New York duo arrested in Florida on theft charges

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Two New Yorkers are being held in a Florida jail after officials said they flew to the Sunshine State solely to commit widespread fraud.

The Sarasota County Sheriff's Office said 22-year-old Graisy Pichardo and 26-year-old Myles Nicholas were arrested Wednesday and are being held on $15,000 bail each.

Deputies said they tried to buy gift cards at two Walmarts on Tuesday but left when asked for identification. Store officials contacted law enforcement.

Deputies say they found the pair inside a rental car outside a store. They said the duo had used cloned credit cards to buy $3,000 in gift cards at several stores. They say a machine to clone credit cards was found.

It couldn't be determined if they have an attorney. They are charged with theft and other felonies.

Source: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/08/08/3549785/new-york-duo-arrested-in-florida.html

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Fatty acids found in fish linked to lower risk of breast cancer

June 27, 2013 ? A high intake of fatty acids found in fish is associated with a 14% reduction in the risk of breast cancer in later life, finds a study published on bmj.com today.

The results show that each 0.1 g per day or 0.1% energy per day increment of intake of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (n-3 PUFA) derived from fish was associated with a 5% reduction in risk. To achieve this risk reduction, intake of oily fish such as salmon, tuna or sardines should be 1-2 portions per person per week.

Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers, accounting for 23% of total cancer cases and 14% of cancer deaths in 2008. Studies suggest that a healthy diet and lifestyle is crucial for the prevention of breast cancer, and dietary fat is one of the most intensively studied dietary factors closely related with risk.

The n-3 PUFAs include ALA, EPA, DPA and DHA. They are involved in chemical messaging in the brain, helping to regulate blood vessel activity and areas of the immune system. The main dietary sources of EPA, DPA and DHA come from oily fish, while ALA is found mainly in nuts, seeds, and leafy green vegetables.

Although n-3 PUFAs are the most promising types of fat to reduce cancer risk, results from human studies are inconsistent.

So a team of researchers based in China set out to investigate the association between fish and n-3 PUFA intake and the risk of breast cancer. Levels were measured from both dietary sources and blood tests.

They reviewed and analysed the results of 26 studies from the United States, Europe and Asia involving over 800,000 participants and over 20,000 cases of breast cancer.

Marine n-3 PUFA was associated with a 14% reduction of breast cancer between the highest and lowest category of marine n-3 PUFA intake. The risk was lowest in Asian populations, probably because fish intake is much higher in Asia than in western countries, say the authors.

Further analysis indicated a dose response: each 0.1 g per day or 0.1% energy per day increment of intake was associated with a 5% reduction in risk. However, no significant protective association was found for ALA -- the plant based n-3 PUFA.

The authors say their analysis, together with previous publications, "supports a protective role of marine n-3 PUFA on the incidence of breast cancer."

They conclude: "Our present study provides solid and robust evidence that marine n-3 PUFA are inversely associated with risk of breast cancer. The protective effect of fish or individual n-3 PUFA warrants further investigation of prospective studies."

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/most_popular/~3/kSA6Cy-wQac/130627190653.htm

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Lincoln Mitchell: Edward Snowden and the Story of American Weakness

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The NSA surveillance story is evolving from one of outrage-by many Americans upon learning that their government has, to cut to the chase, been spying on them, and by many in the political establishment because a mid-level contractor has told this to the world, to one of bad comedy. The story is now one of the U.S. trying to figure out where Snowden is, what flights he did or did not board and what countries are going to sympathize with the U.S. and turn Snowden over to the American authorities. It feels like a global game of where's Edward with the U.S. cast as the incompetent detective.

This entire episode has been bad for the U.S. for several reasons, but one that has been largely overlooked it the extent to which it makes the U.S. look weak. Spying on citizens, tracking their phone calls and other communications is what one expects from vulnerable authoritarian regimes, not from governments claiming to be the leaders of the free world. Strong countries have a functioning modern state that can assure secrecy and do not seek to cut fiscal corners by contracting out key functions to private companies who often enjoy useful ties to current and former government officials. Again, this kind of incompetence and weak state is not what the most powerful country in the world should be projecting.

If a similar thing had occurred in another country, particularly one that was not on good terms with the U.S., the news about surveillance would be described by the U.S. government and most of the American media as prima facie evidence of a non-democratic regime in that country. The role played by private contractors would be presented as evidence of a weak state, low accountability and a degree of cronyism or corruption. It is not surprising that the U.S. media has not focused on these issues with regards to Snowden, but these points are not lost on the rest of the world.

