The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Tuesday, April 16, 2013 - 3
NEWS BRIEFS
LANSING
No layoffs from
federal budget cuts
Automatic federal budget cuts
will cost Michigan $150 million
in funding for programs such as
special education and a cloth-
ing allowance for needy kids,
but none of state government's
48,000 employees will lose their
jobs, the state announced Mon-
day.
About $20 billion, or 42 per-
cent, of the state's $48 billion
budget comes from federal funds
- a concern for state officials
ever since the automatic spend-
ing reductions began taking
effect more than six weeks ago.
Gov. Rick Snyder's adminis-
tration said the most significant
direct cut is to a program that
will not be able to provide about
$137 at the start of the school
year to each of 21,000 chil-
dren living with relatives after
being removed from their home.
SEATTLE, Wash.
Search and rescue
delays effort to
find lost hiker
Dangerous conditions Mon-
day prevented rescuers from
searching for a hiker who was
caught in an avalanche over the
weekend in the Cascade Moun-
tains east of Seattle.
The - hiker's wife, Marilynn
Hungate, identified him to
KING-TV as Mitch Hungate, 61,
a dentist and seasoned athlete.
He was with two other com-
panions Saturday afternoon
when an avalanche swept them
more than 1,200 feet down Gran-
ite Mountain, a 5,600-foot peak
about 45 miles east of Seattle.
The two friends emerged from
the snow and called for help.
They tried but weren't able to
find Hungate.
AMMAN, Jordan
Jordanian
extremist praises
* Boston bombing
Visitors to the National Sep-
tember 11 Memorial & Museum
must now pay a $2 service fee to
reserve passes online or by phone.
The fee went into effect last
* month, although there is no
charge for admission to the
memorial on the World Trade
Center site. There's also no
charge for same-day passes dis-
tributed on a first-come, first-
served basis.
Family members of some 9/11
victims say the fee violates the
memorial's mission.
"They're making money off the
people that died. It's disgusting,"
Jim Riches, a retired FDNY dep-
uty chief who lost his firefighter
son, told the New York Post.
AI-Chalabi served seven
years in prison for his part
in the foiled attack. His
group is outlawed in Jordan.
VUKOVAR, Croatia
Effects of Balkan
conflict still felt
* by many soldiers
Edin Kapidzic fought in Croa-
tia's brutal war for independence
and came out alive. Carrying on
in peace turned out to be harder.
Years after returning from the
front lines, the former soldier
from eastern Croatia hanged
himself in a park in the home-
town he defended during the
1991-95 conflict, part of the
wider disintegration of the for-
mer Yugoslavia. Kapidzic left
behind a wife and four children.
But no suicide note.
He was among nearly 2,000
Croatian war veterans who have
killed themselves since war
ended in the Balkan country of
4.2 million, which is now slated
to join the European Union. An
estimated 1,000 people com-
mit suicide each year in Croa-
tia, of whom 100 to 120 are the
so-called Croatian defenders, or
l those who took part in the war,
according to official statistics.
-Compiled from
Daily wire reports.
Boston bombing
prompts review
of London race
Alexander h. Yuan/AP
A man, center, supervises a dancing group during a mass folk dance in front of the Pyongyang Indoor Stadium in
Pyongyang, North Korea on Monday.
During holiday, Korea
calm after threatening war
Festivities continue
despite potential
missile launch
PYONGYANG, North Korea
(AP) - North Koreans cel-
ebrated the birthday of their
first leader Monday by danc-
ing in plazas and snacking on
peanuts, with little hint of the
fiery language that has kept the
international community fear-
ful that a missile launch may be
imminent.
Pyongyang fired off a rocket
ahead of the last anniversary of
Kim Il Sung's birth - the cen-
tennial - but this time the day
was simply the start of a two-
day holiday for Pyongyang
residents who spilled into the
streets.
Girls in red and pink jackets
skipped along streets festooned
with celebratory banners and
flags and boys on inline skates
took a break to slurp up bowls
of shaved ice.
