A flood of Chinese to American colleges

GRINNELL, Iowa - Dozens of American colleges and universities are seeing a surge in applications from students in China, where a booming economy means that more families can pursue the dream of an American higher education.

But that success - following a 30 percent increase last year in the number of Chinese studying in the United States - has created a problem for admissions officers.

At rural Grinnell College, nearly one of every 10 applicants is from China. They all send glossy brochures crammed with photos depicting high-achieving lives. ("Hi Professors!" announced one from a young woman who described herself as "sincere, kind and tough.")

How do they choose perhaps 15 students from the more than 200 applicants from China?

Half of Grinnell's applicants from China this year have perfect scores on the math portion of American college entrance exams, making the performance of one hard to distinguish from another.

But the most accomplished applicants will have lower grades, because Chinese schools tend to grade on a far less generous curve than American high schools.

Few will have taken honors or Advanced Placement courses.

Then there is the challenge of assessing an applicant's command of English, since some Chinese families hire "agents" to write the application essay. These same advisers counsel families to spend money on the fancy brochures.

"They should save their money," Seth Allen, the dean of admission and financial aid at Grinnell, said.

Mr. Allen said that few would actually be read by the overworked admissions officers as they plowed through nearly 3,000 applications over all. The brochures, said Jonathan C. Edwards, Grinnell's coordinator of international admission, were destined for the recycling bin.

Grinnell officials said they spend most of their time on Chinese applications trying to parse the essays for an authentic voice and sensibility.

A young woman from Shanghai, for example, impressed Mr. Edwards with an essay that described her volunteering at a rehabilitation center, where an autistic boy captured her heart.

"Such a hopeless boy evoked my strong feeling to help him and love him," she wrote. She was admitted last fall.

Another Chinese applicant made a less favorable impression by writing about her own hardship while helping others after the earthquake in 2008 in Sichuan Province.

"Every day, I showered and brushed my teeth using cold water," she wrote. "It was unbearable."

The admissions officers sometimes reach out to teachers and counselors at the applicants' high schools - especially those that have emerged as "feeders" to American colleges.

During each of the last two summers, Mr. Allen traveled through China on a recruiting tour with representatives from other colleges. For the colleges, such tours are motivated at least partly by money: an applicant from China or another country could have an edge if he or she can pay full tuition.

Grinnell also has a dozen full scholarships set aside for international applicants who need help paying tuition.

"I realize what regional differences there are in China," Mr. Allen said.

"Lumping students into this amorphous Chinese applicant pool really isn't doing them justice."

At Grinnell, the graduation rate of the Chinese students has been comparable to the 1,600-member student body over all - about 84 percent of those who enroll graduate in four years.

Most Chinese students at Grinnell do "very well" in economics, math or science, the subjects in which they are most likely to major, Mr. Allen said.

Help with writing English papers is also available in a writers' workshop.

"Chinese students are required to devote significantly more time to their studies than American students, and this generally carries through when they come to college in the U.S.," he said.

Applicants from China have also been learning about Grinnell and other American colleges and universities through a popular Chinese Web site, cuus.cn - which stands for Chinese Undergraduates in the United States, but the letters are also meant to be shorthand for "See You in the U.S."

The applicants often demonstrate unusual diligence.

"A girl from China called the other day after lunch, which was 2 or 3 in the morning for her," Mr. Edwards said. "She said she was calling to make sure everything in her application was complete," he said. "I had to tell her to go to bed."

Modern-day slavery: A problem that can't be ignored

You know that moment when you read something, and then immediately have to re-read it because you cannot believe it is true? That happened to me when I read that the levels of slavery and people trafficking today are greater than at any point in history.

Surely that cannot be right?

Obviously there is no precise figure, but the International Labor Organization and respected abolitionists like Kevin Bales and Siddharth Kara put the global number of slaves at between 10-30 million worldwide. At a minimum, 10 million.

Driving the global people trading business is ruthless greed, vast returns on investment and crucially, government ineffectiveness. The same as most criminal enterprises.

And the numbers involved are extraordinary.

The United Nations estimates the total market value of human trafficking at 32 billion U.S. dollars. In Europe, criminals are pocketing around $2.5 billion per year through sexual exploitation and forced labor.

But let’s remember the commodity here is not drugs or contraband; it is human beings. And usually the most vulnerable in society.

Those unable to defend themselves, those who innocently trust the intentions of others, those who can easily be made to disappear.

The cruelty and inhumanity of those who would profit from such a crime is truly shocking.

In previous centuries, when slaves were captured and traded each had a significant market value. Although their ill-treatment was often horrific, the reality was that it made economic sense to keep a slave alive and functioning, to protect what was usually a significant investment, made with a view to long term.

