hye
* Chaebol debate rages

► 20 December 2012  - Military satellite heads skyward :: 19 December 2012 - UK's Skynet military satellite launched | By Jonathan Amos Science correspondent, BBC News

A powerful new telecommunications satellite for the UK military is launched on an Ariane rocket from the Kourou base in French Guiana.

* MoD satellite's classified tech - 19 December 2012 - A powerful new telecommunications satellite is being launched on Wednesday for the British military. The Skynet-5D spacecraft is the final piece in a multi-billion-pound system that enables UK forces to stay connected wherever they are deployed in the world. Because it is a military system, Skynet has been designed to evade enemy jamming and eavesdropping, and as such contains a number of classified technologies. BBC science correspondent Jonathan Amos was granted special access to the spacecraft before its launch. (VIDEO)

* Ariane rocket ready to do battle - 23 November 2012 by Jonatahan Amos

► Crocodile's flying leap at swimmer in Australia. 9 December 2012  - Three Swedish tourists had a surprise while swimming in a national park in Australia when a crocodile leapt from rocks landing on one of them. Felix Andersson, Jakob Hellberg and Ulrik Bergsland were testing new underwater camera kit when they spotted the creature and moved in for a closer look. The crocodile suddenly launched itself from rocks in the Litchfield National Park, landing on Felix Andersson's shoulder.  Speaking to the BBC News Website, Mr Andersson said he was surprised but unhurt by the crocodile. (VIDEO) 

► A flying crocodile jumps at Felix!  Published on Dec 12, 2012 by Ulrik Bergsland :: Ulrik Bergsland (me) Jakob Hellberg (holdin the camera) and Felix Andersson (the one getting faceslapped by the crocodile) were going for a swim in Litchfield national park in northern Australia when suddenly supercrocdile appeared!



► 19 December 2012 - X-47B stealth drone targets new frontiers

► Sao Paulo's police turn hi-tech to fight crime 

► Los Angeles's icy surprise

► Episode 8 - Barcelona

► 19 December 2012  - Day in pictures: 19 December 2012 

► Going After Guns: 'You can't have police state & armed population'. Published on Dec 19, 2012 :: President Barack Obama has made a move towards stronger gun control in the U.S. The proposal comes after the mass shooting at the Sandy Hook elementary school that took the lives of 26 people, including 20 children (VIDEO) || NEWS

► Video: Huge volcano erupts, shoots giant ash column in Ecuador. Published on Dec 19, 2012 :: (NOTE VIDEO IS MUTE) Residents living near Ecuador's Tungurahua volcano have been advised to voluntarily evacuate after an increase in activity created at least three moderate explosions and ash fall on nearby villages. The first explosion generated a column of ash that reached two kilometers (1.24 miles) in height and fell over various communities, among them the tourist city of Banos. A third explosion generated a column of ash nearly five kilometres (3.1 miles) tall.



► Crazy Russian Winter: What happens to boiling water at -41C? Published on Dec 19, 2012 :: An illusionist has made surviving the cruel Russian winter much more entertaining through science and a little bit of magic, by showing the world what happens when boiling water meets -40 degrees Celsius winter temperatures || COURTESY || NEWS



► Time names US President Obama Person of the Year, again. Published on Dec 19, 2012 :: Time magazine has once again chosen US President Barack Obama as 'person of the year.' He beat seven other shortlisted contenders, including his Egyptian counterpart Mohammed Morsi and Pakistani activist for women's education Malala Yousafzai. (VIDEO)  ||  NEWS

► CrossTalk: Charity Cliff. Published on Dec 19, 2012 :: ­Can government welfare be replaced by private charity? How much of an impact do rich people in America make on the lives of the less fortunate? To what degree does the tax code stimulate individuals and companies into making more charitable contributions? And should it? Does charity attempt to replace poor public policy? CrossTalking with Richard Land, Stephen Pimpare and Leslie Lenkowsky. (VIDEO) 

► NDAA 2013 - Indefinite detention without trial is back  
► Adequate or faulty? Russian lawmakers vote for US adoption ban amid criticism 
► US Army to seek death penalty for soldier charged with Kandahar massacre
► Clinton's 'Sovietization' comment attracts Kremlin's ire
► A New Earth? Potentially habitable planet discovered orbiting nearby star similar to our sun
► Down to -50C: Russians freeze to death as strongest-in-decades winter hits (PHOTOS)
► Russians in Syria are 'legitimate targets' - key opposition group member 
► Newtown massacre motives: likely factors behind school-shooting emerge 
► Historical images of lost Russian royal jewels rediscovered
► LGBT begin kissing protest as Duma readies to vote on gay propaganda bill 
► 'Swan Lake' in 3D: 'Avatar' director to work on blockbuster ballet in Russia

