Penn State abuse scandal engulfing revered Paterno (AP)

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. ? Every Tuesday during the fall, Joe Paterno ambles into the media room at Beaver Stadium, settles into his seat and holds court.

The octogenarian coach usually doles out some one-liners along with the injury updates.

This Tuesday's press conference isn't likely to resemble any other in Paterno's 46-year tenure at Penn State.

Paterno will be asked about what he knew and when about his former defensive coordinator and one-time heir apparent Jerry Sandusky, who was indicted on charges of sexually abusing eight boys over 15 years.

Authorities have said that Paterno, who testified in the grand jury proceedings that led to the charges, is not a target of the investigation. But the state police commissioner has chastised him and other school officials for not doing enough to try to stop the suspected abuse.

Pennsylvania state police Commissioner Frank Noonan said Monday in Harrisburg that Paterno fulfilled his legal requirement when he relayed to university administrators that a graduate assistant had seen Sandusky attacking a young boy in the team's locker room shower in 2002. But the commissioner also questioned whether Paterno had a moral responsibility to do more.

"Somebody has to question about what I would consider the moral requirements for a human being that knows of sexual things that are taking place with a child," Noonan said.

"I think you have the moral responsibility, anyone. Not whether you're a football coach or a university president or the guy sweeping the building. I think you have a moral responsibility to call us."

Already there are some calls for Paterno's resignation.

"I don't know his involvement, but I do think he could send a very strong message if he would step down and retire, or even make a public statement," said Julie McGinn, a 23-year-old biology major from Chicago.

The school issued a statement Monday night reminding media that the main focus of this week's press conference was Saturday's Senior Day game with Nebraska.

The contest, however, is almost an afterthought considering the shocking developments.

"He's a figurehead for this school," said McGinn, who stood in front of the student union Monday afternoon holding a sign that read, "I paid a six-figure tuition and all I got was this lousy sex scandal."

Sandusky was prohibited from holding youth sports camps on campus in 2002, but continued to hold them through 2008 under his Sandusky Associates company at the university's Behrend campus, just outside Erie.

"We provided the facilities for it," Behrend spokesman Bill Gonda said Monday. "There were no allegations, no complaints during his tenure here."

Sandusky also operated football camps at Penn State Capital College in Middletown, Robert Morris University and Muhlenberg College, among others, according to his website, which is now offline.

The camp was aimed at students from fourth grade through high school and offered personal attention and coaching from Sandusky.

Happy Valley has been consumed by the scandal since Sandusky, once revered as the architect of the "Linebacker U." defenses, was charged over the weekend with the abuse of eight boys over a 15-year span. Penn State athletic director Tim Curley ? Paterno's boss ? and senior vice president Gary Schultz have stepped down, and they surrendered Monday in Harrisburg on charges of perjury and that they failed to alert police about abuse complaints.

Lawyers for Sandusky, Curley and Schultz have said their clients are innocent. Paterno, in a statement Sunday issued by his son, Scott, said he was shocked and saddened by the allegations.

"If this is true we were all fooled, along with scores of professionals trained in such things, and we grieve for the victims and their families. They are in our prayers," Paterno said in the statement.

But Happy Valley has always been different, where the program boasts the slogan "Success with Honor."

"Can they say 'Success with Honor' anymore?" asked Rebecca Durst, owner of Rinaldo's Barber Shop, a fixture in State College since 1926.

At a news conference, Noonan and state Attorney General Linda Kelly were peppered with questions about whether Paterno was given details about what graduate assistant Mike McQueary ? now the team's wide receivers coach ? saw on the night of March 1, 2002.

Paterno has referred to his grand jury testimony in which he testified that he was informed by a graduate assistant that he had witnessed an incident in the shower of the team locker room. Prosecutors have said Paterno passed on the information to Curley.

But Paterno said specific actions alleged to have occurred in the grand jury report were not relayed to him.

"It was obvious that the witness was distraught over what he saw, but he at no time related to me the very specific actions contained in the grand jury report," Paterno said in the statement. "Regardless, it was clear that the witness saw something inappropriate involving Mr. Sandusky. As coach Sandusky was retired from our coaching staff at that time, I referred the matter to university administrators."

Whether that was enough was being debated on campus and across "Happy Valley," where pride in the Nittany Lions is as deep as it is fierce.

