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Malaysian Islamic party urges Beyonce concert ban

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 04:25:00 +0000

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - Malaysia's conservative Islamic party called Sunday for a concert by US singer Beyonce to be banned, two years after her debut here was shelved over fears of protests by Muslim groups.

The R&B star is due to perform on October 25 at the Bukit Jalil national stadium just outside the capital, organiser Marctensia said on its website.

The Pan-Malaysian Islamic party (PAS) has campaigned against several foreign performers and in 2007, along with other Muslim groups, threatened protests that forced Beyonce to scrap her planned debut concert in Malaysia.

"We oppose the holding of such concerts and we will take action to prevent such a concert from taking place in Malaysia," PAS youth chief Nasrudin Tantawi told AFP, without specifying what action would be taken.

"This performance is not suitable for Muslims as her skimpy attire and behaviour onstage are immoral and lead to unclean behaviour," he said.

The scheduled concert is part of Beyonce's "I am..." world tour, which has seen her perform in North America and Europe, the website said. The promoters could not be reached for comment.

Performances by foreign artists frequently come under fire in Malaysia, particularly from PAS.

The Islamic party called for Danish band Michael Learns to Rock to be banned from performing earlier this month, saying it was an insult to Muslims during the fasting month of Ramadan. The group managed to perform without incident.

It also held protests against Canadian rocker Avril Lavigne's concert last year after failing to have it banned, saying her performance would weaken the younger generation "morally and mentally."

A performance by Gwen Stefani was also targeted, and although the event went ahead she was forced to cover up after complaints about her skimpy outfits.

source : ca.news.yahoo.com

"30 Rock" and "Mad Men" out to defend Emmy trophies

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 04:17:00 +0000

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Will the "Mad Men" of television score a second Emmy best drama victory and can anyone stop comic actress Tina Fey and "30 Rock"?

The U.S. television industry bestows its highest honors on Sunday at the 61st Prime Time Emmy Awards in a ceremony hosted by actor Neil Patrick Harris that is expected to be dominated by two very different shows.

NBC's self-parody of network TV, "30 Rock", goes into Sunday with a leading 22 nominations, including best comedy, best comic actress for Fey -- its star and creator -- and best comedy actor for Alec Baldwin, who all won Emmys last year.

"Mad Men", the AMC series set in the 1960s advertising industry, has 16 nominations and is favored to repeat its win last year, when it became the first series from a cable network other than HBO to win the Emmy for best drama.

"I think we will definitely see repeats of the best drama and comedy winners of last year, and we risk seeing repeats of all of the top winners for the first time in Emmy history," said Tom O'Neil of awards web site www.theenvelope.com.

"There's going to be a lot of outcry if that happens and unjustifiably so, because if these shows deserve to win, they should. But people want fresh new things," he said.

FRESH FACES

The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences expanded the number of nominees this year in a bid to acknowledge the range of offerings on more than 120 network and cable channels available to American viewers.

The move brought in fresh faces like Fox's irreverent cartoon series "Family Guy," HBO's polygamy drama "Big Love" and actor Jim Parsons of the CBS comedy "The Big Bang Theory".

But O'Neil said Glenn Close looked unstoppable in her bid to repeat her best drama actress win for the FX legal series "Damages" despite challenges from Elisabeth Moss ("Mad Men), Sally Field ("Brothers & Sisters"), Kyra Sedgwick in "The Closer", Mariska Hargitay in crowd-pleaser "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit" and Holly Hunter in "Saving Grace."

The race looks tighter for best drama actor, with Hugh Laurie's grouchy doctor in the Fox medical series "House" posing the strongest challenge to last year's surprise winner Bryan Cranston, who plays a drug-dealing teacher in AMC's "Breaking Bad".

"Many (Emmy) voters may ... keep in mind that Hugh Laurie is way overdue for an Emmy win, and this year might be the perfect time to do so," said Rob Licuria of www.awardsheaven.net.

Jon Hamm's dapper ad executive on "Mad Men," "In Treatment" therapist Gabriel Byrne, Michael C. Hall's serial killer in "Dexter," and Australian Simon Baker of "The Mentalist" are also in the running for best actor in a drama.

There could also be surprises in the best variety or comedy category, which has been dominated in recent years by Jon Stewart's "The Daily Show" on Comedy Central

Industry watchers said Emmy voters may tip their hat this year to NBC's "Saturday Night Live," which more than doubled its audiences last fall with its presidential campaign skits.

In the technical portion of the Emmys last week, Fey picked up a trophy for her uncanny impersonations of ex-Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin, while singer Justin Timberlake was honored for playing various characters on "SNL".

Reality competition shows have had their own category for six years, but the Emmy has gone each time to "The Amazing Race" on CBS. Rivals this year include "American Idol," "Dancing with the Stars," "Top Chef" and "Project Runway."

HBO is a unit of Time Warner Inc. ABC is owned by the Walt Disney Co; NBC is a division of the NBC Universal unit of General Electric Co; Fox and FX are part of News Corp. CBS is part of CBS Corp; AMC is owned by Cablevision Systems Corp.

(Editing by Xavier Briand)

WHO warns of major shortfall in swine flu vaccine

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 04:08:00 +0000

Indian nurses wear protective masks in Hyderabad on September 17. Production of swine flu vaccines...

GENEVA (AFP) - Production of swine flu vaccines will fall "substantially" short of the amount needed to protect the global population, the World Health Organisation warned Friday as the pandemic death toll rose.

