|
- {"id": "1815744", "text": ["Even before the Metropolitan Opera 's Saturday matinee of Mozart 's `` Magic Flute '' began , this family-friendly version of Julie Taymor 's 2004 production looked to be a huge success .", "Children were everywhere , a rare sight at the venerable institution .", "They were having pictures taken in front of the house , dashing up and down the stairs of the Grand Promenade and , before long , sitting up in their seats all over the auditorium .", "Peter Gelb , the Met 's new general manager , whose multifaceted outreach efforts have already become a model for opera companies everywhere , has rightly stated that the major impediment to making this art form accessible to children is that most operas are simply too long .", "So besides translating the text from German into English , the solution here was to cut the production , which normally lasts 3 hours 10 minutes , down to 100 minutes without an intermission .", "Actually the matinee clocked in at close to two hours , but few of the children seemed to mind .", "The audience was remarkably attentive and well behaved .", "Of course one strict Met protocol -- if you leave the auditorium , you are not allowed re-entry until intermission -- was wisely ditched for the day , so children could take restroom breaks .", "Shortening the score involved what must have been painstaking decisions .", "The overture and several entire arias and ensembles were cut .", "Other arias were abridged through some very deft trims .", "Otherwise the Met went all out .", "The cast was excellent , and James Levine conducted .", "The very free English translation by the poet J . D . McClatchy was clever and singable .", "Papageno , still without a girlfriend and miserable , asks forlornly : `` Is my face just one big puddle .", "Are n't I cute enough to cuddle .", "`` The Papageno , Nathan Gunn , was certainly cute enough .", "This dynamic baritone exuded charm and cavorted about the stage like an acrobat .", "At one point he tried to flee danger by scurrying up the side of a huge plastic tube he was trapped in , only to slide back down , landing with the floppy-limbed aplomb of a Charlie Chaplin .", "He seemed the darling of every child in attendance -LRB- and the audience included Mr. Gunn 's five -RRB- .", "The stupendous bass Ren\u00e9 Pape was Sarastro .", "A lovely , clear-voiced lyric soprano , Ying Huang , in her debut role at the Met , was an alluring Pamina .", "Matthew Polenzani brought his sweet tenor voice and wholesome appeal to Prince Tamino .", "The agile coloratura soprano Erika Miklosa was a vocally fearless and aptly chilling Queen of the Night .", "As the wicked Monostatos , the trim tenor Greg Fedderly was unrecognizable with his flabby , fake pot belly , which induced giggles every time he exposed it .", "I am on record as being no fan of Ms. Taymor 's production , which to me is a mishmash of imagery , so cluttered with puppets , flying objects and fire-breathing statues that it overwhelms Mozart 's music .", "But this show was not presented with me in mind .", "So let me offer the reactions of three young attendees .", "Amitav Mitra , my neighbor , who is 8 , came as my guest .", "And Kira and Jonah Newmark , 9 and 7 , the children of friends , were also glad to share their critiques afterwards .", "For Amitav , this was his first opera .", "Though Jonah had seen opera videos at home with his sister , he too was trying the real thing for the first time .", "Kira , a burgeoning opera buff , has attended , as she put it , `` real three-hour operas , '' most recently `` The Barber of Seville '' at the New York City Opera .", "Not surprisingly Ms. Taymor 's fanciful sets , costumes and puppets won raves from this trio of critics .", "But their most revealing comments were about the singing and the story .", "The singing `` was loud , '' Amitav said .", "Jonah added , `` It was too loud . ''", "Kira more or less agreed .", "I pressed them about this .", "Today , when children hear amplified music everywhere , often channeled right into their ears through headphones , how could unamplified singing seem too loud .", "Amitav clarified their reactions when he said that the singing was `` too loud for human voices , '' adding , `` I never thought voices could do that . ''", "So their reaction was not a complaint about excessive volume , but rather an attempt to explain the awesome impression made by Ms. Miklosa 's dazzlingly high vocal flights as the Queen of the Night , or Mr. Pape 's unearthly powerful bass voice , or the amassed chorus in the temple scenes .", "It takes a while for young opera neophytes to adjust to such mind-boggling voices , to realize that this strange , unamplified `` loudness '' is actually amazing .", "The other common reaction concerned the story , which all three children enjoyed .", "Kira , though , was struck by the gravity of Prince Tamino 's dilemma .", "`` Tamino was a little too serious for me , '' she said , adding : `` He never does anything that 's funny .", "He takes things seriously . ``", "I think Mr. Levine , who conducted a glowing and elegant performance , would be pleased by Kira 's reaction .", "Mr. Levine made certain that some of the opera 's most somber episodes were included , like the long scene in which the confused Tamino is confronted by the austere Speaker -LRB- David Pittsinger -RRB- , a stalwart member of Sarastro 's brotherhood , at the entrance to the temple .", "Like most fairy tales `` The Magic Flute '' is a mysterious story of good and evil .", "Naturally , Ms. Taymor 's production makes the opera 's monsters quite charming , like the puppet bears who are enchanted by Tamino 's magic flute .", "And the boys singing the kindly Three Spirits -LRB- Bennett Kosma , Jesse Burnside Murray and Jacob A . Wade -RRB- are turned spectral and eerie , with their bodies painted white and Methuselah beards .", "This `` Magic Flute '' was the first Met opera that was transmitted live in high-definition video to some 100 movie theaters around the world .", "Ultimately the point of this technological outreach is to entice newcomers into attending opera performances .", "The children I spoke with are likely to be back .", "Summarizing his reactions to `` The Magic Flute , '' Jonah said , `` I do n't think it 's going to be the best opera I 'm going to go to in my life . ``", "What he meant , explaining further , was , `` I 'm , like , going to go to others that will be even better . ``", "MUSIC ."], "summary": ["Julie Taymor family friendly production of Mozart 's The Magic Flute at Metropolitan Opera features libretto translated into English and has been cut from nearly four hours to less than two .", "Is filled with puppets and elaborate costumes that appeal to children .", "Production is part of Met general manager Peter Gelb 's initiative to expand opera audience .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3, 6, 33], "tag": ["Arts"]}
- {"id": "1815747", "text": ["When it comes to spectacle , Hollywood enjoys nothing better than a nasty legal battle between two determined and egotistical adversaries : Bette Davis meets Joan Crawford , in a courtroom .", "In the past such face-offs have featured prominent figures like the former Disney chairman Michael D . Eisner , the DreamWorks co-founder Jeffrey Katzenberg , the superagent Michael S . Ovitz , the humorist Art Buchwald and the actress-writer Joan Collins .", "Many of them cringed to hear their private comments and inner thoughts offered up for public consumption .", "And so may it go if the headline-making book publisher Judith Regan proceeds with a lawsuit her lawyers have threatened against the News Corporation , which owns HarperCollins , the publishing house that fired her in December after the O . J . Simpson book and television project imploded .", "In an interview last week Ms. Regan 's lawyer , Bert Fields , said he was preparing to file a lawsuit for libel and wrongful termination against the News Corporation shortly after the New Year because of allegations that she had been fired after making anti-Semitic remarks during a heated phone conversation with a company lawyer .", "`` My present thought is that we would sue not just for breach of contract but for libel , '' he said .", "`` They issued false and defamatory statements about Judith .", "This has been terribly destructive to her career , and I think the damages could be huge . ``", "A News Corporation spokesman declined to comment officially because the matter involved an imminent lawsuit , but he provided what he said was the company view : the News Corporation was confident about its case and not worried that a third party , a temporary worker who was briefly Ms. Regan 's assistant , had emerged to support Ms. Regan 's account of the conversation that led to the dismissal .", "`` We 're very confident that what we said is not false , `` said the company executive , who added that the News Corporation chairman , Rupert Murdoch , was taking an active interest in the matter .", "`` But this seems to be heading more toward a public relations war than a litigation . ''", "Well , naturally so .", "In Hollywood battles a war of words often precedes legal formalities , and Mr. Fields has plenty of experience .", "He has played legal counselor in headline-grabbing cases like Mr. Katzenberg versus the Walt Disney Company in the mid-1990s , and two Tom Cruise defamation cases , in Britain in 1998 and in California in 2003 , both over allegations that he was homosexual .", "In those instances Mr. Katzenberg and Mr. Cruise got satisfaction , either financial or legal , although they had to suffer through headlines that , in Mr. Cruise 's case , repeated the unsupported allegations and , in Mr. Katzenberg 's case , unearthed a nasty remark about his diminutive height .", "But a case involving Ms. Regan may well prove to be uglier and more prurient .", "Legal scholars and prominent litigators said that proving libel is extremely difficult , but it opens the door to a public airing of the litigants ' private affairs .", "`` Libel is a very , very high mountain of proof to climb , and you can get destroyed in the process , '' said Pierce O'Donnell , a leading litigator who successfully sued Paramount in the 1980s for Mr. Buchwald , who contended that the studio had stolen his screenplay idea in its movie `` Coming to America . ''", "Ms. Regan , whose lively personal life is already well-worn fodder for tabloid gossip , will find lawyers poring over every off-color remark she may have made , Mr. O'Donnell said .", "Former colleagues have already emerged to confirm that she was reprimanded in the past for making an anti-Semitic remark at work .", "Mr. O'Donnell said : `` She will open herself up to every scurrilous allegation .", "She will not enjoy one minute of this litigation .", "They 'll hire a bulldog , and it 'll be a bloodletting . ``", "Meanwhile HarperCollins , which owns ReganBooks , would probably face uncomfortable questions about why it tolerated Ms. Regan for so long if the company found her behavior so objectionable .", "And executives would also have to submit to a detailed examination of their decision-making process in the Simpson project , a book titled `` If I Did It '' and a television interview conducted by Ms. Regan , which unleashed such a cascade of public outrage that both were canceled .", "`` Everything that went on will get into evidence , '' Mr. Fields promised .", "`` What really happened with that interview , what Jane Friedman , '' the president of HarperCollins and Ms. Regan 's former boss , `` is really like . ''", "A significant issue for a jury , Mr. O'Donnell said , would be whether the accusations of anti-Semitism were merely a pretext for getting rid of the controversial publisher .", "HarperCollins `` may say that this was the straw that broke the camel 's back , but the other side may say the straw was really the embarrassment over O . J . , `` he said .", "The breach-of-contract matter might be considered a garden-variety case , except for the accusation of anti-Semitism .", "With four years remaining on her contract , Ms. Regan would have been paid several million dollars had she not been fired for cause , a general term that usually includes behavior like dishonesty , failure to carry out orders or sexual harassment .", "But the charge of anti-Semitism itself is not a clear-cut one for either side , legal experts said .", "In its termination letter News Corporation did not specify the reason for Ms. Regan 's dismissal , though the company did later release its account of the allegedly anti-Semitic remarks to the news media .", "Mr. Fields said he planned to argue that a HarperCollins lawyer , Mark Jackson , knew that Ms. Regan never said that a `` Jewish cabal '' was in league against her during that phone conversation .", "`` He stated it , knowing it was false , '' Mr. Fields said .", "`` These days people do n't want much to do with an anti-Semite or an anti-black person . ``", "Others said it was more complicated .", "`` It really is a he said-she said , '' said Alan R . Friedman , a leading New York entertainment lawyer .", "`` Both sides have their reasons .", "Both witnesses have reason to be less than objective .", "And you have to show that it has an impact on her reputation .", "Will this really change anyone 's opinion of Judith Regan , a ` Jewish cabal ' .", "This is n't like denying that the Holocaust occurred .", "That 's just a burden . ``", "David R . Ginsburg , who is executive director of the entertainment law program at the University of California , Los Angeles , said that if a jury believed she made the remark , it would be a basis for firing .", "`` Taking it in the abstract , it is damaging for a company to take no action while a senior executive purportedly makes anti-Semitic remarks , '' he said .", "Several lawyers said they imagined that the matter would never have received this much attention if not for the furor over O . J . Simpson .", "And they said they believed it would be settled quietly once the media noise died down because the negative implications for both sides were so great .", "On the eve of the new year there were indications that a window might open toward conciliation .", "Mr. Fields suggested an apology : `` In my view they should retract what they said .", "If they did , it might limit the damages .", "We 'd still sue for breach of contract , but we might not sue for libel . ``", "The News Corporation executive said the company would prefer to settle the matter quietly .", "`` We 'd like this to go away quickly , amicably and professionally , `` he said .", "`` We 're not going to settle at any price .", "We have a very strong case .", "But having the winning case does n't mean you want to go to court . `` ."], "summary": ["Judith Regan says she is preparing to file lawsuit against News Corp , Rupert Murdoch-owned media giant that owns Harper Collins publishing house , which fired her after O J Simpson book project imploded .", "Regan 's lawyer Bert Fields says libel and wrongful termination suit is related to allegations that Regan had been fired after making anti-Semitic remarks during heated phone conversation with company lawyer .", "News Corp declines to comment officially .", "Photos .", "Chart of other face-offs between famous names and large corporations ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4, 3], "tag": ["Arts", "Books"]}
- {"id": "1815756", "text": ["Last year 's debut of Howard Stern 's radio show on Sirius Satellite Radio put the technology on the map , raising the public 's awareness of satellite radio and helping to boost significantly subscriber totals for Sirius and its larger rival , XM Satellite Radio .", "Today , thanks in part to the outsize radio personality , the Stern Effect has increased Sirius 's base to about six million subscribers , up 80 percent from one year ago .", "XM has increased its numbers by more than 30 percent , ending 2006 with 7.7 to 7.9 million customers .", "`` There is a tendency to view satellite radio as if the glass is half empty , and that it is a failure or disappointment , '' said Craig Moffett , senior cable analyst for Sanford C . Bernstein .", "`` In fact , nothing could be further from the truth , '' he said .", "`` Satellite radio is growing faster than any consumer product except for the iPod . ''", "But Sirius and XM shares have taken a battering on Wall Street , with prices for both off about 50 percent from their year-ago levels .", "On Friday , Sirius closed at $ 3.54 , while XM ended the year at $ 14.45.", "And now , the industry may be getting ready to try an even more dramatic third act -- a possible attempt to merge the two services .", "The benefits of a merger have been promoted by the chief executive of Sirius , Mel Karmazin , for a number of months , and Sirius officials continue to say that a merger would be a good thing .", "XM has not commented on the possibility , and neither company has said whether they have actually discussed the issue .", "`` When you have two companies in the same industry , we have a similar cost structure .", "Clearly , a merger makes sense from an investor 's point of view to reduce costs , and to have a better return , `` said David Frear , the chief financial officer for Sirius .", "Both companies have continued to lose hundreds of millions of dollars because of marketing and other subscriber acquisition expenses .", "During the year , XM sharply lowered its expectations for 2006 subscriber levels , from January 's predicted end-of-year total of 9 million to a maximum of 7.9 million .", "-LRB- Sirius reduced its subscription projection by about 100,000 . -RRB-", "Nate Davis , XM 's president , said his company believed that the slower-than-expected growth rate was of its own making and not a result of any market indifference .", "`` We did not stimulate the market with new products , '' he said .", "XM 's most talked-about receivers , the Pioneer Inno and Samsung Helix , were first announced one year ago .", "Several new receiver models will be introduced later in 2007 .", "In addition , production of some receivers was temporarily halted to stop a condition that was allowing satellite signals to be picked up by neighboring vehicles .", "The hiccups typical of fledgling industries appear to be over .", "Both companies have their programming lineups largely in place and a wide range of receivers available in retail stores .", "In addition to Howard Stern , Sirius features personalities like Deepak Chopra , Judith Regan , Richard Simmons and Martha Stewart .", "Sports programming includes N.B.A. , N.F.L. , and N.H.L. games .", "Nascar programming begins this year .", "XM has shows with hosts including Bob Dylan , Ellen Degeneres , `` Good Morning America '' personalities , and Oprah Winfrey .", "XM broadcasts every Major League Baseball game as well as P.G.A. golf .", "Yet the vast majority of programming remains duplicative .", "Each company offers a wide variety of rock , pop , folk , and other musical genres , as well as the same news channels , which include the BBC , CNN , Fox , and MSNBC .", "Sirius and XM each claim that their music channels are more compelling than the competition 's , but most casual listeners would be hard-pressed to tell the difference .", "`` The services mirror each other tremendously , '' said Richard Doherty , an analyst with the Envisioneering Group , a research firm .", "`` More people know that one service has Howard Stern than know which one has him . ''", "Except for a relatively small handful of viewers looking for particular programs , consumers searching for a satellite service in a retail store often make their decision not on the merits of one over the other , but which one is more convenient to buy .", "`` For the subscriber , it all comes down to which one of the two is closer to the cash register .", "Customers can not tell the difference between the two services , `` Mr. Moffett said .", "Customer choice will play an even smaller role in the coming years as both companies come to rely more on selling satellite radio as a factory-installed option on new cars , and less on receivers sold at retail stores .", "Both companies have exclusive agreements with the automobile companies .", "Customers typically get free service for a number of months , and then must pay $ 12.95 a month to continue listening .", "XM has exclusive arrangements with General Motors , Honda , Hyundai , Nissan and Porsche .", "Sirius has similar alliances with BMW , DaimlerChrysler , Ford , Kia and VW-Audi .", "Today , about 63 percent of XM 's subscribers are buyers of new cars , and Sirius 's new subscribers are derived equally from new car and after-market sales .", "As more cars are equipped with satellite radios , the new car market could grow to as high as 70 percent of sales in the next few years , Mr. Moffett said .", "`` We see greater and greater demand in the car market , '' said Mr. Davis of XM .", "`` And we think the used car market will be an opportunity to sell to new subscribers . ''", "Used car subscribers incur no additional hardware costs if the receiver is already in place .", "And if the companies were to merge and effectively double their subscriber base , the new company could reduce programming costs through increased negotiating clout , removal of duplicative channels and elimination of redundant employees .", "Whether Sirius and XM attempt to merge , a number of variables that will determine the size of the industry 's success remain unknown .", "They include the number of new cars that will be equipped with satellite radio receivers .", "The percentage of new car owners who will subscribe after the free trial period ends .", "And whether purchasers of used cars equipped with satellite radio will be more or less likely to subscribe than new car owners .", "The business may also be vulnerable to subscription overload , Mr. Doherty said , if consumers find that monthly recurring expenses from cellphone bills , cable TV , and other services are too high .", "Yet even if that is true , there is little doubt that the concept of satellite radio is no longer alien to consumers .", "According to Sirius , 83 percent of consumers aged 18 to 55 are now aware of the technology .", "Mr. Frear became personally cognizant of that when he tried to rent a car with a Sirius radio recently but found they were all taken .", "`` Every year , satellite radio just sinks deeper and deeper into the public consciousness , '' he said .", "Correction : January 16 , 2007 , Tuesday An article in Business Day on Jan . 1 about the increase in subscribers for Sirius Satellite Radio and its rival , XM Satellite Radio , misstated one news channel that is offered by both companies .", "It is CNBC , not MSNBC ."], "summary": ["Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio may try merger .", "Benefits of merger have been promoted by Sirius chief executive Mel Karmazin and Sirius officials continue to say that merger would be good thing .", "XM has not commented on possibility , and neither company has said whether they have actually discussed issue .", "Both companies have continued to lose hundreds of millions of dollars because of marketing and other subscriber acquisition expenses .", "Graphs .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 13, 10], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1815757", "text": ["The business of grain marketing has not been its usual sleepy self lately in Western Canada .", "Plans by the government to strip the Canadian Wheat Board of its monopoly control over most of the country 's wheat and barley exports have provoked a fight that is pitting farmer against farmer and the agency against the government .", "The wheat board , founded 75 years ago as part of a wave of cooperative ventures for improving farmers ' lives , is now one of the world 's largest grain traders , with annual sales of $ 4 billion to $ 6 billion .", "The board is , in many respects , among the last of the cooperative projects that remains true to its original goals .", "But those goals now have little in common with the open market philosophy of the minority Conservative government that came to power just under a year ago .", "Shortly before Christmas , that clash resulted in an unusual cabinet order to fire the wheat board 's president , Adrian Measner .", "The fate of the board will be eagerly awaited in the United States , where farm groups have unsuccessfully challenged the Canadian board 's monopoly .", "Among the companies likely to move into Canada 's export market , if it is opened , are commercial grain traders like Cargill of Minneapolis and Archer Daniels Midland of Decatur , Ill .", "`` There is absolutely no doubt that part of the reason the Conservative government is pushing as hard as it is pushing is , I suspect , that they are feeling pressure from the Americans , '' said Murray Fulton , an agriculture economist who directs a center for the study of cooperatives at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon .", "The wheat board concept is simple .", "In exchange for its monopoly over wheat destined for export from Canada 's three prairie provinces , as well as a small part of British Columbia , it pays every farmer the same average sale price .", "Overall , Professor Fulton said , price averaging has provided most farmers with greater stability and higher prices than they would have obtained in an open market .", "A study commissioned by the wheat board on barley prices released in December gives more specifics .", "The report , by Richard S . Gray of the University of Saskatchewan , Andrew Schmitz of the University of Florida and Troy G . Schmitz at Arizona State University , concluded that farmers ' barley revenue from the wheat board was 59 million Canadian dollars higher from 1995 to 2004 than it would have been in an open market system .", "Wheat board supporters argue that the board also helps farmers by negotiating terms with railways and ports .", "The system seems to have supporters on the buyers ' side as well .", "It provides a more uniform grading of grains than is available in the United States , for instance .", "But averaging prices has a significant drawback for some farmers .", "By definition , an average price is often lower than what individual farmers who live near the United States border could obtain by directly trucking their harvest south .", "The province of Alberta , home to Prime Minister Stephen Harper , has long opposed the board for that reason , among others .", "Chuck Strahl , the minister of agriculture , has repeatedly said that all he wants is to give farmers the choice of pooling their risk through the wheat board or going out on their own .", "`` We are trying to get more marketing choice for farmers , '' he told the House of Commons in December .", "`` We want to put more money in their pockets .", "We want them to take advantage of their own expertise . ``", "Professor Fulton argued in a separate study published last month that the wheat board can not survive in an open market .", "Indeed , its history before it was granted a monopoly supports that idea .", "The operation floundered as farmers chose the open market when prices were high , returning to the board only during hard times .", "Mr. Strahl has not found it easy to end the board 's monopoly .", "A 1998 law gave farmers control of the board by letting them directly elect 10 of its 15 directors , with the balance , including the president , being appointed by the government .", "-LRB- Because the government guarantees the board 's finances , however , it retained the power to issue cabinet orders . -RRB-", "The Conservatives , in the minority , have been unable to get any of the other parties to support changes in the wheat board .", "An attempt earlier this year to amend the board 's legislation was resoundingly defeated by opposition parties .", "And when five wheat board positions came up for election this fall , the government heavily promoted candidates who backed its plan .", "Farmers , however , responded by electing four candidates who favor the current monopoly .", "Now Mr. Strahl plans a vote on creating an open barley market early in 2007 .", "But he has also made it clear that the government will not be bound by its results .", "The level of support for the government 's open market plan is unclear .", "Even Mr. Strahl said during recent committee testimony : `` I think I 've had 4,500 letters on wheat board issues since I 've been in office .", "They are almost equally divided . ``", "Mr. Measner , a 34-year veteran of the wheat board , had become something of a minor celebrity by rebuffing orders from Mr. Strahl and his staff to stop promoting the monopoly system and start backing the government 's plan .", "Before his dismissal on Dec . 22 , Mr. Measner began a court challenge of a cabinet order requiring the board to support the government , arguing that it is unconstitutional and outside the government 's power over the board .", "`` The government has a direction they 're taking the wheat board , and it does n't matter what people say or what people want , `` Mr. Measner said in an interview from his home after his firing .", "`` My position is that it should be farmers making the decision . ''", "Ken Ritter , a farmer from Saskatchewan who is the board 's chairman , said the legal challenge of the government 's orders will continue as will the board 's campaign to keep the current system .", "`` This is very , very divisive , '' Mr. Ritter said .", "`` This has gone on for 40 years . ''", "Professor Fulton said that by firing Mr. Measner and attempting to gag the board , the government runs the danger of alienating even some of the farmers who back its open market position .", "`` The view seems to be shifting , '' Professor Fulton said .", "`` Even farmers who might support a change in the wheat board are saying , why do it this way . '' ."], "summary": ["Plans by Canada to strip Canadian Wheat Board of its strict control of wheat and barley exports provokes fight between farmers and government .", "Board , founded 75 years ago , pays all farmers average sale price over market value in exchange for monopoly .", "Supporters say system helps farmers negotiate terms with buyers while critics say some living near United States border could potentially generate profits higher than average price .", "Vote is planned on creating open market .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 18, 34, 14], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1815760", "text": ["In brand-new offices with a still-empty game room and enough space to triple their staff of nearly 30 , a trio of entrepreneurs is leading an Internet start-up with an improbable mission : to out-Google Google .", "The three started Powerset , a company whose aim is to deliver better answers than any other search engine -- including Google -- by letting users type questions in plain English .", "And they have made believers of Silicon Valley investors whose fortunes turn on identifying the next big thing .", "`` There 's definitely a segment of the market that thinks we are crazy , `` said Charles Moldow , a partner at Foundation Capital , a venture capital firm that is Powerset 's principal financial backer .", "`` In 2000 , some people thought Google was crazy . ''", "Powerset is hardly alone .", "Even as Google continues to outmaneuver its main search rivals , Yahoo and Microsoft , plenty of newcomers -- with names like hakia , ChaCha and Snap -- are trying to beat the company at its own game .", "And Wikia Inc . , a company started by a founder of Wikipedia , plans to develop a search engine that , like the popular Web-based encyclopedia , would be built by a community of programmers and users .", "These ambitious quests reflect the renewed optimism sweeping technology centers like Silicon Valley and fueling a nascent Internet boom .", "It also shows how much the new Internet economy resembles a planetary system where everything and everyone orbits around search in general , and around Google in particular .", "Silicon Valley is filled with start-ups whose main business proposition is to be bought by Google , or for that matter by Yahoo or Microsoft .", "Countless other start-ups rely on Google as their primary driver of traffic or on Google 's powerful advertising system as their primary source of income .", "Virtually all new companies compete with Google for scarce engineering talent .", "And divining Google 's next move has become a fixation for scores of technology blogs and a favorite parlor game among technology investors .", "`` There is way too much obsession with search , as if it were the end of the world , '' said Esther Dyson , a well-known technology investor and forecaster .", "`` Google equals money equals search equals search advertising .", "It all gets combined as if this is the last great business model . ``", "It may not be the last great business model , but Google has proved that search linked to advertising is a very large and lucrative business , and everyone -- including Ms. Dyson , who invested a small sum in Powerset -- seems to want a piece of it .", "Since the beginning of 2004 , venture capitalists have put nearly $ 350 million into no fewer than 79 start-ups that had something to do with Internet search , according to the National Venture Capital Association , an industry group .", "An overwhelming majority are not trying to take Google head on , but rather are focusing on specialized slices of the search world , like searching for videos , blog postings or medical information .", "Since Google 's stated mission is to organize all of the world 's information , they may still find themselves in the search giant 's cross hairs .", "That is not necessarily bad , as being acquired by Google could be a financial bonanza for some of these entrepreneurs and investors .", "But in the current boom , there is money even for those with the audacious goal of becoming a better Google .", "Powerset recently received $ 12.5 million in financing .", "Hakia , which like Powerset is trying to create a `` natural language '' search engine , got $ 16 million .", "Another $ 16 million went to Snap , which has focused on presenting search results in a more compelling way and is experimenting with a new advertising model .", "And ChaCha , which uses paid researchers that act as virtual reference librarians to provide answers to users ' queries , got $ 6.1 million .", "Still , recent history suggests that gaining traction is going to be difficult .", "Of dozens of search start-ups that were introduced in recent years , none had more than a 1 percent share of the United States search market in November , according to Nielsen NetRatings , a research firm that measures Internet traffic .", "Amassing a large audience has proved to be a challenge even for those with a track record and resources .", "Consider A9 , a search engine owned by Amazon.com that received positive reviews when it began in 2004 and was run by Udi Manber , a widely recognized search specialist .", "Despite some innovative features and early successes , A9 has captured only a tiny share of the market .", "Mr. Manber now works for Google , where he is vice president of engineering .", "The setback apparently has not stopped Amazon or its chief executive , Jeffrey P . Bezos , from pursuing profits in search .", "ChaCha said it counts an investment company owned by Mr. Bezos among its backers , and Amazon is an investor in Wikia .", "An Amazon spokeswoman said Mr. Bezos does not comment about his personal investments .", "Some start-ups are similarly bullish .", "`` We expect to be one of the top three search engines , '' said Riza C . Berkan , the chief executive of hakia .", "It is a bold claim , given that hakia 's technology is not yet ready for prime time , and Mr. Berkan readily concedes it will take time to perfect it .", "The dream , however , is quintessential Silicon Valley .", "`` It is hard for me to believe that anybody thinks they can take Google 's business from Google , `` said Randy Komisar , a venture capitalist who was once known as Silicon Valley 's `` virtual C.E.O. '' for his role as a mentor to scores of technology firms .", "`` But to call the game over because Google has been such a success would be to deny history . ''", "In some ways , the willingness of so many to make multimillion-dollar investments to take on Google and other search companies represents a startling change .", "In the late 1990s , when Microsoft dominated the technology world , inventors and investors did everything they could to avoid competing with the software company .", "Yet many of today 's search start-ups are putting themselves squarely in the path of the Google steamroller .", "Most explain that decision in similar ways .", "They say that Google 's dominance today is different from Microsoft 's in the late 90s when its operating system was a virtual monopoly and nearly impossible to break .", "In the Internet search industry , `` you earn your right to be in business every day , page view after page view , click after click , '' said Barney Pell , a founder and the chief executive of Powerset , whose search service is not yet available .", "They also say that the market for search simply is too large to resist .", "Google , which , according to Nielsen , handles about half of all Internet searches in the United States , is valued at an astonishing $ 141 billion .", "So , the reasoning goes , anyone who can grab even a small slice of the search market could be well rewarded .", "`` You do n't need to be No . 1 to be worth billions of dollars , `` said Allen Morgan , a partner at Mayfield Fund , a venture capital firm that invested $ 10 million in Snap .", "The company is also backed by Bill Gross , an Internet financier who pioneered the idea of linking ads and search results , only to see Google seize the powerful business model and improve on it .", "Almost all of today 's search entrepreneurs also say that Google 's success lends credibility to their own long-shot quest .", "When Lawrence Page and Sergey Brin first started tinkering with what would become Google , other search engines like AltaVista and Lycos and Excite were dominant .", "But the companies that owned them were distracted by efforts to diversify their businesses , and they took their eye off the ball of Internetsearch and stopped innovating .", "Some now say that search has not evolved much in years , and that Google is similarly distracted as it introduces new products like word processors , spreadsheets and online payment systems and expands into online video , social networking and other businesses .", "`` The more Google starts to think about taking on Microsoft , the less it is a pure search play , and the more it opens the door for new innovations , '' said Mr. Moldow , the Foundation Capital partner .", "`` That 's great for us . ``", "But at the same time , Google , Yahoo and Microsoft have thousands of engineers , including some of the world 's top search specialists , working on improving their search results .", "And they have spent billions building vast computer networks so they can respond instantly to the endless stream of queries from around the world .", "Search `` is becoming an increasingly capital-intensive business , '' said Marissa Mayer , Google 's vice president for search .", "That makes it harder for start-ups to catch up to the giants , she said .", "That is not stopping entrepreneurs from betting that they can .", "Powerset has search and natural-language experts among its two dozen employees , including former top engineers from Yahoo and a former chief linguist from Ask Jeeves , Ask.com' s predecessor .", "They are the kind of people who could easily land jobs at Google or Microsoft or Yahoo .", "Steve Newcomb , a Powerset founder and veteran of several successful start-ups , said his company could become the next Google .", "Or , he said , if Google or someone else perfected natural-language search before Powerset , then his company would make a great acquisition for one of the other search companies .", "`` We are a huge story no matter what , '' he said .", "Ms. Dyson , the technology commentator and Powerset investor , captured the optimism more concisely and with less swagger .", "`` I love Google , '' she said , `` but I love the march of history . '' ."], "summary": ["Search-engine companies such as Powerset , hakia , ChaCha and Snap are trying to be next Google .", "Wikia Inc , company started by founder of Wikipedia , plans to develop search engine that , like popular Web-based encyclopedia , would be built by community of programmers and users .", "These ambitious quests reflect renewed optimism sweeping technology centers like Silicon Valley and fueling nascent Internet boom .", "It also shows how much new Internet economy resembles planetary system where everything and everyone orbits around search in general , and around Google in particular .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 9, 8], "tag": ["Technology", "Business"]}
- {"id": "1815761", "text": ["As the Jewel of the Seas , a luxury cruise ship owned by Royal Caribbean , steamed down the coast toward Bermuda in late October , there were plenty of distractions , including two Olympic-size pools , Latin dance lessons and Boozer Bingo .", "But Birdie Jaworski was having none of it .", "Ms. Jaworski , a single mother who sells Avon products in tiny Las Vegas , N.M. , instead spent much of her time inside the ship 's lounges and meeting rooms with other book enthusiasts , listening to authors like Elinor Lipman -LRB- `` My Latest Grievance '' -RRB- , Terri Jentz -LRB- `` Strange Piece of Paradise '' -RRB- , and Lynnette Khalfani -LRB- `` The Money Coach 's Guide to Your First Million `` -RRB- .", "`` I was having so much fun hanging out with people with the same literary interests as me , '' said Ms. Jaworski , who runs a book club in her hometown and is herself an aspiring author .", "Ms. Jaworski was one of about 150 book lovers aboard the ship for a five-day literary-themed cruise out of Boston .", "Known as Book It to Bermuda , it is just the latest example of a growing genre of cruises that could be called Ship Lit .", "Often sponsored by publishers , the cruises , aboard commercial liners , feature popular authors who give readings and seminars -- even knitting lessons -- to boatfuls of book lovers .", "Ms. Jaworski was particularly impressed with a presentation by Ms. Jentz , whose book recounts a brutal attack she survived in Oregon 30 years ago , and subsequent journey back to the scene to investigate .", "The seas were rough that day , according Ms. Jaworski , so Ms. Jentz delivered her presentation sitting down .", "`` I enjoyed it , even though I was feeling a little queasy , '' said Ms. Jaworski .", "For authors and their publishers , the cruises offer an opportunity to promote their books to a captive audience of hundreds of enthusiastic readers .", "People tend to read a lot on cruises , and the profile of a typical Ship Lit cruise customer -- older and female -- is an especially good match for romance , health and fitness books , publishers say .", "`` It 's become increasingly difficult to create and build a book and make it successful , `` says Keith Fox , president of McGraw-Hill Professional , the division of the McGraw-Hill Companies that published Ms. Khalfani 's financial advice book .", "Literary cruises , he said , are `` an opportunity for us to get our authors in front of a demographic that loves books . ''", "Authors say the environment makes for a special experience .", "`` You get to connect with people in a way that you never would at a bookshop , '' Ms. Khalfani said .", "`` I had people stopping me in the bathroom , in the spa .", "I probably gave another three or four minisessions just sitting around talking shop . ``", "The feeling was mutual .", "`` Bermuda was stunning , but the authors made the cruise , '' says Julie Rogers , a self-described `` crazed reader '' from San Jose , Calif . , who was on the cruise .", "The company that has done the most to promote Ship Lit , however , is Levy Home Entertainment , a book distributor with thousands of retail accounts , including Wal-Mart Stores , Target , and Kmart .", "With the support of major publishers , Levy has organized two Authors at Sea cruises that each featured more than two dozen authors .", "Mary Higgins Clark , Paul Levine , a mystery writer , and Arthur Frommer , a travel expert , have been headliners on the cruises , while Jackie Collins and Dean Koontz have lent their star power to bon voyage parties .", "The next cruise is tentatively scheduled for 2008 .", "Levy has long sought novel ways to spur sales of mass market paperbacks , which the company says account for a third of its sales , such as organizing bus tours and driving groups of authors from city to city to do signings .", "The idea for a literary cruise grew out of that experience , says Pam Nelson , director of promotions for Levy .", "Publishers say it is difficult to measure the direct impact of the cruises , but they say participating authors see an increase in sales .", "Harlequin Enterprises sent a half dozen of its writers on the Authors at Sea cruise last spring .", "Craig Swinwood , executive vice president for sales and marketing at Harlequin , notes that those authors , including Debbie Macomber and Carla Neggers , had record years .", "Still , `` you could do five cities in that same week , '' on a regular book tour , he said .", "Books by participating authors are sold onboard .", "Levy sold about 2,500 books on its last cruise .", "And the marketing starts months beforehand .", "In Levy 's case , featured books are distributed with an Authors at Sea logo on the covers , and tucked inside each book is a coupon for $ 250 toward the price of the cruise .", "But the real payoff may come from the word-of-mouth after vacationers return home , telling their friends and posting their thoughts on one of the many book-oriented Web sites and blogs .", "`` These are not just readers .", "These are power readers that can really drive trends in the book business , `` says John Lindsay , a vice president at Levy .", "Indeed , the Internet has changed the dynamics of the book business in profound ways .", "Ms. Macomber , who has written dozens of mass market novels , keeps in touch with her fans through her own Web site .", "`` We 're used to being in that celestial cloud , `` she said .", "`` Now authors are out there .", "You have to be . ``", "As a featured author on the Levy cruise , Ms. Macomber gave knitting lessons to attendees -LRB- knitting features prominently in her 2005 novel , `` A Good Yarn '' -RRB- .", "After the cruise , she added the readers she had met to her mailing list , and many have left messages on her online guest book , she said .", "Kate Duffy , editorial director of the Kensington Publishing Corporation -LRB- whose author , Beverly Barton , was on the last Levy cruise -RRB- , courts these readers , whom she affectionately calls `` the big mouths , '' sending them manuscripts and soliciting their opinions .", "After attending the Authors at Sea trip , she said , `` I added 10 more big mouths to my list . ''", "MEDIA ."], "summary": ["Literary cruises give authors and their publishers opportunity to promote books to captive audience of enthusiastic readers .", "Environment provides connection with readers that authors can not achieve through bookstore appearances or other events .", "Cruises are becoming popular as it becomes icreasingly difficult to successfully market new books .", "Photos d ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [10, 35], "tag": ["Business", "Books"]}
- {"id": "1815789", "text": ["When Ban Ki-moon takes over as secretary general of the United Nations on Monday , he may quickly have to grapple with the crisis in Darfur , fighting in Somalia and the continuing strife in the Middle East .", "But he will have to wait to enjoy one of the more glamorous trappings of his new post : the secretary general 's official residence on Sutton Place , the exclusive Manhattan enclave off the East River .", "The General Assembly recently approved a $ 4.5 million renovation of the residence , a 14,000-square - foot neo-Georgian attached town house with four floors and a basement .", "Until October , when the work is expected to be completed , Mr. Ban and his wife will sleep and entertain in a suite at the Waldorf-Astoria , where they have been living since November .", "Choi Soung-ah , who has been serving as a spokeswoman during Mr. Ban 's transition , said that while he would have preferred to move directly into the Sutton Place residence , `` it 's just essential refurbishment that 's been pushed off for years . ``", "`` He would rather , of course , be in the official residence and not living in a hotel where he ca n't really unpack his own things , his own belongings , `` Ms. Choi said .", "`` There is such a thing as the official residence of the secretary general .", "Of course that would be better , and it would be very convenient . ``", "The residence was once home to Anne Morgan , the daughter of J . P . Morgan , the financier .", "It was donated to the United Nations in 1972 and has not been significantly refurbished since 1950 , according to a September report prepared by the secretary general 's office .", "The report estimated that the renovation effort would cost $ 4.49 million .", "Of that , $ 650,900 would go toward security upgrades , including $ 137,700 for a digital video-recording system and additional cameras .", "The price includes $ 200,000 to upgrade the kitchen , $ 100,000 to redo the restrooms and $ 2.1 million for a central heating , ventilation and air-conditioning system .", "The upgrades that are not related to security total $ 255 per square foot .", "The General Assembly also approved $ 202,500 for temporary accommodations for the incoming secretary general and his family .", "Details in the report hint at the sort of domestic annoyances the departing secretary general , Kofi Annan , has dealt with since he took up the post in 1997 .", "The house currently `` poses safety hazards '' and is prone to `` severe malfunctions , requiring increasingly frequent emergency repairs , '' the report says .", "Specifically , it describes a `` technologically obsolete '' telecommunications system , an 85-year-old electrical wiring system unequipped to handle the phalanx of communications and security technology required by a modern world leader and an elevator that violates New York City 's safety code .", "The building is heated with steam , which frequently leaks from `` heavily corroded '' pipes and fittings , the secretary general 's report says , damaging walls and furniture .", "The high-powered fans that are used to address the leaks sometimes make matters worse , by overloading the electrical circuit and causing power failures .", "The General Assembly has also approved a separate , extensive renovation of the United Nations headquarters , which is expected to cost $ 1.9 billion and take seven years .", "In the meantime , Mr. Ban , the former South Korean foreign minister , will not have to wait to move into his new office , on the 38th floor of the gleaming Secretariat building .", "He will do so starting Monday , but not a moment sooner , Ms. Choi said , noting , `` Kofi Annan is still the secretary general until the 31st of December . '' ."], "summary": ["Ban Ki-moon , new secretary general of UN , will have to wait to enjoy one of more glamorous trappings of his new post : secretary general 's official residence on Sutton Place .", "General Assembly recently approved $ 4.5 million renovation of residence .", "Ban and his wife are staying at Waldorf-Astoria until Oct , when work is expected to be completed ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 3, 2], "tag": ["World"]}
- {"id": "1815792", "text": ["As a New Year 's deadline arrived , Russia 's natural gas monopoly , Gazprom , struck a deal early Monday to supply gas to Belarus for the next five years , averting a price dispute that threatened to disrupt supplies to Europe , the company said in a statement .", "The agreement , reached as the Russian capital celebrated the New Year with rolling displays of fireworks , more than doubled the price that Belarus will pay for natural gas this year and raised it significantly in the years to come .", "For Belarus , a close ally of Russia , the price of gas would rise to $ 100 per thousand cubic meters in 2007 , from $ 46 now , and increase steadily to the level paid by European countries by 2011 , the company said .", "Gazprom , Russia 's largest company , succeeded in achieving , at least in part , what its officials had described as a central goal : ending subsidized supplies of energy to the countries of the former Soviet Union .", "Belarus , led by its autocratic president , Aleksandr G . Lukashenko , has for years benefited from the comparatively inexpensive supply of natural gas , a vital part of its sclerotic economy , still mostly managed by the state .", "The agreement headed off a shutdown of supplies to Belarus and beyond , avoiding the disruptions of last year , when the effects of a price dispute with Ukraine rippled throughout Europe and raised concerns about Russia 's reliability as an energy supplier .", "Gazprom , closely allied to the Kremlin , threatened to cut off gas supplies again beginning Monday at 10 a.m. if Belarus did not agree to the higher prices .", "At least 20 percent of Russian natural gas destined for Europe passes through Belarus , less than the amount that transits Ukraine but enough to raise new concerns in Europe .", "The agreement was reached after months of negotiations -- and a final week of threats and counterthreats .", "Belarus 's prime minister , Sergei S . Sidorsky , arrived in Moscow on Sunday for a last round of negotiations and announced the deal with Gazprom 's chairman , Aleksei B . Miller .", "Mr. Miller had suggested that Belarus should ultimately pay the going market price , now roughly $ 260 per thousand cubic meters of gas .", "The agreed price , $ 100 per thousand cubic meters , was less than the $ 105 that Gazprom had demanded in the past few days .", "But under the deal announced on Monday , Gazprom , in keeping with its stated goals of expanding its export empire , will acquire 50 percent of Beltranzgaz , the Belarussian gas-transit monopoly that distributes gas through the country .", "Mr. Lukashenko , whose rule has been described as the last dictatorship in Europe , had previously vowed never to give up control of those pipelines .", "On Friday , he vowed that Belarussians would rather live in unheated dugouts than pay the higher prices that Gazprom was demanding .", "`` All this means destruction of our relations , '' he said .", "A statement by Mr. Sidorsky early Monday appeared to reflect his government 's unease with the agreement .", "`` The Belarussian side , in a difficult atmosphere on the eve of the new year , signed an agreement on unfortunate terms , '' he said , according to Agence France-Presse .", "Russia has long been the country 's most reliable partner , shielding it from efforts by Europe and the United States to isolate Mr. Lukashenko , who won re-election to a third term as president in balloting in March that was denounced as unfair .", "But the negotiations suggested that Russia 's political priorities had been surpassed by Gazprom 's economic ones ."], "summary": ["Russia 's natural gas monopoly , Gazprom , strikes deal to supply gas to Belarus for next five years , averting price dispute that threatened to disrupt supplies to Europe .", "Agreement more than doubled price that Belarus will pay for natural gas in 2007 and raised it significantly in years to come ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1], "tag": ["World"]}
- {"id": "1815795", "text": ["City , state and federal agencies granted final approvals last month to a half-dozen wide-ranging projects in a political aligning of the stars that will promote New York City 's most ambitious economic development agenda in decades .", "Approval or financing was given to a Second Avenue subway .", "An extension of the Flushing Line to the Far West Side .", "A spur to connect the Long Island Rail Road to Grand Central Terminal .", "Financing for tens of thousands of apartments for low - and moderate-income residents .", "The Atlantic Yards complex near Downtown Brooklyn , which includes a new home for the basketball Nets .", "And even the bus-stop shelters and public toilets that New Yorkers and visitors have demanded for years .", "Some of the approvals were prompted by legal deadlines and last-minute efforts by departing Pataki administration officials -- including Charles A . Gargano , the chairman of the Empire State Development Corporation .", "Peter S . Kalikow , the chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority .", "And the governor himself -- to stake out their legacy .", "But two more enduring forces also converged : the beginning of the last 1,000 days of the Bloomberg administration , and a climate that some urban planners suggest signals at least a lull in the nearly half-century backlash against the bulldozer diplomacy of Robert Moses .", "`` It 's a pretty amazing list , `` said Robert D . Yaro , the president of the Regional Plan Association , a group that studies transportation and development issues .", "`` It 's the Bloomberg administration pushing hard .", "There 's a pro-growth , long-range theme behind all this . ``", "Kenneth T . Jackson , the Columbia University urban historian , said that Mr. Bloomberg 's speech in December outlining the challenges posed by a growing population `` signaled that New York had to fight for its place at the table , that real estate and commercial rents and housing prices are getting out of hand .", "The only way the city can prosper is to make that more reasonable and the only way to do that is to increase the supply .", "`` I think they 're beginning to move , `` Professor Jackson said .", "In the months ahead , the Bloomberg administration 's development agenda includes rezoning in Harlem as well as in Jamaica and Willets Point in Queens .", "The administration also wants to make another effort to gain approval for the transformation of the James A . Farley general post office building in Midtown Manhattan into a commuter rail hub called Moynihan Station -- one proposal that appears to be in political limbo .", "`` After 9/11 , a spirit of cooperation -- not perfect -- prevailed that enabled people to aim farther than they had in decades , '' said Daniel L . Doctoroff , the deputy mayor for economic development , who was instrumental in winning many of the approvals .", "`` The mayor really encouraged that kind of thinking -- repositioning New York City 's economy to compete with other cities in the 21st century . ``", "Several of the approved projects still face court challenges .", "Some others are bound to raise concerns over displacement and congestion .", "And the promise of a Second Avenue subway has been dangled before skeptical New Yorkers for nearly 80 years .", "But even if some projects are delayed , the others would change the city 's face and , arguably , help fend off competition from New Jersey and from other world capitals .", "`` I think you probably would have to go back to the late 1930s to see anything like that , '' Mr. Doctoroff said .", "`` I do n't think any mayor has had an agenda like this , not since La Guardia . ``", "On Dec . 6 , the city sold $ 2 billion in bonds to extend the No . 7 subway line 1.1 miles west and then south from Times Square to 11th Avenue and 34th Street to help transform the largely fallow Far West Side .", "On Dec . 18 , the federal government agreed to grant $ 2.6 billion to link Long Island Rail Road commuters directly to the East Side of Manhattan and $ 693 million for the Second Avenue subway from 96th to 63rd Streets .", "On Dec . 19 , Mr. Pataki presided over the installation of the first two huge steel columns to mark the perimeter of the Freedom Tower at the World Trade Center site .", "The same day , Mr. Bloomberg announced the installation of the first 24 of 3,300 bus-stop shelters by a company that will also replace 330 newsstands and install and operate 20 public toilets .", "The `` street furniture '' will help pay for the city 's tourism campaign .", "On Dec . 20 , the City Council , in a compromise supported by the mayor , voted to overhaul a tax break to induce developers to build tens of thousands of apartments for New Yorkers making less than 80 percent of the median household income , or $ 56,720 for a family of four .", "That day , a state oversight board gave final approval to the $ 4 billion Atlantic Yards project , a mostly residential complex with a basketball arena , offices and retail space near Flatbush and Atlantic Avenues .", "In addition , new stadiums are being built for the Yankees and the Mets .", "Brad Lander , the director of the Pratt Center for Community Development , a planning group , said : `` My guess is , we are only just now settling into the general sense that the city 's growth and development are long-term trends , not a short-time , business-cycle flash . ``", "Dick Dadey , the executive director of Citizens Union , said that the city , bolstered by a robust economy , was trying to meet pent-up demand .", "`` Say what you want about the scope and size of development , '' he added , `` the projects that are being approved are more sensitive to the current communities and neighborhoods or to creating new ones -- like the new Downtown Brooklyn -- than Moses ever was . ''", "Moreover , Mr. Dadey said , `` the community boards no longer have the sway they once did over stopping local projects , '' and some local groups are even supporting development -- `` trying to encourage it responsibly in ways that benefit a greater number of people . ''", "In `` The Power Broker , '' Robert A . Caro in 1974 wrote that without the approval of Robert Moses , who oversaw virtually all public works in New York until he was eased out in 1968 , the city was `` utterly unable '' to build anything .", "Mr. Caro said in an interview that he , too , was struck by the plethora of projects approved in December .", "`` Does this alignment of stars show that this is may be a problem that democracy can solve .", "`` he said .", "`` For the first time in 40 years , I 'm hopeful . `` ."], "summary": ["New York City , New York State and federal agencies grant final approval to half-dozen large projects that will transform some areas of city and help bring it competitively into 21st-Century .", "Wide-ranging projects signal lull in climate of nearly 50-year backlash against ` bulldozer diplomacy ' of Robert Moses .", "Developers are more sensitive to needs of communities and some communities welcome changes that can improve neighborhoods .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [10, 0], "tag": ["New York and Region"]}
- {"id": "1815801", "text": ["For a half-century , he has been the center of a heartbreaking mystery , this boy of 4 or 5 who lies buried beneath a black granite stone in the shade of rhododendrons .", "Visitors to his grave in Ivy Hill Cemetery here pray and leave toys , perhaps bestowing more love on this child than he ever had in his life , which was marked by sickness and hunger and ended in a beating .", "The boy 's body , bruised and naked , was found in a cardboard box in a patch of woods off a dirt road on the city 's outskirts in February 1957 .", "He was a symbol of child abuse at its worst .", "Yet all these years later , he has no name .", "William H . Kelly , a retired Philadelphia detective , and his friend Joseph McGillen , a retired investigator for the medical examiner 's office , visit the boy 's grave often .", "`` My little friend , '' Mr. Kelly calls him .", "The men , both 79 , dream of giving the boy an identity before they die .", "Still officially an open homicide investigation , the case is `` one of the very few in which we ca n't say who it is , `` said Capt . Benjamin Naish , a Philadelphia police spokesman .", "Elmer Palmer was the first officer on the scene that drizzly Feb . 26 , 1957 .", "`` It looked like a doll , '' he recalled recently .", "`` Then I saw it was n't a doll . ``", "The boy 's hair had been cut , crudely , either just before or just after death , so his body was flecked with hairs .", "Mr. Palmer , now 79 , was a young husband and father then .", "He recalled shivering in his raincoat , thinking , `` What a shame . ''", "At least this will be solved quickly , he thought .", "`` They had so many leads . ''", "But there were problems .", "A college student had spotted the body on Feb . 25 , but did not call the police until the next day , after confiding in a priest .", "Cold slows decomposition , so it was impossible to tell how long the boy had been dead .", "An autopsy showed that the child had been beaten to death and that he had been ill and undernourished .", "His baby teeth were intact , and he had apparently never been to a dentist .", "His body bore several small scars that looked like surgical incisions .", "Yet a survey of local doctors and hospitals turned up nothing .", "Photographs of the boy 's face were printed in the newspapers , hung on storefronts and mailed with utility bills throughout Philadelphia and beyond .", "Orphanages and other child-care institutions were checked .", "Still nothing .", "Detectives even dressed the corpse and photographed it in a sitting position , then distributed the pictures in the hope that the more `` lifelike '' appearance would jog someone 's memory .", "A man 's corduroy cap found near the body was traced to an area store .", "The owner recognized it from the strap the buyer had her sew on .", "She recalled him as a man in his 20s who had come into the store alone .", "There was nothing special about him .", "He was never found .", "The police traced the cardboard box to another store .", "It was one of a dozen that had held bassinets sold from Dec . 3 , 1956 , to Feb . 16 , 1957 .", "Investigators tracked down all but one buyer -- quite a feat , considering the store 's cash-only policy -- but found no link to the boy .", "Among the many tips and theories : the boy was a refugee who came to America after the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 .", "He was the son of wandering carnival workers , several of whose children had died under odd circumstances .", "He was the son of an itinerant roofer who had worked in the Philadelphia area .", "More than 11,000 Hungarian passports were checked .", "The carnival workers were cleared .", "The roofer was found , along with his son , safe and sound .", "Finally , the boy was buried in a potter 's field , with detectives as pallbearers .", "His grave was the only one with a stone , donated by a local monument maker .", "Years went by .", "The patch of woods was bulldozed for houses .", "The dirt road became a busy street .", "Investigators who had worked on the case acquired paunches and pensions .", "But for all the big-city death and mayhem they had seen , they could not forget the little boy .", "The Vidocq Society , a Philadelphia group composed largely of law enforcement professionals who investigate long-unsolved crimes , adopted the case .", "Mr. Kelly and Mr. McGillen are members .", "-LRB- The society is named after a famed 18th-century French detective , Eug\u00e8ne Fran\u00e7ois Vidocq . -RRB-", "Another member was Remington Bristow , an investigator in the medical examiner 's office who had been deeply affected by the case .", "His own son had died in early childhood .", "Mr. Bristow worked on the case practically full time , even in his retirement , spending thousands of dollars of his own to chase leads across the country .", "He carried a death mask of the child in his briefcase .", "Until his death in 1993 , Mr. Bristow theorized that the child was the son of an unmarried daughter of a couple who ran a foster home in an old mansion .", "He even suggested that the child might have died accidentally .", "The boy 's D.N.A. was obtained when the body was exhumed in 1998 and reburied in Ivy Hill , in a plot donated by the cemetery .", "Those close to the case hold out hope that a match will turn up one day .", "Mr. Kelly and Mr. McGillen say the key to the mystery may lie in the memory of a woman who grew up in Philadelphia and says that when she was a child her parents brought a boy home and kept him in the basement .", "One day , the woman says , her mother battered the boy to death , then drove with her to the patch of woods to dispose of the body .", "The woman told her story to Mr. Kelly and Mr. McGillen several years ago , in the presence of her psychiatrist .", "She said she decided to come forward after a television reprise of the case , one of several in recent years .", "`` We think she 's the real deal , `` Mr. McGillen said .", "But William Fleisher , a former Philadelphia police officer and F.B.I. agent who is the president of the Vidocq Society , is not so sure .", "`` Nothing she says has been proved , nothing she says has been disproved , '' said Mr. Fleisher , now a private investigator .", "And if the boy remains without a name and the crime goes unpunished .", "Sooner or later the killer will be `` in a place where there 's no appeal , `` Mr. McGillen said .", "`` And I feel good about that . '' ."], "summary": ["Bruised and naked body of unidentified boy , 4 or 5 , was found in patch of woods on outskirts of Philadelphia in February 1957 .", "Autopsy showed that child had been beaten to death and that he had been ill and undernourished .", "Vidocq Society , Philadelphia group composed largely of law enforcement professionals who investigate long-unsolved crimes , adopted case .", "Yet all these years later , boy has no name .", "William H Kelly , retired Philadelphia detective , and Joseph McGillen , retired investigator for medical examiner 's office , visit boy 's grave often .", "They dream of giving him identity before they die .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 49, 20, 4, 2, 7], "tag": ["U.S."]}
- {"id": "1815802", "text": ["Darlene Bishop , the nationally renowned evangelical preacher , begins her book about how God cured the cancer afflicting one of her brothers with a Biblical verse : `` And the prayer of faith shall save the sick , and the Lord shall raise him up . ''", "The book , `` Your Life Follows Your Words , '' is sold in the gift shop of Solid Rock Church , the 4,000-member congregation in Monroe , Ohio , where Ms. Bishop is a co-pastor .", "She has promoted it on her television show , `` Sisters , '' which is modeled after ABC 's `` The View '' and is broadcast on four cable networks nationwide .", "On her Web site , Ms. Bishop promises that the book reveals `` how God healed her of breast cancer '' and a brother of throat cancer .", "Nowhere , though , does she mention , that the brother , Darrell Perry , a successful country music songwriter whom everyone called Wayne , died from the cancer a year and a half ago .", "In a sworn deposition responding to two lawsuits filed by Mr. Perry 's four children , Ms. Bishop stated that no doctor ever diagnosed the breast cancer she referred to prominently in her book .", "Instead , Ms. Bishop testified , she thought that she had cancer in 1986 and that it was cured .", "`` She 's lying to people and exploiting my father for her own financial gain , `` Mr. Perry 's eldest son , Bryan Perry , 36 , said in an interview .", "One lawsuit accuses Ms. Bishop of wrongful death because , it says , she convinced Mr. Perry to pray rather than to seek medical care .", "The other accuses her of mismanaging and misusing his estate , which the Perry children say could be worth millions .", "The estate case is to be argued in Butler County Probate Court on Friday .", "Mr. Perry 's death at age 55 left some of country music 's most popular performers , including Toby Keith and Tim McGraw , without one of their most trusted and prolific writers .", "Now the battle over who caused his death , who owns his assets and how best to interpret his legacy is dividing a once-close family whose members climbed from Appalachian poverty to prominence in the music industry and the evangelical movement .", "Ms. Bishop would not answer questions about the suits .", "On her Web site , she says that the allegations `` are complete lies '' and that she never discourages anyone from seeing doctors .", "She also says she is a trustworthy steward of Mr. Perry 's estate , which , she said in the deposition , could be worth nothing after his many debts are paid .", "Long before she gained fame as a preacher , Ms. Bishop was her family 's spiritual leader , Bryan Perry said .", "One of Mr. Perry 's two former wives , Janet Perry-McCormick , said that he often sought the religious counsel of his older sister , whom he called Sissy , and that his children grew up attending her church .", "`` I put my faith in Darlene , '' Bryan Perry said .", "`` We all did .", "We thought she was a holy , pure woman . ``", "Wayne Perry fathered four children with three women , two of whom he married , his sons said .", "He abandoned his family when Bryan was 2 to pursue his songwriting career , which produced such hits as `` A Woman 's Touch , `` recorded by Mr. Keith , and '' Not a Moment Too Soon , `` by Mr. McGraw .", "He earned millions of dollars , said a music industry lawyer , Rush Hicks , who is advising the children .", "After doctors diagnosed his throat cancer in December 2002 , Mr. Perry moved into Ms. Bishop 's mansion on her $ 2.6 million horse farm in Monroe to re-commit his life to God , his sons said .", "According to Ms. Bishop 's book , when her brother arrived at her front door , he confirmed that he had cancer , and she replied , `` Let that be the last time those words ever come from your mouth . ''", "In her deposition , Ms. Bishop said Mr. Perry had decided on his own to disregard doctors ' advice that he immediately begin chemotherapy and radiation treatments .", "But Mr. Perry 's children contend that their aunt persuaded him to forgo medical treatment and rely on a process of faith healing that , Ms. Bishop wrote in her book , God had explained to her in a revelation .", "`` He was laying in bed dying , and she had him convinced that he was healed , '' said Mr. Perry 's son Justin Jones , 28 , who lived in Ms. Bishop 's house for a year caring for his father .", "As his throat tumors swelled to the size of tennis balls , Mr. Perry stopped eating , Mr. Jones said .", "His weight dropped to 84 pounds .", "He did consent to chemotherapy , Mr. Jones said , but only after the tumors had restricted his breathing to the point that he collapsed .", "The chemotherapy shrank the tumors , Mr. Jones said , and his father began eating again .", "In her book , Ms. Bishop describes her brother 's spiritual awakening and the improvement in his condition , but she does not mention his chemotherapy .", "As Mr. Perry regained strength , he and Ms. Bishop went on a nationwide tour of evangelical churches , promoting Ms. Bishop 's book about his miraculous recovery , his children said .", "Against his doctor 's advice , Mr. Perry stopped chemotherapy , Mr. Jones said .", "On Oct . 13 , 2004 , an oncologist , Dr. Albert Malcolm , wrote a letter telling Mr. Perry that his cancer was terminal .", "Mr. Perry forwarded the letter to Janet Perry-McCormick , his former wife , after writing across the top , `` Destroy this letter after you read it , '' and , `` Only you and Darlene know this . ''", "The note is proof that Ms. Bishop knew her brother was dying but concealed it from the public while continuing to promote her book , Mr. Perry 's children said in interviews , but in her deposition , Ms. Bishop said she learned of Dr. Malcolm 's diagnosis after Mr. Perry died in May 2005 .", "Mr. Perry 's death raised questions about the ownership of his royalties , his catalogs of songs and his `` hook book , '' which his children describe as a loose-leaf notebook stuffed with lyrics and musical riffs , most of which had not been recorded .", "The children accused Ms. Bishop 's son Lawrence Bishop II , a musician , of recording two albums that contained a total of five songs copyrighted by Mr. Perry without paying royalties to his estate .", "Copyrights are not strictly followed in the Christian country music business , Ms. Bishop said in her deposition .", "She also said Mr. Perry 's notebook was missing .", "Their father 's songs could be worth millions of dollars , the children said , but only if they can be marketed , an impossibility given no hook book and a dispute over song rights .", "Ms. Bishop said Mr. Perry 's catalogs of songs belonged to the record companies that recorded and promoted them , not the family .", "Also in dispute is Mr. Perry 's life insurance policy , worth $ 260,000 .", "Ms. Bishop was named the policy 's sole beneficiary , but the children claim it was meant for them .", "One point on which both sides agree is that Mr. Perry died believing he had been healed by God .", "`` The only thing he told me , '' Ms. Perry-McCormick said , `` was , ' I 'm going to show Sissy that I can be healed just like she was . ' `` ."], "summary": ["Darrell Perry , successful country music songwriter died from cancer year and half ago .", "Perry 's four children have filed two lawsuits against their aunt , Darlene Bishop , renowned evangelical preacher .", "One lawsuit accuses her of wrongful death , claiming that she convinced Perry to pray rather than to seek medical care .", "Other accuses her of mismanaging and misusing his estate , which Perry children say could be worth millions .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 8, 4], "tag": ["U.S."]}
- {"id": "1815811", "text": ["This college town received what it wanted when , during the 1980s and 90s , it sought to reverse the decline of its downtown and to create a more vibrant civic center that would draw people at night and on weekends .", "Since then , thousands of young professionals , retirees and former suburbanites have moved to glistening condominium buildings in the shadow of the state Capitol 's dome and only a few blocks from the University of Wisconsin 's main campus .", "And there is hardly a bad night for business near State Street , where university students and tourists pack restaurants and bars to capacity even on freezing weeknights .", "But as downtown 's population and revelry have grown , so have overcrowding on the streets , vandalism and , most significantly , the police say , alcohol-related crime .", "Mayor Dave Cieslewicz and other officials find themselves grappling with a problem that is a direct result of Madison 's successful transformation : how to tone down downtown .", "As an urban issue , the downsizing of downtowns has little precedent because many cities , particularly in the Midwest , are struggling mightily to bring people back to their cores , not send them away .", "Of course , many college towns deal with problems related to drinking .", "In the Midwest alone , La Crosse , Wis . , and East Lansing and Ann Arbor , Mich . , are struggling with how to cope with the public mayhem often fueled by inebriated students .", "In Madison , two Common Council members , convinced that much of what ails downtown can be traced to the proliferation of bars and restaurants known more for drinking than dining , introduced a plan intended to reduce the number of such establishments , and to restrict the approval of new liquor licenses .", "The plan , which has the support of Mayor Cieslewicz -LRB- pronounced chess-LEV-ich -RRB- , is preliminary and does not detail , for example , how many or which places may be closed .", "A final plan is expected to be ready for a Council vote in the spring .", "That area of nearly one square mile -- between Lake Mendota , Lake Monona and Blair and Lake Streets -- has 120 places that serve only or mostly alcohol .", "They have a capacity of more than 11,000 people , city officials said .", "The proposal has its critics , many of whom call it nothing less than modern-day Prohibition , and an assault on personal freedom and the free market that flies in the face of Madison 's traditional liberalism and Wisconsin 's entrenched drinking culture .", "Some Council members say they worry that limiting the number of bars will only increase the number of drinkers who turn to house parties and makeshift taverns , where binge drinking and bad behavior often go together but behind closed doors .", "`` A lot of the activists on this issue revile alcohol , and their logic is equally fallacious as the original Prohibitionists ' , `` said Austin King , the president of the Common Council and a member of its Progressive caucus .", "`` From a safety perspective , '' Mr. King said , `` I would much , much rather have young people drinking in the regulated environment of bars . ''", "College students , not surprisingly , also oppose the plan .", "`` A proportion of students drink irresponsibly , but the majority do n't , `` said Katrina Schleitwiler , 21 , a political science major at the University of Wisconsin .", "`` This would just drive students into other places to drink and not affect the problem at all . ''", "Although Ms. Schleitwiler acknowledged a spate of crimes around campus and downtown , she said she did not think alcohol abuse by students or anyone else was at its root .", "`` Madison is becoming a big city with more crime , '' she said .", "`` How different is that from any other city .", "`` The police see things differently .", "According to a recent police department analysis of attacks in which someone was injured downtown , about 75 percent of the victims and perpetrators were intoxicated .", "The analysis also found that after midnight on Thursdays , Fridays and Saturdays , police officers , paramedics and firefighters often spent half to all of their working hours responding to alcohol-fueled fights and disorderly conduct .", "Noise , public urination and vandalism are constant concerns .", "The University of Wisconsin has tried many initiatives to curtail under-age drinking and older students ' overconsumption .", "Most recently , the city and the college jointly paid for a municipal alcohol policy coordinator -- referred to as the `` bar czar '' -- to redouble those efforts .", "`` Frankly , nothing has worked very well , and there 's still a culture of binge drinking , `` Mayor Cieslewicz said .", "For the last five years , Madison , formerly a sleepy college town , has grown by about 2,500 people a year into a medium-size city with a population of about 230,000 .", "In the last decade , 1,950 apartments -- rental and condominium units -- have been built downtown .", "But the arrival of so many newcomers has produced a culture clash .", "Stefanie Moritz , a retired librarian , moved with her husband from Phoenix into a downtown condominium about three years ago , drawn by pedestrian-friendly streets , a university job for her husband and the community 's progressive politics .", "`` We decided that we definitely wanted to live downtown , so we could get rid of one of our cars , my husband could walk to work and we could enjoy the downtown experience , '' Ms. Moritz said .", "`` The reality is a little bit different . ''", "She said she quickly grew irritated at being awakened at 2:30 a.m. , when the noisy bar crowd usually begins to make its way home , dropping empty beer cans and other trash along the way .", "One morning she woke to find that garbage had been torched and the flames had charred a tree .", "`` I want to live downtown , but I also want a decent quality of life , '' Ms. Moritz said .", "`` And I feel that that is being denied by the present level of alcohol use . ''", "About 18 months ago , Ms. Moritz became active in a relatively new residents ' group , Capitol Neighborhoods , which is at the forefront of the push for stricter drinking rules .", "Hawk Schenkel , the owner of one of the biggest restaurants on State Street , Hawk 's Bar and Grill , pointed out that residents who criticized the downtown scene had `` moved downtown in a university town . ''", "`` Do they know where all the revenue comes from downtown , why we have a downtown that 's alive and worth being in .", "`` Mr. Schenkel asked .", "`` All that could change . ''", "`` If the ordinance as written were to pass , my bar would automatically be worth at least $ 100,000 more , overnight , and it 's clear that I personally stand to gain financially , `` he said .", "`` But I 'm against this on principle , and I do n't think it helps the problem .", "My argument is that there are n't enough bars .", "It 's the overcrowding that leads to violence . `` ."], "summary": ["Madison , Wis , college town that sought to reverse decline of its downtown in 1980s and 1990s to draw people at night and on weekends , is now facing overcrowding on streets , vandalism and , most significantly , alcohol-related crime .", "Officials are grappling with how to scale down downtown .", "Map . Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3], "tag": ["U.S."]}
- {"id": "1815830", "text": ["For Sunni Arabs here , the ugly reality of the new Iraq seemed to crystallize in a two-minute segment of Saddam Hussein 's hanging , filmed surreptitiously on a cellphone .", "The video featured excited taunting of Mr. Hussein by hooded Shiite guards .", "Passed around from cellphone to cellphone on Sunday , the images had echoes of the videos Sunni militants take of beheadings .", "`` Yes , he was a dictator , but he was killed by a death squad , '' said a Sunni Arab woman in western Baghdad who was too afraid to give her name .", "`` What 's the difference between him and them .", "`` There was , of course , a difference .", "Mr. Hussein was a brutal dictator , while the Shiite organizers of the execution are members of the popularly elected Iraqi government that the United States helped put in place as an attempt to implant a democracy .", "It was supposed to be a formal and solemn proceeding carried out by a dispassionate state .", "But the grainy recording of the execution 's cruel theater summed up what has become increasingly clear on the streets of the capital : that the Shiite-led government that assumed power in the American effort here is running the state under an undisguised sectarian banner .", "The hanging was hasty .", "Laws governing its timing were bypassed , and the guards charged with keeping order in the chamber instead disrupted it , shouting Shiite militia slogans .", "It was a degrading end for a vicious leader , and an ominous beginning for the new Iraq .", "The Bush administration has already scaled back its hopes for a democracy here .", "But as the Iraqi government has become ever more set on protecting its Shiite constituency , often at the expense of the Sunni minority , the goal of stopping the sectarian war seems to be slipping out of reach .", "`` We speak about the crimes of Saddam Hussein , but now here we are behaving in the same way , '' said Alaa Makki , a prominent Sunni politician .", "`` We fear that nothing has been changed .", "On the contrary , we feel it is going in a worse direction . ``", "After the invasion , Sunni Arabs , bitter at losing their place , refused to take part in Iraq 's first elections , allowing Shiites and Kurds to sweep to power .", "Americans here spent the following months persuading the Shiites to let the Sunnis back in .", "The idea , at the time , was that involving Sunnis in politics would drain the insurgency of its violence .", "Instead , the violence got worse , and in February , the long-abused Shiites struck back , using the force of the state ministries and agencies that they now control .", "Now , American officials are pressing Iraqi leaders , both Sunni and Shiite , to reconcile and have made it a central demand for continued support of the Iraqi government .", "But the prospects for mutual agreement seem ever more distant .", "`` I ca n't think of any good reason for any level-minded person to be interested in reconciliation , `` one secular Sunni politician said .", "That unwillingness , shared by most of the Shiite political elite , is a serious challenge to any new American strategy proposal that President Bush may announce soon .", "Indeed , the Sunni political class is getting smaller .", "Many of the Sunni politicians once ubiquitous during the broad discussions of the Iraqi Constitution two years ago are now gone .", "Virtually none of the members of the Association of Muslim Scholars , a hard-line Sunni Arab religious group , are left in Iraq -- most of them have gone to Jordan and Syria .", "Out of more than 50 members of the Baghdad council that runs the city , only one is Sunni .", "The reason is that Shiites , who had been driven from their homes and relentlessly slaughtered by Sunni suicide bombers , are now pushing back .", "The taunting during Mr. Hussein 's execution capped months of advances by Shiite militias , which have forced Sunnis farther back into western Baghdad .", "But as the Shiites gain the upper hand , they also seem to be abandoning any hint of compromise .", "The video , Sunnis said , was a startling symbol of that .", "In the images , the guards taunt Mr. Hussein .", "They damn him .", "They cheer their Shiite heroes so persistently that one observer makes a remark about how the effort to rein in militias does not seem to be going well .", "Immediately after they let him drop , in the midst of repeating a prayer , the voices rise in urgency and begin talking excitedly .", "Then several others chime in , telling those present to step back from the body and to wait three minutes before touching it .", "The video was particularly disturbing for Sunni Arabs , who accuse the government of willfully allowing militias to remain in the ranks of its security forces .", "It left the impression that the government cared more for revenge than for justice , Sunnis said .", "`` Either it 's terrible incompetence or it 's an act of revenge -- a vendetta , `` said Adnan Pachachi , a respected Sunni whose political career began long before Mr. Hussein took power .", "`` That was the impression people had . ''", "One of the problems was the timing .", "The execution was rescheduled a number of times , as Iraqi officials raced through a checklist of requirements put forth by the Americans .", "Two legal conditions -- that it not be held on a holiday and that the Iraqi president and his two deputies be given 30 days to sign off on the sentence first -- were ignored .", "The fact was not lost on Sunni political leaders , including Mr. Makki , who said the execution was a step backward for the country .", "`` This is a political mistake , '' he said .", "`` We lost a lot with this . ''", "To make matters worse , it fell just as the first day of the Id al-Adha holiday dawned for Sunnis -- a day before the Shiites ' observance was to begin .", "Shiite politicians did not apologize and some even reveled in the timing .", "That did a major disservice to reconciliation , many argued .", "`` Why could n't they have waited for a few more days .", "`` Mr. Pachachi said .", "`` It was a deliberate insult to so many people .", "It helped Saddam 's friends . ``", "Yusra Abdul Aziz , a Sunni teacher in Mansour , had a blunter analysis : `` They changed him from a criminal into a martyr . ''", "In a strange twist , Sunni insurgents did not seem to care .", "Sunni Jihadist Web sites had virtually no messages about Mr. Hussein 's death , aside from two re-released statements , old debates by militant sheiks over whether he should be considered a martyr .", "`` The feeling is that they do n't care about him , `` said Rita Katz , who runs the SITE Institute , a group that tracks militant Islamist Web sites .", "For the more hard-line Sunni Arabs , the execution simply confirmed their view that joining the Shiite government could never work .", "Sheik Hakam Abdullah al-Shahiri from the Obeid tribe in Kirkuk is an example .", "`` Iraq is occupied now by the U.S. and Iran and a puppet government for both sides , '' he said .", "`` With the execution of Saddam the Arab identity of Iraq and its unity have ended . ''", "That has left moderate Sunnis -- those who still seek reconciliation -- to ponder the danger of a Shiite hegemony that seems too scarred from past abuses to govern lightly .", "`` Governing a country should not be done by reflexes , '' Mr. Makki said .", "`` It should be wisdom first .", "A panoramic view . ``", "`` Not behaving from one side , '' he added , `` like what we saw here . ''", "THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ : NEWS ANALYSIS ."], "summary": ["Saddam Hussein 's hanging was supposed to be formal and solemn proceeding carried out by dispassionate state , but recording of execution 's cruel theater summed up what has become increasingly clear on streets of Baghdad : that Shiite-led government that assumed power in US effort is running state under undisguised sectarian banner .", "It was degrading end for vicious leader , and ominous beginning for new Iraq .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [8, 7, 11], "tag": ["World", "Washington"]}
- {"id": "1815834", "text": ["He drew pictures of himself with angel wings .", "He left a set of his dog tags on a nightstand in my Manhattan apartment .", "He bought a tiny blue sweat suit for our baby to wear home from the hospital .", "Then he began to write what would become a 200-page journal for our son , in case he did not make it back from the desert in Iraq .", "For months before my fianc\u00e9 , First Sgt . Charles Monroe King , kissed my swollen stomach and said goodbye , he had been preparing for the beginning of the life we had created and for the end of his own .", "He boarded a plane in December 2005 with two missions , really -- to lead his young soldiers in combat and to prepare our boy for a life without him .", "Dear son , Charles wrote on the last page of the journal , `` I hope this book is somewhat helpful to you .", "Please forgive me for the poor handwriting and grammar .", "I tried to finish this book before I was deployed to Iraq .", "It has to be something special to you .", "I 've been writing it in the states , Kuwait and Iraq .", "The journal will have to speak for Charles now .", "He was killed Oct . 14 when an improvised explosive device detonated near his armored vehicle in Baghdad .", "Charles , 48 , had been assigned to the Army 's First Battalion , 67th Armored Regiment , Fourth Infantry Division , based in Fort Hood , Tex .", "He was a month from completing his tour of duty .", "For our son 's first Christmas , Charles had hoped to take him on a carriage ride through Central Park .", "Instead , Jordan , now 9 months old , and I snuggled under a blanket in a horse-drawn buggy .", "The driver seemed puzzled about why I was riding alone with a baby and crying on Christmas Day .", "I told him .", "`` No charge , '' he said at the end of the ride , an act of kindness in a city that can magnify loneliness .", "On paper , Charles revealed himself in a way he rarely did in person .", "He thought hard about what to say to a son who would have no memory of him .", "Even if Jordan will never hear the cadence of his father 's voice , he will know the wisdom of his words .", "Never be ashamed to cry .", "No man is too good to get on his knee and humble himself to God .", "Follow your heart and look for the strength of a woman .", "Charles tried to anticipate questions in the years to come .", "Favorite team .", "I am a diehard Cleveland Browns fan .", "Favorite meal .", "Chicken , fried or baked , candied yams , collard greens and cornbread .", "Childhood chores .", "Shoveling snow and cutting grass .", "First kiss .", "Eighth grade .", "In neat block letters , he wrote about faith and failure , heartache and hope .", "He offered tips on how to behave on a date and where to hide money on vacation .", "Rainy days have their pleasures , he noted : Every now and then you get lucky and catch a rainbow .", "Charles mailed the book to me in July , after one of his soldiers was killed and he had recovered the body from a tank .", "The journal was incomplete , but the horror of the young man 's death shook Charles so deeply that he wanted to send it even though he had more to say .", "He finished it when he came home on a two-week leave in August to meet Jordan , then 5 months old .", "He was so intoxicated by love for his son that he barely slept , instead keeping vigil over the baby .", "I can fill in some of the blanks left for Jordan about his father .", "When we met in my hometown of Radcliff , Ky . , near Fort Knox , I did not consider Charles my type at first .", "He was bashful , a homebody and got his news from television rather than newspapers -LRB- heresy , since I 'm a New York Times editor -RRB- .", "But he won me over .", "One day a couple of years ago , I pulled out a list of the traits I wanted in a husband and realized that Charles had almost all of them .", "He rose early to begin each day with prayers and a list of goals that he ticked off as he accomplished them .", "He was meticulous , even insisting on doing my ironing because he deemed my wrinkle-removing skills deficient .", "His rock-hard warrior 's body made him appear tough , but he had a tender heart .", "He doted on Christina , now 16 , his daughter from a marriage that ended in divorce .", "He made her blush when he showed her a tattoo with her name on his arm .", "Toward women , he displayed an old-fashioned chivalry , something he expected of our son .", "Remember who taught you to speak , to walk and to be a gentleman , he wrote to Jordan in his journal .", "These are your first teachers , my little prince .", "Protect them , embrace them and always treat them like a queen .", "Though as a black man he sometimes felt the sting of discrimination , Charles betrayed no bitterness .", "It 's not fair to judge someone by the color of their skin , where they 're raised or their religious beliefs , he wrote .", "Appreciate people for who they are and learn from their differences .", "He had his faults , of course .", "Charles could be moody , easily wounded and infuriatingly quiet , especially during an argument .", "And at times , I felt , he put the military ahead of family .", "He had enlisted in 1987 , drawn by the discipline and challenges .", "Charles had other options -- he was a gifted artist who had trained at the Art Institute of Chicago -- but felt fulfilled as a soldier , something I respected but never really understood .", "He had a chest full of medals and a fierce devotion to his men .", "He taught the youngest , barely out of high school , to balance their checkbooks , counseled them about girlfriends and sometimes bailed them out of jail .", "When he was home in August , I had a baby shower for him .", "One guest recently reminded me that he had spent much of the evening worrying about his troops back in Iraq .", "Charles knew the perils of war .", "During the months before he went away and the days he returned on leave , we talked often about what might happen .", "In his journal , he wrote about the loss of fellow soldiers .", "Still , I could not bear to answer when Charles turned to me one day and asked , `` You do n't think I 'm coming back , do you .", "`` We never said aloud that the fear that he might not return was why we decided to have a child before we planned a wedding , rather than risk never having the chance .", "But Charles missed Jordan 's birth because he refused to take a leave from Iraq until all of his soldiers had gone home first , a decision that hurt me at first .", "And he volunteered for the mission on which he died , a military official told his sister , Gail T . King .", "Although he was not required to join the resupply convoy in Baghdad , he believed that his soldiers needed someone experienced with them .", "`` He would say , ' My boys are out there , I 've got to go check on my boys , ' `` said First Sgt . Arenteanis A . Jenkins , Charles 's roommate in Iraq .", "In my grief , that decision haunts me .", "Charles 's father faults himself for not begging his son to avoid taking unnecessary risks .", "But he acknowledges that it would not have made a difference .", "`` He was a born leader , '' said his father , Charlie J . King .", "`` And he believed what he was doing was right . ''", "Back in April , after a roadside bombing remarkably similar to that which would claim him , Charles wrote about death and duty .", "The 18th was a long , solemn night , he wrote in Jordan 's journal .", "We had a memorial for two soldiers who were killed by an improvised explosive device .", "None of my soldiers went to the memorial .", "Their excuse was that they did n't want to go because it was depressing .", "I told them it was selfish of them not to pay their respects to two men who were selfless in giving their lives for their country .", "Things may not always be easy or pleasant for you , that 's life , but always pay your respects for the way people lived and what they stood for .", "It 's the honorable thing to do .", "When Jordan is old enough to ask how his father died , I will tell him of Charles 's courage and assure him of Charles 's love .", "And I will try to comfort him with his father 's words .", "God blessed me above all I could imagine , Charles wrote in the journal .", "I have no regrets , serving your country is great .", "He had tucked a message to me in the front of Jordan 's journal .", "This is the letter every soldier should write , he said .", "For us , life will move on through Jordan .", "He will be an extension of us and hopefully everything that we stand for .", "I would like to see him grow up to be a man , but only God knows what the future holds .", "THE CONFLICT IN IRAQ : AN APPRECIATION ."], "summary": ["Dana Canedy , in appreciation of her late fiance , First Sgt Charles Monroe King , holds that he boarded plane for Iraq in Dec 2005 with two missions -- to lead his soldiers in combat and to prepare their boy for life without him .", "Notes that he wrote what would become 200-page journal for their son in case he did not make it back .", "Says that Charles was killed on Oct 14 , and journal will have to speak for him now .", "Photo shows Charles with their young son , Jordan ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 3, 11, 33], "tag": ["Front Page", "U.S."]}
