Open webOS finds its way onto Nexus 7

Since going open source, HP's webOS platform has been ported to a handful of Android devices, including the Galaxy Nexus and the Nook Color. The most recent addition to this niche club is the ASUS-made Nexus 7. A dedicated gesture area, working keyboard, brightness adjuster, and Wi-Fi connectivity are all up and running.

Palm expatriates may by happy to see their old friend webOS again, especially if they have a a spare Nexus 7 kicking around to get the build running themselves once it's made publicly available, but as you can see in the video, things are still very much in an alpha state.

It's hard to say exactly where aspects of Open webOS will proliferate through the mobile ecosystem over the long run, but looking at experiments like this, it's hard not to think that Android might be one of those places. Any old webOS users here? Who would be willing to try to bring it to their Nexus 7? 

via webOS Central

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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/VhEicL9fXxI/story01.htm

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China Launches its Own GPS

China has opened its own global positioning system to the public. Called BeiDou, the technology promises about the same accuracy as GPS - about 10 meters - but covers only a small section of the world.

There are currently 33 BeiDou satellites in orbit, but only six are active. The system will need 24 active satellites for a global coverage. The Chinese government said that it plans to have 5 geostationary orbit satellites and 30 non-geostationary orbit satellites operational by 2020, including performance enhancing devices.

According to Chinese officials, BeiDou has been developed to "maintain independence and keep the initiative in [China's] hands, keep open, compatible, stable and reliable on technology, offer global service, thereby accelerating the foundation of navigation satellite industrial chain, consummating? the sustaining extending and guaranteeing system, expanding the range of application in the country's economic and social sector." Like GPS, BeiDou has been used by the military prior to its opening to the public.

China said that BeiDou currently provide positioning services to "most parts" of the Asia-Pacific region, "including continuous passive positioning, navigation and timing services."

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Huge Fire Destroys Warehouse, Disrupts Pink Line Service

DNAinfo.com Chicago:

CHICAGO ? Part of the Pink Line was shut down Saturday following a four-alarm fire at a Pilsen warehouse that created plumes of smoke that could be seen for miles.

Service resumed late Saturday night.

Firefighters requested the "L" to be shut down after flames and smoke from a fire at a three-story warehouse on the 2400 block of West 21st Street neared the tracks Saturday afternoon. The train is shut down from Polk and Central Park. Trains are operating only between 54th/Cermak and Central Park and 18th Street and the Loop. Shuttle buses are available for passengers traveling between 54th/Cermak and Polk, the CTA said.

Read the whole story at DNAinfo.com Chicago

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/30/huge-fire-destroys-wareho_n_2385122.html

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University Archives To Preserve - Youtube

Videos : A??B??C??D??E??F??G??H??I??J??K??L??M??N??O??P??Q??R??S??T??U??V??W??X??Y??Z??0

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As Biodiversity Declines, Tropical Diseases Thrive

Mosquitoes like this one can carry the virus that causes dengue fever.

James Gathany/CDC Public Health Image Library

Global health advocates often argue that the tropical diseases that plague many countries, such as malaria and dengue, can be conquered simply with more money for health care ? namely medicines and vaccines.

But a new paper is a reminder that ecology also has a pretty big say in whether pathogens thrive or die off. Using a statistical model, researchers predicted that countries that lose biodiversity will have a heavier burden of vector-borne and parasitic diseases. Their results appear this week in PLoS Biology.

"The general logic is that the more organisms you have out there, the more things there are that can interrupt the life cycle of disease, and the less concentration you'll have of any vector," Matthew Bonds, a researcher at Harvard Medical School and the lead author of the paper, tells Shots.

But plants, mammals and birds are disappearing fast ? one-third of the world's species are now threatened with extinction, according to the United Nations. And when the creatures that prey on mice, mosquitoes or other vectors of disease go, parasites and other disease-causing agents discover it's a lot easier to survive.

Scientists have already shown that's one reason for the explosion of Lyme disease in the Northeast United States. A 2002 paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that if you have a rich community of tick hosts, like squirrels, mice and other small mammals, the disease is diluted among them. But if the habitat is degraded, and ticks carrying Lyme have only white-footed mice as hosts, the disease risk to humans can rise dramatically.

West Nile encephalitis, a mosquito-borne disease, has also ripped through communities with the help of surging bird populations, according to a study in Nature.

Because of studies like these, Bonds wanted to see how strong the causal relationship was between biodiversity and 12 common vector-borne and parasitic diseases on a global scale. So he chose statistical methods from a new field that blends economics and ecology called "macroecology" to figure out how biodiversity loss affected disease burden, controlling for several different variables.

Ultimately, he found that if a country with a relatively high biodiversity (such as Indonesia) were to lose 15 percent of it, the burden of disease would be expected to increase by about 30 percent. His models also showed how diseases have a significant impact on economic development and explain differences in income between tropical and temperate countries.

"I think what this shows is that the burden of disease is really important, and it's not just driven by health care," he says. "These diseases spend so much of their life-cycles outside of humans, so they're part of the physical environment."

Nevertheless, human disease is still generally viewed as a medical or public health problem ? not an ecological problem. Policymakers only just beginning to talk about conservation as they plan for public health.

Source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/12/29/168210441/as-biodiversity-declines-tropical-diseases-thrive?ft=1&f=1007

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Video: Boehner faces tough political future following fiscal cliff fight

Best bets: America storms 'Downton Abbey'

This season, America meets England, as Shirley MacLaine muscles her way into the mansion, playing Cora's mother. Also this week: The chilling and engrossing "Zero Dark Thirty" opens, and the fascinating "Looper" hits home video.

Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/hardball/50315452/

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CCOTY 1968 Nomination: NSU Ro80?The Tragic Automotive ...

In the Pantheon of automotive gods and godesses, the Ro80 occupies a long-guaranteed spot. Simply put, it is one of the boldest, most influential and revolutionary cars ever?despite being a dismal failure. Its tragic story comes straight from the Greek legends; perhaps it should have been called the Icarus.

NSU was a small maker of little cars and motorcycles. Both their 600cc Prinz and slightly larger 1000/1200 were notable for their Corvair-like looks, as well as for having an air-cooled rear engine tucked in close to the rear wheels. But as consumer income grew throughout the ?60s, the German (and European) market quickly expanded into larger classes, and NSU made a bold double bet.

