Torres faces charges including breaking and entering in the nighttime with intent to commit a felony, destruction of property, assault and battery and armed assault in a dwelling.

Republican file photo

HOLYOKE – Driving on High Street Thursday, a woman who police say was punched, kicked and attacked by a man with a machete found herself driving behind his Jeep Cherokee later in the day, police said.

After a quick cell phone call to police, Jeffrey Torres, 25, of 8 Grover St., was facing multiple charges, Lt. Laurence P. Cournoyer said.

Among the charges Torres was issued include breaking and entering in the nighttime with intent to commit a felony, destruction of property, assault and battery and armed assault in a dwelling, he said.

Torres was in the Police Station lockup on Appleton Street and is scheduled to be arraigned Friday in Holyoke District Court, he said.

The first call police received in the incident was about 2 a.m. to an address on North East Street. A woman said a man had broken into her apartment and attacked her. When police arrived, they found an apartment door splintered and a woman with red bruises on her right eye and right cheek, he said.

The woman and Torres had argued, he said, and he returned to the apartment, punching and kicking her and fleeing. The woman declined medical treatment, he said.

Shortly after, the woman’s brother came to the apartment to check on her. The brother said he was attacked on the stairs and his arm was cut, but he was unable to identify the attacker, he said.

At 2 p.m., the woman was driving at High and Suffolk streets when she saw the familiar Jeep Cherokee, which police stopped nearby on Oliver Street, he said.

Police found a machete in the vehicle, he said.

One Massachusetts dealer said sales at his Chevrolet dealership were up 30 percent last year.

Associated PressThis photo provided by General Motors Co., shows the 2012 Chevrolet Cruze LT. (AP Photo, General Motors Co., Mark Finkenstaedt)

SPRINGFIELD – General Motors posted its highest profit ever in 2011, a positive development that the region’s GM dealerships shared in, and a trend they look forward to seeing continue this year.

Strong sales in the U.S. and China helped the car maker turn a profit of $7.6 billion, besting its old record of $6.7 billion in 1997, the Associated Press reported Thursday.

Local dealers attribute last year’s surge in business to such factors as pent-up demand, the closing of lower-performing General Motors dealerships and GM making better products now than in previous years.

Michael D. Balise, vice president of Balise Motor Sales Co., which has Chevrolet and Buick-GM dealerships in the area, said Thursday that sales were up about 14 percent last year.

“There is a lot of pent-up demand,” Balise said. “It is not that the economy is good. People can’t fix their cars anymore and have to buy new ones.”

He said Balise’s sales have benefited from the fact that there are fewer dealerships. Because he expects there to continue to be pent-up demand this year, Balise predicted his dealerships' sales of GM products should be up by about 10 percent.

“The demand for the product is pretty strong,” Balise said.

Pierre E. Beauchamp, vice president and sales manager at Central Chevrolet in West Springfield, reported a similar scenario. Sales were up close to 30 percent last year, and he expects to see sales increase this year by about 25 percent.

Beauchamp attributed the surge to GM offering a better line of cars, which he said makes them easier to sell. Sales of models such as the Malibu, the Sonic and the Silverado are strong, he said.

“The product is a heck of a lot better so it is easier to sell cars,” Beauchamp said.

Thomas A. Dillon, owner of Dillon Chevrolet in Greenfield, said his dealership’s sales were up about 10 percent last year and have been up 5 percent for January. Dillon expects that trend to continue.

“The quality is unbelievable,” Dillon said of the last two years worth of models as opposed to the ones offered six to eight years ago.

He said the Chevy Cruze gets over 40 miles per gallon of gas, something that is a good selling point with gasoline at $3.60 a gallon.

“GM is doing great and Chevrolet is bread and butter for GM,” Dillon said.

Last year, GM made most of its income in North America, where its pretax profit totaled $7.2 billion, according to the Associated Press.

The council is moving forward with plans to construct a new senior center.

WESTFIELD – The Council on Aging will move back to its permanent headquarters at 40 Main St. on March 5 following seven months of operating from temporary offices at City Hall and St. John’s Lutheran Church.

The last day of operation at St. John’s Church, a Senior Center relocation Site, will be March 1, director Tina Gorman said Monday.

Tina Gorman

“Everyone is excited and I am anxious to get everyone under the same roof again,” said Gorman.

The council’s senior lunch program and all activities have been held at the Broad Street church since the end of June last year because of on-going road reconstruction along Main Street and construction and demolition at Rocky’s Hardware, that abuts the 40 Main St. council headquarters.

Health insurance, travel club and medication equipment loan program services operated at City Hall during that same time period.

Gorman said the final day at St. John’s Senior Center Relocation Site will be March 1. She said March 2 will be a moving day, with no lunch served and all activities canceled that day. The COA office at City Hall will be open on March 2 and that office will officially close on March 7 and reopen March 8 at the Main Street site, the director said.

“We are grateful to the Rev. Christopher Hazzard, the Board of Trustees and the entire congregation for the use of their facility during our time of need,” said Gorman.

Seniors are being officially notified of the move in the March Council on Aging newsletter, Gorman said.

The move back to Main Street will save the city some funding from the nearly $20,000 allocated for the temporary relocation.

Mayor Daniel M. Knapik and the City Council, last November allocated $13,600 to the COA to finance the temporary church location until the end of the current fiscal year. Last August the city appropriated $6,400 to the council to cover rental fees during July to the end of October.

A new Senior Center Building Committee is expected to announce its choice of an architect for a proposed new center to be building on Noble Street. The cost of a new Senior Center has been estimated at about $6 million.

The bill mandates that utilities pay a new assessment to help finance costs of a state investigation into utility performance during a storm.

The Republican file photo | Mark M. MurrayWorkmen from Western Massachusetts Electric Company work on clearing trees branches from the power lines on Bliss Road at Burbank Road in Longmeadow following the crippling October nor'easter that struck the region.

