K-Blogger's: What's Trending Now?

Wednesday - July 27, 2011

2011-08-20T04:36:00.002+08:00

Wednesday - July 27, 2011

1. Libya, Syria and Middle East unrest - Wednesday 27 July 2011

2.Miracle of the Day - Cholesterol Cured by God

~0~

Libya, Syria and Middle East unrest

• Britain expelled all eight remaining Libyan embassy staff in London to make way for representatives from the national transitional council (NTC) as the "sole governmental authority" of the country. Announcing the move foreign secretary William Hague said it reflected the "legitimacy, competence and success" of the NTC.

• A crowd of pro-rebel protesters welcomed the expulsion of the diplomats at a demonstration outside the London embassy, but were not allowed to replace the flag (see 2.23pm). The move is not a legal recognition of the NTC so it does not give it access to Libyan assets held in Britain (see 1.27pm).

• Hague said Tuesday's appearance on Libyan television of the Lockerbie bomber, Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, showed what a "great mistake" the Scottish justice minister had made to release him in 2009. Video of the Megrahi's appearance can be seen here.

• The NTC's new representative in London has been named as Mahmoud Al-Nakou. In an article for the Guardian in February Nakou wrote: "Make no mistake, post-Gaddafi Libya will require a healthy link with western governments".

Syria

• At least eight people have been killed, including an 11-year-old child, after the army raided the town of Kanaker near Damascus (see 1.59pm).

• Syrian activists have begun a conference in Turkey to discuss what the protest movement does next (see 10.00am).

3.19pm: More than 100 civilians have been rescued by Libyan rebels after being kidnapped by pro-Gaddafi forces in Misrata, writes Chris Stephen in the besieged city.

Commanders said the rescue of families on Sunday was planned in co-ordination with Nato.

The captives were seized in the Ghiran district of Misrata on 24 April while fierce fighting raged in the city.

Art student Hawa Ahmed, 20, said she was woken that morning by government soldiers banging at her door.

"They told us we had 10 minutes to leave, we had no time to take anything," she said.

3.11pm: Hague's bullish statement on Libya was a gamble, writes Simon Tisdall.

e said concerns about Libyan student funding delayed the decision to expel the diplomats.

My colleague Lizzy Davies has been talking to a student from Tripoli who is studying at Leeds Met.

"I'm really glad to hear this news because we had the feeling that if the Libyan embassy was still under the control of the Libyan regime we would face financial problems in the future," the student said (he did not want to give his name for fear of reprisals).

He had been so worried about the student allowance disappearing that he had started trying to find a job. "I asked them to find me anything," he said.

If it funding had gone, he said, he could not have gone back to Libya under the current circumstances.

"So transforming control from the Libyan regime to the new government is very good news for us as students because we feel safe that our studying will continue."

2.23pm: Pro-rebel supporters outside the Libyan embassy have been told that they can't replace the Libyan flag .... at least for now, Peter Walker reports.

There's still an ever-changing collection of protesters outside the embassy, waving their rebel flags and chanting whenever a TV camera is pointed there way, but little in the way of action.

Some rebel supporters have, slightly cheekily, asked the police if they're allowed access to the first floor balcony to swap the Gaddafi-era all-green flag (left) still hanging there for their red, black and green version. Not yet, came the reply.

I just spoke to one man who confided that he makes sure he walks past the embassy most days so he can shout insults from a distance at the charges d'affaires.

1.59pm: Video from activists in Syria purports to show a dawn raid by the military on the Damascus suburb of Kanaker which killed at least eight people.

Reports of the death toll vary. An AFP report on Al-Arabiya claims that 11 were killed in the raid.

It quotes Ammar Qurabi, head of the National Organization for Human Rights, as saying:

"The security forces raided homes at dawn on Wednesday and during the operation 11 people were shot dead and more than 250 arrested."

The Local Co-ordination Committees of Syria have named eight of those killed, including an 11 year old child.

1.27pm: The expulsions are less significant than they appear, Channel 4 News' political editor Gary Gibbon points out.

It is "political recognition" but not legal recognition. So it doesn't open the door for Britain to hand over the hundreds of millions of pounds worth of assets the Gaddafi regime has in this country to the NTC – though that has been the ardent wish of the Government for some time.

For now, all the Attorney General feels comfortable authorising is the handing over of assets belonging to the oil company, Agoco, worth £91m to the Benghazi alternative government.

Are they sure that money will be spent by the NTC on civilian uses not arms (which would potentially put the UK in breach of UN resolutions)? Is the FCO happy for us to say it has "guarantees" that the money won't go to arms? The answer came that they'd prefer us to talk about having had "conversations" with the NTC.

1.18pm: Stephen Twigg, shadow foreign minister, welcomed the expulsion of the Libyan diplomats but urged the government to clarify what is being done to secure an end to the conflict.

The National Transitional Council has shown it is the body most able to represent the people of Libya and it is right it is acknowledged as such and that Gaddafi's diplomats be expelled from the UK.

The important thing now is clarity about post-conflict planning and working urgently for a political settlement.

1.14pm: Peter Walker describes the scene outside the embassy in a series of Twitter updates:

Handful of rebel flag-waving exiles celebrating at #libya embassy. One man told me he'd wait all day in case #gadaffi diplomats left

"We've waited 42 years for #gadaffi to go - what's a few hours?" he said. #libya

Spotted one man looking nervously through 2nd floor window at exiles and assorted press below #libya #gadaffi

Asked policeman on door if I could ring bell. 'I'm afraid the embassy aren't taking visitors today,' he said, v politely #libya

1.06pm: Meanwhile, in Syria activists claim the security forces killed eight people in the latest attempt crackdown on dissent.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says residents of the southern Kanaker suburb tried to stop the advancing troops by throwing stones and closing roads with burning tires.

The group says Wednesday's raid also wounded a number of people who are being treated in mosques. It says the raid occurred after electricity and telephones were cut off in the area.

(I should have mentioned in the last post, that this is Matthew Weaver taking over the reins again. Thanks Haroon).

12.56pm: A small group of pro-rebel exiles have been waving the independence flag and chanting for the cameras outside the Libyan embassy in Knightsbridge, Peter Walker reports.

One of the group told him they want to heckle the expelled diplomats as they leave. "It is not an angry crowd, there's quite a celebratory mood," Peter says.

But there has been no sign of diplomats hurriedly packing.

Hague's performance today appeared designed to dispel doubts about the wisdom and effectiveness of the government's strategy and convince his listeners that success was only a matter of time. He emphasised that he had the full support of the prime minister, David Cameron, in ordering the expulsions and pursuing the campaign. He also stressed Britain's leading role in organising the international response to the uprising that began in March.

All this leaves him very exposed if things don't go according to plan, or drag on indefinitely at ever greater cost. Hague admitted indirectly that Britain and its allies have no actual control over what happens next in Libya. That is ultimately up to the Libyan people, and their collective wishes are difficult to gauge ...

The success of the Libyan policy will consequently be measured, primarily, by what happens to Gaddafi. If he survives, crowing, to fight another day, Hague and others may not.

3.01pm: Activists claim sixteen tanks were involved in today's raid on the Damascus suburb or Kanaker.

12.53pm: The national transitional council leader, Mustafa Abdul Jalil has just been speaking in Benghazi and confirmed that Mahmoud Al-Nakou would be the council's new representative in the UK. Jalil said:

Al-Gaddafi and his followers are now the dissidents who defected from lawful authority.

We commend the international community for its support. We commend this move by the United Kingdom. It reflects the political scene inside the United Kingdom.

Jalil also called on Gaddafi "dissidents" to lay down their arms during Ramadan. He said the opposition did not wish to fight during the holy month but added:

Unless Gaddafi steps down and gives liberty and self-resolution to the people, we will will continue to fight more fiercely.

12.40pm: As Hague announced the expulsions, a handful of demonstrators arrived at the Libyan embassy and shouted angrily at the staff inside the building.

According to the Press Association, one man, who said he was from Misrata, shouted:

Get out rats. You murdered my brother-in-law. Thank you UK. Thank you USA.

12.35pm: Hello, this is Haroon Siddique taking over from Matthew for a short while.

While William Hague's statement today has been welcomed by Libyan opposition supporters not all British MPs are happy about it. The left wing Labour MP Jeremy Corbyn claims it is proof that the Nato operation is moving away from its original objective - to protect Libyan civilians from Gaddafi. He tweeted:

Government recognition of NTC in Libya suggests it was and is a war for regime change - latest moves suggest deper civil war.

12.05pm: Here's Hague's full statement.

11.53am: Mahmoud Al-Nakou is rumoured to be the new Libyan ambassador to London.

In an article for the Guardian in February Nakou wrote:

Hundreds of thousands of Libyans have studied and lived in the UK, Europe and the US in the decades since oil was discovered, and those highly educated individuals yearn for a productive, co-operative and collaborative relationship with the west. Make no mistake, post-Gaddafi Libya will require a healthy link with western governments and companies to benefit from their technology, skills and expertise, while the west needs our immense natural and mineral riches.

11.45am: Nick Watt has more details on the expelled diplomats:

Libyan charge d'affaires plus eight diplomats expelled. Charge given three days. Others asked to leave over summer #libya

Nick and Haroon Siddique's news story on the expulsions is here.

11.38am: Here are some of the key passages from Hague's statement:

The Libyan people can be assured that we will remain on their sides for as long as it takes.

The prime minister and I have decided that the UK recognises and will deal with the NTC as the sole governmental authority in Libya. This decision reflects the NTC's increasing legitimacy, competence and success, in reaching out to Libyan's across the country.

We summoned the Libyan charge d'affaires here to the Foreign Office this morning and informed him that he and other regime diplomats from the Gaddafi regime must now leave the UK. We no longer recognise them as members of the Libyan government.

We are inviting the NTC to appoint a new Libyan diplomatic envoy to take over the Libyan embassy in London.

The UK continues to explore how to unfreeze assets to support the NTC. At the request of the Arabian Gulf oil company - a Libyan oil company - the UK is ready to make available £91m of the company's assets in the UK.

11.17am: Hague denied that there was a "back-channel" for Gaddafi to stay in Libya in return for ceding power. He also repeated that the campaign will continue for as long as necessary. There is no time table for ending the campaign, he said.

"The pressure on Gaddafi is increasing all the time. We are not setting a timetable," he said.

11.08am: Hague says the expulsion is a political statement of intent to Libya.

He said Britain would have expelled diplomats earlier but had to first ensure that Libyan students living in the UK would continue to receive funds.

On the appearance of Megrahi at that rally, Hague said it confirmed the "mistake" of the Scottish government decision to release him two years.

On a possible political settlement to the conflict he said Britain supports the work of the UN envoy. Hague repeated that Gaddafi's fate is a matter for the Libyan people. "The best solution involves Gaddafi leaving Libya ... but it is not one we can guarantee," he said.

11.02am: Hague says Britain now regards the NTC as the sole authority for Libya.

"We will deal with the NTC on the same basis as other governments around the world," he said. He also confirmed the expulsion of Gaddafi's remaining diplomats from London and the invitation to the NTC to form an embassy.

10.56am: The expulsion of the Libyan diplomats, which is in line with the conclusions of the international contact group, is a rare step for Britain which normally recognises states and not governments, writes Nick Watt.

At the start of the conflict Britain declined to follow the example of the French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, who recognised the council as the legitimate government of Libya.

A foreign office source explained the change of heart. "We dragged in the charge d'affaires. He and his colleagues are now packing their bags.

"We now regard the NTC as the legitimate expression of the Libyan people. We have invited them to set up shop and represent the Libyan people with full diplomatic status. This is the next obvious step in showing our support for the NTC."

10.52am: Six of the expelled Libyan diplomats are being named as: Khaled Benshaban, Tarek Al-Obide, Mokhtar Elamin, Hasan Toumi, Fathi S.M. Hariba, and Taher Shawesh.

LIBTRIP, the Twitter account of a group of activists based in London, claims there are only six diplomats at the embassy.

10.44am: Interesting:

Sky's Tim Marshall tweets:

Sky Sources. Some Libyan staff expelled from London embassy say they will go to Benghazi because they support rebels.

10.40am: The Guardian's Nicholas Watt confirms that the NTC will be invited to establish a London embassy.

William Hague: Libyan charge d'affaire and all embassy staff to be expelled. NTC to be invited to establish embassy #libya

Nick will be covering Hague's press conference which is due to start in the next 20 minutes. Both Sky News and BBC will be taking a live feed.

10.28am: More than 30 members of Libya contact group, including Britain and the US, agreed to recognise the NTC [national transitional council] as the legitimate authority in Libya earlier this month.

PA has this on the expulsion of the Gaddafi's diplomats:

It is understood that eight representatives of Muammar Gaddafi's regime are still staffing the Libyan Embassy in London's Knightsbridge, more than four months after Britain joined international air strikes.

The Libyan charge d'affaires was today being summoned to the Foreign Office to be told he and his staff must leave the UK.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We can confirm that the Libyan charge d'affaires has been called to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and is being informed that he and the remaining Libyan diplomats in the UK are expelled."

Unconfirmed reports suggest that the embassy building may be offered to the opposition Transitional National Council in a mark of its increasing recognition as the legitimate representative of the Libyan people.

Foreign Secretary William Hague is expected to give further details of the move in a press conference later this morning.

10.22am: All Libya's remaining diplomats in the UK are being expelled, the Foreign Office has confirmed to PA.

Sky News foreign affairs editor Tim Marshall claims this will allow the National Transitional Council to put its representatives in the embassy.

He tweets:

UK expelling all remaining 8 Libyan Embassy staff. Will allow NTC to replace them Official recognition of NTC as representing Libya.

Libyan Charge d'affairs is now in with Foreign Office Permanent Under Sec being given the news he is being expelled.

10.09am: William Hague's press conference on Libya is due to start at 11am. It is unclear at this stage why he has called it.

But Sky News claims that UK is to expel Libyan embassy staff.

On Monday Hague suggested that Britain was prepared allow Gaddafi to stay in Libya in return for ceding power.

He said: "Obviously him leaving Libya itself would be the best way of showing the Libyan people that they no longer have to live in fear of Gaddafi. But as I have said all along, this is ultimately a question for Libyans to determine."

On Tuesday Hague's officials insisted that the government's had not changed its stance on Libya.

10.00am: Syrian activists are meeting in Turkey for what they claim is the first meeting of its kind since the uprising began, AFP reports.

Bahiya Mardini, who heads the Cairo-based Arab Free Speech Committee, said the Istanbul meeting will focus on "developing the coordination between activists and working groups of the revolution".

Wissam Tarif, founder of the human rights group Insan, is providing a Twitter commentary on the meeting. His updates are included in the Guardian's Middle East Twitter network (see right), but here's a selection from meeting:

In Istanbul at The Syrian Activists Network meeting. More than 200 amazing young Syrian activists. Training not speeches. Good! #Syria

Germ Sema Abd Rabu introducing the program. She called herself a germ! Al Assad keeps making mistakes and they mock him now. #Syria

Mouath Al Sebai talking key point about future Syria: tolerance, civil society, democracy, pluralism and a civil state. #Syria

Dr Emad: People want Political Programs not individuals. A vision not opposition groups disputing. #Syria

9.28am: Welcome to Middle East Live. Libya looks set to be the main focus today after the Lockerbie bomber appeared at a pro-Gaddafi rally last night and Britain's foreign secretary William Hague is due to give press briefing on the conflict. Here's a run-down of the latest developments.

Libya

• Libyan state television has broadcast footage showing Abdelbaset al-Megrahi, the Lockerbie bomber, at a gathering in support of Muammar Gaddafi. Megrahi appeared to be frail and was sitting in a wheelchair almost two years after his release from a Scottish prison.

• ITN has this footage of Megrahi's appearance at the rally.

_

• Parties to the crisis in Libya remain deeply divided on how to reach a political solution the United Nations envoy Abdul Ilah Al-Khatib said after visits to Benghazi and Tripoli. His spokesman said: "The Special Envoy said it is clear from the discussions in Tripoli today and in Benghazi yesterday with representatives of the Libyan Transitional National Council, that both sides remain far apart on reaching agreement on a political solution,"

• The international criminal court has dismissed suggestions by Britain and France that Gaddafi could be allowed to remain in Libya as part of negotiated deal to remove him from power, insisting that a new government would be obliged to arrest the dictator under warrants issued by the court. "He has to be arrested," said Florence Olara, spokeswoman for the court's chief prosecutor, Luis Moreno-Ocampo.

• The failure of Nato's military campaign will force the coalition to offer more concessions to Gaddafi, according to a Guardian editorial:

Strip away the concession that Mr Hague and his French counterpart Alain Juppé appeared to make, and Nato is still left demanding that the colonel fall on his sword as a precondition for a ceasefire and national reconciliation talks. Unless the economic and military pressure on Gaddafi inside Tripoli really is intense – and if so he is doing a good job of hiding it – this is make-believe. The U-turn Britain, France and the US have just performed is unlikely to be the last.

• It is time to tempt Gaddafi out, not blast him out, argues the Guardian's veteran foreign correspondent Jonathan Steele.

Having shifted on Gaddafi's future the next step for France and Britain should be to persuade their rebel allies to accept the principle of an immediate ceasefire. Then give the word to the UN negotiator and let him work on getting a response from the government side. Ramadan provides the incentive for an all-round military pause. With persistence it might even take permanent root.

Syria

• Shimon Peres, the president of Israel, called on Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad to resign. In his first news conference for Arab media the former Israeli prime minister paid tribute to Syrian demonstrators, who he said "are fighting for peace and who want to live like human beings".

• Syrian opposition groups say targeted assassinations of protest leaders and mass arrests signal a tactic change by the Syrian state in attempts to stamp out dissent ahead of an anticipated escalation in nightly demonstrations during Ramadan, Lebanon's Daily Star reports.

Egypt

• The trial next week of the ousted president Hosni Mubarak comes at a dangerous moment, writes Jeffrey Fleishman for the LA Times

But any move that appears to allow Mubarak to slip from justice is sure to provoke an outraged backlash from Egyptians who regard their former leader as a tyrant. They want him called to account for filling jails with political opponents and running a government that enriched tycoons and friends in the ruling party …

But the prevailing view is that the reports of poor health are a ruse, with Egyptians believing his ailments, including reports that he has stomach cancer, slips in and out of comas and refuses to eat, are theatrics to save him from prison. Many are skeptical that Mubarak and former Interior Minister Habib Adli, who is also charged with the murder of protesters, will be tried beginning Aug. 3. The holy month of Ramadan begins next week, and some say Mubarak's lawyer will announce a new health crisis in the hours before the judge is to take the bench.

• Potential presidential hopeful Mohamed ElBaradei called for a broad-based coalition, that would include the Muslim Brotherhood, to contest the parliamentary elections. The former UN weapons inspector wants to ensure parliament fairly represents many of the new parties, dominated by younger activists, according to the Egyptian daily al-Masry al-Youm.

He said:

We don't have the luxury today to enter into fierce competition between the different streams, especially when we are building the house from the start … At this stage, there must be a parliament that represents all Egyptian forces.

• The telecommunication group Vodafone is to meet human rights campaigners to discuss how it can prevent its networks being hijacked by repressive regimes after it was forced to send out pro-government messages by the Egyptian government during the uprising.

Bahrain

Hundreds of people in Bahrain have been reinstated to their jobs after being sacked when they took part in a demonstrations earlier this year. The kingdom's Labour minister said 564 had been reinstated, according to Trade Arabia. Earlier this month Human Rights Watch called on the Bahrain government to reinstate more than 2,000 workers who were sacked after taking part in pro-democracy protests in March.
*~*~*~*~*

Miracle of the Day - Cholesterol Cured by God

"All honor, all glory, all praise.To my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. The doctor said my total Cholesterol was high,and my

HDL (which is the good Cholesterol) was too low. And the LDL (which is the bad Cholesterol) was too high. And the

Triglycerides (which is the fat) was too low. and the doctor prescribe me lipitor, Which has a bad side affect to it and can

cause liver problem. But praise be to my God, God brought my total Cholesterol down, raised my HDL (good Cholesterol)

up, Loweedr my LDL bad Cholesterol and raised my Triglycerides. All without Lipitor praise God!"

*~*~*~*~*

hostgator coupon Php weby

Tuesday - July 26, 2011

2011-08-20T04:20:00.000+08:00

Tuesday - July 26, 2011

1.

Peru halts coca plant eradication program

2. Miracle of the Day - Cholesterol Cured by God

*~*~*~*~*

Peru halts coca plant eradication program:

Plant used in manufacture of cocaine has practical applications among native peoples

The nation Peru has temporarily suspended the eradication of its coca plants, which is used to produce the narcotic cocaine. The Peruvian government says that it is planning to re-design its anti-drug programs. The news came as a shock to U.S. officials, as Peru has been courted for years to become active in a "war on drugs" in the region.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Peru is currently the world's leading coca grower and could easily surpass Colombia as the globe's top cocaine producer. The coca plant has been commonly used in Peru and other Andean nations for centuries. Many people here chew coca leaves or drink coca tea.

In addition, coca is considered an effective treatment for altitude sickness and is often used in medicine and in traditional religious ceremonies.

Many still say that the coca crop is cultivated for use in the cocaine industry.

"We are working on how to re-direct efforts," said Oscar Valdes, the Peruvian interior minister. Eradication efforts would resume "very soon," according to Valdes, but added that the government wanted to focus more on catching major traffickers and cutting off access to supplies, such as kerosene used to refine the crop into cocaine.

"The public must understand that the reduction of illicit crops will continue, as the president has said, and there will be a frontal fight against drug trafficking," Valdes added.

Richard Soberon, head of the anti-drugs program for Peruvian President Ollanta Humala's government, said there will be an indefinite "pause" in the eradication program in the Alto Huallaga region northeast of Lima to evaluate the effort.

"In every country, in Afghanistan, in Colombia, in Bolivia, in Mexico, it is normal to have these pauses to do the necessary evaluation of what has happened, to correct mistakes," he said.

Soberon also pointed out that years of eradication efforts had had little impact on the production of coca in Peru.

Rose Likins, the U.S. ambassador to Peru, appeared surprised by the decision. "I still haven't received a complete explanation of what happened," she said. "It would have been better to have received information about this beforehand."

According to a United Nations report, Peru in 2010 became the world's largest coca producer, overtaking Colombia, where production has seen a steady decline.
*~*~*~*~*

*~*~*~*~*

Miracle of the Day - Cholesterol Cured by God

"All honor, all glory, all praise.To my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. The doctor said my total Cholesterol was high,and my HDL (which is the good Cholesterol) was too low. And the LDL (which is the bad Cholesterol) was too high. And the Triglycerides (which is the fat) was too low. and the doctor prescribe me lipitor, Which has a bad side affect to it and can cause liver problem. But praise be to my God, God brought my total Cholesterol down, raised my HDL (good Cholesterol) up, Loweedr my LDL bad Cholesterol and raised my Triglycerides. All without Lipitor praise God!"

