NATO ends victorious 7-month Libya campaign

NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen speaks to reporters in Tripoli, Libya, Monday, Oct. 31, 2011. NATO's top official is praising the Libyans for their "courage, determination and sacrifice" to oust dictator Moammar Gadhafi, and says they have transformed Libya and "helped change the region." Fogh Rasmussen is in Tripoli to mark the end of the alliance's 7-month campaign over Libya, which played a key role in ousting Gadhafi. The NATO mission ends at midnight Monday Libyan time (2200 GMT, 6 p.m. EDT). (AP Photo/Abdel Magid al-Fergany)

NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen speaks to reporters in Tripoli, Libya, Monday, Oct. 31, 2011. NATO's top official is praising the Libyans for their "courage, determination and sacrifice" to oust dictator Moammar Gadhafi, and says they have transformed Libya and "helped change the region." Fogh Rasmussen is in Tripoli to mark the end of the alliance's 7-month campaign over Libya, which played a key role in ousting Gadhafi. The NATO mission ends at midnight Monday Libyan time (2200 GMT, 6 p.m. EDT). (AP Photo/Abdel Magid al-Fergany)

NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen speaks to reporters in Tripoli, Libya, Monday, Oct. 31, 2011. NATO's top official is praising the Libyans for their "courage, determination and sacrifice" to oust dictator Moammar Gadhafi, and says they have transformed Libya and "helped change the region." Fogh Rasmussen is in Tripoli to mark the end of the alliance's 7-month campaign over Libya, which played a key role in ousting Gadhafi. The NATO mission ends at midnight Monday Libyan time (2200 GMT, 6 p.m. EDT). (AP Photo/Abdel Magid al-Fergany)

An unidentified wounded Libyan man, flashes victory sign, during his medical treatment in Chamran hospital in Tehran, Iran, Monday, Oct. 31, 2011. Hospital officials said 76 wounded Libyans arrived in the early morning of Thursday, Oct. 27, and a group of them are receiving treatment at Tehran's Chamran Hospital which is run by the Iranian Defense Ministry. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

TRIPOLI, Libya (AP) ? NATO's triumphant, 7-month air campaign against Libya ended Monday, setting the country on the path to a democratic transition less than two weeks after the capture and killing of ousted dictator Moammar Gadhafi.

The alliance turned down a Libyan request to extend the protective umbrella for a few more weeks, apparently eager to exit on a high note and wrap up a costly mission at a time of financial austerity.

The relatively quick victory in Libya represented a major boost for a Cold War alliance bogged down in a 10-year war in Afghanistan, a 12-year mission in Kosovo and the seemingly never-ending anti-piracy operation off the Somali coastline.

The operation's critics ? including Russia, China and the African Union ? have argued that NATO misused the limited U.N. resolution imposing a no-fly zone and authorizing the protection of civilians as a pretext to promote regime change.

But with alliance airstrikes helping open the way on the battlefield following a lengthy stalemate, revolutionary forces eventually captured Tripoli in late August and brought an end to the war with the death of Gadhafi on Oct. 20.

"Together, we succeeded. Libya is finally free," NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen told a joint news conference in Tripoli with Mustafa Abdul-Jalil, Libya's interim leader.

Addressing the Libyans, he said: "You acted to change your history and your destiny. We acted to protect you."

In the past seven months, NATO warplanes flew 26,000 sorties, including more than 9,600 strike missions, destroying more than 1,000 tanks, vehicles, and guns.

U.S. planes flew a quarter of those missions, mostly in support roles such as air refueling and surveillance of the battlefields, while the European allies and four partner nations conducted the vast majority of ground attacks.

As NATO pulled out, Libya's leadership, the 51-member National Transitional Council, was taking another step toward a democratic system, to be operational within two years. The council chose a new prime minister, U.S.-educated electrical engineer Abdurrahim el-Keib, who is to appoint a new government that will pave the way for general elections.

El-Keib, an NTC member from Tripoli with a doctorate from North Carolina State University, said he would appoint the government within two weeks.

The new government will oversee the drafting of a constitution. The NTC started out as an impromptu group of anti-Gadhafi activists, but evolved into a more carefully chosen interim government after the fall of the Gadhafi regime, said Jalal el-Gallal, an NTC spokesman.

Fogh Rasmussen, the NATO chief, suggested the possibility of a future partnership with a democratic Libya, but made clear that NATO is ending its role. Asked about reports of unsecured weapons sites across Libya, Fogh Rasmussen said that "it is now primarily the responsibility of the new authorities in Libya to make sure that weapons are properly secured."

Abdul-Jalil confirmed the presence of chemical weapons sites, and said foreign inspectors were arriving later this week to deal with the issue.

Libyan leaders had requested an extension of NATO protection for a few more weeks, but Libyan officials said that was turned down. NATO leaders have repeatedly emphasized that although overall the campaign went very well, the conflict placed a significant burden on some alliance capabilities.

"I think the critical resource that was stretched in the course of this was intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance," Adm. James Stavridis, NATO's top military commander, told The Associated Press in Brussels.

Some senior officers in NATO suggested the alliance needed to extract itself quickly from at least one of those engagements at a time when defense budgets in Europe and the United States are being slashed as part of public spending cuts and other austerity measures designed to deal with the economic crisis.

"Within the alliance ... we're concurrently doing Afghanistan, Libya for the past seven months, the Balkans, piracy (and) a counter terrorism operation in the Mediterranean," said Stavridis, who as the Supreme Allied Commander has ultimate responsibility for the wars and all other operations.

He noted that Libya represented the first completion of a NATO operation.

Asked whether NATO would possibly be providing training for the new Libyan army, Stavridis said that the focus of international assistance to Libya should be on a bilateral basis with Arab and Western nations.

