High winds fuel wildfires in Colorado, Oklahoma

(CNN) -- High winds helped fuel fast-moving wildfires in Colorado and Oklahoma on Monday, prompting evacuations in both states, officials said.

At least one home was destroyed in the 300-acre blaze in Woodward County, Oklahoma. Emergency officials have been responding to as many as five wildfires in the area since Sunday evening, when 40-mph winds began whipping through the region, said Matt Lehenbauer, director of emergency management for the county.

At least one firefighter suffered heat exhaustion, Lehenbauer said. No other injuries were reported.

The fire, near Fort Supply Lake in northwestern Oklahoma, began at 10 a.m. and was 90 percent contained Monday afternoon, Lehenbauer said.

Authorities believe embers from a campfire sparked the blaze. About 30 homes and 120 campsites were evacuated. Firefighters were also working a 1,200-acre blaze on the east side of the county, believed to be started by arcing utility lines, Lehenbauer said.

CNN

Climate shifts 'not to blame' for African civil wars

Climate change is not responsible for civil wars in Africa, a study suggests.

It challenges previous assumptions that environmental disasters, such as drought and prolonged heat waves, had played a part in triggering unrest.

Instead, it says, traditional factors - such as poverty and social tensions - were often the main factors behind the outbreak of conflicts.

The findings have been published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) in the United States.

"Climate variability in Africa does not seem to have a significant impact on the risk of civil war," said author Halvard Buhaug, senior researcher at the Peace Research Institute Oslo's (Prio) Centre for the Study of Civil War.

"If you apply a number of different definitions of conflict and various different ways to measure climate variability, most of these measurements will turn out not to be associated with each other.

He added that it was not too hard to find examples of where politicians were publicly making the link between the projected impact of climate change and the associated security risks.

Margaret Beckett, when she held the post of British Foreign Secretary, tabled a debate on climate change at the UN Security Council in 2007.

Ahead of the gathering, the British delegation circulated a document that warned of "major changes to the world's physical landmass during this century", which would trigger border and maritime disputes.

In his paper, Dr Buhaug questioned the findings of research that appeared in PNAS in November last year.

The 2009 paper suggested that climate had been a major driver of armed conflict in Africa, and that future warming was likely to increase the number of deaths from war.

US researchers found that across the continent, conflict was about 50% more likely in unusually warm years.

BBC News

Planned Quran-burning could endanger troops, Petraeus warns

(CNN) -- The U.S. commander in Afghanistan on Monday criticized a Florida church's plan to burn copies of the Quran on September 11, warning the demonstration "could cause significant problems" for American troops overseas.

"It could endanger troops and it could endanger the overall effort in Afghanistan," Gen. David Petraeus said in a statement issued Monday.

The Dove World Outreach Center in Gainesville, Florida, plans to mark the anniversary of al Qaeda's September 11, 2001, attacks on New York and Washington by burning copies of the Muslim holy book. The church insists the event is "neither an act of love nor of hate," but a warning against what it calls the threats posed by Islam.

The event has drawn criticism from Muslims in the United States and overseas, with thousands of Indonesians gathering outside the U.S. Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Sunday to protest the planned Quran burning.

CNN

Djokovic destroys Fish to reach U.S. Open quarters

(CNN) -- Novak Djokovic breezed into the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open with a straight sets demolition of home hope Mardy Fish in their fourth round match at Flushing Meadows on Monday.

The Serbian third seed took just one hour and 50 minutes to complete a 6-3 6-4 6-1 win over Fish, who came into the final grand slam in the form of his life but was comprehensively outclassed on Arthur Ashe.

"It was a great performance and my best so far in tournament," he told Sky Sports.

It earned Djokovic a quarterfinal clash at Gael Monfils, who beat Richard Gasquet 6-4 7-5 7-5 in an earlier all-French clash.

"I have a tough opponent, but the way I'm playing I have a good chance," added Djokovic, who has a career 4-0 advantage over Monfils and a fine record in New York.

