The Liltrane That Could

Costa ship expected to reach land Wednesday - Business - MiamiHerald.com

2012-02-29T04:24:00.000-05:00

Costa ship expected to reach land Wednesday - Business - MiamiHerald.com:

A Costa Cruise ship disabled by a fire should reach the Seychelles’ island of Desroches Wednesday.

A helicopter filled with supplies and communications equipment was enroute to the ship Tuesday, according to a Costa spokesman. Passengers were served a cold breakfast Tuesday and told to ready their luggage for debarkation as the cruise ship was being towed by a French fishing vessel.

An engine room fire disabled the ship Monday, leaving it adrift without air conditioning or lights. No one was injured, according to Costa.

The incident is the second in six weeks for Genoa, Italy-based Costa. In January, one of its ships, the Concordia, hit a reef and capsized.

Costa, which is owned by Miami-based Carnival Corp., said Monday that the Allegra was steady and conditions are safe.

“The shipboard fire-extinguishing system and emergency procedures were activated promptly and special fire-fighting squads extinguished the fire,” the company said in a statement.

Still, the emergency alarm went off and passengers and crew members were instructed to report to their muster stations Sunday night local time. The ship is carrying 636 passengers and 413 crew members.

Tugboats, aircraft and other vessels were dispatched to the ship, which was drifting and without power. The first vessel expected to reach the cruise liner to offer help was a French-flagged fishing boat; several other boats also are expected to reach it by Tuesday afternoon local time, and a helicopter was to bring food and phones.

The Associated Press reported that passengers were being held in communal rooms rather than cabins and were likely to sleep on outside decks; the fire cut power to engines as well as lights and air conditioning.

Also a concern: the threat of piracy. The region off the coast of Tanzania where the ship was drifting has seen attacks by Somali pirates, though officials said the risk was not high. A Costa executive said a nine-member Italian military team on anti-pirate duty was aboard.

“If pirates attack, the armed guards on board will respond. But as far as I am aware, no pirates have been sighted in the area,” said Seychelles presidential spokeswoman Srdjana Janosevic.

The 20-year-old cruise ship left Madagascar Saturday and had been scheduled to arrive Tuesday at the port of Victoria in the Seychelles.

The incident was Costa’s second since the year began. On Jan. 13, the Costa Concordia was maneuvering close to the Tuscan island of Giglio when it struck a reef and capsized. The shipwreck is believed to have killed 32 people; the captain was arrested and other officials are under investigation.

The incident caused a drop in future cruise bookings and hit cruise prices throughout the industry. But the latest problem had little effect Monday on Carnival’s value; its stock closed at $29.96, down just a penny from the previous close.

The fire aboard Costa Allegra follows several other incidents that have put cruise vacations in a harsh light since the Concordia disaster, including norovirus outbreaks on a few ships and the recent robbery of several Carnival guests during a tour in Puerto Vallarta.

On Monday, Cruise Lines International Association president and CEO Christine Duffy released a statement highlighting the industry’s adherence to safety regulations.

The statement said: “CLIA extends its regrets to all those who were affected by this incident on the Costa Allegra, and we are pleased that the crew acted quickly and professionally and that no passengers or crew were injured.”

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/02/28/2665094/costa-ship-expected-to-reach-land.html#storylink=cpy

Osama bin Laden's home reduced to rubble, removing a reminder of Pakistan terror links

2012-02-28T04:58:00.000-05:00

Osama bin Laden's home reduced to rubble, removing a reminder of Pakistan terror links | StarTribune.com:

Pakistani authorities have reduced the house where Osama bin Laden lived for years before he was killed by U.S. commandos to rubble, destroying a concrete symbol of the country's association with one of the world's most reviled men.

Workers completed the demolition job in the garrison town of Abbottabad in northwest Pakistan on Monday.

The al-Qaida leader moved into the three-story house in 2005. Acting on intelligence gathered by the CIA, a team of U.S. commandos flew in by helicopter from Afghanistan and killed bin Laden on May 2 before dumping his body at sea hours later.

The operation left Pakistan's army in the awkward position of explaining why it had not detected the U.S. raid, and how bin Laden was able to live in the town without its knowledge. U.S. officials have said they have found no evidence that senior Pakistani officials were in the know about bin Laden's whereabouts.

Mechanized backhoe vehicles and construction workers began pulling down the house on Saturday night, working under floodlights.

An Associated Press photographer said Monday the job was completed, save for a section of its boundary walls.

The house stood less than half a mile (one kilometer) from one of the Pakistan army's top training academies.

Authorities never allowed journalists inside the building, and starting from a few days after the raid stopped them from even getting close to it.

Officials did not explain why the house was destroyed. Some residents of Abbottabad thought it should be a tourist attraction, although given the sensitivities surrounding the property it was hard to see the government developing it as one.

Property documents show the land was owned by a man who later served as a courier for bin Laden. He is believed to have been killed during the raid.

Last year, several foreigners were briefly detained for trying to see it, including the Danish ambassador and his wife. U.S. commandos took computers, books and other intelligence materials from the building after killing bin Laden, and American officials were allowed to visit it in the weeks that followed.

Al-Qaida-inspired or affiliated groups have killed thousands in the country over the last few years.

Later Monday a bomb exploded outside a rally held by northwestern Pakistan's dominant political party, killing five people, police officer Hussain Khan said.

The blast took place in the town of Nowshera in the northwest's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa district.

Khan said the device went off when a motorcade of officials from the Awami National Party was leaving the building.

The province's Chief Minister Ameer Haider Khan Hoti had addressed the meeting but had left the venue by helicopter.

Inmates allowed to purchase MP3 players, music

2012-02-28T04:56:00.000-05:00

Inmates allowed to purchase MP3 players, music - CBS News:

A new program will allow federal prison inmates to listen to music on personal MP3 players.

More than 200,000 prisoners will be allowed to have MP3 players, which will be sold to them in the prison commissionaires, and choose from an in-jail house library of about 1 million tracks.

Image via Wikipedia

"The MP3 program is intended to help inmates deal with issues such as idleness, stress and boredom associated with incarceration," bureau spokeswoman Traci Billingsley told USA Today, adding that "keeping inmates constructively occupied is essential to the safety" of prison staffers and prisoners.

The U.S. Bureau of Prisons is currently testing out the music program at a women's unit in West Virginia, but the program is expected to expand to the rest of the system later this year, according to Billingsley.

The list will exclude "explicit" songs, including tracks with obscene or racially-charged language. The prison-governing body can also prohibit a title that it determines may disrupt the good and orderly running of the institution," according to Billingsley. The U.S. Bureau of Prisons will employ the same stringent standards set by the Recording Industry Association of America to rate the songs.

The program will be managed by an internal system, so the prisoners will not have access to the Internet. They will be able to listen to clips of the songs through their prison-issued devices and decide if they want to download the song. No taxpayer money will be used to develop the system.

David Fathi, the director of the American Civil Liberties Union's National Prison Project, called the program a "positive step" toward improving prison security and said it would aid in rehabilitating prisoners toward their eventual re-entry to the outside world by providing a link to society.

However, Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley said that allowing prisoners to have music could have unforeseen repercussions, saying that it is "difficult to see how all of the necessary safeguards can be put into place to stop prisoners from using MP3 players as bargaining chips or other malicious devices."

"It appears to be a risky endeavor and raises a lot of questions that need to be answered," he said.

How to turn down a request

2012-02-27T08:37:00.000-05:00

How to turn down a request - Sacramento Living - Sacramento Food and Wine, Home, Health | Sacramento Bee:

Rejecting a request generally isn't fun, whether the advance is romantic ("Want to go out Saturday?"), professional ("Can you have the report done by 1 p.m.?") or social ("Come on, just one more drink!").

"A lot of times people say yes when they don't want to, because they're afraid of hurting or disappointing somebody," said Ben Benjamin, co-author with Amy Yeager and Anita Simon of the forthcoming book, "Conversation Transformation: Recognize and Overcome the 6 Most Destructive Communication Patterns" (McGraw-Hill).

"People worry, 'What will happen if I say no?'" added Yeager. "They have a worst-case scenario in their head."

Here's how to avoid regretting your response.

Degree of difficulty: Hard - if you have trouble saying no. But, like most things, it gets easier with practice.

Buy time. "There is a whole group of people who immediately say no without thinking and another who say yes without thinking," Benjamin said. "I give the same advice to both groups: 'Thanks for asking. Let me think about it.' Then think about, 'What do I want from this situation?'"

You need to know your tendencies. That self-awareness can help you avoid a knee-jerk response in either direction.

Out of courtesy, give them a time frame, Yeager said. "'Let me look at my schedule and I'll get back to you in an hour, or tomorrow.' They're not left hanging."

Beware of offers you can't refuse. Sometimes, a request isn't a direct, open question. Your acceptance is assumed. "I want to watch the games today (so you will be in charge of the kids for the next 10 hours)." Or, "You did such a great job with x, we've given you the honor of y!" That can create feelings of manipulation, which leads to arguing or resentment.

"Understand what the leading question is - it's a question AND it's an opinion telling you what the right answer is," Benjamin said. A strategy for dealing with it is to paraphrase what you heard. "I hear you saying you want to watch the games; are you asking if I will keep the kids busy till bedtime?" That gives you time to think, "Am I all right with this?" If not, say, "I had a different idea; let's talk about it."

