Chris Rock is backpedaling a day after Tweeting support for comedian Tracy Morgan, reports the New York Daily News . After Morgan got in trouble for joking that he would stab his son to death if his son were gay last week, Rock initially wrote that he would not “want to…
Continue reading …Bahrain’s rulers are striving to make it seem as if all is well in their tiny Persian Gulf country, but a brutal crackdown on dissent continues as a 20-year-old student is sentenced to a year in prison for reading a poem critical of the government. Ayat al-Qurmezi was convicted of…
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• Murray wins 3-6, 7-6 (7-2), 6-4 • Thousands queue for tickets for held-over final Andy Murray won his second Queen’s title after beating Jo-Wilfried Tsonga by two sets to one. The British No1 lost the first set 3-6, before winning a second set tie-break (7-2) and then clinching the final set 6-4. The final was held over from Sunday after a washout, and the tournament organisers made tickets available to the general public – with thousands being snapped up on Sunday night and the remainder all sold well before the 12.40pm start. Murray – seeded No2 – forced a break point chance in game three, but a somewhat fortunate net cord from a fierce volley saved Tsonga. In game five it was the Scot who found himself on the back foot, love-40 down. Tsonga, seeded fifth, made the most of the opportunity, correctly challenging a marginal line call, which gave the Frenchman the initiative. After allowing Murray brief hope in his next service game as the Briton rallied to deuce from 40-15 down, Tsonga powered his way further ahead at 5-2 as the world No4 laboured on the baseline. Murray finally found his range in game nine, mixing things up to force two break points – only for Tsonga to recover and claim the first set after a tame forehand into the net from the No2 seed. The second set went with serve through five games, which included fine net exchanges from both men. Murray had been sublime in his semi-final demolition of Andy Roddick, and slowly grew in composure, but was finding Tsonga a determined opponent as the Frenchman closed out his next service to love, levelling at 3-3. A 131mph serve put Murray ahead again, and he then forced two break chances in the next game, which Tsonga recovered only to concede another after a long return from the baseline. However, Murray again failed to take advantage as more chances were wasted with unforced errors before Tsonga eventually levelled again at 4-4. It was five apiece after a love service game from the Frenchman, who had beaten the Englishman James Ward in the semi-finals. Murray continued to be dogged by unforced errors as Tsonga was handed two break points, the second of which was saved by a fortunate net-cord ricochet. However, he pulled through to lead 6-5. Tsonga’s athleticism was impressive, diving to volley back Murray’s own acrobatic return from between his legs at the baseline as the second set went to a tie-break. Both men gained mini-breaks before Murray moved 5-2 ahead as Tsonga lost his range at the baseline and closed out the set 7-6 (7-2) to level the match. By the third set there was little to choose between the two men, who met in the quarter-finals at Wimbledon last year, as the decider moved towards a tense conclusion. The crowd found their voice again as Murray finally broke Tsonga’s resistance to lead 3-2 and then moved further ahead with the Queen’s Centre Court basked in sunshine. The 24-year-old Scot was now beginning to showboat, producing a drop-shot through his legs as he took control of the match for the first time at 5-3. Murray secured the championship on his next serve to love, completing the comeback in just short of two and a half hours. Andy Murray Tennis guardian.co.uk
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Uninhabited island made famous by the BBC reality series is in ‘safe hands’ after being sold to a family on neighbouring Harris The uninhabited Hebridean island of Taransay, made famous by the reality television series Castaway, has been sold to a local family only a fortnight after going on the market for £2m. Taransay, with its herds of sheep and wild deer, as well as cottages and a bunkhouse, was put up for sale late last month by owners Angus and Norman MacKay, brothers who live on the neighbouring island of Harris. Taransay is one of the largest islands in Scotland left wholly in private hands. It was made famous by the BBC series Castaway in 2000, and has lochs “teeming” with trout, “first-class” coastal and sea angling and abundant deer stalking. The island, one of the least spoilt and most beautiful places in the Western Isles, appeared to be a perfect purchase for a rich buyer interested in country pursuits. But instead it has been snapped up by another family on Harris. They are friends of the MacKays and already have “a long association with Taransay”. John Bound, from the selling agents CKD Galbraith, said the new owners – who have not been named – had no plans to change Taransay’s current use, mainly for self-catering holidaymakers and sheep farming. “Given its exceptional beauty and outstanding setting, it was no surprise that Taransay attracted so much interest and been sold in less than two weeks. The existing owners know the purchaser and all involved are delighted with the outcome and the island passes into safe hands,” Bound said. “There will no doubt be a number of disappointed parties who would have liked to bid, but it is fitting that Taransay is now in the new ownership of somebody closely acquainted to the area who will preserve the current management of the island.” The island, which is effectively two smaller islands connected by a sandy isthmus on the edge of the Atlantic, comprises about 3,445 acres. Unusually, every part of the island and building is owned solely by the new buyers, including a recently upgraded farmhouse, the old school chalet and a bothy for holiday use. The BBC series transformed Taransay from a little-known holiday destination to one of the most recognised names in the Hebrides. Up to 9 million viewers watched for a year as an initial group of 36 “castaways”, including families with children, tried to survive unaided in the harsh landscape and grow their own food. The film-makers refurbished derelict buildings, allowing the MacKays to turn the properties into holiday lets after the series ended. Their father, John MacKay, bought Taransay in 1967 for £11,000. It was once home to hundreds of islanders and three townships but has been uninhabited for decades. Scotland Property Reality TV Television guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …Broadway’s gaspingly irreverent Book of Mormon swept nine Tony Awards last night, wining everything from Best Musical to Best Score to Best Direction to Best Actress in a musical (Nikki M. James). “You did it, Joseph! You got the Tony!” joked the co-creator of the musical, Trey Parker, referring to…
