Spanish director wins YouTube online festival

Actor Michael Fassbender, and David Victori Blaya of Spain, winner of the 'Your Film Festival' award at the 69th edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2012. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Actor Michael Fassbender, and David Victori Blaya of Spain, winner of the 'Your Film Festival' award at the 69th edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2012. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

Actor Michael Fassbender, and David Victori Blaya of Spain, winner of the 'Your Film Festival' award at the 69th edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2012. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)

VENICE, Italy (AP) ? Spanish filmmaker David Victori has won the inaugural edition of YouTube's Your Film Festival for his short movie "The Guilt."

The winner was announced Sunday on the sidelines of the Venice Film Festival after selection by a jury that included director Ridley Scott and actor Michael Fassbender.

Victori, whose movie focuses on a man obsessed with revenge after his wife's murder, will receive $500,000 for his next project, with Scott and Fassbender acting as executive producers. That means Victori will benefit by having the guidance of the two experienced insiders and be able to add their names to his next work.

YouTube viewers chose the 10 finalists who traveled to Venice for the final selection after viewing the films on YouTube's channel www.YouTube.com/yourfilmfestival. The narrative-driven submissions could be no longer than 15 minutes in length.

YouTube has held film contests in the past, but the global Your Film Festival is on a much larger scale.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2012-09-02-Italy-Venice%20Film%20Festival-YouTube/id-171028dae81a4533a7bc94663ace97c0

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Late court decisions may impact 2012 election

FILE - In this May 1, 2012, file photo, Viviette Applewhite, 93, a plaintiff in a lawsuit against Pennsylvania's tough new voter identification law, speaks in a video played during a news conference in the Pennsylvania state Capitol in Harrisburg, Pa., as one of her lawyers, Witold J. Walczak of the American Civil Liberties Union. Before voters get a say in this year's presidential race, lawyers and judges are having theirs. A series of ongoing court battles in several vital states may determine over the next several weeks everything from how people cast their votes, when polling locations will be open and what ballots will look like. Many of the cases have a partisan bent, with rulings potentially tipping the scales slightly in favor of Democrats or Republicans. The legal battles have entered an urgent phase, with only two months to go before the election and just a few weeks before military and overseas absentee ballots must go out. Pennsylvania attorneys recently filed briefs arguing whether an appeal on the state's strict voter ID law should be held in September or October. Opponents won a mid-September court date, which is late even by their standards. "This is by no means impossible, but certainly the closer you get a decision to Election Day the harder it is to make changes," said Walczak. (AP Photo/Marc Levy, File)

FILE - In this May 1, 2012, file photo, Viviette Applewhite, 93, a plaintiff in a lawsuit against Pennsylvania's tough new voter identification law, speaks in a video played during a news conference in the Pennsylvania state Capitol in Harrisburg, Pa., as one of her lawyers, Witold J. Walczak of the American Civil Liberties Union. Before voters get a say in this year's presidential race, lawyers and judges are having theirs. A series of ongoing court battles in several vital states may determine over the next several weeks everything from how people cast their votes, when polling locations will be open and what ballots will look like. Many of the cases have a partisan bent, with rulings potentially tipping the scales slightly in favor of Democrats or Republicans. The legal battles have entered an urgent phase, with only two months to go before the election and just a few weeks before military and overseas absentee ballots must go out. Pennsylvania attorneys recently filed briefs arguing whether an appeal on the state's strict voter ID law should be held in September or October. Opponents won a mid-September court date, which is late even by their standards. "This is by no means impossible, but certainly the closer you get a decision to Election Day the harder it is to make changes," said Walczak. (AP Photo/Marc Levy, File)

Before voters get a say in this year's presidential race, lawyers and judges are having theirs.

A series of court battles in several states may determine, over the next several weeks, everything from how people cast their votes, when polling locations will be open and what ballots will look like. Many cases have a partisan bent, with rulings potentially tipping the scales slightly in favor of Democrats or Republicans.

The legal fights have entered an urgent phase, two months before the Nov. 6 election and just a few weeks before military and overseas absentee ballots must go out.

Pennsylvania lawyers recently filed briefs arguing whether an appeal on the state's strict voter ID law should be held in September or October. Opponents won a mid-September court date, which is late even by their standards.

