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Edward Snowden: Solar-Flare ‘Killshot’ Cataclysm Imminent By Oliver Wilis, on July 23rd, 2013 Edward Snowden, NSA Whistleblower, speaking from Sheremetyevo Airport’s Hotel Novotel, revealed the CIA’s Project Stargate was a complete success. (Photo: The Internet Chronicle) MOSCOW, Russia – Edward Snowden, hacker-fugitive and former National Security Agency (NSA) contractor, revealed Tuesday that a series of solar flares is set to occur in September, killing hundreds of millions of people. Documents provided by Snowden prove that, as of 14 years ago, Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) remote viewers knew that the event was inevitable. Ever since, the world’s governments have quietly been trying to prepare for the sweeping global famine to result. Speaking from his room at Sheremetyevo Airport’s Hotel Novotel, Snowden revealed that government preparations for September’s catastrophic solar flares have been “to only limited avail.” The flares’ results, he said, are known casually throughout the global intelligence community as “the killshot.” Remote viewers employed by the CIA’s Project Stargate use their ability to perceive geographically and chronologically distant events to protect America. Since 1999 they have known about the solar-flare event but have been threatened into silence by enforcers on the secret government’s payroll. As a part of hiring Snowden as a contractor, the NSA granted the 30-year-old access to all communications on earth. Now he has provided The Internet Chronicle with top-secret Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) documents outlining just how terrible the solar flares’ results will be. In just two months, “the killshot” is set to disable all electronic food and water delivery systems. Ever since the late 20th century, hundreds of millions of people have begun to rely on technological automation to enable their very lives. Solar flares release electromagnetic pulses, hazardous to electronic circuits. The smallest electronic circuits, such as those in computers’ central processing units, will be the most vulnerable. Snowden said FEMA and the National Disaster Reduction Center of China have been taking steps for 14 years in light of the findings of Project Stargate. FEMA’s own documents, provided by Snowden, lay out how the organization plans to round up tens of millions of the poorest Americans for housing at secure locations “to better facilitate feeding and provision of consumer goods.” Snowden, for years a CIA contractor, released testimonials from hundreds of remote viewers. Many of those remote viewers are still on the payroll of the governments of the United States and the Russian Federation. Those testimonials, though written independently by the analysts, are comprised of 4,472 pages, every single one of which, alarmingly, evince Snowden’s account. “The massive electromagnetic pulse from the solar flares, or ‘the killshot,’ will shutter most of the world’s electrical systems,” said Snowden. “The Americans whose lives are most at risk are the elderly and the infirmed, those who depend on technology to enable their receiving home care or life-sustaining medical treatment.” Throughout the 1970s and the 1990s, Russia and the United States were desperate to track and monitor the construction and maintenance of each other’s nuclear silos. The nations’ governments openly admitted having poured billions of dollars into the training of elite teams of remote viewers. With their powers, the remote viewers were able to deter nuclear launches and, ultimately, bring an end to the Cold War. In the mid-’90s, the CIA simply pretended to close its remote-viewing program, so that it could operate more effectively. Snowden said he hopes that his coming forward will allow Project Stargate’s participants to be able to live normal, open lives again, “instead of as circus animals, instead of as freaks.” He added, “[significant others of Project Stargate employees] have to get Q clearances just to cohabitate with, without even marrying, their loved ones. That’s tantamount to slavery.” Humanity is about to pay a most dire price for its technological dependence. That price, said Snowden, proved a leading factor in his decision to come forward to the press – about both the global Holocaust about to ensue, as well as NSA analysts’ power, on the slightest whim, to listen to the phone calls of any person on earth. Snowden said, with regard to CIA remote viewers, “I have seen too many brave whistleblowers become subjects of smear and ridicule for using their talents to expose the truth.” Added Snowden, bitterly, “Well, we’ll see who’s Mr. Chuckles when ‘the killshot’ goes down.” WikiLeaks attorneys; and Anatoly Kucherena, Snowden’s own counsel, together produced a video calling for calm and global preparedness. Monday, Snowden sent the video, below, to the Russian Federal Migration Service as part of his call for asylum. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkYQEuHwzgM&feature=player_embedded OR, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gkYQEuHwzgM http://www.chronicle.su/news/edward-snowden-solar-flare-killshot-cataclysm-imminent/

Firefox starting slow ?? Try disabling hardware acceleration The Firefox web browser is loading all web pages pretty fast on my system, not slower than Google Chrome for example, and also starting up just fine and in a matter of a second or so. While I have nothing to complain about, other users may not be that lucky. Some are reporting that Firefox takes a long time to load even though that should not really happen, especially since page loads just fine and fast in other web browsers. Vishal discovered a fix for the issue, at least for some users of Firefox, by accident. He noticed that his version of Firefox took nine or ten seconds to load on startup, even with extensions, themes and plugins disabled. He does not mention if Firefox was trying to load a session though which may attribute to the loading time. http://www.askvg.com/tip-reduce-mozilla-firefox-loading-time-by-disabling-hardware-acceleration-featureAnyway, he tried many different fixes and tweaks to find out why Firefox was starting up so slow and nothing seemed to work, until he disabled hardware acceleration in the browser's options. A restart afterwards showed that this resolved the issue that he was facing. Now, I'm not entirely sure how the hardware acceleration feature is linked to the browser's startup, but since disabling the feature did speed up the loading of the browser, it must be in some way. Disable hardware acceleration To disable hardware acceleration in the Firefox web browser do the following: Tap on the Alt-key on the keyboard and select Tools > Options from the menu that opens up. Switch to Advanced > General in the new options menu. Locate "Use hardware acceleration when available" and uncheck the option. Restart Firefox. If the feature is responsible for your browser's slow loading time, you should notice a speed boost on the next start of Firefox. Check if your browser is using hardware acceleration If the parameter is enabled, it does not mean that your Firefox version is indeed making use of hardware acceleration. To check up on that, enter about:support into the address bar of the browser and load it. Navigate down to the graphics section here and locate the GPU Accelerated Windows parameter. If it reads 0/x then it is not being used. This may be a driver issue or because the graphics card is not supported. If you see a number other than zero before /x then it is enabled and used in Firefox. There are some alternatives that you may want to explore. The first thing that you may want to do is make sure that you have the latest driver installed on your system. Visit the Nvidia or AMD graphics driver website and check the latest version available for your graphics adapter. If it is out of date, download it and install it. I would then enable hardware acceleration again in Firefox to see if the updated driver resolved the issue that you have been facing. Closing Words It is always a good idea to update the video card driver first if you suspect issues with your browser's hardware acceleration. If that does not resolve the issues you are facing, disable hardware acceleration in the browser. It should not really make that much of a difference when you are browsing regular websites on the Internet anyway. http://www.ghacks.net/2013/07/12/firefox-starting-slow-try-disabling-hardware-acceleration/?