- {"id": "1815835", "text": ["Jordan W . Hess was the unlikeliest of soldiers .", "He could bench-press 300 pounds and then go home and write poetry .", "He learned the art of glass blowing because it seemed interesting and built a computer with only a magazine as his guide .", "Most recently , he fell in love with a woman from Brazil and took up digital photography , letting both sweep his heart away .", "Specialist Hess , the seventh of eight children , was never keen on premonitions , but on Christmas of 2005 , as his tight-knit family gathered on a beach for the weekend , he told each sibling and parent privately that he did not expect to come home from Iraq .", "On Nov . 11 , Specialist Hess , 26 , freshly arrived in Iraq , was conducting a mission as the driver of an Abrams tank when an improvised explosive device , or I.E.D. , blew up with brain-rattling force .", "The blast was so potent it penetrated the 67-ton tank , flinging him against the top and critically injuring his spine .", "His four crewmates survived .", "For three weeks , he hung on at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio , long enough to utter a few words to his loved ones and absorb their kindness .", "On Dec . 4 , Specialist Hess slipped onto the ever-expanding list of American military fatalities in Iraq , one that has increased by an average of more than three a day since Oct . 1 , the highest three-month toll in two years .", "On Sunday , with the announcement of the death in Baghdad of Specialist Dustin R . Donica , 22 , of Spring , Tex . , the list reached the somber milestone of at least 3,000 deaths since the March 2003 invasion .", "The landmark reflects how much more dangerous and muddled a soldier 's job in Iraq has become in the face of a growing and increasingly sophisticated insurgency .", "Violence in the country is at an all-time high , according to a Pentagon report released last month .", "December was the third deadliest month for American troops since the start of the war , with insurgents claiming 111 soldiers ' lives .", "October and November also witnessed a high number of casualties , 106 and 68 respectively , as American forces stepped up combat operations to try to stabilize Baghdad .", "`` It escalated while I was there , '' said Capt . Scott Stanford , a National Guard officer who was a commander of a headquarters company in Ramadi for a year , arriving in June 2005 .", "`` When we left this June , it was completely unhinged .", "There was a huge increase in the suicide car bombs we had .", "The I.E.D. ` s were bigger and more complex . ''", "`` And it was very tense before we left in terms of snipers , '' said Captain Stanford , a member of the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America .", "`` I do n't know if there were more of them , or if they were getting better . ``", "This spike in violence , which has been felt most profoundly by Iraqi civilians , who are dying by the thousands , has stoked feverish debate about the nation 's presence in Iraq .", "Many Democrats in Congress are urging a phased withdrawal from the country , and the Bush administration is leaning toward deploying additional troops in 2007 .", "If the conflict continues into March , the Iraq war will be the third longest in American history , ranked behind the Vietnam War and the American Revolution .", "President Bush did not specifically acknowledge reaching the milestone of 3,000 American deaths , but a White House spokesman , Scott Stanzel , said the president `` grieves for each one that is lost '' and would ensure that their sacrifices were not made in vain .", "The campaign against terrorism , Mr. Stanzel said , will be a long struggle .", "Specialist Hess had volunteered for his mission to spare another soldier the danger of going outside the wire that day .", "Like so many of his fallen comrades , he had become the victim of an inescapably dangerous roadside landscape .", "`` It was the type of injury you rarely recover from .", "In past wars you would n't have gotten out of theater , `` said his father , Bill Hess , a Boeing engineer and retired Air Force man .", "`` So that was a blessing , that he could talk to us .", "He mouthed words and we were able to say we loved him .", "There is a lot to be said for that . ``", "A Steady Toll of Deaths In many ways , the third 1,000 men and women to die in Iraq faced the same unflinching challenge as the second 1,000 soldiers to die there -- a dedicated and ruthless Iraqi insurgency that has exploited the power of roadside bombs to chilling effect .", "These bombs now cause about half of all American combat deaths and injuries in Iraq .", "Over all , the casualty rate has remained relatively steady since 2005 , dipping only slightly .", "It took 14 months for the death toll to jump to 2,000 soldiers from 1,000 .", "It took about two weeks longer for it to rise to 3,000 from 2,000 , during the period covering Oct . 25 , 2005 , to this week .", "`` It is hugely frustrating , tragic and disappointing that we ca n't reduce the fatality rate , `` said Michael O'Hanlon , a military analyst for the Brookings Institution .", "The service members who died during this latest period fit an unchanging profile .", "They were mostly white men from rural areas , soldiers so young they still held fresh memories of high school football heroics and teenage escapades .", "Many men and women were in Iraq for the second or third time .", "Some were going on their fourth , fifth or sixth deployment .", "But in other ways , the situation has changed in the past year .", "Improvised explosive devices -- the kind that killed Specialist Hess -- have grown deadlier , despite concerted Pentagon efforts and billions of dollars spent trying to counteract them .", "Insurgents are now more adept at concealing bombs , booby-trapping them and powering them to penetrate well-armored vehicles .", "They are also scattering more of them along countless roads using myriad triggers and hiding spots -- under garbage and tires , behind guardrails , inside craters .", "At the same time , Iraqi citizens have grown less inclined to tip off soldiers to the presence of these bombs .", "About 1,200 roadside bombs were detonated in August .", "The toll of war has fallen most heavily this year on regular Army soldiers , at least 544 of whom died in this group of 1,000 , compared with 405 in the last group .", "This increase was the result of fewer National Guard soldiers and reservists being deployed to Iraq in 2006 .", "Considering the intensity of the violence in Iraq this year , it is remarkable that the casualty rate did not climb higher , analysts and officers say .", "Long-awaited improvements in body and vehicle armor have helped protect soldiers , and advances in battlefield medicine have saved many lives .", "New procedures , like leaving wounds open to prevent infection , and relaying soldiers to hospitals faster than ever , have kept more service members alive .", "Troops now carry their own tourniquets .", "During World War II , 30 percent of all wounded soldiers died of their injuries , a number that dipped to 24 percent during the Vietnam War and then to 9 percent for the Iraq conflict .", "Though this is a positive development , it also means that more soldiers are coming home with life-changing injuries , including amputations and brain trauma .", "More than 22,000 soldiers have been wounded in Iraq .", "`` There is no question that the number of dead should have been far higher , '' said Dr. William Winkenwerder , the assistant secretary of defense for health affairs , referring to the Iraqi conflict .", "`` Some of these blast injuries are very powerful . ''", "Bombs and bullets are not the only things that can kill soldiers .", "Nearly 20 percent of those who die in Iraq do so outside of combat operations .", "Sometimes it is the hazard of driving too quickly on badly rutted roads to avoid danger .", "Humvees , weighted down with armor , can easily flip if maneuvered too quickly .", "Many of Iraq 's roads are not built to hold heavy vehicles , and the ground can give way , tossing multi-ton machines into narrow canals where soldiers have drowned .", "Helicopters are sometimes strafed by sandstorms or crippled by mechanical malfunctions .", "Accidents make up two-thirds of the nonhostile deaths .", "With so many soldiers carrying so many weapons , unintentional casualties occur , sometimes while handling firearms .", "Fire from one 's own side is another inevitability of war , as is suicide .", "Since March 2003 , 93 soldiers have died from self-inflicted wounds in Iraq .", "In a way , these deaths , coming not at the hands of the enemy , but as a consequence of inferior roads and turbulent weather , can be even more difficult for parents to accept .", "Sometimes they wait months for official reports , since all noncombat deaths must be investigated .", "`` I do n't think I ever thought something like this could happen , `` said Shelley Burnett , whose son , Lance Cpl .", "Jason K . Burnett , 20 , died in May after his tank toppled into a canal .", "`` We talked a lot about the I.E.D. ' s and the dangers out there , but Jason kept saying , ' There is not a whole lot they can do to a tank . '", "`` Death at Roadside Over the last two years , the Pentagon has worked frantically to harden body armor and the armor on its Humvees and other vehicles .", "And the insurgents in Iraq have responded just as forcefully with deadly innovations in roadside bombs , and a fury of sniper bullets .", "The most lethal development is the use of the `` explosively formed penetrators , '' which pierce armor and stay intact when they explode .", "Roadside bombs are often detonated from a distance -- with garage door openers , for example -- or automatically , from pressure-sensitive devices , like a simple rubber air hose .", "Motion detectors and infrared devices are also used .", "The vast majority of these bombs do not kill soldiers , or even injure them seriously .", "Four out of five I.E.D. ` s that detonate do not cause casualties , an improvement over previous years , the Pentagon says .", "But those devices that do cause casualties are killing more soldiers .", "An analysis by The New York Times of military records found that in 2003 , the devices accounted for 16 percent of troop fatalities .", "This year , they accounted for 43 percent .", "And an increasing number are killing more than one soldier .", "`` Unfortunately , when there is a fatal I.E.D. attack , there often are multiple wounded and casualties , '' said Christine DeVries , a spokeswoman for the Pentagon 's Joint I.E.D.", "Defeat Organization .", "`` The enemy has had some success in adapting to what we are doing . ''", "Lance Cpl .", "Jon Eric Bowman , 21 , affectionate and angel-faced , was typical of many of the soldiers and marines who found their calling in the military .", "He was raised in rural Dubach , La . , far from the razzmatazz of New Orleans , and could not wait to join after the Sept . 11 attacks .", "He was first sent to Iraq early in 2005 .", "When he came home later that year , he had changed .", "Three days before he was set to redeploy this September , he sat with his wife in their truck and talked for six hours .", "`` He was crying , he was so scared , '' said his wife , Dawn Bowman , 26 .", "`` He was having dreams that he was n't coming back . ``", "In fact , Corporal Bowman had been having blackouts , migraines and a tic , new ailments from his time in Iraq , his wife said .", "The diagnosis was Tourette 's syndrome , and he was then told by doctors in in Louisiana that fluid had built up in his brain .", "He wound up back in Iraq , anyway .", "`` They felt he was just trying to get out of Iraq , '' said Johnny Bowman , the corporal 's father , of his son 's superiors .", "`` That there was really nothing wrong with him .", "That 's what he told me on the phone . ``", "Corporal Bowman did not push the issue , feeling guilty about abandoning his fellow marines .", "On Oct . 9 , his Humvee ran across a roadside bomb , killing him instantly .", "He had been manning the machine gun .", "`` Jon Eric was not just my only son , '' his father said .", "`` He was my best friend . ''", "Lance Cpl . Jeromy D . West , 20 , a mortar man who loved to fish as much as he hated to study , was killed on Nov . 25 by a sniper bullet as he stood guard on a roof in Haditha .", "It was his second deployment .", "In December , shortly after word of his death , his family honored his wishes and held a memorial for him on the football field at Hamilton High School , near San Diego , where he had been a star player .", "A thousand people showed up .", "`` Everybody liked him , '' his stepfather , Ron Klopf , said .", "`` People would say , ' God , your son is polite . '", "And I would say , ` My kid .", "` I called him Eddie Haskell -- so polite at everybody else 's house . ``", "Corporal West was goofy in the best way .", "Not long before he joined the Marines , he and his friend would compete to see who could get a bigger freeze headache from eating too much ice cream .", "They would writhe in pain .", "Then they would do it again .", "He was 17 when he decided to get serious and join the corps , something his parents tried to talk him out of .", "`` ` You can get killed doing this , ' '' Mr. Klopf remembers saying .", "`` And he said , ' Should we send some other parent 's kid out there .", "` And that 's how he was . ``", "For Corporal Burnett , death came not from bullets or bombs but from riding in a tank in a country crisscrossed with irrigation canals and crumbly roads .", "Just two years after graduating from high school in St . Cloud , Fla . , where he spent his summers building houses for the poor and four-wheeling on back-country roads , Corporal Burnett 's tank fell off a bridge and plunged into a canal , in which he drowned .", "His mother can not forget the day Jason and his younger brother tossed her back and forth in the yard to make her scream with laughter .", "`` He was a fun-loving kid , '' Mrs. Burnett said .", "`` If you heard laughter , you knew Jason was around . ''", "Optimism was Specialist Robert F . Weber 's indelible quality .", "A gunner from Cincinnati , he had warned his mother , Cathy , that the roads in Iraq were wretched .", "She worried a lot during his first deployment , particularly after he sent home a roll of film to develop .", "The first print she saw was of a missile hitting a barracks .", "But he made it back to America and bought a blue Kia , the color of his eyes , before redeploying three weeks later .", "The Army had been a good fit .", "`` He was proud of himself , '' she said of Bobby , her only child .", "`` I was very proud .", "It was like he found his niche . ``", "On his second deployment , though , the situation in Iraq had become grimmer .", "`` Mom , things are getting worse over here , more dangerous , '' he said , from his base near Mosul the Saturday before he died .", "`` The roads are bad .", "You do n't run over anything even if it looks like a piece of paper . ``", "But the lumbering armored Humvee he was on never hit a bomb on Sept . 30 .", "It swerved somehow and flipped , killing him .", "Mrs. Weber said she can not imagine seeing the troops walk away from Iraq now , when democracy seems as unattainable as ever .", "`` For what did all these guys get killed over there .", "`` she asked , incredulously .", "`` What for .", "`` Seven Days from Home Back in America , countless families and friends have waited and worried and tried their best these past years to keep themselves busy until their husbands , sons , wives , daughters , fathers , mothers or buddies returned home safely .", "For 3,000 of them , the reunion never came .", "In too many cases , the homecoming was tantalizingly near , a few more X 's on the calendar and the vigil would be over .", "A number of soldiers were killed just days and weeks from the end of their deployment , a date close enough to allow those back home to lower their guard a trifle , making the deaths all the more devastating .", "`` It 's almost like Christmas is here , and you wake up Christmas morning and there is no Christmas , `` said Col . Bill Rochelle , a retired National Guard commander of the 42nd Division support command .", "Gunnery Sgt .", "John D . Fry , a 28-year-old marine from Lorena , Tex . , was seven days from scooping up his wife , Malia , and his three kids into a group hug back in America .", "`` My plans , '' Sergeant Fry told his commander , `` are to go home and wrestle with my kids . ''", "He and Mrs. Fry were only 15 when they went on their first date , to see `` A League of Their Own , '' and then to eat ice cream at the mall .", "Mom and Dad drove them home .", "A year later , he plopped her on his lap and proposed .", "They kept their engagement a secret .", "Not long after , he was named salutatorian at Heritage Christian Academy .", "Another student bested him for the top title .", "It was the future Mrs. Fry , the valedictorian .", "`` We were soul mates , '' Mrs. Fry said .", "On Nov . 15 , 1995 , five days after he graduated from boot camp , they were married .", "Mr. Fry , who liked a challenge , specialized in defusing explosive devices , a nerve-racking skill he brought with him to Iraq .", "`` Babe , '' Mrs. Fry recalled his saying when he chose the specialty , `` it 's dangerous , but I want to do it .", "And I said , ` Let 's go . '", "`` A team leader , Sergeant Fry , who shipped out to Iraq in September 2005 , disarmed 73 bombs , including one of the biggest car bombs found in Falluja .", "Once he helped defuse a suicide vest that insurgents had belted to a mentally handicapped Iraqi teenage boy .", "The boy had been beaten and chained to a wall .", "Another time , he spotted a bomb from the roof of a house .", "A little boy popped into the yard , hovering dangerously close to it .", "Sergeant Fry won his confidence by playing peekaboo , then got him to move away .", "He was in `` very high spirits '' in March , calling his wife to say that his duties were done , his paperwork filed and his anticipation impossible to stifle .", "`` He had made it , '' she said .", "Then a mission came down , and commanders were preparing to send a team of mostly inexperienced men to defuse bombs along a road in Al Anbar province .", "He volunteered for the job , instead .", "`` That is how he led , '' Mrs. Fry said .", "Sergeant Fry found three bombs that night and defused them .", "But the insurgents had hidden a fourth bomb under the third one , a booby-trap .", "It blew up and killed him .", "An Army team stayed with his body for six hours , fending off enemy fire in the dark until soldiers with mortuary affairs arrived to take his body away .", "The war never scared him , Mrs. Fry said .", "`` It was hard , but he felt he was making a difference , '' she said .", "`` He believed truly , that if he was n't over there , they would be trying to harm us here . ``", "Estimates of Iraqi Civilian Deaths Unlike the tally for American service members , no official count is available for the number of civilians killed in Iraq .", "Estimates based on mortuary tallies , news reports and household surveys vary widely .", "Using figures provided by the Iraq Ministry of Health , which counts violent deaths at hospitals across the country , and Baghdad 's central morgue , the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq has estimated that more than 28,000 Iraqi civilians were killed during the first 10 months of 2006 , a number 40 times higher than the number of American service members killed during that time .", "The American military has criticized the civilian count as high , but it has not released statistics of its own .", "In its quarterly reports to Congress , the Pentagon has provided a rough estimate of the number of Iraqi civilians and security forces killed or wounded by insurgents .", "That number has risen sharply , to an average of more than 90 a day since last May .", "In an off-the-cuff estimate during an official visit to Vienna in November , Iraq 's health minister , Ali al-Shimari , said that 150,000 Iraqis had been killed in violence since the war began in 2003 , the Associated Press has reported .", "Iraq Body Count , an independent group that monitors news reports of deaths , has recorded the deaths of more than 52,000 Iraqi civilians .", "The highest estimates of the civilian toll come from a team of researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health .", "In a study published in The Lancet , a British medical journal , they estimated 600,000 Iraqis died from violence between March 2003 and July 2006 , basing their analysis on a survey of 1,849 households in 47 neighborhoods across Iraq .", "That study was widely criticized -- the sample interviewed may not accurately represent the entire country -- but it emphasized both the difficulty of tracking deaths in a war zone and the need for a reliable count .", "There were three , not four ."], "summary": ["List of US military fatalities in Iraq has reached milestone of 3,000 deaths since March 2003 invasion .", "Number reflects how much more dangerous soldier 's job has become in face of growing and increasingly sophisticated insurgency .", "Pentagon reports that violence in country is at all-time high .", "No official count is available for number of civilians killed .", "Estimates based on mortality tallies , news reports and household surveys vary widely .", "Brief sketches of several US servicemen killed in Iraq .", "Graphs .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [11, 187, 186, 12], "tag": ["World", "Front Page"]}
- {"id": "1815836", "text": ["Eliot Laurence Spitzer takes the oath of office as New York 's 54th governor in a capital desperately in need of a new moral authority figure .", "Whether or not he succeeds in fulfilling the soaring expectations that led to his landslide victory , his political timing is fortunate .", "After making ethical reform one of the central pledges of his campaign , Mr. Spitzer has watched from the sidelines in recent weeks as scandal has engulfed the upper reaches of state government .", "`` This is a crisis that I do n't want to waste , `` Mr. Spitzer said in an interview before he was sworn in early today .", "-LSB- Page B4 . -RSB-", "`` If there is a result of this momentary concentration on ethical dilemmas and failures , an opportunity to galvanize support for reform , we better seize it . ''", "Since the November election , Comptroller Alan G . Hevesi , a Democrat , has resigned and pleaded guilty to a felony .", "The Senate majority leader , Joseph L . Bruno , a Republican , has revealed that federal authorities were investigating his outside consulting work .", "State Senator Efrain Gonz\u00e1lez Jr . , a Democrat , has been charged with stealing more than $ 400,000 in state money .", "And a state court judge has forced a recalcitrant Legislature to reveal how it spends hundreds of millions of dollars worth of taxpayer funds on pet projects .", "In his effort to change the culture of Albany , Mr. Spitzer said that upon taking office , he would issue `` a slew '' of executive orders `` relating to ethics , procurement and the behavior of the leadership in the agencies where a governor has unilateral control . ''", "The orders will mirror those he recently outlined for his own staff , which included a ban on gifts of more than nominal value and a prohibition on members of the executive branch from lobbying any part of the executive branch for two years after they leave their posts .", "More daunting will be his efforts to push lawmakers to pass a number of measures early in the legislative session as he seizes on his landslide victory and the recent corruption scandals to push his agenda .", "`` He has talked about redistricting reform , he 's talked about campaign finance reform , he 's talked about ending pay to play and he 's talked overall about a transparent and accountable state government , `` said Blair Horner , the legislative director of the New York Public Interest Research Group .", "`` If he accomplishes all of that , that 's probably more reform than we 've seen in New York for the last 200 years . ``", "Mr. Spitzer is trying to reshape a state government notoriously resistant to change .", "Voters re-elected Mr. Hevesi as their comptroller after he admitted using state employees to chauffeur his wife .", "And while nearly a dozen lawmakers faced criminal charges in the last few years , many were subsequently re-elected .", "Mr. Spitzer will probably gain more traction from voters by delivering on his other priorities , including lowering property taxes and revitalizing the upstate economy .", "As attorney general , Mr. Spitzer made his name by taking on Wall Street corruption as the bull market of the late 1990s unraveled and the Securities and Exchange Commission had a limited appetite for enforcement , giving him an opening to redefine his job and make himself a nationally known figure .", "But he now must learn to work by consensus instead of by subpoena , and close watchers of the Albany scene say Mr. Spitzer must act fast so as not to lose momentum .", "Still , while reform proposals have stalled for years in the legislature , lawmakers are aware that Mr. Spitzer was elected by a record margin .", "`` Right now the Legislature is on its heels , '' Mr. Horner said .", "`` They know the public and the new governor wants action , and I think the Legislature will want to accommodate him , but if he gets bogged down in the first session , it makes it harder to achieve the things he wants to do . ''", "Already , Senate Republicans have embraced Mr. Spitzer 's proposal to delineate all spending items in the state budget , ending the practice by the Legislature and Gov . George E . Pataki of writing large blank checks into the budget that they could later spend , largely in secret .", "Certainly , the new governor has a much more caffeinated style than the old one .", "There were titters in political circles when Mr. Pataki recently escorted a group of former Republican governors to the Broadway show `` The Drowsy Chaperone . ''", "The play 's title echoed the criticisms frequently lobbed at Mr. Pataki -- that he has been rarely seen or heard in Albany as its problems have festered .", "Mr. Spitzer has the on-the-offensive style of a former prosecutor and is well known for rattling rich and powerful cages .", "He made a campaign slogan of changing Albany `` on Day 1 '' of his administration , but sought to set a new tone even earlier .", "Shortly before the election , he withdrew his endorsement of Mr. Hevesi , even though the two had been close political allies .", "Mr. Spitzer said that after the election he would begin adhering to a set of campaign finance guidelines far stricter than those required by state law .", "There have been , however , some steps that have raised eyebrows , including Mr. Spitzer 's appointment of a Cablevision lobbyist to be his new secretary of state .", "But many of his closest advisers will be veterans of the attorney general 's office or of his campaign .", "In his inaugural address , Mr. Spitzer will strive to flower his litigator 's prose with rhetorical flourishes .", "Along those lines , he said he would `` hearken back to the great transformations New York has gone through -- the Erie Canal is everybody 's favorite metaphor , and there will be some passing reference to it -- and Teddy Roosevelt 's effort to bring a new ethic of governance to the capital . ``", "`` The theme of the inaugural speech is clearly going to be that we are turning a corner , '' he said .", "`` We have to think of ourselves through a different prism , both in terms of ethics and as an entire state .", "We have to think of ourselves as one New York and not a series of interests that are spoken to , appealed to and mollified . ``", "Brass tacks will probably wait until Wednesday , when Mr. Spitzer delivers his first address to the Legislature , and until Feb . 1 , when his first executive budget is due .", "`` Somebody told me an inaugural is values , a State of the State is principles and the budget is the bad news , '' he said .", "The bad news starts with the multibillion-dollar deficits projected for the state in future years .", "`` The surplus we had at the end of the year is no different than an advance on a credit card bill that will come due on our next statement , '' he said .", "`` There is an increasing series of deficits as we proceed to Year 2 , 3 and 4 .", "The deficit increases by several billion dollars a year thereafter , and this is a consequence of prior budgets having pushed costs into the out years .", "That will make it tough , and tough choices have to be made . ``", "But Mr. Spitzer has some costly promises to keep , and conversely , some politically risky cuts to make .", "During the campaign , he outlined a complicated set of priorities , including reining in state spending to offset escalating future deficits , but also increasing spending on education and cutting by half the number of New Yorkers without health insurance .", "In his speech , he said , he will touch on his three overarching goals .", "At the forefront are his plans for ethical reforms , which include exploring changes to the quasi-independent public authorities that control much of the state 's spending but act , as he has said , as a `` shadow government '' with little accountability .", "A second focus will be investing in the state 's infrastructure , including large transportation projects like replacing the Tappan Zee Bridge and building the Second Avenue subway .", "He also wants the state to take a much more assertive role in creating lower-cost housing .", "`` We have n't had an aggressive state housing policy for how long .", "`` he said .", "`` The state has to participate if we 're going to build the housing stock we need . ``", "Perhaps the most complicated part of his three-pronged agenda is his plan for economic revitalization .", "Reviving the economy of upstate New York , and particularly the Buffalo area , is of such concern that he split the leadership of the Empire State Development Corporation in half , with leaders for upstate and downstate .", "He also wants to rein in state spending overall , in part by overhauling the Medicaid system , but also by lowering property taxes and providing relief to businesses on issues like workers ' compensation policies .", "At the same time , he wants to increase education spending by billions of dollars .", "With so much to do , he hopes to move quickly .", "`` Delay is the enemy of progress , '' he said .", "`` If you do not lay out the agenda early on and lay out the framework for change , we wo n't get there . `` ."], "summary": ["Eliot Spitzer is sworn in as New York 's 54th governor , after making ethics reform central pledge of landslide victory in his election campaign and watching in recent weeks as scandal reached upper reaches of state government .", "Spitzer says that he will issue slew of executive orders relating to ethics , procurement and behavior of leadership in agencies where governor has unilateral control .", "Orders will mirror those he recently outlined for his own staff , which included ban on gifts of more than nominal value and prohibition on members of executive branch from lobbying any part of executive branch for two years after they leave their posts .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [11, 10, 2], "tag": ["Front Page", "New York and Region"]}
- {"id": "1815837", "text": ["The Democrats taking over Congress this week are promising sweeping changes to ethics and lobbying laws , pledging to clean up after a spate of corruption scandals under Republican rules .", "So far , however , their proposals are not as comprehensive or far-reaching as changes already adopted by many state legislatures .", "Democrats in both chambers are proposing new restrictions on gifts , meals or trips paid for by lobbyists .", "They say they plan for the first time to require lawmakers to disclose their sponsorship of the pet items known as earmarks that they insert into major bills .", "House Democrats also want to require members to certify that they will not personally profit from the projects .", "Several states , responding to the federal scandals as well as their own statehouse imbroglios , have already adopted more sweeping gift and travel bans , broader measures to end the central role of lobbyists or government contractors in financing campaigns and new public campaign financing intended to reduce lawmakers ' dependence on big donors .", "To enforce their rules , about half the states have also created independent ethics watchdogs , outside the control of the lawmakers they police -- something federal lawmakers have so far resisted .", "House Democrats recently said they would create a panel to study the idea .", "John Hurson , a former member of the Maryland General Assembly and president of the National Council of State Legislatures , remembers marveling at the goings -on just a few miles away in the United States Capitol .", "He was barred from letting a lobbyist buy him a cup of coffee under rules enforced by the Maryland Ethics Commission .", "Meanwhile , congressmen were flying across the country for golf trips with lobbyists and enlisting them as major fund-raisers for their re-election campaigns .", "`` It was amusing in a sad kind of way , '' said Mr. Hurson , who now works as a Washington lobbyist himself , for a cosmetics industry trade group .", "`` At the state level in Maryland a lobbyist ca n't even have his name on a campaign flier .", "And at the federal level some of these guys are basically running campaigns . ``", "Democrats say their proposals are significant first steps , especially given the customary opposition of most incumbents toward rules that would restrict their fund-raising edge .", "The Democrats argue that their proposals go further than anything Republicans managed to pass .", "`` It is an important step forward from where we have been , let 's put it that way , `` said Representative Chris Van Hollen , the Maryland Democrat who is taking over the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and is a proponent of several more drastic changes .", "Still , some Democrats say they hope the Congress will go beyond the party leaders ' current proposals .", "They argue that their party took control of Congress in part because of backlash against the corruption scandals under the Republicans , that many new members campaigned on ethics reform and that a failure to deliver meaningful changes could hurt the party in the 2008 elections .", "Lawmakers say the Supreme Court made it difficult to regulate campaign spending by ruling in 1976 , in Buckley v. Valeo , that it is a protected form of free expression .", "States , however , are testing the limits of that decision .", "More than a dozen states , including New Jersey and Connecticut , have enacted so-called pay-to-play laws that block contractors or executives of their companies from making campaign contributions to officials who could influence state contracts .", "Connecticut , reeling from a payoff scandal that unseated its governor , recently passed a pay-to-play law that takes aim at a time-tested tactic for evading contribution limits : funneling money through dependents .", "The law bans campaign contributions not only from lobbyists and contracting executives but also from their children and spouses .", "To make enforcement easier , lobbyists and contractors would be required to disclose the names of their family members on a public Web site .", "-LRB- No Congressional proposal does the same . -RRB-", "On Tuesday , a federal district court judge in Connecticut will hear a challenge to the law .", "Connecticut has also borrowed some aspects of a decade-old Maryland law that seeks to restrict the most valuable gift that lobbyists give lawmakers : campaign fund-raising .", "At the federal level , caps on individual or corporate campaign contributions have placed a premium on `` bundlers , '' who solicit and collect donations to turn over in bulk to a candidate 's campaign .", "Many Washington lobbyists are among the biggest bundlers , and even help run re-election campaigns .", "Across the District of Columbia border in Maryland , state law bars lobbyists from soliciting contributions for candidates or playing any roles in the campaigns .", "`` Lobbyists can no longer be the center of the fund-raising process , '' Mr. Van Hollen of Maryland said .", "Mr. Van Hollen said he planned to introduce a measure requiring federal lobbyists to disclose whom they ask for the contributions that they bundle and how much those people give .", "A similar measure was deleted from a bill by the Republican leadership before it reached the floor .", "States are also adopting new forms of public campaign financing .", "Congressional candidates receive no public financing , and there is no limit on what they can spend .", "And the public financing system adopted for presidential campaigns after the Watergate scandal is on the brink of obsolescence .", "For the first time in three decades , the major 2008 presidential candidates are expected to reject the system in favor of raising unlimited private funds .", "Several states , however , are expanding the idea .", "Maryland and New Jersey are among those considering a system enacted in Arizona and Maine .", "The new Connecticut law includes a modified form of the idea , known as `` clean elections . ''", "Participating candidates who get a certain amount of small contributions -- as low as $ 5 in some places -- receive large lump sums of public campaign money early in the race if they agree not to raise or spend private funds .", "And , up to a limit , the state pledges to give participating candidates enough money to match the campaign spending of any rival candidate outside the system .", "No state , of course , has eradicated the influence of money .", "In Maryland , for example , lobbyists can not take individual lawmakers to dinner but can treat whole legislative committees , a rule lobbyists say favors the well-financed .", "Even so , some Annapolis lobbyists appreciate the fund-raising ban .", "`` Legislators can call and say they need your help , '' said Minor Carter , a Republican lobbyist .", "`` And you have the absolute defense of saying , ' I 'm sorry , I ca n't . ' `` ."], "summary": ["Democrats taking over Congress are promising sweeping changes to ethics and lobbying laws , pledging to clean up after spate of corruption scandals under Republican rules .", "Their proposals are not as comprehensive or far-reaching as changes already adopted by many state legislatures .", "Several states have adopted more sweeping gift and travel bans , broader measures to end central role of lobbyists or government contractors in financing campaigns and new public campaign financing intended to reduce lawmakers ' dependence on big donors ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 0, 1], "tag": ["Front Page", "U.S.", "Washington"]}
- {"id": "1815838", "text": ["With his plain pine coffin strapped into an American military helicopter for a predawn journey across the desert , Saddam Hussein , the executed dictator who built a legend with his defiance of America , completed a turbulent passage into history on Sunday .", "Like the helicopter trip , just about everything in the 24 hours that began with Mr. Hussein 's being taken to his execution from his cell in an American military detention center in the postmidnight chill of Saturday had a surreal and even cinematic quality .", "Part of it was that the Americans , who turned him into a pariah and drove him from power , proved to be his unlikely benefactors in the face of Iraq 's new Shiite rulers who seemed bent on turning the execution and its aftermath into a new nightmare for the Sunni minority privileged under Mr. Hussein .", "-LSB- Page A7 . -RSB-", "The 110-mile journey aboard a Black Hawk helicopter carried Mr. Hussein 's body to an American military base north of Tikrit , Camp Speicher , named for an American Navy pilot lost over Iraq in the first hours of the Persian Gulf war in 1991 .", "From there , an Iraqi convoy carried him to Awja , the humble town beside the Tigris River that Mr. Hussein , in the chandeliered palaces that became his habitat as ruler , spoke of as emblematic of the miseries of his lonely and impoverished youth .", "The American role extended beyond providing the helicopter that carried Mr. Hussein home .", "Iraqi and American officials who have discussed the intrigue and confusion that preceded the decision late on Friday to rush Mr. Hussein to the gallows have said that it was the Americans who questioned the political wisdom -- and justice -- of expediting the execution , in ways that required Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki to override constitutional and religious precepts that might have assured Mr. Hussein a more dignified passage to his end .", "The Americans ' concerns seem certain to have been heightened by what happened at the hanging , as evidenced in video recordings made just before Mr. Hussein fell through the gallows trapdoor at 6:10 a.m. on Saturday .", "A new video that appeared on the Internet late Saturday , apparently made by a witness with a camera cellphone , underscored the unruly , mocking atmosphere in the execution chamber .", "This continued , on the video , through the actual hanging itself , with a shout of `` The tyrant has fallen ! May God curse him ! '' as Mr. Hussein hung lifeless , his neck snapped back and his glassy eyes open .", "The cacophony from those gathered before the gallows included a shout of `` Go to hell ! '' as the former ruler stood with the noose around his neck in the final moments , and his riposte , barely audible above the bedlam , which included the words `` gallows of shame . ''", "It continued despite appeals from an official-sounding voice , possibly Munir Haddad , the judge who presided at the hanging , saying , `` Please no ! The man is about to die . ''", "The Shiites who predominated at the hanging began a refrain at one point of `` Moktada ! Moktada ! Moktada ! '' -- the name of a volatile cleric whose private militia has spawned death squads that have made an indiscriminate industry of killing Sunnis -- appending it to a Muslim imprecation for blessings on the Prophet Muhammad .", "`` Moktada , '' Mr. Hussein replied , smiling contemptuously .", "`` Is this how real men behave .", "`` American officials in Iraq have been reluctant to say much publicly about the pell-mell nature of the hanging , apparently fearful of provoking recriminations in Washington , where the Bush administration adopted a hands-off posture , saying the timing of the execution was Iraq 's to decide .", "While privately incensed at the dead-of-night rush to the gallows , the Americans here have been caught in the double bind that has ensnared them over much else about the Maliki government -- frustrated at what they call the government 's failure to recognize its destructive behavior , but reluctant to speak out , or sometimes to act , for fear of undermining Mr. Maliki and worsening the situation .", "But a narrative assembled from accounts by various American officials , and by Iraqis present at some of the crucial meetings between the two sides , shows that it was the Americans who counseled caution in the way the Iraqis carried out the hanging .", "The issues uppermost in the Americans ' minds , these officials said , were a provision in Iraq 's new Constitution that required the three-man presidency council to approve hangings , and a stipulation in a longstanding Iraqi law that no executions can be carried out during the Id al-Adha holiday , which began for Iraqi Sunnis on Saturday and Shiites on Sunday .", "A senior Iraqi official said the Americans staked out their ground at a meeting on Thursday , 48 hours after an appeals court had upheld the death sentence passed on Mr. Hussein and two associates .", "They were convicted in November of crimes against humanity for the persecution of the Shiite townspeople of Dujail , north of Baghdad , in 1982 .", "Mr. Hussein , as president , signed a decree to hang 148 men and teenage boys .", "Told that Mr. Maliki wanted to carry out the death sentence on Mr. Hussein almost immediately , and not wait further into the 30-day deadline set by the appeals court , American officers at the Thursday meeting said that they would accept any decision but needed assurance that due process had been followed before relinquishing physical custody of Mr. Hussein .", "`` The Americans said that we have no issue in handing him over , but we need everything to be in accordance with the law , '' the Iraqi official said .", "`` We do not want to break the law . ''", "The American pressure sent Mr. Maliki and his aides into a frantic quest for legal workarounds , the Iraqi official said .", "The Americans told them they needed a decree from President Jalal Talabani , signed jointly by his two vice presidents , upholding the death sentence , and a letter from the chief judge of the Iraqi High Tribunal , the court that tried Mr. Hussein , certifying the verdict .", "But Mr. Talabani , a Kurd , made it known that he objected to the death penalty on principle .", "The Maliki government spent much of Friday working on legal mechanisms to meet the American demands .", "From Mr. Talabani , they obtained a letter saying that while he would not sign a decree approving the hanging , he had no objections .", "The Iraqi official said Mr. Talabani first asked the tribunal 's judges for an opinion on whether the constitutional requirement for presidential approval applied to a death sentence handed down by the tribunal , a special court operating outside Iraq 's main judicial system .", "The judges said the requirement was void .", "Mr. Maliki had one major obstacle : the Hussein-era law proscribing executions during the Id holiday .", "This remained unresolved until late Friday , the Iraqi official said .", "He said he attended a late-night dinner at the prime minister 's office at which American officers and Mr. Maliki 's officials debated the issue .", "One participant described the meeting this way : `` The Iraqis seemed quite frustrated , saying , ' Who is going to execute him , anyway , you or us .", "` The Americans replied by saying that obviously , it was the Iraqis who would carry out the hanging .", "So the Iraqis said , ` This is our problem and we will handle the consequences .", "If there is any damage done , it is we who will be damaged , not you . '", "`` To this , the Iraqis added what has often been their trump card in tricky political situations : they telephoned officials of the marjaiya , thesupreme religious body in Iraqi Shiism , composed of ayatollahs in the holy city of Najaf .", "The ayatollahs approved .", "Mr. Maliki , at a few minutes before midnight on Friday , then signed a letter to the justice minister , `` to carry out the hanging until death . ''", "The Maliki letter sent Iraqi and American officials into a frenzy of activity .", "Fourteen Iraqi officials , including senior members of the Maliki government , were called at 1:30 a.m. on Saturday and told to gather at the prime minister 's office .", "At .", "3:30 a.m. , they were driven to the helicopter pad beside Mr. Hussein 's old Republican Palace , and taken to the prison in the northern suburb of Khadimiya where the hanging took place .", "At about the same time , American and Iraqi officials said , Mr. Hussein was roused at his Camp Cropper cell 10 miles away , and taken to a Black Hawk helicopter for his journey to Khadimiya .", "None of the Iraqi officials were able to explain why Mr. Maliki had been unwilling to allow the execution to wait .", "Nor would any explain why those who conducted it had allowed it to deteriorate into a sectarian free-for-all that had the effect , on the video recordings , of making Mr. Hussein , a mass murderer , appear dignified and restrained , and his executioners , representing Shiites who were his principal victims , seem like bullying street thugs .", "But the explanation may have lain in something that Bassam al-Husseini , a Maliki aide closely involved in arrangements for the hanging , said to the BBC later .", "Mr. Husseini , who has American citizenship , described the hanging as `` an Id gift to the Iraqi people . ''", "The weekend 's final disorderly chapter came with the tensions over Mr. Hussein 's body .", "For nearly 18 hours on Saturday , Mr. Maliki 's officials insisted that his corpse would be kept in secret government custody until circumstances allowed interment without his grave becoming a shrine or a target .", "Once again , the Americans intervened .", "The leader of Mr. Hussein 's Albu-Nasir tribe , Sheik Ali al-Nida , said that before flying to Baghdad on an American helicopter , he had been so fearful for his safety that he had written a will .", "Bizarrely , Sheik Nida and others were shown on Iraqi television collecting the coffin from the courtyard in front of Mr. Maliki 's office , where it sat unceremoniously in a police pickup .", "After the helicopter trip to Camp Speicher , the American base outside Tikrit , the coffin was taken in an Iraqi convoy to Awja , and laid to rest in the ornate visitors ' center that Mr. Hussein ordered built for the townspeople in the 1990s .", "Local officials and members of Mr. Hussein 's tribe had broken open the marbled floor in the main reception hall , and cleared what they said would be a temporary burial place until he could be moved to a permanent grave outside Awja where his two sons , Uday and Qusay , are buried .", "At the burial , several mourners threw themselves on the closed casket .", "One , a young man convulsed with sobs , cried : `` He has not died .", "I can hear him speaking to me . ``", "Another shouted , `` Saddam is dead ! Instead of weeping for him , think of ways we can take revenge on the Iranian enemy , '' Sunni parlance for the Shiites now in power .", "THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ ."], "summary": ["US and Iraqi officials who have discussed intrigue and confusion that preceded decision to rush Saddam Hussein to gallows have said that it was Americans who questioned political wisdom and justice of expediting execution , in ways that required Prime Min Nuri Kamal al-Maliki to override constitutional and religious precepts that might have assured Hussein more dignified passage to his end .", "New video that has appeared on Internet underscores unruly , mocking atmosphere in execution chamber .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7], "tag": ["Technology", "World", "Front Page", "Washington"]}
- {"id": "1815839", "text": ["It may fall short of a feel-good sequel to `` Chinatown , '' the movie based on the notorious , somewhat shady water grab by Los Angeles that allowed the city to bloom from a semi-arid desert .", "But in one of the largest river restoration efforts in the West , water is again flowing along a 62-mile stretch of the Owens River after a dry spell of nearly a century .", "That part of the river had been left mostly drained when upstream water , fed by snowmelt from the towering Sierra Nevada , was channeled 233 miles south to fill swimming pools and bathtubs throughout Los Angeles .", "The restored flow is among several long-awaited steps the city is taking to help make amends for the environmental consequences of its water maneuvering , most notably the drying up of Owens Lake , an area more than three times the size of Manhattan , here in the Owens Valley .", "Los Angeles agreed in December to expand efforts to control toxic dust storms that erupt from what is left of the lake , a 110-square-mile body that emptied when the river was diverted to Los Angeles through an aqueduct opened in 1913 .", "The lake 's salty , mineral-laced basin has been the largest single source of particulate pollution in the country .", "It looks so otherworldly that it doubled as a desolate planet in the movie `` Star Trek V : The Final Frontier . ''", "To restore the river , Los Angeles built automated gates at the point where the river veers into the aqueduct .", "The gates steer some water into the original riverbed , setting the stage for the growth of cottonwood trees and other plants and the return of waterfowl and other animals .", "Much of the water eventually returns to the aqueduct , though some of it is being used for lake irrigation and other projects .", "Environmentalists here say they are keeping an eye on Los Angeles for backsliding , but they acknowledge that the new efforts will make a significant difference .", "As winds whipped across Owens Lake on a recent afternoon , Mike Prather of the Owens Valley Committee , which along with the Sierra Club took Los Angeles to court over the environmental fallout of its water policies , marveled at sandpipers , American avocets and other birds frolicking in the shallow pools created by the irrigation .", "`` This work will bring back more and more of them , '' Mr. Prather said , savoring the twist in the battle that means water once intended for Los Angeles will feed the lake .", "`` It 's Owens Valley 's turn to stick its straw in L.A. ` s water , '' he said .", "Court rulings and the threat of legal action have largely forced Los Angeles 's hand in dealing with its past water moves , but city leaders say they are also intent on doing the right thing in keeping up a vital source of water while avoiding further damage to the Owens Valley .", "H . David Nahai , president of the board that oversees the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power , said Los Angeles was looking for less adversarial ways to resolve differences over the valley , which provides 40 percent to 60 percent of the city 's water supply , depending on the snowfall in the mountains .", "`` We ca n't change the past , but we can shape the future , `` said Mr. Nahai , one of five board members appointed by Mayor Antonio R . Villaraigosa , who promised a friendlier approach to the valley when he took office in July 2005 .", "Susan Cash , the chairwoman of the Board of Supervisors of Inyo County , where the Owens Valley is located , said animosity toward Los Angeles had lessened since the early 20th century , when the water diversion was made possible by the purchase of much of the valley by less-than-forthcoming city operatives .", "The underhanded moves , as chronicled by historians , included city representatives posing as ranchers as they bought up property .", "The questionable land dealing provided the inspiration for `` Chinatown , '' the 1974 movie starring Jack Nicholson as a private detective who stumbles across corruption on a Los Angeles water project .", "Water from the valley made possible the growth of what became the nation 's second-largest city .", "But people in the valley have long regarded the water dealings as a double-edged sword .", "Officials here have argued that the water diversion undercut the potential for growth .", "But others say that such prospects were dim anyway in such a dry and remote valley , and that Los Angeles 's keeping the water clean and the land relatively untouched has been a boon .", "Los Angeles 's policy of allowing public access to much of its land and the fact that many people here have worked for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power , one of the valley 's largest employers , or have friends or relatives there , have contributed to improved relations .", "The godfathers of Ms. Cash 's children worked for the department .", "`` The fact is , '' she said , `` we are in a marriage with no annulment in the near future , so we have to find a way to work together . ''", "Inyo officials said the city 's projects could inspire more tourism , the only real economic activity in this dry , high-desert valley .", "`` We have recreational users now but not to the extent it can be once the river is flowing and there is sufficient water for fish and wildlife , '' said Arlene Grider , president of the chamber of commerce here .", "The long-promised river restoration is a $ 24 million project , compensation won from a lawsuit by environmental groups over excessive groundwater pumping .", "It came after delays that prompted a county judge in September 2005 to impose daily fines of $ 5,000 on Los Angeles .", "The penalty has so far cost the city $ 2.3 million and will continue until a large volume of water flows through the river in the coming months .", "The work on the lake , scheduled to be completed by 2010 , will irrigate or otherwise control dust over 43 square miles .", "The improvements result from an agreement the city signed with the local air pollution control regulator in 1998 that sets a timetable to comply with federal requirements to control dust on the lake .", "The city has spent $ 400 million on dust control for just under 30 square miles of the worst pockets , and in December , through a mediator , it agreed to do 12.7 more square miles by 2010 at a cost of $ 105 million .", "A water department spokeswoman in Los Angeles , Carol Tucker , said ratepayers would see relatively modest increases in their monthly bills .", "The river restoration , for example , would amount to an increase of about 26 cents .", "Los Angeles has one of the country 's more intensive conservation programs , allowing it to use roughly the same amount of water even as it has grown by 750,000 residents in the past two decades .", "But environmentalists say they doubt the city can grow much more without finding more water .", "Mr. Nahai said the Department of Water and Power was already studying other possibilities , like using groundwater from within Los Angeles , buying water from other places and desalinating ocean water .", "But one thing is certain , he said : `` Are we going to get to a place where we are going to pump all the water out .", "No . ``", "Still , most everyone suggests there could be rough going ahead .", "Ms. Cash , the Inyo County supervisor , said officials were only `` cautiously optimistic '' about a changed relationship with Los Angeles because they had heard nice words from the city before , only to end up in court .", "Mr. Nahai acknowledged that the litigious nature of the relationship would be difficult to break .", "`` Nobody can guarantee there wo n't be litigation in the future , and litigation has its uses , `` he said .", "`` There is no denying what the City of Los Angeles has done far too often has been because of court order . ''", "He added , `` It 's like what Mark Twain said : ` Whiskey is for drinking , and water is for fighting over . ' '' ."], "summary": ["Water is again flowing along 62-mile stretch of Owens River in eastern California , in one of largest river restoration efforts in West , and after dry spell of nearly century .", "That part of river had been left mostly drained when upstream water , fed by snowmelt from Sierra Nevada Mountains , was channeled 233 miles south to Los Angeles .", "Restored flow is among several long-awaited steps city is taking to help make amends for environmental consequences of its water maneuvering , most notably drying up of Owens Lake , area more than three times size of Manhattan .", "Diagram .", "Map . Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 2, 1], "tag": ["Front Page", "U.S."]}
- {"id": "1815841", "text": ["With his wife , his children and his parents looking on , Eliot Laurence Spitzer was officially sworn in at midnight as the 54th governor of New York State during a private ceremony here at the governor 's mansion .", "A cheer rose from the guests : `` Go get ' em , Eliot ! '' And with those words , New York 's Democrats reclaimed the governor 's office after 12 years of Republican rule , and Mr. Spitzer , 47 , ascended to a historic office that has been held by Franklin and Theodore Roosevelt , Alfred E . Smith , Thomas E . Dewey and Hugh L . Carey , who was present .", "A more festive public inauguration ceremony with pomp , circumstance , food and music is scheduled to be held Monday afternoon , but Mr. Spitzer needed to take the oath of office by midnight in order to ensure the smooth transition of government as he took over from Gov . George E . Pataki , whose 12-year term ended at midnight .", "Mr. Spitzer was sworn in by Judge Robert W . Sweet , the Federal District Court judge who gave Mr. Spitzer his start in public service , hiring him as a clerk in 1984 after his graduation from Harvard Law School .", "With the new governor were his wife , Silda Wall Spitzer .", "His daughters , Elyssa , 17 , Sarabeth , 14 , and Jenna , 12 .", "His parents , Bernard and Anne Spitzer .", "And dozens of political figures and family friends .", "The party was not without drama .", "Lloyd Constantine -- Mr. Spitzer 's friend , tennis partner , onetime law partner and co-chairman of his transition team -- continued his tradition of buying Champagne for a Spitzer oath of office .", "The bottles seem to grow in size with the job .", "As Ms. Wall Spitzer put it , `` The bottles just keep getting bigger . ''", "This time Mr. Constantine went for a 12-liter bottle of Veuve Clicquot called a balthazar .", "But opening it did not prove easy -- the Champagne did not flow until Mr. Constantine attacked the giant bottle with a wrench , enlisted the help of another guest , and eventually broke the lip of the bottle , cutting his hand , and waving the bloody hand in triumph .", "Asked if it was worth it , he said , `` Yeah , sure . ''", "The public festivities later Monday were to feature New York State wines from Long Island , the Hudson Valley and the Finger Lakes , as well as regional specialties like Guss 's pickles , Junior 's cheesecake and Buffalo wings from the Anchor Bar in Buffalo .", "There was some trepidation about the weather forecast , though .", "Mr. Spitzer , who spoke about the value of optimism during the campaign , planned an outdoor inaugural for New Year 's Day in Albany -LRB- and a 6 a.m. run through Washington Park -RRB- .", "But with light rain falling , and freezing rain forecast , most of the inaugural events were pushed back an hour in the hopes that the bad weather would move through ."], "summary": ["Eliot Spitzer is sworn in as 54th governor of New York State by Federal Judge Robert W Sweet at governor 's mansion in Albany .", "Ceremony i small and private and is attended by family , friends and dignitaries .", "Larger celebration is planned for afternoon of January 2 .", "12-year regime of Gov George E Pataki ended at midnight .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 7], "tag": ["New York and Region"]}
- {"id": "1815842", "text": ["As she wrote her first inaugural speech , M . Jodi Rell turned to the remarks of Gerald R . Ford .", "Like the former president who took over after the resignation of Richard M . Nixon , Governor Rell was looking for a way to soothe nerves , not make waves .", "She was sworn in on a hot day in July 2004 after the abrupt resignation of Gov . John G . Rowland , a Republican who would be sentenced to a year in federal prison on corruption charges .", "`` People were so disappointed , they were so disillusioned , they had just lost faith , '' Ms. Rell said , apparently referring to both her own situation and President Ford 's .", "`` They just needed somebody to say it 's going to be O.K. and we are going to get past this . ``", "Now , with Mr. Ford 's death coinciding with Ms. Rell 's preparation for her first full term , she said her role as the state 's leader had evolved .", "She was no longer the accidental governor .", "`` After the election , it just felt like coming back to work .", "Nothing really changed , `` Ms. Rell , a Republican who swept 63 percent of the vote in November , said in a recent interview at the Capitol here .", "`` But it 's only in the last week or so where it 's hit me -- this is different .", "The expectations and the new session gives you pause to say all right , this is what we are going to do .", "This is my agenda . ``", "Extremely popular and perceived as honest and calm , Ms. Rell is just now beginning to form her own cabinet , dismissing nearly all of Mr. Rowland 's top assistants .", "After two years largely characterized by initiatives to `` right the ship '' in a state crippled by corrupt politicians , Ms. Rell , who will be sworn in on Wednesday , now must attack more complex problems , such as soaring health care and energy costs .", "And though she was one of only a handful of Republicans in the Northeast who managed to retain a top office this election season , Ms. Rell faces a veto-proof Democratic majority in both chambers of the General Assembly .", "The dominance of Democrats could certainly hobble Ms. Rell 's plans to cut taxes .", "Already , she has compromised one of her signature ideas : after legislative leaders indicated they would block her efforts to cut the car tax , Ms. Rell dropped the subject , saying she would choose her battles carefully .", "`` I think we are approaching a time where we have to come up with some really creative solutions , and if the governor ca n't get there it is possible the honeymoon would be over , `` said Donald E . Williams Jr . , leader of the Democrats in the State Senate .", "But for all the chatter in political circles of their party 's new power , Mr. Williams and other Democrats speak of the Republican governor in tones usually reserved for one of their own .", "`` I do n't think anyone is looking for unnecessary fights , `` Senator Williams said .", "`` The governor has sealed her popularity among voters and made people feel extremely comfortable . ''", "Confrontation and flashy speech are not Ms. Rell 's style .", "Elected to the State House of Representatives in 1984 , she earned a reputation for dealing with mundane details , picking apart legislation and knowing precisely where there was room for compromise .", "That approach helped lead to a sense of Ms. Rell , 60 , as a maternal figure , something that has stuck through her term in executive office .", "Some Democrats remark privately that when the governor admonishes them to kill or push through a bill , it is like being scolded by their mother .", "Ms. Rell cultivates that image : In a season of brutal campaign attack advertisements , one of her commercials featured the governor sitting in a chair with her grandson .", "A public service announcement encouraging drivers not to drink and drive has Ms. Rell on a playground surrounded by children .", "And when she released a health care proposal last week , half a dozen children sat on either side waving to the television cameras .", "Peering out at the audience over her bifocals , Ms. Rell resembled a teacher reading the lesson of the day .", "Ms. Rell and her supporters have always been happy to acknowledge that she was an unlikely candidate to become the state 's top political figure .", "A former homemaker who dropped out of college , Ms. Rell earned her political education on the job , working her way up to become minority leader of the House before being tapped by Mr. Rowland to run for lieutenant governor .", "The two were never particularly close , and Ms. Rell maintains that she had no clue about Mr. Rowland 's wrongdoings , something that infuriates opponents trying to tie her to the corrupt administration .", "Such criticisms have somehow yet to stick .", "Even when Ms. Rell 's chief of staff became embroiled in controversy for distributing invitations to a political fund-raiser on state time last year , voters consistently told pollsters they trusted the Rell administration .", "Some people in both parties complain that Governor Rell has done little to articulate or push her own agenda , instead favoring policies typically backed by Democrats such as stem-cell research or civil unions for same-sex couples .", "Others see that as her strength .", "`` You hear Democrats claim : ' She has n't done anything , she has n't done anything , ' `` said Chris Barnes , a pollster at the University of Connecticut .", "`` Well , the last governor did something and the something was lining his pockets .", "People are quite happy this governor is not doing that something . ``", "Instead , Ms. Rell has wisely been `` adjusting the course rather that setting it , '' Mr. Barnes said .", "`` People were not begging for grandiose plans .", "They just want the government not to mess things up . ``", "Such a modest goal aptly sums up the governing philosophy of Ms. Rell , who describes herself a steadfast moderate who believes in `` less government , less intrusive government , and less spending whenever possible . ''", "Her biggest fights with the Legislature will likely be over the budget , which Ms. Rell will present in February , and taxes .", "Also , Democrats plan to making universal health care a top priority , while Ms. Rell last week offered a far more limited proposal than what Democrats envision .", "Ms. Rell opened the health care bidding last week with a plan to let uninsured adult residents buy into a pool with a premium of $ 250 a month .", "Emphasizing that she would not support a `` big government '' subsidy , Ms. Rell said the cost of the plan to the state would be minimal .", "After decades in public office , Ms. Rell can still appear wary of the spotlight , blushing at the slightest embarrassment or standing at the back of a crowd -- and she guards her privacy .", "When she had a mastectomy to remove breast cancer two days after Christmas in 2004 , her assistants did not announce the operation until she was already at the hospital and asked well-wishers not to send flowers .", "There are signs of increasing comfort with the pageantry .", "On Wednesday , Ms. Rell will lead the first inaugural parade and ball the state has had in more than a decade -LRB- though she turned down a society reporter 's request to photograph her off-white ball gown last week -RRB- .", "`` I think you 're going to see more and more of her , `` said Robert Farr , an ally of Ms. Rell who recently retired from the General Assembly .", "`` A year ago she was the governor by accident , but she can clearly be the real thing now .", "`` She is not going to be one rushing for press conferences , '' Mr. Farr added .", "`` She is not one to go out and state a political position every day .", "But when she stakes something out , she is going to present something that can give measurable results . ``", "For her part , Ms. Rell said she is still drawing inspiration from the former president she looked to the first time she took the oath of office .", "`` Gerald Ford was not flashy , '' she said , her voice softening .", "`` He wanted to talk to people .", "And I know that 's what I want .", "I want people to feel comfortable .", "I want them to see a governor up close . `` ."], "summary": ["Gov M Jodi Rell is set to begin full term at helm of Connecticut after taking two years to right ship .", "Took office in 2004 following resignation of her predecessor John G Rowland .", "Plans to use full term to attack serious problems , such as soaring health care and energy costs .", "Dominance of Democrats in State Legislature will hinder her plans to cut taxes .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [13, 15, 2], "tag": ["Health", "New York and Region"]}
- {"id": "1815843", "text": ["In New York City , rapes , robberies and assaults , among other crimes , continued to decline last year , prompting the Police Department 's top official to herald 2006 as a very good year .", "Homicides , however , climbed 10 percent in the city , reversing a much-hailed decrease .", "`` We 'd like to see no homicides .", "The reality is we 're going to have them , `` said Police Commissioner Raymond W . Kelly .", "`` I think this is a very good year . ''", "He called the increase in killings in 2006 all but negligible compared with 1990 , a year with one of the highest homicide rates in recent history .", "That year , crack-fueled violence soared , and 2,262 people were killed .", "Last year there were 579 killings citywide as of Dec . 24 , an increase of 52 homicides over the same period in 2005 .", "Yet overall crime last year was down 5 percent .", "The number of reported rapes declined by 7.4 percent to 1,486 , subway crime plunged 13 percent and auto theft fell 11.4 percent .", "The police said the year 's jump in homicides was rooted largely in an unusually high number of `` reclassified '' deaths , deaths linked to injuries incurred in months or years past .", "There were 38 reclassified homicides in New York last year , compared with 21 in 2005 .", "New York 's overall fall in crime also contrasts with an increase nationwide .", "According to a report by the F.B.I. , violent crime across the country rose 3.7 percent during the first half of the year .", "Dallas remained the country 's most violent city , with 3,985 crimes per 100,000 people , according to the midyear report , while New York ranked 10th with 1,1,87 per 100,000 .", "Myriad factors account for New York 's continuing decline in crime overall , the police and criminologists say .", "They cited more effective policing , shifting drug patterns and the lowest unemployment rate in 30 years .", "Yet what is puzzling , one expert said , is that overall crime is dropping even as New York becomes an increasingly polarized city , with haves and have-nots often living side by side in luxury condominiums and public housing .", "`` Within a few blocks , people are living worlds apart , '' said Andrew Karmen , a sociology professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and the author of `` New York Murder Mystery : The True Story Behind the Crime Crash of the 1990s . ''", "`` In theory , that should make the poor more dissatisfied and drive people to commit crimes , '' he said .", "`` But that does n't seem to be happening in New York . ``", "One possible explanation , Dr. Karmen said , is that the city is largely populated by immigrants , many of whom are driven by a determination to succeed .", "`` I think they still maintain a positive outlook and faith in the American dream , '' he said .", "`` But if it does n't deliver , attitudes could change . ``", "It has proven difficult to root out violent crime in the city 's toughest corners .", "One of the city 's most perilous neighborhoods is in the 75th Precinct in Brooklyn , which includes East New York .", "There the number of slayings last year was virtually unchanged from 2005 at 28 , and 3,239 crimes were reported .", "Public housing projects have a disproportionate number of crimes .", "While 5 percent of New York 's eight million residents live in public housing , Commissioner Kelly said , 16 percent of the city 's homicides take place there .", "The Police Department plans to tackle that seemingly intractable problem by redeploying personnel from other areas and opening police substations in the most troubled housing complexes , Commissioner Kelly said .", "Both homicide victims and suspects tend to have links to crime already , he said .", "Of those arrested last year in homicides , 95 percent had criminal histories .", "75 percent of the people killed did .", "Such figures point to the department 's need to continue expanding its homicide , shooting and crime databases , Mr. Kelly said .", "`` The more information we have , the greater the potential we have to prevent crimes , '' he said .", "New York 's rebirth as a safer-than-average large city since the 1990s has coincided with an increase in tourism here .", "According to city officials , about 44 million people visited last year on business or pleasure .", "`` One overarching reason why people are coming here , in a city that was attacked five years ago , it 's because they have a sense of comfort as far as security is concerned , `` Mr. Kelly said .", "The department is continuing to pour more resources into community policing , forging bonds between its officials and local leaders , especially those from new immigrant communities .", "Yet in neighborhoods where homicide rates climbed , residents seem divided about whether this recent and heightened focus was improving their lives .", "Allah B , the director of the Allah in Mecca Youth Center in Harlem , commended officers in its precinct , the 28th , for holding local forums and listening to community concerns .", "Even though slayings in the precinct more than doubled , to 11 , last year , he said the increased connection between residents and the police fostered a greater sense of ease .", "Yet a longtime resident of the St . Nicholas Homes in Harlem said police efforts to rout out criminals were having a divisive effect in her neighborhood .", "`` They caused a lot of trouble trying to play one person against the other , '' said the woman , who would give only her first name , Keisha .", "She said people in the neighborhood also felt harassed and persecuted by the police , and that such impressions heightened the tension and stress in the community .", "Still , despite a slight increase in the number of homicides in her neighborhood , she said the streets felt far less violent than in previous years .", "The sense that New Yorkers are increasingly inhabiting two different realities seems particularly strong in places like Fort Greene , Brooklyn , home to a thriving cafe scene and crime-plagued public housing complexes .", "Eleven homicides were recorded in the neighborhood last year , compared with none in 2005 .", "Strolling along a stretch of DeKalb Avenue by Fort Greene Park late last week , Cheryl Pickett , 36 , said she had no idea that murders had risen so sharply in the area .", "Ms. Pickett , who has lived in Fort Greene for five years , said her perception of the neighborhood had not changed .", "She still thinks of it as a safe , child-friendly place with charming shops and bars .", "`` When things happen , it 's really surprising , `` Ms. Pickett said .", "`` This year seems no different than last . '' ."], "summary": ["Murders in New York City rose by 10 percent in 2006 over 2005 to 579 , even as overall crime continued to decline .", "Homicides were well below 2,262 in 1990 .", "Rise reversed declining trend .", "Overall crime fell 5 percent in 2006 compared to 2005 .", "Reported rapes were down 7.4 to 1,486 .", "Subway crime plunged 13 percent and auto crime fell 11.4 percent ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 11, 8], "tag": ["New York and Region"]}
- {"id": "1815882", "text": ["Standing before a row of enlarged photographic slides of deadly viruses like Ebola and Hantavirus that decorate the new lunchroom at his office , Dr. Sherif Zaki professed himself to be uplifted .", "`` I ca n't tell you how much this has done for our morale , `` Dr. Zaki said .", "As a leader of an 11-year-old program at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention here that tries to ferret out the cause of 700 or so unexplained deaths across the United States each year , Dr. Zaki spends his days on matters that could test the morale of any scientist : a boy in Mississippi who died 17 days after developing a fever and headache .", "A football player at the University of Missouri who died hours after collapsing on the field .", "A skateboarder who scraped her knee and died a few days later .", "These are among the mysteries for which Dr. Zaki and his colleagues at the Unexplained Deaths Project , or UNEX , serve as the medical detectives of last resort .", "Now , after years of toiling in the subbasement of a 1950s-era building on the C.D.C. ` s campus , Dr. Zaki 's team has moved to a futuristic-looking building nearby where the window shades automatically rise or fall depending on the amount of sunshine , a transmission electron microscope stands ready to magnify bacteria and viruses up to 740,000 times , and images of deadly pathogens pass for d\u00e9cor .", "Started in 1995 as an informal collaboration among a handful of C.D.C. scientists determined to identify outbreaks of new infectious diseases before they reached epidemic proportions , UNEX distinguished itself as an interdisciplinary group that brought together the expertise of virologists , bacteriologists , epidemiologists , veterinarians and clinicians .", "As enthusiasm for the program grew , four affiliates in state health departments opened in California , Connecticut , Minnesota and Oregon .", "Despite their success and the continuing threat of emerging infections , the state programs recently lost their financing , and enthusiasm for UNEX even within the C.D.C. was dwindling , to the point where its very future appeared to be in doubt until late December , when another year 's financing was finally approved .", "The problem , Dr. Zaki said , is that the program 's interdisciplinary nature clashes with the trend , at C.D.C. and in science generally , toward specialization .", "In fact , each researcher involved with UNEX has another position within one of C.D.C. ` s specialized departments .", "Dr. Zaki , for instance , is chief of infectious disease pathology activity .", "The hundreds of cases referred to UNEX each year by state health authorities , medical examiners and the occasional private physician represent a fraction of the true number of unexplained deaths across the country .", "Dr. Zaki estimates that there are `` tens of thousands '' of such cases each year .", "Most are presumed to be caused by infectious agents , usually carried by animals or insects , which is why UNEX is housed in the C.D.C. ` s National Center for Zoonotic , Vector-Borne and Enteric Diseases .", "`` There are so many cases where we say , ' We know this is infectious , ' where I 'd bet you anything the death was caused by a virus we ca n't find , `` Dr. Zaki said .", "In fact , UNEX is able to find the particular killer pathogen in only about 15 percent of the cases referred to the office , he said .", "On July 12 , 2005 , for instance , 19-year-old Aaron O'Neal , a reserve linebacker for the University of Missouri Tigers , collapsed on the field during a preseason workout and died soon after at a hospital .", "An autopsy found that the lining of his brain had been inflamed , a possible sign of viral meningitis .", "But even when UNEX received brain tissue samples , no virus or any other clear sign of what caused the inflammation could be detected .", "Aside from storing the remaining tissue sample on the chance that a new test might one day solve the mystery , the case was closed .", "Still , UNEX collars its share of microbial culprits .", "On Sept . 13 , 2005 , a 10-year-old Mississippi boy went to his pediatrician with a fever , headache and an itchy scalp .", "Within days he became so disoriented and agitated that he bit a family member .", "Admitted to the hospital , he grew sicker , but all tests came back negative .", "After he died on Sept . 27 , it took UNEX just eight days to detect the rabies virus in serum samples .", "They later learned , by speaking with friends and family , that dead bats had been previously found inside the boy 's home and garage , and that he had removed a live bat from his bedroom and released it outdoors in spring 2005 .", "Sometimes , finding the cause of a death means discovering a pathogen previously unknown to science .", "During the 2003 outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome , or SARS , it was a colleague of Dr. Zaki 's , Cynthia Goldsmith , who first identified the SARS coronavirus using an older-generation electron microscope at their old lab .", "`` It took my breath away when I first recognized it , '' Ms. Goldsmith said .", "Then there are the times when a probable cause of death is suspected , but local health officials are reluctant to perform an autopsy .", "On Oct . 5 , 2001 , minutes after a Florida photo retoucher for The National Enquirer died of what appeared to be inhalation anthrax , a doctor who treated the man called Dr. Zaki .", "`` The medical examiner was n't inclined to do the autopsy , `` Dr. Zaki recalled .", "`` Finally they said , ' O.K. , we 'll do it , but only if you come down . '", "`` When Dr. Zaki and a small group of colleagues flew to Florida the next morning on a private chartered jet , they learned that some of the staff at the Palm Beach County medical examiner 's office had had second thoughts about the autopsy .", "`` When we got there , '' Dr. Zaki said , `` the people in the facility told us , ' If you do that autopsy , we 're all going to leave and never come back .", "You 're going to leave spores , you 're going to contaminate the facility . '", "`` Dr. Zaki 's group explained that the spores become dangerous only if allowed to dry out -- something they would prevent through meticulous cleaning -- and that antibiotics given as prophylaxis would eliminate the slim remaining chance of infection .", "Even so , they performed the autopsy in a small room used for storage .", "`` We left that room much cleaner than when we found it , '' Dr. Zaki said .", "His own laboratory has an unequalled collection of automated testing equipment and a trove of tissue samples dating back decades .", "`` I do n't think there 's any laboratory like this in the world , `` Dr. Zaki said .", "`` And there 's nowhere else where people from so many different fields are together in such close proximity .", "It makes one very proud . ``", "Egyptian by birth , Dr. Zaki graduated third in his class of 1,200 at the University of Alexandria medical school before coming to the United States to study pathology in 1983 .", "Asked why he chose pathology , he replied : `` My mom asked me the same question .", "She said , ` Be a real doctor . '", "But pathology explains how and why a disease happens . ``", "Yet UNEX , as sophisticated as its equipment may be , is still routinely outfoxed by nature 's most archaic life forms , the viruses and bacteria whose roles in human disease , and hiding places in blood and tissue samples , continue to defy detection .", "`` We think we know everything , '' Dr. Zaki said , `` but we do n't know the tip of the iceberg .", "`` There are so many viruses and bacteria we do n't know anything about , that we do n't have tests for , `` he said .", "`` A hundred years from now , people will not believe the number of pathogens we did n't even know existed . `` ."], "summary": ["Dr Sherif Zaki , leader of 11-year-old Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Unexplained Deaths Project , describes challenges of being medical sleuth .", "Says there are about 700 unexplained deaths in US every year and it is his mission of project to try and find out why each person died .", "Program files tissue samples so they can be tested again if new information emerges .", "Case examples described .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 5, 12], "tag": ["Health"]}
- {"id": "1815893", "text": ["People in the United States have gotten used to the repulsive fact that raw chicken , meat and eggs are often contaminated with dangerous bacteria .", "Scrub the cutting board , we are warned , do n't nibble the cookie dough , do n't eat burgers rare .", "In other words , handle meat like a biohazard -- and then eat it .", "But until recently , getting sick from salad was something that most Americans did n't even think about unless they were traveling to a poor country .", "At home , fruits and vegetables have been regarded as clean and safe for as long as most people can remember .", "Lately , though , produce has caused a disturbing number of disease outbreaks .", "Just since September , bacteria-tainted tomatoes , spinach and lettuce have made hundreds of people sick , and killed three .", "There have been 20 serious outbreaks in the past decade or so , and many have come from crops grown in California , not from imports .", "Fruit juices , alfalfa sprouts and almonds have also been involved -- all of them supposedly health foods , like salad , the things we feel most virtuous about eating .", "The known outbreaks are just the tip of the iceberg , health officials say .", "Far more illness is never reported .", "Most people do n't call the health department about a few days of gut trouble .", "The government estimates that over all , food-borne microbes -- not just the ones on produce -- make 76 million people a year sick , put 325,000 in the hospital and kill 5,000 .", "In a modern country , a rise in disease caused by tainted food seems like a giant step backward in public health .", "But there has n't been much public outrage or even disgust at the notion of filth seeping into the food supply .", "Among the nastiest bacteria is E . coli 0157 : H7 , which makes a powerful toxin that can cause severe illness and sometimes even kidney failure .", "This is the germ found on spinach a few months ago , and more recently on iceberg lettuce served at Taco Bell restaurants .", "It comes from cow feces and was first identified in 1982 .", "Feeding the animals grain instead of hay seems to promote its growth .", "The strain is harmless to cows , but in people it is so dangerous , according to the Food and Drug Administration , that swallowing as few as 10 organisms may be enough to cause an infection .", "About 73,000 people a year get sick from this type of bacteria , and 61 die , the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports .", "`` It 's gotten more attention this fall , but we 've seen these outbreaks due to lettuce and other leafy greens for a long time , `` said Dr. Christopher Braden , chief of the outbreak response and surveillance team for enteric diseases at the disease centers .", "`` We are seeing this on an ongoing basis .", "That 's not an acceptable outcome .", "We need to find ways to interrupt that contamination . ``", "Last August , the F.D.A. announced a `` lettuce safety initiative '' in response to recurring E . coli outbreaks .", "It began with last fall 's lettuce harvest and included visits by inspectors to farms and cooling and packing facilities .", "But the spinach and Taco Bell outbreaks happened anyway .", "There are several ways that bacteria can contaminate lettuce .", "Water is an obvious route , whether from unsanitary irrigation or spraying , or from flooding .", "Animals can carry bacteria onto farmland , which is apparently how the spinach outbreak occurred -- feral pigs wandered from cow pastures to spinach fields , taking E . coli with them .", "Sick workers who handle produce can also contaminate it , and so can dust blowing off pastures .", "One bad batch can spoil others when they are mixed for chopping and bagging .", "Scientists think most contamination lies on the surface of crops , but studies have shown that it is possible for bacteria to be taken up through root systems and actually wind up inside the plants , where no amount of washing could get rid of it .", "In any case , E . coli 0157 : H7 tends to be sticky and is difficult or impossible to wash off , even when it 's only on the surface of produce .", "Over the past 30 years , diseases linked to produce have increased , Dr. Braden said .", "Increased ability to detect outbreaks may explain part of the increase , but not all of it , he added .", "`` We 're convinced it 's real in large part , `` he said .", "`` We 're seeing an increased number of outbreaks , an increased number of cases in outbreaks , and an increase in the number of types of produce involved . ``", "The reason is not known for sure .", "But , Dr. Braden said : `` The way produce is farmed and processed has changed .", "It 's become more centralized , and you have these huge processors and distributors that produce tens of thousands of pounds of a particular produce in a particular day .", "If something goes wrong with that produce you 've got a big problem , whereas with small farmers , if there is a problem it 's much more limited . ``", "In addition , he said , bagged and prewashed produce did n't exist 25 years ago , and people today eat more raw vegetables than in the past .", "`` There 's probably more susceptible people eating those things , `` Dr. Braden said .", "`` We have an aging population , and more people with chronic medical conditions that might make them more susceptible . ''", "The F.D.A. is responsible for produce safety , while the Agriculture Department oversees meat , poultry and eggs .", "Some politicians have urged that a single new agency be formed to take charge of all food safety , but even if that is done , it still may not answer basic questions about how to clean up produce .", "Dr. David W . K . Acheson , chief medical officer at the center for food safety and applied nutrition at the F.D.A. , said the agency was trying to find ways to prevent outbreaks .", "But , Dr. Acheson said , it has nowhere near the resources to inspect the hundreds of thousands of facilities that handle fresh produce in the United States .", "The Agriculture Department has far more inspectors and is required by law to have one in every major meat processing plant .", "One question the drug agency is trying to figure out , he said , is how close is too close when it comes to cattle and produce .", "`` We know that 0157 is a natural contaminant of cow feces , '' Dr. Acheson said .", "`` Cow feces , if it gets on fresh produce , is not good .", "Should there be some limitation as to how close cattle should be to a leafy-greens field .", "Fifty feet , 5 miles , 50 miles .", "What 's the science .", "`` Fifty feet may be plenty if the cows are downhill and downstream of the farm , he said -- but if it 's the other way around , five miles may not be enough .", "`` What 's really going to work .", "`` Dr. Acheson asked .", "`` At this point , there are a lot of unknowns . ''", "Another approach , instead of trying to prevent contamination , is to get rid of it after the fact .", "Nuts can be heat-treated and juices can be pasteurized .", "Some experts have recommended irradiating lettuce .", "`` People in the agency are looking at the impact of that , '' Dr. Acheson said .", "`` There are two pieces : does it work , and what dose do you need .", "Then , what 's the impact of that dose on the quality of the product .", "You could irradiate anything and sterilize it , but you may end up with mush .", "It 's not quite that easy . ``", "Dr. Braden said that so far , scientists had not found any way to prevent outbreaks .", "`` Not that people are n't working on it hard , `` he said , adding that the food industry itself is under pressure .", "`` There may be some self-regulation from the industry , the growers themselves , '' he said .", "`` They have to do something themselves , or else they 're going to lose their market . ``", "SECOND OPINION ."], "summary": ["Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that E coli strain recently found on spinach from California farm is virulent enough that swallowing only 10 organisms could be enough to cause infection .", "Increased number of health alerts and outbreaks related to fruits and vegetables has generated many new guidelines , such as Food and Drug Administration 's lettuce safety initiative , but researchers point to variety of causes and methods of contamination and say they are difficult to track and stop .", "Some experts hold that bagged and prewashed produce is fairly new to marketplace and increased consumption of raw produce make outbreaks more widespread than anytime in past .", "Many researchers are working on prevention measures , but few changes have been implemented .", "Drawings ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [19, 20, 43, 63, 25, 4, 60, 56], "tag": ["Health"]}
