“Zero Dark Thirty” hits the U.K.: did critics zero in on torture scenes?

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) – “Zero Dark Thirty” landed this week in the United Kingdom, where the Kathryn Bigelow drama continued to stir debate over its depiction of the use of torture in the CIA’s decade-long hunt for Osama bin Laden.

As they have in the U.S., some critics accused the filmmakers of implying that enhanced interrogation techniques could be a useful form of intelligence gathering, while others believed that Bigelow and screenwriter Mark Boal were more ambiguous in their portrayal of torture’s efficacy.

Most reviewers were floored by the propulsive storyline, the performance of star Jessica Chastain and the gripping dramatization of the raid on bin Laden’s compound in Pakistan.

In the Evening Standard, David Sexton argues that the film is ambivalent about waterboarding and other brutal methods, noting that a key piece of information is only discovered after interrogators ply a detainee with food and kindness.

“This has proved offensive to those who, to avoid having to accept there may be negative consequences from taking the moral high ground, prefer to believe that torture must always be ineffective as well as wrong,” Sexton writes. “Some of these critics – most notably nitwit Naomi Wolf, who has tastefully compared Bigelow to Leni Riefensthal and dubbed her ‘torture’s handmaiden’ – have claimed the film’s disturbing representation of torture amounts to a blithe commendation of the practice, not really a possible interpretation for those who have actually seen the movie.”

In a four-star review, Sexton went on to hail “Zero Dark Thirty” as “terrifically good” and said the depiction of the raid was a “masterclass in action filmmaking.”

In The Independent, Anthony Quinn praised the film for avoiding simplistic conclusions about America’s controversial interrogation methods.

“The waterboarding, the beatings, the dog collars, all the stuff you’ve heard about is here, and perhaps some you haven’t – the spectacle of a man being forced inside a small wooden box is as harrowing as any,” Quinn writes. “Is this an abhorrent crime? Would the information be impossible to gain by other means? The film isn’t saying either way; it is asking us to make up our own minds.”

Quinn also argued that the film is more effective because it was directed by a woman and that because of her gender, Bigelow has a less “gung-ho” relationship to violence than a Ridley Scott or Michael Mann might bring to the same material (he may not have seen “Point Break”)

Robbie Collins maintains in his review of the film in the Telegraph that Bigelow and Boal leave it to audiences to decide whether torture is right or wrong.

“These scenes are every bit as hellish to watch as they should be, and Bigelow’s genius is to make them feel at once gratuitous and necessary,” Collins writes.

He also praised the film for eschewing jingoism and for having the courage to end on a deflated note.

“Where, then, does Zero Dark Thirty leave us?” Collins asks.

“In the same place it leaves Maya: with our thirst for justice quenched, but our sense of rightness shaken. “Where do you want to go?” a pilot asks her, and she starts shedding tear after tear. This, finally, is what victory looks like, and its likeness to defeat is terrifying.”

Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian was more unsettled by the film’s relationship with torture and seemed to wish it had taken a firmer position.

“There is nothing in Zero Dark Thirty comparable to Gavin Hood’s soul-searching 2007 movie, Rendition, in which Jake Gyllenhaal’s CIA agent denounces waterboarding information as valueless; he quotes Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice and says torture victims ‘speak upon the rack,/ Where men enforced do speak anything,’” Bradshaw writes. “I can well believe that, but for me the most sinister depiction of torture is non-depiction. Many Hollywood movies about the war on terror have managed to ignore the subject, implying non-existence. Despite its fence-sitting, I prefer Bigelow’s account.”

Bradshaw was also less enamored of the film on an artistic level, writing that “It is well made, with a relentless, dour drumbeat of tension and a great final sequence, but nowhere near as good as the first season of Homeland.”

Empire Magazine’s Kim Newman mostly skirted the political debate surrounding “Zero Dark Thirty,” but was ecstatic about Bigelow’s directing, the film’s pacing and star turns.

“Like Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker, it’s a relatively new kind of American patriotic war movie, counterprogramming jaded paranoid fantasies like the Bourne movies or the liberal horror stories (Redacted, Rendition, In The Valley Of Elah, Green Zone etc.) thrown up by the War On Terror,” Newman writes. “It’s measured, seething with suppressed emotion, unafraid of slow stretches and false trails, snapping shut like a mantrap when blood is shed. If it grips in a more intellectual, journalistic manner than its Oscar-winning predecessor, it’s because Chastain’s character is necessarily absent during the climax – though she has a terrific post-traumatic outburst when the case is closed.”

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Osborne: HS2 is engine for growth

28 January 2013 Last updated at 08:39 ET

George Osborne: “I think it is the engine for growth in the north and the midlands”

The HS2 high-speed rail network will be an “engine for growth” for the north of England and the Midlands, the chancellor has said.

George Osborne admitted the £32bn project was expensive and would take many years, but said it would create “tens of thousands of jobs”.

But critics say the plan is flawed.

Some argue that there is little evidence to suggest the introduction of the line will help reduce regional inequalities in the country.

The first phase of the high-speed rail project will link London to Birmingham. Now the government has announced that its preferred route for phase two will run northwards along two branches – one to Manchester and Manchester Airport; the other to Toton near Nottingham, and then on to Sheffield and Leeds.

Heal the divide?

Mr Osborne’s fellow Conservative MP, Andrew Bridgen, said his North West Leicestershire constituency would have “all the pain and none of the gain”.

