Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/166629977?client_source=feed&format=rss
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Monday 28 November 2011
Sunday 27 November 2011
Emma Willis & Matt Willis Welcome Second Child
Emma Willis & Matt Willis Welcome Second Child
Emma Willis has given birth to her second child, a baby boy. The 35-year-old presenter and her husband, former singer for the band Busted, Matt [...]
Emma Willis & Matt Willis Welcome Second Child Stupid Celebrities Gossip Stupid Celebrities Gossip News
Source: http://stupidcelebrities.net/2011/11/27/emma-willis-matt-willis-welcome-second-child/
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Good Reads: Iran, Israel, and Qatar. What's their game?
Israel denies killing an Iranian weapons scientist. Iran detains and releases a Taliban insider. Qatar foments an Arab Spring. Why is everyone suddenly acting like bit players in a Graham Greene novel??
It?s a question very much on people?s minds these days: What is Iran?s game plan?
Skip to next paragraphThe country is allegedly still engaged in a nuclear weapons program, although it denies this. It continues to prop up allies and militant groups throughout the Middle East, including Syria?s embattled President Bashar al-Assad and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. And they?ve been detaining and releasing a number of top Al Qaeda and Afghan Taliban leaders since the fall of the Taliban in late 2001.
What possible use might Iran have for a bunch of elderly Islamists under house arrest?
Leah Farrall, writing for The Atlantic magazine, met one of the Taliban?s foremost advisers, the Egyptian-born journalist Mustafa Hamid, recently at a cafe in Alexandria, Egypt. They discussed his years in detention and his own theories about Iran?s ambitions in the Middle East. Mr. Hamid says he is at a loss to understand why Iran held onto him so long, but he believes the Islamic Republic had more than compassion on its mind when they released him two months ago.
?"Iran only kept those who it could use as playing cards," Hamid says. "Because the Americans say I am important, they thought that they had caught a big fish." Hamid believes that those who remain in Iran ? which reportedly include senior al Qaeda and Egyptian Islamic Jihad leaders as well as a number of other militants of significant stature or experience ? are being held as bargaining chips. "The others who remain, they are being treated as playing cards," he said. "Iran wants to use them to make a deal, and so I don't feel that they are going to release them for this reason."
If, as Hamid believes, Iran is playing a game in the Middle East, it is not the only nation to do so.
Scott Peterson, in yesterday?s Christian Science Monitor, writes a well-researched piece tracing a string of assassinations against Iran?s nuclear scientists and weapons experts. The latest to die, on Saturday at a mysterious blast at a weapons depot outside of Tehran, was Maj. Gen. Hassan Moghaddam, the proclaimed ?father? of Iran?s missile program.
Iran claims that the blast was an accident. Regional experts note that Iran has had a number of strange accidents lately, including a computer virus that accidentally shut down 1,000 of its 8,000 uranium-enrichment centrifuges; and two nuclear scientists who accidently drove past motorcycles who accidently placed ?sticky bombs? to the side of their cars. One of those scientists accidentally died.
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Saturday 26 November 2011
Friday 25 November 2011
International community makes last-ditch attempt to save Russian space probe
Officials from NASA and the European Space Agency have pitched in to help save the Russian Phobos-Grunt probe, which was supposed to fly to a Martian moon to collect soil samples but is instead stuck in orbit around Earth.?
An international effort is under way to save Russia's Phobos-Grunt mission to Mars, but time is quickly running out on propelling the probe toward the Red Planet.
Skip to next paragraphThe interplanetary undertaking is designed to visit Phobos, one of the moons of Mars, and return samples to Earth by 2014.
But?Phobos-Grunt's deadline?only chance for departure from Earth orbit is projected to be Nov. 24, due to the alignment of Earth and Mars as well as the spacecraft's fuel status to attain the outward-bound oomph required.
Using powerful radio dishes to monitor the vehicle, officials from the European Space Agency, NASA and Russia have been engaged in a global endeavor to rescue the spacecraft, which has been stranded in low-Earth orbit since its Nov. 8 launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. After the?Phobos-Grunt probe?separated from its Zenit booster, the probe failed to perform a critical maneuver needed to begin the trek toward Mars. [Photos: Russia's Mars Moon Mission]
"We are trying to help them out of trouble," said Wolfgang Hell, the service manager who is overseeing the European Space Agency's support to Russia's NPO Lavochkin, the main contractor on the Phobos-Grunt project. Hell is based at the European Space Operations Center in Darmstadt, Germany.
"Normally, we were supposed to step in, so to speak, and provide tracking services with our ground station network once the spacecraft was on an escape trajectory to Mars," Hell told SPACE.com. "It was never planned that we would support the spacecraft while in the near-Earth phase."
Hell said that his Russian colleagues have gained a better understanding of what ails the spacecraft. "They reached the conclusion that they have some kind of power problem onboard. So they have become more specific in terms of what we should be doing to help them."
But that help embraces a number of challenges, Hell said.
For instance, the spacecraft risks running out of electrical power each time the probe is eclipsed as it spins around Earth. Commanding?Phobos-Grunt?, therefore, is possible only while it's facing the sun.
Also, due to a lack of downlink from the craft's onboard transponder, ground trackers must rely on imprecise radar-tracking data. Not knowing exactly where the spacecraft is makes pointing ground transmitting antennas correctly a challenge.
"It takes a lot of luck to really hit the spacecraft with a main beam," Hell said. "Because it's in such a low-Earth orbit ? we have so little time, something like six to eight minutes, to get the command up."
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T-Mobile to bleach Samsung Galaxy S II in white, arriving 'in time for the holidays'
What's that gorgeous device doing in a pearly white on this side of the pond? T-Mobile will be offering a second color option for its flagship TouchWiz device, the Samsung Galaxy S II, "in the coming weeks." Though its exact launch date is uncertain, the two companies assured us that it would land in time for the holidays. We're just hoping they're not referring to Valentine's Day.
T-Mobile to bleach Samsung Galaxy S II in white, arriving 'in time for the holidays' originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 22 Nov 2011 11:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | | Email this | CommentsSource: http://www.engadget.com/2011/11/22/t-mobile-to-bleach-samsung-galaxy-s-ii-in-white-arriving-in-ti/
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Thursday 24 November 2011
Al Eisele: The Texas-Size Influence and Ego of Bob Strauss
Normally, I wouldn't recommend a book about a public figure written by someone who calls him "Uncle Bob," but Kathryn McGarr's biography of her great uncle, Washington superlawyer and political insider Robert Strauss, is an exception.
McCarr's well-researched book, The Whole Damn Deal: Robert Strauss and the Art of Politics, will do nothing to diminish Strauss's reputation as a quintessential power broker whose influence across party lines is matched only by his Texas-size ego (Public Affairs, October 2011, 480 pages, $29).