- {"id": "1815895", "text": ["The day 's coppery last light reflects off the backs of sea bass swimming in fish ponds lined in neat rows on this desert farm .", "Fish farming in the desert may at first sound like an anomaly , but in Israel over the last decade a scientific hunch has turned into a bustling business .", "Scientists here say they realized they were on to something when they found that brackish water drilled from underground desert aquifers hundreds of feet deep could be used to raise warm-water fish .", "The geothermal water , less than one-tenth as saline as sea water , free of pollutants and a toasty 98 degrees on average , proved an ideal match .", "`` It was not simple to convince people that growing fish in the desert makes sense , '' said Samuel Appelbaum , a professor and fish biologist at the Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research at the Sede Boqer campus of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev .", "`` It is important to stop with the reputation that arid land is nonfertile , useless land , '' said Professor Appelbaum , who pioneered the concept of desert aquaculture in Israel in the late 1980s .", "`` We should consider arid land where subsurface water exists as land that has great opportunities , especially in food production because of the low level of competition on the land itself and because it gives opportunities to its inhabitants . ''", "The next step in this country , where water is scarce and expensive , was to show farmers that they could later use the water in which the fish are raised to irrigate their crops in a system called double usage .", "The organic waste produced by the cultured fish makes the water especially useful , because it acts as fertilizer for the crops .", "Fields watered by brackish water dot Israel 's Negev and Arava Deserts in the south of the country , where they spread out like green blankets against a landscape of sand dunes and rocky outcrops .", "At Kibbutz Mashabbe Sade in the Negev , the recycled water from the fish ponds is used to irrigate acres of olive and jojoba groves .", "Elsewhere it is also used for irrigating date palms and alfalfa .", "The chain of multiple users for the water is potentially a model that can be copied , especially in arid third world countries where farmers struggle to produce crops , and Israeli scientists have recently been peddling their ideas abroad .", "Dry lands cover about 40 percent of the planet , and the people who live on them are often among the poorest in the world .", "Scientists are working to share the desert aquaculture technology they fine-tuned here with Tanzania , India , Australia and China , among others .", "-LRB- Similar methods of fish farming are also being used in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona . -RRB-", "`` Each farm could run itself , which is important in the developing world , '' said Alon Tal , a leading Israeli environmental activist who recently organized a conference on desertification , with the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification and Ben-Gurion University , that brought policy makers and scientists from 30 countries to Israel .", "`` A whole village could adopt such a system , '' Dr. Tal added .", "At the conference , Gregoire de Kalbermatten , deputy secretary general of the antidesertification group at the United Nations , said , `` We need to learn from the resilience of Israel in developing dry lands . ''", "Israel , long heralded for its agricultural success in the desert through innovative technologies like drip irrigation , has found ways to use low-quality water and what is considered terrible soil to grow produce like sweet cherry tomatoes , peppers , asparagus and melon , marketing much of it abroad to Europe , especially during winter .", "`` Most development is still driven by the Zionist ethos that the desert was some mistake of God that we have to correct and make the desert bloom , '' said Uriel Safriel , an ecology professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem .", "The history of fish-farming in nondesert areas here , mostly in the Galilee region near the sea , dates back to the late 1920s , before Israel was established as a state .", "At the time , the country was extremely poor and meat was considered a luxury .", "But fish was a cheap food source , so fish farms were set up on several kibbutzim in the Galilee .", "The early Jewish farmers were mostly Eastern European , and , Professor Safriel said , `` they only knew gefilte fish , so they grew carp . ''", "Eventually they expanded to other varieties of fish including tilapia , striped bass and mullet , as well as ornamental fish .", "The past decade has seen the establishment of about 15 fish farms producing both edible and ornamental fish in the Negev and Arava Deserts .", "Fish farming , meanwhile , has become more lucrative worldwide as people seek more fish in their diet for better health , and ocean fisheries increasingly are being depleted .", "The practice is not without critics , who say it can harm the environment and the fish .", "In Israel there was a decision by the government to stop fish farming in the Red Sea near the southern city of Eilat by 2008 because it was deemed damaging to nearby coral reefs .", "Some also argue that the industry is not sustainable in the long term because most of the fish that are farmed are carnivorous and must be fed a protein-rich diet of other fish , usually caught in the wild .", "Another criticism is that large numbers of fish are kept in relatively small areas , leading to a higher risk of disease .", "Professor Appelbaum said the controversy surrounding fish farming in ocean areas does not apply to desert aquaculture , which is in an isolated , controlled area , with much less competition for resources .", "On Kibbutz Mashabbe Sade , Amit Ziv runs a fish farm , raising about 15,000 fish at a time .", "Up to 500,000 cubic meters of water from the fish ponds is recycled for irrigation every year .", "`` It 's a matter of better efficiency , `` said Mr. Ziv , who pays about 24 cents a cubic meter for water , a government-subsidized rate .", "`` In an area where there is lack of water , being able to use it twice over is a huge advantage . ''", "Mr. Ziv , 39 , said there are benefits to raising fish in the desert : the dryness translates to fewer insects and less mold and disease .", "He also said the warm air makes it easier to keep the pools temperate .", "He remembers the stories his parents , who , along with other founders of the kibbutz in 1948 , would tell of having to travel long days to get to the fields of the communal farm .", "They then tilled closer to central Israel , because at the time the local arid ground was thought to be impossible to farm .", "`` Now , '' he said , pointing toward the desert-grown crops , `` the fields are all here . ''", "Mr. Ziv and his dog turned back toward the fish ponds stretched out under green plastic hothouse canopies .", "It was time to prepare for a shipment of hatchlings that was to arrive the next day ."], "summary": ["Desert aquaculture , which was first used in Israel , has become increasingly popular way to farm crops and fish in otherwise arid and unfertile ground .", "Professor Samuel Appelbaum , Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research fish biologist and pioneer of process that pumps subsurface water up to tanks for use in fish ponds and irrigation , describes how aquaculture can transform communities .", "Double usage of water is ideal as farmers use water from fish farms , which is high in organic matter , to irrigate and fertilize fields .", "Kibbutz Mashabbe Sade , Israel , aquaculture discusssed .", "Map . Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4, 10, 40], "tag": ["Science", "Health"]}
- {"id": "1815906", "text": ["A year after Hollywood rediscovered weighty political and social issues in movies like `` Syriana , '' `` Crash '' and `` Brokeback Mountain , '' the box office story of 2006 was that moviegoers finally said , `` Enough . ''", "They showed no appetite for a critique of their eating habits in `` Fast Food Nation . ''", "They were n't ready to fly along on `` United 93 , '' no matter how skilled its expos\u00e9 of homeland insecurity .", "They did n't care to see combat or suffer its after-effects in `` Flags of Our Fathers . ''", "And even Leonardo DiCaprio could n't interest them in touring the ravaged Africa of `` Blood Diamond . ''", "While Al Gore 's prophecies in `` An Inconvenient Truth '' produced a respectable $ 24 million for Paramount , it was the message-movie exception that proved the rule .", "The big money was to be made making people laugh , cry and squeeze their dates ' arms -- not think .", "`` What worked was classic , get-away-from-it-all entertainment , '' said Rob Moore , Paramount 's marketing and distribution chief .", "`` What did n't was things that were more challenging and esoteric . ``", "Comedy , animation and adventure , all with a PG-13 rating or tamer -- and for young adults , R-rated horror flicks -- were the escapist recipe for success .", "Reminding moviegoers of what was on the news , and in an election year at that , only turned them off .", "-LRB- Unless it was on the news nine years ago , as in `` The Queen . '' -RRB-", "While Disney 's `` Pirates of the Caribbean : Dead Man 's Chest `` set a new opening-weekend record and topped the box office tables with $ 423 million , the winner among studios was Sony Pictures , which said it would end the year with nearly $ 1.7 billion domestically -- besting its own industry record -- and $ 3.3 billion overseas .", "In an off year for its Spider-Man franchise , Sony managed to win a record 13 weekends , led by Adam Sandler -LRB- `` Click '' -RRB- .", "Will Ferrell -LRB- `` Talladega Nights : The Ballad of Ricky Bobby '' -RRB- .", "An animated hit -LRB- `` Open Season '' -RRB- .", "James Bond -LRB- `` Casino Royale , '' which has grossed $ 155 million , a franchise record -RRB- .", "And Will Smith -LRB- `` The Pursuit of Happyness '' -RRB- .", "Mr. Smith 's film broke $ 100 million , and he appears to have bolstered his stature as Hollywood 's man who can do no wrong , a bankable star in dramatic , romantic , comedic or action roles .", "-LRB- When actors play against type , however , it can be deadly , as Russell Crowe showed in Ridley Scott 's film `` A Good Year , '' for 20th Century Fox .", "Coming after his nose dive in `` Cinderella Man , '' Mr. Crowe 's belly-flop raised questions about his status as a top box office draw . -RRB-", "Then there was what Jeff Blake , Sony 's marketing and distribution czar , called `` that rare adult blockbuster , '' Ron Howard 's `` Da Vinci Code . ''", "Fans of the book ignored the film 's reviews , and it grossed $ 218 million .", "`` Really , we brought the adults back to the movies this year , which is part of the reason why we 're doing so much better , `` Mr. Blake said of the industry , tipping his hat to Warner Brothers ' `` Departed '' and 20th Century Fox 's `` Devil Wears Prada . ''", "Sony also got a boost from its Screen Gems unit .", "Four of its horror films opened at No . 1 .", "Typical was `` When a Stranger Calls , '' made for just $ 15 million , which grossed $ 48 million domestically .", "Over all , the top tier of the box office held its usual contours : 5 blockbusters exceeded $ 200 million , and 12 fell in the $ 100 million to $ 200 million zone .", "In addition , 39 exceeded $ 50 million , 7 more than in 2005 .", "Total domestic box office reached $ 9.4 billion , a shade shy of the 2004 record but 5 percent more than in 2005 , said Paul Dergarabedian , president of Media by Numbers , which tracks box office results .", "Attendance was up 3.3 percent .", "No . 2 Disney had its second-best year ever worldwide , with more than $ 3.27 billion internationally , and exceeded $ 1 billion domestically for the 10th time , thanks largely to `` Pirates '' and the year 's No . 2 movie , Pixar 's `` Cars , '' with $ 244 million .", "Mark Zoradi , who runs marketing and distribution for Walt Disney Motion Pictures Group , said basic entertainment had proved to be the cure for the industry 's woes .", "`` People love to go to the movies to laugh , to feel emotion and cry , '' he said .", "`` That 's why ` Cars ' is so big .", "It was n't a straight-out slapstick comedy .", "At its core , it was an emotional movie with comedy in it . ``", "The slate of movies at year 's end was much stronger than on the same weekend a year earlier : up 10 percent in the aggregate , and 12 percent when comparing just the top 12 grosses .", "Fox 's `` Night at the Museum , '' the Ben Stiller comedy , led the field , raking in $ 38 million for a total so far of $ 117 million .", "Among animated films , Fox 's `` Ice Age : The Meltdown '' came in at No . 2 , nearly hitting $ 200 million .", "Bruce Snyder , president for domestic distribution , said Fox had been wise to get its movie into theaters well before the deluge of more than a dozen other computer-animated movies about animals .", "One that suffered was Warner 's `` Ant Bully , '' which was sandwiched between Sony 's `` Monster House '' and Paramount 's `` Barnyard '' and came away with just $ 28 million in sales .", "Paramount , too , might have regretted the title of its `` Flushed Away , '' which cost $ 150 million but grossed only $ 62 million .", "`` Happy Feet '' was a much-needed big hit for Warner , which had been less than overjoyed by the $ 200 million gross of `` Superman Returns . ''", "Despite the animation glut , the potential payoffs -- Paramount 's `` Over the Hedge '' grossed $ 155 million , and `` Happy Feet '' reached $ 176 million on Sunday -- are huge enough to make this a recurring phenomenon .", "For Fox 2005 was a strong year .", "`` X-Men : The Last Stand '' was the No . 3 movie , at $ 234 million , and Meryl Streep 's performance turned a formulaic comedy into a worldwide hit in `` Prada . ''", "Fox also had the year 's most original film , `` Borat : Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan , '' which was made for less than $ 20 million and grossed more than $ 125 million .", "Among thought-provoking movies , `` Flags of Our Fathers '' showed how treacherous it can be to open an Oscar contender in September or October .", "While `` The Departed '' was a hit , `` All the King 's Men , `` `` Hollywoodland '' and `` Running With Scissors '' all bombed .", "Back-to-school audiences much preferred Lions Gate 's `` Saw III . ''", "Warner missed , meanwhile , with `` Blood Diamond , '' a big action movie that also had something to say .", "Alan Horn , the studio 's president , said he thought the film had managed the feat , but audiences did n't , and the film has grossed $ 36 million so far .", "`` The audience is telling us that either they want lighter fare , and they just do n't want to go there and have a movie as thematically heavy as ` Blood Diamond ' is , or it 's the quality of the movie , `` he said .", "Audiences apparently were n't eager to read , either .", "With directors like Clint Eastwood , Alejandro Gonz\u00e1lez I\u00f1\u00e1rritu and Mel Gibson pushing for authenticity , the studios wound up releasing subtitled movies that were shot largely or entirely in Japanese , Moroccan , Mexican , Mayan and Russian .", "But even Brad Pitt could n't draw big crowds for `` Babel , '' and the Fox Searchlight release of the Russian blockbuster `` Night Watch '' proved that some cultural exchanges will remain a one-way street .", "It remains to be seen whether `` Letters From Iwo Jima , '' Mr. Eastwood 's critically adored Japanese companion piece to `` Flags , '' could lure sizable audiences once it expands from a micro-release .", "Fifth-place Paramount was cheered by the low-budget comedies `` Jackass Number Two '' and `` Nacho Libre , '' but was counting for redemption on `` Dreamgirls , '' which opened to packed houses on Christmas Day .", "In just 852 theaters , the movie grossed $ 38.5 million through New Year 's weekend , and the studio was counting on Oscar attention to make it a megahit .", "Universal , in a leadership transition , struggled to fill a gaping hole in its slate .", "The studio has n't released a movie that it made since August , and wo n't have one till April .", "-LRB- `` The Good Shepherd , '' its lone prestige release at year 's end , was financed by Morgan Creek . -RRB-", "Its biggest movie was `` The Break-Up , '' at $ 118 million , but more typical were duds like `` Miami Vice , '' `` Man of the Year , '' `` Let 's Go to Prison , `` and '' The Black Dahlia . ``", "New Line 's year , finally , was summed up by `` Snakes on a Plane , '' a trip you 'd want to forget , as long as you could survive it .", "The studio 's standout performers were `` Final Destination 3 '' and `` The Texas Chainsaw Massacre : The Beginning . ''", "New Line 's stab at exploiting the religious Christian market , `` The Nativity Story , '' cost $ 35 million , but grossed just $ 37 million .", "By comparison , a tiny proselytizing football movie called `` Facing the Giants , '' made for just $ 100,000 by a Southern Baptist congregation in Georgia , grossed $ 10 million in a limited release .", "Correction : January 4 , 2007 , Thursday An article in The Arts on Tuesday about the most popular movies of 2006 and others that did not do as well at the box office referred incorrectly to two languages spoken in `` Babel , '' one of the films with subtitles that did not draw big crowds .", "They are Spanish and Berber , not `` Mexican '' and `` Moroccan . '' ."], "summary": ["Moviegoers favored films that were escapist fantasies in 2006 .", "Sony Pictures was winner among studios , earning nearly $ 1.7 billion domestically and $ 3.3 billion overseas .", "Pirates of the Caribbean : Dead Man 's Chest set new opening-weekend record and topped box office tables with $ 423 million .", "Other high grossing films included Click , Talladega Nights : The Ballad of Ricky Bobby , Open Season , Casino Royale and The Pursuit of Happyness .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [12, 14, 17], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]}
- {"id": "1815915", "text": ["Within days of convening , the new Congress will return to some of the biggest battles of the last decade as House Democrats try to rush through legislation requiring the government to negotiate lower drug prices for Medicare beneficiaries and overturning President Bush 's restrictions on embryonic stem cell research .", "The Medicare proposal highlights the profound differences between Democrats and Republicans over the future of the nation 's health care system , the proper role of government and the role of private markets in securing the best value for the huge sums spent on health care .", "State officials say they wish Congress would focus on a more immediate problem : money for the Children 's Health Insurance Program , which provides coverage for four million low-income children , is running out in more than a dozen states .", "Dr. Rhonda M . Medows , commissioner of the Georgia Department of Community Health , said , `` Our program will run out of federal money in March , and all 260,000 children in the program will lose their health care coverage if Congress fails to act . ''", "In debating the future of the children 's health program , which has broad bipartisan support , Congress will take up proposals to cover some of the 46 million people who have no health insurance .", "Dr. Mark B . McClellan , former administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services , said , `` Congress should consider expanding the Children 's Health Insurance Program to low-income adults . ``", "Many Democrats agree .", "But even modest proposals may collide with Democratic efforts to restore fiscal discipline and to reduce the federal budget deficit .", "Congress convenes on Thursday .", "Representative Nancy Pelosi , the California Democrat who is in line to be speaker , has said the House will , in its first 100 hours , vote on bills to authorize drug price negotiations under Medicare and to expand federal financing of stem cell research .", "Representative Tom Allen , Democrat of Maine , said he was `` giddy '' at the prospect of being able to legislate on health care after toiling for 10 years in the minority .", "`` People in Maine find it incomprehensible that the Medicare law has a provision that forbids negotiation of lower prices , '' said Mr. Allen , who introduced a bill to give beneficiaries access to drug discounts negotiated by the government in 1998 .", "By adding a drug benefit to Medicare in 2003 , Congress authorized the biggest expansion of the program since its creation in 1965 .", "The drug benefit , unlike most Medicare benefits , is delivered entirely by private insurers subsidized by the government .", "The insurers negotiate with drug manufacturers to obtain discounts , often in return for promoting the use of particular drugs .", "The 2003 law prohibits the government from interfering in those negotiations and stipulates that Medicare can not establish a list of preferred drugs .", "Most Democrats want to repeal the ban on price negotiations .", "Wendell E . Primus , an aide to Ms. Pelosi , said the Democratic proposal would require the secretary of health and human services to negotiate , but would not specify how .", "`` It will be very simple language , '' Mr. Primus said .", "`` We do not think that Congress needs to hammer out all the details .", "There are a lot of smart people in the administration , including the secretary , who can look at how we 're buying drugs -- the Medicaid program , the Department of Defense , vaccines , et cetera -- and figure out the best way of negotiating better prices with drug companies . ``", "Republicans said they welcomed the opportunity to debate the issue .", "The House Republican leader , Representative John A . Boehner of Ohio , said the Democrats ' proposal would `` take a wrecking ball to a popular program that has cut drug costs for consumers through competition . ''", "Such competition , he said , `` has kept prices lower than anyone expected . ''", "Administration officials suggested that Mr. Bush would veto a bill calling for price negotiations .", "Democrats could then exploit the issue in the 2008 campaign , as they did in the midterm elections .", "Under a bill introduced in 2005 by several House Democrats , Medicare would offer a government-run drug plan , in addition to all the plans offered by private insurance companies , and federal officials would negotiate with drug manufacturers on the prices of drugs covered by the government plan .", "But aides to Ms. Pelosi said House Democratic leaders now wanted to go further .", "Under their proposal , the government would negotiate on behalf of all people in Medicare drug plans , more than 22.5 million people .", "House Democrats assume that if the government negotiates lower drug prices , the savings will automatically be passed on to beneficiaries in the form of lower premiums .", "But they could not immediately say how they would guarantee that result .", "In the absence of detailed instructions from Congress , lower drug prices could mean lower costs and higher profits for the insurers that operate Medicare drug plans .", "Michael O . Leavitt , the secretary of health and human services , said he did not want the power to negotiate .", "`` I do n't believe I can do a better job than an efficient market , `` Mr. Leavitt said in an interview .", "Leslie V . Norwalk , acting administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services , said that under the Democrats ' proposal her agency would have to `` hire hundreds of people to negotiate prices for 4,500 different drugs . ''", "And Ms. Norwalk said the agency would be besieged by lobbyists seeking higher Medicare payments for specific drugs .", "That , she said , is `` how Washington really works . ''", "Senator Max Baucus , the Montana Democrat who is in line to become chairman of the Finance Committee , helped shape the 2003 law .", "In March , he voted against a proposal to authorize drug price negotiations .", "But Mr. Baucus , who is up for re-election in 2008 , said he had an open mind and would hold hearings on the idea .", "Kate Leone , an aide to the Senate Democratic leader , Harry Reid of Nevada , said Senate Democrats had the same legislative priorities as House Democrats , but were not committed to the 100-hour schedule .", "Mr. Primus said the new Congress would also `` give the president another chance to veto a stem cell bill , '' like the one he vetoed in July .", "In campaign commercials in 2006 , Democrats and some Republicans boasted of their support for embryonic stem cell research as a way to find treatments for a wide range of diseases .", "Advocates of such research say that , despite gains in the elections , they still do not have the votes to override a veto .", "They are working with Senate allies on a plan to attach the stem cell bill to unrelated legislation that Mr. Bush would feel obliged to sign .", "Lawmakers are also likely to wrestle with these issues : Many Democrats will try to reduce Medicare payments to managed care plans .", "They contend such plans are overpaid by about 10 percent .", "Insurers intend to fight back , with support from the Bush administration , Republican lawmakers and beneficiaries who see the plans as a way to obtain extra benefits at an affordable cost .", "Congress faces a huge challenge in devising a new formula to pay doctors for treating Medicare patients .", "Under the current formula , doctors ' fees would be cut more than 4 percent a year for the next decade .", "Lawmakers are determined to avert such cuts , but see no easy way to pay the cost .", "Democrats have drafted legislation to speed the approval of safe , low-cost versions of expensive biotechnology drugs , which account for a growing share of spending on pharmaceuticals .", "People who pay for health care , including state officials , employers and insurers , support such legislationas a way to slow spending on biotech drugs , which can cost more than $ 10,000 a year .", "Biotech companies argue that their products , made from living organisms , are so complex that they can not be exactly duplicated by generic drug manufacturers .", "As a result , they say , a `` copy '' would rarely be interchangeable with the original .", "The Food and Drug Administration has approved thousands of generic drugs deemed equivalent to traditional brand-name medicines .", "But the agency is unsure of its legal authority to approve such versions of biotech drugs ."], "summary": ["There are profound differences between Democrats and Republicans over future of nation 's health care system , proper role of government and role of private markets in securing best value for huge sums spent on health care .", "House Democrats , now in majority , will try to rush through legislation requiring government to negotiate lower drug prices for Medicare beneficiaries and overturn Pres Bush 's restrictions on embryonic stem cell research .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 0], "tag": ["Health", "U.S.", "Washington"]}
- {"id": "1815916", "text": ["When the same old irksome question popped up recently at one of his final public events here , Gov . Jeb Bush , addressing Spanish-speaking reporters , gave an atypically dramatic answer : `` Yo no tengo futuro , '' or `` I have no future . ''", "His words set off round-the-world buzz , with The Daily Telegraph of London going so far as to call them `` a recognition by the Bush family that their dynastic reign in American politics is drawing to a close . ''", "But in fact , the question lives on .", "Mr. Bush 's spokeswoman said last week that he made the comment jokingly , and when asked about it later in an e-mail message , Mr. Bush himself replied , `` I was misunderstood by a reporter . ''", "He did not elaborate , leaving the world to know only this much : Half his life after he arrived in Miami as a 27-year-old real estate salesman , Governor Bush returns here this week without the title before his name and , he insists , without knowing what his future holds .", "`` We 're in the preface of the new book in my life and I just do n't know yet , `` he told reporters last month in Tallahassee , a day after his official portrait , with a Bible and a BlackBerry in the background , was unveiled at the Governor 's Mansion .", "`` I 'm going to take some time off , hopefully do a little fishing , golfing , resting , reading , exercising .", "And I 've got to make a living , so I 'll figure it out probably in January . ``", "Florida , too , has some readjusting to do .", "After eight years in office , Mr. Bush , 53 , is leaving as one of the most popular and prominent governors in state history , not least because of his relationship to President Bush -LRB- brother -RRB- and former President George Bush -LRB- son -RRB- .", "Succeeding him is Attorney General Charlie Crist , who is Republican like Mr. Bush but otherwise starkly different .", "Despite the wishful prodding of admirers , Mr. Bush has adamantly ruled out a presidential campaign of his own next year , saying that he wants only to return to Miami with his wife , Columba , and their cat , Sugar .", "Yet rumors about his future have burst forth as regularly as exotic species in the Everglades -- among them that he would be the next commissioner of the National Football League , run for Senate or become Senator John McCain 's running mate if Mr. McCain won the Republican nomination for president in 2008 .", "`` The presidency is out of the question at this point because of Bush fatigue , '' said Peter Schweizer , a fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford who wrote `` The Bushes : A Dynasty '' with his wife , Rochelle .", "`` But the vice presidential slot is something that 's very much in play .", "He 's a successful governor of an important state , he helps shore up relations with the social conservatives and he has the Bush money machine . ``", "One of Mr. Bush 's former chiefs of staff has gone to work for Mr. McCain 's exploratory committee , but several other former aides have signed up with Gov . Mitt Romney of Massachusetts , another probable Republican contender .", "`` Jeb is a policy-driven guy , '' Mr. Schweizer said .", "`` If he can be a vice president that plays some kind of a policy role as Cheney has , as Gore did in the Clinton administration , then Jeb Bush will be interested . ''", "Many assume that for now -- at least partly at the urging of his wife , described as shy and eager to be out of the public eye -- Mr. Bush will return to the private sector .", "He reported a net worth of $ 1.4 million in 2005 , down from $ 2.4 million in 1998 .", "He was a partner in a major real estate development firm here until his first , unsuccessful run for governor in 1994 , but Mr. Schweizer predicted that Mr. Bush might now seek out work involving the bioscience industry or the Latin American economy , both of which `` he seems particularly animated by . ''", "All indications notwithstanding , ardent admirers like Grover Norquist , the president of Americans for Tax Reform , are not giving up on the prospect of Mr. Bush jumping into the presidential race next year , especially if Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York becomes the Democratic candidate .", "`` He could step in later than anybody else , '' Mr. Norquist said .", "`` You can run for president with the last name of Bush , even though there is and will be Bush fatigue , in a year that you 're likely to be running against someone whose last name is Clinton . ``", "For the time being , Mr. Bush bought a car , a Chrysler 300C , and rented a $ 5,500-per - month , 3,949-square - foot condominium in Segovia Tower , a luxury building overlooking a golf course in lush Coral Gables .", "`` I have no idea what I will be doing next , '' he wrote by e-mail from Boca Chica , Fla . , where he was vacationing with his parents .", "`` My priorities are to hang out with my beloved wife -LRB- until she ca n't take it anymore ! :", "As for the continued speculation , he wrote : `` I am flattered that all sorts of people are interested in what I am going to do and many have offered advice as well .", "That will all subside soon . ``", "Small signs suggest , however , that he will have a hard time giving up executive powers .", "He told reporters that while buying furniture recently , he had to stifle the urge to tell the store owner a better way of doing business -- a trait his adversaries say they will not miss .", "`` Bush was the type that if you did not agree with him , he really did n't have time for you , `` said State Senator Frederica Wilson , Democrat of Miami .", "`` He wanted you to rubber stamp every idea he had , and he would n't listen to reason . ``", "While Mr. Bush is internationally famous , Mr. Crist , who will be sworn in as governor on Tuesday , is a stranger to all outside Florida and , but for his native Tampa Bay region , not particularly well known within the state either .", "While Mr. Bush was ideologically driven , often making enemies in pursuit of `` big , hairy , audacious goals '' and divisive social policies , Mr. Crist seems above all a pleaser , avoiding firm opinions and promising to be `` the people 's governor . ``", "Yet despite Mr. Bush 's abrasiveness and the plunging popularity of his brother the president , he has remained well liked -- or at least respected -- to the end , a feat in a state as ethnically and politically divided as Florida .", "A poll last month by Quinnipiac University found that 57 percent of Floridians feel he did a `` good '' or `` great '' job as governor , compared with only 10 percent who said he had done a `` bad '' job .", "Howard Simon , executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida , said the poll results reflected approval of Mr. Bush 's persona more than of his policies .", "Mr. Simon pointed out that two major education initiatives during the governor 's tenure -- a costly effort to lower class size and another to provide universal prekindergarten classes -- were passed by public referendum , over the governor 's objections .", "`` It needs to be said that the personal appeal and likeability of Jeb Bush has led the press and the public to overlook the extremism of many of his policies , '' he said .", "Several of Mr. Bush 's pet initiatives in fact failed , including a school voucher program that the Florida Supreme Court found unconstitutional .", "But Mr. Bush pushed through $ 19.3 billion in tax cuts , put an unprecedented emphasis on standardized testing in public schools , privatized thousands of government jobs and ended affirmative action in public university admissions .", "He also persuaded the Scripps Research Institute and other bioscience research groups to open laboratories in Florida , which he says will makethe state economy less dependent on tourism and create more high-paying jobs .", "And he has appointed more than a third of the state 's judges , assuring that his socially and fiscally conservative beliefs will continue to hold some sway .", "While others have emoted about Mr. Bush 's departure -- including his father , who wept as he described his second son 's `` decency '' and `` honor '' in a speech in Tallahassee last month -- he has characteristically avoided introspection .", "Asked last month what he would miss most about the Governor 's Mansion , he cited its beauty , its staff -- and its towels .", "`` Fresh towels -- all you want , '' he said .", "`` Here , although I 've been trained to do otherwise , it 's just any time I want I can have many towels . `` ."], "summary": ["Jeb Bush is leaving as one of most popular and prominent governors in Florida 's history after eight years .", "Despite wishful prodding , he has adamantly ruled out presidential campaign of his own next year , but rumors about his future have burst forth .", "One is that he would become Sen John McCain 's running mate if McCain wins Republican nomination for president .", "One of Bush 's former chiefs of staff has gone to work for McCain 's exploratory committee , but several other former aides have signed up with Gov Mitt Romney , another probable Republican contender .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [16, 12, 11], "tag": ["U.S.", "Washington"]}
- {"id": "1815929", "text": ["Representative John D . Dingell , a Michigan Democrat who with more than 50 years ' tenure is the senior member of the House , is not so sure about the idea of creating an independent group to enforce ethics rules .", "But Gabrielle Giffords , a brand-new House Democrat from Arizona , considers it a no-brainer .", "Of the longstanding approach in which lawmakers are seated on the ethics committee to police their peers , Representative-elect Giffords said , `` It is like having the fox guard the henhouse . ''", "Those divergent outlooks over how best to fulfill the Democratic promise to clean up the House are just one illustration of a friction that could develop in the new Congress as the party takes control after 12 years in exile .", "While most attention will be focused on the divide between Republicans and Democrats , members of the new majority have their own differing perspectives , corresponding largely to length of service , that could ultimately prove more crucial to their success or failure .", "Of 233 Democrats who will be sworn in on Thursday , 147 -- 63 percent -- have been elected since Republicans won control of the House in 1994 , and have never served in the majority .", "Those whose service predates the 1994 revolution , on the other hand , number only 86 , or 37 percent .", "But it is this core of senior Democrats , Mr. Dingell among them , who will lead 20 of the 21 major committees and so exercise concentrated legislative power .", "The differences in tenure tend to manifest themselves geographically as well .", "The makeup of the senior membership has a more urban flavor , while those more recently elected tend to come from the suburbs and exurbs .", "These newer members have faced tougher electoral opposition than their older counterparts , who in many cases represent overwhelmingly safe Democratic districts .", "A majority of new chairmen have traditional liberal roots .", "Lawmakers , senior aides and analysts say the institutional gulf is not necessarily problematic and could even prove beneficial if Democratic leaders are able to harness the experience and skill of the chairmen to the enthusiasm and drive for reform exhibited by the newcomers .", "But they worry that it could become a distraction if the `` old bulls , '' as they are sometimes called , believe that less seasoned lawmakers are demanding too much too fast or if the newer members see the veterans as representative of Congressional inertia .", "`` The guys who have been there for a while and built up seniority saw an abuse of the system , so they know firsthand why it has to change , '' said Representative Rahm Emanuel of Illinois , who will be chairman of the Democratic caucus .", "`` The new members ran on an agenda of why it has to be changed .", "`` If managed correctly , you have the experience and energy to make changes .", "If not managed correctly , it has the potential to be a fault line . ``", "Leading House Democrats say the long-tenured members and those sent to Congress in recent elections broadly agree on a desire to move ahead on social programs , ethics , energy , national security and fiscal responsibility .", "The differences , they say , are subtler .", "Do issues studied in the previous Congress , for instance , need a full further examination in committee , in deference to the new chairmen .", "Is there need for a separate commission to scrutinize war contracting , or should this too be the province of the committees .", "In any event , it is clear that the lower classmen , particularly the large and celebrated group of 30 freshmen , want to move quickly .", "`` The new class coming in and some of the other newer members are absolutely committed to delivering on the agenda we talked about during the election , '' said Representative Chris Van Hollen of Maryland , who will lead the House Democratic campaign effort for 2008 .", "`` Now that we are in power , we want to make sure that we are changing direction in Washington , and that means following through not just on the big print but the fine print , a break with business as usual . ''", "Representative-elect Ed Perlmutter , Democrat of Colorado , agreed .", "`` I do n't think the chairs are not looking to be aggressive , `` Mr. Perlmutter said , '' but I do see in this freshman class a real desire to make changes and move things along quickly , because I think that was the direction we were given by our voters . ``", "Senior Democrats say that as the lawmakers who endured minority status for so long , they are the ones most painfully aware of a need for new direction .", "Their stake in holding on to a majority , they say , means protecting and advancing the careers of new lawmakers , who in many cases were elected with fund-raising and other help from senior Democrats .", "`` It is not like we are just now meeting for the first time , '' said Representative Barney Frank , Democrat of Massachusetts , who will be chairman of the House Financial Services Committee and can tick off the names of junior committee members he has worked with , as well as several freshmen he personally supported .", "`` We all campaigned for these guys . ''", "Mr. Dingell said an urge to remake the House was hardly anything new .", "`` This is a normal phenomenon which occurs in this place every two years , '' he said , `` and I have seen no class come in that could be described as different .", "We all come here just dying to do something .", "But the smart ones of us know how to get it done by working within the system .", "I have no fears they are out to burn the place down . ``", "But Norman Ornstein , a longtime Congressional observer at the American Enterprise Institute , said he saw competing drives among members of the new majority .", "`` You have a significant number of Democrats who think the major change is that the whip is now in their hands and it is the Republicans taking the lash , '' Mr. Ornstein said .", "`` A number of others want to keep the spigots running , but just into their own pockets .", "Those who genuinely want to change the House -- the way it operates , the culture of Washington -- have their work cut out for them . ``", "The Democrats ' leader , Representative Nancy Pelosi of California , the incoming speaker , has been in the House since 1987 but has never been chairwoman of a committee , and so in some respects her role may be that of an outsider free to pursue transformation .", "In one of her first tests , however , some seven weeks ago , many of those headed for chairmanships opposed her push to install Representative John P . Murtha of Pennsylvania as majority leader .", "Instead , they backed Representative Steny H . Hoyer of Maryland , at least partly because they saw him as a check on Mrs. Pelosi 's power .", "Mr. Hoyer went on to win .", "Mrs. Pelosi has told allies that while she respects the authority of the new chairmen , she will not allow them to dominate the party agenda or stall legislative initiatives that have broad support .", "And she has already indicated that she does not intend to send the party 's early legislative initiatives back through the committee process , but will instead bring a minimum-wage increase and energy and health bills , among others , straight to the floor .", "Democrats senior and junior say they are watching to see whether their ideals merge or collide .", "But they view party differences as just another factor they will have to take into account as they assume control .", "`` I think people understand it is a little bit of a bump and we have to deal with it , '' Mr. Frank said .", "Michael Arcuri , a moderate Democrat from upstate New York who won a Republican-held seat in November , said the combination of exuberance and experience should prove an advantage for the party .", "`` If we strike the balance between the two , '' Mr. Arcuri said , `` we are going to accomplish some pretty incredible things . ''", "Correction : January 9 , 2007 , Tuesday An article last Tuesday about possible divisions among Democrats in Congress misstated the number of Democratic freshmen in the House .", "It is 42 , not 30 .", "-LRB- Democrats took over 30 Republican-held seats and 12 seats that had been vacated by Democrats . -RRB- ."], "summary": ["Divergent outlooks are part of friction that may develop in new Congress as Democratic party takes control after 12 years .", "Democrats have differing perspectives , corresponding largely to length of service , that could ultimately prove crucial to their success or failure .", "Photos .", "Graph shows composition of House Democrats ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4, 3], "tag": ["U.S.", "Washington"]}
- {"id": "1815930", "text": ["A FEW years back , while traveling in the Sierra Madre Occidental of northern Mexico , I came upon a canyon packed with cliff dwellings no one had lived in since before the time of Christopher Columbus .", "On the ground were discarded artifacts , pieces of frayed baskets , broken pottery and hundreds of desiccated corn cobs -- the ruins of an ancient civilization .", "I reached down to pick up what I thought was a dry gourd , and instead found myself cradling the skull of a human child .", "As I turned it in my hands , I noticed a deliberate hole in the back of the skull , directly above the spine .", "The skull was not cracked around the hole , which means the child had most likely been alive when a spike or some other implement had been slammed into his or her head from behind .", "This is not the only skull like this .", "Excavations from elsewhere in northern Mexico have turned up other children killed the same way , human sacrifices to an ancient water deity , their bodies buried under pre-Columbian ball courts or at the foot of pillars in important rooms .", "With knowledge of such widespread ferocity , I recently saw Mel Gibson 's movie `` Apocalypto , '' which deals with the gore of the Mayan civilization .", "I had heard that the movie 's violence was wildly out of control .", "But even as I winced at many of the scenes , as a writer and researcher in ancient American archaeology , I found little technical fault with the film other than ridiculous Hollywood ploys and niggling archaeological details .", "Indeed , parts of the archaeological record of the Americas read like a war-crimes indictment , with charred skeletons stacked like cordwood and innumerable human remains missing heads , legs and arms .", "In the American Southwest , which is my area of research , human tissue has been found cooked to the insides of kitchen jars and stained into a ceramic serving ladle .", "A grinding stone was found full of crushed human finger bones .", "A sample of human feces came up containing the remains of a cannibal 's meal .", "It could be argued that `` Apocalypto '' dehumanizes Native Americans , turning their ancestors into savage monsters , but I think it does the opposite .", "Oppressed hunter-gatherers in the movie are presented as people with the same , universal emotions all humans share .", "And urban Mayans are portrayed as politically and religiously savvy , having made of themselves a monumental , Neolithic empire , something more akin to ancient Egypt than the trouble-free agrarians who come to most people 's minds when they think of native America .", "To further shatter that popular notion of Native Americans , there 's the scene in which a turquoise-jeweled priest stands atop a staggering temple yanking out one beating human heart after the next .", "That 's an image that nearly every archaeologist working in Central America has played in his or her head many times , only now it 's on the big screen for everyone to see .", "Being told by screenwriters and archaeologists that their ancestors engaged in death cults tends to make many Native Americans uneasy .", "In Arizona , Hopi elders turn their eyes to the ground when they hear about their own past stained with overt brutality .", "The name Hopi means people of peace , which is what they strive to be .", "Meanwhile , excavators keep digging up evidence of cannibalism and ritualized violence among their ancestors .", "How do we rectify the age-old perception of noble and peaceful native America with the reality that at times violence was coordinated on a scale never before witnessed by humanity .", "The answer is simple .", "We do n't .", "Prior to 1492 it was a complex cultural landscape with civilization ebbing and flowing , the spaces in between traversed by ancient lineages of hunters and gatherers .", "To the religious core of pre-Columbian Mayans , a beating heart ripped from someone 's chest was a thing of supreme sacredness and not prosaic violence .", "If `` Apocalypto '' has a fault , it is not with its brutality , but with us in the audience who cringe , thinking the Mayans little more than a barbaric people .", "The fault lies in our misunderstanding of a complicated history , thinking we can lump a whole civilization into a single response and walk out of the movie saying , `` That was disgusting . ''", "Op-Ed Contributor Craig Childs is the author of the forthcoming `` House of Rain : Tracking a Vanished Civilization Across the American Southwest . '' ."], "summary": ["Craig Childs Op-Ed disagrees with those who argue that Mel Gibson movie Apocalypto dehumanizes Native Americans , turning their Mayan ancestors into savagely violent people .", "Says oppressed Mayans in movie are presented as people with universal emotions shared by all humans .", "Says problem with movie is with audience who finds Mayans barbaric .", "Says fault lies in misunderstanding of complicated history that lumps entire civilization into simplistic response ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [15, 14, 29], "tag": ["Opinion"]}
- {"id": "1815938", "text": ["After Somalia 's Islamist forces abandoned their final outpost on Monday , the transitional government moved aggressively to assert control , setting a three-day deadline for all weapons to be turned in and calling for international peacekeeping troops to be sent immediately .", "Somalia was already a place where military-grade weaponry was casually flaunted on its streets , but the Islamists ' swift collapse has created such a surplus of guns that the average price of a Kalashnikov assault rifle , one of the world 's most popular killing machines , has dropped to $ 15 .", "Ali Mohammed Gedi , the former veterinarian who is the transitional prime minister , said at his daily news conference that he would not tolerate the situation and gave instructions for turning in the weapons .", "`` Individuals or groups of people who have trucks mounted with antiaircraft guns , known as ' technicals , ' should bring those battlewagons to Mogadishu 's old port , `` he said .", "Clan leaders were skeptical about whether he would succeed , and many Somalis seemed dead set against it .", "`` They 're trying to neuter us , `` said Muhammad Duudo , an unemployed car mechanic .", "`` And it 's not going to happen .", "Just wait until the full moon passes and the darkness comes . ``", "Whatever lies ahead , encouraging or ominous , most Somalis seemed to agree that after a week of fast-moving events , the rough outlines of a new reality were emerging .", "For the first time since the former dictator , Mohamed Siad Barre , fled the country in 1991 , casting Somalia into 15 years of anarchy , there is a credible government based in Mogadishu , the capital , with serious outside support and no organized military threat from within .", "True , countless gunmen still roam the streets , heavily armed warlords still command authority and the seeds of a possible guerrilla movement may be taking root .", "But so far no major force has emerged to challenge the authority of the transitional government .", "The only rival , the Islamists , lost their last conventional military battle on Monday .", "The Islamists had steadily lost ground since Dec . 24 , when Ethiopia unleashed a punishing series of airstrikes and pushed ground troops deep into Somali territory .", "Ethiopian officials justified their intervention in Somalia 's messy , violent internal politics by saying the Islamist movement was a regional threat with terrorist connections and ambitions to invade their country .", "Ethiopia commands one of the most powerful militaries in Africa , and within days of its entrance into the war , Burhakaba , a pivotal inland town , fell from Islamist control -- then Jowhar , another key town , and then Mogadishu , the Islamists ' former stronghold .", "By Sunday , the last remnants of the Islamist forces , which just a few weeks ago controlled a large swath of Somalia , were cornered in Kismayo , a port city on the south Somali coast .", "Thousands of Ethiopian and transitional government troops were closing in on them , and on Sunday night , the Ethiopians began pounding away with heavy artillery .", "At the same time , Kismayo clan elders were pleading with the Islamists to leave .", "The elders said the Islamists did not stand a chance , and they were worried that their city was about to be flattened .", "Clan elders in Mogadishu similarly decided last week that the Islamists were a losing cause and pulled their troops and weapons out of the movement .", "As in Mogadishu , the Islamists in Kismayo , after many fiery speeches about fighting to the death , simply fled .", "By Monday morning , many of the Islamists ' fighters in Kismayo had shed their uniforms and melted back into the population while others headed south toward a thickly forested area along the Kenyan border .", "`` I ca n't tell you how happy people were that they disappeared , `` said Adam Ragay , a businessman in Kismayo .", "As soon as the Islamists left , looters rushed into the streets and smashed up stores and ran away with televisions and cellphones .", "But by midafternoon , the brief burst of anarchy was over and transitional government troops had arrived on the outskirts of town .", "Residents of Kismayo said the remaining Islamists were heading toward Ras Kamboni , a small town in an isolated area on the Kenyan border that the Islamists had used before as a hide-out .", "Ethiopian intelligence officials say operatives of Al Qaeda , invited by the Islamists , planned the 1998 attacks on American Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania from Ras Kamboni .", "Kenyan officials say they have increased border security to keep the Islamists from escaping .", "`` Anyone who ventures to enter Kenya will have to go through a very serious vetting process , '' Alfred N . Mutua , a Kenyan spokesman , said in a statement on Monday .", "Mr. Gedi has acknowledged that he needs a lot of outside help .", "Security in Mogadishu is still uncertain , with just a light presence of soldiers .", "Mogadishu 's ports and airport remain closed , strangling the flow of goods and sending prices for rice , sugar , oil and gasoline through the roof .", "The schools remain closed .", "One of the Islamists ' first steps after beginning their ill-fated attack on the transitional government was to close all schools to funnel more teenagers to the front .", "Their move backfired both militarily and politically after countless teenage soldiers were summarily mowed down by better-trained Ethiopian troops .", "Abdi Sallah , a pharmacist in Mogadishu , said he thought that the new government was heading in the right direction but that it needed to step gingerly .", "`` So , we ask all the militia to turn in their weapons and then what happens .", "`` he said .", "`` Do they become part of a national army or do they become unemployed .", "Have these guys thought all this through .", "`` ."], "summary": ["Transitional government in Somalia moves aggressively to assert control after Islamist forces abandon their final outpost .", "Transitional prime minister Ali Mohammed Gedi sets three-day deadline for all weapons to be turned in and calls for international peacekeeping troops to be sent immediately .", "Clan leaders are skeptical about whether he would succeed , and many Somalis are dead set against order to surrender firearms .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 4], "tag": ["World"]}
- {"id": "1815939", "text": ["Having enjoyed a year that was better than average in the stock market and a much weaker one in housing , home owners and investors appear neither exuberant nor glum about 2007 .", "In fact , they are decidedly ambivalent , according to a recent New York Times / CBS News poll .", "They are split , for instance , almost evenly on whether it is a good time to buy a new home or better to wait , even though a sizable majority expects home prices to stay steady or rise , especially in their neighborhoods .", "The poll also showed that Americans had regained some faith in stocks as a safe investment since the market 's crash in 2000 , but they were less confident that stocks would rise next year than they were during the depths of the last bear market , in 2002 .", "The telephone survey was conducted from Dec . 8 to 10 and included 922 adults nationwide and has a sampling error of plus or minus three percentage points .", "The seeming confusion and anxiety is not entirely new or limited to average Americans .", "Similar worries abounded in late 2005 , when some economists and market experts predicted the nation 's long housing boom would come to a screeching halt and inflict damage on the economy and the stock market .", "While home sales did plummet from record levels , the stock market rebounded to new heights after a brief stumble last summer .", "The Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index posted a 14 percent gain last year , its best showing since 2003 .", "The American economy also put up stronger-than-expected performance as job growth and business investment made up for the faltering real estate market .", "Still , in follow-up interviews , several of those polled last month said that while they were confident about their personal financial positions , they were preparing themselves for tougher times by either changing their spending and investment patterns or by not taking as many risks .", "Christopher J . Pujol , an account manager at a pharmacy benefits company in Texas , said he planned to shift some of the assets in his 401 -LRB- k -RRB- account to cash from stock-based mutual funds because he did not think the market would match its 2006 performance .", "`` The good times ca n't go on forever , `` he said .", "`` I take a conservative approach and take money off the table . ''", "Mr. Pujol is not alone .", "Skeptical market experts have raised concerns about the durability of the recent rally .", "More broadly , economists are significantly divided about the outlook for the year , from the most pessimistic among them predicting a recession and the most optimistic saying economic growth could be so strong that it may force policy makers to resume raising interest rates to fight inflation .", "`` People seem to have a fairly balanced view about things , '' said Robert T . McGee , chief economist at U.S. Trust , who reviewed results of the poll .", "`` We have had a relatively strong housing boom and people recognize that is over , but at the same time the disappointment in stocks that occurred after 2000 and 2001 is dissipating some . ''", "The poll is in line with other recent surveys that show Americans are slightly more cautious , even though most of them have stable employment and are seeing their paychecks increase , said Lynn Franco , director of the consumer research center at the Conference Board , which produces a widely followed consumer confidence index .", "`` Over all , it 's this glass half-full / half-empty scenario , `` she said .", "Mr. Pujol , who lives in Keller , Tex . , near Fort Worth , with his wife and their two young sons , thinks that the economy will moderate in 2007 .", "The family bought a new home four years ago and is not planning to move but Mr. Pujol and his wife have other real estate investments in Texas that he thinks will fare better than property on the coasts .", "Mr. Pujol reflected the view of most Southerners , 57 percent of whom said local housing prices would increase in the coming year and the same number said it was a good time to buy a house .", "Only 47 percent of people surveyed nationally said it was a good time to buy a house and 45 percent said local prices would increase .", "The difference may reflect the relative strength of housing in Texas , on the Gulf Coast and in the Carolinas .", "Not surprisingly , home owners were also more upbeat on housing -- 52 percent said it was a good time to buy a home -- than renters , 60 percent of whom felt it would be better to wait .", "-LRB- Similarly , 65 percent of people who owned stocks or mutual funds said the stock market would go up next year compared with 39 percent of people who did not have investments . -RRB-", "Laura Koepnick , a lawyer for the state of Massachusetts , said she and her partner would like to move to a bigger home from their condo in Boston but think home prices may fall further still .", "`` It 's more of a buyers market , but it has been so up and down that I am not comfortable making a huge investment at this time , `` said Ms. Koepnick , 36 , who is still paying off law school loans and owns a mutual fund in a retirement account .", "Darla K . Bundy , who works for the state of Pennsylvania , would also like to move but she faces an entirely different set of challenges .", "So many homes are on sale in Ridgway , the small industrial town two and a half hours northeast of Pittsburgh where she lives , that Ms. Bundy said she could not make as much as she and her husband , a welder , owe on the property .", "In 2001 , Ms. Bundy lost an $ 18-an-hour job making specialty light bulbs for Sylvania when the company moved some production to Mexico .", "After taking a two-year computer training course paid for by the government , she has a $ 12-an-hour clerical job at the state transportation department .", "`` My husband and I would love to make financial investments to prepare for retirement , '' Ms. Bundy , 42 , said .", "`` But to even take $ 20 out of our budget and put it somewhere else is unthinkable . ''", "Like several other people , Ms. Bundy pointed to Sept . 11 , 2001 , as a critical turning point for her family -- she lost her job shortly before the attacks of that day and her husband has had a hard time finding work ever since .", "The brief recession that followed the technology bust in 2000 ended before the attacks of 2001 , but many Americans view the attacks as an important historical marker in the nation 's and their personal economic lives .", "That may be a function of the weak employment and wage growth that characterized the economic recovery from 2002 to 2004 .", "The economy was `` pretty good until 9/11 , and then it took a major dive , '' said Dawn E . Owsley , a 33-year-old who owns a spa business in Olympia , Wash .", "`` And then it picked up a little .", "But I feel that we have not yet caught up . ``", "Over all , a majority , 52 percent , said they were making enough to pay bills and obligations and a sizable minority , 35 percent , said they earned enough to save and buy extras , while 12 percent said they did not make enough to meet their household expenses .", "By comparison , 17 percent of those who answered that question in early 2005 said they did not make enough , 48 percent said they did and 33 percent said they could save and buy extras .", "Most Americans , 71 percent , said if they had extra money to invest they would put it in real estate rather than stocks , which were favored by 22 percent of the respondents .", "By comparison , during the peak of the housing boom in the spring of 2005 , an NBC News / Wall Street Journal poll found that 80 percent preferred real estate and 13 percent stocks .", "Of those polled , 77 percent said they owned their own home and 21 percent said they rented .", "But only 44 percent said they owned stocks or mutual funds , down from 56 percent in the first half of 2000 .", "That shift away from stock ownership is not surprising given that many investors are still smarting from the technology-led crash of 2000 and the two-year bear market that followed .", "And in spite of the recent rally , mutual fund flows indicate that investors remain skeptical of American stocks .", "As of Dec . 27 , investors poured $ 15 billion into domestic equity funds in 2006 , compared with $ 134 billion in nondomestic funds and $ 305 billion in money market funds , according to AMG Data Services .", "Edward A . Kellerhals , a retired municipal electrical inspector who lives near Fresno , Calif . , said his investments in stocks and real estate had provided a comfortable retirement for him and his wife .", "Though he has long thought that land is a better investment than stocks , he became convinced that real estate prices in California had become outlandish when he and his wife were looking to buy a home at the end of 2005 .", "`` This piece of junk we saw was selling for $ 300,000 , '' Mr. Kellerhals , 76 , said .", "`` The roof was leaking all over the place and there was a trailer with a caved-in roof in the back . ''", "He has become more bullish on stocks , but says that at their age he and his wife `` do n't buy much stock anymore . ``", "`` We are just slowly going to sell it all , '' he said .", "How the Poll Was Conducted The latest New York Times / CBS News poll is based on telephone interviews conducted Dec . 8 through Dec . 10 with 922 adults throughout the United States .", "The sample of telephone exchanges called was randomly selected by a computer from a complete list of more than 42,000 active residential exchanges across the country .", "Within each exchange , random digits were added to form a complete telephone number , thus permitting access to listed and unlisted numbers alike .", "Within each household , one adult was designated by a random procedure to be the respondent for the survey .", "The results have been weighted to take account of household size and number of telephone lines into the residence and to adjust for variation in the sample relating to geographic region , sex , race , marital status , age and education .", "In theory , in 19 cases out of 20 , overall results based on such samples will differ by no more than three percentage points in either direction from what would have been obtained by seeking out all American adults .", "For smaller subgroups , the margin of sampling error is larger .", "Shifts in results between polls also have a larger sampling error .", "In addition to sampling error , the practical difficulties of conducting any survey of public opinion may introduce other sources of error into the poll .", "Variation in the wording and order of questions , for example , may lead to somewhat different results .", "Complete questions and results are available at nytimes.com/ polls .", "THE YEAR AHEAD IN MARKETS ."], "summary": ["New York Times / CBS News poll shows that home owners and investors are ambivalent about 2007 .", "They are split almost evenly on whether it is good time to buy new home or better to wait , even though sizable majority expects home prices to stay or rise .", "Poll shows also that Americans had regained some faith in stocks as safe investment since market 's crash in 2000 , but they are less confident that stocks will rise in 2007 than they were during last bear market in 2002 .", "Also shows that those interviewed are preparing themselves for tougher times by either changing their spending and investment patterns or by not taking as many risks .", "52 percent say they are making enough to pay bills and obligations and 35 percent say they earn enough to save and buy extras , while 12 percent say they do not make enough to meet household expenses .", "Graphs .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 2, 42, 10, 1], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1815941", "text": ["Five years ago , the United States economy went through a recession that did virtually no damage to the housing market .", "In 2007 , the question is whether the economy can emerge unscathed from a housing recession .", "As 2006 ended , the opinion of stock market investors could not have been clearer : there are blue skies ahead .", "The Dow Jones industrial average , which was up 16.3 percent for 2006 , was setting new highs in the final week of the year , and even the shares of home builders had rallied sharply from their midyear lows .", "In the bond market , however , the outlook was cloudy at best .", "Prices in the futures market showed that investors expected that the next move by the Federal Reserve would be to reduce the interest rate it has raised 17 times since mid-2004 .", "That indicates worry about a slowing economy .", "And another traditional indicator -- the yield curve -- says the same thing .", "When short-term interest rates exceed long-term rates , as they do now , a recession often follows .", "Nonetheless , there are other indicators in the bond market to show a complete lack of worry .", "In a recession , less creditworthy borrowers are more likely to default as business turns bad , so investors who fear a downturn are expected to demand higher interest rates from them .", "But investors are not doing that .", "The spread between Treasury bonds and BB-rated bonds -- the best level of junk -- has shrunk to historic lows of less than two percentage points .", "And while very bad junk bonds -- those rated CCC or lower -- pay much more , spreads there fell to their lowest ever in 2006 , although they drifted up a bit late in the year .", "So the stock market says a boom is here and is going to stay , housing notwithstanding .", "And the bond market expects a recession -- but one that does not damage those who are financially stretched before it begins .", "`` We think of markets as forecasters , '' said Robert J . Barbera , the chief economist of ITG .", "`` But it is very hard to come up with a model '' that makes sense of the current forecasts .", "The answer to that conundrum is probably to look at markets from a different perspective .", "They move because money comes in or goes out , and money now is easier and more plentiful than ever .", "So most asset prices have risen , whether stocks or long-term bonds or commodities .", "An exception is short-term debt .", "There is no upside to a Treasury bill that matures in a few months , and thus little attraction to it .", "There is a perception that central banks tightened in 2006 , and that was true of the Federal Reserve and the European Central Bank .", "But it is anything but accurate about the central banks that matter the most now .", "`` We are in a global market , with the central banks of Japan and China very , very easy , '' Mr. Barbera said .", "`` Two central banks are pumping it out hand over fist . ''", "Where is the money going .", "Into consumption in many countries , and into a bidding war for assets as well .", "The Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index , which generally contains the largest public companies in the United States , now has eight companies in it that have announced plans to go private , often with a lot of borrowed money involved .", "And companies that are awash with cash are putting a lot of that money into dividends and even more into stock buybacks , at least among S . & P . 500 companies , reports Howard Silverblatt , an analyst with Standard & Poor 's .", "He estimates that those 500 companies spent $ 425 billion on capital in 2006 , up 3 percent from the prior year , and spent $ 437 billion on stock buybacks , up 25 percent .", "It was the first year ever that more money was spent on buybacks than capital spending .", "Dividends climbed 11 percent , to $ 224 billion .", "Stock of Exxon Mobil , the largest company in the country by market value , rose 36 percent , but because of share buybacks the company 's market value climbed only 28 percent , leaving it at $ 447 billion .", "That is still well below the record year-end value for an American company , the $ 603 billion valuation for Microsoft at the end of 1999 .", "Microsoft , its stock up 14 percent in 2006 , ended the year as the fourth-largest company , with a market value of $ 258 billion , trailing General Electric and Citigroup .", "Among all companies , not just those in the index , S . & P . counted 221 special dividends in December , the most for a single month since 1978 .", "Some stocks went down , of course , but not that many .", "All of the 10 sectors in the S . & P . 500 showed gains , with the best performance coming from telecommunications services , which rose 32 percent , and the worst from health care , which managed a gain of 6 percent .", "The overall index managed a gain in 11 of the 12 months , the exception being May .", "The last time the index managed that was in 1958 .", "For what it 's worth , the year that followed , 1959 , was a respectable year with a rise of more than 8 percent .", "But as good as the market was in the United States , it was better almost everywhere else .", "The S . & P . 500 rose 13.6 percent .", "But in dollar terms , virtually every major market in Europe was up at least 20 percent , and some grew much more .", "The Asian performance was more mixed , with Japan 's leading index rising just 5.7 percent , but many of those markets did much better than the United States did .", "The vast majority of American stocks have surpassed the highs they set in the great bull market that ended in 2000 , but that is not true of many of the most prominent stocks .", "That bull market was kindest to technology stocks .", "Many of them have not come close to recovering to their old peaks , and may never do so .", "It was also kind to large stocks in general , as a lot of money poured into index funds that tracked the S . & P . 500 index , and some of the largest , such as General Electric and Merck , are well below where they were .", "That index , calculated the traditional way that gives the highest weight to the largest companies , ended the year at 1,418.30 , still 7.1 percent below its 2000 high of 1,527.48 .", "But the index is also calculated on an equal-weighted basis , in which each of the 500 stocks counts as much as any other .", "For the year , that index did only a little better than the regular S . & P . , but it ended the year 52 percent above its 2000 high .", "The Dow , of course , set records in the year .", "But just 8 of the 30 Dow stocks -- Boeing , Exxon Mobil , Altria , American Express , Procter & Gamble , United Technologies , Caterpillar and Citigroup -- set new highs in 2006 .", "Two of them , Eastman Kodak and International Paper , have never risen above the highs they set in 1997 .", "The dollar , widely forecast to weaken , did so against the euro , and the Chinese yuan was allowed to float upward against the dollar , gaining 3.4 percent during the year .", "But the dollar actually showed a small gain against the Japanese yen .", "That the dollar held up as well as it did in the face of growing trade deficits reflects that people around the world continue to be happy to hold dollar-denominated assets , including Treasury securities .", "That willingness has also helped to hold down interest rates in this country .", "Those low interest rates helped support home prices .", "As home prices rose , lenders became more willing to lend on homes with little equity , or to people whose ability to repay seemed suspect , and that lending also provided money to keep consumption strong .", "Mortgage defaults were few and far between , which was hardly a surprise given that virtually any home could be sold for more than had been borrowed against it .", "But that started to change in 2006 .", "Some subprime loans -- a polite way of saying loans to people with poor credit -- defaulted soon after they were issued .", "The banking regulators , who had watched without action as the mortgage market heated up , finally put out guidelines aimed at restricting risky borrowing just as the market was turning lower .", "That could make it hard for homeowners under financial stress to refinance their existing home loans .", "With prices falling in some regions , home builders reported a surge of cancellations of purchase contracts .", "Housing starts plunged , and although starts showed a reassuring increase in November , newly issued permits to build new homes continued to decline .", "Oddly enough , rising home sales could be a bad sign in 2007 , particularly if prices continue to sag .", "A surge in sales of existing homes could be an indication that people were being forced to sell , and that could have a depressing effect on purchases of other things .", "In the past , when home prices fell , the number of homes sold also fell , as homeowners hung on to wait for good times to return .", "That could be harder this time , at least for those with mortgages that allow large increases in monthly payments .", "But even with housing in many areas of the United States on the ropes , much of the rest of the world seems to be humming along .", "There is strong economic growth in most of the developing world , and many commodities prices continue to be strong .", "Still , it was in commodities that the perils of a liquidity-driven market were exposed .", "Crude oil ended the year at virtually the same level as a year earlier , but spot natural gas was down 44 percent .", "It is no coincidence that a bet on natural gas led to the most notable hedge fund blowup of the year .", "Reality , in the form of warmer weather and higher inventories than expected , sent prices plunging .", "No such disasters have befallen most other markets , and with earnings strong , perhaps they will be averted .", "Easy money is driving up asset prices , and that could continue in 2007 .", "THE YEAR AHEAD IN MARKETS ."], "summary": ["Whether economy can emerge unscathed from housing recession in 2007 is unclear .", "Investors expect stock market to continue to rally as it did in 2006 .", "Outlook for bond market is cloudy because investors expect Federal Reserve to reduce interest rates as economy slows .", "Spread between Treasury bonds and BB-rated bonds -- best level of junk -- has shrunk to historic lows of less than two percentage points .", "Stock market says boom is going to stay , housing notwithstading .", "Graphs ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [12, 14, 1, 64], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1815943", "text": ["The United States and its allies in Europe , in a tacit acknowledgment that sanctions imposed by the United Nations Security Council in late December are too weak to force Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions , have embarked on a new strategy to increase the financial and psychological pressure .", "The plan is to use the language of the resolution to help persuade foreign governments and financial institutions to cut ties with Iranian businesses , individuals in its nuclear and missile programs and , by extension , the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps , said Stuart Levey , under secretary of the treasury for terrorism and financial intelligence .", "The Guard and its military wing are identified as a power base for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad .", "Under his administration , American officials said , the Guard has moved increasingly into commercial operations , earning profits and extending its influence in Iran in areas involving big government contracts -- including building airports and other infrastructure , oil production and the providing of cellphones .", "Bush administration officials , who asked not to be identified because they were discussing diplomatic plans , said envoys would soon head abroad to press officials of foreign governments and banks to interpret the Security Council resolution equally aggressively .", "The new strategy builds on the Treasury Department 's efforts over the past few months to get Western banks to scale back business with Iran or risk running afoul of American laws .", "In 2006 , the European banks Credit Suisse First Boston and UBS said they would not do any new business with Iran .", "It is hard to assess how deeply the financial actions may cut , since the most willing parties to the effort -- the United States and Europe -- have few business dealings with Iran .", "The United States does have laws that give it considerable leeway to impose financial restrictions on banks and companies doing business in Iran , while European law does not .", "That said , Britain is also backing the new push , as is France , although to a lesser extent .", "Germany , with far more business interests in Iran , is not quite as eager .", "Japan is not a member of the Security Council , and the country is heavily dependent on the Persian Gulf for oil .", "But Japanese government officials have recently indicated their willingness to limit some of their business dealings with Iran .", "Last month , the Japan Bank for International Cooperation announced that it would not issue any new loans for Iranian projects until Iran resolved the nuclear impasse with the West .", "In addition , Japan has reduced its stake in an initial $ 2 billion deal to develop Iran 's largest onshore oil field at Azadegan to 10 percent from the originally agreed 75 percent , citing concern about Iran 's nuclear program .", "While United States officials have discussed what they are trying to do with their Russian and Chinese counterparts , the belief is that they have gone about as far as they are willing to go with the Security Council resolution that passed Dec . 23 .", "Russia fought to keep certain entities off the list and to keep the list as narrow as possible .", "Mr. Levey noted that the resolution cited three people as off limits to outside commercial transactions , and , in another section , prohibited transactions with agencies `` owned or controlled '' by them .", "The three , he said , are Maj . Gen . Yahya Rahim Safavi , commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps .", "Gen . Hosein Salimi , who is in charge of the air force branch of the corps .", "And Ahmad Vahid Dastjerdi , who runs the Aerospace Industries Organization .", "Thus , an effort to bar future foreign commercial or government involvement , including bank transactions , affecting missile programs and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard is authorized by the resolution , Mr. Levey said .", "`` This resolution will be a big step forward in getting governments and financial institutions to pay more attention to Iran 's use of deceptive financial practices to facilitate its dangerous conduct and to stop doing business with the I.R.G.C. , `` Mr. Levey said , referring to the Revolutionary Guard .", "The resolution says that `` all states '' will `` take the necessary measures '' to bar `` financial assistance '' and `` financial resources or services '' related to nuclear and ballistic missile programs .", "The resolution 's appendix cites several government and private groups and 12 people as involved in those programs .", "Interrupting foreign involvement with those groups and individuals is also part of the new campaign .", "But American officials have no figures on the value of international business done with those cited in the resolution .", "The United States and European officials said they had also begun trying maneuvers aimed at undermining the self-assurance of Iranian officials , especially those who travel abroad .", "The recent arrests of four Iranian diplomats by American troops in Iraq , the officials said , played into that strategy .", "Pentagon officials said the Iranians were suspected of transferring improvised explosive devices from Iran to Iraq .", "Iran complained loudly that the men were diplomats and that their arrest violated accepted diplomatic rules .", "The diplomats , two of whom American officials said were probably members of the Revolutionary Guard , were eventually released .", "But their arrests are `` precisely the type of thing that will chip away at their confidence , '' one European official said .", "Most of the Western officials spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the issue .", "Even before the new effort began , the slowdown in international business was already emerging as a problem for Iran , which has vast oil fields but relatively little refining capacity .", "It imports 43 percent of its gasoline , according to the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security , a Washington-based nonprofit group that follows energy issues .", "In a rare acknowledgment of difficulty , the Iranian oil minister , Kazem Vaziri-Hamaneh , told the ministry 's news agency , Shana , recently that Iran was encountering obstacles in financing oil projects .", "`` Currently , overseas banks and financiers have decreased their cooperation , '' Mr. Vaziri-Hamaneh told the agency .", "Iran is already seeking to secure gasoline imports from its allies , including Venezuela , and shifting some dependency from gasoline to natural gas .", "`` Definitely , the Iranian economy is suffering a great deal as a result of the economic punishment , '' said Gal Luft , the executive director of the Institute for the Analysis of Global Security .", "But he added that Mr. Ahmadinejad `` is not just sitting on his hands and waiting . ''", "The new strategy comes in part because few believe that the sanctions resolution that passed Dec . 23 has the muscle to sway Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions , which it insists are focused on energy production , not weapons .", "The road to sanctions was a tortuous one , filled with wrangling between the United States , which pushed for tough measures , and Russia , which advocated weaker measures .", "United States and European officials said they might still try to include tougher sanctions through the United Nations in the months ahead .", "But they say the West will need to use other measures as well .", "Specifically , the United States will press France , Germany , Italy and other European countries to halt credits that encourage doing business in Iran .", "The German Ministry of Economics , in a credit program called Hermes , says on a Web site that Iran is among `` risky markets , which are also growth markets , '' identified for such credits ."], "summary": ["United States and allies in Europe embark on new strategy to increase financial and psychological pressure on Iran , in tacit acknowledgment that sanctions imposed by United Nations Security Council in late Dec are too weak to force Iran to abandon its nuclear ambitions .", "Plan is to use language of resolution to help persuade foreign governments and financial institutions to cut ties with Iranian businesses , individuals in its nuclear and missile programs and , by extension , Iranian Revolutionary Guard , which is identified as power base for Pres Mahmoud Ahmadinejad .", "It is hard to assess how deeply financial actions may cut , since most willing parties to effort -- US and Europe -- have few business dealings with Iran .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 7, 1, 2], "tag": ["World", "Washington"]}
- {"id": "1815949", "text": ["By the end of 2006 , Wall Street had every reason to celebrate .", "A second-half rally propelled the stock market to its best year since 2003 .", "Companies reported strong profits , and some , like oil producers and investment banks , had record-shattering earnings .", "Yet the year had a more precarious beginning .", "Worries were rampant that a slowdown in housing would hurt the overall economy and that the Federal Reserve would raise interest rates and stall growth .", "But the economy proved resilient , withstanding a housing slump .", "The Fed halted its campaign for higher interest rates .", "Profits accelerated , and there was a huge wave of mergers and acquisitions .", "Nonetheless , Wall Street economists are looking at 2007 with some caution .", "They expect at least some slowdown in economic growth .", "And many worry that housing 's slump will spread to other corners of the economy .", "The analysts surveyed predicted that the Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index , which closed 2006 at 1,418.30 , would end 2007 at 1,440 to 1,570 .", "Richard Bernstein Chief Investment Strategist Merrill Lynch Though concerns mount that the world is suffering from global warming , Richard Bernstein is content to call himself a `` bipolar bear . ''", "While he foresees returns rising 12 percent over the coming year -- and the S . & P . hitting 1,570 by the end of the year -- Mr. Bernstein expects increased volatility .", "That is in large part because the Fed will not ease , or lower rates , in January , he says .", "`` As the uncertainty about the Fed easing has gone up , you 've found that the market has become choppier , `` he said .", "Mr. Bernstein cautioned that he expected growth in gross domestic product to be a full percentage point below other estimates , citing in part a `` money illusion '' over the growth in the Dow and even in energy prices .", "Investors should watch earnings carefully , he said .", "`` There 's sort of an embedded assumption that earnings will be going great forever . ``", "Mr. Bernstein recommends a mix of 50 percent stocks , 30 percent bonds and 20 percent cash for investors ' portfolios .", "Among sectors to watch , Mr. Bernstein rated telecommunications as a growth sector , aided by increasing attractiveness in European and Asian companies .", "`` It 's one of our turnaround sectors , `` he said .", "He is bearish on energy and commodities , citing their cyclical nature .", "Abby Joseph Cohen Chief Investment Strategist Goldman Sachs The coming year looks to be reasonable , if a little slow , said Abby Joseph Cohen , long one of Wall Street 's optimists .", "`` We are assuming profit growth is in the process of deceleration , '' she said .", "`` Especially in the case of energy companies , we expect that they will show gains for 2007 , but they will not show as much of a boost as in previous years . ''", "Still , Ms. Cohen said , her team 's research indicates that the S . & P . is underpriced , pointing to a 12-month target of 1,550 .", "Buoyed by the Fed 's halt in raising interest rates , merger activity should keep rolling , but with more of a focus on international expansion .", "With the slowdown in housing , the economy will rotate toward discretionary consumer services , like travel , restaurants and entertainment , she said .", "Large-capitalization industrials and information technology may also see favorable growth .", "Over all , Ms. Cohen said , the economy should run well , with no real bumps in the way .", "David Bianco Chief U.S. Equity Strategist UBS Investment Research David Bianco remembers a scary moment from last summer , as he and others feared that the Fed might tighten interest rates .", "Since then , the stock market has recovered and that forward momentum should carry over into 2007 , he said .", "`` We 'll continue to see P / E expansion , `` Mr. Bianco said of price-to-earnings ratios , '' mostly driven by everybody 's fears of a weakening economy not taking place . ``", "Mr. Bianco said that he expects the Fed to cut interest rates in March , setting a fairly steady metronome for slowing but solid growth and a target S . & P . of 1,500 by year-end .", "Like Ms. Cohen , Mr. Bianco said that he sees the S . & P . as relatively undervalued .", "Despite the flurry of merger activity in 2006 , he believes that the S . & P . has been using less than half of its debt capacity , something he expects to be corrected .", "Housing will continue to slow and prices will fall further , taking consumer-related spending and industries like autos along with it , he said .", "Abhijit Chakrabortti Chief U.S. and Global Equity Strategist J . P . Morgan Chase Last year can be summed up in one phrase , according to Abhijit Chakrabortti : Value killed growth .", "`` If you had that the S . & P . would be up for the year , you would have said that tech , industrials and health care would kill value stocks , '' he said .", "`` But telecoms and utilities were the big winners . ''", "Coming off a surprisingly good 2006 , however , Mr. Chakrabortti is distinctly bearish .", "He sees slower growth in the United States compared with Asia and Europe .", "Volatility will pick up as earnings slow down , he added , and the dollar will weaken .", "The Fed will hold steady , Mr. Chakrabortti said , but other central banks will tighten .", "He predicts the S . & P . will rise to 1,440 -- the low end of targets among the analysts surveyed .", "`` I very much suspect that there will be a time when a 1,440 valuation looks good , '' he said .", "`` The market will be disappointed with the Fed , and we 'll see a significant correction sometime in the first half . ``", "Ethan S . Harris Chief U.S. Economist Lehman Brothers Ethan S . Harris said he was less surprised than most by the resilience of the stock market last year .", "He expects 2007 to be a growth year , albeit one without the boom that marked the last half of 2006 .", "`` There 's still room for the market to rally , `` he said .", "To that end , he staked an S . & P . price target of 1,570 , thanks in large part to the economy shrugging off the housing slump .", "But he also said he did not expect a completely rosy economic picture .", "Alone among economists surveyed , Mr. Harris talked about the possibility of `` a very mild version of stagflation . ''", "Moreover , he gave recession a 20 percent chance to appear in 2007 .", "THE YEAR AHEAD IN MARKETS ."], "summary": ["Wall Street economists Richard Bernstein , Abby Joseph Cohen , David Bianco , Abhijit Chakrabortti and Ethan S Harris are cautious about economy in 2007 .", "They expect at least some slowdown in economic growth .", "Many are concerned that housing 's slump will spread to other parts of economy .", "Analysts surveyed predict that Standard & Poor 's 500-stock index , which closed 2006 at 1,418.30 , will end 2007 at 1,440 to 1,570 .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [11, 9, 10, 8], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1815950", "text": ["Hundreds of people emerged from tents beside this city 's Canal St . - Martin to greet the chilly New Year with a hot lunch from a nearby soup kitchen .", "But not all of them were homeless .", "Dozens of otherwise well-housed , middle-class French have been spending nights in tents along the canal , in the 10th Arrondissement , in solidarity with the country 's growing number of `` sans domicile fixe , '' or `` without fixed address , '' the French euphemism for people living on the street .", "The bleak yet determinedly cheerful sleep-in is meant to embarrass the French government into doing something about the problem .", "`` Each person should have the minimum dignity in a country as rich as this , '' said Bleunwenn Manrot , a 28-year-old with a newsboy cap on her head and a toothbrush in her hand .", "Ms. Manrot drove more than six hours with friends from her home in Carhaix , Brittany , to spend New Year 's Eve along the canal .", "The demonstration has drawn enough media attention over the holidays for President Jacques Chirac to acknowledge it during his traditional New Year address to the nation on Sunday .", "He asked the government to work in the coming weeks to `` put in place a truly enforceable right to housing '' that would give the homeless the legal means to demand a place to live .", "Given France 's well-financed social services , the country 's homeless problem is relatively mild -- the national statistics bureau estimated the number of people living without a fixed address on any one night at 86,000 for all of France in 2004 , about equal to the number of homeless in Los Angeles alone .", "But even that number is disturbing for the socially active segment of France 's population .", "In December 2005 , the French affiliate of the international charity Doctors of the World began distributing nylon pup tents to people who sleep on Paris 's sidewalks and beneath its bridges .", "The movement took hold , and since then the tents have become a fixture in odd corners of the city .", "In an effort to increase pressure on politicians , another group , Don Quixote 's Children , marshaled some of the tent dwellers last year to set up their tents along the Canal St . - Martin , in the heart of `` bobo '' -LRB- short for bourgeois bohemian -RRB- Paris .", "The canal was dug by Napoleon to supply Paris with clean drinking water .", "Since mid-December , the encampment has become a happening in one of Paris 's most happening neighborhoods .", "`` There are 250 tents now , '' said Jean-Baptiste Legrand , the organization 's president .", "`` The people keep coming , and the tents are full . ''", "The protest has started to spread to other cities , including Orl\u00e9ans , Toulouse and Lyon , and has been picked up by politicians as the presidential campaign gets under way .", "Fran\u00e7ois Hollande , the leader of the Socialist Party , and Bertrand Delano\u00eb , the mayor of Paris , have signed the group 's petition calling for a solution to the housing problem .", "Both of the leading presidential candidates -- Nicolas Sarkozy , of the governing Union for a Popular Movement , and S\u00e9gol\u00e8ne Royal of the Socialists -- support the cause .", "Catherine Vautrin , the minister for social cohesion , met with Mr. Legrand and other members of his group and last week announced a tenfold increase in spending to help the homeless , to $ 92 million from $ 9 million .", "She said the money would allow homeless shelters to stay open around the clock on weekends and extend their weekday opening by three hours a day .", "But a legally enforceable right to housing is the biggest prize sought by housing activists , including Don Quixote 's Children , and they remain skeptical of Mr. Chirac 's New Year promise .", "France already has a hard time housing new immigrants and asylum seekers .", "Fires in overcrowded , substandard lodgings have caused scandals in recent years .", "Finding a place for the hardcore homeless is certain to complicate those problems .", "`` Chirac 's speech means nothing , `` said Ms. Manrot , the Brittany protester .", "Such comments suggest that the long camp-out will continue .", "Organizers have arranged portable toilets and a soup kitchen to keep the ad hoc village operating .", "Vans of blankets and other supplies arrive regularly , much of the material donated by Parisians .", "Volunteers sweep the canal-side cobblestones to keep the area clean .", "`` I like the protest because it 's nonviolent , `` said another protester , Renaud Huv\u00e9 , 39 , a photographer .", "`` It 's a citizens ' call . ``", "So far , the authorities have been tolerant , though they have quietly evicted tent dwellers before , when the news media were not watching .", "The police broke up one encampment under a bridge farther north along the canal in October .", "Magali Marx , 23 , a sales assistant in a clothes shop , expressed the laissez-faire attitude of the neighborhood 's residents as she passed by .", "`` It 's a bit of a pain for the people who want to walk along the side of the canal , `` she said .", "`` But then , these people do n't have a roof . ``", "Not all of the homeless are down-and-out French .", "A group of immigrants continues to live farther up the canal beneath what people in the area have dubbed `` the bridge of the Afghans . ''", "The government says that a third of the country 's homeless hold jobs .", "The homeless who make up the bulk of the canal-side campers are thankful for the attention .", "`` Let 's hope it makes a difference , `` said Jean , a middle-aged man who said he had been living on the streets of Paris for eight years .", "But staying on the street is anything but restful for those who have a warm bed waiting at home .", "Rain and high winds dampened the canal-side New Year 's Eve celebration .", "Ms. Manrot and her boyfriend , Franck Renardineau , ended up sleeping in their car .", "`` I sleep in one of the tents , '' Mr. Legrand said , rubbing his pale , exhausted face .", "`` But I 've stayed at home a couple of times .", "We 've got a lot going on . ``", "PARIS JOURNAL ."], "summary": ["Dozens of middle-class French people have been spending nights in tents along canal in Paris in solidarity with country 's growing number of homeless people .", "Demonstration has drawn enough media attention over holidays for Pres Jacques Chirac to acknowledge it during his traditional New Year address to nation .", "Given France 's well-financed social services , country 's homeless problem is relatively mild .", "But even small number of homeless is disturbing for socially active segment of France 's population .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [6, 2, 9], "tag": ["World"]}
