ACOZO.COM: January 2014

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Knox, Sollecito convicted after Italian appeal
1/30/2014 9:46:14 PM

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

NEW: Italian court finds Amanda Knox, ex-boyfriend guilty of murder in retrial
NEW: Knox sentenced to 28 1/2 years in prison
Knox opted not to travel to Italy for the new trial after spending four years in jail
Both were convicted previously of British student's murder, later acquitted on appeal

Florence, Italy (CNN) -- An Italian appeals court convicted former exchange student Amanda Knox and her ex-boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito on murder charges Thursday night.

Prosecutors said the couple had killed Meredith Kercher in November 2007. They were convicted two years later of murder, but those charges were overturned on appeal in 2011.

A judge said Thursday that Knox was sentenced to 28 1/2 years in prison. Sollecito's sentence was 25 years.

It is unlikely that Knox, who lives in Seattle, Washington, will return to Italy to serve additional prison time because U.S. law dictates that a person cannot be tried twice on the same charge, a legal expert told CNN. He believes that if Italy were to ask for extradition, U.S. officials would deny the request.

"She was once put in jeopardy and later acquitted," said Sean Casey, a former prosecutor who is now a partner at Kobre & Kim in New York. "Under the treaty, extradition should not be granted."

Presiding judge Alessandro Nencini has 90 days to write his arguments behind the jury's ruling. Once that is out, lawyers have 90 days to appeal.

Kercher, 21, of Great Britain, was found partially naked in a pool of blood in the house she shared with Knox in the picturesque town of Perugia, where both women were exchange students.

Knox has said she is afraid to return to Italy, where she spent four years behind bars.

"I will become ... a fugitive," she told Italian daily La Repubblica this month, when asked what she would do if she was found guilty in the second trial.

Italy's Supreme Court in March overturned the pair's acquittals, saying that the jury did not consider all the evidence and that discrepancies in testimony needed to be answered.

The case was sent to a retrial in Florence.

Dressed in a purple sweater with sunglasses nestled on his collar, Sollecito made it to the tribunal for the morning session and was expected to return for the verdict, but his attorney, Luca Maori, said Thursday evening that Sollecito would not be coming back to court.

Amanda Knox retrial verdict: Six things to know

Ruling unclear

The retrial began in September, refocusing international attention on the case that grabbed headlines in Italy, Britain and the United States -- but neither Knox nor Sollecito were present in court.

It has renewed questions about the effectiveness of Italy's justice system, given widespread doubts over the handling of the investigation and key pieces of evidence.

Both Knox and Sollecito have maintained their innocence.

Timeline: Kercher murder case

'Fugitive'

Knox, 26, and Sollecito, 29, were convicted in 2009 of killing Kercher, who was found with more than 40 stab wounds and a deep gash in her throat.

Prosecutors say she was held down and stabbed after she rejected attempts by Knox, Sollecito and another man, Ivory Coast-born Rudy Guede, to involve her in a sex game. Guede is the only person in jail for the murder, and many aspects of the crime still remain unexplained.

Speaking on Thursday, Knox's defense team asked for an acquittal.

Knox has always denied murdering Kercher and has maintained she is not guilty in a written statement to the Florence court.

"I must repeat to you. I'm innocent. I did not rape, I did not steal ... I did not kill Meredith," Knox said in a lengthy e-mail presented by her lawyer to the court in December.

Sollecito was in the Dominican Republic at the start of the retrial but returned to Italy.

In November, he took to the stand to make a spontaneous declaration, saying the charges against him were "absurd."

"For me, it's a nightmare that goes beyond imagination," he said of what he's been through.

'No one remembers Meredith'

The case has dragged on for more than six years, frustrating attempts by Kercher's family to discover the truth about her death. The three trials have done little to clear up mysteries surrounding the details of the murder.

"They are tired of this long trial and they want justice," Francesci Maresca, attorney for the Kercher family, said.

The Kercher family welcomed the retrial ruling, Maresca said in March, adding they believed the ruling that acquitted Knox and Sollecito was "superficial and unbalanced."

They believe more than one person was in the room when Kercher was killed, he said.

"No one remembers Meredith, while the two defendants write books, speak to the media and earn money," Maresca told the court in closing remarks last month.

Ferguson advocates for Knox

One person who has been advocating for Knox is Ryan Ferguson -- the Missouri man who walked free last November after being imprisoned for nearly a decade. He was wrongly convicted of murdering a newspaper editor, and a state appeals court overturned his conviction.

"We kind of had this connection in the sense that we've been through this justice system ... It's relatively the same. We've been through this, and there's not a whole lot of people" who've had the same experience, he told CNN's "New Day."

"So it's cool and we can kind of just talk to each other. She wanted to reach out and say if you need to talk to anybody, if you need any help, I'm here for you. If not, I completely understand. So that's how we began communicating."

Asked about Knox' current state of mind, he said she's staying positive.

"She seems to be doing very well. I'm impressed with her. It's so daunting at this time," he said. "Within 48 hours she should know her fate. You can't start living life until they actually clear you and until you're free essentially. So I'm amazed how she's doing. She's working hard on school and continuing life the best she can. She believes the courts are going to do the right thing based on the facts. I agree."