BOSTON – In the wake of complaints about slow responses by utilities to the freak October snowstorm, the Massachusetts Senate Thursday unanimously approved a bill that requires utilities to provide customers without power twice-daily estimates of when electricity would be restored.

The bill also mandates that utilities pay a new assessment to help finance costs of a state investigation into utility performance during a storm.

The bill also seeks to hold utilities accountable by assuring that all state-imposed penalties on utilities for violations of their storm response plans are distributed to affected customers via a credit. The credit would be based upon a customer's use of power during the month or months the penalty was incurred, senators said.

Attorney General Martha Coakley cheered approval of the bill. Coakley had sought the measure that directs all penalties paid by utilities back to affected customers through rate credits.

"The Senate’s action to advance this storm response bill will greatly assist our continuing efforts to protect ratepayers by holding utilities accountable for safety and reliability at reasonable costs," Coakley said in a statement. "It will also ensure direct rate relief to those affected customers who have been harmed by inadequate emergency storm response."

The Republican file photoSen. Stephen Brewer, the chairman of the Senate Ways and Means Committee, said utility communication was a disgrace in the aftermath of the Oct. 29 snow storm.

The bill comes after central and Western Massachusetts were hit with Hurricane Irene in August and then the Oct. 29 snowstorm.

“The failure of utility companies to effectively communicate with state and local officials, as well as home and business owners, was a disgrace,' said state Sen. Stephen M. Brewer, a Barre Democrat and chairman of the Senate Ways and Means Committee. "It’s time that our utilities start treating their clients as customers, not just ratepayers, and not just a profit margin or a bottom line."

Brewer said some customers went a week or more without power after the Oct. 29 snowstorm hit. Brewer said an 86-year-old North Brookfield woman, Dorothy Hall, was found dead in her unheated home after that storm.

According to a release by Sen. Gale D. Candaras, a Wilbraham Democrat, the bill requires public utility companies to provide twice-daily estimates to customers on when electricity will be restored following a 24-hour damage assessment period, and to set up a call center during a major storm. The call center must be located in Massachusetts and must have sufficient staffing to handle increases in calls.

Candaras spoke out during one hearing on the Oct. 29 storm.

In addition, utilities will pay an assessment charge to help the state Department of Public Utilities pay for storm investigations. The cost of this assessment cannot be passed on to customers.

“Those affected by the numerous storms of 2011 know firsthand the hardships of being without power for an extended period," Candaras said. "This legislation will work towards making utility companies more responsible and communicative to their customers."

The state utilities department still needs to rule on an investigation into the response of electric companies to the Oct. 29 snowstorm. The state investigation centers on the companies' work to restore electric power, including their communications with cities and towns.

During debate over the bill, Republicans tried to stall the merger between NStar and Northeast Utilities, warning that it would increase electricity rates for consumers and leave an open-ended question about how suited the large corporation will be to respond to future storms.

By MATT MURPHY

BOSTON - Despite scuttling a Republican-led effort to delay the proposed merger of NStar and Northeast Utilities, members of the Senate on Thursday expressed serious reservations about the impact the deal would have on long-term energy costs.

“I think you heard today on the floor the concerns of many of the members about the end cost after four years. I think the initial savings to each individual customer is between $12 and $15, but what happens after year four? That is a concern for us,” Senate President Therese Murray said.

The Plymouth Democrat also said she needed to know more about cost impacts before deciding whether she thought the NStar purchase of Cape Wind energy would be beneficial to Massachusetts.

“I’m anxious to hear during the (Department of Public Utilities) hearings what the actual cost is going to be and what is the benefit, besides green energy, which I support by the way. I have a lot of windmills in my district and if you drive down Route 3 you’ll see some really big ones in the town of Kingston, which is now a green community, so I support wind sited in the correct locations, but I’m also concerned about cost,” Murray said.

The Senate unanimously approved a bill on Thursday aimed at improving the response of investor-owned utilities to storm-induced power outages, reflecting on customer frustration that has built over the past year in the wake of extended outages following Tropical Storm Irene and an October snowstorm.

The bill requires utilities to pay a new assessment totaling $460,000 to help cover state storm response investigation costs, and also to provide customers without power with twice-daily estimates of when electricity would be restored. Utilities would not be allowed to pass assessment costs on to customers, and the legislation creates mechanisms for utility companies to be in direct communication with municipalities and state emergency response teams about the status of power restoration efforts.

“We got the policy, the process and the incentives right. But even though we are ahead of other states, better than bad is not good enough,” said Sen. Benjamin Downing, reflecting on legislation passed after the 2008 ice storm to address similar problems. “The response we’ve seen over the past year shows there’s significant room for improvement.”

During debate over the bill, Republicans tried to stall the merger between NStar and Northeast Utilities, warning that it would increase electricity rates for consumers and leave an open-ended question about how suited the large corporation will be to respond to future storms.

Sens. Michael Knapik, Bruce Tarr, Robert Hedlund and Richard Ross offered an amendment that was rejected on a 7-29 vote that would have placed a moratorium on the approval of any utility merger until at least three months after the passage of the bill or until the completion of all investigation of storm responses by the Department of Public Utilities.

“What we’re simply saying is let’s take a timeout,” Knapik said.

Gov. Deval Patrick on Wednesday announced a conditional agreement with NStar to facilitate the merger that would impose a four-year rate freeze on the new power company, and also require the company to purchase 27.5 percent of Cape Wind power generation should that project be operational by 2016.

The administration characterized the Cape Wind purchasing agreement as an important piece to the state’s renewable energy agenda and a component of NStar’s strategy to comply with the Green Communities Act. If Cape Wind doesn’t get built, NStar would have to make a comparable purchase of renewable energy in the state.

