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8A – Daily News – Friday, May 28, 2010 WORLD BRIEFING BP labors to kill oil leak COVINGTON, La. (AP) — BP’s attempt to choke off the gusher at the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico appeared to be making some progress, officials said Thursday as dire new government esti- mates showed the disaster has easily eclipsed the Exxon Valdez as the biggest oil spill in U.S. history. As the world waited to see whether the ‘‘top kill’’ would work, President Barack Obama announced major new restrictions on drilling projects, and the head of the federal agency that regulates the industry resigned under pressure, becoming the highest- ranking political casualty of the crisis so far. BP started shooting heavy drilling mud into the blown-out well 5,000 feet underwater on Wednesday afternoon. It was the latest in a string of attempts to stop the oil that has been spewing for five weeks, since the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded and sank off the coast of Louisiana. Eleven workers were killed in the accident. Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen said Thursday afternoon that the mud was stopping some oil and gas but BP was still pumping it in. BP said it should know by the end of the day whether it worked. ‘‘It’s a work in progress,’’ Allen said. ‘‘We need to let it play itself out.’’ Police say 73 killed in drug lord manhunt KINGSTON, Jamaica (AP) — Jamaican securi- ty forces kicked down doors and arrested dozens of residents of a bullet- pocked slum on Thursday, and said the death toll from four days of fighting sparked by the search for a reputed drug lord has risen to 73. The target of the man- hunt, Christopher ‘‘Dudus’’ Coke, was nowhere to be found. ‘‘We are still searching for Mr. Coke,’’ said Deputy Police Chief Glenmore Hinds. ‘‘Cer- tainly we can’t disclose where we are looking.’’ Hinds said police and soldiers have found 73 bodies, three of which were killed in incidents not related to the raid. ‘‘The 73 bodies we’re speaking about are all civilians,’’ Hinds said. ‘‘But civilians are some- times gunmen and gun- women.’’ Berenson on parole after aiding rebels LIMA, Peru (AP) — Activist Lori Berenson walked out of prison smiling Thursday but got a chilly reception from her new neighbors after serving three-quar- ters of a 20-year sen- tence for aiding leftist rebels. Now 40, the New Yorker spent more than a third of her life behind bars — getting married, giving birth, undergoing back surgery — but never denouncing the Tupac Amaru Revolu- tionary Movement she was convicted of abet- ting. When she was arrest- ed in November 1995 with the wife of the group’s leader, prosecu- tors said Berenson was helping it plot a takeover of Peru’s Con- gress that never hap- pened. The following month, police found a forged ID card bearing her photo in a raid on a rebel safe house. But Berenson appar- ently became less stri- dent over the years, many of them spent in frigid prisons in the high Andes. Documents her defense team provided to the judge who granted her parole Tuesday said Berenson had ‘‘recog- nized she committed errors’’ getting involved with the rebels. A year after Beren- son’s arrest, the Tupac Amaru gained notoriety when 13 of its members stormed the Japanese ambassador’s residents and seized hostages. Among their demands was Berenson’s release. The standoff ended 126 days later with all the rebels killed. GRADUATION 2010 A special page featuring this year’s graduates! From kindergarten to college. Congratulate your special graduate! THIS WILL APPEAR IN THE D NEWSAILY RED BLUFF TEHAMACOUNTY Saturday, June 5th Deadline: Friday, May 28th $18 2 or more $ your graduates photo Congratulations To our favorite Graduate of 2010 Have a wonderful future. Jane Doe Best Wishes RED BLUFF TOTAL COST ea. 12 ea. INCLUDES PHOTO Tensions rise as SKorea holds drills SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Military tension on the Korean peninsula rose Thursday after North Korea threatened to attack any South Korean ships entering its waters and Seoul held anti-submarine drills in response to the March sinking of a navy vessel blamed on Pyongyang. Separately, the chief U.S. military commander in South Korea criticized the North over the sinking of the South Korean war- ship Cheonan in which 46 sailors died, telling the communist country to stop its aggressive actions. North Korean reaction was swift. The military declared it would scrap accords with the South designed to prevent armed clashes at their maritime border, including the cut- ting of a military hot line, and warned of ‘‘prompt physical strikes’’ if any South Korean ships enter what the North says are its waters in a disputed area off the west coast of the peninsula. A multinational team of investigators said May 20 that a North Korean torpedo sank the 1,200- ton ship. Seoul announced punitive mea- sures, including slashing trade and resuming anti- Pyongyang propaganda over radio and loudspeak- ers aimed at the North. North Korea has denied attacking the ship, which sank near disputed west- ern waters where the Koreas have fought three bloody sea battles since 1999. ‘‘The facts and evi- dence laid out by the joint international investigation team are very compelling. That is why I have asked the Security Council to fulfill their responsibility to keep peace and stabili- ty ... to take the necessary measures, keeping in mind the gravity of this situation,’’ U.N. Secre- tary-General Ban Ki- moon said as he opened a conference in Brazil meant to help find solu- tions to global conflicts. Congress to vote on lift of gay ban WASHINGTON (AP) — Congress neared precedent-setting votes Thursday on whether to allow gays to serve open- ly in the military. A House vote, which could come Thursday evening, would repeal the 1993 law known as ‘‘don’t ask, don’t tell’’ that has effectively required gays wishing to join the military to hide their sexual orientation. The Senate Armed McGinniss and say she’d begin building a ‘‘tall fence tomorrow.’’ Palin, wearing running shorts, a T-shirt and a visor, spoke briefly to a reporter at the gate of her lakeside home Thursday. She joked of having to build a fence to protect her family’s privacy but declined to comment further, saying she was busy babysitting her nephews. McGinniss wrote a mag- azine article critical of Palin and is writing a book on her. How DeWyze Services Committee was also prepared to vote on the issue. In both cases the initiative to end the ban was attached to a $760 billion defense spending bill. The gay rights amend- ment, supported by Presi- dent Barack Obama, is the product of a compro- mise with Pentagon lead- ers: It will not go into effect until the Pentagon completes a study, expect- ed in December, on the ramifications of the poli- cy change and until the president, the defense secretary and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff certify that it won’t hurt the military’s ability to fight. As debate on the defense bill opened in the House, Republicans objected to legislating the ban before the study is completed. Sign flashes passionate lyrics to motorists STEVENS POINT, Wis. (AP) — A digital construction sign along a central Wisconsin inter- state has been flashing a rock-inspired passionate message to passing motorists. The sign near Stevens Point spelled out ‘‘Danger Danger,’’ ‘‘High Voltage,’’ ‘‘When We Touch, ‘‘When We Kiss,’’ to rush- hour drivers Thursday. The words are bor- rowed from the song ‘‘Danger! High Voltage’’ by the Detroit-based rock band Electric Six. James Bierman, co- owner of Central State Signing, says a hacker must have changed the message board. The black and orange construction sign was placed on Interstate 39 because the state Depart- ment of Transportation contracted with United Painting of Forest Junc- tion to repaint several overpasses in the area. Actor Gary Coleman in critical condition SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Former child television star Gary Cole- man is in critical condi- tion in Utah, a spokes- woman for the hospital said Thursday. Utah Valley Regional Medical Center spokes- woman Janet Frank said Coleman, 42, was admit- ted to the Provo facility on Wednesday but she couldn’t release any other details. Coleman lives in San- taquin, which is 55 miles south of Salt Lake City. The actor is best known for his stint on TV’s ‘‘Diff’rent Strokes,’’ which aired from 1978 to 1986. In February, Coleman suffered a seizure on the set of ‘‘The Insider.’’ Obama to US World Cup team: You’ll have a fan in Oval Office WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama told the U.S. World Cup soccer team they’ll have a fan watch- ing in the Oval Office during next month’s tour- nament in South Africa. Obama met with the team at the White House Thursday. So did Vice President Joe Biden, who will attend the team’s opening match against England on June 12. For- mer President Bill Clinton was also on hand, having recently been named the honorary chairman of the bid committee trying to bring the World Cup back to the U.S. in 2018 or 2022. While their soccer skills got the players into the White House, it was their fashion sense that caught the eye of the lead- ers. Clinton told the play- ers he wants to join the team just for their stylish tan dress shoes. Obama agreed they were ‘‘good- looking’’ shoes. Fence work at Palin home continues WASILLA, Alaska (AP) — Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is making good on a threat to build a fence around her Wasilla home to keep her new neighbor — an author who is writing a book about her — from peering in. Work on the fence con- tinued Thursday, three days after Palin took to Facebook to ‘‘welcome’’ neighbor Joe won ‘Idol’ Simon Cowell was granted his final wish on ‘‘American Idol.’’ Lee DeWyze, the bash- ful paint sales clerk champi- oned early by the biting British judge on the Fox singing contest, was crowned ‘‘Idol’’ on Wednesday over single mother Crystal Bowersox. His victory was based on votes cast after Tuesday’s performances, which drew more acclaim from the judges for Bowersox, though DeWyze was Cow- ell’s favorite from the out- set. DeWyze knew it, too. Back during Hollywood Week, the show’s rapid-fire post-audition phase, he took note of Cowell tapping along as he crooned The Fray’s ‘‘You Found Me.’’ It became clearer after his ren- dition of Snow Patrol’s ‘‘Chasing Cars’’ during the first round of the semifinals that Cowell was pushing for the throaty underdog from Mount Prospect, Ill. ‘‘I fought for you to be here,’’ he told DeWyze. ‘‘I still believe in you.’’ Such affirmations helped the unassuming rocker to overcome his shortcomings, namely a lack of self-confidence, to take down Bowersox, arguably the ninth season’s most powerful singer. Despite his innate shyness, DeWyze solidified himself as a contender early in the finals with deft takes on The Box Tops’ ‘‘The Let- ter’’ and the Rolling Stones’ ‘‘Beast of Burden.’’ ‘‘You are growing faster than anybody on this stage,’’ Kara DioGuardi told him. Indeed, DeWyze was always on the ascent, pow- ering through walking pneumonia for the Cor- nelius Brothers’ ‘‘Treat Her Like a Lady,’’ and making everyone take notice when he unexpectedly dueted with a bagpipe player on The Beatles’ ‘‘Hey Jude.’’ The sheepish vocalist strug- gled more at conversing with Ryan Seacrest and maneuvering through the group routines than singing. The panel wasn’t just satisfied with DeWyze’s raspy tone. Panelists demanded to see the scruffy, 24-year-old singer smile. He finally flashed them a goofy grin and started to hit a stride after Elvis Presley’s ‘‘A Little Less Conversa- tion.’’ Meanwhile, Bower- sox began to fumble when tasked with out-of-her-ele- ment genres. Still, her spot on the finale always seemed certain. BOX SHOWN IS ACTUAL SIZE (1 COL. X 2 1 /2 ”) Send or Deliver Photo & ad copy to D NEWSAILY Red Bluff, CA 96080 TEHAMACOUNTY 545 Diamond Ave. PO Box 220 email: advertising@redbluffdailynews.com Include your phone number -- we will call you for credit card payment. Or Call 527-2151 for assistance Presented by the Happy Valley Community Foundation. We are a nonprofit organization. Proceeds go back to the community for grants programs and the Strawberry Festival. Rain date: Saturday, June 5th. Call 357-5449 for more information.