Water recycling at Japan nuclear plant stops again (AP)

TOKYO – A water recycling system at Japan's damaged nuclear power plant was halted for repairs Monday after a brief run that had been hailed as major progress in restoring control and improving conditions at the crippled plant.

Tons of fresh water has been pumped to the plant to cool its reactors, a process that taints the water with radiation. About 110,000 tons of tainted water has accumulated and could overflow by early July if the recycling system fails or other storage options are not enough.

Workers have struggled for weeks to use a new system to clean the tainted water and reuse it in the cooling process. The water treatment components fully operated for five hours earlier this month, and test-runs were conducted before it went fully operational Monday. It also pumped treated water into the reactors — a long-awaited new phase that lasted only briefly.

Plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Co. said the recycling system was halted about an hour and a half after it began operating. Workers spotted water leaking from a hose that was sending the processed water into the reactors, TEPCO spokesman Junichi Matsumoto said.

The leak shut down the recycling segment of the system, while the cleaning segment is continuing to operate. Workers switched back to fresh water injection into the reactors, Matsumoto said.

No new leakage outside the plant has been reported. TEPCO plans to start repair work early Tuesday to restore the recycling segment as soon as possible, hopefully by the end of the day.

The multinational system has reprocessed 1,850 tons of contaminated water as coolant to be pumped back into the reactors. In full capacity, the system can treat up to 1,200 tons of contaminated water per day, more than twice as much as needed to cool the three reactors.

The March earthquake and tsunami destroyed power and cooling systems at the Fukushima Dai-ichi plant, melting reactor cores and leaking massive amount of radiation. Some contaminated water seeped into the ocean in April and May, causing criticism and concerns in and outside of Japan.

Some of the tainted water is stored in temporary tanks, but the rest has still pooled inside reactor and turbine basements and utility pits, hampering workers and risking radiation exposure.

TEPCO has sealed cracks, set up oil fences around the coastal plant, and acquired more storage tanks in case of emergency. But as long as the cleaning segment of the recycling system is functioning, the volume of tainted water will not grow.

Announcing the launch of the recycling system earlier Monday, Goshi Hosono, newly appointed nuclear crisis minister, called the system "a major step forward" toward stable cooling of the reactors. But he said he was not fully confident about the system.

"It's a problem if the system continues to be unreliable," he said. "We must turn it into something that can feed water stably."

TEPCO and the government have said they hope to achieve a cold shutdown of the reactors by January by bringing the core temperatures to below 100 Celsius (212 Fahrenheit).

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Human Barricade Stops India's Big Ticket Steel Project (OneWorld.net)

BHUBANESWAR, Jun 24 (IPS) - Fourteen-year-old Satikanta Sahu loves going to school, but these days, he would rather spend his time manning the barricade and facing down policemen in the sandy coastal village of Govindpur in India’s eastern state of Orissa.

While his mother and their neighbours lie on the ground hugging the sands to form a round-the-clock human barricade, Sahu runs errands, bringing them drinking water and occasionally shouting slogans.

His slogans rebuke the Orissa government for plotting to wipe out their village to give way to a 12- billion-dollar steel plant. The plant, to be built and run by South Korea’s Pohang Steel Company (POSCO), will have a capacity of four million tonnes and is touted to be the largest Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in India, Asia’s third largest economy.

The Orissa government says the plant needs a total of 3,719 acres, of which only some 150 acres are private land, the rest being forest and government land. But it is the 150 acres that are highly contentious, because they are home to 613 families whom the plant will displace.

These families are concentrated in Govindpur and the neighbouring village of Dhinkia, where they make a living growing betel leaves.

At the forefront of the protest are women and children, Sahu among them. "I love going to school. But I have been here for many days now, because this is our livelihood," he says. "We want POSCO to go back. We will not allow the designs of Naveen Patnaik (Orissa’s chief minister) to succeed."

As India tries to industrialise and attract foreign investment, it faces resistance from villagers and farmers reluctant to part with land on which they are rooted. According to a study last year by leading business chamber ASSOCHAM, delays in land acquisition are threatening investments worth 100 billion dollars, while at least 22 major steel projects worth 82 billion dollars are stalled because of protesting farmers and activists.

