Malaysians lose bid to halt rare earths plant

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) ? Malaysian activists lost a court battle Thursday to halt Australian miner Lynas Corp. from firing up a rare earths plant that has sparked health and safety concerns.

After months of delay, Lynas in September obtained the Malaysian government's approval to start processing rare earths, which are minerals crucial for manufacturing high-tech products.

But villagers and civic groups took the case to court, calling for the Australian company's operating license to be suspended until the court rules on whether it would permanently block production.

Coalition leader Tan Bun Tet said the High Court refused Thursday to suspend Lynas' license before a final decision on the plant's fate is made.

"The court ruled that our fears are premature because the plant is not in operation yet. We are disappointed with the decision but we will appeal. We will fight to the end," Tan told The Associated Press.

The court ruling paves the way for Lynas to start operations immediately but it can still face obstacles later on if the court rules in favor of the villagers.

Lynas Malaysia managing director Mashal Ahmad told AP that the company plans to start operations "as soon as possible, definitely by this year."

The 2.5 billion ringgit ($818 million) refinery in northern Pahang state is to be the first in years outside China, which has restrictions on rare earth exports.

Rare earths are 17 minerals used in the manufacture of hybrid cars, weapons, flat-screen TVs, mobile phones, mercury-vapor lights, and camera lenses. China has about a third of the world's rare earth reserves but supplies about 90 percent of what is consumed.

Residents living nearby the plant and civic groups have staged protests for months over fears of health and environmental risks posed by potential leaks of radioactive waste. Lynas has said its plant has state-of-the-art pollution control.

Controversy over the project poses a headache to the government with general elections expected to be called by April.

The Lynas plant is expected to meet nearly a third of world demand for rare earths, excluding China. It will refine ore from Australia. Lynas said output for the first phase has been sold out for the next decade.

Malaysia's last rare earths refinery ? operated by Japan's Mitsubishi group in northern Perak state ? was closed in 1992 following protests and claims that it caused birth defects and leukemia among residents. It is one of Asia's largest radioactive waste cleanup sites.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/495d344a0d10421e9baa8ee77029cfbd/Article_2012-11-08-AS-Malaysia-Australia-Rare-Earths/id-7e825b24bd0846ffba800a5adbaa2340

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15 Great Excuses Not to Form the Fitness Habit :zenhabits

?Clear your mind of can?t.? ~Samuel Johnson

Post written by Leo Babauta.

Lots of people know they should be getting fit, but they can?t seem to find the time to form the fitness habit.

And while I understand this completely ? I was stuck in overweight, unhealthy mode for years ? I think it?s useful to take a look at the justifications we give ourselves to put it off.

I put things off because I didn?t have time, or energy, or I had too many family commitments, or not enough motivation, or work kept getting in the way, or I didn?t feel good enough to run, or I was sick, or other people would make things difficult, or I didn?t have the money for a gym membership ? you get the idea.

But I?ve learned to kill all the excuses. Or to put it less violently, I?ve found loving ways to let them go and embrace the joy of a fit and healthy life.

I did it with six kids and a wife, a full-time job (and now my own business), a ton of family and work commitments, freelancing on the side, building a blog on the side, while writing various books ? and so the excuses were ultimately meaningless.

Why might you be putting things off? Let?s look at the justifications, and try to blast them.

1. I don?t have the time. Do 5 minutes a day. You can squeeze 5 minutes of brisk walking into your busy schedule. If you can?t, you might need to seriously rethink your priorities. Cut back on TV, Internet surfing, watching or reading the news. This 5 minutes a day (for now) will save your life. If you can?t go outside to walk due to the weather, do some pushups, air squats and lunges at home or near your desk. Start with 5 minutes of an easy exercise, and once you?ve learned to fit this into your day, you can expand to 10 minutes.
2. I have kids, dude. Yeah, me too ? I have six of them. They?re awesome, and I love spending time with them. So I take them to the park and play with them, running and climbing and lifting them up (like weights) and putting them on my shoulders and running up hills. By exercising in front of them, and with them, I?m setting a good example for them that they will take into adulthood. We combine exercise and bonding time. Or split time with your spouse, or do it when they?re at school or sleeping (at night or early mornings). You owe it to your kids to get healthy and stay healthy into old age.
3. My job takes my time and energy. Mine too ? at one point I was working two jobs while starting a blog/business (and writing about 20 posts a week). I know that work drains your energy and sucks up your time, but if you put fitness first, you can do both. Workout before work ? it?s a great way to start your day, get some key thinking done, get energized before you start working. Or workout right after work ? great way to unwind, de-stress, and perhaps spend time with your spouse or friend or kids.
4. I?m too tired. Not working out actually makes you feel more tired most of the time ? in my experience and from lots of people I?ve talked to about this. When you work out regularly, you feel refreshed, energized, de-stressed, ready to take on the world. If you?re tired, just tell yourself all you need to do is lace up your shoes and get out the door ? even the most tired among us can do that!
5. I?m sick or injured. If you?re really sick, with a fever or serious medical condition, exercise at this moment might not be best ? rest is sometimes better. Same with serious injuries. But often you can do something with lesser illnesses and injuries, and we just let the pain or tiredness stop us. Consult a doctor if you have a serious condition, but most people who just have the sniffles can still go for a walk or do some bodyweight exercises at home.
6. My family isn?t supportive. That is definitely tough, but you have options. One of my favorite tactics is getting my family on board early ? before I?ve decided to make a change, when I?m still thinking about it. I send them articles I?m reading, talk to them about things I?ve learned, why this is important to me, etc. Then when I?m ready to make a decision to change, I ask for their help deciding ? and then their help implementing. Another tactic is to just ask for them to give you the space to make your own change, even if they don?t want to support you, and then find support online. Finally, sometimes you have to take responsibility for your life instead of blaming it on others, and just do what you need to do, and try to win their support and educate them along the way, even if they?re not there at first.
7. The gym is too expensive, or too far. Go walking or running outside. Doing bodyweight exercises at home or in the office is free. You can do yoga at home using free videos online.
8. It?s too hard. Start easy. Just 5 minutes of walking, or just 5 pushups. If that?s too hard, do 2 minutes of walking or 2 pushups. Starting small and only progressing gradually beats this objection every time, and is generally a good idea for other habit-change reasons as well.
9. I don?t have the right equipment/clothes. Use whatever you have. You can go walking in jeans and a T-shirt. I?ve walked and run barefoot many times. You can do bodyweight workouts in your bedroom in your underoos.
10. I?m not good at it. No one is good at it when they start out. Everyone has to learn, everyone starts somewhere. You get good at it by doing it. Do it in the privacy of your home if you?re afraid of looking stupid. Find a friend who?s a beginner and do it with them. Or do it with a trainer or a friend who?s really good at it and can show you how.
11. I don?t know how. Who cares? Get started ? that?s the most important thing. You?ll learn as you go. You don?t need to read a dozen books or websites to learn something ? just start, take it easy so you don?t get injured, and educate yourself as you go. If you?re worried about getting injured, do a free session with a trainer or find a friend who knows what he or she is doing.
12. I?m not strong, fast, flexible. You know how you get strong? Do strength exercises. You know how you get fast? Keep doing it. A good way to get flexible is to do yoga. Exercise solves all these problems.
13. I hate running. So don?t run! There are a thousand different ways to exercise. Walk, bike, swim, do yoga, pilates, tai chi, martial arts, strength training, bodyweight exercises, dance aerobics, kickboxing workouts, bootcamps, gymnastics, rock climbing, hiking, basketball, football, soccer, trampolines. Also, running can be fun if you start easy (walk/run intervals), go somewhere beautiful, and do it while conversing with a good friend.
14. The weather sucks (too cold, rainy, hot, etc.). Do it inside. Go to a gym or public indoor pool. Or suck it up and go outside anyway! I?ve run in torrential rain (it?s amazing), done Crossfit in freezing early morning weather, done a GoRuck Challenge with 70 lbs. of weight on my back for 13 hours in the middle of the night, the heat of midday, freezing ocean water, with sand in my shoes. It?s hella fun.
15. I?m not motivated. Bam. Motivated.

