PEOPLE Remembers the American Soldiers Killed in Afghanistan

With the exit from Iraq and the draw-down of troops in Afghanistan, the numbers of Americans killed continues to drop.

Still, loved ones are mourning 311 lost, and as of Dec. 17, the wars' toll since 2001 now stands at 6,656.

Edward Joseph Acosta, 21
Trevor Brandon Adkins, 21
Ahmed Kousay al-Taie, 46 Erica Paige Alecksen, 21
Tobias Christoph Alexander, 30
Joseph James Altmann, 27
Mabry James Anders, 21
Joshua Ryan Ashley, 23
Bradley Wayne Atwell, 27

Daniel Benjamin Bartle, 27
Jon-Luke Bateman, 22
Jonathan Batista, 22
Rayvon Battle Jr., 25
Taylor John Baune, 21
Jordan Logan Bear, 25
Clayton Ross Beauchamp, 21
Genaro Bedoy, 20
Bryan Richard Bell, 23
Russell Ryan Bell, 37
Jose Oscar Belmontes, 28
Kenneth Wade Bennett, 26
Keith David Benson, 27
Richard Liam Berry, 27
Robert John Billings, 30
Christopher James Birdwell, 25
Jeremie Shane Border, 28
Christopher David Bordoni, 21
Joshua Alan Born, 25
Michael Cean Braden, 31
Mikayla Anne Bragg, 21
John R. Brainard III, 26
Sean Edward Brazas, 26
Andrew Trevor Britton-Mihalo, 25
Michael John Brodsky, 33
Christopher L. Brown, 26
Daniel Joseph Brown, 27
Milton W. Brown, 28
Gregory Thomas Buckley, 21
Antonio Carlos Burnside, 31
Thomas Jefferson Butler IV, 25
Brandon Lucas Buttry, 19

Gerardo Campos, 23
Shane William Cantu, 20
Daniel Lewis Carlson, 21
Sean Patrick Carson, 32
Roberto Cazarez, 24
Julian Clement Chase, 22
Nicolas D. Checque, 28
Gregory Lamont Childs, 38
Bruce Kevin Clark, 43
Junot M. L. Cochilus, 34
Kenneth Eldren Cochran, 20
Keaton Grant Coffey, 22
Julian Lee Colvin, 21
Timothy John Conrad Jr., 22
Gregory Todd Copes, 36
Cesar Cortez, 24
Niall William Cotisears, 23

Joseph D’Augustine, 29
Johnathon Frank Davis, 20
Nathan Tyler Davis, 20
Coater Bernard Debose, 55
Michael Robert Demarsico II, 20
Anthony Joseph Denier, 26
Leroy Deronde III, 22
Nicholas Michael Dickhut, 23
Scott Edward Dickinson, 29
Alex Frank Domion, 21
Curtis Joseph Duarte, 22
Michael Stephen Duskin, 42
James Evan Dutton, 25
Edward Joe Dycus, 22

Kevin Richard Ebbert, 32
Jason Kyle Edens, 22
Brandon Forrest Eggleston, 29
Vincent James Ellis, 22
Darrel Lynn Enos, 36
Richard Allen Essex, 23
Bobby Lee Estle, 38
Kyler Lavon Estrada, 21

Joseph Henry Fankhauser, 30
Aaron Matthew Faust, 22
Mathew Gregory Fazzari, 25
Patrick Delaney Feeks, 28
Arronn David Fields, 27
Krystal Marie Fitts, 26
Joseph Fitzmorris, 31
Thomas Kent Fogarty, 30
Nicholas Charles Fredsti, 30

Vilmar Galarza Hernandez, 21
Luis Antonio Oliver Galbreath, 41
Jonathan William Gifford, 34
Theodore Matthew Glende, 23
Jonathan Alan Gollnitz, 28
Moises Jesus Gonzalez, 29
Brandon Dwayne Goodine, 20
Brittany Bria Gordon, 24
Brett Edward Gornewicz, 27
Walter David Gray, 38
Kevin James Griffin, 45
Samuel Mark Griffith, 36
Jesse James Grindey, 30
Dustin Dean Gross, 19
Raul Madrigal Guerra, 37
Michael J. Guillory, 28

Ryan Preston Hall, 30
Carl Erik Hammar, 24
Shawn Thomas Hannon, 44
John Eric Hansen, 41
Justin Michael Hansen, 26
Jeremy Franklin Hardison, 23
Zachary Hayden Hargrove, 32
Aaron Arthur Henderson, 33
Alex Hernandez III, 21
Pernell Johnnie Herrera, 33
Channing Bo Hicks, 24
Darrion Terrell Hicks, 21
Tanner Stone Higgins, 23
Terence John Hildner, 49
Hunter Dalton Hogan, 21
Eric Scott Holman, 39
Patricia Lee Horne, 20
Brian Daniel Hornsby, 37
Justin Louis Horsley, 21
John Patrick Huling, 25

Francis Dee Imlay Jr., 31
Aaron Dale Istre, 37

Kedith Lamont Jacobs Jr., 21
Sean Robert Jacobs, 23
Jamie Darrell Jarboe, 27
Ryan Paul Jayne, 22
Ryan Jeschke, 31
David Andrew Johnson, 24
Donna Rae Johnson, 29
Nicholas Scott Johnson, 27
Payton Alexander Jones, 19
James Austin Justice, 21

Ramon Taisakan Kaipat, 22
Matthew Geoffrey Kantor, 22
Andrew James Keller, 22
Thomas Elliott Kennedy, 35
Kurt William Kern, 24
Richard James Kessler Jr., 47
Michael Joseph Knapp, 28
Jabraun Steven Knox, 23
Noah Mark Korte, 29
Suresh Niranjan Aba Krause, 29

