Friday, January 11, 2013

Friday, January 11, 2013

The government has recentlyreported on the Hard RockHotel & Casino project. Theyhave indicated that practi-cally all the necessary re-quirements set by theevaluation Commission havebeen met with the exceptionof but a few details. In ameeting planned to take placeon Monday, they will discusscertain details which must beincluded in the agreement sothat the property of the for-mer Bushiri complex can betransferred to the Southwestgroup.

The government ex-plained that this process issomewhat different fromother hotel projects of the

past. Other past projectswere signed off for vacantland areas with no edifice onthem. In the case of Bushiri,there is a building complexon the terrain, although thebuilding is practically worth-less and would have to be de-molished by any developer.Despite this fact, accordingto our laws of accountability,that building has some value.That value has to be reflectedin the agreement that thegroup will be signing.

According to the govern-ment, the impact of a HardRock for Aruba will be greatover a wide range of aspects.One aspect is a moral aspectin the sense that currently thebuilding sitting on the site isan ugly ruin for tourists and

locals passing by.Another aspect of its im-

pact is that the new projectwill generate additional in-come and rooms inventorywhich we badly need. Thereare various peak momentswhen we don’t have enoughrooms.

A third impact is that thenew hotel will open up a newmarket, a market of personsof the younger generationwho can afford to pay theprices of rooms that a HardRock Hotel demands.

Just like the Ritz Carlton(which is expected to open itsdoors in October) focuses ona specific market, so does aHard Rock Hotel. This willhelp to diversify the touristattraction for Aruba

Hard Rock Hotel & Casinoproject almost ready forconstruction start up

BEIRUT (AFP) - The worststorms in a decade leftswathes of Israel and Jordanunder a blanket of snow andparts of Lebanon blacked outon Thursday, bringing miseryto a region accustomed totemperate climates.

Freezing temperatures andfloods since Sunday haveclaimed at least 11 livesacross the region and exacer-bated the plight of hundredsof thousands of Syrianrefugees huddled in tentedcamps in Jordan, Turkey andLebanon.

The United Nations issuedan urgent appeal for funds tohelp refugees in the northernJordanian camp of Zaatari,which was almost entirelyflooded on Wednesday, withresidents battling mud andsub-zero temperatures.

"The next 72 hours will bea critical test of our ability tomeet the basic needs of chil-dren and their families at Za-atari," UN Children's Fund(UNICEF) Jordan representa-tive, Dominique Hyde said ina statement on Thursday.

Worst storms in decade bringMideast to near standstill

QUETTA, Pakistan (AFP) -Bomb attacks killed 92 peo-ple in Pakistan's city ofQuetta on Thursday, as twinsuicide bombers targeted asnooker hall frequented byShiites in the deadliest singleattack in the country fornearly two years.

At least 92 people werekilled and 121 woundedwhen two suicide bombersblew themselves up at thecrowded club in an area ofthe southwestern city domi-nated by members of the Shi-ite Muslim community, asenior police officer said.

It was one of the worstsingle attacks ever on the mi-nority community, which ac-count for around 20 percentof Pakistan's 180-millionstrong population.

It was the deadliest attackin Pakistan since twin suicidebombers killed 98 people out-side a police training centre inthe northwestern town ofShabqadar on May 13, 2011 -- shortly after US troopskilled Osama bin Laden.

The double suicide blastscame hours after a bomb ripped

through a security forces' vehi-cle in a crowded part of the city,killing 11 people and woundingdozens more.

According to the US-basedHuman Rights Watch, 2012was the deadliest year onrecord for Shiites in Pakistan.

The organisation lateThursday called the govern-ment's failure to protect thecommunity, which accountfor around 20 percent of thepopulation.

Twin suicide blastskill 92 in Pakistan'sQuetta: police

2 Friday, January 11, 2013

Serial killers and killer pit-bulls were graphically shownand discussed at this week-end's FORENSIC DEN-TISTRY lecture given at theInternational Center for Ad-vanced Education, sponsoredby Walker Orthodontics.

Minister of Justice, Mr.Drs. Arthur Dowers and histeam of Special InvestigativePolice, Prosecutors,andCriminologists joined 15local Dentists in thisprovocative 2 day lecture.

The guest lecturers are theworld renowned Dr. RichardSouviron and Dr. WilliamSilver, Chief and DeputyForensic Odontologists,Metro Dade County FloridaMedical Examiner Depart-ment, (Miami, Fla.).

Their combined experi-ence in using dental recordsand bite marks provided ariveting presentation on theidentification of missing per-sons, victims of criminal vio-lence, criminal convictionand unidentified remains ofmass disaster victims.

When bodies and bodyparts are found, the police andmedical examiner must deter-mine without a doubt who theperson is, how they died andwhy! The importance of gooddental records, showing miss-ing teeth, crooked teeth, im-plants and restorations(fillings) are the clues that cansolve the mystery.

The families and insur-ance companies must knowas soon as possible.

Dr's Silver and Souviron'firsthand experience onsiteafter Hurricane Katrina, theValueJet crash in the Ever-glades and World Trade Cen-ter showed the organizationof support teams necessary todeal with the victims of thoseunexpected disasters.

Compelling situations,bringing attention to our needto be prepared for the un-thinkable possibility of aplane crash at the airport ornearby offshore, cruise shipdisasters happen while in portand offshore, possibility of arogue hurricane, consideringthe effect of our heavy rains.

How are the victims han-dled, collected, stored, iden-tified and disposed of..ontoor off island????

Another provocative topicpresented is the importanceof Forensic Dentistry in solv-ing crimes. Bite marks onvictims confirm the violentnature of the act. The markleft on the victim can berecorded and used to provethe guilt or innocence of anaccused person. The traineddentist assist the police in theinvestigation and testifieswith the evidence in court.

Killers are convicted onthis evidence and innocentpersons, wrongfully con-victed, on death row have

been released. The most no-torious serial killer ever, TedBundy, 40 known victims,was convicted and executed,with the expert evidence pro-vided by Dr. Souviron.

An important piece of ad-vice from Dr. Souviron:"IFYOU ARE BEING AT-TACKED IN A RAPE AT-TEMPT....BITE HIM!" Nodefense then for 'Consent'with the assailant!!!

Biting also includes ani-mal attacks. Specifically pre-sented were documenteddeaths caused by Pit Bulldogs. Lethal attacks uponowners, neighbors andstrangers led to Miami DadeCounty banning ownershipof the Pit Bull breed. Penal-ties to an owner range from amisdemeanor to felony.

This program left every-one attending with their ownideas for their homework,what each must do in the im-mediate future to prepare ourcommunity for the unfore-seen disasters and how toprotect the innocent and se-cure the guilty in crimes.

A very special thanks toSuzie Nuboer, Sui Lin Mart-inus and Josephine van Am-mers who put this eventtogether and the Minister ofJustice, Mr. Drs. ArthurDowers, who brought to-gether Aruba's finest law en-forcement team and theselfless committed Dentistsserving our community.

Aruban Police take the biteout of crime

Everyone who files a petition to sell goods during the

Carnaval 2013 season must have the following:

1. A passport photo

2. Afls 5 Census paper (Census Office)

3. Valid I.D. or a work permit

4. An Afls 4 stamp

5. The license fee is Afls 225, when its done one will be

called to pick up and pay.

