event-logo: 2012

Tuesday, July 3, 2012

Thursday, March 15, 2012

Age, military ties mark Kim Jong Un's inner circle

PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) — Wherever North Korea's young new leader goes, they're there: a group of graying military and political officials who shadow Kim Jong Un as he visits army bases, attends concerts and tours schools.

As Kim Jong Un steps into the role of "supreme commander" less than two months after his father's death, these officials can be seen in the background. They listen attentively as their leader speaks during "guidance visits" and stand at his side during group photos, smiling and clapping.

Since Kim Jong Il died of a heart attack in December, Kim Jong Un has assumed the mantle of leadership with apparent confidence. But this aging circle of advisers is …

UN chief wants more police and troops for Haiti

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says he wants to beef up the U.N. peacekeeping force in Haiti with 1,500 additional police and 2,000 troops to better respond to the massive earthquake.

Ban says he asked the U.N. Security Council on Monday to raise the ceiling for the force, which currently has about 7,000 troops and 2,100 police. He says the extra …

State puts off 847 area code overlay

The Illinois Commerce Commission on Wednesday ordered dozens oftelephone companies to return as many as 750,000 unused telephonenumbers in area code 847 in an effort to delay the start of anoverlay area code.

The Citizens Utility Board said the return of the numbers, alongwith other conservation strategies by the commission, mean residentsof the northern suburbs served by area code 847 will avoid thenuisance of 11-digit dialing for the foreseeable future.

"The commission is telling the phone industry . . . they can'thoard numbers," said Martin Cohen, executive director of CUB. Areacode 847 "shouldn't run out of numbers for four years or longer."CUB has been …

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Girl, 3, eats leftovers for 2 days after mom dies

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — A 3-year-old girl comforted herself with her favorite toy and ate cheese, leftover lasagna and milk for two days after her mother died unexpectedly in their New Zealand home.

The girl's uncle, Pete Silbery, told The Associated Press on Friday that Shylah Silbery managed to open the fridge and comfort herself with a teddy bear named "Possum" after Lauren Silbery, 28, died.

The family last spoke to Lauren Silbery on Oct. 19, he said. Two days later, they were worried enough to call a friend who lived near her Wellington home. The friend could see the girl inside the home, but not the mother, prompting the family to call police, Pete Silbery …

Old WVU chant ready for comeback: ; Morgantown native, broadcaster promote classic version of cheer with younger fans

As a child, Jay Redmond sold programs and soda to fans at oldMountaineer Field in downtown Morgantown.

That is when Redmond, now 53, first fell in love with the "Let'sGo, Mountaineers" chant, which until recently was little more than afading memory.

"It's just one of the great memories I have from old MountaineerField," Redmond said. "I wanted to help bring back a great traditionthat was lost."

Redmond, who hasn't missed a home game since 1966, said the chantstarted sometime in the 1930s and was used until new stadium wasbuilt on the Evansdale campus in 1979.

He said the chant has faded over the years due to the newstadium's size, and is now used only …

Shipp Sails Right for No. 1 UCLA in Win

LOS ANGELES - Josh Shipp scored a career-high 24 points, Arron Afflalo added 20 and UCLA defeated Long Beach State 88-58 Tuesday night in its first game as the nation's No. 1 team since 1995.

Fresh off winning the Maui Invitational last week, the Bruins (5-0) found themselves in a two-point game late in the first half of their first home game in two weeks.

But it wasn't long before they finished off the victory.

Freshman Russell Westbrook added a career-high 11 points and Darren Collison had.

The Bruins hit 13 3-pointers, led by Shipp's career-high six and Westbrook's 3-of-3 from long-range.

Sterling Byrd led Long Beach State (2-3) with career …

Sept. 11 widow killed in US plane crash

One of the victims of Continental Flight 3407, Beverly Eckert, was a Sept. 11 widow who put her never-ending grief to good use to make the country safer.

Just last week, Eckert was at the White House with Barack Obama, part of a meeting the president had with relatives of those killed in the 2001 attacks and the bombing of the USS Cole to discuss how the new administration would handle terror suspects.

"She was such an important part of all of our work," said Mary Fetchet, another 9/11 family activist. She learned Eckert was aboard the plane from another close Eckert family friend now headed to Buffalo. Officials investigating the crash have not …

HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL BITS

Illinois coach John Mackovic is aware of the serious problem hefaces in trying to lure blue chip athletes to his campus. Becauseof his late hiring, the lack of quality and quantity in his incomingfreshman class was to be expected. But recruiting likely will onlyget tougher in the next few years.

"The clock is ticking on Illinois, just like it did on SMU," oneconference coach said. "According to the five-year rule establishedby the NCAA, if a school is placed on probation twice within fiveyears, it will get the death penalty - like SMU."

Alumni may not be aware that Illinois came thisclose toreceiving the death penalty. If the new NCAA rule was in effect …

At 94, O'Neil to Play in All-Star Game

KANSAS CITY, Kan. - John Jordan "Buck" O'Neil never got a free pass in life. The grandson of a man brought to this continent a slave, O'Neil moved to Kansas City to avoid racial persecution in the Deep South. He played baseball during an era of segregation, and earlier this year was denied entry into the National Baseball Hall of Fame by a special 12-member panel.

It figures that on Tuesday night, when the 94-year-old O'Neil stepped into the batter's box during a minor league All-Star game, nobody could quibble over an intentional walk.

Except maybe O'Neil and a few thousand fans.

"I just might take a swing at one," he said before Tuesday night's Northern League …

Pa. court rules in favor of ex-Drifters manager

A federal court says a former manager of 1950s doo-wop group The Drifters could be entitled to millions of dollars from concert promoters who've infringed on the band's trademark.

The 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia ruled last week in favor of ex-manager Faye Treadwell. The Glendale, Calif., resident has fought a lengthy legal battle over the name of the group, which sang such classics as "Up …

Hospital waste: a toxic peril?

Every day, a hospital produces at least three pounds of usedneedles, bloody bandages, discarded gallbladders and other infectiouswaste for each of its beds.

Most of this waste from 32,000 Chicago area hospital beds isburned in aging hospital incinerators that environmentalists sayendanger public health.

Hospitals, of course, are supposed to make people healthy. Butat least 45 Chicago area hospital incinerators spew toxic compoundsthat have been linked to cancer, learning disorders, breathingdifficulties and other ills.

There's a second irony involving infectious waste fromhospitals, nursing homes, doctors, dentists and veterinarians:

…

Bear Stearns CEO Cayne expected to resign, but remain as chairman, Wall Street Journal says

Bear Stearns Chief Executive James Cayne is resigning under pressure from shareholders upset over the firm's losses amid a slew of problems sparked by the collapse of mortgage markets, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday.

