Blog-heap o' links from 2007-Oct

TUE 2007-OCT-30

Epidemic Without Bordersmedicalnewstoday.com/ ... 15:48:16HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, probably came into the US from Haiti around the year 1969, a decade earlier than most scientists believed, says new research from the US... "Haiti was the stepping stone the virus took when it left central Africa and started its sweep around the world. Once the virus got to the US, then it just moved explosively around the world..."

Under Digital Tyrannysmartphonetoday.com/ ... 15:44:46Apple has stopped accepting cash for the iPhone. Leaving credit and debit cards as the only means by which you can now buy one from the company. For Apple, the point of this new policy is to allow them to better track who buys an iPhone. Apple is also limiting iPhone sales to two per customer... the direct result of the market for unlocked iPhones...

Theftsuntimes.com/ ... 14:59:54Chicago... Three Romanian fighters from the AIBA World Boxing Championships... plus the team manager, were sent home after authorities say the fighters were caught shoplifting at Nordstrom Rack on State...

Alcohol Was Involvedhosted.ap.org/ ... 14:57:20GALLIVARE, Sweden... He may look young for his age, but 77-year-old Swedish retiree Per-Eric Henricsson was not flattered when his local supermarket asked him to show ID to prove that he was old enough to buy a case of beer...

Animals can be Dangeroushosted.ap.org/ ... 14:55:45ANCHORAGE, Alaska... A volunteer at the Eagle River Nature Center is recovering after being bitten... on the buttocks by a brown bear sow.... four puncture wounds... Rangers and biologist say this was a chance encounter with the sow, who also had a cub with her, and no further action was necessary...

Yuck!hosted.ap.org/ ... 14:54:15SUFFIELD, Conn... Police arrested a husband and wife after finding them and their 9-year-old daughter living in an "absolutely disgusting" house.... found piles of clothes covered in food and feces, three feet of dirty dishes in the kitchen sink, a kitchen table covered with garbage and rotten food, and brown liquid running out of the refrigerator onto the floor... cockroaches... watched a rat run across the floor... A three-foot pile of clothing, pizza boxes and candy wrappers blocked the 9-year-old's bedroom door...

Transport Troublehosted.ap.org/ ... 14:52:29MEQUON, Wis... As many as 10 vehicles drove around barriers and onto freshly poured concrete on a busy thoroughfare during rush hour.... "Once someone goes around the barricade and busts through the tape, others follow..."

WW2 - still with ushosted.ap.org/ ... 14:51:54A postcard that a Japanese soldier mailed from a Southeast Asian battlefront during World War II has reached a recipient in Japan 64 years later, a university whose student helped deliver it said Saturday...

Digital Threatnews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 14:45:53...The scrambled text systems used to defeat automatic sign-ups are known as Captchas or "Completely Automated Public Turing test to tell Computers and Humans Apart". Typically they feature a disfigured word or one overlaid with artefacts that make it difficult for anyone but a human to decipher. Many computer criminals have been trying to crack these systems to get at the net-based resources, such as e-mail accounts or blogging tools, they are designed to protect... novel system for getting round Captchas uses images of a woman called "melissa" who invites victims to decipher the scrambled text. Entering the correct text produces another image and another chunk of scrambled text. Mr Genes said the Captchas seen with the first versions of the malicious program are all taken from the sign-up system for Yahoo webmail. In the past many viruses have tricked people into opening booby-trapped attachments with the false promise of seeing explicit images, said Mr Genes, but this was one of the first to actually show people more images if people respond...

Supernatural Tyrannyreuters.com/ ... 14:41:54Politicians and pharmacists in Italy responded angrily on Tuesday to an appeal by Pope Benedict for pharmacists to refuse to dispense drugs such as the "morning after pill" if they object on moral grounds... Health Minister Livia Turco said that while the Pope had the right to urge young people to be sexually responsible, he could not tell professionals such as pharmacists what to do. "I don't think his warning to pharmacists to be conscientious objectors to the morning after pill should be taken into consideration..."

Nuclear is Nastynews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 13:55:42Russia says there has been a radiation leak at a nuclear reprocessing plant in the Ural mountains east of Moscow, but that it has not harmed anyone...