£200m stolen paintings are destroyed in a stove SEVEN world-famous paintings worth around £200million are thought to have been burnt by a Romanian woman whose son is accused of stealing them. By: Peter Allen Published: Fri, July 19, 2013 1Comments One of the stolen paintings, Henri Matisse's 1919 Reading Girl in White and Yellow The masterpieces include exquisite London scenes by Claude Monet, as well as works by Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse – prompting one expert to describe their feared destruction as a “crime against humanity”. All were taken in a daring raid at Rotterdam’s Kunsthal museum last October. Thieves arrived in broad daylight and stripped the walls in less than two minutes. Six Romanians have been charged with the theft and now detectives in their home country have found the charred remains of what looks like the paintings in an oven. They were put there by Olga Dogaru who said she torched the artwork to destroy the evidence following her son’s arrest in January. The paintings were: Picasso’s 1971 Harlequin Head; Claude Monet’s 1901 Waterloo Bridge, London and Charing Cross Bridge, London; Henri Matisse’s 1919 Reading Girl in White and Yellow; Paul Gauguin’s 1898 Girl in Front of Open Window; Meyer de Haan’s Self-Portrait of around 1890; and Lucian Freud’s 2002 work Woman with Eyes Closed. I then added some logs, slippers and rubber shoes and waited until they had completely burned Olga Dogaru Forensic specialists later confirmed that small fragments of painting primer, the remains of canvas and paint were found in the oven. Ernest Oberlander-Tarnoveanu, director of Romania’s National History Museum, said it would be “a crime against humanity” if the works had been destroyed. Mrs Dogaru has admitted hiding the artwork in an abandoned house and also in a cemetery. It was only when police started searching her home earlier this year that she incinerated them. She said: “I placed the suitcase containing the paintings in the stove. I then added some logs, slippers and rubber shoes and waited until they had completely burned.”

Pizzeria Owner Caught on Webcam; Internet Reacts Thursday, July 18, 2013, by Erin DeJesus 331 Thanks to some 4Chan users, the owner of San Diego's Jersey Joe's Pizzeria now has the nickname "Jerkin' Joe." The pizzeria's unsecured webcam, located in the kitchen area, allegedly caught owner Giusepp "Joe" Scire masturbating in the back room, which Internet peeping toms screengrabbed and shared on 4Chan. Scire has publicly denied that the images are of him and/or his restaurant, telling the Huffington Post that he's possibly the victim of retaliation by two recently fired employees. And of course, the Internet's not done yet. Jersey Joe's Yelp page is now the site for strangers to practice their double-entendre skills, like in this recent review: "Sauce is real Italian, and they were able to crank one out in just a few minutes... Was a little disappointed with the meat pizza, needed to slap a bit more salami on there, maybe add some pulled pork or hot sausage."

New Chinese coast guard ships spotted near islands at center of dispute with Japan Japan’s 11th Regional Coast Guard/ Associated Press ) - In this photo released by Japan’s 11th Regional Coast Guard, a China Coast Guard ship numbered 2101 sails in waters 66 kilometers (41 miles) from the East China Sea islands called Senkaku by Japan and Diaoyu by China Wednesday, July 24, 2013. Chinese coast guard ships were spotted for the first time near the disputed islands conlled by Japan following a reorganization of the service in a bid to boost its effectiveness. By Associated Press, Updated: Wednesday, July 24, 6:57 PM TOKYO — Chinese coast guard ships were spotted Wednesday for the first time near disputed islands controlled by Japan following a reorganization of the service to boost Beijing’s ability to enforce its maritime claims. Japan’s coast guard said four Chinese craft were seen early in the day just outside Japanese territorial waters around the tiny uninhabited East China Sea islands called Diaoyu by China and Senkaku by Japan.

DEA Raids Legal Medical Marijuana Dispensaries In Washington, 'Humiliating' Shop Owners The Huffington Post | By Meredith Bennett-Smith Posted: 07/25/2013 1:32 pm EDT | Updated: 07/25/2013 2:55 pm EDT In a series of coordinated raids, federal agents from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration raided marijuana dispensaries in Washington State on Wednesday, despite the fact the state legalized the substance last November. DEA spokeswoman Jodie Underwood confirmed the operation to The Associated Press and said all search warrants had been executed by Wednesday evening. Underwood did not go into detail about the raids. Local television station KIRO 7 reported that the raids followed a two-year investigation by the federal agency, and the station listed four of the dispensaries visited by the DEA. One of the dispensaries, Bayside Gardens, confirmed the raid on its Facebook page and defiantly announced that it remained open for business. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zscQj-RaZK0 "We are still open! We may not have meds at the moment but we are still open!" the post read. "They will not keep us down Thank You everyone for ALL of you support and love. We have no Meds, but we still have our dignity and we aren't going anywhere [all sic]." Bayside employee Casey Lee told another local station, KING 5 News, that around seven vehicles participated in the raid on Bayside Wednesday morning, confiscating documents and around $2,500 worth of medical marijuana. "It's humiliating," Lee told KING 5. Leif O'Leary, a medical marijuana patient at the also-raided Seattle Cross dispensary, told KING 5 he didn't understand why federal law enforcement would be concerned with his small-town supplier. "You can't tell me there isn't [sic] bigger fish to fry, especially now that recreational marijuana is legal [in Washington]," O'Leary said. "It is just to me inconceivable that this is still happening." Washington State and Colorado are the only two states in the U.S. where recreational marijuana use has been legalized by a state law. They are two of the 18 states that allow medical marijuana. The DEA has made it clear that it will uphold federal law, which still classifies marijuana as an illegal substance. "The Drug Enforcement Administration's enforcement of the Controlled Substances Act remains unchanged," said the DEA in a press statement following the passage Washington and Colorado's 2012 legalization initiatives. "In enacting the Controlled Substances Act, Congress determined that marijuana is a Schedule I controlled substance. The Department of Justice is reviewing the ballot initiatives and we have no additional comment at this time." Also on HuffPost: 