The Cape Wind portion of the deal was characterized by House Minority Brad Jones on Wednesday as “legalized extortion” on the part of the administration to prop up Cape Wind, and Knapik called the wind project investment a “fool’s errand.”

East Falmouth Republican Rep. David Vieira called it a “backroom deal.”

“This seems like extortion to me. I don’t appreciate the Governor playing Chicago-style politics with the future of Cape Cod and the Islands,” Vieira said in a statement. “If NStar wanted to purchase CapeWind power, NStar has always been free to make such a purchase. The fact the Governor held the NStar merger hostage to the CapeWind power purchase just doesn’t pass the smell test.”

Knapik, a Westfield Republican, said the state already knows that National Grid’s deal to buy 50 percent of the wind farm’s power will lead to $420 million to $695 million in above market energy costs. “I don’t want to have to explain this deal and all the money floating around because the people making the deal will be long gone by 2015,” Knapik said.

Tarr also warned that the negative impact Cape Wind power could have on electricity costs for homeowners could stall the momentum in favor of renewable energy sources if residents become wary of costly projects adding to their power bills.

Downing urged his colleagues to reject the amendment, arguing that lawmakers should not intervene and should let the DPU complete its regulatory review process, though he said he shared some of the same concerns on cost.

Sen. Stephen Brewer noted that the Legislature would be in session until the end of July if further action on the merger, expected to be decided by early April, required legislative intervention.

Though the GOP amendment failed, Murray said she would be watching the DPU hearings closely.

“More importantly, you’re merging with a company that had major outages in Connecticut that they were not able to respond to adequately and that is my major concern. Will the company be too big to respond in the future?” Murray asked.

The Senate also passed legislation requiring schools to develop emergency response plans, with senators saying most schools already have such plans but some don't.

A bill overhauling the oversight of education collaboratives also moved closer to final passage with the Senate concurring with House amendments to the bill, and sending it back to that branch with a further amendment.

With its fine-print warnings on the label against using while driving or using heavy machinery, Kush Cakes – which contain valerian root and melatonin – are potentially hazardous, said Niels K. Rathlev, chairman of Baystate Medical Center’s department of emergency medicine.

Stephen Brewer

ATHOL – In their battle to keep mood-altering substances away from teenagers, law enforcement officials have found new allies: 14 grandmothers and grandfathers based in Athol.

Thanks to opposition from the North Quabbin Patch Grandparent Support Group and state Sen. Stephen M. Brewer, D-Barre, 120 gas stations and convenience stores have stopped selling Kush Cakes, one of the more popular – and legal – herbal stimulants being sold across Western Mass.

From its psychedelic packaging to its stoner-friendly website, Kush Cakes have struck a raw nerve with parents and public safety officials concerned that the product mimics the mind-mellowing properties of marijuana.

After spotting the so-called relaxation brownies on sale at Mike’s Market two blocks from Athol High School, the grandparents group sprung into action – first checking out the herbal brownie’s manufacture and chemical makeup, then sampling the product itself.

At meeting last November, one grandmother detailed her experience under the influence of Kush Cakes, said Bette Jenks, a coordinator for North Quabbin Patch, a non-profit social service agency.

“She said she fell asleep, and woke up with a roaring headache,” Jenks recalled.

Armed with its research and the backing of a town narcotics officer, the group approached Brewer, who joined their campaign and sent a letter expressing their concerns to Waltham-based Alliance Energy LLC, the owner of Mike’s
.
To everyone’s surprise, Alliance agreed to remove the herbal brownies from all 120 stores in Massachusetts and Connecticut.

“This is an immense triumph ..,” said Brewer. “I applaud Alliance Energy for their swift action to address this problem. It is a step in the right direction and will hopefully prove to be an example for other convenience store chains, not just in Massachusetts, but nationwide,” he added.

With its fine-print warnings on the label against using while driving or using heavy machinery, Kush Cakes – which contain valerian root and melatonin – are potentially hazardous, said Niels K. Rathlev, chairman of Baystate Medical Center’s department of emergency medicine.

“Melatonin is a hormone that induces sleep; this (Kush Cakes) isn’t something that should be eaten during daytime hours; it can actually put you to sleep,” Rathlev said.

The warning labels are unlikely to discourage some teenagers, and might actually encourage them, Rathlev said.

Nobody at California-based Kush Cakes or its distributor, Vapor Rush LLC, could not be reached for comment.

Athol is one of a growing number of western Massachusetts police departments expressing concern about so-called synthetic marijuana — a substance that many communities across the country are seeking to ban.

Last month, Westfield police raided two convenience stores and seized an estimated $12,000 worth of synthetic pot and related drug paraphernalia.

Last week, Northampton police visited a few dozen city stores to educate and warn shopkeepers about the substance before further enforcement action is taken.

Criminal charges are pending in Westfield District Court against the owners of S&S Mart on Franklin Street and Quick Mart on Southwick Road following the January raid.

Staff writers Ted LaBorde and Connor Berry contributed to this report.

The conservative commentator called the decision "an undeniable victory for the blacklisters."

AP file photoPat Buchanan

NEW YORK (AP) — Conservative commentator Pat Buchanan, who's been suspended from MSNBC for the past four months, won't be coming back.

The network said Thursday that it had decided to part ways with the former GOP presidential candidate after 10 years.

He hasn't been on the network since the October publication of his book "Suicide of a Superpower." MSNBC President Phil Griffin says he didn't think the book should be part of the national dialogue.

Buchanan, in a column posted Thursday night, called the decision "an undeniable victory for the blacklisters."

The products subject to recall are five-gallon containers and 1-gallon bags of “The Chili Station” Beef Chili with Beans and 5-gallon containers and 1-gallon bags of “The Chili Station” Beef Chili with Beans and/or Turkey Chili.