Cayne was expected to be replaced by Bear Stearns President Alan Schwartz, a 57-year-old investment banker respected for his dealmaking savvy.

Cayne started notifying Bear Stearns' board on Sunday that he plans to give up his post but remain as chairman, the Journal reported on its Web Site, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter.

Bear Stearns representatives did not immediately return phone and e-mail messages seeking comment late Monday.

Cayne, 73, had been under scrutiny since the summer, as the liquidity crisis pushed scores of mortgage lenders out of business, bled more than $100 billion (euro67.92 billion) from Wall Street's books, and coaxed the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates by a full percentage point.

The company, one of the nation's biggest underwriters of mortgage-backed bonds, may be the Wall Street investment bank most directly exposed to this year's credit squeeze.

But until now, Cayne had managed to keep his job even as peers like Citigroup Inc.'s Charles Prince and Merrill Lynch & Co.'s Stan O'Neal lost theirs. A nearly 40-year veteran of Bear Stearns, he took the CEO job in 1993 and became chairman in 2001.

Some people point to the collapse last summer of two Bear Stearns hedge funds set up to bet on risky mortgage debt as the trigger for the subprime mortgage crisis, which began as people with tainted or weak credit history started defaulting on their loans.

Cayne later came under fire after the Journal reported that as the two hedge funds were going bankrupt, he was playing golf and bridge without access to e-mail or a telephone.

Bear Stearns Cos.' fiscal fourth-quarter loss, the first in its 84-year history, and the collapse of the hedge funds, prompted Cayne to pass on his 2007 bonus. Members of the company's executive committee also did not receive year-end bonuses.

Bear Stearns' profit plummeted 89 percent in fiscal 2007 as the bank wrote billions of dollars of bad debt off its books. The company's stock had lost almost 47 percent of its value as of late December.

The company and other firms have seen writedowns from investments in subprime mortgages and fixed-income trading come in much steeper than first expected.

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

Anti-Musharraf Cases at Pakistani Court

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Legal wrangling over President Gen. Pervez Musharraf's re-election bid intensified Monday after exiled former leader Benazir Bhutto accused the general's allies of pushing Pakistan toward a dangerous crisis by refusing to restore democracy and share power.

The Supreme Court on Monday heard a slew of petitions that seek to disqualify Musharraf as a presidential candidate. Meanwhile, Bhutto's party protested a reported change in election rules that could make it easier for the military leader to stand for a new five-year term.

Pakistan's political turmoil is deepening as Musharraf, who took power in a 1999 coup, maneuvers to extend his rule. He wants lawmakers to vote him back in by mid-October but faces legal obstacles because he still holds the office of army chief as well.

Musharraf's popularity has plummeted since he tried to remove the country's top judge in March, sparking a pro-democracy protest movement. The Supreme Court later reinstated the judge. Musharraf is also struggling to contain an upsurge in pro-Taliban militants near the Afghan border.

Last week, Musharraf sidelined his chief political rival, former prime minister Nawaz Sharif, sending him back into exile. But in doing that, he set up another showdown with the Supreme Court that had earlier ruled that Sharif could return to Pakistan.

In an interview with The Associated Press Sunday, Bhutto said her party may join other opposition groups, including Sharif's, in resigning from Parliament and taking to the streets to try to force the U.S.-allied president from office.

Bhutto said that a group of Musharraf's allies was advising him to contest the presidential election without stepping down as army chief.

"We all know that any election in uniform would be illegal. But they prefer to play with the Constitution and create a crisis rather than have a smooth transition to democracy," Bhutto said. "Pakistan can ill afford confrontation and anarchy."

Bhutto has been in talks with Musharraf for months on a pact that would include constitutional amendments to defuse the legal challenges to his re-election bid and let her return to Pakistan and compete in parliamentary elections due by January.

But negotiations have snagged over the reluctance of Musharraf to give up his sweeping powers, and dismay among his die-hard supporters that they could by eclipsed by Bhutto.

Bhutto declined to forecast whether the talks could still succeed, but said her party was girding for a failure that could deepen the political confrontation. She plans to return from an eight-year exile on Oct. 18, regardless of the outcome of the talks.

On Monday, a nine-member panel of Supreme Court judges resumed hearing six petitions, including one by Jamaat-e-Islami, Pakistan's largest Islamic group, on Musharraf's eligibility to stand again as president.

Attorney-general Malik Mohammed Qayyum said that, with the cases pending in court, the Election Commission was "reluctant" to announce the schedule for the presidential vote.

It was unclear when the court would reach a verdict. Ruling party lawmakers have said the vote will be held in early October.

The state Associated Press of Pakistan news agency reported Sunday that the Election Commission had announced that an article of the Constitution that could bar Musharraf from standing again as president - because he also holds the army chief's post - would not apply in the vote.

Bhutto's party said that was illegal.

"As Gen. Musharraf is disqualified from contesting for President, he has prevailed upon the Election Commission to arbitrarily and illegally tamper with the Constitution of Pakistan," party spokesman Farhatullah Babar said.

Election Commission officials were not immediately available for comment Monday.

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Associated Press Writer Stephen Graham contributed to this report.

Fox opens up about old flame: 'Nikita'

Megan Fox has nothing to hide.

The candid 22-year-old "Transformers" star, who's currently engaged to actor Brian Austin Green, opened up to GQ about her love life, telling the magazine she was once in love with a female stripper. Fox, who appears on the October cover in a black bikini, said she was in the relationship when she was 18 and first living in Los Angeles alone.

"Well, that year my boyfriend broke up with me, and I decided _ oh man, sorry, mommy! _ that I was in love with this girl that worked at the Body Shop," said Fox. "I decided that I was going to get her to love me back, and I went out of my way to create a relationship with this girl, a stripper named Nikita."

Fox said Nikita would do "these beautiful slow dances to Aerosmith ballads." The actress also said she would bring the Russian stripper gifts and try to inspire her to quit her line of work.

Fox's publicist, Dominique Appel, confirmed the contents of the GQ report Monday.

Despite the brief relationship with a woman, Fox said she does not identify herself as gay.

"Look, I'm not a lesbian," said Fox. "I just think that all humans are born with the ability to be attracted to both sexes. I mean, I could see myself in a relationship with a girl _ Olivia Wilde is so sexy she makes me want to strangle a mountain ox with my bare hands. She's mesmerizing. And lately I've been obsessed with Jenna Jameson, but ... oh boy."