No explanation for Florida shooting rampage that leaves 7 dead Posted on: 4:45 pm, July 27, 2013, (CNN) — The 43-year-old gunman who set fire to his apartment in suburban Miami and then fatally shot six people in and around the building had given authorities no reason to believe anything was amiss until Friday night, police said Saturday. “Nobody seems to know why he acted the way he acted,” Hialeah Police Department Spokesman Carl Zogby told reporters about Pedro Vargas. Police were looking into the possibility that Vargas — described by some as a “quiet” man — may have had a dispute with the building managers, who were among his victims, Zogby said. But that had not been established. An initial check indicated that Vargas had no criminal history and no history of irrational behavior. “We don’t have an explanation,” Zogby said. The incident began around 6:30 p.m. Friday, when callers to 911 reported that smoke was emanating from Apartment 408, which Vargas had recently rented and where he was living with his mother, Zogby said. The Hialeah police spokesman said Vargas used a flammable liquid to spread the fire. As the two building managers ran toward the smoking apartment, Vargas exited the apartment and shot them both several times, killing them, Zogby said. He returned to his apartment balcony, shooting 10 to 20 times into the street. A 33-year-old man who was returning home from work was struck in a parking lot across the street, Zogby said. He identified the slain victim as a father. “The subject then ran out of his apartment, ran down to the third floor, kicked the door open of an apartment and shot a 69-year-old man, his 51-year-old wife and their 17-year-old daughter inside the apartment,” Zogby said. All three died. “Vargas then ran out of the apartment, ran throughout the building firing shots at random in a very irrational fashion,” Zogby said. By now, firefighters had arrived at the approximately 90-unit building but were unable to enter the burning apartment because of the gunfire, Zogby said. Hialeah police — aided by officers from nearby police agencies — responded in droves, with more than 100 at the building, he said. “Our main objective at that point was to neutralize an active shooter,” he said. “He fired at us and we fired at him.” After eluding police for about three hours, Vargas entered another apartment, where he holed himself up with two hostages and began negotiating with police, Zogby said. But when the negotiations failed after about three hours, “the SWAT unit made the decision to enter and neutralize — and shoot — Mr. Vargas,” Zogby said. “When they entered the apartment, he resisted, he fired at them. There was an exchange of gunfire, he was ready to fight.” The officers returned the fire, and Vargas died on the scene early Saturday, Zogby said. The hostages were “shaken up,” but not hurt. Police found a 9 mm pistol and “plenty of ammo,” Zogby said. The fire never spread beyond the Vargas apartment.

Jackson's 'Smooth' leaning move really was patented Enlarge No. 5,255,452 on the books: Michael Jackson's patent is for shoes that allow a person to sway past his center of gravity by hitching a heel slot in the shoes to a peg in the stage floor. The patent ended in 2005, though, after a government fee was not paid. Enlarge Epic Records The move in action: Jackson shows off the anti-gravity lean. By Dan Vergano, USA TODAY Fans of Michael Jackson's Smooth Criminal video will recall how, in the middle of performing the 1988 song, the pop star and his dancers leaned forward dramatically. Turns out Jackson didn't just invent the move — he eventually patented it. To do what became a signature move in live performances without the help of harnesses and wires, Jackson created a shoe "system" called "Method and Means for Creating Anti-Gravity Illusion." APOLLO TRIBUTE: 'The spirit of Michael is here' along with thousands of fans WILL DISCOVERED: Family confirms existence of 2002 document "Most people think of Michael Jackson's intellectual property in terms of his songs and the Beatles catalogue. They usually don't know about his other endeavors," says lawyer Milord Keshishian of Milord & Associates in Los Angeles. "A lot of entertainers with business savvy try to protect what they invent." Granted in 1993 to Jackson and two partners by the U.S. Patent and Trade Office, patent No. 5,255,452 covers a "system for allowing a shoe wearer to lean forwardly beyond his center of gravity by virtue of wearing a specially designed pair of shoes." A heel slot in the shoes gets hitched to retractable pegs in a stage floor. Wearing the shoes, Jackson (or anyone) could seem to lean past his center of gravity without toppling. The effect would be most striking in live performances, during which harnesses and wires would be too cumbersome or impossible to disguise. "His untimely death has subjected Michael Jackson's personal choices to debate, but his dedication to creating and protecting his art is unquestionable," Keshishian says. Aside from Jackson's involvement, the patent isn't spectacularly unusual for the entertainment industry, he adds. Special-effects creators often seek to patent effects. "Some dance moves are copyrightable as well," he says. "I've used (Jackson's) patent for years in classes to teach students what they can patent," says lawyer Gene Quinn of IPWatchdog.com. Rather than licensing the shoes, Jackson probably sought the patent to keep the effect exclusive, Quinn says. "Just getting a patent may be enough to create marketing buzz in some cases, and he may have achieved that as well." Despite his fame and fortune, Jackson claimed "small entity status" in his patent application, which as a small-business employer entitled him to pay one-half the regular fees. But imitators can dance in copies of the shoes without fear. The patent ended early, on Oct. 26, 2005, after failure to pay a final maintenance fee to the federal government.