The U.S. is further projecting weakness by seeking to portray itself as a victim. Much of the world, including many in the U.S., look at these revelations and become very concerned about a superpower which apparently has been gathering information and tracking the behavior of millions of people both inside and outside its borders. For these people, the U.S. needs to be held accountable for its activities, or at least recognize what they have been doing. The U.S., however, and rather appallingly, appears to see itself as a country that has been betrayed by a rogue contractor perhaps in cahoots with Russia, China or somebody else.

More strikingly, the U.S. has proved unable to convince any of these countries to support its position and help bring Snowden back to the U.S. The U.S. looks weak when one rather obscure contractor can pose what the government presents as a serious security breach, and looks even weaker when it cannot even find that contractor or have him returned to the U.S. The efforts to apprehend Snowden, replete with unsuccessful efforts to determine in what country he is hiding or what flight he is boarding are beginning to make the NSA look like the Keystone Kops.

The U.S. is the most powerful country in the world and frequently presents itself as the arbiter, in one form or another, of what is just, legal and democratic, not just within our borders but globally. Portraying Snowden as a national security threat, traitor or criminal, and the U.S. as Snowden's victim, undermines U.S. credibility in these matters. Anybody who has listened to U.S. rhetoric on democracy and freedom can more or less plainly see that even, and perhaps particularly, by American standards, Snowden should not be considered a criminal. By insisting, with little success, that the rest of the world see him this way, the U.S. government isolates itself and stakes out a position defined by hypocrisy and an inability to admit its own wrongdoing.

The series of decisions that got the U.S. to this point is also troubling because it reflects poor judgment as well as a myopia and lack of perspective at almost every step along the way. Did the people who made the decisions to authorize the NSA surveillance program really think that such widespread surveillance was necessary, helpful or consistent with the values of a free society? Did the decision makers think this would remain secret, particularly when poorly vetted contractors were given access to important information? Did they think the rest of the world would hurry to cooperate with efforts to apprehend Snowden rather than be outraged about the surveillance itself? These poor decisions have damaged the U.S. image and credibility abroad more than Snowden could have.

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Follow Lincoln Mitchell on Twitter: www.twitter.com/LincolnMitchell

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lincoln-mitchell/edward-snowden-and-the-st_b_3514280.html

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Useful Links and Resources regarding southern Alberta floods ...

As southern Alberta rebuilds from the significant weather events and flooding from June 19th, please find below helpful tips and resources on disaster recovery and insurance information.?
?
Disaster Recovery Handbook prepared by the Alberta Government

Insurance Bureau of Canada Tips Sheets regarding water and flood damage:
? Homes
? Vehicles
? Businesses

According to the Insurance Bureau of Canada, regarding insurance coverage:
??Talk to your insurance representative to make sure you have appropriate coverage.
??Sudden and accidental bursting of plumbing pipes and appliances is covered by all residential policies. However, damage may not be covered when freezing causes the escape of water.
??In general, overland flooding resulting in water entering a home is not covered. Overland flooding usually occurs when bodies of water, such as rivers, dams and other watercourses, overflow onto dry land and cause damage. Overland flooding and seepage can?t be covered by home insurance because it is only a risk for the small percentage of the population who live in a flood plain. Since the purpose of insurance is to spread risk among many policyholders, flood insurance for those at risk would be unaffordable.
??Water damage in a basement due to a sewer backup is only covered if specific sewer backup coverage has been purchased.
??Damage to homes caused by hail or wind is usually covered. This includes damage caused by flying debris or falling branches or trees, or damage caused by water entering through openings caused by wind or hail.
??Damage to vehicles from wind, hail or water is usually covered if comprehensive or all perils coverage auto insurance has been purchased. This coverage isn?t mandatory, so check your policy.
??In certain circumstances, homeowners who are unable to return home due to insurable damage are entitled to additional living expenses.

Alberta Government Useful Links
Flood?Recovery Information?
Press Release June 26th??

Flood cleaning tips:
??Re-entering your home
??Cleaning your home
? Removing mold?
??Disinfecting?water wells?
??Cleaning Cisterns

? Previous

Source: http://www.brokerlink.ca/blog/useful-links-southern-alberta-floods/

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2nd man held in slaying probe as Hernandez challenges bail ruling

Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez will remain in jail after Superior Court Judge Renee Dupuis denied his bail appeal.

