All day, all night: Obama's long search for votes

President Barack Obama gestures while speaking during a campaign rally in Byrd park in Richmond, Va., Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012. The president is on the second day of his 48 hour, 8 State campaign blitz. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

President Barack Obama gestures while speaking during a campaign rally in Byrd park in Richmond, Va., Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012. The president is on the second day of his 48 hour, 8 State campaign blitz. (AP Photo/Steve Helber)

President Barack Obama gestures while speaking during a campaign event at Ybor City Museum State Park, Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012, in Tampa, Fla. The president is on the second day of his 48 hour, 8 State campaign blitz. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

President Barack Obama greets supporters after speaking at a campaign event at City Park in Denver, Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2012. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

President Barack Obama gestures while speaking at a campaign event at Ybor City Museum State Park, Thursday, Oct. 25, 2012, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

President Barack Obama greets supporters in the audience after speaking during a campaign event at Doolittle Park, Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2012, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) ? Deep in the longest day of his campaign, President Barack Obama was in a Las Vegas casino, gambling that his re-election bid needed one more stop. It was 1:40 a.m. on his clock, and he was pleading with the hotel cooks and waiters for their votes.

"I need you so that I can keep on working for you," he told workers at the Bellagio. His voice was going. And soon, he was going again, too.

Obama's 40-hour blitz across America on Wednesday and Thursday was a sign of how the final campaign of his life will look and feel through Nov. 6. His presidency in doubt, Obama is not just chasing votes. He is chasing time.

The soaring importance of the early voting ? happening now in key states such as Ohio, Nevada, Colorado, Iowa and Florida ? means the president is into the last-minute sprint, with 12 days to go.

"The old model is gone," said adviser David Plouffe, standing in the early darkness in Tampa, Fla., after Air Force One's red-eye flight from Vegas. "Every day is Election Day now."

Even by campaign standards, where the travel days at this stage are supposed to be full of energy and urgency, Obama's trip covered remarkable ground. More than 7,600 miles of it.

And often it has come with Obama boasts about his pace.

"Our 48-hour, marathon-extravaganza fly-around. We are pulling an all-nighter," he said from Denver. "No sleep. Quite a bit of coffee."

Actually, Obama doesn't drink coffee. And he ends up sleeping a little in his bed on the plane. But the all-nighter part sure felt right, the way Obama and his entourage blurred through five time zones to maximize campaign time.

Obama ricocheted from the heartland to Hollywood, from the mountains to the desert, from ocean to ocean. He ate pizza in Iowa, laughed with Jay Leno in California and mocked Mitt Romney into the wee hours of the Nevada night.

"Vote! Vote! Vote!" the president shouted by then, his message shrunk to its essentials.

Along the way, a helicopter for the press broke down. A van carrying his staff wouldn't start. Air Force One hit monster turbulence. But that was just a memory by the time Obama had a spectacular sunset helicopter ride over Los Angeles, or when he saw 15,000 people waiting for him in the Virginia sun.

The itinerary centered on six toss-up states: Iowa, Colorado, Nevada, Florida, Virginia, and Ohio. He included California to appear on "The Tonight Show," and Illinois so that he could make a splash of voting early as president.

Obama's campaign day lasted more than 18 hours on Wednesday, technically ending at about 2:30 a.m. EDT. His friends and advisers competed for floor space on the plane to sleep. That didn't last long. Obama was in Florida and campaigning anew by 7 a.m. EDT.

That's when signs of punchiness started to show. Some of Obama's aides broke into dance when a familiar Stevie Wonder song played at the end of his Tampa event. The president sounded hoarse.

"I'm just going to keep on keeping on," he said.

Soily Rivera, a 28-year-old homemaker from Tampa, brought her 6-month-old son Jose Santa Maria to hear Obama. When asked if Obama's marathon trip to the battleground states could show desperation, she shook her head in disagreement.

"No, determination," she said. "Determination. Big time."

That is what Obama's campaign wants voters to see ? a president full of drive and vigor. Yet Obama also has to campaign this hard because he is fighting for survival. Polls show a remarkably close race in all the key states.

He used spare time for political advantage. In separate conference calls aboard Air Force One, Obama spoke to 17,000 campaign volunteers, 9,000 undecided voters and 50 disc jockeys from swing states.

On the ground, Obama kissed babies, took photos with his motorcade drivers and bought doughnuts for firefighters. He joked with one young boy in Aurora, Colo., that he had the same big ears as the president.

