The Onion makes a living by blurring the lines between the real and the fictional, so much so that the site's satire is often . 

On Monday, that line became even murkier as Syrian hackers apparently took control of The Onion's social media accounts, parodying the site's satirical tone with puzzling statements about the Syrian civil war and the international response it has engendered.

"UN retracts report of Syrian chemical weapon use: 'Lab tests confirm it is Jihadi body odor,'" read one , since deleted. "Syrian Electronic Army was here," read another message, which was posted to several of The Onion's Twitter accounts. 

The SAE — a nebulous group of hackers that backs Syrian President Bashar al-Assad — has claimed responsibility for hacking a number of Western media groups in recent weeks, including NPR, the BBC, and the Associated Press. In the most extreme case, the SAEwith a fake tweet from the AP's account that claimed President Obama had been wounded in an attack on the White House. 

[You can read more about the Syrian Electronic Army and its motives ]

Yet while the Syrian Electronic Army undoubtedlythose accounts, it was at first unclear if The Onion was the group's latest target, or if the site was just playing an elaborate prank. Given that satire is The Onion's bread and butter, there was initially some suspicion that the "hack" was really an inside joke. As Stefan Becket at New York wrote:

— Stefan Becket (@stefanjbecket)

So in this game of satire and cyber-warfare, who can we believe?

In addition to the tweets claiming responsibility for the hacks — which, as the , went out on at least one account that had been dormant for months — the SAE appeared to take credit elsewhere on the web. According to E Hacking News, one of the alleged hackers posted athat showed him/her in control of an Onion Twitter feed.

The tweets in question have all since been deleted, too, indicating that The Onion removed them after regaining control of its accounts. And the site, known for its quick turnarounds on major news items, was even making light of the hack — or, perhaps, perpetuating the joke — in a couple of articles and tweets Monday afternoon.

"After hacking into The Onion’s Twitter account earlier today, members of the Syrian Electronic Army confirmed that the organization simply wanted to have a little fun before soon dying at the hands of rebel forces," anposted Monday night read. "Onion Password Changed To OnionMan77," read theof another post.

— The Onion (@TheOnion)

— The Onion (@TheOnion)

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Francis, who has said he wants to make concern for the poor a hallmark of his papacy, will visit the Manguinhos slum in Rio de Janeiro on the fourth day of his July 22-29 trip to the world's largest Catholic country.

Manguinhos is one of Rio's most visible favelas, wedged between a busy highway and a former oil refinery and near the main airport and large military bases.

The shantytown, which the pope will visit on July 25, had a long history of drug-related violence, but a police occupation late last year kicked out many of the drug and gun traffickers.

Manguinhos, home to about 35,000 poor people, is one of the communities that have been part of a community policing operation that has reduced violence in the shantytowns of Rio de Janeiro.

The pope will also meet young prisoners who will be brought to the archbishop's residence for the occasion.

The main purpose of the trip is for the pope to preside at the Catholic Church's World Day of Youth, an international gathering sometimes dubbed a "Catholic Woodstock" that takes place in a different city every two years.

The World Day of Youth celebrations start on July 23 and end on July 28.

Francis, the first non-European pope in 1,300 years on, arrives on the afternoon of July 22 and will rest the next day to overcome jet lag, according to the official program of the trip released by the Vatican.

On July 24, he will fly by helicopter to the city of Aparecida, about 240 km (150 miles) southwest of Rio de Janeiro, to visit the national shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida, whom the Church honors at the patroness of Brazil.

That evening he visits a hospital in Rio that treats AIDS patients.

The pope's participation in World Youth Day events starts on the evening of July 25 in Rio's famed Copacabana Beach area and culminates with a huge open-air Mass in the Guaratiba area of the city on July 28.

During the trip he will also address Brazil's political and business leaders.

The trip is expected to be the only one abroad for the pope this year. The former Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio of Buenos Aires is expected to visit his homeland early next year.

He is expected to travel to the central Italian city of Assisi, birthplace of St. Francis, whose name Bergoglio adopted when elected pope on March 13.

