Source: http://feeds.nytimes.com/click.phdo?i=fb7a7b6c815165251cd3b6918a5f1847
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Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Global Update: Joint Effort Announced Against Tropical Diseases
[unable to retrieve full-text content]Companies, governments and nonprofit organizations are releasing money, access to databases and outreach efforts to counter diseases such as leprosy and guinea worm.
Monday, January 30, 2012
"Beasts," "The House I Live In" win top awards at Sundance (omg!)
PARK CITY, Utah (Reuters) - "Beasts of the Southern Wild" and "The House I Live In" won the top awards at the Sundance Film Festival on Saturday, making them likely favorites for independent movie audiences in 2012.
Directed by Benh Zeitlin and set in impoverished Louisiana, "Beasts of the Southern Wild" picked up the jury prize for best drama as well as best cinematography with its poetic tale of the bond between a father and a daughter.
The documentary winner, "The House I Live In," was one of many documentaries at Sundance 2012 that looked at a struggling America at Sundance 2012. It is an examination of America's long war on drugs and critiques of U.S. drug policies, its court system, prisons and their impact on minorities.
"The war on drugs is a terrible scar on America," said director Eugene Jarecki.
Special juries of industry professionals vote on winners, and those are considered the top prizes but audiences also vote for their favorites.
"The Surrogate," which stars Helen Hunt and John Hawkes and is about a man's quest to lose his virginity while mostly confined to an iron lung, won the Audience Award for best drama.
The film, based on the life of poet and journalist Mark O'Brien, fetched one of the highest selling prices at the festival -- a reported $6 million -- and with its mix of comedy and drama could turn out to be one of the bigger U.S. indie hits in cinemas to come out of the festival.
"Love is a journey, that's it," said director Ben Lewin when accepting his trophy, quoting a line from the film.
"SEARCHING FOR SUGAR MAN"
The Audience Award for documentary was given to "The Invisible War," about an epidemic of sexual assault in the U.S. military and shining a light on a little known problem.
Other documentary special jury prizes went to "Love Free or Die," about the Episcopal Church's first openly gay bishop, Gene Robinson; and "Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry," about the Chinese artist and activist who was detained for 81 days last year.
"Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry" director Alison Klayman took a picture of the crowd upon accepting the award and promised to send it to the Chinese artist, who was spent 81 days in government detention last year and felt it was too risky to attend the festival from China.
Sundance, which is backed by Robert Redford's Sundance Institute for filmmaking, is the largest U.S. gathering for independent movies. Festival winners go on to become some of the most talked about films in art houses.
Many of the more hyped fictional films for Sundance 2012 did not live up to their buzz, with many including "Red Lights" starring Robert De Niro and Spike Lee's "Red Hook Summer" disappointing critics, although films have still sold.
In addition to prizes for U.S. films, Sundance also gives awards in world cinema.
"Searching for Sugar Man," about the search for an obscure 1970s Detroit folk singer known as Rodriguez, won the audience award for best world documentary as well as a special jury prize. It was one of the most popular films of the festival, which served as the d3ebut for documentaries such as "An Inconvenient Truth."
Chile's "Violeta Went To Heaven," based on the life of Chilean folk singer Violeta Parra's journey from a poor upbringing to national hero, won the jury prize for best drama, and "The Law In These Parts" was the jury's pick for best documentary.
(Reporting By Christine Kearney; editing by Mohammad Zargham and Bill Trott)
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S&P 500 Week in Review: Netflix Draws Investing Demand, E-Trade ...
By Scott Gillette
January 29 2012
Email This
Monday
Netflix (NASDAQ:NFLX) was hit hard pre-market by Wedbush?s lack of confidence. Wedbush believes that Q1 earnings will be poor, and 2012 consensus estimates ill drop a buck a share. Piper Jaffray, for what it?s worth, is optimistic about Netflix, as they think the customer base will stabilize and ultimately grow again.
Don?t Miss: Netflix?s Streaming Service Comes Up Short for Movie Buffs.
Halliburton?s?(NYSE:HAL) results came in this morning, and although EPS and revenues beat estimates, the higher expectations of the market were not met. Interesting tidbit: unconventional oil drilling has twice as much activity as unconventional gas drilling.
Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN): The entire pharmaceutical sector is being downgraded, and Amgen is no exception. Its stock has been downgraded to underweight by JP Morgan.
Earnings Report: PetMed Express Inc. Earnings: Shrinking Margins for Fifth Consecutive Quarter, Net Income Falls.
Sears Holdings Corporation (NASDAQ:SHLD): The performance of this stock has been remarkable: up 69% year to date, the stock jumped by 8% before coming down close to where it started at the beginning of trading. Some believe Sears is now in a classic short squeeze.
Southwestern Energy Co. (NYSE:SWN) popped along with other natural gas producers because the spike of prices and Chesapeake?s planned cuts in production.
Chesapeake Energy Corporation (NYSE:CHK): After sinking overnight to $2.20, natural gas futures jumped 6.4% in a matter of minutes. Apparently there were too many short-sellers in the natural gas market, and the market has taken care of them for the time being.
Tuesday
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Sunday, January 29, 2012
Tamron and Kenko bring third-party glass to the Micro Four Thirds bash
The fresh trend of Micro Four Thirds shooters is on the rise, thus it shouldn't come as a surprise that more glass-makers are jumping on the MFT bandwagon. Joining the likes of Panasonic, Olympus and Kodak as part of the Micro Four Thirds Group, is a trifecta of third-party lens manufacturers: Tamron, Kenko Tokina and ASTRODESIGN. Following closely behind rival Sigma, the newcomers are looking to make a dent in the four-thirds universe. Better late than never, right? There's still no sign of these optics being available for you to stack in your camera bag, but the news just came in, so it shouldn't be too long before you can get some extra glass for your shiny new GX1.
