The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Thursday, April 11, 2013 - 3A The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom Thursday, April 11, 2013 - 3A NEWS BRIEFS GROSSE POINTE, Mich. Santorum school speech requires permission slips Former U.S. Sen. Rick Santo- rum says it's unfortunate that students will need a permis- sion slip to hear him speak at a Detroit-area school. ) Grosse Pointe South High School reversed course Wednes- day and said Santorum can appear on April 24. But students will need approval from parents to hear his speech on leadership. The Pennsylvania Republican served in Congress for 16 years and was a conservative GOP can- didate for president last year. South principal Matt Outlaw had canceled the event Monday, partly because the group spon- soring Santorum's visit wouldn't share a copy of his speech ahead of the appearance. But Outlaw says he talked to Santorum by phone and apologized. SAN FRANCISCO Bill aimed at boy scouts' gay ban makes progress A bill aimed at pressuring the Boy Scouts of America to lift its ban on gay members by making the organization ineligible for nonprofit tax breaks cleared its first vote on Wednesday in the California Legislature. The Senate Governance and Finance Committee voted 5 to 2 to move the first-of-its-kind bill to the Senate Appropriations Committee for review. The Youth Equality Act, spon- sored by Sen. Ricardo Lara, D-Long Beach, would deny tax- exempt status to youth groups that discriminate on the basis of gender identity, race, sexual ori- entation, nationality, religion or religious affiliation. PARIS Gay attack victim becomes celebrity for rights cause The shockingphoto ofahomo- phobic attack victim in Paris that went viral on social media this week and caused the French interior minister to weigh in was used as an emblem in a pro-gay rally Wednesday evening. The bloody image of Wilfred de Bruijn's cut and bruised face was brandished by gay groups during a demonstration of several thou- sand people as evidence of their claim that homophobic acts have tripled nationwide over opposi- tion to a law legalizing gay mar- riage. This week, the French sen- ate will conclude its debate on a controversial law - which is expected to pass - legalizing same-sex marriage and adop- tion. It's been a rocky run since it was unveiled last November by President Francois Hollande's Socialists and split the majority- Catholic country. LONDON Bomb found by gardeners during competition- Gardeners in Britain who were digging flowerbeds for a village horticultural competition have instead uncovered a World War II bomb. Police say a bomb disposal unit was sent to a crossing near Naffer- ton train station in the northeast of England after residents report- ed finding the explosive device. The area near railway tracks was cordoned off to prevent vibrations from trains setting the device off, and local train servic- es were temporarily stopped as a precaution. Officers said Wednesday the object turned out to be an inert two-pound (one-kilogram) air- craft bomb. They have removed the device to safely dispose of it. -Compiled from Daily wire reports . Scon tAppewnite/AP Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., left, meets in his office with families of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Conn., on the day he announced that he reached a bipartisan deal on expanding background checks to more gun buyers, on Capitol Hill in Washington Wednesday. Senators com-promnise for background check increase Gun laws still to be put through Congress WASHINGTON (AP) Conservative senators from both parties announced their support for expanding back- ground checks for gun buy- ers Wednesday, giving a burst of momentum to advocates of stronger restrictions. But big questions remain about wheth- er President Barack Obama can push significant gun controls through Congress. The compromise between Sens. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and Patrick Toomey, R-Pa., boosted the chances that the Senate will agree to broaden required background checks, a step gun control groups laud as an effective way to keep weap- ons from criminals and the mentally ill. The senators are among the most conservative members of their parties, both have received "A" ratings from the National Rifle Association, and their endorsements could make it easier for hesitant col- leagues to back the effort. Gun control advocates still face opposition from many Republican senators and resis- tance from moderate Demo- crats, including several facing re-election next year in GOP- leaning states. In the Repub- lican-run House, leaders have shown little enthusiasm for Obama's ideas, making that chamber an even higher hur- dle. Under the agreement the two senators announced at the Capitol, background checks would be expanded to all for- office, telling them that "this will not be in vain." He became choked up when a reporter asked about the impact of the family members' visit, saying, "I'm a parent, a grandparent... <. -tra ,g . r - sales at gun shows and online, with records kept by licensed gun-dealers who would han- dle the paperwork. Exempt- ed would be noncommercial transactions such as between relatives. Currently, the