9oz Miracle: World's Smallest Ever Baby Boy

3:23pm UK, Friday March 05, 2010

Damien Pearse,

Sky News Online

Meet the world's smallest ever surviving baby boy - weighing just nine ounces.

The tiny child - smaller than a can of coke - was born after just 25 weeks.

He was so little at birth that a tape measure laid next to his body was wider than his limbs.

Doctors in Germany were convinced he would not survive but refused to give up hope.

Now - eight months after the birth - medics have finally released a picture of the mite, confident he is strong enough to make it through.

The child weighed just 275g and is the smallest baby boy ever to survive. There have been three girls who have been lighter.

Doctors are confident the boy - now eight-months-old - will pull through

The most premature baby to survive is believed to have been born after 21 weeks, a girl born in Miami in America in 2004.

Experts on medical ethics advise doctors not to resuscitate babies born before 23 weeks in the womb.

More than 80,000 babies are born prematurely in Britain every year and half need to be treated in intensive care.

Doctors expect babies weighing less than 12oz not to survive.

The baby in Germany was delivered by Caeserean section at the University of Medicine at Goettingen in June 2009.

A spokesman for the university told Sky News Online that doctors were "extremely proud" of the boy and the parents were overjoyed.

"This was an incredible fight for life," the spokesman said.

 LINK TO VIDEO AND PHOTOS:

http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/video/Is-This-The-Worlds-Most-Premature-Baby-Tom-Thumb-Germany/Video/201003115567914?lpos=video_Article_Body_Copy_Region_0&lid=VIDEO_15567914_Is_This_The_Worlds_Most_Premature_Baby_Tom_Thumb_Germany

http://www.wbaltv.com/video/22751833/

A man uses a body scanner at Schiphol airport in the Netherlands. Ten more U.S. airports will be equipped with the scanners. Photo: AP

Ten more U.S. airports are getting new scanners capable of detecting explosives like those carried by the alleged Christmas Day bomber, an administration official said Friday.

The new machines at airports including Boston’s Logan, Chicago’s O’Hare and Charlotte’s Douglas will take full body scans of airline passengers and can detect explosives hidden under clothing. LAX airport in Los Angeles, which already has one of the advanced scanners operating in its international terminal, will receive eight additional scanners, a Democratic member of Congress said.

The Transportation Security Administration bought 150 of the advanced imaging technology machines in September with $25 million in stimulus cash. POLITICO reported last month that it took the Department of Homeland Security seven months just to place the order — and it still hasn’t released a list or developed a complete plan for where to send them. Major airports still without the scanners, even after this new deployment, include all three of New York City’s hubs — Newark, LaGuardia and JFK.

The Obama administration announced a push to get up to 1,000 of the scanners into 75 percent of the country’s largest airports in the wake of the Christmas Day bombing attempt. The 2011 budget request includes nearly $215 million to build more of the scanners and $218 million to pay some 5,300 TSA staff to operate the machines.

Installing the scanners is complicated because they are much larger than traditional metal detectors. Airports also have to build separate, windowless rooms where TSA agents can look at the scans without seeing passengers — the scans are so detailed that it is easy to determine a person’s gender, raising privacy concerns. The addition of the new machines brings the total number of U.S. airports operating them up to 29, including 17 of the country’s largest.

Republicans have questioned the dramatic increase in funding, particularly because the money for the machines had to come out of other areas of the DHS budget.

“I am apprehensive because it is unclear whether such a costly and manpower-intensive approach is the absolute best course of action, especially when the initial deployment of whole-body imagers appears to be an interim step towards the use of even more advanced technology,” Rep. Hal Rogers (R-Ky.) said Thursday. “Far too often, government overreacts in the wake of a crisis.” Rogers serves on the Appropriations subcommittee that authorizes the DHS budget.

New York Rep. Peter King, the top Republican on the Homeland Security Committee, has blasted the DHS budget because it cuts five of the Coast Guard’s maritime counterterrorism teams, including the one charged with protecting New York City.

A full list of the airports that will get new scanners, according to an administration official:

Boston Logan

Los Angeles

Charlotte Douglas, N.C.

Oakland, Calif.

Chicago O'Hare

Port Columbus, Ohio

Cincinnati

San Diego

Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

San Jose, Calif.

Kansas City, Mo.