He was runner-up in 2007 and reached the semifinals for the past two years, each time losing to Roger Federer, who is a potential last four opponent again.

Federer was playing Austrian 13th seed Jurgen Melzer in the night match later on Labor Day.

CNN

Airline CEO: Nix co-pilot, save money

(CNN) -- He's already suggested installing coin-operated lavatories and selling standing room on flights, so it may not be surprising that the latest idea from the colorful CEO of Ryanair is once again pushing air travelers' buttons.

It's not necessary to have two pilots on every flight, Michael O'Leary said in a recent interview.

"Let's take out the second pilot. Let the bloody computer fly it," O'Leary told Bloomberg Businessweek, adding that a flight attendant on each flight could be trained to help land a plane if something goes wrong.

"If the pilot has an emergency, he rings the bell, he calls her in," O'Leary told the magazine. "She could take over".

O'Leary also revisited the idea of offering passengers the option of standing on flights in a cabin equipped with handrails, which would reduce fares by up to 25 percent, he said.

(The possibility of air travelers standing on board planes has been dismissed by aviation experts. Even "vertical seats," which would let passengers stand while being strapped in, would have a hard time becoming a reality, according to a BBC analysis this year).

Ryanair, which is based in Dublin, Ireland, is known for its rock-bottom fares. It's also famous for its fees and is upfront about them on its Web site, which details charges for everything from online check-in to traveling with infants.

Meanwhile, O'Leary is infamous for coming up with and touting attention-getting ideas to make flying even cheaper -- a strategy that his detractors say gives the airline lots of free advertising.

CNN

Reports: Google considering iTunes-like music service

(Mashable) -- Apple may get a nasty surprise this holiday season; rumors are swirling that Google's Andy Rubin is planning on a holiday-season launch for the search behemoth's new music download service.

According to a Reuters report, Rubin, the Google VP Engineering who oversees Android development, has been deep in talks with record labels and "hopes to have the service up and running by Christmas".

Google's service would be an iTunes challenger that would be deeply connected to the Android mobile operating system. As we reported over the summer, it seems the company plans to first launch a music download service and progress to an online subscription service by next year.

Ultimately, "Google Music" would be a cloud-based subscription service with the ability to stream directly to Android mobile devices.

An anonymous record label exec confirmed to the newswire that Google was, indeed, in talks with labels about launching such a service and that labels aren't at all upset about the prospect.

CNN

MLB: Baltimore 4, New York Yankees 3

NEW YORK, Sept. 6 (UPI) -- Brian Roberts lined a run-scoring hit in the seventh inning Monday, handing the Baltimore Orioles a 4-3 victory over the New York Yankees.

Corey Patterson led off the frame with a single off Yankees starter A.J. Burnett (10-13) and went to second on a sacrifice bunt by Cesar Izturis. Roberts then socked a clean single to right, easily scoring Patterson with the go-ahead run.

Roberts ended the game 3-for-5 with two RBI and Matt Wieters contributed an RBI and walked twice for the Orioles, who took the first of three games at Yankee Stadium.

Brian Matusz (8-12) surrendered three runs on five hits with a pair of walks and four strikeouts over six innings.

Koji Uehara pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to earn his seventh save for the O's.

UPI

Hermine landfall expected Monday night

MIAMI, Sept. 6 (UPI) -- Tropical Storm Hermine, about 100 miles south-southeast of Brownsville, Texas, at 5 p.m. EDT Monday should make landfall late that night, U.S. forecasters said.

The National Hurricane Center said the storm, packing maximum sustained winds of 60 mph, would hit land in northeastern Mexico or extreme south Texas. Hermine was traveling north-northwest at 15 mph, and should move into inland Texas Tuesday, the center said.

Isolated tornadoes were possible along the lower and middle Texas coast beginning Monday evening and lasting overnight.

