Last minute lovers ; St Valentine's day is tomorrow - but don't despair if you haven't bought a present yet. From champagne flutes to furry red cushions, Joyce Hickey has the guide

Never, ever fall for that "I hate Valentine's day, it's a bigscam by card companies and shops to con us into spending loads ofmoney on tack" line. Well, of course that's true but anyone showingup tomorrow with one arm as long as the other will be in deeptrouble. So, to spare your blushes (and your relationship), we did aquick scoot around town to pick up some last-minute items to see youright.

Complexions love flickering lights, so turn down the dimmer andrekindle an old flame by candlelight. At Galleria you can gostraight with a variety of solid colour pillar candles, or getfrivolous with red jelly candles containing little gold hearts in aglass (E3.05). A pack of four red heart-shaped night lights costsE5.05 and a squat heart candle is a pumping E1.30. On a more subtlenote, four floating pink rose candles and a shallow bowl comeattractively boxed for E10.05.

Pink roses are there in spades in Pia Bang: everything on heart-shaped lavender bags (E22) hanging along the stair-rail and on softcotton cushion covers (E59) casually adorning the simple whitefurniture.

If you should happen to come up roses - still, yawn, the bestseller for St Valentine's day, but at Jungle Flowers in Malahidethey try to steer people towards longer-lasting blooms such asorchids and other exotics - it might be nice to present them in avase. At TK Maxx there's a glittering display at very reasonableprices, including Polish crystal vases starting at E19.99 and plainlead crystals from E6.99. Bargain of the week must be a wide butdumpy milky white and clear glass striped vase by LSA at an amazingE16.99. It's unlikely to be there five minutes later, but it'salways worth keeping an eye out for such things there.

If yours is a more rustic style, Avoca has some pottery jugs withall-over flowers for E29.99 which just cry out to be crammed withtulips. And if you want to wash that person right out of your hair,or anywhere else, try the heart-shaped soaps by Two's Company atE6.95. Or if you want to say it large, a siren red, furry love-heart cushion will set your pulse racing for E9.99 at The Source(at) Urbana.

Domesticated types who find the time to bake might be keen onheart-shaped pastry cutters for love cookies (just use yourshortbread recipe and roll them out more thinly).

After a concerted hunt, a heart cutter turned up in AllRooms in apack with an elephant, a pig, a star and a hippo for E2.99.

If you're celebrating, you could get an elegant pair of LouiseKennedy champagne flutes for E75, or mix a cocktail in a steel andleather Stellar shaker for E60 at Brown Thomas. If that doesn'tfloat your boat, off to Dunnes Stores with you for a "Fancy a snog?"mug. It could be the best E2 you ever spent.

And if there's any chance of a proposal tomorrow, you can getmoving on your wedding list straight away. Roches Stores islaunching its wedding gift registry this week. You can go intoeither the Henry Street, Dublin, or Patrick Street, Cork, branch,meet a consultant and have a great time zapping all the things you'dlike.

Your guests can then go into any of the branches around thecountry, print out the list and buy something in the usual way -wrapping and delivery can be arranged.

Guests will also be able to phone in an order or even buysomething on the Internet, at www.roches-stores.ie, and you'llreceive regular progress reports.

Box: Greek tragedy angers Olympic boxing fans

AAP General News (Australia)
08-25-2004
Box: Greek tragedy angers Olympic boxing fans

Furious Greek fans have rained plastic water bottles onto the Olympic boxing ring after
local hero ELIAS PAVLIDIS lost his light heavyweight quarter-final to Egypt's AHMED ESMAIL.

The ringside doctor ordered the fight to be stopped after inspecting the Greek's cut
left eye with one minute 38 seconds of the third round remaining and PAVLIDIS leading.

Egypt, which had never won an Olympic boxing medal, has now won at least three bronzes.

Superheavyweight MOHAMED ALY and heavyweight MOHAMED ELSAYED have already won through
to the semi-finals and a guaranteed bronze.

AAP RTV sp/lma

KEYWORD: OLY BOX FANS (ATHENS)

2004 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Fed: Cosgrove says defence could have done better on Collins

AAP General News (Australia)
04-19-2004
Fed: Cosgrove says defence could have done better on Collins

(EDS - Repeating to clarify Collins' rank in first para)



CANBERRA, April 19 AAP - Defence chief Peter Cosgrove has conceded that the Defence
Department had made mistakes in the case of intelligence whistleblower Lieutenant Colonel
Lance Collins.

General Cosgrove admitted defence had not handled Lt Col Collins' case well and said
he had told those responsible to lift their game.

Asked if Lt Col Collins' handling had been fair and transparent, General Cosgrove told
Channel Nine: "In some respects no, because I think that Lance had some of his personal
management not done well.

"I've pointed that out to responsible officers and told them to lift their game and
correct those issues and certainly to give Lance Collins some redress.

"On other issues, to do with his broader issues to do with intelligence, they've been
examined before by competent authorities and I've sent them back for another look.

"I'm not sure where that will go."

Lt Col Collins, the Army's top intelligence analyst, complained that his career stalled
after he criticised the Defence Intelligence Organisation (DIO) for ignoring his warnings
on East Timor.

He wrote to Prime Minister John Howard last month calling for a royal commission into
Australia's intelligence agencies, citing a list of failures from Iraq's weapons of mass
destruction to failing to predict the Sandline affair in Papua New Guinea.

A military report into his case, leaked last week, said Lt Col Collins had been treated
disgracefully and recommended giving him a retrospective award for his work in East Timor.

