Stars ask to help Obama change drug, jail policy

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? Lil Wayne, Ron Howard, Scarlett Johansson and Kim Kardashian are all on the same page when it comes to criminal justice reform.

They're among more than 100 entertainers calling on the president to focus on changing drug laws. Rap mogul Russell Simmons helped assemble the coalition of celebrities and civil rights leaders that presented a letter to President Barack Obama on Tuesday.

The group praises the president's efforts toward drug incarceration reform but insists "the time is right" to move toward replacing jail sentences with intervention and rehabilitation for non-violent offenders. The starry group, which also includes Jennifer Hudson, Nicki Minaj, Susan Sarandon and Will Smith, also asks Obama to form a panel to handle clemency requests and to support a measure that allows judges to waive mandatory minimum sentences.

"It is critical that we change both the way we think about drug laws in this country and how we generate positive solutions that leave a lasting impact on rebuilding our communities," Simmons said, citing Department of Justice data that shows that the United States jails more of its citizens than any other country in the world.

Drug offenders comprise nearly half the federal prison population in the U.S.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/stars-ask-help-obama-change-drug-jail-policy-093211524.html

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Justin Timberlake Brings His Album Release Party To TV

One-hour special, which airs on the CW the same day The 20/20 Experience hits stores, will also feature new music video.
By Driadonna Roland

Justin Timberlake
Photo: Matt Kent/ Getty Images

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1703539/justin-timberlake-album-release-tv-special.jhtml

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Minka Kelly joins J.J. Abrams' android-cop pilot

By Tim Kenneally

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) - The future just got a whole lot better-looking.

"Friday Night Lights" and "Charlie's Angels" star Minka Kelly has signed on for J.J. Abrams' untitled futuristic police pilot, which has received an order from Fox.

Billed as an "action-packed buddy cop show," the project is "set in the near future, when all LAPD officers are partnered with highly evolved human-like androids."

Kelly will play Valerie Stahl, a uniformed cop with a strong moral compass who believes the best of people.

Abrams is re-teaming with "Fringe" writer/executive producer J.H. Wyman, who's writing the script and also executive producing with Abrams and Bryan Burk.

Brad Anderson ("The Machinist") is directing the project, which comes from Abrams' Bad Robot and Warner Bros. Television.

The cast also includes "Six Feet Under" actress Lili Taylor, who'll play Maldonado, an ambitious and determined police captain who is willing to make sacrifices for the greater good.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/minka-kelly-joins-j-j-abrams-android-cop-165324309.html

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Poland aims to pave way for 2015 climate deal

WARSAW, Poland (AP) ? Hoping to win over EU critics of Poland's recent stance on climate change, the environment minister said Friday that the coal-powered nation will make every effort to pave the way for a lasting deal in 2015 when it hosts a U.N. global warming conference in November.

Last year, Poland vetoed the EU's road map for emissions reductions beyond 2020, drawing sharp criticism from environmental groups and EU officials.

Poland relies on coal for more than 90 percent of its electricity. Aiming to protect coal mining jobs and a major home industry, the government plans to continue relying on coal in the coming decades.

But Environment Minister Marcin Korolec told The Associated Press that Poland has been at the forefront of climate change policy, reducing carbon emissions by 30 percent in recent years, compared to the 6 percent requirement written into the Kyoto Protocol. He said some of Poland's critics in Europe ? he didn't name them ? hardly met the 6 percent target.

"Emission reduction really took place in Poland, at the price of high social costs" of closing heavy industry and layoffs, Korolec said.

A recent U.N. climate conference agreed to adopt a new global climate pact by 2015 to modify the Kyoto Protocol.

The conference showed that not all countries were following the climate regulations that were supposed to apply to all, said Korolec whose ambition it is to help mend this situation during the conference that opens Nov. 11 in Warsaw.

"I want the meeting in Poland to be a good introduction to the negotiating process. I want us to make this good start," Korolec said.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/495d344a0d10421e9baa8ee77029cfbd/Article_2013-03-08-EU-Poland-Climate-Talks/id-e9252aa5b94849ca9da88606ec8d9771

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IRL: Scanner Pro, Mophie Juice Pack Helium and the Native Union Pop Phone

Welcome to IRL, an ongoing feature where we talk about the gadgets, apps and toys we're using in real life and take a second look at products that already got the formal review treatment.