Fox also defended Miley Cyrus and Vanessa Hudgens regarding their racy photo scandals and said that she doesn't like Disney because they take "these little girls, and they put them through entertainment school and teach them to sing and dance, and make them wear belly shirts, but they won't allow them to be their own people. It makes me sick."

___

On the Net:

http://www.gq.com

Jubilant Crowd Recreates Selma March

SELMA, Ala. - More than a thousand people gathered Sunday to commemorate the 1965 "Bloody Sunday" voting rights march - and remarked how the original protest paved the way for modern-day candidates to break political barriers.

With a marching band leading the way, participants retraced the steps to the bridge where marchers were beaten back by state troopers as they marched from Selma to Montgomery in support of opening polls to blacks across the South.

U.S. Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., one of the leaders of the first march, described how the group marched past jeering whites on March 6, 1965, then were beaten with night sticks, trampled by horses and sprayed with tear gas.

"When we left the church to walk through the heart of downtown Selma, it was a silent walk. There were 600 of us armed with a dream," Lewis said. "The dream was that people of color would have the right to vote - the right to participate in the democratic process."

Martin Luther King Jr. led a separate march to the bridge two days later. On March 21, 1965, after a federal court intervened, King led a five-day march to the capital. The marches led to the passage of the Voting Rights Act later that year, which removed barriers such as literacy tests that were set up by segregationists to keep blacks from registering to vote.

Sunday's event attracted Democratic presidential candidates Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. Speaker after speaker said that neither Clinton or Obama would be running for president if it wasn't for the sacrifices made on Bloody Sunday. Clinton is seeking to become the first woman elected president; Obama is trying to become the first black president.

Former President Bill Clinton joined his wife for the march and was inducted into the National Voting Rights Museum Hall of Fame in a ceremony.

"If it hadn't been for Selma, there would be no Voting Rights Act. If it hadn't been for the Voting Rights Act, the South would have never recovered and two white southerners - Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton - never could have become president," the former president said.

Marchers ranged from babies in strollers to men and women in their 80s and 90s. The marchers included veterans of the civil rights movement and parents seeking to show their children a piece of history.

"I'm here because I went to jail for the freedom to vote. I slept on the floor," said 85-year-old Lecy Lindsey of Wilcox County. She said she was active in protests to allow blacks to register to vote.

Lowell and Lynn Bass of LaGrange, Ga. said they brought their four children, ages 6-12, to give them a taste of history.

"These guys live in a totally different world. My job is to show them the sacrifice of others," Lynn Bass said of her sons.

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Associated Press writer Phillip Rawls contributed to this report.

Rangers 15, Reds 13

Texas			Cincinnati
ab r h bi		ab r h bi
Borbon cf	6 2 2 0		Bruce rf	2 0 0 1
German 2b	5 4 3 3		F.Lewis ph-rf	0 1 0 0
Dav.Murphy lf	4 2 2 2		Valaika 2b	4 0 0 0
D.Paisano lf	0 0 0 0		Cairo ph-2b	2 0 0 0
N.Cruz dh	4 2 3 6		Votto 1b	2 1 1 0
J.Moore ph-dh	1 0 0 0		Costanzo 1b	2 0 0 0
Moreland 1b	5 1 3 2		Rolen 3b	0 0 0 0
C.Davis 3b	5 1 1 2		J.Francisco ph-3b	5 2 3 1
Treanor c	5 0 0 0		Gomes lf	3 1 1 3
Teagarden c	0 0 0 0		Hermida ph-lf	3 0 0 0
Chavez rf	5 1 2 0		Stubbs cf	2 3 2 0
A.Blanco ss	4 2 1 0		D.Sappelt ph-cf	3 2 2 2
		Hanigan c	2 2 2 0
		Mesoraco c	3 0 2 0
		Janish ss	3 0 2 3
		J.Castro ph-ss	2 1 0 0
		T.Wood p	2 0 1 1
		J.Krebs p	0 0 0 0
		Heisey ph	1 0 1 2
		F.Cordero p	0 0 0 0
		M.Griffin ph	1 0 0 0
		Arredondo p	0 0 0 0
		Burton p	0 0 0 0
Totals	44 15 17 15		Totals	42 13 17 13

Texas (ss)	204	004	050—15
Cincinnati	024	022	210—13

E_Treanor (1), Rolen 2 (2), Costanzo (1). LOB_Texas 5, Cincinnati 13. 2B_Borbon (3), German (6), N.Cruz (4), Moreland (6), J.Francisco 2 (5), Mesoraco (1), T.Wood (1). 3B_Heisey (2). HR_N.Cruz (1), C.Davis (5), Gomes (3), D.Sappelt (3). SB_German (1), Moreland (1), F.Lewis 2 (3), Stubbs (2), Janish (1). CS_Chavez (1). SF_Bruce.

Texas
	IP	H	R ER BB SO
Tom.Hunter	2	6	5	5	1	1
M.Tobin BS,1-1	2	2	3	2	3	2
O'Day	1	2	0	0	1	2
D.Hankins BS,1-1	1	3	2	2	1	1
C.Young W,1-0	1	3	2	2	1	2
J.Miller	1	1	1	1	1	1
T.Hurley S,1-1	1	0	0	0	0	0
Cincinnati
T.Wood	5 1-3	9	7	5	0	5
J.Krebs BS,1-1	2-3	4	3	3	0	1
F.Cordero	1	0	0	0	0	2
Arredondo L,0-2 BS,2-3	1	4	5	5	1	1
Burton	1	0	0	0	0	0

HBP_by Tom.Hunter (Rolen).

Umpires_Home, Dan Bellino; First, Tony Randazzo; Second, Mike Muchlinski; Third, Stephen Barga.

A_3,349 (10,311).

Latvia wins EU OK to bail out bank

Latvia gained EU approval Monday to shore up the country's second-largest bank JSC Parex with another state capital injection.

The European Commission did not say how much Latvia would spend to buy new shares and long-term debt from the bank but said it would be based on European Central Bank recommendations and would require it the bank to pay a risk premium and a fee.

The recapitalization aims to give Parex a capital adequacy ratio of 11 percent to cover potential losses. Latvia has also promised to send regulators a restructuring plan to prove that the bank could survive in the long-term without state help.

EU regulators must check that large state bailouts don't trigger competition problems by giving one bank an unfair advantage over rivals.

A bank run on Parex last November only ended when the government stepped in to save it from collapse, buying a 51-percent stake for 2 lats ($3.85) and injecting some 200 million lats ($385 million) to keep it afloat.

