Recent attacks by radical Muslim sect in Nigeria (AP)

A look at recent major attacks in Nigeria attributed to the radical Muslim sect known locally as Boko Haram:

? Dec. 25: Boko Haram claims responsibility for an attack on a Catholic church in Madalla near Nigeria's capital that kills 35 people and wounds 52. The sect shoots and kills a police officer after a failed bombing at a church in Jos, as a suicide bomber detonates a car full of explosives outside the Yobe state office for the country's secret police, killing three.

? Dec. 22-24: Sect members fight with police and military forces around the city of Damaturu, leaving at least 61 people dead.

? Nov. 4: Sect members bomb government buildings and shoot their way through the city of Damaturu, killing more than 100 people, while bombs and a suicide attack in Maiduguri leave 4 dead.

? Aug. 26: A sect member detonates a car loaded with explosives at the United Nations headquarters in Nigeria's capital Abuja, killing 24 people and wounding another 116.

? June 16: A car loaded with explosives detonates at the federal police headquarters in Abuja, killing at least two people. Police first call the attack a suicide bombing, but later deny it.

? April 9: Gunmen from the sect set fire to the Maiduguri International Hotel and kill a politician ahead of local elections.

? April 8: A bomb allegedly planted by the sect explodes at an election office in Suleja in Niger state, killing 16 people.

? Jan. 28: Gunmen with the sect shoot and kill the leading candidate for governor in Borno state along with six others in his entourage.

? Dec. 31, 2010: A bomb allegedly planted by the sect explodes at a crowded and popular outdoor beer garden at a military barracks in Abuja, killing at least four people.

? Dec. 24, 2010: A series of bombs allegedly planted by the group explode in the central Nigerian city of Jos, killing as many as 80 people.

? Sept. 7, 2010: Gunmen with the sect free about 700 inmates from a Bauchi federal prison.

? July 2009: About 700 people die after sect members riot and a security crackdown hits Maiduguri, the sect's spiritual home.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/africa/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111225/ap_on_re_af/af_nigeria_violence_glance

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Stamford_Times: RT @AnthonyOnFOX: Stamford Mayor: "It's Christmas day, there probably hasnt been a worse Christmas day in the city of Stamford"

Loader Stamford Mayor: "It's Christmas day, there probably hasnt been a worse Christmas day in the city of Stamford"

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Louis Vuitton Pissed at The Hangover 2 For Use of Knockoff Bag; Suing to Have Scene Pulled


Louis Vuitton is suing Warner Bros. for its use of a fake Louis Vuitton bag in The Hangover Part II, demanding that the scene in question be removed. So random.

In the film, Zach Galifianakis' Alan tells Stu not to mess with his luggage, saying, "Careful, that is ... that is a Louis Vuitton." He pronounces it Lewis. Awesome.

Louis Vuitton has issues with this, for multiple reasons:

For one, Warner Bros. never got permission to use its precious and valuable trademark. Moreover, the luggage in the movie is a knockoff, or so the brand claims.

Also awesome, if you're a viewer. Not not for L.V.

The company is seeking damages on top of an injunction prohibiting Warner Bros. from distributing The Hangover 2 going forward as long as the luggage scene appears.

If you recall, the studio was also sued for its use of Mike Tyson's face tattoo on Ed Helms' character in the sequel, even though Tyson appeared in the original.

Can't make this stuff up ...

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2011/12/louis-vuitton-pissed-at-the-hangover-2-for-use-of-knockoff-bag-s/

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Big-Time College Football Was 2011's Biggest Grinch, Will Hopefully Pledge to Be Better in 2012

by Mike Cole on Sat, Dec 24, 2011 at 3:26PM ?

Joe PaternoNew Year's resolutions are usually nothing more than some hollow promises that we make to ourselves at the beginning of each year.

Then March rolls around and instead of cutting 10 pounds, you've somehow put on seven, all while forgetting how to even get to the gym.

Resolutions are typically fruitless. However, there's one group that's going to need a huge list of them for 2012, and that's the National College Athletic Association.

The NCAA -- most notably big-time college football -- embarrassed itself at seemingly every corner in 2011. Far too often, the NCAA's on-field product was overshadowed by the greed, deceit and downright monstrosities that occurred off of the field.

Real quick, if we were to play word association and I said to you, "NCAA," what would your response be? After 2011, it very well might be "scandal."

Scandals rocked the NCAA at its foundation this year.

There were the questions about Cam Newton, and more importantly, Cecil Newton. Then we found out that in Columbus, you could get some tattoos for free so long as you played football for THE Ohio State University. From there, we went south -- literally and figuratively -- to hear about the hundreds, nay thousands, of illegal benefits that University of Miami football players were showered with over the last decade.?

And of course, nothing was worse than the nauseating details stemming from the allegations placed upon former Penn State defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky. That ongoing scandal has torn down the legacy of a coaching legend in Joe Paterno, and it could very well end up being the beginning of the end for one of the country's most recognizable football programs.

