Italian Court Acquits, Frees Amanda Knox

An Italian appeals court Monday overturned American student Amanda Knox’s conviction in the murder and rape of a fellow student, freeing her from prison and allowing her to return to the United States.
Knox collapsed in tears after the verdict was read. Her co-defendant, Raffaele Sollecito, also was cleared of killing 21-year-old Meredith Kercher in 2007.

The court, however, upheld Knox’s slander conviction for accusing bar owner Diya “Patrick” Lumumba of carrying out the killing. The sentence was set at three years, or time served, since Knox has been in prison since Nov. 6, 2007.
The Kercher family looked on grimly as the verdict was read after 11 hours of deliberations by the eight-member jury. Outside the courthouse, some of the hundreds of observers shouted, “Shame, shame!”
Yet inside the frescoed courtroom, Knox’s parents, who have regularly traveled from their home in Seattle to Perugia to visit the 24-year-old over the past four years, hugged their lawyers and cried with joy.
“We’ve been waiting for this for four years,” said one of Sollecito’s lawyers, Giulia Bongiorno.
Hours later, Knox again was a free woman.
Corrado Maria Daclon, the secretary general of a foundation that has championed Knox’s cause, said Knox told him as she left prison that she just “wanted to go home, reconnect with her family, take possession of her life and win back her happiness.”
Daclon was in the car with Knox as she left Perugia’s Campanne. Italian lawmaker Rocco Girlanda, who is close to the American, says she and her family will leave Italy on Tuesday aboard a commercial flight from Rome.
Prosecutors can appeal the acquittal to Italy’s highest court. There was no word late Monday if they planned to do so.
Earlier Monday, Knox delivered a tearful 10-minute address in Italian to the packed courtroom asking them to allow her to return to the U.S. and saying she did not kill her British roommate.
“I did not kill. I did not rape. I did not steal. I wasn’t there,” Knox said.
“I’ve lost a friend in the worst, most brutal, most inexplicable way possible,” she said of the 2007 murder of Meredith Kercher, a 21-year-old Briton who shared an apartment with Knox when they were both students in Perugia. “I’m paying with my life for things that I didn’t do.”

Knox and Sollecito, Knox’s former boyfriend from Italy, were convicted in 2009 of sexually assaulting and murdering Kercher, who was stabbed to death in her bedroom. Knox was sentenced to 26 years in prison, Sollecito to 25. They both deny wrongdoing.
“I never hurt anyone, never in my life,” Sollecito said Monday in his own speech to the jury.
Hundreds of eager observers gathered outside the courthouse ahead of the highly anticipated announcement, joining television vans that have been camped out for more than a week. One hundred reporters were being allowed into the subterranean courtroom.
Observers lined the street leading to the courthouse, taking pictures as the two vans carrying Knox and Sollecito from the prison to the court passed by.
Kercher’s mother, sister and a brother traveled to Perugia for the verdict. They had expressed worry over the possibility of an acquittal but told reporters as deliberations were under way that they hoped the jury would do the right thing and not be influenced by the media’s focus on the case.
“As long as they decide today based purely on the information available to them and they don’t look into the media hype, I think justice will be found,” the victim’s sister, Stephanie Kercher, told reporters. She said the family was satisfied with the original verdicts.
She lamented that Meredith had been “most forgotten” in the media circus surrounding the case, with news photos more frequently showing Knox and Sollecito than “Mez” — the victim’s nickname. “It’s very difficult to keep her memory alive in all of this,” she said.
The family, however, said it could understand the Knox family’s media campaign.
“They fully believe in her innocence. You can’t blame them for that,” said Lyle Kercher, the victim’s brother. “But it’s obviously hard for us.”
As the verdict was broadcast live, hundreds of reporters and camera crews filled the underground, frescoed courtroom before Knox’s address, while police outside cordoned off the entrance to the tribunal.
The trial has captivated audiences worldwide: Knox and Sollecito had been convicted of murdering Meredith in what the lower court said had begun as a drug-fueled sexual assault.
Also convicted in separate proceedings was Rudy Hermann Guede, a small-time drug dealer and drifter who spent most of his life in Italy after arriving here from his native Ivory Coast. Guede was convicted in a separate fast-track procedure and saw his sentence cut to 16 years in his final appeal.
Lawyers for Knox and Sollecito believe Guede was the sole killer, but the prosecution and a lawyer for the Kercher family say that bruises and a lack of defensive wounds on Kercher’s body prove that there was more than one aggressor holding her into submission.
Knox said she had nothing more than a passing acquaintance with Guede, who played basketball at a court near the house, and didn’t even know his name. Sollecito, who addressed the court before Knox, told jurors that he did not know Guede at all.
Sollecito was anxious as he addressed the court, shifting as he spoke and stopping to sip water. He said prior to the Nov. 1, 2007 murder was a happy time for him, he was close to defending his thesis to graduate from university and had just met Knox.
The weekend Kercher was murdered was the first the pair planned to spend together “in tenderness and cuddles,” he said.
At the end of his 17-minute address, Sollecito took off a white rubber bracelet emblazoned with “Free Amanda and Raffaele” that he said he has been wearing for four years.
“I have never taken it off. Many emotions are concentrated in this bracelet,” he said. “Now I want to pay homage to the court. The moment to take it off has arrived.”