Continue reading Tamron and Kenko bring third-party glass to the Micro Four Thirds bash
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ClockworkMod developer teases touch-based recovery
ClockworkMod developer Koushik Dutta has shown off some early progress in bringing touchscreen functionality to his popular custom recovery image for Android. In a video posted on his Google+ page, Koush demonstrates the ability to navigate through menus using touch, rather than the regular volume rocker/power button combo required by current ClockworkMod builds.
A custom recovery image is an important tool for anyone wanting to use custom firmware on their Android device, so it's great to see advanced functionality like touch headed to a popular recovery like CWM.
This isn't the first time we've seen early implementations of touch support in custom recoveries, though. Previous efforts have included an unofficial version of ClockworkMod for the Galaxy Nexus, which uses on-screen keys instead of old-fashioned clicky buttons. The important difference with Koush's implementation is that it allows you to touch and scroll anywhere on the screen to select the item you want, just like when you're browsing through menus in Android.
The developer points out that the version shown in the video is still a "rough cut", with plenty of work yet to be done. But based on what we've seen in the video, things are already looking very promising.
Source: +Kouishik Dutta
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/M995hVXZZu8/story01.htm
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Saturday, January 28, 2012
[OOC] Named
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This is the auto-generated OOC topic for the roleplay "Named"
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This topic is an Out Of Character part of the roleplay, ?Named?. Anything posted here will also show up there.Topic Tags:
Forum for completely Out of Character (OOC) discussion, based around whatever is happening In Character (IC). Discuss plans, storylines, and events; Recruit for your roleplaying game, or find a GM for your playergroup.This is the auto-generated OOC topic for the roleplay "Named"
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Harvard Gets Its First VC Firm: The Experiment Fund
As just about everyone should know by now, the seeds of what grew into Facebook were planted at Harvard. Might there be a bunch of mini-Zucks lurking in the dorms of Cambridge? If so, a new venture capital firm ? the first housed right on the Harvard campus ? wants to find them.Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/4ic_MzebaIQ/
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Friday, January 27, 2012
Michael Jackson's children cement his legacy
Phil Mccarten / Reuters
Singer Michael Jackson is immortalized in a ceremony where his children Prince, Blanket and Paris use Jackson's shoes and gloves and their own hands to make imprints in cement in the courtyard of Hollywood's Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles on Jan. 26.
By Piya Sinha-Roy, Reuters
Late pop star Michael Jackson was immortalized in cement on Thursday when his three children stamped the "Thriller" singer's glove and shoe prints in the hallowed concrete courtyard of Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood.
Well over a hundred fans of the King of Pop and celebrities including Justin Bieber and Jackson family members watched the song and dance spectacle and listened to the three children talk about the legacy of their father.
"My dad won the lifetime achievement award. It was an award he strived and worked the hardest to get but for me, and I think for him as well, this right here is his lifetime achievement award. This is what he strived to get and this is what we are giving him now today," said Prince Michael, 14, Jackson's eldest son.
Jackson's daughter Paris, 13, imprinted her father's iconic silver sequined glove and scrawled his name into the cement, adding a heart in between Michael and Jackson. Prince Michael and his brother Blanket, 9, put their father's shoe into the cement, and all three left their own handprints next to dad's.
The hour-long ceremony included spoken tributes and musical performances from Jackson's friends and family, including his brothers Tito and Jackie, who were part of the Jackson 5, and mother Katherine who called the event "a very very solemn occasion for my son."
John G. Mabanglo / EPA
Click to see pictures from the highs and lows of Michael Jackson's career.
"Michael, we miss you, that's for sure. There's hardly a day that goes by without him going on in my mind somehow, some way, and I know he is here today with us," said Tito Jackson.
Musical producer Quincy Jones, who worked with Jackson on one his most successful album, "Thriller," Motown singer Smokey Robinson and comedian Chris Tucker, a friend of Jackson's, shared their personal memories of Jackson while Canadian pop sensation Bieber called him "an inspiration."
"People are going to remember him for his dancing and his singing, but people need to remember him for who he was," said Bieber.
"Everything I do, I look at Michael and I want to be as good as he was," said Bieber, 17, whose rise to fame was compared to the late singer by Paris as she introduced him.
Jackson gained success with songs such as "ABC" and "I'll Be There" as a child singer with his brothers, and later pursued a solo career that earned him worldwide fame and fans with hits such as "Rock With You," "Bad," and "Beat It."
His sudden death from a drug overdose in 2009 aged 50, sent shockwaves around the world. Late last year, Jackson's doctor at the time was convicted of involuntary manslaughter for administering a surgical anesthetic to Jackson as a sleep aid.
Jackson's glove and shoe imprints will be placed alongside Hollywood screen legends such as Clark Gable, Marilyn Monroe and Sidney Poitier outside the iconic Hollywood theater that has been a tourist attraction for decades.
Notably absent from the ceremony were Jackson's sisters Janet and LaToya as well as brothers Jermaine and Randy.
The event, hosted by the late singer's estate, showcased dancers from Cirque du Soleil's Jackson tribute show and featured "Glee" cast member Harry Shum, Jr. ahead of the show's Jackson tribute episode next week.
More in TODAY entertainment:
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Scots ponder independence vote with 16-year-olds (AP)
LONDON ? Scotland's leader has presented his proposal for a ballot on independence ? and his ideas include letting 16- and 17-year-olds cast ballots in a vote that could see the breakup of Britain within four years.
