TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras (AP) — A Honduran patrol boat has located a semi-submersible craft used by drug traffickers to carry cocaine. Five crew members have been detained.
Officials say the submarine-like vessel is floating about 15 meters (50 feet) under the surface of the Caribbean off the Honduran coast after the crew tried to sink it.
They say divers have …
The number of new cases in federal courts related to consumer issues surged in the year ended last Sept. 30 as Americans battered by the recession fought foreclosures and downgraded debt ratings, data released Tuesday show.
The statistics were compiled by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, which keeps track of the workload of federal courts. They showed that cases filed by individuals or state regulators under two federal laws, the Fair Credit Reporting Act and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, jumped 53 percent in fiscal 2009 _ to 6,463 from 4,239 the previous year.
Many lawsuits have been filed against credit reporting agencies, which …
Thomas Ramos is eligible to serve as a parent member of the Curielocal school council that dumped principal Jerryelyn Jones eventhough he doesn't have a child at Curie, officials said Tuesday.
Ramos' guardianship -- since May 2005 -- of a relative whoattends Curie Metro High makes him eligible to sit on the LSC,Chicago Public Schools officials said Tuesday.
CPS said an ethics charge that could disqualify Ramos from anyLSC is still under review.
A hearing was scheduled for 5 p.m. April 13 on allegations thatRamos solicited and accepted money from a Curie vendor in 2004 and2005 and failed to report the payments.
Ramos is …
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Advanced Micro Devices Inc. narrowed its third-quarter loss slightly, as the chip maker's remaining stake in factories it spun off last year dragged down the results.
Ignoring the baggage from the spinoff, AMD said Thursday it would have earned more than Wall Street expected, a sign the company is getting better at squeezing profit out of the remaining business.
AMD shares rose 33 cents, or 4.6 percent, to $7.47 in extended trading, after the release of the results.
AMD makes microprocessors, the "brains" of computers, and graphics processors. Its numbers supply fresh evidence that corporate spending is propping up the computer industry as consumer …
Tenor Placido Domingo peppered his classical repertoire with a crowd-pleasing array of popular music and even donned a mariachi suit and sang along with the audience, smoothing over controversy surrounding his Saturday concert at the Mayan pyramids of Chichen Itza.
With help from Mexican crooner Armando Manzanero and Puerto Rican soprano Ana Maria Martinez, an ebullient Domingo won over the crowd with encores ranging from West Side Story's "Tonight," to the popular ballad of southern Yucatan state, "Peregrina."
Domingo and Martinez also joined forces on a thundering, majestic tribute to the Mayan ruins in "The Silver Moon of Chichen …
Disadvantaged children from the Cheddar Valley have been giventhe day of a lifetime.
The children from Axbridge, Banwell, Churchill, Hutton andSandford were treated to a trip at Longleat thanks to members ofthe Rotary Club of Wrington Vale and the Kids Out initiative.
More than 25,000 disadvantaged children enjoyed a fun day out atthe seaside, theme parks, adventure parks, museums and zoos acrossthe UK and Ireland this year when the Day Out was held last week.
Rotary club spokesman Tony Poole said: "1,000-plus children agedbetween 5 and 12 who attend schools in Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshireand Gloucestershire were treated to an extraordinary day out …
FEZ, Morocco - American Jill Craybas defeated Yulia Beygelzimer 6-4, 6-1 Tuesday to reach the second round of the Grand Prix SAR Princess Lalla Meryem.
Milagros Sequera of Venezuela also advanced when Virgine Razzano of France retired at 3-6, 7-6 (7) because of a left thigh injury.
Fourth-seeded Anastasia Rodionova was beaten by Julie Ditty 7-5, 7-5, but No. 7 Camille Pin and No. 8 Anne Kremer both advanced.
Pin beat Stephanie Dubois 6-1, 6-4, and Kremer downed Fatima Zahrae El …
Argentine farmers said Friday that they would fight a reported plan to nationalize grain trading, warning that such a move would deepen a long-running conflict between the government and agricultural groups.
Growers' groups were reacting to reports in Argentine newspapers that the government's tax collection agency, AFIP, is considering creating a body to control the domestic and foreign trading of grains, flours and oils.
The government's reported goal would be to supply the domestic market first and export the leftover.
AFIP declined a request by The Associated Press for comment on the reports, which appeared in leading Argentine newspapers La …
BANGKOK (AP) — Soldiers, civil servants and families worked frantically Tuesday to add more than 1 million sandbags to Bangkok's vulnerable northern flood defenses after the city's governor warned they were needed to keep waters from swamping the capital.
Gov. Sukhumbhand Paribatra said late Monday that a 6-kilometer (3.7-mile) flood wall on the edge of the city's suburbs was vulnerable from massive pools of runoff flowing down from the north, signaling the threat to the city was still grave. He said the wall needed to be reinforced by Wednesday night.
"Every second counts," said Sukhumbhand Paribatra, whose call for city residents not to let down their guard contrasted …
An Indian police agency investigating the deaths of two women in Kashmir said Monday they drowned and were not raped and killed as alleged by locals, a ruling likely to further fuel anti-India sentiment.
The deaths of 22-year-old Neelofar Jan and her 17-year-old sister-in-law Asiya Jan in May ignited violent protests in the Himalayan region, where militant groups have fought Indian forces for independence or a union with Pakistan since 1989. More than 68,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in the uprising and subsequent Indian crackdown.
The two women disappeared as they walked home from their family's apple orchard in Shopian, a town 35 miles …
More than three and a half years and $57.9 million ago, work was just getting started on the realignment of Interstate 83 in York County between exits 14 and 16. The project wrapped up Dec. 6, about a week ahead of schedule.
A project of this variety is one that promises a wealth of traffic issues to be sorted through, but also a much brighter future for commuters and businesses in the area.
Construction aimed to soften the stretch of interstate referred to as Dead Man's Curve, as well as reconstruct and expand the South George Street (exit 15) interchange and widen the Leaders Heights Road (exit 14) interchange.
"In terms of inconvenience, the brunt of the project was actually borne by the businesses along Leaders Heights Road (Route 182) in the vicinity of the Leaders Heights interchange (exit 14)," said Greg Penny, community relations coordinator for PennDOTs Engineering District 8.
The volume of traffic along the Leaders Heights corridor has grown tremendously in the past 20 years, said Tony Campisi, president and chief executive officer of York Township-based Glatfelter Insurance Group. His business is in that corridor.
Congestion along Leader Heights Road should improve now that trucks can use George Street to access I-83 North, Campisi said. Previously, trucks couldn't get on to I-83 North without using Leaders Heights Road because there was no access ramp from southbound Business 83 (George Street) to northbound I-83.
Leaders Heights Road's two-lane bridge over I-83 was also widened to five lanes, and traffic lights were added and timed to control traffic.
A second exit ramp was added to make it more natural for southbound traffic on I-83 to access northbound Business 83 (George Street).
"Overall, it's been a much needed improvement. We now have a much more pleasant and safe (system), and (it's) convenient to our facilities here, and that's going to be a positive for all of our visitors," Campisi said.
The congestion caused by the construction did not hinder York Traditions Bank, which is just off of exit 16 (Route 74 and Queen Street) in York Township. If anything, it increased the bank's exposure because it forced people to migrate to the side roads, such as St. Charles Way, where York Traditions has its headquarters, said Michael Kochenour, chairman, president and chief executive officer of the bank.
