Teary testimony from victim's family in Arias case

Jodi Arias appears for the sentencing phase of her trial at Maricopa County Superior Court in Phoenix, Wednesday, May 15, 2013. The same jury that convicted Arias of murder one week ago took about three hours Wednesday to determine that the former waitress is eligible for the death penalty in the stabbing and shooting death of her one-time lover in his bathroom five years ago. (AP Photo/The Arizona Republic, Rob Schumacher, Pool)

Jodi Arias appears for the sentencing phase of her trial at Maricopa County Superior Court in Phoenix, Wednesday, May 15, 2013. The same jury that convicted Arias of murder one week ago took about three hours Wednesday to determine that the former waitress is eligible for the death penalty in the stabbing and shooting death of her one-time lover in his bathroom five years ago. (AP Photo/The Arizona Republic, Rob Schumacher, Pool)

Tanisha Sorenso truns away as autopsy photos of her brother Travis Alexander are displayed on Wednesday, May 15, 2013, during the sentencing phase of the Jodi Arias murder trial at Maricopa County Superior Court in Phoenix. If the jury finds aggravating factors in her crime, Arias could be sentenced to death. Jodi Arias was convicted of first-degree murder in the stabbing and shooting death of Travis Alexander, 30, in his suburban Phoenix home in June 2008. (AP Photo/The Arizona Republic, Rob Schumacher, Pool)

Tanisha Sorenso closes her eyes as autopsy photos of her brother Travis Alexander are displayed on Wednesday, May 15, 2013 during the sentencing phase of the Jodi Arias murder trial at Maricopa County Superior Court in Phoenix. If the jury finds aggravating factors in her crime, Arias could be sentenced to death. Jodi Arias was convicted of first-degree murder in the stabbing and shooting to death of Travis Alexander, 30, in his suburban Phoenix home in June 2008. (AP Photo/The Arizona Republic, Rob Schumacher, Pool)

Jodi Arias looks at the family of Travis Alexander as the jury arrives on Wednesday, May 15, 2013, during the sentencing phase of her trial at Maricopa County Superior Court in Phoenix. If the jury finds aggravating factors in her crime, Arias could be sentenced to death. Jodi Arias was convicted of first-degree murder in the stabbing and shooting death of Travis Alexander, 30, in his suburban Phoenix home in June 2008. (AP Photo/The Arizona Republic, Rob Schumacher, Pool)

Prosecutor Juan Martinez addresses the jury on Wednesday, May 15, 2013, during the sentencing phase of the Jodi Arias murder trial at Maricopa County Superior Court in Phoenix. If the jury finds aggravating factors in her crime, Arias could be sentenced to death. (AP Photo/The Arizona Republic, Rob Schumacher, Pool)

PHOENIX (AP) ? The jury deciding the fate of convicted murderer Jodi Arias heard dramatic and emotional testimony Thursday from the family of the man she killed as they described how their lives were ripped apart by his death.

Siblings of Travis Alexander broke down in tears as they made an impassioned plea to jurors that Arias be executed for stabbing him to death in 2008.

Steven Alexander said he suffered ulcers, went on antidepressants, was separated from his wife and cannot sleep because of the horrible dreams.

"I don't want these nightmares anymore," Steven Alexander told the jury, at times almost sneering with anger as he recalled what happened to his beloved brother. "I don't want to have to see my brother's murderer anymore."

The testimony came as the trial's penalty phase opened in a Phoenix courtroom, with attorneys giving arguments on whether Arias should get a life sentence or be executed. The same jury convicted Arias of first-degree murder last week.

The prosecutor displayed family portraits as the siblings spoke, prompting Arias to break down in tears herself.

Sister Samantha Alexander became emotional as she described how their grandmother, who raised the victim, saw her health fail after the killing and died around the time of jury selection.

"Travis was the glue in our family," Samantha Alexander said. She also recalled her brother's charisma, sense of humor, insight and "huge smile."

"I thought my brother was bulletproof," Steven Alexander said. "I thought he was stronger than anyone. He couldn't be cut down or knocked down."

Meanwhile, defense lawyer Kirk Nurmi said Arias will testify as he listed several factors that the jury can consider in deciding to grant mercy, including her age, troubled upbringing, lack of criminal history before the killing, and even her skills as a talented artist.