"He enjoys days like this," campaign spokeswoman Jen Psaki said during one of Thursday's flights, somewhere over the hills on the way to Virginia. "They're busy. They're hectic. We'll sleep on Nov. 7th."

If Obama accomplished any single goal, it was to educate people that many of them can vote right now, so they don't have to get entangled with work or child-care problems on Election Day.

Back in Denver, Sarah Romero, 51, has gotten off her day job at 2 p.m. for the past two months and headed over to her local Obama campaign office to volunteer for the president through the evening.

She was happy Obama was swinging by Denver. But not blown away by his pace. That's his job.

Said Romero: "They get naps on the plane."

__

Associated Press writers Nicholas Riccardi in Denver and Tamara Lush in Tampa, Fla., contributed to this report.

__

Follow Ben Feller on Twitter at www.twitter.com/BenFellerDC .

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2012-10-25-Obama/id-17a06001cc4049ce9c267966a82a7b1d

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Alamo to display fragile 'Victory or Death' letter

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) ? Visitors to the Alamo will get a rare glimpse next year of the "Victory or Death" letter penned 177 years ago by the head of the outnumbered Texas forces while under bombardment by Mexican government troops.

The State Library and Archives Commission voted Wednesday to allow the fragile, fading letter written by Col. William Barret Travis to be displayed at the Alamo for the anniversary of the two-week battle that ended on March 6, 1836. The commission originally decided against the loan but later reconsidered.

State archivists had recommended against transporting the letter to San Antonio and putting it on display. Light has already bleached the original letter, making it difficult to read and the paper extremely fragile. The letter is kept in a dark vault in Austin.

But Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson told the commission Wednesday he thought displaying the letter for the first time at the Alamo would attract tremendous interest in Texas history.

"There is a balance between preservation and public access," he said. "In my view, in every Texans' lifetime there should be one opportunity to see this in person."

The commission chairman, Michael Waters, pointed out that the letter was placed on display at the state library in Austin on the anniversaries of the siege in 2010 and 2011. The main topic of Wednesday's hearing centered on providing security for the letter, not whether the travel or the exposure would harm it.

Patterson said he'd received a commitment from the director of the Department of Public Safety to provide all necessary measure to protect the letter. He described how state troops would transport the letter in an armed convoy, likely with air support, to and from the Alamo.

Only retired state archivist David Gracy voiced opposition to loaning out the letter. In the 1960s, Gracy tried but failed to convince then-Gov. Price Daniels not to display the letter under a bright light around the clock, and Gracy believes most of the damage to the letter happened during this period.

"It is vitally important to protect this letter, as it is to protect all of the archives for not just this moment, no matter how important it is for us, but for the entire future," he said. "You have a professional staff of the highest quality who knows what needs to be done to protect this letter."

Travis was a South Carolina-born Alabama lawyer and militiaman who fled to Texas when it was still part of Mexico. He resumed his law practice in Texas and became an ardent advocate of revolution against Mexico. He gathered reinforcements for a militia detachment occupying the Alamo, a former mission church in Bexar, the future San Antonio.

Under attack from a much larger Mexican force under the command of Gen. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, Travis wrote the letter on Feb. 24, 1836. In it, he stated that his men had been under Mexican bombardment for 24 hours, and that Santa Anna had given the Texans the ultimatum to surrender or "be put to the sword."

"I have answered the demand with a cannon shot, & and our flag still waves proudly from the walls ? I shall never retreat or surrender," Travis wrote.

He concludes: "If this call is neglected, I am determined to sustain myself as long as possible & die like a soldier who never forgets what is due to his own honor & that of his country ? Victory or Death."

A courier managed to sneak the letter out, and it was published in leaflets and newspapers throughout the U.S.

The volunteers came, but not in time. Santa Anna's forces stormed the Alamo on March 6 and overwhelmed and killed its defenders. The volunteers joined the troops under Sam Houston's command and defeated Santa Anna at the April 22 Battle of San Jacinto near present-day Houston, securing Texas independence until its annexation by the United States in 1845.

According to the state library website, the letter was returned to the Travis family shortly thereafter. In 1893, his great-grandson sold it for $85 to the Texas state government. It was placed in the state library upon its creation in 1909.

___

Associated Press writer Terry Wallace in Dallas contributed to this report.