Continue reading the main story

Jayne McCubbin Economics and social affairs correspondent, BBC North West Tonight

---

This morning all roads to Manchester were gridlocked. As usual. All snarled up, a nasty mess of lorries and commuters.

There’s a huge infrastructure problem here. Freight has increased 60% since 1995. There simply isn’t enough rail capacity to shift it off the roads.

But what if there was an additional rail line to London? HS2 as well as the West Coast main line. North West-based haulage giant Eddie Stobart says the increase in capacity would transform its business. In doing so, it might also transform many people’s commute.

And hey presto, the region’s moving again. Or so the theory goes. It’s about keeping people, parts and products on the move.

But what about the businessman who told me he’d leave Warrington if HS2 didn’t stop at his town? There may also be economic losers if it gets businesses relocating too.

“It’s going to cut my constituency north to south, destroy lots of countryside and put fear and planning paralysis to a lot of my communities.”

Mr Osborne acknowledged that “you can’t build a brand new railway line without having some impact on families” but added that there would be “a very generous compensation scheme”.

On Sunday, Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg suggested that the extension of the high-speed rail line would “heal the north-south divide”.

But Prof John Tomaney from the School of Planning at University College London (UCL) said that, given the evidence in countries where high-speed lines have been introduced, such as France, Spain and South Korea, there was very little evidence of reducing regional inequalities.

“On the contrary, in fact the evidence seems to suggest that it’s the capital cities which gain principally from these developments,” he told the BBC.

“A very good example would be the Madrid to Seville line in Spain. That line was built in order to promote the growth of Seville. But in actual fact, following its completion, Madrid grew at a much faster rate than Seville.

“In fact the gap between their economic performances widened. The relationship between Seoul and Busan [in South Korea] is very similar.”

Regeneration debate

Music mogul and rail enthusiast Pete Waterman said that HS2 would regenerate major areas of Britain.

“Just look at what the Olympics did for parts of South East London – some people complain about the cost, but the area has been completely transformed. The same will happen [with the HS2 hubs],” he told the BBC.

But Richard Wellings from the Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA) disputed this.

“If you look at somewhere like Doncaster, which has had a very fast link to London for decades now, it still remains one of the poorest towns in the UK. If you compare its policy statistics with neighbouring boroughs that don’t have the same links to London, they’re very similar.”

‘Economic error’

There have been many estimates of the economic benefits of HS2.

The HS2 business case, put forward by the Department for Transport in February 2011, concluded that phase one, from London to the West Midlands, would generate £20bn in economic welfare benefits, mostly as a result of time savings to business travellers.

The total benefits for the whole network were estimated at £44bn, although the accountants KPMG put their estimate much lower, saying HS2 could boost annual economic output between £17bn and £29bn in 2040.

According to the government, phase one would create about 40,000 jobs. That includes a potential 30,000 jobs in “planned employment growth” around the high-speed rail stations, 9,000 in construction of the line and 1,500 in the operation of the trains.

But groups who oppose HS2 say the business case is based on unrealistic assumptions – that projections do not take into account competition from conventional rail – and question the strategic benefits.

A separate study by KPMG, commissioned by the West Midlands Integrated Transport Authority (Centro), found that HS2 would add some £1.5bn in gross value to the West Midlands, the equivalent of a £300 rise in average wages.

IEA Deputy Editorial Director, Richard Wellings questions the business case for High Speed 2.

But the IEA’s Mr Wellings said the government was making “a basic economic error” with HS2.

“It’s not just the basic cost of around £33bn, there’ll also be loads of add-ons – leaking infrastructure around the stations, the huge regeneration schemes that will be taxpayer funded – the kind of thing we saw along the route of HS1.

“So this is very, very bad news for taxpayers and the wider economy,” he told the BBC.

But the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) said projects like HS2 created “confidence, jobs and competitiveness”.

And Sir Richard Leese, chair of Manchester City Council, said that while high-speed rail did not guarantee growth, it would give both major cities and smaller towns in the north “a better chance”.

“Fundamentally in the north of England it’s not about speed, although shorter journeys are better for the economy, it is about capacity. It’s about more capacity for passengers and more capacity for freight as well.”

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Money fears vs. real benefits in Medicaid choice

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama thinks his health care law makes states an offer they can’t refuse.

Whether to expand Medicaid, the federal-state program for the poor and disabled, could be the most important decision facing governors and legislatures this year. The repercussions go beyond their budgets, directly affecting the well-being of residents and the finances of critical hospitals.

Here’s the offer:

If states expand their Medicaid programs to cover millions of low-income people now left out, the federal government will pick up the full cost for the first three years and 90 percent over the long haul.

About 21 million uninsured people, most of them adults, eventually would gain health coverage if all the states agree.

Adding up the Medicaid costs under the law, less than $ 100 billion in state spending could trigger nearly $ 1 trillion in federal dollars over a decade, according to the nonpartisan Urban Institute.

“It’s the biggest expansion of Medicaid in a long time, and the biggest ever in terms of adults covered,” said Mark McClellan, who ran Medicare and Medicaid when George W. Bush was president.

“Although the federal government is on the hook for most of the cost, Medicaid on the whole is one of the biggest items in state budgets and the fastest growing. So there are some understandable concerns about the financial implications and how implementation would work,” McClellan said.

A major worry for states is that deficit-burdened Washington sooner or later will renege on the 90-percent deal. The regular Medicaid match rate averages closer to 50 percent. That would represent a significant cost shift to the states.