Under Tyrannynews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 13:46:41...Why, I asked her, was she sending her son to these special classes, focusing on the past when everything else in Wuhan seemed obsessed with the future? Traditional culture has many advantages, she said. The emphasis on virtue, kindness and self-discipline is good for my son. Confucius was a very wise man. This is all the more remarkable because until recently Confucius was vilified by the Communist authorities... Even today, the Party's leaders are wary. Some new Confucian schools have already been closed down. But they are meeting a need. As China freewheels through the chaos of rapid economic change, many are searching for meaning...

Civilization vs Gangsterismnews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 14:41:20A group of pirates that hijacked a South Korean cargo ship in the waters off Somalia have been overpowered by the crew, according to one official... hosted.ap.org/ ... 14:40:42A bomber blew himself up about a quarter-mile from President Gen. Pervez Musharraf's office Tuesday, killing seven people... reuters.com/ ... 14:02:58A suicide bomber on a bicycle killed 30 Iraqi policemen doing their morning exercises at a base north of Baghdad on Monday, in one of the deadliest strikes on security forces in months... reuters.com/ ... 14:02:31Oct 27... A battle between al Qaeda in Iraq and a major Sunni Arab insurgent group killed at least 16 militants on Friday near the ancient city of Samarra... involved the Islamic Army, a nationalist group that has been hostile to al Qaeda since June and has fought the Sunni Islamist group in areas of Baghdad and some Sunni towns... news.bbc.co.uk/ ... 13:47:36Oct 28... A suicide car bomb has exploded at a bus terminus in the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk, killing at least eight people and injuring more than 20... news.bbc.co.uk/ ... 13:47:22Oct 28... About 80 Taleban fighters have been killed in clashes with forces from the US-led coalition in Afghanistan's Helmand province... news.bbc.co.uk/ ... 13:45:15Oct 29... Azerbaijan says it has foiled an Islamist plot to carry out a terrorist attack on state agencies and diplomatic missions in the capital, Baku. Security forces raided a group planning the attacks, killing one member and arresting several others...

History - still with usreuters.com/ ... 14:42:44Karl Marx, who complained of excruciating boils, actually suffered from a chronic skin disease with known psychological effects that may well have influenced his writings... hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) in which the apocrine sweat glands -- found mainly in the armpits and groin -- become blocked and inflamed. "In addition to reducing his ability to work, which contributed to his depressing poverty, hidradenitis greatly reduced his self-esteem... This explains his self-loathing and alienation, a response reflected by the alienation Marx developed in his writing..."

US Militarycontent.hamptonroads.com/ ... 15:43:11A training bomb fell off a Navy Hornet while the aircraft was approaching Oceana Naval Air Station this afternoon. No one was injured in the 12:15 p.m. incident... foxnews.com/ ... 15:37:21A group of congressmen has asked the Department of Veterans Affairs to reconsider its ban on the flag-folding ceremony at military funerals after the agency decided last month to streamline burials at federal cemeteries. "The flag folding recitation is a longstanding tradition which brings comfort to the living and honor to the deceased," Rep. Heath Shuler, D-N.C., writes in his letter Tuesday signed by 11 other congressmen. "The recitations accompanying each fold pay tribute to the service and sacrifice of our veterans and their families, the nation they proudly serve, and the beliefs that they hold dear." Veterans Affairs made the new policy decision last month, after a complaint was filed to the White House. Steve L. Muro, the director of the National Cemetery Administration's field programs office, ordered cemetery directors to stop the readings... defenselink.mil/ ... 14:30:40National Guard... October 24, 2007... This week, the Army, Marine Corps and Coast Guard announced an increase, while the Air Force announced a decrease. The Navy number remained unchanged. The net collective result is 1,672 more reservists mobilized than last week.... This brings the total National Guard and Reserve personnel who have been mobilized to 92,971, including both units and individual augmentees....