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Attack by stone and bottle throwing youths hours after King Abdullah II announced political reforms is denied by government The motorcade of King Abdullah II of Jordan has reportedly come under attack from protesters throwing bottles and stones during a visit to a town in the country’s south. Abdullah was unhurt in the attack, which came hours after he bowed to popular demands for political reform, agreeing to have an elected prime minister from a parliamentary majority replace the current method of appointing the cabinet. An unnamed security official said young people attacked the motorcade in two different areas in Tafila, 125 miles south of the capital Amman. A government spokesman, Taher Edwan, later rejected the account. “This news is totally baseless,” he said. “There was no attack whatsoever with empty bottles and stones. “What happened is that a group of young Jordanians thronged the monarch’s motorcade to shake hands with him.” He said that when police “pushed them away, there was a lot of shoving”. A palace official who accompanied Abdullah gave a similar account: “It was a gesture of welcome, not an attack.” Abdullah was on a fact-finding trip to inspect infrastructure projects and hear his subjects’ demands. The king has agreed to elected cabinets but gave no timetable, saying that sudden change could lead to “chaos and unrest”. The move represented a big concession to demands from activists who have taken to the streets in six months of protests to demand a greater political say. Many Jordanians want the king to loosen his absolute grip on power, which includes appointing prime ministers and cabinets. In the televised speech on Sunday, marking his 12th year as Jordan’s ruler, Abdullah said future cabinets will be formed according to an elected parliamentary majority. He also promised further changes without giving much detail, saying that a royal commission is now exploring “possible amendments” to the constitution appropriate for Jordan’s “present and future”. When Abdullah became king in 1999, he floated the idea of a constitutional monarchy similar to the British system, but little has been said on the subject since. Jordanians have been demanding a new elected parliament that would replace one widely seen as docile. However, a small group of activists says it wants the king to relinquish all his power and become only a figurehead. But major political parties such as the powerful Muslim Brotherhood have rejected such proposals, calling the king a “stabilising influence”. Abdullah said the changes would be implemented based on the recommendations of a national dialogue committee, which recently proposed laws governing elections and political parties. The committee is also reviewing economic legislation to tackle official corruption, nepotism and bureaucracy. The Jordanian government has lifted restrictions on public assembly, allowing protesters to demonstrate freely. But it has said it needs time to enact laws on political freedoms, including those addressing election and political parties. Abdullah sacked his prime minister in February, responding to protesters’ complaints that he was insensitive to their economic hardships. Protests in Jordan have been relatively smaller and generally more peaceful than elsewhere in the Middle East, although one person died during a protest in March. One man burned himself badly in April after setting himself on fire outside the prime minister’s office . King Abdullah Jordan Middle East Arab and Middle East unrest Protest Mark Tran guardian.co.uk
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NHS ‘listening’ tsar comes back with extensive rewrite of Andrew Lansley’s health and social care bill Experts recruited by David Cameron after the outcry over coalition plans to reform the NHS have recommended a series of key changes that will see the health and social care bill extensively rewritten. Prof Steve Field, chairman of the NHS Future Forum, said an overhaul of the plans was necessary after health secretary Andrew Lansley’s original blueprint to improve the NHS in England alarmed health professionals, patients and the public. He said that “the principles underlying the bill – devolving control to clinicians, giving patients real choices and control, and focusing on outcomes – are well supported”. But in remarks that underline the fear and confusion aroused by Lansley’s original bill, he added: “During our listening we heard genuine and deep-seated concerns from NHS staff, patients and the public which must be addressed if the reforms are to be progressed. Our recommendations represent important changes in future policy, crystallising those thousands of voices, as well as our own views.” The forum’s 16 recommendations include findings that: • The pace of the reforms, which had alarmed many critics in the NHS, should be varied so that the service carries them through only when it is able to do so. • The health secretary should retain ultimate accountability for the NHS in England, a responsibility that Lansley sought to abandon in his original bill. • Not just GPs but also nurses, specialist doctors and other clinicians should be involved in making local decisions about the commissioning of care – another rejection of a key element of the original bill. • “Competition should be used to secure greater choice and better value for patients. It should be used not as an end in itself, but to improve quality, promote integration and increase citizens’ rights.” • In addition, the restructuring of the NHS should be based not on the regulator Monitor’s duty to “promote” competition – which should be removed – but on citizens’ power to challenge the local health service where they do not feel their service offers meaningful choice or good quality. Field, the former chair of the Royal College of GPs, and the 44 other experts on the panel have spent more than two months talking to health professionals, patient groups and others after the bill was put on hold amid increasing political difficulty for the coalition. NHS Health Andrew Lansley Liberal-Conservative coalition Denis Campbell guardian.co.uk
Continue reading …A 14-year-old girl who was the top seller of Girl Scout cookies in San Diego died suddenly at a school dance, reports ABC News . Sabrina Keller, who sold 3,463 boxes of cookies this year, collapsed at the event held to celebrate the end of eighth grade. She was flown…
Continue reading …In just a few hours, the National Archives will at last publish the entire 7,000-page Vietnam report known as the Pentagon Papers . The documents represent among the most important in modern presidential history, leading the Nixon administration to crack down on leaks that led to phone taps, break-ins, and…
Continue reading …Pretty Jasmijn Rijcken thought a New York City cop was kidding when he pulled her over to tell her she was showing too much skin while bike riding. You see, she was bare-legged and wearing a skirt. “He said, ‘It’s very disturbing, and it’s distracting the cars,’” Rijcken told…
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