McGarr, who has a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University, wrote her book after Strauss decided to scrap his own ghostwritten memoir with journalist Peter Ross Range, who conducted more than 70 interviews with him. She draws on those interviews, as well as her own extensive interviews with Strauss and access to his private papers, to ably chronicle his colorful and truly remarkable life. (Range wouldn't tell me why Strauss decided not to publish their collaborative effort, but I suspect it was because he didn't tell it like Strauss wanted him to.)
The 93-year-old Strauss, who is confined to a wheelchair in his Watergate apartment and is said to be suffering from dementia, almost certainly wouldn't make that complaint about McGarr's book, which is marred by its adulatory tone.
Indeed, it is replete with effusive praise from those exposed to his formidable personality and jovial profanity since 1971, when he became treasurer and then chairman of the Democratic National Committee during the Nixon/Ford years, then served as U.S. special trade representative under Jimmy Carter, co-chairman of the National Economic Commission under Ronald Reagan and ambassador to the Soviet Union and Russia under fellow Texan George H.W. Bush. (I shudder to think what he told Gorbachev and Yeltsin.)
"He is an absolute genius at brokering conflict," Sen. Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) gushes, while Tom Brokaw tells us Strauss "knew how to make money in Washington... by representing a lot of different interests -- but he was never not a citizen. He really cared about the country, and cared about getting the right things done."
GOP strategist Mary Matalin sends him a mash note, saying "I'm in awe of your history and larger-than-lifeness," and former first lady Barbara Bush calls him "absolutely the most amazing politician. He is everybody's friend and... could sell you the paper off your own wall." Former Republican National Committee Chairman (and Strauss law partner) Ken Mehlman goes even further, pronouncing him "unbelievably relevant today, as he was in the '70s and '80s, and as he will be in 30 years."
OK, we get it that Robert S. Strauss is bigger than life, but the incessant praise runs thin after a while. Nevertheless, this is a fascinating and well-written book about one of the most interesting -- and, yes, important -- figures on the national political landscape in the last third of the 20th century.
In fact, I may be guilty of helping Strauss cultivate what McGarr calls his "incestuous" relationship with the Washington press corps. Shortly after he became DNC treasurer, I invited him to meet with about a dozen Washington journalists in a group I had organized, and he was a big hit. I later would kid that I helped him get his start in Washington.
As McGarr writes, "While his power derived from being a friend to the White House and a force on [Capitol] Hill, those relationships all came down to his personality -- the sparkle in his eye, his enormous and endearing ego, his humor and his colorful way of speaking 'Texan' that seemed to require him to say 'goddamn,' 'son-of-a-bitch' and 'whore' several times in any conversation."
The son of poor German Jewish immigrants in West Texas, Strauss became a big man on campus at the University of Texas after arriving in Austin in 1935. He got his first big break after graduating from law school, thanks to the same means he would employ so effectively the rest of his life -- wielding the lever of political influence.
Hoping to join the FBI rather than enlist in the Army as World War II broke out in December 1941, Strauss's application was rejected because of pro-German remarks his father once made. Strauss explained his situation to the head of the law firm he had joined, who called an influential Texas congressman, who later became Speaker of the House Sam Rayburn, who assured the FBI that Strauss was a loyal American. J. Edgar Hoover agreed and Strauss became an FBI agent in 1942 in Columbus, Ohio, where his wife Helen was born, before being transferred to Dallas four years later.
After that, he was off and running, leaving the FBI in 1945 to join fellow former FBI agent and law school graduate Richard Gump to start a two-man law firm that would become one of the 40 largest in the United States. He became an adviser and confidant to a succession of powerful Texans, from Lyndon Johnson to John Connally to President Bushes 41 and 43, and to Hubert Humphrey, who persuaded him to come to Washington to rescue the bankrupt DNC and help Humphrey run for president in 1968.
Humphrey didn't make it, as we know, even though Strauss claims he he offered to make him his running mate, and the rest is history, which McGarr chronicles in rich detail. As Strauss himself might say, "Sumbitch, she tells the whole damn deal."
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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/al-eisele/the-texassize-influence-a_b_1108991.html
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Wednesday 23 November 2011
Top cable programs for Nov. 14-20 (omg!)
Rankings for the top 15 programs on cable networks as compiled by Nielsen for the week of Nov. 14-20. Day and start time (EST) are in parentheses:
1. NFL Football: Minnesota vs. Green Bay (Monday, 8:30 p.m.), ESPN, 9.99 million homes, 14.18 million viewers.
2. NFL Football: New York Jets vs. Denver (Thursday, 8:30 p.m.), NFLN, 4.87 million homes, 7.05 million viewers.
3. Auto Racing: NASCAR Sprint Cup (Sunday, 3 p.m.), ESPN, 4.54 million homes, 6.79 million viewers.
4. "SportsCenter" (Monday, 11:37 p.m.), ESPN, 4.47 million homes, 5.94 million viewers.
5. "Walking Dead" (Sunday, 9 p.m.), AMC, 4 million homes, 6.07 million viewers.
6. Auto Racing: Rain Delay (Sunday, 4:45 p.m.), ESPN, 3.5 million homes, 5.16 million viewers.
7. College Football: Nebraska at Michigan (Saturday, 12:02 p.m.), ESPN, 3.38 million homes, 4.23 million viewers.
8. "WWE Raw" (Monday, 10 p.m.), USA, 3.36 million homes, 4.9 million viewers.
9. "WWE Raw" (Monday, 9 p.m.), USA, 3.33 million homes, 5 million viewers.
10. "Storage Wars" (Tuesday, 10:30 p.m.), A&E, 3.07 million homes,, 4.23 million viewers.
11. "Jessie" (Friday, 9 p.m.), Disney, 3.02 million homes, 4.23 million viewers.
12. "SpongeBob SquarePants" (Saturday, 10:30 a.m.), Nickelodeon, 3.01 million homes, 4.32 million viewers.
13. "SpongeBob SquarePants" (Saturday, 9 a.m.), Nickelodeon, 3.009 million homes, 4.08 million viewers.
14. College Football: Oklahoma State vs. Iowa (Friday, 8 p.m.), ESPN, 3.004 million homes, 3.99 million viewers.
14. Movie: "The National Tree" (Sunday, 8 p.m.), Hallmark, 3.004 million homes, 4.01 million viewers.
___
USA is owned by Comcast's NBCUniversal. ESPN and the Disney Channel are owned by the Walt Disney Co. Nickelodeon is owned by Viacom. AMC is owned by AMC Networks. NFLN is owned by the NFL Enterprises LLC. A&E is owned by the A&E Television Networks. The Hallmark Channel is owned by Crown Media Holdings, Inc.
___
Online:
http://www.nielsen.com
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As floods recede, Bangkok blame game begins
Apichart Weerawong / AP
A Thai couple and a dog ride on a floating material through a flooded road in Don Muang district of Bangkok, Thailand, on Nov. 14.
By Ian Williams, NBC News correspondent
BANGKOK, Thailand ? One of the most striking things about the Thai floods is the sheer ingenuity people have shown to simply get around.
I've seen all manner of aquatic contraptions, from rafts made from empty drinking water bottles to crafts fashioned from larger plastic drums, with a bicycle mounted on the deck driving a home-made propeller through the increasingly fetid waters.