US Military Casualtiesdefenselink.mil/ ... 14:35:46

Army Master Sgt. Thomas L. Bruner, 50, of Owensboro, Ky., died Oct. 28, in Kabul, Afghanistan from a non-combat related illness. He was assigned to the Headquarters, 2nd Brigade, 100th Division, U.S. Army Reserve, Owensboro, Ky. The incident is under investigation. defenselink.mil/ ... 14:35:32

Army Staff Sgt. Joseph F. Curreri, 27, of Los Angeles, Calif., died Oct. 27 in Siet, Lake Jolo Island, Philippines from injuries sustained in a non-combat related incident. He was assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne), Fort Lewis, Wash. The incident is under investigation. defenselink.mil/ ... 14:35:12

Army Spc. David E. Lambert, 39, of Cedar Bluff, Va, died Oct. 26, in Baghdad, Iraq, of wounds sustained from an improvised explosive device. He was assigned to the 237th Engineer Company, 276th Engineer Battalion, 91st Troop Command of the Virginia National Guard. defenselink.mil/ ... 14:34:57

Army Sgt. Joshua C. Brennan, 22, of Ontario, Ore., died Oct 26 in Asadabad, Afghanistan

Army Spc. Hugo V. Mendoza, 29, of Glendale, Ariz., died Oct 25
of wounds sustained when they came in contact with enemy forces using RPG, machine gun and small arms fire during combat operations on Oct 25, in Korengal Valley, Afghanistan. The soldiers were assigned to the 2nd Battalion, 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Vicenza, Italy. defenselink.mil/ ... 14:34:00

Army Pfc. Adam J. Chitjian, 39, of Philadelphia, Pa., died Oct 25 in Balad, Iraq, of injuries sustained when he came in contact with enemy forces using small arms during combat operations. He was assigned to 3rd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, Fort Hood Texas. defenselink.mil/ ... 14:33:36The Department of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced today that the remains of five U.S. servicemen, missing in action from the Vietnam War, have been accounted-for and will be returned to their families for burial with full military honors.

Navy Lt. j.g. Norman L. Roggow, of Aurelia, Iowa

Navy Lt. j.g. Donald F. Wolfe, of Hardin, Mont.

Navy Lt. j.g. Andrew G. Zissu, of Bronx, N.Y.

Navy Chief Petty Officer Roland R. Pineau, of Berkley, Mich.

Navy Petty Officer 3rd Class Raul A. Guerra, of Los Angeles, Calif.
Pineau was buried on Oct. 8 in Arlington National Cemetery near Washington, D.C. The dates and locations of the funerals for the other servicemen are being set by their families. On Oct. 8, 1967, Zissu and Roggow were the pilots of an E-1B Tracer en route from Chu Lai Air Base, Vietnam, back to the aircraft carrier USS Oriskany. Also on board were Wolfe, Pineau and Guerra. Radar contact with the aircraft was lost approximately 10 miles northwest of Da Nang, Vietnam. Adverse weather hampered immediate search efforts, but three days later, a search helicopter spotted the wreckage of the aircraft on the face of a steep mountain in Da Nang Province. The location, terrain and hostile forces in the area precluded a ground recovery. In 1993 and 1994, human remains were repatriated to the United States by the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (S.R.V.) with information that linked the remains to unassociated losses in the same geographical area as this incident. Between 1993 and 2004, U.S/S.R.V. teams, all led by the Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command (JPAC), investigated the incident more than 15 times in Da Nang city and Thua Thien-Hue Province. Between 2004 and 2005, the joint teams surveyed and excavated the crash site where they recovered human remains and crew-related items. During the excavation in 2005, the on-site team learned that human remains may have been removed previously from the site. S.R.V. officials concluded that two Vietnamese citizens found and collected remains at the crash site, and possibly buried them near their residence in Hoi Mit village in Thua Thein-Hue Province. In 2006, another joint U.S./S.R.V. team excavated the suspected burial site in Hoi Mit village, but found no additional remains. In 2007, more remains associated with this incident were repatriated to the United States by S.R.V. officials.... defenselink.mil/ ... 14:31:36

Army Staff Sgt. Robin L. Towns Sr., 52, of Upper Marlboro, Md., died Oct 24 in Bayji, Iraq, of wounds suffered when an improvised explosive device detonated near his Humvee during combat operations. He was assigned to the 275th Military Police Company, 372nd Military Police Battalion, Washington, D.C. National Guard. defenselink.mil/ ... 14:31:23