First Minister Alex Salmond announced the Scottish government's preferred options for the vote on whether to sever ties from Britain, which it plans to hold in the fall of 2014. A "yes" vote would lead to independence taking effect with a May 2016 election for the Scottish Parliament.
Scotland and England united in 1707 to form Great Britain. Scotland gained significant autonomy after voting in 1997 to set up the Edinburgh-based Scottish Parliament, but some Scots want to go further and make the nation of 5 million people an independent country within the European Union.
Salmond told Scottish lawmakers in the Edinburgh assembly Wednesday that the ballot would ask "Do you agree that Scotland should be an independent country?"
But he said it could also include a third option, backing increased autonomy short of full independence.
And he said the voting age should be lowered from the current 18.
"If a 16-year-old in Scotland can register to join the army, get married and pay taxes, surely he or she should be able to have a say in this country's constitutional future?" Salmond said.
Scottish 16-year-olds can join the army ? though they cannot be sent into combat until they are 18 ? work full-time and marry without parental consent. The official Scottish drinking age outside the home is 18, but even that has some exceptions for 16- and 17-year-olds.
Salmond, who leads the separatist Scottish National Party, said independence would bring "a new, more modern relationship between the nations of these islands ? a partnership of equals."
The exact wording is subject to input from Scottish voters and negotiations with the British government in London, which insists it has the final authority to authorize a binding referendum.
British Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservative-led government has offered the Scottish administration the power to hold a vote on independence, but wants a say in the timing and could insist that the Electoral Commission, which will run the referendum, be allowed to set the question.
Salmond's proposed wording is likely to be seen by opponents as slanted in favor of independence.
Opponents of independence want to hold the vote as soon as possible, because polls suggest only about a third of Scots favor splitting from England.
Cameron has said the ballot should pose a straight yes-no question, and not include a third option, which has been dubbed maximum devolution. Salmond disagrees.
"If there is an alternative of maximum devolution which would command wide support in Scotland, then it is only fair and democratic that option should be among the choices open to the people of Scotland," Salmond said.
Cameron stressed Wednesday that everyone in Britain, not just Scots, should have a say in any changes to Scotland's status.
"The point that everyone needs to understand is that options for further devolution, options for changes across the United Kingdom, are matters all of the United Kingdom should rightly discuss," he said.
Michael Moore, Cameron's minister responsible for Scotland, was due to hold talks with Salmond on Friday but the meeting was postponed because Moore has chicken pox.
Salmond said an independent Scotland would keep Queen Elizabeth II as head of state but would not send troops to "illegal wars like Iraq, and we won't have nuclear weapons based on Scottish soil." Scotland is currently home to Britain's fleet of nuclear-armed submarines.
Scottish Labour leader Johann Lamont, whose party opposes independence, accused Salmon of belittling Scots who wished to remain in Britain.
"Why does he assert as fact that we all wish to be independent of each other when we all know, as families and communities, we want to come together in partnership and cooperation?" she said.
___
Online:
Scottish Government referendum consultation paper: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Consultations/Current
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Thursday, January 26, 2012
Insight: Scottish separatists face tough independence battle (Reuters)
EDINBURGH, Scotland (Reuters) ? Holding court in Edinburgh castle surrounded by sabers and armor from centuries-old battles with the English, Scottish nationalist leader Alex Salmond sets out his plans to fight for freedom by the ballot box rather than the sword.
Peppering his arguments with references to Scotland's 18th century national poet Robert Burns, on whose birthday this week he
launched his referendum bid, Salmond portrayed the end of Scotland's 300-year union with a dominant England as inevitable, and the idea of a United Kingdom as anachronistic.
Having stolen a march on a complacent British political establishment last year by winning an overall majority in Scotland's devolved parliament, Scottish National Party (SNP) leader Salmond wants a referendum in 2014 that would allow a historic breakaway for the nation of 5.2 million.
The British government opposes the move and wants to force a swift vote before the canny Salmond can build momentum for change.
Salmond, a 57-year-old former oil industry economist, has a keen sense of history and symbolism.
He chose Edinburgh castle, a fortress that dominates the Scottish capital's skyline from its rocky perch on an extinct volcano, to sell his case to the international press.
"It was in this venue, Edinburgh castle, that the first ... old Scots parliament was held almost 900 years ago," Salmond said. The castle was also the site of numerous bloody battles between Scots and the English.
"It does stress the continuity of Scotland as a Scottish nation stretching back over 1,000 years of independence before the Acts of Union of 1707," he added, painting Scotland's place in the United Kingdom as a historic aberration.
Still, with support for outright independence running at 30 to 40 percent he has a tough battle ahead to convince skeptical Scots, of whom some have almost as many misgivings about Salmond as they do about independence.
The British government says only it has the right to give Salmond the power to hold a binding referendum, and then only with conditions, including on the questions asked. Government officials are due to meet Salmond to try to reach a compromise.
HIGH STAKES
At stake are British oil reserves in the North Sea to which Edinburgh is a gateway. Salmond claims Scotland is entitled to 90 percent of them.
Debates over how Britain would divide up its debt and its military and what it would do with its nuclear weapons, currently based in Scotland but which the SNP vows would have no place there after independence, are already bitter and fraught.
Britain also faces a loss of political and economic clout, while the loss of Scotland would redraw the political map, ironically to the advantage of Prime Minister David Cameron's Conservatives, who are almost extinct north of the border but oppose independence.