<SCRIPT charset="utf-8" type="text/javascript" src="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822/US/34kums34tru-20/8019/c9c9e18e-4c2d-45d9-9cff-112e98c6639e"> </SCRIPT> <NOSCRIPT><A HREF="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2F34kums34tru-20%2F8019%2Fc9c9e18e-4c2d-45d9-9cff-112e98c6639e&Operation=NoScript">Amazon.com Widgets</A></NOSCRIPT>

<SCRIPT charset="utf-8" type="text/javascript" src="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822/US/34kums34tru-20/8006/d018e89b-42a0-4d99-abe9-a532f09ba2de"> </SCRIPT> <NOSCRIPT><A HREF="http://ws.amazon.com/widgets/q?ServiceVersion=20070822&MarketPlace=US&ID=V20070822%2FUS%2F34kums34tru-20%2F8006%2Fd018e89b-42a0-4d99-abe9-a532f09ba2de&Operation=NoScript">Amazon.com Widgets</A></NOSCRIPT>

<script type="text/javascript" src="http://moreshare.com/js/share.php?b=u3KpX9KZ"></script>

<a href="http://www.newhostgatorcoupon.com">hostgator coupon</a>
<a href="http://phpweby.com">Php weby</a>

*~*~*~*~*

Trending on Tuesday - July 26, 2011

2011-08-20T04:09:00.001+08:00

Trending on Monday - July 26, 2011

1. Chelsea Clinton arrives at a panel discussion hosted by Marie Clare magazine entitled "Social Media: The Perils and Possibilities of Living in a Digital World," at the Hearst Tower on Tuesday, July 26, 2011 in New York.

2. Miracle of the Day - Throat cancer and Pregnancy healing *~*~*~*~* *~*~*~*~* *~*~*~*~*
*~*~*~*~* *~*~*~*~*
Miracle of the Day - Throat cancer and Pregnancy healing "My name is Vikki from Brazil. As soon as I disco
vered I had got cancer in my throat in 2003, I immediately invited a group of prayer to visit me for 1 week. On the third day, God used someone to say that he was healing me. Then, I was about to have my second surgery and for three times I was in the hospital and had to return home before the surgery. Every time, something happened. God was speaking to me. But on the fourth time, I had the second surgery, had the second biopsy and the result was NEGATIVE. My second testimony is. My wife was on her fifth month of pregnancy and the doctor said the baby was dead. We prayed a lot and two weeks later, my wife had the exams again, and there was Kimberly... She´s amazing. God is tremendous. Praise God"

hostgator coupon Php weby *~*~*~*~*

Trending on Monday - July 25, 2011

2011-08-20T04:00:00.000+08:00

Trending on Monday - July 25, 2011

WFT, EWG, ATVI, GS, WFR are Stocks Trending Up

We have found the following stocks to be trending up over the past 4 days as of Monday, July 25, 2011. Definitely worth keeping an eye on.

Weatherford INTL LTD (NYSE:WFT) increased its share price to $20.45 +$0.06% on 27,774,332 shares traded . Weatherford International Ltd. is a provider of equipment and services used in the drilling, evaluation, completion, production and intervention of oil and natural gas wells.

Ishares MSCI Germany Index (AMEX:EWG) increased its share price to $26.56 +$0.00% on 8,836,300 shares traded . The investment seeks to replicate, net of expenses, the MSCI Germany index. The fund normally invests at least 95% of its assets in the securities of the index and in depositary receipts (DRs) representing securities in the index. It invests at least 80% o

Activision Blizzard Inc (NASDAQ:ATVI) increased its share price to $12.17 +$0.02% on 8,500,281 shares traded . Activision Blizzard, Inc. (Activision Blizzard) is an online, personal computer (PC), console and handheld game publisher. It has 3 segments:Activision Publishing,Blizzard Entertainment, Inc. and its subsidiaries & Activision Blizzard Distribution.

Goldman Sachs GRP (NYSE:GS) increased its share price to $136.85 +$0.01% on 5,851,986 shares traded . Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is a global investment banking, securities and investment management firm. Its three segments are Investment Banking, Trading and Principal Investments and Asset Management and Securities Services.

MEMC Electronic MTRL (NYSE:WFR) increased its share price to $8.21 +$0.02% on 5,304,783 shares traded . Memc Electronic Material is engaged in the manufacture and sale of wafers and has been a pioneer in the design and development of wafer technologies.

Atrinsic Inc (NASDAQ:ATRN) increased its share price to $4.69 +$0.44% on 5,304,328 shares traded . Atrinsic, Inc. is a direct marketing company based in the United States. It has two main service offerings: Transactional services and Subscription services.

Monsanto Company (NYSE:MON) increased its share price to $76.42 +$0.01% on 4,144,672 shares traded . Monsanto Company is a global provider of agricultural products for farmers. Its seeds, biotechnology trait products, and herbicides provide farmers with solutions that improve productivity, reduce the costs of farming and produce better foods.

Akamai Technologies Inc (NASDAQ:AKAM) increased its share price to $30.41 +$0.00% on 3,392,333 shares traded . Akamai Technologies, Inc. provides services for accelerating & improving the delivery of content and applications over the Internet from live and on-demand streaming videos to conventional content on web pages to tools that help people transact business.

Precision Drill TRST (NYSE:PDS) increased its share price to $17.89 +$0.09% on 3,236,891 shares traded . Precision Drilling Trust, through its subsidiaries, provides contract drilling, and completion and production services to the oil and gas exploration and production companies in Canada, the United States and internationally.

PUB Entrpr GP (NYSE:PEG) increased its share price to $33.20 +$0.02% on 3,090,670 shares traded . Public Service Enterprise Group is an energy company, whose business consists of four segments, which are Power, PSE&G and the two direct subsidiaries of Energy Holdings L.L.C., PSEG Global L.L.C. and PSEG Resources L.L.C.

*****

Amazon.com Widgets

hostgator coupon Php weby

Trending on Sunday - July 24, 2011

2011-07-21T03:37:00.002+08:00

1.   Jenna Fischer Is Having A Boy
2.   Fake Apple store employees believe they work for Apple
3.   Caroline Wozniacki was out with Rory McIlroy on Sunday night
4.   Wendi Deng And Wives Who Stand Behind Their Men
5.    Miracle of the Day - Saved by Grace

*~*~*~*~*

Jenna Fischer Is Having A Boy

Jenna Fischer has a boy on the way!

The 37-year-old actress, who plays new mom Pam on NBC's "The Office," was asked by Jay Leno on Monday's "The Tonight Show" if her parents were excited about the arrival of their first grandchild.
"This is the second grandchild," the actress corrected Jay and added, "but first grandson."
The late night host jumped at her casual announcement.
"This is the exclusive, Jay," Jenna, who is appearing in the new movie, "A Little Help," continued. "When I went to my movie premiere the other day a reporter asked me if I knew what I was having, and I said I do, but I'm not sharing that yet because I'm [going to] have Jay be the first to know."

She also told Jay that she and husband Lee Kirk are expecting their bundle of joy in the fall.

"September we're in what they call the home stretch," she said.

*~*~*~*~*

Fake Apple store employees believe they work for Apple

We are pretty use to seeing stories about fake Apple products that stream out of China but it seems that some bootleggers have decided to raise the bar and have opened up “Apple Stores” in some Chinese cities.

According to one American couple who came across one in the city of Kumming, several hundred miles from the nearest official Apple store, that other some differences which take some careful observation to spot the fake stores are faithful reproductions of the Apple store theme.

The really amazing thing though is that the employees in these stores believe that they are actually working for Apple, blue t-shirts and all.

*~*~*~*~*
Caroline Wozniacki was out with Rory McIlroy on Sunday night

Caroline Wozniacki and golf sensation Rory McIlroy were spotted Sunday night sharing a dinner and stealing a kiss in London. The encounter came days after golf's U.S. Open champion split with his long-time girlfriend.

A tennis blogger happened to spot the young stars dining at the Central London location of the British chain All Bar One and surreptitiously snapped two pictures of the sporting stars. She posted the pictures on Twitter but later took them down after an attack of conscience.

After winning the Open, McIlroy cited his girlfriend of four years, Holly Sweeney, as one of his influences. He said she knew him better than anyone else and helped keep him grounded. McIlroy had broken up with her before the start of the 2011 season in order to focus on golf but later "begged" her to get back together. McIlroy released a statement on Monday saying he and Sweeney broke up sometime before this last weekend's British Open.

Wozniacki and McIlroy first were linked after engaging in a flirty conversation on Twitter last week. After McIlroy wished the world No. 1 a happy 21st birthday and marveled at how old she was getting, Wozniacki responded:

Kidding. Kidding. For all we know, Wozniacki and McIlroy were sharing a friendly glass of water and exchanging a platonic peck on the cheek. Or maybe Caro was looking for tips from Rory on how to win a major. Or perhaps she was consoling him after he performed poorly at one. Don't jump to conclusions, even though they were also seen holding hands.

There's only one thing for certain: If they go out again, McIlroy should hope the 5-foot-10 Wozniacki wears flats.

*~*~*~*~*

Wendi Deng And Wives Who Stand Behind Their Men

Embattled media mogul Rupert Murdoch has at least one loyal supporter: Wendi Deng. Yesterday, his ever-poised Chinese wife shocked the world by lunging with a volleyball player’s instinct at would-be attacker Jonathan May-Bowles, 26, during a hearing with British lawmakers.

The slap heard round the world has many focusing on Deng, who is 38 years younger than Murdoch, and brings new meaning to the adage “behind every great man, there’s a great woman.” Influential socially and in News Corp’s dealings in China, Deng is considered a powerful behind-the-scenes asset to Murdoch and was quite literally behind him—often leaning in to show her support—during yesterday’s hearings on the UK phone hacking scandal.

When May-Bowles charged toward Murdoch with a foam pie, Deng’s protective instinct kicked in, signaling to the world that she will stand behind her man through scandal, humiliation and even assault. Here’s a look at the women you’d want on your team—the power wives who have gone to bat for their men.

Victoria Beckham
Soccer star David Beckham has been accused of cheating on multiple occasions, but his Spice Girl wife has remained steadfast behind her man. If tested, we think Posh Spice could pack a wallop (almost) as powerful as Deng’s.

Carla Bruni
The ex-model and wife of French President Nicholas Sarkozy has frequently offered public support of her husband and defended him from criticism by rival Dominique de Villepin.

Hillary Clinton
Who wouldn’t want Hillary behind them? She stood by Bill Clinton through several allegations of sexual misconduct, including the infamous Monica Lewinsky scandal.

Olivia Harrison
A decade ago Harrison made headlines after saving her Beatles hubby from a knife attack at their home. Assailants beware: She reportedly hit the intruder on the head with a lamp.

Demi Moore
Moore, America’s “G.I. Jane,” sided with her actor husband Ashton Kutcher in his recent feud with The Village Voice over alleged factually inaccurate statements made about child sex slavery in the U.S.

*~*~*~*~*

Miracle of the Day - Saved by Grace

"A couple of moths ago in February I was driving down the road on my way to pick my dad up from work and my van ran over a huge chunck of ice covered with snow. My van went into a spin and I yelled out Jesus nooooooooo and I went into two complete circles, I stopped and another car hit me. If it wasnt for that car hitting me I would have flipped. I drove two months on a bent axle here it is in April and I just traded my van for another van. The weather on that night in February was sooo bad you could not even see the road. Praise God his hand is what stopped my van from flipping."

*~*~*~*~*

~*~*~*~*~*~* hostgator coupon Php weby

Trending on Saturday - July 23, 2011

2011-07-20T11:58:00.000+08:00

1.   Ja Rule Sentenced For Tax Evasion
2.   Studio cancels plans for The Dark Tower adaptation
3.   Jonah Hill Weight Loss:

Can You Lose Weight Without Expensive Personal Trainers?
4. ‘Tim Robbins and the Rouges Gallery Band’ Release Debut Album 5. Miracle of the Day - MIDWAY PENTECOSTAL CHURCH

*~*~*~*~*
Ja Rule Sentenced For Tax Evasion

Ja Rule has been sentenced by a New Jersey court to more than two years in federal prison for failing to file tax income returns, The Associated Press reports. He also was ordered to pay $1.1 million in unpaid taxes.

Ja Rule sentenced to prison in gun case

"I in no way attempted to deceive the government or do anything illegal," the rapper said prior to sentencing. "I was a young man who made a lot of money — I'm getting a little choked up — I didn't know how to deal with these finances, and I didn't have people to guide me, so I made mistakes."

Ja Rule (real name: Jeffrey Atkins) pleaded guilty in March to failing to pay taxes on more than $3 million in income.

Ja Rule pleads guilty to $3 million tax evasion

Last month, Ja Rule was sentenced to up to two years in state prison after pleading guilty to attempted criminal weapon possession. The prison sentence will be served at the same time as the federal tax sentence and, depending on his release date for the gun charge, he could serve four to 12 months for taxes. He's serving time at the Oneida Correctional Facility in upstate New York.

*~*~*~*~*

Studio cancels plans for The Dark Tower adaptation

Back in May, we reported that Universal Pictures had put the pre-production team for The Dark Tower on hiatus due to concerns about the project’s rapidly ballooning budget. Now it looks like director-producer Ron Howard’s ambitious plans for adapting Stephen King’s post-apocalyptic tale might never see the light of day, as the studio has reportedly canceled the entire project.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, a deadline to commit to the project came and went without the necessary approval, and Howard has already begun lining up the project that will replace The Dark Tower in his schedule. The report indicates that a message went out to everyone involved with the project — which would have taken the form of three feature-length movies and two television miniseries — that the financial requirements for such a plan just couldn’t be reconciled.

The Dark Tower was set to produced by Howard, Imagine Entertainment, and writer-producer Akiva Goldsmith, with No Country For Old Men actor Javier Bardem in talks for the lead role of Roland, a lone gunslinger pursuing a mysterious enemy across a dangerous wasteland. The seven-novel series was a blend of John Ford-style western and magic-fueled fantasy, and featured some of King’s characters from other novels in supporting roles.

The series has had almost as much trouble on its journey to the big screen as its protagonist has on his quest, as this is the second high-profile adaptation of the novels to fall by the wayside. Back in 2007, “Lost” creators J.J. Abrams, Carlton Cuse, and Damon Lindelof were attached to bring the story to theaters, but backed off a few years later due to the extensive commitment the project would require.

Given the high-profile nature of the novels, this probably won’t be the last we hear of a Dark Tower adaptation, but it could be a little while before there’s talk of Roland strapping on his big-screen guns again.

*~*~*~*~*
Jonah Hill Weight Loss; Can You Lose Weight Without Expensive Personal Trainers?

Jonah Hill, star of teen snark flicks "Superbad" and "Get Him to the Greek," has reshaped his formerly chubby self for a new film "21 Jump Street." Hill's personal nutritionist and trainer helped him lose weight; are expensive resources needed for weight loss? The keys to successful weight loss are information and willpower.

The first step, before you start a weight loss and exercise regime, is to see your doctor to explore why you are overweight. Conditions like sleep apnea can cause weight gain. You may also have Metabolic Syndrome or Type 2 diabetes. If so, Metformin can help regulate your insulin. Thyroid issues can cause weight gain, too.

Blood work will also identify any problems with hypertension or cholesterol. Recent blood tests revealed that my LDL (low density lipoprotein or bad) cholesterol was high and my HDL (high density lipoprotein or good) cholesterol was low. I wanted to avoid medication, so I followed the Mediterranean Diet. I was able to get my cholesterol back to normal and I dropped thirty pounds.

Structural problems, like tendonitis or chronic back pain, can cause issues with exercise. A physical therapist or chiropractor can set up an exercise routine that adapts to your muscular-skeletal problems.

Obesity is generally a family issue. Once you learn about your own health history, you can help your children make healthy choices too. Adopting healthier new habits in exercise and nutrition is crucial; it isn't necessary to seek professional help to make those changes. Nutritional information is readily available online and in media sources. Many websites provide support, information, printable food journals and exercise schedules.

Weight loss apps are available for mobile devices and cell phones, too. These apps provide information on calories, fat, sodium, fiber, protein and vitamin content in all kinds of food. Information is available about restaurant menus and packaged food, too. Apps also provide ingredient lists for those with allergies and dietary restrictions.

Restaurants are making nutrition information available, too. Subway, for example has put together a helpful guide for dieters. Some restaurants post information or print in it in their menus. Nutrition data for most restaurants is available online.

Exercise videos and fitness programs are available online. Exercise DVDs sell for under $10 at many retail outlets. Most exercise programs require no special equipment. Jack Lalane was a television fitness guru. The only materials needed to exercise with him were a chair and towel.

If you're considering an exercise machine, Sears sells a quality elliptical cross-trainer for $85.95. Craigslist, eBay and Amazon sells thousands of used exercise machines cheap, too. We got ours for $25; the whole family uses it.

Personal trainers and nutritionists do provide one important function: accountability. Regular check-ins help keep dieters on track. You can get that at lower cost, from groups like Tops and Weight Watchers. My friend lost 80 pounds and swears by Weight Watchers. There are online accountability groups, on social sites like Facebook, too.

If you're going to spend money on weight loss, purchase meal replacements and nutritional diet-friendly foods. I've used Designer Whey, Nature's Way Alive, Soy Joy and Lean Cuisine with success. Keeping these products on hand for easy weight control. These habits are inexpensive and set a healthy example for the whole family.

*~*~*~*~*

‘Tim Robbins and the Rouges Gallery Band’ Release Debut Album

Tim Robbins, the 50-year-old actor famous for roles in The Shawshank Redemption, Mystic River, and a slew of other films, is following in the footsteps of his late father, Gilbert Robbins.

Gilbert, who died in April of 2011, was a member of the Highwaymen, a 60's folk band who made a significant impact in their day with songs such as “Cottonfields” and “Michael.”

Now Tim is on a musical journey of his own as he and the Rougues Gallery Band are scheduled to release their debut self-titled album on Tuesday of this week.

“My first desire to perform came from watching [my dad] on stage. I remember it as so intoxicating,” Robbins said in a statement Monday. “Audiences were encouraged to sing along and be part of the event. That is a relationship I’ve been seeking all my life, that alchemy between performer and audience.”

To promote the new album, 50-year-old Robbins has booked appearances on the “Late Show with David Letterman” on July 25, “The View” on July 26, and has also announced a concert tour, which kicked off last week in Vancouver.

Although the Oscar winning actor is no stranger to music he stayed off the radar until now to ensure his songs were “coming from a genuine place.”

Robbins explained the reason behind his “waiting” was simple:

“I wanted to understand what my voice was and what kind of stories I wanted to tell. I think I’m ready to tell those stories now.”

*~*~*~*~*

Miracle of the Day - MIDWAY PENTECOSTAL CHURCH-MIRACLE CHURCH

"DURING OUR APRIL MIRACLE REVIVAL WITH EVANGELIST DAVID CHRAMIE THERE WAS AN ELDER BROTHER REX SHARP GOD CALLED OUT TO MINISTER TO. THE LORD TOLD BROTHER REX THROUGH THE EVANGELIST THAT HE WOULD BE HEALED OF A KNOT IN HIS NECK AREA. NOTE HERE THE KNOT WAS NOT NOTICABLE NOR VISIBLE THROUGH BROTHER REX SHARPS CLOTHES. AFTER REV. CHERAMIE PRAYED FOR BROTHER REX AND THE LORD HEALED HIM HE ASKED ME AS HIS PASTOR TO LOOK AT WHERE THE KNOT WAS AND IT DISAPPEARED BEFORE OUR EYES. GOD TOTALLY REMOVED THE GROWTH AND MIDWAY IS IN THE MIDST OF A GREAT MIRACLE REVIVAL. THANKS TO THE NAME OF JESUS"

*~*~*~*~*

hostgator coupon

Trending on Friday - July 22 2011

2011-07-20T05:17:00.001+08:00

1.   Red Hot Chili Peppers Unveil 'Rain Dance Maggie' Single: Listen
2.   Lamar Odom involved in a near-fatal car accident
3.   Julianne Hough
4.   'Cash Cab' strikes and kills pedestrian in Canada
5.    Miracle of the Day - A modern Lazarus

*~*~*~*~*
Red Hot Chili Peppers Unveil 'Rain Dance Maggie' Single: Listen

The Red Hot Chili Peppers return -- with a new guitarist and some more cowbell, no less -- with "The Adventure of Rain Dance Maggie," the first single from forthcoming album "I'm With You" that hit the web on Monday (July 18).

"Hey now/ you've got to make it rain somehow," Anthony Kiedis sings on the upbeat funk track, which recalls the group's "Dani California" in tone. Josh Klinghoffer, the band's former touring guitarist who has replaced John Frusciante full-time, fits in nicely on this track, with his screeching riffs contrasting with Flea's bass lines and the use of cowbell at the end of the song.

Due out Aug. 30, "I'm With You" is the group's long-awaited follow-up to 2006's double CD "Stadium Arcadium," which has sold 2.3 million copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. Producer Rick Rubin told Billboard.com last month that Klinghoffer's addition to RHCP changed the group's dynamic on the album: "It sounds like the Red Hot Chili Peppers that you've never heard before," he says.

No word on when the music video for "Rain Dance Maggie" will premiere, but Kreayshawn, the upstart female rapper of "Gucci Gucci" fame, is set to direct the clip.
*~*~*~*~*
Lamar Odom involved in a near-fatal car accident

Lamar Odom was involved in a serious car accident in New York on July 14, when his driver hit a 15-year-old boy and a motorcyclist.
Odom was in Jamaica, Queens for his cousin's funeral when the driver of his car service struck the two victims. The basketball player was not injured, but was reportedly visibly upset about the accident.

"Thank you for your support and prayers!" Odom wrote on Twitter on Monday.

MediaTakeOut.com, who first reported the incident, said that the pedestrian and motorcyclist were seriously injured in the crash. Odom's wife, Khloe Kardashian was not in the vehicle.

"Khloe wasn't in the car. It was a driver, and Lamar was in the back seat," Kardashian's publicist told the New York Post.
Odom, who plays for the Los Angeles Lakers and is the star of the TV realty show "Khloe & Lamar," married Khloe Kardashian in 2009 after dating for a month. The premiere of "Khloe & Lamar" was watched by an estimated 2.6 million viewers. The ratings were lower than those seen for the January debut of another "Kardashian" series, "Kourtney and Kim Take New York," which attracted 3 million viewers, the Hollywood Reporter said.

Kardashian and Odom, who married in 2009, had told OnTheRedCarpet.com earlier this month that cameras were not off-limits anywhere while filming their new reality show.

*~*~*~*~*

Julianne Hough

The "Dancing with the Stars" pro joined boyfriend Ryan Seacrest at a hospital to open a multimedia center called "The Voice," which allows kids to DJ tunes. The actress tweeted, "Having a very inspirational and emotional morning meeting kids at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia."

*~*~*~*~*

'Cash Cab' strikes and kills pedestrian in Canada

A "Cash Cab" taxi struck and killed a pedestrian in Vancouver when a technical staff member was driving the replica cab back to the lot after filming on the Canadian version of the game show wrapped for the day.

The staff member crashed into a 61-year-old man crossing the street and the man died in the hospital soon after the accident Friday, police said. The family of the Surrey man has requested that his name not be released.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the victim and his friends and his family," said Andrew Burnstein, president of Castlewood Productions Inc., the production company behind the Canadian version of "Cash Cab."

"My heart also goes out to the driver of the vehicle, a member of our technical staff, who is shaken and devastated by this tragic accident, as is our entire team," he said.

There were no witnesses to the crash and charges had not been filed, according to the Vancouver Sun. The driver remained at the scene of the accident and the replica taxi is being held by investigators.

The trivia game show pays out cash to unassuming passengers who correctly answer questions for the duration of their commute. Adam Growe, a comedian and a licensed taxi driver, hosts the Canadian version of the mobile show. He was not driving the cab at the time of the accident, which is reportedly the worst in the show's history.

The American version of "Cash Cab" is filmed in New York and Chicago and broadcast on the Discovery Channel. Its host, Ben Bailey, has said that he never gets into fender benders.