Tropical storm force winds extended outward up to 105 miles from the storm's center, U.S. forecasters said.

A storm surge was expected to raise water levels by as much as 2 to 4 feet above ground level along the immediate coast.

UPI

MLB: Pittsburgh 3, Atlanta 1

PITTSBURGH, Sept. 6 (UPI) -- Neil Walker bashed a two-run homer in the sixth inning Monday and the Pittsburgh Pirates went on to defeat the struggling Atlanta Braves 3-1.

Jose Tabata also drove in a run for Pittsburgh, which handed the first-place Braves their fourth loss in five games in the first of a three-game series at PNC Park.

Brian Burres (3-3) made an emergency start in place of Jeff Karstens and delivered six solid innings, allowing only one run on five hits, striking out three and issuing no walks in his first start since May 29.

Joel Hanrahan picked up his fourth save of the season with a scoreless ninth.

UPI

MLB: Washington 13, New York Mets 3

WASHINGTON, Sept. 6 (UPI) -- Rookie Danny Espinosa belted a grand slam and added a solo shot Monday in the Washington Nationals' 13-3 rout of the New York Mets.

Espinosa, who joined the team Sept. 1 and was playing in only his fifth major league game, finished the day 4-for-5 with six RBI.

Ivan Rodriguez drove in three runs and Roger Bernadina scored three times in the Nationals' third straight victory.

Scott Olsen (4-8) pitched four innings of hitless ball in relief of starter Jordan Zimmermann to collect the victory.

Mike Pelfrey (13-9) absorbed the loss for New York, which has dropped six of eight. He yielded six runs on five hits with three walks over 3 2/3 innings.

UPI

MLB: Florida 7, Philadelphia 1 (1st game)

PHILADELPHIA, Sept. 6 (UPI) -- Adalberto Mendez tossed six shutout innings in his major league debut Monday and Florida downed Philadelphia 7-1 in the first game of a doubleheader.

Veteran minor leaguer Mendez (1-0) made his bow after eight seasons in the Cubs' and Marlins' systems. 

He yielded just one hit and two walks, striking out six before leaving the game with a strained right quad.

Mike Stanton broke out of a 3-for-45 slump to go 3-for-5 with a two-run homer and Dan Uggla contributed three hits, three RBI and a run scored for the victors.

The Phillies also went with a pitcher making his first career start. Vance Worley (0-1) allowed two runs on six hits over five innings.

UPI

MLB: Chi. White Sox 5, Detroit 4 (10 inn.)

DETROIT, Sept. 6 (UPI) -- A.J. Pierzynski lofted an RBI single in the 10th inning Monday and the Chicago White Sox won their seventh straight game, 5-4 over Detroit.

Manny Ramiriez led off the 10th with a single off Jose Valverde (2-4) and advanced to second when left fielder Ryan Raburn bobbled the ball. Alejandro De Aza came in to run for Ramirez and went to third on Alex Rios' single.

Pierzynski then hit a jam shot to left -- his third RBI of the game -- allowing De Aza to score the go-ahead run.

Chris Sale (1-1) made the lead hold up with a 1-2-3 bottom of the 10th and the Chisox won again, keeping the heat on the Minnesota Twins in the American League Central. Second-place Chicago entered the contest trailing the Twins by 3 1/2 games.

UPI

MLB: Toronto 7, Texas 2

TORONTO, Sept. 6 (UPI) -- Vernon Wells, Aaron Hill and Yunel Escobar all homered Monday, powering the Toronto Blue Jays to a 7-2 victory over Texas.

Wells connected for a three-run homer, Aaron Hill clubbed a two-run shot and Escobar added a bases-empty blast to stake Toronto to a victory in the opener of a four-game series at Rogers Centre.

Ricky Romero (12-8) picked up the win, yielding one run on seven hits with two walks and two strikeouts through seven innings.

