Vacation Rentals of North Myrtle Beach Releases its Summer Entertainment List

Booking the perfect rental property is only part of arranging a great summer vacation. Vacation Rentals of North Myrtle Beach understands that everyone needs a break from the sun and surf once in a while. The property management company has put together a sneak peak at the best shows, concerts and stand up in the North Myrtle Beach area this summer. Many of these venues offer special group discounts, too, ensuring affordable fun for even the largest families.
Alabama Theatre
Located in Barefoot Landing in North Myrtle Beach, the Alabama Theatre will host a select group of artists this summer: Leann Rimes will play there on July 15, The Temptations and The Four Tops will make a joint appearance on July 29 and comedian Jim Gaffigan will perform on August 19. Still, the venue is mostly known for its musical variety extravaganza called “one: The Show.“ Playing throughout the summer, this year’s “one” features more than 20 new songs and dance numbers, covering genres such pop, rock, gospel and country.
With the purchase of an adult ticket, two kids under 16 can get in free every Monday, Wednesday and Friday through Labor Day.
Carolina Opry
Established in 1986, this Myrtle Beach venue is famous nationwide – it’s garnered press in USA Today, The New York Times and CNN. This summer, the Opry will be featuring “Good Vibrations,” which is billed as a 90-minute “virtual tour” of sixties, seventies and eighties pop music. On a sixties kick? Then get tickets to the Opry’s version of “Beatlemania” too!
Both these shows are in addition to the Opry’s award-winning musical revue, performed by the venue’s talented cast, and its laser light show, which covers themes like Classic Rock, Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd.
Legends in Concert
This tribute artist production has locations all over the country, but the Myrtle Beach venue has some great impersonators booked this summer. Some are predictable – Elvis, Michael Jackson – while others are more unusual – Aretha Franklin, ABBA.
Medieval Times
Take a trip to the 11th century by booking a show at Medieval Times. The event is essentially a themed dinner show; guests will be treated to a four-course meal, a slightly modern twist on a meat and potatoes dinner, while rooting on jousting knights. This is great for groups, especially for families, but definitely book early. Right now, the Myrtle Beach castle is running a promotion where guests get a free upgrade to the Royalty Package, which includes preferred seating and a commemorative program.
House of Blues
This North Myrtle Beach club hosts a wide variety of acts – artists like Peter Frampton, The Psychedelic Furs and Wiz Khalifa will be making appearances this summer. The House of Blues has some steady engagements as well, like its Gospel Brunch and Murder Mystery Dinners. The dinners are recommended for kids 13 and up, so it might be wise to leave the younger children at home for this one.
Pirates Voyage
The whole family can earn their sea legs by embarking on North Myrtle Beach’s newest show – Pirates Voyage. Similar to Medieval Times, guests feast on five courses while watching two rival pirate camps battle over treasure. This show is complete with a new score written by Dolly Parton.
Not sure which place to visit first? Let Vacation Rentals of North Myrtle Beach book a show for you. Be sure to visit the company’s bookings page – they have plenty of rentals in the North Myrtle Beach area. The dedicated staff will help all guests find the property that best suits their vacation needs.
Vacation Rentals of North Myrtle Beach is conveniently located at 1021 Second Avenue North, Suite 6 and can be contacted directly by calling 1.888.488.8588 or visiting its website: http://www.vacationrentalsofnmb.com.

Los Alamos Fire: 1st Air Samples Show No Elevated Radiation

The wildfire that surrounds the nuclear lab in Los Alamos, N.M., has grown to at least 61,000 acres amid mounting concerns about what might be in the smoke that's visible from space.
Such fear has prompted fire crews to set their own fires along the perimeter of the lab. So far, the strategy is working. The first air samples show lots of smoke, but no signs of elevated radiation.
"Those results show that what we see in this fire is exactly what we see in any fire across New Mexico," said Charles McMillan, the lab's director.
Environmental officials aren't taking any chances. The Environmental Protection Agency is bringing in dozens of air monitors all around the state, along with a special airplane that takes instant radiation samples. So far, officials have not been able to find anything amiss.
"Our facilities and nuclear material are protected and safe," McMillan told ABC News.
Some observers are worried not just about the barrels of nuclear waste stored at the lab, but also what's in the canyons that surround the sprawling complex. Nuclear tests were performed in the canyons dating back to the 1940s.
"The trees have grown up during that time frame and the soil could be contaminated," said Rita Bates of the New Mexico Environment Department. "If it gets heated and that stuff goes airborne, then we are concerned about that."
The canyons were a dumping ground for radioactive materials decades ago, but are now open to the public and are considered safe.
Still, one graduate student armed with a Geiger counter took to to show there was no shortage of metal or radioactivity.