"At the moment there's no discussion with in NATO about a follow-on role," he said. "We're not planning on anything nor have we been tasked with anything at this point."

The ouster of Gadhafi would not have been possible without NATO.

In the early days of the armed rebellion, anti-Gadhafi fighters rapidly seized territory, particularly in Libya's east, but quickly lost ground again, and by late March, Gadhafi's troops were advancing toward the rebellion's stronghold, the eastern city of Benghazi.

NATO interceded, armed with a U.N. Security Council mandate to protect Libyan civilians, and flew its first bombing sorties at the end of March. However, the alliance often appeared to be doing much more than shielding civilians.

It worked closely with revolutionary forces, its airstrikes of regime targets paving the way for rebel advances in those areas. It also widened the range of targets, going not just after tanks and rocket launchers, but also symbols of the Gadhafi regime, including his sprawling residential and government complex, Bab al-Aziziyah, in downtown Tripoli.

At one point, NATO bombed Libyan naval vessels after the Libyan navy tried to mine the harbor of the besieged rebel-held port of Misrata and tried to carry out attacks on shipping there.

With the end of NATO's Libya mission, the alliance has faced some calls to intervene in Syria's uprising.

But Fogh Rasmussen said NATO has no intention to get involved in Syria.

"I can completely rule that out," he said. "Having said that, I strongly condemn the crackdowns on the civilian population in Syria. What has happened in Libya sends a clear signal to autocratic regimes all over the world ? you cannot neglect the will of the people."

___

Associated Press writer Rami al-Shaheibi in Tripoli contributed report.

___

Follow Slobodan Lekic on Twitter at http://twitter.com/slekich

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2011-10-31-ML-Libya/id-2314823b17244250ba24b99d0d4b50e4

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Video: All Hands on Tech: Cypress CEO

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Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21134540/vp/45083615#45083615

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NATO: Man in Afghan army uniform kills 2 troops

Afghans play football around the palace of former Afghan King Darul Aman, which was destroyed during the civil war, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, Oct. 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)

Afghans play football around the palace of former Afghan King Darul Aman, which was destroyed during the civil war, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, Oct. 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)

Afghan youths play atop a destroyed bus in front of the palace of former Afghan King Darul Aman, which was destroyed during the civil war, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, Oct. 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)

An Afghan boy, center, laughs while playing with another boy outside the former Afghan King Darul Aman's palace which was destroyed during the civil war, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, Oct. 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) ? NATO says a man wearing an Afghan military uniform has turned his weapon on coalition and Afghan troops in the country's south, killing two members of the U.S.-led coalition.

The coalition says the shooter also was killed in the incident Saturday in southern Afghanistan.

The nationalities of those killed were not disclosed and the coalition did not provide any other details about the shooting.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) ? A suicide car bomber struck a NATO convoy on the outskirts of Kabul on Saturday, causing casualties among the NATO service members and Afghan civilians, the U.S.-led coalition said. Afghan officials said three civilians and one policeman were killed.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, which occurred near Darulaman Palace, the bombed-out seat of former Afghan kings on the southwest outskirts of the capital. It was the deadliest of two attacks in the day that targeted either the U.S.-led coalition or Afghan government offices in the country.

"Initial reports indicate that there has been a vehicle-borne IED attack today against a coalition vehicle in Kabul," NATO said in a statement, using military terminology for a car bomb. The alliance said "several" of its service members were among the casualties of the attack, but provided no other details.

The Afghan Ministry of Interior said three Afghan civilians and one Afghan police were killed. The Taliban claim came shortly after the attack in a text message to media outlets.

An Associated Press reporter on the scene said that NATO and Afghan forces had sealed off the area. Two NATO helicopters landed to airlift casualties. The back end of a NATO bus appeared to have been blown apart and was turned into a charred shell.

Earlier Saturday, a female suicide bomber blew herself up as she tried to attack a local government office in the capital of Kunar province, a hotbed of militancy in northeast Afghanistan along the Pakistan border.

Abdul Sabor Allayar, deputy provincial police chief, said the guards outside the government's intelligence office in Asad Abad became suspicious of the woman and started shooting, at which point she detonated her explosives.

There were no other casualties in that attack.

Afghan and U.S.-led coalition forces conducted operations earlier this month, killing more than 100 insurgents in an effort to curb violence in rugged areas of Kunar where the coalition and Afghan government have a light footprint.

Farther south along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, Afghan and coalition forces captured two leaders of the Haqqani network and two other suspected insurgents in Sarobi district of Paktika province, the coalition said.

Haqqani fighters, who are affiliated with the Taliban and al-Qaida, are heavily rooted in Paktika and neighboring Paktia and Khost provinces.

One of the captured leaders provided insurgent fighters with funding, weapons, supplies and hideouts, and the other coordinated attacks against Afghan forces, the coalition said.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2011-10-29-AS-Afghanistan/id-0fabcff245614108907d38744d95f56b

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Defeat Mark Henry on Raw and Punk gets WWE Championship Match at Survivor Series

Careful what you wish for, CM Punk. After asking for a WWE Title Match against Alberto Del Rio on Monday night?s Raw Supershow, it appears the anti-establishment Superstar may finally get what he wants ? but only if he can overcome The World?s Strongest Man.

The Executive Vice President of Talent Relations and Interim General Manager of Raw, John Laurinaitis, issued a statement arranging a match on Monday night between Punk and World Heavyweight Champion Mark Henry. Should Punk prevail, he will earn a WWE Title Match at Survivor Series against Alberto Del Rio. For Mr. Laurinaitis? full statement, please see below:

"After giving this CM Punk situation serious consideration, I've reached a decision. In my deliberations as Executive Vice President of Talent Relations and Interim General Manager of Raw, I concluded that although Punk is extremely talented, he has lost several matches recently. As a result, I've decided that he must prove he's worthy of a WWE Title opportunity. This Monday night, Punk must compete against World Heavyweight Champion Mark Henry. If Punk wins, he will face Alberto Del Rio for the WWE Championship at Survivor Series. I wish both men a good match."

