Kerry Says He Is Preparing Proposals on Syria Crisis

WASHINGTON — Secretary of State John Kerry said on Wednesday that he had ideas about how to persuade President Bashar al-Assad to agree to a political transition in Syria and planned to raise them on his first foreign trip this month.

“We need to address the question of President Assad’s calculation currently,” Mr. Kerry said after a meeting with Jordan’s foreign minister, Nasser Judeh. “I believe there are additional things that can be done to change his current perception. I’ve got a good sense of what I think we might propose.”

Mr. Kerry did not say what proposals he had in mind. He is expected to travel to the Middle East and Europe, but the trip has not been formally announced.

“I can assure you my goal is to see us change his calculation, my goal is to see us have a negotiated outcome and minimize the violence,” Mr. Kerry said. “It may not be possible. I am not going to stand here and tell you that’s automatic or easily achievable. There are a lot of forces that have been unleashed here over the course of the last months.”

Mr. Kerry made a similar statement during his Senate confirmation hearing last month. Despite his caution that progress might not be possible, the effect of Mr. Kerry’s comments was to heighten expectations for his trip. Mr. Kerry is also expected to try to make headway on the issues dividing the Palestinians and the Israelis and set the stage for President Obama’s trip to Israel next month.

Mr. Kerry’s comment on Syria came a day after Mr. Obama said little about the Syria crisis in his State of the Union address. In that speech, Mr. Obama said he would keep pressure on the Syrian regime, but he did not voice confidence, as he had in his 2012 address, that Mr. Assad would soon be forced to relinquish power.

Mr. Kerry said that Mr. Obama would begin by listening to Israeli and Arab leaders and would not be bringing a major new proposal.

“The president is not prepared at this point in time to do more than listen to the parties, which is why he has announced he is going to go to Israel,” he said.

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Carly Rae Jepsen Reveals Why She's Heartbroken on New Single 'Tonight I'm Getting Over You'

Only on People.com

By Dahvi Shira

02/13/2013 at 04:45 PM EST

Heartbreak was far from the theme of Carly Rae Jepsen's catchy, career-launching Grammy-nominated radio hit, "Call Me Maybe" – but in her latest single, the starlet touches on romance gone wrong.

Reliving the past failed relationship that inspired "Tonight I'm Getting Over You," Jepsen, 27, recently explained at PEOPLE's pre-Grammy soiree at Sayers Club in Hollywood, "As an artist, it's fun to explore [my] many sides and sort of go through my experience with love in a more personal way. I hope you haven't experienced it, but I certainly have had that relationship that is on-again, off-again and good and bad."

The singer – who has most recently been dating fellow musician Matthew Koma – goes on to say, "With this particular song, it was sort of that decision that even though [the relationship] is hot and cold, sometimes you've got to move on."

Jepsen, who performed a soulful, acoustic version of the typically upbeat song at the party, sings in the lyrics, "We're not lovers, but more than friends. Put a flame to every single word you ever said. No more crying to get me through. I'll keep dancing 'til the morning with somebody new. Tonight I'm getting over you."

Says Jepsen of the Max Martin-produced tune: "I think it's important to have a bit of a connection to a song that you sing, and there's going to be some grittiness behind it, because otherwise it doesn't come across as sincere. So I do think I tap into those memories in a certain way, but it doesn't make me feel sad. It just makes me feel a little contemplative and in the moment."

The man behind the music has not been revealed – and Jepsen says with a laugh, "It's probably for the best" that he doesn't know it's about him.

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Clues to why most survived China melamine scandal

WASHINGTON (AP) — Scientists wondering why some children and not others survived one of China's worst food safety scandals have uncovered a suspect: germs that live in the gut.

In 2008, at least six babies died and 300,000 became sick after being fed infant formula that had been deliberately and illegally tainted with the industrial chemical melamine. There were some lingering puzzles: How did it cause kidney failure, and why wasn't everyone equally at risk?

A team of researchers from the U.S. and China re-examined those questions in a series of studies in rats. In findings released Wednesday, they reported that certain intestinal bacteria play a crucial role in how the body handles melamine.

The intestines of all mammals teem with different species of bacteria that perform different jobs. To see if one of those activities involves processing melamine, researchers from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and Shanghai Jiao Tong University gave lab rats antibiotics to kill off some of the germs — and then fed them melamine.

The antibiotic-treated rats excreted twice as much of the melamine as rats that didn't get antibiotics, and they experienced fewer kidney stones and other damage.

A closer look identified why: A particular intestinal germ — named Klebsiella terrigena — was metabolizing melamine to create a more toxic byproduct, the team reported in the journal Science Translational Medicine.

Previous studies have estimated that fewer than 1 percent of healthy people harbor that bacteria species. A similar fraction of melamine-exposed children in China got sick, the researchers wrote. But proving that link would require studying stool samples preserved from affected children, they cautioned.

