Thursday, February 12, 2009

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Janice Taylor: Eat. Have Sex. Lose Weight. Top
St. Valentine's Day is next Saturday, February 14th (as if you didn't know) , and I wanted to be sure to get your dinner menu to you now, giving you enough time to think the evening through, create your shopping list, shop and cook! Although this meal is most definitely more than this blogger would normally eat in one sitting, it is my hope that the steam and sexy quality of the food will ignite enough fat-burning adrenaline and desire that one will cancel out the other! You dig? (As they said before my time ... still I enjoy the "beatnik" image!) Your St. Valentine's Dinner Menu ~ from the Our Lady of Weight Loss Kitchens Appetizer - Best Ever St. V. Deviled Eggs w. Caviar Soup - Ginseng Chicken Soup a.k.a. Chinese Penicillin Salad - Really Red and Radical Radish Salad Main Dish - Perfectly Porky with Fig Sauce Vegetable Dish - Shameless Champagne Carrots Dessert - Delicious and Decadent Dark Chocolate Squares NOTE: If you are cooking for two or four, adjust quantities. Some of these recipes are so good, I make them in big batches and eat for a few days. Like the Deviled Eggs ... great for a snack, breakfast or lunch with a salad. Best Ever St. Valentine's Day Deviled Egg and Caviar Caviar: Stimulates the formation of testosterone, maintaining male functionality. Ingredients: 8 hard-cooked eggs * 8 Tablespoons caviar (red or black) * 1 Tablespoon chopped chives or green onions * 2 Tablespoons mayonnaise (reduced calorie) * 1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard * splash of hot sauce (optional) * 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper Directions : Shell the hard-boiled eggs, cut them in halves, and remove the yolks. * Mash the yolks well and combine with all ingredients except caviar. * When it is thoroughly whipped together, heap it into the whites with a spoon * Put a little dollop of caviar on the top of each egg. I like to alternate black caviar and red! Serves 8 to 16. *** Ginseng Chicken Soup Chinese Penicillin ) Gingseng: Increases desire for physical contact. This recipe serves 12 (which is a lot more than 2 ... duh!), but it's so good, healthy, low in calorie and potent, why not cook it up in big batches! Ingredients: non-stick spray (I used Pam or one of those type of sprays) * 1 tablespoon vegetable oil * 1 cup chopped sweet onion (get the onion goggles out!) (link to onion goggles) * 3 tablespoons diced peeled fresh ginger * 8 garlic cloves, minced (feeling brave? Go for 10 cloves, minced!) * 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch pieces (cooked) * 3 cups water * 1-quart carton low-fat chicken broth * 2 cups fresh or frozen yellow corn * 3 sliced ginseng roots * salt and pepper to taste Directions: Spray large pan with cooking spray. When hot add oil. * Add onion, ginger, and garlic cloves; sauté for a few minutes, until onions are translucent. * Add chicken. * Add water and broth; bring to a boil. * Stir in corn and ginseng and bring to a boil. * Reduce heat; simmer 20 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Serves 12-one cup servings *** Really Red Radish Salad Radish: Egyptian pharoahs loves its spicy taste for stimulating the palate Ingredients: 2 teaspoons sugar * 1 fresh lime, juiced * 1/2 cup reduced fat/calorie sour cream * 8 red radishes, thinly sliced * 2 tart apples, cored, and then thinly sliced * 1 (6 to 8 inch) cucumber, seeded and thinly sliced * 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill. Directions: Combine sugar, lime juice and sour cream in a medium bowl with a fork. * Add radishes, apple, and cucumber. * Turn vegetables and fruit in dressing to coat. * Season with dill, salt, and pepper, toss again. Serves 4. *** Shameless Champagne Carrots Champagne: The 'drink of love' lowers inhibitions This simple carrot side dish is fast and easy to make. There is something magical about the combination of carrots and dill. It is a great use for leftover champagne. Ingredients : Non-Stick Spray * one tablespoon butter * 1 pound carrots, peeled and thinly sliced into coin shapes (vs. julienne strips)* 1/4 cup low-fat chicken stock * 1/2 cup champagne (save the rest for later!) * 1 teaspoon honey * 1 Tablespoon fresh lime juice * 2 teaspoons fresh dill weed, chopped or 1 teaspoon dried (fresh preferred) Directions: Coat heavy saucepan with non-stick spray. *Add butter. * Sauté the carrots in the butter over medium heat until they begin to brown. * Add the chicken stock, champagne, honey, and salt. * Stir and Simmer. Cover and Cook over low heat, until al dente (do not let them get mushy! Al dente is best!) About 5 minutes. * Remove cover and cook until liquid is almost evaporated. Still using low heat ... add lemon juice, dill week, stir to combine and serve. Serves 4 to 6. *** Perfect Pork Chops with Fig Sauce FIG: Greeks ate in a frenzied copulation ritual. The chipotle pepper blends beautifully with the figs - spicy sweetness YUM - to give it a bit of a kick! Ingredients: 4 boneless pork chops, approx. 1" thick (4 to 6 ounces each) * Kosher salt * Fresh ground black pepper * 1/2 teaspoon ground chipotle peppers * non-stick spray * 1 Tablespoon Virgin Olive Oil * 1/2 cup minced sweet onions * 5 garlic cloves, finely minced * 1/2 cup red wine *1 cup low-fat chicken broth * 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves *1 cup diced fresh figs Directions: Season each pork chop with salt, pepper, and ground chipotle, place between two sheets of plastic wrap and pound down! Pound, pound, pound. * Heat a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Spray non-stick spray and then add olive oil. Sear pork loin chops until golden brown on each side. * Remove to a platter and keep warm. Reduce heat, add onions and sauté until translucent. *Add garlic and sauté some more! *.Carefully pour in red wine into pan (not your mouth!). Stir for about one minute. Add broth, thyme and figs. * Cook over medium heat, stirring often and mashing figs until the sauce is thickened. * Somewhere between 10 and 15 minutes. * Place pork chops in pan, flip it, again, coating both sides with the sauce. * Simmer for a minute or two, until the chops are fig infused. Serves 4. *** Delicious and Decadent Dark Chocolate Squares Chocolate: Relaxes and stimulates! One Square Dark Chocolate Square ! (small square) Unwrap it. Let it melt in your mouth! Savor it - one one-ounce square per person! Enjoy! Spread the love ... not the icing! Janice ___________________________________________________ You can find out more about Janice Taylor, Life & Wellness Coach, Author of the Our Lady of Weight Loss books by visiting Our Lady of Weight Loss/Beliefnet Blog and Janice's webiste, Our Lady of Weight Loss . Follow Janice on Twitter Facebook For Life & Wellness Consult, write Janice . More on valentine's day
 