Jarrod Allen Lallier, 20
Todd William Lambka, 25
Matthew John Leach, 29
Dick Alson Lee Jr., 31
Brian Jeffery Leonhardt, 21
Joseph Michael Lilly, 25
Darren M. Linde, 41
Daniel Lee Linnabary II, 23
Kevin E. Lipari, 39
Roberto Loeza Jr., 28
John Darin Loftis, 44
Joseph Daniel Logan, 22
Jesus Jonathan Lopez, 22
Conner Thomas Lowry, 24
Bryant Jordan Luxmore, 25

Bruce Andrew MacFarlane, 46
Thomas Raymond MacPherson, 26
Matthew Patrick Manoukian, 29
Robert Joseph Marchanti II, 48
Justin Cameron Marquez, 25
Chase Stone Marta, 24
Ethan Jacob Martin, 22
Alex Martinez, 21
Robert Anthony Massarelli, 32
Erik Nathaniel May, 26
Kyle Brenton McClain, 25
Philip Daine McGeath, 25
Nathan Ronald McHone, 29
Allen Robert McKenna Jr., 28
Barett Wambli McNabb, 33
Richard Lewis McNulty III, 22
John David Meador II, 36
Dale Wayne Means, 23
Kashif Mohammed Memon, 31
Michael Joseph Metcalf, 22
Daniel Thomas Metcalfe, 29
Jonathan Matthew Metzger, 32
Cale Clyde Miller, 23
Eugene Clifton Mills III, 21
Christopher Michael Monahan Jr., 25
Jose Luis Montenegro Jr., 31
Osbrany Montes De Oca, 20
Cody Otho Moosman, 24
Travis Alan Morgado, 25
Christopher E. Mosko, 28
Sky Russell Mote, 27
Christopher Lee Muniz, 24

Dustin Paul Napier, 20
Juan Pantoja Navarro, 23
Benjamin Harold Neal, 21
James Dominic Nehl, 37
Joshua Nathaniel Nelson, 22
Sapuro Brightley Nena, 25
David Paul Nowaczyk, 32
Israel Paul Nuanes, 38

Nicholas Henry Olivas, 20
Tyler J. Orgaard, 20
Kyle Bruce Osborn, 26
Jesse Aaron Ozbat, 28

Scott Patrick Pace, 39
Joshua Cole Pairsh, 29
Michael Jeremy Palacio, 23
Alejandro Jose Pardo, 21
Christopher Alexander Patterson, 20
Brandon Robert Pepper, 31
Sergio Eduardo Perez, 21
Trevor Adam Pinnick, 20
Benjamin Carlos Pleitez, 25
William Compton Poling Jr., 42
Paris Shawn Pough, 40
Alexander George Povilaitis Jr., 47
Stephen Chase Prasnicki, 24
John Castle Pratt, 51
Daniel Joseph Price, 27
Scott Eugene Pruitt, 38
Michael Wayne Pyron, 30

Christopher Keith Raible, 40
Thalia Suzanne Ramirez, 28
Ryan Davis Rawl, 30
Clovis Tim Ray, 34
Jerry Don Reed II, 30
Chad Robert Regelin, 24
Nicholas J. Reid, 26
Kevin James Reinhard, 25
Jose Joel Reyes, 24
Jeffrey Leon Rice, 24
Joseph Alvin Richardson, 23
Travis William Riddick, 40
Jeffrey James Rieck, 46
Michael Eugene Ristau, 25
Richard Anthony Rivera Jr., 20
Daquane Demetris Rivers, 21
Dion Rashun Roberts, 25
Leonard Robinson, 29
Daniel Anthony Rodriguez, 28
Jose Rodriguez, 22
Kyle Robert Rookey, 23
Adam Corey Ross, 19
Nicholas Jan Rozanski, 36
Clinton Keith Ruiz, 22
David E. Rylander, 23

Brenden Neal Salazar, 20
Christian Riley Sannicolas, 20
Ryan James Savard, 29
Philip Channing Sipe Schiller, 21
Joseph Lee Schiro, 27
Jonathan Philip Schmidt, 28
Julian Seiji Scholten, 26
Jacob Michael Schwallie, 22
Matthew Scott Schwartz, 34
Matthew Ryan Seidler, 24
Ricardo Seija, 31
Anthony Ramon Servin, 22
Dean Russell Shaffer, 23
Christopher Greg Singer, 23
Matthew Steven Sitton, 26
James Lyn Skalberg Jr., 25
Tyler James Smith, 24
Orion Nelson Sparks, 29
William Chapman Stacey, 23
Cameron James Stambaugh, 20
Trevor Jovanne Stanley, 22
Camella Marchett Steedley, 31
Riley Gene Stephens, 39
Steven Prince Stevens II, 23
Matthew Henrick Stiltz, 26
Jesse Wade Stites, 23
Michael Joseph Strachota, 28
Sean Patrick Sullivan, 40
Billy Albert Sutton, 42
Steven Gene Sutton, 24
Jason Michael Swindle, 24

Abraham Tarwoe, 25
Robert Joseph Tauteris Jr., 44
Tofiga Joshua Tautolo, 23
David Wayne Taylor, 20
Nicholas Andrew Taylor, 20
Alec Robert Terwiske, 21
Matthew Bradford Thomas, 30
Alejo Rene Thompson, 30
Joel Del Mundo Tiu, 48
Louis Ramon Torres, 23
Jon Ross Townsend, 19
Gregory Ray Trent, 38
Nelson D. Trent, 37
Neil Isaac Turner, 21