___

Online:

Texas State Library and Archives Commission: http://bit.ly/OE1ei8 )

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/alamo-display-fragile-victory-death-letter-215311906.html

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Workouts in extreme weight-loss TV fuels negative attitudes about exercise

ScienceDaily (Oct. 25, 2012) ? The Biggest Loser might be a TV ratings winner, but its extreme depiction of exercise is more likely to turn people off than get them off the couch, according to new research from the University of Alberta.

Researchers in the Faculty of Physical Education and Recreation found that watching a short video clip of the Biggest Loser fueled negative attitudes toward exercise, raising further questions about how physical activity is shown in the popular media.

"The depictions of exercise on shows like The Biggest Loser are really negative," said lead author Tanya Berry, Canada Research Chair in Physical Activity Promotion. "People are screaming and crying and throwing up, and if you're not a regular exerciser you might think this is what exercise is -- that it's this horrible experience where you have to push yourself to the extremes and the limits, which is completely wrong."

In the study, 138 undergraduate students from the U of A were split into two groups. One group watched a seven-minute clip -- chosen for its extreme depiction of exercise -- from early in The Biggest Loser's ninth season, when competitors were struggling with obesity. A control group watched a segment from the reality show American Idol.

Immediately after viewing the clips, participants from both groups were asked to write down their first five thoughts. Students also completed a computer test that measured their automatic attitudes about exercise before they had time to think about the question, plus a hand-written questionnaire.

"We did find that the people who watched The Biggest Loser had worse attitudes about physical activity than those who watched the American Idol clip," said Berry, adding that the results were consistent no matter participants' physical activity levels or weight.

Berry said the results debunk the belief held by some researchers and many in the popular media that shows like The Biggest Loser can be motivational and get people off the couch. In fact, the negative portrayals of exercise are counterproductive to public health campaigns.

"There's a lot of effort and good work out there just to get people more active, but it's such a small voice in this big wash of different depictions of exercise. It's a big mess."

Berry's research team is now working on a further study that focuses on followup episodes of the Biggest Loser that feature participants who have lost weight, are physically fit and enjoy exercise. Those results should be published next year.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of Alberta. The original article was written by Bryan Alary.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

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Journal Reference:

1. Tanya R. Berry, Nicole C. McLeod, Melanie Pankratow, Jessica Walker. Effects of 'Biggest Loser' Exercise Depictions on Exercise-Related Attitudes. American Journal of Health Behavior, 2013; 37 (1): 96 DOI: 10.5993/AJHB.37.1.11

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/vuqYsc35Wlg/121025122429.htm

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Abbas says ready for peace talks if U.N. recognition bid succeeds

RAMALLAH, West Bank (Reuters) - Western-backed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Wednesday he would be ready for negotiations with Israel "straightaway" if the U.N. recognized Palestine as a non-member state.

His comments appeared to be another attempt to assure the United States that the Palestinian campaign for status change at the U.N. is not an attempt to circumvent bilateral talks with Israel deadlocked since 2010 over settlement construction in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem.

"We have resolved to go to the U.N. to save the two-state solution and to achieve the rights of our people as an observer state," Abbas told reporters during a visit by the Bulgarian president to the West Bank city of Ramallah.

"We're ready to go back to negotiations straightaway. Going to the U.N. is not a substitute for negotiations. We are in need of negotiations to solve the final status of issues that face us both," he said.

In a speech to the U.N. General Assembly last month, Abbas sought so-called "non-member state" status in the world body, a grade below the full recognition that eluded the Palestinians at the U.N. Security Council last year, due to insufficient backing.

U.S. envoy to the United Nations Susan Rice has said the Palestinian bid "would only jeopardize the peace process". Israel also opposes a change in the Palestinians's status.

In a letter to U.S. President Barack Obama last week, Abbas said the Palestinian move at the U.N. was aimed at securing "international recognition that would facilitate negotiations".

OBSERVER STATE

The Palestinians' current U.N. status is an "observer entity". If Abbas wins, that would change to "observer state", granting Palestinians access to bodies such as the International Criminal Court, where they could file complaints against Israel.

The president of the 193-member U.N. General Assembly, Vuk Jeremic, has said the issue will likely be debated in mid-November, after the U.S. presidential election.

The Palestinians need a simple majority for the upgrade, but predict that between 150 and 170 nations will vote in favor.

Peace talks were briefly renewed in 2010 but collapsed after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused to extend a 10-month partial settlement construction freeze in the occupied West Bank, land Palestinians seek for a future state.