Condom Rocket Gone Wrong

Friend behind Hudson River boat crash that killed bride-to-be and best man may have been intoxicated: officials Bride-to-be Lindsey Stewart and best man Mark Lennon, both 30, were killed after boat crashed into a barge in Hudson River, north of Tappan Zee Bridge. Friend Jojo K. John, 35, has been charged with vehicular manslaughter and vehicular assault. An official says they have probable cause to believe John operated the boat while drunk. NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Published: Saturday, July 27, 2013, 7:44 AM Updated: Sunday, July 28, 2013, 12:06 AM Norman Y. Lono for New York Daily News The damaged speedboat that crashed into three barges in the Hudson River. It was a storybook romance with a heartbreaking ending. A horrific Hudson River speedboat wreck killed a beautiful bride-to-be and left the best man missing and presumed dead just two weeks before their wedding — and a friend is charged as the drunken skipper, officials said. The would-be groom, one of four survivors from the boozy crash late Friday night, was left to make funeral plans for lost love Lindsey Stewart. “It can’t end like this,” Stewart’s anguished mother, Carol Stewart-Kosik, told WABC-TV hours before her daughter’s body was found. The 19-foot Stingray bowrider driven by banker Jojo John, 35, plowed into a stationary barge loaded with heavy construction materials just south of the Tappan Zee Bridge, officials said. Facebook Lindsey Stewart and Brian Bond; a friend of the couple confirmed to the Daily News that these two were on the boat. Bond is being treated for a broken eye socket while Stewart's body was later found. “We have probable cause to believe he operated the boat while intoxicated,” said Rockland County Undersheriff Robert Van Cura, citing witness statements. John was held on $250,000 bail after his hospital-bed arraignment on charges of vehicular manslaughter and vehicular assault. Additional charges were possible in the tragic wreck. The body of Stewart, 30, of Piermont, was found Saturday, about 14 hours after the crash catapulted her and wedding party member Mark Lennon into the cold, murky river. She was not wearing a life jacket when discovered. “I feel so horrible for the family,” Rockland County Sheriff's Department Chief William Barbera told the Daily News. “You’re planning a wedding and now you’re planning a funeral. It’s just so unfair.” Lennon’s body had not been recovered as of Saturday night, and search teams were expected back on the Hudson Sunday morning to resume efforts to find him. Facebook Officials believe Jojo K. John was intoxicated while operating the boat when it crashed. He was charged with vehicular manslaughter and vehicular assault. Stewart’s fiancé, Brian Bond, 36, was knocked unconscious in the wreck that mangled the boat’s front end and spattered blood across its seats. After regaining his wits, the injured Bond frantically dialed 911 in a fruitless attempt to save his bride and his best man. “Lindsey was getting married two weeks from today,” her red-eyed mother said while keeping a grim vigil from the riverbank Saturday, before Lindsey’s body was found. “Now her and the best man both are missing.” Stewart-Kosik tossed two white roses into the water in memory of the tragic couple shortly before her daughter’s body was recovered floating in the Hudson just a short distance from the crash site. “They just went out for a nice night on the river,” said Stewart-Kosik, who broke down in tears. “I can’t talk about it. I’m sorry.” Lindsey Stewart, the bride-to-be. Stewart was also set to become an aunt, with her pregnant sister expecting a daughter in September. The couple met in their youth and became lifelong friends before falling in love about four years ago, said the dead woman’s stepfather. PHOTOS: CRANE DAMAGES BROOKLYN BRIDGE SCAFFOLDING A February photo on Stewart’s Facebook page showed her flashing an engagement ring alongside a beaming Bond. The two often attended church in suburban Pearl River. “They were planning a good future together,” said Stewart’s stepfather, Walter Kosik. Their immediate plans included an Aug. 10 wedding at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, followed by a Caribbean honeymoon in the Grenadines. Norman Y. Lono for New York Daily News Carol Stewart-Kosik, the mom of the bride-to-be who was found dead. “She did all the plans herself,” said a shaken Kosik. “She had everything under control, a real smart lady.” But instead of finalizing wedding details, the Stewart family was preparing for an unexpected funeral. Stewart was also set to become an aunt: Her pregnant sister is expecting a daughter in September, Kosik said. Authorities said no booze was found aboard the Stingray, and said nothing about whether speed played a role. The speedboat can go as fast as 60 mph. Bond and three others on board survived the crash, which occurred soon after the happy couple and four male friends jumped into the boat around 10:40 p.m. at the Tappan Zee Marina. The couple, who shared an apartment just up the street from the marina, was headed across the river from Piermont to Tarrytown when the craft slammed into the barge, which is part of a project to replace the Tappan Zee Bridge. Norman Y. Lono for New York Daily News The scene of the tragic speedboat crash Saturday morning. Stewart and Lennon, 30, were hurled into the Hudson while the other four were tossed around the badly damaged boat, officials said. All suffered head injuries in the crash. Rescue efforts were hampered when the disoriented survivors couldn’t provide an exact location for the wreck. “They weren’t sure what they hit, and they weren’t sure exactly where the accident took place,” Van Cura said. Two of the four people remaining on the boat were wearing life jackets when rescuers arrived. One of the survivors suffered a broken arm, while Bond was treated for a fractured eye socket and a puncture wound on his arm. Facebook The missing man was identified as her fiancé's best man, confirmed by a friend as Mark Lennon. Authorities said Saturday that the rescue mission has turned into a recovery, as both are now presumed dead. “He is still in shock,” said his father, Bruce Bond, when asked if his son knew about Stewart’s death. “He is in a lot of pain right now.” The three other people on the boat were all taken to Nyack Hospital for treatment. The injured boaters were brought ashore at the Tappan Zee Marina. PHOTOS: BRIDGE COLLAPSE “There was blood on arms, everywhere,” Anthony Apolito, a valet at the Pier 701 bar at the marina, told The Journal News. “I don’t even know how to explain it. It was depressing.” ABC NEWS Carol Stewart-Kosik, the mom of Lindsay Stewart, who was found dead Saturday. 'They just went out for a nice night on the river,' she said, breaking down in tears. Investigators believe the group of pals may have started the night at the marina-based watering hole. Bond, a former Pearl River resident, is an art teacher in Westchester County, while his fiancée worked at the Prudential Life Insurance Co. in Nyack. Bruce Bond said he was headed from the hospital to offer his condolences to the Stewart family. He also described best man Lennon as “a wonderful kid.” The barge was one of three moored together about 200 feet south of the span. Officials said there were lights on the barge, which was located about a half-mile from the shoreline, but they acknowledged visibility could have been an issue. “It was very dark out there last night and very difficult to see the barges in the water,” said Van Cura. www.lohud.com Four people were also injured late Friday after the boat struck a barge on the west side of the Hudson River near the Tappan Zee Bridge. Officials said they believe John, whose Facebook page says he works for JP Morgan Chase, co-owned the boat. One picture on his Facebook page shows him clutching a bottle of Stella Artois while hugging two beauties, one of whom is also holding a bottle of brew. One of John’s neighbors in upstate Nyack said the affable banker told him Friday afternoon that he was “going to hang out on a boat with some buddies” on Saturday. “He’s a very friendly guy,” said the neighbor, who asked not to be identified. “I hope he’s all right.” Officials said detectives are speaking to the survivors, but they wouldn’t reveal what they told investigators. Robert Sabo/New York Daily News The Tappan Zee Bridge, between Nyack and Tarrytown, New York. Barbera said the massive search effort, which resumed around 9:15 a.m., included Piermont police and fire departments with help from the NYPD, New York State Police, Yonkers Police and the Westchester County marine unit. Kosik said he knew there was a problem when the police contacted him at 2:30 a.m. “That’s a nightmare I don’t wish on any parent,” he said. Kosik said the couple would have jumped at the chance for a ride on the river. “Knowing them, they probably enjoyed going out on the water,” he said

Bride-To-Be Killed in Hudson River Wedding Party Boating Accident New York (CNN) -- [breaking news update at 5:08 p.m. ET] The operator of a boat carrying members of a wedding party that struck a barge in the Hudson River -- leaving the bride-to-be dead and the best man missing -- has been arrested, a Rockland County, New York, sheriff's office official said. The boat's operator is being arraigned at an area hospital on one court of first-degree vehicular manslaughter and three counts of second-degree vehicular assault, said county Undersheriff Robert Van Cura. [Original story published at 3:11 p.m. ET] New York (CNN) -- A boat carrying members of a wedding party struck a barge in the Hudson River, leaving the bride-to-be dead and the best man missing, authorities said Saturday. The body of Lindsey Stewart of Piermont, New York, was recovered Saturday about an eighth of a mile from the river's edge, Rockland County Sheriff's Chief William Barbera told CNN. The search for the best man, Mark Lennon, continues. Both of them went overboard when the 21-foot Stingray power boat hit a barge about 200 feet south of the Tappan Zee Bridge, located about 25 miles north of Manhattan. The groom was among four others who were injured in the accident, the family said. He suffered a fractured eye socket, CNN affiliate WABC reported. One body found; search continues "The river at night is very dark, and even knowing the barges are there, they are difficult to locate until you are very close," said Rockland County Undersheriff Robert Van Cura. Stewart's stepfather, Walter Kosik, said the family was notified about the accident early Saturday morning. "That's a nightmare I don't wish on any parent -- police coming over to your house waking you up out of your sleep to tell you an accident has occurred," Kosik told CNN. Barbera said at least two of the injured were wearing life jackets, but it's not clear whether Stewart or Lennon did. Stewart was a "real smart lady," Kosik said, adding that she and her fiance were a pair of "workaholics so I know they were planning a good future together." The bride's mother, Carol Stewart, told the affiliate that some friends had picked up her daughter by boat, but she didn't know where they were going. The groom-to-be told the mother that they hit something and he called 911. "She's supposed to be married two weeks from today," Carol Stewart said. "It just can't end like this."

