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La star de la
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JUMIA
Thursday 28 February 2013
Chris Brown Says He's 'Different' Now, Gets Embraced By Elton John 'I'm forgiven ... but, yes, I worked hard for it,' Brown says of his reconciliation with Rihanna.
It was strange enough
to see Chris Brown
mugging with Elton John at the British superstar's traditional Oscar
watching party on Sunday night.
And it must have been even stranger for Breezy to be seated among the stars as host Seth MacFarlane made his cutting "date movie" joke at the expense of the 23-year-old singer during the show's opening monologue.
But perhaps even stranger is that Brown picked the John party as place to open up about how he's changed since the incident that has come to define his personal and professional lives in many people's minds: his 2009 assault on Rihanna.
Maybe the multiple news sources that approached Brown for comment caught the singer in a loose-lipped moment when his typically on-guard pose was down. (Strangely, though, none have offered up any video or audio of their talks and Brown's reps have not returned calls for confirmation of the quotes.)
Or maybe the feeling of acceptance among the glitterati merely inspired Brown to open up. Either way, the comments that emerged represent one of the first times the 23-year-old star has given a sense that he's grasped the enormity of that fateful night, or provided insight into his recent reconciliation with Rihanna.
"I've made mistakes and I made, you know, the biggest mistake of all of them on a night," Brown said according to Entertainment Weekly, whose writer described a scene where some other guests, "glowered ... turned away or folded their arms" as Brown passed by them.
"Things got out of hand. I was a kid and I didn't understand things going on in my head. I've grown a lot since then and I know things now I didn't get then. I know some people still talk about it but I'm the one who learned the lesson and I know I'm a different person now."
Rihanna didn't attend the party with on-again beau Brown, but she recently told Rolling Stone in a cover story that she's decided that it was more important for her to be happy than to worry about what people think of their reunion. "He doesn't have the luxury of f---ing up again," she said. "That's just not an option."
Brown confirmed the pair were on good terms, telling the New York Post, "we are really happy ... we are back together. She is the most beautiful girl in the world."
He also reportedly spoke to England's Daily Mirror, calling the 2009 assault the "deepest regret" of his life, adding, "but she loves me -- what can I say? I'm forgiven ... but, yes, I worked hard for it." He added that he's grown up a lot since that night. "I was very young," he said. "And I took a lot of stuff, fame, for granted."
As for how Brown — who recently scuffled with singer Frank Ocean in an incident in which someone in Brown's crew reportedly used a homophobic slur against the Odd Future crooner — ended up at the AIDS-benefit party thrown by the openly gay John, Brown said he was personally invited by Elton. "I met Elton about a year ago," he told the Post. "And he's been a good friend to me."
John, you might recall, famously embraced Eminem after the rapper was criticized for his homophobic lyrics at the beginning of the millennium. He also helped Slim Shady make it through a nearly fatal drug addiction years after the two performed together at the 2001 Grammy Awards.
The flamboyant British piano man seems to have done the same with Brown, taking the sometimes unpredictable singer under his wing, mugging in pictures with him at the party and, perhaps, offering him some advice on how to survive the glare of the media.
"I remember what Elton did that time," Brown said of the unforgettable Elton/Eminem Grammy moment. "I think he does what he thinks is right and finding the positive while a lot of other people focus on the negative. A lot of people say one thing but, you know, they don't let things go, either."
At one point, EW reported that John chaperoned Brown over to a high-roller table anchored by Bono, Steven Tyler, Quincy Jones and Jim Carrey.
"It was an honor for him to personally invite me and it's a blessing to be here," said Brown. "This is a great event to raise money and awareness about AIDS [promotes the message that] people with HIV are people too, there shouldn't be discrimination against them or any discrepancy or any fear about being around them. At the end of the day, I'm not homophobic in any way and I don't focus on the negative that people bring to it."
li class="more lastButton">More»
And it must have been even stranger for Breezy to be seated among the stars as host Seth MacFarlane made his cutting "date movie" joke at the expense of the 23-year-old singer during the show's opening monologue.
But perhaps even stranger is that Brown picked the John party as place to open up about how he's changed since the incident that has come to define his personal and professional lives in many people's minds: his 2009 assault on Rihanna.
Maybe the multiple news sources that approached Brown for comment caught the singer in a loose-lipped moment when his typically on-guard pose was down. (Strangely, though, none have offered up any video or audio of their talks and Brown's reps have not returned calls for confirmation of the quotes.)
Or maybe the feeling of acceptance among the glitterati merely inspired Brown to open up. Either way, the comments that emerged represent one of the first times the 23-year-old star has given a sense that he's grasped the enormity of that fateful night, or provided insight into his recent reconciliation with Rihanna.
"I've made mistakes and I made, you know, the biggest mistake of all of them on a night," Brown said according to Entertainment Weekly, whose writer described a scene where some other guests, "glowered ... turned away or folded their arms" as Brown passed by them.
"Things got out of hand. I was a kid and I didn't understand things going on in my head. I've grown a lot since then and I know things now I didn't get then. I know some people still talk about it but I'm the one who learned the lesson and I know I'm a different person now."