"Current supplies of pandemic vaccine are inadequate for a world population in which virtually everyone is susceptible to infection by a new and readily contagious virus," WHO director general Margaret Chan said in a statement.

Despite new evidence that only one dose of the vaccines currently being tested will be enough for most people, WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl said output next year will be "substantially less" than the 4.9 billion doses annual production forecast.

Some 25 pharmaceutical laboratories working on vaccines have indicated that weekly production is lower than 94 million doses, he said.

In May, the WHO had forecast a weekly output of 94.3 million doses if full scale vaccine production was launched.

But pharmaceutical companies have in recent weeks slashed their production expectations due to poorer than expected yields from the so-called "seed virus" strains developed by WHO-approved laboratories.

Amid growing fears that poorer nations will not get enough vaccines, the United States led nine countries which on Thursday pledged to make 10 percent of their swine flu vaccine supply available to other nations in need.

The UN health agency's chief applauded the move by the United States, Australia, Brazil, Britain, France, Italy, New Zealand, Norway and Switzerland.

"Given that current demand outstrips supply, these donations, together with the doses pledged by manufacturers, will help increase supplies of pandemic vaccines to populations that would otherwise not have access," said Chan.

Swine flu cases are expected to increase as the Northern Hemisphere enters its winter season. Britain has already reported a new surge in caseload.

The WHO also announced Friday that the global flu death toll has reached 3,486, up 281 from a week ago.

The UN agency said the Americas region still has the highest death toll, at 2,625. The Asia-Pacific reported 620 fatalities, while Europe recorded at least 140 deaths. In the Middle East, 61 people succumbed to the virus while in Africa, 40 people have died from it.

The WHO also said flu activity was "above the seasonal baseline" in the United States and that it has reached epidemic levels in France and Japan.

Transmission is rife in central and south America and Asia, it added, while in temperate regions of the Southern Hemisphere, such as Australia and South Africa, flu activity is declining.

Experts have previously predicted that about one third of the world's population of more than 6.5 billion people could be affected by A(H1N1). But they stress that so far most victims are suffering only mild symptoms.

Obama: racism not at root of criticism

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 04:08:00 +0000

A White House photo of President Barack Obama during an interview with George Stephanopoulos of...

WASHINGTON (AFP) - US President Barack Obama does not think racism is "the overriding issue" in the fierce debate on health care but said in interviews to be aired Sunday that tempers were rising over the proper role of government.

"Are there people out there who don't like me because of race? I'm sure there are. That's not the overriding issue here," Obama insisted in an excerpt of an interview to be broadcast on the CNN show "State of the Union."

The US leader, in a media blitz to shore up popular support for health care reform, is taking to five major Sunday news programs after commandeering prime-time television earlier this month with a major address to Congress on the issue.

Obama has been forced to weigh in on the controversial issue of race after former president Jimmy Carter claimed racism was driving demonstrations and rhetoric on the president's health care reform plans and spending policy.

The "overwhelming part" of the American population is much more concerned with how health care reform will affect them, Obama stressed, according to an interview excerpt released by ABC News' "This Week" program.

The "biggest driver" for the intense opposition to his administration's proposals, Obama told the network, is likely from people who are "passionate about the idea of whether government can do anything right."

The president similarly told NBC's "Meet the Press" that it is an argument "that's gone on for the history of this republic -- and that is, what's the right role of government? How do we balance freedom with our need to look after one another?"

There has been a long-standing debate in the United States on big power plays from the White House, Obama told CNN, which is "usually that much more fierce during times of transition or when presidents are trying to bring about big changes."

The vitriolic attacks of the 1930s on then US president Franklin Roosevelt "are pretty similar to the things that are said about me -- he was a communist, he was a socialist," Obama said according to a CNN exerpt.

On the CBS show "Face the Nation," Obama said he thought that "health care has become a proxy for a broader set of issues about how much government should be involved in our economy.

"Even though we're having a passionate disagreement here, we can be civil with each other, and we can try to express ourselves acknowledging that we're all patriots, we're all Americans, and not assume the absolute worst in people's motives."

Obama's spokesman Robert Gibbs moved this week to calm temperatures after Carter said much of the criticism leveled at Obama, America's first black president, was the result of racism.

"The president does not believe that the criticism comes based on the color of his skin," Gibbs said.

In an interview with NBC on Tuesday, 84-year-old Carter had said he thought that "an overwhelming proportion of the intensely demonstrated animosity toward President Barack Obama is based on the fact that he is a black man, he's African-American."

The debate exploded after Republican lawmaker Joe Wilson veered from normal US political etiquette shouting "You lie!" at the president during a speech to Congress, and when thousands protested against Obama administration policies in Washington.

Since then, a succession of Democratic lawmakers and political columnists have warned that the heckling and other overt signs of public disapproval not only foster a dangerous climate but also reflect underlying racial bias.

The top Republican in the US House of Representatives, John Boehner, this week dismissed the notion that race played a role in protests against Obama's health care plan and other policies.

"The outrage that we see in America has nothing to do with race. It has everything to do with the policies that he is promoting," Boehner told reporters on Thursday.

Since Obama swept to victory in elections last November there have been several incidents that have seized on Obama's race.