"This is by no means impossible, but certainly the closer you get a decision to Election Day the harder it is to make changes," said Vic Walczak, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania.

Wisconsin's attorney general is making a late push in the courts to reinstate voter ID requirements.

Republicans say they have pursued voter ID laws to prevent fraud. Democrats call it a political ploy to suppress voters who may not have the proper identification, particularly affecting groups that typically vote Democrat.

Along with Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, there are unresolved cases in Florida, Ohio, Iowa and Nevada. Those are among the most competitive states and any factor could tip the balance.

?Florida and Ohio are locked in litigation tied to changes in early voting rules. Republicans in Florida approved a law last year that reduced the number of early voting days to eight from as many as 14. Advocates are challenging that, and a panel of three federal judges recently determined that the changes could hurt participation by blacks, who lean heavily toward the Democrats.

Ohio officials have struggled for months over early voting rules. The Obama campaign sued over a law that prevented most people from using early voting on the weekend and Monday before Election Day; a federal judge on Friday agreed to restore those voting days. The state's attorney general is working on an appeal.

?Florida and Iowa are dealing with suits related to the efforts by election administrators to purge voting rolls of ineligible people. The U.S. Department of Justice is continuing to pursue a suit challenging Florida's purge, which previously included a list that contained more than 500 people who were citizens. A Hispanic civic organization also sued, alleging that the purge is an attempt to remove legitimate minority voters from the rolls.

Civil rights activists in Iowa are seeking to block the state's Republican secretary of state from using emergency rules to try and purge voting lists of noncitizens. The groups contend that Secretary of State Matt Schultz was abusing his power in a bid to disenfranchise Latinos. Schultz says the effort is necessary to help maintain fair elections.

?Nevada is dealing with a unique case over the state's decades-old voting option of "none of the above." The state attorney general is appealing a federal court's decision that the ballot option is unconstitutional. The Republican National Committee financed the suit out of fears votes for "none" could influence the outcome, with conventional thinking that people who might cast a ballot for "none" are anti-incumbent voters who might be more likely to support Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney.

Nevada officials filed an emergency motion in that case Thursday, noting that the state must finalize ballots for overseas and military voters by Sept. 7

The lengthy legal docket continues a trend seen since the disputed 2000 election in Florida. Between that election and the 2010 vote, the amount of election law litigation has more than doubled, according to Rick Hasen, a professor of law and political science at the University of California, Irvine. New technologies, more partisan fighting and a series of new laws that affect voting are helping drive the trend.

Hasen said there's no sign of it abating.

"The picture is one of continued foment, agitation and litigation," he said.

The legal battles before Election Day may be just a first round. Thousands of lawyers and activists are preparing to help deal with issues for the campaigns that may arise Nov. 6, and they are poised to handle longer disputes if a crucial state turns out to be nearly tied, as Florida was in 2000.

Hasen said the Florida vote taught both sides that there isn't much benefit in waiting until after the election to resolve disagreements over election administration.

"If you're going to sue, it's better to sue earlier rather than later," Hasen said.

___

Contact AP Writer Mike Baker on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mikebakerap

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2012-09-02-Election-Court%20Cases/id-b98887874ce04274aebcb3b2c6d1632d

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Fish outlasts Simon in match that ends past 1 a.m.

Mardy Fish returns a shot to Gilles Simon of France in the third round of play at the U.S. Open tennis tournament, Saturday, Sept. 1, 2012, in New York. (AP Photo/Henny Ray Abrams)

Mardy Fish returns a shot to Gilles Simon of France in the third round of play at the U.S. Open tennis tournament, Saturday, Sept. 1, 2012, in New York. (AP Photo/Henny Ray Abrams)

Gilles Simon, of France, stretches during a match against Mardy Fish at the U.S. Open tennis tournament Saturday, Sept. 1, 2012 in New York. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

Gilles Simon, of France, reacts to a call during a match against Mardy Fish at the U.S. Open tennis tournament Saturday, Sept. 1, 2012 in New York. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

Mardy Fish reacts after missing a shot during a match against Gilles Simon, of France, at the U.S. Open tennis tournament, Saturday, Sept. 1, 2012, in New York. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

NEW YORK (AP) ? Setting aside a disagreement with the chair umpire and a whopping 75 unforced errors, 23rd-seeded Mardy Fish of the United States outlasted a hobbling Gilles Simon of France 6-1, 5-7, 7-6 (5), 6-3 to win a third-round U.S. Open match that ended past 1 a.m. Sunday.