The Other photos

/AP Photo

The Las Conchas fire burns near the Los

Los Alamos Wildfires: Detectors Checking the Air 

Los Alamos Wildfire Evacuation 

Nuclear Plant Evacuation Concerns 

Much of the area burned in the massive fire that blazed through the area in 2000, and no elevated levels of radiation were detected then.
PHOTOS: Los Alamos Wildfires Continue to Light Up Sky
The Los Alamos facility -- the birthplace of the atomic bomb -- was shrouded in secrecy long before it was surrounded by smoke after the Las Conchas fire began Sunday.
"It contains approximately 20,000 barrels of nuclear waste," former top security official Glen Walp said. "It's not contained within a concrete, brick-and-mortar-type building, but rather in a sort of fabric-type building that a fire could easily consume.
"Potential is high for a major calamity if the fire would reach these areas," he added.
The flames from the 108-square-mile fire reportedly have reached as close as 50 feet from the grounds. With a wildfire so close, lab officials, along with government officials such as New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez, are trying to reassure the public of the plant's safety.
"I'm confident in saying that they are committed to making it safe," Martinez told ABC News.
Thousands Evacuated, Some Remain
After a mass evacuation, the city of Los Alamos remains a ghost town. Most of its 12,000 residents were evacuated Monday, with some leaving their sprinklers on to protect their homes.
Still, according to Police Chief Wayne Torpy, about 150 die-hard residents have stayed behind, unfazed by the danger presented by their nuclear neighbor.
"I know the laboratory is secure and they're ready for this kind of emergency situation," Stephanie Chavez, a resident of Los Alamos, told ABC News.
Firefighters have made progress in the past few days, and have said that the risk of the flames reaching radioactive material is slim. Still, they cautioned that winds Wednesday could change, as could their level of confidence.
"It's a lot better that it's down," said Doug Tucker, chief of the Los Alamos Fire Department. "But we can't relax. It's better, but we can't relax quite yet."
The fire began around 1 p.m. Sunday, according to a report by InciWeb, which provides the "incident information system" and compiles information from government agencies. The report indicated that Sunday's weather conditions included high temperatures, low humidity and high winds, all of which contributed to the inferno.

$100 Billion Catalog Shopping Business Re-Imagined for iPads by TheFind

TheFind, a leading facilitator of online, mobile, and offline commerce and partner to thousands of stores and brands, today launched CATALOGUE – the only app that re-imagines the $100 billion catalog shopping experience for iPad and Android tablets. At launch, CATALOGUE includes the spring collections from national retailers, catalogs and brands that include Crate and Barrel, Williams Sonoma, Sephora, eBags, Stella & Dot, Sundance, Tea Collection, Uggs, and many others. Currently, CATALOGUES is focused on the brands and catalogs that match the early demographics of tablet ownership. As of the initial release, 30 catalogs are included in CATALOGUE, while TheFind is actively working with more than 70 titles, all of which are expected to appear in CATALOGUE within the next 30-60 days.
“Many retailers report that already half of what they consider to be mobile traffic is coming through tablet devices,” wrote Sucharita Mulpuru, vice president, principal analyst with Forrester Research, Inc. in the January 2011 report, Five Retail eCommerce Trends To Watch In 2011. “This is likely to lead to a new subset of mobile commerce: tablet commerce (you read it here first: T-commerce)…enabling easy browsing in a living room, during a bus commute to work, or at an airport.”
“We are very excited to partner with TheFind on creating a unique tablet shopping experience that leverages our strengths in merchandising with TheFind’s demonstrated capabilities in mobile and tablet commerce,” said John Seebeck, vice president of eCommerce for Crate and Barrel. “We’re impressed with how TheFind re-imagines the catalog shopping experience for the new and promising tablet medium.”
Backed by a patented and searchable index of some 500,000 stores and 450 million products, and buoyed by the success of its highly rated and popular mobile apps, which have been downloaded more than one million times, TheFind is uniquely positioned to deliver a tablet shopping experience that stimulates consumer demand across hundreds of stores with the sort of tactile discovery and inspiration that drives retailers’ existing paper catalog businesses.
“Even today, catalog shopping is a $100 billion business, with more than 20 billion catalogs being printed and delivered via the postal service to people’s homes,” said Siva Kumar, CEO of TheFind. “Retailers continue to invest in this business because they stimulate demand and inspire consumers in a way that no other medium has matched; but the emergence of tablets with their tactile approach and high resolution screens presents an opportunity to revolutionize and reinvent a massive retail channel.”
Beyond tablet shopping, Kumar noted that TheFind is also investing in a similar application for Facebook, recognizing a parallel opportunity to create a socially-curated shopping experience on tablet computers that leverages ‘Likes’ from Facebook and the deep index of TheFind’s CATALOGUE app for tablets.
CATALOGUE is available for free download at here: http://www.thefind.com/tablet as well as in the iTunes App Store, Android Market and Amazon app store.
About TheFind
TheFind makes it easy to shop, for anything you like, in every store, all at once. Made possible by patented search and discovery technology, TheFind is the fastest growing top-tier shopping engine and the one people return to more than any other according to comScore’s measure of comparison shopping engines. Ranked number 12 on the 2010 Inc. 500 list of fastest growing private companies, TheFind was founded in 2005, has been profitable since late 2008, and was venture funded by Bain Capital Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners and Redpoint Ventures. TheFind is a San Francisco and Silicon Valley-based company.

Walk-In Batch Oven Cures Composites for Aerospace Industry

Wisconsin Oven designed and manufactured a gas-fired walk-in batch oven to cure composite material for the aerospace industry. The customer manufactures various parts for several aircraft manufacturers. The oven is divided into two (2) independent chambers that are separated by a vertical lift door which can be opened to combine the chambers for curing long parts. The front section of the composite curing oven has a useable chamber length of 25’0”and the rear section has a useable chamber length of 20’0”. When the center door is open the curing oven has an overall useable chamber length of 45’0”. The oven was designed with the capacity to heat a 3,500 pound load (per oven section) of composite material and steel structure from 70° to 300° F within one (1) hour when loaded into an ambient oven.
The composite curing oven has total chamber dimensions of 12’0” wide x 46’0” long x 8’0” high and a maximum operating temperature of 500º F. The composite curing oven is constructed with 6” thick tongue and groove panel assemblies and 20 gauge aluminized steel interiors and ductwork. Each individual chamber utilizes a 1,500,000 BTU per hour industrial air heat burner including a motorized gas control valve, flame detector and flame relay with alarm horn. The front chamber recirculation system has a 37,000 CFM @ 30 HP blower and the rear chamber has a 30,000 CFM @ 25 HP blower. A combination airflow design was used to maximize heating rates and temperature uniformity.
The industrial batch oven is specifically designed with composite curing features for precise temperature and pressure control. The exhaust features motorized dampers on both the fresh air inlet and the exhaust outlet for enhanced heating and cooling capabilities. The vacuum system has a total of eighty (80) interior vacuum stubs and forty (40) vacuum ports located throughout the oven. The oven also has eighty (80) type “J” thermocouple jacks and a jack panel wired to the data acquisition system for control and recording. All of these composite curing features provide the customer with the ability to closely monitor part temperatures for a high quality cure. For more information on composite curing ovens visit our website.
The customer required a 60-point (30 points per chamber) temperature uniformity survey for +/-10°F at 300°F as required by testing requirements for AMS2705D Class 2 furnaces. The oven has a UL certified NEMA 12 control enclosure with IEC style motor starters, push buttons, and pilot lights.
For further details on this equipment, or to work with The Wisconsin Oven Corporation on another application, call Jim Lucas at (262) 642-6010, or by email at jlucas(at)wisoven(dot)com. To request a quote for a composite curing oven please visit the website and fill out the online batch survey questionnaire with equipment specifications.