IMAGES SEEN WITH FULL BODY SCANNER:

http://images.search.yahoo.com/images/view?back=http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%3Fei%3DUTF-8%26p%3Dairport%2Bfull%2Bbody%2Bscanners%2Bimages&w=300&h=240&imgurl=earthhopenetwork.net%2Fx-ray_backscatter_naked_human_body.jpg&size=9.9kB&name=x+ray+backscatter+naked+human+body+jpg&rcurl=http%3A%2F%2Fearthhopenetwork.net%2Fforum%2Fshowthread.php%3Ftid%3D278&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fearthhopenetwork.net%2Fforum%2Fshowthread.php%3Ftid%3D278&p=airport+full+body+scanners&type=jpeg&no=1&tt=64&oid=e4842f6b3a29e3e6&tit=x+ray+backscatter+naked+human+body+jpg&sigr=11ohs92lp&sigi=11rad0k8b&sigb=12b8o0j2o#FCar=e4842f6b3a29e3e6

Loaded handgun found in backpack of student, 8, who threatened classmate

Justin Fenton

Baltimore Sun

March 6, 2010

Authorities were trying to determine Friday how an 8-year-old boy obtained a loaded handgun that was found in his backpack by school police after he made threats toward a classmate.

The third-grader at Sharp-Leadenhall Elementary School, a small Baltimore City school for special-needs children, was arrested Thursday afternoon and charged as a juvenile with handgun possession. School officials said the boy was "acting suspiciously" and staff began closely monitoring his behavior, which led to a search of his backpack and the discovery of a .380-caliber handgun.

A law enforcement source with knowledge of the incident said the boy was overheard making a threat to another student and walked over to his locker. A staff member followed him and saw the boy take out his backpack, at which point the employee observed the loaded gun, the source said.

The boy denied knowledge of the weapon, according to two sources.

He was arrested that day and placed on community detention with the Department of Juvenile Services, according to school officials and three sources with knowledge of the case. At a juvenile court hearing Friday, a judge ordered that he remain on community detention, the sources said.

School officials said school and city police were conducting an investigation to determine the gun's owner and where the gun came from originally. They said charges could be filed against others who might have contributed to the student coming into possession of the gun.

"Our focus continues to be maintaining safe and supportive environments for our students," said Jonathan T. Brice, director of student support for Baltimore City's public schools. "But the broader issue is really an adult issue, about children having access to weapons."

The Department of Social Services has begun an inquiry, and sources said the agency had an "extensive" history with the family.

Sources said the boy lives in North Baltimore and was bused to Sharp-Leadenhall in South Baltimore, between Federal Hill and M&T Bank Stadium. The school is located along a small strip of industrial space and offices, adjacent to a shelter for men who are homeless or have substance abuse problems.

In the 2008-2009 school year, the school had an enrollment of only 66 students.

Brice said the school is not equipped with metal detectors. Edie House, a school spokeswoman, said 43 schools have metal detectors and 64 schools have hand wands to scan students for weapons, which are placed in schools at the request of the principal and the school community.

House said Friday was "as normal as it could be, under the circumstances."

Brice said the school's principal, James Linde, met with faculty members before classes started, and a letter was sent out to all students' homes to inform them of the situation.

The incident was first reported by the Investigative Voice Web site, and school officials did not release a statement until midday Friday. Parents interviewed by television stations said they had not heard about the discovery of the gun and the student's arrest, and some said they were reconsidering whether the school was a safe place for their children.

"I think it's very important to allow the process to work, and that we're able to determine the appropriate consequence and support for this young person, so that this incident does not become the sum total of their experience in school," Brice said. "Hopefully, this is merely one incident in what will become a very successful academic career."

At the nearby Solo Gibbs Recreation Center, volunteer Ashley M. Cichowicz, 31, watched as children played and joked. She said the center averages about 30 kids per day, offering arts, crafts and the ability to explore on a computer.

Last year, the center had a retired police officer talk to the children about gun safety. He told them not to pick up a gun, and to alert an adult if they see one. One little girl said her father had been killed in gun violence.

"It's really unbelievable, but these kids have access to handguns," said Cichowicz, a Sykesville native who now lives in the neighborhood. "I think it's tragic that this city is so violent and guns are so prevalent that a child could get their hands on one. Thankfully, tragedy was averted, this time."

LINK TO VIDEO

http://www.wbaltv.com/news/22753594/detail.html

Newport Officer Arrested, Accused Of DUI In Cruiser

WH considering military trials for 9/11 suspects

JENNIFER LOVEN

Associated Press

The White House got an Upgrade this week when Jay-Z and Beyonce Knowles dropped by the situation room.

