Florida Hit With New Lawsuit Over Voter Purge Effort

Florida was hit with a new lawsuit on Tuesday over its efforts, under Republican Governor Rick Scott, to purge non-citizens from the state's voter rolls.

A coalition of voting rights organizations, including the Fair Elections Legal Network, filed the lawsuit in federal court in Miami on behalf of various plaintiffs. They included the Florida Immigrant Coalition, the National Congress for Puerto Rican Rights and a local chapter of the Service Employees International Union.

The lawsuit, which follows others filed earlier this month by the U.S. Justice Department and American Civil Liberties Union, names Florida Secretary of State Ken Detzner, who is responsible for running elections in the state, as the defendant.

It accuses Florida of violating Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act because a disproportionate of those targeted, as part of efforts to cull non-citizens from the voter rolls, are Hispanics.

Latinos make up only about 14 percent of registered voters in Florida, according to the lawsuit. It added, however, that 61 percent of the 2,700 people on a "purge list" of suspected non-citizens, targeted for potential removal from the state's voter rolls, were Hispanic.

"Adding up the disparate impact, 82 percent of those on the purge list are people of color. These numbers are glaringly disproportionate," the complaint said.

Governor Scott, Detzner and other officials have defended the voter purge effort, saying it was aimed at protecting the integrity of the voter rolls and involved just a fraction of Florida's more than 11 mill lion voters.

But the purge effort came against the backdrop of earlier moves by Scott and other Republicans to cut back on early voting hours and crack down on voter-registration drives, And critics say the efforts, in the run-up to November's closely contested presidential election, are aimed at lowering the participation of students and minorities who historically tend to vote Democratic.

A large and enthusiastic turnout of black and Hispanic voters helped carry President Barack Obama to victory in Florida, a crucial battleground state, in 2008.

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? 2012 Thomson/Reuters. All rights reserved.

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Hindu radicals attack Christian village in Orissa : News Headlines ...

CWN - June 19, 2012

Some 50 Hindu extremists attacked a tiny Christian village in the eastern Indian state of Orissa on June 15, beating a Protestant pastor and 20 residents. The remaining villagers fled into the woods.

Orissa was the site of a 2008 anti-Christian pogrom that left an estimated 100 dead and 50,000 homeless.

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Microsoft details deep Skype integration in Windows 8

Microsoft details deep Skype integration in Windows 8

Microsoft's been letting loose all of Windows Phone 8's secrets this morning, and the latest tidbit is all about VoIP calling. Turns out, the team in Redmond's really putting that money it spent on Skype to good use by integrating the video chatting/VoIP service deeply in its new mobile OS. From a user perspective, incoming Skype calls are treated like cellular communications, meaning that they appear as regular calls and are integrated with standard phone features -- like call waiting -- to maintain a seamless calling experience. The VoIP apps continue to run in the background, of course, thanks to WP8's new multitasking capabilities, and VoIP integration will be available to all developers.

To check out the latest updates from Microsoft's Windows Phone event, visit our liveblog!

Microsoft details deep Skype integration in Windows 8 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Jun 2012 13:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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BBVA Android app offer in-app enrollment for Internet banking

Version 2.0 also allows users who weren't using online banking to enroll directly from the app.

"We're using technology to create banking solutions that are simple and convenient," said Alex Carriles, executive vice president and director of Mobile Strategy and Retail Innovation at BBVA Compass. "The new app gives users a fast and easy way to manage their BBVA Compass accounts in a visually enhanced setting. It brings the user experience to a whole new level."

The Android app was upgraded to respond to customer feedback and also to incorporate more innovative technology. As part of BBVA Compass' strategy to align the functionality and the look-and-feel of all of their mobile apps, its graphical design is consistent with the iPhone 2.0 mobile banking app that was released in March.

"Mobile banking is growing and evolving at a rapid pace," Carriles said. "Because this new app is based on an exclusive in-house development, we will be able to add more features, more frequently. There are many things that our customers would like to see in our apps, and we have heard them loud and clear, and nearly every feature they have requested, and more, will be added to our apps throughout this year."

BBVA Compass first released its Android app in 2010, allowing customers to retrieve balances, review transactions, transfer funds and locate branches. Over the last two years, the bank's Mobile Strategies team has launched native apps for iPhone, BlackBerry, Android, iPad and PlayBook.