Avoid ambiguity. If someone asks if you'd like to go out, and you aren't interested, skip the procrastination and mixed messages. "It's often easier in the long run to be direct. Not cruel, but direct," Yeager said. If there's a real reason you feel comfortable sharing, you can add one briefly.

"No matter what you're saying, keep your voice tone neutral and clear," Yeager said. "Be clear with yourself in what you're saying and not have guilt or worry come through." Added Benjamin: "If you do a 'yes, but,' the person is going to come back again and again, and it's even more disappointing and upsetting, and you get caught in a lie."

Intending to demonstrate goodwill, people often respond with a sort of yes-no-yes, as in, "Oh, bowling sounds like such fun. But I told my mom I would take her shopping and then I have to do carpool and then Allie hasn't been feeling well. I wish I could join you." If you have no intention of ever heaving a bowling ball, you've just delayed the inevitable letdown. If the person sees through your veil of regret, you've called your sincerity into question for future interactions.

Living in reality is ultimately easier, Benjamin said, even if occasionally uncomfortable: "People often think they have to lie, otherwise the person is going to be mad." And sometimes they will.

But, he said, "Both business and interpersonal relationships fail when people are behaving in ways that are not resonant with what they want."

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2012/02/27/4293679/how-to-turn-down-a-request.html#storylink=cpy

Warren Buffett Buys US Precious Metals Business from Cookson Group

2012-02-27T06:49:00.001-05:00

Jesse's Café Américain: Warren Buffett Buys US Precious Metals Business from Cookson Group:

Apparently Berkshire's Richline Group didn't get the memo that Warren doesn't like silver or gold.

Richline is involved in the fabrication of precious metals into jewelry. The acquisition of US Precious Metals will bring them into the mill and findings portion of the precious metals industry, as well as acquiring European and Asian distribution channels.

A small deal for Berkshire, but it is a bit of fun.

I wonder if Warren will have an introductory note to Richline's next company report, "May Is Gold Month." lol.

Cookson Group Sells US Precious Metals Business To Richline Group

(RTTNews) - Cookson Group plc reached an agreement to sell its US Precious Metals business, an operation that forms part of its Precious Metals division, to Richline Group Inc., an unit of Berkshire Hathaway Inc.

Earlier, Cookson announced that, following the US Precious Metals business becoming loss-making, it had begun a strategic review and significant downsizing of the business. Subsequently, Richline expressed an interest in buying this business, and on 22 February 2012, Cookson and Richline inked a deal for Richline to acquire the business, subject to normal legal and regulatory closing provisions which may be completed in the 2012 second quarter.

The net cash consideration is subject to closing balance sheet adjustments but is expected to be sufficient for Cookson's exit from the business to be cash neutral, including taking into account the restructuring and other costs incurred in preparing the business for sale. The gross assets of the businesses being acquired by Richline are nearly $69.8m or 44.4 million pounds, while the net assets are about $60.2 milion.

Richline Acquires U.S. Precious Metals Business

Richline Group will acquire the U.S. precious metals division of the Cookson Material Products Group in the second quarter of 2012.

According to a Cookson statement, the gross assets of the businesses being acquired by Richline are approximately $69.8 million, and net assets roughly $60.2 million. It said its U.S. precious metals business had become “loss-making.”

Businesses in the United Kingdom, France, Hong Kong, Japan, and China that will distribute and sell Richline product are part of the acquisition, Richline said.

Richline, owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway, said this deal demonstrates its commitment to the mill and findings segments of the businesses...

A Richline spokesman declined comment on a Reuters report that suggested it is about to purchase Italian jeweler UnoAErre.

Rioting over Nikes raises image issues

2012-02-27T06:45:00.000-05:00

Rioting over Nikes raises image issues – USATODAY.com:

The almighty Swoosh is suddenly in an unlikely — if not uncomfortable — position: playing defense.

Nike

Nike Foamposite One Galaxy basketball shoe

Enlarge

Nike

Nike Foamposite One Galaxy basketball shoe

Nike, the world's largest sneaker maker, with revenue topping $20 billion last year, is mostly watching from the sidelines as its name has been linked with consumer rioting outside shopping malls in Florida and Maryland over limited access to the $220 basketball shoe Foamposite One Galaxy. The release of the $180 Air Jordan XI shoe before Christmas also caused a riot at a mall in Indianapolis, fights in Seattle and a stabbing in Jersey City.

For Nike, industry dominance comes at a price. While the brand has successfully stayed cool — if not cutting-edge — over nearly 40 years in the highly competitive sneaker business, the way it stays on top may need to evolve in a fast-changing world of social media that has greatly democratized knowledge of and access to its newest and coolest shoes.

VIDEO: Wait for Nike Galaxy shoe turns crowd rowdy

In the recent past, folks who crave the newest Nike sneakers would likely hear about it from inside channels, says John Horan, publisher of the newsletter Sporting Goods Intelligence. Under that scenario, maybe 100 or 200 insiders would show up at the mall for the new shoe's release. But with social media as the new information forum that's widely available to everyone, says Horan, "instead of 100 people lined up, you have 1,000 — or more."

Nike declined to detail how it's coming to grips with the situation. "As with the launch of all Nike products, consumer safety and security is of paramount importance," Nike spokesman KeJuan Wilkins said in a statement.

Here's what image and brand gurus say Nike should do:

•Supply enough shoes. Don't ship product until there is ample supply to meet demand, says brand consultant Jonathan Salem Baskin.

•Sell 'em online. An online or in-store lottery for popular new shoes could eliminate the problem, says Horan. (Wilkins says Nike stores often hand out tickets to people standing in line.)

•Plan better. Nike execs often know well ahead of time — thanks to focus groups, data and trends analysis — which shoes will be hot, says Baskin.

•Put the CEO out front. Nike CEO Mark Parker should be visibly apologizing for what happened and promise to fix it, says brand consultant Al Ries.

•Talk firmly. Nike should issue a much stronger statement that this is not what the brand stands for. "The problem is they tolerate it with a shrug and wink," says Baskin.

•Withdraw it. To prevent more ruckus, Nike should remove the shoe from stores, Baskin says.

How Can Google+ Help Your Business?

2012-02-27T06:41:00.002-05:00

How Can Google+ Help Your Business? - Ecademy:

Analyst Paul Allen - Google+'s unofficial statistician - predicts that G+ may exceed 400 million users by then end of this year.

Improves your search engine ranking.
Which company do you think is going to get ranked higher on Google's search engine, the one using Google+ or the one just using Facebook?

"When you Google our company name - Brandignity -- the Google+ profile appears right at the top of the search results, which really helps," says Maciej Fita, SEO Director, Brandignity, LLC, an SEO and social media marketing company. "Clients and potential clients will often search a company name before inquiring further, so this has helped us spread our digital voice that much more efficiently."

A plus for collaboration.
"Google+ is a must for CIOs trying to encourage collaboration," states David Politis, founder,BetterCloud, which provides third-party products for Google Apps. "In a flat world, social tools like Google+ support fast and easy domestic and cross-border sharing [of documents, images and so on], enabling productivity at a fraction of the price of conventional meetings" or videoconferencing.

Video chat with customers, colleagues and media -- for free.
Speaking of collaboration, one of the most buzzed about features on Google+ is Google Hangouts, Google's video chat tool. "Google Hangouts works well for video conferencing with members in your circle," says Kenneth C. Wisnefski, founder and CEO of WebiMax, a search engine optimization (SEO) company, who has used Google+ to video chat with up to six people (the service can host up to 10 parties currently). "The 'screen share' feature works great," he notes. However, "ensure you have a secure and fast internet connection, otherwise the video can be low quality and lower resolution."

Google+ Hangouts is particularly useful for those organizations with workers in different offices. "I manage employees and freelancers in North America, Asia and Europe," explains Casey Armstrong, partner and COO, webbbROI, an online marketing business. "Through Google+ Hangouts, we are able to collaborate in real-time through screen sharing, on Google Docs, and via video chat. In addition, even if I'm on the move, I can video chat through my iPhone on Google+. Talent is everywhere and Google+ removes the location barrier."

Get your message to the right audience with just a click.
"Circles are invaluable," state Ross Kimbarovsky and Mike Samson, co-founders ofcrowdSPRING. "Think of circles as your customer groups. Most businesses will have a variety of different customer groups and sometimes you want to communicate separately with each group," they explain.

With Google+, you can put customers into different groups or "circles" (by geography, by age, by interest) and then easily communicate with each circle separately, or with multiple circles at the same time. "For example, we created a group of loyal customers. We can customize offers and deals specifically for those customers without sending the same offers generally to the rest of the world or to other customers."

Free focus groups.
Why pay for focus groups when you can use Google+ to get answers to questions or elicit customer feedback? That's what SEER Interactive, a search marketing firm, recently did. SEER used its Google+ page to host an hour long Q&A session covering SEO and PPC topics. "The result was a lively conversation on Google+ with more than 100 comments over the course of an hour," says Wil Reynolds, founder, SEER Interactive.

Good for B2B marketing.
If you are looking to connect with other businesses, Google+ Your Business is designed to help. "We have found Google+ to be useful for acquiring new customers," explains Mike Rheaume, co-founder, SnapKnot, an online wedding photographer directory.