It looks like the first couple of hip hop is rubbing shoulders with the first couple of the nation.

Photos ripping through the Twitterverse show Jay-Z and Beyoncé Knowles in the White House Situation Room.

The pair is seated with a group around a long, polished table with an official presidential seal clearly visible on the wall.

The rapper had casually mentioned a visit to 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. during a concert Wednesday at the Verizon Center.

"I just came from the White House," he said on stage. 

 A White House official later confirmed that the Brooklyn-born rapper had toured the White House before the show and briefly met President Obama.

http://www.wbaltv.com/education/22739368/detail.html

Sarah Palin shopping reality show about Alaska with 'Survivor' producer Mark Burnett

Sherryl Connelly
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

 

Thursday, March 4th 2010, 2:20 PM

 

Reinke/AP

Sarah Palin addresses attendees at the National Tea Party Convention in Nashville, Tenn., Feb. 6, 2010. The politician is currently shopping a reality series.

No one ever doubted that Sarah Palin was a survivor, but she's taking that a step further by pitching a reality show with "Survivor" producer Mark Burnett.

Palin and the master of reality television have been shopping a docudrama about Alaska to all the major broadcasters, multiple sources told EntertainmentWeekly.com. She and Burnett have taken meetings at ABC and CBS, with plans to stop by NBC.

They also confabbed with reality chief Mike Darnell at Fox, where the Palin family seized the opportunity to visit "American Idol," though the former vice-presidential candidate stayed in the green room.

One executive joked that "she's pitching a sequel to 'Commander in Chief,' " a defunct show that starred Geena Davis as the first female president.

The former governor of Alaska and her family would appear on the show, which was described by an insider as "'Planet Earth' meets Alaska meets her family." "Planet Earth" is the Discovery channel's high-definition nature series hit.

"There's an awful lot of interest in her," said an executive. "As a short-order series, it might work. It would depend on what kind of footage you get."

Palin started her week in Los Angeles appearing on "The Tonight Show," where she joked with Jay Leno that the difference between Alaska and L.A. is that "Here when people have a frozen look on their face, I find out it's Botox."

She also swept through the Oscar week gift suites. 

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv/2010/03/04/2010-03-04_sarah_palin_shopping_reality_show_about_alaska_with_survivor_producer_mark_burne.html#ixzz0hGjUoyfM

http://www.nydailynews.com/real_estate/galleries/celebrity_homes/celebrity_homes.html

Could L.A. throne be fit for a King?

As unlikely as it probably is, Lakers franchise has been quite fortunate when it comes to landing elite talent

Vincent Bonsignore

Staff Writer

03/04/2010 12:02:55 AM PST

Cleveland Cavaliers' LeBron James (23) and Los Angeles Lakers guard Kobe... ((AP Photo/Tony Dejak))

LeBron James playing for the Lakers next year is such a far-fetched, preposterous, outlandish fantasy we have no other choice but to completely and utterly embrace it.

And we have every right to, every reason to, because this is Hollywood. Crazy, whimsical dreams like this come true all the time for the Lakers.

Just look at their history.

They acquired Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the greatest player in the game at the time, from Milwaukee for four players in 1975. They lucked into Magic Johnson and James Worthy after acquiring draft picks (which turned out to be No. 1s overall) from lowly Utah and Cleveland.

The Lakers have always been fortunate like that, and probably always will be. It's part of their charm, and the main reason they've been the most glamorous team in the NBA since arriving here in 1960.

Players want to come here, star here. They understand they'll perform on one of sports' biggest stages, and they'll contend for championships every year.

So when the opportunity to come here presents itself, they do whatever it takes to make it happen.

Remember when there was no chance the Orlando Magic would allow Shaquille O'Neal to leave as a free agent at the height of his game in 1996?

Yet that is exactly what happened.

These are the Lakers, and this is where the biggest stars in the game come to play.

O'Neal went on to lead the Lakers to three consecutive championships from 2000-03.

While we're on the subject of the summer of 1996, keep in mind that was the same offseason the Lakers shipped Vlade Divac to Charlotte for the draft rights to a 17-year-old kid from Lower Merion High outside Philadelphia.

That's how the Lakers ended up with Kobe Bryant.

Yeah, dreams come true for the Lakers.

Crazy, impossible dreams that have no business even being talked about; yet somehow, someway, always seem to come to fruition.

You think the Pau Gasol trade just happened? Do you think someone just acquires a spectacular talent like Gasol for Kwame Brown and Javaris Crittenton?

