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Cricket - Sports

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Dunya TV

Dunya TV


Altaf for religious harmony in country

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<p>&nbsp;</p><p>Addressing the Muttahida Qaumi Movement coordination committee meeting, MQM chief Altaf Hussain issued directions for contacting religious scholars of all schools of thoughts for political and religious harmony in the country.<br />&nbsp;</p>


At least 128 killed in Syria violence Friday

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<p>&nbsp;</p><p>At least 128 people were killed across Syria on Friday, as fighting raged in parts of Damascus and troops fired on protests in the country&nbsp;s second city of Aleppo, a Britain-based watchdog said.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Friday&nbsp;s violence came after more than 300 people were killed nationwide on Thursday, making it the deadliest day of a 16-month uprising against President Bashar al-Assad&nbsp;s regime.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 85 civilians, 26 government troops and 17 rebels were among those killed on Friday.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Eleven civilians and two rebels were killed in the southern city of Daraa, and 12 civilians were killed in the northwestern city of Idlib, along with three rebel fighters, the group said.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In the capital, where the Syrian army was conducting a counter-offensive to try to recapture districts under rebel control, nine civilians were reported dead, along with three rebel fighters, while 25 civilians and one rebel were killed in Damascus province, the group said.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In Aleppo, the country&nbsp;s commercial centre, activists said security forces opened fire on a demonstration, and the Observatory reported fierce fighting in several of the city&nbsp;s districts.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>It put the death toll in the city at 10 civilians, including at least one killed in a demonstration, and six rebel fighters.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The group said government forces were killed in battles in Idlib province, Homs, Damascus and Daraa, without giving a detailed breakdown.<br />&nbsp;</p>


Argentina nabs half-ton of Africa-bound cocaine

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<p>&nbsp;</p><p>The cocaine was tightly packed into 490 brightly colored bricks and stuffed into heavy dredging equipment being flown from the international airport in Buenos Aires to an oil company in Lagos, Nigeria, said Maria Siomara Ayeran, the director-general of Argentina&nbsp;s customs agency.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Something smelled funny, and not just to Tota and Gala, the agency&nbsp;s drug-sniffing dogs.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Ayeran said the company in Africa doesn&nbsp;t exist, and the exporter was under such suspicion that all its shipments are exhaustively searched.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Once the dogs marked the spot, officers opened up the machinery late Thursday and found 536 kilos of pure cocaine inside thick walls of lead and steel, Ayeran said. She said it was most likely intended for the streets of Europe, where it would be worth nearly $25 million.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Ayeran said it&nbsp;s the first time the Argentine government has confiscated such a large shipment of cocaine being smuggled by air from Buenos Aires to Nigeria.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&quot;Today the link with Africa is a new route that they are exploiting and is in development,&quot; she said.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The customs agency said the suspects were known to investigators and the case was handed over to a judge who ordered six pre-dawn raids to accumulate more evidence. Officials said the identities of the people and companies involved could not be released because the case was being kept sealed while under investigation.<br />&nbsp;</p>


Oil falls on Europe's economic woes

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<p>&nbsp;</p><p>Benchmark oil fell $1.22 on Friday to end at $91.44 per barrel in New York. Brent crude, which is used to price international varieties of crude, was down 97 cents to finish at $106.83 in London. This was the first decline after seven straight gains.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The main focus for traders was Spain, where the government predicted that the country&nbsp;s recession will extend into next year and the region of Valencia said it needed help from the central government to pay its bills. But Germany was also a concern as finance officials there said growth in Europe&nbsp;s strongest economy likely slowed somewhat in the second quarter. Meanwhile, in the U.K. the government said it had to borrow more than expected last month.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Europe&nbsp;s lengthy battle with a massive government debt crisis has affected industries in other countries, such as the U.S., that do business there. It also has cut demand for oil and other energy products.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Oil had risen about 10 percent over seven days on concerns that renewed tensions between the West and Iran could result in a disruption of oil supplies from the Persian Gulf.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&quot;After the long run-up in prices we&nbsp;ve had the last 10 days or so, I think (events in Europe) kind of reminded people that the demand picture is still not very rosy,&quot; said Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy &amp; Economic Research.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Meanwhile, natural gas prices hit the highest level since early January as businesses and consumers cranked up air conditioning systems to stay cool in the hot weather. Natural gas rose by 8.2 cents to finish at $3.081 per 1,000 cubic feet.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The price of natural gas fell below $2 for the first time in more than a decade in April after a production boom boosted inventories. At the same time, a mild winter kept demand in check. The cheaper prices prompted many utilities to switch to natural gas from coal to fuel their generators.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In other energy trading, heating oil fell by 2.27 cents to finish at $2.9243 per gallon and wholesale gasoline prices added less than a penny to end the week at $2.943 per gallon.<br />&nbsp;</p>