Motivation is everywhere. It?s in the mindset. It?s in the people around you doing something amazing, showing what?s possible. It?s in the idea that moving your body can be fun, joyous, miraculous, and that sitting is killing you.

You can have excuses, or you can move. Your choice.

The Simple Fitness Habit

Today I?m launching my new fitness course, called Simple Fitness Habit. I?m super excited about it.

What is it? At its heart, it?s a course on forming the fitness habit, aimed at people who:

• Want to learn how to break mindless eating habits; and
• Are beginners and have a hard time starting out; or
• Want to gain muscle or get lean;
• Want to train for a half marathon or similar event;
• Want to get fit as they age

If you fit any of these categories, you should benefit from Simple Fitness Habit.

So what?s in the course? A ton of great content and more:

1. A module on forming habits
2. The Mindful Diet, aimed at learning how to change eating patterns
3. Mindful Diet recipes from me and Jules Clancy of Stone Soup
4. Fitness plans for different goals, from a great group of experts
5. An accountability forum to help you stick to the habit
6. Monthly webinars (for Gold & Platinum levels)
7. Bonus ebooks (for Gold & Platinum levels)
8. Ask the Expert features (twice-monthly for Platinum levels)

We have a super lineup of experts contributing to the program, in addition to myself:

• Craig Ballantyne is the founder of Turbulence Training and other bodyweight & kettlebell workout programs meant to reduce bodyfat and build muscle. He?s a long-time Men?s Health magazine training expert.
• Jules Clancy of Stone Soup?is a cooking author and blogger, and a food lover who adores her veggies. She teaches simple cooking methods and shares some wonderful, simple recipes in this program.
• JC Deen of JCD Fitness is a fitness author who has written for numerous fitness sites (such as Bodybuilding.com) and has helped many people build muscle, lose fat, and look good naked. He teaches beginners how to build muscle in this program.
• Scott Dinsmore of Live Your Legend is passionate about helping people do work that lights them on fire, and has had great fitness habits for years. He shows you how to use the 30-day fitness challenge to make fitness fun and interesting.
• Matt Frazier of No Meat Athlete has run in numerous marathons and ultramarathons, and helps people not only run better, but do so on plant fuel. He helps beginners run their first half marathon in this program.
• Rog Lawson of RogLaw Fitness is a dynamic fitness guru who helps people look good and feel great while having a helluva lot of fun. He shows you how to get sexy and lean, and lose those stubborn last 10 lbs.
• Chris Lopez of Fit and Busy Dad helps reshape the physiques and lives of busy family men, one dad at a time.
• Mark Sisson of Mark?s Daily Apple teaches people about living a healthy lifestyle based on how humans have lived for most of their history. He?s the author of The Primal Blueprint.

Read more about Simple Fitness Habit & sign up today!

Note: Sea Change members, please check your email regarding a discount.

Source: http://zenhabits.net/excuses/

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News sites knocked out as data center floods

15 hrs.

Wilson Rothman , NBC News

At 4:21 p.m. ET Monday, the tech blog Gizmodo tweeted that its downed?site would "be back soon!?There was a data center battery failure after the power went down in Lower Manhattan. Generators powering up." But almost a day later, the site ? and its sister?sites in the Gawker network ? were still limping.

Gawker was not alone. The Huffington Post and BuzzFeed experienced outages and trouble publishing. CNET reported that Livestream, host of the live "Sandycam" video?feed, had a "major outage." And?MarketWatch, a property of the Wall Street Journal, was "?severely disrupted by Hurricane Sandy," according to a?post on its?Tumblr site.

When you see a website go down,?the blame usually falls on hackers or, more often, software bugs.?We don't often think of?the Web as having a physical existence, but sure enough, Sandy has shown that nature can impact websites with greater force than any team of malicious code wizards can summon up.

The problem was explained by BuzzFeed ? not in a post on its own site, but on a BuzzFeed channel on the Tumblr blogging network:

Datagram, the ISP whose Manhattan servers host BuzzFeed, Huffington Post, Gawker, and other sites, has lost power, an official there told us via text this evening.

"Basement flooded, fuel pump off line ? we got people working on it now. 5 feet of water now," the official wrote.

Even Tuesday, Datagram was still struggling to recover. At 11:20 a.m. ET, the company's website reported: "We are still flooded, as soon as the basement is cleared we will be allowed to operate the generator and restore power." Then at 11:53 a.m. came the update: "The building has slowly begun to pump water out of the basement. They are unable to provide an ETA however."

Nationally, the picture was not so grim. Most of the country's?top websites "appear to have weathered the storm remarkably well," wrote Aaron Rudger, senior?marketing manager of Web performance for Keynote, a mobile and website monitoring and testing service, in an email to NBC News. "Overall performance slowed by about 7 percent, with average availability of 98 percent."

Rudger said that only one of 40 biggest websites tracked by Keynote had an outage in the timeframe?of?Sandy's impact, job site Monster.com. "That site experienced major failures at around 8?p.m. Pacific Time last night, persisting throughout the evening and into the morning. The site appears to have recovered now."

Gawker founder and publisher Nick Denton "was among Internet honchos who engages a data center in downtown Manhattan, which, unshockingly to anyone who's read a weather report in the last five days, didn't make it," wrote The Awl's Choire Sicha, who added, "The rest of us made data center preparations; even then, some of us went down after midnight."

But given the scope of the outage, it's not clear what quick preparations could have been made to avoid the problems, especially for sites that are hosted in a single physical?location.?

"We had plans for a second data center in 2013 which we will now be moving up," Scott Kidder, Gawker's?executive director of operations, told NBC News in an email. "We ? as other publishers ? had counted on Datagram's ability to withstand anticipated natural disasters, which seems to have been misplaced."

Like other sites facing data failures in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, Gawker turned to alternative publishing. (You can now?find Gawker sites at updates.gawker.com,?updates.gizmodo.com, updates.kotaku.com, updates.jalopnik.com, and so on). Denton urged his staff to turn to Facebook and Twitter as well.

"While we're obviously disappointed with Datagram," said Kidder, "our priority has been getting back online for our readers with an alternate publishing platform, which we've now done with all sites thanks to Tumblr."

"Elements of BuzzFeed?s site and many story pages are back online, thanks to a Content Delivery Network, Akamai, which hosts the content at servers distributed around the world," said BuzzFeed's Tumblr page. "We aren?t able to update the site right now, however," so the site provided its Tumblr, Twitter and Facebook info for readers.

During its outage, The Huffington Post was able to redirect traffic to an alternate server at status.huffingtonpost.com, but appeared to have recovered sooner than the?others.?

Re-directing readers to social channels and new Web addresses is a messy proposition, but in today's twitterfied news world, it's not as crazy as it sounds. At least not for BuzzFeed, according the site's tech editor, Matt Buchanan.