Homemade Elevator Crushed Florida Woman, Margaret Harrison Death Remains ‘A Mystery’ [PHOTOS] By Zoe Mintz on July 26 2013 9:33 AM A homemade elevator built outside a Florida home crushed Margaret Harrison, 66, to death on Tuesday. Fox News Screenshot A homemade elevator built outside a Florida home crushed Margaret Harrison, 66, to death on Tuesday. Google Maps A homemade elevator installed with the best intentions crushed a 66 year-old woman on Tuesday. The elevator was built 17 years ago from a fork lift, wood and wielded metal which was located outside a three story home in in Weeki Wachi, Fla. The “lift” helped Jean Blair, who uses a motorized wheelchair, get around, WTSP reports. While Blair’s husband and son were away, her best friend, Margaret Harrison, was supposed to stop by and keep her company. Blair sent the elevator to the first floor in anticipation of her friend’s arrival, but she never showed. It was only when Harrison’s boyfriend came to the home did he find her underneath the elevator. She was unresponsive and pronounced dead at the scene, the Tampa Bay Times reports. "I knew as soon as I saw her," Francis Jorr said. "She was blue already." But her death remains a mystery. Investigators don’t suspect foul play, said the lift was working normally and there was no indication Harrison suffered a medical emergency. An autopsy confirmed that the elevator crushed her to death, the Hernando County Sheriff's Office said. "They couldn't find anything wrong with it," Jean Blair’s husband, Robert, said about the homemade elevator he built. Blair, a retired engineer crafted the lift for his wife in the 1990s when he constructed the house. The old forklift is wielded to a concrete base that sits adjacent to the home. It is speed-controlled and can reach the first floor in 13 seconds, he said. Florida law doesn’t require lifts in private homes to be inspected or require certifications. Blair didn’t have the required electrical permit and the elevator didn’t have any required safety switches either, authorities said. The elevator has since been shut down. The elevator was "solidly built. But don't get me wrong. Obviously, I've got to do something to make it more foolproof," Blair told the Tampa Bay Times. The couple said they received more than 60 sympathy calls two days since the accident. "We're Christians, and look forward to seeing her again," Blair said.

A Horn Blowing Statue

A Cute in Prayer

Thank God You're A Man

Masturbation Facts & Statistics

A 'quarter of a second' from disaster: 500mph RAF Tornado missed glider by just 100ft thanks to lightning reflexes of fighter pilot The near-miss took place in the skies above the Scottish Highlands The RAF tornado saw and avoided the glider with split-second manouevre Authorities find neither pilot was at fault as the airspace is 'uncontrolled' PUBLISHED: 07:02 GMT, 26 July 2013 | UPDATED: 12:16 GMT, 26 July 2013 A hero Tornado pilot going 500mph 'back-flipped' his fighter jet at 250ft above the ground to avoid an inevitably fatal crash with a glider, it was revealed today. The daredevil's lightning reflexes allowed him to force his own plane downwards and miss the other aircraft by 'a quarter of a second' - or 100ft, an air investigation has found. His RAF jet was tearing through a valley in the Highlands on a training exercise when he saw the tiny glider coming towards him. To avoid collision at terrifying speed the fighter pilot 'bunted', an aerobatic move where a plane is forced into an inverted loop and speeds away upside down. Scroll down for video Incredible: This MailOnline graphic shows how the terrific Tornado pilot used lightning reflexes to avoid a glider, by flying his jet on its back just above the ground If he had decided to fly above the glider instead, the Tornado's jet engine would have sent the light aircraft spiralling downwards into the ground. He had been travelling along the route of the River Spey near the Highland Wildlife Park and a report into the near miss described the risk of collision as 'high'. The glider pilot said the risk of collision was 'high', a UK Airprox Board report said. Near miss: The Tornado pilot spotted the glider 'at the very last moment' when flying at 500mph along the route of the River Spey near the Highland Wildlife Park. File picture The Tornado pilot, based at RAF Lossiemouth, was returning to base when he spotted the glider about 500m away. The report says: 'The glider pilot pulled up, gaining about 50ft in altitude as the Tornado passed under and adjacent to him coming within an estimated 100ft vertically.' 'No other crew member in the formation saw the glider.' The incident took place near the village of Kincraig, as the fighter pilots avoided the Highland Wildlife Park. The RAF pilot said the glider may have been obscured by the canopy arch of his plane. A file picture of the DG-808 glider. The pilot was a civilian on a six-hour flight The glider, which has the registration number G-EEZO, was four hours and 16 minutes into a flight lasting six hours and 42 minutes from the Scottish gliding centre in Portmoak, Kinross. Its civilian pilot was flying a single-seat, high performance DG-808C motor glider. The report said: 'No specific flight safety recommendations can be made; both pilots were entitled airspace users in class G [uncontrolled] airspace where the principle of 'see and avoid' is used to prevent collision. 'However, military crews must remain aware that light aircraft, including gliders, can and will operate in class G, from low level below radar coverage, to higher altitudes.' However the report recommended that the Tornado's flight recorders should be upgraded: 'The Tornado flight recording capability runs out after 3hr and the incident occurred 3hr 20min into the sortie, so no visual record of the event exists. 'It is recommended that the Tornado fleet software is upgraded such that sorties are visually recorded in their entirety, regardless of sortie length.' Cockpit view of low-level RAF Tornado flight in Scotland

