My brother Jim is helping to coordinate the Guinness Book of World Records Bamboo Dance in Mizoram in North East India on March 12. That just gives you time to get your passport in order, do a little practice and get a team together. They are aiming for about 12,000 dancers.
In this two-minute TED talk, CD Baby founder Derek Sivers reminds us that a flip side exists to everything and what we consider weird is really just different. Certainly a good lesson to refresh yourself on.
Mick Harford took charge of his first home game at Loftus Road today and was in search of his first win as Rangers' boss. Standing in the way of the maiden victory were Scunthorpe, a team that have never won at Loftus Road.
The Lofty Heights crew were split into two groups before the game as Lofty, PK, Corp and Darren went to the Springbok and in the Connie were me, Sam , Justin, Nik and Iceman. We were also joined by Michael Whelan, Shamie and more Irish R's in the Connie. We all joined up before the start of the game as normal service was resumed. Jenson was on holiday duty once again and we had a late arrival.... California Hoop finally arriving 39 minutes into the first half!
Mick Harford made one change from the team that lost 5-0 at Nottingham Forest on Tuesday evening. Damion Stewart dropped out as Rowan Vine replaced him as the R's lined up in a 4-4-2 formation. Leigertwood dropped to right back, Connolly moved into centre back with Gorkss and Hill was at left back. Buzsaky and Taarabt played in the wide positions, with Faurlin and Quashie in the centre of midfield. Vine partnered Jay Simpson up front.
During the first half Rangers' created more chances than the visitors but failed to make their possession and opportunities count. On two separate occasions the R's had the ball in the back of the net but were denied by two offside decisions, one of which looked extremely tight. Scunthorpe had a chance to go into the break one up after Ikeme blocked a Woolford shot, he could only parry it to Togwell who was 12 yards out but he blasted way over the bar.
Thankfully half time came along to save us! News broke out at lunchtime that Gareth Ainsworth would be leaving the club and becoming a free agent. Ainsworth was presented to the crowd at half time and he was given the chance to say thank you to the fans for making his stay at Loftus Road "fantastic and unforgettable". He said that we never got less than 100% from him (I believe we always got 110%) and QPR would hold a special place in his heart. Ainsworth's favourite memory was the day at Hillsborough when the R's won 3-1 and clinched promotion to the Championship, 12 months after joining the club from Cardiff on a free transfer.
Gareth really has earned himself a legendary status during his seven and a half years at the club and I'm sure everyone will wish him the very best as he looks to prolong his playing career. I sincerely hope that Gareth will one day come back to the club in some capacity. Its just a shame the C-Club couldn't stay away from their prawn sandwitches long enough to thank him for all his efforts during his time here and being a caretaker manager on two separate occasions for them.
Oh there's a "game" to talk about, here we go with the second half. The R's continued to enjoy more possession than their opponents but rarely looked like they would threaten Joe Murphy in the Scunthorpe goal. I counted possibly three shots on target during the second half, from Leigertwood, Cook and another shot that has since been forgotten about. The passing got better as the half got older but that final killer ball was lacking. Scunthorpe did have the ball in the back of the net at the midway point of the half, but once again the offside flag came to Rangers' rescue. However just a few minutes later it was 1-0 to the visitors. A long ball from defence found Hooper out on the right hand side. His through ball into the centre found Thompson completely unmarked and he poked home from close range. Immediately after the goal a double substitution was made. Antonio German and Lee Cook came on for Rowan Vine and Adel Taarabt. Some 5 minutes later Angelo Balanta came on for Akos Buzsaky. During his time on the pitch Lee Cook looked the most likely to create any kind of chance and his crosses from the left hand side looked very dangerous during his 15 minutes on the pitch. Unfortunately an equalizer wasn't found and Scunthorpe went away with the points for the first time in their history.
After the game a protest was held by 150-200 fans outside the W12 VIP entrance, little to everyone's knowledge that Flavio Briatore had left the ground upon Scunthorpe scoring their goal. Chants of "we want our Rangers' back", "£20 you're having a laugh", "you can stick you're four year plan up you're a@#e" and mimicking the circus music. The songs being sung during the game like "if you hate Briatore clap you're hands" (and a few others I wont mention due to the language). These chants were heard by the Chairman and you now have to wonder if he will look to sell up to someone else, if he hasn't already started courting with prospective investors.
Onto our Man of the Match award. Its hard to look elsewhere than the person that is going to get this award today. Lee Cook looked like he was progressing nicely on his comeback from injury and posed a lot of threat when he came on and today the award definitely has to go to Gareth Ainsworth.
This morning it has been announced that Fitz Hall has left the club on loan until 31st May with his destination being Newcastle United.
Hall joined Rangers in January 2008 and made his debut against Chelsea in the FA Cup tie at Stamford Bridge and has gone on to make 54 appearances and scored 2 goals, both of which came against Barnsley at the beginning of last season.
The 6ft 4ins centre-back started his playing career with non-league Barnet before joining Chesham United.
There he came to the attention of Oldham Athletic manager, and former Magpie coach, Iain Dowie who took the Londoner to Boundary Park in 2002.
A brief stay at Southampton followed before rejoining Dowie at Crystal Palace.
There, alongside Routledge, Hall and The Eagles were relegated from the Premier League during their first season back in the top flight.
In 2006, though, Hall returned to England's top division when he was snapped up by Wigan for a £3m fee. He then Joined Rangers in January 2008.
I'd like to wish Fitz all the best during his time at Newcastle.
Carl Ikeme has extended his loan spell at the R's until the 6th April.
The Wolves custodian has been at Rangers' for the past month and has played in the last two fixtures, conceding 7 goals in the process. Ikeme played a bit part at the end of last season as Wolves clinched promotion to the Premiership.
Mick Harford told the Official QPR website "Carl has trained ever so well since he's been here. He's a good size and has a great presence, which helps to take the pressure off the back four a little bit. We want players who want to play for this Football Club."