"Google+ is visual and participatory, meaning that photographers can easily share and comment on others' work. For us, this means it's easy to share photography-related content and connect with individual photographers [SnapKnot's target customers] beyond the major social media tools like Twitter and Facebook." Since using Google+, SnapKnot has achieved a high member conversion rate - and Rheaume considers it an excellent B2B marketing tool, especially for visual- and/or content-heavy businesses.

A potentially powerful PR tool.
Using Google+ circles, you can target your public and media relations. "If we deliver a message, we know that it is going to be picked up by users who are more likely to respond, including key industry personalities and publishers," states Mike Essex, online marketing manager at Koozai, a U.K. digital marketing agency. Indeed, because Google+ allows users to tailor their message to a specific group (or circle), Essex has found Google+ to be a more effective PR tool than Twitter.

Can help promote brand awareness.
"With the emergence of the social web, it has become essential for brands to build their reputation online," states Karim Guessous, founder and CEO of Tradepal, a peer-to-peer trading network. "Google+ gives a unique opportunity for an emerging product, such as Tradepal, to assert our personality and engage our user base." Through its Google+ page, Tradepal shares original content and tips, and has had dialogues with users, helping to solidify and promote its brand.

Another way to advertise promotions.
With Google+, it's easy to offer promotions to those in your circles. For example, Arby's recently offered a coupon to Google+ users for a $2.99 Fish Sandwich & Small Curly Fries.

Government accused of blocking new cancer drugs to save money | Society | guardian.co.uk

2012-02-25T22:39:00.000-05:00

Government accused of blocking new cancer drugs to save money | Society | guardian.co.uk:

The government has been accused of "systematically" delaying the introduction of new cancer drugs in order to save money.

A leading cancer specialist and the head of Britain's biggest drugs company said innovative drugs were being held back as part of an ill-conceived attempt to cut costs.

Prof Jonathan Waxman, of Imperial College London, who founded the Prostate Cancer Charity and helped establish an all-party parliamentary group to improve cancer treatment, described the situation as a disaster.

He said a number of new cancer drugs had been blocked by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice), which assesses the cost-effectiveness of new treatments.

"In my view, Nice has over-regulated and proscribed drugs that offer real advances to people with cancer," he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.

"In my particular area of specialisation, which is prostate cancer, we have had two new drugs become available over the last year and a half which offer real benefits for patients.

"I would argue that they have been disallowed – banned – by Nice on the basis of an assessment which is not a true financial costing of the worth of the drugs."

He warned that drug companies might soon no longer find it worthwhile to seek approval for their products in Britain.

"We are going to have a situation in the UK where drugs are not available for our patients. It is a disaster. Someone just needs to sort this out."

GlaxoSmithKline's chief executive, Sir Andrew Witty, said delaying the approval of innovative new drugs was a false economy. He said: "Cancer in the UK is a good example where we're seeing oncology drugs being systematically delayed from introduction and reimbursement.

"The issue here is, of course, if you don't buy the new drug it is going to save you money in the drug bill. But the drug bill is only 8% to 10% of the total healthcare bill and what is being lost in this stampede for cost cuts is any kind of strategic thoughtfulness."

A Department of Health spokesman said: "The government has increased spending on health, which includes new drugs, and thousands more patients are getting access to the most advanced treatments.

"The government has not changed any assessment processes relating to cancer drugs.

"Furthermore, drug companies need to look hard at the high costs they are asking of the health service for their latest treatments."

Nelson Mandela Is Hospitalized in Planned Visit

2012-02-25T16:47:00.001-05:00

Nelson Mandela Is Hospitalized in Planned Visit - NYTimes.com:

Nelson Mandela, the first black president ofSouth Africa, was hospitalized Saturday, the office of the country’s current president, Jacob Zuma, announced.

“Madiba has had a long-standing abdominal complaint, and doctors feel it needs proper specialist medical attention,” the statement said, using Mr. Mandela’s honorific clan name.

Mr. Mandela, who battled apartheid and spent 27 years imprisoned by the white minority government, is 93 years old, and has been in virtual seclusion for the past two years after retiring from public life eight years ago. His health is closely watched; a hospitalization in Johannesburg in January 2011 set off a panic.

Mr. Mandela’s last major public appearance was in 2010, at the final World Cup game in Johannesburg. For the past year he has spent most of his time in Qunu, the Eastern Cape village where he lived for most of his childhood.

Rumors about Mr. Mandela’s health have swirled for years, even in the days after his release from prison in 1990, when apartheid was crumbling and earnest talks between the African National Congress and the governing National Party began. His lack of bitterness toward the white minority made him a global symbol of reconciliation.

When Mr. Mandela was hospitalized last year, there was fevered speculation in the news media in the face of virtual silence from the government. Reporters spent the night outside the hospital where he had been admitted, and many feared he was at death’s door. But after two nights he was released.

Late Saturday Mr. Zuma released a new statement, saying that Mr. Mandela had undergone a diagnostic procedure and was expected to be discharged on Sunday or Monday.

“Madiba is fine and fully conscious and the doctors are satisfied with his condition, which they say is consistent with his age,” it said. “He was in good health before admission in hospital, but doctors felt the complaint needed a thorough investigation.”

It continued, “We are happy that he is not in any danger.”

Obama apologizes for burning of Korans

2012-02-24T00:54:00.001-05:00

Obama apologizes for burning of Korans - UPI.com:

U.S. President Obama apologized to Afghan President Hamid Karzai Thursday for the accidental burning of Korans by NATO troops that has led to violent protests.

Violent anti-American protests have erupted across Afghanistan since the U.S. military Tuesday apologized for what it said was the accidental "improper disposal" at Bagram Air Base of religious materials, including copies of the Muslim holy book.

The United States is working with the Afghan government to investigate the incident.

"We will take the appropriate steps to avoid any recurrence, including holding accountable those responsible," Obama said in the letter delivered by U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Ryan Crocker, Karzai's office said.

The War in Afghanistan

White House spokesman Jay Carney said the letter to Karzai was a follow-up to a telephone conversation between the two leaders.

"I think that the message that we're trying to convey here is that this was inadvertent. We take it very seriously," Carney told reporters aboard Air Force One Thursday.

Carney said NATO Commander Gen. John Allen, "is taking steps to ensure that this kind of thing can't happen again by instituting training on the handling of religious materials."

An Afghan soldier, apparently angry over the burning of Korans, fatally shot two U.S. troops and wounded four others, Afghan officials said.

GALLERY: Uses, misuses of the Koran

Carney told reporters the expression of regret by Obama was part of a letter to Karzai "on a number of topics, including the Afghan-led reconciliation process and our bilateral relationship with Afghanistan, in which he included an expression of his regret and apologies for the inappropriate and inadvertent mishandling of religious materials."

Carney noted that Dana Perino, when she was press secretary for former President George W. Bush, "expressed apologies on behalf of the president" after a 2008 incident in which a U.S. serviceman "apparently shot or did damage to a Koran."

"And that's appropriate for the same reason, because our concern -- this president's concern, as was surely the case with President Bush, is the safety and security of our men and women in uniform, as well as our civilians in Afghanistan," Carney said.

"And one of the reasons that it's appropriate to express our sincere apologies for this incident is that the kind of reaction that it can cause risks putting our men and women in harm's way, or in further risk than they already are," he said. "So I think that precedent is a useful one to look at."

It remained unclear how many Korans were involved, a military official told CNN Thursday. The official said American troops at the base would have been unable to read the texts, which could have contributed to the error.

Another military official said earlier the materials had been removed from a detainee center's library because they carried "extremist inscriptions" on them and there was "an appearance that these documents were being used to facilitate extremist communications."

Violent protests took place Thursday at U.S. and NATO military facilities across Afghanistan, including one demonstration in which police apparently shot and killed two protesters.

The Taliban in Afghanistan called on Muslims to attack NATO facilities and convoys and kill military personnel, CNN reported.

In an e-mail message, the Taliban accused "the invading infidel authorities" of trying to calm the situation with two "so-called shows of apology, but in reality they let their inhuman soldiers insult our holy book."

The e-mail urged Afghans to seek revenge "until the doers of such inhumane actions are prosecuted and punished."

"We should attack their military bases, their military convoys, we should kill their soldiers, arrest their invading soldiers, beat them up and give a kind of lesson to them that they never dare to insult the holy Koran," the message said.

The International Security Assistance Force said in a statement two military personnel were killed in eastern Afghanistan Thursday by "an individual wearing an Afghan National Army uniform" but didn't identify the troops' nationality.

CBS News said an Afghan official said the dead and wounded in the attack in the eastern province of Ningarhar were American. The official said the shooting seemed to be motivated by the burning of Korans at the Bagram Air Base north of Kabul, but did not elaborate.

Google’s Diversifying Display Ad Business Could Pass Facebook’s, eMarketer Guesses | TechCrunch

2012-02-23T19:15:00.000-05:00

Google’s Diversifying Display Ad Business Could Pass Facebook’s, eMarketer Guesses | TechCrunch:

Image via CrunchBase

Research firm eMarketer has put together a few interesting data points that show Google doing better in display ads than you might have realized. That is, by growing this business across properties and networks that it at some point acquired — YouTube, DoubleClick, and mobile (AdMob) — it’s set to pass Facebook’s own display business.