"I think BuzzFeed is in a unique position because it's a social publisher at its core ? so it's totally natural for us to move to these other media," Buchanan told NBC News. "I think a lot of our readers are totally comfortable following us as natives of the social Web. Also, it helps that we had strong presences on Twitter and Tumblr to begin with."

Despite intermittent Tumblr outages, Buchanan said traffic was "picking up" on BuzzFeed's alternatives, particularly buzzfeedpolitics.tumblr.com.

But?getting BuzzFeed's main?site back on track has taken more Herculean efforts: It is rebuilding the whole operation on a cloud-based server run by Amazon.?"The team have been working non-stop since we went down yesterday," said BuzzFeed's Ben Smith.?One of BuzzFeed's New York-based?developers who coded through the night for the emergency site?transplant did so with a tree smashed through the roof of his home.

Wilson Rothman is the Technology & Science?editor at NBC News Digital. Catch up with him on Twitter at @wjrothman, and join our conversation on Facebook.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/technolog/news-sites-knocked-out-nyc-data-center-floods-1C6759330

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Ohio jury convicts teenager of Craigslist murders

AKRON, Ohio (Reuters) - A jury convicted 17-year-old Brogan Rafferty of murder on Tuesday in the deaths of three men, two of whom were lured to Ohio by a Craigslist ad promising work on a farm.

Rafferty and Richard Beasley, 53, were charged with murder in the deaths of the three men. Two men answered a social media ad for a $300-a-week job as a caretaker on a farm about 100 miles south of Cleveland.

Although prosecutors said Beasley pulled the trigger, they accused Rafferty of assisting in the crimes and the attempted murder of a fourth man, Scott Davis.

Rafferty was 16 when he was arrested in November 2011, but was tried as an adult. He faces up to life in prison in the killing of David Pauley, 51, of Norfolk, Virginia; Ralph Geiger, 56, of Akron, Ohio; and Timothy Kern, 47, of Massillon, Ohio.

Rafferty did not react as the multiple guilty verdicts were read by Judge Lynne Callahan, but his mother dropped her head and sobbed.

Kern's father cried when the guilty verdict in his son's murder was read. After all of the verdicts, he gave a thumbs up.

The Summit County, Ohio, jury of seven women and five men took 20 hours to reach a verdict.

During the trial, Rafferty testified that he feared for his life after watching Beasley, a man he considered a father figure and spiritual leader, shoot Geiger in the head execution style.

Rafferty admitted he dug two holes that he said were meant to be graves. He told jurors that he felt trapped into doing what Beasley said because he was "terrified" of the older man.

But prosecutors called Rafferty an apt pupil of Beasley and said the teen had ample opportunities to turn the older man in and protect himself and his family.

After the trial concluded, some of the jurors spoke to reporters about the verdict.

"It was a tough one. He was a child and he is a child, and it was very difficult to make a decision," juror Michele Lewis said.

A male juror who asked not to be identified said the jury did not believe Rafferty's story that he was so afraid of Beasley that he cooperated in the murders.

"This was not one man intimidating another," he added.

Beasley, a friend of the Rafferty family, is scheduled to stand trial in January. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty. Rafferty's sentencing is scheduled for November 5.

The Ohio crimes are among a growing number of incidents involving Craigslist and other social media, including other attacks on people responding to advertisements.

In 2009, a former medical student was accused of killing a masseuse he met through Craigslist. In February, two men in Tennessee were accused of killing a man and a woman for "unfriending" the daughter of one of the suspects on Facebook.

(Editing by Greg McCune and James B. Kelleher; Editing by Sandra Maler and Stacey Joyce)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ohio-jury-convicts-teenager-craigslist-murders-013916249.html

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U.S. refiners to assess damage as Sandy moves inland

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. refinery and pipeline companies that nearly halted East Coast fuel supplies ahead of Hurricane Sandy will begin assessing the storm's damage on Tuesday, hoping that their flood defenses and on-site power allow a quick return to service.

Three of the area's six key refineries -- including the two largest -- effectively shut down operations in advance of landfall Monday evening for the Atlantic storm. Two more reduced operating rates, curtailing at least two-thirds of the region's capacity.

Major ports that supply the area with some 1 million barrels per day (bpd) of imported fuel were also shut, while the northern leg of the Colonial Pipeline from the Gulf Coast was idled. It supplies as much as 15 percent of the East Coast's 5.2 million bpd of gasoline, diesel and fuel demand.

As Sandy's up to 90 mile per hour winds slow over land and its 13-foot storm surge subsides, operators such as Phillips 66 and PBF Energy will assess any damage to their facilities, and start making plans for restoring operations - a delicate process in the best of times.

If damage is limited, many experts say fuel supplies should resume within a few days, potentially reversing the three-day, 6 percent rally in benchmark New York harbor gasoline futures as traders shift their focus from the threat of a supply squeeze to the loss of demand from airport and road closures.

"Markets have already bumped up prices to some degree. If there's no major catastrophes then prices are going to go in the other direction," said John Auers, senior vice president and refining specialist at Turner, Mason & Co. in Dallas.

He said that the East Coast plants, even those near the water, are better protected from potential flood damage than those that suffered weeks-long outages on the Gulf Coast following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita seven years ago.

But even well-prepared plants can face problems. Two months ago Phillips 66, which reported a power outage at its 238,000-bpd Bayway, New Jersey, refinery on Monday, was forced to clear more than two feet of floodwater from its Alliance, Louisiana, refinery following Hurricane Isaac, delaying its restart.

"Bayway is probably the most exposed as it sits right out by the water and it's certainly in the path of the storm," said Matthew Partridge, downstream analyst at Wood Mackenzie in Houston. He said plants should be up "within a few days" if they escape damage, although it was too early to give an assessment.

Most refineries have some on-site generation equipment that could help restore operations if there are power outages. Phillips 66 did not immediately respond to an email seeking further details on the Bayway outage.

The largest risk may simply lie in restarting vast, intense equipment after a brief shutdown.

"You're talking about heating up oil to fairly high temperatures, putting it through processing units at high pressure," said Auers. "Anytime you interrupt that steady-state there is always the potential for issues."

SUPPLIES STRETCHED, BUT DEMAND WEAK

Oil traders were already beginning to reconsider the run-up in fuel prices ahead of the storm. RBOB gasoline futures slipped 0.8 percent in overnight trading, the first loss in four days. One trader offering to sell physical cargoes in the New York harbor market found no buyers on Monday.

That's despite the fact that fuel stockpiles -- heating oil in particular -- are unusually low for this time of year.

While awaiting news on fuel supplies, oil traders began totting up the impact on demand.

Airlines had canceled more than 13,700 flights for Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, including more than 7,600 for Monday alone, Flight-tracking service FlightAware said. Road travel ground to a halt, with major bridges and tunnels shut down. Marine traffic at some of the nation's busiest ports was halted.

"The flip side is demand is going to be a lot lower this week, as not many people are going to be out there driving," said Partridge. "If this number of refineries went offline during the summer driving season gasoline prices would go through the roof."

The precautionary refinery closures are more widespread than during Hurricane Irene in August 2011, when only the Bayway plant shut completely.

Philadelphia Energy Solutions began the precautionary closure of key units at its 330,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) Philadelphia refinery, the biggest in the region.

