Religious slights are the buzz as India marks Republic Day

Followers of India's three main religions - Islam, Hinduism, and Sikhism - have balked loudly at cultural slights this week. There's a reason for it, and it's not all politics.

No one likes to have their religion slighted. This is especially true in India, where there are thousands of gods, and tensions are close to the surface when it comes to ill-considered comments about religion.

Skip to next paragraph

Last week, author Salman Rushdie canceled his much anticipated visit to India?s biggest literary festival because of reported threats of assassination. Many Muslims regard his 1988 novel, "Satanic Verses," to be blasphemous, and some Muslim clerics threatened massive protests if Mr. Rushdie showed up at the festival in Jaipur. A handful of authors attempted to read the book ? which is banned in India ? on Rushdie?s behalf in a form of protest, but organizers stopped them.

Just the day before, American late night talk show host Jay Leno managed to offend India?s Sikh community with a satirical sketch, involving the Sikh faith?s holiest shrine, the Golden Temple. In a video showing the homes of the GOP presidential candidates, Leno showed a photo of the Golden Temple, calling it ?Mitt Romney?s summer home on Lake Winnipesaukee.??

But that wasn?t all.

On Jan. 25, a Chicago-based sports commentator offended Hindus in his post-game description of a hockey match between the Chicago Blackhawks and the Nashville Predators. Sportscasters are famous for stretching metaphors to the breaking point, but the Chicago commentator was quoted by Indian websites as saying the Predators were ?swallowing up space like some weird Hindu god."

The objection is to the word ?weird,? which a Nevada-based Hindu community leader Rajan Zed ? president of the Universal Society of Hindus ? said was hurtful to the feelings of the world?s 1 billion Hindu people.

Offending all three of the main faiths of the world?s second largest country is quite a feat. In hockey games this is called a hat trick.

What outsiders generally don't quite grasp about India is that sacredness is woven into almost every act of every day. Unlike post-religious societies, where Westerners may attend church once a week (or once a year), many Indians are constantly aware of their religious duties at work, at play, at meal times. I can't tell you how many times I've sat in the back of a taxi cab, in fear, as a Delhi taxi driver takes his hands off the wheel and puts them together in a sign of respect as he passes a holy shrine.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/csmonitor/globalnews/~3/srm12iWmM0k/Religious-slights-are-the-buzz-as-India-marks-Republic-Day

hennessy hennessy lymphoma cancer glenn beck cacao cacao spartacus blood and sand

EU leaders to discuss growth as Greece case looms (AP)

BRUSSELS ? European leaders will try to come up with ways to boost growth despite steep budget cuts across the continent when they meet in Brussels on Monday.

The 27 heads of state and government will get a taste of the popular frustration with austerity and high unemployment as they try to get to the summit in a city paralyzed by strikes.

While the official theme of Monday's meeting is boosting growth and jobs, the elephant in the room will be Greece.

Leaders aren't expected to make any decisions on a new massive bailout for Greece until international debt inspectors have issued a new report on the country's finances.

Athens' euro partners have grown frustrated with its slack implementation of spending cuts and reforms almost two years after first receiving international aid.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120130/ap_on_bi_ge/eu_europe_financial_crisis

keystone pipeline mitt romney drew peterson untouchable seal and heidi klum herman cain south carolina bath salts bill maher

Official Formspring for Android application available now

If you're one of the more than 28 million users of Formspring, you'll notice that there has been a lack of an official application from the social network. That all changes now as the official Formspring for Android application is available right now in the Android Market. 

It offers a pretty full experience, allowing you to ask and respond to questions from your contacts on the go. Sharing photos is also built in, and that pretty much covers everything Formspring is about. If there's room for one more social network on your Android device, hit the download links after the break. A word of warning though, it force closes at every time of asking on the Galaxy Nexus so you'll have to wait for an update to join in if you're using one.

read more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/60hoWd00ylI/story01.htm

blue ivy devil inside ted nugent dash diet how to make moonshine joel osteen emmy rossum

Clashes erupt in Cairo during anti-army protest (Reuters)

CAIRO (Reuters) ? Hundreds of Egyptian protesters demanding an immediate end to military rule clashed on Sunday with rivals in civilian clothes outside central Cairo's state media building, the same place where 25 people were killed in a demonstration in October.

"Down with military rule," protesters chanted. The sound of gunshots rang through the air but it was unclear who was firing.

"Tell me council, who chose you? It's Mubarak's gang that appointed you," the crowd chanted, referring to the army council which has ruled Egypt since President Hosni Mubarak was ousted on February 11.

Dozens of protesters clashed with a group of people protesters described as "thugs" brought out to attack them, hurling stones at each other. There was no sign of police or troops intervening or securing the media building.

"We were protesting here peacefully, and all of a sudden a group of around 50 thugs came from side streets surrounding the building and attacked us with stones and glass bottles, and we responded by throwing stones back at them. They tore down our tents," said Mohamed Abdo, 45, an elevator worker.

State radio said residents in a poor area next to Maspero, the site of the demonstration, had challenged the protesters because they were disrupting shops and businesses in the area.

Protesters often say such "thugs," usually youths in plain clothes and sometimes members of the police force, have been hired by the authorities to disrupt demonstrations.

The October violence at Maspero in which 25 people died erupted when troops tried to break up a protest sparked by what Christians said was an attack on a church in southern Egypt.

Egyptians have become increasingly frustrated by military rule, though many still see the army as a vital force for stability after months of political turmoil.

"The country cannot continue like this. Things are getting worse. They have to transfer power now. The country cannot stay like this any longer," said Waleed Kamal, 25.

He was not among the protesters, but lives nearby. "If we get civilian rule, the country will get back on its feet, the economic wheel will turn," he added.

Egyptians on January 25 marked the first anniversary of mass demonstrations against Mubarak in Tahrir Square, near the Maspero site of Sunday's protest.

(Writing by Edmund Blair; editing by Tim Pearce)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/africa/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120129/wl_nm/us_egypt_protest

free shipping day free shipping day golden globe nominations 2012 war in iraq war in iraq barbara walters government shutdown

Libyan PM calls for security meeting over weapons (Reuters)

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) ? Libyan Prime Minister Abdurrahim al-Keib called on Sunday for a regional security conference to tackle a proliferation of weapons by exiled supporters of former leader Muammar Gaddafi.

The Libyan civil war may have given militant groups in Africa's Sahel region like Boko Haram and al Qaeda access to large weapons caches, said a U.N. report released on Thursday.

"(There is) still a real threat from some of the armed remnants of the former regime who escaped outside the country and still roam freely. This is a threat for us, for neighboring countries and our shared relations," Keib told African Union leaders in Addis Ababa.

"My country calls for a regional security conference in Libya of interior and defense ministers of neighboring countries," he told the summit, the first since Gaddafi's death last year.

A U.N. report said the Libyan civil war may have created a proliferation of small arms, giving militant groups like Boko Haram and al Qaeda access to large weapons caches in Africa's Sahel region that straddle the Sahara, including Nigeria, Niger and Chad.

The report said some countries believe weapons have been smuggled into the Sahel by former fighters in Libya - Libyan army regulars and mercenaries who fought on behalf of Gaddafi, who was ousted and killed by rebels.

