Judge orders US Air Force to re-instate fired gay nurse

A judge has ordered the US Air Force to re-instate a nurse fired under a policy barring openly gay military personnel.

In the state of Washington, a judge ruled the ban unconstitutional and said the firing hurt morale in her unit.

Maj Margaret Witt sued after the Air Force sacked her upon learning of her relationship with a civilian woman.

President Obama and some military leaders have called for the repeal of the "don't ask, don't tell" policy, but Congress this week rejected the bid.

On Friday, US District Judge Ronald Leighton became teary as he praised Maj Witt for her struggle to win back her job following her 2004 suspension and subsequent dismissal.

BBC News

Tropical Storm Matthew hits Nicaragua

Miami, Florida (CNN) -- Tropical Storm Matthew made landfall over eastern Nicaragua on Friday afternoon, bringing with it a threat of heavy rain, flash floods and mudslides.

The weather system was centered about 40 miles (65 kilometers) west-southwest of the Nicaraguan town of Cabo Gracis a Dios Friday afternoon and was heading west at 15 mph (24 kph). Its maximum sustained winds had slowly slightly to 45 mph (less than 75 kph), according to the Miami, Florida-based National Hurricane Center.

The governments of Nicaragua and Honduras dropped a hurricane watch they had issued earlier for parts of their countries. Tropical storm warnings remained in effect, as did a tropical storm watch for the coast of Belize, the center said.

The weather system could dump between 6 and 10 inches of rain over portions of Nicaragua and Honduras, with up to 15 inches falling in isolated areas, forecasters said. Both those countries are mountainous and have in the past suffered from treacherous rain-triggered mudslides.

"These rains could produce life-threatening flash floods and mudslides," the hurricane center said.

CNN

Flooding displaces more than 2 million people in Nigeria

Lagos, Nigeria (CNN) -- More than 2 million people have been displaced in northern Nigeria after flood gates on two dams were opened to release rising waters along the Niger River, a state official said Friday.

The flood gates on the Challawa and Tiga dams -- located at Kano in the country's north-central region -- were opened last month, according to Umar Kyari, the director of press affairs for Jigawa state.

Kyari blamed the flooding on "poor management of the water," saying the dams are often left until they are full.

"They went ahead and opened them and the water washed away anything in its way," Kyari said.

No deaths have been reported as a result of the flooding, and Kyari said "the government has tried its best to ensure no loss of life" by moving people to shelters and neighboring villages.

However, the flooding has left 97 hectares (about 240 acres) of farm land waterlogged and has caused 4.5 billion naira ($29 million) in damages, Kyari said.

CNN

Facebook CEO donates $100M for ed reform

NEWARK, N.J., Sept. 24 (UPI) -- New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Newark Mayor Cory A. Booker have joined forces with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to improve public education in Newark.

The trio appeared on Friday's edition of "The Oprah Winfrey Show" to announce the formation of the Partnership for Education in Newark, a commitment to a bipartisan initiative to ensure every school-aged child in Newark has access to a high-quality education as preparation for a successful future and a better quality of life.

The governor said he has authorized Booker to work with the local community to develop and implement a comprehensive education plan for the future of the Newark Public School District, based on clear standards and metrics that reward excellence in teaching, school leadership and student achievement. The plan is to be carried out under the mayor's leadership during the next few years.

To support these efforts, Zuckerberg announced the creation of the foundation Startup: Education, with an initial gift of $100 million to improve educational opportunities for young people.

UPI

Missing plane found crashed

MINOCQUA, Wis., Sept. 24 (UPI) -- The Federal Aviation Administration said a plane reported missing Thursday night as found Friday in northern Wisconsin with both occupants dead.

Elizabeth Isham Cory, an FAA spokeswoman, said the Vilas County Sheriff's Department received a call at 8:30 p.m. Thursday about an overdue plane traveling from Aurora, Ill., to the Minocqua Woodruff Airport, The (Madison) Wisconsin State Journal reported Friday.