Jalfred David Vaquerano, 20
Manuel Joseph Vasquez, 22
Jorge Luis Velasquez, 35
Dain Taylor Venne, 29
Don Cayetano Viray, 25
Paul Clarke Voelke, 36

Brian Lloyd Walker, 25
Jonathan Patrick Walsh, 28
Eric Dean Warren, 23
David John Warsen, 27
Samuel Thomas Watts, 20
Dennis Paul Weichel Jr., 29
Jeffrey Lee White Jr., 21
Nicholas Schade Whitlock, 29
Justin Michael Whitmire, 20
Ronald Herbert Wildrick Jr., 30
Justin James Wilkens, 26
Clarence Williams III, 23
David Vincent Williams, 24
Eric Edward Williams, 27
Wesley R. Williams, 25
Ryan James Wilson, 26
Shane Gregory Wilson, 20
Wade Daniel Wilson, 22
William Robert Wilson III, 27
Jessica Marie Wing, 42
Benjamin Brian Wise, 34
Joshua Eli Witsman, 23
Chris John Workman, 33
Sterling William Wyatt, 21

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Predicting who's at risk for violence isn't easy

CHICAGO (AP) — It happened after Columbine, Virginia Tech, Aurora, Colo., and now Sandy Hook: People figure there surely were signs of impending violence. But experts say predicting who will be the next mass shooter is virtually impossible — partly because as commonplace as these calamities seem, they are relatively rare crimes.

Still, a combination of risk factors in troubled kids or adults including drug use and easy access to guns can increase the likelihood of violence, experts say.

But warning signs "only become crystal clear in the aftermath, said James Alan Fox, a Northeastern University criminology professor who has studied and written about mass killings.

"They're yellow flags. They only become red flags once the blood is spilled," he said.

Whether 20-year-old Adam Lanza, who used his mother's guns to kill her and then 20 children and six adults at their Connecticut school, made any hints about his plans isn't publicly known.

Fox said that sometimes, in the days, weeks or months preceding their crimes, mass murderers voice threats, or hints, either verbally or in writing, things like "'don't come to school tomorrow,'" or "'they're going to be sorry for mistreating me.'" Some prepare by target practicing, and plan their clothing "as well as their arsenal." (Police said Lanza went to shooting ranges with his mother in the past but not in the last six months.)

Although words might indicate a grudge, they don't necessarily mean violence will follow. And, of course, most who threaten never act, Fox said.

Even so, experts say threats of violence from troubled teens and young adults should be taken seriously and parents should attempt to get them a mental health evaluation and treatment if needed.

"In general, the police are unlikely to be able to do anything unless and until a crime has been committed," said Dr. Paul Appelbaum, a Columbia University professor of psychiatry, medicine and law. "Calling the police to confront a troubled teen has often led to tragedy."

The American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry says violent behavior should not be dismissed as "just a phase they're going through."

In a guidelines for families, the academy lists several risk factors for violence, including:

—Previous violent or aggressive behavior

—Being a victim of physical or sexual abuse

—Guns in the home

—Use of drugs or alcohol

—Brain damage from a head injury

Those with several of these risk factors should be evaluated by a mental health expert if they also show certain behaviors, including intense anger, frequent temper outbursts, extreme irritability or impulsiveness, the academy says. They may be more likely than others to become violent, although that doesn't mean they're at risk for the kind of violence that happened in Newtown, Conn.

Lanza, the Connecticut shooter, was socially withdrawn and awkward, and has been said to have had Asperger's disorder, a mild form of autism that has no clear connection with violence.

Autism experts and advocacy groups have complained that Asperger's is being unfairly blamed for the shootings, and say people with the disorder are much more likely to be victims of bullying and violence by others.

According to a research review published this year in Annals of General Psychiatry, most people with Asperger's who commit violent crimes have serious, often undiagnosed mental problems. That includes bipolar disorder, depression and personality disorders. It's not publicly known if Lanza had any of these, which in severe cases can include delusions and other psychotic symptoms.

Young adulthood is when psychotic illnesses typically emerge, and Appelbaum said there are several signs that a troubled teen or young adult might be heading in that direction: isolating themselves from friends and peers, spending long periods alone in their rooms, plummeting grades if they're still in school and expressing disturbing thoughts or fears that others are trying to hurt them.

Appelbaum said the most agonizing calls he gets are from parents whose children are descending into severe mental illness but who deny they are sick and refuse to go for treatment.

And in the case of adults, forcing them into treatment is difficult and dependent on laws that vary by state.

All states have laws that allow some form of court-ordered treatment, typically in a hospital for people considered a danger to themselves or others. Connecticut is among a handful with no option for court-ordered treatment in a less restrictive community setting, said Kristina Ragosta, an attorney with the Treatment Advocacy Center, a national group that advocates better access to mental health treatment.

Lanza's medical records haven't been publicly disclosed and authorities haven't said if it is known what type of treatment his family may have sought for him. Lanza killed himself at the school.

Jennifer Hoff of Mission Viejo, Calif. has a 19-year-old bipolar son who has had hallucinations, delusions and violent behavior for years. When he was younger and threatened to harm himself, she'd call 911 and leave the door unlocked for paramedics, who'd take him to a hospital for inpatient mental care.

Now that he's an adult, she said he has refused medication, left home, and authorities have indicated he can't be forced into treatment unless he harms himself — or commits a violent crime and is imprisoned. Hoff thinks prison is where he's headed — he's in jail, charged in an unarmed bank robbery.