Hess Corp said it shut its 70,000-bpd refinery in Port Reading, New Jersey, while PBF Energy opted to reduce rates at its 180,000-bpd Paulsboro plant in southern New Jersey, and its Delaware City facility.

Delta Air Lines' Monroe Energy said it was monitoring the storm, but did not anticipate altering operations at its 185,000-bpd plant in Trainer, Pennsylvania, which has only recently returned to service after major maintenance.

Even if the refineries escape unscathed, however, any damage to the vast network of oil terminals, pipelines and truck racks could complicate supply logistics.

NuStar Energy and Magellan Midstream Partners, two of the biggest players in the nation's pipeline and storage terminal business, also shut terminals along the East Coast.

"As a result, the distribution infrastructure, including pipelines and refined product terminals are extremely important and could hamper recovery efforts if significant amounts of this infrastructure is damaged," said Roger Ihne, principal in the oil and gas practice at consultancy Deloitte.

(Reporting By Janet McGurty, Jonathan Leff and David Sheppard; Editing by Michael Urquhart)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/u-refiners-assess-damage-sandy-moves-inland-054951534--finance.html

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Turn of Mind: A Brilliant and Disturbing Tale of ... - Maine Crime Writers

James Hayman:? ?My name is Dr. Jenifer White . I am sixty-four years old. I have dementia. My son , Mark, is twenty-nine. My daughter, Fiona, twenty-four. A caregiver, Magdalena, lives with me.?

This is the opening paragraph of the front jacket copy of one of the most original, beautifully written and genuinely frightening murder mysteries I?ve read in years. Titled Turn of Mind, the book is a debut novel by a writer named Alice LaPlante ?who teaches creative writing at Stanford and San Francisco State University.? LaPlante?s previous fiction consisted of short stories published in literary journals like Epoch and the Southwestern Review.

Imagine a murder mystery largely narrated in the voice and thoughts of the suspected and likely murderer, a once distinguished orthopedic surgeon who specialized in surgery of the hand but who is now descending into advanced Alzeimer?s Disease.? The suspect, a woman named Jennifer White, has no idea whether or not she committed the crime. At times she thinks she may have.? At other times she thinks she might not have.? As often as not she?s not even aware that the victim of the crime is actually dead. Or that her husband James is also dead. Or, as the book progresses, even who her own children are.

Still the evidence against Dr. White as the killer seems compelling.? The victim, named Amanda O?Toole, was, before her death, an imperious and controlling woman in her seventies who lived a few doors down from Dr. White in an upscale Chicago neighborhood. In spite of O?Toole?s bristly personality and their frequent disagreements O?Toole and Dr. White are described as lifelong best friends. Each had keys to the other?s house.? O?Toole was the godmother of the Whites? two children, Mark and Fiona.

The victim is already dead when the book opens.? Her body was found lying in a pool of blood.? The cause of death was a blow to the head. White and O?Toole were heard arguing loudly shortly before the killing.? Even more damning for White, the hand surgeon, is the fact that four of the fingers of O?Toole?s right hand were carefully and expertly amputated after her death for no apparent reason.? Later in the book a Saint Christopher?s medal belonging to White turns up. It is found to have traces of O?Toole?s blood on it.

What makes this book so compelling and frankly unforgettable, however, is not the details of the crime or the work of the cop in charge, a dogged and determined woman named Detective Luton. It is not even the ultimate solution to the murder.? Rather it is the beautifully constructed portrait of the disintegration of a once brilliant mind belonging to a character we come to know and care for.

A group blog on this site this weekend will have us all tell of the scariest books we?ve ever read. While Dr. White is no Hannibal Lechter, in many ways she is more frightening.? The descent into Alzheimer?s Alice LaPlante describes so beautifully is a condition we all fear for ourselves.? It is one that many of us have experienced first hand watching the slow disintegration of elderly parents or others we care for. It makes an absolutely brilliant choice to wrap around a tale of murder and deceit.

Source: http://mainecrimewriters.com/jims-posts/turn-of-mind-a-brilliant-and-disturbing-tale-of-murder

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A circus comes to Gaza _ minus lions and ladies

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) ? The circus came to Gaza on Friday, accompanied by blaring music, juggling clowns and fire blowers ? but getting it there required its own high-wire act.

No women performers were included for fear of offending conservative Palestinians and the Gaza Strip's militant Hamas rulers, and the circus' lone lion and tiger were left behind because of the high cost of transporting them legally into Gaza.

The Egyptian National Circus put on its first show of a month-long visit to the impoverished coastal territory on Friday, a sign of warmer relations between Hamas and post-revolution Egypt, which is governed by the Islamic group's ideological parent, the Muslim Brotherhood.

Although it's not state-sponsored, the Egyptian circus could only come because the country's government loosened restrictions on the flow of passengers in and out of Gaza. More foreigners now enter Gaza, including the ruler of the resource-rich Gulf state Qatar earlier this week.

Once in Gaza, the Egyptians' faced an unusual situation ? most Palestinians here don't know what a circus is.

"I think it's going to be really surprising for most people," said Riwa Awwad, 19, ahead of the opening night.

"Gazans are famous for not liking anything and I think they'll do the impossible to entertain us," said Awwad, who came with her extended family to the fairground on Friday.

In an ironic twist, the cheery circus with its flashing lights was held on the grounds of a notorious security prison that was destroyed during an Israeli offensive four years ago.

For the Gazans fortunate enough to see the opening show, it was a welcome relief from conflict and despair. The fairgrounds were packed with excited children in new cloths, women in glittery headscarves, others in black face veils, and men in suits and freshly pressed shirts. Families snacked on pumpkin seeds.

They hollered and cheered as a tight-rope walker wiggled his hips and belly-danced on a thread suspended above the ground. A performer hurled silver knives around volunteers. A red-clad fire blower shot whooshing, yellow licks of flame out of his mouth. Two clowns dressed in yellow-and-blue bumbled and fumbled as they tried to juggle, delighting children.

It took months to arrange the visit to the impoverished territory, where 1.6 million people live in a 25 mile-long sliver wedged between Israel and Egypt and face a punishing blockade imposed after Hamas seized control in 2007.

Aside from a circus' brief visit in the 1990s, there's never been anything like it since Israel captured the strip from Egypt in 1967. Israeli forces and settlers withdrew in 2005.

Businessman Mohammed Faris said he remembered seeing the circus under Egyptian rule in the 1950s, when Gaza was still a liberal place with casinos and bars. He said he recalled as a child seeing men walking on nails and female acrobats flying across stage.

"It was men and women - pretty women," he said.

Not this time around.

Organizer Mohammed Silmi said female performers had to stay behind because the circus was worried that leaping ladies in tights would offend Gazans.

He said Hamas didn't explicitly ban women but he was asked to abide by Gaza's "traditions" when he petitioned to get the circus to come.

In practice, the circus wiggled a little around the no-women rule. At one point a man in drag, sporting a brown wig and red dress, sang and danced with Bunduk the clown.

After Hamas seized control of Gaza in 2007, Israel and Egypt imposed a blockade that aimed to weaken the militants who seek Israel's destruction.

Under international pressure, it was loosened after Israel raided a blockade-defying boat and killing nine Turkish activists aboard in 2009. Key restrictions still remain on exports and importing raw materials.

All the circus equipment came through the Rafah border crossing, but expensive fees and cumbersome paperwork kept the circus from bringing lions, tigers and horses across the border.