Therapist's New Self-Empowerment E-book Helps To 'Have the Life You Want'

Self-help books are common, but how many are written by currently-practicing, experienced psychotherapists? How many of these are 20-year HIV survivors who are marking the 30th anniversary of AIDS by sharing tips for optimal living that apply to everyone? Popular Los Angeles psychotherapist, life/business coach, and motivational speaker Ken Howard, LCSW, announces the launch of his new e-book for Amazon Kindle, Apple iBook, Barnes and Noble Nook, and other e-book readers, “Self-Empowerment: Have the Life You Want”: the “portable psychotherapist” for the problems you face today.
The innovative self-help e-book, for a general adult audience, teaches people how to “close the gap between how life is and how you would like it to be,” in important areas such as mental health, health, career, finances, family, community and spirituality. Poignant anecdotes make every lesson come alive.   
The book is based on nearly two decades of Howard’s experiences in his psychotherapy and coaching practice, working with thousands of individuals and couples in Los Angeles, California. The theme of his practice is self-empowerment, and he teaches tools for optimal living to survive and thrive after setbacks, barriers, and losses.
“No matter where you are, no matter what’s going on for you, you survey the landscape of your life and ask yourself, What can I do to move things to the next level? Where are the gaps between how I live now, and what optimal living would be for me?” he says. “Then, you empower yourself by using your internal and external resources to close those gaps.”
Thomas Kerrihard, MD, a prominent psychiatrist, calls Self-Empowerment, “Direct and accessible...which reveals a deep understanding of the process toward a self-empowered life….comprehensive…well-balanced and clinically-informed strategies…a thoughtful and sensitively-written book.”
Howard’s book has words of wisdom for each focus area, which he calls the “domains of life.” He adds a cautionary tale to each chapter in a section called “Challenges,” which tells you what to avoid if you’re going to be successful at closing those gaps. A case study success story concludes each chapter, based on real people in Howard’s practice (amalgamated to protect client-therapist confidentiality).   
Howard is most well-known for his work in the gay community. A survivor living with HIV for over 20 years, he was named one of the Top Ten “Dedicated and Deserving” Social Workers of the Year for 2011 by Social Work Today magazine for his work counseling people with HIV/AIDS, especially those who are newly-diagnosed and just coming to terms with managing a long-term, chronic disease.
Trained as a psychiatric social worker at the University of Southern California School of Social Work, Howard’s websites include HaveTheLifeYouWant.com, GayTherapyLA.com, and PozTherapist.com. Podcast episodes based on “Have the Life You Want” are available on iTunes, Zune, Podcast Alley, and other podcast providers. The e-book is available in Amazon Kindle format, BarnesandNoble.com, and Apple iBook via iTunes. Hardcover and paperback editions of the book are forthcoming.
Howard can be reached at KBHMSW(at)aol(dot)com.

P&G Pet Care's Four-Legged V.P. Of Canine Communications, Euka, Will Retire After 56 Dog Years of Loyal Service

Procter & Gamble (P&G) Pet Care announced today that Euka, its V.P. of Canine Communications since 2003, will retire next spring after a good, long run of dedicated service. The 9-years-young Labrador, along with other members of her leadership team, conducted an extensive search for the best replacement and one dog stood out and met all of the specific job requirements. He’s an energetic, 6-month old Petit Basset Griffon Vendeen (PBGV). For the next 10 months, Euka will be putting this little guy through his paces as he learns about his new responsibilities associated with serving as the ambassador for Iams and Eukanuba. Before all of that begins, this pup needs a name, so the leading pet food brands are turning to Facebook fans for help, and in return donating funds to an important cause.
Beginning today, visit either http://www.facebook.com/iams or http://www.facebook.com/eukanuba and suggest a name for this new 4-legged hire. Names will be accepted until July 7, 2011 at midnight EDT. A team of pet-naming aficionados at P&G Pet Care will choose the top five names and unleash a Facebook poll for voting July 11-18. The name that receives the most “Likes” during the polling period will win-out, with an announcement being posted on the Facebook pages July 19. For every name suggestion and resulting “Like” from June 29 through July 18, P&G Pet Care will donate $1 (up to $10,000) to America's VetDogs.
"Euka has touched the lives of so many during her tenure with us, and we’ll really miss her after she retires next April," said Vicki Seiler, external relations associate, P&G Pet Care. “But she’s going to take the training of this young PBGV seriously, and she definitely has a lot to teach him before he flies solo in his new role: making appearances around the globe, earning his champion title and becoming certified as a Canine Good Citizen and Therapy dog…and that’s just year one.”
If there’s a dog that deserves some R&R after years of dedication and hard work, it’s Euka. Since joining the team in the summer of 2003, she’s been the official greeter of office visitors, represented Iams and Eukanuba at corporate events and industry activities, supervised numerous shelter make-overs and visited school children to help educate them about the importance of animals and how best to take care of them. In 2004, her celebrity really took off when she became a national “cover dog” by appearing on Fortune Magazine with P&G CEO at the time, A.G. Lafley.
Euka’s training program for her replacement has begun and everyone is anxious to start calling this new employee by a permanent name. Seiler continued, “We’ve had this puppy for a couple weeks now and have had a lot of fun getting to know him, but when we started talking about what to call him, we said: ‘Who better to name our newest vice president than our Iams and Eukanuba Facebook friends?’ We'll be posting photos and videos so everyone can get to know him a little before sharing their suggestions, but when they see him, we’re sure they’ll fall in love with his face too like we all did.”
Visit http://www.facebook.com/iams or http://www.facebook.com/eukanuba to suggest a name for P&G Pet Care’s new V.P. of Canine Communications and help raise money for a good pet cause.
About P&G Pet Care
For more than 60 years, P&G Pet Care (NYSE:PG), the maker of Iams and Eukanuba, has enhanced the well-being of dogs and cats by providing world-class quality foods and pet care products. To learn more about Eukanuba® and Iams® Dog & Cat Foods or general pet care and nutrition information, call the Iams Consumer Care Center at (800) 446-3075. You can also visit us on the Web at http://www.iams.com.
About Procter & Gamble
Four billion times a day, P&G brands touch the lives of people around the world. The company has one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands, including Pampers®, Tide®, Ariel®, Always®, Whisper®, Pantene®, Mach3®, Bounty®, Dawn®, Gain®, Pringles®, Charmin®, Downy®, Lenor®, Iams®, Crest®, Oral-B®, Duracell®, Olay®, Head & Shoulders®, Wella®, Gillette®, Braun® and Fusion®. The P&G community includes approximately 127,000 employees working in about 80 countries worldwide. Please visit http://www.pg.com for the latest news and in-depth information about P&G and its brands.