- {"id": "1815974", "text": ["Public School 64 , a vacant building with a leaky roof , broken windows and a colony of pigeons , sits on East Ninth Street near Tompkins Square Park at the center of one of the last fights against gentrification in Manhattan .", "Since 1998 , it has touched off pitched battles in the neighborhood , embroiling two mayoral administrations and employing a legion of lawyers and fixers , all for naught .", "In November , vandals broke in and painted the walls with another layer of anti-landlord graffiti .", "Gregg Singer , the small-time developer who bought the building , which runs from Ninth Street to 10th Street , for $ 3.15 million at a city auction , says he has been stymied at every turn from renovating the building for elderly tenants , nonprofit organizations or college dormitories .", "He said he was the victim of a political deal between Mayor Michael R . Bloomberg and a former city councilwoman , Margarita L\u00f3pez .", "Mr. Singer 's opponents view him as an interloper with little respect for the needs of the community or the building 's history as a political and cultural center for the East Village and Lower East Side .", "They say his secret intention is to build luxury housing .", "The opponents include not only neighborhood activists but nearly every local elected official , the pro-development Bloomberg administration and the owner of the penthouse next door at the Christadora House , a 1980s symbol of encroaching gentrification where protesters once chanted , `` Kill yuppie scum . ''", "The 16-story , 79-year-old apartment building originally housed a charity by the same name that helped immigrants adjust to life in New York .", "More than eight years after Mr. Singer bought the building , there is no end in sight .", "P.S. 64 is a blight even as Tompkins Square Park , the site of a homeless encampment and riot in 1988 , has been transformed into a quiet oasis for the white-collar professionals who live nearby .", "`` It 's an amazing tale , `` said Steven Spinola , president of the Real Estate Board of New York .", "`` Whatever you believe , the fact that this has dragged on so long is amazing .", "The property continues to be an eyesore and a wasted opportunity in the neighborhood . ``", "Last year , the city declared the building a landmark , an example of the French Renaissance Revival style .", "It now plans to change the zoning to eliminate most development options .", "`` For the government to sell me the building and then landmark it , it 's like bait and switch , `` Mr. Singer said .", "`` Complaints from the community do n't bother me .", "It 's the government that 's the problem .", "They 've blocked me from doing any useful development here . ``", "City officials called his claims nonsense and have asked that the suit be dismissed .", "Virginia Waters , a city lawyer , said that Mr. Singer could use the building for a medical or community center , or a dormitory , so long as the city is assured it would be occupied by students .", "`` The city has in no way prohibited those uses from going forward , '' she said .", "`` However , we have read that he wants an exorbitant rent .", "That may be his problem . ``", "Ms. L\u00f3pez , who was appointed last April to the city 's Housing Authority by Mr. Bloomberg , did not return calls about the controversy .", "The atmosphere is poisonous .", "One flier likened Mr. Singer 's dormitory design to a Nazi concentration camp .", "Another invited people to toss dog droppings over the construction fence .", "More recently , Mr. Singer put up his own posters announcing that the `` Christotora Treatment Center , '' for the homeless , drug addicted and recently paroled , was `` coming soon . ''", "And he set off a furor when he used an old permit to alter the outside of the building to buttress his suit challenging landmark designation .", "`` Singer 's been combative from the beginning , `` said David McWater , the chairman of Community Board 3 , which includes Ninth Street .", "`` He thinks it 's his God-given right to make as much money as he can . ``", "There was little question that Mr. Singer had stepped onto a minefield when he outbid a dozen rival bidders in July 1998 at an city auction .", "Police officers offered to escort him past an angry group of protesters .", "It took a year to close on the property , which Mr. Singer says is now worth $ 51 million , though the effect of landmark status is unclear .", "The building came with a deed restriction : It must be used as a `` community facility , '' including a library , nursing home or clinic , or for social service or arts groups .", "The original opposition to the sale was led by Armando Perez and Chino Garcia of Charas , a community group that established the El Bohio Cultural and Community Center in the building after P.S. 64 closed in 1977 .", "Over time , it became a home for housing activists , artists , theater groups , a bicycle repair shop and the Latin Kings , a notorious street gang .", "The school is `` symbolic of the struggle in our community , '' said Councilwoman Rosie Mendez , Ms. L\u00f3pez 's successor .", "`` When everyone else fled the community during the 1970s , we took out the rubble and created community gardens , affordable housing .", "He can move forward on developing this as a community facility , or he can decide to sell it . ``", "In 1997 , Antonio Pag\u00e1n , who had clashed with Charas and who was then the local city councilman , urged the Giuliani administration to auction the property .", "The fight to `` save '' P.S. 64 became a cause c\u00e9l\u00e8bre among local groups , the Puerto Rican Legal Defense Fund , the actress Susan Sarandon and Ms. L\u00f3pez , a friend of Mr. Perez 's who later succeeded Mr. Pag\u00e1n on the Council .", "Mr. Singer 's first move was to evict Charas .", "That took more than two years and 110 police officers to haul away protesters who had chained themselves together .", "`` The anger was n't at Gregg , per se , `` said Lyn Pentecost , executive director of the Lower East Side Girls Club .", "But he had `` stepped into the thick of community politics . ''", "At one point , Ms. Pentecost said , she offered to buy a third of the building for the Girls Club for $ 3 million .", "She said Mr. Singer was interested only in leasing it .", "`` He 's an opportunist , `` said Valerio Orselli , a member of Charas .", "`` I do n't believe for a minute that Mr. Singer intended it to be the community center we envisioned . ``", "The developer tells a different story : He says that Ms. L\u00f3pez warned the Girls Club , and many other nonprofits , not to get involved with him .", "He said 108 schools and nonprofit and social service organizations responded to an appeal he sent to 1,000 groups , but they all backed out .", "No doubt some potential tenants who visited the building were scared off by the frequent protests outside , so perhaps New York University , the New School and the New York Society for the Deaf decided to sidestep a volatile situation .", "John Caizzo , a vice president at the DeMatteis Organization , who decided on a different site for his company 's project , acknowledged that the building `` seems like a hot potato . ''", "But no city officials told him to stay away , he said .", "But Cecilia Abrilla , a director of the Puerto Rican Alliance , on the Lower East Side , wrote to Mr. Singer in 2003 saying Ms. L\u00f3pez `` has cast a warning to the nonprofit community to stay away from Mr. Singer '' by threatening to withdraw financial support for the organizations .", "And a top city official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the litigation made it clear that the local community effectively has veto power .", "`` At the end of the day , '' the official said , Mr. Singer `` will have to find an accommodation with the community . ''", "After a series of meetings in 2004 with Robert B . Tierney , chairman of the Landmarks Commission , Mr. Singer devised a plan to preserve the Ninth Street side of the old school while building a 19-story dormitory tower at the rear .", "He said as much as $ 2 million a year in excess revenue would flow to local groups .", "In return , according to the lawsuit , Mr. Tierney promised to refrain from landmarking and support a building permit .", "But the proposal ignited broader opposition , and the Buildings Department denied him a permit after imposing what Mr. Singer called `` an unprecedented requirement '' that he prove that he had a contract with a specific school for the housing .", "City officials said they imposed the rule after unscrupulous developers had tried to convert `` dormitories '' into market-rate housing .", "Days later , Mr. Singer said , Ms. L\u00f3pez , a Democrat , announced her endorsement of Mr. Bloomberg , a Republican with whom she had quarreled , rather than the challenger , Fernando Ferrer .", "Michael Rosen , who lives in the penthouse at Christadora House , formed a new group that lobbied to designate the school a city landmark .", "`` The thought of a dormitory , tall or short , was out of place in this neighborhood , '' he said , adding , `` My hope is that the building comes back to serve people who are in need . ''", "Mr. Singer scoffed , saying Mr. Rosen did not want his views blocked .", "In June , the Landmarks Commission voted to designate P.S. 64 a landmark , over the objection of the Real Estate Board , a powerful lobbying organization .", "`` The building should never have been landmarked , '' Mr. Spinola , the board 's president , said .", "Further , he said , the city 's new requirement for dormitories was tantamount to `` telling a commercial developer he must have leases before they 'll give him a permit . ``", "City lawyers denied many of Mr. Singer 's assertions .", "`` Landmarks never had a deal with him , '' said Gabriel Taussig of the Law Department .", "`` He had nothing in writing . ''", "Mr. Singer sued over the permit denial and lost .", "He is appealing .", "The first , and so far only , attempt at a settlement came in July , when Mr. Singer met with Ms. Mendez , United States Representative Nydia Vel\u00e1zquez and a lawyer for the city .", "The two sides explored a proposal for Mr. Singer to provide space for community groups while he built apartments in the rest of the building .", "The talks quickly collapsed , with each side blaming the other .", "That is when Mr. Singer stripped terra cotta elements and copper cornices from the building 's exterior , a move the politicians saw as a breach of faith .", "`` I 'm disappointed that all the negotiations have broken down , `` said William Jones , pastor of the Gospel Fellowship Church nearby .", "`` I would 've been thrilled if there was a compromise that allowed residential development and community space . `` ."], "summary": ["Developer Gregg Singer and New York City 's East Village community continue eight-year running battle over development plans for former Public School 64 .", "Singer says city has stymied his plans to renovate building for elderly tenants , nonprofit organizations or college dormitories .", "Community says Singer secretly intends to build luxury housing .", "Singer has filed three suits against city .", "One suit contends Mayor Michael R Bloomberg made political deal with former councilwoman Margarita Lopez to block Singer development plans .", "Singer expresses anger over city 's declaring building landmark and plans to rezone area to eliminate most development options ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 4, 15, 6], "tag": ["New York and Region"]}
- {"id": "1816052", "text": ["Logan Fox ca n't quite pinpoint the moment when movies and television shows replaced books as the cultural topics people liked to talk about over dinner , at cocktail parties , at work .", "He does know that at Micawber Books , his 26-year-old independent bookstore here that is to close for good in March , his own employees prefer to come in every morning and gossip about `` Survivor '' or `` that fashion reality show '' whose title he ca n't quite place .", "`` It kills me , '' Mr. Fox , 53 , said over coffee on Friday afternoon , shaking his head .", "`` The amount of time spent discussing culturally iconic shows has superseded anything in the way of books that I can detect .", "Discussing books is very much one on one .", "It just hurts me . ``", "Mr. Fox is bracing himself for an emotionally wrenching few months .", "In December Micawber announced that it would close , after years of fighting not only the tyranny of other media but also the steady encroachment of big-box retail competitors and the Internet .", "Independent bookstores , of course , have been under siege for nearly two decades by the megachains and the Web retailers , and have been steadily dropping away , one by one .", "Now , though , the battle is reaching some of the last redoubts .", "Mr. Fox said that Micawber 's first chain competitor , Encore Books , arrived in the mid-1990s , and his sales plummeted 25 percent , nearly putting him out of business .", "Soon after , Barnes & Noble and Borders came to town .", "And then there was Amazon.com.", "But beyond those factors , Mr. Fox said , he blames a change in American culture , in the quickening pace of people 's lives , in the shrinking willingness to linger .", "During the 1980s , in the store 's early days , customers would come in and stay all afternoon , carefully inspecting the books that were packed tightly together , spine to spine .", "No longer .", "`` The driving force of all of this is the acceleration of our culture , '' Mr. Fox said .", "`` The old days of browsing , the old days of a person coming in for three or four hours on a Saturday and slowly meandering , making a small pile of books , being very selective , coming away with six or seven gems they wanted , are pretty much over .", "If you go to the Strand or to Micawber Books today , it 's a whole different gear , where society wants satisfaction and fulfillment now . ``", "The other crisis for independent booksellers , Mr. Fox said , is the current state of publishing .", "The job of building writers ' reputations and nurturing them has fallen to agents , he said .", "Publishers are concerned only with the bottom line , he added , looking for the home run instead of the single .", "And there is the question of quality .", "Though Micawber carries a few , Mr. Fox laments the rapid growth of the celebrity cookbook genre .", "Children 's books , in particular , are driven by marketability instead of creativity , said Bobbie Fishman , the children 's books buyer at Micawber .", "`` It 's either pirates , wizards , one of a series , or written by Katie Couric , `` she said .", "Independent bookstores across the country are suffocating , squeezed by Amazon.com and the chain bookstores that deliver deeper discounts and wider variety than independent shops .", "According to the American Booksellers Association , a trade group of independent bookstores , there are about 2,500 such stores in the United States , down from about 4,700 in 1993 .", "And that is not counting those that sell only used books .", "Micawber opened in 1981 , when Princeton was an old-money kind of place , with independently owned shops lining Nassau Street , adjacent to the picturesque Princeton University campus .", "`` When we first came , every store on this street was a 15 - , 20-year entrenched old-family business , '' Mr. Fox said .", "Today that same thoroughfare is dominated by chain stores like Ann Taylor and Foot Locker .", "Micawber Books , with its purple walls and its alien name , which comes from Dickens ' novel `` David Copperfield , '' is the one that sticks out now .", "Half the store is devoted to secondhand books and other vintage publications , like a stack of Archie comics on the register .", "The other half is new books , a well-edited mix that includes fiction , history , children 's books and the occasional concession to popular taste , like Rachael Ray 's `` Express Lane Meals . ''", "-LRB- There are also stalwarts , evidenced by the back wall of shelves lined with Penguin Classics . -RRB-", "Mr. Fox is proudly from the old school of bookselling .", "He says he has only been inside a Barnes & Noble store three times .", "-LRB- `` I ca n't do it , `` he said , grimacing . -RRB-", "In the mid-1990s , when the struggling Micawber took on Margaret Griffin as a partner , she insisted that Mr. Fox abandon his system of 3-by-5-inch index cards in boxes and become computerized .", "The new Sony Reader , a handheld device that stores dozens of titles electronically .", "Never tried it .", "`` I do n't want to sound corny about it , `` Mr. Fox said .", "`` But there is something transformative about the book . ''", "Mr. Fox began as a bookseller in the ` 70s at the Strand Book Store in Manhattan , and moved to Princeton to open Micawber , then a store devoted entirely to secondhand books from his own personal library .", "His father , Joe Fox , was an editor at Random House , nurturing the careers of John Irving and Truman Capote .", "His childhood was sprinkled with the romantic stuff of traditional New York publishing , with swanky book parties attended by famous authors and writers for The Paris Review .", "In her 1998 film , `` You 've Got Mail , `` Nora Ephron used the name of his father , who , as it happens , was also a former boyfriend of hers .", "Joe Fox was the name she gave the character played by Tom Hanks , a chain bookstore owner who swiftly puts Meg Ryan and her tiny shop around the corner out of business .", "Of course , in the Micawber story , Logan Fox is in the Meg Ryan role , the person who champions the mom-and-pop store and derides the corporate behemoth .", "In Micawber 's case , Mr. Fox said there was no imminent financial crisis , only the recognition that years from now , selling the business would be a far more difficult task .", "`` Ten years down the road , we could n't imagine who would buy us at all , `` he said .", "After Micawber quietly put out the word that it was for sale , Princeton University offered to buy the building that houses the store for an undisclosed sum , and promised to bring in Labyrinth Books , a scholarly chain with stores in New Haven and Manhattan .", "All the architectural details incorporated into Micawber , Mr. Fox pointed out sadly , will be bulldozed .", "And he has no idea what he will do next .", "Still , Mr. Fox said he was trying hard not to be cynical .", "`` I consider this a success story , '' he said .", "`` Our intention was to be a good townspeople store . '' ."], "summary": ["Logan Fox has sold his independent bookstore Micawber Books in Princeton , NJ . Laments cultural shift away from books .", "Holds that fast pace of life and shrinking attention spans have made customers less eager to linger and search for books in store that forgoes commercial push of best sellers at front of store .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 13, 0], "tag": ["Arts", "Education", "Books"]}
- {"id": "1816057", "text": ["Diane Sawyer , whose continued commitment to `` Good Morning America '' has been the subject of speculation since Charles Gibson departed the show in June , has in recent weeks left some executives at ABC with the impression that she intends to remain with the program until at least early summer , according to one executive briefed directly on Ms. Sawyer 's status .", "By sending signals that she intends to stay with `` Good Morning America '' -- at least through the end of the current prime-time television season , and perhaps longer still -- Ms. Sawyer has prompted some exhaling in the upper echelons of both the news division and the network as a whole .", "That is because she remains ABC 's biggest news star in the morning -- and perhaps the evening as well -- on a program that is by far the news division 's most valuable , with annual profits believed to be well in excess of $ 100 million .", "The executive , who spoke yesterday on condition of anonymity because of the delicate diplomacy involved , said Ms. Sawyer had met before Christmas , as she does periodically , with David Westin , the president of ABC News .", "Separately , the official said , she had also had a holiday lunch in New York with Robert A . Iger , the president and chief executive of the Walt Disney Company , ABC 's corporate parent , though that get-together was characterized as more social than business .", "By staying put , Ms. Sawyer , 61 , also promises to keep `` Good Morning America '' competitive with `` Today '' on NBC , the ratings leader for more than a decade , at a moment when that program and its audience are continuing to adjust to a new co-anchor , Meredith Vieira , who replaced Katie Couric in September .", "-LRB- Since Mr. Gibson 's departure for `` World News , '' `` Good Morning America '' has gone through some growing pains of its own , as it introduced Chris Cuomo as its news reader and Sam Champion as its weatherman , while pairing Robin Roberts with Ms. Sawyer as lead anchors . -RRB-", "In the most recent November sweeps period , `` Today '' had an average daily audience of 5.8 million , about 735,000 more than `` Good Morning America , '' which drew an audience of about 5.1 million , according to Nielsen Media Research .", "During the same period a year ago , the lead of `` Today '' over `` Good Morning America '' was about 5,000 viewers larger , although both shows have lost viewers over the last year .", "In June an ABC spokesman said Ms. Sawyer remained committed to `` Good Morning America '' through at least early 2007 .", "When asked in September how much longer she planned to stay with the program , she told a reporter that she was not ready to entertain that question .", "`` ` I 'm sorry if it sounds like a dodge , `` she said at the time .", "`` I truly am looking ahead and enjoying this part .", "And there is plenty of time to think about what remains after -- when and whether . ``", "When asked yesterday about Ms. Sawyer , Jeffrey Schneider , a senior vice president of ABC News , dismissed any notion of a timetable for her tenure on the program .", "He added : `` Diane is having a great time on ' G.M.A. '", "She loves the new team .", "And she has had an unrivaled run of groundbreaking reporting which has her passionately engaged . ``", "Ms. Sawyer 's current contract with the network extends for at least two more years , said the executive with knowledge of her situation .", "But Ms. Sawyer has always characterized her tenure on `` Good Morning America '' as temporary -- and the network has regarded it as such -- even if it has been eight years since she joined the show , at a moment of crisis , after the network had just jettisoned a new , low-rated anchor team ."], "summary": ["Diane Sawyer indicates that she will stay with ABC morning program Good Morning America until at least early summer .", "Decision prompts sigh of relief from upper echelons of news division and network as whole , who have relied on Sawyer for star power since departure of Charles Gibson .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1], "tag": ["Arts"]}
- {"id": "1816064", "text": ["SOMETHING made me uneasy when I dropped a box of gluten-free EnviroKidz organic Koala Crisp cereal in my shopping cart .", "But it 's hard to suspect a cartoon koala , so I moved on .", "The unsettling sensation came back when I bought a bag of my favorite organic frozen French fries .", "Why did the verdant fields in the Cascadian Farm logo make me feel so smug .", "Then I got really suspicious .", "A bag of natural Cheetos seemed so much more appealing than the classic cheese puff .", "Why .", "Was it the image of a subdued Chester Cheetah rising gently from a farm field bathed in golden sunlight .", "Like clues to a murder that suddenly point to a single culprit , the mystery in my shopping cart revealed itself .", "Wheat sheaf by wheat sheaf , sunrise by sunrise , the grocery store shelves had been greenwashed .", "And I was falling for it .", "The kind of greenwashing I 'm talking about is not just a fake environmental ethos .", "Greenwashing , it seems to me , can also describe a pervasive genre of food packaging designed to make sure that manufacturers grab their slice of the $ 25 billion that American shoppers spend each year on natural or organic food .", "As a design shorthand , it makes subtle use of specific colors , images , typefaces and the promise of what marketers call `` an authentic narrative '' to sell food .", "Especially in recent years , greenwashing has spilled out well past the organic section of the grocery store .", "Even the snack aisle at the gas station is n't immune .", "`` Somebody becomes successful with a specific point of view , and the consumer begins to identify with it and it spreads like a virus , '' said Paula Scher , a partner in Pentagram , an international design firm .", "From there it 's only a matter of time before Cap 'n Crunch shows up in a hemp jacket , raising money to save the manatees .", "Buy a greenwashed product and you 're buying a specific set of healthy environmental and socially correct values .", "If the package does its work , then the food inside does n't actually have to be organic , only organic-ish .", "The right cues on a package free mass-market consumers from doing any homework , said Elizabeth Talerman , a branding analyst .", "They can assume that a group she calls the green elite -- those early adopters who pushed for organic food laws and who helped make Whole Foods markets a success -- have done the work for them .", "`` The mass market wants an instant identifier , '' said Ms. Talerman , a longtime New York advertising consultant .", "So what are the identifiers .", "After shopping for dozens of products in places as varied as food co-ops and convenience stores , I 've uncovered the essential elements of a greenwashed product .", "Start with a gentle image of a field or a farm to suggest an ample harvest gathered by an honest , hard-working family .", "To that end , strangely oversize vegetables or fruits are good .", "If they are dew-kissed and nestled in a basket , all the better .", "A little red tractor is O.K. Pesticide tanks and rows of immigrant farm laborers bent over in the hot sun are not .", "Earth 's Best , a baby and toddler food company , offers a delicious example .", "Its whole grain rice cereal features two babies working the rice fields .", "One is white and one is black .", "-LRB- A greenwashed package would never show the black child working in the fields alone . -RRB-", "A sign that looks hand-hewn declares `` No GMO 's . ``", "There is a barn , a butterfly and a typeface that could have come from the back room of a general store .", "A good greenwashed product should show an animal displaying special skills or great emotional range .", "Some Organic Valley packages feature a sax-playing , environmentally friendly earthworm .", "Jaunty cows on Stonyfield Farm yogurt wear sunglasses and headbands .", "The cows on Horizon 's milk cartons dance a bovine jig , despite challenges by organic purists that some Horizon cows see precious little pasture .", "A little family history helps , too .", "My Family Farm of Fort Thomas , Ky . , sells packaged cookies and crackers and promises to give some of the money to charity .", "On the back of the box is a story that begins , `` With careers as licensed social workers , my sister and I are committed to improving the lives of children . ''", "A carton of Country Hen omega-3 eggs , which cost $ 3.69 for six , had a fuzzy black-and-white photograph inside showing the company 's owner , George Bass , and the entire Country Hen family , along with their favorite eggnog recipe .", "A cause is important .", "Nature 's Path , the maker of Koala Crisp , promises that 1 percent of sales will be spent saving endangered species .", "Barbara 's Bakery , maker of Puffins cereal , pays for the National Audubon Society 's live `` puffin cams '' in the Gulf of Maine .", "Buy a box of Peace Cereal 's raspberry ginger crisp , and a percentage of the profit helps pay for International Peace Prayer Day in New Mexico .", "The actual health benefits of a product do n't always matter .", "A package of organic Naturepops from College Farm shows a field of lollipops and a barn , suggesting a well-educated farmer tending her candy .", "The sugar might come from cane juice and tapioca syrup , but it 's sugar just the same .", "And although `` organic '' is losing its power as a code word for certain cultural values , it does n't hurt to flaunt it if you 've got it .", "The word appears 21 times on a box of Cascadian Farm Vanilla Almond Crunch .", "Having established a design paradigm that succeeds in selling food that is often more expensive than conventional groceries , the design world should perhaps rejoice .", "This is not the case .", "Some top brand and package designers find the cartoonish animals and bad hippie typefaces as grating as a self-righteous vegan at a barbecue .", "But then , they did n't like American food package design that much to begin with .", "`` It 's the bottom of the barrel , `` said Ms. Scher , who works in the New York office of Pentagram design .", "Riskier designs , like the clean lettering and curvy bottle of Pom Wonderful pomegranate juice , are rare .", "Food manufacturers usually agonize over changing the size of a box or shifting the background color from teal to aquamarine .", "But when a trend starts to show success , it 's a design pileup .", "That 's what happened with the natural and organic category , which makes up about 10 percent of the food at the grocery store and has been growing by more than 20 percent a year since 2000 .", "In the grocery business , a 4 percent jump is considered a victory .", "`` It 's aisle after aisle of design desperation , `` said Brian Collins , chairman and chief creative officer of the design group at Ogilvy , the international advertising and public relations company .", "He called the look `` phony na\u00efvet\u00e9 '' and predicted that its demise was close because consumers are wising up .", "There is value in telling a story , but it must be true , he said .", "Merely dressing up the package is not enough , he said .", "Nonetheless , manufacturers are eager to project a wholesome image .", "`` It 's the halo effect , `` said Caren Wilcox , executive director of the Organic Trade Association .", "`` That 's why we encourage consumers to look for the U.S.D.A. organic seal . ``", "But even the organic seal does n't necessarily offer assurances that the item is produced in a way that jibes with consumer expectations for something that comes in a greenwashed package .", "`` All the ingredients being used in items with the organic seal are produced using the organic system , '' Ms. Wilcox said .", "`` It does n't mean they do n't sometimes end up in products some people think other people should n't eat . ``", "Design and packaging experts fix the start of sincerity and authenticity in food package design in the 1970s .", "Mo Siegel began selling Celestial Seasonings tea in boxes with sleepy bears .", "Tom and Kate Chappell gave up the corporate life to create Tom 's of Maine toothpaste .", "Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield sold ice cream in Vermont , using goofy hand-rendered graphics to tell their story .", "The trend grew in the 1980s , when corporate America entered a noncorporate phase .", "`` Companies began to try to not look like big companies , '' Ms. Scher said .", "By the late 1990s , anything with a hint of natural organic goodness sold in big numbers .", "Today , many companies that started with a humble story line have been purchased by larger interests .", "Unilever owns Ben and Jerry 's , the Hain Celestial Group is traded on Nasdaq and Tom 's of Maine is controlled by Colgate-Palmolive .", "The kind of imagery that once marked a brand as an alternative to corporate food conglomerates has now been incorporated into Lay 's potato chips .", "Consumers can buy classic Lay 's in the shiny yellow bag , or Natural Lay 's , with a thicker cut , expeller-pressed oil and sea salt .", "The package has a brown harvest graphic design , old-timey typefaces and a matte bag .", "The natural chips cost about 10 cents an ounce more than the classics .", "A handful of either still offers 150 calories and 10 grams of fat .", "`` When it gets to Lay 's , `` Ms. Scher said , '' its time to change . ``", "Ms. Talerman , the New York advertising consultant , predicted that the fascination with what she called the green identifiers will last about five years longer .", "Then , she said , green-elite food consumers will push companies for even more information about environmental impact , labor practices and community involvement , and mass market consumers will start reading labels instead of just searching out easy identifiers .", "Food manufacturers might begin to copy the new nutrition-style labels that Timberland is putting on its shoe boxes .", "Each one lists the amount of energy it took to make the shoes , how much of that was renewable , whether child labor was used and how many hours per pair Timberland dedicated to community service .", "`` As soon as the mass market starts to understand these issues more , '' Ms. Talerman predicted , `` we 'll get away from the fields and the giant vegetables and get back to better design . ``", "It 's More or Less Natural , And It 's Getting Bigger by the Day EACH year grocery manufacturers roll out tens of thousands of products , ever hopeful that a new box of crackers or a frozen entree will be a hit with consumers .", "In 2006 , 17,779 food products were introduced , according to Mintel International , a market research company .", "That 's a jump of almost 2,000 items over the previous year .", "Of those products , 3,761 either were organic or had an all-natural claim on the label .", "`` It seems now that everybody is getting into organics , '' said Lynn Dornblaser , a new-products industry analyst at Mintel .", "She predicted that in 2007 , a shakedown will occur in the organic industry as its products become accessible to larger numbers of people .", "One key indicator of this shift is that Wal-Mart is selling organic products for less money than many competitors .", "Other fast-growing categories last year were baby food , with 116 new products , and ready-to-eat meals or meal-replacement products , with 1,125 items , up from 791 in 2005 .", "Desserts , ice cream and candy came out at a healthy clip , but fruits and vegetables were not so lucky .", "The number of new products in that category dropped by 13 percent .", "`` We 're also seeing more of a focus on authentically ethnic foods , `` Ms. Dornblaser said .", "`` It 's not just pasta sauce : it 's pasta sauce from Tuscany . ``", "Indian food , in particular , is beginning to catch on .", "Although the numbers are small -- only 143 new Indian food items appeared last year -- the figure is almost double the number brought out the year before .", "KIM SEVERSON ."], "summary": ["Food manufacturers are greenwashing their packaging , using specific colors , images and typefaces to convey message that product is healthy .", "In recent years , greenwashing has spilled out past organic section , even into snack section .", "Packaging often displays fields , farms , animals or allegiance to worthy cause , and includes words like ` natural ' and ` healthy ' .", "Photos .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [14, 13, 43, 66], "tag": ["Arts", "Dining and Wine"]}
- {"id": "1816065", "text": ["DREW NIEPORENT still remembers the afternoon in the 1970s when Warner LeRoy ordered him to turn off the Barbra Streisand eight-track .", "Mr. Nieporent , who today operates restaurants from Louisville to London , was tending the bar for Mr. LeRoy at Maxwell 's Plum on the Upper East Side .", "He cued up the Streisand tape every day at lunch .", "It 's no longer clear if it was the warble of the tape or of `` Evergreen '' that set Mr. LeRoy off , but he ordered the eight-track turned off and pronounced that from that moment on , music was forever banned during lunch at Maxwell 's Plum .", "Silent , strident or Streisand , there 's no consensus on what should play on the dining room hi-fi . Without an easy recipe for success , chefs and restaurateurs turn to consultants , D.J. ` s , enthusiastic staff members and their own record collections , seeking a mix that works .", "`` Music in restaurants is a sore issue in general , '' said Andrew Carmellini , who , when he 's not manning the stoves at A Voce , is working on his second recording with his band , the Crown .", "`` Pre-opening , I thought my list was brilliant , '' he said .", "`` But you name the complaint -- the jazz is too boring , the horns are too shrill , there 's too much bass -- and we 've gotten it . ``", "Many restaurateurs try to avoid such complaints by seeking professional help .", "Food service establishments make up `` a significant portion '' of the 400,000 locations into which Muzak pipes music , according to Karen Vigeland , a company spokeswoman .", "The bulk of those are quick-service places , but Muzak 's roster also includes more elite clients , like ` Wichcraft , the sandwich chain Tom Colicchio has an interest in .", "Dean & DeLuca 's cafes .", "And Emeril Lagasse 's restaurants .", "-LRB- Apologies to anyone who had illusions that Doc Gibbs , Mr. Lagasse 's musical sidekick on `` Emeril Live , '' is selecting the discs at Emeril 's . -RRB-", "Many of Muzak 's clients purchase one of the company 's 90 or so `` core programs , '' themed mixes with titles like `` Rock Show '' or `` Concrete Beats , '' each of which is about 1,200 songs long .", "For others , the company generates custom soundtracks , which may be a core program with advertising spliced in -LRB- touting breakfast sandwich deals in the morning , for example -RRB- or a mix that 's tailored to a restaurant 's particular vibe .", "Part of the appeal of services like Muzak or Digital Music Xperience , another large music consulting firm , is that they make life easier : No iPods to lose , no CDs to scratch .", "The bulk of Muzak 's customers stream the company 's musical feed over the Internet or through a satellite dish .", "Jeremy Abrams , managing partner of the New York-based music consulting company Audiostiles , said that a large percentage of his clients come to him from the larger companies `` looking for something a little more customized and up-to-date . ''", "Daniel Boulud 's restaurant group , Dinex , left Muzak three years ago to become Audiostiles 's first restaurant client .", "Since then , Thomas Keller 's restaurants in New York , California and Las Vegas , and the Four Seasons hotel group have signed on .", "Mr. Abrams said he tailors playlists to the time of the day they 'll be heard .", "To determine exactly what will work for each place , he polls clients on the tempos and genres they want , asking them whether they prefer instrumentals or vocals , new music or something familiar .", "Some restaurants , looking for an even more intimate approach , turn to D.J. ` s .", "Nemo Librizzi started out choosing the music for the restaurants at the Maritime Hotel and has since added Barbuto , Employees Only , Thor and more to his roster .", "Describing himself as the kind of guy who shows up to meetings without business cards or much of a plan , he said : `` I like to tell clients that they can have me come in and do a mix for them for a few thousand dollars , but that 's like an off-the-rack suit , like buying music by the yard .", "I prefer to do multiple fittings , to tailor the music after hearing feedback from the staff . ``", "His basic strategy might include `` a little jazzy after work music '' for the cocktail hour and late-night montages in which he will slip samples of Jack Kerouac reading from `` On the Road '' between cuts of pygmy music .", "`` Sometimes when I look at a place I hear this kind of music being played , '' he said .", "`` Certain music likes to live in certain rooms .", "I do n't understand it .", "It 's like magic . ``", "Muzak or magic , some restaurateurs ca n't abide the thought of having an outsider select a soundtrack .", "`` Just like I would n't outsource one of my restaurants ' wine lists , I would never outsource the music , `` said Danny Meyer , whose Union Square Hospitality Group operates nine venues in New York .", "Both Mr. Nieporent and Mr. Meyer rely on managers to fine-tune the mix .", "`` Getting it right is a function of watching the guests , '' Mr. Meyer said .", "`` In a restaurant setting , music is a little like air-conditioning -- no one 's going to tell you when the air-conditioning is perfect , but when it is , the conversations in the room will be more energetic . ``", "-LRB- Digital Music Xperience developed a high-tech system to manage the Panera Bread chain 's `` aural strategy '' -- the music -- with microphones in the ceilings of the company 's stores that measure noise level in the room and adjust the volume of the music accordingly . -RRB-", "Sometimes the music program is a group effort .", "Gabriel Stulman , who owns the Little Owl with the chef Joey Campanaro , said the eclectic mix of music played there is `` mine , Joey 's , the servers and all . ``", "Sometimes it 's a solo show : regulars at Babbo are accustomed to having plates of black spaghetti with rock shrimp served with an audible side of whatever Mario Batali likes , as loud as he likes , whenever he likes .", "-LRB- These days his iPod is more likely to be dishing up the plaintive croon of Michael Stipe than the mix of Led Zeppelin and Jimi Hendrix that dominated the restaurant 's dining room in its early years . -RRB-", "At the Great Jones Cafe in NoHo , the manager , Bill Judkins , stocks the restaurant 's jukebox with seven-inch singles from his own personal and obsessively manicured collection .", "On Dec . 26 , he replaced part of the jukebox 's holiday lineup with a selection of James Brown and James Brown side project records , to honor the Godfather of Soul .", "But not all restaurant folks have 45s of `` Hot Pants '' at their fingertips .", "Some even choose the most radical soundtrack of all .", "Grant Achatz , the chef of Alinea in Chicago , says he has `` great appreciation for but limited knowledge '' of music , and that that is one reason he has chosen not to play any in his dining rooms .", "Beyond that , he said , he has not yet found a way to match the acoustics to the food in a restaurant full of people , each of them at different points in his lengthy tasting menus .", "He did experiment with speakers above each table that would deploy `` audio spotlight '' technology , which can project a very precise beam of sound into a narrowly delineated area .", "But the noises bounced off the hardwood tabletops and reverberated throughout the space .", "Hearing a crunch during a creamy course , he said , just did n't seem right .", "The system , he said , is `` back on the drawing board '' for now .", "And until that changes , his customers will just have to eat Mr. Achatz 's `` white truffle explosion '' to the sounds of silence .", "Correction : January 10 , 2007 , Wednesday An article last week about music in restaurants misstated the relationship between Muzak and ` Wichcraft restaurants .", "Muzak provided stereo equipment for a ` Wichcraft restaurant in San Francisco .", "It does not provide the chain with recorded music .", "Correction : January 15 , 2007 , Monday An article in Thursday Styles on Dec . 7 about holiday music in retail stores and an article in Dining on Jan . 3 about the debate over playing music in restaurants misstated the name of a music consulting company that sells audio systems and programming to such businesses .", "It is DMX -- not Digital Music Express or Digital Music Xperience ."], "summary": ["Chefs and restaurant owners sometimes turn to consultants or even staff members for suggestions on type of music to play , but often hear complaints from customers .", "Muzak offers themed mixes or can generate custom soundtracks tailored to specific restaurant .", "Other companies that offer music to restaurants noted .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [4, 54, 45, 12], "tag": ["Arts", "Dining and Wine"]}
- {"id": "1816069", "text": ["Capitalizing on Manhattan 's robust real estate prices , the Museum of Modern Art is selling its last vacant parcel of land in Midtown for $ 125 million to Hines , an international real estate developer based in Houston , the museum 's director said yesterday .", "As part of the deal Hines is to construct a mixed-use building on West 54th Street that will connect to the museum 's second - , fourth - and fifth-floor galleries , said the director , Glenn D . Lowry .", "He said the project would afford about 50,000 square feet of additional exhibition space for the Modern 's painting and sculpture collections .", "A Hines spokesman said it was too early to say what the building 's other uses would be .", "The property is one of several the Modern acquired during the last decade in mapping out an ambitious expansion .", "A glass-and-steel addition designed by the architect Yoshio Taniguchi was completed in November 2004 .", "Hines also plans to provide about 10,000 square feet in the new building 's basement for museum storage .", "After construction expenses for the new galleries are covered , the Modern estimates that some $ 65 million will go to its $ 650 million endowment .", "`` This is a Christmas present , '' Mr. Lowry said .", "`` It 's a tremendous boon to enhancing what is already an extraordinary collection . ``", "The 10 percent addition to the endowment will go toward caring for the collections and acquisitions .", "No firm timetable for construction has been set , he added , but he estimated that completion of the new building was at least five years away .", "In 1996 the museum bought the Dorset Hotel , a 19-story building from the 1920s next door on West 54th Street , along with two adjacent brownstones in a $ 50 million transaction .", "Much of that land was used for Mr. Taniguchi 's addition .", "That expansion , including an increase in MoMA 's endowment to cover operating expenses , cost $ 858 million in total .", "The museum also quietly purchased other parcels on West 54th Street , including what had been the City Athletic Club , a brownstone and a sliver building next door .", "Over the years , Mr. Lowry said , the museum has been inundated with offers from developers interested in buying the land , but did not seriously consider selling until recently .", "`` But as the market went into overdrive it seemed like the right move to make , '' he said .", "The Modern put out the word that it was open to offers and the response was overwhelming .", "Hines was the highest bidder , Mr. Lowry said .", "`` We ultimately settled on Hines because of its financial offer and because it has a good reputation for working with architects , '' Mr. Lowry said .", "He added that no architect had been selected to design the new building or the Modern 's additional galleries .", "When Mr. Tanaguchi conceived his design he took into consideration a possible future expansion to the west , Mr. Lowry said , making it structurally easy to break through to what will be the new building and extend each of the three gallery floors by about 17,000 square feet .", "Jerry I . Speyer , a Modern trustee and real estate developer who is president and chief executive of Tishman Speyer , helped negotiate the sale .", "-LRB- He was instrumental in the purchase of the Dorset Hotel , too . -RRB-", "`` The museum is not in the real estate business , but in the business of showing art , collecting art and educating people about art , '' Mr. Speyer said .", "`` Because of the figuration of the land , there was a limit to the amount of space we could use for galleries . ''", "He said that the entire board agreed that now was the time to act .", "`` Everyone felt great about the decision , '' he said of the sale .", "`` There were no issues in anyone 's mind . ``", "The parcel as a whole consists of about 200,000 square feet of buildable space , Mr. Lowry said .", "The addition also opens the way for the museum to address wide criticism of the exhibition spaces in the Taniguchi building .", "When the Modern reopened in 2004 many faulted its curators for showing fewer artworks in its expanded galleries than it had before .", "`` The goal has always been to display the collection better , '' Mr. Lowry said .", "Responding to the criticism , he said the display of art in the museum 's previous incarnation was `` overly dense , '' which people felt was `` too much like a textbook . ''", "Trying to anticipate the museum 's needs for contemporary art display is not easy .", "Mr. Lowry said the new galleries would be designed to be flexible .", "`` We envision them to include space that will deal with the unanticipated changes of the future , '' he said .", "And whereas MoMA had to close its doors on West 54th Street during the 2002-04 building project , operating a temporary museum in Queens , Mr. Lowry said that would not be necessary this time .", "`` The construction of these galleries will not entail closing the museum again , '' he said ."], "summary": ["Museum of Modern Art will sell its last vacant parcel of land in Midtown for $ 125 million to real estate developer Hines .", "As part of deal , Hines will construct mixed use building on West 54th Street that will connect to museum 's galleries and afford about 50,000 square feet of addition exhibition space .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1, 2], "tag": ["Arts"]}
- {"id": "1816070", "text": ["`` I did n't go there to make a point , `` said Laura Poitras , a documentary filmmaker , about traveling in Iraq to make '' My Country , My Country , `` one of four documentaries about the war contending for Oscar nominations this year .", "`` I do n't think I would risk my life to make a point , `` she added , seated in her comfortable TriBeCa office early last month .", "`` But I did feel it was important to understand this war -- and to document it -- and I did n't think that the mass media was going to do it . ``", "Ms. Poitras , 42 , used her own camera and recorded sound herself as she followed an Iraqi physician for eight months .", "An outspoken Sunni critic of the American occupation , he was seeking a seat on the Baghdad Provincial Council during the national elections in January 2005 , but did not win .", "`` My Country , My Country '' may not capture the best-documentary Oscar , or even be selected as one of the five nominees , to be announced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Jan . 23 .", "-LRB- The awards ceremony is on Feb . 25 . -RRB-", "But its presence on the highly competitive feature-length documentary shortlist -- 14 other films are on that list -- highlights a shift toward gritty , guerrilla filmmaking , a willingness to tackle controversial subjects , no matter the obstacles .", "Issue-oriented documentaries dominate the shortlist , chosen by the 138 members of the documentary branch of the academy .", "Eighty-one films met the eligibility requirements .", "Of those , the members who voted selected 15 and will further narrow the field to the 5 nominees .", "`` This is the year of the angry documentary , of the ' Take back America ' documentary , `` Sheila Nevins , president of HBO Documentary Films , said in a telephone interview .", "`` The theatrical documentary , '' she added , `` has replaced the television documentary in terms of talking back to the administration .", "That 's one of the only places where one can do it . ``", "But one pioneering filmmaker , Albert Maysles , did not seem enthusiastic about the trend .", "`` I am a strong advocate of distancing oneself from a point of view , '' he said recently .", "`` What is good for the documentary world in ' Fahrenheit 9/11 , ' '' -- Michael Moore 's 2004 film -- `` is that Michael 's heart was in the right place `` for viewers who agreed with him , he said .", "`` But he damages his cause because he is out to get people .", "He 's using people in a nonloving fashion to serve the purpose of his argument .", "If what you think is correct , what do you have to fear in telling the full story .", "`` Stanley Nelson , the director of another shortlisted film , '' Jonestown : The Life and Death of Peoples Temple , `` said that while Mr. Moore was '' over the top , `` his work occupied a significant position within the genre .", "Speaking at an Upper West Side coffee shop , Mr. Nelson said , `` What 's fascinating about documentary today is the different ways to approach it . ``", "Referring to his own film about Jim Jones , who led the mass suicide in which more than 900 people died in Guyana in 1978 , Mr. Nelson said : `` It was essential for us not to say that this guy was only evil .", "Just by being somewhat objective , we were being revolutionary . ``", "Mr. Nelson 's comment reflects a climate in which the pursuit of objectivity in documentaries is hardly the norm , as it had been during the 1950s and ` 60s .", "In that period , American filmmakers like Mr. Maysles advocated `` direct cinema , '' where the camera was thought of as a fly on the wall , capturing but not commenting on life .", "Still , some of the shortlisted documentaries adopt this approach more than others in treating subjects like these : Global warming : Davis Guggenheim 's box office hit , `` An Inconvenient Truth , '' with former Vice President Al Gore .", "Religion : Rachel Grady and Heidi Ewing 's `` Jesus Camp , '' about born-again Christian children at an evangelical summer camp in North Dakota .", "Amy Berg 's `` Deliver Us From Evil , '' about Oliver O'Grady , a former priest and convicted pedophile .", "And Mr. Nelson 's film about Jim Jones .", "Race : Ricki Stern and Annie Sundberg 's `` Trials of Darryl Hunt , '' about a wrongly convicted African-American man .", "Free speech : Barbara Kopple and Cecilia Peck 's `` Shut Up & Sing , '' on the fallout after Natalie Maines , of the Dixie Chicks , publicly criticized President Bush on the eve of the 2003 invasion of Iraq .", "The political campaign process : Frank Popper 's `` Can Mr. Smith Get to Washington Anymore . , '' which follows the 2004 grass-roots campaign of Jeff Smith , a Missouri Democrat , for Congress .", "The two-party political system : Henriette Mantel and Steve Skrovan 's `` Unreasonable Man , '' a profile of Ralph Nader .", "In addition to Ms. Poitras 's film , the three other shortlisted documentaries on the Iraq war are James Longley 's `` Iraq in Fragments , '' Deborah Scranton 's `` War Tapes '' and Patricia Foulkrod 's `` Ground Truth . ''", "Ms. Kopple , a two-time Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker who once worked for Mr. Maysles , said more people were seeing documentaries because they wanted to watch passionate stories about unforgettable characters .", "`` Audiences are smart enough to decide for themselves if they agree with the point of view onscreen , '' she said .", "`` I 'm not sure that ` distance ' is a positive thing in nonfiction filmmaking .", "I think there 's a time and place for distance .", "In television journalism , for example . ``", "She agreed with Mr. Maysles about letting a story unfold naturally .", "`` The most important factor , in my opinion , '' she said , `` is not do we grow too close to our subjects , it 's are we willing to go on a journey with them that may not end up as we first envisioned it .", "`` One director who took such a journey was Mr. Guggenheim with '' An Inconvenient Truth . ``", "Speaking from Los Angeles , he recalled the beginning of his own transformation after watching a presentation by Mr. Gore on climate change , which became the centerpiece of the film .", "`` All movies are personal , '' Mr. Guggenheim said .", "`` When I make a movie , I do n't have activism in mind .", "I have an experience in mind .", "Before I saw Al 's slide show , I was not an environmentalist .", "But when I saw it , it shook me to the core . ``", "In a telephone conversation in New York with Ms. Ewing and Ms. Grady , the directors of `` Jesus Camp , '' Ms. Grady said their film was as `` balanced as humanly possible for us . ''", "`` It 's unattainable to have no point of view at all , `` she said .", "`` We 're human , and we did the best we could . ``", "With its concentration on national politics , the academy passed over a clutch of well-made films that in other years might have fared better : for example , Christopher Quinn 's `` God Grew Tired of Us : The Story of the Lost Boys of Sudan '' .", "Doug Block 's `` 51 Birch Street , '' an exploration into the lives of his parents .", "And Ward Serrill 's `` Heart of the Game , '' about girls ' basketball .", "Similarly , the three remaining shortlisted movies , all set in foreign countries other than Iraq , may face an uphill battle .", "They are Lucy Walker 's `` Blindsight , '' about six blind Tibetan children .", "Yael Klopmann 's `` Storm of Emotions , '' about the Israeli pullout from the Gaza Strip .", "And Kim Longinotto and Florence Ayisi 's `` Sisters in Law , '' a profile of two Cameroon women -- a judge and a prosecutor -- fighting for women 's rights .", "However the academy members vote , Ms. Poitras said she already considered `` My Country , My Country '' successful .", "She cited a scene she had shot at the Abu Ghraib detention center : a 9-year-old Iraqi boy is being held for some unspecified reason by American Army officers who call him a dangerous juvenile .", "Moments such as these , she said , `` will bring a sense of questioning and shame about some of the things we are doing in Iraq . ''", "So even a filmmaker like Ms. Poitras , who by her own account employed a subtle and patient approach , may have made a point after all .", "In the current climate for documentaries , she certainly is not alone ."], "summary": ["Documentary films on shortlist for Oscar nominations are all issue based .", "Films My Country , My Country , An Inconvenient Truth , Jesus Camp , Deliver Us From Evil , Trials of Darryl Hunt , Shut Up & Sing , Can Mr Smith Get to Washington Anymore . , An Unreasonable Man , Iraq in Fragments , War Tapes and Ground Truth noted .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [34, 32, 28, 30], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]}
- {"id": "1816074", "text": ["In a moment of presidential empathy , former President George Bush recalled a skill he had learned from Gerald R . Ford : how to handle being ridiculed on `` Saturday Night Live . ''", "`` I remember that lesson well , since being able to laugh at yourself is essential in public life , '' Mr. Bush said in his eulogy for Mr. Ford on Tuesday .", "`` I 'd tell you more about that , but as Dana Carvey would say : ` Not gon na do it .", "Would n't be prudent . '", "`` As the 82-year-old former president imitated his own impersonator , there were only three people in the audience who knew exactly how it felt to be ridiculed , as a sitting president , on late-night television .", "Former President Bill Clinton responded with a hearty laugh from his seat in the Washington National Cathedral , while former President Jimmy Carter , in a neighboring pew , looked on with a smile .", "Seated nearby was President Bush , who has been relentlessly skewered by TV comics as well .", "With Mr. Ford 's death last week , the group of living former presidents has shrunk to three , down from five in the early 1990s .", "Since 1994 , Richard M . Nixon , Ronald Reagan and , now , Mr. Ford have left the stage , while Mr. Clinton has joined the ranks of former chief executives .", "The dynamic among the former presidents is perpetually evolving , as people age , rivalries fade and former political opponents discover they share more similarities than differences .", "The current club has at its core two presidents in different parties -- Mr. Clinton , 60 , and the elder Mr. Bush -- who have become companions in traveling and fund-raising for causes around the world .", "The two at times appear more friendly than Mr. Bush is with his son , or than Mr. Clinton is with Mr. Carter , 82 , a fellow Democrat .", "And on Tuesday it was Mr. Carter , not either of the Bushes , who accompanied Mr. Ford 's coffin back to Grand Rapids , Mich . , for burial .", "Though Mr. Ford and Mr. Carter squared off in the 1976 election , they became friends after both were out of office .", "On a flight home from Cairo in 1981 , after the funeral of the Egyptian leader Anwar el-Sadat , they found common ground discussing their presidential libraries .", "Similar kinship has grown between Mr. Clinton and the first President Bush , in contrast to the rocky relationship between Mr. Clinton and Mr. Carter .", "Though the two Southern Democrats are from similarly humble backgrounds , they have been at odds repeatedly over the years .", "In 1993 , Mr. Carter said he was `` very disappointed '' in the Clintons for sending their daughter , Chelsea , to private school rather than public school , as the Carters had done with their daughter , Amy .", "After the Monica Lewinsky scandal , Mr. Carter said he had been `` deeply embarrassed by what occurred . ''", "In more recent years , the Clinton-Carter relationship has had a tinge of rivalry , as both men have sought to become global statesmen .", "The funeral also provided a stage for those thinking about the politics of tomorrow , as well as those of yesterday .", "Along with the three former presidents sat several of those who may aspire to the job , including Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York , former Mayor Rudolph W . Giuliani of New York and Representative Dennis J . Kucinich of Ohio .", "And it was a reminder that while the nation elects only the president , the White House becomes home to a whole family whose members have to cope with the spotlight .", "At the cathedral on Tuesday , Rosalynn Carter was seen talking intently with Nancy Reagan .", "One row behind them , Chelsea Clinton spoke animatedly with a fellow Stanford University alumna , Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice .", "Tom Brokaw , the former NBC News anchor , said in his eulogy that when Mr. Ford brought his family to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue , `` he brought the humanity that comes with a family that seemed to be living right next door . ''", "For neighbors of the Fords in Alexandria , Va . , from the 1950s until they moved into the White House in 1974 , they were in fact the family next door , with four independent-minded children whose public indiscretions Mr. Ford sometimes had to confront .", "His son Jack admitted in a newspaper interview in 1975 that he smoked marijuana and lived a rowdy bachelor 's life .", "His daughter , Susan Ford Bales , was a headstrong teenager when her father became president and was married for a time to a Secret Service agent who had been assigned to guard the family .", "Mr. Ford and Ms. Bales , now middle-aged , walked hand in hand down the center aisle of the cathedral before the service , and each read a passage from the Bible .", "Ms. Bales 's reading came from James 1:19 - 25 , chosen by the family to help illuminate the former president 's humble approach to the bitter times in which he served .", "`` Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness , and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls , '' Ms. Bales read .", "`` But be doers of the word , and not merely hearers who deceive themselves . ''", "THE 38TH PRESIDENT Correction : January 5 , 2007 , Friday An article on Wednesday about the funeral of former President Gerald R . Ford drew an erroneous comparison between Chelsea Clinton and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice , who sat next to each other .", "Ms. Rice received degrees from the University of Denver and Notre Dame .", "She is not an alumna of Stanford University , where Ms. Clinton received a bachelor 's degree .", "-LRB- Ms.", "Rice is a former Stanford provost . -RRB- ."], "summary": ["Former Pres Gerald R Ford 's death brings group of former living presidents to three : George Bush , Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton .", "Dynamic among former presidents continually evolves , as people age , rivalries fade and former political opponents discover they share more similarities than differences .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 7], "tag": ["U.S.", "Washington"]}
- {"id": "1816075", "text": ["In a soaring tribute to a modest man , Gerald R . Ford was remembered on Tuesday as bringing the ordinary virtues of decency , integrity and humility to mend a broken government after the pain of war and scandal .", "`` Amid all the turmoil , Gerald Ford was a rock of stability , '' President Bush told the gathering of generations of Washington 's powerful at Washington National Cathedral .", "`` And when he put his hand on his family Bible to take the presidential oath of office , he brought grace to a moment of great doubt . ''", "The cathedral 's grand setting and the pomp of a state funeral provided a counterpoint for the unassuming character praised by the eulogists .", "President Bush 's father called Mr. Ford `` a Norman Rockwell painting come to life '' .", "Tom Brokaw , the former television anchor , described `` Citizen Ford '' as a `` champion of Main Street values '' .", "And Henry A . Kissinger said the man he served as secretary of state `` had the virtues of small-town America . ''", "When the cathedral 's limestone arches echoed , it was with the drums and brass of Aaron Copland 's `` Fanfare for the Common Man , '' and the ushers directing the capacity crowd of 3,700 to their seats were uniformed Boy Scouts , a tribute to Mr. Ford 's youthful achievement of the rank of Eagle Scout .", "Among the hymns was `` Eternal Father , Strong to Save , '' known as the Navy Hymn , a particular favorite of Mr. Ford , who served in the Pacific during World War II .", "President Bush , overseeing a deeply unpopular war in Iraq and perhaps pondering his own legacy , lauded Mr. Ford 's `` firm resolve '' in sending the Marines to rescue the crew of the American merchant ship Mayag\u00fcez when it was seized by Cambodia .", "He suggested that some acts widely condemned during Mr. Ford 's administration in the 1970s had come to look wiser in historical perspective , including his pardon for his immediate predecessor , Richard M . Nixon .", "In addition , Mr. Bush noted that Mr. Ford was criticized for signing the Helsinki Accords , the 1975 agreement that ratified borders in Soviet-dominated Eastern Europe while also setting new standards for human rights .", "`` History has shown that document helped bring down the Soviet Union as courageous men and women behind the Iron Curtain used it to demand their God-given liberties , '' Mr. Bush said .", "Mr. Ford 's coffin arrived at the cathedral by motorcade from the Capitol , a final journey through the city where he served as 13-term congressman , vice president and finally president , the only person to hold the nation 's top two offices without being elected to either .", "After the 90-minute Episcopal funeral service , Mr. Ford 's body was flown from Andrews Air Force Base outside Washington to his hometown , Grand Rapids , Mich . , for a burial service on Wednesday in a plot beside the museum that bears his name .", "In Washington , the Gothic cathedral where Mr. Ford helped dedicate the nave in 1976 , became for the morning a crossroads of the capital 's past and present , with Supreme Court justices and members of Congress in the south transept facing scores of foreign ambassadors and former foreign leaders in the north transept .", "Across an aisle from the diplomats sat Mr. Ford 's honorary pallbearers , including in the front row Mr. Kissinger .", "Donald H . Rumsfeld , who served as defense secretary to both Mr. Ford and the current President Bush .", "Alan Greenspan , the former Federal Reserve chief who was Mr. Ford 's top economic adviser .", "James A . Baker III , who ran Mr. Ford 's unsuccessful 1976 campaign for president .", "And Brent Scowcroft , Mr. Ford 's national security adviser .", "Facing the altar , where Mr. Ford 's coffin , draped by a flag , sat , were Mr. Ford 's widow , Betty , who was escorted in and out of the cathedral by President Bush , and the Ford children , Steve , Jack , Mike and Susan .", "Across the nave from the Ford family sat President Bush and Laura Bush , and Vice President Dick Cheney , who served Mr. Ford as chief of staff , with his wife , Lynne .", "Several current cabinet members and three former presidents -- the elder Mr. Bush with his wife , Barbara .", "Jimmy Carter and his wife , Rosalynn .", "And Bill Clinton and his wife , Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton , and their daughter , Chelsea .", "With them was Nancy Reagan , the former first lady .", "Like much of the outpouring of affection for Mr. Ford since he died at his home in Rancho Mirage , Calif . , on Dec . 26 at the age of 93 , the service focused on what President Bush called the `` calm and healing '' the former president brought to `` one of the most divisive moments in our nation 's history . ``", "Mr. Ford , the House minority leader , succeeded first Vice President Spiro T . Agnew and then President Nixon after both men were forced from office by scandal .", "`` Gerald Ford brought to the political arena no demons , no hidden agenda , no hit list or acts of vengeance , '' said Mr. Brokaw , who explained that Mr. Ford had asked him to address the funeral as a representative of the press corps .", "`` He knew who he was , and he did n't require consultants or gurus to change him . ``", "Mr. Kissinger in particular emphasized the substantive achievements of Mr. Ford in foreign policy , saying the `` deserved commentary '' on Mr. Ford 's character `` has sometimes obscured how sweeping and lasting were his achievements . ''", "In remarks perhaps intended to reflect on his own record as well as Mr. Ford 's , he credited the former president with keeping ethnic conflicts in Cyprus and Lebanon from spiraling out of control , producing the first peace agreement between Israel and Egypt and presiding over `` the final agony of Indochina with dignity and wisdom . ''", "Historians , Mr. Kissinger added , will find `` that the cold war could not have been won had not Gerald Ford emerged at a tragic period to restore equilibrium to America and confidence in its international role . ''", "A few hours after the service , the plane carrying Mr. Ford 's body circled over the University of Michigan football stadium , where he had been a standout center and linebacker , then landed at the airport named for him in Grand Rapids .", "The university 's marching band , which arrived on a red-eye flight from California after the Rose Bowl game on Monday , solemnly played its fight song , `` The Victors . ''", "About 200 friends and local dignitaries invited by Mr. Ford 's family attended the brief ceremony before the 13-mile motorcade to his presidential museum in downtown Grand Rapids , passing thousands of residents who lined the streets , some holding signs that said `` Welcome home . ''", "Billboards around the city declared `` Gerald ' Our ' Ford : 1913-2006 . ``", "Despite a fierce , bitter wind blowing off the Grand River , Tim Micho waited with his video camera and 7-year-old daughter , Tessa , for two and a half hours to watch the motorcade pass by .", "`` She 'll probably never get to see something like this again , `` Mr. Micho , 43 , said .", "`` It 's so moving to see this many people out here to support him . ``", "A single bagpiper played `` Amazing Grace '' as Betty Ford and the rest of the family made their way slowly behind the coffin into the museum , a geometric , glassy structure along the water .", "Inside , they held a brief service for family and honored guests , including former President Carter .", "Like many along the streets in Grand Rapids , Gov . Jennifer M . Granholm spoke of Mr. Ford 's deep roots in the region .", "Here , Ms. Granholm said , Mr. Ford had learned from his family `` some good Midwestern values likehard work and sportsmanship and integrity and honesty . ''", "Here , he had played high school football -LRB- with a few men , now frail , in attendance on Tuesday -RRB- , had married and had been elected to Congress .", "`` Welcome home , '' Ms. Granholm said , `` to the people that you reflected so well when you were in Washington . ''", "THE 38TH PRESIDENT ."], "summary": ["Former Pres Gerald R Ford is eulogized as modest man bringing virtues of decency , integrity and humility to mend broken government after pain of war and scandal .", "Washington National Cathedral 's grand setting and pomp of state funeral provide counterpoint for unassuming former president .", "Capacity crowd of 3,700 attends .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3], "tag": ["U.S.", "Washington"]}
- {"id": "1816077", "text": ["A parolee who has served more than 30 years in prison for two separate homicides and other violent crimes in New York City was arrested yesterday by the Suffolk County police and charged in the shooting deaths of a 52-year-old woman and her 30-year-old son over the weekend .", "The man , Fernando DeCampoamor , 59 , of Mount Sinai , N.Y. , was scheduled to be arraigned today on two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of the woman , Amelia Garcia , and her son , Ferneliz Cruz , the authorities said .", "They were found shot once in the head in the basement apartment in Coram where they lived with Mr. Cruz 's wife and their two small children .", "According to the police , the suspect told investigators he had lent money to Ms. Garcia , whom he described as his companion of six months , and became enraged Saturday evening over what he said was a delay in repayment .", "Mr. Cruz and his family had spent that early evening at a nearby self-service laundry .", "He had returned home first with a few loads of clean clothes .", "His wife , Yessenia Hernandez , and their children , an 8-year-old and a 2-month-old , returned to the apartment 20 minutes later to find Ms. Garcia dead and Mr. Cruz severely wounded .", "He died on Sunday night , about 24 hours later , at Stony Brook University Medical Center .", "It was unclear whether Mr. Cruz had returned to the apartment , on Marie Lane , before his mother was shot or after , the police said .", "Detective Lt . Jack Fitzpatrick of the Suffolk police said that according to state records , Mr. DeCampoamor was convicted of a murder in Brooklyn in 1961 and paroled in 1967 .", "In 1968 , he was convicted in connection with a nonfatal shooting and sentenced to 15 years in prison .", "He was paroled in 1975 .", "In 1985 , he was sentenced to 81/3 to 25 years in prison for manslaughter in connection with a killing in Queens .", "He was paroled in 2003 and had been working recently as a tow truck driver .", "Lieutenant Fitzpatrick said he did not know whether Ms. Garcia had any knowledge of Mr. DeCampoamor 's criminal background .", "Neighbors and friends said Ms. Garcia and Mr. Cruz immigrated from the Dominican Republic about 12 years ago .", "Ms. Garcia helped care for her son 's children while he and his wife worked .", "Neighbors said he worked full time for a bakery and bread distributing company , and might have held other part-time jobs , including one as a waiter .", "His wife worked part time at a local fast-food restaurant .", "A neighbor , Darlene Kennedy , 32 , described the family as close-knit and unfailingly polite .", "She said the 8-year-old , Yerneli , who played with her children , was cheerful and very bright and seemed to love learning new games .", "From the open door of the family 's basement apartment , which was covered in black dust left by police fingerprint technicians on Monday , a chess board and chess pieces could be seen on the kitchen table .", "Blood was pooled on the linoleum ."], "summary": ["Fernando DeCampoamor is charged with murdering Amelia Garcia and her 30-year-old son Ferneliz Cruz in Coram , NY . Police say he lent money to companion Garcia and became enraged over delay in repayment .", "Was on parole for 1985 murder in New York City .", "Previous record noted ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 1], "tag": ["New York and Region"]}
- {"id": "1816079", "text": ["Indonesian officials reversed themselves on Tuesday and admitted that they did not know what had happened to a passenger jet that disappeared from radar screens in bad weather on Monday shortly after issuing a distress signal .", "On Monday , Indonesian Air Force and Transport Ministry officials told local and foreign news services that wreckage from a 17-year-old Boeing 737-400 operated by Adam Air had been found strewn on jungle-covered mountainside on Sulawesi island .", "They also said 12 of the 102 people on board had survived .", "But later they said reports that the wreckage and survivors had been found were wrong .", "Officials said they had been misled by incorrect information from villagers and local officials in the remote area where the reports had originated .", "`` We apologize for the news that we released earlier , '' said Eddy Suyanto , an air force official , The Associated Press reported .", "`` It was not true . ''", "Indonesian officials said they planned to resume the search for the plane on Wednesday .", "The presumed crash was another loss for the Indonesian aviation industry , which boomed after deregulation in 1999 led to the founding of several low-cost airlines but which has had a long history of accidents .", "It was a particularly bitter blow to Adam Adhitya Suherman , 26 , the president of Adam SkyConnection Airlines .", "In an Indonesian industry known for bankruptcies and safety problems , Mr. Suherman and his family of Chinese traders had aimed to create a reliable and relatively inexpensive airline for a rapidly growing pool of Indonesian travelers .", "And they seemed to be succeeding .", "From a shoestring domestic operation , started in 2003 with three leased Boeing 737s , the airline grew by 2006 into a $ 300 million-a-year business , flying 19 planes to 25 domestic and international destinations and harboring big ambitions for growth .", "The family 's goal for 2006 was to carry six million to eight million passengers .", "It was courted by big investors , including Qantas and Tiger Airways .", "While emphasizing safety , the airline has had its share of troubles .", "On Feb . 11 last year , an Adam Air flight to Makassar from Jakarta lost its way , making an unscheduled landing hundreds of miles off course in eastern Indonesia .", "The pilots blamed a malfunction in the navigation equipment but Mr. Suherman said it had been working properly .", "On May 31 , 2005 , part of the landing gear of a Boeing 737 operated by Adam Air collapsed on landing at the Jakarta airport .", "More Rescued After Ferry Sinking REMBANG , Indonesia , Jan . 2 -LRB- AP -RRB- -- Fishing boats rescued dozens of people from the sea on Tuesday , four days after a ferry sank in a storm off Indonesia , but 400 people remained missing .", "The ferry Senopati Nusantara foundered after being pounded by heavy waves for more than 10 hours as it neared the end of a two-day journey to Java , Indonesia 's main island , from the Indonesian section of Borneo island .", "Officials said the bad weather caused the sinking .", "About 200 survivors have been found , and officials say the search will continue until Sunday .", "Thirteen bodies have been recovered and scores more have been seen floating at sea .", "Susilo , 35 , was picked up by fishermen and taken to a hospital with chest pains and respiratory problems after drifting four days in a life raft .", "`` Six among us died , one by one , '' said Mr. Susilo , who like many Indonesians uses one name .", "Some who died drank seawater , he said ."], "summary": ["Indonesian officials reverse themselves and say they do not know what happened to passenger jet that disappeared from radar screen on Jan 1 after issuing distress signal .", "They say initial reports that wreckage was found on Sulawesi island along with 12 survivors was wrong .", "They say search will resume on Jan 3 ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3], "tag": ["World"]}
- {"id": "1816080", "text": ["The Israeli chief of staff , Lt . Gen . Dan Halutz , conceded Tuesday that the military had made serious errors during last summer 's war against Hezbollah in Lebanon but said he would not resign his post .", "General Halutz said Israel had badly damaged Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and killed `` hundreds of terrorists . ''", "But he said Israel was `` not successful in reducing the short-range rocket fire on Israel 's north until the cease-fire , `` which came after 34 days of fighting .", "Critics of General Halutz and of the Israeli government of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert have said the military relied too heavily on air power and delayed too long sending in ground troops in the numbers needed to push back the Hezbollah fighters and supporters who were firing Katyusha rockets into Israel .", "Critics have also said that the military should be led by a ground forces commander -- General Halutz spent his career in the air force -- and that reserves were not called up in time , were badly trained and equipped , and often faced contradictory orders .", "`` We attacked the Katyushas , but unsuccessfully , '' General Halutz said .", "He spoke Tuesday at a Tel Aviv news conference summing up the army 's own investigation of its behavior during the war .", "He said he would stay on `` to correct what can be corrected , '' and said to resign now would be `` running away . ''", "He said Mr. Olmert and Defense Minister Amir Peretz had not asked him to go .", "`` I have not heard my superiors calling on me to resign , '' he said .", "`` If they do , I will respond . ''", "He suggested that discipline had broken down to some degree .", "`` There were cases in which officers did not carry out their assignments , and cases in which officers objected on moral grounds to their orders , '' he said , an apparent reference to resistance against attacking southern Lebanese towns and villages .", "He said that those instances of refusal `` ran counter to the army 's basic values `` and that a senior officer was suspended as a result .", "During the war , as criticism mounted , General Halutz effectively demoted the commander of the northern front , Maj . Gen . Udi Adam , putting the deputy chief of staff , Maj . Gen . Moshe Kaplinski , alongside him .", "General Adam later quit the army .", "Previously , General Halutz has said the army fired some cluster munitions , with the `` bomblets '' placed in artillery shells , into southern Lebanon in contradiction of his orders that they be aimed only at specific targets .", "The United States is investigating whether the Israelis used cluster munitions made and paid for in America in ways that contravene American regulations for the weapons ' use .", "General Halutz implicitly criticized Mr. Olmert for setting as a goal of the war the release of two Israeli soldiers captured by Hezbollah in a cross-border raid on July 12 , an act that set off the fighting .", "The Winograd committee , which is led by a retired judge , Eliyahu Winograd , and was appointed by the government , is still investigating the conflict and its outcome .", "General Halutz said that if the committee called for his resignation , `` of course '' he would comply .", "Defense Minister Amir Peretz has made the same pledge .", "The war ended with a cease-fire on Aug . 14 , after a United Nations Security Council resolution mandated an enlarged and strengthened international peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon and supervision of Lebanon 's seacoast and border with Syria to prevent the rearming of Hezbollah .", "The fighting left more than 1,000 people dead on both sides .", "Israel says more than 500 of the dead were Hezbollah fighters , but Hezbollah disputes that .", "Israel counted 159 fatalities , including 39 civilians who were killed by the more than 4,000 rockets Hezbollah fired into Israel .", "In Gaza on Tuesday , Palestinian security forces were searching for a Peruvian photographer for Agence France-Presse , Jaime Razuri , 50 , a day after his abduction .", "The Palestinian Authority president , Mahmoud Abbas , said he was hopeful .", "`` We 're sure he will soon be released , `` Mr. Abbas told a delegation from the news agency and French and Peruvian diplomats .", "`` In past incidents of this kind , hostages have been freed after one or two days . ''", "In the latest in a string of foreigner abductions , several unmasked gunmen abducted Mr. Razuri in the center of Gaza City on Monday as he was returning from an assignment with an interpreter and a driver .", "Separately , warring Hamas and Fatah factions returned 14 fighters kidnapped on Monday after mediation from representatives of Islamic Jihad , Palestinian officials said .", "The violence resumed Monday when Hamas gunmen shot at a brother of a senior Fatah militant in the northern Gaza Strip , violating an earlier deal for a general truce ."], "summary": ["Israeli chief of staff , Lt Gen Dan Halutz , says that military made serious errors during 2006 war against Hezbollah in Lebanon but says he will not resign his post .", "Halutz suggests one problem was discipline and cites cases in which officers refused assignments and objected on moral grounds .", "Critics of Halutz say military relied too heavily on air power and delayed too long sending in sufficient ground troops .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3], "tag": ["World"]}
- {"id": "1816081", "text": ["Prime Minister Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia said Tuesday that his country , one of the poorest in the world , could not afford to keep troops in Somalia much longer and that it was ill equipped to play the role of peacekeeper there .", "Two hours after he spoke , two Ethiopian soldiers were gunned down in an ambush in southern Somalia in one of the first strikes of an anticipated anti-Ethiopian guerrilla campaign .", "According to residents in Jilib , about 250 miles southwest of Mogadishu , Somalia 's capital , a fighter for the Islamist forces , who were routed last week by Ethiopian-led troops , had shot two Ethiopian soldiers while they were crossing a bridge .", "Witnesses said the fighter then dashed into town and was quickly surrounded by Ethiopian troops , who killed him .", "`` It was a suicide mission , '' said Mohammed Subiye , a farmer in Jilib .", "The Islamist forces , which in the span of one week went from ruling much of Somalia to fleeing into the bush , have vowed to fight a guerrilla insurgency against the Ethiopians , whom they consider infidel invaders .", "But Mr. Meles said he did not plan to have his troops to remain in Somalia for much longer , possibly only a few more weeks .", "The troops were dispatched to neutralize the rising regional threat posed by the Islamists , he said , and now international peacekeepers are needed to bring order to a country that has been synonymous with anarchy for 15 years .", "`` We do n't have the money to take this burden individually , `` Mr. Meles said during a speech to Ethiopia 's Parliament .", "Diplomats in the region are hurrying to cobble together an African peacekeeping solution , but despite murmurs of commitment from several countries , including Uganda , South Africa and Nigeria , a force has yet to materialize .", "Somalia is far from stable , with many heavy weapons still in the hands of warlords , and the country 's turmoil is likely to dissuade many nations from volunteering troops .", "On Tuesday , Ali Mohammed Gedi , Somalia 's transitional prime minister , reiterated his plea for the nation 's many gunmen to turn in their weapons .", "But few seemed to be listening .", "The collection points across Mogadishu remained empty , and many young men defiantly vowed to keep their guns .", "Meanwhile , the remnants of the once-fierce Islamist army continued to flee south from Kismayo , the port city 100 miles from the Kenyan border that had been a final stronghold until the Islamist military definitively collapsed there on Monday .", "Kenyan authorities said 10 fighters were apprehended on Monday as they tried to slip through the border disguised as refugees .", "Eight had Eritrean passports while two had Canadian passports , said Alfred Mutua , a spokesman for the Kenyan government .", "All of them were carrying briefcases packed with cash .", "`` They definitely did n't look like refugees , `` Mr. Mutua said .", "Mr. Mutua said that the suspects remained in Kenyan custody and that they would probably be returned to Somalia to face charges under the transitional government , though it has not yet set up a justice system .", "The Islamists tried to improve their military prospects by calling for a global jihad against Ethiopia , a country with a long Christian history .", "But in the end , American officials said , only a few hundred foreign fighters answered the call , the bulk of them from Eritrea , Ethiopia 's archenemy .", "Still , the Islamists were widely believed to have been sheltering several wanted terrorists , and American officials said they were hoping to use the swift collapse of the Islamist forces as an opportunity to capture men they have been chasing for years .", "Ships from the Fifth Fleet of the United States Navy , based in Bahrain , have increased patrols off Somalia 's coast to prevent any suspects from escaping .", "`` Yes , we have a presence out there , '' said Lt . Denise Garcia , a spokeswoman for the Fifth Fleet .", "So far , though , no suspects have been apprehended .", "Somalia continues to be a work in progress .", "The country 's transitional president , Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed , has yet to set foot in the capital , and only a select few officials of the transitional government have returned to it .", "Many of them seem to be pulling in wildly different directions .", "On Tuesday , Hussein Mohammed Aideed , the interior minister and son of a notorious warlord , announced that he would like to erase the 1,000-mile long border between Somalia and Ethiopia .", "`` We should unite , just like the Europeans , '' Mr. Aideed said at a news conference .", "`` One money .", "One passport .", "One security . ``", "Many Somalis consider Ethiopia a historic enemy and were appalled by the suggestion .", "`` All I can say is that the interior minister is entitled to his opinion , '' said Abdirahman Dinari , the spokesman for the transitional government .", "`` But he does not speak on behalf of the government . '' ."], "summary": ["Prime Min Meles Zenawi of Ethiopia says that his country can not afford to keep troops in Somalia much longer and that it is ill equipped to keep peace there .", "Several countries in region have spoken of committing troops , but force has yet to materialize .", "Somalia 's instability may prevent many nations from volunteering troops .", "Islamist forces have vowed to fight guerrilla insurgency against Ethiopians .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 5], "tag": ["World"]}
- {"id": "1816083", "text": ["Ali Saleem may have devised the perfect , if improbable , cover for breaking taboos in conservative , Muslim Pakistan .", "In a country where publicly talking about sex is strictly off limits , Mr. Saleem has managed not only to bring up the subject on his prime-time television talk show -- but to do so without stirring a backlash from fundamentalist Islamic clerics .", "And he has done so as a woman .", "When Mr. Saleem takes to the airwaves , he is Begum Nawazish Ali , a coquettish widow who interviews Pakistan 's glitterati and some of its top politicians .", "A real woman could not possibly do what Mr. Saleem does .", "In the unlikely event a station would broadcast such a show , the hostess would be shunned .", "And taking on the guise of a married woman -- whose virtue is crucial to her whole family -- would be equally impossible .", "But apparently a cross-dressing man pretending to be a widow is another matter entirely .", "It is something of a mystery why a man who openly acknowledges he is bisexual is a sensation here .", "Traditional Islamic teaching rejects bisexuals and gays , and gay Pakistanis have few outlets for a social life .", "The gay party scenes in Lahore and Karachi are deep underground .", "Mr. Saleem has his own theory for his popularity : he thinks Pakistan has always been more open than outsiders believed .", "It is true that Pakistan is , in a sense , two countries .", "There is urban , and urbane , Pakistan , where Western mores are more accepted , although nudity would never be seen on television or scantily clad women on billboards .", "And then there is rural Pakistan , where Islam is generally practiced with more fervor .", "It is also true that the Pakistani president , Gen . Pervez Musharraf , is relatively tolerant about what the media can show and cover , including politics .", "Although General Musharraf came to power in a bloodless coup by the military in 1999 , he has been more open to political criticism in the press than some of his democratic predecessors .", "Mr. Saleem , 28 , is thrilled with his success for reasons that are both political -LRB- he is proud to be breaking ground in bringing up tough subjects -RRB- and profoundly personal .", "`` My biggest high is to see myself gorgeous in the mirror '' he said recently while reclining in a makeup-room chair .", "As a beautician outlined his eyes , adding glitter and eye shadow , he said , `` Maybe , yes , I am a diva . ''", "It is hard to judge how successful Mr. Saleem 's show is -- there is no form of Nielsen ratings here .", "And there are clearly people who find the show revolting .", "But by many measures , it is a success .", "Television critics have been generally supportive , and the show , which has been on a year and a half , has a prime-time slot despite its name , `` Late Night Show With Begum Nawazish Ali . ''", "Mr. Saleem said it was named for its racy content , usually shown late , but he said the network scheduled it earlier hoping for a hit that would bring in more advertising revenue .", "Urbanites , meanwhile , seem not to be able to get enough of the once-a-week show , which is rerun twice each week .", "They have showered praise on Mr. Saleem 's portrayal of a middle-aged widow who , in glamorous saris and glittery diamonds , invites to her drawing room politicians , movie stars and rights advocates from Pakistan and India .", "With fluttering eyelids and glossy lips , Begum Nawazish Ali -LRB- Begum means Lady or Mrs. in Urdu -RRB- flirts with male guests using suggestive banter and sexual innuendo .", "With female guests , she is something of a tease , challenging them about who looks better .", "Questions are pointed and piercing .", "Politics , democracy and saucy gossip are enmeshed in her conversation .", "Mr. Saleem sees the show 's acceptance and commercial success as a testimony to the tolerance and moderation of Pakistan , a country often seen by the outside world as teetering on the edges of militancy and extremism .", "Colorful and witty , Mr. Saleem is open about his own sexuality and sprinkles his conversation with gender-bending phrases .", "`` My life fluctuates between two extremes , '' he says .", "`` I always say this : I am a man and I am a woman .", "It is two gender extremes , and I am constantly trying to balance it . ``", "He is unabashed at the criticism that his show often borders on raunchiness .", "`` Sitting senators have sent requests to be on the show , '' he says .", "Mr. Saleem has also been willing to take on tough political subjects .", "He is openly critical of the army 's role in ruling Pakistan , for instance .", "His show is not the only one pushing the envelope on that and other touchy subjects .", "In another network television program , `` Aalim Online , '' religious scholars from Shiite and Sunni sects sat side by side and responded to viewers ' queries on different issues from their respective viewpoints .", "Television talk shows and news programs have also openly criticized the policies of previous governments on their support for the Taliban and on their policies in Kashmir , which both India and Pakistan claim .", "President Musharraf 's policies and the role of the powerful Inter-Services Intelligence , or ISI , have come under fire on talk shows and analysis programs , something unimaginable some years ago .", "That is not to say that anything goes .", "The restrictions on print media are generally tougher than for broadcast journalists , and some subjects are considered clearly off limits .", "Owais Aslam Ali , secretary general of Pakistan Press Foundation , an independent media research center in Karachi , said that `` on things of consequence , restrictions remain . ''", "He said that included reporting on the tribal areas bordering Afghanistan , where the Taliban and Al Qaeda are taking refuge .", "Mr. Ali said there also were unstated restrictions on reporting about Baluchistan , the southwestern province where a low-level civil insurgency has long simmered .", "`` This is a big black hole as far as media is concerned , '' he said .", "`` Parameters have been set .", "You cross those parameters at your own peril . ``", "Mr. Saleem , who in the guise of Begum Nawazish Ali often gets away with questions to politicians that print journalists might be wary of , said his show would not have been a possibility earlier .", "`` I owe Begum Nawazish Ali 's existence , in a certain way , to General Musharraf , `` he said .", "But he appears to know his own limits .", "He shrugged when asked if he should not invite the general himself on the show , appearing to indicate that he knew that was one taboo he could not break .", "But it did not stop him from flirting with the idea , especially after General Musharraf made himself so open to the media during his book tour of the United States last year .", "`` I would love it if Musharraf would come on the show , '' he said .", "`` If he can go on Jon Stewart 's show , then why not .", "`` KARACHI JOURNAL ."], "summary": ["Ali Saleem is cross-dressing man who portrays flirty widow on Pakastani television .", "Television critics have been generally supportive and show , which features interviews with country 's celebrities and politicians , has prime-time slot .", "Saleem says show 's acceptance is symbol of Pakistan 's tolerance and moderation .", "Some media researchers say that restrictions on print media are tougher and that some subjects are still off limits .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [23, 45, 3, 44], "tag": ["World"]}