The European Bank of Reconstruction and Development _ a lender owned by 61 nations _ last month agreed to buy a quarter of the bank for euro84.2 million ($115 million) and give it a euro22 million ($30 million) loan.

Latvia's deteriorating economy in turn forced the government to seek a euro7.5 billion ($10.23 billion) bailout from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund late last year.

The country has hit a deep recession after three years of stellar growth, when it led all EU members in gross domestic product growth. Bank lending is currently tight and the worsening economy may see more loans default.

The EU executive now expects the economy to shrink 13.1 percent this year, with unemployment surging to 15.7 percent.

Ilan Ramon, Uncamouflaged; Others might have downplayed their identity. That was not his way.

HOW WAS IT THAT, ON June 7,1981 - When eight F-16 Fighting Falcons, escorted by six F-15 Eagles, set off from Israel on a darling and audacious mission to drop one-ton bombs on Iraq's Osiraq nuclear reactor - how was it that these jet fighters went undetected as they flew over Jordanian and Saudi Arabian air space?

King Hussein of Jordan actually sighted the fighters from his yacht in the Gulf of Eilat. He was, however, apparently unable to interpret their significance.

Surveillance planes in Saudi Arabia - four AWACS (Airborne Warning and control System) aircraft - could have detected and monitored the path of the Israeli jets, and warned of the direction of their flight path. But the attention of the AWACS was directed to the Iraq-Iran war to the west, and they had no inkling of the bombshell attack.

Moreover, the Saudis noted that Israel had disguised its jets and identified them as Jordanian, an explanation supported by U.S. officials.

While there is a factual basis to the first two explanations, the truth is that the third one was "a fabrication from beginning to end".

As Shlomo Nakdimon wrote in First Strike (1987), "the uncamouflaged planes clearly displayed their Israeli insignia."

As is NOW WELL-KNOWN, ILAN RAMON, the Israeli astronaut who died this month on board the ill-fated Space Shuttle Columbia, piloted one of those F - 16s. He helped to insure the success of the raid by monitoring the planes' fuel supplies, Col. Ze'ev Raz, the overall flight commander, said this month.

The glory of Col. Ramon's life, as an Israeli and as a Jew, was that it was uncamouflaged.

When, as a 27-year-old navigational pilot, he risked his life on a dangerous mission for the future well-being of others, he pierced the skies as a soldier of Israel. Uncamouflaged.

When - as a family man on a mission which most did not recognize as of equal danger - he explored the heavens to fulfill a human impulse, he circled the globe as a proud representative of his people: Israeli and Jew, religious and secular, past and present.

Others might have downplayed that identity, or hidden it. Not Ilan Ramon.

Though his life was tragically cut short, and we are bereft of his beautifully modest example, we can inscribe it on our hearts: Ilan Ramon, an Israeli and a Jew. Uncamouflaged.

CAUGHT!

Chicago police have arrested and charged 38-year-old James A. Dixon with an attack on former U.S. Senator Carol Moseley Braun on April 27.

The U.S. Ambassador to New Zealand was attacked as she was about to open the door to her South Side residence. Dixon, of the 6100 block of S. Drexel, was charged with one count of attempted armed robbery and one count of aggravated battery. One of two college students who were walking down the street when Braun was attacked jumped the suspect and pursued him when he ran.

Parade, tree lighting to be held in Dunbar

Dunbar will be holding its annual nighttime Christmas Paradetoday.

Participants will line up at 6 p.m. near the McDonald'srestaurant on 10th Street. The parade will begin at 7 p.m.,according to a press release from the city.

The parade will wind from Tenth Street, to Dunbar Avenue, to 16thStreet, and then to Ohio Avenue and back to City Hall. Plaques willbe awarded in three categories for best floats.

The city's tree lighting ceremony will follow immediately afterat City Hall.

Santa Claus will greet children at City Hall, where recreationdepartment workers will serve hot chocolate.

Donations for the Dunbar/Institute Food Pantry will be acceptedat City Hall throughout the evening.

Monday, March 12, 2012

Butterfly record safe another day

World-record holder Denis Pankratov of Russia can rest easybecause U.S. star Tom Malchow couldn't in the hours before the finalof the men's 200-meter butterfly Wednesday at the Pan PacificSwimming Championships in Sydney, Australia.

After missing Pankratov's world record by .54 seconds in thesemifinals Tuesday, thinking about breaking it cut into Malchow'ssleep time that night.

On Wednesday, Malchow won the event in 1 minute, 55.41 seconds,.19 seconds off Pankratov's mark of 1:55.22 set in 1995. Afterward,he mourned the loss of a good night's sleep.

"After my semi swim, a few people came up to me and talked a bitabout the record," Malchow said after posting the second-fastest timein history. "I thought, `Wow, I could do this,' and tossed andturned a bit through the night.

"I don't know whether it made the difference. I supposed it couldhave. But I've done the best three swims of my life."

In the other highlight of the day, Australian teenager Ian Thorpeset his fourth world record in as many days when he led the men's800-meter relay team to victory. Thorpe, who also has broken twoworld records in the men's 200-meter freestyle and one in the men's400-meter freestyle, helped Australia beat its previous world mark bymore than three seconds. His leadoff leg of 1:46.28 was just outsidehis individual record of 1:46.

Thorpe, 16, was followed by Bill Kirby, Grant Hackett and MichaelKlim as the Aussies finished with a time of 7:08.79, bettering theirmark of 7:11.86 set last year. Lemieux's deal to buy Pens clearsfinal hurdle

Former Pittsburgh Penguins star Mario Lemieux cleared the lasthurdle in his purchase of the team by finalizing a lease at the CivicArena. The agreement with SMG was reached late Tuesday andapparently was the final piece of the puzzle in Lemieux's $95 milliontakeover of the team he led to Stanley Cup championships in 1991 and1992. Lemieux already has begun closing on the sale, a process thatrequires the numerous parties involved to sign more than 100documents. Nashville Predators forward Sergei Krivokrasov, whoplayed for the Blackhawks from 1992-93 to 1997-98, must undergocounseling as part of an agreement for dismissal of adomestic-violence charge brought by his wife. The charge stemmedfrom an argument Aug. 8 at their home in Michigan. Wolves, Islesstrike partial affiliation agreement

The Wolves announced a partial affiliation agreement with theNHL's New York Islanders.

The Wolves, who were an independent team in their first fiveseasons in the International Hockey League, will retain that statusdespite the announcement. They will continue to get players fromother NHL clubs, but the Islanders will provide five to sevenveterans.

