Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/167361937?client_source=feed&format=rss
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Wednesday, November 30, 2011
60 Minutes Shows Us Austerity America (OliverWillisLikeKryptoniteToStupid)
Microscopic worms may hold key to living on Mars
LONDON |
LONDON (Reuters) - British scientists believe microscopic worms which are biologically very similar to humans may be the key to helping humans colonize other planets like Mars by giving clues on coping with long-term space living.
A team of scientists led by Nathaniel Szewczyk from Notthingham University blasted 4,000 of the worms, known as known as Caenorhabditis elegans, or C. elegans, into space on board the Space Shuttle Discovery, and studied their progress.
Many experts -- including astrophysicist Stephen Hawking -- believe the ultimate survival of humanity could be dependent on the human colonization of other planets.
"While this sounds like science fiction, it is a fact that if mankind wants to avoid the natural order of extinction then we need to find ways to live on other planets," Szewczyk said in a statement about his research.
But there are some major challenges associated with long-term space living -- including high levels of radiation exposure and rapid loss of bone strength.
In a study published in Interface, a journal of The Royal Society, Szewczyk's team found that in space, their worms developed from egg to adulthood and produced offspring just as they do on earth.
This makes them an ideal and cost-effective experimental way to study the possible effects of long-term and long-distance space exploration in humans, they said.
The researchers were able to successfully monitor the effect of low Earth orbit (LEO) on 12 generations of C. elegans during the first three months of a six month voyage on the International Space Station.
"While it may seem surprising, many of the biological changes that happen during spaceflight affect astronauts and worms and in the same way," Szewczyk said.
"We have been able to show that worms can grow and reproduce in space for long enough to reach another planet and that we can remotely monitor their health."
C. elegans was the first multi-cellular organism to have its genetic structure completely mapped, and many of its 20,000 genes have the same functions as those in humans, Szewczyk's team explained in their study.
Around two thousand of these genes play a role in promoting muscle function and 50 to 60 percent of these have obvious human counterparts, they said.
The C. elegans worm has long been used by scientists to help further the understanding of human biology, so now Szewczyk thinks it could help researchers investigate living on Mars.
Szewczyk's team worked with experts at the Universities of Pittsburgh and Colorado in the United States and the Simon Fraser University in Canada, to develop a compact automated C. elegans culturing system which could be monitored remotely for the effects of environmental toxins and in-flight radiation.
"Worms allow us to detect changes in growth, development, reproduction and behavior in response to environmental conditions such as toxins or in response to deep space missions," Szewczyk said.
"Given the high failure rate of Mars missions, use of worms allows us to safely and relatively cheaply test spacecraft systems prior to manned missions."
(Reporting by Kate Kelland, editing by Paul Casciato)
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More Optimus handsets will receive Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade, LG confirms
More Optimus handsets will receive Ice Cream Sandwich upgrade, LG confirms originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 28 Nov 2011 06:57:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Iranian protesters enter UK compound in Tehran (Reuters)
TEHRAN (Reuters) ? Iranian protesters stormed the British Embassy compound in Tehran on Tuesday, smashing windows and burning the British flag during a rally to protest against sanctions imposed by Britain, live Iranian television showed.
Protesters threw petrol bombs and one waved a framed picture of Queen Elizabeth apparently found inside the compound, the state TV showed.
The semi-official Mehr news agency said protesters pulled down the British flag, burned it, and put up the Iranian flag.
The incident followed Britain's imposition of new sanctions on the Islamic state last week over its nuclear program.
London banned all British financial institutions from doing business with their Iranian counterparts, including the Central Bank of Iran, as part of a new wave of sanctions by Western countries.
Iran's Guardian Council approved a bill on Monday to downgrade Iran's ties with Britain, one day after the Iranian parliament approved the measure compelling the government to expel the British ambassador in retaliation for the sanctions.
In parliament in Tehran on Sunday, a lawmaker warned that Iranians angered by the sanctions could storm the British embassy as they did to the U.S. mission in 1979.
