সোমবার, ৩১ ডিসেম্বর, ২০১২

?Gangnam Style? singer Psy buys LA condo

10 hrs.

This week in celebrity real estate, Korean singer Psy bought a condo in Los Angeles and Derek Jeter eyed a Chelsea condo in Manhattan.

Korean star Psy buys LA condo
How do you buy a condo ?Gangnam Style??

Pay for it in cash.

According to the Los Angeles Times, Korean pop star Psy bought a condo in the exclusive Blair House on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles for $1.249 million and paid for it in cold-hard cash.

Psy was already a phenomenon in Korea before his catchy song ?Gangnam Style? made its way to America via YouTube. The video has been viewed over a billion times and parodied nearly as much. Psy signed a record deal with Scooter Braun, (the manager for Justin Bieber), in early September, and with this Westwood home purchase, it looks like his transition to American fame is complete.

The glassy and modern condo measures 2,776 square feet on one of the lower floors of the Blair, a luxury building constructed in 1989. Psy?s unit features large windows and modern fixtures.

Apartment-less Derek Jeter eyes Chelsea duplex for 2013 season
Derek Jeter needs a place to live in Manhattan!

This seems inevitable, after Jeter sold his luxury East Side apartment in October for a cool $15.5 million. The Yankees shortstop was looking to downsize, so he dumped his 5,400-square-foot Trump World Tower penthouse at 845 United Nations Plaza, New York, NY 10017.

Now the hobbled Yankees captain is said to be pondering a rental in one of the hottest neighborhoods in all of Manhattan: Chelsea.

According to The Real Deal, the 38-year-old future Hall of Fame inductee has his eyes on a 5-bedroom, 4-bath unit in the Chelsea Quarter Condominium building.

If this 4,000-square-foot duplex sounds like downsizing, well, remember that Jeter is the man with a 30,000-square-foot custom home in Tampa.

No matter where the even-tempered star lands, he?s going to need an elevator. Jeter is still mending from an ankle break suffered during the American League playoffs in October.

More from Zillow:

?? Rihanna Buys in Pacific Palisades

?? Brooke Mueller Flips Tarzana Home

?? Biggest Celebrity Home Sales of 2012

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/gangnam-style-singer-psy-buys-la-condo-1C7753063

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Car bombing targeting Shiites in Pakistan kills 19

QUETTA, Pakistan (AP) ? A car bomb targeting a bus carrying Shiite Muslim pilgrims killed 19 people in southwest Pakistan, officials and eyewitnesses said.

Earlier Sunday, 21 tribal policemen believed to have been kidnapped by the Taliban were found shot dead in Pakistan's troubled northwest tribal region, government officials said.

Reports conflicted about whether the car bombing was a suicide attack or the device was detonated remotely.

Pakistan has experienced a spike in killings over the last year by radical Sunni Muslims targeting Shiites, whom they consider heretics. The violence has been especially pronounced in Baluchistan province, where the latest attack occurred.

In addition to the 19 people killed in the bombing in Baluchistan's Mastung district, 25 others were wounded, many of them critically, said Tufail Ahmed, a local political official. The blast destroyed the bus and damaged a nearby bus also carrying Shiites.

Ahmed and a person who was riding in the second bus, Mohammed Ayan Danish, said the attack was carried out by a suicide bomber.

The bomber "rammed a small car into the first bus, which contained 43 pilgrims," said Danish.

But Akbar Durrani, the home secretary in Baluchistan, said the explosion was caused by a car packed with explosives that was parked beside the road and detonated by remote control.

The pilgrims who were targeted were headed to Iran, a majority Shiite country that is a popular religious tourism destination, Ahmed said.

Shiites make up around 15 percent of Pakistan's 190 million people. Baluchistan has the largest community, mainly made up of ethnic Hazaras, identifiable from their facial resemblance to Central Asians.

An escalation in recent years of Sunni extremists' attacks against Shiites in Pakistan has been fueled mainly by the group Laskar-e-Jangvhi, aligned to Pakistani Taliban militants in the tribal region. More than 300 Shiites have been killed in Pakistan this year, according to Human Rights Watch.

The violence has pushed Baluchistan deeper into chaos. The province was already facing an armed insurgency by ethnic Baluch separatists who frequently attack security forces and government facilities. Now the secessionist violence has been overtaken by increasingly bold attacks against Shiites.

The sectarian bloodshed adds another layer to the turmoil in Pakistan, where the government is fighting an insurgency by the Pakistani Taliban and where many fear Sunni hard-liners are gaining strength. Shiites and rights group say the government does little to protect Shiites and that militants are emboldened by their perceived links to Pakistan's intelligence agencies.

The 21 tribal policemen who were shot dead were found shortly after midnight Sunday in the Jabai area of Frontier Region Peshawar after being notified by one policeman who escaped, said Naveed Akbar Khan, a top political official in the area. Another policeman was found seriously wounded, Khan said.

The 23 policemen went missing before dawn Thursday when militants armed with rocket-propelled grenades and automatic weapons attacked two posts in Frontier Region Peshawar. Two policemen were killed in the attacks.

Militants lined the policemen up on a cricket pitch late Saturday night and gunned them down, said another local official who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to reporters.

Also Sunday, two Pakistani army soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb in the North Waziristan tribal area, the main sanctuary for Taliban and al-Qaida militants in the country, security officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with official policy.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned the escalating violence, especially the continuing targeting of religions minorities, U.N. spokesman Martin Nesirky said.

"These cruel acts of violence cannot be justified by any cause or grievance," Ban's spokesman said. "Their perpetrators should be brought to justice."

The secretary-general stressed the U.N.'s solidarity and support for the government and people of Pakistan and "their efforts to defend their country's institutions and freedoms in the face of the scourge of terrorism," Nesirky said.

___

Associated Press writers Riaz Khan and Rasool Dawar in Peshawar, Pakistan, contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/car-bombing-targeting-shiites-pakistan-kills-19-005101092.html

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Deepcaster: Cartel Supressing Gold & Silver's Role As Canaries of ...

imagesSubmitted by Deepcaster:

The proposed forced Investment of Present and Prospective Retirees 401(K) Assets in U.S. Treasury Paper about which we earlier wrote, is now followed by yet another prospective attack on Retirees? Security, and indeed on the Wealth Security of those who hold $US Denominated Assets.

The Prospective Rigging of the CPI Calculation Protocol would , yet again, make the ?Official? CPI even further removed from The Inflation Reality.? The Reality is that the current U.S. Inflation Rate, 9.82%, is already Threshold Hyperinflationary.
Absent manipulation, Gold and Silver would be the monetary ?Canaries? of the Financial World, whose prices would long ago have warned of Excessive Monetary and Credit Creation. Well, in the past decade their price appreciation certainly has ?warned? of that, but not in the past few months. Gold and Silver prices are subject of ongoing Price Suppression by a Fed-led Cartel. But Gold and Silver Price Suppression, cannot last forever.

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?As the miscreants in Washington negotiate solutions to the [various ?Ed.] crises, trial balloons have been floated that agreement has been reached to use a new CPI measure?the C-CPI-U, which tends to understate inflation even more than the CPI-U?as way of deceptively reducing cost-of-living adjustments to Social Security, etc.? Not too surprisingly, public reaction appears to be turning increasingly negative, as the concept gets broader exposure in the popular press.

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Public Furor Mounts Over Proposed Use of the C-CPI-U to Short-Change Social Security Recipients on Their Cost of Living Adjustments. The chain-weighted CPI-U (C-CPI-U) is the fully substitution-based inflation series that is under serious consideration by those in Congress and the White House as a replacement for the CPI, with the goal of cutting Social Security cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) by stealth.? A fully-substitution-based inflation index used in COLA calculations would reflect lower inflation than would the CPI-U or CPI-W (used for Social Security), resulting in fraudulently- and artificially-reduced cost-of-living adjustments to social programs, retirement funds, etc.

