Court urged to stay out of Anna Nicole Smith case

The widow of the man who fought Anna Nicole Smith over a Texas millionaire's oil fortune is urging the Supreme Court to stay out of a long-running legal battle over Smith's estate.

Elaine Marshall, in court papers filed Friday, said that a court order preventing Smith's estate from collecting $88.5 million from the estate of Marshall's late husband, E. Pierce Marshall, should remain in place while the federal appeals court in San Francisco tries to sort out the tangle of competing claims.

Howard K. Stern, Smith's lawyer-turned-boyfriend, asked Justice Anthony Kennedy to lift the appeals court order. Stern said that …

Writer Jenkins' golf shot makes the screen

Ask sportswriter-novelist Dan Jenkins about his favorite sportsmovies and he ticks off "Rocky," "Slapshot," "Chariots of Fire" and"Everybody's All-American."

And the worst? "All the rest of 'em," he says.

Jenkins is responsible for two sports movies. His pro footballnovel, Semi-Tough, went to the big screen, and his next novel (in1974), Dead Solid Perfect, about the pro golf tour, shows up Sundayon HBO.

It has been 37 years since the last real golf movie - …

Court: Carl Lewis back on ballot in NJ Senate race

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Nine-time Olympic gold medalist Carl Lewis was ordered back on the ballot in a state Senate election by a federal appeals court Tuesday in possibly the final word over whether the celebrity political newcomer would meet a four-year residency requirement for state senators.

A 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel put Lewis, a Democrat, back on the ballot with a 2-1 ruling issued less than five hours after hearing arguments. The court said a full opinion would be filed later.

But after months of legal hair-splitting on exactly when Lewis became a New Jersey resident, the court seemed to indicate that issue was not the heart of the case. Instead, the court …

Art exhibit paints grim picture of climate chaos

Artists in London are painting a grim vision of a globe ravaged by climate change.

Among the 63 works on display at the Royal Academy are a print of a lonesome-looking tree clinging to a tiny island amid a yawning ocean and a huge cage-like globe clad in glowering red neon.

The co-curator of the exhibition at the Royal Academy, …

Top prospects prefer November

A study of the NCAA's early signing period for basketball, whichbegan in 1982, reveals interesting results, says talent scout BobGibbons of Lenoir, N.C.

In November, 76 percent of the top 100 prospects in the U.S.signed scholarships. That contrasts with last year's record 89percent.

But Gibbons points out the trend has been steadily upward from48 percent of the top 150 prospects making early decisions in 1982 to76 percent in 1988.

"That means the nation's college recruiters are doing anincreasingly effective job of enticing the top high school talent tomake their college choice in November," Gibbons said. "It should benoted that of the 24 top 100 …

ENHANCING CORPORATE MEMBERSHIPS

If corporate membership in a country club has been out of reach for your company, it could be time to check our two new membership plans at Orchard Ridge Country Club. Exciting changes in the 2012 dues and fee structure might put you in a position to acquire corporate membership and take advantage of club benefits from which your entire company can profit.

Beginning in March of 2012, a company that establishes a Corporate Golf Membership at Orchard Ridge can designate at least two individuals to represent the company as members. The designees have all the benefits of a Full Golf Membership including full use of the facilities for a spouse and children under the age of 23, …

Officials: 9 US troops killed in Afghanistan

A multi-pronged militant assault on a small, remote U.S. base killed nine American soldiers and wounded 15 Sunday in the deadliest attack on U.S. forces in Afghanistan in three years, officials said.

The attack on the U.S. outpost came the same day a suicide bomber targeting a police patrol killed 24 people, while U.S. coalition and Afghan soldiers killed 40 militants elsewhere in the south.

The militant assault on the American troops began around 4:30 a.m. in a dangerous region close to the Pakistan border and lasted throughout the day.

Militants fired machine guns, rocket-propelled grenades and mortars from homes and a mosque in the village of …

Dafoe channels Cheney, Rove

Willem Dafoe is almost unrecognizable as the paunchy, baldingpolitical puppet master behind Dennis Quaid's President Staton in"American Dreamz." But changing his appearance is nothing new forthis performer. After all, he has played characters as diverse asJesus ("The Last Temptation of Christ") and the Green Goblin ("Spider-Man").

Written, directed and produced by "American Pie" co-director PaulWeitz, "American Dreamz" pokes fun at the public's obsession with atop-rated television show that affords ambitious unknowns instantfame. A clueless U.S. president who suddenly decides to get back intouch with reality does so by becoming a guest judge on the show,where he becomes …

Making a Connection

Matthew Crocker remembers well the first discussions he had with his mother, Regis, the president of Crocker Communications, about moving the company into the realm of Internet service.

"I was leaving UMass and really dreading the thought of being without Internet service," he recalled for BusinessWest. "I tried to convince her that the Internet was the next wave of communication ... the place where the company needed to go. She said 'no."'

He and his brother, James, tried again a few months later. The answer was the same.

It took a cover story in Time on the Internet, which she read on the flight home from a business trip, that finally convinced her, said Matthew, …

US, European stocks get boost from Hewlett-Packard

Stock markets in Europe and the United States got a boost Tuesday from Hewlett-Packard Co. saying it is weathering the economic slowdown better than anticipated.

But the news was not enough to cheer Latin American investors concerned about how the region's commodity-heavy economies will do in a global recession, while Asian markets also closed lower overnight.

U.S. stocks staged a late-session rally that pushed the Dow Jones industrial average up 151.17 points, or 1.83 percent, to 8,424.75.

The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares closed up 76.39 points, or 1.9 percent, at 4,208.55, having flirted with falling below the 4,000 level earlier. It …

Ancient ramparts, modern mistakes

Writing from St. George's, Grenada

It has been a hot climb up the steep road (all roads are steephere) to a point where many forces of history have left their mark.This is the highest and longest of the ridges that encircle St.George's harbor. Other, lower promontories were fortified in the18th century, but this one has the most extensive line of masonryremains.

An interconnected chain of fortresses lined this citadel - someof them still in use, some standing bare and defenseless. From onefenced-in area, a woman is coaxing a man, asking for food, for money,for a message from friends.

Her interlocutor stands half-hidden on a parapet, with a hugeChristian …

Judge: Disbarred D.A. Must Leave Now

DURHAM, N.C. - Duke University has reached an undisclosed financial settlement with three former lacrosse players falsely accused of rape, while a judge said late Monday he would order the disbarred prosecutor to leave office immediately.

Duke had suspended Reade Seligmann, Collin Finnerty and Dave Evans after they were charged last year with raping a stripper at an off-campus party. The university also canceled the team's season and forced their coach to resign.

"We welcomed their exoneration and deeply regret the difficult year they and their families have had to endure," the school said Monday in a statement. "These young men and their families have been the subject of …

Ljubicic reaches semifinals at Lyon GP

Third-seeded Ivan Ljubicic of Croatia reached the semifinals of the Lyon Grand Prix on Friday by beating Florent Serra of France 7-6 (6), 6-2.

Ljubicic, the 2001 Lyon champion, served 16 aces and broke his opponent twice in the second set before closing out the game on his second match point.

The Croatian big server will play his first semifinal since May 2008 at Poertschach, Austria.

"It's a great feeling to get into my first semifinal of the year," said the 29th-ranked Ljubicic. "If I can finish the year in the top 20 that will be a really good year for me. I feel like I am getting back to where I belong with my ranking. I'm feeling good on the court again."

Serra saved four break points in the first set to force a tiebreaker but Ljubicic _ losing only four points on his first serve during the match _ took a 3-0 lead and served his 10th ace before taking the set on his second set point.

Ljubicic, the only non-French player in the quarterfinals, extended his perfect record against Serra to 4-0 and will face either top-seeded Jo-Wilfried Tsonga or Arnaud Clement in the next round.

French wild card Michael Llodra edged doubles partner Marc Gicquel of France 7-6 (5), 6-4. Llodra broke twice and served his 13th ace on match point to reach Lyon's semifinals for the first time in seven appearances.

Second-seeded Gilles Simon was to play Julien Benneteau later Friday.