Rihanna didn't attend the party with on-again beau Brown, but she recently told Rolling Stone in a cover story that she's decided that it was more important for her to be happy than to worry about what people think of their reunion. "He doesn't have the luxury of f---ing up again," she said. "That's just not an option."
Brown confirmed the pair were on good terms, telling the New York Post, "we are really happy ... we are back together. She is the most beautiful girl in the world."
He also reportedly spoke to England's Daily Mirror, calling the 2009 assault the "deepest regret" of his life, adding, "but she loves me -- what can I say? I'm forgiven ... but, yes, I worked hard for it." He added that he's grown up a lot since that night. "I was very young," he said. "And I took a lot of stuff, fame, for granted."
As for how Brown — who recently scuffled with singer Frank Ocean in an incident in which someone in Brown's crew reportedly used a homophobic slur against the Odd Future crooner — ended up at the AIDS-benefit party thrown by the openly gay John, Brown said he was personally invited by Elton. "I met Elton about a year ago," he told the Post. "And he's been a good friend to me."
John, you might recall, famously embraced Eminem after the rapper was criticized for his homophobic lyrics at the beginning of the millennium. He also helped Slim Shady make it through a nearly fatal drug addiction years after the two performed together at the 2001 Grammy Awards.
The flamboyant British piano man seems to have done the same with Brown, taking the sometimes unpredictable singer under his wing, mugging in pictures with him at the party and, perhaps, offering him some advice on how to survive the glare of the media.
"I remember what Elton did that time," Brown said of the unforgettable Elton/Eminem Grammy moment. "I think he does what he thinks is right and finding the positive while a lot of other people focus on the negative. A lot of people say one thing but, you know, they don't let things go, either."
At one point, EW reported that John chaperoned Brown over to a high-roller table anchored by Bono, Steven Tyler, Quincy Jones and Jim Carrey.
"It was an honor for him to personally invite me and it's a blessing to be here," said Brown. "This is a great event to raise money and awareness about AIDS [promotes the message that] people with HIV are people too, there shouldn't be discrimination against them or any discrepancy or any fear about being around them. At the end of the day, I'm not homophobic in any way and I don't focus on the negative that people bring to it."
0
Chris Brown Says He's 'Different' Now, Gets Embraced By Elton John 'I'm forgiven ... but, yes, I worked hard for it,' Brown says of his reconciliation with Rihanna.
It was strange enough
to see Chris Brown
mugging with Elton John at the British superstar's traditional Oscar
watching party on Sunday night.
And it must have been even stranger for Breezy to be seated among the stars as host Seth MacFarlane made his cutting "date movie" joke at the expense of the 23-year-old singer during the show's opening monologue.
But perhaps even stranger is that Brown picked the John party as place to open up about how he's changed since the incident that has come to define his personal and professional lives in many people's minds: his 2009 assault on Rihanna.
Maybe the multiple news sources that approached Brown for comment caught the singer in a loose-lipped moment when his typically on-guard pose was down. (Strangely, though, none have offered up any video or audio of their talks and Brown's reps have not returned calls for confirmation of the quotes.)
Or maybe the feeling of acceptance among the glitterati merely inspired Brown to open up. Either way, the comments that emerged represent one of the first times the 23-year-old star has given a sense that he's grasped the enormity of that fateful night, or provided insight into his recent reconciliation with Rihanna.
"I've made mistakes and I made, you know, the biggest mistake of all of them on a night," Brown said according to Entertainment Weekly, whose writer described a scene where some other guests, "glowered ... turned away or folded their arms" as Brown passed by them.
"Things got out of hand. I was a kid and I didn't understand things going on in my head. I've grown a lot since then and I know things now I didn't get then. I know some people still talk about it but I'm the one who learned the lesson and I know I'm a different person now."
Rihanna didn't attend the party with on-again beau Brown, but she recently told Rolling Stone in a cover story that she's decided that it was more important for her to be happy than to worry about what people think of their reunion. "He doesn't have the luxury of f---ing up again," she said. "That's just not an option."
Brown confirmed the pair were on good terms, telling the New York Post, "we are really happy ... we are back together. She is the most beautiful girl in the world."
He also reportedly spoke to England's Daily Mirror, calling the 2009 assault the "deepest regret" of his life, adding, "but she loves me -- what can I say? I'm forgiven ... but, yes, I worked hard for it." He added that he's grown up a lot since that night. "I was very young," he said. "And I took a lot of stuff, fame, for granted."
As for how Brown — who recently scuffled with singer Frank Ocean in an incident in which someone in Brown's crew reportedly used a homophobic slur against the Odd Future crooner — ended up at the AIDS-benefit party thrown by the openly gay John, Brown said he was personally invited by Elton. "I met Elton about a year ago," he told the Post. "And he's been a good friend to me."
John, you might recall, famously embraced Eminem after the rapper was criticized for his homophobic lyrics at the beginning of the millennium. He also helped Slim Shady make it through a nearly fatal drug addiction years after the two performed together at the 2001 Grammy Awards.
