During their investigation, Rugby police provided her with a crime-fighting booklet that discusses home security. But she told the Advertiser when she asked about putting in a new security fence and upgrading its capabilities, she was told THE LAWS ON LIABILITY MEANT SHE RISKED A POLICE INVESTIGATION HERSELF IF ANY TRESPASSERS HURT THEMSELVES CLIMBING IT.

She had wanted to add barbed wire to the fence in order to reduce the ease with which the robbers apparently gained access to her home. But the Warwickshire Police "Operation Impact" booklet, which gives victims information on crime-fighting, suggested SHE COULD RISK A PROSECUTION HERSELF IF SOMEONE WOULD BE HURT.

"I respect that if the postman or the gas man calls, they don't expect to hurt themselves. But I was speechless - you couldn't make it up. I THINK THESE LAWS SHOW WE HAVE GONE SOFT IN THE HEAD," SHE TOLD THE NEWSPAPER.

Yasuo Fukuda's two-day stay follows a series of conciliatory gestures on both sides. Signs of improving relations have been gathering pace, helping to push aside long-standing disputes over territory, wartime history and a regional rivalry.

"Both sides want better ties, but they can't change the fact their relations are fraught with problems," said Hisashi Takahashi, international relations professor at Sophia University in Tokyo. "The question is, whether they can keep on talking, because the problems are going to take a long time to tackle."

China is Japan's No. 1 trade partner; Japan is a top investor in China.

The pound bought just one euro 37.6 cents in quiet Christmas Eve trading. "There are increasing signs that the British economy has hit a brick wall triggered by the decline in the housing market," said analysts at BNP Paribas. The European Central Bank (ECB) president Jean-Claude Trichet's recent comments have also boosted the euro.

Britain's record trade deficit has also helped push down the value of sterling.

Kathleen Casey-Kirschling, born on January 1, 1946, is acknowledged as the nation's first baby boomer and the first to apply for social security benefits, for which she will be eligible in 2008. The New Jersey grandmother is the first of an estimated 80 million Americans born between 1946 and 1964, a GENERATION THAT LED A SOCIAL REVOLUTION IN THE 1960S AND CHANGED THE FABRIC OF MOST FACETS OF SOCIETY.

The cost for government-funded social security and medical care for the boomers leaves a FUNDING GAP OF BETWEEN 40 AND 76 TRILLION DOLLARS FOR NEXT 75 YEARS, according to various estimates. "America is facing a demographic juggernaut," says Brent Green, a marketing consultant and author, in his "Boomers" blog. "An unprecedented number will soon be entering the retirement stage of life. One-third of the population will be over 50 by 2010. One in five will be over 65 by 2010."

On the economic side, some fear the "SILVER TSUNAMI" WILL DRAIN THE COUNTRY OF ITS WEALTH. The problems are even more acute in some European countries and Japan which face a similar demographic time bomb.

Authorities in the remote district where the churches were attacked, most nothing more than mud and thatch houses, have deployed 450 police to quell the violence, which had tapered off by Wednesday, said Bahugrahi Mahapatra a government official. There were conflicting reports of what sparked the unrest in Orissa, a state in eastern India with a history of violence against the area's tiny Christian minority. Mahapatra called the violence a "sensitive matter" and refused to discuss how it began.

Some reports said that Christians had attacked a hardline Hindu leader, Laxmanananda Saraswati of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad group, who had been leading an anti-conversion movement. But the New Delhi-based Catholic Bishops Conference of India said the fighting began when Hindu extremists objected to a Christmas Eve show, believing the display was designed to encourage Hindus at the bottom of the religion's rigid caste hierarchy to convert to Christianity.

An argument over the Christmas show got out of hand and some of the Hindus opened fire on the Christians, injuring three of them, said John Dayal, a spokesman for the Bishops Conference. The Hindus then went on a rampage on Christmas Day, chasing people out of six churches and setting the buildings ablaze, he said.

The warplanes struck in an "effective pinpoint operation" targeting eight caves and other hideouts being used by the separatist rebels of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, the military said in a statement posted on its website. On Tuesday, Turkey's military claimed that more than 200 Kurdish rebel targets in northern Iraq have been hit since Dec. 16, killing hundreds of rebels. Wednesday's strikes were the third aerial operation confirmed by the military since Dec. 16. The military also has confirmed that it sent ground troops to hunt down the rebels on Dec. 18.

