Monday, December 3, 2012

Lung cancer patients with pockets of resistance prolong disease control by 'weeding the garden'

ScienceDaily (Dec. 1, 2012) ? The central skill of cancer is its ability to mutate -- that's how it became cancerous in the first place. Once it's started down that path, it's not so difficult for a cancer cell to mutate again and again. This means that different tumors within a single patient or even different areas within the same cancerous deposit may develop different genetic characteristics. This heterogeneity helps cancer escape control by new, targeted cancer therapy drugs.

Two of these targeted drugs are crizotinib and erlotinib -- they do wonders for the patients whose cancers depend on the basic mutations that these drugs exploit. That is, until pockets of the cancer mutate again, pivoting their dependence away from the original, targeted mutation. Due to continuing mutation, the unfortunate reality is that while crizotinib and erlotinib extend patients' lives, the drugs eventually, inevitably, inexorably stop working.

A University of Colorado Cancer Center study published in the December issue of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer's (IASLC) Journal of Thoracic Oncology shows that when pockets of resistant cancer develop, it's often possible to zap these resistant pockets with focused, targeted radiation while continuing crizotinib or erlotinib to maintain control of the majority of the disease that continues to depend on the primary mutation.

"We liken this to weeding the garden," says Andrew Weickhardt, MD, senior clinical fellow at the CU Cancer Center. "In nearly half of patients, when these drugs stop working, they stop working only in a limited number of sites. Given how well these people tolerate the medication, it made sense to us to treat these isolated spots with radiation (or in one case, surgery), and continue the same drug, which was obviously working elsewhere."

This study of 65 patients showed that continuing either crizotinib or erlotinib after the treatment of resistant pockets was associated with more than half a year of additional cancer control.

The benefit was especially robust when the metastatic lung cancer progressed in the brain. The brain is unfortunately a common site of progression because the molecules of crizotinib and erlotinib have difficulty in passing from the bloodstream into the brain, across the so-called blood-brain barrier. Cancer cells sit in the brain as in a robber's cave, hidden away from the drugs.

"We expect using radiation to zap these pockets of cancer in the brain, and then continuing the targeted therapy to become the standard of care," says CU Cancer Center investigator, Ross Camidge, MD, PhD, director of the thoracic oncology clinical program at University of Colorado Hospital.

There was also a smaller but still significant progression-free survival benefit for using this approach in patients whose cancers progressed first outside the brain.

If and when pockets of crizotinib- or erlotinib-resistant lung cancer are detected, "Clinicians should consider using radiation in the body and especially in the brain to weed the garden while continuing the drug, when there is good ongoing control of the cancer in other sites in the body," Weickhardt says.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of Colorado Denver. The original article was written by Garth Sundem.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


Journal Reference:

  1. Andrew J. Weickhardt, Benjamin Scheier, Joseph Malachy Burke, Gregory Gan, Xian Lu, Paul A. Bunn, Dara L. Aisner, Laurie E. Gaspar, Brian D. Kavanagh, Robert C. Doebele, D. Ross Camidge. Local Ablative Therapy of Oligoprogressive Disease Prolongs Disease Control by Tyrosine Kinase Inhibitors in Oncogene-Addicted Non?Small-Cell Lung Cancer. Journal of Thoracic Oncology, 2012; 7 (12): 1807 DOI: 10.1097/JTO.0b013e3182745948

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_health/~3/UnbebVxgc4w/121201085913.htm

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Fitting Extra Electrical Sockets | Safe Home Improvement

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FIT EXTRA ELECTRICAL SOCKETS

No special manual skills are required, but a sound knowledge of electrical work is an advantage.

Working with electricity is potentially dangerous, and you should not attempt to convert or add sockets unless you have the necessary experience and knowledge. If in doubt, enlist the help of a professional electrician.

FITTING-ELECTRICAL-SOCKETS

FITTING-ELECTRICAL-SOCKETS

Always turn off the electricity supply at the consumer unit when working on electrical installations. Wear eye protectors and gloves when using a club hammer and bolster.

An adequate number of electrical sockets will eliminate the inconvenience and expense of extension leads.
To increase the number of sockets in your home either convert existing single-socket outlets to doubles or fit additional sockets. Single sockets will be either ?flush?, i.e. they don?t stick out from the wall, or ?surface-mounted?, i.e. boxes that do stick out a little bit from the wall.

