Review of forex education

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Death of Nancy Kerrigan's father ruled a homicide

The medical examiner has ruled that the death of Daniel Kerrigan, the father of figure skater Nancy Kerrigan, was a homicide, the Middlesex County district attorney's office said Tuesday.
The skater's brother, Mark, was arraigned in January on assault and battery charges in an incident involving his father, but the district attorney's office would not say if other charges might be filed against the younger Kerrigan in light of the medical examiner's finding.
Daniel Kerrigan, 70, died January 24 after an alleged altercation with his son at the Kerrigan home in Stoneham, Massachusetts.
The Kerrigan family released a statement through their attorney expressing disappointment "that the medical examiner would release a cause of death without having all of the relevant facts. We believe this finding to be premature and inaccurate."
"The Kerrigan family does not blame anyone for the unfortunate death of Dan Kerrigan, who had a pre-existing heart condition," said the family statement, released by attorney Tracy Miner.
Mark Kerrigan, 45, pleaded not guilty to the charges against him January 26. Through his attorney, he denied any responsibility in his father's death.
According to Middlesex County Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth Keeley, police responded to a 911 call at approximately 1:30 a.m. January 24 from Brenda Kerrigan, wife of Daniel and mother to Mark and Nancy Kerrigan.
Keeley told District Court Judge Mark Sullivan during the arraignment for Mark Kerrigan that there was a violent argument and struggle between the father and his son, resulting in the elder Kerrigan falling or collapsing on the kitchen floor. Keeley said Mark Kerrigan told authorities "that he did in fact have an argument with his father, the argument became physical, he grabbed his father around the neck, and at some point the father collapsed to the floor."
According to Keeley, police found Mark Kerrigan in the basement of the house, "clearly intoxicated" and "extremely combative." He refused to comply with police officers, said Keeley, and they had to subdue him with pepper spray before forcibly removing him from the home.
Mark Kerrigan's attorney, Denise Moore, said in court that Kerrigan was unemployed, was recently released from a correctional facility and was living at home with his parents. He is taking medications and seeking psychological help for post-traumatic stress, apparently from his time in the Army, she added.
Despite appeals from his attorney, the judge ordered Kerrigan held on $10,000 cash bail. His next court appearance is expected to be February 24.
Nancy Kerrigan first gained prominence by winning a bronze medal at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France. In 1994 she earned a silver medal in Lillehammer, Norway. But she is perhaps best remembered for being injured in an attack before the 1994 Winter Games by skating rival Tonya Harding's ex-husband and an accomplice.

Murtha's gallbladder procedure rarely deadly

Taking out a patient's gallbladder is routine. At least 500,000 such surgeries are done each year in the United States. It takes an hour or two, and the patient can go home that day or the next.
But in rare cases, the surgery can be deadly. Democratic Rep. John Murtha of Pennsylvania recently died after complications from the procedure after doctors "hit his intestines" during surgery, a source close to the late congressman told CNN.
Murtha underwent the scheduled laparoscopic surgery at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, on January 28, to remove his gallbladder, and was discharged. Three days later, he was admitted to Virginia Hospital Center's Intensive Care Unit because of major complications from surgery, the hospital said in a statement. He died there Monday at age 77.
The National Naval Medical Center declined to reveal additional details on Murtha's death.
At most, only one out of every 1,000 patients, dies during gallbladder removal, according to the American College of Surgeons. Factors that increase the risk of death include gangrene, a burst gallbladder, or severe diseases.
The laparoscopic surgery is a safe, minimally invasive procedure, said Dr. L.D. Britt, president-elect of the American College of Surgeons and professor at Eastern Virginia Medical School. Out of hundreds of thousands of cases, only a handful result in damage to the intestines, he said. Precise statistics are not available.
"Even when you have an injury, it doesn't often, obviously, lead to death," Britt said. "This is very surprising, but we know that death is a possible complication of any procedure."