Thailand's National Science and Technology Development Agency even ran a competition called "Mobility in the Time of Flood," which attracted 89 entries and was won by another bicycle-driven raft cobbled together by a bunch of students. The Bangkok Post devoted most of its back page to the contest Tuesday under the headline "Amateur Inventors to the rescue.?
It provided a note of humor amid increasingly angry recriminations over who's to blame for a deluge that's swamped a third of the country and killed more than 600 people. The floods have also affected some 10,000 factories, and hit the global supply chain for automotive parts and hard disk drives.
Nearly half a million workers have been affected. Japanese-owned factories are particularly badly hit, and the government fears that many will curtail future investment plans. Japan is the largest foreign investor in Thailand.
The clean-up and recovery will cost billions of dollars, and shave an estimated 2.5 percent off economic growth.
The good news is that the floodwaters are receding to the north of the city. In Bangkok, the authorities say the eastern suburbs should be dry within a week or so, though it could be the new year before the water drains from western areas.
Don Muang airport and its surrounding areas still resemble a lake. The airport is only home to a couple of low-cost carriers these days, most flights now departing from a new airport, but it?s still a remarkable sight.
Blame game begins
Of course, few people now trust the predictions of the authorities, which have changed constantly, with officials frequently contradicting each other from day to day.
National government officials are in a constant sparring match with their city authorities, and, of course, rival political camps are accusing each other of mismanagement.
There's anger in the outer suburbs, where many believe they were sacrificed to keep downtown Bangkok dry. Angry residents have even ripped down dikes in some areas to allow the floodwaters to shift.
Some blame irrigation officials for failing to release water from up-country dams earlier in the year.
Deputy Prime Minister Kittiratt Na-Ranong had a simpler explanation in an interview with Dow Jones Newswires. It was unfair to accuse the government of mismanagement, he said. "This has to be the result of climate change and global warming."
Well, up to a point, Mr. Kittiratt.
Many reports have suggested that low-lying Bangkok is vulnerable to rising sea levels, and, yes, Thailand had heavy rain this year ? roughly 25 percent more than normal by some estimates.
But the great flood of 2011 was a largely manmade disaster.
The country has seen years of mindless development, much of it on what has historically been a flood plain to the north of the capital. Paddy fields have been paved over with concrete to make way for vast industrial estates and urban sprawl. Natural drainage routes have been blocked.
In the city, too, a once massive network of klongs (canals), the city's drainage system, has been replaced by roads; housing developments sit where water used to flow.
That so many people and businesses were in harm's way in areas that are historically vulnerable to floods, with the waters left with nowhere to go, is the result of decisions taken over the years by short-sighted and often venal politicians. To blame it all on climate change is an enormous cop-out.
Photoblog: Thais adjust to life in waist-deep water?
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Tuesday 22 November 2011
Samsung Galaxy Nexus gets 'opened'
Read our Galaxy Nexus Review!
It’s not “rooting,” it’s openness
-- Nick Kralevich, Android security engineer
There's a bit of brouhaha on the Internet today about the Samsung Galaxy Nexus being "rooted." While I applaud the gentlemen who take the time to build binaries needed to flash the superuser/switchuser files to the GNexus, I think it's more important to re-visit something from the past. Namely, you don't need to exploit a Nexus device to root it. The tools to unlock the potential of a Nexus phone are included, so pushing new software that allows more access to the system isn't really a surprise. Hopefully, someone can go further with this access and do something that does surprise us.
Mr. O'Brien, I tip my hat to you for taking the time to build your superboot image. Most users wouldn't take the time needed to learn how do it, and you've provided the easy path for them. Now there's no excuse for anyone with a GNexus to not jump in feet first and see what Android can do when given the proper tools, and openness.
More: MoDaCo
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Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/yDosbVo5JM8/story01.htm
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Del. chemical site eyed for renewable energy (AP)
One of Delaware's most troubled environmental sites, the abandoned Metachem site, is being considered by state and federal officials for its potential to produce clean energy.
The 65-acre site near Delaware City is being paved over to keep chemicals spilled at the plant from continuing to leach into groundwater. That has limited possible reuses for the property, which was the site of several large chemical spills and was placed on the federal Environmental Protection Agency's list of most hazardous waste sites in 1987.
Originally owned by Standard Chlorine of Delaware, and later Metachem, the plant manufactured chlorinated benzene compounds from 1966 to 2002. Several large spills have occurred at the site, including a 1986 spill of 569,000 gallons of volatile organic compounds. Chemicals from the spill have been found in groundwater, soil, creek sediments, surface water and nearby wetlands, leading to a fish consumption advisory for the Red Lion Creek.
Now, with the help of a new EPA program, solar panels could one day cover the site, providing an environmental benefit from a property that has been an environmental concern for decades, said Collin O'Mara, secretary of the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Colorado announced earlier this month that they plan to assess 26 sites over the next 12 to 18 months. Other sites include an open-pit copper mine in southwestern New Mexico; a former lead smelter in Montana; and landfills in Arizona, Louisiana and New Jersey.
Gail Mosey, an NREL senior energy analyst, said at the unveiling in New Mexico that the project has the potential to use re-use contaminated sites instead of developing farmlands, forested areas or other currently undeveloped lands. The EPA is spending $1 million on the assessment in hopes of transforming the sites from eyesores to assets, federal officials say.
O'Mara said state officials hope to have a system operating in the next few years at the former plant, where capping is expected to be completed about 2016.
The site's industrial history works to its advantage because a strong infrastructure already is in place, the environmental secretary said.
The property is surrounded by manufacturing sites that could use the power as well as utility lines that could accept power from the site for use throughout the region.
"So, there are a lot of options for where the electrons could flow," O'Mara said.
Environmentalists were cautiously optimistic.
Members of the Delaware Nature Society, which has tracked the remediation effort for years, said the idea has promise as long as it doesn't negatively affect efforts to contain contaminants on the property.
Seth Ross, a retired DuPont engineer who has been one of the Delaware Nature Society's leaders in following the remediation, said the contaminants are not expected to break down in the soil for 50 to 100 years. Knowing that, Ross said he wanted to ensure that the contamination underground is not forgotten. He said it's essential to closely monitor the cap over the years.
"Any cap is going to crack, develop cracks, and there has to be a program to follow that and keep it repaired," Ross said.
O'Mara said the state was looking into if the panels could be placed on the site without disturbing the cap. The fact that the site's neighbors are also industrial means the "not-in-my-backyard" complaints often associated with running power lines to alternate energy sites are not likely.
Brenna Goggin, the Delaware Nature Society's environmental advocate, said she was hopeful the site could serve as a model for cleanup spots elsewhere.
"Just because you have these severely contaminated sites that you don't know what to do with, perhaps there are ways to put renewable energy sources on them so that at least something beneficial comes out of this," Goggin said.