In December, a politician campaigning to be chairman of the Republican National Committee distributed a song titled "Barack the Magic Negro," sparking furious debate about race in American politics and the soul of the Republican party in the wake of its White House defeat.

source : ca.news.yahoo.com

Garza stops winless streak in Tampa Bay victory over Toronto

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 04:05:00 +0000

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. - It shouldn't come as a surprise that Matt Garza stopped a slump against Toronto.

Garza struck out 10 while ending a personal nine-game winless streak and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Blue Jays 4-0 on Saturday night.

"He always pitches great against us," Toronto manager Cito Gaston said. "We haven't beat him too many times."

Garza (8-10) allowed three hits over 7 1-3 innings in winning for the first time since beating Blue Jays ace Roy Halladay 4-2 on July 24. The right-hander is 3-5 - with all three victories coming against Toronto - over his past 15 starts.

"My record doesn't matter as long as we win," Garza said. "The last couple starts I've been on a roll."

Since joining the Rays last year, Garza is 6-2 against the Blue Jays. The right-hander is 3-0 this season when facing Toronto.

"He had movement on his pitches," Tampa Bay catcher Dioner Navarro said. "When he fell behind, he made pitches."

Toronto rookie Ricky Romero (12-9) lost for the fourth time in five starts, giving up four runs and seven hits in six innings.

"Just one bad inning," Gaston said. "After that he pitched well."

The Blue Jays are 4-13 against Tampa Bay this season.

"When you have streaks like that against teams, you try not to ask too many questions," Tampa Bay left-fielder Carl Crawford said. "You just try to keep the streak going."

The Rays scored four times in the first. Jason Bartlett walked and Carl Crawford, who stole second base in the eighth inning Friday night with Tampa Bay ahead 9-4, was hit on the right elbow by a Romero pitch.

"He wasn't throwing at him," Gaston said.

Crawford agreed.

"I just think it got away from him," Crawford said. "I don't think he was trying to hit me on purpose."

Evan Longoria then singled in Bartlett to give him 108 RBIs on the year. Ben Zobrist, Willy Aybar and Gabe Kapler also singled in a run before Romero struck out Navarro and Akinori Iwamura to end the inning.

Garza, who walked six, worked out of jams in the first and third to help Tampa Bay win for the fourth time in six games, including three in a row, following an 11-game skid. Russ Springer, Randy Choate and Dan Wheeler combined to finish the three-hitter.

"I'm really happy with the way the boys are playing," Rays manager Joe Maddon said. "There's a lot of energy and fight."

Navarro was briefly stunned, but remained in the game after being hit in the head by Adam Lind's back swing in the third.

NOTES: Rays 1B Carlos Pena (two broken fingers on left hand) has started light hand exercises and should have surgically inserted pins removed in about four weeks. "I'm happy with the way it's going," said Pena, who is expected to be ready for spring training. ... Blue Jays LHP Jesse Carlson served the final game of a three-game suspension stemming from a bench-clearing incident Tuesday against the New York Yankees. ... Five-time all-star Pedro Guerrero threw the ceremonial first pitch and also led fans in singing "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" during the seventh-inning stretch. ... There were 10 singles and no extra-base hits in the game.

source : ca.news.yahoo.com

Indonesia police say DNA confirms key militant dead

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 04:03:00 +0000

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Forensic tests on the DNA from the body of a man killed during a raid by Indonesian police this week confirm he was Noordin Mohammad Top, one of Asia's most wanted militants, police said on Saturday.

Malaysian-born Top, suspected mastermind of deadly suicide July bombings of the JW Marriott and Ritz-Carlton hotels in Jakarta, died on Thursday in a shootout during a raid on a house near Solo in Central Java.

"There is no doubt that he's Noordin M Top," national police spokesman Nanan Soekarna told a news conference.

Hours after the raid, police had identified Top based on fingerprint records held by Malaysian police, but Soekarna said on Saturday "the DNA also matches 100 percent."

The official also held up a photograph of Top's bearded face taken after his death to show the match with those on police file.

Top had eluded authorities for years. In a raid in Central Java last month some police initially thought they had killed the militant only to have forensic tests prove that wrong days later.

DNA results matched samples from three of Top's children from Cilacap in Central Java and Malaysia, said Brigadier General Eddy Saparwoko, head of Indonesia's disaster victim identification unit.

Top had a wife in Malaysia before he fled the country and also took at least one more wife while on the run in Indonesia.

Authorities planned to send Top's body to Malaysia soon and it would not be necessary for his family there to come to Indonesia, Soekarna said.

Indonesia, Southeast Asia's biggest economy and the world's most populous Muslim country, had been under intense pressure to capture or kill Top ahead of a planned visit by U.S. President Barack Obama in November.

Top, who set up a violent splinter group of regional militant network Jemaah Islamiah, was blamed for attacks in Bali and Jakarta that killed scores of Westerners and Indonesians.

(Reporting by Karima Anjani; Writing by Ed Davies, editing by Ron Popeski)

source : ca.news.yahoo.com

Taliban leader Mullah Omar takes aim at Obama

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 04:00:00 +0000

KABUL (Reuters) - Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar issued a statement Saturday telling people of the West not to listen to U.S. President Barack Obama's justifications of war and vowing to defeat NATO troops like other invaders of history.

In a statement posted in English on a Taliban website, shahamat.org, marking the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan and attributed to the reclusive Taliban leader, Omar said U.S. and British offensives in recent months had been a failure.

"The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan calls on the public of the West not to be deceived by the assertions of Obama, who says the war in Afghanistan, is a war of necessity. The West does not have to wage this war," the statement said.