Source: http://www.wwe.com/shows/raw/punk-henry

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Curiosity is critical to academic performance

ScienceDaily (Oct. 27, 2011) ? Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it's good for the student. That's the conclusion of a new study published in Perspectives in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science. The authors show that curiosity is a big part of academic performance. In fact, personality traits like curiosity seem to be as important as intelligence in determining how well students do in school.

Intelligence is important to academic performance, but it's not the whole story. Everyone knows a brilliant kid who failed school, or someone with mediocre smarts who made up for it with hard work. So psychological scientists have started looking at factors other than intelligence that make some students do better than others.

One of those is conscientiousness -- basically, the inclination to go to class and do your homework. People who score high on this personality trait tend to do well in school. "It's not a huge surprise if you think of it, that hard work would be a predictor of academic performance," says Sophie von Stumm of the University of Edinburgh in the UK. She co-wrote the new paper with Benedikt Hell of the University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland and Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic of Goldsmiths University of London.

von Stumm and her coauthors wondered if curiosity might be another important factor. "Curiosity is basically a hunger for exploration," von Stumm says. "If you're intellectually curious, you'll go home, you'll read the books. If you're perceptually curious, you might go traveling to foreign countries and try different foods." Both of these, she thought, could help you do better in school.

The researchers performed a meta-analysis, gathering the data from about 200 studies with a total of about 50,000 students. They found that curiosity did, indeed, influence academic performance. In fact, it had quite a large effect, about the same as conscientiousness. When put together, conscientiousness and curiosity had as big an effect on performance as intelligence.

von Stumm wasn't surprised that curiosity was so important. "I'm a strong believer in the importance of a hungry mind for achievement, so I was just glad to finally have a good piece of evidence," she says. "Teachers have a great opportunity to inspire curiosity in their students, to make them engaged and independent learners. That is very important."

Employers may also want to take note: a curious person who likes to read books, travel the world, and go to museums may also enjoy and engage in learning new tasks on the job. "It's easy to hire someone who has the done the job before and hence, knows how to work the role," von Stumm says. "But it's far more interesting to identify those people who have the greatest potential for development, i.e. the curious ones."

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Journal Reference:

1. S. von Stumm, B. Hell, T. Chamorro-Premuzic. The Hungry Mind: Intellectual Curiosity Is the Third Pillar of Academic Performance. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 2011; 6 (6): 574 DOI: 10.1177/1745691611421204

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/10/111027150211.htm

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Exclusive: A Baby Girl For Beyonc

Beyonc? has seen a lot of dreams come true in her life ? but this one tops them all. The singer has learned she?s expecting a girl, an insider tells In Touch exclusively.

?Beyonc? is thrilled she?s having a daughter,? confides a close friend of the singer?s, explaining that while Beyonc? and her husband, Jay-Z, would be happy to have a healthy child of either sex, she?d secretly been hoping for a girl. ?She and her mother are so close, and she?s wanted to have that relationship with her own child.?

And though she and Jay-Z, 41, are like a second set of parents to their nephew Daniel, Beyonc? is a girlie girl at heart and longs to share her passion for sparkly outfits with a Mini-Me. Indeed, the singer ? who adores the clothes her mom, Tina Knowles, designs for her ? has been so eager to play dress-up with her baby that she?s already been breaking the bank at stores ranging from Gucci and Louis Vuitton to Gap and OshKosh B?gosh. ?Her family?s afraid there won?t be anything left to buy for her baby shower in December!? the friend laughs.

For more details about Beyonc? and Jay-Z?s baby plans, including how the two will decorate the nursery, pick up this week's issue of In Touch.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/InTouchWeekly/~3/eEpViGKVsm0/exclusive_a_baby_girl_for_beyo.php

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How states fared on unemployment aid applications (AP)

The number of people seeking unemployment benefits dipped slightly last week, though not by enough to suggest that hiring is picking up.

Weekly applications for unemployment benefits declined 2,000 to a seasonally adjusted 402,000, the Labor Department said Thursday. That's the fourth drop in six weeks.

Here are the states with the largest increases and decreases. The state data is for the week ended Oct. 15, one week behind the national data.

States with the biggest drops:

California: Down 8,942, due to fewer layoffs in the service industries

New York: Down 7,273, due to fewer layoffs in transportation, services, and public administration

Texas: Down 3,489, no reason given

Pennsylvania: Down 3,258, no reason given

Georgia: Down 2,740, due to fewer layoffs in the trade, service, manufacturing and healthcare industries

Illinois: Down 2,525, no reason given

States with the biggest increases:

Wisconsin: Up 1,193, no reason given

South Carolina: Up 1,189, due to layoffs in manufacturing

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/economy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111027/ap_on_bi_ge/us_unemployment_benefits_glance

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The 787 takes flight, and lives up to its promise

Passengers of an All Nippon Airways Boeing 787 are welcomed by lion dance to celebrate the airplane's inaugural commercial flight from Japan, at Hong Kong International Airport on Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2011. The jet, nicknamed The Dreamliner by Boeing Corp., was flown by Japan's All Nippon Airways and was packed with aviation reporters and enthusiasts ? some of whom paid thousands of dollars for the privilege. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu)

Passengers of an All Nippon Airways Boeing 787 are welcomed by lion dance to celebrate the airplane's inaugural commercial flight from Japan, at Hong Kong International Airport on Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2011. The jet, nicknamed The Dreamliner by Boeing Corp., was flown by Japan's All Nippon Airways and was packed with aviation reporters and enthusiasts ? some of whom paid thousands of dollars for the privilege. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu)

All Nippon Airways Boeing 787 takes off for the airplane's inaugural commercial flight to Hong Kong at Narita International Airport in Narita, east of Tokyo, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2011. (AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye)

All Nippon Airways Boeing 787 takes off for the new airplane's inaugural commercial flight to Hong Kong at Narita International Airport in Narita, east of Tokyo, Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2011. (AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye)

ABOARD ALL NIPPON AIRWAYS FLIGHT 7871 (AP) ? It's the plane that is supposed to change the experience of flying.