By beating the 16th-seeded Simon, who repeatedly stretched his leg muscles and hit serves slowly, Fish reached the round of 16 at Flushing Meadows for the third consecutive year. He's only made it to the quarterfinals once in 12 appearances, losing to Rafael Nadal at that stage in 2008.

This time, Fish's reward is a matchup against top-seeded Roger Federer, who has won five of his record 17 Grand Slam titles at the U.S. Open.

Asked during an on-court interview what he'll need to do to get past Federer, Fish responded: "I have no idea right now, to be honest. A lot more than I did today. But we'll try to rest as best we can and see what we can do."

The 30-year-old Fish missed about two months this season because of an accelerated heartbeat and had a medical procedure in May.

After the 3-hour, 3-minute match, he did not appear at a news conference; the tournament said he was getting treatment, but didn't give any specifics.

Still, on court, Fish was fresher than Simon, especially at the end, reeling off the last four games ? including breaking at love to go ahead 4-3 in the last set.

"I know that he's not feeling 100 percent, and sometimes it's even tougher to play guys like that, to keep your concentration," Fish said. "Apart from the serve, he appeared to be playing really well. ... Made for a long night."

Sure did.

There were plenty of drawn-out points, as if they were slogging their way through a match on red clay. Fish put together a 67-20 edge in winners, but also made many, many more miscues, 75-31.

They began a tad past 10 p.m. on Saturday night, which was the 60th birthday of Fish's father ? he was serenaded with a chorus of "Happy Birthday" by spectators at the end.

"This is probably a good gift," Fish said, smiling.

He was in a far worse mood earlier in the evening.

Fish was up a set and a break but couldn't pull away against an opponent who appeared to be struggling with bothersome legs. Simon kept propping a heel on his changeover chair to stretch out his hamstrings when switching sides or hopping around as though trying to loosen the muscles. His service speeds were rather slow, averaging under 95 mph on first serves and about 80 mph on second serves.

Simon said afterward he didn't have a leg injury.

"I was just tired from my two matches before. They were long. And it's hard to recover because I had to run a lot. It starts to be painful in the legs," said Simon, who played five sets in the first round, then four in the second.

"The first match was very hard. The second one was hard also and didn't allow me to recover before this one," Simon added. "Already at the beginning it was difficult, so of course it's getting worse and worse on the court. But it's part of the game. I have to be in better shape."

Fish had his own issues, getting into a dispute with chair umpire Carlos Ramos over the way a line call was handled.

In the 10th game of the second set, Simon hit a shot that appeared to land long in the middle of an exchange. Fish continued the point and eventually lost it, then pointed out a mark beyond the baseline to Ramos.

"I can't do your job and mine at the same time," Fish told the official, who responded: "Mardy, I'm telling you, I saw the ball good."

By rule, Fish would have had to halt play during the point to challenge it; a TV replay showed the ball did, indeed, land long.

Fish lost that game and might have allowed his frustration to leak into the next one, too, because he quickly fell behind love-40 and wound up getting broken when he dumped a backhand into the net to trail 6-5.

The conversation between Fish and Ramos continued at the ensuing changeover ? sort of. With the loud music that blares over the arena loudspeakers during breaks, Fish told Ramos: "I cannot hear one word you're saying, so all you're doing is yelling. I cannot hear you at all."

And that was that.

Simon then came out and served out the set, which ended with three consecutive missed forehands by Fish.

The American had a chance to get up quickly in the third set, holding three break points while ahead 1-0, but he failed to convert any of them. After Simon held there, he stood with his back against the wall near a baseline, grabbing his left toes and pulling that leg behind his back to stretch his thigh muscle. At the opposite end, Fish tossed his racket to the court.

He showed some more anger in that set's tiebreaker, leaning forward and screaming at himself after Simon whipped a running backhand passing winner on a full sprint to take a 3-1 lead.