The flamboyant British piano man seems to have done the same with Brown, taking the sometimes unpredictable singer under his wing, mugging in pictures with him at the party and, perhaps, offering him some advice on how to survive the glare of the media.
"I remember what Elton did that time," Brown said of the unforgettable Elton/Eminem Grammy moment. "I think he does what he thinks is right and finding the positive while a lot of other people focus on the negative. A lot of people say one thing but, you know, they don't let things go, either."
At one point, EW reported that John chaperoned Brown over to a high-roller table anchored by Bono, Steven Tyler, Quincy Jones and Jim Carrey.
"It was an honor for him to personally invite me and it's a blessing to be here," said Brown. "This is a great event to raise money and awareness about AIDS [promotes the message that] people with HIV are people too, there shouldn't be discrimination against them or any discrepancy or any fear about being around them. At the end of the day, I'm not homophobic in any way and I don't focus on the negative that people bring to it."
li class="more lastButton">More»
And it must have been even stranger for Breezy to be seated among the stars as host Seth MacFarlane made his cutting "date movie" joke at the expense of the 23-year-old singer during the show's opening monologue.
But perhaps even stranger is that Brown picked the John party as place to open up about how he's changed since the incident that has come to define his personal and professional lives in many people's minds: his 2009 assault on Rihanna.
Maybe the multiple news sources that approached Brown for comment caught the singer in a loose-lipped moment when his typically on-guard pose was down. (Strangely, though, none have offered up any video or audio of their talks and Brown's reps have not returned calls for confirmation of the quotes.)
Or maybe the feeling of acceptance among the glitterati merely inspired Brown to open up. Either way, the comments that emerged represent one of the first times the 23-year-old star has given a sense that he's grasped the enormity of that fateful night, or provided insight into his recent reconciliation with Rihanna.
"I've made mistakes and I made, you know, the biggest mistake of all of them on a night," Brown said according to Entertainment Weekly, whose writer described a scene where some other guests, "glowered ... turned away or folded their arms" as Brown passed by them.
"Things got out of hand. I was a kid and I didn't understand things going on in my head. I've grown a lot since then and I know things now I didn't get then. I know some people still talk about it but I'm the one who learned the lesson and I know I'm a different person now."
Rihanna didn't attend the party with on-again beau Brown, but she recently told Rolling Stone in a cover story that she's decided that it was more important for her to be happy than to worry about what people think of their reunion. "He doesn't have the luxury of f---ing up again," she said. "That's just not an option."
Brown confirmed the pair were on good terms, telling the New York Post, "we are really happy ... we are back together. She is the most beautiful girl in the world."
He also reportedly spoke to England's Daily Mirror, calling the 2009 assault the "deepest regret" of his life, adding, "but she loves me -- what can I say? I'm forgiven ... but, yes, I worked hard for it." He added that he's grown up a lot since that night. "I was very young," he said. "And I took a lot of stuff, fame, for granted."
As for how Brown — who recently scuffled with singer Frank Ocean in an incident in which someone in Brown's crew reportedly used a homophobic slur against the Odd Future crooner — ended up at the AIDS-benefit party thrown by the openly gay John, Brown said he was personally invited by Elton. "I met Elton about a year ago," he told the Post. "And he's been a good friend to me."
John, you might recall, famously embraced Eminem after the rapper was criticized for his homophobic lyrics at the beginning of the millennium. He also helped Slim Shady make it through a nearly fatal drug addiction years after the two performed together at the 2001 Grammy Awards.
The flamboyant British piano man seems to have done the same with Brown, taking the sometimes unpredictable singer under his wing, mugging in pictures with him at the party and, perhaps, offering him some advice on how to survive the glare of the media.
"I remember what Elton did that time," Brown said of the unforgettable Elton/Eminem Grammy moment. "I think he does what he thinks is right and finding the positive while a lot of other people focus on the negative. A lot of people say one thing but, you know, they don't let things go, either."
At one point, EW reported that John chaperoned Brown over to a high-roller table anchored by Bono, Steven Tyler, Quincy Jones and Jim Carrey.
"It was an honor for him to personally invite me and it's a blessing to be here," said Brown. "This is a great event to raise money and awareness about AIDS [promotes the message that] people with HIV are people too, there shouldn't be discrimination against them or any discrepancy or any fear about being around them. At the end of the day, I'm not homophobic in any way and I don't focus on the negative that people bring to it."
0
Birdman Says 'Nobody Got Hurt' In Nicki Minaj/ Mariah Carey Beef 'I don't consider it beef, they both getting paid to do a job,' Cash Money CEO tells MTV News.
Lil Wayne may not be
an "Idol"
watcher, but Birdman
tunes in regularly to watch Nicki Minaj judge the
top-rated singing competition.
"We rep Nick, that's our little sister, so we support everything she do, so we definitely watch. It ain't no secret," the Cash Money CEO told MTV News during NBA All-Star weekend in Houston, where he also celebrated his birthday.