No more stuffy noses, dry throats or severe fatigue. Larger windows to provide a stronger connection to the world outside. And mood lighting that can either ease jet lag or turn the plane into a nightclub at 40,000 feet.

And for the most part, Boeing's 787 succeeds. Flying it is more enjoyable. But it's still flying. Just because the plane is new doesn't mean the food will taste better or you won't be stuck in front of a kicking kid.

There has been plenty of hype surrounding the 787, a long-range plane marketed as The Dreamliner that carried its first passengers Wednesday on a four-hour flight from Tokyo to Hong Kong. It has been called "revolutionary" and "a game-changer."

And, indeed, a sleek design makes the plane stand out the moment you step on board. A higher ceiling ? at least the perception of one ? reduces claustrophobia. And natural light pours in, creating a welcoming feeling.

Maybe that 10-hour flight won't be so bad after all. Maybe.

The biggest benefit should come from features that fight jet lag. Those couldn't really be experienced by the 240 reporters and aviation enthusiasts who made the relatively short inaugural flight.

They include a doubling of the humidity, to 16 percent, and bringing the cabin's pressure closer to what it feels like on the ground. Planes are normally pressurized to 8,000 feet, higher than any point on the East Coast. Air inside the 787 is made to feel the equivalent of 6,000, slightly higher than Denver. The pressure and humidity changes should lead to fewer headaches and leave passengers with more energy after long trips.

The short flight also didn't provide for a test of the full impact of LED lights that slowly change color, another feature designed to fight fatigue. The impact was felt when the cabin lit up in a funky rainbow display, turning the plane into something out of "Saturday Night Fever." Add some loud music and it's not too hard to imagine a bachelor or bachelorette party at 40,000 feet.

The lighting concept is being rolled out on other aircraft, including new models of the narrow-body 737. European aircraft maker Airbus also offers something similar on new A320s.

Another feature a passenger should notice on the 787 is the windows. The plane's strong carbon-fiber frame, which allows for the humidity and pressure improvements, enables windows 30 percent larger than those on traditional aluminum-body planes.

Just don't expect window shades. Boeing replaced them with an electronic tinting feature. Click a button below the window and it slowly starts to darken. The window never becomes completely blacked out ? you can still see out ? but enough light is blocked to make sleeping possible. Not that anybody was trying to sleep during the boisterous inaugural flight. At the very least, you can picture little kids playing with the windows for hours.

Boeing also tackles the problem of crowded overhead bins. Getting bags into the bins, and opening and closing them when they are heavy and full, was easier than on any other plane.

The plane's manufacturer says they are the largest bins on any plane, with enough room for one carry-on bag per passenger. While the bins are much larger, the only way that seemed feasible was with identically rectangular bags stacked in optimal order.

The plane is also supposed to be much quieter, both for passengers inside and people on the ground. Engines with a wave pattern in the metal lower the roar, although Boeing won't say by how much.

And a lighter plane allows for more padding to protect passengers from noise and vibration. Wednesday's flight seemed quieter, but a handheld sound meter registered noise levels similar to Boeing's 777. (Maybe those soothing lights were playing tricks on the mind.)

The most-promising feature of the 787 will come on later models: a turbulence-dampening system. Accelerometers in the plane's nose will register a sudden drop and sent a signal through fiber-optic cables to the wings. What would have been a 9-foot drop is cut to 3. No other plane has this technology.

Airlines have already purchased almost 800 of the original 787 because of promised fuel savings and the ability to open up new routes. Japan's All Nippon Airways is the first to fly it. United Continental will be the first in the U.S. sometime late next year.

There are some features that Boeing can't control. Individual airlines determine how much legroom passengers get. They also pick between a roomy eight-across seating arrangement or a more cramped nine-across layout.

All Nippon has eight seats in each row and installed a double armrest for the middle seats, providing a few extra inches of personal space.

And in the end, isn't that all we want?

___

Scott Mayerowitz covers air travel for The Associated Press. He can be reached at http://twitter.com/GlobeTrotScott.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2011-10-26-Boeing%20787%20Review/id-d6dbfd8f06b04a94af7980118eeb489f

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Would Anybody Else Upload Their Consciousness to the Internet? [Just Me?]

I was watching Ghost in the Shell again today—for the umpteenth time—and got to thinking: If the technology existed in the future and I had the opportunity to do so, I'd totally abandon this meat sack that I exist in and upload my consciousness to the 'Net. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/G0kRaM62BFg/would-anybody-else-upload-their-consciousness-to-the-internet

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House votes to boost huge Arizona copper mine (AP)

WASHINGTON ? The House approved a federal land swap Wednesday that would clear the way for creation of North America's largest copper mine in Arizona, despite opposition from the Obama administration and complaints that the proposed mine operator had partnered with Iran and faces allegations of human rights violations.

The swap would trade 2,400 acres of federal forest land in southeastern Arizona for about 5,300 acres of environmentally sensitive land throughout the state controlled by a subsidiary of global mining giant Rio Tinto. The bill passed the Republican-controlled House on a 235-186 vote.