Oh yeah, there's also the BCS. That mess may be worse than ever, as we'll get a pair of two-loss teams meeting in the Sugar Bowl a night before the Orange Bowl will host two three-loss teams. If that's not the best college football has to offer, then I don't know what is. At least no one will be arrested or lose their eligibility because of it -- or so we'd like to hope.

It's unfortunate, too, because at its best, the NCAA should represent the very best amateur athletics in the world really, the IOC be damned. However, Division I college football is so far from that desired standard that it shouldn't even be considered part of the NCAA.?

Of course, big-time college football is about as synonymous with amateurism as the desert is to hockey. College football is a business, and it is a booming business. Money and power dictate conference realignment and the ensuing TV deals. Money and power dictate recruiting. Money and power dictate just about everything in college football. And that is most likely the genesis of all of these problems.

There is so much to be gained from being powerful in college football, and because of it, university presidents, athletic directors, coaches and players will all do whatever they can to make sure they make it to the top of the mountain. We saw and continue to see the depths that power can reach in the midst of the unspeakable horrors being alleged in the Penn State scandal.

Once you reach the top, you can do as you please. Until, of course, you get caught. And as Penn State has also taught us, things get really, really ugly when that train derails.

As is the case more often than not, it's all about fixing the system. College football has a long way to go, but after a year like 2011, any sort of improvement will surely be embraced. The system, and those who benefit the most from it, must start to realize the problems, though. Until that, we can expect more of the same. And if 2011 taught us anything, it starts to get really, really ugly when that train flies off the track.

Are we harping on the negatives here? Sure. But has college football done anything as of late to help shine a positive light on the product? Of course not.

But 2012 is a new year for everyone, including big-time college football. So go right ahead, NCAA. Make those resolutions. Just please, be an inspiration to all of us and see those resolutions through.

Aim to be better, and hopefully you will be. After all, things can't get much worse.

Source: http://www.nesn.com/2011/12/big-time-college-football-was-2011s-biggest-grinch-will-hopefully-pledge-to-be-better-in-2012.html

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Religiously active people more likely to engage in civic life, Pew study finds

The Pew study authors say their findings counter the view that religiously active people are less engaged with the secular world. Increased trust of others and optimism about one's impact on the community are cited as factors.

Religious activism is good for civic life in America, according to a new study out from the Pew Research Center Project on the Internet and American Life released on Friday.

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The report finds that some 40 percent of Americans engage in some form of religious activity, whether going to a mosque, a synagogue, or a church. And?in turn, they feel better?all around about their place in the larger civic community.

According to a statement on the website,?these individuals are more trusting of others, are more optimistic about their impact on their community, think more highly of their community, are more involved in more organizations of all kinds, and devote more time to the groups to which they are active, in comparison to those who do not engage in religious activities.

As far as technology goes, the study found, Americans who are members of religious groups are just as likely as others to use the Internet, have broadband at home, use cell phones, use text messaging, and use social-networking sites and Twitter.

?Some analysts have been concerned that those who have active spiritual lives might not be as engaged with the secular world,? notes?report?author Jim Jansen on the website.??We see the opposite. Those who are religiously active are more likely to participate in all kinds of groups and more likely to feel good about their communities. Those who are active in religious groups seem to be joiners. They also are active users of technology,? he adds.

These conclusions do not surprise?scholars of American religious life or technology.

?This confirms what other researchers have been finding in recent years,? says Douglas Jacobsen, professor of theology and church history at Messiah College in Grantham, Penn.?He notes that despite a public assumption that religiously-engaged individuals?might be less inclined to civic participation, he points to?such recent research as the critically acclaimed, ?American Grace:?How Religion Divides and Unites Us,? by?Robert Putnam and David Campbell, as evidence that leading mainstream scholars are finding just the opposite.

?They found that churchgoing people are three to four times more civically active than those who do not go to church,? he says.

However, he points out that this engagement is not necessarily tied to the specific beliefs. ?It has more to do with the act of being part of a congregation,? says Prof. Jacobsen, adding that?friendships?in a religious setting ?tend to have a morally super-charged quality to them.?

When?people ask you to do something, he says, ?you tend to say yes.?

Religious teachings have a component of helping others at their core, points out Eugene Fisher, Professor of Catholic-Jewish Studies at Saint Leo University?in Florida.

?Civic participation would be a natural result of that push to help your fellow man,? he points out. But he does?suggest that the 40 percent figure for those who engage in religious activity?might be too low.

?There are many more people who consider?themselves either religiously or spiritually engaged but who do not participate in the traditional religious institutional life in America,? he adds.

The high level of digital participation by religiously?engaged folks does not surprise media expert Paul Levinson,?author of ?New New Media.?

