The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Tuesday, November 29, 2011 - 3 NEWS BRIEFS KALAMAZOO, Mich. $30 million spent in 6 years on scholarship fund An anonymously funded free college tuition program for high school graduates of the Kalama- zoo Public Schools that was launched six years ago has spent more than $30 million on higher education for more than 2,300 students. Data provided by The Kalama- zoo Promise program show that about one-third of the students who started college on Promise scholarships have dropped out, at least temporarily, and another 10 percent of eligible students didn't take advantage of the scholarship program, the Kalamazoo Gazette reported yesterday. "Those numbers tell the story of what still needs to be done," said Janice Brown, the program's executive director. NEW YORK CITY Stocks soar on big shopping weekend A weekend of strong holiday shopping in the U.S. and radical proposals for stanching Europe's debt crisis sent stocks soaring yesterday. The Standard & Poor's 500 index broke a seven-day los- ing streak and the Dow Jones industrial average jumped 291 points, itsbiggestgain in a month. Markets in Europe also surged as leaders there discussed previ- ously unthinkable approaches for containing the region's debt troubles, such as joint bond sales and much tighter fiscal controls. France's CAC-40 jumped 5.5 per- cent. Indexes in Germany and Italy rose 4.6 percent. The bat- tered euro rose against the dollar. European finance ministers discussed aggressive measures to stop the debt crisis from destroy- ing the 17-nation currency union. CARACAS, Venezuela Columbian drug trafficker captured A top Colombian drug traffick- er reputedly responsible for ship- ping tons of cocaine to the United States through Central America and Mexico has been captured in Venezuela, officials said yester- day. The U.S. had offered a $5 mil- lion reward for information lead- ing to the arrest of Maximiliano Bonilla Orozco, also known as "Valenciano," who was also on Colombia's most-wanted list. Colombian authorities told The Associated Press that Bonilla was captured Sunday. The infor- mation was later confirmed by Colombian President Juan Man- uel Santos, who was in Venezu- ela meeting with President Hugo Chavez. "He's one of the most recog- nized drug traffickers, who has caused terrible harm to our coun- try," Santos told Chavez at the presidential palace. TRIPOLI, Libya Libyan clerics urge leaders to disarm rebel fighters Dozens of Libyan religious leaders yesterday urged authori- ties to disarm former rebels and form a national army, backing the transitional government's struggle to exert control over the militias that overthrew dictator Moammar Gadhafi. The fighters are widely admired for their role in bringing down the Gadhafi regime, but the clerics' statement reflected con- cern over the militias' refusal to submit to the central authority. Dozens of militias have held on to arsenals of heavy weapons and sometimes clash among them- selves. "We advise speeding up the process of establishing a national army and the collection of arms," said a statement from the 250 imams and other clerics gathered for a conference in Tripoli, the first of its kind after the fall of the Gadhafi regime. -Compiled from Daily wire reports GM to offer loaner cars to Volt owners TAREK FAWZY/AP Egyptian women walk past a banner and poster in Arabic that both read, "Nour Party," on the first day of parliamentary elections in Alexandria, yesterday. Conservative Nour Party praised b Egyptian voters Islamist parties expected to do well in first elections after revolution ALEXANDRIA, Egypt (AP) - Egypt's first parliamentary elections since the fall of Hosni Mubarak brought the political debut of a. potentially power- ful new player on the scene, the ultraconservative Islamist movement known as the Salafis. At several voting stations in this Mediterranean coastal city yesterday, Salafis packed the lines as early as 7 a.m., an hour before the polls opened, clearly dis- tinguishable by the long, mous- tache-less beards of the men and the blanketing robes and veils of the women leaving nothing of their bodies visible but their eyes. Their presence in the lines only grew throughout the day, as women in veils and gloves passed out campaign fliers for the Nour Party, the main Salafist entry in the race. "Anybody who is afraid of the Salafis doesn't know who we are," said Um Ibrahim, 43, who wore a face veil and had dragged her children to the polls with her. "The Nour Party under- stands religion the way that God intended and they will lead us properly." Islamic parties in general are expected to do well, likely to win a plurality or even a majority in the next parliament, raising the likelihood that Egypt will see an increased melding of religion into its politics. Strongest is the Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's