GOP lawmakers and business groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Mining Association, say the proposed mine, 70 miles east of Phoenix, would pump billions of dollars into the Arizona economy and help create nearly 4,000 mining-related jobs.

The Obama administration and many Democratic lawmakers opposed the land swap, saying an environmental review should be completed before the exchange is made.

Democrats also complained that the mining company will not have to pay royalties to the U.S. government for lucrative mineral rights that could be worth billions of dollars. And they said the proposed mine site contains sacred Native American artifacts and important cultural areas that would be displaced by the mine.

But their arguments were overridden by Republicans who said the mine would be a major job creator and would help reduce imports of copper used in a wide range of items, including cars, lamps and computers.

"There is no excuse for the United States to depend on foreign nations for our minerals supplies when we have ample reserves that could be developed here at home," said Rep. Doc Hastings, R-Wash., chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee.

Hastings and other Republicans dismissed Democratic complaints that the bill short-circuited necessary environmental reviews. The mine project cannot proceed without a battery of federal environmental reviews and consultation with Native American tribes, Hastings said.

Rep. Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., the bill's sponsor, said the land swap "does not pre-empt anything," such as the Antiquities Act, the National Environmental Policy Act or other laws.

But Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-Ariz., said the environmental review should be conducted now, when the U.S. government has the most leverage over the project. Once land that now is part of the Tonto National Forest is turned over to private control, the government's ability to require changes and enforce the law "is really limited at best," he said.

Under the plan, first proposed in 2005, a Rio Tinto subsidiary would gain access to more than 2,400 acres of federal forest land thought to contain vast resources of high-grade copper, potentially worth billions of dollars.

In exchange, about 5,300 acres of environmentally sensitive and recreational land throughout Arizona would be transferred to federal control, including 3,000 acres on the lower San Pedro River in southeastern Arizona and 940 acres to be added to the Appleton-Whittell Research Ranch southeast of Tucson. The land is controlled by Resolution Copper Co., a subsidiary of Rio Tinto, a London and Australia-based company that operates mines worldwide.

Rep. Edward Markey, D-Mass., said the House vote rewarded a company that partners with Iran to mine nuclear material, a reference to a uranium mine in Namibia owned by Rio Tinto in which Iran has a minority stake.

In a statement late Wednesday, Rio Tinto said, "The government of Iran, which acquired its 15 percent stake in Rossing (a Rio Tinto affiliate) in 1975, does not gain access to any nuclear technology through its investment, has no uranium product off-take rights and all dividend payments have been frozen. Rio Tinto has a strong and long-standing policy of compliance with all applicable economic sanctions and laws."

Rio Tinto also faces a lawsuit in the U.S. claiming that it aided the government of Papua New Guinea in genocide and war crimes in the late 1980s. A decade-long civil war began after islanders sabotaged a copper mine that islanders said was fouling the environment. Many people were killed in violent clashes with the Papua New Guinea military.

On Tuesday, the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals allowed claims of racial discrimination and crimes against humanity to go forward.

Bruce Richardson, a spokesman for Rio Tinto, said Wednesday that the company will "vigorously defend ourselves against these improper claims."

Separately, Grijalva, Markey and other Democrats complained that under current law, the mining company will not have to pay any royalties to the U.S. government for mineral rights that could be worth as much as $7 billion.

"A foreign-owned company doing business on U.S. public lands is basically getting a blank check on extraction (of copper) and a green light from Congress to go ahead and begin this without any return on the money," Grijalva said.

Jon Cherry, a vice president of Resolution Copper, said the mine could generate as much as $61 billion in economic benefit for Arizona "without the need for one dollar of federal stimulus."

The legislation hasn't yet come up in the Democratic-controlled Senate, where it's expected to encounter greater resistance.

___

Online:

Resolution Copper Mine: http://securearizonasfuture.com

___

Follow Matthew Daly's energy coverage at http://twitter.com/MatthewDalyWDC

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/uscongress/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111027/ap_on_go_co/us_arizona_copper_mine

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Windows XP turns 10, still thrives

By Suzanne Choney

Ten years ago today, Oct. 25, Microsoft released Windows XP, which became one of its most popular flavors of the Windows operating system?? largely because what came after it, Windows Vista, was so terrible.

And while many of us will be looking to migrate from Windows 7 to Windows 8 when it becomes available?? no date is set, but it could be late next summer?? there are still plenty of folks using XP. (And you probably know this, but Msnbc.com is a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC Universal.)

Live Poll

If you're a Windows user, which OS do you have?

• 164906

  Windows 7

  38%

• 164907

  Windows XP

  55%

• 164908

  Windows Vista

  6%

• 164909

  Windows Me

  0%

• 164910

  Windows 98

  1%

VoteTotal Votes: 5095

In StatCounter's chart, above, in the United States, XP still ranks as the top operating system, followed by Windows 7 and?? gulp?? Windows Vista. Vista was security-laden to the point of sluggishness and resulted in lots of user frustration. Microsoft remains so sensitive about the slowness issue from Vista's days that it has made a big point of saying that Windows 8 will boot super fast.

Microsoft is still providing "extended" (that means: you pay) tech support for XP patches and security updates through April 2014.

Globally, XP's reach is even larger than in the U.S.:

"Happy Tenth Birthday, Windows XP. Now Please Die," is the headline Tuesday from NetworkWorld, which says that the operating system's "longevity has allowed XP to take root and outlast its welcome. Consumers have been quicker to ditch XP for Windows 7 while businesses hem and haw and slowly test a decade's-worth of custom apps on Windows 7. The current economic situation isn't helping one iota as budgets are constrained from Wall St. to Main St."