Gaza's makeshift zoos and other merchants often bypass that problem by hauling animals through smuggling tunnels linking the territory to Egypt. In one famous scene captured on film, Gazans used a crane to lift a camel over the border fence as the animal twitched in the air in agony.

Animal welfare aside, Gaza's main zoo recently turned to improvised taxidermy to keep its deceased animals on exhibit.

The area also continues to be violent. As circus technicians were setting up their tent earlier this week, Palestinian militants were fighting Israeli forces in tit-for-tat rounds of rocket fire and retaliatory airstrikes.

Egyptian technician Khalil Gomaa, 55, jolted upon every crashing boom. He told his children he was in Jordan so they wouldn't be worried. "But I'm worried," he said.

But the circus' biggest challenge may be packing the 1,000-seater tent for the month-long visit.

A series of Palestinians interviewed didn't know what a circus was, and the tickets ? ranging from $5-$10 seats ? are too expensive for most of Gaza's traditionally large families.

Some 40 percent of Gazans live on less than $2 a day, a third are unemployed and most need U.N. donated food.

They include the mother of eight, Sabrine Baoud, and her unemployed husband. After the circus was explained to her, Baoud, 35, said she was glad her children didn't know anything about it.

They'd never be able to afford to go.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-10-26-Gaza-Circus/id-c1845b8e28b847cba82a3153e34356d9

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Kids' mountain bike program likely the first of many in Old Town ...

Ten children in Old Town learned the joys of mountain biking during a monthlong program for grades 4-8 that ran mid-September through mid-October.

The program was made possible by a first-of-its-kind collaboration of three Maine-based organizations: Old Town Recreation, Maine Winter Sports Center and the Bicycle Coalition of Maine.

?They were very excited to just go out and experience the outdoors,? said Kevin McPhee, director of Old Town Recreation, which hosted the program. ?We have a river trail here in the Old Town-Orono area that goes along the Stillwater River. It?s just a beautiful bike trial, and they were able to experience that on a couple of occasions.?

Biking in the mud was their favorite part.

?They usually came back and had mud up their backs and huge smiles,? McPhee said. ?Their parents would come to pick them up and just shake their heads and smile.?

Healthy Hometowns, the community development program of the Maine Winter Sports Center, provided mountain bikes and helmets for participants, as well as training and curriculum for leaders.

?The focus of this program was on experiencing the lifelong, active outdoor pursuit of mountain biking,? said Central Maine Healthy Hometowns coach Lauren Jacobs. ?Kids had a blast exploring the trails, getting muddy and becoming skilled bikers.?

In April, L.L.Bean announced a $1 million donation to Healthy Hometowns to expand the program into a year-round, statewide effort. This donation coincides with L.L.Bean?s mission to get more children outdoors during their 100th anniversary year and beyond.

?In the past, Healthy Hometowns has been primarily cross-country ski-oriented and mostly in the County, up in Aroostook,? Jacobs said. ?With the funding in April, we can go statewide and year-round. This is the first time we?ve had equipment to use in other regions.?

The funding is providing staff, training and resources for Healthy Hometowns expand its focus to outdoor activities such as paddling, hiking, mountain biking, orienteering and camping.

So far, the donation enabled Healthy Hometowns to purchase 20 mountain bikes, three boat trailers of kayaks, and expand their ski collection to approximately 1,500 sets of skis. The program ?coaches? have started spreading out across the state, and the equipment supply will continue to grow over the next three years, Jacobs said.

The 10 children who participated in the Old Town mountain bike program gained skills and confidence through riding on local trails and fields and engaging in a variety of games and activities used to teach bike handling, shifting, braking, safety and navigating obstacles.

The Bicycle Coalition of Maine, a statewide cycling advocacy group, supported the initiative with a safety program for participants and program leadership by a coalition employee.

?Participants markedly improved their biking skills while getting great exercise and getting the opportunity to experience the great Maine outdoors as it was meant to be enjoyed,? McPhee said.

During the summer, Healthy Hometowns and Old Town Recreation worked together to provide kayaking and biking opportunities to summer camp participants. And this winter, the two organizations will work together for the third year to offer a youth cross-country ski program in conjunction with the Penobscot Valley Ski Club.

?This will be an ongoing effort,? McPhee said. ?We look forward to doing this spring, summer, fall and winter. We look forward to partnering with them each season to provide a different activity.?

Healthy Hometowns trailers filled with cross-country skis and snowshoes will travel throughout the state all winter to give children the chance to experience winter sports. Several schools in the Bangor area have booked the equipment, including schools in Winterport, Hampden, Bangor and Dover-Foxcroft.

?We are really focused on winter right now, planning winter sports, getting out calendars filled up and getting ready to do our ski weeks,? Jacobs said. ?But it won?t be long before we start thinking about spring and getting programming lined up. We already have a couple of requests ? Milo has already scheduled the mountain bikes for their outing club members for some time in May.?

For information about Healthy Hometowns, including equipment rental and outdoor programs, visit www.mainewsc.org; the Old Town Recreation Department at www.oldtownrec.com; and the Bicycle Coalition of Maine at www.bikemaine.org.

Source: http://bangordailynews.com/2012/10/24/outdoors/kids-mountain-bike-program-likely-the-first-of-many-in-old-town/

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One foot from the grave!

Public release date: 15-Oct-2012
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Contact: University of Leicester Press Office
pressoffice@le.ac.uk
44-011-625-22415
University of Leicester

You wont believe it! Archaeologists who led Search for King Richard III reveal Victorian builders came within inches of destroying human remains

Archaeologists from the University of Leicester who uncovered a grave thought to contain the skeleton of King Richard III have revealed that the remains came within inches of being destroyed by Victorian builders.

The University of Leicester led the search for the Anointed King who died at the battle of Bosworth in association with Leicester City Council and the Richard III Society. The University team dug three trenches under a Leicester car park before their discovery was made.

Now site director Mathew Morris has disclosed that the remains were found just inches below Victorian foundations. Had the 19th century builders dug a little further-no remains would have been found.

Mathew said: "It was incredibly lucky. If the Victorians had dug down 30cm more they would have built on top of the remains and destroyed them."

City Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby added: "It is extremely lucky that the remains were found at all.

"His head was discovered inches from the foundations of a Victorian building. They obviously did not discover anything and probably would not have been aware of the importance of the site.

"If their plans had been just a little different, they could have destroyed a most significant historic find."

A team from the University of Leicester, including archaeologists and geneticists, is now engaged in a scientific investigation to determine whether the remains are indeed of King Richard III.

Using DNA extracted from Michael Ibsen, believed to be a descendant of King Richard III's sister, the team will seek to determine if there is a match.

###

The entire dig was filmed by Darlow Smithson Productions for a Channel 4 Documentary.

You can watch the Press Conference announcing the results from the dig here http://www2.le.ac.uk/offices/press/media-centre/richard-iii

---

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?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 15-Oct-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: University of Leicester Press Office
pressoffice@le.ac.uk
44-011-625-22415
University of Leicester

You wont believe it! Archaeologists who led Search for King Richard III reveal Victorian builders came within inches of destroying human remains

Archaeologists from the University of Leicester who uncovered a grave thought to contain the skeleton of King Richard III have revealed that the remains came within inches of being destroyed by Victorian builders.

The University of Leicester led the search for the Anointed King who died at the battle of Bosworth in association with Leicester City Council and the Richard III Society. The University team dug three trenches under a Leicester car park before their discovery was made.