"The public of the West should also not be deceived by the assertions of the General Secretary of NATO and British prime minister who claim the war in Afghanistan is for the defense of the West. Such deceiving and baseless utterances must not confuse you."

A Taliban spokesman, Qari Yousuf, said the statement was genuine. The precise whereabouts and health status of Omar are not known, as he does not appear in public.

Obama, who has already ordered 21,000 extra troops to Afghanistan this year, is expected to consider a request for more troops from his commander there in coming weeks.

There are now more than 100,000 Western troops in Afghanistan, two thirds of them Americans.

"The invaders should study the history of Afghanistan from the time of the aggression of the Alexander," the statement said.

"Still, if they are bent on ignoring the history, then they themselves saw with their own eyes the events of the past eight years. Have they achieved anything in the past eight years?"

U.S. commanders believe the reclusive Taliban leader has been hiding in Pakistan since he was driven from power in Kabul in 2001 after refusing to turn over al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden after the September 11 attacks on the United States.

A press officer for U.S. and NATO-led troops in Afghanistan, Captain Elizabeth Mathias, declined to comment on the statement.

(Editing by Mike Peacock)

source : ca.news.yahoo.com

PayooClub PTC kelas Kakap

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 11:25:00 +0000

PayooClub [DAFTAR DISINI]

Pembayaran : AlertPay, Paypal, LibertyReserve dan MoneyBooker
Rates per Klik : $10 untuk Free Member $20 untuk Upgraded Member
Referral Rates :30% untuk Free Member 55% untuk Upgraded Member
Min Payout :$5000 untuk Free Member $300 untuk Upgraded Member
Waktu Payout : 2 hari kerja

Deskripsi
Ini dia PTC kelas Kakap. Ya, kedengarannya seperti SCAM. Tapi mereka bersertifikasi kok. Tenang aja. Jangan khawatir. Saya sarankan, jika anda serius di PTC ini boleh jadi jalan anda untuk bisa meraup $ banyak di internet. Hanya saja untuk bisa cepet2 payout, saya sarankan anda jadi Upgraded Member, dengan membayar $279 (sebelumnya $349 lho..). Atau kalo belum ada dana, ya jadi free member juga gak apa2. Pelan2 ajaa.. Gimana, tertarik. Gabung aja Gratis kok..

Itu yang dapat saya berikan buat temen2 semua. Sebetulnya Buaanyak bgt PTC. Cuman untuk awal saya sangat menyarankan 5 aja dulu. Biar fokus dan gak pusing ngejalaninnya. Intinya, Jangan Nunggu lama2. Mulai dari sekarang, karena anda sama sekali tidak rugi jika bergabung sekarang. Semua PTC yang saya review diatas GRATIS dan pasti membayar anda.

PTC Bux.to

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 11:21:00 +0000

Bux.to [DAFTAR DISINI]

Pembayaran : AlertPay
Rates per Klik : $0.01 untuk STANDAR Member
Referral Rates : $0.01
Komisi Referral: 1 Level. Komisi Langsung
Min Payout : $10
Waktu Payout : 3-5 hari kerja

Deskripsi
bux.to adalah PTC yang sudah cukup tua (2002). Iklannya melimpah untuk di klik. Jika anda ada dana lebih anda bisa upgrade ke Premium Member dan get more money. Tapi klo belum ada, anda cukup jadi standard member juga sudah lumayan. Jika anda bisa mengajak 20 member saja, kemungkinan anda bisa mendapat $63 sebulan. Gak Jelek juga khan.

NeoBux PTC Paling Inovasi

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 11:19:00 +0000

NeoBux [DAFTAR DISINI]

Pembayaran : Paypal dan AlertPay
Rates per Klik : $0.01 untuk STANDAR Member dan $0.015 untuk Golden Member
Referral Rates : $0.005 untuk STANDAR Member dan $0.01 untuk Golden Member
Komisi Referral: 1 Level. Komisi Langsung
Min Payout : $2
Waktu Payout : INSTANT !!! Minta Langsung dibayar.

Deskripsi
Neobux adalah PTC yang menurut saya paling banyak inovasinya. Sangat disarankan untuk diikuti. Instant Payment adalah salah satu kelebihan yang dimiliki oleh perusahaan ini. Sistem Rented Referral juga sangat menguntungkan jika anda ingin 'Bermain-main' untuk mendapatkan penghasilan yang lebih.

Cara membuat Paypal Tanpa Kartu Kredit

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 11:14:00 +0000

Saya yakin, banyak temen2 blogger yang membahas tentang topik ini. Tapi masih ada juga yang nanya ke saya, makanya saya juga jadi ikut2an deh mbahas..
Ok.. Mari Kita mulai.. dari hal2 yang sering ditanyakan.

Apa sih paypal itu?
Paypal adalah sebuah media "Bank Online". Kenapa saya katakan begitu? karena dengan paypal kita bisa menyimpan uang kita, dan membayar serta mengirim uang seperti halnya uang konvensional. Bedanya rekening kita adalah rekening virtual, yang hanya bisa diakses dengan menggunakan jaringan internet.