RobotWorx CEO Donates $50K for New OSUM Science Building

Keith Wanner, CEO of industrial robot company RobotWorx, and his wife, Joan, have pledged $50K to The Ohio State University at Marion, Ohio. The funds will go towards the building of a new science facility on the OSU Marion regional campus.
“OSU is such an incredible institution,” Wanner said. “We’re very happy to have the opportunity to contribute to this exciting project.”
Wanner graduated from The Ohio State University in 1979 with a welding engineering degree. He went on to establish a robotics integration business based out of Marion. Even now, he remains connected to OSU with three engineering grads holding major management positions at the company.
The education Wanner received from OSU inspired and informed his entrepreneurialism and love of technology. With this donation, the alum has a chance to give back and open up new opportunities for future science students. Wanner is a strong advocate of science education because he believes it has a dramatic impact on American manufacturing.
“Now, more than ever before, our nation is in need of highly skilled workers,” Wanner said. “The future of the robotics industry alone depends on it. That’s why I make it a priority to support STEM education at the local level whenever possible.”
Located in close proximity to the campus’ Larry Yoder Prairie Nature Center, the new OSUM facility will house biology, zoology, botany, chemistry, physics, and geology labs. Construction of the new, eco-friendly science building is currently scheduled for 2012.
About RobotWorx:
RobotWorx has been integrating industrial robots since 1992. A FANUC Authorized System Integrator, Motoman Solution Provider, and KUKA Robotics Partner, RobotWorx designs and builds workcells for a number of applications, including arc welding, cutting, material handling, machine tending, dispensing, and assembly. Visit http://www.robots.com or call 740-383-8383 for additional information about RobotWorx.

Doubts cast over DNA evidence in Amanda Knox murder case

In a report ordered by the appeal judge, two independent forensic experts disputed part of the evidence used to convict Knox and co-defendant Raffaele Sollecito, Knox's ex-boyfriend, of the murder of British student Meredith Kercher, TG24 reported Wednesday, citing a leaked court review.
The original case was told Knox's DNA was found on the knife believed to be the murder weapon and traces of Kercher's DNA were found on the blade.

But the report, originally due to be made public Thursday, found the genetic profile attributed to Kercher is "unreliable" and results may have been contaminated.
The report also suggested that traces of Sollecito's DNA found on the clasp of Kercher's bra strap could have come from atmospheric contamination and pointed to mistakes in the tests.
"The international procedures for inspection, protocol and collection of evidence were not followed" for both the bra clasp and the knife, the forensic experts said.
The 23-year-old Knox is serving 26 years for the crime, while Sollecito was sentenced to 25 years. Both deny involvement in the 2007 killing of Kercher.
A third person, Rudy Guede, was also convicted of Kercher's murder and of sexually assaulting the British student. He testified Monday that Knox and Sollecito were to blame for Kercher's murder.
Guede has admitted to being present at the time of the killing, however he denies murder.
Prosecutors said Kercher was killed by Knox, Sollecito and Guede as part of a drug-fueled sexual assault. Her body was found in a pool of blood in the house in Perugia which she shared with Knox