The gallbladder, a small pear-shaped organ under the liver, squeezes bile from the liver out into the small intestine. Signs that this organ may need to be removed include sharp pain in the right abdomen, low fever, and nausea and bloating.
In a laparoscopic cholecystectomy, the technical term for the procedure, the surgeon removes the gallbladder with instruments placed into four small slits in the abdomen, according to the American College of Surgeons. This kind of surgery is performed to remove gallstones or to remove an infected or inflamed gallbladder.
A laparoscope, a telescope-like instrument with a light and video camera on the end, helps the surgeon see inside the abdomen. Removal of the gallbladder this way usually takes one to two hours. This is much more common and less invasive than an open cholecystectomy, which involves making a six-inch incision in the abdomen and cutting through to the gallbladder.
Injury to the intestines during the procedure is rare, but it is a risk that patients are informed about before surgery, said Dr. Albert Wu, professor of health policy and management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.
If the intestine is perforated, stool can leak into the abdomen, causing a systemic infection called sepsis, he said. If the patient begins taking antibiotics immediately when that happens, that could solve the problem, but if the perforation goes unnoticed and several days pass, the infection can get worse and result in death, Wu said.
This is just one possible scenario, however, experts said. It is unknown at what point during the procedure his intestine may have been harmed, or in what way.
"It certainly is a surgical error, I just don't know where the mistake [was], how that occurred," Britt said.
The damage could have occurred during dissection or, alternatively, when inserting the trocar, a surgical device that aids the introduction of other instruments into the abdomen, Britt said. Another possibility is that the heat probe could have injured the intestine, and later the area that got burned could have opened up and leaked, Britt said.
The takeaway message is to always call your doctor or come back in the hospital if you feel unwell after surgery, experts say.
"If you suspect that something is wrong, without delay you should contact the surgeon because time really is of the essence," Wu said.
A 2009 study led by the Mayo Clinic found that almost 9 percent of U.S. surgeons who responded to the survey said they had made a major error in the previous three months.
"No operation is 100 percent free of complications and problems," Britt said. "The best you can do is, obviously, follow instructions, as I'm sure [Murtha] did."
Britt stressed that the laparoscopic procedure is common. He performed three last week, two that went smoothly and one of which needed to be converted into an open procedure because of scar tissue. The public should not be frightened, he said.
"At the end of the day, if you don't have it done and you have a diseased gallbladder, you're talking about a very high complication rate and a possibility of death," he said.

Haiti rubble collapses as diggers try retrieve body

Teams of rescuers in Haiti's capital rushed to the city's Caribbean Market on Tuesday after a machine used to clear rubble caused a secondary collapse, trapping at least one Haitian in the rubble.
A French excavation team was working the site, which collapsed in the January 12 earthquake, said Lt. Col. Christophe Renou of French Civil Protection. The team spotted a body in the rubble and brought in an excavation machine, which resembles a bulldozer, to attempt to reach the body, he said.
The machine tipped into a hole, however, and caused further collapse, Renou said. Several Haitians were in the building at the time, he said, some helping in the search and others looking for useful items. Teams are aware of at least one person alive, confirmed with radar.
Renou said he believes more people are trapped, but he doesn't know how many or whether they are alive.
The French crews called U.S. and Mexican teams to the site to help with the rescue. The U.S. team brought more radar and lifting devices to try to extract the known survivor and reach any others, said Norman Skjelbreia, an incident commander from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
The rescue mission is complicated, he said, by the Caribbean Market's debris and rubble and an adjacent building that is partially collapsed.
More than 212,000 people died in the earthquake, Haitian officials said, and bodies are being recovered every day.
Rescuers pulled an apparent survivor of the original quake, Evan Muncie, 28, from the rubble of a market on Monday. Doctors found him suffering from extreme dehydration and malnutrition, but without significant crushing injuries.
Muncie's family told staff at the hospital that he had been missing since the quake, and was found in the wreckage of a market where he sold rice. Muncie told doctors that someone brought him water while he waited for rescue, but sounded confused and sometimes thought he was still in the rubble.
By Wednesday, Muncie was in stable condition, according to University of Miami hospital spokeswoman Nery Ynclan, who said he was more alert and aware of his surroundings and was answering questions.
Ynclan said Muncie had eaten and even asked for chocolate -- which staff provided in small quantities. Muncie will be at the hospital at least another week, she said. His brother and mother arrived Monday at the hospital to be with him, she said.
Ynclan also said that crews returned Tuesday to the the site where Muncie was found and determined he may have been trapped in a room with some food or water. He was likely not pinned down, she said, but scrapes on his hands and feet indicate he may have tried to climb out.