"The safety and fluid flow of traffic with the improvements that they've made, I think, are going to be excellent and serve the county well," Kochenour said. "There's no question. It does definitely create additional options and should, overall, cut down on congestion."
Kochenour hopes the influx of new residents to York County who commute to work in Baltimore will continue now that the road has been improved, giving his bank and other businesses better access to those potential customers.
York Township is basically divided by I-83, said Phil Briddell, president commissioner of the York Township board of commissioners. Improving motorists' ability to cross from one side of the township to the other was not something that a lot of thought was given to in the 1950s when the road was built, Briddell said.
Because of traffic growth over the years in York Township and the surrounding townships, improving the flow of traffic became vital, Briddell said. The improvements through this project have allowed for normal traffic movement again, Briddell said.
Next up in PennDOTs pipeline of large projects in Central Pennsylvania is the approximately $90 million reconstruction of the interchange between Route 15 and Route 581 in Cumberland County, which is slated to begin in the spring. While that project is concentrated in the Route 15 corridor, it is expected to have a major impact on the region, Penny said. The project is expected to wrap up in 2010, when PennDOT will begin to concentrate on bridge improvements in the area.
"We're kind of winding; down on big projects. Other projects pale in comparison to what we'll be doing (at Route 15 and Route 581)," Penny said.
* Actress says she's never been reluctant to take good televisionroles
By MATT HURWITZ
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
LOS ANGELES - To filmgoers, she's known as the woman who scaredthe pants back on Michael Douglas in 1987's "Fatal Attraction." Nowit's the drug dealers of urban Los Angeles on "The Shield" who areworried.
"She has an agenda, and she can't wait to start," Glenn Close saysof her character, Monica Rawling, who took over as captain of thecorrupt and dysfunctional Farmington precinct at the beginning of theshow's fourth season.
Rawling has returned to her roots, having walked the beat in thefictitious district earlier in her career. So, in a sense, has Close,who returned to television after a fruitful - and continuing - careerin feature films.
"I've always tried not to be snobbish about it," says the 58-year-old actress, who's done made-for-TV movies (including "SomethingAbout Amelia" and "Sarah, Plain and Tall") as well as feature films("The World According to Garp," "The Big Chill," "The Natural" and"Reversal of Fortune" among many others). "To me, the bottom line iswhat's on the page. And the writing on this show is greatstorytelling," she adds during a break in filming the FX series.
"Having her here raises the whole bar," notes star MichaelChiklis, who plays corrupt-but-effective cop Vic Mackey. "Glenn doesphenomenal work, and it just brings a new, fresh excitement to thewhole process, particularly now that we're in our fourth season."
Sharing "starring" credit with another big name was actuallysomething Chiklis, now one of the show's producers, had hoped forsince the end of the first season.
"I felt even then that the respect for the show was extremely highin the industry, and we could definitely get high-caliber people,"says the actor, who won an Emmy in 2002.
Chiklis' appearance in Fox's upcoming "The Fantastic Four" delayedthe start of this season's production by three months, allowing theshow's writers time to develop a new character.
"We came up with Rawling's character and realized pretty quicklyit was going to be a very significant role," says "The Shield"creator and executive producer Shawn Ryan. "Casting-wise, we knew weneeded someone who could stand up with Michael Chiklis."
The writers played an "if we could get anyone, who would we tryfor?" game, and came up with Close, a five-time Academy Award nomineewho, to their surprise, accepted the role.
"Prior to Glenn, they were very interested in having veryincognito actors," notes veteran actress CCH Pounder, who playsDetective Claudette Wims. "That's helped the show ring more ofreality, as opposed to, 'Hey, Richard Burton is playing the cop!'"
30
KISSIMMEE, Fla. (AP) — Bud Norris pitched five shutout innings and struck out five to lead the Houston Astros past a St. Louis Cardinals split-squad, 3-2 Saturday.
Norris entered the game with a 10.29 ERA in three appearances, but said he felt relaxed and ready for opening day after shutting down Cardinals.
Astros manager Brad Mills said he did not realize that Norris had struggled this spring. He said Norris looked fine and was ready to step into one of the openings on the Astros staff. Norris went 9-10 with a 4.92 ERA for Houston last season.
The Astros were out-hit, 11-7, but took a 3-0 lead and held on. First baseman Brett Wallace improved his spring training average to .362 with a run-scoring single.
Lance Lynn started for the Cardinals and struck out four, allowing two runs in four innings.
A 43-year-old schoolteacher had a 2-year history of personality change with episodes of unusual behaviour, confusion, amnesia, agitation and double vision. Depression was the initial diagnosis. However, treatment with anti-depressants did not alleviate her symptoms. She was referred to a neurologist who suspected an endocrine cause for her condition. A selected image from an infused computed tomography scan is shown (Fig. 1). Can you make a diagnosis? What other imaging study may be helpful?
PANCREATIC INSULINOMA (UNCINATE PROCESS)
This condition is seen in more detail on magnetic resonance imaging (Fig.1, arrow).
Although many different modalities are available for preoperative localization of functional islet cell tumours, the accuracy of these techniques remains controversial. Traditionally a combination of computed tomography and angiography has been used. More recently, newer imaging techniques, including ultrasonography (transabdominal, endoscopic and intraoperative), MRI and radionuclide scanning with a stomatostation analogue have come into use.
Detection of functional islet cell tumours is challenging because the small size (less than 2 cm) of these lesions necessitates imaging techniques with both high resolution and high inherent tissue contrast. Recent studies have shown that a combination of introperative ultrasonography and palpation has a sensitivity of 100%.(f.1) Many pancreatic surgeons may, however, wish to have the tumour localized preoperatively.
Although recent application of 2-phase dynamic helical CT has been reported to have a sensitivity as high as 82%,(f.2) this technique relies on the administration of an exogenous contrast agent precisely timed to attain adequate tissue contrast and on appropriate collimation to achieve adequate resolution. Even with these parameters optimized, CT sensitivity decreases with tumours smaller than 1 cm in dimension. MRI, a modality that has superior inherent tissue contrast discrimination, has been limited in the past by motion artifacts and decreased spatial resolution. The development of new software and hardware has helped to reduce these problems, improve resolution and enhance existing tissue conspicuity through fat suppression techniques. MRI is now considered particularly good at detecting tumours less than 1 cm in dimension. For this reason the current literature suggests that MRI alone(f.1,3) or in combination with ultrasonography,(f.4) be used as the initial radiologic approach to detect clinically suspected small endocrine pancreatic tumours.
References
(f.1) Moore NR, Togers CE, Britton BJ. Magnetic resonance imaging of endocrine tumours of the pancreas. Br J Radiol 1995;68:341-7.
(f.2) Van Hoe L, Gryspeerdt S, Marchal G, Baert AL, Mertens. Helical CT for the preoperative localization of islet cell tumours of the pancreas: value of arterial and parenchymal phase images. AJR 1995;165:1437-9.
(f.3) Mori M, Fukuda T, Nagayoshi K, Kohzaki S, Matsunaga N, Hayashi K, et al. Insulinoma: correlation of short-T1 inversion-recovery (STIR) imaging and histopathologic findings. Abdom Imaging 1996;21:337-41.
(f.4) Angeli E, Vanzulli A, Castrucci M, Venturini M, Sironi S, Zerbi A, et al. Value of abdominal sonography and MR imaging at 0.5 T in preoperative detection of pancreatic insulinoma: a comparison with dynamic CT and angiography. Abdom Imaging 1997;22:295-303.