LUDLOW – The Chili Station of Ludlow is recalling approximately 3,800 pounds of chili products because they may have been produced without the benefit of federal inspection, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service announced Thursday.

The products subject to recall are five-gallon containers and 1-gallon bags of “The Chili Station” Beef Chili with Beans and 5-gallon containers and 1-gallon bags of “The Chili Station” Beef Chili with Beans and/or Turkey Chili.

Case labels or packaging may bear the establishment numbers “EST. 6380” or “P-6380.”

No illness has been reported in connection with these products.

For information call Jeffrey Belkin, a company representative, at (413) 883-5096.

The event will held be at Hitchcock Free Academy.

BRIMFIELD - There will be a retirement reception Saturday from 2 to 4 p.m. to honor retiring 34-year police patrolman Joel R. Norton Sr.

The public is invited to the event, which will be at Hitchcock Free Academy, 2 Brookfield Road.

East Longmeadow police charged a Somers man with drunken driving and a slew of other motor vehicle offenses after he allegedly led them on a somewhat low-speed chase throughout the town.

Here are the most-read stories on MassLive.com yesterday. If you missed any of them, click on the links below to read them now.

The most viewed photo gallery of heavy snow blanketing Eastern Europe is at right.

1) New Hampshire bill to place warning signs near Massachusetts borders rejected by lawmakers [Robert Rizzuto]

2) Randy Moss talks about how he gambled in the locker room with Robert Kraft and explains how Bill Belichick killed his ego [Nick Underhill]

3) East Longmeadow police arrest 55-year-old Michael Fiore for drunken driving, other charges, after 'low-speed' pursuit through town [George Graham]

4) Misconduct probe of West Springfield Police Capt. Daniel O'Brien turned over to U.S. Attorney's office, DA says [Sandra Constatine]

5) Westfield Marine among 3 killed in car crash near Camp Pendleton [Associated Press]

Here are the average energy prices in the Pioneer Valley for the week ending today.

Savery was a senior at Gateway Regional High School.

Republican file photo

WESTFIELD – An 18-year-old Middlefield woman lost her life early Friday when the car she was riding in flipped over and caught fire on Bates Road.

The victim, identified by police as Emily Savery, was pronounced dead at Noble Hospital. She was a senior at Gateway Regional High School, school officials said.

The two other passengers suffered injuries, according to a release issued by police. Randy Smith, 22, of Douglas, was taken to Baystate Medical Center in Springfield. He was listed in fair condition Friday at Baystate, a spokeswoman said.

Ashlin Dion, 18, of Huntington, also a senior at Gateway, was taken to Noble where she was treated and released, police said.

The crash occurred shortly before 12:50 a.m. as 23-year-old Upton resident Jay Franklin drove a 1994 Ford Escort north on Bates Road.

The car left the roadway near 233 Bates Road, hit a tree stump, rolled over and burst into flames. Franklin suffered minor injuries that did not require hospital treatment.

Deputy Fire Chief Mark Devine said all four occupants were out of the burning car when firefighters arrived on scene. Bystanders helped to extricate at least one of the victims, he said.

Firefighters used foam to extinguish the blaze, Devine said.

Stacy Stewart, administrative assistant to the superintendent, said both students and staff have been informed of Savery’s death.

“They do have counselors here all day for both students and staff members that may need to talk to somebody,” Stewart said.

Police said Bates Road was closed for four hours while they investigated the accident and cleared the scene.

The crash remains under investigation by the Westfield Police Department Traffic Bureau with assistance from the Massachusetts State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section.

New York Times correspondent Anthony Shadid, a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner whose dispatches captured untold stories from Baghdad under "shock and awe" bombing to Libya wracked by civil war, died Thursday of an apparent asthma attack in Syria while reporting on the uprising against its president.

The Associated Press/The Washington PostAnthony Shadid takes notes outside Ayatollah Sistani's office in Najaf Dec. 3, 2003. The city of Najef, south of Baghdad, is the site of one of the holiest mosques' in Shiite religious beliefs. Shadid, a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner who strove to capture untold stories in Middle East conflicts from Libya to Iraq, died Thursday Feb. 16, 2012 in eastern Syria after slipping into the country to report on the uprising against its president. (AP Photo/Bill O'Leary, The Washington Post)

NEW YORK — New York Times correspondent Anthony Shadid, a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner whose dispatches captured untold stories from Baghdad under "shock and awe" bombing to Libya wracked by civil war, died Thursday of an apparent asthma attack in Syria while reporting on the uprising against its president.

Shadid, 43, who survived a gunshot wound in the West Bank in 2002 and was captured for six days in Libya last year, was returning with smugglers from Syria to Turkey when he collapsed, the Times said.

Times photographer Tyler Hicks told the newspaper that Shadid had suffered one bout of asthma the first night, followed by a more severe attack a week later on the way out of the country.

"I stood next to him and asked if he was OK, and then he collapsed," Hicks told the Times.

Hicks said that Shadid was unconscious and that his breathing was "very faint" and "very shallow." He said that after a few minutes he could see that Shadid "was no longer breathing."

Hicks carried Shadid's body to Turkey after this latest attack, the newspaper said.

"Anthony was one of our generation's finest reporters," Times Publisher Arthur Sulzberger said in a statement. "He was also an exceptionally kind and generous human being. He brought to his readers an up-close look at the globe's many war-torn regions, often at great personal risk. We were fortunate to have Anthony as a colleague, and we mourn his death."

Lebanon's Prime Minister Najib Mikati wrote on his Twitter account: "Sincere condolences to journalist Anthony Shadid's (RIP) family, friends & New York Times colleagues. I've known and admired him personally. N.M."

Shadid's father, Buddy Shadid, told The Associated Press on Thursday his son had asthma all his life and had medication with him.

