More than 65 countries sign Arms Trade Treaty

More than 65 countries have signed the landmark treaty regulating the multibillion-dollar global arms trade and the United States announced it will sign soon, giving a strong kickoff to the first major international campaign to stem the illicit trade in weapons that fuel conflicts and extremists. The announcement on Monday by U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry that the U.S, the world's largest arms dealer will sign is critical, but the treaty's ultimate strength rests on support by all major arms exporters and importers. While the treaty was overwhelmingly approved on April 2 by the U.N. General Assembly, key arms exporters including Russia and China and major importers including India, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia and Egypt abstained and have given no indication yet that they will sign it. Signatures are the first step to ratification, and the treaty will only take effect after 50 countries ratify it. Finland's Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja, a key treaty backer, predicted that there will be 50 ratifications "within slightly more than a year but the real test is, of course, getting those who still have doubts or who have not made up their minds, to sign on and ratify.'' The treaty will require countries that ratify it to establish national regulations to control the transfer of conventional arms and components and to regulate arms brokers, but it will not control the domestic use of weapons in any country. It prohibits the transfer of conventional weapons if they violate arms embargoes or if they promote acts of genocide, crimes against humanity or war crimes, and if they could be used in attacks on civilians or civilian buildings such as schools and hospitals. What impact the treaty will have in curbing the global arms trade estimated at between $60 billion and $85 billion remains to be seen. A lot will depend on which countries ratify it, and how stringently it is implemented once it comes into force.
 News source: www.indianexpress.com

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A R Murugadoss' actress commits suicide

Bollywood actress Jiah Khan, who acted in A R Murugadoss directed Aamir Khan starrer Ghajini reprising the role of Nayanthara from the Tamil version, committed suicide at her Juhu residence on Monday night. The 25-year-old actress was reportedly suffering from depression. Jiah was brought up in England and had shifted to Mumbai with her mother Rabiya recently. Her mother said, Jiah was depressed after coming from Hyderabad after doing an audition for two big Telugu films. Her audition had reportedly gone awry, she told police. The suicide took place at around 10:45 pm on the third floor of Sagar Sangeet Apartments in Juhu. The actress made her Hindi film debut in 2007 opposite Amitabh Bachchan in the controversial Nishabd. Amitabh Bachchan expressed his grief on the death of the young actress on Twitter sayd "WHAT ...!!! Jiah Khan ??? what has happened ? is this correct ? unbelievable !!!"
 News source:indiatimes.com

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Anna Nicole Smith's 6-Year-Old Daughter May Get $49M From Sanctions

Anna Nicole Smith's legal battle against the estate of her late husband's family, which takes place for about a decade, may end soon. According to New York Daily News, U.S. District Judge David O. Carter ruled earlier this week that the son of Smith's late billionaire husband, Pierce, would be sanctioned for using delaying tactics throughout the case by concealing some legal documents. Judge Carter said that the estate's tactic was "too pervasive and too egregious to be ignored." He explained, "It would promote disrespect for the authority of the federal courts to turn a blind eye to actions that willfully and blatantly attempted to make a mockery of this justice system." The amount of the sanction is not finalized yet. However, Smith's 6-year-old daughter Dannielynn is predicted to get approximately $49 million from the family. The judge gave a chance to the lawyers to defend themselves and present arguments as to why they should not pay the sanction. The next hearing has been set for August 13. Smith met oil tycoon J. Howard Marshall II when she worked in Las Vegas in 1991. The two began dating and later got married when she was 26 and Marshall 89. People speculated that the former Playboy model married him for his wealth, but she denied it. Marshall passed away one year after they got married. Smith later took a legal action against Marshall's heir and son E. Pierce Marshall, after the Marshall senior's death. Smith said that her late-husband promised to give her some of his fortune. However, Supreme Court decided that she was not entitled to any of her late husband's properties.
 News source: www.aceshowbiz.com

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Hangover 3s Bradley CooperZach Galifianakis Heather Graham Enjoy Hot Fun on the Beach in Brazil

The Wolfpack is hitting the beaches of Brazil! Hangover 3 costars Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Ken Jeong, Justin Bartha and Heather Graham showed off their summer bods while hitting beach in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil earlier today. Graham, 43, flaunted her figure in a multi-colored bikini while swimming with Jeong, who sported plain black trunks. NEWS: Hangover cast says goodbye to the franchise Meanwhile, Helms and Galifianakis were spotted in bright Speedo-styled swimsuits. Lookin' good guys! Bartha was also snapped smooching his rumored fiancée Lia Smith. The cast of actors recently arrived in Brazil to promote The Hangover Part III after their Paris premiere
 News source: www.eonline.com

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Miss Universe Canada crowns wrong contestant