And while budgets are a big factor, so is comfort level. Many who have stayed with XP just find it like a well-worn slipper, not ready to be thrown out and too comfy to give up. If you're a Windows user, which version do you have? Take our poll above.

Related stories:

Check out Technolog, Gadgetbox, Digital Life and In-Game on Facebook,?and on Twitter, follow Suzanne Choney.

Source: http://technolog.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/10/25/8482818-windows-xp-turns-10-still-thrives

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Arduino-powered glove brings real sound effects to your make believe gun show (video)

The days of air-punching invisible Daleks and making your own sound effects are over: a team from Carnegie Mellon's Human-Computer Interaction course have built a glove that does it all for you. The Augmented Hyper-Reality Glove can identify upper-cuts and karate chops using flex and tilt sensors and play the accompanying sound effect using an Arduino-powered Adafruit wave shield. We can see some potential downsides -- flirtatious finger-gun fusillades accompanied by the sound of cannon fire might just ruin your date. If you're undaunted by such social faux pas, see the toy your inner-child always wanted in action after the break.

Continue reading Arduino-powered glove brings real sound effects to your make believe gun show (video)

Arduino-powered glove brings real sound effects to your make believe gun show (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 24 Oct 2011 14:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/GJeZRnLQdfE/

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Nation of Islam leader slams Gadhafi's death (AP)

CHICAGO ? Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan said Tuesday that those rejoicing in the death of ousted Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi will come to sorrow and predicted that the U.S. was unprepared for the looming backlash from his overthrow.

Farrakhan told a Chicago radio station that Gadhafi's death was "an assassination" and laid it at the feet of the U.S., Great Britain and France. Gadhafi was killed last week, two months after being ousted as Libya's leader. His 42-year reign turned the oil-rich country into an international pariah and his own personal fiefdom.

Farrakhan, who considered Gadhafi a friend, said those nations' establishment of a no-fly zone to stop Gadhafi's planes and offers of humanitarian relief to the Libyan people were intended to help oust Gadhafi from power and gain access to Libya's oil wealth.

"They succeeded in being the authors of the successful assassination of a sitting president," Farrakhan told WVON-AM in Chicago, adding that it placed America's interests in danger. "No one can trust the United Nations because it is a pawn of the Western world. No nation will give up their weapons of mass destruction like Gadhafi did, because it is the only protection they have against the wicked witches of the West."

Farrakhan also noted that the people now claiming leadership of Libya are advocating Islamic Sharia law, something that he contends the U.S. has opposed.

Farrakhan said he became acquainted with Gadhafi in the 1970s and 1980s, and noted that Gadhafi loaned his organization $5 million over the years. Farrakhan said Gadhafi had also lent Elijah Muhammad, his predecessor as head of the Nation of Islam, $3 million to convert a Greek Orthodox Church in Chicago into the Mosque Maryam.

"It wasn't the money, but the principles that made me his brother," Farrakhan said.

Farrakhan said Libyan oil revenue was used to build schools and universities that increased literacy, and he credited Gadhafi with establishing a health care system that he said was the best in the Third World.

Gadhafi, 69, was buried Tuesday along with his son, Muatassim, and former Defense Minister Abu Bakr Younis after the military council in the city of Misrata ordered a reluctant Muslim cleric to say the required prayers. The National Transitional Council is under international pressure to investigate the circumstances of Gadhafi's death.

Farrakhan said America "doesn't know what it's gotten itself" into with the Gadhafi overthrow. He said he didn't believe Gadhafi when he said al-Qaida was involved in efforts to oust him, but now Farrakhan believes that was true.

The Chicago-based Nation of Islam has espoused black nationalism and self-reliance since it was founded in the 1930s, though in recent years has made efforts to recruit other ethnic groups.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/africa/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111026/ap_on_re_us/us_libya_farrakhan

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Report says that Romney?s state health plan supports illegal immigrants (The Ticket)

Romney (Elaine Thompson/AP)

A new story from the Los Angeles Times reveals one major way Mitt Romney's past record on illegal immigration contradicts his current rhetoric: His Massachusetts health care plan aids illegal immigrants.

Romney signed the state's health care overhaul into law when he was governor, in 2006. The law includes a Health Safety Net program, which provides medical care for undocumented immigrants and other uninsured residents of Massachusetts.

"Uninsured, poor immigrants can walk into a health clinic or hospital in the state and get publicly subsidized care at virtually no cost to them, regardless of their immigration status," writes LA Times reporter Noam N. Levey. Representatives of the Romney campaign told the newspaper that Romney never intended for the Health Safety Net to support undocumented immigrants. But officials involved in the legislation disagreed with that characterization, saying the language does not bar undocumented immigrants from receiving care.

At last week's debate in Nevada, Texas Gov. Rick Perry dredged up a years-old controversy over illegal immigrants who worked for a lawn care service Romney used at his Belmont, Mass. home. Perry once again branded Romney as a supporter of amnesty for illegal immigrants.

And in recent days, Romney has attempted to turn that around on Perry, accusing the Texas governor of supporting education aid for "anchor babies," children of undocumented immigrants.

More popular Yahoo! News stories:

? Herman Cain says abortion should be outlawed

? Did President Obama want American military troops to remain in Iraq?

? Survivors of the Ohio exotic animal outbreak held at Columbus zoo

Want more of our best political stories? Visit The Ticket or connect with us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/gop/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/yblog_theticket/20111024/el_yblog_theticket/la-times-romneys-state-health-plan-supports-illegal-immigrants

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Mexico's Drug War: Confessions of a Narco-Killer (Time.com)

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

A number of gaming stimulation study sites review the consumer ...