(Reporting by Philip Pullella; Additional reporting by Alonso Soto in Brasilia; Editing by Jon Hemming)

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Author Michael Lewis did not defame a money manager in his best-selling 2010 book "The Big Short," according to a federal judge in Manhattan.

In a lawsuit filed in 2011, Wing Chau, a manager of collateralized debt obligations, and his firm Harding Advisory LLC, accused Lewis of including a series of defamatory statements in a chapter revolving around a 2007 dinner in Las Vegas that included Chau and hedge fund manager Steven Eisman.

The book, which spent six weeks atop The New York Times' list of hardcover nonfiction bestsellers, looks at the housing and credit bubble during the 2000s that lead to the 2007 financial crisis.

Chau also named Eisman and the book's publisher W.W. Norton & Co as defendants, over what he called "accusations of grave professional misconduct, incompetence, and irresponsibility."

But U.S. District Judge George Daniels said the statements were "non-actionable expressions of opinion," not "assertions of fact that may properly serve as a basis for libel claims."

"A careful review of Chapter 6 of The Big Short indicates that the challenged statements are incapable of being reasonably susceptible to any defamatory meaning," Daniels wrote in a ruling on Friday.

Moreover, Daniels said "many of the allegedly defamatory statements about the plaintiffs are completely or substantially true."

"We respectfully disagree with the court's decision and intend to appeal," said Steven Molo, a lawyer for Chau.

W.W. Norton and a lawyer representing the firm and Lewis did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

David Schulz, a lawyer for Eisman, declined to comment.

The case is Chau et al v. Lewis et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 11-01333.

(Reporting by Bernard Vaughan; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

Jewish leaders hope the three-day pilgrimage to the Ghriba synagogue, Africa's oldest, on the island of Djerba is regaining momentum after attendance plummeted in the wake of a 2002 al-Qaida bombing and lingering safety concerns following Tunisia's revolution two years ago.

The pilgrimage evokes a larger issue for Tunisia: How to convince Jews and other foreigners that stability has returned enough to merit a visit and help revive a weakened economy. The tourism trade accounts for about 400,000 jobs and 7 percent of economic output in Tunisia, an overwhelmingly Muslim country of nearly 11 million.

Despite the setbacks in recent years, Tunisia's Jews were sounding optimistic.

"This year will be better. The atmosphere is good, and the preparations have been made carefully," said Perez Trabelsi, the president of Ghriba's operating committee, and a Djerba native. "Attendance will go up from one year to the next, to return to its top level like before."

At its peak in 2000, about 8,000 Jews came many from Israel, Italy and France, where they or their forebears had moved over the years. Such crowds haven't returned since an al-Qaida-linked militant detonated a truck bomb at the synagogue in 2002, killing 21 people, mostly German tourists and badly jolting the now-tiny Jewish community.

The pilgrimage was called off in 2011 in the wake of Tunisia's revolution, when major street protests ousted longtime President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, who fled to Saudi Arabia, and some ultraconservative Muslims called Salafis chanted anti-Semitic slogans at their rallies. Last year, the pilgrimage resumed on a tiny scale: Only 100 or so foreigners came. This year, community leaders hope 300 to 500 will have come.

Rene Trabelsi, a Paris-based tour operator, said the Tunisian government led by the moderate Islamic party Ennahda has "gone beyond our hopes" in providing security measures, police and troops for the pilgrimage.

After Saturday's Sabbath, the three-day pilgrimage was expected to culminate Sunday with the sale of necklaces, scarves and other craftwork to raise money for the synagogue. On Friday, as it got underway, families lit candles and the faithful marched through a white-washed archway lined with bunting and Tunisia's red crescent-and-star flag into the ornate, blue-and-white synagogue.

Jews have been living in Djerba since 500 B.C. The Jewish population has shrunk to 1,500, down from 100,000 in the 1960s. Most left following the 1967 war between Israel and Arab countries, and Socialist economic policies adopted by the government in the late 1960s also drove away many Jewish business owners.

Djerba, a dusty island of palm trees and olive groves, lures hundreds of thousands of tourists every year mainly Germans and French for its sandy beaches and rich history. The Ghriba synagogue, said to date to 586 B.C., itself once drew up to 2,000 visitors per day, Jewish leaders have said.