Links between al Qaeda and Boko Haram have become a growing source of concern for the countries of the region, the U.N. report said.

The Islamist sect Boko Haram has killed at least 935 people since it launched an uprising in Nigeria in 2009, including 250 in the first weeks of this year, Human Rights Watch said last week.

(Reporting by Yara Bayoumy; Editing by James Macharia)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120129/wl_nm/us_libya_security_au

nhl all star draft presidential debate david blaine seal team 6 touch nitrous oxide rihanna thug life tattoo

Ex-Boston Mayor White, led in turbulent '70s, dies (AP)

BOSTON ? Former Mayor Kevin H. White, who led the city for 16 years including racially turbulent times in the 1970s and was credited with putting it on a path to prosperity, died Friday, a family spokesman said. He was 82.

White, who had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease in 2003, died peacefully at his Boston home surrounded by his family, spokesman and friend George Regan said.

"He was a man who built Boston into the world-class city it is today," said Regan, who called his loss "devastating."

White, a white Irish Catholic from a family of politicians, is credited with revitalizing Boston's downtown and seeing the city through court-ordered busing, but he ended his four-term tenure in 1983 under a cloud of ethics suspicions.

White, a Democrat, was elected Massachusetts secretary of state three times before running for mayor for the first time in 1967 against antibusing activist Louise Day Hicks. He defeated her with support from the black community and liberals.

After losing a 1970 bid for governor, White was re-elected mayor in 1971, again defeating Hicks. He won again narrowly in 1975 and 1979.

White was considered as a vice presidential running mate to U.S. Sen. George McGovern of South Dakota in 1972 but was passed over for U.S. Sen. Thomas Eagleton of Missouri, who was later shunted aside for R. Sargent Shriver Jr.

After U.S. District Court Judge W. Arthur Garrity ordered busing to desegregate public schools in 1974, White protected schoolchildren from violence with federal and state assistance during the period of crisis and in 1976 led a march of 30,000 to protest racial violence.

White was never totally comfortable with busing, however, and called Garrity's plan "too severe."

"I wish I knew a way to have taught Garrity or convinced Garrity to be more generous ... or softer in his implementation of that order," White said after his time as mayor.

U.S. Sen. John Kerry of Massachusetts, a fellow Democrat, said White "knew how to wisely wield the power of the mayor's office for the public good."

"For 16 years," Kerry said in a statement, "the mayor shepherded the city through the turbulence of the late '60s and mid-'70s and in the process ushered in the remarkable city we know today."

Current Mayor Thomas Menino, also a Democrat, praised White for his contributions to the city.

"Mayor Kevin White was a great friend and a great leader who left a lasting mark of hope and inspiration on the City of Boston," he said in a statement. "He will be sorely missed."

White's first two terms were known for his Little City Halls in the city's far-flung neighborhoods that gave power to ethnic and racial minorities, but he consolidated his power in his final two terms.

White closed the Little City Halls and instead used a network of ward lieutenants who rewarded the mayor's supporters with city jobs and contracts.

Seven mayoral aides were eventually indicted on fraud and extortion charges. His one-time budget director and an official of the Boston Redevelopment Authority were convicted of fraudulently obtaining city pensions. A deputy commissioner was convicted of tax evasion for failing to report money that prosecutors said he gained from bribes.

White was never implicated. The State Ethics Commission, however, conducted a 10-month investigation that found "reasonable cause" that White had violated conflict-of-interest laws.

The city also wallowed in a financial crisis in the later years of his tenure that led to layoffs of police officers and firefighters and the shutdown of some stations.

The crises were exploited by his critics, who called him King Kevin, and he dropped out of the 1983 mayoral race, eventually won by Raymond Flynn.

"It's no secret that Kevin and I were rivals for many years," Flynn said. "But underneath that sometimes heated rivalry, rooted in different priorities, was a mutual respect. Kevin and I shared a deep love for this complex, fascinating city of Boston."

A liberal reformer, White appealed to a cross-section of society, including the young.

Once, when the Rolling Stones were arrested on the way to Boston, the mayor released them into his own custody.

"The Stones have been busted, but I have sprung them!" he told an audience at Boston Garden.

While the busing crisis brought a stain to the city, White was also credited with revitalizing the city's downtown, especially the shops and restaurants of Quincy Market, which remains one of the city's top tourist attractions. He thought the downtown renaissance would make Boston a "world-class city."

A statue of White was unveiled near Quincy Market in 2006.

Gov. Deval Patrick, a Democrat, said White's stewardship created "a path to prosperity for the city."

White's father and maternal grandfather had been Boston City Council presidents. In 1956, he married Kathryn Galvin, the daughter of another City Council president. He was educated at Tabor Academy, Williams College, Boston College Law School and the Harvard Graduate School of Public Administration.

After handing over the office to Flynn in 1984, White accepted a position at Boston University as a professor of communications and public management.

While mayor in 1970, White had major surgery to remove two-thirds of his stomach. He suffered a heart attack in 2001 while at a Florida restaurant and spent several days in a hospital when he had a pacemaker implanted.

He is survived by his wife of 55 years, Kathyrn Galvin White, five children and several grandchildren.

___

Associated Press Writer Sylvia Wingfield contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/obits/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120128/ap_on_re_us/us_obit_kevin_white

pumpkin carving patterns pumpkin carving patterns lizzie borden lizzie borden 20/20 maps directions josephine baker

First White House Chief Technology Officer, Aneesh Chopra, steps down

He was appointed with a fair bit of fanfare as the United States' first Chief Technology Officer back in May of 2009, but it looks like Aneesh Chopra has decided that it's now time to make room for the nation's second CTO. The White House confirmed today that Chopra is stepping down from his position, noting that he has amassed a "dizzying array of accomplishments." Among those are his contributions to the Obama administration's national wireless strategy, a set of internet policy making principals, and a number of efforts related to the President's open government strategy, including the Data.gov platform. No word on his successor just yet, nor is there any official word on what Chopra plans to do next -- although The Washington Post reports that he's expected to run for lieutenant governor of Virginia.

First White House Chief Technology Officer, Aneesh Chopra, steps down originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 27 Jan 2012 15:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  The White House  | Email this | Comments

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/27/first-white-house-chief-technology-officer-aneesh-chopra-steps/

walking dead season 2 saving private ryan world series tickets world series tickets nelson cruz nelson cruz michael young

Analysis: Obama speech puts him in campaign arena (AP)

WASHINGTON ? President Barack Obama, having watched his Republican adversaries pound him for weeks, got his turn Tuesday, using his State of the Union speech to land the first major counterpunch of the still-forming 2012 election.

It came before a prime-time audience of millions that the GOP candidates can only envy, even if their fiery debates are turning heads.

Obama didn't mention Mitt Romney or Newt Gingrich in his third State of the Union address. But the GOP contenders were never far from mind. Obama demanded economic fairness for Americans on the same day that Romney revealed paying a relatively modest 14 percent in taxes on his $21 million in 2010 income.

"You can call this class warfare all you want," Obama said, chiding Republicans. "But asking a billionaire to pay at least as much as his secretary in taxes? Most Americans would call that common sense."

