Exercise, less sitting time, linked to better sleep

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Insomniacs looking for a good night's sleep may want to hit the treadmill, take a walk or play a game of golf or tennis because a new report released on Monday shows exercise promotes good sleep and the more vigorous the workout the better.

Just 10 minutes of exercise a day could make a difference in the duration and quality of sleep, the survey by the non-profit National Sleep Foundation showed.

"We found that exercise and great sleep go together, hand in hand," Max Hirshkowitz, a sleep researcher and the chair of the poll task force, said in an interview.

"We also found a step-wise increase in how vigorous the quality is, in terms of how much you exercise. So if you say you exercise a lot, we found better sleep quality. For people who don't exercise at all we found more sleep problems."

Earlier research studies have shown the impact of exercise on sleep, but Hirshkowitz, who is a professor at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, said the survey is the first to detail the benefits of exercise in a nationally representative poll of this size.

People who described themselves as exercisers reported better sleep than their more sedentary counterparts, although the amount of sleep, an average of just under seven hours on weeknight, was the same.

More than 75 percent of the 1,000 people questioned in the Internet and telephone poll who described themselves as exercisers said they slept well, compared to just over half of people who did no exercise.

Very active people reported fewer sleep problems, dozed off quicker and needed less shut eye a night to function at their best during the day.

Sitting, more than eight hours daily also had a negative impact on sleep, according to the poll.

NAPS, STRUGGLING TO STAY AWAKE

Nearly half of Americans report experiencing insomnia occasionally, and 22 percent suffer from the condition, which can be caused by stress, anxiety, pain and medication, every or almost every night, according to the foundation.

In addition to poorer sleep, non-exercisers also were less likely to report good or excellent health compared to active people and had more trouble staying awake while driving and eating.

Nearly three times as many sedentary people said they have trouble keeping awake during the day than exercisers. They also took more naps and had more symptoms of sleep apnea, a disorder that causes shallow breaths or pauses in breathing during sleep, than exercisers,

More than 44 percent of non-exercisers were at a moderate risk for sleep apnea, a higher percentage than active people questioned in the poll.

The survey also seemed to debunk the idea that exercising early or late in the day would adversely impact sleep because it showed that being active at any time of the day was better than being sedentary.

"Exercise is beneficial to sleep," Dr. Barbara Phillips, a member of the poll task force, said in a statement. "It's time to revise global recommendations for improving sleep and put exercise - any time - at the top of our list for healthy sleep habits."

(Editing by Bill Trott)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/exercise-less-sitting-time-linked-better-sleep-051143787.html

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Angels' Trout takes high road on salary, position

TEMPE, Ariz. (AP) ? Los Angeles Angels slugger Mike Trout figures if he keeps producing like he did during his historic rookie season, he'll be in line for a handsome raise soon enough.

The Angels renewed the contract of the AL Rookie of the Year for $510,000 on Saturday, just $20,000 above the major league minimum, prompting an angry response from Trout's agent.

While Craig Landis said the renewal "falls well short of a 'fair' contract," Trout took the high road before a morning workout at the Angels' spring training complex on Sunday, repeatedly insisting that "I'm just happy to be in the lineup."

"I mean, my time will come," Trout said before a team meeting. "I just have to keep putting out numbers and concentrating on one thing, and that's getting to the postseason."

Trout had a base salary of $482,500 last year, when he hit .326 with 30 homers and 83 RBIs, and led the majors with 129 runs and 49 steals. Trout was the run-away choice as the AL's top rookie, earning a $10,000 bonus, and finished second to Detroit's Miguel Cabrera in MVP voting.

Trout has 1 year, 70 days of major league service, which the Angels historically have place more weight upon than performance in renewing contracts. Teams are allowed to renew the contracts of unsigned players on their 40-man rosters from March 2-11.

There were 22 players whose contracts were finalized by the Angels on Saturday. The highest salary of those players went to first baseman and outfielder Mark Trumbo, who will make $540,000.

Trout likely will be eligible for arbitration after the 2014 season.

