Helle Ib: Giftigt spil – men ingen klare beviser

De to første dage i Skattesagskommissionen har absolut ikke skabt klarhed over, hvem der lækkede de fortrolige oplysninger i Thorning-Kinnocks skattesag – eller om daværende skatteminister Troels Lund Poulsens (V) spindoktor Peter Arnfeldt ”tilbød” Ekstra Bladet indblik i dele af indholdet.

Ekstra Bladets påstand svækkes af manglende beviser. Til gengæld har offentligheden fået indblik i, hvor beskidt det politiske spil på Christiansborg kan udfolde sig.

Two big health insurers team up in acquisition [The Kansas City Star]

A planned acquisition of Coventry Health Care Inc. by fellow insurer Aetna Inc., announced Monday, will give Aetna access to more Medicaid and Medicare

business -- programs expected to grow under national health reform.

But what local consumers are likely to notice first is that the $5.7 billion deal will reduce by one the number of major health care insurance carriers in

the Kansas City market.

"In the local fully insured marketplace, especially for small groups, that brings us down to Blue Cross and Blue Shield, UnitedHealth, Humana and Aetna,"

said David Power, a broker with the Power Group in the Kansas City area. "We'll have one less option to show clients to compare plans and rates, and that

means less competition."

Mike Brewer, president of Lockton Benefit Group, said that in the local middle market, involving companies of up to 5,000 people covered, he'd add Cigna as a

competitor, but he agreed that reduced competition was among the first things that came to mind when he heard of the deal.

"Consolidation does tend to erode competition a little, but the upside may be Aetna having a little more muscle to work with in the marketplace," Brewer

said.

Aetna sent notes to its brokers that said, in part, "In the foreseeable future, it is business as usual -- nothing changes." The purchase is subject to

approval from Coventry shareholders and federal and state regulators.

Aetna is the nation's third-largest health insurer based on enrollment numbers, ranking it behind UnitedHealth Group and WellPoint nationally. In Missouri

and Kansas, the Blues have the largest premium share and will continue to be the biggest after the Aetna deal is done.

What's attractive to Aetna in the deal is Coventry's 932,000-strong Medicaid enrollment. Since the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the health care overhaul

legislation, millions more Americans are expected to become eligible to participate in the state- and federally funded program for persons identified as poor

and disabled.

Just since the court's decision, WellPoint, which offers Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans in 14 states, said it intended to acquire Amerigroup Corp. Industry

analysts expect more consolidations as insurers try to bolster their government business.

Aetna called the Coventry acquisition a "fabulous" deal, even if the November elections change the future of health reform.

Aetna also would gain Coventry's Medicare business at a time when the big, aging baby-boom generation is becoming eligible for that program. Coventry has

about 1.5 million people enrolled in its Medicare prescription drug coverage.

According to statistics supplied by the carriers, Aetna has more than 18 million medical policy members, nearly 13.6 million dental members, and more than

8.6 million pharmacy members. The acquisition would add Coventry's nearly 3.8 million medical members and nearly 1.5 million Medicare Part D members.

Aetna shares rose 5.3 percent in Monday trading to $40.06, and Coventry shares jumped about 20 percent to $41.86.

Summer of LeBron Ends With Gold

The Spanish balloon popped when LeBron James hammered home a dunk late in the fourth quarter. For James, who had relished his role throughout the Olympic

tournament as a facilitator rather than a scorer, it was a rare show of might, as if to punctuate the fact that, yes, he was still LeBron—the NBA's Most

Valuable Player, an NBA champion, and now, after two weeks in London, a two-time Olympic gold medalist.
James made his exit from Sunday's game shortly after dunking, and in the waning moments of Team USA's 107-100 gold medal victory over Spain, he and coach

Mike Krzyzewski embraced in front of the bench. It had been a hard-fought contest, the sort of nip-and-tuck, counterpunching affair that James and his

teammates said they wanted.

"A lot of teams have won gold easy," said James, who finished with 19 points, seven rebounds and four assists. "We didn't want it that way."

Olympic basketball can be a tough sell for fans back home: Team USA wins? Well, that was expected. But a loss? "It is a disaster," assistant coach Mike

D'Antoni said. The tournament had been more exhibition than sport as the U.S. steamrolled its way into the final, winning its games by an average of 35.7

points. But the game with Spain was different. Spain had the Gasol brothers, Marc and Pau. Spain had experience. And Spain had motivation: The game was a

rematch of the 2008 gold-medal game that the U.S. won.
One of the major plot lines was whether Spain's size would give the U.S. problems. But Krzyzewski and his staff stuck to their game plan: Team USA would go

small. It was one of the principles that Jerry Colangelo, chairman of USA Basketball, kept in mind when he and Krzyzewski assembled the roster.

