Couple Married for 71 Years Die Hours Apart

A husband and wife who eloped in 1942 and were married for more than seven decades died hours apart this week at a hospice in northern Illinois.

Family members say Robert and Nora Viands were inseparable during their marriage, which included three separate wedding ceremonies. Together, they raised five children.

"They were really never apart," said one of their daughters, Barb Milton. "They would hold hands in the dining room."

The two lived together in their home until moving to a Rockford retirement center earlier this year as their health deteriorated.

Robert Viands, who had been diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease, was 92 when he died around 12:45 a.m. Wednesday. Nora Viands, 88, died at 4:45 p.m. She'd been hospitalized with pneumonia in December.

Milton said that whenever the couple would go anywhere throughout their marriage, when their father decided it was time to leave he would tell his wife and be out the door. Robert would wait in the car while Nora would linger, saying her goodbyes.

"We joked (after Nora died) that he was tugging on her, saying 'Come on Nora,' and she said 'No, I have to say goodbye to the kids,'" Milton said.

The couple, who were originally from Ashland in central Illinois, met on a blind date. But family members say Nora wasn't initially smitten, and vowed not to go out with him again.

Robert, who was later drafted during World War II, persisted and the two went on a second date. They eventually eloped to Missouri because at 17, Nora was too young to legally wed in Illinois. To appease their families — she was Catholic, he was Methodist — they had two more ceremonies in their respective churches.

The couple marked their 71st anniversary in June.

Robert Viands spent 30 years working at a distributor company and retired as a rural postal carrier. He enjoyed fishing and gardening. Nora "loved a little flavor of the casinos," according to an obituary, and was a teacher as well as a cheerleading coach.

They also had 18 grandchildren.

Milton said she and her siblings had worried about what would happen to their surviving parent when the other one died. And though they are sad to lose them, "in our hearts we're glad."

"All of us children have said this is the only way they would have wanted it," she said.

A joint funeral will be held Sunday in Rockford, about 80 miles northwest of Chicago.

Naval Academy case involving former football players continues on holiday weekend

WASHINGTON — Prosecutors and three separate legal defense teams will gather for the resumption of a hearing to determine whether three Naval Academy midshipmen will be court-martialed over sexual assault allegations.

The hearing resumes Saturday in the case of three former Navy football players who are accused of sexually assaulting a midshipman at an off-campus party last year.

The alleged victim is now a senior at the academy. During three days of testimony in open court, she has said she does not remember being assaulted by any of the students. She has testified she only learned of the allegations from others afterward.

Defense attorneys have been underscoring the woman's spotty memory from drinking too much.

Swiss Suicide Prompts the Question: What's Undue Stress in a C-Suite?

One of the business world’s sadder and more macabre stories is coming out of serene Switzerland this week. An executive, Pierre Wauthier, finance chief at Zurich Insurance (ZURN:VX), allegedly killed himself and penned a suicide note detailing pressure from Chairman Josef Ackermann.

When Wauthier’s family brought the letter to the remaining executives at Zurich Insurance, Ackermann stepped down, though he described the allegations as “unfounded.” Suffice to say, this isn’t the sort of management challenge one finds in a business school syllabus.

This morning the company’s executives cobbled together a quick conference call in a bid to calm investors. Chief Executive Martin Senn said there is no link between Wauthier’s death and the company’s performance. But he also said Senn “did an excellent job at all times” and the company’s board would “look into the question as to whether there was undue pressure placed on our CFO.”

Ackermann is certainly no softie. One doesn’t rise to the top of an outfit like Deutsche Bank and steer it through the Great Recession without driving a lot of troops above and beyond the call of duty. And it’s certainly likely Ackermann was leaning on Wauthier, a 53-year-old father of two. He joined the board in May 2012 and recently had to sign off on some worse-than-expected results. But it was Ackermann’s job—his legal obligation, in fact—to pressure Wauthier and to a greater extent Senn, the CEO. Meanwhile, former colleagues told Reuters, Ackermann never lost his cool or got personal with co-workers.