Cisco Systems 1Q Profit Jumps 28 Percent

SAN FRANCISCO - Cisco Systems Inc., the world's largest networking equipment maker, said Wednesday its first-quarter earnings surged 28 percent over last year as customers spent gingerly to upgrade their networks to accommodate faster Internet traffic.

Cisco also profited from its recent $6.9 billion acquisition of Scientific-Atlanta Inc., the world's second-largest cable television box seller, which added $584 million to Cisco's sales during the quarter. The deal closed in February.

Cisco's net income for the quarter ending Oct. 28 was $1.61 billion, or 26 cents per share, compared with $1.26 billion, or 20 cents per share, in the same period last year.

Quarterly sales for the San Jose-based company, which makes the routers, switches and other devices used to link networks and direct traffic on the Internet, were $8.18 billion, compared with $6.55 billion last year. Cisco also produces digital subscriber line and cable broadband equipment, Voice over Internet Protocol telephone service products and network management software.

Excluding one-time charges, Cisco would have earned $1.9 billion, or 31 cents per share.

The company was expected to earn, on average, 29 cents per share on $7.9 billion in revenue, according to analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial.

John Chambers, Cisco's chief executive officer, said in a conference call that Cisco is succeeding in convincing customers to think of the network as the central platform for communications and IT needs.

"The balance was amazingly good everywhere," Chambers said. "All elements of our vision have evolved as we thought."

Sales increased across the company's core line of products. Growth was particularly strong in emerging markets such as Eastern Europe, Latin America, Africa and the Middle East, where orders were up over 40 percent, and the commercial and service provider markets, said Dennis Powell, Cisco's chief financial officer.

"It wasn't just one area that drove this," Powell said in an interview with The Associated Press. "We were hitting on all cylinders. Every product and every geography was performing extremely well for us."

Cisco expects the momentum to help drive 24 to 25 percent year-over-year revenue growth in the fiscal second quarter, which would translate to about $8.2 billion or $8.3 billion in quarterly revenue, Powell said.

Analysts said Cisco's broad-based growth reflected a general strengthening in the networking industry, as customers scramble to upgrade outdated gear and accommodate growing bandwidth demands.

"It's not quite the perfect storm, but a lot of things aligned nicely for them to be able to put these numbers up," said Zeus Kerravala, an analyst with the Yankee Group. "There was strength all over the place."

The results were announced after the market closed. The company's stock price gained as much as 9 percent in after-hours trading, rising $2.26 to $27.36. Cisco's stock closed up 26 cents, or about 1 percent, to $25.10 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.

Businesses switching electric suppliers

At Hershey Foods Corp. in Hershey, the manufacturing and candy making is done with equipment run by electric motors. Each year, the chocolate company uses as much electricity as a city with 20,000 homes.

And so, when Pennsylvania announced a pilot program in 1997 to allow consumers and businesses to choose their own electric companies, the executives at Hershey were interested. They saw it as a way to cut costs on the 300 million kilowatt hours of electricity it uses annually.

After intensively studying the program, which essentially deregulated the electricity industry, Hershey decided to choose a new electric provider and sought bids. It made the switch in 1999 from GPU Energy and PP&L Inc. to Exelon Energy, an affiliate of PECO Energy Co. in Philadelphia.

Today, Hershey Foods is saving millions of dollars on electricity, according to Don Hornung, energy procurement manager for the company, who said the exact amount of savings "is an internal figure" and is something the company would not disclose.

Hershey's experience with the electric choice program seems to indicate that change is good, when it comes to electricity. But not everyone is comfortable with change, according to Eric Levis of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission, which oversees the Electric Choice program.

Even though all 5.3 million electric consumers in the state can now choose their suppliers, only 507,058 have as to date, Levis said. Of those, 94,188 commercial customers and 4,456 industrial customers have changed electric suppliers, representing a fraction of the businesses in Pennsylvania.

Still, Levis is encouraged by the figures, released by the Pennsylvania Consumer Advocate's Office on Jan. 1. At the end of 1999, there were slightly fewer than 500,000 consumers enrolled in the program.

"We're still seeing an increase in the number of customers participating," said Levis. "It's only been a year, and it can be a complicated subject matter for some people."

A higher percentage of commercial and industrial customers have switched electric suppliers, Levis said. That's because businesses use more electricity and stand to save more if they switch to a company that sells electricity for less.

"The businesses were generally more on top of this than many residential customers," said Levis. "For them, electricity is such a large part of their expenses."

Joining the ranks of those who have switched, Levis said, are the Pennsylvania Department of General Services, Pennsylvania State University, the Central Dauphin School District and the Mechanicsburg School District. All have saved money, he said, although he didn't know exactly how much.

And more companies apply every month with the PUC for licenses to sell electricity in the commonwealth, Levis said, despite the fact that some companies have dropped out because of the record heat and drought last Summer that drove up the cost of electricity.

There are more than 104 electric suppliers who have applied to do business in the state, according to the PUC's web site and 101 have received licenses to supply electricity to residential, industrial and commercial customers. Only five have opted not to serve the Central Pennsylvania area.

All but five are licensed to serve Central Pennsylvania's residential, commercial and industrial customers.

Touchstone Energy, a division of American Cooperative Services Inc., Harrisburg, is licensed to provide electricity in the commonwealth, specifically in the areas served by PECO and GPU. With just 3,000 customers, Touchstone is considered one of the smaller firms in the electric business, but the majority of its customers are commercial and industrial businesses, including a few big names.

The company, developed in 1998 by Pennsylvania's 13 electric cooperatives and one in New Jersey, has a oneyear contract to supply electricity to coffee giant Starbucks Coffee Co. for its roasting plant and distribution center in York County. The Starbucks plant supplies the entire East Coast with Starbucks coffee, according to Ben Ricci, director of retail marketing for Touchstone.

Touchstone was also the choice of Rutter's Dairy Inc. when it was looking for a company to supply electricity to about 40 of its convenience stores, as well as its bottling and manufacturing plant in York. Rutter's has a one-year contract with Touchstone.

"We most definitely saved money," said Jeff Crist, vice president of fuel management for Rutter's, declining to say exactly how much. Crist is preparing to seek bids for a new contract for electricity, with the agreement with Touchstone drawing to a close. Crist expects Touchstone to bid and is considering staving with the company.

As for Touchstone, the company is "prospecting" in the Philadelphia area now, looking for additional customers, said Ricci. The small cooperativeowned company is successful, he said, because it is responsive to its customers.

"We were persistent," he said. "We're very hands-on. I think that made the difference."

At Hershey Foods, meanwhile, the only difference that has resulted from the change is that the company is saving money, according to Hornung.

"We don't see any difference in service or reliability." he said. The new electric program serves more than 30 Hershey Foods locations in Central Pennsylvania, he said, including the main chocolate plant in Hershey and manufacturing and warehousing centers in Lancaster, Hazleton, Mechanicsburg and Reading.

Hornung is preparing now to rebid the Hershey Foods electricity contract. He said electricity prices are higher than last year at this time, primarily due to the record heat and drought last summer that boosted the cost of electricity.

He foresees the construction of more electric-generating plants in Pennsylvania to serve the demand for cheap electricity, which will then drive costs down.

"It'll start to behave like a regular market," said Hornung.

EU levies hefty fine on car glass makers

The EU's antitrust chief on Wednesday fined car glass producers Asahi, Pilkington, Saint-Gobain and Soliver more than 1.3 billion euros ($1.66 billion) for price-fixing, the largest sum ever levied by the EU for a cartel.

France's Compagnie de Saint-Gobain SA must pay 896 million euros ($1.14 billion) _ more than any other company has been fined before.

The European Commission said the four companies control 90 percent of the glass used to make European cars, a market worth 2 billion euros in 2003.

EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes said the companies fixed prices over a period of five years. She said the fines were high because European industry had to "learn the lessons the hard way."

"If you cheat, you will get a heavy fine," she said. "These companies cheated the car industry and car buyers for five years."

The EU said it increased Saint-Gobain's fine by 60 percent because the company was a cartel repeat offender. It was fined last year for an EU-wide window glass cartel, following earlier fines for a Belgian flat glass cartel in 1988 and a similar cartel on the Italian market in 1984.