(Reporting by Robin Pomeroy; Editing by Mark Heinrich and Angus MacSwan)
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Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Eurozone ministers meet amid fears of euro breakup (AP)
BRUSSELS ? Eurozone finance ministers are streaming into Brussels on Tuesday in a desperate bid to save the 17-nation euro currency ? and to protect Europe, the United States, Asia and the rest of the global economy from a debt-induced financial tsunami.
Most officials agree that, in the race to save the euro, there is no time to lose, but all of a sudden it seems there are more leaks in the dike than there are fingers.
And it's not just a currency used by 332 million people that is at stake. As German Chancellor Angela Merkel and others have said, if the euro fails, so too does the 27-nation European Union, a rousing diplomatic success that united a continent ripped apart by two World Wars.
If the Euro fails, bank lending would freeze, stock markets would likely crash, and Europe's economies would crater. Nations in the eurozone could see their economic output fall temporarily by as much as 50 percent, according to UBS forecasters. The financial and economic pain would spread west and east as the U.S. and Asia get ensnared in the credit freeze and their exports to Europe collapse.
In all, it's a scenario far more dire than even the devastating 2008 credit crunch after the U.S. mortgage debacle.
"If Europe is contracting, or if Europe is having difficulties, then it's much more difficult for us to create good jobs here at home," President Barack Obama said Monday as he met EU officials in Washington.
At the top of Tuesday's agenda is finding a means to integrate the eurozone's disparate nations ? ranging from powerful Germany to tiny Malta ? much more fully, both politically and financially. And the ministers must do it fast, without the delays caused by democratic niceties like time-consuming referendums.
The market doubt that is now engulfing Europe has brought home one hard lesson: It is impossible in the long term for a common currency to survive without common economic rules.
The 17 eurozone finance ministers will discuss jointly issuing so-called eurobonds ? an all-for-one, one-for-all way of having the different countries guarantee each others' debts. Right now each nation issues its own bonds, and each must pay wildly differing borrowing rates. Three small EU nations ? Greece, Portugal and Ireland ? are surviving only on bailouts, already shut out of international bond markets. Two large debt-strapped eurozone nations ? Italy and Spain ? are roaring closer to being shut out of bond markets as well, but their economies are too large for Europe to bail out.
Having stronger countries like Germany stand behind the general European debt would in theory prevent weaker countries like Italy from having to pay higher and higher borrowing rates ? and perhaps avoid a debt spiral that leads to a national bankruptcy.
But it would also almost certainly increase Germany's very low cost of borrowing ? and for that reason Germany has been fiercely resisting the eurobond proposal.
Press reports have said German officials are proposing that the five eurozone countries who have the top AAA credit rating jointly issue bonds. But that proposal ? which Germany subsequently denied putting forward ? has drawn boos from the European Commission, the EU's executive arm.
Having the EU divided into euro-using and non-euro-using countries is bad enough, critics of the German plan argue. Further fragmenting the eurozone into strong countries and weak countries would benefit no one, they say.
Also high on the agenda Tuesday is much stronger central fiscal governance for those countries that use the euro ? integration with enough teeth that authorities at European Union headquarters in Brussels could demand changes in national budgets and impose penalties on countries whose deficits were too big.
Ceding even a little control over national budgets involves ceding some national sovereignty ? a tough sell to voters.
And the officials will hear a report from Klaus Regling, the head of the European Financial Stability Facility ? the fund that is supposed to be a firewall against financial contagion, the frightening phenomenon of market doubt spreading from one country to another.
In October, the 27 European heads of government "decided" to increase the lending capacity of the fund, known as the EFSF, from euro440 billion ($587 billion) to euro1 trillion ($1.3 trillion) But that increase in firepower remains only a theoretical construct. Significant investors in the fund have not yet been found.
Meanwhile, the financial contagion seems almost impossible to check as it spreads from one country to the next. Greece is in dire trouble, then suddenly the markets have doubts about Italy, then even Germany is having trouble borrowing at the low interest rates to which it has become accustomed. Over one 24-hour period last week, the credit ratings for Hungary, Portugal and Belgium were all downgraded.
Privately, EU officials have told The Associated Press that the best Europe can hope for is a decade of slow growth and pain, with the euro holding together.
