Amazon to Investigate Claims of Worker Intimidation at German Centers

BERLIN — The workers came from across Europe to pack boxes for the online retailer Amazon at distribution centers in Germany during the Christmas rush. They did not expect to be watched over — some say intimidated — by thugs in neo-Nazi-style clothing and jackboots.

On Friday, Amazon said it was investigating claims made in a documentary that a subcontractor employed security guards with neo-Nazi ties to oversee the immigrant workers.

The documentary, broadcast Wednesday on the ARD public television network, showed guards in black uniforms with H.E.S.S., after Hensel European Security Services, but also the last name of Hitler’s deputy, Rudolf Hess, emblazoned on their chests.

According to the film, security guards employed by the subcontractor scared and intimidated hundreds of temporary workers from Hungary, Poland, Spain and other European countries.

The accusations ignited an outcry on social media and calls for consumers to think twice about placing their next order on Amazon. The company responded by pledging to investigate the claims, saying that it was in its own interest to provide a safe and secure working environment for all of its employees, temporary as well as permanent.

“Amazon does not tolerate discrimination or intimidation, and we will act swiftly to eliminate any such behavior,” Ulrike Stöcker, a spokeswoman for the company in Germany, said in a statement.

Germany is Amazon’s most important market after the United States. It recorded revenues of $8.7 billion here last year, part of the $61 billion it generated worldwide. The company, based in Seattle, employs tens of thousands of people around the world.

Heiner Reimann of the Ver.di union, which represents employee interests at a plant in Bad Hersfeld in central Germany, where the filmmakers recorded the security guards, said that the young men, sporting black bomber jackets, jackboots and short, military-style haircuts, made invasive spot-checks at the temporary residences where the workers were kept.

In the documentary, a woman from Spain who gave her name only as Silvinia, told the filmmakers that the guards kept them under constant observation.

“They go into the house when the people are not there,” she said. “And also when they are there, sleeping or taking a shower.”

Mr. Reimann said some of the men were wearing clothing made by the company Thor Steinar, a brand popular among Germany’s far-right extremists, whose clothes have been banned from the country’s Parliament building, and several German soccer stadiums.

Patrick Hensel, who heads the security company, rejected the claims that its employees had intimidated immigrant workers, as shown in the documentary. He said the security guards in question would be confronted about the accusations and that appropriate action would be taken.

Mr. Reimann said Amazon should seek to set a good example in Germany of how to combine the use of temporary workers with high standards, and should be aware of certain historical sensitivities. “We are talking about Polish workers who were kept in a holiday camp with a fence around it and were being watched by guards,” Mr. Reimann said in a telephone interview.

“We are in Germany,” he said. “We have a certain history to respect.”

Read More..

Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries Divorce Is Headed to Trial

By Ken Lee

02/15/2013 at 03:45 PM EST

Kris Humphries and Kim Kardashian

Seth Browarnik/StarTraks

Kim Kardashian had a good day in court Friday in her ongoing divorce battle with Kris Humphries.

A judge ruled that their case – in which Humphries alleges that Kardashian committed fraud by never intending to be married – is ready for trial.

"[Humphries] has had more than adequate time to prepare," L.A. Superior Court Judge Stephen Moloney stated during the Friday hearing. A trial date of May 6 was set. Neither Kardashian nor Humphries were present in court on Friday.

The NBA star's attorney, Marshall Waller – who had filed papers Thursday to be removed from the case – has long claimed difficulty in gathering evidence from various TV studios that work with Kardashian.

Kardashian, whose baby with Kanye West is due in July, has denied Humphries's claims, saying she's been legally "handcuffed" to him ever since they split.

"We want a trial because that's the only way this will end," Kardashian's lawyer Laura Wasser previously told PEOPLE. "There was no fraud. They have no case."

Legal experts say Humphries's chances of winning an annulment based on fraud is a long shot.

By facing off in a trial, Kardashian could potentially win her goal of being divorced from Humphries before her baby's due date.