'What joy to set police speed guns off': Spanish driver whose derailed train killed at least 80 people while travelling at 120mph in 50mph zone posted boasting Facebook photo of speedometer The passenger train derailed outside city of Santiago de Compostela All eight carriages of the Madrid to Ferrol train derailed The train was carrying 218 passengers when it smashed into the wall Many were travelling to the area on the eve of a Christian festival Foreign Office confirmed a British citizen is among the injured Driver posted picture of train speedometer at 125mph in March last year Spanish PM has visited scene and declared three days official mourning PUBLISHED: 21:06 GMT, 24 July 2013 | UPDATED: 09:08 GMT, 26 July 2013 A driver of the Spanish train which hurtled off the tracks and smashed into a wall, killing at least 80 people, previously boasted of speeding on his Facebook page. Francisco Jose Garzon, one of the drivers on the train which crashed, leaving up to 141 people injured including one Briton, is reported to have posted a picture on the site of a train speedometer at 125mph last year. According to reports he also boasted about how fast he was going. The webpage has disappeared after images appeared on Spanish TV and newspaper websites. Alongside the photo, which was published in March last year, he wrote: 'What joy it would be to get level with the police and then go past them making their speed guns go off. Ha ha!.' It came after a Spanish court said one of the drivers of the train was being held in custody in hospital. Scroll down for video Terrifying: A horrifying video has been released of the moment the train hurtled off the tracks near the city of Santiago de Compostela last night Moment of impact: The train hurtled off the tracks and smashed into a wall, leaving at least 80 people dead and up to 141 were injured Francisco Jose Garzon (left), one of the drivers on the train which crashed, is reported to have posted a picture on Facebook in March last year of a train speedometer at 125mph (right) Rescue: A fireman carries a wounded victim from the wreckage of the train crash near Santiago de Compostela The Supreme Court of the Galicia region, which did not say which driver was being questioned, said: 'The judge has ordered the police to take a statement from the driver, currently under formal investigation, in the hospital where he is being held in custody.' A terrifying video meanwhile has emerged which captured the moment the train crashed. All eight carriages of the Madrid to Ferrol train derailed near the city of Santiago de Compostela last night. Wreckage from the devastating train crash in Spain is removed Dramatic video footage from a security camera shows the train careering into a concrete wall as it came off the rails on the bend, before flipping onto its side and hurtling down the railway line with its terrified passengers on board. Deadly: The train which had 218 passengers and an unspecified number of staff on board at the time of the accident hurtles down the track after falling on to its side Admission: One of the drivers told railway officials by radio that he took the bend at 190 kilometres (118 miles) per hour in an urban zone with a speed limit of 80 kph, daily El Pais reported Moment high-speed passenger train derails and crashes One of the drivers was trapped in his cabin and told the railway station by radio that the train entered the bend at 190 kilometres per hour (120 mph), reported newspaper El Pais. The speed limit on that section of track is 80km/h (50mph). 'We're only human! We're only human!' he told the station, the newspaper said, citing sources close to the investigation. 'I hope there are no dead, because this will fall on my conscience.' Police have put an unnamed train driver under formal investigation - the Galicia government said one driver was in hospital. Newspaper reports cited witnesses as saying driver Francisco Jose Garzon,who helped rescue victims, had shouted: 'I've derailed! What do I do?' into a phone. The accident is the worst train accident in 30 years and television footage showed one wagon pointing upwards into the air with one of its ends twisted and disfigured. Another carriage that had been severed in two could be seen lying on a road near the track. State-owned train operator Renfe said in a statement that 218 passengers and an unspecified number of staff were on board at the time of the accident. Clearance: Rescue workers at the accident site at the entrance of Santiago de Compostela Station Aftermath: Rail personnel clear the area and fix the track at the site of the accident Wreckage: Part of the train is carried away following the horrific crash Twisted: The accident is the worst train accident in 30 years and television footage showed one wagon pointing upwards into the air with one of its ends twisted and disfigured Accident: The train jumped the tracks on a bend just before arriving in the northwestern shrine city of Santiago de Compostela Horrifying: At least 80 people have been killed and up to 141 injured including one Briton after a packed Spanish passenger train derailed on a bend last night Derailed: All eight carriages of the Madrid to Ferrol train came off the tracks near the city of Santiago de Compostela Tragic: Emergency crews work to help those who were injured in the Spanish train crash which happened just outside Santiago de Compostela Train crash leaves at least 80 dead in Spain Renfe said the derailment happened at 8.41pm local time on a high-speed section that was inaugurated two years ago. After the crash, bodies were seen covered in blankets next to the tracks and rescue workers tried to get trapped people out of the train's carriages, with smoke billowing from some of the wreckage. Some passengers were pulled out of broken windows, and one man stood on a carriage lying on its side, using a pickaxe to try to smash through a window. Belongings: Police officers collect baggage at the scene of a train crash Relatives of the victims of a train accident reacts outside the Cersia building for more information Harrowing: Families wait for further information during the identification of the bodies Difficult: Friends and family waited anxiously for news of their loved ones Public visit: Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy (centre), Public Works Minister Ana Pastor (right), and Galician Regional President Alberto Nunez Feijoo (second left) visit the scene of a train accident in Santiago de Compostela Declaration: The Spanish Prime Minister declared three days official mourning throughout Spain Wrecked carriages at scene of Spanish train disaster TVE showed footage of what appeared to be several bodies covered by blankets alongside the tracks next to the damaged train wagons and rescue workers entering toppled carriages through broken windows. The crash happened about an hour before sunset after the train emerged from a tunnel and derailed on the curve - sending cars flying off the tracks. As casualties were taken to hospitals in Santiago and two other cities in the region, authorities appealed for people to donate blood. Removal: A carriage is lifted at the scene of a train crash Surveying the scene: The crash happened about an hour before sunset after the train emerged from a tunnel and derailed on the curve - sending cars flying off the tracks Statement: State-owned train operator Renfe said in a statement that 218 passengers and an unspecified number of staff were on board at the time of the accident Terrifying: A general view of the train crash. The incident happened as Catholic pilgrims converged on Santiago de Compostela to celebrate a festival honouring St James, the disciple of Jesus whose remains are said to rest in a shrine Investigation: Emergency personnel work through the debris at the scene Cause: An official inspects the train engine amongst the wreckage of a train crash Ownership: The train, which belongs to the state-owned Renfe company, was not an AVE high speed train, but it was a relatively luxurious version that uses the same track as Spain's fastest expresses Terrible scene filmed on camera phone after train crashes in... CYBER CROOKS TARGET CRASH Cyber crooks attempted to capitalise on the devastating rail disaster by sending out a stream of bogus news emails pertaining to be CNN updates in a scam to steal bank details. Fraudsters are believed to have targeted millions of people as the death toll rose following the tragedy in Santiago de Compostela. They launched their campaign just a day after sophisticated criminals attempted to cash in on the birth of the Royal baby. A 'steady flow' of messages designed to look like emails from CNN have been sent out this week, according to analysts at web security firm Appriver. In each case, the fraudsters rely on recipients clicking on links in the fake emails which claim to direct them to updates from the American news organisation. But instead, unwitting readers are lured onto a webpage where their computer can be infected by a virus designed to steal their bank details. A CNN spokesman said: 'Our security team is currently investigating these latest emails and we will continue to do everything possible to combat attempts to use our brand in this way'. Neighbours responded to calls from the police to bring blankets and sheets to the scene along with bottles of water. As darkness fell, generators and emergency lighting were brought in to help the rescue teams. Alberto Nunez Feijoo, president of the region of Galicia, described the scene as 'Dante-esque'. One of the passengers, Sergio Prego, said: 'The train travelled very fast and derailed and turned over on the bend in the track. 'It's a disaster. I've been very lucky because I'm one of the few to be able to walk out.' Another passenger, Ricardo Montero, said: 'When the train reached that bend it began to flip over, many times, with some carriages ending up on top of others, leaving many people trapped below. 'We had to get under the carriages to get out.' Lidia Cannon, who previously lived in the city and was visiting for the local fiesta celebrating St James, said she saw a woman who had lost a foot as a result of the train crash. She told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: 'We heard a big bang, like, we thought it was an air crash, I thought it was a car crash, other people thought it was a bomb. It was very, very loud, the noise.' Ms Cannon said people went to help and told of one man's experience of visiting the crash site. People living nearby rushed to the scene with bottles of water and blankets Devastation: At least 80 have died and rescue efforts went on through the night Carnage: People look down from the rail bridge on the aftermath of a devastating train crash in north west Spain Injured: A woman is carried from the wreckage of the train on a stretcher as emergency service workers try to rescue survivors Emergency: Rescue workers carry victims on stretchers away for treatment. More than 70 bodies are reported to have been removed from the wreckage Two victims with head wounds - one with his arm in a sling - are helped by a rescue worker WORST SPANISH TRAIN CRASH FOR DECADES The Spanish train crash is the worst the country has experienced since a terrible three-train accident in a tunnel in Leon province in 1944. Due to heavy censorship at the time, the exact death toll for the Leon disaster has never been established. The official figure was given as 78 dead, but it is thought that as many as 250 may have been killed. There was another serious accident in Spain 1972 when a Madrid to Cadiz express collided head-on with a local train on the outskirts of Seville in the south west of the country. A total of 77 people died, with more than 100 injured. The Madrid train bombings of March 2004 produced a death toll of 191- but this was a terrorist outrage and not an accident. There were 10 explosions aboard four commuter trains, with the attacks being directed by an al Qaida-inspired terrorist cell. The latest incident comes less than two weeks after six people were killed and scores injured in a train crash just south of Paris. Recent bad train crashes in Europe include one in February 2010 in Buizingen in Belgium which claimed the lives of 18 people, a September 2006 crash of a magnetic levitation train on a test track in the Emsland area of Germany which killed 23 people, and a derailment of a packed train outside the Montenegro capital of Podgorica in January 2006 in which 46 people died. In Britain, no passenger has been killed in a train accident since 84-year-old Margaret Masson from Glasgow died following the Virgin West Coast Pendolino train derailment at Grayrigg in Cumbria in February 2007. In terms of deaths, the worst rail crashes in recent times in the UK were outside Paddington in west London in October 1999 when 31 people died in a two-train collision after one of them had gone through a red light, and at Clapham in south London in December 1988 when 35 people were killed in a three-train crash. Britain's worst peace-time crash was in 1952 at Harrow and Wealdstone in north west London when 112 people died in a three-train disaster. The worst rail disaster in Britain was at Quintinshill near Gretna Green in Scotland in 1915 during the First World War in a multiple-train smash in which a troop train caught fire, killing more than 220 people. She said: 'He couldn't cope with it. He said he was there 20 minutes but he took out a man that was asking for his wife and his wife was inside, dead. A boy was looking for his girlfriend and she was inside the train, dead. 'He was taking out people that had mobile phones in their pockets ringing all the time. He couldn't cope with it because policemen and doctors and everyone was crying and he had to leave. 'I saw a woman who had lost one foot. But instead of crying or shouting or whatever because of the pain she was looking very, very serious. They were carrying her away and she had her sight, her eyes, were looking to one point - she was in shock.' Miguel Morado, journalist at local newspaper La Voz de Galicia said: 'Everything points to inadequate [sic] speed - the train driver who survived the crash, when he was being rescued didn't know that people had died, and admitted going too fast with the train... 'He gave a figure he said he was going at 190 km/h - this is part of a network where the speed limit is 80. 'Although it's clear that it was human error, that the driver made a mistake, there's also the question of the line in that part of the network. Galicia is distant from the centre, it's never been well connected with Madrid... The people who made the decisions were too hasty.' Officials said they believed the crash was an accident but declined to offer more details, saying an investigation was under way into the cause. Renfe said that it - and track operator Adif - were collaborating with a judge who has been appointed to probe the accident. Passenger Ricardo Montesco said: ‘It was going so quickly . . . it seems that on a curve the train started to twist, and the carriages piled up one on top of the other. The accident occurred near the station in Santiago de Compostela, 60 miles south of El Ferrol. The train, which belongs to the state-owned Renfe company, was not an AVE high speed train, but it was a relatively luxurious version that uses the same track as Spain's fastest expresses. It was Spain's deadliest train accident in decades. In 1944, a train travelling from Madrid to Galicia crashed and killed 78 people. Another accident in 1972 left 77 dead on a track to south-western Seville, according to Spanish news agency Europa Press. Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who was born in Santiago de Compostela, the capital of Galicia region, visited the site and the main hospital on this morning. He declared three days of official national mourning for the victims of the disaster A man covered in dirt and blood is stretchered away Horror: A woman is evacuated by emergency workers A passenger with a head wound is helped by a policeman A man comforts a victim of the crash. A man who was on the train told reporters that the train started to twist, and the carriages piled up one on top of the other Support: A citizen and a local policeman rescue an injured survivor The incident happened as Catholic pilgrims converged on Santiago de Compostela to celebrate a festival honouring St James, the disciple of Jesus whose remains are said to rest in a shrine. The city is the main gathering point for the faithful who make it to the end of the El Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route that has drawn Christians since the Middle Ages. The feast day festivities were cancelled, town hall spokeswoman Maria Pardo told Spanish National television TVE. Foreign Secretary William Hague said: 'I was very saddened to hear of the terrible train accident near Santiago de Compostela in Spain last night. 'My thoughts are with all those affected and their friends and family. Search effort: Rescue efforts were continued throughout the night following the train crash Emergency: Injured passengers are given treatment close to the side of the track where the train derailed Desperate effort: Emergency crews on the scene checking for survivors of the crash 'The British Embassy team in Spain are working closely with the Spanish authorities as they respond to this tragedy. 'We know that one British citizen was injured in this accident and the embassy has been providing consular support.' Keith Barrow, associate editor of International Railway Journal, whose editorial offices are in Falmouth in Cornwall, said today: 'Spanish railways' safety record is pretty good. 'Major accidents have been extremely rare. A lot of money has been poured into the system and passenger numbers were rising before the 2008 recession, which has hit Spain particularly badly. 'There has been a big reduction in fares lately to try to get more passengers to use the railways. A number of lines have been electrified and there are plans to allow private companies to operate services.' Mr Barrow said the train involved in the Santiago accident was a Class 730 high-speed train. He went on: 'Investigators will want to recover the data recorder from the train's cab so they can establish just what happened. 'People in Spain will obviously be shocked by what has happened. It's the worst crash they have had in many years. But I don't think people will be put off travelling by train.'