sys- tem applies only to sales by the country's 55,000 federally licensed firearms dealers. The agreement also con- tains provisions expanding firearms rights, and that con- cerns gun control supporters. Some restrictions on trans- porting guns across state lines would be eased, sellers would be shielded from lawsuits if the buyer passed a check but later used a firearm in a crime and gun dealers could conduct business in states where they don't live. "Truly the events at New- town changed us all," said Manchin, citing the Connecti- cut town where December's murders of 20 first-graders and six educators propelled gun control to the top rank of national issues. "Americans on both sides of the debate can and must find common ground." Emotion, always prominent in the gun issue, cropped up late Wednesday when Man- chin met with relatives of the Newtown victims in his Senate 71*11 aid Toomey: "Criminals and the dangerously mentally ill shouldn't have guns. I don't know anyone who disagrees with that premise." He said that expanding the checks wasn't gun control, "just com- mon sense." The agreement makes it all but certain that the Senate will reject a conservative blockade and vote Thursday to begin debating Democrats' gun leg- islation. Besides broader back- ground check requirements, the bill would also toughen laws against illicit firearms sales and provide a small increase in school security aid. Underscoring that the fight was far from over, NRA spokesman Andrew Arula- nandam said the organization opposes the Manchin-Toomey accord. The group, which has fought most of Obama's gun proposals and claims nearly 5 million members, said the focus should be on improv- ing the nation's mental health system and sources of violence like gangs. "Expanding background checks at gun shows will not prevent the next shooting, will not solve violent crime and will not keep our kids safe in schools," the NRA said. N. Korea missle test masked by holiday Newscasts focus on Downtown, schoolchildren marched toward statues of the national holiday, two late leaders, Kim II Sung and Kim Jong II, dragging brooms to not preperation for sweep the hilltop plaza where they tower over Pyongyang. potential war Women with coats thrown over traditional dresses rushed PYONGYANG, North Korea through the spring chill after (AP) - As the world braced for leaving a rehearsal for a dance a provocative missile launch by planned for Kim II Sung's birth- North Korea, with newscasts day celebrations. worldwide playing up tensions At the base of Mansu Hill, on the Korean Peninsula, the a group of young people held a center of the storm was strangely small rally to pledge their loyalty calm. to Kim Jong Un and to sing the The focus in Pyongyang on Kim ode, "We Will Defend the Wednesday was less on prepar- Marshal With Our Lives." ing for war and more on beau- Kim Un Chol, the 40-year-old tifying the capital ahead of the head of a political unit at Pyong- nation's biggest holiday: the yang's tobacco factory, said he April 15 birthday of the nation's had been discharged from the founder, Kim Il Sung. Soldiers military but was willing to re- put down their rifles to blanket enlist if war breaks out. He said the barren ground with sod and North Koreans were resolute. students picked up shovels to "The people of Pyongyang are help plant trees. confident. They know we can win But the impoverished, tightly any war," he told The Associated controlled nation that has his- Press. "We now have nuclear torically used major holidays to weapons. So you won't see any draw the world's attention by worry on people's faces, even if showing off its military power the situation is tense." could well mark the occasion Kim Jong Il elevated the mili- by testing a missile designednto tary's role during his 17-year rule strike U.S. military installations under a policy of "military first," in Japan and Guam. and the government devotes a South Korea's foreign minister significant chunk of its annu- said the prospect of a medium- al budget to defense. Human range missile launch is "consid- rights groups say the massive erably high." spending on the military and North Korean officials have on development of missile and not announced plans to launch a nuclear technology comes at the missile in defiance of U.N. Secu- expense of most of its 24 million rity Council resolutions barring people. Two-thirds face chronic Pyongyang from nuclear and food shortages, according to the missile activity. World Food Program. But they have told foreign dip- North Koreans are taught lomats in Pyongyang that they from childhood to hate the U.S. will not be able to guarantee and to gird against an invasion their safety starting Wednes- by "imperialists" intent on tak- day and urged tourists in South ing over the entire Korean Pen- Korea to take cover, warning that insula. a nuclear war is imminent. Most Guns and tanks are popular diplomats and foreign residents toys for children in the highly in both capitals appeared to be militarized society, and young staying put. North Koreans learn to fire guns The European Union said when they are teenagers, resi- there was no need for member dents say. As young adults, they states to evacuate or relocate