Lt Col Collins, whom General Cosgrove handpicked to be his eyes and ears in East Timor,
complained that DIO ignored his warnings of widespread bloodshed following the independence
referendum in the former Indonesian province and tailored its assessments to tell the
government what it wanted to hear.

General Cosgrove said Lt Col Collins was a good officer and performed very well when
they worked together in East Timor.

"I don't necessarily agree with everything he says but I don't resile from the fact
that here is an intelligent and loyal officer who was seeking sincerely to put a point
of view," General Cosgrove said.

He said the reason Lt Col Collins had not been allowed to see the report into his case,
which criticised the DIO, was because it was flawed.

General Cosgrove also denied that the defence department was seeking to frustrate a
parliamentary inquiry into military justice, which resumes hearings later this week.

He said a memo allegedly instructing staff how to keep correspondence under wraps was
routine and of the sort found in many organisations.

"This is an ordinary office protocol and it's used not just in defence (but) in many
government departments, probably in your network, certainly in law firms, it's used everywhere
to have an ordinary protocol over working documentation," he said.

"We're cooperating fully with the inquiry and we're continuing to do so."

Opposition defence spokesman Chris Evans said the memo recommended marking sensitive
documents as "internal working documents" to ensure they could not be tabled before the
parliamentary committee.

Senator Evans said the Defence Department was contacting serving and former military
officers and families of deceased defence personnel ahead of the hearings.

AAP dep/mfh/maur/jlw

KEYWORD: INTELLIGENCE 2ND DAYLEAD (REPEATING)

2004 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Vic: Police face new database scandal

AAP General News (Australia)
02-12-2004
Vic: Police face new database scandal

Police are investigating whether officers have improperly accessed confidential information
about the man charged over the bashing death of cricketer DAVID HOOKES.

Melbourne's The Age newspaper says a police audit has found up to 35 officers used
a police computer to check information about ZDRAVKO MICEVIC, the man charged with manslaughter
over the death of HOOKES.

HOOKES died on January the 19th after he was allegedly punched by MICEVIC outside a
Melbourne hotel.

The paper says police who can't give legitimate reasons for accessing the files face the sack.

The new files probe comes a week after a report by acting Ombudsman ROBERT SEAMER found
some police had an improper attitude towards accessing personal information on the database.

Five officers were disciplined last year for inappropriately accessing the file of
victims' rights campaigner and political candidate KAY NESBIT before the 2002 state election.

AAP RTV mf/lma

KEYWORD: FILES HOOKES (MELBOURNE)

2004 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Qld: Arsonists behind shop blaze: Cops

AAP General News (Australia)
12-13-2003
Qld: Arsonists behind shop blaze: Cops

Police suspect arsonists were behind a shop fire in Brisbane's east overnight that
caused over $1 million in damage.

The fire broke out at Beaurepairs on Redland Bay Road, Capalaba, around 3.30am (AEST)

Police were called to the address after receiving reports that two men in a white van
threw an explosive device into the front of the business.

The shop was gutted although surrounding businesses were saved by firefighters.

Police estimate that over $1 million in damage was caused.

Police are guarding the scene until scientific officers arrive.

AAP RTV jtl/rca

KEYWORD: EXPLOSIVE (BRISBANE)

2003 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Fed: PM accused of misleading disabled over payment cuts

00-00-0000
Fed: PM accused of misleading disabled over payment cuts

SYDNEY, Aug 7 AAP - The federal Opposition today accused Prime Minister John Howardof misleading recipients of disability payments by wrongly implying the government's reviewprocess had been suspended.

Labor community services spokesman Wayne Swan today called on the government to suspendpayment cuts until it had looked into claims they were being made wrongly and unfairly.

Mr Swan accused Community Services Minister Amanda Vanstone of "bullying" and of singlingout some of the most vulnerable people in society for "savage cuts".

Mr Howard said on Monday that Senator Vanstone was concerned about reports some carerswere having their $87 fortnightly allowance eliminated despite no change in their circumstances.

The prime minister said the government would look into the matter by the end of this week.

But despite the prime minister's comments, recipients still face having their paymentscut if they do not provide Centrelink with documentation as part of the review, Mr Swansaid.

And those who have already had their payments cut are left with nothing while the reviewof their cases is itself being supposedly reviewed.

"There are people being stripped of the allowance as we speak," Mr Swan told radio 2GB.

"And people who have (already) lost their allowance are just in limbo.

"There are no plans from Senator Vanstone to restore the allowance until they finish the review."

Mr Swan said people who heard or read Mr Howard's assurances that the matter was beinglooked into could be misled into thinking there was a suspension of the initial reviewprocess.

"There are others who think that the process has been stopped as the prime ministerimplied and if they fail to submit their forms to Centrelink in the next few days or weeksthey will be automatically removed from the allowance," Mr Swan said.

He said Senator Vanstone was committed to removing a quota of 30,000 disability paymentsout of the 70,000 under review, regardless of the merits of the case.

"The truth is she's a bully," he said.

"She is out there singling out some of the most vulnerable people in our society withsome of the most savage cuts."

AAP jh/hn/ldj/jlw

KEYWORD: DISABILITY

NSW: Free trade deal with US could hurt local farmers

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NSW: Free trade deal with US could hurt local farmers

A new study has found a free trade agreement with the United States could hurt localfarmers and the Australian economy as a whole.

The study, prepared by independent firm ACIL Consulting and reported in The SydneyMorning Herald, says a free trade deal could cost the economy more money than it injects.

It says the US would have most of the bargaining power because it needs the agreementless than Australia.

…