As
the judges on "American Idol" are working toward narrowing down the top
24 contestants, some still wonder how Nicki Minaj and Mariah Carey will
fare together when the show starts to go live. Though they have had
not-so-kind words in the past, Bird doesn't believe there is a problem
at all.
"I don't consider it beef, they both getting paid to do a job and they're just doing their job," he said. "Ain't nobody get hurt, so it ain't no big deal."
Nicki's progression as an artist and a businesswoman is much more interesting to Baby, who gives Minaj his full support. "I saw the whole play, been a part of it so I think it's amazing. We ain't never had a female in the business to accomplish what she's accomplishing, period," he said. "I never saw a woman in this business, especially in my time of doing this, work as hard as her."
For her latest feat, Nicki has hooked up for the second year in a row with MAC for MAC Viva Glam, the makeup juggernaut's HIV/AIDS charity campaign. As a part of the campaign, the Pink Friday rapper has a new lavender shade of Viva Glam lipstick, which she dubbed "Nicki 2."
"I wanted to just have something new to try, and MAC wanted to come out with lavender shades. I tried this on and I loved it," she told MTV News.
It's all enough to make the Birdman proud. "I just like how she get out and go get it."
0
Nicki Minaj, Keith Urban and Mariah Carey in Charlotte on
"American Idol"
"We rep Nick, that's our little sister, so we support everything she do, so we definitely watch. It ain't no secret," the Cash Money CEO told MTV News during NBA All-Star weekend in Houston, where he also celebrated his birthday.
Birdman Praises Nicki Minaj As 'American Idol'
Judge
"I don't consider it beef, they both getting paid to do a job and they're just doing their job," he said. "Ain't nobody get hurt, so it ain't no big deal."
Nicki's progression as an artist and a businesswoman is much more interesting to Baby, who gives Minaj his full support. "I saw the whole play, been a part of it so I think it's amazing. We ain't never had a female in the business to accomplish what she's accomplishing, period," he said. "I never saw a woman in this business, especially in my time of doing this, work as hard as her."
For her latest feat, Nicki has hooked up for the second year in a row with MAC for MAC Viva Glam, the makeup juggernaut's HIV/AIDS charity campaign. As a part of the campaign, the Pink Friday rapper has a new lavender shade of Viva Glam lipstick, which she dubbed "Nicki 2."
"I wanted to just have something new to try, and MAC wanted to come out with lavender shades. I tried this on and I loved it," she told MTV News.
It's all enough to make the Birdman proud. "I just like how she get out and go get it."
Nicki Minaj Steps Into The Future MAC Viva
Glam Campaign
0
Nicki Minaj, Keith Urban and Mariah Carey in Charlotte on
"American Idol"
Beyonce, The-Dream Making 'Music That Feels Good' 'She's just shooting to be regular and OK and not trying to appease everybody,' The-Dream tells 'RapFix Live.
beyoncé doesn't do
anything half-heartedly. Whether it's her multiplatinum albums or
high-powered stage show, Queen Bey pours her all into her work. It's a
side of her that fans got to see while watching her HBO documentary "Life
is But a Dream." It's a side that her longtime collaborator and
friend The-Dream
knows first-hand.It's no secret that the singer/songwriter who
penned Bey's "Single Ladies" is once again hooking
up with her on her upcoming LP. But what the two are cooking up?
The way The-Dream tells it, the formula is a lot simpler than folks
would think.
"There's
no particular sound that I think we're shooting for, we're just trying
to make music that feels good," he said on Wednesday (February 27) when
he appeared on "RapFix Live."
"If you seen the HBO thing, which was great, we had been talking about doing something that showcases who she is and what she wants because we see those figures that are so out of the stratosphere," he continued.
The-Dream, who is working on releasing his own LP, IV Play, says that Beyoncé is perceived as a pop goddess; in reality, she's just a regular person. Her next LP should reflect that same sentiment. "She's just shooting to be regular and OK and not trying to appease everybody," The-Dream said.
"You have to appease yourself and your soul for doing it," he continued, before joking about her unforgettable Super Bowl performance. "You're in front of everybody all day. She gives her all onstage as you seen in the Super Bowl. She shut the lights down."
What are you expecting from Beyoncé's next album? Tell us in the comments!
The-Dream Shares His Opinion On Kanye West,
'Suit & Tie' And Beyonce
"If you seen the HBO thing, which was great, we had been talking about doing something that showcases who she is and what she wants because we see those figures that are so out of the stratosphere," he continued.
The-Dream, who is working on releasing his own LP, IV Play, says that Beyoncé is perceived as a pop goddess; in reality, she's just a regular person. Her next LP should reflect that same sentiment. "She's just shooting to be regular and OK and not trying to appease everybody," The-Dream said.
"You have to appease yourself and your soul for doing it," he continued, before joking about her unforgettable Super Bowl performance. "You're in front of everybody all day. She gives her all onstage as you seen in the Super Bowl. She shut the lights down."
What are you expecting from Beyoncé's next album? Tell us in the comments!