Both Kardashian and Humphries were ordered to appear in person for an April 12 hearing for a last-ditch attempt to settle the case.

"Every case is capable of settling before trial," Waller told PEOPLE at an earlier hearing.

Read More..

Study: Fish in drug-tainted water suffer reaction

BOSTON (AP) — What happens to fish that swim in waters tainted by traces of drugs that people take? When it's an anti-anxiety drug, they become hyper, anti-social and aggressive, a study found. They even get the munchies.

It may sound funny, but it could threaten the fish population and upset the delicate dynamics of the marine environment, scientists say.

The findings, published online Thursday in the journal Science, add to the mounting evidence that minuscule amounts of medicines in rivers and streams can alter the biology and behavior of fish and other marine animals.

"I think people are starting to understand that pharmaceuticals are environmental contaminants," said Dana Kolpin, a researcher for the U.S. Geological Survey who is familiar with the study.

Calling their results alarming, the Swedish researchers who did the study suspect the little drugged fish could become easier targets for bigger fish because they are more likely to venture alone into unfamiliar places.

"We know that in a predator-prey relation, increased boldness and activity combined with decreased sociality ... means you're going to be somebody's lunch quite soon," said Gregory Moller, a toxicologist at the University of Idaho and Washington State University. "It removes the natural balance."

Researchers around the world have been taking a close look at the effects of pharmaceuticals in extremely low concentrations, measured in parts per billion. Such drugs have turned up in waterways in Europe, the U.S. and elsewhere over the past decade.

They come mostly from humans and farm animals; the drugs pass through their bodies in unmetabolized form. These drug traces are then piped to water treatment plants, which are not designed to remove them from the cleaned water that flows back into streams and rivers.

The Associated Press first reported in 2008 that the drinking water of at least 51 million Americans carries low concentrations of many common drugs. The findings were based on questionnaires sent to water utilities, which reported the presence of antibiotics, sedatives, sex hormones and other drugs.

The news reports led to congressional hearings and legislation, more water testing and more public disclosure. To this day, though, there are no mandatory U.S. limits on pharmaceuticals in waterways.

The research team at Sweden's Umea University used minute concentrations of 2 parts per billion of the anti-anxiety drug oxazepam, similar to concentrations found in real waters. The drug belongs to a widely used class of medicines known as benzodiazepines that includes Valium and Librium.

The team put young wild European perch into an aquarium, exposed them to these highly diluted drugs and then carefully measured feeding, schooling, movement and hiding behavior. They found that drug-exposed fish moved more, fed more aggressively, hid less and tended to school less than unexposed fish. On average, the drugged fish were more than twice as active as the others, researcher Micael Jonsson said. The effects were more pronounced at higher drug concentrations.

"Our first thought is, this is like a person diagnosed with ADHD," said Jonsson, referring to attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder. "They become asocial and more active than they should be."

Tomas Brodin, another member of the research team, called the drug's environmental impact a global problem. "We find these concentrations or close to them all over the world, and it's quite possible or even probable that these behavioral effects are taking place as we speak," he said Thursday in Boston at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Most previous research on trace drugs and marine life has focused on biological changes, such as male fish that take on female characteristics. However, a 2009 study found that tiny concentrations of antidepressants made fathead minnows more vulnerable to predators.

It is not clear exactly how long-term drug exposure, beyond the seven days in this study, would affect real fish in real rivers and streams. The Swedish researchers argue that the drug-induced changes could jeopardize populations of this sport and commercial fish, which lives in both fresh and brackish water.

Water toxins specialist Anne McElroy of Stony Brook University in New York agreed: "These lower chronic exposures that may alter things like animals' mating behavior or its ability to catch food or its ability to avoid being eaten — over time, that could really affect a population."

Another possibility, the researchers said, is that more aggressive feeding by the perch on zooplankton could reduce the numbers of these tiny creatures. Since zooplankton feed on algae, a drop in their numbers could allow algae to grow unchecked. That, in turn, could choke other marine life.