Other European countries with separatist movements, such as Spain, are watching Scotland's progress closely.
For Salmond and the SNP, independence is about equality and fulfilling Scotland's potential. Scotland deserves to have equal status among world nations, and while doing well economically now, it would do much better alone, the SNP says.
A separate Scotland would have more power to improve its economy and would be able to better argue its case in the European Union. It would control where it sends soldiers to fight, say party officials who consider the Iraq war illegal.
"We will be able to make Scotland the country we all know it can be -- a wealthier, fairer nation," Salmond said on Wednesday.
He quoted Burns' famous poem on equality, "A Man's a Man for A' That", to mock members of the British parliament's upper house, the House of Lords, for, as he saw it, bossing Scotland about.
"The man of independent mind, he looks and laughs at a'that," he told Scotland's parliament on Wednesday.
UNIONIST & SEPARATIST ARGUMENTS
Salmond wants a ballot in late 2014, when he would be able to ride a wave of nationalist sentiment on the 700th anniversary of the historic Battle of Bannockburn, a victory over the English, and the more modern feel-good factor of hosting the Commonwealth Games and Ryder Cup sporting events.
The SNP leader has accused Cameron and other London-based parties of trying to "bully and intimidate" the Scots into an early vote, playing into a long-standing sense of Scottish irritation with their larger English neighbor.
"I'm leaning more towards independence mainly because of the actions of the Conservative government in Westminster," said Malcolm Jones, 47, an Edinburgh IT manager.
So far, unionist politicians appear uncoordinated and have done little to check Salmond's momentum. No unionist spokesperson has emerged among the Conservatives, Labour or Liberal Democrats, Britain's main political parties.
The SNP has portrayed their attempts to highlight the risks and disadvantages of Scottish independence as scaremongering and proof England thinks Scots are "too poor, too stupid, too peripheral" to stand alone, the SNP's campaign manager said.
Unionist politicians are now trying a different tack.
"What we have to do is make a positive case for Britain. I'm very clear that Scotland is better off in one of the most enduring and successful unions across the world," Scottish Conservative party leader Ruth Davidson told Reuters.
"We have to show that we walk taller, shout louder, stand firmer for being part of the United Kingdom .... most of Scotland agrees with me," she added, before going on to list Anglo-Scots military, scientific and cultural achievements.
Scottish Labour leader Johann Lamont wants to ensure Salmond, who led the SNP to a landslide election victory last May, does not assume the mantle of spokesman for Scotland.
"This is not a country oppressed by the English, seeking liberation, with Alex Salmond the man to do it," she said, speaking at the Scottish parliament at Holyrood, which faces Holyrood Palace, the British Queen's residence in Scotland.
The crowns of Scotland and England were unified in 1603 by a Scottish king, James VI, upon his accession to England's throne. The two countries' parliaments were unified about a century later by the Acts of Union in 1707.
SALMOND & BRAVEHEART
Some consider Salmond one of Britain's most talented politicians and Scotland's best advocate.
Others brand him a slippery demagogue set on exploiting old grievances between Scotland and England.
Even in Salmond's home town of Linlithgow in central Scotland, supporters of Salmond's cause are hard to find.
"I don't want independence. I don't like the SNP and I don't like Salmond. He's arrogant and smug," said retiree Fred Orr, 77, the first person interviewed by this reporter in Linlithgow, but voicing what were to become familiar misgivings.
"They say they got in with a big majority, but a big majority never voted. They're a flash in the pan," he added, speaking on a chilly day round the corner from ornate Linlithgow palace, birthplace of 16th century ruler Mary Queen of Scots.
Many Scots struggle to see how they are at a disadvantage within the United Kingdom.
Britain's previous Prime Minister Gordon Brown is Scottish, as is former finance minister Alistair Darling, while Brown's predecessor Tony Blair was born in Scotland and educated there. Current leader Cameron also has Scottish ancestry.
Scots, who represent about eight percent of Britain's population of 62 million, currently hold several key posts in the UK government and at many other British institutions, while the BBC has a dedicated Scottish Gaelic channel, BBC Alba, for the small minority of Scots who speak the language.
"Why should we be independent, apart from the Braveheart reason?," said Glasgow student Mungo Hay, 20, referring to a 1995 film about a 13th century warrior who fought for Scottish independence, stirring renewed interest in Scotland's history.
Some Scots feel they are getting a good deal out of a devolution arrangement that set up a Scottish parliament in 1999.
Scotland has its own legal system, and the Scottish parliament in Edinburgh has the power to legislate on a range of issues, including health, education and law and order.
In some areas, Scots fare better than other Britons, such as free university tuition for Scots at Scottish universities. Medical prescriptions are also free in Scotland, unlike England.
Salmond plans to continue to use Britain's sterling currency, but expects Scotland to control all decisions about debt and spending, raising the specter of a mismatch between fiscal and currency union that has contributed to the eurozone crisis.
Salmond also expects the Bank of England to remain Scotland's lender of last resort, bailing out Scottish banks if they hit trouble.
The problem for the SNP is that the British government, also citing experts, disputes almost every one of Salmond's claims, and much of the public is not convinced either.
"We find ourselves in a position where we have to balance up assertions from one group of politicians against those of another group of politicians," said Owen Kelly head of Scottish Financial Enterprise financial services industry body.
WHAT WOULD BURNS DO?
The SNP's push for independence has stirred misgivings among some who view the party as monopolizing Scottish identity.
Howie Nicholsby, an Edinburgh kiltmaker who has dressed stars including Robbie Williams and Lenny Kravitz, worries that the SNP's brand of nationalism may turn Scotland's welcoming, international outlook into a jingoistic, inward-looking one.
