WASHINGTON (AP) — Three federal judges have expressed skepticism about whether the Texas Legislature’s new Republican-friendly political maps violate a federal law aimed at protecting minorities.

Attorneys for the U.S. Justice Department and the state of Texas made their closing arguments Tuesday in Washington. Texas is one of nine states with a history of racial discrimination that must get federal permission to make changes to election laws under the Voting Rights Act.

It’s unclear when the judges will rule.

The Justice Department and a coalition of minority groups argue lawmakers recut several districts to dilute minority voting power. The state denies the claim and maintains the new districts were designed to solidify and improve Republican chances.

Texas is adding four seats to its congressional delegation because of adjustments made in the 2010 census.

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MIAMI (AP) — LeBron James and Dwyane Wade each scored 22 points, Mike Miller added 14 off the bench and the Miami Heat shook off a slow start to run away from the New Orleans Hornets 109-95 on Monday night.

James added 11 rebounds and eight assists for Miami, which won for the eighth time in nine games and ended up with six players in double figures. Chris Bosh and Norris Cole each scored 12 for the Heat, and Mario Chalmers added 11.

Miami was down 45-33 midway through the second quarter, then outscored New Orleans 76-50 the rest of the way.

Jarrett Jack and Carl Landry each scored 14 for New Orleans, which lost for the 17th time in 19 games after a 2-0 start. Emeka Okafor scored 13 points and Greivis Vasquez added 11 for the Hornets, who only managed 25 rebounds – the lowest total in the NBA this season. Miami had 39 rebounds, and James had more by himself than any two Hornets combined.

There were all sorts of indicators suggesting that Miami would get off to a less-than-ideal start.

It was Miami’s third game in four nights, though all were at home. Monday’s tip-off came about 24 hours after Sunday’s down-to-the-wire epic against Chicago, where the Heat win wasn’t secure until 0.1 seconds remained. And the second night of back-to-backs have been trouble all season for Miami, which had been 3-3 in those contests – including both of its home defeats, those coming against Atlanta and Milwaukee.

So sure enough, the Heat started slowly – and found themselves in a 12-point hole against a team with the worst record in the Western Conference.

New Orleans made 10 of its first 11 shots, then used a 16-6 run in the second quarter to build what was a 45-33 lead after Xavier Henry connected on a 3-pointer. With that, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra called time-out.

Whatever he said in that huddle worked wonders.

When play resumed, Wade got going, and the game changed for good. Wade scored 11 straight Miami points to erase the deficit almost single-handedly – 13 out of 15 points as well, assisting a basket by James to account for the other two – and the Heat went into halftime up 51-49.

They were just getting started.

Less than a minute into the third quarter, Hornets coach Monty Williams was calling time-out, sensing the game was slipping away.

And it was.

Miami scored the first nine points of the third, stretching the lead to 60-49 and capping what was a 27-4 run over a span of less than eight minutes. James scored 14 points in the quarter, Chalmers made all three of his shots – all from 3-point range – and the Miami lead was up to 87-68 by the end of the period.

By then, the only drama left was whether James would get his 33rd career triple-double. Instead, he got the fourth quarter off.

Notes: Justin Bieber, who has been the subject of more than a few tweets posted by Heat owner Micky Arison, was in attendance. … Williams had high praise for the Heat before the game, especially Spoelstra. “Spo doesn’t get enough credit in my opinion for the ability to coach talent, supreme talent, every night,” Williams said. … Miller – no stranger to injury problems in his Heat tenure – was grabbing at his right hand late in the first quarter and grimacing in pain, but stayed in the game. … James became the 17th player in NBA history with 17,000 points, 4,500 rebounds and 4,500 assists. Of the first 16, 13 are Hall of Famers already, the others being Gary Payton, Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant, all sure-fire Hall entrants one day.

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HELENA, Montana (AP) — A mountaintop Jesus statue can stay at a ski resort in the western U.S. state of Montana – for now.

The religious statue, which has been on federal land since 1955, was allowed to remain in place for at least 10 more years after the U.S. Forest Service reversed its eviction order Tuesday. The initial decision came amid heated debate over the separation of church and state as required by the U.S. Constitution.

The agency had faced a firestorm of criticism from religious groups, the state’s congressman and residents after it decided last year to boot the Jesus statue from its hillside perch in the trees above Whitefish.

After the agency’s about-face, opponents promised a lawsuit within the week. They argue the statue’s free placement on federal land is unconstitutional.

The statue has been a curiosity at the famed Big Mountain ski hill for decades, mystifying skiers with its appearance in the middle of the woods as they cruise down a popular run.

The Forest Service said in its original decision that case law was stacked against such a statue. They previously argued rules prevented the federal government from favoring or promoting religion.

But Forest Service supervisor Chip Weber said the revised decision took into account that the statue is eligible for placement on National Register of Historic Places, and that no substantive concerns related to environmental conditions were found in about 95,000 comments received by the agency.

The latest decision renews a 10-year special-use permit for the Knights of Columbus Council, members of which placed the statue there.