"As the big man fades into the sunset around the world," Colangelo said, "there won't be any choice but to go with quickness and speed."

The wisdom of that gamble was apparent at the start of the fourth quarter when the U.S. mounted a 12-4 run to break open a one-point game. Whether it was

James working his way to the basket or Kevin Durant sinking his fifth 3-pointer or point guard Chris Paul dribbling past the 7-foot-tall Pau Gasol, Spain

could no longer contend.

It was a physical game. Recalling one of Marc Gasol's four first-half fouls, Carmelo Anthony said Gasol "tried to take my leg off." But the Americans

eventually found the space to run the court and separate themselves. "The closer the game got, the more intense we got," said Bryant, who had 17 points and

three 3-pointers.
That makes 14 gold medals in 17 Olympic appearances for Team USA, which got a game-high 30 points from Durant. Paul, who finished with 11, described the

London Games as the most fun he has had as a player. "I hate that in a couple months, these guys are going to be my enemies," he said.

Krzyzewski, 62-1 as Team USA's coach since taking over the program in 2006, joined Henry Iba as the only U.S. coaches to lead the team to gold in consecutive

Olympics. He hedged afterward when asked about his announced plans to step down from his position. "The thing that I would want to do with Jerry, and will

do, is take some time to evaluate everything," he said. "I think I can get a great meal out of this."

Over the past seven years, one of Krzyzewski's most important partnerships has been with James. As a 19-year-old in 2004, James was a bit player on a U.S.

team that settled for bronze at the Athens Games. Once Krzyzewski came aboard, James was instrumental in the national team's success. He got other NBA

megastars to buy into the ethos of the Olympics.

"I've just seen him grow immensely," Krzyzewski said. "He's the best player and he's the best leader and he's as smart as anyone playing the game right now."

He cited how James played the final five minutes of the Spain game with four fouls. He knew not to pick up his fifth.

There was an air of finality to the postgame festivities. James said he wasn't certain if he would be with the team in 2016, and it might not be his choice.

FIBA is said to be considering an age limit. Colangelo said he expects to know more in December.

After James checked out of the game, he celebrated by dousing Krzyzewski with water, then climbed to his spot on the podium. It was a fitting last act during

this, the Summer of LeBron—he went out on top.

Charles Zentai case the last Nazi pursuit

The 90-year-old Perth man had been accused of beating a Jewish teenager to death and throwing his body in the Danube River in Nazi-occupied Budapest in

November 1944.

Yesterday, the High Court ruled that the government could not order Mr Zentai's extradition to Hungary because the offence of "war crime" did not exist under

Hungary's laws in 1944.

The decision draws to a close the era of Nazi war crimes prosecutions in Australia - a troubled hunt that resulted in four failed court cases over 25 years

at a cost of tens of millions of dollars.

At its height, from 1987 to 1992, a Special Investigations Unit set up by the Hawke government examined up to 800 cases of suspected Nazi-era war criminals

living in Australia, but a lack of hard evidence and the unreliability of aged witnesses made it difficult to lay charges.
Some questioned whether Australia's heart was really in the hunt to prosecute crimes committed half a century earlier. A 2006 US-government commissioned

report accused Australia of having "an ambivalent" attitude to hunting Nazi war criminals and a "lack of the requisite political will".

Mr Zentai said yesterday he was stunned and happy at the High Court's decision but his life had been ruined by the case.

But the ruling infuriated the Jewish community. Efraim Zuroff, from the Jerusalem-based Simon Wiesenthal Centre, labelled it a black day for Australian

justice and a terrible day for survivors of the Holocaust.

He said not one attempt to bring accused Nazi war criminals in Australia to justice had succeeded, and he believed it was now the end of the line.

"We are up against obstacles that are simply impossible," Mr Zuroff said. "If there is no judicial will to bring the criminals from World War II to justice

in Australia, then it won't happen."

Executive Council of Australian Jewry president Danny Lamm said the decision would be seen by many as the triumph of narrow legalism over substantive

justice.

