Special Operations Command United States chooses the Transparent Language Software

Transparent Language, Inc. announced today that the company received a contract for the U.S. Special Operations Command, the parent company of Clear CL-150 technology products left languages riticism. Rosetta Stone Spanish

The CL-150 Technology Matrix for Critical Languages a comprehensive suite of software to use applications and content to support language teaching and learning in a variety of contexts, from classroom to learn independently.
Prior to this award, Transparent Language software was already used for language teaching for a number of special operations units and special forces students in the U.S. Army John F. Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. The new CL-150 Community License announced today expands the availability of CL-150 for all employees USSOCOM worldwide, including the staff of the Army Special Forces, Special Operations Forces, Navy, Navy SEALs and Air Force Special Operations.
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The firm invested $140 million in 28 companies last year. Almost a third of those were new investments. The firm also exited from five investments, including three acquisitions, one initial public offering and the filing for another IPO.Rosetta Stone Arabic

"We continued to see improvement in the overall economy and particularly in the sectors we have been watching and investing in during the last few years," said Kate Mitchell, managing director with the Foster City venture firm. "As we look to 2006, we'll be investing in Internet services companies that can build traction in the marketplace using less capital."Rosetta Stone Chinese

Sectors also grabbing the firm's attention include Internet advertising, software as a service, consumer electronics and health care.
BA Ventures expanded its team, bringing on board Rob Herb as a managing director. He was a 20-year veteran of AMD.
Mitchell also credited the firm's associates, usually among the twenty-something crowd, for bringing some hot sectors to the firm's attention.
One associate, for instance, gave the firm's leadership a report on the gaming industry and its attractive demographics. Another associate was a big fan of sending photos via cell phones.
That may have prompted the firm's investment last year in Siimpel, which makes camera components for cellphones.
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Rose provides necessary inspiration for Game 2 triumph

From the moment Derrick Rose hoisted his MVP trophy into the air Wednesday night and told the United Center crowd, "This is for the city of Chicago,'' you sensed it.

You sensed Rose felt compelled to justify NBA Commissioner David Stern's presence and all the recent fuss that has made the Bulls star more uncomfortable than any defender could.

You sensed that a gimpy left ankle wouldn't stop Rose from aggressively driving down the lane like somebody late for work on the Dan Ryan.

You sensed, injury or not, there was no way the league's youngest MVP ever would allow his team to lose two straight home playoff games to the 44-win Hawks.

And Rose didn't in a 25-point performance that was more gritty than graceful and good enough in an 86-73 victory to even the Eastern Conference semifinals 1-1.
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"I'm happy now it's over,'' Rose said of the pageantry, "so we can ball out.''

Yes, Rose still shot the ball like a guy not getting familiar lift from his legs but his burst was back. Of even more importance, so were the Bulls we are used to seeing.

The pomp and circumstance made it a significant night for the MVP. But it might have held more meaning for Rose's teammates considering how badly they needed to find what was missing.

As these playoffs have revealed, even when Rose plays up to his new standard, it only matters if his teammates fill in the rest of the equation. Rose plus defense and rebounding equals winning. Rose minus those things equals early exit.

Nothing added up in Game 1. But thanks mostly to Joakim Noah, they rediscovered the formula and regained control of the series in Game 2.

While Rose demonstrated his trademark poise, Noah supplied the passion that reflected the urgency. During the postgame press conference, Rose arrived at the podium first and didn't want to start until Noah joined him.

"Where's Jo?'' Rose asked.

It wasn't a question Al Horford had to ask.

"He was playing like a monster,'' Carlos Boozer said of Noah.

Fear can be efficient fuel. If the Bulls had fallen behind 0-2 after consecutive home losses, sure, they still could have overcome that deficit. But saying something is possible over and over again doesn't make it any more probable.

Without a victory in Game 2, psychologically the Bulls would have been done. They mustered the mental toughness to avoid that reality.

"I thought we had the right mindset,'' Tom Thibodeau said.

