WASHINGTON – The number of newly laid-off workers filing claims for jobless benefits dropped last week, and the number of people remaining on the rolls also fell, evidence that layoffs have eased.
Still, both figures remain above levels associated with a healthy economy, and analysts expect the unemployment rate to keep rising.
The Labor Department said Thursday that first-time unemployment claims fell to a seasonally-adjusted 570,000, down from an upwardly revised figure of 580,000 the previous week. Analysts expected a slightly larger drop to 565,000, according to Thomson Reuters.
The tally of those continuing to claim benefits dropped to 6.13 million from 6.25 million in the previous week, the lowest level since early April. The figures on continuing claims lag initial claims by a week.
Economists closely watch initial claims, which are considered a gauge of layoffs and an indication of companies' willingness to hire new workers.
While the figures are volatile, first-time claims have trended downward in recent months. Initial claims topped 600,000 for most of this year, until falling below that level in early July.
The four-week average of claims, which smooths out fluctuations, fell by 4,750 to 566,250 last week. That's about 90,000 below its peak for the current recession, in early April.
The weekly figures remain far above the roughly 325,000 that analysts say is consistent with a healthy economy. New claims last fell below 300,000 in early 2007.
Job losses have slowed recently. The department said earlier this month that companies cut 247,000 jobs in July, a large amount but still the smallest number in almost a year.
The unemployment rate dipped to 9.4 percent in July from 9.5 percent, its first drop in 15 months. But Obama economic adviser Christina Romer predicted Tuesday that unemployment could reach 10 percent this year and average 9.8 percent next year.
The recession, which began in December 2007 and is the worst since World War II, has eliminated a net total of 6.7 million jobs.
And when federal emergency programs are included, the total number of jobless benefit recipients was 9.19 million people in the week that ended Aug. 8. That was up from 9.18 million in the previous week. Congress has added up to 53 extra weeks of benefits on top of the 26 typically provided by the states.
The large number of people remaining on the rolls is an indication that unemployed workers are having a hard time finding new jobs.
More job cuts were announced this week. Columbus, Ind.-based Cummins Filtration, a division of diesel engine manufacturer Cummins Inc., said it will eliminate about 400 jobs through next March as it shifts production of filter assemblies to a Mexican plant.
Among the states, Michigan reported the largest increase in initial claims, with 4,068, which it attributed to layoffs in the auto industry. The state data lags the initial claims data by one week.
Pennsylvania, Florida, Puerto Rico and Missouri had the next largest increases.
California reported the largest decrease in claims of 6,286, which it attributed to fewer layoffs in the service industries. Tennessee, Texas, Wisconsin and Ohio had the next largest drops.
August 2009
HYANNIS PORT, Massachusetts (Reuters) –
Family members of U.S. Senator Edward Kennedy gathered on Thursday for a private mass at the seaside home where the 77-year-old towering figure in Democratic politics died two days ago.
As Boston prepared for three more days of tributes to the patriarch of one of America's most famous political dynasties, state officials took up the question of how quickly they could replace the state's senior senator, who had brain cancer.
Governor Deval Patrick told the Boston Globe that he wanted to honor Kennedy's wish to change state laws to allow him to name an interim senator to hold the post during the approximately five-month period until an election can be held.
Patrick and fellow Democratic lawmakers including Massachusetts Senator John Kerry have said that filling Kennedy's seat quickly will be vitally important as Congress works on overhauling the U.S. healthcare system.
Throughout his 47 years in the Senate, Kennedy advocated healthcare reform, which has become a key initiative of U.S. President Barack Obama. Kennedy's death leaves the Democrats one vote shy of the 60-member super-majority they need to override any attempted Republic filibusters.
SANCTUARY IN TRAGEDY
Police blocked off roads leading to the Cape Cod compound where the Kennedys have time and again gathered to endure tragedies that included the assassinations of two brothers, President John Kennedy and Senator Robert Kennedy, and the death of the late president's son in a plane crash a decade ago.
At midday, Kennedy's body will be driven to the presidential library of his late brother, after taking a winding route past Boston landmarks including Faneuil Hall and the Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy Greenway, a park named after his mother.
Crowds of mourners began to form at the library early on Thursday morning, local media reported.
The body will remain at the library, whose centerpiece is a soaring glass atrium overlooking Boston Harbor, until Saturday, when his funeral will be held a Boston church. Obama, who got a major boost in his race for the White House when Kennedy endorsed him, is expected to speak.