attend camps to learn military their diplomatic missions, but it techniques. called on North Korea to "refrain But there was no sign North from further provocative decla- Koreans were brushing up on rations or action." their skills Wednesday. Pyong- The threats are largely seen yang sporadically holds civil air as rhetoric and an attempt by raid drills in which citizens prac- North Korea to scare foreigners tice blacking out their windows into pressing their governments and seeking shelter. But no such to pressure Washington and drills have been held in recent Seoul to change their policies months, residents said. toward Pyongyang, as well as to Last year, the days surround- boost the military credentials of ing the centennial of the birth its young leader, Kim Jong Un. of Kim I Sung, grandfather of North Korea does not have dip- the current ruler, were marked lomatic relations with the U.S. by parades of tanks, missiles and and South Korea, its foes during goose-stepping soldiers, as well the Korean War of the 1950s, and as the failed launch of a satellite- has pushed for a peace treaty to carrying rocket widely believed replace a60-year-old armistice. by the U.S. and its allies to be a On the streets of Pyongyang, test of ballistic missile technol- there was no sense of panic. ogy. THE NEW LINE CHINESE CUISINE 7(j1i Gardn'eniYUTn -6 SPECIAULZING IN HONG KONG, TAIWANESE, SZECHUAN & HUNAN STYLES 734-995-1786 116 S. MAIN STREETOE7 (BE1WEENW.HURONANDWASHINGTONST) DOWNTOWN ANN ARBOR WWWKAIGARDEN.COM i-s Technology stocks reach record high, double analysts' expectations Stock market reverses course, rising three days straight NEW YORK (AP) - Tech- nology stocks roared back Wednesday, driving the Stan- dard & Poor's 500 and Dow Jones industrial average to record highs. The industry has lagged the broader market this year, but surged after network com- munications company Adtran reported earnings that were double what Wall Street ana- lysts expected. That boosted optimism that businesses will increase spending on technol- ogy equipment. Chipmakers Micron and Intel jumped, as did other network equipment makers like Cisco and JDS Uniphase. Stocks were also up on an opti- mistic reading of the Federal Reserve's latest minutes. Technology stocks rose 1.8 percent, the most of the 10 industry groups in the S&P. That's a big change from tech's weak performance this year. The group is up just 4.7 per- cent, trailing the S&P's gain of 11.3 percent. "Tech has performed so poorly, it's oversold and war- rants some interest here," said Scott Wren, a senior equity strategist at Wells Fargo Advi- sors. "If the economy contin- ues to improve there is going to be some capital spending." The stock market has reversed course this week, ris- ing three straight days. Last week, investors' confidence fell because of an unexpect- edly poor report on the U.S. job market and other signs that the economy slowed in March. The Dow Jones industrial average jumped 128.78 points Wednesday, or 0.9 percent, to 14,802.24. It was the biggest one-day rise in a month. The Dow is up 13 percent in 2013. The Nasdaq composite, which is heavily weighted with technology stocks, had the biggest percentage gainof the three main indexes Wednes- day, rising 59.39 points, or 1.8 percent, to 3,297.25. The S&P rose 19.12 points, or 1.2 per- cent, to 1,587.73. Investors viewed positively the minutes from the Fed- eral Reserve's latest meeting, which were released before the market opened. The minutes revealed that policy makers are becoming more confident that the U.S. economy can grow without stimulus from the Fed, said Brian Gendreau, a market strategist at Cetera Financial Group. The Fed released the min- utes at 9 a.m. Eastern, five hours ahead of schedule, after the document was inadvertent- ly distributed to congressional staff and trade group officials. The market rose steadily in the morning and stayed high through the afternoon. A majority of the Fed's 12 policymakers want to con- tinue the stimulus. Still, many members indicated they want to slow and eventually end the program before the end of the year, as long as the job market and economy show sustained, improvement. The Fed didn't disclose how many of its poli- cymakers held those views. That suggests that a num- ber of Fed officials think the economy may be doing well enough to stand on its own. The Fed has been buying $85 billion worth of bonds each month to keep interest rates extremely low, encourage borrowing and spending and drive money into riskier assets like stocks. "The idea that the Fed thinks that we are closer to the restoration of normality might be positive for the market," said Gendreau. While the Dow and S&P have been setting record highs frequently over the past month, the Nasdaq remains 35 percent below its record of 5,048 set March 10, 2000. The index surged the during the technology bubble of the late 1990s. The Nasdaq is at its highest level in more than 12 years. Among stocks making big moves, Facebook rose 98 cents, or 3.7 percent, to $27.57 after General Motors said it would start running ads on the social network site. Adtran rose $2.75, or 14 percent, to $22.46, and JDS Uniphase rose 64 cents, or 4.8 percent, to $13.98.