Saint-Gobain said it had set aside only 560 million euros ($714 million) for the "excessive and disproportionate" fine. It said it would immediately appeal the EU decision to the EU Court of First Instance and would not have to pay the fine until its legal challenge is exhausted.

"The fine represents approximately 95 percent of the annual sales of Saint-Gobain's automotive glass business in Europe and several decades' net income," it said.

European antitrust regulators can fine companies up to 10 percent of global turnover for every year they broke the law. The money goes into the EU budget, usually funded by taxpayers, and is spent mostly on farm subsidies and research.

Kroes said the Saint-Gobain fine "may be the largest ever for a cartel but it still falls well short of that (10-percent) cap" because she said the company has an annual turnover of 43 billion euros ($55 billion).

Asahi Glass Co. of Japan was fined 113.5 million ($144.7 million) for its European subsidiary, formerly called Glaverbel. It got a 50 percent reduction because it cooperated with regulators. The company said it would explain the impact of the fine on its financial results at a later date.

Britain's Pilkington PLC _ owned by Japan's Nippon Sheet Glass Co. _ must pay 370 million euros($471.6 million). A smaller company, Belgian-based Soliver NV, was fined far less: 4.396 million euros ($5.6 million).

Regulators said Asahi, Pilkington and Saint-Gobain _ the three major suppliers of glass to European automakers _ met regularly to discuss target prices, shared out markets and allocated car maker customers from early 1998 to early 2003. Soliver only joined some of these meetings.

The companies made glass for car windscreens, car doors, rear windows and sunroofs.

The antitrust investigation was triggered by an anonymous tip-off, the EU executive said.

Kroes could not say how far the cartel had hiked car prices but encouraged customers to seek damages from the glass suppliers through the national courts.

NYC's Rockefeller Center tree is from Connecticut

The star attraction at New York's Rockefeller Center this Christmas will be a 76-foot (23-meter) Norway spruce from Connecticut.

Crews cut down the 10-ton tree Wednesday morning at the home of schoolteacher Maria Corti in Easton.

The spruce will be hoisted by a crane onto a trailer and transported about 50 miles (80 kilometers) to New York City. The tree will be erected at the center Thursday.

Marketing director Keith Douglas says Rockefeller Center does aerial searches for a Christmas tree and spotted Corti's spruce as a good candidate. The Christmas tree at Rockefeller Center is a beloved holiday classic that attracts tourists from around the world.

After Christmas, the tree will be donated to Habitat For Humanity to use as wood for a home in Connecticut.

Last year's Rockefeller Center tree was a 72-foot-tall (22-meter) Norway spruce from Hamilton, New Jersey. The owners had used it as their first Christmas tree in 1931.

Wimbledon Men's Champions

2010 _ Rafael Nadal

2009 _ Roger Federer

2008 _ Rafael Nadal

2007 _ Roger Federer

2006 _ Roger Federer

2005 _ Roger Federer

2004 _ Roger Federer

2003 _ Roger Federer

2002 _ Lleyton Hewitt

2001 _ Goran Ivanisevic

2000 _ Pete Sampras

1999 _ Pete Sampras

1998 _ Pete Sampras

1997 _ Pete Sampras

1996 _ Richard Krajicek

1995 _ Pete Sampras

1994 _ Pete Sampras

1993 _ Pete Sampras

1992 _ Andre Agassi

1991 _ Michael Stich

1990 _ Stefan Edberg

1989 _ Boris Becker

1988 _ Stefan Edberg

1987 _ Pat Cash

1986 _ Boris Becker

1985 _ Boris Becker

1984 _ John McEnroe

1983 _ John McEnroe

1982 _ Jimmy Connors

1981 _ John McEnroe

1980 _ Bjorn Borg

1979 _ Bjorn Borg

1978 _ Bjorn Borg

1977 _ Bjorn Borg

1976 _ Bjorn Borg

1975 _ Arthur Ashe

1974 _ Jimmy Connors

1973 _ Jan Kodes

1972 _ Stan Smith

1971 _ John Newcombe

1970 _ John Newcombe

1969 _ Rod Laver

1968 _ Rod Laver

1967 _ John Newcombe

1966 _ Manolo Santana

1965 _ Roy Emerson

1964 _ Roy Emerson

1963 _ Chuck McKinley

1962 _ Rod Laver

1961 _ Rod Laver

1960 _ Neale Fraser

1959 _ Alex Olmedo

1958 _ Ashley Cooper

1957 _ Lew Hoad

1956 _ Lew Hoad

1955 _ Tony Trabert

1954 _ Jaroslav Drobny

1953 _ Vic Seixas

1952 _ Frank Sedgman

1951 _ Dick Savitt

1950 _ Budge Patty

1949 _ Ted Schroeder

1948 _ Bob Falkenburg

1947 _ Jack Kramer

1946 _ Yvon Petra

1940-45 _ No tournament, World War II

1939 _ Bobby Riggs

1938 _ Don Budge

1937 _ Don Budge

1936 _ Fred Perry

1935 _ Fred Perry

1934 _ Fred Perry

1933 _ Jack Crawford

1932 _ Ellsworth Vines

1931 _ Sidney Wood

1930 _ Bill Tilden

1929 _ Henri Cochet

1928 _ Rene Lacoste

1927 _ Henri Cochet

1926 _ Jean Borotra

1925 _ Rene Lacoste

1924 _ Jean Borotra

1923 _ Bill Johnston

1922 _ Gerald Patterson

1921 _ Bill Tilden

1920 _ Bill Tilden

1919 _ Gerald Patterson

1915-18 _ No tournament, World War I

1914 _ Norman Brookes

1913 _ Tony Wilding

1912 _ Tony Wilding

1911 _ Tony Wilding

1910 _ Tony Wilding

1909 _ Arthur Gore

1908 _ Arthur Gore

1907 _ Norman Brookes

1906 _ Laurie Doherty

1905 _ Laurie Doherty

1904 _ Laurie Doherty

1903 _ Laurie Doherty

1902 _ Laurie Doherty

1901 _ Arthur Gore

1900 _ Reggie Doherty

1899 _ Reggie Doherty

1898 _ Reggie Doherty

1897 _ Reggie Doherty

1896 _ Harold Mahoney

1895 _ Wilfred Baddeley

1894 _ Joshua Pim

1893 _ Joshua Pim

1892 _ Wilfred Baddeley

1891 _ Wilfred Baddeley

1890 _ Willoughby Hamilton

1889 _ Willie Renshaw

1888 _ Ernest Renshaw

1887 _ Herbert Lawford

1886 _ Willie Renshaw

1885 _ Willie Renshaw

1884 _ Willie Renshaw

1883 _ Willie Renshaw

1882 _ Willie Renshaw

1881 _ Willie Renshaw

1880 _ John Hartley

1879 _ John Hartley

1878 _ Frank Hadow

1877 _ Spencer Gore

RWE 2Q net profit down 67 percent to euro347M

Utility RWE AG said Thursday its second quarter net profit fell 67 percent because of a strong performance last year, one-time effects this year and higher expenses related to carbon dioxide emissions.

The Essen-based company also reiterated its downward profit outlook for 2008 because of charges related to the initial public offering of its American Water unit.

RWE said net profit in the April-June period fell to euro347 million (US$517 million) from euro1.1 billion a year earlier.

Total sales, however, rose 22 percent to euro11 billion (US$16.4 billion) in the second quarter from euro8.5 billion last year.

Second quarter pretax profit fell 33 percent to euro807 million (US$1.2 billion) from euro1.2 billion compared with last year.

"The prerequisites for a successful fiscal 2008 are still good, although these interim financial statements do not reflect this yet," chief executive Juergen Grossmann said in the company's report.

"We will see most of this success reflected in ... figures in the second half of the year," he added.

Reiterating a previous forecast, he said that "in 2008, however, our trading activities are unlikely to match the unusually strong performance achieved last year."

RWE's weaker earnings were a result of its discontinued operation, American Water, which it intends to fully divest and didn't include in the current earnings. RWE announced its intention to float the company in 2006 and has thus far sold off about 40 percent, generating proceeds of about euro1.3 billion (US$2 billion). American Water is one of the biggest water utilities in the U.S.