Obama could not use the State of the Union's formal setting for a purely political speech, of course. But he invited a symbolically telling guest to the crowded House chamber: the secretary who works for investor Warren Buffett, a billionaire who says the U.S. tax code unwisely lets him pay a lower tax rate than his clerical staff.

Obama called his new proposal for a minimum 30 percent tax on millionaires the "Buffett rule."

It would have doubled Romney's tax bill. It also dings Gingrich, who wants to eliminate the capital gains tax. As Romney noted in Monday's GOP debate in Tampa, Fla., he would pay essentially no income taxes under Gingrich's plan.

The tax quarrel is one of the philosophical differences splitting the two parties, which have grown so hostile in Congress that it's impossible for the president to pass anything but the blandest of initiatives. Last year's showdowns over spending bills and the debt ceiling brought the government to the brink of shutdowns and triggered a credit rating downgrade.

Yet a number of lawmakers, especially those elected with tea party help, answer to constituents who detest compromise and say a federal government meltdown might not be a bad idea.

Congress' GOP leaders declared Obama's ideas dead in dismissive statements early Tuesday, hours before his speech. Obama went the through the motions anyway, pitching ideas for job training, clean energy and other topics.

These issues will play a role in the general election, once the GOP picks its nominee. But the dominant issue will be Obama's handling of jobs and the economy.

That severely limits his ability to focus on his first three years in office, except for foreign achievements such as the killing of Osama bin Laden. And it forces him to argue that he still can accomplish good things despite a bitterly gridlocked legislative branch.

Until Tuesday, the Republicans' wildly unpredictable presidential race had dominated political news, leaving Obama largely on the sidelines. Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, and Gingrich, the former House speaker, express open disdain for the president, blaming him for nearly every lost job and foreclosed home.

Romney was particularly pointed Tuesday in Tampa, one day after a Republican debate widely seen as his best in a while.

"High unemployment and record home foreclosures," Romney said. "Debt that's too high and opportunities that are too few. This is the real state of our union. But you won't hear stories like these in President Obama's address tonight."

Obama "will make the opening argument in his campaign against a `do-nothing Congress,'" Romney said. "It's shameful for a president to use the State of the Union to divide our nation."

Actually, a "do-nothing Congress" is only one of Obama's planned campaign themes. His aides know the economy might undo him, but they also detect big vulnerabilities in the Republican candidates.

Gingrich has a long history of unorthodox ideas, combative relations with supposed allies and lucrative Washington consulting contracts, which Romney is highlighting this week.

Romney's record at the corporate-restructuring firm Bain Capital proved to be a ho-hum issue in the Republican primary. But it might trouble independent voters next fall, when Democrats would paint Romney as an uncaring plutocrat who pays low taxes and eliminates jobs with barely a thought.

The approaching campaign might emancipate Obama in a sense. The gridlocked and toxically divisive capital can be a dreary place. He may not relish another grueling year of campaigning across the country. But at least he can get away from Washington and utter a few ideas without having them immediately declared dead, foolish or worse.

Obama likes the phrase, "You campaign in poetry but govern in prose." Today's more apt rendering might be, "You campaign in Reeboks and govern in leg irons."

Running shoes surely aren't the preferred attire of any president. They'd rather use the office's power and prestige to pursue policy goals.

In Washington's poisonous atmosphere, however, running for re-election might give Obama his best chance to break free from the logjams for a while and try to recapture the enthusiasm and joy of 2008.

Romney, Gingrich or some other Republican will be waiting, eager to make him answer for a nation still trying to turn an economic corner.

___

EDITOR'S NOTE ? Charles Babington covers politics for The Associated Press.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politicsopinion/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120125/ap_on_an/us_state_of_union_analysis

cabin in the woods dan quayle brett favre packers stock packers stock mastectomy st. nicholas

Giants top 49ers 20-17 in OT to reach Super Bowl (AP)

SAN FRANCISCO ? The New York Giants have their own Super Bowl formula: in overtime and on the road.

And with Lawrence Tynes' foot.

Five plays after the 49ers' Kyle Williams fumbled a punt, Tynes kicked a game-winning 31-yard field goal in overtime, sending the Giants to the Super Bowl with a 20-17 victory over San Francisco in the NFC championship game on Sunday.

In another tight one in this decades-old postseason rivalry, both defenses made key stops before New York capitalized on a rare mistake in San Francisco's resurgent season. Williams' blunder put the Giants in perfect position for another sensational finish in a season full of them.

"That was a tough game. We had to fight for every yard that we got," Giants quarterback Eli Manning said. "Defense was outstanding, special teams getting us two turnovers was huge. That led to 10 points."

The first three overtime series ended in punts before Williams fumbled. The Giants won it moments later and silenced ? for good this time ? the towel-waving, poncho-wearing sellout crowd at cold, rainy Candlestick Park.

"It was one of those situations where I tried to turn it upfield and it just didn't work out," Williams said.

Manning and the Giants (12-7) will face the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl on Feb. 5 in Indianapolis as 3 1/2-point underdogs. The last time the teams met for the NFL title, 2008, the Giants ended the Patriots' bid for a perfect season.

Tynes had a hand, er, foot in getting the Giants to that one, too, kicking the game-winning field goal in overtime at Green Bay.

Devin Thomas put the Giants in position by recovering his second fumble of the game after Jacquian Williams stripped the ball from fill-in return man Kyle Williams, who also fumbled earlier to set up a New York touchdown.

"It's my second NFC championship game, my second game-winner," Tynes said of his kick 7:54 into overtime. "It's amazing. I had dreams about this last night. It was from 42, not 31, but I was so nervous today before the game just anticipating this kind of game. I'm usually pretty cool, but there was something about tonight where I knew I was going to have to make a kick. Hats off to Eli, offense, defense. Great win."

Manning went 32 of 58 for 316 yards and two touchdowns and overcame six sacks in his record fifth road playoff win, New York's fifth in a row overall.

Manning threw a go-ahead 17-yard touchdown pass to Mario Manningham with 8:34 remaining after Kyle Williams fumbled for the first time.

The Giants challenged that the ball touched Williams' right knee and Thomas recovered with 11:06 left and coach Tom Coughlin won, giving the Giants the ball back at the 29.

"That was a tremendous football game for those that really enjoy football at it's very basic element," said Coughlin, who matched former Cowboys coach Tom Landry for most road playoff wins with seven. "Just a classic football game that just seemed like no one was going to put themselves into position to win it. Fortunately we were able to do that."

A 12-point underdog in the 2008 title game, the Giants battered Brady and got a last-minute TD pass from Manning to Plaxico Burress to win their third Super Bowl. Five months ago, Manning declared he was in the same class as Tom Brady. Now, he'll get another chance to outdo him on the NFL's biggest stage.

During this playoff run, he's already outplayed Aaron Rodgers and the defending champion Packers, and fellow former No. 1 pick Alex Smith.

Victor Cruz set the tone Sunday with eight of his 10 receptions in the first half and finished with 142 yards.

"It's just been a tremendous effort by all of us, man," Cruz said. "We understand that any one of us can get hot at any moment. As long as we're all on the same page and just playing together, man, we've got a great group of guys."