The social network had the highest online ad sales of any company in the U.S. last year, at $1.73 billion. But that was a mere $200 million or so above Google. This year, eMarketer expects a similar story, with Facebook bringing in $2.58 billion versus Google’s $2.54 billion. Things change in 2013 and 2014, further off from what the data can tell us accurately.

The firm thinks Facebook’s growth rate is going to plummet after this year, down to 13 percent in 2014, while Google’s is going to continue at nearly 50 percent through 2013 and still at nearly 30 percent in 2014.

I’m not ready to bet on that.

The estimates are based on publicly available documents from both companies, and other sources. On Google’s side, itsearnings from last quarter indicated that its non-search ads were on track to reach $5 billion a year, or 12 percent of its total business. This is double what it brought in over the previous five quarters. YouTube is getting better and better at monetizing videos, DoubleClick is a market leader in online display ads, and AdMob has a strong position across mobile platforms. I agree it makes sense to be bullish about this part of Google’s business.

On Facebook’s side, eMarketer’s original estimate for its revenue had been $2.01 billion in the US, but Facebook’s S-1 filing proved this to be around 15 percent over what it actually was. The projections here read as if eMarketer feels burned by being so positive about last year. But the report manages to qualify itself in the event that Facebook revenue does in fact start to grow more quickly, by noting the potential benefits of newer advertising features like Sponsored Stories.

That’s the thing. Facebook’s ad business is still young, the company is fine-tuning all sorts of interesting features, and there are other ways that the business could see new growth, for example if Facebook launches a web-wide ad network that competes with DoubleClick and the rest of the online ad industry. 2013 and 2014 are a long ways off, and other numbers like traffic are looking fine.

SBA Changes Definition Of 'Small Business'

2012-02-22T17:08:00.000-05:00

SBA Changes Definition Of 'Small Business':

In an effort to boost access to federal contracts and financial assistance, the Small Business Administration recently changed its definition of"small business" in a variety of industries for the first time in about 25 years.

Small-business advocates, however, aren't yet sure if or how the move will affect small businesses' ability to get federal government contracts. The SBA released 37 updated revenue-based size definitions of small businesses in 34 professional, scientific and technical services sectors, after starting work on the definitions in 2007. The new size standards take effect March 12.

The SBA took into account factors such as inflation and current economic conditions, as well as federal contracting trends, average firm size and degree of competition within the individual industries, and was motivated to make the changes by the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, which requires the SBA to continue a comprehensive review of size standards for the next several years, according to an SBA spokesperson.

The SBA, which negotiates small-business contracting goals with various federal agencies, estimates the new definitions will make as many as 8,350 more firms eligible for contracts and financial assistance. "It allows small businesses to retain their small-business status and contracting officers to have a larger selection of small businesses to choose from for contracting opportunities," the spokesperson said.

But the National Small Business Association isn't so sure these changes will be beneficial to small businesses. Although the NSBA is planning a thorough analysis, the Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group cited "a couple areas of concern," NSBA spokesperson Molly Brogan said. "Some industries, such as architecture and engineering, are grouped together, and the combination can cause some issues. Another concern is there may be enhanced competition from businesses on the larger end of the scale that are now classified as a small business. For the majority of businesses that have about nine to 11 employees, it's hard to compete against a company that has 500 employees."

While the National Federation of Independent Business, a Nashville, Tenn.-based advocacy group, doesn't define small business by size, about 70 percent of its members have 10 or fewer employees, according to NFIB spokesperson Cynthia Magnuson. Still, Magnuson said government contracts aren't necessarily what will help their small-business members. "We represent 350,000 small businesses and not a tremendous number of them vie for government contracts," Magnuson said. "Our top priorities tend to be things that affect our whole membership, like taxes, health care and regulation."

By contrast, Brogan of NSBA said leveling the playing field for small-business contracts is one of its members longtime concerns. "Our board has revised our top priority issues for 2012, and contracting is among those," Magnuson said. "Ensuring small businesses do have an equal opportunity through small business set-asides is a big issue."

This definition of small businesses in relation to federal contracts is also being addressed by the House Small Business Committee. The Protect American Small Businesses Act, introduced by Reps. Joe Walsh (R-Ill.) and Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), would require that the size standard be assigned by each group's North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code. "My bill ensures that small businesses do not have to compete with global corporations to create jobs in our local communities," Walsh said in a statement. "Size standards assure the viability of America's biggest job creators -- small businesses."

Vaping (Electronic Cigarette) Saves Money, Check It With the Saving Calculator on Saudi-un-ny.net

2012-02-22T05:24:00.000-05:00

Vaping (Electronic Cigarette) Saves Money, Check It With the Saving Calculator on Saudi-un-ny.net:

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As per the electronic cigarette reviews electronic cigarette is a replacement to regular cigarette. An electric cigarette is preferred these days because of its extraordinary features over a normal tobacco cigarette. An electronic cigarette does not produce any ash, tar and smoke. So they are also called smokeless cigarettes. Reviews say that a normal tobacco cigarette when smoked produces a large amount of ash and smoke. But e cigs do not have these drawbacks. An e smoker does not feel any foul smell from the mouth, hand and clothes.

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Greece bailout wards off Europe meltdown

2012-02-22T05:21:00.001-05:00

Greece bailout wards off Europe meltdown:

The bailout has saved Europe, for now, but it's unlikely to save Greece.

The €130 billion ($172 billion) rescue — agreed to Tuesday after an all-night summit of European ministers — prevented an uncontrolled bankrupcty and calmed investors worried that a Greek default would have started a chain reaction across Europe. But it left key problems unresolved.

Draconian budget cuts could keep Greece mired in recession after five straight years. The deal doesn't directly address the debt problems in other struggling countries in the 17-country zone that uses the euro. Spending cuts could reduce tax revenue and possibly worsen the government's finances.

"You can't shrink your way out of a recession," said Mark Weisbrot, co-director of the liberal Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington. "What they are doing to Greece really makes no economic sense."

In Athens, Greeks reacted with a mixture of relief and fear of a dark future.

"I don't see it with any joy because again we're being burdened with loans, loans, loans, with no end in sight," architect Valia Rokou said in the Greek capital.

Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos said the agreement managed to prevent imminent catastrophe: "we avoided the nightmare scenario," he said.

The agreement was the second massive bailout of Greece following a €110 billion ($146 billion) rescue in 2010 that didn't return the country to solvency. It will give Greece €130 billion in loans through 2014 from other eurozone governments and the International Monetary Fund. It was secured after Greece agreed to painful and humiliating measures, including thousands of layoffs of civil service workers and cuts to the minimum wage, imposed by countries suspicious of Greece's reform efforts after two years of what they called the country's broken promises.

The finance ministers wrangled until the early morning over the details of the rescue, squeezing last-minute concessions out of private holders of Greek debt who agreed to lose 53.5 percent of the face value of their investment to avoid even more severe losses if Greece fails to pay €14.5 billion in debt due March 20.

The serious risks of the bailout's failure include the likelihood that Greece's economy remains in a deep recession instead of returning to growth in 2013 as the deal assumes. That would undermine chances of paying even the reduced debt load, estimated at a still-high 120 percent of annual economic output in 2020, down from 160 percent now.

Additionally, political outrage over the cutbacks could lead Greece politicians to balk at the tough conditions. That could push rescuer countries — led by Germany — to cut off further funding.

Elections in Greece are expected in April. The leaders of the two main parties have committed to the cuts and reform program, but anti-bailout parties have been gaining in the polls.

Greece's economy shrank 7 percent in the fourth quarter of last year and unemployment is 19 percent, a consequence of cuts in public wages and increased taxes inflicted during a downturn.

If that keeps up, even the rescuers acknowledge the reduction goal of 120 percent of GDP is long gone.

"The risks are clearly on the downside," said Diego Iscaro, an economist at IHS Global Insight. "By austerity alone, Greece will not solve the problems it has at the moment. We don't know when the economy will return to growth and how it will grow."

Greek politicians nevertheless greeted the package as a turning point for their battered country.

"It's no exaggeration to say that today is a historic day for the Greek economy," said Greek Premier Lucas Papademos.

The deal helped bring the Dow industrial average over 13,000 on Tuesday for the first time since May 2008, powered by optimism that economic recovery was on the way. It finished up 15.82 points at 12,965.69.

In Washington, White House spokesman Jay Carney said President Barack Obama called German Chancellor Angela Merkel to thank her for her leadership in helping secure the eurozone agreement. But Carney said European countries need to do more to stave off further crises, including strengthening financial firewalls to prevent one nation's troubles from spreading across the continent.

Including Greece's first bailout worth €110 billion the new deal means every Greek man, woman and child will owe the eurozone and the IMF about €22,000 ($29,000).

Greece agreed to cut spending and wages, and to permit outsiders to supervise its finances through European Union and IMF officials stationed in Greece. The rescuers also demanded a separate account for the aid money and legal guarantees that creditors get paid before teachers, doctors and police do.

The agreement assumes that banks and investors owed money by Greece will take new bonds that reduce their holdings by more than half.