The PKK has waged a war for autonomy in parts of Turkey for more than two decades. The fighting has cost tens of thousands of lives. The U.S., the European Union and Turkey consider the PKK a terrorist organization, but the U.S. in particular has been concerned that Turkish operations affecting northern Iraq could destabilize one of the war-torn country's most stable areas.

Ankara has said it would not tolerate more PKK attacks, after a string of deadly ambushes killed dozens of troops in the past months. In October, the parliament allowed the government to send troops into Iraq to hit rebel bases there.

Officers from the Secret Intelligence Service staged discussions, known as "jirgas", with senior insurgents on several occasions over the summer. An intelligence source said: "The SIS officers were understood to have sought peace directly with the Taliban with them coming across as some sort of armed militia. The British would also provide 'mentoring' for the Taliban."

The disclosure comes only a fortnight after the Prime Minister told the House of Commons: "We will not enter into any negotiations with these people." Opposition leaders said that Mr Brown had "some explaining to do".

Dozens of people packed out a council meeting to express their concerns over the plans for a two-minute long call to prayer to be issued three times a day, saying that it could drown out the traditional sound of church bells. But a spokesman for the Central Mosque said that Muslim's also have the right to summon worshippers.

After the meeting, Sardar Rana, a spokesman for the Central Mosque, said he would be happy to clarify any issues and invited anyone to come to the mosque so he could satisfy their concerns. He said: "The call is going on in so many places in the UK, and we must get the same right as everybody else. When they ring the bells in church, we respect it but that is also a call to prayer. We don't want to do anything that will disturb the people or upset the people."

Israeli restrictions forbid Jewish prayer on the Temple Mount and only allow Jews to ascend for certain hours on some days while the Mount is open to Muslims yearlong. Muslim prayer services take place throughout the day in the many mosques and Islamic religious schools situated on the holy site.

"WE DEMAND THE GOVERNMENT OF ISRAEL ALLOW THE JEWISH PEOPLE TO HAVE FREEDOM OF RELIGIOUS EXPRESSION ON THE TEMPLE MOUNT. This will serve as a preliminary step in confirming the Jewish people's inexorable connection with the Temple Mount, location of the Holy Temple, under the sovereignty of the people of Israel," states a letter to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert signed by the leaders of the New Jewish Congress, the Sanhedrin and the Holy Temple and Temple Mount movements.

The Congress is a group of religious Zionist leaders here while the Sanhedrin consists of prominent rabbinic leaders who in 2004 reformed the ancient group of Jewish judges that previously constituted the legislative body of Israel. The reformed Sanhedrin has been a subject of debate within some Jewish communities. The rabbinic leaders and activists demanded the Israeli government move toward allowing non-Muslim worship by initially establishing special days for Jewish communal prayer in fixed locations on the Temple Mount.

THEY DEMANDED OLMERT ALLOW PRAYER ON THE MOUNT ON IMPORTANT JEWISH HOLIDAYS, INCLUDING PASSOVER, SHAVUOT, SUKKOT, ROSH HASHANA, YOM KIPPUR, THE FIRST DAY OF HANUKKAH AND ON THE ISRAELI NATIONAL HOLIDAYS OF JERUSALEM DAY AND ISRAELI INDEPENDENCE DAY.

Last Wednesday, (19th Dec) Jews commemorated the Jewish fast day of the Tenth of Tevet, mourning the First Temple's destruction and the siege placed on Jerusalem leading up to Temple's destruction during the reign of the Babylonian ruler Nebuchadnezzar.

Jewish organizations and Temple Mount activist groups here were planning visits to the Temple Mount in observance of last Wednesday's Jewish day of mourning. Rabbi Chaim Richman, director of the international department at Israel's Temple Institute, a Mount activist group which planned to lead a tour of the site this week, said Israeli police informed his group earlier this week that they had decided the Mount would be closed the rest of the week to non-Muslims FOR FEAR OF OFFENDING MUSLIMS ON THE ISLAMIC HOLIDAY.

The letter to Olmert called the Temple Mount "'THE HOLIEST PLACE IN THE WORLD FOR THE JEWISH PEOPLE,' yet Jews are denied the right to pray in groups, and even as individuals ... they are granted no opportunity for any religious expression whatsoever on the Temple Mount. However, let it be known that the Jewish people will never accept the total refusal of Jewish communal prayer on the Mountain," the letter states.