George McGovern: How Lincoln Speaks to Us Today Top
Abraham Lincoln, whose two hundredth birthday we observe today, was our greatest president and a keen student of political expression. Though his personal hero was George Washington, he also had a high regard for Thomas Jefferson. "I never had a feeling politically that did not spring from the sentiments embodied in the Declaration of Independence," Lincoln said in a speech at Independence Hall in Philadelphia in 1861, a month before his inauguration. His contemporary political heroes during his rise to power were also masters of political language, Henry Clay and Daniel Webster. Lincoln believed that his two greatest achievements were saving the Union against the secession of the southern states which triggered the Civil War and issuing the Emancipation Proclamation, and today we honor him for these historic accomplishments. Lincoln had loathed slavery from his youth, but he was willing to abide the practice in the South if the slave states would remain peacefully in the Union. What Lincoln held to without compromise was the necessity of preventing slavery from entering the federal territories from which new states would be carved. He believed that if slavery could be confined to the states where it already existed, it would gradually wither and die. Unfortunately, the southern leaders, or at least a significant portion of them, also believed that slavery would be doomed if it could not be continuously invigorated with new additions from the public lands. They also coveted new slave states to increase their political clout in Washington. Almost from the moment of Lincoln's election in 1860, the states of the South began to leave the Union. And so the war came. Thus was born the irony of a president who longed for peace being called to preside over four years of the bloodiest war in our history. Six hundred thousand young Americans died in that conflict, a number equal to the combined U.S. losses of World Wars I and II. Of course, the losses were so high because the soldiers on each side were Americans -- Americans killing Americans. One could cite a number of reasons why Lincoln remains such a highly regarded president to all the generations since his assassination so many years ago. Certainly one of those factors has been the inspired and masterful speeches that came from his heart, mind, and soul. No other president possessed such compelling literary power and grace. Perhaps Thomas Jefferson and Woodrow Wilson would rate second and third among the presidents who crafted their own addresses. I recall vividly during my years in the excellent public schools of Mitchell, South Dakota, being required to memorize and recite Lincoln's Gettysburg Address. That address stirred my respect for Lincoln then as it does today. It belongs with the Declaration of Independence, the preamble to the Constitution, and the Bill of Rights among our greatest state papers. Each of us might add others to that list. In my case I would add Lincoln's two inaugurals and the farewell addresses of two generals who served as president, George Washington and Dwight Eisenhower. Lincoln worked diligently on his speeches. He would begin by reading the better speeches of Daniel Webster and Henry Clay, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, and he would draw upon his knowledge of the Bible, Shakespeare, Aesop's Fables and John Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress . He also kept at hand a file of his own previous speeches. He would then begin to write in longhand a draft of his speech, which he would further refine each time he read it. This process of reading selected works, digesting the most stirring and eloquent passages of other speeches, and then laboriously writing his own thoughts and words could sometimes take weeks or even months. When he finally had a draft that satisfied him he would call in a critic -- perhaps his secretary of state, William H. Seward -- and ask him to read the speech aloud in Lincoln's presence. Then the president would read it aloud to Seward and the two men would discuss where the draft might be improved. It was through this give and take that Seward suggested a phrase for Lincoln's first inaugural address that in the final draft became the now immortal phrase "the better angels of our nature." Often Lincoln made his point with a story -- a parable. Here he addresses the Wisconsin State Agricultural Society in Milwaukee, on September 30, 1859: It is said an Eastern monarch once charged his wise men to invent him a sentence to be ever in view, and which should be true and appropriate in all times and situations. They presented him the words: 'And this, too, shall pass away.' How much it expresses! How chastening in the home of pride! How consoling in the depths of affliction. Perhaps we need to ponder these words in our present national need. It might also be wise after eight years of "neo-conservatism" to recall Lincoln's words at Cooper Union in New York City on February 27, 1860: "What is conservatism? It is not adherence to the old and tried, against the new and untried?" It is also relevant to our own day, while respecting Lincoln's appreciation for historical experience, to recall his appreciation for the need for change: The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present, the occasion is filled high with difficulty, and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves and then we shall save our country. George McGovern, a former U.S. senator from South Dakota and Democratic presidential nominee, is the author of Abraham Lincoln, just published by Times Books .
 
Wendy Diamond: Pedigree Pooches Hit NYC To Strut Their Stuff! Top
Once a year the pace of the city changes. There is an animal energy that's easy to sniff out and flows through the city streets the smell of hot dogs . Now I'm not talking about those pesky and sometimes terrifying city rats, or even the dumpster-diving coons, of course I'm talking about the one and only Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, a New York City staple (and the second longest running sporting event in the country, next to the Kentucky Derby), now in it's 133rd year. That's right people the Super Bowl is over and it's dog show season, so grab your fan flags for the breed you support and let's all get into the canine spirit! To kick off the festivities of Lucky's favorite two-day dog event, (which starts today) we attended the Westminster Dog Show Pedigree Awards Dinner at the Museum of Natural History. Just a warning to pet owners out there: never bring your dog to a room filled with terrifying stuffed animals. When Lucky caught glimpse of some of those dinosaurs and bears, I swear she dug a basement into her dog bag. In attendance for the exciting pre-show awards was the iconic, raspy-voiced beauty, Bernadette Peters who came without her rescued mutt Kramer. Peters, along with one of my favorite funny ladies, Mary Tyler Moore, host "Broadway Barks" every year to benefit various, reputable animal charities. Check out BroadwayBarks.com for more information. And for all of you with sensitive ears, Broadway Barks isn't what you think it is, so you don't need ear plugs! Lucky and I also ran into the fabulous Archaelogist Iris Love who is the Grande dame of Dachsunds. We also heard word that there will be a new Brooklyn Animal Resource Center or BARC ( BarcShelter.org ). With Animal Haven closing in Queens at least we know one borough will have a home for all the homeless animals. We love all the work of local shelters, especially this local, non-profit, no-kill shelter. Lots of barks this week I guess! This week Lucky and I also hopped on over to a very savvy cat event, the "Hello Kitty Commotion" party hosted by V Magazine and MAC Cosmetics. I have to say I love Hello Kitty -- she's always happy, always strong, and an icon in her own right. She sounds like Lucky! Truly considered bringing Pasha, but Pasha is not interested in saying Hello to any other Kitties. At the event I ran into the lovely Mr. James Gager, creative director of MAC sans his adorable poodle, both of whom I have been fond of for quite some time. Lucky and I also saw designer Adam Lippe, who told me about his two Labradoodles, Bidu after a Brazilian cartoon character and Lola , because "gay guys name their dog Lola." We also ran into MTV's The City sweetie and Whitney Port's sometimes beau, Australian rocker Jay Lyon who told us about his Argentinean Mastiff named Gunner. I guess that's what an Australian names an Argentinean. R&B star Ciara hit us up with details about her favorite boxer, Tyson, not Mike Tyson, and not a Boxer, but her Maltipoo of the same name. She can't help but name her dogs after professional boxers. Little Miss MisShapes darling Leigh Lezark was taking a break from spinning to talk about her Mini Dachshund named Edie, an homage to the Factory and Andy Warhol. Edie was originally going to be called Lydia (after Winona Ryder's creepy Beetle Juice character), but perhaps Lezark was afraid she was going to end up saying "Beetle Juice" too many times and Edie would be gone. Lucky and I also attended a dinner hosted by world renowned antique furniture dealer and author Todd Merrill and his wife Lauren to celebrate the one year rescue of their 8 year old Blossom from the ASPCA. The couple adopted their dog and it was given one year to live because she was 3 times overweight. I'm happy to report that their dog is now in great health and it looks like she's kind of cat-like when it comes to lives. At the dinner I sat next to, cavorted, laughed and chatted with Anthony Haden-Guest, popular author and columnist. I realized at the time that I shouldn't have brought Lucky, but Wanda, because Anthony is the brother-in-law of the original Wanda in A Fish Called Wanda , Jamie Lee Curtis. That also means that Anthony is brother to my all time favorite actor , comedian and all around genius Christopher Guest, the mastermind behind the brilliant film and my obvious personal favorite, Best in Show (how timely). Thank dog for Piggy Banks! If Bernie Madoff had one it probably would be the biggest Pig. Checkout www.AnimalFair.com for more pet tips to keep you going no matter the economic climate. Wendy Diamond with Anthony Haden-Guest, brother of her hero Christopher Guest from the film Best In Show
 