-
The-Dream on "RapFix Live"
-
Kano: Jubilation, as Bayero Returns
Emir of Kano Alhaji Ado Bayero
By Ibrahim Shuaibu
Emir of Kano Alhaji Ado Bayero has returned to Kano after travelling to
London for medical check up a day after gunmen attacked his convoy in
Kano and killed three of his body guards on January 19.
Bayero, who had arrived Malam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA)
around 7pm on Wednesday from London aboard a Nigeria Airforce plane, was
warmly received by the teaming crowd at the airport.
The huge crowd defied all the security measures put in place at the
airport and surged into the premises to welcome the emir.
Litvinenko Secret Files Examined
Alexander Litvinenko was poisoned in 2006 after meeting Russian
contacts
The judge due to preside over the inquest into the death of Russian spy
Alexander Litvinenko is to examine secret documents to decide whether
more information can be made public.
Sir Robert Owen will look at the government files in a closed hearing.
He announced the plan at a pre-inquest legal review considering the
scope of the inquest, due to start in May.
Litvinenko, 43, was poisoned in London in 2006 - allegedly at a meeting
with two Russian former KGB contacts.
The UK government is seeking to prevent certain details relating to the
case from being placed in open court for security reasons.
Ben Emmerson QC, lawyer for Litvinenko's widow Marina, has suggested
this should be treated with the "greatest degree of scepticism" and
seeks to conceal details of Mr Litvinenko's ties to MI6.
Sir Robert will examine a bundle of secret documents, in the company of
counsel for Foreign Secretary William Hague, to decide if more can be
made public on the government's reasons for wanting each of the
documents kept secret.
It is not clear when the closed hearing to study the government files
will take place.
Speaking at the Royal Courts of Justice in central London on Wednesday,
Sir Robert said: "I intend to conduct this inquest with the greatest
possible degree of openness and transparency."
The UK government's public interest immunity (PII) application to
exclude sensitive information is being opposed by lawyers for
Litvinenko's widow as well as media organisations, including the BBC.
Sir Robert insisted he would subject the application to the "most
stringent and critical examination", and that the inquest would be a
"full, fearless and open investigation into the circumstances of Mr
Litvinenko's death".
Botswana U-17 Delegation to Arrive Friday
Golden Eaglets
The U-17 National Team of Botswana will arrive in Nigeria on Friday for
a two-match friendly with the U-17 National Team, Golden Eaglets.
Both matches, which will take place at the U. J. Esuene Stadium,
Calabar will hold on Saturday, March 2 and Monday, March 4.
The Nigeria Football Federation has organized the games as part of the
Golden Eaglets’ final phase preparation for the African U-17
Championship taking place in Morocco between April 13th – 27th.
Manu Garba’s boys are unbeaten in 20 friendly and competitive matches
since coming on stream last year, and swept into the African U-17 finals
by winning all six qualifying matches, scoring 21 goals and conceding
only one.
In contrast, Botswana’s cadets only squeezed past Malawi, Rwanda and
Algeria to reach the eight-nation finals.
Prior to their qualifying race last year, the Eaglets played a similar
two-leg friendly against the Rwandan U-17 Team, also in Calabar, both of
which they won comfortably.
The Eaglets will fly out of the country to Qatar on 13th March, for a
four-week final preparatory programme ahead of the continental showpiece
in Morocco. They will be availed of the exquisite training facilities
at the world-renowned Aspire Academy for Sports Excellence, Doha.
Nigeria takes on Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire and debutants Congo Brazzaville
in Group B of the African U-17 Championship in Morocco.
Botswana U-17 Delegation to Arrive Friday
Golden Eaglets
The U-17 National Team of Botswana will arrive in Nigeria on Friday for
a two-match friendly with the U-17 National Team, Golden Eaglets.
Both matches, which will take place at the U. J. Esuene Stadium,
Calabar will hold on Saturday, March 2 and Monday, March 4.
The Nigeria Football Federation has organized the games as part of the
Golden Eaglets’ final phase preparation for the African U-17
Championship taking place in Morocco between April 13th – 27th.
Manu Garba’s boys are unbeaten in 20 friendly and competitive matches
since coming on stream last year, and swept into the African U-17 finals
by winning all six qualifying matches, scoring 21 goals and conceding
only one.
In contrast, Botswana’s cadets only squeezed past Malawi, Rwanda and
Algeria to reach the eight-nation finals.
Prior to their qualifying race last year, the Eaglets played a similar
two-leg friendly against the Rwandan U-17 Team, also in Calabar, both of
which they won comfortably.
The Eaglets will fly out of the country to Qatar on 13th March, for a
four-week final preparatory programme ahead of the continental showpiece
in Morocco. They will be availed of the exquisite training facilities
at the world-renowned Aspire Academy for Sports Excellence, Doha.
Nigeria takes on Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire and debutants Congo Brazzaville
in Group B of the African U-17 Championship in Morocco.
Senators Clash over Assault Weapons
Democratic Sen. Brian Frosh (standing L) discusses a Maryland
gun-control bill with Sen. E.J. Pipkin (standing R), R-Cecil
Recent mass shootings like the massacre of first-graders and staffers
at a Connecticut elementary school and the increasing deadliness of
assault weapons makes a ban on those firearms more urgent than ever, the
Senate author of a proposal to prohibit them said Wednesday.
Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., made the remark as the Senate
Judiciary Committee held a hearing on her proposal, which would also bar
ammunition magazines that can hold more than 10 rounds.
But the bruising, difficult path through Congress that the proposal
will have was illustrated when the Judiciary panel's top Republican
challenged the need for the assault weapons ban. Sen. Charles Grassley,
R-Iowa, questioned the ban's constitutionality and said it would take
the weapons away from people who use them for self-defence, reports The
Associated Press.
Further underscoring the roadblocks that gun control legislation faces
in Congress, the chairman of the House Judiciary Committee said
Wednesday that he opposes universal background checks for gun purchases,
a central piece of President Barack Obama's plan for curbing gun
violence. Rep. Bob Goodlatte, R-Va., told reporters that the proposal
could lead to creation of a federal gun registry — which the Obama
administration has said will not happen.
The hearing was the Senate's third since the Dec. 14 attack at Sandy
Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., that killed 20 students and
six workers. The Judiciary panel could begin writing legislation as
early as Thursday, but that session is likely to be delayed until next
week.
Numerous relatives and neighbours of victims of Newtown, as well as
other shootings at Aurora, Colo., and Virginia Tech filled the large
hearing room.
At one point, Feinstein played a video showing how a bump fire slide, a
piece of equipment added to an assault weapon, allows it to rapidly
fire many rounds of ammunition, much as a machine gun would.
"The need for a federal ban has never been greater," Feinstein said.
Grassley expressed sympathy for gun violence victims, but said existing
gun laws are not being adequately enforced, including background checks
designed to prevent criminals from getting weapons.
"We should be sceptical about giving the Justice Department more laws
to enforce" when it's not enforcing current ones, Grassley said.
Grassley said he believed Congress will eventually take action on
boosting penalties for illegally trafficking guns, on more adequately
keeping guns from people with mental problems, and encouraging states do
a better job of reporting mental health records of potential gun buyers
to the federal background check system.
At one point, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., used his questioning of
Milwaukee Police Chief Edward Flynn to argue that the current background
check system is not being well enforced, since only a handful of the
roughly 80,000 people annually who fail those checks are prosecuted for
filing documents saying they qualify to own the weapons.
Uncharacteristically for a Senate hearing, Flynn interrupted the
senator, saying, "I want to stop 76,000 people from buying guns
illegally," a reference to the gun purchases that the background check
system blocked last year. "That's what background check does."
His remark drew applause from spectators in the room.
Iran Praises Milestone Nuclear Talks
World Powers hold nuclear talks with Iran
Iran and world powers agreed Wednesday to hold new talks in March and
April over the Islamic republic's disputed nuclear drive, after
negotiations in Kazakhstan which Tehran praised as a possible turning
point in the decade-old dispute.
There was no sign of a major breakthrough over Iran's nuclear ambitions
in the Kazakh city of Almaty but the agreement on new meetings
suggested potential for progress.
The talks saw the five UN Security Council members and Germany offer
Iran a softening of non-oil or financial sector-related sanctions in
exchange for concessions over Tehran's sensitive uranium enrichment
operations.
A senior US official said Iran "appeared to listen carefully to the
offer" and its chief negotiator Saeed Jalili issued rare praise for the
world powers' "positive" and "realistic" attitude.
Speaking in Vienna, Iran's Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi went even
further, saying he was "very optimistic about the outcome".
"Things are taking a turning point and I think the Almaty meeting will
be (seen as) a milestone," Salehi said.
Jalili, seen as close to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei,
was more circumspect, saying the world powers' proposals were "more
realistic, compared to what they said in the past."
"We consider these talks as a positive step which could be completed by
taking a positive and constructive approach and taking reciprocal
steps," he told reporters in Almaty.
Uranium enrichment is the most sensitive part of the nuclear cycle as
the process can be used to make both nuclear fuel and the explosive core
of a nuclear bomb that the powers fear Iran wants to develop.
Officials said the sides would next meet at the level of senior civil
servants on March 17-18 in Istanbul.
Talks involving Jalili and the six world powers represented by EU
foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton would then take place in Almaty on
April 5-6.
In contrast to the more effusive Iranian response, Ashton refused to be
drawn into a judgement of the talks' success.
Three Dead in Swiss Shooting
Police and medics at the crime scene
Three people have been killed and seven injured during a shooting at a
factory near the Swiss city of Lucerne, local media quote officials as
saying.
The killer is among the dead, police and prosecutors are reported as
saying.
Shooting broke out in the canteen at the Kronospan wood processing
plant in the town of Menznau at around 09:00 (08:00 GMT), reports the
BBC.
Police and rescue services are at the scene and the entire area is
currently sealed off.
"The workers were eating a snack in the cafeteria during the morning,
and there was a massacre," said a man quoted by the Swiss news website
20minutes, who had phoned the factory to check on the welfare of his
father.
An emergency telephone line had been set up for families of the
factory's employees.
