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FLORENCE, S.C. --

The rumbling of a combine with a hopper full of freshly harvested, golden corn in an Effingham field is a reminder of the great growing season the Pee Dee has had, with a warm winter allowing farmers to plant earlier to benefit from rains that lasted through the summer.

There are other beneficiaries of these conditions as well.

Among the most nefarious of them are mosquitoes who have not only been annoying, but have been spreading lethal diseases at the highest rates in three years.

Perhaps the biggest mosquito-born problem is Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE). After a quiet 2011, the horse-killing disease has returned, with six confirmed cases of the virus in South Carolina horses this year. The Pee Dee has been especially hard hit. Two of the cases were in Horry County, one in Marion, one in Darlington and one in Kershaw. And with months before the first frost, experts predict this could be just the beginning of an especially bad year for horses, who bear the brunt of the attack from a disease that bears their name.

Its been a mess, said Dr. Karen Bolten, a traveling veterinarian with Carolina Equine Clinic South. And it usually gets worse later in the summer. My first case was in the beginning of June, and I foresee it continuing to be bad through the end of summer.

The virus kills nine out of 10 horses infected. Two to five days after a horse is bit by a virus-carrying mosquito, it will begin to show symptoms such as stumbling, circling, head pressing, depression or apprehension, weakness of legs, partial paralysis, inability to stand, muscle twitching or death.

Bolten is on the frontline of the fight against the virus and has seen half of the states confirmed EEE cases. The virus, which can eventually affect a horses neurological function, forced her to euthanize two and hospitalize the other. The third horse did survive.

Bolten recommends owners vaccinate horses twice a year for EEE due to their high exposure to mosquitoes. She recommends having a vet do the job as opposed to buying over-the-counter treatments.

There are a lot more problems with feed-store vaccines, Bolten said. The one woman had vaccinated with feed-store vaccine, and her horse still got it. Its not that stores are mishandling it, but they might not understand proper vaccine handling such as the proper storage temperature.

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Wet summer brings killer equine virus to Pee Dee

CTV Toronto Published Thursday, Aug. 9, 2012 9:24AM EDT Last Updated Thursday, Aug. 9, 2012 6:39PM EDT

Toronto Mayor Rob Ford was released from hospital Thursday afternoon after an infection triggered his asthma, leading to a two-day hospitalization.

Speaking to TSN radio after his release, Ford said he was ready to be back at city hall again Friday.

It was just an allergic reaction to something in my esophagus and I couldnt breath, so it freaked me out for a bit, but Im back in fighting form and Ill be at work tomorrow, Ford told the sports radio station.

Ford admitted himself to Humber River Hospital late Tuesday night.

A release issued by the mayors press secretary Wednesday said Ford has suffered an adverse reaction to food, which irritated his throat and stomach and triggered his asthma.

Fords mother, Dianne Ford, spoke to reporters Thursday before her son was released. She thanked citizens for their support.

On behalf of the Ford family, we really, truly appreciate all the phone calls weve got, the concerns, the support, really, really has been wonderful and we sincerely appreciate it, she said.

Fords brother, Coun. Doug Ford, also spoke to reporters earlier in the day, saying that his brother was making a speedy recovery.

The doctor said he should be released today and everything seems to be all right, he said. The doctor said hes strong, strong heart, he feels good. He has an infection in his throat, but hes good to go. Hes sitting there, returning phone calls and asking for the Toronto Sun for his football picks.

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Toronto mayor feeling better, no word on release

The use of the word "Republican" on campaign lawn signs promoting State Senate District 47 incumbent candidate Julianne Ortman has prompted supporters of her primary election opponent, Bruce Schwichtenberg, to file a complaint with the State of Minnesota Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH).

On Aug. 1, members of Schwichtenberg for Senate filed a complaint with the OAH alleging that the signs violate state statute because they falsely imply that Ortman has the Republican Party endorsement. Neither candidate has the party's endorsement because neither received the necessary 60 percent of votes after five rounds of balloting during the party's district endorsement convention held earlier this year.

In material sent to the OAH, two different signs were presented as evidence. One sign reads "Vote August 14, Julianne Ortman, Republican for Minnesota Senate" and another says "Julianne Ortman, Republican for State Senate."

In an email to the newspaper, Schwichtenberg said the signs undermine the voice of the grassroots, activists, delegates and alternates and citizens of Carver County.

"There was no endorsement and her actions to this point may already have cause irreparable harm to our campaign," he said. "Many people have given their time, money and support to our campaign and to have their efforts thwarted by illegal and unethical actions is inexcusable."