As the protest of more than 2,000 people against POSCO continues, the Orissa government has deployed over 800 police to the site.

The villagers, under the umbrella of POSCO Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS, which means Group to Resist POSCO) have formed a three-tier barricade at the entry to the village and keep a round-the- clock vigil.

The Orissa government has called the acquisition move a peaceful process. Protesters and activists say, however, that the government is coercing them into giving in by deploying a huge number of police officers to the area.

"Of the total 3,719 acres needed for the project, 2,958 acres is forest land for which we have got required clearance from the federal government’s environment ministry," Orissa Industry Minister Raghunath Mohanty told IPS.

"About 608 acres are revenue land (government land). We need to acquire only 152 acres of private land where about 613 families will be displaced," informs Mohanty.

While the government decided to temporarily halt land acquisition in the face of protests, the villagers say they will fight to their last breath and keep continuous vigil. From Jun. 8 onwards, over 400 students have joined the protest meetings, along with more than 2,000 women and elderly members. Now, the activists are planning to hold classes on the frontlines, so that students can keep protesting and not miss their studies.

"The government calls it a peaceful land acquisition programme, while the truth is that meetings are on in the administration and a blue print is being prepared to enter Govindpur forcefully," says PPSS leader Prashant Paikray.

The activists fear the government is planning a repeat of Kalinganagar, another area in Orissa’s Jajpur district. There, in January 2006, tribal people protested the construction of a steel plant by India’s iconic Tata Group and were fired upon by police, resulting in the death of 12 people.

"Why is the government and the state upset over the so-called biggest FDI, when we for generations to come could remain happy and prosperous with our vibrant economy of pan (betel), mina (fish) and dhan (paddy) without any such project which promises only to destroy everything around us?" asks Abhay Sahoo, one of the leaders of the protest movement.

"This is one area in the country where the Forest Rights Act (FRA) 2006 has been grossly violated and various government appointed committees even corroborated that," says Sahoo.

Earlier this year, India’s Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh gave clearance to the POSCO project on certain conditions. Yet a panel set up by the ministry itself suggested last October that the project violated coastal regulations and forest rights laws.

The four-member panel, headed by India’s former environment secretary Meena Gupta, probed the issue and differed in their views. But a majority of three panel members recommended the revocation of the environmental clearance given to POSCO in 2007.

The majority of the panel said POSCO-India Pvt. Ltd has not been able to address all the issues relating to Coastal Regulatory Zone notifications, and identified a number of serious lapses and violations, including suppression of facts.

Later, in a press statement, POSCO said it "never violated any law or procedure for obtaining any governmental clearance whatsoever required for the Project."

"After five long years of MOU (Memorandum of Understanding), we have not been able to commence any operation, owing to our commitment to obtain all necessary statutory clearances before commencing any operation," POSCO said.

While POSCO seems to have overcome the environmental clearance hurdle despite the views of the panel, for now, only the human barricades and steely resolve of the villagers stand in POSCO’s way.

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Human Barricade Stops India's Big Ticket Steel Project (OneWorld.net)

BHUBANESWAR, Jun 24 (IPS) - Fourteen-year-old Satikanta Sahu loves going to school, but these days, he would rather spend his time manning the barricade and facing down policemen in the sandy coastal village of Govindpur in India’s eastern state of Orissa.

While his mother and their neighbours lie on the ground hugging the sands to form a round-the-clock human barricade, Sahu runs errands, bringing them drinking water and occasionally shouting slogans.

His slogans rebuke the Orissa government for plotting to wipe out their village to give way to a 12- billion-dollar steel plant. The plant, to be built and run by South Korea’s Pohang Steel Company (POSCO), will have a capacity of four million tonnes and is touted to be the largest Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in India, Asia’s third largest economy.

The Orissa government says the plant needs a total of 3,719 acres, of which only some 150 acres are private land, the rest being forest and government land. But it is the 150 acres that are highly contentious, because they are home to 613 families whom the plant will displace.

These families are concentrated in Govindpur and the neighbouring village of Dhinkia, where they make a living growing betel leaves.