Their decision to expand up-market with a new four-door sedan was certainly ambitious, and got even more so: What was initially intended as a Ford Taunus competitor was later scaled up to directly compete against the smaller Mercedes models and BMW?s Neue Klasse. Ambitious indeed?but that was the relatively easy part.

Having signed a development contract with Felix Wankel, NSU co-developed what became the modern rotary engine (Wankel?s original design, which featured a rotating engine case, was scrapped). Their new engine debuted in the limited-production NSU Spider (seen above in an interesting contemporary street shot).

Only 2,375 of the single-rotor, 50 hp cars were built, more or less as rolling test labs. It wasn?t long before the engine exhibited problems, mostly with the tricky apex seals?something that should have given NSU pause about powering the Ro80 with a larger, two-rotor version placed ahead of the front (driving) wheels.

The Ro80?s 995cc, twin-rotor engine was rated at 113 hp (115 PS). Because of the rotary?s tendency to run rough on overrun with a manual transmission, NSU turned to a Saxomat semi-automatic transmission, built by Fichtel and Sachs (and also offered by Porsche as the Sportomatic). It combined an shift-lever actuated automatic clutch with a torque convertor. Although there was no clutch pedal, one shifted through the three gears manually, much like the automatic stick shift found in some contemporary VW Beetles.

Inboard front disc brakes rounded out the very ambitious drive train, which was designed to shine on the German autobahns that were mostly uncrowded in the early- and mid-sixties. Unfortunately, the drive train was less ideally suited to dense traffic and city driving.

You already know where this is going: The Ro80?s engine was woefully underdeveloped in terms of durability. It became a nightmare of warranty costs and earned such a bad reputation that NSU was eventually forced to accept a takeover by Audi. That said, let?s focus instead on one of its indisputably superb qualities: The very enduring influence of its superb body design.

The Ro80 body design was an in-house job executed by Claus Luthe. It is utterly brilliant, even if some of its proportions seem a wee bit eccentric from certain angles. But that just adds to its allure, at least in the eyes of its admirers.

Needless to say, you?re looking at the mother of all Audis here?and the Taurus and, to some extent, just about every modern sedan. The drooping front nose, the overall wedge shape ending in a tall tail, the gracefully arching roof. The R080?s vast and enduring influence is unmistakable. And its aerodynamic Cd of 0.355 was excellent for the times.

The Ro80 was the significant link between that other goddess, the 1955 Citro?n DS, and just about everything that followed. The ?utterly uncompromising shape of the DS was hardly conducive to cribbing; it was certainly revered, but mostly at a distance. In contrast, the R080?s design was seen as a more pragmatic way forward, as it incorporated the key advantages of the Citro?n?s long-wheelbase and aerodynamic design in a more palatable and practical solution.

Only 37,398 Ro80s were built over its decade-long lifespan. NSU tried valiantly to address the severe issues involving engine life (some engines showed apex-seal wear after as little as 15,000 miles and were worn out by 30,000).?Still, it was a losing battle. Although it would later be fought with relatively greater success by Mazda, similar issues plagued their rotaries as well.

Many frustrated?owners refitted their Ro80s with the little Ford V4,?which was the only engine that fit. It was an ironic choice: The rotary?s biggest asset was turbine-smooth running, and the Ford V4 was one of the roughest engines ever built. Of course, Saab took the same road with their two-stroke 96, but did so officially.

A modest number of Ro80s were sold in the U.S. I?ve never seen one, nor do I expect to, so the prospect of an in-depth?write up?here is not terribly likely. But ateupwithmotor just recently published his article on the Ro80, and it is (as always) very comprehensive?and it?s right on time for the Ro80?s CCOTY nomination, as its historical value is more appreciated than ever (during the late seventies, one could hardly give away an Ro80). The Ro80 was COTY in Europe in 1968, beating out the Fiat 125 (second) and Jensen FF (AWD).

Source: http://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/ccoty-1968-nomination-nsu-ro80-the-tragic-automotive-goddess/

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Over the fiscal cliff: Soft or hard landing?

House Minority Whip Rep. Steny Hoyer of Md., pauses during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012, where he urged House Republicans to end the pro forma session and call the House back into legislative session to negotiate a solution to the fiscal cliff. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)

House Minority Whip Rep. Steny Hoyer of Md., pauses during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012, where he urged House Republicans to end the pro forma session and call the House back into legislative session to negotiate a solution to the fiscal cliff. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)

President Barack Obama walks past a Marine honor guard as he steps off the Marine One helicopter and walks on the South Lawn at the White House in Washington, Thursday, Dec. 27, 2012, as he returned early from his Hawaii vacation for meetings on the fiscal cliff. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Efforts to save the nation from going over a year-end "fiscal cliff" were still in disarray as lawmakers returned to the Capitol to confront the tax-and-spend crisis. A tone-setting quotation was Democratic Sen. Harry Reid's assertion that the House under Republican Speaker John Boehner had been "operating with a dictatorship."

President Barack Obama flew back to Washington from Hawaii after telephoning congressional leaders from his Christmas vacation perch. Once back, he set up a meeting with leaders of both parties at the White House late Friday to make a fresh attempt to find a solution before Monday night's deadline.

A look at why it's so hard for Republicans and Democrats to compromise on urgent matters of taxes and spending, and what happens if they fail to meet their deadline:

___

NEW YEAR'S HEADACHE

Partly by fate, partly by design, some scary fiscal forces come together at the start of 2013 unless Congress and Obama act to stop them. They include:

? Some $536 billion in tax increases, touching nearly all Americans, because various federal tax cuts and breaks expire at year's end.

? About $110 billion in spending cuts divided equally between the military and most other federal departments. That's about 8 percent of their annual budgets, 9 percent for the Pentagon.

Hitting the national economy with that double whammy of tax increases and spending cuts is what's called going over the "fiscal cliff." If allowed to unfold over 2013, it would lead to recession, a big jump in unemployment and financial market turmoil, economists predict.

___

WHAT IF THEY MISS THE DEADLINE?

If New Year's Day arrives without a deal, the nation shouldn't plunge onto the shoals of recession immediately. There still might be time to engineer a soft landing.

So long as lawmakers and the president appear to be working toward agreement, the tax hikes and spending cuts could mostly be held at bay for a few weeks. Then they could be repealed retroactively once a deal was reached.

