English-speaking youth found in Berlin after claiming he lived in forest for five years with recently deceased father British consular staff are working with police in Berlin trying to identify an teenager who walked out of a German forest speaking English and knowing only his first name. The boy, called Ray, presented himself to the Berlin authorities last week , saying he followed his compass north to reach the city after the death of his father with whom he had roamed through the woods for about five years. A Foreign Office spokesman said consular staff were assisting officials in Berlin but it was not yet known if the boy, thought to be 17 or 18, was a British national. Berlin police said they had approached Interpol to see if the boy matched any missing person reports. Officers will not know the results of the inquiry until Monday. Detectives are going over everything Ray has told them to establish a picture of his background and biography. The teenager told youth workers that his father, whom he called Ryan, had died two weeks ago and he had buried him in a shallow grave covered with stones. The boy said they began wandering in the woods after his mother, who he said was named Doreen, died. He told youth workers that he and his father never set up home but kept moving, staying in tents and huts in the woods. Claudia Elitok, of Berlin police, said: “He speaks fluent English and a few words in German. “He explained that the last five years were spent in the woods with his father, then his father died and he buried him. “He was walking for two weeks before getting to Berlin. “He has said what happened to his mother but I can’t go into that information. “He was found in good condition and is being taken care of by officials.” The teenager’s story is reminiscent of the “Piano Man”, German Andreas Grassl, who was found wandering the streets of Sheerness, Kent, in 2005. Despite Europe-wide appeals, no one knew who the 20-year-old was. For months he remained uncommunicative except for showing his accomplished pianist skills. Germany Europe guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Progressive rapper Jasiri X released a new video on September 15, “I Am Troy Davis (T.R.O.Y.),” highlighting the plight of a man who is scheduled to be executed on the 21st by the state of Georgia. While tea party “patriots” are cheering the death penalty at Republican presidential debates, this case highlights the primary problems with the death penalty — the possibility of executing an innocent and the racial disparities in the application of the penalty. It is clear that there is a reasonable doubt as to the guilt of Davis — so much so that one of the jurors in the original case has publicly stated that if she knew then what she knows now, she would’ve voted “not guilty.” Among the key problems with the case: The case against him consisted of witness testimony that was full of inconsistencies. Since then, all but two of the state’s non-police witnesses from the trial have recanted their testimony — and many have sworn in affidavits that police pressured or coerced them into testifying or signing statements. You can learn more about the case at www.TroyAnthonyDavis.org and take action at Color of Change sending a letter to the Georgia Board of Pardons and Parole. Act quickly, the execution is scheduled for next week.
Continue reading …Blackburn Rovers ended up delivering on Chris Samba’s promise to make Arsenal’s life a living hell, something of a surprise given that for almost an hour the visitors looked to have only the weather to worry about. Arsenal twice took the lead here and should never have lost so heavily, yet once again they contributed to their own downfall to the extent that the supposedly unhappy Blackburn fans were speculating before the end that this could be another 8-2. The soggiest Saturday of the season so far all but washed away the protest march against Steve Kean before kick-off. A few hundred bedraggled supporters made their point as they were escorted to the ground by police, and perhaps even succeeded in showing the depth of their feeling by braving a downpour, though there was little sign of dissent inside the ground, and even on the concourses home fans were debating with each other whether Kean deserved more loyalty. When a clever ball forward by Alex Song split a statuesque Rovers defence to allow Gervinho to claim his first league goal for Arsenal after only 10 minutes there were still no dissatisfied rumblings from the terraces, and to their credit Blackburn managed to give their fans something to cheer about by getting back on terms midway through the first half. This time it was Yakubu Ayegbeni’s turn to score a first goal for his new club, and though the former Everton striker was slightly fortunate to be in the right place for Junior Hoilett as he wandered back