Absolutely not.

Unless you're the Lakers, who always seem to bask in good fortune.

This brings us to James, and the crazy notion of him joining forces next year with Bryant and Gasol in Los Angeles.

For any other team, obtaining the greatest young player in the game is a fantasy too outrageous to even consider, and that includes the clubs currently jockeying for cap space to make a run at James when he becomes a free agent this summer.

But there is no dream too big for the Lakers, as they have proved throughout their charismatic existence.

The rumor has been out there for a few months now, with longtime NBA reporter Sam Smith floating it out of Chicago back in November. It picked up steam this week when a source close to Phil Jackson told Hoopshype.com that James had expressed interest in playing for the Lakers next year.

Within hours, talk radio and Internet message boards were buzzing with the possibility.

Some people dismissed it as far-fetched. The Lakers are too far over the salary cap, they argued, and there is no way James and Bryant can possibly coexist on the same team.

Details, I say, details.

Not only can it happen, if James really wants it to, it will happen.

Stay with me here.

First, the Cavaliers will do everything in their power to make sure he stays.

But if James wants to leave, he will. And it just so happens his desire to play for the Lakers also gives the Cavaliers a decent fallback plan should he go.

First, the Lakers have enough young talent to work out a sign-

and-trade deal with the Cavaliers. Instead of letting James walk away for nothing, Cleveland can reap something in return.

For the Cavs, getting Andrew Bynum and Lamar Odom or Ron Artest, plus a couple of first-round picks, looks a whole lot better than the nothing they'll get if James signs with New York or New Jersey.

Second, it keeps James out of the Eastern Conference.

If you're the Cavaliers, losing James is easier to digest if you have to play him only twice a year compared with the handful of times they'd see him if he stayed in the same conference.

As far as James and Bryant not being able to coexist, that is nonsense.

Bryant coexisted with O'Neal well enough to win three championships with him, and James and Bryant played brilliantly together in the 2008 Olympics, leading Team USA to the gold medal.

It's the perfect situation for both.

Bryant has only a few more years left, and the opportunity to add to his championship collection is immediately enhanced with the addition of James.

By the time Bryant gets fazed out, King James will be entering his prime, ready to take over the franchise. Kareem once passed the torch to Magic, and Bryant took over for Shaq.

That's the way the Lakers do it. One great player turns over control to the next one. It's how they've managed to hang 10 championship banners over the past 40 years and become the NBA's flagship franchise.

So how does this all come about?

That's the easy part.

James goes to the Cavaliers and gives them an ultimatum. Trade me to the Lakers, or I will sign with the New York Knicks or Chicago Bulls - with you getting nothing in return - and I will haunt you five or six times every year for the next decade.

If you are the Cavaliers, what choice do you really have but to comply? If you're going to lose James, wouldn't you want something valuable in return, and don't you want him as far away from Cleveland as possible?

If you're the Lakers, you gladly deal Bynum and either Odom or Artest and a couple of first-round picks to ensure your dynasty continues for the foreseeable future.

Crazy? Far-fetched?

Certainly.

Possible? Absolutely.

Sarah Palin and entourage descend like 'locusts' on Oscar swag suite

Brian Kates
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

 

Originally Published:Thursday, March 4th 2010, 10:10 AM
Updated: Thursday, March 4th 2010, 10:26 AM

 

Reinke/AP

An entertainment website is reporting that Sarah Palin and her entourage descended like 'locusts' onto an Oscar swag suite.

Sarah Palin and her entourage descended "like locusts" on the Oscar swag suite, scarfing up freebies in a binge that "practically cleaned the place out," celebrity gossips reported Thursday.

The former Alaska Gov's Wednesday pigout included jewels from Pascal Mouawad, watches by Skagen and a fancy new hairdo for her daughter Willow. The new coiffure came courtesy of Erick Orellana, Jennifer Aniston's longtime hairstylist, witnesses said.

The Los Angeles Times reported Palin was supposed to donate all of her gift items back to the Silver Spoon Oscar Suite for auction, as well as $1,700 of her own cash, in support of Red Cross efforts in Haiti and Chile.

But E! Online insisted, "we can assure you she did not give up any of her swag."

The entertainment news outlet quoted an unnamed vendor who said that as many as 20 people from the Palin camp swarmed the event.

"They were like locusts," he said.

News of Palin's grabfest ignited the blogosphere.

"She insisted every person in her huge entourage get something, and there were assistants, nannies, security - insanity!," an unnamed HollywoodLife.com source said.