One year in, Obama must define himself

In his first year in the White House, President Obama has proved to be an elusive figure. This is ironic given that his campaign to win the Democratic primary in 2007 and 2008 had been premised on the idea that voters preferred a candidate who stood for something.
For one thing, he distinguished himself from Sen. Hillary Clinton by highlighting the fact that he had been against the Iraq War from the start and never wavered in his position.
Yet in 2010, many Democrats, as well as Republicans, are unsure of who President Obama is and what exactly he stands for.
The president has opened himself up to attack by falling into the trap of being the pragmatic president who avoids taking clear stands. He makes himself vulnerable to attack from liberals who believe he is disloyal to their cause, moderates who are not convinced that he really will govern from the center and conservatives who can paint him as embodying their very worst fear.
Several times, the nation has seen Obama take a firm stand but then back off. Most recently, the president has wavered on his decision to have one of the masterminds of 9/11 tried in a civilian court in New York. When a backlash developed from New York officials, the Obama administration backed down and said it was reconsidering.
This was similar to what happened with the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base. The president started his term announcing he would close the facility within a year. But from the time of the announcement, he encountered fierce opposition from members of both parties who didn't want detainees transferred to detention centers in their home states. At this point, the schedule to close Guantanamo remains unclear.
We have seen the same kind of elusiveness on domestic policy. With some exceptions, such as his effective speech on health care after a politically brutal month, the president has avoided making too many speeches where he outlines his broader vision of public policy.
At several points in the health care negotiations, the president has conceded on significant items that he once supported. Many liberals were upset that he gave up on the public option and allowed for abortion restrictions to be placed in the bill. Many moderates were unhappy that the president did not fight harder for cost-control measures that he once said were essential to the success of the legislation.
When presidents fail to define themselves, they can find themselves in political trouble. To be sure, it is essential that a president avoid being so ideologically rigid that he circumscribes the opportunities for productive negotiations.
But at the same time, a president needs to let voters and fellow politicians know what he is about. Lyndon Johnson frequently spoke about his broader vision for a Great Society, even while accepting significant compromises on the particulars of bills.
Ronald Reagan stuck to his arguments about the dangers of too much government and the need for an aggressive stance against Communism, even while accepting policies, such as arms negotiations with the Soviets in 1986 and 1987, that signaled very different goals.
Even Bill Clinton, who was notoriously opportunistic, was able to define himself as a centrist Democrat who would defend the social services provided by the federal government since the New Deal while pushing for market-based reforms and market deregulation.
Then there were presidents who proved much less popular.
Jimmy Carter ran into trouble in 1979 and 1980, as critics from all sides of the political spectrum saw in him a lot of what they didn't like -- conservatives saw a left-wing Democrat, liberals saw a hidden conservative -- while few people found something in his presidency for which they were willing to fight.
Similarly, George H.W. Bush saw his political standing plummet after a high point during Operation Desert Storm for, among other things, refraining from dealing with the "vision thing" on domestic policy during a recession. As a result, he found himself under attack from multiple angles.
Since the Republican victory of Scott Brown in Massachusetts, Obama has tried to speak out in a more forceful fashion but continues to send signals in many directions.
At some moments, he draws on a populist rhetoric to attack the banks and call for regulations; at other times, he taps into the agenda of the moderate Democratic Leadership Council with his calls for deficit reduction and spending cuts.
Most recently, the president has invited Republicans to participate in a summit on health care. If the event comes off, it will be important that Obama provides a strong sense of what provisions within the existing legislation the White House will insist on if there is to be a final deal.
The president is still early in his presidency. He has time to correct his problems and to emerge stronger during year two. But time is slipping away. Many members of the administration must feel like athletes on the court, looking up at the game clock as the minutes fade away.
The president must do better at explaining just what his presidency is about. This does not mean abandoning a strategy of negotiation and compromise and ideological flexibility, but it does mean better defining the person who will be at the negotiating table. Otherwise, everyone else in the room will do that job themselves.
The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Julian Zelizer.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) added 150 points, or 1.5%, after having risen as much as 230 points earlier in the session. It was the Dow's b

Stocks rallied Tuesday as growing bets that European officials will rescue Greece from its debt problems reassured investors after a four-week selloff.
After the close, Dow component Walt Disney (DIS, Fortune 500) reported higher-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue. Shares rose 2% in extended-hours trading.