The Swedish team said it is highly unlikely people would be harmed by eating such drug-exposed fish. Jonsson said a person would have to eat 4 tons of perch to consume the equivalent of a single pill.

Researchers said more work is needed to develop better ways of removing drugs from water at treatment plants. They also said unused drugs should be brought to take-back programs where they exist, instead of being flushed down the toilet. And they called on pharmaceutical companies to work on "greener" drugs that degrade more easily.

Sandoz, one of three companies approved to sell oxazepam in the U.S., "shares society's desire to protect the environment and takes steps to minimize the environmental impact of its products over their life cycle," spokeswoman Julie Masow said in an emailed statement. She provided no details.

___

Online:

Overview of the drug: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/meds/a682050.html

Read More..

Wall Street declines with slide in Wal-Mart shares

Finola Hughes has called the upcoming 50th anniversary of "General Hospital" a "really sweet" moment."I think the fact that we, at 'GH,' are doing so well right now, and to enter into our 50th anniversary on such a high, it feels really sweet," the actress, who plays Port Charles Police Chief Anna Devane, told Access Hollywood, when asked about the daytime drama's impending anniversary.

Read More..

Russia Seeks Arrest of Georgian Politician

MOSCOW — Russian authorities issued an arrest warrant for a Georgian politician, Givi Targamadze, on Thursday, charging that he had incited riots in Russia, in particular by helping to organize an anti-government march last May that culminated in a confrontation between protesters and the riot police.

Russian authorities asserted that the large anti-government protests were being orchestrated by foreign powers, but Mr. Targamadze, a longtime lieutenant of President Mikheil Saakashvili, is the first non-Russian to face criminal charges.

Russian television has broadcast what it says is surveillance video showing Mr. Targamadze meeting with a leftist leader, Sergei Udaltsov, and two of his deputies, at one point offering to deliver large sums of money on behalf of a Russian banker now living in exile.

At the time, Mr. Targamadze said no such meeting had taken place and that the footage had been manufactured by the Prosecutorial Investigative Committee and the Federal Security Service, or F.S.B., the successor to the K.G.B.

“It is clear that this was all prepared in the investigative committee and the F.S.B. headquarters,” he told Dozhd, an Internet news site. “It is sold to the media and then very quickly, at lightning speed, the Investigative Committee reacts.”

A spokeswoman for Georgia’s general prosecutor told Interfax on Thursday that Georgia cannot extradite Mr. Targamadze to Russia because it would violate his rights under the country’s Constitution, but that prosecutors could open a criminal case based on Russia’s request.

Russian analysts noted that the Georgian government did not say Mr. Targamadze’s status as a lawmaker gave him immunity from prosecution. Mr. Saakashvili’s party lost a parliamentary election last October to an opposition coalition intent on repairing Tbilisi’s icy relations with Moscow.

Mr. Targamadze could not be reached for comment on Thursday. A spokesman for the United National Movement, the party he belongs to, said he was traveling outside Georgia. Meanwhile, the police in Moscow said they were working to determine who else in Russia may have had contact with Mr. Targamadze.

Foreign interference in Russian politics was a central theme on Thursday when President Vladimir V. Putin met with top officials at the Federal Security Service, congratulating them on “courageous acts to neutralize internal and external enemies.” Mr. Putin reported that 200 foreign intelligence officers had been identified in 2002, and spoke with satisfaction about new measures restricting foreign financing for nonprofit organizations.

“Any direct or indirect interference in our internal affairs — any form of pressure on Russia, its allies and partners — is unacceptable,” he said, according to a transcript.

He urged the F.S.B. to increase pressure on the Internet, which he said was being used to promote extremist ideas.

“To neutralize different types of extremist structures we need to act as resolutely as possible,” he said. “It is necessary to block attempts by radical groups to use information technologies, Internet resources and social networking Web sites for their propaganda,” he said.

He went on to say that Russian civil society was rapidly becoming more engaged and active, but that uncontrolled speech and organizing could pose a risk to the state.