Vernon Davis caught touchdown passes of 73 and 28 yards and wound up with three catches for 112 yards for the NFC West champions (14-4), who went from 6-10 a year ago to a contender and ended an eight-year playoff drought.

"It will be a tough one. It will take a while to get over," Harbaugh said.

The only other time these two franchises faced off in the conference championship the game finished in memorable fashion. On Jan. 20, 1991, Roger Craig fumbled with the 49ers leading 13-12 late in the fourth quarter and the Giants went on to win 15-13 to deny San Francisco a chance at a third straight Super Bowl title. New York then beat the Bills to capture its second Super Bowl.

These teams met six times in the playoffs between the 1981 and `94 seasons with the winner going on to win the Super Bowl four times.

Smith went 12 for 26 for 196 yards and two touchdowns and was sacked three times. San Francisco converted only one third down, coming on the final play of regulation as the offense was unable to overcome Williams' blunders.

"We all know him. We know how committed he is to winning," Smith said. "It's not on him. I look at the 1-for-13 on third downs. I know he's going to feel bad, but he's still part of our team. We didn't lose the game there. We lost it across the board offensively. We just couldn't get it done."

The Giants appeared on the verge of collapsing and Coughlin's job status in jeopardy just a month ago, when they fell to 7-7 with an embarrassing loss to the Washington Redskins on Dec. 18.

They were facing elimination the following week against the Jets and Rex Ryan, but the Giants won 29-14. They followed with a 31-14 win over Dallas in the regular-season finale to win the NFC East and get to the playoffs for the first time since 2008.

New York dominated Atlanta at home in the opening round, and then came another stunner: a 37-20 victory at Green Bay.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120123/ap_on_sp_fo_ga_su/fbn_nfc_championship

harry morgan john lennon death john lennon death c.j. wilson three stooges pujols mythbusters

Financial infidelity: Take survey on money secrets

Getty Images stock

Are you hiding a money secret?

By Allison Linn

Maybe you snuck a latte in this morning even though you and your spouse swore off the coffee shop to save money.

Maybe you told your boyfriend those shoes you bought were on sale, when really you paid full price.

Or maybe you?re waiting for just the right moment to reveal to your fianc? that you have a $12,000 credit card bill hanging over your head.

Everyone knows financial issues can make or break a relationship, and yet we?re guessing few of us are completely honest with our spouse or partner when it comes to money.

TODAY.com and SELF magazine are partnering to find out the truth about money lies.

We want to hear from you: How much financial information do you have to share with your partner, and when? What is an acceptable little white lie, and when does not being upfront about finances constitute financial infidelity?

Click here to take our survey, and we?ll use the results in some upcoming stories.

?

Source: http://lifeinc.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/23/10199900-financial-infidelity-take-our-survey-on-money-secrets-and-lies

how the grinch stole christmas macaroni and cheese festivus festivus zeno melanie amaro new air jordans

Minn. bear delivers at least 2 cubs on Internet (AP)

ELY, Minn. ? A 3-year-old bear in Minnesota has given birth to at least two cubs before an Internet audience.

Lynn Rogers of the Wildlife Research Institute, affiliated with North American Bear Center, says Jewel gave birth in a den near Ely to the first cub at 7:22 a.m. Sunday, and a second at 8:40.

According to the Duluth News Tribune (http://bit.ly/xuFrjP), Rogers says a third cub might have been born at 9:08 a.m., but the den camera's view was blocked.

Rogers and his colleagues recorded the birth of a bear named Hope in 2010. A Hunter killed Hope last year.

Jewel is the younger sister of Lily, who gave birth to Hope. A hunter killed Hope last year.

___

Online:

North American Bear Center: http://www.bear.org

___

Information from: Duluth News Tribune, http://www.duluthsuperior.com

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120123/ap_on_re_us/us_internet_bear_sister

boston news matilda new jersey weather halloween movies halloween movies new york snow new york snow

Congress has legal clout on Keystone pipeline: study (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? The Congress has the constitutional right to legislate permits for cross-border oil pipelines like TransCanada's Keystone XL, according to a new legal analysis released late on Friday.

The study by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service could give a boost to Republicans drafting legislation to overturn a decision this week by President Barack Obama to put the $7 billion Alberta-to-Texas project on ice.

Historically, U.S. presidents have made executive decisions on pipelines that cross borders. But Congress had the power all along to weigh in on the permits, said the study, done by four legislative attorneys with the CRS.

"If Congress chose to assert its authority in the area of border-crossing facilities, this would likely be considered within its Constitutionally enumerated authority to regulate foreign commerce," the study said.

Republicans in Congress have elevated the Canadian pipeline and the construction jobs it would create into an election-year issue, accusing Obama of caving in to environmental groups. They pushed to include a deadline for a permit approval in a payroll tax cut bill that Obama signed into law in December.

But this week, Obama and the State Department said an environmental review of a portion of the proposed pipeline could not be rushed, closing the door on a quick start to the project.

BACK IN THE DAY

The CRS study examined the history of decisions by presidents on thorny issues involving approval of cross-border projects such as bridges and power lines stretching back to 1869, when President Ulysses Grant ruled on a French transatlantic cable used to send telegrams.

The report also looked at more recent court cases involving oil and gas pipelines crossing the Canada-U.S. border.

While the U.S. president has authority over foreign affairs, the U.S. Constitution gives Congress the power to regulate foreign commerce, the report explains.

Until now, presidents have issued permits by executive order for pipelines, and Congress has stayed out of the matter.

The report did not comment on specific proposals floated by Republicans in the Senate and House of Representatives, but said that "legislation altering the pipeline border crossing approval process appears likely to be a legitimate exercise of Congress's constitutional authority to regulate foreign commerce,"

Legislation on cross-border "facilities" like pipelines "is unlikely to raise significant constitutional questions, despite the fact that such permits have traditional been handled by the executive branch alone," it said.

REPORT 'HELPS THE CONVERSATION'

Any "plan B" drafted by Republicans would still have to clear a very big political hurdle. While legislation could easily pass in the Republican-controlled House, the Democratic-led Senate is another matter.

"Regardless of whether the Republican legislation seeking to rubber-stamp Keystone XL would pass constitional muster, it would still need to pass the Senate and be signed by the president, and that is not going to happen," a Senate Democratic aide said on Friday.

But the CRS report "greatly helps the conversation" among Senate and House Republicans strategizing about how to keep the project alive, said Ryan Bernstein, an energy adviser to Senator John Hoeven of North Dakota, whose office requested the study.

"I think this confirms what we've been saying all along - Congress has the authority to approve the Keystone pipeline," said Bernstein, who is helping Hoeven draft legislation that would see Congress approve the project.

Earlier on Friday, Republicans in the House of Representatives said they were considering using upcoming payroll tax cut or highway construction bills to force quick approval of the pipeline.

Representative Lee Terry, whose home state of Nebraska would host part of the pipeline, has drafted legislation to shift the Keystone decision-making process from the Obama administration to the independent Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, which regulates pipelines in the United States.