Sadly, Wauthier’s fate is relatively common in the business. White males in finance, insurance, and real estate are 1.12 times more likely to commit suicide that the average Joe, according to data compiled by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Suicide statistics are particularly grim for insurance salesmen, who kill themselves 1.38 times more often than average. Financial officers, however, tend to commit suicide at slightly lower-than-typical rates.

Meanwhile, the inquiry announced today raises many more questions than it answers. What constitutes “undue stress” in one of the world’s most-stressful jobs—overseeing finances at a company with more than $70 billion in annual revenue? How will the board go about its investigation? And what does it plan to do with the findings?

Dunkin' Donuts apologizes for blackface ad campaign in Thailand

Dunkin' Donuts on Friday apologized and will pull an advertising campaign running in Thailand that features a model in blackface makeup offering a chocolate doughnut. 

Dunkin' Donuts in Thailand had come under fire Friday for an ad that the Human Rights Watch said was racist. 

The ad in question was for Dunkin's "charcoal donut" and it features a model wearing blackface makeup and bright pink lipstick holding up a bitten doughnut. The translated Thai slogan reads: "Break every rule of deliciousness."

The most outrageous fast food menu items

Karen Raskopf, chief communications officer for Dunkin' Brands, apologized for the advertising running in Thailand. 

"Dunkin' Donuts recognizes the insensitivity of this spot," Raskopf said. "On behalf of our Thailand franchisee and our company, we apologize for any offense it caused. We are working with our franchisee to immediately pull the television spot and to change the campaign."

The marketing effort first drew fire from the Human Rights Watch.

Phil Robertson, deputy director of the Asia division for the group, said it's "rather incredible that an international company like Dunkin' Donuts" would run such an ad.

The Associated Press said it's common in Thailand for marketing to feature racist undertones. A Thai skin whitening cream, for instance, is advertised in television commercials as boosting job prospects for those who use it. According to the AP, the commercials say white-skinned people have a better chance of landing a job than those with dark skin. 

There's also a line of household mops and dust pans sold under the "Black Man" label. Product labeling features a smiling black man in a tuxedo and bow tie.

The apology stands in stark contrast to what the chief executive of Dunkin's Thailand franchise told the Associated Press.

Nadim Salhani told the AP that criticism of the poster and television spot is just "paranoid American thinking."

"It's absolutely ridiculous," said CEO Nadim Salhani. "We're not allowed to use black to promote our doughnuts? I don't get it. What's the big fuss? What if the product was white and I painted someone white, would that be racist?" 

Apple's iPhone trade-in program to add consumer choice

Apple is poised to start offering an in-store trade-in program, but consumers already have plenty of options to turn their old iPhone into cash—enough, in some cases, to get their next one for free.

The company launched the new program on Friday, offering a credit for returned iPhones that can be used toward the purchase of a new one. That's just in time for Apple's Sept. 10 event where analysts expect the company to announce a new iPhone.

It's not surprising that Apple—which already has an online recycling program that lets consumers trade their iPhone for credit on an Apple gift card—would expand into store trades, said Todd Day, senior industry analyst for Frost & Sullivan. "If you look at Apple's overall business model, it's not just about the devices but the overall universe," he said. Offering a competitive trade-in program helps ensure those customers stick around, particularly if they receive a gift card instead of cash, as is the case with Apple's existing online program.

There's plenty of competition in the field. "Trade-in programs for smartphones have probably become the biggest, hottest area of smartphone transactions this year," said Eddie Hold, vice president of connected intelligence for research firm NPD Group.

AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon all launched early-upgrade programs this summer that rely on consumers trading in old devices. Retailers including Best Buy, Radio Shack and Amazon.com also have trade-in programs, as do manufacturers including Samsung and HTC and resale sites Gazelle.com and NextWorth.com.

The appeal of the trade-in is clear once you look at the numbers. A nearly 2-year-old 16GB iPhone 4S currently fetches as much as $230 in some trade-in programs (see chart below). If prices for the forthcoming iPhone hold steady, that's more than enough to buy the new model at carriers' usual subsidized price of $199. An iPhone 5 with the same capacity could be worth up to $390, which puts a big dent in the usual $649 retail price for users upgrading mid contact.