Still, the research is pretty strong, said microbiologist Jack Gilbert of the University of Chicago and Argonne National Laboratory, who wasn't involved in the new study.

More importantly, "this paper adds to a growing body of evidence which suggests that microbes in the body play a significant role in our response to toxicity and in our health in general," Gilbert said.

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Putin Aims to Limit Officials’ Investments Abroad

MOSCOW — President Vladimir V. Putin introduced a draft law on Tuesday that would ban senior Russian officials from holding bank accounts or stocks outside Russia, the latest in a series of recent measures intended to insulate the country’s governance from foreign influences.

The draft law, which requires legislative approval, applies to a wide range of top officials, including lawmakers, ministers, top officials at the Central Bank and other state funds, and those whose work involves “the sovereignty or national security of the Russian Federation,” as well as their spouses and young children.

The change, though appealing to the broad public, would come as a jolt to many in Russia’s ruling class, who are both wealthy and deeply integrated into the West.

First presented in discussions on “nationalization of the elite,” the ban has been framed primarily as a way to guarantee officials’ loyalty to Russia, and also as a check on corruption, a topic on which the Kremlin knows that it is politically vulnerable. Commenting on a similar proposal by legislators last fall, a Kremlin spokesman, Dmitri S. Peskov, said officials with investments outside Russia “are not safe, in terms of being firm in defending the state’s interests.”

If the measure becomes law, as expected, officials will have three months to close their foreign accounts and sell their stock, or else face possible dismissal based on “lack of trust.” State auditors can initiate investigations into officials based on information provided by journalists, law enforcement bodies, political organizations and other sources.

The introduction of the draft law met with cheers from lawmakers, who have embraced a series of populist —some say reactionary — measures in the months since Mr. Putin returned to the presidency. An ultranationalist lawmaker, Vladimir V. Zhirinovsky, said foreign holdings marked government officials as members of a “fifth column.”

“They’ve bought half of Europe — the real estate, the accounts in all banks, they vacation there, their children study there, their relatives live there, they give birth there, they get medical treatment there,” he told a television reporter. “And it’s easy to influence them. A fifth column is formed here. One has to live at home, vacation at home, work and study. If you don’t like it, do not enter state service.”

A number of legislators said Tuesday that Mr. Putin’s measure could be broadened. Nikolai Levichev, of the party A Just Russia, suggested widening the circle of relatives who would come under scrutiny, noting that there are “multiple cases when a grown son or a niece of some governor or minister is a multimillionaire, in some cases invested in foreign banks.” In their proposal, some legislators had recommended banning Russians from owning real estate overseas as well, but Mr. Putin seems to have set that provision aside.

Foreign bank accounts have traditionally been used by officials as “an instrument for bribetaking,” noted Yevgeny Minchenko, a political analyst, in an interview with the Kommersant FM radio station. But the measure presented Tuesday leaves gaping loopholes, he said, because officials can still keep their money in accounts associated with offshore companies, or under the names of proxies or friends. “It’s clear that any law can be bypassed,” he said.

High-level corruption — and especially lavish spending by Russian officials overseas — has been a perennial theme for Mr. Putin’s critics, and some saw the measure presented on Tuesday as the president’s attempt to claim the issue as his own. Kirill Kabanov, chairman of the National Anticorruption Committee, a watchdog organization, said he believed that Mr. Putin had resolved to wrest control over the financial practices of the elite.

He said officials were being presented with a choice: either leave state service and retain foreign assets, or “stay in the real vertical — but if it becomes clear that in reality you are thinking about how to maintain your life in Côte d’Azur, you will be thrown out of the caste.”

“It’s not a secret to anybody that for many people, the motive for entering state service is to provide for a quiet life beyond the borders of our motherland at the expense of our budget,” he said.

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Christopher Dorner, Fugitive Ex-Cop, in Gun Battle with Police: Report

By Mike Fleeman

02/12/2013 at 04:45 PM EST

Undated photo of Christopher Dorner

LAPD/AP

After an extensive and tense search, authorities believe they found fugitive ex-policeman Christopher Dorner in the Southern California mountains, where a gun battle reportedly broke out Tuesday.

It wasn't immediately known whether Dorner had been apprehended.

Dorner, wanted for allegedly going on a rage-filled vendetta that left three people dead and another wounded, was in a shootout with federal authorities in the Big Bear area, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Two officers have been wounded, a Los Angeles Police Department official tells PEOPLE. Their conditions were not known.

Dorner reportedly broke into a cabin and tied up a couple before stealing their car.

Authorities say Dorner's alleged wave of violence was retribution for having been fired from the LAPD in 2008 after making false statements. Dorner said he would stop the killing when the LAPD publicly proclaimed his innocence and restored his reputation.