At the forefront of the protest are women and children, Sahu among them. "I love going to school. But I have been here for many days now, because this is our livelihood," he says. "We want POSCO to go back. We will not allow the designs of Naveen Patnaik (Orissa’s chief minister) to succeed."

As India tries to industrialise and attract foreign investment, it faces resistance from villagers and farmers reluctant to part with land on which they are rooted. According to a study last year by leading business chamber ASSOCHAM, delays in land acquisition are threatening investments worth 100 billion dollars, while at least 22 major steel projects worth 82 billion dollars are stalled because of protesting farmers and activists.

As the protest of more than 2,000 people against POSCO continues, the Orissa government has deployed over 800 police to the site.

The villagers, under the umbrella of POSCO Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS, which means Group to Resist POSCO) have formed a three-tier barricade at the entry to the village and keep a round-the- clock vigil.

The Orissa government has called the acquisition move a peaceful process. Protesters and activists say, however, that the government is coercing them into giving in by deploying a huge number of police officers to the area.

"Of the total 3,719 acres needed for the project, 2,958 acres is forest land for which we have got required clearance from the federal government’s environment ministry," Orissa Industry Minister Raghunath Mohanty told IPS.

"About 608 acres are revenue land (government land). We need to acquire only 152 acres of private land where about 613 families will be displaced," informs Mohanty.

While the government decided to temporarily halt land acquisition in the face of protests, the villagers say they will fight to their last breath and keep continuous vigil. From Jun. 8 onwards, over 400 students have joined the protest meetings, along with more than 2,000 women and elderly members. Now, the activists are planning to hold classes on the frontlines, so that students can keep protesting and not miss their studies.

"The government calls it a peaceful land acquisition programme, while the truth is that meetings are on in the administration and a blue print is being prepared to enter Govindpur forcefully," says PPSS leader Prashant Paikray.

The activists fear the government is planning a repeat of Kalinganagar, another area in Orissa’s Jajpur district. There, in January 2006, tribal people protested the construction of a steel plant by India’s iconic Tata Group and were fired upon by police, resulting in the death of 12 people.

"Why is the government and the state upset over the so-called biggest FDI, when we for generations to come could remain happy and prosperous with our vibrant economy of pan (betel), mina (fish) and dhan (paddy) without any such project which promises only to destroy everything around us?" asks Abhay Sahoo, one of the leaders of the protest movement.

"This is one area in the country where the Forest Rights Act (FRA) 2006 has been grossly violated and various government appointed committees even corroborated that," says Sahoo.

Earlier this year, India’s Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh gave clearance to the POSCO project on certain conditions. Yet a panel set up by the ministry itself suggested last October that the project violated coastal regulations and forest rights laws.

The four-member panel, headed by India’s former environment secretary Meena Gupta, probed the issue and differed in their views. But a majority of three panel members recommended the revocation of the environmental clearance given to POSCO in 2007.

The majority of the panel said POSCO-India Pvt. Ltd has not been able to address all the issues relating to Coastal Regulatory Zone notifications, and identified a number of serious lapses and violations, including suppression of facts.

Later, in a press statement, POSCO said it "never violated any law or procedure for obtaining any governmental clearance whatsoever required for the Project."

"After five long years of MOU (Memorandum of Understanding), we have not been able to commence any operation, owing to our commitment to obtain all necessary statutory clearances before commencing any operation," POSCO said.

While POSCO seems to have overcome the environmental clearance hurdle despite the views of the panel, for now, only the human barricades and steely resolve of the villagers stand in POSCO’s way.

Want to Know More?

» OneWorld Guide: India - Poverty, Food and Energy in a Changing Climate

ALL THE LATEST GLOBAL HEADLINES

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Human Barricade Stops India's Big Ticket Steel Project (OneWorld.net)

BHUBANESWAR, Jun 24 (IPS) - Fourteen-year-old Satikanta Sahu loves going to school, but these days, he would rather spend his time manning the barricade and facing down policemen in the sandy coastal village of Govindpur in India’s eastern state of Orissa.