"There's plenty of room in the union to be a Scottish Brit. Or a British Scot. However you want it," he told Reuters at his 21st Century Kilts shop in central Edinburgh, speaking in front of a photo of his designs by fashion photographer Mario Testino.
Others, seeing the SNP plans to hold the referendum in the anniversary year of the Battle of Bannockburn, fear the SNP may be exploiting historical grievances with the English.
"I'm a bit worried by a split with England becoming inflammatory. I wouldn't like to see us becoming a nation of English haters," said Dumfries newsagent Steven Moodycliffe, 48.
Asked by Reuters whether Burns would have supported Scottish independence, Salmond said he thought the poet would have liked the idea of the referendum plan being launched on his birthday.
At the house in Dumfries in which Burns died and where he wrote some of his most memorable poetry, the museum attendant was not sure what Burns would have thought about independence.
"He was certainly a nationalist, but whether he wanted to be completely free I don't know," said Donald MacLachlan, who has worked at Dumfries museums for 25 years. "It all depends on the circumstances. Maybe Scotland couldn't have gone it alone in those days? Perhaps these days we can't either?"
When pressed, MacLachlan said that Burns probably would have backed the SNP's cause, unlike himself.
"The idea of independence is nice, but I don't think it's a good idea to split one big country into lots of smaller ones. From a nationalistic point of view it's good, but we all need a little help," he said.
(Reporting by Mohammed Abbas)
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Review: Ex-Beatle longs for Liverpool on new album (AP)
"Ringo 2012," Ringo Starr. (Hip-O/Ume)
One look in the mirror was all it took for ex-Beatle Ringo Starr to find the best producer for his 17th solo record, "Ringo 2012," Starr claims. Unfortunately, looks can be deceiving and Starr might have done better shopping around someone to make this release more interesting.
As it stands, "Ringo 2012" is equal parts reflection and rehash. The subject matter, mostly composed by others, is mostly fond memories of days gone by for Starr, with a bit a make-love-not-war ethos sprinkled in for good measure. When presented with Starr's dry vocal approach, most tracks lack the required luster to make this album stand out.
"Ringo 2012" is blues, rock and a touch of honky-tonk. The melodies aren't bad. They're just too well-traveled. From the first track "Anthem" to the final salute in "Slow Down," there's not much here to show us that Starr has challenged himself beyond a formulaic delivery. "Wings" is a nice song, but he's already recorded it years ago on his sixth album.
There are some moments when the fit is fine, as on "Rock Island Line." This bluesy standard made its way to Starr by way of Lead Belly and so-called skiffle bands in Liverpool, England, where Starr paid his early dues in the Eddie Clayton Skiffle Group. The song gets a nice boost from blues guitar standout Kenny Wayne Shepard, who sizzles throughout.
CHECK THIS TRACK OUT: On "In Liverpool," Starr gives us a glimpse of his life in the town of his youth, walking to the Iron Door club to play with Rory Storm. You can feel his voice warm as he reminisces about his pre-Beatles days. Truth be told, there's very little on this album to reference his breathless, chart-topping Fab Four time. Seems like Starr appreciates an earlier time in his career a little more, and it seems earnest here.
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Ron Harris can be reached at http://twitter.com/Journorati
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Wednesday, January 25, 2012
McDonald's 4Q net income jumps 11 pct (AP)
NEW YORK ? McDonald's says net income rose by 11 percent in the fourth quarter, as the fast-food giant continues to attract budget-conscious customers.
Net income of $1.38 billion translated to $1.33 per share, beating the $1.29 predicted by analysts polled by FactSet.
Revenue jumped 10 percent to $6.82 billion, slightly above expectations of $6.81 billion.
McDonald's has performed well throughout the recession and its aftermath with a two-pronged strategy. It's continued to attract a base of cash-strapped customers by keeping prices low, and it's been able to lure the newly budget-conscious, who in previous years might have shunned the burger chain, with new offerings like smoothies, lattes, and remodeled restaurants.
As the world's largest burger chain, its game plan is often copied by other fast-food restaurants. And its decisions on pricing, menu items and other topics serve as a bellwether for the rest of the industry.
In a statement, CEO Jim Skinner said the company plans to open 1,300 new restaurants in the coming year. The additions, which would include Japan and Latin America, would add a net gain of about 900 restaurants to the 33,500-plus locations around the world.
McDonald's, whose share price has climbed from about $63 to just more than $100 in the last two years, has been praised for moving to where demand is. The company gets less than a third of its revenue from the U.S. Europe makes up 40 percent, up from 36 percent five years ago. The European restaurants are performing well, growing revenue 9 percent, even "in the face of ongoing economic uncertainty," McDonald's said in a statement.
The region that covers Asia Pacific, Africa and the Middle East makes up 22 percent of revenue, up from 14 percent five years ago, with some of that growth focused on China. That region grew revenue by 13 percent.
Skinner also said McDonald's Corp. would continue to set aside money for renovating restaurants. The renovations have helped attract new customers, but also have needled some franchisees who had to pay some of the costs.
The cost of raw ingredients will be a key topic when executives answer analysts' questions about earnings in a conference call Tuesday morning. McDonald's raised prices twice last year and left the door open for more increases as it struggled with rising costs for ingredients like wheat and corn. Now, costs for many commodities have leveled off, but analysts will want to know if McDonald's sees more increases in the near future.
It said in its earnings release that it expects costs for most of its commodities to in the U.S. to increase 4.5 to 5.5 percent in the U.S., and 2.5 to 3.5 percent in Europe. Three months ago, it predicted increases of 4.5 to 5 percent for both the U.S. and Europe for 2011.