Even if it later balks at the bailout conditions, Greece would have difficulty writing down the new debt it issued to private bondholders, who demanded stronger legal protections. Official creditors — the IMF, the eurozone countries and the European Central Bank — would also have difficulty accepting more writedowns.

Inability to pay — or unwillingness to accept the harsh conditions — could lead to a non-negotiated "hard" default that could end in Greece leaving the euro.

On top of the new rescue loans, Athens will also ask banks and other investment funds to forgive it some €107 billion ($142 billion) in debt, while the European Central Bank and national central banks in the eurozone will forgo profits on their holdings.

The deal "closes the door to an uncontrolled default that would be chaos for Greece and Greek people," said European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso.

Despite those unprecedented efforts, Greece is at the very best starting on a long and painful road to recovery.

It is being pushed to make its economy more business-friendly and productive by opening access to closed trades and professions; halting rampant tax evasion; allowing more flexibility in wage bargaining between companies and unions; simplifying starting a business; and cutting its bureaucracy.

"It's not an easy (program), it's an ambitious one," said Christine Lagarde, the head of the IMF.

For the private debtholders who Greece owes money to, the bond swap will lop €107 billion off Greece's €352 billion load. On top of that, investors will be asked to give Athens 30 years to repay them, compared with just under 7 years.

Average interest rates would fall to 3.65 percent from around 4.8 percent.

Overall losses for private bondholders would be above 70 percent when accounting for the new bonds' longer repayment period and lower interest rate.

Private investors weren't the only ones having to give ground. The eurozone countries will reduce the interest that Greece has to pay for its first package of bailout loans to 1.5 percentage points over market rates from between 2 percentage points to 3 percentage points currently.

At the same time, the European Central Bank and the national central banks in the countries that use the euro will forgo profits on their Greek debt holdings, again reducing the costs for Greece.

Several hurdles remain before Greece will see any of the money or other benefits of the new program.

Apart from the implementation of more than 30 different savings and reform measures by Greece, the new bailout has to be debated by parliaments in several member states, including Germany, the Netherlands and Finland.

The IMF also still has to decide how much of the €130 billion bill it is willing to stump up. The Washington-based fund had indicated its contribution will be lower than the one-third of the total it has provided in previous bailouts.

Lagarde, the IMF chief, said the fund's board would decide on its contribution in mid-March. It will consider the whole program, "but also additional matters such as the proper setting up of a decent firewall," she said.

The overall ceiling for eurozone rescue loans has been set at €500 billion ($663 billion), much of which has already been committed to Ireland, Portugal and now Greece.

Euro leaders will decide at their summit in early March whether that ceiling should be increased.

It will also take some time to see how many private creditors will participate in the debt relief and how many will have to be forced to sign up through new legal clauses. The representatives of the private bondholders said they were confident that investors would find the deal attractive, but some analysts fear that imposing losses on even some bondholders may destabilize markets.

McHugh reported from Frankfurt, Germany. Derek Gatopoulos and Elena Becatoros in Athens, Greece, Sarah di Lorenzo and Don Melvin in Brussels and AP Business Writer Paul Wiseman in Washington contributed to this report.

Rising Gas Prices

2012-02-21T15:02:00.002-05:00

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

Want Your Husband to Save Money? Move Near More Women

2012-02-20T02:23:00.002-05:00

Want Your Husband to Save Money? Move Near More Women - Current Rates, News and Information about Savings Accounts:

Are you looking for ways to get your husband to save money and make better decisions when it comes to money but just can’t figure out how? A new study may have the solution you’re looking for: Move near more women!

It seems that men make more responsible financial decisions when there are more women around. But why in the world would this be the case?

Scarcity of Women Impacts Men’s Financial Decisions

A study conducted in mid-January by the University of Minnesota’s Carlson School of Management revealed that men tend to borrow more, save less and make more impulsive decisions when they believe they outnumber women.

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The university researchers asked groups of men to read articles suggesting that their local population had either more women or men. Then they were asked to indicate how much money they would save each month from a paycheck, in addition to how much they would borrow on credit cards for purchases.

Interestingly, when the articles suggested there was a scarcity of women, the savings rate fell 42 percent and men were willing to borrow 84 percent more each month.

The study went on to provide a real-life example of men living in Columbus, Ga., where there are 1.18 single men for every single woman. It revealed the average consumer debt was $3,479 higher in Columbus than 100 miles away in Macon, Ga. where there seems to be a scarcity of men with 0.78 single males for every woman.

The researchers revealed that men undoubtedly spend more when there are other men around and spend considerably less when they are outnumbered by women. But why does gender contribute to this shift in spending and saving habits?

Impulsivity and Competition Drive Men to Spend More

A major contributing factor in a man’s desire to spend more when around other men was higher levels of testosterone, impulsivity and overall competitiveness. Men work harder to impress when in each other’s presence.

According to the study, this natural tendency among men is so deep-rooted that commercials for male-oriented products featuring beautiful women could see greater success if they featured one woman surrounded by men.

So with the new revelations regarding men and money, what did the study learn in its comparison of men and women?

Interestingly enough, sex ratios don’t affect women’s financial decisions in the same way as they do men. However, the ratio of men to women does impact their expectations of how much men should spend on them.

After female study participants read an article stating that men outnumber them, women expected men to spend more on dinners, Valentine’s Day gifts and engagement rings.

How to Help Your Husband Save More

So now that you know men may have a greater tendency to save money when around more women, does this mean it’s time to uproot the family? Not at all. In fact, with the right savings plan, your husband can get on track no matter who he’s around:

Look at your expenses: As a couple, it’s important to take a good look at the amount you pay out for family expenses to determine where your money is distributed each month.
Set up a budget: Next, it’s a good idea to decide exactly how you want to spend your money bysetting up a family budget. In it, you can incorporate not only your monthly expenses, but rare expenditures and entertainment funds.
Open savings accounts: While most families open at least one checking account, some fail to open one or more savings accounts that instill discipline into savers due to account restrictions. As a family you can open various types of savings accounts including money market and certificate accounts, which offer less liquidity and offer higher returns.
Exercise discipline: As a team, it’s important to have each other’s backs when it comes to spending money. If one partner doesn’t have a great deal of discipline, it’s up to the other partner to encourage and push for the discipline necessary to spend responsibly as a couple.

As noted in the study, both men and women are driven by their natural impulses. Men become more competitive when in the presence of men and women expect greater security when in the presence of more men, which could affect the spending habits of both genders.

The study authors noted that, as human beings, we have the ability to override our natural impulses when in the presence of one another, which means with a little discipline, your hubby can save money for the family without you first selling your home and moving to a city with a large quantity of women.

China to overtake India as top gold buyer, says WGC

2012-02-19T02:25:00.000-05:00

China to overtake India as top gold buyer, says WGC - Business Intelligence Middle East - bi-me.com - News, analysis, reports:

China is set to overtake India as the world's largest gold buyer this year as demand for the metal for jewellery and as a safe-haven investment surges, the World Gold Council said Thursday.

Global demand hit 4,067.1 tonnes in 2011 -- edging up 0.4 percent year-on-year -- worth an estimated US$205.5 billion, the first time demand has surpassed $200 billion, the WGC said in its latest annual report.

Gold prices rose to a record over US$1,920 an ounce in September on frenzied buying by individuals, investment funds and central banks in the aftermath of a US credit rating downgrade and plunging global equity markets.

Prices have slipped since but still hover around US$1,700 per ounce.

India, the largest gold consumer and importer, saw a 7.0% decline in demand year-on-year to 933.4 tonnes last year, while demand from China jumped 20.0 percent to 769.8 tonnes in the same period.

"There was a major boost to the overall demand from China, a trend we see continuing in the new year," said Marcus Grubb, WGC's investment managing director.

"It is likely that China will emerge as the largest gold market in the world for the first time in 2012."

India and China, which have been battled high inflation, combined account for more than half of the world's gold demand.

India, where gold is widely purchased for religious and ceremonial occasions, consumed less of the yellow metal in 2011 largely because of a weak rupee, which made imports of gold -- priced in dollars -- more expensive.

"The domestic currency fell precipitously in the second half of 2011, on foreign capital outflows. The rapid rise and fall in the rupee and resulting local gold price swings impacted gold buying," the report said.

India's gold demand was down 27.0% year-on-year in the second half of 2011.

The WGC said it expects global demand for gold to remain strong in 2012.

Despite the recent softening in demand, India is likely to record steady demand for gold this year, in-line with 2011 trends, analysts and the WGC said.

"The sentiment is likely to remain upbeat this year as inflation is moderating and various tax incentives are likely to support purchases," WGC's Middle East and India managing director Ajay Mitra told reporters.

Analyst Hareesh V. of research firm Geojit Comtrade expects India's gold demand to rise marginally by 2%-3% this year.

"India could consume close to 965 tonnes in 2012, with the rupee rising against the dollar and inflationary pressures easing, which would boost the import of gold," Hareesh said.

Best Way Out Of Poverty

2012-02-19T02:23:00.001-05:00

Best Way Out Of Poverty | The Manila Bulletin Newspaper Online:

The UNESCO-UNEVOC 2004 Bonn Declaration states that technical and vocational education/training is intended for poverty alleviation, promotion of peace, and environmental conservation in order to improve human quality of life and boost sustainable development. It is recognized that the principal route out of poverty is work, which can be had through education, specifically technical and vocational education that can generate employment and/or foster self-employment. This can be realized through entrepreneurship, sustainable livelihood, technical skills development, and advanced ICT skills.