Who is going to snag an Emmy on Sunday night?

It’s that time of the year again — Emmy season. And with the awards show running on Sunday night, now’s the chance to lay out some of the likely statue winners. As any diehard television viewer knows, the awards don’t always go to who necessarily deserves them.
Here’s a look at some predictions, along with some thoughts on some pretty strong contenders.

Best Drama Series — “Mad Men”

“Mad Men” will likely be the big winner of the night. The series had yet another strong season and has solidified its role as the darling of the Emmy voters.

Best Comedy Series — “Modern Family”

Expect ‘”Modern Family” to beat out “Parks and Recreation,” earning it back-to-back wins. It’s consistently funny and universally likable, which should translate to lots of Emmy votes.

Best Actor in a Drama — Jon Hamm

Despite stellar performances by Kyle Chandler in “Friday Night Lights” and Steve Buscemi in “Broadwalk Empire,” expect Hamm to capitalize on a Bryan Cranston-free year and take the prize. Hamm’s performance this season forever changed the way we view Don Draper.

Best Actress in a Drama — Elisabeth Moss

While “The Good Wife’s” Julianna Margulies and Kathy Bates from “Harry’s Law” are bigger, more attractive names for Emmy voters, I think the nod will go to Elisabeth Moss. Her performance on “Mad Men” this season hit an elite level.

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama — John Slattery

His might be the most stacked category of the night. While Walton Goggins and Peter Dinklage both had very strong seasons respectively on “Justified” and “Game of Thrones,” it’s likely this one will go to Slattery for his performance on “Mad Men.” He’s been nominated before and is due for a trip to the podium.

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama — Margo Martindale

Margo Martindale’s memorable role on “Justified” might just grant her the Emmy, while Kelly Macdonald’s impressive role in “Boardwalk Empire” will probably be overlooked.

Best Actor in a Comedy — Steve Carell

Louie C.K. had a tremendous first season on “Louie,” but next year will likely be his year to get showered with awards. This year belongs to Steve Carell, especially after his touching final season as Michael Scott on “The Office.”

Best Actress in a Comedy — Laura Linney

Laura Linney should grab the win here. She had a strong first season of “The Big C” and the voters love to reward movie actors for making the jump to the small screen. Her biggest competition is Amy Poehler’s impressive work on “Parks and Recreation.”

Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy — Ed O’Neill


With four of the six nominees in this category, it’s a safe bet that the winner will hail from “Modern Family.” While an argument can be made for all four men, Ed O’Neill, with an intensely solid year, should win it.

Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy — Jane Lynch


While the most likable choice is “Hot in Cleveland’s” Betty White and the most consistent choice is “Modern Family’s” Julie Bowen, Jane Lynch has the single strongest performance in “Glee’s” emotional episode, “Funeral.” And yes, she is also hosting this year’s awards show.

Outstanding Variety, Music or Comedy Series –“The Daily Show with Jon Stewart”


Chalk up another win for “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart.” The show is consistently well-done and just as consistently loved by the voters.

Outstanding Reality-Competition Program — “The Amazing Race”


There’s a good chance “The Amazing Race” will regain the crown from “Top Chef.” It’s cooking up to be a bit of a race.

Outstanding Made for Television Movie or Miniseries — “Mildred Pierce”

While “Downton Abbey” was critically acclaimed, one can’t ignore simple mathematics: HBO Miniseries + Respected Film Star = Emmy Award. Count on “Mildred Pierce,” which starred Kate Winslet in the title role.

Best Actor in a Movie or Miniseries — Edgar Ramirez

Look for Edgar Ramirez, with his performance in “Carlos,” to edge out Laurence Fishburne for his work in “Thurgood.”

Best Actress in a Miniseries or Movie — Kate Winslet


Kate Winslet is the likely choice. She was the backbone of “Mildred Pierce” and is the clear favorite.

US Open 2011: Andy Murray looks to Davis Cup after losing to Rafael Nadal

Andy Murray left New York on Sunday, his favourite city, disappointed but not devastated to be out of the US Open and committed to helping Great Britain win their Davis Cup tie against Hungary in the more familiar surroundings of Glasgow next weekend.

A return to the team environment is compensation of sorts – not to mention a distraction – and, after losing his semi-final in four sets to Rafael Nadal, Murray was in a better mood than might have been expected.

He was quick to dispel fears that a sore back would prevent his involvement. “I didn’t feel it at all until middle or end of the fourth set,” he said. “It was just sore from playing a lot of tennis on the hard courts. I’m sure everyone has problems right now. Playing three best-of-five matches in three days you’re going feel stiff and sore.”

Recalling the happy experience of his last visit to the Braehead Arena with the Great Britain team, when he won three matches against Luxembourg, Murray said: “It’s nice. It’s not something I’m thinking about too much, but I’m sure I’ll enjoy it again and enjoy being with the team. I always enjoy playing Davis Cup. I will probably leave [on Sunday] and then go straight up to Scotland. I might even fly directly there, because the team’s meeting up in the evening. I’ll go as soon as I can.”

If absorbing himself in the Davis Cup – not historically a priority – was a way of cleansing the memory of another loss to Nadal, Murray sounded more resigned to losing to a great player than distraught at falling short again.

“I had chances to break and go up a break in the first and the second sets, and didn’t. I was playing better in the third and fourth sets. I had a chance to go up in the fourth, and didn’t quite get it. I managed to hang on relatively well right until the end. It was a tough match because I think both of us had quite a lot of chances.”

On his decision to spend a lot more time at the net – 44 visits for 33 points – he said: “Rafa was slicing a lot of returns at the start of the match so, when I went down, I started serving and volleying a bit more. Once he started seeing I was more [aggressive] it becomes harder to serve and volley.

“But, yes, I was trying to come in. The first two sets I just wasn’t coming in on the right shots, and then I started picking my moments much better on the third and fourth sets.

“When you [have] played a long match the day before, you need to get the balance right. Anyone playing Rafa is going to play a lot of long rallies. So, if you can get opportunities to shorten the points, it is good to do that.”

As for the outcome of the final – and his place among the top four – he said, “Rafa can obviously still win against him, but Novak this year is playing much better tennis than he did last year. That’s something I have to look at and say, ‘You know, it’s not impossible to improve and turn those head to heads around.’ I’m sure the final will be a very good match. I don’t see either one as a major favourite.”