*~*~*~*~*

Miracle of the Day - A modern Lazarus

"A brother in our church who is a severe diabetic was hospitalized after having a stroke. He went into a coma, and the doctors said that they felt he wouldnt live through it. It wasnt soon after they said that, he had a heart-attack and he quit breathing on his own. They had him on dialisis and a breathing machine. Our church decided we would pray together for him, believing a miracle without doubting. Many people from the church went to the hospital and layed hands on him and prayed. Many days went by and the doctors were saying there was no hope, they said that a man who went through these things, would be brain dead. They claimed that since he had blood on the brain, that he would become a vegetable and never recover. The bible tells us that the effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man, availeth much. I believe that the effectual fervent prayer of many righteous men and women availeth even more. As quick as the doctors were saying that he would be brain dead, he began to breath on his own. Day after day went by and he began to speak, he began to remember, he began to walk, and he began to do all the things that he had done before. The doctors even came to see him, and they said to him, you are a miracle. They were amazed in the recovery that this brother had. We must realize that Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. He will never change, what He did while He was on this earth, He can still do today. Im not saying that every time you pray for someone that God will raise him from the dead, but if it be the will of God for him to be raised then he will. Dont stop believing in the Word of God, when it says "Whatsoever you ask in my name, I will do it". Keep praying and God can bring a modern Lazarus back to life before your eyes."

*~*~*~*~*

hostgator coupon

Trending on Thursday - July 21, 2011

2011-07-16T05:34:00.001+08:00

1.    Kawasaki Disease
2.    Legionnaires' Disease Reported in Las Vegas Aria Hotel & Casino
3.    Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 Review
4.    Poll Shows 55 Percent of Americans Will Not Take Summer Vacation
5.    Miracle of the Day - A MIRACLE BABY

***

Facebook Stunner: Child's Kawasaki Disease Mystery Solved By Users

ne desperate mom named Deborah Copaken Kogan through a series of photos, being unable to diagnose her son's eyes swollen shut, his chin and cheeks ballooned beyond recognition and his fever ever rising her son's rare condition used Facebook to reach out and eventually figured out what his condition was and how to treat it. Kawasaki disease (KD) is rare, but the social network might have saved the child's life.

So, Kogan's virtual friends looked at her posted photos, and simply commented on them. She rushed her son to the hospital.
An unofficial Facebook blog stated:

    "There is no virtual in feelings of that magnitude. Perhaps just as in the real world, with your real life, and quote-unquote real friends, your Facebook friend network is what you make it. Accordingly, old adages apply: Choose your friends wisely. Put in as much as you expect to get out."

So what is Kawasaki disease?

The disorder, first described in 1967 by Dr. Tomisaku Kawasaki in Japan, often begins with a high and persistent fever that is not very responsive to normal treatment with paracetamol (acetaminophen) or ibuprofen. The fever may persist steadily for up to two weeks and is normally accompanied by irritability.

Kawasaki published the first English language report of 50 patients with Kawasaki disease in 1974. Since that time, KD has become the leading cause of acquired heart disease among children in North America and Japan. Although an infectious agent is suspected, the cause remains unknown. However, significant progress has been made toward understanding the natural history of the disease and therapeutic interventions have been developed that halt the immune-mediated destruction of the arterial wall.

Inflammation of the mucous membranes in the mouth, along with erythema (redness), edema (swelling) with fissures (cracks in the lip surface), desquamation (peeling) and exsudation of the lips become exceedingly evident. Rashes occur early in the disease, and the cutaneous rash observed in patients with KD is non-specific, polymorphic, non-itchy and normally observed up to the fifth day of fever.

Some of these symptoms may come and go during the course of the illness. It is a syndrome affecting multiple organ systems, and in the acute stage of KD, systemic inflammatory changes are evident in many organs.

If left untreated, some symptoms will eventually relent, but coronary artery aneurysms will not improve, resulting in a significant risk of death or disability due to myocardial infarction (heart attack). If treated in a timely fashion, this risk can be mostly avoided and the course of illness cut short.

Children with Kawasaki disease should be hospitalized and cared for by a physician who has experience with this disease. When in an academic medical center, care is often shared between pediatric cardiology and pediatric infectious disease specialists (although no specific infectious agent has been identified as yet). It is imperative that treatment be started as soon as the diagnosis is made to prevent damage to the coronary arteries.

***

Legionnaires' Disease Reported in Las Vegas Aria Hotel & Casino

If you were in Las Vegas in the month of June to July, you may need to check for symptoms of fever, chills, coughing, headaches, and loss of appetite – all signs possibly pointing to a case of Legionnaires’ disease.

Six cases of the pneumonia-like disease were discovered at the Aria Hotel & Casino, according to the Southern Nevada Health District.

Public Information Manager Jennifer Sizemore stated that sampling was conducted at the resort after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention informed her that cases of the disease were found in out-of-state visitors who stayed at the hotel, reported Medical News Today.

In cooperation with the health district, Aria Resort contacted guests who stayed at their hotel from June 21 to July 4, when water tests detected elevated levels of Legionella bacteria in several of their guest rooms.

The common and naturally occurring bacteria exists in most water supplies and in some circumstances, may lead to respiratory illness or pneumonia. It grows best in warm water, hot and cold water taps, hot water tanks, and water in air conditioning systems.

The bacteria originated in 1976, when people who attended a Philadelphia convention of the American Legion suffered from an outbreak of the disease. In 2011, the bacteria was also found in a hot tub at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles; 439 people became sick as a result.

According to the official statement released by the Nevada hotel, illness usually occurs when someone receives direct concentrated exposure to the bacteria when breathed in as a mist or vapor. Symptoms usually begin two to 14 days after exposure.

It is reported not to be contagious and can be successfully treated with antibiotics, although in five to 30 percent of the cases, death can occur, according to the CDC. Those who smoke or are 65 and older are at a higher risk.

Each year in the United States, about 8,000 to 18,000 people are hospitalized due to the disease. The illness usually occurs in the summer or the early fall, though it can happen any time of the year.

The Nevada Health District shared that every patient that contracted the disease from the hotel was successfully treated and have fully recovered.

The Aria has been working to eliminate the bacteria from the water source, undertaking a multi-prong remediation plan.

Vice President of Hotel Operations Paul Berry stated, “Following the recent elevated test result, our facilities team immediately implemented additionally precautionary measures, and our most recent test results indicate that no detectible level of active Legionella bacteria was present in any of the locations tested. We will continue to monitor our water quality on an ongoing basis to ensure the safety of the water system and our guests.”

No new cases have been reported as of yet.

***

Amazon.com Widgets

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 Review

The highest grossing franchise of all-time concludes the series on a slightly underwhelming, but ultimately high note.

It is something of a bittersweet realization that after ten years, the Harry Potter films have come to their conclusion, and the character will never again grace the big screen — excluding Lucas-style special editions and the possibility that a rabid fan will go Misery on J.K. Rowling and force her to write an eighth Harry Potter book. Barring that, the franchise ends on a high note, albeit a slightly muted one.

It has been an odd and nearly unparalleled experience watching the cast of Harry Potter grow through the years. And as the actors matured and grew into their roles, the series itself also matured. The tone became darker, and the stories grew more complex. The style changed as well, partly due to the deepening plot, but mostly due to the change of directors. For the final outing, David Yates returns behind the lens of Harry Potter for the fourth time, and his style has become very distinctive, as has his view of what Harry Potter is all about.

Yates is not into the spectacle of Harry’s world as the original Potter director, Christopher Columbus was, nor does he emphasize the magical nature as Alfonso Cuaron did in Prisoner of Azkaban. He is closer to Mike Newell (who directed Goblet of Fire) than to the other two, but still, Yates has his own way of seeing things. He is a character director, and as a result the emphasis is on Harry’s journey more than anything else. That makes the journey and the conclusion satisfying, but at the cost of the epic scale of the final battle.
Part 2

Deathly Hallows — Part 2 is not so much a sequel as it is just a continuation of Part 1. Rather than having its own three-act structure, Part 2 essentially begins during the middle of the second act, which began in Part 1. If possible, watch Part 1 immediately before watching Part 2. It will make more sense in terms of the narrative flow.

The movie begins without much introduction. It picks up immediately where Part 1 ended and hits the ground running. Without spoiling too much for people that haven’t read the books, Harry (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) continue to hunt the horcruxes that are keeping Voldemort (Ralph Finnes) alive, while around them the war is over, and he-who-must-not-be-named has won.

If you watched the first film, then you know everything you need to know about the plot of the second. All of the exposition and setup was dumped into Part 1, leaving Part 2 to focus on the climactic confrontation and final battle, which occupies more than the last hour of the film. There is very little fat on this film, which is both a good and bad thing. Part 1 was nearly all set up, so many of its faults were overlooked, and rightly so. It had moments that dragged, and there were very few action scenes to break up the monotony of the months the characters spent on the run. Part 2 does not have that problem at all. In fact, the events in the film all take place over the course of a few days.

3D is not always a good thing

At times, this film looks better than it has any right to. There are shots that are simply beautiful, and the visuals are almost a character in themselves. As with the previous films, Yates uses the colors of the world to convey emotion. The majority of the time the film looks grey, with occasional blue hues, until a pivotal change happens and colors explode into the scene. It is almost the exact opposite of Columbus’ visual style, which was loaded with rich and lush colors.

While that may make for an interesting visual look, it is not one that works well with 3D. Part 2 is a visually dark film. The majority of it takes place at night, and one lengthy scene set during the day is all filmed in a dark setting. Mix that in with Yates’ use of monochromatic hues and the intended bleak look becomes muddy and hard to distinguish.

There are some impressive visual effects and great looking shots. Do yourself a favor and see it in 2D so you can actually appreciate it.
Yates leaves his mark

Part 2 marks the fourth Harry Potter film for director David Yates, which means that quietly, Yates has become the most influential person for the entire series in terms of visual look and style. Yates is a director who loves to focus on the character development and emotional side of events above all else. He works well with actors, has the ability to get memorable performances out of his cast, and Part 2 is no exception. From the stars to the cameo shots, every actor in the film does his or her job well, and a good deal of credit for that has to go to the director.

Yates squeezes all the emotion out of an already emotionally charged finale, and the moments that work best are the quiet ones. Without getting into spoilers, there are several scenes towards the end when puzzle pieces fall into place, and the truth about past actions come out. Those are among the best and most memorable moments of the film, and if you haven’t read the books, then they may even shock you and make you rethink how you have judged some of the characters. He also uses flashbacks from previous movies, as well as flashbacks to previously unseen events, and he does so masterfully. In one instance in particular, Yates tells an entire story through a few brief flashbacks, and in the course of those few minutes the entire story changes.

Where he stumbles is the action. Yates has never been a strong action director. In both the Half-Blood Prince and The Order of the Phoenix, major battles from the book were neutered under Yates, and ended up being overshadowed in favor of the emotional side of what happened during those battles. In fact, in Half-Blood Prince, the climactic battle from the book was totally removed from the film, which was a baffling decision. Not only would it have made for a good conclusion to a somewhat slow-paced film, it made sense in the structure of that story to have a fight at the end, yet Yates cut it entirely.

In Part 2, there are still some good action scenes, but most of them occur in the background. Granted, to recreate the entire final battle would probably tack on another hour and cost an additional $100 million or so, but at 130 minutes, Part 2 is already the shortest of all the Potter films, and it could have easily added 20 minutes of the fighting that has been building up for the last seven films.

The idea is to keep the focus entirely on Harry, and so other characters which play a significant role in the final book are relegated to the background. Even Ron and Hermione seem to disappear for huge chunks of time — in one scene they are actually just sitting down while the battle is raging, as if they don’t exist until Harry arrives.

The final battle is underwhelming to say the least, and major characters to the series are left with stunted epilogues that don’t do them justice. There is one fight in particular between characters that aren’t named Harry Potter, but it is almost an afterthought, and the emotional context is mostly missing.

This is the battle we have all been waiting 10 years to see (15 for fans of the book), and yet it is just something that sort of happens in the background. The Deathly Hallows Part 2 is still a good movie, but it is underwhelming and lacking in certain areas. That being said, there is still plenty of action to enjoy, and the final confrontation between Harry and Voldemort is fun to watch.
Conclusion

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 2 is a suitable ending to the beloved franchise, and one that will make a lot of fans happy. However, it will also leave a lot of fans wanting more, due to the decision to shift the focus of the final battle away from the battle itself towards a greater emphasis on the characters. That makes sense, but at the same time, it would be somewhat akin to re-making Return of the King, but instead of showing the Battle of Minis Tirith, focusing almost entirely on one character that is inside the city and only fleetingly involved in the battle.

The 3D is also a problem. Since the action scenes are not the major focus, the inclusion of 3D isn’t really necessary, and more importantly it makes a movie that is already visually dark, much darker. Yates deliberately employs a monochromatic color scheme to help sell the bleak feel of the world, and the added darkness of 3D doesn’t mesh well with that. The film looks amazing at times, and in 3D you actually miss some of the impressive visuals.

Putting aside the 3D and the final battle (or lack thereof), the film nicely ties up several loose ends and brings the series to a mostly satisfying conclusion. The battle could have been more of a focus, but the emphasis is on Harry and his journey, and that is wrapped up nicely. It isn’t a perfect ending to the franchise, but it is a good one, and should is a decent goodbye to one of the most memorable and beloved franchises of all time.

***
Poll Shows 55 Percent of Americans Will Not Take Summer Vacation

Merriam-Webster introduced into its dictionary the word, "staycation," meaning a vacation spent at home or nearby, just as the recession officially ended in 2009. Next to enter into the lexicon may be the word, "naycation."

According to an annual survey by Marist Poll, a majority of U.S. adults, 55 percent, say they will not be booking a summer vacation this year. Only 18 percent said they will take several shorter weekend trips while 16 percent said they will take one or more long getaways. The remaining 11 percent said they will do both or "other."

Of the 45 percent of adults who say they will take a vacation this year, 41 percent said they will take several shorter weekend trips. Though drivers in Los Angeles bracing themselves for the closure of the major 405 freeway, or "carmageddon," may opt to stay very local this weekend.

The national poll results show the continuing waning of a traditional summer vacation, according to Lee Miringoff, director of Marist Poll of Marist College in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.

Marist's survey has asked American adults since 2000, "Do you plan on taking a vacation this summer?"

Those answering affirmatively were 66 percent in 2000, compared to 45 percent this year, the lowest since the survey began. The figure decreased slightly from last year, when 48 percent said they planned to take a summer vacation.

"This is clearly driven by economy," Miringoff said. "The idyllic image of traditional pack your bags and head away for a couple weeks is not what's going on."

Marist conducted the survey from June 15 to June 23 with 1,003 adults over 18. The margin of error was three percentage points.

The unemployment rate rose in June to 9.2 percent, with employers adding only 18,000 jobs that month.

Miringoff said the data may be driven both by lower incomes and less confidence in the economy or one's financial security.

Of the respondents, 34 percent said they have changed their vacation plans this year to save money while said while two-thirds of respondents said they have not. Mirinoff said there has been little change in the survey results since 2009 when the recession officially ended.

The U.S. recession began in December 2007 and ended in June 2009, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research in September 2010, though the organization did not state the economy has returned to "normal capacity."

In 2009, 65 percent of surveyed results said money concerns did not alter their vacation plans while 35 percent said they were financially restricted.

***
Miracle of the Day - A MIRACLE BABY

"WELL HALLEJUAH PRAISE THE LORD MY LORD AND SAVIOR IT WAS PROPHESIED TO ME THREE YEARS AGO THAT GOD WOULD BLESS ME WITH A CHILD.. MY TUBES HAVE BEEN TYED SINCE NOV 1995 I AM MARRIED TO MY HUSBAND OF TWO 12 YRS NOW . ILL TELL YOU WHEN IT WAS MENTIONED I WAS LIKE SARAH LAUGHING, SMILING, WELL ABOUT A WEEK AGO, I FOUND OUT I AM PREGNANT WOW, THE LORD IS AMAZING ISNT HE .AMEN I AGREE SO THROUGH MY HUSBAND HIS PRAYER WAS ANSWERED. ITS BEEN ALMOST 15YRS SINCE MY LAST CHILD WAS BORN. I HAVE THREE FROM MY PREVIOUS MARRIAGE . 22YR DAUGHTER 15YRS DAUGHTER, 17YR SON. NOW IAM PREGNANT AND HAPPY WHAT AN AWESOME MIRACLE GOD IS GOOD IN ALL HIS WAYS. I AM TRULY BLESS IAM 46 MYSELF.."

***

Amazon.com Widgets

hostgator coupon

Trending on Wednesday - July 20, 2011

2011-07-16T05:09:00.001+08:00

1.   Severus Snape Voted by Fans as the Greatest Harry Potter Character of All Time
2.   Caligula Statue Unveiled in Italy
3.   Carmageddon
4.   Anna Paquin
5.   Miracle of the Day - Life long migrane-headaches gone

Amazon.com Widgets

***

Severus Snape Voted by Fans as the Greatest Harry Potter Character of All Time

MTV News Harry Potter World Cup reveals the opinion of the fans, as the majority voted Severus Snape as the greatest Harry Potter character of all time. This was reported by entertainments sites, this month of July 2011.

In the story, Severus Snape, played by British actor Alan Rickman, is the potions master in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. His character held mystery for quite a long time with regards to whether he is a villain or a hero. At the conclusion of the seven books and eight movies of the Harry Potter series, Snape emerged as the hero to most of the fans.

Further reports revealed by another separate movie.com readers’ poll that the Favorite Villain, was won by Bellatrix Lestrange, a die-hard follower of Lord Voldemort. At second rank is Draco Malfoy, the long-time rival of Harry Potter at Hogwarts.

Reportedly, the most unforgettable moment in the Harry Potter series is the death of Professor Dumbledore, with 51 percent of the total votes, winning over the also popular kissing moment of Harry Potter and Cho Chang at the fifth installment of the series, Order of the Phoenix.

Fans think that the character that should get a spin-off is Neville Longbottom, a courageous student from Gryffindor and a good friend of Harry Potter. Luna Lovegood ranked second to Longbottom in this category.

Fans were also asked who they think will most be successful in the future. Forty-three percent voted Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley). At second rank was Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter), who got 22 percent of the total votes, followed by Emma Watson (Hermione Granger) having 17 percent of the votes.

According to reports, the final movie “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2? grossed an amount of approximately $43.6 million in 26 territories outside the United States on its first day of showing in different countries last July 14, 2011, with Severus Snape leaving an indelible mark among millions of Harry Potter fans worldwide.

***
Caligula Statue Unveiled in Italy
alian police unveiled a colossal marble statue believed to be a rare image of the incestuous and lunatic Roman emperor Caligula sitting on a throne.

The statue lay buried for nearly 2,000 years near Lake Nemi, south of Rome, where Rome’s third emperor Caligula, who ruled from 37 to 41 A.D., had two enormous “love boats.”

Amazon.com Widgets

The statue was recovered last January, when finance police stopped tomb robbers trying to smuggle large, elaborately carved, marble pieces out of the country. (Video of the recovery by Italy’s finance police).

In order to find the statue's missing pieces, the archaeologists excavated the area where the tomb robbers conducted their illegal dig.
The remains of a large, semicircular nymphaeum, or fountain court, emerged. Originally enclosed by a series of 23-foot-tall columns, the fountain court boasted a niche at its center in which Caligula’ statue once stood.
ndeed, the area contained more than one hundred fragments belonging to the statue, including the head.

Moreover, the archaeologists unearthed some other 150 objects, such as vases and pieces of jewelry.

"We even found a lead pipe with a stamp bearing the name of Caius Iulius Silanus, who most likely was the villa’s first owner," said Giuseppina Ghini, of the Archaeological Superintendency of Lazio.

Made from Greek marble of Paros, considered in antiquity the world’s best and most precious, the statue shows a young robed man, sitting under a pillow on a beautifully decorated throne as the god Zeus.
On the left foot, the statue is wearing the "caligae" military boot after which the notorious Roman emperor, whose real name was Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, was nicknamed.

"It’s a unique sculpture, a piece of incredible beauty. Indeed, it shows a rare image of Caligula," Ghini said.

The capricious emperor, who is said to have made his favorite horse Incitatus a senator, used to sail his spectacular ships on Lake Nemi, not far from where his statue stood, indulging his sensual proclivities.

According to the Roman historian Suetonius, the vessels had "sterns studded with gems and ample space for baths, porticoes, and dining rooms, and a great variety of vines and fruit-bearing trees. Reclining on these ships all day long, he would sail amid choral dancing and singing."
The ships were scuttled in a "damnatio memoriae" (aimed at erasing someone from history) after the 29-year-old emperor was murdered in his palace on the Palatine Hill in Rome by his own guard.

They were recovered in 1927 during the rule of dictator Benito Mussolini.

Measuring 230 feet by 66 feet, the ships still feature details such as exquisite wolf heads adorning the end of the beams and decks covered with marble and mosaics.

A lakeside ship museum was built for the extraordinary finds, but German troops torched them during World War II.

Although the ships are lost forever, Caligula is set to return to Nemi. His colossal statue, cleaned of the earth that had covered it for two millennia and re-assembled, will be permanently displayed at the ship museum.

***

Carmageddon
A 10-mile stretch of Interstate 405 in Los Angeles will be closed this weekend, leading to fears of massive gridlock.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa pleads with Los Angeles residents to stay away from the 405 freeway on the weekend of July 16-17, during a news conference at the Sherman Oaks Galleria. Beginning Friday evening, authorities will begin shutting down a 10-mile segment of the freeway for 53 hours so crews can demolish one side of the Mulholland Drive Bridge as part of a $1 billion highway improvement project.

***

Anna Paquin Likes Hooking up With Her Husband on Screen

Oscar winner Anna Paquin has no problems filming sex scenes with her husband Stephen Moyer, who plays her boyfriend in the HBO hit series True Blood.

The 29-year-old star recently spoke to V magazine where she spoke about the True Blood series and sharing steamy scenes with Moyer.

"Maybe it should be weird, simulating sex with your husband in front of people," she said in the V magazine's The Transformation Issue. "But it's really not. When it's a love scene with someone you actually love, there's no feeling like, 'Can I touch him here? Can I touch him there?' You know what your boundaries are-or what they aren't, I suppose."
As if making out with your husband isn't hot enough, Paquin who came out as bisexual last year, can be seen in the magazine looking like a perfect replica of Marilyn Monroe with a blonde wig and a mustard-colored dress.

***
Miracle of the Day - Life long migrane-headaches gone

"Well, I became a christian when I was only 12, but way before that I had headaches migranes constantly about 3 to 4 timesweek. I started taking regular meds, 1 tylenol, then 2 at a time, then 3, 4, then changed to a few advils, then heavy meds. By the middle of 2006 NO MEDS were doing it, and I ended up in a hospital 3 times. One day I decided to read a book "They Shall Expel Demons" a present from my mom that had been on my shelf for years. I talked a lot about illnesses/diseases, and "genetic conditions" that were really not physical afterall. I apply the authority prayers, rebuking all evil that had taken a toll in my life all this time. IT WORKED. I never had a physical problem, my God almighty, my Lord Yeshuah, and the Holy Spirit FREED ME"

Amazon.com Widgets

hostgator coupon

Trending on Tuesday - July 19, 2011

2011-07-16T05:00:00.000+08:00

1.    AnnaLynne McCord
2.    So You Think You Can Dance' host Cat Deeley talks first Emmy nomination -- and celebratory conga line?
3.   Systems designed to catch billions of dollars in Medicare, Medicaid fraud inadequate
4.    Best Credit Cards for Job Seekers
5.    Miracle of the Day - Behold I am with you even unto the end       of    the earth.

***

AnnaLynne McCord
The "90210" star may have a new man. Access Hollywood spotted the actress, who turns 24 on Saturday, with "Prison Break" alum Dominic Purcell. The two were holding hands on the "91210" set during McCord's break from filming. The stunner previously dated "Twilight" hunk Kellan Lutz.

