Pakistan Times

Muhammad Arif Ikram Best person in Punjab 2013

2013-12-27T20:37:00.000-08:00

Who is Mian Muhammad Arif Ikram

Muhammad Arif Ikram's Experience

Accountant

at Agrileaf International Khanpur

Location: Pakistan

Company Industry: Pharmaceutical

Job Role: Accounting/Banking/Finance

January 2011 - October 2012

Agrileaf International Khanpur Accountant 1 Year 2011 2012 to date

Scale Operator

at Aisha Cotton Industries (Pvt.) Ltd

Location: Pakistan

Company Industry: Industrial

Job Role: Management

January 2006 - January 2007

Aisha Cotton Industries (Pvt.) Ltd. Khanpur Store Incharge 1 Year 2006 2007

Accounts Clerk

at R.Y.K. Sugar Mills

Location: Pakistan

Company Industry: Manufacturing and Production

Job Role: Accounting/Banking/Finance

January 2005 - January 2006

R.Y.K. Sugar Mills, Rahim Yar Khan. Accounts Clerk 1 Year 2005 2006

Service Advisor

at Toyota Islamabad Motors

Location: Pakistan

Company Industry: Industrial

Job Role: Customer Service

January 2000 - January 2002

Name of Institution Designation Period From To

Toyota Islamabad Motors, Islamabad Service Advisor 3 Years 2000 2002

Accountant

at S.A.S. Security (Pvt.) Ltd. Islamabad

Location: Pakistan

Company Industry: Security

Job Role: Accounting/Banking/Finance

January 1999 - January 2001

S.A.S. Security (Pvt.) Ltd. Islamabad Accountant 3 Years 1999 2001

Extra years of experience not listed above: 1 Years, 2 Months

Muhammad Arif Ikram's Education

Bachelor's degree / higher diploma , Islamic Studies

at Islamia University

Location: Pakistan

Completion Date : January 2008

Bachelor's degree / higher diploma , Chemistry, Physics, Maths

at Govt. Post Graduate College

Location: Pakistan

Completion Date : January 2004

High school or equivalent , Chemistry, Physics, Biology, Maths

at Hira Public School

Location: Pakistan

Completion Date : January 1999

Jam Zahid Hussain Lar Khanpur Photo in ZASH 2011

2013-12-27T20:18:00.000-08:00

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The Monument's Men New Movie in the Cinema

2013-12-10T10:35:00.002-08:00

The Monument's Men New Movie in the Cinema

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2013-12-10T10:21:00.000-08:00

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2013-12-10T10:09:00.002-08:00

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2013-11-25T22:36:00.002-08:00

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2013-11-25T20:20:00.000-08:00

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2013-11-25T20:11:00.002-08:00

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2013-11-24T21:38:00.001-08:00

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Pakistani drama Chubhan Episode 54 on Hum Television 25 November 2013

2013-11-24T21:33:00.002-08:00

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2013-11-24T03:46:00.000-08:00

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Watch Waar 2013 Full Free Online Download Waar (2013)

2013-11-10T11:40:00.003-08:00

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Cast : Shaan as Mujtaba (as Shaan Shahid) , Aisha Khan as Javeria , Shamoon Abbasi as Ramal , Meesha Shafi as Zoya , Ali Azmat as Ejaz , Hamza Abbasi as Ehtasham
You can watch and download the movie in High-Definition on PC (desktop, laptop, tablet, handheld pc etc.) and Mac. Download it and watch it on your computer, your tablet, TV or mobile device. Waar is a new upcoming Pakistani Movie.The film is one of the few projects in the Pakistan to revive the cinema amongst other movies to be released in Pakistan in 2012.
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Rehman Malik,Interior Minister of Pakistan has some scenes in the movie.