The Rangers' Tommy Hunter (12-3) was lit up for seven runs on seven hits in an emergency start in place of Cliff Lee, whose originally scheduled appearance was first pushed back until Tuesday and then scratched due to an ailing back.

UPI

Archbishop of Southwark to meet anti-pope protesters

An archbishop is to meet leading campaigners against the pope this week to tell them to "show respect" to Catholics celebrating his visit to London.

Scotland Yard has brokered the meeting between the Archbishop of Southwark, Peter Smith, a senior figure in the Catholic church, and the organisers of a campaign against Pope Benedict XVI's visit.

Smith said today he had no intention of infringing the rights of those intending to protest against the papal visit. But he said he planned to use the encounter to encourage them not to become overly confrontational.

"I've always said, thank God in this country we have free speech," he said. "They are perfectly entitled to protest. What I would ask of all of them is to do so in a dignified way, which does not disrupt the joy of the Catholic community in welcoming the pope. I hope they would show respect to those of us who do have [religious] convictions".

Smith denied that he requested the meeting. But a Metropolitan police memorandum seen by the Guardian states that the request came from Smith.

"At the request of Archbishop Smith, the Metropolitan Police Service will provide a room for the meeting between members of the Protest the Pope Movement and the Roman Catholic Church," sergeant Nicholas Williams, the Met's head of the Communities Together Strategic Engagement Team, said in a letter to protesters.

The Guardian

Character Counts: Gibbs, Reporter Debate Jobs via Twitter

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs made history when he became the first White house spokesman to use Twitter, and now he can add another milestone: first ever press secretary participating in an unofficial Twitter debate.

Gibbs duked it out late last week in a little reported Twitter back and forth with Weekly Standard senior writer Stephen Hayes. The two debated the small business aid bill gummed up in the Senate, with Hayes posting more than 30 tweets on the topic, and Gibbs about a dozen. The White House press secretary also seemed to like the experience, Gibbs tweeted that he "enjoyed" the "civil" debate.

It was an unusual way for the White House to start off its jobs-themed Labor Day weekend, with the August jobs numbers released on Friday and the President traveling to Wisconsin to talk small business on Monday. Gibbs typically uses Twitter to send out updates or articles, but rarely engages in a lengthier exchange with a single person.

"I think if the press secretary of the United States is engaging in a Twitter battle with a conservative pundit, there's no way the press secretary can win," PoliticsDaily.com columnist Matt Lewis told Fox. "I think it's probably a los[ing] forum, but it is quite interesting. It's a sign of the times".

But Richard Socarides, former special assistant to Bill Clinton, says it's good for the White House to adapt to the times. At the beginning of Clinton's first term, "E-mail was new at the White House and the notion that people sat in front of their computers all day, and answered their emails right away, was pretty revolutionary, so I think it's great, I mean this is the way we're talking to each other".

Hayes, a Fox News contributor, sparked the showdown by tweeting, "So @PressSec if raising taxes in a recession wld ‘put businesses further in a hole' what would raising taxes in a stymied recovery do?" He continued, "Come on @PressSec, I answered your questions. Answer just one of mine".

Gibbs responded to Hayes within a few minutes and the debate lasted until Friday morning.

Fox News

Tory MP weeps over discovery that his Brazilian wife is £70-a-time suburban prostitute

He said he wanted to become famous for his political achievements. But yesterday a Tory MP was thrown into the spotlight for a very different reason – after his wife of seven years was exposed as a £70-an-hour prostitute.

Mike Weatherley, 53, was one of the new wave of MPs who came to power with Prime Minister David Cameron earlier this year.

The father-of-three took his blonde wife to functions in the run-up to the General Election, and just two months ago she was photographed visiting the Houses of Parliament.

But it was revealed by a Sunday newspaper that 39-year-old Carla has also been busy plying her trade in three different 'massage parlours', under the names Bea, Adriana and Bianca.