It's safe to say we're a little picky around here: Darren's trying out yet another scanner app, and Edgar has settled on a smartphone battery pack (because everyone knows we can't agree on which is the best one). And Philip's been playing with a retro-styled "handset" because, well, why not?

Filed under: Misc

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/_uFMXhTm9yI/

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Cybersecurity threatens US-China relations: WH official

Carolyn Kaster / AP file

National security adviser Tom Donilon speaks during the daily news briefing at the White House in Washington on Thursday, May 17, 2012.

By Andrew Rafferty, Staff Writer, NBC News

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Chinese leaders must address cybersecurity threats emanating from their country on ?an unprecedented scale? or risk weakening the economic relationship between Beijing and the United States, White House national security adviser Tom Donilon said Monday.

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?U.S. businesses are speaking out about their serious concerns about sophisticated, targeted theft of confidential business information and proprietary technologies through cyberintrusions emanating from China on an unprecedented scale,? said Donilon.? ?The international community cannot afford to tolerate such activity from any country.?

The remarks, delivered to The Asia Society in New York, are the first by a White House official to specifically name China as a threat to U.S. cybersecurity.

Though Donilon focused mainly on the danger to U.S. businesses, he did acknowledge the risk such an attack could pose to U.S. national security.? He said that the issue has become ?a key point of concern and discussion with China at all levels of our governments? and that President Barack Obama has vowed to do what is necessary to protect America?s interests against cyberattacks. ?

During last month?s State of the Union address, Obama highlighted how vulnerable America?s financial institutions, power grid and air traffic control systems could be to an attack.? The president, who has signed an executive order to help address those concerns, called on Congress to pass comprehensive legislation that would better secure online networks to help protect against attacks.

The president never mentioned China during his high-profile address.

But on Monday, Donilon was much more direct, detailing three requests for Beijing, including recognition of the severity of the problem, ?serious steps? to address it and establishing guidelines of acceptable norms in the digital realm. ??

?Both countries face risks when it comes to protecting personal data and communications, financial transactions, critical infrastructure, or the intellectual property and trade secrets that are so vital to innovation and economic growth,? said Donilon.

James Lewis, a cybersecurity expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said Donilon?s remarks indicate an aggressive shift in how the administration deals with China. It is a pivot, Lewis said, that comes as more and more data pours in pointing to China as the biggest culprit behind cyberattacks.

?The atmosphere has just changed; the data is overwhelming,? he said.

Lewis said protecting digital institutions is more diplomatically framed as an economic issue instead of a security one to avoid stirring threats of military action. Still it is significant the debut of the administration?s sterner policy came from the president?s top security adviser, he said. ??

A report released in February by a private security firm found a Chinese military unit hacked more than 140 businesses, mostly inside the United States.? It?s a claim the Chinese government denies.

Media giants The New York Times and Wall Street Journal say they had been hacked for months and through an investigation with the FBI, traced the intrusions back to China.? The Wall Street Journal said the hacking was aimed at monitoring the newspaper?s China reporting, a claim that the spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry called ?irresponsible.?

White House spokesman Jay Carney said cybersecurity will be one of the priorities the president addresses with congressional leaders when he visits Capitol Hill this week.

And the United States is not alone. European countries have suspected China has infiltrated their computer systems as well.? Nations could retaliate with sanctions against Beijing.

?It?s become a problem that China can?t ignore without harming their economy,? said Lewis.

Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/11/17273068-cybersecurity-threatens-us-china-relationship-white-house-official-says?lite

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Will cardinals go off European grid to choose new pope?

Maurizio Brambatti / EPA

Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet is among the non-Europeans who are considered possible papal candidates.

By Tracy Connor, Staff Writer, NBC News

It's been 35 years since an Italian pope has ruled the Catholic Church, and some Vatican watchers believe the conclave that starts Tuesday could be the first to elect a pontiff from outside Europe.

While the Italians control a quarter of the votes, recent scandals suggest that they might be too beset by deep divisions to unite early around one candidate from their home turf.

The church's influence in Europe is on the wane, and its biggest area of growth is in sub-Saharan Africa, leading some to suggest that it might be time to look beyond the traditional countries for a pope with global appeal.