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Online:

American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry: http://www.aacap.org

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AP Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/LindseyTanner

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Wall Street Week Ahead: A lump of coal for "Fiscal Cliff-mas"

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wall Street traders are going to have to pack their tablets and work computers in their holiday luggage after all.

A traditionally quiet week could become hellish for traders as politicians in Washington are likely to fall short of an agreement to deal with $600 billion in tax hikes and spending cuts due to kick in early next year. Many economists forecast that this "fiscal cliff" will push the economy into recession.

Thursday's debacle in the U.S. House of Representatives, where Speaker John Boehner failed to secure passage of his own bill that was meant to pressure President Obama and Senate Democrats, only added to worry that the protracted budget talks will stretch into 2013.

Still, the market remains resilient. Friday's decline on Wall Street, triggered by Boehner's fiasco, was not enough to prevent the S&P 500 from posting its best week in four.

"The markets have been sort of taking this in stride," said Sandy Lincoln, chief market strategist at BMO Asset Management U.S. in Chicago, which has about $38 billion in assets under management.

"The markets still basically believe that something will be done," he said.

If something happens next week, it will come in a short time frame. Markets will be open for a half-day on Christmas Eve, when Congress will not be in session, and will close on Tuesday for Christmas. Wall Street will resume regular stock trading on Wednesday, but volume is expected to be light throughout the rest of the week with scores of market participants away on a holiday break.

For the week, the three major U.S. stock indexes posted gains, with the Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> up 0.4 percent, the S&P 500 <.spx> up 1.2 percent and the Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> up 1.7 percent.

Stocks also have booked solid gains for the year so far, with just five trading sessions left in 2012: The Dow has advanced 8 percent, while the S&P 500 has climbed 13.7 percent and the Nasdaq has jumped 16 percent.

IT COULD GET A LITTLE CRAZY

Equity volumes are expected to fall sharply next week. Last year, daily volume on each of the last five trading days dropped on average by about 49 percent, compared with the rest of 2011 - to just over 4 billion shares a day exchanging hands on the New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq and NYSE MKT in the final five sessions of the year from a 2011 daily average of 7.9 billion.

If the trend repeats, low volumes could generate a spike in volatility as traders keep track of any advance in the cliff talks in Washington.

"I'm guessing it's going to be a low volume week. There's not a whole lot other than the fiscal cliff that is going to continue to take the headlines," said Joe Bell, senior equity analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research, in Cincinnati.

"A lot of people already have a foot out the door, and with the possibility of some market-moving news, you get the possibility of increased volatility."

Economic data would have to be way off the mark to move markets next week. But if the recent trend of better-than-expected economic data holds, stocks will have strong fundamental support that could prevent selling from getting overextended even as the fiscal cliff negotiations grind along.

Small and mid-cap stocks have outperformed their larger peers in the last couple of months, indicating a shift in investor sentiment toward the U.S. economy. The S&P MidCap 400 Index <.mid> overcame a technical level by confirming its close above 1,000 for a second week.

"We view the outperformance of the mid-caps and the break of that level as a strong sign for the overall market," Schaeffer's Bell said.

"Whenever you have flight to risk, it shows investors are beginning to have more of a risk appetite."

Evidence of that shift could be a spike in shares in the defense sector, expected to take a hit as defense spending is a key component of the budget talks.

The PHLX defense sector index <.dfx> hit a historic high on Thursday, and far outperformed the market on Friday with a dip of just 0.26 percent, while the three major U.S. stock indexes finished the day down about 1 percent.

Following a half-day on Wall Street on Monday ahead of the Christmas holiday, Wednesday will bring the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index. It is expected to show a ninth-straight month of gains.

U.S. jobless claims on Thursday are seen roughly in line with the previous week's level, with the forecast at 360,000 new filings for unemployment insurance, compared with the previous week's 361,000.

(Wall St Week Ahead runs every Friday. Questions or comments on this column can be emailed to: rodrigo.campos(at)thomsonreuters.com)

(Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Additional reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Jan Paschal)

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Obama Nominates Kerry for Secretary of State

WASHINGTON — President Obama on Friday nominated Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts as secretary of state, choosing an elder of the Democratic Party’s foreign policy establishment and a crucial political ally in the Senate to succeed Hillary Rodham Clinton.

“In a sense, John’s entire life has prepared him for this role,” Mr. Obama said, making the widely expected announcement at the White House. “He’s not going to need a lot of on-the-job training.”

With Mr. Kerry standing at his side, the president praised Mr. Kerry’s combat service in the Vietnam War and his three decades in the Senate, which Mr. Obama said had placed him at the heart of “every major foreign policy debate for the past 30 years.”

Mr. Kerry, the president said, had also earned the respect of his Senate colleagues and he expressed confidence that Mr. Kerry would be quickly confirmed. In recent weeks, Senator John McCain, the Arizona Republican, has jokingly referred to his colleague as “Mr. Secretary.”

Mr. Obama’s first choice for the job, Susan E. Rice, the ambassador to the United Nations, asked Mr. Obama to withdraw her name last week after Mr. McCain and other Republicans threatened to block her nomination because of statements she made after the lethal attack on the American mission in Benghazi, Libya.

In addition to Mr. Kerry’s foreign-policy credentials, Mr. Obama noted that he had supported the president’s political career at key moments — not least, he said, by inviting a “young Illinois state senator to address the Democratic National Convention in 2004.”

Mr. Kerry, 69, was his party’s presidential candidate in that election, losing to George W. Bush. He is chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and has carried out several diplomatic missions for the Obama administration, helping to persuade President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan to agree to a runoff election in 2009. Early in the administration, he also tried to engage President Bashar al-Assad of Syria, who has waged a brutal crackdown on his own people as he fights to cling to power.