Star Cast:
Shaan Shahid,Shamoon Abbasi,Meesha Shafi,Ayesha Khan,Ali Azmat,Uzma Khan and Hamza Abbasi.
Directed By:
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Produced By:
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Written By:
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Music By:
Qayyas
Release Date:
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Government Plan to bring affluent in tax net

2013-06-27T03:39:00.001-07:00

Government Plan to bring affluent in tax net- Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has finalised a comprehensive plan to bring affluent people in the tax net in a countrywide tax broadening drive to be launched from July 1, a tax official told Dawn.

The proposed target for bringing rich people in the tax net for the next fiscal year is 500,000 persons, who would be traced on the basis of financial transactions and data collected from NADRA.

Income tax return filers fell to less than 800,000 in tax year 2012, showing that less than 0.5pc of the population files tax returns in the country of 180 million.

“We will start work on broadening of tax base from July 1,” a senior tax official told Dawn. NADRA has already provided data of 140,000 potential people, who are living in posh areas, having multiple banks accounts, and frequently make foreign visits, but they do not figure on the tax roll.

An official statement of the FBR issued on Wednesday said the most important step in this direction has been the decision to use the National Data Warehouse (NDW) for identification of new taxpayers who can be brought into the tax net.

The NDW would be used in various ways, including its usage for acquisition of data through profiling loading and data mining and usage.

In Pakistan, the National Data Warehouse was only owned and maintained by NADRA. But the statement by FBR has created confusion which NDW would be used for tracing taxpayers because no such thing exists at the FBR.

An information expert says that there is a huge difference in database and national data warehouse. He said FBR can only have a database based on a few machines.

FBR officials contacted were not available for comments to clarify this issue.

According to the FBR statement, the respective RTOs would be sent details and electronic profiles of these potential taxpayers so that notifications are issued by the tax commissioners concerned.

All monitoring and control of the process would be automated and system based.

The FBR has also upgraded its call centre facility for facilitation of taxpayers. Linkages with third-party sources, including provincial revenue authorities, have also been established for effective implementation and monitoring.

To strengthen the enforcement mechanism for the broadening plan, various decisions have been made by the FBR which include initiation of statutory proceedings against persons who failed to respond to outreach notifications through issuance of notices under section 114 of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001.

In case of taxpayer’s persistence on non-compliance, provisional assessment would be finalised and the taxpayer would still have the option to file a return accompanied by a wealth statement and reconciliation of wealth statement within the period of 60 days whereby provisional assessment order would be automatically vitiated.

If the taxpayer did not file the return and required documents within 60 days, the tax liability raised as per the provisional assessment order would become final and would be recoverable and, if necessary, penal and prosecution proceedings, which may culminate in imprisonment and imposition of fine, would also be initiated in selected cases for creating a credible deterrence.

On Musharraf case, govt acting on Supreme Court directions

2013-06-27T03:37:00.001-07:00

On Musharraf case, govt acting on Supreme Court directions- Interior Minister, Ch. Nisar Ali Khan Thursday clarifing government’s stance on high treason case against Musharraf said no double standards were adopted and it was following only Supreme Court’s instructions in this regard. Responding to various questions raised by the opposition members in the parliament here, the Interior Minister said that the government did only what the Supreme Court of Pakistan had directed it to do. He said the Supreme Court had asked the government to give its opinion only over a case against Pervez Musharraf for abrogating the Constitution and detaining judges of the higher judiciary after imposing emergency on November 3, 2007.”There was no question of abrogating the Constitution from 12 October 1990 or from 1956 or so on,” he added.

He was of the view that if anybody wanted to open the high treason cases from beginning, they have no objection.

He opined 99.9 percent of the army had nothing to do with the imposition of Martial Laws, rather a few people were involved in such practices, damaging the image of the whole army.

The interior minister made it clear: “We will not accept any insult against Pakistan army,” saying Pak army jawans have been giving huge sacrifices for the nation, so they are ‘the bravest of the brave’.

He said that a person who has been brought to justice now may not be seen as general or military man, but an offender. “Linking the activities of an individual with the whole institution is unjustified,” he remarked.