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If the people controlling the U.S. government were honest, they simply would tell the COLA recipients that payments were being cut as part of the effort to balance the budget.? Yet, no one in Washington has the political courage to suggest such a thing, openly, hence the regular deception that so often surfaces in the headline budget bargaining.

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Reducing COLA by artificially reducing CPI reporting is not new.? Had the politicians not pursued similar policies successfully in the 1980s and 1990s, Social Security payments would be more than double current levels? annual SGS ? CPI Inflation? (using) the 1980-based measure came in at 9.4% in November ?? (emphasis added)

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November CPI, Industrial Production?, Shadowstats.com, 12/14/12

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The proposed forced Investment of Present and Prospective Retirees 401(K) Assets in U.S. Treasury Paper about which we earlier wrote, is now followed by yet another prospective attack on Retirees? Security, and indeed on the Wealth Security of those who hold $US Denominated Assets.

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The Prospective Rigging of the CPI Calculation Protocol would , yet again, make the ?Official? CPI even further removed from The Inflation Reality.

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The Reality is that the current U.S. Inflation Rate, 9.82%, is already Threshold Hyperinflationary (see below).

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And, of course, Official Numbers-Rigging is not limited to the U.S. We note Chinese and Eurozone Numbers-Rigging as well.

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?A fake Libor rate, the scandal involving global benchmark interest rates that has raised the level of distrust in major banks and markets, is nothing compared to the damage that could be done if China?s true economic growth figures were revealed, according to Larry McDonald?s newsletter.

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?Is Chinese GDP the new Libor? ?More and more investors are starting to question the Chinese math on GDP.

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?Annual gross domestic product came in at 7.6 percent in the second quarter, according to China?s government on July 13th. The report was better than investors expected?

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?But slowing imports and industrial production, as well as harder-to-fudge electricity usage data, points to much slower growth, according to McDonald and other investors. Barclays believes the number should have been more like 7.15 percent.

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?What worries McDonald? is that lying by governments and banks ? be it Libor rates or GDP statistics ? raises the systemic risk to the markets, which is much worse than just economic risk.?

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?Lying Libor Is Nothing Compared to China?s Fake GDP: Report?

John Melloy, CNBC, 7/22/2012

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Indeed, if one considers all the salient Chinese data together, one concludes that the Barclays estimate of Chinese GDP at 7.15% is still high.

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In order to obtain a realistic view of economic performance it is necessary to look beyond the Official Data to data that are more difficult to manipulate. For China, for example, consider:

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China?s shipbuilding industry has suffered a 60% decline in gross tonnage of orders; some builders may go bankrupt. China has vast stockpiles of as-of-yet-unused coal, iron ore, and copper. In the first half of 2012, Shanghai land sales fell close to 60%. The June 2012 Chinese electrical grid usage was flat. Prices in some Asian sectors sank an incredible 25% in June because of collapsing demand. China?s neighbor Singapore reported that its GDP growth fell 1.1% during the second quarter of 2012 following a 9.4% gain during the first quarter.

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Australia has been losing jobs ? Australian employers surprised the market after reporting payrolls were trimmed by 27,000 in June 2012; pushing the unemployment rate up to 5.2% from 5.1% in May, due primarily to redirection in growth of Chinese demand. And the two major customers of China?s exports ? the Eurozone and the US continue to weaken.

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Switching focus to the U.S. we recently see that some Mainstream Media are claiming that the Housing Market has bottomed and is recovering. It is not.

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?With minimal levels of consumer confidence and sentiment, and without positive real (inflation-adjusted) income growth and available credit, consumers generally cannot support real growth in broad consumption, let alone fuel a renewed housing boom.? The financially-impaired banking system still largely is sitting on the sidelines, despite four-plus years of systemic-liquefaction efforts by the Federal Reserve.

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Nonetheless, insurance payments on hurricane-damaged properties should help provide at least some temporary boost to the home construction industry in the next quarter or so.

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November housing starts fell month-to-month by a statistically-insignificant 3.0%, likely reflecting mixed pressures from storm disruptions and rebuilding.? The November loss, however, was in the context of downside revisions to reported activity of the last several months, in this highly volatile series.?

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?November Durable Goods, Housing Starts, GDP Revision, #490?

John Williams, shadowstats.com, 12/21/2012

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And most important, consider Williams on Real Current U.S. Inflation.

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?Set by Uncontained Fiscal Malfeasance, and Exacerbated by Still-Unfolding Effects of the 2008 Systemic Panic and Near-Collapse, U.S. Hyperinflation Looms by End of 2014.? After decades of U.S. government fiscal mismanagement, by 2004, the U.S. budget deficit was so out of control that it had become both unsustainable and uncontainable.? Using generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP-accounting), the deficit for just the fiscal-year 2004 exploded to $11.0 trillion?

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?Adjusted for distortions from one-time accounting changes, the actual, or GAAP-based, federal deficit has run roughly $5 trillion per year since 2004, and it likely topped $7 trillion in 2012, with total federal debt and the net present value of federal-government obligations approaching $90 trillion.? No amount of spending cuts, outside of the politically-untouchable social programs, and no amount of tax increases, can bring the GAAP-based annual U.S. budget deficit into balance.

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?Faced with structural impairments to individual income growth, the Federal Reserve (under Chairman Alan Greenspan) actively encouraged the excessive growth of consumer debt as a way to support economic activity, continuously borrowing economic growth from the future.

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?With an inevitable day of reckoning, the U.S. financial and banking systems came literally to the brink of collapse in September 2008.? To prevent the unthinkable, the Federal Reserve and the U.S. government created, spent, loaned, guaranteed, and gave away whatever money was necessary, and otherwise bailed out or acquired a number of failing large corporations?

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?Those actions forestalled a systemic collapse, but they did not resolve the fundamental underlying difficulties. Contrary to official GDP reporting, there has been no subsequent economic recovery.

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?The ultimate costs for saving the system in 2008 and beyond, comes down to inflation, which will be reflected eventually in the complete debasement of the U.S. dollar.? Accordingly, actions taken during the crisis-containment of 2008, and later, brought the outside timing for the hyperinflation forecast of 2018, into 2014.

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??the U.S. dollar, as we know it, is not likely to survive until the next congressional election in 2014??

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?Special Commentary: Review of Economic, Systemic-Solvency, Inflation, U.S. Dollar and Gold Circumstances, #485?

John Williams, shadowstats.com, 11/27/2012

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Official Data Purveyors would have you believe that U.S. inflation is ?contained,? GDP is growing healthily, and Sovereign Debt is sustainable. Not true! The U.S. for example is already Threshold Hyperinflationary at 9.82% and GDP growth is a negative 2.10% and the net present value of downstream Federal as-yet-unfunded government obligations is nearly $90 trillion.

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Bogus Official Statistics mask a wide variety of Negative Effects of ongoing Q.E. to Infinity and related Actions. Shadowstats.com calculates Key Statistics the way they were calculated in the 1980s and 1990s before Official Data Manipulation began in earnest. Consider:

Bogus Official Numbers vs. Real Numbers (per Shadowstats.com)
Annual U.S. Consumer Price Inflation reported November 15, 2012

2.16%

9.82%

U.S. Unemployment reported November 2, 2012

7.9%

22.9%

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U.S. GDP Annual Growth/Decline reported November 29, 2012

2.49%

-2.10%

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U.S. M3 reported November 17, 2012 (Month of October, Y.O.Y.)

No Official Report

3.56%

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Shadowstats Forecast of Impending Hyperinflation beginning no later than the end of 2014, is quite significant.

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?I have been warning of a hyperinflation for at least seven years, but those warnings have been about a hyperinflation that was sometime in the future, generally in 2018 or 2014 timeframes mentioned above. Now, however, along with the passage of time, circumstances have evolved and are aligned for the hyperinflation to develop in the near future, specifically, within the next two years or so, by the end of 2014. Key developments, such as global loss of confidence in the U.S. dollar, and the dollar losing its safe-haven status, fell into place during 2011.