The worst? Breakup of the euro, with bank runs, recession and misery.
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[OOC] Criss-Cross Love Triangle
Forum rules
This forum is for OOC discussion about existing roleplays.
actually if you dont mind id like the athletic girl? and i was wondering if gymnastics counted?
Otaku Boy for me please.
This forum is for OOC discussion about existing roleplays.
Please post all "Players Wanted" threads in the Roleplayers Wanted forum!
This topic is an Out Of Character part of the roleplay, ?Criss-Cross Love Triangle?. Anything posted here will also show up there.Topic Tags:
Forum for completely Out of Character (OOC) discussion, based around whatever is happening In Character (IC). Discuss plans, storylines, and events; Recruit for your roleplaying game, or find a GM for your playergroup.Umm... I feel bad... :( I just made the nerdy girl.... But if you want her bad enough, I can give her up. Or maybe we can have two nerdy girls? I mean, everyone wins that way!
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RainbowMotorcycles - Member for 0 years
You can have her I guess, I can choose some one else ^^ Please submit you character :)
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~*NovaleeTehNinja*~ - Member for 0 years
Who knows, maybe we can have 2 nerdy girls ^^ Thank you very much by the way
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RainbowMotorcycles - Member for 0 years
It's no problem I can think of millions of other characters I can play in this rp ^^
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~*NovaleeTehNinja*~ - Member for 0 years
Can I reserve the childhood friend girl, please?
Should have a character up soon... Thanks:)
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sweetgal - Member for 0 years
I have submitted the Popular Boy character.
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Winds Of Fate - Member for 1 years
ok i added more roles this should get fun ok everyone who wanted a spot reserved is good and i forgot to put it but anime picks only
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projectdarkeden - Member for 0 years
may i have the goth or popular girl?
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emotionless - Member for 2 years
actually if you dont mind id like the athletic girl? and i was wondering if gymnastics counted?
Edit: k so im kinda epic at twins, so if its cool id like to make the athlete and another girl role, any one thats not filled. lol actually if you could make a drama geek that would be epic...i know its asking a lot...but...PLEASE!
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emotionless - Member for 2 years
Otaku Boy for me please.
Edit:
Okay I made him he's up just let me know if I need to change anything.
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bananaramma - Member for 0 years
Can I have the popular girl?
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Horseygirl - Member for 2 years
is the Goth Girl still open, if she is can i reserve her?
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LoveHateKindOfGirl - Member for 0 years
Return to Out of Character
Post a reply
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Sahar Aziz: Rule Of Law, Not Rule By Law for Egypt
Egypt is forever changed. Whether ruled by a civilian government or a military junta, gone are the days when the government can blithely dismiss the will of the people or coerce them into obedience. This most recent wave of mass protests demonstrates Egyptians' refusal to go back to the dark ages of iron fisted dictatorship. Government accountability is the new normal.
Holding a government accountable, however, is of little value if it is ad hoc and necessitates violence. Rather, meaningful accountability occurs when it is embedded in a legal system based on a societal expectation that the government serves the people, not the other way around. The January 25 revolution and each subsequent wave of protests are rooted in demands for oversight and transparency of government.
The time is ripe to invest in rule of law in Egypt.
Thus far, Egyptians have had little choice but to go to the streets to make their demands heard. What often starts out as a peaceful expression of political will quickly turns violent at the hands of the current military junta. Agitators are government hired thugs or state police tasked with beating, shooting, and poisoning innocent civilians with potent military grade tear gas.
While exigent circumstances, namely the SCAF's refusal to hand over power to a civilian government, warrant mass demonstrations, this model is unsustainable. Resorting to the streets every time a government fails to implement the will of the people does not come without a significant price to the country. The ensuing political instability keeps tourism, a major source of Egypt's national income, at historic lows. It also shuts down the stock exchange, closes factories, and puts hundreds of thousands of Egyptians out of work.
These adverse consequences are cited by a significant number of Egyptians increasingly frustrated with the ongoing protests in Tahrir Square. They emphasize their need to work, feed their families, send their kids to schools, and return to a sense of normalcy in their everyday lives. Many question if democracy and stability are compatible, and if forced to pick they would choose the latter.