Prosecutor Juan Martinez went through each factor and sought to turn the attention to the gruesome killing, asking what her age, background and art skills have to do with what happened the day Travis Alexander was stabbed nearly 30 times.

Other witnesses in the penalty phase will include Arias' friends and an ex-boyfriend who lived with her for several years in California.

Arias' attorneys earlier asked to step down from the case, but a judge denied the request.

Details about the motion were sealed, but legal experts said Arias complicated efforts for her defense when she gave an interview to Fox affiliate KSAZ minutes after her conviction, saying she preferred death over life in prison.

"I believe death is the ultimate freedom, and I'd rather have my freedom as soon as I can get it," Arias said.

During a closed-door meeting with the judge on Tuesday, Nurmi and Jennifer Willmott sought permission to withdraw from the case, according to court minutes released Thursday.

Los Angeles-area criminal defense lawyer Mark Geragos said Arias' attorneys have a conflict of interest with their efforts to keep their client off death row and Arias' assertion that she'd rather die for her crime.

"It's not highly unusual," he said. "There are cases where defendants make decisions that they're better off on death row, but that puts the lawyer in a conflicted position. You've got a duty as a lawyer to bring the conflict of interest to the courts and disclose it."

Added Phoenix criminal defense lawyer Julio Laboy: "It would be something I would do in my major felony cases if I found that a client was actually working against me and not working with her defense."

Arias cannot choose the death penalty. It's up to the jury to determine a sentence.

On Wednesday, the panel took less than three hours to determine that Arias should be eligible for death in the killing of her one-time lover after prosecutors proved the murder was especially cruel.

Arias, 32, acknowledged killing Travis Alexander at his suburban Phoenix home after a day of sex. She initially denied any involvement then later blamed the attack on masked intruders. Two years after her arrest, she settled on self-defense.

The victim suffered nearly 30 knife wounds in what prosecutors described as an attack fueled by jealous rage after Alexander wanted to end his affair with Arias and prepared to take a trip to Mexico with another woman.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-05-16-US-Boyfriend-Slaying/id-4e4385b79976412387456e4f38925294

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In Syria, terrorist designation means more go hungry

The presence of an Al Qaeda-linked group among Syria's rebels and past US prosecutions of those who've supported groups it deems terrorists has slowed the flow of food and medical aid to Syria.

By Tom A. Peter,?Correspondent / May 16, 2013

A convoy formed by a delegation of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent carry humanitarian aid as they drive in Aleppo's countryside in January. Syria's civil war has claimed well in excess of 70,000 lives and dislocated millions. The need for aid has far outpaced the international response.

Mahmoud Hassano/Reuters/File

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Members of Abu Sayeed?s grassroots aid group were en route to the Turkish border to pick up a shipment of food when the leader of Jabhat al-Nusra announced that his group was loyal to Al Qaeda.

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Immediately the Gulf donors who?d sent the food withdrew their support.

Mr. Sayeed says his organization has no ties to Jabhat al-Nusra or any group on either side of the conflict. However the presence of Al Qaeda-linked fighters among the Syrian rebels has scared off a number of donors, unwilling to risk inadvertently supporting the group and suffering repercussions, like financial sanctions from the US.

?There are so many Islamic organizations that stopped supporting us after Nusra?s statement,? he says, adding that he?s sent representatives to reassure donors and get support flowing once more. ?They were worried about getting blacklisted.?

'Strong warning'

Syria's civil war has claimed well in excess of 70,000 lives and dislocated millions. The need for aid has far outpaced the international response. Local aid workers say that Jabhat al-Nusra?s announcement has rattled donors who worry they could be accused of?supporting terrorism if they spend money inside Syria.

For charities in the Middle East,?this is not a solely theoretical concern. In 2007 the Holy Land Foundation, then the largest Islamic charity in the United States, was charged and?eventually convicted of supporting Hamas. Some members of the charity received prison sentences of up to 65 years for, what they said, was purely humanitarian support sent to Gaza.

In an official statement after the sentencing hearing, David Kris, US assistant attorney general for national security at the time said, ?These sentences should serve as a strong warning to anyone who knowingly provides financial support to terrorists under the guise of humanitarian relief.?

Donors and others involved in Syrian relief efforts appear to remember that message.?Potential funders began edging away?from Syria as early as December, when the US designated Jabhat al-Nusra as a terrorist organization.