While his mother and their neighbours lie on the ground hugging the sands to form a round-the-clock human barricade, Sahu runs errands, bringing them drinking water and occasionally shouting slogans.

His slogans rebuke the Orissa government for plotting to wipe out their village to give way to a 12- billion-dollar steel plant. The plant, to be built and run by South Korea’s Pohang Steel Company (POSCO), will have a capacity of four million tonnes and is touted to be the largest Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in India, Asia’s third largest economy.

The Orissa government says the plant needs a total of 3,719 acres, of which only some 150 acres are private land, the rest being forest and government land. But it is the 150 acres that are highly contentious, because they are home to 613 families whom the plant will displace.

These families are concentrated in Govindpur and the neighbouring village of Dhinkia, where they make a living growing betel leaves.

At the forefront of the protest are women and children, Sahu among them. "I love going to school. But I have been here for many days now, because this is our livelihood," he says. "We want POSCO to go back. We will not allow the designs of Naveen Patnaik (Orissa’s chief minister) to succeed."

As India tries to industrialise and attract foreign investment, it faces resistance from villagers and farmers reluctant to part with land on which they are rooted. According to a study last year by leading business chamber ASSOCHAM, delays in land acquisition are threatening investments worth 100 billion dollars, while at least 22 major steel projects worth 82 billion dollars are stalled because of protesting farmers and activists.

As the protest of more than 2,000 people against POSCO continues, the Orissa government has deployed over 800 police to the site.

The villagers, under the umbrella of POSCO Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS, which means Group to Resist POSCO) have formed a three-tier barricade at the entry to the village and keep a round-the- clock vigil.

The Orissa government has called the acquisition move a peaceful process. Protesters and activists say, however, that the government is coercing them into giving in by deploying a huge number of police officers to the area.

"Of the total 3,719 acres needed for the project, 2,958 acres is forest land for which we have got required clearance from the federal government’s environment ministry," Orissa Industry Minister Raghunath Mohanty told IPS.

"About 608 acres are revenue land (government land). We need to acquire only 152 acres of private land where about 613 families will be displaced," informs Mohanty.

While the government decided to temporarily halt land acquisition in the face of protests, the villagers say they will fight to their last breath and keep continuous vigil. From Jun. 8 onwards, over 400 students have joined the protest meetings, along with more than 2,000 women and elderly members. Now, the activists are planning to hold classes on the frontlines, so that students can keep protesting and not miss their studies.

"The government calls it a peaceful land acquisition programme, while the truth is that meetings are on in the administration and a blue print is being prepared to enter Govindpur forcefully," says PPSS leader Prashant Paikray.

The activists fear the government is planning a repeat of Kalinganagar, another area in Orissa’s Jajpur district. There, in January 2006, tribal people protested the construction of a steel plant by India’s iconic Tata Group and were fired upon by police, resulting in the death of 12 people.

"Why is the government and the state upset over the so-called biggest FDI, when we for generations to come could remain happy and prosperous with our vibrant economy of pan (betel), mina (fish) and dhan (paddy) without any such project which promises only to destroy everything around us?" asks Abhay Sahoo, one of the leaders of the protest movement.

"This is one area in the country where the Forest Rights Act (FRA) 2006 has been grossly violated and various government appointed committees even corroborated that," says Sahoo.

Earlier this year, India’s Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh gave clearance to the POSCO project on certain conditions. Yet a panel set up by the ministry itself suggested last October that the project violated coastal regulations and forest rights laws.

The four-member panel, headed by India’s former environment secretary Meena Gupta, probed the issue and differed in their views. But a majority of three panel members recommended the revocation of the environmental clearance given to POSCO in 2007.

The majority of the panel said POSCO-India Pvt. Ltd has not been able to address all the issues relating to Coastal Regulatory Zone notifications, and identified a number of serious lapses and violations, including suppression of facts.

Later, in a press statement, POSCO said it "never violated any law or procedure for obtaining any governmental clearance whatsoever required for the Project."

"After five long years of MOU (Memorandum of Understanding), we have not been able to commence any operation, owing to our commitment to obtain all necessary statutory clearances before commencing any operation," POSCO said.