The Mick Harford and Tony Coton partnership started tonight with the unenviable trip to high flyers Nottingham Forest, the Lofty Heights crew were there to witness the events unfold in front of us.
After hearing the news that Wayne Routledge had left the club for Newcastle United, tonight’s gang of Jenson, Sam, Justin, Jack and myself were in slightly less optimistic moods and were left feeling pretty puzzled as to what was going on at our club and begun to wonder who may be next out the door and who the next loan signing will be, disillusionment has definitely started to affect the fans, so who knows what it is doing to the management team and the players. The news that Crystal Palace had gone into administration broke as we were on the road, this meant that the R’s jumped up a place in the table before a ball was kicked in anger. Inside the ground we met up with our Welsh friends Richard, Sophie and Dan.
Mick Harford made two changes from the side that drew 2-2 at Blackpool at the weekend. Nigel Quashie and Matt Hill, two new signings this week, came in for the two players that have departed the club in the last 24 hours, Patrick Agyemang and Wayne Routledge.
Nottingham Forest started the game the better of the two sides and if I’m honest they completely controlled the opening 45 minutes. Forest were freely passing the ball around without feeling too much pressure from the R’s defenders or midfielders. The chances soon came but were not taken as McKenna fired wildly shot hide and wide. Disaster struck on 19 minutes. Forest were awarded what looked to be a very soft free kick just outside the Rangers’ penalty area. As Rob Earnshaw placed the ball on the floor I turned to Richard and said “U watch this now, 1-0, top right hand corner”. Earnshaw stepped up and placed his shot into the top right hand corner, I wish I never predicted it!! 1-0 Forest and Lee Camp started celebrating in front of the R’s fans that had given him a good reception at the start of the game. Just two minutes later and it was 2-0! Quashie was dispossessed in the centre of midfield and Forest swept thru the R’s with some slick passing. The final pass was to Earnshaw and he made no mistake as he netted with a powerful shot into the bottom left corner. Camp this time decided to start celebrating like he had just won the World Cup and annoyed many of the travelling supporters. I think it’s safe to say that he lost a lot of the R’s fans that continued to back him when he left. Forest were in complete control and Rangers’ didn’t even pose any threat to Camp’s goal until 27 minutes as Adel Taarabt tamely shot at goal. Unfortunately that was the best moment of the half for the away fans as we started to sing our own songs and try to at least enjoy our time in Nottingham. I will shed some light on them a little later on as I try to end this report on a more positive note. Carl Ikeme made his first real save of the evening on 30 minutes as Majewski fired a cracking shot on goal and Ikeme parried the ball into the air before gathering up at the second attempt. 32 minutes were on the clock as Forest were given the chance to make it 3-0. Earnshaw turned in the box and was tripped by Gorkss, referee Ilderton pointed to the spot, although it looked soft from where we were sitting(it would be nice to see the replay of the challenge). Former R’s striker Dexter Blackstock stepped up and buried the penalty and he toned his celebration somewhat, nice to see someone didn’t milk it in the moment. Luckily no more goals were conceded in the final 10 minutes of the half but what we witnessed really was not pretty at all!
Half time saved us from further humiliation and the main topic of discussion was at what time we were going to leave in the second half. We agreed that we should leave on 4-0 or if there was no improvement in the first 20minutes of the second half.
Harford made two changes at half time. Faurlin and Stewart came off and were replaced by Ephraim and Ramage. It took a matter of seconds for Rangers’ to have their first telling shot on goal. Taarabt squared the ball to Quashie but his effort went straight at Camp. Four minutes into the half and goal number four was chalked up. Cohen, who scored in the same fixture last year, received the ball 35yards from goal and was given acres of space. Cohen let rip from 20yards out, Ikeme got a hand to it but unfortunately he seemed to mis-judge the flight of the ball and he could only palm the ball into the back of the net. It was at this time that Richard, Sophie and Dan left and let’s face it who could blame them! At this time the R’s fans were sarcastically cheering every pass we made and even started singing “it’s just like watching Brazil”
I will now list three of the songs that I can remember being sung in the hope it’ll cheer you up after only hearing doom and gloom before I then tell you about how we went 5-0 down. “If you can’t borrow money Borrowdale, if you can’t borrow money Borrowdale, if you can’t borrow money, can’t borrow money Borrowdale”. “There’s only one Peter Ramage, one Peter Ramage, walking along, singing a song, living in a Ramage wonderland”. But the best one of all from the evening has to be :- “We’ve lost that scoring feeling, wooaahhh that scoring feeling. We’ve lost that scoring feeling and now it’s gone gone gone wooaaaahhhhhhhhhhh”.
Now it’s back to the action, well when I say action I mean the last piece of action we saw, Forest’s fifth goal. Good work down the Forest left and a neat through ball into the R’s penalty area led to Forest having two efforts cleared off the line but the ball dribbled to Perch who was following up to slide home from an acute angle.
We can view this game from two different perspectives. Forest really did look comfortable and put in a good shift tonight. Their finishing was clinical and really did make Rangers’ look like a struggling mid table team. On the other hand Rangers’ were poor and didn’t pressure or get in the faces of Forest at all. A very bad day at the office and I really hope the players got a real roasting at the end of the game because performances like that cannot be tolerated. Harford has come out and said that we need a striker after tonight’s game, well hopefully two will come in and the players will put in some effort on the training ground before Saturday’s game against Scunthorpe.
All that remains is for our Man of the Match to be named. As no-one on the field is worthy of the award and us having 693 fantastic travelling fans in attendance, I am going to go with Jenson’s suggestion that the 693 fans should be our Man/Woman/Child of the Match. I wish that our fans were like that for every game!
Nottingham Forest: Camp, Perch, Morgan (Chambers 72), Wilson, Anderson (Tyson 70), Earnshaw, Cohen, Gunter, McKenna, Blackstock (Adebola 80), Majewski.