The House Energy and Commerce Committee will hold a hearing on Wednesday about Terry's bill and other Keystone measures.

(Editing by Peter Cooney)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120121/pl_nm/us_usa_pipeline_legislation

surrogates james garner veteran aircraft carrier apocalypse now happy veterans day happy veterans day

Dracula-esque monkey long thought vanished reappears

A team set up camera traps in Borneo in June, hoping to captures images of wildlife known to congregate at several mineral salt licks but the?pictures that came back caught them all by surprise: groups of?monkeys?none had ever seen.

Scientists working in the dense jungles of Indonesia have "rediscovered" a large, gray?monkey?so rare it was believed by many to be extinct.

Skip to next paragraph

They were all the more baffled to find the Miller's Grizzled Langur ? its black face framed by a fluffy, Dracula-esque white collar ? in an area well outside its previously recorded home range.

The team set up camera traps in the Wehea Forest on the eastern tip of Borneo island in June, hoping to captures images of clouded leopards, orangutans and other wildlife known to congregate at several mineral salt licks.

The pictures that came back caught them all by surprise: groups of?monkeys?none had ever seen.

With virtually no photographs of the grizzled langurs in existence, it at first was a challenge to confirm their suspicions, said Brent Loken, a Ph.D. student at Simon Fraser University in Canada, and one of the lead researchers.

The only images out there were museum sketches.

"We were all pretty ecstatic, the fact that, wow, this?monkey?still lives, and also that it's in Wehea," said Loken.

The?monkey, which has hooded eyes and a pinkish nose and lips, once roamed the northeastern part of Borneo, as well as the islands of Sumatra and Java and the Thai-Malay peninsula. But concerns were voiced several years ago that they may be extinct.

Forests where the?monkeys?once lived had been destroyed by fires, human encroachment and conversion of land for agriculture and mining and an extensive field survey in 2005 turned up empty.

"For me the discovery of this?monkey?is representative of so many species in Indonesia," Loken told The Associated Press by telephone.

"There are so many animals we know so little about and their home ranges are disappearing so quickly," he said. "It feels like a lot of these animals are going to quickly enter extinction."

The next step will be returning to the 90,000 acre (38,000 hectare) forest to try to find out how many grizzly langurs there are, according to the team of local and international scientists, who published their findings in the American Journal of Primatology on Friday.

They appear in more than 4,000 images captured over a two-month period, said Loken, but it's possible one or two families kept returning.

"We are trying to find out all we can," he said. "But it really feels like a race against time."

Experts not involved in the study were hugely encouraged.

"It's indeed a highly enigmatic species," said Erik Meijaard, a conservation scientist who spent more than eight years doing field research in the area.

In the past they were hunted to near extinction for their meat and bezoar "stones," he said, which can, on occasion, be found in their guts.

Bezoars, as Harry Potter fans know from lectures given by Prof. Snape to first year students, are believed by some to neutralize poison.

Meijaard said the animal has long been considered a subspecies of the Hose's Leaf?Monkey, which also occurs on the Malaysian side of Borneo, but it now looks like that may not be the case.

"We think it might actually be a distinct species," he said, "which would make the Wehea discovery even more important."

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/science/~3/5lXI0Lunxng/Dracula-esque-monkey-long-thought-vanished-reappears

billy crystal veterans day thank you veterans day thank you nigel tufnel day black friday deals molokai molokai

Rob Lowe Talks Twitter Controversy On The Ellen Degeneres Show

Earlier this week, actor Rob Lowe's 140-character updates on Twitter caused controversy when he proclaimed that Peyton Manning was retiring. Check out the clip above to see Lowe on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, as he discusses the sheer power of the social media platform.

"; var coords = [-5, -72]; // display fb-bubble FloatingPrompt.embed(this, html, undefined, 'top', {fp_intersects:1, timeout_remove:2000,ignore_arrow: true, width:236, add_xy:coords, class_name: 'clear-overlay'}); });

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/20/rob-lowe-ellen-degeneres-show-twitter_n_1217524.html

mary tyler moore ray lewis baltimore ravens gabby giffords gabby giffords ravens san francisco 49ers

More Than Half of Teens Who Gave Birth Weren't Using Contraception: CDC (HealthDay)

THURSDAY, Jan. 19 (HealthDay News) -- Slightly more than half of U.S. teenaged girls who had a child between 2004 and 2008 did not use birth control, and a third didn't think they could get pregnant at the time, a new government study finds.

Although the number of teens who get pregnant in the United States has fallen in recent years, the U.S. teen birth rate is still the highest of any developed country, with more than 400,000 births in 2009, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"These are the girls who had risky sex and ended up getting pregnant and giving birth," said study co-author Lorrie Gavin, a health scientist with the CDC's Division of Reproductive Health. "This is the group that we should pay most attention to, because they're the ones who experienced unintended births."

According to the report, 50.1 percent of girls aged 15 to 19 who had an unintended pregnancy were not using any form of contraception when they got pregnant, and 31.4 percent thought they could not get pregnant at the time.

Commenting on the findings, Lawrence Finer, director of domestic research at the Guttmacher Institute in New York City, had this to say: "The fact that they found such a low level of contraceptive use says a number of things about what we need to do to try to improve adolescent reproductive health."

Finer said more teens should be using IUDs and implants because they take the decision-making out of the equation.

"In the past, these methods have been seen as ones for older women, but those methods should be considered first-line methods for adolescents and young adults," Finer suggested. "Historically, it's been condom and pill for young people, but we need to expand our thinking on that."

The girls who didn't think they could get pregnant have misconceptions about pregnancy, Finer added. "That clearly reflects on education and awareness," he said.

The reason some girls think that they can't get pregnant is probably a combination of factors, Finer explained.

"The risk of becoming pregnant from one act of sex is relatively small," he noted. "It may be the case that, for some teens, they had unprotected sex and didn't become pregnant so then they think they won't become pregnant based on their past experience," he said.

"This is a lack of recognition that if you don't get pregnant one time you may get pregnant at another time," Finer pointed out. In addition, some girls may think that either they or their partner is infertile.

Finer said more education about pregnancy and contraception is needed.

Another co-author of report pointed out other scenarios that might explain why these teens did not use contraception.

"Other reasons for not using contraception were their partner did not want to use it, or because they didn't mind getting pregnant," said Ayanna T. Harrison, who is also with the Division of Reproductive Health.

Among teens who got pregnant despite saying they used birth control, 24 percent said they used condoms and 21 percent said they used an IUD, implant or a birth control pill, said Harrison.

"When we looked at age, race and ethnicity, we didn't see a huge difference," Harrison said. However, among those who thought they couldn't get pregnant, 42 percent were Hispanic compared to almost 27 percent of white teens and 32 percent of black teens, she said.

Gavin added that most were not using the most effective methods of birth control, such as IUDs.

"They were using methods that require some kind of ongoing behavior, such as taking a pill every day or using a condom every time you have sex," she said. "We know that consistent use of the pill or a condom is a major problem."

Efforts are needed to dispel myths about becoming pregnant and to increase motivation to avoid pregnancy, Gavin said.

"We need to do a better job for sexually active teens," Gavin said, including providing better access to contraception, encouraging the use of more effective methods and increasing the motivation to use birth control consistently.