Steven Waldman: Is Obama's Tax Cut the Biggest in History? Top
The Democrats have been so busy defending federal spending, and denigrating the stimulative power of tax cuts, that they apparently either forgot -- or felt they couldn't -- point out something rather dramatic: the tax cuts in this stimulus plan appear to be the biggest in history. The compromise stimulus plan includes $282 billion in tax cuts over two years. According to the Wall Street Journal, Bush's first two years of tax cuts amounted to $174 billion. A second batch in 2004 and 2005 cost $231. And those were thought to be bigger than the tax cuts offered by Reagan, Kennedy or others. Now, perhaps some new analysis will show that the tax cuts end up not quite being the largest in history by this measure or that. But it's clear they're massive. I'm ducking the debate on whether this is economically a good or bad -- but surely it ought to be a big story. It leads to two further points. The fight got boiled down to: Democrats want spending. Republican want tax cuts. This is partly the media's fault for following the script layed out by the Congressional leaders, but it also represents a lost opportunity by Obama. In his press conference, he mostly made the case for spending. He didn't make the case for the massive size of his tax cuts. Second, Obama kept a campaign promise that few Republican thought he'd keep. If this weren't part of a larger package, that would be an enormous story. A liberal Democrat in the campaign promised the biggest tax cut in history. Republicans said it was a complete charade (and many liberals didn't much like it anyway). And the Democrat in his first few weeks delivers the tax cut. More on Stimulus Package
 
Roy Zimmerman: A Song for Darwin Day: "Creation Science 101" (VIDEO) Top
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Mike Tyson Book Shopped To Publishers, Started While He Was In Prison Top
MIKE Tyson is ready to spill the beans. But the one-time heavyweight champ doesn't want any leaks, so his book proposal is being seen by only five publishers. ... Tyson started writing while he was in prison. "Me and my cellmate would read to each other at night," Tyson told one editor. "One night I would read out loud to him, the next night he would read out loud to me. And we would do that back and forth until the book was completed."
 
Steven Weber: TARP, Octuplets and The Triumph of the Mediocre Top
(Caution: Untethered Metaphor Alert. The next paragraphs contain several labored, unrestrained attempts at colorful commentary.) Even though George Bush is currently running a small dance academy in Crawford (see "Tango Terrorismo" HuffPo 8/5/07), his legacy of mediocrity lives on. After the initial jaw drop upon hearing that an amount of money verging on a trillion dollars was basically thrown out of a getaway car and into the cupped hands of various corporations, banks and private plutocracies with nary a word of caution, the feeling in the country is on of liberation. Even though we voted for "change" there is still a temptation to continue in this unrestrained vein. Americans prefer "can do" to years of depressing Bush "can don't" and breaking the trillion barrier was another example of classic American come-back-from-behind push the envelope be the best, the greatest, the biggest spirit. And it was okay. It actually felt liberating, downright--shall we say---stimulative? Shit, let's go for zillion! Bazillion! Yee hah! Having lived through a decade or so in which quaint terms like "beheading", "torture" and "talent show" have regained purchase in common discourse, expressions which should be relegated to historical texts taught to no children left behind, it is no longer surprising to find that the only recently passed Bush era will have spawned living, breathing embodiments walking among us today. American culture, having had its higher ambitions whittled down most notably during those years to appeal to the supposed tastes of the profligate and thick browed herd doesn't extol symphonies but Sim phonies, perpetuating messages which teach us that it's okay, indeed preferable, to be downright mediocre. A sense of ethics, morality, civility and actual ability serve only to slow the flow of cash. Away with ethics, morality, civility and actual ability. Bring on the candy and the freaks. Between the menacing acronym TARP and the gag-inducing Nadya Suleman AKA Octopussy, the latest credulity-straining events to occupy both ends of the cultural spectrum, we are still living in an Ian Fleming carny world and the always trusty media, ready to amass an unthinking crowd of agreeable consumers, barfs the data like a barker all over our passive punims. In both media obsessed cases, the public is simultaneously praised and insulted, informed yet denied, given only so much info to induce either relief or umbrage but little else. As when, after having had the thrift scared out of us, no one took a moment to ask the where, how, why, who or WTF about all that dough spent to right the listing economy, we now have the sick spectacle of Our Lady of the Litter, the living embodiment of all the Right Wing's pompous faux-religious blather about conservative family values and the sanctity of life. You preached it, you got it. There she is: Ms. America, warped self-image, mutated feminism, misplaced values and all. The current distraction from relevance is courtesy of the folks who brought you The Bush Doctrine, championed deregulation and pursued war for oil. And still no real questions are being asked, no real consequences for such bad, bad, bad behavior. It's enough to make you buy a new iPhone. This is the world that Bush bequeathed to us, just as deformed babies were the fruits of atomic testing near populated atolls; ethics, civility, common sense and the nearly one trillion TARP dollars floating like so many soap bubbles popping and leaving no trace. Add to that the media repackaging inane sludge into meringue and sending it out digitally coast to coast and you have a continuation of Bush's doctrine of mediocrity and mendacity, one in which despite the best efforts, will likely linger even in the comforting embrace of change and hope.
 