2- Preparation
The following assumes your house is wired conventionally, using modern materials. Old round-pin sockets should be replaced by an electrician.
Most socket outlets in modern homes are connected to what is known as a ring circuit or ring main. From a 30amp fuse or 32amp miniature circuit breaker (MCB) in the consumer unit, a length of 2.5mm? two-core-and-earth cable runs from one socket to another and then back to the consumer unit where it is connected to the same set of terminals from which it originated.

There are usually two ring circuits in the average house, one supplies power to the ground floor sockets and the other to the sockets upstairs .At each socket the cable is cut and connected to terminals behind the faceplate.

Some homes have only one or two socket outlets per room, but the number can be increased with the addition of an extension known as a spur. This comprises a s2.5mm? cable connected to the terminals of an existing socket or to a separate junction box on the ring circuit. From there, the spur cable runs to a new socket. You can have as many spurs as there were socket outlets on the ring originally. Each original double socket counts as two.
Individual radial circuits are used to supply power to a single
appliance such as a cooker or shower unit, but radial circuits can also be used to supply a number of sockets. Spurs can also be connected to this multi-outlet type of radial circuit.

A radial-circuit cable terminates at the last socket ? it does not return to the consumer unit as with a ring-circuit cable. A 2.5mm? two-core-and-earth cable is used for a floor area up to 20m? (24yds?), and the circuit must be protected by a20amp fuse or MCB. Higher-rated fuses and cable are required for larger floor areas.

Single sockets on a ring or radial circuit can be converted to doubles or even fused triple sockets. Spur sockets can also be upgraded, provided the spur cable is serving only the one socket outlet.

3 ? Testing the circuit

Step 1:?Before testing the circuit, turn off the electricity using the main switch on the consumer unit.

Step 2: Unscrew the socket faceplate and ease it off its mounting box. Note the number of cables feeding the socket ? if three cables are connected, it is safe to upgrade the socket. If two are fitted you should test the circuit.

Step 3: Disconnect all the appliances on the circuit, then remove the red-colored live wires from the socket terminal and separate these wires. Attach a continuity tester between the two live wires ? if the tester glows, the socket can be changed.

If the tester fails to light, get a qualified electrician to test the circuit before changing the socket. Similarly, if only one cable is connected to the back
of your single socket, have that tested by an qualified electrician to make sure it is safe to convert.

4- Converting ? Surface-mounted sockets
This is one of the easiest ways to increase the number of socket outlets in your home. No extra wiring is required and little or no redecoration afterwards. Just swap the single mounting box for a double box of the same depth, and connect the new double socket to the existing circuit cable.

Step 1: Before starting work, turn off the electricity using the main switch on the consumer unit ? check that the poweris off with a proprietary plug-in socket tester.
Step 2: Remove the two securing screws and pull the old faceplate away from its mounting box. Loosen the terminals securing the wires and remove the faceplate.

Check that the bare earth wires are covered with green/yellow earth sleeving ? if not, cut a piece of sleeving to length and thread it over the wires, leaving about 12mm (1/2in) of each wire exposed.

Step 3: Remove the old mounting box. Break the plastic web covering the appropriate ?entry hole? for the cable in the new box. Pass the cable through the hole and screw the box to the wall.

Use a spirit level to get your mounting boxes horizontal. Slotted holes allow you to adjust the position of each box as you drive the fixing screws into the wall.

You may be able to use the existing screws and wall plugs. Ifnot, drill new fixing holes in the wall and insert wall plugs.

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Step 4: Connect the existing wires to the terminals in the new socket ? red to the L-terminal, black to N-terminal and green/yellow to E-terminal. Make sure all the wires are held securely and that no bare wire is exposed.
When two or more identical wires are connected to a single terminal, they should be twisted together with pliers to ensure a good connection.
Step 5: Push the socket faceplate into the box, taking care not to trap the wires, then tighten the faceplate screws.
Step 6: When all is secure, turn the electricity on and test the socket by plugging in a lamp or a plug-in socket tester.

5- Converting ? Flush sockets
The simplest way to upgrade a flush socket is to use a special mounting box that converts it to a double surface-mounted socket. The conversion box is attached to the existing metal box, using the two short screws provided.