That is not so today. Many girls and women, who are trafficked, particularly for the sex trade, are done so with a view to high rate of return over a relatively short period of time. Then they are switched from the steady supply of replacements.

And what do you suppose happens to those who are seen to have maxed out their usefulness?

Often addicted to drugs they have been forced to take, almost certainly in the country illegally, with no support, and with no record that they ever existed.

A bad outcome is more or less assured.

It is also difficult to see any hope for the people who trade in people. They have reconciled themselves to the awful crimes that they commit, and are unlikely to stop because others tell them to.

No, to stop this shameful trade takes the will of governments.

First in the countries where people are either abducted or forced into labor.

These are often nations that are facing many problems, with tough economies, poor infrastructure, and sporadic and ineffective forces of law and order. People in rural and remote regions are often the targets, people who can be easily misled, or just kidnapped, with next to no chance of the crime ever being properly investigated.

For local and national governments it is just one more of a series of pressing problems they must face. The international community has a role to play in forcing it higher up each of these countries to-do lists.

This is not a problem that can be ignored.

CNN will go to the places where the people traffickers ensnare their victims.

And we will follow the routes through to markets where they get the best return on their haul.

And these destination countries are often not those struggling with the basics of civil government and policing.

No, they are established western societies, throughout Europe and in the U.S.

Have you noticed when there are raids on the brothels in these countries, that when the police do a sweep of the red light areas, so many of those arrested appear to come from thousands of miles away? How did they get there?

Is the so-called massage parlor operating in your neighborhood, sometimes brazenly touting the services of teenage Asian girls, really journey’s end for a wretched trip that began continents away?

This is a story which truly touches many parts of the world.

The current rates of return ensure that the people trafficking business will continue to grow, unless there is a concerted effort and will to stop it, by governments around the world.

The UN’s Office on Drugs and Crime reports that human trafficking is the fastest growing criminal enterprise in the world – now tied with arms smuggling and trailing only the illicit drug trade. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says human trafficking crosses cultures and continents.

CNN will use the full range of our international resources to track and champion this story. We will be in the countries where people are abducted, traded and passed into the hands of the smugglers. We will follow the routes as people are ruthlessly moved to areas where they can generate the highest return on investment.
And we will be at the end of the line where men, women and boys and girls are over-worked, raped and abused, and when no longer of value, discarded.

It is a story which is shocking and tough.

But there are also many examples of great courage and inspiration. Of people who have made a stand, of groups who at great personal risk have taken the fight to the criminals. And of individuals who have found freedom, and have not let their experience break them.

We want to highlight these important victories, these triumphs of human spirit.

There are many fine groups and individuals doing outstanding work to help trafficking victims.

Organizations like Anti-Slavery International, Free the Slaves, International Justice Mission, ECPAT, Not For Sale and Polaris Project have fearless team members at the frontlines, risking their lives in lawless lands, to help those most vulnerable.

Celebrities like Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher, Ricky Martin, Anil Kapoor, Emmanuel Jal and Peter Gabriel are also dedicating their voices to the growing call for justice around the world.

CNN will be proud to work with many of them as we put our resources behind this project throughout 2011.

Because human trafficking is a shameful trade that must be stopped.

Cell phone outage affects millions in Pakistan

Pakistan's top cellular provider said a fire at a technical hub disrupted its services in the capital and nearby areas, but that the network should be completely restored late Monday.
Cell phone use has surged in Pakistan in recent years, and millions of people were believed to be affected by the Mobilink outages, which led to dropped calls or no cell phone signals whatsoever.
The company said it had partially restored all services including voice, email and texting as of Monday afternoon.

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"Our technical teams continue to work around the clock to ensure that all equipment is fully restored at the earliest," Omar Manzur, Mobilink's director of public relations, said in a statement.
The fire was reported at a technical hub in Islamabad on Sunday evening. No one was hurt in the incident, the company said.
Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani directed government officials to check into the matter amid growing frustration with the loss of service Monday. Like other countries where cell phone use has spread, many in this nation of 180 million don't bother installing landlines anymore.

Black money case: Action will be taken against Hasan Ali Khan, says Pranab

New Delhi:  Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today said the government has taken note of the Supreme Court's observations and action will be taken against Pune-based stud farm owner Hasan Ali Khan who is facing charges of stashing huge amounts of money in tax havens.

"That is being taken care of. We have noted the observations of the Supreme Court. All appropriate action will be taken," he said on the sidelines of a CII meet when asked if the government was contemplating any action against Khan.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had yesterday issued a 'Look out Circular' at all airports against Khan to ensure that he did not flee the country.
   
Khan is facing charges of stashing away over US $ 8 billion in Swiss banks. In 2009, he was served a notice for a tax demand for about Rs 40,000 crore.
    