Many Republicans also are unwilling to keep expanding government programs, particularly one as complicated as Medicaid, which has a reputation for being inefficient and unwieldy.

Awaiting decisions are people such as Debra Walker of Houston, a part-time home health care provider. She had a good job with health insurance until she got laid off in 2007.

Walker was recently diagnosed with diabetes, and she’s trying to manage by getting discounted medications through a county program for low-income uninsured people.

Walker estimates she earned about $ 10,000 last year, which means she would qualify under the income cutoff for the Medicaid expansion. But that could happen only if Gov. Rick Perry, R-Texas, reconsiders his opposition.

“I think that would be awesome if the governor would allow that program to come into the state,” Walker said. “That would be a help for me, robbing Paul to pay Peter for my medicines.”

She seems determined to deal with her diabetes problem. “I don’t want to lose a limb later on in life,” said Walker, 58. “I want to beat this. I don’t want to carry this around forever.”

As Obama’s law was originally written, low-income people such as Walker would not have had to worry or wait. Roughly half the uninsured people gaining coverage under the law were expected to go into Medicaid. The middle-class uninsured would get taxpayer-subsidized private coverage in new insurance markets called exchanges.

But last year the Supreme Court gave states the right to opt out of the Medicaid expansion. The court upheld the rest of the law, including insurance exchanges and a mandate that virtually everyone in the United States have health coverage, or face a fine.

The health care law will go into full effect next Jan. 1, and states are scrambling to crunch the numbers and understand the Medicaid trade-offs.

States can refuse the expansion outright or indefinitely postpone a decision. But if states think they’ll ultimately end up taking the deal, there’s a big incentive to act now: The three years of full federal funding for newly eligible enrollees are only available from 2014 through 2016.

So far, 17 states and the District of Columbia have said they’ll take it. That group includes three Republican-led states, Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico. Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer was prominent among GOP leaders who had tried get the law overturned.

An additional 11 states, all led by Republicans, say they want no part of it. Perry says it tramples states’ rights.

The remaining states are considering options.

In some cases, GOP governors are trying to persuade balky legislatures led by Republicans. Hospitals treating the uninsured are pressing for the expansion, as are advocates for the poor and some chambers of commerce, which see an economic multiplier from the infusion of federal dollars. Conservative foes of “Obamacare,” defeated at the national level, want to hold the line.

The entire debate is overshadowed by some big misconceptions, including that the poor already have Medicaid.

Many of them do, but not all. Medicaid generally covers low-income disabled people, children, pregnant women and some parents. Childless adults are left out in most states.

The other misconception is that Medicaid is so skimpy that people are better off being uninsured.

Two recent studies debunked that.

One found a 6 percent drop in the adult death rate in states that already have expanded Medicaid along the lines of the federal health care law. A second looked at Oregonians who won a lottery for Medicaid and compared them with ones who weren’t picked and remained uninsured. The Medicaid group had greater access to health care, less likelihood of being saddled with medical bills, and felt better about their overall health.

Skeptics remain unconvinced.

Louisiana’s health secretary, Bruce D. Greenstein, is concerned that the Medicaid expansion could replace private insurance for many low-wage workers in his state, dragging down quality throughout the health care system because the program pays doctors and hospitals far less than private insurance. He says the Obama administration and Congress missed a chance to overhaul Medicaid and give states a bigger say in running the program.

“Decisions are made by fiat,” he said. “There is not any sense of a federal-state partnership, what this program was founded on. I don’t feel in any way that I am a partner.” The Obama administration says it is doing its best to meet state demands for flexibility.

But one thing the administration has been unwilling to do is allow states to partly expand their Medicaid programs and still get the generous matching funds provided by the health care law.

That could have huge political implications for states refusing the expansion, and for people such as Walker, the diabetes patient from Houston.

These numbers explain why:

Under the new law people making up to 138 percent of the federal poverty line, about $ 15,400 for an individual, are eligible to be covered by Medicaid.

But for most people below the poverty line, about $ 11,200 for an individual, Medicaid would be the only option. They cannot get subsidized private coverage through the new health insurance exchanges.

So if a state turns down the Medicaid expansion, some of its low-income people still can qualify for government-subsidized health insurance through the exchanges. But the poorest cannot.

In Texas, somebody making a couple of thousand dollars more than Debra Walker still could get coverage. But Walker would be left depending on pay-as-you-go charity care.

“It’s completely illogical that this has happened,” said Edwin Park, a health policy expert with the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, which advocates for low-income people.

Federal officials say their hands are tied, that Congress intended the generous federal matching rate solely for states undertaking the full expansion. States doing a partial expansion would have to shell out more of their own money.

“Some people are going to be between a rock and a hard spot,” said Walker.

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Tiger headed toward another win at Torrey

SAN DIEGO (AP) — The Pacific air was so cold at the end of a 10-hour day at Torrey Pines that Tiger Woods thrust both hands in the front pockets of his rain pants as he walked off the course at the Farmers Insurance Open.

It was a fitting image. Woods made a marathon day look like he was out for a stroll.

Staked to a two-shot lead going into the third round of this fog-delayed tournament, Woods drove the ball where he was aiming and was hardly ever out of position. Even with a bogey on the final hole — the easiest on the back nine — Woods still had a 3-under 69 and expanded his lead by two shots.

In the seven holes he played in the fourth round later Sunday afternoon, Woods hit the ball all over the course and still made three birdies to add two more strokes to his lead.