Subs not used: Smith, McGugan, McGoldrick, Moussi.
Today the club have announced the departure of Wayne Routledge to Championship table toppers Newcastle United for an undisclosed fee.
Routledge joined the club in the January transfer window last year for £600,000 from Aston Villa after a successful two month loan spell at Cardiff City. He went on to make 47 appearances for the R's and scored 7 goals in the process, including a hat-trick against Exeter in the League Cup.
Routledge was apparently disillusioned with life at Loftus Road after seeing managers come and go during his 12 month stay, and lets be fair, who can blame him!
I would like to wish Wayne all the best for the future and thank him for his efforts over the past 12 months.
Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, in a recent interview with Mike Allen of Politico warned that the financial markets could react negatively if Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke isn't confirmed for a second term. (READ Politico's full story here.)
Geithner suggested that the market would see a failed Bernanke confirmation as "very troubling," but claimed that he was "very confident" Bernanke would receive enough Senate votes to win a second term. "The markets would view this as very troubling thing for the economy as the whole," Geithner said. "I don't think they should be uncertain. I think they can be confident because we're very confident." Predicting that the U.S. economy will begin to show positive job growth by this Spring, Geithner added that Bernanke has done a "remarkable job of guiding this economy through the recession." The Treasury Secretary also expressed some sympathy for the millions of Americans still struggling to find work, or otherwise impacted by the financial crisis. The country is "in a moment where people are incredibly angry and frustrated by the damage this crisis caused...You see that across the country. That's perfectly understandable, and everybody involved in this effort is bearing a lot of the brunt of that frustration and anger." In the second portion of the interview, Geithner said that the financial rescue program which "was designed to bring capital back into the financial system so banks could lend again" was "remarkably successful." "The cost of credit and the ability for businesses across the country [to get credit]" was stabilized by the bailout, Geithner said, while acknowledging that the small business market is still having trouble getting credit.
Two deals have been announced today as Matt Hill joins the club on loan from Wolves until the end of the season and Patrick Agyemang leaves the club as he joins Bristol City on loan, also until the end of the season.
Matt Hill started his career at Bristol City as a trainee in 1998 and went on to make 198 appearances for the club before moving to Preston in January 2005 for £100,000, rejecting that chance to join Rangers in the process. During his time at Preston he won the Player of the Year award for the 2006/07 season. In 2008 he went and joined Wolves for an undisclosed fee but has been limited to only 15 appearances during his time there.
The left back is quoted on the Official QPR website saying "I spoke with Mick Harford before I joined, and the chat we had was certainly enough to convince me to come down here.I like to think I am the sort of player who is all-hearted, and always gives it everything when I play".
All of us here at Lofty Heights would like to welcome Matt to club club and hope he has an enjoyable spell at the club.
In the second piece of transfer news of the day, Patrick Agyemang joins Bristol City on loan for the rest of the season.
Agyemang has had limited chances at Rangers this season but has bagged three goals for the R's this term. Agyemang has been frustrated as of late with not being able to hold down a regular place in the first team and with the R's changing their manager on a frequent basis it has unsettled the player. Hopefully the move will be a good one for the pacey striker and we wish him will during his time at Ashton Gate.
Finally, there is sad news for close followers of the club. Derek Buxton, the clubs statistician from the early 70's onwards, passed away on Sunday following a brief illness. I hope I speak for everyone here when I say that our thoughts are with Derek's family and pass on our condolences.
The new management duo of Mick Harford and Tony Coton combine for the first time as the R's travel to the Midlands for their midweek clash against high flying and promotion hopefuls Nottingham Forest. Here's a little guide of what to expect on your visit to the City Ground.
The Stadium.
Current Capacity - 30,576
The City Ground has been the home of Forest since 1898 and undergone some major redevelopments so that it could be one of the host stadiums for thr Euro 96 tournament. The stadium is the tenth largest outside the top division behind Newcastle United, Middlesbrough, Sheffield United, Leicester City, Leeds United, Southampton, Coventry City, Derby County and Sheffield Wednesday. Contrary to popular belief the name "Forest" does not originate from Sherwood Forest, but from the Forest Recreation Ground just north of Nottingham City Centre which is where the club first played upon its formation in 1865 (though the name of the Forest Recreation Ground does in turn derive from a time when that ground was part of Sherwood Forest). The club have announced plans for a brand new 50,000 seater stadium which would possibly be located in Gamston and is part of the FA's World Cup bid for 2018/2022. Away fans are housed in the lower tier of the Bridgford End. Upto 4,750 fans can be held in the end. The facilities in this end are pretty good and the view of the pitch is unrestricted. A lot of noise can be made here so do make the most of it on your visit.
The History between the teams.
At Forest (27)
Forest 16 QPR 0 Draw 11
Amazingly Rangers' have never won on their travels to the City Ground. That streak was close to being broken last year as the R's drew 2-2 12months ago. An exciting end to the first half saw Forest score a penalty in injury time, only for Matteo Alberti to go up the other end and poke home an equalizer just 90 seconds later and ensured the teams went in level at the break. It was Alberti getting himself on the scoresheet once again early in the second half to set the R's on their way but a Chris Cohen leveller from close range made sure that the two teams shared the points.
How to get there.
By Car:- The postcode required for the City Ground today is NG2 5FJ There are two routes you can use to get to the City Ground and I will quickly give you an oversight here now. The most common route is to go up the M1 and leave at junction 24, heading down the A453 towards Nottingham and then joining the A52 heading towards Grantham and then join the A6011 into Nottingham. The ground is on the A6011 opposite the cricket ground. The other way is as follows - Leave the M1 at Junction 21a (Leicester East) and follow the A46 dual carriageway towards Newark. After around 20 miles take the A606 towards Nottingham. At the first roundabout that is the junction with the A52, take the 4th exit onto the A52, signposted towards Grantham. At the next roundabout turn left onto the A6011 towards Nottingham. The ground is about a mile down this road.