There was no sense of panic
in the North Korean capital,
where very few locals have
access to international broad-
casts and foreign newspapers
speculating about an imminent
missile launch and detailing
the international diplomacy
under way to try to rein Pyong-
yang in.
Elsewhere in the region,
however, the focus remained
on the threat of a launch as U.S.
Secretary of State John Kerry
wrapped up a tour to coordi-
nate Washington's response
with Beijing, North Korea's
most important ally, as well as
with Seoul and Tokyo.
In Seoul, South Korean
Defense Minister Kim Kwan-
jin told a parliamentary com-
mittee Monday that North
Korea still appeared poised to
launch a missile from its east
coast, though he declined to
disclose the source of his infor-
mation.
Kerry warned North Korea
not to conduct a missile test,
saying it would be provocation
that "will raise people's temper-
atures" and further isolate the
country and its impoverished
people. He said Sunday that
the U.S. was "prepared to reach
out," but that Pyongyang must
first bring down tensions and
honor previous agreements.
Foreign governments have
been trying to assess how seri-
ously to take North Korea's
recent torrent of rhetoric
warning of war if the U.S. and
South Korea do not stop hold-
ing joiet military maneuvers
just across the border.
Officials in South Korea,
the United States and Japan
say intelligence indicates
that North Korea, fresh off
an underground nuclear test
in February, appears ready
to launch a medium-range
missile. North Korea has
already been slapped with
strengthened U.N. sanctions
for violating Security Council
resolutions barring the regime
from nuclear and missile activ-
ity.
North Korea has warned
that the situation has grown
so tense it cannot guarantee
the safety of foreigners in the
country and said embassies
in Pyongyang should think
about their evacuation plans.
But British Foreign Secretary
William Hague said Monday
that although there is reason
for concern over the "frenetic
and bellicose" rhetoric, Brit-
ain believes there has been "no
immediate increased risk or
danger" to those living in or
travelling to North Korea.
He said Britain does not
see an immediate need to
draw down embassy staff,
but is keeping that under
constant review. He added
that, from discussions with
other governments, the U.K.
does not believe any foreign
embassy in Pyongyang plans
to close.
While concerns over North
Korea continued to dominate
headlines abroad, Pyongyang's
own media gave little indica-
tion Monday of how high the
tensions are.
The Rodong Sinmun, the
Workers' Party newspaper, fea-
tured photos and coverage of
current leader Kim Jong Un's
overnight visit to the Kumsu-
san mausoleum to pay respects
to his grandfather. There was
only one line at the end of the
article vowing to bring down
the "robber-like U.S. imperial-
ists."
British police
prepare heightened
security for
Sunday's marathon
LONDON (AP) - British
police are reviewing security
plans for Sunday's London Mar-
athon, the next major interna-
tional marathon, because of the
bombs that killed two people at
the race in Boston. But there is
no known specific or credible
threat against the hugely popu-
lar British race at the moment,
a security official said Monday.
Police already were preparing
a major security operation for
Wednesday's ceremonial funer-
al for former Prime Minister
Margaret Thatcher, an event at
St. Paul'sCathedral that will be
attended by Queen Elizabeth II
and many dignitaries. The plans
call for a procession through the
streets of London, with Thatch-
er's flag-draped coffin to be car-
ried on a horse-drawn carriage.
The funeral's security plans
are expected to be reviewed in
light of the Boston bombings.
London has long been con-
sidered a top target for inter-
national terrorists, with the
government saying the threat
level is "substantial." In 2005, a
series of suicide attacks on the
public transport system in the
British capital killed 52 people.
London and mainland Britain
also face a moderate threat from
Northern Ireland-related ter-
rorism, according to the govern-
ment.
Two bombs exploded near
the finish of the Boston Mara-
thon on Monday, killing two
people and wounding more
than 80 others, race organizers
and police said. The situation
sparked alarm bells in Britain,
where a massive security opera-
tion was put in place last sum-
mer to protect the successful
London Olympics.