from an offside position, there was nothing wrong with the deft single touch that stranded Wojciech Szczesny. Players were beginning to lose their footing at this point as rain hammered down from a still-darkening sky, though Arsenal produced some of their brightest football and could have scored through Andrey Arshavin and Gervinho in addition to the goal from Mikel Arteta that restored their lead by the interval. Another first-time scorer for a new club, all Arteta had to do was crash the ball home from near the penalty spot after Aaron Ramsey’s shrewd run and perfect square ball had created the opportunity. So Arsenal had little to excuse what befell them at the start of the second half, especially as their inability to defend set pieces reached ludicrous new heights when Song turned Rubén Rochina’s free-kick past his own goalkeeper under no particular pressure. Now trying to weather two storms at once, with the Rovers fans noisily backing their side. Arsenal simply went from bad to worse. Another set piece led to another goal for Yakubu, standing level on the six-yard line to get the crucial last touch to Steven Nzonzi’s low cross after collecting a corner at the back of the area, then almost laughably Arsenal contributed a second own goal. There was not a lot Laurent Koscielny could do to avoid diverting the ball into his own net once Szczesny had failed to cut out Martin Olsson’s firmly struck cutback from the byline, but the way Yakubu, of all people, had sent Olsson skipping down the right to easily evade Johan Djourou’s rushed challenge and allow the substitute to do as he pleased with the whole of the Arsenal half to run at will give Arsène Wenger sleepless nights. Paul Robinson made a couple of good saves before Marouane Chamakh’s well-taken goal five minutes from time gave the scoreline some respectability from Arsenal’s point of view and a better indication of the balance of the game, though conceding four goals to Blackburn is almost as bad as shipping eight at Old Trafford. That’s not to take anything away from a spirited and energetic Blackburn performance. This always promised to be a day for Kean to remember, and amid incredible scenes the end, after Per Mertesacker had headed over and Robin van Persie struck a shot at Robinson with stoppage time chances to claim a point, it was. Premier League 2011-12 Blackburn Rovers Arsenal Premier League Paul Wilson guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Follow all the action, debates and issues on the first day of this year’s Liberal Democrat conference in Birmingham Where are the Lib Dems heading? This time last year Lib Dem relations with the Conservatives seemed to be getting warmer and warmer. At the end of their conference in Liverpool I wrote a “10 things we’ve learned” blog which said that the Lib Dems had made up their minds about the coalition – and that they liked it. Twelve months later, after a crushing defeat in the local elections, the mood is rather different. In the Guardian today Polly Toynbee is floating the idea of the Lib Dems turning left . “Behind the scenes quietly better relations are growing between Ed Miliband’s camp and many Lib Dem MPs, softly anticipating a future together,” she writes. It is possible that Labour or the Conservatives could win an outright majority at the next election. But at this point the chances of another hung parliament seem high and, for that reason, it would be nice to know what this battered, much maligned, but curiously resilient party actually thinks. I’ve just arrived in Birmingham for a conference that lasts until Wednesday. Hopefully, I’ll find out. The conference formally starts at 2.30pm. Here’s the agenda. 2.30pm: Paul Tilsley, the deputy leader of Birmingham city council, opens the conference with a short speech. 2.40pm. A debate on party business. Norman Lamb, Nick Clegg’s chief parliamentary will speak. It is possible too that there might be a vote on the party’s decision not to have a proper vote on the health bill. (Evan Harris, who is leading the campaign to rewrite the health bill, has written about this in the Guardian today.) 3.10pm: Delegates will debate a motion on Lords reform saying elections should start by 2015. 3.55pm: Lynne Featherstone, the equalities minister, will speak. She will confirm that the government will consult on plans to allow gay and lesbian couples to get married . 4.15pm: Delegates will debate a motion criticising the government’s plans to limit the amount of time for which disabled people can claim the contributory employment and support allowance. 5pm: Another short debate on party business, including a contribution from Tim Farron, the party president. That’s the end of the formal conference business. 