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EU slams Libyan regime's 'human rights violations'

BRUSSELS (AP) — EU foreign ministers are condemning what they call the "grave violations of human rights" perpetrated by the regime of Moammar Gadhafi and saying the Libyan leader must relinquish power immediately.

In a statement, foreign ministers from the 27 EU countries are calling on the Gadhafi regime's followers to defect and …

Egyptian church worker shares skills in Canada

Kitchener, Ont.

Arsanuos Faltas meets people from many different countries and churches in his role as a church worker at a Coptic Orthodox retreat centre in Egypt.

This past year he has been using skills honed at the retreat centre to support programs at First Mennonite Church and House of Friendship in Kitchener, Ont., as a participant in MCC's International Volunteer Exchange Program (IVEP).

Highlights of his year in Canada, he says, are the opportunities to use his Arabic language skills, and his understanding of other cultures and religions to break down barriers among people and faith groups in Canada.

A memorable event took place at First Mennonite …

Pitt Drops Louisville 76-69 to Advance

Sam Young had 21 points and 12 rebounds, and hit a pair of free throws with less than a minute left in overtime to help Pittsburgh beat No. 13 Louisville 76-69 Thursday night and advance to the semifinals of the Big East tournament.

The seventh-seeded Panthers (24-9) outscored Louisville 12-2 to start the overtime, and their 74-64 lead with 30.9 seconds left was their biggest of the game.

Pittsburgh, which has knocked Louisville out of three straight conference tournaments, advanced to play either third-seeded Notre Dame or No. 6 seed Marquette on Friday night.

DeJuan Blair added 16 points and eight rebounds for Pittsburgh, which has been to the last …

Shed loads of fun

If you're planning to go to Keynsham Music Festival on Sunday,then look out for a …

Addressing the Debt Crisis in the European Union: The Validity of Mandatory Collective Action Clauses and Extended Maturities

Abstract

The sovereign debt crisis in the European Union has put significant pressure on the fundamental divisions of power between the Union government and member states. One part of the recommended solution for the crisis calls for the imposition of mandatory collective action clauses and extended maturities for all sovereign bonds issued by member states, the first instances of Union-wide fiscal policy choices being forced upon member states. After an explanation of the relevant bond terms, this Comment evaluates the validity of the proposed mandates based on the current state of the framework of power in the EU and concludes that the mandates are valid under the EU implied …

Ford to pay workers $6,000 bonus in new contract

FORD/UAW CONTRACT: Ford Motor Co. and the United Auto Workers reached a new four-year contract agreement Tuesday. It covers Ford's 41,000 U.S. factory workers.

THE DETAILS: Most workers won't get annual raises, but will get at least $16,700 over the life of the contract, including a $6,000 signing bonus …

AP ENTERPRISE: 2009 _ year of terror charges in US

U.S. prosecutors charged more suspects with terrorism in 2009 than in any year since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, providing evidence of what experts call a rise in plots spurred by Internet recruitment, the spread of al-Qaida overseas and ever-shifting tactics of terror chiefs.

A review of major national security cases by The Associated Press found 54 defendants had federal terrorism-related charges filed or unsealed against them in the past 12 months.

The Justice Department would not confirm the figure or provide its own. But an agency spokesman said 2009 had more defendants charged with terrorism than any year since the 2001 attacks. The year that came …

Whealan Pool reopens as an aquatic center

Before home air conditioners were commonplace, there was WhealanPool, a mammoth Far Northwest Side facility where thousands of cityand suburban residents would retreat on a summer's day.

This afternoon, after a two-year hiatus, the Cook County ForestPreserve District's sprawling concrete-paved lake at 6200 W. Devonwill be reborn as the Whealan Pool Aquatic Center, a smaller, moremodern swimming hole with water slides and an interactive playstructure for kids.

The debut will come a day after the city got its own interactivespray pool. City officials dedicated the spray pool Tuesday atPiotrowski Park, 4247 W. 31st St..

At Whealan Pool, the reopening is …

Romanian ex-PM gets prison time in corruption case

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — Romania's highest court on Monday sentenced former Prime Minister Adrian Nastase to two years in prison after convicting him of illegally raising funds for a failed presidential campaign.

The ruling is the first time a former Romanian premier has been sentenced to prison since communism ended in the country in 1989.

Four others in the case received six-year prison sentences. The sentences can be appealed.

Nastase, who was prime minister from 2000 to 2004, insists he is innocent and that the case is politically motivated. He said he would appeal.

Prosecutors alleged that companies and state agencies were forced to pay fees to attend a …

Allen: Reliable spill numbers hard to nail down

The Obama administration's point man for the government's response to the Gulf Coast oil spill is acknowledging that reliable numbers on the severity of the crisis are hard to get.

Speaking at a Washington briefing Friday, Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen conceded: "I think we're still dealing with the flow estimate. We're still trying to refine those …

Be a survivor

frontiers of science

If you were on a desert isle, what herb would you take along?

When I called Dr. James Duke the other day to ask him a question about a journal article on garlic and cancer, he asked me to hold on, since he had a pot of garlic soup on the oven and didn't want it to burn!

"If I were stranded on a desert isle, I'd rather have garlic than almost any other herb," Duke said. "It'll boost your immune system and fight the nasties better than anything I can think of."

And there are plenty of bugs and diseases around, some of them deadly serious. In fact, since 1990, 15 million new cases of cancer were diagnosed. According to the National Cancer …

Chilean judge sentences Catholic priest to recite psalms for traffic violation

A judge in southern Chile has sentenced a Catholic priest to recite seven psalms daily during three months as punishment for illegal parking.

Judge Manuel Perez said he issued the unusual sentence after Father Jose Cornejo claimed he could not afford the 50,000 peso (US$100,euro68) fine that would have been the regular sanction for illegal parking in the city of Puerto Montt.

"He will have to recite seven psalms," Judge Perez told the Santiago daily La Tercera.

"This is not a …

NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION: Road to NBA title goes through San Antonio

Spurs that jingle

The San Antonio Spurs have won at least 50 games since 1999 andhave won at least 50 games in a season 15 times since 1976:

Year W L Pct.