Converting a single flush socket to a double or triple flush socket involves more work but the result looks neater. It is probably best to leave this type of conversion until you plan to redecorate.

Step 1: Having turned off the power at the consumer unit, unscrew and remove the old faceplate and metal mounting box. You may need to cut around the old box in order to release it from the surrounding plaster.
Step 2: Hold the new metal box in the required position ? this is largely determined by the original hole in the wall, but there is some leeway. Draw round the box to indicate how much masonry needs to be removed.

Step 3: Using a cordless drill fitted with a masonry bit, drill
a series of closely-spaced holes in the masonry. Use a depth stop or a piece of tape wrapped around the drill to ensure the holes are all the same depth.

You can buy a drilling jig for boring out the recesses for mounting boxes ? it is comprised of rows of closely packed tubes mounted on a backing plate that you attach to the wall.

Step 4: Use a bolster or cold chisel to chop out a neat rectangular recess for the new box. Drill fixing holes and fit wall plugs

Step 5: Knock out a convenient cable-entry hole in the box and line the hole with a rubber grommet that will prevent the metal chafing the cable. Pass the cable through the hole and screw the box into its recess.
Use decorator?s filler to make good any damaged plaster.
Step 6: Connect the existing wires to the terminals in the new socket ? red to the L-terminal, black to N-terminal and green/yellow to E-terminal.
When two or more identical wires are connected to a single terminal, they should be twisted together with pliers to ensure a good connection.
Make sure all the wires are held securely and that no bare wire is exposed.

Dealing with a hollow wall:

It is relatively easy to convert a flush socket that is set in a plasterboard partition wall.
Step 1: Turn off the electricity using the main switch on the consumer unit.
Step 2: Remove the old fitting and draw round the new mounting box. You may need to reposition the box to one side of the original opening to avoid cutting into wooden studs that form the framework of the wall.

Step 3: Drill holes in the corners of the marked area and cutout the waste with a pad saw.

Step 4: Punch out the cable-entry hole and fit a grommet in the new box, then feed in the cable. Fit dry-wall flanges to the sides of the box.

Step 5: Pass the box through the hole in the wall and manoeuvre it until the flanges come up against the inside face of the plasterboard.

Step 6: Wire the socket as described in Step 6 above and screw it to the mounting box. As you tighten the screws, the flanges grip the plasterboard and hold the box in place.
Special plastic mounting boxes with hinged flanges are available for fitting sockets to hollow stud partitions.

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6 ? Fitting extra sockets
You can add a new socket to the circuit by connecting a length of 2.5mm? two-core-and-earth cable to the terminals of an existing socket, provided that the socket is not on a spur itself or already feeding a spur

To avoid long cable runs, mount the new socket on the wall directly behind an existing socket in the next room.

? If you want a new socket on the opposite side of the room, run the spur cable under the floor. The new cable can rest on the floor or ceiling between joists or it can be secure to the side of a joist with plastic cable clips.

? If your new spur has to run across the line of joists, you will have to drill a series of 12mm(1/2in) holes through the joists. These holes must be 50mm (2in) below the tops of the joists to avoid floorboard nails.

Step 1: Before starting work, turn off the electricity using the main switch on the consumer unit.

Step 2: Remove the existing socket and box, then drill a hole for a short length of cable through the wall.

Step 3: Cut a recess for a flush box or fit a surface-mounted box on the other side. Punch out the cable-entry hole for the cable (fit a rubber grommet in a metal box to prevent chafing the cable) and screw the box in place.

Step 4: Strip a short length of sheathing off both ends of the spur cable, check that the bare earth wires are covered with green/yellow earth sleeving ? if not, cut a piece of sleeving to length and thread it over the wires leaving a12mm (1/2in) of each wire exposed.

Step 5: Connect the existing wires to the terminals in the new socket ? red to the L-terminal, black to N-terminal and green/yellow to E-terminal.

When two or more identical wires are connected to a single terminal, they should be twisted together with pliers to ensure a good connection.

Make sure all the wires are held securely and that no bare wire is exposed.

At the other end, twist the new wires together with the matching wires from the ring main, and insert them in the terminals of the original socket on the other side of the wall.

Run longer spur cables along a wall inside plastic mini-trunking and connect them to surface-mounted sockets.