Is Robert Gibbs Pretty In Pink? (VIDEO, POLL) Top
Politico has also taken note of Robert Gibbs' flair for fashion ( see our slideshow tribute to his ties ), and recently asked the press secretary the most important question to date: Do you look pretty in pink? Reporter: "Mr. Gibbs, what is up with your pastel ties? You seem to be a huge fan of the pink and the green and the blue." Gibbs: "Somebody told me they look good, and I need all the help I can get." Reporter: "Do you think you look pretty in pink? Gibbs: "I'll let everyone else answer that." Watch the exchange and answer that below. WATCH: More on Video On HuffPost
 
Viacom Profit Falls, Media Networks Revenue Actually Up Top
LOS ANGELES — Viacom Inc., the media conglomerate controlled by Sumner Redstone, said Thursday its fourth-quarter profit fell 69 percent as the recession hurt advertising, home entertainment and video game revenue and it recorded $454 million in charges. The owner of the MTV, Nickelodeon and Comedy Central cable networks and the Paramount movie studio said it earned $173 million, or 28 cents per share. That was down from $559.5 million, or 86 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter. Excluding charges for programming write-downs and restructuring related to the reduction of 850 jobs, or 7 percent of its work force, in December, New York-based Viacom earned 76 cents per share. This is a penny less than expected by analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters. Shares fell 23 cents, or 1.4 percent, to $16.80 in early trade Thursday. Shares are down 58 percent from a year ago. Revenue was flat at $4.24 billion _ in line with analyst expectations _ as advertising sales fell 3 percent globally to $1.35 billion. Chief Executive Philippe Dauman said marketers continued to pull back from its cable networks, although not as much as they have from other media such as local TV stations. "It is clear that while as cable network owners we are in a more favorable media segment than most, advertising (comparisons) are likely to get worse before they get better," he said on a conference call with analysts. Restructuring will save $200 million in 2009, he said. Despite the ad decline, revenue from the company's media networks rose 1 percent to $2.48 billion, as fees from cable and satellite operators grew 12 percent to $667 million. Ancillary revenues, including from the "Rock Band" video game, were flat at $462 million. Dauman blamed the "soft retail environment" for hurting hardware sales of the game, which came in below expectations. "Rock Band 2," released in the fall, sold 2 million units on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 platforms through December. Revenue from filmed entertainment, which includes studio Paramount Pictures, dipped 2 percent to $1.81 billion. The company said this was due mainly to a 6 percent drop in home entertainment revenue, which fell to $1.02 billion. "The home entertainment market, as the most important revenue driver for the industry, was hit by the downturn at retail," he said. Meanwhile, Redstone, whose control of Viacom is held through his theater chain company, National Amusements Inc., said "very substantial progress" was being made with creditors on restructuring National Amusement's debt. In October, National Amusements was forced to sell $233 million in nonvoting shares of CBS and Viacom to avoid violating the terms of its loans. "I can confirm that National has not sold and does not expect to be required by its lenders to sell any additional shares of CBS and Viacom. Not a share," Redstone said. "I have been advised that an agreement acceptable to all parties is now within reach." For the full year, Viacom earned $1.25 billion, or $2 per share, compared with $1.84 billion, or $2.72 per share, in 2007. Adjusted earnings rose to $2.38 per share _ an increase of 2 cents per share over 2007. The company's revenue rose 9 percent to $14.63 billion in 2008 from $13.42 billion in 2007. ___ Business Writer Rachel Metz in New York contributed to this report.
 