As for parking, there is a large car pack situated at the ground and there are other car parks in and around the area of the ground to park in so it should be pretty easy to park up.
By Train:- The ground is walkable from Nottingham railway station (20mins). As you come out of the main station entrance, turn left and then left again. Follow the road down to the dual carriageway and then turn right. The ground is about 3/4's of a mile down the dual carriageway on the left, just over Trent Bridge.
Pubs 'n' Grub.
The Meadow Club on Meadow Lane has now become the 'unofficial' pub for away supporters it adjoins Notts County FC. The Trent Bridge Inn and Larwood and Voce do not allow away supporters in. There are a large number of food outlets around the ground including a McDonalds, which is less than 5 minutes walk down Radcliffe Road. If you have time to spend in the city centre there are a vast number of pubs, clubs and eating places. For those of you who like a bit of culture when it comes to a good old fashioned pub with some light hearted entertainment then I would highly recommend Hooters, although it is not suitable for some of our younger viewers.
After weeks of speculation today it was finally announced that Nigel Quashie has returned to Rangers', some 11 years after his first spell at the club.
Quashie arrives on a free transfer after being released from his contract at West Ham. The deal will last until the end of the season.
Quashie started his career in the Rangers' youth ranks and broke into the first team in December 1995 when he made his debut for the R's at Old Trafford. At the start of the 98/99 season Quashie made a £2.5million pound move to Nottingham Forest. Permanent spells at Portsmouth, Southampton, West Brom and then West Ham, as well as loan spells at Birmingham, Wolves and more recently MK Dons have accumulated before his return to the club he supported as a child.
Quashie is quoted as saying on the Official QPR website as saying "It's great to be back home, and I am delighted to be at a Club that I love to pieces. I had a good time when I was here before, and the fans were very good to me. I'm a fan of the Club myself so I know what they demand. There are some excellent players here and it is nice to come back and be a part of it".
Hopefully Quashies return will add some much needed bite and leadership the R's midfield has lacked since Martin Rowlands and Gavin Mahon have been ruled out due to long term injuries.
I hope you just us here at Lofty Heights in welcoming Nigel a very happy return.
Today Mick Harford and QPR welcomed a new member to the coaching staff as Tony Coton was named as the man that would be Rangers' number two behind Harford.
Coton is largely remembered for his time at Manchester City in the early 90's. He was bought by Howard Kendall for just under a million pounds and was the most expensive goalkeeper bought by a British club at that time. During his time at City he won the clubs Player of the Year award on two occasions and also won an England B cap in 1992.
Having moved to City's fierce rivals Manchester United in 1996 for £500,000 it was in 1997 that Coton moved on to become a goalkeeping coach and quickly established himself as one of the best in the business in that department. After 11 successful years at Old Trafford it was advised that Coton stepped down from his role due to on-going knee troubles which stopped his participation in training sessions.
Both Harford and Coton are no strangers to each other having played together in the early 80's at Birmingham City. The pair have reamined close friends which each other over the years and share similar views on the game.
Coton is quoted on the Official QPR website "Mick and I are very good friends. We have kept in touch over the years - we normally speak two or three times a week - and we have the same philosophies on how the game should be played. He called me and said he needed a hand, and wanted someone he can trust who he gets on well with. This was a big decision for me because I live up in Bolton with my family. But we go back a long way and I am delighted to be here to help."
I hope you join us all at Lofty Heights in welcoming Tony to Loftus Road and wish him an enjoyable stay at the club.
On a side note, it was announced yesterday that the R's home fixture against Plymouth that was scheduled for the 9th January has now been rearranged for Tuesday 9th March, kick off at 8pm.
"We are bypassing our normal financing accounting and checks and balances. We're doing it because the humanitarian need is immediate." Verizon says it has so far transmitted $3 million in aid to the American Red Cross; Sprint reported having transmitted $1.2 million to a variety of charities.
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7:30 PM ET: Fear that time is running out -- The latest from the AP paints an increasingly desperate picture:
Pushed to the far edge of desperation, earthquake-ravaged Haitians dumped decaying bodies into mass graves and begged for water and food Friday amid fear that time is running out to avoid chaos and to rescue anyone still alive in the wreckage. The U.S. military brought some relief, taking control of the airport, helping coordinate flights bringing in aid and evacuating foreigners and the injured. Medical teams, meanwhile, set up makeshift hospitals, workers started to clear the streets of corpses and water was being distributed in pockets of the city. But the task was enormous. Aid workers and authorities warned that unless they can quickly get aid to the people, Port-au-Prince will degenerate into lawlessness.
7:15 PM ET: U.S. General says world has an "opportunity" in Haiti
6:35 PM ET: Photos of bodies being pulled in the streets -- There have been a good number of truly haunting images coming out of Haiti from the many photographers doing essential journalism down there (Damon Winter's on front of the New York Times this morning was particularly striking.) Here's a slideshow from TIME that provides a good overview of the events of the last few days. 6:30 PM ET: Clinton heading to Haiti Saturday -- From the AP:
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton says she is heading to Haiti to inspect the damage from this week's devastating earthquake firsthand. Clinton will travel with USAID Administrator Dr. Rajiv Shah Saturday. She plans to meet with President Rene Preval and other Haitian officials. She says she will inspect U.S. relief efforts. Clinton says she wants to convey to the Haitian people "our long term, unwavering support, solidarity and sympathies."
6:25 PM ET: U.S. could take larger security role in Haiti -- From the AP:
The top U.S. military officer is leaving open the possibility of a growing security role for U.S. forces if desperation turns to violence in Haiti, a risky undertaking in a country that was chaotic even before this week's devastating earthquake. U.S. forces sent to Haiti to help relief efforts are operating under what two military officials said Friday is an adaptation of standard military rules of engagement that allows for self-defense even though the Pentagon does not expect a need for it. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to characterize the confidential rules.