"Teen pregnancy is a public health concern because teen mothers are more likely to experience negative social outcomes, and infants of teen mothers have higher risks for preterm birth, low birth weight and related complications," the authors wrote.

The report was published in the Jan. 20 issue of the CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.

More information

For more on teen pregnancy, visit the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/health/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/hsn/20120120/hl_hsn/morethanhalfofteenswhogavebirthwerentusingcontraceptioncdc

doritos confederate flag confederate flag kim delaney kim delaney dead sea scrolls new jersey nets

Cash-strapped Ireland tests limits of austerity

Butcher Sean Smith, 43, chats with one of his regular customers in his shop in Dublin on Thursday, Jan. 19, 2012. Smith says Ireland feels like it's ``under German rule'' ever since it took an EU-led bailout that requires severe budget cuts and tax hikes. Terms of Ireland's international bailout mean at least three more years of deepening austerity. (AP Photo/Shawn Pogatchnik)

Butcher Sean Smith, 43, chats with one of his regular customers in his shop in Dublin on Thursday, Jan. 19, 2012. Smith says Ireland feels like it's ``under German rule'' ever since it took an EU-led bailout that requires severe budget cuts and tax hikes. Terms of Ireland's international bailout mean at least three more years of deepening austerity. (AP Photo/Shawn Pogatchnik)

Dublin mechanic Tommy Larkin, 35, drains oil from a customer's car in his garage in Dublin Thursday, Jan. 19, 2012. Many Irish people are struggling to pay their bills and face a financial breaking point following four years of tax rises and spending cuts. Terms of Ireland's international bailout mean at least three more years of deepening austerity. (AP Photo/Shawn Pogatchnik)

Mechanic Tommy Larkin, 35, drains oil from a customer's car in his garage in Dublin Thursday, Jan. 19, 2012. Many Irish people are struggling to pay their bills and face a financial breaking point following four years of tax rises and spending cuts. Terms of Ireland's international bailout mean at least three more years of deepening austerity. (AP Photo/Shawn Pogatchnik)

Butcher Sean Smith, 43, arranges his display of premium Irish meats in his shop in Dublin on Thursday, Jan. 19, 2012. Smith says Ireland feels like it's ``under German rule'' ever since the country took an EU-led bailout. (AP Photo/Shawn Pogatchnik)

DUBLIN (AP) ? Ireland is testing the limits for how much European Union-ordered austerity one country can take. Its four-year struggle to save its banks and tame a runaway deficit has already meant slashing thousands from the annual budgets of most households ? and many Irish say they're close to breaking point.

"We're squeezed to the pips," said Tommy Larkin, a 35-year-old mechanic changing tires and oil on the double in northside Dublin. "I never had to watch my money in the good times, but that's all I do with my money now."

Across the road, butcher Sean Smith, 43, isn't quite as forlorn about his own family finances but is just as bleak about Ireland's financial future.

"We're under German rule, it's as simple as that, and we'll be paying them back forever," Smith said, referring to Ireland's loss of economic sovereignty since taking a bailout from the EU and International Monetary Fund 14 months ago.

On Thursday, EU and IMF chiefs monitoring Ireland's handling of its debt crisis left Dublin singing the praises of a government that has slashed its 2011 deficit to below 10 percent of GDP, ahead of the bailout plan's target.

Ireland has been cutting its budgets and raising a slew of taxes since January 2009 and, according to the EU-IMF bailout plan, still must cut billions more over the next three years just to regain a 2015 deficit of 3 percent of GDP, the maximum level permitted in the eurozone.

Middle-class wages have been cut around 15 percent, while the nearly 15 percent unemployed have seen welfare and other aid payments trimmed. The government has just raised sales tax to 23 percent, joint highest in the EU, imposing a new household tax, and planning new water charges next. Keeping a car on the road can mean an annual fee of anything from euro160 ($205) to euro2,258 ($3,045), while recent fuel-tax hikes have helped take gas above euro1.50 per liter ($7.25 per U.S. gallon).

Many economists believe Ireland is trying to defy economic gravity by fighting a war on its own debt that, to succeed, will require strong economic growth alongside spending cuts. Austerity alone, the recipe so far, undercuts the hopes of growth by sucking money out of the economy.

The same formula of reforms centered on austerity is being applied across Europe and is championed by Germany's chancellor and leading voice in Europe's financial planning, Angela Merkel, as a way out of the region's financial crisis. Recession-hit Greece and Portugal, which have also been the recipients of bailouts, face severe austerity measures.

The proponents of austerity have pointed to Ireland as proof that it can work, but questions are growing over how much longer the country can keep squeezing money from its economy.

"If austerity don't work in Ireland, it won't work anywhere. And it can't work here if people are scared stiff of spending whatever money they have," said David McWilliams, Ireland's most prominent economic commentator, who foresaw the demise of the 1994-2007 Celtic Tiger economy as credit and property bubbles collapsed.

McWilliams noted that Ireland has an extremely flexible labor market by European standards, is quick to use its traditional safety valve of emigration to keep unemployment artificially low, and has built a lopsided economy dependent on the fortunes of nearly 1,000 foreign multinationals based here.

Despite these advantages, he said, Ireland still stands little chance of achieving the economic growth it needs so long as it's trapped in an EU-directed plan that takes progressively more money out of people's pockets.

"Search every economic textbook you've ever read and find the one that says cutting expenditure in the teeth of a recession will make the economy grow. It doesn't exist," McWilliams said.

"The problem with our austerity budgets is that we're trying to hit a moving target, and every cut and tax hike moves the target further away. I don't see how these austerity budgets ever end," he said.

Ireland's most recent consumer confidence survey last month recorded a precipitous drop as citizens reflected worries about their declining net pay and job security, mortgages in negative equity, and tougher times expected to come.

Austin Hughes, chief economist at KBC Ireland, a Belgian-owned bank that is one of Ireland's main mortgage providers, said the country faces a make-or-break 2012. If the economy doesn't grow sufficiently, he said, people will increasingly reject the whole rationale of austerity.

"Ireland started battling its downturn in 2008 before virtually the rest of the world. As we face into 2012, we're battling this sense of dread, that this fight against debt could go on forever. The risk is it's going to tax people's willingness to make further adjustments," said Hughes, who co-authored the consumer confidence report.

"People rightfully wonder: How bad will property taxes get? How much higher will the other charges go? How bad will the cuts in public services be? We've been living with too much certainty for too long," he said.

"With each austerity budget the government extends this sense of hope that we're coming to the corner, that the worst is over and things are about to get better. And at each stage that hope gets snatched away."

Ireland's exceptional exposure to the economic fortunes of its two major trading partners, the U.S. and the United Kingdom, appears to be the key to pulling Ireland out of its doldrums ? or its Achilles heel, if those two economies don't generate their own growth.

Multinationals in Ireland, chiefly American companies attracted by an unusually low 12.5 percent rate of corporate tax, generate more than 18 percent of Ireland's entire GDP.

The trouble is, those companies making goods for sale overseas provide just 7 percent of Ireland's jobs, according to estimates by McWilliams. So even as these companies' exports boost GDP, their actual economic footprint on the ground in Ireland is far less.

