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August 2009

NCAA throws out Memphis' Final Four run (AP)

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Memphis has lost every one of the 38 victories it piled up in a basketball season that ended with John Calipari's Tigers just missing out on a national title.
The NCAA stripped Memphis of all its wins from 2007-08 Thursday, saying the Tigers used an ineligible player who is believed to be NBA star Derrick Rose.
The university isn't accepting the punishment, not yet.
Memphis president Shirley Raines said shortly after the NCAA's announcement that the school is appealing what she called an unfair penalty.
"We know the rules," Raines said. "We did our due diligence. We did everything we could to determine the student-athlete was eligible and that the rules were being followed."
The NCAA announcement came 16 months after the Tigers lost the national championship to Kansas in overtime at the end of the 2007-08 season. It marks the second time both Memphis and coach John Calipari had to vacate Final Four seasons. The Tigers were stripped of their 1985 appearance and Calipari's Massachusetts team lost its 1996 berth.
Now the basketball coach at Kentucky, Calipari said in a statement he was "very disappointed and disheartened by the NCAA's findings" and that he would not comment again until Memphis' appeal is concluded. Calipari said he's looking forward to coaching Kentucky this fall where officials are fully supporting him despite the Memphis scandal.
"I'm not worried about it because they have never said Coach Cal did anything wrong at all," said Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear, who appeared with Calipari at the Kentucky State Fair on Thursday before the NCAA announcement. "I think he's a very upstanding guy. I think that's his reputation and I think that reputation will be with him here. I really don't foresee any problems."
Memphis finished 38-2 in 2007-08, setting the NCAA record for wins in a season.
The NCAA report did not identify the ineligible player by name, though descriptions of the athlete involved lead to the conclusion it could only be Rose. He was the only player who played just that season at Memphis — a fact noted by the governing body of college sports. Rose went on to be selected by the Chicago Bulls as the No. 1 pick in the 2008 draft and later won the NBA rookie of the year award.
The player was accused of having another person take his SAT exam in Detroit so he would be eligible as a freshman after failing the ACT three times in Chicago.
Memphis argued that the university did not have enough information to substantiate the allegations in November 2007 and cleared him to play. Memphis officials defended their investigation Thursday and said four people interviewed the player, with neither Calipari nor athletic director R.C. Johnson involved.
"That person responded that he took the test, and we believed him," university legal counsel Sheri Lipman said.
However, the SAT officials later conducted their own investigation and notified the player, the university and the NCAA's eligibility center that they were canceling his test in May 2008.
The agency said it sent letters to the player in March and April 2008; the second letter was sent three days after Rose and the Tigers lost to the Jayhawks. The player did not respond to either letter.
The infractions committee said it struck hard with its penalties because the ineligible player was used the entire season. Rose played in all 40 games, starting 39.
In a statement released by his attorney Thursday, Rose said "it is satisfying to see that the NCAA could find no wrongdoing on my part in their ruling.
"I think it is important for people to understand that I complied with everything that was asked of me while at the university, including my full participation in the university's investigation of this issue, and was ultimately cleared to play in the entire 2007-08 season by the NCAA clearinghouse and the university."

In addition to the lost season, Memphis also must return the money it received from the NCAA tournament to Conference USA and will be prevented from receiving future shares doled out in the conference's revenue-sharing program. If Memphis loses its appeal, Johnson said approximately $300,000 in bonus money Calipari earned from that season would be paid back.

The NCAA said the committee pressed Memphis officials during a hearing on the matter about why steps weren't taken in November 2007 to bench the ineligible player and avoid problems.

Part of Memphis' appeal will be the role, and possible flaws, in the NCAA clearinghouse. Officials declined to be specific but noted the eligibility center cleared the student twice — before being admitted and after the university pointed out a grade change in high school.

The committee also said the player's brother received free transportation on the team's charter plane and hotel lodging that season. Investigators said the total cost would have come to $1,713.85. Such an arrangement is considered an impermissible extra benefit.