He criticized the opposition for politicising the issue.

He informed the house that government has constituted a four-member committee of Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) to investigate the high treason issue.On the issues of Karachi violence, the interior minister said the federal government’s help was always available to provincial government in maintaining peace and it was ready to take onboard all the political parties to resolve the issue.

The political parties of Sindh should develop consensus among themselves and the provincial government should also come with clear stance on the issue,he said.

The minister urged the provincial government to call a special session to debate on the current situation of Karachi and come with consensus policy, which would be supported by the federal government.

Nisar said that he would visit Karachi next month and hold meetings with Governor Sindh, Chief Minister and political parties to help find solution to the issues available within the ambit of constitution.

He made it clear that federral government will not interfere in the matters of the provincial government.

The Interior Minister stressed the need to make a comprehensive and proactive policy to check militancy in the country and said federal government would call a meeting soon to discuss the security situation and come up with a joint strategy to drive the country out of security crisis.

He apprised the House that there was no national security policy on ground, so we have to prepare overhaul policy to tackle menace of terrorism and law and order situation.

In response to Swiss cases, the interior minister said that the Supreme Court (SC) has taken notice of the matter and government’s reply would be submitted according to the law.

He said that facts should not be mutilated and clarified that PML-N excused for including a section proposed by PPP in the Charter of Democracy (CoD) to ensure that both the parties would withdraw cases against each other after coming into power.

Gaga tops Forbes' Most Powerful Musicians list

2013-06-27T03:35:00.001-07:00

Gaga tops Forbes' Most Powerful Musicians list- Pop star Lady Gaga has beaten Beyonce and Madonna to the title of World's Most Powerful Musician according to Forbes Magazine's 2013 list.

The 27-year-old came first in the annual ranking, which is determined by earnings, social media influence and press mentions, largely thanks to the star's 'Born This Way' world tour grossing a massive USD 168 million, despite it being cut short due to her hip injury.

The eccentric performer, who also ranked second on Forbes' Most Powerful Celebrities list, is a prolific social media user and communicates daily with her 38.5 million Twitter fans and 57.9 million Facebook fans, who she calls her 'Little Monsters'.

Beyonce ranked second on the list, with her current 'Mrs Carter World Tour' grossing USD 2 million per concert date, while Madonna came in at number three with her 'MDNA Tour' raking in over USD 305 million.

Taylor Swift was fourth thanks to the smash success of her new album 'Red', while rockers Bon Jovi, powered by their 'Because We Can' tour, came in at number five, and social media whizz Justin Bieber was sixth.

Coldplay were the only British artists to feature in the American-dominated Top 10, after their world tour made them USD 3 million per performance.

Latest PTI distributes mangoes from Zardari among poor

2013-06-27T03:34:00.001-07:00

Latest PTI distributes mangoes from Zardari among poor- Wednesday was a hot but sweet day for the poor inhabitants of katchi abadi (slum locality) in G-7, as Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) distributed free mangoes worth thousands of rupees among them. The PTI’s Central Secretariat received 40 crates of mangoes for its Chairman Imran Khan from President Asif Ali Zardari. The party leadership pondered over the matter and it was decided that the fruit should be given to the slum dwellers. “It was practically a mouthwatering feast for the hundreds of poor, who live in the katchi abadi and many of them can hardly afford enjoying the fruit,” commented Rizwan Chaudhry of the PTI Media Centre.

Improvement in Indo-Pak ties will benefit Afghanistan

2013-06-27T03:32:00.003-07:00

Improvement in Indo-Pak ties will benefit Afghanistan- Any improvement of ties between New Delhi and Islamabad will automatically improve the situation in Afghanistan, US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Ambassador James Dobbins said today.

Dobbins, who arrived here to brief Indian officials on the proposed talks with Taliban as part of stabilising war- torn Afghanistan, also said that there is no prospect of any agreement with Taliban unless they decide on severing ties with all terror groups, including al-Qaeda.