6.30pm: Nick Clegg, Sarah Teather, David Heath, Don Foster and Alistair Carmichael will speak at the conference rally. I’ll be blogging all afternoon and I’ll post a summary after the conference finishes at 5pm. My colleague Paul Owen will then take over the blog to cover the rally and any other late breaking news. Shortly I’ll post a round-up of the best Lib Dem news from today’s papers. Nick Clegg Vince Cable Liberal Democrat conference 2011 Liberal Democrat conference Liberal Democrats Andrew Sparrow guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Two Conservative Myths: a) Tax cuts for the wealthy are the only effective solution for job creation. b) Government spending destroys job creation except in our military industrial complex. Bill O’Reilly has been on a tear lately to help propagate those myths and his latest screeds have focused on our nation’s “rampant taxation” even though many news outlets have been reporting that our tax rates haven’t been this low since 1958 . He had on two economic talkers immediately following the above TPM to discuss his fiendish ideas and they both disagreed with him profusely, but he’s the Grand Poobah of the right-wing Villagers so I tune in so you don’t have to. His solution is the flat tax con, gutting federal spending and adding a horrifying and regressive national sales tax of 2 percent on everything we consume so drug dealers will finally pay their fair share. But a funny thing happens to him when he speaks with economic bobble heads. Even ones that work for Fox. They all think he’s ideas are loony. These myths never die; they are only perpetually transmitted. And now we have more bad news. President Obama is getting his wish, it would appear, as 38 Senators joined forces to stick more forks into our struggling economy. Saxby Chambliss’ Gang of Six has grown to 38 U.S. senators from both parties, who on Thursday urged the debt reduction “supercommittee” to aim high and secure $4 trillion in budget savings. The Georgia Republican was joined by Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., and a group too large to fit on the news conference stage to send a message to the 12-member joint committee created in the summer’s deal to raise the debt ceiling. The committee must devise a plan by November to reduce future deficits by at least $1.2 trillion, on top of $917 billion in already agreed-upon savings. Chambliss and his gang want to nearly double that, as most budget experts say a $4 trillion course correction is necessary to lasso the nation’s rising debt. “As you can see, our numbers have grown significantly,” Chambliss said. “We’re not only bipartisan, but we stretch on both sides of the spectrum in our respective caucuses. That’s how serious we know this debt is.” This summer the Gang of Six — Sens. Chambliss, Warner, Mike Crapo, R-Idaho; Tom Coburn, R-Okla; Kent Conrad, D-N.D.; and Dick Durbin, D-Ill. — put forth a framework to save $3.7 trillion through cuts to domestic and military programs, changes in the tax code and reform of costly entitlements such as Medicare. The Gang of 38 did not back one proposal, rather stressing that the foundation for a big deal already has been laid by the Gang of Six and outside panels. “Nobody needs to really look too far for what we need to do,” said Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga. “They just need to be willing to pull the trigger.” The gang joined a chorus of groups urging a home run solution, heartening Maya MacGuineas, the president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget. “It’s not often you get that many senators anywhere together pushing for something,” she said. “I think we’ll look back and think this is a pretty important moment.” Important for whom? Certainly not the working class and poor. Since the GOP will never vote in higher taxes or raise much revenues except in the most abstract sense imaginable, this whole process looks to be a failed experiment at the expense of 98 percent of the country. Duncan sums it up this way : I somehow missed that in addition to the SuperWanker committee we know have the self-appointed Grand Royal Poobahs Of The Duchy Of SuperDuperWanker who want to ‘GO BIG!!!’ And if their plans move forward and the working class is once again used as an ATM machine for Wall Street so we share the sacrifice with ourselves, we may have to actually depend on the tea party House members to do what they usually do and block any legislation supported by the president. By the way, if you need to argue with a tea party relative or friend about taxes, here’s a couple of links to help you even though you’re probably wasting your time. USATODAY: U.S. tax burden at lowest level since ’58 CCPP: Federal Income Taxes on Middle-Income Families at Historically Low Levels