The big wild card is the stock market and the nation's financial confidence: Would traders start to panic if Washington appeared unable to reach accord? Would worried consumers and businesses sharply reduce their spending? In what could be a preview, stock prices in the U.S. and Europe dropped Friday on waning hopes that Obama and key lawmakers would reach an 11th-hour compromise.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has warned lawmakers that the economy is already suffering from the uncertainty and they shouldn't risk making it worse by blowing past their deadline.

___

WHAT IF THEY NEVER AGREE?

If negotiations between Obama and Congress collapse completely, 2013 looks like a rocky year.

Taxes would jump $2,400 on average for families with incomes of $50,000 to $75,000, according to a study by the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center. Because consumers would get less of their paychecks to spend, businesses and jobs would suffer.

At the same time, Americans would feel cuts in government services; some federal workers would be furloughed or laid off and companies would lose government business. The nation would lose up to 3.4 million jobs, the Congressional Budget Office predicts.

"The consequences of that would be felt by everybody," Bernanke says.

___

THE TAXES

Much of the disagreement surrounds the George W. Bush-era income tax cuts, and whether those rates should be allowed to rise for the nation's wealthiest taxpayers. Both political parties say they want to protect the middle class from tax increases.

Several tax breaks begun in 2009 to stimulate the economy by aiding low- and middle-income families are also set to expire Jan. 1. The alternative minimum tax would expand to catch 28 million more taxpayers, with an average increase of $3,700 a year. Taxes on investments would rise, too. More deaths would be covered by the federal estate tax, and the rate climbs from 35 percent to 55 percent. Some corporate tax breaks would end.

The temporary Social Security payroll tax cut also is due to expire. That tax break for most Americans seems likely to end even if a fiscal cliff deal is reached, now that Obama has backed down from his call to prolong it as an economic stimulus.

___

THE SPENDING

If the nation goes over the fiscal cliff, budget cuts of 8 percent or 9 percent would hit most of the federal government, touching all sorts of things from agriculture to law enforcement and the military to weather forecasting. A few areas, such as Social Security benefits, Veterans Affairs and some programs for the poor, are exempt.

___

THERE'S MORE AT STAKE

All sorts of stuff could get wrapped up in the fiscal cliff deal-making. A sampling:

? Some 2 million jobless Americans may lose their federal unemployment aid. Obama wants to continue the benefits extension as part of the deal; Republicans say it's too costly.

? Social Security recipients might see their checks grow more slowly. As part of a possible deal, Obama and Republican leaders want to change the way cost-of-living adjustments are calculated, which would mean smaller checks over the years for retirees who get Social Security, veterans' benefits or government pensions.

? The price of milk could double. If Congress doesn't provide a fix for expiring dairy price supports before Jan. 1, milk-drinking families could feel the pinch. One scenario is to attach a farm bill extension to the fiscal cliff legislation ? if a compromise is reached in time.

? Millions of taxpayers who want to file their 2012 returns before mid-March will be held up while they wait to see if Congress comes through with a deal to stop the alternative minimum tax from hitting more people.

___

CALL THE WHOLE THING OFF?

In theory, Congress and Obama could just say no to the fiscal cliff, by extending all the tax cuts and overturning the automatic spending reductions in current law. But both Republicans and Democrats agree it's time to take steps to put the nation on a path away from a future of crippling debt.

Indeed, the automatic spending cuts set for January were created as a last-ditch effort to force Congress to deal with the debt problem.

If Washington bypassed the fiscal cliff, the next crisis would be just around the corner, in late February or early March, when the government reaches a $16.4 trillion ceiling on the amount of money it can borrow.

Boehner says Republicans won't go along with raising the limit on government borrowing unless the increase is matched by spending cuts to help attack the long-term debt problem. Failing to raise the debt ceiling could lead to a first-ever U.S. default that would roil the financial markets and shake worldwide confidence in the United States.

To avoid that scenario, Obama and Boehner are trying to wrap a debt limit agreement into the fiscal cliff negotiations.

___

SO WHAT'S THE HOLDUP?

They're at loggerheads over some big questions.

Obama says any deal must include higher taxes for the wealthiest Americans. Many House Republicans oppose raising anyone's tax rates. Boehner tried to get the House to vote for higher taxes only on incomes above $1 million but dropped the effort when it became clear he didn't have the votes.

Republicans also insist on deeper spending cuts than Democrats want to make. And they want to bring the nation's long-term debt under control by significantly curtailing the growth of Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security ? changes that many Democrats oppose.

Obama, meanwhile, wants more temporary economic "stimulus" spending to help speed up a sluggish recovery. Republicans say the nation can't afford it.

___

IT'S NOT JUST WASHINGTON

Seems like they could just make nice, shake hands and split their differences, right?

But there's a reason neither side wants to give ground. The two parties represent a divided and inconsistent America. True, Obama just won re-election. But voters also chose a Republican majority in the House.

Republicans and Democrats alike say they are doing what the voters back home want.

Neither side has a clear advantage in public opinion. In an Associated Press-GfK poll, 43 percent said they trust the Democrats more to manage the federal budget deficit and 40 percent preferred the Republicans. There's a similar split on who's more trusted with taxes.

About half of Americans support higher taxes for the wealthy, the poll says, and about 10 percent want tax increases all around. Still, almost half say cutting government services, not raising taxes, should be the main focus of lawmakers as they try to balance the budget.

When asked about specific budget cuts being discussed in Washington, few Americans express support for them.

___

THE COUNTDOWN

Time for deal-making is short, thanks to the holiday and congressional calendars. Some key dates for averting the fiscal cliff:

? Lawmakers didn't begin returning to the Capitol until Thursday, leaving less than a week to vote on a compromise before year's end.

? Obama returned Thursday from his Christmas vacation in Hawaii. The president asked congressional leaders to the White House Friday to try to resolve the fiscal cliff.

? If lawmakers reach Dec. 31 without a deal, some economists worry that the financial markets might swoon.

? The current Congress is in session only through noon Eastern time on Jan. 3. After that, a newly elected Congress with 13 new senators and 82 new House members would inherit the problem.

___

Associated Press writers Jim Kuhnhenn, Alan Fram and Andrew Taylor and Director of Polling Jennifer Agiesta contributed to this report.