- {"id": "1816085", "text": ["It would be an ambitious project even in a Middle Eastern country not embroiled in war : build an American-style university where classes are taught in English , teachers come from around the world and graduates compete for lucrative jobs in fields like business and computer science .", "Yet some of the leading lights of Iraq 's political and intellectual classes are doing exactly that , even as the bloodshed widens .", "Their planned American University of Iraq is modeled after the famous private universities in Cairo and Beirut .", "The project 's managers have a board of trustees .", "A business plan recently completed by McKinsey & Company , an international consulting firm .", "Three candidates for university president .", "And $ 25 million , much of it in pledges from the American government and Kurdish sources .", "To fulfill their dream , they need much more : $ 200 million to $ 250 million over 15 years , said Azzam Alwash , the board 's executive secretary .", "But if it does become a reality , the university will not be built in Baghdad , which for centuries was a beacon of learning in the Arab world .", "Instead , it is slated for what is the most non-Iraqi part of Iraq .", "The site is on a windswept hilltop along the outskirts of Sulaimaniya , the eastern capital of Iraqi Kurdistan , 150 miles north of Baghdad and far from the car bombs and death squads that are tearing apart the Arab regions of Iraq .", "Because of its relative safety so far , Kurdistan can more easily attract aid and reconstruction money .", "With doctors , engineers , businesspeople , academics and students among the hundreds of thousands fleeing to neighboring countries or the West , the university raises hopes of stanching the country 's enormous brain drain and pushing Iraq forward .", "`` You really need to develop the political elite of the future , the educated elite of the future , '' said Barham Salih , the project 's Kurdish founder , a deputy prime minister who received a doctorate in statistics and computer modeling from Liverpool University in Britain , and whose daughter attends Princeton .", "`` The focus is also to stimulate reform in the Iraqi education system . ''", "However , some Arab education officials in Baghdad , the capital , have argued that the university should be built there , not in a part of Iraq where secessionist ambitions are well known .", "Baghdad first achieved fame for its schools and scholars during the Abbasid caliphate , which reached its height in the eighth century .", "Even in the 20th century , before the Iran-Iraq war of the 1980s and international economic sanctions of the 1990s , students from the region flocked to Baghdad .", "But because of security threats , many universities in Baghdad have been closed since October .", "Up to 150 employees from the Ministry of Higher Education were abducted by men in commando uniforms in mid-November .", "Jihadist groups have threatened to kill students on campuses .", "So intellectuals like Kanan Makiya , the prominent former exile and writer who strongly advocated for the American invasion , say they plan to move their research projects to the American University .", "Mr. Makiya founded the Iraq Memory Foundation , an organization based in the fortified Green Zone in Baghdad that is documenting Saddam Hussein 's atrocities .", "`` The problem is nobody can thrive in Baghdad anymore , '' said Mr. Makiya , who teaches Middle Eastern studies at Brandeis University and sits on the new university 's board of trustees .", "`` The north is much more stable , growing , prosperous . ''", "`` There is a sadness that we 're being driven out of Baghdad , `` he added .", "The university 's planners plan to make Mr. Makiya 's documentary project the core of the humanities department .", "Mr. Alwash , an environmental scientist , has said he will use the university as a base for his research project , which is about rejuvenating the southern marshlands .", "Other prominent intellectual and political figures , many of whom supported the American invasion , are on the board .", "They include Fouad Ajami , a professor of Middle Eastern studies at Johns Hopkins , and John Agresto , an education adviser in the Coalition Provisional Authority who , as he ended his tenure there in 2004 , told a reporter he was `` a neoconservative who 's been mugged by reality . ``", "The planners have sketched a rough schedule .", "Construction would start in the spring , and the first 15 to 30 students could begin a six-month intensive English course , to be taught in rented space here in Sulaimaniya , before they start a two-year master 's program in business administration .", "The first class to earn bachelor 's degrees would start in fall 2008 .", "The program would take five years , with the first devoted to the study of English , Mr. Alwash said .", "Although the university has regional aspirations like its counterparts in Cairo and Beirut , the first undergraduate class would be mostly Iraqis , Mr. Alwash said , and a majority probably Kurds .", "In the university 's first five years , degree programs would focus on subjects that the board judges to be crucial to Iraq 's development : business , petroleum engineering and computer science , for example .", "`` This has to have immediate practical consequences for the economy of Iraq and the politics of Iraq , '' Mr. Salih , the founder , said .", "After five years , the university may add humanities degree programs .", "`` We want them to study the ideas of Locke , the ideas and writings of Paine and Madison , '' Mr. Alwash , the executive secretary , said .", "`` We want them to understand what democracy is -- not only majority rule , but also the rights of minorities .", "They should be well rounded . ``", "Projected undergraduate enrollment is 1,000 students by 2011 and 5,000 by 2021 .", "The numbers are small compared with enrollment at Baghdad University , the country 's flagship public university , which has 70,000 students .", "Sulaimaniya University here has about 12,000 students .", "In total , about 475,000 Iraqis are pursuing college-level degrees across the country , in 21 public universities or colleges , 18 private ones and about 40 technical institutes , according to the American Embassy .", "Tuition at American University would be $ 8,500 to $ 10,000 a year , Mr. Alwash said .", "That places the university beyond the reach of the average middle-class Iraqi family .", "But Mr. Salih said the school planned to give loans and scholarships .", "Zalmay Khalilzad , the American ambassador and an alumnus of the university in Beirut , has promised that American agencies will give the school $ 10.5 million , possibly the largest donation by the United States to any single education project in Iraq , if American officials approve the business plan .", "Mr. Khalilzad , a native Afghan , helped found the American University of Kabul after the American military ousted the Taliban from Afghanistan in 2001 .", "Some Kurds fear that the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan , the governing party of eastern Kurdistan led by Mr. Talabani and Mr. Salih , could end up diverting money from the university for its own purposes .", "Among many Kurds , the main Kurdish parties have a reputation for corruption and authoritarian rule .", "`` I hope this will not just be party propaganda , because we need a real academic center for this society , '' said Asos Hardi , the editor in chief of a weekly newspaper here .", "`` Having a Western-style university in Iraq would help strengthen education here and across the country . ''", "THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ ."], "summary": ["Group of Iraqis are planning American University of Iraq , American-style university with international teachers and classes taught in English .", "Prominent intellectual and political figures support university and its chosen site in Sulaimaniya , area that is relatively safe so far .", "Some education officials in Baghdad argue that university should be built there instead .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [15, 28, 2], "tag": ["World", "Education"]}
- {"id": "1816095", "text": ["In 1997 , Jonathan T . Taplin , a veteran film and television producer , stood up at a cable industry convention and asserted that in the future all movies would be distributed over the Internet .", "He recalls being laughed out of the room .", "Mr. Taplin may laugh last .", "Online distribution of movies has arrived , at places like Apple Computer 's iTunes Store .", "And even though Mr. Taplin 's own video-on-demand company , Intertainer , shut down operations five years ago , it says it deserves some credit -- and cash .", "Last week , Intertainer filed a broad lawsuit asserting that Apple , Google and Napster are infringing on a 2005 patent that covers the commercial distribution of audio and video over the Internet .", "Founded by Mr. Taplin and two other Hollywood entertainment executives in 1996 , Intertainer developed technology to distribute movies on demand through cable and phone lines for viewing on televisions and personal computers .", "It gained investors including Intel , Microsoft , Sony , NBC and Comcast .", "`` Intertainer was the leader of the idea of entertainment on demand over Internet platforms before Google was even thought up , '' said Mr. Taplin , now an adjunct professor at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern California .", "He and a secretary constitute the entire remaining staff of Intertainer .", "Theodore Stevenson , a partner at McKool Smith , the Dallas firm representing Intertainer , said the company filed suit against Apple , Google and Napster because they were perceived as leaders in the market for digital downloads .", "He declined to specify the damages that Intertainer was seeking .", "Apple , Google and Napster all declined to comment on the lawsuit .", "Intertainer 's tale is somewhat different than other intellectual property suits brought by technology licensing firms .", "By 2002 the company seemed to have a growing business , with 125,000 Internet subscribers for its servers and 35,000 TV subscribers through the Comcast cable system .", "But in the fall of 2002 , the company shut down its service and filed a lawsuit against some of the backers of Movielink , a competitor backed by five Hollywood studios , including Sony , Universal and Warner Brothers .", "At the time Mr. Taplin said the studios were using Movielink as a price-fixing vehicle to kill Intertainer .", "An antitrust investigation by the Justice Department into Movielink was dropped in 2004 .", "The studios settled the lawsuit last March for an undisclosed sum , and Mr. Taplin said in a phone interview Tuesday that Intertainer would henceforth pursue a patent licensing business .", "The company holds nine patents , including United States Patent No . 6,925,469 , which was issued in 2005 and is intended to cover the management and distribution of digital media from various suppliers .", "Despite initial backing from Microsoft and Intel , Mr. Taplin said the two companies were not involved in the decision to bring the Apple , Google and Napster lawsuit .", "He said that decision was made by Intertainer 's board and that none of his original corporate backers have board seats .", "Several of the company 's original investors have taken patent licenses , he said , but he would not name the companies .", "Despite the company 's decision to file the case in a federal district court in Texas that has traditionally looked favorably on plaintiffs in patent lawsuits , several digital media experts said that Intertainer might have a difficult time enforcing its patent because of its relatively recent filing date of 2001 .", "By that time , for example , Real Networks , the Seattle-based pioneer in streaming digital media , had begun an Internet subscription service for digital content .", "Legal experts said it was difficult to handicap Intertainer 's claims .", "`` There are so many of these lawsuits nowadays , '' said Eric Goldman , director the High-Tech Law Institute at Santa Clara University School of Law .", "`` It is hard to figure out which ones are a serious threat and which ones are not . ''", "Mr. Goldman also said it was unclear what specific technology or service was covered by the Intertainer patent .", "`` I have the same problem with this patent as so many of the patents of the dot-com boom days : I do n't know what it means , `` Mr. Goldman said .", "Mr. Stevenson , the Intertainer lawyer , said the patent covers a system that can be used by content owners to upload their content and used by consumers to download it .", "`` It is pretty basic to the architecture of digital content delivery nowadays , '' he said .", "Mr. Taplin , who once worked as a road manager for Bob Dylan and produced several movies , including `` Mean Streets , '' `` The Last Waltz '' and `` To Die For , '' has a history of activism on technology issues .", "In 2002 , he encouraged those attending a technology conference to urge the Federal Communications Commission to ensure that broadband providers would not be able to block specific Web sites -- an early version of a hot-button issue that has become known as network neutrality .", "Earlier that year , he testified before the Senate against legislation that would have forced high-tech manufacturers to incorporate technology to prevent piracy in their software and hardware .", "Correction : January 4 , 2007 , Thursday A headline in Business Day yesterday about a lawsuit brought by Intertainer , a digital media company , against Apple Computer , Google and Napster misstated the nature of the litigation .", "It involves a patent , not a copyright ."], "summary": ["Intertainer files broad lawsuit against Apple Computer , Google and Napster for infringing on 2005 patent covering commercial distribution of audio and video over Internet .", "Claims to be leader of concept of entertainment on demand over Web platforms .", "Founder Jonathan T Taplin has history of activism on variety of technology issues .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5], "tag": ["Technology", "Business"]}
- {"id": "1816100", "text": ["A government effort to cool Ireland 's roaring economy by encouraging people to save is threatening to backfire .", "In 2001 , Ireland encouraged citizens to set money aside each month in special accounts by offering to match a portion of those savings .", "The catch was that savers had to lock up their money for five years .", "About 1.1 million Irish savers -- or 40 percent of the adult population -- amassed 16 billion euros -LRB- $ 21 billion -RRB- in savings , a sum that is about 10 percent of the country 's annual gross domestic product .", "But now that the five years are over , the wealth is being unleashed , and the plan may do exactly what it was meant to prevent : add fuel to the economy of one of the most competitive and fastest-growing countries in Europe .", "The expected outcome underscores the trickiness in taming surging economies -- a task that the authorities in China are grappling with .", "It could also serve as a case study for countries , like the United States , which are looking for ways to motivate spendthrift consumers to save more to rebalance their economies .", "Edel Byrne , 30 , an operations director for a large chain of restaurants in Dublin , is looking forward to spending the 20,000 euros she will have accumulated when the five-year lockup ends in the spring .", "She has her eyes on a Marni handbag -- the line sells on the Internet for 280 to 1,060 euros -- and airline tickets to Rio de Janeiro , Milan and Paris .", "She plans to spend some of what is left on a house that she recently bought in the Dublin suburbs .", "In 2002 , Ms. Byrne would never have dreamed of setting aside as much as 254 euros each month for five years if the government had not made it worth her while : It gave her one euro for every four she paid into her so-called Special Savings Incentive Account , or S.S.I.A.", "For Ms. Byrne , the government incentive was worth 63.50 euros each month .", "Her own monthly payments , the government bonus and the interest she earned were not accessible as the savings accumulated .", "Some of the accounts have already matured since the program opened in May 2001 .", "But most savers , who on average have accumulated 15,000 euros , according to industry estimates , delayed opening the accounts until the months before enrollment ended in April 2002 .", "The freed savings will come on top of an estimated 5 billion euros in increased public spending and tax cuts that the Irish government plans to pump into the economy in 2007 , an election year .", "If the Irish choose to spend their savings over a few months rather than tap the personal wealth pool over two or three years , inflation , especially for services like hotels and restaurants , could accelerate at a time when prices are already rising rapidly .", "`` The 16 billion euros is a phenomenal amount of money , '' said Jim Power , chief economist at Friends First , a pension and investment firm in Dublin .", "`` There is of course an inflationary risk .", "There is already an inflationary risk notwithstanding the S.S.I.A. effect . ``", "The savings plan was devised by Charlie McCreevy , the Irish finance minister at the time and now the European Union 's commissioner for the internal market , who wanted to tame a potential threat of inflation to the Irish economy .", "In 2000 , consumer prices in Ireland rose 5.6 percent .", "That figure had moderated to 2.5 percent for 2005 , but it started creeping up again in 2006 , to a 4.4 percent pace in November , and is expected to stay relatively high at about 3.5 percent in 2007 , according to some economists who fear the bounty from the savings accounts could inject too much money into the economy over a short period .", "But nobody really knows what will happen , which is why there have been widespread surveys of the intentions of savers like Ms. Byrne .", "Banks eager to hold on to the large sums are offering new but less generous saving products .", "Savers whose special accounts have already matured appear to be taking their time in deciding what to do with the money .", "Similar savings plans by other European governments have not been as popular , probably because the cash incentives were much less generous than those offered by the Irish plan .", "In Britain , for example , tax-efficient savings plans like Individual Savings Accounts , or I.S.A. ` s , operate through the tax system rather than with cash incentives .", "Consumer spending in Ireland is less than 50 percent of gross domestic product , low by European standards , according to Dan McLaughlin , chief economist at Bank of Ireland .", "According to the Irish Central Statistics Office , the country had a household savings rate of 11.9 percent of income in 2003 , compared with 2.1 percent in the United States and 11.1 percent in France .", "On Grafton Street , one of central Dublin 's main shopping streets , evidence of the usual seasonal surge in spending has not been hard to detect .", "But whether spending will be further fueled as Irish consumers anticipate tapping their savings is difficult to judge , said Stephen Sealey , a buying director for the department store Brown Thomas .", "It sells Herm\u00e8s handbags for as much as 10,000 euros -LRB- $ 13,200 -RRB- and Chanel watches for 7,500 euros -LRB- $ 9,940 -RRB- .", "`` Over the last four years , we have seen a steady growth in luxury goods , '' he said , adding that buoyant consumer spending `` is driving double-digit year-on-year growth across the business . ''", "Mr. McLaughlin , at Bank of Ireland , said that surveys by his bank indicated that a slice of the special accounts would be spent on foreign holidays and home renovations .", "He forecast that spending from the accounts would help support the economy over the next three or four years at a time when rising interest rates are adding to the costs of housing .", "But if Ms. Byrne is any indication , not all the money will be spent .", "`` The Irish are good at treating themselves these days , but I would feel guilty to spend over half the amount on luxuries , '' she said .", "`` I do not think you should just throw away five years of hard savings . '' ."], "summary": ["Five years after Ireland encouraged citizens to save money in special accounts designed to slow roaring economy , government officials fear spending spree will do exactly what plan was meant to prevent .", "Underscores problems in taming surging economies .", "Inflation could accelerate at rapid pace if Irish choose to spend 16 billion euros -LRB- $ 21 billion -RRB- in savings that are just now becoming available .", "Analysts are uncertain how savings will be spent , if at all ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 4, 1, 36], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1816123", "text": ["The steeply rising cost of preventing and suppressing wildfires , which burned more of the American landscape in 2006 than in any other year since at least 1960 , is creating a rift between Washington and state and local governments over how the burden ought to be shouldered .", "A study issued in November by the inspector general 's office of the United States Department of Agriculture , the parent agency of the Forest Service , said the nature of the wildfire threat was changing as private homes and communities pushed ever closer to the boundaries of once-remote public lands .", "Those communities and landowners , rather than federal taxpayers , should have to pay for more of their own fire protection , the report concluded .", "States and local governments are gearing up to fight back in Congress , arguing that decades of federal mismanagement of national forests and open spaces , not development , created the threat and that little communities with few resources are neither responsible for it nor equipped to make a difference .", "The pattern of wildfire distribution during the recently ended fire season , which charred more than 9.8 million acres , supports either side .", "According to federal statistics , more state , county and private lands burned than in any other year since 1997 -- about half the total 2006 losses -- primarily because of monstrous blazes in Oklahoma , in Texas and across the Upper Plains , regions where most property is privately owned .", "That finding , though also driven by broader factors like drought and heat that have little to do with residential development in fire-prone areas , supports the federal contention that the government has had to shift an increasingly large share of its resources from the task of protecting its own forests to firefighting elsewhere .", "In some places , though , the issue is more complex .", "In Stillwater County , Mont . , north of Yellowstone National Park , for example , the small , long-established towns of Nye and Fishtail are bordered on two sides by national forest .", "In early July , the first of two huge fires erupted in the forest and roared into those communities , where 100,000 acres of mostly private land and 32 homes were burned .", "The blaze was the worst in the county 's history , local officials say .", "`` The forest is very dry and primed for fires started by lightning , and when that occurs in a forest not managed as well as it could have been , it soon gets out of control and meets the community , '' said Ken Mesch , the Stillwater County disaster and emergency services coordinator .", "`` If the federal government started pulling back money for fire suppression , they would be hanging us out to dry . ''", "Federal land managers say protection of private land at the boundaries of public space -- called the wildland-urban interface -- is the fastest-growing component of the nation 's firefighting budget .", "In 2003 and 2004 , the inspector general 's report estimated , the Forest Service spent at least half a billion dollars , and perhaps as much as a billion , protecting private property in such areas .", "The trend is similar at the Interior Department , which oversees hundreds of millions of acres of public lands in the West through the Bureau of Land Management , the Fish and Wildlife Service , and the National Park Service .", "Fire prevention activities -- controlled fires or thinning of burnable vegetation -- have shifted there toward the interface lands , said Lynn Scarlett , deputy interior secretary .", "Ms. Scarlett said that almost half the 1.1 million acres treated by the Interior Department for fire-risk reduction in 2006 were in interface zones , about double the proportion as recently as 2002 .", "She said her department , too , was considering that it demand increased cost-sharing by state and local governments , though she emphasized that any outcome would have to be collaborative .", "`` One of the last things you want in an emergency is people squabbling over who 's going to pay , `` she said .", "The report from the Agriculture Department 's inspector general said a major problem was simply the weight of accumulated assumptions : fire response in the West has long meant federal authorities ' riding to the rescue , with no questions asked and no cost too great to bear .", "`` Public expectations and uncertainties about protection responsibilities , '' the report said , `` compel the Forest Service to suppress fires aggressively and at great expense when private property is at risk , even when fires pose little threat to National Forest system land . ''", "About 8.5 million homes were built at the wildland-urban interface within the interior West in the 1990s alone , according to the Forest Service .", "But state and local officials say they already pay their share to protect those communities and homeowners , partly because the residential growth has coincided with years of federal budget cuts .", "Arizona , for instance , now has 12 to 14 air tanker firefighting aircraft under contract , up from 2 to 4 in 2005 , as a result of reduced federal spending on tankers , said Lori Faeth , a policy adviser to Gov . Janet Napolitano .", "`` Our forests are in the condition they are because of poor federal management , '' Ms. Faeth said .", "`` They 've put us in this position , and they have the responsibility to pay for it . ``", "The Forest Service 's director of fire and aviation management , Tom Harbour , said the agency would follow up on the inspector general 's recommendations .", "`` We 're not going to walk away , `` Mr. Harbour said , '' but we will engage in a vigorous debate with our partners about the right way to split the pie . ``", "Still , money is only part of the issue , he said .", "Communities and developers in the West should be thinking in new ways as well , he said , including the use of fire-wise construction techniques and preparedness plans that involve residents in their own defense even before fires start .", "Many land experts say hardly anyone is addressing the most tangled and emotional question raised by the debate : how much or how little voice federal land managers should have in land-use decisions .", "`` Thinking through in advance the fire implications of a new subdivision next to a national forest boundary -- that does n't happen , `` said James L . Caswell , administrator of the Idaho Office of Species Conservation .", "Given the property rights issue and the tension between local governments and Washington that has shaped the West 's culture for the last century , a system of planning that allows federal officials veto power would seem unlikely .", "Mr. Caswell said better planning must be part of the solution .", "`` A thousand houses next to a boundary could overwhelm all the other cost-control issues , '' he said .", "`` But , '' he added , `` that 's a very emotional topic , so it 's really hard to deal with . `` ."], "summary": ["Steeply rising cost of preventing and suppressing wildfires is creating rift between Washington and state and local governments over who should pay .", "Agriculture Dept report says private homeowners and communities , rather than federal taxpayers , should pay more of their own fire protection .", "State and local governments are fighting back .", "Recent fire season burned 9.8 million acres .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 2], "tag": ["U.S."]}
- {"id": "1816124", "text": ["Massachusetts , the only state where same-sex marriage is legal , took a first step toward possibly banning it Tuesday when legislators voted to advance a constitutional amendment defining marriage as the union between a man and a woman .", "The amendment now requires the approval of at least 50 legislators in another vote in the 2007-8 session .", "Then it would be placed on the November 2008 ballot as a referendum question .", "If it passed , the amendment would not invalidate the more than 8,000 same-sex marriages that have taken place since they became legal in May 2004 .", "But it would prevent future marriages of gay men and lesbians .", "`` This is democracy in action , '' said Kris Mineau , president of the Massachusetts Family Institute , which sponsored the amendment .", "`` It 's giving people the opportunity to vote on the most essential institution in human existence -- marriage . ``", "Arline Isaacson , co-chairwoman of the Massachusetts Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus , choked back tears .", "`` The price that our children and families will pay is so severe that we simply have to recommit ourselves to fight this some more , '' she said .", "The swiftness of the vote on Tuesday surprised people on both sides of the issue , taking place without any debate , just minutes after the constitutional convention had been gaveled into session .", "Proponents of the amendment needed just 50 of the legislature 's 200 lawmakers to support it .", "The final vote was 61 in favor of the amendment and 132 opposed .", "Later in the day , supporters of same-sex marriage persuaded lawmakers to reconsider the amendment , but the second vote , 62 to 134 , only affirmed the results of the first .", "National groups on both sides of the issue said they would commit resources to help advocates wage battle here .", "This past Election Day , the tide had seemed to be turning slightly in favor of supporters of same-sex marriage , with the defeat of an opposition amendment in Arizona and passage of seven others by slimmer margins than similar amendments in 2004 .", "Just two months ago , at an earlier constitutional convention , the legislature appeared to have essentially killed the proposal to allow a vote .", "During that session , legislators recessed without voting on the amendment , tabling it until Jan . 2 , the last day of the legislative session .", "Both sides said they expected that lawmakers would then vote to end the session without taking up the measure .", "But last week , the state 's Supreme Judicial Court , which three years ago ruled that same-sex marriage should be legal , threw a wrench into things .", "The court chided lawmakers for their maneuvers to avoid a vote on the amendment , saying the legislature had demonstrated `` indifference to , or defiance of , its constitutional duties . ''", "The court said it was not empowered to order the legislature to vote on the amendment , which petitioners , including Gov . Mitt Romney , had asked it to do .", "But the court 's criticism appeared to be enough to make some lawmakers , including some supporters of same-sex marriage , decide to allow a vote .", "`` Certainly , the court ruling changed the atmosphere this week , '' said Mr. Mineau , whose organization had gathered a record 170,000 petition signatures to get the amendment before the legislature .", "Ms. Isaacson said , `` The S.J.C. decision really tipped the scales against us . ''", "Tuesday 's vote was considered a victory for Governor Romney , a Republican who has used his opposition to same-sex marriage as a conservative rallying point as he has laid the groundwork for an expected run for the presidency in 2008 .", "In a statement Tuesday , Mr. Romney called the marriage vote `` a huge victory for the people of Massachusetts . ''", "By contrast , the vote was something of a rebuke to the incoming governor , Deval L . Patrick , a supporter of same-sex marriage who on Thursday will be sworn in as the first Democrat to occupy the governor 's office in 16 years .", "On Tuesday , before the constitutional convention , Mr. Patrick met with the House speaker and the Senate president , both Democrats , to urge them to find a way to defeat the amendment , even if it meant adjourning without voting on it .", "`` I believe that adults should be free to choose whom they wish to love and to marry , '' Mr. Patrick said , adding that he objected to using the constitutional amendment process `` to give a minority fewer freedoms than the majority . ''", "After the vote , Mr. Patrick said in a statement , `` We have work to do over the next year to turn this around . ''", "The new legislature taking office this month includes more supporters of same-sex marriage .", "But people on both sides of the issue said it was not clear if the balance had tipped enough to sideline the amendment .", "Ms. Isaacson and other gay rights activists have said that , should the initiative get on the 2008 ballot , they fear losing to an expensive campaign that would draw opponents from around the country .", "Polls in Massachusetts have generally found that just over half of the citizens surveyed supported same-sex marriage , but about the same number wanted the constitutional amendment to come before voters .", "On Tuesday , scores of demonstrators lined the street outside the Statehouse and spilled into the building .", "`` I think it is going to get defeated next time around , '' said Lea Roy , 38 , a supporter of same-sex marriage from Fitchburg who hopes to marry her girlfriend .", "`` It 's something you always dream about growing up -- getting married .", "Then it 's like , I 'm gay and we 're not allowed to get married . ``", "But David Wilson , who , along with his partner , Rob Compton , was a plaintiff in the original lawsuit that legalized same-sex marriage , was less optimistic .", "`` It feels like the rug has been pulled out from under us , '' said Mr. Wilson , who has married Mr. Compton .", "`` Maybe I 'll feel better tomorrow , but today I feel like I 've been shot . ``", "Bea Martins , 63 , an opponent of same-sex marriage from Fall River , said she was `` very pleased '' by the vote .", "As the initiative winds its way through the rest of the process , Ms. Martins said , `` my counsel is we continue praying to the dear Lord for justice to be done . '' ."], "summary": ["Massachusetts Legislature votes to advance constitutional amendment defining marriage as union between man and woman .", "Amendment now requires approval of at least 50 legislators in another vote in 2007-8 session for it to be placed on ballot as referendum .", "If passed , amendment would not invalidate same-sex marriages that have taken place since becoming legal in 2004 , but would prevent future marriages .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 1, 0, 2], "tag": ["U.S."]}
- {"id": "1816125", "text": ["The Delaware River , which separates New Jersey and Pennsylvania , is putting distance between the Democratic governors of the two states , who are at a standoff over the financing and environmental implications of a plan to deepen the river for larger cargo ships and oil tankers .", "After a yearlong impasse over the $ 300 million project , which requires approval and money from both states , Gov . Edward G . Rendell of Pennsylvania has halted the work of the Delaware River Port Authority , a bistate agency he heads that regulates activity along the river , blocking construction projects and increasing debt .", "He warned at a recent news conference that `` our patience is running out . ''", "But Gov . Jon S . Corzine of New Jersey said that officials in his state are not yet convinced that Pennsylvania 's recent promises to accept the bulk of the waste from the riverbed and cover any cost overruns would allay their concerns .", "Moreover , Mr. Corzine , who has yet to offer a definitive position on the project , has expressed doubts about it from an environmental standpoint .", "`` I understand his frustration , '' Mr. Corzine said in an interview .", "`` We have people who are frustrated also about the environment , and I 'm certain with all the details , some of the conceptual ideas that have been framed , we 'll work through it . ``", "The debate over the Delaware predates both governors , and for many of those who have followed it -- environmentalists and developers alike -- the stakes are high .", "Backers say the proposal to deepen more than 100 miles of the river , from the mouth of Delaware Bay north to Philadelphia , to 45 feet from 40 feet , is critical to the revitalization of the Port of Philadelphia .", "Critics contend the dredging could shake free contaminated sediments that could be absorbed by fish or make their way into the water supply .", "`` It 's a giant waste of money that 's going to hurt the environment and waste taxpayers ' resources , `` said Jeff Tittel , executive director of the New Jersey chapter of the Sierra Club .", "Mr. Tittel challenged Mr. Rendell 's contention that the dredging would make the Philadelphia port more competitive with other major East Coast ports .", "`` The port will still be 100 miles from the ocean , '' Mr. Tittel pointed out , `` and will still not be competitive with Port of Newark , Norfolk , or even Halifax . ''", "Governor Rendell continues to push for the project as a potential economic development engine .", "He pointed to a similar , if more costly , dredging project effectively undertaken at the Port of New York in the last six years , asking in a recent interview , `` Why is it good enough in the north and not good enough in the south .", "`` Meanwhile , his refusal to take action to reduce the interest rates on bonds issued by the Delaware River Port Authority has increased the agency 's debt by $ 7 million .", "In addition to agreeing to handle waste and extra costs , Governor Rendell has also promised to appoint a committee to examine the environmental impact of the 10-year project .", "But Governor Corzine dismissed these concessions , saying , `` It would be an overreading of that to say we 've come to an agreement . ``", "Those who know both men and understand the dispute said that they are dismayed that the governors of neighboring states , both from the same political party , have been unable to have a meeting of the minds .", "`` Hopefully , the two governors will sit down and resolve this , '' said State Senator Stephen M . Sweeney , a Democrat from Gloucester County in southern New Jersey and an opponent of the plan .", "`` Honestly , I have n't heard anything about this in a year . ``", "Mr. Rendell and Mr. Corzine , who have both played roles in the national Democratic Party , have enjoyed a cordial if not particularly deep friendship .", "But their styles are as different as the environs of the well-heeled New Jersey suburb of Summit , where Mr. Corzine lived while he was chief executive at Goldman Sachs , and the rough-and-tumble , in-your-face attitude of South Philadelphia , in Mr. Rendell 's adopted hometown .", "The garrulous Mr. Rendell , who will be 63 this week , is a former prosecutor and Philadelphia mayor who once instigated spectators to throw snowballs on the field at a pro football game .", "The earnest Mr. Corzine , who just turned 60 , is a multimillionaire and former Wall Street trader who successfully tackled fiscal problems in his first year but sometimes struggled to get along with state legislative leaders from his own party .", "Despite his frustration , Governor Rendell said the issue has not affected his friendship with Mr. Corzine , a relationship that he said dates to his successful 1991 campaign for mayor of Philadelphia , when Mr. Corzine , then a trader at Goldman Sachs , was a significant campaign contributor .", "`` I think he 's a great , great , great public servant , `` said Mr. Rendell , a native New Yorker , who before becoming governor in 2003 served as chairman of the Democratic National Committee .", "`` I believe that Governor Corzine has acted in good faith and does intend to resolve this . ''", "Mr. Corzine , the former head of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee , declined to discuss how the dispute had affected his rapport with Mr. Rendell .", "Indeed , he was reluctant to talk about the matter .", "Days after Mr. Rendell 's acerbic comment that New Jersey officials are `` running out of excuses , '' Mr. Corzine would say only , `` I actually think it 's better for us to have private conversations about it . ``", "Mr. Rendell said that he has tried to be accommodating with New Jersey officials , who over the past 14 months had asked to delay talks on the dredging project while political campaigns were going on in both states .", "Also , Mr. Corzine was trying to work out the details of his first budget , which led to a seven-day shutdown in July of the state government .", "He said that he and Mr. Corzine were scheduled to meet this month on the issue .", "`` I do n't know what reason they 'll find now , `` Mr. Rendell said of the prospect of any future delays .", "David P . Rebovich , director of the Institute of New Jersey Politics at Rider University , said the showdown has highlighted Mr. Rendell 's `` feisty , quick-witted , can-do style '' and the fact that Mr. Corzine is `` much more thoughtful and deliberative . ''", "`` The impasse is n't doing either state much good , `` Professor Rebovich added ."], "summary": ["New Jersey Gov Jon S Corzine and Pennsylvania Gov Edward G Rendell head for showdown over financing and environmental issues of plan to deepen Delaware River .", "Corzine expresses concern that dredging could shake free contaminated sediment .", "Says he is not convinced by Pennsylvania 's promises to accept bulk of waste from river and cover cost overruns .", "Rendell sees project as critical to revitalization of Port of Philadelphia .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 8, 9], "tag": ["New York and Region"]}
- {"id": "1816127", "text": ["Sale prices for Manhattan apartments fell in the last quarter of 2006 , while the pace of sales was reported to be strong and the backlog of unsold apartments fell , according to several market studies released yesterday by large real estate brokerage firms .", "The new quarterly numbers led brokers and market analysts to conclude that the Manhattan real estate market -- with its legendary high prices -- appeared to have so far escaped the worst of the real estate market excesses , like large price cuts by developers , reported across the country .", "`` It shows us that we hit the soft landing that a lot of people were hoping for , '' said Gregory J . Heym , an economist who prepared market studies for two brokerage firms , Brown Harris Stevens and Halstead Property .", "The new figures were also reported in a series of competitive and sometimes contradictory studies .", "One report , released by Prudential Douglas Elliman , reported a 5 percent decline in the average apartment sale price , compared with the previous quarter , while one by the Corcoran Group put the decline at 1.5 percent .", "Both put the average sale price for all apartments at more than $ 1.2 million .", "A third study by Mr. Heym showed that average apartment prices actually increased by 5 percent from the prior quarter .", "But even this study showed weakness in the market .", "It found that prices for co-ops , the older apartments that make up most of Manhattan 's residential real estate , declined by 5 percent , with these declines offset by increased sale prices for condominiums .", "He said more than half the sales were in new luxury buildings that command premium prices .", "Yet what heartened many market watchers was the market 's overall stability , and the rising sales , according to the Prudential report , in what is traditionally a weak quarter .", "Average prices were higher last quarter than they were in the same quarter a year ago .", "For all of 2006 , average prices were also higher than the previous year , which included the peak quarters of the recent real estate boom .", "At the end of December , the Prudential report found that the backlog of unsold apartments had dropped to 5,934 from 7,623 , a decline of 22 percent and slightly below the inventory reported a year before , as apartments were sold and overpriced apartments were taken off the market .", "At the same time , the Prudential report tracked 2,441 sales in the last quarter of 2006 , an increase of 15.5 percent from the prior quarter and a 55 percent increase from the fourth quarter of 2005 .", "Jonathan J . Miller , an appraiser and president of Miller Samuel Inc . , prepared the Prudential report .", "He said some of the increase in sales might be exaggerated because of improved reporting by New York City , which last summer began providing sales information for previously undisclosed co-op sales .", "But he said that the increase in reported sales was the largest he had seen in several years , especially in the fourth quarter when sales typically decline an average of 8 percent .", "But he said that he believed the market was strengthening and that it was now `` just barely '' a buyer 's market , but one in which buyers were frustrated because sellers were not making significant concessions .", "He found that the average discount from the final asking price for an apartment fell to 2.8 percent from 4 percent in the previous quarter .", "Pamela Liebman , president of the Corcoran Group , said that sellers are now generally pricing their apartments realistically , and that with the economy strong and Wall Street bonuses high , `` the psychology of the market is very positive . ''", "`` The big story here is the story that never happened , '' she said .", "`` The story was supposed to be that prices would crash in 2006 , and a strong buyer 's market will emerge .", "Buyers can certainly pick and choose , but those who think they are going to have a field day out there right now are mistaken . ``", "Ms. Liebman said the fear of a price collapse caused by a construction boom has not been borne out so far , and the outlook remained good for this year .", "She said several thousand planned condominiums have instead been turned into hotels and office buildings , as hotel profits and office rentals have risen .", "The trends in the Manhattan real estate market have always been something of a puzzle , since the average and median prices tend to move up and down with the changing mix of large and small apartments and of apartments in old and new buildings .", "In addition , the various market studies augment public records of sales with private databases compiled by brokers and appraisers of recent closings that have not yet been reported by the city .", "New building sales also distort the data , since sales often close up to a year or more after they go to contract .", "Ms. Liebman predicted that average sale prices would rise next year as contracts already signed at new expensive luxury buildings with multiple sales of more than $ 10 million , like 15 Central Park West and the Plaza on Fifth Avenue , are completed .", "Several reports showed significant price increases in very large apartments with four or more bedrooms and in studios .", "The reports generally showed the largest increases in very large apartments with four or more bedrooms , with declines in average prices for two-bedroom apartments , which still averaged above $ 1.5 million per apartment .", "Overall , 2006 ended with an average price increase of 6 percent over the previous year 's sales , Mr. Miller said , while the median went up by 11 percent .", "Mr. Heym , the economist at Halstead and Brown Harris Stevens , attributed the continued strength of the market to the local economy , which he said has produced more jobs last year than in any year since the 2000 boom , and that interest rates that have remained low .", "Mr. Heym said , `` 2006 turned out to be a really good year , much better than people thought . '' ."], "summary": ["Prudential Douglas Elliman reports 5 percent decline in average apartment sale price in last quarter .", "Corcoran Group puts decline at 1.5 percent .", "Both reports put average sale price for all apartments at more than $ 1.2 million .", "Results of Brown Harris Stevens and Halstead Property study noted ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 4], "tag": ["New York and Region"]}
- {"id": "1816129", "text": ["The dollar slumped yesterday and the euro climbed to a three-week high against the currency .", "A steady slide in the value of the dollar since late 2005 , primarily against the euro and the British pound , has steepened over the last month amid indications that interest rates will rise in Europe , while the Federal Reserve is expected to cut rates this year .", "At the same time , countries with large dollar holdings are showing a new willingness to dump the dollar in favor of the rising euro , though the current activity is seen as posing little long-term risk to the dollar .", "Late last month , the United Arab Emirates became the latest country to shift more of its currency reserves away from the dollar , joining Russia , Switzerland , Venezuela and others .", "Those moves coincide with ambiguous signals from China about possibly pulling back from the dollar , and recent word from Iran , the world 's fourth-largest oil producer , that it would prefer euros as payment for oil , which is typically priced in dollars .", "But currency experts say that this turn away from the dollar is not likely to do any long-term damage to the currency 's value for a number of reasons .", "First , the motives of central banks that are adding other currencies to their reserves do not appear to be driven by the belief that the euro will eventually supplant the dollar as the world 's key currency .", "Rather , these central banks are doing what investors do to cut risk : diversifying their portfolios .", "Moreover , the amount of currency moved so far has been relatively small in a global market that trades trillions of dollars a day -- only about $ 2 billion in the case of the United Arab Emirates , for example .", "`` There is some indication that central banks are moving to diversify reserves , but it 's at a very slow pace , `` said David Powell , a currency analyst with IDEAglobal .", "`` Is it the start of a massive shift out of the dollar .", "I would say no . ``", "Yesterday , the euro traded at $ 1.3272 , up from $ 1.3198 late Friday in New York .", "The British pound was at $ 1.9721 , up from $ 1.9586.", "The United States dollar index , a measure of the dollar 's strength against a basket of currencies , fell to 83.23 from 83.65 on Friday .", "In February 2002 , the index was at 120 .", "But trading was thinner than usual yesterday as financial markets were closed in the United States , as were markets in Tokyo and Singapore .", "In 2006 , the euro appreciated more than 11 percent against the dollar , while the British pound rose nearly 14 percent against the dollar .", "But the dollar is not likely to start flowing with great speed out of central banks because foreign countries risk devaluing their investments if they do so .", "Even the slightest suggestion that a country is thinking about swapping dollars for euros risks sending the value of the dollar falling , and in turn hurts all foreign investors in American securities .", "The case of China , which holds more Treasury securities than any other foreign nation except Japan , offers an example of why countries would be reluctant to dump their dollar reserves .", "In October , the most recent month for which figures are available from the Treasury Department , China held $ 345 billion in Treasury securities .", "That was up from $ 301 billion a year earlier .", "Its currency holdings total $ 1 trillion .", "About $ 700 billion of that , economists estimate , is in dollars .", "So in many ways , it is in China 's best interest not to let the dollar 's value slip .", "Heavy sales of the dollar could make it harder for the People 's Bank of China to manage its gradual appreciation of the yuan against the dollar .", "Anything more abrupt , Beijing fears , would make Chinese goods less competitive in the United States and pose problems domestically for some of the loans from its state banks .", "And if the dollar drops too much , the value of China 's holdings would decrease , limiting the lending ability of its banks .", "Nonetheless , the rising euro is not something the United States or foreign investors can afford to ignore .", "`` You have to start to thinking that the euro can be of some risk to the dollar , '' said Shaun Osbourne , chief currency strategist at TD Securities in Toronto .", "`` Over the course of the next 5 or 10 years , I do n't think there 's any danger that the dollar 's pre-eminence is threatened .", "But in the long run , there is certainly the risk that does happen . ``", "One issue driving investors from the dollar is the possibility that interest rates in the United States and Europe may move farther apart .", "Financial markets are currently expecting at least one interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve sometime next year .", "That contrasts with predictions of further rate increases by the European Central Bank .", "`` A lot of foreign investors think the Fed is going to cut rates in 2007 , and that 's a rather dollar-bearish thing , `` said Julia Coronado , senior economist with Barclays Capital .", "Some economists predict the dollar will fall further in 2007 .", "The euro finished 2006 at $ 1.31 , and some economists see it climbing near $ 1.40 -- a high in its seven-year history .", "`` We believe that the dollar 's decline versus the euro has further to run , with $ 1.38 a possible destination for the pair over the next six months , `` said Tom Levinson , a foreign exchange strategist with ING Wholesale Banking in London .", "Still , many economists are unwilling to predict that the dollar faces an inevitable demise .", "`` The dollar is still the world 's No . 1 currency , and it 's going to stay that way , `` said Nigel Gault , chief United States economist for Global Insight .", "`` The euro is gradually going to become more important , but I do n't see it becoming more important than the dollar . `` ."], "summary": ["Steady slide in value of United States dollar since 2005 continues as Federal Reserve is expected to cut rates this year and currencies such as British pound and euro are rising .", "United Arab Emirates joins Russia , Switzerland , Venezuela and other countries that have shifted reserves away from dollar or have hinted at similar plans .", "Experts do not expect long-term damage to US currency 's value .", "Graph ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 3, 5], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1816130", "text": ["College stinks .", "Just ask Emily Watson , a sophomore at Dartmouth , who sprays her dorm room once a week and her clothes two to three times a week with fresheners , usually in citrus or other fruity flavors .", "Ms. Watson did not grow up using air fresheners , but a Febreze commercial two years ago changed all that .", "`` If you 're in a frat basement or something , you kind of stink afterwards , and you want to wear your jeans the next day , `` Ms. Watson said .", "Younger customers like Ms. Watson are at the forefront of the boom in air fresheners , which have grown up since the first Air Wicks and Glade sprays hit the shelves two generations ago .", "Glade 's first sprays in evergreen and blossom scents appeared in 1956 and were marketed to suburban families as a way to banish cooking and tobacco smells .", "Since then , thousands of new products have made their debuts -- plug-ins , fragrance fans , diffusers , flashing light shows -- becoming pricier and fancier every year .", "These days , air fresheners are selling to a wider range of customers , as companies pour more money into advertisements that show people of all ages , male and female , euphorically smelling their `` clean '' air .", "Procter & Gamble introduced Febreze air products in 2004 , after sensing a growing market , and put its marketing heft behind them .", "Sales across the industry have soared as a result , up 50 percent , or nearly $ 600 million since 2003 , according to Kline & Company , a market research firm in New Jersey .", "Total sales are expected to reach $ 1.72 billion in the United States this year , the firm said .", "`` P . & G . came from nowhere , '' said William Schmitz , a senior analyst with Deutsche Bank .", "`` And they expanded the category . ''", "Febreze has become popular with young people who go barhopping and come home with smelly sweaters , Mr. Schmitz said .", "Indeed , Procter & Gamble sought such customers by creating offbeat Febreze ads featuring young 20-somethings -- men and women -- making air fresheners seem cool .", "The company used much the same approach to marketing for its Swiffer cleaning products , with one of them appearing in the hands of Jessica Simpson on a Rolling Stone cover in 2003 .", "One of the first Febreze air freshener products was designed to look like a CD player .", "Febreze Scentstories , released in 2004 , features `` stop '' and `` play '' buttons and `` discs '' that radiate scents rather than music .", "The disc titled `` Wandering Barefoot on the Shore '' features scents like `` splashing in the waves '' and `` sailing in the bay . ''", "`` Teenage girls are very scent-involved , generally speaking , '' said John Paquin , executive vice president and global account director for Febreze at Grey Worldwide , a WPP Group agency .", "`` You ca n't have enough scent with teenage girls . ``", "Shoppers looking to brighten their air will find plenty of options .", "More than 1,000 new fresheners hit the market last year , exceeding the number for 2005 and 2004 combined , according to the Productscan Online service of Datamonitor .", "Companies that make air fresheners , like SC Johnson , maker of Glade .", "Reckitt Benckiser , maker of Air Wick .", "And Procter & Gamble say they are responding to consumer demand .", "Scent , they say , has become more important to consumers .", "`` Fragrance for some people is a natural expression of themselves , '' said Tammy Maier-Jones , category manager for Glade .", "`` They want their friends to come over and say , ' That 's Linda 's scent , ` or ' Mary 's scent . '", "`` SC Johnson spent only $ 31 million on Glade ads in 2003 , before Febreze .", "It has since increased its spending by more than $ 30 million a year , bringing Glade to Febreze 's level , according to Nielsen Monitor-Plus , a unit of VNU .", "`` There 's an explosion of activity in this segment , `` said Michelle Dauchy , category manager for Glade .", "Febreze commercials now account for about 30 percent of air freshener commercials , and about 40 percent of the money spent buying TV air time in the category .", "Procter & Gamble spent $ 58 million for Febreze commercials in the first nine months of 2006 , overshadowing Reckitt Benckiser 's $ 31 million and just above SC Johnson 's $ 55 million in that period , Monitor-Plus numbers show .", "SC Johnson released a Glade product in August directly for tweens , or girls 8 to 12 years old , and teenage girls .", "Its Scented Oil Light Show plugs into walls and beams bright colors and scents like Berry Burst , Watermelon Rush and Vanilla & Cream .", "Glade commercials for the Light Show feature a teenage girl in a bathrobe complaining that her mother bought the freshener for her younger brother rather than for her .", "The company developed a tween-focused Web site for the Light Show and ran a contest online for teenagers to win `` the ultimate slumber party '' with Vanessa Anne Hudgens , star of the Disney show `` High School Musical . ''", "Ten pairs of best friends won the contest and hung out with Ms. Hudgens in Hollywood in November .", "The Glade Create-a-Scent PlugIn , released in 2004 , also appeals to young shoppers .", "Tweens have long made their own perfume potions , and the Glade product provides suggested combinations of its scents .", "Air Wick introduced a new look for some of its fresheners last July with animated commercials , featuring elephant and octopus characters .", "These new products tend to be pricey .", "The Febreze `` players '' cost $ 27.49 and discs are $ 5.99 apiece .", "The Glade Light Show costs $ 11.99.", "But then teenagers today have more discretionary money than those of past generations , analysts said .", "`` The teenager today is purchasing what prior generations have looked to buy when they became young career professionals , '' said Marshal Cohen , chief industry analyst at the NPD Group , a retail research company .", "`` Younger consumers are much older today , in terms of what they 're buying . ``", "Mothers and older consumers remain important to air freshener companies , and many advertisements continue to be directed at people with families .", "About three-quarters of households bought air fresheners last year , according to an ACNielsen Homescan Consumer Facts report .", "Ad executives said there had also been significant growth in the last few years among those traditional customers .", "`` It used to be that home environment stopped at d\u00e9cor , and now scent is brought in as another dimension , '' said Tammy Anthony , executive director for client services in the Cincinnati office of Landor Associates , a WPP Group agency that works with Procter & Gamble on Febreze .", "`` Today 's consumers crave experiences that touch all of their senses . ``", "About 40 percent of people who buy air products started buying them in the last six years , according to a recent survey by MarketTools , a firm based in San Francisco that does consumer research for Procter & Gamble and other packaged goods companies .", "About half of the people buying air scents said they were now putting them in more rooms than they used to .", "The living room , kitchen , bathrooms and master bedroom are the most popular , but fresheners are also showing up in the oldest child 's room , the survey found .", "Teenagers are sometimes encouraged to make their rooms smell better by their parents , but they are also seeking out the scents themselves .", "About a third of teenagers with scented air in their rooms buy the fresheners themselves , a third ask their parents to buy them , and the other third said their parents put the freshener in , according to a survey by Weekly Reader Research , a research firm in Stamford , Conn . , that specializes in teenagers .", "The survey , while not scientific , interviewed 1,500 teenagers online and found that two-thirds used air fresheners .", "Of those , about a third said advertisements had convinced them their rooms could smell better .", "Jessica Ray , a freshman at Williams College , said she liked having a dorm room scent that could be smelled all the way down her hallway .", "She has been using an apple-cinnamon-scented Glade PlugIn , but in the spring , she says , she 'll switch to something flowery .", "Her family in Virginia did not use fresheners when she was growing up , but Ms. Ray said she was likely to continue to buy them throughout her life .", "Even specialty retailers are seeking young buyers .", "Anne Taintor Inc . , a specialty retailer for women that uses vintage images and a playful sense of attitude in its products , has found that a lemon-gelatin-scented freshener sells well among college students .", "`` Young people are more oriented towards the inside than the outside , '' said Christina White , the company 's senior vice president for marketing .", "`` They 're in front of their computers .", "They 're not taking long walks in the woods .", "The idea of scent tended to be a personal thing , but younger people are seeing it in a much broader way .", "They want to control everything around them in their own spaces . ``", "It is not just teenage girls who are enjoying scented rooms .", "Boys , too , are customers .", "Unilever has had success selling its Axe line of body sprays aimed at young men in the last few years , and Weekly Reader Research found that about 60 percent of its male respondents used fresheners , just 10 percentage points fewer than the teenage girls surveyed .", "Mohammad Usman , a freshman at Dartmouth , said that most of his friends of both sexes were scent savvy .", "He showed up for college this fall with about a dozen fresheners he brought from home , he said .", "He sprays them about once a week .", "`` I go to the gym every day , and I come back and it always smells because my laundry bag is there , '' Mr. Usman said .", "`` Tonight , I 'm throwing a movie night , so before I clean my room , I 'm going to spray some Febreze . ``", "ADVERTISING ."], "summary": ["Makers of air fresheners are responding to increased demand as scent becomes more important to consumers .", "College students are fueling growth in new generation of air fresheners .", "Companies such as Procter & Gamble , S C Johnson and Reckitt Benckiser have increased spending to capitalize on trend .", "Older consumers remain important to air freshener makers as indicated by focused advertising in segment .", "Photos .", "Graphs ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [48, 25, 24, 23, 26, 0], "tag": ["Education", "Business"]}
- {"id": "1816131", "text": ["Eugen David , a small-time farmer with a chipped tooth and muddy boots in this obscure wrinkle of Transylvania , is an unlikely man to attract the attention of movie stars and moguls .", "But he counts Vanessa Redgrave , George Soros and Teddy Goldsmith among his backers in a land battle with a Canadian gold mining company .", "The company , Gabriel Resources , owns the rights to mine the hills here and wants Mr. David , 41 , to leave his 50 acres of land so that the company can carve out what would be Europe 's largest open-pit gold mine .", "Mr. David says he is n't budging .", "`` We do n't want to move , `` he says , staring across at the brown-gray stain of Rosia Montana 's defunct gold mine , which would be swallowed by Gabriel Resource 's huge project .", "In the old days , a pipsqueak like Mr. David would n't stand a chance fighting powerful and sophisticated adversaries like Gabriel Resources and its minority partner , the Romanian government .", "But this is the Internet age , when local activists like Mr. David can tap into an increasingly well-oiled global network of non-governmental organizations for financial and political support on a long list of causes and emerge with almost as much clout as any corporation .", "Mr. David 's stubbornness has struck a chord with the anti-globalization movement .", "Gabriel Resources ' proposed open-pit , cyanide-leaching mining process has also drawn the ire of international environmentalists who are now trying to stop it .", "They just might win .", "Mining is one of the world 's most unpopular pursuits these days , particularly the gigantic gouging that leaves the earth pocked with moonscape-like craters a mile or more wide .", "Gold mining is disdained even more because of the perceived frivolity of its end : to provide lucre for the rich , status for the everyman and hidden stores of wealth for nations .", "But it also has a strong allure , particularly for resource-rich countries like Romania that are struggling to develop impoverished communities that need jobs .", "The $ 3.7 billion project would plow more than $ 2 billion into the Romanian economy and could earn Gabriel Resources and its shareholders profits of $ 1 billion or more .", "And the company involved here , a Toronto-based corporation with market capitalization of $ 1 billion , is run by savvy mining executives , many of them highly experienced from cutting their teeth building the Barrick Gold Corporation , the largest gold mining company in the world .", "The allure is perhaps stronger in Romania because the country was created , in a way , by gold mining .", "Early in the second century A.D. , Emperor Trajan extended Roman territory to include what is now Transylvania , in the western half of Romania , to mine Europe 's most important gold deposits .", "The mines helped finance the expansion of the empire to its peak .", "When the Romans abandoned the territory almost 200 years later , they left behind colonists who are the ancestors of Romanians today .", "When the Romans left , the mining did not stop .", "The eventual ruling dynasty , the Hapsburgs , and the Communists , who turned to open-pit mining , continued the process , though with dwindling efficiency .", "The mine was finally shut in early 2006 .", "Gabriel Resources was born in the breakup of the state-owned economy after Communism 's collapse when Romanian businessmen with little mining experience and suspected ties to the former secret police won a vast concession to exploit mineral deposits .", "Mr. David and his neighbors realized six years ago that the company planned to expand the old mine and formed an association called Alburnus Maior -- Rosia Montana 's Roman name -- to try to stop the project .", "They were engaged in an ineffective letter-writing campaign when the founders of Gabriel Resources moved the company 's listing from Vancouver , British Columbia , to the more respectable Toronto Stock Exchange .", "Mr. David 's opposition might have withered had it not been for an ill-advised plan to build a Dracula theme park near the picturesque Romanian town of Sighisoara , once home to Vlad Dracula , the notorious Romanian ruler and inspiration for `` Dracula , '' the Bram Stoker novel .", "Prince Charles of Britain , fond of Romania 's old Saxon villages , was outraged .", "So was Teddy Goldsmith , the aging anti-globalist environmentalist and scion of a wealthy business family .", "A Swiss-born environmental journalist named Stephanie Roth , who wrote for Mr. Goldsmith 's magazine , The Ecologist , moved to Romania to help defeat the project .", "With such powerful forces aligned against it , the theme park for Sighisoara died .", "While in Romania , Ms. Roth heard about the Gabriel Resources ' plan for Rosia Montana and went to meet Mr. David in April 2002 .", "Within months , she had introduced him to some of the most powerful environmental organizations in the world .", "`` When I came there was no computer , no Web site , '' Ms. Roth said .", "`` I tried to empower the local organization . ''", "Ms. Roth started by helping Mr. David 's group obtain a grant for a few hundred dollars from an American environmental organization , Global Greengrants Fund .", "They organized a public hearing in Rosia Montana that drew 40 non-governmental organizations with Romanian operations , including Greenpeace , and catapulted Mr. David 's dispute onto the national stage .", "Then Ms. Roth took to the road .", "By the time Gabriel Resources ' founders turned the company over to more professional management in 2005 , the company had an international coalition of nongovernmental organizations arrayed against it .", "But the mining industry does n't easily back down .", "Hoping to extract an estimated 300 tons of gold and 1,200 tons of silver from the mine , Gabriel Resources introduced a public relations campaign with Madison Avenue-style television commercials and community sponsorships to win over 960 Rosia Montana families that it needed to relocate .", "It cast itself as an economic savior .", "It even countered a critical documentary with its own film , `` Mine Your Own Business . ''", "Some efforts backfired .", "Gabriel Resources helped sponsor the Transylvanian International Film Festival in nearby Cluj-Napoca .", "But when its organizers invited Ms. Redgrave to receive a lifetime achievement award , Ms. Roth quickly put the actress and Mr. David together .", "Ms. Redgrave 's acceptance speech became a rallying cry against Gabriel Resources ' project .", "The anti-Gabriel Resources ' movement had its mascot and the European press began covering the story .", "Word of the movement had by then reached the Open Society Institute of George Soros , which has been working for years for more accountability from Romanian public officials .", "`` When guys in S.U.V. ' s with bags full of cash show up in a poor locality in Romania , they can really make the law there , '' said Radu Motoc , project director of the Open Society Foundation-Romania .", "Nearly all members of Rosia Montana 's former and current council are either employed by Rosia Montana Gold , Gabriel 's local subsidiary , or have family members who are , according to the foundation .", "The foundation , which has already given $ 35,000 to the cause , says it plans to spend as much as $ 240,000 next year fighting the project and helping Mr. David .", "Because of the polarizing debate surrounding open-pit gold mining , it is hard to find an unbiased commentator to assess the risks and benefits of Gabriel Resources ' proposed mine .", "A major focus of contention is the use of large quantities of highly toxic cyanide to separate gold and silver from the ore .", "In 1999 , Aurul , a joint venture of the Australian mining company , Esmeralda Exploration , and a Romanian national company , Remin , began a leaching operation to recover gold from old tailings in Baia Mare , or Great Mine , roughly 80 miles north of Rosia Montana .", "Like Gabriel Resources , the company promised a state-of-the-art , self-contained project that would not pose risks to the environment .", "But less than a year later , the dam holding back a lake of cyanide-laced water burst , sending 100,000 cubic meters of contaminated water downstream to the Danube , killing more than 1,200 tons of fish in Hungary .", "Gabriel Resources says it would build in safeguards that were missing at Baia Mare .", "It has promised to convert most of the cyanide into a nontoxic compound before discharging it into the mine 's tailing pond .", "It also promises to clean up pollution left by past mining operations and spend $ 70 million to do as much as possible to repair the altered landscape after its project is done .", "`` Arsenic , cadmium , nickel , lead , '' said Catalin Hosu , a public relations official for Gabriel Resources , ticking off just a few of the heavy metals that leach from ancient mines to give this valley its name .", "Rosia Montana means red mountain .", "`` We help the biodiversity .", "We help the environment , `` said Yani Roditis , Gabriel Resources ' chief operating officer .", "That 's difficult for many people here to believe .", "The new project will grind down several hills , leaving four deep pits in their place , and slowly fill an entire valley with wastewater and tailings that will take years to solidify .", "Robert E . Moran , a mining expert hired by the opposition to evaluate the impact of Gabriel Resources ' plans , said that the mine , despite detoxification , would inevitably produce other toxic byproducts damaging to the environment , including heavy metals .", "The controversy , meanwhile , has splintered the town , its buildings divided between those with signs that read , `` Property of Rosia Montana Gold Corp . '' and others that say , `` This Property Is Not For Sale . ''", "`` I was born here , so why should I leave .", "`` said Gabriela Jorka , 38 , who runs a small general store in Rosia Montana .", "`` I 'd rather kill myself . ``", "Eugen Bobar , 60 , the school principal , says that the dispute is pitting parents against children , husbands against wives .", "But only about 40 percent of the families to be relocated remain , and Mr. Bobar predicts that most of them will leave .", "`` Most of the people who talk about the environment are just making an excuse , '' Mr. Bobar said , sitting in the school 's office late one night .", "`` They will leave for a good price . ''", "Mr. David , however , insists there is a committed core of opponents who will not sell , whatever the offer .", "In that case , Gabriel Resources warns , it may ask the state to step in and move people out by force .", "But that could lead to years of legal wrangling .", "The company has told its shareholders that it expects to receive final approval for the project from the Romanian government this year and will start producing gold by mid-2009 .", "Gabriel Resources , which is based in Toronto , is , meanwhile , trying to win over the remaining holdouts .", "It is sponsoring education for underprivileged children in Rosia Montana through a nongovernmental organization run by Leslie Hawke , the mother of the actor Ethan Hawke and a celebrity herself in Romania .", "She supports the project .", "`` It 's probably better that nothing happened , but the gold is there and if they do n't do it , somebody else will , `` Ms. Hawke said .", "`` And I 'd rather that they do it than somebody else . `` ."], "summary": ["Eugene David refuses to leave home in Romania where Gabriel Resources wants to build largest open-pit gold mine .", "Gabriel owns rights to mine hills in area but not 50 acres of land David lives on .", "David has taken fight to Internet , where he has gained support from celebrities , environmentalists and members of anti-globalization movement .", "Company launches campaign to convince town of economic benefits and safety of proposed mine .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 7], "tag": ["Technology", "Business"]}
- {"id": "1816141", "text": ["Advisers to former Mayor Rudolph W . Giuliani said yesterday that someone infiltrated the Giuliani camp last fall and stole a document about his presidential prospects and political liabilities .", "It was then leaked , they said , as a `` dirty trick '' to embarrass Mr. Giuliani and highlight such headaches as his controversial former aide , Bernard B . Kerik , and one of his ex-wives , Donna Hanover .", "The Daily News was given the 140-page document recently by someone `` sympathetic to one of Giuliani 's rivals for the White House , `` The News said in an article published yesterday .", "According to the article , the document proposes a $ 100 million fund-raising effort for 2007 , names an array of potential donors , and warns that Mr. Giuliani might face `` insurmountable '' problems , including questions about Mr. Kerik and Ms. Hanover .", "Mr. Giuliani is expected to decide over the next few months whether to run for president , his advisers say , and he has already formed an exploratory committee to raise money .", "A Giuliani spokeswoman , Sunny Mindel , said yesterday that the document belonged to a staff member and did not reflect official strategy , but `` simply someone 's ideas which were committed to paper over three months ago . ``", "Ms. Mindel said the document was apparently stolen from a piece of luggage during a Giuliani political trip last fall , then photocopied and replaced in the luggage .", "Ms. Mindel said she did not know if her office would seek a criminal investigation of the alleged theft .", "The public disclosure of the document is potentially damaging for Mr. Giuliani , not least because since 9/11 , he has built a business as a private consultant on security issues while creating an image as a political leader capable of combating terrorism .", "Indeed , an adviser to one of his possible rivals in 2008 , Senator John McCain of Arizona , half-joked yesterday that it was interesting that Mr. Giuliani 's businesses included security consulting .", "`` I 'm surprised that something like that would ever leave the custody of a campaign , and that such raw and frank information would be around the countryside , `` said the McCain adviser , John Weaver .", "`` That said , a lot of the information was predictable . ''", "The document outlines a fund-raising effort to bring in at least $ 25 million by the end of March , and to spend more than $ 21 million this year .", "The News said it included notations that named Mr. Giuliani 's chief fund-raiser , Anne Dickerson , and a senior political aide , Anthony Carbonetti .", "Ms. Mindel would not say to whom the document belonged .", "Among the sections that appear outdated are the prospective donor lists .", "The document proposed New Jersey fund-raisers Lewis M . Eisenberg and Larry Bathgate , financier Henry R . Kravis , and FedEx executive Fred Smith .", "The first three men were named last month as leaders of Mr. McCain 's fund-raising operation , and Mr. Smith is expected to join the roster shortly .", "Assessing the document , which includes printed text , handwriting and spreadsheets , The News drew the conclusion that Mr. Giuliani appeared torn between seeking the White House and continuing his business endeavors , which include consulting on leadership and security issues , a law practice and an investment concern .", "One page in the document , according to The News , says Mr. Giuliani might `` drop out '' of the race as a result of `` insurmountable '' personal and political concerns .", "On that page was a list of bullet points that seem to highlight those concerns : Mr. Giuliani 's consulting practice .", "His former police commissioner , Mr. Kerik , who has struggled with personal and professional controversies .", "Ms. Hanover , with whom he had a stormy breakup .", "His third and current wife , Judith Nathan Giuliani .", "And `` social issues '' -- apparently a reference to his support for abortion rights , gay civil unions , and gun control , some or all of which are opposed by many Republican voters .", "`` All will come out -- in worst light , '' the document stated .", "`` $ 100 million against us on this stuff , `` it continued , apparently a reference to likely efforts by Giuliani opponents to draw public attention to his liabilities .", "It also suggests that Mr. Giuliani would categorize and honor his donors with terms from baseball .", "While President Bush referred to his best financial supporters as `` Rangers '' and `` Pioneers , '' Mr. Giuliani would call them `` Team Captains , '' `` MVPs , '' `` All-Stars , '' and `` Sluggers . ''", "He would focus his fund-raising operations in New York , Washington , and California , the document indicates .", "Ms. Mindel called the document `` very outdated , '' but at least some of the ideas reflect current strategy discussions in the Giuliani camp , according to Republican Party figures who are familiar with the discussions and who spoke to The New York Times recently on condition of anonymity .", "Specifically , these Republicans say , Giuliani advisers believe that he is broadly popular enough to be able to raise money quickly for a presidential bid , and that he would need more than $ 100 million by the end of 2007 .", "According to Giuliani advisers , the document was a notebook compiled by one staff member whose luggage was not immediately located after a private plane flight last fall .", "They said it was not an official dossier that all Giuliani political aides shared .", "`` Voters are sick and tired of dirty tricks , '' Ms. Mindel said .", "Referring to the document , she added : `` It 's about as relevant today as a grocery list written in early October -- in pencil . `` ."], "summary": ["Advisers to former New York City Mayor Rudolph W Giuliani say someone infiltrated Giuliani camp and stole document about his presidential prospects and political liabilities .", "Daily News was given document recently , and reports it proposes $ 100 million 2007 fundraising effort , names potential donors , and cites other issues .", "Giuliani is expected to decide whether to run for presidency in next few months .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 4], "tag": ["U.S."]}
- {"id": "1816142", "text": ["Iraq 's Shiite-led government said Tuesday that it had ordered an investigation into the abusive behavior at the execution of Saddam Hussein , who was subjected to a battery of taunts by official Shiite witnesses and guards as he awaited his hanging .", "Officials said a three-man Interior Ministry committee would look into the scenes that have caused outrage and public demonstrations among Mr. Hussein 's Sunni Arab loyalists in Iraq , and widespread dismay elsewhere , especially in the Middle East .", "In an unofficial cellphone video recording that was broadcast around the world and posted on countless Web sites , Mr. Hussein is shown standing on the gallows platform with the noose around his neck at dawn on Saturday , facing a barrage of mockery and derision from unseen tormentors below the gallows .", "As the shock of those scenes reached a new crescendo in Iraq , American officials said that they had worked until the last hours of Mr. Hussein 's life to persuade Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki to delay the execution .", "The officials , who spoke on condition that they not be identified , said they appealed to Mr. Maliki not to execute Mr. Hussein at dawn on Saturday because of the onset of a major Islamic festival , and because of constitutional and legal questions that the Americans believed threw the legitimacy of the execution into doubt .", "But when Mr. Maliki decided to go ahead with the hanging , the Americans said they made no further attempts to stop it , having concluded that they could advise the Iraqis against the execution , but not prevent it if the Iraqis persisted , out of respect for Iraqi sovereignty .", "When asked if that decision had been made in the White House , the Americans refused to say , noting only that it came some time before the final exchanges on Friday night .", "Mr. Hussein was hanged at 6:10 a.m. on Saturday , about seven hours after what the officials said was their final attempt to postpone the hanging .", "`` We told the prime minister that going forward on the first day of Id would have a negative reaction in the Islamic world , and among the Iraqi people , '' a senior American official said , recounting a telephone conversation with Mr. Maliki that began at 10:30 p.m. Baghdad time on Friday .", "The reference was to the Id al-Adha holiday , which began for Sunnis on Saturday , marking the end of the annual pilgrimage to Mecca .", "`` Therefore , '' the official said , `` we said we thought it would be better if they delayed until after Id , and use the delay to resolve the legal issues . ''", "The American official said that Mr. Maliki had never fully explained his urgency in carrying out the death sentence , which was upheld last Tuesday in an appeals court ruling that set off a 30-day countdown for executions to be carried out after a final appeal has been turned down .", "But the prime minister gave one explanation that appeared to weigh heavily on his mind , the American said , and that was his fear that Mr. Hussein might be the subject of an insurgent attempt to free him if the procedural wrangling over the execution were protracted .", "`` His concern was security , and that there was a danger that if it continued , maybe there would be a mass kidnapping to bargain for Saddam Hussein 's release , `` the official said .", "`` He was concerned that he might somehow get free . ''", "The American decision to confirm that they had opposed the quick execution came after days of silence from the American Embassy and the United States military command in Baghdad , which appeared to have been shocked , like so many others , by the unofficial video recording that showed the bedlam at the gallows .", "With some Iraqi politicians raising fresh demands for Mr. Maliki 's dismissal , the Americans , in offering to have a senior official discuss the matter in a telephone interview with The New York Times , appeared eager to protect the Bush administration from a fresh surge of criticism for its handling of events in Iraq .", "The official said that among American officials in Iraq who had tried to stop Mr. Maliki from rushing Mr. Hussein to the gallows , the reaction to the scenes of abuse had been one of dismay .", "`` Well , yes , when I think of the behavior of the people who were there , I 'm disappointed and distressed , that 's true , `` the official who spoke in the telephone interview said .", "He said he had been one of the Americans who intervened with Mr. Maliki on Friday night and earlier last week to try to delay the hanging .", "Mr. Maliki seemed equally eager to ward off the opprobrium stirred by the execution .", "Attempts to reach Mr. Rubaie were unsuccessful .", "The prosecutor , Munkith al-Faroun , said the other man holding a cellphone above his head was also an official , but he could not recall his name .", "The government inquiry was ordered as a groundswell of protest grew at Sunni population centers across Iraq .", "The protests , sporadic in the first 72 hours after the hanging , appeared to be building in intensity as Iraqi and American troops relaxed security cordons that had been thrown around centers of diehard support for Mr. Hussein , including his hometown , Tikrit , 100 miles north of Baghdad , and Awja , the village where he was born , a few miles away .", "The protesters carried portraits of Mr. Hussein , chanted his name , and fired weapons in the air .", "Thousands of mourners flocked to Awja , where Mr. Hussein 's body has lain in a reception hall .", "The body , in a plain wood coffin draped in an Iraqi flag , has become a point of pilgrimage for loyalists .", "Many of those reaching Awja have wept as they filed past the coffin , shouting slogans of fealty of the kind that were universal in Iraq when Mr. Hussein was the country 's dictator .", "`` Maliki , you coward , you are an American agent , '' cried one demonstrator in Tikrit , referring to the prime minister .", "`` Iran , out , out ! '' another man shouted , echoing anger among Sunnis at the rise to power in Baghdad of Shiite religious groups backed by Iran , including Mr. Maliki 's Dawa Party .", "After Mr. Maliki made it clear to the Americans in Baghdad that his decision was final , the official who discussed the events on Friday night said , American commanders were told to deliver Mr. Hussein to an execution bloc in the Kadhimiya district of northern Baghdad that Mr. Hussein 's military intelligence agency used to execute countless opponents of his government .", "At 4 a.m. , Mr. Hussein was flown by an American military helicopter from an American detention center and handed over to the Iraqis .", "He was hanged with only Iraqis present , in a group of about 25 , including executioners and guards , according to accounts by American and Iraqi officials .", "A postponement of the execution until after the holiday would have delayed it at least until Thursday of this week .", "But the American officials said they had made no stipulation as to how long the delay should be , since their concern , beyond respecting the sanctity of the Id al-Adha holiday , had been that Mr. Maliki should await a formal judicial ruling resolving the legal issues before going ahead with the hanging .", "The Americans said Mr. Maliki had agreed , as the Americans had urged , to ask the chief judge of Iraq 's Supreme Judicial Council , Midhat al-Mahmoud , to issue a formal written judgment saying that the uncompleted legal procedures that concerned the Americans were not necessary to the lawfulness of the hanging .", "But Judge Mahmoud refused , the Americans said , and around midnight on Friday the Iraqi leader decided to go ahead with the execution , signing a decree ordering that Mr. Hussein be `` hanged by the neck until dead . ''", "The legal issues the Americans said they urged Mr. Maliki to resolve before the hanging centered on a constitutional provision requiring Iraq 's three-man presidency council to affirm all executions before they are carried out .", "That posed a potential obstacle to the hanging because Iraq 's president , Jalal Talabani , is opposed to the death penalty .", "One of the other members of the council , Tariq al-Hashemi , is a Sunni from a moderate party that has disavowed Mr. Hussein , but has been careful not to endorse his trial and execution .", "Mr. Maliki , in pushing ahead with the hanging , relied on a provision in the statute that established the Iraqi High Tribunal , which convicted Mr. Hussein , which said that the tribunal 's verdicts , once upheld by its own appeal bench , were final and not subject to presidential review .", "It was that conflict the Americans said they wanted resolved by a written ruling from Judge Mahmoud .", "`` Mr. Maliki said that Judge Mahmoud had given that opinion orally , but we said it would be better for everybody if he said it in writing , '' the American official who discussed the standoff said .", "Sami al-Askari , a political adviser to Mr. Maliki who attended the hanging , said in a telephone interview that the committee would question everyone present at the execution .", "He said those who used their cellphones to record the event would be one focus of the inquiry .", "He said his own observation was that the worst sectarian taunts had come from a guard he described as a poorly educated Shiite man with a thick Arabic accent .", "`` It was horrible , it was terrible , it was a mistake , '' he said .", "`` We were supposed to sit there quietly , just looking at what 's going on . ``", "The first images of the execution that were released were in the form of an official video recording without sound .", "The unofficial cellphone images showed Mr. Hussein , with the noose around his neck , facing shouts of `` Go to hell ! '' and taunts of `` Moktada ! Moktada ! Moktada ! '' in reference to an unruly Shiite cleric , Moktada al-Sadr , who has become a populist hero among Shiites .", "Speaking of those protesting the abuse of Mr. Hussein , Mr. Faroun , the prosecutor , asked , `` Where were these critics when Saddam 's people were executing whole prisons full of innocent people .", "`` He said he had been deeply offended by the taunting of Mr. Hussein , and had tried to stop it .", "`` You heard my voice on the cellphone recording , '' he said .", "`` I was the one shouting , ' Please , no .", "The man is about to be executed . '", "`` THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ Correction : January 4 , 2007 , Thursday A front-page article yesterday about an Iraqi government investigation of the abusive behavior at the execution of Saddam Hussein , including the unauthorized cellphone camera recording of it , misstated the account of a witness who said he saw two others there holding cellphone cameras aloft to record Mr. Hussein 's final moments .", "While the witness , Munkith al-Faroun , a prosecutor at Mr. Hussein 's trial , said both of the others were officials , he did not identify one of them as Mowaffak al-Rubaie , the national security adviser .", "Mr. Rubaie , who could not be reached for comment in the article , said yesterday that he had handed his cellphone to security officials an hour before the hanging and had not recorded it ."], "summary": ["Iraq 's Shiite-led government orders investigation into abusive behavior at execution of Saddam Hussein , who was taunted by witnesses to his hanging .", "Unofficial cellphone video recording of execution that was broadcast around world has caused public demonstrations in Iraq and widespread dismay elsewhere .", "United States officials say they worked to persuade Prime Min Nuri Kamal al-Maliki to delay execution until Islamic holiday passed and legal questions could be answered .", "US official says Maliki was worried that insurgents might try to free Hussein if execution was delayed .", "Some Iraqi politicians are raising new demands for Maliki 's dismissal .", "Government inquiry is ordered as protests build in intensity .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3, 1], "tag": ["World", "Front Page", "Washington"]}
- {"id": "1816168", "text": ["Have you ever made a profit from a catering business or dog walking .", "Do you prefer to work alone or in groups .", "Have you ever set a world record in anything .", "The right answers could help get you a job at Google .", "Google has always wanted to hire people with straight-A report cards and double 800s on their SATs .", "Now , like an Ivy League school , it is starting to look for more well-rounded candidates , like those who have published books or started their own clubs .", "Desperate to hire more engineers and sales representatives to staff its rapidly growing search and advertising business , Google -- in typical eccentric fashion -- has created an automated way to search for talent among the more than 100,000 job applications it receives each month .", "It is starting to ask job applicants to fill out an elaborate online survey that explores their attitudes , behavior , personality and biographical details going back to high school .", "The questions range from the age when applicants first got excited about computers to whether they have ever tutored or ever established a nonprofit organization .", "The answers are fed into a series of formulas created by Google 's mathematicians that calculate a score -- from zero to 100 -- meant to predict how well a person will fit into its chaotic and competitive culture .", "`` As we get bigger , we find it harder and harder to find enough people , '' said Laszlo Bock , Google 's vice president for people operations .", "`` With traditional hiring methods , we were worried we will overlook some of the best candidates . ''", "Google is certainly not alone in the search for quantitative ways to find good employees .", "Employers use a wide range of tests meant to assess skills , intelligence , personality and honesty .", "And the use of biographical surveys similar to Google 's new system is on the rise .", "Such tools , however , have mainly been the trademark of large corporations recruiting armies of similar workers , like telephone service representatives or insurance sales agents .", "They are rarely used in Silicon Valley , which is built on a belief in idiosyncratic talent .", "`` Yahoo does not use tests , puzzles or tricks , etc. , when interviewing candidates , '' Jessie Wixon , a spokeswoman for Yahoo , said .", "-LRB- Google is known for hazing prospects in interviews with intractable brain teasers .", "And it once tried to attract candidates by placing some particularly difficult problems on billboards . -RRB-", "Google 's growth is staggering even by Silicon Valley standards .", "It is constantly leasing new buildings for its overflowing campus here and opening offices around the world .", "Google has doubled the number of employees in each of the last three years .", "Even though the company now has about 10,000 employees , Mr. Bock says he sees no reason the company will not double again in size this year .", "That would increase the number of hires to about 200 a week .", "As a result , Mr. Bock , who joined Google from General Electric last spring , has been trying to make the company 's rigorous screening process more efficient .", "Until now , head hunters said , Google largely turned up its nose at engineers who had less than a 3.7 grade-point average .", "-LRB- Those who wanted to sell ads could get by with a 3.0 average , head hunters said . -RRB-", "And it often would take two months to consider candidates , submitting them to more than half a dozen interviews .", "Unfortunately , most of the academic research suggests that the factors Google has put the most weight on -- grades and interviews -- are not an especially reliable way of hiring good people .", "`` Interviews are a terrible predictor of performance , '' Mr. Bock said .", "Mr. Bock said that he wanted the company 's human resources department to bring the iconoclastic style as its Web site developers to the normally routine function of interviewing job candidates .", "`` The level of questioning assumptions is uniquely Googly , '' Mr. Bock said .", "So Google set out to find out if there were any bits of life experience or personality it could use to spot future stars .", "Last summer , Google asked every employee who had been working at the company for at least five months to fill out a 300-question survey .", "Some questions were factual : What programming languages are you familiar with .", "What Internet mailing lists do you subscribe to .", "Some looked for behavior : Is your work space messy or neat .", "And some looked at personality : Are you an extrovert or an introvert .", "And some fell into no traditional category in the human resources world : What magazines do you subscribe to .", "What pets do you have .", "`` We wanted to cast a very wide net , '' Mr. Bock said .", "`` It is not unusual to walk the halls here and bump into dogs .", "Maybe people who own dogs have some personality trait that is useful . ``", "The data from this initial survey was then compared with 25 separate measures of each employee 's performance .", "Again there were traditional yardsticks -- the employee 's reviews , both by supervisors and peers , and their compensation -- and some oddball ones .", "One score was what the company called `` organizational citizenship , '' said Todd Carlisle , an analyst with a doctorate in organizational psychology , who designed the survey .", "That is , `` things you do that are n't technically part of your job but make Google a better place to work , `` Dr. Carlisle said , such as helping interview job candidates .", "When all this was completed , Dr. Carlisle set about analyzing the two million data points the survey collected .", "Among the first results was confirmation that Google 's obsession with academic performance was not always correlated with success at the company .", "`` Sometimes too much schooling will be a detriment to you in your job , '' Dr. Carlisle said , adding that not all of the more than 600 people with doctorates at Google are equally well suited to their current assignments .", "Indeed , there was no single factor that seemed to find the top workers for every single job title .", "-LRB- And pet ownership did not seem to be a useful predictor of anything . -RRB-", "But Dr. Carlisle was able to create several surveys that he believed would help find candidates in several areas -- engineering , sales , finance , and human resources .", "Currently about 15 percent of applicants take the survey .", "It will be used for all applicants starting this month .", "Even as Google tries to hire more people faster , it wants to make sure that its employees will fit into its freewheeling culture .", "The company boasts that only 4 percent of its work force leaves each year , less than other Silicon Valley companies .", "And it works hard to retain people , with copious free food , time to work on personal projects and other goodies .", "Stock options and grants certainly encourage employees to stay long enough to take advantage of the company 's surging share price .", "Google 's hiring approach is backed by academic research showing that quantitative information on a person 's background -- called `` biodata '' among testing experts -- is indeed a valid way to look for good workers .", "Michael Mumford , a psychology professor at the University of Oklahoma who specializes in talent assessment , said that this sort of test was effective , but he cautioned that companies should not rely on oddball factors , even if they seemed to correlate to good performance .", "`` You have to know or at least have a hypothesis why having a dog makes a good computer programmer , '' Professor Mumford said .", "`` If you ask whether someone started a club in high school , it is a clear indicator of leadership . ''", "At Google , it is too early to tell if the system is working .", "The surveys have been in use in about a dozen areas for several months .", "Indeed , there is some resistance even at Google to the idea that a machine can pick talent better than a human .", "`` It 's like telling someone that you have the perfect data about who they should marry , `` Dr. Carlisle said .", "But even before the results are in on the new survey , Mr. Bock says he is already seeing success in easing the company past its obsession with grades .", "`` More and more in the time I 've been here , we hire people based on experience as a proxy for what they can accomplish , `` he said .", "`` Last week we hired six people who had below a 3.0 G.P.A. ''", "Correction : January 5 , 2007 , Friday A picture caption on Wednesday with the continuation of a front-page article about the hiring practices of Google reversed the names of the two employees looking over a job application .", "Laszlo Bock , a Google vice president , was at right .", "Todd Carlisle , an analyst at the company , was at left ."], "summary": ["Google has created extensive survey to screen for well-rounded job candidates .", "300-question survey asks job applicants about their attitudes , behavior , personality and is meant to predict how well person will fit into company 's hectic and competitive culture .", "Such hiring tools are more often used by large corporations and not Internet companies , which pride themselves on finding unique talent .", "Google has traditionally hired people with excellent academic records but it says academic success does not always correlate with success at company .", "Google has 10,000 employees and is growing so rapidly that company wants to make screening process more efficient .", "Some hiring experts say Google 's new approach is valid way to look for good workers and better indicator of job performance than interviews .", "Photo .", "Graphic of application survey ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [9, 60, 7, 49, 25], "tag": ["Technology", "Front Page", "Business"]}