2004-05 59 23 .720

2003-04 57 25 .695

2002-03 60 22 .732

2001-02 58 24 .707

2000-01 58 24 .707

1999-00 53 29 .646

1998-99 37 13 .740

1997-98 56 26 .683

1996-97 20 62 .244

1995-96 59 23 .720

1994-95 62 20 .756

1993-94 55 27 .671

1992-93 49 33 .598

1991-92 47 35 .573

1990-91 55 27 .671

1989-90 56 26 .683

1988-89 21 61 .256

1987-88 31 51 .378

1986-87 28 54 .341

1985-86 35 47 .427

1984-85 41 41 .500

1983-84 37 45 .451

1982-83 53 29 .646

1981-82 48 34 .585

1980-81 52 30 .634

1979-80 41 41 .500

1978-79 48 34 .585

1977-78 52 30 .634

1976-77 44 38 .537

Robert Horry knows something about what it takes to win an NBAchampionship. In his 13 years in the league, Horry has been part ofsix teams and three different franchises that have finished theseason popping champagne corks and, a few months later, putting onthe diamond-laden rings that go to the world champions. No currentNBA player has more championship bling than Big Shot Bob. Now in histhird year with the reigning champion San Antonio Spurs, Horry alsoknows whats coming next. The pressure of repeating that will followthe Spurs as it did when Horry played for the Los Angeles Lakers andHouston Rockets. The challenge from the leagues legitimate contendersto combat, and even mimic, the Spurs. You cant copy a style, Horrysaid before an exhibition game in Indianapolis last month. When Ifirst got traded to Phoenix (fom Houston before the 1996-97 season),we tried to copy the Bulls style. Every system is not good for everyteam. You have certain matchups that work with certain peoplesabilities. The style that worked for the Spurs last season might notbe as successful this season, which begins Tuesday night with a ringceremony and a game against the Denver Nuggets. The Spurs areconsidered nearly as big a favorite to repeat as the Lakers or Bullswere during their years of dominance. Like other recent championshipteams, including the 2002-03 Spurs, San Antonio didnt stand still,adding veteran free agents Michael Finley and Nick Van Exel to a teamthat revolves around the inside presence of All-NBA forward TimDuncan and the perimeter game of All-Star guard Manu Ginobili andpoint guard Tony Parker. Though the playing style of the Spursdiffers from that of the Lakers or Bulls, the blueprint is prettymuch the same. I think the model has been there for years. You haveyour main players, you have role players, you have role playersaccept their roles and your star players play the right way and yougo from there, said Duncan. I think you can find that in every teamthats won it, from the Lakers when they were winning it, to the oldLakers when they were winning it, to the Celtics when they werewinning. Its all the same. What has changed the landscape is the NBAsalary cap, trying to figure out a way to compensate a teams starswithout compromising its chances to win. That doesnt differ whetheryoure being chased or doing the chasing. I think whatever positionyoure in, the goal is the same for everybody; everybody wants to winan NBA championship, said Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich, who has wonthree. The most important thing is that whatever a team does thesedays has to be done in relation to the cap and to the salaryrestrictions, because if a mistake is made in that area, it can bethree to six years before a team recovers from it. Whatever getsdone, if a mistake is made, like overpaying someone whos not really afranchise player and youre stuck with that guy for X number of years,then youre not going anywhere, because you dont have the money to addthe pieces. Having said that, one can only fit the pieces togetheraround who the stars are as wisely as possible, knowing full wellthat good fortune has something to do with it. Sometimes, bad luckcan turn into dumb luck, as happened when David Robinson was injuredback during the 1996-97 season and the Spurs fell into the lottery,then won the lottery and drafted Duncan with the top pick. But afterwinning titles in 1998-99 and 2002-03, the Spurs were forced to redomuch of their roster when veteran reserves Steve Kerr and Danny Ferryretired and Stephen Jackson signed with the Atlantia Hawks. The nextseason, the Spurs started giving a more prominent role to a second-year player named Ginobili. With us, when we drafted Manu (in thesecond round in 1999), we didnt know he was going to be the Manu thatyou see today, said Popovich. The pieces have to fit around thestars. Thats what other teams are trying to do this year in order tosupplant the Spurs: The Miami Heat, which came within a game ofreaching the NBA Finals last season, overhauled its roster moreradically than any other team in the league. Miami brought inveterans Antoine Walker, Gary Payton, James Posey and Jason Williamsthrough trades and free agency with hopes that they will play as wellas the supporting cast did with Shaquille ONeal and Dwyane Wade lastseason. The Phoenix Suns, who lost to the Spurs in the WesternConference finals after having the best regular-season record in theleague, traded Quentin Richardson and Joe Johnson, deepened its frontcourt with Kurt Thomas, Brian Grant and James Jones and will now playwithout All-Star forward Amare Stoudemire for the first four monthsafter knee surgery. The Indiana Pacers, who made the playoffs despitea tumultuous season that included Ron Artests suspension for 73 gamesafter the infamous brawl in Detroit and injuries to other keyplayers, including Jermaine ONeal, added European star SarunasJasikevicius in hopes of the former Maryland guard becoming theirGinobili. The Detroit Pistons, who lost to the Spurs in the NBAFinals, saw their top eight players return, but watched as Hall ofFame coach Larry Brown left for the New York Knicks over the summer.His successor, Flip Saunders, will have a much more balanced te

Magnificent mess // Zen and the art of Michigan Avenue repair

It's a very Zen experience, walking down the middle of NorthMichigan Avenue without being arrested.

But it's perfectly legal to stroll there, meditating deeply,while parts of of the west sidewalk are closed.

See, bustling North Michigan hasn't been well lately, thanks tothe $25 million reconstruction of the Chicago River bridge and bothlevels of the avenue from the Wrigley Building to Grand Avenue andbeyond.

First the east side of Michigan was torn up and renovated. Nowit's the west side's turn.

Some skyscrapers and shops on the west side have had onlytenuous links to civilization - temporary walkways that stretch overthe void.

Maybe by Thanksgiving everything will be renewed and reopened,better than ever. Meanwhile, magnificent people are sufferingthrough the magnificent mess at the start of the Magnificent Mile.

Most days, Henry Brown dresses like a gigantic hot dog, completewith bun, and passes out handbills on the torn-up section of MichiganAvenue.

The handbills read something like "Our burgers are fresh grounddaily with no preservatives, additives or fillers. FREE. Smallfries and drink with any burger sandwich. One per customer."

Hungry passersby don't find that hard to digest in one quickread.

Brown works for Barry Potekin of Gold Coast Dogs on StateStreet. "Till they started tearing it up," Brown says, he tarried onthe east side of Michigan, near the plaza north of the WrigleyBuilding.

"I don't pass out leaflets like I used to because it's so messedup," Brown says, and "because my fans are on the other side" of theconstruction.

"It's a different crowd now."

Brown has been working for Potekin six years, and when notpamphleteering does Gold Coast deliveries. He stores his costume inthe restaurant basement.

Hot dogs have always been red-hot sellers. But somerestaurants have been hard hit during construction.

George Kuan says business in his House of Hunan-Michigan Avenuerestaurant was down "50 percent last year" while his side, the eastside of the avenue, was out of action.

This year, with the east side renovated, his dining business is"definitely better." But "taxis and tour buses still cannot stop infront."

A block west of Michigan, at Riccardo's restaurant on Rush,owner Nick Angelos says "business is halfway down." He blames therecession and the Michigan Avenue rip-up.

For one thing, people haven't able to use the stairway fromupper Michigan Avenue. to Riccardo's. The stairway has been closedtemporarily.

And taxes, not taxis, aren't helping either.

"Sixteen years ago I paid $7,000 a year in real estate taxes onthe Riccardo building," says Angelos. "I put my bones and my bloodinto it and fixed it up. Now they're asking me for $150,000" a year.

"It's not democracy. We're in crisis. With the real estatetaxes, I'm going to have to close and get out."

At Billy Goat's on the west side of Michigan's lower level,owner Sam Sianis says "lunch business has been down. People don'tcome down for lunch because it's too far to walk. All stairs havebeen closed" from the upper level at various times.

"When they were fixing the other side, it was easier," Sianissays.

Did President Bush have trouble getting to Billy Goat's forlunch on Dec. 10?

"When Bush was here, it was open. Construction on the westside started the first of the year."

Listen, Sam, tell us again: Did Bush pay for his lunch?

"The President when he got up to leave, he took money out ofhis pocket to pay. I told him, `Mister President, because it's yourfirst time at Billy Goat, Billy Goat is going to buy you lunch. Thesecond time, you pay."

Don't try that yourselves, readers.

James Williams, confined to a wheelchair, is a familiar sighton Michigan's upper level.

Sometimes people stop to chat with him, or offer acontribution. "I've been here three or four years," he says, and hefeels he has made many friends.

What impact has construction had on any donations he mightreceive? "None," Williams says.

Williams used to favor the west side of Michigan Avenue but hecan be found on "both sides" now that the west side is a wasteland.

At the Rand McNally map and travel store on the west side, atorn-up street "definitely has had an impact" on business, saysmanager Rebecca Owen. "Luckily, the product we carry is somethingpeople will go to a little bit of trouble to get," Owen says.

And there's a bright side. "We have had an additional group ofpeople coming to see the construction," she says, "how interesting itis to see the old structure of the road."

This is an especially rugged time for Manouchehr Shabahang, whoowns Shabahang Persian Carpets on the east side of Michigan. "Itdefinitely affects our business," he says of the mess.

"I lost money last year," Shabahang says. "This is a touristarea and a lot of tourists didn't bother to come to this side becauseit was uncomfortable. Now this side is clear and we get some of thetraffic from the other side. It's better for us."

Policeman Dominic LaCalamita helps keep traffic running throughMichigan Avenue's war zone.

One problem: "Cab drivers stop in the middle of the street topick people up, or let them out right in the middle of the block."

LaCalamita finds that people confronted with constructionconfusion on the west side generally are "accepting it more than theydid on the other side, because they tore it up much faster on thewest side. They started Jan. 6. They're really working."

Barbers on both sides of Michigan are holding their own,trimwise. Roberto Cordova co-owns the barbershop in the east side'sEquitable Building with Vito Citrano.

"It was a little harder for our friends to come see us" when theeast side was torn up, says Cordova. "But they struggled through it.We're all happy because it's so nice now. We had a whole year ofthat.

"You kind of don't get new customers" during reconstruction, headmits. But now his rebuilt east side "looks nicer. There's a bigdifference."

Joe Gambino says haircut numbers in his west side WrigleyBuilding Barber Shop haven't been affected by the mess. But "peoplecomplain they have to go a little further, go down the street moreand come up."

Sue McKenna also works in the Wrigley Building, with theIllinois Insurance Information Service. She says when workmen weretearing up the avenue's east side, "for two whole days they had thelarge ball that breaks up the concrete, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM. By the endof the day my head was rocking with the ball.

"I didn't remember how annoying and distracting it was till theydid it on the west side."

Sy Handwerker feels kind of shellshocked in the east side'sEquitable Building. "We have survived about two years ofconstruction," says Handwerker, president of the Hanlen Organizationpublic relations firm.

"Before they tore up the street, they tore up the plaza, andbefore that they tore up the entire lobby," Handwerker says. "It'sbeen like a war zone here for a long, long time.

"People were always getting lost. We told them they had to walkover to the other side of the street to get across the bridge." Nowthey must use Handwerker's side of the street to cross the river.