The site is rich with legend. The first Jews who arrived were said to have brought a stone from the ancient temple of Jerusalem that was destroyed by the Babylonians. The stone is kept in a grotto at the synagogue. Women and children descend into the grotto to place eggs scrawled with wishful messages on them.

The pilgrims, mostly Sephardic Jews with roots in Tunisia, come for the festivities starting 33 days after the Jewish holiday of Passover that include singing, dancing and drinking the traditional "boukha" brandy made from dates or figs.

At poolside at a posh Djerba hotel, some pilgrims reveled in the festivities and brushed off any concerns.

Emile Arki, a 63-year-old businessman who splits his time between Paris and California, said all too often "what's happening in Tunisia is exaggerated with an alarmist tone ... We were well greeted at the airport. The people are smiling. I don't see why anybody should be afraid."

The religious affairs minister sent an adviser to "congratulate our Jewish brothers during their festival," and the tourism minister was expected on Sunday.

Within seconds of the fracas, the Dow Jones Industrial Average plummeted 145 points (see the graphic below) before picking itself back up a few minutes later.  took a close look at how the nosedive was implicated by technology — sophisticated computer-trading software that monitors news headlines, corporate announcements, and yes, even social media to make buy or sell decisions in fractions of a second. Welcome to the world of algorithm-based decision-making.

The Journal's Geoffrey Rogow and Telis Demos :

The technology has been around for several years, but it is increasingly finding adherents among financial firms, including hedge funds, investment banks, and even long-term investors such as mutual-fund companies. Experts say traders use the data for just about every kind of investment around the world, from U.S. stocks to the Korean won. []

Once Dataminr's distress signals were received, the firms' proprietary software exploded into action, ready to sell. The whole process occurred in the blink of an eye. 

— which publishes The Journal — claims these "elementized" news feeds "cut execution times and perform deeper analysis" than traditional methods. In addition to scanning hundreds of millions of tweets and headlines, they take into account several additional factors, including the reputation of a news source (in this case a tweet from the AP's confirmed account) and a tweet's geo-location. Media firms, including Dow Jones, Bloomberg, and Reuters, have been using elementized news feeds in some capacity since 2006.

And while it may feel gratifying to point fingers at the machines' mathematical inability to preemptively sniff out a hoax, The Journalthat Dataminr's computers were quick to right a wrong. A second alert warning clients that the initial news may not have been accurate was sent out almost immediately, even before the AP had a chance to announce it had been hacked. Five minutes after the fake White House explosion sent the market into free fall, "shares rebounded across the board, and the blue-chip index ended the day with gains greater than before the incident."

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“Let me help clear up some confusion based on my observations. It's all about innovation and a maturing marketplace. I have been asked why AT&T and Verizon have different earnings when the two companies on a similar track. If you pull the camera back and look at the maturing and changing industry things look much clearer. I see growth in wireless changing, but continuing. That goes for AT&T as well as Verizon, Sprint and others," saysJeff Kagan.

“AT&T and Verizon are actually on the same general track, but they are not on the track at the same time. AT&T moved into the smartphone market very early. This gave them strong growth years ago before competitors jumped into the same space. There were years when a visit to an AT&T store was much different than a visit to a Verizon or Sprint store. AT&T was loaded with smartphones while Verizon and Sprint were still mostly plain handsets. Then AT&T got the Apple iPhone and they took off like a bullet ahead of competitors," saysJeff Kagan.

“This is the part that many are not thinking about when comparing AT&T and Verizon. Having an early start in this smartphone market means more of their customer base would be smartphone users, earlier. And that was the case. Simply compare AT&T smartphone customers with Verizon or Sprint. The AT&T percentage is much further ahead," says Kagan.

That means AT&T would reach smartphone saturation ahead of Verizon and Sprint. That is what is happening. Kagan sees no general weakness from AT&T or strength from Verizon. They are on the same growth track, it's just that AT&T's growth track started years ahead of Verizon.