most organized political force, in existence for 80 years with a network of activists and chari- ties nationwide. After the lifting of Mubarak's autocratic hand, newly created Salafi parties have flooded onto the scene. They are challenging the Brotherhood's near monop- oly on the religious bloc and are likely to push even harder than the Brotherhood for religious rule. They bring an ideology that makes the Brotherhood look moderate in comparison. Salafis advocate a Saudi-style hard- line interpretation of Islam that brooks no compromise in a lit- eralist interpretation of Shariah law and advocates a staunch segregation of the sexes. They have long shunned the concept of democracy, saying it allows man's law to override God's. During the election cam- paign, their bluntness startled many in Egypt, where even the pious usually have a relatively easygoing view. During an Alex- andria rally, Salafis covered a public statue with cloth because it included mermaids. One Salafi leader refused to appear on a TV political talk show until the female host put on a headscarf; another insisted a partition be put between him and a female host. A sheik recently burst into a concert at a Nile Delta uni- versity, took to the stage and shouted that music was "haram" - religiously forbidden. But the Salafis also highlight why Islamists appeal to some. In a nation where poverty is widespread, Islamists - unlike liberals - have taken the lead in providing charity work and social programs, including free medical and educational ser- vices for the poor. While liberals fear imposition of Islamic law, some in this intrinsically reli- gious society look on an Islamist candidate and see a moral per- son who is less likely to be cor- rupt. "I am a divorced woman and the Nour party candidates have always helped me financially to stand on my feet," said Hor- reya Attia, a 52-year old mother of two. "The least I could do is return the favor at the polls." In downtown Alexandria, Amira Salah, 19, sat with her friends talking about who to vote for. She was dressed in a way Salafis consider improper - makeup on her face, jeans and a colorful headscarf - but she sur- prised her girlfriends when she said she wanted to vote for the Nour Party. "They'll be able to run the country in the right and God- fearing way," she said. "They will use the correct traditions of the prophet to rule Egypt. Even if they made me cover up from top to bottom and wear a face veil, I would be OK with it." Safety agency investigating Volt's lithium-ion battery amid fire concerns DETROIT (AP) - General Motors, concerned about the image of its Chevrolet Volt, is offering free loaner vehicles to owners who are worried about the electric cars catching fire. The move comes after a gov- ernment safety agency said on Friday that it is investigating fires involving the Volt's lithium- ion battery packs following crash tests. Thus far, the Volt tests have not raised concerns about the safety of other electric cars, the agency has said. GM said yesterday that the vehicle is safe. But it will contact owners of the more than 5,000 Volts sold in North America since December2010 toreassure them. It will also offer loaner cars to ensure that owners are satisfied and confident in their purchase. GM has not put a time limit on how longcustomers can keep the loaners, but said the offer is not a response to demands from cus- tomers. The National Highway Traf- fic Safety Administration said a Volt battery pack that was being monitored caught fire on Thurs- day, a week after it was hit in a side-impact crash test. The. agency said another battery that was crash-tested recently gave off smoke and sparks. The latest fires are in addition to a battery fire ata test facility in Wisconsin back in June. The Volt, which can travel about 35 miles on electric power before a small gasoline generator kicks in to run the car, has helped Chevrolet's public image, and GM is eager to protect that good will. The company has promoted the car extensively as a first step toward independence from for- eign oil, and the Volt has helped counter a gas-guzzling image left over from years of GM selling mainly pickup trucks and ineffi- cient sport utilityvehicles. Mary Barra, GM's senior vice president of product develop- ment, said both fires reported by NHTSA occurred seven days to three weeks after the crash tests, and could have been prevented if the battery charge had been drained as GM has called for in its post-crash procedures. She said only a few Volts have crashed on public roads. None have caught fire, nor have the battery packs been compro- mised. "We don't think there's an immediate fire risk," said GM North American President Mark Reuss, who addressed the media in a conference call along with Barra. "This is a post-crash activity." NHTSA wasn't aware of the post-crash procedures at the time of the June fire, GM