"When Ireland's GDP rises, it doesn't mean anything to the real people of Ireland. It means Pfizer pumped out more Viagra last month," McWilliams said, referring to one of Ireland's most high-profile U.S. drug companies and exports. "And frankly, the level of erectile dysfunction in North America is hardly a firm basis for growth in Ireland."

Perhaps the most striking aspect of Ireland's economic fall has been the relatively low levels of public protest.

Commentators credit Ireland's post-Famine experience of poverty and emigration, its tradition of close government-labor union relations, and its exceptionally high levels of property ownership as disparate reasons why the country's shrinking work force keeps reporting to their jobs.

Smith, the Dublin butcher, and Larkin the mechanic are both bracing in their own ways for a tougher 2012. Both imagine an alternative Ireland where enraged workers riot in the streets, but both doubt it will happen.

Larkin is living paycheck to paycheck with nothing left over for savings. His partner takes care of their 3-year-old child at home, and another baby's on the way in March. The home they bought in 2006 with a euro270,000 ($350,000) mortgage is worth less than half of that now.

The auto shop has had to lower prices to keep penny-pinching customers coming in. Its newest competition includes shops that sell imported, used German tires ? too worn down for German roads, but still legal in Ireland ? for half the price of new ones.

One of his friends has just given up on Ireland and joined the 1,700 on average who leave the country each week. Part of him would love to join his friend overseas.

"If I had nothing tying me down, no mortgage, I'd be on that plane to Australia as well," Larkin said.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-01-19-EU-Ireland-Pains-of-Austerity/id-3527dfc3ac9841d9b6acba31db5445ed

funny pics contagion contagion memory ducati hitch asu

3 shark attacks in Australia in less than 3 weeks (AP)

SYDNEY ? A snorkeling guide was attacked by a 10-foot (3-meter) tiger shark off a remote beach in Australia's third attack this month. That's as many attacks as the country generally sees in an entire year.

David Pickering, 26, was leading a group of snorkelers through a lagoon at Western Australia's Coral Bay on Thursday when the shark swam up to him and sunk its teeth into his arm.

"I turned around and boom, there he was," Pickering told reporters. "(The force) was enough to actually bring me forward and under him because I scraped my knee on his belly."

Pickering said he punched the shark with his other arm and it backed off. He then yelled at the other snorkelers ? a couple and their two children ? to get out of the water before swimming the 300 feet (100 meters) back to shore.

"I'm pretty stoked that it happened to me and not one of those kids," he said.

Pickering was taken to a hospital in Perth with severe lacerations to his arm. His injuries were not life-threatening and he was in stable condition, Royal Flying Doctor Service spokeswoman Joanne Hill said.

The attack came one day after a surfer was bitten by a shark at a beach off Australia's east coast. Another surfer was attacked at a beach north of Sydney on Jan. 3.

Despite the encounter, Pickering said the attack wouldn't keep him away from the ocean.

"I'll definitely be back in the water ? as soon as this bad boy is healed up," he said, holding his arm up with a laugh.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/oceania/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120119/ap_on_re_as/as_australia_shark_attack

gpa calculator menorah chanukah chanukah david archuleta david archuleta hobbit trailer

Police: Pa. robbery suspect used infection threat

SHARON, Pa. (AP) ? Police say a man tried to rob a western Pennsylvania gambling parlor by threatening to spread a staph infection.

Online court records don't list an attorney for 41-year-old Fred Parker, of Coolspring Township.

Police say he walked into Lucky's Internet Cafe in Sharon on Monday night and began touching the walls and gambling machines, claiming he has MRSA ? a serious staph infection that resists antibiotics.

Sharon police Chief Mike Menster says Parker then threatened to infect the cashier if he didn't give Parker money. The chief tells The Herald newspaper of Sharon, "It's our first case of robbery by threat of an infectious disease."

Police say Parker left when the cashier refused, but was arrested a short time later based on his description.

Parker remained in jail Wednesday.

___

Information from: The Herald, http://www.sharon-herald.com

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/aa9398e6757a46fa93ed5dea7bd3729e/Article_2012-01-18-Infectious%20Threat/id-da4be5aff00b41e297dc2a0be2719f44

walmart black friday ad walmart black friday ad rick perry gaffe rick perry gaffe graham spanier graham spanier penn state board of trustees

Venture capital investments up 19 percent in 4Q

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) ? Funding for startups rose 19 percent in the fourth quarter as venture capitalists fueled money into more companies in the Internet, clean technology and other sectors.

According to a study released Friday, startup investments grew to $6.57 billion in the October-December quarter from $5.52 billion in the same period in 2010. The volume of deals, though, did not keep up with the amount of money invested. There were 844 deals completed in the fourth quarter, down from 861 a year earlier.

Called the MoneyTree report, the study was conducted by PriceWaterHouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association based on data from Thomson Reuters.

For all of 2011, venture investments jumped 22 percent to $28.43 billion, in 3,673 deals. That's up from $23.26 billion in 2010, when the money went to 3,526 deals.

Venture capitalists piped $133.9 million into 80 seed-stage companies in the fourth quarter. That's down from $233.2 million going to 90 such startups in the fourth quarter of 2010. The decline suggests some caution on the part of venture capitalists looking at the newest, often most risky, startup investments.

A total of 364 early-stage companies snapped up $2.27 billion in venture funding during the quarter. That compares with $1.48 billion going to 318 early-stage startups in the last three months of 2010. The report said 222 companies in the expansion stage received $2.36 billion in funding, compared with 270 companies snagging about the same amount a year earlier. In the later stage, 178 startups received $1.8 billion in the fourth quarter, while $1.4 billion went to 183 companies a year earlier.

By industry, software companies received the most funding with $1.76 billion snagged in the fourth quarter, followed by biotechnology with $1.27 billion.

San Francisco-based internet storage locker Dropbox Inc. got the single-largest investment during the quarter, $250 million. In second place was Better Place Inc., which is based in Palo Alto and builds infrastructure and systems for electric vehicles, with $200 million.

John S. Taylor, head of research at the National Venture Capital Association, said the figures show "cautious optimism."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/495d344a0d10421e9baa8ee77029cfbd/Article_2012-01-20-Venture%20Investments/id-7a1f46e5058d4255a5c53c8c2c336027

bluebeard blue angels weather miami angus t. jones belgian malinois girl fight jacoby brissett

Citi misses forecasts; 4Q profit down 11 percent

In this Jan. 6, 2012 photo, a Citibank customer makes a transaction at an ATM, in New York. Citigroup said Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2012, its income fell 11 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011due to lower investment banking income, an accounting charge, and a decline in the value of its assets. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

In this Jan. 6, 2012 photo, a Citibank customer makes a transaction at an ATM, in New York. Citigroup said Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2012, its income fell 11 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011due to lower investment banking income, an accounting charge, and a decline in the value of its assets. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)

NEW YORK (AP) ? Choppy financial markets hurt Citigroup's investment banking profits, and the bank missed Wall Street expectations. The bank said Tuesday that profit fell 11 percent in the last three months of last year.