"Neither the travel coordinator nor the business director had an explanation as to how the brother was permitted to board without having paid for the two flights," the NCAA report said.

Memphis officials called those honest mistakes that have been fixed.

The school's women's golf team also received three years probation and lost a scholarship for violations in its program.

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AP Sports Writer Michael Marot in Indianapolis contributed to this report.

Steelers QB Roethlisberger hurts ankle (AP)

LATROBE, Pa. – Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger injured his right ankle or foot during the last half-hour of the team's final training camp practice. It was not immediately certain how badly he was hurt or how long he would be out.
Roethlisberger had an ice pack on the back of the ankle when he was carted off at the end of Thursday's workout, with offensive coordinator Bruce Arians accompanying him. Roethlisberger didn't talk to reporters, but he could be overheard saying, "Oh it just feels great. It feels like a car ran over it."
Coach Mike Tomlin declined to talk to reporters. Team spokesman Dave Lockett said only, "Someone stepped on his foot, and we don't have any updates other than that."
As the Steelers' starting offense practiced against the starting defense, left tackle Max Starks couldn't handle a rush from linebacker James Harrison, the 2008 NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Starks went down to one knee as he tripped Roethlisberger, who stayed on the turf for about 5 minutes.
After being treated by athletic trainer John Norwig, Roethlisberger spent the rest of practice sitting on a cooler, then left the field on a golf cart, a towel draped over his head.
Normally, any player seriously injured during a Steelers practice is removed from the field immediately and is taken to a hospital — an indication that Roethlisberger's injury may be no more serious than a sprain. Starks suggested such, saying, "My feet are fine. I don't have a sprained ankle."
Starks isn't certain exactly how the two-time Super Bowl-winning quarterback was hurt, but he didn't hear any popping or tearing noises as Roethlisberger went down, sounds that might signal a serious injury.
"James Harrison was bull rushing ... I'm not sure I knocked him into him (Roethlisberger) or what happened behind me. I was busy trying to block the defensive MVP," Starks said. "He got tripped up and fell down."
Roethlisberger didn't tell any teammates how he felt, though he could be heard saying, "I'll be all right."
"He didn't want to talk about it now, but I'm sure he'll address us upstairs," Starks said.
The injury was only the second major mishap of the Steelers' three-week-old camp — right guard Darnell Stapleton needed knee surgery less than a week into camp. It brought an abrupt end to what might have been the best of Roethlisberger's six NFL training camps.
He has shown a strong, accurate arm for several weeks after having some soreness for several days, causing Arians to say, "His arm's really alive."
Roethlisberger is certain not to play in the Steelers' exhibition game Saturday at Washington. The Super Bowl champion Steelers have two more exhibition games after that before opening the season Sept. 10 against Tennessee.
The last time the Steelers were coming off a Super Bowl-winning season, 2006, Roethlisberger sustained severe facial injuries during a motorcycle crash six weeks before camp began, then missed the opener after undergoing an appendectomy.
The Steelers stage most nearly all of the practices on one of Saint Vincent College's three grass fields, but their second and final practice Thursday was held on an artificial turf field because of rain earlier in the day. There was no indication the turf contributed to the injury.

Obama wants Libyan house arrest for Lockerbie bomber (AFP)

WASHINGTON (AFP) –
President Barack Obama said Thursday that Libya should put cancer-stricken Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali Mohmet al-Megrahi under house arrest and rebuked Scotland for releasing him from jail.

Washington meanwhile warned Libya that its warming ties with the United States were on the line in its treatment of Megrahi, as furious relatives of victims of the 1988 disaster branded his compassionate release "appalling."

"We have been in contact with the Scottish government, indicating that we objected to this, and we thought it was a mistake," Obama said in an interview with a conservative radio host at the White House.

"We're now in contact with the Libyan government and want to make sure that if, in fact, this transfer has taken place, that he's not welcomed back in some way, but instead, should be under house arrest."

State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said that Libya's treatment of Megrahi would have a significant diplomatic impact.