Cory said the Piper 44 plane disappeared from radar near Minocqua and was located Friday 5 miles north of the city.

The cause of the plane crash was unknown Friday.

UPI

NASCAR's Bowyer: Wouldn't cheat to win

DOVER, Del., Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Sprint Cup driver Clint Bowyer Friday angrily denied doing anything to deserve a stiff NASCAR penalty he received this week.

"I don't believe that we did anything wrong," Bowyer said during a news conference at Dover International Speedway where we was preparing for Sunday's Sprint Cup Chase race.

Bowyer and team owner Richard Childress were each slapped with a 150-point reduction after winning last week's race in New Hampshire. Post-race inspectors found that the car body location specifications weren't in order.

"There is a lot of integrity that goes into this sport," Bowyer said. "I'm damn proud of being a part of this sport. I love this sport and I wouldn't cheat to win a race in this sport".

Bowyer asserted to reporters that his car had passed inspection at the track and that his team made sure it was legal before NASCAR took it to its research and development center.

UPI

Top karaoke singers compete for dumplings

MOSCOW, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Karaoke enthusiasts from 28 countries including the United States and Britain have gathered in Russia to sing for a prize of 1 million dumplings.

The 2010 Karaoke World Championships features a male contestant and a female contestant from each participating country and the top winner will be awarded 1 million Siberian dumplings, or pelmeni, The Daily Telegraph (Britain) reported Friday.

Organizers said contestants are allowed to sing their renditions in the language of their choosing. They said all of the contestants are amateur singers.

UPI

Oksana lawyers say Mel tapes are real

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Lawyers for Mel Gibson's ex-girlfriend say she walked away from a $15 million deal to destroy tapes documenting the U.S. film star's alleged abusive behavior.

Oksana Grigorieva, the mother of Gibson's infant daughter Lucia, has accused the Oscar winner of threatening and assaulting her.

Audio recordings that appear to have captured explosive arguments between the former couple have been leaked online but not been verified as real.

Gibson's representatives have, in turn, accused Grigorieva of extortion.

"The fact that a room full of Mel Gibson's lawyers were willing to pay $15 million for the destruction of the tapes and photographs, proves beyond any doubt that they are real.

UPI

Georgia extends tolls 9 years

ATLANTA, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Georgia officials voted to extend tolls, originally promised to expire next year, on Georgia 400 until 2020 to fund "vastly needed projects".

The State Road and Tollway Authority, which is led by Gov. Sonny Perdue, voted Friday to extend the tolls until September 2020. Perdue suggested there may be a temporary suspension in 2011, to satisfy a 20-year-old promise, with a new toll to begin shortly after, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Friday.

The tolls were to expire in 2011, when the bonds used to pay the bridge are scheduled to be paid off in full.

"There are vastly needed projects we need to do sooner rather than later," Perdue said of the reason for extending the toll.

Tad Leithead, chairman of the Atlanta Regional Commission, stood with the governor during the news conference following the vote.

UPI

'Charlotte's Web' art up for auction

NEW YORK, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- More than 40 original illustrations from the beloved children's book "Charlotte's Web" are to be auctioned off next month in New York, organizers said.

The artwork from the estate of illustrator Garth Williams is to be part of Heritage Auctions' Oct. 15 Illustration Art Auction in Manhattan. The original cover art and 44 of the book's 46 interior illustrations will be offered in the auction and sold without reserve.

Published in 1952, "Charlotte's Web" was named the best-selling children's paperback of all time by Publisher's Weekly in 2000. The book is about how a clever spider saves a good-hearted pig from slaughter.

UPI

U.K. Internet sex offender sentenced

LONDON, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Britain's "worst" pedophile was sentenced to 8-1/2 years in prison as officials warned parents of the dangers to children posed by the Internet, officials said.

Michael Williams, 28, a postman, was sentenced for using social networking sites to contact up to 1,000 child victims over a five-year period, The Daily Telegraph reported.