CNN's Hada Messia reported from Florence, Italy. Steve Almasy reported and wrote from Atlanta. CNN's Livia Borghese contributed to this report

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Doctors try to wake Schumacher

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Doctors try to wake Schumacher
1/30/2014 5:39:54 PM

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Doctors reduce Michael Schumacher's sedation to start 'waking up process'
Former F1 world champion has been in a medically-induced coma for a month
45-year-old suffered a severe head injury when skiing in France in late December

(CNN) -- He has been in a medically induced coma for over a month, but former Formula 1 world champion Michael Schumacher's sedation is being reduced to start the "waking up process," his agent said Thursday.

Schumacher suffered severe head trauma in a skiing accident at the French Alps resort of Meribel on December 29.

The announcement marks a key change to Schumacher's condition, which has been routinely described as "stable" by agent Sabine Kehm in recent weeks.

"Michael's sedation is being reduced in order to allow the start of the waking up process which may take a long time," she said in a statement on Thursday.

Read: Mercedes and Ferrari support Schumacher

"For the protection of the family, it was originally agreed by the interested parties to communicate this information only once this process was consolidated.

"Please note that no further updates will be given."

Kehm went on to repeat previous requests for the media to respect the privacy of Schumacher's family.

"The family of Michael Schumacher is again requesting to respect its privacy and the medical secret, and to not disturb the doctors treating Michael in their work. At the same time, the family wishes to express sincere appreciation for the worldwide sympathy."

A seven-time world champion whose F1 career ended in 2012, Schumacher has been treated in Grenoble since his accident.

Neurosurgeons there operated twice to remove blood clots on the brain and reduce swelling, the reason he has been kept asleep since the surgery.

The German has been inundated with support from around the world during his stay, with his former stable Mercedes running the message "Keep Fighting Michael" on its silver livery when they revealed their new car for testing on Monday.

Read: F1 cars honor Schumacher

The Ferrari team, who Schumacher raced for between 1996 and 2006, also showed their support for their five-time world champion this week in the Spanish city Jerez, where teams are conducting winter testing ahead of the new F1 season.

On the eve of the first day of testing, the team's crew posed with a pit board showing the message "Forza Michael" while the new F14-T scarlet racer made its track debut with the same words of encouragement.

On Tuesday, the team published a note from Niki Lauda, who won two world championships for Ferrari in the 1970s, which read: "Michael, every day I follow your improvements and every day I am close to you. I hope I can speak to you very, very soon!"

Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso told CNN that F1 was "still in shock" over Schumacher's accident and condition.

"The day that I received the news I could not believe it to be honest," Alonso, who was speaking in Madrid on Wednesday at an exhibition that charts the course of the driver's career.

"He was the man that can beat anything and can win any race and can do anything without any worries, so to see him and to see the accident ...

"We're all hoping every day to have some good news coming from the hospital," added Alonso.

In early January, a French prosecutor investigating the accident said that speed was not a reason for Schumacher's fall.

His investigative team believe the experienced skier hit a rock hidden beneath the snow, while traversing an area between two marked pistes, which catapulted him face first onto another rock.

Schumacher ended up 9 meters (30 feet) from the edge of the piste, said prosecutor Patrick Quincy.

Footage filmed on a small camera attached to Schumacher's helmet has been used to help the investigators' analysis.

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Child executed in alleged mob hit

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Child executed in alleged mob hit
1/31/2014 4:52:40 AM

Nicola "Coco" Campolongo, 3, was shot in the head along with his grandfather, Giuseppe Iannicelli, and his grandfather's 27-year-old companion -- victims of an apparent mob hit over money.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Nicola "Coco" Campolongo was shot and killed last week
His grandfather and grandfather's companion were also killed
The boy's death has shocked the country, even catching the attention of Pope Francis

Rome (CNN) -- Mafia killings don't typically shock Italians -- as disturbing as the occasional hit may be, the tragedy usually affects only friends and families of the victims.

But a coldblooded, point-blank killing this month in southern Italy has a nation grieving -- for a 3-year-old child.

Nicola "Coco" Campolongo was shot in the head along with his grandfather, Giuseppe Iannicelli, and his grandfather's 27-year-old companion -- victims of an apparent mob hit over money.

Their bodies were found January 19 in a burned-out Fiat Punto on the outskirts of Cosenza, in southern Italy's Calabria region. Iannicelli, who was serving a drug-related sentence on house arrest, appeared to be the target of the hit.

"In all my years investigating organized crime murders, none has been as horrific as this one," lead prosecutor Franco Giacomantonio told CNN. "It is unimaginable that a child can be made to pay for the crimes of his parents."

The killing even caught the attention of Pope Francis, who called Coco's death "unprecedented." He asked worshippers at his Sunday address to say a prayer for Coco and called on the boy's killers to repent for their crimes.

Coco's 24-year-old mother, Antonia Iannicelli, didn't attend her son's funeral. She's serving a four-year jail sentence for the possession and sale of drugs. Police feared members of the powerful 'Ndrangheta crime organization -- believed to be behind the killings -- would target Iannicelli if she attended.

Her two other children, ages 4 and 5, were moved to protective custody in another region of Italy. Iannicelli will be allowed to serve out the rest of her sentence on house arrest with her surviving children.

The killing of such a young child has sparked debate in Italy about how to protect children growing up in the shadow of the country's crime syndicates in the impoverished south. Coco was just an infant when his mother began serving her jail sentence.

On Tuesday, Francesco Talarico, head of the regional government in Calabria, wrote a letter to the president of Italy's national observatory of the rights of minors, urging the group to "lift the veil of silence" that often accompanies mafia crimes, and to "seriously investigate what can be done to protect the future of at-risk children like Coco."