?The Internet is an amplifier of all that each of us are in our humanity,? he says via e-mail, adding that if an essential component of anyone or group is their religion, ?then they will enjoy and rely upon the Internet as a way of being in touch with others of similar perspectives, and spreading the word to the world at large.?

This report is based on the findings of a survey on Americans? use of the Internet. According to the site, the study findings are?based?on data from telephone interviews conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International from Nov. 23 to Dec. 21, 2010, among a sample of 2,303 adults, age 18 and older.?Telephone interviews were conducted in English and Spanish by landline (1,555) and cell phone (748, including 310 without a landline phone).

Staff writer Dan Wood contributed to this report.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/nuz3xrR_16c/Religiously-active-people-more-likely-to-engage-in-civic-life-Pew-study-finds

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The Los Angeles Times is counting down the top sports moments in L.A. history. Coming in at #4 is...

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Source: http://www.bruinsnation.com/2011/12/21/2652250/the-los-angeles-times-is-counting-down-the-top-sports-moments-in-l-a

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Want democracy in China? Have 9 years in prison

A Chinese court sentenced a veteran democracy activist Friday to nine years' imprisonment for inciting subversion, after he wrote four essays arguing for democracy.

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The sentence given to Chen Wei is thought to be the most severe punishment handed down in a crackdown on dissent this year.

He was convicted of "inciting subversion of state power" over the essays, which he wrote and published online, said one of his lawyers.

Chen was one of hundreds of dissidents, rights activists and protest organizers swept up in a crackdown on dissent from earlier this year, when the ruling Communist Party sought to stifle potential protests inspired by anti-authoritarian uprisings across the Arab world.

Attorney Liang Xiaojun said the trial at a court in the city of Suining in southwestern China lasted about two and a half hours and that the sentence was handed down 30 minutes after the trial concluded.

"We pleaded not guilty. He only wrote a few essays. We presented a full defense of the case, but we were interrupted often, and none of what we said was accepted by the court," Liang said.

Liang said that after the sentence was handed down, Chen said: "I protest, I am innocent. The governance of democracy must win, autocracy must die."

'What's wrong' with free speech?
Chen's wife Wang Xiaoyan denounced the punishment.

"He is innocent and the punishment was too harsh. The court did not allow him to defend himself and he was completely deprived of his right to free speech," Wang said by phone from Suining. "What's wrong with a person freely expressing his ideas?"

Chen was among those who signed the "Charter 08" manifesto for democratic reform that was co-written by Liu Xiaobo, the jailed dissident who won the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize.

Two other dissidents from Sichuan detained at about the same as Chen ? Ran Yunfei and Ding Mao ? have been released.

A contagion of conflict in China?

Chen, 42, previously served time for participating in the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy demonstrations in Beijing, where he was attending college.

In 1994, Chen was sentenced to five years' imprisonment for "counterrevolutionary propaganda and incitement," according to the court indictment for his subversion charge.

Friday's sentence handed down to Chen appears to be the heaviest penalty meted out in relation to this year's crackdown, said Wang Songlian, a researcher with the Hong Kong-based advocacy group, Chinese Human Rights Defenders.

Story: Christmas craze fills China's malls, not churches

"This severe punishment against an activist, caught up in the Jasmine crackdown, shows how the Chinese government's nerves are still jittery," Wang, the Hong Kong researcher, said.

"All its latest moves, its attempts to control its microblogs, its crackdown on activists, show it is increasing tightening on freedom of expression and other civil liberties," she said.

Story: Chinese cops clash with green protesters

Others rounded up in this year's crackdown who have been punished include Beijing activist Wang Lihong, who was sentenced to nine months in jail in September for staging a protest on behalf of other activists, and Yang Qiuyu, a Beijing activist who was sentenced to two years of re-education through labor.

Before the trial, his wife said Chen was being prosecuted for "nothing but his essays."

"I hope to see him in the courtroom," she added. "I haven't seen him since he was detained."

China's party-run courts rarely find in favor of defendants in trials for political charges.

The Chinese government's hostility to political dissent is likely to grow next year as the Communist Party's prepares for a leadership handover.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45774139/ns/world_news-asia_pacific/

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Hamas Joins Palestinian Liberation Organization

CAIRO ? The Hamas militant group has agreed to join the Palestine Liberation Organization ? a key step toward unifying the long-divided Palestinian leadership.

Hamas' leader Khaled Mashaal on Thursday joined a committee that will prepare for elections to the PLO leadership.

Those elections are likely years away but Mashaal's move means he will work with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, head of the rival Fatah party.

The PLO is the umbrella group of the Palestinian independence movement.

Thursday's development is an important step toward reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah ? which have been split since Hamas seized control of the Gaza Strip in 2007.

Separate elections in the West Bank and Gaza for a unified parliament are tentatively set for next year.

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/22/hamas-joins-plo_n_1164721.html

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