Theoretically, the Hawks still enjoy home-court advantage because of their Game 1 upset. But the Bulls' missing edge has returned and now they have no reason to lose another game in the series if they play with that sense of purpose — especially on defense.

Joe Johnson struggled for open looks as Keith Bogans and Luol Deng took turns ruining Johnson's night. Johnson hit only 7 of 15 for 16 points and didn't react well to having an extra defender run at him. Jamal Crawford, as streaky as they come, looked more like the Tim Floyd-era version as the Bulls closed quicker on his shots. Two nights after scoring 22, Crawford hit just 2 of 10 for 11 points — half his total in Game 1. The Hawks shot 34 percent overall.

"I think our defense is based on all five of us,'' Noah said.
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Flood danger spreads along Mississippi

Emergency officials from Missouri to Mississippi scrambled Wednesday to prepare for potential flooding as the river continued to rise. Fears have prompted an emergency declaration for 920,000 residents in Memphis and surrounding Shelby County, Tenn., where authorities blocked some suburban streets and more than 200 people evacuated to shelters.

Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, a Republican, asked the White House to declare 11 counties along the river disaster areas in anticipation of flooding, as Vicksburg, Natchez and other riverfront communities braced for floods.

President Obama on Wednesday declared parts of Tennessee, Mississippi and Kentucky disasters, making them eligible for federal help with relief efforts.

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STORY: Mo. levee blast inundates acres of farmland
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MORE: Levee blasted to spare Cairo, Ill.

Heavy snowmelts from Minnesota and North Dakota combined with three large rain events this year have triggered the rising river levels, says Bob Anderson, an Army Corps spokesman based in Vicksburg, Miss. While the levee breaches helped bring down water levels in some areas, relentless water pressure continued to threaten river communities in the Ohio and Mississippi river valleys.

"There's never been a flood of this magnitude on the upper Mississippi," Anderson says. "It's testing the outer limits of our system."

Using chemical explosives, Army Corps engineers on Monday blew a 2-mile-long gash into the Bird Point's levees in southeastern Missouri, just south of where the Ohio and Mississippi rivers meet.

The breach relieved some of the river's pressure by flooding 130,000 nearby acres and 100 homes in Missouri, affecting about 300 people, Anderson says.

Farmers whose properties are in the spillway created by the levee blasts have filed a class action lawsuit against the Army Corps of Engineers, alleging that the agency's decision to divert the floodwaters toward the area of their properties violated their constitutional property rights. The lawsuit seeks an as-yet unspecified amount of damages.

Farmer Martin Hutcheson, whose family has farmed in the area since the early 1900s, flew over the area Wednesday and said it was "devastating" to see his property under water. About 5,000 of his 9,850 tillable acres are affected by the spillway, he said.

The decision to blow up the levees was made as river levels threatened to overrun cities such as Cairo, Ill., and burst through levee systems further downriver, Anderson says.
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Marie Osmond’s Wedding Dress: Then and Now

When Marie Osmond remarried first husband Stephen Craig on Wednesday, it wasn’t hard to find her something old: she simply reused her original wedding dress. The singing star pulled the Ret Turner gown — long-sleeved with a full skirt (so Catherine Middleton!) — out of her archives, updating it with a simpler veil and chunky pearls. The move wasn’t her original plan — a dress she’d had specially designed for the occasion wasn’t “right,” she tells ET — but it worked out perfectly. “I was cleaning out my garage and all of a sudden this box showed up in this pile of stuff … and it was this dress and it was five days ago. I’m not kidding,” she says. “I can’t breathe, but I’m in it.” Turner, a renowned Hollywood costume designer, actually clothed Osmond in her earlier years while he was working on Donny and Marie in 1977. An Emmy winner several times over, he also served as costume designer on programs like The Sonny and Cher Show and Mama’s Family, and won the Costume Designers’ Guild Award for lifetime achievement — presented by Osmond — in 2002. While Osmond didn’t end up requiring a wardrobe change for her private Las Vegas nuptials, groom Craig, for his part, did swap tuxes; when the couple first married in 1982, he wore white. –Kate Hogan