"There were three dead and seven injured, some of them seriously
injured," prosecutors' spokesman Simon Kopp told Swiss newspaper Blick.
Switzerland has one of the highest rates of gun ownership in the world,
but such gun attacks are relatively rare.
All healthy Swiss men aged between 18 and 34 are obliged to do military
service and all are issued with assault rifles or pistols which they
are supposed to keep at home.
Until recently, many kept their weapons even after completing their
military service - though rules on this have recently been tightened.
According to the Geneva-based Small Arms Survey, Switzerland ranks
third in terms of gun ownership, behind the United States and Yemen.
Street gun violence is very rare in Switzerland, says Emma Jane Kirby,
who recently investigated the subject for BBC News.
However, there are more domestic homicides and suicides with a firearm
in Switzerland than virtually anywhere else in Europe except Finland,
she says.
Three Dead in Swiss Shooting
Police and medics at the crime scene
Three people have been killed and seven injured during a shooting at a
factory near the Swiss city of Lucerne, local media quote officials as
saying.
The killer is among the dead, police and prosecutors are reported as
saying.
Shooting broke out in the canteen at the Kronospan wood processing
plant in the town of Menznau at around 09:00 (08:00 GMT), reports the
BBC.
Police and rescue services are at the scene and the entire area is
currently sealed off.
"The workers were eating a snack in the cafeteria during the morning,
and there was a massacre," said a man quoted by the Swiss news website
20minutes, who had phoned the factory to check on the welfare of his
father.
An emergency telephone line had been set up for families of the
factory's employees.
"There were three dead and seven injured, some of them seriously
injured," prosecutors' spokesman Simon Kopp told Swiss newspaper Blick.
Switzerland has one of the highest rates of gun ownership in the world,
but such gun attacks are relatively rare.
All healthy Swiss men aged between 18 and 34 are obliged to do military
service and all are issued with assault rifles or pistols which they
are supposed to keep at home.
Until recently, many kept their weapons even after completing their
military service - though rules on this have recently been tightened.
According to the Geneva-based Small Arms Survey, Switzerland ranks
third in terms of gun ownership, behind the United States and Yemen.
Street gun violence is very rare in Switzerland, says Emma Jane Kirby,
who recently investigated the subject for BBC News.
However, there are more domestic homicides and suicides with a firearm
in Switzerland than virtually anywhere else in Europe except Finland,
she says.
Failing to Beat Apple, Nokia Aims for BlackBerry
Apple logo
(Bloomberg)
(Bloomberg)
As erstwhile smartphone leader Nokia Oyj (NOK1V) fails to gain much
headway on Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Samsung Electronics Co., the Finnish
company is setting its sights on a weaker rival: BlackBerry.
Nokia is betting its partnership with corporate-computing giant
Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) will help it win business users, targeting
BlackBerry’s stronghold. Nokia’s newest Lumia smartphones, including two
introduced this week at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, run on
Microsoft’s operating system and come with Excel, Word and PowerPoint.
Gaining a foothold in the business market is crucial for Nokia as it
and BlackBerry fight for third place in smartphones, behind Samsung --
the leader in devices using Google Inc. (GOOG)’s Android -- and Apple.
Shares of both Nokia and BlackBerry have lost 90 percent in the past
five years as first consumers and then companies have turned to Android
and Apple’s iOS, reports Bloomberg.
“The importance of winning the business audience on a scale of 1 to 10
is easily an 11,” said Ramon Llamas, an analyst at research firm IDC in
Boston. He expects Windows Phone handsets to surpass BlackBerry this
year, with Nokia responsible for most of the gains.
BlackBerry, formerly known as Research In Motion Ltd. (BB), pioneered the corporate mobile-device market in North America and still has a strong following in Washington and on Wall Street. Nokia, the biggest seller of Windows handsets, may appeal to information-technology chiefs seeking easy synchronization between smartphones and company computers, which most often use Microsoft’s operating system.
BlackBerry, formerly known as Research In Motion Ltd. (BB), pioneered the corporate mobile-device market in North America and still has a strong following in Washington and on Wall Street. Nokia, the biggest seller of Windows handsets, may appeal to information-technology chiefs seeking easy synchronization between smartphones and company computers, which most often use Microsoft’s operating system.
‘Perfect Moment’
Nokia Chief Executive Officer Stephen Elop, who joined from Microsoft in 2010, started betting on his former employer’s operating system after Nokia’s homegrown Symbian software fell out of favor among consumers.
Nokia Chief Executive Officer Stephen Elop, who joined from Microsoft in 2010, started betting on his former employer’s operating system after Nokia’s homegrown Symbian software fell out of favor among consumers.
Lumia unit sales rose to 4.4 million in the fourth quarter, making up
almost 75 percent of all Windows Phone sales. BlackBerry (BBRY) sold 7.4
million smartphones, for 3.2 percent of the global market. IPhones and
Android devices together account for about 90 percent of smartphone
sales.