"People were talking about having JoePa step down, making Facebook sites about it," Mac Frederick, a Penn State senior from Chambersburg, Pa., said as he ate at The Diner, just across street from campus. "I don't think that's really necessary. It's obvious some individuals tried to cover the story up, but I don't know if JoePa knew much about it."

Alex Fakhraee, 19, of Ambler, Pa., said it might be time for the 84-year-old Paterno to go. But his concerns have more to do with the direction of the program under JoePa's leadership than the scandal.

"I'm sure it's going to affect our image in some way," Fakhraee said outside the union. "From what I know, he knew about it and he reported it. After that I feel it's not his obligation. He's just here to coach the football team."

Others were more critical.

"If he cared, he would have said something 10 years ago," Joshua Daly said as he dined with a friend at Champs Sports Bar and Grill in State College. "He's as guilty as anybody. He knew about it ... no one called the police."

Paterno has won 409 games, the Division I record, along with two national titles. He has an impeccable record of focusing on academics as well as athletics ? it's the Penn State library, not an athletic building, that is named for Paterno and his wife Sue.

But that doesn't absolve him of responsibility, said Lori Schope, who cuts hair at Rinaldo's.

"Anybody that says they knew about it and didn't do anything about it," she said, "is complicit."

Former Penn State safety Byron Scott, now with the Buffalo Bills, believes Paterno's legacy is strong enough to withstand the current turmoil.

Much like JoePa's show on Tuesday afternoon, the rock-solid program may never be quite the same.

"It's sickening, shocking. It's very saddening," said Scott, who played for Penn State from 1999-2002 and roomed with Sandusky's son one year. "Hopefully it's not true. And, if it is, man, it's just bad."

___

AP writers Mark Scolforo and Marc Levy in Harrisburg; Nancy Armour in State College; and John Wawrow in Buffalo, N.Y., contributed.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111108/ap_on_sp_co_ne/fbc_penn_state_abuse

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Murdoch tabloid spied on hacking victims' lawyers (AP)

LONDON ? Rupert Murdoch's British newspaper company spied on two lawyers who represent alleged victims of phone hacking by its tabloid News of the World, the firm acknowledged Monday.

News International said lawyers Mark Lewis and Charlotte Harris "were subject to surveillance," a practice it called "inappropriate."

The BBC and The Guardian newspaper reported Monday that Lewis and Harris were followed and filmed last year by private investigator Derek Webb, who was hired by the now-defunct tabloid to gather evidence in a bid to discredit them.

Webb ? who ran a company called Silent Shadow ? told the BBC that the surveillance began in early 2010 and included following and filming Lewis' ex-wife and daughter while they went shopping.

Lewis told the BBC that spying on his teenage daughter was "nothing short of sick" and accused the newspaper of "Mafia-like" behavior.

News International said surveillance was not illegal, but "was clearly deeply inappropriate in these circumstances."

It said the action "was not condoned by any current executive at the company."

Lewis represents the family of 13-year-old Milly Dowler, whose phone was hacked after she disappeared in 2002. She was later found murdered.

Harris's clients have included actress Leslie Ash, politician Lembit Opik and soccer agent Sky Andrew, all of whom claim their cell phone voice mail messages were intercepted by the newspaper.

Murdoch shut down the News of the World in July after evidence emerged that the tabloid's reporters had eavesdropped on Dowler's phone messages while police were hunting for her, and that such illegal activity was widespread at the newspaper.

That touched off a storm of public outrage that shook Murdoch's media empire and sent tremors through Britain's political, police and media establishments.

Several senior executives of Murdoch's News Corp. have resigned over the scandal, including former News of the World editor Rebekah Brooks and ex-Wall Street Journal publisher Les Hinton.

More than a dozen journalists, most of them former News of the World employees, have been arrested and questioned about phone hacking, though none has yet been charged. Dozens of people ? from celebrities and politicians to the families of crime victims ? are suing Murdoch's News Corp.

Murdoch and his son and heir apparent James both denied knowing hacking was endemic at the newspaper when they appeared before a panel of British lawmakers in July.

Former News Corp. employees have cast doubt on their testimony, and James Murdoch has been recalled to give evidence to the committee again on Thursday.