At Sculpture Unveiling, Appeals for Artist’s Release

They rose from the majesty of one of New York’s great fountains: 12 bronze statues, each depicting an animal of the Chinese zodiac, staring fiercely at passers-by at the edge of Central Park. The mayor, the curator and artists from around the world were there for the exhibit’s opening on Wednesday. The creator was not. Ai Weiwei, a prominent Chinese contemporary artist and social activist, had been scheduled to attend the celebration. But on April 3, he was detained by Chinese authorities for his outspoken criticism of the Communist Party, and he has not been seen publicly since.

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, presiding over the ceremony, said Mr. Ai’s detainment was “very disturbing” and called for his release.

“This is a message from America to the whole world that we are the place where people can come and express themselves,” Mr. Bloomberg said. “China would be well served to listen to our message and to copy us.”

Mr. Bloomberg, no stranger to criticism as the elected leader of a fractious city, said “freedom is our competitive advantage” and called free expression “the most valuable of all New York City’s riches.”

“The more a city embraces diversity and tolerates dissent, the stronger it becomes,” he added. “And there is no place on earth that gives freer rein to more voices and viewpoints than New York City.”

A spokesman for the Chinese consulate in New York did not return a request for comment. The Chinese Foreign Ministry has accused Mr. Ai of economic crimes.

About 100 people joined Mr. Bloomberg for the unveiling of Mr. Ai’s “Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads,” and a dozen artists and cultural leaders took turns reading from Mr. Ai’s writings and interviews.

Alexandra Munroe, a curator at the Guggenheim Museum, read one quotation: “Without freedom of speech, there is no modern world, just a barbaric one.”

Mr. Bloomberg said he was not concerned that his criticism might hurt the business of his media company, Bloomberg L.P., in China. “If you start setting your beliefs on what’s important to your pocket, you’re not going to be a very happy person, nor is society going to benefit,” he said.

Mr. Ai, 53, lived in New York for a decade, from 1983 to 1993, and attended Parsons the New School for Design.

He is well known for his role in the design of the stadium used during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, known as the “Bird’s Nest.” But his demands for democracy and his defense of political prisoners have irked the Chinese government. In January, one of Mr. Ai’s studios, on the outskirts of Shanghai, was demolished, and in April, he was detained in Beijing as he prepared to board a plane for Hong Kong.

Mr. Ai’s zodiac work will be on display through July 15 at the Pulitzer Fountain at 59th Street and Fifth Avenue, by the Plaza Hotel.

In an interview with The New York Times in March, Mr. Ai said he liked the unconventional location of the piece. “I like that people can notice it and at the same time, not to bother them too much,” he said.

The sculptures will also be displayed in Houston, London, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh and Washington.
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Packing punch for humanity, Pacquiao now a cultural icon

"The singing thing with Manny is so tender. This guy, such a powerful man in the ring, is unafraid to sing an emotional, sentimental song like Sometimes… " marvels singer-songwriter Dan Hill, who recorded the 1977 smash hit that was re-released last month as a duet with Pacquiao as lead vocal.

Juxtaposed against the sometimes cruel sport of boxing, Emmanuel Dapidran Pacquiao — "Pac-Man" — is a striking anomaly on today's sporting landscape: He is the grateful megastar with a sense of humanity. The global reach of the diminutive fighter as a champion of giant causes, including addressing poverty, medical and environmental concerns, threatens to outdistance any grand ring achievements.

In the process, Pacquiao has managed to retain an aura of vulnerability while not surrendering his air of invincibility.
Building his brand

Undeniable charm and playful exuberance also have helped catapult Pacquiao into the realm of international icon. Increasingly, he is in demand as a product endorser for major companies, among them Nike and Hewlett-Packard. The eight-time champion has branded a cologne fragrance (MP8) and a "Pacquiao Produce" line of vegetables that might hit supermarket shelves before 2012.