Continue reading …Deputy PM vows to keep tax level as long it raises revenue, despite calls from chancellor and other Tories for its abolition Deputy prime minister Nick Clegg has promised to keep the 50p top rate of tax despite calls from some of their Tory party coalition partners to have it scrapped. However Clegg said the Liberal Democrats would back abolition of the top rate in the long run if it was not raising much revenue and if it was replaced by new taxes on “unearned income”. These could include a 1% annual “mansion tax” on homes worth more than £2m, a land tax, and restricting tax relief on pensions to the basic 20p rate. As Liberal Democrats gathered for their annual party conference in Birmingham, he said cutting rates for the wealthy while millions were struggling to make ends meet could “destroy” public support for the entire tax system. Chancellor George Osborne has made no secret of his desire to abolish the 50p rate on incomes over £150,000 – describing it as a “temporary” measure introduced by the former Labour government. However Clegg made clear that as far as the Lib Dems were concerned, the priority had to be reducing the burden of taxation on lower- and middle-income earners. “We are not there to rush to the aid of the top 1% of very, very rich people who are not in straitened circumstances,” he told the Independent. In a separate question-and-answer session in Birmingham on Saturday morning, for upRising, a leadership programme for young people, Clegg also said the country needed to stop relying on financial services as “the locomotive” of the country and redouble efforts to get growing manufacturing and other services. “What we are going through in this country is not just about balancing the books,” he said. If the country thinks that all it needs to do is “have the City of London … and not worry about the manufacturing … the country won’t move on,” he said. He added: “The need to rebalance, to rewire the country.” In the Independent, Clegg acknowledged that the government had to do more to boost growth in the economy, adopting what he called a “Plan A-plus”. “If millions of taxpayers feel they are being overlooked, ignored and passed over, as preference is given to people who need the least amount of help at the moment, you destroy the very fabric of consensus without which a sensible tax system cannot survive. “It would be utterly incomprehensible for millions of people who work hard, do their best for their families, and play by the rules, if suddenly the priority is to give 300,000 people at the very, very top a tax break. “It is not going to happen – certainly not until there is significant progress on giving tax breaks to those on lower and middle incomes.” While his show of muscle-flexing on the eve of the party conference season will doubtless play well with Lib Dem activists, it will infuriate many Tories who are determined to see an end to the 50p rate. Nick Clegg Tax and spending Tax Liberal Democrat conference Liberal Democrats Liberal Democrat conference 2011 Conservatives George Osborne Economic policy Poverty Lisa O’Carroll guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …• Press refresh or turn on the auto-update for the latest • Email rob.smyth@guardian.co.uk with your thoughts • Keep up with all the goals across the UK Team news There are debuts for Andre Santos and Yakubu, while Jason Lowe makes his first Premier League start. Jason Lowe is a child of the 1990s. When Jason Lowe was born, this little epiphany-inducer was top of the UK hit parade . This fact makes me feel very old. Blackburn (4-4-2) Robinson; Salgado, Samba, Dann, Givet; Rochina, Lowe, Nzonzi, Hoilett; Formica, Yakubu. Subs: Bunn, Olsson, Grella, Petrovic, Vukcevic, Roberts, Hanley. Arsenal (4-2-3-1) Szczesny; Sagna, Koscielny, Mertesacker, Andre Santos; Song, Arteta; Arshavin, Ramsey, Gervinho; van Persie. Subs: Fabianski, Walcott, Djourou, Gibbs, Chamakh, Benayoun, Coquelin. Referee Andre Marriner Not this game department Wolves v QPR may be off because of a power cut . A power cut! It’s obviously very bad for the paying punters, blah blah etcetera, but of far more importance is whether I should remove Matt Jarvis and Stephen Ward from my fantasy team before the window shuts at 12.30pm. Previously on Blackburn v Arsenal… I wanted to link to Kevin Gallacher’s fantastic goal at Highbury in 1997 – what a crazily underrated player he was – but I can’t find it. So instead, from the same season, here’s a devastatingly economical through pass from Dennis Bergkamp , part of Arsenal’s scary 4-1 mauling of Roy Hodgson’s side at Ewood Park. Preamble Hello. Everything’s BIG in football these days. Teams are never “in trouble” or “enduring a mildly chastening period of strife”; they are invariably “in crisis”. Blackburn and Arsenal, who meet today at Ewood Park, have been the two crisis clubs of this burgeoning Premier League season. And what crises they are: Arsenal may finish as low as fifth, while Blackburn are a point from safety. For what it’s worth (absolutely