Now site director Mathew Morris has disclosed that the remains were found just inches below Victorian foundations. Had the 19th century builders dug a little further-no remains would have been found.

Mathew said: "It was incredibly lucky. If the Victorians had dug down 30cm more they would have built on top of the remains and destroyed them."

City Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby added: "It is extremely lucky that the remains were found at all.

"His head was discovered inches from the foundations of a Victorian building. They obviously did not discover anything and probably would not have been aware of the importance of the site.

"If their plans had been just a little different, they could have destroyed a most significant historic find."

A team from the University of Leicester, including archaeologists and geneticists, is now engaged in a scientific investigation to determine whether the remains are indeed of King Richard III.

Using DNA extracted from Michael Ibsen, believed to be a descendant of King Richard III's sister, the team will seek to determine if there is a match.

###

The entire dig was filmed by Darlow Smithson Productions for a Channel 4 Documentary.

You can watch the Press Conference announcing the results from the dig here http://www2.le.ac.uk/offices/press/media-centre/richard-iii

---

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?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-10/uol-off101512.php

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'Taken 2' proves unstoppable at box office

By Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter

Box office revenues soared 58 percent over a year ago thanks to a handful of films that overperformed, led by Liam Neeson action pic "Taken 2" and Ben Affleck's awards darling "Argo."

From 20th Century Fox and EuropaCorp, "Taken 2" grossed $22.5 million from 3,706 theaters in its second weekend to stay at No. 1. An unqualified hit, the pic has now earned $86.8 million domestically and $132.8 million internationally for a worldwide total of $220 million -- just shy of the $226.8 million earned by the first "Taken" in its entire run.

STORY: THR Cover: Confessions of Ben Affleck

"Argo," from Warner Bros., grossed a strong $20.1 million from 3,232 locations in its debut to easily take the No. 2 spot. The critically acclaimed film surged 47 percent from Friday to Saturday as moviegoers flocked to see the period political thriller, about the rescue of six Americans during the 1979 Iranian hostage crisis.

Affleck both directed and stars in the $44 million film, which received a glowing A+ CinemaScore, guaranteeing a long run for the film throughout awards season.

The movie's opening weekend was fueled by older moviegoers -- 93 percent of the audience was over the age of 25, and 52 percent over the age of 50 -- but Warners is confident the audience will expand. In terms of gender, 54 percent were females.

"Good movies rise to the occasion. Both 'The Town' (also directed by Affleck) and 'Gran Torino' played older initially and then turned into four-quadrant movies," Warners president of domestic distribution Dan Fellman said.

Based on the true story of the rescue of six Americans hiding out at the Canadian Embassy during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis, "Argo" also headlines Bryan Cranston, Alan Arkin and John Goodman. The film chronicles how the Americans were able to escape Iran after the CIA and specialist Tony Mendez, played by Affleck, staged a fake movie production as a cover.

GK Films and Smokehouse, George Clooney and Grant Heslov's former production company, produced "Argo."

Q&A: "Argo's" Bryan Cranston on CIA secrets, Ben Affleck's directing style

Summit Entertainment's pre-Halloween pic "Sinister" also overperformed, taking the No. 3 spot with $18.3 million from 2,527 theaters. The pic is the most profitable of the weekend, considering it cost under $3 million to make.

The R-rated "Sinister" marks another victory for uber horror producer Jason Blum and Brian Kavanaugh-Jones' Automatik, a joint venture between IM Global and Alliance. They produced alongside the film's writer and director, Scott Derrickson ("The Exorcism of Emily Rose"). The film stars Ethan Hawke as a true-crime writer whose family is plunged into danger after he finds a box of gruesome home movies.

"Whenever you overperform industry expectations, it's always a nice thing," Lionsgate executive president of distribution David Spitz.

Sinister, receiving a C+ CinemaScore, common for a horror film, skewed slightly male (54 percent), while two-thirds of the audience was between the ages of 18 and 34.

Sony's animated hit "Hotel Transylvania" showed no signs of slowing down in its third weekend as it jumped the $100 million mark, grossing $17.3 million to come in No. 4. The film's domestic cume is $102.2 million; internationally, it's also overperforming and has grossed $49.3 million through Sunday from a total of 24 markets.

"'Hotel Transylvania' is performing beyond anyone's imagination, and the holds are ridiculous. It exceeds expectations in every new market it opens in," Sony president of worldwide distribution Rory Bruer said.

STORY: Horror watch: 16 spooky movie choices for Halloween at home

"Hotel Transylvania" even beat new Sony family comedy "Here Comes the Boom," starring Kevin James (also a voice lead in "Hotel Transylvania") and Salma Hayek. The pic, produced by Adam Sandler's Happy Madison, grossed a soft $12 million from 3,014 theaters to place No. 5. The film did receive an A CinemaScore.

CBS Films' dark comedy "Seven Psychopaths," only opening in 1,480 locations, slightly underperformed in grossing $4.3 million to place No. 9. A favorite on the festival circuit, the pic stars?Colin Farrell, Sam Rockwell, Woody Harrelson, Christopher Walken and Abbie Cornish.

Saturday's live broadcast of the Metropolitan Opera's "L'Elisir d'Amore" placed No. 10 with $2.3 million from 900 theaters. The broadcast kicks off the seventh season of "The Met: Live in HD" program.

Summit's specialty pic "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" placed No. 11 as it expanded into a total of 726 theaters, grossing $2.2 million for a pleasing cume of $6.2 million.

Conservative offering "Atlas Shrugged: Part II" came in No. 12 in its debut, grossing $1.7 million from 1,071 theaters.

Related content:

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Source: http://entertainment.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/10/14/14432028-taken-2-proves-unstoppable-at-box-office-for-second-week-argo-in-close-second?lite

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The Life (and Sometimes Near Death) of the Indie Music Industry ...

In 2011, the best-selling album in both the USA and the UK was 21 by Adele. It?s no great surprise that the record was an international hit; the North London singer?s soulful pop not only has a significantly broad-ranging appeal, but has also been widely acclaimed. But while many favourable words have been used to describe the album, one word which is not normally associated with it is ?indie?. Yet Adele is that rare thing ? a platinum selling artist signed to an independent label, XL Recordings.

XL is one of the labels whose stories are told in Richard King?s history of 30 years of the independent music business. The focus is the UK, but America nonetheless has an important role in the book, and not only as a potential market for selling records. American bands like Sonic Youth and The Pixies influenced the sound of independent music in the late ?80s and, as King points out in his introduction, the archetypal independent label was the US-based Atlantic, before it became a subsidiary of Warner.

Indie has of course become a genre as much as a signifier of commercial independence. By 1986, King points out, ?any passing gaggle of white boys and girls who had started a band, irrespective of which label they were signed to ? a corporate major or a bedsit start-up ? was now called indie. But the book makes it clear that there is much more to independent music than the jangly guitar bands of the ?80s or the post-punk that was initially the sound peddled by pioneering labels like Rough Trade and Factory. King also covers the electronic and dance scene, and the impact of labels such as Warp and the first incarnation of XL.

A heavy proportion of the text appears inside speech marks: King has evidently spent a huge amount of time interviewing the titular madmen and mavericks, and by giving them the opportunity to tell their own stories he provides a vivid insight into what being directly involved in the independent music business was like. In addition to the tales of signing bands and marketing releases there are also plenty of the kind of anecdotes that tend to be integral to so many books about music. The drug-fuelled era of the late ?80s provides much of the material here, including a perhaps too vivid story involving a naked and E?d up graphic designer, and the glass roof of 4AD?s studio.