6:20 PM ET: Search for relief grows more desperate -- From the AP:
Pockets of looting flared across the capital. Small bands of young men and teenagers with machetes roaming downtown streets helped themselves to whatever they could find in wrecked homes. "They are scavenging everything. What can you do?" said Michel Legros, 53, as he waited for help to search for seven relatives buried in his collapsed house. A Russian search-and-rescue team said the general insecurity was forcing them to suspend their efforts after nightfall. "The situation in the city is very difficult and tense," said team chief Salavat Mingaliyev, according to Russia's Interfax news agency.
5:35 PM ET: Obama grants Temporary Protected Status to Haitians The Obama administration, which earlier this week imposed a temporary halt on deportations for Haitian immigrants with expulsion orders, has now granted them Temporary Protected Status, which will allow them to stay and work in the country for 18 months. 5:15 PM ET: Relief work in high gear -- The Christian Science Monitor takes a look at how relief groups are working around the clock to reach victims of the earthquake:
Teams from across the world have been arriving in Haiti since the first hours after the quake. Many have not gotten any more than a few minutes of sleep, if any. The more than 20 countries here - in addition to the UN, World Bank, and numerous private groups - have already pledged aid to Haiti. Brazil is dispatching aircraft with food and water, Cuba has sent 30 doctors, and Israel dispatched a rescue staff of 240. At the Port-au-Prince airport, military planes from Venezuela and Colombia had landed, bringing in supplies.
4:45 PM ET: Should Haitians be given special status due to the earthquake? TIME's Carmen Gentile asks the question:
Unlike undocumented immigrants from similarly troubled countries, those from the island nation detained by U.S. immigration officials have quickly been ordered to be deported back. Now, the catastrophe may lead the Obama Administration to reconsider the controversial policy. Indeed, soon after the earthquake, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano imposed a temporary halt to deportations, allowing 30,000 Haitians with expulsion orders to remain in the U.S. Until the President decides otherwise, however, the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) that grants a semblance of asylum to migrants from six countries will still exclude those from Haiti.
4:30 PM ET: Missing NYU students found -- We wrote yesterday about two NYU students who were said to be missing following the earthquake. Happy to report that they were both found safe today. As the Washington Post mentioned earlier today, Twitter users are using the hashtag #rescuemehaiti in an attempt to help direct rescue teams to those who are trapped or in need of urgent assistance.
USAforHaiti RT @clarlune: RT @yveno76: URGENT Rescue team needed at lycee Anacaona Leogane students are still trapped.. Please RT... #rescuemehaiti 4:20 PM ET: American doctor rescued -- A 65-year-old American doctor from New Jersey who was trapped in Port-au-Prince's Hotel Montana has been rescued after 50 hours buried in the rubble. Sarla Chand, who is from Teaneck, was freed by French firefighters. CBS has a report:
3:55 PM ET: Miracle amid the rubble -- The New York Daily News has a moving story about a four-year-old boy who was rescued three days after being buried alive inside his home. 3:45 PM ET: France asks creditors to cancel debt -- From the AP:
France on Friday urged Haiti's creditors to speed efforts to cancel the impoverished Caribbean nation's debt, a stranglehold that began two centuries ago when Napoleon demanded reparations for the island's independence. In 1825, France demanded 150 million francs in gold as reparations for lands lost by former slave owners. Haiti took massive loans from American, German and French banks at exorbitant rates of interest to pay back France.
3:30 PM ET: Trapped woman rescued -- Raw video of a woman being pulled from the rubble at a collapsed shopping center by a search and rescue team from Iceland yesterday.
3:20 PM ET: Streets full of bodies -- AP has aerial footage of the streets of Haiti, where bodies can be seen lying everywhere.
Some more aerial footage, this time surveying the destruction as of today:
3:00 PM ET: Americans desperate to leave Haiti -- AP has footage of a tense scene at the airport where people are trying to get out of Haiti. U.S. citizens were frantically waiving their passports as U.S. soldiers who were trying to sort out people to be evacuated.
2:30 PM ET: Pelosi says earthquake may give Haiti "fresh start" -- Democratic Speaker Nancy Pelosi said today she hopes US aid to the country would help it achieve a "new, fresh start," while acknowledging that it was a "very sad time": "From my own experience with earthquakes, being from San Francisco, I think that this can be an opportunity for a real boom economy in Haiti," Pelosi said.
11:30 AM ET: Update on relief efforts -- A round-up of reports: --A White House spokesman announced that as of this morning Americans have donated more than $8 million for Haiti relief via text message. The donation system, set up by the Red Cross and the State Department, allows people to donate $10 at a time by texting HAITI to 90999. For more information on how you can help, visit HuffPost's Impact page. --UN says 6,000 pounds of food is to be distributed, and that earlier reports of looting at its warehouse were overblown --Adm. Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, says 9,000 - 10,000 US troops will be in Haiti by Monday to help distribute aid. --U.N. aid organizations plan to launch an emergency appeal to raise $550 million, a spokeswoman said today. --Comcast says it will donate $1 million to disaster relief. --Madonna announced that she has donated $250,000 for disaster relief, and is asking others to match her. 11:00 AM ET: Why it's so hard to get relief into Haiti -- Simply landing at the airport is a major logistical challenge, the AP says:
U.S. military air traffic controllers are scrambling to keep earthquake aid flowing into the Haitian capital without the use of a control tower or radar, and amid struggles over fuel, tarmac space and even staircases to access planes. With all the hurdles facing rescue and relief efforts in this shattered city, it appears the first to overcome are at its major entry point for supplies. U.S. federal officials halted nonmilitary flights for eight hours Thursday at the request of the Haitian government, leaving dozens of planes circling.
10:55 AM ET: U.S. troops arriving -- AP has some raw video of US troops arriving in Haiti this morning, as well as footage of them helping those who are injured.
10:50 AM ET: "We can all do something" -- First Lady Michelle Obama releases a public service announcement telling people what they can do to help.