?It?s been a big issue,? says Mazen Asbahi, chairman of the Syrian Support Group, the only US-based NGO given a license to directly support the Free Syrian Army. ?The designation of Jabhat al-Nusra had an impact on donors generally. However, with recent US support directly to the Free Syrian Army, our hope at the Syrian Support Group is that donors will feel more comfortable in supporting moderate actors in Syria.?

Jabhat al-Nusra's announcement may also have an effect on opposition fighters facing major weapons and ammunition shortages. Rebel groups have long called on the United States and other western countries to provide them with significant assistance, with little response. The announcement now makes support less likely.

?From my perspective we weren?t getting any supplies. It?s been zero help. All we?ve got so far is promises, so the announcement won?t make any difference,? says Abu Mudar, a former colonel in the government army now fighting alongside the opposition. ?Of course, if anyone had been thinking about supplying us with weapons, they won?t now.?

The unheard majority

Despite mounting concerns among Western politicians about Jabhat al-Nusra and other conservative Islamist groups on the frontlines of the Syrian civil war, a number of locals say that the level of attention far outweighs the actual issue.

By most estimates, jihadists now account for about one-fifth of Syrian opposition forces. Jabhat al-Nusra is said to have 10,000 fighters at most ? reportedly among the opposition's most effective and best-funded.

?Jabhat al-Nusra is a very small group compared to the rest of the Free Syrian Army,? says Abu Mujahid, deputy commander of an opposition unit in Aleppo.

A number of opposition fighters say that despite the group's hardline politics, many Syrians are attracted to it merely for its?resources and hold much more moderate beliefs than the group?s official party line. Additionally, opposition members report that there has been much internal debate among Syrians in Jabhat al-Nusra about their leader?s, Abu Mohammed al-Jawalani, statement declaring allegiance to Al Qaeda.

Aid groups say that the announcement has thus far only affected small, independent donors, while major international and governmental organizations have long planned aid distribution around the existence of groups such as Jabhat al-Nusra.

Syrian aid groups say that if?independent donors continue to cut funding, they will reduce the capabilities of grassroots aid efforts, creating more opportunities?for Jabhat al-Nusra ? one of the few groups capable of providing assistance ??to gain?support.

?If other groups stop sending aid it will not affect Nusra, because it is one of the richest groups in Syria,? says Abu Marwan, who runs a grassroots aid effort in Syria. His group's funding was unaffected by the announcement because its funding comes from inside the country.

?Poor people only care about helping their families with food. They don?t care if it comes from Al Qaeda or Israel. If the international organizations stop helping us because of Jabhat al-Nusra, Jabhat al-Nusra will be the one who benefits by getting more supporters inside Syria.?

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/4VEcR7FSuX0/In-Syria-terrorist-designation-means-more-go-hungry

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Black hole powered jets plow into galaxy

May 15, 2013 ? This composite image of a galaxy illustrates how the intense gravity of a supermassive black hole can be tapped to generate immense power. The image contains X-ray data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory (blue), optical light obtained with the Hubble Space Telescope (gold) and radio waves from the NSF's Very Large Array (pink).

This multi-wavelength view shows 4C+29.30, a galaxy located some 850 million light years from Earth. The radio emission comes from two jets of particles that are speeding at millions of miles per hour away from a supermassive black hole at the center of the galaxy. The estimated mass of the black hole is about 100 million times the mass of our Sun. The ends of the jets show larger areas of radio emission located outside the galaxy.

The X-ray data show a different aspect of this galaxy, tracing the location of hot gas. The bright X-rays in the center of the image mark a pool of million-degree gas around the black hole. Some of this material may eventually be consumed by the black hole, and the magnetized, whirlpool of gas near the black hole could in turn, trigger more output to the radio jet.

Most of the low-energy X-rays from the vicinity of the black hole are absorbed by dust and gas, probably in the shape of a giant doughnut around the black hole. This doughnut, or torus blocks all the optical light produced near the black hole, so astronomers refer to this type of source as a hidden or buried black hole. The optical light seen in the image is from the stars in the galaxy.