"(But) he was walking to the border because it was too dangerous to ride in the car," the father said. "He was walking behind some horses — he's more allergic to those than anything else — and he had an asthma attack."

The Associated Press/The Washington PostBoston Globe reporter Anthony Shadid receives assistance from Palestinian doctors and Israeli medics after being shot in the shoulder while reporting in the West Bank city of Ramallah March 31, 2002. Shadid had been shot in the West Bank in 2002 and kidnapped for six days in Libya last year, but it was an apparent asthma attack that killed the two-time Pulitzer Prize winner in Syria Thursday Feb. 16, 2012 while he was reporting on the uprising against its president.

Shadid, an American of Lebanese descent, had a wife, Nada Bakri, and a son and a daughter. He had worked previously for the AP, The Washington Post and The Boston Globe. He won Pulitzer Prizes for international reporting in 2004 and 2010 when he was with the Post.

In 2004, the Pulitzer Board praised "his extraordinary ability to capture, at personal peril, the voices and emotions of Iraqis as their country was invaded, their leader toppled and their way of life upended."

Shadid also was the author of three books, including "House of Stone: A Memoir of Home, Family, and a Lost Middle East," in which he wrote about restoring his family's home in Lebanon, forthcoming next month from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

A native of Oklahoma City, Shadid graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He joined the AP in Milwaukee in 1990, worked on the International Desk in New York and served as the AP's news editor in Los Angeles. He was transferred to Cairo in 1995, covering stories in several countries.

AP Senior Managing Editor John Daniszewski, who worked with Shadid in Baghdad during the U.S. invasion in 2003, called him "a brilliant colleague who stood out both for his elegant writing and for his deep and nuanced understanding of the region."

"He was calm under fire and quietly daring, the most admired of his generation of foreign correspondents," Daniszewski said.

Martin Baron, the editor of the Globe, for whom Shadid worked while at that newspaper, told the Times that Shadid had a "profound and sophisticated understanding" of the Middle East.

"More than anything, his effort to connect foreign coverage with real people on the ground, and to understand their lives, is what made his work so special," Baron said. "It wasn't a matter of diplomacy: it was a matter of people, and how their lives were so dramatically affected by world events."

Ralph Nader, the former third-party presidential candidate, called Shadid "a great, great reporter."

"His courage, stamina, intellect and extraordinary powers of observation respected his readers' intelligence while elevating his profession's standards," the longtime consumer advocate said in a statement.

Nader added in a phone call to the AP that he knew Shadid from his time at The Washington Post and had met his family.

"What a loss," he said.

A hearse brought Shadid's body Friday to a forensic science institute in Adana, in southern Turkey, where an autopsy was to be performed, the state-run Anatolia news agency reported. Hicks and a plain-clothed Turkish military official accompanied the hearse, it said.

Hicks refused to answer reporters' questions about his journey back to Turkey and he followed the coffin into the building, it said.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu posted comments about Shadid's death on his Twitter account in English.

"Not only as a good journalist but a true friend as well, Anthony Shadid's death put me in sorrow. Knowing that at the very final moments ... of his life, he was looking for truth," Davutoglu wrote.

Shadid had been reporting in Syria for a week, gathering information on the resistance to the Syrian government and calls for Syrian President Bashar Assad to step down, the Times said. The exact circumstances and location of his death were unclear, it said.

Times Executive Editor Jill Abramson sent a note to the newsroom Thursday evening, relaying the news of Shadid's death and remembering him.

"Anthony died as he lived — determined to bear witness to the transformation sweeping the Middle East and to testify to the suffering of people caught between government oppression and opposition forces," she wrote.

Shadid, long known for covering wars and other conflicts in the Middle East, was among four reporters detained for six days by Libyan forces loyal to Moammar Gadhafi last March.

Speaking to an audience in Oklahoma City about a month after his release, he said he had a conversation with his father the night before he was detained.

"Maybe a little bit arrogantly, perhaps with a little bit of conceit, I said, 'It's OK, Dad. I know what I'm doing. I've been in this situation before,'" Shadid told the crowd of several dozen people. "I guess on some level I felt that if I wasn't there to tell the story, the story wouldn't be told."

When Shadid's wife was asked at the time whether she worried about him returning to writing about conflicts, she said as a journalist she understood that he might need to.

"At the end of the day, he's my husband, and the thought of going through life without him and raising our children alone is terrible," she said afterward.

Shadid's father, who lives in Oklahoma City, said a colleague tried to revive his son after he was stricken Thursday but couldn't.

"They were in an isolated place. There was no doctor around," Buddy Shadid said. "It took a couple of hours to get him to a hospital in Turkey."

Romney's message might resonate with Republican voters, who sometimes tend to be wary of the rest of the world.

Associated PressRepublican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks at the Livonia Chamber of Commerce luncheon in Farmington Hills, Mich., Thursday, Feb. 16, 2012.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The world according Republican presidential front-runner Mitt Romney: Europeans are socialists. The Chinese are currency manipulators. Russia can't be trusted to abide by nuclear agreements. The Palestinians are out to destroy Israel. And the U.S. is too generous with humanitarian aid.

It often appears that Romney is targeting the rest of the world as fiercely as he does his rivals for the party nomination and President Barack Obama. It's not just expected foils like Iran that are in his line of attack. He takes aim at European allies, who are seen as slipping the capitalist leash.

The tough talk drives home Romney's criticism that Obama is an apologist for America, soft on its enemies and too forgiving of its friends. It's a message that might resonate with Republican voters, who sometimes tend to be wary of the rest of the world.

It also raises questions about whether the rhetoric could damage U.S. relations abroad in the event that the former venture capitalist and Massachusetts governor wins the White House.

A key Romney foreign policy adviser discounts any potential problems.