Ortman argued that there was no misuse of the word "Republican" on the signs.

"My opponent and I are both members of the Republican Party and running in the Republican Primary Aug. 14; the sample ballots identify us both as Republicans," she wrote in an email to the newspaper.

"We both filed an Affidavit of Candidacy with the Secretary of State, which inquired, under penalty of perjury, to declare a party affiliation. We both declared ourselves to be Republicans," Ortman continued. "I am optimistic that the OAH will uphold our ability to communicate this information to voters, and our right of free speech contained in the First Amendment to the Constitution."

A probable cause hearing was to be held by the OAH on Tuesday, Aug. 7. At that time, the OAH was to decide whether or not it would dismiss the case or plan an evidentiary hearing. The OAH's ruling was not available when this edition went to press.

The primary election will be held on Tuesday, Aug. 14.

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Word on lawn signs causes disagreement between candidates

WASHINGTON -- The Census Bureau is recommending that Hispanics be treated as a distinct race, a move that acknowledges the group's growing significance, but could reduce their numbers in future surveys.

The census currently considers "Hispanics" an ethnicity, allowing people to identify both as Hispanic and as a member of a separate racial group. The proposed change would drop the ethnicity question, and simply ask about race, allowing people to check a box next to choices that include black, white, or Hispanic.

The proposal concerns some Hispanic political leaders who fear that it would lead to a lower overall Hispanic count as some people of mixed origin choose to identify as white or black.

"This is a hot-button issue," said Angelo Falcon, president of the National Institute for Latino policy in New York City and a community adviser to the census. "The burden will be on the Census Bureau to come up with evidence that wording changes will not undermine the Latino numbers."

But others doubt it will undermine the numbers because Latinos who are of European, African or indigenous American descent will more likely choose Latino as their race if it's an option.

"There'll be a lot fewer Hispanics checking the white box," said Tomas Jimenez, a sociology professor at Stanford University. He said the proposed change might better reflect how Latinos define themselves. If anything, making Hispanic a race "will probably mean a decrease

The proposal was among several Census Bureau recommendations released Wednesday, stemming from new government research on the best ways to count the nation's demographic groups. The other changes would drop use of "Negro" from census surveys and add write-in categories Arabs and Middle Easterners to specifically identify themselves.

The changes are based on research conducted during the 2010 census that showed many people who filled out the traditional form did not feel they fit within the five government-defined racial categories: white, black, Asian, Pacific Island and Native Indian/Alaska Native.

More than 14 million Californians identified themselves as Latino/Hispanic in the 2010 census, and a growing number, in the race category, are describing themselves as "some other race."

Nationally, about 18 million -- roughly 37 percent -- Latinos used the "some other race" category.

Originally posted here:
Census Bureau wants to drop word "Negro," asking Hispanics what race they are

MANILA, Philippines Months after Friendster was relaunched as a social discovery and gaming platform, Multiply announced that it will shut down its social networking and content sharing services to shift its focus to online shopping.

In an announcement posted on the website, Multiply chief executive officer Stefan Magdalinski said users will no longer be able to share photos, videos and blogs starting December 1.

Magdalinski believes that other websites will do a better job serving you than we can.

Facebook currently leads the pack in the social media race with over 900 million followers.

From December 1st, we will unfortunately no longer be able to support Multiply in its current form notably we will be removing the social networking and content sharing part of Multiply (photos, videos, blogs, social messaging, etc.). We have decided to discontinue providing and hosting these services, as we have concluded that other Internet sites who are committed to social networking services will do a better job serving you than we can.

For our existing users of social networking features, we will be providing easy ways for you to either download your stuff (photos, blogs, content, etc.), or migrate it to other online services. Well announce the precise details shortly. It will be your choice whether to download, migrate or just let your content lapse (and get deleted).

For our existing commerce users (both buyers and sellers) in Indonesia and the Philippines, there will be no action required.

Magdalinski said Multiply will now focus on improving its online shopping capability, citing its 350 million consumers in Indonesia and the Philippines.

I suspect that many of you will not like the news, and I am sorry to have to deliver it now. I hope that you will be able to understand the reasons for our decision and thank you for being a part of the Multiply community over the past eight years, he said.

Social networking pioneer Friendster discontinued its services in 2009 as it lost ground to Facebook. The website instead focused on allowing users to play games and earn points to buy virtual goods.

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Multiply to shut down social networking services