For information and to get the petition forms interested per-

sons can go to the Palace of Justice at Macuarima from

Monday to Friday, from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. For addi-

tional information readers may contact Ms.. Milly Dirks at

tel. 5272900. The last day to file a petition is January 24,

Announcement of the ArubaPolice Force regarding thesale of goods duringCarnaval events

WASHINGTON (AFP) - TheUnited States sought to as-sure Afghan President HamidKarzai on Thursday that itwould remain committed tohis country even as US offi-cials weigh a major with-drawal of American forces.

After an elaborate militaryceremony for Karzai outsidethe Pentagon, US DefenseSecretary Leon Panetta toldhis "distinguished visitor"that more than 10 years ofwar had paved the way forAfghanistan to stand on itsown.

"After a long and difficultpast, we finally are, I believe,at the last chapter of estab-lishing a sovereignAfghanistan that can governand secure itself for the fu-ture," Panetta said.

"We've come a long waytowards a shared goal of es-tablishing a nation that youand we can be proud of, onethat never again becomes a

safe haven for terrorism," hesaid at the outset of his talkswith Karzai.

Since US-led troops top-pled the Taliban from powerin 2001 following the Sep-tember 11 attacks, the Afghanpresident has had a stormyrelationship with his US al-lies, and American officialsare anxious to demonstrateWashington's full-fledgedsupport during his visit.

In his talks this week,Karzai is expected to push fora substantial US militarypresence in Afghanistan after2014, when the NATO-ledmission is due to end.

But some officials in theWhite House favor a lightfootprint of several thousandtroops after 2014, and BenRhodes, a deputy national se-curity adviser, even sug-gested Tuesday that theUnited States might pull outall of its troops.

US will stand byAfghanistan, Panettatells Karzai

Friday, January 11, 2013 3

The Music Foundation,“Stichting Musica” has an-nounced that the official tick-ets for the Grand Carnavalmusic event are on sale. Ashas been reported, the well-known Calypso and Road-march contest this year is

being organized by theStichting Musica and hasbeen renamed: Aruba Caiso& Soca Monarch. This grandevent begins next week Tues-day, January 15, 2013.

There will be three pre-

final nights. The final nightwill be Saturday, January19th. All events will takeplace in the Joe LaveistSportspark in San Nicolaas.The public has two entranceticket options. They can pur-chase tickets for each night,

or they can buy a package fora 4-night access to the musi-cal events.

Tickets are available at:Plaza Bookshop, Cliffix,CD & More, Superfood,WEMA, Valero Boulevard,

Valero Essoville, GalloRojo, MY USA, Fun Milesand Dragon CD & Elec-tronics.

Last Sunday the registeredbands chose the particular se-quence for each night. OnTuesday, the 15th of Januarythe bands Tsunami, LeGroove, Youth Extreme, Up-grade and Je’o will perform.On Wednesday 16th, Simple-mente Pabo, Claudius &Oreo, Virus Band, XC Lanz,Hot Ones Band and D’liciouswill be next on stage. On thefinal night of the pre-final,The Failures, D.U.R.O.,NBO, Aruba Invaders, Thissand That, Zeta Band, DushiBand and Robert Jeandor ysu Solo Banda Show willconclude the line up of musicand bands.

Present at the news con-ference was Erik Jan Emanrepresenting Purple Enter-tainment Group. This com-pany will be in charge of allthe logistics. Eman indicatedthat this year the musicianswill experience a very ac-commodating and practicalarea behind the stage. Also,for the first time, the audi-ence will experience in thislargest festival no less than36 moving lights, which will

provide a spectacular lightingeffect on stage.

Stichting Musica was par-ticularly pleased to announcetheir sponsors for this grandfestival. Among the sponsorsare Setar NV who will be of-fering the festival a pay perview via cable as well as viainternet for foreing viewers.

Romar Trading will ensurethat all bars are well stockedwith Heineken beer. Othersponsors will be, Blackberry,Palm Beach Plaza, ValeroRetail and Hertz Lease.

All in all, the mega musicevent is expected to surpassall other events of previousyears!

With a total of 22 Caisos and 61 Socas participating:

Entrance tickets for Aruba’s biggest Carnavalevent: Caiso & Soca Monarch are here!

MUNICH, Germany, Jan10, 2013 (AFP) - A 94-year-old pensioner broke out ofhospital in Munich so hecould belatedly celebratehis birthday in one of theGerman city's famous beerhalls, police said Thursday.A passer-by noticed the eld-erly man at an undergroundrail station on Wednesdayas he still had an intra-venous drip needle im-planted in his left hand.He took the slightly dazedman to transport authoritieswho called the police."After several calls, itemerged that the pensionerhad bolted from a Munichclinic," police said in astatement. "He himself saidhe was on his way to a beerhall to have a belated birth-day celebration."Police said the man wasthen returned to the hospi-tal, where doctors agreed toallow him to have the tall,frothy beverage of hischoice.

Man, 94, boltsGerman clinic in

search of birthdaybeer

FRI. - JAN - 11

6 p.m. - 2 am: Inscription Tumba Contest 2013 -Hoffie Chona (Paradera)7 p.m. - Children’s Queen Election Noord (Centrodi Bario Noord)Children’s Queen’s Election Dakota (Centro diBario Dakota) SAT. - JAN - 12

6:30 p.m. - Aruba’s Children’s & Youth Calypsoand RoadmarchContest (Aruba EntertainmentCenter)SUN. - JAN - 13

1 p.m. - San Nicolas Balloon Parade - San Nicolas


Two years ago Balashi Brew-ery partnered with StichtingArubaanse Carnaval, SAC, tohost the first of what is nowconsidered one of the mostfun carnival parties of theseason, the Chill Flip Flopbeach party. They introducedtheir new Balashi Chill,which was an instant success,and turned hotel row intobeach for the event.

This year, the 3rd annualChill Flip Flop Party willcapture all the fun of Car-naval on Sunday, January 20,from 4:00 PM until midnight,while being an actual beachparty at the Surfside Marinain Oranjestad. Balashi is alsotaking this opportunity to in-troduce their new, 8 oz “ponycans,” of Chill, which fitnicely in the hand and caneasily be finished while thebeer is still icy cold.

The event will host a pa-rade of major local musicaltalent and internationalsinging sensation Cris Cab asguest featured performer. DJBig Rig, Upgrade Music, Dat-apaniK and DJ Nutzbeatz willkeep the vibe flowing all day,until the grand finale, whenCris Cab will demonstratewhy he is the hottest youngCuban performer in Miami.

Partygoers will receivegreat Chill logo gifts alongwith their purchase of cases ofthe new pony cans of beer.Sunglasses, hats, tee shirts,tank tops, booty shorts andcan holders will be distrib-uted. During the first half hourof the event, from 4:00 to 4:30PM only, receive a gift of abeautiful, full size, unfoldingthermal cooler on wheels witha pull handle, making it easyto take your beer with youwherever you go.

This is a beach partyabove all, and to emphasisthis, a featured event will bea fashion show by bikini spe-

cialists, Amar Swimwear ofAruba, with island modelscompeting to be their AmarBikini Model of 2013.