Kagan says, “Going forward, I see growth in the wireless industry coming from two different areas. One is more traditional. That means getting existing users to do more with their smartphones and therefore spend more. Two is helping other industries transform to the wireless model. This is already starting to happen in some industries like automotive, health care and retail as an example.”

Automotive gives drivers the ability to access the Internet from their dashboard or let riders surf the web as well as get information like weather, traffic directions and so on.

Also, the vehicle stays in touch with the manufacturer, and recommends service when it is time. And, this is going further and faster all the time.

Health care lets users track their vitals, like their diabetes numbers or blood pressure and have them instantly transmitted to the doctor's office. Better care and fewer actual doctor visits.

Retail recognizes users when they walk into the store, greets them, then sends personalized coupons depending where they are in the store and based on past purchases.

Plus every other industry will also move toward this wireless model as well. The potential for the wireless industry here is enormous. That means carriers like AT&T and Verizon, and handset makers.

So, growth in wireless will change, but will continue. That goes for AT&T as well as Verizon, Sprint and other carriers.

About Jeff Kagan

Jeff Kagan is an Industry Analyst who is regularly quoted by the media over 25 years.

He offers comment on wireless, telecom and tech news stories to reporters and journalists.

He is also known as a Tech Analyst, Wireless Analyst, Telecom Analyst and Principal Analyst depending on the focus of the story.

He follows wireless, telecom, Internet, cable television and IPTV. He also follows the wider and more general consumer electronics and technology space.

Visit his website: at jeffKAGAN.com to learn more and for disclosures.

Reporters: Jeff Kagan sends comments by email to reporters and the media. If you would like to be added to this email list please send request by email.

Clients: Call or email Jeff Kagan to discuss becoming a client. Kagan has worked with many companies over 25 years as consulting clients.

Contact: Jeff Kagan by email at jeff(at)jeffKAGAN(dot)com or by phone at 770-579-5810.

Kagan is an analyst, consultant, columnist and speaker.

Twitter: @jeffkagan

Jeff KAGANJeff Kagan, Tech Analyst, Industry Analyst770-579-5810

After the judge's order, Islamabad's administration declared that Musharraf's lavish country residence could serve as a jail, meaning the ex-president could be held there under house arrest.

The development is the latest act in the drama surrounding Musharraf's return to Pakistan, which climaxed with his arrest Friday after a speedy escape from another court hearing.

The former general, who seized power in a coup and ruled Pakistan for nearly a decade, has seen his fortunes plummet since he returned in March after four years in self-imposed exile.

The arrest of such a prominent military figure in a country that has experienced three coups has unsettled Pakistan at a time when it is preparing for historic elections on May 11.

Saturday's order came at a hearing in an Islamabad court, where Musharraf was brought under heavy security as supporters and opponents gathered outside the court.

The judge ruled that he would be given judicial remand, which means that he would be held in custody until the next hearing on May 4.Musharraf's legal team had been pushing to get his estate on the edge of Islamabad declared a temporary jail under Pakistani law. The Islamabad chief commissioner later issued a notification declaring the residence a jail, said police official Mohammed Khalid.

After the court hearing, Musharraf was taken back to a police guesthouse where he had spent the night, and then was transported in the late afternoon to his private house on the outskirts of the capital.

Musharraf was arrested in the case that stems from his decision, while in power, to sack and detain the judges, including the country's chief justice, after declaring a state of emergency and suspending the constitution. At the time, Musharraf apparently was concerned that the judges would push back against his re-election as president. As a justification for the state of emergency he also cited the growing Taliban insurgency in the country's northwest.

But the move backfired horribly.

The country's lawyers took to the streets in widespread protests that eventually weakened Musharraf's government so much that he was forced to call new elections and step down.

A judge has said that Musharraf's 2007 decision amounted to terrorism, which is why the case is now being heard before an anti-terrorism court. Such courts are closed to the media and the public.

Musharraf returned to Pakistan to make a political comeback and contest the May 11 election. But he was greeted with little popular support and was disqualified from running in the election.

A judge on Thursday ordered his arrest. That sparked Musharraf's dramatic escape from court in a speeding vehicle. After getting away, he holed up in his heavily guarded house on the outskirts of Islamabad until he was taken into custody on Friday morning.