Coco's mother was already serving her second prison term for drug crimes tied to 'Ndrangheta -- one of the most powerful organized crime syndicates in the world, according to Francesco Forgione, head of Italy's Parliamentary anti-Mafia Commission.

"Coco's mother is the first victim of the system," Talarico told CNN. "Her son had little chance to escape that life."

In the wake of Coco's killing, Interior Minister Alfano Angelino and National Police Chief Alessandro Pansa signed an emergency protocol in the child's name to ensure the protection of children's rights.

"We need ... to make sure the protocol does not forget children who are growing up in vulnerable situations outside the law, who may be victims or witnesses to crimes. We need to make sure Coco is the last child ever killed like this," Pansa said.

No suspects have been named in the triple homicide, but Giacomantonio believes it is likely connected to the region's drug trade.

Would the Mafia target Pope Francis over Vatican reforms?

Barbie Nadeau reported this story for CNN from Rome. Sarah Aarthun wrote and reported from Atlanta.

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Man dies after firefighters won't help

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Man dies after firefighters won't help
1/31/2014 4:47:17 AM

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

NEW: Two employees have been suspended with pay, a spokesman says
Three people tried to summon firefighters to help the collapsed man
Mills' daughter said she saw a firefighter at the station
That firefighter, a new employee, apparently said he had to be dispatched to help

(CNN) -- Marie Mills held her 77-year-old father, who had collapsed outside in a Washington street. She screamed for help.

A passerby rushed across the street to bang on the door of a fire station, knowing that firefighters are trained to provide emergency medical help.

But they wouldn't leave the station.

The same thing happened when two more people tried to summon the firefighters for assistance, Mills says.

"We looked across the street at the fire station. There was a firefighter that was actually standing against the fire apparatus," she told CNN affiliate WJLA. "Everybody started trying to wave him over." But the firefighter said he had to be dispatched first.

"I even ran to the curb and said, 'Are you going to help me or let my dad die?'" said Mills.

Later, after an ambulance finally arrived, Cecil Mills died at a hospital. He had suffered an apparent heart attack.

An investigation is under way and, so far, no officials are publicly challenging Mills' version of events.

"It's an outrage," Washington Mayor Vincent Gray said at a news conference. "I was absolutely furious."

He said he apologized to Marie Mills for "what appeared to be dereliction," DC news station WTTG reported.

"Those who failed to respond as they should -- they will be held accountable, period," Gray vowed.

In comments Thursday to CNN, Gray said he has "taken a lot of time with it."

The investigation is "being done as rapidly as we possibly can," he added.

The D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department told CNN it is investigating the incident, which took place along the 1300 block of Rhode Island Avenue on Saturday.

"Our duty is to respond to all requests for emergency assistance. If it is determined that proper protocols were not followed at the conclusion of our investigation, then appropriate action will be taken," spokesman Tim Wilson said.

The protocol is in question because, according to the Mills family, those who asked for help at the fire station were told to call 911.

Calls to 911 were placed, but a mix-up with the address delayed an ambulance, said Washington Council member Tommy Wells.

"Two things happened," he said. "One was that no one came out of the fire house to help this gentleman. The other is the ambulance that was dispatched was dispatched to the wrong place. This was a number of fiascos."

Paul Quander, deputy mayor for public safety, said a "very new, probationary employee" was at the facility. The employee's first response should be "to ask a senior person, and we believe that was done," he said, according to WTTG. "The question now is what did that senior person say? What did that person do? Did they follow protocols and procedures?"

There are no protocols that would prevent fire personnel from helping those in need, Quander told CNN Thursday. "These are people who run into burning buildings. They work in the most hazardous conditions imaginable.

"They cross the streets, they cross highways to get to people. It is understood. It is common. This is why it is so troubling that we did not take the appropriate action in this case. It's right across the street."

"It's hard to get your arms around" the idea that this took place, he added.

Lt. Kellene Davis was the officer in charge of the station at the time of the incident, WTTG reports.

Davis did not respond immediately to an e-mail Thursday from CNN, and a call to a phone number listed for her was not answered.

Also Thursday, a spokesman said that two employees of the D.C. Fire and Emergency Medical Services Department have been suspended with pay in the wake of the incident.

"I cannot say who they were because it is a personnel matter and an ongoing investigation, but I can tell you that neither of them was the probationary firefighter involved in the incident," said Keith St. Clair, with the office of the deputy mayor for public safety.

The employees were working at the station, he said.

Cecil Mills, a lifelong Washington resident, worked for the Department of Parks and Recreation.

His daughter, in mourning, had kind words for the mayor's handling of the matter. "I appreciate how seriously he is taking this because it never should have happened," she told WTTG.

Marie Mills wasn't immediately available Thursday when contacted by CNN.

The firefighters' union said the incident simply should never have happened.

"We need to find out why it did occur and make sure it never happens again," said Ed Smith, president of the DC Fire Fighters Association, in a statement reported by WTTG.

He added that on the union's behalf, "I offer Mr. Mills' family a sincere apology."

CNN's Aaron Cooper and Mike M. Ahlers contributed to this report from Washington.

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Are kids equipped to deal with ads?

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CNN.com delivers up-to-the-minute news and information on the latest top stories, weather, entertainment, politics and more.