Besides making less money on investment banking, the bank lost money because of a quirky accounting rule related to the value of its corporate bonds.

Citi made $1.16 billion, or 38 cents per share, on revenue of $17.2 billion. The results fell short of the 54 cents per share estimated by analysts surveyed by FactSet, a provider of financial data.

A year earlier, in the fourth quarter of 2010, Citigroup made $1.3 billion on revenue of $18.4 billion.

Citigroup's broad international profile helped its results. Its business and consumer loans grew 14 percent to $465 billion, with most of the growth coming from Latin America and Asia.

As Americans pay down debt, the bank's credit card portfolio is improving. The number of Citi customers late with payments by 90 days or more fell 30 percent from the same period a year earlier.

Its losses from loans fell 40 percent, a bigger decline than the bank had anticipated. That allowed Citi to take a profit of $1.5 billion from the reserves the bank had kept aside for such losses.

But the volatile stock and bond markets in the fourth quarter led to a decline of 45 percent in Citi's investment banking revenue, to $638 million. The bank made less money on debt and equity underwriting and fees from advising on mergers and acquisitions.

Citi, one of the worst-hit banks during the financial crisis, has been reducing the toxic loans in its portfolio ? a condition of its $45 billion federal bailout. Those assets declined 25 percent in the fourth quarter, reducing overall revenue.

The bank also took a loss of $40 million because of an accounting rule that applies to the value of the corporate debt that the bank sells to investors. The value of that debt rose in the fourth quarter, but the bank had to take a loss because it would have had to pay more to buy it back on the open market.

For all of 2011, Citigroup's income was $11.3 billion on revenues of $78.4 billion, compared to net income of $10.6 billion on revenues of $86.6 billion for the full year 2010.

This marks the bank's second straight full year of profits. Citi's results were badly hurt during the financial crisis, posting close to $40 billion in losses from 2008 and 2009 combined.

Citi's stock was down 3 percent at $29.77 in pre-market trading.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-01-17-Earns-Citigroup/id-6a45580104ec43d3b7b8333be7663eae

brown recluse heather locklear hospitalized joplin tornado there will be blood there will be blood extreme makeover home edition friday the 13th

76ers win 3rd straight, beat Bucks 94-82 (AP)

PHILADELPHIA ? Jrue Holiday scored 24 points and Andre Iguodala had 21 to help the Philadelphia 76ers beat the Milwaukee Bucks 94-82 on Monday and remain unbeaten at home.

Everything is going right for the Sixers this season. They've won three straight, nine of 10 overall and already hold a four-game lead over the second-place New York Knicks in the Atlantic Division. The Sixers are 6-0 at home.

Iguodala went 9 of 14 from the floor hours after he was chosen as part of the 20-player men's Olympic basketball pool. Known as a lockdown defender, he surprised Tobias Harris with a block from behind late in the third.

Spencer Hawes, their 7-foot-1 center, buried his first two 3-pointers of the season in the third.

Andrew Bogut returned from concussion-like symptoms to lead the Bucks with 20 points and 11 rebounds.

Hawes finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds, and Lou Williams scored 17 points. The Sixers won without reserve guard Evan Turner, who sat out with a right quad contusion.

Williams cut off a late Bucks' surge with a 3-pointer that stretched the lead to 83-71. Their top reserve, Williams entered as the Sixers' leading scorer at 16.1 points per game. Six other Sixers averaged double-digit scoring, proving they don't need a superstar to make them contenders in the Eastern Conference, just team-oriented basketball.

Coach Doug Collins calls the Sixers perhaps the most unselfish team he's coached in all his years in basketball.

Check out the assist totals that go along with the points: Williams had six, Holiday five and Iguodala four.

Iguodala was rewarded for his defensive effort Monday when he was announced as one of the 20 players who will be candidates for the London Games. Iguodala, the ninth overall pick of the 2004 draft, has spent all nine seasons with the Sixers. He was the go-to defensive stopper for the U.S. team that won gold in the 2010 world championships.

"I think Dre's got a great chance if he stays healthy," Collins said. "He's gotten off to a great start for us this year."

While he's carved a reputation as a stout man-to-man defender, Iguodala bested Harris late in the third. Stephen Jackson made a nice dish to Harris as he cut down the lane, but Iguodala was there to swat the ball against the backboard with his left hand.

Hawes stunned everyone in the third when he nailed a pair of 3-pointers after missing his previous four attempts on the season. His first one gave the Sixers a 67-54 lead, then he stepped back to end the third with his second straight for a 76-62 lead. It was that kind of game.

The Sixers made 11 of 23 3-pointers. With a hand in the lane, they forced the Bucks to shoot a step or two beyond their comfort range and into 3 of 14 3-point shooting.

One weak point for the Sixers had been slow starts, but they made 12 of 19 shots in the first quarter and rolled to an early 13 point lead.

Brandon Jennings (18.7 ppg) was limited to seven points and missed eight of 11 attempts and was outplayed by Holiday. With Jennings struggling to get going, the Bucks fell to 0-8 on the road.

Notes: The Sixers are off to their best home start since going 10-0 in 2002-03. ... The Bucks failed to win three straight over the Sixers for the first time since 2005. ... The Sixers won six games at home by holding all teams under 90 points.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/sports/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120116/ap_on_sp_bk_ga_su/bkn_bucks76ers

occupy rose parade stanford stanford oklahoma state university badgers badgers nbc sports network

5 tourists killed in Ethiopia: report

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia (AP) ? Five foreign tourists were killed by unknown armed rebels in Ethiopia's restive Afar region in the country's north, Ethiopian state television reported on Tuesday.

The Ethiopian Television, or ETV, cited the Ethiopian Ministry of Defense reporting a group of eight unidentified foreign nationals were attacked near the Eritrean border on Monday.

ETV said two tourists were injured severely and have been brought to a health clinic by defense forces. They are in critical condition, the state television said. Another tourist survived the attack unharmed.

ETV suggested that the attackers were rebels with ties to Ethiopia's archrival Eritrea, which hosts the exiled Oromo Liberation Front, a rebel group listed as a terrorist organization by the Ethiopian government.

Ethiopia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs acknowledged tourists had been attacked in the Afar region but said it didn't have any further details about the attack or the victims' nationalities.

In Berlin, a spokesman at the German Foreign Ministry, speaking on customary condition of anonymity, said it has received "reports of an attack on a tour group with Germans in Ethiopia" and that the ministry is trying to determine what had happened.

In Vienna, Austrian Foreign Ministry spokesman Peter Launsky-Tiefenthal said as many as 22 tourists of several European nationalities may have been attacked, including two Austrians.

___

David Rising in Berlin and George Jahn in Vienna contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-01-17-AF-Ethiopia-Tourists-Killed/id-fba1b9b60e9d41b1897ccd449747d529

abc store lobster recipes nate diaz vs donald cerrone vanderbilt texas a m lesnar vs overeem appetizer recipes

Hypocrisy, Thy Name Is Kennedy (Powerlineblog)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS and RSS Feed via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/187260805?client_source=feed&format=rss

spear of destiny rock hill sc kate middleton pregnant national book awards jessica sutta sexiest man alive 2011 ruben studdard