- {"id": "1816226", "text": ["IN a high school locker room in Worthington , Ohio , Sam Maniar handed a piece of string tied to a washer to each of the field hockey players sitting around him .", "He told the athletes to use their minds to move the washer from side to side , and he watched as each girl 's washer started to swing .", "`` By thinking about moving the washer , we send a message from the brain to the nerve receptors in our fingers to move the string attached to the washer , '' said Dr. Maniar , a sports psychologist .", "`` Most people are in total amazement .", "I use it show the connection between our thoughts and our bodies . ``", "Every athlete and coach knows that harnessing one 's mind can lead to feats of coordination and finesse on the field .", "But what many are just learning is that taking care of an athlete 's emotional health -- and managing stress in particular -- can help prevent injury .", "`` The research is there showing that high stress levels do increase the risk of getting injured , but few lay people realize the connection , '' Dr. Maniar said .", "Iona MacKenzie , 35 , a triathlete and adventure racer in Boulder , Colo . , believes that a period of undue tension in 2001 led to her back-to-back injuries .", "Ms. MacKenzie had just started a highly stressful job in Vancouver , was rowing competitively and was also dealing with a long-distance relationship that was financially and emotionally draining .", "`` I 'd been rowing for about seven or eight years completely injury free , `` she said .", "`` But during that year I fractured a rib and soon after that healed , I injured my lower back .", "Both are fairly common injuries for female rowers , but I do n't feel like either would have happened if my body had n't been so weakened by how much stress I was under . ``", "The American College of Sports Medicine recently issued a consensus statement -- a joint effort by about a dozen sports medicine practitioners , team doctors and sports psychologists -- to inform team physicians , coaches and athletic trainers about the important link between stress and injury .", "`` This concept is not always welcomed with open arms in the sports community where athletes are taught to be tough , '' said Dr. Stanley A . Herring , chairman of the consensus statement committee , a team physician for the Seattle Seahawks and a consultant to the University of Washington 's sports medicine department .", "`` But you ca n't tough your way through mental issues . ``", "Stress is an omnipresent problem , and the word is used to describe situations ranging from a long wait at Starbucks to fear of a terrorist attack .", "So why , one may argue , is n't every athlete collapsing to the ground .", "While the research has shown a consistent connection between significant negative life events -- the end of a relationship , a death in family , the loss of job , failing in school -- and the increased risk of injury , the key is n't so much the stressful event itself , but how a person handles it .", "`` One man 's stress is another man 's vacation , `` Dr. Herring said .", "`` Those at risk are the ones whose stress exceeds the resources they have to cope with it . ''", "There are several explanations for how stress leads to injuries .", "According to Frank M . Perna , a psychologist and associate professor at Boston University , there may be multiple causes .", "`` Studies have shown that when you 're stressed you do n't pay enough attention to visual cues , `` he said .", "That , for example , could cause a football player to miss something in his peripheral vision and be blindsided and injured .", "Physiologically , more stress means more stress hormones flowing through your body .", "Cortisol , a stress-related hormone , decreases the immune response , Dr. Perna said .", "`` Athletes who are training hard are breaking down muscle , '' he said , `` and cortisol will impede the body 's ability to repair muscles , making them more likely to get injured or exacerbate a chronic injury . ``", "STRESS also increases muscle tension , and tense muscles are more susceptible to tearing or can throw a person off balance and affect coordination .", "Studies have shown that during a single school year , one in six athletes is likely to suffer an injury serious enough to miss games .", "Other studies have reported that high stress levels make athletes at least twice as susceptible to injury .", "The key to recognizing athletes at risk , the researchers agreed , is simply bothering to probe deeper .", "`` When the athlete gets a preseason physical , it should n't be just about the ` physical , ' '' Dr. Herring said .", "`` Ask about what 's going on at home , how are things with their girlfriend , do they feel overwhelmed .", "And if the answers are concerning , it 's an opportunity to help them out . ``", "Dr. Margot Putukian , director of athletic medicine at Princeton University , said , `` Most coaches do n't perceive mental health as something they have to worry about . ``", "For coaches who do n't have a sports psychologist on call , it is still easy enough to implement some stress-management techniques .", "Dr. Maniar said there was no reason a coach could not learn a few relaxation tips .", "The American College of Sports Medicine recommends methods such as progressive muscle relaxation , a sequence of movements to tense and release muscle groups to bring tension levels down .", "Visual imagery , which involves picturing certain images to create a different physical state , can also be employed .", "`` For example , imagining being on a beach in the warm sand is likely to produce a physical shift that makes you feel more relaxed , '' said David B . Coppel , a sports psychologist in Kirkland , Wash .", "And doing deep , abdominal breathing helps change shallow breathing -LRB- a symptom of stress and tension -RRB- into deeper , rhythmic breathing .", "MOST high school and college teams may not be sitting down for group yoga and meditation sessions in place of practice , but a few forward-thinking coaches are already heeding the College of Sports Medicine 's recommendations .", "Terri Simonetti Frost , who coaches the field hockey team at Thomas Worthington High School in Worthington , Ohio , brought Dr. Maniar in teach her players imagery techniques .", "He also encouraged the girls to better communicate about what was causing tension in their lives .", "`` Communication is our biggest technique for coping with stress , '' Ms. Frost said .", "`` If a kid seems off during practice , I 'll call her aside and we 'll talk about what 's going on in her life . ``", "Ms. Frost gives her players an extra day off each week -- they practice only four days -- to help reduce stress .", "She also talks to them about their study habits and what is going on in their academic schedules so that they wo n't feel overwhelmed by school and sports simultaneously .", "`` I think on a sort of subconscious level it may play a role in keeping the players healthy , '' she said .", "Although it is impossible to prove cause and effect , she noted that none of her players were injured this last season , and the team was undefeated in the regular season .", "The doctors who put together the College of Sports Medicine consensus statement also said that common emotional reactions to injury -- like loss of identity , fear , anxiety and depression -- could affect a player 's recovery .", "`` But people who have learned coping strategies for dealing with setbacks in life can better handle the stress of being on the sideline , '' Dr. Perna said .", "Stephanie Heinsons , 21 , a senior at Ohio State University who competes in equestrian events , regularly practices controlled breathing and imagery to help cope not only with the stress of competition but also with everyday life .", "`` These techniques help to calm me down and force my focus back into the present , '' she said .", "If she skips her relaxation techniques , she is more likely to feel anxious and tense up .", "`` When I take a deep breath and tell myself to focus on the present , I become calm , '' Ms. Heinsons said .", "`` That helps me like magic . '' ."], "summary": ["Research shows that high stress levels in athletes increase risk of getting injured .", "American College of Sports Medicine releases consensus statement advising team physicians , coaches and athletic trainers on link between stress and injury .", "Researchers say key to finding athlete at risk is to probe deeper and discover how person is handling stressful event .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [13, 31], "tag": ["Health", "Style"]}
- {"id": "1816229", "text": ["DR . FRAN E . COOK-BOLDEN , a dermatologist in Manhattan , is an advocate of skin-care minimalism .", "When a patient recently arrived for an appointment toting 20 different products she was using regularly -- including an eye cream , a vitamin C cream , a wrinkle serum , a pigmentation cream , a mask , a peel , a scrub and `` some sort of special oxygen detoxifying cream '' -- Dr. Cook-Bolden said she confiscated all but three .", "`` It gave me a headache just to look at all of those products , '' Dr. Cook-Bolden said .", "`` Just two products , a gentle cleanser and a good sunscreen , are enough daily skin care for most people , and you can buy those at a drugstore or a grocery store . ''", "Dr. Cook-Bolden is part of a back-to-basics movement among dermatologists .", "At a time when beauty companies are introducing an increasing number of products marketed for specific body parts -- including necks , creases around the mouth and eyelids -- or for apocryphal maladies like visible pores or cellulite , these doctors are putting their patients on cosmetics restriction diets .", "They are prescribing simplified skin-care routines requiring at most three steps : soap .", "Sunscreen every day , no matter the weather or the season .", "And , if necessary , a product tailored to specific skin needs , whether a cream for pimples or pigmented spots , or a vitamin-enriched moisturizer for aging skin .", "Each product , they say , can be bought at drugstores for $ 30 or less .", "Among those doctors who have become experts at uncluttering their patients ' vanity tables and medicine cabinets is Dr. Sarah Boyce Sawyer , an assistant professor of dermatology at the School of Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham .", "`` My New Year 's beauty resolution for patients is : cut down on skin-care products and cut your skin-care budget , `` Dr. Sawyer said .", "`` Cut down on those $ 100 potions . ''", "For some doctors , simplifying skin-care routines is a way to make patients follow a regimen or a means to soothe irritated skin .", "But some dermatologists are also suggesting patients use fewer , less expensive products because they believe there is little scientific research to justify buying an armload of pricey cosmetics , Dr. Sawyer said .", "`` We have good medical evidence on prescription products , '' she said .", "`` But the science is fuzzy with a lot of cosmetics . ''", "Unlike drugs , cosmetics are not required to prove their efficacy .", "Prescription medications like Accutane for acne and over-the-counter drugs such as sunscreen ingredients must undergo rigorous clinical testing before they gain approval from the Food and Drug Administration .", "But cosmetics are not subject to the agency 's scrutiny before they go on sale .", "The F.D.A. defines cosmetics as topical products that do not alter the structure or function of the skin .", "Dr. William P . Coleman III , the vice president of the American Academy of Dermatology , said consumers should view moisturizers and wrinkle creams as no more than superficial treatments .", "`` You have to think of cosmetics as decorative and hygienic , not as things that are going to change your skin , '' said Dr. Coleman , who is a clinical professor of dermatology at Tulane University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans .", "`` A $ 200 cream may have better perfume or packaging , but as far as it moisturizing your skin better than a $ 10 cream , it probably wo n't . ``", "According to F.D.A. regulations , beauty manufacturers are responsible for the safety of their cosmetics and for their own marketing claims .", "Although many beauty companies perform studies on their products , they are not required to conduct clinical trials on the level of medical research or to make their proprietary research available to the public .", "Dr. Mary Ellen Brademas , a clinical assistant professor of dermatology at New York University Medical Center , said the paucity of rigorous published science on cosmetics makes it difficult to determine how well creams work , whether they cost $ 10 , $ 100 or $ 1,000 .", "`` People are spending $ 450 on a jar of cream just because it is made out of something exotic like salmon eggs or cocoons , '' Dr. Brademas said .", "`` But the cheapest products work just as well as the more expensive ones . ''", "A study of wrinkle creams published last month by Consumer Reports concluded that there was no correlation between price and effectiveness .", "The study , which tested nine brands of wrinkle creams over 12 weeks , also concluded that none of the products reduced the depth of wrinkles by more than 10 percent , an amount `` barely visible to the naked eye . ''", "The Consumer Reports study found , for example , that a three-step regimen of Olay Regenerist products costing $ 57 was slightly more effective at reducing the appearance of wrinkles than a $ 135 tube of StriVectin-SD or a $ 335 combination of two La Prairie Cellular lotions .", "`` I am seduced by fancy packaging as much as the next person , '' Dr. Brademas said .", "`` But I have a theory that all these skin-care things come out of the same vat in New Jersey . ''", "John Bailey , the executive vice president for science of the Cosmetic , Toiletry and Fragrance Association , an industry trade group in Washington , said that skin care varies widely in price because of amounts spent on research and development of ingredients and product formulas , and the cost of manufacturing and packaging .", "But , he said , it is difficult to measure performance differences among products .", "`` Cosmetics do n't have the same quantitative analysis as drugs , so you do n't have a set gauge you can use to determine perceived and actual benefits , `` said Dr. Bailey , who has a Ph.D. in chemistry .", "`` Ultimately , consumers will have to try products out and find what works best for them . ''", "THE back-to-basics skin-care regimen is based on practicality rather than marketing claims .", "It does not rely on exotic ingredients grown on far-flung islands hand-picked by natives only under a full moon .", "Dr. Diane C . Madfes , a clinical instructor at Mount Sinai School of Medicine , said that basic skin care requires washing one 's face to remove dirt , sweat and bacteria , and using sunscreen to impede sun damage .", "People who worry about wrinkles , pimples , dry spots or pores may want to add one or two treatment products , she said .", "Dr. Cook-Bolden , who has been a paid consultant for several mass-market cosmetics brands , suggested a mild liquid cleanser for the face .", "Instead of using toners , which may strip skin , or gritty exfoliation beads and microdermabrasion systems , which may irritate skin , she recommended using a washcloth to slough off dead skin cells .", "`` If you have dry , sensitive skin , you just pat the washcloth on your face gently in a circular motion , '' she said .", "`` If you do n't have irritated skin , you can put more speed and pressure on the washcloth . ``", "Dermatologists disagree whether a moisturizer is then needed .", "Dr. Brademas said it is superfluous .", "`` Moisturizer is optional unless you are in the Arctic , '' said Dr. Brademas , who favors Vaseline petroleum jelly for dry hands , feet , knees and elbows .", "`` I 'm not sure moisturizers do very much except for creating a smooth surface so that makeup can go on without drag . ``", "Dr. Cook-Bolden took a more agnostic position .", "`` If you need a moisturizer , moisturize , '' she said .", "`` If you want less moisture , use a lotion .", "If you want more , use a cream .", "And if you have acne-prone skin , use a gel or a spray . ``", "Although the dermatologists interviewed for this article disagreed about moisturizer , they agreed on one point : the importance of sun protection , including hats , avoidance of midday sun and the use of an effective sunscreen .", "They recommended that consumers look for formulas that include ingredients -- like zinc oxide , titanium dioxide or Mexoryl SX -- that impede damage from the sun 's longer wavelength UVA rays , a protective effect that is not indicated by a product 's SPF rating .", "Beyond soap and sunscreen , Dr. Madfes said that one or two additional products might be added to personalize a skin-care routine .", "`` People who see wrinkles around their eyes are going to reach for an eye cream , '' Dr. Madfes said .", "`` Someone who looks in the mirror and sees large pores may want to use a cleanser with salicylic acid , which can reduce clogged pores . ''", "She is also a proponent of night creams that combine retinol , a form of vitamin A that may help speed up the turnover of skin cells , and antioxidants such as vitamin C , vitamin E or lycopene that may help thwart environmental damage to the skin .", "People with skin conditions like severe acne or people interested in topical anti-wrinkle drugs should consult their doctors about prescription medications , she said .", "On an expedition last week to a CVS Pharmacy at Columbus Circle with a reporter , Dr. Madfes examined the product labels on skin-care items from a variety of mass-market brands and recommended a few basic products , including Cetaphil cleanser and La Roche-Posay Anthelios SX sunscreen .", "`` Higher end , more expensive products may look better in the box and feel better on your face , but they do n't necessarily work better than less expensive products as long as you look for ingredients that are known for efficacy , `` Dr. Madfes said .", "But she did see one benefit to splurging .", "`` The thing is , when someone buys a $ 200 cream , they are going to use that cream , '' Dr. Madfes said .", "`` So , in the end , their skin may benefit . ''", "Drugstores Bank on Snob Appeal -LRB- But Can You Pronounce It .", "-RRB- By NATASHA SINGER LUMENE .", "Lierac .", "Ol\u00ed . Arnaud .", "Proraso .", "No , these are not race-car drivers competing in the Dakar Rally .", "They are imported skin-care brands now competing for consumers ' attention on the shelves at Target , Walgreens and CVS Pharmacy .", "To try to attract brand-conscious beauty consumers who are wont to buy their cosmetics at department and specialty stores , drugstore and big-box chains are starting to introduce niche European skin-care lines .", "These imported products , some of which include retinol , peptides or antioxidants derived from exotic plants , aim to rival prestige brands in formula , texture , packaging and fragrance .", "`` You are no longer necessarily getting a better product assortment , better products or better service at a department store , '' said Karen R . Young , the chief executive of the Young Group , a consulting firm for the beauty industry .", "`` It is a massive leveling of the playing field . ''", "In the last few years , for example , CVS , with 6,200 stores nationwide , has upgraded its cosmetics aisles in 300 stores by introducing beauty departments called Healthy Skincare Centers .", "The displays are stocked with French skin-care brands like Av\u00e8ne and La Roche-Posay , a line that was previously sold in the United States through dermatologists ' offices .", "The centers are staffed by beauty advisers .", "These products cost more than mass-market skin care .", "Janice Jacobs , director of proprietary and limited-distribution brands for CVS , said the chain 's most expensive skin-care product now costs about $ 60 , up from about $ 20 in 1999 .", "`` Consumers are looking for convenience and accessibility , '' Ms. Jacobs said .", "`` If we can give her the tools and the testers of a department store , and the skin-care advice on her terms when she needs it , then she is willing to buy in our stores . ''", "Last year , Target created a department called Bath & Body , a range of 20 skin-care brands including Ma Provence , a fragrance line , and Proraso , an Italian shaving line , that are now sold in almost 1,500 stores .", "Walgreens recently introduced its European Beauty Collection , a group of seven skin-care brands including Institut Arnaud Paris and Skincode , a line from Switzerland .", "And drugstore.com just added Cl\u00e9o , a brand made in Italy whose key ingredient is yogurt .", "`` The drugstores are saying , ' We are not Saks , but if we have our own Spanish or Finnish brand , we 'll attract consumers with our own exclusive products , ' `` Ms. Young said ."], "summary": ["Many dermotologists are advising patients to restrict use of cosmetics even as beauty companies are introducing an increasing number of products marketed for specific body parts -- including necks , creases around mouth and eyelids -- or for apocryphal maladies like visible pores or cellulite .", "Are prescribing simplified skin-care routines -- soap , sunscreen and , if necessary , products tailored to specific skin needs .", "Chain drugstores are attempting to attract brand-conscious beauty consumers by introducing imported skin-care lines .", "Photos -LRB- M ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 6, 8], "tag": ["Health", "Style"]}
- {"id": "1816230", "text": ["FOR those who have failed in a decade or three 's worth of New Year 's resolutions to become better workers , spouses , parents , athletes or lovers , there is a new frontier in personal growth -- or at least a proliferation of products , mostly hawked over the Internet , that promise to help turn the last bit of untrammeled downtime -LRB- sleep -RRB- into an opportunity for improvement .", "New health products have emerged , often from the margins of commerce .", "Old self-help approaches like subliminal `` sleep learning '' have evolved and found new life on the Web .", "`` While you sleep ! '' has become an Internet marketing catchphrase .", "The idea plays on two classic , if contradictory , American impulses : the desire to get ahead , and the compulsion to avoid the slightest expenditure of effort .", "There are diet pills sold under names like Lose and Snooze and Sleep ` n Slim , which contain collagen and which the makers say can help maximize the body 's metabolism .", "There are foot pads from Japan that look like tea bags and promise to drain toxins and restore energy while you sleep .", "On one Web site , hypnotictapes.com, besides recordings designed to improve public speaking or break addiction to alcohol or heroin , there are programs promising to help you , at least partly while sleeping , `` Overcome Fear of Clowns '' and `` Master the Bagpipes . ''", "`` The grow-yourself revolution started in the ' 50s , '' said David Allen , a productivity consultant who wrote `` Getting Things Done : The Art of Stress-Free Productivity '' -LRB- Viking , 2001 -RRB- , and it `` is the one industry that has never faltered in the last 40 years .", "All they have done is give you more clever ways of getting it without having to give anything . ``", "Products marketed for nocturnal self-transformation often target outward appearance .", "Ortho-K contact lenses , which reshape the cornea to correct vision and are typically worn only at night , have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration .", "But the claims of many other products are more nebulous .", "Nancy Clark , a registered dietician and the author of the best-selling `` Nancy Clark 's Sports Nutrition Guidebook `` -LRB- Human Kinetics , 2003 -RRB- , said that she had never heard of collagen -- the supposed magic bullet in some nocturnal diet pills -- used as a weight-loss aid .", "`` If it were true , '' she said , `` it would be front-page news . ''", "The products with perhaps the broadest potential market , and often the most extravagant promises , are designed for so-called sleep learning .", "Professionals who think the boss has been a little slow with that promotion -- and who have left their skepticism in their other briefcase -- can try to kick-start their careers with the Wealth & Success Power Affirmations subliminal program -LRB- `` start advertising to your own mind '' -RRB- .", "Sold through sleeplearning.com, it can be played through stereo pillow speakers available on the same Web site for $ 29.95.", "Not everyone selling self-improvement while sleeping promises overnight miracles .", "James Schmelter , a certified hypnotherapist who runs hypnotictapes.com out of San Francisco , said sleep learning on its own is often of only marginal benefit , which is why it is only one of four elements in his hypnosis-at-home programs , many of which he records individually for customers and sells for $ 98 .", "The other three parts of the program are to be listened to awake .", "Hypnosis is generally accepted as a legitimate technique to facilitate other forms of treatment , like cognitive behavior therapy , said Guy H . Montgomery , a clinical psychologist at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in Manhattan .", "But unlike the hypnotized brain , which is receptive to spoken suggestions , the sleeping brain is not so suggestible , said Dr. Michael J . Sateia , the head of the sleep disorders program at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon , N.H.", "`` Generally , '' he explained , `` sleep is considered to be a state of being relatively ' offline , ' as it were , with respect to extrasensory input . ''", "Sleep learning is a self-empowerment concept that dates back at least to Aldous Huxley 's `` Brave New World , '' published in 1932 , but for most of the intervening years it could be found mainly on cassette programs tucked away on self-help shelves in bookstores alongside volumes on astral projection .", "That all changed with the Internet .", "Marc VanDeKeere , for example , is one seller of sleep-learning self-improvement products who said he has noted a spike in business in recent years .", "Mr. VanDeKeere , a hypnotherapist who operates the Web site brainwave-entrainment . com , said he had seen sales of subliminal problem-solving and meditation products , which he recommends that customers use while sleeping , increase by a third in the last few years .", "And he proudly points to 17,000 positive feedback responses for his products on eBay .", "`` Fifteen years ago , '' he said , `` nobody would be able to find these products . ''", "Eldon Taylor , the founder of Progressive Awareness Research , a company in Medical Lake , Wash . , that has marketed a line of hypnosis CDs to be used awake and asleep under the InnerTalk brand since 1984 , said demand has grown noticeably in the last five years .", "He attributes that growth in part to economic anxieties that have increased people 's desire to wring productivity out of the wee hours .", "`` How many times do people change jobs .", "`` asked Mr. Taylor , whose Web site , innertalk.com, offers CDs titled '' Excel in Exams `` and '' Natural Breast Enlargement . ``", "`` We live in a society full of more information than we can absorb , '' he said , `` but we 're required to absorb it , because if we do n't absorb it , we fall out `` of the race .", "This apparent renewed interest in learning while snoozing comes at a time of increased academic research into the topic .", "Last year , for example , researchers at the University of L\u00fcbeck in Germany found that gently stimulating the brain during sleep with an electrical current at a certain frequency improved the ability of test subjects to remember a string of words they had learned before a nap .", "Still , Dr. Jerome M . Siegel , a professor of psychiatry at the Center for Sleep Research at the University of California , Los Angeles , said that most research he has seen indicates that subliminal sleep learning is of little or no value because `` the sound had to actually wake you before you would benefit . ''", "Dr. Siegel recalled rigging a speaker system under his own pillow in junior high school in a failed effort to learn French .", "`` Even when you 're sleepy , but not asleep , `` he added , '' you do n't learn very well . ``", "A study in 1992 by the British Psychological Society dismissed the concept of sleep learning , finding that it can `` only occur if the sleeping person is partly awakened by the message . ''", "But such findings did not kill off interest in the concept and its seductive , something-for-nothing allure .", "For Candace Kinsella , a retired nurse in Largo , Fla . , who wanted to reduce by a few sizes , diet pills were not enough , so she turned to a weight-loss sleep program that is not subliminal , but consists of spoken messages like `` eat more vegetables , '' she said .", "Despite the potential distraction of someone talking while you 're trying to sleep , she said the program , which is sold on the Web site robert-egby . com , is relaxing .", "`` It 's like going to sleep with the TV on , `` she said .", "She credits it with helping her lose 50 pounds over one year , starting from a weight of 345 , simply by providing constant reminders to go to the gym , drink water instead of soda and eat better .", "`` All of this augments '' a commitment during waking hours to healthy living , she explained .", "Then again , the typical middle-aged American gets as little as 6.1 hours of sleep a night , according to a recent University of Chicago study , instead of the commonly accepted optimum of eight .", "So people who fail to transform themselves suitably during the wee hours can always fall back on using their sleep to obtain one thing that doctors believe is crucial to a life of happiness and productivity : rest ."], "summary": ["Web gives new life to products that promise to transform you ` while you sleep , ' and those with broadest market and most extravagant promises are designed for so-called sleep learning .", "Most research shows that people learn only when awake and suggest that people use sleep to rest .", "Drawing ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [15, 6], "tag": ["Technology", "Education", "Style"]}
- {"id": "1816249", "text": ["WILLIAM LEININGER is not your typical environmental zealot .", "A Navy commander who works as a doctor at the Naval Medical Center San Diego , he is a Republican and lives in one of California 's most conservative counties , in a development of neat lawns and Spanish-style houses .", "His 2,400-square - foot , single-level house -- `` the usual Southern California design , '' he said recently -- is barely distinguishable from its neighbors , apart from one detail : the red-tile roof is crammed with solar panels .", "Dr. Leininger , 42 , is one of thousands of Californians , many of them unlikely converts to the cause of alternative energy , who have installed solar power systems in their homes in just the last year .", "Spurred by recent legislation that provides financial incentives -- and by rising energy costs and , perhaps , by a lingering distrust of power companies in the aftermath of the California electricity crisis at the start of the decade -- homeowners across the state have come to see solar power as a way to conserve money as well as natural resources .", "Architects in California are routinely designing solar systems into custom homes , and developers are offering solar systems and solar-ready wiring in new spec houses and subdivisions .", "Solar power is also emerging as a kind of status symbol , a glamorous mark of personal responsibility .", "Celebrities , including Leonardo DiCaprio , Alicia Silverstone , Carlos Santana and Tom Seaver , have installed solar systems .", "-LRB- Edward Norton runs a campaign in Los Angeles , encouraging his fellow celebrities to install solar panels on their homes and to make donations for systems in low-income housing . -RRB-", "The vogue began in earnest a year ago , when the state legislature approved the California Solar Initiative , one of the most ambitious solar programs in the world .", "The legislation took effect at the start of this month but was preceded by a stopgap measure with similar terms that ran throughout 2006 , offering homeowners a rebate on top of the federal tax credit of up to $ 2,000 that has been available nationwide since 2006 .", "The theory was that supplanting the year-to-year incentive programs in place since 1998 with the long-term certainty offered by the initiative 's 10-year , $ 3.2 billion program of rebates -LRB- one-third of which would likely go to homeowners -RRB- would stimulate the development of a robust solar sector -- which could then be weaned from subsidies as its growing scale brought down prices .", "If it works as planned , said J . P . Ross , the policy director for Vote Solar , an organization that advocates for large state-level solar projects , the initiative will stimulate the installation of 3,000 megawatts of solar electrical generating capacity in the state over the next decade .", "That would be an increase by a factor of more than 20 , Mr. Ross said , equivalent to 30 small natural-gas-fired power plants .", "Given the enthusiasm homeowners have shown for the initiative , filing nearly twice as many plans for solar systems with the California State Energy Commission in 2006 than in previous years , this goal may not be far-fetched .", "Other states are considering the future of their solar programs -LRB- several states in the Northeast and the Southwest have less ambitious ones in place , including New York , New Jersey and Connecticut -RRB- , and they are closely watching California 's .", "As the rebate program has made it less expensive to install a home solar system -- and as banks , which consider a solar system to be an improvement that increases a house 's value , have made financing readily available -- the solar industry has grown .", "There are now 434 companies registered to install solar systems by the state energy commission , which together installed just under 50 megawatts of solar electric generating capacity in 2006 , the most in a single year .", "-LRB- California 's total capacity by October was 180 megawatts , enough energy to power about 135,000 homes .", "At the end of 2005 the nationwide solar photovoltaic capacity was 425 megawatts . -RRB-", "While much of the total came from industrial and utility installations , more than 7,000 homeowners filed plans with the state energy commission in 2006 , up from about 4,000 in each of the previous two years .", "The companies are responding not only to an increase in demand , but also to a change in the type of consumers interested in going solar .", "Unlike the do-it-yourself tinkerers who once made up much of the home photovoltaic market , the people fueling the current growth spurt are interested in hands-off user friendliness .", "`` I more or less set it up and then I forgot about it , '' said Nicky Gonz\u00e1lez Yuen , an instructor in political science at De Anza College in Cupertino , who hired a company called NextEnergy to install the modest three-kilowatt system in his 100-year-old Berkeley duplex .", "`` I 'm a really busy person , and I did n't need to know that level of information . ``", "Companies like NextEnergy provide homeowners with a complete package that includes system design , permit applications , rebate processing , installation , maintenance and warranty .", "`` It was a seamless , painless process , '' said Mr. Yuen , whose system cost $ 16,000 after the California rebate and the federal tax credit , which together saved him $ 10,000 .", "It was `` comparable to having a sprinkler system put in , '' he said .", "Mr. Yuen , 47 , was the first on his block to install a solar system : `` In my circle I 'm the eco-nut , `` he said .", "But , he said , less than a year later they are quite common in his neighborhood .", "`` A lot of people are really paying attention and beginning to think about the whole environmental cycle , '' he added .", "But even as these solar adopters re-evaluate their relationship to the power grid , virtually all of them remain connected to it , which is contrary to the go-it-alone image of the early solar pioneers .", "Though the connection means a house will lose power in a blackout , most home users find the ease of operation makes up for the loss of independence .", "`` All I see is an e-mail from the system once a month , '' said Robert Felton , chief executive of TenFold , a software company , of the report of how much power his mansion in the Oakland hills is using and producing .", "As recently as 10 years ago it was unheard of and , in fact , illegal for solar-powered houses in California to connect to the grid .", "Now power companies are legally required to credit their customers for the excess power they produce .", "The grid , in effect , serves to store power , replacing the bank of batteries that is a component of off-grid systems .", "At the end of the year , credits for solar power added to the grid are applied against charges for power taken from it , helping homeowners `` zero out '' their electricity bills .", "According to Borrego Solar Systems , the company that installed the long rows of solar panels on a hill next to Mr. Felton 's house , two-thirds of its customers manage to do so .", "Excess credits are lost at the end of the year , so homeowners , at least for now , can not make a profit from their solar systems .", "Even so , the savings can be substantial : in 2005 Mr. Felton paid Pacific Gas and Electric about $ 2,500 a month for electricity .", "-LRB- `` I have a whole bunch of fountains and water features and stuff like that , '' he said . -RRB-", "In California residential electricity rates are tiered , and large users like Mr. Felton pay rates about three times higher than more modest consumers , making solar power even more attractive .", "While the average home solar system is about five kilowatts , Mr. Felton 's is 45 kilowatts , and he seldom sees an electric bill .", "Borrego Solar estimated the system could save Mr. Felton almost $ 2 million over 30 years -- far more than the $ 255,000 the system cost him after a $ 134,000 rebate .", "Mr. Felton , 67 , said that a solar system did not make sense when he built his house in 2000 , but that the rebate , as well as rising electricity prices , persuaded him to install the system last year .", "His pragmatic concerns were also informed by broader issues .", "`` I 'm not a hippie greenie , `` he said , pointing out that with a background in nuclear engineering , he strongly supports nuclear power .", "`` But solar is certainly a way to get off foreign oil . ''", "As a member of the military who has been deployed to the Persian Gulf three times , Dr. Leininger has been affected by the nation 's foreign oil habits more than most .", "`` The need for stable oil supplies is the big reason that we spend so much time in the Persian Gulf , '' he said .", "`` Decreasing our national energy consumption is in my self-interest . ''", "His neighbors in the San Diego suburb of Escondido , most of them politically conservative , have responded well to the solar panels of the eight-kilowatt system that he and his wife , Suzann , a cartographer , installed last year on their roof .", "The neighborhood association , which was required to approve the plan by California law , did so happily , he said .", "Lately , the Leiningers have noticed at least one other photovoltaic system in the immediate area and a number of solar heating systems for swimming pools .", "-LRB- Meanwhile , in Orange County , which is known for its political conservatism , about 250 solar installations were approved from January to November last year , more than twice the 2005 figure . -RRB-", "The Leiningers , who paid Borrego Solar $ 39,000 for their system after a $ 24,000 rebate , figure their system will pay for itself in a dozen years -- assuming residential electricity rates do not increase , as they have by 37 percent since 1998 .", "Dr. Leininger estimated that his system had reduced his household carbon emissions by nearly 30 tons since it was installed in June , and that it was well on its way to zeroing out .", "`` It comes down to personal responsibility , '' he said .", "`` If I can go electricity-neutral on my house , that 's that much less coal we have to burn . ``", "And much less money .", "`` One of the most gratifying things is on a sunny day when the meter is spinning backward , '' Dr. Leininger said .", "`` We have a guaranteed return on the system because we know we 're not going to have an electric bill from now on . ``", "Chasing Solar Power in the Northeast HOME solar systems in the Northeast can produce up to 90 percent of the electricity generated by those in California , said Michael Hall , chief marketing officer for Borrego Solar Systems , a company in California .", "It is not surprising , then , that some California installers are expanding nationally .", "They include PowerLight and Akeena Solar , which opened offices in New Jersey in the last two years .", "The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority 's Web site , powernaturally.org, explains the state 's incentive program , which has been in place since 2002 .", "It covers 40 percent to 70 percent of the cost of a home system , depending on its size and other factors .", "State-approved installers are listed at the site as well .", "New Jersey has been offering rebates to homeowners for photovoltaic systems since 2001 , and it is now the second-largest solar market in the country .", "The state offers rebates up to $ 3.80 per watt for home systems .", "While this is less than New York 's rate , New Jersey makes it possible for system owners to sell renewable energy credits and earn continuing revenues , unlike New York and most other states .", "Details and contact information for dozens of installers are at the New Jersey Clean Energy Program 's Web site , njcep.com.", "Connecticut 's rebate program pays up to $ 25,000 per solar photovoltaic installation , depending on the components used and how they are configured .", "Information is at ctinnovations.com/ funding / ccef / solar -- rebates.php.", "GREGORY DICUM ."], "summary": ["Solar industry has grown in California in year since state legislature approved homeowner rebates for installing solar electric generating systems .", "Banks , which consider solar systems to be improvement that increases house 's value , are making financing readily available .", "Architects are routinely designing solar systems in custom houses , and developers are offering solar systems and solar-ready wiring in new spec houses and subdivisions .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 16], "tag": ["Home and Garden", "Style"]}
- {"id": "1816254", "text": ["After the peppered beef carpaccio and before the pan-fried sea bass there were raucous toasts and the clinking of wine glasses in the V.I.P. room of New Heights , a jazzy restaurant in this city 's most luxurious location , overlooking the Bund .", "Wang Guangyi , one of China 's pioneering contemporary artists , was there .", "So were Zhang Xiaogang , Fang Lijun , Yue Minjun , Zeng Fanzhi and 20 other well-known Chinese artists and their guests , many of whom had been flown in from Beijing to celebrate the opening of a solo exhibition of new works by Zeng Hao , another rising star in China 's bubbly art scene .", "`` We 've had opening dinners before , `` said the Shanghai artist Zhou Tiehai , sipping Chilean red wine , '' but nothing quite like this until very recently . ``", "The dinner , held on a recent Saturday night in a restaurant located on the top floor of a historic building that also houses an Armani store and the Shanghai Gallery of Art , was symbolic of the soaring fortunes of Chinese contemporary art .", "In 2006 Sotheby 's and Christie 's , the world 's biggest auction houses , sold $ 190 million worth of Asian contemporary art , most of it Chinese , in a series of record-breaking auctions in New York , London and Hong Kong .", "In 2004 the two houses combined sold $ 22 million in Asian contemporary art .", "The climax came at a Beijing auction in November when a painting by Liu Xiaodong , 43 , sold to a Chinese entrepreneur for $ 2.7 million , the highest price ever paid for a piece by a Chinese artist who began working after 1979 , when loosened economic restrictions spurred a resurgence in contemporary art .", "That price put Mr. Liu in the company of the few living artists , including Damien Hirst and Jeff Koons , whose work has sold for $ 2 million or more at auction .", "`` This has come out of nowhere , '' said Henry Howard-Sneyd , global head of Asian arts at Sotheby 's , which , like Christie 's , has just started a division focusing on contemporary Chinese art .", "With auction prices soaring , hundreds of new studios , galleries and private art museums are opening in big cities like Beijing and Shanghai .", "Chinese auction houses that once specialized in traditional ink paintings are now putting contemporary experimental artworks on the block .", "Western galleries , especially in Europe , are rushing to sign up unknown painters .", "Artists a year out of college are selling photographic works for as much as $ 10,000 each .", "Well-known painters have yearlong waiting lists .", "And the Solomon R . Guggenheim Museum and the Pompidou Center in Paris are considering opening branches in China .", "`` What is happening in China is what happened in Europe at the beginning of the 20th century , '' said Michael Goedhuis , a collector and art dealer specializing in Asian contemporary art who has galleries in London and New York .", "`` New ground is being broken .", "There 's a revolution under way . ``", "But the auction frenzy has also sparked debate here about whether sales are artificially inflating prices and encouraging speculators , rather than real collectors , to enter the art market .", "Auction houses `` sell art like people sell cabbage , '' said Weng Ling , the director of the Shanghai Gallery of Art .", "`` They are not educating the public or helping artists develop .", "Many of them know nothing about art . ``", "But the boom in Chinese contemporary art -- reinforced by record sales in New York last year -- has also brought greater recognition to a group of experimental artists who grew up during China 's brutal Cultural Revolution -LRB- 1966-1976 -RRB- .", "After the 1989 government crackdown in Tiananmen Square , avant-garde art was often banned from being shown here because it was deemed hostile or anti-authoritarian .", "Through the 1990s many artists struggled to earn a living , considering themselves lucky to sell a painting for $ 500 .", "That has all changed .", "These days China 's leading avant-garde artists have morphed into multi-millionaires who show up at exhibitions wearing Gucci and Ferragamo .", "Wang Guangyi , best-known for his Great Criticism series of Cultural Revolution-style paintings emblazoned with the names of popular Western brands , like Coke , Swatch and Gucci , drives a Jaguar and owns a 10,000-square - foot luxury villa on the outskirts of Beijing .", "Yue Minjun , who makes legions of colorful smiling figures , has a walled-off suburban Beijing compound with an 8,000-square - foot home and studio .", "Fang Lijun , a `` Cynical Realist '' painter whose work captures artists ' post-Tiananmen disillusionment , owns six restaurants in Beijing and operates a small hotel in western Yunnan province .", "If China 's art scene can be likened to a booming stock market , Zhang Xiaogang , 48 , is its Google .", "More than any other Chinese artist Mr. Zhang , with his huge paintings depicting family photographs taken during the Cultural Revolution , has captured the imagination of international collectors .", "Prices for his work have skyrocketed at auction over the last two years .", "When his work `` Bloodline Series : Comrade No . 120 '' sold for $ 979,000 at Sotheby 's auction in March , many art insiders predicted the market had topped out and prices would plummet within months .", "But in October , the British collector Charles Saatchi bought another of Mr. Zhang 's pieces at Christie 's in London for $ 1.5 million .", "Then in November at Christie 's Hong Kong auction , Mr. Zhang 's 1993 `` Tiananmen Square '' sold to a private collector for $ 2.3 million .", "According to Artnet.com, which tracks auction prices , 16 of Mr. Zhang 's works have sold for $ 500,000 or more during the past two years .", "Are such prices justified .", "Uli Sigg , the former Swiss ambassador to China and perhaps the largest collector of Chinese contemporary art with more than 1,500 pieces , calls the market frothy but not finished .", "`` I do n't see anything at the moment that will stop the rise in prices , `` he said .", "`` More and more people are flocking to the market . ''", "Mr. Goedhuis insists that this is the beginning of an even bigger boom in Chinese contemporary art .", "`` I do n't think there 's a bubble , `` he said .", "`` There 's a lot of speculation but no bubble .", "That 's the paradox .", "In China there are only a handful of buyers -- 10 , 20 , 30 -- out of a billion people .", "You only need another 10 to come in and that will jack up prices . ``", "He added : `` Another astonishing fact is there is not a single museum in the West that has committed itself to buying Chinese art .", "It 's just starting to happen .", "Guggenheim , the Tate Modern , MoMA , they 're all looking . ``", "Representatives from those museums , as well as others , have made scouting missions to China .", "A growing number of international collectors are looking at Chinese art too .", "`` After the 2005 Sotheby 's show I just jumped in , `` said Didier Hirsch , a French-born California business executive who has long collected American and European contemporary art .", "`` People said the next big run-up in prices would be at Sotheby 's in March so I said , ` Now or never . '", "`` Mr. Hirsch purchased nearly his entire collection -- about 40 works -- by phone after doing research on the Internet .", "He said he went first for what he called the titans -- the original group of post - ` 79 painters -- including Wang Guangyi and Liu Xiaodong .", "Some critics here say the focus on prices has led to a decline in creativity as artists knock off variations of their best-known work rather than exploring new territory .", "Some are even employing teams of workers in assembly-line fashion .", "Christopher Phillips , a curator at the International Center of Photography in New York , has become a regular visitor to China , scouting young artists for the center and other places .", "On a recent trip `` I went to visit the studio of a well-known Beijing painter , '' Mr. Phillips said .", "`` The artist was n't there , but I saw a group of canvases being painted by a team of young women who seemed to be just in from the countryside .", "I found it a little disconcerting . ``", "There are also complaints that some artists are ignoring international standards by selling works directly into the auction market , rather than selling first to collectors .", "And many experts here say that some gallery officials and artists are sending representatives to the auctions to bid on their own works to prop up prices , or `` protect '' the prices of some rising stars .", "But Lorenz Helbling , director of the ShanghART Gallery here , said Chinese artists continue to produce an impressive array of works , and that talk about the market being overrun by commercialism is exaggerated .", "`` Things are much better than they were 10 years ago , '' he said .", "`` Back then many artists were commissioned to simply paint dozens of paintings for a gallery owner , who went out and sold those works .", "Now these artists are thinking more deeply about their work because they 're finally getting the recognition they deserve . `` ."], "summary": ["Soaring prices for Chinese contemporary art have led way for opening of hundreds of new studios , galleris and private art museums in cities like Beijing and Shanghai .", "Chinese auction houses that once only dealt in traditional art have now begun to put contemporary pieces on block .", "European galleries are also clamoring to sign unknown Chinese artists , some of whom been able to sell their works for large sums .", "Auction and gallery frenzy has sparked debate in China about whether sales are artificially inflated to encourage speculators , rather than real collectors , to enter art market .", "There are also complaints that some artists are ignoring international standards by selling works directly into auction market , rather than selling first to collectors .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [63, 19, 10, 11], "tag": ["Travel", "Arts"]}
- {"id": "1816258", "text": ["Christopher Wheeldon , one of the world 's most sought-after choreographers , who recently announced an end to his residency at New York City Ballet , has formed his own company , a major event in the dance world .", "The company , Morphoses the Wheeldon Company , is to make its debut in August at the Vail International Dance Festival in Colorado , followed by four to six performances at the Sadler 's Wells Theater in London in September and roughly the same number at City Center in New York in October .", "The company is named after a 2002 dance that Mr. Wheeldon created for City Ballet .", "In an interview yesterday Mr. Wheeldon said performances would include a mix of his own choreography and works by others , performed by stars on loan from City Ballet and the Royal Ballet in London .", "`` We 're still kind of at the hopes-and-dreams stage , `` he said , adding that he had approached no one to become a permanent member .", "`` I do n't really believe in poaching , `` he said .", "`` I do n't even know at this stage whether I can offer them the security they need . ``", "At Vail , he said , he planned to cast couples from the Hamburg Ballet , Pacific Northwest Ballet , San Francisco Ballet and City Ballet to dance the four pas de deux from his `` Polyphonia . ''", "Among the dancers tentatively scheduled to participate in his first season are Wendy Whelan , S\u00e9bastien Marcovici , Maria Kowroski , Sofiane Sylve and Edwaard Liang from City Ballet , and Darcey Bussell , Alina Cojocaru and Johan Kobborg from the Royal Ballet , where Mr. Wheeldon has danced and choreographed .", "`` None of these dancers reflect the dancers that are necessarily going to be in the company when it 's formed in a more concrete way , `` he said .", "Mr. Wheeldon said he would concentrate on the artistic side and focus on new works , including those by contemporary choreographers .", "For now Lourdes Lopez , a former City Ballet principal , is handling administrative matters .", "The company is expected to have about 20 members and an annual budget of about $ 5 million .", "Mr. Wheeldon declined to discuss specifics on how the company would be financed , saying only that some potential donors had shown interest .", "The initial performances are being presented by Vail , City Center and Sadler 's Wells , which will cover the dancers ' fees and serve as long-term partners of the company .", "He said he hoped those performances would attract interest from potential company members and donors .", "The arrival of a new dance company is always an unusual event , given the funds needed to support an essentially money-losing endeavor .", "It is even rarer for an individual to establish a private company , as opposed to one sponsored by a city .", "But Mr. Wheeldon 's stature and substantial body of work , especially at his tender age of 33 , appear to be enough to attract backers .", "Mr. Wheeldon said in November that he would leave City Ballet as its first resident choreographer when his contract expires in 2008 .", "He is scheduled to choreograph two more works for it .", "Peter Martins , the City Ballet 's ballet master in chief , said at the time that he was happy to see Mr. Wheeldon spread his wings .", "Mr. Martins was in rehearsals and could not be immediately reached for comment yesterday .", "Inevitably Mr. Wheeldon 's company will compete for attention , donations and dancers , something Mr. Wheeldon indirectly acknowledged .", "He said Mr. Martins gave his blessing , yet `` he understands also that this may mean some dancers will decide to come to me , '' Mr. Wheeldon said .", "`` That 's just the way life is and the way things go . ``", "He continued , `` I 'm sort of stepping into an area where people might think , ` Why does New York need another ballet company when we 've already got two .", "' `` -LRB- In addition to City Ballet , New York is home to American Ballet Theater . -RRB-", "Answering his own question , he said , `` Maybe it does n't , but I 'm going to do it , and we 'll see if I 'm foolish or not . ``", "Mr. Wheeldon said he wanted to give dancers a greater voice , which is sometimes difficult in large companies like City Ballet .", "Referring to leaders of large companies in general , he said that casting decisions were not `` always handled in a perfectly sensitive way . ''", "`` My mission is to create an environment that is collaborative in all respects , '' he said .", "In an earlier recent interview he said he could make a `` change for the better in the ballet world '' by starting a company from scratch .", "`` I want to be in complete control of my personal artistic vision and goals , '' he said , `` and am not really interested in inheriting a legacy , but rather taking the opportunity to forge my own . ''", "Starting fresh also meant bypassing the `` big politics '' and bureaucracy of a large company , he said .", "The idea began taking shape last summer when the San Francisco Ballet presented one of his pieces at the Lincoln Center Festival .", "The choreographer William Forsythe had a work on the same program , and the two spoke at length .", "`` He basically told me that I needed to take a step forward on my own and do something different , and coming from him -- he is a man who has continued to invent himself -- it was immediately resonant , '' Mr. Wheeldon said .", "Mr. Wheeldon received a boost from an old friend at City Ballet , Damian Woetzel , who had recently become artistic director of the Vail festival and agreed to give him a springboard there .", "`` We 're going to work together to further the ideas that we 've been kicking around all these years , `` Mr. Woetzel said .", "`` It 's a chance to make a real solid contribution . ``", "While mainly making dances for City Ballet -- itself long a vehicle for George Balanchine 's work -- the British-born Mr. Wheeldon has been sought out by companies around the world , including the San Francisco Ballet , the Royal Ballet , the Bolshoi Ballet and the Philadelphia Ballet .", "News of his plans have been percolating through the dance world but were not widely known .", "`` What a good idea , '' said George Steel , the executive director of the Miller Theater at Columbia University , which began expanding its dance offerings after an evening of Wheeldon choreography in the fall of 2005 .", "`` More dancing is wonderful , '' Mr. Steel said .", "`` It 's a huge opportunity for him to have a company he can run . ``", "Dance Correction : January 9 , 2007 , Tuesday An article in The Arts on Thursday about the formation of a new dance company by the choreographer Christopher Wheeldon misstated the name of one of the companies that asked him in the past to choreograph for it .", "It is the Pennsylvania Ballet -LRB- based in Philadelphia -RRB- , not the Philadelphia Ballet ."], "summary": ["Christopher Wheeldon , one of world 's most sought-after choreographers who recently announced end to his residency at New York City Ballet , has formed his own company Morphoses the Wheeldon Company .", "Company will make debut in August at Vail International Dance Festival in Colorado and will perform at Sadler 's Wells Theater in London and at City Center in New York City .", "Wheeldon comments .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1], "tag": ["Arts"]}
- {"id": "1816262", "text": ["In a rare reprise to a rare trial , the jury that convicted a Long Island man of murder by depraved indifference last October in a drunken-driving crash that killed a limousine driver and a 7-year-old girl may be brought back to court for hearings on whether some members acted improperly during deliberations .", "In an answer submitted on Dec . 29 to a defense motion , Robert Hayden , an assistant Nassau County district attorney , agreed that a hearing should be held to determine if jurors discussed what they believed were prior drunken-driving charges against the defendant , Martin Heidgen , 25 .", "Such accusations were not included in the evidence introduced in the five-week trial , and could be considered a contamination of the jury proceedings .", "Beyond that , Mr. Hayden said in his answer , that the belief of a previous drunken-driving arrest was `` not true , '' as far as he knew .", "Mr. Hayden said the hearing should be limited to that issue , and rebuffed as `` irrelevant '' several other claims of impropriety raised by Mr. Heidgen 's lawyer , Stephen LaMagna , as causes for setting aside the guilty verdict .", "Mr. LaMagna also claimed that some jurors felt pressured to vote to convict Mr. Heidgen of the most serious charge , that some discussed the case outside the jury room , and that one said she planned to write a book about it .", "The Heidgen case was unusual because the defendant was prosecuted for a fatal drunken-driving crash under laws treating his crime as the functional equivalent of intentional murder .", "Such prosecutions , while not unprecedented , are considered rare and are usually brought only in the most horrific cases .", "Mr. Heidgen , whose blood-alcohol level was three times the legal limit , was driving the wrong way on the Meadowbrook Parkway when his pickup truck crashed head -on with a limousine taking a family home from a wedding .", "The crash killed the limousine driver , Stanley Rabinowitz , 59 , and Katie Flynn , who had been the flower girl .", "The girl 's parents and grandparents , who were also in the limousine , suffered minor injuries .", "After three days of deliberations , the jury told Acting Justice Alan R . Honorof of State Supreme Court that it was deadlocked , but after he sent them back for more deliberations , reached a verdict on the fifth day .", "Within days of the verdict , though , the jury forewoman said she had felt pressured to vote for the charge of `` murder by depraved indifference '' that Mr. Heidgen was convicted of , even though she believed he was guilty of the lesser crime of manslaughter .", "Based on the depraved indifference conviction , Mr. Heidgen faces a minimum of 25 years in prison .", "Manslaughter carries a minimum of 15 years .", "Mr. Heidgen 's lawyer , who could not be reached for comment on Wednesday , has said that based on interviews with other jury members , he believed that some jurors browbeat the last two holdouts who thought Mr. Heidgen was guilty of manslaughter , rather than murder .", "`` It is fairly rare for hearings like these to be held , '' said George Goltzer , vice president of the New York State Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers .", "`` The general rule is that you do n't let a jury impeach its own verdict .", "But if the charges are serious -- say that racism or serious misconduct was involved in the decision or something like that -- the courts have allowed it . ``", "Mr. Goltzer said he was not too familiar with the case , but added that evidence of `` extra-record information '' -- not part of the evidence introduced at the trial -- might qualify as serious enough to review a jury 's verdict .", "Justice Honorof is expected to decide in the next few days if and when hearings should be held .", "A spokesman for the district attorney , Kathleen Rice , said it was expected that with the district attorney 's assent , the hearings would be scheduled ."], "summary": ["Assistant Nassau County , NY , District Attorney Robert Hayden agrees that hearing should be held to determine whether jurors discussed what they thought were prior drunken-driving charges against Martin Heidgen before convicting him of murder .", "Heidgen crashed his vehicle into car , killing 7-year-old Katie Flynn and driver Stanley Rabinowitz .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 9], "tag": ["New York and Region"]}
- {"id": "1816274", "text": ["President Bush is all but daring Democratic leaders to attack his signature tax cuts as they take over Congress .", "But Democrats , perhaps to his frustration , are having none of it .", "In an opening salvo on Wednesday , Mr. Bush proclaimed that he would present a budget next month that manages to project a balanced budget by 2012 while permanently extending more than $ 1 trillion in tax cuts .", "`` It is also a fact that our tax cuts have fueled robust economic growth and record revenues , '' Mr. Bush wrote in an op-ed article for The Wall Street Journal .", "`` We met our goal of cutting the deficit in half three years ahead of schedule . ''", "The implicit message , which Republican lawmakers reinforced later , was that their tax cuts were popular with voters , that Republicans had proven the economic benefits of tax cuts and that Democrats would court disaster if they even hinted at rolling them back or repealing them .", "But even as Democratic leaders continue to accuse Mr. Bush of having a reckless fiscal policy , they have refused to discuss dismantling his tax cuts or even to engage in a debate with him about the best way to stimulate economic growth .", "`` It 's always the same old tired line with them -- ` Tax and spend , tax and spend , tax and spend , ' '' said Senator Kent Conrad , the North Dakota Democrat who is chairman of the Senate Budget Committee .", "`` We 're not going there . ``", "At least not now .", "Democratic leaders say they see no need to revisit Mr. Bush 's tax cuts for several years because they are not set to expire until the end of 2010 .", "And they contend that the government could increase revenues as much as $ 100 billion a year simply by closing the `` tax gap , '' taxes that are owed but not paid .", "When asked about their tax plans , as they have been again and again since Nov . 7 , Democratic leaders insist they want to preserve many of the middle-class tax cuts like the child tax credit and a reduction in the so-called `` marriage penalty '' for two-income households .", "The Democrats ' coyness is less than candid .", "Although it is true that Mr. Bush 's tax cuts have four more years of life , it is also true that Congress faces serious fiscal headaches that can not be postponed for even a full year .", "One of those challenges is the Iraq war .", "The conflict is likely to cost far more than $ 100 billion this year , even if the United States began reducing troop levels .", "So far , Mr. Bush has kept war spending out of the regular budget request that he sends to Congress each February , instead seeking the money on an expedited as-needed basis .", "Democrats say , however , that they will not accede to such requests , as their Republican predecessors did , because they sidestep the process by which Congress normally debates spending priorities .", "Perhaps the bigger and more enduring problem is the alternative minimum tax , a tax that was originally intended for the richest households but that has been not adjusted for inflation and is rapidly engulfing tens of millions of middle-class families every year .", "To prevent the alternative tax from becoming a de facto tax increase , Congress has been passing temporary fixes for the last several years .", "Those fixes now cost more than $ 50 billion a year , and the cost is expected to climb sharply for the rest of the decade .", "Repealing the alternative minimum tax , a goal shared by Democrats and Republicans , would reduce government revenues by about $ 1 trillion over the next 10 years and would be a huge drain on the Treasury that nobody in either party has figured out how to finance .", "Democrats , meanwhile , have a wish list of their own .", "House Democrats plan to reduce interest rates on student loans by half as part of their plan to pass measures that they have long favored in the first 100 legislative hours .", "Democrats also want to funnel more money to develop alternative energy sources , domestic security and the Children 's Health Insurance Program .", "House Democrats plan to reintroduce tough new `` pay-go '' budget rules as early as this Friday .", "Under `` pay-go , '' which governed spending measures in the 1990s but expired in 2002 , new entitlement programs or new tax cuts have to be matched by comparable spending cuts or tax increases .", "Politicians in both parties may be feeling a temporary reprieve from fiscal pressures because the budget deficit has indeed declined sharply in the last two years .", "Largely because of big back-to-back increases in tax revenue for the last two years , the deficit shrank to $ 248 billion in 2006 from a peak of $ 412 billion in 2004 .", "Measured as a share of the total economy , the approach economists view as more meaningful than the deficit size in dollars , the shortfall is 1.9 percent of the gross domestic product , modest by historical standards .", "But many budget analysts remain highly skeptical about Mr. Bush 's promise to eliminate the deficit , noting that the balanced budget would not occur until four years after he had left office .", "One reason for the skepticism is that the government would be renewing all of Mr. Bush 's tax cuts at precisely the time that the 76 million baby boomers have begun pouring into retirement and claiming government benefits from Social Security and Medicare .", "White House budget forecasts have also proven wildly wrong in both good years and bad , as tax revenue plunged far more than officials predicted from 2001 through 2004 and climbed faster than predicted in 2005 and 2006 .", "Despite the recent jump in tax receipts , moreover , federal tax collections are still low as a share of the total economy .", "Spending , on the other hand , climbed sharply as a share of the economy and remains high by historical standards .", "Mr. Conrad of the Budget Committee acknowledged on Tuesday that higher taxes , especially on wealthier families , would eventually have to be part of a comprehensive plan that included tough spending restraint and an overhaul of entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare .", "`` I believe that if Americans are told the truth they will support actions necessary to address the budget , '' he said .", "`` If we 're going to be honest about this , it 's going to require both sides ' giving up some of their fundamental positions . ``", "But other Democratic lawmakers say it would be almost pointless to lead an unpopular fight over raising taxes until Republicans are willing to share some of the political pain .", "With Mr. Bush almost certain to fight almost any effort to revisit his tax cuts , and Republicans in Congress unlikely to rebel against the president , Democrats are inclined to wait until after Mr. Bush is gone .", "THE 110TH CONGRESS : NEWS ANALYSIS ."], "summary": ["News analysis notes even as Democratic leaders continue to accuse Pres Bush of reckless fiscal policy , they refuse to discuss dismantling his popular tax cuts or even engage in debate about best way to stimulate economy .", "Still , Congress faces serious fiscal problems that can not be postponed ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [6], "tag": ["U.S.", "Washington"]}
- {"id": "1816278", "text": ["The sleek , bulbous-nosed new bullet trains here look like they are designed to whisk passengers across wide-open spaces .", "But on this congested island , they represent the start of a 180-mile-per-hour commuter train system .", "After a quarter century of planning and construction , the system is scheduled to open on Jan . 5 .", "It will tie together cities and towns where 94 percent of Taiwan 's population lives , offering an alternative to clogged highways and the air pollution the vehicles on them produce .", "For some urban planners and environmentalists , the project is an example of how Asia may be able to control oil imports , curb fast-rising emissions of global-warming gases and bring a higher standard of living to enormous numbers of people in an environmentally sustainable way .", "Passengers who travel on a fully loaded train will use only a sixth of the energy they would use if they drove alone in a car and will release only one-ninth as much carbon dioxide , the main gas linked to global warming .", "Compared with a bus ride , the figures are half the energy and a quarter of the carbon dioxide , train system officials said .", "But the system 's enormous cost -- $ 15 billion , or $ 650 for every man , woman and child on Taiwan -- has made it a subject of dispute .", "And a series of commercial disputes since the project began in 1980 has produced a remarkable hodgepodge : French and German train drivers who are allowed to speak only English with Taiwanese traffic controllers while operating Japanese bullet trains on tracks originally designed by British and French engineers .", "The system has become so complex that the leader of Taiwan 's consumer movement is calling for citizens to boycott it entirely until extensive safety data is released .", "`` Cherish your life , do n't be a guinea pig , `` Cheng Jen-hung , the chairman of the Consumers ' Foundation , said in an interview , repeating his group 's slogan .", "With 900 passengers on a fully loaded train , he warned , `` if there is an accident , there will be very heavy casualties . ''", "Arthur Chiang , the vice president for administration at Taiwan High Speed Rail , said the system was completely safe .", "But he acknowledged that the project had been bedeviled by opposition .", "`` Pandora 's box has already opened and everything has come out except hope and mutual trust , `` he said during a recent test run on one of the new trains from the capital , Taipei , in the north , to the city of Taichung , in west-central Taiwan .", "`` We just wanted to make it simple , but we failed , '' he added .", "`` Politics is one of the factors . ''", "Using overhead electric lines instead of diesel locomotives , the trains will run from Taipei down through western Taiwan to Kaohsiung , the main industrial city in the south .", "That is a distance of 215 miles , about the same as between New York and Washington .", "The system will start with 19 trains in each direction daily and eventually will be able to handle 88 trains daily in each direction .", "Planning started in 1980 , when Taiwan was still under martial law .", "The route was preliminarily picked in 1991 , as Taiwan was starting on the path to become the vibrant , even tempestuous , democracy that it is today .", "Every large city and town along the route lobbied to have its own stop and new railway station , and a succession of governments agreed .", "Three trains a day will travel from Taipei to Kaohsiung in 90 minutes , with just one stop , in Taichung .", "But most of the trains will make six intermediate stops , lengthening travel time to two hours and seven minutes .", "That is still 38 minutes faster than Amtrak 's Acela Express between New York and Washington , which also has up to six intermediate stops but a lower top speed .", "But flights between Taipei and Kaohsiung take just 40 minutes .", "Enormous stations resembling state-of-the-art airport terminals have been built on the outskirts of each city along the route except Taipei , where the existing main rail station is being used .", "The new stations can not be in most downtown areas because of the difficulty in acquiring land for tracks : the high-speed trains travel almost entirely on specially built , 60-foot-tall viaducts to avoid the need to cross roads .", "Smaller trains and buses will link the new stations to downtown .", "Although many urban planners see systems like this one as positive for the environment , Lee Schipper , the research director at Embarq , an environmental transport research group in Washington , said the system could eventually increase the use of energy , rather than save it , if the ease of using the trains encouraged people to move farther away from work .", "The expectation in Taiwan is that the train system will attract a lot of users at first , notwithstanding Mr. Cheng 's call for a boycott .", "The consumer movement here is not as big or visible as it was even 10 years ago .", "A French train driver sporting a magnificent handlebar mustache , who declined to give his name , sent Mr. Chiang 's train hurtling down the tracks on the recent test run .", "The driver said the trains were actually simpler to operate than those in France .", "`` It 's easier , it 's all automatic , `` he said in French .", "But the requirement that all communications take place in English is a complication , he added .", "The electronic displays in the cabs of each train are also in English .", "The Taiwan High Speed Rail Corporation is training Taiwanese drivers to replace the European drivers and plans to switch the entire system to spoken Chinese and Chinese-language computer displays in about three years , Mr. Chiang said .", "The consortium had expected to hire experienced Japanese drivers , but the Japanese companies that made the trains were unable to persuade Japan 's rail system operators to transfer any of their drivers to Taiwan .", "Whether the train system becomes a commercial success will partly depend on how many people use its somewhat inconveniently located stations , how quickly the land is developed around these stations and how much the tickets cost .", "The initial price for a one-way , coach ticket from Taipei to Kaohsiung will be $ 44 , or two-thirds the price of a typical airline ticket .", "Riding the train is much like a very low-altitude flight , and very quiet .", "Chen Chi-cheng , a 5-year-old invited on the test run , watched with fascination as the rooftops of houses flashed past .", "`` It 's like a plane , `` he said breathlessly .", "TAIPEI JOURNAL ."], "summary": ["Taiwan 's new bullet train system is scheduled to open on Jan 5 .", "It will tie together cities and towns where 94 percent of its population lives and offer alternative to clogged highways and air pollution vehicles on them produce .", "System 's enormous cost -- $ 15 billion -- has made it subject of dispute .", "Some environmentalists worry that system could eventually increase use of energy , if ease of using trains encourages people to move farther away from work .", "Project 's decades of planning and construction recalled .", "Photos .", "Map ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 7, 2, 30], "tag": ["World"]}
- {"id": "1816286", "text": ["A soldier from the 101st Airborne Division is scheduled to plead guilty next Tuesday to a reduced charge for mercy killing in connection with the death of three unarmed Iraqi men shot by American infantrymen last spring , according to lawyers for other defendants in the case .", "The terms of the plea arrangement will allow the soldier , Specialist Juston R . Graber , originally charged with capital murder , to be convicted of aggravated assault and to receive a nine-month prison sentence in exchange for his testifying against three other members of his squad , the lawyers said .", "The three other soldiers , members of the same company as Specialist Graber in the division 's Third Brigade , still face courts-martial on premeditated-murder charges , making them eligible for the death penalty or , barring that , life in prison .", "Army prosecutors have accused them of carrying out an impromptu plan , following a raid on a marshy island northwest of Baghdad , to kill the three Iraqis after cutting off their plastic handcuffs and forcing them to run , still blindfolded , from the squalid hut where they had been discovered .", "The two soldiers accused of firing on the men as they fled -- Specialist William B . Hunsaker and Pfc . Corey R . Clagett -- have said they shot in self-defense after the three broke free from the thin `` zip-tie '' handcuffs and attacked them .", "A third soldier , Staff Sgt . Raymond L . Girouard , the squad 's ranking member , is accused of devising the plan to kill the men , then punching Private Clagett and cutting Specialist Hunsaker to give the appearance that they had been attacked .", "None of these three defendants have entered a formal pea .", "The guilty plea by Specialist Graber , to be entered before an Army judge at Fort Campbell , Ky . , and his testimony against the other soldiers will make gaining their acquittal far more difficult than it would have been had all four kept a unified legal front , lawyers for the three others said .", "`` It changes the complexion of the entire case and makes the case much stronger against Clagett , Hunsaker and Girouard , '' said Paul Bergrin , a lawyer for Private Clagett who said he had not expected Specialist Graber to get `` such an outstanding deal . ''", "`` It gives the government 's case credibility and corroboration where they did n't have it before , `` Mr. Bergrin added .", "`` It requires us to rethink our strategy . ''", "Specialist Graber 's two military lawyers , Capt . Shaun Lister and Capt . Will Suddeth , did not reply to e-mailed requests for comment or phone messages left with military officials at Fort Hood , Tex . , where both are based .", "Their client 's willingness to testify for the prosecution , though , was bitter news to the three other defendants .", "Michael Waddington , a lawyer for Specialist Hunsaker , said Specialist Graber 's plea arrangement felt like a betrayal , `` especially when we 've been disclosing our strategy `` to his lawyers for months .", "Specialist Graber 's legal team had joined with Mr. Waddington , Mr. Bergrin and Capt . Ted Miller , a lawyer for Sergeant Girouard , in a collaborative pact known as a joint defense agreement , which lawyers often create if their clients face similar charges in the same incident .", "Defense lawyers said Specialist Graber 's plea was not particularly surprising , given the disparity between the evidence against him and the charges he had faced .", "According to the evidence , Specialist Graber made a last-second decision to shoot the dying man after a squad medic declared him beyond help and , according to sworn statements from soldiers not charged in the case , after Sergeant Girouard said , `` Put him out of his misery . ''", "But Army prosecutors nonetheless charged Specialist Graber , 21 , with premeditated murder , creating an enormous incentive , defense lawyers for the three other soldiers said , for him to plead guilty to a lesser charge that more closely fit the crime .", "The first court-martial in the case will be Private Clagett 's , scheduled to begin Jan . 15 at Fort Campbell , Mr. Bergrin said .", "Two other soldiers , Sgt . Leonel Lemus and Pfc . Bradley Mason , are expected to testify for the prosecution that they heard Sergeant Girouard conceive a plan to free the Iraqi men from their handcuffs and have Private Clagett and Specialist Hunsaker kill them .", "But Mr. Bergrin said he would call a powerful witness of his own : Col . Michael Steele , the brigade commander , who , according to several soldiers ' sworn testimony , told some soldiers to `` kill all military-age males '' they encountered during the raid , on May 9 .", "Colonel Steele 's lawyer , Lt . Col . Raymond A . Jackson , said on Wednesday that Colonel Steele had never given such an order , a denial putting him at odds with several soldiers under his command .", "The Army has granted Colonel Steele immunity to testify , Mr. Bergrin said , and once on the stand and under oath , `` he 's going to have to tell the truth . ``", "Correction : January 5 , 2007 , Friday An article yesterday about a guilty plea by Army Specialist Juston R . Graber to a reduced charge of mercy killing in connection with the deaths of three Iraqi men misstated the original charge against him and the maximum punishment three other soldiers could receive if convicted .", "Specialist Graber was charged with noncapital murder , not capital murder .", "The three other soldiers scheduled for courts-martial face life in prison -- not the death penalty -- if convicted ."], "summary": ["Specialist Juston R Graber is scheduled to plead guilty to reduced charge for mercy killing in connection with death of three unarmed Iraq men shot by US soldiers in 2006 .", "Will testify against squad members Specialist William B Hunsaker , Pfc Corey R Clagett , and Staff Sgt Raymond L Girouard ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0], "tag": ["U.S."]}
- {"id": "1816293", "text": ["The Iraqi prime minister 's office on Wednesday mounted its first public defense of the way the government carried out the execution of Saddam Hussein , and said that Iraqi authorities had detained a guard who they believed was involved in recording the moment in a macabre and unauthorized video that has generated revulsion around the world .", "Iraqi officials , in their effort to dampen the video 's impact , tried to challenge the impression it conveyed that Mr. Hussein , for all his brutal crimes , had behaved with far more dignity in his final minutes than his seemingly thuggish executioners .", "`` The execution operation has been mischaracterized for political purposes , '' said Sadiq al-Rikabi , an adviser to Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki , who was present at the execution .", "Mr. Rikabi asserted that it had been carried out properly .", "`` What has happened is not an insult or degradation , '' he said .", "But even as Mr. Maliki 's government tried to defend its actions , the United States military , which had held Mr. Hussein in custody until it transferred him to Iraqi authorities about an hour before he was hanged , sought to distance itself from any responsibility for the scenes revealed in the video .", "`` You know , if you 're asking me , ` Would we have done things differently , ' yes , we would have , '' said Maj . Gen . William B . Caldwell IV , an American military spokesman in Baghdad , at a news briefing on Wednesday .", "`` But that 's not our decision , `` he added .", "`` That 's an Iraqi government decision . ``", "The reaction from the American military seemed to widen a rift that has been opening recently between the Shiite-led government of Mr. Maliki and its American supporters on a range of issues .", "They include the government 's tolerance of militias , the recent discovery of the unofficial presence of Iranian military officers in Baghdad and the swiftness with which the Iraqis put Mr. Hussein to death after his appeals had been exhausted .", "Mr. Maliki 's office confirmed Wednesday that until Mr. Hussein 's final hours , the American Embassy had sought to delay the execution long enough to avoid having it on a Muslim holiday and to resolve some remaining legal issues .", "`` The Americans wanted to postpone it , '' said Maryam al-Rayas , a legal adviser to the prime minister .", "The decision to go ahead , Ms. Rayas said , was `` a victory for the Iraqi government . ''", "The prime minister had decided that beginning the new year with Mr. Hussein dead trumped all other considerations , including the advice of the embassy , said Ms. Rayas , who also characterized the time frame as reasonable .", "`` There was no rush , '' she said .", "The Iraqi government 's detention of one of the guards generated some skepticism , with some Iraqi officials suggesting that Iraq was seeking a low-level scapegoat to blame for the almost Gothic display of intimidation and death that the images depict .", "Mr. Rikabi refused to name or otherwise characterize the guard who had been arrested other than to say that he was being held in Baghdad after an investigation had determined that he had shot the video with a cellphone camera .", "But Munkith al-Faroun , who was the prosecutor at Mr. Hussein 's trial and was present at the execution , has said publicly that 2 of the 14 Iraqi officials and court representatives flown in by American helicopters to witness it were openly videotaping the event with cellphones .", "When asked about Mr. Faroun 's statements , Mr. Rikabi said , `` I do not have this information . ''", "On Wednesday , The New York Times erroneously quoted Mr. Faroun as saying that one of the officials he had seen holding up a cellphone during the execution was Mowaffak al-Rubaie , Mr. Maliki 's national security adviser .", "Mr. Rubaie , in a telephone interview from London , said that along with all the Iraqi officials who were flown to the execution block by American helicopter , he had been searched at the Green Zone helipad and that his cellphone and even his keys were taken from him .", "`` I did not have a cellphone in the execution chamber , '' he said .", "But , further undermining the assertion that only a single guard had videotaped the execution , Mr. Rubaie said he had seen `` two or three '' others in the official contingent who did have cellphones .", "He suggested that they might have been among officials who arrived at Camp Justice , the American camp in northern Baghdad where the hanging took place , by car .", "The failure to call more senior officials to account raised suspicions among some Iraqis .", "`` They want to blame it on a guard , '' one senior Iraqi official said .", "Mr. Rubaie told CNN that there could have been as many as two others in the guard contingent who were associated with that scheme .", "In the wake of the video 's release , there were continuing condemnations of the way justice was meted out to Mr. Hussein after he lost his case in a court specially set up to judge crimes committed during his rule .", "On Wednesday , the United Nations high commissioner for human rights , Louise Arbour , renewed a previous call for restraint in carrying out the executions of two of Mr. Hussein 's co-defendants who were also sentenced to death .", "The manner of Mr. Hussein 's execution appeared to give a boost to the remnants of his outlawed Baath Party .", "In the town of Huwaish , north of Baghdad , hundreds of people led by gunmen calling themselves the `` mujahedeen of the Baath Party '' marched in protest , and in the once prosperous Baghdad neighborhood of Monsour , a large black banner proclaimed that Mr. Hussein 's death would set off fighting against `` the Americans and their followers . ''", "The banner was signed , in nicely printed lettering , `` Baath Party . ''", "At the same time , one of Mr. Hussein 's most ruthless enforcers , Izzat Ibrahim al-Douri , who has eluded his American pursuers for nearly four years , was named the Baath Party leader on one of its Web sites .", "Although the claim could not be independently verified , Mr. Douri has long been considered a leader of the Baathist insurgency .", "Asked repeatedly to describe how the American military would have carried out the execution differently , General Caldwell declined to elaborate , saying that the question was hypothetical , since the Iraqis were in control once they received custody of Mr. Hussein outside the execution block .", "`` It was not our decision as to what occurred at that point , but we would have done it differently , '' General Caldwell said .", "Still , Mr. Rikabi , the prime minister 's political adviser , said that the government rejected all criticism of the execution , including the point at which one of the guards shouted , `` Moktada ! Moktada ! Moktada ! '' as Mr. Hussein stood on the trapdoor of the gallows -- a reference to Moktada al-Sadr , the radical Shiite cleric who leads the militia called the Mahdi Army .", "The exclamation came at the end of a standard Muslim prayer that both the guards and Mr. Hussein were saying aloud , Mr. Rikabi said .", "But the guards were from the Shiite south , where Mr. Sadr is popular , and the prayer there typically ends with the reference to him , Mr. Rikabi said .", "`` If you go to any mosque in Karbala or Najaf you will hear them shouting like that , '' he said .", "`` This is their habit . ''", "Seemingly contradicting his own government , Mr. Rubaie said he was ashamed of what had happened during the execution , which he described as `` unacceptable '' and `` disgusting . ''", "`` It is not professional , it 's the wrong thing to do , and it should not have happened , `` he said .", "`` But it should n't divert the mind of the people from the crimes that Saddam has been condemned to death for . ``", "THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ ."], "summary": ["Iraqi Prime Min Nuri Kamal al-Maliki ` s office mounts its first public defense of way government carried out execution of Saddam Hussein , saying Iraqi authorities have detained guard who they believe was involved in recording moment in macabre and unauthorized video that has generated revulsion around world .", "Iraqi officials seek to challenge impression that Hussein , for all his brutal crimes , behaved with more dignity in his final minutes than his seemingly thuggish executioners .", "United States military , which had held Hussein in custody until it transferred him to Iraqi authorities hour before he was hanged , seeks to distance itself from any responsibility for scenes revealed in video ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 5, 1], "tag": ["World", "Washington"]}