He persuaded hundreds of children ages 10 to 16 to perform sex acts on Web cams, which he recorded on carefully cataloged computer files, the newspaper said.

He went on to sexually abuse at least four girls between the ages of 13 and 15, prosecutors said.

"This was Internet sex offending on a previously unseen scale," prosecutor Andrew Macfarlane said.

"Ironically, in this day and age, many parents don't let their children out at night lest they meet someone like the defendant," he said.

UPI

Prison holds beauty pageant

BOGOTA, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- A former paramilitary leader was crowned a beauty queen at the close of an annual pageant at Colombia's Good Shepherd prison.

Diana Layton, 21, who joined a right-wing paramilitary group at the age of 12 and acted as commander of a death squad, won the tiara and gift bag following the pageant at the Bogota prison, the Toronto (Canada) Globe and Mail reported Friday.

"I came from a place where you had to act like a man. I walked in rubber boots, wore camouflage, and carried a machine gun," Layton said. "To feel so feminine preparing for the competition is so nice. I feel beloved and admired".

Virginia Camacho, secretary of the prison and coordinator of the pageant, said the event can give important self-worth to the prisoners.

UPI

Britain raises Irish terror threat level

LONDON, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Britain's home secretary said officials have raised the threat level for Irish-related terrorism and there is a "strong possibility" of an attack.

Home Secretary Theresa May said the threat level for Irish-related terrorism was raised from moderate to substantial while the threat level for international terrorism remained at severe, meaning an attack is highly likely, The Daily Telegraph reported Friday.

"The director general of the Security Service has informed me that he has raised the threat to Great Britain from Irish-related terrorism from moderate to substantial, meaning that an attack is a strong possibility," May said. "Judgments are based on a broad range of factors, including the intent and capabilities of terrorist groups.

UPI

Miami moves ahead with science museum plan

MIAMI, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Miami says it has cleared a major hurdle in its plans to create a major science museum downtown intended as a magnet for tourists.

The City Commission approved a sleekly contemporary, environmentally friendly design Thursday for the Miami Science Museum that supporters say will transform a bleak corner of Biscayne Boulevard into a tourist destination, the Miami Herald reported.

In a 4-1 vote, the commission set aside objections from activists who claimed violates city rules limiting development on flood-prone coastal land and who threatened a lawsuit to stop it, the newspaper said.

City planners and lawyers assured commissioners the rules do not apply to the government-sponsored museum project.

"Sometimes you have to dream," Commission Chairman Marc Sarnoff said.

UPI

Conservationists oppose Laos dam plans

VIENTIANE, Laos, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Laos says it rejects calls for a dam moratorium on the Mekong River because it wants cheap power to develop its economy despite threats to fish habitats.

The Southeast Asian nation moved this week to secure regional approval for the first major hydropower plant on its stretch of the lower Mekong in the face of protests from international conservation groups, Britain's Guardian newspaper reported Friday.

The country's proposed hydropower plant threatens the habitat of the giant Mekong catfish, which can weigh up to 650 pounds, the newspaper said.

Catfish as long as small cars and stingrays that weigh more than tigers are threatened by the proposed 2,600-foot dam, but the government said the economic benefits outweigh the environmental risks.

UPI

N.Y., Calif., see whooping cough outbreaks

NEW YORK, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- New York health officials are urging parents to vaccinate their children against pertussis, commonly known as "whooping cough," as reported cases escalate.

Data for the first eight months of 2010 show 383 cases compared with 181 cases for the same period in 2009, a State Department of Health release said Friday.

About 30 percent of patients with pertussis require hospitalization, the release said, and about 70 percent of those hospitalized are infants under the age of six months.

"Pertussis is quite contagious and can be serious, especially for infants less than one year old," State Health Commissioner Richard F. Daines, M.D., said.