Kenapa saya HARUS memiliki account Paypal?
Saya juga menanyakan hal yang sama, ketika mau mendaftar paypal. Banyak Merchant yang sudah bisa menerima pembayaran dengan menggunakan paypal, intinya anda bisa berbelanja online tanpa memasukkan Nomor Kaertu Kredit secara langsung. Lebih aman dan nyaman. Belanja dengan kartu kredit mempunyai resiko kita "dijahati" oleh para "Carder" yang melakukan "Carding" (baca: mereka berbelanja dengan menggunakan kartu kredit kita). Bagi anda pelaku bisnis Online, banyak sekali program affiliasi yang paymentnya integrated dengan Paypal. Anda juga bisa menerima pembayaran dengan paypal, jika anda menjual produk online. Jadi saya sangat menyarankan anda-Para netter pemburu $$$, online marketter dan on-line shopper- untuk memiliki account paypal.

Siapa saja yang boleh mempunyai Paypal?
Setiap warga negara yang namanya tercantum di 'Country List' Paypal, bisa memiliki rekening paypal. Syaratnya harus berusia minimal 18 tahun.

Bagaimana saya memulai untuk membuka paypal?
Anda bisa langsung membuka Situsnya langsung DISINI. Jika anda kesulitan dalam bahasa inggris, jangan khawatir sekarang paypal juga sudah support bahasa indonesia.

Betulkah harus memiliki Kartu Kredit untuk membuat account Paypal?
Bukan suatu keharusan sebenarnya, tapi jika ada akan lebih baik. Kartu kredit digunakan untuk mem-verifikasi account paypal anda, sehingga menjadi account Verified. Setelah anda memasukan 16 digit no kartu kredit anda, paypal akan memberi 4 digit kode verifikasi yang akan tercetak pada billing tagihan kartu kredit anda. Uang anda akan "dipinjam" sebesar $1.95, yang nantinya itu akan "dikembalikan" ke account paypal anda. Anda tinggal memasukan 4 digit itu ke bagian halaman konfirmasi paypal, dan acount anda pun akan segera verified.

Kenapa paypal saya harus "Verified"?
Paypal yang "verified" bisa digunakan untuk pembayaran (jika belanja On-Line), mengirim uang (ke Account paypal lain/ transfer) dan melakukan "withdraw" (Penarikan tunai) ke rekening Bank Lokal di indonesia, yang tentu saja hal ini belum bisa di lakukan oleh rekening paypal yang "UnVerified". UnVerified account baru bisa menerima uang saja.

Saya belum/ tidak punya Kartu Kredit, Bisakah saya punya account Paypal yang Verified?
Tentu saja bisa. Hanya saja anda harus rela mengeluarkan sedikit uang untuk membeli VCC (Virtual Credit Card). Harganya gak terlalu mahal Kok. Sekitar $6-$10. Semakin mahal biasanya layanannya semakin bagus (Lebih cepat membuat account Paypal anda verified). Jika anda mau anda bisa membelinya di VCC terpercaya, seperti yang saya rekomendasikan dibawah ini.

Ada 3 pilihan account, Personal, Premier dan Bisnis, yang mana sebaiknya yang saya pilih?
Saya sangat menyarankan bagi anda yang pemula untuk memilih yang premier.
Personal : anda hanya bisa melakukan pembayaran saja (tidak bisa menerima transfer/ pembayaran dari orang).
Premier : Anda bisa melakukan pembayaran dan menerima uang dari orang lain. Hanya saja limitnya dibatasi $500 per hari.
Bisnis : Anda bisa menerima maupun melakukan pembayaran, dan dapat diakses oleh banyak orang sekaligus (multi akses). Anda akan dikenakan biaya setiap transakasi. Sedangkan pada 2 tipe account sebelumya tidak.

Discover Books and Magazines using Search Options

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 17:14:00 +0000

Earlier this year, we introduced the Search Options panel in web search, making it easier to perform queries that limit results to a particular type of content- such as videos, forums, and reviews. We are now making it even easier to find books and magazines by making all of the content on Google Books searchable using the Search Options panel.

This will provide easier access to books and magazines by letting you slice and dice your results with certain characteristics. For example, you can now search for only books or magazines or for only content that you can preview in Google Books.

Try this yourself when you search the web using Google by clicking "Show options..." and selecting "Books".

Please note that this is currently only available in the United States, but we look forward to making this available elsewhere in the future.

New AdWords bidding tutorial

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 17:14:00 +0000

Last month we launched a new feature of AdWords called Bid Simulator. Bid Simulator takes some of the guess work out of cost per click (CPC) bidding by estimating the number of clicks or impressions you could have received if you had used a different maximum CPC bid. Today, I thought I would take the opportunity to help you make the most of this new feature by explaining how to use the data from Bid Simulator to maximize the profit from your marketing investment.

In general, when you increase your maximum CPC bid for keywords on search you are able to generate more clicks to your site. This may be because your new bid qualifies you to appear higher up in the Sponsored Links on the search results page, or because your higher bid qualifies your ad to appear in new, more expensive auctions. The goal for you as an advertiser is to decide whether or not these additional clicks come at a cost that is still profitable for you.

To make this decision, you need to compare your expected value per click to your incremental cost per click. Your value per click is how much a click for a particular keyword is worth to you, on average. Your incremental cost per click is how much extra you are paying, on average, for the extra clicks you are getting from your higher bid. When your value per click is higher than your incremental cost per click it makes sense to increase your bid. On the other hand, if your value per click is lower than your incremental cost per click, you probably want to decrease your bid.