"The Catholic Church has moved far beyond the notion that any one nationality has a peculiar aptitude for the Office of Peter," said NBC News Vatican analyst George Weigel, author of "Evangelical Catholicism."

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"The secondary reason why this is a wide-open field from which a non-European candidate may emerge is that the Catholic Church is in serious difficulty throughout western Europe and in parts of central and eastern Europe.

"Even stalwart Poland is beginning to show some troubling signs of the influence of secularism."

Catholic Center for Media via AP

Cardinal Robert Sarah is from Guinea but also has a strong Vatican background.

A number of non-Europeans keep showing up on Vaticanologists' lists of papabili,?those cardinals thought to have the right stuff: Marc Ouellet of Canada, Luis Antonio Tagle of the Philippines, Odilo Pedro Scherer of Brazil, Robert Sarah of Guinea.

The Rev. Thomas Reese, an analyst for the National Catholic Reporter, said that when insiders talk about crossing the European borders, the conversation often ends up in Africa, "where the church is growing, where it's dynamic and where it's a success in vocations."

"The church looks good in Africa," he said. "The counter-argument is: The church in Africa is doing fine. We need someone to deal with the church in Europe, North America and Latin America, where it's in trouble."

Reese said he's "not sure that geography is the answer" to the Vatican's problems, but at the same time he sees the appeal of a pope from afar.

"It would certainly send a message that this is a global church, this is not a European church any more," he said.

With just three days to go before the conclave, there is no indication that the cardinals are rallying around any one candidate, including the Italians.

Weigel said many of the top non-European candidates have impressive Roman credentials:

Cardinal Marc Ouellet: The former archbishop of Quebec City, he heads the Congregation for Bishops, has worked in two Vatican departments and has taught at the Lateran University. He also has Latin American experience, having taught there, and has confronted an "aggressively secular environment" in Quebec. But some will question whether the scholarly pastor can reform the curia, the administrative apparatus of the Vatican.

Cardinal Odilo Pedro Scherer: The archbishop of Sao Paolo, Brazil, worked for the conclave's senior cardinal, Giovanni Battista Re, at the Congregation of Bishops under Pope John Paul II. Now he has the top job in the country with the most Catholics. He lacks charisma, though, and many cardinals feel they need someone with personality.

Cardinal Robert Sarah: Appointed archbishop of Conakry, Guinea, when he was just 34, Sarah now heads the pontifical council Cor Unum, which is the Vatican's parallel to the U.S. Agency for International Development. Weigel noted, however, that Rome has often not been as friendly as it could have been to African church leaders.

Franco Origlia / Getty Images

Filipino Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle has lots of energy and charisma but might be seen as too young.

Cardinal Timothy Dolan: The archbishop of New York's personality could be a double-edged sword. "No member of the College of Cardinals lights up a room like [Dolan]," Weigel said, but skeptics could find him too effervescent. Plus, there is a longstanding prejudice against so-called "superpower popes."

Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle: The passion and emotion of Manila's top Catholic could be attractive to electors looking beyond Italy for a candidate. His youth -- he's just 56 -- could go against him. "He could be pope for 40 years. If that's the case, he better be a great one," Reese said.

Other geographic outliers who have been mentioned and might get some votes in early balloting include Malcolm Ranjith of Sri Lanka, Thomas Collins of Toronto, Sean O'Malley of Boston and Jorge Bergoglio of Buenos Aires.

An oft-mentioned cardinal, Peter Turkson of Ghana, is favored in the Italian press, which Weigel said historically means his candidacy is over even before voting starts.

Reese said regardless of how many worthy candidates there are, he wouldn't bet on a pontiff from another continent.

"The odds are against it when more than half the College of Cardinals is from Europe," he said. "They always begin by looking at the Italians."

Related:

'It takes as long as it takes': How the next pope will be chosen, step by secret step

Exposing Vatican secrets a 'dangerous' mission, says Vatileaks journalist

Riots, revenge and royal rigging: A history of controversial conclaves

Will Catholics embrace change? The view from one parish in Rome

The cardinals will fill out ballots in the Sistine Chapel until all 77 ballots -- two-thirds plus one of the cardinal electors -- reach a consensus. NBC's Anne Thompson reports.

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Source: http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/09/17239020-will-the-cardinals-go-off-the-european-grid-to-choose-a-new-pope?lite

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