Part of the declines in earnings were also a result of the company having to buy more CO2 emission certificates than it had to buy a year ago. RWE spent euro583 million (US$869 million) in the certificates in the first half, compared to just euro37 million in the first half of 2007.

"At the end of July, emissions allowances for 2008 were quoted at euro22 (US$33) per metric ton of CO2. We expect that prices will continue to be high," RWE said.

During the first half, the company sold 162 billion kilowatt hours of electricity, a 3.3 percent increase over the 157 billion hours sold a year ago.

Gas sales were up 4 percent to 183 billion kilowatt hours from 178 billion a year ago.

Total sales for the group during the first six months were up 13 percent to euro25 billion (US$37.3 billion) from euro22 billion a year ago.

First half net profit fell to euro1.2 billion (US$1.8 billion) from euro2.6 billion a year ago.

RWE said higher energy sales came from more industrial and household demand, with gas seeing the steepest rise.

The company said gas sales in Germany rose 9 percent, in the U.K. 5 percent and 11 percent in the Czech Republic. Electricity sales also rose with a 1.5 percent increase in Germany, and 2 percent in the U.K., Slovakia and Poland.

Meanwhile, the company said costs increased sharply for commodities across the board.

Coal prices, were more than double what they were during the first half of 2007, while oil prices averages were more than 72 percent over the prior year's level. In the firs half of 2008, gas prices were 20 percent more expensive than in 2007.

Shares of RWE were up 1 percent at euro74.40 (US$111) in Frankfurt morning trading.

___

On the Net:

http://www.rwe.com

Doc Powell recaptures his youth with 'On 97th and Columbus'

Everyday, Doc Powell walked or drove back and forth to 97th and Columbus in New York. He also traveled up to Harlem and downtown to Manhattan. It didn't matter which was he went or where ever he came from, 97th and Columbus confronted him. Doc is now a mature individual, but each time he returned to that particular place memories returned.

Recently, Doc was in Chicago serving as musical director for Grammy and Stellar Award winners Kirk Franklin, Yolanda Adams and Donnie McClurkin for their "Hopeville Tour." With him serving as leader of the accompanying band, one could understand why the three gospel stars stir up righteousness through their music.

In so many words Doc said, 97th and Columbus was the haven for his development. The club belonged to Mikell who kept an active program of all genres of music. It was extremely busy, Doc told me and it was a kind of university for a developing musician.

"Musicians from every era frequented 97th and Columbus including Art Black and the Jazz Messengers, George Benson and a host of talented guys, who played their instruments, sang and jammed with fervor."

He remembered Wes Montgomery, the rock outbursts of Carlos Santana who frequented the place that was recognized as the melting pot of the New York sound. He remembered listening to Patrice Rushen, George Duke, Fourplay member Harvey Mason, Grammy Award winner Marcus Miller, Grammy nominated sax virtuoso Bennie Maupin. Other innovative music he heard came back to him in harmonic textures, rhythms and melodies. He also thought about the fantastic improvisations that came when groups interacted together.

What a life? What wealth of musical heritage filled with all kinds of idioms that embraced the eras of musical history, the kind of music that filled the jukeboxes, the fabulous jazz that circulated through Harlem and the swinging styles of many people. Doc recalled that it was George Benson who signed a letter recommending him for college. "He was always a big supporter of my career and my playing," Doc said.

His title track, "97th and Columbus" features saxophonist Ron Brown which permits one to feel how it used to be in a New York club when the joint was jumping and the rhythm section was grooving."

On the album, Doc used his electric classical guitar skills to spotlight Ramsey Lewis' "Sun Goddess" saying "Ramsey is a very important musician and innovative leader and I always wanted to record this song because it is one of my favorites." Another highlight is "Ode to Chet," and this composition's arrangement is extremely innovative and is a beautiful tribute to the musician. Said Doc, "Chet is a favorite guitarist of mine, we also share the experience of being studio musicians who became solo artists."

Article copyright REAL TIMES Inc.

Photograph (Doc Powell)

Obituaries in the News

Edna Hipps Hamrick

GAFFNEY, S.C. (AP) - Edna Hipps Hamrick, who founded the Hamrick's Inc. clothing store chain with her husband, has died. She was 89.

Mary Martin died Monday, according to the Blakely Funeral Home.

The family business, which started out in 1945 as a grocery store in a mill community, grew to include 20 clothing stores in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia, according to the company.

Hamrick's makes its own lines of ladies' clothes under several brand names, including Links, N Touch, Southern Lady, Company Collection and Nikki.

Hamrick's children continue to run the company, which has about 1,500 employees.

---

Vlatko Pavletic

ZAGREB, Croatia (AP) - Vlatko Pavletic, a former speaker of Croatia's parliament who served as acting president for two months, has died. He was 77.

Pavletic, of the ruling conservative Croatian Democratic Union, died Wednesday. He took over presidential duties in December 1999, when President Franjo Tudjman died. The new president, Stipe Mesic, was sworn in February 2000.

Though loyal to Tudjman - an authoritarian and nationalist leader who ruled Croatia for a decade, Pavletic was never an outspoken nationalist.

Pavletic later was a deputy speaker of parliament and retired in 2004. He also wrote essays and books on literature.

---

Gordon "Specs" Powell

SAN DIEGO (AP) - Jazz drummer Gordon "Specs" Powell, who recorded with Billie Holiday and played for "The Ed Sullivan Show" as part of the CBS network orchestra, has died. He was 85.

Powell, who died Saturday of complications from kidney disease, also had heart trouble. He died at a care center near his home in the northern San Diego County suburb of San Marcos, according to his son, Ted Smith.

Powell began his career doubling as a pianist, but rose to fame as a drummer during the swing era and became a fixture on the 52nd Street jazz scene in New York.

In 1943, he was hired by CBS, becoming one of the first black musicians to play for a national network.

Powell was a versatile percussionist who carried a kit filled with castanets, clickers and other noisemakers he referred to as his "bag of tricks."

Powell was born in New York on June 5, 1922.

---

Garrard "Buster" Ramsey

SIGNAL MOUNTAIN, Tenn. (AP) - Garrard "Buster" Ramsey, the first coach of the Buffalo Bills, has died. He was 87.

Nephew Knox Wagner Ramsey Jr. said Ramsey died Sunday of pneumonia at a Chattanooga-area retirement center where he had been living.

Ramsey played guard at William & Mary, where he was the school's first All-American. In the NFL, as a two-way player as a lineman, he was part of the Chicago Cardinals' team that won the 1947 championship.

In 1959, he became coach of the newly formed Bills team of the old AFL, where he was 11-16-1 in two seasons before being fired in 1962. He also held coaching positions with the Detroit Lions and Pittsburgh Steelers.

As a defensive coach with the Lions in the 1950s, Ramsey was credited with helping develop the 4-3 defense and helped popularize blitzing linebackers.

He ended his coaching career with the Steelers in 1965.

Ramsey retired to the Smoky Mountains foothills in East Tennessee, where he raised cattle and served on the Blount County School Board and the county commission. He is listed on the World War II Honor Roll at the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

---

Ed Smith

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) - Ed Smith, a Democratic operative who spent his life in a wheelchair while registering voters and working for civil rights, has died. He was 56.

Smith died Sunday at his Raleigh home after a bout with pneumonia, friends said.

He never let his childhood bout with polio keep him from being a force in state Democratic politics and work for presidential candidates, friends said.

Smith worked on at least 60 campaigns and political campaigns, helping put in office former House Speaker Dan Blue and current U.S. House members such as Brad Miller, Bob Etheridge and G.K. Butterfield.

He was a state co-chairman for the 2000 Gore-Lieberman campaign, first vice chairman of the state Democratic Party and a Democratic National Committee member from 2001 to 2003. He later worked for John Edwards' 2004 presidential campaign.

After contracting polio at age 5, Smith spent long periods in an iron lung but was among the first disabled to attend his Raleigh high school and ultimately graduated from St. Andrews Presbyterian College in Laurinburg.

Millers sets stage for change

In a move to convert from a mutual insurance company to a stock-owned insurance company, Harrisburg-based Millers Mutual Insurance Co.'s board of directors has approved the formation of a mutual holding company and is now awaiting state approval of its plan.