Formula One: Maldonado fastest in second practice

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<p>&nbsp;</p><p>Pastor Maldonado finished fastest for Williams during Friday&nbsp;s rain-affected second free practice session for Sunday&nbsp;s German Grand Prix.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The Venezuelan, who was ninth fastest in the morning&nbsp;s opening session, topped the times with a lap of the Hockenheim circuit in one minute 27.476 seconds midway through the session.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>A heavy downpour preceded the session and effectively suspended proceedings for 20 minutes as drivers elected not to go out on the track until conditions had improved.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Track times steadily got quicker and Spanish Grand Prix winner Maldonado edged out second-fastest German Nico Rosberg of Mercedes midway through the session seconds before more rain arrived.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Intermittent rain followed and although teams were able to continue testing their cars, the 27-year-old&nbsp;s time stood strong until the end of the session.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Defending drivers&nbsp; champion German Sebastian Vettel was third fastest for Red Bull followed by Mexican Sergio Perez of Sauber and Frenchman Romain Grosjean of Lotus.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Force India driver German Nico hulkenberg was sixth fastest followed by Australian Daniel Ricciardo of Toro Rosso.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>McLaren&nbsp;s Jenson Button, fastest in the morning session, wound up eighth quickest ahead of Australian Mark Webber in the second Red Bull and Finn Kimi Raikkonen in the second Lotus.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Briton Lewis Hamilton was 19th fastest in the other McLaren and Championship leader Spaniard Fernando Alonso wound up 20th.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The session was red-flagged for the final four minutes after 43-year-old Michael Schumacher destroyed the rear end of his Mercedes car during a high-speed crash at the exit of turn 12.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Despite extensive damage to his car, his home fans were relieved to see the seven-times champion walk away unhurt.<br />&nbsp;</p>


Olympics: Flame makes dramatic arrival in London

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<p>&nbsp;</p><p>The Olympic flame makes a dramatic arrival in London on Friday to tour the capital before it plays a starring role in the opening ceremony in one week&nbsp;s time.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>A Royal Marine commando will abseil from a helicopter with the flame before it spends the night safely housed in the Tower of London, where Queen Elizabeth II keeps her ceremonial jewels.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The 8,000-mile (12,800-kilometre) relay culminates in the capital after snaking around Britain and visiting the Republic of Ireland.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Before it reached the capital, police arrested a 17-year-old man after he tried to grab the torch from a female torchbearer while it passed through Gravesend, a town southeast of London.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The teenager sprinted out of the crowd toward the torchbearer and was grabbed by the security officers accompanying the torch.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The torch was to stop in Guildford just south of London before being flown by helicopter into London. It will begin its tour of the capital in Greenwich on Saturday.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In another step closer to next Friday&nbsp;s opening ceremony, the Olympic flag was hoisted above the Downing Street residence of Prime Minister David Cameron.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Preparations for the Games have been dogged by concerns over security after a firm supplying private guards for venues said it could not supply all of the 10,000 it had promised.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>But chief organiser Sebastian Coe insisted security would not be compromised, as the government had drafted in 3,500 extra troops to cover the shortfall by security giant G4S, with another 1,200 on standby.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&quot;This is not an issue that has remotely compromised security. This was actually about the supply and the mix, it&nbsp;s never been about the numbers,&quot; Coe said.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Coe however got into a testy exchange with an interviewer about criticisms of the organisers&nbsp; approach to protecting sponsors&nbsp; rights.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Asked by a BBC radio presenter if he would be able to wear a Pepsi T-shirt to an Olympic event, Coe replied: &quot;No, you probably wouldn&nbsp;t be walking in with a Pepsi T-shirt because Coca-Cola are our sponsors and they have put millions of pounds into this project but also millions of pounds into grassroots sport.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&quot;It is important to protect those sponsors.&quot;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Asked whether he could wear Nike trainers, since Adidas is an official sponsor, Coe added: &quot;Let&nbsp;s put some reality in this. You probably would be able to walk through with Nike trainers. Does that satisfy you?&quot;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Amid gripes about the Olympic security and transport, London Mayor Boris Johnson hit out at critics of the Olympics, saying Britain was about to stage the greatest show on Earth and doom-mongers&nbsp; should &quot;put a sock in it&quot;.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&quot;Oh come off it, everybody -- enough whimpering,&quot; Johnson wrote in The Sun newspaper.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&quot;Cut out the whingeing. And as for you whingers, put a sock in it -- fast.&quot;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>As the preparations for the Games intensified, the competitors were limbering up.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The US basketball &nbsp;Dream Team&nbsp; spearheaded by superstars Kobe Bryant and LeBron James underlined their status as favourites for gold when they beat Britain in a warm-up game in Manchester.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The Dream Team&nbsp;s form contrasted with bad news for tennis star Rafael Nadal, who has been forced to pull out of the Games because he is struggling with tendinitis in his knees.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The man expected to be one of the faces of the London Olympics, the world&nbsp;s fastest man Usain Bolt, is also struggling with fitness.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The reigning Olympic 100 metres and 200 metres champion has been given a new orthopaedic bed at the Jamaica team&nbsp;s training base in Birmingham, central England, to ensure a longstanding back problem does not flare up.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Bolt will not compete at a Diamond League meeting in Monaco on Friday after complaining of tightness in his hamstring in the aftermath of his defeat by compatriot Yohan Blake at the Jamaican Olympic trials last month.<br />&nbsp;</p>