'We certainly agree that there is no prospect of improvement in relationship with Taliban or any agreement with Taliban unless they assure terrorism is...Addressed,' the US diplomat said, adding that Taliban has to do much more before an agreement is reached.

'In an agreement, they need to improve on cessation of hostilities, respectfully attend the Constitution and go about severing of all ties with al-Qaeda and similar terrorist organisations,' Dobbins said.

'Any improvement in Indo-Pak ties will almost automatically improve the Afghanistan situation,' he said.

Dobbins added that he had gathered an impression during his two meetings with Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif that 'improvement in relationship with India is very high on his (Sharifs) list of priority.'

The US ambassador, who met Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai yesterday, will meet his Indian counterpart S K Lambah today.

The visit comes a day after US Secretary of State John Kerrys three-day official visit for the India-US Strategic Dialogue.

During the dialogue, Kerry had assured India that its concerns over Taliban insurgents gaining legitimacy without severing their terror links will not be 'overlooked or undermined' during the talks with the Islamic fundamentalist group.

Deep inside Windows 8.1's hidden new features

2013-06-27T03:30:00.002-07:00

Windows 8.1 preview now available: Here's what you need to know, After months of teasing and torture, the Windows 8.1 Developer Preview is finally here, ready to deliver us from many of Windows 8’s glaring flaws. You’ve no doubt already heard about Windows 8.1’s biggest new features: The Start button is back, Bing owns the Search charm, the split-screen Snap feature is customizable, yada yada yada. You know the drill.

What hasn’t been talked about much are the subtler changes—the hidden secrets tucked away in the dark corners of Windows 8.1, whispering and waiting for a turn to shine rather than shouting their proverbial presence from the proverbial rooftops.

No, these gems aren’t as flashy as Windows 8’s newfound ability to sync apps and Internet Explorer 11 tabs across multiple devices, but they’re arguably just as (if not more) handy. And there’s no way you’ll find them unless you dig deep...or read this enlightening guide. Let’s start with something basic, but far from obvious.

Yes, the Start button is back...but the Start menu isn’t. So you still need to swipe through a multiclick process involving the charm bar if you want to shut down your PC—if you don’t know about the Start button’s secret menu, that is.

Right-clicking the Start button that appears when you hover your mouse cursor in the lower-left corner of the screen brings up a bevy of powerful options, including quick links to deep stuff like Disk Management and Command Prompt tools.

Now, the menu itself isn’t new to Windows 8.1. What is new is the addition of a Shut Down option to said menu. Hovering over it for a second gives you options to shut down or restart your PC right then and there, no fiddling with hidden menus required. The Taskbar Properties option is another old friend with a subtle new look—and a crucial one for desktop diehards. Did you hear that Windows 8.1 lets you boot directly to the desktop on start up? It does, but Microsoft clearly doesn’t really want you to do it, since the option is buried in this obscure corner of the OS.

Head to the desktop, right-click the taskbar, select Properties, and then open the brand-spankin’-new Navigation tab. There, you’ll find new options for disabling the uppermost hot corners. Those options are also available in the modern-style PC Settings, but many Start screen options can only be found here.

And how handy-dandy they are! Want to boot directly to the desktop or the All Apps screen? Here’s your chance, and the other selections are just as useful. (Show the desktop background on the Start screen? Yes While you’re busy taking advantage of all the hot resizable Snap size action in Windows 8.1, don’t forget that you can now have a single app open in multiple Snapped windows—something you couldn’t do in the original Windows 8 release. SkyDrive takes on a much bigger role in Windows 8.1, driving Microsoft’s vision of a seamless, cloud-connected world even further.

In fact, SkyDrive is so vital an underpinning to Windows 8.1 that Microsoft dedicates an entire section to it in the modern-style PC Settings. A vast number of settings now sync and follow you from device to device by default—including modern apps, woohoo! But if you really want to live in the cloud, you’ll need to enable some options buried three or four levels down.