"During the process, on behalf of Mike, I asked only that the Angels compensate Mike fairly for his historic 2012 season, given his service time," Landis said in a statement. "This contract falls well short of a 'fair' contract and I have voiced this to the Angels throughout the process. Nonetheless, the renewal of Mike's contract will put an end (to) this discussion."

Nationals outfielder Bryce Harper, the reigning NL Rookie of the Year, will make $750,000 this season under terms of the five-year deal he signed through 2015.

Harper hit .270 with 22 homers, 59 RBIs and 18 stolen bases in 139 games last season.

Landis also made it seem that Trout was unhappy with a move to left field this season, which was designed to allow speedy Peter Bourjos to become the Angels' primary center fielder.

"As when he learned he would not be the team's primary center fielder for the upcoming season," Landis' statement said, "Mike will put the disappointment (of his salary) behind him and focus on helping the Angels reach their goal of winning the 2013 World Series."

Trout acknowledged Sunday that he prefers center field, the position he's played since the Angels selected him in the first round of the 2009 amateur draft. But he also said that he believes playing in left field will help him to become a more complete outfielder.

"I'm a center fielder, obviously," Trout said. "But you know, when you're an outfielder, you should be able to play all three. I think it's going to help me get reads off the bat. It's going to be a fun adjustment for me."

During batting practice this spring training, Trout has made a habit of spending two days in left field and two days in center, often rotating on a daily basis. He said the idea was to remain sharp in center field while adjusting to left, where he mostly played late in games last season.

"My main position is center field, obviously. It's definitely a different position than left field. But I just have to make an adjustment and go with the move," he said. "I feel fine out there. Just getting into games, getting some experience out there will definitely help me."

Angels manager Mike Scioscia said Trout still will play center field, and that his versatility ? his ability to play left ? is one of the reasons he is so valuable.

"Mike is going to be a center fielder, no doubt. We understand that's what's his position," Scioscia said. "But right now his versatility is something that's going to make us a better team, and he will play some center field this year. He's going to play left field, too."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/angels-trout-takes-high-road-salary-position-174042161--mlb.html

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Somalia: Court clears woman convicted in rape case

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) ? A Somali appeals court on Sunday dropped charges against a woman who alleged she was raped by government security forces and had been convicted of defaming the government.

Mogadishu appeals court Judge Mohamed Hassan Ali said there wasn't enough evidence to substantiate the prosecutor's charge. A court in February had sentenced the woman to one year in prison after medical evidence entered into the record showed that the woman was not raped. Some experts questioned whether Somalia has the medical expertise to make the kind of judgment.

A journalist who interviewed the rape victim and was tried alongside her had his sentence reduced from one year to six months. The judge said the interview was not conducted according to journalism ethics or Somali law.

The February verdict against the two provoked international outcry by human rights groups, and Human Rights Watch on Sunday said it wasn't satisfied with the appeals court's decision.

"The court of appeals missed a chance to right a terrible wrong, both for the journalist and for press freedom in Somalia," said Daniel Bekele, Africa director at Human Rights Watch. "The government has argued that justice should run its course in this case, but each step has been justice denied."

Prime Minister Abdi Farah Shirdon welcomed the decision concerning the rape victim and said "we are a step closer to justice being done."

"However, I was hoping for a different outcome on the journalist. I note his sentence has been reduced from 12 months to six, but I do not believe journalists should be sent to prison for doing their job. We must have freedom of expression, which is guaranteed in our constitution," Shirdon said.

The Somali capital has moved past the violence that engulfed Mogadishu for much of the last two decades. In a sign of its progress, the United States earlier this year officially recognized the country's government for the first time in two decades.

Despite the progress, Somali government institutions remain weak and corrupt, and the government relies heavily on the security provided by 17,000 African Union troops in the country. Allegations of rape against government security forces are common, especially around the sprawling camps for internally displaced people in Mogadishu.

Rights groups decried the case against the woman and the reporter ? freelance journalist Abdiaziz Abdinur ? as politically motivated because the woman had accused security forces of the assault. Abdinur was convicted despite never having published any story based on the interview with the woman.