Last year, some 37,500 ath-
letes competed in the London
Marathon, with many more
watching the springtime event.
Chief Superintendent Julia
Pendry, police commander for
the London race, said Mon-
day that "a security plan is in
place for the London Marathon.
We will be reviewing security
arrangements in partnership
with (the) London Marathon."
A police spokesman who
spoke on condition of anonym-
ity because he was not autho-
rized to go on the record said
the security presence may be
increased.
A security official, speak-
ing on condition of anonymity
because he was not authorized
to speak publicly about the mat-
ter, said there are no credible or
specific threats against the Lon-
don Marathon.
The London race's chief
executive, Nick Bitel, said mar-
athon officials contacted the
police to discuss security plans
"as soon as we heard the news"
about Boston. He expressed
shock and sadness about the
situation in Boston, saying "it
is a very sad day for athletics
and for our friends in marathon
running."
BP manager testifies
at trial over oil spill
$500 million Wrigley Field
renovation headed to court
Detailed plans
for stadium get
heat from rooftop
owners
CHICAGO (AP) - The Chica-
go Cubs have been fighting for
years to get back to the World
Series. They may have a fight on
their hands to upgrade Wrigley
Field, too.
The Cubs unveiled details
Monday of their' $500 million
plan to renovate the 99-year-
old ballpark. It calls for more
night games, a new hotel, a new
clubhouse, extended beer sales,
various upgrades for fans -
and a massive electronic video
screen that could spark a legal
battle with rooftop owners who
have a financial stake in being
able to view the games from
across the street.
The proposed 6,000-square-
foot screen in left field is nearly
three times as large as the ven-
erable scoreboard currently
atop the centerfield bleachers.
Team chairman Tom Ricketts
said "significant" advertising-
related revenue from the video
screen and a 1,000-square-foot
sign in right field would be
pumped back into the team.
"If this plan is approved, we
will win the World Series for
our city," Ricketts of the Cubs,
who have not won it all since
1908 and haven't played in the
series since 1945.
The Cubs say rooftop views
would be "largely preserved"
and that the sign and screen
are "far less than our origi-
nal desire for seven signs to
help offset the costrof ballpark
restoration." Ricketts would
not say what the team means
when it says the signs would
have "minimal impact" on the
views from the rooftops. Nor
would he discuss the likeli-
hood of a lawsuit, saying only
that "we will take that issue as
it comes."
The rub is that the rooftop
owners have a contract with
the Cubs in which they share
revenue from the rooftop seats
- an unusual arrangement, to
be sure. The rooftop owners
have 11 years remaining on the
contract, and they showed no
sign of endorsing the big new
signs the Cubs want to put up.
"We have a contract with the
Chicago Cubs and we intend
to see that it's enforced," said
Beth Murphy, who owns roof-
top bleachers and Murphy's
Bleachers, a popular tavern
just beyond Wrigley's center-
field wall. "We have fulfilled
our end of the contract, we pay
them 17 percent of our gross
revenues every year."
Murphy said the rooftop
owners were shut out of nego-
tiations between the city and
the team. She said she couldn't
imagine how a 6,000-square-
foot sign - slightly more than
a tenth of an acre - could be
installed without disrupting
views from the rooftops.
Ricketts said the two sides
have a ways to go, that the
agreement must be approved by
city planners and the City Coun-
cil. But he said Mayor Rahm
Emanuel and the alderman
whose ward includes Wrigley
Field, Tom Tunney, support the
overall plan. The mayor's office
has, in fact, agreed the signs can
be installed, but there has been
no agreement on size or design.
Only Boston's Fenway Park is
older than Wrigley Field among
major league parks. Baseball
purists love its intimacy -.the
ivy-covered walls, the commit-
ment to day games - but the
team says it spends $15 million
a year just to keep up with basic
repairs and desperately wants
new revenue to pay for new
amenities. A better showplace
could perhaps help the Cubs
snap a World Series champion-
ship drought that dates to 1908,
six years before Wrigley was
built.