___

Follow Connie Cass on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/ConnieCass

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2012-12-29-Fiscal%20Cliff-News%20Guide/id-e2aafdd032cf4515942b44774e20a80e

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OneWed Brings Its Inspirational Wedding Imagery To iPad

It's been days, possibly even weeks, since we've covered a wedding-focused startup. Let's change that, shall we? OneWed, the company formerly known as Nearlyweds, is now on iPad. The new app quietly arrived just before the holidays, offering a new way for brides-to-be to browse, be inspired by, save and share wedding imagery and ideas.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/lhj0XlPNXlU/

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Over One Billion Tourists Traveled Internationally ... - Business Insider

The economy seems to be rebounding and that means that more people are traveling.

Over one billion tourists traveled internationally in 2012, according to the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO). Another five to six million traveled domestically within their own countries.

This is a record number for international travel. Global tourism has more than doubled since 1990, when 435 million tourists crossed international borders.

Europeans seem to travel the most internationally, with 53 percent of all international visitors coming from Europe. Only 22 percent of international tourists came from Asia, and 17 percent came from the Americas.

Though the UNWTO does not track exactly which countries these people visit, it does track the most popular destinations by continent. The majority of international tourists went to countries in Europe (51 percent), while 22 percent went to Asia/Pacific and 16 percent traveled to the Americas.

The UNWTO has launched a campaign to capitalize on this growth in international tourism called 1 Billion Tourists, 1 Billion Opportunities. They're encouraging tourists to act responsibly by buying locally, respecting local culture, using public transportation, and protecting heritage sites.

International tourism is one of the world?s largest economic sectors, accounting for 9% of global GDP (direct, indirect and induced impact), one in every 12 jobs, and six percent of world trade, according to the UNWTO.?

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/over-one-billion-tourists-traveled-internationally-this-year-infographic-2012-12

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China To Tighten Internet Control | Stuff.co.nz

China's new communist leaders are increasing already tight controls on internet use and electronic publishing following a spate of embarrassing online reports about official abuses.

The measures suggest China's new leader, Xi Jinping, and others who took power in November share their predecessors' anxiety about the internet's potential to spread opposition to one-party rule and their insistence on controlling information despite promises of more economic reforms.

"They are still very paranoid about the potentially destabilising effect of the internet," said Willy Lam, a politics specialist at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

"They are on the point of losing a monopoly on information, but they still are very eager to control the dissemination of views."

This week, China's legislature took up a measure to require internet users to register their real names, a move that would curtail the web's status as a freewheeling forum to complain, often anonymously, about corruption and official abuses.

The legislature scheduled a news conference for today to discuss the measure, suggesting it was expected to be approved.

That comes amid reports Beijing might be disrupting use of software that allows web surfers to see sites abroad that are blocked by its extensive internet filters.

At the same time, regulators have proposed rules that would bar foreign companies from distributing books, news, music and other material online in China.

Beijing promotes internet use for business and education, but bans material deemed subversive or obscene and blocks access to foreign websites run by human rights and Tibet activists and some news outlets.

Controls were tightened after social media played a role in protests that brought down governments in Egypt and Tunisia.

In a reminder of the web's role as a political forum, a group of 70 prominent Chinese scholars and lawyers circulated an online petition this week appealing for free speech, independent courts and for the ruling party to encourage private enterprise.

Xi and others on the party's ruling seven-member Standing Committee have tried to promote an image of themselves as men of the people who care about China's poor majority.

They have promised to press ahead with market-oriented reforms and to support entrepreneurs, but have given no sign of support for political reform.

Communist leaders who see the internet as a source of economic growth and better-paid jobs were slow to enforce the same level of control they impose on movies, books and other media, apparently for fear of hurting fledgling entertainment, shopping and other online businesses.

Until recently, web surfers could post comments online or on microblog services without leaving their names.

That gave ordinary Chinese a unique opportunity to express themselves to a public audience in a society where newspapers, television and other media are state-controlled.

The most popular microblog services said they have more than 300 million users and some users have millions of followers reading their comments.

The internet also has given the public an unusual opportunity to publicise accusations of official misconduct.

A local party official in China's southwest was fired in November after scenes from a videotape of him having sex with a young woman spread quickly on the internet.

Screenshots were uploaded by a former journalist in Beijing, Zhu Ruifeng, to his Hong Kong website, an online clearing house for corruption allegations.

Some industry analysts suggest allowing web surfers in a controlled setting to vent helps communist leaders stay abreast of public sentiment in their fast-changing society.

Still, microblog services and online bulletin boards were required to employ censors to enforce content restrictions. Researchers said they delete millions of postings a day.

The government said the latest internet regulation before the National People's Congress was aimed at protecting web surfers' personal information and cracking down on abuses such as junk email. It would require users to report their real names to internet service and telecom providers.

The main ruling party newspaper, People's Daily, has called in recent weeks for tighter internet controls, saying rumours spread online have harmed the public.

In one case, it said stories about a chemical plant explosion resulted in the deaths of four people in a car accident as they fled the area.

Proposed rules released this month by the General Administration of Press and Publications would bar Chinese-foreign joint ventures from publishing books, music, movies and other material online in China.

Publishers would be required to locate their servers in China and have a Chinese citizen as their local legal representative.

That is in line with rules that already bar most foreign access to China's media market, but the decision to group the restrictions together and publicise them might indicate official attitudes are hardening.

That comes after the party was rattled by foreign news reports about official wealth and misconduct.

In June, Bloomberg News reported that Xi's extended family has amassed assets totalling US$376 million, though it said none was traced to Xi. The government has blocked access to Bloomberg's website since then.

In October, The New York Times reported that Premier Wen Jiabao's relatives had amassed US$2.7 billion since he rose to national office in 2002. Access to the Times' Chinese-language site has been blocked since then.

Previous efforts to tighten controls have struggled with technical challenges in a country with more than 500 million internet users.

Microblog operators such as Sina and Tencent Ltd were ordered in late 2011 to confirm users' names, but have yet to finish the daunting task.

Web surfers can circumvent government filters by using virtual private networks ? software that encrypts web traffic and is used by companies to transfer financial data and other sensitive information.

But VPN users said disruptions that began in 2011 were increasing, suggesting Chinese regulators were trying to block encrypted traffic.

Curbs on access to foreign sites have prompted complaints by companies and Chinese scientists and other researchers.

In July, the American Chamber of Commerce in China said 74 per cent of companies that responded to a survey said unstable internet access "impedes their ability to do business".

Chinese leaders "realise there are detrimental impacts on business, especially foreign business, but they have counted the cost and think it is still worthwhile," said Lam.

"There is no compromise about the political imperative of controlling the internet."