Greece passes steep cuts as riots seize capital

ATHENS, Greece (AP) -- Greece fended off a bankruptcy that threatened to roil global financial markets, approving severe spending cuts and tax increases Wednesday in the face of violent protests by Greeks who say they have suffered enough.
The package of austerity measures would keep bailout money flowing to Greece from other European countries and the International Monetary Fund. It would free $17 billion in fresh loans, although the money will only be enough to see the nation through September.
Investors around the world cheered the news, but protesters, fighting tear gas, hurled whatever they could find at riot police and tried to blockade the Parliament building.
"This is bad. The country will be sold for a piece of bread," said insurer Dimitris Kostopoulos. "There were many other more appropriate alternatives to this. Parliament has once again betrayed us."
Public sector salaries and pensions have been cut in the past year, and unemployment is above 16 percent. By comparison, it is about 9 percent in the United States.
Parliament approved $40 billion in tax increases and spending cuts, and privatization of public services to raise $71 billion more, all through 2015. Greece's overall economic output is about $330 billion, or roughly the size of Washington state's.
The $17 billion in loans are the latest batch in a $157 billion bailout by the European Union and the IMF. Parliament is expected to pass another bill Thursday to implement the austerity measures.
Without the bailout money, Greece was at risk of default. While no one knows for sure what would have happened next, analysts have said it would have threatened the viability of the euro, the European Union's common currency, and could have done much worse.
Some market experts had predicted a Greek default could have trigged another world financial meltdown, like what happened after the Lehman Brothers investment house collapsed in 2008 in the United States.
The risk is that banks, both in Europe and the U.S., would have had to chalk up billions of dollars in losses because of Greek loans that had gone bad. No one knows which U.S. banks hold what amount of Greek debt.
On Sunday, European finance ministers will meet in Brussels to work on a second bailout for Greece, expected to be similar in size to the first, in hopes of shoring up its finances beyond just a few months.
Banks are expected to share some of the burden. One way would be for banks to repurchase Greek bonds after they expire, as French banks have indicated they may do. Many economists still expect it won't be enough.
"We must avoid the country's collapse with every effort," Prime Minister George Papandreou said before the vote. "Outside, many are protesting. Some are truly suffering. Others are losing their privileges. It is their democratic right. But they and no one else must never suffer the consequences ... of a collapse."
More protests could undermine the government's ability to implement the harsh austerity measures, which tax even the lowest-paid Greeks and raise prices during a recession.
"They are not out of the water just yet," said Carl Campus, an analyst at BMO Capital Markets.
The cuts and tax increases passed 155-138, with five voting "present" and backing neither side. During the vote, stun grenades echoed across a square outside Parliament. Acrid clouds of tear gas and orange and green smoke-bomb mist hung in the air.
Several banks and storefronts were smashed, while a Socialist dissenter who backed the government at the last minute, Alexandros Athanassiadis, was briefly assaulted by protesters after leaving Parliament on foot.
Violence continued throughout the afternoon, and smoke billowed from a post office beneath the finance ministry before a fire was put out. Rioters set up burning barricades along Syntagma Square, where demonstrators have staged a sit-in for the past month. Nearby streets were littered with chunks of smashed marble and ripped-up paving stones that had been thrown at police.
A general strike that began Tuesday paralyzed the country, grounding planes, leaving ferries docked and stranding tourists during the busy summer season.

By Wednesday night, police said 49 officers had been injured, one seriously when he was hit in the face by a chunk of marble. Forty-three protesters were detained, with 17 of them arrested. Emergency services said they had treated 99 protesters and passers-by for injuries.
Dozens of injured were treated at a first-aid center set up inside the square's metro station. Most were treated for breathing problems, contusions and broken bones, volunteers at the first aid center said, appealing for medical supplies.
Across Europe, officials hailed the vote as an act of "national responsibility" and urged Greek lawmakers to follow up with another positive vote Thursday.
"That's really good news," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on her way out of an economic forum in Berlin. Germany is Greece's biggest creditor.
Relief was the main response in markets, too. Soon after the vote, the euro rose against other world currencies, including to $1.44 against the American dollar. Stock markets around the world were posting big gains.
Christopher Torchia, Menelaos Hadjicostis and Demetris Nellas in Athens and Geir Moulson in Berlin contributed.

Trinitarian Theologian Offers Alternate Resolution To Southern Baptist Convention on Rob Bell's "Love Wins"

Jason Pratt, an apologist for trinitarian theism and the historical reliability of the Gospels, takes exception to the recent Southern Baptist Convention Resolution "On The Reality Of Hell"--while affirming the reality of hell! He offers an alternate resolution, “On The Reality Of The Victory Of God’s Love And Justice”, which comments further on each of the original Resolution's citations. Pratt calls for Arminian, Calvinistic and Universalist Southern Baptists to respectfully discuss the issues among themselves; and to not promote false information about Rob Bell's "Love Wins". 