Are kids equipped to deal with ads?
1/31/2014 1:55:20 PM

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Kids will see Super Bowl ads for junk food and booze, with violence, sex and sexism
Steyer: Digital media ads are insidious: "advergaming," viral and social media marketing
He says kids are a part of the product-selling cycle, without being paid or even knowing
Media and ad savvy is essential, he says. We must teach kids to view media critically

Editor's note: James Steyer is CEO and founder of Common Sense Media, a nonprofit advocacy group for children's online privacy. He also teaches courses on civil rights, civil liberties and children's issues at Stanford University and is the author of "The Other Parent: The Inside Story of the Media's Effect on Our Children" and "Talking Back to Facebook: The Common Sense Guide to Raising Kids in the Digital Age."

(CNN) -- This Sunday, my family will be among the 110 million people gathered in front of their TVs to watch the Super Bowl, and with ad revenue projected at $300 million, we can expect advertisers to be as outrageous as ever, with spots promoting junk food, alcohol and erectile dysfunction drugs and depicting violence, sex and gender stereotypes.

This said, TV ads -- even during the Super Bowl -- might be the least of parents' concerns. Digital media has dramatically changed the advertising landscape, and includes immersive websites, "advergaming," viral marketing, mobile ads, social media marketing and precise behavioral and location targeting. More than ever before, advertising and entertainment are inextricably linked. In many cases, the content is the ad, and this can be particularly confusing for children, who are less able to understand persuasive intent.

Jim Steyer

Common Sense Media just released a research brief -- "Advertising to Children and Teens: Current Practices" -- to provide an inventory of advertising practices aimed at kids and teens and calling for research to quantify exposure and examine the effects.

The report finds that the integration of advertising and content across so many platforms -- from product placement to online games and Facebook apps -- has made it much more difficult for researchers to measure the exposure and impact of advertising on kids. While traditional advertising and its effects on kids have been well researched, no one knows the impact of these new media platforms.

The concern isn't just what products are sold to kids or what messages are sent to them, it's that new modes of advertising are insidious and particularly troubling for kids and teens, who are less able to differentiate advertising from entertainment and whose sense of self is still developing. What does it mean for a tween or teen girl to receive weight-loss ads, targeted to her based on her age, gender, location, the foods she likes and the topics she searches? We need to understand the impact of this type of advertising on young people, what it means for their consumption habits, self-esteem, and right to privacy.

Kids are also becoming a critical part of the product-selling cycle, without being paid (or even knowing, in many cases). Even Super Bowl advertisers are relying on our kids in large part to spread the word for them.

No longer can you simply hit the mute button or fast-forward through the Viagra ads.
James Steyer

For example, Doritos' "Crash the Super Bowl" ad contest has been seeking votes all over the Web -- including the kids' game site Addicting Games -- where information can be collected, and where likes, shares and views are the new measure of success. And a young person's "liking" or "sharing" of a product may appear in their friends' newsfeeds as endorsements or testimonials.

No longer can you simply hit the mute button or fast-forward through the Viagra ads. Millions of kids will be on phones and tablets while watching the big game and the ads they interact with on these little screens -- that might not even register as ads -- have far greater implications for kids' healthy development.

Media and ad savvy is now an essential skill and it's imperative we teach our kids to view media critically -- to understand what's being sold and what methods are used to sell products. And we must call upon the research community to develop new methods to quantify and analyze the effects of advertising on young people, not just to limit what's negative but to have a better understanding of how to reach kids with positive messages.

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The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of James Steyer.

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Syria, Iran playing Obama for fool?

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CNN.com delivers up-to-the-minute news and information on the latest top stories, weather, entertainment, politics and more.

Syria, Iran playing Obama for fool?
1/31/2014 1:57:19 PM

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Syria has only removed about 4% of priority one chemical weapons, U.S. says
Frida Ghitis: Syria, Iran seem willing to toy with the U.S., raising doubt about negotiations
She says U.S. needs to make clear that it will back up its positions with action

Editor's note: Frida Ghitis is a world affairs columnist for The Miami Herald and World Politics Review. A former CNN producer and correspondent, she is the author of "The End of Revolution: A Changing World in the Age of Live Television." Follow her on Twitter @FridaGhitis.

(CNN) -- Remember Syria's chemical weapons? Yes, those, the ones the Syrian regime agreed to give up after President Obama threatened to bomb.

All of the "priority one" the most dangerous of those weapons, were supposed to be gone by December 31 last year. They're not. Almost all of them -- more than 95% -- are still in Syria despite a commitment by the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to get rid of his deadly arsenal.

The deal to remove Syria's stock of WMD was the one tangible accomplishment of the Obama administration's approach to the Middle East's multiple crises. Now that deal looks to be failing, even as red flags also start flying along the path to a deal with Iran.

Frida Ghitis

It's hard to escape the impression that Iran and its close ally, Syria, are toying with the U.S.

America is earnestly seeking a diplomatic solution. And we should all hope diplomacy succeeds in securing an agreement that stops the carnage in Syria and one that prevents Iran from becoming a greater threat to its neighbors. But there is a reason these efforts are already running into trouble.

Secretary of State John Kerry is valiantly pursuing the suit-and-tie approach to peace, but Kerry is handicapped by the growing perception that Obama will not use military force under any circumstances. The U.S. doesn't need to release bombs to show it is powerful. What it needs to do is remind its adversaries, its enemies, that it has options beyond the well-appointed rooms of hotels along Lake Geneva.