"Other governments are not naive, and they understand the rough-and-tumble of U.S. politics just as we understand the rough-and-tumble of politics in other countries," said former Ambassador Richard Williamson, who held many top diplomatic jobs in Republican administrations.

That's true, but only so far, said John Pantzalis, a professor and expert in international relations at Florida's St. Leo University.

"If he repeats these things when he gets to a debate with Obama, that would create problems," Pantzalis said, adding that at this stage of the campaign, "he can get away with it."

Romney's two main rivals, Rick Santorum and Newt Gingrich, take similar tough stands on foreign policy. They all portray Obama as soft on American enemies, glossing over the president's order for the risky mission that killed Osama bin Laden and a policy that has wiped out much of the al-Qaida leadership cadre.

But Romney's views are particularly noteworthy because he remains the favorite in the Republican race despite losses in recent nominating contests and a surge by Santorum in some polls. He has a big advantage in money and organization and an early lead in delegates who will ultimately determine the party's nominee.

The economy, not foreign affairs, has dominated the presidential race. But sometimes the two issues overlap. Romney says China's monetary policies have hurt Americans and has promised that on the first day as president, he would designate China a currency manipulator, subjecting it to sanctions.

Pantzalis cautioned Romney on his China remarks, especially with the communist giant and No. 2 world economy about to go through a leadership change.

"The Chinese have become incredibly nationalistic," Pantzalis said. "There is a major danger of messing up relations with China with hardline rhetoric later in the campaign, especially with a new leader trying to consolidate his power and prove his strength."

Romney described this week's meetings in Washington between Obama and the likely new leader, Vice President Xi Jinping, as "empty pomp and ceremony." In a column published in The Wall Street Journal, Romney wrote: "A nation that represses its own people cannot ultimately be a trusted partner in an international system based on economic and political freedom."

Among some of Romney's other foreign affairs comments:

—Obama's "worst foreign policy mistake yet" was signing a new treaty with Russia to further limit nuclear arsenals.

—The Palestinians are out to destroy Israel, not negotiate their way to a peaceful two-state solution.

—The U.S. should cut humanitarian aid — and China should pick up the slack.

Romney's tough stance on illegal immigration is unlikely to garner much favor in Latin America, the source of most of the immigrants. The position comes despite Romney's family history: His father was born in Mexico and the candidate still has relatives there.

Romney's criticism of Obama's Iran policy is particularly relevant as the administration scrambles to head off a feared Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear installations.

Obama says he's not ruled out using military force, but he has not been so directly threatening. Romney takes a far harder line and says he would stand much closer to Israel.

As if to draw a line under his Iran policy, Romney said in one Republican debate: "If we re-elect Barack Obama, Iran will have a nuclear weapon. And if we elect Mitt Romney, if you elect me as the next president, they will not have a nuclear weapon."

In U.S. presidential elections, it remains axiomatic that a candidate trying to win a party's nomination plays more to the extremes when seeking a place on the ballot and then charts a more moderate course in the final election campaign. Even at that, however, history teaches that it often is far easier to make campaign promises than to fulfill them once in office.

Just ask Obama, who vowed he would close the U.S. military prison for terrorist suspects at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, during his first year in office. That still hasn't happened — Congress has stood in the way of such action — and the pledge lives on mostly as an issue the Republicans use against the president.."

Republican U.S. Sen. Scott Brown is ahead of his Democratic challengers in the minds of the voters, including consumer advocate Elizabeth Warren, according to a new Suffolk University/7News poll released late Thursday.

(AP file photos)Clockwise from top-left, Republican Sen. Scott Brown, democratic challengers Elizabeth Warren, Marisa DeFranco and James King.

BOSTON - Republican U.S. Sen. Scott Brown is ahead of his Democratic challengers in the minds of the voters, including consumer advocate Elizabeth Warren, according to a new Suffolk University/7News poll released late Thursday.

The statewide poll of 600 voters in Massachusetts concluded, with a 4-point margin of error, that Brown was ahead of Warren by 9 points with each respectively taking 49 and 40 percent of the electorate, if the vote was held today.

The Suffolk poll contradicts a WBUR poll released earlier this week that showed the two candidates running neck-and-neck.

In questions matching Brown against Democratic candidates Marisa DeFranco and James King, those polled opted for the incumbent. Brown ranked over DeFranco, a Middleton immigration lawyer, 55-22 percent and over King, a Boston corporate attorney, 57-21 percent.

Among likely Democratic voters in the September primary, Warren carried a heavy margin over her Democratic opponents. More than 72 percent of likely Democratic voters said they would vote for Warren, 5 percent said DeFranco, and 1 percent went for King, with 20 percent still undecided.

Interestingly enough, the poll concluded that Warren led 69 percent to 19 percent among Democrats, but trailed 86 percent to 7 percent among Republicans and 60 percent to 28 percent among independents. With approximately 52 percent of Bay State residents registered as independents, their vote is seen as crucial to taking the win in an election.

General election voters said they favor having one Democratic and one Republican senator from Massachusetts in Washington, with 60 percent saying they see a benefit to having a member of each party representing them in the Senate and 36 percent saying they do not.

Among independents, 64 percent said there is a benefit to split party representation, while 30 percent disagreed. Among registered Democrats, 49 percent agreed, and 47 percent disagreed.

Warren was said to be qualified to serve as senator by 40 percent of those polled while 32 percent said she was not. And Brown was seen as a "leader" in the senate by 43 percent of those polled while 38 percent consider him a "follower."

“Scott Brown’s popularity and appeal are overpowering the efforts of Elizabeth Warren, who struggles to introduce herself to the larger pool of Massachusetts voters. Warren’s support does not have traction among independents," said David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center in Boston. “Warren has great numbers to build upon within the likely Democratic voter base. Now, she must broaden her appeal to independent voters in the state who do not know her well, if at all. If she fails to do this, the election could be a repeat of Brown-Coakley."