Like past dictators, it is precisely such disillusionment that the military hopes will defeat those demanding meaningful democracy now, not later. What started out as a revolution has transformed into a war of attrition between Egyptian nationalists of all political stripes committed to transforming Egypt to a meaningful democracy and an illegitimate military junta engaged in duplicity, delay tactics, and coercion to hijack the revolution.
Unless the focus shifts to transitioning Egypt to a nation with a strong rule of law foundation where government accountability occurs on a daily basis, the military will have the upper hand in this asymmetrical battle.
Egypt has a rich legal history that has produced one of the most complex and sophisticated legal systems in the Middle East. But this very system has been one of the strongest tools in the arsenal of Egypt's dictators. Mubarak and his predecessors were notorious for concentrating their power through rule by law.
The SCAF has proven itself to be no exception. They have granted themselves extraordinary powers through legal decrees and supra-constitutional legal declarations, surpassing Mubarak's tyranny.
Not to be mistaken with rule of law, rule by law allows government officials to manipulate laws to concentrate and further entrench their power while eliminating political opposition. In contrast, rule of law ensures no one is above the law, all citizens are treated equally before the law, adjudicators of disputes are independent and objective, and legitimate grievances can be redressed without destabilizing mass protests.
Many legal reforms are needed but none are more important for government accountability than freedom of information laws. Such laws are glaringly absent in Egypt, denying the citizenry and media accurate information necessary to identify and rectify flagrant abuses of power. Similarly, laws regulating nongovernmental organizations strips civil society the independence and autonomy to perform its indispensable role in government oversight. The independence of the judiciary, the bedrock of a functional rule of law system, has also been substantially compromised over the past thirty years.
Absent these and many other needed legal reforms, Egyptians will be left with no other choice than to turn to the streets, as they should when faced with the false choice between oppression and freedom. But for those who believe democracy and stability are not mutually exclusive, the time is ripe to invest in transforming Egypt's corrupted rule by law system to transparent and fair rule of law.
Despite the international community pouring millions of dollars into Egypt, not enough of it is going towards supporting Egyptian lawyers, democracy activists, and academics seeking to implement legal reforms that allow the people to hold their government accountable. This paves the way for combating public corruption, promoting equal rights for minorities and women, and defending human rights.
The past tumultuous six months prove that Egyptians are willing to make the sacrifices necessary to implement democracy. Never again will they allow themselves to be denied the fundamental right to control their national destiny.
Strengthening the rule of law is a potent tool to that end.
Sahar Aziz is an Associate Professor at Texas Wesleyan School of Law, a legal fellow at the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding, and a member of the Egyptian American Rule of Law Association.
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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sahar-aziz/rule-of-law-not-rule-by-l_b_1113644.html
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Britons worry profits to trump services in hospital deal (Reuters)
HUNTINGDON, England (Reuters) ? Maggie Blight has only praise for the local state-funded hospital where she got her hernia fixed last year.
"I couldn't fault it. It was excellent," the 67-year-old family worker said of the care she received at Hinchingbrooke hospital in Huntingdon, 60 miles northeast of London.
Now she is worried, not for her own health, but for that of the debt-laden hospital, which is the first in more than 60 years to be transferred to a private company from the state system under a contract approved on November 10.
At the heart of her concerns -- shared by many in England -- are fears that organizing health services around profit will lead to services being cut and patients being forced to pay extra for some treatments.
Ministers and officials stress the worries are unfounded, but the subject is sensitive in a country where the National Health Service, providing free care for all since 1948, is viewed with an almost religious awe.
Any dilution of the system where the state both pays for and provides medical care is routinely condemned as unacceptable "privatization."
"I think of it as our National Health Service, it belongs to us, we paid for it," said Blight.
"As soon as you have got private enterprise involved, the word profit pops up," she said.
Britain's state health service is under strain from a 20-billion-pound savings program, a massive reorganization of primary care and proposed legislation to increase competition among providers of medical care.