A mutual insurance company is owned by its policyholders, and a stock-held company is owned by stockholders. In the case of Millers, policyholders would have the same voting rights they enjoyed prior to the conversion.

Once the conversion is made, Millers would be able to make an initial public offering of stock, said David W. Carmean, vice president and secretary of the company, which sells property and casualty insurance. An IPO would allow the company to acquire other insurance companies,fundmajor capital improvements and create new enterprises, among other possibilities.

"At a later date, should the company desire, they could do an IPO, but the idea would be to sell 49 percent of the stock, leaving the mutual holding company with 51 percent of the stock, thus preventing a takeover," Carmean said.

He pointed to the case of Lancasterbased Old Guard Group Inc., which became the target of a hostile takeover attempt by Marietta-based Donegal Group Inc. when Old Guard began an initial public stock offering in 1997. Donegal failed in its attempt.

He stressed that launching an IPO is ,,only a possibility in the future. This action we're taking right now is only to form a mutual holding company."

In a July 21 notice to eligible members, Millers said a mutual holding company will be formed under the plan, and members' voting rights will be transferred to the mutual holding company, which will become the parent of the reorganized holding company system. Once Millers is converted to a stock insurance company, it will be controlled by its sole shareholder, a stock holding company to be owned by the mutual holding company.

"Millers will be converted from a mutual insurance company to a stock insurance company and you will continue as a policyholder of the converted company," the notice told policyholders. "Your insurance coverage will not change."

According to Rick Russell, executive vice president of the Professional Insurance Agents Association, Mechanicsburg, a state law passed in 1996 allows for mutual-to-stock conversions. State Insurance Department spokeswoman Melissa Fox said 11 such conversions have occurred since the law passed.

"Demutualization is a controversial issue in the insurance industry today," Russell noted, saying the issue "can even get pretty emotionally charged" over whether policyholders will lose ownership of the company when the conversion takes place.

In a July 19 letter to policyholders, Millers President and CEO Robert Lyon said the move "is being undertaken to enable the company to prepare for its future in an ever-changing financial services industry."

A public hearing has been tentatively scheduled for 9 a.m., Sept. 24 in the state Insurance Department's administrative hearings office in the Capital Associates Building at 901 N. Seventh St., Harrisburg, to hear comments regarding the conversion, which is called a "demutualization," according to Fox.

Fox said the Insurance Department received the Millers Mutual reorganization plan July 16, and is now reviewing it. Millers' policyholders had 30 days from the date of the July 21 notice to eligible members to provide the Insurance Department commissioner or Millers with any comments on the plan. As of Aug. 30, the department had not received any written comments, Fox said.

In the past year, Lyon has stated that his firm plans to remain independent in the consolidating insurance industry. Millers Mutual has about $50 million in assets and 50 employees, and last year acquired another company, Paradise Mutual Insurance Co., Hanover, which brought in another $5 million in assets and 15 employees.

"Any mutual company that dernutualizes does so to find an avenue for additional capital that it can raise," said Dennis Rowe, president and CEO of Harrisburg -based Penn National Insurance. "It certainly isn't a sign of weakness that a company would demutualize or have an initial public offering. To the contrary, it's a sign of strength."

An insurance company has a number of options for transforming to a publicly held company from a mutual company owned by policyholders, Rowe noted. He said Penn National Insurance has a holding corporation that is fully owned by the original mutual company, so it's not demutualized.

As for the time frame, Fox said any company filing to demutualize before the Insurance Department has 90 days to file its plan with the department after a two-thirds majority of the board of directors passes a resolution.

In the past, the department had 60 days to approve the resolution from the time it was filed. "Now, that is no longer the case," Fox said. "Sixty days was entirely too short a time frame to accomplish this. So, the time frame has been waived."

The department looks for evidence that the company is acting in the best interests of the policyholders and will remain solvent if it demutualizes, Fox said.

If the commissioner approves the plan, within one year the company is required to present the information to the policyholders for approval. A vote must be held within 30 days and win a twothirds majority of policy holders for the plan to gain approval.

If approved, the company will file corporate articles of amendment with the Department of State's Corporation Bureau. Generally, the day of the filing is the day of conversion. If disapproved, and the company wants to try again, the entire procedure must be repeated, Fox said.

Martin boosts NASCAR lead

Mark Martin drove away from every challenge Sunday and won theNASCAR Champion Spark Plug 400 in Brooklyn Mich.

It was a sweet victory for the 31-year-old Martin, who boostedhis Winston Cup points lead over three-time champion Dale Earnhardt.

Martin, who was driving a Ford, was solidly in the battlethroughout the 400-mile race on Michigan International Speedway'stwo-mile, high-banked oval. He led 70 of the last 76 laps anddefeated Chevy driver Greg Sacks by 1.7 seconds.

Defending Winston Cup champion Rusty Wallace finished third,followed by Bill Elliott and Ricky Rudd, who made a great chargeafter starting 39th in the 41-car field.

Earnhardt appeared to be the driver to beat in the first half ofthe race, but he faded and wound up eighth. He now trails Martin by48 points with just 10 races left.

It was the second victory of the season and the third of hiscareer for Martin, whose victory early this season in Richmond, Va.,was spoiled when he was hit with a $40,000, 47-point penalty forusing an illegal carburetor.

IMSA: Geoff Brabham took a big step toward his third consecutiveIMSA-GT driving championship by winning the Nissan Grand Prix of RoadAmerica in Elkhart Lake, Wis.

Brabham, who was driving a Nissan GTP ZX-Turbo, averaged 113.111mph m.p.h.for 39 laps on the four-mile road course. He defeatedJaguar driver Davy Jones by 22 seconds. Juan Fangio finished thirdin a Toyota Eagle.

City Services, but no money from City Hall for Pilgrim

Pilgrim Baptist Church didn't get a promise of city funds to help rebuild its church, but several city departments will help the church in its rebuilding process.

Mayor Richard M. Daley met with Pilgrim's board Wednesday morning and plans to assess the building destroyed in Friday's fire.

"We have to look at this very carefully. The history has a lot of value to it," Daley said at a news conference Wednesday.

The council has no immediate plans to donate funds to rebuild the 115-year-old church, the mayor said.

Gov. Rod R. Blagojevich Monday pledged up to $1 million in state funds to rebuild the church. But Daley offered the church the services of city departments to help protect what's left of the building.

Pilgrim Baptist Church burned last week leaving just a shell of the limestone building at 3301 S. Indiana Ave. The "church was designed as a synagogue between 1890 and 1891 by Louis Sullivan and Dankmar Adler, but housed the Pilgrim congregation since 1922. The building was designated a Chicago landmark in 1981.

It was also the home of the church's longtime music director Thomas A. Dorsey, considered the father of gospel music.

The City Council Wednesday presented church leaders with a resolution that remarked on the "acoustical perfection of the building's sanctuary," as it hailed the building's significance to the city.

Ald, Arenda Troutman (20th), chair of the council's Committee on Historical Landmark Preservation, said the fire may have been a blessing in disguise.

"You can do a lot with a shell," Troutman said. "I know you can rebuild."

Daley said structural engineers began surveying the site Wednesday to determine the safety of the building.

Chicago Police will continue to provide security at the site and the city's Department of Permits will help the church begin the process of erecting a fence to protect what's left of the building.

The congregation is expected to use the Bronzeville military academy for services Sunday, Daley said.

Article copyright REAL TIMES Inc.

Palestinian civil servants unpaid after Israeli tax transfer doesn't materialize

Palestinian officials say thousands of civil servants have not been paid their May wages because Israel has failed to transfer tax revenues due under an agreement between the two sides.

Jamal Zakout, a government spokesman, says Israel was meant to transfer $78 million dollars at the end of May. The money is used to pay around 150,000 Palestinian civil servants.

However Lee Gat, spokeswoman for Israeli Finance Minister Finance Minister Roni Bar-On, said Sunday that the transfer was made during the past few days.

Poll: Pa. Senate Dem primary too close to call

A new poll finds that Pennsylvania's Democratic primary for U.S. Senate is now too close to call.

