from United Press International

LEICESTER, England, June 20 (UPI) — A British study says chemicals from secondhand cigarette smoke have been found in infants who live with smokers.

Traces of the chemical cotinine, a chemical released when the body breaks down nicotine, is more abundant in urine samples from smokers’ babies than from non’smokers’ children, WebMD said Wednesday.

Dr. Mike Wailoo, a senior lecturer in the child health department of England’s University of Leicester, said the babies of parents who smoked had cotinine levels more than five times higher than babies of non’smoking parents.

The effects of cotinine on infants is not known, WebMD said.

The researchers said maternal smoking quadrupled the babies’ cotinine levels. Paternal smoking nearly doubled the levels.

By NANCY ZUCKERBROD, AP Education Writer
from YAHOO! NEWS

NEW YORK - The scarlet letter in education these days is an “R.” It stands for restructuring - the purgatory that schools are pushed into if they fail to meet testing goals for six straight years under the No Child Left Behind law.

Nationwide, about 2,300 schools are either in restructuring or are a year away and planning for such drastic action as firing the principal and moving many of the teachers, according to a database provided to The Associated Press by the Education Department. Those schools are being warily eyed by educators elsewhere as the law’s consequences begin to hit home.

Schools fall into this category after smaller changes, such as offering tutoring, fall short. The effort is supposed to amount to a major makeover, and it has created a sense of urgency that in some schools verges on desperation.

“This is life and death,” says John Deasy, superintendent of schools in Prince George’s County, Md., where several schools are coming face to face with the consequences of President Bush’s signature education law. “This is very high’stakes work.”

The schools bearing the label are often in poor urban areas, like Far Rockaway at the end of the subway line in the New York City borough of Queens. But they’re also found in leafy suburbs, rural areas and resort towns.

Only schools that receive federal aid for low-income students - known as Title I - are subject to the law’s consequences. But they can be brand-new facilities with luxuries like television studios.

read more at YAHOO! NEWS

WASHINGTON - President Bush has talked with British Prime Minister Tony Blair about taking a role as a Middle East peace envoy after he leaves office next week. Assistant Secretary of State David Welch, the State Department’s top diplomat for the Middle East, talked with Blair in London on Wednesday, while the White House and State Department spoke glowingly about the prime minister’s credentials but said there was nothing to announce yet.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert also expressed support for Blair playing a role in the Middle East.

“Officials in the prime minister’s office are aware of this idea and Prime Minister Olmert is very supportive of Prime Minister Blair and of his continuing involvement in the Middle East and the peace process,” Israeli government spokeswoman Miri Eisin said.

Blair steps down next Wednesday.

“Obviously Prime Minister Blair has been very active and deeply involved in Middle East peace issues throughout his prime ministership,” White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said.

She said Blair and Bush speak often. “It would not surprise me if they have talked about what Prime Minister Blair would like to do following the end of his term … but we don’t have anything to announce today,” Perino said.

read more at YAHOO NEWS

Now why wouldn’t they want to recover this money????? I’ll give ya two guesses and the first one doesn’t count!!

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department has opted out of at least 10 whistle-blower lawsuits alleging fraud and corruption in government reconstruction and security contracts in Iraq, and has spent years investigating additional fraud cases but has yet to try to recover any money.

A congressional subcommittee heard testimony on the matter yesterday, as lawmakers sought to determine why the federal government has not done more to recover tens of millions of dollars that allegedly have been misused or misspent in Iraq.

“I would expect, given the talent that the Justice Department has available to it, . . . that they could have done more,” Representative William D. Delahunt, Democrat of Quincy, said at the hearing. “I have the uneasy feeling like we’re missing something here, a potential substantial recovery.”

The government’s reluctance to join in any of the civil suits has sparked allegations of political interference.

More at Boston.com

By DEB RIECHMANN, Associated Press Writer
from YAHOO! NEWS

WASHINGTON - Vetoing a stem cell bill for the second time, President Bush on Wednesday sought to placate those who disagree with him by signing an executive order urging scientists toward what he termed “ethically responsible” research in the field.

Bush announced no new federal dollars for stem cell research, which supporters say holds the promise of disease cures, and his order would not allow researchers to do anything they couldn’t do under existing restrictions.

Announcing his veto to a roomful of supporters, Bush said, “If this legislation became law, it would compel American taxpayers for the first time in our history to support the deliberate destruction of human embryos. I made it clear to Congress and to the American people that I will not allow our nation to cross this moral line.”

He vetoed similar embryonic stem cell legislation last July.

His executive order encourages scientists to work with the government to add other kinds of stem cell research to the list of projects eligible for federal funding - so long as it does not create, harm or destroy human embryos.

read more at YAHOO! NEWS

From an email I received today from the Save Darfur organization:

Greetings,

Next Monday, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will have an unprecedented opportunity to help end the genocide when she attends a meeting about Darfur with top officials from the U.S., China, France and other key nations.

China, France, and the U.S. all have great influence over Sudan, but acting individually, none has yet been able to put enough pressure on the Sudanese government to stop the violence.

By acting together, however, we believe these three nations can lead the world in ending the Darfur tragedy.

Ask Secretary Rice to use this one-of-a-kind opportunity to urge China and France to join forces with the U.S. on Darfur diplomacy. Click here to send your message to Secretary Rice today.

The Bush administration took a desperately-needed first step last month when it announced its “Plan B” sanctions against the Sudanese government. Now Secretary Rice must use this meeting with French, Chinese and other leaders to increase the pressure on Sudanese President Bashir.