___
Online:
EPA Metachem fact sheet ? http://www.epa.gov/reg3hwmd/npl/DED041212473.htm#background
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Monday 21 November 2011
Review: MJ book thankfully focuses on the music (AP)
"Man in the Music: The Creative Life and Work of Michael Jackson" (Sterling Publishing), by Joseph Vogel: We get it already: Michael Jackson was kind of a weird dude.
In the weeks, months and now years since the music icon's death, news consumers across the globe have been inundated with examinations of Jackson's life. And frankly, too much of it has focused on the sensational aspects of his 50 years on Earth.
Luckily, for those of us who prefer to remember Jackson as a once-in-a-generation entertainer and the undisputed King of Pop and not so much for his sometimes peculiar personal choices, we have Joseph Vogel in our corner.
Vogel, who writes about popular culture, music and politics for The Huffington Post and teaches at the University of Rochester, has written a book that focuses solely on Jackson's creative output.
"Man in the Music" is thankfully all about just that ? the music.
And it's really good.
Vogel takes the reader album-by-album, song-by-song and examines in exhaustive detail how Jackson produced a lifetime's worth of music that became a soundtrack to the lives of millions.
Jackson's Motown years, including his work with The Jackson 5, isn't covered in "Man in the Music," which focuses on the singer's solo work, beginning with 1979's mega-selling "Off the Wall" all the way through "Invincible" in 2001.
Vogel, relying on news archives, Jackson's words and interviews with those who collaborated on the albums, opens the door to the studio and provides an in-depth picture of the artist's creative process. Each song Jackson recorded during his solo career is examined with a critical eye.
It's a fascinating read and really a must-have for any Jackson fan.
"I wanted to write something historically and critically rigorous, but approach the subject with less cynicism and curiosity," Vogel writes in the preface.
Mission accomplished, sir.
___
Online:
http://www.joevogel.net/
___
Follow Mike Householder on Twitter at http://twitter.com/mikehouseholder
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Sunday 20 November 2011
Obama sending Clinton to repressive Myanmar (AP)
BALI, Indonesia ? Seizing an opportunity for historic progress in repressive Myanmar, President Barack Obama is dispatching Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton to the long-isolated nation next month in an attempt to accelerate fledgling reforms.
The move is the most dramatic sign yet of an evolving relationship between the United States and Myanmar, also known as Burma, which has suffered under brutal military rule for decades. Obama said Friday there had been "flickers of progress" since new civilian leadership took power in March.
"If Burma continues to travel down the road of democratic reform, it can forge a new relationship with the United States of America," Obama said as he announced Clinton's trip while on a diplomatic mission to southeast Asia.
Clinton will be the first U.S. secretary of state to visit Myanmar in more than 50 years.
In exploring a breakthrough engagement with Myanmar, Obama first sought assurances of support from democracy leader and Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. She spent 15 years under house arrest by the nation's former military dictators but is now in talks with the civilian government about reforming the country.
The two spoke by phone on Thursday night while Obama was flying to Bali on Air Force One.
By sending in his chief diplomat, Obama is taking a calculated political risk in a place where repression is still common. He warned that if the country fails to commit to a true opening of its society, it will continue to face sanctions and isolation. But he said that the current environment is a rare opening that could help millions of people "and that possibility is too important to ignore."
Myanmar is subject to wide-ranging trade, economic and political sanctions from the U.S. and other Western nations, enforced in response to brutal crackdowns on pro-democracy protesters in 1988 and 2007 and its refusal to hand power to Suu Kyi's party after the 1990 elections.
Clinton said that while there may be an opening for a democracy push in Myanmar, the U.S. was proceeding cautiously.
"We're not ending sanctions. We're not making any abrupt changes," she said during an interview with Fox News. "We have to do some more fact-finding and that's part of my trip."
Suu Kyi's lawyer, Nyan Win, welcomed news of Clinton's visit.
"It is time for the U.S. to make such a high-level visit. This is going to be a very crucial visit," Win said.
Senior Obama administration officials said the U.S. wants to see a number of actions from Myanmar, including the release of more political prisoners; serious internal domestic diplomacy between the government and ethnic groups, some of which have been in civil war for decades; and further assurances with regards to interactions with North Korea.
The administration's policy toward Myanmar has focused on punishments and incentives to get the country's former military rulers to improve dire human rights conditions. The U.S. imposed new sanctions on Myanmar but made clear it was open to better relations if the situation changed.
Myanmar's nominally civilian government has declared its intention to liberalize the hardline policies of the junta that preceded it. It has taken some initial steps, such as easing censorship, legalizing labor unions, suspending an unpopular, China-backed dam project, and working with Suu Kyi.
Officials said Clinton would travel to Myanmar Dec. 1, making stops in Yangon and Naypyitaw.
A U.S. opening with Myanmar would also contribute to Obama's goals of rebalancing power in the region, as Burma's military leaders for long had close ties to China.
Beijing has poured billions of dollars of investment into Myanmar to operate mines, extract timber and build oil and gas pipelines. China has also been a staunch supporter of the country's politically isolated government and is Myanmar's second-biggest trading partner after Thailand.
Administration officials stressed that the new engagement with Myanmar was not about China. They said the Obama administration consulted with China about the move and said they expected China to be supportive. They argued that China wants to see a stable Burma on its borders, so that it doesn't risk problems with refugees or other results of political instability.
Human rights groups welcomed Obama's announcement as an opportunity to compel further reforms.
"We've been arguing a long time that political engagement and political pressure are not mutually exclusive," Benjamin Zawacki, Amnesty International's Southeast Asia researcher, told The Associated Press, adding that Clinton "should not miss the opportunity in this historic visit to pressure the government and speak very clearly that the human rights violations taking place there need to stop."
Elaine Pearson, the deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said the Burmese government must realize that a visit by Clinton "puts them on notice, not lets them off the hook for their continually atrocious human rights record."
Obama was to see Burma's president during the summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, that brought him to Bali. The two have met before, at an ASEAN meeting in Singapore, when Thein Sein was prime minister.
ASEAN announced Friday that Myanmar would chair the regional bloc in 2014, a significant perch that Myanmar was forced to skip in 2006 because of intense criticism of its rights record.
Obama attended a meeting Friday afternoon with the heads of ASEAN, whose 10 members include host Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore, Thailand and Malaysia. The group will expand for the East Asia Summit, a forum that also counts China, Japan, South Korea, India, Australia, New Zealand, Russia and the U.S. as members.
The president held one-on-one meetings on the sidelines of the summit with leaders from Indonesia, India, Malaysia and the Philippines. Administration officials said Obama discussed the issue of Myanmar in his meetings with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Philippine President Benigno Aquino III.
Earlier, in a move promoting American trade, Obama presided over a deal that will send Boeing planes to an Indonesian company and create jobs back home, underscoring the value of the lucrative Asia-Pacific market to a president needing some good economic news.
Obama stood watch as executives of Boeing and Lion Air, a private carrier in Indonesia, signed a deal that amounts to Boeing's largest commercial plane order. Lion Air ordered 230 airplanes, and the White House said it would support tens of thousands of jobs in the U.S.