Spain train crash: Shocking video footage shows horrifying moment train derails killing 78 and injuring scores more 26 Jul 2013 09:03 WARNING: Some people may find the footage distressing - Was passenger train travelling too fast in moments before smash? This is the horrifying moment a Spanish passenger train derailed killing at least 78 people and injuring scores more in the country's worst train accident in decades. The haunting footage, taken from a CCTV at track level, shows the train rounding a bend before a carriage appears to 'jump' causing a domino effect. The train's cabin skids along the tracks before flipping on its side and smashing into a concrete siding along with a number of other carriages. Today it was reported that the Class 730 train may have been travelling way over the speed limit as it went round a bend outside Santiago de Compostela. Investigators are likely to look at excessive speed as a possible cause of the horrific smash, which left 141 hurt, including one Briton in north-west Spain. The subsequent derailment left a scene of devastation, with toppled and smashed carriages lying alongside the track, bodies being laid out beside the line, and bloodied survivors being carried to safety. One passenger said the train, from Madrid to Ferrol, was "travelling very fast" moments before the derailment in what is Spain's worst train crash for more than 40 years. The Briton was one of 141 people injured, with casualties being treated in local hospitals. With the dead being taken to a makeshift morgue set up in a Santiago indoor sports arena, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who was born in the city, visited the crash scene. Prime Minister David Cameron wrote to Mr Rajoy today, saying: "People in Britain have been greatly saddened by this tragedy. Please pass my deep condolences to those who have lost loved ones and my thoughts and prayers to all those who have been injured." Pilgrims converge on the Santiago de Compostela annually to celebrate a festival honouring St James, the disciple of Jesus whose remains are said to rest in a shrine. Foreign Secretary William Hague said: "I was very saddened to hear of the terrible train accident near Santiago de Compostela in Spain last night. "My thoughts are with all those affected and their friends and family. The British Embassy team in Spain are working closely with the Spanish authorities as they respond to this tragedy. "We know that one British citizen was injured in this accident and the embassy has been providing consular support." Lidia Cannon, who previously lived in the city and was visiting for the local fiesta celebrating St James, said she saw a woman who had lost a foot as a result of the train crash. She told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: "We heard a big bang, like, we thought it was an air crash, I thought it was a car crash, other people thought it was a bomb. It was very, very loud, the noise." Ms Cannon said people went to help and told of one man's experience of visiting the crash site. She said: "He couldn't cope with it. He said he was there 20 minutes but he took out a man that was asking for his wife and his wife was inside, dead. A boy was looking for his girlfriend and she was inside the train, dead. "He was taking out people that had mobile phones in their pockets ringing all the time. He couldn't cope with it because policemen and doctors and everyone was crying and he had to leave. "I saw a woman who had lost one foot. But instead of crying or shouting or whatever because of the pain, she was looking very, very serious. They were carrying her away and she had her sight, her eyes, were looking to one point - she was in shock." Alberto Nunez Feijoo, president of the region of Galicia, described the scene as "Dante-esque". One of the passengers, Sergio Prego, said: "The train travelled very fast and derailed and turned over on the bend in the track. It's a disaster. I've been very lucky because I'm one of the few to be able to walk out." Keith Barrow, associate editor of International Railway Journal, whose editorial offices are in Falmouth in Cornwall, said today: "Spanish railways' safety record is pretty good. "Major accidents have been extremely rare. A lot of money has been poured into the system and passenger numbers were rising before the 2008 recession, which has hit Spain particularly badly. "There has been a big reduction in fares lately to try to get more passengers to use the railways. A number of lines have been electrified and there are plans to allow private companies to operate services." Mr Barrow said the train involved in the Santiago accident was a Class 730 high-speed train. He went on: "Investigators will want to recover the data recorder from the train's cab so they can establish just what happened. "People in Spain will obviously be shocked by what has happened. It's the worst crash they have had in many years. But I don't think people will be put off travelling by train." The train involved was a bi-mode train capable of running on electrified high-speed lines as well as operating independently on non-electrified tracks. Peter Sheppard, from the UK's Institution of Engineering and Technology, said: "Railways generally have a very high safety record, but it is disappointing to see two recent major incidents (France and Spain) where there has been a significant loss of life. "However - and this is based on news reports only - it would seem that both are as a result of human error and not the technology involved. " He went on: "The former case (France) appears to be a maintenance issue, the latter case (Spain), based on the first reports, seems to be as a result of a significant over-speed (although there could well be other factors as what is perceived by passengers is sometimes different to reality). "What has to happen when the inquiries are complete is to determine if there is any methods by which technology could have intervened, prevented or given early warning of these accidents and either supported the infrastructure maintenance teams or advised/intervened in the cab." Philippa Oldham, head of transport at the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, said: "It is still too early to say with any certainty exactly what happened but accident investigators are likely to be looking at a number of factors which could have caused or contributed to this accident. "They will be looking at the role of the signalling and speed advice system, as well as the role of the driver. They will also be investigating whether there were any other technical or component causes like rail breakages, train defects or damage caused by vandalism that could have contributed to the accident." She went on: "Another key issue which will need to be investigated is the performance of the train vehicles and whether any design improvements or adjustments could have protected more people from harm. "Rail travel remains one of the safest ways to travel, with far fewer deaths and injuries than other forms of transport such as car travel. The UK also has the joint-safest railway safety record in Europe."