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Tuesday, January 24, 2012
EU states agree ban on Iranian oil imports, central bank (Reuters)
BRUSSELS (Reuters) ? European Union governments agreed on Monday to an immediate ban on all new contracts to import, buy or transport Iranian crude oil, a move to put pressure on Tehran's disputed nuclear program by shutting off its main source of foreign income.
However, to protect Europe's economy as it battles to overcome a debilitating debt crisis, the governments agreed to phase in the embargo, giving countries with existing contracts with Iran until July 1, 2012 to end those deals.
At a meeting of foreign ministers in Brussels, EU governments also agreed to freeze the assets of Iran's central bank and to ban all trade in gold and other precious metals with the bank and other public bodies, EU officials said.
Western powers hope the far stricter sanctions net, which brings the EU more closely into line with U.S. policy, will force Iran to scale back or halt its nuclear work, which Europe and the United States believe is aimed at developing weapons. Iran says it is enriching uranium solely for peaceful purposes.
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said she wanted financial sanctions to persuade Tehran to return to negotiations with the West, which she represents in talks with Iran.
"I want the pressure of these sanctions to result in negotiations," she told reporters before the ministers met.
"I want to see Iran come back to the table and either pick up all the ideas that we left on the table ... last year ... or to come forward with its own ideas," she said.
Tehran says its nuclear program is necessary to meet its rising energy needs, but the United Nations' International Atomic Energy Agency said last year it had evidence that suggested Iran had worked on designing a nuclear weapon.
EU sanctions follow fresh financial measures signed into law by U.S. President Barack Obama on New Year's Eve and mainly targeting the oil sector, which accounts for some 90 percent of Iranian exports to the EU. The European Union is Iran's largest oil customer after China.
MEASURED STEPS
Economic considerations weighed heavily on EU preparations for the embargo in recent weeks because of the heavy dependence of some EU states on Iranian crude. Greece, which is at the heart of the debt crisis, is almost entirely dependent on Iranian oil. It must now seek alternative sources.
Diplomats will return to the issue of oil sanctions before May, officials said, to assess whether the measures are effective and whether EU states are succeeding in finding sufficient alternative resources.
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other oil-rich states in the Gulf are expected to increase their output of crude oil to offset the loss of access to Iranian exports.
"There will be a review of the embargo before May," one EU official said. The review could potentially affect the date when the full ban takes effect, diplomats said.
Greece, which depends on financial help from the EU and the International Monetary Fund to stay afloat, gets nearly a quarter of its oil from Iran, thanks to favorable financing terms from Tehran.
"The financial situation of Greece at the moment is not the brightest one, and rightly they are asking us to help them find a solution," a senior EU official told reporters on Friday.
With a significant part of EU purchases of Iranian oil covered by long-term contracts, the grace period will be an important factor in the effectiveness of the EU measures.
The unprecedented effort to take Iran's 2.6 million barrels of oil per day of exports off international markets has kept global prices high, pushed down Iran's rial currency and caused a surge in the cost of basic goods for Iranians.
(Additional reporting by Adrian Croft in London and Sebastian Moffett in Brussels; Editing by Luke Baker and)
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Monday, January 23, 2012
Gantos' 'Dead End in Norvelt' wins Newbery Medal
NEW YORK (AP) ? This year's winners of the top prizes in children's literature were honored for stories of resilience over the most everyday troubles: a boy grounded by his parents, a dog that loses its favorite toy.
Jack Gantos' "Dead End in Norvelt" won the John Newbery Medal for the best children's book of 2011, and Chris Raschka's "A Ball for Daisy" won the Randolph Caldecott award for best illustration. The prizes were announced Monday by the American Library Association during its midwinter meeting in Dallas.
No cash prizes are given, but the awards are watched closely by booksellers and librarians and often lead to increased sales and a lasting place on a school or store bookshelf. Previous winners include such favorites as Louis Sachar's "Holes" and Brian Selznick's "The Invention of Hugo Cabret," the basis for Martin Scorsese's film "Hugo."
Within hours of the prizes' announcement, "Dead End in Norvelt" and "A Ball for Daisy" were both in the top 50 on Amazon.com and both out of stock.
Gantos and Raschla are well established in children's publishing. Gantos, 60, has been a finalist for the Newbery and the National Book Award. Raschka, 52, won the Caldecott in 2006 for "The Hello, Goodbye Window."
Gantos' novel follows the humorous adventures of a boy named Jack Gantos, grounded "for life" by his parents and prone to the most gushing nosebleeds. But he is restored by the stories he learns about his hometown, Norvelt, a planned community in Pennsylvania founded during the Great Depression.
The author is more than a little like the Jack Gantos of his book. He spent part of his childhood in Norvelt and shares his character's sensitive nose. Gantos said he thought of "Dead End" after giving a eulogy for his aunt that looked back on Norvelt's special past.
"I talked about the spirit of people helping people, and how people really banded together," Gantos said during a telephone interview from his home in Boston. "And at the end of my eulogy, a lot of people came up to me and said they didn't know about the history of Norvelt. I love history, and I love humor, so I thought history could use a little humor."
Raschka's wordless picture book, told through watercolor, ink and gouache, recounts the saga of a white and gray terrier whose beloved red ball is stolen by a bigger, brown poodle. The ball bursts and Daisy's spirit seems to break with it, until the poodle returns with a blue ball that leaves the pets and their owners equally content.