On Jan. 6, Universal TV, a Somali television station, reported that armed men in police uniform had raped a young woman. The same day Al Jazeera published an article which described rape by security forces in camps for internally displaced people in Mogadishu.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon had expressed deep disappointment over the sentences and urged the Somali government "to ensure that all allegations of sexual violence are investigated fully and perpetrators are brought to justice," U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky said.

Experts in confronting violence against women said the original verdict would discourage Somali women from reporting rape even more than they are already in the conservative Muslim society.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/somalia-court-clears-woman-convicted-rape-case-114730437.html

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Reflections on the Jewish Political Styles and the Moroccan ?Gentiles

By Mohammed Zeriouh

Morocco World News

Oujda, Morocco, March 2, 2013

?I believe that the return [to Morocco] may almost be possible. There will be no Judeo-Berber cities as those which were in Morocco.? With such an announcement, the documentary Tinghir-Jerusalem: the Echoes of Mellah (Tinghir-J?rusalem, les ?chos du Mellah) by Kamal Hachkar is summarized. It continues: ?Yet, in Israel, my encounters convinced me that it is possible to recreate connections despite this long rupture and that we can revive this pluralistic Morocco together.??

Hachkar?s film is 87 minutes long and is a co-production of Les Films d?un Jour and the Moroccan TV channel 2M. It sheds light on controversial questions such as those related to the Jewish diaspora and exile. As any careful viewer would point out, the film is based on anecdotes and hearsay that the main speaker keeps repeating every now and then, ?I heard when I was young??. Of course, this cannot be practical for a documentary based on historical content. However, first and foremost, two underlying motivating factors for the making of the documentary are: the desire to attain full normalization with Israel and the search for a geography where diaspora Jews may settle. If this last issue of settlement is itself unsettled among Jews, how do Jews in diaspora living in others? lands define themselves and how does the Moroccan government deal with the issue?

It needs a context to start. Neturei Karta Organisation, literally standing for ?Guardians of the City,? is a Jewish fraction which was created in Jerusalem, in 1938 and is known for its fierce opposition to the creation of the state of Israel in Palestine. It seeks with gusto to dismantle Israel, considering it as illegal. Broadly speaking, Neturei Karta rigorously opposes any formation of a Jewish state on the land of Arabs, be it in Palestine or elsewhere. Worth noting, the stance the organization has taken is fed by the determination to debunk the alleged credibility of Zionism, divulge the unlawfulness of Zionist claims and disclose the real hidden agendas of this ideology that pass under the table. In its belief, the Zionist movement, which was brought into being by figures such as Theodor Herzl, works day in and day out worldwide looking for ?a land without a people?? for a people without land.

In opposition to that, the spiritual and cultural orientations of the aforementioned anti-Zionist organization are part of a whole set of principles held by the most orthodox Jewish sect labeled Haredi Jews dispersed around the globe. This position is based on the teachings of Judaic scriptures, which state that Jews are destined to live in exile owing to their sins. Such a religious basis begot the organization?s political attachment to the concept of diaspora as a natural fate of Jews over the world. The organization?s members go further to deem any Jewish claim to own a state with borders as a violation of divine will.

Most controversially, a revision of Judaic and Rabbinic literature unveils the fact that any act of settlement by Jews is to be by nature fanatic and exclusive. That is because one of the convictions rooted in the mindscape of a Jew is that Gentiles are impure and their presence would spoil the ?sacredness?? of the Jewish ?chosen?? self.? The Talmud is strict about it to the letter that any Jew who lives among the Gentiles is considered as ?one who has no God? (Babylonian Talmud, Ketubot 110b). Gentiles are ?heathens?? to be excluded, ghettoized, and placed in a position of marginal importance. This ideological background explains why the neo-Apartheid system is functioning now against Palestinians. The term ?Apartheid?? here is borrowed from the book Palestine: Peace not Apartheid by former U.S president Jimmy Carter. It is noteworthy that even Carter?s outlook in the book was severely opposed by the Zionist movement worldwide. That is because Gentiles in the Jewish mindset are to serve the presence of the Jewish Master and are to remain like the ??madwoman in the attic?? to use the analogy from Charlotte Bront??s Jane Eyre.