In a message posted on his Facebook page after his arrest, Musharraf wrote: "These allegations are politically motivated, and I will fight them in the trial court, where the truth will eventually prevail."

Musharraf seized control of Pakistan in a coup in 1999 when he was army chief and spent nearly a decade in power before being forced to step down in 2008. He returned despite Taliban death threats and a raft of legal challenges. He also faces legal charges in connection with the 2007 assassination of the former prime minister Benazir Bhutto and the 2006 death of a Baluch nationalist leader.

But it has been the case related to the judges that has sparked the most contention since Musharraf's return a reflection of the deep animosity many in the legal sphere still have for the former strongman.

His arrest is a significant act in a country where senior army officers have long seemed untouchable. The army is still considered the most powerful institution in Pakistan, but its aura of impunity has declined in recent years, especially in the face of an activist judiciary.

When Musharraf entered the court Saturday, he was surrounded by a phalanx of police and paramilitary Rangers.

Pakistani lawyers chanted: "Whoever is a friend of Musharraf is a traitor." Supporters shouted: "Long live Musharraf!"

Musharraf had hoped to regain some of his power by winning seats in the May 11 election. That vote will mark a significant milestone for Pakistan which has seen its democratic evolution stalled by a history of military coups.

The winner of the presidential election will continue to face rising militancy in violence in the country.

On Saturday, a suspected suicide bomber targeted security forces outside the main gate of a hospital in Khar, the main town in the Bajur tribal region. Four people died in the blast, said political administration official Abdul Haseeb Khan. The tribal regions border Afghanistan to the west and have been the scene of numerous attacks by militants, who are opposed to the Pakistani government and want to impose their version of Islam on the rest of the country.

Morsi set the date as Dec. 15 in a nationally televised speech to the Islamist-led assembly that hurriedly approved the draft charter amid widening opposition from secular and Christian groups.

Egypt's Constitutional Court was due to rule Sunday on whether to dissolve the panel. If the judges decide to hold their session, whatever the decision, it is still a challenge and a continuation of the tug of war between Morsi and the powerful judiciary, which dissolved the Islamist-dominated parliament earlier this year.

"After receiving this draft constitution, and out of keenness to build the nation's institutions without delay or stalling, I will issue today the call for a public referendum on this draft charter on Saturday, Dec. 15," Morsi said. "I pray to God and hope that it will be a new day of democracy in Egypt."

Morsi urged those who opposed it to go out and vote. "With us all we build the nation," he said.

As he announced the date, more than 100,000 of his supporters danced and chanted in celebration as they gathered in one of Cairo's squares in support of efforts to rush through the draft charter.

The demonstrations the largest turnout of Morsi supporters since he came to office in June were seen as a show of strength for Islamists seeking to counter mass opposition protests held over the past week denouncing the president's decision to seize near absolute power and the fast-tracking of the draft charter ahead of a Constitutional Court decision on Sunday on whether to dissolve the panel.

Across the river, a few thousand of Morsi's opponents rallying in Cairo's Tahrir Square raised their shoes to show contempt for the announcement.

The referendum date placed the next move in the standoff in the hands of the Constitutional Court. It was not clear what a decision to disband the constitutional assembly would have now that the charter has been drafted and a date set for the vote.

Judges, still smarting from Morsi's earlier decrees giving himself and the constitutional assembly immunity from judicial oversight, have threatened to boycott observing the referendum.

In his speech, Morsi appealed to the judges to carry out their duties, praising their national roles and adding that the state will not challenge their decisions or powers.

"I am sure that the judges of Egypt will be of help to their nation and people. No one can act outside legal legitimacy," he said in the official ceremony held for the delivery of the draft constitution attended by panel members, as well as Defense Minister Sheik al-Azhar, and the former prime minister picked by the military council that governed Egypt until Morsi's election.

Despite wide opposition to the constitution and walkouts by secular and Christian representatives from the panel drafting the constitution, Morsi said the constitution establishes a real democratic system and "is going in the right direction."