► Life goes on despite 'Mayan Apocalypse'. Published on Dec 19, 2012 ::Thousands of tourists are flocking to Mexico's Yucatan peninsula to be part of the so-called "Mayan Apocalypse". Many of them believe the world is coming to an end this Friday, when a major cycle of the Mayan calendar ends. Some say the 5000-year-old Mayan civilization is entering a new era. So what do the Mayan people think themselves? Al Jazeera's David Mercer visited a Guatemalan highland village to find out. (VIDEO)

► People & Power - The Organ Traders Published on Dec 19, 2012 :: An investigation into the loose but interconnected multi-million dollar international criminal enterprise of human organ trading. People & Power tries to find out how this trade continues to flourish and the challenges law enforcers are faced with. (VIDEO) 


►
Obama says stricter gun laws necessary. Published on Dec 19, 2012 :: In the wake of a shooting at a primary school in Connecticut that resulted in the deaths of 20 children and six adults, President Obama has been working on ways to prevent another mass killing. Obama has put Vice-President Joe Biden in charge of coming up with plans - which focus mainly on tightening up gun laws. He says there is already a growing consensus that a ban on automatic, military-style weapons must be put into place. Al Jazeera's Patty Culhane reports from Washington, DC. || ► Obama calls for gun law reform. Published on Dec 19, 2012 :: President Barack Obama has urged US politicians to "have the courage" to seek compromise and reform the nation's gun laws. He's appointed Vice-President Joe Biden to head a task force charged with seeking policy solutions. Al Jazeera's Patty Culhane has more details.

Latest Headlines

■ Russia Gives Initial OK to American Adoption Ban 
■ YPF, Chevron Sign Argentina Shale Pact 
■ Fear Keeps Egypt's Christians Away from Polls 
■ Mikulski to Head Appropriations, Senator Says
■ Senators Write Sony, Criticize 'Zero Dark Thirty'
■ FBI Offers $50k Reward in Chicago Jail Escape
■ Obama Pressing for Policy Changes After Shooting
■ State Dept. Security Chief Resigns After Benghazi
■ Snowstorm Hits Rockies, Heads to Midwest 
■ General Motors to Buy Back 200 Million Government Shares 
■ In Cold Blood Killers Exhumed in Second Murder Investigation
■ Dictator's Daughter Becomes South Korea's First Female President
■ Benghazi Review Finds Systematic Security Faults
■ CNN: Obama Pledges Action on Guns By January
■ CNNMoney: Dumbest Moments of 2012 

► Person of the Year: Barack Obama, Architect of the New America 

'The American people have rightly been frustrated at the pace of change, and the economy is still struggling, and this President we elected is imperfect,' Obama says. 'And yet despite all that, this is who we want to be.'
By Michael Scherer

* Exclusive: The Person of the Year Interview
* Inside the White House: Never-Before-Seen Photos
* Re-Election: The Data Miners Who Helped Obama Win
* Obama Photo Diary: 48 Hours with the President 
* Runner-Up: Malala's Journey — A Timeline 
* Runner-Up: Tim Cook and Apple's Greatest Moments
* Runner-Up: TIME Sits Down with Morsi
* Runner-Up: What Is the 'God Particle'? 
* 2012 In Brief: The People Who Mattered Most - BASHAR ASSAD
* Those We Lost: TIME's 2012 Tributes
* President Obama, Driller-in-Chief
* Joe Klein: The 2012 Awards for Political Courage
* Joel Stein: 2012's Coolest Person Is...
* Live Reactions: What You're Saying About #POY2012
* Take the TIME Person of the Year Quiz 


Short List

* Malala Yousafzai
* Tim Cook 
* Mohamed Morsi 
* Fabiola Gianotti 

Featured

* South Korea Elects First Female President 
* Autism Backlash: Guilt by Association?
* A New Financial Bubble—or Three?
* This Is 40 Minutes Too Long 

► Connecticut Community Copes After School Shooting
► TIME Picks the Most Surprising Photos of 2012
► Inside a Nazi Christmas Party, 1941

► L.A. mayoral election a wide-open contest

► China cracking down on doomsday group 

► Waiting for 'Doomsday' - Dec. 21, 2012: Fearful 'end of world' callers flood NASA December 19, 2012

* Merida Mexico, says: Hope to see you after Dec. 21
* China cracking down on doomsday group
* TV shows, movies tap into fear of the big fall
* More: Are you equipped for end of the world?

► Raw: Rocket With 3 Astronauts Takes Off for ISS. Published on Dec 19, 2012 by AssociatedPress :: A Soyuz spacecraft carrying three astronauts, NASA's Tom Marshburn, Russia's Roman Romanenko, and Canada's Chris Hadfield, took off atop a towering Russian rocket on Wednesday, headed for the International Space Station. (Dec. 19)

► Sen. Feinstein will not become Judiciary Committee chair
► Clinton accused of faking illness to avoid Benghazi testimony
► House Democrats push on gun control 
► Senate Judiciary Committee holds hearing on voter suppression
► Pictures in the News | December 19, 2012 - Posted By: Marc Martin