Last week, Dorner allegedly fatally shot Monica Quan, 27, and her fiancé, Keith Lawrence in Irvine, Calif., in a vehicle at a parking structure. Quan was the daughter of a former LAPD officer who Dorner claims bungled his termination appeal.

After failing to steal a boat in San Diego, Dorner allegedly attacked more victims – this time, police officers. He allegedly shot at LAPD officers protecting one of his targets, grazing one officer in the head. Dorner was able to escape after shooting up the officers' car.

Thirty minutes later, he allegedly ambushed two officers at an intersection in Riverside, Calif., killing one of them and sending the other to the hospital.

Police then found Dorner's burned-out pickup truck and tracks leading away from the vehicle off a wooded road near Big Bear.

Story developing ...

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Wall Street ends slightly higher, Dow near a record

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks closed modestly higher on Tuesday, putting the Dow within striking distance of an all-time high, as investors looked ahead to President Barack Obama's State of the Union address.

Investors will be listening to Obama's speech for any clues on a deal with Republicans to avert automatic spending cuts due to take effect March 1. The tone of the speech will also be scrutinized, with any sign of compromise likely to be warmly received.

The S&P 500 has risen for the past six weeks, putting it up 6.5 percent so far this year, while the Dow is about 1 percent away from its all-time closing record of 14,164.53, reached in October 2007.

But gains have been harder to come by since the S&P hit a five-year high on February 1. Daily moves have been small and trading volume light as investors search for new reasons to drive stocks higher.

About 5.73 billion shares changed hands on the New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq and NYSE MKT on Tuesday, below the daily average so far this year of about 6.48 billion shares.

"We're likely to settle in for a period and digest the gains we've had, though there's still a bias towards positive momentum," said Eric Teal, chief investment officer at First Citizens Bancshares in Raleigh, North Carolina.

"Questions over government spending are the big overhang, and we're looking for Obama to inspire some confidence over that tonight."

The White House has signaled Obama will urge investment in infrastructure and clean energy, suggesting companies in those sectors may be volatile in Wednesday's session.

"Gun makers could also see a reaction if Obama talks about anything with respect to gun control," said Teal, who helps oversee $5 billion. Shares of Smith & Wesson fell 2 cents to $9.11 while Sturm Ruger was up 0.4 percent at $53.91.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> was up 47.46 points, or 0.34 percent, at 14,018.70. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> was up 2.42 points, or 0.16 percent, at 1,519.43. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> was down 5.51 points, or 0.17 percent, at 3,186.49.

Housing shares were among the strongest of the day, led by a 12.5 percent jump in Masco Corp to $20.02 after the home improvement product maker said it expects new home construction to show strong growth in 2013. The PHLX housing sector index <.hgx> rose 3.7 percent.

Avon Products Inc surged 20 percent to $20.79 as the S&P 500's top percentage gainer after the cosmetics company reversed sales declines and cut costs.

On the downside, Coca-Cola Co fell 2.7 percent to $37.56 and was the biggest drag on the Dow after reporting revenue below estimates, hurt by a weaker-than-expected performance in Europe.

Michael Kors Holdings shares jumped 8.8 percent to $62.04 after the fashion company handily beat Wall Street's estimates and raised its full-year outlook.

With earnings season starting to wind down, Thomson Reuters data through Tuesday morning shows of the 353 companies in the S&P 500 that have reported results, 70.3 percent have exceeded analysts' expectations, above a 62 percent average since 1994 and 65 percent over the past four quarters.

Fourth-quarter earnings for S&P 500 companies are estimated to have risen 5.3 percent, according to the data, above a 1.9 percent forecast at the start of the earnings season.

About 62 percent of stocks traded on the New York Stock Exchange closed higher while 59 percent of Nasdaq-listed shares closed in positive territory.

(Editing by Nick Zieminski)

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The Lede: Latest Updates on the Pope’s Resignation

The Lede is providing updates on Pope Benedict XVI’s announcement on Monday that he intends to resign on Feb. 28, less than eight years after he took office, the first pope to do so in six centuries. (Turn off auto-refresh to watch videos.)

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Is Adele's New Tattoo a Tribute to Her Son?

Mom & Babies
Celebrity Baby Blog

02/11/2013 at 10:00 AM ET

Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP. Inset: Christopher Pol

A is for … Angelo?

During Sunday’s Grammy Awards, Adele brought some serious flower power to the red carpet.

But her Valentino embroidered floral dress, which she accessorized with matching printed pumps, burgundy diamond flower earrings, a black ruffled pouch purse and a vintage up ‘do, wasn’t the only thing that caught our attention.

The singer — who nabbed an award for best solo pop performance for her hit, “Set Fire to the Rain” — showed off some new ink: a discreet “A” in script behind her right ear.

The new mom is mum on the inspiration for her latest tattoo, but could it be another ode to her baby boy’s name?