A survey of likely Democratic voters released Wednesday by Quinnipiac (KWIHN'-uh-pee-ak) University shows U.S. Rep. Joe Sestak has closed the gap with fifth-term Sen. Arlen Specter.

The Quinnipiac poll gives Specter a 44 percent to 42 percent edge. The sampling error margin is 3.2 percentage points. Fourteen percent are undecided.

Barely a month ago, Sestak trailed by 20 points or more in some polls before he began airing TV ads.

The telephone survey of 945 likely Democratic voters primary voters was conducted from May 5 through Monday.

The primary election is Tuesday.

Hurricane Alex churns toward Mexico, Texas coasts

Hurricane Alex churned westward through the Gulf of Mexico early Wednesday, far from oil spill cleanup efforts but on a collision course with Mexico and the southern Texas coastline.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami upgraded the storm to a Category 1 hurricane _ the least powerful type _ Tuesday night. By Wednesday morning, it sustained winds of 80 mph (129 kph). Alex became the first June hurricane in the Atlantic since 1995, the center said.

Bands of intense rain began lashing deep south Texas and northeast Mexico Wednesday morning as Alex slowed its movement to 7 mph (11 kph). The National Weather Service pushed Alex's landfall back to late Wednesday night or early Thursday and raised the possibility that it would make landfall as a Category 2 hurricane.

Texas residents had been preparing for the storm for days, readying their homes and businesses and stocking up on household essentials. But the storm was expected to deal only a glancing blow to the state and to make landfall Wednesday evening south of Matamoros, Mexico, and some 100 miles (160 kilometers) south of Brownsville.

The storm was expected to pack winds of at least 90 mph (145 kph) when it comes ashore, but those could increase to as much as 110 mph (177 kph) if it strengthened to a Category 2.

As of 7 a.m. CDT Wednesday (1200 GMT), Alex was 220 miles (355 kilometers) southeast of Brownsville moving west-northwest at about 7 mph (11 kph), with maximum sustained winds near 80 mph (129 kph).

Oil rigs and platforms in the path of the storm's outer bands were evacuated, and President Barack Obama issued a pre-emptive federal disaster declaration for southern Texas counties late Tuesday.

The three oil rigs and 28 platforms evacuated are not part of the Gulf oil spill response. Alex is projected to stay far away from the spill zone and not affect recovery efforts, but tall waves kicked up by the farthest reaches of Alex did toss oil-soaking boom around the water.

Texas also watched Alex's outer bands warily. Alex was expected to bring torrential rains to a Rio Grande delta region that is ill suited _ both economically and geographically _ to handle it.

Passing showers Tuesday quickly pooled along parts of downtown streets in Brownsville and Matamoros, a worrisome sign with Alex expected to dump eight to 12 inches (30 centimeters) of rain in the region and as much as 20 inches (50 centimeters) in isolated areas.

In Matamoros, cab driver Alfonso Lopez said he worried that that people would wait until the last minute to take the storm seriously.

"A lot of people trust too much that it won't be very bad or it will change course," he said.

In Cameron County, one of the poorest areas of the U.S. and Texas' southernmost point, Brownsville Mayor Pat Ahumada said he would wait to make his city's emergency declaration in part because the city is cash strapped and he did not want to start paying city workers extra before absolutely necessary.

In Matamoros, government workers stuck duct-tape in X's across the windows Tuesday of the immigration office at the main downtown bridge. Trucks cruised slowly down residential streets, replacing people's large drinking water jugs and cars packed supermarket parking lots.

Matamoros Civil Protection Director Saul Hernandez said they would begin evacuating about 2,500 people from coastal areas east of the city Wednesday morning. But Hernandez said his real concern was the 13,000 families in 95 of the city's low-lying colonias, unincorporated areas where residents frequently have no public utilities or city services.

___

Weber reported from South Padre Island, Texas. Associated Press Writer April Castro in Austin contributed to this report.

Kosovo vote marred by allegations of fraud

PRISTINA, Kosovo (AP) — Kosovo's election authorities were nearing the end of a recount of nearly 40 percent of votes cast in last month's general election, an official said Tuesday, following complaints of widespread fraud in the country's first poll since it declared its independence from Serbia.

Ballots from 700 polling stations out of 760 across Kosovo where irregularities were reported have already been recounted, said Fehmi Ajvazi, a spokesman for the Central Election Commission.

The commission agreed on a recount just days after the Dec. 12 poll when candidates for the 120-seat legislature complained of widespread fraud. Suspicion arose in poling station where monitors complained that votes for party candidates exceeded those cast for a single political party. Voters in Kosovo are asked to choose a political party and up to five party candidates.

Results from the recount are expected late Wednesday. The final result is not likely to change the winner of the poll, but will affect who makes it into the 120-seat parliament. Initial preliminary results gave incumbent Prime Minister Hashim Thaci the lead over his political rivals.

The commission has also ordered a new vote be held in three regions, home to over 100,000 out of 1.6 million registered voters and a partial new vote in two other regions. The vote is to be held on Jan. 9. Over 710,000 people voted in the Dec. 12 poll.

A panel looking into complaints said in a ruling made public on Dec. 16 that in these regions election officials were "bribed ... ballot boxes stuffed, signatures forged" and there was "pressure and intimidation" upon voters.

Two of the regions where voters will recast ballots are strongholds of Thaci's Democratic Party of Kosovo.

The recount has cast doubts over the ability of Kosovo's authorities to hold a fraud-free vote, the first such election since declaring independence from Serbia in 2008.

It further tarnishes Kosovo's international image, following a damning report by a European investigator who claims he has evidence Thaci headed an international human organ trafficking ring and is also involved in organized crime.

The allegations made by Council of Europe investigator Dick Marty have rocked Kosovo although Thaci has dismissed them as fabrications and an attack upon Kosovo's claim to statehood.

Kosovo seceded from Serbia after almost a decade of U.N. administration.

So far 72 countries have recognized Kosovo as an independent country, but Serbia has vowed never to accept the move by Kosovo's ethnic Albanian majority.

Advent prizes

West: Avon and Somerset police's website has an advent calendarwith a difference this year.

The calendar has a crime prevention tip for every day in the run-up to Christmas - and offers a chance to win prizes.

Subjects include drink-driving and binge-drinking and advice onsafer shopping and burglary prevention.

There will also be video clips of the mounted and dog sectionsand the helicopter unit on their work at Christmas.

On certain days there will be crime-related quiz questions. Forevery correct answer, the user's name will be placed into a prizedraw with a Nintendo Wii as first prize and two Apple iPod Nanos asrunners-up prizes.

The website is at www.avonand somerset.police.uk

Dropping out sets very bad example

I Was disappointed to see one of the young city councillors, JohnWest, admitting he had dropped out of university before he hadhardly begun.

I note he is "hoping to go back some time". What was wrong withchoosing another subject and continuing his further education in thepresent, not the future?

I was also saddened to see Kevin Stewart, leader of the SNP groupand deputy leader of the council, admit to dropping out of uni andnever going back while supporting John's decision.

Neither are good examples for new students just commencing theirchosen university courses this month

Angela KelmanKemnay

Blue Jackets Edge Kings 3-2 in OT

AP Online
01-17-2004
Dateline: COLUMBUS, Ohio

Los Angeles Kings' Brad Chartrand, right and Columbus Blue Jackets' Anders Eriksson chase a loose puck during the third period Friday, Jan. 16, 2004, in Columbus, Ohio. The Blue Jackets won, 3-2, in overtime. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete)

Rick Nash scored his second goal of the game in overtime to give Columbus a 3-2 victory over Los Angeles on Friday night, snapping the Blue Jackets' eight-game home winless skid.

Nash, the NHL's leading goal scorer with 27, took a pass from Darryl Sydor at center ice, skated in alone and chipped a shot over Roman Chechmanek's shoulder with two minutes left.

The Blue Jackets won at home for the first time since Dec. 2.

Nash put Columbus ahead 2-1 earlier in the period, but the Kings' Alexander Frolov tied it about a minute later.

Geoff Sanderson scored Columbus' other goal, and Josef Stumpel added a goal for the Kings, winless in their last 14 games _ three short of tying the team record set in 1970.