___

Jill Lawless can be reached at: http://twitter.com/JillLawless

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/britain/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111107/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_britain_phone_hacking

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Merkel says will take a decade to turn around euro zone (Reuters)

BERLIN (Reuters) ? German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Saturday it would take a decade before the euro zone was in a better position and there was much work left to be done to solve the bloc's sovereign debt crisis.

"(It will) certainly take a decade until we are in a better position again," Merkel said in her weekly podcast. "We have a whole chunk of work ahead of us, I've got to say."

Merkel spoke a day after the euro zone failed to secure new money at a G20 summit from potential investors such as China and Brazil for its efforts to overcome the debt crisis.

Uncertainty about efforts to tackle the crisis persisted on Saturday. Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou, who survived a confidence vote on Friday but is expected to step down, said negotiations to form a coalition government would start soon.

He called for a broad-based government to secure a bailout from the euro zone, the main weapon in Europe's battle against the spreading economic crisis.

Merkel said all of Europe had overspent for years but welcomed that all euro zone members had agreed to a debt brake like Germany's.

"Almost all European countries have spent more over the years than they earned," she said.

(Reporting by Annika Breidthardt; Editing by Susan Fenton)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/eurobiz/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111105/bs_nm/us_eurozone_merkel

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Case against Michael Jackson's doctor goes to jury (AP)

LOS ANGELES ? The case of Michael Jackson's doctor was placed in a jury's hands Thursday after contentious legal arguments over who was to blame for the superstar's death ? the celebrity who craved sleep at any cost or the doctor accused of providing the drugs that killed him.

In final statements delivered in a packed courtroom, a defense attorney cast Dr. Conrad Murray as a victim of Jackson's celebrity, saying he would never have been charged with involuntary manslaughter if his patient was someone other than Jackson.

"They want you to convict Dr. Murray for the actions of Michael Jackson," attorney Ed Chernoff said. "This is not a reality show. It is reality."

Prosecutor David Walgren portrayed Murray as a liar and greedy opportunist who put his own welfare before that of Jackson.

"Conrad Murray is criminally liable for the death of Michael Jackson," he told jurors. "Not because it was Michael Jackson but because Conrad Murray is guilty of criminal negligence."

Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor submitted the case to jurors after a full day of arguments and told them to begin deliberations Friday.

If convicted, Murray could receive a minimum sentence of probation or a maximum of four years. He would be unlikely to serve that much time, however, because of jail overcrowding.

Earlier, Walgren, in a carefully structured argument enhanced by video excerpts of witness testimony, spoke of the special relationship between a doctor and patient and said Murray had corrupted it by giving Jackson the anesthetic propofol as a sleep aid.

He ridiculed the defense theory that Jackson had injected himself with the fatal dose of the anesthetic and denounced the testimony of defense expert Paul White who blamed Jackson for his own death.

"What you were presented by Dr. White was junk science. It was garbage science," Walgren said.

Chernoff countered that Dr. Steven Shafer, a propofol expert who testified that evidence showed Murray killed Jackson, was wrong and overstepped his role as a scientist by becoming an advocate for Murray's conviction.

He said Shafer ignored Murray's statement to police in which the physician said he gave the singer a small dose of propofol and left the room after the drug should have worn off.

Walgren also projected images of Jackson's grief-stricken children on a giant screen and told jurors that Murray took away their father.

With Jackson's mother and siblings watching from the courtroom gallery, Walgren showed a photo of Jackson at his last rehearsal before the picture of the three Jackson children ? Prince, Paris and Blanket ? at their father's memorial.

He also reminded jurors of the scene in Jackson's bedroom when Paris came upon Murray frantically trying to revive her lifeless father and screamed, "Daddy!"

"For Michael Jackson's children this case goes on forever because they do not have a father," Walgren said.

The prosecutor repeatedly called Murray's treatment of Jackson bizarre and said there was no precedent for the cardiologist giving the singer propofol to help him sleep.

Still, Jackson trusted him and that eventually cost the singer his life, Walgren said.

"Conrad Murray looked out for himself and himself alone," the prosecutor said.

Walgren said Murray was more concerned with earning $150,000 a month as Jackson's personal physician and traveling to London for his "This Is It" concert than with the welfare of his patient.

He cited evidence showing Murray did not call 911 after finding Jackson unresponsive. Instead he called Jackson's personal assistant, a decision the prosecutor said was just one of the doctor's bizarre actions on the day the singer died.