HuffPost Readers Pay It Forward: A Round-Up Of Random Acts Of Kindness Top
Earlier last week, and inspired by heart-warming stories of charity from around the country, we asked our readers to submit their own random acts of kindness, in the hopes of putting a spotlight on all the good hard work that's going on in communities around this country. And less than a week later, we have been absolutely overwhelmed by you responses. We've pulled together some of those that caught our eye in the hopes that even more of you will be inspired, but know that these were not necessarily the best or the biggest -- because there is no such thing. As Larry278 put it so well in a comment on our original post: I wonder if one may do a random act of kindness if one chooses to do kindnesses in every moment of each day? Without further ado: My sister has been unemployed for a year. As a result, she was a year behind in her rent and on her way to being evicted. Finding this out, I got the landlord information, and paid off all of the back rent she owed and paid her rent up front for the next year without her knowledge. She is a very proud woman and didn't ask me for help. She's been going through this struggle all alone and was spiraling into a severe depression. She also admitted to me that she had contemplated suicide, once it became mandatory for her to leave her apartment. She'd had no luck finding a job in spite of sending out thousands of resumes and had not had a single interview since last summer. When I gave her the copy of the check I wrote to her landlord today, she just cried and cried and thanked me. I wanted to share this story with you because there are so many people out there, like my sister, who desperately need help. If we can all help just one person who is in dire need of help, we can all get through these difficult times together. - SabrinaFair A Mervin's department store closed and I was the last to buy some store fixtures. They asked me to also take a large pile of professionally cleaned coats, sweaters, umbrellas, gloves and such - the left-over lost-and-found. They didn't give it to Good Will because GW charges for things and they wanted them to people directly, for free. I accepted. At a place that usually has a lot of homeless, two people told me to keep them until the winter rainy-season because they can't manage many belongings and didn't need them at the moment. When it got cold and wet, I found the city had put up a chain link fence keeping people from going under this overpass and other areas nearby - there was no one! Arg! Just yesterday, a rainy afternoon, I met a woman collecting money for charity for children outside a grocery store. In three hours she'd collected only $5, but she remarked what a nice umbrella I had. I asked about her circumstance and realized she wasn't well off at all - volunteering as she had no job (and was looking for work) - and had no umbrella. So, I gave it to her. She opened it up and with it, she lit up like a child with their first toy at Christmas. It was hard to believe she could be so happy over something so small, but I'm glad I had this burden handed to me by the man at the Mervin's store... - RTIII My wife and I were driving on a small state road in New Mexico in December when it started to snow. It got so bad I had to pull over in the middle of nowhere to put on snow chains. I was having a really hard time trying to put on the chains when a pickup truck pulled over and stopped. Out jumped a man in a suit, he was coming from church I think and asked if I needed help. I said sure and before I know it he took off his jacket and got down in the snow and put on my chains. Then he told me not to worry that the snow stopped further up the road. With that he wished me a merry christmas jumped back in his truck and took off down a side road. I don't even know his name. I would love to contact him to tell him how much I appreciate what he did. It renews my faith in mankind. - John Martin Although not an organized charitable event, I simply stopped for coffee at a local specialty coffee shop. The line was long and twisty, everyone anxious for their morning coffee. Apparently a repeat customer, a young man with developmental difficulties came to the head of the line and ordered a fancy blender concoction. As he struggled with counting his coins, he was oohing and aahing over how delicious the drink tastes. "It is so good with chocolate on top." The waitperson realized he did not have enough money and kindly said, "Hey Hank, you need a $1.47 more, bring it in next time, OK?" Hank nodded his head yes as he spun around with what can only be described as a look of pure joy on his face over this drink. I was several patrons behind and involved in a juicy novel not paying much attention but thought to myself, I will just give them the $1.47 Hank owed when my turn comes up. When I mentioned this to the waitperson he said, "God, I love our customers!! Every single person in front of you has offered to pay the difference!" Not that it mattered as Hank's benefactor walked back in with him shortly thereafter and made good on the purchase. But still in the random stop of an overcast day, there was kindness flowing from people over something so simple. Our basic decency and willingness to help one another out in the smallest of situations is magical and for the briefest moments confirm that goodness prevails. - Pamela Ehret We are very poor African-Americans who learned from our parents, who were able to send us to private and parochial schools, the value of obtaining a good education and giving back to our community in a positive way. Although retired, we were able to take a few dollars from our savings account to provide bona-fide scholarship assistance to two young talented African-American female students, one of whom is presently a senior at West Chester University of Pennsylvania. The following is a copy of the correspondence we received from one of the students (Kiara Thomas): Dear Mr.and Mrs. Ronald B. Saunders, I am so pleased and honored to receive this scholarship from you, and I can assure you that your money is being spent well. You two are really blessings and angels from above. There are so many people who are unable to attend college because of financial difficulties. Well, your family is helping those in need with your contribution. I participated in the Miss Black Teenage Beauty Pageant in 2001 and won the title in 2004. The pageant contributed so much to my life and I owe part of my success to the teachings and examples of the dignified men and women on staff. Currently I am a senior at West Chester University of Pennsylvania. My major is psychology. I have a cumulative gpa of 3.3 and I will be graduating in May of 2009. I plan to go straight into graduate school with my concentration in counseling. Once again I appreciate and humbly accept and thank you for this scholarship. With gratitude, Kiara Thomas - Ronald B. Saunders I have a friend in plenty of debt whose car died. I made her a zero-interest loan so she could buy a good used car with cash and I'm waiting for her to get her budget together so I can pay off her credit cards and arrange a payment schedule for her to repay me. It's too much money to make a gift and I want her to get out of trouble but feel good about doing it herself. - Jane My partner and I have been blessed with a caregiver Julia, who has been helping us care for Donna's 95-year old mother for two years. We live in New Jersey. Recently, Julia's mother, who was ailing in a nursing home in South Carolina, passed away. Julia, who lives from week to week on our paycheck, and has a daughter at home who recently had a baby and for whom she also cares, did not have money enough to join the rest of her family and attend her mother's burial. Donna paid for her trip and gave her money to live on besides while she was grieving. We consider Julia a part of our family, not just a professional helper. We feel that because she came into our lives, she is part of our responsibility, part of our human family and we owe it to her to be there for her and her family in times of trouble. We feel this is the attitude that people in general, and Americans in particular need to cultivate, and that our new president understands profoundly will be key to a safe and healthy future for us all. - Francesca Jenkins *** And then there were two stories that serve as a poignant reminder that random acts of kindness are just that: random. They don't have to occur in the here and now, or be done by those who have to help those who have not. Often, they are just the opposite. I was in a serious car accident in India. I spent 6 weeks in the medical intensive care unit and was then discharged. A pregnant nurse from the ICU invited me to stay at her home while my recovery continued. She showed me to a bedroom and attached bath, which I used. I later observed that she and her husband, having given me their room, slept on a table top and used the outdoor bathroom. I learned from this incident that the people with the least to give are the most generous. - Abbe Anderson I wear my Birkenstocks until they're absolutely worn through, until the cork has fallen away from the toes and the soles separate, causing them to slap loudly against the pavement as I walk. While working at an NGO in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, I realized my latest pair of had run their course. They'd shod my old feet through several countries and different lives, but it was time to put them to pasture. I threw them into the alleyway behind my little flat which is located in one of the most impoverished areas of the world and where much of the local economy is based on picking recyclables from an enormous, gaseous garbage dump. With this in mind, I figured the remnants of my sandals would somehow be put to good use. The next day, when I returned fr om work, there lay a pair of sandals at my door -- MY sandals. They'd been glued, sewed, cleaned, buffed, and some kind of epoxy was filled into the cracks of the cork soles. It'd been an ingenious repair, too; one I would never have thought to make. I asked my landlord, the cleaning woman, my neighbors...no one knew who'd done the work. In this incredibly stressed community, someone committed a simple, random act of kindness. That was a year ago. I still wear them now and seldom does a day go by that I don't think of that kindness. - Todd Eliassen *** We hope your hearts have been warmed as much as ours have. And for more inspiration, we highly recommend reading the comment thread on our original post . We mentioned earlier that "these stories are a much needed counterpoint to all the doom and gloom" and that with your help we'd do our best to "change the conversation." Well, rest assured, that's one conversation that's already been changed. Let's keep it going! More on Giving
 
Obama Administration Will Protect New Bank Bailout Grants: Barney Frank Top
WASHINGTON — Rep. Barney Frank asserted Thursday that the Obama administration can be more trusted than the Bush administration to ensure that banks do not misuse money they get from a $700 billion bailout fund. Frank, D-Mass., denied in a nationally broadcast interview that Congress has failed to put strings on these loans to ensure that banks do not pay extravagant executive bonuses or take expensive retreats. "We didn't give them the second half ($350 billion) with no strings attached," Frank said on CBS's "The Early Show." "The Treasury Department has agreed to impose very strict rules," the congressman added, "and I think it would be a very big mistake to assume that the Obama administration is going to be as lax as the Bush administration." Frank did acknowledge that a bill he pushed to place specific limits on bonuses and other perks is not likely to get through Congress. "The error is to assume that because the Bush administration resisted compensation restrictions ... that the Obama administration is going to do the same," he said. "In fact, the Obama administration is behaving very differently," Frank said. He was talking about disbursements to financial institutions of moneys from the second half of the $700 billion TARP initiative (Troubled Assets Relief Program) that was instituted last fall. "The fact is, these funds are being conditioned by the Obama administration," Frank said. "If they get the money, they are legally bound to follow certain rules." Frank also said that none of the money from the second part of TARP has been disbursed yet, and he said the new administration will insist that a much larger chunk of it go toward reducing home foreclosures. The House chairman was interviewed a day after leading bank CEOs came before his committee to defend their practices in the wake of rampant criticism from both lawmakers and the public. "We're Americans first and bankers second," said John Stumpf, president and chief executive of Wells Fargo & Co. "As an industry, we clearly made mistakes," added John Mack, chairman and CEO of Morgan Stanley. Eight chief executives sat at a witness table for more than six hours Wednesday, assuring lawmakers that an infusion last fall of $165 billion in taxpayer money to their banks was good for consumers. The money was part of that $700 billion rescue plan. They also told Congress that lending has increased and that CEO bonuses have been eliminated. And while some lawmakers said they hoped that by their testimony the bankers could gain some credibility, some of their inquisitors weren't convinced. "America doesn't trust you anymore," declared Rep. Michael Capuano, D-Mass. More on Bailout Bandits
 
