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Following the recovery of the black box and cockpit recorder from the 2009 Air France crash, officials have pulled a passenger’s body from the ocean. The French Gendarmerie says the remains, which were still attached to a plane seat, were pulled up this morning. The first search effort after the…

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If the GOP held a presidential debate and barely anyone attended, would it still be a debate? The AP and Reuters are the latest to duck out of tonight’s South Carolina debate, Politico reports. A number of prospective candidates, including Mitt Romney, Sarah Palin, Newt Gingrich, Mitch Daniels, and Mike…

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Sorcery claim in Iran power struggle

Iranian power struggle between president and supreme leader sees arrests and claims of undue influence of chief of staff Close allies of Iran’s president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, have been accused of using supernatural powers to further his policies amid an increasingly bitter power struggle between him and the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Several people said to be close to the president and his chief of staff, Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei , have been arrested in recent days and charged with being “magicians” and invoking djinns (spirits). Ayandeh , an Iranian news website, described one of the arrested men, Abbas Ghaffari, as “a man with special skills in metaphysics and connections with the unknown worlds”. The arrests come amid a growing rift between Ahmadinejad and Khamenei which has prompted several MPs to call for the president to be impeached. On Sunday, Ahmadinejad returned to his office after an 11-day walkout in an apparent protest over Khamenei’s reinstatement of the intelligence minister, who the president had initiallyasked to resign. Ahmadinejad’s unprecedented disobedience prompted harsh criticism from conservatives who warned that he might face the fate of Abdulhassan Banisadr, Iran’s first post-revolution president who was impeached and exiled for allegedly attempting to undermine clerical power. Ayatollah Mesbah Yazdi, a hardline cleric close to Khamenei, warned that disobeying the supreme leader – who has the ultimate power in Iran – is equivalent to “apostasy from God”. Ahmadinejad has so far declined to officially back Khamenei’s ruling over Heydar Moslehi, the minister at the centre of the row. In the first cabinet meeting since the president returned, Moslehi was absent. Khamenei’s supporters believe that the top-level confrontation stems from the increasing influence of Mashaei, an opponent of greater involvement of clerics in politics, who is being groomed by Ahmadinejad as a possible successor. But the feud has taken a metaphysical turn following the release of an Iranian documentary alleging the imminent return of the Hidden Imam Mahdi – the revered saviour of Shia Islam, whose reappearance is anticipated by believers in a manner comparable to that with which Christian fundamentalists anticipate the second coming of Jesus. Conservative clerics, who say that the Mahdi’s return cannot be predicted, have accused a “deviant current” within

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Lib Dems face loss of up to 600 seats

Clegg’s party fears long-term damage to activist base as Labour seeks to capitalise on public anger at spending cuts The Liberal Democrats are bracing themselves for the loss of up to 600 seats in Thursday’s local elections in England, prompting fears that their activist base across the country could be devastated. The elections for 9,000 seats in 279 English authorities are being seen as the first electoral verdict on the coalition’s spending cuts, with Labour expecting major gains and senior Lib Dems admitting they face punishment in some areas for the role they have played in the coalition. Richard Kemp, leader of the Lib Dems in the Local Government Association, said: “We’re doing well against the Tories, not so well against Labour. We will make losses as any governing party does. We will clearly, undoubtedly lose seats. 300 would be a good day, 600 would be a bad day.” He said serious losses would damage the party’s campaigning strength. “A political party is like an army. You have your generals in London but most of the work is done by the sergeants, the local councillors. If you take the councillors out there will be nothing left in terms of local activities and campaigns, you reduce campaigning efficiency.” Labour is expected to make major gains across the country, symbolically taking control from the Lib Dems in Sheffield, where Nick Clegg has his constituency. It has also targeted Newcastle upon Tyne and Hull. Tory-held North Warwickshire, Trafford, Dudley and Walsall are believed to be vulnerable to Labour, which has also put efforts into Dover. Labour is also hoping to seize control in Ipswich, Lincoln, Leeds, Blackburn and Darwen, and North Tyneside and to make significant gains in Birmingham, the biggest council – where the Tories and Lib Dems have been in coalition for seven years – paving the way to seize back control next year. Steve Bedser, a Labour councillor in the Kings Norton ward and agent for Longbridge, a target for the party, said: “As a Labour politician, knocking on doors is a joy compared with 2008 when it was really quite soul-destroying. There are a lot of people angry and worried about the cuts. We’re finding that our vote is now very highly motivated and the Tory vote locally is quite static.” Liberal Democrats Local elections 2011 Local politics Local government Labour Elections 2011 Polly Curtis guardian.co.uk

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Firefighters Enjoyed Meeting, Eating With Obama

While in New York Thursday to pay his respects to those who lost their lives on September 11, 2001, President Barack Obama visited and had lunch at a fire station that lost 15 firefighters during the attack. (May 5)

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Oliva Not ‘mum’ on Daily Show at Skyy Party