Lambasting the Centre for not having the "will power" to act against black money hoarders, the apex court on March 3 asked why Khan and others were not subjected to custodial interrogation despite the probe agencies possessing sufficient materials.

"What the hell is going on in this country," an anguished court had asked.

In connection with the black money case involving Khan, the Supreme Court had in February also asked the Centre to ensure that Khan did not leave the country.

What is passive euthanasia?

New Delhi:  The term "passive euthanasia" used by the Supreme Court in its verdict on Aruna Shanbaug's case is defined as the withdrawal of medical treatment with the deliberate intention to hasten a terminally ill-patient's death.

Various medical and legal dictionaries say passive euthanasia is the act of hastening the death of a terminally-ill patient by altering some form of support and letting nature take its course.

Passive euthanasia can involve turning off respirators, halting medications, discontinuing food and water so the patient dies because of dehydration or starvation.

Passive euthanasia can include giving the patient large doses of morphine to control pain in spite of the likelihood that the painkiller can cause fatal respiratory problems.

Active euthanasia involves helping the patient to die on the basis of a request by either the patient of those close to him or her, usually direct family members.

A well-known example of active euthanasia is the death of a terminally ill Michigan patient on September 17, 1998. On that date, Dr. Jack Kevorkian videotaped himself administering a lethal medication to Thomas Youk, 52, who suffered with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

CBS broadcast the videotape on 60 Minutes less than a week later. Authorities subsequently charged Kevorkian with first-degree premeditated murder, criminal assistance of a suicide, and delivery of a controlled substance for administering lethal medication to a terminally ill man.

There was no dispute that the dose was administered at the request of Youk, nor any dispute that Youk was terminally ill. A jury found Kevorkian guilty of second-degree murder in 1999.

This science graduate stole bikes for fun

Traffic Police Constable SB Kumbhar, who
caught the bike thief. (Courtesy Mid-Day.com)

Pune:  Others steal vehicles to make money by selling them after changing the number plate, but the police say Kishor Bhimrao Khadke, a BSc graduate from Amravati, does it for the fun of biking.

The police said Khadke stole three two-wheelers in the past 30 days to go on long rides. The Vishrambaug police booked Khadke under Section 379 (stealing) of the IPC and recovered the three vehicles from his possession.

The arrest of Khadke was made by traffic policeman, Constable SB Kumbhar, on Lal Bahadur Shastri Road.

Kumbhar spotted Khadke violating a traffic signal at Alka Talkies chowk and signalled for him to stop. Khadke ignored Kumbhar and sped away on his vehicle, which made the traffic policeman chase him on his bike
After a pursuit of about a kilometre, Kumbhar caught up with Khadke and got hold of him. Khadke was on a bike with a number plate that read MH-12/AT 8701.

Khadke was not able to show Kumbhar his driving licence and vehicle papers, which made the policeman suspicious. Khadke eventually admitted that the bike was stolen.

"I left him with no choice but to confess to the crime," said Kumbhar. Khadke said he had stolen the bike from Kothrud three days ago and was using it to have fun riding on it. He said his father was a farmer in Amaravati and that he was living with a cousin at Parande Nagar in Dighi.

Kumbhar searched the computerised RTO registration for the number plate of the stolen bike and found out that the vehicle belonged to Santosh Mahadik, a resident of Karve Nagar.

The policeman said he also discovered that Khadke was involved in two more cases of vehicle theft at Sadashiv Peth and Somwar Peth.

Kumbhar said Khadke's cousin was sick of his brother's habit of stealing vehicles. He said Khadke had now been taken away by his family members to Amravati to stop him from stealing more bikes.

Mahadik, whose bike was stolen from near Karve statue, said that he has not yet received the vehicle but that the police had assured him that he would get it back after finishing up with the formalities. He also thanked Kumbhar for catching the suspect.

DCP Manoj Patil (Traffic) congratulated Kumbhar for his bravery. "This shows even traffic policemen can detect a crime, and Kumbhar has set an example for all," Patil said.

US Army incorporates yoga in training

Washington:  The US Army has introduced yoga for the first time in its physical fitness regimen.

The changes in its "combat readiness test" are being made as part of an overhaul of its fitness programme for the first time in 30 years, the Christian Science Monitor reported.

The training will incorporate the elements of yoga and benefits of rest among other workouts. The new regimen, announced March 1, will be carried out in phases.

"There have been all kinds of rumours about what this is and what it isn't. People have said, 'It's yoga-like, it's like Pilates' ... And frankly, it is all those things," the Monitor quoted Gen. Mark Hertling, deputy commanding general for initial military training at the US Army's Training and Doctrine Command, as saying.