“Citizens’ right to freedom of speech is unshakable and inviolable — however, no one has the right to sow hatred, to stir up society and the country, and put under threat the life, welfare and peace of millions of our citizens.” He offered a similar warning about citizens’ initiatives, saying the rise in activism “obviously will be supported by the state.”

“At the same time, I want to underline — no one has a monopoly on the right to speak in the name of all Russian society, especially structures that are controlled and financed from abroad,” he said.

The head of the F.S.B., Aleksandr Bortnikov, told Mr. Putin that the United States and its allies had increased “geopolitical pressure” on Russia over the past year, noting that “as before, they consider our state as one of their main competitors in the international arena.”

Read More..

Leah Hostalet Helps Find Kidney Transplant Matches on Facebook

This Valentine's Day, kidney transplant recipient Jerry Wilde is celebrating life with his family thanks to a devoted friend, a generous stranger – and Facebook.

When the kidney he had received through a transplant in 1992 developed a cancerous tumor and was surgically removed, Wilde was put back on dialysis and was told that just eight percent of people with his blood type could be his donor. Dozens of friends, family and colleagues were tested to see if they were a match, but to no avail.

"The waiting period for my blood type on the transplant list was long, between two and a half and three years," says Wilde, 50, a professor of educational psychology at Indiana University East. "I didn't think I'd survive that long. I thought, 'Well this just isn't going to happen. I'm just going to wither away.'"

But when Leah Hostalet, Wilde's friend and former student, saw a status update from Wilde in November of 2011 that he was in search of a kidney donor, she wanted to help.

On November 18 she set up a Facebook page, Find a Kidney for Jerry, which included his blood type and other pertinent medical information. Becky Melton – a total stranger to Wilde – saw the page that would change both their lives.

"I was looking for purpose in my life. It just struck me," says Melton, 28, who was scrolling through Facebook when she saw Jerry's page, "I thought, 'I want to do this. This is my guy. I am going to give him my kidney.' "

Melton, a loan processor in Richmond, Ind., and Wilde exchanged information. On December 14, Melton found out she was a match, and texted Wilde a photo of herself holding a sign with a picture of two kidneys on it. The sign read: "We're a match!" Wilde still gets choked up thinking about that day.

"I was standing in the living room in shock," he says. "I had never met this person. It's like, who does this for a complete stranger?"

On February 24, 2012, the transplant took place and Wilde has been healthy ever since.

From left: Becky Melton, Jerry Wilde and Lea Hostalet four months after his transplant

Courtesy Leah Hostalet

Though thrilled for her friend, Hostalet, a 33 year-old mom of three in Brownsburg, Ind., didn't feel her efforts were done.

"I felt drawn to this cause for some reason, and I felt like there was more I could do," she says.

Her solution? Find a Kidney Central, a hub for kidney donation pages that now is home to 161 people who are in need of a new kidney. In the year the page has been up and running it has linked donors for 38 transplants, and has grown from a bulletin board of information into a vibrant support community for those waiting for transplants.

"Everyone who is in need is so supportive of one another," says Hostalet, "The community feel to the page brings me such joy."

Pairing Kidneys Everywhere

The efforts have created a good will cascade effect: Leona Jones of Bedford, Ind., found and utilized Find a Kidney Central. In July, Jones got a call from her transplant coordinator, who had been contacted by Susan Yost, a woman who had seen Jones's page and wanted to donate her kidney. Though Yost and Jones were not a match, they agreed to participate in a paired donation program at IU Health University Hospital.

They were then connected to Peggy McCormick and her nephew Lucas, who needed a second transplant after his first transplanted kidney started to fail. Peggy donated her kidney to Leona, and Susan was a match for Lucas and donated a kidney to him.

"It was just like everything fit," says McCormick, 58, of donating her kidney to Jones. "It was a match made in heaven."

Doctors told McCormick that it was a miracle that Leona was matched.

"Two days before the transplant we all met," says McCormick. "After we had our preliminary labs done they got us all together in a room. There was a lot of hugging and crying."

Adds Jones, "It was very emotional ... I didn't know these people, and for someone to give up part of their body to you, it's indescribable."