Deborah King: Rihanna - Just say NO to abuse! Top
The hot young R&B stars - 20-year-old Rihanna and her 19-year-old boyfriend of the past year Chris Brown - had been scheduled to appear at the Grammys when Brown's wayward fists got in the way. Rihanna was taken to the hospital with a busted lip, swollen black eye, bloodied nose, and contusions on her forehead and both sides of her head. The fight supposedly started when Brown received a text message from another girl wanting to hook up with him. Pulled over to the side of the road in the Hancock Park neighborhood in Los Angeles, Rihanna tossed the keys to the rented Lamborghini out the window, and Brown started wailing on her. Someone heard Rihanna's screams and called 911. By the time the police arrived, Brown was no longer on the scene, and Rihanna, who purportedly had lost consciousness for a bit, named him as her assailant. The police also photographed the serious swelling and bruises on her face and arm, so there is physical evidence of the assault. It's what happens next that is so important for the millions of young Rihanna fans (10 million tracks of hers were digitally downloaded in 2008), and for Chris Brown's as well. While Brown turned himself into police, who booked him on suspicion of making criminal threats and then released him after he posted $50,000 bail, there are some reports that say Rihanna does not want Chris Brown to be criminally punished and is no longer assisting investigators in the criminal case against him. I'm hoping that this best-selling artist doesn't give in to the pressures of patriarchy to forgive him, which would be the typical abused woman syndrome. It's undoubtedly what Chris saw his mother do when his stepfather would beat her; he grew up with domestic violence. Did his mother also forgive Chris when guests alerted security at a Miami hotel in 2007 when he was fighting with her, breaking dishes and screaming at her? Both Chris and Rihanna are scheduled to appear on the red carpet today for the NAACP Image Awards, both nominated as outstanding recording artists. It will be very disappointing, and very disturbing, if they make nice and show up together. Please, Rihanna, for the sake of all the young women watching, let them know that abuse is not to be tolerated, not to be forgiven. Don't let more young men grow up thinking it's okay to use their fists on the women they supposedly love. What a lousy message for Valentine's Day, or any day, ever.
 
Roseanne Colletti: College Challenge Top
Fewer recruiters with fewer jobs! That's confounding college students at campus job fairs. Recruiters who do show up are more frequently offering unpaid internships rather than employment. Even students confident in their academic skills are questioning their choice of study. Unfortunately, that's how things are shaking out whether a student is on scholarship, working to pay for school or has parents who are paying for it. A recent advertising industry job fair aimed at minority students at New York University saw the number of recruiters reduced by almost half. The director of career development at New York City's Baruch College, Patricia Imbimbo, says, "Top students are still getting jobs, just not as many tops students and not as many jobs." Truisms that once were true are no longer. Follow your passion and you will be successful may no longer be practical advice. On the other hand, find the need and fill it is as true today as ever. And that's the challenge facing those preparing to enter the workforce for the first time, as well as those preparing to re-enter after being forced out. Business students hitching their star to a future in the financial sector may do well to rethink their plans to become an asset manager, investment banker or trader. Imbimbo says job seekers should keep their eyes open to new possibilities in credit risk management, green technology and needed, though lesser paying, positions in education and government. Those who can see around the corner and direct their steps accordingly are most likely to find opportunity in chaos. One of the best ways to improve your career foresight is not only to talk to those plugged in, but to hear what they're saying. Professional development coaches advise network until it hurts. The roster of contacts should not exclude any part of your life. Your physician is just as viable a resource as a former boss or colleague. Students already understand the concept of unpaid internships. That's because they usually receive college credit for them. However, now they are vocally not even interested in the college credit. They want the work experience and will barter their skills accordingly. This is a little tougher for mature and experienced professionals to get their arms around, but being visible in a job category you seek, even without being paid, puts you two steps ahead of everyone else. "Not all college students get it, but they are beginning to come around, "according to Imbimbo. Those who do get it are inventing ways to separate themselves from the competition. They are not only aggressively seeking unpaid internships, but also signing up for volunteer work just experience, opportunities overseas and niche areas of study that can make them appear expert among the throngs of generalists. No, college is not what it used to be according to students who chatted with me. "It's not the fun time my mom and dad had," frowned one junior at Baruch College. The college experience is undergoing an evolution from a quest for knowledge, wisdom, and self-awareness to the applied science of selecting a career path that won't slip out from under you in a few years. Parents who are still inclined to let their college-age children find themselves, may do well to offer a little more informed guidance according to some career specialists. In the final analysis, ten years down the road the question, "Why didn't you tell me"? is not one the parent of a current college student really wants to hear. (for more of my stories go to nbcnewyork.com ) More on Careers
 
Man Runs Out Of Gas After Robbing Gas Station Top
CAPE HAZE, Fla. — Authorities said they arrested a man who apparently forgot to fill up when he was robbing a gas station. The Charlotte County Sheriff's Office said a 23-year-old man used a Bowie knife to rob a Cape Haze gas station early Sunday. Deputies said the man pulled the 12-inch blade and demanded money. But when he left, a customer followed him and called 911. While deputies were looking for signs of the robber, a newspaper carrier told them that a man in a car matching the one from the robbery had run out of gas nearby. The man was arrested several hours after the robbery and charged with robbery with a weapon and loitering/prowling. He was released Monday on $10,500 bail. ___ Information from: Sarasota Herald-Tribune, http://www.herald-trib.com More on WTF
 
Police: Car Bomb Kills 4 In Northern Iraq Top
BAGHDAD — The Interior Ministry spokesman says a bomb attack has killed five Shiite pilgrims and injured 50 others in central Iraq. Maj. Gen. Abdul-Karim Khalaf says the pilgrims were near the shrine of Imam Hussein in the Shiite holy city of Karbala when the attack occurred Thursday. Hundreds of thousands of Shiite pilgrims are expected to visit Karbala on Monday to mark the end of 40 days of mourning that follow Ashoura, the anniversary of the seventh-century death of the Prophet Muhammad's grandson Hussein. He was killed in a battle for the leadership of the nascent Muslim nation following Muhammad's death in 632. He's revered by Shiites because he is the son of Ali, the man they believe should have been the direct successor to the prophet. More on War Wire
 