To download the free BBVA Compass Android mobile banking app, visit Google Play and search for BBVA Compass, or text the word android to 4BBVA (42282).

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Iraq PM asks Obama to stop Exxon-Kurdistan oil deal

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Ex-Rutgers student in webcam case leaves jail

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Google Sounds Censorship Alarm in Free World

Google announced Monday that it had received more than 1,000 requests from authorities to take down content from its search results and YouTube video service during the past six months. Google has characterized this as an "alarming trend." The company also released its twice-yearly Transparency Report, noting noted that the requests were aimed at removing some 12,000 items overall.

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Earnings Preview: Barnes & Noble 2Q results

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MARC travel awards announced for the AAI 2012 Advanced Course in Immunology

[ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 18-Jun-2012
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Fran Yates
fyates@faseb.org
301-634-7109
Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology

Bethesda, MD FASEB MARC (Maximizing Access to Research Careers) Program has announced the travel award recipients for The American Association of Immunologists (AAI) Advanced Course in Immunology at the Seaport World Trade Center, Boston, MA from July 29 August 3, 2012. These awards are meant to promote the entry of underrepresented minority students, postdoctorates and scientists into the mainstream of the basic science community and to encourage the participation of young scientists at the AAI 2012 Advanced Course in Immunology. This year MARC conferred 6 awards totaling $11,100.

The FASEB MARC Program is funded by a grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, National Institutes of Health. A primary goal of the MARC Program is to increase the number and competitiveness of underrepresented minorities engaged in biomedical and behavioral research.

The following course participants have been selected to receive a FASEB MARC Travel Award:

Dr. Monica Campo-Patino, University of Washington [AAI member]

Jorge Luis Medina, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio [AAI member]

Elane Reyes, Case Western Reserve University

Marisel Sanchez, Cedars Sinai Medical Center

Shirdi E. Schmiel, University of Minnesota

John M. Stewart, Loma Linda University [AAI member]

###

FASEB is composed of 26 societies with more than 100,000 members, making it the largest coalition of biomedical research associations in the United States. Celebrating 100 Years of Advancing the Life Sciences in 2012, FASEB is rededicating its efforts to advance health and well-being by promoting progress and education in biological and biomedical sciences through service to our member societies and collaborative advocacy.



[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share Share ]

?


AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.


[ Back to EurekAlert! ] Public release date: 18-Jun-2012
[ | E-mail | Share Share ]

Contact: Fran Yates
fyates@faseb.org
301-634-7109
Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology

Bethesda, MD FASEB MARC (Maximizing Access to Research Careers) Program has announced the travel award recipients for The American Association of Immunologists (AAI) Advanced Course in Immunology at the Seaport World Trade Center, Boston, MA from July 29 August 3, 2012. These awards are meant to promote the entry of underrepresented minority students, postdoctorates and scientists into the mainstream of the basic science community and to encourage the participation of young scientists at the AAI 2012 Advanced Course in Immunology. This year MARC conferred 6 awards totaling $11,100.

The FASEB MARC Program is funded by a grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, National Institutes of Health. A primary goal of the MARC Program is to increase the number and competitiveness of underrepresented minorities engaged in biomedical and behavioral research.

The following course participants have been selected to receive a FASEB MARC Travel Award:

Dr. Monica Campo-Patino, University of Washington [AAI member]

Jorge Luis Medina, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio [AAI member]

Elane Reyes, Case Western Reserve University

Marisel Sanchez, Cedars Sinai Medical Center

Shirdi E. Schmiel, University of Minnesota

John M. Stewart, Loma Linda University [AAI member]

###

FASEB is composed of 26 societies with more than 100,000 members, making it the largest coalition of biomedical research associations in the United States. Celebrating 100 Years of Advancing the Life Sciences in 2012, FASEB is rededicating its efforts to advance health and well-being by promoting progress and education in biological and biomedical sciences through service to our member societies and collaborative advocacy.



[ Back to EurekAlert! ] [ | E-mail | Share Share ]

?


AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.


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Wall Street Week Ahead: Greek election results may bring respite

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Greek political parties supporting a bailout for the country won a slim parliamentary majority in Sunday's elections, which may give markets some respite, but any coalition's majority looks set to be narrow and may lack the stability needed to push through painful reforms.

Whatever the outcome, Europe's problems are far from over as the debt crisis threatens to further engulf the larger economies of Spain and Italy.

In a sign of relief over the Greek results, U.S. stock index futures opened up on Sunday, looking to extend the market's recent gains.