Such underlying spiritual and ideological principles that Jews embrace construct a typical radical Jewish egocentrism that awards legitimacy to any violation of human rights against the Gentiles. The International League Against Racism and Anti-Semitism, or Ligue Internationale Contre le Racisme et l?Antis?mitisme (LICRA) in French, stands as a shield against any suspicion of Jewish violation of international law and human rights. The 1990 Fabius-Gayssot law, or Gayssot law, in France for instance announces that ?any discrimination founded on membership or non-membership of an ethnic group, a nation, a race or a religion is prohibited.? The exploitation of this statement gave strategic privilege to Jews that anybody studying the Jewish case seriously could face either a fine up to 45,000 Euros or a prison sentence up to one year.

Concrete illustrations are needed for this. The trial that the French philosopher Roger Garaudy went through after having uncovered facts about the Zionist agenda and practice is one of the forms of discrimination against the intellectual body embarking on objective studies of Jews and is at the same time a form of the severe punishments this body may ?deserve.?? Roger Garaudy prefers to call such a practice ?political superstition?? in the introduction for his book La Mafia Juive: Traite des Blanches. Second, the Jewish American intellectual and academic Norman Finkelstein is another example of the discrimination that anybody who suspects Zionist violations of others? rights would face. Mr. Finkelstein was banned from entering Israel for 10 years and was also refused tenure at DePaul University in Chicago for attacking several academics who promote Zionist agendas such as Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz. Such ?sacredness?? that Jews and Zionists are endowed with is the natural result of unfounded controversial laws and organizations as the ones mentioned above.

In this regard, the Moroccan government led by Abdlillah Benkirane is challenged with such forces that own the right to accuse any unwanted figure of ?anti-Semitism.?? One of the ironies of the term is that Muslims are not encompassed by the term ?Semitic?? as if they were not of Semitic origin and of Abrahamic faith too. Such a pressure compelled the head of the contemporary government to attend the funeral of the Secretary General of the Foundation of Jewish-Moroccan Cultural Heritage Simon Levy in person. This was read as a sign of tolerance and recognition. Sometime after that, Abdlillah Benkirane was reported missing in the funeral of Abdessalam Yassin, the leader of Al Adl Wa Al Ihssane (Justice and Charity) movement. Those signs of tolerance and recognition of the other that were cordially shown once with Simon Levy suddenly vanished.? As time passed by, Abdlillah Benkirane appeared again in person celebrating the inauguration of ?Salat Elfasseyin?? Synagogue in Fes. Again, the signs of tolerance and recognition which disappeared for some time boldly appeared anew in that event.

Inharmoniously, the documentary with which this article began was boycotted by the PJD (Justice and Development Party) members when it was played in the International Film Festival in Tangiers. Sometime after the boycott, Tinguir Jerusalem, which is an explicit daring form of Zionist propaganda, appeared on 2M during the PJD presidency with Mr. Mustapha El Khalfi as the minister of Communications to address Moroccans who do fund the channel, first, and to break the neck of those who did not accept it in the international film festival, second. More controversially, the film was addressed to the Moroccan audience knowing that this audience is anti-Zionist and regularly condemns any atrocity organized by Zionist apparatuses.

To bring this labyrinth-like journey to a close, the following comparison sounds too legitimate. British Member of Parliament George Galloway wrote on his personal Facebook page on Thursday, 21 January that he refused to debate with an Israeli at Oxford University, since ?if they want to speak about Palestine, the address is Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO).?? The questions that present themselves here from start to finish are the following:? If Mr. Galloway boycotted Zionists since he already knew that he, as well as any Palestinian or non-Jew, is only a Gentile in the eyes of Israelis and Zionists worldwide, did Mr. Benkirane understand that too? Or shall he?