The Dow Jones industrial average (INDU) added 150 points, or 1.5%, after having risen as much as 230 points earlier in the session. It was the Dow's biggest one-day point advance since Jan. 4, when it gained 155.91.
The S&P 500 index (SPX) rose 14 points, or 1.3% and the Nasdaq composite (COMP) gained 25 points, or 1.2%.
"The prospect of the EU helping out Greece is a sigh of relief, but I really think today is mostly a bounce after the selloff," said Scott Armiger, portfolio manager at Christiana Bank & Trust.
He pointed out that last week, stocks rallied the first two sessions of the week before sliding later in the week. "Today is a good day, but it's only Tuesday," he said. "We need to see how the week plays out."
The threat of a default in Greece has sparked fears of a broader crisis that could impact Portugal, Spain, Ireland, Italy and other debt-challenged European nations. U.S. investors have been trying to gauge what kind of impact such a crisis would have on financial institutions as well as the still-fragile global economic recovery.
News that European Union leaders will meet Thursday to discuss how to manage a growing debt crisis reassured investors. Additionally, Greece said it's raising the retirement age and asking civil servants to accept bonus cuts.
European Central Bank president Jean-Claude Trichet is reportedly leaving a conference in Australia early to join the Thursday meeting. And the Wall Street Journal reported Germany is considering a plan to work with other EU members to offer loan guarantees to Greece and other troubled euro zone countries.
The December trade balance from the Commerce Department is due in the morning, while the January Treasury budget is due out in the afternoon. The weekly crude oil inventories report from the government is also due in the morning.
The House Financial Services Committee holds a hearing on the unwinding of Federal Reserve liquidity programs that were put in place at the height of the financial crisis. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke testifies.
Pop after the fizzle: Stocks have fallen for four weeks straight on worries about China curbing bank lending, Washington cracking down on bank trading practices, and more recently, Europe's debt woes.
Between rally highs hit on Jan. 19 and Monday's close, the Dow lost 7.6%, the S&P 500 lost 7.3% and the Nasdaq lost 8.4%.
"I don't see this as much more than a reflex rally after the downtrend," said Mike Stanfield, chief investment officer at VSR Financial Services.
"There's still a lot of uncertainty about the economic and political environment going forward," he said. "It wouldn't be surprising to see the first half of the year be something of a consolidation period."
The burger and beverage recession
On the move: Financial shares bounced Tuesday, with the KBW Bank (BKX) index rising 1.3%. The index slipped nearly 5% between the market rally peak on Jan. 19 and Monday's close.
Big energy stocks including Exxon Mobil (XOM, Fortune 500) and Chevron (CVX, Fortune 500) rallied as the dollar slipped versus the euro. Barrick Gold (ABX), Goldcorp (GG) and Alcoa (AA, Fortune 500) were among the other big commodity shares rising.
Caterpillar (CAT, Fortune 500) gained after it was reportedly upgraded to "overweight" from "underweight" by Morgan Stanley.
Economy: Wholesale inventories fell by 0.8% in December after rising 1.6% in November, according to a government report released in the morning. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com thought inventories would rise 0.5%, on average.
"The weak inventories number shows you that businesses are not ready to restock their shelves," said Armiger. "They don't feel confident enough yet."
Toyota: The troubled automaker announced a global recall of 437,000 hybrids, including the 2010 Prius, due to problems with the anti-lock brakes.
Toyota (TM) has recalled 8.1 million vehicles due to brake problems. Shares gained 2.4%.
The House Oversight Committee holds a hearing on the company's recall Wednesday.
Quarterly results: Coca-Cola (KO, Fortune 500) reported fourth-quarter earnings of $1.54 billion or 66 cents per share, up 55% from a year earlier and in line with analysts' estimates, according to Thomson Reuters' estimates. The Dow component reported revenue of $7.51 billion, up 5% from a year ago and better than expected.
Shares of Coca-Cola rose 2.6%.
With 335 companies, or 67% of the S&P 500, having reported results, earnings are on track to have risen 207% versus a year ago and revenues to have gained 8%, according to Thomson Reuters. The jump is largely attributed to a combination of cost-cutting efforts and easy comparisons to a year ago.
Financials are expected to benefit more than any sector. Striping out financials leaves earnings growth at 16% and revenue growth at 3%.
Results have largely been positive, with 74% of companies beating earnings forecasts and 71% beating revenue forecasts.
0:00 /1:20Toyota workers on the fix
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Commodities: U.S. light crude oil for March delivery rose $2.56 to settle at $73.75 on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
COMEX gold for April delivery rose $11 to settle at $1,077.20.
Bonds: Treasury prices tumbled, raising the yield on the 10-year note to 3.63% from 3.56% late Monday. Treasury prices and yields move in opposite directions.
Market breadth was positive. On the New York Stock Exchange, winners topped losers three to one on volume of 1.24 billion shares. On the Nasdaq, advancers beat decliners by over nine to four on volume of 2.24 billion shares.