Raschka said "Daisy" was inspired by his son, who at age 4 was devastated when his yellow ball broke during a scrape with a neighbor. The author said he began thinking of "those first feelings of losing something beloved" and knowing you can't get it back. For the story, he changed the main character from a boy to a dog.
"When you're a picture book illustrator, your readers are often 3 or 4 years old, and you don't want the drawing to be upsetting in itself," Raschka said during a phone interview from the offices of Schwartz & Wade Books, an imprint of Random House Inc. "By having an animal, there's some distance, and yet there is still a connection."
Other winners were announced Monday, including John Corey Whaley's "Where Things Come Back," which received the Michael L. Printz Award for best young adult literature; and Kadir Nelson's "Heart and Soul," winner of the Coretta Scott King Book Award for best African-American story. The King prize for best illustrated book was given to Shane W. Evans' "Underground: Finding the Light to Freedom."
Jesmyn Ward's "Salvage the Bones," winner last fall of the National Book Award for fiction, was among 10 recipients of the Alex Award for adult books that appeal to teens. Others cited included Erin Morgenstern's acclaimed debut "The Night Circus" and David Levithan's "The Lover's Dictionary." Bill Wright's "Putting Makeup on the Fat Boy" received the Stonewall award for "exceptional merit relating to the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender experience."
The Pura Belpre award for best Latino author went to Guadalupe Garcia McCall for "Under the Mesquite," while the Belpre illustration prize was given to Duncan Tonatiuh for "Diego Rivera: His World and Ours." Translator Laura Wilkerson's work on Bibi Dumon Tak's "Soldier Bear," originally published in Dutch in 2008, won her the Mildred L. Batchelder Award for best book translated from a foreign language.
Susan Cooper, known for her fantasy series "The Dark is Rising," won the Margaret A. Edwards award for lifetime achievement in young adult literature.
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Heidi Klum and Seal "Have Had a Rough Road Lately" (omg!)
On Saturday, TMZ reported that Heidi Klum and Seal were heading for a divorce, and that Klum would be filing the papers citing "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for their split.
But Us Weekly has learned, exclusively, that the supermodel, 38, and her husband of six years, 48, are still together -- for now.
PHOTOS: Heidi and Seal's sweet romance story
"Nothing is finalized or for sure. Seal flew back from the UK yesterday and he and Heidi are in the house together now," friend close to the couple tells Us. "They've had a very rough road lately. They're either madly in love or having crazy fights."
The friend goes on to say that the couple's recent trip to Aspen was full of tension, adding "they fought a lot. It was a very hard trip."
PHOTOS: Heidi Klum's craziest Halloween costumes
Seal, who's famous for his 1994 single "Kiss from a Rose" is set to spend the next month in Australia, where he will serve as a coach on the Aussie leg of the vocal competition show The Voice, alongside Joel Madden.
"It's been very hard. but there is a lot of love there, and any decision that will be made is a tough one because they have beautiful children who they both love very deeply," the friend says.
PHOTOS: The most buzzed-about celebrity divorces
The couple has three biological children, Henry, 6, Johan, 5, and Lou, 2, plus Klum's 7-year-old daughter from her previous marriage, Leni, whom Seal adopted in 2009.
Get more Us! Follow us on Twitter, Friend us on Facebook, Subscribe to Us Weekly
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Sunday, January 22, 2012
US citizen kidnapped in Nigeria's oil delta (AP)
LAGOS, Nigeria ? Assailants kidnapped a U.S. citizen leaving a bank in Nigeria's oil-rich southern delta Friday, the first such attack targeting foreigners in the restive region for several months.
The attack happened in Warri, the capital of Delta state, local police spokesman Charles Muka said. Investigators believe the assailants trailed the man to the bank and waited outside before kidnapping him, Muka said.
Kidnappers later made contact with authorities and demanded a $333,000 ransom, he said.
The attack occurred in Nigeria's oil-rich Niger Delta, where foreign firms have pumped oil out of the country for more than 50 years. Despite the billions flowing into Nigeria's government, many in the delta remain desperately poor, living in polluted waters without access to proper medical care, education or work.
In 2006, militants started a wave of attacks targeting foreign oil companies, including bombing their pipelines, kidnapping their workers and fighting with security forces. That violence waned in 2009 with a government-sponsored amnesty program promising ex-fighters monthly payments and job training. However, few in the delta have seen the promised benefits.
While foreign workers have become harder to target, local kidnapping gangs have begun seizing middle-class Nigerians as well.
Deb MacLean, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria's capital Abuja, said diplomats there were aware of the kidnapping.
"We continue to monitor the situation closely and assist," MacLean said Friday night.
In 2011, there were five reported kidnappings of U.S. citizens in Nigeria, according to a recent U.S. State Department travel warning about the country. The most recent occurred in November when two U.S. citizens and a Mexican were kidnapped from a Chevron Corp. offshore oil field and held for about two weeks, the State Department said.
___
Associated Press writer Jon Gambrell contributed to this report.
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Saturday, January 21, 2012
Obama campaign sends the most popular Obama to campaign in battleground Florida (Washington Bureau)
George?s most used iPhone and iPad accessories of 2011
When I was asked to compile a list of my most used accessories of 2011, I looked around and discovered — I don’t use that many accessories. That made
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/IILmnuyWovw/story01.htm
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Friday, January 20, 2012
Indiana governor to give GOP State of the Union response (Reuters)
INDIANAPOLIS (Reuters) ? Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels, who once considered running for president in 2012, has been tapped by Republicans to deliver their response to President Barack Obama's State of the Union address next week, Congressional Republicans said on Thursday.