At the time, Abbas made a Palestinian return to negotiations conditional on halting settlement activity in the West Bank and Arab East Jerusalem, areas Israel captured in a 1967 war.

That demand was absent from his latest remarks on reviving the U.S.-backed negotiations. Netanyahu has urged Abbas to resume talks unconditionally.

In response to the U.N. bid, Israeli officials have threatened financial sanctions against Abbas's Palestinian Authority, which is dependent on Israeli-transferred customs duties and Western aid.

Lagging donor funding, partly as a result of Israeli and Western financial punishments for the more ambitious status change Abbas sought in 2011, has emptied Palestinian government coffers and stirred street protests.

Local elections in the West Bank this week brought gains to dissidents within Abbas's ruling Fatah party. And a visit to the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip on Tuesday by Qatar's ruler also dealt a blow to the Palestinian Authority, which lost control of the enclave to the Islamist group in 2007.

(Additional reporting by Jihan Abdalla, Editing by Jeffrey Heller)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/abbas-says-ready-peace-talks-u-n-recognition-151345956.html

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Man Charged With Toddler's Murder To Enter Plea | Stuff.co.nz

A South Auckland man charged with murdering his two-year-old stepdaughter in Manurewa is expected to enter a plea next month.

Michael Martin appeared in the Manukau District Court yesterday where he was remanded on bail by Judge Anna Johns.

He will reappear in court on November 7.

Martin has also been charged with driving with excess breath alcohol and obstructing the course of justice.

He is accused of killing Leilani Mary Jane Lotonu'u-Lorigan four months ago.

The toddler died on June 10 at a Housing New Zealand home she lived at with her mother, her baby sister Miami, and Martin.

A woman is also facing two charges of assaulting Leliani in February.

She was granted name suppression and was remanded on bail to re-appear in the court in October.

At the time of the toddler's death police said an ambulance was called to Martin's Manurewa house about 5.45am and Leilani was pronounced dead.

Leilani's great grandmother, Joyce Lorigan, said Leilani died from septicemia from two ruptures in her bowel and passed away in her "mother's arms".

"She never made it to the hospital... she died in my granddaughter's arms. She thought the baby had a tummy bug," she said.

"It's the biggest nightmare."

Miami is now been looked after by a Child, Youth and Family caregiver.

- ? Fairfax NZ News

Source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/auckland/local-news/7857517/Child-murder-accused-to-enter-plea

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West Yorkshire: Future?s bright as ?2.7m grant set to create 300 jobs

Around 300 new jobs are set to be created at a Wakefield manufacturing company thanks to a ?2.7m government funding boost.

Bosses at Harvard Engineering say the Regional Growth Fund cash means the company will be able to expand manufacturing of LED lighting systems at its Normanton Industrial Estate base.

The company ? which moved to Normanton from a site in Beeston, Leeds, 18 months ago ? has turned over ?26m since last November.

Company finance director Martin Baum said: This grant is very good news for the Wakefield economy.

?We draw 90 per cent of our workforce from the immediate location. Over the next five years this is going to create 300 more jobs in all areas of our business, from research and development, right the way through the business to shop floor production work.

?We are really pleased. It will allow us to invest money in further machinery and automation in our factory, which means we don?t have to send the manufacturing of the product to the Far East or Eastern Europe. We can keep the manufacturing here in the Wakefield district.?

Meanwhile, Wakefield companies will also benefit from two Leeds City Region programmes that have secured Regional Growth Funding.

The Key Growth Clusters Programme will provide grants of between ?100,000 and ?1m. It will help businesses from across the Leeds City Region to grow by supporting investment in new equipment, infrastructure or research and development activity.

The SME (Small and Medium Enterprise) Employment Growth Programme is a grants programme seeking to invest between ?10,000 and ?100,000 in SMEs Funds will be available for approximately 200 SMEs.

Coun Denise Jeffery of Wakefield Council said he local authority has worked closely with the Leeds City region to develop the bids, adding: ?Boosting small and medium size companies is critical to creating more jobs in the district.?

Source: http://rss.feedsportal.com/c/534/f/641501/p/1/s/56d99fe4/l/0L0Syorkshireeveningpost0O0Cwest0Eyorkshire0Efuture0Es0Ebright0Eas0E20E7m0Egrant0Eset0Eto0Ecreate0E30A0A0Ejobs0E10E50A55817/story01.htm

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Egypt catches arms smugglers near Libyan border

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