The best news yet is en-trance to the event is entirelyFREE; there is no fee to joinin a great afternoon of carni-val fun, musical entertain-ment and bodacious bodieson the beach, courtesy ofAruba’s National Brewery,Balashi. Everyone is invitedto Surfside to enjoy the am-biance and just Chill!

By Rosalie Klein

Chill Flip Flop Party will be ahighlight event of Carnival 59

Marketing Manager Vanessa Hollander shows off thenew pony can

Cris Cab

What do George Clooney,Will Ferrel, Jennifer Garner.Jennifer Lopez, Debra Mess-ing, Jeremy Renner. MerylStreep and Kerry Washingtonhave in common?

They have all either beennominated or have won oneor several Golden Globesover the years. The 70th an-nual Golden Globe cere-monies which will be held at

the Beverly Hilton Hotel inBeverly Hills on January the13th and each of these illus-trious performers will be pre-senters, handing over theGolen Globe to thelucky winners.

The show will be hostedby Tina Fey and AmyPoehler.

Continue on pg 5

"Exclusive coverage

the Golden Globes

Awards"by Noel de Souza

THE MORNING NEWS is proud to welcome a series of

exclusive interviews from Special Guest Correspondent

Noel de Souza. Noel is an actor and journalist, and a mem-

ber of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, as a cor-

respondent for The Times of India. As one of the planners

of the upcoming Golden Globe Awards 2013, which will be

broadcast live this Sunday, January 13, he has a unique

perspective on this glittering event, considered a “predic-

tor” of who will claim the Oscars later this year.


It’s a fun filled night and itis know as the party of theyear in Hollywood circles,with every one scrambling toget invited.

Before the ceremoniesbegin celebrities and the in-vited guest mingle and sipMoet & Chandon champagne

and then sit down to dinner.If you would like to eat whatthe stars are eating that night,here are the recipes whichwill help you prepare theidentical meal. You can enjoyit while you and yourfriends sit in front of your TVand watch the show.

"Exclusive coverage theGolden Globes Awards"by Noel de SouzaContinued from pg 4

WASHINGTON (AFP) - Thehuge wave of liquidity un-leashed by major centralbanks in the past four years tofight crises could be peaking,a top official of the IIF globalbanking group said Thursday.

"The liquidity cycle is be-ginning to turn," said HungTran, first deputy managingdirector of the Institute of In-ternational Finance.

Financial markets havebenefited significantly fromthe flood of liquidity, which

drove a lot of the investmentactivity as investors searchedfor yield amid a low interest-rate environment, Tran said.

And liquidity remainsplentiful and seems to be in-creasing all the time, he said,pointing to the Federal Re-serve's expansion last monthof a third round of quantita-tive easing, to a monthly $85billion in bond purchases.

"But the music has startedto stop," Tran said at a newsbriefing at the Washington

headquarters of the associa-tion, which represents morethan 450 financial institutionsworldwide.

Tran highlighted that par-ticipants at the Federal OpenMarket Committee's Decem-ber meeting were consideringending QE3 sooner than theend of this year, according tothe minutes of the meeting.

Outlining a scenario thatcould prompt the FOMC topull the plug, Tran said theUS economy would be doing

"not super, but decent."The housing sector would

be making a strong come-back, manufacturing exportswould be doing well and stateand local governments wouldbe adding jobs this year, re-versing layoffs that had actedas a drag on the recovery.

In Europe, several bankshave recovered, he noted, thanksto supportive actions from theEuropean Central Bank.

Under his European sce-nario, several banks will de-

cide to repay their ECB loansahead of the three-year dead-line because "they may notneed the money."

They borrowed the moneybecause of fears that theycould lose access to marketsdue to a lack of enough liquid-ity, not because they needed itfor lending, he explained.

"In the investor community,you see the end of QE3 here,the repayment of ECB liquid-ity there, meaning the liquiditycycle is beginning to turn."

Banking group IIF sees liquidity peaking


CARACAS (AFP) - Withcancer-stricken PresidentHugo Chavez hospitalized inCuba, thousands of flag-wav-ing Venezuelans in red shirtsfilled the streets of CaracasThursday to inaugurate hisnew term without him.

Bands played patriotic an-thems from street-side stagesas people poured out of busesto make their way on foot to-ward the Miraflores presiden-tial palace for a symbolicswearing-in of the people inplace of Chavez, who is toosick to take the oath of office.

Shouts of "Chavez,Chavez!" and the anti-oppo-sition slogan "They will notreturn" could be heard, asChavista militants stoked the

crowd. On one stage, anevangelical religious servicewas underway.

"I love the president," saidPedro Brito, a 60-year-oldlaw professor, in a red T-shirtwith the slogan "I amChavez."

"He has done a lot for poorpeople, the ones who had noplace to sleep of food to eat.He has shown us how to lovethe country."

Vice President NicolasMaduro hosted a meeting ofleftist Latin America presi-dents and other foreign repre-sentatives who have come toshow support for the Chavezgovernment in a period ofdeep uncertainty about the fu-ture.

The Supreme Courtcleared the ailing Chavez toindefinitely postpone hisswearing-in and said his ex-isting administration couldremain in office until he iswell enough to take the oath.

It was the last legal hurdleto a government plan for re-solving the vacuum createdby Chavez's illness that metfierce resistance from the op-position, which had argued itwas unconstitutional.

The opposition kept a lowprofile on Thursday but criti-cized the government for notdeclaring Chavez temporarilyincapacitated.

Leopold Lopez, an oppo-sition leader, called it "an in-definite situation in which we

can be without a president,and without clear signs thatthe president is governing."

Henrique Capriles, whoran unsuccessfully againstChavez in the October presi-dential elections, acceptedthe unanimous ruling as"binding" but said it did notend the uncertainties facingthe oil-rich country.

"The excuses are over, MrMaduro. Now it falls to youto assume the responsibilityof the office and to govern,"Capriles said.

But even without the offi-cial ceremony, and despite

deep political divisions here,Venezuela's government pre-pared for a day of celebrationof Chavez, who won re-elec-tion in October by an 11-point margin, despite hishealth battles.

In televised speeches, onTwitter and in work places,the government has madeblanket appeals for Venezue-lans to turn out.

The military announced itwas reinforcing security inthe city and at other strategicpoints to ensure the day wasobserved peacefully.

Venezuela stages inauguration rally without Chavez

Supporters of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez gatheroutside Miraflores presidential palace during an event inhomage of Chavez, in Caracas

not need refrigeration.It could also have applica-

tions in the treatment of cancerand Alzheimer's, with insulinplaying a role in both diseases,he added.

There are an estimated 347million diabetes sufferersworldwide and diagnoses areincreasing, particularly in de-veloping countries, due togrowing levels of obesity andphysical inactivity.

It is expected to be the sev-enth leading cause of death inthe world by 2030, with theWorld Health Organisationprojecting total deaths from di-abetes will rise by more than50 percent in the next 10 years.

Complications of diabetesinclude heart disease, blind-ness, limb amputation and kid-ney failure.

the cervical fluid.But the 44 women included

in the pilot study had alreadybeen diagnosed with either en-dometrial or ovarian cancer.

The test must now be con-ducted on women who appearhealthy, to determine if it coulddetect cancers in their earlystages.

They also aim to search forways to increase the test's ac-curacy in detecting ovariancancer.