For a fleeting moment, all of Denise Garrido’s dreams were coming true. Then a “typo” knocked her off the 2013 Miss Universe Canada podium and called the organization’s integrity into question. Just 24 hours after being crowned, Garrido met Sunday with pageant director Denis Davila, who stripped her of her sash, crown, trophy and chance to represent Canada at Miss Universe in the United States this December. “My heart sank,” Garrido, 26, told the Star. “I was so sad.” Davila informed her that a “typo” occurred when transferring the judges’ handwritten scores into a computer program that determines the winner. Garrido had not finished first; she had finished fourth, the third runner-up to Riza Santos, 26, of Calgary, who will soon collect her crown in Toronto.“It’s been the ultimate dream of mine,” said Garrido, who won the 2008 Miss Earth Canada and 2010 Miss World Canada pageants. “All of the other pageants were building toward this one.” Garrido, of Bradford, Ont., holds no bad feelings toward Davila or the organization. But others say the embarrassing mix-up, a first for the organization in 11 years, could have been prevented. After judges score the contestants, someone inputs the results into a computer. Andrew Lopez, a spokesman for Miss Universe Canada, said that for 10 years, the person inputting the results had been lawyer Nick Macos of Black Sutherland LLP. But Macos, who is independent of Miss Universe Canada, was not available this year, Lopez said. It was left to an inexperienced pageant employee to transfer the scores; it was he who made the error. Davila could not be reached for comment on why another person not connected to Miss Universe Canada was not found to calculate the scores. “In retrospect, I’m sure he wishes he would have done that,” said Lopez. A third-party audit, required to compare the handwritten scores with the computer results, spotted the error Sunday. Lopez could not confirm who carried out the audit, but said the person inputting the scores the night of the pageant is not required to be independent. Former employee Fabricio Loza-Alvarado said it should be a requirement, and noted he raised such concerns after seeing staffers do it rather than Nick Macos in previous pageants. “Every single person who does the calculation needs to be third party,” said Loza-Alvarado, a former production director and producer. “If not, it puts you in a very compromising situation.” Loza-Alvarado believes that his questioning of the organization’s integrity played a role in his firing after 12 years with Miss Universe Canada. Lopez declined to comment on Loza-Alvarado’s dismissal. Marwa Ishow, a contestant in the 2013 pageant, which was held at the St. Lawrence Centre for the Arts in Toronto, said Garrido deserved to win and the “typo” fiasco has left her and other competitors uneasy. “How we do we know that everything else wasn’t wrong?” said Ishow, 22. “The whole pageant seems like it was staged.” To make up for Garrido’s crushing disappointment, Miss Universe Canada has plans for her to join Santos on some of her titleholder duties and has tapped her to be a judge for the 2014 competition. “I will always have the memory of being the 24-hour queen,” said Garrido, who is now too old to compete in the competition again. This is the second year in a row that controversy has gripped the pageant. In 2012, transgender model Jenna Talackova waged a battle to enter the competition.
 News source: www.thestar.com

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Philip Seymour Hoffman Entered Detox For Narcotic Abuse

Philip Seymour Hoffman just got out of detox for a drug problem that was spinning out of control ... a problem he desperately wanted to nip in the bud ... and he's already back doing a movie. Hoffman -- who struggled with substance abuse in the past but kicked the habit for 23 years -- fell off the wagon more than a year ago. He tells TMZ it started slowly with prescription pills, and recently escalated to snorting heroin. Hoffman -- who won a Best Actor Oscar in 2006 for "Capote" -- tells us the heroin use only lasted a week or so and he quickly realized he needed help, so he checked himself into a detox facility on the East Coast. He says he was at the facility for 10 days and checked out last Friday. Hoffman credits what he calls "a great group of friends and family" for helping him seek the treatment he needed to get better. And at least for now, it seems it worked, because Hoffman is clean and back on a movie set in Europe
 News source: www.tmz.com

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Mariah Carey & Nicki Minaj Exit From American Idol

Randy Jackson has already bowed out from American Idol and Keith Urban isn’t sure of his time left on the show, so it’s no surprise that Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj are both bailing after judging the competition for only one season. Prior to Randy’s departure, we’ve heard that they were all four being fired and replaced as judges. The rumor was that the Idol producers were looking at past Idols to judge the future seasons of the show. Mariah and Nicki both took to their official Twitter accounts to share the news of their exits from the show. Mariah tweeted, “w/ global success of #Beautiful (#1 in 30+ countries so far) @MariahCarey confirms world tour & says goodbye 2 Idol.” Nicki said on Twitter, “Thank you American Idol for a life changing experience! Wouldn’t trade it for the world! Time to focus on the Music!!! Mmmuuuaahhh!!!” We have already had confirmation that Jennifer Hudson is joining the judges’ panel. Who should join her? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below and stay tuned for the latest news on American Idol right here at Earsucker.
 News source:earsucker.com

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