"Our affiliation with the Wolves is great for both franchises,"Islanders general manager Mike Milbury said. "The Wolves will getsome great players from the Islanders." Len Ziehm Banned Michiganbooster causing trouble again

Former Michigan guard Louis Bullock accepted a loan from boosterEd Martin, who had been banned from having contact with the school'sbasketball program since an NCAA investigation in 1997, the DetroitFree Press reported. The paper quoted people familiar with a federalinvestigation as saying Bullock ignored a school directive to avoidMartin. Such contact is prohibited and might put the university introuble with the NCAA. San Antonio Spurs forward Sean Elliott wasreleased from the hospital, nine days after receiving a kidneytransplant from his brother Noel. Elliott waved to a few fans whohad gathered, then signed autographs for hospital workers. TheLittle League World Series semifinals will be played today inWilliamsport, Pa. Defending champion Toms River, N.J., will facePhenix City, Ala., in the U.S. bracket, and Puerto Rico will take onJapan in the international bracket.

`Power loss' light signals fuel, emissions problems

Q.The "power loss" light frequently comes on in my 1986 ChryslerLeBaron convertible. The car runs extremely well, but I feel uneasydriving it. Solution? L.H., Palos Heights

A. Have a mechanic check out the car. There is something wrongwith the car's fuel or emissions-control systems. The problem maynot affect performance much, but probably is adversely affectingemissions levels.

Q. My cousin owns a Toyota Camry. I own a Nissan Maxima. We'redebating over which car is the most popular and reliable. Help?D.S., StickneyA. The Camry outsells the Maxima, which is as reliable as theCamry and more fun to drive in SE model form.Q. I had my car rustproofed when I bought it two years ago.Now, I hear rustproofing was unnecessary. Holes were drilled in thecar for the rustproofing. What do I do about them? S.K., HickoryHillsA. Nothing. They were drilled to get rustproofing material intohidden body areas.Q. I've had my 1992 Jeep tuned up, but now the maintenance lightis on all the time. Is there a release button I can press to turnthe light off, as was the case with my 1987 Volkswagen? J.D.,ChicagoA. Your Jeep has no such button. Take it to where you had themaintenance work done and have them reset the computer. There is noother way to get rid of the light, says Elmwood Park's CairaAutomotive.Q. My 1996 automatic-transmission Nissan Sentra is supposed toget an EPA-estimated 28 m.p.g. in the city.I get 22-25 m.p.g. Anything wrong with the car? J.C.,ChicagoA. I doubt it. You're looking at estimated economy. Real-worldeconomy can vary a lot, depending on things like the weather, trafficand driving habits. The 25 m.p.g. figure is pretty good for yourSentra.Q. My 1986 Volkswagen Jetta's "oil warning" light comes on, eventhough the car runs fine and has plenty of oil. Then it goes off,only to come on again. I had the oil sensor switches checked and/orreplaced, and the oil pump pressure is fine. C.E., ChicagoA. It just sounds like a wiring problem - perhaps a short in awire.Send your car-related questions to Q&A With Dan Jedlicka, c/oChicago Sun-Times, Fourth Floor, 401 N. Wabash, Chicago, Ill. 60611.Please enclose a stamped, self-addressed envelope.

Centre progress to semis after star scare

Chippenham League Corsham Centre A were given an almighty frightbefore progressing to the semi-finals of the reebrooks- sponsoredEric Hughes Memorial Knockout Cup.

The defending Robson Taylor Chippenham Sunday League championsare the favourites for the cup but found themselves 4-1 down toDivision 4 outfit North Star B at one stage before winning 8-4. James Lye's treble, braces from Tim Jefferies and Russell Gibbingsand Stuart Tutty's goal sank the Star, for whom Steve Allison andMark Dolman hit two apiece.

Westbury Rangers A beat fellow Premier Division side Maud HeathSports 5-4 on penalties after their tie finished 2-2 after extratime. Darren Holcombe and Ali Duncan put Sports in charge before aMatty Smith double levelled matters.

Division 2 side Hullavington's amazing cup run continued as theyknocked out Division 1 high-fliers Foresters Arms with a 4-3success. Ed Wilkins scored a hat trick after Phil Garland had givenhis team the lead. Leigh Rowles-Hitchcock (2) and Ricky Carr scoredfor the Foresters.

Pheasant complete the semi-final line-up following a 4-1 win overDivision 1 team Chippenham Sports & Social Club. Liam Phillamore(2), Luke Barrett and Kane Kauppinen scored for the Division 2 sideand Chris Hawkins replied.

Biddestone Social finally surrendered their unbeaten record inthe Premier Division, losing 3-1 to Potterne. Jamie Bayes' penalty,Julian Alexander and a Mike Few own goal saw Biddestone home. GlennArmstrong scored for the leaders.

Dog & Fox Ashley remain in second place after they defeated BoxRovers 3-1. Mark Gerrish (2) and Steve Wickings scored for the Dogbefore Jamie Harrison replied.

Semington Rovers got the better of old rivals Miller Sports,winning 2-1. Josh Mills and Richard Allum scored for Rovers with TomEvans finding the net for Miller.

Goals from Danny Amerouso, Jamie Jordan, Bradley King-Taylor andTom Berrington earned The Ship a 4-1 win over FC Colerne, whosereply came from Bradley Bennett.

Winsley beat Holt by the same scoreline. Mike Little scored ahat-trick and Dean Ranger netted the winners. Nick Corbett's penaltywas Holt's reply.

Division 1 leaders White Hart Combe beat North Bradley 6-0 thanksto a Chris Cox hat-trick, Aaron Merryweather's double and a LeeFernandez effort.

Atworth United picked up their first win in 11 matches with a 3-2 success at Biddestone Arms, Ross Menghini (2) and Luke Tallentirescored for the winners, with Richard Chaffey and Craig Duff ontarget for Biddestone.

Graham Griffiths' brace earned Cooper Avon a 2-0 win over Bremhill View Social Club, while Rowde FC crashed to a 6-3 defeat athome to Bradford News. Matty Gurke scored three for News and MartinPowell (2) and Tom Downing completed their tally. Jamie Mullings (2)and Damian Plunkett scored for Rowde.

FC Bradford are the new leaders of Division 2 after they crushedbottom side Affordable Mortgages Villa 10-1. Mark Robinson andSteve Rose scored three apiece, Steve Bryant bagged a brace andJason Triggs and Charlie Powell's made up the 10. Alex Lustkusreplied for Villa.

Owen Bryan and Ashley Groves scored two apiece as AFC Melkshambeat The Crown Devizes 4-0.