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MOSLEY: Pacquiao opponent facing scrutiny

Pacquiao, featured on 60 Minutes in 2010, was named to Time magazine's list of the world's 100 most influential people in 2009.

In February, Pacquiao, newly elected as a Filipino congressman, visited President Obama at the White House and also met with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), for whom he campaigned. Demonstrating budding political savvy, he sought Reid's legislative assistance on behalf of a job-creating bill relating to the garment industry in his homeland.

Asked to compare the vagaries of his two occupations, Pacquiao said with a laugh, "There is no cheating in boxing — only in politics."

At 5-6 with a Justin Bieber-like mop-top, the goateed left-hander stands taller than many contemporaries. He appears to be the charismatic antithesis of the preening, often-narcissistic, sometimes-rude modern-day athlete. Pacquiao embraces all — even news media. More than mere boxer, he is a lawmaker, philanthropist, singer, spokesman and bona-fide hero to the masses of his impoverished homeland.

The 32-year-old is by all accounts humble, gracious and self-effacing — a simple, uncomplicated man who loves to sing karaoke. Clearly, the spiritual fighter has uncovered his version of contentment and enlightenment. He and his wife, Jinkee, are the parents of four children.

"I never believed that you had to say bad things about your opponent to make yourself bigger," Pacquiao says in his hotel suite before Saturdays' welterweight title showdown against Shane Mosley at the MGM Grand Garden Arena. "You can be popular, or be a champion, without trash talking. And you can be a good example for people, especially children."

Not since the halcyon days of Muhammad Ali has a fighter had such positive worldwide impact. Pacquiao has accomplished that minus Ali's bravado, gamesmanship and former status as heavyweight king, and with only a smidgen of controversy. That came on the issue of performance-enhancing drugs.

The boldest public allegation came from his foil, welterweight Floyd Mayweather Jr., as the pair negotiated to fight. Thus far, no fight — except in Nevada federal court where Pacquiao in 2009 sued Mayweather, promoter Oscar De La Hoya and others for defamation. Pacquiao claims the allegations were made out of "ill will, spite, malice, revenge and envy." He has never tested positive in a post-fight urinalysis.
Music relieves his stress

Pacquiao's rock-star status has been unaffected. Last year, he earned $32 million in the ring as one of the world's top-grossing athletes. He retains an enormous entourage of family and friends numbering in the hundreds.

"Manny is someone who is genuinely concerned; he relates to people," says his promoter, Bob Arum of Top Rank. "The last fighter I had who truly was that way was Ali. Manny is generous to a fault, as was Ali. The most endearing quality about (Pacquiao) is his big heart."

Pacquiao refuses to construct a shrine unto himself, even in his own home — where he keeps boxing awards, mementos and memorabilia stashed away. He sings to his children most every night, either back home in the Philippines or at his home in Los Angeles, where he trains at Freddie Roach's Wild Card Boxing Club in Hollywood.

Hill, who discovered from his "hysterical" wife that the fighter was singing his famous song last year on Jimmy Kimmell Live!, will attend Saturday's fight. Afterward, he and Pacquiao will reprise their uber-love song classic in a post-fight concert at the Mandalay Bay casino.

The fighter once sang Imagine with comedian Will Ferrell on Kimmel's show.

"I love music," Pacquiao says in his soft-spoken manner. "When I listen to music, all the stress is gone. I feel stronger."

Perhaps that is why he always broadly smiles as he enters the arena to face the fear all fighters confront. Sometimes, Roach says, he's a little too nice while applying his trade. The fighter who can carry a tune sometimes carries his opponent, too.

"Look at his last fight — he ends up liking the fighter during the fight," Roach says of Pacquiao's 12-round triumph against Antonio Magarito last November. "Instead of knocking out the guy, he asks him, 'Are you OK?' He didn't feel as if he had to embarrass the guy. I told him he should have knocked him out. He said, 'It's a sport and I didn't have to hurt him; I beat him up enough.'