The body then will be flown to Arlington National Cemetery outside Washington, for burial near the graves of his brothers, John and Robert.
Born the last child of a family of nine and the youngest of four brothers, Kennedy joined the Senate in 1962, taking the seat previously held by his brother John.
While he was initially considered a lightweight elected largely because of his family's wealth and famous name, Kennedy recovered from a series of personal tragedies and scandals to become known as an expert dealmaker who read the rhythms of legislative life better than almost anyone else.
"Senator Kennedy was the real deal -- an authentic, principled and giving public servant who pushed us to work for things yet to be," Boston mayor Thomas Menino said on Wednesday.
"Boston has never had a greater champion. Massachusetts has never known a more relentless fighter for economic and social justice. America has never witnessed a more influential and productive legislator," Menino said.
(Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss; writing by Scott Malone in Boston; editing by Vicki Allen)
WASHINGTON – Government data this week showed that consumers and businesses went on a big-ticket spending spree in July, sending home, car and equipment sales soaring by the largest amount in years. On Thursday, the Labor Department's report on weekly jobless claims will indicate whether that improved confidence about the economy is boosting the job market.
Wall Street economists expect the number of first-time unemployment benefit claims will fall to 565,000 from 576,000. That would reverse two weeks of increases, which had heightened analysts' concerns about the availability of jobs.
The government on Thursday also will provide an updated estimate of the nation's gross domestic product, the broadest measure of U.S. economic activity. Analysts expect the report will show that the economy shrank 1.5 percent in the April-to-June quarter, a bit worse than last month's estimate of a 1 percent drop.
Still, either number is an improvement over the 6.4 percent plunge the economy experienced in the first quarter, the worst in nearly three decades.
On Wednesday, reports showed that new home sales jumped almost 10 percent from June, while orders for long-lasting goods like appliances, planes and computers rose nearly 5 percent in July, the third increase in the past four months.
"It looks like we've hit bottom and we're now slowly trying to dig our way out," said Nigel Gault, chief U.S. economist at IHS Global Insight.
Still, it remains unclear whether the growth can be sustained. Though the increases in housing sales and manufacturing last month were dramatic, they came from extraordinarily low levels and were fueled by temporary government programs like Cash for Clunkers and tax credits for home sales.
Most economists now agree the recession that began in December 2007 has ended or is ending. Some say the economy is poised to grow strongly in the July-September quarter, but will probably show weaker growth after government stimulus spending tapers off.
Sales of new homes surged to a seasonally adjusted pace of 433,000 in July from 395,000 in June, the Commerce Department said, providing another sign the housing market is bouncing back from the historic bottom reached early this year. Driven by falling prices, the fourth-straight monthly increase was greater than expected. Sales haven't risen so dramatically since February 2005.
While sales are still off nearly 70 percent from the frenzied peak four years ago, they are still up more than 30 percent from the bottom in January a big relief after a long and painful decline.
"We can stop worrying about the housing market and start playing closer attention to other issues, such as when credit will start flowing more freely," Joel Naroff, chief economist at Naroff Economic Advisors, wrote in a note to clients.
The improved outlook could help further boost the economy. As home sales rise, builders will gradually need to hire more workers to pour foundations and pave roads, reversing the trend that saw 1.4 million industry jobs shed since the recession began.
"These are crucial elements of a sustainable recovery," David Resler, chief economist at Nomura Securities, wrote in a research note.
Construction job losses have slowed recently, with 76,000 lost in July, about half January's level.
Much like Cash for Clunkers, homebuyers are rushing to take advantage of a federal tax credit that covers 10 percent of the home price, or up to $8,000, for first-time owners. Home sales must be completed by the end of November for buyers to qualify.
And there are many deals to be had: The median sales price of $210,100 was 11.5 percent lower than levels a year ago, but still up from March's low of $205,100.
Builders and real estate agents fear that the end of the tax credit could reverse the upward trend. Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., has introduced legislation to extend it for another year, raise it to $15,000 and make it available to all buyers.
If that doesn't happen, Isakson said in an interview, "the little improvement we have from awful to terrible will go away and it will go back to awful again."
Some builders are already seeing sales dip.
At A.F. Sterling Homes in Tucson, Ariz., sales fell in July because the builder said it couldn't guarantee the homes could be finished in time to qualify, said Randy Agron, the company's vice president.
"The real estate market is really a fragile thing," he said. "It's not the right time to take (the tax credit) away."
There were 271,000 new homes for sale at the end of July, down more than 3 percent from May. At the current sales pace, that represents 7.5 months of supply, which means builders have scaled back construction to the point where supply and demand are coming into balance.