Mohammed Zeriouh is co-editor of the International Cinematic E-Magazine and a third-year PhD student in the doctoral unit of ?Languages, Cultures and Communication? at the faculty of letters, Mohammed 1 University, Oujda, Morocco.

The views expressed in this article are the author?s own and do not necessarily reflect Morocco World News? editorial policy

? Morocco World News. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, rewritten or redistributed

Source: http://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2013/03/80678/reflections-on-the-jewish-political-styles-and-the-moroccan-gentiles/

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Kerry: Turkish PM's Zionism comments 'objectionable'

Kayhan Ozer / Pool via EPA

Secretary of State John Kerry talks with Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara, Turkey, March 1, 2013.

By Arshad Mohammed and Jonathon Burch, Reuters

Secretary of State John Kerry on Friday criticized a comment by Turkey's prime minister likening Zionism to crimes against humanity, as the disagreement cast a shadow over talks between the NATO allies.

Kerry, on his first trip to a Muslim nation since taking office, met Turkish leaders for talks meant to focus on the civil war in neighboring Syria and bilateral interests from energy security and Iran's nuclear program to counter-terrorism.

But the comment by Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan at a U.N. meeting in Vienna this week, condemned by his Israeli counterpart, the White House and U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, has clouded his visit.

"We not only disagree with it, we found it objectionable," Kerry told a news conference with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, saying he raised the issue "very directly" with Davutoglu and would do so with Erdogan.

Erdogan told the U.N. Alliance of Civilizations meeting in Vienna on Wednesday: "Just as with Zionism, anti-Semitism and fascism, it has become necessary to view Islamophobia as a crime against humanity."

The Turkish prime minister's caustic rhetoric on Israel has in the past won applause from conservative supporters at home but raised increasing concern among Western allies.

---

Kerry said Turkey and Israel were both key U.S. allies and urged them to restore closer ties.

?

"Given the many challenges that the neighborhood faces, it is essential that both Turkey and Israel find a way to take steps ... to rekindle their historic cooperation," Kerry said.

"I think that's possible but obviously we have to get beyond the kind of rhetoric that we've just seen recently."

While on a visit to Turkey, Secretary of State John Kerry spoke out about the violence in Syria. He has pledged to send Syria $60 million in non-lethal aid and Syrian opposition leaders are asking for secure humanitarian quarters through which aid can enter the country. NBC's Catherine Chomiak reports.

Washington needs all the allies it can get as it navigates the political currents of the Middle East, and sees Turkey as a key player in supporting Syria's opposition and planning for the era after President Bashar Assad.

Ties between Israel and Turkey have been frosty since 2010, when Israeli marines killed nine Turks in fighting aboard a Palestinian aid ship that tried to breach Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip.

"If we must talk about hostile acts, then Israel's attitude and its brutal killing of nine of our civilian citizens in international waters may be called hostile," Davutoglu said, adding Turkey had always stood against anti-Semitism.

"No single statement carries a price higher than the blood of a person ... If Israel wants to hear positive statements from Turkey it needs to reconsider its attitude both towards us and towards the West Bank," he told the news conference.

Turkey has demanded a formal apology for the 2010 incident, compensation for victims and their families and for the Gaza blockade to be lifted. Israel has voiced "regret" and has offered to pay into what it called a "humanitarian fund" through which casualties and relatives could be compensated.

Support for Syrian opposition
Erdogan appeared displeased when Kerry arrived late for their evening talks, remarking there was not much time left, according to a U.S. pool reporter who attended the picture-taking session at the start of the meeting.

Kerry, in turn, apologized, saying that he had a good meeting with Davutoglu, according to the pool reporter.

Erdogan, speaking through an interpreter, replied that they "must have spoken about everything so there is nothing left for us to talk about." In a joking tone of voice, Kerry said: "We need you to sign off on everything."

Turkey's relations with the United States have always been prickly. And Erdogan's populist rhetoric, sometimes at apparent odds with U.S. interests, is aimed partly at a domestic audience wary of Washington's influence.