Thanks to the fog that wiped out an entire day of golf on Saturday, the Farmers Insurance Open didn't stand a chance of finishing on Sunday.

Woods just made it look like it was over.

He had a six-shot lead with 11 holes to play going into the conclusion of the final round on Monday. The two guys chasing him were Brandt Snedeker, the defending champion, and Nick Watney, who won at Torrey Pines in 2008. Neither was waving a white flag. Both understood how much the odds were stacked against them.

"I've got a guy at the top of the leaderboard that doesn't like giving up leads," Snedeker said. "So I have to go catch him."

"All we can do tomorrow is go out and try to make him think about it a little bit and see what happens," Watney said.

And then there was Erik Compton, a two-time heart transplant recipient who had a birdie-eagle finish in the third round that put him in third place through 54 holes, still five shots behind Woods. Someone asked Compton about trying to chase Woods. He laughed.

"I'm trying to chase myself," he said.

Woods was at 17-under par for the tournament, and more than just a six-shot lead was in his corner.

He finished the third round at 14-under 202, making it the 16th time on the PGA Tour that he had at least a four-shot lead going into the final round. His record on the PGA Tour with the outright lead after 54 holes is 38-2, the exceptions being Ed Fiori in 1996 when Woods was a 20-year-old rookie and Y.E. Yang in the 2009 PGA Championship.

Woods attributed his big lead to the "whole package."

"I've driven the ball well, I've hit my irons well, and I've chipped and putted well," he said. "Well, I've hit good putts. They all haven't gone in."

Woods has a good history of Monday finishes, starting with Torrey Pines. It was on this course along the coast north of La Jolla that Woods won a 19-hole playoff against Rocco Mediate to capture the 2008 U.S. Open for his 14th major.

He also won the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am on a Monday in 2000 when he rallied from seven shots behind with seven holes to play. He won his lone title in The Players Championship on a Monday, along with a five-shot win in the Memorial in 2000, and a scheduled Monday finish in the Deutsche Bank Championship outside Boston.

Woods even gets to sleep in.

A Monday finish because of weather typically resumes in the morning so players can get to the next tournament. CBS Sports, however, decided it wanted to televise the conclusion, and so play won't begin until 2 p.m. EST. That decision might have been based on Woods being headed toward victory — just a hunch.

Woods already has won seven times at Torrey Pines, including the U.S. Open. That matches his PGA Tour record at Bay Hill and Firestone (Sam Snead won the Greensboro Open eight times, four each on a different course).

The tournament isn't over, and Woods doesn't see it that way.

"I've got to continue with executing my game plan. That's the idea," he said. "I've got 11 holes to play, and I've got to play them well."

He seized control with his 69 in the third round that gave him a four-shot lead, and he might have put this away in the two hours he played before darkness stopped play.

He badly missed the first fairway to the left, but had a gap through the Torrey pines to the green and had a two-putt par. He missed his next shot so far to the left that the ball wound up in the first cut of the adjacent sixth fairway. He still managed a simple up-and-down for par.

After a 10-foot birdie on the par-3 third, Woods couldn't afford to go left off the tee again because of the PGA Tour's largest water hazard — the Pacific Ocean. So he went miles right, beyond a cart path, a tree blocking his way to the green. He hit a cut shot that came up safely short of the green, and then chipped in from 40 feet for birdie.

"I was able to play those holes in 2-under par," Woods said. "And then I hit three great drives right in a row."

One of them wasn't that great — it was in the right rough, the ball so buried that from 214 yards that Woods hit a 5-wood. It scooted down the fairway and onto the green, setting up a two-putt birdie the stretched his lead to six shots. And after another good drive, the horn sounded to stop play. Because it was due to weather, Woods was able to finish the hole, and he two-putted for par.

Eleven holes on Monday were all that were keeping him from his 75th career win on the PGA Tour, and delivering a message to the rest of golf that there could be more of this to follow no matter what the golf course.

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Women in infantry: Tough challenge?

Hospital Corpsman Shannon Crowley packs for a mission as Lance Cpl.. Kristi Baker sits on her bed in 2010 in Afghanistan.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Maren Leed: Ban on women in combat has hurt operations, women's promotion


• Leed: Integrating women into the physically demanding infantry presents challenges


• Women are already in combat; she says, the "front line" and "rear line" no longer exist


• Leed: Research into women in infantry might show that some limits might be appropriate

Editor's note: Maren Leed is senior adviser, Harold Brown Chair in defense policy studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. From 2011 to 2012, she served as senior adviser to the chief of staff of the U.S. Army. Follow the Center for Strategic and International Studies on Twitter.

(CNN) -- In the coming years, lifting the ban on women in combat, announced Thursday by Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, might prove particularly challenging in the most iconic of military occupations -- the infantry, among the most physically demanding and tradition-bound branches of the Marines and the Army.

Determining the best path forward to integrate women into this elite group will require hard-nosed honesty, careful management and compelling leadership.

For the 65 years that women have enjoyed a permanent place in the United States military, they have been subject to restrictions. One rationale is the notion embedded in our culture that women should be shielded from great physical risks. Another is a recognition of the physical superiority of the average male over the average female. A third is the fear that unit cohesion, critical to military performance, would suffer with the introduction of women.

Maren Leed

These three concerns apply to varying degrees in the infantry. But the last 11 years of war have clearly demonstrated that warfare is no longer waged in a linear fashion, and that the concept of "front line" no longer applies.