"What can you say to that? He is the most compassionate fighter I've ever met."
Governing and gambling

His empathy derives from experience and a well-documented childhood: Pacquiao, who often begged for food or money, began fighting at 14 to support his mother and her six children.

"It's hard for us, as North Americans, to really understand what he has gone through and why he is genuine," says Hill, a Canadian. "The poverty is alarming and heart-crushing. I think what he sees (back home) is his de facto family."

Last May, Pacquiao was elected to the House of Representatives from the province of Sarangani.

"When I started fighting professionally (in 1995), every time I saw poor people sleeping in the streets, it made me think that one day I hoped I could help them," he says.

Oftentimes, as he walks the streets, Pacquiao doles out cash.

"He can't shake his past, even if he is earning millions," says Nick Giongco, a reporter for the Manila Bulletin who has known the fighter for more than 15 years. "He knows he came from nothing. He knows what it is like to be poor, to beg for food and money. In the Philippines, you cannot afford to forget your roots."

Pacquiao will wear yellow boxing gloves in the Mosley fight to symbolize "unity and hope to end poverty." His trainer says his biggest concern is that his fighter "just might give it all way. He is that good of a guy," Roach says. "I hope it never happens."

Recipients of Pacquiao's largesse include those also attracted to apparently his biggest vice — gambling. In Bob Simon's 60 Minutes piece last summer, the CBS reporter showed Pacquiao shooting pool — with a $30,000 wager at stake, he said.

Pacquiao is an avid baccarat player and, most recently, has taken up poker.

The fighter's gambling "is a huge topic of conversation," says Abac Cordero of The Philippine Star, though as a congressman Pacquiao is not permitted to play games of chance in government-owed casinos. Then again, he visits the gaming meccas of Las Vegas, Atlantic City and Macau.

"He loses big and wins big, but he knows his limits," Cordero says.

But his devotion to religion seems to know no boundaries. A devout Catholic, Pacquiao has an almost surreal-like serenity that he says has carried him through a sometimes-difficult life.

"I always pray. Without God, we have nothing," he says. "I give him thanks. It's common sense. Without God, we are not here — He created us and the universe. It is very simple."
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Renren shares surge 29% in 1st day of U.S.

That's how much Renren shares jumped Wednesday in their first day of U.S. trading after the company raised $743 million in an IPO. China's biggest social-networking website sold 53.1 million American depositary receipts at $14 each, the high end of the range and an eye-popping multiple of 72 times last year's sales. (By comparison, Facebook was recently valued in a Goldman Sachs deal at 25 times sales.) Renren shares soared as high as $24 before closing at $18.01. The ticker symbol is RENN.
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"There is a point where it gets excessive and it gets crazy, and we're starting to reach those numbers."

Wells Fargo CEO John Stumpf, on how stricter capital rules abroad may damage the economy. He cited a push by Swiss regulators that would force lenders to hold capital equal to at least 19 percent of risk-weighted assets. Stumpf, speaking to his fourth annual meeting as Wells Fargo's chief, said liquidity ratios proposed by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision "may be even more problematic," requiring lenders to hold enough liquid assets to survive a 30-day seizing up of credit markets.
Heads up

Visa releases quarterly financial results today, and analysts predict it will report earnings of $1.21 per share, up 26 percent, on revenue of $2.23 billion, up 14 percent. Consumers are spending more as the economy pulls out of the recession, giving a boost to the San Francisco credit card giant. On Tuesday, rival MasterCard said its earnings rose 24 percent, topping estimates.
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Study Shows Salty Diet Good; Heart Group Disagrees

Jan A. Staessen, MD, PhD, of the University of Leuven, Belgium, led a study that measured urinary sodium levels in 3,681 healthy, 40-ish people and then followed their health for about eight years.