Trade-in programs typically also pledge to wipe your device of data.

Maximum trade-in values

Site	16GB iPhone 5	16GB iPhone 4S	16GB iPhone 4	16GB 3GS
Amazon.com*	$389.50	$230	$200	$70
Apple (Recycling program)*	$336	$221	$151	$52
Best Buy*	$315	$157.50	$105	$36.75
Gazelle	$330	$220	$135	$12
NextWorth	$340	$197	$130	$32
RadioShack	$300	$195	$135	$27.50
Verizon*	$259	$162	$83	$27

*Company offers gift card, not cash.

And the market is poised to boom. Just 13 percent of smartphone users trade in their old handsets, according to a July NPD survey of 1,000 consumers. And 40 percent of smartphone buyers in the 12-month period ending June 2013 were first-time smartphone users, the firm reported. As awareness of programs grow, users are increasingly likely to use them when they're ready to upgrade, Hold said.

Consumers can expect aggressive pricing with so many players in the market, said Kirk Parsons, senior director of telecom services for J.D.Power and Associates. Earlier this month, for example, Best Buy offered a minimum $200 trade-in value for any working iPhone 4S, to use toward an upgrade to an iPhone 5. That's nearly $45 more than the current trade-in value for a 16GB model. Gazelle occasionally offers coupon codes for an extra 5 percent on the sale value.

Don't judge by the maximum offer, however. It's worth getting detailed estimates at several sites, Parsons said. The process is usually as simple as answering a few yes/no questions about the phone's condition. Phone damage can, of course, make the price take a nosedive, but some trade-in services also cut their price if the phone was engraved, or if you're missing the manual or charger.

Many trade-in programs also value phones differently by carrier and even color. Amazon.com's program, for example, offers as much as $200 for a black 16GB iPhone 4 from AT&T, versus $120 for the same model from Verizon. And if it's white? That'll be up to $145 for the Verizon version and $180 from AT&T.

Even before the new iPhone is announced, you may be able to start shopping around. Most sites let consumers lock in orders for a short period, ensuring they can have their new phone in hand before sending in the old. That timing varies: Radio Shack has a 20-day window; Apple, 14 days from the time you receive the shipping materials. There's no penalty for missing the window; you'll just have to get a new estimate, with the new market price.

Twitter's legal champion of free speech steps down

SAN FRANCISCO -- Alex Macgillivray, Twitter’s top lawyer who pushed back against government and law enforcement demands and helped stake out the company’s stance as “the free speech wing of the free speech party,” is stepping down.

He made the announcement in a blog post on Friday. And on Twitter, of course: "Passing the torch. I care deeply about Twitter and our users, will continue to help while exploring other passions"

Vijaya Gadde, who has handled Twitter’s corporate and international legal work, will take over as general counsel. Macgillivray said he would continue to work as an advisor to Twitter.

“I continue to care deeply about Twitter, the folks who work at Twitter and our tremendous users, so I’ll remain close to all three,” Macgillivray said in a blog post.

There was an immediate outpouring on Twitter from Macgillivray’s admirers who said they were grateful for his efforts to protect Twitter users’ rights and his advocacy of digital civil liberties.

Tweeted Silicon Valley investor Hunter Walk: "@amac is one of the best I've seen. Not just 'lawyer w good soul' but rather a good soul who happens to practice law."

It’s unclear if Twitter will maintain that same level of commitment to free speech rights after Macgillivray, known on Twitter as @amac, leaves the company. As Twitter expands around the world and prepares for a hotly anticipated initial public stock offering, that commitment has become tougher to maintain.

Seamus Heaney death: Irish reaction

Hollywood actor Liam Neeson has said that Ireland has lost a part of its soul with the death of Seamus Heaney.

Nobel laureate Mr Heaney has died at the age of 74.

Mr Heaney was born near Toomebridge, but as a child moved to Bellaghy in County Londonderry.