WASHINGTON - Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton said Friday that every child born in the United States should get a $5,000 "baby bond" from the government to help pay for future costs of college or buying a home.
Clinton, her party's front-runner in the 2008 race, made the suggestion during a forum hosted by the Congressional Black Caucus.
"I like the idea of giving every baby born in America a $5,000 account that will grow over time, so that when that young person turns 18 if they have finished high school they will be able to access it to go to college or maybe they will be able to make that downpayment on their first home," she said.
The New York senator did not offer any estimate of the total cost of such a program or how she would pay for it. Approximately 4 million babies are born each year in the United States.
Clinton said such an account program would help Americans get back to the tradition of savings that she remembers as a child, and has become harder to accomplish in the face of rising college and housing costs.
She argued that wealthy people "get to have all kinds of tax incentives to save, but most people can't afford to do that."
The proposal was met with enthusiastic applause at an event aimed to encourage young people to excel and engage in politics.
"I think it's a wonderful idea," said Rep. Stephanie Stubbs Jones, an Ohio Democrat who attended the event and has already endorsed Clinton. "Every child born in the United States today owes $27,000 on the national debt, why not let them come get $5,000 to grow until their 18?"
Britain launched a similar program in January 2005, handing out vouchers worth hundreds of dollars each to parents with children born after Sept. 1, 2002.
Earlier this month, Time magazine proposed a $5,000 baby bond program.
Niklas Moisander scored the winning goal to lead Finland to a 2-1 victory over Wales in Group 4 of World Cup qualifying on Saturday.
The AZ Alkmaar defender found the net in the 76th minute after the two teams had been deadlocked at 1-1 at halftime.
Roni Porokara gave Finland a 1-0 lead in the fifth minute, scoring on a rebound from close range after a good save by goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey.
Craig Bellamy equalized in the 18th after David Vaughan had raced down the left and crossed to the Wales forward.
Neither team can qualify for next year's World Cup, with Germany and Russia having already clinched the top two spots in the group.
With an end strength of slightly more than 26,000 personnel, the U.S. Army Special Operations Command (USASOC) is one of the smallest major Army commands. Belying USASOCs assigned strength, however, is the large footprint that Army special operations forces have left on every operation since 9/11 in support of the global war on terrorism, especially over the past year.
As demonstrated in combat operations during this time, USASOC soldiers are trained and equipped to fight secretive and hidden enemy forces in Iraq, Afghanistan and other hot spots around the globe.
In 2003, during the largest deployment in the history of Army special operations forces, this command balanced intense combat operations with the difficult mission of planning for the training and equipping of the future USASOC force.
Now, in 2004, we remain heavily engaged in Iraq, Afghanistan and countries throughout the world-yet because of this command's vision and adaptability, we have enjoyed unprecedented mission successes.
It is our continued commitment to soldiers that will enable us to harness their unrelenting determination to prosecute the global war on terrorism as USASOC continues its Transformation into a more deployable and lethal force.
USASOC has continued to orchestrate the largest deployment of Army special operations forces in the history of the command. Of particular note was the deployment of more than 100 Special Forces operational detachments to Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF), which exceeded the number deployed into Vietnam during the height of hostilities there.
The global war on terrorism requires a near-total commitment of Army special operations forces to accomplish the many and varied missions not only in the U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM) theater of operations, but in dozens of other spots around the world.
Remarkably, while managing the priority mission of supporting USCENTCOM and Special Operations Command Central, USASOC maintained extensive support to operations in the Philippines, Colombia, Haiti and other countries around the world.
In Afghanistan, where the operational tempo remains high, two Special Forces battalions are engaged in combat operations against anticoalition forces. Tactical psychological operations (PSYOPs) companies provide support by disseminating PSYOP products in remote areas. Regular rotations of assets from the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (SOAR) (Airborne) provide the lift support dictated by operations in the high-altitude conditions of Afghanistan. One civil affairs brigade provides humanitarian and civil assistance to the transitional Afghan national government, and its establishment of new provisional reconstruction teams is a major step in the process.
A similar commitment of USASOC forces is present in Iraq. In the rebuilding of Iraq's post-war infrastructure, Army special operations forces (ARSOF) are performing their doctrinal missions throughout the country. Special Forces units, working in conjunction with the special operations aviation assets, continue to focus on high-value targets and key personnel to ultimately reduce the threat to coalition forces operating there. A civil affairs command and two civil affairs brigades are now operating in Iraq to provide desperately needed humanitarian assistance and to help pave the way for the transition to a self-governing Iraq. Psychological operations soldiers also are playing a key role in the production and dissemination of media products that are an essential link in communication with the Iraqi populace. In fact, from the onset of the global war on terrorism, these information warriors have been heavily engaged with the production, distribution and dissemination of a wide variety of operation-related PSYOP products. During Operations Enduring Freedom and Iraqi Freedom, PSYOP forces produced more than 170 million leaflets and thousands of hours of television and radio broadcasts.
The 75th Ranger Regiment has been engaged continuously in combat operations since Operation Enduring Freedom began in October 2001. In fact, more than 70 percent of the Rangers assigned to the regiment have participated in multiple combat deployments.
Over the last year, the 75th Rangers have conducted combat operations (mounted infiltrations behind enemy lines, heliborne assaults, complex urban raids and rescue operations) with other special operations forces, conventional and coalition forces in both Afghanistan and Iraq.
Crucial to all the special operations missions already mentioned is the extraordinary combat support and combat service support provided by the soldiers of the U.S. Army Special Operations Support Command (Airborne). The Sentinels, as they are known, have deployed with USASOC forces to every corner of the globe, supplying them with the communications, logistical and medical support needed to sustain operations in unforgiving environments.
In both Afghanistan and Iraq, Army special operations forces have played, and will continue to play, significant roles in the global war on terrorism.
The MH-47, a modified version of the Chinook heavy assault helicopter, is a superb aircraft flown by the 160th SOAR. Examples of the MH-47D and MH-47E variants' superior performance abound in Afghanistan, where its functionality at night in zero-visibility weather conditions has become legendary. Despite the historically superior performance of those models, the 160th SOAR, in May of this year, rolled out its newest weapon in the war on terrorism-the MH-47G.
With its aerial refueling capability and other highly specialized mission equipment, including the new common avionics architecture system cockpit, the MH-47G will provide unsurpassed support to special operations forces under some of the most challenging mission scenarios and conditions ever realized. As the Army moves toward joint interoperability in its conventional aviation fleet, the MH47G is already joint-interoperable, with an advanced, integrated navigation and communications suite.
The world's first A/MH-6 Little Bird helicopter combat mission simulator, which will soon be operational, will be among the most advanced helicopter simulators ever designed and will integrate with existing MH-47 and MH-60 Black Hawk simulators to give the 160th SOAR enhanced mission rehearsal and training capabilities.
As USASOC's organizational requirements are expanded to keep up with its operational tempo, one of the most critical resourcing objectives is to increase institutional training at the U.S. Army John E Kennedy Special Warfare Center and School. To support the upcoming growth of Special Forces (SF) units, the institutional training base must be augmented. In order to keep up with projected growth and current manning demands, the SF training pipeline itself must expand.
In addition, the bulk of USASOC's Army Reserve assets are in civil affairs and psychological operations. The Special Warfare Center and School will continue to produce soldiers in those specialties to meet mission demands and force design update requirements.
Historically, SF soldiers' abilities to converse with local nationals while deployed have been a tremendous operational asset, and institutional special operations language training has kept pace with current demands. In fiscal year 2004, seven war-related target languages were added to the schoolhouse's list for immediate development, and language training proficiency standards have been raised, requiring greater speaking skills.