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?Why 2014? While inflation is far from being out of control at the moment, the U.S. dollar is relatively strong, due to the euro crisis, that can change rapidly as global markets and domestic holders of the U.S. currency begin to flee the dollar, along with dumping dollar-denominated assets. Fiscal, systemic-solvency and economic conditions are deteriorating markedly, with a confluence of unstable circumstances likely to come to a head within the next year or so, placing extremely heavy selling pressure on the U.S. dollar and, before 2014, setting the stage for hyperinflation.

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?The damage to the U.S. financial system and to U.S. dollar credibility have been so severe in recent years?

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?The U.S. economy is far weaker than commonly viewed?it never recovered from the 2006/2007-to-2009 plunge in activity?and? has begun to show renewed deterioration in terms of already moribund consumer income growth.

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?Fundamental effects of the crises already have been seen in deteriorating funding conditions for Social Security and the annual budget deficit in general.

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?Reflecting the impact of the recession, Social Security cash flows began turning negative in 2010, seven or eight years ahead of schedule. Also reflecting the effects of the recession and the crises responses of the Fed and federal government, the annual cash-based federal deficit exploded, hitting $1.3 trillion or above for each of the last three years, with annual GAAP-based deficits running at $5 trillion or more.

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?Pending the results of court challenges, the Affordable Care Act (ACA) healthcare legislation likely will add more than $10 trillion in unfunded liabilities (net present value) to the government?s 2012 GAAP-based accounting, due for release in December 2012. That, plus consideration of accounting for Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae and otherwise normal annual transactions, could push the reporting of total GAAP-Based U.S. obligations?including gross federal debt and net present value of unfunded liabilities?from $80 trillion in 2011, into the $120 trillion range for 2012, or roughly eight-times the level of U.S. GDP.? (emphasis added)

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?Review of Economic, Systemic-Solvency, Inflation, U.S. Dollar and Gold Circumstances, #445?

John Williams, shadowstats.com, 7/17/2012

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Of Great Significance is the fact that Degradation of the U.S. Dollar?s status as World Reserve Currency is already well under way.

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China has already entered into bilateral Currency Deals with several nations including Russia, Iran, Brazil, and (soon to be former) financial allies Japan and Australia. Consequently, the Purchasing Power of the $US will suffer a huge hit in the next very few years. Given the Real Numbers (per Shadowstats and Deepcaster, et al.) it is no wonder Economist Nouriel Roubini characterizes U.S. Recovery as a ?Fairy Tale.?

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??the first-half growth rate looks set to come in closer to 1.5 percent at best, even below 2011?s dismal 1.7 percent. And now, after getting the first half of 2012 wrong, many are repeating the fairy tale that a combination of lower oil prices, rising auto sales, recovering house prices and a resurgence of U.S. manufacturing will boost growth in the second half of the year and fuel above-potential growth by 2013.

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??the gravity of weaker growth will most likely overcome the levitational effect on equity prices from more quantitative easing, particularly given that equity valuations today are not as depressed as they were in 2009 or 2010. Indeed, growth in earnings and profits is now running out of steam??

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?We?re Not Even Close to a Robust Recovery?

Nouriel Roubini, Project Syndicate, 7/22/2012

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And it is not just Doctor Doom Roubini who sees beyond the Bogus Official Data. Former Reagan Budget Director, David Stockman sees the Real Data, the Consequences, and the Challenges clearly.

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?I don?t think we are at the beginning of the recovery. I think we are at the end of a disastrous debt supercycle that has gone on for the last thirty or forty years, really. It started when Nixon defaulted on our obligations under Bretton Woods and closed the gold window. Incrementally, year after year since then, we have been going in a direction of extremely unsound money, of massive borrowing in both the private and the public sector. We now have an economy that is saturated with debt: $54 trillion or $53 trillion ? 3.5 times the GDP ? way off the charts from where it was for a hundred years prior to the beginning of this. The idea that somehow all of that debt is irrelevant, as the Keynesians would tell us, is fundamentally wrong ? and the reason why the economy can?t get up off the mat.

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?We?re doing all the wrong things. We?re adding to the problem, not subtracting. We are not allowing the debt to be worked down and liquidated. We?re not asking people to save more and consume less, which is what we really need to do. And so therefore I think policy is just making it worse, and any day now we will have another recurrence of the kind of economic crisis we had a few years ago.?

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?Austerity Is Not Discretionary,? Interviewed by Alex Daley, Casey Research

David Stockman, Congressman and former Reagan Budget Director, 7/20/2012

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Official data sources have Powerful Interests to protect and Truth is often sacrificed. Thus it is essential to rely on other entities and persons such as Shadowstats, Deepcaster, Stockman, Paul Craig Roberts, and Roubini for Genuine Data and Honest Analyses. Given the aforementioned, to Protect and Profit from confiscatory polices and Bogus Numbers it is essential to Invest in the Precious Monetary metals, Gold and Silver, (but see Note 1) and Inflation-Resistant Assets such as Food Commodities. For Deepcaster?s specific recommendations aimed at Profit and Protection despite Bogus Official data and Confiscating Policies see Notes 2, 3, and 4 below.

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Necessary also, is having Courage to see the Truth, because the Truth is not always Pretty.

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Finally, important to note is the fact that, absent manipulation, Gold and Silver would be the monetary ?Canaries? of the Financial World, whose prices would long ago have warned of Excessive Monetary and Credit Creation. Well, in the past decade their price appreciation certainly has ?warned? of that, but not in the past few months. Gold and Silver prices are subject of ongoing Price Suppression by a Fed-led Cartel as described in Note 1 below. But Gold and Silver Price Suppression, cannot last forever.

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Best regards,

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Deepcaster

December 28, 2012

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Note 1: We encourage those who doubt the scope and power of Overt and Covert Interventions by a Fed-led Cartel of Key Central Bankers and Favored Financial Institutions to read Deepcaster?s December, 2009, Special Alert containing a summary overview of Intervention entitled ?Forecasts and December, 2009 Special Alert: Profiting From The Cartel?s Dark Interventions ? III? and Deepcaster?s July, 2010 Letter entitled ?Profit from a Weakening Cartel; Buy Reco; Forecasts: Gold, Silver, Equities, Crude Oil, U.S. Dollar & U.S. T-Notes & T-Bonds? in the ?Alerts Cache? and ?Latest Letter? Cache at www.deepcaster.com. Also consider the substantial evidence collected by the Gold AntiTrust Action Committee at www.gata.org, including testimony before the CFTC, for information on precious metals price manipulation. Virtually all of the evidence for Intervention has been gleaned from publicly available records. Deepcaster?s profitable recommendations displayed at www.deepcaster.com have been facilitated by attention to these ?Interventionals.? Attention to The Interventionals facilitated Deepcaster?s recommending five short positions prior to the Fall, 2008 Market Crash all of which were subsequently liquidated profitably.

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Note 2: A well-known Billionaire increased his holdings in one Asset by 49% to $224 Million in the third quarter, according to SEC filings. We have earlier recommended investing in this Asset. We agree with the Billionaire that now is the time to dramatically increase ones Investment in this Asset.

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Therefore, recently, we issued a recommendation suggesting you consider doing the same, via a leveraged double long ETF. We suggest this in spite of the less-than-positive Economic news.

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In spite of the Washington, D.C. gridlock.

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In spite of ongoing Financial scandals.

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We expect this Sector could begin its launch up strongly as soon as tomorrow. If so, now would be a time to ?get in.?

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To see our Recommendations and Forecasts for Key Sectors, read our recent Alert ?Buy Reco re. High Potential Asset; Forecasts: Equities, Gold, Silver, Crude Oil, & U.S. Dollar/Euro, U.S. T-Notes, T- Bonds, & Interest Rates? in ?Alerts Cache? at www.deepcaster.com

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Note 3: The Various Challenging Fundamental Economic, Financial and Political Forces operating on Key Markets lately have coalesced in a way to enable our High Probability Forecasts going into 2013.