10:45 AM ET: Donations on track to break record -- USA Today reports that the level of giving to Haiti is on course to exceed the private donations made in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and the 2004 tsunami in Asia. After Katrina, Americans gave a total of $6.47 billion in private donations. 10:30 AM ET: Where will all the money go? -- AP takes a look at the difficulties in channeling relief money to Haiti:
Haiti has received billions of dollars in taxpayer and private aid from the United States and others, yet is so poor that few homes had safe drinking water, sewage disposal or electricity even before the earthquake. With sympathetic donors around the world sending money, making sure that aid is spent properly will be a challenge. Corruption, theft and other crime and Haiti's sheer shortage of fundamentals -- reliable roads, telephone and power lines and a sound financial system -- add to the difficulty as foreign governments and charities try not only to help Haiti recover from the disaster but pull itself out of abject poverty. It is one of the poorest places on Earth. Most basic public services are lacking, people typically live on less than $2 a day, nearly half the population is illiterate and the government has a history of instability. The public has little opportunity to be sure that aid to the government is used honestly and well. Nor is following the money easy for donors, including the United States, 700 miles away and one of the country's biggest helpers.
10:15 AM ET: $8 million for Haiti relief -- A White House spokesman announced that as of this morning Americans have donated more than $8 million for Haiti relief via text message. The donation system, set up by the Red Cross and the State department, allows people to donate $10 at a time by texting HAITI to 90999. For more information on how you can help, visit HuffPost's Impact page. 10:00 AM ET: Burying the dead -- As mentioned last night, the Miami Herald filed a heartbreaking report about the overwhelming scene at the Port-au-Prince morgue. According to Haitian President Rene Preval, the government has managed to remove around 7,000 corpses from the streets and morgues in order to bury them in mass graves.
Here's a report from Reuters about the bodies piled up in the streets. The narrator compares the scene to that of a war zone.
9:30 AM ET: Reporters reflect on what's gone on -- Jonathan Katz, an AP correspondent in Port-au-Prince, has written a moving reflection on the last few days in Haiti and how they've redefined the country's relationship to tragedy. Here's an excerpt:
The city is a ruin. Fuel, food and water are running in short supply. Mothers have lost their children. Children have lost their families. Entire neighborhoods are sleeping in the streets. People walk miles up and down mountains, carrying everything they own, with no real place to go. But here is what is new: You have perhaps seen the pictures of the national palace smashed into a lurching heap over the grassy Champs de Mars. Or of the collapsed twin spires of the Notre Dame d'Haiti cathedral complex, which claimed the life of the archbishop. Or of the collapsed parliament where the senate president remained trapped Wednesday. Imagine if nearly all the institutions in your life -- flawed, but still the only ones -- disappeared, all at once. In a life where the next meal is uncertain, where the next rain may claim your home, where the next election may happen or not -- where that is the normal. Think of having those institutions smashed all around you. At the very moment when you have lost someone, perhaps many people, you loved.
In the video below, another AP reporter, Rich Matthews, talks about how you "can't escape the death" in Haiti. He says he was unprepared for the chaotic scene he encountered when he landed at the airport. The smell from the dead bodies is so bad that you can taste it, Matthews says: "Today, I tasted death."
9:20 AM ET: Aftershocks -- Port-au-Prince was rocked by a strong aftershock at around 5:00 AM ET this morning, Reuters reports. A video report from the AP:
8:50 AM ET: The ongoing struggle to deliver aid -- Nearly every news account of the situation in Haiti this morning has focused on the difficulty of the relief effort. "Haitian Rescue Stymied Amid Chaos," the Wall Street Journal writes; "Tensions Mount in Devastated Capital as Aid Starts to Reach Haiti," is the headline leading the New York Times' website. As the AP wrote this morning: "More and more Friday, the focus fell on the daunting challenge of getting food and water to millions of survivors." Among the problems listed by the Journal: "A badly damaged seaport, a congested one-runway airport, a shattered communications system and difficulty coordinating the aid have delayed relief efforts." A spokesman for the UN Mission in Haiti told the AP that Haitians are beginning to run out of patience. "Unfortunately, they're slowly getting more angry and impatient," the spokesman said. "I fear, we're all aware that the situation is getting more tense as the poorest people who need so much are waiting for deliveries. I think tempers might be frayed." As mentioned earlier, looters have broke into the UN's food warehouse Haiti. And, according to the Times, the Haitian National Police force has all but disappeared.
8:45 AM ET: Aristide looking to return -- The former president, currently exiled in Africa, says he's ready to head to Haiti:
In a rare public appearance, Aristide told reporters at a hotel next to Johannesburg's airport that he and his family are ready to return to Haiti to help with the catastrophe. He said friends, whom he did not name, are willing to provide a plane to fly him to Haiti with medical supplies and other emergency equipment. "As far as we are concerned, we are ready to leave today, tomorrow, at any time to join the people of Haiti, share in their suffering, help rebuild the country, moving from misery to poverty with dignity," said Aristide, his wife Mildred next to him, eyes downcast, twisting a handkerchief.
8:40 AM ET: US military personnel arrive -- This morning's update:
More than 300 troops of the U.S. 82nd Airborne Division arrived at the Port au Prince airport overnight and others have arrived in nearby waters on the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson, Lt. Gen. Ken Keen told ABC's "Good Morning America." "We have much more support on the way. Our priority is getting relief out to the needy people," he said. About 5,500 U.S. soldiers and Marines are expected to be in Haiti by Monday.
8:30 AM ET: Food warehouse looted -- From the AP:
Looters have broken into U.N. food warehouses in Haiti's crumbled capital, an official said Friday, as security and logistical challenges mounted for groups trying to feed at least 2 million people reeling from a devastating earthquake. The U.N. World Food Program had 15,000 tons of food aid in Haiti prior to Tuesday's 7.0-magnitude earthquake, stocks designed for hurricane relief. Spokeswoman Emilia Casella said local partners reported that the U.N. warehouse in Port-au-Prince's Cite Soleil neighborhood was looted but the agency did not know how much aid was stolen or exactly when it was taken.