A similar trend is happening in other industries across the economy.
Orders for transportation equipment, including cars, car parts and airplanes rose more than 18 percent, helping to drive the durable goods data.
A huge jump in aircraft orders accounted for most of that gain. Also, auto production improved last month as General Motors and Chrysler reopened many plants that were shut in May and June while the companies restructured and emerged from bankruptcy protection.
__
Associated Press Writer Christopher S. Rugaber contributed to this report from Washington. AP Real Estate Writer Alex Veiga contributed reporting from Los Angeles.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) –
Sleep deprivation, "insult slaps," water dousing and "walling," or slamming a detainee's head against a wall, were techniques used by CIA interrogators to break high-value detainees, according to an agency memo.
The memo, sent to the U.S. Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel on December 30, 2004, was released on Monday under a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by Amnesty International USA and the American Civil Liberties Union.
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder on Monday named a special prosecutor to probe Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) prisoner abuse cases.
His decision, which promises political headaches for President Barack Obama, came after the Justice Department's ethics watchdog recommended considering prosecution of CIA employees or contractors for interrogations in Iraq and Afghanistan that went beyond approved limits.
"The goal of interrogation is to create a state of learned helplessness and dependence conducive to the collection of intelligence," the memo, outlining procedures for handling captured al Qaeda leaders sent to CIA "black site" prisons, said.
The document, first reported by The Washington Post, said prior to an interrogation session, detainees may be stripped and held in a "vertical shackling position" to begin sleep deprivation.
Once the interrogation begins, the "insult slap" on the face may be used when the interrogator needs to immediately correct the detainee, the memo said.
The document said "walling" was one of the most effective interrogation techniques for wearing down detainees physically.
"An HVD (high-value detainee) may be walled one time (one impact with the wall) to make a point or 20 to 30 times consecutively when the interrogator requires a more significant response to a question," the document said.
Interrogations at CIA prisons occurred in special cells outfitted on one side with a plywood wall to prevent severe head injuries, The Washington Post reported.
The paper said agency spokesman George Little noted that the interrogation program operated under guidelines approved by top legal officials of the Bush administration.
"This program, which always constituted a fraction of the CIA's counterterrorism efforts, is over," Little was quoted as saying.
CIA officials have also noted that harsh techniques were reserved for a small group of top-level terrorism suspects believed to be knowledgeable about the September 11, 2001, attacks, the Post said.
Former U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney criticized Obama's ability to handle national security after the special prosecutor was appointed.
Cheney, who has emerged as a vocal defender of Bush administration policies since leaving the White House, said the intelligence obtained from harsh interrogation techniques had saved lives.
"The people involved deserve our gratitude. They do not deserve to be the targets of political investigations or prosecutions," he said in a statement.
(Editing by Nick Macfie)
A new web site claims to give the odds on you dying next year, or
for whatever period you select, based on a few simple questions.
The site, DeathRiskRankings.com,
is the brainchild of researchers and students at Carnegie Mellon
University. It provides answers based on publicly available data from
the United States and Europe, comparing mortality risks by gender, age,
cause of death and geographic region. Put your info in, and it produces
the probable causes of your demise and provides insight on the timing
of that unfortunate event.
The site can compare such things as the odds of death next year by
breast cancer for, say, a 54-year-old Pennsylvania woman or her
counterpart in the United Kingdom.
Of course the results produced by the web site speak to groups of
people and cannot predict with accuracy when you might actually kick the bucket. The timing of your own end is based on many uncharted factors, from heredity to lifestyle to untimely accidents.
But noodling around with the interface can be enlightening, if not frightening.
"It turns out that the British woman has a 33 percent higher risk of
breast cancer death. But for lung/throat cancer, the results are almost
reversed, and the Pennsylvania woman has a 29 percent higher risk,"
explained Paul Fischbeck, site developer and professor of social and
decision sciences and engineering and public policy at Carnegie Mellon.
"Most Americans don't have a particularly good understanding of their own mortality risks,
let alone ranking of their relevant risks," said David Gerard, a former
professor at Carnegie Mellon who is now an associate professor of
economics at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wis.
The researchers found that beyond infancy, the risk of dying increases annually at an exponential rate.
A 20-year-old U.S. woman has a 1 in 2,000 (or 0.05 percent) chance
of dying in the next year, for example. By age 40, the risk is three
times greater; by age 60, it is 16 times greater; and by age 80, it is
100 times greater (around 1 in 20 or 5 percent).