But these Challenges have provided a Superb Opportunity to invest in one ?Fortress Asset? International company (one likely to profit regardless of the economic environment) on the cheap. And its Recent Yield is over 8% to boot.

For these Forecasts for Key Markets for December 2012 through to the Spring 2013 and our High Yield Fortress Asset Buy Recommendation see our recent Alert, ?8% Yield Fortress Asset Buy Reco; Forecasts into 2013: Equities, Gold, Silver, Crude Oil, & U.S. Dollar/Euro, U.S. T-Notes, T- Bonds, & Interest Rates,? just posted in ?Alerts Cache? at?www.deepcaster.com.

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Note 4: There are Magnificent Opportunities in the Ongoing Crises of Debt Saturation, Rising Unemployment, Negative Real GDP growth, over 9.0% Real U.S. Inflation (per Shadowstats.com) and prospective Sovereign and other Defaults.

One Sector full of Opportunities is the High-Yield Sector. Deepcaster?s High Yield Portfolio is aimed at generating Total Return (Gain + Yield) well in excess of Real Consumer Price Inflation (9.82% per year in the U.S. per Shadowstats.com).

To consider our High-Yield Stocks Portfolio recommendations with Recent Yields of 10.6%, 18.5%, 26%, 15.6%, 8%, 6.7%, 8.6%, 10%, 14.9%, 8.8%, 10.4%, 15.4%, and 10.7% when added to the portfolio; go to?www.deepcaster.com?and click on ?High Yield Portfolio?.

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Source: http://www.silverdoctors.com/deepcaster-cartel-supressing-gold-silvers-role-as-canaries-of-the-financial-world/

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S'pore's environmental issues in 2013 [News] | Green Business Times

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Home / News / S?pore?s environmental issues in 2013 [News]

By Monica Kotwani, Channel NewsAsia, 29 Dec 2012.

Environment and Water Resources Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said the priority and challenge will be in inculcating more socially gracious attitudes among Singaporeans.

Dr Balakrishnan said his ministry is also studying other countries to cope with a potential sea-level rise.

National water agency PUB has been making preparations for rainy days and the monsoon season, such as widening drainage and installing closed-circuit cameras (CCTVs).

The Environment and Water Resources Ministry said there are another 15 projects in the pipeline for PUB in the coming year.

It is a race to get Singapore ?water independent? by ramping up land catchment areas and building more Newater plants.

Singapore?s first water agreement with Malaysia expired in 2010 and the second one is due to expire in 2061.

In addition, the ministry and its statutory boards will take a tougher stand on littering.

From 2013, fines for first-time offenders will increase from S$300 to S$500.

The Home Affairs Ministry will be installing CCTVs in almost every block for for surveillance, and the National Environment Agency (NEA) will ride on this technology to catch high-rise litterbugs.

?We have to put a stop to high-rise littering ? it?s unacceptable. Nearly 90 per cent of us live in high-rise apartments, and I get no end of complaints from people saying people are throwing all kinds of stuff,? said Dr Balakrishnan.

As penalties increase, 2013 will also see stepped up enforcement, including giving citizens the power to take action against those who litter.

?We?re going to start a course next year, which will be very similar to the same course our NEA officers go through, before they?re issued with warrant cards to take action if need be, when a minority of people litter, or act irresponsibly in our environment,? said Dr Balakrishnan.

?From next year onwards, we will have to step up enforcement, in order to send a message to anyone considering dropping something, that the probability of being caught is actually going to be higher, and therefore we hope there will be a greater deterrence. Our reputation of being clean and green was a hard-won reputation, and we cannot afford to lose it.?

NEA also introduced the tray-return scheme at nine hawker centres in 2012. Over the next two years, it will roll out the scheme to all new and existing hawker centres.

In both cases, the ministry said it is about instilling a sense of graciousness in behaving responsibly, and using peer pressure to effect change.

Assoc Prof Paulin Tay-Straughan from the Department of Sociology at the National University of Singapore said: ?This is the part where we have to be very careful when we talk about growing active state ownership, getting ordinary Singaporeans to step up and be part of this informal policing.

?It has to be done in a gracious manner. It has to be done in a way that does not publicly humiliate others, because then each time you get humiliated, you alienate that person, or a particular segment of the population will get alienated, and when you alienate people, you will not be able to get their buy-in. So the way to do it is to really learn how to encourage others towards pro-social behaviour in a gracious manner.?

Assoc Prof Tay-Straughan said one way of instilling socially gracious behaviour is to learn from the past.

She said: ?A very good example would be the queuing culture. Not that long ago, we did not queue. Remember the masses ? that when the bus comes, everybody pushes, to try to get up the bus. But then we decided that?s not the right way to manage public behaviour, so we started the notion of the queue culture. And we?ve done that very well, right? You don?t get fined for not standing in line. The reason you end up standing in line is because other people would tell you, ?This is a line, and you should be behind me.?

?We need to encourage Singaporeans to do that. When somebody litters, to say, ?Excuse me, the bin is around the corner.? Or to go one step further to when somebody drops a pack, as you?re walking along, just pick it up and deposit it at the next bin you see.?

On a larger scale, the Environment Ministry said it will do more to deal with the effects of climate change.

In 2011, the ministry raised the minimum levels for land reclamation by at least one metre, as an adequate buffer against a potential rise in sea levels.

This year, the National Climate Change Secretariat released a strategy document, detailing the government?s multi-fold initiatives ? from reducing carbon emissions, to beefing up research capabilities for clean technology solutions.

The ministry said it is also studying countries like the Netherlands, where one-third of the country is below sea-level.

Dr Balakrishnan said: ?It?s a whole challenge of engineering, design, planning and learning new techniques in order to cope with sea-level rise. We also have to cope with greater volatility in weather.?

Dr Balakrishnan said being a small country, Singapore will have to prepare for the worst, and take nothing for granted.

He said: ?We?re so focused on building up our water, our freshwater generation capacity, desalination and recycling, it is also part of the long-term preparation for climate change. That?s a really major challenge which is creeping up on us, but actually, can end up being literally a tsunami that we have to deal with.?

Source: Channel NewsAsia

Related Content

Source: http://www.greenbusinesstimes.com/2012/12/30/spores-environmental-issues-in-2013-news/

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Plan Now for Next Year's Holiday Decorations

Plan Now for Next Year's Holiday DecorationsNow that the most of the major holidays have gone and folks are starting to pack away their gear, it is important to plan ahead for next year so that you can save both time and money.

Of course, nearly everyone knows about buying gift wrap and decorations after the holidays for cost savings, but personal finance weblog PFAdvice also points out that every minute you spend now to property put away your holiday gear will pay dividends next year when you drag it back out and put it back on display. It is easy to put things off until next year, like having a stocking or tree skirt laundered to remove tree sap or spills, but what is easily removed by dry cleaning now may prove impossible to fix next year. In that sense you should go ahead and replace anything broken now while it's cheap and pack it away well so it will be in new condition when you need it next year.

For other tips on how to use time now to save both time and money next year see the source link below.

Save Time and Money Next Christmas | PFAdvice

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/0q-xV-HzJYc/plan-now-for-next-years-holiday-decorations

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Senator Harkin and Small Business Owners 'Countdown' to Middle ...

Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-MD) were joined by small business owners for a press conference today on Capitol Hill on the so-called "fiscal cliff."? The event was styled after the New Year's festivities at New York's Times Square and urged Congressional Republicans not to "drop the ball" on middle class families.

Updated: 9 hr., 45 min. ago

Source: http://www.c-span.org/Events/Senator-Harkin-and-Small-Business-Owners-39Countdown39-to-Middle-Class-Tax-Hikes/10737436903/

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Kate Winslet Preps For Honeymoon In Space After Down-To-Earth Wedding

After nearly a month of secrecy, details crop up about Winslet and Ned Rocknroll's 'country-chic' wedding ceremony.
By Emily Blake


Kate Winslet
Photo: Getty Images

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1699465/kate-winslet-ned-rocknroll-wedding-details.jhtml

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New Year's Resolutions 2013: Our Cooking Ambitions For The New Year

With a new year upon us, we're thinking about food. Surprise!