Winehouse’s dad says he thinks seizure killed her

Amy Winehouse’s father says he believes she died after suffering a seizure related to alcohol detoxification and “there was nobody there to rescue her.”

The soul diva, who had fought drug and alcohol problems for years, was found dead in bed at her London home on July 23. Her family says toxicology reports indicated there was alcohol in her bloodstream but it was unclear whether this had contributed to her death at age 27.

Mitch Winehouse said Friday during a taping of Anderson Cooper’s new syndicated talk show that traces of the prescription drug Librium, which is used to fight anxiety and withdrawal symptoms of alcoholism, were found in her body.

“Everything Amy did, she did to excess,” he said on the show, which is to air as Cooper’s debut Monday. “She drank to excess and did detox to excess.”

He said he regretted that his daughter — whose most famous song, “Rehab,” has her answering “no, no, no” when told to go to rehab — was trying to kick her alcoholism without a doctor’s help. He said “the periods of abstinence were becoming longer, and the periods of drinking were becoming shorter. It was heading in the right direction.”

The singer, whose other hits include “Tears Dry on Their Own,” had suffered seizures during this period and would lose consciousness. Her father admitted he was speculating that this happened on the morning she died and said he should find out more conclusively how she died when a full inquest into her death begins next month.

Years earlier, when Amy Winehouse was on harder drugs including heroin and cocaine, her father said, he would not have been surprised if she had died.

Mitch Winehouse, who is starting his own singing career, was in New York when his daughter’s security guard called him in July. Hearing the distraught tone of the security guard’s voice, the father said his first words were, “Is she dead?”

Amy Winehouse’s breakthrough “Back to Black” album was recently certified as the best-selling disc in Britain so far during the 21st century. The updated take on old-time soul also was responsible for five Grammy Awards.

“When she wasn’t drinking,” her father said, “she was absolutely on top of the world.”

He occasionally dabbed tears from his eyes as Cooper’s show ran video clips of her. He said he was comforted by the outpouring of support from her fans. Her mother, Janis Winehouse, said she’s had people approach her to thank her for having the singer.

Mitch Winehouse said he blamed the singer’s ex-husband, a music industry hanger-on, for introducing her to hard drugs but did not blame him for her death. He said she had not taken drugs since December 2008.

Amy Winehouse’s boyfriend at the time of her death, Reg Traviss, said they had spent a quiet evening looking at pictures and watching DVDs two days before she died. They were looking forward to attending a friend’s wedding in a few days and were planning a trip to St. Lucia around her Sept. 14 birthday.

He said he struggled to find the right moments to talk to his girlfriend about her drinking without seeming as though he was nagging.

“She was a really clever girl,” Traviss said. “She knew what she was doing. I would sometimes choose my moments when there was something that was needed to be said.”

Winehouse’s family has set up a foundation to raise money to help people beat alcohol and drug addiction. Her father met with British political leaders to seek backing for setting up a drug rehab center in her name.

The foundation officially starts operation next week, and her father indicated that was why he was coming forth to do interviews about her.

Cooper’s program donated $50,000 to the foundation, although spokeswoman Laura Mandel said the donation was made after the interview was set up and the booking wasn’t contingent upon giving the foundation money.

Amy Winehouse’s stepmother and aunt also appeared on Cooper’s show.

Amazon’s new drop-off spot: 7-Eleven?

Amazon appears to be developing a program that will put lockers in 7-Eleven stores, letting customers have their online orders delivered to a safe, public spot instead of left on their doorsteps — where they could get stolen.
Earlier this week, the iPad-only news source The Daily quoted an unnamed source saying that the online retailer is on the verge of testing a program that would put storage lockers in the convenience stores.
According to the source, customers would be able to order books or other items from Amazon, then select a convenient 7-Eleven where they could pick the order up when it arrives.
Then, on Wednesday, John Cook of GeekWire posted a photo he said showed a set of lockers in a Seattle 7-Eleven, where Amazon is expected to test the system before rolling it out further.