“I understand the statue has been a long-standing object in the community since 1955, and I recognize that the statue is important to the community for its historical heritage based on its association with the early development of the ski area on Big Mountain,” Weber said.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation, which argues the religious statue does not belong on public land, said it anticipated the agency’s reversal. It argues that the Forest Service was breaching separation of church and state rules by leasing the small patch of land for the Jesus statue.

“We have no objection to shrines like these on private property. That is where they belong,” said Annie Laurie Gaylor, FFRF co-president. “I think it will be very easy to show that this special permit is a sham.”

Gaylor said the public comments received by the Forest Service do not make its decision any more constitutional.

“We think we have a very strong case. There is just no question that the Knights of Columbus should not be given a special use permit,” she said.

U.S. Rep. Denny Rehberg, who had taken a prominent role in fighting for the statue, said Tuesday he would withdraw his legislation that offered the alternative to swap the small plot of federal land to Whitefish Mountain Resort in exchange for another nearby patch of ground.

“I’m glad that after hearing from more than 95,000 people, the Forest Service had the courage to do the right thing today,” Rehberg said in a statement. “This victory belongs to everyone that took time to voice an opinion.”

The Freedom From Religion Foundation also opposed the land swap as a public handout to a church group.

The statue has been maintained by the local Knights of Columbus, a Catholic fraternal organization, ever since members that included World War II veterans – inspired by religious monuments they saw while fighting in the mountains of Europe – erected the monument in 1955. The Knights have never been charged for use of the public land.

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SAN ANTONIO – Negotiations between minority groups and Texas officials in a lengthy clash over new political districts appeared stalled Monday as both sides prepared to argue in Washington over whether the Republican-drawn maps violate the federal Voting Rights Act.

An attorney for the League of United Latin American Citizens, one of nine groups suing to block the maps, said negotiations to create temporary maps so Texas could salvage an April 3 primary date hit an impasse over the weekend. Both sides have another week to work out a deal, but Luis Vera, LULAC’s general counsel, said he was not optimistic.

“It just doesn’t seem feasible,” he said.

A federal court in San Antonio last week gave the sides until Feb. 6 to draw up the temporary maps that would remain in place through November’s election. If they don’t, Texas’ primaries will be pushed back for a second time. They were originally scheduled for March.

Lauren Bean, a spokeswoman for the Texas attorney general’s office, said her office was not commenting on the negotiations.

Vera said a major obstacle is that the state isn’t involving all parties in the negotiations. Gary Bledsoe, president of the Texas NAACP that is among the nine plaintiffs, said the state was mainly negotiating with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund and the Mexican American Legislative Caucus.

Bledsoe said unanimous agreement among the nine isn’t required for the court to accept a deal. He believes that while there is a “reasonable chance” the state could work out a deal with two or three of the groups, odds are longer of getting total consensus.

Vera has been among the most vocal proponents of simply waiting for a Washington federal court to rule on the separate issue of whether the original maps violate the Voting Rights Act.

States typically redraw their political boundaries every 10 years based on population figures from the census. Texas is one of nine, mostly Southern states that require “preclearance” from the U.S. Justice Department when changes to electoral maps are made.

At issue is how the Texas maps treat minorities. Republican leaders say the maps merely benefit their party’s candidates, but minority groups claim they discriminate by diluting minority voting power. One major issue has been whether the maps fairly account for the surge in Hispanic population in Texas over the last decade.

Closing arguments in the Washington trial are set for Tuesday. Many of the principal negotiators involved in the interim map talks traveled to Washington on Monday to prepare for that case.

The three-judge panel in Washington has given no indication on when it might rule.

The San Antonio court had previously drawn interim maps while the Washington trial took place. The U.S. Supreme Court threw them out earlier this month, saying the San Antonio court did not show enough deference to the map crafted by Texas lawmakers and adjusted parts of the map where there was no Voting Rights Act argument.

Before the San Antonio court last week gave both sides an additional 10 days to hash out a compromise or forfeit an April 3 primary date, Texas Republican Party chairman Steve Munisteri said conservative minorities would be disenfranchised if the primary is delayed again.

The later Texas’ primaries are held, the less influence the state is likely to have on who emerges as the Republican presidential nominee.

“If we’re talking about minority rights, what about Hispanic Republicans?” Munisteri told the court during Friday’s hearing.

If the April 3 date is postponed, Democrat and Republican party leaders say an April 17 primary would be possible if temporary maps are in place by mid-Februrary.

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MIAMI – LeBron James and Dwyane Wade each scored 22 points, Mike Miller added 14 off the bench and the Miami Heat shook off a slow start to run away from the New Orleans Hornets 109-95 on Monday night.

James added 11 rebounds and eight assists for Miami, which won for the eighth time in nine games and ended up with six players in double figures. Chris Bosh and Norris Cole each scored 12 for the Heat, and Mario Chalmers added 11.

Miami was down 45-33 midway through the second quarter, then outscored New Orleans 76-50 the rest of the way.

Jarrett Jack and Carl Landry each scored 14 for New Orleans, which lost for the 17th time in 19 games after a 2-0 start. Emeka Okafor scored 13 points and Greivis Vasquez added 11 for the Hornets, who only managed 25 rebounds — the lowest total in the NBA this season. Miami had 39 rebounds, and James had more by himself than any two Hornets combined.