Monfils withdraws from Olympics with injury

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<p>&nbsp;</p><p>French tennis player Gael Monfils has withdrawn from the Olympics because of a right knee injury.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The No. 17-ranked Monfils dropped out a day after Rafael Nadal also ruled himself out of the London Games because of undisclosed injury problems.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Monfils was replaced Friday by Julien Benneteau for the July 28-Aug. 5 Olympic tennis competition at Wimbledon. He will play singles alongside Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Gilles Simon and Richard Gasquet.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Benneteau will also play with Gasquet in men&nbsp;s doubles, while Tsonga will team up with Michael Llodra.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The 25-year-old Monfils didn&nbsp;t play at the French Open and Wimbledon this year because of the knee problem.<br />&nbsp;</p>


Athletics: Kiprop sets year's best mark in 1500m

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<p>&nbsp;</p><p>Kenya&nbsp;s Asbel Kiprop produced the best performance of the year by winning the 1500m in a personal best time of 3min 28.88sec at the Monaco Diamond League meeting on Friday.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>The world and Olympic champion took the initiative 400m from home to finish ahead of his compatriot Nixon Chepseba, whose time of 3:29.77 was also a personal best.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Fellow Kenyan Silas Kiplagat had set the previous fastest time this year, 3:29.63, in Doha in May.<br />&nbsp;</p>


Smith, Amla give South Africa solid foundation

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<p>&nbsp;</p><p>Graeme Smith and Hashim Amla laid the foundations for a significant score as South Africa recovered from the early loss of Alviro Petersen to reach 86 for one at the close of the second day of the first Test against England at the Oval on Friday.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>James Anderson produced a superb delivery in the third over of the innings, swinging the ball in and striking Petersen on the back pad to win a leg before wicket decision from umpire Steve Davis.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Petersen&nbsp;s dismissal continued the trend of a day which saw bowlers dominate for long periods under an overcast sky in south London.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>However, South African captain Smith and Amla saw their team through to the close to keep the tourists in contention after England&nbsp;s first innings of 385 all out.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Amla had an escape 10 minutes before the end of an extended day&nbsp;s play when England captain Andrew Strauss dropped him at first slip off Ravi Bopara.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>But Amla finished on 47 not out, while Smith, playing in his 100th Test, was unbeaten on 37.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>There were signs, though, that the tourists will need to build a big first innings score because of uneven bounce from a dry pitch, while England off-spinner Graeme Swann was able to get some turn.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>England lost their last seven wickets for 118 runs despite an aggressive innings of 60 off 90 balls by Prior.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Fast bowler Dale Steyn struck in the third and fifth overs of the day to dismiss Alastair Cook and Ravi Bopara as the match underwent a transformation from the first day when the England batsmen were seldom troubled in reaching 267 for three.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>In the first eight overs, England added only six runs for the loss of two wickets as Steyn and Vernon Philander bowled an immaculate line, gaining some swing with the second new ball.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>South Africa, bidding to replace England as the world&nbsp;s top ranked Test team, made a crucial breakthrough when Steyn dismissed Cook.<br />Cook added only one run to his overnight 114 before he was bowled off an inside edge by a ball from Steyn which swung in to him.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Bopara made an unhappy return after a year out of the Test team, trying to withdraw his bat after shaping to hook, but getting an edge to be caught behind by AB de Villiers without scoring.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Jacques Kallis bowled Ian Bell for 13 when Bell left a delivery which cut back and clipped his off bail.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Prior and Tim Bresnan added 29 runs before Bresnan chopped a ball from leg-spinner Imran Tahir on to his stumps and Prior also had useful stands of 45 for the eighth wicket with Stuart Broad and 25 for the ninth wicket with Graeme Swann.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>Prior, who survived a difficult chance to Jacques Rudolph at gully off Morne Morkel when he was on 17, went on the attack to break the early stranglehold by the South African bowlers.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>But Morne Morkel took the last two wickets to finish with four for 72. AB de Villiers, keeping wicket in place of the retired Mark Boucher, held five catches.<br />&nbsp;</p>