According to The Daily, customers would get an email with a bar code that would then allow them to get a number to punch in to access a locker.

Cook wrote that a 7-Eleven employee told him the lockers are set to be activated on Friday.
Amazon did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment on this story. A 7-Eleven spokeswoman said the company currently has no comment.
Such a program would theoretically put Amazon on par with competitors like Best Buy, which will send online orders delivered to a local store for pick-up.

Libyan rebels say they have Gadhafi “Surrounded”

Ousted Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi has been surrounded and has no way of leaving the area, Anees al-Sharif, a spokesman for the Tripoli Military Council.
He said that he could not comment on where Gadhafi is, but that rebel fighters were closing in. The Tripoli council is part of the rebel coalition known as the National Transitional Council.
Abdallah Kenshil, chief negotiator for the NTC, said he could confirm that two of Gadhafi’s sons, Saif al-Islam and Mutassim, had been seen in Bani Walid.
U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Tuesday that officials believe Gadhafi is on the run. “I don’t have any information as to exactly where he’s located,” he said.
On Wednesday  the rebel fighters had started advancing on Bani Walid, one of the last Gadhafi loyalist strongholds, Wednesday night but did not give further information.
Earlier Wednesday, trucks armed with anti-aircraft guns and rocket launchers pulled into a forward operating base 30 kilometers (18½ miles) southwest of the Libyan coastal city of Misrata.
The fighting force known as the Victory Unit was back from its patrol of the desert landscape separating the Gadhafi stronghold of Bani Walid and rebel city of Misrata.
The 70-kilometer (43½-mile) buffer zone has been quiet for the past two weeks as a cease-fire was declared while tribal leaders from Bani Walid and representatives from the National Transitional Council negotiate the city’s surrender.
“We don’t want more bloodshed,” said Antar Al Birra, the commander of the Victory Unit. “Too many people have died, so we hope the negotiations will be successful.”
Al Birra’s forces are battle-hardened from months of heavy fighting, and with Gadhafi’s forces against the ropes, he says the battle to take the city will be short.
“If we are ordered to take the city, it won’t take us long, maybe two or three hours,” Al Birra said.
Many soldiers on the front hope for a peaceful solution. But as Saturday’s deadline looms, many are anxious as hope begins to fade that one will be reached.
“Negotiations have completely failed,” said Shamsaddin Ben Ali, a spokesman for the NTC. “We won’t agree to their demands.”
These demands include rebel forces entering the city unarmed, rebels refraining from searching houses and, the most contentious, a full pardon for the people of Bani Walid.
“We won’t grant amnesty because there are people with blood on their hands, and we want them to face a trial,” Ben Ali said. “I predict fighting to resume on Saturday.”
If rebel forces are given the green light to attack, the assault from the east will be led by Cmdr. Khalil Al Shibly.
Al Shibly waits for the order from the NTC to attack Bani Walid but, like his soldiers, he hopes for a negotiated settlement.
He says three other towns between Misrata and Sirte have laid down their weapons through negotiations and welcomed revolutionary forces.
He believes Bani Walid will eventually do the same but says those who agree to a settlement in the city face retaliation by hard-core Gadhafi loyalists.
One such town — Waddan, 400 kilometers (249 miles) south of Misrata, which also controls Sirte’s last link to the outside world — also tried to join the revolution but is now facing resistance.
“Waddan is currently being shelled by Gadhafi’s forces,” Al Shibly said. “The town rose up and joined the revolution but is now under attack from the nearby city of Hun.”
Al Shibly has another concern for when Bani Walid is taken, either peacefully or by force. He is afraid that some Gadhafi loyalists will stage a resistance, and if those fighters are killed in an ensuing battle, their tribes will try to seek revenge, leading to a tribal war.
To avoid a potential tribal war, Al Shibly says the negotiators from the NTC have tribal links to the cities they are dealing with, but adds they still must proceed with caution.
“It is really important that we find a peaceful solution to the remaining towns,” Al Shibly said. “If they don’t, I’m afraid the country could see some form of tribal war.”