This kind of opportunity may only come along once. The United States, China and France must seize this chance to lead. Click here to tell Secretary Rice not to let this opportunity slip away.

The people of Darfur have waited more than four years for world leaders to make a concerted effort to end the violence. Secretary Rice must make sure Monday’s meeting in Paris marks the beginning of sustained, unified world diplomacy.

Click here to send your email to Secretary Rice by the end of Friday to make sure she receives your message.

It is times like this when making your voice heard can remind our leaders how much power they actually have in bringing peace to Darfur.

As always, thank you for your dedication to those who are suffering - and for your hope that our leaders will rise to the occasion.

Best regards,

Colleen Connors
Save Darfur Coalition

P.S. Take this opportunity to learn more about what Secretary Rice and her French and Chinese colleagues can do to bring an end to the genocide. Read the ENOUGH Project’s Darfur Strategy Briefing entitled “An Axis of Peace for Darfur: The United States, France and China.”

P.P.S. We-re just $28,000 away from reaching our $400,000 goal by midnight today, Wednesday, June 20th to support our Divest for Darfur campaign and other crucial projects. Help put us over the top — click here now to make a secure, tax-deductible gift that will help put a stop to the violence in Darfur before more lives are lost.

GENEVA, June 20 (UNHCR) - People across the world were celebrating World Refugee Day on Wednesday amid a call on the global community to help the world’s displaced and a warning that their numbers were set to rise.

In New York, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said in his first World Refugee Day (WRD) message as UN chief that international solidarity was crucial to meet the urgent humanitarian needs of refugees and others forcibly displaced.

“As we mark World Refugee Day, let us recall what sets these families, children and elderly apart from others on the move around the globe. The difference is that they cannot go home. To ensure that they are cared for and protected until they can, let us offer them our support and understanding,” he said.

High Commissioner António Guterres was in Africa Wednesday to celebrate the annual event, while UNHCR Goodwill Ambassadors such as Angelina Jolie, Adel Imam, George Dalaras, Muazzed Ersoy and Osvaldo Laport have also lent their support with interviews, appearances and campaigning. There was no specific theme this year, but many countries chose their own.

Global WRD celebrations kicked off in New Zealand. In Wellington, an official ceremony was held at Parliament House while on a nearby soccer pitch a team of celebrities took on a World Refugee All Stars XI. Exhibitions, lectures, panel discussions and a refugee youth work expo were scheduled in other parts of the country.

Across the Tasman Sea in Canberra, Australia, World Refugee Day (WRD) flags flew in the parliamentary zone while the Captain Cook Fountain and other monuments were spotlighted in blue. A spectacular light show was also planned in Switzerland, where acclaimed artist Gerry Hofstetter gave the media a sneak preview on Tuesday of four bridges - one in each of the main linguistic areas of the Alpine nation - that he has illuminated with UNHCR logos, messages and images.

More at Reuters

By DENISE LAVOIE
Associated Press Writer
from Breitbart.com

BOSTON (AP) - The Vatican reversed the annulment of former Rep. Joseph P. Kennedy II’s first marriage, a union that had lasted 12 years and produced two sons.

Sheila Rauch on Wednesday confirmed a report on Time magazine’s Web site that her appeal of the annulment to Rome has succeeded.

“I’m very grateful that the marriage was validated,” she told The Associated Press.

Rauch had sharply criticized the Catholic church for annulling her marriage, alleging in a 1997 book that the Kennedy family’s influence in the church had made it possible.

Rauch and Kennedy, the eldest son of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, were granted a civil divorce in 1991.

She said she found out about the annulment only after Kennedy married his former congressional aide, Beth Kelly, in a civil ceremony two years later.

“The (original) annulment decision totally overlooked the fact that I felt that we had a very strong marriage in the beginning, we had two wonderful children, and it lasted,” Rauch said Wednesday. “I was certainly happy in the beginning. … things unraveled, but that doesn’t mean you didn’t have a marriage.”

Rauch said she was told of the Vatican’s decision to reverse the annulment by officials from the Boston Archdiocese in May, although the decision was actually reached in 2005.

Terry Donilon, a spokesman for the Boston Archdiocese, declined comment. “Such matters are appropriately private and confidential,” he said.

A spokeswoman for Kennedy had no immediate comment.

Kennedy served in Congress from 1987 to 1999. He had been considered a favorite for Massachusetts governor in the late 1990s, but after several months of family trouble and bad publicity, including publication of his ex-wife’s book, “Shattered Faith,” he decided not to run.

Since leaving Congress, Kennedy has worked as president of Citizens Energy Corp., a non-profit company he founded to provide low-cost heating oil to the poor and elderly.

read more at BREITBART.COM

By LIZ AUSTIN PETERSON, Associated Press Writer
from YAHOO! NEWS

AUSTIN, Texas - An angry crowd beat a man to death after a vehicle he was riding in struck and injured a young girl, police said Wednesday.

Police believe 2,000 to 3,000 people were in the area for a Juneteenth celebration when the attack occurred Tuesday night.

The driver had stopped to check on the little girl at the entrance to an apartment complex when a group of men attacked him, authorities said. The passenger, David Rivas Morales, 40, got out to try to help the driver, but the crowd turned on him, said police Commander Harold Piatt.

Morales was beaten to death by as many as 20 men and left lying in a parking lot, Piatt said. A preliminary autopsy listed blunt force trauma as the cause of death.

The little girl, 3 or 4 years old, was taken to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

The driver, who got away from the crowd, is cooperating with investigators, police said.

read more at YAHOO! NEWS