Further gaming stimulation study information can be obtained at www.fedstats.gov, and email can be addressed to Lafata Settler@www.tamu.edu. Overall, gaming stimulation study supporters were definitely pleased, and the markets reflected this up tick in attitude: the NYSE showed strong gains, and stocks in the gaming stimulation study portfolio were up 2% today. With unlimited gaming stimulation study revenues possible, there may be no end to this strong growth in site. Officials from OPOSDS concurred, stating that: ?We find this paper about gaming stimulation study from Lafata Settler to be a strong testament to our industry?s growth and potential. It clearly outshines the detractors and any negative points?. Although Lafata Settler disagreed with the results from www.adobe.com and others, the general feeling was that this work was solid and sound, and worth examining further. ?Wow?, stated Winger Mcalphin, ?I never thought that gaming stimulation study would come this far?I knew that investments from private individuals would surely come, but from the major investment houses? No way!?. ?Speaking from a personal viewpoint, I believe that the more we can get out of this time period, the better?, concluded Tomory Tannery of the gaming stimulation study company BBFS. ?We can all look forward and predict financial success for all involved, but that comes tempered with a bit of risk right now?. Foreign interests have also been piqued by these developments, and many private gaming stimulation study investors from Europe have already contacted Lashley Allday about working together. ?Look, let?s be honest here,? stated Volz Duffee, ?I don?t want to ruin the parade, but somme humility and financial restraint in a sector dominated by gaming stimulation study firms would go a long way.? ?Greenham Griffeth really put well when saying ?It ain?t over with gaming stimulation study until it?s over??, quoted Krough Lobendahn, ?And I?m with them all the way until it?s time to move on?. The ground breaking work by Becraft Santeramo was also cited as a major force in bringing this gaming stimulation study industry to the forefront. The cornerstone work, also know as the gaming stimulation study bible, made way for other proprietors in the industry. These people, in turn, made way for more institutional gaming stimulation study investment firms that pumped millions of dollars into the sector. Otukolo Fransen of www.mapquest.com agreed, ?I am a big fan of this gaming stimulation study paper - it lays out the ground work for exceptional progress and investment in this sector. Personally, I?m going to invest my own funds in project development?.

Source: http://www.cocoon-health.com/?p=118

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How to Shop at Costco and Sam's Club Without a Membership [Evil Week]

Buying toilet paper a pallet at a time from Costco or Sam's Club can save you money in the long run, but what if you only shop there once every few months? You still want the savings, so what do you do? Turns out you can still take advantage of bulk pricing without paying membership fees.

First, Sam Club actually offers a free one-day pass that you can print out and bring in whenever you want. Sounds great! Unfortunately by using this pass, you're going to be charged an extra 10% on everything you buy, thereby negating a lot of the savings you'd get buying in bulk. Though, a lot doesn't mean all, so you still might come out ahead, depending on what you buy. One-time crazy sales and loss leaders (items advertised cheap in order to get you into their stores) come to mind as a good use of this one-day pass.

Costco, on the other hand, doesn't require you to pay an extra 10% (or their standard 5% non-member surcharge) as long as you have a Costco Cash card, which is just a gift card. If you know someone who has a Costco membership, Consumerist says you can ask them to buy a bunch of $10 pre-paid Costco Cash cards for you. All you have to do is show the card at the door to gain entry, then use it at the register when you check out, paying anything over $10 with cash or a debit card. Don't use your other $10 Costco Cash cards in the same purchase, since you're saving them for subsequent trips.

You can even have your Costco membership-having friends order these cash cards online, though the minimum purchase there is $25 instead of $10.

Of course you can still go into Costco without a membership, but you'll have to pay that extra 5% surcharge. It's not bad, and depending on what you buy, can still save you money.

Original photo by Flickr user /*dave*/

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/67_pa_TUWFI/how-to-shop-at-costco-and-sams-club-without-a-membership

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Althouse: 142 legal secretaries surveyed and not one preferred ...

Why? Lawprof Felice Batlan elicited these comments:

? ?Females are harder on their female assistants, more detail oriented, and they have to try harder to prove themselves, so they put that on you. And they are passive aggressive where a guy will just tell you the task and not get emotionally involved and make it personal.?

? ?I just feel that men are a little more flexible and less emotional than women. This could be because the female partners feel more pressure to perform.?

? ?Female attorneys have a tendency to downgrade a legal secretary.?

? ?I am a female legal secretary, but I avoid working for women because [they are] such a pain in the ass! They are too emotional and demeaning.?

? ?Female attorneys are either mean because they're trying to be like their male counterparts or too nice/too emotional because they can't handle the stress. Either way, their attitude/lack of maturity somehow involves you being a punching bag.?

? Women lawyers have ?an air about them.?

The most obvious theme there is: emotion. It's the old: Women are more emotional. A secondary theme is: Women display the effects of the discrimination they've experienced. It's a complex mix, apparently.

Obviously, the secretaries' perspectives are subjective, and they themselves are women (95% of those surveyed were) so whatever is true of women ? they're emotional/they're victims of discrimination ? would, presumably, also be true of them.

Source: http://althouse.blogspot.com/2011/10/142-legal-secretaries-surveyed-and-not.html

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Hulu Plus coming to the Nintendo 3DS in November

Hulu Plus and 3D video capture will hit the 3DS by the end of November, Nintendo said this week.

Beginning in November, Nintendo 3DS users will be able to stream a range of Hulu Plus content, Nintendo announced today.

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Caveats apply: You'll have to download a firmware update, and you'll have to sign up for Hulu Plus, which will set you back nine bucks a month. In a press release, Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime touted the new features as evidence of the Nintendo 3DS's ability to "evolve."

On a related note, that same firmware update will allow users to record up to 10 minutes of 3D video, and create 3D stop-motion animation videos. This should make all those videos of your cat all that more exciting. (We kid!)