We've never been much for making New Year's resolutions, because we hope we'll be able to set goals for ourselves all year long. But, we have warmed to the idea of setting some cooking, eating and drinking goals for ourselves in 2013, just to be extra certain that we'll follow through. Don't worry, guys -- we're not talking about dieting here. We're talking about seeking out things we've never eaten, sharpening our skills in the kitchen and feeding all of you better. Happy new year!

We resolve to:

  • Stop being afraid of making cakes.
  • Make friends with dough (especially sourdough).
  • Use our slow-cookers way more.
  • Make sauerkraut.
  • Continue our quest to love anchovies.
  • Drink more/learn more about wine (especially white wine, because we sometimes ignore it).
  • Sharpen our knives more often (doing it ourselves, on the wet stone) instead of just complaining that they're getting dull.
  • Cook at least one recipe from all the cookbooks we "collect" and never use.
  • Buy one new kind of cheese per week. Think about it, that's 52 new kinds of cheese in a year.
  • Eat all our produce before it rots.
  • Have a fondue party.
  • Cook more, but really cook (pizzas and quiches don't count).
  • Make vin d'orange for summer entertaining. (Vin d'orange is a dangerously strong cocktail, that tastes just right on a summer day. It takes a couple of months to make, and so requires thinking ahead.)
  • Start composting.
  • Perfect our chicken tortilla soup recipe.
  • Make spicy pickles.

What are your food resolutions? Let us know in the comments!

Want to read more from HuffPost Taste? Follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest and Tumblr.

Also on HuffPost:

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/29/new-years-resolutions-2013-cooking_n_2347748.html

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Lytro Who? Toshiba Developing Refocusing Camera for Phones

Lytro was the first to commercialize the idea of taking photos that you can refocus later, but now others are getting in on the concept.

Toshiba has developed a camera that also takes photos with adjustable focus, only this one can fit in a cellphone. Toshiba's camera module is small -- a square shape that measures 0.4 of an inch per side -- making it ideal as a phone camera. Packed inside it, though, are no less than 500,000 individual lenses, each just 0.001 inch in diameter.

[More from Mashable: Your Lytro Photos Just Got Upgraded]

As the initial report in Japan's The Asahi Shimbun newspaper describes, each lens captures light slightly differently than the others, which the image processor can interpret to change which subject is in focus after the fact.

The idea of a lens array with many different lenses is similar to how insects view the world. The compound eyes of a fly have hundreds of different optical units, which the fly's brain can process to give it a complete picture of its environment. Similarly, 3D cameras use two lenses (or two parts of the same lens) to capture slightly different pictures of the same scene to produce a 3D effect.

[More from Mashable: Now You Can Shift the Perspective of Your Lytro Photos]

Although the concept is similar to the Lytro camera, the technology is somewhat different. The Lytro uses an elaborate single lens along with a special image sensor that can capture the direction data of light rays in addition to their color and intensity, a technology it calls light-field photography. That data is fed into a proprietary image processor to create images you can later refocus or shift perspective.

In previous interviews with Lytro executives, they told Mashable there was nothing holding back the idea of putting the technology in a cellphone. Although the company's distinctive stick-of-butter-shaped camera is relatively large, much of its size is due to the 8x optical zoom lens, which could be replaced with a much smaller one to fit in a phone.

No word on when Toshiba's camera unit will make it into phones, if ever. We've contacted the company for comment and will update the story if and when we hear back.

Would you like to see refocusing come to phone cameras? How much extra would you pay for a phone that lets you take photos you can refocus later? Let us know in the comments.

Image courtesy of iStockphoto, visualdensity

Unboxing the Lytro

The Lytro packaging is thankfully sparse and simple, with very little unnecessary plastic.

Click here to view this gallery.

This story originally published on Mashable here.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/lytro-toshiba-developing-refocusing-camera-phones-121018572.html

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Homes for the homeless: a smart investment in dignity

Despite a recent rise in poverty, homelessness is down. One reason? Providing a residence for the homeless creates enough self-respect for them to deal with underlying issues.

By the Monitor's Editorial Board / December 26, 2012

Al Horne looks up at the rain falling on homeless people waiting in line to receive a Christmas meal by The Extended Aftercare Alumni volunteers on Christmas morning in downtown Houston. Volunteers distributed a holiday meal, clothes, and hygiene gift packages on Christmas morning in a tradition started to give people new to recovery from drug and alcohol addiction an opportunity to be of service.

Mayra Beltran/Houston Chronicle/AP Photo

Enlarge

Two decades ago, a simple idea was floated in the United States: Give homeless people a home rather then temporary shelter and their sense of personal dignity will rise, opening the way for them to solve their problems.?

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The idea finally spread nationwide under President George W. Bush and has been enhanced by President Obama. This has led to an amazing result: Despite the drop in personal income and a rise in poverty caused by the 2007-09 recession, homelessness has dropped in recent years, according to new data.

The reasons now seem obvious. People who aren?t living on the streets or in temporary settings have better stability to deal with mental, drug, or family problems that often go hand in hand with homelessness. They don?t cycle in and out of hospitals, mental-health facilities, jails, courts, or shelters at great expense to taxpayers. They are not socially stigmatized by their living conditions. A home helps center them.

For charities and government, the cost savings of this ?housing first? strategy have been a significant incentive to keep funding it. In 2010, the Obama administration even began to believe it could completely whip homelessness. It set a goal to end ?chronic? homelessness by 2015 (or not have any individuals who have been homeless for a year or more or have had at least four episodes of homelessness in the past three years). It set the same goal for homeless veterans. But it set a less ambitious date of 2020 to end homelessness for families, youth, and children.

The goals may not be met by those dates but that should not discourage efforts to give those struggling with homelessness the self-respect and stability that helps them keep off the streets. The next nationwide survey of the homeless population will be on the night of Jan. 28-29, offering yet another possible marker on recent progress.

?We know that combining permanent housing with a coordinated pipeline of supportive services is the best way to help people improve their lives and avoid future homelessness,? said Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius in a recent speech.

Despite the nationwide results, many cities with the worst homelessness are worried about the future. A December survey by the US Conference of Mayors showed that homeless families with children were denied shelter this year in more than half of these cities because of inadequate capacity. The cities expect an increase in demand for shelter in 2013.

When a good idea works in addressing a social ill, both liberals and conservatives can often rally around it. They did so on welfare reform in 1996 and again on the ?housing first? strategy. Opinions may differ on funding levels or the degree of private versus government contributions, but good reform ideas can find a permanent home in society.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/ES_b_4PsMUo/Homes-for-the-homeless-a-smart-investment-in-dignity

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Prep Blog: Post Christmas Tournament Madness ? CBS Minnesota

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) ? The Christmas holiday has passed, and high school athletes got a few days off to open gifts and enjoy family time.

But the weekend after Christmas is one of the busiest in the state for high school teams as virtually every hockey, basketball and some wrestling squads compete in a holiday tournament. It gives fans a chance to see some of the best teams in the state square off in a competitive atmosphere without an entire season being on the line.

With that said, here are some of the best bets if you want to see some of the best teams and athletes in the state in action the rest of the week.

Boys Hockey: Schwan Cup

The Schwan Cup is easily the biggest boys holiday hockey tournament in Minnesota with 48 teams playing in four brackets around the Twin Cities. The thrill for the players is getting to the championship games in each bracket, which are all played at Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul

The Gold Division is loaded with Minnetonka, Hill-Murray, Blaine, Burnsville, Breck, Duluth East, Edina and St. Thomas Academy. Most of those teams end up at Xcel Energy Center in March for the state tournament. Action got started Wednesday, with the highlight of the day being St. Thomas Academy?s 2-1 overtime win over Edina.