But if their findings hold up,the test could be a powerfultool in fighting these two can-cers of the ovaries and theuterus lining.

Ovarian cancer causes moredeaths than any other cancer ofthe female reproductive sys-tem, the CDC notes, addingthat treatment is most effectivewhen it is caught in its earlystages.

Likewise, endometrial can-cer is the most commonly di-agnosed gynecologic cancer,the CDC said, and is besttreated when caught early.

"Genomic-based tests couldhelp detect ovarian and en-dometrial cancers earlyenough to cure more of them,"Johns Hopkins graduate stu-dent Yuxuan Wang said in astatement.

She noted that the cost ofthe test could be similar to cur-rent cervical fluid HPV testing,

He explained that the testworks because the cervicalfluid collected during the paptest occasionally contains cellsshed from ovaries or the uter-ine lining.

So it followed that any can-cer cells present in those or-gans could also be present in

WASHINGTON (AFP) -Turns out the pap smear -- aroutine test women undergoeach year or two to screen forcervical cancer -- could helpscreen for other types of can-cer as well, a new study saidthis week.

A new test takes the samefluid swab from the cervix andtests it for the presence of cer-tain cancer-specific mutations.

The scientists were hopingto catch cases of ovarian andendometrial cancer -- twocommon and deadly cancerswhich, until now, were notable to be screened for rou-tinely.

In the pilot study, the testwas able to accurately detecteach of 24 endometrial can-cers, a 100 percent successrate.

The test also detected nineof 22 ovarian cancers, for a 41percent success rate during thepilot study. And in no caseswere healthy women in thecontrol group mis-identified ashaving cancer during thestudy.

The scientists cautioned thatthe process must be tested on amuch larger scale before beingmade available to the public.

Pap test could screen for ovarianand uterine cancer


Health & Living

veloping "novel" treatments ofdiabetes, a chronic conditionin which the pancreas does notproduce enough insulin or thebody cannot use it properly.

"The generation of newtypes of insulin have been lim-ited by our inability to see howinsulin docks into its receptorin the body," Lawrence said.

"This discovery could con-ceivably lead to new types ofinsulin that could be given inways other than injection, oran insulin that has improvedproperties or longer activity sothat it doesn't need to be takenas often."

Importantly, Lawrence saidthe discovery could also haveramifications for the treatmentof diabetes in developing na-tions, allowing for the creationof more stable insulins that do

SYDNEY (AFP) - Break-through research mapping howinsulin works at a molecularlevel could lead to new dia-betes treatments and end dailyneedle jabs, helping hundredsof millions of suffers.

A joint US-Australian teamsaid it has been able to lay outfor the first time in atomic de-tail how the insulin hormonebinds to the surface of cells,triggering the passage of glu-cose from the bloodstream tobe stored as energy.

Lead researcher MikeLawrence said the discovery,more than 20 years in the mak-ing and using powerful x-raybeams, would unlock new andmore effective kinds of dia-betes medication.

Lawrence said the team'sstudy, published in the latestedition of Nature, had revealeda "molecular handshake" be-tween the insulin and its recep-tor on the surface of cells.

"Both insulin and its recep-tor undergo rearrangement asthey interact -- a piece of in-sulin folds out and key pieceswithin the receptor move toengage the insulin hormone,"he said of the "unusual" bind-ing method.

Understanding how insulinattaches to cells was key to de-

Insulin breakthrough could see endto needles

FDA Recommends LowerBedtime Dose for Zolpidem-- The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) an-

nounced yesterday a new recommendation that bedtime

doses of the sedative-hypnotic zolpidem be reduced, on

the basis of data showing morning blood levels in some

patients may be high enough to impair activities requir-

ing alertness, such as driving. The recommendation ap-

plies to zolpidem products approved for bedtime use,

marketed as generics and under the brand names Am-

bien, Ambien CR, Edluar, and Zolpimist. Data show the

risk for morning impairment is highest with extended-re-

lease forms of these drugs, and women appear to be

more susceptible to this effect because they eliminate

zolpidem more slowly than men, a statement from the

FDA notes.

(More information on the announcement is available on

the FDA Web site.)

video calls and being able tocall mobile phones from com-puters, as well as being able toconnect with friends at leadingsocial network Facebook.

A Skype feature on Face-book, a social network inwhich Microsoft owns a smallstake, allows for multi-personconversations and instant one-on-one video calls withfriends.

Skype users can make low-cost or free phone calls overthe Internet using their com-puters or smartphones. Skypebypasses the standard tele-phone network by channelingvoice and video c

BEIRUT (AFP) - The worst storms in a decade leftswathes of Israel and Jordan under a blanket of snowand parts of Lebanon blacked out on Thursday, bringingmisery to a region accustomed to temperate climates. Freezing temperatures and floods since Sunday haveclaimed at least 11 lives across the region and exacer-bated the plight of hundreds of thousands of Syrianrefugees huddled in tented camps in Jordan, Turkey andLebanon. Media reports said the cold weather originatedin Russia, with one daily dubbing the storm "Olga," andauthorities urged citizens to remain indoors. (photo Jor-dan cit y of Amman)


Sci-Tech

SAN FRANCISCO (AFP) -Microsoft sent out word that itwill "retire" its Messenger on-line chat feature on March 15and replace it with the SkypeInternet telephony service itbought last year.

Microsoft sent an emailmessage advising Messengerusers to update to Skype usingtheir same account informationin advance of the deadline.

"You'll be able to instantmessage and video chat...justlike before, and also discovernew ways of staying in touchwith Skype on your mobile

and tablet," Microsoft said inthe message.

The Redmond, Washing-ton-based technology giantannounced in November thatit was shutting down Messen-ger in favor of merging usersinto Skype.

The transition began latelast year with the release ofSkype 6.0 software that letspeople sign in to the onlinecommunication service usingMicrosoft accounts. Messen-ger will be shut off in everycountry but China.

Skype features include

Skype to replace Microsoft Messengerin March

LAS VEGAS (AFP) - With an app, a game or a gadget,technology startups and major companies across allsectors are trying to tackle some of the thorniest prob-lems in health and medicine. The Consumer ElectronicsShow is filled with new gadgets to monitor fitness, detectproblems and find solutions to health issues rangingfrom obesity to diabetes to rare medical conditions. Onetrend is "gamification," which uses a model from thevideo game industry to offer points and rewards to boosthealth and reduce costs. At CES, the world's biggesttechnology show, UnitedHealthcare unveiled a joint ef-fort with Konami Digital Entertainment to reduce child-hood obesity through a new dance game that challengesyoungsters while monitoring things like body massindex and caloric burn rate. The program adds game me-chanics and game psychology to make the experiencemore engaging and immersing.

easy to acquire, it is vulnerableto hacking, which could allowsomeone outside the school tomonitor a student's off-campuswhereabouts if they obtainedthe student's tracking number,"said Dotty Griffith, director ofpublic education for theACLU's Texas chapter.

Since the ID badges are alsoused to purchase food in thecafeteria, check books out ofthe library and participate inafter school programs, Her-nandez was denied access tomany school activities.

CHICAGO (AFP) - A federaljudge has dismissed a Texasgirl's objection to locator chipsin student ID badges at a pub-lic high school in a case thatraises concerns about the ero-sion of privacy and civil liber-ties.