"The risks are higher, but still not that bad," Gerard said. "At 80,
the average U.S. woman still has a 95 percent chance of making it to
her 81st birthday."
Other results for queries about dying within the year:
For every age group, men have a much higher annual death risk than
women. For 20-year-olds, the risk is 2.5 to three times greater for
men. Men are much more prone to accidents, homicides and suicides, and
the risk of dying from heart disease is always higher for men than
women, peaking in the 50s when men are 2.5 times at greater risk of
dying.
Women's cancer risks are higher than men's in their 30s and 40s.
For heart disease and cancer, U.S. blacks have a much higher death
risk than U.S. whites. Overall, blacks in their 30s and 40s are twice
as likely to die within the year as their white counterparts. Only for
suicides, do whites consistently exceed blacks, where whites typically
have two to three times greater chances of dying.
For 20-year-old males, 80 percent of their death risks are from
accidents, homicides and suicides. By age 50, however, these causes
make up less than 10 percent and heart disease is No. 1, accounting for
more than 30 percent of all deaths.
Obesity-related death risks
are much higher in the United States than in Europe. For example, the
annual diabetes death risk in the United States is three times that
found in northern Europe for 60 year olds.
Fischbeck and Gerard hope the site will add information to the U.S. healtchcare debate.
"We believe that this tool, which allows anyone to assess their own
risk of dying and to compare their risks with counterparts in the
United States and Europe, could help inform the public and
constructively engage them in the debate," Fischbeck said.
10 Easy Paths to Self Destruction
Human Lifespans Nearly Constant for 2,000 Years
Health Care Debate Based on Lack of Logic
Original Story: Death Calculator Predicts Your Odds of Kicking the BucketLiveScience.com chronicles the daily advances and innovations made in science and technology. We take on the misconceptions that often pop up around scientific discoveries and deliver short, provocative explanations with a certain wit and style. Check out our science videos, Trivia & Quizzes and Top 10s. Join our community to debate hot-button issues like stem cells, climate change and evolution. You can also sign up for free newsletters, register for RSS feeds and get cool gadgets at the LiveScience Store.
WASHINGTON (AFP) –
Amazon, Microsoft and Yahoo! joined an alliance opposing the legal settlement which would allow Google to digitize and sell millions of books in a move the Internet giant dismissed as "sour grapes."
The three technology heavyweights are among the members of a coalition called the Open Book Alliance which expressed concern about "serious legal, competitive, and policy issues" surrounding Google's book scanning project.
In a statement, the alliance said its members, which include the San Francisco-based non-profit the Internet Archive, publishers and library associations, will counter the Google book settlement "in its current form."
Google reached a class action settlement in October of last year with the Authors Guild and the Association of American Publishers to a copyright infringement suit they filed against the Internet powerhouse in 2005.
Under the settlement, Google agreed to pay 125 million dollars to resolve outstanding claims and establish an independent "Book Rights Registry," which will provide revenue from sales and advertising to authors and publishers who agree to digitize their books.
Alliance co-chairs Peter Brantley and Gary Reback said in a blog post on a website created by the coalition, openbookalliance.org, that the settlement "creates an unprecedented monopoly and price fixing cartel."
"Just as Gutenberg?s invention of the printing press more than 700 years ago ushered in a new era of knowledge sharing, the mass digitization of books promises to once again revolutionize how we read and discover books.
"But a digital library controlled by a single company and small group of colluding publishers would inevitably lead to higher prices and subpar service for consumers, libraries, scholars, and students," they said.
"Public interest demands that any mass book digitization and distribution effort be undertaken in the open, grounded in sound public policy, and mindful of the need to promote long-term benefits for consumers rather than those of a few commercial interests," they added.
Brantley is a director of the Internet Archive, which maintains a digital library of websites and has its own book scanning project, while Rebak is an anti-trust lawyer in Silicon Valley who ironically helped persuade the Justice Department to file its anti-trust case against Microsoft in the 1990s.
Google, whose book project is already facing anti-trust scrutiny from the US Justice Department, a court review and privacy concerns, dismissed the move by the coalition.
"This sounds like the Sour Grapes Alliance," it said in a statement. "The Google Books settlement is injecting more competition into the digital books space, so it?s understandable why our competitors might fight hard to prevent more competition."
Other members of the alliance include the American Society of Journalists and Authors, the Council of Literary Magazines and Presses, the New York Library Association, Small Press Distribution and the Special Libraries Association.