There were all sorts of indicators suggesting that Miami would get off to a less-than-ideal start.

It was Miami’s third game in four nights, though all were at home. Monday’s tip-off came about 24 hours after Sunday’s down-to-the-wire epic against Chicago, where the Heat win wasn’t secure until 0.1 seconds remained. And the second night of back-to-backs have been trouble all season for Miami, which had been 3-3 in those contests — including both of its home defeats, those coming against Atlanta and Milwaukee.

So sure enough, the Heat started slowly — and found themselves in a 12-point hole against a team with the worst record in the Western Conference.

New Orleans made 10 of its first 11 shots, then used a 16-6 run in the second quarter to build what was a 45-33 lead after Xavier Henry connected on a 3-pointer. With that, Heat coach Erik Spoelstra called time-out.

Whatever he said in that huddle worked wonders.

When play resumed, Wade got going, and the game changed for good. Wade scored 11 straight Miami points to erase the deficit almost single-handedly — 13 out of 15 points as well, assisting a basket by James to account for the other two — and the Heat went into halftime up 51-49.

They were just getting started.

Less than a minute into the third quarter, Hornets coach Monty Williams was calling time-out, sensing the game was slipping away.

And it was.

Miami scored the first nine points of the third, stretching the lead to 60-49 and capping what was a 27-4 run over a span of less than eight minutes. James scored 14 points in the quarter, Chalmers made all three of his shots — all from 3-point range — and the Miami lead was up to 87-68 by the end of the period.

By then, the only drama left was whether James would get his 33rd career triple-double. Instead, he got the fourth quarter off.

Notes: Justin Bieber, who has been the subject of more than a few tweets posted by Heat owner Micky Arison, was in attendance. … Williams had high praise for the Heat before the game, especially Spoelstra. “Spo doesn’t get enough credit in my opinion for the ability to coach talent, supreme talent, every night,” Williams said. … Miller — no stranger to injury problems in his Heat tenure — was grabbing at his right hand late in the first quarter and grimacing in pain, but stayed in the game. … James became the 17th player in NBA history with 17,000 points, 4,500 rebounds and 4,500 assists. Of the first 16, 13 are Hall of Famers already, the others being Gary Payton, Kevin Garnett and Kobe Bryant, all sure-fire Hall entrants one day.

Article source: http://www.oddnews.org/77-odd-news/459-heat-shake-off-slow-start-beat-hornets-109-95-(ap).html

The school has more than 1,200 pupils and is concerned at the level of interest it is attracting

11:23am UK, Tuesday January 31, 2012

Up to 15 girls at Le Roy High School have developed the ailment over the past few months.

It causes twitching and uncontrollable verbal outbursts – including swearing in some cases.

Doctors say the symptoms could be due to conversion disorder – once known as mass hysteria.

Even though it is a psychological condition, the symptoms are real.

However, campaigner and environmentalist Erin Brockovich is now investigating whether it could have something to do with pollution.

Ms Brockovich – whose life was depicted in a film starring Julia Roberts – is looking into whether a chemical that spilled in a 1970 train derailment about four miles from the school could have anything to do with it.

Although the school has ruled out a link with the derailment because “the plume has been shown moving in the opposite direction some three miles away”, it has called in an independent environmental expert to investigate.

The school wants “sound advice” from professionals on the situation, “void of self-interest”, school administrator Kim Cox said.

Environmentalist Erin Brockovich has become involved

“Our community has suddenly found itself at the centre of national attention due to the students who have been exhibiting neurological symptoms,” the school’s administrator said in a statement.

“This has led to much speculation, conjecture and misinformation in the national media and consequently within our community.”

According to the Mayo Clinic, females are much more likely to get conversion disorder and it is more common in adolescents or young adults.

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BEIJING (Reuters) – Several kindergartens in a province in northern China are charging parents 1,200 yuan ($190) for a palm-reading test that they claim can predict their toddlers’ intelligence and potential, state news agency Xinhua said.

Many parents have flocked to palm readers for the test, used in kindergartens in northern Shanxi province and designed for children above the age of three months, the report said.

According to the company that designed the tests, Shanxi Daomeng Culture Communication Co, the reading of palms helps “determine the children’s innate intelligence and potential,” Xinhua reported.

In Communist Party-ruled China, a one-child policy has raised the stakes for parents who place great emphasis on educating their children in the expectation that the offspring will support them when they grow old.

Some experts, however, have dismissed the idea of the palm-reading technology.

“This technology remains unaccounted for,” Xinhua quote a pediatrics expert as saying.

Fortune-telling, including palm-reading, has deep roots in Chinese tradition, although China’s leaders have discouraged and punished devotees of the practice which they brand superstition.

Many people, including government officials, seek geomancy masters’ guidance on financial, career and personal matters and many Chinese couples go so far as to plan the timing of a child’s birth to fall within auspicious times in the lunar calendar.

(Reporting by Sabrina Mao and Sui-Lee Wee; Editing by Ken Wills)

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