____
Associated Press writers Aye Aye Win in Yangon and Alisa Tang in Bangkok contributed to this report.
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The Beastly Péter Nádas
Much more than Tolstoy, Parallel Stories should be compared to Rabelais. Yes, I am referring to the 16th-century French writer and occasional monk who penned that delightful tale of the misadventures of two giants, Gargantua and Pantagruel. It was Rabelais, after all, who insisted that the body is its own kingdom. A fart can rule the world. What the body wants, it gets. For Rabelais, all the important things that men do in the public sphere?like politics?are just ways to pass time when we're not serving our basic needs; namely, the desire to eat and shit and piss and fuck.
Source: http://feeds.slate.com/click.phdo?i=7bfd3268d939aa38be8b5610e9237e47
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Saturday 19 November 2011
Video: Gingrich haunted by DC insider past
Wired to cheat? (We're looking at you, Ashton)
Demi and Ashton - you don?t really need their last names, do you? - have called it quits, following rumors of his infidelity. While most of us want our mates to be true to only us, are we really built for monogamy? Sexual health expert Brian Alexander weighs in.
Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/vp/45345980#45345980
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Friday 18 November 2011
Common Wanted To 'Get In The Ring' On 'Sweet'
Chicago MC shot new video for the single in Haiti, then used clip to raise funds for the earthquake-ravaged nation.
By Rebecca Thomas
Common
Photo: MTV News
NEW YORK — Moments into Common's new video for "Sweet," a man in a mustard-yellow dress shirt faces down the camera, casually twirling a machete. It's a fitting image for the blistering No ID track from the Chicago MC's upcoming The Dreamer, The Believer. Com is at turns cold and cutting on the single, slinging verses like blades.
If it feels unexpected coming from the man who can still set hearts aflutter with emotive tunes like "The Light" and "Come Close," it's just that Lonnie Rashid Lynn Jr. also happens to be the rap star who brought you '07's "The People." That duality gives "Sweet" its bitter aftertaste and, according to Com, fuels a December 20 release that shows off "a lot of different energies."
"When I started 'Sweet,' as soon as I started talking on it, I was like, 'Yo, this is hip-hop, this is what I do," he said, smiling broadly at the memory during a chat with MTV News at the Warner Bros. offices. "It was a lot I had to get off my chest on that. And at the same token, I love hip-hop music and raw rap music, for me it was like, 'Man, I'm gonna go ahead and give them this side of me too.' "
But Common doesn't just go for the crown on the track, he growls at some unidentified "singing" MCs for getting all "Frank Sinatra" on their records. Told by MTV News that early buzz put "emo" rapper Drake in the "Sweet" bull's eye, the Chi spitter looked surprised.
"The great thing about hip-hop, you definitely get motivated by other hip hop artists," he explained. "You get in the ring and you'll be like, 'Let's go,' but for me, it's like, I'm talking to whoever feels it, whoever when they hear it, they're like 'Ooh, is that person talking about me?' "
So ... should the Toronto rapper add Com to the short list of critics taking him to task for crooning? "I think Drake is a good artist," he responded breezily. "He's a great artist." Not to mention, teaming up with No ID has a tendency to bring out that street in Common: "It's natural for me to do that, it's organic. That's somebody I grew up with and he knows me and knows what I've done throughout the years, whether good or bad."
On Monday night the Can I Borrow a Dollar? MC debuted the clip via Ustream. In it, he stalks the bustling, dirt-strewn streets of Haiti snarling heat like, "I'm the franchise so I rock my own chain / Know I said give 'em that '80s cocaine/ Something raw, something pure, so I stayed in that vein." But underscoring his many facets, Com also took the opportunity to raise funds for the earthquake-ravaged Caribbean country by having fans first donate $1 to the Sean Penn- led J/P Haitian Relief Organization in order to stream the visual.
Share your thoughts on the "Sweet" video in the comments below.
Related ArtistsSource: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1674504/common-sweet-music-video.jhtml
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Congress moves to end Fannie, Freddie bonuses (AP)
WASHINGTON ? Congress is seeking to end the practice of paying million-dollar bonuses to executives at government-controlled mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
The House Financial Services Committee approved legislation Tuesday that would suspend tens of millions in Fannie and Freddie executive compensation packages, stop future bonuses and align their salaries with other federal employees who make much less. The vote was 52-4, with strong support from both parties.
The Senate is expected to take up a similar measure. Lawmakers say the legislation limiting pay at the bailed-out firms could be sent to President Barack Obama by the end of this year.
Twelve executives at the firms received roughly $35.4 million in total salary and bonuses in 2009 and 2010. Fannie CEO Michael J. Williams received about $9.3 million for the two years. Freddie CEO Edward Haldeman Jr. was paid $7.8 million for that stretch.
The government rescued Washington-based Fannie and McLean, Va.-based Freddie three years ago after they nearly folded because of big losses on risky mortgages they purchased. Taxpayers have spent about $170 billion to rescue the two firms, the most expensive bailout of the 2008 financial crisis.
The government estimates the bailout could reach up to $220 billion through 2014.
"These lavish compensation packages and bonuses are unfair, unreasonable and unjust to the taxpayers whose assistance is the only thing keeping Fannie and Freddie afloat," said Rep. Spencer Bachus (R-Ala.), chairman of the House committee.
Edward DeMarco, acting director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, said the executives were hired after the companies were taken over by the government in 2008. After the takeover, the salaries for those positions were reduced by an average of 40 percent and some senior positions were eliminated, he said.
DeMarco told the Senate Banking Committee that bonuses are being used to keep talented executives with the companies. Without them, taxpayers would incur greater losses.
"The people who are there now did not choose government jobs," he said. "A sudden and sharp change in pay would certainly risk a substantial exodus of talent, the best leaving first in many instances."
Fannie and Freddie own or guarantee about half of all mortgages in the U.S., or nearly 31 million home loans. Along with other federal agencies, they backed nearly 90 percent of new mortgages over the past year.
This month, Fannie asked for $7.8 billion and Freddie requested $6 billion in extra aid to cover large quarterly losses, mostly caused by low mortgage rates reducing profits.
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Thursday 17 November 2011
Fix Slippery Heels with a DIY Cloth Insert [DIY]
The insoles of women's shoes are often uncomfortably slippery. If you want to end the slipping-and-sliding, try this 10-minute hack for a more stable pair of heels.
Instructables user kazmataz recommends using fabric that's strong, at least the size of your feet, and, obviously, not too silky or thin. Cloth that's too thick could also cause problems, altering the fit of the shoe. The fabric she used has some texture and about the thickness of a cotton T-shirt.
Once you've got your fabric, making your no-slip inserts couldn't be easier: trace your foot and cut out the outline, then use spray adhesive to apply it to your insole. Voila! No more slipping.
Easy No-Slip Heel Mod | Instructables
You can follow or contact Melanie Pinola, the author of this post, on Twitter or Google+.
Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/K413lanj3gU/fix-slippery-heels-with-a-diy-cloth-insert
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Wednesday 16 November 2011
Justin Timberlake Almost Landed On Drake's Take Care
'That was the one person that I was sorta like, 'Damn!' but we'll get it though,' Drizzy says of working with JT.
By Jocelyn Vena
Justin Timberlake
Photo: Frank Micelotta/ Getty Images
A year ago, Drake spoke to MTV News about the possibility of working with Justin Timberlake, saying that he had built a "rapport" with the pop superstar.
With Drizzy's new album Take Care out this week, however, it's clear the two didn't actually end up getting that rapport on tape. But in the latest issue of Billboard, the Canadian MC says that he and Timberlake came pretty close to making a collaboration happen.
"I really wanted to work with Justin Timberlake on this project and we came so close, man, so close. He's just super busy, and not in the music mindset right now as far as creating," he revealed.
In the 12 months since Drake first talked to us about working with the star, Timberlake has forged a real-deal Hollywood career, with roles in movies like "The Social Network" and "Friends With Benefits."
"The song was gonna be dope," the rapper said of the track, which was reportedly set to be produced by Noah "40" Shebib. "It was solid, a solid little look. But he's so immersed in the acting thing, and I don't blame him, he's doing great at it. He was just like, 'I really want to work. I just can't do it right now. But we'll work as soon as I'm back in the studio.' "
And Drake is holding out hope it'll happen one day.
"He gave me his word on that, so I'm looking forward to [working] with him," he said. "Even just giving him some ideas, writing, him working with [40], I think that would just sound crazy — Justin Timberlake and 40.
"Half the time, I just want artists to work on 40's beats; I don't even really want to intrude, I just want to hear them," the rapper added. "40 has so many ideas, and I'd love to hear an artist like Justin Timberlake to see what he and 40 could come up with. But that was the one person that I was sorta like, 'Damn!' but we'll get it though."
Share your reviews of Drake's Take Care in the comments below!
Related ArtistsSource: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1674476/drake-take-care-justin-timberlake.jhtml
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'Twilight' Fans Bond Over Vampire Love In 'Tent City'
'I would have come two weeks ago if they would have let me,' one camper tells MTV News outside 'Breaking Dawn' premiere.
By Kara Warner
A fan attends the "Breaking Dawn" premiere in Los Angeles
Photo: Getty Images
LOS ANGELES — Here at MTV News, we've been celebrating the highly anticipated release of "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1" with a flurry of "Twilight"-related activity.
Now it's time to spotlight the very dedicated, passionate fanbase. On Saturday, we headed out to "Twilight" fan central, fondly referred to as "tent city," where more than 900 people had already set up camp ahead of tonight's Los Angeles premiere. (Join MTV.com live from the red carpet at 8 p.m. ET!)
"I got here at 12 a.m. Wednesday night," Megan Lambert told us in front of her "Team Jacob"-themed tent. Lambert holds the #2 spot in line and is hoping for a hug from Taylor Lautner at the premiere.
Campers Lisa Paulosky, Emily Chadduck and Christy Brolezi bonded over their love for "Twilight" and formed a Facebook group ahead of the premiere for fellow fans who wanted to camp out. Several members traveled a considerable distance to be there.
"I came from Chicago," Paulosky said.
"I came from New Mexico," Chadduck admitted.
They all want one thing on Monday: a Robert Pattinson encounter.
"I need to take a picture with Rob," Brolezi said. "My heart will break if I don't."
The most creative fan group award goes to the ladies behind the Facebook group Kristen Stewart's Hot Bodyguard, a.k.a. Team HBG. Unsurprisingly, the ladies are hoping for a photo opp with Kristen and their main man, HBG.
"We have a special present for HBG that we've been holding onto for a year," founding member Lynsey Jacob told us.
We also happened upon a young male fan, who wasn't at all shy about his love for the lady vampires, particularly Nikki Reed. "I'm Team Vampires," Cody Huddleston said with a smile.
The dedication among these fans is a marvel, and they would have camped out sooner if they could have. "I would have come two weeks ago if they would have let me," Shannon Berry said. "I would have come a month ago."
Tonight, join MTV.com live from the "Breaking Dawn - Part 1" red-carpet premiere as we talk to your favorite stars about all things "Twilight"!
Check out everything we've got on "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1."
For young Hollywood news, fashion and "Twilight" updates around the clock, visit HollywoodCrush.MTV.com.
Related PhotosSource: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1674371/breaking-dawn-premiere-tent-city.jhtml
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Tuesday 15 November 2011
Milton Security Group Establishes Premier Partnership with Helion ...
Milton Security Group Establishes Premier Partnership with Helion Automotive Technologies to Bring Network Security to the Automotive Industry
Milton Security Group and Helion Automotive Technologies
Fullerton, CA (PRWEB) November 08, 2011
Milton Security Group LLC, manufacturer of the Edge Series of adaptive network security appliances, announced today the signing of Helion Automotive Technologies to the Premier Partner Program. This partnership establishes a large leap forward in Network Security for the automotive industry.
?Helion Automotive Technologies is now the sole Premier Partner for the Edge Series in the automotive industry?, said James McMurry, CEO, Milton Security Group. ?Helion Automotive Technologies is the best partner in the Automotive Dealer arena when it comes to network management and security, and we are proud to have them as the sole Premium Partner for the Automotive Dealer market.?
Just as every organization at a minimum needs firewalls, anti-virus and good policies, they also need an adaptive mechanism to ensure all of their systems are compliant to their standards. In addition, they need to understand and control who is on their network at any given moment, including guest, visitors, consultants and contractors. This is where the Edge Adaptive Network Access Control appliance fits in.
?Milton Security Group is a perfect partner for Helion. Both companies guide our customers to success in an information-driven world by supplying exceptional customer service, delivering top-notch products and engaging partner programs,? said Erik Nachbahr, President of Helion Automotive Technologies. ?Network security is the only way to keep customer data safe and secure. This security provides the platform for growth and prosperity in the auto industry. ?
About Milton Security Group LLC:
Milton Security Group LLC, a Department of Veterans Affairs Certified Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB) was started in 2007 with the basic idea to make Network Security within reach of all businesses. From this basic principle, Milton Security Group has designed and developed a growing suite of security solutions. All of our solutions are tailored for the individual customer, as each network is unique.
About Helion Automotive Technologies:
Helion Automotive Technologies was formed in 1997 with the goal of bringing strong Information Technology strategies and leadership to businesses of all sizes. At Helion we offer dealerships short term IT fixes for what you need now, and long-term IT solutions for what lies ahead. We?ve provided IT solutions for dealerships across the country for more than a decade and when it comes to dealer IT systems, we?ve been there done that-better than anyone else and are here to help.
We can make sure your IT systems are well managed and provide solutions for your IT headaches. We are not just any tech company; we are the tech company for auto dealers. It?s all we do.