***
'So You Think You Can Dance' host Cat Deeley talks first Emmy nomination -- and celebratory conga line?
“I know I should pretend to be a lot cooler than I am, but inside there’s a screaming teenage girl just dying to get out,” Cat Deeley tells EW. The feeling is mutual. The host of Fox’s So You Think You Can Dance earned her first Emmy nomination after years of being snubbed (something fans – and EW – have been lamenting since the category was introduced in 2008). “‘Ohmygod, you’ve done it!’” she says her publicist told her on the phone this morning. “I’ve got a couple of friends staying with me at the moment, so everyone was there in pajamas with giant hair and slightly sleepy eyes but completely delighted and sharing in the glee of it all,” Deeley says. “It was a fun morning. Because I style myself for the show, I had to literally throw everything into a bag and then come to the show. It’s been very hectic, but I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else to celebrate it really.”

Having a show tonight — during which we’ll find out Season 8's Top 10 dancers and their new all-star partners — does present one problem. “There’s bottles of champagne that have been delivered to rooms, but no corks have actually been popped just yet,” Deeley says. “We are a live show, and we ended up snogging Mary Murphy last week without the help of champagne, so god only knows what I’d have to deal with tonight if those corks start going too soon.” She won’t get to celebrate too heavily after tonight’s show either — she’s got to go home and learn lines for the cameo she’s filming tomorrow for Showtime’s Don Cheadle series House of Lies.

Ask Deeley what she did differently last season to finally nab the nomination, and she’s at a loss. But she won’t let the recognition go to her head, which she proved at 5:45 a.m. this morning when her boss at Fox, Mike Darnell, called to congratulate her. “We get on really well, but it’s normally by trading insults almost to the point of being offensively rude, but we love it,” she says. “So he gets on the phone, ‘Ohmygoodness, it’s so great. It’s so amazing. I can’t believe it. It’s so well-deserved. And it’s long pass time.’ And I’m just like, ‘Okay, stop. I find this really weird that you’re being so nice to me, and I’m not happy with it. I’m incredibly uncomfortable with it.’ And he’s like, ‘Okay, well how about this then: How come it only took you seven years?’ I’m like, ‘Okay, you s—. Get lost.’”

“I know I should pretend to be a lot cooler than I am, but inside there’s a screaming teenage girl just dying to get out,” Cat Deeley tells EW. The feeling is mutual. The host of Fox’s So You Think You Can Dance earned her first Emmy nomination after years of being snubbed (something fans – and EW – have been lamenting since the category was introduced in 2008). “‘Ohmygod, you’ve done it!’” she says her publicist told her on the phone this morning. “I’ve got a couple of friends staying with me at the moment, so everyone was there in pajamas with giant hair and slightly sleepy eyes but completely delighted and sharing in the glee of it all,” Deeley says. “It was a fun morning. Because I style myself for the show, I had to literally throw everything into a bag and then come to the show. It’s been very hectic, but I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else to celebrate it really.”

Having a show tonight — during which we’ll find out Season 8's Top 10 dancers and their new all-star partners — does present one problem. “There’s bottles of champagne that have been delivered to rooms, but no corks have actually been popped just yet,” Deeley says. “We are a live show, and we ended up snogging Mary Murphy last week without the help of champagne, so god only knows what I’d have to deal with tonight if those corks start going too soon.” She won’t get to celebrate too heavily after tonight’s show either — she’s got to go home and learn lines for the cameo she’s filming tomorrow for Showtime’s Don Cheadle series House of Lies.

Ask Deeley what she did differently last season to finally nab the nomination, and she’s at a loss. But she won’t let the recognition go to her head, which she proved at 5:45 a.m. this morning when her boss at Fox, Mike Darnell, called to congratulate her. “We get on really well, but it’s normally by trading insults almost to the point of being offensively rude, but we love it,” she says. “So he gets on the phone, ‘Ohmygoodness, it’s so great. It’s so amazing. I can’t believe it. It’s so well-deserved. And it’s long pass time.’ And I’m just like, ‘Okay, stop. I find this really weird that you’re being so nice to me, and I’m not happy with it. I’m incredibly uncomfortable with it.’ And he’s like, ‘Okay, well how about this then: How come it only took you seven years?’ I’m like, ‘Okay, you s—. Get lost.’”

Deeley won’t reveal if the show has something special planned for her on-air tonight. “Maybe they might throw something at me,” she guesses. We suspect she’s right, especially after guest judge Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Modern Family) gave her a public endorsement on last night’s show — and returns tonight with an Emmy nomination himself. With So You Think You Can Dance receiving its first nod for Outstanding Reality-Competition Program and multiple choreographers being recognized as well, Deeley jokes, “We might just form one long conga chain in one giant circle and just pat each other on the back furiously.”

Looking ahead, Deeley can’t tease how fans will feel about tonight’s bottom couples because producers won’t tell her who they are. “I am a blabbermouth, and I tend to love to have a chat, so they don’t trust me with that kind of information,” she says. And while she hasn’t thought of the Emmy campaign she’ll mount to defeat category vets Jeff Probst, Phil Keoghan, Tom Bergeron, and Ryan Seacrest, she does have big plans to cash in on her Emmy nomination. “I will be coming out with a range of T-shirts, mugs, mousepads, and possibly even a rug with my face on it,” she laughs. “So if you love me or hate me, you’ve got something to wipe your feet on.”

***
Report: Systems designed to catch billions of dollars in Medicare, Medicaid fraud inadequate

The federal government's systems for analyzing Medicare and Medicaid data for possible fraud are inadequate and underused, making it more difficult to detect the billions of dollars in fraudulent claims paid out each year, according to a report released Tuesday.

The Government Accountability Office report said the systems don't even include Medicaid data. Furthermore, 639 analysts were supposed to have been trained to use the system — yet only 41 have been so far, it said.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services — which administer the taxpayer-funded health care programs for the elderly, poor and disabled — lacks plans to finish the systems projected to save $21 billion. The technology is crucial to making a dent in the $60 billion to $90 billion in fraudulent claims paid out each year.

"I'm looking forward to hearing, someday, about major fraud scams discovered as a direct result of this integrated repository and the use of creative pattern recognition techniques implemented on top of it. Until we hear that story, the public is not getting value for money from these investments," said Malcolm Sparrow, a health care fraud expert at Harvard University.

The current antiquated database is a piecemeal system with data stored in disparate systems, meaning employees don't have access to all data from all programs.

Each state has its own systems with very limited access to Medicare or national Medicaid data. But CMS does not have set plans to share access with the states, despite an earlier commitment to do so starting in 2010, according to the report.

The agency plans to integrate the missing Medicaid data by 2014 and is "very aggressive schedule" to train hundreds of other analysts on the program, said Dr. Peter Budetti, CMS deputy administrator and director for program integrity. He declined to say exactly when the analysts would be trained at a hearing Tuesday to discuss the role of technology in health care fraud.

The new $150 million systems, which went live in 2009, are intended be a one-stop storage for all data, accessible by all CMS staff and its contractors, law enforcement and state agencies.

But crucial pieces are still missing — including so-called "share systems data" that would help analysts identify and prevent payment of fraudulent claims, according to the report.

The agency planned to include this by 2008, but funding for the software to implement the system was delayed. CMS is now aiming for November 2011, the report said.

"To achieve the maximum taxpayer savings, the federal government needs to do a better job of getting this new technology into the hands of oversight staff working to curb the tens of billions of taxpayer dollars lost to waste and fraud," Sen. Tom Carper, D-Del., said at hearing held at Tuesday's hearing.

Medicare is one of the largest payer systems in the world, with contractors processing about 4.5 million claims per workday. For decades, CMS has operated under a pay and chase system, paying the claims quickly so legitimate medical providers can operate and following up on suspicious claims afterward. But as Medicare fraud has morphed into sophisticated scams, access to data showing what claims are being paid in real time has become more critical. By the time officials process the scams, crooks have already fled with the money.

"CMS takes our responsibility to fight health care fraud seriously. As we work to improve these existing systems, we are implementing advanced new technologies to further enhance our efforts to identify potential fraud before payments are made," CMS spokesman Brian Cook said.

On July 1, CMS implemented a new technology program, which is not included in the report. The agency is trying to improve prevention with screening technology similar to what's widely used by credit card companies to keep fraudulent claims from being paid in the first place. Medicare has awarded an initial $77 million contract for that system.

But when pushed by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla., on when the agency would use that technology to actually stop paying suspicious claims, Budetti waivered.

"We did not set this up to automatically stop payments on day one," Budetti said.

He later estimated within a year, but said it would likely be sooner.

"I'm not going to give you an exact date because we're going through this process for the first time," Budetti said. "This is the whole purpose of doing it. We want to stop those payments before they go out the door."

***

Best Credit Cards for Job Seekers

Even as economists debate whether the U.S. could experience a double-dip recession, unemployed and underemployed Americans agree on one thing: looking for work can get expensive. Fortunately, the best credit cards offer ways that you can actually save money during your job hunt, as long as you use them responsibly.

Best credit card for the all-important interview outfit:

In a recent interview, New York style adviser Allison Berlin told CBS News that few job seekers need to spend more than $500 on their core interview outfit. For women, a simple sheath dress and a sharp pair of shoes will fit the bill. Men should invest in a classic wool suit.

According to experts at Virginia Tech's Career Services Center, your interview suit's designer doesn't matter nearly as much as how well it fits. Investing just $50 in custom alterations can make even an inexpensive suit or dress help you look corner-office ready.

Blue Cash Everyday Card from American Express offers special department store bonuses to help you save money on your job-hunting togs. This top-rated credit card gives you 2 percent cash back on regular department store purchases. AmEx has also partnered with online retailers to save you even more money on select sales events. There's no annual fee, and you can even qualify for up to 12 months at zero interest.

If you make the first cut and are called back for a second interview, personal finance expert Barbara Friedberg suggests scanning department stores for clearance-priced accessories. Jazz up your basic suit or dress with a pop of color from a sharp tie or an accent pin. If you feel overdressed during your first interview, hit the sale racks for a blazer and matching slacks or skirt.

Best credit card for basic job-hunting expenses:

Chase Freedom Visa has been rotating through a series of attractive cash-back offers all year. Right now, they're offering a $200 cash rebate if you use your new card consistently for six months. Get $100 back after spending your first $500 before month three, and get another $100 back when you spend another $1,000 before the half-year mark. This means that Chase could end up picking up half the tab for your basic interview wardrobe.

You'll also get 1 percent cash back on all your purchases, giving you something back on related expenses such as online job-search services, networking power breakfasts, resume preparation, interview coaching, and so on.

Best credit card to keep the gas tank full:

A government survey estimates that most Americans spend just under a half-hour commuting to work every day. When researchers from Gallup excluded telecommuters from a similar poll, they bumped their best guess to a 45-minute round trip to the office. Your first commute, of course, is to the job interview.

Booking multiple interviews could force you to drive in opposite directions throughout the week, so you could easily spend a chunk of your savings on gasoline. Gas rewards cards shave some of those costs, letting you earn back some of your gas money as rebates or bonus merchandise.

PenFed Platinum Cash Back Rewards can keep you moving through the job market with an unusual combination of bonus rebates and low finance charges. New cardholders can earn 5 percent cash back when they pay at the pump, paying back $1.50 on every $30 tank of gas. There is no annual fee, and its current 13.99 percent APR is among the lowest available.

Of course, PenFed reserves its best rewards credit card for applicants with excellent credit. According to the credit union's website, unemployment doesn't necessarily block you from contention, as long as your credit profile shows that you've worked hard to pay your existing bills on time.

Best credit card for out-of-town job offers:

Today's job market forces us to make hard decisions. Sometimes, the right opportunity just isn't in our own backyard. According to government statistics, about one in eight Americans told census takers that job opportunities prompted their most recent move.

And about three in 10 of us moved to stay close to family members, including spouses who had to relocate for work. Not every employer foots the bill for candidates to interview in person, making a flexible travel card essential if you intend to take your job hunt on the road.

VentureOne Rewards from Capital One offers the benefits of an airline credit card with the earnings potential of a traditional cash rebate credit card. With no annual fee, this Capital One credit card plugs cardholders into an innovative way to earn free travel.

You'll get "miles" for every dollar you spend on the card, which you can trade for flights on any airline. Use your leftover miles for hotel stays and car rental fees, and your entire out-of-town interview could cost you nothing out of pocket.

Can I get a credit card if I'm not working now?

If you're not currently employed, applying for a new credit card while you're looking for work may sound like an exercise in futility. But as long as you've stayed current with your credit card payments, lenders still want to see your application.

Consider hanging out a consulting shingle and applying as a self-employed business owner. It's a job-hunting strategy that many professionals use, anyway. Your prospective credit card issuer really cares more about whether you're a solid risk than where you intend to work.

Just make sure you don't use a new line of credit to replace your lost income. Stay frugal and focused, using your credit card's rewards to offset the cost of finding a new job--even if you're presently employed.

***

Miracle of the Day - Behold I am with you even unto the end of the earth.

"We were in Lima Peru in 2006. I normally buy round trip air tickets to Chiclayo. The Holy Spirit told me to buy only a one way ticket for this flight. I did not understand what was happening but I bought the one way ticket. The Holy Ghost finally told me that with a round trip ticket I would be tied to a certain flight on a certain day. My wife an I flew to Chiclayo. Just as we were leaving there the Pastor said, please stay one more day. We felt that that was the Lord so we said OK. Our return flight would have been flight 204 that crashed in the Amazon Jungle. We flew over the crash site the next day while they were still removing bodies. We have had so many miracles in ministry it is hard to just list one of them but we know the Lord is faithful in caring for us." hostgator coupon

Trending on Monday - July 18 2011

2011-07-16T04:44:00.001+08:00

1.   NASA Probe to Uncover Secrets of Brightest Asteroid Vesta
2.   Queen Latifah: “Gay is the New Black”
3.   Google surge highlights tech rally
4.   CIA Bin Laden Hunter 'John' Identified From White House Photos
5.   Miracle of the Day - Supernatural Supply

***

Amazon.com Widgets

NASA Probe to Uncover Secrets of Brightest Asteroid Vesta

The asteroid Vesta may be the brightest asteroid in the solar system, but it remains shrouded in mystery.

When NASA's Dawn probe enters into orbit around Vesta on July 15 — the first spacecraft to visit the 330-mile-wide (530-kilometer) protoplanet — it promises to shed light on the many enigmas of the second-largest body in the asteroid belt.

NASA launched the $466 million Dawn mission in 2007, with Vesta as the first (but not last) stop. The Dawn probe is also expected to visit Ceres, the largest asteroid in the solar system, but only after unlocking the secrets of Vesta. Here's a look at the main questions astronomers hope the probe will help solve:

Why is Vesta so bright?

Vesta is the brightest asteroid, with a surface about three times as bright as Earth's moon, "and why it is so bright is the No. 1 mystery of Vesta," planetary scientist Christopher Russell, principal investigator for NASA's Dawn spacecraft, told SPACE.com.

When one looks at the most reflective celestial bodies in our solar system, Venus is the most reflective planet because of its clouds, and the sixth-largest Saturn moon Enceladus is the most reflective body overall because of its snow, "but Vesta doesn't have an atmosphere or snow," Russell noted. "Hopefully when Dawn inspects Vesta's surface, we'll get an answer."

Does Vesta have a magnetic field?

One potential explanation for Vesta's brightness is that it possesses a strong magnetic field. This could help shield it from electrically charged particles driven by the solar wind that would normally darken the asteroid over time, Russell said.

Unfortunately, Dawn does not have a magnetometer to probe Vesta for magnetic fields. Still, Russell does not think Vesta has a strong magnetic field, and suspects there is another reason why the asteroid is so reflective and bright.

"Personally, I think the answer is that Vesta has a lot of white crystals or other material on its surface," he said.

Where are other asteroids resembling Vesta?

There seem to be very few asteroids that resemble Vesta, but there should be far more.

The outermost layers of Vesta are made up mostly of basaltic rock — the same type found in much of the Earth's crust. There are asteroids called "vestoids" that, judging by their orbits, researchers suspect were once part of Vesta before they got blasted off by a cosmic impact. A few other basaltic asteroids have been discovered relatively recently as well, such as one named Magnya in the outer part of the main asteroid belt.

Still, theories of asteroid formation have suggested that more than half of all asteroids should be made largely of either basalt or another common mineral on Earth, olivine, and approximately 99 percent of these predicted asteroids are missing.

"There may have been other asteroids like Vesta that met a bad fate," Russell said. "It could be that Vesta was born when Jupiter hadn't formed yet, when forming bodies like Vesta was relatively easy."

Many of these Vesta-like asteroids might later have disappeared when Saturn and Jupiter shifted their orbits, with the gravitational pulls of these giant planets pulverizing Vesta's siblings against each other or slinging them at Earth and the rest of the inner solar system. Vesta may have simply been lucky to be very nearly the sole survivor.

What is the dark spot near Vesta's equator?

A series of photos recently captured by Dawn revealed a strange dark spot on Vestaabout 60 miles (97 km) wide near the asteroid's equator, moving from left to right across the field of view as the asteroid rotated.

Researchers suspect this blotch might be a crater.

"We'd like craters on Vesta for a variety of reasons," Russell said. "The number, size and distribution of craters on Vesta would give us some idea of how old the surface is, as impacts need time to accumulate. Craters also serve as digging tools, revealing what's beneath Vesta's surface."

"We'll know very soon now," he added.

***
Queen Latifah: “Gay is the New Black”

Out of the “is he/she or isn’t he/she” celebrities, Queen Latifah is often mentioned as among the possibly closeted.

Rumors about Latifah’s sexuality have swirled ever since she hit it big, and intensified when she played a lesbian in the popular mid-90's film Set It Off. The rapper turned actress has also long been suspected of having a relationship with her trainer, Jeanette Jenkins.

Whispers about Latifah’s personal life are intensifying now that the character she plays in Single Ladies has a minor gay subplot:

    On Single Ladies, her character discusses the pros and cons of sexual anonymity, saying initially that network executives backed away from her fictional talk show. But later in the episode she returns to Val with a scheme to pretend they’re in a relationship because she’s now discovered that “gay is the new black.” The character reveals, “Being gay is fabulous…I have six new Facebook fan pages. And for every sponsor that falls out, I’ve gotten two more.”

While the question of Latifah’s sexuality is often posed, it shouldn’t override her amazing work. Coming out is a personal decision, and Latifah’s personal life is her own business. Still, a role model like Latifah would be great for gay and lesbian teens struggling with their own coming out issues. Do you think Queen Latifah is gay?

***

Google surge highlights tech rally

Technology stocks edged higher Friday, buoyed by surging shares of Google Inc. after the Internet powerhouse surpassed Wall Street’s earnings projections.
Google GOOG +12.94% shares soared about 12% to $592.30 in early trading, after the company posted a 36% jump in earnings.

“We believe the Google investment thesis will continue to improve from here,” Barclays Capital analyst Anthony DiClemente said in a note. “In his first quarter as chief executive officer, Larry Page confidently presided over a 2Q where underlying trends in core search showed both pricing and unit acceleration.”

Other Internet shares also rose, with Yahoo Inc. YHOO +0.48% up 2%, eBay Inc EBAY +1.10%   gaining 2% and AOL Inc. AOL +1.19%   moving up 1.4%.

Those gains set the tone for a sector-wide advance, as the Nasdaq Composite Index COMP +0.60% added 0.8% to 2,783. The Morgan Stanley High Tech 35 Index MSH +0.61% also gained 0.8%.

Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index SOX +0.10% was mostly flat, as some chip makers, Advanced Micro Devices AMD +0.08% , Texas Instruments TXN +0.15%   and Nvidia Corp NVDA +0.07% , slipped.

***

CIA Bin Laden Hunter 'John' Identified From White House Photos

The New York Observer reports that the man who hunted Osama bin Laden has been identified.

The mystery started to unravel after the AP wrote a story about the man on July 5, noting that he was "hidden from view, standing just outside the frame of that now-famous photograph" of President Obama's national security team watching the raid that took down the 9/11 mastermind.

According to the Observer, John Young, a writer for Cryptome.org noted a man's yellow tie in that photo, then matched that tie with one worn by a man whose full face is revealed in other photos released by the White House.

From there, the Observer sought to put a name to the face and wrestled with the question about whether to publish it if they did. The piece is a classic detective story -- read the whole thing.

Fox News quotes former CIA operations officer Charles Faddis, who contends that revealing the man's identity "is a real serious matter."

"It's not entertainment, some people may think it is, but it's not ... There are real people out there that are going to be killed because of this."

"I implore you, do not publish this man's name," former deputy director of central intelligence John McLaughlin told the Observer.

***
Miracle of the Day - Supernatural Supply

"Praise God for his miracle provision. I just want to share what God is doing for me on another dimension. Ive been going through some severe satanic attacks,because I pray for people with hard cases and God always shows up. Not to brag,but people have gotten healed of Cancer,MS,people have gotten cars given to them,jobs they could not get on their own. Salvation from DrugsAlcohol,etc. I have been fired from my job,due to a lie that I was rude to a customer,when in fact,customers wrote in about me and my excellent customer service skills, and they are christians who I still call,and they call me and we pray together. God has been paying my rent,lights,gas,medical bills,food,phone. I only get 356.00 a month from unemployment benefits two-months after I was fired. Check this out,my rent is 350.00 alone,but God has stretched my finances when I began to support the needy elderly Jews,and poor children who have no foodshelter and other ministries totaling more than I have for myself. God paid a 1,250. hospital bill without welfare,and I cannot even get public assistance. I find money in my dressers,pockets,my family sends me money and I have never told them that I am unemployed,but God touches their heart. I am like the widow-woman, I pays tithes & offerings unto the Lord,yet my bills are paid without borrowing money,and I know that Phillipians 419 is working in my life because I stretched out on faith and obedience to the Lord and he has never let me down. I could go on,but this I am sure this will allow you to believe God,that he is a man that cannot lie. Do not give up,you are on the brink of a MIRACLE. i do street evangelism,yet I am ordained by God and man, but I do it for
*** hostgator coupon

TRENDING on Sunday - July 17 2011

2011-07-16T03:28:00.001+08:00

1. Jerry Seinfeld Selling Colo. Home for $18 Million

2. Elin Nordegren has new billionaire boyfriend and ‘he doesn’t play golf’

3. Threatened snow leopards found in Afghanistan

4. Mark Cuban joins 'Shark Tank' for season three -- EXCLUSIVE

5. Miracle of the Day - No deadly thing can harm you

***

Jerry Seinfeld Selling Colo. Home for $18 Million

Comedian Jerry Seinfeld has a deal for you.

Seinfeld is selling his home in Telluride for $18 million.

The 14,000-square-foot, 12-bedroom, contemporary ranch home is fully furnished. It sits on almost 27 acres in a subdivision.

According to KMGH-TV, the home features four fireplaces, a 5,000-square-foot deck, a guest house and a private road.

***

Elin Nordegren has new billionaire boyfriend and ‘he doesn’t play golf’

So all of you who had money on Elin Nordegren landing a rich boyfriend before Tiger Woods won another major, please step up and collect your winnings. She’s back, baby.

Long-suffering Elin, rumored to have battered Tiger Woods’ Escalade with a golf club on that emotionally stormy Thanksgiving night in 2009, has been single again since August. And now TMZ and the New York Post are saying that she’s got a new man. And he’s a billionaire.

Her new love is “wealthy American investor” Jamie Dingman, according to the Post. Dingman once dated Bridget Moynahan, the mother of Tom Brady’s son.

Elin, who divorced cheating golf great Tiger Woods following a series of scandals with multiple women, has been dating Dingman, the son of billionaire Michael Dingman, for months.

Friends say Jamie is an accomplished emerging-markets veteran who has represented his father’s interests in China for the past six years. In the mid-1990s, he specialized in Russian private equity funds. He also owned an Indy car-racing team sponsored by World Childhood Foundation, a charity founded by Queen Silvia of Sweden.