Kroch's and Brentano's bookstore on the west side keeps itsrevolving front door securely locked because there's now a dropoffbeyond it. But customers can use a side lobby door.

"Yes, business has gone down some," says Kroch's assistantmanager Bette Popik. "But not as bad as we thought it would. Ithink probably because we have so many restaurants on this side.People still come to pick up their McDonald's.

Kroch's is where many Boul Mich denizens pick up the ChicagoReader on Thursday. But now the huge newspaper stack vanishes earlybecause the weekly can't be delivered easily.

"The Reader guy only delivers one load versus two. He has tocome up through the dock area."

Still, nobody can stop a reader, lower case. "We've had threeor four autograph parties" at Kroch's since the avenue became rubbleand thin air on the west side. At one party, Popik says, poet G.E.Murray autographed and sold more than 125 copies of his book Walkingthe Blind Dog.

Homemade signs abound on Michigan Avenue. Many of the largeplywood boards that separate people and gaping holes have cryptic,interconnected messages written on them. One reads, "Nobody hasRECORDS!!!

Another reads, "Shutup. . . ! I think I hear the secretary."

Still further on: "Screenwriters. Have parts of your scriptsshown up in commercials."

And then, "Who are YOU to script people off? (ugly worms)."

And so it goes, sometimes alternating with signs that read,"Bridge CLOSED. Use east side."

Somewhere out there is an unhappy writer. But aren't allwriters unhappy?

Though the scheduled date for completion of Michigan Avenuereconstruction is Thanksgiving week, things may be wrapped up sooner.

"We anticipate that the bridge and roadway on the west side willbe completed sometime in September," says Russell Salzman, executivedirector of the Greater North Michigan Avenue Association.

"And then they will finish the southeast leaf of the bridge.There's an early finish clause, substantial enough that I'm toldcontractors are duly motivated.

"Our association is planning a rather significant event thatwill be a major kickoff to the Christmas season, opening the gatewayto the Mile."

And that's the situation on Michigan Avenue, Zen and now.

Waid steps down as chief creative officer at Boom!

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Mark Waid, a comic-book industry veteran who served as editor-in-chief and then chief creative officer at Boom! Studios, is stepping down, but will continue writing its critically lauded titles "Irredeemable" and "Incorruptible."

The Los Angeles-based company's CEO, Ross Richie, says Waid, who joined in 2007, played a key role in its growth from a small "upstart to top-tier publisher," and that Waid made it clear he was "ready to take on new challenges."

Waid, whose stints in the industry have included "Captain America" for Marvel and DC's "The Flash" and "Kingdom Come," says he will "refocus his energies on writing and creating."

___

Online:

http://www.boom-studios.com/

Ex-UK communications chief: Be proud of Iraq war

Spinmaster Alastair Campbell told the Iraq Inquiry on Tuesday that former Prime Minister Tony Blair's team has nothing to apologize for even though the dossier it used to convince the British public to go to war with Iraq was riddled with faulty intelligence.

Britons should be proud, not apologetic, about what the country accomplished in Iraq, despite the years of bloodshed that followed the U.S.-led invasion, Campbell said in a stout defense of Blair's decision to invade Iraq, which remains deeply unpopular in Britain.

"Do I support that decision now?" he told the panel. "Yes. I think that Britain, far from beating ourselves up about this, should be really proud of the role we played in changing Iraq from what it was to what it is becoming, and the impact that is having on the region."

It was a spirited defense from the man who served as Blair's top communications strategist from 1997 until his resignation in August 2003.

Campbell conceded that planners did not properly forecast the internecine violence that gripped Iraq for years after the fall of dictator Saddam Hussein, or the growth of al-Qaida and other terrorist groups inside Iraq, but nonetheless felt Britain had performed a tremendous feat by removing Saddam.

From his vantage point as a chief strategist to Blair, and the architect of Blair's largely successful communications strategy, Campbell vehemently denied long-standing suspicions that he pressured intelligence chiefs to distort their findings to strengthen the case for war against Saddam in a dossier released in September 2002.

Blair presented the dossier to Parliament and the public as part of an orchestrated, Campbell-influenced public relations campaign meant to convince skeptics that Saddam posed a well-defined threat to Britain's national security.

In the dossier, Blair's government claimed that Saddam might have nuclear weapons within a year, which proved false, and possessed a chemical and biological arsenal that could be launched within 45 minutes, also false.

In addition, Blair claimed there was no doubt about his conclusion that Saddam posed a serious threat.

Campbell refused to give an inch on these points, denying that he had "sexed up" the dossier _ as initially claimed by the British press _ and saying the claims in the dossier were justified by intelligence claims made at the time.

"I defend every single word of the dossier, and I defend every single part of the process," Campbell said. "It was a genuine attempt by the prime minister and the government to engage the public properly."

He said the dossier was "a serious, solid piece of work" _ even though much of the information it contained turned out to be wrong.

Campbell said Blair's assertion that the danger posed by Saddam was "beyond doubt" reflected the prime minister's personal conclusion, based on a series of intelligence briefings and conversations with his intelligence teams, and was not an attempt to mislead the public.

Campbell said he fully expected weapons to be found inside Iraq and conceded that it put the government "in a very difficult situation" when none were discovered.

Chris Ames, a journalist who maintains the Iraqi Inquiry Digest Web site, said the panel did not seem to accept many of Campbell's explanations.

"It seems clear that the panel were very skeptical," he said. "They seemed to have evidence that British participation in the war was about regime change rather than weapons of mass destruction, but Campbell denied this. They also put him on the spot over the claim that intelligence established 'beyond doubt' that Iraq had WMD _ a claim Campbell insisted was justified."

The antagonism between Campbell, a former newspaper reporter, and the British press was plain throughout the proceedings.

He accused the Guardian newspaper of indulging in "conspiracy theories" and traced the controversy over the dossier to a piece of "dishonest journalism."

During the lunch break, Campbell tweeted that the "hacks" were producing a lot of drivel about the inquiry.

He told the panel that Blair was aware of the tremendous opposition he faced in his decision to go to war but firmly believed military action was needed.

The former prime minister, whose political position was gravely undermined by widespread unhappiness with the war, is expected to testify before the Iraq Inquiry in late January or early February.

Campbell was among the first major figures from Blair's inner circle to give his version of events to the Iraq Inquiry, the most wide-ranging investigation into the war thus far in Britain.

His testimony shed some light on occasionally testy relations between the British and American governments during the run-up to the war. He said American officials were sometime insensitive to the impact their remarks would have in Britain, citing former US Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld as one example.

"You can't choose the leadership of another country," he said. "They didn't always understand that their statements and positions would have an impact beyond their shores."

He criticized the postwar communications strategy used by the American government and said he considered going to Iraq to play a major role in setting communications policy but reconsidered because of American opposition to a British takeover.

Hamma, Buffalo Gr. slide past Stevenson

Buffalo Grove junior shortstop Lindsey Hamma knows how to deliver. . . and when.

Hamma hit a game-winning double in the bottom of the sixth in theopener as the No. 9 Bison (13-2) swept 1998 Elite Eight qualifierStevenson 3-1, 3-2 Saturday in Buffalo Grove.

With BG trailing 1-0 and two outs in the bottom of the sixth,Hamma doubled to right field to drive in Kim Hardt and MelissaCounley, who had singled. Hamma later scored on an error."I just wanted to concentrate," Hamma said. "Coach (Laura) Stocktold me they were playing deep and anything over the infield wouldfall in. And it happened."Hamma's hit helped senior pitcher Kim Czapala improve to 8-1. Shescattered four hits and struck out 10.The Patriots (5-6) scored in the fourth when Stefany Schultzdoubled and scored on a single by freshman pitcher Elissa Wisniewski."Lindsey came through with a clutch hit," Stock said. "That's whywe have her batting in the 3-spot. Their freshman pitcher did a goodjob. It was our third time through the (batting) order and we knewwe wouldn't get a fourth shot at her."In the second gane, Bison pitcher Michelle Catalano improved to 5-1.BG scored two in the second when Erin Bravo and Kate Stake led offwith singles.With two outs, Stevenson errors allowed two runs.The Patriots got even, scoring single runs in the fourth on an RBIgrounder by Wisniewski, who was the designated hitter, and in thesixth on a double by Sami Sutker and a single by Schultz.But in the bottom of the sixth, Counley reached on an error, PiperMead bunted her to second. After a fielder's choice left Hamma onthird, the Bison shortstop scored the game-winner on a two-out wildpitch."We played very well and got good pitching from a freshman andsophomore (Jenny Kopin)," Stevenson coach Larry Freidrich said."You just can't leave six on base and beat a team like that."

Rhone-Poulenc joins with Hoechst: Move is first step toward a full merger between two giants

PARIS - Two of Europe's largest drug makers, Hoechst of Germanyand Rhone-Poulenc of France, are merging their pharmaceutical andagrochemical operations.