This institutional agility to increase Army special operations student production and simultaneously add courses like the Special Operations Tactical Air Controllers Course is indicative of the adaptive, creative problem-solving USASOC soldiers are empowered to bring to the fight.
Over the last several years, USASOC has worked closely with the Combined Arms Center, the U.S. Army Forces Command, and the Army's combat training centers (CTCs) to make significant improvements to the interoperability and integration of Army special operations forces with conventional units during training at the CTCs. Some of the major improvements include seamless integration of unit training objectives, concurrent rotational timelines, integrated after-action reviews and the collection of integration-specific lessons learned for the Center for Army Lessons Learned. These improvements have enabled the identification of integration friction points and will ultimately lead to the development of tactics, techniques, procedures and doctrine for increased interoperability and integration.
In addition, USASOC will soon establish a joint special operations task force (JSOTF) training program at Fort Bragg, N.C., to train special operations forces on JSOTF operations in an unconventional warfare environment. The program will be linked to the Army's battle command training program and will integrate ARSOF with Army conventional force operations in a simulated training environment.
Interoperability with conventional forces was a hallmark of the OIF campaign, and this capability will make USASOC soldiers even more effective in future contingency operations.
When deployed, Special Forces battalion and group headquarters elements are tasked with establishing forward operating bases, Special Forces operational bases or joint special operations task force headquarters. To operate on the modern battlefield, these headquarters elements require high bandwidth connectivity from their remote, deployed location to other headquarters elements located throughout the theater of operations and beyond. To address this requirement, Army special operations forces have developed the special operations forces tactical assured connectivity system program (SOFTACS), which is a state-of-the-art tactical communications system designed to automate the command, control, communications, computers and intelligence information flow throughout the deployed ARSOF community and to worldwide strategic assets.
USASOC is currently fielding the SOFTACS systems to each of the Special Forces groups. The addition of this equipment will have an immediate and significant impact on the groups' ability to conduct global war on terrorism operations using organic assets.
From the pine-forested training grounds at Fort Bragg, N.C., to the sun-baked sands of Iraq, to the snow-capped terrorist havens on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, the soldiers of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command are more relevant to the joint operations team than ever before and stand ready to confront both traditional and unconventional enemies on any battlefield, any time.
Our commitment to accessing the best soldiers in the Army and providing them with the best training and equipment possible for the long term is a promise that we must keep. The soldiers and family members who place their lives on hold and at stake, in the name of freedom, deserve nothing less.
It is this principle-and the respect demanded and earned by the quiet professionalism of USASOC soldiers during the global war on terrorism-that keeps me confident that this war will one day come to an end.
[Author Affiliation]
By Lt. Gen. Philip R. Kensinger Jr.
Commanding General,
U.S. Army Special Operations Command
[Author Affiliation]
LT. GEN. PHILIP R. KENSINGER JR. assumed command of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command (USASOC) in August 2002. Before commanding USASOC, he was the Army's Deputy G-3/5. Gen. Kensinger received his commission as a second lieutenant in June 1970, after graduating from the U.S. Military Academy. His general officer assignments include commanding Special Operations Command, Central; deputy commanding general and chief of staff of the U.S. Army Special Operations Command and commanding general, U.S. Army South at Fort clayton, Panama, and Fort Buchanan, Puerto Rico. Gen. Kensinger has also served as reconnaissance platoon leader, later S-I (Adjutant), 3rd Battalion, 36th Infantry, 3rd Armored Division, U.S. Army Europe and Seventh Army, Germany; executive officer, later commander, Operational Detachment, C Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group (Abn.); commander, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 3rd Brigade, Wist Airborne Division (Air Assault); S-I (Adjutant), Headquarters, 3rd Brigade, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault); Commander, A Company, 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault); S-I (adjutant), 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry, 101st Airborne Division (Air Assault); military observer, Operations Directorate (J-3), United States Southern Command; commander, Special Forces Battalion Task Force, Joint Task Force-11, Honduras; executive officer, 3rd Battalion, 7th Special Forces Group, Fort Gulick, Panama; career program manager, Career Programs Branch, U.S. Army Military Personnel Center; commander, 1st Battalion, 5th Special Forces Group (Abn.); operations staff officer, later chief of Special Programs Branch, Operations Directorate (J-3), U.S. Special Operations Command; and commander, 3rd Special Forces Group (Abn.) He earned a master's degree from Louisiana State University and A&M College in 1980. Gen. Kensinger's military education includes the U.S. Army Aviation School, Infantry officer advance course, Defense Language Institute and the School of International Studies. He also attended the U.S. State Department's Foreign Service Institute.
For most of our lives, the Cold War held the world in a balance of terror. The United States has emerged from the Cold War as the world's single superpower. For the present, the threat of global war has receded. More countries are embracing democracy and free-market economics. Relationships with our key allies remain strong. For all this, the world remains a dangerous and complicated place.
In this environment, the United States will often be the single essential nation in international crises, from humanitarian assistance in natural disasters to ending international conflict. The role of the Army has broadened. Operations will vary both in scopefrom preventing war to winning wars-and size-from small-scale contingencies to major theater wars. Military success has always been about getting decisive force to the critical location before an adversary can complicate the situation. Right now, we cannot do this across the full spectrum of potential operations. Our heavy forces need to be more deployable and our light forces need greater staying power.
Secretary of the Army Louis Caldera and Chief of Staff of the Army GEN Eric K. Shinseki have directed all of us to transform our Army-already the most respected Army in the world-into a strategically responsive force that is dominant across the full spectrum of operations. Our acquisition, technology, and logistics community will play a huge role in creating a force that is deployable, dominant, and sustainable.
Strategic responsiveness means deploying, anywhere in the world, a brigade in 96 hours, a division in 120 hours, and five divisions in 30 days. If our Army is going to get there within these timeframes, everything a Brigade Combat Team needs must fit on a C-130: soldiers, fuel, ammunition, and vehicles. This means that all platforms must weigh less than 20 tons. We can design such vehicles, and we have some now. The challenge is to achieve the lethality and survivability essential to battlespace dominance.
Up to now, we have dominated by putting superbly trained soldiers together with platforms that individually overmatched the platforms of potential adversaries. For example, our Abrams tank is the finest in the world, and no other artillery system can match the emerging Crusader howitzer. While these systems will continue to be relevant to the Army's future, neither will fit on a C-130. Where we are deploying over long distances and our adversaries are not, we are likely to find that we will not have overmatch on an individual platform basis. Instead, we will achieve an overall capability overmatch by training our soldiers to exploit the synergy of agile, survivable, and lethal platforms that are digitized and networked to provide interoperable situational awareness.
Designing a system of the right size and weight for a C-130 is fairly simple, but maintaining the needed lethality and survivability will be difficult. To achieve essential lethality, we are examining guns, missiles, and precision munitions in all combinations. We are also looking at the combinations of system attributes that can help keep our soldiers safe. We will probably incorporate a suite of subsystems that will include armor, threat sensors, and active protection into manned systems with inherently small silhouettes and high agility.
Reducing the logistics footprint is the other significant challenge. Two of the biggest drivers here are fuel and munitions. By exploiting technology, we will develop more fuel-efficient systems and replace tons of dumb munitions with fewer smart munitions. This way, we will be reducing the logistics burden and increasing operational capability at the same time. Improved energy efficiency will bring us the dual benefits of a reduced logistics footprint and greater operating range. Precision munitions will reduce the footprint while increasing weapon effectiveness and reducing collateral damage.