To learn more, you can watch the tutorial video below. In the video, I'll show you how to calculate these values, how to interpret them and how to use the data to maximize the profit from your marketing investment. My team and I are always looking for ways to help make the AdWords auction easier to understand so if you have other topics that you'd like us to address, please leave a comment on the video and we may be able to make it a topic for a future video.

Watch it on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRx7AMb6rZ0

Posted by Hal Varian, Chief Economist

It’s been two years…

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 17:14:00 +0000

and you are still missed by many of us. You borrowed your name to a radio and a couple of festivals now. Rapid fans remembered you before a football game the other day.

Down here, same old “not the end” life that we are trying to give a sense to. Hope they treat you well up there with music and Carpati cigarettes.

Thank you for giving us so much…

How tolerance works in Romania

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 17:09:00 +0000

Yesterday Madonna’s world tour had a stop in Bucharest. 60,000 people were said to be present at her concert. I like her music and I was curious to see how it was. Before the concert the journalist reported in great detail the preparation for this concert.

According to the news that surfaced the online media channels the night after the concert Madonna had “Romania at her feet” and it was a historical concert. The organizational problems or fact that, unlike other artists that came to Bucharest, she did not say a word in Romanian were also mentioned.

In the concert a “gypsy moment” took place where Madonna sang “La isla bonita” and Lela Pala Tute a song in Romani (The Madness Of Love).

Madonna added:

“Now, I’ve been paying attention to news reports and it’s been brought to my attention that there’s a lot of discrimination against Romanis and Gypsies in general in Eastern Europe. And I feel very sad, because I don’t believe in discrimination against anyone. We believe in freedom and equal rights for everyone. Gypsies, homosexuals, people who are different, everyone is equal and should be treated with respect, OK? Let’s not forget that!”

That evening the moment was mentioned only tangentially in newspapers and the public’s reaction was noted by few (I found only one but I am not sure whether they also mentioned it in the printed version – I’ll have to check that). In the heart of Bucharest Madonna was booed when she asked people to respect the others.

Sky News found that this event deserves more than a line and published the “Madonna Booed Over ‘Sad’ Gypsy Abuse” article. The news spread on international media, Associated Press also mentioned it. Then the Romanian online media started to talk about public’s reaction and how it was inappropriate. They questioned people’s reaction. From the readers’ comments I gather that the TV channels did not mention the “gypsy moment” at all. A number of hours after the news was out (half a day after the event took place) several discussions started online on this topic.

Romania seems surprised. The readers are asked:

Why do you think Madonna sent this message ?:

to teach Romanian a lesson about being tolerant
to build up her image
to make sure her concert will not be soon forget.

First the incident is not important enough to be talked about in our media, until the international press underlines it. Then we start talking about it. (How we talk about it is another story!)

That is how the conversation about tolerance takes place in Romania. I feel like Romanian leaders hope we will become a truly democratic country following the same pattern: EU will notice our mistakes and will show them to us so that the people can learn not to make them anymore.

In the “gypsy moment” with Madonna, the public could see (and be vocal about it) that foreigners say Romanians are no tolerant but in the same time they don’t even know us. People cannot understand why Madonna would touch or care about a wound that is not hers, a wound that we don’t even know we have.

Similarly, people cannot understand most of the EU’s regulations and policies and why are those affecting their life. Why does Brussels think they know us? We never talked with them, they never talked with us. EU will be booed in Romania as long as people will continue to see it as a group of foreigners telling them what to do…in a different language.

When will we learn to be tolerant with Romani people? Well, as you can see, we are in denial about this.

Romanian National Library needs help

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 17:09:00 +0000

While this title is no news to anybody that knows a little bit about this library, something changed this week. A TV station in Romania aired a movie that showed, for the first time, how bad the reality is for this library. (The movie about this starts on minute 9).

Many people got angry but the reactions were very few until… Monday evening when some young people ( I hope to find out more about them) started an online petition. The Ministry of Culture is asked in simple terms to make the needed effort to give the library its rightful home. Since Monday 2,126 people sign it. Signers wrote comments on how much they want and need to have a national library, librarians from all over Romania showed their support, representatives from different publishing houses signed it too. Young students or parents claimed the need for preserving the collection of this institution…

It is the first time when a library in Romania gets support from its public. (So far no library association or commission took any stand after this movie) The whole movement is quite interesting and I am very curious to learn if the National library will know how to use this momentum.

In case you want to support this move watch the movie, sign the petition and join our group on Facebook Romanian National Library: Looking for a home.

The Tired Librarian

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 17:09:00 +0000

Following my heart and Mado’s guidence,

For M.

She’s not ready to go

But she’s tied to.

The children will be looking for her eyes

to take their side on quarrels with the others.

The air will remain still for the time being

She’ll work some place else without really dreaming.

The books will await, computers will boot

exhibits will manage without her input.

The others are stronger and history’s with them,

They are stones but illusion makes them out of cream.

She got tired of working the work

while the others are talking her talk.

It’s painful for her but, can you see?

She’ll leave and we’ll be left with an empty library.

“You’ll have the books, the others are guarding!”

We have them… up on 3 meter shelving.

God Bless America

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 16:58:00 +0000

For the first time in 5 years of living in USA I’ve spent the 4th of July with a small group of Americans. As natural as it is to say Our Father before dinner, God Bless America was sang before tonight’s dinner. No unnecessary introductions, just the song, a few skipped words, goose bumps and small tears.