Today's deal is a step toward a full merger between the FrenchandGerman companies, which should be completed within three years, saidRhone-Poulenc Chairman Jean-Rene Fourtou.

The widely anticipated combination of the pharmaceutical andagrochemical businesses would create a company with annual sales ofabout $20 billion, tying Switzerland's Novartis for leadership inthelife sciences industry.The new company will be called Aventis and will be based inStrasbourg in eastern France. Hoechst and Rhone-Poulenc will eachown 50 percent.The local impact of the merger was not immediately known."We want to create a new company, with European roots and globalreach, to take full advantage of the extensive opportunities of lifesciences in the 21st century," Rhone's Fourtou and Jurgen Dormann ofHoechst said in a statement.It was anticipated that Dormann would be the new chairman ofAventis, and Fourtou the vice chairman, the statement said.The two companies expect the deal will help them save $1.2 billionin three years, with 60 percent of those savings in theirpharmaceutical operations and 40 percent in agrochemicals.Unions in France and Germany have been critical of the merger,fearing layoffs. Hoechst employs 118,000 workers and Rhone-Poulenc,68,000.Analysts have warned against a full merger until the heavilyindebted firms reduce costs.Rhone-Poulenc shares were 4.2 percent lower in afternoon trading.

Bomb 1/4-Mile From Musharraf's HQ Kills 7

RAWALPINDI, Pakistan - A suicide attacker set off a bomb at a checkpoint a quarter-mile from the military headquarters where President Gen. Pervez Musharraf was staying Tuesday, killing seven people, police said.

The blast will likely feed fears for the country's stability just as it prepares for crucial parliamentary elections and faces a growing threat from Islamic militants.

The man walked up to the checkpoint in the city of Rawalpindi a quarter-mile from Army House. Musharraf was safely inside at the time, his spokesman Rashid Qureshi said.

Police said three of their officers and four civilians were killed along with the lone assailant. Fourteen policemen and four civilians were wounded, he said.

"When police officers asked him to halt, the attacker got panicked. And as the police tried to capture him, he blew himself up," city police chief Saud Aziz told The Associated Press. "Our officers died to protect the citizens of Pakistan."

The attack left the area around the checkpoint, which guards a road leading to Army House and the residences of several top generals, strewn with flesh and torn clothing.

An Associated Press photographer saw emergency workers remove the body of an elderly man killed as he was riding by on a bicycle.

Police said women and children aboard a passing minibus were also among the dead and wounded. Television footage showed schoolbags abandoned on the seats of the vehicle, whose windows were blown out.

Investigators cordoned off the area to retrieve evidence. A policeman climbed an overhanging tree to dislodge part of the bomber's severed head.

Fortified army posts at the checkpoint and the nearby gate to the residence of Gen. Tariq Majid, the army's No. 3 commander, were scarred with shrapnel and spattered with blood.

While there was no claim of responsibility, Pakistan has been rocked by a string of suicide bombings mostly blamed on Islamic extremists.

An attack on the homecoming parade of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto on Oct. 18 in the southern city of Karachi killed more than 140 people.

In Rawalpindi, a garrison city just south of the capital Islamabad, two blasts on Sept. 4 killed 25 people and wounded more than 60, many of them on a Defense Ministry bus.

Despite the violence, Bhutto announced plans to travel to Rawalpindi on Nov. 9 but said she would not hold processions.

"There are two options," Bhutto told reporters while visiting some of those wounded in the Karachi bombing. "Either we have to sit home due to this (threat), or keep contacting people. And I will continue to go to the masses, but address them at a public meeting."

Pakistan has suffered a surge in suicide attacks since Musharraf's decision in July to crack down on militants tightening their grip on areas along the Afghan frontier.

U.S. officials warn the area has become a haven for Taliban militants fighting in Afghanistan and that al-Qaida may be using it to plot fresh attacks on the West.

Last week, Pakistan sent troops to tackle supporters of a pro-Taliban cleric in the northwestern district of Swat. Officials say four days of violence in the once-peaceful mountain region has left around 100 people dead.

Musharraf, who has survived at least three attempts on his life, is widely expected to join forces with Bhutto in a U.S.-friendly alliance, provided her party fares well in January parliamentary elections.

Both are stressing the need for moderates to pool their strength to defeat extremism and terrorism - making them prime targets for Islamic hard-liners who deride them as U.S. stooges.

Extremists are trying hard to secure a "big catch," said Sheikh Rashid, a senior Cabinet minister and close political ally of Musharraf: "This is a very critical time and critical situation."

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Associated Press writer Munir Ahmad in Islamabad contributed to this report.

Celebrities push for freedom for defendants in grisly slaying of three Arkansas boys

An effort to free three young men convicted in the lurid 1993 slayings of three 8-year-old boys is gathering speed, with rock stars and other celebrities taking up their cause and with about 150 supporters rallying Wednesday on the steps of the Arkansas state Capitol.

Supporters of the "West Memphis Three" say prosecutors and a small-town police force railroaded the young men because of their fascination with heavy metal music and the occult. And they say new DNA tests and other forensic evidence call their guilt into question.

At the Capitol, sympathizers including Natalie Maines, lead singer for the Dixie Chicks, unfurled a long banner of postcards asking for the men to be released.

"You want to do anything you can to right this wrong," said Maines, whose earlier criticisms of President George W. Bush outraged many country music listeners. "I'm just amazed that these guys are still in prison and have turned into men in prison."

For years, prosecutors have steadfastly maintained the defendants committed the crime. And the convictions have withstood numerous appeals, with the Arkansas Supreme Court saying in 1996 that there was "substantial evidence" of guilt.

The grisly killings of Stevie Branch, Christopher Byers and Michael Moore shocked West Memphis, a blue-collar town of about 28,000 across the Mississippi River from bustling Memphis, Tennessee.

Police found the battered bodies of the three boys in a drainage ditch a day after they disappeared from their neighborhood. Their hands were bound to their legs with shoelaces, and one boy was sexually mutilated, prosecutors say.

Three teenagers _ Jason Baldwin, Damien Echols and Jessie Misskelley _ were arrested a month later, largely on Misskelley's confession. Misskelley told investigators how he watched Baldwin and Echols sexually assault and beat two of the boys as he chased down another who was trying to escape.

The case _ two trials, held in 1994 _ included testimony and prosecutors' allegations that the defendants acted as part of a satanic cult, and that they used to eat the hind legs of dogs and participate in orgies.

A jury gave Misskelley life in prison plus 40 years. Baldwin got life without parole. Echols, then 19, the oldest of the three, was sentenced to die. No execution date has been set.

A 1996 HBO documentary, "Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills," galvanized many supporters, who say that it reinforced their belief that the defendants were falsely convicted because they listened to heavy metal music and dressed in black in a small Southern town with a strong Christian faith.

"They were listening to Metallica. They were listening to the music they liked," said supporter Kody Bradshaw, 19, of Gurdon. "I feel blessed to be an avid, open supporter in my town. We live smack in the middle of the Bible Belt."

Since the film's release, Echols' art made from old magazines and prison-issued razors has sold at auction, the proceeds going toward a defense fund. Echols contributed lyrics to rock band Pearl Jam's 2006 album. Henry Rollins, frontman for punk rock band Black Flag, issued a tribute album in 2002 to raise money for their defense. Comedian Margaret Cho highlighted the case several times on her blog, posting a picture of herself across from a bespectacled Echols, sitting behind prison glass.

"Damien is beautiful like a girl, with a pale, delicate complexion," Cho wrote after a 2004 visit. "He is an inspiring teacher and a remarkable thinker. His writing is a constant source of wonder, especially as he lives in this terrible captivity."

In all, the defense fund has received more than $1 million (euro700,000) over the past decade from celebrities and Internet donors, money that has gone toward new DNA testing and a second federal appeal on Echols' behalf, said supporter Capi Peck.

The new appeal, filed in October, includes the results of DNA tests conducted by a private laboratory in Virginia. The lab said much of the evidence failed to yield reportable results, but on the material that could be tested, no traces of the three defendants were found.

The filing also included claims by forensic experts that the bodies were not mutilated by the killers, but mauled by animals.

A federal judge ordered the state courts to examine the new claims first. The Arkansas attorney general has asked for more time to look over the material. However, a spokesman said the state stands behind the convictions.

Asked Tuesday if he would consider commuting or pardoning the three, Democratic Gov. Mike Beebe said: "No, absolutely not."

The Arkansas Supreme Court in 1996 roundly rejected an appeal from Echols and Baldwin, who were tried jointly. It also upheld the judge's decision to let the jury see evidence such as a funeral register Echols owned, as well as a journal that contained "morbid images and references to dead children."