Logistics has always been an essential enabler of military success. If we are to achieve the responsive, deployable, agile, versatile, lethal, survivable, and sustainable force described in the Army vision, we will need to refine and accelerate the revolution in Army logistics. We must implement a highly efficient logistics command and control system that operates seamlessly from the industrial base to our deployed forces. We will significantly reduce the size of our deployed logistical footprint. In the future, if we don't need to deploy it, we won't need to move it, fuel it, protect it, or repair it. This will become possible, in part, because of our exceptional command, control, communications, and intelligence resources.
Our goal is to transform today's Army into a force that is dominant across the full spectrum of operations-the objective force. Advances in information, materiel, and weapon system technologies will make it possible for objective force units to achieve the same effect as today's forces with fewer, lighter, and more reliable systems. This complete transformation will be accomplished in three phases: initial, interim, and objective. At present, the Army will field two initial Brigade Combat Teams at Fort Lewis, WA. These brigades will be used to validate an organizational and operational model for the interim force. Simultaneously, we will acquire the Interim Armored Vehicle and field it as the centerpiece of the interim force. The lessons we learn from the interim phase, along with future technologies, will be the building blocks for the final phase of our transformation to the objective force. We are already maturing the technologies that will lead to the revolutionary warfighting capabilities of our Future Combat System. The Army is collaborating with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency on this challenging endeavor. The Future Combat System will be the catalyst for the completion of the Army's transformation.
In a little more than a decade when our Nation calls on our soldiers to face new threats in faraway lands, they will be trained in the right doctrine with the right materiel and supported with the right processes. This will be possible because of our efforts right now, today. Transforming the Army requires focus, enormous energy, and our best cooperative efforts. As a team, we can make our vision of the future come true. The Army is depending on us. The Nation is depending on us. Today's second grader, who will grow up to be tomorrow's soldier on point for the Nation, is depending on us. It's time to "roll up our sleeves" and make the vision a reality.
This edition of Army AL&T features articles on our team's many contributions toward building the future force, one that is Persuasive in Peace, Invincible in War.
[Author Affiliation]
Paul J. Hoeper, Assistant Secretary Of The Army For
Acquisition, Logistics And Technology
PALM BAY, Fla. A man armed with high-powered rifles and handgunsopened fire at a shopping center here yesterday, killing at leasteight people, wounding 11 and holding hostages in a supermarket forseveral hours before he was arrested early today, authorities said.
"The man has been arrested," Police Lt. Candice Leek saidshortly after 2 a.m., more than 7 hours after the shooting began."They chased him down and subdued him. He is being brought to thestation right now."
The gunman, who was not identified, had released the last ofthree hostages about a half hour before his capture.
After their release, the man said he was going to kill himself,Leek said. But police fired tear gas canisters into a store where hewas hiding.
SWAT team members stormed in behind the cloud of gas, andauthorities said they found the gunman in the back of the store.
Leek said police discovered that numerous customers andemployees who were in the store when the gunman entered had "lockedthemselves in the coolers," where they remained throughout the siege.
"They are being let out and treated now," she said.
Police had negotiated with the gunman over a special telephoneline, according to police spokeswoman Louise Brown.
More than 200 police, backed by Air Force canine units,converged on the scene and police snipers were on rooftops, accordingto witnesses.
A second man had been taken into custody "in relation" to theshootings, but authorities later determined he had not taken part inany shooting, Brown said. Some witnesses had described two gunmen,one in his late 20s and the other in his 50s.
"There are a total of eight dead - five bodies in the K martparking lot they are trying to retrieve, three confirmed dead in thehospital," said Brown. "Two of the victims are Palm Bay policeofficers."
The little town about 30 miles south of the Kennedy Space Centerhad only four officers.
Initially, police had said 12 people were believed to have beenkilled.
In the confusion that persisted during the long siege, itremained uncertain how high the death toll might climb. At one pointduring the evening Brown said "30 is the number of bodies we have onthe ground," but she did not know how many of those were takingcover.
There were reports late last night that the melee may havestarted as a gunbattle between an apparently berserk man and a nearbyresident whose dog he killed, but authorities could not confirm that.
Several hours after the shooting began, five buses rolled out ofthe shopping centers, crowded with people who leaned out of thewindows waving and cheering. Authorities said they were taken to anearby store for police interviews and then to City Hall for reunionswith relatives.
The Holmes Regional Medical Center was treating 11 people forgunshot wounds.
Dear Zazz: "Rick" and I have been dating for four months, andwe've quickly become very serious. We're both in our mid-20s.
A few months before we met, Rick ended an engagement with"Cheryl," whom he'd dated for four years. He says he's absolutely nolonger interested in her.
The problem is that Cheryl finds every possible reason to call orsee Rick. For instance, when a mutual friend came to town, shedemanded that they both have dinner with him. If something happensin her personal life, Rick is the one she calls.
Rick tells me that he and Cheryl are just good friends. When Icomplain about his encounters and conversations with her, he says I'mbeing unreasonable. He says if I trusted him, I wouldn't make a bigdeal about this.
I told him it's not normal for ex-lovers to carry on like this.His response: "Well, I'm not normal." Am I overreacting?
DOESN'T LIKE IT
Dear Doesn't: If Cheryl needs a best friend, Rick is the wrongcandidate. And if Rick needs a friend, he should be turning to you,not her.
Almost certainly, Cheryl has ulterior motives: She wants to re-establish the relationship. Rick may think he's involved in a simple"friendship," but he's deceiving himself.
In almost all cases, it's a mistake to remain good friends with aformer fiancee, especially when there's a new love (like you) in thepicture.
If Rick insists on being Cheryl's pal, even though you find itdisturbing, then he's being disrespectful to you, and he's notputting his relationship with you first. That's a bad sign.
One more observation: When people, especially lovers, give usinsights into themselves - saying things like "I'm not normal" - weought to listen to them and believe them. Rick is telling you thatif you want a relationship with him, don't expect rational,appropriate behavior. Take that as a serious warning sign.
Dear Zazz: My 10-year high school reunion is coming up, and Idon't want to go. I made this decision the day after graduation. Myclassmates never were nice to me, and I've never forgotten how theytreated me.
I have an etiquette question: Do I have to RSVP my regrets to thereunion committee or can I ignore their invitation?
STILL REMEMBERS
Dear Still: One great thing about being out of high school: You'reallowed to skip things without getting a doctor's note or a writtenexcuse from your mother. Sure, you can skip the reunion withoutacknowledging the invitation. You can even send it back with "returnto sender" scrawled across the envelope if that'll make you feelbetter.
Of course, if you attend the reunion, you might find your formerclassmates more mature and pleasant than they were in high school.
Sometimes, a reunion can be helpful to attendees with bad memoriesof high school. You'll see your former tormentors as imperfectadults. You'll measure your successes against their failures. I'mnot advising you to go to the reunion, necessarily, but if you do,you could find vindication and closure there.
Write Zazz (Box 3455, Chicago 60654) or e-mail(zazz@suntimes.com). Zazz Bash questions or tickets: (312) 321-3010.
Phase II of the investigation of the Nitro Sanitation Landfill isset to begin.
At Tuesday's Nitro City Council meeting, Project Manager DavidHight from the Office of Environmental Remediation and Chris Amickfrom Kemron Environmental Services were on hand to tell council andthe public about the current status of the investigation.