During the last campaign he also played the role of Mitt Romney in Mr. Obama’s debate preparations.

“Nothing brings two people closer together than two weeks of debate prep,” the president joked. “John, I’m looking forward to working with you rather than debating you.”

Mr. Kerry has long coveted the job of secretary of state.

Mrs. Clinton, who is recovering from the effects of a concussion, did not appear at the White House announcement.

“Hillary wanted very much to be here today, but she continues to recuperate,” the president said. “I had a chance to talk to her earlier today, and she is in good spirits and could not be more excited about the announcement that I’m making.”

Mr. Obama still has to fill two other key openings in his national security team, finding replacements for Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta, who intends to resign; and David H. Petraeus, director of the Central Intelligence Agency, who resigned in November because of an extramarital affair.

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Katherine Heigl Calls Adalaide's Adoption 'Serendipitous'

When Katherine Heigl announced her family had welcomed a second daughter into their home, fans were shocked — and, apparently, so was husband Josh Kelley.

Interested in giving daughter Naleigh, 4, a sibling, the actress and the singer began the adoption process with their sights set on Korea, only to eventually learn international adoptions were becoming increasingly difficult.

“Korea had gotten very hard to adopt from and China had a very long waiting list. I was kind of, ‘Tick, tick, tick. Any day now!’” Heigl, 34, told Jay Leno Thursday.

That’s when the couple began researching the idea of a domestic adoption and received quite the surprise much sooner than expected. “My lawyer called and said, ‘There’s a birth mother and she’s due in four weeks. She’s all yours if you want her!’” she recalls.

Paul Drinkwater/NBC

“So I had to talk Josh into that one. He thought it was going to be a few years and that we were going to end up with more a 9 or 10-month-old. He looked at me and said, ‘You’re telling me in a month we’re going to have a newborn?’”

Reassuring Kelley that it would all work out, the mom-of-two admits the arrival of Adalaide Marie Hope, now 7 months, couldn’t have come at a better point in their lives.

“I said, ‘Yeah, it’s perfect timing … we’re both here, we’re not working, this is great [because] we can spend time with her,’” she explains. “And it actually has been beautifully serendipitous and graceful because we’ve gotten to spend all this wonderful time with her.”

Recently, the family of four — who reside full-time in Utah — continued Heigl’s childhood holiday traditions of hitting the snowy slopes with their skis. But when Kelley had the task of taking Naleigh to her first class, it didn’t take long for her parents to realize some traditions just don’t die.

“All my siblings would go off and ski and [my parents] sent me to ski school, but every day I would come home with a note pinned to my jacket that just said, ‘Katie did not enjoy her day at ski school,’” Heigl shares, adding she would “cry and cry” during the ski session.

“Josh took Naleigh … and I was pretty sure I was going to get a very similar note — I did. She was not into it at all, hysterical in fact.”

As for the doting dad? He was equally beside himself. “Josh is driving home on the phone with me, ‘I’m just so disappointed she won’t even try,’” the actress shares. “And I said, ‘Josh, she’s four … she’ll get it! She’ll get the hang of it.’”

Unfortunately for Kelley, along with the arrival of winter weather comes a few sneezes, sniffles and colds as well.

“Adalaide had a little head cold for about a week and then Josh started thinking he was getting sick. He makes this noise when he thinks he is getting a stuffy nose,” Heigl shares, before imitating the sound.

“I’m dead asleep in the middle of the night, that’s what I hear and I wake up to it. I said to him the next day, ‘What’s the problem Josh?’”

When her husband of almost five years — they celebrate their anniversary Sunday — admitted he couldn’t breathe, she encouraged him to look to the couple’s baby girl for a bit of inspiration.

“I said, ‘Everybody in this world gets head colds. Your baby is handling it better than you are! I think you’re going to survive this,’” she says with a laugh. “But, all in all, 90 percent of him is amazing.”

– Anya Leon

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AP IMPACT: Big Pharma cashes in on HGH abuse

A federal crackdown on illicit foreign supplies of human growth hormone has failed to stop rampant misuse, and instead has driven record sales of the drug by some of the world's biggest pharmaceutical companies, an Associated Press investigation shows.

The crackdown, which began in 2006, reduced the illegal flow of unregulated supplies from China, India and Mexico.

But since then, Big Pharma has been satisfying the steady desires of U.S. users and abusers, including many who take the drug in the false hope of delaying the effects of aging.

From 2005 to 2011, inflation-adjusted sales of HGH were up 69 percent, according to an AP analysis of pharmaceutical company data collected by the research firm IMS Health. Sales of the average prescription drug rose just 12 percent in that same period.

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EDITOR'S NOTE — Whether for athletics or age, Americans from teenagers to baby boomers are trying to get an edge by illegally using anabolic steroids and human growth hormone, despite well-documented risks. This is the second of a two-part series.

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Unlike other prescription drugs, HGH may be prescribed only for specific uses. U.S. sales are limited by law to treat a rare growth defect in children and a handful of uncommon conditions like short bowel syndrome or Prader-Willi syndrome, a congenital disease that causes reduced muscle tone and a lack of hormones in sex glands.

The AP analysis, supplemented by interviews with experts, shows too many sales and too many prescriptions for the number of people known to be suffering from those ailments. At least half of last year's sales likely went to patients not legally allowed to get the drug. And U.S. pharmacies processed nearly double the expected number of prescriptions.

Peddled as an elixir of life capable of turning middle-aged bodies into lean machines, HGH — a synthesized form of the growth hormone made naturally by the human pituitary gland — winds up in the eager hands of affluent, aging users who hope to slow or even reverse the aging process.