On the regional level, the Colombo Plan, an organization of 26 countries, performs the aforementioned tasks through its Staff College by way of assisting third-world countries in the Asia Pacific region develop and enhance their technician education systems. The vision of the Colombo Plan Staff College (CPSC) “is to undertake capacity building program to improve the quality of technical and vocational education and training (TVET) systems.” One of its main functions is providing courses to enhance professional education and training of persons with key supporting roles for the development of TVET.

In our country, the government acknowledges that education is indeed the best way out of poverty. However, there are at least two major issues that confront the educational system: the increasing number of drop-outs at both the elementary and secondary levels and the rising unemployment rate due to the mismatch between industry needs and academic course offerings. Moreover, there is the existing bias against technical and vocational education and blue collar jobs.

For this reason, Republic Act 7796, the Technical Education and Skills Development Act, was promulgated in 1994. Thus, the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) came into being. It integrated the former Manpower and Youth Council (NMYC), Bureau of Technical and Vocational Education (BTVE) of the Department of Education and Apprenticeship Program of the Department of Labor and Employment. The law mandates TESDA to establish and maintain a system of accrediting, coordinating, integrating, monitoring and evaluating the different technical-vocational educational and training programs. In 2009, there were 3,825 TVET providers around the country and 14,627 TESDA-registered programs.

With the intention of popularizing technical-vocational education, the Strengthened Technical-Vocational Education Program (STVEP), initiated by the Tech-Voc Task Force, was launched in SY 2007-2008, pursuant to the Education for All global movement, the Philippine Millennium Goals, the Medium Term Philippine Development Plan, and the 10-point agenda of the government.

Be that as it may, there are very few institutions which offer quality technical-vocational courses. Three of the more prestigious and in-demand courses are those offered by the MFI Foundation (formerly Meralco Foundation), Don Bosco Technical College, and Dualtech Training Center Foundation, Inc.

MFI Foundation’s flagship program is the Industrial Technician Program (ITP), a post-secondary certificate program which equips students with appropriate knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to be highly competent technicians. ITP has various areas of specialization such as electrical technology, electronics technology, instrumentation technology, tool and die technology, and information technology. It also offers two-year certificate courses in automotive and motorcycle technology, industrial mechatronics technology, refrigeration and air-conditioning technology and network administration technology.

The Don Bosco Technical College (DBTC) offers technical-vocational training for out-of-school male youth. Its Manpower Skills Training Center, the umbrella of technical education and manpower skills of DBTC, offers a 15-month technical-vocational training and certificate course consisting of a 10-month “in-service” training and a 5-month supervised “in-plant” training. It offers four courses namely, fitter machinist, general electrician, refrigeration and air-conditioning mechanic and industrial electronics.

Dualtech Training Center Foundation, Inc. (DTCFI) or Dualtech started in Manila in 1982. It provides technical-vocational training to low-income groups, particularly unskilled workers, underprivileged high school graduates, and deserving out-of-school youths. Its sole training course, Electromechanics Technology (Maintenance Skills Training), which runs for 24 months has been jointly developed and implemented by Dualtech and partner companies. The first six months are spent in training centers while the next 18 months are spent alternately, one day in the center and five days in the factory. The course covers basic skills (measuring, technical drawing, basic electronics, industrial safety, computer literacy), advanced skills (industrial motors, digital electronics, pneumatic controls, sensor technology, refrigeration and air conditioning), and values formation (study and work habits, basic Christian doctrine, and personal development).

All the aforementioned schools cater to applicants who are poor but deserving. They must be Filipino citizens, 17-22 years old, high school graduates, physically and mentally fit and with an annual family income of not more than R120,000 based on ITR or tax exemption certificate. They are required to present their high school card, birth certificate, and they must pass the written and oral examinations.

Many technical-vocational schools offer popular courses such as care giving, home care aide, practical nursing, language training, cosmetology, dressmaking, computer secretarial, computer repair and servicing, paralegal practice, and many others. However, there are less popular but challenging, interesting, and practical short courses of six-month to three-year duration offered in Metro Manila schools, which award training certificates upon completion of the course and which interested students and out-of-school youth can enrol in. These can be classified into the following categories: technical (welding, drafting, crane operation, pipe installing, ship yard welding, air craft maintenance technician, footwear manufacturing technician, consumer electronics technician, refrigeration and air conditioning technician); health and allied medical profession (dental hygiene, alternative medicine, pharmacy technician, dental laboratory technician, chiropractic, child and babysitting safety); food and hotel (housekeeping, room attendant, fundamental professional baking and pastry, catering management, food technology, hot kitchen cooking, barista); finance and business (financial accounting, bookkeeping, grassroots entrepreneurship, business office technology for women, travel technician); and technology (animation, jewellery, souvenir making).

This point of view should counteract the common belief that a college diploma guarantees employment. On the contrary. There is an influx of graduates every year who end up being unemployed. Courses are usually forced on students by their parents and the choice is based on current trends. A very good example is Nursing. Due to the desire of many to go abroad and improve their lives, thousands upon thousands of students apply to the course without thinking if the demand will still be there by the time they graduate. The result is that 700,000 nursing graduates are jobless now.

The need for technical-vocational education should be emphasized, intensified, and extensively promoted. Proper dissemination to the public should be done to stop the proliferation of unemployed college degree holders and to start underscoring and appreciating the advantages of technical-vocational courses.

Technical vocation is not only in demand in the market today. It also encourages entrepreneurship and enhances livelihood opportunities in individuals. With proper orientation and facilitation, reinforcing technical-vocational courses will be beneficial to the Filipino masses.

Kudos to the Department of Education for recognizing this need and incorporating it in the K to 12 program. It is a good start to bring awareness of the benefits, specifically economic growth, that technical-vocational courses will bring to the country in general and to the individual Filipino in particular. But the drive should be sustained with unrelenting commitment.

Oil mixed but up on week eyeing Iran, Greece

2012-02-19T02:22:00.000-05:00

Oil mixed but up on week eyeing Iran, Greece - Reuters -:

Brent crude oil ended lower on Friday as investors booked profits after gaining for four straight days and hitting overbought conditions as it topped USD 120 a barrel.

But Brent crude posted its fourth consecutive weekly gain, with prices elevated due to fears of supply disruptions in Iran and rising confidence that Greece will finally secure a debt bailout deal by Monday.

US crude rose for the third consecutive day, ending at the highest level in nine months, and chalking up its second straight week of gains.

A slew of recent upbeat economic data has helped US crude advance, although a report on Thursday that US consumer prices rose the most in four months in January due to a spike in gasoline prices raised concerns that higher energy costs could slow the economic recovery.

In London, ICE Brent crude for April delivery settled at USD 119.58 a barrel, falling 53 cents, or 0.44%, after hitting a session high of USD 120.70, the highest since June 15.

For the week, Brent crude rose USD 2.27, or 1.94%, extending gains to the fourth week in a row.

US crude for March delivery settled at USD 103.24 a barrel, gaining 93 cents, or 0.91%, topping the USD 103.22 close from January 4 and posting the highest finish since front-month crude ended at USD 103.88 on May 10.

For the week, US crude ended up USD 4.57, or 4.6%. That marked its best performance since the week to December 23, when front-month prices ended up USD 6.15, or 6.58%.

In post-settlement trading, March crude extended the day's high, hitting USD 104.14, up USD 1.83, the priciest for front-month US crude since the May 11, 2011 intraday high of USD 104.60. March crude expires on Tuesday.

April Brent's premium against its US counterpart contract narrowed sharply to USD 15.98 at the close, from USD 17.47 on Thursday.

Brent crude's Relative Strength Index (RSI) fell back to 70, from 73.6 on Thursday, according to Reuters data. A reading of 70 is the threshold for overbought conditions.

US crude rose, latching on the movement in equities, some analysts said.

"While today's leading indicators and CPI data didn't present any major surprises, they also weren't sufficient to stall the recent upward acceleration equity trends," said Jim Ritterbusch, president of Ritterbusch & Associates in Galena, Illinois.

"Ongoing efforts to replace Iranian barrels during the coming months could keep the front of the Brent curve expanding," he said. And, delays in North Seas oil cargo will also be supportive to Brent, he added.

Brent's total volume was 515,681 contracts, 5.5% below its 30-day average while US crude's volume was 751,649 contracts, 10.3% above its 30-day average, according to Reuters data.

"On the technical side, WTI (West Texas Intermediary crude) has held its ground, providing minor dips all week long (and) there has been good call spread buying all week long, providing for an upward bias," said Tony Rosado, options broker with GA Global Markets in New York.

Floor trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange will be closed on Monday in observance of the Presidents Day holiday.

The weekly US inventory reports will be delayed a day due to the holiday. Data from the American Petroleum Institute will be released on Wednesday, at 4:30 pm EST (2130 GMT) and the report from the US Energy Information Administration will be issued on Thursday at 11 am EST (1600 GMT).

IRAN TENSION, GREEK OUTLOOK

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, accused by the West of pursuing a nuclear weapons program, said in Pakistan that foreign nations were determined to dominate the region and that this should not be allowed.