The description of the courts, also known as the provincial and national Human Rights Commissions, comes from the Canada Family Action Coalition, which has addressed the problem in an alert to its constituents, and warns the United States is not that far from having similar assaults on traditional family values.

"It has become apparent in the past month how badly the acts are written and how they are being misused to violate the rights of Canadians," the organization said. "We today have a major national magazine, a federal political party leader and a registered political party, a major Catholic newspaper (Catholic Insight) and an internationally renowned journalist all of whom are being investigated by appointed 'hate speech therapists' from the commissions," the group said. THE LAWS ALSO OFTEN ARE INTERPRETED BY THOSE WHO HAVE NO TRAINING IN THE LAW, AND THE COMMISSIONS ARE NOT BOUND BY THE RULES OF LAW WHEN THEY MAKE THEIR DECISIONS, he added.

The journalist is Mark Steyn, according to CFAC spokesman Brian Rushfeldt, and the newest case involves Canada's national Catholic magazine of news, opinion and analysis. The publication has been told it is being targeted by a complaint from Edmonton resident Rob Wells, who alleges the publication has offended homosexuals. The magazine's editor, Father Alphonse de Valk, dismissed the complaint as unfounded, and said his publication follows the teaching of the Catholic Church on homosexuality.

Alan Borovoy, general counsel for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, told the magazine he never imagined human rights commissions would ultimately be used against freedom of speech, because they were launched in an effort to eliminate discrimination in pay and housing. But after "SEXUAL ORIENTATION" was added as a protected class, THE TRIBUNALS HAVE BEEN EXPLOITED in pursuit of a ban on anything or anyone with less than a full endorsement of the homosexual lifestyle choice.

"The majority of the complaints have been related to homosexuals claiming that they've been offended, that hate is being propagated against them. THE MAJORITY BEING TARGETED ARE RELIGIOUS SECTORS OF SOCIETY," he said. "You see if my feelings are hurt and I feel discriminated against due to my 'religious orientation' then surely I must have a right and entitlement to have an appointed group of people in the Human Rights Commission at taxpayers' expense, intervene and force the activist to pay me compensation for my feelings. This is really not bullying is it? OR IS IT MORE LIKE EXTORTION?" said a commentary by the Family Action organization.

"How can I prove my feelings are hurt? I don't need to prove it. I just say it is so and it is so. Do I need to provide truth? No, not under the functions of the Human Rights Act. - SECTION 3(1) STATES THAT IF SOMETHING 'INDICATES DISCRIMINATION' AND 'IS LIKELY TO EXPOSE TO HATRED OR CONTEMPT' IT IS A BASIS FOR ACTION."

Worse yet, the commentary noted, the tribunals may make their own rules and regulations, based on the statutory provision that "the panel is not bound by the rules of law respecting evidence in judicial proceedings." Said the Christian Anti-Defamation Coalition, "The 2007 Federal Hate Crimes Bill which threatens religious liberties and lays the groundwork for 'thought crime,' which has no place in American law and violates the concept of equal protection under the law. AS HAS OCCURRED IN OTHER NATIONS, THESE LAWS PAVE THE WAY FOR CHRISTIANS TO BE SILENCED AND EVEN ARRESTED BECAUSE THEY BELIEVE THAT HOMOSEXUAL ACTS ARE SINFUL."

Michael Marcavage, of Repent America, says his organization has members who were jailed for proclaiming their Christian beliefs on public streets in Philadelphia, because of state regulations similar to the federal proposal. "It's extraordinarily important that it has been removed from the defense reauthorization bill," he told WND. "BUT WE KNOW THAT THE HOMOSEXUAL LOBBY IS EXTRAORDINARILY AGGRESSIVE WHEN IT COMES TO OBTAINING SPECIAL PROTECTIONS. That's exactly what this is. We must be very vigilant as to what their next move is going to be. THEY'RE NOT GOING TO GO AWAY," he said.

Billions of tons of methane hydrate, frozen chunks of chemical-laced water buried in sediment some 3,000 feet under the Pacific Ocean floor, may help Japan win energy independence from the Middle East and Indonesia. Japanese engineers have found enough "flammable ice" to meet its gas use demands for 14 years.