In a 5-1 decision, the High Court said that, under Australia's extradition treaty with Hungary, the government could not surrender one of its citizens over

acts capable of giving rise to any form of criminal liability, only for the specific offence for which extradition was sought.

It said that, although the offence of murder existed in Hungary in 1944, Hungary had not requested Mr Zentai's extradition for murder; rather, it had

requested his extradition for the offence of "war crime".

Dissenting judge Dyson Heydon said that point was an "extremely technical one". Justice Heydon said that if Mr Zentai was returned to Hungary and convicted,

an accurate answer if someone later asked him what he was convicted for was "beating a Jew to death in Budapest in 1944".

"The questioner could equally accurately answer: 'That's murder. That was certainly an offence in Hungary in 1944'," Justice Heydon said.

Hungary enacted laws in 1945 that retrospectively introduced the war crimes offence.

Mr Zentai, who is on bail, has denied any involvement in the death of teenager Peter Balazs since details of the claims against him were revealed in The

Australian in 2005.

Some prosecutors in Australia say the Simon Wiesenthal Centre, which has mounted a global campaign for Nazi war crimes prosecutions, gave them poorly

researched lists of suspects.

In 1991 charges were laid against Mikolay Berezowsky for alleged involvement in the deaths of 102 Jews in Ukraine. The case did not proceed to trial.

In 1993 the South Australian Supreme Court acquitted Ivan Polyukovich of charges of murdering a Jewish woman in 1942 and being knowingly concerned with the

murder of 850 others. The same year, mass murder charges against Heinrich Wagner were dropped because of his ill-health.

System could warn of solar storms

A warning system with the potential to protect against the devastating and costly effects of a massive solar storm could be on the horizon.

That's according to research published in the journal Astroparticle Physics.

Solar flares can be accompanied by the release of high energy particles - a coronal mass ejection - towards Earth.

Ensuing huge geomagnetic storms could wreak havoc on electronic systems, satellites, power grids and communication networks.

Data from the study, led by Prof Ephraim Fischbach and Prof Jere Jenkins of Purdue University, suggest that the rate of breakdown of radioactive materials

changes in advance of solar flares.

They hope they can use this to develop a system that could predict when a potentially devastating geomagnetic storm might take place. This would allow

authorities to adopt protective measures, such as shutting down satellites, at times of most risk.

But it is unclear how long such a system would take to develop. Prof Jenkins told BBC News: "We're still developing algorithms to pinpoint what type of flare

and magnitude it will be."

Other physicists are more sceptical of the conclusions made by the researchers. Commenting on the findings, Dr Peter Soler, a particle physicist at the

University of Glasgow, said: "I do not believe the actual decay rate is being affected by this."
Radioactive elements - such as uranium - are unstable and break down over time. As they do this they release energy in the form of radiation. Physicists have

long held the view that the rate of breakdown - or decay - for any given radioactive substance is constant.

A chance event led Prof Jenkins to doubt this. He was watching television coverage of astronauts spacewalking at the International Space Station. A solar

flare erupted and was thought to pose a risk to the astronauts. On checking equipment in his laboratory, he was surprised to discover that the rate of

radioactive decay changed before the solar flare.

The current report follows years of painstaking research designed to strengthen this initial observation. "It's the first time the same isotope has been used

in two different experiments at two different labs, and it showed basically the same effect," Prof Fischbach said.

It is unclear how solar particles affect rates of radioactive decay, but Prof Jenkins asserts that "either neutrinos are affecting the decay rate or perhaps

an unknown particle is". Neutrinos are subatomic particles; huge numbers of them are spewed out during a solar flare.

One of the biggest geomagnetic storms on record was the Carrington event of 1859. According to Prof Fischbach: "There was so much energy from this solar

storm that the telegraph wires were seen glowing." He pointed out that "because we now have a sophisticated infrastructure of satellites, powergrids and all

sorts of electronic systems, a storm of this magnitude today would be catastrophic. Having a day and a half warning could be really helpful in averting the

worst damage".

According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, there are around 1,000 satellites in operation above the Earth's atmosphere. Satellites are used for

communication, weather forecasting, navigation, research and reconnaissance.

Solar activity fluctuates over an approximate 11-year cycle. Activity is likely to peak over the next year or so and could bring strong solar storms.
Solar particles also produce one of nature's wondrous spectacles - the auroras - natural light shows in the Earth's atmosphere. The auroras visible in the

northern and southern hemispheres are known as the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) and Aurora Australis (Southern Lights), respectively.