"Timely vaccination against pertussis provides the best protection. In fact, if it weren't for widespread vaccinations among children and adults, we'd see many more cases of pertussis," he said.

Pertussis is a bacterial infection of the respiratory tract easily spread through the air in droplets from an infected person by sneezing or coughing.

UPI

Contest gives $100,000 for 'Better Burger'

MIAMI BEACH, Fla., Sept. 24 (UPI) -- A hamburger cooked with strawberry barbecue sauce was the $100,000 winner at the Sutter Home Winery's Build a Better Burger contest in Florida.

The burger, created by Jaeger Stoltz, 43, of Seattle bested four other finalists in the beef burger portion of the contest, held on South Beach in Miami Beach, The Miami Herald reported Friday.

Gina Haase of New Jersey took home the $15,000 prize in the alternative category, which involved burgers made without beef, for her turkey sliders inspired by Chinese dumplings.

Sutter Home officials said the competition was started 20 years ago to promote their wine.

UPI

Crist donors denied class-action lawsuit

TALLAHASSEE, Fla., Sept. 24 (UPI) -- A Florida judge has refused to grant class-action status to a lawsuit by contributors who claim Gov. Charlie Crist cheated them by becoming an independent.

The plaintiffs, Linda Morton of Naples and James Rood of Jacksonville, a former U.S. ambassador to the Bahamas, had also asked the court to freeze $7.5 million in Crist's campaign warchest, the Fort Myers News-Press reported. Senior Circuit Judge Jack Schoonover refused Thursday to convert the lawsuit to a class action and has twice refused to freeze any of Crist's funds.

Tom Grady, a lawyer for the plaintiffs said Crist, who is running as an independent for the U.S. Senate, could be hit with hundreds of small claims cases from individual donors.

Crist dropped his affiliation with the Republican Party several months ago after polls showed him losing the primary to Marco Rubio, a former speaker of the state House of Representatives and Tea Party favorite.

UPI

Chavez risks losing legislature majority

CARACAS, Venezuela, Sept. 24 (UPI) -- Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez rallied supporters before Sunday's national assembly elections as opposition campaigners vowed to halve the government's parliamentary majority and limit its lawmaking powers.

Chavez, 56, is widely tipped to win the legislative elections but the opposition is banking on small victories that will reduce a majority it handed to Chavez when it boycotted the 2005 election.

If, as widely predicted, Chavez wins fewer than 110 seats then the opposition will have the chance to mount an obstructionist campaign against his revolutionary lawmaking in the legislature if not entirely succeed in derailing his Bolivarian revolution, analysts said.

Opposition campaigners hope to capitalize on electricity and water shortages, high crime rates and government inefficiencies and build on promises of forcing change.

Opposition candidate Maria Corina Machado urged voters to go to the polls without fear to make Venezuela "a safer country" -- a reference to opposition allegations of government intimidation of dissidents.

UPI

NBC Universal Chief Jeff Zucker resigns

NBC Universal Chief Executive Jeff Zucker said Friday that he would be stepping down as soon as the merger between Comcast and NBC Universal was completed, which is expected later this year.

Zucker made the announcement to his staff in New York on Friday morning, and it was first reported by the New York Times. The move was not entirely unexpected because Comcast, which will own the majority stake of the combined entity, has made it clear that Comcast Chief Operating Officer Steve Burke would be in charge of NBC Universal. The timing of the announcement, however, was sooner than most people had figured.

Behind the scenes for the last few weeks, Zucker and his bosses at General Electric Co., which currently owns NBC Universal, have been tussling over when Burke would unveil his plans for a new organizational structure -- which presumably would not include Zucker.

Zucker, who rose to prominence as the youngest-ever executive producer of the "Today" show and spent four years running the company's entertainment operation in Burbank, took over the entire company in 2007. 

It was a tumultuous reign. Although Zucker energized the company, moved NBC Universal into the digital age and was a key architect of the online video website Hulu, he badly misfired by hiring an inexperienced independent TV producer, Ben Silverman, to be in charge of programming for the NBC network.