With a 100-billion-pound ($160-billion) annual budget and 1.4 million staff in England alone, even a sliver of its business is an attractive prize for private health operators.
Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron and his ministers say greater competition from within and outside the NHS will improve efficiency and quality, and argue that the standard of medical service is what matters, not who delivers it.
Critics fear the legislation will destabilize the system by encouraging state hospitals to abandon unprofitable services and splitting patient care among unconnected medical providers.
The debate has hurt Cameron, who has worked hard to shake off his center-right party's reputation -- gained under former leader Margaret Thatcher in the 1980s -- of preferring private to public healthcare.
SHARED OWNERSHIP
Circle, a medical cooperative listed on the London stock market with ownership shared between its employees and international investment funds, will take over management of Huntingdon from February.
The hospital's future had been in doubt since 2007 after it ran up debts of 39 million pounds on an annual turnover of just 100 million pounds, partly because a new treatment center failed to attract as many patients as expected.
Circle says it can pay off the debts over the life of its 10-year contract by identifying more efficient ways of delivering care. Unison, the main health union, says it fears a loss of jobs from "profiteers."
Local health officials said if the Circle deal is successful, it could be repeated at the estimated 20 other NHS hospitals suffering financially.
The hospital will remain NHS property, staff will remain NHS employees and patients will continue to receive NHS treatment free of charge.
"This is not privatization," said Stephen Dunn, policy director at local health authority NHS Midlands and East, who conceived of the plan.
"It's a ground-breaking and watershed moment for the NHS. I am confident that this will be a model for the future," he said, and added that it was a "great deal" for local people.
Huntingdon's residents praise the care provided by the mainly single-story hospital, which opened in 1983 to the west of the town and serves a catchment of 165,000 people in the surrounding area.
Its location spares local patients an 18-mile journey to larger hospitals in Cambridge or Peterborough.
"The maternity service was fantastic," said Jo Robinson, a 38-year-old writer whose son was born at the hospital in September last year.
LABOUR LEGACY
The Circle contract is actually part of a wave of public sector reforms introduced in the early 2000s by former Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair, who held that the state did not have to be the sole supplier of public services.
The Hinchingbrooke deal itself was set in train under the previous Labour administration, voted out in May 2010, which hired private firms to provide NHS services at around 30 new orthopedic and day-surgery treatment centers.
Circle takes this one step further and will be the first private company to run the full range of hospital services, including maternity and emergency care, since the NHS was founded.
Commercial rivals say it will be hard for Circle to make a profit at a small hospital like Huntingdon while it continues to be paid standard NHS rates for carrying out treatments and at a time when the state service is seeking spending savings of 5 percent a year.
The hospital could also lose some income-generating patient services because of trends in medical practice: specialist treatment such as stroke care or heart surgery is increasingly concentrated at larger hospitals, while many minor procedures and long-term care can now be moved to smaller community clinics and even patients' homes.
Matt James, chief executive of the Private Hospitals Alliance, a private healthcare lobby group, said he had twice backed out of bidding for the Huntingdon contract when working for health firms.
"In both instances I could not justify the level of risk involved given the minimal, if any, expected returns," he said in emailed comments.
Circle Chief Executive Ali Parsa, a former executive of investment bank Goldman Sachs, said his firm would make money by cutting waste, not services.
"Our problem is we have a healthcare system we can't afford and it needs to become more efficient," he said.
He said Circle had improved productivity by 20 percent in the first year of running an NHS surgical treatment center in Nottingham, central England, while improving quality of outcomes, by giving greater authority to doctors and nurses.
"It's incredible what can be achieved within the (health) system with the same people," he said.
Parsa said local people should not worry that Circle -- which will take a share of annual surpluses -- would put profits before patients. Circle would aim for a single digit surplus similar to that targeted by existing NHS organizations, and would reinvest part of that back into services, he said.
"Our profit will not come from taking more money out of the healthcare. Our profit will come by taking more waste out and ensuring that the surplus (is shared) between everybody," he said.