Elop says he often gets asked whether he’d be interested in buying
BlackBerry, even though the company hasn’t said it’s for sale. “When I
get asked that question, my answer is ’I’m interested in their
customers,’” he said in an interview in Barcelona this week. “It’s a
really perfect moment to go after that marketplace.”
Nokia slipped 0.8 percent to 2.70 euros at 1:28 p.m. in Helsinki.
BlackBerry fell 1.4 percent to $13.06 yesterday in New York.
Cambodian Coke
Businesses are important to handset manufacturers because they carry a lot of clout when carriers decide which handsets to offer. A single corporate account can include thousands of individual users who tend to favor more expensive devices and have higher phone bills. Nokia says one European carrier it is negotiating with receives about a third of its revenue from companies.
Businesses are important to handset manufacturers because they carry a lot of clout when carriers decide which handsets to offer. A single corporate account can include thousands of individual users who tend to favor more expensive devices and have higher phone bills. Nokia says one European carrier it is negotiating with receives about a third of its revenue from companies.
Nokia has been touting its business-customer gains. The company says
Coca-Cola (KO) salespeople in Cambodia and Vietnam use Lumia smartphones
process orders while on the move. And it says London real-estate broker
Foxtons Ltd. equipped more than 900 employees with Lumias, allowing
them to synchronize calendars and work on spreadsheets and documents on
the road.
Multitasking Whiz
BlackBerry delayed its new operating system, BlackBerry 10, several times. In March it plans to start U.S. sales of the $199 touch-screen Z10, which Bloomberg’s Rich Jaroslovsky called “handsome, intuitive to use and a whiz at multitasking.”
BlackBerry delayed its new operating system, BlackBerry 10, several times. In March it plans to start U.S. sales of the $199 touch-screen Z10, which Bloomberg’s Rich Jaroslovsky called “handsome, intuitive to use and a whiz at multitasking.”
The company, based in Waterloo, Ontario, has more than 250,000
enterprise servers around the world, which help it ensure the security
of corporate communications. It says more than 3,500 companies and
government agencies in North America are considering its latest devices.
“It’s not surprising that competitors are scrambling to get into the
enterprise,” said David J. Smith, BlackBerry’s executive vice president
for mobile computing. He said his company still offers the greatest
security for corporate data.
With mobile devices evolving rapidly and the market growing, Nokia can
win new customers as business users consider changing providers,
according to Chris Weber, the company’s global sales chief.
“We need to keep pushing,” Weber said over coffee at Nokia’s
headquarters in Espoo, Finland. “It’s a good opportunity now with people
and companies trying to decide which way to go.”
Simply defeating BlackBerry may not be enough for Nokia. Apple and
Android manufacturers have almost squeezed other operating systems out
of the consumer market, and there’s no guarantee they won’t do the same
in the business world.
Third Ecosystem
In the five years since their introduction, the iPhone and Android have captured a combined 78 percent of the business- smartphone market, leaving BlackBerry with 16 percent and Nokia with 4 percent in 2012, according to IDC.
In the five years since their introduction, the iPhone and Android have captured a combined 78 percent of the business- smartphone market, leaving BlackBerry with 16 percent and Nokia with 4 percent in 2012, according to IDC.
Samsung, (005930) the world’s biggest maker of smartphones, bought a
stake security software company Fixmo Inc. last month to improve its
corporate credentials. Apple this month gained some Home Depot Inc. (HD)
managers as customers. And in October, the U.S. Defense Department said
it plans to open its network for the first time to Android devices and
iPhones.
Nokia sales chief Weber acknowledges that Apple and Android are
formidable foes. But he insists there can be what he calls a “third
ecosystem” in the smartphone business.
“I am confident that the bet we have on Microsoft gives us the
opportunity to be the third,” Weber said. “I do think there’s room and I
think there is appetite.”
Presidency: Economy Not in Any Danger
Dr Doyin Okupe
By Chuks Okocha
The Presidency Wednesday dismissed the claim by the Action Congress of
Nigeria (ACN) that the economy of the country is about to collapse,
stating that the economy is not in danger of collapsing as all globally
financial recognized indices shows that the Nigerian economy is stable
and on an upward path.
A statement signed by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on
Public Affairs, Dr Doyin Okupe described the claim by the ACN as lacking
in substance and running contrary to the verdicts of reputable
international rating agencies who have consistently upgraded the
country's economic ratings in the last one and a half years.
Army Denies Killing Four Nasarawa State Varsity Students
Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Azubuike Ihejirika
• Insist never use live ammunition in such situations
By Senator Iroegbu
Nigerian Army has denied killing four Nasarawa State university
students who were allegedly felled by military bullets during the
students' protests of last Monday over scarcity of water in the school
premises.
The Director of Army Public Relations (DAPR), Brig-Genl Ibrahim
Attahiru, stated this Wednesday at the maiden monthly press briefing in
Abuja, organised to explain the state of affairs and recent activities
within the Military service.
Attahiru spoke in defence of the soldiers from 177 Guards Battalion,
who were involved in the operations, claiming that they did not use live
rounds of ammunition throughout the exercise.
Celebrities model Yomi Casual's 2013 design collection
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