nothing), I reckon Arsenal will finish fourth and Blackburn will stay up. That said, the latter is dependent on who they appoint if, as seems inevitable, they sack poor old Steve Kean. Given the judgement of Blackburn’s owners thus far – particularly the sacking of the exceptional Sam Allardyce and this finger-lickin’, toe-curlin’ video – they will probably appoint James Corden, Jedward or, more absurd still, John Gregory. Premier League 2011-12 Blackburn Rovers Arsenal Rob Smyth guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Average deposit required for a mortgage is 10 times higher than it was 20 years ago, making it difficult for people to buy a house Prospective homebuyers are having to stump up a deposit 10 times the size of that needed 20 years ago, despite incomes less than tripling during the same period. Since 1990 the average housing deposit has risen from an average of £6,793 to a staggering £65,924. During the two decades, house prices have more than quadrupled, while the average household income has grown by just two and a half times, according to research from bank and mortgage lender First Direct . A combination of a rise in house prices and a reduction in the amount banks are willing to lend has meant that those looking to buy a house last year would have found it more difficult financially than at any other time in the last 20 years. Those who grabbed the opportunity to get on the housing ladder in 1995 and 1996, on the other hand, will have found it easier than at any other time over the last 20 years, with house prices at that time closer to three and a half times income and an average 10% deposit required to buy a home. Now buyers are typically stumping up 27% of the property price. “Much has been made of rising house prices, but the average deposit needed in the first place has actually risen more than twice as fast as house prices and almost four times as fast as income,” said Bruno Genovese of First Direct. “This is why we are seeing first time buyers getting older, with more and more people struggling to get on the property ladder.” Alice Murphy, 27, and her boyfriend Michael have been saving for years for a deposit. The couple rent a one bedroom flat in Reading but desperately want to buy in London, where Alice works. “We have a few thousand pounds that we have got from inheritances and from saving, which, if we were anywhere else other than the south east, would be enough to buy somewhere,” she said. “But prices in the areas we are looking in just seem to be going up and up and mortgages harder to get.” The couple are considering getting a “very big mortgage” and buying a property where they could take in a lodger to help pay for the loan. “It’s hard to know what to do. It sounds awful but I have friends who are just waiting for older relatives to die so that they can inherit the money to enable them to buy somewhere to live,” she said. Many prospective buyers who are currently renting are now suffering the double whammy of saving bigger amounts for a deposit while seeing their rent increase. Last month, rents rose by the fastest amount in a year , bringing the average UK rent to £713 a month or just over £1,000 in the capital. The figures, released by lettings agent network LSL properties, also showed the extent to which tenants are struggling to pay their rent. Tenant arrears increased last month for the first time since April, with almost 11% of all UK rent unpaid or late by the end of August. Separate research from the Halifax indicates that those living outside London and commuting into the capital easily offset the cost of the train by the amount they save in buying a home. House prices within a travelling distance of an hour from the outskirts of London are on average £375,000 (60%) lower than in the centre of the city, while the average annual cost of a 60-minute commute is £4,400. Examples of commuters paying more to live out of the capital are rare, said the bank. Those in Beaconsfield number amongst them, however, with commuters paying a higher average house price than central London (£757,097), while also having to pay an annual train fare of £2,972 to get to work. House prices First-time buyers Property Mortgages Renting property Lisa Bachelor guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …• Ireland 15-6 Australia • Watch World Cup video highlights, interviews and more From a last-gasp defeat to Australia in 1991 to being dumped in 2007 without ceremony, the World Cup has not always been the happiest of hunting grounds for Ireland. But they put that history of disappointment to rights in Auckland, beating one of the favourites of the title, denying Australia even a losing bonus point. It was all the more remarkable for coming on the back of a run of form that was indifferent at best: four defeats in four international warm-up