"We will be watching very carefully to see what they do upon his return and we have told them that this will be something that will potentially affect our future relations," Crowley said.

Crowley noted that Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi, once considered a pariah, was now seeking better relations with Washington.

"If he wants to be seen as a responsible leader in the region and beyond, this will be an opportunity for him to prove it," he said.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said US diplomats in Tripoli had told the government there on Thursday that Megrahi should be under house arrest and treated as a "convicted mass murderer" who took part in terrorist activity.

The terminally ill Megrahi, the only person ever convicted over the bombing of a US Pan Am jetliner that killed 270 people, earlier headed home after the Scottish government decided he had only weeks to live.

The United States expressed anger and regret as Megrahi left jail.

"On this day, we extend our deepest sympathies to the families who live every day with the loss of their loved ones. We recognize the effects of such a loss weigh upon a family forever," said Gibbs.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who represented relatives of many young victims of the tragedy as a senator from New York, said Washington was "deeply disappointed" and said Megrahi should still be in jail in Scotland.

Attorney General Eric Holder issued a statement repudiating the legal grounding of Scottish Justice Minister Kenny MacAskill's decision to free Megrahi, who was serving a minimum of 27 years in jail.

"There is simply no justification for releasing this convicted terrorist whose actions took the lives of 270 individuals, including 189 Americans," he said.

"Megrahi did not show and has not shown compassion for innocent human life."

The release was a bitter blow to American relatives of Lockerbie victims, many of whom were students returning home from Europe for Christmas after student exchange visits.

Susan Cohen, who lost her daughter Theodora, said the Scottish government's decision was "appalling."

"You want to feel sorry for anyone, please feel sorry for me, feel sorry for my poor daughter, her body falling a mile through the air," Cohen told CNN.

"This is 270 people dead, this is a convicted mass murderer and terrorist. I have no doubt about his guilt," she said, arguing that Britain's zeal to exploit oil fields in rehabilitated Libya were at the root of the decision.

"Are we so devastatingly weak now? Have we lost all of our moral fiber that you can say that Megrahi can be released from prison for compassionate release?

"Where was his compassion for my daughter?"

Bert Ammerman, who lost his brother in the disaster, asked "where is the compassion for the victims and the families that have to live with this for the rest of our lives?" in an interview aired on Fox 5 television in New York.

MacAskill said Megrahi could return to Libya to die because Scots law required that "justice be served but mercy be shown."

The bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 which blew up over the Scottish town of Lockerbie on December 21, 1988, was the worst terrorist attack committed in Britain.

Megrahi was convicted in 2001 after a trial held under Scottish jurisdiction at a special court in the Netherlands.

Alabama linebacker, girlfriend arrested (AP)

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama football player Courtney Upshaw and a female student identified as his girlfriend are free on bond after being arrested on charges of domestic violence and harassment.
Upshaw and Kendall Lynn Gryzb were charged after an altercation about 9:30 p.m. Wednesday. Both are 19 years old, and a school spokeswoman says both were arrested by university police in the parking lot of the campus recreation center.
Upshaw is a sophomore linebacker. He played in 13 games last season and is competing for the starting spot this year.

Ticket site swamped for Jackson tribute in Vienna (AP)

VIENNA – Fans have swamped the Web site offering tickets for next month's global Michael Jackson tribute in Vienna.
Some 85,000 passes for the Sept. 26 event in the Austrian capital are up for grabs on http://www.tribute2009.com. Prices range from about $85 to more than $712.
Event promoters say the Web site crashed more than half an hour before the sale was due to start at 11 a.m. EDT after a million people had accessed it.
Jackson's brother Jermaine is expected to name the performers in the next two weeks.
The tribute will take place at a 17th-century palace. Jermaine Jackson has said Vienna was chosen as the venue because his brother "loved castles."
Michael Jackson died June 25 at age 50.