officials have said. In the U.S., GM is noti- fied of any severe Volt crashes through its OnStar safety sys- tem, and it sends a team to the car within a day to drain the bat- tery charge to prevent any fires. In the Volt's system, Lithium- ion battery cells, which essen- tially are a single battery, are assembled into a pack of cells, and coolant is pumped between the cells to keep them from over- heating. In the June fire ata test facility in Burlington, Wis., cool- ant leaked from the battery and crystallized, and that could have been a factor in the fire, GM has said. The fire came three weeks after a side-impact crash test and was severe enough to cause sev- eral other vehicles parked near- by to catch fire as well. Barra said that in all the Volt incidents, the battery cells were not involved in the fires, only the electronics within the battery pack. But she would not be more specific until NHTSA's investi- gation is over. Reuss said GM won't sell any Volts in other countries until it makes sure emergency respond- ers, salvage yards and dealers have been trained to discharge the batteries after a severe crash. The Volt and Nissan's Leaf, with a total of more than 8,000 cars on the road in the U.S., are among the first mass-marketed plug-in electric cars. They went on sale in the 2011 model year. Other automakers are also work- ing on electric vehicles. The safety testing hasn't raised concerns about electric vehicles other than the Volt, but NHTSA is asking manufactur- ers who have electric cars on the market, or who plan to introduce them, for more detailed infor- mation on battery testing. The agency also is asking for the companies' procedures for dis- charging and handling batteries, including recommendations for reducing fire risks. Lithium-ion batteries, which are rechargeable, have been the subject of several recalls of con- sumer electronics. Millions of laptop batteries made by Sony Corp. for Apple Inc., Dell Inc., Lenovo Group Ltd. and other PC makers were recalled in2006 and 2007 after it was discovered that they could overheat and ignite. Police choose not to clear Occupy LA camp Law enforcement surrounded camp for six hours LOS ANGELES (AP) - Wall. Street protesters declared a minor victory yesterday when they defied a midnight dead- line to leave their tent city encampment around City Hall and police withdrew after surrounding the camp for six hours without moving in. Four people were arrested as police cleared downtown streets to make way for morn- ing rush hour traffic, but police said the event was largely peaceful. Police Chief Charlie Beck said it remains unclear when the nearly two-month-old Occupy LA camp would be cleared. About half of the 485 tents hadbeen taken down as of Sunday night, leaving patches of the 1.7-acre park around City Hall barren of grass and strewn with garbage. "There is no concrete dead- line," Beck told reporters yes- terday morning after hundreds of officers withdrew without moving in on the camp. The chief said he wanted to make sure the removal will be done when it was safe for protesters and officers and "with as little drama as possible." Protesters chanted "we won, we won" as riot-clad officers left the scene. "I'm pretty much speech- less," said Clark Davis, media coordinator for Occupy LA. Police turned back after hundreds of Occupy LA sup- porters showed up at the camp Sunday night as the midnight deadline for evacuation neared. As the night drew on, many demonstrators left. Protester Julie Levine said she was surprised that police did not move in as the numbers dwindled. "We were fearful," she said. "But we held our num- bers and police were on their best behavior." A celebratory atmosphere filled the night with protest- ers milling about the park and streets by City Hall in seeming good spirits. A group on bicy- cles circled the block, one of them in a cow suit. Organizers led chants with a bull horn. A police tactical alert was called that kept officers on overtime. Officers reopened the streets at around 6:30 a.m. "Let's go get breakfast," said Commander Andrew Smith as he removed his helmet. The protest was largely peaceful but there were some skirmishes. Four people were arrested for failure to disperse and a few protesters tossed bamboo sticks and water bottles at offi- cers, Smith said. NEW YORK UNIVERSITY Behind every real estate development project there is a'creative, well-networked visionary. M.S. in Real Estate Development In New York, across the country, and around the globe, to be successful in real estate development you need to be creative, flexible, well-networked, and business savvy. The M.S. in Real Estate Development delivers the practical expertise, the visionaty and strategic thinking, and the industry connections required not only to survive, but thrive in today's challenging marketplace. 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