Their finding: People with the highest sodium levels had a significantly lower risk of dying from heart disease than did people with the lowest sodium levels.

"Our current findings refute the estimates of computer models of lives saved and health care costs reduced with lower salt intake," Staessen and colleagues conclude in the Journal of the American Medical Association. "They do also not support the current recommendations of a generalized and indiscriminate reduction of salt intake at the population level."

These recommendations come from the American Heart Association (AHA), which advises everyone to limit their sodium intake to 1,500 milligrams of sodium per day -- a substantial cut from the 3,600 to 4,800 milligrams of sodium most Americans get each day.

Predictably, those guidelines -- and the slightly less stringent official U.S. salt guidelines -- drew fire from the Salt Institute, the trade group representing the salt industry. The group has been quick to herald the European findings.

"We now know conclusively that the U.S. government's war on salt consumption will cause harm," Lori Roman, president of the Salt Institute, says in a news release. "This study confirms previous research indicating that reductions in sodium lead to an increased risk of disease and death."

Nothing could be further from the truth, says Ralph L. Sacco, MD, president of the American Heart Association and chairman of the neurology department at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

"We need to take this article with a large grain of salt," Sacco tells WebMD. "There are major problems with it, and there is only this one article with these findings, which are contrary findings to what we and others have found."

Sacco notes that the study looks only at relatively young, white Europeans, with no sign of high blood pressure or heart disease, over a relatively short period of time. He suggests that the measure on which the study is based -- collection of all urine output over a 24-hour period -- is subject to large variation if even one sample is missed during the collection period.

More to the point, Sacco notes a long string of studies linking high salt intake to high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke.

"The AHA recommendation to reduce salt intake is based on strong science, not just extrapolations or complex math," Sacco says. "There have even been randomized trials, the strongest evidence we have that show people who follow lower-sodium diets have lower blood pressure and fewer heart attacks and strokes."

Staessen and colleagues note that blood pressure did go up a bit in people with the highest sodium levels. They agree that people with high blood pressure can lower their blood pressure by lowering their salt intake. But they suggest that previous studies have overestimated the effects of salt intake on healthy people who are not oversensitive to sodium.

Moreover, they point to studies showing that people have a very difficult time lowering their salt intake. This, they suggest, shows that the body actually fights against lowering salt intake and regulates itself to keep sodium levels "within a narrow range."
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Pakistani Army, Shaken by Raid, Faces New Scrutiny

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — The reputation of the army, the most powerful and privileged force in Pakistan, has been severely undermined by the American raid that killed Osama bin Laden, raising profound questions about its credibility from people at home and from benefactors abroad, including the United States
That American helicopters could fly into Pakistan, carrying a team to kill the world’s most wanted terrorist and then fly out undetected has produced a stunned silence from the military and its intelligence service that some interpret as embarrassment, even humiliation.

There is no doubt that the raid has provoked a crisis of confidence for what was long seen as the one institution that held together a nation dangerously beset by militancy and chronically weak civilian governments.

The aftermath has left Pakistanis to challenge their leadership, and the United States to further question an already frequently distrusted partner.

By Wednesday, members of Parliament, newspaper editorials and Pakistan’s raucous political talk shows were calling for an explanation and challenging the military and intelligence establishment, institutions previously immune to public reproach.

Some were calling for an independent inquiry, focused less on the fact that the world’s most wanted terrorist was discovered in their midst than on whether the military could defend Pakistan’s borders and its nuclear arsenal from being snatched or attacked by the United States or India.

“If these people are found to be incompetent, heads should roll,” said Zafar Hilaly, a prominent newspaper columnist.

Different questions were coming from Pakistan’s neighbors and Western allies, including the United States. In Congress, powerful lawmakers in charge of foreign military assistance delivered scathing assessments of the Pakistani Army as either incompetent or duplicitous, saying that renewed financial support was hardly guaranteed.

In Britain, Prime Minister David Cameron told Parliament it was unbelievable that the Pakistani authorities did not know that Bin Laden was hiding not far from the capital.