Ex-care home worker guilty of abuse on UK island (AP)

LONDON – An ex-care worker at a former home for troubled children on the English Channel island of Jersey has been found guilty of indecently assaulting teenage children.
Gordon Wateridge was convicted Thursday on nine assault charges by a jury.
Jersey, a British territory off the coast of France, has been dogged by reports that staff at the island's Haut de la Garenne children's home beat and sexually abused children in their care in the 1960s and 1970s.
Investigators said the 78-year-old Wateridge is the first person prosecuted following a major inquiry into abuse allegations at the home.
Judge Christopher Pitchers said Wateridge is likely to be handed a jail term when he is sentenced at a hearing next month.

Health Insurance Quote

Health Insurance Quote

When insured parties experience a loss for a specified peril, the coverage entitles the policyholder to make a 'claim' against the insurer for the covered amount of loss as specified by the policy. The fee paid by the insured to the insurer for assuming the risk is called the 'premium'. Insurance premiums from many insureds are used to fund accounts reserved for later payment of claims—in theory for a relatively few claimants—and for overhead costs. So long as an insurer maintains adequate funds set aside for anticipated losses (i.e., reserves), the remaining margin is an insurer's profit.

In U.S., the tax on interest income on life insurance policies and annuities is generally deferred. However, in some cases the benefit derived from tax deferral may be offset by a low return. This depends upon the insuring company, the type of policy and other variables (mortality, market return, etc.). Moreover, other income tax saving vehicles (e.g., IRAs, 401(k) plans, Roth IRAs) may be better alternatives for value accumulation. A combination of low-cost term life insurance and a higher-return tax-efficient retirement account may achieve better investment return.

If Obama Discards Public Option, What's Left of Reform? (The Nation)

The Nation -- When Barack Obama assumed the presidency, there was talk that former Democratic National Committee chair Howard Dean might be his Secretary of Health and Human Services.

That would have made Dean the administration's point person in the fight for healthcare reform.

It also would have increased the likelihood that reform would be real.

But Dean was rejected.

And, now, the prospect of real reform is fading fast.

Dean said last week at the "Netroots Nation" gathering in Pittsburgh that the only thing that made healthreform legislation proposed by House committees (and apparently backed by the administration) worth doing was the public option. In that legislation, the physician and former Vermont governor argued, "the last shred of reform is the public option."

Just days later, however, the administration appeared to be shredding that last shred of reform.

The Associated Press reports that, "President Barack Obama's administration signaled Sunday it is ready to abandon the idea of giving Americans the option of government-run insurance as part of a new health care system."

The woman who got the HHS job reform advocates had hoped would go to Dean certainly seemed Sunday to be jettisoning the idea of creating a government-organized alternative to private health insurance Sunday.

Appearing on CNN's "State of the Union" program, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius dismissed the public option as "not the essential element" of the administration's healthcare agenda.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said pretty much the same thing when he appeared Sunday on the CBS News program "Face the Nation."

"What the president has said is in order to inject choice and competition. . . people ought to be able to have some competition in that market," said Gibbs.

Pressed on whether the administration was abandoning the public option, Gibbs would only say that, "The president has thus far sided with the notion that that can best be done with a public option."

Startlingly, the clearest signal that the administration is preparing to jettison the public option came from Obama himself. Speaking at a town hall event in Colorado referred to the public plan as merely a "sliver" of his reform agenda and said: "The public option, whether we have it or we don't have it, is not the entirety of healthcare reform."

On this, Obama is right.

The public option has already been so dumbed-down and neutered that it is little more than a sliver.

The problem is that it may be the only sliver of real reform in his program.

Even with a robust public option, the president's initiative looks a lot like a bailout for the insurance industry --in stark contrast to the a single-payer reform that would replace industry profiteering with a not-for-profit system like Medicare.

Without a public option, there is no real reform.

Dean argued in Pittsburgh that: "The public option is (incremental reform)... But there is no incrementalism without the public option."

In fact, without the public option, the Obama approach -- and that of compromise-prone Democrats in Congress -- looks increasingly like a step in the wrong direction.