While POSCO seems to have overcome the environmental clearance hurdle despite the views of the panel, for now, only the human barricades and steely resolve of the villagers stand in POSCO’s way.

Want to Know More?

» OneWorld Guide: India - Poverty, Food and Energy in a Changing Climate

ALL THE LATEST GLOBAL HEADLINES

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Human Barricade Stops India's Big Ticket Steel Project (OneWorld.net)

BHUBANESWAR, Jun 24 (IPS) - Fourteen-year-old Satikanta Sahu loves going to school, but these days, he would rather spend his time manning the barricade and facing down policemen in the sandy coastal village of Govindpur in India’s eastern state of Orissa.

While his mother and their neighbours lie on the ground hugging the sands to form a round-the-clock human barricade, Sahu runs errands, bringing them drinking water and occasionally shouting slogans.

His slogans rebuke the Orissa government for plotting to wipe out their village to give way to a 12- billion-dollar steel plant. The plant, to be built and run by South Korea’s Pohang Steel Company (POSCO), will have a capacity of four million tonnes and is touted to be the largest Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in India, Asia’s third largest economy.

The Orissa government says the plant needs a total of 3,719 acres, of which only some 150 acres are private land, the rest being forest and government land. But it is the 150 acres that are highly contentious, because they are home to 613 families whom the plant will displace.

These families are concentrated in Govindpur and the neighbouring village of Dhinkia, where they make a living growing betel leaves.

At the forefront of the protest are women and children, Sahu among them. "I love going to school. But I have been here for many days now, because this is our livelihood," he says. "We want POSCO to go back. We will not allow the designs of Naveen Patnaik (Orissa’s chief minister) to succeed."

As India tries to industrialise and attract foreign investment, it faces resistance from villagers and farmers reluctant to part with land on which they are rooted. According to a study last year by leading business chamber ASSOCHAM, delays in land acquisition are threatening investments worth 100 billion dollars, while at least 22 major steel projects worth 82 billion dollars are stalled because of protesting farmers and activists.

As the protest of more than 2,000 people against POSCO continues, the Orissa government has deployed over 800 police to the site.

The villagers, under the umbrella of POSCO Pratirodh Sangram Samiti (PPSS, which means Group to Resist POSCO) have formed a three-tier barricade at the entry to the village and keep a round-the- clock vigil.

The Orissa government has called the acquisition move a peaceful process. Protesters and activists say, however, that the government is coercing them into giving in by deploying a huge number of police officers to the area.

"Of the total 3,719 acres needed for the project, 2,958 acres is forest land for which we have got required clearance from the federal government’s environment ministry," Orissa Industry Minister Raghunath Mohanty told IPS.

"About 608 acres are revenue land (government land). We need to acquire only 152 acres of private land where about 613 families will be displaced," informs Mohanty.

While the government decided to temporarily halt land acquisition in the face of protests, the villagers say they will fight to their last breath and keep continuous vigil. From Jun. 8 onwards, over 400 students have joined the protest meetings, along with more than 2,000 women and elderly members. Now, the activists are planning to hold classes on the frontlines, so that students can keep protesting and not miss their studies.

"The government calls it a peaceful land acquisition programme, while the truth is that meetings are on in the administration and a blue print is being prepared to enter Govindpur forcefully," says PPSS leader Prashant Paikray.

The activists fear the government is planning a repeat of Kalinganagar, another area in Orissa’s Jajpur district. There, in January 2006, tribal people protested the construction of a steel plant by India’s iconic Tata Group and were fired upon by police, resulting in the death of 12 people.

"Why is the government and the state upset over the so-called biggest FDI, when we for generations to come could remain happy and prosperous with our vibrant economy of pan (betel), mina (fish) and dhan (paddy) without any such project which promises only to destroy everything around us?" asks Abhay Sahoo, one of the leaders of the protest movement.

"This is one area in the country where the Forest Rights Act (FRA) 2006 has been grossly violated and various government appointed committees even corroborated that," says Sahoo.

Earlier this year, India’s Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh gave clearance to the POSCO project on certain conditions. Yet a panel set up by the ministry itself suggested last October that the project violated coastal regulations and forest rights laws.