Astronauts Prepare to Temporarily Abandon International Space Station

The astronauts aboard the International Space Station said Monday that ground controllers are figuring out how best to leave the vast complex running — what lights to leave on, which vents to keep open — in case it needs to be temporarily abandoned.
A Russian rocket carrying space station supplies failed during liftoff two weeks ago and crashed into Siberia. It’s the same type of rocket used to launch people to the station. Until Russian engineers can figure out what went wrong, all Soyuz launches are on hold.

Six men are living aboard the space station. Three of them will leave late next week, a week late to keep the outpost fully staffed as long as possible. A new crew of three was supposed to blast off this month. But the flight has been delayed until at least the beginning of November, just two weeks before the three remaining residents would have to leave.
Given that the investigation is still ongoing, “there are a lot of things that have to stack up” to allow for an early November launch, said U.S. astronaut Michael Fossum.
Fossum said he and his two crewmates will leave the space station in the best possible condition if it must be vacated.
“The teams in Houston are in the preliminary stages of deciding everything, from what ventilation we’re going to leave running, what lights we’re going to leave on, what condition each particular experiment will be on, every tank, every valve, every hatch,” Fossum said at a news conference from space.
He added: “It’s too early for us to get too worried about that frankly. It will take us a few weeks to finish that up, but we have another nine or so weeks here, my crew of three. So we’ve got plenty of time for those kinds of things.”

Astronauts have been living aboard the station, without interruption, for almost 11 years.
With NASA’s space shuttles retired as of July, the Soyuz is the only means of getting astronauts to and from the space station. Private U.S. companies hope to provide an alternative in three to five years. These commercial rocket makers will start with cargo runs — possibly by year’s end — and build from there.
At best, Fossum and his two crewmates — one Japanese and one Russian — will have less time than usual to brief their replacements face to face. They’re already videotaping some instructions. At worst, the newcomers will have to make do with the videotapes, with no one on board to greet them and fill them in on the workings of the sprawling lab. None of the three has lived on the space station before; in fact, two will be new to space.
“The space station does require some care and feeding, and so it’s important for us to be here if we possibly can,” Fossum said. “If that’s not possible and we have to shut it down for a little while, we’re going to do our best to leave it in the best possible condition to make it through that down time, and have it prepared for the next crew to open the doors, turn on the lights and come on aboard.”
U.S. astronaut Ronald Garan Jr. pointed out that science experiments still “are going full speed ahead.”
“We are breaking records every week with the number of hours” devoted to scientific research, Garan said.
That pace will diminish, however, as soon as Garan and his two Russian crewmates return to Earth in their Soyuz capsule next week. That’s why the participating space agencies are so eager to keep six on board; it takes that many pairs of hands to keep the space station humming and experiments going.

Thousands Evacuated as Wildfire Destroys More Than 1,000 Homes in Texas

More than 1,000 homes have burned in at least 57 wildfires across rain-starved Texas, most of them in one devastating blaze close to Austin that’s still raging out of control, officials said Tuesday.
The Texas Forest Service said nearly 600 of the torched homes were in Bastrop County, some 25 miles from Austin. The agency said that blaze was still uncontained Tuesday. Fanned in part by howling winds from the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee, the blaze rapidly grew Tuesday to at least 30,000 acres.