He suggested Murray delayed the call until he could hide medical equipment and bottles that might incriminate him.

Evan after paramedics arrived, the doctor made no mention of giving Jackson propofol because of "a consciousness of guilt," Walgren said.

The prosecutor also played statements of several doctors who testified that they would never have agreed to give Jackson propofol for insomnia in a private home.

"The setting represents an extreme violation of the standard of care," Walgren said. "No one ever did it until it was done to Michael Jackson. It is gross negligence and it is a cause of Michael Jackson's death."

At one point, Walgren suggested Murray was conducting "an obscene experiment" on Jackson.

Chernoff contended that prosecutors hadn't proven that Murray committed a crime by giving Jackson doses of propofol in the singer's bedroom. He also suggested multiple prosecution witnesses had lied and that Shafer was "a cop" with an agenda.

The prosecutor responded with sarcasm to Chernoff's claim that Murray was the victim in the case and listed an array of witnesses who had been blamed by the defense.

"Poor Conrad Murray," he said repeatedly in a mocking tone. "Everyone is just allied against him."

Walgren told jurors the case is not complicated.

"What's unusual," he said, "is that Michael Jackson lived as long as he did under the care of Conrad Murray."

With only Jackson and Murray present in the singer's room on the day he died, there are things that will never be known about his death, Walgren said. But he said it was clear that Murray, untrained in anesthesiology, was incompetent.

"The people won't prove exactly what happened behind those closed doors," he said. "Michael Jackson could give answers, but he is dead.""

___

AP Entertainment Writer Anthony McCartney contributed to this report.

___

McCartney can be reached at http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/music/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111104/ap_en_mu/us_michael_jackson_doctor

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Magnitude 5.8 quake hits N. Chile, no damage seen (Reuters)

SANTIAGO (Reuters) ? A 5.8 magnitude earthquake shook northern Chile early on Saturday, but there were no immediate reports of any damage to property or copper mines in the area, emergency and mine officials said.

The temblor struck at 3:13 a.m. EDT and was centered 13 miles northeast of Antofagasta, at a depth of 20.5 miles, the U.S. Geological Survey reported, revising the quake down from an original reading of 6.0 magnitude.

State emergency office ONEMI said the temblor had knocked out cell phone services in some areas, but it had received no reports of damages.

A union official at Anglo American's 90,000 tonne per year Mantos Blancos deposit near the epicenter said workers had felt the tremor, but operations were not affected.

(Editing by Todd Eastham)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/latam/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111105/wl_nm/us_chile_quake

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Israel suspends tax pay transfers to Palestinians (AP)

JERUSALEM ? Israel has carried out its threat to suspend transfer of tax payments totaling some $100 million to the Palestinians Authority to protest this week's admission of Palestine to the United Nations' cultural agency, officials on both sides said Thursday.

The Palestinian bid to join the agency, UNESCO, is part of a broader campaign to win U.N. recognition of an independent state of Palestine, in defiance of U.S. and Israeli opposition. UNESCO's acceptance of Palestine as a member on Monday buoyed the Palestinians but infuriated Israel because it endowed the Palestinians with greater international legitimacy.

Israel later said it would punitively suspend the monthly transfer of roughly $100 million in customs, border and some income taxes that it collects each month on behalf of the Palestinians and relays to their government in the West Bank.

On Thursday, Palestinian officials said Israel has not made this month's transfer. The funds are usually sent in the first three days of the month.

An Israeli official said a "temporary hold" has been put on the money transfer "pending a final decision." The official spoke on condition of anonymity because Israel has yet to make its position public.

The funds are critical for the Palestinian Authority, which employs tens of thousands of people. The cut-off comes just days before a Muslim holiday. The Palestinian prime minister, Salam Fayyad, said he had borrowed from local banks to make sure people get paid ahead of the holiday.

The U.S. cut off contributions ? some $60 million ? to UNESCO after the Palestinians won membership and Canada swiftly followed suit, together depriving the agency of about 25 percent of its annual funding.

Israel Radio reported on Thursday that Israel, too, would withhold its annual $2 million contribution, but a government spokesman said he couldn't confirm that.