It certainly wouldn’t be the first time. Days after she scored a Golden Globe in January, Adele was spotted sporting a gold nameplate “Angelo” necklace.

– Anya Leon

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Pope shows lifetime jobs aren't always for life

The world seems surprised that an 85-year-old globe-trotting pope who just started tweeting wants to resign, but should it be? Maybe what should be surprising is that more leaders his age do not, considering the toll aging takes on bodies and minds amid a culture of constant communication and change.

There may be more behind the story of why Pope Benedict XVI decided to leave a job normally held for life. But the pontiff made it about age. He said the job called for "both strength of mind and body" and said his was deteriorating. He spoke of "today's world, subject to so many rapid changes," implying a difficulty keeping up.

"Usually a man who is entirely healthy in his early 80s has demonstrated his survival prowess" and can live much longer, said Dr. Thomas Perls, an expert on aging at Boston University and director of the New England Centenarians Study. The pope's comments about strength of mind "does make one worry that he is concerned about his mind," Perls said.

But aging alone is reason enough. It has driven many from jobs that used to be for life — Supreme Court justices, monarchs and other heads of state. As lifetimes expand, the woes of old age are catching up with more in seats of power. Some are choosing to step down rather than suffer long declines and disabilities as the pope's last predecessor did.

Since 1955, only one U.S. Supreme Court justice — Chief Justice William Rehnquist — has died in office. Twenty-one others chose to retire.

One in 5 U.S. senators is 70 or older, and some have retired rather than seek new terms, such as Hawaii's Daniel Akaka, who left office in January at age 88.

The Netherlands' Queen Beatrix, who just turned 75, recently said she will pass the crown to a son and put the country "in the hands of a new generation."

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Wall Street ends flat as investors seek new catalysts

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks ended a quiet session with slight moves on Monday as investors found few reasons to keep pushing shares higher following a six-week advance, though the longer-term trend was still viewed as positive.

The benchmark index is up more 6.4 percent in 2013, putting both the S&P 500 and Dow industrials near multi-year highs. The S&P is less than 4 percent from its all-time intraday high of 1,576.09, hit in October 2007.

"This is still a market that looks terrific, but when you're up for six weeks in a row, everyone is going to want to take a pause going into the seventh week even if there is no bad news out there," said Eric Kuby, chief investment officer at North Star Investment Management in Chicago.

Volume was light, with about 4.812 billion shares changing hands on the New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq and NYSE MKT, well below the daily average so far this year of about 6.48 billion shares.

Wall Street was modestly lower throughout the session but regained some ground in the final hour of trading as Google Inc rebounded off earlier losses. Shares of the Internet search giant dipped 0.4 percent to $782.42, recovering from earlier declines of 1 percent after the company said in a filing former chief executive Eric Schmidt is selling roughly 42 percent of his stake in the company.

Also in the tech space, Apple Inc rose up 1 percent to $479.93 after the New York Times reported the iPhone maker was experimenting with the design of a device similar to a wristwatch.

The Federal Reserve's Vice Chair Janet Yellen, seen as a potential successor to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke next year, said the Fed is still aggressively stimulating an anemic U.S. economic recovery that has failed to bring rapid progress on employment.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> was down 21.81 points, or 0.16 percent, at 13,971.16. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> was down 0.92 points, or 0.06 percent, at 1,517.01. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> was down 1.87 points, or 0.06 percent, at 3,192.00.

Upbeat U.S. and Chinese data last week helped the S&P 500 extend its weekly winning streak to six. The index gained about 8 percent over that period.

Equities have been strong performers lately and many investors have used any declines in the market as opportunities to buy.

"Everyone wants to buy on a dip in this market, but if you're on the sidelines right now, the decline we're seeing today just isn't the kind you would jump in on," Kuby said.

President Barack Obama will describe his plan for spurring the economy in his State of the Union address on Tuesday. He is expected to offer proposals for investment in infrastructure, manufacturing, clean energy and education.

Opposition has grown to the $24.4 billion buyout of Dell Inc , the No. 3 personal computer maker, as three of the largest investors joined Southeastern Asset Management on Friday in raising objections. Dell said in a regulatory filing it had considered many strategic options before opting to go private in a buyout led by Chief Executive Michael Dell.

Dell shares hovered near $13.65, the buyout offer price.

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc shares rose 2.7 percent at $170.35 after it said longtime drug development partner Sanofi plans to boost its stake.

Moody's Corp was one of the strongest percentage gainers on the S&P 500, rising 4.9 percent to $45.49. Last week the stock plunged 22 percent after the U.S. government launched a civil lawsuit against the company. The sell-off marked the stock's worst week since October 2008.

About 53 percent of stocks traded on the New York Stock Exchange closed lower while slightly more Nasdaq-listed stocks closed in negative territory.

(Editing by Nick Zieminski)

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