The bright spots in X-ray and radio emission on the outer edges of the galaxy, near the ends of the jets, are caused by extremely high energy electrons following curved paths around magnetic field lines. They show where a jet generated by the black hole has plowed into clumps of material in the galaxy (mouse over the image for the location of these bright spots). Much of the energy of the jet goes into heating the gas in these clumps, and some of it goes into dragging cool gas along the direction of the jet. Both the heating and the dragging can limit the fuel supply for the supermassive black hole, leading to temporary starvation and stopping its growth. This feedback process is thought to cause the observed correlation between the mass of the supermassive black hole and the combined mass of the stars in the central region or bulge or a galaxy.

These results were reported in two different papers. The first, which concentrated on the effects of the jets on the galaxy, is available online and was published in the May 10, 2012 issue of The Astrophysical Journal. It is led by Aneta Siemiginowska from the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) in Cambridge, MA and the co-authors are ?ukasz Stawarz, from the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science in Yoshinodai, Japan; Teddy Cheung from the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, DC; Thomas Aldcroft from CfA; Jill Bechtold from University of Arizona in Tucson, AZ; Douglas Burke from CfA; Daniel Evans from CfA; Joanna Holt from Leiden University in Leiden, The Netherlands; Marek Jamrozy from Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland; and Giulia Migliori from CfA. The second, which concentrated on the supermassive black hole, is available online and was published in the October 20, 2012 issue of The Astrophysical Journal. It is led by Malgorzata Sobolewska from CfA, and the co-authors are Aneta Siemiginowska, Giulia Migliori, ?ukasz Stawarz, Marek Jamrozy, Daniel Evans, and Teddy Cheung.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_technology/~3/5prUHaNU_s0/130515151433.htm

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Gripping Photos Capture the Mirror Worlds of North and South Korea

Architectural photographer Dieter Leistner was born the same year East Germany began construction on the Berlin Wall. He was 37 when it fell. Maybe that's why his interest in North and South Korea feels so personal?he spent forty years in another divided country.

Leistner's new book, Korea - Korea, is a compendium of images that were shot in 2006, in Pyongyang, and 2012, in Seoul. Each spread compares two different public spaces in each city, including bus stops, subway cars, and public squares. In a foreword to the book, curator Klaus Klemp explains his perspective as a German:

Up until 1989, Koreans and Germans shared the same fate, although for quite different reasons. While the division of Germany was the result of a terrible war unleashed by Germany across the whole of Europe, the creation of a capitalist South and a communist North Korea was the result of Japanese occupation and a proxy war that the former World War II allies and later Cold War antagonists carried out on Korean soil. German division into West and East and the Korean division into South and North are thus not entirely comparable. But this constellation of the division of a nation, with people cut off from each other, families torn apart, a total blackout on all contact, and the suffering of many victims who paid with their lives or years in labor camps for any attempts to flee is particularly painful for the German observers who can remember their own similar experiences.

The side-by-side image comparison could've easily become gimmicky (or even exploitive). But Leistner manages to avoid that pitfall?mainly because of his talent as a photographer, but also because he focuses on the everyday experiences that the two cultures still share. [Gestalten via It's Nice That]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/emotional-photographs-capture-the-mirror-worlds-of-nort-506815204

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Video Distribution Platform Brightcove Announces A Streaming Module For Live Events

Thanks to a new module from video distribution platform Brightcove, the company will make it easier for customers to roll out live video streams on a wide variety of devices. The brilliantly named Brightcove Video Cloud Live module allow Brightcove customers to manage live events with many of the same features as their on-demand video streams.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/sK61OmwNVpQ/

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Google welcomes Gladstone, MO to the Fiber family

It looks like the slow and steady fiber-fication of Missouri is well underway, as the Gladstone City Council has voted to bring Google's speedy broadband service to the city. This comes just a few days after the Mountain View company welcomed Grandview into the fold, and we're sure the Show Me state will soon see even wider Fiber adoption just like neighboring Kansas. Of course, Gladstone's induction is merely honorary at this point; there's still plenty of work to be done before its citizens can surf the fastest internet waves in the Midwest.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/05/14/google-fiber-gladstone-missouri/?utm_medium=feed&utm_source=Feed_Classic&utm_campaign=Engadget

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Small conservative groups describe big burdens of IRS scrutiny

By Nick Carey

(Reuters) - For Kevin Kookogey, the Internal Revenue Service's scrutiny of his one-man outfit providing conservative mentoring for students was so onerous he thought it was trying to deter him from political activity.

"It worked," said the Tennessean who ran the group Linchpins of Liberty. "I completely shut down and do my mentoring without fundraising so I can avoid getting audited."