Obama can do this by speaking directly and firmly about those choices. That alone would go a long way in reshaping some points of views, and could produce results. If it doesn't, more concrete steps would be required, from increasing material support for specific anti-al-Assad forces to a tightening of sanctions against Iran and other steps.

Diplomats can help concentrate the mind of their interlocutors when the people on the other side of the table worry about the possible cost of failure.

This is true of Syria's al-Assad, who has heard Obama's threats on the use of chemical weapons starting in the summer of 2012, and is still playing games with America while relentlessly slaughtering and starving his people.

And it is true about Iran, which just heard Obama during the State of the Union threaten to veto a plan to set the stage now for additional sanctions against Iran if negotiations fail in the next six months. Iranian officials presumably also heard the president state what so many have stopped believing: that he is prepared "to exercise all options to make sure Iran does not build a nuclear weapon."

Iran foreign minister says Obama's remarks are for "domestic consumption"

The more we hear from the Iranians, the less likely it seems that a successful agreement can be reached.

After CNN's Fareed Zakaria talked to Iranian President Hassan Rouhani last week, he concluded there's a "train wreck" on its way in negotiations. The U.S. is moving forward on the assumption that a deal would involve the dismantling of some key nuclear facilities, but Rouhani, the moderate face of the Islamist Republic, made it "categorically, specifically and unequivocally" clear that Iran has no intention of ever rolling back its nuclear program.

On Syria, I had heard rumors that the removal of its most terrifying weapons was not going as scheduled. Then an anonymous source told Reuters that the regime has delivered a dismal 4.1% of the 1,300 tons of toxic agents it has reported, "and there is no sign of more," on the way.

Then the U.S. confirmed it.

On Thursday, Ambassador Robert Mikulak, who heads the U.S. delegation to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, told the group that Syria is ignoring the timeline for removal of banned weapons and displaying "a 'bargaining mentality' rather than a security mentality." In addition, he said, there is little progress on Syria's commitment to destroy its chemical weapons production facilities.

If Syria's games over its chemical weapons sound familiar -- agreements followed by "misunderstandings" and endless delays -- it is because we see much the same already unfolding with Iran.

Iran's President and foreign minister are well versed in their communications strategy with the West. They are charming and fluent, speaking directly to Western publics who would like nothing better than to be done with the threat of a confrontation. And how great it would be to truly resolve the issue diplomatically.

Hope, however, is not a strategy any more than closing your eyes when you don't like what you see, as when Iranian President Hassan Rouhani tweeted that in the Geneva agreement the "world powers surrendered" to Iran. That's when the White House dismissed the worrisome statement as a play for a domestic audience.

Since then, however, one after another Iranian official has maintained they have no intention of taking apart any of their nuclear program. Without destroying any centrifuges, reactors, or other facilities, Iran can negotiate with the West, and receive political, diplomatic and economic benefits from the loosening of sanctions, as it already has. And then, as top Iranian officials have said, it can reverse any freeze and resume high-level enrichment in 24 hours. That's the vow from the top nuclear negotiator and the foreign minister.

Making matters worse, much worse, we have just learned that American intelligence officials believe Iran has essentially already reached the "nuclear breakout" capability it sought. Director of National Intelligence James Clapper told Congress this week that Iran has made "technical progress in a number of areas -- including uranium enrichment, nuclear reactors, and ballistic missiles -- from which it could draw if it decided to build missile-deliverable nuclear weapons." In other words, he concluded, the only thing between Iran and nuclear weapons is a political decision to build the bomb. Everything else is already in place.

That extraordinary revelation received little attention in the U.S., where the headlines were consumed with the crisis in ice-logged Atlanta. In other places, the news was cause for alarm. "Heaven help us," tweeted a respected Israeli journalist, "Iran can now build and deliver nukes."

How is it possible that Iran and Syria are getting away with this?

Iran and Syria are not the only countries convinced that the U.S. will not take military action. Saudi Arabia apparently has reached much the same conclusion.

After his 2012 red lines became blurred, the deal to get rid of al-Assad's chemical weapons allowed Obama to claim he had succeeded in showing consequences for their use, even if al-Assad stayed in place and the killing continued. But now it looks as if essentially nothing has changed. Except that tens of thousands more have died.

To support American diplomacy, Obama needs to erase that image of a weak America. Again, there is no need to launch attacks and deploy troops. But there is a need to show to America's enemies they cannot play the U.S. for a fool. The President needs to assert convincingly that he will be able to exercise power if that becomes necessary. Nothing would be more helpful to the chances for diplomatic success.

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The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Frida Ghitis.

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Stem cell breakthrough may be cheap

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CNN.com delivers up-to-the-minute news and information on the latest top stories, weather, entertainment, politics and more.

Stem cell breakthrough may be cheap
1/31/2014 3:46:17 AM

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

The stem cells were created from cells of young mice
Researchers put these blood cells in an acidic environment
Stem cell therapies may one day be used to treat diseases
This new technique has not been tried in humans

(CNN) -- We run too hard, we fall down, we're sick -- all of this puts stress on the cells in our bodies. But in what's being called a breakthrough in regenerative medicine, researchers have found a way to make stem cells by purposely putting mature cells under stress.

Two new studies published Wednesday in the journal Nature describe a method of taking mature cells from mice and turning them into embryonic-like stem cells, which can be coaxed into becoming any other kind of cell possible. One method effectively boils down to this: Put the cells in an acidic environment.