Under Circle's contract the company will not get paid unless Hinchingbrooke hospital makes a surplus and its historic debt is being repaid. If the hospital slips back into the red, Circle will be liable for up to 5 million pounds of the deficit.
Nigel Beverley, Hinchingbrooke's interim chief executive, said the Circle contract, which went through 12 months of government scrutiny, was vital for the hospital's survival.
Although the hospital was now running with a small surplus, it could not pay off its debts alone and would have had to find another partner or consider closing if the government had rejected the contract, he said.
"If the deal had not had happened we would have to go back to the drawing board. Fortunately we are not in that position."
(Additional reporting by Paul Sandle; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)
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BRUTAL: Democrats Unleash New TV Attack On ... - Business Insider
The Democratic National Committee has launched yet another attack on Mitt Romney's flip-flopping record, with a new tv spot to air in swing states.
The ad is already airing in Ohio, and is styled after a sneak preview trailer for a blockbuster action movie.
"It's the story of two men trapped in one body ? Mitt vs. Mitt," the dramatic voice-over says.
As Romney seeks to lock up the Republican nomination, Democrats appear to be doing their best to continue the chaos in the GOP field ? and this ad cuts right to Romney's weak points: abortion and healthcare.?
Watch the video below:
Here is the longer web version of the ad
Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/democrats-unleash-new-tv-attack-on-romneys-flip-flopping-2011-11
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Monday, November 28, 2011
3 American students arrested in Cairo back in US
Derrik Sweeney, 19, of Jefferson City, Mo., smiles as he walks with his mother, Joy Sweeney, center, and sister Ashley Sweeney after arriving at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport Saturday, Nov. 26, 2011, in St. Louis. Derrik Sweeney and two other American students were arrested on the roof of a university building near Tahrir Square in Cairo last Sunday, accused of throwing firebombs at security forces fighting with protesters. On Thursday, a court ordered the three to be released. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Derrik Sweeney, 19, of Jefferson City, Mo., smiles as he walks with his mother, Joy Sweeney, center, and sister Ashley Sweeney after arriving at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport Saturday, Nov. 26, 2011, in St. Louis. Derrik Sweeney and two other American students were arrested on the roof of a university building near Tahrir Square in Cairo last Sunday, accused of throwing firebombs at security forces fighting with protesters. On Thursday, a court ordered the three to be released. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Derrik Sweeney, center, gets hugs from his father Kevin Sweeney, left, and sister Ashley, right, as arms from his mother, Joy Sweeney, wrap around from behind after Derrik arrived at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport Saturday, Nov. 26, 2011, in St. Louis. Sweeney and two other American students were arrested on the roof of a university building near Tahrir Square in Cairo last Sunday, accused of throwing firebombs at security forces fighting with protesters. On Thursday, a court ordered the three to be released. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Derrik Sweeney, center, gets hugs from his father Kevin Sweeney, left, and sister Ashley, right, after Derrik arrived at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport Saturday, Nov. 26, 2011, in St. Louis. Sweeney and two other American students were arrested on the roof of a university building near Tahrir Square in Cairo last Sunday, accused of throwing firebombs at security forces fighting with protesters. On Thursday, a court ordered the three to be released. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Derrik Sweeney, left, walks with, from left to right, his mother, Joy Sweeney, sister Ashley Sweeney and father Kevin Sweeney after arriving at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport Saturday, Nov. 26, 2011, in St. Louis. Sweeney and two other American students were arrested on the roof of a university building near Tahrir Square in Cairo last Sunday, accused of throwing firebombs at security forces fighting with protesters. On Thursday, a court ordered the three to be released. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
Derrik Sweeney, center, gets hugs from his father Kevin Sweeney, left, and sister Ashley, right, as arms from his mother, Joy Sweeney, wrap around from behind after Derrik arrived at Lambert-St. Louis International Airport Saturday, Nov. 26, 2011, in St. Louis. Sweeney and two other American students were arrested on the roof of a university building near Tahrir Square in Cairo last Sunday, accused of throwing firebombs at security forces fighting with protesters. On Thursday, a court ordered the three to be released. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
ST. LOUIS (AP) ? Three American college students detained for several harrowing days in Egypt before obtaining their release as deadly protests swept Cairo have flown home to freedom, one describing an ordeal so terrifying he wasn't sure he would survive it.