Milton Security Group LLC
111 North Harbor Blvd., Suite D
Fullerton, CA 92832
Main: 888.674.9001
http://www.miltonsecurity.com
info(at)miltonsecurity(dot)com
Helion Automotive Technologies
1965 Greenspring Drive
Timonium, MD 21093
(443) 541-1500
http://www.heliontechnologies.com
info(at)heliontechnoligies(dot)com
###
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Arizona recall vote energizes Democrats (AP)
PHOENIX ? Last week's recall election defeat of the Republican legislator who wrote Arizona's tough anti-immigration law and the seating of Democratic mayors in Phoenix and Tucson have given Democrats renewed hope for picking up the state in next year's Senate and presidential elections.
Combined, the outcomes underscored the diversity of voters in what many view as a conservative state even though voters here are split nearly in thirds among Republicans, independents and Democrats.
The Democratic Party argued that Tuesday's recall of state Senate President Russell Pearce was evidence of a broader shift to the left that will reverberate in 2012.
"For the first time in 20 years, we will have Democratic mayors of Tucson and Phoenix," state Democratic Party Chairman Andrei Cherny wrote in an email to supporters. "And for the first time in American history, a state legislative leader - the most powerful politician in Arizona - was recalled from office. These are victories for all Arizonans - ones that six months ago would have seemed all but impossible."
"A year from now, when we are looking back on Election Day 2012, we will point to last night as where things turned around for our party and state," he added.
Republicans dismissed Tuesday's results as coming from an "abnormal election" funded by out-of-state interests upset by Arizona's 2010 enactment of the groundbreaking immigration enforcement law known as SB1070.
"They thought this proved a point. It didn't," said Arizona GOP chairman Tom Morrissey. "It will all be undone in the next election. It was a power grab by the left. They won a battle, they have not won the war by any means."
But the rhetoric, new polls and the emphasis being put on Arizona by the Democrats and President Barack Obama's campaign indicates that the state ? which on the surface appears solidly red with its two longtime Republican U.S. Senators, a GOP near-sweep of statewide offices and one of the country's most conservative legislatures ? is heading into the 2012 elections solidly purple.
In the 2008 presidential race, Arizona was a given for home-state candidate John McCain, the Republican nominee.
And while Republican Gov. Jan Brewer was an easy winner in 2010, Democrat Janet Napolitano twice ran gubernatorial races in the last decade.
"I think that some on the East Coast don't put us there," said Cherny. "But every indication is we are there. The Obama campaign has said Arizona is at the top of the places they are looking at to compete very hard."
In 2012, Obama spokeswoman Ofelia Casillas said, the state will play a "critical role" and has been among the battleground states where its grassroots movement, Organizing for America, has been active. The campaign has also recently hired a Mexican-American regional field director and a Mexican-American fellow who is focused on reaching out to the Latino community.
Those efforts may find fertile ground in a state where Hispanics make up nearly 30 percent of the population.
A recent Rocky Mountain Poll from October showed Obama either about even or apparently ahead of three Republican presidential contenders: Herman Cain, Mitt Romney and Rick Perry.
The same survey also found that only 38 percent of the state's voters call themselves conservative. Thirty-four percent consider themselves moderate while 28 percent call themselves liberal.
"The impression of Arizona as a majority conservative state is more a reflection of gerrymandering and the historically superior strength of conservative forces in getting their voters to the polls," the Behavior Research Center said of the ideological splits.
Indeed, neither party holds a majority of the state's voters. Republicans hold a slight lead with roughly 36 percent of registered voters while roughly 33 percent are independent and 31 percent are Democrats.
The Behavior Research Center pollsters said the recall of Pearce, whom they called "the most powerful conservative voice in state government," may be a "harbinger of what can happen when voters in the center organize to get out their vote and make their election preferences felt."
Organization and appealing to mainstream voters more interested in solving problems than championing extreme politics and hot-button issues like immigration are the focus of the Arizona Democratic party, Cherny said.
In that vein, their hopes in the state's 2012 race for U.S. Senate may have been bolstered last week when Richard Carmona officially entered the race for the seat now held by retiring Republican Jon Kyl. The former surgeon general under President George W. Bush was aggressively recruited by Democratic leaders who hope he will appeal to the state's moderate and independent voters.
Carmona describes himself as a fierce independent and notes that Republicans in the past had also recruited him to run for office. He'll face lesser-known Don Bivens, an attorney and former state party chairman, in the primary, while U.S. Rep. Jeff Flake and businessman Will Cardon will battle for the Republican nomination.
Morrissey, the state Republican chairman, said Tuesday's vote only provides his party's activists with an incentive to work harder. And there's reason for optimism, he said.
"In the wake of all this we still face the same problems: immigration, jobs, education, the economy. It all happens to be tied together," Morrissey said.
___
Clausing reported from Albuquerque, N.M.
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Monday 14 November 2011
Arab League to suspend Syria over bloody crackdown
CAIRO?? The Arab League voted Saturday to suspend Syria in four days if it does not end its bloody crackdown against anti-government protesters.
The decision was a symbolic blow to a nation that prides itself on being a powerhouse of Arab nationalism.
Qatar Foreign Minister Hamad bin Jassim said 18 countries agreed to the suspension, which will take effect on Wednesday. Syria, Lebanon and Yemen voted against it, and Iraq abstained.
The Arab League also will introduce political and economic sanctions against Syria, he said.
Violence has continued unabated since Syria agreed on Nov. 2 to an Arab-brokered peace deal that called for the Syria to halt violence against protesters, pull tanks and armored vehicles out of cities, release political prisoners and allow journalists and rights groups into the country.
'Stop the violence'
The United Nations says 3,500 people have now been killed in seven months of violence.
"Syria is a dear country for all of us and it pains us to make this decision," bin Jassim said. "We hope there will be a brave move from Syria to stop the violence and begin a real dialogue toward real reform."
"We were criticized for taking a long time but this was out of our concern for Syria," he told reporters in Cairo. "We needed to have a majority to approve those decisions."
The League called for Syrian opposition parties to come to a meeting at the Arab League headquarters "to agree a unified vision for the transitional period," Jassim added.
In a nod to concerns that the decision could pave the way to international intervention as occurred in Libya, bin Jassim stressed that "no one is talking about a no-fly zone, people are trying to mix up the cases. None of us is talking about this kind of decision."
However, Jassim held out the possibility that the Arab League could call on the United Nations to help protect the rights of Syrians.
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"If the violence and killing doesn't stop, the Secretary General will call on international organizations dealing with human rights, including the United Nations," he said.
Protesters plea for 'freedom'
Dozens of protesters outside had rallied for the decision, carrying placards reading "Freedom for the Syrian people" and "Arab leaders are garbage" as they chanted for the removal of Syrian President Bashar Assad.
They were joined by demonstrators from Yemen, protesting violent government crackdowns in their country.
The decision comes as November is shaping up to be the bloodiest month yet in Syria's 8-month-old uprising. More than 250 Syrian civilians have been killed in the past 11 days as the regime besieges the rebellious city of Homs.
The bloodshed has spiked dramatically in recent weeks amid signs that more protesters are taking up arms to protect themselves, changing the face of what has been a largely peaceful movement.