Whenever you are installing new cable runs, make sure you do not cut the cable too short ? instead push the excess cable back into the wall or below the floor after you have connected the wires to their terminals.

Feeding a cable behind the skirting can be a problem. Decide where you want to mount the new socket and use a cordless drill fitted with an extra-long masonry bit to cut a channel behind the skirting board. Rake out the debris from behind the skirting with a cold chisel.

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Source: http://www.safehomeimprovement.com/fitting-extra-electrical-sockets/

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Screen Doors and Submarines

What's wrong in this picture?Utilitarian, a fancy and I might add a little hard to pronounce word that means useful, practical, handy. The opposite of which is useless, worthless and unhandy. Is unhandy a word? Any how, in my eventful explorations of houses, I find all manner of attempts at reinventing the wheel. Some people put forth great effort merely to accomplish failure. Leaving behind monuments to their creativity and misguided endeavor.

So it was recently while traversing a roof top. A high roof with a low pitch. If I'm going to be that high, I'd rather be on a gentle slope. Not to pick on any of my fellow inspectors, but this was an instance where being up close and personal was very revealing and somewhat amusing.

Before I step onto any roof I scan the field, just to see if anything jumps out at me. I look at the shingles close to me, the gutter, the penetrations and step on to the roof. On this low pitched roof things were leaping out at me.

Fire caulk used to "seal" worn flashing boot.

One of the most frequent issues I find with low sloped roofs is penetrations that have been incorrectly flashed. Almost every time the plumbing vents have a typical sloped roof flashing collar installed on the pipe that has been slathered with tar and or caulk to "seal" it.

Through this particular roof were several pipes which drew me like a tractor beam. The first one I examined had some wonderful variations on the caulking theme, one that was new to me. I love finding new tricks to tell my clients NOT to do.

The rubber collar was very loosey goosey, not even closely sealing off the pipe from rain and the elements. Since this sloped roof vent had been installed under the rolled asphalt covering, it could not be easily replaced with another wrong one. This problem screamed for a solution outside the box.

Pipe inside a pipe or up periscope Way out.?

The person who found this solution is a creative thinker. Instead of the usual and ugly black roof tar or sticky old caulk, expandable fire caulk was sprayed in from below. No leaks and its fire safe!

Then there was the pipe in the pipe. Um, how exactly is that water proof? Oh right, more fire caulk. You have to love expandable foam.

I have saved the best for last.

The vent opening faces UP the roof slopeThe roof vent installed near the lower part of the slope. Wait that's not the best part. Can you see the problem here? I would bet most people can, with the exception of the person who installed the vent.

It's backwards! The screened opening faces up the slope in the direction the water flows.

I think this problem needs another solution from a spray can.

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James Quarello
Connecticut Home Inspector
Former SNEC-ASHI President
NRSB #8SS0022
JRV Home Inspection Services, LLC

 ASHI Certified Inspector

To find out more about our other high tech services we offer in Connecticut click on the links below:

Serving the Connecticut Counties of Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, New Haven, Southern Litchfield and Western New London.

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Source: http://activerain.com/blogsview/3539144/screen-doors-and-submarines

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Sunday, December 2, 2012

ANALYSIS: Egyptians warn Morsi is no friend of US

AFP / Getty Images

An Egyptian man delivers a speech as protesters gather in Cairo's landmark Tahrir Square on Friday to protest against a decree by President Mohammed Morsi granting himself broad powers that shield his decisions from judicial review.

By Richard Engel, NBC News Chief Foreign Correspondent

News Analysis

TAHRIR SQUARE, CAIRO -- This was the place where the revolution began: the roundish square where Egyptians celebrated Mubarak's fall.

This is where they are shouting on bullhorns again, outraged because they say the Muslim Brotherhood has stolen the revolution and is railroading though a constitution that could lock in Muslim Brotherhood rule for 50 years, bringing more Islamic law. They cry -- not against Islam -- but that an extremist interpretation is being forced down their throats by a president who critics say is acting every part the tyrant. ?

This is also a warning, they claim, of what may happen across the Middle East. The era of the Muslim?Brotherhood appears to have arrived. President Obama has hailed the Brotherhood's President Mohammed Morsi as a pragmatist who helped end the Gaza crisis. Egyptians here think the Brotherhood has conned Washington, just like it conned them.