The other top hockey tournament in the metro is the Sports Authority Classic at the St. Louis Park Recreation Center. Action starts Thursday afternoon and the field includes Bloomington Jefferson, Wayzata, Eden Prairie, Moorhead, Lakeville North, Benilde-St. Margaret?s, Elk River and Maple Grove.

Boys Basketball: Catholic Spirit Tournament

The University of St. Thomas serves as host to one of the better boys high school basketball tournaments this weekend. Action gets started Thursday with an 8-team bracket that includes Wayzata, Hill-Murray, Rosemount, Providence Academy, Cretin-Derham Hall, St. Agnes, Milwaukee Bay View and Holy Angels. You?ll notice mostly private Catholic schools in the field.

The Granite City Classic at St. Cloud Apollo should also be a solid tournament. The field of 10 teams includes Rocori, Becker, St. Michael-Albertville, Blake, Sartell, Delano, Buffalo, St. Cloud Tech, St. Cloud Apollo and Apple Valley, which features one of the state?s top players, Tyus Jones.

Girls Basketball: Dick?s Sporting Goods Classic

The top girls basketball tournament in the metro area is the Dick?s Sporting Goods Classic at Hopkins High School. The field includes host Hopkins, St. Paul Central, Eden Prairie, Prior Lake, Minnetonka and Osseo. There?s also a very competitive tournament at Hill-Murray, which includes the host as well as Cretin-Derham Hall, Cooper, Totino-Grace, Wayzata, Mounds View, Centennial and Stillwater.

Wrestling: The Clash National Duals

If you want to see some of the best high school wrestling in the country, head to Rochester Community and Technical College this weekend. It serves as the host for the Clash National Duals, which are Friday and Saturday. There are 12 Minnesota schools in the field, led by national powerhouse Apple Valley.

Other Minnesota teams in the field include Burnsville, Forest Lake, Hastings, Kasson-Mantorville, Kimball, Owatonna, Prior Lake, Rochester Mayo, Simley, St. Michael-Albertville and Zumbrota-Mazeppa.

Also a good reminder: The Target Center will host the Timberwolves Shootout, an all-day basketball tournament, on Saturday, Jan. 5. The event features five Minnesota teams, and the day starts with Lakeview Christian Academy facing Onalaska (Wis.) at 9 a.m. At 11 a.m., DeLaSalle faces Blue Valley Northwest High School of Kansas. Roseville will face Valley High School of West Des Moines, Iowa, at 1 p.m. The final and featured match-up of the day puts Minnesota?s two top junior recruits against each other.

Tyus Jones and Rashad Vaughn will lead Apple Valley and Cooper respectively in a game that?s scheduled for 3 p.m. I?ll be at that game to get my first in-person look at each player. Both have received several offers from the best Division I programs in the country. The Gophers have offered scholarships to both.

Source: http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2012/12/27/prep-blog-post-christmas-tournament-madness/

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Pakistan: Bhutto's son launches political career

ISLAMABAD (AP) ? The 24-year-old son of former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto launched his political career Thursday with a fiery speech before thousands of cheering supporters observing the fifth anniversary of his mother's assassination.

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari's speech comes several months before national elections are expected to be held. He is too young to participate in the elections himself ? the minimum age is 25 ? but is likely to be a key asset for the ruling Pakistan People's Party. The party's popularity has plummeted since it took power nearly five years ago as the country has struggled with a weak economy and bloody Taliban insurgency.

Before dawn on the same day, dozens of militants armed with rocket-propelled grenades and automatic weapons attacked two tribal police posts in Pakistan's northwest, killing two policemen, officials said. Twenty-one other policemen are missing and presumed kidnapped.

Zardari was made chairman of the Pakistan People's Party after his mother's death but has mainly played a background role until now while he completed his studies at Oxford University in Britain.

"I want to tell you that thanks to God he has completed his studies, but now is the time of his training," his father, President Asif Ali Zardari, told the crowd of supporters Thursday in Garhi Khuda Bakhsh village in southern Sindh province, site of the Bhutto family mausoleum. "He has to study Pakistan, he has to learn from you and he has to work according to your thinking,"

The Bhutto family has played a prominent role in Pakistani politics for much of the country's 65-year history. Bilawal Bhutto Zardari's grandfather, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, founded the Pakistan People's Party and served as both the country's president and prime minister in the 1970s. He was eventually hanged in 1979 after Gen. Zia ul-Haq seized power in a military coup.

Benazir Bhutto twice served as prime minister in the 1980s and 1990s but never completed a full term. Her governments were dismissed both times under the cloud of corruption allegations by presidents who were close to the country's powerful army. She was killed in a gun and suicide bomb attack on Dec. 27, 2007, shortly after returning from self-imposed exile to participate in national elections.

After her death, the Pakistan People's Party rode a wave of public sympathy to garner the most seats in the 2008 elections, and Asif Ali Zardari was elected president. But the popularity of both the party and the president has fallen significantly since then as the government has failed to address pressing problems, such as Pakistan's shortage of electricity and stuttering economy. The government has also struggled in its fight against the Pakistani Taliban, who have killed thousands of people in attacks throughout the country.

Rasul Bakhsh Rais, a political science professor at Lahore University of Management Sciences, said it was not a surprise that the Pakistan People's Party unveiled Bilawal Bhutto Zardari in an attempt to boost its fortunes in the upcoming elections, which are expected by June at the latest.

"This is Pakistan and dynastic politics is the norm," said Rais. "Bilawal is perhaps the only card left in the chest of the Pakistan People's Party."

Both Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and his father sought to whip up the emotions of the crowd Thursday by shouting "Long live Bhutto" and "Bhutto is alive." Many of the supporters waved the red, black and green flag of the Pakistan People's Party and held pictures of Benazir Bhutto and her father.

"If you kill one Bhutto, one thousand more Bhuttos will emerge," said Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.

He took a swipe at the judiciary, which has clashed with the current government, by asking why people arrested for suspected involvement in his mother's murder have yet to be convicted.

But some critics have questioned why Zardari has not done more to push forward the investigation during more than four years as president.

The president at the time of her death, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, blamed the Pakistani Taliban for the attack, and five suspected militants are facing trial for alleged involvement in the killing. The Pakistani Taliban have denied targeting Bhutto.

A Pakistani court issued an arrest warrant for Musharraf last year over allegations he played a role in the attack, which he has denied. Arrest warrants were also issued for two senior police officials accused of negligence in the assassination. Prosecutors accused one of the officials of failing to provide proper security for Bhutto and the other of cleaning the crime scene before evidence could be collected.

A U.N. investigation into the assassination said it could have been prevented and blamed all levels of government for failing to provide adequate security. It also accused intelligence agencies and other officials of severely hampering the investigation into those behind her murder.

The attack on the tribal police posts before dawn Thursday took place in the town of Darra Adam Khel in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, government officials said. The town is located near Pakistan's tribal region, the main sanctuary for Taliban militants in the country.

Security forces have launched an operation to try to recover the 21 missing policemen, said the officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but suspicion will likely fall on the Pakistani Taliban.

____

Associated Press writer Riaz Khan contributed to this report from Peshawar, Pakistan.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/pakistan-bhuttos-son-launches-political-career-130514407.html

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China online video blow as state tightens its grip on Internet | Rapid ...

Louise Duffy | 27-12-2012

Chinese censors may require Internet users to register with their real names and Government identity cards when signing up with network providers, according to state media.

Many social networking sites including Facebook and Twitter are blocked in China, as is the YouTube online video service.

Once the new regulations are in place, the Government will be able to monitor people visiting different websites and determine why certain sites, particularly foreign ones, are popular.

"The law should escort the development of the Internet to protect people's interest," said the People's Daily. "Only that way can our Internet be healthier, more cultured and safer."