The settlement still needs the approval of a US District Court judge, who is to hold a "fairness hearing" on the deal in New York on October 7.
Microsoft, which entered into a 10-year Web search partnership with Yahoo! last month that set the stage for a joint offensive against Google, also had a project to create a vast digital library but shut it down in May of last year.
Online retail giant Amazon is a major player in the electronic book sector through its popular e-reader, the Kindle.
Google announced, meanwhile, it was making over one million public domain books available for free in ePub format, an open industry standard for electronic books, in addition to the current PDF versions.
"We founded Google Books on the premise that anyone, anywhere, anytime should have the tools to explore the great works of history and culture," Google said in a blog post.
"This feature takes us one step closer towards realizing that goal by helping support open standards that enable people to access these books in more places, on more devices and through more applications," it said.
NEW YORK – Visitors to the World Trade Center site can now watch live video of the construction at ground zero.
A nearby exhibit opened Wednesday. The 9/11 Memorial Preview Site is housed in old camera shop on Vesey (VEH'-see) Street, near Broadway.
Free of charge, the 3,000-square-foot space features models and renderings of the memorial design. It includes twin reflecting pools with cascading waterfalls where the towers stood, surrounded by the names of the nearly 3,000 victims.
Visitors can also record their 9/11 stories at a booth there.
The memorial to the 2001 terrorist attacks won't open to the public for at least two years.
The National September 11 Memorial & Museum will cover 8 of the 16 acres of the trade center site.
____
On the Net:
National September 11 Memorial & Museum: http://www.national911memorial.org
DETROIT (Billboard) –
Brendon Urie and Spencer Smith, former members of Panic! At the Disco, are anything but panicked as they prepare for life after a schism that cut the band in half.
The two severed ties amicably in July with guitarist Ryan Ross and bassist Jon Walker, who have started a new group called the Young Veins.
"Luckily it didn't end badly," frontman Urie told Billboard.com. "We all understand we wanted to do different things and were just pulling each other's strings in different directions. I think we were very fortunate that we're all still very good friends and were able to come to this amicable agreement."
Now Urie and drummer Smith, who are finishing up a run opening for Blink-182 with some hired hands, are plotting their next move. They have a new single out, a song called "New Perspective" -- which Urie wrote about nine months ago after waking from "an intense, really lucid dream" -- that was recorded for the soundtrack to the film "Jennifer's Body."
Urie said he and Smith have about 10 other songs ready to consider for Panic's third album. "Some stuff sounds like Frank Sinatra," Urie said, "and some stuff sounds ... kind of like the Who, and some stuff is just rock, and it's a lot of fun to play. We really want to spend a lot of time writing and just messing around with ideas in the studio."
They'd like to record the album this fall and have it out "by the beginning of next year, February or something." Blink-182 bassist Mark Hoppus has agreed to produce at least one track.
"There's always a bit of nerves that come with expectations and new situations," Urie said. "But, really, Spencer and I are just trying to get back to where we used to be, and we're looking forward to doing more tours and writing new songs and meeting new people and having all these new experiences.
"The future should be exciting, you know? It shouldn't be a nerve-wracking experience."
(Editing by Sheri Linden at Reuters)
TRIPOLI, Libya – The only man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing returned home Thursday to a cheering crowd after his release from a Scottish prison an outrage to many relatives of the 270 people who perished when Pan Am Flight 103 exploded.
President Barack Obama said the Scottish decision to free terminally ill Abdel Baset al-Megrahi on compassionate grounds was a mistake and said he should be under house arrest. Obama warned Libya not to give him a hero's welcome.
Despite the warning, thousands of young men were on hand at a Tripoli airport where al-Megrahi's plane touched down. Some threw flower petals as he stepped from the plane. He wore a a dark suit and a burgundy tie and appeared visibly tired.
He was accompanied by Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi's son, Saif al-Islam Gadhafi, who was dressed in a traditional white robe and golden embroidered vest. The son pledged last year to bring al-Megrahi home and raised his hand victoriously to the crowd as he exited the plane. They then sped off in a convoy of white sedans.
International photographers and camera crews along with most Libyan broadcast media were barred from filming the arrival at the airport, which decades ago had been part of a U.S. air base.
Al-Megrahi's release disgusted many victims' relatives.
"You get that lump in your throat and you feel like you're going to throw up," said Norma Maslowski, of Haddonfield, New Jersey, whose 30-year-old daughter, Diane, died in the attack.