Experts say these folks don't need the drug, and may be harmed by it. The supposed fountain-of-youth medicine can cause enlargement of breast tissue, carpal tunnel syndrome and swelling of hands and feet. Ironically, it also can contribute to aging ailments like heart disease and Type 2 diabetes.

Others in the medical establishment also are taking a fat piece of the profits — doctors who fudge prescriptions, as well as pharmacists and distributors who are content to look the other way. HGH also is sold directly without prescriptions, as new-age snake oil, to patients at anti-aging clinics that operate more like automated drug mills.

Years of raids, sports scandals and media attention haven't stopped major drugmakers from selling a whopping $1.4 billion worth of HGH in the U.S. last year. That's more than industry-wide annual gross sales for penicillin or prescription allergy medicine. Anti-aging HGH regimens vary greatly, with a yearly cost typically ranging from $6,000 to $12,000 for three to six self-injections per week.

Across the U.S., the medication is often dispensed through prescriptions based on improper diagnoses, carefully crafted to exploit wiggle room in the law restricting use of HGH, the AP found.

HGH is often promoted on the Internet with the same kind of before-and-after photos found in miracle diet ads, along with wildly hyped claims of rapid muscle growth, loss of fat, greater vigor, and other exaggerated benefits to adults far beyond their physical prime. Sales also are driven by the personal endorsement of celebrities such as actress Suzanne Somers.

Pharmacies that once risked prosecution for using unauthorized, foreign HGH — improperly labeled as raw pharmaceutical ingredients and smuggled across the border — now simply dispense name brands, often for the same banned uses. And usually with impunity.

Eight companies have been granted permission to market HGH by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which reviews the benefits and risks of new drug products. By contrast, three companies are approved for the diabetes drug insulin.

The No. 1 maker, Roche subsidiary Genentech, had nearly $400 million in HGH sales in the U.S. last year, up an inflation-adjusted two-thirds from 2005. Pfizer and Eli Lilly were second and third with $300 million and $220 million in sales, respectively, according to IMS Health. Pfizer now gets more revenue from its HGH brand, Genotropin, than from Zoloft, its well-known depression medicine that lost patent protection.

On their face, the numbers make no sense to the recognized hormone doctors known as endocrinologists who provide legitimate HGH treatment to a small number of patients.

Endocrinologists estimate there are fewer than 45,000 U.S. patients who might legitimately take HGH. They would be expected to use roughly 180,000 prescriptions or refills each year, given that typical patients get three months' worth of HGH at a time, according to doctors and distributors.

Yet U.S. pharmacies last year supplied almost twice that much HGH — 340,000 orders — according to AP's analysis of IMS Health data.

While doctors say more than 90 percent of legitimate patients are children with stunted growth, 40 percent of 442 U.S. side-effect cases tied to HGH over the last year involved people age 18 or older, according to an AP analysis of FDA data. The average adult's age in those cases was 53, far beyond the prime age for sports. The oldest patients were in their 80s.

Some of these medical records even give explicit hints of use to combat aging, justifying treatment with reasons like fatigue, bone thinning and "off-label," which means treatment of an unapproved condition

Even Medicare, the government health program for older Americans, allowed 22,169 HGH prescriptions in 2010, a five-year increase of 78 percent, according to data released by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services in response to an AP public records request.

"There's no question: a lot gets out," said hormone specialist Dr. Mark Molitch of Northwestern University, who helped write medical standards meant to limit HGH treatment to legitimate patients.

And those figures don't include HGH sold directly by doctors without prescriptions at scores of anti-aging medical practices and clinics around the country. Those numbers could only be tallied by drug makers, who have declined to say how many patients they supply and for what conditions.

First marketed in 1985 for children with stunted growth, HGH was soon misappropriated by adults intent on exploiting its modest muscle- and bone-building qualities. Congress limited HGH distribution to the handful of rare conditions in an extraordinary 1990 law, overriding the generally unrestricted right of doctors to prescribe medicines as they see fit.

Despite the law, illicit HGH spread around the sports world in the 1990s, making deep inroads into bodybuilding, college athletics, and professional leagues from baseball to cycling. The even larger banned market among older adults has flourished more recently.

FDA regulations ban the sale of HGH as an anti-aging drug. In fact, since 1990, prescribing it for things like weight loss and strength conditioning has been punishable by 5 to 10 years in prison.

Steve Kleppe, of Scottsdale, Ariz., a restaurant entrepreneur who has taken HGH for almost 15 years to keep feeling young, said he noticed a price jump of about 25 percent after the block on imports. He now buys HGH directly from a doctor at an annual cost of about $8,000 for himself and the same amount for his wife.

Many older patients go for HGH treatment to scores of anti-aging practices and clinics heavily concentrated in retirement states like Florida, Nevada, Arizona and California.

These sites are affiliated with hundreds of doctors who are rarely endocrinologists. Instead, many tout certification by the American Board of Anti-Aging and Regenerative Medicine, though the medical establishment does not recognize the group's bona fides.

The clinics offer personalized programs of "age management" to business executives, affluent retirees, and other patients of means, sometimes coupled with the amenities of a vacation resort. The operations insist there are few, if any, side effects from HGH. Mainstream medical authorities say otherwise.

A 2007 review of 31 medical studies showed swelling in half of HGH patients, with joint pain or diabetes in more than a fifth. A French study of about 7,000 people who took HGH as children found a 30 percent higher risk of death from causes like bone tumors and stroke, stirring a health advisory from U.S. authorities.