The auroras are most visible at high latitudes - usually in the polar regions. However, the intensity of this light show is influenced greatly by the amount

of solar flare activity. According to Prof Fischbach, "the aurora borealis appeared as far south as Cuba" during the famous Carrington event.

Chad Johnson: I still love Evelyn

Chad Johnson says he still loves Evelyn Lozada - even though the reality star has filed to end their 41-day-old marriage.
 Lozada filed for divorce Tuesday after Johnson was arrested for allegedly head-butting her during an argument Saturday. The football star was dropped by the

Miami Dolphins the next day.

In a statement on his website - OCNN - Johnson apologized for his action and said he loves her to death. He also said he planned to stay positive and hopes

to get signed by another NFL team.

"I would like to apologize to everyone for the recent events that have occurred," Johnson's statement read. "I would like to wish Evelyn well and will never

say anything bad about her because I truly love her to death. I will continue to be positive and train hard for another opportunity in the NFL. To all the

fans and supporters I have disappointed, you have my sincerest apologies. I will stay positive and get through this tough period in my life."

The couple's July 4th wedding was taped for their VH1 reality show ''Ev & Ocho'' -but the network has decided it will no longer air.

Paul Ryan and Ryan Gosling spark vice-presidential humour online

When Mitt Romney officially named Wisconsin congressman Paul Ryan as his running mate on Sunday he likely had no clue what the internet had in store for him.

Early Saturday, as news began to leak, online pranksters sprung into action and revived a meme that first appeared earlier this year: Paul Ryan Gosling. It

builds on that uber-popular "Hey Girl" meme featuring actor Ryan Gosling by combining pictures or Tweets of Paul Ryan with a romantic and/or conservative

caption.
One of the first blogs to spring into action was Hey Girl, It's Paul Ryan. According to Time Magazine, the Tumblr blog was started back in April but lasted

only about a week. Since Ryan was picked to be Romney's running mate, however, it was revived.

It features such pithy comments as "Hey girl, I like big cuts and I cannot lie" and "Hey girl, I may be vying for #2. But you'll always be my #1."
Here's another one:
But Hey Girl, It's Paul Ryan is not to be confused with another Tumblr called simply Paul Ryan Gosling that sprung up on Saturday.
The creator(s) behind the Paul Ryan Gosling Tumblr don't want to be confused with yet another addition to the meme craze. They wrote:
"If you follow @PaulRyanGosling on Twitter, be advised that that is not the real Paul Ryan Gosling, the adorable middle-class-destroying scamp that you know

and love from this page right here.

Facebook.com/PaulRyanGosling. Real talk."
The @paulryangosling Twitter account also sprang into action Saturday with a Tweet about Medicare.

Removing the barriers to consent for organ donation

Within 24 hours of these words appearing in print, Team GB is likely to have won at least three more medals, and during the same time frame at least three

more British people will probably die waiting for an organ transplant.

Each year about 1000 patients lose their fight for life, a life that could have been saved by an altruistic gift from someone they probably had never met.

This has led to widespread calls for the replacement of the current opt-in system for organ donation by what is known as a soft opt-out system, where a

person's consent is assumed unless they have objected in their lifetime. Wales is consulting on such a scheme, which has improved the level of donated organs

in Belgium and Spain. Recently our sister paper, the Evening Times, has done much to raise the profile of the opt-out campaign through a well-supported

petition and by sharing stories of the suffering of those waiting for transplants and the joy of those who have had one.

How far would an opt-out mechanism go towards eliminating the growing transplant organ shortage? Much depends on the attitude adopted towards the views of

the bereaved family and relatives.

As The Herald reports today, such a move may make less difference than anticipated if relatives continue to have a veto. Currently, around a quarter of

suitable organs are never transplanted because of the refusal of the bereaved. Even when the dead patient is on the donor register, one in 10 families

withholds consent. They may assert that the patient "has suffered enough" or worry that staff will not strive to save a person's life if there are plans in

place for transplanting their organs. Often the issue has never come up in conversation.

The gap between demand and supply of organs could be diminished if relatives were not allowed to over-rule the wishes of the deceased, argues Dr David Shaw

of Aberdeen University. He describes respecting the veto as "unethical, unprofessional and against the spirit of the law".

This is an ethically complex area. It touches on the relationship between the citizen and the state and that between patient and doctor. It pitches the

rights of suffering patients against those of grieving relatives. The Herald has argued that any change to the system must take the public with it, or risk

making the organ shortage worse instead of better, as happened in Brazil.