Los Angeles Times

Court Confirms Charges Against Ex PM

The Ljubljana Local Court ruled that the charges against five people in the investigation of corruption related to Slovenia's biggest defence contract are admissible, the court reported. The suspects, who reportedly include Janez Janša, the former prime minister, will now be informed of the charges against them.

Slovenian media reported in August that Janša faces charges of soliciting a bribe in return for helping Finnish defence company Patria win the 2006 tender for 135 armoured personnel carriers (APCs).

Janša has denied any involvement in the selection process and accused the prosecution of orchestrating a political campaign against him.

Apart from Janša, charges in connection to the Patria deal have also reportedly been filed against Joze Zagožen, a senior member of the Slovenian Democrats (SDS); businessman Walter Wolf; army officer Tone Krkovič, a close associate of Jansa's; and Ivan Crnkovic, the boss of Rotis, the Slovenian company selected to supply the armoured personnel carriers from Patria.

The court's vice president, Matjaz Voglar, refused to go into detail of the decision today, noting that the court would not give more information until the suspects receive the notices of indictment.

The four, bar Wolf, who has not responded to the accusations yet, rejected any wrongdoing while expressing indignation over the fact that weekly Mladina reported about the indictment before they had been officially notified of it.

The Slovenia Times

Greek police arrest 26 for storing child pornography

At least 26 people suspected of storing child pornography have been arrested in Greece during a nationwide crackdown, Greek police said on Friday.

According to an official report, police raided 180 houses and workplaces in more than 20 Greek cities in the past few days.

Last year, Greek police broke up a suspected child pornography ring and arrested 24 people, including a priest, two doctors and an army officer.

The Greek government passed a law in 2007 which imposed heavy sentences, including life imprisonment, for crimes related to child pornography.

RIA Novosti

Young Bulgarian Scientists Unveil Octopad, Dreaming Glasses

Bulgarian scientists have unveiled four new inventions at a ceremony in Parliament, including the iPad-based "Octopad".

Octopad, a Bulgarian version of iPad, is a mini-computer that can be used for taking notes, listening to music or watching video, which also has a navigation system and wireless Internet device. Its projected production price is about EUR 120.

The second new invention is "dreaming glasses", which help people remember their dreams. The glasses have a device that records when a person is dreaming, and can also be programmed to wake them up.

The other two inventions presented Friday are computer programs. The first one recognizes objects based on their motion on the ground, while the other one recognizes objects from a video tape. Both are deemed very useful for security purposes.

All four inventions are authored by scientists from the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences aged between 22 and 38.

According to Hristo Lafchiev, from the union of young scientists Cogito, the Bulgarian MPs hardly paid any attention to the presentation of the inventions. He did say, however, that the scientists will try to sell their inventions to companies for mass production.

Novinite

Bulgarian Orthodox Church Rallies 10 000 to Demand Religion in Schools

Some 10 000 people took part in a procession in Sofia organized by the Bulgarian Orthodox Church to demand the study of religion in schools.

The rally, which was led by the Bulgarian Patriarch Maxim, was in support of the Church's demands to introduce religion as a subject throughout the entire school education – from nursery schools to the 12th grade.

The procession started at the National Palace of Culture and culminated at the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral, where Patriarch Maxim and the bishops performed a service praying for the children of Bulgaria and for the introduction of the obligatory study of religion in schools.

According to the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, the measure is supposed to help breed moral values and greater spirituality in Bulgarian youth.

The rally participants, seemingly including Bulgarians of all ages and walks of life, carried banners saying things such as "A Nation without Morals Is Doomed" or "66 Years of Atheism Are Enough!", apparently referring to the fact that religion was removed as a subject from school curriculum after the leftist coup d'etat of September 9, 1944, which ushered into the communist period.

The church tabled a petition for the introduction of religion in schools to the President, Parliament, Council of Ministers, and the Ministry of Education.