Republicans said Daniels had a solid record for effective government and fiscal responsibility, describing him as well-suited to deliver the response following Obama's address on January 24.
"It's an honor to be asked. I hope to do the assignment justice," said Daniels, who was elected in 2004 and reelected in 2008. He is limited to two terms by Indiana law.
Daniels could be seen as a safe and popular choice for Republicans, who are in the early stages of selecting a nominee to run against Obama in November and may not want voters to perceive them as giving preference to one candidate.
"Mitch Daniels is a fierce advocate for smaller, less costly, and more accountable government, and has the record to prove it," House Speaker John Boehner said in a statement announcing Daniels as the choice for the Republican response.
Indiana has a balanced budget, a AAA credit rating and Republicans control both sides of the state legislature and are pressing a measure to make Indiana the first right-to-work state in the industrial heartland.
"As Indiana's governor, Mitch Daniels helped improve his state's economy by fostering an environment to create jobs," Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said.
State Republicans say making Indiana a right-to-work state would help attract and create jobs, while critics see the proposals as union-busting. State Democrats have sought to delay the measure by boycotting sessions, drawing fines.
Efforts by Republicans to move such legislation could become hot-button issues in potential presidential swing states such as Ohio and Wisconsin this year.
(Editing by Paul Thomasch)
Thursday, January 19, 2012
480 homeless after heavy rains in Mozambique (AP)
MAPUTO, Mozambique ? City officials say 480 people were flooded out of their homes in Mozambique's capital after a tropical depression brought torrential rain and high winds.
City officials said the homeless were being sheltered Wednesday in schools, churches and even sports fields. Emergency officials, meanwhile, said tropical depression Dando had now dissipated after two days of destroying homes, downing power lines and causing other damage in Maputo and other southern areas. No deaths were reported.
In the southern Inhambane province, officials said roofs were blown off 71 classrooms, seven teachers' homes and two offices at a school. In neighboring Gaza province, 40 small homes were swept away and 1,000 goats were killed.
Rabbi Eric H. Yoffie: Religion Is Divisive and Conservative -- and a Very Good Thing
I am a person of liberal convictions, and I spend most of my time with other liberals. Many of my friends share my liberal political views but recoil from my liberal religious beliefs. The reason that they give most frequently is that "religion is divisive and conservative."
My answer is always the same: "You are absolutely right."
Religion, I tell them, is divisive because it deals with important matters -- above all, the search for holiness and God and the struggle to determine the ultimate values that guide our lives. As human beings contend with these questions, they will offer multiple answers; this has been so since the time of Babel. Indeed, I am always amused that my liberal friends who are so insistent on pluralism in the political realm are so surprised and put off by pluralism in the religious realm. But a diversity of views on religious question is inevitable and desirable. Matters of right, wrong, and the character of the sacred are never simple. Theology, precisely because it deals with weighty and difficult subjects, is a discipline of hard edges.
You are stuck, I go on, in a childish, simplistic mindset that sees religion as a gentle, "let's all get along" affair. But no one needs religion for that. And any religion that, from time to time, is not intellectually ferocious in asserting its idea of the good -- as opposed to someone else's idea of the good -- is not a religion to be taken seriously.
At this point in the argument, my friends look at me with a smirk. You have made my case, they say. Aware of what they are thinking, I acknowledge the underside of religion. Ferocious intellectual arguments about what is moral and what God expects of us can take an extremist turn. They can become an instrument to separate those with our beliefs from the despised "other" who thinks differently. They can become a rationale to hate and even to kill.
But in most instances, I point out, exactly the opposite is true. We humans are essentially communal beings, and in our search for meaning, we build communities with others who share our values. And despite our very significant differences and our claims of superiority, it is fascinating that all major religious traditions end up asserting two basic truths. The first is the fundamental dignity of every human being -- a dignity that can only come from without and not from within; and the second is our capacity for a deep and sincere compassion that enables us to go beyond ourselves and to feel the pain of others.
True, religious people often begin by feeling this compassion for those in their own narrow community, embracing and comforting only those who attend their church or synagogue or mosque, who share their rituals, and who define morality in their terms. But what we see, from the American experience above all, is that once we have learned to relate to our own community with dignity and compassion, we rather quickly acquire the capacity to relate to others in the same way.
Yes, strong views can be dangerous, but, I insist to my friends, once we accept religion's divisiveness we can get something back from it. And that something is that religion ultimately leads to healing far more often than it leads to hate. And that is why religious Americans, as Robert Putnam has demonstrated, are, as a general rule, more charitable, more caring, and better citizens than other Americans.
Regarding the conservative nature of religion, I argue that religion is conservative because it resists the tyranny of the new and the culture of now. It asserts that when we decide on the matters of greatest consequence, we must give a hearing to the sages of old and to the sacred texts that record their voices. The religious world, it should be said, does not agree on how much attention should be paid to these voices. For fundamentalists, it is their holy writings that matter most; for religious liberals such as myself, ancient teachings must be interpreted in light of reason and modern realities. Yet both camps defer, in some significant measure, to the wisdom of those who came before.
But such deference can only be welcome. Religion rejects the arrogance of those who assume that by virtue of the fact that they are here now, living and breathing at this moment, they possess greater insight into the human condition than revered teachers of old. Religion gives the dead a vote. It says that when we want to repair the spirit and learn about kindness and compassion, the teachings of our ancestors are indispensable.
My conclusion: religion is indeed divisive and conservative -- and it is also a very good thing.
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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rabbi-eric-h-yoffie/religion-is-divisive-and-_b_1211924.html
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