The lorry driver's daughter, who is alleged to have worked as a prostitute in her native Brazil before marrying Mr Weatherley, was caught on camera performing a sexy striptease in pink and black polka dot underwear for an undercover reporter.

She said she worked in three brothels and charged £70 an hour for sex. 'I like it here, nice clients, nice people, nice place and good money,' she told the Sunday Mirror.

The shocking revelation is bound to prove an embarrassment to Mr Cameron, who is pictured smiling at Mr Weatherley's side on the MP's personal website.

The couple are understood to have met in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, while business executive Mr Weatherley was on a work trip.

They married in Brighton in 2003. It was the MP's second marriage and, at the time, the new Mrs Weatherley's occupation was listed as 'housewife'.

She is reported to have gone home to Brazil in 2007, returning two years later when her husband asked her to assist him ahead of his election campaign.

But that was a decision Mr Weatherley may have been regretting yesterday. The MP, who insists that he has been separated from his wife since February this year, wept when approached at his home in Brighton yesterday. 

He said he had no idea that Mrs Weatherley had been selling her body, but claimed they had remained good friends since their separation.

'I am still very shocked by the news and am trying to come to terms with it,' he said. 'I do have proof that we have been separated since February which I can show if needed'.

Daily Mail

Quarterback Leinart hooks on with Texans

HOUSTON, Sept. 6 (UPI) -- The Houston Texans have signed quarterback Matt Leinart two days after he was cut by the Arizona Cardinals, the signal-caller's agent said Monday.

Agent Tom Condon told The Houston Chronicle that Leinart has inked a 1-year contract with the Texans after the 27-year-old was let go by the Cardinals, for whom he had played his entire career.

Leinart had been expected to inherit the Cardinals' role following the retirement of Kurt Warner, but the defending NFC West champs instead opted for former Cleveland Browns quarterback Derek Anderson and released Leinart, a former Heisman Trophy winner at Southern California.

UPI

Five sets of twins in one kindergarten

ALBERTVILLE, Ala., Sept. 6 (UPI) -- Officials at an Alabama school said one kindergarten class contains five sets of twins -- all boys.

The officials at Big Spring Lake Elementary School in Albertville said the occasion certainly marked the first time this many sets of male twins have been in the same class, WAFF-TV, Huntsvlle, Ala., reported Monday.

Some of the twins are identical while others are fraternal.

"We're different. We don't have the same face," fraternal twins Austin and Jacob Moffatt explained.

UPI

PM pays homage to fallen soldiers

Prime minister speaks at special service honouring those killed in battle in 2010

For just the second year running, Denmark’s National Flag Day was celebrated at Christiansborg Palace Square on Sunday to honour the country’s military personnel sent abroad.

Around 1,200 members of the military participated in the day’s parade, with songs from the Royal Life Guard Music Corps accompanying the hundreds in attendance. According to Berlingske Tidende newspaper, festivities went on until nearly midnight.

Prior to the celebration, however, a remembrance service was held at nearby Holmens Church in honour of the 11 soldiers killed so far this year in Afghanistan.

Family members of the fallen soldiers were joined by several representatives of the royal family, parliament and the prime minister, Lars Løkke Rasmussen.

In the packed church, Rasmussen called the day a chance ‘for the affected people to unconditionally meet face-to-face to reflect on and remember’ the men and women who gave their lives in the service of their country.

The Copenhagen Post

Hawks preventing mail delivery

CALGARY, Alberta, Sept. 6 (UPI) -- Canada Post said it plans to resume mail delivery to about 150 homes, suspended due to an aggressive family of hawks.

Officials said delivery to the Bayview neighborhood of Calgary, Alberta, was suspended Aug. 26 after a mail carrier was repeatedly nose-dived by one of the birds, the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. reported Monday.

Adrean Wolvers, a spokesman for Canada Post, said the hawk eventually broke the mail carrier's bicycle helmet.

Wolvers said mail service will resume as soon as possible.

UPI