Such stories might be great entertainment, but it?s the actual challenges of making an independent label succeed that are the real meat of the book. One recurring theme is the paradox that, as Richard Scott, founder of distribution group The Cartel, puts it: ?when there are hits about, you have financial problems.? The best example of this is New Order?s ?Blue Monday?, released by Factory in 1983. The costs of producing the single, with its die-cut sleeve, meant that Factory made a loss on each copy they sold. The huge success of the single therefore meant a substantial loss for the label.

The ?Blue Monday? case is an isolated early example, but King later notes that ?By the midpoint of the 1990s the momentum of the independent sector had stalled almost to a halt.? Rough Trade ceased trading in 1991, and Factory declared bankruptcy in 1992. The reasons for the decline of independent labels are varied. The involvement of major labels in the indie scene, combined with insufficient distribution in the independent sector was one. Some label founders, such as Creation?s Alan McGee, had all but burned out due to their hedonistic yet hard-working lifestyles. And in the case of Factory and its founder Tony Wilson, it was sheer hubris that led to the label?s demise.

The way that the story unfolds in the final chapters of King?s book, it seems that the mid-00s wave of guitar bands signed to independent labels ? such as The Strokes, Franz Ferdinand and the Arctic Monkeys ? were responsible for the resurrection of this element of the music business. However, as Rough Trade?s Geoff Travis says, ?it?s about building structures outside of the mainstream but that can help you infiltrate the mainstream.? The most exciting independent labels in operation today seem to follow this principle.

A run through the roster of the forward-thinking XL illustrates the point well. In addition to Adele, they have signed artists as diverse as The xx, Tyler, The Creator, and Jack White. Although they may only release half a dozen albums per year their influence on music far exceeds the number of their releases. As is clear from King?s book, this is how independent music should function.

Source: http://www.popmatters.com/pm/review/164281-how-soon-is-now/

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IMF jumps ship on Europe | | MacroBusiness

So you take a 2 week holiday, and when you return you find the?IMF have switched sides!

?Fiscal policy should be appropriately calibrated to be as growth-friendly as possible,? the International Monetary and Financial Committee said in a communique.

The statement came after days of back and forth between those ? led by Germany ? urging no let-up from belt-tightening and those arguing for a loosening of the grip of austerity.

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Christine Lagarde said on Thursday she was happy for Greece ? struggling under the weight of cuts demanded by international creditors ? to have two more years to meet its deficit reduction targets.

So has the IMF suddenly woken up the fact that demanding every?government slash spending and raise taxes is, in many cases, counter productive because they have?underestimated the fiscal multiplier in government spending ? ?No this isn?t new. As I?noted?back in August 2011, the IMF along with its new President have been well aware for some time that their theories on expansionary fiscal contraction have underestimated the negative effects of attempting government sector austerity at a time of private sector de-leveraging, specifically in a fixed currency environment.

Ms Lagarde is finally vocalising what many critics, such as myself, have been arguing since the crisis began. Tightening fiscal policy in the absence of increased private sector investment or external surpluses leads to weaker growth, which in turn worsens public finances further. Without external debt relief and/or the ability to externally devalue this becomes a spiral downwards as domestic retrenchment adds to this counter-productive dynamic. I discussed this in detail here.

Ms Lagarde does, however, appear to be covering all bases by attempting to frame this in the context of worsening economic circumstances caused by externalities while insisting government debt is still the major issue.?I suspect that the renewed tension in Spain is the real driver of Ms Lagarde?s comments as she is using it as an opportunity to once again attempt to separate the IMF and herself from the damage the organisation she has inherited has done while it slowly aborts its European mission.

The Germans, for their part , don?t seem too impressed by a renewed push to once again sideline their policy efforts:

Germany?s finance minister said Friday there is ?no alternative? to cutting debt in European countries, a day after the head of the IMF called for Greece to be given more time to pare its deficit.

?There?s no alternative to reduce in the medium term too high sovereign debts, especially and of course for? the eurozone as a whole,? Wolfgang Schauble said in a debate with IMF managing director Christine Lagarde in Tokyo.

Lagarde on Thursday appeared to soften slightly on the need for heavily indebted countries to trim their fiscal cloth, when she said: ?Instead of frontloading heavily it is sometimes better? to have a bit more time.?

She said the IMF was happy for debt-addled Greece to have another two years to get its fiscal house in order and bring budget deficits down to levels agreed with international creditors.

Schauble is correct, there is no alternative to cutting debts across the Eurozone, but that isn?t actually the point of Lagarde?s comments. The real point is whether the current strategy is actually working in doing just that ?and if we look at the trajectory of debt in much of the European periphery the answer ?appears to be no. ?Greece is the leading example:

Euro zone officials are considering new ways to reduce Greece?s huge debts because delays to reforms by Athens and continued recession have put the target of a debt to GDP ratio of 120 percent in 2020 out of reach,?euro zone?officials said.

A Greek debt sustainability analysis prepared by the International Monetary Fund, the European Central Bank and the European Commission in March forecast Greek debt would rise to 164 percent of GDP in 2013 from around 160 percent in 2012 under a baseline scenario assuming the Greek economy would stop contracting next year.

But?Greece?now expects its economy to shrink by 3.8 percent in 2013, its sixth consecutive year of contraction, boosting its debt ratio to 179.3 percent.

?At the moment it looks like Greece?s debt level will rise to well above the target of 120 percent of GDP by 2020,? ECB Executive Board member Joerg Asmussen told the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper.

Schauble went on to say that it does not build confidence when policy is changed midway through its political course, which I agree with, but given the solid backtracking from northern creditors, including Germany, on pledges made at the July summit its a fairly ironic statement in my opinion. Schauble went on to use this example to demonstrate his point:

When you want to climb a mountain and you start by going down, the mountain gets higher

True enough, but again not particularly relevant to his argument as this is actually the problem with the current policy that Ms Lagarde is referring to. Spain is another clear example of this:

The black hole in Spain?s?budget?has expanded faster than Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy?s attempt to shrink it, portending the same unrest roiling Greece.

The harshest austerity since the return to democracy in 1978 has failed to contain the deficit as the economy sinks deeper into recession. The shortfall increased in the first half of the year, as it did in the previous 12 months. Even after a sales-tax increase and health-care cuts kick in this quarter, it may still approach last year?s 9.4 percent of gross domestic product, said Ignacio Conde-Ruiz, an economist at the independent?applied Economic Research Foundation?in Madrid.

And like other periphery countries before it, this sliding further down the mountain is met with lower ratings:

S&P warned that rising unemployment and harsh austerity measures are likely to intensify social unrest and cause further friction between Spain?s central and regional governments.

?The downgrade reflects our view of mounting risks to Spain?s public finances, due to rising economic and political pressures,? said the rating agency in a statement.

?In our view, the capacity of Spain?s political institutions (both domestic and multilateral) to deal with the severe challenges posed by the current economic and financial crisis is declining, and therefore, in accordance with our rating methodology (see ?Sovereign Government Rating Methodology And Assumptions,? published June 30, 2011), we have lowered the rating by two notches.?

The downgrade to BBB- from BBB+ late on Wednesday leaves Spain one notch above ?junk? status. S&P also attached a ?negative outlook?, which warns of a possible downgrade in the medium term.