Ahmadinejad's remarks follows a string of belligerent comments from Iranian officials raising threats that Iran would retaliate in the wake of sanctions the West has imposed on Tehran due to its disputed nuclear program.

Iran, however, has sent a letter to European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton signalling willingness to resume nuclear talks with world powers that have been frozen since January last year. The United States and EU expressed cautious optimism, but emphasized any new negotiations must be sustained and focused on the nuclear issue.

Iran's top oil customers in Europe are already making substantial cuts in imports ahead of EU sanctions that take effect in July, reducing flows to the continent in March by more than a third, industry sources said.

This has increased demand for replacement barrels from Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Russia, leading to higher prices, although there is no shortage of actual supply.

Meanwhile, Greece edged closer to winning a second rescue package worth 130 billion euros as officials in Athens said Germany was optimistic a deal could be struck despite misgivings over whether Greece would stick to its commitments.

Euro zone finance ministers are due to meet on Monday, and expectations that they will sign off a bailout deal for Greece increased after a proposal was dropped to withhold part of the agreement until after Greek elections expected in April.

Prices were also supported by more evidence of sustained recovery momentum in the US economy. US data on Thursday showed jobless claims falling to a near four-year low, solid growth in factory activity in the Mid-Atlantic area and a faster-than-expected rise in housing starts.

32 stand trial over Iran's biggest bank fraud

2012-02-18T17:15:00.000-05:00

32 stand trial over Iran's biggest bank fraud - World news - Mideast/N. Africa - Iran - msnbc.com:

A Tehran court began hearing the trial of 32 defendants Saturday in a $2.6 billion bank fraud case described as the biggest financial scam in the country's history, state TV reported.

The charges involve the use of forged documents to get credit at one of Iran's top financial institutions to purchase assets, including major state-owned companies.The capital's chief prosecutor, Abbas Jafari Dowlatabadi, read the text of the indictment against the 32 accused, who wore prison uniforms at the opening session at the Revolutionary Court, which deals with cases involving security and organized crime.

Iran's judiciary has banned media from identifying the defendants by their full names. The primary defendant is referred to in reports by his nickname, "Amir Mansour Aria," and he is described in the Iranian media as the head of a sprawling business empire.

State TV's website quote the indictment as saying the owners of the Aria Investment Development Company used "incorrect connections with executive and political elements" to accrue wealth.

"Dozens of instances of bribe payments to staff and managers of banks have taken place under various titles," it said.

The indictment also said company managers undermined the country's economic security through engaging in organized fraud and paying large amounts of bribes to illegally accumulate several billion dollars.

State TV said the top defendant has been charged with being "corrupt on earth," an Iranian legal term meaning that the defendant is an enemy of God. The charge carries the death penalty."Not only did they prevent the progress and the increase of production and national wealth, they inflicted damage to people's trust and healthy economic activity," the indictment said.

Aria pleaded not guilty, but acknowledged that he has violated some laws.

"Some violations were committed and all that was on my order," TV's website quoted him as telling the court. "I had no intention of committing treason against the country and the (ruling) system. If I wanted to do so, I would have taken the money out of the country."

Mahmoud Reza Khavari, the former head of Iran's Bank Melli and one of the suspects in the case, has left Iran and now reportedly lives in Canada.

State TV said Judge Nasser Seraj must go through 12,000 pages of documents before he can issue a verdict in the high-profile case.

Aria's business empire reportedly includes more than 35 companies whose activities range from mineral water production to a football club and meat imports from Brazil.

The first details of the case became public in September.

Mentoring Women Business Owners

2012-02-17T21:32:00.000-05:00

Sanofi - Mentoring Women Business Owners | 3BL Media:

Owning a small business in today’s economy requires perseverance, savvy and optimism – with guidance from a trusted source an added plus. This is especially true for women, who are underrepresented among small business owners. To provide such guidance, Sanofi US and several other corporations have been participating in the 2011 Corporate Supplier Diversity Mentoring Initiative with the New Jersey Association of Women Business Owners.

The program benefits both women small business owners and the companies: It is designed to advance the development of women-owned businesses and introduce companies to these female entrepreneurs, increasing their business diversity. In January, after a half-dozen formal mentoring sessions and upon conclusion of the pilot, Sanofi US hosted a wrap-up meeting at 55 Corporate Drive for all the participants.

Each participating company hosted a mentoring session, during which the women who were mentored practiced 30-second elevator pitches (brief presentations about themselves and their business), received training on business and supply chain-related topics and attended information sessions about the host company.

“This program provided women small business owners an opportunity to network with each other and to interact with Sanofi US and the other corporate participants,” says Kathleen Castore, Manager, Corporate Initiatives, who served as the mentor during the program. “It also provided them with leadership training, business education and Request for Proposal (RFP) response training.”

Among the reasons for our involvement in the mentoring program were to gain a more diverse supply chain and possibly do business with a mentoree’s company, as well as to promote innovation and entrepreneurship among the women small business owners. “We have had a great opportunity to mentor and work with some dynamic, diverse, innovative, professional and creative women through this process. Developing and increasing their skills and capacity will lead to future women-owned suppliers we may be able to incorporate into our supply chain,” says Kathleen.

The Final Training Meeting at 55 Corporate Drive
During the mentoring program’s last meeting, Christophe Cailleaud, Vice President, Head of North America Procurement, welcomed the group with opening remarks. He followed up with an informal discussion on how Sanofi US can further understand and assist small women-owned businesses in the challenges they face, particularly in navigating a large corporation’s stringent strategic sourcing process.

Christophe also confirmed the company’s continued support for the New Jersey Association of Women Business Owners and the mentoring initiative. “Considering the ups and downs of the economy, fast-paced changes in technology and the unique challenges women business owners face today, our mission to encourage women's economic independence through business ownership is more important than ever before,” he said.

Police can monitor file download histories

2012-02-17T09:01:00.000-05:00

SOCA: Police can monitor file download histories | Security Management | ZDNet UK:

On Wednesday evening, SOCA hailed the success of an operation against music blog RnBXclusive, which provided links to illegal music downloads. The agency took down the site on Tuesday, posting in its place a warning to people using the site for downloads that they could face up to 10 years in jail.

The Serious Organised Crime Agency put this notice on the RnBXclusive website for around 32 hours after the website was taken down.

One of the measures of the campaign's success, SOCA said in its statement on Wednesday, is that "a number of site users have deleted their download histories".

RnBXclusive did not host the music files itself, instead directing people to cyberlocker services similar to Megaupload, going by captures of the blog on the Way Back Machine archive. Asked for an explanation of how SOCA could monitor downloads, given these are not available via the blog's site, the agency confirmed it is tracking individual people's actions.

SOCA's investigative team "has been monitoring activities [of] users of the site", a spokesman for the agency told ZDNet UK.

He declined to comment further, saying that to go into SOCA's "techniques and methodology" could hinder the investigation.

Legality questioned

Cybersecurity expert Peter Sommer said the legality of SOCA's monitoring depends on the methods it is using. The UK police have regional units that use hacking as one way of surveilling suspects.

Read this

Megaupload takedown shows need for fresh debate

"One can only speculate, but there are only two ways one can think of in which they would know that download histories had been deleted," Sommer told ZDNet UK. "The first would involve them having seized the suspect's computer and carried out a forensic inspection, which would be legal."

"The second would be by remotely hacking into a suspect's computer," Sommer continued. "If they do that, there is a considerable likelihood that it would be illegal because the law enforcement exemption in the Computer Misuse Act does not apply to the use of a Trojan for remote hacking."

In the UK, copyright enforcement laws allow rights holders to get a court order forcing ISPs to block access to copyright-infringing sites hosted overseas, as was the case with RnBXclusive. However, the RnBXclusive takedown was carried out under conspiracy-to-defraud laws, rather than copyright enforcement laws.

"All action taken in this case was done after due and careful consideration with respect to the legal position of [SOCA's] actions," the police agency's spokesman said, when asked whether Tuesday's takedown had followed due process.

All action taken in this case was done after due and careful consideration with respect to the legal position of [SOCA's] actions.
– SOCA

He added that RnBXclusive "enabled access to music obtained by hacking, including some which had not yet been released". The site had 70,000 visitors daily, mainly men between 18 and 25 years old, in the week before the arrest, according to SOCA.

The spokesman declined to comment on whether users of other download-related sites were also being monitored.

Three more music sites have shut up shop or gone legal since the RnBXclusive takedown and arrest of its proprietor, according to SOCA, which said it had "monitored responses" to its action. The agency's spokesman declined to name the three sites.

"One has taken itself offline voluntarily, one claims to be considering taking itself offline, and another has posted a claim on its home page to now only be dealing in legal music files following the activity," SOCA said in its statement.

Industry warning

The message posted by SOCA on RnBXclusive's site said that "as a result of illegal downloads young, emerging artists may have had their careers damaged", and that "if you have illegally downloaded music you will have damaged the future of the music industry". The content of this warning was influenced by representatives of rights holders, according to the police agency's spokesman.

That message has now been taken down, having been up for around 32 hours as part of what SOCA described as "the first phase of the operation". This operation is entirely connected to RnBXclusive, rather than referring to future, similar campaigns, the agency's spokesman explained. He also clarified that the 10-year-sentence threat in the message was made under the Criminal Justice Act 1987."It was written by SOCA, but we did have input from industry," he said.