"This isn't about compassionate release. This is part of give-Gadhafi-what-he-wants-so-we-can-have-the-oil," said Susan Cohen, of Cape May Court House, New Jersey. Her 20-year-old daughter, Theodora, was killed.
At home, al-Megrahi, 57, is seen as an innocent scapegoat the West used to turn this African nation into a pariah. At the airport, some wore T-shirts with his picture and waved Libyan and miniature blue-and-white Scottish flags. Libyan songs blared in the background.
"It's a great day for us," 24-year-old Abdel-Aal Mansour said. "He belongs here, at home."
Moammar Gadhafi lobbied hard for the return of al-Megrahi, an issue which took on an added sense of urgency when al-Megrahi was diagnosed with prostate cancer last year. He was recently given only months to live.
The former Libyan intelligence officer was convicted in 2001 of taking part in the bombing on Dec. 21, 1988, and sentenced to life in prison for Britain's deadliest terrorist attack. The airliner exploded over Scotland and all 259 people aboard and 11 on the ground died when it crashed into the town of Lockerbie.
Al-Megrahi's conviction was largely based on the testimony of a shopkeeper who identified him as having bought a man's shirt in his store in Malta. Scraps of the garment were later found wrapped around a timing device discovered in the wreckage of the airliner. Critics of al-Megrahi's conviction question the reliability of the store owner's evidence.
He was sentenced to serve a minimum of 27 years in a Scottish prison. But a 2007 review of his case found grounds for an appeal, and many in Britain believe he is innocent. He served only eight years.
Scottish Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said although al-Megrahi had not shown compassion to his victims many of whom were American college students flying home to New York for Christmas MacAskill was motivated by Scottish values to show mercy.
"Some hurts can never heal, some scars can never fade," MacAskill said. "Those who have been bereaved cannot be expected to forget, let alone forgive ... However, Mr. al-Megrahi now faces a sentence imposed by a higher power."
He added that he had ruled out sending the bomber back to Libya under a prisoner-transfer agreement, saying the U.S. victims had been given assurances that al-Megrahi would serve out his sentence in Scotland.
"I don't understand how the Scots can show compassion," said Kara Weipz, of Mount Laurel, New Jersey. Her 20-year-old brother Richard Monetti was on board the doomed flight. "I don't show compassion for someone who showed no remorse."
As al-Megrahi's white van rolled down street outside Greenock Prison on his way to the airport in Glasgow, Scotland, some men on the roadside made obscene gestures. He later appeared on the airport tarmac dressed in a white tracksuit and baseball cap.
In a statement following his release, al-Megrahi stood by his insistence that he was wrongfully convicted.
"I say in the clearest possible terms, which I hope every person in every land will hear all of this I have had to endure for something that I did not do," he said.
He also said he believed the truth behind the Lockerbie bombing may now never be known.
"I had most to gain and nothing to lose about the whole truth coming out until my diagnosis of cancer," he said, referring to an appeal that he dropped in order to be freed. "To those victims' relatives who can bear to hear me say this, they continue to have my sincere sympathy for the unimaginable loss that they have suffered."
Gadhafi engineered a rapprochement with his former critics following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. He renounced terrorism, dismantled Libya's secret nuclear program, accepted his government's responsibility for the Lockerbie bombing and paid compensation to the victims' families.
Western energy companies including Britain's BP PLC have moved into Libya in an effort to tap the country's vast oil and gas wealth.
Briton Jim Swire, whose daughter Flora died on Flight 103, welcomed the Libyan's release, saying many questions remained about what led to the bomb that exploded in the cargo hold.
"I think he should be able to go straight home to his family and spend his last days there," Swire told the BBC. "I don't believe for a moment this man was involved in the way he was found to be involved."
Among the Lockerbie victims was John Mulroy, the AP's director of international communication, who died along with five members of his family.
____
Associated Press Writers Geoff Mulvihill in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, Shawn Marsh in Trenton, New Jersey, Meera Selva in London, Matthew Lee in Washington, Jessica M. Pasko in Albany, New York, and Jim Hannah in Dayton, Ohio, contributed to this report.
WHAT HAPPENED?: A quarterly report released Thursday by the Mortgage Bankers Association found that more than 13 percent of American homeowners with a mortgage have fallen behind on their payments or are in foreclosure.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN?: It's another new record, and an indication that the foreclosure crisis is still getting worse as layoffs continue to soar.
WHAT'S NEXT FOR THE ECONOMY?: Foreclosures won't stop rising until around six months after layoffs peak. And economists don't expect unemployment, now at 9.4 percent, to crest until this winter at the earliest.