Christians, liberals left out as Islamists back Egypt's draft constitution

"President?Obama is supporting a terrorist," a man told me amid chants of "Leave! Leave!" in Tahrir Square and "Down, down with the rule of the Muslim Brotherhood's spiritual leader." Before, it was "Down, down with Mubarak."


Morsi's decree divides Egypt
Egypt was torn in half just over a week ago when Morsi made himself more powerful than Mubarak ever was, and the kings before him. Morsi declared himself above judicial oversight, his decisions final and unassailable. He made himself, according to critics, a new pharaoh on the Nile. Imagine if, after five months in office, an American president announced that he could pass any law he pleased regardless of Congress or the U.S. Supreme Court. Imagine if he said his decisions were final and inspired by God.

After issuing a decree making himself more powerful than the courts, Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi has sparked a wave of anger ? some of which is directed toward the United States. NBC's Richard Engel reports.

Morsi last night apologized for the power grab and said he didn't want the extra authorities, but that they were necessary for the good of the people and to safeguard the revolution. Dictators always say stuff like that. Burn down the village to save it.

At first Egyptians were shocked that Morsi would make such an obvious and, according to Egyptian judges, blatantly illegal move. It's clear now, as some analysts have long feared, that the brotherhood is making sure it doesn't lose power again by taking control of Egypt's constitution. The Brotherhood wants to write the rules of the game. Now they've done that too.

PhotoBlog: Dueling demonstrations in Cairo

Protected by the president's new-found supreme and unquestionable powers, Morsi ordered his Islamist allies to finish writing the constitution and get it on his desk by the end of this week. They did it, even though many independent legal experts, Christians and opposition politicians boycotted the drafting process. The Brotherhood called the new constitution "a jewel." Many Egyptians say it leaves too much room for the implementation of Shariah law. ?

The constitution also empowers the people and government with a duty to uphold moral values, a vague clause that could pave the way for vigilante morality police. The constitution barely mentions protecting women's rights. According to women who were originally involved in the drafting process, and who subsequently left because they felt they were being ignored, clauses specifically demanding that women be protected from violence and sex trafficking were dropped because Islamists feared it would conflict with their desire to allow child brides.

ANALYSIS: Crisis tests Egyptians' constitution

The constitution has long been the Muslim Brotherhood's lodestar and, in the past, they have been willing the kill for it. In 1954, not long after a group of 'free officers' carried out a coup against the British-backed monarchy, a Brotherhood assassin tried to kill President Gamal Abdel Nasser. Nasser, a leading free officer, favored a mostly secular, pro-military constitution. The Brotherhood, an Islamist group that supports the return of Arab and Islamic unity and the revival of ancient Muslim glory and Shariah laws, couldn't accept the new rules.

Ahmed Youssef / EPA

18 days of popular protest culminated in the downfall of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak on Feb. 11, 2011.

The Brotherhood's assassination attempt failed. The gunman's eight bullets, fired while Nasser was giving a speech in Alexandria, all missed. The Brotherhood was banned. The group went underground, at times tolerated but more often repressed by Nasser's successors: presidents Mubarak and Anwar el-Sadat. When the revolts started against Mubarak, the Brotherhood saw that fate had given them another chance.

Muslim Brotherhood's calculated rise to power
Looking back now, it all seems so obvious, yet many Egyptians refused to see it coming. In fact, many of the secular revolutionaries backed the Brotherhood, arguing they were better allies than the hated military. The Brotherhood played its cards well.

The Brotherhood was late to join the anti-Mubarak revolts in 2011. When students and liberals initially occupied Tahrir Square, it looked like it might be a passing thing. The Brotherhood either didn't appreciate its significance, or wanted to wait to see who was winning.

I remember watching the Brothers march into the square. They arrived in a large group of perhaps five hundred. Nearly all were men. Many had beards. Most were dressed in poorly cut dark suits. They occupied a corner of Tahrir near a Kentucky Fried Chicken. They came with microphones and wood to build a platform. The other protesters in the square seemed happy to have the support of the new arrivals.

Egypt's Morsi, top judges compromise to defuse soaring tensions over decree

The protests continued to grow. Labor unions went on strike. The military enacted a coup against Mubarak. President Obama withdrew his support for Washington's long-time Arab friend. And Mubarak the president was no more.