Crew inspects shuttle after launch, heads for space station

As they head toward a rendezvous with the international space station, crew members of the space shuttle Endeavour are checking for any signs of damage after Monday's early morning launch.
Tuesday's routine inspection includes checks of the shuttle's protective thermal tiles. Cameras and lasers capture views of the shuttle's exterior, which NASA will inspect on Earth for any damage sustained during launch.
The shuttle will dock with the space station just after 12 a.m. Wednesday.
Endeavour lifted off from Kennedy Space Center early Monday. During the mission, the six-member crew is delivering a key module to the space station.
The crew is delivering a third connecting module, an Italian-built Tranquility node and a seven-windowed cupola to be used as a control room for robotics. The mission also will include three spacewalks.
The space station will be about 90 percent complete once the node and cupola are added, NASA said.

Federal workers in Washington, with the exception of emergency employees, stayed home Monday and students in most schools in the nation's capital got

The mid-Atlantic region continued digging out Monday from the weekend's record blizzard, but snow-weary residents learned of a new winter storm due in the area on Tuesday.
The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning, with predictions of another 10 to 20 inches of snow, for northern Virginia and eastern Maryland, including the District of Columbia, beginning Tuesday afternoon and continuing through Wednesday.
"A winter storm warning means significant amounts of snow are expected or occurring," said the statement from the weather service facility in Sterling, Virginia. "The combination of snow and strong winds will make travel very hazardous."
If as severe as predicted, the new storm would be the third major snowfall to hit the nation's capital and surrounding region in just over seven weeks.
In last weekend's blizzard, a record 32.4 inches of snow fell on Washington's Dulles International Airport over two days, breaking a January 7-8, 1996, record of 23.2 inches.

Federal workers in Washington, with the exception of emergency employees, stayed home Monday and students in most schools in the nation's capital got a snow day.
Many residents who spent the weekend playfully making snowmen and hurling snowballs also grumbled as they shoveled hip-high snow from driveways.
"The streets are pretty well covered," Kingsley Barreto said Sunday about his subdivision in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
"No cars coming in or out of here. Hopefully everyone in the community has enough supplies to last them for a little while, because it doesn't look like we're going anywhere anytime soon," Barreto said in a post he submitted to iReport, a CNN Web site that allows people to submit information, pictures and videos.
Watch Barreto's iReport on his neighborhood
Crews worked around the clock to clear roads and repair power lines, warning that it might take days to restore electricity to some customers from Pennsylvania to Virginia.
Two of Dulles' four runways were open Monday morning, and officials hoped to have a third open later in the day, said Courtney Mickalonis of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority.
The situation there is "getting back to normal," Mickalonis said.
But airport officials asked travelers not to go there without confirmed flights.
Reagan National Airport was scheduled to reopen at 10 a.m. Monday, with flights resuming on a limited basis, the airport authority said. Travelers were urged to check with airlines on flight schedules before heading to the airport.
Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport was open Monday, with limited service, spokesman Jonathan Dean said.
One of the two runways opened Sunday night, and some flights landed, Dean said. However, airport authorities expect carrier delays and cancellations because of the backlog.
Are you there? Share your winter weather photos, video
Airport crews were dealing with a refreeze from overnight, but officials intended to have both runways open by the end of Monday.
Amtrak canceled several trains Sunday after trees and power lines fell on tracks, the train service said. Dozens of Greyhound bus trips in mid-Atlantic states also were canceled, the company said on its Web site. And officials across the region advised drivers to stay off slick roads.
"Everybody's just trying to clean up and get a little bit ahead of the game before the next round comes," said Michelle Timberlake, who lives on a farm in Boyce, Virginia, about two hours west of Washington.
The interior designer found herself running through a mountain of snow when about 40 cows escaped from the pasture on her husband's farm in search of food and shelter.
"This was not what I imagined for myself," she said Sunday, laughing about the experience.