- {"id": "1816302", "text": ["I have a dream , my friends .", "I have a dream that we are approaching the day when a ranch-owning millionaire Republican like George Bush will make peace with a vineyard-owning millionaire Democrat like Nancy Pelosi .", "I have a dream that Pelosi , who was chauffeured to school as a child and who , with her investor husband , owns minority shares in the Auberge du Soleil resort hotel and the CordeValle Golf Club , will look over her famous strand of South Sea Tahitian pearls and forge bonds of understanding with the zillionaire corporate barons in the opposing party .", "Furthermore , I dream of a great harmonic convergence among the obscenely rich -- between Randian hedge fund managers on the right and helipad environmentalists on the left .", "I dream that the big-money people who seem to dominate our politics will put aside their partisan fury and discover the class solidarity that Karl Marx always said they shared , and their newfound civility will trickle down to the rest of us .", "I dream that Berkeley will make peace with Buckhead , Streisand with DeVos , Huffington with O'Reilly .", "I have my dreams , but of course , I am realistic too , for I am aware that at present there is no peace among the secluded island villas .", "I look out across the second homes of America and its surrounding tropical regions and I see polarization among the Kate Spade devotees and bitterness among the Rolexes .", "And I know that both Bush and Pelosi are part of an upper-income whirlwind of strife .", "Some people believe that Pelosi is an airhead , but that is wrong .", "Some people believe she is a radical San Francisco liberal , but that , too , is wrong .", "The main fact to know about Pelosi is that she is a creature of the modern fund-raising system .", "Some politicians rise because they run political machines .", "Some rise because they are great communicators .", "Pelosi has risen because she is a master of the thousand-dollar-a-plate fundraising circuit .", "Living amid a web of investors , venture capitalists and West Coast technology tycoons , she raised heroic amounts of money for the Democratic Party before she ever thought of running for anything herself .", "In 1984 , she was the state party chairwoman .", "In 1986 , she was the national fund-raising chairwoman for the Senate Democrats .", "Since coming to the House , she has discovered what many a savvy pol has discovered -- that the fastest way to ascend in Congress is to raise a lot of money and give it to your peers .", "She paid her dues selecting party favors , arranging seating charts -LRB- after that , legislation is easy -RRB- , and laying thick dollops of obsequiousness on cranky old moguls and their helmet hair spa-spouses .", "She has done what all political fund-raisers do : tell rich people things they already believe , demonize the other side , motivate the giving with Manichaean tales of good versus evil .", "It is no wonder The Los Angeles Times calls her a `` rabid Democrat '' or that Time magazine calls her `` hyperpartisan . ''", "It is not a surprise , as The Washington Post reported this week , that despite campaign promises about changing the tone in Washington , Pelosi has decided to exclude Republicans from the first burst of legislation -- to forbid them to offer amendments or alternatives .", "She is part of the clash of the rival elites , with the dollars from Brookline battling dollars from Dallas , causing upper-class strife that even diminutive dogs , vibrant velvets and petite salades ca n't fully soothe .", "It pains me to see plutocrats fight , because it sets such a poor example for those of us in the lower orders who fly commercial .", "It pains me even more because politicians from the rival blueblood clans go to embarrassing lengths to try to prove they are most authentically connected with working Americans .", "Think of John Kerry visiting a Wendy 's or Bill Frist impersonating a Bible thumper .", "This week , witness Pelosi going on her all-about-me inauguration tour , which is designed to rebrand her as a regular Catholic grandma from Baltimore .", "Members of the middle classes never have to mount campaign swings to prove how regular they are , but these upper-bracket types ca n't help themselves , and they always lay it on too thick .", "So I harbor my dreams of reconciliation , but in the meantime , why oh why ca n't we have a decent overclass in this country -- a group of highly attractive dimwits who spread bland but worthy stability over our political scene .", "Why oh why do we have to have this endless canap\u00e9 war -- the people of the vineyard against the people of the ranch .", "Op-Ed Columnist ."], "summary": ["David Brooks Op-Ed longs for wealthy politicians to put aside their partisan fury and discover civility .", "Says House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is example of rich politician who rose to power by mastering fund-raising system .", "Says despite campaign promises to change tone in Congress , Pelosi has excluded Republicans from first burst of legislation ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [22, 4, 31], "tag": ["Opinion"]}
- {"id": "1816308", "text": ["Robert L . Nardelli 's rich compensation and poor performance at Home Depot have long been cited by shareholder activists as a prime example of what they view as excessive executive pay .", "Some union members dressed up in giant chicken outfits to protest the board 's reluctance to clip Mr. Nardelli 's wings .", "What did all their outrage get them .", "Mr. Nardelli 's removal -- and at least a $ 210 million bill for a golden handshake on his way out the door .", "Yesterday , Home Depot 's board ousted Mr. Nardelli as chairman and chief executive in a surprising move that highlights the growing influence of investors pressuring boards to rein in executive pay .", "But it also illustrates another point : Even when their voices are heard , shareholders often wind up holding the bag .", "At Home Depot , Mr. Nardelli is expected to receive an exit package worth more than $ 210 million on top of the nearly $ 64 million he was paid during his six years at the helm .", "That equals about $ 45 million a year .", "Over that same period , Home Depot 's stock has fallen from over $ 50 a share early in his tenure to $ 41.16 just before Mr. Nardelli 's resignation was announced .", "By contrast , Home Depot 's chief competitor , Lowe 's , has paid its chief executives about one-third of what Mr. Nardelli made during the same time , while investors have enjoyed a healthy increase in their holdings .", "Mr. Nardelli 's compensation may have a prominent place in the pantheon of pay-for-failure , but his arrangement is by no means unique .", "`` The company is big , the underperformance is significant and the numbers are very large , '' said Lucian Bebchuk , a Harvard Law School professor who is an outspoken critic of executive pay .", "`` But each of the pieces that lead to the decoupling of pay from performance are very common to the executive compensation landscape . ''", "Across corporate America , chief executives have been walking away with lavish riches even when their companies fail to perform , according to an analysis by the Corporate Library .", "At Pfizer , Henry A . McKinnell left with an exit package worth $ 213 million , including an $ 82 million pension , after the pharmaceutical giant he ran for six years lost over $ 137 billion in market value on his watch .", "Jay Sidhu , the former chairman and chief executive of Sovereign Bank , received $ 44 million last fall when he was removed after a bitter proxy fight .", "Morgan Stanley 's board awarded Philip J . Purcell an exit package worth more than $ 95 million when he was forced out in July 2005 .", "Tom Freston , who was ousted at Viacom in September , and Carleton S . Fiorina , who was forced out by Hewlett-Packard in February 2005 , were handed tens of millions of dollars when they abruptly stepped down .", "`` You can call them pay-for-failure packages , '' said Jesse M . Fried , a law professor at the University of California , Berkeley , who has been critical of excessive compensation packages .", "`` You get what you pay for . ''", "The reason highlights the `` Heads I win .", "Tails I win `` nature of executive pay -- especially for chief executives hired to orchestrate a turnaround .", "Over the last decade , many boards and big investors bought into the belief that a celebrity C.E.O. or corporate savior was vital for success .", "There have certainly been a number of examples of chief executives who delivered outsize gains to their shareholders , enjoying big rewards themselves .", "As a result , most executives have been able to take advantage of the perception that they would deliver big rewards to negotiate employment contracts that guaranteed them bonuses when they arrived , paid them handsomely with stock options during their careers -- and in many cases , ensured severance contracts providing millions more once they left .", "`` The justification that is given for these big executive pay packages is that we have to give them very strong incentives to create shareholder value , '' Mr. Fried said .", "`` But if you are allowing them to walk away with hundreds of millions of dollars even if they do extremely poorly , you are undermining that case . ''", "That appears to be what happened at Home Depot .", "When Mr. Nardelli was hired in December 2000 , he was seen as a strong leader who could help restore Home Depot to the luster it enjoyed in its early years .", "Home Depot 's board offered him a contract that would pay him well if times were bad and even more if the company 's performance was better .", "Mr. Nardelli received $ 63.5 million in salary , bonuses , and other compensation , including $ 21 million in forgiven loans and company-paid taxes during his career at Home Depot .", "In that time , however , he failed to turn the company around .", "Yesterday , details of his $ 210 million exit package were released .", "As part of the negotiated arrangement , Mr. Nardelli is expected to take home a severance payment of $ 20 million , a $ 32 million pension , a $ 2 million 401 -LRB- k -RRB- and $ 139 million in deferred equity awards and stock options that he now will be able to cash early .", "That amount could grow if Home Depot 's shares rebound under a new leader .", "Mr. Nardelli also stands to receive another $ 18 million in `` other entitlements , '' which the company did not disclose , but will be paid over the next four years so long as he does not violate a noncompete contract .", "Under his employment contract , Mr. Nardelli was eligible for benefits like life insurance , and dental and medical coverage for several years after his departure .", "It is unclear whether he will still receive them .", "`` When you guarantee income to an executive regardless of performance , you end up paying and you rarely get performance , '' Mr. Hodgson said .", "`` The board could have saved themselves hundreds of millions of dollars and still have their reputations intact . ''", "Representative Barney Frank , the Massachusetts Democrat who is the new chairman of the House Financial Services Committee , called Mr. Nardelli 's exit package `` confirmation of the need to deal with a pattern of C.E.O. pay that appears to be out of control . ''", "Some investors were so happy to see Mr. Nardelli leave that they declared victory -- no matter how hollow .", "They are holding out hope that his ignominious exit will serve as an example to others .", "William C . Thompson Jr . , New York City comptroller , said he hoped `` all the attention that has been focused on him -- with his excessive pay and his underperformance -- will lead to change within this company and send a message to other companies . ''", "Still , he conceded that the $ 210 million exit package was something `` we would have preferred not happen . ''", "A CHAIRMAN 'S FALL ."], "summary": ["Robert L Nardelli 's $ 210 million exit package from Home Depot highlights expensive ` pay-for-failure ' golden handshakes executives tend to receive after being pressured to leave companies .", "Amounts seem unaffected by poor performance .", "Incentives to attract high-profile talent undermines shareholder value and do little to improve business .", "Recent exit packages of prominent executives are shown .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 32, 27], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1816325", "text": ["Coming home from their respective tours of duty in Iraq , John Reid and Alina Gutierrez had never met but they had a lot in common .", "Both were sergeants in the 42nd Infantry Division of the Army and were deployed in Iraq from autumn 2004 to autumn 2005 .", "And both had a strong interest in running their own businesses when they got home .", "Ms. Gutierrez is an owner of a Glass Doctor franchise , and next month , Mr. Reid will open his own Glass Doctor in a neighboring New Jersey county .", "They are the beneficiaries of an innovative private-sector business plan aimed at encouraging and supporting military veterans .", "The Veterans Transition Franchise Initiative , or VetFran , a program sponsored by the International Franchise Association , offers veterans a discount on financing prospective franchises as a way of thanking them for serving the country .", "Nearly 200 participating franchise companies provide qualified veterans `` the best deal '' in acquiring a new franchise , a deal not available to other franchise investors , according to Dina Dwyer-Owens , president of the Dwyer Group , a franchise organization in Waco , Tex .", "Franchises have become an increasingly appealing route for many would-be entrepreneurs .", "According to a 2004 study by PricewaterhouseCoopers , franchise businesses employ more than 18 million Americans and generate more than $ 1.5 trillion , or nearly 10 percent of private-sector economic output .", "The study noted that there were more than 760,000 franchise businesses in the United States and franchising continues to be a fast-growing business opportunity .", "VetFran was conceived by Don Dwyer Sr . , Ms. Dwyer-Owens ` father , after the Persian Gulf war .", "When Mr. Dwyer died suddenly in 1994 , the VetFran program foundered .", "After 9/11 and the invasion of Afghanistan , Ms. Dwyer-Owens decided that the program ought to be revived and , in 2002 , she turned it over to the franchise association .", "VetFran is open to all veterans , not just those returning from Afghanistan and Iraq .", "Since the program began , more than 600 veterans have received discounts in starting franchise businesses .", "Among the participating franchise companies are Dunkin ' Donuts , Midas , the UPS Store , Gold 's Gym and Aamco Transmissions .", "Ms. Gutierrez , 26 , said she received a 10 percent discount on her Glass Doctor franchise fee , which saved her several thousand dollars in much-needed capital for her outlet in Mercer County .", "But as with Mr. Reid and other veterans who have participated in the VetFran program , the money was not as significant as the meaning of the gesture .", "`` I was very excited when I heard about the program , '' Ms. Gutierrez said .", "`` When you come home from your deployment , you are not sure if everyone appreciated what you had done .", "I thought it was very cool that they recognized that we risked our lives in Iraq and they appreciated our sacrifice . ``", "Mr. Reid , who views Ms. Gutierrez as a colleague , not a competitor , said that the VetFran discount was a big influence on his decision to pursue a Glass Doctor franchise .", "`` The less capital you have to lay out , the better , '' he said .", "`` You need as much start-up money as you can get . ''", "He was also impressed that Glass Doctor , one of eight franchise businesses owned and operated by the Dwyer Group , was willing to be flexible with his deal , offering him an additional four months before he has to start repayments .", "Because of their military training , returning veterans are highly regarded as prospective franchise operators by franchise companies .", "As with the military , successful franchises operate within a specific system and a set of guidelines , created by the franchiser .", "`` Someone coming back from the military is a great fit for a franchise business , '' said Jim Blasingame , a small-business consultant and host of the `` The Small Business Advocate Show '' on radio .", "`` They not only know what it 's like to work hard but they know how to operate within a system .", "With a franchise , you ca n't think outside the box .", "You have to color inside the lines . ``", "The military is apparently good training for all types of entrepreneurs .", "According to William D . Elmore , associate administrator for veterans business development at the Small Business Administration , there are 25 million veterans in the United States and one in seven of them is successfully self-employed .", "`` Veterans have the highest rate of successful self-employment of any group of Americans , '' Mr. Elmore said , noting the 14 percent success rate in self-employment .", "He attributes this success to the discipline and training every soldier acquires during their service .", "`` There is an enormous resource going into the training and deployment of soldiers and out of that comes a skill set , discipline and worldliness that most citizens do n't have at a young age . ``", "Mr. Reid , 40 , says that Iraq gave him an opportunity to save $ 60,000 while he was deployed and he was intent on using that money to set up his own business .", "`` As a noncommissioned officer in charge of a logistics section , I was responsible for 45 people , '' he said .", "All 45 came back .", "`` So I thought , ' Let 's see how I do in business . '", "`` His Glass Doctor franchise in Somerset , N.J. , which is set to open Feb . 5 , gives him exclusive rights to all of Somerset County .", "`` They told me , ' We have a system .", "If you follow it , you 'll be successful . '", "That sounded like the business for me , `` he said .", "The VetFran program is allowing Brett Cooper to start a Lawn Doctor franchise in Boonville , Mo . , while keeping his full-time job as a sales representative for Graybar Electric .", "As an 18-year member of the Missouri Army National Guard , Mr. Cooper was called up for a tour of duty in Afghanistan in 2004 and spent a year deployed in and around Kabul .", "`` I looked into a Lawn Doctor franchise six years ago , but I was n't financially able to do it , `` Mr. Cooper said .", "`` While I was in Afghanistan , I saved my salary .", "I 'm a major so the pay was very good .", "and it gave me a cushion .", "I e-mailed Lawn Doctor from Afghanistan and was made aware of the VetFran program . ``", "He received a 5 percent discount on his start-up costs for the franchises , which is significant given that Lawn Doctor franchises cost $ 90,000 .", "As with other veterans starting franchises , Mr. Cooper does not hesitate to let customers know he is a veteran .", "`` I 've absolutely used my veteran status , `` he said .", "`` People are very grateful that you have served your country , especially in the current conflict .", "Doing that kind of service for your country builds trust and respect . ``", "Ms. Dwyer-Owens is pleased by the response to the VetFran program thus far .", "`` The veterans are so grateful that we are there to say thanks , '' she said .", "`` I 'm proud of it .", "There 's no government funding .", "It 's all done by private businesses . ``", "Mr. Elmore praised the VetFran program as a strong private-sector initiative that opened doors for veterans seeking small-business opportunities .", "He also cautioned that veterans should seek expert advice available through S.B.A. business development centers before signing any agreements -LRB- www.sba.gov / vets -RRB- .", "Jerry Pyle , a retired Marine sergeant in Mineola , Fla . , is among those who appreciate the VetFran gesture .", "After a 22-year career in the Marines ended in 1999 , Mr. Pyle tried his hand in corporate retail and found himself ill suited to that atmosphere .", "He began his own business as a handyman and home remodeler and when he moved from South Carolina to central Florida , he heard about the Dream Maker Bath and Kitchen Worldwide franchise , another Dwyer Group company .", "`` It resonated with me that a corporation would actually take my service to the country into consideration , '' he said .", "`` It felt like a belated payback for 22 years of service . ''", "The VetFran program emphasizes that veterans not only make excellent franchisers but employees as well .", "Mr. Pyle said that he gravitated toward the qualities and values of veterans and all of his five full-time employees are either veterans or wives of veterans .", "`` Their qualities of teamwork , ethics and enthusiasm make us a better company , '' he said .", "SMALL BUSINESS ."], "summary": ["Veterans Transition Franchise Initiative offers veterans assistance in setting up prospective franchises in deals not available to other investors .", "Business plan is aimed at encouraging and supporting military veterans .", "Study by PricewaterhouseCoopers shows franchises have become increasingly appealing route for entrepreneurs , employing more than 18 million Americans and generating more than $ 1.5 trillion .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [8, 7, 4], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1816327", "text": ["The dictator sat alone in his cell , three years in American custody .", "His beard had gone gray , his sons were dead and the gallows were being readied .", "Saddam Hussein in those final days turned to poetry , so often his source of solace in times of difficulty , inspired by his vision of himself as inseparably tied to those he led .", "The poem , `` Unbind It , '' is his rallying call to be sounded from the grave .", "It is a mixture of defiance and reflection , but no remorse .", "No mention of the tens of thousands of lives he was responsible for taking .", "No expression of guilt or sadness or regret .", "The poem , flush with florid phrases that were his trademark , begins with what sounds like a paean to the love between himself and his people , who were about to lose him .", "Unbind your soul .", "It is my soul mate and you are my soul 's beloved .", "No house could have sheltered my heart as you have .", "He moves quickly to more aggressive language .", "He refers to the foreigners who swept him from power and to the Iraqis who rose to rule here in his place .", "The enemies forced strangers into our sea And he who serves them will be made to weep .", "Here we unveil our chests to the wolves And will not tremble before the beast .", "The verses were written by Mr. Hussein after he was sentenced to death and , according to his relatives , are believed to be his last written words .", "A handwritten copy of the poem was passed along by the Iraqi authorities to his family in Tikrit , along with his final will and testament , according to Mr. Hussein 's cousin Muayed Dhamin al-Hazza .", "Mr. Hazza read the poem on the telephone , saying he hoped Mr. Hussein 's farewell would underline the manner in which the execution was carried out .", "Iraqi and American officials confirmed that a poem left among Mr. Hussein 's belongings at the American military detention center was delivered to his family .", "In the poem , Mr. Hussein praises those who continue to fight for the Iraqi nation and condemns the `` wolves '' who have brought ruin through their invasion .", "He portrays himself as a martyr .", "His poetry , like his speeches at decisive moments of his dictatorship , was often obscure , highly alliterative and difficult , even for Arabic speakers , to comprehend fully .", "At the height of his power , Iraqis brave enough to discuss the subject would shake their heads at his rambling speeches and convoluted verse .", "Some would suggest , with glances over their shoulders , that in his efforts to show himself as a scholar of Arab history and literature , he inadvertently revealed some of the darker recesses of his mind .", "According to news reports , Mr. Hussein even made gifts of his poetry to his American captors .", "Iraqis familiar with his style helped translate his death cell poem .", "Sections that would have been unintelligible in a literal translation have been interpreted loosely in an attempt to reveal the meaning Mr. Hussein intended .", "He is most clear when talking about how he sees himself in light of his impending death .", "I sacrifice my soul for you and for our nation Blood is cheap in hard times .", "Mr. Hussein told his official biographer that he cared little what people thought of him when he was alive , but that he hoped to be revered as one of the giants of history -- as a Nebuchadnezzar or Saladin -- 500 years from now .", "He ordered that one in every 10 bricks used in reconstructing the ancient palace at Babylon be stamped with his name or an eight-pointed star to symbolize the eight letters in his name in the Arabic alphabet .", "For a man whose vanity was in proportion to his brutality , he appears , from the poem , to have seen himself as dying for a greater good .", "It was a theme he returned to repeatedly in the courtroom where he was condemned to death for crimes against humanity , telling the judges that he was speaking to history .", "Many Iraqis viewed the thousands of portraits of Mr. Hussein erected around the country -- in business suits , as warrior , as Arab sheik -- as a sort of guidebook to his illusions about himself .", "Even as his secret police murdered tens of thousands , he sealed himself off with the conviction that he was widely loved .", "One of his favorite books was `` The Old Man and the Sea , '' but his style could not be mistaken for Hemingway .", "No short crisp sentences for Mr. Hussein .", "While still in power , he wrote , at least in part , two romantic novels .", "`` Zabibah and the King , '' which is set in a fanciful Arabia of long ago , tells of a lonely king who , while powerful , feels cut off from his liegemen .", "He encounters Zabibah and is entranced by her beauty and wisdom .", "But outsiders soon invade the kingdom , which is described as the cradle of civilization , and Zabibah is raped -- on Jan . 17 , a reference to the beginning of the Persian Gulf war of 1991 .", "When the book was released , Central Intelligence Agency analysts reportedly pored over it searching for clues into Mr. Hussein 's mind .", "But they could just as easily have turned to `` The Old Man and the Sea , '' which Mr. Hussein had first read as a young man in a different prison : `` A man can be destroyed not defeated . ''", "In that spirit , he urges his followers to be fierce and noble , saying : We never kneel or bend when attacking But we even treat our enemy with honor .", "THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ ."], "summary": ["Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein in final days before his execution turned to poetry , often his solace in times of difficulty , inspired by vision of himself as inseparably tied to those he led .", "Final poem , ` Unbind It , ' compares Iraqi people to his soul mate .", "Florid poem is mixture of defiance and reflection .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 4, 8], "tag": ["World", "Washington"]}
- {"id": "1816340", "text": ["When boards of directors go shopping for a new chief executive , their first stop is often General Electric .", "After all , its disciplined approach to management , the `` G.E. Way , '' has been chronicled in a shelf 's worth of books , including `` Winning , '' by its former chief executive , John F . Welch Jr . , who gets much of the credit for his system of building a deep bench of talent .", "That system included rotating executives through many jobs , teaching them productivity and quality-control tools like Six Sigma , and training them at the company 's vaunted management school .", "G.E. executives were in such demand that just one week after Mr. Welch tapped Jeffrey R . Immelt as his successor in late 2000 , the two runners-up were immediately lured away .", "Home Depot recruited Robert L . Nardelli , and 3M took W . James McNerney Jr .", "But the ouster of Mr. Nardelli from Home Depot raises anew the question of whether G.E. executives are so bankable when they switch to new companies .", "The answer , many management experts say , is not necessarily .", "Though Mr. McNerney has succeeded at both 3M and then at Boeing , Mr. Nardelli joins Lawrence R . Johnston , another high-flying G.E. executive who left in 2001 for a troubled tenure at Albertson 's , among the alumni who did not live up to expectations .", "`` G.E. is still the best training ground on the planet , but that still does n't mean that everyone is going to succeed , `` said Noel M . Tichy , a professor at the University of Michigan Business School who has written extensively about G.E.", "If there is any pattern , experts say , it is that G.E. executives succeed when they switch to companies that are , well , a lot like G.E. -- big industrial firms that are dominant in their fields , or that need an infusion of manufacturing and research discipline , or that must grow by acquisition .", "By contrast , they tend to have more trouble in companies , retailers like Home Depot , that require more fingertip feel to manage .", "`` G.E. people are good at getting structure , system and strategy right , but they do n't always understand the soft issues like culture , `` said Boris Groysberg , an assistant professor at the Harvard Business School who recently studied 20 star G.E. managers who went on to run other companies .", "Many management experts say that the very command and control management style that has characterized many successful G.E. executives may have led to Mr. Nardelli 's downfall .", "They note that he shifted Home Depot 's emphasis to the commercial market , installed all sorts of productivity tools and otherwise `` G.E. - ified '' the company .", "But , they say , he did not recognize that sales associates react differently than white-collar managers to change , and thus need different incentives to embrace it .", "He closed stores and moved people around , which meant that many sales staff found themselves with new bosses .", "He insisted that shelves be stocked during off hours , and he instituted formal inventory control and performance evaluation systems .", "`` He was foisting all this change on people who are n't necessarily looking to rise to higher levels in the organization , and so did n't see any upside for themselves in any of it , `` said Batia M . Wiesenfeld , associate professor of management at the Leonard N . Stern School of Business at New York University .", "The style did not necessarily work for ambitious managers either , said Anthony J . Mayo , a lecturer at the Harvard Business School .", "`` He brought a classic G.E. top-down , autocratic command and control approach and style , which just did not work out of the context of G.E. , '' he said .", "Mr. Mayo includes Mr. Welch , Stanley Gault , Lawrence Bossidy and several other former G.E. executives in his coming book , `` In Their Time : The Greatest Business Leaders of the 20th Century . ''", "But he said that his research turned up many ex-G . E executives who ignored `` context-based management , '' his term for tailoring management approaches to specific situations .", "The G.E. way was particularly out of place in a retail operation , said James E . Schrager , clinical professor of entrepreneurship and strategy at the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business .", "`` Boards get overenthusiastic about the G.E. glow , '' he said .", "`` They forget that there 's a big divide between selling light bulbs and appliances to stores and running the stores that sell them to consumers . ``", "Mr. Nardelli is not the first G.E. alumnus who took on another company amid much fanfare , only to leave under a cloud .", "John B . Blystone left G.E. to run the SPX Corporation in 1995 .", "At first , shareholders applauded his cost-cutting methods .", "But revenue stalled .", "Mr. Blystone resigned in 2004 `` to spend more time with his family , '' amid controversy over his sale of SPX shares before the release of lackluster quarterly results .", "Shares of Conseco leaped in 2000 when Gary C . Wendt , then the head of GE Capital , became its new chief .", "He was unable to turn the company around , and two years later he relinquished the chief executive slot .", "Conseco soon filed for bankruptcy protection .", "Mr. Johnston left G.E. to run Albertson 's in 2001 .", "He closed stores and cut jobs , but still could not compete with the Wal-Mart juggernaut .", "Albertson 's sales and stock plunged , and the company was eventually sold .", "`` G.E. people bring a great tool kit with them , but they really need the global learning centers , the diverse product portfolio , the access to capital , all of the resources of G.E. to maximize its value , '' said Nicholas P . Heymann , who follows G.E. for Prudential Securities .", "There are many success stories too , of course .", "Mr. Bossidy , one of Mr. Welch 's hand-groomed executives , was considered a savior at Allied Signal -LRB- later Honeywell -RRB- , as was Mr. Gault at Rubbermaid .", "Kirk Hachigian continues to get high marks at Cooper Industries .", "John Trani ran into problems with Stanley Work 's unions toward the end of his tenure , but he nonetheless is credited with whipping the company 's costs and operations into shape before he retired in 2003 .", "And , of course , Mr. McNerney , who left G.E. to run 3M at the same time that Mr. Nardelli left for Home Depot , got 3M 's sales and stock price way up .", "He recently left to head Boeing , and most analysts expect him to do well there , too .", "The success stories , experts say , have several things in common : The companies were manufacturers that needed to cut costs , pump up product innovation and grow by acquisition -- all skills that are finely honed at G.E.", "In contrast , Albertson 's and Home Depot are retailers , an area that G.E. has not touched save for a brief and unrewarding stint owning Montgomery Ward .", "SPX needed to expand businesses it already owned -- something that was emphasized far less by Mr. Welch than it is by Mr. Immelt , G.E. ` s current chief .", "And Conseco was foundering -- a company G.E. would never have bought , and probably would have sold .", "`` The errors come in when G.E. people feel they learned all the secrets at G.E. , '' said Ms. Wiesenfeld of New York University .", "They become enamored of their own knowledge , she added , `` and do n't feel they have to learn about the business they are going into . ``", "Mr. Immelt , G.E. ` s current chief , has not been cheered by shareholders throughout much of his tenure .", "He took over from Mr. Welch in September 2001 , just in time for the terrorist attack of Sept . 11 to wreak havoc with G.E. insurance , aircraft leasing and other businesses .", "And he also suffered through two years of share price stagnation , which ended just last month .", "Shareholders did not clamor for his resignation , though .", "One reason , analysts say , was that Mr. Immelt seemed to understand the problems , and was installing innovation processes and product lines to fix them .", "Another reason was that his total compensation package -- $ 8,534,829 in 2004 and $ 3,400,769 million in 2005 -- was well below the sums paid to other chief executives like Mr. Nardelli .", "A CHAIRMAN 'S FALL ."], "summary": ["Ouster of Home Depot chairman-chief executive Robert L Nardelli , former executive at General Electric , raises anew question of whether GE executives are so bankable when they switch to new companies .", "Many management experts say answer is not necessarily .", "Nardelli joins Lawrence R Johnston , another high-flying GE executive who left in 2001 for troubled tenure at Albertson 's , among alumni who did not live up to expectations .", "Gary C Wendt tapped in June 2000 to run Conseco Inc after building GE Capital Services .", "Conseco filed for bankruptcy protection two months after Wendt stepped down in October 2002 .", "Jeffrey R Immelt started at GE in 1982 .", "He has sold off lackluster business and prodded managers to focus on ` organic growth ' since taking over as chief executive in 2001 .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 5, 6, 30, 32, 33, 4], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1816344", "text": ["At first , the psychiatric drug Zyprexa may have saved John Eric Kauffman 's life , rescuing him from his hallucinations and other symptoms of acute psychosis .", "But while taking Zyprexa for five years , Mr. Kauffman , who had been a soccer player in high school and had maintained a normal weight into his mid-30s , gained about 80 pounds .", "He was found dead on March 27 at his apartment in Decatur , Ga . , just outside Atlanta .", "An autopsy showed that the 41-year-old Mr. Kauffman , who was 5 feet 10 inches , weighed 259 pounds when he died .", "His mother believes that the weight he gained while on Zyprexa contributed to the heart disease that killed him .", "Eli Lilly , which makes Zyprexa , said in a statement that Mr. Kauffman had other medical conditions that could have led to his death and that `` Zyprexa is a lifesaving drug . ''", "The company said it was saddened by Mr. Kauffman 's death .", "No one would say Mr. Kauffman had an easy life .", "Like millions of other Americans , he suffered from bipolar disorder , a mental illness characterized by periods of depression and mania that can end with psychotic hallucinations and delusions .", "After his final breakdown , in 2000 , a hospital in Georgia put Mr. Kauffman on Zyprexa , a powerful antipsychotic drug .", "Like other medicines Mr. Kauffman had taken , the Zyprexa stabilized his moods .", "For the next five and a half years , his illness remained relatively controlled .", "But his weight ballooned -- a common side effect of Zyprexa .", "His mother , Millie Beik , provided information about Mr. Kauffman , including medical records , to The New York Times .", "For many patients , the side effects of Zyprexa are severe .", "Connecting them to specific deaths can be difficult , because people with mental illness develop diabetes and heart disease more frequently than other adults .", "But in 2002 , a statistical analysis conducted for Eli Lilly found that compared with an older antipsychotic drug , Haldol , patients taking Zyprexa would be significantly more likely to develop heart disease , based on the results of a clinical trial comparing the two drugs .", "Exactly how many people have died as a result of Zyprexa 's side effects , and whether Lilly adequately disclosed those risks , are central issues in the thousands of product-liability lawsuits pending against the company , and in state and federal investigations .", "Because Mr. Kauffman also smoked heavily for much of his life , and led a sedentary existence in his last years , no one can be sure that the weight he gained while on Zyprexa caused his heart attack .", "Zyprexa , taken by about two million people worldwide last year , is approved to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder .", "Besides causing severe weight gain , it increases blood sugar and cholesterol in many people who take it , all risk factors for heart disease .", "In a statement responding to questions for this article , Lilly said it had reported the death of Mr. Kauffman to federal regulators , as it is legally required to do .", "The company said it could not comment on the specific causes of his death but noted that the report it submitted to regulators showed that he had `` a complicated medical history that may have led to this unfortunate outcome . ''", "`` Zyprexa , '' Lilly 's statement said , `` is a lifesaving drug and it has helped millions of people worldwide with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder regain control of their lives . ''", "Documents provided to The Times by a lawyer who represents mentally ill patients show that Eli Lilly , which makes Zyprexa , has sought for a decade to play down those side effects -- even though its own clinical trials show the drug causes 16 percent of the patients who take Zyprexa to gain more than 66 pounds after a year .", "Eli Lilly now faces federal and state investigations about the way it marketed Zyprexa .", "Last week -- after articles in The Times about the Zyprexa documents -- Australian drug regulators ordered Lilly to provide more information about what it knew , and when , about Zyprexa 's side effects .", "Lilly says side effects from Zyprexa must be measured against the potentially devastating consequences of uncontrolled mental illness .", "But some leading psychiatrists say that because of its physical side effects Zyprexa should be used only by patients who are acutely psychotic and that patients should take other medicines for long-term treatment .", "`` Lilly always downplayed the side effects , '' said Dr. S . Nassir Ghaemi , a specialist on bipolar disorder at Emory University in Atlanta .", "`` They 've tended to admit weight gain , but in various ways they 've minimized its relevance . ``", "Dr. Ghaemi said Lilly had also encouraged an overly positive view of its studies on the effectiveness of Zyprexa as a long-term treatment for bipolar disorder .", "There is more data to support the use of older and far cheaper drugs like lithium , he said .", "Last year , Lilly paid $ 700 million to settle 8,000 lawsuits from people who said they had developed diabetes or other diseases after taking Zyprexa .", "Thousands more suits are still pending .", "But Ms. Beik is not suing Lilly .", "She simply wants her son 's case to be known , she said , because she considers it a cautionary tale about Zyprexa 's tendency to cause severe weight gain .", "`` I do n't think that price should be paid , `` she said .", "Mr. Kauffman 's story , like that of many people with severe mental illness , is one of a slow and steady decline .", "Growing up in DeKalb , Ill . , west of Chicago , he acted in school plays and was a goalie on the soccer team .", "A photograph taken at his prom in 1982 shows a handsome young man with a messy mop of dark brown hair .", "But in 1984 , in his freshman year at Beloit College in Wisconsin , Mr. Kauffman suffered a breakdown and was found to have the most severe form of bipolar disorder .", "He returned home and , after medication stabilized his condition , enrolled in Northern Illinois University .", "He graduated from there in 1989 with a degree in political science .", "For the next year , he worked as a bus driver ferrying senior citizens around DeKalb .", "In a short local newspaper profile of him in 1990 , he listed his favorite book as `` Catch-22 , '' his favorite musician as Elvis Costello , and his favorite moment in life as a soccer game in which he had made 47 saves .", "A few months later , he followed his mother and stepfather to Atlanta and enrolled in Georgia State University , hoping to earn a master 's degree in political science .", "`` He wanted so much to become a political science professor , '' Ms. Beik said .", "But trying to work while attending school proved to be more stress than Mr. Kauffman could handle , Ms. Beik said .", "In 1992 , he suffered his most severe psychotic breakdown .", "He traveled around the country , telling his parents he intended to work on a political campaign .", "Instead , he spent much of the year homeless , and his medical records show that he was repeatedly admitted to hospitals .", "Mr. Kauffman returned home at the end of 1992 , but he never completely recovered , Ms. Beik said .", "He never worked again , and he rarely dated .", "In 1994 , the Social Security Administration deemed him permanently disabled and he began to receive disability payments .", "He filed for bankruptcy that year .", "According to the filing , he had $ 110 in assets -- $ 50 in cash , a $ 10 radio and $ 50 in clothes -- and about $ 10,000 in debts .", "From 1992 to 2000 , Mr. Kauffman did not suffer any psychotic breakdowns , according to his mother .", "During that period , he took lithium , a mood stabilizer commonly prescribed for people with bipolar disorder , and Stelazine , an older antipsychotic drug .", "With the help of his parents , he moved to an apartment complex that offered subsidized housing .", "But in late 1999 , a psychiatrist switched him from lithium , whichcan cause kidney damage , to Depakote , another mood stabilizer .", "In early 2000 , Mr. Kauffman stopped taking the Depakote , according to his mother .", "As the year went on , he began to give away his possessions , as he had in previous manic episodes , and became paranoid .", "During 2000 , he was repeatedly hospitalized , once after throwing cans of food out of the window of his sixth-floor apartment .", "In August , he was institutionalized for a month at a public hospital in Georgia .", "There he was put on 20 milligrams a day of Zyprexa , a relatively high dose .", "The Zyprexa , along with the Depakote , which he was still taking , stabilized his illness .", "But the drugs also left him severely sedated , hardly able to talk , his mother said .", "`` He was so tired and he slept so much , '' Ms. Beik said .", "`` He loved Shakespeare , and he was an avid reader in high school .", "At the end of his life , it was so sad , he could n't read a page . ``", "In addition , his health and hygiene deteriorated .", "In the 1990 newspaper profile , Mr. Kauffman had called himself extremely well-organized .", "But after 2000 , he became slovenly , his mother said .", "He spent most days in his apartment smoking .", "A therapist who treated Mr. Kauffman while he was taking Zyprexa recalls him as seeming shy and sad .", "`` He was intelligent enough to have the sense that his life had n't panned out in a normal fashion , `` the therapist said in an interview .", "`` He always reminded me of a person standing outside a house with a party going on , looking at it . ''", "The therapist spoke on the condition that her name not be used because of rules covering the confidentiality of discussions with psychiatric patients .", "As late as 2004 , Mr. Kauffman prepared a simple one-page r\u00e9sum\u00e9 of his spotty work history -- evidence that he perhaps hoped to re-enter the work force .", "He never did .", "As Mr. Kauffman 's weight increased from 2000 to 2006 , he began to suffer from other health problems , including high blood pressure .", "In December 2005 , a doctor ordered him to stop smoking , and he did .", "But in early 2006 , he began to tell his parents that he was having hallucinations of people appearing in his apartment .", "On March 16 , a psychiatrist increased his dose of Zyprexa to 30 milligrams , a very high level .", "That decision may have been a mistake , doctors say .", "Ending smoking causes the body to metabolize Zyprexa more slowly , and so Mr. Kauffman might have actually needed a lower rather than higher dose .", "A few days later , Mr. Kauffman spoke to his mother for the last time .", "By March 26 , they had been out of contact for several days .", "That was unusual , and she feared he might be in trouble .", "She drove to his apartment building in Decatur the next day and convinced the building 's manager to check Mr. Kauffman 's apartment .", "He was dead , his body already beginning to decompose .", "An autopsy paid for by his mother and conducted by a private forensic pathologist showed he had died of an irregular heartbeat -- probably , the report said , as the result of an enlarged heart caused by his history of high blood pressure .", "Ms. Beik acknowledged she can not be certain that Zyprexa caused her son 's death .", "But the weight gain it produced was most likely a contributing factor , she said .", "And she is angry that Eli Lilly played down the risks of Zyprexa .", "The company should have been more honest with doctors , as well as the millions of people who take Zyprexa , she said .", "Instead Lilly has marketed Zyprexa as safer and more effective than older drugs , despite scant evidence , psychiatrists say .", "Ms. Beik notes that Stelazine -- an older drug that is no longer widely used even though a federally financed clinical trial showed it works about as well as Zyprexa -- stabilized Mr. Kauffman 's illness for eight years without causing him to gain weight .", "`` He was on other drugs that worked , '' she said .", "Correction : January 6 , 2007 , Saturday A front-page article on Thursday about the side effects of the psychiatric drug Zyprexa misstated the name of a older drug tested against Zyprexa in a federally sponsored clinical trial .", "It was perphenazine -LRB- also called Trilafon -RRB- , not Stelazine ."], "summary": ["Mother suspects that weight gain from psychiatric drug Zyprexa may have contributed to heart disease that killed her 41-year-old son .", "John Eric Kauffman took drug for five years for symptoms of acute psychosis , and gained 80 pounds before being found dead last year at his home in Decator , Ga .", "Eli Lilly , which makes Zyprexa , issues statement noting that Kauffman had other medical conditions that could have led to his death .", "Claims Zyprexa is ` lifesaving drug ' .", "Weight gain is common side effect of Zyprexa .", "For many patients , side effects are severe .", "But connecting them to specific deaths can be difficult , because people with mental illness develop potentially life-threatening diseases more frequently than other adults .", "In 2002 , statistical analysis conducted for Eli Lilly found that compared with older antipsychotic drug Haldol , patients taking Zyprexa would be significantly more likely to develop heart disease .", "Whether Lilly adequately disclosed risks are central issues in thousands of product-liability lawsuits pending against company , and in state and federal investigations .", "Kauffman 's mother Millie Beik describes her son 's illness .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [16, 17, 5, 15, 0, 14, 12, 4], "tag": ["Front Page", "Health", "Business"]}
- {"id": "1816345", "text": ["A laboratory that has tested most of the nation 's electronic voting systems has been temporarily barred from approving new machines after federal officials found that it was not following its quality-control procedures and could not document that it was conducting all the required tests .", "The company , Ciber Inc . of Greenwood Village , Colo . , has also come under fire from analysts hired by New York State over its plans to test new voting machines for the state .", "New York could eventually spend $ 200 million to replace its aging lever devices .", "Experts on voting systems say the Ciber problems underscore longstanding worries about lax inspections in the secretive world of voting-machine testing .", "The action by the federal Election Assistance Commission seems certain to fan growing concerns about the reliability and security of the devices .", "The commission acted last summer , but the problem was not disclosed then .", "Officials at the commission and Ciber confirmed the action in recent interviews .", "Ciber , the largest tester of the nation 's voting machine software , says it is fixing its problems and expects to gain certification soon .", "Experts say the deficiencies of the laboratory suggest that crucial features like the vote-counting software and security against hacking may not have been thoroughly tested on many machines now in use .", "`` What 's scary is that we 've been using systems in elections that Ciber had certified , and this calls into question those systems that they tested , `` said Aviel D . Rubin , a computer science professor at Johns Hopkins .", "Professor Rubin said that although some software bugs had shown up quickly , in other instances `` you might have to use the systems for a while before something happens . ''", "Officials at the commission and other election experts said it was essential for a laboratory to follow its quality-control procedures and document all its testing processes to instill confidence in the results .", "Commission officials said that they were evaluating the overall diligence of the laboratory and that they did not try to determine whether its weaknesses had contributed to problems with specific machines .", "Computer scientists have shown that some electronic machines now in use are vulnerable to hacking .", "Some scientists caution that even a simple software error could affect thousands of votes .", "In various places , elections have been complicated by machines that did not start , flipped votes from one candidate to another or had trouble tallying the votes .", "Until recently , the laboratories that test voting software and hardware have operated without federal scrutiny .", "Even though Washington and the states have spent billions to install the new technologies , the machine manufacturers have always paid for the tests that assess how well they work , and little has been disclosed about any flaws that were discovered .", "As soon as federal officials began a new oversight program in July , they detected the problems with Ciber .", "The commission held up its application for interim accreditation , thus barring Ciber from approving new voting systems in most states .", "Ciber , a large information technology company , also has a $ 3 million contract to help New York test proposed systems from six manufacturers .", "Nystec , a consulting firm in Rome , N.Y. , that the state hired , filed a report in late September criticizing Ciber for creating a plan to test the software security that `` did not specify any test methods or procedures for the majority of the requirements . ''", "The report said the plan did not detail how Ciber would look for bugs in the computer code or check hacking defenses .", "A spokeswoman for Ciber , Diane C . Stoner , said that the company believed that it had addressed all the problems and that it expected to receive its initial federal accreditation this month .", "Federal officials said they were evaluating the changes the company had made .", "Ms. Stoner said in a statement that although the Election Assistance Commission had found deficiencies , they `` were not because Ciber provided incomplete , inaccurate or flawed testing , but because we did not document to the E.A.C. ' s liking all of the testing that we were performing . ''", "She added that the test plan cited in New York was just a draft and that Ciber had been working with Nystec to ensure additional security testing .", "The co-chairman of the New York State Board of Elections , Douglas A . Kellner , said Ciber had tightened its testing .", "But Mr. Kellner said yesterday that Nystec and Ciber continued to haggle over the scope of the security testing .", "New York is one of the last states to upgrade its machines , and it also has created some of the strictest standards for them .", "Mr. Kellner said only two of the six bidders , Diebold Election Systems and Liberty Election Systems , seemed close to meeting all the requirements .", "Besides Ciber , two other companies , SysTest Labs of Denver and Wyle Laboratories , in El Segundo , Calif . , test electronic voting machines .", "Ciber , which has been testing the machines since 1997 , checks just software .", "Wyle examines hardware , and SysTest can look at both .", "The chairman of the Election Assistance Commission , Paul S . DeGregorio , said SysTest and Wyle received interim accreditations last summer .", "Mr. DeGregorio said two other laboratories had also applied to enter the field .", "Congress required greater federal oversight when it passed the Help America Vote Act of 2002 .", "Since then , the government also put up more than $ 3 billion to help states and localities buy electronic machines , to avoid a repeat of the hanging punch-card chads that caused such confusion in the 2000 presidential election .", "The commission was never given a substantial budget , and it did not finish creating the oversight program until last month .", "Until then , the laboratories had been at the heart of the system to evaluate voting machines , a system that seemed oddly cobbled together .", "While the federal government created standards for the machines , most of the states enacted laws to make them binding .", "The states also monitored the testing , and much of that work was left to a handful of current and former state election officials who volunteered their time .", "As a result , voting rights advocates and other critics have long been concerned about potential conflicts of interest , because the manufacturers hire the laboratories and largely try to ensure confidentiality .", "Michael I . Shamos , a computer scientist who examines voting machines for Pennsylvania , said about half had significant defects that the laboratories should have caught .", "Besides certifying the laboratories , the Election Assistance Commission will have three staff members and eight part-time technicians to approve test plans for each system and check the results .", "The manufacturers will be required to report mechanical breakdowns and botched tallies , and Mr. DeGregorio said those reports would be on the agency 's Web site .", "Dr. Shamos said , `` This is not the sea change that was needed . ''", "He said he was disappointed that the commission had hired some of the same people involved in the states ' monitoring program and that it never announced it had found problems with Ciber operations .", "Dr. Rubin of Johns Hopkins said the laboratories should be required to hire teams of hackers to ferret out software vulnerabilities .", "And the laboratories will still be paid by the voting machine companies , though a bill now in Congress could change that to government financing .", "A recent appearance in Sarasota , Fla . , by the SysTest Labs president , Brian T . Phillips , also raised eyebrows .", "After a Congressional election in the Sarasota area ended in a recount last month , the victorious Republican candidate hired Mr. Phillips as a consultant to monitor the state 's examination of whether there had been a malfunction in the voting machines .", "Several critics questioned whether Mr. Phillips should have taken such work , either because of its partisan nature or because it represented such a public defense of the industry .", "Mr. Phillips said he did not see any conflict because his laboratory had not tested the software used in Sarasota .", "And the project does not appear to have violated the ethics rules of the election commission ."], "summary": ["Federal Election Assistance Commission bars Ciber Inc from testing nation 's electronic voting systems after finding flaws in its quality-control procedures and lack of required documentation on tests it conducted .", "Ciber is largest tester of voting machine software and has tested most of nation 's electronic voting systems .", "It has also come under fire from analysts hired by New York State over its plans to test new voting machines for state .", "Experts say Ciber problems underscore longstanding worries about lax inspections in secretive world of voting-machine testing .", "Say deficiencies of Ciber laboratory suggest that crucial features like vote-counting software and security against hacking may not have been thoroughly tested on many machines now in use .", "Ciber says it is fixing its problems and expects to gain certification soon .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [8, 1, 7, 3], "tag": ["Technology", "Front Page", "U.S."]}
- {"id": "1816348", "text": ["In 1997 , as the government listened in on their phone call , Adham Hassoun , a computer programmer in Broward County , Fla . , proposed a road trip to Jose Padilla , a low-wage worker there .", "The excursion to Tampa would be his treat , Mr. Hassoun said , and a chance to meet `` some nice , uh , brothers . ''", "Mr. Padilla , 36 , a Brooklyn-born Puerto Rican who had converted to Islam a few years earlier , knew Mr. Hassoun , an outspoken Palestinian , from his mosque .", "Still , according to a transcript of the conversation obtained by The New York Times , Mr. Padilla equivocated as Mr. Hassoun exhorted .", "`` We take the whole family and have a blast , '' Mr. Hassoun said .", "`` We go to , uh , our Busch Gardens , you know You wo n't regret it .", "Money-back guarantee . ``", "Mr. Padilla , laughing , suggested that they not discuss the matter over the phone .", "`` Why .", "`` Mr. Hassoun said .", "`` We 're going to Busch Gardens .", "What 's the big deal ! `` That conversation took place five years before Mr. Padilla , a United States citizen accused of plotting a '' dirty bomb `` attack against this country , was declared an enemy combatant .", "Given that Mr. Padilla and Mr. Hassoun are now criminal defendants in a terrorism conspiracy case in Miami , it sounds suspicious , as if Mr. Hassoun were proposing something more sinister than a weekend at the amusement park .", "He well may have been -- but maybe , too , he was sincere or joking about a Muslim retreat .", "Deciphering such chatter in order to construct a convincing narrative of conspiracy is a challenge .", "Yet , prosecutors say , the government will rely largely on wiretapped conversations when it puts Mr. Padilla , Mr. Hassoun , and a third defendant , Kifah Jayyousi , on trial as a `` North American support cell '' that sent money , goods and recruits abroad to assist `` global jihad . ''", "Tens of thousands of conversations were recorded .", "Some 230 phone calls form the core of the government 's case , including 21 that make reference to Mr. Padilla , prosecutors said .", "But Mr. Padilla 's voice is heard on only seven calls .", "And on those seven , which The Times obtained from a participant in the case , Mr. Padilla does not discuss violent plots .", "But this is not the version of Mr. Padilla -- Al Qaeda associate and would-be bomber -- that John Ashcroft , then the attorney general , unveiled in 2002 when he interrupted a trip to Moscow to trumpet Mr. Padilla 's capture .", "In the four and a half years since then , as the government tested the limits of its power to deal with terrorism outside the traditional law enforcement system , Mr. Padilla is the only accused terrorist to have gone from enemy combatant to criminal defendant .", "His criminal trial , scheduled to begin late this month , will feature none of the initial claims about violent plotting with Al Qaeda that the government cited as justification for detaining Mr. Padilla without formal charges for three and a half years .", "Those claims came from the government 's overseas interrogations of terrorism suspects , like Abu Zubaydah , which , the government said , Mr. Padilla corroborated , in part , during his own questioning in a military brig in South Carolina .", "But , constrained by strict federal rules of evidence that would prohibit or limit the use of information obtained during such interrogations , the government will make a far more circumscribed case against Mr. Padilla in court , effectively demoting him from Al Qaeda 's dirty bomber to foot soldier in a somewhat nebulous conspiracy .", "The initial dirty bomb accusation did not disappear .", "It quietly resurfaced in Guant\u00e1namo Bay , Cuba .", "The government filed the dirty bomb charges against Mr. Padilla 's supposed accomplice , an Ethiopian-born detainee , at about the same time it indicted Mr. Padilla on relatively lesser offenses in criminal court .", "A Change in Strategy The change in Mr. Padilla 's status , from enemy combatant to criminal defendant , was abrupt .", "It came late in 2005 as the Supreme Court was weighing whether to take up the legality of his military detention and the Bush administration , by filing criminal charges , pre-empted its review .", "In a way , Mr. Padilla 's prosecution was a legal maneuver that kept the issue of his detention without charges out of the Supreme Court .", "After apprehending him at O'Hare International Airport in Chicago in May 2002 , the Bush administration made a choice : to detain Mr. Padilla militarily , in order to thwart further plotting , rather than to follow him in order to gather evidence that might serve a criminal prosecution .", "Now that Mr. Padilla has ended up a criminal defendant after all , the prosecution 's case does not fully reflect the Bush administration 's view of who he is or what he did .", "Senior government officials have said publicly that Mr. Padilla provided self-incriminating information during interrogations , admitting , they said , to undergoing basic terrorist training , to accepting an assignment to blow up apartment buildings in the United States , and to attending a farewell dinner with Khaled Sheikh Mohammed , the suspected master planner of the Sept . 11 attacks , before he flew to Chicago in 2002 .", "But any confessions by Mr. Padilla while he was detained without charges and denied access to counsel -- whether or not he was mistreated , as his lawyers claim -- would not be admissible in court .", "And it is unlikely that information obtained during the harsh questioning of Al Qaeda detainees would be admissible , either -- and , further , the government is disinclined to expose sensitive intelligence or invite further scrutiny of secret jails overseas .", "Probably as a consequence , the current criminal case zeroes in on what the government sees as an earlier stage of Mr. Padilla 's involvement with terrorism .", "It focuses primarily on the other defendants ' support during the 1990s for Muslim struggles overseas , especially in Bosnia , Kosovo and Chechnya .", "Mr. Padilla , who was appended to their pre-existing case , in which he had been an unnamed co-conspirator , is depicted as their recruit .", "Although prosecutors have declined to discuss the government 's strategy , their filings and statements in court provide a picture of the case they are expected to present at trial .", "The most tangible allegation against Mr. Padilla is that in 2000 he filled out , under an alias , an Arab-language application to attend a terrorist training camp .", "That application is expected to be offered into evidence alongside the wiretapped conversations , but Mr. Padilla 's lawyers say they will contest its admissibility , challenging the government 's assertion that the `` mujahideen data form '' belonged to their client .", "Robert Chesney , a specialist in national security law at Wake Forest University , called the prosecution a pragmatic one , analogous to `` going after Al Capone on tax evasion . ''", "But Deborah Pearlstein , a lawyer with Human Rights First who has consulted with Mr. Padilla 's defense , said that his will never be an ordinary , pragmatic prosecution .", "`` If Jose Padilla were from Day 1 just charged and tried , then maybe , '' she said .", "`` But this is a case that comes after three and a half years of the most gross deprivation of human rights that we 've seen in this country for a long time . ``", "Further , Ms. Pearlstein noted , the government has reserved the option , should the prosecution fail , of returning Mr. Padilla to the military brig .", "This , she said , `` casts a shadow '' over the current prosecution .", "The Bush administration 's military case against Binyam Mohamed , 28 , the Ethiopian detainee at Guant\u00e1namo , put the current proceedings in a different light , too .", "In December 2005 , Mr. Mohamed was referred to the military commission in Guant\u00e1namo on accusations that he conspired with Mr. Padilla on the dirty bomb plot .", "It was little noticed at the time .", "But accusations against Mr. Padilla that are nowhere to be found in the indictment against him filled the pages of Mr. Mohamed 's charging sheet , with Mr. Padilla repeatedly identified by name .", "The sheet referred to the two men meeting in Pakistan after Sept . 11 , 2001 , studying how to build an improvised dirty bomb , discussing the feasibility of a dirty bomb attack with Al Qaeda officials and agreeing to undertake the mission to blow up buildings .", "Mr. Mohamed 's lawyer , Clive Stafford Smith , said that these charges were based on a forced confession by Mr. Mohamed , who , he said , was tortured overseas into admitting to a story that was fed to him .", "`` Binyam was told all along that his job was to be a witness against Padilla , Abu Zubaydah and Khaled Sheikh Mohammed , '' Mr. Stafford Smith said , adding that his client `` has no conscience knowledge that he ever met '' Mr. Padilla .", "The charges against Mr. Mohamed and other Guant\u00e1namo detainees who were headed for prosecution there have been suspended temporarily as a result of the Military Commissions Act passed by Congress in October .", "Those charges are likely to be reinstated , a Pentagon official said yesterday .", "That Mr. Mohamed faced dirty bomb charges and Mr. Padilla does not speaks to the central difference between being a terrorism suspect in Guant\u00e1namo and a criminal defendant charged with terrorism offenses in the United States .", "In Guant\u00e1namo , the military commission system that deals with foreign-born terrorism suspects is expected to allow , with some exceptions , the use of information obtained through coercion .", "`` Federal court rules are restrictive , '' Professor Chesney of Wake Forest University School of Law said .", "`` The very essence of why they 're trying to have that separate military system was to create rules to use information that is deemed by the intelligence community to be trustworthy but would n't make it under the federal rules of evidence . ``", "David Cole , a professor of law at Georgetown University and author of books on terrorism and civil liberties , sees the difference between the two systems more critically : `` What this says clearly is that they feel that they can get away with using tainted evidence in the military commission system that they ca n't use in the criminal court system . ``", "The Wiretapping Case The criminal case against Mr. Padilla has its roots in the prosecution of Sheikh Omer Abdel Rahman , the blind Egyptian cleric who was convicted in 1995 of conspiring to blow up the United Nations and other New York landmarks .", "In the early 1990s , Sheikh Rahman 's telephone was tapped , and Mr. Hassoun and Dr. Jayyousi , a Jordanian-born American citizen who holds a doctorate in civil engineering , came to the government 's attention through phone calls to or from his line .", "Then the government , under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act , began to eavesdrop on them , which eventually pulled Mr. Padilla into their net , too .", "The government presents the three defendants as `` joined at the hip , '' as one prosecutor put it in a hearing last summer .", "But Judge Marcia G . Cooke of Federal District Court , noting that Mr. Padilla was appended to a case well under way , asked the government , `` If they are so joined at the hip , why is Mr. Padilla so late to the dance .", "`` Dr. Jayyousi , a former school system administrator in both Detroit and Washington , D.C. , never met Mr. Padilla , his lawyer , William Swor , said .", "It is Mr. Hassoun , the government said , who recruited Mr. Padilla .", "But both Mr. Hassoun 's and Mr. Padilla 's lawyers deny that Mr. Padilla was recruited .", "Seven Taped Phone Calls Mr. Padilla 's lawyers and relatives say that he left South Florida for Egypt in September 1998 on a spiritual journey .", "A former juvenile offender , he converted to Islam as part of an effort to straighten out his life , they say .", "His mosque in Fort Lauderdale sponsored his travel , he told friends , relatives and F.B.I. agents who interviewed him in 2002 .", "Mr. Hassoun belonged to that mosque , and the telephone transcripts seem to indicate that Mr. Hassoun helped , at the least , with Mr. Padilla 's travel plans .", "The seven taped phone calls that bear Mr. Padilla 's voice involve conversations with Mr. Hassoun from 1997 to 2000 .", "On those calls , Mr. Padilla , unlike some of the other defendants , does not employ what the government says is coded language .", "According to the government , other defendants refer to their jihad-related plans as `` getting some fresh air , '' `` participating in tourism , '' `` opening up a market , '' `` playing football , '' and so on .", "This leads to silly-sounding exchanges where `` the brothers '' discuss going on `` picnics '' in order `` to smell fresh air and to eat cheese '' or using $ 3,500 to buy `` zucchini . ''", "In contrast , Mr. Padilla 's seven conversations with Mr. Hassoun range from straightforward -- Mr. Hassoun tells Mr. Padilla that his grandmother has died .", "Mr. Padilla tells Mr. Hassoun that he has found himself an 18-year-old Egyptian bride who is willing to wear a veil -- to vaguely suggestive or just odd .", "In one phone call , the two men talked about a dream .", "It appeared to be the dream that Mr. Padilla , according to his relatives , cites as having played a crucial role in inspiring him to convert to Islam : the vision of a man in a turban , surrounded by the swirling dust of a desert .", "Mr. Hassoun brought it up and told Mr. Padilla that he himself had experienced the same vision .", "`` What do you mean you saw the same dream .", "`` Mr. Padilla asked .", "`` I saw the dream of the uh person with the turban , '' Mr. Hassoun said .", "Mr. Hassoun explained how , in his dream , the turban was wrongly wrapped and so he thought the man might be a spy , in which case , he was prepared `` to split his body apart . ''", "But then , he said , he understood that `` the brother was a good one . ''", "`` Yeah .", "`` Mr. Padilla said .", "In three of the seven conversations , Mr. Padilla made statements that the government has identified as `` overt acts '' in furtherance of the accused conspiracy .", "In the first , Mr. Hassoun asked , `` You 're ready , right .", "`` and Mr. Padilla said , '' God willing , brother , it 's going to happen soon . ``", "That was the summer of 1997 , a year before Mr. Padilla left South Florida for Egypt .", "In the second , Mr. Padilla told Mr. Hassoun , during a 1999 conversation from Egypt , that he had asked his ex-wife in the United States to arrange for him to receive an army jacket , a book bag and a sleeping bag , supplies that he had requested because `` there was a rumor here that the door was open somewhere . ''", "In the third , Mr. Padilla told Mr. Hassoun in April 2000 , that he would need a recommendation to `` connect me with the good brothers , with the right faith '' if he were to travel to Yemen .", "Prosecutors say Mr. Padilla is mentioned , although by his Muslim name Ibrahim or by another alias , on 21 additional tapes .", "One of them refers to Ibrahim as being `` in the area of Usama , '' which the government takes to mean that he was near Osama bin Laden .", "But Mr. Padilla 's lawyers contest that interpretation .", "`` That is just nonsensical , Your Honor , that these men who for years , according to the government , have been talking in code all of a sudden are going to throw Osama bin Laden 's name around , `` Michael Caruso , a federal public defender , said in court .", "Mr. Padilla has pleaded not guilty .", "But before his case goes before a jury , his fitness to stand trial will be evaluated .", "On the basis of Mr. Padilla 's lawyers ' assertion that he is mentally damaged as a result of his prolonged isolation and his interrogation in the brig , Judge Cooke has ordered a psychiatric evaluation by a Bureau of Prisons doctor to be completed this week .", "Friday in The Times : The only person on the American mainland still held asan enemy combatant .", "Correction : January 5 , 2007 , Friday A front-page article yesterday about wiretapped conversations in the case against Jose Padilla , who is accused of plotting a `` dirty bomb '' attack , omitted two lines at the continuation in some copies .", "The sentence should have read : `` In the four and a half years since then , as the government tested the limits of its power to deal with terrorism outside the traditional law enforcement system , Mr. Padilla is the only accused terrorist to have gone from enemy combatant to criminal defendant . '' ."], "summary": ["Prosecutors say government will rely largely on wiretapped conversations when it puts Jose Padilla , Adham Hassoun and Kifah Jayyousi on trial as ` North American support cell ' that sent money , goods and recruits abroad to assist ` global jihad ' .", "Say 230 recorded conversations form core of government 's case , including 21 that make reference to Padilla .", "But Padilla , who is American citizen , does not discuss violent plots on any of seven calls on which his voice is heard .", "Padilla 's criminal trial will feature none of initial claims about violent plotting with Al Qaeda that then-Atty Gen John Ashcroft cited as justification for detaining him without formal charges for three and half years .", "Those claims came from government 's overseas interrogations of terrorism suspects like Abu Zubaydah .", "Government claims that Padilla corroborated them , in part , during his own questioning , but strict federal rules of evidence prohibit or limit use of information obtained during such interrogations .", "Government will make far more circumscribed case against Padilla in court , effectively demoting him from Al Qaeda 's dirty bomber to foot soldier in somewhat nebulous conspiracy .", "Case recalled .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [24, 15, 22, 23, 17, 18], "tag": ["Front Page", "U.S."]}
- {"id": "1816363", "text": ["In May , in a nearly empty basement ballroom at the Hotel du Pont in Wilmington , Del . , Robert L . Nardelli , the chairman and chief executive of Home Depot , stood between huge timers , intended to limit questions from the handful of shareholders present .", "After dismissing questions about his compensation or the independence of the board , Mr. Nardelli abruptly ended the meeting after only 30 minutes .", "Time ran out on Mr. Nardelli on Tuesday , after the board , at a hastily arranged meeting , decided that he should go -- with a $ 210 million exit package .", "It was a surprising turnaround for Home Depot 's board , which had publicly supported Mr. Nardelli as recently as two weeks ago even as questions about his compensation , business strategy and autocratic management style mounted .", "What ultimately divided the board and its chief executive appeared to have been Mr. Nardelli 's compensation .", "Over six years as chief executive , he had taken home $ 64 million and was on track to earn hundreds of millions more .", "In recent months , people close to the board say , directors sought to rein in the compensation under the terms of his current contract .", "Mr. Nardelli , these people said , had challenged that effort .", "`` He was brought down by his compensation , '' a person close to the board said .", "`` It was an erosion of relationships over several months .", "He lost the confidence of the board . ``", "In the end , the debate over cutting Mr. Nardelli 's pay may not have revolved around large numbers .", "It would have been possible , for example , for the board to give Mr. Nardelli a minimum bonus of $ 3 million under the terms of his contract , rather than the $ 7 million he received in 2005 .", "A director , however , speaking on the condition of anonymity , insisted that compensation was not the reason for Mr. Nardelli 's departure and that there was no `` smoking gun '' behind his resignation .", "The fall of Mr. Nardelli is the latest illustration of chief executives and boards coming under pressure when rich executive pay yields few apparent returns in the form of a rising stock price or improving profits .", "Outsize executive pay has increasingly become a flash point for investors , lawmakers and regulators .", "Still , critics of executive pay practices were incensed by Mr. Nardelli 's gold-plated exit , the terms of which were largely laid out in his 2000 contract .", "The pay package includes severance and retirement pay , restricted stock , stock options and other forms of deferred compensation .", "The package is `` further confirmation of the need to deal with a pattern of C.E.O. pay that appears to be out of control , '' said Representative Barney Frank , Democrat of Massachusetts , who will be chairman of the House Financial Services Committee .", "When he was hired , Mr. Nardelli was a prized former manager under John F . Welch Jr . at General Electric , running its $ 15 billion power systems division .", "Since he became chief executive , however , Home Depot 's stock price has languished and the company has lost market share to its chief rival , Lowe 's .", "But the seeds of Mr. Nardelli 's ouster were sown that day in May , according to several people close to the board .", "The angry outcry over how Mr. Nardelli conducted the annual meeting was compounded by the humiliation board members felt because they had been persuaded to stay away from the May meeting , departing from usual practice .", "That discontent grew in recent months as large shareholders threatened a revolt at Home Depot 's annual meeting this spring .", "Yesterday , Home Depot , the nation 's largest home-improvement chain , named Frank Blake as its new chairman and chief executive .", "Mr. Blake , another former General Electric executive , joined Home Depot in 2002 and helped develop business strategy at the company .", "Mr. Blake already appears to be distancing himself from Mr. Nardelli and his rigid style .", "In an address to Home Depot employees over an internal television system yesterday , Mr. Blake advised them to `` lighten up '' and `` have fun again , '' according to one worker .", "Mr. Blake 's current employment agreement is in force , Home Depot said , and the board is working out details of a new employment contract .", "Shares of Home Depot rose 2.3 percent , or 91 cents , to $ 41.07 yesterday .", "Messages for Mr. Nardelli were not returned yesterday .", "For Kenneth G . Langone , a director and co-founder of Home Depot , Mr. Nardelli 's resignation carries a particular sting .", "A onetime member of the G.E. board , Mr. Langone played an instrumental role in bringing Mr. Nardelli to Home Depot .", "And when it became clear that Mr. Nardelli would come aboard only as chief executive , he persuaded his old friend , Arthur Blank , then the chief executive , to step aside .", "Mr. Nardelli was the first chief executive plucked from outside of Home Depot since its founding in 1978 .", "He immediately drew fire over his lack of retail experience .", "Inside the company , his hands -on , severe management style rubbed against a more casual culture that gave store managers autonomy .", "By contrast , Mr. Nardelli was an obsessive workaholic who rose at 4 a.m. , logged 14-hour days and routinely worked through the weekend , splitting his time between Home Depot 's headquarters in Atlanta and shuttling from store-to-store in a chauffeured black Chevy Suburban .", "He earned the nickname `` general '' -- and , as if to underscore the point , he hired dozens of former military officers to run stores , a recruitment strategy he introduced at G.E.", "Mr. Nardelli never won over the chain 's store managers , current and former company executives said .", "After touring stores , he frequently inflamed managers by sending critical e-mail messages about cluttered aisles and poorly lighted displays .", "The result was a high level of manager turnover .", "In the last 18 months , three senior merchandise executives -- Tom Taylor , John Costello and Carl C . Liebert III -- left the company , leaving Mr. Nardelli with very few experienced retail executives in his top ranks .", "`` The long-term retailers never felt he integrated himself into the retailing piece of the business , '' said Harold Reiter , chairman and chief executive with Herbert Mines Associates , an executive recruitment firm .", "Outside of the company , many shareholders , angry at how the annual meeting in May was conducted , struggled to embrace the bold strategic course Mr. Nardelli was setting for Home Depot that steered it further away from its bread-and-butter business of selling hammers and nails to consumers .", "For instance , Mr. Nardelli was betting big on Home Depot Supply , a new unit that supplied professional contractors with lumber , cement and pipes .", "He spent $ 7 billion in recent years to buy about 40 companies , turning Home Depot Supply into a $ 12 billion business , whose sales now account for 13 percent of the company 's $ 90 billion in revenue .", "Mr. Nardelli also planned to move aggressively overseas , particularly into China , where the company acquired a retail chain in December .", "During his tenure , Home Depot doubled its sales and sharply increased its earnings per share .", "Yet while the board backed his vision for the company , shareholders were less enthused .", "The stock has barely budged over his tenure .", "Because of that lackluster performance , critics sought to make Mr. Nardelli Exhibit A for chief executives who receive millions and millions of dollars in pay for weak performance .", "Many of those critics took aim at Home Depot 's board , which they argued was cozy and tight-knit , with close ties between one another and with G.E. Sitting at the center of Home Depot 's board is Mr. Langone , who has been the longstanding chairmanof the board 's nominating committee and who some critics say has loaded up the board with many of his friends and former business associates .", "A proponent of paying chief executives well for their performance , Mr. Langone has long supported Mr. Nardelli 's generous contract .", "As chairman of the compensation committee at the New York Stock Exchange , Mr. Langone also signed off on Richard A . Grasso 's largest pay days as chairman and he remains embroiled in a civil suit over Mr. Grasso 's $ 139.5 million pay package .", "Mr. Langone did not return calls for comment .", "The lawyer who represented the New York exchange was the same lawyer who represented the board of Home Depot : Martin Lipton , the takeover lawyer who founded Wachtell , Lipton , Rosen & Katz .", "Mr. Lipton , a longtime friend of Mr. Langone , was originally hired to help defend Mr. Nardelli and the board against Relational Investors , an owner of Home Depot shares that has challenged Mr. Nardelli 's strategies in regulatory filings .", "Mr. Lipton has often found himself in the middle of sticky situations where the chief executive is ousted and paid an enormous golden parachute .", "Mr. Lipton also worked for Morgan Stanley 's board when Phillip Purcell was fired .", "He did the same for Disney when Michael D . Eisner was terminated .", "While many of Home Depot 's critics were elated that Mr. Nardelli was leaving the company , they expressed shock at the size of his departure pay package .", "`` We 're aghast at the level of compensation that Nardelli is walking away with -- this is money directly out of shareholders ' pockets , `` said Richard Ferlauto , the director of pension investment policy for the American Federation of State , County and Municipal Employees , whose pension fund owns shares in the company .", "Furthermore , if Home Depot is trying to distance itself from Mr. Nardelli , Mr. Blake is a strange choice , some Wall Street analysts said .", "Like Mr. Nardelli , Mr. Blake has little retail experience .", "He spent much of his career at G.E. and helped develop the Home Depot supply business .", "`` There will be some pushback to his appointment , '' said Stephen C . Chick , an analyst with J . P . Morgan Securities .", "Analysts said the performance of Home Depot 's retail business , which has lagged behind that of its main rival , Lowe 's , for several years , lay at the heart of Mr. Nardelli 's troubles .", "Mr. Nardelli 's original strategy of sharply cutting costs -- by reducing employees ' hours and hiring more part-timers -- alienated loyal customers , who relied on experienced store staff for advice .", "`` Home Depot was managing the company for Wall Street 's earnings expectations and that came at the expense of the investment needed in their retail business , `` Mr. Chick said .", "Mr. Nardelli `` has to take the blame for that , '' Mr. Chick said .", "Far from cooling down shareholders angry over Mr. Nardelli 's pay and other corporate governance issues , Mr. Nardelli 's departure seems to have instead inflamed them .", "`` It 's not enough to shuffle the deck chairs .", "They have n't changed their strategy and there is n't any fresh blood on the board , `` said Ralph Whitworth , who heads Relational Investors , which owns about $ 1 billion of Home Depot 's stock , or about a 1.2 percent stake .", "About three weeks ago , Mr. Whitworth notified Mr. Nardelli in a letter that he was intending to call on shareholders to create a committee to study Home Depot 's direction and performance and planned to submit at least two candidates for the board .", "Yesterday , Mr. Whitworth said those plans had not changed .", "`` There 's clearly some big , big corporate governance issues here and I do n't expect that to change without fresh blood on the board , `` he said .", "A CHAIRMAN 'S FALL Correction : January 6 , 2007 , Saturday A picture in Business Day on Thursday of the home of Robert L . Nardelli , who was ousted as chairman and chief executive of Home Depot , carried an incorrect credit .", "It was by Chris Rank of Bloomberg News , not by Home Depot ."], "summary": ["Home Depot board dismisses chairman and chief executive Robert L Nardelli with $ 210 million exit package .", "Surprise move comes only two weeks after board publicly supported him amid mounting questions about his compensation , business strategy and autocratic management style .", "Nardelli reportedly challenged efforts of directors who sought in recent months to rein in his compensation under terms of his current contract .", "Over six years as chief executive , he has taken home $ 64 million and was on track to earn hundreds of millions more .", "His fall is latest illustration of chief executives and boards coming under pressure when rich executive pay yields few apparent returns in form of rising stock price or improving profits .", "Outsize executive pay has increasingly become flash point for investors , lawmakers and regulators .", "In Nardelli 's case , critics are also incensed by his gold-plated exit .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [14, 5, 3, 15, 6], "tag": ["Front Page", "Business"]}
- {"id": "1816366", "text": ["Drivers crossing the George Washington Bridge must contend with 18-wheelers , infuriating delays and noxious exhaust .", "Soon , they will also have advertisements from Geico .", "The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is expected to announce an arrangement with Geico , the auto insurance giant , that will include the posting of a huge billboard on top of the toll plaza in Fort Lee , N.J. , that says `` Geico Drive Safely . ''", "Drivers will also see Geico signs with the company 's mascot , a gecko , on the tollbooths and electronic signs on the approach roads .", "Geico 's message will also be integrated into the Port Authority 's direct mailings and its Web site , and costumed gecko mascots will appear at Port Authority bus stations .", "The arrangement , first reported in The Wall Street Journal , will provide the agency with $ 3.2 million over two years .", "It is the first of its kind for the Port Authority , which has been trying to find new sources of revenue to offset rising costs , said Stephen Sigmund , the agency 's chief of public and government affairs .", "Geico is not the first company to think about buying a bridge -- or at least the advertising rights to one .", "And other public agencies have been exploring unconventional ways to bring in more money , even if it means toying with long-held taboos about commercializing public spaces .", "The Golden Gate Bridge , Highway and Transportation District , for instance , is exploring how to sell sponsorships in San Francisco .", "Mr. Sigmund said the Port Authority had been looking for the right advertisers since at least 2005 , adding that Geico was a natural since it is one of the country 's largest and best-known auto insurers .", "In a world where consumers can fast-forward through television advertisements , subscribe to commercial-free satellite radio and block pop-up ads on the Internet , companies like Geico are continually looking for fresh ways to get in front of consumers .", "In that context , getting in front of about 57 million eastbound drivers who cross the George Washington Bridge each year could amount to a gold mine , especially because it is not uncommon for cars to spend 15 or more minutes creeping toward the toll plaza in New Jersey .", "`` This is more than just eyeballs .", "It 's about reinforcing a message about a bridge that people have an endearing feeling to , `` said Drew Sheinman , chief executive of Axcess Partners Worldwide , a marketing company hired by the Port Authority to develop new advertising .", "Mr. Sheinman said that under the agreement , no other signs can compete with Geico 's at the bridge , which may allay fears that the toll plaza will become overrun with ads .", "`` This is not going to be left field at Yankee Stadium , '' he said .", "Still , the new signs could irritate drivers who view their cars as a refuge from media messages , as well as preservationists who see the bridge , a landmark , as unfit for commercial advertisements -- even if they appear only on the tollbooths .", "`` It 's a city icon that should not be tampered with in this way , `` said Vanessa Gruen , of the streetscape committee at the Municipal Art Society , which deals with street and sidewalk advertising .", "`` It 's not really worth the amount of money they 'll get out of it to block the view of the span . ``", "Brand experts also questioned whether Geico , which has won plaudits for its imaginative advertising campaigns , may turn off customers and dilute its name by making it too prominent .", "`` Since advertisers have generally lost some degree of control over what messages get into people 's lives , consumers resent getting them foisted on them , `` said Robert Passikoff , the president of Brand Keys , a brand consultant .", "But , Mr. Passikoff added , consumers may warm to the Geico ads as well as others on prominent public buildings and bridges if they know the proceeds are being used to improve service .", "The Port Authority has set a goal of generating $ 100 million in advertising and sponsorships , about three times more than it currently brings in , Mr. Sigmund said .", "He said , though , that the new advertising must match the surroundings and not jeopardize safety .", "Last month , for instance , the Port Authority announced an agreement with Samsung , the electronics giant , to install power outlets at Kennedy International Airport that travelers with laptop computers will be able to use ."], "summary": ["Auto insurer Geico will sign advertising deal with Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to post billboard at toll plaza on New Jersey side of George Washington Bridge and electronic signs on approach roads .", "Deal is worth $ 3.2 million over two years .", "It is agency 's first attempt to find new sources of revenue .", "Agreement permits no other signs to compete with Geico 's .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 5, 3], "tag": ["New York and Region"]}
- {"id": "1816367", "text": ["Gov . Eliot Spitzer vowed yesterday to make health insurance available to all children and enroll all eligible adults in Medicaid .", "If carried out fully , his pledges would cut the number of uninsured New Yorkers in half .", "But those promises may not turn out to be as ambitious as described .", "How far they go will depend on details the governor and his staff said would not be made public until late this month .", "At their most far-reaching , the governor 's plans would give New York the lowest percentage of uninsured people in the country , and would mark a sharp increase in coverage for the poor .", "Even so , such promises would not be as hard or as expensive to carry out as most people would guess , according to people who study the politics and economics of health care .", "People who have no health insurance tend to be young and healthy , cheaper to care for and cheaper to cover than those who are currently covered .", "As a result , the United Hospital Fund , a policy research group , has estimated that covering all of the uninsured in New York would cost $ 4.1 billion a year -- less than one-tenth of what the state already spends on Medicaid , the health plan for the poor .", "Most of the uninsured are also poor , and already qualify for Medicaid or a similar program , Child Health Plus , so experts said that easier enrollment and more aggressive recruitment in those programs would almost certainly be at the center of Mr. Spitzer 's plans .", "The biggest obstacle , they said , could be new federal requirements that people signing up for Medicaid produce birth certificates or other proof of citizenship .", "In his first address to the Legislature , Mr. Spitzer said , `` We will introduce a budget that in the very first year , guarantees access to health insurance for all of New York 's 500,000 uninsured children . ``", "But to guarantee access to insurance and to guarantee actual coverage could be two very different things .", "Many people have access to government programs , at least in theory , but do not take advantage of them .", "Again , the governor did not say precisely what he meant by his promise .", "In New York , children qualify for free health insurance through either Medicaid or Child Health Plus , in households that earn up to 160 percent of the federal poverty line -- about $ 21,000 a year for a family of four .", "Above that limit , up to 250 percent of the poverty line -- about $ 33,000 for a family of four -- they are eligible for Child Health Plus for a premium of $ 15 a month or less .", "About two-thirds of New York 's uninsured children already qualify for one of the programs on those terms .", "Danielle Holahan , senior health policy analyst at the United Hospital Fund , said , `` That , plus the fact that children are pretty cheap to insure , '' suggests that getting most of them enrolled `` is something we could tackle pretty easily . ''", "State law also says that any child , no matter how high the family income , can be enrolled in Child Health Plus by paying a premium that averages less than $ 200 a month , much less than a commercial insurance policy .", "Officials in the Pataki administration argued that that means New York already guarantees access to coverage for all children .", "Ms. Holahan said the state could draw middle-income children into Child Health Plus by putting the premiums on a sliding scale as incomes rise , rather than having an abrupt jump up from $ 15 a month .", "Mr. Spitzer said that within four years , `` we will enroll the 900,000 Medicaid-eligible adults '' by simplifying the paperwork .", "That promise could be tougher to keep , experts said , because he is promising not mere access but actual coverage .", "Each year , about one-third of the people on Medicaid in New York fail to renew their enrollment , though they remain eligible , so policy analysts say that an easier renewal process would keep some people enrolled .", "They also proposed tying Medicaid enrollment to food stamps , welfare , schools and other public services .", "But some people are reluctant to sign up , particularly immigrants who mistrust the government or just can not be bothered .", "`` The only way you ever get to really universal coverage is with some sort of individual mandate requiring people to enroll , '' said Diane Rowland , executive director of the Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured .", "Almost 14 percent of New Yorkers are uninsured , according to the Census Bureau , below the national average of nearly 16 percent but well above Minnesota , with the lowest rate , less than 9 percent .", "If Mr. Spitzer succeeds in insuring all children and all people eligible for Medicaid , the number of uninsured in New York would drop below 7 percent .", "Medicaid spends more than $ 45 billion a year to insure 4.2 million New Yorkers , but most of those costs are spent on older and disabled patients .", "An estimated 1.2 million people qualify for Medicaid or Child Health Plus but are not enrolled .", "They are disproportionately healthy young adults and children .", "`` Low-income people who have serious health needs end up in a hospital emergency room , and they enroll in Medicaid at that time , if they 're not enrolled already , `` Ms. Rowland said .", "`` So the remaining uninsured tend to be healthier than those who are insured . ''", "CHANGEOVER IN ALBANY ."], "summary": ["New York Gov Eliot Spitzer vows to make health insurance available to all children and enroll all eligible adults in Medicaid .", "United Hospital Fund , policy research group , estimates that covering all uninsured people in state would cost $ 4.1 billion annually , less than one-tenth what is already spent on Medicaid .", "Health care experts say Spitzer plan will include easier enrollment and more aggressive recruitment for Medicaid and Child Health Plus program .", "Say biggest obstacle would be federal requirement that people seeking Medicaid produce proof of citizenship ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 0, 9], "tag": ["Health", "New York and Region"]}