Nawaz would lead govt in next polls: Shahbaz

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<p><br />While addressing public gathering in Muzaffargarh, he said that &lsquo;Ali Baba and 40 tugs&rsquo; would be defeated in next coming elections.</p><p><br />He said that cruel rulers unscrupulously exploited the people in the name of so-called of democracy, adding poor farmers were provided fertilizers on high rates as compared to genuine price.</p><p><br />He claimed that after coming to power the PML-N would overcome the crisis of loadshedding within six months, adding that unemployment and poverty would be exterminated out of the country.</p><p><br />Giving reference to last year flood, he said that President did not bother about the flood-hit people and let them helpless on the mercy of fate.</p>


Faisalabad: Customs official killed over enmity

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<p><br />Hassan Javed, the son of MPA Javed Bhatti also got hurt in firing.</p><p><br />As per details, Customs Deputy Collector Hamayun Farooq Bhatti along with his nephew Hassan Javed Bhatti was on way in the area of Madina Town that some unidentified armed men on motorbikes targeted his vehicle with indiscriminate firing.</p><p><br />As a result, both of them sustained severe injuries and were shifted to district headquarter hospital where Deputy Collector Custom succumbed to injuries.</p><p><br />Following the incident, police cordoned off the related area and commenced search operation.</p><p><br />The injured Hassan Javed Bhatti is son of PMA Javed Bhatti.</p>


Legal battle over ownership of missing cat

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<p>&nbsp;</p><p>Lauren Terry is considering legal action over the pet, which she named Podge, went missing in March.</p><p><br />Miss Terry, a former student put up posters around her local area. She also followed the advice on the RSPCA&rsquo;s website, reporting the animal missing, checking their lost pet register; and contacting local animal welfare centres and vets in nearby and surrounding areas. But her search was fruitless until she checked the RSPCA website for rehomed strays that she found a photo of Podge, who had been picked up near Miss Terry&rsquo;s home in Sutton, Surrey.</p><p><br />The RSPCA treated him as a stray and found him a new owner &ndash; who re-named the tom Mr Darcy and says that he has formed a strong bond with the other cat in the house.</p><p><br />She said: &ldquo;I did everything I could to look for Podge when he went missing. To be told I can&rsquo;t have him back is awful.&rdquo;</p><p><br />Miss Terry, who is hoping to study law at university this September, said Podge was &ldquo;sorely missed&rdquo;. She is considering county court action to recover the cat. <br />She says the cat is a property and would only cease to be so were she to give the rights away. But the new owner could claim that the RSPCA takes on ownership if an animal is ruled as stray &ndash; which is then passed on when it is rehomed.</p><p><br />A spokesman for the charity said: &ldquo;Both can claim a legal right to the cat and if they cannot settle it between them, it will be a matter for the courts.</p><p><br />&ldquo;Clearly, the local branch rehomed the cat in good faith but if Lauren can prove ownership of the cat then we can go back to the adopters and again ask them to return the cat to the original owner. &ldquo;This is a very sad situation, but the RSPCA does find loving new homes for more than 34,000 animals a year and situations like this are thankfully extremely rare.&rdquo; <br />&nbsp;</p>


China cyclist narrowly avoids deadly collision with lorry

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<p>&nbsp;</p><p>The accident in Ningbo City in east China&nbsp;s Zhejiang Province occurred when the woman ran a red light as she was riding her bike across an intersection.</p><p><br />The woman managed to jump out of the way to avoid the vehicle.</p><p><br />She was uninjured but the electric moped she was riding was destroyed when it was hit by the lorry. <br />&nbsp;</p>