Latest News Nelson Mandela's condition critical but 'stable'

2013-06-27T03:27:00.001-07:00

Latest News Nelson Mandela's condition critical but 'stable'- Former South African leader Nelson Mandela is in a stable condition, his granddaughter says, though he remains critical.

Ndileka Mandela said the 94-year-old's family were taking comfort from messages of support from the public.

Mr Mandela's health had worsened in recent days, prompting President Jacob Zuma to cancel a foreign visit.

South Africa's first black president has been in hospital since 8 June with a lung infection.

Emotional crowds continue to gather outside the Pretoria hospital.

They have been adding messages of support for Mr Mandela, known by his clan name Madiba.

Correspondents say South Africans now seem resigned to the prospect of his death. "We don't like seeing Mandela going through so much pain, he has had a tough time in his life and he's gone through a lot of struggle. I think this struggle should get over sooner," Khulile Mlondleni told the BBC.

"We are all going to feel bad when he passes [away], but at the same time we will be celebrating his life. He has done so many great things for this country," said 25-year-old John Ndlovu, quoted by Reuters news agency.

Speculation warning

After visiting her grandfather in hospital, Mdileka Mandela said it was an anxious time for the family.

"He's stable and we'd like to say that we thank everybody for giving their support and praying with us ... we are anxious as you know that he is critical but he's in a stable condition right now," she said.

"It's been hard, especially because of all of this - that we have to do everything in the public eye."

Mr Zuma's spokesman Mac Maharaj said on Wednesday evening that Mr Mandela's condition had deteriorated over the weekend.

After consultations with doctors, Mr Zuma said he was cancelling his trip to a regional summit in the Mozambican capital Maputo. The statement from his office said he "reiterated his gratitude on behalf of government, to all South Africans who continue to support the Madiba family".

The decision will only reinforce the impression that Nelson Mandela's life is slipping away, the BBC's Mike Wooldridge reports from Johannesburg.

But later Mr Zuma's office warned against speculation about Mr Mandela's health, saying that announcements about his condition would come from the president himself or Mr Maharaj.

Mr Maharaj criticised some media outlets for broadcasting unverified information, as rumours spread on social media sites.

Mr Mandela is revered for leading the fight against white minority rule in South Africa and then preaching reconciliation despite being imprisoned for 27 years.

He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1993 and was elected president the following year. He left office in 1999 after a single term.

Prosecutors say NFL star Aaron Hernandez 'orchestrated execution,' concealed evidence

2013-06-27T03:25:00.003-07:00

Prosecutors say NFL star Aaron Hernandez 'orchestrated execution,' concealed evidence- Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez drove his friend to a remote spot in an industrial park in the dead of night and — still fuming from a fight at a nightclub three nights earlier — "orchestrated his execution," prosecutors alleged in a Massachusetts court Wednesday.

Hernandez pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and five firearms charges, including possessing a large-capacity firearm, more than a week after the body of Odin Lloyd, 27, was found near his Massachusetts home. A judge ordered him held without bail.

Hernandez "drove the victim to the remote spot, and he then orchestrated his execution. That's what it was," First Assistant District Attorney William McCauley said in Attleboro District Court. "As (Lloyd) tried to turn, he was shot in the back, and the defendant and his confederates stood over him and delivered the two fatal shots," McCauley said, adding: "He orchestrated the crime from the beginning and took steps to conceal and destroy evidence."

Wearing a white V-neck shirt, red sports shorts and handcuffs, Hernandez showed no emotion as prosecutors laid out a bruising account of what allegedly happened the night Lloyd, a semi-professional football player, was killed, citing what they say is surveillance camera footage, text messages and witnesses who were working the overnight shift who heard gunshots as evidence. Hernandez wiped tears from his face at the very end of the arraignment.

Lloyd's bullet-punctured body was found by a jogger June 17 in an industrial park a mile from Hernandez's North Attleborough home. The death was ruled a homicide.