HollywoodLife.com also reported that Palin picked up a blue Kenya robe from designer Jenna Leigh, facewash and a pair of foam Bandal sandals.

"She kind of cleaned the place out," Ben Russo of EMC/Bowery told AOL's Pop Eater. The website said swag-grabs included 40 pairs of AIAIAI earphones.

One witness said security swept the venue and would not allow photos.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/03/04/2010-03-04_sarah_palin_and_entourage_descend_like_locusts_on_oscar_swag_suite.html#ixzz0hEejAq9S

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0310/33866.html

http://www.nationalenquirer.com/grand_jury_indictment_john_edwards_hunter_coverup/celebrity/68250

Obama Health Care Speech: It's Time To Act

ALAN FRAM

AP

03/ 3/10

02:24 PM 

WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama urged Congress Wednesday to vote "up or down" on sweeping health care legislation in the next few weeks, endorsing a plan that denies Senate Republicans the right to kill the bill by stalling with a filibuster.

"I don't see how another year of negotiations would help. Moreover, the insurance companies aren't starting over," Obama said, rejecting Republican calls to begin anew on an effort to remake the health care system.

The president made his appeal as Democratic leaders in Congress surveyed their rank and file for the votes needed to pass legislation by majority vote – invoking rules that deny Senate Republicans the right to block it through endless stalling debate. Obama specifically endorsed that approach.

The outcome will affect nearly every American, either making major changes in the ways they receive and pay for health care or leaving current systems in place. There is still no certainty about the final result in Congress – or even that Democrats will agree to the series of changes that Obama said he was including as Republican contributions.

GOP leaders were unmoved.

The Senate Republican leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, said a decision by Democrats to invoke rules that bar filibusters would be "met with outrage" by the public, and he said Obama was pushing a sweeping bill that voters don't want.

"They've had enough of this yearlong effort to get a win for the Democratic Party at any price to the American people," McConnell said on the Senate floor.

At its core, Obama's proposal would extend health care to tens of millions of uninsured Americans while cracking down on insurance company practices such as denying coverage on the basis of a pre-existing medical condition.

With his remarks, delivered at the White House, Obama took the lead in a bid by congressional Democrats to mount a party-line rescue mission for the health care legislation that appeared on the cusp of passage late last year, only to be derailed when Republicans won a Massachusetts Senate seat that gave them the ability to block it.

Story continues below

Obama's remarks were replete with criticism of the insurance industry as well as dismissive asides about GOP critics.

Insurers are "continuing to raise premiums and deny coverage. For us to start over now could simply lead to delay that could last for another decade or more," he said.

As for calls for additional debate, he said that in the year since he inaugurated his campaign for health care changes, "every idea has been put on the table. Every argument has been made."

"Everything there is to say about health care has been said, and just about everyone has said it," Obama said as murmurs of laughter swept through his receptive audience of invited guests in the White House East Room.

The president's appearance appeared part of an endgame strategy put in motion last week, when Obama presided over a bipartisan summit meeting with leaders of both parties and both houses. After seven hours of discussion, he said he had heard ideas for changes from sides, and he signaled that the time may have come for Democrats to proceed on their own if GOP critics were not ready to join them.

While his spokesmen and Democratic congressional leaders joined in calls for an up-or-down vote – a simple majority, no filibusters allowed – the White House announced with fanfare on Tuesday he was asking lawmakers to incorporate four GOP suggestions.

Obama said he was exploring GOP proposals for cracking down on fraudulent medical charges, revamping ways to resolve malpractice disputes, boosting doctors' Medicaid reimbursements and offering tax incentives to curb unnecessary patient visits to doctors.

The ideas included an experiment that would establish special courts in which judges with medical expertise would decide malpractice allegations. The idea has been criticized by the Center for Justice & Democracy, a consumer group that prefers the current system of awarding damages. It said health courts would be "anti-patient."

In a speech that reprised many of the points he has made in the past year, Obama cast the battle over health care as something more.

"At stake right now is not just our ability to solve this problem, but our ability to solve any problem. The American people want to know it is still possible for Washington to look out for their interests and their future. They are waiting for us to act."

"They are waiting for us to lead. And as long as I hold this office, I intend to provide that leadership."

Immediately after Obama finished speaking, the White House made good on his promise to "do everything in my power to make the case for reform," saying he would travel to Pennsylvania on Monday and to Missouri next Wednesday to press the issue.