Opinion: A more equal military? Bring back draft

Historically, logistics operations were conducted "in the rear," where risks were comparatively low. This has changed: In 2006 in Iraq, for example, one in every five truck convoys was attacked. Although infantry clearly remains one of the most dangerous military occupations, the proliferation of homemade bombs and other low-cost, lethal weaponry and tactics have heightened the risk of almost every occupation. War is more uniformly dangerous.

That said, physical differences between the sexes remains a thorny issue. Determining gender-neutral physical standards for an integrated infantry will be one of the most difficult tasks ahead.

Infantry soldiers and Marines are the primary forces for operations on foot. They not only travel long distances, but also frequently carry loads in excess of 50 pounds. Both the short- and long-term health effects of such demands can be significant.

Single mom fought alongside combat troops in Afghanistan

The Defense Department has consistently pursued solutions to lighten the load, from exoskeletons to unmanned vehicles that would serve as "pack mules," to the elusive quest for higher power, lower weight batteries.

The success of these efforts will benefit both men and women. But until that happens, research into the effects these physical demands have on women is necessary before determining the degree to which they can, and should, be part of the full range of infantry.

Whether men serving in the infantry will accept women as peers is another open question.

Those who oppose women in the infantry argue that they would change group dynamics, disrupt bonding and ultimately harm unit cohesion. In the past, these fears have been brought up regarding the participation of minorities and homosexuals, too. But data show these negative predictions don't come true. Instead, successful integration has happened with strong leadership, and, critically, a process that is broadly perceived to be fair.

Opinion: Women in combat a dangerous experiment

Even if the arguments underpinning the ban on women in combat have weakened, is there sufficient justification for change? The Joint Chiefs apparently believe so, as they have unanimously recommended the ban be lifted.

Each of the services already has been taking steps along these lines. This is in part driven by the evolution of the battlefield. When today's senior leaders were serving time in Iraq and Afghanistan, they realized that the restrictions on women sometimes also restricted their missions.

They implemented work-arounds and sought exceptions to policy. But they came home with firsthand experience of the mismatch between modern warfare and the policies limiting women's role. Women are in combat, and senior military leaders believe that future success demands they must remain available to be so, in even greater numbers.

From the institutional viewpoint, there are also concerns that the traditional limitations fail to make the best use of women in the service. Combat experience weighs heavily in promotion decisions, and restrictions have precluded women from gaining experiences equal to those of male counterparts.

Women are also excluded from many of the occupations disproportionately represented in senior leadership, and that automatically limits the number of women who can advance to the highest levels. At the same time, the pool of Americans eligible for military service is shrinking, and competition for high-quality recruits is intensifying. So it's imperative that the military fully leverage the talent of the men and women it has and that it seeks to attract.

By the numbers: Women in the U.S. military

The arguments in favor of lifting the ban on women in combat outweigh those against it. Despite Defense Secretary Leon Panetta's announcement on Thursday, the military services maintain the prerogative to preclude women from serving in certain positions or occupations.

Infantry, or at least some specialties within that branch, could well be a case in which restrictions are warranted. But military leaders have time to evaluate this proposition, and to set the conditions to make any change stick. The path ahead may not be smooth, but it is necessary.

Follow us on Twitter @CNNOpinion.

Join us on Facebook/CNNOpinion.

The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Maren Leed.

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‘Argo’ wins Producers Guild Awards

LOS ANGELES (AP) — “Argo” continues to shake up the Oscar race by taking the top honor at the Producers Guild Awards on Saturday.

Ben Affleck, coming off winning Golden Globe Awards for best motion picture drama and director for the real-life drama, received the award handed out at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

“I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention that I’m still working as an actor,” he said in his acceptance speech.

Affleck also stars in “Argo” as the CIA operative who orchestrated a daring rescue of six American embassy employees during the 1979 Iranian hostage crisis. George Clooney and Grant Heslov share the producer award with Affleck as “Argo” beat out the Civil War saga “Lincoln,” which has a leading 12 Academy Awards nominations.

Other nominees in the PGA movie category were “Les Miserables,” ”Zero Dark Thirty,” ”Beasts of the Southern Wild,” ”Django Unchained,” ”Life of Pi,” ”Moonrise Kingdom,” ”Silver Linings Playbook,” and Skyfall.”

Along with honors from other Hollywood professional groups such as actors, directors and writers guilds, the producer prizes have become part of the preseason sorting out contenders for Academy Awards.

The big winner often goes on to claim the best-picture honor at the Oscars on Feb. 24.

Disney’s “Wreck-It Ralph” won the guild’s animation category, beating “Brave,” ”Frankenweenie,” ”ParaNorman” and “Rise of the Guardians.”

“Searching for Sugar Man” took the documentary prize, beating “A People Uncounted,” ”The Gatekeepers,” ”The Island President,” and “The Other Dream Team.”

Showtime’s “Homeland” won the producer’s award for television drama series, which beat out “Breaking Bad,” ”Downton Abbey,” ”Game of Thrones,” and “Mad Men.”

The ABC sitcom “Modern Family” took the prize for best comedy series for the third straight year, beating “30 Rock,” ”The Big Bang Theory,” ”Curb Your Enthusiasm,” and “Louie.”

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Wall Street Week Ahead: Bears hibernate as stocks near record highs

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks have been on a tear in January, moving major indexes within striking distance of all-time highs. The bearish case is a difficult one to make right now.

Earnings have exceeded expectations, the housing and labor markets have strengthened, lawmakers in Washington no longer seem to be the roadblock that they were for most of 2012, and money has returned to stock funds again.