By Richard Esposito and Erin McClam, NBC News

Authorities are investigating whether Aaron Hernandez, the NFL star accused of murder in the recent shooting death of a friend, was involved in the drive-by killings of two men last year, sources told NBC News on Thursday.

The men, Daniel Abreu and Safiro Furtado, were shot to death from an SUV on July 16, 2012, after leaving a Boston nightclub.

Police put out a description of the SUV but never made an arrest. Abreu was driving in a BMW, and Furtado was in the passenger seat. One of three people in the backseat was also shot and survived.

Hernandez was charged Wednesday with first-degree murder in the execution-style killing earlier this month of Odin Lloyd, whose body was discovered in an industrial park not far from Hernandez?s home. Hernandez, an All-Pro tight end, was released by the New England Patriots after his arrest.

Prosecutors said he had summoned two friends from out of state before driving to pick up Lloyd and carry out the killing.

On Thursday, Hernandez was denied bail for a second time. Superior Court Judge Renee Dupuis said that the state?s case appeared ?circumstantial but very, very strong.? Hernandez was appealing a denial of bail by another judge the day before.

Prosecutors said they had uncovered four new pieces of evidence in less than 24 hours after searching a condo leased by Hernandez. They said they had found ammunition, a clip and a picture of Hernandez with a Glock handgun.

William McCauley, an assistant district attorney, also said that Hernandez had interfered with the investigation by home surveillance-camera video and instructing his girlfriend not to talk to investigators.

?The evidence of his guilt is overwhelming,? prosecutor William McCauley said.

Hernandez?s lawyers argued that he deserved bail because of his upstanding character and clean record, and because he was not a risk to flee. They noted that he stayed put last week, when rumors circulated in the media that Hernandez was about to be arrested. The judge was unmoved.

Considering the details of the case, ?The idea that I could release him on a bracelet and he would comply with court rules is not something that I am willing to accept,? Dupuis said. ?A bracelet just wouldn?t keep him here. Nor would $250,000.?

Hernandez watched from along one wall of the courtroom, standing behind a partition and shackled at the wrists. He has pleaded not guilty to the first-degree murder charge and five gun charges.

Meanwhile, authorities in Connecticut announced they had charged a second man in connection with Lloyd?s killing ? Carlos Ortiz of Bristol, the city where Hernandez grew up. Ortiz was charged as a fugitive from justice, appeared in court and agreed to return to Massachusetts, said Brian Preleski, the state?s attorney for New Britain.

Ortiz?s connection to the investigation was unclear, and the prosecutor gave no other details.

Prosecutors in Massachusetts laid out a detailed account of Lloyd?s killing on Wednesday but did not say who fired the fatal shot. They said that Hernandez was apparently upset that Lloyd, three nights earlier at a nightclub, was talking to people Hernandez had problems with.

Hernandez, 23, was being held at Bristol County Jail in Dartmouth, Mass., where the sheriff said he would be treated like any other inmate ? no workout equipment, no TV, no Internet access and, on the first night, spaghetti for dinner.

Mike George / Sun Chronicle / Pool / EPA

Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez and lawyer Michael Fee in Attleboro District Court on Wednesday.

Prosecutors say Hernandez was still fuming from the nightclub dispute three days earlier when he orchestrated the killing June 17.

They said Hernandez and the two friends picked Lloyd up at his house at 2:30 a.m. Surveillance footage from Hernandez?s house shows him leaving earlier in the night with a weapon, they said.

They said Lloyd got into the car and texted his sister, ?Did you see who I am with,? and later added, ?NFL? and ?Just so you know.? Prosecutors said Thursday that they believe Lloyd sent the texts because he was concerned for his safety.

Later that morning, between 3:23 a.m. and 3:27 a.m., workers on the overnight shift at the industrial park reported hearing gunshots, authorities said. It was not clear who investigators believe fired the shots.

Prosecutors say security videos from Hernandez?s house show him with firearms after Lloyd was murdered and show a Nissan Altima ? the same type of car Hernandez had rented ? coming and going at the industrial park.

Surveillance footage captured Hernandez getting out of the car at his house at 3:29 a.m. with a gun, prosecutors say.