Defense lawyers claimed detectives coerced two taped statements out of the then-17-year-old Misskelley, who they say had the mental capacity of a child. Supporters of the three point to inconsistencies _ how Misskelley offered the wrong times for the slayings and the wrong colors for the shoelaces that bound the second-graders.

But the Arkansas high court noted that Misskelley was advised of his rights three times during a four-hour interview with officers. The court also noted Misskelley's "detailed knowledge of the injuries inflicted on the boys."

The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear a 1997 appeal from Echols.

What is clear from the record is Echols' macabre imagination.

"I kind of enjoy it because now even after I die, people are going to remember me forever. They're going to talk about me for years," he told the documentary filmmakers.

"People in West Memphis will tell their kids stories. It will be like, sort of like I'm the West Memphis boogeyman. Little kids will be looking under their beds before they go to bed."

___

On the Net:

Supporters' Web site: http://www.wm3.org

`Minnelli on Minnelli'

`Minnelli on Minnelli' on Broadway

NEW YORK From Sarah Bernhardt to Sophie Tucker, from Danny Kaye toJerry Lewis. They all played the Palace, New York's famous vaudevillehouse that most recently was home to Disney's "Beauty and the Beast."

Now it's Liza's turn.

That's Liza with a Z. Liza Minnelli is following in the footstepsof her mother, Judy Garland, another legendary entertainer who stagedseveral comebacks at the Palace. And daughter does momma proud.

Minnelli's show is a homecoming of sorts. Garland's ghost hoversover the proceedings. Yet it is director Vincente Minnelli, Liza'sfather, whose genius is celebrated by his offspring in this basicallyone-woman evening called "Minnelli on Minnelli," which openedWednesday for a limited run through Jan. 2.

Minnelli sings tunes featured in many of her father's films,including "Cabin in the Sky," "The Band Wagon," "An American inParis" and "Gigi."

Don't go expecting the Minnelli of yore. The voice has the volume,if not the control, of the past, and hip replacements have hamperedher mobility. She does several of her numbers while sitting in achair.

But she still has something that can't be denied. There is aspirit and enthusiasm - plus a bit of her mother's vulnerability -that gets her over the roughest edges of an evening that,fortunately, improves as it goes along.

Patience will be awarded. And often there are poignant remindersof the past: An eager Minnelli, reminiscent of the 19-year-old whofirst captivated Broadway in 1965 in "Flora, the Red Menace." Or thesexy Sally Bowles in the Bob Fosse film version of "Cabaret." Or eventhe sophisticated Minnelli of more recent forays at such supersizedvenues as Radio City Music Hall.

She does deliver - both an affectionate valentine to her fatherand an entertaining act in its own right. Still, she takes a while towarm up. The whole first half, in fact.

Director Fred Ebb, lyricist for "Chicago, "Cabaret" and "Flora,"has surrounded her with six chorus boys, who are done in by the mostprosaic choreography this side of "The Ed Sullivan Show." These guysare there for support - and to give Minnelli a breather - but much ofthe time, they just get in the way.

Act 1 seems as if it is a glorified variety show with Minnelliworking her way through a series of songs that never quite catchfire. She also has little interaction with the audience.

Things change in the second act. By then, Minnelli has done anewly fashioned version of Lerner and Loewe's "I'm Glad I'm Not YoungAnymore," joking about her problems with drugs, alcohol and weight.She relaxes and so does the audience.

The woman also trots out family photos, pictures of herself as achild, mostly in costumes from her father's movies. She also showsbrief film clips from several of the films, including "MadameBovary," "The Bad and the Beautiful," "Brigadoon" and "Gigi."

By then Minnelli has the audience on her side, further cementingthe relationship with a powerhouse version of the torch song, "WhatDid I Have That I Don't Have." All that's left is a deserved standingovation. Liza is still here.

Pakistan: 50 Militants, 2 Troops Killed

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Militants attacked a military base near the Afghan border Thursday, sparking a battle that drew in army helicopters and left about 50 insurgents and two soldiers dead, the army said.

Military spokesman Maj. Gen. Waheed Arshad said eight soldiers were wounded in the fighting near Razmak, a town in the South Waziristan region where pro-Taliban militants hold sway.

It was not possible to independently confirm the casualties from the fighting that raged as visiting U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John D. Negroponte met with President Gen. Pervez Musharraf in Islamabad.

Pakistan, under growing U.S. pressure to crack down on Taliban and al-Qaida in its border regions, reported Wednesday that it had killed about 40 militants in the North Waziristan region.

Arshad said army forces repelled repeated militant attacks Thursday in Razmak. Army helicopters and ground fire destroyed four rebel positions, he said.

Arshad said their initial estimate was that at least 30 militants were killed, but added later that tribesmen informed officials that as many as 50 insurgents had died in the military attack.

A militant rocket hit a transformer and power line, cutting electricity in Razmak, he said.

But he denied reports from three intelligence officials who said 10 soldiers had been killed in the fighting. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.

One of the intelligence officials told The Associated Press that another four to six soldiers were missing after the attack on the Nawaz Fort base. He said helicopter gunships had joined the battle, which began at 1 a.m. and was continuing late Thursday morning.

Fighting between Islamic militants and security forces has been raging across northwest Pakistan since the army assailed a radical mosque in the capital, Islamabad, in July. Most of the combat has taken place in the rugged mountains along the Afghan frontier, where Taliban and al-Qaida militants appear to be gaining strength.

Pakistan also has witnessed several suicide attacks in otherwise peaceful areas, including two blasts on Sept. 4 that killed 25 people and wounded more than 60 in Rawalpindi, where the army has its headquarters.

U.S. officials have welcomed signs that Musharraf, who is currently seeking a new five-year term, is taking a tougher line.

"There is no doubt whatsoever of Pakistan's commitment to restoring and establishing security in that part of the country and more than doing its share in the war against terror," Negroponte said Wednesday.

A statement issued by Musharraf's office Thursday after the visiting envoy met the president said the U.S. had committed $750 million for the development of Pakistan's tribal regions over five years.

The army says it has deployed 90,000 troops in the border region in an attempt to curtail militancy and stop guerrillas from crossing into Afghanistan to attack NATO forces.

But the military had scaled back its operations under disputed peace deals signed last year, and there is growing alarm that extremists have used the breathing space to exert control over ever-greater areas of North West Frontier Province.

Militants are currently holding hostage some 260 soldiers seized in South Waziristan on Aug. 30 and are waging a morality campaign reminiscent of the former ruling Taliban regime in Afghanistan.

Extremists are pressuring shopkeepers in the region not to sell music or movies and barbers not to trim beards or face punishment for encouraging behavior they consider un-Islamic.

In the latest incident, a bomb planted in a market near the city of Kohat destroyed six stores selling music CDs, two tailor shops and one barber shop before dawn on Thursday, local police officer Anwar Khan said. No one was reported hurt.

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Associated Press Writers Bashirullah Khan in Miran Shah and Ishtiaq Mahsud in Dera Ismail Khan contributed to this report.

Analysis: Huckabee and McCain face off after fending off Romney in US presidential race

John McCain, meet Mike Huckabee. You are now rivals.

Until now the two Republican presidential candidates have been convenient allies _ the two Davids who knocked down Mitt Romney, the financial Goliath. But there is nothing convenient about Michigan and South Carolina, states whose nomination races could make or break either candidate's hopes for being the next Republican presidential nominee.

So these two men who separately confronted Romney, one in Iowa and one in New Hampshire, are now in the same ring.

"I don't see us going out there and taking the gloves off," Huckabee said of the prospects of a tough encounter with McCain.

To be sure, McCain and Huckabee appeal to separate wings of the Republican Party. Iowa with its greater share of social conservatives and evangelicals was better suited to Huckabee. New Hampshire, with its independents and national security minded voters, preferred McCain.

Who wins depends on who else they can draw in with their distinct messages _ McCain's national security savvy and independent streak or the former Arkansas governor's religion-streaked economic populism.

The two tend to like each other _ Huckabee has called McCain a "genuine American hero." So far neither shows any inclination to go after the other with the same zeal with which Romney went after both of them.

But neither of them is reluctant to pull his punches if confronted. McCain did it directly, airing ads in New Hampshire quoting newspapers that called Romney a phony. And Huckabee prepared a negative ad against Romney in Iowa, chose not to air it, but showed it to the media anyway.

Huckabee campaign manager Chip Saltsman, speaking to reporters the night of the Iowa caucuses, conceded as much: "It's politics, and it may get a little rough."

The first inkling could come as soon as Thursday, when the Republican candidates gather in Myrtle Beach for a debate.

Flying in to South Carolina from his third place finish in New Hampshire, Huckabee on Wednesday hinted at the contrasts he might draw with McCain. His main argument: He is a governor with executive experience, McCain is a U.S. senator with armed services expertise.