S&P 500 futures rose 6.2 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures added 44 points and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 10.5 points.

"The gain is understandable given the massive fallout that could have happened had the (pro-bailout) New Democracy Party lost," said Michael Yoshikami, chief executive officer at Destination Wealth Management in Walnut Creek, California. "If they're able to construct a majority, as it appears, that will be a huge relief for the market."

The Greek conservative New Democracy party and Socialist PASOK, who broadly back an EU/IMF bailout package keeping Greece from bankruptcy, looked set to jointly secure a slim majority. SYRIZA, the leading leftist party that pledged to tear up the terms of the bailout package, conceded defeat.

If there is any sign of market stress on Monday morning, investors will look for action from the world's central banks who, according to officials, stand ready to intervene if trading becomes turbulent.

"We'll have all kinds of other headlines for Europe over the summer that we'll be trading on, so we're nowhere near the end of volatility," Yoshikami said.

At stake in Greece's election, as investors see it, had been the country's future in the euro zone and possibly the future of the currency bloc itself.

Official results released by the interior ministry, with 97 percent of ballots counted, showed New Democracy taking 29.7 percent of the vote and SYRIZA 26.9 percent. The PASOK Socialists were set to take 12.3 percent of the vote.

Because of a 50-seat bonus given to the party which comes first, that would give New Democracy and PASOK 162 seats in the 300-seat parliament.

The euro hit a three-week high against the U.S. dollar in early Australasian trade according to Reuters data, rising to around $1.2730 from around $1.2655 late in New York on Friday.

But markets have had a tendency to react positively to political developments late Sunday and early Monday only to quickly reverse. That was the case last weekend after the EU announced a 100 billion euro bailout for Spanish banks.

Weeks of worry over the potential outcome of the Greek election have prompted a number of central banks to prepare for market problems.

Central banks from major economies are ready to take steps to calm markets should the outcome of the Greek elections create a market storm, officials from the Group of 20 told Reuters.

Among them, European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said the ECB was ready to step in and fund any viable euro zone bank that gets in trouble. The Bank of England on Thursday announced a $155 billion (100 billion pound) offer of loans to banks.

G20 leaders kick off a two-day summit in Mexico on Monday and the rest of the week is not likely to be any quieter.

The Federal Reserve is due to release a policy statement on Wednesday at the end of its two-day meeting, and the steady flow of sovereign debt warnings and downgrades is likely to continue.

In another sign of investor nervousness, the CBOE Volatility index , Wall Street's fear gauge, was up for much of Friday even as stocks rose, although the VIX closed lower. Stocks and the VIX typically have an inverse relationship.

"People have been hedging their positions aggressively over the past two weeks heading into this weekend," said Alec Levine, a derivatives strategist at Newedge Group SA in New York.

"No matter what happens (this) week, we will return to a massive game of chicken between the newly elected Greek government, whoever that may be, and the EU, specifically Germany."

THE FED AHEAD

Despite the fears, stocks ended the week on a positive note, marking a second straight week of gains. The benchmark Standard & Poor's index is now up 6.8 percent for 2012, though still well off its highest levels of the year.

Part of what has spurred optimism for stock investors in recent weeks has been the hope that the Fed and other central banks would provide more economic stimulus. There has been continuing speculation over whether the Fed will engage in a third round of quantitative easing.

"We do think that expectations of QE3 will drive the market one way or the other," said Omar Aguilar, chief investment officer for equities at Charles Schwab Corp, in San Francisco.

But the fact that the Fed has made no recent changes to policy could mean the economic data policymakers are seeing is "not as bad as everyone thinks," Aguilar said.

Also ahead of the vote, Russell Indexes said certain events in Greece could mean changes in its indexes through implementation of its "financial crisis" rule. Its indexes include the Russell Global Index.

ON RATINGS WATCH

Adding to investor nervousness has been a slew of recent ratings cuts.

Among the most recent, Fitch Ratings on Friday downgraded Egypt's sovereign credit rating deeper into junk status. On Thursday, Egan-Jones cut France's sovereign credit rating.

Many investors see that trend continuing as agencies try to gauge the impact of the euro zone and other problems on the global economy.

"We're probably going to see more of it," Peterson said.

(Additional reporting by Doris Frankel and Ryan Vlastelica; Editing by Maureen Bavdek and Chizu Nomiyama)

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