This evening at just before 23.00 the news broke that after only FIVE games in charge, Paul Hart has left the club by mutual consent.
The news has came as a little bit of a shock but relief to some (maybe many) fans after witnessing some pretty clueless performances and also in his first game in charge, against Bristol City, seeing 6 defenders take to the field for the final 10 minutes and seeing the R's cling on for dear life, even tho the game was not in danger of slipping out of Rangers' reach.
Of Hart's five games, three of them were against Sheffield United. Two 1-1 draws and Tuesday night's 3-2 loss, which was described as pathetic and woeful by the few Rangers' fans that went to the game. A 3-0 loss at struggling Ipswich followed Hart's only win as R's gaffer, a 2-1 win against Bristol City.
The news of Hart's departure comes after a rumoured spat with Adel Taarabt. Apparently the Moroccan was less than happy at being left out of the starting eleven by the former Portsmouth manager and was very vocal about his unhappiness. Could player power be the reason for departure, or is it a combination of that and the poor performances on the field? Who knows!
I'm sure we will hear more during the course of tomorrow as to who may take the caretaker reins for the time being whilst the search for yet another manager starts.
This Saturday Paul Hart’s struggling Rangers side travel to former R’s boss Ian Holloway’s Tangerine Army Blackpool in a clash between two teams chasing the play off positions. As always here are a few hints and tips for your journey ahead.
The Stadium.
Current Capacity – 10,035
Bloomfield Road has been the home of Blackpool since 1901and has undergone a redevelopment plan over the past 10 years. On completion of the North and West Stands it was decided that the South Stand was to be pulled down, in 2003, ready for redevelopment and the away fans would be housed in a temporary stand situated to the east of the stadium. The temporary structure is still in place and in use by away fans. This has no covering and on cold days in Dec, Jan and Feb the nice breeze that you get from the sea really can rip straight through you, so wrap up warm on your visit!! You will notice that the new South Stand is as good as completed and has been named the Jimmy Armfield Stand. Word has it that when this does open to the home fans is that the season ticket holders from the North Stand will be transferred over to the Armfield Stand and will enable away fans to take their place in a small part of the North Stand. There are further plans to redevelop the East Stand and complete the regeneration of the stadium. This would incorporate some office or retail space (rumour) so more land needs to be acquired before building can go ahead there. On completion of the final stand the capacity of the ground would go up to 16,000.
The History between the teams.
At Blackpool (11)
Blackpool 2 QPR 4 Draw 5
Rangers’ recent record at Bloomfield Road holds pretty impressive reading, winning 3 of the last 4 encounters. That run all started off in March 2002, the last time Rangers’ fans were housed undercover in the old battered and bruised South Stand. A Richard Langley hat-trick was the dose of the day for the play off chasing R’s and the massive Rangers’ travelling support, many of whom stayed in the town to party all night long!
How to get there.
By Car: - Today’s post code for the journey is FY1 6JJ. The journey to Blackpool is a long one but is really easy to find. Come off the M6 at junction 32 and follow the M55 all the way into Blackpool. As you enter Blackpool you will see the ground on your right hand side and there are two car parks that you can park in opposite the ground.
By Train:- The closest station to the ground is Blackpool South but there are very few trains that stop here and you will probably arrive at Blackpool North. Blackpool North is roughly two miles from the ground so you may find it easier to jump in a taxi or catch a number 11 bus heading in the direction of Lytham St Annes.
Pubs 'n' Grub.
The closest pub to the away ground that will accept travelling supporters is the No 1 bar, a working men’s club, which is adjacent to the away supporters’ entrance. I would suspect that many fans will be making a day of it and will be planning on venturing into town before and maybe after the game. If this is so then you will find quite a few places to sit down and eat or drink, including the usual fast food chains such as McDonalds and KFC, there are also various fish and chip shops that I’m sure will be popular which many people that make the trip.
With Rangers enjoying an extended run in the FA Cup, albeit via a third round replay, Sheffield United made their second visit to Loftus Road in a month as we searched for a victor and with the winners earning a trip to Bolton as a reward for their efforts in a weeks time.
For the second time this season I decided against making the trip, as I have also decided to do on Saturday so I’ll be reporting from the comfort of my bed again I’m afraid. I’m unsure of who from the Lofty Heights gang made the effort on a cold night in W12, although I do know that Jenson, Sam and Karl did go, the poor things!
Paul Hart selected the same starting eleven that earned the 1-1 draw at Bramall lane 10days ago.
Rangers started the game off the brighter of the two teams and it wasn’t long before the first chance of the game was made by the R’s. Ramage’s throw in was taken down by Simpson and he poked it to the edge of the box to the advancing Leigertwood, fresh from signing his new contract extension, his effort flew just wide of the post. Rangers were soon back on the attack with Routledge down the left side and his pass to Faurlin was just outside the area and the Argentine’s curling effort was palmed away by Blades ‘keeper Bunn. Bunn was again called into action, this time rather unexpectantly. Agyemang burst down the left hand side and drilled his cross into the Sheffield United six yard box, the ball cannoned off Taylor and Bunn was on hand to superbly tip the ball around for a corner. With Rangers seemingly in complete control it was a shock when United took the lead. Montgomery floated his cross over to the back post, Williamson was allowed time to pull the ball down and then fired home from close range, poor defending by the Rangers defence. Buoyed by their goal it was the Blades who started to take control of the game. Gary Borrowdale was lucky not to concede a penalty for a shove on Ched Evans as the Welshman controlled a cross and was looking to pull the trigger, former R’s striker Bradley Allen in the commentary box couldn’t believe how it wasn’t a penalty and the R’s lived on. Then Rangers were given another lifeline, this time by the crossbar! James Harper’s long ball released Ched Evans, who beat the Rangers offside trap, and with only Cerny to beat his effort cannoned off the bar and into safety. There was one last Rangers effort before the half come to an end. Borrowdale sent in a cross at the second time of asking, it was met by Kaspers Gorkss and his effort was cleared off the line by Geary.