Under the plan, the num-
ber of night games could be
increased from 30 to 40, and
construction would include a
175-room hotel, an office build-
ing with retail space and health
club, and 1,000 "remote" park-
ing spots that would be free
and come with shuttle ser-
vice. Emanuel has hailed the
"framework" agreement, not-
ing that it includes no taxpayer
funding.
If the deal wins approval
from city officials, Ricketts
said work could begin after
this season ends and be com-
pleted over the next five years.
Manager had no
safety concerns for
oil rig despite last
minute changes
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - A BP
team leader who supervised man-
agers on the oil rig that exploded
in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010 tes-
tified Monday that he was frus-
trated by last-minute changes
to the drilling project, but didn't
have any safety concerns before
the deadly blast.
John Guide was BP's wells
team leader for the Deepwater
Horizon project and supervised
two rig managers who have
been indicted on manslaugh-
ter charges in the deaths of 11
workers. He was the first wit-
ness to testify during the eighth
week of a federal trial seeking
to assign responsibility for the
disaster.
The explosion that killed
the rig workers triggered the
nation's worst offshore oil spill.
Barring a settlement, U.S. Dis-
trict Judge Carl Barbier, who
is hearing testimony without
a jury, could decide how much
more money BP and its contrac-
tors owe for their roles in the
catastrophe.
' In an email three days before
the April 20, 2010, blowout
of BP's Macondo well, Guide
complained about last-minute
changes and warned his boss,
David Sims; that the operation
wouldn't succeed if it continued
"in this manner." Guide sent
the email after learning about a
change in the plan for cement-
ing BP's Macondo well.
"David, over the past four
days there has been so many last
minute changes to the operation
that the (BP rig managers) have
finally come to their wits end.
The quote is 'flying by the seat
of our pants,"' Guide wrote.
Plaintiffs' attorneys have
claimed that email shows BP sac-
rificed safety in a rush to com-
plete a project that was behind
schedule and millions of dollars
over budget.
Guide, however, testified that
the concerns he expressed in his
April 17 email had nothing to do
with safety. Guide said he never
tried to cut corners to save money
or pressured rig crew members
to speed up operations so the rig
could move on to drilling another
well.
"Safety was the number one
priority," he said.
Guide said he sent the April
17 email after learning that BP
planned to add 30 barrels of
"spacer" during the Macondo
well's cementjob.Aspaceris aliq-
uid used to separate other liquids
from each other.
"I didn't know about this," he
recalled. "I was surprised."
, Robert Kaluza and Donald
Vidrine, BP's well site leaders on
the rig at the time of the explo-
sion, have pleaded not guilty to
manslaughter charges and await
a separate trial. An indictment
last year accuses Kaluza and Vid-
rine of botching a key safety test
and disregarding abnormally
high pressure readings that were
glaring signs of trouble before the
blowout.
Guide said he spoke to Vidrine
on the morning of April 17 and
discussed the last-minute chang-
es to the drilling plans.
"Mr. Vidrine was frustrated,"
he recalled. "He made the com-
ment that it just seemed like try-
ing to put all this stuff together
made him feel like he was flying
by the seat of his pants."
. Guide said he also discussed
his concerns with Brian Morel, a
BP engineerontheproject,before
sending the email to Sims.
"Everybody wants to do the
right thing, but, this huge level
of paranoia from engineering
leadership is driving chaos,"
Guide wrote in the email. "Brian
has called me numerous times
trying to make sense of all the
insanity."
More than a month before the
blowout, Sims wrote but never
sent a scathing email in which
he accused Guide of criticizing
"nearly everything we do on the
rig" without accepting responsi-
bility for his role in supervising
the operation.
"You are always defensive and
the victim. You seem to not want
to make a decision so that you
can criticize it later," Sims wrote
in the email, one of several testy
exchanges he had with Guide.