The Nintendo 3DS debuted in the US in late March, to generally favorable reviews. "I?m pretty comfortable saying that the Nintendo 3DS is the best gaming platform the company has ever created: The user experience is quite polished in a variety of ways, and its forward-thinking core feature really does make gaming better," one critic wrote. And Nintendo did indeed post incredibly strong first-day sales.

By June, however Nintendo had managed to unload only 710,000 3DS units ? far short of expectations. In late July, in an effort to gin up excitement in the device, Nintendo dropped the price on its 3DS from $249 to $169. It was, one pundit quipped, the "fastest post-launch price drop (by one-third) ever."

But the price drop may have worked: Last month, Nintendo said it had sold 185,000 units in the 19 days immediately following the drop. Not too shabby.

For more tech news, sign up for the weekly BizTech newsletter, which ships every Wednesday.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/aAyQc7ltC00/Hulu-Plus-coming-to-the-Nintendo-3DS-in-November

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Palmer's Raiders debut an 'awful feeling'

Kansas City notches six interceptions against Palmer, Boller in 28-0 win

updated 8:50 p.m. ET Oct. 23, 2011

OAKLAND, Calif. - Kyle Boller dropped back on Oakland's first series and threw a pass to the left sideline that Kendrick Lewis intercepted and returned for a touchdown. Carson Palmer did the same to the right side to Brandon Carr in the fourth quarter.

After all the talk this week about who would start at quarterback for the Oakland Raiders, it didn't much matter. Boller and Palmer were equally bad.

Boller and Palmer each threw three interceptions and the Kansas City Chiefs took advantage of the rusty quarterback play to win their third straight game, beating Oakland 28-0 Sunday in their most lopsided road win ever against the Raiders.

"It was just an awful feeling walking off the field to be beat like that in the fashion that we were beat," said Palmer, who was a retired player at home less than a week ago. "We need to regroup."

Boller became the first Raiders quarterback in 13 years to throw three interceptions in the first half, including Lewis' 59-yard score on the first drive of the game for Oakland (4-3). Palmer relieved in the second half and threw three more interceptions, including one that Flowers returned 58 yards to give the Chiefs a 28-0 lead early in the fourth quarter.

Cornerback Javier Arenas and Le'Ron McClain each added touchdown runs for the Chiefs (3-3) on a day the Kansas City offense didn't have to do much at all.

After being outscored 89-10 in lopsided losses to Buffalo and Detroit to open the season, the defending AFC West champion Chiefs have won three straight to get back into contention in the division race. While the wins came against cellar dwellers Minnesota and Indianapolis and a banged-up Raiders team missing its leading passer, scorer and rusher for most of the game, the Chiefs aren't apologizing.

"We don't have too many pretty games but as long as we come away with the victory that's all that matters," said cornerback Brandon Carr, who had one interception. "We're definitely making progress and trying to keep this thing going.

The Raiders promising season was jolted last week when starting quarterback Jason Campbell was knocked out with a broken collarbone. Coach Hue Jackson moved quickly to get a replacement by trading for Palmer on Tuesday.

Palmer had been working out on his own in Southern California. Because of his rust and unfamiliarity with his teammates and the playbook, Palmer did not start in his debut.

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It didn't end up mattering because neither quarterback was able to do much besides throwing interceptions.

Boller was 7 for 14 for 61 yards and became the first Raiders quarterback to throw three interceptions in the first half since Donald Hollas in 1998 against Miami. Palmer went 8 for 21 for 116 yards with the three interceptions.

Palmer now has the bye week to get up to speed before making his first start Nov. 6 at home against Denver.

"We're not blinking," Jackson said. "This football team is not going to blink. We have to play better. We have to play better offensively. I take full responsibility."

This marked the first time the Raiders had thrown six interceptions in a game since that 1998 game against the Dolphins and the Chiefs had their first six-interception game since 1984 against Seattle.

"We knew that they had a quarterback controversy," Lewis said. "We studied film and studied their routes and that they were going to give him a limited playbook. When we had the opportunity to make big plays and capitalize, that's what we did. And we did a good job with it."

Jackson was coy all week about whether Boller or Palmer would start at quarterback in Oakland's first game since Jason Campbell broke his collarbone. With star running back Darren McFadden leaving in the first quarter with an injured right foot, it didn't much matter.

Oakland moved into Kansas City territory on its first drive and tried to run a trick play on third-and-1 that backfired. Third quarterback Terrelle Pryor lined up at receiver and went in motion to behind the center and took a quick snap for a keeper. The Raiders were called for a false start because Pryor was not set for a second.

On the next play, Boller threw an out pass to Jacoby Ford that Lewis stepped in front off and returned 59 yards for the touchdown to give the Chiefs a 7-0 lead.

The boos for Boller started but Palmer remained on the sideline with a baseball hat. Boller threw his second interception on a deep pass to Denarius Moore that Flowers caught. The Chiefs then drove 61 yards for a score Le'Ron McClain's 1-yard run.

Boller finally got the Raiders moving with some good runs by Michael Bush before Derrick Johnson stuffed him on fourth down at the 1 when Jackson called for a direct snap to the running back.

Boller was intercepted again late in the half.

"I'm just extremely frustrated," Boller said. "I had an opportunity to go there. It just didn't go as planned. Definitely not my best outing. I feel bad for my teammates. I feel like I let my teammates down. There's not much to say. The play speaks for itself."

? 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Saints put up 62 vs. hapless Colts ? |? ??Highlights

Drew Brees completed 31 of 35 passes for 325 yards and five touchdowns, and the New Orleans Saints set a franchise record for points and victory margin in a 62-7 demolition of the hapless Indianapolis Colts on Sunday night.

Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/45009237/ns/sports-nfl/

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