The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.spx> has gained 5.4 percent this year and closed above 1,500 - climbing to the spot where Wall Street strategists expected it to be by mid-year. The Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> is 2.2 percent away from all-time highs reached in October 2007. The Dow ended Friday's session at 13,895.98, its highest close since October 31, 2007.

The S&P has risen for four straight weeks and eight consecutive sessions, the longest streak of days since 2004. On Friday, the benchmark S&P 500 ended at 1,502.96 - its first close above 1,500 in more than five years.

"Once we break above a resistance level at 1,510, we dramatically increase the probability that we break the highs of 2007," said Walter Zimmermann, technical analyst at United-ICAP, in Jersey City, New Jersey. "That may be the start of a rise that could take equities near 1,800 within the next few years."

The most recent Reuters poll of Wall Street strategists estimated the benchmark index would rise to 1,550 by year-end, a target that is 3.1 percent away from current levels. That would put the S&P 500 a stone's throw from the index's all-time intraday high of 1,576.09 reached on October 11, 2007.

The new year has brought a sharp increase in flows into U.S. equity mutual funds, and that has helped stocks rack up four straight weeks of gains, with strength in big- and small-caps alike.

That's not to say there aren't concerns. Economic growth has been steady, but not as strong as many had hoped. The household unemployment rate remains high at 7.8 percent. And more than 75 percent of the stocks in the S&P 500 are above their 26-week highs, suggesting the buying has come too far, too fast.

MUTUAL FUND INVESTORS COME BACK

All 10 S&P 500 industry sectors are higher in 2013, in part because of new money flowing into equity funds. Investors in U.S.-based funds committed $3.66 billion to stock mutual funds in the latest week, the third straight week of big gains for the funds, data from Thomson Reuters' Lipper service showed on Thursday.

Energy shares <.5sp10> lead the way with a gain of 6.6 percent, followed by industrials <.5sp20>, up 6.3 percent. Telecom <.5sp50>, a defensive play that underperforms in periods of growth, is the weakest sector - up 0.1 percent for the year.

More than 350 stocks hit new highs on Friday alone on the New York Stock Exchange. The Dow Jones Transportation Average <.djt> recently climbed to an all-time high, with stocks in this sector and other economic bellwethers posting strong gains almost daily.

"If you peel back the onion a little bit, you start to look at companies like Precision Castparts , Honeywell , 3M Co and Illinois Tool Works - these are big, broad-based industrial companies in the U.S. and they are all hitting new highs, and doing very well. That is the real story," said Mike Binger, portfolio manager at Gradient Investments, in Shoreview, Minnesota.

The gains have run across asset sizes as well. The S&P small-cap index <.spcy> has jumped 6.7 percent and the S&P mid-cap index <.mid> has shot up 7.5 percent so far this year.

Exchange-traded funds have seen year-to-date inflows of $15.6 billion, with fairly even flows across the small-, mid- and large-cap categories, according to Nicholas Colas, chief market strategist at the ConvergEx Group, in New York.

"Investors aren't really differentiating among asset sizes. They just want broad equity exposure," Colas said.

The market has shown resilience to weak news. On Thursday, the S&P 500 held steady despite a 12 percent slide in shares of Apple after the iPhone and iPad maker's results. The tech giant is heavily weighted in both the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 <.ndx> and in the past, its drop has suffocated stocks' broader gains.

JOBS DATA MAY TEST THE RALLY

In the last few days, the ratio of stocks hitting new highs versus those hitting new lows on a daily basis has started to diminish - a potential sign that the rally is narrowing to fewer names - and could be running out of gas.

Investors have also cited sentiment surveys that indicate high levels of bullishness among newsletter writers, a contrarian indicator, and momentum indicators are starting to also suggest the rally has perhaps come too far.

The market's resilience could be tested next week with Friday's release of the January non-farm payrolls report. About 155,000 jobs are seen being added in the month and the unemployment rate is expected to hold steady at 7.8 percent.

"Staying over 1,500 sends up a flag of profit taking," said Jerry Harris, president of asset management at Sterne Agee, in Birmingham, Alabama. "Since recent jobless claims have made us optimistic on payrolls, if that doesn't come through, it will be a real risk to the rally."

A number of marquee names will report earnings next week, including bellwether companies such as Caterpillar Inc , Amazon.com Inc , Ford Motor Co and Pfizer Inc .

On a historic basis, valuations remain relatively low - the S&P 500's current price-to-earnings ratio sits at 15.66, which is just a tad above the historic level of 15.

Worries about the U.S. stock market's recent strength do not mean the market is in a bubble. Investors clearly don't feel that way at the moment.

"We're seeing more interest in equities overall, and a lot of flows from bonds into stocks," said Paul Zemsky, who helps oversee $445 billion as the New York-based head of asset allocation at ING Investment Management. "We've been increasing our exposure to risky assets."

For the week, the Dow climbed 1.8 percent, the S&P 500 rose 1.1 percent and the Nasdaq advanced 0.5 percent.

(Reporting by Ryan Vlastelica; Additional reporting by Chuck Mikolajczak; Editing by Jan Paschal)

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Kuwait MPs target financial help for citizens

KUWAIT (Reuters) – A parliamentary committee in Kuwait proposed on Sunday that the government pay a portion of the interest on citizens’ personal loans and give a 1,000 Kuwaiti dinar ($ 3,500) gift to each Kuwaiti without such debts, state news agency KUNA reported.