3 shot during Super Bowl celebrations in New Orleans

Three people were shot amid celebrations surrounding the New Orleans Saints' Super Bowl win, police said Monday.
The shootings occurred at about midnight, at the intersection of Iberville and Bourbon streets, in the Crescent City's French Quarter, authorities said in a statement.
None of the victims -- a 25-year-old man, a 30-year-old woman and a 36-year-old woman -- had life-threatening injuries, New Orleans, Louisiana, police said.
The 25-year-old was shot in his right ankle and both women were shot in their left shin. All three were treated and released in good condition.
"According to investigators, the victims stated that they were standing with a crowd when they heard gunshots and observed that they had been struck," the police statement said. Several officers were in the area and responded quickly to the call of shots fired, according to the statement.
CNN affiliate WWL-TV of New Orleans reported Monday that two people had been detained in connection with the incident. In the police statement, issued Monday, authorities asked those with information to contact them.

Study: 'Electronic cigarettes' don't deliver

"Electronic cigarettes" that vaporize nicotine juice to inhale instead of smoke from burning tobacco do not deliver as promised, according to research at Virginia Commonwealth University.
"They are as effective at nicotine delivery as puffing on an unlit cigarette," said Dr. Thomas Eissenberg, at the school's Institute for Drug and Alcohol Studies.
His study, funded by the federal National Cancer Institute, is the first by American doctors to check the function of so-called "no-smoke tobacco" devices, which are unregulated in the United States for sale or use.
The units are shaped like a cigarette and contain a battery that heats a filament to vaporize liquid nicotine in a refillable cartridge. Smokers buy the devices to get around no-smoking restrictions and to attempt to quit conventional cigarettes.
Some users nickname what they're doing as "vaping" instead of smoking, to reflect the vapor produced by the heating element. The devices are marketed as an alternative to smoking, but retailers avoid making claims about health or safety.
Fans have established a Web site, www.e-cigarette-forum.com. Founder Oliver Kershaw said the site "is the largest e-smokers community online with some 26,000 members, most of whom are in the U.S."
Jimi Jackson, a former tobacco smoker in Richmond, Virginia, who sells electronic cigarettes, is convinced there are immediate health advantages in avoiding the known cancer-causing substances in the smoke of a burning cigarette.
"I smoked 37 years, and when I found them, I was, like, 'Thank, you Jesus,' " Jackson said with a laugh, as a reporter visited his shop, No Smoke Virginia, coincidentally just a few blocks from where the research was conducted at Virginia Commonwealth.
In March, the Food and Drug Administration imposed a ban on continued imports of the devices, pending regulatory review for any health risks.
The latest clinical evidence suggests users are not getting the addictive substance they get from smoking tobacco. "These e-cigs do not deliver nicotine," Eissenberg said of the findings he expects to publish in an upcoming issue of the British Medical Journal.
This past summer, Eissenberg recruited smokers without prior experience using e-cigarettes to volunteer to use two popular brands of the devices for a set period. The 16 subjects were regularly measured in a clinical setting for the presence of nicotine in their bodies, their reported craving for conventional cigarettes, and certain physiological effects such as a change in heart rate.
"Ten puffs from either of these electronic cigarettes with a 16 mg nicotine cartridge delivered little to no nicotine," the study found.
But the units may deliver hazardous chemicals, according to preliminary checks by federal regulators. In a notice to importers, the FDA blocked continued shipments after finding diethylene glycol, a chemical used in antifreeze that is toxic to humans.
The government's statement noted there are no health warnings on the products, and that "the FDA analyses detected carcinogens, including nitrosamines."
The notice of the import ban says "the product appears to be a combination drug-device," that "requires pre-approval, registration and listing with the FDA" in order to be marketed in the United States.
A company challenging the import ban claims in federal court documents to have sold 600,000 of the devices in a year's time through a network of 120 distributors in the United States.
"We are on the verge of going out of business, which is why we are suing the FDA in U.S. District Court," said Washington, attorney Kip Schwartz, representing a company called "Smoking Everywhere," a U.S. wholesaler that was importing the devices from China.
The lawsuit questions the FDA's authority to block shipments of a non-tobacco product, and says the agency has violated its statutory process for product review. Liquid nicotine is available on the open market through pharmaceutical houses and vendors who sell e-cigarettes.
A judge has yet to rule on the company's request for an injunction that would allow imports to resume. "There has been no change," said FDA spokesman Siobhan DeLancey. She said "a decision in the case is still pending, with no timeline."
President Obama, who has described himself as an occasional smoker, has been offered one of the devices by Florida Rep. Cliff Stearns. The Republican lawmaker's office said the president did not respond.
An administration spokesman last year said the White House was not aware of the offer.
In a copy of a letter to the chief executive dated March 26, Stearns wrote, "I have recently given out e-cigarettes to a few members of Congress and they have become quite a hit."
Sales of the devices continue at shopping mall kiosks and small storefront retailers, apparently drawing from stock imported before the FDA began to block shipments from overseas suppliers.