The Patriots cut him within hours after he was led from his home in handcuffs. The team had given Hernandez a five-year, $40 million contract last summer, including a $12.5 million signing bonus. The investigation also cost Hernandez his endorsement deal with CytoSport, the maker of the Muscle Milk supplement drink.

Former New England Patriots player Aaron Hernandez is charged in a Massachusetts court with murder and several counts of unlawful possession of firearms.

This story was originally published on Thu Jun 27, 2013 9:18 AM EDT

Source: http://feeds.nbcnews.com/c/35002/f/663306/s/2de1ad17/l/0Lusnews0Bnbcnews0N0C0Inews0C20A130C0A60C270C19170A3210E2nd0Eman0Eheld0Ein0Eslaying0Eprobe0Eas0Ehernandez0Echallenges0Ebail0Eruling0Dlite/story01.htm

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Britain hesitant on breakthrough EU budget deal

BRUSSELS (AP) ? A European Union summit pushing to end the region's economic turmoil and fight youth unemployment was sidetracked Thursday as Britain refused to sign off on a hard-fought deal on a 960 billion euro ($1.3 trillion) budget.

Two big agreements announced ahead of the meeting in Brussels ? on the 2014-2020 budget and on the shape of future bank bailouts ? had injected fresh credibility into the efforts of EU leaders to control the region's economic problem.

But the budget deal only highlighted deep divisions among the 27 EU nations over whether to spend or cut their way out of crisis, with the UK seeking reassurances that it won't have contribute too much at a time of belt-squeezing across the continent.

The multi-annual budget, which includes the first cut to EU spending in its history, determines what the bloc can spend on common infrastructure like railway or road projects, farming subsidies and aid to poor countries. It's separate from national budgets ? and much smaller ? but a source of difficult and passionate debate.

Most key players hailed Thursday's budget deal as a fine piece of brinkmanship and compromise. But British Prime Minister David Cameron sounded a different note, calling it "absolutely essential" that the EU stick to parts of an earlier agreement reached in February.

He insisted that Europe must do what "we're doing in Britain, which is getting control of spending, making sure we live within our means and then making ourselves more competitive."

Judged by the numbers, Britain's opposition to the deal appeared more guided by principle than substance: Due to a provision on agricultural funding, the country would lose some of its previously negotiated repayment from the budget, costing it about an annual 200 to 300 million euros, a diplomat from a major EU country said.

The issue left London up against Paris, which would have to pay for the bulk of the shortfall otherwise, the diplomat said. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't allowed to discuss the closed-door talks publicly.

The EU leaders' were seeking to hash out a compromise over a late working dinner. Their talks were initially meant to focus on finding ways to get more young people employed, and calmly taking stock of EU efforts to stabilize the world's biggest economic bloc now that its deep debt troubles have subsided.

The EU countries have been trying since last fall to cobble the budget together. Some countries wanted to increase or maintain spending levels while others firmly insisted it made no sense to increase the budget while individual governments were imposing tough austerity policies at home.

After months of arguments, European Parliament President Martin Schulz triumphantly announced a budget agreement with the European Commission on Thursday morning.

Thursday evening, he said he was "quite surprised" that the EU leaders didn't sign on. "I had thought ... that things were almost wrapped up. That is not the case," he told reporters.

"If it fails here (among EU leaders) ... that is certainly not the best way of regaining confidence in Europe."

Crucially, the EU budget also includes money for the employment measures that the bloc's leaders are debating at this week's summit. No budget agreement would mean no money for those projects.

The EU's 27 leaders are also at odds over how to step up the fight against unemployment, with a German-led group calling for structural reforms and others saying more spending was needed to kick-start growth.

Unemployment is at a record high of 11 percent for the EU and 12.2 percent for the 17 member countries that use the euro. It is far worse for the young: Latest figures show almost one in four people aged under 25 in the EU are unemployed. In Greece and Spain, that rate has it hit more than 50 percent.

"It is simply unacceptable that young people should be paying with their life chances for a crisis for which they are entirely blameless," Schulz told the leaders.

But Germany, Europe's reluctant paymaster, again dashed hopes of investing any new money to ease the problem.

"The German government insists that the problems of Europe and the eurozone have to be tackled at the root and solved step by step," Chancellor Angela Merkel said ahead of the summit. Spending more won't solve the problems, she insisted.