AFC Bell lost 2-1 at home to Pig & Whistle United, Steve Badgerand Trevor Jones netting before Luke Enderby pulled one back.

Paul Knight (2) and Darren Legg earned Christian Malford a 3-3draw with Audley FC, for whom Chris Yeo (2) and Dave Nolan scored.

Paul Watson's goal and an Ian Dawkins penalty gave Sutton Bengera 2-1 win over Eastlands. Mark Simpson replied for the losers.

Steeple Ashton slipped up in Division 3 as they were beaten 2-1by Trowbridge Town Supporters Club. Ron Marshall and Steve Russellscored for the supporters and Mark Hunt replied from the spot.

Southwick Wanderers defeated Corsham Park Rangers 4-0 to leavetheir opponents in the relegation zone. Domonic Sheppard, StuartFarr, Ryan Watson and an Ollie Cooper own goal did the damage.

British Lion surrendered top spot in Division 4 to CorshamCentre B after they were held to a 3-3 by White Horse FC and theCentre beat Old Road Tavern 6-0. Warren Jones hit four of the six,with Jason Brooks and Alex Mitchell also scoring.

Chippenham United RAOB claimed their third win in 19 matchesafter they came from behind to beat Kings Arms 2-1, Carl Jacobi'sopener being wiped out by Matt Blackmore and Jason Forde.

World Cup Biathlon Results

Results Friday from a World Cup biathlon meet:

Women

7.5 kilometers

Missed targets in parentheses

1. Martina Glagow, Germany, 21 minutes, 24.1 seconds (0).

2. Kati Wilhelm, Germany, 21:24.4 (1).

3. Tora Berger, Norway, 21:24.7 (0).

4. Andrea Henkel, Germany, 21:27.1 (0).

5. Kaisa Varis, Finland, 21:40.10 (1).

6. Kaisa Makarainen, Finland, 21:42.4 (1).

7. Magdalena Neuner, Germany, 21:43.1 (2).

8. Oksana Khvostenko, Ukraine, 21:43.6 (0).

9. Simone Denkinger, Germany, 21:43.7 (1).

10. Sandrine Bailly, France, 21:48.2 (1),

11. Natalia Guseva, Russia, 21:49.8 (1).

12. Helena Jonsson, Sweden, 21:50.10 (0).

13. Anna Carin Olofsson, Sweden, 21:52.2 (1).

14. Teja Gregorin, Slovenia, 21:52.6 (1).

15. Svetlana Sleptsova, Russia, 21:54.10 (1).

___

Overall standings

After two events

1. Martina Glagow, Germany, 100 points.

2. Simone Denkinger, Germany, 71.

3. Anna Carin Olofsson, Sweden, 60.

4. Helena Jonsson, Sweden, 59.

5. Sandrine Bailly, France, 58.

6. Kati Wilhelm, Germany, 56.

7. Tatiana Moiseeva, Russia, 53.

8. Andrea Henkel, Germany, 53.

9. Teja Gregorin, Slovenia, 52.

10. Svetlana Sleptsova, Russia, 44.

Filly Zenyatta improves to 10-0

Move over, Rachel Alexandra and make room for undefeated filly Zenyatta.

Zenyatta pulled away to a 1 3/4-length victory over Life Is Sweet in Saturday's $150,000 Milady Handicap, improving to 10-0 in her career.

Ridden by Hall of Fame jockey Mike Smith, Zenyatta rallied from six lengths off the pace to win at Hollywood Park in her first start after a seven-month layoff.

"I'm numb," he said. "I'm looking for some emotion now but I'm just numb. She's just amazing."

She covered 1 1-16 miles on the synthetic Cushion Track surface in 1:42.30 and paid $2.40, $2.10 and $2.10 as the 1-9 wagering favorite.

Kentucky Oaks and Preakness winner Rachel Alexandra has generated much of the buzz in racing over the past few weeks. But Zenyatta was making headlines last year.

She was 2008 champion older female, having won the Breeders' Cup Ladies' Classic at Santa Anita in October. That race could be the setting this fall for a possible matchup between Zenyatta and Rachel Alexandra, who became the first filly in 85 years to beat the boys last weekend in the second leg of the Triple Crown.

"As far as Rachel Alexandra, she's such a great filly and I don't want to ruin what she did," Smith said. "But Zenyatta is Zenyatta. When the match comes up down the road, it's going to be exciting for racing."

Smith got a close-up look at Rachel Alexandra after finishing second to her aboard Kentucky Derby winner Mine That Bird in the Preakness.

Fans crowded around the paddock rail to see Zenyatta before she headed onto the track. One held up a hand-lettered, red-white-and-blue sign that read, "Rachel who, Go Zenyatta."

Zenyatta was supposed to make her 2009 debut three weeks ago in the Louisville Distaff at Churchill Downs, but Shirreffs scratched her because of muddy track conditions.

That left him and owners Jerry and Ann Moss anxious to see whether Zenyatta would preserve her undefeated streak.

"The streak is always in the back of your mind," Shirreffs said. "The first race back you want to make it as easy as possible."

"I had a hard time sleeping last night," Ann Moss said.

Zenyatta's name comes from the title of The Police album "Zenyatta Mondatta."

Moss, co-founder of A&M Records who had the 1980s supergroup on his label, says the moniker doesn't really mean anything. But her results sure do.

"I continue to be thrilled and overwhelmed with this wonderful horse," he said in the winner's circle. "She's back now, so hopefully we can have some fun this year."

Asked if that fun included a showdown with Rachel Alexandra, Moss replied, "Oh sure. Whatever race comes up. We really haven't thought much beyond this one."

A total of $817,589 was bet to show on the six fillies and mares in the race, with $745,418 of that wagered on Zenyatta. She was such a sure thing that a $2 show bet on her paid 10 cents.

"Wasn't she just great?" asked Shirreffs. "What a move she made."

Zenyatta and stablemate Life Is Sweet nearly clipped heels at the back of the field going into the second turn. Smith moved his filly outside, then swung her four horses wide into the stretch turn. She quickly overtook one horse past the eighth pole before inching away without Smith going to his whip.

"Garrett (Gomez) and I were playing some serious jockey games out there," Smith said. "It was all clean and fair. She's so handy that when I eased up on the pedal, she backed up for me, came around and it was all over."

Life Is Sweet, also trained by Shirreffs, came in on a three-race winning streak. The two fillies have similar come-from-behind running styles. Life Is Sweet was the second choice a 6-1, making her and Zenyatta the only horses in the race at single-digit odds.