But the most urgent question of all is what to do about it, and whether the United States should continue to invest in a Pakistani military whose assurances that it does not work with terrorists carry less weight than ever.

Pakistani officials, who feel betrayed by the United States for not informing them in advance about the raid, are responding more defensively by the day.

The biggest question for Pakistan is whether the event prompts a reconsideration of its security strategy, which has long depended on militant proxies, including groups entwined with Al Qaeda.

American officials are certain to use the fact that Bin Laden had taken shelter in Pakistan to press the country for a clearer break from its past. Both sides have an interest in preserving some form of the status quo. Pakistan would like to keep the billions of dollars in aid that flow from the United States. The United States would like to prevent this nuclear-armed Muslim nation from turning more hostile, hosting terrorist networks and complicating efforts to end the war in Afghanistan. But the challenges ahead were revealed in how the outrage over the Bin Laden raid has cut differently in Pakistan and the United States.

For the United States, it has raised the issue of whether any assurance provided by the Pakistani military can be trusted, including the security of its nuclear arsenal. The army has insisted it is adequately protected from extremists, but has resisted security assistance from the United States that it considers too invasive. “We can press Pakistan until the cows come home on its nuclear program,” said Michael Krepon, a co-founder of the Stimson Center in Washington, which works on programs to reduce nuclear weapons. “But they are not going to do the things that we would like them to do that they don’t want to do.”

In Pakistan, commentators who consider the nuclear weapons the country’s most valued asset have raised another concern: In light of the American operation, are the weapons safe from a raid by the United States, or even India?

Meanwhile, the chief of the army, Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, and the head of the Inter-Services Intelligence agency, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Shuja Pasha, have remained silent about what they knew or did not know about Bin Laden’s presence.

They have both met with President Asif Ali Zardari since the American raid, but no mention has been made in public of those discussions. Civilian politicians have been virtually absent.

Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani left for France on Tuesday, but said Wednesday that he would cut short his trip and return home. Senior ministers in the cabinet failed to turn up in Parliament to offer any explanations on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Instead, the Foreign Office and the information minister, apparently on orders from the military, issued statements intended to explain the shortcomings.

In Parliament on Wednesday, Information Minister Firdous Ashiq Awan said the American helicopters had evaded detection by radar “due to hilly terrain” and use of “nap of the earth” flying techniques, an account that failed to comfort almost anyone.

The Foreign Office defended the fact that Bin Laden was not detected because the high security walls at his house in Abbottabad were in line with a culture of privacy. These scant explanations fueled more speculation.

One of the military’s biggest advocates, Kamran Khan, a journalist whose nightly television show garners big audiences, led the chorus: “We had the belief that our defense was impenetrable, but look what has happened. Such a massive intrusion and it went undetected.”

Mr. Khan posed the question on many Pakistani minds: “What is the guarantee that our strategic assets and security installations are safe?”

In some Pakistani quarters, the failure of the army and intelligence agencies to detect Bin Laden, or to do anything about him if indeed his presence was known, prompted calls for an overhaul of the nation’s strategic policies.

“Instead of making more India-specific nuclear-capable missiles, the funds and the energy should be directed to eliminating the terrorists,” said an editorial in the newspaper Pakistan Today.

The editor, Arif Nizami, said the American raid made a mockery of the Pakistani military’s bravura that its fighter jets could shoot down American drones. “You talk of taking out drones, and you can’t even take out helicopters,” Mr. Nizami said.

Some Pakistanis said they were more concerned about the fact that known terrorists were living in their midst than the violation of sovereignty by the Americans.

“The terrorists’ being on our soil is the biggest violation of Pakistan’s sovereignty,” said Athar Minallah, a prominent lawyer. “If Osama bin Laden lives in Abbottabad, there could be a terrorist in my neighborhood.”
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E-Cigarettes: A Healthy Alternative? E-Cigarettes are Sweeping the Nation and Everyone is Taking Notice.