But the two have strong common interests. Officials said Syria would top the agenda in Kerry's meetings with Erdogan and President Abdullah Gul, building on the discussions in Rome between 11 mostly European and Arab nations within the "Friends of Syria" group.

After the Rome meeting, Kerry said on Thursday the United States would for the first time give non-lethal aid to the rebels and more than double support to the civilian opposition, although Western powers stopped short of pledging arms.

Turkey has been one of Assad's fiercest critics, hosting a NATO Patriot missile defense system, including two U.S. batteries, to protect against a spillover of violence and leading calls for international intervention.

It has spent more than $600 million sheltering refugees from the conflict that began almost two years ago, housing some 180,000 in camps near the border and tens of thousands more who are staying with relatives or in private accommodation.

Washington has given $385 million in humanitarian aid for Syria but U.S. President Barack Obama has so far refused to give arms, arguing it is difficult to prevent them from falling into the hands of militants who could use them on Western targets.

Turkey, too, has been reluctant to provide weapons, fearing direct intervention could bring the conflict across its borders.

Copyright 2013 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

Source: http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/03/01/17149873-kerry-calls-turkish-pms-zionism-comments-objectionable?lite

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Celgene drug shown to be effective, safe in psoriasis trial

(Reuters) - Celgene Corp's experimental drug apremilast proved to be more effective than a dummy pill for psoriasis patients in a late-stage study, clearing the way for the company to file for U.S. regulatory approval in the second half of 2013.

Celgene said 59 percent of patients in the 844-patient trial achieved a 50 percent improvement in symptoms at 16 weeks, using a standard score of the severity and extent of psoriasis, compared with 17 percent of placebo patients. A 75 percent improvement in symptoms was seen in 33 percent of the treatment group and 5 percent of the placebo group.

The Phase 3 trial is the first of two pivotal studies of the drug in patients with psoriasis, a disease in which itchy, painful skin plaques are thought to be caused by an inflammatory response initiated by the body's immune system.

Apremilast is a pill that inhibits an enzyme known as phosphodiesterase 4, or PDE4, and acts to damp down inflammation.

Celgene said previously it planned to file for Food and Drug Administration approval of the drug as a treatment for psoriatic arthritis in the first quarter of this year.

Side effects were consistent with those seen in earlier trials of the drug, with the most common being diarrhea and nausea.

Celgene said no cases of tuberculosis or lymphoma were observed through Week 16, and there was no increase in risk of cardiovascular events or serious opportunistic infection.

"From a physician's perspective, this can definitely be a first-line therapy because of the excellent risk/benefit profile," said Dr. Richard Langley, director of dermatology research at Dalhousie University in Halifax, and one of the study's lead investigators. "I think the patient acceptance of this drug and the physician acceptance is going to be extremely high."

He noted that most psoriasis patients are currently treated with methotrexate, which can cause serious side effects.

Newer biologic drugs used to treat psoriasis, which include Amgen Inc's Enbrel and AbbVie Inc's Humira, can make patients more susceptible to infection, Dr. Langley said.

(Reporting b Deena Beasley in Los Angeles and Bill Berkrot in New York; Editing by Jan Paschal)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/celgene-drug-shown-effective-safe-psoriasis-trial-162210841--finance.html

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Mom defends letting the Web name her baby

Trending

Jacoba Urist, TODAY Contributor

9 hours ago

The mom who agreed to let the Internet choose her baby?s name for $5,000 doesn?t know what all the fuss is about.

?Especially now with people all around me trying to pay their mortgages and get by, I have $5,000 I can put towards my baby?s future, and $5,000 makes a difference in my life,? Natasha Hill, a single, children?s art teacher in Los Angeles, told TODAY Moms. ?Here?s the chance for me to do something really positive for my unborn son or daughter.?

Natasha Hill

Natasha Hill is defending her choice for getting paid to have her baby's name voted on through an Internet voting contest.

Due in September with her first child, the 27-year-old Hill won a contest sponsored by the baby-name website Belly Ballot, which offered $5,000 for naming rights. Online voters will choose Baby Hill?s name from a list of five girl and five boy names, supplied by the website, which will include advertiser-sponsored suggestions. Voters will be allowed one vote per person per sex.