The proposal from the financial and economic affairs committee, which is made up of members of parliament, would need approval of the wider assembly and the country’s ruler if it is to be passed into law.

Lawmakers elected in December had originally sought a complete bailout of billions of dollars of household debt but were met with strong resistance from policymakers who said the plans were not feasible.

If the proposal becomes law it would not be the first time that Kuwait, one of the world’s richest countries per capita, gives out such financial aid.

In 2011, to mark three major anniversaries, ruler Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah granted 1,000 dinars to each of the country’s 1.2 million citizens and as well as free food rations for 13 months.

Kuwait’s oil wealth and generous welfare state have helped to shield the Gulf country from severe Arab Spring-style unrest, although there have been frequent demonstrations over political participation and other local issues.

Under the plan proposed on Sunday, the government would pay off interest incurred on loans. KUNA said this applied to the period between January 2002 to April 2008, citing committee rapporteur Safa al-Hashem. ($ 1 = 0.2818 Kuwaiti dinars)

(Reporting by Sylvia Westall; Editing by Alison Birrane)

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Victoria Identifies New Gold Targets on the Dublin Gulch Property, Yukon

TORONTO, ONTARIO–(Marketwire – Jan 27, 2013) – Victoria Gold Corp. (TSX VENTURE:VIT) (“Victoria” or the “Company”) is pleased to report favorable results from early stage exploration on the newly staked VBW and VBS claim blocks. Victoria has discovered a 5 km long, east-west striking gold-in-soil trend on the western claims, returning up to 244 ppb Au (Figure 2). As a result, Victoria has identified multiple new gold targets for follow up exploration in 2013.

Reconnaissance mapping and soil geochemistry programs were initiated in 2012 to collect data in two areas that have not been explored in over 20 years. Historical exploration included mapping and sampling efforts done by the Yukon Geological Survey in the mid-1990s. These lands were staked by Victoria in November, 2011 as part of an Access and Exploration Agreement with the First Nation of Nacho Nyak Dun.

This ground covers an area of 290 km² (Figure 1 – shown in green).

To view “Figure 1. Dublin Gulch claim block with the VBW and VBS claims highlighted,” please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/victoria_gold_jan27_fig01.pdf

In September, 2012, 1942 ridge and spur soil samples were collected from the company”s VBW and VBS claim blocks. Results of the soil sampling program defined a 5 km long, east-west striking gold-in-soil (>20 ppb Au) and coincident As, Ag, Sb and Bi trend on the western claims, returning up to 244 ppb Au (Figure 2). The trend is proximal to and coincident with an area of quartz veined quartzite with local areas of heavily oxidized brecciated quartzite and associated en echelon quartz veins as well as several mapped faults. These positive indicators are hallmarks for identifying gold mineralization with favourable metallurgical recovery. Contact metamorphism in the sediments are evident extending 2km east-west in the vicinity of the highest soil values in VBW providing additional confidence the targets are of sufficient size to warrant a meaningful follow up exploration program.

The mapping program also delineated two outcropping intrusive bodies. One of these outcrops is located 1.5km north of the gold in soil trend and the other is located in the northwest quadrant of the VBW claim block. The intrusions are interpreted to be of similar character to the Dublin Gulch stock, which hosts the company”s Eagle gold deposit, located 15 km to the east.

To view “Figure 2. 2012 soil geochemistry results for the VBW and VBS claims,” please visit the following link: http://media3.marketwire.com/docs/victoria_gold_jan27_fig02.pdf

Mr. John McConnell, President and CEO of Victoria commented, “These results demonstrate the very large scale of the wider Dublin Gulch property and provide promising indications of gold mineralization adjacent to the company”s flagship Eagle Gold deposit.”

The company plans to follow up the results of this season”s program with an expanded geochemical sampling and mapping program, and a property-wide airborne geophysical survey to better delineate areas prospective for gold deposits. Reconnaissance drilling is planned to test the gold bearing targets identified during the 2012 program. The Victoria geological team is encouraged with the 2012 results and the prospect of discovering a new gold deposit in this relatively unexplored area.

About Victoria

Victoria Gold is an emerging gold producer whose flagship asset is its 100% owned Dublin Gulch property which hosts the Eagle Gold Deposit. Dublin Gulch is situated in central Yukon Territory, Canada, approximately 375 kilometers north of the capital city of Whitehorse. The property covers an area of approximately 650 square kilometers, is accessible by road year-round and is located within Yukon Energy”s electrical grid.

The Eagle Gold Deposit is expected to be Yukon”s next operating gold mine and includes Probable Reserves of 2.3 million ozs of gold from 92 million tonnes of ore with a grade of 0.78 grams of gold per tonne, as outlined in a National Instrument 43-101 definitive feasibility study. The NI 43-101 Compliant Mineral Resource has been estimated to host 222 million tonnes averaging 0.68 grams of gold per tonne, containing 4.9 million ounces of gold in the “Indicated” category, inclusive of Probable Reserves, and a further 78 million tonnes averaging 0.60 grams of gold per tonne, containing 1.5 million ounces of gold in the “Inferred” category.