- AP

Comments

Source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/digital-living/8123662/China-to-tighten-internet-control

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OUYA Ships 1,200 Development Consoles, Shows Off Its Pre ...

OUYA, the Android-based affordable gaming console that inspired a wide range of reaction from tech watchers and gamers alike when it debuted on Kickstarter back in July 2012, today reached an important milestone: shipping product. Admittedly, it?s just the developer-specific consoles for now, but 1,200 units are now winging their way to actual people, and the company put the pre-release gaming console on video to prove it.

This OUYA unboxing video gives us a glimpse at what the thing looks like in the flesh ? albeit in a transparent plastic casing for both controller and console that doesn?t reflect its anticipated shipping fit and finish. The design isn?t quite final either, as founder Jules Uhrman explains on the video alongside an Ouya designer that the d-pad will change, as will shoulder pad positioning and a number of other internal controller components. Also newly shown off in the video are a micro USB port on the console itself, and an internal fan in the device to keep it cool during intense gaming sessions.

The console looks an awful lot like early renders we?ve seen (minus the limited-edition transparent plastic finish) and Uhrman even goes so far as to actually plug in the console and power it up on video, although we don?t see anything beyond a boot screen as the device loads up with the ?OUYA? branding. At the very least though, we know it turns on, and that it?s shipping in some capacity, which in itself might be?enough?to quiet those who were?skeptical about OUYA?s ability to deliver any kind of working device at all.

Shipping development consoles today also means that OUYA has indeed kept its initial hardware ship date promise ? a rarity among any Kickstarter projects, and impressive given the?popularity?of this one in particular and the amount of scrutiny it received. On-time delivery of these units bodes well for OUYA?s anticipated March 2013 shipping date for consumer units. But there?s still plenty of work to be done on software, and refinements are needed on the hardware side, too, so nothing?s set in stone at this point. Still, it?s great to see OUYA even reach this point, and here?s hoping they make that March launch.

OUYA was created in 2012 by Julie Uhrman, a video game industry veteran who saw an opportunity to open up the last closed game platform ? the TV. Julie and an initial team of game developers and advisors brought the concept to life with the help of Yves Behar and the fuseproject, and took it to Kickstarter in July of 2012. It became one of the most successful Kickstarter projects ever, with tens of thousands of backers pledging to...

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Source: http://techcrunch.com/2012/12/28/ouya-ships-1200-development-consoles-shows-off-its-pre-release-android-gaming-hardware-on-video/

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Why One Should Hire A Debt Management Company?

It is easy for one to fall for the trap of debts today. Inspired by the need, you will today find a lot of debt management companies who have helped a lot of people to get rid of this serious issue. If you are practically trapped and been dodging the creditors calls, it is time for you to get some professional help. A debt management company would work out a plan that would help you get rid of the debts in least possible time. Such companies have a lot of experience and they probably had handled a very similar client like you. The plan is made one they analyze your financial condition completely.

These companies have been doing a good deed by providing one of the worst problems of mankind, Debt. Debt can leave you strangled in never ending anxious thoughts. This endless thinking will not do you any good but leave you under a hell lot of mental pressure. Such worries are not good for your health and might result in depression or hypertension. Do not push yourself here and talk to a good debt management company. With their experience and knowledge they will frame the best possible plan for you.

It is the best way to stay free of worries and calls from your creditor. Such company will handle the case for you while helping you payback at the same time. They can help you with all sorts of loans and credit card debts. They will tailor a plan which would be based on your financial health and earnings. The plan would always be affordable for you and even if they have to pay some amount from their side they should do that. Out of all debt management UK companies Back 2 Credit is considered as the best. The reason is their expertise in the field so contact them for debt management plans UK. So stop hurting yourself and say goodbye to life full of disgrace. The company also helps people near bankruptcy with IVA Debt Advice. So if you are in need of debt solutions Birmingham, give them a call and take a debt advice.

Source: http://www.articlesnatch.com/Article/Why-One-Should-Hire-A-Debt-Management-Company-/4306382

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My Top 10 New Zealand Books for Kids & Teens in 2012 | My Best ...

December 6, 2012 ? 8:00 am

We have so many great authors and illustrators in New Zealand and I love shouting about them.? There have been a bumper crop of books from NZ authors and illustrators this year and there are strong contenders for the 2013 New Zealand Post Children?s Book Awards.? Some of these books have been included in my other Top 10 of 2012 lists but I wanted to do a separate list to highlight these spectacular NZ books.

Filed under books, children, children's fiction, Illustrators, New Zealand, young adult, young adult fiction

Tagged as best books, best of 2012, junior fiction, middle-grade fiction, New Zealand, picture books, Top 10, Top 10 New Zealand Books Kids & Teens in 2012, Young Adult

Source: http://bestfriendsrbooks.wordpress.com/2012/12/06/my-top-10-new-zealand-books-for-kids-teens-in-2012/

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Better mental health care predicted for Healthy Families kids with ...

Children with less serious needs will have to find providers who take Medi-Cal?s lower rates

By Lynn Graebner
California Health Report

Santa Cruz County mental health staff and patient advocates in California predict that many children enrolled in the state?s Healthy Families Program, an insurance program for low-income families that will be phased out in 2013, should actually have better access to mental health services once they start transitioning to Medi-Cal in January.

This summer the state legislature approved Governor Jerry Brown?s plan to cut the Healthy Families Program, saving the state $129 million in the next two years and $71 million annually after that. Healthy Families enrolls families whose incomes are low, but not low enough to qualify for Medi-Cal, as Medicaid is known in California. Many fear that with this transition to Medi-Cal, former Healthy Families enrollees will have difficulty finding health providers, since Medi-Cal pays providers less.

Many county health departments in California, however, welcome the state?s 2011 decision to give their departments responsibility for managing the money that will help them provide the specific mental health services needed locally.

But they are concerned about the state?s recent decision to switch from funding Medi-Cal mental health services with state general funds to giving counties a set amount of sales tax revenues. That funding will be based on estimated mental health care needs, but counties say that funding may not keep pace with the growing need for services.

?Counties certainly want to move forward. We think we can do it, [but] it comes down to the financial support,? said Suzanne Tavano, Director of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services for the Santa Cruz County Health Services Agency.

The state is estimating counties? funding needs for mental health services based on historical use plus the expected increased use of county services as Healthy Families enrollees come into the Medi-Cal system.