Army Sgt. Edward O. Philpot, 38, of Latta, S.C., died Oct 23 in Afghanistan, from a non-combat related Humvee rollover accident. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 263rd Armor Regiment, South Carolina National Guard, Dillon, S.C. This incident is under investigation. defenselink.mil/ ... 14:31:04

Army Staff Sgt. Larry I. Rougle, 25, of West Jordan, Utah, died Oct. 23 in Sawtalo Sar Mountain, Kunar Province, Afghanistan, of wounds when he was engaged by enemy small arms fire during combat operations. He was assigned to 2nd Battalion, 503rd Airborne Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade Combat Team, Vicenza, Italy. defenselink.mil/ ... 14:29:47

Navy Seaman Anamarie Sannicolas Camacho, 20, of Panama City, Fla.

Navy Seaman Genesia Mattril Gresham, 19, of Lithonia, Ga.
died Oct. 22 in Bahrain during a non-combat related incident. Both sailors held the Master-at-Arms rating and were assigned to U.S. Naval Support Activity Bahrain. The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation.

Staying Healthyreuters.com/ ... 14:28:47A few nights without sleep can not only make people tired and emotional, but may actually put the brain into a primitive "fight or flight" state...

Virtual Future is Nownews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 14:27:05The growing number of toy-themed virtual worlds aimed at young people risks undermining the basic human values we wish to instil in children. So said industry veteran Lord Puttnam opening a London conference devoted to discussing virtual worlds. He feared that all children will learn from these virtual spaces is that they are first and foremost consumers. He urged creators to build more moral virtual worlds that instil in children the values that societies need...

Healing Ourselvesnews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 14:17:01Treatment for adrenoleukodystrophy has mainly involved bone marrow transplant, but this can be problematic due to lack of donors and rejection by the body. French doctors have now managed to modify the boys' own bone marrow... Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) is a rare inherited disorder that leads to progressive brain damage, failure of the adrenal gland and eventually death. It occurs because a flawed gene on the child's X chromosome means his body cannot produce an enzyme needed to break down fatty acids which can accumulate in the brain. There is no cure. "Lorenzo's Oil", a mixture of oleic acid and euric acid, is only really effective before the onset of symptoms...

Feeding Ourselvesnews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 14:16:10Organic produce is better for you than ordinary food, a major European Union-funded study says... contained more antioxidants and less fatty acids... But researchers did admit the study showed some variations...

Animal Culturenews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 14:11:51A clam dredged up off the coast of Iceland is thought to have been the longest-lived animal discovered. Scientists said the mollusc, an ocean quahog clam, was aged between 405 and 410 years and could offer insights into the secrets of longevity...

Science Marches Onnnnnnnews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 14:11:11US researchers have created exotic new versions of atomic nuclei including one previously thought to not exist. The three new isotopes of magnesium and aluminium suggest other heavy variants of everyday elements could be created...

Evolution Isn't Easynews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 14:10:56Some Neanderthals were probably redheads, a DNA study has shown...

Orbiting Overheadmyweb.cableone.net/ ... 14:06:58...Their joy turned to concern, however, when a rip was spotted in the second solar panel. NASA needs to get the tower up and running to prevent malfunctioning station equipment from delaying the addition of a much-anticipated European research lab. A massive rotary joint is supposed to make sure the solar panel wings on the right side of the space station are facing the sun. But the gear, which was installed in June, has been experiencing electrical current spikes for nearly two months... hosted.ap.org/ ... 14:04:06Oct 20... A giant leap is about to be made for womankind. When space shuttle Discovery blasts off Tuesday, a woman will be sitting in the commander's seat. And up at the international space station, a female skipper will be waiting to greet her...