“He’s never been so happy. He and Elin have strong feelings for each other,” a friend said. “He’s a classic all-American guy. He’s handsome, a total gentleman and low-key. He’s never been in the press. Elin’s a very lucky girl; he’s a great guy but very private.”

The source added, “He doesn’t play golf.”

Elin’s friends sure are chatty.

Look, Elin’s got plenty of her own money — enough to last several lifetimes. So I’m not believing that she latched onto this guy for his cash. But then again, if your first husband owned a yacht, it would be hard to downgrade to this guy.

***

Threatened snow leopards found in Afghanistan

A healthy population of snow leopards, elusive big cats threatened across the mountain ranges of Central Asia, has been found in one of the few peaceful areas of Afghanistan, a wildlife group said.

Camera traps documented the secretive, usually solitary animals at 16 locations across the Wakhan Corridor, a long panhandle in northeastern Afghanistan free from the insurgency that plagues most of the country, the World Conservation Society said in a statement seen Friday.

Listed as globally threatened, only some 4,500 to 7,500 snow leopards live across a dozen nations in the high mountain ranges of Central Asia. The cats are poached for their pelts and killed by shepherds guarding their flocks upon which the leopards sometimes prey.

The sleek, fuzzy-tailed leopards are also captured for the pet trade, while an increasing demand for their penises and bones in China, where some believe they enhance sexual performance, has also led to their decimation.

"This is a wonderful discovery. It shows that there is real hope for snow leopards in Afghanistan. Now our goal is to ensure that these magnificent animals have a secure future as part of Afghanistan's natural heritage," Peter Zahler, the World Conservation Society's deputy Asia director, said in the statement.

The New York-based group has been working in the Wakhan Corridor, which borders China, Pakistan and Tajikistan, since 2006 on protecting wildlife including the Marco Polo sheep and the ibex. George Schaller, a wildlife biologist with the society, has proposed creating a reserve in the region.

The statement, released Wednesday, did not estimate the number of leopards in the corridor, but said the species remained threatened.

The society, which works with the U.S. government's aid arm, USAID, is providing conservation education in every Wakhan school, has trained 59 rangers to monitor wildlife, constructed predator-proof livestock corrals and started an insurance scheme to compensate shepherds for livestock taken by predators, according to the statement.

***

Mark Cuban joins 'Shark Tank' for season three -- EXCLUSIVE

Shark Tank is giving Mark Cuban a promotion.

The Dallas Mavs owner stole the show during a trio of guest appearances on the business-based reality series last season. Now ABC and executive producer Mark Burnett have signed on Cuban for nearly all of season 3.

Cuban will appear in 10 of the reality show’s 13 episodes, which means the rest of the sharks can expect to look forward to the young billionaire aggressively outbidding them. Shark Tank is expected to return to Friday nights in midseason.

***

Miracle of the Day - No deadly thing can harm you

"We purchased 17 acres of land to have the church building on and our home along with anyone who wanted to make a change in their life and serve Jesus. As we were clearing off the land, My husband Pastor Jose A. Gutierrez and Sister Rose were going to lift up an old door to clear the area, I said no Brother Jose move over and let me help Sister move that. He hesitated but then he gave in. I put my foot down and began to help lift the door when I felt like someone had hit my foot with the full swing of a baseball bat and then a terrible burning began to spread across my foot and ankle. I raised the door on up and saw a 3 12 foot snake and I said it got me. My husband who is really exciteable, thought I was playing around because Jesus allowed me to remain very calm about this. Then they all saw the snake and began trying to kill it. I told my husband and other Brothers and sisters to send someone to the house or church to get praying oil. As we walked slowly to our front pourch, everyone began to start coming that way as they saw something was going on. I ask my husband to pray for me and with me to rebuke the poison that was going through my body. As I sat down on the pourch I asked someone to cut my foot and let it bleed. It took about 15 minutes for them to get something sharp, 2 or 3 different people brought over knives , razor blades but none were sharp. As a Brother was trying to cut my foot to let it bleed he kept shaking. he is the one who butchers all the meat for us and could not make the cut, by then 30 - 45 minutes had already gone by. I know the Lord healed me already and this was something they thought they needed to do. He finally cut my foot and let it bleed. Another Sister came up and told me they were going to take me to the hospital emergency room and I said I dont need to go. They all insisted so I went for them to check it. They called ahead so they were waiting for me with IVs ready to go and all but I had not began to go into anaphlactic shock so they could not administer the medications. All they could do was watch me and continually asking what had happened. I used this as a chance to witness to all that ask about our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. About how His word is a living word, the same yeaterday, today and forever. They watched me 16 hours and my foot did swell and that was all. A specialist looked at my foot and said it was a snake bite, even the aproximate size and type of snake. I did get an area where I was bite that looked like it was going to rotten and they said they would have to cut out a 50 cent size hole in my foot. I said no I am standing on the promise of God's Holy word, "No deadly thing shall harm you...It was the hootest part of the summer here in Texas and I should have died but the grace of God was with me and He kept me and allowed me to use this as a tool to witness to others about Him and His wonderful love for us. Never doubt the power in the name of Jesus for "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." He can help you too, call on His wonderful name. In His service Sister Donna Gutierrez Nixon,Texas"

***

hostgator coupon

Saturday - July 16, 2011

2011-07-15T21:32:00.003+08:00

1. Zooey Deschanel
2. Eva Longoria
3. Two-Headed Snake Amazes Zoo Visitors in Ukraine
4. Candy Spelling sells mansion
5. Miracle of the DaY - Gods Favor

***

Zooey Deschanel

The quirky actress and singer lends her voice to the animated film "Winnie the Pooh," opening Friday. The performer wrote and sang the movie's original song "So Long," which she describes to the Associated Press as "not too modern but not too old-fashioned."

***

Eva Longoria

Good thing the “Desperate Housewives” star kept her day job: The Las Vegas nightclub that is part-owned by the actress is closing due to financial troubles. The profitable restaurant attached to the club will still be kept open.

***

Two-Headed Snake Amazes Zoo Visitors in Ukraine

A two-headed snake has become a popular attraction at a Ukrainian zoo.The three-year old, two-foot-long animal's two heads are each able to think and eat separately, and have even been seen to steal food from each other.

The small albino California Kingsnake is currently on display at the Black Sea resort town of Yalta. The private zoo the animal is being kept at is called Skazka, or Fairy Tale.

Zoo workers told AFP that the snake's two heads are deeply independent, often disagree and will steal food from each other.

"Sometimes one head wants to crawl in one direction and the other head in another direction," zoo director Oleg Zubkov told AFP.

Zoo worker Ruslan Yakovenko added that he tries to feed the snake's two heads separately to avoid conflicts over food.

"If it is really hungry, its heads may steal food from each other," he said, saying that he is forced to separate the heads with a barrier.

"The second head may get angry, but both then feel satiation because they only have one stomach," he continued.

The zoo noted that kingsnakes hunt other reptiles, meaning that one of the snake's head could instinctively try to attack and eat the other one.

Visitor numbers have nearly doubled since the snake went on display earlier in July. "Many enter the zoo feeling horrified and leave delighted," Yakovenko said.

The snake is believed to be Europe's only two-headed specimen. On loan from Germany, it will be on display in the Ukraine until September.

***

Candy Spelling sells mansion

Candy Spelling has officially, and finally, sold her beloved Candyland mansion. The 56,500 square-foot, Holmby Hills home includes 27 baths -- not including the one that Spelling took on the sale.

The Los Angeles Times reports that Spelling, the widow of TV producer Aaron Spelling and mother of actress/authoress Tori Spelling, has sold the 4.7-acre estate to 22-year-old, British racing Formula 1 racing heiress Petra Ecclestone, after it sat on the market for a little over two years.

And it appears that Spelling is among the victims of the current depressed housing market; while Candy had been asking $150 million for the home, which was built in 1991, Ecclestone picked it up for a mere $85 million cash -- just over half of what Spelling had been seeking.

Still a princely sum, but Ecclestone -- who's marrying entrepreneur James Stunt next month and plans to use Candyland as a part-time residence -- is getting a lot for her (or rather, her father's) money: The mansion has an estimated 123 rooms, including 14 bedrooms, several gift-wrapping rooms, and an on-site beauty salon. Oh, and there's also a bowling alley, a 17,000-square-foot attic, and a flower-cutting room.

The property includes parking for more than 100 vehicles, which Ecclestone -- the daughter of Formula 1 billionaire Bernie Ecclestone and former Armani model Slavica -- will presumably fill with race cars.
Spelling, meanwhile, will be moving into a more modest, 15,555 square-foot condo in Century City, which she picked up for $35 million -- less than the $47 million that she originally agreed to pay for it in 2008.

***

Miracle of the DaY - Gods Favor

"Wow I dont even know where to begin. Ill try to be brief. My wife has been on a career path towards becoming a full fledge English educator. At least 10 years ago she decided to go back to college to finish her B.A degree. She started with a class here and there, attending part-time, weekends as well. Before we relocated to GA from NY, she finally did complete her studies. Our prayer is that God would open a door for her to teach in the state of GA. To do that she needed to take a pass the Praxis exams, on which there are two of them. She passed the 1st one, and shortly after began "subing" in the school district. She was then hired as permanent sub, whereby she went to the same school, same classroom each day. The schools primary teacher went out on indefinite leave. Thanks be to God, my wife did such a good job that the principal interviewed her, offered her a FT teaching position, but my wife had the pass the Praxis II exam. Remember I said there were two exams. My wife took the II exam, and did not pass. By this time the principal has already sent in all her paperwork to HR, has my wife on her org chart, contracts are being sent to my wife from the state, but my wife was still lacking this one state certification. My wife took the exam a second time, and unfortunately missed it by 9 points. At this point she thought it was over - her career that is. We would need a MIRACLE from God to somehow allow this opportunity to go forth in spite of my wife still needing to clear one final hurdle. Soon after my wife had to make what was undoubtedly the hardest phone call ever. She needed to tell those who offered here the FT teaching position that she wouldnt be able to do it as she didnt score a passing grade. In comes the MIRACLE. Do you know that the principal, and the head of the HR division for educators all went to bat for my wife. It doesnt make sense, as we have no other relationship with these folks. All we can say is that God worked a Miracle and gave my wife Favor unlike anything weve even seen before. My wifes situation went beyond the final hour. It appeared that this deal was dead, but God ... She reports to work in August and is there newest English teacher. He is a miracle working God"

***
hostgator coupon

Friday - July 15, 2011

2011-07-14T00:47:00.000+08:00

1. Rhode Island’s Ironman Gordon Dash
2. The Borat ETF?
3. We need a childlike, bulldog kind of faith
4. David Beckham announces baby name: Harper Seven Beckham
5. Miracle of the Day - Cancer

***
Rhode Island’s Ironman Gordon Dash

The Ironman triathlon is considered to be one of the most grueling and physically taxing athletic events in the world. It requires both skill and incredible endurance in all three of its components- swimming, biking, and running. Athletes put in months and months of training to physically prepare for this event and are constantly pushing their bodies to the limit. To compete in the Ironman, you must possess tremendous physical strength, but even more importantly, you must possess mental strength.

Gordon Dash, a Rhode Island native who grew up on the South Side of Providence has both. The 32-year-old engineer who now lives in Houston, TX returned to his hometown this weekend to compete in Sunday’s Providence Amica Half-Ironman and in the process, raise money for the South Side Boys & Girls Club, where he spent much of his childhood. He finished the 70.3-mile course in 5 hours 21 minutes, successfully accomplishing his goal of beating his last year time of 5:42:39.

Between the 6am swim start in Lincoln and the hours later finish in front of the State House, Dash kept calm and focused as he covered the 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike ride, and 13.1-mile run through downtown Providence, the Brown Campus, Blackstone Boulevard, and the East Side. Dash advanced in his placing as the day progressed, gaining almost 250 spots in the bike portion of the race, which he considers to be one of his strengths and greatest area of improvement throughout the past year. His journey to the finish line yesterday is an incredibly impressive feat, but just as meaningful is his journey to the starting line.
A true child of Providence

Dash was born and raised in Providence and lived on the South Side with his two older brothers and younger sister until he went away to college. He received a Bachelor’s degree in engineering at North Carolina A&T University, and went on for a Masters at NC State, also in engineering. Dash has a close personal connection to the South Side Boys & Girls Club, having spent a lot of time there while growing up. Much of his love for athletics and well as success in life can be attributed to SSGBC.

The Boys and Girls club was a safe haven for him and his siblings, where his mom could drop them off after school and they could stay away from the streets. He describes the club as basically a “free camp”, where you could play and hang out, focus on homework, and learn survival skills as well. “It was the starting foundation block of my athletic career; we were always playing basketball there or swimming,” says Dash. “It always kept me active.” Remember the South Side, giving back

Now a lead design engineer for a renewable energy/wind company, Gordon Dash returns 20 years later to his roots with SSBGC and uses the Ironman as an example of hard work and dedication to inspire the kids as well as his own family. He uses his own experience that you can do whatever you want if you put your mind to it. His word of advice to the kids who currently are part of SSBGC is to “stay focused and positive, and don’t let any negative influences in your life get in your way."
From Classical High track to the Ironman

Based on today’s impressive performance, you would think that he is a veteran triathlete, but Gordon Dash is surprisingly new to the sport, having only completed his first triathlon exactly year ago at the very same Providence Amica Ironman 2010. A natural runner (and not just because of that great last name), Dash began his running career at Classical High School. He excelled in all three seasons: cross country, indoor, and outdoor track. Post-high school, Dash kept the sport in his life by competing in marathons. Always interested in keeping busy and having an active lifestyle, he came home one summer and heard about the Ironman and decided that he was going to do it. Not an experienced biker or swimmer, Dash began coaching himself in all 3 sports, a big leap from just running, and crossed the finish line a year later. A few months after that, he completed his first full Ironman in Arizona.

Returning to do the Amica Ironman for the second time was especially meaningful to him because of his family and his connection to the area. His whole family gets together to cheer him on and uses it as a way of coming together for something good. Inspiring other people is so important to him and has helped him pull through injuries and tough parts of the race. “I originally wanted to pull out of the race because I was not nearly in my top shape," he says, "but I really wanted to provide inspiration to my family and friends. If you put your mind to something, your body will follow. I am extremely satisfied for completing this great event.”

Looking to the future, Dash is going to recover from this race and then resume training compete in the Miami Ironman, which is on October 30. His long-term goal is to ultimately make it to the Ironman World Championship in Kona, Hawaii, which is the dream of almost every long-distance triathlete. From his start as a kid playing hoops at the Boys & Girls Club, to crossing the finish line at the Providence State Capital, clearly this is someone who makes his dreams come true.

***
The Borat ETF?

U.S. investors soon may have access to an ETF that holds firms based in Borat's "Glorious Nation."

On Thursday, Global X Funds filed for permission to launch 14 foreign, single-country exchange-traded funds, most of which are located in frontier markets, including Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Slovakia, Morocco, Nigeria, and Kazakhstan.

While Kazakhstan, a former Soviet republic, probably is most known to United States investors because of comedian Sacha Baron Cohen's Kazakh character Borat who "starred" in the 2006 mockumentary film by the same name, the oil-rich nation in theory is ripe for an ETF, given its already-prominent role in energy production, along with oil and natural gas deposits that are believed to lie below Kazakhstan's portion of the Caspian Sea. And right now, few ETFs available to U.S. investors have any exposure at all to Kazakhstan equities, with the highest concentration (just below 5% of assets) coming from Guggenheim Frontier Markets ETF (FRN).

Global X's filing Thursday demonstrated that the firm is committed to pushing the geographic boundaries of the ETF world for U.S. investors. Several of the countries have single-country ETFs devoted to them that trade in foreign markets, but there are no single-country ETFs covering these nations that trade on U.S. exchanges at this time. (For example, as we recently noted in the ETF Weekly, Van Eck currently has a Nigeria ETF in registration as well.)

Global X did not detail expense ratios or ticker symbols for the proposed funds.

The proposed funds:

Global X FTSE Portugal 20 ETF
Global X FTSE Ukraine ETF
Global X Greece 20 ETF
Global X Hungary ETF
Global X Luxembourg ETF
Global X FTSE Morocco 20 ETF
Global X Czech Republic ETF
Global X Slovakia ETF
Global X Qatar ETF
Global X Kuwait ETF
Global X Nigeria ETF
Global X FTSE Bangladesh ETF
Global X FTSE Sri Lanka ETF
Global X Kazakhstan ETF

***

We need a childlike, bulldog kind of faith

Evangelist Joel Osteen tells the story of how he came to promise his little girl a trip to Disney World.

She had been there before when she was younger, but now she was 12 and wanted to go again. As her daddy tucked her into bed one night, she asked him if they would ever go to Disney World again.

“Of course we will, sweetie,” her daddy said. “When?” she asked. “I don’t know, some day,” he replied. “You promise, daddy?” ... Without hesitation, Joel made that promise to his little girl and kissed her good night.

The next morning, Joel’s daughter didn’t miss a step in reminding him of his promise the night before. She wanted to know when they were leaving. Needless to say, Joel Osteen got a steady diet of “Daddy, you said! Daddy, you promised!” until reservations were made and her little suitcase was packed for Disney World.

That’s precisely the kind of faith the Father-God wants us to posses when it comes to receiving all He has promised us. That childlike, bulldog kind of faith that refuses to let go or give up on the things that are important to us. He wants us to stay in faith, believing daily He will come through for us.

We need to dump the passive, negative attitude that gets us nowhere but depressed and defeated and take hold of a bold, assertive, persistent spirit that brings victory and reality to our faith.

“Now faith is the confirmation, the title deed of things hoped for and the proof of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)

It’s amazing! I have gotten such a revelation of this that every time I read a Scripture — or remember a promise my Father-God has made to me — and I say “God, you said,” it goes off on the inside of me with such conviction that I know that I know my promise is on its way. It has taken my faith to a whole new level in God.

God, you said no weapon formed against me will prosper! (Isaiah 54:17); God, you said by Your stripes I am healed (Isaiah 53:4-5); God, you said You are my refuge and strength, a very present help in times of trouble! (Psalm 46:1); God, you said Psalm 91 belongs to me; God, you said, even to my old age and when my hair is white, You will carry me and save me (Isaiah 46:4); I especially love God, you said You will show me specified new things, hidden things kept in reserve, which I have not known; they are created now, called into being by the prophetic word. (Isaiah 48:6-7). God’s word is full of “God, you saids,” and they all belong to us.

Get a revelation of this, saints. The Bible is God’s own personal love letter to us, full of promises and instruction. We can have what it says we can have; we can be who it says we can be; we can have peace that passes all understanding; we can prosper and be in health even as our soul prospers; we can speak to that mountain, be thou removed; and, yes, we can go to Disney World if He promises it.

Only believe ... have faith in God, folks. All His promises are yes and amen. Find your “God, you said” and take it straight to the throne room ... pray it, stand on it, present it as evidence ... argue your case, according to Isaiah 41:21. God is faithful, my friends. He will do it for you. He promised. If God said it ... I believe it ... that settles it!

There isn’t a problem or crisis under the sun the word of God does not have the answer or solution to. Only believe, He will fix it for you!
***
David Beckham announces baby name: Harper Seven Beckham

First Natalie Portman reportedly based her baby’s first name on the first letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Now David and Victoria Beckham have given their daughter a middle name inspired by a number.

David Beckham announced on Facebook that he and wife Victoria Beckham have named their new baby girl — born Sunday morning at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles — Harper Seven Beckham.

“I am so proud and excited to announce the birth of our daughter Harper Seven Beckham,” the soccer star wrote. “She weighed a healthy 7lbs 10oz and arrived at 7.55 this morning, here in LA.”

The number of sevens in that sentence — not to mention the fact that Harper was born in the seventh month, and that David Beckham encountered more than a little luck as No. 7 when he played for Manchester United — may have inspired their baby (spice) girl’s middle name.

Personally, though, I like to think they took a little advice from “Seinfeld’s” George Costanza.

So what do you think of the name? Is your opinion more Costanza (pro)? More Susan (con)? Or split down the middle: pro Harper but con Seven? The comments section of this post awaits your celebrity baby name verdicts.

***

Miracle of the Day - Cancer

I was told back in 1999 I had Cancer in my lower Bowels. They said that i had maybe 6 months to live. They wanted to go in and see if it was in a cluster form, if it was, they could remove it all. I told them that God would make it that way which He did.

They went in just before Chirstmas and took it all from my body I know without God making it possiable it would have never happened. God healed my spine as well. I was told in 1995 that I would not be walking by 2004 and I am Healed and Set Free from all that. Praise God!

***

Amazon.com Widgets

hostgator coupon

Trending on Thursday - July 14, 2011

2011-07-14T00:23:00.001+08:00

1. Andre Agassi Inducted Into Hall Of Fame
2. Steven Tyler Prepares for American Idol Return, Upcoming Aerosmith Tour
3. shirley temple - Observations: The good son?
4. Contact lenses help man to win Harry Potter competition
5. Miracle of the Day - Gods Protection

***

Andre Agassi Inducted Into Hall Of Fame
When Andre Agassi wasn’t throwing fits on and off the court he was capable of playing some of the most energetic, exciting, fun tennis we have ever witnessed and it’s for that reason Agassi was inducted this weekend into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, R.I.

During his career Agassi racked up 60 titles with an 870-274 win/loss record. Agassi’s records included eight Grand Slams, the No. 1 ranking for 101 weeks and the fourth highest winnings of all-time at $30 million.

Speaking to the crowd Agassi said:

“I’m thrilled and humbled and quite terrified, to be honest, to stand in front of you,” while adding, ”I’ve grown up in front of you. You’ve seen my ups and downs. You’ve given me compassion, understanding and love, more than I expected — and many times more than I deserved.”

Congratulations to my favorite tennis player, watching him on the court was like watching lightning bottled only to be released on anyone in the vicinity of her verbal and physical assaults. Agassi wasn’t also pleasant to watch in a refined sport like tennis, but he made it all seem like so much fun thanks to his never ending passion for winning and the sport.

Agassi was accepted into the hall of fame in the “Recent Player” category, while Kellmeyer was inducted in the “Contributor” category.
***

Steven Tyler Prepares for American Idol Return, Upcoming Aerosmith Tour

the enigmatic lead singer of legendary rock band Aerosmith, is in negotiations at the moment, but looks likely to return along with Randy Jackson for season 11 of American Idol.

While Tyler and Jackson are “most likelys,” fellow former judge Jennifer Lopez is currently “on the fence” as to whether to come back or not for another season.

In addition to renewing his moonlighting gig on the popular Fox Network show, Tyler published his autobiography titled “Does the Noise In My Head Bother You?” on May 11th, and has since returned to his hometown to work on the iconic rock band’s first album since 2004.

“It’s always great to be home. I’ve been away for so long,” Tyler told FoxNews recently. “You know, we jumped right into writing some songs; we got three already and the band is rockin’. We’re working on the album right now,” Steven continued, “We go on tour November/December, and we should have the album finished in a couple of months.”

While there is no official word on the US tour dates, Tyler and Company recently announced their South American tour will begin on October 22nd in Peru.
***
shirley temple - Observations: The good son?

Often I think that if I were a good son, I’d pack up our lives and move to that little town in Minnesota..
This was hard. As we drove away from The Meadows, I told my wife Michelle to take the route that would pass by her apartment. Sure enough, there she was in the window, waving goodbye.

The Meadows is an assisted living facility where Mom moved two months ago. Her new apartment is very spacious and very nice with a private deck off the living room. It is, however, much smaller than her house and her condition prevents her from filling it up with the things she loves in life.