Andrea Hernandez, 15, andher father told school officialsthey oppose the use of locatorchips on religious grounds.

Officials at San Antonio'sNorthside school district saidthey were willing to give her achipless badge, but warned thestraight-A student she wouldbe expelled from her presti-gious selective-enrollmentschool if she did not wear it.

Hernandez refused, sayingthe new badges are the "markof the beast" and that to bemade to wear one equates toforcing her to "fall in line" andendorse the program.

Judge Orlando Garcia said"The accommodation offeredby the district is not only rea-sonable, it removes plaintiff'sreligious objection from legalscrutiny all together."

Similar tracking programs

are being implemented atschools across the nation.While they can help officialslocate students in an emer-gency, although some said theprime motive is money.

Schools are awarded fundsbased upon attendance and thechips allow administrators tocount students as present evenif they don't make it to theirhomeroom because they'rechatting in the hallway with afriend.

"Because the technology is

US schoolgirl loses ID locator chip battle


JAN 05 - JAN 12

O’stad : ‘ Serv. Noord. ’ - S.N. ‘ Serv. Seroe Preto’

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tion and tightening supplies,cereal export prices thendropped because of weakerdemand for feed and indus-trial uses.

The sharpest declines reg-istered in 2012 were for sugar(17.1 percent), dairy products(14.5 percent) and oils (10.7percent), while decreaseswere much more modest forcereals (2.4 percent) andmeat (1.1 percent).

In December, the FAO oilsindex averaged 197 points(down 1.9 percent on No-vember), while the meatindex averaged 176 pointsand the sugar index averaged274 points -- both marginallydown on the previous month.

The dairy index averaged197 points -- 0.9 percenthigher than in November.

Clinton, where he was eventu-ally posted to the OMB.

In 1998 he was named direc-tor of the OMB, where hehelped to manage tough nego-tiations with a hostile Republi-can Congress and achievedfour consecutive years ofbudget surpluses, the first since1960.

When Bush became presi-dent in 2001, Lew moved backto his native New York City,where he joined the manage-ment team of New York Uni-versity.

In 2007-2008 he moved toCitigroup, where he notablyheaded a speculative fund andreaped an annual salary thattopped $1 million.

Before returning to the OMBin 2010, he served as deputysecretary for management andresources under Secretary ofState Hillary Clinton.

Lew, an Orthodox Jew, grewup in New York City and is amarried father of two adultchildren.

He has always been low-keyin public. According to a recentprofile of him in The New YorkTimes, he brings his own lunchto work -- a cheese sandwichand an apple -- and eats at hisdesk.

to 209 points, continuing adescent from the 263 pointsregistered in August.

"The result marks a rever-sal from the situation lastJuly, when sharply risingprices prompted fears of anew food crisis," said JomoSundaram from FAO's Eco-nomic and Social Develop-ment Department.

"But international coordi-nation...as well as flaggingdemand in a stagnant interna-tional economy, helped en-sure the price spike wasshort-lived and calmed mar-kets so that 2012 pricesended up below the previousyear’s levels," he said.

After surging betweenJuly and September 2012 dueto uncertainties over produc-

ROME (AFP) - Global foodprices fell by 7.0 percent in2012 from the level the pre-vious year, the UN's Foodand Agriculture Organisationsaid on Thursday, assuagingworries a few months agothat the world could be head-ing for a food crisis. TheFAO added that prices hadfallen in December for thethird month in a row.

The Rome-based FAO'sFood Price Index averaged212 points in 2012, a drop of7.0 percent owing largely tofalls in the prices of sugar,dairy products and oil.

According to the FAO'sindex, a monthly measure ofchanges in a basket of foodcommodities, prices droppedin December by 1.1 percent

WASHINGTON (AFP) - JackLew's two previous stints asWhite House budget directorand his reputation as a skilleddeal-maker will be put to thetest now that President BarackObama has nominated him tobe Treasury secretary.

With Republicans gearing upfor a showdown with the WhiteHouse over the country's mas-sive debt, Lew has been pickedto replace the pugnacious Tim-othy Geithner, who steered theObama administration through

the financial crisis.The nomination requires

Senate confirmation.Currently White House

chief-of-staff, Lew, 57, is a vet-eran of the treacherous politicsof Washington, and is seen ashaving a keen understanding ofdomestic and international eco-nomics.

Plus, he has already beendeeply involved in budgetfights between the WhiteHouse and Congressional Re-publicans, as Director of theOffice of Management andBudget (OMB) and, since lastyear, Obama's chief of staff.

A Harvard graduate, Lewhas spent his entire profes-sional life in the US capitalsince 1979, except for an eight-year span during the Republi-can presidency of George W.Bush.

He started out as a policy ad-viser to the Democratic speakerof the US House of Represen-tatives, Thomas "Tip" O'Neill.During that period, Lew alsoearned a law degree fromGeorgetown University.

He joined a large Washing-ton law firm when O'Neill re-tired in 1987 and in 1993 wasrecruited into the White Houseof Democratic president Bill

Treasury to test Lew's mettleas budget guru


Finance

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- Best foreign languagefilm: "Amour" (Austria),"Kon-Tiki" (Norway), "No"(Chile), "A Royal Affair"(Denmark) and "War Witch"(Canada).- Best animated feature:

"Brave," "Frankenweenie,""ParaNorman," "The Pirates!Band of Misfits" and"Wreck-It Ralph."

for "Lincoln," and ChristophWaltz for "Django Un-chained."- Best supporting actress:

Amy Adams for "The Mas-ter," Sally Field for "Lin-coln," Anne Hathaway for"Les Miserables," HelenHunt for "The Sessions," andJacki Weaver for "Silver Lin-ings Playbook."

Zeitlin for "Beasts of theSouthern Wild," Ang Lee for"Life of Pi," Steven Spielbergfor "Lincoln," and David O.Russell for "Silver LiningsPlaybook."- Best leading actor:

Bradley Cooper for "SilverLinings Playbook," DanielDay-Lewis for "Lincoln,"Hugh Jackman for "Les Mis-erables," Joaquin Phoenix for"The Master," and DenzelWashington for "Flight."- Best leading actress: Jes-

sica Chastain for "Zero DarkThirty," Jennifer Lawrencefor "Silver Linings Play-book," Emmanuelle Riva for"Amour," Quvenzhane Wallisfor "Beasts of the SouthernWild," and Naomi Watts for"The Impossible."- Best supporting actor:

Alan Arkin for "Argo,"Robert De Niro for "SilverLinings Playbook," PhilipSeymour Hoffman for "TheMaster," Tommy Lee Jones


LOS ANGELES (AFP) -Here are the nominees in themain categories for this year'sOscars, to be handed out atthe climax of Hollywood'sannual awards season onFebruary 24.- Best picture: "Amour,"

"Argo," "Beasts of the South-ern Wild," "Django Un-chained," "Les Miserables,""Life of Pi," "Lincoln," "Sil-ver Linings Playbook," "ZeroDark Thirty."- Best director: Michael

Haneke for "Amour," Benh

Nominees in main Oscars categories

--Aruba’s newest lounge,Brickell Bay Sand Beach, inPalm Beach, created quite astir with its recent opening,revealing a chic, unique en-vironment that has stronglyattracted island fashionistasas a relaxed, elegant place towhile away the eveninghours.