Life Is Sweet returned $2.20 and $2.10, while Allicansayis Wow was another three-quarters of a length back in third and paid $2.80 to show.

Gomez said Life Is Sweet didn't seem to like Hollywood Park's surface, which he said more resembles dirt than Santa Anita's Pro-Ride surface, where she scored three major stakes wins earlier this year.

"Down the backstretch she wasn't really taking me anywhere today," Gomez said. "She picked it up down the lane and finished OK. Overall, it was a very respectable performance. What can you say about Zenyatta?"

Zenyatta became the first Milady repeat winner since Azeri in 2002-03. Smith rode that champion filly, too.

Groups sue to block Arctic offshore drilling

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — More than a dozen Alaska Native and environmental organizations sued Thursday to block offshore oil drilling in the Beaufort Sea off Alaska's north coast.

The 13 groups filed the legal challenge to federal approval in August of Shell Oil's exploration drilling plan with the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Earthjustice attorney Holly Harris said in a news teleconference that allowing Shell to drill when it has no credible plan to clean up an Arctic Ocean oil spill is insulting and irresponsible.

The company has said that the chance of a spill during exploration was minimal and that its spill response plan more than meets federal requirements. That plan includes a fleet of response vessels, onshore response and a containment cap that cover a blowout, it said.

But Harris said the company's contention that it could recover 95 percent of oil spilled from exploratory drilling was preposterous.

"In icy conditions, the agency's own analysis and drills conducted in Alaska, suggest it could drop to 3 percent or 1 percent, or ultimately, can be completely ineffective with crews just standing by because they literally can't deploy," Harris said. "It is, frankly, a hyperbolic claim to suggest, 'Don't worry, we'll clean up 95 percent of it.'"

Melissa Schwartz, spokeswoman for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement in Washington, D.C., said the agency would have no response to the lawsuit.

Shell Alaska spokesman Curtis Smith said by phone from New Orleans that the challenge was expected but that the company's exploration plan deserved approval. "We believe BOEMRE was thorough in its analysis of our plan, and we are confident that their approval of our plan will be validated in court, as it was in May of 2010," he said.

The company also was confident in its spill response plan, he said.

"We feel we have put in place the most technically sound, environmentally sensitive plan of exploration in the history of North America," he said. "Our confidence in making a statement like that is informed by our history in Alaska, the planning we have done, the unprecedented oil response plan, and the addition of a capping and containment system very much like the one that ultimately ended the blowout in the Gulf of Mexico."

Shell wants to drill up to three exploratory wells in the Chukchi Sea and two in the Beaufort Sea in 2012. Arctic Ocean outer continental shelf reserves are estimated by the federal government at 26.6 billion barrels of recoverable oil and 130 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

Shell Alaska has said it has spent upward of $4 billion on leases and development in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas.

Drilling is strongly backed by Alaska officials hoping to find new sources of oil for the trans-Alaska pipeline. But exploration drilling during ice-free months this year was blocked in part by a successful appeal of two air permits issued to Shell in 2010 by the Environmental Protection Agency.

The EPA announced last week it had approved an air quality permit for one of the company's drilling vessels.

Interior Secretary Ken Salazar had suspended Arctic offshore drilling operations after the blowout of BP's Deepwater Horizon rig in the Gulf of Mexico. Salazar has said the federal government will proceed with "utmost caution" in Arctic waters more than 1,000 miles from the nearest Coast Guard base.

Wednesday, March 7, 2012

Ethiopians end voting in first round of local and parliamentary elections

Ethiopians voted Sunday in a first round of general elections that the opposition coalition boycotted to protest alleged intimidation of its candidates, and that an international rights group said would be unfair.

The electoral board received no reports of irregularities or incidents before polls closed nationwide at 6 p.m. (1500GMT), board official Tesfaye Mengesha said.

Governing coalition candidates are running virtually unchallenged after the main opposition coalition pulled out of the races for nearly 4 million positions, ranging from neighborhood council jobs to parliamentary seats.

Some 4.5 million or so candidates are left vying for the seats. A second round will be held April 20.

The election board did not have an official turnout figure, but Tesfaye estimated it would be around 90 percent of Ethiopia's 26 million registered voters. The country's total population is around 80 million.

In deeply religious Ethiopia, where the Ethiopian Orthodox Church holds lengthy, early-morning Sunday services, some even skipped their morning worship to cast ballots.

"It's a good government," Asrat Fanta, 43, said after voting for the ruling party.

New York-based Human Rights Watch said, however, that opposition candidates and prospective voters had been threatened, attacked and arrested during campaigning, and that hopes for fair elections were doomed.

The largest coalition of opposition parties _ the United Ethiopian Democratic Forces _ said it was boycotting the vote because some 14,000 of its candidates had been forced to drop out after receiving threats or being denied registration.

Its leader, Beyene Petros, said that if any of the opposition coalition's 6,000 remaining candidates win because their names remained on the ballots, printed before the boycott, they would withdraw.

Another opposition group said its 3,000 or so candidates also dropped out in similar circumstances.

Government and election officials denied the allegations of threats or intimidation, and said they expected these elections to be Ethiopia's most free and fair.

Ethiopia has struggled in the past with election irregularities and violence, notably in the aftermath of 2005 general elections when security forces killed 193 protesters.

Many voters appeared confident that this ballot would be trouble-free.

"Everything seems to be calm, and hopefully we will get a party that stands for the people," said Bezunesh Yimam, a 51-year-old teacher who said only that she was voting for a party that will provide "the right service that I've been deprived of." She would not elaborate.

Other voters were less hopeful.

Housekeeper Letarik Chane, 22, said she was still angry over the 2005 violence and decided to abstain from this year's vote.

"In the last election, I waited for a full day to vote and was really disappointed in the aftermath of the results," which opposition parties said were rigged to allow the ruling coalition to regain parliamentary control. "I do not want to repeat the same mistake again," Letarik said.

Reel Life review: 'Undefeated'.(TimeOut)

Reel Life review: 'Undefeated'

Had Chicago's crack team of documentary makers of "Hoop Dreams" produced the Oscar-winning sports doc "Undefeated," it would have followed the bumpy, conflicted roads traveled by the black teens playing football for the Manassas High School in North Memphis.

Instead, directors Dan Lindsay and T.J. Martin opt for an obvious and market-friendly approach: They follow the super-noble white coach who sacrifices his business, his home life and his patience to help the woeful Manassas football players better their game and attain personal self-actualization.

In other words, volunteer coach Bill Courtney saves them and the Manassas football team.

"Undefeated" follows the Manassas Tigers' 2009 season with Courtney inspiring his team to break the school's 110-year streak of never winning a state football playoff game.