That's because the "reforms" currently under consideration threaten to undermine Medicare and Medicaid -- with radical cost-cutting schemes -- while steering hundreds of billions in federal dollars into the accounts of for-profit insurers and the pharmaceutical industry.

This is not "change we can believe in."

This is change that serious reformers will find "very difficult" to support, as Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson, D-Texas, said Sunday on CNN.

Johnson explained that progressives would have a tough time backing legislation that did not include a public option.

"The only way we can be sure that very low-income people and persons who work for companies that don't offer insurance have access to it, is through an option that would give the private insurance companies a little competition," explained Johnson, a former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus who once worked as the chief psychiatric nurse at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Dallas.

Johnson's right.

Without a robust public option, what the Obama administration and compromised Democrats in the House and Senate are talking about is not "healthcare reform."

It's "healthcare deform" that does not begin to address the crisis created by insurance industry profiteering -- and that could well make the "cure" worse than the disease.

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Dog Tags

In breeding circles, a male canine is referred to as a dog, while a female canine is called a bitch. The father of a litter is called the sire, and the mother of a litter is called the dam. Offspring are generally called pups or puppies until they are about a year old. A group of offspring is a litter. The process of birth is whelping. Many terms are used for dogs that are not purebred.

Mixed-breed dogs or Mongrels (also called "mutts") are dogs that do not belong to specific breeds, being mixtures more than two in variant percentages. Mixed breed dogs and purebred dogs are both suitable as companions, pets, working dogs, or competitors in dog sports. Sometimes different breed dogs are deliberately bred, to create cross-breeds such as the Cockapoo, a mixture of Cocker Spaniel and Miniature Poodle. Such deliberate crosses may display some degree of hybrid vigor and other desirable traits, but may or may not inherit any of the desired traits of their parents, such as temperament or a particular color or coat. Without genetic testing of the parents, the crosses can end up inheriting genetic defects that occur in both parental breeds.

Dog Tags

Swine flu inspires new video game (AP)

LONDON – Since swine flu first emerged in April, it has sparked panic, vaccine production and now, a video game.
In an effort to raise awareness, Dutch researchers have created a game that challenges players to control a new pandemic.
"It is actually what is happening now, what is happening in the real world," said Albert Osterhaus, head of virology at the Erasmus Medical Center, who designed "The Great Flu" game with colleagues.
The game can only be played online at http://www.thegreatflu.com and it is free. A World Health Organization spokesman said Monday the agency was not familiar with the game and had not had time to play it.
WHO has reported nearly 178,000 cases of swine flu including 1,462 deaths worldwide, though those numbers are believed to be a gross underestimate of the actual caseload, since hard-hit countries no longer test all cases with flu-like symptoms.
As the virus has spread worldwide, countries have tried different methods to slow it down and pharmaceutical companies are now racing to produce a swine flu vaccine.
The game begins with images of bedridden patients and graveyards from the 1918 Spanish flu. As the head of the fictitious "World Pandemic Control," players pick a flu strain, and then monitor that strain's spread around the world.
To fight the emerging outbreak, players use measures including setting up surveillance systems, stockpiling antivirals and vaccines, and closing schools and airports. Players also have a limited budget and are warned that "your actions to control the virus cost money, so keep an eye on it."
A running tally of the numbers of people infected and those who have died sit above the budget. Newspaper stories about the deadly virus and the global response to it — like riots breaking out worldwide — pop up to help players monitor the outbreak.
Messages from governments mirror the difficulties faced by international agencies like WHO. For instance, when players set up costly surveillance systems, the game often relays a message from governments that "we will comply with your directions...but we must inform you that the political support for this action is low in this region. Therefore, the effectiveness of the system may differ from your expectations."
Osterhaus said the video game's approximation of combating a pandemic, choosing between various interventions yet still watching the outbreak spread, gives people a sense of how difficult it is to make decisions in the public health world.
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On the Net:
http://www.thegreatflu.com
http://www.who.int