"The idea that he's had longer experience, ask Joe Biden and Chris Dodd what it did for them," he said of two Democratic senators who bowed out of the presidential race. "There are not two more experienced people in terms of foreign policy and military background than Chris Dodd and Joe Biden. But they took one, two percent, something like that?"

Ed Rollins, a senior adviser, put it succinctly: "A governor makes decisions. A senator doesn't make decisions; a senator sits and listens and learns and casts votes."

McCain is looking to repeat his 2000 victory in Michigan, eager to court independent voters in the state. Romney is putting all his resources in Michigan and hoping that his role as native son and fond memories of his father, who was governor there, will boost him to victory. Huckabee could be a spoiler, tapping religious, social conservatives in the state's rural regions and among economically anxious workers closer to the manufacturing centers.

In South Carolina, Huckabee is leading in the polls and it there that the contest with McCain is likely to be head-on. Huckabee is already exploiting an issue that could be damaging to McCain _ immigration _ by running ads in the state promoting his tougher proposal for treating illegal immigrants.

Still, Romney remains a factor. Following his second place finish in New Hampshire, Romney pulled his ads from Florida and South Carolina, where he had invested heavily, to focus his finances on Michigan. A victory in Michigan for Romney would send him back to South Carolina with new life.

That would complicate things for Huckabee. Romney would be competing for some of his same voters, opening a path for McCain to win.

But Huckabee has quickly built his lead in the state, becoming a favorite with religious and working class voters.

His traveling bus bears an enormous likeness of him and a the logo: "Faith, family, freedom." And his speeches Wednesday were laden with religious and anti-abortion references that were not as prominent when he stumped in New Hampshire.

"If we were to say that the taking of an innocent life is not wrong, then nothing is wrong," he told a rally in Spartanburg, before visiting a church-assisted pregnancy center that attempts to persuade women not to have abortions.

It is common at Huckabee events to find parents with their home schooled children, many of them devout Christians.

"Mothers and fathers raise better kids than governments do," Huckabee says.

But Huckabee is aiming for a swath of voters beyond the religious and opponents of abortion. His government-off-our-backs, end-the-income-tax proclamations could resonate with young, working class people.

"South Carolina is just a state designed for a guy like Huckabee," said Clemson University political scientist David Woodard. "If he can pull a surprise in Michigan, and comes in with a full wind, he could level the field."

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EDITOR'S NOTE _ Jim Kuhnhenn has covered politics in Washington for 14 years. Associated Press Writer Llbby Quaid contributed to this article.

WVU concludes rough January: Loss at Rutgers made Mountaineers 2-7 in month

PISCATAWAY, N.J. - At first the "hip, hip, hooray" might seem outof place.

Maybe some of the Coke toasts on the plane ride back toPittsburghseem inappropriate. Party hats and noise makers, well, it does notseem right.

Yet West Virginia University's basketball team, despite Sundayafternoon's 87-61 thumping by host Rutgers, has reason to celebrate.January is over."It was rough," WVU forward John Oliver said. "We had a lot ofroad games. We'd get home, then go on the road again. Up and down.We lost a whole bunch of games.""It's been the toughest month yet," Mountaineer junior forwardMarcus Goree said. "A lot of games we lost by one, two points.""Sometimes it feels good and bad," WVU guard Lionel Armstead said."It feels bad that we didn't win as many as we should have. You haveto learn from those terrible losses."With a 26-point road pounding that at times seemed even worse, WVUf inished a 2-7 January. The schedule contained three home games -against probable NCAA participants Connecticut, Miami (Fla.) andVillanova - last week's neutral-site contest with Marshall and roadgames at Syracuse, Providence, Seton Hall, Georgetown and Rutgers.Of all the foes, only Georgetown does not have a winning record.If there was a tougher schedule than the one rebuilding WVU (9-12, 3-8 in Big East) attempted, it belonged to a rap group that decided totour Utah.Making matters worse in the month's finale was the fact WVU endedDecember with a 65-63 comeback win over Rutgers in Morgantown. Withfive days off since their previous game, the Scarlet Knights (14-6,6-4), in a rare position of NCAA Tournament contenders, basicallylaid in wait for the rematch. Greeting WVU was the fifth sellout of1998-99 at the 8,500-seat Louis Brown Athletic Center."I feel relieved," Rutgers freshman center Rashod Kent said. "Weknew we could beat this team as long as we ran our offense andplayeddefense."Perhaps thrown by the refreshing national anthem of guitar-strumming United States/former Rutgers soccer player Alexi Lalas,WVUfailed to score on its first eight possessions and never led.Rutgers jumped to leads of 8-0, 13-4, 30-12, 40-16 and 51-24 atintermission. The crowd of 8,503 developed blue-and-gold blood lust.Fueling the decibels was the, well, perfect game of senior forwardRob Hodgson. He made 11-of-11 from the field, including his six 3-point tries. He also sank his three free throws, added fiverebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. The only stain onthe statistical sheet of his career-high 31-point day was aturnover."We were leaving shooters open that we knew we couldn't," Oliversaid."We were supposed to guard him and we didn't," WVU Coach GaleCatlett said.Rutgers hit 10-of-19 3-pointers and shot 53 percent (28-of-53)from the field. Junior guard Earl Johnson added 10 points for theScarlet Knights, who have won four straight. Against early WVUpressure, Rutgers continually found Hodgson behind the defense fordrives or open 3-pointers."We changed our press attack," said Hodgson, who made just acombined 12-of-35 from the field in his previous five games. "Thatstarted me early."Hodgson's biggest shot came with 2:18 left when he defended hisspotless afternoon with a final 3-pointer."Everyone knows how hard Rob is on himself," Rutgers forward JeffGreer said. "I was coming on the fast breaks saying, 'Where's Rob?Where's Rob?' "WVU barely managed a whimper, a la earlier games with Connecticutand a December road bashing at Ohio University.Goree led the Mointaineers in both scoring (19) and rebounding(seven). Point guard Jarett Kearse, who earned three fouls in thefirst 9:48, finished with 14 points and center Chris Moss 10. WVUshot just 41 percent. Its last 50 percent-plus effort came in thefirst Rutgers game. Forward Elton Scott and the recently hotArmstead combined to score nine points on 4-of-13 shootingIn an effort to halt the Rutgers tsunami, Catlett used 10 playersin the first half. That had an opposite influence on WVU's offense,which committed 16 turnovers. Rutgers committed just four in thehalf against a defense that enveloped it in December's rally."Once you break the press a few times, they slow back off," Greersaid. "They didn't play as hard as they did in Morgantown.""I considered leaving at halftime," Catlett said. "It wasn't verypretty from where I sat."The best news for WVU was that February appears kinder. Four ofthe seven games, including Wednesday night's with Providence, arehome. Five of the seven contests are against those, like WVU, in thebottom half of the Big East standings. Only one game, the Feb. 9game with visiting St. John's, is against a ranked foe."Some guys are frustrated," Oliver said."We don't have," Armstead said, "any choice other than to have abetter month."Writer Mike Cherry can be reached at 348-5170.

Wakefield Struggles, D-Rays Edge Red Sox

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - Struggling knuckleballer Tim Wakefield gave up a two-run homer to Delmon Young, and the Boston Red Sox lost 5-4 to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Sunday.

The Red Sox, who clinched at least the wild-card spot Saturday, started play with a 2 1/2-game lead over second-place New York in the AL East.

Wakefield (16-12) entered 9-0 at Tropicana Field and 19-2 overall against the Devil Rays, but he gave up four runs and seven hits in five innings.

In his past four starts, the right-hander has allowed 21 runs over 17 2-3 innings. The four outings have come after he missed a start with a sore back.

Young put the Devil Rays up 2-0 with his homer in the second. The rookie right fielder, who had been 1-for-14 against Wakefield, has 13 homers and 93 RBIs this season.

Tampa Bay, last in the AL East with a 64-92 record, snapped a five-game skid. Al Reyes pitched a perfect ninth for his 25th save in 29 opportunities.

Red Sox left fielder Manny Ramirez missed his 24th consecutive game with a strained left oblique. Boston manager Terry Francona is not sure when Ramirez will return.

"I don't know," Francona said. "He said he had a better day yesterday, which is good. I'd rather hear him say that than say it's getting worst. He seems real upbeat, but he's not ready to play. Just keep plugging away."

Boston first baseman Kevin Youkilis sat out for the seventh straight game due to a bruised right wrist. He could return during a regular season-ending six-game homestand that starts Tuesday.

Jonny Gomes' fourth-inning RBI single and a run-scoring single by Jorge Velandia in the fifth extended the Devil Rays lead to 4-0.

Edwin Jackson (5-15) had a one-hitter through five, but failed to get out of the sixth when Boston scored three times to pull to 4-3. David Ortiz and Coco Crisp had RBI singles, and another run scored when J.D. Drew walked with the bases loaded.