This next article will not only make you feel healthier but will quite possibly save your life. If you are a smoker or know someone who smokes then you will want to keep reading this article to learn about the Electronic Cigarette and how it has been sweeping the nation. Many people have already made the switch to this truly remarkable healthier cigarette.

We've done all the research for you and as a gift to you we've found a leading E-Cigarette manufacturer that has agreed to provide all of our readers with a Promotional E-Cigarette ( offer expires on 05/06/11 ). They agreed to do this because they know once you try it, you too will switch to the E-Cigarette just like the millions of other users who have already made the switch.

The Dangers of Smoking Traditional Cigarettes
Smoking traditional cigarettes is undeniably bad for your health and is responsible for nearly 1 in 5 deaths in the United States and accounts for at least 30% of all cancer deaths. Those are some scary statistics to say the least. Even more startling is the fact that about half of all Americans who keep smoking will die because of it. Yet people keep smoking, all because of that little ingredient known as nicotine.

Let's talk a little bit about what’s actually causing the deaths from smoking cigarettes. For one, we know it's not the nicotine. Rather, it’s all the nasty chemicals produced from burning tobacco. There are over 50 known carcinogens emitted from cigarettes. It's remarkable to think that this habit is still practiced by over a billion people today considering the health risks associated with it.

Ever see those commercials on TV that shows a smoker’s lungs, that when squeezed, can fill an entire cup up with tar? That happens just from smoking a pack a day. Imagine how much better you would feel if you freed your lungs from all that tar.

I can guarantee you, if I was to walk up to someone smoking a cigarette and recite the above known health risks of smoking cigarettes, then hand them a cigarette which provides the same pleasures but without the health risks, they would take it in exchange of their current cigarette in a heartbeat. I’m sure you would to. You would be a fool to at least not try it.
Is There an Alternative?
Wouldn't it be great to be able to smoke a cigarette for the nicotine only while leaving out all the other harmful chemicals? Wouldn't it also be great to smoke a cigarette anywhere you wanted? Wouldn't it be nice to be able to smoke a cigarette while lying in bed without disturbing the person lying next to you? Or perhaps while sitting on the couch with your family and not having to worry that you’re causing harm to yourself or to the people around you?

To me, the perfect cigarette would be one that only dispensed nicotine, was odorless, and wasn’t bad for your health the way traditional cigarettes are. After all, it’s the nicotine within the tobacco that makes smoking so pleasurable. Unfortunately though, in order to get the nicotine out of the cigarette, you need to burn it and inhale the smoke. This is where the dangers lye, and is why you need to stop doing so immediately. Especially now since there is an alternative available.

The Solution!
An Electronic Cigarette, otherwise known as an E-Cigarette or E-Cig, is a battery powered device (same size and appearance of a regular cigarette) used to inhale vaporized nicotine. This technique of inhaling nicotine is called vaping. It's called vaping, rather than smoking, because the cigarette doesn't actually burn anything. Rather, it heats the nicotine liquid into a vapor. It produces a smoke like appearance but it's nothing more than a combination of water and nicotine, leaving out all the carcinogens that result from smoking a traditional cigarette.
Even those not considering quitting traditional cigarettes have been turning to the E-Cigarette as a safe alternative. It provides all the pleasures you get from smoking a traditional cigarette but without all the negatives, such as the tar, carcinogens, and harmful chemicals. Not to mention the yellow teeth, smelly clothes, and blackened lungs. Also, these E-Cigarettes cost a fraction of what it costs to smoke traditional cigarettes.

Take my advice and try an E-Cigarette. The time to act is right now. You will feel better than you've felt in a long time. In the 12 years that I’ve been writing this column, I feel that this is the most important and most beneficial one yet. It’s a great feeling knowing that I have the opportunity to potentially save many lives. I’ve done the research for you, all you need to do is get yours before this promotion ends. I promise you, you won’t regret it.
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