Prosecutors said that the killing was prompted by a fight between the two friends during a trip June 14 to a Boston nightclub. Three days later, Hernandez and two friends allegedly picked Lloyd up at his house at 2:30 a.m. Surveillance footage from Hernandez's house shows him leaving earlier in the night with a weapon, prosecutors said.

After getting into the car, Lloyd allegedly texted a family member, asking, "Did you see who I am with," prosecutors said. He then texted that it was Hernandez and followed it up with "Just so you know" in another text message, the prosecutors alleged during the arraignment.

Later that morning, between 3:23 a.m. and 3:27 a.m., employees who were working the overnight shift at the industrial park where Lloyd's body would later be found reported hearing gunshots, authorities said. It's not clear who investigators believe fired the shots.

"It is at bottom a circumstantial case. It is not a strong case," Michael Fee, Hernandez's attorney, said in court.

Prosecutors allege that security videos from Hernandez's house show him with firearms after Lloyd was murdered and show a Nissan Altima — the same type of car Hernandez had rented — going to and coming from the site where Lloyd's body would be found. He was seen exiting the vehicle at 3:29 a.m. with a gun at his home on the surveillance footage, prosecutors claim, shortly after authorities say Lloyd was killed.

Hernandez, 23, was placed in handcuffs and put in a police cruiser just before 9 a.m. Wednesday by Massachusetts State Police and North Attleborough police. Authorities have searched his home, on the Rhode Island line not far from the Patriots' stadium, several times over the past week.

Less than two hours after the arrest, the Patriots announced they were releasing Hernandez.

DOMA widow says on hearing of Supreme Court win

2013-06-27T03:24:00.001-07:00

DOMA widow says on hearing of Supreme Court win I cried, I cried, The 84-year-old widow at the center of an historic gay-rights marriage case before the Supreme Court said she cried on Wednesday upon learning of her win, with the justices deeming unconstitutional a federal law that bars recognition of same-sex marriage.

Smiling and at some times emotional, Edie Windsor said: “I cried, I cried,” after learning of her landmark victory, hailed by one of her attorneys, James Esseks, as a “watershed” moment in the decades-long battle for gay rights.

“We won everything we asked and hoped for. Wow,” she told a room full of reporters at The Center, a LGBT rights community center in New York City. The victory means the federal government must recognize the marriages of gay and lesbian couples married in the 12 states that allow same-sex marriage, plus the District of Columbia, and give them the same benefits that they had been previously denied under the struck-down law, the Defense of Marriage Act (or DOMA).

Donna Lieberman, executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said it meant the end of what Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had called "skim-milk marriage" during oral arguments in March. “I thought we had every right to win. I thought our arguments were sound and everyone else's were insane,” she quipped.

Windsor noted that her journey as a lesbian throughout the decades meant she had had to lie a lot of the time about her sexuality. Her other attorney, Roberta Kaplan, likened Windsor to Susan B. Anthony, Rosa Parks and Harvey Milk.

“It makes me feel incredibly proud and humble,” Windsor said.

Windsor launched her lawsuit after getting a bill for $363,000 in estate taxes after her wife, Thea Spyer, died in 2009 – two years following the couple's marriage in Canada. She noted that if her spouse had been named “Theo,” she wouldn't have received that bill.

She was heartbroken after Spyer’s death but also “overwhelmed with a sense of injustice and unfairness” and decided to sue to get her money back.

“Children born today will grow up in a world without DOMA. And those same children who happen to be gay will be free to love and get married – as Thea and I did – but with the same federal benefits, protections and dignity as everyone else,” Windsor said. “If I had to survive Thea, what a glorious way to do it and she would be so pleased."

Kaplan said Windsor would recoup that money plus interest, as would other couples who brought a case. For other couples, who are married now, the reimbursement will depend on each federal program and benefit. DOMA had blocked the access of same-sex married couples to more than 1,100 federal benefits.