For proof that the drug works, marketers turn to images like the memorable one of pot-bellied septuagenarian Dr. Jeffry Life, supposedly transformed into a ripped hulk of himself by his own program available at the upscale Las Vegas-based Cenegenics Elite Health. (He declined to be interviewed.)

These promoters of HGH say there is a connection between the drop-off in growth hormone levels through adulthood and the physical decline that begins in late middle age. Replace the hormone, they say, and the aging process slows.

"It's an easy ruse. People equate hormones with youth," said Dr. Tom Perls, a leading industry critic who does aging research at Boston University. "It's a marketing dream come true."

___

Associated Press Writer David B. Caruso reported from New York and AP National Writer Jeff Donn reported from Plymouth, Mass. AP Writer Troy Thibodeaux provided data analysis assistance from New Orleans.

___

AP's interactive on the HGH investigation: http://hosted.ap.org/interactives/2012/hgh

___

The AP National Investigative Team can be reached at investigate(at)ap.org

EDITOR'S NOTE _ Whether for athletics or age, Americans from teenagers to baby boomers are trying to get an edge by illegally using anabolic steroids and human growth hormone, despite well-documented risks. This is the second of a two-part series.

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Wall Street falls on fiscal cliff setback

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks finished lower on Friday after a Republican plan to avoid the "fiscal cliff" failed to gain sufficient support on Thursday night, draining hopes that a deal would be reached before 2013.

Still, stocks managed to rebound from the day's lows near the end of the session, and for the week, major averages still ended higher, with the S&P 500 gaining 1.2 percent.

Trading was volatile as confidence eroded in the prospect of a deal out of Washington, and in part due to quarterly expiration of options and futures contracts. The CBOE Volatility Index <.vix> or VIX, the market's favored anxiety measure, finished below its high of the day.

Republican House Speaker John Boehner failed to garner enough votes from even his own party to pass his "Plan B" tax bill late on Thursday. It was the latest setback in negotiations to avoid $600 billion in tax hikes and spending cuts that some say could tip the U.S. economy into recession.

"The failure with Plan B was disappointing, if not terribly surprising, but now there's a real lack of clarity about what will happen, and markets hate that," said Mike Hennessy, managing director of investments for Morgan Creek in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

Herbalife dropped for an eighth straight session. Investor Bill Ackman recently ramped up his campaign against the company. The company skidded 19 percent to $27.27 and has lost more than 35 percent this week.

Plan B, which called for tax increases on those who earn $1 million or more a year, was not going to pass the Democratic-led Senate or win acceptance from the White House anyway. But it exposed the reality that it will be difficult to get Republican support for the more expansive tax increases that President Barack Obama has urged.

Still, the declines of less than 1 percent in the three major U.S. stock indexes suggest that investors do not believe the economy will be unduly damaged by the absence of a deal, said Mark Lehmann, president of JMP Securities, in San Francisco.

"You could have easily woken up today and seen the market down 300 or 400 points, and everyone would have said, 'That's telling you this is really dire,'" Lehmann said.

"I think if you get into mid-January and (the talks) keep going like this, you get worried, but I don't think we're going to get there."

Banking shares, which outperform during economic expansion and have led the market on signs of progress on resolving the fiscal impasse, led declines. Citigroup Inc fell 1.6 percent to $39.49, while Bank of America slid 1.9 percent to $11.29. The KBW Banks index <.bkx> lost 1.19 percent.

Volatility on Friday was exacerbated in part by "quadruple witching," the quarterly expiration of stock index futures and options, stock options and single stock futures contracts.

About 8.59 billion shares changed hands on major U.S. exchanges, more than the daily average of 6.47 billion daily in 2012, in part due to expiration.

The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> dropped 120.72 points, or 0.91 percent, to 13,191.00. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> fell 13.52 points, or 0.94 percent, to 1,430.17. The Nasdaq Composite Index <.ixic> lost 29.38 points, or 0.96 percent, to 3,021.01.

"Amazingly, this sharp decline today may not actually change the technical picture much - unless the decline gets worse," said Larry McMillan, president of options research firm McMillan Analysis Corp, in a research note.

The day's round of data indicated the economy was surprisingly resilient in November; consumer spending rose by the most in three years and a gauge of business investment jumped.

But separate data showed consumer sentiment slumped in December. The S&P Retail Index <.spxrt> fell 1.2 percent.

U.S.-listed shares of Research in Motion sank 22.7 percent to $10.91 after the Canadian company, known as the BlackBerry maker, reported its first-ever decline in its subscriber numbers on Thursday alongside a new fee structure for its high-margin services segment.

(Additional reporting by Ryan Vlastelica and Leah Schnurr; Editing by Bernadette Baum, Jan Paschal and Nick Zieminski)

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Egypt’s Chief Prosecutor Retracts His Resignation

CAIRO — Egypt’s chief prosecutor withdrew his resignation on Thursday, just days after submitting it. The move was the latest bizarre turn in a complicated three-way struggle among the new Islamist president, the institutions of the old government and the president’s opposition in the streets.

President Mohamed Morsi appointed the prosecutor, Talaat Ibrahim Abdullah, in a Nov. 22 decree that set off protests across the country and prompted a political crisis because it also sought to exempt presidential edicts from judicial scrutiny.

Mr. Abdullah’s role drew more critical attention after a night of deadly violence between Mr. Morsi’s Islamist supporters and their opponents outside the presidential palace this month. A local Cairo prosecutor accused Mr. Abdullah and Mr. Morsi’s chief of staff of pressing for legal action without adequate evidence against a group of opposition protesters that the Islamists had captured during the battle. When the pressure was rebuffed, the local prosecutor said that Mr. Abdullah had briefly sought to punish him by transferring him to a remote town in Upper Egypt.