Amick and Hight discussed the components of Phase II, whichinclude additional geophysical surveys, human health and ecologicalrisk assessments and the removal of off-site sanitary and industrialwaste materials.
Amick said that he wants to make sure that all potentiallyaffected citizens are well informed about what will be happening onand around their property.
He said that a major part of Phase II is the excavation of testpits in the landfill. Some of this excavation will take place onprivate property. The excavation was planned to happen during colderweather in order to lessen the effects of vapor release on the peopleinvolved, but Amick said there's a reason the work has been postponeduntil April.
"We have decided that if we excavate and find drums of industrialwaste on someone's property, we're going to take it out right when wefind it so we'll only have to make one trip," he said. "This shouldlimit the vapor migration for the people involved."
Amick said that the property that is excavated would be returnedto its original state.
"We will replace the land will new backfill and we will grade,seed and put straw down," he said. "We'll leave it as good or betterthan we found it. I know there are concerns about that."
If drums of industrial waste are found, they will be characterizedand disposed of after excavation, said Amick.
In addition to test pit excavation, sediment samples will becollected in addition to water from wells placed in different partsof the landfill site. These parts of Phase II will be completed inMay, and after work is done, Amick said a report would be written.Phase I of the investigation was completed in May 2002.
The finalized reports for both Phase I and Phase II will beavailable for public review in the Nitro Public Library.
The final outcome of the site, if all parts of the project go asplanned, is the construction of a boat ramp for the city of Nitro.Amick said the construction of the boat ramp would begin duringspring of 2004 if work goes as planned.
Copenhagen Airports will build a new 200 million kroner ($26.4 million) terminal for low-cost airlines.
The operator of Copenhagen's international airport said Tuesday the terminal dubbed CPH Swift will be ready by 2010 and will have an annual capacity of 6 million passengers who can access planes through six gates.
Airlines must have a 30-minute turnaround at the new terminal, at least 90 percent of the passengers must check in online, through their cell phones or a self-service kiosk. Transfer to other flights is not possible.
Copenhagen's airport is the hub for Scandinavian Airlines. It is the Nordic region's largest airport with 21.4 million passengers in 2007.
ABSTRACT The amyloid peptide congener Ap(10-35)-NH, is simulated in an aqueous environment in both the wild type (WT) and E22Q "Dutch" mutant forms. The origin of the noted increase in deposition activity resulting from the Dutch mutation is investigated. Multiple nanosecond time scale molecular dynamics trajectories were performed and analyzed using a variety of measures of the peptide's average structure, hydration, conformational fluctuations, and dynamics. The results of the study support the conclusions that 1) the E22Q mutant and WT peptide are both stable in "collapsed coil" conformations consistent with the WT structure of Zhang et al. (2000, J. Struct. Biol. 130:130-141); 2) the E22Q peptide is more flexible in solution, supporting early claims that its equilibrium structural fluctuations are larger than those of the WT peptide; and 3) the local E22Q mutation leads to a change in the first solvation layer in the region of the peptide's "hydrophobic patch," resulting in a more hydrophobic solvation of the mutant peptide. The simulation results support the view that the noted increase in activity due to the Dutch mutation results from an enhancement of the desolvation process that is an essential step in the aggregation of the peptide.
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
The results of our multiple-nanosecond time scale molecular dynamics trajectories of the solvated AP peptide congener in its WT and E22Q mutant forms support a number of conclusions related to the structure, fluctuations, dynamics, and hydration of the peptide.
1. The E22Q mutant and WT peptide are both stable in cc conformations consistent with the WT structure of Lee and coworkers (Zhang et al., 2000). The structure of the central hydrophobic core is preserved throughout the entire simulation for both systems.
2. In solution, the E22Q peptide is more flexible than the WT, supporting an early hypothesis that the equilibrium structural fluctuations of the E22Q mutant peptide were larger than those of the WT peptide (Zhang et al., 1998). The E22Q mutant peptide presents a wider distribution of the end-to-end distances than does the WT peptide. The fluctuations of the theta and psi angles of the residues in the 22-27 region are larger in the E22Q mutant than in the WT peptide. The RMS fluctuations of atoms of the E22Q peptide are larger than those of the WT for all the aminoacids in the 17-26 region.
3. The values of the S2 order parameter are consistently smaller in the Dutch mutant than in the WT peptide in the region between residue 21 and residue 26, which indicates that the motion of the NH amide bond is less restricted in the Dutch mutant than in the WT peptide. The absence of hydrogen bonds between the LVFFA and the VGSN regions in the E22Q mutant, which are present in the WT peptide, is correlated with the higher degree of flexibility of the structure of the mutant peptide around residue 22.
4. A comparison of the solvent-exposed surface area of the two peptides shows that the E22Q mutant peptide has a greater hydrophobic surface area exposed to the solvent. The mutant peptide also presents a larger radius of gyration than does the WT peptide. The local E22Q mutation leads to a local perturbation of the peptide hydration and the structure of the first solvation layer in the region of residue 22.
5. The water-water interaction energy for the waters of the first solvation shell of the LVFFA hydrophobic patch residues is significantly more favorable (more negative) in the mutant peptide. This is correlated with a less favorable (less negative) water-peptide interaction. Both observations are consistent with the formation of a more hydrophobic solvation shell over the hydrophobic patch of the E22Q mutant peptide. This difference should result in a small energetic cost of desolvation of the Dutch mutant peptide in the aggregation process relative to the WT peptide. These observations suggest that the Dutch mutant peptide may have a lower barrier and larger enthalpic driving force to desolvation and aggregation than does the WT peptide, in agreement with the noted increased activity of the Dutch mutant peptide.
We thank the referees and Troy Whitfield for helpful comments on an earlier version of this manuscript. J.E.S. gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the National Institutes of Health (1801 NS41356-01), National Science Foundation (CHE-9975494) and the Petroleum Research Fund of the American Chemical Society (34348-AC6). We also acknowledge the Center for Computational Science at Boston University that provided essential computational resources.
[Reference]
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[Author Affiliation]
Francesca Massi and John E. Straub
Department of Chemistry, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts 02215 USA
[Author Affiliation]
Received for publication 22 December 2000 and in final form 18 April 2001.
[Author Affiliation]
Address reprint requests to John E. Straub, Boston University, Dept. of Chemistry, 590 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, MA 02215. Tel.: 617-3536816; Fax: 617-353-6466; E-mail: straub@bu.edu.
Mary Kay Wydra calls herself the Valley's biggest cheerleader.
That's an oversimplification of her duties as President of the Greater Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau, but still, the title fits. And while she works to sell the region to travelers, she's also recruiting residents to root for the home team.
For Mary Kay Wydra, the Pioneer Valley is home. But it is also her workplace, her passion - and her product.
She's been selling that product for more than 15 years as part of the team at the Greater Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau (GSCVB), which she now directs.
Wydra has dubbed herself the definitive cheerleader for Western Mass., though that may be an oversimplification of her day-to-day duties. Responsible for promoting the Pioneer Valley as a year-round destination for everyone from large-scale corporate groups seeking convention and meeting spots to tour groups in search of new sites to visit, not to mention the casual day-tripper, Wydra and her staff must constantly find new ways to market the region as fun, exciting, historic, educational, accessible, and affordable, all on a shoe-string budget.
There are many challenges that come with that assignment, some that are relative to the broad tourism industry, such as seasonal slowdowns and intense competition for tourism and convention dollars.