Jon Switzer replaced Jackson with the bases loaded and one out, and induced a double-play grounder from Eric Hinske.

Jackson gave up three runs and five hits in 5 1-3 innings. He was 0-3 with a 9.15 ERA over his previous four starts.

Tampa Bay went up 5-3 in the sixth on Josh Wilson's sacrifice bunt. Alex Cora got Boston to 5-4 with a solo homer off Dan Wheeler in the eighth.

Notes:@ Tampa Bay All-Star LF Carl Crawford (strained left groin) missed his sixth consecutive game. He might also sit out a three-game series against the New York Yankees that begins Tuesday. ... Boston LF Jacoby Ellsbury singled in the third and has a hit in 19 of 20 games since being recalled from Triple-A Pawtucket on Sept. 1. ... Red Sox C Doug Mirabelli made his first start since straining his left hamstring on Sept. 6.

Is Shane on wane as a Bear? Matthews seems lost in QB rotation

PLATTEVILLE, Wis. Shane Matthews' job isn't easy these days-working his way into playing shape, honing his proficiency at runningthe Bears' offense and keeping up with trade rumors.

But he has help.

"My buddies are always on the Internet, kind of giving me updateson what's going on," Matthews said. "I had somebody call me yesterdayabout me going to Cleveland. They saw (ESPN's) John Clayton sayingsomething about that.

"But it's out of my control. There's nothing I can do about that."

That helpless feeling is one Matthews is getting used to. A yearago he was the Bears' starting quarterback, about to establishhimself in the NFL. He threw eight touchdown passes and threeinterceptions in leading the Bears to a 3-2 record before a hamstringinjury short-circuited his season.

Today he's the third-string quarterback, falling further behindstarter Cade McNown with each day. He knows he has a better chance ofplaying in Cleveland, Tampa or somewhere other than Chicago. He mightbe the only player in the league who hopes the No. 4 guy beats himout.

"It's very awkward," said Matthews, 30, a six-year veteran. "Idon't even know how to approach it. You want to go out and play wellevery time you can. But, realistically, if I'm here, there's a chanceI won't play a down."

Matthews, a Pascagoula, Miss., native, has an easy-going Southerndemeanor that masks an intense pride. "I've proven I can play in thisleague," he said. His chances of doing that this year are slim, andthat's not an easy thing for him to take.

"It's difficult," he said. "But I've been through so much in myfootball career, and I've been screwed every way possible. I know thebig picture: Cade's the guy and they chose Jim to be the backup, andif I'm the third guy, I can live with it. If not, maybe I can gosomewhere else and play."

Maybe. Maybe not. There have been rumors of trade offers forMatthews, offers that might seem more enticing with the developmentof No. 4 quarterback Mark Hartsell. "We're hearing rumbling, but it'sjust rumbling until I hear something concrete," said Steve Mandell,Matthews' new agent. "I wouldn't be surprised if some teams show someinterest."

If something's up, Bears vice president of player personnel MarkHatley isn't saying.

"We've got four quarterbacks, and we'll narrow it down to three,"Hatley said. "We've worked real hard to get our depth (atquarterback) to where it is, and we feel good about that position.

"I don't want to get into the trade possibilities. He's going tobe here. We plan on him being here and playing and helping us win."

Matthews is not asking for a trade, though in the offseason heasked the Bears to let him out of his contract, to no avail.

"I thought if they were going to go with (McNown and Miller) maybethey could let me move on with my career," he said. "They decided notto do that."

It was too good of a deal for the Bears. A right-of-first-refusalin Matthews' contract last year effectively chilled other teams'interest in him. He signed with the Bears for $500,000, with $1million in incentives based on playing time and performance.

"It's an unbelievable luxury," quarterbacks coach John Shoop said.

"We're extremely glad we've got him," Hatley said. "It would beinteresting to see if anybody else in the league has got (as good aNo. 3 quarterback) because I don't think they do. Shane's done a lotof good things. We can win with him."

Matthews has been the ultimate good soldier, working with theother quarterbacks on the nuances of the Bears' offense.

"Shane's been nothing but great to me," Hartsell said. "He's beenmore than helpful."

"He's been a big plus for Cade," Hatley said. "I'm sure if youtalked to Cade, he'd say the same thing."

All Matthews can do is continue to play well and hope for thebest. He knows three quarterbacks played extensively for the Bearslast year. There are no other options.

"It's not like I can play poorly so they can get me out of here,"Matthews said. "You can't do that because any time you step on thatfield, you're auditioning for the entire league.

"I could throw fits and cuss and scream and moan and groan abouteverything, but it's only going to make matters worse. I guess if Idid that, maybe they would run me out of here. But that's just not mypersonality. That's not how I was brought up."

Texas may eliminate steroid testing program

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — When Texas began testing tens of thousands of high school athletes for steroids, the goal was to stop teens from taking dangerous performance-enhancing drugs. The death of a 17-year-old baseball player in a Dallas suburb had drawn national attention to the hazard.

But that program could now be axed to save money. Tough economic times are prompting the state along with school districts across the country to pull back from steroid testing just a few years after a series of scandals in professional and amateur sports.

"When steroids was all over the media, everybody said 'We've got to have it,'" said Chris Franz of Sport Safe, an Ohio-based company that conducts recreational drug and steroid testing for hundreds of high schools and districts across the country.

In 2008, Texas became the third state to begin steroid testing, setting up a massive $6 million program. Every one of the state's 700,000-plus public school athletes — from freshmen female tennis players to senior offensive linemen in football — were eligible to be randomly selected, pulled from class and required to submit a urine sample.

But after the first 50,000 tests produced fewer than two dozen confirmed cases, critics derided the effort as a waste of money. This month, with the state facing a projected $15 billion budget shortfall, the House's first draft budget eliminated the program's money. A Senate draft still includes funding.

Even some one-time supporters of screening are wavering. "We accomplished our goal," said state Rep. Dan Flynn, "and that was to educate and create a deterrent."

New Jersey and Illinois also have statewide programs. Florida eliminated its small testing program in 2009. Many school districts also conducted testing although the exact number isn't known.

Programs were often funded with state and federal grants. Now, as the money starts running out, so does the desire to keep testing Depending on the complexity of the test, steroid testing can easily exceed $100 per student and when schools see very few getting caught, they decide to pull back.

"If schools had the budget to do it, they would," Franz said. "The biggest thing Texas would be missing is the deterrent. And that's too bad."

Supporters of steroid testing insist that the rarity of confirmed cases shows the program is working as a deterrent.

Eliminating the program now would only encourage steroid use, said Don Hooton, of Frisco, who started the Taylor Hooton Foundation after his 17-year-old son's suicide in 2003 was linked to steroid use. He has testified before Congress and the Legislature to advocate for testing.

"It's like a school district that has a serious gun violence problem and puts up metal detectors," Hooton said. "When gun violence goes down, they say 'Well, that's a waste of money, let's take the metal detectors away because we don't have a problem anymore.'"

Texas has been scaling down the program almost since it began. The original $6 million budget was slashed to $2 million in 2009.

Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, an early supporter, intends to fight to preserve the tests as "an important deterrent," said his spokesman, Mike Walz. When put up against proposed budget cuts for teachers and pre-kindergarten programs, health care for the poor and myriad other budget issues, said Flynn, "What's more important? We didn't catch a lot of kids, but we were hoping we wouldn't have to. I can't fight to get $1.8 million."

Jeff Horn, principal at Green Valley High School in Henderson, Nev., calls the funding excuse "a cop-out." Green Valley started Nevada's first public school drug testing program in 2008 and hasn't had a positive test for steroids yet, but intends to continue after its federal grant runs out this year. Horn said student fees will be used to pay for the tests. "It's not about athletics anymore," Horn said. "It's about saving lives."

Hooton said Texas could still have a smaller testing program that targets sports most likely to find steroid users, such as football, baseball and weightlifting. In 2007, lawmakers briefly considered a "ticket tax", a 25-cent fee on football and basketball game tickets, to pay for testing. Gov. Rick Perry and Republicans holding majorities in the House and Senate and have pledged not to raise taxes this session.

Hooton said Texas' action will have national consequences.

"There are eyes from all over the United States that are watching this program. It is the shining star, the most substantial effort and I'm very proud of it," Hooton said. "If Texas kills this program, it will become an excuse for other states to never stick their toe in the water and make a run in this thing."

O, brother, where art the accolades now?

Strapped into my Nexis coupe, I've been motoring through newspaperreviews of "The Ladykillers," the new Coen Brothers concoction, and"Cold Mountain," the Weinstein brothers hit that wasn't, looking forcomments on their soundtracks -- both produced by T Bone Burnett. Ihad a feeling they weren't getting as much attention as theydeserved, and I was right.