Other prosecutors accused the Morsi government of trying to turn law enforcement into a political tool, and on Monday they staged an angry protest at the door of the high court building where Mr. Abdullah works. Dozens of riot police officers stood guard. After hours of confrontations on the street and in his office, Mr. Abdullah wrote out a letter of resignation, and the crowd left in triumph.

In response, Mr. Morsi’s Islamist supporters denounced the forced resignation as mob rule. “What street thugs do these days,” was how Mr. Morsi’s party, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood, described it in a statement. The party also accused the prosecutors of brandishing weapons to intimidate Mr. Abdullah. Witnesses said they did see not any weapons.

If groups of public employees were allowed to force out their bosses, “the whole country would descend into total chaos, governed by the law of the jungle,” the party said. It called judges who had opposed the appointment “enemies of the revolution” and “enemies of the people” because they favored the return of the former chief prosecutor, appointed by Hosni Mubarak and faulted for failing to pursue his cronies.

Evidently pushed by the Morsi government and its supporters not to resign, Mr. Abdullah said Thursday that his earlier resignation had been illegitimate because it occurred “under pressure” from the angry lawyers outside his office, Egyptian state news media reported.

The reversal is likely to raise new alarms about Mr. Morsi’s efforts to tighten his grip on power, days before the conclusion on Saturday of a two-phase referendum on an Islamist-backed draft constitution.

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Huge Savings With MyBatua Season’s Sale

The online Islamic clothing store MyBatua.com brings more reasons to smile. The Store announces huge discounts and assured gifts on every purchase of women Abayas, kurtis and Jibabs.

(PRWEB) December 21, 2012

MyBatua.com has extended its seasonal sale on Islamic clothing range for a fortnight to appreciate the huge response of buyers. Being one of the most renowned stores for a vibrant range of Islamic clothing range, MyBatua has announced discounts up to 60% on modern, contemporary, fashionable and exclusive Islamic apparel for men and women.

The online store offers a huge collection of Jibabs, kurtis, abayas and Hijabs for customers, with the choice of customization. All the clothing items displayed at the sale are designed to reflect exclusive style statements of customers. Islamic outfits at MyBatua are available with contemporary and very stylish looks. Jilbabs and Abaya at the store are also made from natural fabric and with contemporary texture.

At http://www.mybatua.com visitors may choose from an extensive range of hijabs available in different styles, plain solid colors, fantastic design and attractive ones for joyful events. Like their name they are very simple to put on without any wrapp or Hijab pin. The store is well-known for its best quality beautiful hijabs and Abayas with an inexpensive price tag.

The best part of the season sale at the store is the availability of the finest range of ethnic clothing for a diverse array of women buyers who never compromise on quality and style. The store features a diverse variety of modest Women’s clothing items that range from conventional Abayas to custom Hijabs designed with finest craftsmanship.

Apart from a pretty good collection of regular and Plus sizes of Jibabs, Abayas and Hijab, customers also get an option to customize clothes without any additional cost. With every purchase at http://www.mybatua.com seasonal sale, customers find huge cash discounts and assured gifts to turn their shopping spree rewarding and a never before experience. MyBatua range comes with free shipping and hassle free delivery to the customers worldwide.    

MyBatua a leading online store for clothing and accessories has now become a one stop shopping place for Islamic fashion clothing. It is catering to all needs of online shoppers for Abayas, Jilbabs, Hijabs, Sherwanis and variety of accessories including brooches and unique handbags suitable for all occasions and weddings.

Amrish Goel
Mybatua.com
+918826009522
Email Information

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High School Football Star Protects Bullied Student with Special Needs

Heroes Among Us

By Johnny Dodd

12/20/2012 at 04:50 PM EST

Chy Johnson with Carson Jones (right) and the rest of her "boys," the Queen Creek, Ariz., high school football team

Dave Knoer/K-KAMERA.COM

Carson Jones didn't think he was doing anything special last August when he asked his buddies on the Queen Creek High School football team in Queen Creek, Ariz., to help watch over a special-needs sophomore who was getting picked on by other students.

"I just thought if the other kids saw us treating her nicely, then maybe they'd do the same thing," recalls Jones.

The 18-year-old quarterback with a 4.3 GPA had no idea how his good deed would end up changing the life of Chy Johnson, whose neurological disorder limits her cognitive abilities to that of a third-grader. But over the past three months, Johnson, 16, has gone from being a bullied outcast to becoming one of the most celebrated kids at Queen Creek High.  

"If it wasn't for Carson, I honestly think we would have pulled her out of school and homeschooled her," says Johnson's mom Liz, who first met Jones years earlier while working as a teacher's aide at his elementary school.

When Chy started coming home from her classes in tears, describing how kids were throwing trash at her and calling her names, Liz wondered if maybe the "wholesome, good-natured" Jones might be able to help.
 

Liz tracked Jones down through his Facebook page and asked if he could find out who was picking on her daughter. The next day, Jones found Chy sitting alone in the cafeteria and asked her to come sit with him and a group of other seniors on the football team.   

"She's pretty much been with us ever since,"says Jones, who ended up "having a talk” with her tormentors.
 

Not only has the bullying stopped, but the players have made Chy an unofficial member of their team – walking her to classes, taking her to dances and parties, even inviting her down to the sidelines during games.

Carson and the rest of the team's kindness hasn’t been lost on Chy.

"They're my boys and I'm their lucky girl," she says. "They're awesome."

Know a hero? Send suggestions to heroesamongus@peoplemag.com. For more inspiring stories, read the latest issue of PEOPLE magazine

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