New Jobless Claims Drop Slightly Top
WASHINGTON — Nearly 5 million Americans continued to draw jobless benefits late last month, and new requests again exceeded 600,00 as companies lay off scores of workers amid a deepening recession. The Labor Department said Thursday that the number of initial jobless benefit claims dropped to a seasonally-adjusted 623,000, from an upwardly revised figure of 631,000 the previous week. The latest tally still was above analysts' expectations of 610,000 claims. And in a sign that laid-off workers are having difficulty finding new work, the number of people claiming benefits for more than one week rose to 4.81 million from 4.78 million, the highest total since records began in 1967. The continuing claims data lag new claims by a week. An additional 1.5 million people are receiving benefits under an extended unemployment compensation program approved by Congress last year, bringing the total number of recipients to 6.3 million. Continuing claims are up sharply from a year ago, when the figure was 2.7 million. In slightly better economic news, the Commerce Department reported Thursday that retail sales jumped 1 percent in January, reversing six months of decline and defying expectations of a 0.8 percent drop. The rise in sales follows a 2.7 percent plunge in December, which marked the weakest holiday selling season since at least 1969. The 631,000 new jobless claims filed two weeks ago was the highest tally since October 1982, when the economy was emerging from a steep recession, though the labor force has grown by about half since then. The four-week average of claims, which smooths out fluctuations, rose by 24,000 to 607,500, the first time that figure has topped 600,000 in the current recession. Economists consider jobless claims a timely, if volatile, indicator of the health of the labor markets and broader economy. A year ago, initial claims stood at 339,000. Companies from a range of sectors are hemorrhaging jobs as the recession worsens. Consumers have cut back on their spending in response to declining home values and plummeting stock portfolios, and businesses also are tightening their belts. On Wednesday, Boston-based money manager Putnam Investments said it would cut 260 jobs, or about 10 percent of its work force. A day earlier, General Motors said it would cut 10,000 salaried jobs, or 14 percent of its white-collar employees. FedEx Corp. said Monday it is eliminating 900 positions. Among the states, California saw the biggest increase in jobless claims, a jump of 20,000 that it attributed to layoffs in construction and service industries. The next largest increases were in: North Carolina, with 8,663; Ohio, with 4,738; Georgia's 4,392; and Kansas, with 3,232. Virginia saw the largest drop in claims, a decline of 1,937, which it attributed to fewer layoffs in manufacturing. Drops of 1,00 or more also were reported in New Jersey, Missouri, Oklahoma and Connecticut.
 
US, Russian Satellites Collide In Space (VIDEO) Top
Two communication satellites - one Russian, one American - have collided in space some 800 kilometres above Siberia. More on Russia
 
Economic stimulus package on track for final votes Top
WASHINGTON — Economic stimulus legislation at the heart of President Barack Obama's recovery plan is on track for final votes in the House and Senate after a dizzying final round of bargaining that yielded agreement on tax cuts and spending totaling $789 billion. Obama, who has campaigned energetically for the legislation, welcomed the agreement, saying it would "save or create more than 3.5 million jobs and get our economy back on track." The $500-per-worker credit for lower- and middle-income taxpayers that Obama outlined during his presidential campaign was scaled back to $400 during bargaining by the Democratic-controlled Congress and White House. Couples would receive $800 instead of $1,000. Over two years, that move would pump about $25 billion less into the economy than had been previously planned. Officials estimated it would mean about $13 a week more in people's paychecks when withholding tables are adjusted in late spring. Critics say that's unlikely to do much to boost consumption. Millions of people receiving Social Security benefits would get a one-time payment of $250 under the agreement, along with veterans receiving pensions, and poor people receiving Supplemental Security Income payments. An additional $46 billion would go to transportation projects such as highway, bridge and mass transit construction; many lawmakers wanted more. The House could vote on the bill as early as Thursday, though Friday seemed more likely. The Senate would follow, but its schedule is less certain. The Obama plan offers a 60 percent subsidy to help unemployed people pay health insurance premiums under the COBRA program and divvies up $87 billion among the states to help them with their Medicaid costs for the next two years. It provides $19 billion to modernize health information technology systems, even though such funding will create few jobs right away. To tamp down costs, several tax provisions were dropped or sharply cut back. A provision popular with Republicans and the big business lobby that would have awarded about $54 billion to money-losing businesses over the next two years was instead limited to small businesses, greatly reducing its cost. A $15,000 tax credit for anybody buying a home over the next year was dropped; instead, first-time homebuyers could claim an $8,000 credit for homes bought by the end of August. Car buyers could deduct the sales tax they paid on a new car but not the interest on their car loans. But nothing could shake negotiators from insisting on including $70 billion to shelter middle- to upper-income taxpayers from the alternative minimum tax, originally passed a generation ago to make sure the super-rich didn't avoid taxes. The move is aimed at easing headaches that would follow if Congress passed it later in the year _ rather than creating jobs. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that provision will have relatively little impact on the economy. In late-stage talks, Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., pressed for $8 billion to construct high-speed rail lines, quadrupling the amount in the bill that passed the Senate on Tuesday. Reid's office issued a statement noting that a proposed Los Angeles-to-Las Vegas rail might get a big chunk of the money. Scaling back the bill to levels lower than either the $838 billion Senate measure or the original $820 billion House-passed measure caused grumbling among liberal Democrats, who described the cutbacks as a concession to the moderates, particularly Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., who are feeling heat from constituents for supporting the bill. Specter played an active role, however, in making sure $10 billion for the National Institutes of Health, a pet priority, wasn't cut back. After final agreements were sealed Wednesday afternoon, staff aides worked into the night drafting and double-checking in hopes of officially unveiling the measure Thursday.
 
"Two Lovers" Premiere: Stone-Faced Joaquin And Gwyneth's Leather Shorts (PHOTOS) Top
"Two Lovers" had a New York premiere Wednesday night, hours after star Joaquin Phoenix filmed his utterly bizarre Letterman appearance . Joining Phoenix at the movie were his costars Gwyneth Paltrow and Vinessa Shaw. Paltrow took a fashion risk in a gold top, black jacket, black shorts, tights and gray ankle boots. PHOTOS: More on Gwyneth Paltrow
 