Maybe that got Fish going, because he won the next two points and later used a backhand volley winner to close the set at 12:35 a.m., 2? hours after they started playing.

Fish did not need a lot more time to end things.

___

Follow Howard Fendrich on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrich

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2012-09-02-TEN-US-Open-Fish/id-7ba51e9a42714e22bb5556524d183a04

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Islamist rebels seize control of Douentza

BAMAKO, Mali (AP) ? Islamist extremist rebels seized control of Douentza, moving much closer to government-held territory in central Mali.

Douentza was taken early Saturday morning by the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa (known by the French acronym MUJAO). Douentza is 190 kilometers (120 miles) north of Mopti, a central town held by the Mali army.

Islamist leader Oumar Ould Hamaha said the MUJAO fighters entered Douentza and forced the surrender of the Gandakoy militia, who are secular rebels.

The seizure of Douentza was confirmed by residents contacted by phone from Bamako.

The fall of Douentza shows that Islamist forces are gaining territory and moving closer to southern Mali.

The United Nations reports that an estimated 440,000 people have fled the conflict and are in need of emergency food and shelter.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/islamist-rebels-seize-control-douentza-124435160.html

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Fracking supporters, foes prepare legal next steps | NCPR News

Drilling rig in the Marcellus Shale region. Photo: Laurie Barr

Albany, NY, Aug 31, 2012 ? New York State is poised to issue its plans for hydrofracking. The decision could come any time after Labor Day. But there's no guarantee the controversy will die down, and both opponents and supporters are exploring their legal options.

New York State?s Department of Environmental Conservation has spent four years studying hydraulic fracturing, and the agency?s final guidelines are expected out soon, potentially paving the way to allow drilling.

And when that document is made public, environmental lawyers will be ready. ?We?re going to scrutinize them with the fine-tooth comb, and then we?re going to decide on next steps, says Natural Resources Defense Council attorney Eric Goldstein. He says it?s too soon to say if his group will file a lawsuit, since no one has seen the DEC?s final plans. ?Good lawyers do everything they can to avoid litigation in the first place.?

But Goldstein says he?s still prepared for a courtroom fight. Potential lawsuits, he says, will likely center on a 1978 statute known as the State Environmental Quality Review Act.? That law requires the DEC to go through an extensive review of fracking, which includes outlining potential environmental problems, discussing alternatives, reviewing public comments and publishing it all in a massive final document.

Over the years the DEC has held that fracking can be done safely, as long as it?s properly regulated. But everyone is waiting to see how this final document will turn out, including Deborah Goldberg, an attorney with Earth Justice. She says if, for example, there was something left out of the document, or something that was ?procedurally improper?, her organization could file a lawsuit.

Meanwhile, representatives from the gas drilling industry have frequently complained that the state has taken far too long to approve fracking. Among them is Tom West, an Albany attorney who represents the industry. He says he thinks ?environmental stakeholder groups have made it very clear that no matter what the final standards are, they?re going to sue anyhow, which shows that their true intention is to block the development of our indigenous energy resources.?

West says he doesn?t believe the gas industry will take legal action against the DEC, since doing so could cause the whole environmental review process to start all over again.? But he says that if environmental groups try to get an injunction, or a temporary court ban, on fracking, drillers would likely jump into the legal fray: ?I suspect that some operators will intervene in that litigation to explain that they have leases that are expiring, how much money they have invested in New York State.?

West adds that he thinks environmentalists face an uphill legal battle: ?I think it?s going to be very difficult for the environmental groups to challenge the final standards when they come out, because the DEC has bent over backwards to be accommodating to their concerns.?

Eric Goldstein of the Natural Resources Defense Council agrees that it could be difficult to make the case that the DEC hasn?t done its job: ?Those challenging a state action have a heavy burden to show that the state has acted contrary to law, and that?s not an easy burden to prove.?

The DEC has spent all year reviewing more than 60,000 comments on fracking from the public, which it is required to respond to in its final report. Nevertheless, it's still expecting to get sued.

Source: http://www.northcountrypublicradio.org/news/story/20402/20120831/fracking-supporters-foes-prepare-legal-next-steps

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