“It’s strange: for a Resolution supposedly addressing Rob Bell’s "Love Wins", there isn’t a single indication in it that the framers even read his book!”
In mid-June of 2011, a majority of representatives to the Southern Baptist Convention, meeting in Phoenix, Arizona, agreed to a Resolution “On the Reality of Hell” (the text of which can be found at SBC.net.)
The resolution opens with an acknowledgment that popular pastor Rob Bell’s "Love Wins" has been making waves challenging “the church’s historical teaching on the doctrine of eternal punishment of the unregenerate”, by which the Resolution explicitly means “conscious, eternal suffering” of “the unconverted”.
After nine brief prooftexting elements, the Resolution concludes by “implor[ing] Southern Baptists to proclaim faithfully the depth and gravity of sin against a holy God, the reality of Hell, and the salvation of sinners by God’s grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone, to the glory of God alone.”
Jason Pratt, a Southern Baptist Christian apologist, isn’t impressed.
“The implication is that Rob doesn’t do all that in his book. But he absolutely does, on every point the Resolution implores about!
“What Rob also does, though, is teach God’s original persistence to save sinners from sin--just as Calvinists affirm. And he teaches the scope of God’s action to save sinners--just as Arminians affirm.
"That’s why technically Rob is a universalistic Christian, and not a Calvinistic nor (any longer) an Arminianistic Christian: because he agrees too much with both Calvinists and Arminians!
“But he is still a Christian,” Pratt insists. “And a Christian preacher, including in 'Love Wins'. He very strongly proclaims the salvation of sinners by God’s grace alone, through faith alone, in Jesus Christ alone, to the glory of God alone.
"That’s the key message to his whole book--including for his hope that this salvation from sinners doesn’t stop at death. It’s maximally evangelical, not only partially so.”
Pratt converted to Christian universalism himself in early 2000, long before even hearing of Rob Bell, or any other modern Christian universalists. Having extensively studied the Judeo-Christian canon, he takes issue with the prooftext list in the Resolution.
“I’m sure they were trying to simplify it down for a popular audience,” he allows. “But in doing so they’re ignoring the context of a lot of those references.
"It’s even a little humorous: several of those references actually testify to things like the salvation of rebel angels sometime after the Second Coming of Christ, and to Christ’s imprisonment of people who refused to bring hope of salvation to people being punished by Christ in prison!
“But while it’s funny,” he adds, “it’s also very seriously misleading to people. Defenders of eternal conscious torment, or of annihilationism, each appeal to contexts. But in my experience, I have found that universalists are the ones keeping the most contexts in mind--even though universalists do have sloppy defenders, too, sometimes.”
Pratt has composed an alternate Resolution, “On The Reality Of The Victory Of The Love And Justice Of God”, addressing each of the texts mentioned in the original Resolution, but more thoroughly so. “Obviously it’s longer: I’m going into more detail,” he explains. “But it’s only six and a half pages. I could have gone on for hundreds of pages!”
Pratt’s counter-Resolution invites readers to search into matters for themselves concerning the contexts of the unforgivable sin, the judgment of the sheep and the goats, the judgment of the lake of fire, and the topic of salvation from sin after death.
He wishes readers to resolve “not to bear false witnesss against Rob Bell”, and “to discuss and disagree respectfully among ourselves, whether Calvinistic, Arminianistic, or Universalistic, the scope and/or persistence of God’s great salvation of sinners from sin.”
Jason also invites Southern Baptist readers to visit the home page of this alternate Resolution (http://www.evangelicaluniversalist.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=1875 ) and register to show support for it.
Jason Pratt has been teaching trinitarian theology and historical Christian apologetics for years as an invited guest author at the Christian Cadre Journal, and at the Evangelical Universalist forum. His 800+ page philosophical apologetic for trinitarian theism (leading to an expectation of historical Christianity) can be found for free at both sites; as can his 480 page Gospel harmonization project (with historical apologetic notes). His epic fantasy novel "Cry of Justice" won the 2008 retailer-poll award for Novel of the Year from the Christian Small Publishers’ Association; a hard-back dust-jacketed edition can be ordered from most online stores including Amazon, B&N, Target and Wal-Mart. His 105 page informal critique and commentary of Rob Bell’s Love Wins can be found for free download as “The Prodigal Gospel of Rob Bell”

“If a child has swallowed something bad, should you let it drink, or should you let it vomit?” The new iPhone app Binkie for quick first aid.

“If a child has swallowed something bad, should you let it drink, or should you let it vomit?”

The new iPhone app Binkie for quick first aid.

It’s always frightening for any new parent when their child is in pain, has fallen or has swallowed something bad. The perfect iPhone app has been developed especially for this group: Binkie. Binkie provides quick answers to the most pressing question when something like that happens: what should I do?

Anyone who wants medical advice can find a myriad of

information on the internet. The same is true of the current medical apps. They are not really user-friendly because they do not provide what you really need at those moments. Parents of a sick child do not want extensive information, but want to know what they must do to help. Binkie has been developed to answer precisely that question!

From symptom to action
Binkie lists no less than 68 diseases and types of accidents that can happen to young children.

The application starts with the symptom: these are listed alphabetically, but can also be found by clicking on Binkie’s body parts. Binkie then asks questions and shows pictures of various symptoms that help you to identify the complaint. The parent is told what he or she must do and when a doctor should be called. Binkie also offers the possibility of storing important emergency telephone numbers, such as those of the general practitioner and pharmacy, so they can be called immediately. Binkie is not intended as a replacement for the general practitioner, but as a first, practical port of call for parents, grandparents, carers, teachers or childminders.

Made for and by young parents

Binkie is different because the app was created by young parents: Wessel Tiessens and Inge Koolen. Inge’s dissatisfaction with the scarce visual information in the booklets provided by the health clinic gave her the idea for an app. Inge Koolen: “As young parents, you’re often faced by questions that need an immediate and clear answer. But you don’t necessarily want to go to the general practitioner or hospital, especially not during the weekend. In those cases it would be helpful to be able to check, using photos, what for instance those red spots might be.”

Wessel turned with this idea to his colleagues, Christian Loncle and Danny Gorter, also parents of young children. Together they had just started the Dutch Application Company, in the spring of 2010, a development company for mobile applications. Because Christian’s wife Linda is a general practitioner, she was involved from the start to bring her knowledge to the development of Binkie. Linda Loncle: “Every single day in my practice I meet parents who worry about their child. Quite often, simple actions or facts might make life a lot easier for these parents and their child. There’s the internet, of course, but that usually gives too much information. Or it doesn’t tell you what you need to do. Should I go to the doctor or should I wait and see? That’s what parents want to know.” The Smartphone application Binkie answers these questions.

Dutch Application Company
Dutch Application Company develops and produces mobile applications for both businesses and consumers. The company is a start-up of Danny Gorter, former
CFO of Ortel, Christian Loncle, formerly IT manager at KPN Mobiel and Telfort, and Wessel Tiessens, who worked as an independent entrepreneur in (area) marketing and concept development.

The Dutch Application Company develops mobile applications that strengthen and improve company strategies. The Dutch Application Company not only develops nice, new ‘gadgets’ but creates mobile solutions with added value.
In addition, the company develops applications for both the consumer market as the B2B market, at its own risk, but also with other parties. Dutch Applications Company produces the business case, the creative concept and takes care of marketing and promotion campaigns.