God Bless America,
Land that I love.
Stand beside her, and guide her
Thru the night with a light from above.
From the mountains, to the prairies,
To the oceans, white with foam
God bless America, My home sweet home.

In Romania a similar moment, even in a small crowd celebrating our First of December, would be cataloged as right extremism. In USA you don’t get a denigrating label (as far as I know) for this. Some say this is because you have freedom, some say because it is not politically correct. It may be also because people cannot really see you. As an Orthodox Christian(but not only), you still have to wear a mask in the society. Yes, you are free to worship whatever but why are you so different? …and at one point you get tired of explaining. (Nobody cares anyway). Depending on the community, you sometimes need to wear a mask in your own church.

We, who came to learn about freedom first from books and movies, often don’t expect that, once established, freedom is not free. We have to continually give something in exchange for freedom for “our people” being them our community, our county, region, state, world. Compared to other prices like someone’s life, dignity or identity, a mask is a small one. However, to get to this price, many people paid much more along USA history. (It’s market economy 101, a friend of mine would say.)

Will the USA be able to allow maskless people to simply be? Don’t know. All I know is that, at the moment, in Romania, even though the Orthodox communities don’t have a mask they might, just might, get used to the “right extremist” box they are put in and act accordingly.

Having a Communist past, we are just learning about how our face looks like. Some look in the mirror for this, some on the window heading West. In any case we don’t like masks. What we don’t know is that we are expected to wear one and figure very fast how to wear it properly in the European society. You see, very few people (if any) are looking for God’s blessing of the European Union. And in Romania … we used to ask for God’s blessing even before cutting our bread at dinner.

Libraries as outlets for caged youth

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 16:55:00 +0000

Dr. Melba Pattillo Beals, one of the Little Rock nine shared stories from her terrible adolescence. She gracefully talked about how libraries helped her understand that there was another world outside the cage she was put in by the society.

Melba like young warriors are still around us. They are looking for help and this is one reason why libraries are still needed.

Milea, Ada, ǂd 1975-

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 16:51:00 +0000

This morning I added two records for Ada Milea’s music CD’s in OCLC. I was very happy to find her name in LC names. Quijote, her 2006 book and CD from Polirom already had a record and is owned by Stanford and Harvard Universities. Now there are also records for Absurdistan and Republica Mioritica Romania. It’s not a big deal but I am so happy I did this.

This is something newer than what I cataloged today. Nevertheless is still Ada Milea:

As a side thing, for writing these records I derived from an already existing record of Angela Simiea’s Un roman de iubire intre-un albastru infinit. (Angela Similea was the most popular singer in Communits Romania) I don’t know why I thought of her when I was trying to find a Romanian singer in OCLC… In the process of editing the record titles of songs like Să mori de dragoste rănită (To die of broken heart) was replaced by Ada’s ironic songs

Public service in Europe

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 16:44:00 +0000

“There is nothing more noble than the public service.” says president Obama during his stay in Strasbourg.

You can clearly see he does not know the public and more than this the public is taken by surprise by his way of behaving and talking. I am sorry Obama hesitated to name more public services the youth can consider. I think he was not sure about what would qualify as public service and what not in Europe so he stayed in the safe zone. Also, it is not his job to tell European youth this… However, I would have loved to hear him say something like volunteer or work in public libraries That would have required at least a couple of minutes of thinking for our politicians to try to understand what these words mean. Anyway president Obama is the first politician (that I have found) so far that has this kind of motivating discourses for youth in Europe.

Very interesting…

Barack Obama: My President and Person of the Year

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 19:12:00 +0000

Ok.

Barack Obama will be my next President of the United States.

It’s been over a month and it’s finally begun to sink in. I feel like I can talk about it without jinxing something. I’m no longer shell-shocked. I have stopped expecting the worst.

Barack Obama will be my next President of the United States.

Finally. A President I can call My President. I turned 18 in 1998. I voted in the 2000 election. My candidate did not win. I voted in the 2004 election. My candidate did not win. I didn’t give up after these losses, I got motivated. On Tuesday February 5, 2008, I voted in a primary for the first time. It was also the first time I volunteered for a Presidential campaign. Handing out flyers in Hillary country was an exercise in futility. I didn’t care. If I reached one voter, I’d accomplished something.

Barack Obama will be the next President of the United States.

On Tuesday November 4, 2008 at around 8am, I voted for Barack Hussein Obama for the office of President of the United States. I got a provisional ballot as my name wasn’t on the rolls at my polling place. No worries. I brought all my registration paperwork. Nobody was going to stop me from voting. I went to work after voting. I didn’t get a sticker but I didn’t really need one to tell me or the world that I voted. The jacket adorned with Obama buttons probably did the trick. I left work at approximately 6:45 pm. I could have left earlier but I found myself riveted by election return maps and numbers. I went to my friend and coworker Brandon’s house which ended up being packed with Obama supporters. I brought a bottle of wine and some cookies. Luckily he had the champagne.

Barack Obama is the next President of the United States.

We got the official news when NBC called it. The house was buzzing up until that point but when NBC said that Barack Obama had enough electoral votes to be the President of the United States…silence. I think this is where I became shell-shocked. We drank champagne and we talked about things I don’t remember because I was too busy thinking about everything this meant. Change. Hope. Happiness. Mostly the idea that the leadership of this country would finally be someone who would buck the status quo and do what is good for the people.