Earlier this year, the Government introduced similar rules for microblogging sites such as Weibo, forcing users to register their real names, pointing out that it was aiming to prevent people from making malicious and anonymous accusations online.

Source: http://www.rapidtvnews.com/index.php/2012122725603/china-tightens-its-grip-on-the-internet.html

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Thousands of Syrians have already taken refuge in Turkey, while others are waiting before making the decision to cross Hundreds of Syrians have been massing on the northern border with Turkey, preparing to cross over if the army advances further into the area after seizing the city of Jisr al-Shughour. Syrian military sources have told [...]

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. ? A sun-powered robotic explorer named Juno rocketed away Friday on a five-year journey to Jupiter, the solar system?s most massive and ancient planet. Hundreds of scientists and their families and friends watched from just a few miles away, cheering and yelling, ?Go Juno!? as the NASA spacecraft soared into a clear [...]

Greg Stokes and David Chaney have both left their jobs in the wake of the Colombia prostitution scandal. NBC News? Kristen Welker reports. By NBC News and msnbc.com staff Updated at 6:53 p.m. ET: A 12th Secret Service agent is under investigation in the Colombian prostitution scandal, the agency said Friday. Meanwhile, three more agents [...]

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South Africa: Mandela released from the hospital

JOHANNESBURG (AP) ? Former South African President Nelson Mandela was released Wednesday from the hospital after being treated for a lung infection and having gallstones removed, a government spokesman said.

The 94-year-old anti-apartheid icon will continue to receive medical care at home.

Mandela had been in the hospital since Dec. 8. In recent days, officials have said he was improving and in good spirits, but doctors have taken extraordinary care with his health because of his age.

Mandela was released Wednesday evening and will receive "home-based high care" at his residence in the Johannesburg neighborhood of Houghton until he fully recovers, said presidential spokesman Mac Maharaj.

"We thank the public and the media for the good wishes and for according Madiba and the family the necessary privacy," said Maharaj in a statement, using Mandela's clan name, a term of affection. The statement requested that Mandela's privacy continue to be respected "in order to allow for the best possible conditions for full recovery."

David Phetoe, a resident of the Johannesburg township of Soweto, reacted with joy when he heard that Mandela was no longer in a hospital.

"It's not always the case, when people offer great expectations, that those expectations are fulfilled," he said. "In this case, we say in the same tone, in the Christmas mood and in the Christmas season, let him stick around for a while!"

Mandela is revered around the world as a symbol of sacrifice and reconciliation, his legacy forged in the fight against apartheid, the system of white minority rule that imprisoned him for 27 years.

The Nobel laureate served one five-year term as president after South Africa's first democratic elections in 1994. Although the country today struggles with poverty and inequality, Mandela is widely credited with helping to avert race-driven chaos as South Africa emerged from apartheid.

South African President Jacob Zuma was among those who joined Mandela's wife, Graca Machel, and other family members in wishing a Merry Christmas to Mandela at his hospital bedside in Pretoria, the South African capital.

"I think he is an icon of hope and we are very excited" that Mandela is out of the hospital, said Sipho Sibiko, a Soweto resident. "I personally know that he is one of the people that inspired me. He inspires a lot of people and we are excited that he has been released. We wish him many more joyous years and good health."

---

Thomas Phakane contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/south-africa-mandela-released-hospital-192414250.html

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The Year in Space (talking-points-memo)

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79% of UAE Residents Planning Leisure Travel: MasterCard Survey ...

Dec 19 2012

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The UAE Remains a Popular Destination for Travelers from Oman, Qatar, Kuwait and KSA

Tweet this: #MasterCard survey shows 79% of #UAE residents set to #travel for leisure in coming months http://bit.ly/T5ZkVW

Dubai, UAE, 19 December 2012 ? According to the latest findings of a MasterCard survey, 79% of UAE residents are set to travel for leisure in the coming months, a 9% increase from the 2011 results. The survey also shows that 71% of residents plan to increase or maintain their levels of leisure travel when compared to the previous year, which is 6% higher than the 2011 findings.

UAE residents indicated that they are most likely to travel to Asia-Pacific in the coming months, with 47% of respondents aiming to travel to these markets. Asia-Pacific remains the most popular destination for UAE travelers, though fewer UAE residents are planning trips to the region as compared to 2011 (55%). This is followed by Middle East Africa (43%) and Europe (10%) as the next most popular destinations. Interestingly, 3% more respondents are planning to travel within the Middle East than in 2011.

In terms of international destination countries India led the pack once more, with 29% of UAE residents aiming to travel there in the coming months. The United Kingdom (10%) and Malaysia (10%) were also high on the list of destinations for UAE travelers. While Malaysia was also a key destination market in 2011, the United Kingdom did not feature in 2011?s top ten destination markets, marking a new trend. In terms of domestic travel, UAE respondents indicated that Fujairah (41%) remains a popular destination, followed by Abu Dhabi (39%) and Ras Al Khaimah (32%).

With respect to inbound travel, the UAE continues to be a popular destination of choice for GCC residents. In Oman, of those inclined to travel internationally, 42% are likely to travel to the UAE in the near future, a substantial increase from 2011?s score of 35%.This is followed by Qatar (32%), Kuwait (20%) and KSA (13%), which also featured as top origin countries for the UAE in 2011.

?It is encouraging to see that a great number of UAE residents plan to travel internationally in the coming months. This is a reflection of the market?s healthy consumer confidence levels, and certainly bodes well for the travel industry. At the same time, the UAE remains a very attractive destination for leisure travelers from around the globe. In fact, the recent MasterCard Global Destination Cities Index ranks Dubai 8th globally in terms of expected inbound international visitors in 2012, while Abu Dhabi is the world?s fourth fastest growing destination city by international visitor numbers,? said Eyad Al-Kourdi, UAE country manager, MasterCard Worldwide.

Other UAE highlights:

Over the last year, 79% of UAE respondents travelled internationally for leisure, while 50% travelled locally for vacation, marking an increase of 7% for international travel and a decrease of 7% for domestic travel as compared to 2010.

With regard to business travel, 11% of UAE residents travelled abroad and 9% travelled domestically over the last year. Business travel has decreased since the last survey, when 21% of residents travelled internationally in the previous year, and 19% travelled locally.

Among the respondents travelling by airlines, national airlines remained the most popular (47%), followed by budget carriers (37%) and international carriers (33%). Interestingly, budget carriers have seen an increase of 23% in popularity since 2011.

UAE travelers were most likely to stay at luxury hotels (41%) during their business travels, while almost half (42%) of respondents preferred to stay with friends/relatives when travelling for leisure. Luxury hotels have witnessed a 22% increase in popularity for business trips since the last survey.

UAE travelers enjoy shopping at airports, with 79% of residents indicating that they have purchased items at an airport during their travels in past months. Edible items (53%) and cosmetics/fragrances/personal care (26%) remain the most popular purchases at airports, followed by books/magazines (20%).

UAE residents are keen to find the best travel deals, and indicated that airline websites (76%) are the most popular outlet to find a bargain. Travel agents (55%) remain popular for bargain-hunters, and some travelers also look for deals in newspapers (12%). Social media (7%) and coupon sites/apps (3%) lag behind when it comes to finding travel deals.

Not surprisingly, 90% of UAE residents cite their mobile phone as their must-have travel gadget, while 9% won?t leave home without their laptop. One percent must have their MP3 device with them during their travels.

Cash emerges as the most popular payment choice for UAE travellers in relation to expenses under US$ 100 (59%), transportation (50%) and accommodation (38%). Credit cards are the second most popular method of payment for UAE travellers in relation to the purchase of products over US$100 (41%), transportation (37%) and accommodation (34%). Debit/ATM cards are the least preferred by UAE travelers for all categories. It is worth noting that 11% fewer respondents prefer to pay for accommodation with cash as compared to the previous survey conducted a year ago.