- {"id": "1816369", "text": ["The 20-year building boom on Staten Island , long the city 's fastest-growing borough , is decelerating drastically , thanks largely to a reining-in of the island 's freewheeling zoning laws , officials say .", "According to city figures released yesterday , permits for new buildings plunged by 43 percent last year .", "So substantial was the decline that Staten Island almost single-handedly accounted for a 10 percent dip in building permits citywide last year , which was the first drop in the city in a decade .", "In the other four boroughs , permits fell by 1.6 percent , the figures from the City Buildings Department show .", "Of course , the real estate market has been cooling all over the city and the country , but city officials and real estate professionals attributed the disproportionate chill on Staten Island to zoning and tax changes .", "New zoning rules passed in 2004 , which were aimed at stemming a flood of town house developments that residents complained were disfiguring communities and overloading streets with traffic , require larger lots and yards and more parking .", "A tax abatement for new one - and two-family homes was also rescinded last year , further discouraging construction .", "`` It 's one of these perfect-storm situations , `` said Sandy Krueger , chief executive officer of the Staten Island Board of Realtors .", "`` Everything kind of came together at once : the downzoning , the tax abatement removal and the change in the market .", "I think everybody is sort of taking a breath here and waiting this out a little bit to see what happens . ``", "Last year , 826 permits for new buildings were issued in Staten Island , compared with 1,441 in 2005 and nearly 2,000 in 2003 .", "Permits for new units of housing also declined more than 40 percent through November , compared with a 1 percent drop elsewhere in the city , according to census statistics .", "The downturn was broadly welcomed in a place where for years development appeared to proceed with pile driver and shoehorn .", "A one-acre parcel where 18 units of housing could once be built is limited to 7 .", "`` I do n't want Staten Island to stop growing , `` said the borough president , James P . Molinaro , who helped lead the drive for the zoning changes , '' but I want proper growth . ``", "The decline in new housing permits issued on Staten Island affected multifamily dwellings as well as smaller buildings .", "Permits for one-family homes fell 49 percent .", "City officials pointed to several developments planned for the island that they said would be more carefully managed , including a 700-unit waterfront complex in Stapleton , north of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge , which is expected to bring new life to a vacant port .", "As for the slight citywide drop in new building and housing permits outside of Staten Island , the city 's deputy mayor for economic development , Daniel L . Doctoroff , said he saw little cause for concern .", "New housing construction is slowing dramatically across the country , he said , and total construction spending in New York City is increasing as builders focus on commercial projects .", "`` Particularly relative to the overall national housing market , '' Mr. Doctoroff said , `` and taking into account the fact that through much of the year interest rates were rising , I think by every indicator the market here was very resilient . ''", "Frank Naso , one of Staten Island 's biggest builders and the former president of the Building Industry Association of New York City , a trade group , said that zoning changes had been long overdue .", "`` We needed some kind of reform , '' he said .", "`` We 'll continue to build , but instead of building 10 you might build 6 .", "It 's not the end of the world . ``", "Mr. Naso was more upset about the loss of the tax abatement , which cut a homeowner 's property taxes for the first eight years after purchase and allowed many first-time buyers into the market .", "Jeff Gallo , an opponent of sprawl and a member of the Preservation League of Staten Island , who lives in a turn-of-the-century Victorian house in Stapleton , said he had noticed a slight calming in the air .", "`` There 's a feeling out in Staten Island now that you just ca n't get away with everything , `` said Mr. Gallo , a real estate broker who works in Brooklyn .", "Ever since the Verrazano-Narrows bridge was completed in 1964 , linking Staten Island to the rest of New York City , people have flocked to the island , developers have worked frenetically to accommodate them , and longtime residents have bemoaned the disappearance of open space and the strain on the island 's infrastructure .", "During the 1990s , Staten Island 's population grew by 17 percent and civic discontent skyrocketed .", "Eventually the clamor brought results .", "Before the zoning change , you were permitted to build a house with a 4-foot backyard , `` Mr. Molinaro said .", "`` Now you have to have a minimum of 30 feet .", "You were able to buy a house on Staten Island where your bottom step was the street -- there was no sidewalk .", "That was legal ! You ca n't do it no more . ``", "Staten Island , still by far the least-populous borough in the city , was the fastest-growing county in the state , according to the 2000 census .", "It is not even the fastest-growing borough in the city anymore , having fallen into a virtual tie with Manhattan .", "From 2003 to 2005 , the population in both boroughs grew by about 0.9 percent , according to census estimates .", "Helen Siegel , 52 , a schoolteacher who lives in New Springville , in the center of the island , thought back yesterday to the days when cows and pigs from nearby farms used to stroll across her yard .", "`` It might have been better had they done this sooner , '' she said .", "`` It 's all built up on every spare inch of land already . `` ."], "summary": ["New York City officials say 20-year building boom on Staten Island has drastically declined , with new building permits falling by 43 percent in 2006 .", "Say Staten Island decline accounted for 10 percent drop in building permits citywide .", "Declines in other boroughs noted .", "Officials attribute Staten Island decline to zoning and tax abatement changes .", "Graph ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 0, 1], "tag": ["New York and Region"]}
- {"id": "1816482", "text": ["PATTI LuPONE was playing Mrs. Lovett in `` Sweeney Todd '' early last year when she looked out from the stage of the Eugene O'Neill Theater and saw something she had never seen before in a Broadway theater : a popcorn war .", "`` There were two people in the front row sharing a bag of popcorn , '' she said recently .", "`` When she stuck her hand in , he immediately stuck his hand in .", "They were wrestling for the last few kernels of popcorn while we were performing .", "Everyone around them was distracted . ``", "While eating at your seat at a Broadway theater used to be universally forbidden , theaters are increasingly allowing patrons to take their drinks , candy and even crunchy munchies to their seats during a show .", "This let-them-eat-snacks philosophy has been embraced at the Helen Hayes , Hilton , New Amsterdam , Eugene O'Neill and Walter Kerr Theaters , as well as at all nine houses owned by the Nederlander Organization -LRB- the Brooks Atkinson , Gershwin , Lunt-Fontanne , Marquis , Minskoff , Nederlander , Neil Simon , Palace and Richard Rodgers -RRB- .", "`` It 's a reflection of changing audience habits , `` said Jim Boese , the organization 's vice president .", "`` As the audience for Broadway expands , there are changing audience needs .", "This is part of a broader attempt to enhance the audience experience . ``", "It also helps the bottom line for theater owners , who profit from sales at the concession stands .", "And when people can eat at their seats , they tend to buy more .", "To make purchases easier , machines to process credit-card sales -- provided by Visa as part of its sponsorship of Broadway -- were recently installed at bars in the New Amsterdam and Nederlander Theaters .", "There are also plans to create cafe areas with tables and chairs and higher-end products , like high-quality chocolates , in some theaters .", "One has just been constructed at the Minskoff .", "Rosa Hires , the general manager of concessions for the Hilton Theater , owned by Live Nation , said most audience members seemed delighted by the new rules .", "`` If anything , people want more food , '' she said .", "`` They 're asking for wraps and salads `` to be available at the concession stands , she added .", "`` Recently we 've had people asking for hot dogs . ``", "Concession sales there have more than doubled since the Hilton began allowing products other than bottled water to the theater 's seats about three years ago , Ms. Hires said .", "The other theaters mentioned above have seen significant increases as well .", "Some of them have taken steps to minimize distractions and guard against spills .", "The New Amsterdam , home to `` Mary Poppins , '' serves all drinks -- even Champagne -- in spillproof keepsake plastic cups that muffle the sound of clinking ice , Some Nederlander theaters have begun using similar items , though at these you have to pay for the privilege of taking beverages back to your seat .", "Wine at the Richard Rogers , where `` Tarzan '' is playing , costs $ 7 if you drink it in an open cup in the lobby , but is $ 12 for a spillproof commemorative cup that you are allowed to take back to your seat .", "All the theater owners whose houses serve food said they were investigating packaging that would reduce wrapper noise .", "There is no hiding the smell and sound of freshly popped popcorn at the the Neil Simon or the Hilton however .", "In West End of London , where eating and drinking in the theater has long been allowed , quieter foods , including ice cream , are on the menu .", "Baz Bamigboye , an arts writer for The Daily Mail , said in an e-mail message that in his experience London theatergoers `` try and be considerate , '' while New York audience members often take a contrasting stance .", "`` I think the view is , ' If we 're paying $ 100 or so for a ticket , we can do what we like , ' `` he said of Broadway 's audiences .", "At a recent performance of the child-friendly musical `` Hairspray , '' most of the 50 people interviewed said they were unaware of the rule change .", "They thought bringing food to a seat had always been allowed .", "Theatergoers at `` Grey Gardens , '' which attracts a metropolitan crowd , were more familiar with past rules and did n't like the present ones .", "Only 4 out of 50 audience members surveyed said they thought allowing food inside the theater was a good idea .", "`` I came to hear Christine Ebersole , not a Skittles wrapper , '' Jacquelyn Zimbowne of Newark said after the show .", "Gerald Schoenfeld , the chairman of the Shubert Organization , agreed with Ms. Zimbowne .", "`` It annoys many patrons , '' he said .", "`` It causes a refuse problem .", "It damages our carpets .", "It can be disconcerting to the performers . ``", "No midshow snacking is allowed at any of the Shuberts ' 17 Broadway theaters .", "They restrict drinks and snacks to the lobby area .", "And that 's the way it should be , Ms. LuPone said .", "`` Broadway is about a theatrical experience , '' she said .", "`` It 's not about pulling out Marie Callender 's chicken pot pie and a Sterno .", "Would you go to church and pull out a ham sandwich .", "I do n't think so .", "Then why would you do it at the theater .", "`` ."], "summary": ["Many Broadway theaters have changed rules to allow audience members to bring food to their seats as attempt to cater to changing audience desires and also bring in more profit for theater .", "Actors and many seasoned theatergoers object .", "Chart of snacks with ratings on package noise , chewing noise and odds of dropping on floor .", "Drawings ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [5, 32, 20, 8, 10, 35], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts", "Theater"]}
- {"id": "1816485", "text": ["`` Mothers of America , let your kids go to the movies ! '' Always good advice , but the exhortation has dated a bit since 1960 , when Frank O'Hara made it the first line of his poem `` Ave Maria . ''", "`` Going to the movies '' has a quaint ring in the age of the plasma-screen home entertainment system , the iPod and video-on-demand .", "The movies are more than willing to come to us , which has inspired some sages , in and outside the film industry , to prophesy the obsolescence , or at least the increasing marginality , of paper tickets , bags of popcorn and big dark rooms lighted by a projector beam : the cultural ritual known dispassionately in the business as `` theatrical distribution . ''", "According to this vision , children are leading the slow exodus from the theaters .", "From an essay in the current issue of The New Yorker , for example , one learns that , when it comes to visual entertainment , kids these days are `` platform agnostic , '' perfectly happy to consume moving pictures wherever they pop up -- in the living room , on the laptop , in the car , on the cellphone -- without assigning priority among the various forms .", "David Denby , the author of the article and one of The New Yorker 's film critics , is an unapologetic adherent to the old-time religion , as am I , and his survey of the current technological landscape is colored by nostalgia for the old downtown movie palaces and the studio system that fed them .", "Of course , as Mr. Denby acknowledges , children have hardly disappeared from the movie audience .", "On the contrary , adolescents and their younger siblings are the most sought-after segments of the demographically segmented universe of potential viewers .", "The movies that make the most money , and therefore those on which the most production and advertising money is spent , are the ones that simultaneously reach down into the primary grades and up into the ranks of young adults .", "And there is special commercial potency in those movies that parents will be eager to see -- sometimes more than once -- with their children .", "Usually animated , always featuring big stars and wholesome lessons , these films are the ones pointedly aimed at the whole family : cute animals -LRB- and product tie-in toys -RRB- for the little ones , semi-naughty humor and exciting action for their older brothers and sisters , enough in the way of topicality or sophistication to keep mom and dad from losing their minds .", "In many ways the ascension of these movies is an encouraging development .", "Because entertainment aimed at children occupies a bigger share of the marketplace , the level of quality tends to be higher than it was , say , back in the heyday of Walt Disney live-action comedies .", "And the phenomenon of family viewing -- the mothers and fathers of America taking their children to the movies -- has become a central cultural activity consistent with the highly participatory style of parenthood currently in vogue .", "I would not wish it otherwise , but I also worry that the dominance of the family film has had a limiting , constraining effect on the imaginations of children .", "The point of Mr. O'Hara 's poem is that the movies represent a zone of mystery and cultural initiation : `` it 's true that fresh air is good for the body , `` he writes , '' but what about the soul / that grows in darkness , embossed by silvery images `` .", "Never mind that he also reminds his mothers that their offspring `` may even be grateful to you for their first sexual experience , which only cost you a quarter and did n't upset the peaceful home . ``", "How are they going to grow , if the images they see are carefully vetted for safety and appropriateness by the film industry .", "In other words : Parents of America , take your children to the movies you want to see ! Within reason , naturally .", "I cringe at the sight of strollers at `` Apocalypto '' or `` Saw III . ''", "But I also cringe at the timidity and cautiousness -- the hypersensitivity -- that confines family viewing to movies with a plush toy or fast food advertising tie-in .", "At their best , movies not only offer glimpses of fantastic imaginary worlds , but also inklings of what is , for children , the most intriguing and enigmatic world of all : the world of adulthood .", "For the last six months or so , in the guise of a civilian moviegoer , I have been conducting -LRB- with the sometimes unwitting assistance of my wife -RRB- a cautious , intermittent experiment .", "Ignoring the advice of the Motion Picture Association of America and the studio marketing departments about what my children , who are 10 and 7 , should see , I have taken them to revival houses and museums as well as to multiplexes .", "To musicals and subtitled films as well as to risqu\u00e9 action blockbusters and not-too-explicit love stories .", "This experiment has proceeded along two tracks , with two distinct but complementary intentions .", "I want them to learn to appreciate the varieties of this incomparably rich art form , which means learning to endure and even enjoy being occasionally bored , confused or scared .", "I also hope they will develop a taste for the act of moviegoing .", "The recent releases they have seen include `` Casino Royale , '' `` The Illusionist '' and `` The Pursuit of Happyness , '' none of which bored them or troubled their sleep and all of which seemed to me to be much better suited for their age cohort than mine .", "`` The Illusionist , '' in particular , with its star-crossed romance , its theatrical effects and its carefully turned plot twists , struck me as the kind of thing that would delight a bookish , intellectually curious fourth or fifth grader , and I was startled to see it in a theater full of adults .", "But I was gratified to hear my own children , on the subway ride home , puzzling out the intricacies of the plot and arguing about its ambiguities , just as the grownups did .", "Our house is full of DVDs , many of them acknowledged classics , reissued and remastered for rediscovery .", "And we have watched Charlie Chaplin and John Wayne , `` Casablanca '' and `` Frankenstein . ''", "But we also comb through the weekend movie listings in search of those dwindling numbers of screens that will show us old movies the old-fashioned way .", "On Saturdays we frequently find ourselves in sparsely peopled rooms staring at ancient shadows .", "Some adjustment of expectations is required : in the old movies people frequently talk faster and move more slowly .", "They burst into song without self-consciousness .", "There are fewer cuts , longer scenes and occasional visual anomalies .", "`` Why is he purple .", "`` my daughter asked in the middle of '' West Side Story , `` noticing the effects of an aging Technicolor print on Tony 's face .", "In `` The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance '' the tint would periodically switch from sepia to silver and back again .", "My son , noting each shift , wanted to know why it was happening : a question about aesthetics that I could only answer with a whispered lecture about chemistry .", "Most of the old movies he had seen were delivered by means of new technology .", "This one was old in the physical as well as the cultural sense .", "What he made of it I do n't know .", "-LRB- He was amused that Lee Marvin , as the titular villain , calls Jimmy Stewart 's character `` dude . '' -RRB-", "But he watched with an unusual intentness , the same quality of attention he brought to `` Monty Python and the Holy Grail , '' `` Oliver '' and `` Samurai Rebellion , '' some of the other stops on our haphazard tour of movie history .", "I 'm convinced that these films ' beguiling strangeness was magnified by the experience of seeing them away from home and its distractions , with the whir of the projector faintly audible in the background and motes of dust suspended in the path from projector to screen .", "Moviegoing , though unlikely to disappear , will probably never again be the universal rite it once was .", "This is not a catastrophe , just a change of habit .", "Going to the movies may survive as an acquired taste , and also , therefore , as an activity through which taste is acquired .", "FILM ."], "summary": ["A O Scott encourages bringing children to films other than family friendly movies approved by Motion Picture Association .", "Asserts that allowing children to view adult films , within reason , aids in cultivation of their imagination and helps them to become life-long moviegoers .", "Describes experience of taking his children to film The Illusionist and screenings of West Side Story and The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [40, 18, 39], "tag": ["Movies", "Arts"]}
- {"id": "1816495", "text": ["A survey by researchers at Villanova University has found that 85 percent of Roman Catholic dioceses that responded had discovered embezzlement of church money in the last five years , with 11 percent reporting that more than $ 500,000 had been stolen .", "The Catholic Church has some of the most rigorous financial guidelines of any denomination , specialists in church ethics said , but the survey found that the guidelines were often ignored in parishes .", "And when no one is looking , the cash that goes into the collection plate does not always get deposited into the church 's bank account .", "`` As a faith-based organization , we place a lot of trust in our folks , '' said Chuck Zech , a co-author of the study and director of the Center for the Study of Church Management at Villanova .", "`` We think if you work for a church -- you 're a volunteer or a priest -- the last thing on your mind is to do something dishonest , `` Mr. Zech said .", "`` But people are people , and there 's a lot of temptation there , and with the cash-based aspect of how churches operate , it 's pretty easy . ``", "Specialists in church ethics said they believed this was the first study to assess the extent of embezzlement in a denomination .", "Officials at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops said they had seen the study , which was released just before Christmas and was first reported in the National Catholic Reporter , and were considering ways that parishes could tighten their financial controls .", "`` The Villanova study does not come as a surprise , '' said Bishop Dennis M . Schnurr , treasurer of the bishops ' conference .", "`` This is something that the bishops in this country have been looking at for some time .", "They are aware of a need to look for mechanisms that can assist parishes in accountability and transparency . ``", "Mr. Zech and his co-author , Robert West , a professor of accounting at Villanova , did not set out to look for embezzlement .", "They were conducting a study of internal financial controls in Catholic dioceses and sent a battery of questions to chief financial officers in the nation 's 174 Catholic dioceses .", "78 responded .", "Mr. Zech said he was surprised that so many dioceses had detected embezzlement .", "In 93 percent of those cases , police reports were filed .", "He said the survey did not ask who stole the church money .", "But it did ask who detected the theft , and found that it was most often the parish priest , followed by the bookkeeper , an internal auditor or the parish finance council .", "In October alone , three large cases of embezzlement surfaced , including one in Delray Beach , Fla . , where two priests spent $ 8.6 million on trips to Las Vegas , dental work , property taxes and other expenses over four decades .", "In the survey , 29 percent of the dioceses reported thefts of less than $ 50,000 .", "Most denominations have had cases of embezzlement , sometimes by top officials .", "In June , the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. fired its second-ranking financial officer , Judy Golliher , after she admitted stealing money that church officials put at more than $ 132,000 .", "Many nonprofit organizations that accept cash donations experience theft , and churches are particularly vulnerable , said John C . Knapp , director of the Southern Institute for Business and Professional Ethics , at Georgia State University in Atlanta .", "`` Churches have a tendency to be in denial about the potential for this conduct in their midst , '' Mr. Knapp said .", "`` When ethics seminars or ethics codes are proposed in churches , they are often met with resistance from people who say , ' Why in the world would we need this .", "After all , this is the church . '", "Whereas in business , people readily recognize that this sort of thing can happen . ``", "The Salvation Army is widely considered exemplary among nonprofits in handling cash collections .", "The red buckets in which bell ringers collect donations are covered and locked , and all buckets must be returned to a central location , where at least two people count the number and type of bills , coins and checks , said Major George Hood , the charity 's national spokesman .", "The money must be deposited in the bank within 24 hours , and different people reconcile the initial tallies with bank records , Major Hood said .", "In the Catholic Church , parishes and high schools handle many cash transactions , making them vulnerable to theft , the Villanova report notes .", "Canon law requires each parish to have a finance council to provide oversight .", "But Bishop Schnurr , who heads the diocese in Duluth , Minn . , said there were no standards for how finance council members were chosen or whether they should have any expertise in accounting or finance .", "Only 3 percent of the dioceses said they annually conducted an internal audit of their parishes , and 21 percent said they seldom or never audited parishes , the survey found .", "This lack of scrutiny is at the core of the problem , said Francis J . Butler , president of Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities , a nonprofit organization independent of the church .", "`` You 're taking a lot of risk , `` Mr. Butler said , '' and these days the church can not afford to take these kinds of risks . ``", "Bishop Schnurr said the study 's findings on lack of parish oversight contradicted his experience .", "But both he and Kenneth W . Korotky , chief financial officer for the bishops ' conference , said a committee could soon consider writing guidelines for the composition of parish finance councils and how often dioceses should audit parishes .", "But they cautioned that the bishops ' conference could not make guidelines mandatory , because each bishop was in charge of administering his own diocese .", "Jack B . Siegel , a tax lawyer and expert on nonprofit management who has commented on church fraud on his blog , charitygovernance.com, said he kept a tally of church frauds and was surprised by how many occurred at Catholic churches .", "`` I got interested because I thought , wait , I 've heard a lot about pedophilia , why are n't I hearing about these financial problems , `` Mr. Siegel said .", "He said he was impressed with the guidelines that the bishops ' conference and other Catholic organizations have offered .", "But he said , `` How those standards and guidelines get put into practice is what really matters . '' ."], "summary": ["Survey by researchers at Villanova University finds 85 percent of Roman Catholic dioceses that responded discovered embezzlement of church money in last five years , with 11 percent reporting more than $ 500,000 had been stolen .", "Specialists in church ethics claim Catholic Church has some of most rigorous financial guidelines of any denomination .", "But survey finds guidelines were often ignored in parishes .", "Officials at United States Conference of Catholic Bishops say they are considering ways that parishes could tighten their financial controls .", "Survey did not ask who stole money ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 1, 7, 16], "tag": ["U.S."]}
- {"id": "1816506", "text": ["Book publishers braced themselves for a financial blow this week after a bankruptcy filing by Advanced Marketing Services , a book distributor .", "The company filed for bankruptcy protection last Friday , reporting more than $ 200 million in debt to dozens of publishing companies .", "Its creditors included publishers large and small , among them Random House , which is owed $ 43.3 million , and Good Books of Intercourse , Pa . , which specializes in books about the Amish and the Mennonites and is owed nearly $ 1 million .", "A publishing executive said that while authors and readers were unlikely to be affected by the bankruptcy filing , many publishers might not recover much of what they were owed .", "`` This is a huge disruption in this business , '' said the executive , who declined to be further identified because he was not authorized to speak for his company .", "`` The publishers are going to end up taking a big loss . ''", "According to the bankruptcy filing , Advanced Marketing Services has been looking for additional financing or a buyer for the last 18 months , enlisting the investment bank Jeffries & Company in the search .", "Advanced Marketing Services also owns Publishers Group West , a distributor for a consortium of publishers including Grove / Atlantic , which may be hit hardest by the bankruptcy filing .", "`` It 's a mess , `` said Morgan Entrekin , the publisher of Grove / Atlantic , adding that he had been meeting with lawyers for days and was scrambling , trying to figure out how to deal with the situation .", "Advanced Marketing Services was granted $ 75 million of debtor-in-possession financing by creditors so it could continue to function for the next several months .", "Simon & Schuster immediately suspended shipments to Advanced Marketing Services , a Simon & Schuster spokesman , Adam Roth-berg , said .", "Publishers would not give details on their business relationships with Advanced Marketing Services , but the company accounts for as much as 10 percent of some publishers ' sales .", "`` We 're exploring ways to keep working with them , `` a spokeswoman for HarperCollins , Erin Crum , said .", "A spokesman for Random House declined to comment .", "The bankruptcy filing came over the New Year 's weekend , catching many publishing executives by surprise .", "The book industry is largely shut down the week between Christmas and New Year 's Day , and some executives were still trickling back to work late this week .", "Advanced Marketing Services , founded in 1982 , has headquarters in San Diego .", "It acts as a middleman between publishers and booksellers , obtaining books directly from the publishers and distributing them to retailers like Sam 's Club , Costco and BJ 's Wholesale Club .", "The company operates three distribution centers , in Indianapolis .", "Hanover , Md .", "And Woodland , Calif .", "Advanced Marketing Services ' financial difficulties were widely known in the industry , after an accounting scandal in 2003 resulted in the ouster of several senior managers .", "A lawyer for the company did not return calls seeking comment .", "The distributor has near-exclusive access to the discount retailers known as price clubs , including Costco and Sam 's Club .", "The price clubs can produce lucrative returns for the right books , like cookbooks and mass-market reading , and can allow publishers to reach people who do not shop at bookstores .", "Books are a relatively small part of the price clubs ' total business , but they have one attribute that retailers love : the suggested retail price is printed directly on the book jacket .", "Because the books are then discounted by at least 20 or 30 percent , this promotes the feeling among buyers that the stores are offering them a bargain ."], "summary": ["Bankruptcy filing by book distributor Advanced Marketing Services deals financial blow to book industry .", "Advanced reports more than $ 200 million in debt to dozens of publishers , both large and small , such as Random House and Good Books .", "Filing means that publishers might not recover much of what is owed .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 1, 0, 3], "tag": ["Business", "Books"]}
- {"id": "1816507", "text": ["One of the biggest proposed law firm mergers of the last year has been called off , the victim of too many insurmountable issues .", "The two firms , Dewey Ballantine and Orrick , Herrington & Sutcliffe , announced the news yesterday .", "The two had been in talks since last fall to join their specialties in mergers and acquisitions and debt financing .", "The new firm would have been one of the nation 's largest legal advisers , with 1,500 lawyers based in New York and San Francisco .", "Unlike most merger talks , which are conducted in secrecy , the firms announced in October that their top committees had given preliminary approval to the proposal .", "At every step in the process after that , the firms expressed confidence that the deal would go through .", "The two had already decided upon the name Dewey Orrick for the combined firm .", "Dewey 's chairman , Morton A . Pierce , and Orrick 's chairman , Ralph H . Baxter Jr . , would have served as co-chairmen , with Mr. Baxter taking on the additional title of presiding partner .", "Partners were to have voted on the deal last month .", "But as several obstacles proved intractable , those elections were postponed to this month .", "`` While both firms tried their best to work through these challenges , we were unable to bring the merger to completion , '' the two firms said in a statement .", "`` No one issue led us to this point . ''", "Among the most visible distress signals was the departure of 10 partners from Dewey since merger talks began .", "Most ominous were the exits of three lawyers from Dewey 's mergers and acquisitions team , including Michael J . Aiello and Jack S . Bodner , who had been considered prot\u00e9g\u00e9s of Mr. Pierce .", "People familiar with the negotiations said the talks had continued as recently as last weekend .", "The chairmen of both firms said in interviews that the decision to part ways was mutual .", "`` We reached a point where we decided it was in the best interest of both organizations to go our separate ways , '' Mr. Pierce said .", "Both chairmen said that they would look for future growth opportunities , but that neither was looking for another merger partner right now .", "`` When you look at how law firms grow , while mergers have great advantages , it 's the statistically least likely way to do it , `` Mr. Baxter said .", "Unlike mergers in other sectors , law firm consolidation involves the joining of companies whose main assets are their people .", "Orrick is acquainted with such situations , having undertaken merger talks with several firms in recent years , including Coudert Brothers in 2005 and Donovan , Leisure , Newton & Irvine in the late 1990s .", "None of those talks came to fruition , though Orrick subsequently hired lawyers from those firms .", "The dilution of brand names , unclear lines of authority and unfunded pensions are among some of the issues that may have played a role in the talks ' demise , said Peter Zeughauser , a law firm consultant who did not work on the deal .", "Unfunded pensions have long been a concern in the merger of law firms because partners inevitably bristle at taking a pay cut to help new colleagues ' retirement plans .", "Several consultants and lawyers at other firms previously questioned whether Dewey 's unfunded pension system would pose problems for the deal .", "`` It 's not at all uncommon for an unfunded retirement plan to be a deal breaker , `` Mr. Zeughauser said .", "A person familiar with the negotiations also pointed to questions over management authority .", "Though the deal had been labeled a merger of equals , it was clear that Orrick would retain control over crucial matters , the person said .", "Both Dewey and Orrick have long histories .", "Dewey is a storied New York adviser whose name comes from Gov . Thomas E . Dewey .", "Orrick is one of San Francisco 's oldest law firms , founded in 1863 .", "Both have prominent corporate deal-making and litigation practices .", "Dewey , a 550-lawyer firm , is known as a specialist in mergers and acquisitions , having advised on major deals like the hospital operator HCA 's $ 33 billion leveraged buyout .", "And Orrick , with more than 950 lawyers , is considered a leader in debt financing and capital market transactions and restructurings .", "Last year proved profitable for the two firms , with both claiming profits of about $ 1.4 million per equity partner .", "Dewey earned $ 408 million in gross revenue and Orrick pulled in $ 666 million for the 2006 fiscal year , both showing improvement over 2005 ."], "summary": ["Law firms Dewey Ballantine and Orrick , Herrington & Sutcliffe end talks for proposed merger .", "New firm would have been one of country 's largest legal advisors , with 1,500 lawyers .", "Firms say they could not agree on variety of issues and were unable to agree on terms of merger ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [3, 1, 8], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1816510", "text": ["For deal makers , does it get any better than this .", "A heady cocktail of rapidly growing emerging markets , floods of private equity and hedge fund money , buoyant chief executive confidence and a hungry debt market that seems willing to snap up nearly everything that banks can dish out has created an environment so fertile that mergers in 2006 surpassed all records .", "Globally , there were $ 3.79 trillion worth of deals last year , up 38 percent from 2005 , according to data from Thomson Financial .", "Deals were even up 11 percent from the heights of 2000 , the year of the AOL-Time Warner merger that has come to symbolize the dangers of a mergers and acquisitions bubble .", "Many of the deals of that year left a hangover of bad debt and broken companies .", "Records were also broken last year for hostile deals and European deals .", "Dealogic , a competing statistics firm , says that 2006 deal flow was even higher , at $ 3.98 trillion .", "Gavin MacDonald , head of European mergers and acquisitions at Morgan Stanley , acknowledged that he had `` seen a few cycles '' in more than 20 years as a banker , but never one like this .", "`` We thought in 2000 we might not see its like again , but we 've surpassed even that , `` he said .", "No one can agree on what happens next .", "Steven A . Baronoff , the global head of mergers and acquisitions at Merrill Lynch , said , `` The question a lot of people are asking themselves is , ' Last time it ended relatively badly , so will we see the same kind of problems in the future .", "' `` Many bankers , perhaps not surprisingly , insist the answer is no .", "After all , deals during this boom have been happening throughout many industries , not concentrated in just telecommunications and new media as they were in 2000 .", "They are being financed by fast-growing cash flows and forgiving capital markets , not overpriced stock .", "`` This time around it is a very different environment , '' Mr. Baronoff said .", "`` It 's a much more balanced boom . ``", "And although deal volume is up , the prices that companies are paying are still well below what they were in 2000 , said David Kirshenbaum , chief operating officer for global mergers and acquisitions at Citigroup .", "`` We 're seeing lower premiums and much higher identifiable synergies , and a positive reaction from the stock market , `` he said .", "Others , however , see a slowdown in deals coming this year .", "Phil Isherwood , an equity strategist with Dresdner Kleinwort , said to `` prepare for a peak in 2007 . ''", "One of the symptoms , he said , is the prevalence of cash deals .", "Through mid-December , some 70 percent of announced mergers were cash instead of stock , he said , compared with a 10-year average of 40 percent .", "`` This use of cash is a symbol and symptom of a bubble , not an argument against it , '' he said .", "Too much money is chasing too few deals , driving up prices , Mr. Isherwood said .", "`` Bigger deals , bigger borrowing and bigger prices equals bigger risk , not bigger fun . ''", "Indeed , the ever-bigger buyouts of 2006 have raised concerns about the amount of debt used to do the deal .", "`` Given current leverage levels and recent developments in the economic / credit cycle , the default of a large private equity backed company or a cluster of smaller private equity backed companies seems inevitable . ''", "the Financial Services Authority , the British markets regulator , said in a November report .", "Private equity buyers accounted for nearly a fifth of all deals in 2006 , according to Thomson .", "The volume of these deals doubled in the United States in 2006 , as they aggressively outbid corporate buyers .", "For example , a group including Blackstone and the Texas Pacific Group bought the medical device company Biomet for $ 10.9 billion last month , snatching it from the jaws of a larger rival , Smith & Nephew of Britain , which had courted the company for months .", "To win the day , they are taking out larger and larger loans .", "Over all , $ 183.3 billion in high-yield debt was issued in 2006 , according to Thomson , up 52 percent from a year before .", "The key to keeping the merger mania going is liquidity -- or the willingness of banks to lend money .", "So far , the door has been wide open for most borrowers , thanks in part to the exponential growth of new products like credit derivatives and credit default swaps , which allow lenders lay off some of the risk to other buyers .", "That door , of course , could slam shut if a deal goes sour , predict bankers and investors .", "But so far , there is no sign the party is ending : Private equity funds raised about $ 400 billion in 2006 , and as of December had about $ 700 billion available to do deals .", "Morgan Stanley predicts that 2007 will bring even more large leveraged buyouts , including some huge European deals in the $ 25 billion to $ 35 billion range .", "If there is a slowdown on the horizon , many bankers predict it will not happen until at least the second half of the year .", "`` You 've seen a lot of activity in the fourth quarter , and that is a good harbinger for the first half of 2007 , `` Mr. Kirshenbaum of Citigroup said .", "There will continue to be a lot of activity in buyouts , emerging markets , and in Japan and the Middle East , he added .", "New market participants are adding to the trend , helping to smooth the way for hostile deal makers .", "`` Hedge funds have become the kingmakers , '' deciding at what price they will sell out , Mr. MacDonald of Morgan Stanley said .", "Chief executives can no longer rebuff takeover offers easily , because once one is made , their stock is often snapped up by hedge funds looking for a quick buck .", "This impact has been keenly felt in Europe , where such investors helped Mittal Steel take over a reluctant Arcelor , and may be pushing the London Stock Exchange into the hands of Nasdaq .", "That may not be the case in 2007 , though .", "`` The hedge funds have a lot of money , but it is yet unclear that they are getting great returns out of this , '' Mr. Baronoff of Merrill Lynch said .", "`` If they find other higher return activities , maybe they will focus a little less on activism , '' he said .", "Yet as Michael Tory , head of British investment banking at Lehman Brothers , said : `` As long as the liquidity is there and the sources of liquidity remain healthy , there is no reason this ca n't continue . ``", "STREET SCENE Correction : January 11 , 2007 , Thursday A chart on the Street Scene page of Business Day last Thursday that listed the leading merger and acquisition advisers misstated the value of the deals in 2006 .", "For Goldman , Sachs , the sector leader , it was $ 1.088 trillion , not $ 108.8 trillion .", "For the industry as a whole , the value of the deals was $ 3.805 trillion , not $ 380.5 trillion .", "A corrected chart can be found at nytimes.com/ business ."], "summary": ["Thomson Financial reports that 2006 mergers surpassed all records with $ 3.79 trillion worth of deals , up 38 percent from 2005 .", "Deals were up 11 percent from heights of 2000 mergers and acquisitions bubble that left much bad debt and many broken companies .", "Analysts are uncertain what future holds for fast-growing markets , but insist current boom is more balanced .", "Photo .", "Graphs ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [2, 3, 4, 15], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1816520", "text": ["Democrats realized their political and legislative dream Thursday .", "Now they must face reality .", "As they take control of the House and Senate , members of the new majority must reconcile diverse ideological factions within their ranks and make a fundamental choice .", "They can spend their energy trying to reverse what they see as the flaws of the Bush administration and a dozen years in which conservative philosophy dominated Congress .", "Or they can accept the rightward tilt of that period and grudgingly concede that big tax cuts , deregulation , restrictions on abortion and other Republican-inspired changes are now a permanent part of the legislative framework .", "The competing drives were on display amid the constitutional hoopla Thursday and the emotion surrounding Representative Nancy Pelosi 's election as speaker , a position filled until now by the likes of Sam Rayburn , Joseph Cannon and Nicholas Longworth -- men whose names adorn nearby House office buildings .", "`` We have broken the marble ceiling , '' Mrs. Pelosi said after she was handed the gavel .", "In a meeting with the Congressional Black Caucus earlier in the day , Mrs. Pelosi made her own allusions to the competing tugs on Democrats , noting the party was rooted in its traditions but not hostage to the past .", "She promised a new direction `` for all the people , not just the privileged few , '' a reflection of the leadership 's political and policy calculation that Democrats need to champion the average guy .", "`` The agenda we have is about restoring economic security to a very vulnerable middle class , '' said Representative Rahm Emanuel of Illinois , chairman of the Democratic Caucus .", "`` The real activity will be in those areas . ''", "Yet many Democrats contend that President Bush and the Republican-led Congress that was his partner moved the dial too far to the right in many cases .", "And they believe it will be the work of Democrats to make a significant course correction .", "`` I think there are a lot of things the people of America want changed , '' said Senator Patrick J . Leahy , Democrat of Vermont , the new chairman of the Judiciary Committee and a tough critic of some Bush policies .", "Mr. Leahy and others made clear that the new direction had to begin with American policy in Iraq .", "But their domestic legislative agenda suggests that they are picking selected fights rather than going for wholesale change .", "On the economy , they will move swiftly to increase the minimum wage .", "On social policy , they will challenge Mr. Bush by calling for expanded stem cell research .", "They will try to pass legislation increasing college aid for the middle class .", "All of those issues have the twin advantages of broad popular appeal tied to measurable economic impact on individuals .", "But Democrats are in no rush to engage in a fight with Mr. Bush over the ideological centerpiece of his domestic policy , his tax cuts .", "And they have showed no inclination to wade back into the abortion issue , despite its potency among many of their supporters .", "`` We have to keep our eye on the average American family and sort of push aside the interest groups left , right and center , '' said Senator Charles E . Schumer , Democrat of New York .", "`` The world has changed , and it demands new solutions , not the old Democrat and Republican nostrums . ''", "But there is no dispute that Mr. Bush 's legislative and executive record will get a microscopic examination via a renewed emphasis on oversight , a Congressional function Democrats say was all but abandoned in recent years .", "And the results of those inquiries could determine what policies Democrats try to unravel if they uncover a strong case against them .", "`` The Bush administration has passed an entire architecture of laws that are going to be reviewed , '' said Representative Dennis J . Kucinich of Ohio , one of the most liberal members of the House .", "Republicans are waiting to see what develops , uncertain if Democrats sincerely want to join hands and produce some consensus on public policy .", "Or , as one senior Republican asked , will Democrats hostile to the Bush administration be more like the scorpion in the fable with the frog , unable to resist the urge to sting even if they hurt themselves .", "Democrats acknowledge that with their minuscule majority in the Senate and one in the House that is not much larger , they lack the political muscle to go too far in reversing Bush policy even if that was their chief goal .", "And they already have their hands full with delivering on their own ambitious legislative agenda , following through on their pledges of bipartisanship and ethics overhaul and avoiding anything that costs the party its chance at the White House in 2008 .", "Leading Democrats say their best direction is forward , concentrating on establishing a new party legacy rather than obsessing with the perceived failings of Republican rule .", "The test for the party 's newly empowered leadership and the Congressional membership will be whether they can stick to that path .", "THE 110TH CONGRESS : NEWS ANALYSIS ."], "summary": ["News analysis : Democrats taking control of Congress must reconcile diverse ideological factions and make fundamental choice .", "They can focus new power on undoing Republican policies , or concede that GOP changes are permanent part of legislative framework , and move to set new policies .", "Leading Democrats say best direction is forward , concentrating on establishing new party legacy ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [31, 2, 4], "tag": ["U.S."]}
- {"id": "1816523", "text": ["Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt on Thursday evening in an effort to give momentum to the Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations .", "But the meeting was overshadowed by an Israeli raid in the West Bank in which four Palestinians were killed and 20 wounded .", "Mr. Mubarak was clearly embarrassed by the timing of the raid , hours before the meeting of the two leaders in an Egyptian Red Sea resort town , Sharm el Sheik .", "He called it a hindrance to peace efforts and told Mr. Olmert that Egypt `` rejects and is indignant at the military operation . ''", "`` Israel 's security can not be achieved through military force but by serious endeavors toward peace , `` Mr. Mubarak added at his news conference with Mr. Olmert .", "Mr. Olmert said that he was sorry that innocent Palestinians were hurt , but that Israel would defend itself and was acting to arrest `` terrorists who had killed Israelis . ''", "He gave no explanation for the timing of the daylight raid , a vain attempt to arrest a wanted militant , which used unusual force in normally quiet Ramallah .", "He said Israeli troops returned fire , but did not initiate it .", "`` Things developed in a way that could not have been predicted in advance , '' he said .", "`` If innocent people were hurt , this was not our intention . ''", "The Palestinian Authority president , Mahmoud Abbas , with whom Mr. Olmert met last week , condemned the raid , saying in a statement that it `` proved that the Israeli calls for peace and security are fake . ''", "Palestinians have been calling for an extension of a Gaza truce with Israel to the West Bank .", "`` The continued aggression will only lead to the destruction of all efforts aimed at realizing peace , '' Mr. Abbas said .", "Mr. Olmert and Mr. Mubarak said Egypt was continuing its efforts to secure the release of an Israeli corporal captured in June by militants , offering in exchange several hundred Palestinian prisoners held by Israel .", "There had been speculation that the two men might be able to announce more concrete progress on the matter , which is blocking more substantive discussions with Mr. Abbas .", "Egyptian officials said that they were discussing another Olmert-Abbas meeting with Egyptian and Jordanian leaders present .", "Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is to visit the region this month .", "It was an unusual and emotional day for Mr. Olmert , during which he commemorated two legendary Israeli political figures , both of whom he succeeded in their jobs .", "Earlier , in Jerusalem , he spoke at the state funeral for the city 's fabled former mayor , Teddy Kollek , who died Tuesday at 95 and was buried in the area of the Mount Herzl cemetery reserved for Israel 's leaders .", "Mr. Olmert defeated Mr. Kollek to become Jerusalem 's mayor in a bitter political fight in 1993 .", "He said Israel 's first leader , David Ben-Gurion , had declared Jerusalem to be Israel 's capital in 1949 , but `` Teddy Kollek made it so . ''", "Thursday also marked a year since Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a second extensive stroke , which left him in a deep coma from which he is not expected to awaken .", "Mr. Olmert , Mr. Sharon 's deputy , was chosen to lead the Kadima Party in his stead and became prime minister , and he acknowledged Mr. Sharon 's tragedy at his news conference in Egypt .", "In general , Mr. Olmert has been regarded as inferior to Mr. Sharon and Mr. Kollek .", "In the latest opinion poll , conducted by the Dahaf Institute and reported Thursday in the newspaper Yediot Aharanot , nearly 70 percent of Israelis polled said they disapproved of Mr. Olmert 's performance as prime minister .", "Israelis are unhappy with the way he managed the summer 's war against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon and do not much like his personality , contrasting him with the more stolid and experienced Mr. Sharon .", "Still , Mr. Olmert has proved himself a skilled politician , and early on Thursday Parliament quietly passed his $ 68 billion budget , a crucial test of his government 's ability to survive .", "The budget battle was always a great drama under Mr. Sharon , but Mr. Olmert , who has expanded his governing coalition to include parties ranging from Labor to the right-wing Israel Beiteinu Party of Avigdor Lieberman , had little difficulty .", "Mr. Olmert 's office is being rocked , though , by a new corruption scandal .", "He has not been touched by this scandal , though he has been under investigation for smaller cases of improper use of influence .", "But his longtime office director , Shula Zaken , has been put under house arrest and ordered not to contact Mr. Olmert as the police investigate whether she and the director of the Tax Authority , Jackie Matza , tried to help Ms. Zaken 's brother and two other businesspeople through the appointment of cronies to key jobs in return for tax breaks .", "About 30 people are under some form of detention in the spreading scandal .", "The operation in Ramallah by Israeli forces , with armored vehicles , bulldozers and helicopter support , was carried out hours before Mr. Olmert met with Mr. Mubarak .", "Palestinians and news reports said the operation was to arrest Rabiah Hamad of Fatah , a senior member of Al Aksa Martyrs Brigades .", "The army would not confirm that Mr. Hamad was the target , but said the man it wanted was armed and was wounded , but escaped .", "The army arrested four other wanted Palestinians , a spokesman said .", "It was a rare incursion into the heart of Ramallah , and it prompted an angry response .", "Youths on rooftops threw stones , metal trash barrels , a refrigerator and blocks of concrete at the Israeli Army vehicles .", "There were mortars fired at the Israeli soldiers , and an exchange of gunfire .", "Palestinian medics said four men -- Yussef Abdel Khader , 23 .", "Khalil al-Badawi , 20 .", "Jamal Jawela , 29 .", "And Ala al-Himran , in his 20s -- died at a Ramallah hospital from gunshot wounds .", "In Gaza there was continuing violence , with three more men killed in fighting between Fatah and Hamas .", "The fighting centered around the Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza after gunmen surrounded the houses of known political or security figures .", "In Beit Lahiya , a senior Fatah commander , Col . Muhammad Gharib , was killed and his wife severely wounded when Hamas militants attacked his home with rifle fire and rocket-propelled grenades .", "Two of his bodyguards were also killed .", "About 25 others were wounded in Jabaliya , and local radio was filled with appeals to the gunmen to restore calm .", "On Wednesday five Palestinians , including a woman who was a passer-by , were killed and 12 wounded in Fatah-Hamas gun battles , which broke a weeklong lull .", "Other militant factions arranged a truce overnight and kidnapped members of Hamas and Fatah were released by the other sides , but the truce broke down on Thursday .", "The Palestinian prime minister , Ismail Haniya , returned to Gaza on Thursday from hajj , his pilgrimage to Mecca , Saudi Arabia .", "His entourage underwent a special inspection in El Arish , Egypt , to ensure that he was not carrying large amounts of cash back to Gaza , which has been deprived of most Western aid since Hamas won parliamentary elections last January .", "-LSB- Early Friday , Mr. Haniya said he and Mr. Abbas had agreed at emergency talks to keep gunmen from their parties off Gaza 's streets . -RSB-", "For the fourth day there was no word about a kidnapped Peruvian photographer for Agence France-Presse , Jaime R\u00e1zuri , 50 , who is said by colleagues to be lacking a required heart medication .", "Palestinian security services have warned foreign journalists to keep out of Gaza for now , because of the kidnappings and chaos .", "A leader of the Palestinian People 's Party , Bassam al-Salhi , said the security chaos could be resolved only with political agreement .", "`` The weakness of the Palestinian political system and the situation of the current Hamas-led government have contributed to this state of lawlessness , '' he said ."], "summary": ["Israeli Prime Min Ehud Olmert 's meeting with Pres Hosni Mubarak of Egypt in effort to advance Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiationsis is overshadowed by Israeli raid in West Bank that kills four Palestinians and wounds 20 others .", "Mubarak , clearly embarrassed by timing of raid , tells Olmert that Egypt ` is indignant ' at military operation .", "Olmert voices regret that innocent Palestinians were hurt , but says Israel was acting to arrest ` terrorists who had killed Israelis ' .", "Palestinian Authority Pres Mahmoud Abbas also condemns raid .", "Olmert and Mubarak say Egypt is continuing its efforts to secure release of Israeli corporal captured in June by militants .", "Earlier in day , Olmert speaks at state funeral for Jerusalem 's fabled former mayor Teddy Kollek , who died at age of 95 .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [13, 5, 18, 1, 0, 3], "tag": ["World"]}
- {"id": "1816545", "text": ["The foot was balanced on a shopping bag after being scooped up off the dirty street by a man in a track suit .", "There was no person to go with the limb .", "Nearby a charred body was still smoldering , smoke coming off the black corpse 45 minutes after the attack .", "For 50 yards , the dead were scattered about , some in pieces , some whole but badly burned .", "This violence on Thursday involved two bombs timed to go off one after another in the formerly upscale neighborhood of Mansour , which continues to be ripped apart by sectarian violence .", "Thirteen people were killed and 22 wounded , just a small fraction of the civilians killed across the country this week .", "The first device went off at 10:15 a.m. , probably a roadside bomb set on a timer , officials said .", "The attack was apparently aimed at a gasoline station .", "Cars were lined up around the block waiting for fuel , and dozens of people , grasping large plastic jugs , hoped to buy heating fuel .", "Just moments after the first explosion , a second , larger , car bomb detonated .", "The neighborhood has traditionally been a mixed Sunni and Shiite one .", "Although the Abu Jaffar gas station , where the attack was centered , is in what is considered a Sunni area , the method of the attack -- multiple bombs timed to explode in succession -- is usually thought of as a trademark of Al Qaeda in Mesopotamia , a Sunni insurgent group .", "An hour after the explosion , there was still a strong stench of burning gasoline and fire .", "The road was slick with sludge from the water used to douse the fire .", "Blood pooled in areas .", "Scores of armed men were running about , including members of the Iraqi Army and the police .", "Some of those with machine guns had no uniforms at all .", "Shots rang out , mostly in warning .", "Neighbors gathered outside , oddly calm and seemingly accustomed to such carnage .", "A tanker truck filled with fuel was parked near the station , having escaped the blast .", "Not surprisingly , residents living near the area blamed everyone from the government to the Americans to terrorists for what had happened .", "`` We are just innocent people , '' said Nafia Abdul Jabbar .", "`` The people killed were poor , in need of kerosene that they can not afford to buy on the black market because the price is 10 times more than it is at the station . ''", "Elsewhere , a mortar attack was directed at the Shiite neighborhood of Huriya , wounding three people , officials said .", "Clashes on the outskirts of the Sunni neighborhood of Ghazaliya left two people dead and 25 people wounded , Iraqi officials said .", "A grenade attack in the Amin neighborhood killed five people .", "Across the city on Thursday , officials said , 47 bodies were found mutilated -- 4 of them with their heads cut off .", "An interview with the family of a man recently mutilated and killed , a prominent sheik considered to be the prince of the Tamim tribes , gives a glimpse into the complicated underworld that is , in part , responsible for the trucks full of bodies collected around this city every day .", "The man , Sheik Hamid Mohammed al-Suhail , 75 , was found Wednesday in the Shuala neighborhood of Baghdad , a Shiite redoubt , by members of his tribe , which is mixed Shiite and Sunni , who were searching for him .", "He disappeared last Sunday , and his mutilated body was found wrapped in a blanket , covered in blood .", "The search party recognized his body by the distinctive way the beard was trimmed .", "He had been an outspoken critic of the sectarian fighting and participated in a recent conference in Cairo on national reconciliation .", "The kidnappers , whom his relatives hinted they knew but would describe only as `` militiamen '' for fear of reprisal , initially called his family asking for $ 100,000 , said a nephew , Sheik Ali Sammi al-Suhail .", "The family told the kidnappers they did not have the money , the nephew said .", "`` The body was mutilated in a brutal way , '' he said .", "`` They used a drill on him and perhaps other tools . ''", "One hand and one leg were almost completely severed .", "The nephew said he had been told by people who said they witnessed the killing that after his uncle was tortured , his body was thrown from a two-story building .", "He survived the fall but was brutalized further before finally being killed .", "Another prominent Iraqi figure , Sheik Akram al-Zubeidi , was killed Thursday in Karbala , a Shiite holy city where there has been little sectarian strife .", "Sheik Zubeidi was assassinated when he was stopped at a fake checkpoint , a local hospital official said .", "Three other people in the car with him were also killed by the gunmen , whose motive was unclear .", "There was continued fallout Thursday from the execution of Saddam Hussein , as Sunnis , from Kashmir to Libya , used his death as a rallying point .", "The Libyan government announced that it would erect a statue of him to stand next to one of Libya 's own national heroes , news agencies reported .", "At least nine people were hurt in the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir when the police fired rubber-coated bullets to break up a large group of people protesting the execution , Reuters reported .", "Two Iraqi officials involved in the investigation of the distribution of a graphic video of the hanging said Thursday that a second guard was being held for questioning .", "Officials announced the arrest of the first guard on Wednesday .", "There is increasing pressure , including from the White House , on the Iraqi government to proceed with caution in carrying out the execution of Mr. Hussein 's two co-defendants , Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti , Mr. Hussein 's half brother , and Awad al-Bandar , a former judge .", "Despite the international reaction directed at the government of Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki , Mr. Maliki 's popularity among Shiites in southern Iraq seems to have increased .", "In Basra , Iraq 's second largest city , hundreds of demonstrators representing Islamist parties rallied in the streets , praising Mr. Maliki and setting photos of Mr. Hussein on fire .", "THE STRUGGLE FOR IRAQ ."], "summary": ["Two bombs go off in formerly upscale Baghdad neighborhood of Mansour , killing 13 people and wounding 22 others .", "Method of attack -- multiple bombs timed to explode in succession -- is seen as trademark of Al Qaeda in Mesopotamia , Sunni insurgent group .", "Elsewhere , mortar attack is directed at Shiite neighborhood , wounding three people .", "In Baghdad , trucks full of bodies are being collected every day .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [11, 23], "tag": ["World", "Washington"]}
- {"id": "1816553", "text": ["Responding to the shooting death of an unarmed Queens man by police officers nearly seven weeks ago , New York City 's Police Department has commissioned a six-month independent review of its firearms training , of instances in which officers have fired their guns and of the phenomenon of so-called contagious shooting , the department 's top official said yesterday .", "The study , which police officials said was the first of its kind commissioned by the department , will be done by the RAND Corporation , a private nonprofit organization that has reviewed police practices in other major cities , Police Commissioner Raymond W . Kelly said .", "The announcement came amid continuing bitterness since the death of Sean Bell , who was killed in a hail of 50 police bullets in Jamaica , Queens , hours before his wedding on Nov . 25 .", "`` Questions have arisen as to the quality and effectiveness of our training '' Mr. Kelly said at a news conference .", "`` We thought it would be appropriate to bring in a recognized world-renowned nongovernment organization to take a look at all of our firearms training . ''", "Mr. Kelly said a team from RAND would assess five aspects of firearm use by police officers .", "They include initial , continuing and tactical firearms training , investigations of police-involved shootings , and situations in which shots fired by one officer spur other officers to shoot , a phenomenon that may have played a role in Mr. Bell 's death .", "The organization will delve into the details of shootings in which the police are involved , examining an officer 's experience , the nature of the threat , the environment in which they fired their guns and other issues .", "Comparisons will be drawn to firearms training in other law enforcement agencies , Mr. Kelly said .", "RAND will not be looking into the death of Mr. Bell , which is under review by a grand jury in Queens , Mr. Kelly said .", "K . Jack Riley , the acting director of the RAND Center on Quality Policing , said the organization had previously evaluated training in the Los Angeles Police Department , investigated racial profiling among Oakland police officers , and examined ways to improve recruitment and retention among the police in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina .", "`` This is a very proactive step the N.Y.P.D. is taking , '' Mr. Riley said .", "`` I think there is an honest interest in having a dispassionate third party take an objective look at their training , and see if there 's anything they 're not getting right -- or can improve -- with regards to firearms training . ``", "News of the New York study , which will cost about half a million dollars and be paid for by the New York City Police Foundation , a charity that supports the Police Department , drew mixed responses from experts in firearms and police tactics .", "Thomas A . Reppetto , a former president of the Citizens Crime Commission , said that bringing in an outside organization like RAND would likely inspire more public confidence , which has wavered of late , than an in-house Police Department review would .", "But Dean Speir , who writes about firearms and tactics , asked why the Police Department had not undertaken such a review before , citing the death of Amadou Diallo , the unarmed West African immigrant whom officers shot at 41 times .", "Another expert suggested that the money would be better spent on hands -on tactical training .", "`` If you talk to cops , they 'll tell you people on the front line are starved for operational training , `` said Eugene O'Donnell , a professor of police studies at John Jay College of Criminal Justice .", "But Paul J . Browne , a spokesman for the department , said that one purpose of the review was to determine whether the current training needed to be revamped .", "He also noted that Mr. Kelly was not the police commissioner during the Diallo shooting .", "`` What the commissioner wants is an independent assessment , '' Mr. Browne said .", "`` If the training needs to be improved , he wants an independent assessment of what improvements are needed . '' ."], "summary": ["New York City Police Dept commissions Rand Corp to do $ 500,000 independent review of its firearms training .", "Will study instances when officers fire their guns , focusing on ` contagious shootings , ' or why one officer 's shot spurs others to shoot .", "Police Comr Raymond W Kelly hopes to improve quality and effectiveness of training .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [0, 3], "tag": ["New York and Region"]}
- {"id": "1816555", "text": ["For decades , activist shareholders were an entertaining , but largely ignored , Wall Street sideshow .", "Disgruntled investors would attend annual meetings to harangue executives , criticize strategies -- and protest that their complaints were being ignored .", "One agitator appeared in face paint and a red nose after executives called him a clown .", "Today , however , it seems that activists have captured the center ring and are directing the main event .", "On Wednesday , shareholder advocates could claim one of their biggest prizes yet when Home Depot announced the resignation of its chairman and chief executive , Robert L . Nardelli , long a target of shareholder ire for his large compensation and the company 's flagging stock price .", "The main investor who pressed for the overthrow at Home Depot might at first glance seem an unlikely rebel : Ralph V . Whitworth , a lawyer educated at Georgetown and a former campaign worker for President Ronald Reagan who in December announced he had bought about $ 1 billion of the retailer 's stock , or a 1.2 percent stake , through his fund , Relational Investors .", "But the rapid success of Mr. Whitworth 's campaign against the management and strategy of Home Depot demonstrates how thoroughly activists have moved into Wall Street 's inner sanctum .", "Mr. Whitworth has said he still intended to nominate himself and at least one other candidate to Home Depot 's board at its shareholder meeting in the spring .", "`` There 's a lot more respect for investors like me now , `` said Mr. Whitworth , 51 .", "`` I still have to make threats , but now everyone wants to deal with us fast .", "They realize we 've got real power and we 're here to stay .", "`` The shake-up at Home Depot may be just a taste of things to come as shareholders and management at a number of companies , including Brink 's , the Borders Group and Applebee 's International , square off for battle at annual meetings this spring .", "As those fights begin , expect few clown noses .", "`` Activist shareholders have a power and audience beyond what they 've ever enjoyed , `` said Howard Steinberg , a lawyer who advises corporate boards and deal makers .", "`` They 're developing a credible track record , and as a result , more and more managers are forced to engage with them .", "Activists ' time has come . ``", "Since July , activists have pressed successfully to push out chief executives at Pfizer and Sovereign Bank .", "Institutional investors and mutual funds have set aside hundreds of millions of dollars to invest in underperforming companies with the intention of demanding new board seats or alternative strategies .", "Much of that newfound influence is owed to recent legal changes and heightened attention to issues like executive compensation .", "But it also draws on the fact that many activists have now amassed the wealth , knowledge and networks critical for success .", "`` For years these guys were seen as politically motivated oddballs or annoying attention seekers , '' said Nell Minow , editor of the Corporate Library , a research group that rates corporate governance practices .", "`` Now some of those same people control hundreds of millions of dollars and have been around longer than many C.E.O. ' s '' Before the 1980s , much shareholder activism was directed by ideological agitators , including unions , religious organizations and populist figures like Ralph Nader , who bought shares in companies as platforms for urging social , environmental or political changes .", "The United Shareholders Associations , which Mr. Whitworth helped found in 1986 with the corporate raider Boone Pickens , was one of the first major efforts to organize shareholder activists around profit-minded goals .", "Every spring the group would select about 50 companies and begin asking embarrassing questions at shareholder meetings .", "In 1993 , the last year of the group 's operation , 25 of 43 of the companies , including I.B.M , reached agreements with Mr. Whitworth .", "`` The head of General Mills once called me a socialist , '' Mr. Whitworth said in an interview .", "`` I told him I was the ultimate capitalist .", "Business people would return my calls for the first time , and it was giving me an entree into a world I otherwise could n't access . ``", "Foremost among the goals successfully sought by United Shareholders were regulatory changes that made it possible for dissidents to nominate only one or two directors to a board , rather than an entire slate .", "By the mid-1990s , corporate raiders realized the rule offered a less expensive way to stage a takeover rather than buying a company outright .", "When the California Public Employees ' Retirement System began looking for a fund that would use activism to increase returns in 1996 , Mr. Whitworth and a colleague , David H . Batchelder , founded Relational Investors .", "The fund today oversees about $ 7 billion , all invested in only nine companies that are chosen with an eye toward activist intervention .", "In most cases , Mr. Whitworth forces his way onto a company 's board , either by threatening or staging a proxy fight .", "Investors say the fund has averaged a return of about 25 percent annually over the last nine years .", "Activist shareholders like Relational were further aided by changes in the law .", "In particular , they say that regulations passed in 2004 requiring money managers and mutual funds to disclose how they vote in proxy elections have forced once-passive managers to become activists .", "`` There was a sense before that mutual funds in particular just voted with management , '' said Ann Yerger , executive director of the Council of Institutional Investors .", "`` But post-Enron and Tyco , investors expect money managers to justify their votes now , and to be listening to anyone warning about dangers . ''", "Moreover , money managers and hedge funds are beginning to advertise their activist intentions , bragging that aggressiveness gives them an edge .", "In November , the noted investor Robert A . Olstein announced formation of an activist fund .", "`` We want to have an edge , '' said Eric R . Heyman , co-manager of the new Olstein Strategic Opportunities Fund .", "`` Our skill is approaching companies and persuading management to adopt certain decisions , sometimes aggressively , and that 's why people invest with us . ``", "Another important shift is a court ruling last year making it easier for shareholders to challenge directors nominated by companies .", "`` Shareholders ' toolboxes are getting more and more robust every year , `` said Ms. Minow of the Corporate Library .", "Moreover , as the number of activist investors grows , a vast ad hoc network has formed that makes it more difficult for companies to win a fight .", "The universe of activist investors has expanded to include hedge funds like Pirate Capital , which is fighting to add its executives to the board of the security company Brink 's , and investors like Carl C . Icahn , who failed to gain board seats after a public spat with Time Warner 's chief executive , Richard D . Parsons .", "When two activist investors , Pershing Square Capital Management and Nelson Peltz , bought large amounts of stock in Wendy 's International in 2005 , many other like-minded buyers jumped in , according to analysts .", "As a result , the board had no choice but to accept activists ' suggestions , said James V . Pickett , Wendy 's chairman .", "Ultimately , three representatives of Mr. Peltz 's fund joined the board .", "`` Most of the issues the activists raised at Wendy 's were things we were already dealing with , `` Mr. Pickett said .", "`` They just increased the intensity .", "But when they own that much of the company , you have to listen to them even if you do n't want to . ``", "For Mr. Whitworth , who has grown so wealthy that he once gave a charity $ 1 million in exchange for PaulMcCartney 's playing at his wife 's 50th birthday party , that kind of access has increased his effectiveness , he says .", "After forcing his way onto the board of Mattel , Mr. Whitworth was given a gold-plated Barbie in appreciation by other directors when he left .", "But such shifts have also increased his ambitions .", "`` I was a firebrand .", "Now I 've mellowed a lot , `` he said .", "`` But I 'm still young .", "I look forward to helping a lot more companies become more efficient , whether they like it or not . `` ."], "summary": ["Rapid success of activist shareholder Ralph V Whitworth to get Home Depot 's former chief executive Robert L Nardelli to resign demonstrates how thoroughly activists have moved into Wall Street 's inner sanctum .", "Whitworth has said he still intends to nominate himself and at least one other candidate to Home Depot 's board at its shareholder meeting in spring .", "Shake-up at Home Depot may be just beginning as shareholders and management at many companies battle at annual meeting this spring .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 6, 11], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1816557", "text": ["For a half-century , the blue oval logo atop Ford Motor 's headquarters has served as a kind of beacon for the American automobile industry , a signpost for local motorists on area highways and a guidepost for pilots landing at Detroit 's airport nearby .", "But lately , blue is the only word for the malaise surrounding Ford , which is rapidly seeing its position in the industry and in its hometown eroded by its failure to combat foreign competition .", "This year , Ford expects to permanently lose its grip on second place in the American market to Toyota , which passed it twice in monthly sales in the last six months , including December .", "As many as half its blue - and white-collar employees have decided to take voluntary buyouts from a company where jobs were long seen as lifetime guarantees .", "Ron Cimino , 44 , used to regret not landing a job at Ford , where his father worked for 52 years .", "Turned down in 1984 because he lacked a master 's degree , Mr. Cimino of Dearborn wound up starting his own import-export business .", "`` I 'm glad I did n't end up working at Ford , `` he said .", "`` I never thought I 'd say that . ``", "To be sure , General Motors and Chrysler have their own problems that are weighing on this city .", "Their headquarters are here , too , as are some of their car plants , and thousands of their employees have their own worries as each company struggles financially .", "But Ford 's troubles , arguably , are felt more acutely here .", "After all , G.M. placed a good bulk of its manufacturing 60 miles north , in Flint , Mich . , and once had factories from Massachusetts to California as well as the Midwest .", "Chrysler , though still a big local employer , has had German owners for nearly a decade .", "Ford , by contrast , is woven more into the fabric of Detroit , with the Ford name on office buildings , museums , high schools and highways , as well as the football stadium , Ford Field , which opened downtown in 2002 .", "Now , as the annual Detroit auto show prepares to open to the media this weekend , much of this city 's bedrock is unexpectedly at risk .", "In November , Ford disclosed it had pledged nearly all its assets , including the trademark on its 100-year-old logo , as collateral against $ 25 billion in loans needed to fund its restructuring .", "Ford has generated a particular sense of sympathy , bewilderment and fear here that its crosstown rivals have not .", "There is sympathy , analysts say , because more of a human element is involved , namely the Ford family .", "Puzzlement because Ford seemed to be the one Detroit auto company that had an answer for Japanese competition in the 1980s and 1990s with its profitable sport utility vehicles .", "And fear that if a once-powerful company like Ford could falter , no one in Detroit may be safe .", "The sentiment is readily voiced in places like Miller 's Bar , where the red leather barstools and colored Christmas lights evoke the watering hole in `` It 's A Wonderful Life . ``", "It has been a Dearborn gathering spot since 1941 .", "`` Dearborn , '' said the owner , Mark Miller , `` is Ford . ''", "Judy Dolan , a secretary for the Detroit Building Trades Council , said during an interview at her home , `` I feel horrible about the situation they 're in . ``", "She drives only Ford vehicles in support of her hometown company .", "Concern over Ford 's future bubbled up late last month in conversation at the holiday cocktail parties held by the Detroit and foreign car companies and their parts suppliers .", "Given the attention to Ford 's situation , the company 's new chief executive , Alan R . Mulally , who arrived in September from the Boeing Company , is already recognized wherever he goes .", "Mr. Mulally said in an interview that he was recently lost in a local supermarket when another shopper came up to him .", "`` Oh , Mr. Mulally , we 're so glad you 're here , `` he recalled her saying , before she helped him find shampoo .", "His predecessor was William Clay Ford Jr . , who became the face of the company in television ads over the last four years as he struggled to fix Ford 's problems -LRB- he remains chairman -RRB- .", "The family is the reason many company employees past and present refer to the automaker as Ford 's .", "It is not a grammatical error , as visitors here might assume , but a nod to the fact that it is a company built by the original Henry and all the Fords that followed him .", "`` The Fords have a relationship with the American people , '' said James P . Womack , the author and expert in manufacturing efficiency who advised Mr. Mulally at Boeing .", "They include Kevin Boyle 's retired father , also named Kevin , who immigrated to Dearborn from Ireland in the 1950s , drawn by the chance to work for a company founded by the most famous man in the auto business .", "`` People came to Detroit with an intense connection with that name , and then their lives became tied up with that name , '' said Mr. Boyle , a professor of history at Ohio State who has written extensively about the automobile industry .", "`` It was a badge of honor to work for Ford . ''", "Numerous families here boast multiple generations of Ford employees , some who worked on the assembly line , others -- fathers and sons , mothers and daughters -- who toiled in company offices .", "`` I started there when I was 19 , and my whole family worked there , '' said Karen Kenniburg , who manages the vehicles driven by Ford executives .", "The Fords , for their part , have given back , not just in jobs but also in charities .", "Guests at a Nissan holiday party last month at the New Detroit Science Center drank wine and munched crab cakes beneath a wall of donors dotted with names of various Fords .", "The same was true for Honda , whose event took place in an atrium outside Orchestra Hall .", "That seeming omnipresence , however , makes the departures from Ford more poignant .", "Last month , more than 30,000 blue-collar workers accepted deals to give up their jobs .", "About half were ready to retire , but the rest were workers who did not have enough seniority to begin drawing pensions .", "They accepted payments of up to $ 140,000 apiece to leave .", "Ford 's white-collar employees are not exempt .", "The company has already cut 4,000 managers , and 10,000 more are set to go by spring .", "Last month , one of every three salaried employees was called in by their boss to be told Ford was giving them the opportunity for a buyout .", "If they did not accept , their jobs might not be safe , some were told .", "Altogether , more than 45,000 people , or half the number employed by the company at the beginning of the year , will not be working at Ford in 2007 .", "That is likely to hurt business at Miller 's Bar , where 60 percent of the patrons work for Ford , and 18 of 25 cars in the parking lot on a recent afternoon bore Ford logos .", "Others will be affected , as well .", "At a Starbucks on Michigan Avenue , a mile away from Ford 's headquarters , and once a hangout for Mr. Ford , one customer , Shelley Boda , 32 , said she was unable to land a job at the company , where her father , grandfather and numerous relatives worked .", "Instead , she chose the health care field , now less of a safe haven than she had hoped .", "With Ford cutting so many jobs , and the rich benefits that went with them , `` there wo n't be anyone here who can afford health care , `` she said .", "Professor Boyle said Ford employees and the community were now realizing that what they thought was a `` safe bet '' was not .", "`` The funny thing is , people did n't see it as a bet , `` he said .", "`` You would have parents who worked the line and have enough to send kids to college .", "They would go off and get engineering degrees , marketing degrees and work for the companies .", "`` That has crumbled .", "There are few things more terrifying than that . ``", "And yet , many still believe in the power of the Fords themselves to save their company .", "Ms. Kenniburg said they gave Ford an advantage over G.M. and Chrysler as they devise a comeback plan .", "`` The Ford family , '' she said , `` they 're going to do everything in their power to keep this company going . `` ."], "summary": ["Much of bedrock of Detroit , Mich , is unexpectedly at risk as annual Detroit auto show prepares to open to media .", "Ford in November disclosed it had pledged nearly all its assets , including trademark logo , as collateral against $ 25 billion in loans needed to fund its restructuring .", "Ford has generated particular sense of sympathy , bewilderment and fear in Detroit that its crosstown rivals have not .", "Analysts say there is sympathy because of human element is involved , namely Ford family .", "Puzzlement because Ford seemed to be one Detroit auto company that had answer to Japanese competition in 1980s and 1990s with its profitable sport utility .", "Fear that if once-powerful company like Ford could falter , no on in Detroit may be safe .", "Some residents comment .", "Photos ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [15, 18, 16, 19, 17, 14], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1816558", "text": ["Everyone who knows him says it : In a tough fight , Kenneth G . Langone is a guy you want in your corner .", "But when Robert L . Nardelli , the former chief executive of Home Depot , refused to bend to the will of an exasperated board and accept a pay cut , he lost the crucial support of a friend who as lead director not only recruited him but presided over his compensation contract that would later draw so much fire .", "For Mr. Langone , a voluble man whose passions include Italian meatballs , golf and the Roman Catholic Church , it was a surprising reversal .", "Mr. Langone prides himself on his loyalty to his friends and , as a director who has served on the compensation committees of General Electric , Yum Brands and the New York Stock Exchange , he has never been shy about paying his chief executives well .", "Now , people who have spoken with him in recent days say , he is angry with Mr. Nardelli over his unwillingness to have his pay reduced .", "In an era of escalating pay , with chief executives on Wall Street taking in $ 50 million a year and former General Electric executives like David Calhoun getting $ 100 million compensation deals from private equity investors , being paid well was a way for Mr. Nardelli , a scrappy former football player , to keep score .", "In light of Mr. Langone 's vocal and unyielding support for the $ 190 million pay package that was awarded to Richard A . Grasso , the former chief executive of the New York Stock Exchange , he might have been expected to fight to the bitter end to save Mr. Nardelli .", "But as friends who have served on boards with him say , beneath the bluster and occasional histrionics lies a more pragmatic man well aware of his fiduciary duties as a director -- especially at Home Depot , a company that he helped found and that has made him a billionaire .", "`` Ken does not back down , but he also has a strong sense of propriety , '' said Gary E . Earlbaum , a real estate executive who introduced Mr. Langone to Bernard Marcus , a founder of Home Depot , more than 30 years ago .", "`` His loyalty is to the enterprise . ''", "Mr. Langone declined to comment .", "Mr. Nardelli did not return messages left for him .", "At age 71 , when many corporate executives start slowing down a bit , Mr. Langone continues to manage a full schedule of corporate , political , legal and philanthropic activities .", "He is a top financial supporter of Rudolph W . Giuliani , who is weighing a possible run for the White House , and he is the chairman of New York University Medical Center .", "Mr. Langone also still devotes considerable time and energy to contesting the lawsuit brought against him and Mr. Grasso by Eliot Spitzer , the former attorney general for New York who is now the state 's governor .", "That 's all in addition to his day job , running Invemed Associates , the small investment bank he founded .", "But it has been his passionate and unstinting defense of Mr. Grasso 's pay , much of which was set during his time on the exchange 's compensation committee , that has come to define Mr. Langone 's public image .", "His detractors see him as a living symbol of the excesses of runaway executive compensation , a bullying old-school titan whose tendency to befriend his chief executives blinds any objective ability he might have had to keep a ceiling over their pay .", "Mr. Grasso 's huge compensation package , and , according to the lawsuit brought by Mr. Spitzer , his efforts to keep other directors in the dark about it , are perfect examples of this , they say .", "`` Ken Langone is the root of the problem .", "His philosophy is that you can never pay a C.E.O. too much money , `` said Richard Ferlauto , the director of pension investment policy at the A.F.L. - C.I.O.", "`` That was revealed in his defense of Grasso .", "Now we are focusing on the role of Langone `` at Home Depot , he said .", "`` We blame him and his cronies for the original contract . ''", "His defenders , on the other hand , point to his long experience as a director and his acute knowledge of a director 's responsibilities , honed from more than 30 years ' experience as an independent investor .", "Yes , he has a big heart and an inclination to overpay at times , they say , but his ethics are beyond dispute .", "`` I do n't care what kind of a battle I 'm in but I would want Ken Langone on my side , because he is on the side of honor and righteousness , `` said Frank Borman , a former director at Home Depot .", "Mr. Langone 's pursuit of Mr. Nardelli , whom he met in 1999 , when he became a G.E. director , was infused with a sense of glee at the prospect of landing such a corporate star .", "Mr. Nardelli , well aware of the value of the G.E. pedigree , drove a hard bargain .", "A result was the 2000 contract , which , with its guarantees and perks , may well be an anachronism today as rich pay packages come under increasing scrutiny .", "At Home Depot , Mr. Langone is a particularly involved director .", "He is chairman of the nominating committee and has played a significant role in shaping the current board .", "He is also a member of the executive and audit committees .", "He would frequently start his mornings with a call to Mr. Nardelli , and he thrilled in digesting the latest sales data as well as updates about Lowe 's , the retailer 's main competitor .", "And , while walking the floors at store outlets was a responsibility for directors , Mr. Langone did more than his share , as well as inspiring the Home Depot sales force at the frequent pep rallies he attended .", "Still , when it became clear that a combination of the poor performance of Home Depot 's stock and Mr. Nardelli 's obstinate demeanor had made his position untenable , Mr. Langone threw his support with the rest of the board .", "In a 2004 interview for an article about Mr. Langone and his role in the Grasso controversy , Mr. Nardelli said : `` Change is difficult .", "But it is the only constant in today 's environment .", "It takes courage and leadership . ``", "`` I think Ken stands by good business judgment . '' ."], "summary": ["Home Depot 's former director Robert L Nardelli 's refusal to bend to will of exasperated board and accept pay cut lost him crucial support of friend Kenneth Langone , co-founder and director of company , who not only recruited him but presided over his compensation contract that would later draw so much fire .", "Langone is believed to be angry over Nardelli 's unwillingness to have his pay reduced .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [1, 30], "tag": ["Business"]}
- {"id": "1816559", "text": ["Gap 's board , it appears , has had enough .", "After a dismal holiday season -- the third in a row -- the chain 's directors are participating in a broad review of the company 's strategy , intensifying pressure on the chief executive , Paul S . Pressler , to pull it out of a protracted sales slump .", "Gap said yesterday that sales plunged 8 percent in December after a return to the simple fashions that fueled the chain 's meteoric rise in the 1990s , like T-shirts and hooded sweaters , failed to lure customers back into stores .", "In an admission that the back-to-basics approach has not worked , the company cut its earnings forecast for 2006 , blaming deep discounts -- like $ 100 off a fur-lined parka -- required to sell left-over piles of winter clothing .", "`` We are clearly disappointed , '' Mr. Pressler said in a statement .", "Gap 's results in December contrasted sharply with that of its competitors .", "The nation 's retailers reported respectable sales increases for the month , according to several industry groups , even as warm weather hurt winter clothing sales and higher fuel prices pinched consumer spending .", "Sales at stores open a year rose 3.1 percent in December , compared with the period in 2005 , according to the International Council of Shopping Centers , which predicted a 2.5 percent gain .", "For November and December combined , sales rose 2.8 percent , within the group 's forecast .", "As they have for much of the year , department stores like Saks -LRB- up 11.1 percent -RRB- , Federated -LRB- up 4.4 percent -RRB- and J . C . Penney -LRB- up 2.6 percent -RRB- posted strong gains .", "But smaller clothing chains like Abercrombie -LRB- down 1 percent -RRB- .", "Express , a unit of Limited -LRB- down 5 percent -RRB- .", "And Ann Taylor -LRB- down 5.3 percent -RRB- struggled to stand out .", "`` A lot of these retailers limped across the finish line , '' said John D . Morris , a senior retail analyst at Wachovia Securities , who speculated that bargains on flat-screen TVs captivated consumers in a season when there were few must-have fashions .", "Wal-Mart , which heavily promoted flat-screen TVs , said sales rose 1.6 percent , beating its own predictions of a meager 1 percent increase .", "`` Flat-screen TVs flogged fur-lined hoodies , '' Mr. Morris said .", "There were plenty of those hoodies at Gap , which heavily discounted much of its winter clothing in the days immediately before and after Christmas .", "-LRB- The fur-trimmed parka , originally $ 169 , was marked down to $ 68 several days before Christmas . -RRB-", "As a result of the deep discounting , Gap profit margins for the fourth quarter will be `` significantly below '' those of last year , said Sabrina Simmons , senior vice president for corporate finance at the chain .", "The board 's decision to intervene in a review of Gap 's brand strategies suggests that the directors are fed up with the chain 's poor results and the executives who have failed , season after season , to turn it around .", "`` This is a clear judgment coming down on the leadership of the Gap brand , '' Mr. Morris said .", "Revenue in December dropped 4 percent , to $ 2.34 billion , from $ 2.44 billion a year ago .", "The worst performance was at the Gap and Old Navy brands , where monthly sales dropped 9 percent and 10 percent , respectively .", "As a result , Gap yesterday reduced its earnings forecast to 83 cents to 87 cents a share , down from $ 1.01 to $ 1.06.", "Even at Gap , which often describes its sales as `` disappointing , '' the December results appeared to jolt executives .", "The word `` disappoint '' was used at least four times yesterday in a prerecorded phone message and news release describing December sales .", "Mr. Pressler said that he and the board would review brand strategies at Gap and Old Navy and that he was `` committed to making the necessary changes to improve performance . ''", "Banana Republic will not be included in the review because that chain 's sales are improving .", "As the division introduced pricier , preppier fashions , like an $ 88 silk-cashmere half-zip pullover , December sales rose 2 percent , making Banana a bright spot for the company .", "The strategic review would be the second in the last year for the beleaguered Gap division , which has struggled to recapture business after several years of changing missions and fluctuating fashions .", "Over the summer , after months of brainstorming , Gap 's brand president , Cynthia Harriss , introduced the back-to-basics strategy to investors and analysts , even bringing back the lower-case Gap logo used for the chain 's first store in 1969 .", "But the trip down memory lane did not win over shoppers .", "`` We did not gain the traction we had expected , '' Mr. Pressler said ."], "summary": ["Gap says sales dropped 8 percent in December .", "Cuts its earnings forecast for 2006 .", "International Council of Shopping Centers says sales at stores open one year rose 3.1 percent in December compared with period in 2005 .", "Combined sales rose 2.8 percent for November and December within group 's forecast .", "Department stores posted strong gains in December , while smaller clothing chains struggled .", "Wal-Mart says sales rose 1.6 percent , beating its own predictions of 1 percent increase .", "Graphs .", "Photo ."], "publication": "nyt50", "label": [7, 8, 14], "tag": ["Business"]}
|