Based on that estimate the state is depositing a portion of its sales tax revenues into a behavioral health account, which will pay for adult treatment programs as well as youth screenings and services.

?To have counties responsible for providing care for their residents seems to make sense,? said Carmella Gutierrez, president of Californians for Patient Care, a nonprofit patient advocacy organization based in Sacramento. ?The concern is with the funding.?

The Healthy Families Program gave parents seeking mental health care for their children more access to physicians in private practice because Healthy Families provider rates are higher than Medi-Cal?s.

After the transition, children suffering from mental health disorders serious enough to require a specialist, such as conduct disorders or early diagnosis of bipolar disorder, will continue to seek treatment from the county. Children with milder needs ? for instance, depression resulting from divorce ? will need to find therapists who accept Medi-Cal.

The county already has the infrastructure in place to support children with serious mental health care needs, so the transition away from Healthy Families to Medi-Cal should benefit them.

Participants in Healthy Families actually seem to underuse their mental health care services, compared to Medi-Cal participants. No one is sure why that is. ?The state has been trying to get to the bottom of that for quite a few years,? said Patricia Ryan, Executive Director of the California Mental Health Director?s Association.

?I don?t think it was due to any problems per se on the part of Healthy Families,? said Dane Cervine, Program Chief of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services for the Santa Cruz County Health Services Agency. He said it could have been that families just weren?t aware of the services. Medi-Cal has a much longer history of providing mental health services.

That?s one reason why counties are concerned about the current funding estimates ? they expect to see an increase in specialty treatment services as Healthy Families enrollees transfer to Medi-Cal.

Only about 1 percent of Healthy Families beneficiaries in Santa Cruz County, for instance, are getting mental health services, Cervine said. In comparison, usually 5 to 10 percent of children with Medi-Cal are getting some sort of treatment. In Santa Cruz County 10.71 percent of children with Medi-Cal received mental health services in 2010, he said.

Ryan estimates that about 43,000 children transferring from Healthy Families may require these higher-level specialty services at the county or through county-contracted providers.

They will be eligible for a wide variety of services with their Medi-Cal coverage, including screening and assessments, therapeutic behavioral services and wrap around services including family teams and in-home visiting.

Paying for this level of services based on state estimates of current use is a concern, Ryan said at an Oct. 16 Senate Budget Committee hearing.

In an interview, Ryan said counties question the state?s funding estimates for serving these additional children.

?We fear they low-balled it,? she said.

If counties come up short, they may need to redirect county funds from other programs for indigent individuals or for child welfare services or adult protective services, Ryan said.

But the state believes the funding is adequate, said Norman Williams, Deputy Director of the Office of Public Affairs at the California Department of Health Care Services.

?The state will monitor expenditures in this funding category to determine if adjustments are needed on a prospective basis,? he said in an e-mail response to questions.

Healthy Families enrollees with less serious needs, such as attention deficit disorder or mild depression, will be able to continue treatment through their primary care providers.

Children with mid-level needs, such as a child suffering from anxiety about a divorce, who may currently be seeing a private psychiatrist, psychologist or an agency contracting with Healthy Families, could continue to see those providers if the providers agree to take Medi-Cal reimbursements and enroll in the state?s fee-for-service Medi-Cal network.

But some providers and families don?t want to make the switch.

Vivian Gratton, president of the Santa Cruz Chapter of the California Association of Marriage & Family Therapists, treats a child with Healthy Families coverage. The family was told they now have to seek services at the county.

They opted not to. They are comfortable with Gratton and her skill set, she said. They pay Gratton on a sliding scale out of pocket, which is a stretch for them.

Sylvia Yee, another marriage and family therapist in Santa Cruz County, has treated children in the Healthy Families Program even though the reimbursement didn?t completely cover her fees. But she said she probably won?t become a Medi-Cal provider.

She?s not alone. California ranks 46th nationally for Medicaid reimbursement levels to providers, according to Williams.

He indicated his agency is working on equipping counties with lists of current Healthy Family mental health providers who could possibly be resources for counties.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 4th, 2012 at 12:00 am and is filed under Associated Press, Community Report. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Source: http://www.healthycal.org/archives/10167

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Israelis question too, 'Who wants this war?'

Residents of southern Israel only reluctantly express support for a potential expansion of the conflict in Gaza and express sympathy for the suffering on the other side of the border.

By Christa Case Bryant,?Staff writer / November 18, 2012

An Israeli woman takes cover as a siren sounds warning of incoming rockets fired from the Gaza Strip, in the southern town of Ofakim November 18. Many Israeli residents only reluctantly express support for the expansion of the conflict.

Ronen Zvulun/Reuters

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Ashdod and Kiryat Malachi, Israel

Just days after Adi Pito married a woman from the town of Kiryat Malachi, he heard that a rocket from Gaza had struck an apartment building there, killing three residents.

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?I was worried about my wife,? says Mr. Pito, who was in a nearby city at the time. ?If you ask me, I think we have to destroy Gaza. I think they are animals, not people,? he says, pulling at his new wedding ring as he stood outside the damaged apartment yesterday. ?It?s the right thing to do.?

But in towns across southern Israel that have been hit by rockets, other residents only reluctantly express support for a potential expansion of Israel?s Pillar of Defense operation and express sympathy for the suffering on the other side of the border, where at least 53 Palestinians have been killed and hundreds injured since the operation began five days ago.

?When people say, ?Let?s kill them,? I don?t think they really mean to do it,? says Yehudit Bar Hay, a trauma expert at the Israel Center for Victims of Terror and War, known as NATAL. ?It is an angry feeling but ? we don?t want to kill the people of Gaza. We see the mothers and the children, we are sorry for them.?

Even those who are ?very, very injured? from the trauma of living under rocket fire say they don?t want to hurt anybody, adds Ms. Bar Hay, who lives less than a mile from the Gaza border.?

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today that Israel?s military ?is prepared for a significant expansion of its operations,? even as at least 16,000 reservists have been called up for a potential ground invasion. The Defense Ministry has authorized the calling up of as many as 75,000 reservists ? more than six times as many as participated in the 2008-09 Gaza war.

But while some Israelis say war is necessary or inevitable, few are happy about it.?

?Who wants this war? Nobody in Israel,? says Ashdod resident Bebert Avitan, his pink-rimmed glasses hanging from his neck.