Rep. John Murtha dies after surgery complications

Rep. John Murtha of Pennsylvania, a longtime fixture on the House subcommittee that oversees Pentagon spending, died after complications from gallbladder surgery, according to his office. He was 77.
The Democratic congressman recently underwent scheduled laparoscopic surgery at National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, to remove his gallbladder. The procedure was "routine minimally invasive surgery," but doctors "hit his intestines," a source close to the late congressman told CNN.
Murtha was initially hospitalized in December and had to postpone a hearing with Defense Secretary Robert Gates on the administration's strategy in Afghanistan. The congressman returned to work after a few days in the hospital and helped oversee final passage of the 2010 defense appropriations bill.
Murtha had a "tough-as-nails reputation" and a "passion for service," President Obama said in a written statement. He was "a steadfast advocate for the people of Pennsylvania" and "a respected voice on issues of national security," Obama said.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a longtime ally of Murtha's, said in a statement that he always put "the troops and their families first."
Murtha was "incredibly effective in his service in the House," said Wisconsin Rep. David Obey, chairman of the Appropriations Committee. "Every person who serves in the military has lost an advocate and a good friend."

Murtha "will be missed," said House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio. "The House of Representatives has lost one of its own."
Murtha had represented Pennsylvania's 12th Congressional District since 1974, making him the chamber's eighth most senior member. According to his biography on the House of Representatives Web site, Murtha was the first Vietnam War combat veteran elected to Congress.
He was considered one of "the kings of pork" on Capitol Hill by taxpayer watchdog groups for requesting tens of millions of dollars in earmarks.
On his House Web site, Murtha strongly defended earmarks, saying, "I believe that elected representatives of the people understand their constituents and districts best."
Supporters said his efforts helped bring thousands of jobs to western Pennsylvania.
Other controversies dogged Murtha's career. Critics alleged that he steered Pentagon contracts to businesses that hired his brother as a lobbyist, but Murtha insisted that his brother was treated like everyone else.
Murtha also turned up in the FBI's Abscam investigation in 1980 when undercover agents offered bribes to several members of Congress. Murtha was videotaped turning down a bribe, saying he wasn't interested "at this point." He was not charged.
Murtha came under fire during the 2008 election campaign for saying that part of his state was a "racist area" where constituents would not vote for Obama because he was black.
He later apologized and said, "While we cannot deny that race is a factor in this election, I believe we've been able to look beyond race these past few months."
Murtha won 58 percent of the vote in 2008, his last re-election; Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain won the district by less than 1,000 votes.
Murtha, a former Marine, also earned a reputation as one of Congress's loudest anti-war voices. He initially supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq, but he stunned much of Washington when he called for a swift U.S. pullout in November 2005, saying, "U.S. and coalition troops have done all they can. ... It's time for a change in direction."
In 2006, Murtha seemed on track to become the House Majority leader, but he lost to Rep. Steny Hoyer of Maryland. Murtha said he was subject to "swift boat-style attacks" on his ethics record, blasting critics who raised concerns about "unfounded allegations that occurred 26 years ago."
Born June 17, 1932, in West Virginia, Murtha moved with his family to Pennsylvania as a child.
Before joining the House, he was in the Pennsylvania state Legislature. He also served 37 years in the Marines and Marine Corps Reserves. He retired from the Reserves in 1990 and received the Navy Distinguished Service Medal.
Murtha attended Washington and Jefferson College, but dropped out in 1952 to enlist in the Marines. He later graduated from the University of Pittsburgh.
He is survived by his wife, Joyce, and three children.