?Nothing crazy or a brand name or anything,? explains Lacey Moler, Belly Ballot?s founder and mother of three young children in Austin, Texas. Voting starts March 18 and ends March 22; the contest has been so popular, Moler told TODAY Moms she?s considering a second one.

?Crazy? is exactly what many critics are calling the contest, with some decrying it as a sign of the erosion of traditional family values. Most simply can?t understand why a parent would entrust such a major decision to strangers.

But Hill says her critics are missing the point. Her own parents are on board, she told TODAY Moms: ?Sure, they understand that I?m going through this creative name process. But they know that I?m going to be a loving and nurturing mom, which is the most important part of parenting.?

Hill said she plans to pay off debt so her child can be born into a debt-free home, and put at least $3,000 into a college savings account.

She?s quick to point out to mothers who are judging her that ?strangers, after all, wrote all those baby naming books? and ?just opening one up and picking something you like with your finger? is a pretty random way to decide on a name for your child, too.

Hill is still in her first trimester, and doesn?t yet know if she?s having a boy or girl. Even if she hates the winning name, Hill could always just use a nickname ? or change the child?s name a few weeks or months later.

A ?baby naming contract? like the one in the contest is likely not legally enforceable, said Arthur Jacobson, a contracts professor at The Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in New York City. Hill hasn?t signed anything, and more importantly, judges usually void agreements that are found to be against public policy. Making a mom call her child something that she doesn?t like or prohibiting her from changing a baby?s name sound like a pretty textbook example of such a situation.

While advertisers or the website could always ask for their money back, they couldn?t really get her to keep the winning name if she didn?t want to.

Still, this isn't the first time and it probably won't be the last that money has influenced baby-naming decisions. Some grandparents have tried to pressure expectant moms and dads to use a beloved family name, even using promises of a college fund donation as incentive. And it seems Ebay has seen it's fair share of would-be baby name auctioneers, so much so that the site has, from time to time, had to crack down on such transactions over the past decade."

Moler, whose company promises to harness social media like Twitter in order to help parents find the perfect names for their little ones, says online voting is the new frontier in baby names. She said parents who don?t want to participate in crowdsourcing or online balloting shouldn?t have a problem if another mother wants to let strangers help name her child for her.

Even high-powered moms like Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer have turned to crowdsourcing for name inspiration. Mayer emailed friends and tweeted followers shortly after her son?s birth, looking for any and all digital input. Though, the name she and her husband eventually chose, Macallister, was one they?d already been considering for some time.

However, asking for suggestions on Twitter is a few big steps removed from letting the online public decide whether your bundle of joy is a Martha or a Mackenzie. Christian-parenting advocacy group Rosa Cee has called the contest an affront to traditional family values and asked Belly Ballot to cancel it, and and has threatened to boycott any advertisers who participate. Rosa Cee spokesperson Kasey Candela said in a press release, ?A baby?s name isn?t like a baseball stadium, up to the highest bidder. Certain elements of our family and children must be off limits to advertisers for capitalistic opportunity.?

According to Moler, many of the 80 contestants who applied for the March contest cited economic concerns and a real desire for a better future for their family.

Mom-to-be Jaime Rodriquez, who agreed to share her application with TODAY Moms, wrote that she tried for nine and a half years to conceive, and now that she?s finally pregnant, wanted to put the money away in a savings account for her unborn child to have when he is older.

Carly Hamilton, a Canadian resident on government assistance, wrote that she wishes for nothing more than to pay off her student loans before her new addition comes ? she dreams of building her credit and one day buying a home with a small backyard for two children to play outside.

Meanwhile, Hill is sticking by her choice to enter the contest ? and wants the voting public to know that she?s pulling for the name James (if it turns out it's a boy; she doesn't have a favorite girl name yet).

What do you think of having online voters choose a baby name? Share your thoughts on the TODAY Moms Facebook page.

Source: http://www.today.com/moms/mom-defends-5-000-payoff-baby-name-rights-1C8626277

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