"I think the process we've described mimics Mother Nature," said Dr. Charles Vacanti, director of the laboratory for Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine at Brigham & Women's Hospital in Boston and senior author on one of the studies. "It's a natural process that cells normally respond to."

Both studies represent a new step in the thriving science of stem cell research, which seeks to develop therapies to repair bodily damage and cure disease by being able to insert cells that can grow into whatever tissues or organs are needed. If you take an organ that's functioning at 10% of normal and bring it up to 25% functionality, that could greatly reduce the likelihood of fatality in that particular disease, Vacanti said.

This method by Vacanti and his colleagues "is truly the simplest, cheapest, fastest method ever achieved for reprogramming [cells]," said Jeff Karp, associate professor of medicine at the Brigham & Women's Hospital and principal faculty member at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute. He was not involved in the study.

Scientists grow minibrains from stem cells

Before the technique described in Nature, the leading candidates for creating stem cells artificially were those derived from embryos and stem cells from adult cells that require the insertion of DNA to become reprogrammable.

Stem cells are created the natural way every time an egg that is fertilized begins to divide. During the first four to five days of cell division, so-called pluripotent stem cells develop. They have the ability to turn into any cell in the body. Removing stem cells from the embryo destroys it, which is why this type of research is controversial.

Researchers have also developed a method of producing embryonic-like stem cells by taking a skin cell from a patient, for example, and adding a few bits of foreign DNA to reprogram the skin cell to become like an embryo and produce pluripotent cells, too. However, these cells are usually used for research because researchers do not want to give patients cells with extra DNA.

The new method does not involve the destruction of embryos or inserting new genetic material into cells, Vacanti said. It also avoids the problem of rejection: The body may reject stem cells that came from other people, but this method uses an individual's own mature cells.

"It was really surprising to see that such a remarkable transformation could be triggered simply by stimuli from outside of the cell," said Haruko Obokata of the Riken Center for Developmental Biology in Japan in a news conference this week.

The process is called STAP, which stands for "stimulus-triggered acquisition of pluripotency." Karp estimates that the method is five to 10 times faster than other means of reprogramming cells.

Have a taste of the world's first stem cell burger

Researchers used mice to study the STAP cell phenomenon. They genetically altered the mice donating stem cells to "label" those cells with the color green. For instance, they modified mice such that their cells would light up green in response to a particular wavelength of light.

The scientists exposed blood cells from these genetically altered mice to an acidic environment. A few days later, they saw that these cells turned into the embryonic-like state and grew in spherical clusters.

Scientists put the cell clusters into a mouse embryo that had not been genetically modified. It turned out, the implanted clusters could form tissues in all of the organs that the researchers tested. The scientists knew that the cells came from the original mouse because they turned green when exposed to a particular light.

Besides modifying acidity, researchers also stressed the cells in other ways, such as lowering the oxygen environment and disrupting the cell membrane. Increasing acidity was one of the most effective methods of turning mouse blood cells into STAP cells.

There are, of course, some caveats.

For now, the STAP cell procedure has only been demonstrated in cells from young mice. The effectiveness in humans, and the risks, are unknown.

Researchers have not yet shown how STAP embryonic-like stem cells compare with bona fide embryonic stem cells or induced pluripotent stem cells, Karp said.

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Also, although the study was "rigorous" and "well-controlled," it did not demonstrate exactly why the stress on the cells caused them to become STAP cells, Karp said.

As with everything in science, more research is required to confirm the findings and learn more about the implications.

Vacanti hopes the process could get tested clinically in humans within three years. He noted that induced pluripotent stem cells are already being explored in Japan in humans and the same "platforms" could be utilized for STAP cells.

STAP cells also have an additional property that embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells do not: They can become placental cells. Scientists can manipulate them to contribute to tissues of either the embryo or the placenta.

What therapeutic purpose growing more placenta could serve, Vacanti isn't sure -- unless, that is, you wanted to create an embryo and bring it to term.

Cloning stem cells: What does it mean?

But that's not the goal of this research. Vacanti and colleagues want to explore possible ties to cancer from the STAP cell process; it could potentially help to model the process by which cells become cancerous and explore if there is a way to reverse the process.

Stem cell research as a field has been growing at "lightning speed," Karp said.

New reprogramming approaches to stem cells are emerging all the time, he said, and this one in particular "looks incredibly promising."

Follow Elizabeth Landau on Twitter at @lizlandau

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Police: Bieber positive for pot, Xanax

CNN.com - Top Stories

CNN.com delivers up-to-the-minute news and information on the latest top stories, weather, entertainment, politics and more.

Police: Bieber positive for pot, Xanax
1/30/2014 8:20:27 PM

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Justin Bieber was "excited," "insulting," "cocky" and "used profanity," police say
"Yeah, we were smoking all night at the studio," Bieber told police, report says
Bieber charged in Toronto, allegedly struck a limo driver on the back of the head
An L.A. prosecutor is expected to decide soon whether he'll be charged in egging

(CNN) -- Justin Bieber was under the influence of alcohol, pot and Xanax when police stopped him for drag racing in Miami Beach last week, police documents allege.

"Yeah, we were smoking all night at the studio," the singer told a police officer who told him he "reeked of marijuana," according to documents released Thursday.

Bieber was "excited," "talkative," "insulting" and "cocky" and "used profanity," according to a intoxication evaluation conducted by police in the Florida city.