From left: Peggy McCormick, Leona Jones, Susan Yost and Lucas McCormick

Courtesy Peggy McCormick

Hostalet has become a passionate advocate for kidney donation, and spends upwards of 28 hours a week on Facebook helping people set up their own pages and spreading information about her site.

Dr. Bryan Becker, transplant physician and former National Kidney Foundation president, calls Hostalet's work exceedingly important.

"Living kidney donor transplantation is a tremendous way to treat kidney failure with a better likelihood of a good outcome," he says.

Lifelong Bond

As for Wilde and Melton, the two say they share a lifelong bond. Melton is a graduate of IU East, and Wilde had a scholarship named after her, The Becky Melton Scholarship, which is given to a student who exemplifies the spirit of giving.

Hostalet, Melton, Wilde and Wilde's daughter met for dinner one night before the surgery. After dinner, Melton posted the following status on Facebook: "I just met four members of my family that I didn't know."

Hostalet says she is continually inspired by those who post to the site.

"Just seeing their strength, moving forward every day even though they're dealing with this extreme struggle in their lives, it makes me want to keep searching for them. I want to keep educating people as to how difficult dialysis is on the body, and the need for living donors."

As for her next steps, she says, "My plans are to keep this page running and spread as much awareness as possible. I'll take it wherever it leads me. I feel like I'm meant to do this."

Those who are interested in registering as an organ donor on Facebook can do so here.
More Heroes Among Us:

• Scott Neeson Left Hollywood to Save Kids in Cambodia's Slums

• Woman Who Lost her Legs in Tornado Starts Foundation to Help Others

Know a hero? Send suggestions to heroesamongus@peoplemag.com. For more inspiring stories, read the latest issue of PEOPLE magazine

Read More..

Study: Fish in drug-tainted water suffer reaction

BOSTON (AP) — What happens to fish that swim in waters tainted by traces of drugs that people take? When it's an anti-anxiety drug, they become hyper, anti-social and aggressive, a study found. They even get the munchies.

It may sound funny, but it could threaten the fish population and upset the delicate dynamics of the marine environment, scientists say.

The findings, published online Thursday in the journal Science, add to the mounting evidence that minuscule amounts of medicines in rivers and streams can alter the biology and behavior of fish and other marine animals.

"I think people are starting to understand that pharmaceuticals are environmental contaminants," said Dana Kolpin, a researcher for the U.S. Geological Survey who is familiar with the study.

Calling their results alarming, the Swedish researchers who did the study suspect the little drugged fish could become easier targets for bigger fish because they are more likely to venture alone into unfamiliar places.

"We know that in a predator-prey relation, increased boldness and activity combined with decreased sociality ... means you're going to be somebody's lunch quite soon," said Gregory Moller, a toxicologist at the University of Idaho and Washington State University. "It removes the natural balance."

Researchers around the world have been taking a close look at the effects of pharmaceuticals in extremely low concentrations, measured in parts per billion. Such drugs have turned up in waterways in Europe, the U.S. and elsewhere over the past decade.

They come mostly from humans and farm animals; the drugs pass through their bodies in unmetabolized form. These drug traces are then piped to water treatment plants, which are not designed to remove them from the cleaned water that flows back into streams and rivers.

The Associated Press first reported in 2008 that the drinking water of at least 51 million Americans carries low concentrations of many common drugs. The findings were based on questionnaires sent to water utilities, which reported the presence of antibiotics, sedatives, sex hormones and other drugs.

The news reports led to congressional hearings and legislation, more water testing and more public disclosure. To this day, though, there are no mandatory U.S. limits on pharmaceuticals in waterways.

The research team at Sweden's Umea University used minute concentrations of 2 parts per billion of the anti-anxiety drug oxazepam, similar to concentrations found in real waters. The drug belongs to a widely used class of medicines known as benzodiazepines that includes Valium and Librium.