Cautionary Language and Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes certain statements that may be deemed “forward-looking statements”. All statements in this discussion, other than statements of historical facts, that address future exploration drilling, exploration activities, anticipated metal production, internal rate of return, estimated ore grades, commencement of production estimates and projected exploration and capital expenditures (including costs and other estimates upon which such projections are based) and events or developments that the Company expects, are forward looking statements. Although the Company believes that the expectations expressed in such forward looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include: metal prices; exploration successes; continued availability of capital and financing; and general economic, market or business conditions. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

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Djokovic beats Murray for 3rd straight Aust. title

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Novak Djokovic became the first man in the Open era to win three consecutive Australian titles when he beat Andy Murray 6-7 (2), 7-6 (3), 6-3, 6-2 in Sunday's final.

Little wonder he loves Rod Laver Arena.

"It's definitely my favorite Grand Slam," he said. "It's an incredible feeling winning this trophy once more. I love this court."

Djokovic has won four of his six major titles at Melbourne Park, where he is now unbeaten in 21 matches.

Nine other men had won back-to-back titles in Australia over 45 years, but none were able to claim three in a row.

Only two other men, American Jack Crawford (1931-33) and Australian Roy Emerson (1963-67), have won three or more consecutive Australian championships.

Born a week apart in May 1987 and friends since their junior playing days, Djokovic and Murray played like they knew each other's game very well in a rematch of last year's U.S. Open final. There were no service breaks until the eighth game of the third set, when Djokovic finally broke through and then held at love to lead by two sets to one.

Djokovic earned two more service breaks in the fourth set, including one to take a 4-1 lead when U.S. Open champion Murray double-faulted on break point.

"It's been an incredible match as we could have expected," Djokovic said. "When we play each other, it's always, we push each other to the limit and I think those two sets went over two hours, 15 minutes, physically I was just trying to hang in there. Play my game and focus on every point."

The 25-year-old Serb didn't rip his shirt off this time, as he did to celebrate his epic 5-hour, 53-minute win over Rafael Nadal in last year's final. He just did a little dance, looked up to the sky and then applauded the crowd after the 3-hour, 40-minute match.

Murray's win over Djokovic in the U.S. Open final last year ended a 76-year drought for British men at the majors, but he still is yet to make a breakthrough in Australia after losing a third final here in the last four years.

Djokovic's win went against the odds of recent finals at Melbourne Park. In four of the past five years, the player who won the second of the semifinals has finished on top in the championship match. But this year, Djokovic played his semifinal on Thursday — an easy 89-minute minute win over No. 4-seeded David Ferrer. Murray needed five energy sapping sets to beat 17-time major winner Roger Federer on Friday night.

"You don't wake up the next day and feel perfect, obviously," Murray said of the Federer match. "It's the longest match I played in six months probably. It obviously wasn't an issue today. I started the match well. I thought I moved pretty good throughout."

The win consolidated Djokovic's position as the No. 1-ranked player in the world, while Federer and Murray will be second and third when the ATP rankings are released Monday.

Their last two matches in Grand Slams — Murray's five-set win at last year's U.S. Open and Djokovic's victory here last year in five in the semifinals — had a total of 35 service breaks.

It was a vastly different, more tactical battle on Sunday, with the first two tight sets decided in tiebreakers.

"All our matches in last three years have been decided in a very few points, so it's really hard to say if I've done anything different," Djokovic said. "I tried to be more aggressive. So I went for my shots, especially in the third and fourth; came to the net quite often. I was quite successful in that percentage, so it worked well for me."

Murray, who called for a trainer to retape blisters on his right foot at the end of the second set, was visibly annoyed by noise from the crowd during his service games in the third set, stopping his service motion twice until the crowd quieted down. After dropping the third set, he complained about the noise to chair umpire John Blom.

"It's just a bit sore when you're running around," Murray said. "It's not like pulling a calf muscle or something. It just hurts when you run."

Djokovic came from 0-40 down in the second game of the second set to hold his serve, something he called "definitely one of the turning points."

"He missed an easy backhand and I think mentally I just relaxed after that," Djokovic said. "I just felt I'm starting to get into the rhythm that I wanted to. I was little more aggressive and started to dictate the play."

Although Djokovic went into the match with a 10-7 lead in head-to-heads, Murray had beaten Djokovic five out of eight times in tiebreakers, and that improved to six of nine after four unforced errors by Djokovic to end the first set.

Djokovic pegged back that edge in the second set, when Murray also didn't help his cause by double-faulting to give Djokovic a 3-2 lead, and the Serbian player didn't trail again in the tiebreaker.

On the double-fault, Murray had to stop as he was about to serve to pick up a feather that had fallen on the court.

"I could have served, it just caught my eye before I served ... I thought it was a good idea to move it," he said.

"Maybe it wasn't because I obviously double faulted. At this level it can come down to just a few points here or there. My probably biggest chance was at the beginning of the second set; (I) didn't quite get it. When Novak had his chance at the end of the third, he got his."

Djokovic will have little time to savor the win — he's playing Davis Cup for Serbia next weekend against Belgium.

"It's going to be a lot of fun ... to see how I can adjust to clay court in indoor conditions, playing away Davis Cup, which is always tricky," he said.

Andre Agassi was among those in the capacity crowd — the four-time Australian champion's first trip Down Under in nearly 10 years — and he later presented the trophy to Djokovic.

Victoria Azarenka, who won Saturday's women's singles final over Li Na, was also there with her boyfriend rapper Redfoo. Actor Kevin Spacey met in the dressing room with both players ahead of the match and later tweeted a photo of himself with them.

In the earlier mixed doubles final Sunday, wild-card entrants Jarmila Gajdosova and Matthew Ebden of Australia beat the Czech pair of Lucie Hradecka and Frantisek Cermak 6-3, 7-5.

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