The Brotherhood first said it wouldn't seek the new presidency at all. It promised to exist solely as an influential member of civil society. Back then, many Egyptians feared the Brotherhood. It was a semi-secret group. It had a small office in a Cairo apartment building with a sign on the door the size of an index card. Mubarak-era officials had often described the Brotherhood as a group of terrorists. One security official I know called the Brotherhood the most dangerous group in the world. But in the heady 1960s-like days after Mubarak's resignation, the Brotherhood's bad reputation only seemed to give the group more credibility. They'd been oppressed by the man. It was a new day. Everyone, it appeared, deserved a new beginning.

Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Tahrir Square Friday to denounce Egypt's President Mohamed Morsi and the draft constitution his Islamic allies approved earlier in the day.

The Brotherhood went to work. It organized its considerable finances. It built a big new headquarters with far bigger signs on the doors. It sent its representatives around the world, especially to Washington, on a charm offensive. We've been oppressed, they claimed. We were slandered by a tyrant. We're not what you've heard. We can unite the Sunni world against Iran. We can help bring Israeli-Palestinian peace. There were many promises of a great future.

Even then, the Brotherhood's focus on the constitution was clear. The Brotherhood insisted the constitution be drafted only after a new president was elected. The military was overseeing a transition back then. The Brotherhood argued that the military couldn't be trusted to oversee the creation of such an important document. Many Egyptians agreed -- a decision some sorely regret today.

NBC's Ayman Mohyeldin discusses the current unrest in Egypt

Morsi won the election by a narrow margin and then five months into his term, made himself a dictator and ordered his Islamist friends to quickly finish the constitution. Morsi has said he'll drop his extraordinary powers as soon as the constitution is approved in a referendum in December. Islamists are convinced they'll be able to use their grassroots network of activists to win the referendum like they won the elections. Western diplomats tend to agree.

Yet the United States has remained mostly silent on all this, urging both sides to stay calm and work it out. Washington's policy seems to be that what's going on is simply democracy in progress as Egyptians learn to use their new rights.

But in Tahrir Square people seem convinced the Brotherhood isn't testing its fledgling wings. They say Morsi knows exactly what he's doing, Washington be warned.?

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Source: http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/01/15578733-egyptians-fear-decades-of-muslim-brotherhood-rule-warn-morsi-is-no-friend-to-us?lite

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Obama cranks up "fiscal cliff" pressure, Boehner says talks stalemated (reuters)

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Saturday, December 1, 2012

Syrian opposition coalition forms new executive

CAIRO (Reuters) - Syria's new opposition coalition created a new executive body at a meeting in Cairo on Friday, less than a month after the group dominated by the Muslim Brotherhood and its allies came into being with Western and Arab support.

Voting was underway to elect the 11 members of the new "political assembly" at the conclusion of the 60-member coalition's first full meeting, delegates said.

The "political assembly" will be headed by moderate preacher Moaz al-Khatib, the current president of the coalition, and will include his two vice presidents and the coalition's secretary general, Qatari-backed businessman Mustafa Sabbagh, who has emerged as one of the most powerful figures in the new structure.

The changes are part of an internal constitution that also requires a transitional government and parallel structures to be ready to fill the political and security void if President Bashar al-Assad falls from power.

But hardball politics have overshadowed the three-day proceedings in Cairo, with the Brotherhood becoming an overwhelmingly powerful kingmaker.

Since the coalition was set up in Qatar earlier this month with Gulf and Western support the Brotherhood has swiftly assembled a de facto majority bloc, according to insiders keeping track of changes in the membership of the coalition.

The revolt against four decades of autocratic rule by Assad and his late father revived the Brotherhood's fortunes after decades of repression that killed many thousands of its members and opened more sources of financing for the organization from exiled conservative Syrians.

France, Britain, Turkey and Gulf Arab states have already recognized the coalition as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people. The United States has been more cautious.

(Editing by Greg Mahlich)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/syrian-opposition-coalition-forms-executive-194429334.html

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'The Collection': The Reviews Are In!

Horror enthusiasts gush about 'Saw' writer's latest gore-fest, but other critics are less than impressed.
By Josh Wigler


Emma Fitzpatrick in "The Collection"
Photo: LD Entertainment

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1698156/collection-reviews.jhtml

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