Under the proposed Welsh scheme, clinical teams will have a duty of care towards the bereaved and must take into account strong objections, especially when

the views of the dead person are unknown. The scheme proposed by the BMA and supported by Kidney Research UK leaves the final decision with loved ones.

Surely the answer lies not in surgeons removing organs in the face of objections from the grieving spouse and offspring, but all of us openly discussing our

wishes with our nearest and dearest. The biggest barrier to improving the level of consent for organ donation is not the obstruction of irrational relatives

but ignorance.

Sasuke Singapore has celebs huffing and puffing

You could say Fly Entertainment artist Bobby Tonelli received "special treatment" during the filming of Sasuke Singapore's celebrity episode back in June.

After all, the Singapore-based American actor-DJ's girlfriend, local actress Joanne Peh, is the host of the show.

Sasuke Singapore is Channel 5's new crazy, action-packed game show that pushes contestants to their physical limits through an arduous five-part obstacle

course.

A local adaptation of the Japanese series Sasuke (known as Ninja Warrior internationally), it premieres on Aug 9 at 8.10pm, after the telecast of the

National Day Parade.

The 36-year-old Tonelli and Peh, 29, did not bother to hide their affection for each other on the approximately 160m by 25m set at Sentosa.

The couple, who have been dating since 2009, openly addressed each other as "honey" and "dear". While Tonelli was navigating a series of slanted platforms

called the Sextuple Step and jumped from a trampoline onto a cargo net, Peh took out her smartphone to take photographs and videos.

She also energetically cheered her hunky beau on and could not keep her eyes off him.

When asked whether she gave Tonelli any insider tips on how to ace the course, Peh responded with a chuckle.

After all, she was a contestant on the Channel 8 variety series Battle@Water Margin, which saw MediaCorp artists overcoming their phobias of heights and

water as they duked it out on the wacky, wet and wild obstacle courses.

She told The New Paper: "There's nothing I can do to help him because he's the one on the course. "There's no formula for success."

She added: "I didn't want to say I was worried because I might have projected that nervousness." Incidentally, Tonelli had also auditioned to host Sasuke

Singapore, but lost the role to Peh.

Nevertheless, he did his homework for his part as acontestant.

"I studied some of the obstacles on YouTube, worked out a lot and trained myself mentally for this challenge," he said. "I think you just have to focus on

what is going on ahead of you and give it your all."

So are they still at the stage in their relationship where Tonelli has to impress Peh?

Quipped the American: "I think taking part in Sasuke is impressive enough because not everyone can do this."

Yes, even someone as well-built and physically fit as Tonelli was seen having a difficult time on the course.

While climbing up the rope ladder, his foot got tangled and he looked visibly troubled.

Also, he failed to conquer the Jump Hang obstacle and fell into the water below.

When he emerged, looking disappointed with himself, Peh hugged and comforted him, saying: "It's okay baby, I still love you."

She told TNP later: "I think he did great, although he has been very nervous for the past few days.

"I have to say, I was more nervous for the other contestants than him."

Tonelli was joined by other local celebrities such as Nat Ho, 27, Paul Foster, 31, Jimmy T, 48, Sylvia Ratonel, 24, and Koh Yah Hwee, 25.

And none of them had it easy on the course.

The sun was merciless during the shoot and they all left nursing rope burns on their hands.

Actor-singer Ho said: "My only thought was to get on the other side at all cost (for the Tarzan Swing and Rope Ladder). Only when I pressed the buzzer did I

realise both my palms had blisters and were bleeding.

"My next thought was that I cannot play Diablo 3 for a while.

"I didn't really prepare (for Sasuke Singapore). I just watched some YouTube videos and followed my normal exercise routine because I didn't have much of an

idea of what to prepare for."

Singapore Idol 3 runner-up Ratonel suffered even more severe rope burns and was seen being attended to by medical personnel at the scene.

The singer was heard gasping in pain and kept telling the medics not to "press" on her wounds.

Koh also didn't expect the obstacles to be so tough. While she was on the platform to prepare for the Tarzan Swing and Rope Ladder, the actress kept

shouting: "It is different up here!"

She added: "I exercised and did some yoga. I honestly thought it was going to be easy, but it is no joke at all."

U.S. probes HCA heart procedures, hospital billing

U.S. authorities are probing whether heart procedures performed at HCA Holdings Inc hospitals were medically necessary and are investigating the company's

billing practices, the company said on Monday.