The new eatery/nightclubhas live music twice weekly,and this Sunday will featureon of the island’s most pop-ular and dynamic entertain-ers of the last decade,Marisela and the AquariusBand. She is back on Arubafor a limited engagementand will be appearing everySunday through January atBrickell Bay Sand BeachLounge.

Marisela willbe heating upPalm Beach for avery cool night

each weekend begin-ning this Sunday, Janu-ary 6, from 6:00 to9:00 PM. This is a per-former known for“bringing down thehouse,” so don’t missthis rare opportunity toenjoy some great enter-tainment and discoverAruba’s most stylishnew nightspot. EveryWednesday, The Ryders willbe rockin’ the house from9:00 PM until midnight.Enjoy two for one drinks onall brands, even premium,from 4:00 to 7:00 PM everyMonday through Thursday,and from 5:00 to 7:00 PM on

Friday and Saturday, with anadditional late night “HappyHour” on the weekends from10:00 to 11:00 PM.

Brickell Bay Sand Beachlounge is located directlyacross the street from theSouth Beach Center. If youare wondering what is newand hip on Aruba, this is it!

Brickell Bay Sand Beachlounge featuring live music

this Sunday

“Les Miserables”:ex-convict Jean Valjean (Hugh Jack-man) with "Cosette" (Isabelle Allen) an exploited and vic-timised child which he rescued and raises as his owndaughter

Canada’s War Witch: Writer and Director Kim Nguyenpaints a poignant and harrowing portrait of Komona, a 14-year-old girl (played by Rachel Mwanza) who has beenkidnapped from her African village by rebels to become achild soldier. She escapes from the camp with an older al-bino soldier and experiences for the very first time thejoys of a peaceful and loving life, but a fresh tragedy willforce her to confront and fight the ghosts haunting hermind.

SEOUL (AFP) - Tom Cruiseturned down a chance to tryout his "Gangnam Style"dance skills Thursday, de-spite topping South Koreanrapper Psy's list of celebritieswho should attempt the sig-nature horse-riding dance.

When asked last yearwhich person he would mostlike to see "go GangnamStyle", Psy named the "Mis-sion Impossible" star as hisfirst choice.

Cruise, who was in Seoulto promote his new film,hailed Psy as "quite a sensa-tion" but declined to followthe likes of UN secretary gen-eral Ban Ki-moon in imitat-ing the singer's dance moves.

"He does it better thanme," Cruise told reportersduring a press conference to

promote his movie "JackReacher" which will be re-leased in South Korea nextweek.

"I'm very happy for hissuccess. Everyone has reallyenjoyed it," Cruise added.

Psy made Internet historyshortly before Christmaswhen his "Gangnam Style"video clocked more than onebillion views on YouTube.

Cruise was one of manycelebrities around the worldwho took to social networkslast year to promote Psy'svideo as it became a viralsensation.

"Think @Psy_oppa wouldmake a good future co-starGangnam Style?" the Holly-wood star tweeted last Sep-tember.

Tom Cruise turns downPsy's Gangnam challenge

least is the future value of theinvestment. To further en-hance this, Gold Coast man-agement have inaugurated anumber of in-house servicesand have recently become af-filiated Interval International,the world’s largest network ofvacation ownership propertieswhich provides an unlimitedinternational pool of investorsto tap for ownership and rentalprospects. Property exchangefor a vacation in another desti-nation is also availablethrough the Interval Interna-tional affiliation. Gold Coast’sown rental services have alsoproven highly successful in as-sisting owners in renting theirvillas; 24-hour security andmaintenance services also tipthe scales when it is time tomake a decision. Aside fromall this, housekeeping, childcare, catering services , carrental through its partnershipwith AVIS car rental are alsoavailable as well as pre-shop-ping services so cupboardsand refrigerators are stockedupon arrival, which can alsobe arranged through theirproperty management depart-ment. Personnel are also avail-able to assist in arrangingrestaurant reservations and is-land activities.

Visit their website: www.goldcoastaruba.com formore details and availabilityor call 586-2200 to arrange apersonal tour.

ties such as those at GoldCoast, make it easy for someowners to see a valuable returnon their investment.

The design of the resi-dences and public areas isopen, airy and spacious, takingfull advantage of the island en-vironment, with quality con-struction and finishingavailable. Partnering with twoof Aruba’s top providers ofkitchens and bathrooms en-ables developers to offer cus-tom options allowing buyersto individualize their homes.An elegant and chic furniturepackage is available or islanddesigners will assist owners infinishing the décor to theirspecific tastes.

There are many aspects topurchasing property; not the


of 260 town homes, villas andcondominiums with a stunningclubhouse complemented bytwo additional communitypool areas , The Clubhouse isabout to start construction andwill offer to the communityhomeowners and visitors 2tennis courts, full service spaand fitness center as well as astunning pool area and is ex-pected to be complete by early2013. It will also house arestaurant and mini-market.

Owners who purchasedupon the groundbreaking onlya few short years ago, are al-ready enjoying a nearly 50%appreciation on their invest-ment, particularly those takingadvantage of the on site man-agement’s rental services pro-gram. There is always a greatdemand for Aruba and facili-

the response to our concept.” Fito, with his sister Mayrin

and brother Rudy operate CasBon, which has been con-structing homes and buildingdevelopments for all budgetsfor nearly twenty years. “GoldCoast Aruba is the jewel in ourcrown,” observes Fito. “Wewere very excited about thisproject and the scope of actualand planned facilities andamenities. We have spoken tocountless island visitors to findout what they would reallywant in a permanent residenceon Aruba, and took fromthere.”

Input from frequent vaca-tioners who have dreamed oftheir own home in Aruba con-tributed to the realization ofGold Coast Aruba which whencomplete will be a community

-- Management of Gold CoastAruba, the island’s newest andmost innovative gated com-munity, reports that sales havebeen very good and encourag-ing as the global economy re-covers and people looking topurchase vacation homes havefound that Gold Coast is anoutstanding investment value.Director of Sales, Fito Croeshas noticed a surprising per-centage of owners in reality donot spend a great amount oftime personally to use the vil-las or town homes they pur-chase, but are takingadvantage of Gold Coast’srental services to turn their in-vestment into ready income.

“The greater portion ofhome owners are using their“home away from home” inAruba to escape the wintermonths, or spend holidayswith the family on the island,”he remarked, “but I am grati-fied by how many are buyingbecause they felt secure withreal estate investment onAruba. They really study thehistory and economy of the is-land and are impressed withthe political stability and con-tinually increasing value ofprime locations. Gold Coast isin the heart of Malmok, con-sidered Aruba’s most exclu-sive community where thevalue of properties has only in-creased over time. It is onlyminutes to the best beachesand all the action, and yet of-fers a quiet and secluded get-away; we are very pleased by

Gold Coast Aruba: This is the time to invest

fries is enough to be shared bytwo. He was very amused towatch a famous French chefdemonstrating the best way tomake fried potatoes on a gour-met cooking show and couldonly comment “He stole myrecipe!”

Try them the English way-with vinegar, and you’ll won-der how you ever ate frieswithout it. This same 5-starchef also swears by Gouda asthe best topping for the idealgourmet cheeseburger.