Most of those things, the result of a lifetime of collecting the antiques that she loved so much, are now laid out on the floors of her house like some cheap market bazaar. To see her century-old, handmade, wooden furniture and her precious and very fragile glass items set into piles like so much unwanted merchandise was highly upsetting for me. That’s not how it is supposed to be.

But that’s how it is right now. She can’t have too much clutter in her apartment, she can’t have wall-to-wall antiques because it is important that her new home not present obstacles to how she gets around — sometimes with a walker. From a physical standpoint, she needs the space more than she needs her stuff. But from an emotional standpoint, she needs her stuff.

We spent an afternoon bringing over her extensive collection of Shirley Temple items. For years, that was her hobby, her mission really. At first, she bought anything and everything; but as the collection grew, she became much more selective. What she has now is a collection that would rival a museum, filled with unique and interesting things — some of which may be the only artifacts remaining in existence. After all, how many Shirley Temples finely carved and painted from soap could still be around after nearly 80 years?

After an afternoon of moving and carefully stowing away boxes and excess Shirleys, her entire collection was once again in one place, now packed into a closet in her apartment. Beyond Shirley Temple, there is much more stuff that had meaning for her spread out on the floor of her house. We spent the evening slowly walking through the house grabbing the things she wanted. With the larger items we’d stop and ask, “Are you sure you have room for this?”, but most things just went into boxes to be taken to her new apartment without question. As we finished up, she remarked to Michelle, “I’m not dead yet.”

My brother feels bad about it, I think. He tried to move everything that had meaning to her — he thought he had. But she tells each of her kids something slightly different. In his case in particular, as her primary caregiver and an exceedingly busy man with little free time for himself, almost certainly she just didn’t want to ask him. She didn’t want to add to the burden that he already carries. He has no reason to feel bad, but he does. He wants her to be happy. He also wants her to be safe.

There is a fine line between safety and happiness. There is a fine line between the autonomy that Mom still wants and the protection and safety that her children want for her. Mom’s stuff, her antiques and knickknacks, give her happiness, but they also have the potential to become a hazard to her. Is depriving her of the things she loves in the name of safety the best way to ensure the happiest, longest life she can have? There’s no good answer to that. The only thing that is known is that each of her children wants her to be both happy AND to be around for as long as possible.

It’s hard to leave. I wonder what my dad, now gone for 33 years, would want. Often I think that if I were a good son, I’d pack up our lives and move to that little town in Minnesota to be there to help her and my brother with the day-to-day needs of living. I’d be there to spend time with her. I’d be there to swap out antiques that she doesn’t feel comfortable enough to ask my brother about. I’d be there when the fear of the unknown begins to take over, ruining days that should not be ruined. She’s not dead yet. She deserves to enjoy to the fullest the time she has left.

I wonder why I didn’t plan to see Mom’s life left in boxes on the floor when I was in my 20s and she in her still-youthful 50s. But then, I realize that I could not have because it would have been unimaginable then. It is unimaginable now.

The antiques themselves, spread out on the floor, somehow haunt me. When they were made, life was so much harder, so much less luxurious than it is today; but somehow the answers to life’s questions seemed easier, clearer. Families stayed together because they had to. More often than not, they needed each other to survive. Besides, where else would anyone go? Today that’s not the case. Kids move away and build their own lives far from home, relying on modern transportation and technology to bridge the gap that they themselves created. It seems life is easier today, but the questions are much more difficult. The answers certainly are.

I tell myself that I need to try to be a good son. I need to try to be a good brother, a good husband, a good reporter, a good friend. When I fail at any of those, I tell myself to try harder. But what I really need to do is not to try but to do. The question is, “What should I do?” I know there are many other people out there in my situation, far away from home with an aging parent who increasingly needs help.What should anyone do?

***
Contact lenses help man to win Harry Potter competition

Harry Potter fever is currently sweeping the nation as the final instalment in the record-breaking franchise, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, hits UK cinema screens next week.

However, one lucky fan of the books and films has been able to see the movies before anyone else, thanks to his ingenious use of contact lenses and other products.
Kieran Thomas, from Didcot, entered a competition run by Yahoo! Movies to find the biggest Harry Potter fan in the UK, with the prize of a lifetime on offer.

The winner netted the chance to attend the world premiere of the final Harry Potter film in Trafalgar Square, meet all the cast and crew, plus JK Rowling, before being swept away to New York on a jet, along with the stars of the film, to attend the US premiere.

Mr Thomas told the Oxford Mail that he had no intention of missing out on the prize of a lifetime, so he set about making a costume which would set him apart from all the other entrants in the competition – a replica of the villainous Lord Voldemort.

The costume was made by sculpting a prosthetic head, manufacturing the robes to resemble He Who Must Not Be Named and adding the final, important touch – coloured contact lenses.

The completed costume was enough to wow the judging panel and Mr Roberts was soon on his way to London to party with the cast and crew form the biggest film franchise in history.

He told the newspaper: "In the past few days I have been working on it until 5am in the morning and getting up again two hours later!"

However, the effort, and the £2,000 he spent designing the costume and purchasing the associated robes and contact lenses, appears to have been worth it, even though his wife, Jo, has barred him from making any more movie-themed outfits.

***

Miracle of the Day - Gods Protection
"The Lord has protected me from two near miss explosion while traveling to and from work during my tour in Kabul Afghanistan. Upon notification of this deployment the Lord led me to Isaiah 4110 “Fear thou not for I am with thee be not dismayed for I am thy God I will strengthen thee yea, I will help thee, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness." The Lord has proved Himself to me time and time again that He’s faithful to His people and He WILL honor His word."

***

hostgator coupon

Trending on Wednesday - July 13, 2011

2011-07-14T00:14:00.000+08:00

1. Rosario Dawson opens up about her 'Zookeeper' animal bonding
2. Tour de France: Luis Leon Sanchez wins injury-filled stage, as Voeckler takes lead
3. Mario Lopez To Release Children’s Book In September
4. Congo plane crashes; more than 50 dead
5. Miracle of the Day - Healing of the Heart

***
Rosario Dawson opens up about her 'Zookeeper' animal bonding

Rosario Dawson tends to take on dramatic roles, but the actress got to get a bit silly in "Zookeeper" and told OnTheRedCarpet.com that her grandmother had something in common with her monkey co-star.
"I did not get hit by a monkey on set, but a lot of people did get hit by a monkey on set, including my grandmother, which was pretty funny," Dawson told OnTheRedCarpet.com co-host Chris Balish at the film's premiere on Jul 6. "I have the best picture of her with Crystal the Monkey, sitting on her and smiling really hard and my grandmother doing the exact same smile, which is wonderful. I really loved that. It actually reminded me of my grandmother because she was super sweet and really, really cute but packed a wallop on her, man. You would never expect it!"
"Zookeeper" stars Kevin James as a lovable zookeeper who considers leaving his job for something more illustrious, hoping to impress his ex-girlfriend (Leslie Bibb). The zoo animals intervene and break their code of silence in order to help him learn the rules of courtship and get a woman more worthy of his kindness, like the zoo's veterinarian (Rosario Dawson).

"I was lucky, because I play a veterinarian in the movie so I'm supposed to be familiar with the animals and specifically the eagle, so I spent a lot of time with the Wedge-tailed Eagle and that was really incredible," Dawson continued. "But you know, they were all wild animals on set and we got to visit with the gorillas, which were actually at the Franklin Park Zoo, as well as the bears and most of these animals had to be completely separated because they couldn't be anywhere near each other because they're all predators and so it was really funny to watch the movie and see all of them sitting and chatting with each other and you're like, um, that's not possible."

The film also features the voices of Cher, Nick Nolte, Adam Sandler, Ken Jeong, Judd Apatow, Maya Rudolph, Jon Favreau and Sylvester Stallone.

Dawson is best known for her roles in "Kids," "Josie and the Pussycats," "Sin City," "Clerks 2" and "Seven Pounds."

In May, the 32-year-old actress broke up with her boyfriend of three-years, French DJ Mathieu Schreyer. She was previously romantically linked to "Sex and the City" actor Jason Lewis.

"Zookeeper" was released in theaters on July 8, 2011.

***

Tour de France: Luis Leon Sanchez wins injury-filled stage, as Voeckler takes lead

SAINT-FLOUR, France — Spain's Luis Leon Sanchez won the ninth stage of the Tour de France on a wild day of crashes, while France's Thomas Voeckler finished second to take the leader's yellow jersey from Thor Hushovd.
Among those caught in the mayhem was defending champion Alberto Contador, who overcame another crash, banging his troublesome right knee after an early spill.

"I had a problem with my handlebars, which knocked into another rider's saddle," Contador said after safely completing the stage in 12th place. "It pushed me toward the spectators on the side, and I went into them and the bike hit me on the right knee again."

Sanchez moved into second place overall, followed by Australia's Cadel Evans.

Contador, having survived that early scare, stayed bunched in with the main pack, along with other Tour contenders such as Evans and Andy Schleck. They all crossed the line safely, choosing not to chase Voeckler — who is not considered a Tour contender.

Veteran Kazakh rider Alexandre Vinokourov fractured his right thigh bone and withdrew after crashing near the halfway point of the 129-mile route from Issoire to Saint-Flour . He was to be taken by helicopter to Paris to undergo immediate surgery, his team said. Vinokourov, who has said he will retire from cycling at the end of the season, was caught in a heavy crash that sent him and about 30 other riders tumbling like a house of cards.

Spain's Juan Antonio Flecha was hit by a car late on, and he took down Dutchman Johnny Hoogerland with him as he flew sideways off his saddle. Both got up and kept riding. Contador fell early on but was unharmed and rode on.

Organizers said they have excluded the car that caused the incident from the rest of the race, without providing further details.

Flecha did not speak to reporters as he boarded his team bus. Sky's team manager, Dave Brailsford, is considering a formal complaint.

Voeckler was also slightly hurt in the incident, but was careful not to criticize the driver. "It was very possible it could have happened to me, I was lucky not to fall," Voeckler said. "My ankle really hurts because he went into me. I'm not here to cause controversy, but it's very regrettable."

RadioShack's last hopes of winning the Tour appear to have been dashed after team leader Andreas Kloeden injured his back in a fall. American David Zabriskie of the Garmin-Cervelo team was among the injured riders who quit the race Sunday. Today's rest day comes at a perfect time for the battered riders.

Hushovd had worn the yellow jersey since Garmin-Cervelo won last Sunday's team time trial, but the burly Norwegian sprinter looked tired as he rolled over the line several minutes behind Voeckler.
***
Mario Lopez To Release Children’s Book In September

Mario Lopez is celebrating becoming a new father by releasing his children’s book this September.

The book will be released by Celebra Children’s Books (a division of Penguin Books) and is titled “Mario and Baby Gia.” According to the actors people the book will release on September 27 and was named after the actors daughter Gia Francesca.

Gia is the first child for Lopez and Courtney Mazza who met while performing together on Broadway’s A Chorus Line.

Lopez is best known for his role as A.C. Slater on the hit 90's show Saved By The Bell. He’s also not new to the publishing world, having previously written “Knockout Fitness,” ‘’Extra Lean” and “Extra Lean Life.” While he’s covered the world of fitness quite a few times this is the actors first attempt at a children’s book.

***
Congo plane crashes; more than 50 dead

KINSHASA (Congo) - A PLANE crashed in a thunderstorm as it was attempting to land in the Congo on Friday, killing at least 48 people, and leaving a dozen or more buried in the wreckage. 53 passengers survived.

A police spokesman added that more than dozen people were still stuck inside the plane, which was heading from the giant Central African nation's capital to Kisangani in the country's north-east.

He added that the plane crashed a few metres from the Kisangani airport, citing thunder as the primary cause of the crash.

The airline, Hewa Bora, has a history of crashes. In April in 2008, one of their DC-9s rammed into a bustling market after failing to lift off from an airport, killing at least 40 people, most of them on the ground.

Congo has one of the worst air safety records in the world. Few passable roads traverse the country after decades of war and corrupt rule, forcing the country's deeply impoverished people to rely on ill-maintained planes and boats to move around.

***

Miracle of the Day - Healing of the Heart

"I thank God first for healing my spirtiual heart when he filled me with the Holy Ghost. But this healing is about my natural heart. Several years ago I started having severe heart papitations. They came and went just whenever. I did have a Penetcostal pastor pray for me when the symptoms started a few years ago and I did feel the Lord touch me. But I still had attacks. I just kept getting prayer and claming my healing. Some healing is a process of God and time. I praise God that I havent had an attack in several months. I do beleive now that I am completley healed"

***

hostgator coupon

Trending on Tuesday - July 12 2011

2011-07-12T22:50:00.000+08:00

1. Gas prices aren't likely to drop much more this summer
2. J.K. Rowling: 'Never say never' to more 'Potter'
3. Beatles Day staged at Albert Dock Liverpool
4. Summer Sandwiches Celebrities Would Love
5. Miracle of the Day - Heal from cancer

***
Gas prices aren't likely to drop much more this summer

They may drift slightly lower, but most of the declines are over, analysts say. The average for a gallon of regular is $3.794 in California, $3.579 nationally.
Motorists can expect gasoline prices to drift slightly lower over the rest of the summer, but most of the declines are over, analysts said, as the average for a gallon of regular in California reached $3.794 and stood at $3.579 nationally.

The price averages are calculated by the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration, which uses a telephone survey of gas stations across the U.S.

***
J.K. Rowling: 'Never say never' to more 'Potter'

Will she or won’t she?

Although J.K. Rowling has said that the story of Harry Potter ends with the seventh book, she’s reserving the right to change her mind and extend the story.
The 45-year-old author told the enormous crowd gathered for the world premiere of “Deathly Hallows: Part 2” in London Thursday that she has no immediate plans to resurrect Potter's tale, but also that one should “never say never.”

Said Rowling, “It is my baby and if I want to bring it out to play again, I will.”

Indeed, the final “Harry Potter” premiere was a bittersweet moment for the author, as she told BBC News that the franchise has changed her personally.

“You know honestly, if someone told me this is coming, I might’ve said, I can’t do that. I’ve really come out of my shell,” she said. “I was not someone who was a natural public speaker and and I was not very comfortable with this sort of thing. It’s just as well that I got introduced to it by degrees.”

As for what’s next, Rowling notes that she does have a stash of non-“Potter” material waiting in the wings.

“I think I always felt I didn’t want to publish again until the last film was out. I’ve been writing hard ever since I finished writing 'Hallows,' but I will publish again,” she says. “In a sense it’s a beginning for me as well as an end.”

And while we wait to see if Rowling's new beginning will actually include more about the boy wizard, there's always Pottermore.

***
Beatles Day staged at Albert Dock Liverpool

The fourth annual Beatles Day is being celebrated in Liverpool with Beatles tribute bands playing at venues across the Albert Dock.

Visitors have been encouraged to dress in 60s clothing for a fancy dress competition at 1500 BST and Beatles wigs are on sale at venues in the dock.

A Fab Four themed treasure hunt has been arranged for children.

The event's organisers said that the day was also "a celebration of all things Liverpool".

Jeremy Roberts, chairman of the Albert Dock Tenants' Association said: "Beatles Day is a fantastic celebration of the Fab Four and we are thrilled to host this year's event at the Albert Dock.

"The day is going to be action packed with music and entertainment, with all of the dock venues getting into the spirit with special offers and prize giveaways.

"We have been working very closely with the organisers to make this year's Beatles Day the best ever, and we are really looking forward to welcoming people from far and wide to join us."

***

Summer Sandwiches Celebrities Would Love

Here are 5 summer sandwiches your favorite celebrities love to munch:

Shrimp and Chorizo Sandwich

Pan Bagnat: Le French Tuna Salad Sandwich

Best Tomato Sandwich

Pork Cutlet Sandwiches with Basil Aioli

Caramelized Pork Bánh Mì

***

Miracle of the Day - Heal from cancer

"I found out that my God is a divine healer. I was afflicted with that cancer in my breast. I had given up. I thought it would be better with the Lord than being here.

One night the Lord ministered to me. He said, "What good would you be to me being dead, how can you help to build the kingdom if you are gone?" That night I cursed death and began to speak life. Today, I thank God for all that He is. I am a minister today, preaching the living word. Thank you Jesus!"

***

Amazon.com Widgets

hostgator coupon

Trending on Monday - July 11, 2011

2011-07-11T22:34:00.000+08:00

1. Heidi Montag
2. Victoria Justice's boyfriend Ryan Rottman was arrested for DUI, report says
3. Artie Lange, Howard Stern's former sidekick wants to return to the radio show
4. Kate Middleton
5. Miracle of the Day - The Prayer Of The Passer Byer

***

Heidi Montag

"The Hills" star has a new job: Competing to open a restaurant on the new reality-show competition "Famous Food." She told MTV that the VH1 series was "a really competitive, cutthroat show." Montag goes up against celebs Ashley Dupre, Jake Pavelka, and Danielle Staub, among others.

***

Victoria Justice's boyfriend Ryan Rottman was arrested for DUI, report says

Victoria Justice's boyfriend and fellow Nickelodeon star Ryan Rottman was arrested on Friday night for DUI after spending a night out with Zac Efron in Los Angeles.Rottman, who starred on Nickelodeon's "Gigantic," was pulled over after police witnessed his car jumping a curb, E! Online reports. The actor blew a 0.19 on a Breathalyzer, which is more than twice California's legal limit.

Rottman was taken into custody and booked on suspicion of DUI. The 27-year-old actor was released from jail a few hours later.

UK newspaper the Daily Mail reports that Rottman was out drinking with Efron, who was spotted pacing nervously outside of Dillon's pub on Hollywood Boulevard when his friend was being arrested. Demi Moore's daughter Rumer Willis was also reported to be with the group.
The actor appeared on "Gigantic" opposite Meryl Streep's daughters Grace Gummer and Gia Mantegna until the series was canceled in April after one season. Rottman guest-starred on his girlfriend's show "Victorious" in April, which is when the two began dating. He broke up with actress Brittany Snow in November 2010 after dating for two years.

Justice rose to fame on "Zoey 101" and "Spectacular!" before starring her own TV series, "Victorious."

The 18-year-old actress will appear in the upcoming teen Halloween comedy "Fun Size" opposite Chelsea Handler. In the film, Justice is forced to take her younger brother trick-or-treating but loses him in the process. The film will be the directorial debut of "The O.C." and "Gossip Girl" creator Josh Schwartz.

***
Artie Lange, Howard Stern's former sidekick wants to return to the radio show

Artie Lange, the comedian who was Howard Stern's former sidekick returned to radio this week and said that returning to "The Howard Stern Show" would be the "greatest thing ever."

"That would be the greatest thing ever, but listen, I was on the greatest show of all time for about nine years, and I put them in a very awkward situation, to say the least, so what am I going to do?" Lange said on Fox Sports Radio, Punchline magazine reports. "But I love them all and they were great to me."

Lange joined his friend and fellow comedian Nick DiPaolo on Fox Sports Radio, where he was guest-hosting for Tony Bruno. Lange answered questions from fans, who have missed the raunchy funny man since he went on hiatus from Stern's show in December 2010.

Lange left "The Howard Stern Show" after dealing with drug addiction and a suicide attempt. Lange told fans on Wednesday that he had been getting sober at a rehabilitation facility in West Palm Beach, Florida.

Lange has appeared on television series like "Mad TV" and discussed his drug use in his standup routines and book, "Too Fat to Fish."

Stern's other longtime sidekick Robin Quivers revealed in May that she would consider leaving "The Howard Stern Show" to host a TV show.

Stern's radio show airs on Sirius XM satellite radio and in March, the shock jock sued Sirius over a stock options agreement. In December, Stern signed a new 5-year deal with Sirius XM, which agreed to continue to broadcast his show and other programs on his Howard 100 and Howard 101 channels until the end of 2015.

Stern has been a radio host since the 1970s and his show has aired on television. He moved to satellite radio in 2006 following a dispute with terrestrial radio stations that had carried his syndicated show over alleged indecent programming, which led to Federal Communications Commission fines of $2.5 million.

Moments from his career and beef with the FCC and his then-boss were showcased in the 1997 comedy film "Private Parts". Stern has not disclosed his new salary that was promised in his new deal. His previous 5-year agreement had promised him $500 million.

***
Kate Middleton
Los Angeles is rolling out the red carpet for the British royal couple. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are capping off their North American tour with a few days in sunny California. Will and Kate will be attending a Hollywood gala with A-list guests Tom Hanks, Nicole Kidman, and J. Lo.

***

Miracle of the Day - The Prayer Of The Passer Byer

"One morning on my way to work with a brother from my church, I received a phone call from my wife Becky. She was crying and asking me to come home, I asked her to tell me why and what was wrong. After a moment or so, she finally told me she had been in an accident. I asked her if she was ok and she said "just come home please", and then the phone hung up. Amazingly she was talking to me from a persons cell phone in an area that there has never been service before, and never has been since. I immediatly told the brother what had happend, and we headed back the direction of home. On the way I began to pray to God for support, I was worried about my wife. When I arrived at the scene of the accident, I found out that my wife had been in an head on collision. An accident that takes several lives everyday, an accident that 97% of all people dont live through. And my wife made it, without even as much as a scratch on her body. I found out later that a young christian man whos girlfriend had been in an accident no more than 20 minutes after my wife had hers had been driving by and said a small prayer for my wife, asking God to make sure that the person would be safe. I know that it was God sending this person to pray for my wife, so she would be my miracle to remember. His girlfriends accident was not as severe as my wifes and she was released from the hospital with no problems. I thank God there are people who still pray for those they dont know. For the Prayer of the Passer Byer was heard by the God who loves us all, and so my wife was kept safe in the Masters hands."

*** hostgator coupon

Trending on Sunday - July 10, 2011

2011-07-11T20:19:00.000+08:00

1. 2 Killer Negotiation Tips From "Wall Street - Money Never Sleeps"
2. Celebrity Baby Boom: Stars Who Are Expecting
3. extreme makeover home edition
4. pineapple express - Importer: Kronic was sabotaged
5. Miracle of the Day - Healed of Emphysema
***

2 Killer Negotiation Tips From Wall Street - Money Never Sleeps

In one scene of the movie, Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, big time capitalists, Bretton James and Louis Zabel, are negotiating a stock bailout for Zabel’s firm, Keller Zabel Investments. In doing so, they reveal two powerful negotiating techniques that can help you secure the best deal.

James offers Zabel a measly $2 per share. “Under these conditions”, starts off James, “… [James and co] are prepared to risk $2 a share”.

“2 bucks?”, questions Zabel, breaking out in a nervous laughter shocked by the ridiculously low offer. “You're out of your mind. The stock was trading at 79 a month ago. Our building alone is worth more than 2 bucks a share. My board will never accept this. There is no way I'm going to sell for 2 bucks a share.”

The government representative steps in to back up James, telling Zabel that the government could never justify a high price for his firm and that he has no other option. If he doesn’t sell then he faces bankruptcy.

But Zabel remains unmoved. “I'll take my chances in bankruptcy court before I sell to that barracuda” angrily responds Zabel.

A blanket of silence falls over the room. It looks like the deal is off. Neither party is willing to pay the price the other is wanting.
The Defining Moment

Realising that the negotiation has reached stalemate, James decides to do something completely unexpected. While he really wants to buy Zabel’s firm and knows he is getting a great deal, he decides to walk away.

“Then we have nothing more to talk about” says James as he gets up out of his chair and turns to walk away.

But just as James reaches the door, Zabel calls out "6". It’s a counter offer.

“3 and that's it” responds James.

“5”

“3”

“Alright, we'll call it an even 4. So we don't look so god damn pathetic.”

James pauses for a moment, looks at his colleague for confirmation, who nods back at him in agreement, before taking a step forward. “3, and not a dime more,” says James and locks in the deal.