Others, though, are hurdles specific to Greater Springfield. For starters, there's the perception that the region is primarily an 'ideal pit stop' for refueling, grabbing a quick bite, and moving on. There's also the perception that the Valley is too far away (from anywhere) and has little to offer.
Those elements, coupled with the present need to triumph over negative headlines regarding crime, poverty, and fiscal duress, would complicate any cheerleader's job. To overcome those obstacles, Wydra and her staff are composing a multifaceted strategy for not only selling the region, but building momentum within it.
BusinessWest looks this month at the components in that strategy, which includes recruiting new players and inspiring the home team.
The Laws of Attraction
Wydra, a Westfield native, has worn many hats at the bureau. She started there in 1988 as a secretary after graduating from Springfield College with a degree in business and a minor in psychology. She later left to pursue a job in public affairs with Big Y.
Soon, though, Wydra came to the realization that tourism was her calling.
"I really missed my industry," she said. So, after 15 months away from the convention and visitors bureau, she returned, this time to stay, rising up the ranks to assume her current position in January, 2001.
The date is notable - just eight months later, the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 brought the nation to a standstill and the travel industry into a prolonged tailspin. Tourist destinations of all kinds suffered, she said, but major metropolitan areas were especially hard hit.
"People were fearful of traveling to large cities for a long time," she said. "Because of that, more people took notice of our major attractions, and they began to realize that we were a varied, interesting, and accessible place to visit."
So in some ways, 9/11 actually created opportunities for the Pioneer Valley, she said, a situation augmented by the addition of several new attractions; the fact that hotel occupancy rates in the Pioneer Valley have exceeded the state-wide numbers for the past several years are proof of that.
Wydra said steady, improving tourism numbers are the result of a set of marketing and community-based initiatives, designed specifically to keep the Pioneer Valley on the map.
Her approach takes into account both those people unfamiliar with the region and those who live and work here, and is heavily weighted toward positive public relations - an important facet of the bureau's operations and a key component to putting Greater Springfield's best face forward.
It's also one of Wydra's professional strengths. She handled much of the bureau's marketing efforts prior to accepting the president's post, and displays many successful print campaigns of years past in her Main Street, Springfield office.
The current campaign uses materials that showcase the Pioneer Valley to outsiders, including businesses and organizations that may want to hold conventions and meetings in the area, tour groups, and individual travelers, all with a family feel and all underscoring the expansive nature of the region, Wydra explained.
Of course, there is a strong emphasis on major attractions - Six Flags in Agawam, Springfield's new Basketball Hall of Fame, and the Yankee Candle flagship store in South Deerfield among them. The rise in leisure travelers that began in 2002 can also be attributed to the simultaneous addition of four new attractions - the new Hall, the Dr. Seuss Memorial Sculpture Garden at Springfield Quadrangle, the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, and the Superman Ride of Steel roller coaster at Six Flags.
"We really pushed the fact that we had four new attractions being added all at the same time, " she said, "and that helped us get the word out about the Pioneer Valley in general."
It also added to the progress being made in the cross-promotion of events and attractions within the three counties that mak up the Pioneer Valley, one of the aspects of her job that Wydra finds most gratifying.
Weekend Warriors
"The great progress we're seeing among people identifying themselves as part of the entire region and not a specific county or town is wonderful," she told BusinessWest. "We are united by a highway and a river, and can offer so many different types of experiences. You can start a trip in a city and experience the urban flavor of the region. Then, you can go a little further west and visit some of the more funky, artsy places like Northampton; go a little further still and you're in the heart of a beautiful, bucolic area ... I think people realize the value of that."
Another phenomenon Wydra has noticed is the evolution of the region's tourism sector, from what was largely an afterthought in an area dominated by manufacturing, to one of the fastest growing segments of the area's economy.
She said the tourism industry has created a number of jobs locally, and has spawned the creation or expansion of hospitality management programs at UMass, American International College, and Holyoke Community College.
"Years ago, people found travel and tourism information in the leisure section of the daily newspaper," she said. "That is no longer true. Now, the things we are doing are on the front of the business section. We need to continue to cultivate that to benefit the Valley."
At the same time, area residents need to take a measure of ownership in the region's tourism sector by becoming part of cheerleading squad, Wydra added. This includes providing recommendations, directions, or travel advice to visitors, while encouraging families and groups exploring convention sites to consider the Pioneer Valley.
In short, Wydra wants to create a greater sense of pride in the region.
She's doing so through several initiatives, including the Pioneer Valley Pride program, which in part will enlist local individuals to promote Greater Springfield as a possible convention location for regional or national associations they may belong to. Meanwhile, the GSCVB continues to promote the decade-old Howdy Awards, given to residents who work in the hospitality industry annually, to recognize exemplary service.
"These individuals are often overlooked, but they are the people who are giving directions, checking people into hotels, and serving their food," she said.
This year, to augment the program, she has added a wrinkle to the Howdy tradition - 'Howdy U' - that will take shape in June. The program, designed to give those in the hospitality business a crash course in Pioneer Valley tourism, was developed in part to create career ladder opportunities for people in the service industry, as well as to decrease the high turnover levels that are common to hospitality and tourism-related jobs nationwide.
The two-day course, to be held at Western New England College, will first provide its students with information regarding broad skills such as dealing with angry customers, and later, region-specific information.
"We want people to be knowledgeable about the region - to know about attractions like our museums, live theater, and symphony, and how to direct people to them," she said.
The second day, Howdy U participants will be loaded onto a bus and shuttled around the Pioneer Valley on a guided tour of both visible and hidden gems, in order to develop a working knowledge of their proximity to one another.
"That will allow them to tell people how close different attractions are to one another and help them suggest possible itineraries," she explained.
Howdy U graduates will also be able to illustrate the variety of attractions that exists in the region, which Wydra sees as one of its best assets.
"It's a big selling point," she said, pointing out that in addition to specific attractions such as the Yankee Candle flagship store or seasonal events like Bright Nights and the Big E, the bureau frequently promotes 'hub and spoke trips' that allow tourists to stay overnight in one location, but branch out on any number of day trips in surrounding towns and cities.
"We like to point out that there are so many attractions within minutes of each other, that it's very easy to pick a hotel or a bed and breakfast in one city or town, but experience the entire Valley in a matter of days," she explained. "Overall, we try to pitch the Pioneer Valley as a package. All of these partnerships enhance the work we do, and help us expose what the Valley has to offer."
In addition, Wydra is focusing on attracting new populations to the area, including an increased number of bus tour groups and student travelers, of both high school and college age. The bureau also continues to market heavily to potential convention customers, and is poised to capitalize on the opening of the new MassMutual Convention Center, being built on the Springfield Civic Center site, slated to open in September of this year.
Its very construction is adding to the Pioneer Valley Pride Program, Wydra noted. "People are watching it go up and they're starting to get excited about what it means for Springfield."
With or without major projects like the new convention center aiding the marketing efforts of the bureau, though, it always maintains a strong concentration on its three major customers - meeting planners, tour operators, and leisure visitors and has stepped up its collaborative efforts with business partners across the Valley, including some unconventional partners such as area hospitals and banks. The partnerships reflect both the unique and close-knit nature of the region, Wydra said, as well as the growing importance of tourism initiatives to the region's fiscal picture.
"There needs to be a concerted effort to bring commerce into the region," she said. "It's important to everyone, and as more people are exposed to what the Valley has to offer, more people will ultimately take advantage of all of our services."