5 Burgers is now openearly until 10-ish at night; de-livery is available to both thehigh-rise and low-rise hoteland beach district at now extracost for orders over $50. Enjoya great lunch without everleaving the beach by calling586-3904. However, we sug-gest you stop by and enjoytheir authentic, heartfelt hospi-tality; it is not unusual for ei-ther owner to sit and chat,sharing their knowledge of theisland while making sure pa-trons are happy with theirmeal.

Farmer’s or Man Burger (al-most 12 ounces of choicebeef), and a Western Burgerwith Aarons’ secret-recipecrispy onion rings. All of thesecan be personalized with an in-credible array of toppings,(mushrooms, jala-peño pep-pers, bacon, cheese, lettuce,tomato…whatever, the listgoes on) at absolutely no extracost.

5 Burger portions areENORMOUS! Aaron suggeststhat even their small serving of

made fresh daily and 100%pure beef, the kind that madethe hamburger a traditionalAmerican treat.

However, beginning at 7a.m., patrons can now order 2eggs any style, (omelets with3 fillings are $7.99) toast andcoffee with unlimited refillsfor the special introductoryprice of only $4.49, ($5.48,with bacon) or All-you-can-eatpancakes, for $6.99, again,with free refills on fresh cof-fee. Breakfast is served until11 a.m. Famous for their friesmade from fresh potatoes,Aaron has been working formonths on devising the mostirresistible home fries recipe,chunky and tender with skinsstill on; after much testing andtasting, he got the thumbs upfrom his harshest critic, Rosie;so this is another treat youhave to try.

A glance at their burgermenu will certainly tempt youto return for lunch or dinner, tosample their famous specialtyitems such as the Gouda,

--A favorite stop for a greatburger for lunch or dinner hasjust expanded their hours andmenu to offer some of the bestbreakfast bargains to be foundin Palm Beach. Owners Aaronand Rosie Walisever are livingtheir dream: a home on para-dise while welcoming all andsundry to their proud under-taking, 5 Burgers Aruba. Thecouple’s fanatical dedicationto giving their customers whatthey really want has resulted ina unique menu from an inter-

nationally known franchisewith a “5”, which now in-cludes breakfast.

“You never get a secondchance to make a first impres-sion,” believes Aaron. Uponentering 5 Burgers Aruba inThe Village Mall in PalmBeach, one is struck by utterlyspotless surroundings and asmiling, friendly, attentiveservice crew. Of course, themain item on the menu isburgers-the way they weremeant to be, thick and juicy,

5 Burgers Aruba: Now your best breakfast bargain!


Young Award winner as thetop pitcher Clemens were onthe ballot for the first time.

"The standards for earningelection to the Hall of Famehave been very high eversince the rules were createdin 1936," said Hall of Famepresident Jeff Idelson. "Werealize the challenges votersare faced with in this era."

Eligible candidates neededto be named on 75 percent ofthe 569 ballots submitted bymembers of the BBWAA.

Houston Astros secondbaseman Craig Biggio cameclosest by nabbing 68 percentof the vote, finishing just 39votes short of election.

This is the eighth electionby the BBWAA that did notproduce a Hall of Famer.

Other players that wereshutout this year include out-fielder Sammy Sosa andcatcher Mike Piazza. Sosa isbelieved to have failed atleast one drug test while Pi-azza was also a power hitterin the steroid era.

Bonds set the all-timemark in home runs with 762over 22 seasons and estab-lished a single-season recordfor homers with 73 in 2001.

He was named on 206 bal-lots (36.2 percent), whileClemens, who played 24 sea-sons, was also named onabout 200 ballots.

Bonds has denied know-ingly using performance-en-hancing drugs. He wasconvicted of one count of ob-struction of justice for givingan evasive answer in 2003 toa grand jury probing banneddrug use in baseball.

Clemens was acquitted ofperjury charges stemmingfrom congressional testimonyduring which he denied usingdrugs.

PARIS (AFP) - MonacoDavis Cup teammates Ben-jamin Balleret and GuillaumeCouillard have gone into thetennis record books afterplaying out a 70-pointtiebreak.

The pair made history at a$10,000 International TennisFederation third-tier clay-court event at Plantation,Florida, when they met in thefinal qualifying round.

Balleret won the match 7-6 (36/34), 6-1 as 37-year-oldCouillard eventually wilted.

"Neither of us sensed thefirst set would last so long.We were both really tight, be-cause we know each other sowell. We didn't want to loseit. When we switched endsduring the tie-break, with thescore in the 20s and 30s, wewere laughing," said Balleret,the world number 636.

The longest tie-break onrecord, at a tour-level event,came in the 1985 Wimbledondoubles first round whenMichael Mortensen and JanGunnarsson beat John Fraw-ley and Victor Pecci 6-4, 6-4,3-6, 7-6 (26/24).

Tennis:Monaco duoplay record70-pointtiebreak

COOPERSTOWN, NY(AFP) - Barry Bonds andRoger Clemens, who starredduring the so-called "steroidera", were both shutout yes-terday in their attempt to getvoted into Major LeagueBaseball's Hall of Fame.

This is the first time since1996 that the Baseball Writ-

ers' Association of Americawill not be electing anyone tothe Hall of Fame, includingBonds or Clemens who bothhad their careers tarnished bytheir alleged use of perform-ance-enhancing drugs.

All-time home run kingBonds and seven-time Cy

Baseball: Bonds, Clemens shut outin Hall induction

RUHPOLDING, Germany (AFP) : French Martin Four-

cade shoots during the men 4x7.5 km relay at the

Biathlon World Cup on January10, 2013, in Ruhpolding,

southern Germany. France won the competition, Norway

placed second and Austria placed third.

Biathlon: World Cup results

SPORT

NEW YORK (AFP) - MajorLeague Baseball and theMLB Players Association saidThursday they will add ran-dom in-season blood testingfor human growth hormone tothe game's anti-doping pro-gramme.

The prior joint drug preven-tion and treatment programmeallowed for each player to besubject to an unannouncedblood test during spring train-ing and an unannounced, ran-dom test in the offseason.

Major League Baseball,which has been randomly test-ing its minor league playersfor HGH since July 2010, willbecome the only major NorthAmerican sport to blood testunionized players.

Records will also be kept onT/E (testosterone to epitestos-terone) ratios of players toprevent the unauthorized useof synthetic testosterone.

"This agreement addressescritical drug issues and sym-bolizes Major League Base-ball's continued vigilanceagainst synthetic humangrowth hormone, testosteroneand other performance-en-hancing substances," MLBcommissioner Bud Selig said.

"I am proud that our systemallows us to adapt to the manyevolving issues associatedwith the science and technol-ogy of drug testing."

The announcement comes aday after slugger Barry Bondsand pitcher Roger Clemens,who starred during the game'sso-called "steroid era", wereboth shut out in voting for theHall of Fame as for the firsttime since 1996 electors de-clined to name anyone to beinducted this year.

MLB to testfor HGH

Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens

SANKT-ANTON AM ARL-BERG, Austria, (AFP) -Four-time overall World Cupchampion Lindsey Vonn re-turns to action on Saturdayafter a month's absence, fac-ing serious doubts over herability to capture a fifth title.