The game was Gerrard Gallant's first at home since becoming the Blue Jackets' interim coach. Gallant, promoted when president and general manager Doug MacLean relinquished the coaching duties Jan. 1, guided the team to a 2-3-2-0 mark on a road trip.

Sanderson opened the scoring early in the first period, beating Chechmanek on a breakaway off a pass from Scott Lachance,

The Kings, winless in their last seven against Columbus, tied it with 11 seconds left in the second period on Stumpel's stuff from beside the right post.

Columbus rookie Nikolai Zherdev spun out of the left corner, beat two Los Angeles defenders and feed a pass to Nash for a one-timer at 7:22 of the third period to make 2-2. Frolov responded, redirecting Jaroslav Modry's shot from the left circle.

Notes:@ The Blue Jackets' 13 one-goal defeats are the second most in the league. ... Columbus is 3-4-2-1 on the road after starting the season without a road win in their first 14 games. ... The game was the third of a four-game road trip for Los Angeles, 8-8-4-3 away from Staples Center. ... Scott Barney, the Kings' 1997 second- round draft pick, assisted on Stumpel's goal and scored Wednesday night in his first game back since missing three years with a severe back injury.

Copyright 2004, AP News All Rights Reserved
Blue Jackets Edge Kings 3-2 in OT
AP Online
01-17-2004
Dateline: COLUMBUS, Ohio

Los Angeles Kings' Brad Chartrand, right and Columbus Blue Jackets' Anders Eriksson chase a loose puck during the third period Friday, Jan. 16, 2004, in Columbus, Ohio. The Blue Jackets won, 3-2, in overtime. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete)

Rick Nash scored his second goal of the game in overtime to give Columbus a 3-2 victory over Los Angeles on Friday night, snapping the Blue Jackets' eight-game home winless skid.

Nash, the NHL's leading goal scorer with 27, took a pass from Darryl Sydor at center ice, skated in alone and chipped a shot over Roman Chechmanek's shoulder with two minutes left.

The Blue Jackets won at home for the first time since Dec. 2.

Nash put Columbus ahead 2-1 earlier in the period, but the Kings' Alexander Frolov tied it about a minute later.

Geoff Sanderson scored Columbus' other goal, and Josef Stumpel added a goal for the Kings, winless in their last 14 games _ three short of tying the team record set in 1970.

The game was Gerrard Gallant's first at home since becoming the Blue Jackets' interim coach. Gallant, promoted when president and general manager Doug MacLean relinquished the coaching duties Jan. 1, guided the team to a 2-3-2-0 mark on a road trip.

Sanderson opened the scoring early in the first period, beating Chechmanek on a breakaway off a pass from Scott Lachance,

The Kings, winless in their last seven against Columbus, tied it with 11 seconds left in the second period on Stumpel's stuff from beside the right post.

Columbus rookie Nikolai Zherdev spun out of the left corner, beat two Los Angeles defenders and feed a pass to Nash for a one-timer at 7:22 of the third period to make 2-2. Frolov responded, redirecting Jaroslav Modry's shot from the left circle.

Notes:@ The Blue Jackets' 13 one-goal defeats are the second most in the league. ... Columbus is 3-4-2-1 on the road after starting the season without a road win in their first 14 games. ... The game was the third of a four-game road trip for Los Angeles, 8-8-4-3 away from Staples Center. ... Scott Barney, the Kings' 1997 second- round draft pick, assisted on Stumpel's goal and scored Wednesday night in his first game back since missing three years with a severe back injury.

Copyright 2004, AP News All Rights Reserved

French charge 4 suspected in terror training

PARIS (AP) — A judicial official says that four men suspected of belonging to a network sending French residents to the tribal zones of the Pakistan-Afghanistan border to train for combat have been charged.

A woman who was detained with them has been released.

The official said on Saturday that the men, aged 25 to 30, have been charged with "criminal association linked to a terrorist enterprise."

The official said the four are also suspected of plotting to kill the head of the Grand Mosque of Paris, Dalil Boubakeur — but there wasn't enough evidence to justify charges. The official, not authorized to discuss cases publicly, demanded anonymity.

Two of the suspects were detained Monday after disembarking from a flight from Egypt. The others were picked up Tuesday in Paris.

C.J. Hunter testifies before Balco grand jury.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)

Byline: Sean Webby

SAN JOSE, Calif. _ With track star Marion Jones aiming to make another U.S. Olympic team, her ex-husband slipped into federal court Thursday in San Francisco and testified before the grand jury investigating the Balco Laboratories doping case, the San Jose Mercury News has learned.

C.J. Hunter was seen walking into the courthouse Thursday morning. Asked why he was there, the former world-champion shot putter declined comment. His attorney, Angela DeMent, said, "It's not for pleasure."

Returning a telephone call, DeMent later said she and Hunter flew from North Carolina as part of their "cooperation with authorities." She declined to say what information he provided.

Prosecutor Jeff Nedrow did not return phone calls.

Indictments in the Balco case have already been issued against four Bay Area men. Ongoing testimony could mean that more charges will be filed or that others will be indicted, legal experts said.

DeMent said Hunter has been assured by federal prosecutors that he is not a target of their investigation.

Although Jones has repeatedly denied taking banned performance-enhancing substances, Hunter _ who tested positive for steroids four times before the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney _ could be in a position to provide contradictory information.

Such information could lead to perjury charges against Jones if evidence suggests that she took illegal substances and lied about it to the grand jury.

Perjury cases, while not rare, are difficult to prove, said Rory Little of the Hastings College of Law in San Francisco. "It's always hard to prove what is the truth," Little said.

Hunter, 35, could also add to the U.S. attorney's portrait of Balco as a front for an illegal steroid-distribution ring catering to elite athletes.

Indicted in the case are Victor Conte Jr., Balco's president; Balco vice president James Valente; Castro Valley track coach Remi Korchemny; and Greg Anderson, private trainer of Giants left fielder Barry Bonds. All have pleaded not guilty.

Last month, Hunter gave comprehensive interviews to federal investigators on the criminal side of the Balco investigation, and to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, which is investigating allegations of steroid use among U.S. Olympic athletes, including Jones.

Jones' legal team has said that Balco simply performed blood work and suggested a nutritional regimen for the sprinter, mostly through Hunter and coach Trevor Graham.

"So long as anyone who testifies tells the truth, it will be good news for Marion, as it will confirm what she has said all along _ namely that her success is the result of her God-given abilities and hard work," said Rich Nichols, a lawyer for Jones.

Hunter and Jones married in 1998, separated in 2001 and divorced in 2002. Jones is now the girlfriend of sprinter Tim Montgomery, the world-record holder in the 100 meters. Montgomery is facing a possible lifetime ban from the anti-doping agency based on evidence gathered in the Balco investigation. His case has not yet been resolved.

___

Visit MercuryNews.com, the World Wide Web site of the Mercury News, at http://www.mercurynews.com.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.

_____

ARCHIVE PHOTO on KRT Direct (from KRT Photo Service, 202-383-6099):

C.J. Hunter

For information on republishing this content, contact us at (800) 661-2511 (U.S.), (213) 237-4914 (worldwide), fax (213) 237-6515, or e-mail reprints@krtinfo.com.

(c) 2004, San Jose Mercury News (San Jose, Calif.).

C.J. Hunter testifies before Balco grand jury.(Knight Ridder Newspapers)

Byline: Sean Webby

SAN JOSE, Calif. _ With track star Marion Jones aiming to make another U.S. Olympic team, her ex-husband slipped into federal court Thursday in San Francisco and testified before the grand jury investigating the Balco Laboratories doping case, the San Jose Mercury News has learned.

C.J. Hunter was seen walking into the courthouse Thursday morning. Asked why he was there, the former world-champion shot putter declined comment. His attorney, Angela DeMent, said, "It's not for pleasure."

Returning a telephone call, DeMent later said she and Hunter flew from North Carolina as part of their "cooperation with authorities." She declined to say what information he provided.

Prosecutor Jeff Nedrow did not return phone calls.

Indictments in the Balco case have already been issued against four Bay Area men. Ongoing testimony could mean that more charges will be filed or that others will be indicted, legal experts said.