Binkie in bullets

Binkie
 Practical information about no less than 68 complaints that may affect children
 A direct answer to the question: what should I do?
 Photos that help you to recognize the complaint
 Developed in consultation with general practitioners

 Link to medical telephone numbers that you can enter yourself
 Costs only €2,39
More info on http://bit.ly/binkieapp

Short description of Binkie

Binkie tells you what to do if your child is ill or has an accident

This practical iPhone app provides an immediate answer to the question what you should do if your child has been wounded, is ill or has swallowed something bad. A clever menu, supported by photographs, helps you to recognize the complaint quickly. No less than 68 complaints are included. Binkie has been tested by general practitioners and offers you the possibility of entering your own medical telephone numbers. Put your mind at rest for only € 2,39

Android app offers Wi-Fi hacking of Facebook accounts

Sometimes seeing is believing. The FaceNiff Android app, released earlier this month, allows anyone to snoop on traffic on Wi-Fi networks and even hijack Facebook accounts. Sounds bad, but this video demo drives the message home by showing just how easy it is to do:

The app, which works on Android phones that have been rooted, offers "one-touch hacking," says Kevin Mahaffey, founder and chief technology officer at mobile security firm Lookout. The technique isn't new--it's akin to a mobile version of the Firesheep Firefox extension released last year--but it makes it super easy and mobile.
"Even on encrypted Wi-Fi networks the app can do ARP (address resolution protocol) spoofing where it advertises itself as the MAC address of the router to try to get the computers on the network to send traffic through the device," Mahaffey says.
And it's not just for Facebook account hijacking. The developer is broadening the app so it can be used to target accounts on Twitter, YouTube, Amazon, and Polish social-networking site Nasza-Klasa.
To protect against this type of attack you should use SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) encrypted communications by either typing in "https://" before the Web address or setting SSL as a default on the Web sites you visit often. For instance, in Facebook you do this by clicking "Account Settings" under "Account" drop-down menu in the upper right corner, then clicking "Account Security" and checking the "Secure Browsing (https)" box. And if the site doesn't support "https" use a Virtual Private Network if you can.
Even though tools like this can be harmful in the wrong hands, researchers typically release programs that exploit security weaknesses to alert Web surfers to the problem so they can protect themselves and to prompt Web sites to offer SSL support.

Obama Campaign Signals Fundraising Fail

The Obama campaign appears to be signaling that its fundraising totals for the second quarter of the year – the first since President Obama announced for reelection – will not be as robust as the campaign would like.
In an email to campaign supporters today, President Obama unmistakably sought to downplay money.
Campaign officials revealed during the last week that they have set a target of raising $60 million for the quarter from at least 450,000 donors.
But even $60 million would not seem to be a very ambitious goal for Obama. He raised the same amount during the second quarter of 2007, just after he announced his 2008 campaign.
The campaign is hoping to raise up to $1 billion total for the 2012 election.
The email reiterates a call for donors to give at least $5 in order to be automatically entered into a raffle for dinner with Obama and Vice President Biden.
* Bolding is mine, not the campaign’s.

Lightning Kills 22 Students, Teacher in Uganda

Twenty-two students and a teacher died when lightning struck their school in Uganda, officials said.

Another 51 students, aged 7 to 16 were injured in the freak strike 160 miles northwest of Kampala, said local police spokeswoman Zura Ganyana.

Lightning strikes in recent weeks have killed at least 38 people around the country in recent weeks, as  unseasonably heavy storms have ravaged the area. Experts said the school was prone because it is on high ground and does not have a lighting conductor to ground strikes.

Another lightning strike injured 37 students at a school 200 miles away, officials said.

One member of parliament called the situation a crisis.

"I don't know which minister is in charge of the lightning but let the government come up with a statement to inform the country on what is going on and how we can manage it," Parliament Speaker Rebecca Kadaga told Reuters.

Uganda's Minister of State for Disaster Preparedness Musa Ecweru told the BBC the deaths could be blamed on buildings not having lightning rods.

"There are very many schools and brand new health centres which are lacking lightning arrestors," Mr Ecweru said.