After gaining membership in UNESCO, the Palestinians said they planned to seek membership in other U.N. agencies as part of their campaign for statehood. But in Cannes, France, on Thursday, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon warned that "millions" of beneficiaries worldwide could suffer from cuts in U.N. funds if Palestinians join its other agencies beyond UNESCO.

A top Palestinian official suggested the U.N chief should lean on U.S. lawmakers instead.

"I think it would be easier for Mr. Ban Ki-moon to ask the Congress to change their laws," Saeb Erekat said. "I don't think Palestine's admittance to any of these agencies will bring harm."

Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki said there were no immediate plans to apply for membership at other U.N. agencies. Instead, the focus would be on the Palestinian bid for recognition of a state by the U.N. Security Council later this month.

"We want to make sure that we will succeed there, and the moment we will succeed there, our membership in the remaining U.N. organizations becomes an automatic one," Malki said.

Also Thursday, a Palestinian health official in the Gaza Strip said two Palestinian men were killed in clashes with Israeli forces.

Health Ministry spokesman Adham Abu Salmia said he had no information about the men's identities.

The Palestinians said gunbattles began after Israeli soldiers entered Palestinian farmland inside northern Gaza. They said Israeli planes then carried out an airstrike.

The military confirmed the airstrike and said the clashes began after Palestinian militants fired at soldiers on a routine patrol on the Gaza-Israel border. It said its soldiers were on Israeli soil.

The clash marred a brief lull that followed the most serious flare-up in violence in months. At least 10 militants and an Israeli civilian were killed in the exchanges of Palestinian rocket fire and Israeli airstrikes that started late last week.

___

Associated Press writers Daniella Cheslow in Jerusalem and Ibrahim Barzak in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/mideast/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111103/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_israel_palestinians

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Razer Blade

The Blade is Razer's first crack at the laptop gaming market, and it looks stunning. Its dark aluminum chassis has only the glowing Razer logo adorning the lid, a clear indication that the company has taken its cues from Apple and Voodoo. The interior specs sound just as lovely: A discrete Nvidia GPU and Intel Core i7 CPU. Unfortunately, as of this post, there's only one configuration available?no customizing. The Razer Blade all sounds well and good, but when its Q4 2011 release date finally hits, gamers are going to have to ask themselves if the whole package is worth the $2,799.99 price tag.

The Blade's 17-inch screen display outputs true 1080p HD. For its size, the chassis is relatively light, weighing only 6.9 pounds compared to other 17-inch gaming laptops like the Alienware M17x that weighs in at 9.8 pounds. The Razer Blade is also extremely thin, measuring about .88 inches thick. Part of the reason for its slim form factor is Razer dropped the optical drive, a smart move as most gamers nowadays get their fix from digital retailers like Steam.

The Razer Blade's true popping feature, however, is its user interface. The full-size chiclet keyboard swaps out the usual numeric keypad for 10 dynamic adaptive tactile keys, which gives you easy-access to hot-key commands. There's also an LCD pad underneath it that displays in-game information when you're using an external mouse or switches to a multi-touchpad for navigating.

Inside the chassis, the Razer Blade features a 2.8GHz Intel Core i7-2640M processor, 8GB of DDR3 RAM, and an Nvidia GeForce GT 555M (2GB) discrete graphics chip with Optimus technology, which will help extend that 60Wh battery's life span. There's 320GB (7,200rpm) of hard drive space, a bit on the small size. It comes with 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 3.0 (for connecting wireless peripherals), Ethernet jack, a USB 3.0 port, two USB 2.0 ports, and 3.5mm headphone and mic combo jack.

More Laptop Reviews:??? HP Pavilion dv7-6163cl??? Acer Aspire 5755-6482??? Asus K53E-RBR4??? HP Pavilion dm4-2180us (Office Depot)??? HP Pavilion dv6-6173cl?? more
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    'Mini' Stem Cell Transplant May Help Seniors With Blood Cancer (HealthDay)

    TUESDAY, Nov. 1 (HealthDay News) -- Age in itself should not be a factor in deciding whether blood cancer patients are candidates for stem cell transplantation, according to a new study.

    Blood cancers include leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma.

    For the study, researchers analyzed long-term outcomes among 372 blood cancer patients aged 60 to 75 who underwent a "mini-transplant," which is a "kinder, gentler" form of allogeneic (cells from another person) stem cell transplantation developed at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle.