As to the future, Windsor said she would be supportive of the ongoing efforts to bring same-sex marriage nationwide but would otherwise take a back seat.

"I don't have a ton of years left and I would like to relax a little bit," she said lightheartedly.

And when asked what she thought Thea, her partner of 44 years, would say on this big day, Windsor surmised: “You did it, honey.”

Breaking News Jared Leto Covers Candy

2013-06-27T03:21:00.002-07:00

Breaking News Jared Leto Covers Candy- Jared Leto covers the latest issue of Candy, a magazine that bills itself as the center of "transversal style."

So it only makes sense the actor would do so in drag, right?

Yes, this really is a photo of the man after whom Angela Chase lusted on My So-Called Life, decked out in a short pink wig, cherry lipstick and long eyelashes The publication has dressed such stars as James Franco, Chloë Sevigny and Andrej Pejic in drag garb over the year, creating headlines via gender bending and political satire.

In December, Candy placed transgender model Connie Fleming on its cover, styling her to invoke Michelle Obama swearing in on a Bible.

Leto, meanwhile, dabbled a bit in cross-dressing for his upcoming indie film The Dallas Buyers Club. It will mark his first big screen role in five years.

Weddings must wait, but couples celebrate as Supreme Court rulings push gay marriage forward

2013-06-27T03:18:00.001-07:00

Weddings must wait, but couples celebrate as Supreme Court rulings push gay marriage forward- Backed by rainbow flags and confetti, thousands celebrated in California’s streets after U.S. Supreme Court rulings brought major advances for gay marriage proponents in the state and across the country.

Though wedding bells may be weeks away, same-sex couples and their supporters filled city blocks of San Francisco and West Hollywood on Wednesday night to savor the long awaited decisions as thumping music resounded.

“Today the words emblazoned across the Supreme Court ring true: equal justice under law,” said Paul Katami, one of the plaintiffs who challenged California’s gay marriage ban, as he celebrated in West Hollywood.

In one of two 5-4 rulings, the high court cleared the way for gay marriages to resume in California, holding that the coalition of religious conservative groups that qualified a voter-approved ban for the ballot did not have the authority to defend it after state officials refused. The justices thus let stand a San Francisco trial court’s ruling in August 2010 that overturned the ban.

In the other, the court wiped away part of a federal anti-gay marriage law, the Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, putting legally married gay couples on equal federal footing with all other married Americans, allowing them to receive the same tax, health and pension benefits.

The court sidestepped the larger question of whether banning gay marriage is unconstitutional, and states other than California and the 12 others where gay couples already have the right to wed were left to hash out the issue within their borders.

As the sun set on San Francisco, a crowd surged from hundreds to several thousand in the city’s Castro neighborhood, with rainbow flags and confetti filling the air.

James Reynolds, 45, was among the revelers, saying he had been married to his partner of 23 years several times, including once in California.

“It’s been taken away from us,” Reynolds said as he stood in a crosswalk near the barrier blocking off the street for the celebration. “But we’ll be married again.”

In Southern California, an all-day celebration in West Hollywood grew to hundreds by night, including many gay couples dressed in red, white and blue and one sign that read “Today we are American.”

Brendan Banfield, 46, stood on the very spot under a tree in West Hollywood Park where in 2008 he married his partner Charles, becoming one of an estimated 18,000 couples that got married during the four-and-a-half months when gay marriage was legal in California.

“I want to cry,” Banfield said. “It’s been a long journey. I’m grateful I’m alive to see it.”

It remained unclear, however, when California’s gay marriages might start again. Backers of the ban known as Proposition 8 have 25 days to ask the Supreme Court to reconsider. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals also must lift a hold it placed on the lower court order before the state can be free to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

Still, state officials moved quickly. Gov. Jerry Brown said he had directed the California Department of Public Health to start issuing licenses as soon as the hold is lifted, and state Attorney General Kamala Harris went even further, publicly urging the appellate court to act ahead of the final word from the Supreme Court.