Olivia Munn pokes fun at Jon Stewart and the Daily Show while hosting a Skyy Vodka event in Las Vegas with Selita Ebanks. (May 5)

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Sarah Palin Attacks President Obama for ‘Pussy-Footing Around’ on Bin Laden Photo Release

Click here to view this media I think Sarah Palin might have had to block everyone that follows her in any way shape or form on Twitter this week after her attack on President Obama for “pussy-footing around” on the release of the photos of a dead Osama bin Laden. For anyone that is on Twitter that wants to take a look at this search of her name , the comments on there are pretty brutal, not that I feel sorry for her. TPM has more on her Tweet — Palin: Obama ‘Pussy-Footing’ By Not Releasing Photo Of Dead Bin Laden : Just three days after the world learned President Obama ordered a daring special operations mission resulting in the death of Osama bin Laden, Sarah Palin has come around to claim he’s “pussy-footing around” — specifically by not immediately releasing photos of the deceased al Qaeda leader. To underscore the irony, Palin claims the pictures should be released “as warning to others seeking America’s destruction” — one day after numerous reports had her moving in a more pragmatic direction on foreign policy. Palin took to Twitter, one of her go-to modes of communications, moments after news broke that Obama would not release the bin Laden photos. “Show photo as warning to others seeking America’s destruction. No pussy-footing around, no politicking, no drama;it’s part of the mission,” she said. It’s unclear why she thinks photos of bin Laden’s corpse will scare suicidal terrorists. It’s unclear what Sarah Palin thinks about most anything other than how to be a flame thrower and make sure she lines her pocket while doing it, so this doesn’t some as much of a surprise to me. And as Media Matters noted, of course this is nothing but more double-speak out of Palin — VIDEO: Palin Was For Killing Terrorists In Pakistan Before She Was Against It . Color me not shocked after watching her in action over the last few years. Hardball’s Chris Matthews, Salon’s Joan Walsh and the Washington Post’s Eugene Robinson discussed Palin’s flame throwing and sadly poor Robinson found himself having to argue on the same side as Palin with whether these photos should be released or not. The big difference there of course is Robinson would like to put an end to any of the conspiracy theories out there and was advocating for the public’s right to know that they actually did kill bin Laden. Palin on the other hand is just doing what she can to raise her profile so she can make as much money as possible at her next event where someone is silly enough to pay her to show up and speak. I don’t necessarily care if the photos are released for all of the obvious reasons that have been discussed ad nauseum in the press, but I would like to see some other information they gathered that confirmed his death because I do agree with Eugene Robinson that the public does has a right to know they’re being told the truth. That said, I’ll be more than happy to finally see the grifter Sarah Palin’s fifteen minutes of fame finally be up and for the media to quit reporting on what this nitwit posts on her Twitter page or Facebook without making her come on the air for follow up.

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Prince William <![CDATA[&]]> Kate To Visit California In July

LONDON — Wills and Kate are heading west, off to California in July. Prince William and his wife, the former Kate Middleton, will be in the state for three days starting July 8 after their official tour of Canada, the prince’s office announced Thursday. The palace did not provide details of their itinerary. The trip will be William’s first official trip to the United States and Kate’s first-ever visit to the country. The royal couple – now known as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge – married last week at Westminster Abbey in a ceremony seen around the world. After a long weekend in private, they have returned to the remote island of Anglesey in Wales, where William is based as a Royal Air Force search-and-rescue helicopter pilot, putting off a honeymoon for now. They start their weeklong tour of Canada on June 30, visiting Ottawa, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Alberta and the Northwest Territories, including a trip to the Arctic.

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Creative debuts compact, Bluetooth-enabled Zen Style M300 PMP

It may not be quite as convenient to wear as a watch, but Creative’s new Zen Style M300 PMP does have a leg up on the slightly smaller iPod nano in one key respect: it packs built-in Bluetooth 2.1 support so you can use wireless headphones with it. You can also expand the PMP’s memory beyond its basic 4GB, 8GB, or 16GB capacities thanks to its microSD card slot, although you won’t get a touchscreen here — the 1.45-inch display is simply complemented by a couple of touch buttons. Otherwise, you’ll get a built-in FM radio, a mic for voice recording, a promised 20 hours of battery life, and your choice of four different colors: black, white, red or yellow. Those that can do without Bluetooth can also opt for the slightly cheaper, and otherwise identical M100 model — look for both to be available in June, with prices running from $40 to $90. Full press release is after the break. Continue reading Creative debuts compact, Bluetooth-enabled Zen Style M300 PMP Creative debuts compact, Bluetooth-enabled Zen Style M300 PMP originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 05 May 2011 14:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink

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Live Like a Reality-Star Heiress: Rent Paris Hilton’s House for $20,000 a Month

If you’ve always wanted to live like Paris Hilton—though we aren’t sure why you would—now you have a shot. Hilton’s Hollywood Hills home is up for rent at a mere $20,000 a month. And since the hotel heiress purchased the bachelorette pad for $3.865 million in 2007, maybe $20,000 is a great price for a

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