A-list Possibilities
With so many different variables to monitor, Wydra said measuring success has become a detailed process. The occupancy rates at area hotels are constantly monitored, as arc the number of bus tours arriving in the Valley and what types of people are aboard. Attendance at major events and attractions is also compared to the previous year's, down to the last child to pass through the Big E gates, or the last car to exit the Bright Nights tour.
All that data is proof of what Greater Springfield's improving allure to travelers, Wydra said, thanks to home team hustle.
"The Pioneer Valley has become a destination due to a lot of hard work by a lot of people. My job is to be enthusiastic for the region which in and of itself is not hard, because I believe in it, I love it, and it is home to me."
Violence erupted on the streets of Athens on Friday during a general strike, and five politicians resigned from Greece's coalition government in protest over the strict austerity measures the country has to introduce before it can get a crucial €130 billion ($170 million) bailout.
Hours after Greece claimed it had reached an agreement among its squabbling party leaders on new cutbacks, European finance ministers Thursday dashed any hopes that the country was close to getting its bailout when they said more austerity needs to be agreed.
Five ministers in the coalition government led by Prime Minister Lucas Papademos resigned Friday over the cutbacks. Papademos, however, insisted the measures will be introduced, warning that "those who oppose austerity cannot remain in government".
Market reaction: Stock markets and the euro fell sharply, with the Athens stock exchange falling 3 percent.
What's next: Saturday sees the second day of strikes and protests against the austerity measures before a key vote in the Greek parliament, which is scheduled for Sunday.
Q: Why is this budget-cutting so important?
A: Without it, the country would not be eligible for a €130 billion ($170 billion) bailout from other countries in Europe and the International Monetary Fund. Greece needs the money before a €14.5 billion bond deadline on March 20 and strike a vital debt-relief deal with bond investors.
Q: And if Greece were to miss this March 20 bond payment, then what?
A: A disorderly Greek default would potentially spread the crisis to other eurozone countries, by making investors even more leery of lending to them. And analysts fear it could set off a chain reaction similar to the financial meltdown that occurred in the fall of 2008 and triggered the Great Recession.
Q: Didn't Greece already get a massive bailout? Why wasn't that enough?
A. Greece has been surviving since May 2010 on a €110 billion bailout. But the terms of that bailout were harsh, requiring higher taxes and deep cuts in public spending. Those actions pushed Greece deeper into recession, and the country's failure to control spending caused its debt burden to rise.
Q: How badly is Greece doing?
Its economy shrank at an annual rate of 5 percent in the third quarter of 2011, the most recent quarter for which data are available. Earlier in the year, it was shrinking at an 8.3 percent rate— about as fast as the U.S. economy was shrinking during the worst of the Great Recession. Thousands of shops and small businesses, vital to the Greek economy, have gone bankrupt. Unemployment stands at 20.9 per cent.
Q: How harsh are the austerity measures?
A: Greece has agreed to a 20 percent cut in its government work force by 2015. A cut of that size in the U.S. would eliminate 4.4 million jobs — half the number lost across the economy during the Great Recession. Greece will also cut the minimum wage by 22 percent. A cut of that size in the U.S. would bring the hourly minimum wage to around $5.80, roughly the level it was at in July 2008.
Q: What are the terms of the debt-relief deal Greece is negotiating?
A: Banks, hedge funds, pension funds and other private investors who own €206 billion in Greek government bonds would exchange them for a payment of €30 billion, plus €70 billion in new bonds. The payment will come from the €130 billion package from Europe and the IMF. The new bonds would have a lower average interest rate and a longer term of maturity.
Q. How will the rest of the €130 billion bailout be used?
A. Greece will invest roughly €40 billion in the country's banks, who would be at risk of collapse from the losses they take on Greek government bonds as part of the debt-relief deal. The remaining €60 billion will be used for financing the country's deficit.
DENVER - A group that claims marijuana use is safer than drinking ran newspaper ads Saturday mentioning allegations that President Bush once drunkenly challenged his father to fight and Vice President Dick Cheney's accidental shooting of a friend after drinking.
SAFER Colorado, which put a measure on the Colorado ballot to legalize possession of marijuana, placed an ad in a newspaper in Greeley, where Bush made an appearance on Saturday.
The ad in the Greeley Tribune had a photo of Bush accompanied by text that read: "In 1972, this man tried to fight his dad when he was drunk. Just one more reason to vote 'Yes on 44.'" The ad was referring to published reports that in 1972, a 26-year-old Bush had come home drunk and challenged his father to a fight. The matter was reportedly settled without violence.
The group ran the Cheney ad in The Gazette of Colorado Springs, a day after he spoke to troops at the nearby Fort Carson Army post and attended a campaign rally. The ad said, "Shot his friend in the face after drinking. Just one more reason to vote 'Yes on 44.'"
Cheney accidentally shot and wounded a friend while hunting in Texas in February. The vice president said he had one beer several hours before the shooting.
"They were both in town ... and we are simply taking this opportunity to draw attention to the fact that alcohol contributes to far more problems than marijuana," said Mason Tvert, the group's campaign director.
White House spokesman Tony Snow, asked for comment aboard Air Force One as Bush headed to Texas after the rally, dismissed the ads as "kind of snarky and juvenile."
"I'm not sure they did their cause much good," he said.
Referendum 44, which is on Tuesday's ballot, would allow adults to carry up to an ounce of marijuana, similar to an ordinance Denver voters approved last year. No other state allows pot possession for anything other than medical use. Federal law also prohibits possession.
A recent poll of 625 registered voters by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research found 34 percent of voters supported the measure, while 57 percent opposed it. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
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Associated Press writer Nedra Pickler contributed to this report.
Colo. Pro-Pot Ads Target Bush, CheneyDENVER - A group that claims marijuana use is safer than drinking ran newspaper ads Saturday mentioning allegations that President Bush once drunkenly challenged his father to fight and Vice President Dick Cheney's accidental shooting of a friend after drinking.
SAFER Colorado, which put a measure on the Colorado ballot to legalize possession of marijuana, placed an ad in a newspaper in Greeley, where Bush made an appearance on Saturday.
The ad in the Greeley Tribune had a photo of Bush accompanied by text that read: "In 1972, this man tried to fight his dad when he was drunk. Just one more reason to vote 'Yes on 44.'" The ad was referring to published reports that in 1972, a 26-year-old Bush had come home drunk and challenged his father to a fight. The matter was reportedly settled without violence.
The group ran the Cheney ad in The Gazette of Colorado Springs, a day after he spoke to troops at the nearby Fort Carson Army post and attended a campaign rally. The ad said, "Shot his friend in the face after drinking. Just one more reason to vote 'Yes on 44.'"
Cheney accidentally shot and wounded a friend while hunting in Texas in February. The vice president said he had one beer several hours before the shooting.
"They were both in town ... and we are simply taking this opportunity to draw attention to the fact that alcohol contributes to far more problems than marijuana," said Mason Tvert, the group's campaign director.
White House spokesman Tony Snow, asked for comment aboard Air Force One as Bush headed to Texas after the rally, dismissed the ads as "kind of snarky and juvenile."
"I'm not sure they did their cause much good," he said.
Referendum 44, which is on Tuesday's ballot, would allow adults to carry up to an ounce of marijuana, similar to an ordinance Denver voters approved last year. No other state allows pot possession for anything other than medical use. Federal law also prohibits possession.
A recent poll of 625 registered voters by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research found 34 percent of voters supported the measure, while 57 percent opposed it. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
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Associated Press writer Nedra Pickler contributed to this report.