SEA hacks Viber messaging app, claims it's spying on usersJuly 24, 2013 The pro-Assad hacking group Syrian Electronic Army has followed up its apparent hack of the Tango messaging app (and the Daily Dot), with another purported hack, this time of Viber, another messaging system. The group appears to have only hacked the support page (it remains offline), which it replaced with a statement saying, “Dear All Viber Users, The Israeli-based ‘Viber’ is spying and tracking you We weren’t able to hack all Viber systems, but most of it is designed for spying and tracking.” London-based Viber has an R&D office in Israel. In April we wrote about a possible vulnerability in Viber’s system that could allow a hacker to access the Android phones that carried the app. This does not seem to be related to the SEA’s accusations. The screenshots released by the group served to illustrate how they had hacked Viber’s database. What they had hacked, said officials from the company quoted on TechCrunch, was Viber’s customer support system. Among the information stolen were the phone numbers, IP addresses, device types, OS type and version, and registration dates of an undeclared number of users. Viber has about 200,000 users globally. This attack, like other recent actions by the group, was a simple phishing expedition. “Today the Viber Support site was defaced after a Viber employee unfortunately fell victim to an email phishing attack,” the company told 9to5Mac. “The phishing attack allowed access to two minor systems: a customer support panel and a support administration system.” No sensitive user data was exposed, said the company and its databases were not hacked. As for spying, “Viber, like many other companies such as Microsoft, Cisco, Google, and Intel maintains a development center in Israel,” according to the company. “It seems like this caused some people to come up with some pretty bizarre conspiracy theories.”

A Strange Way of Moving Brick