Opponents say the draft charter has a distinct Islamist bent and rights groups have raised concerns about articles that undermine personal and women rights as well as freedoms of expression.

"We want to overcome disagreements and bickering to move toward serious and productive work. There are massive challenges ahead in the future internally and externally," Morsi said, referring to those who walked out of the panel or are criticizing the draft.

"I tell my opponents before my supporters, help me to carry out this responsibility you bestowed upon me in managing the country's affairs," Morsi said.

He called for a national dialogue to discuss the "concerns" of the nation.

Opponents of Morsi's decision and the charter had held massive rallies over the last week, and several hundreds are holding a sit-in in Tahrir, the epicenter of the uprising that forced former President Hosni Mubarak to step down last year. They had conditioned their participation in a national dialogue on Morsi rescinding his decrees, which they said gave him near-dictatorial powers.

In an immediate reaction to the referendum date, prominent democracy advocate Nobel Peace laureate Mohamed ElBaradei, who is a member of a coalition of opposition leaders, said on his Twitter account that Morsi put to a referendum a constitution that "undermines basic freedoms and violates universal rights. The struggle continues."

The opposition announced plans for an intensified street campaign of protests and civil disobedience and even a possible march on Morsi's presidential palace to prevent him from holding a nationwide referendum on the draft.It is not clear whether the opposition can rally enough voters to shoot down the constitution in a referendum or organize a boycott campaign.

1. It is never OK to ask a veteran if he or she has killed someone or to joke about it. If we have, we can't even talk about it with our spouses, much less a stranger.

2. When you thank us for our service or pay for our meal, it is really appreciated. We also appreciate packages and notes.

3. Please don't tell us that wars are a waste of dollars or lives or were fought for oil. What we hear is that, in your opinion, our best friend died for nothing. We know many people disagree with war, but it's better to keep your opinions to yourself.

4. Many of us now have PTSD. If you see us acting anxious or moving away from crowds, turning our backs to the wall or fidgeting, simple kindness or a little distraction will be appreciated. Talk to us about something interesting and give us some breathing room.

5. Please remember that 15 percent of those who serve in the military are women, and some have been in combat. It's better to ask, "Are you a veteran?" rather than, "Was your husband a soldier?"6. As with any person who has a disability, please do not stare at us. We can be sensitive about our scars or injuries and would prefer not to be asked to relive a difficult experience by being quizzed about what happened. Please also understand that war injuries today are very different than in the past and are often not visible. It is not OK to tell someone they "don't look disabled" or appear to need help.

Those of us with disabilities appreciate light conversation and assistance if we look like we are in need.

It was my pleasure to serve our country. -- AMANDA C., U.S. ARMY DISABLED VETERAN

DEAR AMANDA C.: Thank you for your service. And thank you, too, for your helpful suggestions, which are sure to be appreciated not only by civilians, but also by active and retired members of our military.

Readers, as the war in Afghanistan winds down, many thousands of service members are returning home and entering the job market. Please, if possible, honor their courage, dedication and sacrifice by doing your part and providing them with employment. Considering what they have done for us, it is the least we can do to show our appreciation.

DEAR ABBY: I'm afraid I'm an abusive girlfriend. When I get mad at my boyfriend, I yell at him and call him names. Sometimes I hit him. Even though he really makes me angry, I do love him.

I'm not crazy, but I don't know how to control myself. It's not like I'm threatening to kill him.

I don't want to go to counseling or group classes. I don't really hit him a lot. I yell more. I also have jealousy issues. What can I do? -- PROBLEM GIRLFRIEND

DEAR GIRLFRIEND: Your concern is justified, because you are an abusive girlfriend. While I applaud your growing self-awareness, it is very important that you understand the reasons you are behaving this way so you can stop. While you may not like the idea of counseling or group anger management classes, it would be much better if you went voluntarily rather than one day having them court-mandated.

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Write Dear Abby ator P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.

To receive a collection of Abby's most memorable -- and most frequently requested -- poems and essays, send your name and mailing address, plus check or money order for $7 (U.S. funds) to: Dear Abby -- Keepers Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. Shipping and handling are included in the price.