Family helps Gadhafi stay in power

The embattled Libyan leader, Moammar Gadhafi, is one of those rare figures in the world who manages to not only seize power, but also hold onto it for decades. Despite the inevitable mythology that grows up around such figures, however, it is worth noting that he has not done it alone. He has had a large, if at times quarrelsome, family to help him hold onto the reins.

Gadhafi has nine grown children. One is the result of a short marriage to his first wife, seven are with his second wife, and one is adopted. They hold many positions of influence in Libya's security forces, military, telecommunications, and other industries, and plenty of Libya watchers believe Gadhafi uses them not only as agents of his will, but also his eyes and ears.

The most noted power player is Saif Al-Islam. He is the one who shows up relatively often in TV interviews. He is the second oldest son, the oldest from the second wife. He was educated at the London School of Economics. He speaks fluent English, is a fastidious dresser, and he paints. An exhibition of his work was displayed in Moscow.

More importantly, he has long been seen as a possible successor to his father. He has denied any such desire, but others were interested in the idea for quite some time because he was considered more modern in his thinking, even reform minded by many Libya watchers. But that was before his recent and very public vows to fight the protestors to the end.

Another possible successor to the family throne is Mutassim, and accordingly his relationship with Saif Al-Islam is believed to be tense. Mutassim once allegedly helped plot a coup against his father and had to flee the country when it failed. He was eventually forgiven and is now his father's national security adviser. Mutassim was involved in official talks with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2009 about improving U.S./Libyan relations.

Can a nerve stimulator stop my back pain?

Q: I have had severe, chronic back and sciatic pain for many years. My particular problems cannot be resolved surgically. Nerve blocks and other minimally invasive procedures have been partially successful in temporarily reducing the pain.

Medications have reduced my back pain, but the sciatic pain continues to be severe. My pain specialist has suggested an implantable nerve stimulator for the sciatic nerve. How successful are these devices? 

Conditions Expert
Dr. Otis Brawley
Chief Medical Officer,
American Cancer Society

Expert answer

Dear Larry,
I consulted several physiatrists (nerve, muscle, and bone experts who treat injuries or illnesses that affect movement) and neurologists with extensive experience in the treatment of chronic low back pain and pain radiating down the sciatic nerve of the leg in order to answer your question.
They stress that almost all adults have low back pain at some time in their lives and the outcomes are good with the pain going away for most within three months.
Acute low back pain is defined as lasting less than four weeks. Sub-acute low back pain is commonly defined as back pain lasting between four and 12 weeks and chronic low back pain persists for 12 or more weeks.
The health care provider will initially evaluate the patient with low back pain by getting a history of the pain and doing a targeted physical examination. The exam focuses on excluding serious neurologic problems such as malignancy or infection.

Complex migraines: Searing pain, disrupted speech

Barbara A. Mosgrave of Annandale, Virginia, doesn't remember the first time it happened. It's still a blur. But she thinks the episodes began about 50 years ago. At least that's when she remembers someone telling her she was talking gibberish.

"My friends would look at me and say 'What are you talking about?'

At 71, Mosgrave knows to expect the unexpected. Since she was a teen she has suffered from serious migraines. "The kind that cause you to go into a dark room, and shut the door; the pain is that bad," she says. But she knew how to control them, and why they were happening. Yet, when it came to her speech, that was different.

"I had no idea that I was babbling," she admits.

Yet when people began telling her at times she didn't make any sense, she started to wonder; why were her words and phrases coming out all wrong? At first, Mosgrave thought she might be having mini-strokes, but when she went to numerous neurologists they all told her the same thing: She was suffering from a form of headache classified as a complex migraine.

'Spider-Man' to shut down for weeks? Producers mum

A spokesman for the troubled "Spider-Man" musical on Broadway insisted Wednesday that the show is still scheduled to open next week, as talk swirled that the production will shut down for several weeks and the opening will be put off for months.

Rick Miramontez, spokesman for "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark," said, "We are not confirming or commenting on the recent reports" in The New York Times and elsewhere. The $65 million show, he said, is still scheduled to open March 15. re the show.

Published reports, citing anonymous sources in the production, have also said that director Julie Taymor may already be on the way out, after struggling for months to revamp the show amid scathing reviews from some theater critics.

Taymor did not respond to phone calls from The Associated Press.

A new delay would be the sixth for Broadway's most expensive show. The latest postponement would also make it ineligible for theater's biggest prize, a Tony Award. Shows must open by April 28 this year to be considered for a Tony.

"Spider-Man" has already had the longest preview period in Broadway musical history. Many critics got fed up and reviewed it last month, largely panning the musical.

Obama defends education spending plans

President Barack Obama insisted Tuesday that education spending needs to be spared from the growing drive for fiscal austerity, telling an audience of students and teachers in Massachusetts that cutbacks would ultimately prove self-defeating.

"We need to come up with a budget that forces government to live within its means," Obama said. But we "cannot cut back on job-creating investments like education."

The president stressed the need for blending public education reform -- including greater accountability -- and higher spending.

"We have a moral and economic imperative to give every child a chance to succeed," he declared. "A budget that sacrifices our commitment to education is a budget that sacrifices our country's future."