There are two key negotiation techniques used in the scene above.
Negotiation Technique 1: Use Anchoring and Adjustment

James started at $2 and Zabel started at $6. In what is called Anchoring and Adjustment (see Those Clever People at Wikipedia and a little phenomenon called anchoring) initial values, regardless of how extreme, have a strong affect on final values. In this case, James used a $2 anchor, not because he thought he would get it for such a low price but because he knew it would get Zabel to start thinking low values. To counter that effect, Zabel used a $6 counter anchor to get James to start thinking higher values.

If you are selling, start by asking a high price. If you are buying, start with a low price. The technique will subtly but strongly influence the figure the other party has in their mind, therefore allowing you to get the best price.

Despite the effectiveness of the technique, however, many people will not feel comfortable asking for an excessively high or low figure because they don't want to appear unreasonable. That is, they don’t want to risk the Zabellian response, ‘are you out of your mind?’

For those people, negotiation technique two provides for a more comfortable approach.
Negotiation Technique 2: Walk Away

Who wins in a negotiation? The one who is willing to walk away.

Guess what? Be willing to walk away. Even if you are willing to pay the asking price, pretend like you can walk away. This technique is especially useful for people who don’t see themselves as hard line negotiators.

Why? Because you do not have to haggle, you do not have to offer unreasonable figures, and you do not have to have a big mouth to use this technique. All it requires is that you risk not making the purchase on that very day, which, for most purchases worth negotiating for, is worth risking for.

Here’s How You Do It:

Next time you are negotiating with a business supplier, nicely tell the person:

“Thanks for your help but the price you’re offering is beyond my budget” (or whatever reason you want to give).

“But I’ll tell you what I’ll do. I’ll leave you my name and number and if you can do me a better deal, then give me a call and we can take it from there."

Now if that is the best price the salesperson can do then you probably will not get a phone call, in which case you can just go back the next day or so and buy the product. But if they can do you a better deal then they will call you. After all, you have already proved to them that you are not willing to pay their asking price.

What is more, 9 times out of 10 you will not even have to come back. If the salesperson is able to do a better deal, they will usually offer it to you on the spot. It will probably be along the lines of, “alright let me try asking my manager again and see if we can do you a better deal”.

Having been on both sides of the negotiation table (as a salesperson and as a buyer), I have seen this technique work over and over for all deals great and small. It is not only one of the most powerful negotiation techniques, but also one of the easiest and comfortable to use, which makes it all the more useful in securing yourself the best deal.

***
Celebrity Baby Boom: Stars Who Are Expecting

Pregnancy can certainly seem forever when you're awaiting the arrival of your brand new baby, but in Hollywood, it seems like these buns are in the oven for far longer than the average person. Maybe it's because keeping the pregnancy a secret is nearly impossible in Hollywood, or maybe it's just us, but doesn't is seem like some of these ladies (Hudson and Beckham included) have been pregnant for an eternity. The Beckham and Hudson have finally popped, and have days of diapers and pacifiers ahead, so who is next?

Let's celebrate the arrival of Hollywood's newest offspring and take a look at some other ladies who are patiently waiting for the stork to bring their brand new little boy or girl.

So, which of these ladies will be the next to have a headline welcoming their new bundle of joy?

***

extreme makeover home edition

It’s easy to get drawn into watching a home makeover program. Invest a couple of minutes in getting to know a homeowner and her drab living room, and it’s hard to look away before the big reveal at the end.

And from time to time, while trying to anticipate what improvements the designers will make, it’s easy to glance around your own house and wonder what they’d make of your home’s look.

If you’ve ever wanted your home to be featured on one of these programs, read on. Below is a cheat sheet on what producers are looking for in a home — and, more importantly, a homeowner — when they make their casting decisions.

HGTV

HGTV’s lineup relies heavily on homeowners willing to let cameras into their homes, so it depends on a stream of applications received from viewers. Casting calls on HGTV.com look for people ranging from families needing help getting organized to empty nesters who want to transform their space.
Each program has different instructions on how to apply, but many applicants have been submitting videos to campaign for a makeover, said Kathleen Finch, senior vice president and general manager of HGTV. That’s where they get the first look at your personality, so make it count.

“The first thing you look at is not the home in need of a makeover, but the homeowners. The most important thing is someone who really wants to be on television,” Finch said. “We need the stories to be relatable to many people. We’re looking for people who have the dark, dank basement but really need a family room or the young couple expecting twins as a surprise and need to put on an addition.”

But when applying, it’s important to remember that not all programming has the same ground rules, she said. Budgets range by show, and not all involve a free makeover. Some require input or help from the homeowner, while others require that they give complete control to the designer — or, as in a new show, control is given to HGTV’s online community.

Makeover shows typically receive the most applications, Finch said.

One show doesn’t require any application at all. Those picked to be on “Room Crashers” are simply in the right place at the right time — they’re found shopping for home items in stores, and the host convinces them to bring him back to the house for a makeover.

But even then, fans are being resourceful in their efforts to get picked: “What we keep reading on our Facebook page and Twitter is people trying to figure out where Todd is going to show up next,” she said.
‘Extreme Makeover: Home Edition’

The application for “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” will take awhile to complete. It asks for information about your family, house and background. You’re expected to submit photos or videos of your home to make the case on why you — or a family you’re nominating — should be selected.

***

Pineapple express - Importer: Kronic was sabotaged

An importer of synthetic cannabis says Kronic was sabotaged and contaminated with the anti-anxiety medicine phenazepam.

Kronic Pineapple Express was one of two brands of legal highs the government banned last week after they were found to contain the prescription medicine, which can be harmful to some people.

Eight retailers and manufacturers of synthetic cannabis met today and agreed to adopt self regulation in a bid to clean up the industry.

But the Government says it will still go ahead with law changes in the next few weeks to restrict the sale and marketing of synthetic cannabis products.

Synthetic cannabis importer Matt Bowden, who attended the industry meeting, told TV ONE's Close Up that they never never guessed that something like this was going to happen.

"Normally when materials come into the country, we do test them. We make sure that we've been shipped the right thing and we look for impurities," he said.

"But one never thought that somebody was actually going to sabotage a product by contaminating it with a restricted medicine."

Asked what he would say to parents still worried about their children using synthetic cannabis products, Bowden said: "We need to make sure that they're not visible outside stores and we need laws in place to stop them being sold to children. But to put things in perspective the products are not as dangerous as, say, alcohol."

He said alcohol results in at about 1000 deaths a year in New Zealand and cigarettes 5000.

"With these products (synthetic cannabis) we're not having fatalities. As we look at every ingredient coming across the border and scan it specifically for medicines and drugs, I think we can be as confident as possible that it can't happen again."
The eight industry participants said all synthetic cannabis imported into New Zealand will undergo chemical testing before being made available for sale. This will protect public health and resolve any questions about the source of any contamination, they said.

That's a move consumers like.

One man said there are rules and regulations that New Zealanders have to be told what's in their food, so "why not a substance that's being consumed even by people that are under the legal age to use it?"

Bowden pointed out that the products are already covered by the smoke free laws so it is illegal to sell them to minors "and it always has been".

Marijuana 'in most schoolyards'

He said marijuana is available in most schoolyards, and the industry group is trying to restrict synthetic cannabis so it's only available to adults.

"We're saying let's have an understanding between government and industry that when someone wants to take a new psycho-active substance let's put it through the same sort of clinical trials that medicines go through."

New self regulation rules will see synthetic cannabis advertising visible only from the point of sale, there will be no further advertising on any other media and all exterior posters and other advertising will be removed immediately, the industry group said.

"All the larger operations will cease radio advertising, print advertising, will pull signage from outside dairies and from outside all retail outlets," Bowden said.
But he said a ban on synthetic cannabis would drive the industry underground.

"That's what happens right around the world with recreational substances. If you've got a huge consumer demand, if the government just says 'we're going to shut down the legitimate industry tomorrow' as they did with BZP, then these drugs go to the black market.

"You'd just be throwing away consumer guarantees, you're throwing away all that protection you can give consumers."

Those participating in today's meeting were Cosmic, retailers of Juicy Puff; Enjoi; Erox; Herbal Exports; Lightyears Ahead, distributors of Kronic; London Underground; Platinum; and Stargate.

Chris Fowlie of The Hemp Store has dealt in legal highs for more than a decade.

At his store they do not advertise, or sell to people under 18, rules he says the industry needs if it wants to avoid being wasted by new regulations.

"Just take heed of the concerns of the community that we're seeing there otherwise we are no different to alcohol sellers and other drug dealers," Fowlie told ONE News.

Fowlie decided before today's industry meeting to have his imported products screened by ESR.

"You've got to know the consequences of what you are doing. And if you don't know the ingredients in the packet then that's pretty difficult. As I say, I think the responsibility is on our side to behave ethically," he said.

'Poacher turned game-keeper'

Associate Health Minister Peter Dunne said the synthetic cannabis industry's "poacher turned game-keeper" offer today to suddenly self-regulate is welcome, but the Government will go ahead with law changes in the next few weeks to restrict the sale and marketing of their products.

"When any group that has for years done absolutely nothing to help keep the users of its products safe suddenly wants to self-regulate, then you know one of two things has happened - it has either developed a conscience, or it can see a drastic impact on its cash flow," Dunne said.

"Call me cynical, but I am suspecting the latter here," Dunne said, saying amendments to the Misuse of Drugs Acts will go before Parliament in the next few weeks.

"I certainly welcome their suggestions today, but I think the Government - and the public - will naturally receive them with caution of the Tui billboard variety.

"These people do not have a track record of responsible dealings. It is a shoddy industry that does not test its own products and clearly has not cared what is in them as long as they make a lot of money."

Dunne said: "My message to the industry is: yes, impose self-regulation, but the Government will also regulate you.

"And yes, test your products - but you should have been doing that all along, and in the longer term that is what this Government intends to make you do anyway.

"You will have to prove that your products are safe. We are going to back the Law Commission recommendation on that.

"The days of fast bucks, damaging young people's health and no responsibility are at an end."

Dunne told ONE News today the industry can expect severe restrictions on where the synthetic cannabis products can be marketed and distributed.

There also could be regulations on what kind of premises they can be sold at. And in the long term the government would be standing over manufacturers to stand by the promise that all of the products are safe.

***

Miracle of the Day - Healed of Emphysema

"The doctor diagnoised me in 1991 with Emphysema, I had pneumonia continually,The Lord gave me a Word , That He was The Lord Thy God That Health Thee He said I was healed by His Stripes. He sent His Word and His Word Healed Me. The doctors gave me two yrs. to live, at that time I was 49 yrs. old and today I will be 63 in March. I praise God for His Healing Power. I trust Him for EVERYTHING. lord"

*** hostgator coupon

Trending on Saturday - July 9, 2011

2011-07-11T14:24:00.000+08:00

1. Monterey Bay Aquarium's new Open Sea exhibit conveys vastness of oceans
2. 'Curb Your Enthusiasm' season premiere review: Larry David enters a new period
3. Pena notches career best with 14 Ks
4. NCAA Football 12 Impressions
5. Miracle of the Day - A REASON FOR LIVING

***

Monterey Bay Aquarium's new Open Sea exhibit conveys vastness of oceans

MONTEREY — Veteran sailors will often tell you that along with its stark beauty, the open ocean can often bring a certain loneliness.

They've recounted such feelings in both song and story, after all, for hundreds of years.

When you're out there, they say — far out of sight of land — you realize that you're on a sort of desert, watery but desolate.

Or so it might seem on first impression.

But a closer look reveals a whole universe of life found on the constantly changing palette of blues, grays and blacks that make up the colors of the water in a zone known as the "pelagic" (from the Greek) or, more commonly, the open sea.

So, as part of their continuing effort to give guests glimpses of things and places they've never seen before, the curators of the Monterey Bay Aquarium have opened "The Open Sea" — a unique exhibit attempting to replicate an area of the Pacific Ocean approximately 200 miles from the shores of Monterey.

It's an area they have nicknamed the realm of the "the vast and the fast," for its size and depth, and for the lightning-quick speeds of the predators that live there. What used to be known as the "Outer Bay" galleries have undergone an extensive makeover to reflect life in some of the least-explored parts of the Pacific, according to David Cripe, the aquarium's special exhibits coordinator.

"The idea behind this is to give the visitor an inkling of the life and light they might encounter way out there," Cripe said during a recent tour.

Visitors will find many of the same species in the Aquarium's premier 1 million gallon tank with its famed 54-foot-wide, 13-inch thick acrylic wall when it known as the "Outer Bay," Cripe said.

But now patrons will also see new species representative of many of the great migratory and schooling fish and other animals found where sharp winds whip up house-size swells and azure waters run deep — very deep.
Hiding in plain sight

The Open Sea exhibit, which opened July 2, also features a redesigned Ocean Travelers gallery that houses some of the ocean's most impressive long-distance swimmers and navigators, including young sea turtles and diving seabirds such as tufted puffins. One of the highlights includes a new interactive multimedia wall that's devoted to plankton, the microscopic animals that form the base of the food web in the oceans.

***

'Curb Your Enthusiasm' season premiere review: Larry David enters a new period

I didn’t realize how much I’d missed Curb Your Enthusiasm until Larry David greeted a Girl Scout who asked if he wanted to buy some cookies with a genial, “I find them abhorrent but come on in!” It was as though he was beckoning us to join him as well. Back for another season of intentional insults and carefully constructed accidents that result in Larry’s agony, Curb began its eighth season with a few superb mix-ups and at least one classic moment.

Yes, Larry was still in the process of finalizing his divorce from Cheryl (Cheryl Hines). Yes, he was still hanging out with Jeff (Jeff Garlin), and putting up with Jeff’s abrasive wife Susie (Larry to Susie, entering wearing a chic camouflage print dress: “Good afternoon, General Petraeus”). Yes, Larry was still inadvertently making life miserable for Marty Funkhouser (Bob Einstein). And, yes, Larry continues to trade in stereotypes so deeply ingrained in the character that by this point, it barely seemed offensive that our hero would simply assume that discovering his lawyer wasn’t Jewish, but merely passing as a Jew was an automatic disaster. (Nice job, Paul F. Thompkins.)

But the stand-out, ultra-Larry moment in the season opener proved to be the scene in which Larry was compelled to instruct the Girl Scout, played by Justified’s Kaitlyn Dever, how to use a tampon. Everything about the scene worked. The perfectly silly but logical set-up that ended up placing the kid behind a bathroom door as Larry shouted instructions to the 13 year-old girl getting her first period was impeccable. (This was HBO’s truest blood this week.)

David’s physical and verbal fumbling throughout the scene was that marvelous combination of half-amateur-actor, half-comedy-pro performance style that can make him funnier than comic actors far more smooth and skilled.

If David can sustain the fine asperity he mustered here for the rest of the new Curbs, we’ll have a season that might match the Seinfeld reunion episodes last season, and carry Larry to new highs of lowness.

***

Pena notches career best with 14 Ks

Right-hander Ariel Pena of the 66ers has always had a pretty good slider, which was his strikeout pitch on Friday.

But it was his fastball that was the key to his career-best 14-strikeout performance in Friday's 4-0 victory over the Mavericks. Pena allowed just two hits, walked three and hit another in six innings of work.

"The big thing has been his ability to command his fastball," Sixers pitching coach Dan Ricabal said. "He had been getting behind in counts with his fastball. If he's only throwing one pitch (the slider for strikes), then it's not as effective.

"The last two times (including Sunday at Bakersfield), he's been able to command his fastball, which makes his slider better."

Pena was able to throw his slider for a called strike early in the count, and get them to chase a slider out of the zone with two strikes. And you couldn't sit on the slider because his fastball was effective, too.

"I felt great," Pena said. "I had a good fastball, good slider."

Pena (7-3, 3.97 ERA) has been outstanding in back-to-back starts for the Sixers. He allowed six hits and one run while walking one and striking out four in seven innings at Bakersfield.

Pena's pitch count was over 100 at the end of six innings and it's the Angels' policy to remove starters in the minors when they get to that point, but Ricabal said Pena still looked strong.

"He was over 100, but he was stronger after six (Friday)
than he was throwing 83 pitches in seven innings at Bakersfield," Ricabal said.

In all, Sixers pitchers struck out a season-high 20 batters Friday against the Mavericks, the most in the league since 2009 and the first time the Sixers struck out that many in a game since 2007.

Not getting close

Jean Segura, the top prospect on the 66ers roster to start the season, hasn't played for the team since he was placed on the disabled list for the second time this season with a hamstring injury on May 28.
And he's not getting any closer.

At the time, the 66ers hoped Segura would be back the first half of July.

"He suffered a setback at Bakersfield (last weekend)," Sixers manager Damon Mashore said. "He was running and he wasn't 100 percent so we shut him down."

Segura was running and taking batting practice at the time, but isn't doing either now.

Mashore said it would be "a miracle" if Segura was back by the end of July, but there is no timetable currently for his return.

Friday night

Host Lancaster rallied from an early 5-0 deficit, scoring runs in every inning from the second through the sixth to record a 12-8 victory over the Quakes on Friday.

Anthony Jackson led the Quakes by going 4 for 5 with two home runs and four RBIs, while Preston Mattingly was 2 for 2 with a home run and three runs.

Jose Thompson led the way for the JetHawks, hitting two home runs and driving in seven runs.

***

NCAA Football 12 Impressions

NCAA Football 12 has experienced its share of ups and downs in the lead-up to its Tuesday release. The series continues to present one of the strongest feature sets amongst sports games and comes off a well-regarded iteration. It has stumbled in the last month or so however as EA Sports committed several missteps that hampered anticipation levels and followed that with notable indications of desperation on their part to build back some excitement. After spending an extensive amount of time already with NCAA Football 12 here are my initial impressions of the offering with more coverage to follow over the coming days.

When it comes to gameplay there are no real flashy new features and it appears similar to last year but the actual experience is much more refreshing. The new tackling animation system pays immediate dividends leading to a much more wide-open feel on the field. That also results in momentum being better represented and the running game becoming potentially very effective. Considering I prefer to run downhill this is especially beneficial to that style, however getting into the open field with a shifty back or receiver can lead to more explosive plays.

Defense is certainly improved but I don’t believe NCAA 12 will be looked back upon as a “defensive year” for the series. There seems to be a fair balance between the offense and defense. One thing immediately noted was how much more often passes were being dropped by receivers when getting hit as they make the catch attempt or immediately after. The ball often gets jarred loose when hit under those circumstances forcing the QB to find receivers that are more open. That in turn that keeps completion percentages down and gives an advantage to those who find open space to place the ball.

The CPU seems to put up a better challenge than in the past but still has its share of issues. The CPU running game has been anemic and they especially struggle out of the shotgun and running the option. The QBs tend to hold the ball too long and take sacks – this seemingly having been done to cut down on the number of INTs. Coverage sacks will be plentiful.

What has annoyed me though? Two terrible animations that play all too frequently. One is a solo animation where a player runs upright in a half circle after a play ends. This can be noticed seemingly every couple plays and stands out even more in Road to Glory where the camera is always focusing in close to individuals. It’s infuriating that “I” celebrate in this fashion! There is a post-tackle animation where it looks like the player is seizing up while laying on the ground which looks bad as well. Both really need to be patched out.

The celebrations in general are completely detached and contextually rarely seem appropriate. Every player ends up on their own and overreacts to mundane plays while underreacting to the big ones. There are some cut scenes after TDs now that involve several players but they’ll sometimes happen in the wrong area of the field or involve players that wouldn’t have been there to celebrate. The proper on-field emotion is still lacking in the NCAA series.

This, along with commentary, would seem to be the presentation areas most desperately in need of complete overhauls or serious enhancements. Having played Madden NFL 12 the television style camera placement makes a big difference there and that will expose NCAA’s replays and cut scenes for being severely deficient. How many times on a TV broadcast following a play does the camera focus on random players running around in half circles or them bumping into each other constantly when just heading back to the line of scrimmage? How behind NCAA is with its post-play coverage will be realized soon enough.

The commentary is all too familiar and the addition of ‘Game Tracks’ has been a letdown. I’ve yet to have any besides the post-halftime one trigger and those have been mediocre and non-specific. It stands out that Erin Andrews isn’t saying the names of any players or coaches – instead just referring to everyone as “he” or their position. The concept is sound and it remains a welcome addition but it isn’t going to be near enough to hold off complaints about commentary or the need for more dynamic recounting of events during the game such as a halftime show.

Road to Glory is much more compelling this year….at least that is the case after getting out of high school. Though HS added the ability to play both ways and for a whole season the games take longer due to that and feel tedious – lacking any excitement or real draw. The new additions once in college though are good motivators and rewards but I feel that I may be progressing too quickly in “Coaches’ Trust”. The main downside to the mode is that it still favors positions that rack up stats. I’ll have a lengthy write-up on RTG mode tomorrow.

Online Play has not been possible due to the servers being down over most of the last few days so that will be covered in its own impressions article and/or the Hits and Misses review. I still want to dig more into Dynasty mode and play around with features such as the ‘Custom Conferences’. The Online Dynasty setup looks great bringing in all the features of offline including the ability to have coaches start as coordinators.

Random Observations
•The ‘Online Pass’ free trial is now just two days instead of a full week.
•Each game now only has save slots for three images and two highlights.
•Penalties other than ‘Holding’, ‘Offsides’, and ‘False Start” are rare (actually I’ve seen none).
•The CPU will occasionally throw the ball away instantly after a snap.
•The CPU always chooses to kick when winning the toss on the road.
•Auto saved highlights and screenshots are just as bad as ever.
•Even if set to not save those videos/screens still forced to sit through them at the end of game.
•Games played on neutral fields still give the ‘home’ team the crowd support.
•Only seen fumbles caused from big hits so far.
•CPU kickers have hit several 50+ FGs (one was a 55 yarder)

***

Miracle of the Day - A REASON FOR LIVING

"In Dec. of 2000 I had a massive heart attack in my small one bedroom apartment in Michigan, I lived alone so it was quite awhile before an ambulance arrived. a lot of damage was done to the heart, which that within its self is a miracle for me to be alive. The people in Ann Arbor VA Medical Center said that there was nothing could be done because of the extent of the damage, but they forgot about JESUS, WHO sent the best Heart Surgen in the VA system who performed a double by pass, Every thing went well during surgery. While in recovery I stopped breathing, the crash cart was called, people were running in and out with blood, some were yelling with a sense of urgency, one nurse was crying. Four times I died and four times they brought me back, by THE GRACE OF GOD. My relatives were in the waiting room saw all this comotion and was praying and calling every one they knew to pray also. The doctor finally came in after they got me stable and told mother he didnt know if I would be a vegatable because I was out too long. Next morning the doctor came in and opened the blinds in my room waking me up. Everything was normal Because the GREATEST DOCTOR of all had a reason for me to LIVE, may I be worthy of his calling."

***

hostgator coupon

Trending on Friday - July 8, 2011

2011-07-09T00:09:00.000+08:00

1. Josh Hamilton
2. www.nasa.gov
3. space shuttle
4. horrible bosses
5. Miracle of the Day - Robbery foiled

***

*** hostgator coupon code

Josh Hamilton - Tragedy at the Ballpark

Trending on Thursday - July 7, 2011

2011-07-08T14:43:00.001+08:00

1. Taylor Swift postpones Georgia, NC concerts

2. The Brett Favre Chatter That Will Make Your Stomach Churn

3. Keri Russell Pregnant with Baby No. 2

4. Willie Nelson’s Marijuana Plea Bargain Rejected

5. Electric car future envisaged

***

Taylor Swift postpones Georgia, NC concerts

Artist Taylor Swift says she's postponing concerts this week in Atlanta and Charlotte, N.C. because she has bronchitis.

Swift said in a statement that she's been advised by her doctor that she's not well enough to perform shows in Charlotte, N.C. Friday and in Atlanta this weekend.