"I was not sure I was going to live," 19-year-old college student Derrik Sweeney told The Associated Press by telephone moments after his relieved parents, other relatives and dozens of supporters swamped him with hugs as he got off a flight in St. Louis.
Sweeney, the last of the three to arrive late Saturday, recounted how tear gas clouded Cairo's streets and he heard the rumbling of armored vehicles and what sounded like shots being fired just before his arrest a week earlier. Suddenly, the drama involving thousands of demonstrators in the streets had become intensely personal.
Egyptian authorities later announced that they had arrested Sweeney and two others studying abroad ? 19-year-old Gregory Porter and 21-year-old Luke Gates ? on the rooftop of a university building near Cairo's iconic Tahrir Square and a focal point of protests raging in that capital.
Officials had accused the young men of throwing firebombs at Egyptian security forces who were clashing with the protesters. Sweeney said Saturday that he and the other Americans "never did anything to hurt anyone," never were on the rooftop and never handled or threw explosives.
Sweeney said he and the others were told by a group the night of their arrest that they would be led "to a safe place" amid the chaos engulfing the nearby square. Next, he said, they found themselves being taken into custody, hit, and forced to lay for about six hours in a near fetal position in the darkness with their hands behind their backs.
The worst, he said, was when they were threatened with guns.
"They said if we moved at all, even an inch, they would shoot us. They were behind us with guns," Sweeney said in the brief interview.
That night in detention ? "probably the scariest night of my life ever" ? gave way to much better treatment in ensuing days, he said. Sweeney didn't elaborate on who he believed was holding him the opening night but he called the subsequent treatment humane.
"There was really marked treatment between the first night and the next three nights or however long it was. The first night, it was kind of rough. They were hitting us; they were saying they were going to shoot us and they were putting us in really uncomfortable positions. But after that first night, we were treated in a just manner ... we were given food when we needed and it was OK."
He also said he was then able to speak with a U.S. consular official, his mother and obtain legal counsel. He also said he denied the accusations during what he called proper questioning by Egyptian authorities. The three were studying at American University in Cairo.
A court ordered the students' release Thursday and they took separate connecting flights out of Cairo via Germany on Saturday, a day of fresh clashes between Egyptian security forces and protesters. The demonstrators are demanding Egypt's military step down ahead of parliamentary elections due to start Monday.
Porter and Gates were first to arrive back in their home states late Saturday, greeted by family members in emotional airport reunions.
Neither Gates nor Porter recounted any details of the past week in Egypt, where protests erupted Nov. 19 and have continued for days amid sporadic scenes of police firing tear gas and using armored vehicles to chase rock-throwing protesters. Authorities said more than 40 people have died in the unrest.
"I'm not going to take this as a negative experience. It's still a great country," said Gates, his parents wrapping their arms around him, shortly after getting off a flight in Indianapolis.
In another scene played out at Philadelphia International Airport, Porter was met by his parents and other relatives earlier Saturday evening after he landed.
Porter took no questions, saying he was thankful for the help he and the other American students received from the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, administrators at the university they were attending, and attorneys in Egypt and the U.S.
"I'm just so thankful to be back, to be in Philadelphia right now," said Porter, who is from nearby Glenside, Pa., and attends Drexel University in Philadelphia.
Joy Sweeney said waiting for her son had been grueling.
"He still hasn't processed what a big deal this is," she told the AP before his arrival in St. Louis , about 130 miles east of their home in Jefferson City, Mo.
She said she was trying not to dwell on the events and was just ecstatic that her son, a student at Georgetown University in Washington, was coming home before the close of the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.
___
Matheson reported from Philadelphia. Associated Press photographer Michael Conroy contributed to this report from Indianapolis and AP writers Bill Cormier in Atlanta; Maggie Michael in Cairo; Andale Gross and Erin Gartner in Chicago; Sandy Kozel in Washington; Rick Callahan in Indianapolis; and Maryclaire Dale in Philadelphia also contributed.
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