The FBI and the U.S. Capitol Police arrested a man after a lengthy investigation into an alleged plot to carry out a suicide attack on the Capitol.

• Bridgeport, Conn., man seeks to evict 98-year-old mother [New England Cable News]


• Cousin says Randolph teen, 16, killed while playing with friend’s gun [CBS Boston.com]


• Federal agents arrest man who allegedly planned suicide bombing on U.S. Capitol [Washington Post]


Photo by Michael Sohn / Associated PressGerman President Christian Wulff, left, announces his resignation during a statement at the Bellevue Palace in Berlin, Germany, Friday. At right is his wife Bettina Wulff. Click on the link, above right for a report from the New York Times.
• German president Christian Wulff resigns following allegations he had improper ties to businessmen [New York Times]


• Federal judge upholds Massachusetts casino law in wake of challenge concerning Indian tribe [Boston.com]


• Could Al Qaeda get Syria's chemical weapons? [Christian Science Monitor.com]


• Enfield woman benefits from heart valve procedure, avoids life on coumadin [WGGB-TV, abc40/Fox6, Springfield]


• Police say death at Mad River Glen ski area in Vermont was accidental [Burlington Free Press]


• Twitter posts tagged #westernma in Western Mass. [MassLive.com]


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Wieland and 6 other Americans were detained on the 1-year anniversary of a civilian uprising in which more than 35 people were killed. Watch video

The Republican | Don TreegerNorthampton activist Patricia "Paki" Wieland talks about being detained during a recent trip to Bahrain during a press conference at the First Churches in Northampton.

NORTHAMPTON – Activist Patricia “Paki” Wieland is back home, and despite being detained for about 12 hours in Bahrain this week, she said, “I have no regrets having done it.

“We wanted to let the people of Bahrain know they were not alone.”

She and six other Americans were detained Tuesday on the one-year anniversary of a civilian uprising in which more than 35 people were killed. They went to support the protestors and to get the word out about their plight. She said since the uprising, at least 66 have died in violence and many more injured. Doctors have been punished for treating the injured, she said.
The government has barred foreign journalists, human-rights observers and other outsiders from entering the county. She said few know about human rights violations there.

She said she too knew little until a friend asked her to make the trip. And then she said she asked herself, “what can I do to raise people’s consciousness?”

Wieland spoke at a press conference Friday afternoon organized by the American Friends Service Committee that drew more than a dozen of her friends and supporters. She also answered questions and showed pictures of the protest. She arrived back in New York on Wednesday and in Northampton on Thursday.

“I wasn’t afraid,” she said of being detained at two police stations. She said she and the other Americans were not mistreated.

Wieland said she was able to get into Bahrain on a tourist visa, but was deported because she did not report to the hotel she said would be staying at. She said the taxi driver didn’t want to take her there because it was too far.

She didn’t think they would be detained. “I’m a naïve American.” She said, “I didn’t think they (the government) could be as repressive as they were. I didn’t think they would be as violent as they were.”

She said police not only lobbed cans of American-produced tear gas but “kept bombarding us with more tear gas” even after the crowds dispersed.

She said she was impressed by "... the tenacity of the people. The people are not deterred.” She said they feel they “have nothing to lose.” She said they flash the peace symbol and say “samood” which means steadfast.

Last July, Wieland sailed in solidarity with some 38 other peace activists aboard a ship bent on defying the Israeli blockade of Gaza, which has been in place since 2007 when Hamas came to power in the Arab territory. 

She was part of an international effort that employed 10 boats.

The Republican | Don Treeger2-17-12 - Northampton - Republican staff photo by Don Treeger- Northampton activist Patricia "Paki" Wieland talks about being detained during a recent trip to Bahrain during a press conference at the First Churches in Northampton.

Prior to the latest TV ad buy Santorum was being outspent by Mitt Romney by a 29 to 1 margin in Michigan.

Republican presidential candidate, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum speaks during Michigan Faith & Freedom Coalition rally in Shelby Township, Mich., Friday, Feb. 17, 2012. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)

The pro-Rick Santorum super PAC Red, White, and Blue Fund has bought $700,000 worth of air time for advertising ahead of the Feb. 28 Michigan primary.

The ads started airing Thursday.

Prior to the latest buy Santorum's campaign had spent $42,000 on television ads in the state. GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney's campaign and supporting super PAC Restore our Future has spent $2.7 million in the state, outspending Santorum 29 to 1 in Michigan.

Romney is attempting to stop Santorum's momentum in Michigan, where he's trailing Santorum anywhere from three to 15 points, depending on the poll.

A Jan. 20 letter signed by Sen. Scott Brown outlining the terms of "The People's Pledge" was written by general counsel for the National Republican Senatorial Committee.

U. S. Senator Scott P. Brown is seen with Democratic challenger Elizabeth Warren.

When Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. Scott Brown and Democratic Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren were crafting a pledge to keep third party ads out of the U.S. Senate race in Massachusetts, Brown used a third party to help draft his version of the pledge.

Sean Cairncross, general counsel for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, wrote a Jan. 20 letter signed by Brown to Warren's campaign and a version of the terms of the agreement attached to the letter.

Cairncross is a federal campaign finance expert who has argued for loosening campaign finance laws, including authoring a 2007 brief to the U.S. Supreme Court arguing issue ads should be exempt from federal campaign finance regulation.

Colin Reed, Brown's campaign communications director, said, "We consulted with the national party and obtained legal advice from them."

The candidates came to an agreement entitled "The People's Pledge" on Jan. 23. According to the terms of the agreement, the candidate must donate half of the cost of an ad run by a third party to a charity of the opposing candidate's choice. The People's Pledge has inspired similar pledges in races in other states.