The 28-year-old Americanhas endured a roller-coasterseason, being hospitalisedwith an intestinal ailment be-fore bouncing back to win allthree races at Lake Louise.

However, after falling at

Perth for South Africa, wherehe beat Fernando Verdasco andJohn Isner.

Benneteau discovered onThursday that he would be thebeneficiary of AmericanIsner's injury-enforced with-drawal from the AustralianOpen. The 35th-rankedFrenchman was elevated to the32nd and last seeding.


against Andy Murray last Jan-uary in Brisbane.

The towering Kevin Ander-son earlier Thursday becamethe first South African in nineyears to reach the Sydneysemi-finals with victory overDenis Istomin.

The 36th-ranked Andersonaccounted for the Uzbek 6-4,6-3 in 84 minutes and will facelast year's finalist Julien Ben-neteau of France in Friday'slast four.

The last South African toreach the final four was WayneFerreira.

Benneteau, who lost toNieminen in last year's final,was too strong for Americanqualifier Ryan Harrison, win-ning 6-4, 6-2.

Tomic, a 2011 Wimbledonquarter-finalist, now has 17victories from his past 19matches in Australia as heheads into the Australian OpenGrand Slam in Melbourne onMonday.

Tomic grabbed the onlyservice break of the second setwhen Nieminen faltered tryingto stay in the game at 4-5down.

The Finn petered out in thefinal set and shanked his sec-ond serve on match point.

Anderson, who is 6ft 8in(2.03 metres) tall, is bidding toclaim his third ATP title aftervictories in Delray Beach andJohannesburg.

Anderson, 26, is coming offa successful week at themixed-teams Hopman Cup in

SYDNEY (AFP) - YoungAustralian Bernard Tomic tooka major step towards winninghis first career ATP Tour titleby downing defending cham-pion Jarkko Nieminen at theSydney International onThursday.

The 20-year-old, ranked64th, clawed back from drop-ping the opening set to oust theFinn, 6-7 (6/8), 6-4, 6-2 in anight quarter-final.

Tomic will take on thirdseed Andreas Seppi in Friday'ssemi after the Italian elimi-nated Spanish eighth seedMarcel Granollers 6-4, 7-5, inthe last quarter-final.

Tomic's only previous toursemi-final ended in defeat

Tennis: Tomic knocks out defendingchampion Nieminen

CALAMA, (AFP) - Qatar's Nasser al-Attiyah slashed 10-

time champion Stephane Peterhansel's Dakar Rally lead

by over eight minutes on Thursday as the 2011 winner

stormed to victory on the sixth stage. Al-Attiyah started

the day at 9min 54sec behind defending champion Pe-

terhansel but finished just 1min 18sec off the overall

lead, winning his third stage of this year's event, a 438km

special from Arica to Calama. The Qatari, in a Buggy,

clocked 4hr 52min with Peterhansel, in a Mini, in second

spot ahead of American NASCAR driver Robby Gordon,

who was nearly 14 minutes behind al-Attiyah. South

Africa's Giniel de Villiers, driving a Toyota, was sixth to

stay third overall, 42 minutes behind the leader.

2008, 2009, 2010 and 2012."The break was really im-

portant for me. After fallingbadly, my legs weren't strongenough. It's important to lis-ten to your body and that iswhat I have done," she said.

Vonn is currently 725points behind Slovenia's TinaMaze in the overall stand-ings, but will start asfavourite for Saturday'sdownhill and the super-G onSunday.

Val D'Isere in December, sheannounced she was headingback to the United States fora month's rest.

Even then she remained inthe headlines, revealing thatshe had been suffering fromdepression for a number ofyears.

"It's great to see all theother girls again at the WorldCup and you, the media. I amreally enthusiastic to beback," said Vonn, the overallWorld Cup champion in

Alpine skiing: Vonn returns undershadow of doubt


The first-place Spurs im-proved to 28-10 with the helpof their big three Parker, Gi-nobili and Tim Duncan.

Heading into Wednesday'scontest Parker, Ginobili andDuncan were averaging acombined 49.4 points pergame this season. Duncanhad eight points, seven re-bounds and five assistsWednesday.

The Lakers have beenstruggling but one bright as-pect is they have now scoredat least 100 points in 18 oftheir last 20 games.

The Lakers played withoutcentre Dwight Howard (rightshoulder) as well as forwardsPau Gasol (concussion).

Steve Nash finished with14 points and nine assistsagainst San Antonio. Nashnotched his 10,000th careerassist in a loss to Houston onTuesday. He is the fourthfastest to reach the milestonein NBA history.

The Lakers have now lostfour in a row versus theSpurs, including an early sea-son 84-82 setback at home onNovember 13.

NEW YORK (AFP) - The Na-tional Hockey League has rat-ified a new collectivebargaining agreement after aunanimous 30-0 vote by theboard of governors yesterday.

The next step to getting theseason started is for the playersunion to ratify the deal whichshould take place this week-end.

Board chairman and BostonBruins owner Jeremy Jacobsannounced the ratificationwhile league commissionerGary Bettman on Wednesdayapologized for the 113-daylockout.

"I'm sorry. I know an apol-ogy or explanation isn'tenough, but I owe you an apol-

ogy," said Bettman who hasnow overseen three labour dis-putes during his time in office.

"I read the letters, I fol-lowed the tweets. I read theblogs. We have a lot of work todo ... that effort begins today."

It is believed the playerswill vote to ratify the agree-ment, paving the way for train-ing camps to begin sometimewithin a week.

The new collective bargain-ing agreement will last for 10years, with an opt-out clauseafter eight seasons.

The players' share ofhockey-related income willfall from 57 percent to a 50percent with the owners alsogetting 50 percent.

The salary cap for the up-coming season will also re-portedly be $70.2 million witha minimum payroll of $44 mil-lion. The salary cap will dropto $64.3 million for the 2013-14 season.

Bettman has previouslystated that a regular-seasonschedule of at least 48 gamesmust begin by January 19. Theexisting 2012-13 NHL sched-ule had already been cancelledthrough January 14.

NHL: Owners approvenew NHL agreement inlocked-out season

SAN ANTONIO (AFP) -Tony Parker scored 24 pointson 10-of-16 shooting andManu Ginobili had 19 pointsas the San Antonio Spurs de-feated the Los Angeles Lak-ers 108-105 on Wednesday.

Ginobili scored a crucialthree-pointer with 43 secondsleft and pulled down eight re-bounds for the Spurs, whobounced back from a loss tothe New Orleans Hornets onMonday.

Tiago Splitter finished

with 14 points and 14 re-bounds for San Antonio, whoimproved to 15-2 at homethis season. Stephen Jacksonscored 14 points before leav-ing the game with 3:32 re-maining in the fourth quarter.

Kobe Bryant ended with27 points for the Lakers, whosuffered their fifth consecu-tive defeat.

Metta World Peace added23 points, eight rebounds andseven steals, while Earl Clarkhad 22 points and 13 re-bounds.

NBA: Spurs send Lakers tofifth-straight loss

San Antonio Spurs guard Tony Parker (9) gets fouledwhile shooting by Los Angeles Lakers center RobertSacre (left)

Jeremy Jacobs announced theratification

Friday, January 11, 2013

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