Middle East findings:

Across the Middle East, consumers from Kuwait (82%) top the list when it comes to the percentage of consumers aiming to travel for leisure internationally in the coming months. They are followed by consumers in UAE (79%), Qatar (77%), Oman (52%), KSA (43%), Lebanon (19%) and Egypt (14%). Kuwait?s top ranking this year takes the place of Saudi Arabia?s position in 2011.

Budget carriers have gained some presence in the Middle East in the last year, with the majority of consumers in Kuwait and Oman and substantial proportions in other markets using this mode of air travel in past months. National airlines were the most used airlines in the other Middle East countries surveyed.

Purchases at airports remained popular in the region, with around 75% of Middle East air travelers making purchases in the last year. In general, edible items (45%), cosmetics/ fragrance (32%) and cigarettes/ tobacco (21%) are the most popular categories.

The latest survey was conducted between April and June 2012 with respondents aged 18 ? 64 in 25 markets[1]. Data collection was via internet surveys, personal, telephone and Computer Aided Telephone interviews, with the questionnaire translated to the local language wherever appropriate and necessary. The Index and its accompanying reports do not represent MasterCard financial performance.

MasterCard and its Suite of Research Properties Asia/Pacific, Middle East Africa

The MasterCard Worldwide Index suite in Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa includes the long-running MasterCard Worldwide Index of Consumer Confidence, as well as the MasterCard Worldwide Index of Women?s Advancement, Online Shopping, Index of Financial Literacy, and the Index of Global Destination Cities. In addition to the Indices, MasterCard?s research properties also include a range of consumer surveys including Ethical Spending and a series on Consumer Purchasing Priorities (covering Travel, Dining Entertainment, Education, Money Management, Luxury and General Shopping).

MasterCard also regularly releases Insights reports providing analysis of business dynamics, financial policies and regulatory activities in the Asia/Pacific, Middle East and Africa region. Over 80 Insights reports have been produced since 2004.

MasterCard has also released a series of four books on Asian consumer insights, authored by Dr. Yuwa Hedrick-Wong, Global Economic Advisor for MasterCard Worldwide and published by John Wiley Sons.

About MasterCard Worldwide
MasterCard (NYSE: MA), www.mastercard.com, is a global payments and technology company. It operates the world?s fastest payments processing network, connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 210 countries and territories. MasterCard?s products and solutions make everyday commerce activities ? such as shopping, traveling, running a business and managing finances ? easier, more secure and more efficient for everyone. Follow us on Twitter @MasterCardNews, join the conversation on Cashless Conversations Blog and subscribe for the latest news.

Contacts: Nadia Ejaz; GolinHarris ? Dubai; Tel: +971 4 3323308; Email: nejaz@golinharris.com

Jandr? Nieuwoudt; GolinHarris ? Dubai; Tel: +971 4 3323308; Email: jnieuwoudt@golinharris.com

[1] Australia, China, Egypt, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lebanon, Malaysia, Morocco, New Zealand, Nigeria, Oman, Philippines, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, South Africa, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, United Arab Emirates and Vietnam

? Press Release 2012


? Copyright Zawya. All Rights Reserved.


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Pope decries slaughter of 'defenseless' Syrians

VATICAN CITY (AP) ? Pope Benedict XVI wished Christmas peace to the world Tuesday, decrying the slaughter of the "defenseless" in Syria and urging Israelis and Palestinians to find the courage to negotiate.

Delivering the Vatican's traditional Christmas day message from the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica, Benedict also encouraged Arab spring nations, especially Egypt, to build just and respectful societies.

He prayed that China's new leaders respect religion, a reference to persecution Chinese Roman Catholics have at times endured under communism.

As the 85-year-old pontiff, bundled up in an ermine-trimmed red cape, gingerly stepped foot on the balcony, the pilgrims, tourists and Romans below backing St. Peter's Square erupted in cheers.

Less than 12 hours earlier, Benedict had led a two-hour long Christmas Eve ceremony in the basilica. He sounded hoarse and looked weary as he read his Christmas message and then holiday greetings in 65 languages.

In his "Urbi et Orbi" speech, which traditionally reviews world events and global challenges, Benedict prayed that "peace spring up for the people of Syria, deeply wounded and divided by a conflict that does not spare even the defenseless and reaps innocent victims."

He called for easier access to help refugees and for "dialogue in the pursuit of a political solution to the conflict."

Benedict prayed that God "grant Israelis and Palestinians courage to end long years of conflict and division, and to embark resolutely on the path to negotiation."

Israel, backed by the United States, opposed the Palestinian statehood bid, saying it was a ploy to bypass negotiations, something the Palestinians deny. Talks stalled four years ago.

Senior Palestinian official Saeb Erekat said that in a meeting with the pope last week, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas "emphasized our total readiness to resume negotiations." The Palestinians have not dropped their demand that Israel first stop settlement activities before returning to the negotiating table.

Hours earlier, in the ancient Bethlehem church built over the site where tradition holds Jesus was born, candles illuminated the sacred site and the joyous sound of prayer filled its overflowing halls.

Overcast skies and a cold wind in the Holy Land didn't dampen the spirits of worshippers in the biblical West Bank town. Bells pealed and long lines formed inside the fourth-century Church of the Nativity complex as Christian faithful waited to see the grotto that is Jesus' traditional birthplace.

Duncan Hardock, 24, a writer from MacLean, Va., traveled to Bethlehem from the republic of Georgia, where he had been teaching English. After passing through the separation barrier Israel built to ward off West Bank attackers, he walked to Bethlehem's Manger Square where the church stands.

"I feel we got to see both sides of Bethlehem in a really short period of time," Hardock said. "On our walk from the wall, we got to see the lonesome, closed side of Bethlehem ... But the moment we got into town, we're suddenly in the middle of the party."

Bethlehem lies 10 kilometers (6 miles) south of Jerusalem. Entry to the city is controlled by Israel, which occupied the West Bank in 1967.

For those who couldn't fit into the cavernous Bethlehem church, a loudspeaker outside broadcast the Christmas day service to hundreds of faithful in the square.

Their Palestinian hosts, who welcome this holiday as the high point of their city's year, were especially joyous this season, proud of the United Nations' recognition of an independent state of Palestine just last month.

"From this holy place, I invite politicians and men of good will to work with determination for peace and reconciliation that encompasses Palestine and Israel in the midst of all the suffering in the Middle East," said the top Roman Catholic cleric in the Holy Land, Latin Patriarch Fouad Twal in his annual address.

Back at the Vatican, Benedict offered encouragement to countries after the Arab spring of democracy protests. He had a special word for Egypt, "blessed by the childhood of Jesus."

Without citing the tumultuous politics and clashes in the region, he urged the North African region to build societies "founded on justice and respect for the dignity of every person."

Benedict prayed for the return of peace in Mali and harmony in Nigeria, where, he recalled "savage acts of terrorism continue to reap victims, particularly among Christians."

The Vatican for decades has been worried about the well-being of its flock in China, who are loyal to the pope in defiance of the communist's government support of an officially sponsored church, and relations between Beijing and the Holy See are often tense.

Speaking about China's newly installed regime leaders, Benedict expressed hope that "they will esteem the contribution of the religions, in respect for each other, in such a way that they can help to build a fraternal society for the benefit of that noble people and of the whole world."

Acknowledging Latin America's predominant Christian population, he urged government leaders to carry out commitments to development and to fighting organized crime.

In Britain, the royal family was attending Christmas Day church services at St. Mary Magdelene Church on Queen Elizabeth II's sprawling Sandringham estate, though there were a few notable absences. Prince William is spending the holiday with his pregnant wife Kate and his in-laws in the southern England village of Bucklebury, while Prince Harry is serving with British troops in Afghanistan.

Later Tuesday, the queen will deliver her traditional, pre-recorded Christmas message, which for the first time will be broadcast in 3D.

______

Dalia Nammari in Bethlehem and Cassandra Vinograd in London contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/pope-decries-slaughter-defenseless-syrians-111207075.html

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