Russia flood brings volunteer spirit, and new law

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<p>&nbsp;</p><p>Critics suspect the move is aimed at keeping a tight leash on popular movements that could snowball into anti-government protest.</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>A stooped woman in her 70s dropped off a kettle and about $600 in cash in Moscow, while a thick-necked businessman unloaded an SUV packed with brand new strollers and jumbo packages of diapers.</p><p><br />It was part of a spontaneous wave of charity for flood victims in the town of Krymsk, jumpstarted by social networking sites and through a handful of independent radio and TV stations. It was also part of a growing penchant for independent action that unsettles the powerful.</p><p><br />A week after the unprecedented flood volunteerism emerged, a Kremlin-linked body proposed a bill that regulates charity drives. Critics suspect the move is aimed at keeping a tight leash on popular movements that could snowball into anti-government protest.</p><p><br />In the wake of the massive opposition protests that erupted over the winter, officials are uneasy with signs of newly energetic independent initiatives. Recently passed laws put non-governmental organizations under intimidating scrutiny and impose ruinous fines on participants in unauthorized demonstrations.</p><p><br />While the eagerness of Russians to rise to the flood cause was seen by many as a heartening advance for civil society, it also appeared to be tacit criticism of Russian authorities as untrustworthy and ineffectual.</p><p>&quot;The government is terrified of an awakening civil society,&quot; Genady Gudkov, an opposition member of parliament, said Monday on Echo Moskvy radio. &quot;Volunteers and mass volunteerism have only just appeared, and there is a genuine fear that this volunteer movement will morph into something else.&quot;</p><p><br />The bill, to be taken up by Parliament when the lower house reconvenes in September, does not block volunteer efforts. It concerns itself only with the legal and financial liability incurred by volunteers and the organizations they work with.</p><p><br />But activists are concerned that it will add a laborious layer of paperwork that could bog down quick and effective response to disasters like the one in Krymsk. They complain that the vagueness of the legislation creates an ominous atmosphere of government supervision that could have a chilling effect on Russia&nbsp;s budding volunteer spirit, at the same time as President Vladimir Putin intensifies his squeeze on the opposition.</p><p><br />At least 171 people died in Krymsk and nearby parts of southern Russia when flash floods triggered by extraordinarily heavy rains inundated the area on July 6-7.</p><p><br />Thousands of volunteers traveled to the area some 1,200 kilometers (750 miles) south of Moscow to help dig houses out from mud and aid the estimated 5,000 left homeless. Across the country, activists set up donation points for contributions of food, clothes and money.</p><p><br />The response was unusual in a country where the volunteer spirit is far less developed than in the West. In communist times participation at mass rallies and involvement in social groups was mandatory. After the fall of the Soviet Union, many Russians turned inwards, focusing on family and their jobs instead of on the public sphere.</p><p><br />Developers of the legislation say its intent is not to stifle volunteerism, but, in fact, to add clarity to the process.</p><p><br />Darya Miloslavskaya, a member of the Public Chamber and author of the bill, said that it was designed only to establish a more formal relationship between volunteers and the organizations they worked with.</p><p><br />&quot;We have nothing to do with politics. There was no intention of saying that the government is bad and volunteers are good, or vice versa,&quot; Miloslavskaya, who had been drafting the legislation since April, told Echo Moskvy.</p><p><br />The Public Chamber is a state oversight body that monitors parliament and drafts legislation. It consists of members appointed by the Kremlin and representatives of public associations.</p><p><br />The bill would require volunteers and the organizers they work with to sign a contract if participants hoped to receive compensation for any expenses incurred.</p><p><br />Particularly in a country where many look suspiciously on government officials and corruption-riddled state institutions, Russian activists worry that the new law will only deter ordinary people from getting involved at all.</p><p><br />&quot;If the first thing that a volunteer does is get in a car and go to look for some children who are lost in the forest, now according to this bill you&nbsp;ll have (the volunteer) talking to some bureaucrats and filling out papers,&quot; said Maria Baronova, an opposition activist who was one of the main organizers of the Krymsk relief effort.</p><p><br />&quot;People will stop getting involved, because in general people don&nbsp;t want to be connected with either government officials or with bureaucracy,&quot; she said.</p><p><br />The Krymsk relief effort attracted scores of contributors to the collection site in Moscow, where Russians from all walks of life hauled boxes of food and clothes on buses bound for Krymsk.</p><p><br />&quot;It&nbsp;s better to participate in something independent rather than something that belongs to any kind of party, so that no one can make PR out of such a tragedy,&quot; said 28-year-old Anastasia Kayumova, a choir teacher who came to the volunteer site in the morning and ended up staying until dark to help.</p><p><br />&quot;Already on that evening (after the flood), I was telling myself that civil society does exist here,&quot; said Maria Baronova. &quot;People have to understand that you have to do two things in life: go to work, and defend the place you live, that if you don&nbsp;t do that with your own hands then nothing will change.&quot;</p><p><br />In a public discussion Wednesday that brought officials and authors of the bill together with activists, charity organizers insisted that, while some kind of regulation of nascent volunteer movements was necessary in Russia, the law would go too far in giving the government oversight.</p><p><br />&quot;There is a lot that needs elaborating,&quot; said Grigory Kuksin, leader of the volunteer programs of Russia&nbsp;s Greenpeace, during the public discussion. &quot;But it doesn&nbsp;t demand a new law that will narrow the definition of volunteerism.&quot;<br />&nbsp;</p>