The company's shares were down as much as 10 percent.
HCA, in an unusual move, also issued a detailed rebuttal defending itself against a not-yet-published report by The New York Times. The company said it

believes the newspaper will question physician decisions at its hospitals regarding certain heart procedures.

The U.S. Department of Justice is reviewing whether charges to the federal government related to use of implantable cardio-defibrillators (ICDs) met with

billing criteria set by the Medicare health program for the elderly, HCA said in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

The review will include ICD billing and medical records at 95 of the company's 163 hospitals from October 2003 to the present.

ICDs are devices implanted in a patient's chest to help regulate heart rhythm and protect against potentially dangerous racing heart beats. Major

manufacturers of the devices include: Medtronic Inc, Boston Scientific Corp and St Jude Medical Inc.

A representatives for St Jude was not immediately available. A Boston Scientific spokesman did not have an immediate comment. A Medtronic spokesman declined

to comment on an investigation involving another company.

HCA also said that in July the federal prosecutor's office in Miami requested information on reviews assessing the medical necessity of certain

interventional heart procedures. HCA said it believes such reviews have taken place at about 10 of its hospitals, primarily in Florida.

The reviews were conducted by third-party organizations retained by the company, an HCA spokesman said.

The company said its own review of how many of its hospitals may be affected was not yet complete.

Interventional heart procedures include angioplasty and stenting used to clear and prop open blocked coronary arteries.

Jefferies analyst Arthur Henderson said such inquiries were not uncommon.

"Every time they come out, people get pretty nervous about it and the stocks trade down," Henderson said. "There is not enough information to say this is

going to end up bad. As long as the company continues to execute the way they have this quarter, I think there is some upside to the stock."

Shares in HCA fell as much as 10 percent after the disclosures on Monday, but regained some ground to close 3.95 percent lower at $25.55. Rival hospital

operators also fell on news of the probes before recovering. Community Health shares closed down 0.6 percent at $23.83, while shares of Tenet Healthcare Corp

were off 0.03 percent at $4.66.

EARNINGS BEAT EXPECTATIONS

HCA on Monday also reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings as more patients were treated at its facilities. The company stood by its 2012 earnings

forecast.

Net income for the second quarter rose to $391 million, or 85 cents per share, from $229 million, or 43 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding one-time gains, earnings were 85 cents per share, topping analysts' average forecast of 78 cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Revenue rose 12 percent to $8.11 billion. Admissions to facilities owned for at least one year, combined with outpatient volumes, increased 3.9 percent.

Chile marks second anniversary of mine collapse

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) — A cross in the middle of the world's driest desert now marks the spot where a mine collapse trapped 33 men a half-mile under the

earth for 69 days.

Chile on Sunday marked the second anniversary of the cave-in at the San Jose mine in the Atacama desert, honoring the miners who survived in entrapment

longer than anyone else before.

President Sebastian Pinera traveled to the northern city of Copiapo to join the men at the mouth of the mine that nearly became their rocky grave. They

unveiled a five-meter (16 1/2-foot) cross as part of a monument known as the "The 33 miners of Atacama: The miracle of life."

"In such extreme, difficult circumstances you were able to bring out the best in yourselves," Pinera told the miners at a ceremony. "You fought for your own

lives with such strength, faith, hope and comradeship that it touched the fibers of men and women around the world."
The miners said it felt like an earthquake when the shaft caved in above them on Aug. 5, 2010, filing the lower ridges of the copper and gold mine with

suffocating dust. Hours passed before they could even begin to see a few steps in front of them. Above them tons of rock shifted constantly, threatening to

bury them forever.

People on the surface didn't know for more than two weeks that the men had survived the collapse, and the 33 stretched a meager 48-hour store of emergency

food for 17 days, eating tiny capsules of tuna and sips of expired milk. A narrow shaft finally reached their haven and the world learned they were alive.

That shaft allowed food and water to reach the men while rescuers drilled a bigger escape hole. Finally, in a flawless operation that ended in the early

hours of Oct. 13, the miners were hauled up one-by-one in a cage through 2,000 feet of rock.

Back on the surface they were received as heroes for surviving so long in the sweltering, dark depths of the overexploited century-old mine. Their globally

televised rescue mesmerized millions worldwide. They got paid trips to the Greek Islands, visited the Real Madrid stadium in Spain and paraded at Magic

Kingdom in Disney World.