Riyadh will build nuclear weapons if Iran gets them, Saudi prince warns

A senior Saudi Arabian diplomat and member of the ruling royal family has raised the spectre of nuclear conflict in the Middle East if Iran comes close to developing a nuclear weapon.
Prince Turki al-Faisal, a former Saudi intelligence chief and ambassador to Washington, warned senior Nato military officials that the existence of such a device "would compel Saudi Arabia … to pursue policies which could lead to untold and possibly dramatic consequences".
He did not state explicitly what these policies would be, but a senior official in Riyadh who is close to the prince said yesterday his message was clear.
"We cannot live in a situation where Iran has nuclear weapons and we don't. It's as simple as that," the official said. "If Iran develops a nuclear weapon, that will be unacceptable to us and we will have to follow suit."
Officials in Riyadh said that Saudi Arabia would reluctantly push ahead with its own civilian nuclear programme. Peaceful use of nuclear power, Turki said, was the right of all nations.
Turki was speaking earlier this month at an unpublicised meeting at RAF Molesworth, the airbase in Cambridgeshire used by Nato as a centre for gathering and collating intelligence on the Middle East and the Mediterranean.
According to a transcript of his speech obtained by the Guardian, Turki told his audience that Iran was a "paper tiger with steel claws" that was "meddling and destabilising" across the region.
"Iran … is very sensitive about other countries meddling in its affairs. But it should treat others like it expects to be treated. The kingdom expects Iran to practise what it preaches," Turki said.
Turki holds no official post in Saudi Arabia but is seen as an ambassador at large for the kingdom and a potential future foreign minister,
Diplomatic cables obtained by WikiLeaks and published by the Guardian last year revealed that King Abdullah, who has ruled Saudi Arabia since 2005, had privately warned Washington in 2008 that if Iran developed nuclear weapons "everyone in the region would do the same, including Saudi Arabia".
Saudi Arabian diplomats and officials have launched a serious campaign in recent weeks to rally global and regional powers against Iran, fearful that their country's larger but poorer regional rival is exploiting the Arab Spring to gain influence in the region and within the kingdom itself.
Turki also accused Iran of interfering in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and in the Gulf state of Bahrain, where Saudi troops were deployed this year as part of a Gulf Co-operation Council force following widespread protests from those calling for greater democratic rights.
Though there has previously been little public comment from Riyadh on developments in Syria, Turki told his audience at Molesworth that President Bashar al-Assad "will cling to power till the last Syrian is killed".
Syria presents a dilemma for Saudi policymakers: although they would prefer not to see popular protest unseat another regime in the region, they view the Damascus regime, which is dominated by members of Syria's Shia minority, as a proxy for Iran.
"The loss of life [in Syria] in the present internal struggle is deplorable. The government is woefully deficient in its handling of the situation," Turki said at the Molesworth meeting, which took place on 8 June.
Though analysts say demonstrations in Bahrain were not sectarian in nature, two senior Saudi officials in Riyadh said this week that Tehran had mobilised the largely Shia protesters against the Sunni rulers of the Gulf state. Iran has a predominantly Shia population. Around 15% of Saudis are Shia. The officials described this minority, which suffers extensive discrimination despite recent attempts at reform, as "vulnerable to external influence".
Though there has been negligible unrest internally, Saudi Arabia has been shaken by the events across the Arab world in recent months and has watched anxiously as a number of allies – such as President Hosni Mubarak – have been ousted or have found themselves in grave difficulties. President Ali Abdullah Saleh of Yemen is being treated in a Saudi Arabian hospital for wounds caused by a mysterious blast that forced him to leave his country this month.
The former Tunisian ruler Zine al-Abedine ben Ali, whose relations with Riyadh were complex, is reported to have been housed in a luxurious villa in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah after he fled his homeland for Saudi Arabia.
Saudi officials admitted that decision-makers in Saudi Arabia were "not keen" on demonstrators ousting governments, but said they were "even less keen on killing and massacres".
Turki also warned that al-Qaida has been able to create "a sanctuary not unlike Pakistan's tribal areas" in Yemen.
Saudi Arabian foreign policy historically has been pro-western, although differences have emerged with the United States in recent years. The Arab Spring has also caused some tension, with the deployment of troops in Bahrain opposed by Washington.
There has also been conflict following western charges that the kingdom has exported radical strands of Islam around the Muslim world.Turki said that "in all areas, Islam must play a central yet development role" and insisted that "closer monitoring" now ensured that funds raised in the kingdom "were not misused".
Internally, Saudi Arabia faced problems because of the youthfulness of its population, radicalism and different sectarian identities, Turki said.
Senior officials at the ministry of interior in Riyadh said that Iran was using ideology to "penetrate" the Arabian peninsula "in the same way al-Qaida did".
Turki also reiterated a long-standing Saudi call for a nuclear free zone in the Middle East, which would include both Iran and Israel and would be enforced by the United Nations security council.
The prince said sanctions against Iran were working. He welcomed the consensus in Washington that military strikes against Tehran would be counterproductive.
Analysts said that Turki's words about developing nuclear arms may have been intended to focus western attention on Saudi concerns about their regional rival rather than to indicate any kind of definite decision by Riyadh because the practical and diplomatic obstacles of doing so would be immense.
William Hague, Britain's foreign secretary said that Iran has recently conducted covert tests of ballistic missiles as well as at least three secret tests of medium-range ballistic missiles since October.
Iran and the west remain in dispute over its nuclear programme. The US and its allies insist Tehran aims to develop atomic weapons, a charge that Iran rejects.

North Korea shuts down universities for 10 months

Pyongyang has told the North Korean people that the nation will have achieved its aim of becoming "a great, prosperous and powerful nation" in 2012, which marks the 100th anniversary of the founder of the reclusive state, Kim Il-sung.

In addition, Kim Jong-il will turn 70 in February and the "Dear Leader" hopes to be able to transfer his power and an economically stronger nation to his son and heir-apparent, Kim Jong-Un.

Reports in South Korea indicated that the government in Pyongyang on Monday ordered all universities to cancel classes until April of next year. The only exemptions are for students who will be graduating in the next few months and foreign students.

The reports suggested that the students will be put to work on construction projects in major cities while there are also indications that repair work may be needed in agricultural regions that were affected by a major typhoon recently.

Analysts in Japan claim there may be other reasons behind the decision to disperse the students across the country.

Los Alamos Fire: 1st Air Samples Show No Elevated Radiation

The wildfire that surrounds the nuclear lab in Los Alamos, N.M., has grown to at least 61,000 acres amid mounting concerns about what might be in the smoke that's visible from space.
Such fear has prompted fire crews to set their own fires along the perimeter of the lab. So far, the strategy is working. The first air samples show lots of smoke, but no signs of elevated radiation.
"Those results show that what we see in this fire is exactly what we see in any fire across New Mexico," said Charles McMillan, the lab's director.
Environmental officials aren't taking any chances. The Environmental Protection Agency is bringing in dozens of air monitors all around the state, along with a special airplane that takes instant radiation samples. So far, officials have not been able to find anything amiss.
"Our facilities and nuclear material are protected and safe," McMillan told ABC News.
Some observers are worried not just about the barrels of nuclear waste stored at the lab, but also what's in the canyons that surround the sprawling complex. Nuclear tests were performed in the canyons dating back to the 1940s.
"The trees have grown up during that time frame and the soil could be contaminated," said Rita Bates of the New Mexico Environment Department. "If it gets heated and that stuff goes airborne, then we are concerned about that."
The canyons were a dumping ground for radioactive materials decades ago, but are now open to the public and are considered safe.
Still, one graduate student armed with a Geiger counter took to YouTube to show there was no shortage of metal or radioactivity.