US gun culture: Movie theater bloodbath puts pressure on Obama

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<p>&nbsp;</p><p>At least 12 people were killed and around 40 wounded when a gunman opened fire in a Colorado cinema, in one of the nation&nbsp;s worst acts of gun violence since the Virginia Tech bloodbath in April 2007 in which 33 died.</p><p><br />&quot;There are some shootings that basically make the American public stop and look at gun violence, and this may be one of them,&quot; Josh Sugarmann, chief executive of the Violence Policy Center think tank in Washington, told AFP.</p><p><br />New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who favors more gun control measures such as thorough background checks, swiftly called upon Obama and his Republican challenger Mitt Romney to speak out immediately on the issue.</p><p><br />&quot;Maybe it&nbsp;s time that the two people who want to be president of the United States stand up and tell us what they are going to do about it, because this is obviously a problem across the country,&quot; he said.</p><p><br />White House spokesman Pat Carney said: &quot;The president believes we need to take common sense measures that protect the Second Amendment rights of Americans (to keep and bear arms) while ensuring that those who should not have guns under existing laws do not get them.&quot;</p><p><br />&quot;We&nbsp;re making progress in that regard in terms of improving the volume and quality of information on background checks (on gun purchasers), but I have nothing additional on that for you,&quot; he told reporters.</p><p><br />The well-funded US gun lobby, led by the National Rifle Association (NRA), accuse Obama of favoring a United Nations treaty as a ruse to limit Americans&nbsp; constitutional right to own as many guns as they wish.</p><p><br />The Arms Trade Treaty, now under negotiation in New York, is intended to bring order to the global trade in small arms, but the US gun lobby alleges it will lead in time to stricter domestic gun laws.</p><p><br />Gun control campaigners, on the other hand, have been less than impressed with Obama&nbsp;s track record on guns, with the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence giving him an severe &quot;F grade&quot; for failing to lead on the issue.</p><p><br />Citing statistics from the Centers for Disease Control, it says around 100,000 people in the United States are shot over the course of a year, many of them children, and that more than 31,500 die as a result of gun violence.</p><p><br />&quot;We&nbsp;ve been very disappointed with the president&nbsp;s action on the gun issue,&quot; agreed Sugarmann, who favors a ban on sales of handguns and assault weapons. &quot;We hope he moves beyond sympathy (for the Colorado victims) to action.&quot;</p><p><br />Sugarmann predicted the Colorado shooting would prompt a discussion on how to beef up security at movie theaters -- just as the Columbine high school massacre in April 1999 prompted other schools to install metal detectors.</p><p><br />&quot;The distressing thing is that nobody steps back and says, &nbsp;What&nbsp;s the common thread we should be looking at?&nbsp; -- gun availability and the types of guns being sold in this country,&quot; he said.</p><p><br />The town of Columbine is less than 20 miles (30 kilometers) from Aurora, the scene of Friday&nbsp;s bloodbath.</p><p><br />Its nightmare -- two students cut down 13 peers before killing themselves -- was the focal point of Michael Moore&nbsp;s Oscar-winning 2002 documentary &quot;Bowling for Columbine.&quot;</p><p><br />&quot;Too sad at the moment to comment,&quot; Moore, a fierce critic of American gun culture, said Friday on his Twitter account.</p><p><br />Buying a gun is remarkably easy in most American states.</p><p><br />In Virginia, for instance, rifles and shotguns can be purchased by anyone over 18, and handguns by those over 21, so long as they are not illegal immigrants and have no criminal record.</p><p><br />&quot;With the exception of machine guns, firearms are not registered in Virginia,&quot; says the Virginia state police on its website.</p><p>&nbsp;</p>


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