The four-member panel, headed by India’s former environment secretary Meena Gupta, probed the issue and differed in their views. But a majority of three panel members recommended the revocation of the environmental clearance given to POSCO in 2007.

The majority of the panel said POSCO-India Pvt. Ltd has not been able to address all the issues relating to Coastal Regulatory Zone notifications, and identified a number of serious lapses and violations, including suppression of facts.

Later, in a press statement, POSCO said it "never violated any law or procedure for obtaining any governmental clearance whatsoever required for the Project."

"After five long years of MOU (Memorandum of Understanding), we have not been able to commence any operation, owing to our commitment to obtain all necessary statutory clearances before commencing any operation," POSCO said.

While POSCO seems to have overcome the environmental clearance hurdle despite the views of the panel, for now, only the human barricades and steely resolve of the villagers stand in POSCO’s way.

Want to Know More?

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Tennessee woman saved after heart stops at Lady Gaga concert

A Lady Gaga concert turned into a medical emergency for one Tennessee woman. STORY HIGHLIGHTSNEW: The woman's friend says she had another seizure Thursday, and was saved againNEW: Her cardiologist says the 33-year-old appears to have an enlarged heart EMTs restarted her heart after it had stopped for more than five minutesShe was flown to hospital, where her body temperature was cooled to curb damageRELATED TOPICSCardiovascular MedicineNashvilleLady Gaga (CNN) -- A long awaited night out at a Lady Gaga concert turned into a nightmare for a 33-year-old Tennessee woman, whose heart was restarted after stopping for five minutes when she went into cardiac arrest.

Crystal Thornton, from Lyles, Tennessee, was enjoying the concert's opening act at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville with her best friend Christina Tugman on Tuesday night when she had a seizure, according to information provided by Vanderbilt Medical Center.

"She stopped breathing, her eyes rolled back in her head, and her body started twitching," Tugman said. "I was asking if she was OK, and she wasn't responding."

Tugman ran to the lobby to get help. It took Jerry Jones, an EMT supervisor with Vanderbilt University's LifeFlight Event Medicine program, one minute more to reach her.

"The patient was unconscious with no heartbeat," Jones said.

Using a portable automated external defibrillator, Jones and other paramedics spent more than five minutes until they were finally able to get Thornton's heart beating again.

She was then airlifted to Vanderbilt Medical Center's emergency department, where doctors immediately used therapeutic hypothermia to cool Thornton's body temperature to between 93 and 86 degrees -- below the normal body temperature of 98.6 degrees.

Even though her heart was working again, doctors wanted to slow circulation in order to prevent the death of brain cells -- and, therefore, brain damage -- caused by prolonged lack of oxygen. Chilled water blankets were placed over Thornton's body and head, and medical personnel then used a machine to lower her body temperature for 48 hours.

"The patient received incredible care from the moment she experienced problems at the Bridgestone Arena," said Dr. Jared McKinney, medical director of LifeFlight Event Medicine. "It is only through a coordinated team effort that her successful outcome was possible."

After undergoing the two days of cooling therapy, Thornton's body temperature was slowly restored to normal. She regained consciousness and neurologically continues to improve, according to her doctors in Nashville.

On Friday afternoon, she was in stable condition, the Tennessee hospital said.

Her cardiologist, Dr. John McPherson, said that Thornton is undergoing a battery of tests to determine why she suffered the heart attack. He told CNN it appears she has an enlarged heart -- "a genetic condition that, unfortunately, has no warning symptoms and often results in an emergency situation like Thornton experienced."

Next week, she will have surgery to put an implantable cardioverter defibrillator in her chest. The device sends electrical shocks that will automatically kick in if her heart starts beating irregularly and restore it to normal, in hopes of preventing another heart attack.

Leigh Sims, an emergency medical technician and Vanderbilt's manager of event medicine, said the defibrillator saved the woman's life.

"Without an AED, this patient would not have survived," Sims said. "It restored her pulse."

While she's thankful, it's all a blur for Thornton. And she hasn't gotten over not being able to see Lady Gaga strut and sing on stage.