    The five-year rates of overall survival and disease progression-free survival among the patients were 35 percent and 32 percent, respectively. Comparable survival rates were seen when the patients were divided into three age groups -- 60 to 64, 65 to 69, and 70 to 75 -- suggesting that age plays a limited role in the success of the mini-transplant.

    While a survival rate of one-third may seem low, all of the patients would have died within months if they didn't have the transplant, Dr. Mohamed Sorror, an assistant member of the Hutchinson Center's Clinical Research Division, noted in a news release from the Center.

    The investigators also found that greater cancer aggressiveness and having a larger number of medical problems not linked to cancer ("comorbidities") were two factors that affected survival, regardless of age.

    For example, the five-year survival for patients with less aggressive cancer and fewer comorbidities was 69 percent, compared with 23 percent for patients with more aggressive cancer and a large number of comorbidities, according to the report in the Nov. 2 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

    Conventional stem cell transplants are generally not performed on blood cancer patients older than 60 because high doses of total-body radiation and potent chemotherapy are used to prepare patients for transplantation.

    However, the mini-transplant relies on the donor's immune cells to kill the cancer, and low-dose radiation and chemotherapy is used to suppress the immune system rather than destroy it.

    More information

    The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more about blood cancers.

    Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/science/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20111102/hl_hsn/ministemcelltransplantmayhelpseniorswithbloodcancer

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    1Q84

    In "1Q84," award-winning Japanese novelist Haruki Murakami skips between alternate worlds, offering readers a moving love story in what is perhaps his most ambitious novel yet.

    Set in a world just ?a fraction of a centimeter off from our own,? Haruki Murakami?s latest novel, 1Q84, is populated with scenes of gruesome violence and reckless sexuality. At nearly 1,000 pages, it is also the 62-year-old Japanese writer?s most ambitious novel yet ? an unstoppably readable, deeply moving love story that cements Murakami?s reputation as a uniquely compassionate and imaginative novelists who?s among the leading voices of his global generation.?

    Skip to next paragraph

    Murakami ? who has said that he begins writing his novels with a single image in mind ? opens ?1Q84? in a traffic jam on an elevated expressway in Tokyo. It is the year 1984 and beautiful 30-year-old Aomame sits in a taxicab, anxious that she?s going to miss an important appointment. The driver senses Aomame?s unease and suggests she climb down from the expressway using an emergency stairway. It?s an odd suggestion but Aomame is desperate. On her way out of the cab the driver warns her, ?please remember: things are not what they seem.?

    And indeed they?re not. Aomame makes it to her appointment, which turns out to be a ?hit? on an oil executive who abuses his wife, but soon after completing the job she notices that the world seems askew. She hears people talking about news events she?s never heard of, including a recent massacre at a religious compound, and when she looks up at night she sees two moons hanging in the sky ? the familiar moon and, alongside it, a smaller moon, ?slightly warped in shape, and green.?

    Aomame calls the world she?s stepped into ?1Q84? ? in which the ?Q? stands for ?question? ? and her strange surroundings throw into relief the central problem of her life: that with the exception of a single childhood experience, Aomame has always been lonely. That experience took place in 5th grade with a student named Tengo Kawana, who is the other main character in ?1Q84.?

    As the story opens, Tengo confronts a unique situation of his own. He is an aspiring novelist and his editor asks him to rewrite a manuscript called ?Air Chrysalis? that was submitted to a prestigious amateur fiction contest by a dyslexic 17-year-old girl named Fuka-Eri. Tengo?s editor thinks that with some polishing ?Air Chrysalis? could win the prize and he cajoles Tengo into doctoring the manuscript.?

    Tengo hesitates because he doesn?t want to perpetrate a fraud, but he can?t resist the strangely powerful story about a religious cult and a tribe of spirits called the ?Little People? who emerge from the mouth of a dead goat in a world where two moons hang in the sky ? just like Aomame?s 1Q84.

    Murakami likes to blur the boundaries of reality, and in this sense ?1Q84? is his most intricate work. The novel alternates between Tengo?s and Aomame?s stories and as the plot progresses, events draw the two of them together. Yet throughout the novel the line between 1984 and 1Q84, and between Aomame?s story and the fictionalized story of Air Chrysalis remains ambiguous, making it unclear whether it?s even possible for the two characters to meet.

    Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/kf0OFkQemDQ/1Q84

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