Antiquity - still with usreuters.com/ ... 14:24:58A 3,000-year-old burial site in Vanuatu containing 60 headless skeletons and skulls in pots is helping end the mystery over colonization of the Pacific and the first Polynesians... enabled scientists to reconstruct the lives and habits of the seafaring Lapita people, who settled Vanuatu, New Caledonia, Fiji, Tonga and Samoa from Melanesian islands scattered to the west... hosted.ap.org/ ... 13:58:09U.S. and Puerto Rican archaeologists say they have found the best-preserved pre-Columbian site in the Caribbean, which could shed light on virtually every aspect of Indian life in the region, from sacred rituals to eating habits... stones etched with ancient petroglyphs that form a large plaza measuring some 130 feet by 160 feet, which could have been used for ball games or ceremonial rites... include the carving of a human figure with masculine features and frog legs... [probably the mascot...]

World Zookeepingnews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 13:55:27

New Zealand scientists have found what appears to be a cure for the disease that is responsible for wiping out many of the world's frog populations. Chloramphenicol, currently used as an eye ointment for humans, may be a lifesaver for the amphibians... frogs bathed in the solution became resistant to the killer disease, chytridiomycosis... blamed for the extinction of one-third of the 120 species lost since 1980... "And even when they were really sick in the control group, we managed to bring them back almost from the dead..."

Reasons for Repealkxoradio.com/ ... 15:52:29

Yuma Sector Border Patrol... three duffel bags full of marijuana... 124 pounds... $99,000... driver was only described as a U.S. citizen from Yuma... helenair.com/ ... 15:50:50

The nation’s DEA agents can sleep a little easier tonight. They now have one less medical marijuana patient to worry about policing. That’s because Montana’s leading medical marijuana patient-activist took her own life last week, a direct result of DEA actions earlier this year... freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/ ... 15:50:26

...Pretend that humankind made it all the way to the 21st century without alcohol or marijuana. (Perhaps this would not have been possible?) Now pretend that alcohol and marijuana are simultaneously discovered, and think about what kind of laws would be put in place, if any, to govern their use. My guess is that the alcohol laws might be tougher than they are now and that the marijuana laws might be more lenient — but, again, I am only guessing. The alcohol vs. marijuana question is so speculative as to be nearly useless beyond a thought experiment. So we assembled a group of folks with expertise in this area and asked them a much more targeted pair of questions: Should marijuana be legalized in the U.S.? Why or why not?.. agi.it/ ... 15:49:31

A joke about marijuana let people think that the governor of California Arnold Schwarzenegger was about to open the debate on light drugs. But then, after the beginning of complaints, his spokeswoman had to specify that the comment should be seen as a joke. The ex Hollywood star had claimed in an interview given to the British edition of the GQ magazine that he has never used drugs, even if in the past he had confessed smoking marijuana (in a 1977 documentary - 'Pumping Iron' - he was portrayed with a joint in his hands). 'It is not a drug, it's a weed, my drug was pumping up in the gym...." [Termina$$h0!e]

Missingfoxnews.com/ ... 15:43:57Search teams continue to look for a Chicago mom who disappeared Sunday during a jog in a forest preserve. Alma Mendez, 39, a mother of three, was heard from on Sunday around 2 p.m. when she left a friend a voicemail saying she had something important to talk about...

It's Only Moneyhosted.ap.org/ ... 14:56:36WINDBER, Pa... Piles of old coins worth as much as $200,000 were found in a long-abandoned home, including scores that the owner had apparently thrown down a hole in the wall... some minted as early as 1793. Some are worth about $8,500...

Energyhosted.ap.org/ ... 14:43:15The latest estimates show 5 percent of electricity used in the United States goes to standby power, a phenomenon energy efficiency experts find all the more terrifying as energy prices rise and the planet warms. That amounts to about $4 billion a year...

People Dienews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 14:41:06One of Asia's most notorious warlords, Khun Sa, has died in the Burmese city of Rangoon. He had reportedly been suffering from diabetes and high blood pressure. After decades of guerrilla warfare against the Burmese government, largely funded by his drugs empire, Khun Sa signed a peace deal in 1996. He then retired to Rangoon, where he lived under the protection of the military rulers, despite the US offering $2m (£1m) for his capture...

Big Brotherhosted.ap.org/ ... 14:28:02OMAHA, Neb... A Nebraska couple sued state health officials Thursday, arguing their rights were violated when their newborn baby was seized by sheriff's deputies so a mandatory blood test could be performed... "This is a classic case of the government overreaching and violating a family's constitutional rights," said Jeff Downing, the couple's attorney...