The team put young wild European perch into an aquarium, exposed them to these highly diluted drugs and then carefully measured feeding, schooling, movement and hiding behavior. They found that drug-exposed fish moved more, fed more aggressively, hid less and tended to school less than unexposed fish. On average, the drugged fish were more than twice as active as the others, researcher Micael Jonsson said. The effects were more pronounced at higher drug concentrations.

"Our first thought is, this is like a person diagnosed with ADHD," said Jonsson, referring to attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder. "They become asocial and more active than they should be."

Tomas Brodin, another member of the research team, called the drug's environmental impact a global problem. "We find these concentrations or close to them all over the world, and it's quite possible or even probable that these behavioral effects are taking place as we speak," he said Thursday in Boston at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Most previous research on trace drugs and marine life has focused on biological changes, such as male fish that take on female characteristics. However, a 2009 study found that tiny concentrations of antidepressants made fathead minnows more vulnerable to predators.

It is not clear exactly how long-term drug exposure, beyond the seven days in this study, would affect real fish in real rivers and streams. The Swedish researchers argue that the drug-induced changes could jeopardize populations of this sport and commercial fish, which lives in both fresh and brackish water.

Water toxins specialist Anne McElroy of Stony Brook University in New York agreed: "These lower chronic exposures that may alter things like animals' mating behavior or its ability to catch food or its ability to avoid being eaten — over time, that could really affect a population."

Another possibility, the researchers said, is that more aggressive feeding by the perch on zooplankton could reduce the numbers of these tiny creatures. Since zooplankton feed on algae, a drop in their numbers could allow algae to grow unchecked. That, in turn, could choke other marine life.

The Swedish team said it is highly unlikely people would be harmed by eating such drug-exposed fish. Jonsson said a person would have to eat 4 tons of perch to consume the equivalent of a single pill.

Researchers said more work is needed to develop better ways of removing drugs from water at treatment plants. They also said unused drugs should be brought to take-back programs where they exist, instead of being flushed down the toilet. And they called on pharmaceutical companies to work on "greener" drugs that degrade more easily.

Sandoz, one of three companies approved to sell oxazepam in the U.S., "shares society's desire to protect the environment and takes steps to minimize the environmental impact of its products over their life cycle," spokeswoman Julie Masow said in an emailed statement. She provided no details.

___

Online:

Overview of the drug: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/meds/a682050.html

Read More..

Wall Street flat near multi-year highs, M&A helps

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks were little changed on Thursday as investors found few reasons to keep pushing prices higher with major averages near multi-year highs, though a flurry of merger deals kept indexes steady.

Wall Street has rallied lately, with the S&P 500 briefly hitting its highest intraday level since November 2007 in Wednesday's session. Still, there are few obvious catalysts to continue the rally, and while the S&P is on track for its third straight day of gains, none of those daily gains was more than 0.2 percent.

Shares of H.J. Heinz Co jumped 20 percent to $72.40 after it said Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway and 3G Capital will buy the food company for $72.50 a share, or $28 billion including debt. Berkshire's class B shares rose 1.3 percent to $99.22.

Also supporting the market was data showing the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell more than expected in the latest week. The CBOE Volatility index <.vix> fell 1.4 percent, dropping to 12.8.

"While I'm not bearish, I don't see many upside motivations at these levels," said Donald Selkin, chief market strategist at National Securities in New York, who cited the low level of the VIX as a sign the market was overbought.

"We need to digest some of our gains to go higher, but people are so eager to buy on the dips that we're not even seeing dips anymore. People are just chasing the market higher."

Equities have struggled to break above their current levels, where they have been hovering for almost two weeks. The S&P 500 is up more than 6 percent so far this year.

Stocks fell earlier after a report the euro zone's gross domestic product contracted by the steepest amount since the first quarter of 2009. In addition, Japan's GDP shrank 0.1 percent in the fourth quarter, crushing expectations of a modest return to growth.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> was down 10.21 points, or 0.07 percent, at 13,972.70. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> was up 1.21 points, or 0.08 percent, at 1,521.54. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> was up 1.12 points, or 0.03 percent, at 3,197.99.