Part of the reason for a lack of public pressure may be the effectiveness of Israel?s Iron Dome system, which has kept casualties very low despite a barrage of rockets from Gaza. See today's Monitor story on the Iron Dome system.?

?Hamas apparently has much greater capability than it had in the last war on Gaza,? says Galia Golan, a political scientist at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, but notes that there hasn?t been a parallel uptick in Israeli casualties. ?Because Iron Dome has been relatively successful, there has been less pressure on the government or within the government to launch a ground attack.?

Only three Israelis, all from one building in Kiryat Malachi, have been killed in the recent escalation.

As the evening news shows a picture of a bombed out building, lifelong resident Masodi Sugaker says, ?It?s so sad to see this. To [have to] make everything new after this? Why? Because of Hamas.?

?Hamas exploits their own people, the Palestinians,? says she adds.

Her sister, Hanna Shukrun, adds, ?We don?t want [war],? because there are kids [in Gaza].

But she says, ?Israel can?t just sit here and do nothing?. Our army doesn?t need to wait until they have many weapons.?

(This story was edited after posting to correct the name of Galia Golan from IDC Herzliya. We apologize for the error).

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/csmonitor/globalnews/~3/EKBpRj7UmRU/Israelis-question-too-Who-wants-this-war

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35 widely unknown Japanese internet slang terms

Rank ??? Reading Meaning Score 1 ????? Aieee Japanese transcription of a typical scream from American comics, ?Aieeee!? 100 2 ??? Wakotsu On Nico-Nico live net broadcasts, there was initially a low limit on the number of simultaneous broadcasts, so people would spend up to an hour pressing a button to try to capture a slot. Once they got started, people would congratulate them using ???, short for ?????????. 97.4 3 ???? Faboru To make something a favourite, particularly on Twitter 93.6 4 ?? Shouzen Indicates that the current Tweet is a continuation from the last, due to hitting the 140 character limit. 90.6 5 ggrks Guguru Kasu Go Google it! 89.8 6 ksk Kasoku Speed up, used when a thread on 2ch or other bulletin board takes off 88.3 7 hshs Hasu hasu Heavy breathing, from haku-suu, breathe out-breathe in 87.2 8 ????? Fabyoru A not very polite way of describing a Korean getting mad 87.2 9 kwsk Kuwashiku A request for more details 86.8 10 ??? Buhiru To squeal like a pig at a moe (cute) anime 85.3 11 ? Sankaku He/she/it?s cool! Starting from, for example, ?Ken san kakkouii!? (Ken is cool), we get ?Ken?? 84.2 12 ROM??? Rom-tteru Initially was ?Just read this, don?t talk about it?, but now also ?Read Only Monitor?, for someone who reads but doesn?t post to a bulletin board 82.7 13 ??? Sutema Short for Stealth Marketing 81.6 14 ??? Sky High The victory pose of The King of Heroes, Sky High, from the Tiger and Bunny series 81.2 15 ???? Cluster Here indicates a grouping of fans, used as for example, AKB48-cluster. 80.8 16 ???? Owacon Short for Owari (finished) contents. Something that is in the past 80.5 17 ???? Yobitame Short for yobisute and tameguchi, an informal (perhaps a hint of looking down at people) and frank talk 78.9 18 ??? Zuttomo Short for ?zutto tomodachi?, usually used when exchanging photo seals. Japanese equivalent of BFF 75.9 19 ????? Bi-jogger Beautiful female jogger 75.6 20 DQN Dokyun Stupid, anti-social person, perhaps a Japanese chav 75.2 21 ???? ? Yes, it?s a silent ???, apparently from Naruto manga 73.3 22 ??? Cheat Now used to praise people for nice tricks or game hacks, etc 72.9 23 ??? Defo An abbreviation of ?default?, in the sense of ?usually?. An example sentence would be ?Weekday nights at that ramen shop sees defo 30 people waiting.? 66.5 24 ????????? Social media Social media 65.8 25 ?? Up Short for upload, when typed in Japanese input mode 64.3 26 ???? Oshimen Short for ?ichioshi member?, one?s favourite member of a group like AKB48 63.9 27 ??? Owata ASCII art of shouting ?banzai!? on finishing something. ?( ?td> 59.8 28 ?? Daretoku An abbreviation of ?Dare ga tokusurun dayo?, ?Who?s the one who knows all about it??, said for instance to the person starting a thread on comparing the eyelash lengths of AKB48 members 59.0 29 ??? Source Source code, nothing more complicated, I don?t think 55.3 30 ???? Agepoyo ?Age? is to raise, in this sense tension, which means to increase the excitement, and ?poyo? is just a meaningless sound added to the utterance 54.1 31 ????? No side I don?t think this means anything more than the end of a rugby match, but I?m probably wrong? 53.4 32 ???? Bakuhatsu shiro The full phrase is ?Rea-juu bakuhatsu shiro?, abuse from net dwellers to people talking about having too much of a real life, so they should go and blow themselves up 52.3 33 ??? Doyagao Smug face, and part of the name of a television program where it gets translated as ?face of pride? 51.9 34 ??? Warota Slang spelling of ?laugh?, used like LOL in English 50.0 35 ?? Otsu Short for ?Otsukaresamadeshita?, a stock phrase meaning ?Thank you for your hard work? 47.7

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WhatJapanThinks/~3/uAggkEH2K3A/

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Israel feels heat from Europe over settlements

A view of the Jewish West Bank settlement of Maaleh Adumim, with E1, background, near Jerusalem, Sunday, Dec. 2, 2012. Israel on Sunday roundly rejected the United Nations' endorsement of an independent state of Palestine, and announced it would withhold more than $100 million owed to the Palestinians in retaliation for their successful statehood bid. Israel has a master plan to build 3,600 apartments and 10 hotels on the section of territory east of Jerusalem known as E1. The Palestinians have warned that such construction would kill any hope for the creation of a viable state of Palestine. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

A view of the Jewish West Bank settlement of Maaleh Adumim, with E1, background, near Jerusalem, Sunday, Dec. 2, 2012. Israel on Sunday roundly rejected the United Nations' endorsement of an independent state of Palestine, and announced it would withhold more than $100 million owed to the Palestinians in retaliation for their successful statehood bid. Israel has a master plan to build 3,600 apartments and 10 hotels on the section of territory east of Jerusalem known as E1. The Palestinians have warned that such construction would kill any hope for the creation of a viable state of Palestine. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