“This is a very mean-looking fire,” Texas Gov. Rick Perry told Fox News Tuesday. “It is serious and it’s widespread,” he said, noting that firefighters from as far away as Oregon and California have been called to Texas to assist authorities.
At least 5,000 people were forced from their homes in Bastrop County and about 400 people were in emergency shelters, officials said Monday. School and school-related activities were canceled Tuesday.
In Bastrop, a town of about 6,000 people along the Colorado River, huge clouds of smoke soared into the sky and hung over downtown. When winds picked up, flames flared over the tops of trees. Helicopters and planes loaded with water flew overhead, and firefighters along a state highway outside the city converged around homes catching fire.
“Waiting is the most frustrating thing,” said Gina Thurman, 47, choking back tears as she sat by herself in the shade on a curb outside Ascension Catholic Church, one of several shelters in the area. “You’re sitting there and you don’t know anything but your house is probably burning.”
Rick Blakely was among about 30 people sleeping on cots at the church. The 54-year-old said he was in a state of shock and “not expecting anything to be standing” when he returned to his home.
“I just don’t know what I’m going to do,” he said.
Strong winds coupled with drought conditions allowed the fire to travel quickly over somewhat hilly terrain, burning through pine and cedar trees and wiping out subdivisions as well as ranchland. Dry conditions were expected to persist at least through the week, according to the National Weather Service.
The fire was far enough away from Austin that the city was not threatened, but it consumed land along a line that stretched for about 16 miles, Texas Forest Service officials said.
There were no immediate reports of injuries, and officials said they knew of no residents trapped in their homes.
Crews have responded to nearly 21,000 wildfires in Texas since the traditional fire season began early in the year. Outdoor burning, including campfires, is prohibited in all but three of the state’s 254 counties.
The governor’s office said at least 40 Texas Forest Service aircraft were involved in the firefighting Monday along with a half-dozen Texas military aircraft.
The new outbreak led Perry to return home to Texas, cutting short a visit to South Carolina, where he was campaigning for the Republican nomination for president. He also canceled a trip to California.

Since December, wildfires in Texas have claimed 3.5 million acres — an area the size of Connecticut — and destroyed more than 1,000 homes, Perry said. The governor said it was too early to say whether he would attend Wednesday’s GOP debate in California.
“I’m not paying attention to politics right now,” Perry said. “There will be plenty of time for that. People’s lives and their possessions are at stake, and that’s substantially more important.”
Authorities mobilized ground and air forces to fight the largest of at least 63 fires that broke out in Texas since Sunday as strong winds from what was then Tropical Storm Lee swept into Texas, which has endured its worst drought since the 1950s.
On Sunday, about 200 miles to the northeast in Gladewater, a 20-year-old woman and her 18-month-old daughter died when a fast-moving wildfire gutted their mobile home. That fire was out Monday, although several other major blazes continued to burn in at least four other counties in central and northern Texas.
To the west of Austin in Travis County, at least 20 homes were lost and 30 others were damaged in another fire. More than 1,000 homes were under mandatory evacuation and 25 lost in a third fire also in the Austin area.
At least two-thirds of the 6,000-acre Bastrop State Park have burned. The park is home to endangered Houston toads and several historic rock and stone buildings built in the 1930s and 1940s that officials are trying to protect, said Mike Cox of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
From the park’s front gate, Cox said: “All I see is a wall of smoke.”
Residents in Bastrop County are being asked to call either 512-332-8856 or 512-332-8814 for updates on the fire as well as evacuation orders.

Ford At Greater Risk of Strike After Avoiding Bailout Money

It may seem a cruel irony that the one U.S. automaker that took no bailout money is now at greater risk of a national strike as it continues labor negotiations with union leaders.
Based upon initial tallies last week, rank and file Ford United Auto Worker members were leaning overwhelmingly toward a national strike authorization against their employer. With the current national labor contracts set to expire September 14 at General Motors, Chrysler and Ford, local union representatives at Ford were reporting 97 percent of their membership was voting to authorize a strike, if necessary.

“I don’t want to see any more concessions,” said Gary Farris, a Kentucky-based Ford plant employee since 1993. “I’d like to get a raise we haven’t had a raise for a long time.”
Farris says he has two kids in college and would like to see Ford again provide the same college assistance that it took away just as his kids were starting college.
Ford is the only one of the Big Three domestic automakers where, legally, workers can strike. Both GM and Chrysler and their union workers agreed in accepting the federal government’s auto bailout in 2009 to resolve contract issues through binding arbitration.
But as ominous as the strike authorization sounds, some auto analysts believe it is merely a negotiating tool and that the prospect of a strike against Ford is unlikely.