A Brown campaign staff member said it isn't surprising that when they "crafted a groundbreaking agreement" with Warren, they consulted with a federal campaign finance expert to ensure it was enforceable and consistent with all laws and regulations.

Warren's campaign Communications Director Alethea Harney said their versions of the proposed agreement came from either Warren or campaign staff.

"It's unfortunate to find out that Scott Brown's version of the People's Pledge did not come from him but rather a lawyer for the National Republican Senatorial Committee whose expertise is finding loopholes for these outside groups to launch negative attacks," Harney said in a statement, "However, Elizabeth remains committed to honoring the pledge and she expects Senator Brown to honor his commitment."

Senecal, under his stage name Doug Danger, has entertained thousands around the world, broken records and broken bones - lots of bones - in his lengthy career as a profession motorcycle jumper.

Republican file photoDouglas Senecal, AKA Doug Danger, is seen preparing for a jump in this 2007 file photo. Senecal is battling stage 4 cancer.

PALMER – Douglas S. Senecal once jumped 42 cars on a motorcycle. He’s jumped school buses, trucks and even the fuselage of a 737 jet.

Under the stage name Doug Danger, Senecal has entertained thousands of fans around the world, and fearlessly broken records and bones – lots of bones – during a lengthy career as a professional daredevil.

But when his doctor invited him into his office a while back and asked him to have a seat, Senecal admits to feeling a little scared.

“I don’t like any conversation that begins like that,” he said.

His doctor, an oncologist, broke the news that the tumor which had been removed earlier from his neck turned out to be cancerous, and the cancer had spread throughout his body.

If You go:

Time and place for "The Fight for Life," Doug Senecal's cancer benefit,


• Where: Danger Zone Saloon, 948 Main St., Warren


• When: Sunday, Feb. 19, beginning 4 p.m.


• Cost: $10


For donations: Mail check or money order to Doug Danger, care of Louis “Rocket” Re, 182 Fairview Circle, Middle Island, NY 11953 

The doctor explained that Senecal’s cancer was in stage 4, that it was serious, very serious, and recovery was by no means guaranteed.

The doctor said his chances of survival would be 60 to 70 percent, but he would need massive amounts of radiation and chemotherapy which would leave him feeling physically awful.

“I asked him if the chemo would be anything like hitting a concrete wall at 60 mph, because I’ve done that,” Senecal said. “He said it would be similar.”

Weary, sore and run down from his first round of chemotherapy this week, Senecal said he almost feels like he did in 1992 after hitting the concrete wall at the Hudson, N.H., Speedway. That crash fractured his skull, basically wiped out his memory and motor skills and left him in a coma for a month.

It turns out the doctor, he said, “wasn’t too far off” in the toll which chemotherapy would take on his body.

Senecal, 49, a Palmer native and 1980 graduate of Palmer High School, has made a career following the path of his boyhood idol, Evel Knievel, and putting his life on the line. Since the cancer diagnosis, he said, the challenge before him is a little less dramatic, but the stakes are just as high.

But, Doug Danger never quits nor backs down from a challenge, he said.

Courtesy of Doug SenecalDoug Senecal, right, meets with his boyhood idol, legendary daredevil Evel Knevel, in this this undated photo. Senecal says he wants to break Knevel's record of jumping 21 cars on a Harley Davidson.

Before he jumped 42 cars in Loudon, N.H., in 1991, a 251-foot jump that stood as a world record for nine years, Senecal said, he remembers revving his motorcycle on top of the ramp, staring down at all the cars and all the people in the stands and thinking, “This is one of those times when I can’t only ‘think’ I can make this.”

He feels the same way now

He said he doesn’t only think he will beat cancer; he knows he will.

“Sixty to 70 percent? I had less of a chance when I jumped all those cars. That was probably 50-50,” he said.

His doctor, at the beginning, instructed him that in fighting cancer, the proper attitude is in many ways a powerful weapon. “He said you can’t get down, you have to stay upbeat, you have to stay happy,” Senecal said.

When you make a living by jumping, and sometimes crashing, motorcycles, staying upbeat is standard safety equipment, right up there with a helmet and a leather crash suit.

“It takes a different attitude to grab life by the balls and say, ‘Here I go,’” he said. “I can almost hear the cancer running away.”

His family and friends have arranged a benefit on Sunday at his bar, the Danger Zone Saloon in Warren, to raise money on his behalf. There will be food, bands and Karaoke. The party starts at 4 p.m. and will continue into the night.

Senecal said he is hearing there is great interest in the benefit. He knows he has a lot of fans in the area who remember him performing at the Eastern States Exposition and at Riverside Park (now Six Flags New England), and he is looking forward to meeting with them on Sunday.

The cancer treatment is expected to cost between $150,000 and $200,000. While he has basic health insurance, the premiums are costly, around $2,000 per month, he said.

“The insurance situation is terrible,” Senecal said.

And, it goes without saying that while Doug Senecal the independent businessman is laid up from chemo, Doug Danger the daredevil won’t be out making money. Senecal has already had to pass on an upcoming tour in Australia.

“The most important thing right now is to keep up the insurance payments” he said.

View full sizeRepublican file photoDoug Senecal, performing as Doug Danger celebrates mid-air during this 2004 jump at the Rt 20 Club in Palmer. Senecal said he plans to resume his daredevil career once he beats cancer.

In the meantime, Senecal said he can only do what he’s always done, and that’s look forward to his next jump: an attempt to set a world record by jumping 23 cars on a heavy Harley-Davidson motorcycle.

“I’m going to come back 100 percent. I’m going to come back even better,” he said.

The biggest thing he has learned in 20-plus years of tempting fate and cheating death, Senecal said, is to have a profound respect for life and being alive.

“I’ve lived a fantastic life,” he said. “I’m not ready to check out right now.” 