Well the half time interval involved me concentrating on the snooker that I had on in the background during the first time and proved to be far more entertaining and pleasurable, I was half tempted to turn the commentary off but I stayed loyal to the cause and braved the radio waves.
The second half seemed to start with Rangers being the more lively of the two teams. Several chances were dragged wide as the R’s looked to claw their way back into the game. The announcement of the attendance of today’s game was announced 12minutes into the second half. 5,780 in total made the effort to watch this FA Cup tie. The only time that Rangers have had less fans in the stadium this year was in the 2nd round of the League Cup vs Accrington Stanley! Hearing many reasons for not attending being read out, many of them were along the lines of the poor football that was being played by the R’s and some were blaming Paladini, some were blaming the lack of money spent and that they would prefer it if we spent money on players and not compensation packages for the lengthening list of former managers that we have. During the time I wrote that paragraph, between 50mins and 65mins, absolutely nothing of any note happened in the game. Sheffield United made the first substitution of the game and what a telling sub it was!! Within seconds of coming on Jamie Ward was clear through on goal and his shot that was straight at Cerny trickled over the line to make it 2-0 to United. Paul Hart instantly made his first sub of the game. Faurlin came off and was replaced by Taarabt. The sub was greeted by a chorus of boo’s and chants of “You don’t know what you’re doing!” Straight from the kick off Sheffield United scored a third! Gary Borrowdale gave the ball away to Jamie Ward and Richard Cresswell anticipated the early cross and made it 3-0 to the visitors. The fun didn’t end there!! Rangers went up the other end and were awarded a very controversial penalty! Taarabt’s volley was blocked and put out for what seemed to be a corner but for some reason a penalty was given, much to the commentators surprise!! Akos Buzsaky stepped up to the plate and made no mistake from 12 yards out. So between 46 minutes and 66minutes minutes absolutely nothing happened and then between 67minutes and 71 minutes we get three goals! Crazy! Absolutely crazy! A second QPR substitution was made on 75 minutes. Antonio German coming on for Jay Simpson. Well once again the game died down again when you really would’ve hoped that a fighting sprit would be displayed but unfortunately it really didn’t sound like it. Bradley Allen in the commentary position then started to talk about the stability of the club and how these last few years he feels that we haven’t had the stability that we had which bought the success in the 70’s with Dave Sexton at the helm, Gerry Francis in the 90’s and Ian Holloway in the 00’s. Just I’ve written that Rangers won a free kick. Buzsaky took the free kick and Damion Stewart met the ball and flicked the ball into the back of the net! 3-2 and only 90 seconds left!! Unfortunately the fairy tale ending never came around and the score remained 3-2 to the Blades. From listening to the commentary and from texts I received from a few people that went tonight it was a well earned victory.
Again I do state that I wasn’t there tonight so if I’m not accurate with what I say then I am prepared to be shot down for any of my opinions that I put now. We just don’t seem to be a stable club at the moment and it’s now slowly becoming evident on the pitch. The appointment of Paul Hart was very rushed and I think it could soon be the downfall of our season. Time after time tonight I continually heard of a long ball being played from defence to attack and completely bypassing our midfield. You look at the quality of players we possess in the middle of the park and we are choosing to play hoofball when we are more than comfortable playing the ball on the floor and knocking it around. It worked for us earlier in the season, the only thing we lacked then was a plan B. I fear that the trigger will be pulled again shortly on another manager and that it’ll come too late in the transfer market and we’ll be stuck with a load of loan players we don’t want, I hope I’m wrong but I fear for me being right!!
All that is left to do is award a Man of the Match. I haven’t awarded it as I don’t deserve to seeing as I was laying on my bed for the duration of the game so I asked three people I that I knew were at the game. I received four candidates from the three of them, Spark (obviously a joke), Faurlin but the winner with two votes is....... Kaspers Gorkss.
India's latest and largest nuclear reactor is being made at Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu. NDTV is the first channel to report from inside the reactor.
The country is working on reducing its carbon footprint through use of nuclear energy.
Made with Russian help, and located at the very tip of India close to Kanya Kumari, this new project will help India make gigantic leaps in using nuclear energy to reduce its carbon footprint.
NDTV's Science Editor, Pallava Bagla, travelled inside the highly-guarded facility to talk to M K Balaji, the chief of country's most modern atomic reactor.
NDTV: What is the state of readiness of the atomic reactor?
M K Balaji: Unit number is almost ready with 96% work completed, with small amount of cabling work still remaining. Other commissioning activity is going on.
NDTV: When can one expect electricity to flow out from the Nuclear power plant?
M K Balaji: We are targeting to start uranium fuel loading sometime in June. That's an ambitious target because this is a first-of-its-kind reactor that we have constructed and commissioned in this country, the 1000 MW VVER reactor of a different technology. It is a pressurized water reactor and we have assimilated the technology and have set a target of middle of June to do that actually; may be this year we are targeting to make the electricity to flow from here to the grid.
NDTV: People are always worried about nuclear electricity not being safe, now what have you done to ensure safety and security so that the environment does not get contaminated?
M K Balaji: I am saying nuclear energy is always safe, and especially when I talk of my Kudankulam plant, it is state-of-art and most safest reactor in the world... you can always say that..which has got lot of safety features. You are saying the containment... the containment is safe which contains the reactor and we have provided lot of redundant safety features into the reactor like maintaining the reactor in most cold condition. We have a lot of trained people.
The reactor is safely-designed, safely-constructed, safely-commissioned, and is going to be safely-operated by the Indian people. I am sure that people need not have any fear that the reactor is unsafe. Reactor will always be safely producing electricity for the public for years to come.