A Palestinian man works at a new housing development in the Jewish West Bank settlement of Maaleh Adumim, near Jerusalem, Sunday, Dec. 2, 2012. Israel on Sunday roundly rejected the United Nations' endorsement of an independent state of Palestine, and announced it would withhold more than $100 million owed to the Palestinians in retaliation for their successful statehood bid. Israel has a master plan to build 3,600 apartments and 10 hotels on the section of territory east of Jerusalem known as E1. The Palestinians have warned that such construction would kill any hope for the creation of a viable state of Palestine. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

The E1 project at the Jewish West Bank settlement of Maaleh Adumim, near east Jerusalem, Sunday, Dec. 2, 2012. Israel on Sunday roundly rejected the United Nations' endorsement of an independent state of Palestine, and announced it would withhold more than $100 million owed to the Palestinians in retaliation for their successful statehood bid. Israel has a master plan to build 3,600 apartments and 10 hotels on the section of territory east of Jerusalem known as E1. The Palestinians have warned that such construction would kill any hope for the creation of a viable state of Palestine. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

JERUSALEM (AP) ? Four European nations summoned their Israeli ambassadors on Monday to denounce Israel's latest settlement construction push, deepening the rift between the Jewish state and European allies that has cracked open over the Palestinians' successful U.N. statehood bid.

Although Europe considers all Israeli settlement construction illegal, the summoning of ambassadors in France, Britain, Sweden and Spain to accuse Israel of undermining already troubled peace efforts was an unusually strong expression of displeasure. It came at a time when Israel was already smarting over Europe's failure to back the Jewish state in its campaign against the statehood move.

The Europeans were furious over Israel's announcement Friday that it would move ahead on plans to build 3,000 settler homes to punish the Palestinians for winning U.N. recognition of a state of Palestine in territories Israel captured in 1967.

Israel also said it would begin planning work on an especially sensitive piece of land outside Jerusalem that it has refrained from developing because of U.S. pressure. A meeting with developers and other interested parties was to take place Wednesday, though officials have stressed that it could be years before actual construction begins.

After a flurry of angry phone calls from European capitals to Israel over the weekend, France summoned the Israeli envoy to Paris late Monday morning.

France, the first major European country to announce support for the Palestinian statehood effort, also sent a letter to the Israeli government, calling the settlement decision "a considerable obstacle to the two-state solution."

Britain, which abstained in the U.N. vote, urged Israel to reverse the decision as it summoned Israeli Ambassador Daniel Taub to the Foreign Office. Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt told parliament that "together with other E.U. countries we will discuss other potential steps," but he would not elaborate.

British officials said London was looking to Washington to take the lead, and that British diplomats were meeting with American counterparts on Monday.

None of the four European governments openly threatened any concrete measures to punish Israel.

"Our ambassadors were called in and the countries protested about the announcement about the intention to do further construction in settlements," Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Paul Hirschson said.

Israel's Haaretz newspaper reported earlier Monday that Britain and France were considering recalling their ambassadors to Israel in a symbolic but potent expression of dissent. Hirschson said no such intention had been communicated to Israel, and French and British officials denied the report.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met Monday with the consul general of France in the West Bank and asked that France exert pressure on Israel to halt settlement activity, according to the official Palestinian news agency, Wafa.

Senior Palestinian official Nabil Shaath praised the Europeans for taking action.

"We've been expecting this kind of behavior for a long time," Shaath said. "For this to come from France and England is very beneficial to us. We highly appreciate it and we are hoping the U.S. will follow their lead."

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Friday that the settlement activities "set back the cause of a negotiated peace," but nothing harsher has emerged from Washington, the only world power to side with the Israelis against the Palestinians' statehood measure.

Germany, which abstained in the U.N. vote, expressed concern Monday over the Israeli move but wouldn't say whether it had taken any direct measures in response. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is due in Berlin on Wednesday for a previously scheduled meeting with Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Steffen Seibert, Merkel's spokesman, said Germany took a "very negative view" of the settlement announcement, which he said undermined peace efforts.

The growth of settlements, now home to half a million Israelis, is at the heart of the four-year breakdown in negotiations.

The Palestinians view continued settlement expansion as a show of bad faith and refuse to return to talks unless construction is frozen. Netanyahu notes a 10-month settlement slowdown in 2010 failed to jump-start negotiations, and rejects calls for a new construction freeze.

The U.N. General Assembly voted overwhelmingly on Thursday to recognize a Palestinian state in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip, territories Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast war. Israel still occupies those first two territories and restricts access to Gaza, though it withdrew all settlers and soldiers in 2005.

Netanyahu rejects a return to Israel's 1967 lines. His government campaigned against the U.N. measure, saying only direct negotiations could produce a Palestinian state.

But in a stinging diplomatic defeat, just eight other countries, including the U.S., opposed the Palestinian bid. Israel's closest allies in Europe, including Germany, Italy, France and Britain, either abstained or voted with the Palestinians in what amounted to a sweeping condemnation of Israeli settlements.

Israel retaliated by announcing the next day that it would start drawing up plans to build 3,000 settlement homes in the West Bank and east Jerusalem. More explosively, from the Palestinian point of view, it said it would begin planning work for a chunk of land east of Jerusalem known as E1.

Building there would sever the link between the West Bank and east Jerusalem, which the Palestinians claim for a future capital. It would also cut off the northern part of the West Bank from its southern flank.

The Palestinians say construction in that territory would kill any hope for establishing a viable state of Palestine. Successive U.S. governments have agreed, and under intense American pressure, Israel has avoided building settlements in the area. It has, however, developed roads and infrastructure and built a police station.

On Wednesday, Israel's planning and construction committee for the area is scheduled to hold a first-ever meeting to discuss developing the E1 area, a defense official said.

The session, described by the official as a "very, very preliminary" step, would be open to Jewish politicians in the West Bank and developers, as well as Palestinians with any claims to parts of the land. This would be the first step in a planning process that could take months, if not years, before ground is actually broken.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the project.

Actual settlement construction remains far from certain and may have been announced by Netanyahu to appeal to hawkish voters ahead of Israel's Jan. 22 election.

_____

Hinnant reported from Paris. Jill Lawless in London, Louise Nordstrom in Stockholm, Sweden, David Rising in Berlin, Ciaran Giles in Madrid, and Dalia Nammari in Ramallah, West Bank, contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2012-12-03-Europe-Israel/id-19572108d67d410c8636d906757e25ff

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