“This is a pro forma kind of a thing. It’s something the union has to do as part of its governing regulations, and they go to the membership and ask are we willing to strike,” said Kristin Dziczek of the Center for Automotive Research. “In the contract it was one of the union’s weapons. They’ve got another arrow in the quiver.”
Further, the mood among the UAW rank and file is not ripe for a strike, believes Dr. Arthur Schwartz of Labor and Economics Associates, who is also a former labor negotiator for GM.
“I think they’re going to be able to get an agreement. I think there’s room to reward the workers for the success of the company while still not adding to the fixed costs in the future of the company,” he said. “There’s a settlement out there, and to not get it, I think, would really be a tragedy. I don’t think Bob King and the UAW leadership is really thinking about that.”
Dziczek says that the ravages of the recession have been a learning experience for the UAW, much as they have been for the entire American workforce.
“There’s been a change in terms of understanding the fate of membership is really tied to health of those companies, so the leadership really understands that they are trying to create a more competitive company. When the company does well, their members will do well. And when the companies do not do so well members, will also not gain,” he said.
In addition, the increased globalization of industry and auto manufacturing has focused the UAW’s energy in other directions.
“UAW President Bob King has two things that he’s trying to do,” said Schwartz. “One is, he’s trying to organize the foreign transplants and a strike at Ford would send absolutely the wrong message in that regard. And secondly, he’s got the Obama re-election campaign. And Obama was very good to the auto industry in general in ’09. And a strike would be a real thumb in the eye in that case. I really can’t see a strike at Ford.”
Still, the strike threat that now looms against Ford pertains to only national issues. But there are many UAW local chapters that negotiate local contracts, and a strike at the local level can be as damaging as one at the national level. GM and Chrysler are still susceptible to local strikes.
“If you strike a key engine plant or a key stamping plant you can shut down assembly plants. The 1998 Flint strike at GM was a local strike that essentially shut down the entire company,” said Schwartz.
While most of the attention is centered on the Ford negotiation, the UAW is simultaneously negotiating with GM and Chrysler. According to the Detroit News, bargaining with GM and Chrysler is well ahead of the Ford talks, as negotiators work through the weekends and Labor Day holiday.
The talks with the larger manufacturer, GM, will mostly likely dictate the majority of the terms of the Chrysler contract. Ford and UAW negotiators are also well into their talks, but the intensity of negotiations is not expected to peak until after the Labor Day holiday.

Unmanned Spaceship Funded by Amazon.com’s Jeff Bezos Misfires

An unmanned spaceship funded by internet billionaire Jeff Bezos suffered a major failure during a recent test flight, according to US government and industry officials, highlighting the dramatic risks of private space ventures, the Wall Street Journal reported Friday.
The vertical takeoff and landing spacecraft, developed by closely-held Blue Origin LLC, was on a planned suborbital flight from the company’s West Texas spaceport last week, these officials said, when ground personnel lost contact and control of the vehicle.

The mishap dealt a potentially major blow to the ambitions of Bezos, the founder and chief executive of Amazon.com, to develop a system able to reliably blast tourists and eventually astronauts out of the atmosphere.
The serious malfunctions, which have not been disclosed by the company or reported previously, also could set back White House plans to promote a range of commercially developed spacecraft designed to transport crews to the International Space Station by the second half of this decade.
Championed by President Barack Obama’s administration, the goal is to support a number of rival projects, including Blue Origin, to ensure that in the end the U.S. will have alternatives to reach the orbiting station, following last month’s permanent retirement of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s space shuttle fleet.
A spokesman for Blue Origin, based in Kent, Wash., declined to comment.

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