As we get to know Courtney as a genuinely caring, forceful man (imagine a stereotypical Southern sheriff mixed with equal parts Dr. Phil and Super Nanny), the personalities and stories of key teammates come into focus:

* O.C., a super left tackle who needs to bump up his test scores if he wants to take advantage of college scholarships.

* Montrail, aka "Money," an offensive tackle who's on the honor roll, but still struggling to nail down scholarships.

* Chavis, a linebacker with an explosive temper that he will not or cannot control, and that makes him a fascinating wild card in the mix of team personalities.

"Undefeated" works as an incredibly moving chronicle of how a single, selfless person can make an improvement in the lives of

others, and be a role model for ethical treatment and the Golden Rule.

Lindsay and Martin capture some unbelievably personal and telling moments in their movie, which almost rivals Steve James' great "Hoop Dreams" as a feel-good sports doc with plenty of heart.

It probably won't come as a surprise that producer Rich Middlemas was inspired to make "Undefeated" in part by reading Michael Lewis' best-seller "The Blind Side," the true story of a white family who takes in pre-pro football player Michael Oher. (The movie version won Sandra Bullock a best actress Oscar.)

Academy voters love to lavish Oscar wins and nominations on white savior movies: "Blind Side," "Avatar," "Glory," "Dances With Wolves," "Ghosts of Mississippi," "Mississippi Burning," "Cry Freedom," "Geronimo: An American Legend," "The Hurricane" and others, most based on true stories.

Consider that "Undefeated," which concentrates on the white coach, won the Oscar for best documentary Sunday. Meanwhile, 1994's "Hoop Dreams," which concentrated on black players, never even earned an Oscar nomination.

Also consider that the L.A. Times reported that about 94 percent of the Academy voters are white.

Could the movie's unabashedly saintly treatment of Coach Courtney have been a major influence in giving "Undefeated" its Oscar?

"Undefeated" opens at the Century Centre in Chicago and the Evanston Century 12. Rated PG-13 for language. 113 minutes. . . .

Remakes R Us

Join me and James Bond novelist/film historian Raymond Benson as Dann & Raymond's Movie Club presents "We Don't Need No Stinkin' Remakes!" 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 8, at the Arlington Heights Memorial Library, 500 N. Dunton Ave., Arlington Heights. We'll examine 12 remakes of major movies, including "True Grit," "King Kong," "Casino Royale," "The Thing" and "The Man Who Knew Too Much." Call (847) 392-0100 or go to ahml.info. Free admission! Popcorn? Maybe if the machine is working.

'Artist' needs 4 stars

Mike, a longtime Daily Herald reader who says he agrees with my reviews "99.9 percent of the time," left a message on my voice mail last week, castigating me for a giving "The Artist" a mere . . . 1/2

"What gives?" he almost shouted. "Why not four stars? Three and a half stars for 'The Artist'? No way! Four stars all the way!"

Mike, who didn't leave his last name, urged me to reconsider my rating. So two nights before the Oscars, I sat down with my wife Peggy and we watched "The Artist" again.

Nope. "The Artist" was a wonderful feel-good, gimmick movie, but lacked the complexity and depth of a film like "The Descendants." Then Peggy pointed out something I had missed in my original review.

Despite being a silent, black-and-white film, "The Artist" is a perfect movie for our time, for it's about how we must all adapt to change. Jean Dujardin's silent star pays a hefty price for failing to adapt to two things: new technology and economic collapse.

Who can't relate to those changes in 2012?

So, Mike, I'm bumping up "The Artist" to . . . . on your appeal. It just goes to prove that when Daily Herald readers talk -- even on voice mail -- we listen.

Congrats, Kathy!

My congratulations to Kathy Oberfranc of Palatine for beating me at predicting the Academy Awards last weekend. As a valued Subscription Total Access member, she receives four passes to the fabulous i-Pic Theaters in South Barrington plus a $100 gift card to John Barleycorn's in Schaumburg.

See? Sometimes it pays not to listen to film critics.

Local world premiere!

The all-Illinois-made drama "Lac Du Flambeau" will have its world premiere at the Midwest Independent Film Festival, 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 6, at the Century Centre Cinema, 2828 N. Clark St. Chicago. A producers' panel will be held at 6:30 p.m. Written and directed by Columbia College grad Mark McNess Rosengren, the drama concerns a man whose role in a fatal accident pushes him to the edge of suicide. Go to midwestfilm.com.

* Daily Herald film critic Dann Gire's column runs Fridays in Time out!

Reel Life review: 'Undefeated'.(TimeOut)

Reel Life review: 'Undefeated'

In other words, volunteer coach Bill Courtney saves them and the Manassas football team.

"Undefeated" follows the Manassas Tigers' 2009 season with Courtney inspiring his team to break the school's 110-year streak of never winning a state football playoff game.

* O.C., a super left tackle who needs to bump up his test scores if he wants to take advantage of college scholarships.

* Montrail, aka "Money," an offensive tackle who's on the honor roll, but still struggling to nail down scholarships.

* Chavis, a linebacker with an explosive temper that he will not or cannot control, and that makes him a fascinating wild card in the mix of team personalities.

"Undefeated" works as an incredibly moving chronicle of how a single, selfless person can make an improvement in the lives of

others, and be a role model for ethical treatment and the Golden Rule.

Lindsay and Martin capture some unbelievably personal and telling moments in their movie, which almost rivals Steve James' great "Hoop Dreams" as a feel-good sports doc with plenty of heart.

Also consider that the L.A. Times reported that about 94 percent of the Academy voters are white.

Could the movie's unabashedly saintly treatment of Coach Courtney have been a major influence in giving "Undefeated" its Oscar?

"Undefeated" opens at the Century Centre in Chicago and the Evanston Century 12. Rated PG-13 for language. 113 minutes. . . .

Remakes R Us

'Artist' needs 4 stars

"What gives?" he almost shouted. "Why not four stars? Three and a half stars for 'The Artist'? No way! Four stars all the way!"

Mike, who didn't leave his last name, urged me to reconsider my rating. So two nights before the Oscars, I sat down with my wife Peggy and we watched "The Artist" again.

Nope. "The Artist" was a wonderful feel-good, gimmick movie, but lacked the complexity and depth of a film like "The Descendants." Then Peggy pointed out something I had missed in my original review.

Despite being a silent, black-and-white film, "The Artist" is a perfect movie for our time, for it's about how we must all adapt to change. Jean Dujardin's silent star pays a hefty price for failing to adapt to two things: new technology and economic collapse.