"[Rights-holder group] IFPI estimates losses to legitimate businesses and artists caused by the site to be £15m a year," SOCA said in its statement.

In response, digital rights campaigner Peter Bradwell said collaboration between UK law enforcement agencies and rights holders needs to be more transparent.

This is at best a distraction for an organisation who should be dealing with serious, material threats.
– Peter Bradwell, Open Rights Group

"This whole episode seems to be a kind of scarecrow operation. SOCA should not be using threats simply to scare users, almost all of whom have no reason to fear jail. This is at best a distraction for an organisation who should be dealing with serious, material threats," said Open Rights Group member Bradwell.

David Allen Green, head of the media practice at law firm Preiskel & Co, also questioned why the agency is taking part in what is effectively a copyright enforcement case.

"It is not clear why SOCA are involved, and it seems odd that they are using a Heath Robinson combination of contract and conspiracy law," Green said. "The alarmist web page they have used to replace the site taken down is preposterous and makes SOCA look frankly ridiculous."

Whitney Houston Death: Music Industry Pays Tribute : People.com

2012-02-12T22:10:00.000-05:00

Whitney Houston Death: Music Industry Pays Tribute : People.com:

Cover of Whitney Houston

The loss of a legend on the eve of Sunday's Grammys has brought a message of condolence from the Recording Academy.

"Six-time Grammy winner Whitney Houston was one of the world's greatest pop singers of all time who leaves behind a robust musical soundtrack spanning the past three decades," Neil Portnow, president and CEO of The Recording Academy, which presents the annualGrammy Awards, said in a statement Saturday.

"Her powerful voice graced many memorable and award-winning songs."

Portnow goes on to say, "A light has been dimmed in our music community today, and we extend our deepest condolences to her family, friends, fans and all who have been touched by her beautiful voice."

The celebrated actress-singer, 48, was due to perform at music mogul Clive Davis's annual pre-Grammy party at the Beverly Hilton Saturday night. At this time, Beverly Hills Police Lieutenant Mark Rosen tells PEOPLE that there was no evidence of obvious foul play or cause of death determined.

Fellow singers, such as Mariah Carey and Christina Aguilera, also expressedtheir sorrow over the loss.

"Heartbroken and in tears over the shocking death of my friend, the incomparable Ms. Whitney Houston," Carey Tweeted. "She will never be forgotten as one of the greatest voices to ever grace the earth."

U.S. drone strike kills Al Qaeda-linked militant leader in Pakistan

2012-02-10T13:10:00.001-05:00

U.S. drone strike kills Al Qaeda-linked militant leader in Pakistan - latimes.com:

An apparent U.S. drone strike early Thursday in northwest Pakistan killed a top Pakistani Taliban commander also serving as a key Al Qaeda operative, local officials said.

The death of Badar Mansoor, 35, comes as the U.S. steps up its pace of drone missile strikes following a six-week hiatus after an American airstrike accidentally killed Pakistani soldiers near the Afghan border in November.

The predawn strike occurred in North Waziristan, the volatile tribal region that serves as sanctuary for several militant groups, including the Pakistani Taliban and the wing of the Afghan Taliban known as the Haqqani network. The blast hit Mansoor’s compound near a cattle market in Miram Shah, North Waziristan’s largest town.

Pakistani intelligence sources described Mansoor as an Al Qaeda operative who also led a faction of the Pakistani Taliban, the country’s homegrown insurgency. He was believed to be from Punjab, Pakistan’s most populous province, and was responsible for bringing scores of Punjabi militants to Taliban camps in North Waziristan.

The strike was the second in North Waziristan in a week. A U.S. missile attack Wednesday on a hideout belonging to militants loyal to Mansoor killed 10 militants in the village of Spelga, local officials said.

The step-up in drone strikes comes as tension between Washington and Islamabad has been easing in the aftermath of errant U.S. airstrikes Nov. 26 that killed 24 Pakistani soldiers.

A Pentagon investigation concluded that U.S. forces acted in self-defense after a U.S. special operations unit scouring an Afghan village for militants and weapons caches came under heavy machine gun fire and mortar shelling from a ridge line where Pakistani army outposts were located.

Pakistani military officials told U.S. commanders that their posts were being fired on, but U.S. reliance on wrong mapping information contributed to a misunderstanding by American forces about the actual location of the Pakistani soldiers, the investigation concluded. Firing on the Pakistani border posts continued for more than 90 minutes.

The airstrike infuriated Pakistani leaders, who retaliated by shutting down border crossings used by convoys delivering supplies to NATO forces in Afghanistan, and ordering the U.S. to vacate an air base in southern Pakistan that in the past has been suspected as being involved with CIA drone attacks.

The incident further damaged ties between the U.S. and Pakistan at a time when Islamabad is needed to help broker peace talks with Afghan Taliban insurgents that use Pakistan’s tribal border region as sanctuary.

The U.S. halted drone strikes on suspected militant strongholds in the tribal areas for six weeks, and resumed the missile campaign Jan. 11. That attack in North Waziristan killed a top Al Qaeda planner, Aslam Awan, and since then Washington has carried out several drone strikes in the tribal region.

Pakistani officials have signaled that they may soon reopen the country’s border crossings used by NATO convoys.

In another sign that tensions between the two countries are easing, U.S. Gen. James Mattis, commander of U.S. Central Command, is reportedly scheduled to meet with Pakistani army chief Gen. Ashfaq Kayani later this month to discuss the Nov. 26 border incident. The meeting would mark the first visit by a high-ranking U.S. official since the deaths of the Pakistani soldiers.

World Trade Center cost up to $14.8B, audit says “dysfunctional” agency not controlling costs - The Washington Post

2012-02-08T00:42:00.000-05:00

World Trade Center cost up to $14.8B, audit says “dysfunctional” agency not controlling costs - The Washington Post:

The agency that is building the new World Trade Center is “dysfunctional” and has let costs get out of control on the $14.8 billion project, auditors said Tuesday.

The projected cost of the complex has risen $3.8 billion since 2008, when it was estimated at $11 billion, Navigant Consulting, Inc., said in its audit of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey.

Third parties have promised to reimburse the Port Authority for much of the construction, but the agency’s remaining bill is still expected to reach $7.7 billion, up 28 percent from the last estimate of $6 billion, auditors said.

The audit was ordered by the governors of New York and New Jersey. It strongly criticized the Port Authority, which also runs New York area airports, seaports and Hudson River crossings.

The Port Authority is “a challenged and dysfunctional organization suffering from a lack of consistent leadership, a siloed underlying bureaucracy, poorly coordinated capital planning processes, insufficient cost controls, and a lack of transparent and effective oversight of the World Trade Center program that has obscured full awareness of billions of dollars in exposure to the Port Authority,” auditors wrote.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie called the increase “staggering” in a joint statement.

“This record of historic failure must be reversed,” they said.

Scott Rechler, vice chairman of the Port Authority’s Board of Commissioners, said costs went up after the Port Authority stepped in to manage delayed projects that were being built by third parties, including the 9/11 memorial and a performing arts center.

“We got the memorial open by its 10-year anniversary, and I think it’s something we were all very proud of and proud of how it turned out,” Rechler said. “But now we’re at a crossroads and we have to take a step back and focus on where we are from a cost standpoint.”

The authority’s new director, Patrick Foye, said Tuesday the agency was taking the findings seriously and would begin an overhaul of the agency’s structure. Administrators were already considering one of the auditors’ recommendations, putting capital spending decisions in the hands of one person, he said.

“Recommendations like that are going to be very helpful in maximizing the value of every dollar we spend at the World Trade Center and every other capital project in the port’s portfolio,” Foye said.

The agency’s debt has risen from $9.1 billion in 2001 to $19.5 billion, auditors said. The Port Authority receives no tax money, so those funds will have to be paid off through airport surcharges, bridge and tunnel tolls, port fees and rent from the agency’s other properties.

Cuomo and Christie ordered the review after the agency’s board voted to raise bridge and tunnel tolls in August.

The Port Authority has lost millions of dollars in revenue because of lower traffic at its ports, airports and river crossings due to the economy.

Meanwhile, the World Trade Center has suffered a number of construction setbacks.

The company that is laying steel for One World Trade Center, the signature tower, has run into financial problems, and the Port Authority has stepped in to pay some of its bills. A mistake in the design means the Port Authority will have to spend millions of dollars on temporary loading docks for the building. And the builders of the 9/11 museum are fighting with the agency over infrastructure costs.

The 104-story One World Trade Center is now 90 stories high, but the pace of construction has slowed. Foye has blamed winter weather and says it is still on schedule to open in late 2013.

The World Trade Center plan calls for five office towers, a 9/11 museum, the 9/11 memorial, a large subway station and a performing arts center.

But construction of Two World Trade Center, the second-tallest building in the complex at 88 stories, has been postponed because of a lack of tenants.

Three World Trade Center, which was supposed to be 80 stories high, is under construction but has also struggled to find tenants. Developer Larry Silverstein has said he may have to cap the building at seven stories if he cannot get more companies to move in.

Silverstein’s company also owns two other buildings on the site, Four World Trade Center and the already-completed Seven World Trade Center.

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