The leaders' flagship unemployment policy is a pledge made last year to spend 6 billion euros getting young people back to work, starting in 2014. Half of that money, however, is only being repackaged from other existing budget projects.

Thursday's deal on the budget came only hours after EU finance ministers reached a landmark deal determining that banks' shareholders, creditors and holders of large deposits will have to bear the brunt of future bank failures, so that taxpayers don't have to. The joint rules on how to restructure or wind down banks are a key step toward establishing a so-called banking union for Europe, aimed at restoring stability after a tumultuous few years that have dragged down the global economy.

___

Angela Charlton and Sylvain Plazy in Brussels and Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed to this report.

___

Follow Juergen Baetz on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/jbaetz

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/britain-hesitant-breakthrough-eu-budget-deal-203606046.html

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Rivals Microsoft, Oracle team up on cloud push

cloud

Noel Randewich Reuters

June 24, 2013 at 6:02 PM ET

? Pichi Chuang / Reuters / REUTERS

Microsoft and Oracle each face cloud competition from other companies, including Amazon.

Microsoft said on Monday it would support Oracle software on its cloud-based platforms, a tie-up aimed at improving the rivals' chances against nimbler Web-based computing companies chipping away at their traditional businesses.

The two industry leaders have competed for decades to sell technology to the world's largest companies. But they face growing pressure from new rivals selling often-cheaper services based in remote data centers, and they are rushing to adapt.

The two companies have long collaborated out of the public eye to meet customers' needs, Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said on a conference call. "In the world of cloud computing, I think behind-the-scenes collaboration is not enough."

The tie-up does not resolve major competitive challenges the two tech pioneers face in the cloud market, but their cooperation was seen as a symbolically important step.

"Is it a game changer today? Not at all. It shows both companies are serious about their cloud endeavors. The fact that historical competitors are now friends speaks to how big the cloud opportunity is. And it opens up potential avenues of growth down the road," said Daniel Ives, an analyst at investment bank FBR.

Under the agreement, customers will be able to run Oracle software on Microsoft's Server Hyper-V and on Windows Azure platforms, the companies said.

Microsoft will offer Oracle's Java, Database and WebLogic Server to Windows Azure customers, while Oracle will also make Linux available to Windows Azure customers, the companies said in a news release.

Ironically, the pact means Microsoft is effectively promoting Linux and Java-based software, longtime rivals to its own Windows platform. But the software maker stands to benefit from getting any customer to pay for its data center services, regardless of the underlying software being used.

No. 3 software maker Oracle last week missed expectations for software sales for the fourth quarter, sending its shares plunging. Investors worried that the company may have trouble competing with software providers like Salesforce.com and Workday, as well as Amazon.com, which has also become a major player in cloud computing infrastructure.

Top software maker Microsoft's large-scale cloud computing initiative, called Azure, has failed to catch up with Amazon's cloud offering, called AWS (Amazon Web Services), which blazed the trail in elastic online computing services in the cloud.

Longtime rivalry
The rivalry between Oracle and Microsoft dates back several decades and has been marked by a personal rivalry between the companies' best-known cofounders: Larry Ellison and Bill Gates.

In 1995, as the Windows franchise was taking off, Ellison began a high-profile but unsuccessful effort to promote a less expensive competitor to the personal computer known as the Network Computer. Gates began aggressively attacking Oracle's core database business in the late 1990s, infuriating Ellison as Microsoft's less-expensive SQL Server gained market share.

In recent years, both have come under attack from a wave of younger companies, like Workday and Salesforce, which charge a single subscription fee for software and support, at far lower margins than for Oracle's traditional products.

Ellison told analysts on last Thursday's quarterly conference call that Oracle had forged alliances with Microsoft and Salesforce.com, which uses Oracle's technology, and said he would announce details this week.

Over the past five years, shares of Amazon.com, which rents remote computing and storage to other companies, have surged 237 percent. Salesforce.com, founded by former Oracle executive Marc Benioff, has risen 105 percent.

During the same half decade, Oracle's stock has risen 38 percent and Microsoft's shares are up 21 percent.

Additional reporting by Jim Finkle in Boston

Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters.

Source: http://feeds.nbcnews.com/c/35002/f/663301/s/2dde6c74/l/0L0Snbcnews0N0Ctechnology0Crivals0Emicrosoft0Eoracle0Eteam0Ecloud0Epush0E6C10A433573/story01.htm

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