She said the Atlanta show has been rescheduled for Oct. 1, and the Charlotte show will now be Nov. 16.

***

The Brett Favre Chatter That Will Make Your Stomach Churn

Brett Favre was last mentioned on TBL on June 15. (Off topic: Damn, Bar.) The link went to a Sports Illustrated post that captured Favre saying, “I can still throw the ball as well as I ever have. No question about that.”

Before that, I mentioned Favre in a 1-liner (remember those things!? Good times!) that linked to a Pro Football Talk article about Favre not knowing what he was going to do with himself. (Hint: Not take sexy pictures.)

Yesterday when I was on the Twitter, I saw someone RT a Pro Football Talk story about Brett Favre. “No escape from Brett Favre comeback talk,” it said. This struck me as odd. If there were serious Brett Favre comeback talk, wouldn’t we here at The Big Lead be bombarding you with post after post about Favre? I submit that, yes, we would. Apparently, we missed the memo.

Everyone is sick of Favre comeback chatter, and everyone has been sick of Favre comeback chatter since about three Favre comebacks ago. But that doesn’t mean the chatter is going away, at least not until the regular season starts without a Favre comeback.

I think its great that we’ve moved past talking about Favre and can officially get to talking about talking about Favre. Or in this case, talking about not talking about Favre. Until people are yelling about this on Around the Horn again, I think we can move on. Unless more stories like this one from NFL.com’s Gil Brandt come out.That said, I do think Favre would be interested in talking to a team about returning. But I don’t see a team out there right now that would bring him back as a starter.

What?

When the lockout ends (hopefully soon) we can get back to the comeback talk. The shortened training camp and preseason will be very attractive to Favre.

***

Keri Russell Pregnant with Baby No. 2

Keri Russell and husband Shane Deary are expecting their second child, People reports.

Check out photos of Keri Russell

Russell, 35, is already mom to son River, 4. Russell and Deary, a carpenter, wed in February 2007.

The Golden Globe-winning actress is best known for her work on Felicity and most recently starred in the short-lived comedy Running Wilde.

***

Willie Nelson’s Marijuana Plea Bargain Rejected

A West Texas judge has rejected country singer Willie Nelson's plea bargain that would have resolved his marijuana possession case with a fine.
EL PASO, Texas - A West Texas judge has rejected country singer Willie Nelson's plea bargain that would have resolved his marijuana possession case with a fine.

Hudspeth County Judge Becky Dean-Walker told The Associated Press Wednesday that she rejected prosecutor Kit Bramblett's suggestion that Nelson plead guilty and pay a $500 fine for possession of drug paraphernalia, a misdemeanor not punishable with jail time.

Dean-Walker says, "It's not right simply because he doesn't do that for anybody else."

She wants Nelson charged with the misdemeanor of possession of marijuana, which could mean up to one year in jail.

Bramblett did not return a call. Nelson's publicist declined comment.

Nelson was arrested in November at a Border Patrol checkpoint when an agent searched his tour bus. He was later released on bail.

***

Electric car future envisaged

Kiwis could be able to affordably convert their petrol-powered cars to electric vehicles, says a Japanese executive who is pushing his company's electric vehicle prototype technology in New Zealand.

Soichiro Fukutake is the director of Japanese-based Sim Drive, a developer of electric car prototypes.

The company is promoting its protoypes worldwide, saying electric vehicles must be brought into widespread use to help the environment.

The technology is not expected to enter mass production for another two years.

Fukutake is speaking about the company's vision at the Icehouse Ideas conference in Auckland today.

There are two ways the technology could be implemented: where the motor is located in the wheels and the battery in the trunk or under the car seats; and secondly where the motor is placed in the wheels and the battery in a frame under the floor.

Fukutake, who emigrated to New Zealand in 2009, has asked the Government to provide incentives to New Zealanders wanting to convert their cars to electric technology.

"It's too expensive for many consumers to buy new electric vehicles so why not convert them?" he said.

Given New Zealand lacks an automobile manufacturing industry, Fukutake believed it would be better to train New Zealand mechanics on how to convert cars with an internal combustion engine to electric powered cars using Sim Drive technology.

He estimated a basic conversion would cost about NZ$6,000, plus leasing costs for the battery. Fukutake said a significant uptake of conversions would reduce New Zealand's reliance on imported petrol, boost employment and benefit the environment.

The company had also developed new electric steel car prototypes, with an average battery life of 330km.

Of all the countries in the world, China was most interested in the technology, said Fukutake, and a Chinese Government department had undertaken to manufacture electric vehicles using the Sim Drive technology.

The technology was developed with the backing of 34 companies, who contributed NZ$30,000 each to the project, said Fukutake. Critics' concerns over the proposed technology include greater weight in the tyres, safety if a wheel breaks and water damage to motors, but Sim Drive believed those issues were resolvable.

***

hostgator coupon

Trending on Wednesday - July 6, 2011

2011-07-05T18:20:00.001+08:00

1. Chelsea Handler's NBC Show Axes Nearly Half of Its Cast

2. Victoria Beckham to Undergo C-Section in Los Angeles

3. Hackers Target Apple In Latest Security Attack

4. Dalai Lama in Washington for first time since 'retirement'

5. Miracle of the Day - GOD said NO

***

Chelsea Handler's NBC Show Axes Nearly Half of Its Cast

Producers for Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea, the semi-autobiographical NBC

sitcom based on Chelsea Handler's book of the same name, have fired White Collar

alum Natalie Morales, former ER actress Angel Laketa Moore, and -- ouch -- Chelsea

Lately staple Jo Koy. A Vodka rep said the trio was axed "for creative reasons." That

70's Show alum Laura Prepon is staying put as the star (yay), a young Chelsea

Amazon.com Widgets

Handler, but it's a rocky start for the series, which is slated to premiere mid-season

and has already released a trailer with the now-cut cast-members in it. In any case,

we're sure Handler will make some obnoxious irreverent comment about the changes

soon.

***

Victoria Beckham to Undergo C-Section in Los Angeles

Former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham is reportedly scheduled to have her fourth baby

with husband David Beckham today via Cesarean section.

The baby, a girl, will be born at a Los Angeles hospital, MTV UK reports. The child will be

the Beckhams’ first daughter. David Beckham commented on the differences in

preparing for their daughter:

“We’re really excited. You know, it’s a whole new different thing for us. To have so

much pink in the house, lilac in the house, and dresses… All the clothes [are] ready, the

room’s ready, so we’re all ready for it and all excited.”

Sources also say that Victoria Beckham plans to breastfeed her daughter, her first

foray into the practice. Although she formula fed her boys, Beckham says having a girl

has caused her to rethink the decision:

“I’m doing everything differently this time. I want it all to be natural and perfect for

my little girl.”

***

Hackers Target Apple In Latest Security Attack

Hackers have targeted Apple in its latest security attack.

The group, AntiSec, posted a message to Twitter on Sunday claiming to have gained

access to private data from an Apple Inc server. The document, posted to the web,

contained several usernames and passwords.

***

Dalai Lama in Washington for first time since 'retirement'

The Dalai Lama is to celebrate his birthday this week by returning to Washington DC for

the first time since he retired from politics.

The Tibetan spiritual leader will lead a prayer for world peace on the lawn of the Capitol

as well as conduct a special Buddhist ceremony.

The ceremony, a 10-day teaching called a Kalachakra, is expected to draw as many as

100,000 people between Wednesday and July 16.

In May, the Dalai Lama formally stepped down as head of the Tibetan

government-in-exile, giving up the political power that he and his predecessors as Dalai

Lama have wielded over Tibetans for hundreds of years.

Though he remains the spiritual leader of Tibetan Buddhism, his decision to abdicate is

one of the biggest upheavals in the community since the Chinese crackdown led him to

flee in 1959 into exile in India.

The Dalai Lama, the 14th in a line of men said to be the living incarnation of Chenrezig,

a Buddhist god of compassion, says he had little choice. Though he appears hearty, he

turns 76 this week.

***

Miracle of the Day - GOD said NO

I was on my way to church with 5 other people in the truck we were on the interstate

going about 75mph because we were already late and we had a blow out in the front

right tire we hit the edge of an overpass and went airborne into a tree. I was thrown

out of the truck and walked off with just a broken arm. But the man that was driving

had 23 broken bones in his body and his daughters face was crushed to pieces but we

kept faith and kept praying. They were both on life support for 2 weeks, but God did a

miracle and everyone is perfectly fine today. Yea we were not expected to live but

we’re all in the best health of our lives, and we give all glory and thanks to JESUS

CHRIST.

***

Amazon.com Widgets

Trending on Tuesday - July 5, 2011

2011-07-05T00:45:00.000+08:00

1. Sheryl Crow: Down-to-earth celebrity

2. Transformers Dark of the Moon

3. Rosie Huntington-Whiteley

4. Independence Day events to check out

5. Miracle of the Day- Delivered from alcohol

***

Sheryl Crow: Down-to-earth celebrityArtist performs in Sylvania Tuesday

Sheryl Crow’s career has taken her all over the world and splashed her face across the pages of every celebrity magazine in existence.

She was engaged to Lance Armstrong, was a backup singer for Michael Jackson, and has performed with the Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, and Eric Clapton. She’s won nine Grammys and most recently was in the news for accidentally flashing her underwear on a CMT awards show.

All of which indicates that life can be kind of weird for Crow, a solid midwesterner and bona fide top-notch musician who, by virtue of her glamorous looks and our out-of-control celebrity culture, has been forced to navigate two disparate worlds.

One minute she’s a working mother and an artist trying to figure out where the bridge should go on a song she’s written. The next she’s trying to make her way through an airport with paparazzi chasing her down.

"I’ve never been comfortable with the cameras in my face, but I really am uncomfortable with the camera in my kids’ faces and that’s a new thing in the last few years with the media outlets turning toward making money off pictures of people’s children. I think it’s a really unfair practice. My kids don’t understand that and it’s an intrusion and can actually be an assault basically," she said in a phone interview from a tour stop in Sioux City, Iowa.

"These guys run around with cameras like they’re in a war zone and it’s really silly. But there’s money to be made off celebrities’ kids, so that aspect of it is very unsavory. It is weird."

Crow, who is performing at Centennial Terrace in Sylvania Tuesday night, maintains an appealing down-to-earth vibe both in her music and persona. She speaks with an accent that is part southern and part midwestern and she’s never shied away from expressing her views on politics — very liberal — the environment, or any other cause that is important to her.

She makes decisions based on what’s best for her family — she has adopted two boys, Wyatt, 4, and Levi, 1 — and doesn’t seem to pay all that much attention to commercial considerations these days.

"I think your life in general informs your art. So everything in my life has become about them. They’re the first thing I think of in the morning and the last thing I think of at night," she said.

"And every decision I make they’re involved in the decision-making, or at least they inform my decision-making. There is something wonderful about how children reintroduce you to things in life that you don’t notice anymore or that you take for granted. So it’s great to observe life again in a fresh new way through the eyes of a child."

***

Transformers Dark of the Moon

When a mysterious event from Earth's past erupts into the present day it threatens to bring a war to Earth so big that the Transformers alone will not be able to save us.

***

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley Wore a Chastity Belt on the Tranformers Set?!

Guess someone warned Shia LaBeouf's new costar about what happened with him and Megan Fox?

Rosie Huntington-Whiteley brought her gorgeous self to Chelsea Lately Thursday night. Among the things the Victoria's Secret model and Chelsea Handler discussed were, of course, Transformers: Dark of the Moon. So was Rosie able to resist the, erm, boyish charm of Shia?

***

Independence Day events to check out

ATLANTA -- Independence Day is a time to celebrate America with cookouts, time with family and friends and of course, fireworks.

Even if you're planning to celebrate the 4th of July with family and friends, there are plenty of opportunities to celebrate in a bigger way.

The AJC Peachtree Road Race has been an Independence Day tradition for decades in Atlanta. Runners will get started in Buckhead, race south on Peachtree Street, up Heart Attack Hill, into Midtown and finish in Piedmont Park. If you're not running, cheer the runners on along the route.

After the race, make your way Downtown to Centennial Olympic Park. A number of events are planned around the park and at nearby attractions. Just make sure to stake out a spot for your blanket on the lawn for the Fireworks Spactacular.

***

Miracle of the Day - Delivered from alcohol

"Hi, my name is james petty. I grew up in tennessee.I started drinking at the age 15.I was the topical little get what you want kid the coolest one you know how tht goes.So I had to show out and show everyone how much I could drink.Well what started out so much fun,turned into a nightmare.To make a long story short is that im 31 now and for the past 15 years it only got worse. It from a six pack every now and again to 30 beers a day.Until december 26 2004 I got on my knees and ask Jesus into my heart SO PRAISE GOD HE HEALED AND DELIVERED ME I HAVEN'T TOUCH A BEER SINCE.Iwent back to school and got GED,and now i'm attending southwestern assembly of God University God has called me to preach."

Trending on Monday - July 4, 2011

2011-07-01T12:28:00.000+08:00

1. Charlize Theron: I'm Never Getting Married!
2. Botox: Asthma Treatment - Will It Work?
3. Cottage cheese battle pays off
4. Vitamin D Helps to Prevent Diabetes
5. Miracle of the Day- Angelic Intervention

***

Charlize Theron: I'm Never Getting Married!

Sorry boys, Charlize Theron won't be walking down the aisle...ever.

The 35-year-old actress, who dated Stuart Townsend for nearly a decade before they split, says she'd rather have a long-term relationship than the actual wedding. Marriage was "never something that was important [to me]," she told Piers Morgan on his CNN show.

"I really want for myself a long-term relationship, and I have been in long-term relationships," Theron said. "That's the kind of union that I want. The actual ceremony is not something that is important to me, but I see the importance for other people."

In fact, Theron wondered why allowing gay couples to marry is not yet a federal law. "It's a divine right, and when the government starts to tell us who can love and what is good love... I do have a problem with that," she said. "I do have a problem with the fact that our government hasn't stepped up enough to make this federal, to make [gay marriage] legal."

***

Botox: Asthma Treatment - Will It Work?

Botox is known for its ability to reduce unwanted wrinkles. However, it turns out there may be another use for this procedure, and one that's not merely cosmetic. People who suffer from severe asthma may be able to reap benefits from the numbing procedure, which would be fantastic considering how many suffer.

Researchers in Australia have been searching for a way to help reduce asthma's effects. In Australia alone a quarter of a million people suffer from severe asthma. Currently, the numbing procedure is on trial to treat asthma sufferers by way of the muscles of the voice box. It was found that asthma effects in two ways: through the lungs and through the voice box. If the trial of Botox injections through the voice box is successful, this could prove to be a breakthrough treatment for asthma.

Phil Bardin of the The Monash Institute of Medical Research, the institute running the trials, says, "The rationale for this is that we think that the muscles in voice box have become dysfunctional and have fallen into bad habits as part of the asthmatic process and may be compensating for the lung".

True, this method sounds quite unconventional, but hey - whatever works. Most everyone at least knows someone who suffers from asthma, and it's obvious that asthma is not pleasant. It's exciting to think that Botox could potentially be a solution, and, in turn, Botox would gain a greater respect than just taking care of a few wrinkles.

***

Cottage cheese battle pays off: Prices in Israel are reduced after boycott, Facebook campaign

A high-profile Facebook protest has scored a victory for consumers in Israel: Their threats of a boycott have forced dairy manufacturers to lower the price of cottage cheese by some 25 percent.

The two-week campaign drew more than 105,000 people to join a Facebook group vowing to boycott the Israeli staple until prices dropped. The campaign has touched a nerve among Israelis concerned about rising prices and eroding salaries.

Spooked by the outrage, the three large Israeli dairy companies that control the market agreed Wednesday to lower the price of a half-pound (250 gram) container to 5.90 shekels ($1.75) after it had risen to close to 8 shekels ($2.30).

Thursday's newspapers carried glowing headlines that declared: "We Won," and "Cottage Cheese Victory."

"Contrary to his media image, the Israeli consumer is no sucker. The absolute opposite is true," said Sever Plocker, economic columnist for the mass Israeli daily, Yediot Ahronot. "When a product looks too expensive to him, he doesn't buy it, but rather its substitute. The Israeli does not replace the product, he replaces the vendor."

The "cottage protest," as it has come to be known in Israel, has sparked hope it will spread to other fields: the price of gasoline, which is now over $8 a gallon ($2 a liter), and other food products have recently skyrocketed as well.

It also has highlighted the power of social media outlets in sparking change, with some comparing it to the revolutions taking place elsewhere in the Middle East.

"True, this is not Tahrir Square yet, the cottage cheese rebellion did not require us to take any real action, just to press 'like' and skip the cottage cheese shelf in the supermarket," columnist Ben Caspit wrote in the Maariv daily, referring to the square that was the epicenter of the Egyptian uprising. "This was inaction, not action, and it demanded no real sacrifice."

The Facebook page of the cottage cheese boycott identifies organizers as regular Israelis who "work for a living, are raising families and bowing under of the weight of the cost of living in Israel

***

Vitamin D Helps to Prevent Diabetes and Thyroid Disease

A new study from Tufts Medical Center in Boston is linking increased levels of vitamin D with a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes. Vitamin D is also important in managing thyroid disease. There are two types of vitamin D: D2 comes from food and vitamin D3 from sunlight.

Dr. Annastassios Pittas studied 2,039 patients who were at risk for diabetes, with at risk blood sugar levels. Normal blood sugar levels are: 80-120 on rising before breakfast and before meals, less than 160 after meals and 100-140 before bed. Blood sugar amounts are measured in milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL). A patient is declared diabetic if his blood sugar level is 126 mg/dL after fasting for eight hours.

The patients in vitamin D deficiency tests had pre-diabetic blood sugar levels. They were tested over three years. Blood sugar levels were tested at six months, one year, two years and three years. Participants were divided into three test groups according vitamin D levels. The study found that for every 5 nanograms/milliliter of vitamin D participants dropped their risk of developing diabetes by eight percent. Patients with vitamin D levels of 30 ng/ml (the ideal amount) reduced their risk of diabetes 38 percent.

Vitamin D deficiency is also linked to thyroid disease. Vitamin D regulates calcium and other important bodily functions. Patients with low thyroid functioning also often have low levels of vitamin D. Patients who lack sufficient vitamin D are also at increased risk for auto-immune issues, Hashimoto's Disease and Graves Disease. I have had some success managing my hypothyroid issues with vitamin D.

There are two important kinds of vitamin D: Vitamin D3, also called ergocalciferol, is available from sunshine, animal products and supplements. When the skin is exposed to the UVA and UVB rays of the sun, vitamin D is formed. Vitamin D2, called cholecalcoferol, is found in plant sources and fungus.

This vitamin D research is important for parents, especially. Juvenile and type 2 diabetes are increasing in incidence. Type 2 diabetes is generally related to lifestyle choices. Lack of fitness, sedentary behavior, obesity, nutrition and addictive behaviors can lead to diabetes. With a simple addition of vitamin D supplements or increased intake in the diet, parents can positively impact predisposition to diabetes.

Here are foods rich in vitamin D to include in the diet: vitamin D enriched milk, orange juice, ready-to-eat hot and cold cereals and margarine. Foods naturally rich in vitamin D include: tuna, eggs, sockeye salmon, sardines, yogurt, milk, Swiss cheese, liver, mackerel and cod liver oil.

***

A high-profile Facebook protest has scored a victory for consumers in Israel: Their threats of a boycott have forced dairy manufacturers to lower the price of cottage cheese by some 25 percent.

Thursday's newspapers carried glowing headlines that declared: "We Won," and "Cottage Cheese Victory."

It also has highlighted the power of social media outlets in sparking change, with some comparing it to the revolutions taking place elsewhere in the Middle East.

The Facebook page of the cottage cheese boycott identifies organizers as regular Israelis who "work for a living, are raising families and bowing under of the weight of the cost of living in Israel."

***

Miracle of the Day

Angelic Intervention

"On March 20, 2007, I flew from Minneapolis to Philadelphia for a three day conference at the American College. A family friend just had a baby in New York and it was a wonderful opportunity for me to visit the family. I had arranged online for a rental car at "Thrifty" in Philadelphia. The Customer Service associate asked if I wanted insurance coverage but since I had full comprehensive insurance on my autos and did not want unnecessary expenditure I turned it down. When I drove out of the lot, I was looking for the odometer to see how many miles it would take me to New York and back to Philadelphia. Amazingly, it was a brand new SUV with just three miles on it. I went and came back successfully and enjoyed my conference. I was to return the Jeep SUV to Thrifty en route the airport on Thursday, March 22nd after the conference. I lost my way in town and ran out of my scheduled time to turn in the SUV.

So I passed by the front of an office building to ask a passer-by for directions. He was helpful but as he was telling me the direction to follow, there was a loud noise on the right back of the truck from a passenger van backing out of the packing lot The new Jeep SUV for which I refused auto insurance has been hit I held my head with my two hands, lost in thought of the cost, my family’s reaction because we had recently been up-rated by our insurance company for an auto accident by our college daughter. I noticed that my "guide" said, "You’ve been hit" and walked away in a hurry. I came out to see the damage. The driver of the passenger van also came out at the same time. We were amazed to see "no dent, no scratch". We both asked to make sure it was real. Physically, the noise was just too much to see no dent no scratch. But I immediately sensed there was a "third person" involved in that situation and gave thanks to God for sending His angel to handle the impact. I am so grateful because of the trauma of time, paper work, insurance rating and family discomfort that would have followed. I am a committed tither, as well as my wife and our three kids from the little gifts they receive. I owe all the favor to God and His promise to rebuke the devourer for our sakes. He is to be praised for all ages.

K-Blogger's: What's Trending Now?

Wednesday - July 27, 2011

Tuesday - July 26, 2011

Peru halts coca plant eradication program

Peru halts coca plant eradication program:

Trending on Tuesday - July 26, 2011

Trending on Monday - July 25, 2011

Trending on Sunday - July 24, 2011

Trending on Saturday - July 23, 2011

Trending on Friday - July 22 2011

Trending on Thursday - July 21, 2011

Trending on Wednesday - July 20, 2011

Trending on Tuesday - July 19, 2011

Trending on Monday - July 18 2011

TRENDING on Sunday - July 17 2011

Saturday - July 16, 2011

Friday - July 15, 2011

Trending on Thursday - July 14, 2011

Trending on Wednesday - July 13, 2011

Trending on Tuesday - July 12 2011

Trending on Monday - July 11, 2011

Trending on Sunday - July 10, 2011

Trending on Saturday - July 9, 2011

Trending on Friday - July 8, 2011

Trending on Thursday - July 7, 2011

Taylor Swift postpones Georgia, NC concerts

The Brett Favre Chatter That Will Make Your Stomach Churn

Keri Russell Pregnant with Baby No. 2

Willie Nelson’s Marijuana Plea Bargain Rejected

A West Texas judge has rejected country singer Willie Nelson's plea bargain that would have resolved his marijuana possession case with a fine.

***

Electric car future envisaged

Trending on Wednesday - July 6, 2011

Trending on Tuesday - July 5, 2011

Trending on Monday - July 4, 2011

Charlize Theron: I'm Never Getting Married!

Botox: Asthma Treatment - Will It Work?

***

Cottage cheese battle pays off: Prices in Israel are reduced after boycott, Facebook campaign

A high-profile Facebook protest has scored a victory for consumers in Israel: Their threats of a boycott have forced dairy manufacturers to lower the price of cottage cheese by some 25 percent.

Vitamin D Helps to Prevent Diabetes and Thyroid Disease

A high-profile Facebook protest has scored a victory for consumers in Israel: Their threats of a boycott have forced dairy manufacturers to lower the price of cottage cheese by some 25 percent.

Taylor Swift postpones Georgia, NC concerts