Constellation Brands soared more than 38 percent to $43.93 after AB InBev's deal to take over Mexican brewer Grupo Modelo was revised to grant Constellation perpetual rights to distribute Corona and other Modelo brands in the United States. U.S. shares of AB InBev gained 5.1 percent to $92.72.

American Airlines and US Airways Group said they plan to merge in a deal that will form the world's biggest air carrier, with an equity valuation of about $11 billion. US Airways shares fell 9.1 percent to $13.32.

Weakness in Europe contributed to a 5 percent drop in revenue from the region for Cisco Systems , which nonetheless beat estimates as it reported its results late Wednesday. The company's shares slid 1.3 percent to $20.87.

General Motors Co reported a weaker-than-expected fourth-quarter profit, also citing bigger losses in Europe alongside lower prices in its core North American market. The stock was off 2.8 percent at $27.88.

(Editing by Nick Zieminski)

Read More..

A Running Start for a U.S.-Europe Trade Pact

BRUSSELS — Embarking on what could be the biggest trade agreement ever in its economic sweep, officials from the United States and the European Union indicated Wednesday that they had already resolved some of the stickiest issues behind closed doors.

But the sheer ambition of the trade negotiations, which aim not only to eliminate import duties but also synchronize regulations governing products like cars, drugs and medical devices, leaves plenty of room for the talks to bog down in the type of parochial concerns that have derailed past efforts at a trans-Atlantic trade pact.

Ron Kirk, the U.S. Trade Representative, said by telephone Wednesday that this time things would be different. Already, he said, preliminary discussions between him and top E.U. officials have made “very good progress” on issues that have stymied trade relations for years, like health and safety standards applied to food. A final agreement is possible before the end of 2014, he said.

But, Mr. Kirk acknowledged, “we’ve still got a lot of work ahead of us.”

President Barack Obama endorsed a trade pact during his State of the Union address Tuesday, answering pleas from European leaders desperate for a way to speed up economic growth. Though Mr. Obama devoted only a single sentence to the topic, it was the green light that proponents of a trade deal had been hoping for.

“And tonight, I’m announcing that we will launch talks on a comprehensive Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the European Union,” Mr. Obama said, giving the potential pact a name. He added, “Because trade that is fair and free across the Atlantic supports millions of good-paying American jobs.”

European officials on Wednesday agreed with Mr. Kirk that the timing is favorable for an agreement. And officials in both Brussels and Washington noted that the rising economic might of China gave them further incentive. A broad trade agreement could help ensure that Americans and Europeans, and not the Chinese government, would set standards on product safety or protection of intellectual property in years to come.

“You will now be setting what the rules of the road are for trade that are going to shape the global trading system,” said Karan Bhatia, a former deputy U.S. trade representative who is now vice president for global government affairs at General Electric in Washington.

Unless the United States and Europe are in agreement, in too many future trade cases, “we would be forced to accept Chinese standards,” Karel De Gucht, the trade commissioner who is expected to lead the talks on behalf of Europe, said during an interview. “That’s what it is about.”

José Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission — the Union’s administrative arm — said at a news conference here that a trade pact would bolster the economies of the United States and Europe.

“Both of us need growth, and both us also have budgetary difficulties,” Mr. Barroso said. “Trade is the most economic way of promoting growth.”

But Mr. De Gucht, interviewed later, added a note of caution. “The low-hanging fruit doesn’t exist here any more,” he said. “All the easy topics are off the table.”

European leaders, including Prime Minister David Cameron of Britain and Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, have been pushing for a trade deal as a low-cost way of stimulating their struggling economies. Mr. Obama’s statement Tuesday will help put to rest complaints by some Europeans that the U.S. president has not paid enough attention to his country’s largest trading partner.

“A deal will create jobs on both sides of the Atlantic and make our countries more prosperous,” Mr. Cameron said in statement. “Breaking down the remaining trade barriers and securing a comprehensive deal will require hard work and bold decisions on both sides.”