Digital Culturenews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 14:46:21Internet Service Providers urgently need to roll out the next generation of net addresses for online devices, internet pioneer Vint Cerf has said. Every device that goes online is allocated a unique IP address but the pool of numbers is finite and due to run out around 2010. A new system, called IPv6, has been awaiting roll out for 10 years. Unless IPv6 is switched on in the coming years, some devices might not be able to go online, Mr Cerf has warned... hosted.ap.org/ ... 14:44:20A bill to extend a moratorium on Internet access taxes for seven years was approved 402-0 by the House Tuesday, less than two days before it was set to expire. The House initially approved a four-year ban, but last week the Senate passed a seven-year prohibition, despite considerable support for a permanent ban... news.bbc.co.uk/ ... 14:26:41Microsoft has invested $240m (£117m) in social networking site Facebook in exchange for a 1.6% share of the company. That puts a value of $15bn (£7.3bn) on a firm that has only been in existence three and a half years. So why does Microsoft think Facebook is worth $15bn? Here are 15 possible reasons... hosted.ap.org/ ... 14:26:20Like a "411" for the Internet, Whois contains information such as names and phone numbers on the owners of millions of ".com" and other Internet addresses. Bohannon and his staff at the Software and Information Industry Association rely on the free databases daily in their efforts to combat theft and fraud. Law-enforcement officials, trademark lawyers and journalists, as well as spammers, also use it regularly... Nonetheless, some privacy advocates are proposing scrapping the system entirely because they can't agree with the people who use the system on how to give domain name owners more options when they register - such as designating third-party agents. Privacy advocates say individuals shouldn't have to reveal personal information simply to have a Web site... hosted.ap.org/ ... 14:25:34In the 1970s, Vint Cerf played a leading role in developing the Internet's technical foundation. For the past seven years, he's faced the more daunting task of leading a key agency that oversees his creation. After fending off an international rebellion and planting the seeds for streamlining operations, Cerf is stepping down this week as chairman of the Internet Corporation of Assigned Names and Numbers. "My sentence is up," Cerf said with his characteristic sense of humor, which he and others credit for helping him steer the organization through several high-profile battles from which it emerged more stable and stronger...

But is it Art?news.bbc.co.uk/ ... 14:11:33A 16 billion pixel image of Leonardo da Vinci's Last Supper has been posted on the internet, giving art lovers a detailed view of the 15th Century work... 1,600 times more detailed than those taken with a typical 10 million pixel digital camera...

Modern Culturehosted.ap.org/ ... 14:08:22SHARON, Ga.... The most important rule at this remote vacation spot is simple: no white light. Even a sliver of the pupil-contracting rays coming from the window of a cabin at Deerlick Astronomy Village could ruin a neighbor's view of the Milky Way. The 96-acre village in rural Taliaferro County in eastern Georgia is designed for amateur stargazers looking for total darkness and wide-open spaces to build weekend homes...

Monarchy is Deadnews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 13:53:52The declaration issued by Nepal's reinstated House of Representatives this week on the future of the country is much more than a piece of paper... In the most far-flung districts, people were glued to their radios on Thursday, witnessing the dismantling of ancient, feudalistic ties... Since before the Shah dynasty took power, kings here have been regarded as incarnations of the Hindu god, Vishnu. Many still believe this. But factors such as the 2001 royal massacre have undermined the belief, and now parliament has abolished Nepal's status as a Hindu kingdom, making it secular... news.bbc.co.uk/ ... 13:53:02Parliament in Nepal is due to debate a call for the abolition of the country's 240-year-old monarchy. The Maoist former rebels want a republic to be declared before constituent assembly elections...

Sportsmanshipnews.bbc.co.uk/ ... 13:48:27Oct 29... The Boston Red Sox have won the baseball World Series, defeating the Colorado Rockies 4-3 in a four game sweep of the best-of-seven series...

Look Who's Talking!news.bbc.co.uk/ ... 13:47:04Oct 26... Russian President Vladimir Putin has compared US plans for a missile shield in Europe to the Cuban missile crisis of the 1960s...