DeMent said Hunter has been assured by federal prosecutors that he is not a target of their investigation.

Although Jones has repeatedly denied taking banned performance-enhancing substances, Hunter _ who tested positive for steroids four times before the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney _ could be in a position to provide contradictory information.

Such information could lead to perjury charges against Jones if evidence suggests that she took illegal substances and lied about it to the grand jury.

Perjury cases, while not rare, are difficult to prove, said Rory Little of the Hastings College of Law in San Francisco. "It's always hard to prove what is the truth," Little said.

Hunter, 35, could also add to the U.S. attorney's portrait of Balco as a front for an illegal steroid-distribution ring catering to elite athletes.

Indicted in the case are Victor Conte Jr., Balco's president; Balco vice president James Valente; Castro Valley track coach Remi Korchemny; and Greg Anderson, private trainer of Giants left fielder Barry Bonds. All have pleaded not guilty.

Last month, Hunter gave comprehensive interviews to federal investigators on the criminal side of the Balco investigation, and to the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, which is investigating allegations of steroid use among U.S. Olympic athletes, including Jones.

Jones' legal team has said that Balco simply performed blood work and suggested a nutritional regimen for the sprinter, mostly through Hunter and coach Trevor Graham.

"So long as anyone who testifies tells the truth, it will be good news for Marion, as it will confirm what she has said all along _ namely that her success is the result of her God-given abilities and hard work," said Rich Nichols, a lawyer for Jones.

Hunter and Jones married in 1998, separated in 2001 and divorced in 2002. Jones is now the girlfriend of sprinter Tim Montgomery, the world-record holder in the 100 meters. Montgomery is facing a possible lifetime ban from the anti-doping agency based on evidence gathered in the Balco investigation. His case has not yet been resolved.

___

Visit MercuryNews.com, the World Wide Web site of the Mercury News, at http://www.mercurynews.com.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Information Services.

_____

ARCHIVE PHOTO on KRT Direct (from KRT Photo Service, 202-383-6099):

C.J. Hunter

For information on republishing this content, contact us at (800) 661-2511 (U.S.), (213) 237-4914 (worldwide), fax (213) 237-6515, or e-mail reprints@krtinfo.com.

(c) 2004, San Jose Mercury News (San Jose, Calif.).

In defiant move, Iran proclaims nuclear advances

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran claimed Wednesday that it has achieved two major advances in its program to master production of nuclear fuel, a defiant move in response to increasingly tough Western sanctions over its controversial nuclear program.

Iranian officials also indicated that they were on the verge of imposing an oil embargo on European countries to retaliate for the sanctions, but denied reports earlier in the day that six nations had already been cut off.

State TV quoted Foreign Ministry official Hasan Tajik as saying that six European diplomats were summoned Wednesday and told that Iran has no problem replacing customers — an implied warning that Tehran would carry out plans to cut off European Union countries immediately to pre-empt sanctions set to go into effect in July.

Conflicting information about the cut-off has been relayed by Iranian media throughout the day: first the full blockade on six countries, then a report carried by the semiofficial Mehr agency saying that exports were cut to France and the Netherlands with four other European countries receiving ultimatums to sign long-term contracts with Iran.

Iranian officials say an immediate cut-off will hit European nations before they can line up new suppliers, and that Tehran has already found buyers for the 18 percent share of its oil that goes to Europe.

Iran's tough tone comes as tensions mount dramatically with Israel and the United States over its nuclear program, which the West says is aimed at producing weapons technology. Iran denies the charge, saying its program is intended solely for research and generating electricity.

Israel has increasingly warned of the possibility of a military strike on Iran's nuclear facilities, and has accused Iran of being behind attempted attacks on Israeli diplomats in India, Georgia and elsewhere. Iran denies any role in the attacks, which have resembled recent bombing-assassinations of Iranian nuclear scientists that Tehran has blamed on Israel.

Iran is meanwhile pushing ahead on what it says is a drive toward nuclear-self-sufficiency.

On Wednesday, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad oversaw the insertion of the first Iranian domestically made fuel rod into a research reactor in northern Tehran, the country's official IRNA news agency reported.

"I hope we reach the point where we will be able to meet all our nuclear needs inside the country so we won't need to reach out to others, specifically to the world's dastardly people," Ahmadinejad said.

In a gesture underlining the tone of defiance, state TV showed the teenage son of slain nuclear scientist Majid Shahriari removing the curtain from the fuel container and cutting the ribbon.

Separately, the semiofficial Fars agency reported that a "new generation of Iranian centrifuges" had started operation at the country's main uranium enrichment facility at Natanz in central Iran.

State TV showed the father of Mostafa Ahmadi Roshan, killed in January, clicking on the computer to inaugurate the advanced centrifuges, as the scientist's mother and widow stood by with tears in their eyes.

The moves were aimed at showing that Iran is mastering the entire cycle of producing nuclear fuel on its own despite the restrictions of sanctions that have hampered its ability to procure materials from abroad.

The possibility that Iran was expanding its enrichment capacity was a greater concern from the standpoint of nuclear weapons development than the production of fuel rods.

Shannon Kile, a nuclear weapons research at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, said that while from a technical perspective the announcements may be "less than meets the eye," they were likely to be well received by the Iranian public.

"Iran's peaceful nuclear energy program is very popular, it has a lot of support across the political spectrum," he said.

In the fuel cycle, mined uranium is processed into gas, then that gas is spun in centrifuges to purify it. Low-enriched uranium — at around 3.5 percent — is used to produce fuel rods that power a reactor; however, the same process can be used to produce highly enriched uranium — at around 90 percent purity — that can be used to build a warhead.

The Tehran facility where IRNA said the new fuel rods were installed is a research reactor intended to produce medical isotopes used in the treatment of cancer patients. It requires fuel enriched to around 20 percent, considered a threshold between low and high enriched uranium.

Iran has been producing uranium enriched up to 5 percent for years, and began enriching up to near 20 percent in February 2010 after attempts at a deal with the West to import fuel broke down. In January, Iran said it had produced its first such rod.

IRNA said the nuclear fuel rods were produced at a plant in Isfahan, central Iran, and transferred to Tehran under International Atomic Energy Agency supervision. The IAEA had no comment.

A diplomat accredited to the IAEA, which monitors Iran's known nuclear programs, said its inspectors had seen the rods recently and — while they showed some flaws — they were crafted well enough to work inside the reactor.

He spoke on condition of anonymity because his information is privileged.

Iranian officials have long spoken of introducing faster, more efficient centrifuges at the Natanz facility. The Fars news agency report did not give details on the advanced models that were installed.

The diplomat said the "new generation" of centrifuges appeared to be referring to about 65 IR-4 machines recently set up at an experimental site at Natanz. The new model can churn out enriched material at a faster rate than the more rudimentary IR-1 centrifuges, thousands of which are at work in Natanz producing low-enriched uranium, said the diplomat.

Iran has been slow to expand use of advanced models, apparently because strict international embargoes make procurement of parts and materials difficult. The 65 new machines are not nearly enough to set up an effective operation, the diplomat said.

Still, the fact that Iran continues to build the newer machines, even at a slow pace, or produce materials it needs domestically, shows that it is able to circumvent sanctions.

Iran's unchecked pursuit of the nuclear program scuttled negotiations over its nuclear program a year ago, but Iranian officials last month proposed a return to the talks with the five permanent U.N. Security Council members plus Germany.

IRNA on Wednesday reported that Iran's top nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili had written to the European Union's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, to formally announce its readiness to restart those negotiations.

In the past, Iran has angered Western officials by appearing to buy time through opening talks and weighing proposals even while pressing ahead with the nuclear program.

EU spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic said that the bloc was looking into the letter together with the United States, Russia and China before taking an official stand.

___

AP correspondents George Jahn in Vienna, Malin Rising in Stockholm, and Don Melvin in Brussels contributed to this report.

Fire victim identified as S. Side woman, 64

An elderly woman was identified Sunday as one of the victims ofa South Side fire that killed two and injured 12 Saturday night,according to the Cook County medical examiner's office.

Ruth Barnett, 64, of 745 W. Garfield, was identified Sunday asone of those who died in the fire, said the …