Between them, the United States and Europe account for about half of global economic output and one-third of world trade. Trade in goods between the Union and America totaled $646 billion last year, according to U.S. government figures.

According to Mr. Kirk, the trade representative, the Union is the best customer for U.S. exports, buying $459 billion in goods and services and supporting 2.4 million American jobs.

“I don’t know if I would call it the biggest trade agreement in the history of the planet,” Mr. Kirk said, “but it is really a very big deal.”

Read More..

Jeff Probst Wants an All-Celebrity Season of Survivor

TV Watch

Survivor

By Steve Helling

02/13/2013 at 03:30 PM EST

Neil Patrick Harris (left) and Jeff Probst

Getty; CBS

Will Neil Patrick Harris soon be scheming his way to a Survivor victory?

It could happen. Host Jeff Probst has spoken to the How I Met Your Mother star about playing the game – and is currently looking for other celebrities who want to outwit, outplay and outlast the competition in hopes of being Sole Survivor on the long-running CBS reality show.

A celebrity season actually isn't that far fetched. Last season, The Facts of Life star Lisa Whelchel made the final three. And, in 2001, Kate Hudson and then–husband Chris Robinson showed up for an open audition for Survivor: Australia, before being turned away by producers. (How awesome would that have been?)

But for now, there's Survivor: Caramoan, the show's 26th season, premiering Wednesday night (8 p.m. ET). Ten new players will compete against ten returning players – with early favorites that include Dawn Meehan, a surprisingly tough 42-year-old mother of six from Utah, and Andrea Boehlke, a pretty blonde schemer from Wisconsin.

Catching up with PEOPLE, Jeff Probst reveals what to expect this season – and how a celebrity version would work:

Lisa Whelchel got a lot of buzz last season. Are there any other celebrities you'd like to see play the game?
Mark Burnett and I really want to do a celebrity version. We were just talking about this at a Grammy party last week. Neil Patrick Harris was there, and he told me flat out he wants to play. I challenged him and said "Do you really want to do it, or is this just a fun fantasy that will never happen?" He said, "I want to do it."

So, on the heels of NPH having the guts to say, "I'm in" – I'm putting out the challenge! If you are a celebrity and truly believe you could hack it, it's time to put up. It would be a shortened shoot – maybe 10 days or so – so you can still get back to do your movies and TV shows, and you won't lose so much weight that your agents will panic. But rest assured it will still kick your ass. If we can get a truly great cast together I think CBS would go for it.

Sounds fantastic. But until that happens, there's Survivor Caramoan: Fans vs. Favorites. What can we expect?
Even for Survivor, this is quite an unpredictable season. Evacuations, an impromptu tribal council, emotional breakdowns and a great finish. Of the 26 seasons we've done, I believe this will rank among the most memorable. I also think a couple of new favorites may be born this season.

You've chosen 10 returning contestants to play again – including some surprising choices. Why them?
When deciding on returning players we first look at their popularity. It doesn't mean they have to be well liked, but they must be memorable for something. Then we look at their "story." Is there an expectation surrounding their return – i.e., did Phillip learn anything from playing with Boston Rob? Will Cochran finally stand up and be heard? Will Brandon be able to control his emotions? Can Malcolm finish what he started? With this group we felt each has a story worth telling.

The fans seem awfully young. (Four of the five female fans are under 25.) Do they even stand a chance?
We have a fairly young group of fans, but they know the game well and many have been itching to play for a long time. The question is, will their adoration of the favorites make them vulnerable to a blindside? Or will their enthusiasm be the energy they need to keep up? Favorites have a major advantage going into day one.

Last season, contestant Sarah Dawson caught you by surprise when she kissed you – twice! Have you hired bodyguards to guard your personal space?
It's funny how many people have asked me if I was offended by the kisses. I wasn't at all. The kiss that happened at tribal council was probably due to the delirium brought on by not eating for so long. The kiss at the live reunion show was a funny button at the end of a great season of Survivor. The best part was looking out in the audience to see my wife Lisa laughing hysterically.

Read More..