Many fear the change plays directly into the hands of the regime by giving the military a pretext to crack down with increasing force.
Although the crackdown has led to broad international isolation, Assad appears to have a firm grip on power.
Assad, and his father who ruled Syria before him, stacked key security and military posts with members of their minority Alawite sect over the past 40 years, ensuring loyalty by melding the fate of the army and the regime.
As a result, the army leadership will likely protect the regime at all costs, for fear it will be persecuted if the country's Sunni majority gains the upper hand. Most of the army defectors so far appear to be lower-level Sunni conscripts.
Syria blames the bloodshed on "armed gangs" and extremists acting out a foreign agenda to destabilize the regime.
The government has largely sealed off the country from foreign journalists and prevented independent reporting, making it difficult to confirm events on the ground.
Key sources of information are amateur videos posted online and details gathered by witnesses and activist groups who then contact the media, often at great personal risk.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45268111/ns/world_news-mideast_n_africa/
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Sunday 13 November 2011
Beta Investing: How to Grow and Maintain Family Wealth
11/11/11 Paris, France ? We agreed to write a book on ?family money,? that is, on how families get and keep their fortunes over generations. We are completely unqualified to write the book, because our family never had any money. Still, it is a fascinating subject?and the more we look into it, the more we write about it, the more we come to understand what it is all about. It is not about ?safe, conservative? strategies. Instead, it is a manifesto for the most dynamic capitalism on the planet.
The rich are not like everybody else. They shouldn?t try to be. Most people don?t have any money. People who have money are different. If you want to have money, it stands to reason that you have to do things differently. It?s that simple. Especially if you want to have money for more than a single generation.
For example, everybody is trying to find the stock that will go up. They all want to be an alpha investor ? the big man on campus who puts his money into Google when it opened for business?or the guy who bought Berkshire Hathaway back in the ?70s. That?s the whole game, they believe?seeking alpha.
Alpha is what they call the above-market gains you can get by selecting the right stocks. But the trouble with alpha is that it is as unreliable as a teenage employee. You think you?ve got him all set?and he doesn?t show up for work. You choose one stock that goes up. Then, you choose two that don?t. And then you get a real nightmare stock?and you?re wiped out. Over the long run ? by definition and observation ? most alpha-seeking investors cannot beat the market averages.
But what choice do you have? You?re a typical investor. You?ve got 10 years to build up a small pile of savings into a retirement fund. You do your homework. You take your chances. You hope to get lucky.
If you did that for a long time, your successes and your failures would about balance themselves out. Sometimes you?ll beat the market. Sometimes the market will beat you. Provided you didn?t make any major mistakes. But you don?t have forever. You can?t get average, long-term performance. You don?t have long-term. You only get a piece of it?and you hope it will be the good piece.
A serious family, with a serious long-term wealth strategy, on the other hand, has to do something different. It knows that chasing alpha will give it only average returns over time. It knows that average, long-term returns are very small. It wants to do better than that. And it has time on its side. So, how can it do better? Not by chasing alpha at all. Instead, it goes after ?beta.?
A beta strategy is completely different. Instead of trying to beat the market you make the market your friend. You don?t try to beat it; you just want to join it. And go along with it. But you need to be careful to choose which market you join. You want the market that will take you to your destination. And you need to get aboard at the right moment.
We?ve explored this before?how you could have multiplied your money 150 times just by making three simple investment decisions in the last 40 years. And two of the decisions were exactly the same! Note that these are not alpha chasing decisions. These are beta decisions, choosing which market you want to be in?and waiting until the best possible time to get in.
So let?s go back. You know how Richard Nixon cut the dollar?s link to gold in 1971? It didn?t take much imagination to see what would happen next. Inflation rates would probably increase?and they would inevitably drive up the price of gold.
So, imagine that you started with $10,000. And in the early ?70s ? you had years of opportunity ? you bought gold. Just to keep the math simple, we?ll say you paid about $50 an ounce.
By the end of the ?70s your gold was shooting over $500 an ounce. You made 10 times your money. You were not sure what would happen next, but you read the paper. Paul Volcker, head of the Federal Reserve, vowed to crush inflation. He seemed serious. And by the early ?80s?it was beginning to look like he might win his battle against rising consumer prices.
Again, you didn?t have to have a Ph.D. in economics to realize that falling inflation rates wouldn?t be good for gold. On the other hand, they?d be very good for stocks or bonds. So, you made your second decision. You sold the gold and put the money into the stock market. Gold rose over $800, but let?s say you locked in your sale at $500?a ?10 bagger,? as they say. Again, you had plenty of time to make your move. The price of gold stayed over $500 from the end of 1979 until well into 1981.
The stock market took its sweet time too. But that?s the way beta investing goes. One decision. Lots of waiting. The Dow lollygagged around for five years after 1980 before it hit 1,500. So, let?s say you waited 5 years and bought at 1,500. Then, you waited again. Gradually, the Dow rose. And rose. And rose.
By the end of the ?90s, the Dow rose over 10,000. By January, 2000, it was over 11,000. Then, there were so many warning bells ringing you would have had to be deaf not to hear them. The Dow was up 1,000%. People were starting dot.com businesses with nothing. No business plans. No sales. No profits. They were making millions selling them to investors. Something had to give.
What should you have done? You should have made your third investment decision in 30 years. You should have sold stocks and bought gold again. Stocks were overbought. Gold was oversold. Adjusting for inflation, gold was down 80% to 90% from its ?80 high. Stocks were up 5 times, inflation adjusted, from their ?80 low.
If you?d done that you would have multiplied your money another 6 times. Your original $10,000 would have become $300,000. Then, in gold since 2000, you would have multiplied your money another 5 times ? for $1, 500,000.
But let?s say you missed the clanging bells in 2000s. You just held your stocks. In fact, after a brief drop, they continued to go up. The Dow eventually rose over 15,000 ? giving you a total of about $500,000 at the top. Not too shabby, right?
That?s what beta investing can do for you. That?s what the smart money, the old money, the family money does.
In any event, that?s what we try to do in our family office.
Regards,
Bill Bonner,
for The Daily Reckoning
Bill Bonner
Since founding Agora Inc. in 1979, Bill Bonner has found success and garnered camaraderie in numerous communities and industries. A man of many talents, his entrepreneurial savvy, unique writings, philanthropic undertakings, and preservationist activities have all been recognized and awarded by some of America's most respected authorities. Along with Addison Wiggin, his friend and colleague, Bill has written two New York Times best-selling books, Financial Reckoning Day and Empire of Debt. Both works have been critically acclaimed internationally. With political journalist Lila Rajiva, he wrote his third New York Times best-selling book, Mobs, Messiahs and Markets, which offers concrete advice on how to avoid the public spectacle of modern finance. Since 1999, Bill has been a daily contributor and the driving force behind The Daily Reckoning.?Dice Have No Memory: Big Bets & Bad Economics from Paris to the Pampas,?the newest book from Bill Bonner, is the definitive compendium of Bill?s daily reckonings from more than a decade: 1999-2010.?
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