This should come as little surprise to MB readers, as I stated back in July this was all just a matter of time as the existing policy responses are ultimately counter-productive to debtors and creditors alike. Of course the ECB is waiting in the wings with its OMT and this latest ratings downgrade could be the trigger that finally forces Rajoy to seek external help. This is exactly the dynamic that is keeping Spanish bond yields suppressed even though the economy is worsening. However, it should be noted that a further downgrade to ?junk? will force up margins on Spanish bonds at clearing houses and also remove them from investment grade indexes. This what we saw in the case of Portugal which is why their bonds deteriorated so rapidly.

In the meantime the Spanish housing market continues to deteriorate?with cumulative declines in the Tinsa housing index increasing to 32.9% from peak in September. Once again Catalonia is leading the pack?with the ?Mediterranean Coast? falling 39.2% followed by 36% for ?Capitals and Major Cities?, 33.2% for ?Metropolitan Areas?, 28.6% for the ?Balearic and Canary Islands? and 28.5% for ?Other Municipalities?. ?Given the circumstances I can only assume that this means a further increase in the already record high bad debts in the banking system which will again apply more pressure to the government.

As I stated above the current response isn?t helping anyone long term. The bailouts and the monetary policy responses are buying time for the creditors at further expense of the debtors, but the creditors certainly aren?t climbing any mountains either. Unsound credit and bad loans are being masked by these monetary operations but as part of their implementation the real economy of the Eurozone is weakening while social tensions rise. As we?ve seen with Greece this ultimately means the creditors are forced to wear the costs anyway.

The IMF has signaled once again that it believes the current plan is failing and, as I stated ?nearly a year ago?would eventually occur, are slowly pushing back against the fiscal framework. It?s early days but given the developing weakness across the zone I wouldn?t be surprised to see some more side-switching on fiscal policy in the coming months, even from the supposedly?stringently fiscal responsible (even though most of them are not).

Source: http://www.macrobusiness.com.au/2012/10/imf-jumps-ship-on-europe/

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Being at the starting point of our digestive system, we are at the duty of satiating our tongue?s desire by giving the best ever food! Here! With the Great British Chefs you have the chance of achieving what you need! These innovative chefs are immense in giving the best recipes according to the changing time and their recent one are the palatable salmon recipes! We should make it a point to consume salmon because it is extremely nutritious and we can also go through food critic Matthew Fort in order to know about salmon collection. Everybody should know to prepare salmon terrine, pan fried salmon and salmon fillet because it will be tasty to eat.

Source: http://www.bdliban.com/2012/10/13/delicious-salmon-recipes/

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TJantunen.com ? Is Pinterest the Best Option For Your Business?

Oct 13 2012

Professionals state that with the launch of internet business, the idea of market has changed. Actually, professionals state that internet business has basically widened the definition of the word ?market?. At this point, with the launch of social networking sites, the range of the market has increased. This really is opened new facet considering the launch of the idea of Pinterest application. These days, every single business person is desperate to utilize this application to expand his business activity. He?s keen while he would gain a boost in traffic to his site which provides him sufficient probabilities to turn into beneficial sales. However, the billion dollar challenge is; ?is Pinterest the best choice for each business?? This vexed concern needs to be looked at from various ways:

Social marketing:

Social media or social marketing is definitely linked with Pinterest. ?Because professionals point out that these run together. Simultaneously, professionals are of the perception that performance of social networking relies upon a number of elements. They assert that it needs a sufficient amount of knowledge to increase Search engine optimization by using social networking. It?s for this function individuals seek the services of experts in network marketing strategy. These specialists attempt to position the product in as high position of Search engine optimization as it can be. The application of social networking can also be relying on an additional component and that?s the business person should make sure that at regular intervals he needs to perform product review and come up with essential changes on the social networking. Only these scenarios the Pinterest application would be useful to the business house.

Nature of business:

As a matter of fact the overall assumption that social networking will boost the SEO can?t be applied like a thumb rule. Type of business or even the kind of product put on this media performs a similarly crucial part in impacting on the Search engine optimization. These days, the launch of Pinterest for that method is exclusively associated to the kind of product offered to be placed on the web. Keep in mind, there are lots of social networking and every of these media usually serves distinct class of individuals. Thus, you ought to be attentive in selecting the kind of media by which he can communicate via Pinterest. Professionals are also of the perception that some items like arts and artifacts are most appropriate for using Pinterest. Simultaneously, a few of the business houses that have a lesser number of rivals typically don?t require the Pinterest media.

Consider the target:

The overall concept of marketing is that the methods to be implemented depend upon the consumer or the target. Consequently, the performance of the Pinterest also depends upon the target. A few of the items like for instance beauty need far more promotion as compared to jewelry products. Thus in such instances the Pinterest could be of great use. The image picked to be added on the Pinterest must be exclusively related to the product actually put on the social networking. Another essential element that need considering is the price involved with putting the product on the social networking while using Pinterest mode.

Author Bio:

Gloria Philips is content writer and holds a Master degree with an emphasis on writing. She has written numerous articles on various topics. However, she has experience and loves to write about 2 way radios and Motorola Two Way Radios.

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Source: http://tjantunen.com/2012/10/13/is-pinterest-the-best-option-for-your-business/

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Saturday, 10/13/12 : CrossFit Center City

Posted by crossfitcentercity on Friday, October 12, 2012 ? Leave A Comment?

Today, from 12-2pm: MENTAL FITNESS FOR SUCCESS:

Total fitness includes body, mind and spirit. Your thoughts can either contribute to your health, well-being and success, or contribute to your frustration, stress and dissatisfaction. Proper ?thinking push-ups? can create neuro pathways that can build new thought ?muscles? to bypass old and unhelpful ones. When the right thoughts are at work, our minds have the capacity to support us in our life?s goals and create a life that is truly extraordinary. What thought muscles would you rather be strengthening ? the ones that build your body, mind, relationships, and career or the same old ones that have been getting you nowhere? Physical push-ups transform your body, but well-targeted mental push-ups can transform your life. Come and learn all about them with our very own Annie Stone on Saturday, October 13th!

CROSSFIT ENDURANCE is cancelled today due to Ave being away for her Level 1 cert! This is a Running WOD that you can do on your own if you are following the program.

ADVANCED OLY with Jim, 9-11am

SQUATTING ONLY with Sammy, 9am

GYMNASTICS with Sammy, 10am

ONE HOUR OLY with Sammy, 11am

WORKOUT OF THE DAY with Ave, 11am

FOUNDATIONS with Erin, 12pm

SHOULDER LOVE with Erin, 1pm

HYBRID/ADVANCED OLY with Jim, 12-2pm?

BK benches, Reid spots. Always talk to your spotter to make sure EVERYONE is on the same page ? we PROMISE it?ll make you stronger.

WORKOUT OF THE DAY:

SELF-MYOFASCIAL RELEASE: Foam Roll, til 10 minutes past.

DYNAMIC WARM-UP: Spend about a minute to teach and a minute to complete with each of these new mobilizations:

ACTIVATION: Box Jump, up to peak of 3 in 5 minutes.

METABOLIC CONDITIONING:

Work with a partner to complete:

4 rounds for total working time of:

7 Bench Press @ 65%
Row 500m

The first partner to go completes the Bench and the Row with the second partner spotting.? After this, the first partner rests (and spots) while the second partner benches and rows.? Your total time is your score.

Source: http://crossfitcc.com/saturday-101312/

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