Barack Obama will be the President of the United States

I left early, drove home, called my family who seemed to be shell-shocked too. I got home and started searching for information about the Inauguration. I have to be there. I emailed the office of Senator Dianne Feinstein to get tickets but I don’t hold out much hope of getting those. No matter. I’ll stand at the back of the Mall if I have to but I will be there.

Barack Obama is the next President of the United States and Person of the Year

I got an email a couple weeks ago from Heather Champ stating that Time Magazine would like to use one of my pictures. I bet you can imagine my response. After communicating with others who got the same email, I realized that Time was working on their Person of the Year issue and that person is Barack Obama. Not at all surprising really but well worth it. I think Obama has earned that title this year. I hope he affects enough change in this country to earn it for the next 8 years.

Free download puzzle and arcade games

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 19:09:00 +0000

Bejeweled Game
Swap adjacent gems to create sets of 3 or more identical gems in this addictive puzzle game — Bejeweled II.

Mahjong Escape
Match the magic gold tiles and travel through 11 Dynasties, unlocking ancient wisdom on your way, to collect the lost dynasty treasures!

Luxor
Luxor is an action-puzzle game that takes you on a thrilling adventure across the lands of Ancient Egypt.

Poker Superstars II
Take on the masters in high quality No Limit Texas Hold 'Em game based on the Poker Superstars Invitation Tournament Show.

Fish Tycoon
Fish Tycoon is a fish breeding sim game where you breed and care for exotic fish in a true real-time virtual aquarium.

Plants vs. Zombies
Zombies are invading your home, and the only defense is your arsenal of plants! With five game modes to dig into, the fun never dies!

Chuzzle
Googly-eyed little balls of fur that giggle, squeak, and sneeze as you push them across the board! Once you start popping Chuzzles you might not be able to stop!

Diner Dash
Ditch your desk job, roll up your sleeves, and serve up some grub! Help Flo build her dining empire from a roadside diner to a five-star restaurant.

Bookworm game
Build words to feed Lex the Bookworm, but watch out for fiery letters that will set the library ablaze! Download Bookworm — word game for all ages.

Arcade Lines
Align colored balls and score combos in this fun, highly addictive puzzle game.

SKIP-BO: Castaway Caper
With endless family-friendly fun, SKIP-BO: Castaway Caper is an original adventure featuring one of the world's favorite card games!

Governor of Poker
Battle your way through poker tournaments or cash games and win all the cash or property! Play poker in the old west and get a hold of Texas!

Risk II
This classic strategy game comes to life as you deploy your troops and attack your enemies in an all-out effort to take over the world!

Star Defender 4
Jump right in as the battle heats up with a new war raging in the Galaxy! All new missions, better weapons, uglier aliens and more!

Mystery P.I.: New York Fortune
An eccentric New York billionaire has hidden the will to his fortune somewhere in New York City! What are you waiting for? Start searching!

Bejeweled Twist
Spin high-voltage gems to make matches, outwit obstacles, and find endless ways to win! It's a brilliant new way to play Bejeweled!

Colección de imágenes y fotos de Moto GP.

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 18:45:00 +0000

Hayden summarises experiences with Ducati

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 18:34:00 +0000

A year since he signed his contract to become a Ducati rider Nicky Hayden has provided a detailed look back over his time with the Italian factory to date.

Down in 14th place in the standings after 13 races with Ducati, the last of which ended with a blameless first lap crash at Misano, it is fair to say that things have not yet gone to plan for Nicky Hayden with the Italian factory team, but the honest and hardworking American is philosophical about his 2009 season so far.

His results have shown an upward trend since earlier in the year when he changed Crew Chiefs and Juan Martinez was brought back to Ducati to work with him and Hayden already has a 2010 contract with the Bologna-based team and a home podium at Indianapolis to show for his efforts this year.

The Kentuckian rider shared his thoughts on Ducati’s Desmoblog (http://blog.ducati.com) ahead of the final phase of the 2009 MotoGP World Championship:

“Well it has been almost exactly one year to the day that I signed my first Ducati contract, and wow, what an experience! I always wondered what it would be like to be a Ducati rider and now I know very well. It’s everything I ever hoped it would be and more. This truly is a special brand with many special people. It has not always been the smoothest transition if I am truthful with everybody and the results haven’t been great, but this has allowed me to see both sides of the people and I can say that they have been right on point with their treatment of me, on the good days and the bad days.”

“People always talk about how it’s important to never give up, work hard , stay together and results will come, but I’m not sure they always believe this is the case. If anybody doubts this theory take a look at my season - we started off bad and I was not competitive, but with the right attitude and all the hard work from every single person involved with me and that team, we have proved it’s true. There was one stretch in the season where my results looked like 15th, 12th, 12th, 10th, 8th, 5th. That progression is not just a question of luck. It’s a matter of everybody pulling together and working towards the goal, and this is what we believe.”

“Even though most people would say the highlight of my season would have to be Indy, where I stood on the podium of my home GP after a real dog fight of a race, I would say my proudest moment came when the team boss, Livio Suppo, called to tell me Ducati wanted to bring me back for a second year. No contract negotiation between managers and no games, just that Ducati would pick up the option on my second year, and give me another shot. I really do feel it’s where I belong and I couldn’t be happier. So in closing I would just like thank all the Ducati fans out there for supporting me and the team. I know our potential is high and we wont be completely satisfied until we are up where we belong and I promise we will give everything to make y’all proud!”

source ; motogp.com