Yes, the phenomenal success of Burnett's soundtrack for the Coens'"O Brother, Where Art Thou," which had mainstream listeners flockingto the recordings of country relics like Ralph Stanley, isyesterday's news. But you don't have to be carrying a roots-musictorch to recognize what a lift "The Ladykillers" gets from itsinfusions of gospel and blues, and ditto "Cold Mountain" from its pre-bluegrass country and folk.

It can even be argued that the music in these films, both newlyrecorded and drawn from the past, is the best thing about them andthere should have been more of it. (There is plenty of great materialon their respective soundtrack albums that didn't make the finalcinematic cut but could have.)

The "Ladykillers" CD, which ranges from the antique blues of BlindWillie Johnson to the hip-hopped gospel of Nappy Roots, is not quiteas rewarding as the "Cold Mountain" album, which has two real aces inits hole: the White Stripes' Jack White making a winning switch fromgarage rock to earthy fare like "Wayfaring Stranger" and a group ofSacred Harp singers opening ears with its a cappella folk hymns,recorded in a small church in Alabama.

Still, the music in "The Ladykillers," as sparingly applied as itis, is reason enough to see the film, which transfers the classic1955 British comedy starring Alec Guinness to modern Mississippi.Hamming it up with wheezes of laughter, odd head jerks and faketeeth, Tom Hanks plays a pedantic dandy who hires a bunch of misfitsto clean out the vault of a casino. They tunnel into it from thebasement of a feisty old Bible-thumping black woman (Irma P. Hall),whom they each try to knock off after she discovers they're notreally a classical music ensemble in need of a quiet rehearsal space.

As with the weakly conceived "O Brother," which would haveevaporated into thin air without the eerie essence of its mountainmusic, Burnett provides a soulful counterbalance to the goony anticsfavored by the Coens. No matter how cheap the film's humor gets in"The Ladykillers" -- and it doesn't get cheaper than when miningirritable bowel syndrome for yuks -- the soundtrack pulls it backfrom the far side of miscalculation by providing the humane spark theCoens are too gag-happy to bring to their characters.

While there's no doubting the pleasure the filmmakers took incapturing a joyous slice of African-American life -- the rousinggospel finale, set in a church, likely sent them home as happy as itdoes theatergoers -- the film can't avoid the taint of exploitingthat culture. Burnett's roots credibility is the Coens' bestinsurance against charges of indulging in precious stereotypes, andworse. If the film loved the Hall character as much as we're supposedto think it does, would it have made her quite so dim?

"Cold Mountain," a lush, strenuously romantic adaptation ofCharles Frazier's Civil War bestseller, required counterbalancing ofa different order from its musical contributors. For beginners, theyscratched against the big-budget production's photogenic realism --or, in the case of Nicole Kidman's peachy keen complexion and super-whitened teeth, photogenic surrealism -- with their down-home grit.(The film would have you believe that a few years of hardship on theold farm is better than Botox for a fair-skinned beauty'scomplexion.)

White, Alison Krauss, the Sacred Harp singers (directed by thetalented Tim Eriksen, who dubbed the singing parts for BrendanGleeson's Stobrod) and the fiddle and banjo duo of Stuart Duncan andDirk Powell also invest the film with the intangible Americanqualities and insights that can't help eluding screenwriter-directorAnthony Minghella and leading man Jude Law, who are British, andKidman, who spent her formative years in Australia. The fact that thefilm was shot in Romania made it even more reliant on authenticAmerican sounds.

What's so distinctive about Burnett's approach to roots music (aterm he himself has no use for) is that as indebted to tradition ashe is, he actively avoids anything that smacks of high-minded"purity." His aim is to blend elements of the past and present into avital hybrid. He once said that in recording one of the timelesstunes in "O Brother," he treated it like it was rock 'n' roll, seeingit in the same sphere as a Traffic song. And, indeed, singer-songwriter Rodney Crowell remarked that "Man of Constant Sorrow," assung by Dan Tyminski, "ranks with 'My Sharona,' 'Whole Lotta Shakin'Goin' On' and 'She Loves You' in its immediacy."

Whoever said that lightning doesn't strike twice knew what theywere talking about. The success of the "O Brother" album has not beenduplicated by the "Cold Mountain" soundtrack, despite a quick flurryof stories about Sacred Harp music and efforts to sell and pre-sellthe film and music in the same way as "O Brother." And "TheLadykillers" CD likely won't do as well as the "Cold Mountain"soundtrack.

But not everything can be measured in numbers. As a direct resultof Burnett's film work (including his wide-ranging soundtrack for theera-spanning "Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood"), all manner oftraditional American music has a higher profile than it's had inyears. And he is hardly finished fighting this good fight. DMZ, theColumbia Records-associated label that he and the Coens formed in thewake of "O Brother," recently released an intriguing album ofcontemporized blues, spirituals and gospel by Ollabelle, a collectiveNew York ensemble featuring Amy Helm, daughter of the Band's LevonHelm.

More movie projects will undoubtedly follow, maybe one about realmusicians. Wouldn't that be a kick in the pants? The reviewers wouldhave no choice but to open their ears.

Report: Pippen asks for trade to Lakers

Scottie Pippen has asked to be traded to the Los Angeles Lakers, atelevision station reported Wednesday.

KRIV-TV, citing sources it did not identify other than to say theywere close to the Houston Rockets forward, said Pippen recently askedcoach Rudy Tomjanovich to be traded to the Lakers.

Jimmy Sexton, Pippen's agent, declined comment, telling KRIV hewould neither confirm nor deny the story. Tomjanovich did notaddress the issue either, citing club policy that prohibits teamofficials from commenting on trade speculation.

The Lakers also had nothing to say about any proposed deal thatwould reunite Pippen with former Bulls coach Phil Jackson, nowcoaching the Lakers. The Orlando Magic, undergoing a massiveoverhaul, traded center Ike Austin to the Washington Wizards forTerry Davis, Ben Wallace, Tim Legler and Jeff McInnis.

Austin is the fourth Magic starter from last season to be dealt.Pierce, Williams win

Mary Pierce, enjoying her highest ranking in a year but stillwithout a title in 1999, defeated Ai Sugiyama 6-3, 7-5 in the secondround of the Acura Classic in Manhattan Beach, Calif.

Pierce, ranked sixth in the world, won four titles last year.

In other matches, Martina Hingis narrowly avoided another early-round exit, holding off qualifier Lisa Raymond 6-1, 4-6, 6-3; fourth-seeded Aranxta Sanchez-Vicario defeated Ruxandra Dragomir of Romania6-3, 6-1; No. 6 Serena Williams beat Patty Schnyder of Switzerland 6-3, 6-1; and Julie Halard-Decugis of France got by Amy Frazier 7-6 (7-5), 7-5.

Williams needed just 47 minutes to finish off Schnyder afterstruggling to beat Elena Likhovtseva in three sets Tuesday night.Third-seeded Andre Agassi advanced to the round of 16 in the $2.45million ATP Championship in Mason, Ohio, by beating Arnaud DiPasquale of France 6-4, 6-1.

The American contingent, which already included top-ranked PeteSampras, also picked up three surprise winners when Michael Changbeat eighth-seeded Alex Corretja of Spain 6-3, 6-7 (5-7), 6-2; JustinGimelstob beat fellow American Todd Martin, the No. 9 seed, 6-4, 6-4;and Chris Woodruff beat 13th-seeded Thomas Enqvist of Sweden 6-1, 7-5.

In the night match, defending champion Patrick Rafter beat DanielVacek of the Czech Republic 7-6 (7-3), 6-3. Intidab takes Phenomenon

Intidab beat Artax by 1 1/2 lengths in winning the $150,000 APhenomenon Handicap for older horses at Saratoga.

With Robbie Davis in the saddle, Intidab went six furlongs in 1:09in besting a field of seven horses aged 3 and up.

Intidab returned $22.80, $14.40 and $4.50. Artax paid $10.20 and$3.50. Yes It's True was worth $2.10. Happyanunoit, a 13-1 longshot, took the lead midway through the stretch and held off 3-5favorite Tuzla to win the $134,750 Palomar Handicap at Del Mar.

Ridden by Brice Blanc and carrying 113 pounds, Happyanunoitcovered 1 1/16 miles on turf in a stakes-record 1:41 1/5 and paid$28.80, $5.60 and $2.10.

Tuzla returned $2.40 and $2.10. Isle De France paid $2.10.Badgers lose recruits

Two Wisconsin recruits were declared academically ineligible forthe 1999 season as practice began for freshmen players.

Isaac Booker, a 255-pound running back from Lake Butler, Fla., andStephon Watson, a defensive back from Aberdeen, Md., will attend UWthis year but cannot practice with the Badgers.

They will have three years of football eligibility remaining.Linebacker Chris Ramseur was kicked off the Tennessee football teamby coach Phillip Fulmer for violating team rules.