Novinite

Ferguson: Berbatov to Be United's Leading Striker

Manchester United's manager Sir Alex Ferguson has expressed hopes Bulgaria'sDimitar Berbatov will be the team's top striker this season.

He expressed hopes that Berbatov will hit the 25-goal mark as other United strikers have done in past seasons.

"Any time you have a successful season you've always got a striker who's got you 25 goals and upwards. We have had it with Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney last season and others before that. You want players who could get a percentage of goals that make the difference. If Dimitar keeps doing that, he is going to be the one this season," Ferguson told Key103 Radio.

Berbatov has already scored seven goals for Manchester this season, after his brilliant hattrick against Liverpool last week.

The 29-year-old Bulgarian has been under much criticism before the start of the season because of his unconvincing performances after he became United's most expensive purchase at the end of 2008.

Novinite

Bulgarian PM Disciplines Turkey at Balkan Meeting in New York

Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov's behavior at a Balkan leaders' dinner inNew York City has been construed as a demonstration snubbing Turkey's "dominant role" in the region.

Borisov was one of the top guests of a lavish dinner Thursday hosted by Turkish President Abdullah Gul in the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Manhattan.

The dinner was attended by some two 200 elite guests from the Balkans and theUSA, including the Presidents of Turkey, Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina; the Prime Ministers of Bulgaria, Albania, Slovenia; the Foreign Ministers of Romania, Greece, Croatia; the Governor of New York; and numerous businesspeople from the USA and Turkey, reported the special correspondent of the Bulgarian paper Trud Daily.

It cites a diplomatic source as saying that the event was extremely exuberant and about three times as luxurious as a similar reception hosted by the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, which is taken to be a demonstration of Turkey's political and economic might.

Each of the present Balkan leaders was expected to make a speech. According to the report, Turkey's President Gul was late, and his arrival interrupted the speech already in progress of one of the Balkan leaders. Gul's appearance is said to have caused "an euphoria" and wild applause, with the Macedonian President George Ivanov and the Albanian PM Sali Berisha rushing to hug him.

Bulgarian Prime Minister Borisov, however, is reported to have been the only one of the leaders who did not rise to welcome the President of Turkey.

"Walking between the tables, Gul saw that I was sitting down. He probably understood that this demonstration on part of Turkey is not appropriate for a meeting of equals, and came specially to shake my hand," Borisov told the Trud Daily.

After this initial confusion, Borisov's speech was moved earlier on the list, and he spoke right after the Governor of the state of New York.

Novinite

Turkey Wants to Play Role in Bulgarian Muslims Mufti Issue

The foreign ministers of Bulgaria and Turkey have discussed the situation with the appointment of a Chief Mufti of the Bulgarian Muslims.

This occurred at the Balkan reception hosted by Turkey in New York City, after the Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov allegedly snubbed the form of the event leaving his dinner untouched, with only his Foreign Minister Nikolay Mladenovremaining to represent Bulgaria.

After that Mladenov had a meeting with his Turkish counterpart Ahmet Davutoglu, which made headlines in Turkish newspapers on Friday.

"This is a question which can be resolved within the friendly relations between Bulgaria and Turkey. It should not be causing any crises. There will definitely be a solution to this problem," Davutoglu is quoted as saying after the meeting.

He has not made it clear how exactly Turkey plans to participate in resolving an issue that refers only to the Muslim community in Bulgaria.

The Bulgarian Muslim community has been agitated for months over a court ruling that allowed the reinstatement of former Chief Mufti Nedim Gendzhev, who appears to be resented by many Muslims in Bulgaria because of his alleged involvement in controversial practices.

The Muslim community in Bulgaria generally consists of two large groups - ethnicBulgarian Muslims (known as "Pomaks") and ethnic Turks. Some ethnic Roma and an increasingly large number immigrants from Arab countries also belong to the Bulgarian Muslim community.

Novinite