The trick is extracting it without damaging the environment. Japan is joining the U.S. and Canada in test drilling for methane even as scientists express concerns about any uncontrolled release of the frozen chemical. Some researchers blame the greenhouse gas for triggering a global firestorm that helped wipe out the dinosaurs.

"Methane hydrate was a key cause of the global warming that led to one of the largest extinctions in the earth's history," says Ryo Matsumoto, a University of Tokyo scientist who has studied frozen gas since 1987. "By making the best use of our wisdom, knowledge and technology, we should be able to utilize this wisely as a new energy." If successful, the gas drilling project could help Japan reduce a liquefied natural gas import bill that last year was 2.66 trillion yen ($23.3 billion). The country's LNG imports totaled 62.2 million metric tons, equivalent to 3.03 trillion cubic feet, according to the Ministry of Finance's trade report.

The missile blasted off from the Chandipur-on-Sea testing site, 200 kilometres (125 miles) northeast of Orissa state capital Bhubaneswar and hit a flying target successfully, a defence ministry official. The 700-kilogramme (1,540-pound) Akash, meaning "sky" in Hindi, can track 100 targets simultaneously with onboard radar, move at 600 metres (yards) a second and deliver a 55-kilogramme warhead across 27 kilometres in 50 seconds.

The test came a day after India announced plans to increase its nuclear prowess with a ballistic missile capable of hitting targets up to 6,000 kilometres (3,800 miles) away. New Delhi also announced two tests this month of Indian manufactured interceptor missiles, saying they performed better than Patriot air-defence batteries manufactured by US defence group Raytheon.

The missile development project is also to counter the acquisition of newer missiles by Pakistan which carried out tit-for-tat nuclear weapons tests after India conducted a series of atomic detonations in 1998.

The test-firing was conducted on Tuesday in southern Israel as "part of series of improvements conducted in the missile's operational system towards a new radar system that allows a wider cover and detection ranges". The experiment launched the missile at a target imitating an airplane flying on an operational mission.

In August, it was reported that the Israeli air force was to buy advanced Patriot PAC-3 missiles, made in the United States and capable of intercepting aircraft and long-range ballistic missiles, to upgrade the air defence system. The Patriot PAC-3 was reportedly capable of intercepting missiles possessed by Syria, Israel's arch enemy to the north. The missile, weighing 320 kilos (700 pounds), increases the firepower of the Patriot battery, as 16 of them fit on a launcher, compared with four PAC-2s.

The SM-3 Block IA missile engaged and destroyed a medium-range ballistic missile target more than 60 miles above the Pacific Ocean. Personnel at the U.S. Navy's Pacific Missile Range Facility on Kauai launched the ballistic missile target while the crew of the Japanese destroyer JS KONGO (DDG-173) fired the intercepting missile.

"Today's intercept truly paves the way for Japan to deploy a sea-based ballistic missile defense system," said Ed Miyashiro, Raytheon Missile Systems vice president. "The U.S. has gained an important ally that can now defend itself against the threat of ballistic missiles."

During the test, the Japanese crew exchanged track information via satellite with U.S. naval assets, demonstrating missile defense interoperability between the two countries. This test was the 12th successful intercept for the Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense system's SM-3.

The RS-24 missile was launched from the Plesetsk launch facility in northern Russia and its test warheads successfully hit designated targets on the Kura testing range on the Kamchatka Peninsula some 4,340 miles east, Strategic Missile Forces spokesman Alexander Vovk told The Associated Press. Vovk said that the missile carried multiple test warheads, but refused to say how many. The Interfax news agency said the RS-24 is capable of carrying at least three warheads. The Strategic Missile Forces said in a statement that the missile was launched from a mobile launcher.

"The RS-24's deployment will strengthen the Strategic Missile Forces' capability to penetrate missile defense systems and strengthen the nuclear deterrent potential of Russia's strategic nuclear forces," the statement said. "The RS-24 will form the backbone of the Strategic Missile Forces and safely ensure the security of Russia and its allies through the mid-century."

President Vladimir Putin has used windfall oil revenues to modernize Russia's military arsenals amid increasing tensions with the West. The Kremlin has fiercely opposed U.S. plans to deploy missile defense sites in Poland and the Czech Republic, saying they threaten Russia's security.