Elizabeth Smart kidnapper pleads guilty to trying to abduct cousin

A woman convicted in the 2002 kidnapping of Utah teenager Elizabeth Smart pleaded guilty in the attempted kidnapping of Smart's cousin a month later, court officials said Monday.
In exchange for Wanda Barzee's plea of guilty but mentally ill to one count of conspiracy to commit aggravated kidnapping, prosecutors dropped state charges against her in Smart's abduction, said Nancy Volmer, spokeswoman for Utah state courts.
Barzee, 64, pleaded guilty in November to federal charges of kidnapping and unlawful transportation of a minor in connection with Smart's abduction. As part of that plea agreement, she agreed to cooperate with the state and federal cases against her husband, Brian David Mitchell, federal prosecutors have said.
Barzee and Mitchell were accused of abducting Smart, then 14, at knifepoint from her bedroom in her family's Salt Lake City home in June 2002. Smart was found nine months later, walking down a street in the Salt Lake City suburb of Sandy, Utah, in the company of Barzee and Mitchell, a drifter and self-described prophet who calls himself Emmanuel and had done some handyman work at the Smarts' home.
The month after Smart was kidnapped, prosecutors alleged, Barzee and Mitchell attempted to break into the home of her cousin, but were unsuccessful. The girl was 15 years old at the time, according to CNN affiliate KSL. She is not named in court documents.
"Mr. Mitchell's attempt was thwarted when the minor child awakened, which caused Mr. Mitchell to flee," the court documents said.
Following her arrest in 2003, Barzee told authorities that she and Mitchell went to the home in order to abduct the girl, and planned to hold her, along with Smart, in the couple's camp in the mountains, according to court documents.
Sentencing is set for May 21 on the state charge, Volmer said. Barzee faces between one and 15 years in prison, but prosecutors have agreed to allow that sentence to run concurrently with her federal sentence, according to court documents.
Federal prosecutors have recommended a sentence of 15 years in prison for her in exchange for her cooperation against Mitchell. Federal sentencing was set for May 19, but a spokeswoman for federal prosecutors has said a sentence would not be imposed until Barzee's cooperation against Mitchell is complete.
At the hearing in federal court, Barzee apologized to Smart, according to a transcript.
"I'm greatly humbled as I realize how much Elizabeth Smart has been victimized and the role I played in it," she said. "I'm so sorry, Elizabeth, for all the pain and suffering I have caused you and your family. It is my hope that you will be able to find it in your heart to forgive me one day."
Barzee had been housed at the Utah State Hospital while courts determined her competency as well as Mitchell's. After years of being declared incompetent, she recently was declared competent to stand trial, according to the Salt Lake Tribune newspaper. A state court had ruled she could be forcibly medicated, and that ruling led federal prosecutors to proceed with bringing a case against the couple, the Tribune said.
At a competency hearing for Mitchell in October, Smart, now 21, testified that she had been held captive in Utah and California. Just after her abduction, Mitchell took her to a wooded area behind her home and performed a mock marriage ceremony with her, she said. During the nine months of her captivity, Smart testified, no 24-hour period passed without her being raped by Mitchell.
U.S. District Judge Dale Kimball has not yet ruled on Mitchell's competency. State court proceedings are on hold pending the outcome of the federal case.