games and a lacklustre victory over the USA. Suddenly Ireland were back to their swarming, passionate best. Sean O’Brien and Stephen Ferris were immense in the back row. And yet the real damage was done in an even more unexpected area. Ireland have rarely been scattered at the scrummage, but equally, they do not tend to rip teams to pieces at the set piece. They did here, and a special mention must go the front row of Cian Healy, Rory Best and Mike Ross. A special note should also be made of the pincer tackling of Paul O’Connell and Donncha O’Callaghan, the second rows who held up the biggest and strongest of the Australian forwards and forced a scrummage, with the put-in to Ireland. It sounds a forward affair, and so it was, especially when the rain began to fall. There were no tries; just four penalties and a drop goal against two penalties. But there was drama at every turn, with Australia’s attempts to release their running three-quarters running into a brick-wall defence. Or if that was opened up on occasions, by a scrambled defence. Ireland tackled with discipline but also with fury. Tommy Bowe might have sealed the victory with a try in the last minute but he ran out of steam at the end of a 90-yard breakout. It was still a run that ate up the seconds, sending the Wallabies back to their own line, a dispiriting slog for the champions of the Tri Nations. Ireland’s win shakes up the quarter final composition. Ireland should go through as pool winners; Australia as runners-up. Everything has been shaken up, Ireland the mighty rattle. Australia: Beale, O’Connor, A Fainga’a (Mitchell 73), McCabe, Ashley-Cooper; Cooper, Genia; Kepu, Polota-Nau, Alexander (Slipper 62), Vickerman (Simmons 62), Horwill (capt), Elsom (Palu 72), McCalman, Samo (Higginbotham 73). Pens: O’Connor (2) Ireland: Kearney (Trimble 73), Bowe, O’Driscoll (capt), D’Arcy, Earls; Sexton, Reddan (Murray 57); Healy, Best, Ross (Court 76), O’Callaghan, O’Connell, Ferris, O’Brien, Heaslip Pens: Sexton (2), O’Gara (2). Drop goal: Sexton Rugby World Cup 2011 Ireland rugby union team Australia rugby union team Rugby union Eddie Butler guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Second world war fighter plunged to ground near grandstand at event near Reno, killing three people and injuring more than 50 Three people have died and more than 50 were injured after a second world war fighter plane flown by a veteran Hollywood stunt pilot crashed at an air race near Reno, Nevada. The plane, piloted by 74-year-old Jimmy Leeward, plunged to the ground without warning near a grandstand. Body parts and debris were strewn across the airfield. Organisers of the event said a mechanical fault was probably to blame but they were awaiting the results of an official investigation. Stephanie Kruse, a spokeswoman for the Regional Emergency Medical Service Authority, said 56 people were taken to hospital, of whom 15 were in a critical condition and 13 were in a serious condition with potentially life-threatening injuries. “This is a very large incident, probably one of the largest this community has seen in decades,” she said. “The community is pulling together to try to deal with the scope of it.” Witnesses described their shock as the plane tumbled from the sky. Maureen Higgins, of Alabama, was sitting about 30 yards from the crash and watched in horror as the man in front of her started bleeding after debris hit him in the head. “I saw body parts and gore like you wouldn’t believe it. I’m talking an arm, a leg,” she said “The alive people were missing body parts. I am not kidding you. It was gore. Unbelievable gore.” Leeward, of Ocala, Florida, was among those killed. He was a veteran airman and film stunt pilot who named his P-51 Mustang fighter plane the Galloping Ghost, according to Mike Houghton, president and chief executive of Reno Air Races. Renown Regional Medical Centre spokeswoman Kathy Carter confirmed two others died, but did not provide their identities. The P-51 Mustang, a class of fighter plane that can fly at more than 500 mph, crashed into a box-seat area in front of the grandstand at about 4.30pm, race spokesman Mike Draper said. Houghton said the crash appeared to be a “problem with the aircraft that caused it to go out of control”. The rest of the races were cancelled as the National Transportation Safety Board investigated. Another witness Tim Linville, 48, of Reno, said the plane smashed into the ground and shattered, sending shrapnel and debris into the crowd. “It was just flying everywhere,” he said. Tim O’Brien of Grass Valley, California, said he saw the plane pitch violently upward, roll and then head straight down about 100 metres away. O’Brien said it looked like a piece of the plane’s tail had fallen off. United States Nevada David Batty guardian.co.uk
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