His speech was mumbled, his pupils dilated, his face flushed and his eyes bloodshot, the assessment said.

The lab test results and details of Bieber's sobriety tests were released just hours after the 19-year-old singer was booked on an assault charge in Canada, accused of hitting his limousine driver in Toronto a month ago.

Bieber, who will turn 20 in four weeks, apparently sought refuge Wednesday night in Stratford, the Canadian town where he grew up before becoming a pop star.

His father tweeted a photo of Bieber asleep in a bed with Justin's younger half brother, Jaxon. The Twitter message posted by @JeremyBieber read: "Safe and sound #homesweethome"

Earlier Wednesday, Bieber's lawyer entered a "not guilty" plea to the Florida charges of DUI, resisting arrest and driving with an expired license, according to court records.

The prospect of a third criminal arrest for Bieber hangs on a decision expected as soon as next week, after detectives investigating an alleged egg attack on his California neighbor meet again with a Los Angeles prosecutor.

Bieber told police in Miami Beach that he had taken "medications for anxiety" that night but that he did not know what it was or whether he had a prescription for it. "Well, my mom takes care of all that stuff for me," the police report quoted him as saying.

The preliminary toxicology report on Bieber's urine sample said it tested positive for "metabolite of THC," which indicates marijuana use, and alprazolam, the generic name for the prescription sedative Xanax.

At the police station, Bieber failed a series of sobriety tests, including "horizontal gaze," "Romberg balance," "walk and turn," "finger to nose" and "one-leg stand" tests, the police report said.

When Bieber was asked to estimate when 30 seconds passed, he failed by thinking a half-minute was over in 17 seconds, the report said.

He had "great difficulty" completing the Breathalyzer test, the officer wrote. He "continuously forgot basic instructions."

Bieber told the officer "that he was blowing as hard as he could, and told me to look at how red his face was," he wrote. "He advised he was blowing into the hose like he blows into his trumpet."

When he was finally successful, he blew .011 and .014 in two Breathalyzer tests, the report said. Florida's legal limit for drivers under the drinking age of 21 is .02.

Bieber was briefly jailed in Miami Beach on January 23 after he was stopped by a police officer who said he was drag racing in a Lambourghini on a residential street.

Opinion: Money and Justin Bieber's teenage brain

Toronto assault charge

Safe and sound #homesweethome pic.twitter.com/qGoCFj90hs
— Jeremy Bieber (@JeremyBieber) January 30, 2014

Bieber arrived at a Toronto police station for booking Wednesday evening amid a chaotic scene as determined photographers, reporters, screaming fans and the curious converged around his SUV. About a dozen Toronto police officers shoved their way through the crowd to escort Bieber, getting him through the door only after a struggle.

The alleged incident happened after the limo driver picked up a group of six people outside a Toronto nightclub just before 3 a.m. December 30, according to a police statement.

"While driving the group to a hotel, an altercation occurred between one of the passengers and the driver of the limousine," the police statement said. "In the course of the altercation, a man struck the limousine driver on the back of the head several times. The driver stopped the limousine, exited the vehicle and called police."

The singer attended a Toronto Maple Leafs hockey game at the Air Canada Centre earlier in the evening, according to the CBC.

Bieber left the Toronto police station through a rear exit after about two hours inside Wednesday night. He is set to appear in a Toronto court on March 10, police said.

Bieber's Los Angeles lawyer said the charge was "the equivalent of a misdemeanor in the United States."

"Our position is that Mr. Bieber is innocent," attorney Howard Wietzman said. "As the matter is now before the court, it would be inappropriate to address the specifics of either the allegation or of our defense at this time."

Bieber's manager, Scooter Braun, posted messages on Twitter that appear to be related to Wednesday's arrest:

"for all those asking @JeremyBieber and @pattiemallette love their son. Stop passing judgement on a situation u dont understand. i ask people to be kind and hope for the best in people. not assume the worst. thanks"

Bieber's latest criminal arrest came just an hour after the television debut of his newest video, for his song "Confident."

Bieber's bad behavior: We've seen it before

Egging investigation 'tightening up'

Detectives are "tightening up" their case against Bieber in his alleged egg attack on a neighbor's residence, an investigator said Tuesday.

The neighbor accused Bieber of tossing eggs over a fence and onto the mansion next door on January 9, causing an estimated $20,000 in damage.

A dozen Los Angeles County Sheriff's deputies raided Bieber's $6.5 million home in the exclusive Oaks community in Calabasas, California, two weeks ago, taking the security video system as evidence.

A prosecutor reviewed the security video Monday and asked detectives to do more investigation before a decision is made about charging the pop star with felony vandalism, according to Lt. David Thompson.

Detectives will probably meet again with prosecutors in the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office next week, Thompson said. The district attorney will then decide whether a charge will be filed against Bieber.

'Deport Justin Bieber' petition reaches 100,000+ signatures

CNN's Tory Dunnan, Carolyn Sung, Stephanie Gallman and Susan Candiotti contributed to this report.

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How to raise a secure, creative child

CNN.com - Top Stories

CNN.com delivers up-to-the-minute news and information on the latest top stories, weather, entertainment, politics and more.