"I am so mad I missed the concert," she said, according to a statement released by the hospital.

Tugman said Friday that she's grateful to have her friend back -- including after another scare Thursday night, when "all of a sudden she stopped breathing, her eyes rolled back and all those machines started going off."

"They came in and shocked her, and she came right back," said Tugman.

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Advocacy group: Navy stops discharge of sailor in sleepover

By the CNN Wire Staff STORY HIGHLIGHTSPetty Officer Stephen Jones dozed off beside another male sailor while watching TVThe Navy had sought to discharge him for "unprofessional conduct"A gay advocacy group says the charge was an end run around the repeal of don't ask, don't tell (CNN) -- The Navy has halted discharge proceedings against a sailor who was found asleep in the same bed with another male sailor, according to a announcement Friday by Servicemembers United, the nation's largest organization of gay and lesbian troops and veterans.

Petty Officer Stephen Jones, who is stationed at the Naval Nuclear Power Training Command in Charleston, South Carolina, has contended that the Navy's effort to discharge him for "unprofessional conduct" was a trumped-up charge based on the command's suspicion that he might be gay.

Jones also contended that the non-judicial punishment for "unprofessional conduct" was a maneuver around the "don't ask, don't tell" repeal that President Obama signed into law in December.

When contacted by CNN, Navy officials didn't have an immediate comment.

Alexander Nicholson, executive director of Servicemembers United, said the Navy "undoubtedly did the right thing in reversing its decision," made in March, to discharge Jones, who dozed off beside another male sailor while watching television on February 5.

In a recent interview with CNN, Jones, a student at the Nuclear Power Training Command, said another male sailor stopped by that night and they both inadvertently fell asleep on Jones' bed while they watched the CW TV show "Vampire Diaries."

"We strongly suspected that his command was trying to find a roundabout way to discharge Jones because it suspected him of being gay, and we simply were not willing to stand by and watch a new version of 'don't ask, don't tell' emerge under the new label of 'unprofessional conduct,'" Nicholson said in a statement.

Jones hired civilian attorney Gary Myers -- a former JAG officer who is one of the most experienced civilian military defense attorneys in the country -- to fight his discharge, and Servicemembers United worked closely with Jones and Myers to help publicize the case and persuade Navy leaders to retain Jones, according to the Servicemembers United statement.

CNN's Adam Levine and Michael Martinez contributed to this report.

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Indian firm stops selling scarce execution drug to U.S. states

SharePrintBy Michael Winter, USA TODAYComment

Recommend

An Indian pharmaceutical company that was supplying a hard-to-get sedative used in executions says it has stopped selling the drug to U.S. prisons.

The Associated Press reports that Mumbai-based Kayem Pharmaceutical was becoming a major supplier of sodium thiopental, one of the three drugs used in lethal injections in 34 states. After supplying the drug to Nebraska and South Dakota and contacting a half-dozen other states, the manufacturer cited the "ethos of Hinduism" for its decision to "refrain ourselves in selling this drug where the purpose is purely for lethal injection and its misuse."

Read the company's full statement.

Kayem had come under pressure from activists, The Wall Street Journal notes.

Supplies of sodium thiopental became scarce after the sole U.S. manufacturer, Illinois-based Hospira, stopped making the sedative last year, saying it objected to the drug's use in executions. At least seven states have purchased the drug from overseas, while others got it from other states whose stocks had not expired. Several states have postponed executions because of the shortage.

Last week, Kentucky and Tennessee surrendered their supplies of sodium thiopental to the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, which is investigating the importation of the drug. Last month, the DEA seized Georgia's stock.

AP has found that Arizona, Arkansas, California, Georgia, Kentucky, Nebraska and Tennessee obtained sodium thiopental overseas.

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Museums, visitors centers vie for shuttles' last stops

The Associated Press

This image provided by the Adler Planetarium shows a proposal for a space shuttle exhibit in Chicago.

EnlargeCloseThe Associated Press

This image provided by the Adler Planetarium shows a proposal for a space shuttle exhibit in Chicago.

Twenty-one museums and science and visitor centers around the country are vying for one of NASA

View the Original article