Kookogey is one of many conservatives who complain about unfair treatment at the hands of the IRS, the U.S. tax service that admitted last Friday it had inappropriately singled out the Tea Party movement and other conservative groups for extra examination.

On Tuesday, a government watchdog sharply criticized the IRS for its targeting of conservative groups and warned that the agency's actions gave the appearance that it was not politically impartial.

As the political scandal grew, Attorney General Eric Holder promised on Tuesday to investigate the agency and President Barack Obama called the watchdog report's findings "intolerable and inexcusable." Both Democrats and Republicans on Capitol Hill have called for investigations.

Conservative leaders and their lawyers say many of those ensnared were small groups, ill-equipped to handle the intense questioning and document demands that came as they sought tax-exempt status.

"What has got lost in all the news about the IRS targeting conservative groups is that these aren't the big fish like FreedomWorks, Tea Party Patriots or Americans for Prosperity," said Dawn Wildman, president of SoCal Tax Revolt Coalition Inc, a conservative group in Southern California, in reference to some of the largest such groups.

Wildman says she dropped her group's application for tax-exempt status because of IRS push back. "These are just small, largely self-funded, mom and pop Tea Party groups that lack resources to fight back," she added.

The conservative American Center for Law and Justice, which provided legal aid to 27 targeted groups, said the intense scrutiny placed a hardship on its clients, whose average fundraising is around $3,000 to $4,000 a year.

"The IRS knew from the applications the size of the group and picked on the small ones figuring they wouldn't put up a fight," chief counsel Jay Sekulow said. "Most of the big guys got a pass."

The IRS declined to comment on which groups it targeted or on any individual cases.

QUESTIONS 'IMPOSSIBLE TO ANSWER'

Ginny Rapini, a Tea Party leader from Northern California, said her personal IRS travails were highlighted in a U.S. House floor speech last year by Republican Representative Tom McClintock, who accused the agency of harassing Tea Party groups and subjecting one unnamed leader to a personal audit.

The IRS denied at the time that it had targeted conservative groups for special attention, an assertion that has proven to be an embarrassment for the Obama administration in recent days.

While embroiled in a lengthy dispute with the IRS over her group's tax-exempt application, Rapini said the IRS office in Ogden, Utah, audited her and alerted California tax authorities that she and her husband had neglected to pay $20,000 in taxes. They were billed $43,000 with penalties and fees.

Rapini alleges that the personal audit and her group's application were connected. She intends to pay the taxes, which she blamed on an accounting error and are owed to the state, but is still fighting the fees. The IRS declined to comment.

Groups whose leaders were interviewed by Reuters described inquiries which they regarded as excessive and costly, with multiple requests for information, donor lists and political affiliations.

Toby Marie Walker, a leader of the Waco Tea Party in Texas, said her group raised only about $5,000 last year and had to seek free legal assistance to deal with the IRS.

Walker said some questions - such as one asking if she had personal relationships with political figures - were "entirely subjective and almost impossible to answer." The letter made clear there would be penalties for incorrect answers.

"My state representative (Texas House member Charles "Doc" Anderson) is also my veterinarian," she said. "He neutered my dogs, so does that qualify as a close relationship?"

Common questions included asking whether any group members have "run or will run for office in the near future."

Todd Maynes, a tax partner at the Chicago office of law firm Kirkland & Ellis, described the IRS's questions as "very unusual" from an organization he usually regards as "fair and efficient."

"This is not the IRS I've come to know," he said.

Rapini said she endured two rounds of IRS queries after seeking tax-exempt status for the NorCal Tea Party, which raised $100,000 in 2012. The second letter gave her 15 days to answer 19 questions and multiple sub-questions.

She boxed up newsletters, meeting minutes, even a pocket U.S. Constitution and paid $100 to send it to the IRS.

She said the IRS reviewed her returns and alerted California authorities to discrepancies in her filings. "It doesn't pass the smell test for me," she said.

Three weeks after McClintock mentioned her case on the House floor, Rapini said the IRS approved her group's application.

(Reporting by Nick Carey in Chicago; Additional reporting by David Lawder in Washington; Editing by Marilyn W. Thompson, Mary Milliken and Eric Beech)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/small-conservative-groups-describe-big-burdens-irs-scrutiny-050614675.html

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