But the fantasy began to crumble on their return home.

Many ran out of money and had to scratch out a living in the dusty, barren working-class neighborhoods and shantytowns of the desert city of Copiapo. Some

began suffering from health and psychological problems. Others took to alcohol and drugs. Most are still kept up at night by memories of their ordeal.

"I still suffer from the nightmares," said Alex Vega, 33, who vowed never walk into a mine again.

"I'm on psychiatric treatment because I haven't been able to overcome all of it," said Vega, who has traveled to Central America and the United States giving

inspirational talks and works operating construction machinery. He receives a pension of $200 a month to compensate for his psychological problems.

But doctors say the aftermath could have been worse.

"I still see them as great people who were able to go through something terrible," said Alberto Iturra Benavides, the head psychologist who worked with the

miners.

"What surprises me most is the strength of their commitment to life. They could have had deep personality alterations, but it hasn't happened. People can't

even begin to understand how terrible it was for them down there," he added.

Chile announced last year that 14 of the miners who are older than 50 or suffer from health problems that keep them from working would receive a lifetime

pension of $540 a month. The miners have been secretive about the details of what happened during their entrapment, especially the days before they were

found, hoping to strike gold in a film deal.

Now they're banking all their financial hopes on a Hollywood movie deal signed with "Black Swan" producer Mike Medavoy. The production will draw on a book

being written about them by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Hector Tobar.

"The 33," as they are known, will appear as extras in the film, said Remberto Valdes, a lawyer who represents the men. He said they have already received

about $9,000 each for the film and $2,500 for the book and will get royalties from ticket sales.

Their survival story sent the president's popularity ratings soaring. The billionaire businessman supervised the 22-hour rescue and bear-hugged the miners on

their way out. Pinera also traveled the world showing the handwritten note by one of the miners that first alerted rescuers: "We are all well in the shelter,

the 33 of us."

Since then, widespread protests demanding improvements in education and a wider distribution of wealth have eroded Pinera's support and he has become Chile's

most unpopular leader since the country returned to democracy in 1990.

The San Jose collapse brought the mine's safety record into focus and put mining, Chile's top industry, under close scrutiny. A congressional commission last

year found its owners responsible for the cave-in at the 125-year-old mine.

Mining-related deaths fell 36 percent last year to 27, compared to 41 in 2010, the year of the cave-in, according to a report by the Mining Ministry. The

report says accidents at Chile's 8,500 mines last year also fell by 40 percent, their lowest level in 21 years thanks to increased oversight by inspectors.

"The accident left us lessons," Mining Minister Hernan de Solminihac said in a story published Sunday by the newspaper El Mercurio. "We took those seriously

to avoid a tragedy."

At the San Jose mine, Pinera urged lawmakers to fast-track the passing of a mining law that is stuck in Congress. If passed, it would create a new system of

information safety, increase the number of inspections at mine sites and put harsher penalties on those who break the law.

"We all know this law is necessary," he said. "It sanctions anyone who doesn't abide by their duty to protect the security and dignity of miners."

'Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry' tracks artist

Documentary directed by Alison Klayman. In English and Chinese with English subtitles. (R, 91 mins.)

Chinese artist Ai Weiwei spent a productive decade in New York, noticed by almost no one, before returning to his native Beijing in 1993. Since then, as

recounted in Alison Klayman's brisk, clear-eyed documentary "Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry," he has risen steadily to international prominence, through intensifying

antiauthoritarian and social-media activism as well as through his art.

"Mostly I make decisions," Ai tells Klayman, explaining why he lets assistants fabricate his sculpture.

Using her own footage, excerpts from Ai's documentaries and broadcast interviews, Klayman acquaints us with the man behind the decisions, an extraordinarily

down-to-earth yet cosmopolitan figure, full of mischief, courage and defiance.

"Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry" ends with Ai singing a little song - minus subtitles - in Mandarin. Those few moments - and a final Twitter message: "Never retreat,

retweet" - offset an otherwise bleak ending. The film shows Ai intimidated into virtual silence immediately after his release from nearly three months'

imprisonment.

Klayman has already shown us Ai challenging the authorities on various fronts, most grippingly in a confrontation with the Chengdu police officer who had

given him a potentially fatal head injury.

But "Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry" leaves us seeing him as an optimist, as he defines one: someone "exhilarated by life, still curious, who still thinks there is

possibility."