County Antrim-born movie star Neeson told the BBC: "With Seamus Heaney's passing, Ireland, and Northern Ireland especially, has lost a part of its artistic soul."

He added: "He crafted, through his poetry, who we are as a species and the living soil that we toiled in. By doing so, he defined our place in the universe. May he rest in peace".

Mr Heaney was a teacher and then had a distinguished career in poetry, winning the Nobel prize for literature in 1995.

Northern Ireland Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness said he is shocked and saddened by the death of poet Seamus Heaney.

Mr McGuinness tweeted: "Very shocked and deeply saddened to hear that Seamus Heaney, Derry man, poet and Nobel Laureate has died. My thoughts & prayers with Marie and family".

He said Mr Heaney was a "colossus of literature".

"We're all much poorer as a result of his passing today and I feel it very deeply," he said.'

The Irish Prime Minister, Enda Kenny, said Mr Heaney "belongs with Joyce, Yeats, Shaw and Beckett in the pantheon of our greatest literary exponents".

Former US President Bill Clinton said "his uniquely Irish gift for language made him our finest poet of the rhythms of ordinary lives and a powerful voice for peace".

Retired Bishop of Derry Dr Edward Daly knew Seamus Heaney as a friend.

Dr Daly is remembered as the young priest waving a white handkerchief in an iconic photograph from Bloody Sunday.

"Seamus had a very full life. He was a very generous and gentle person and a wonderful poet. He has left a huge legacy behind him," Dr Daly said.

"He has left so much for us all to treasure and enjoy. His legacy will live on for centuries."

Heaney was a classmate of Dr Daly's brother in St Columb's College, Londonderry.

"He wore his huge wisdom very lightly and he gave so generously of his time. He was kind and he had a very gentle wit," he said.

'Global significance'

Former SDLP leader John Hume, who was a close friend of Mr Heaney, said: "His poetry expressed a special love of people, place and diversity of life.

"That profound regard for humanity has made his poetry a special channel for repudiating violence, injustice and prejudice, and urging us all to the better side of our human nature."

Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers said: "Seamus was undoubtedly one of the greatest literary voices the island of Ireland has ever produced and a great ambassador for Northern Ireland.

"It is some consolation that his spirit will live on through his legacy of work and that future generations will continue to be inspired by his distinctive poetic voice."

Irish President Michael D Higgins said: "Generations of Irish people will have been familiar with Seamus' poems.

"Scholars all over the world will have gained from the depth of the critical essays, and so many rights organisations will want to thank him for all the solidarity he gave to the struggles within the republic of conscience."

Fellow Northern Ireland poet Michael Longley said: "I feel like I've lost a brother and there are tens of thousands of people today who will be feeling personally bereaved because he had a great presence.

"Just as his presence filled a room, his marvellous poems filled the hearts of generations of readers."

Ulster Unionist leader Mike Nesbitt said: "Seamus Heaney was a man of global significance, whose insight and artistry brought great credit to Northern Ireland. His influence ran broader than the arts.

"We all remember how President Bill Clinton chose Heaney's great phrase about when 'hope and history rhyme' from Heaney's play Cure at Troy in his speech in Londonderry, and went on to use it for the title of his book detailing his vision of the USA in the 21st Century."

Irish Arts Minister Ireland's Jimmy Deenihan said: "He was just a very humble, modest man. He was very accessible.

"Anywhere I have ever travelled in the world and you mention poetry and literature and the name of Seamus Heaney comes up immediately."

'Timeless art'

Belfast's Lyric Theatre tweeted: "The Lyric Theatre is deeply saddened that Seamus Heaney, our long-term friend and supporter, has passed away."

Damien Smith, head of literature and drama at the Northern Ireland Arts Council said: "Those closest to him also include vast numbers of people from right across the globe who read his poetry from his first book when it appeared in the mid-60s.

"He will be remembered in artistic terms as among the very great poets."

Northern Ireland novelist Glen Paterson said: "He was somebody I was introduced to as a poet when I was still at school - I went to see him read when I was still at school.

"Over the years, as I began to write myself, I met him and he was always very generous to younger writers."