He pointed out that tough training leads to stress, fractures and other injuries. Hence, the new doctrine extols the virtues of breaks on long marches. This new training is a departure from how the army tests its soldiers.

"We've only done push-ups, sit-ups and a two-mile run," for the past 30 years, said Hertling, but "none of those address the kinds of things soldiers are asked to do in combat".

To address this issue, shuttle runs and long jumps have been added to the fitness programme, he said.

Pietersen devastated to be out of World Cup

Chennai: England batsman Kevin Pietersen said on Monday he was saddened and devastated at having to pull out of the World Cup because he needs a hernia operation.

"Sad to leave India.. Love the people & the hospitality!! Alvida doston (Goodbye friends)," he wrote on his Twitter account.

"I fly home tonight. Out of the WC & IPL.. Absolutely devastated!!" he said.

Pietersen will miss the rest of the World Cup, with a team spokesman announcing on Monday that he would be returning home in the next 24 hours for a hernia operation.

England have applied to the International Cricket Council (ICC) for Eoin Morgan to come in as a replacement player, the spokesman said.

Pietersen who moved up the order to open during the World Cup, was out for only 2 runs during England's dramatic Group B win over his native South Africa on Sunday, and it is now 27 one-day internationals since his last century.

Team officials said on Saturday that Pietersen would undergo an operation, but after the tournament, although he did say the injury would "no doubt impact my preparation" during the World Cup.

However, the procedure appears to have been brought forward after he was clearly troubled during Sunday's six-run win at the Chidambaram Stadium and looked more of a threat with his part-time off-spin than with the bat.

Pietersen's injury was diagnosed following England's 6-1 one-day series loss in Australia which came after the Test side's Ashes series triumph.

The batsman's early departure from the World Cup raises questions over his future in the 50-over form of the game, with Pietersen having frequently complained about a crammed international schedule.

Advancing the surgery might enable Pietersen to appear in this year's Indian Premier League. His original plan for a six-week course of treatment after the World Cup coincided with the lucrative event, which starts next month.

Pietersen is due to earn around $650,000 (400,000 pounds) playing for IPL side the Deccan Chargers this season.

However, England would like their star batsman to be well-rested ahead of a busy home season of international cricket, featuring series against Sri Lanka and India.

The first Test against Sri Lanka starts in Cardiff on May 26.

Former Ireland batsman Morgan would have been in England's original squad but for a finger injury. His replacement, Ravi Bopara, made a man-of-the-match winning 60 against South Africa in Chennai on Sunday.

However, both Morgan and Bopara are middle-order batsmen which leaves England needing to find a new opening partner for captain Andrew Strauss.

Either Jonathan Trott or Ian Bell could now be promoted up the order.

England's victory over previously unbeaten group leaders South Africa revived a faltering World Cup campaign which has featured a stuttering win over the Netherlands, a tie with co-hosts India and a shock defeat by Ireland.

Their bid for a quarterfinal spot continues with a group match against co-hosts Bangladesh in Chittagong on Friday.

Govt may seek sacked IPL chief Modi's deportation

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Mumbai: Further trouble for the sacked IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi as the government may seek his deportation to make him join the probe into the alleged violation of foreign exchange laws in the conduct of T20 cricket tournaments.

Official sources said since Modi's passport has been revoked, the Enforcement Directorate could seek for his deportation. Authorities have given Modi time till March 31 to either file an appeal to the Ministry of External Affairs or move court in the matter. (Also Read: Lalit Modi's passport revoked)

Asked about possible deportation of Modi, his lawyer Mehmood A Abdi said that all options are under consideration.

"It is under active consideration. All options are being weighed. We will see what action needs to be taken on it (passport revocation)," Abdi told PTI.

However, the sources said, deportation can end up being a long-term process as various legal issues will have to be looked into.

Actress gifted with pack of cigarettes

Do you remember the heroine of Kalyanram in Kathi. She is Sana Khan imported from Tamil Nadu has also got an unimportant role in last release of Gaganam. As Tamil version Payanam was a good success, Sana Khan aggressively publicized the film in Tamil Nadu attending press meets with team members. During a recent press meet in Chennai Sana sparked new controversy by speaking non sense on smoking and cigarettes. Actress explained gathering that smoking of cigarettes will benefit the women in turning slim. Obviously the Hindu organizations opposing the progression of western culture into India opposed Sana's statements. Hindu Makkal Katchi, the organization known for moral policing in Tamil Nadu took Sana Khan for huge beating and President of organization Mr. Kumar sent a gift pack of cigarettes to the red hot heroine. When Government and Social Organizations are trying to eradicate smoking habits in India, how can Sana Khan mislead the women with false statements?