How to raise a secure, creative child
1/31/2014 8:56:18 AM

Matt Damon, right, at 5, and Kyle Damon, 8, listen to their mother Nancy Carlsson-Paige reading Beatrix Potter in 1975.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Nancy Carlsson-Paige, Matt Damon's mom, is often asked how she raised her children
She says kids get a a solid footing in life with lots of child-centered play in the early years
Parents can give children inner strength; she says. Tough punishment instills fear
Carlsson-Paige: Schools must offer children arts, drama -- activities that can't be tested

Editor's note: Nancy Carlsson-Paige is professor emerita of early childhood education at Lesley University in Massachusetts. Her most recent book is called "Taking Back Childhood: A Proven Roadmap for Raising Confident, Creative, Compassionate Kids."

(CNN) -- People often ask me, especially after another young celebrity takes a fall, "How did you raise two talented artists, both wonderful fathers, who both do such good work in the world?" (One of my sons is the actor Matt Damon, the other, Kyle, is a sculptor). So many young stars seem to struggle and stumble under the pressure of their fame. Why do some handle it well while others go off the rails?

There's no simple answer to this question. A lot happens in our children's lives that we parents can't control. From the beginning, children come to us with different personalities and temperaments; they are born into different cultures and economic circumstances. But we parents are the most important influence in their early lives, and what we do affects how our kids learn to handle the stresses life brings, whatever paths their lives take.

Nancy Carlsson-Paige

One dimension of healthy childhood that gives kids a solid footing in life is having lots of child-centered play throughout the early years and even into grade school. Play is the most important vehicle children have for coping with life and making sense of it.

Matt played pretend games for hours every day for many years -- making up stories, taking on roles and re-working his experiences in creative ways. Not only did all this play help build a strong sense of inner security in Matt, it also built up his capacity to imagine, create and invent ideas.

I believe these years of child-centered play helped Matt become the actor and grounded person he is today. It is of great concern to me that there is less play in children's lives today than a generation ago. The hours spent in front of screens have replaced playtime outside school, and too much focus on academics and testing has eroded playtime inside schools.

I believe that these years of child-centered play helped Matt become the actor and grounded person he is today.
Nancy Carlsson-Paige

When kids are confused or scared or they don't understand things, they work it out in their play. Using their imagination, they rework things until they feel some sense of mastery. This is kids' ongoing way of coping with life and it is crucial for building inner resilience and security.

That inner strength and resilience begins to develop at birth. It is first felt as a sense of trust in others -- adults who respond to cries of hunger and who can provide a home, safety and health.

As time goes on, kids start to carry that security with them on the inside. Security will grow or weaken in childhood depending a lot on how we adults relate to our children in everyday interactions. When we are too heavy-handed with our authority, kids often feel insecure or fearful. When we punish them or use threats and timeouts or other coercive tactics, they might try to obey on the surface, but they aren't building the inner strength and confidence that will be their moral compass when we are not there.

We don't really have to over-use our adult authority with children. We can work out most things with them -- listening to their feelings and needs and taking these into account as much as possible. When we listen to kids with our full attention and try to say back to them what we heard without judging it or giving our own opinion, they feel great trust in us and in themselves. And this kind of listening prevents many conflicts from escalating or from happening in the first place. Of course children need limits, but not the kind that are imposed by "Do as I say."

Recently I was walking on busy streets with my 5-year-old grandson Jake. He pulled his hand from mine. I asked, "You don't want to hold my hand?" "No," he said, "I want to walk by myself." I said, "How about this: On the sidewalk you walk alone and when we cross the street, you hold my hand, because there are so many cars zooming around." Jake nodded yes and took my hand when we got to the street. This simple example shows a way of being with children, of being on the same side with them, working things out with them -- something we can do almost all the time. It is a way of being that helps to strengthen children's inner security and confidence in their own ideas.

Schools are the other big influence in our children's lives. Children spend about half their waking hours in school and what happens there has a big part to play in the inner confidence and social responsibility they develop.

I sent my sons Kyle and Matt to a public high school where community participation, respect for differences, learning empathy and concern for others were part of daily school life. The school had an excellent drama program, another reason why I wanted to send Matt there.

All kids who wanted to participate in the school's stellar ensemble productions could. Matt wasn't a "star." He was on equal footing with all the other kids. Stardom can be confusing for a teen -- it's a time of figuring out who you are and how you fit into what suddenly seems like a much bigger world. Matt's high school drama experiences gave him a rock solid start in theater -- he worked hard at his craft and found delight and meaning in collaboration.

Matt Damon: Together we can solve the world water crisis

I believe that schools should be places not only for academic learning, but also where young people build confidence, a sense of self, and learn to become responsible citizens. It is one of the great tragedies of our day that our schools, excessively driven by data and standardized tests, have no time for activities that can't be tested. No time for the arts and play and the social and emotional learning that will help children handle what life has in store.

Although we parents can't control everything that happens in our kids' lives, we can do a lot to help them build inner security, confidence and a strong inner moral compass that will guide them through challenges they will face when we are no longer there. And our schools should build on this foundation. We should insist that our schools address not just academics, but the whole child -- so that all our children can become healthy and strong and enter adulthood as responsible and caring citizens.

Follow us on Twitter @CNNOpinion.

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The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Nancy Carlsson-Paige.

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ACOZO.COM

Friday, January 31, 2014

Oscar nomination revoked

Knox, Sollecito convicted after Italian appeal

Doctors try to wake Schumacher

Child executed in alleged mob hit

Man dies after firefighters won't help

Are kids equipped to deal with ads?

Syria, Iran playing Obama for fool?

Stem cell breakthrough may be cheap

Police: Bieber positive for pot, Xanax

How to raise a secure, creative child