Mohammad Khatami Slams President Ahmadinejad Top
TEHRAN,Iran — The top reformist candidate in Iran's presidential race has criticized hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad over the country's international isolation. The comments were the first by Mohammad Khatami about the president since Khatami entered the race last weekend. They signaled that his campaign will likely focus on Iranians' worries that Ahmadinejad's fiery anti-Western rhetoric has worsened the country's status in the world at a time when Iran is suffering economic woes. Khatami, a liberal cleric who was president from 1997-2005, told a group of his supporters that "the current situation in the country is not desirable," according to Khatami's Web site. Khatami warned at the meeting late Wednesday that if the situation continues, the country's "social capital and international reputation will be damaged even more." He said Iran needs active diplomacy to decrease "international pressures and isolation." Khatami also assured the country's clerical leadership that he would not go beyond the ruling establishment's red lines. "We are working within the framework of the system, and we are loyal to the constitution and leadership," he said, according to the Web site. Khatami was trying to deflect accusations from hard-liners that reformists aim to undermine _ or even overturn _ the clerical rule installed by the 1979 Islamic revolution, headed by supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has final say on all state matters. Khatami is seen as the sole reformist candidate capable of beating Ahmadinejad, who has the support of Khamenei and hard-liners. Under Ahmadinejad, Iran has suffered international isolation, skyrocketing prices and disputes over the country's nuclear program, which the U.S. and some of its allies fears masks a nuclear weapons pursuit. Iran denies the charge. Still, Ahmadinejad enjoys popularity among the poor for his government's direct cash payments to impoverished sectors and among those admire him for standing up to the West. More on Ahmadinejad
 
Executive Pay Caps Cut Out Of Stimulus Compromise: WaPo Top
Congressional efforts to impose stringent restrictions on executive compensation appeared to be evaporating yesterday as House and Senate negotiators worked to fine-tune the compromise stimulus bill. Provisions to impose a penalty on banks that paid hefty bonuses and to cap pay at $400,000 for all employees at firms applying for additional government funds did not survive the compromise, sources said. More on Goldman Sachs
 
Pioneer Cutting 10,000 Jobs, Abandoning Plasma TV Business Top
TOKYO — Japanese electronics company Pioneer Corp. will cut 10,000 jobs globally to cope with sinking sales of car audio equipment and flat-screen TVs. It will also withdraw from its money-losing plasma display business. The massive job cuts, announced Thursday, are the latest from Japanese corporate giants, which are slashing their payrolls worldwide, reducing production and forecasting annual losses amid a global economic slump. Sony Corp. is shedding 8,000 workers while Nissan Motor Co. and NEC Corp. are each cutting 20,000. Hit by the collapse in demand for car audio equipment and plasma TVs, Pioneer said its net loss in the current fiscal year to March will swell to 130 billion yen ($1.4 billion) from its previous estimate of a 78 billion yen net loss. It would be the fifth straight annual net loss for Pioneer. The Tokyo-based company said it will slash 6,000 full-time salaried workers at home and abroad, accounting for 16 percent of the company's global work force of 36,900. It will also cut 4,000 contract workers at its Japanese and foreign plants. It did not give a regional breakdown. Pioneer is also shutting two overseas plasma display assembly plants _ one in Pomona, California, and the other in Castleford, Britain _ by April. Some 350 employees at the two factories _ 130 in the U.S. and 220 in Britain _ are part of the 10,000 people subject to job cuts, said company spokeswoman Ema Suzuki. The factory closures are part of the plan to withdraw completely from the display business by March, 2010, as the company concluded that it would be impossible to turn around the display business. Pioneer reported a net loss of 26.15 billion yen ($290.52 million) for the October-December quarter, nose-diving from a profit of 1.69 billion ($18.76 million) the previous year. Operating revenue declined 37.8 percent to 131.23 billion yen ($1.46 billion). "Since the U.S. financial crisis and ensuing global downturn, our sales of car electronics products and flat-screen TVs plunged worldwide. We were severely hit by battered consumer sentiment," said Michiko Kadoi, another Pioneer spokeswoman. A company statement said Pioneer would continue facing a tough business environment amid "intensifying competition involving our core products, as well as the impact of the worsening global economic downturn and the Japanese yen's rapid appreciation."
 
Stocks open lower following mixed economic data Top
NEW YORK — Wall Street is still juggling concerns about the U.S. economy even as Congress has struck a deal on a $789 billion economic stimulus plan. Investors are looking past the stimulus plan and mixed economic readings Thursday to cautious earnings forecasts and lingering questions about the health of the banking sector. After an intense focus on Washington this week on the stimulus plan and the Treasury Department's revision to its financial rescue plan, investors are now finding little reason to be optimistic. In the first minutes of trading, the Dow Jones industrial average is down 155 at 7,785. The Standard & Poor's 500 index is down 18 at 816 and the Nasdaq composite index is down 25 at 1,506.
 
Chicken Housing Crisis Hits US Farms Top
A chicken housing crisis has cropped up in the U.S., and it's producing some of the same bleak results as the human one -- foreclosures, lawsuits and devastated homeowners. In the wake of last year's bankruptcy filing by poultry giant Pilgrim's Pride Corp., hundreds of farmers suddenly find themselves unable to make mortgage payments on their pricey chicken coops. To cut costs, Pilgrim's, the nation's second-largest chicken company, has terminated contracts with at least 300 farms in Arkansas, Florida and North Carolina. Under these contracts, farmers receive a set price per pound for raising chicks supplied by Pilgrim's until they are ready for slaughter. The company turns the birds into nuggets, wings and other food. More on Animals
 
Palin Pans Fake Planned Parenthood Email Using Her Name Top
Gov. Sarah Palin on Wednesday called an e-mail pitch in her name for Planned Parenthood that ran wild on the Internet during the presidential campaign "great theater." But she said it wouldn't change her view that "every life is precious." Planned Parenthood wasn't behind the effort, but the e-mails asking for donations spread rapidly in September and October and ended up generating more than $1 million for the organization nationwide, said Clover Simon, Alaska vice president of Planned Parenthood of the Great Northwest. More on Sarah Palin
 
Foreclosures Fall From December To January Top
WASHINGTON — The number of Americans on the verge of losing their homes fell in January but was still up from the same month a year ago. The numbers would have been higher if not for efforts to stall the foreclosure process. Nationwide, more than 274,000 homes received at least one foreclosure-related notice last month. That was down 10 percent from December, but still 18 percent higher than a year ago, according to RealtyTrac Inc., an Irvine, Calif-based foreclosure listing service. Contributing to the monthly drop was a decision by government-controlled mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to suspend foreclosure sales during the winter holidays. Plus, Florida Gov. Charlie Crist brokered a deal in which lenders in that state agreed to a 45-day halt to new foreclosure petitions. But those efforts may not have much of an impact in the long run. "If you don't do anything to get to the core problem, all you're doing is extending the housing downturn," said Rick Sharga, RealtyTrac's vice president for marketing. "It's only a good idea if there's a corresponding program that dramatically restructures hundreds of thousands of loans." Meanwhile, a federal regulator on Wednesday urged more than 800 thrift institutions to suspend all foreclosures while President Barack Obama's top economic officials develop plans to keep borrowers in their homes. The Obama administration plans to spend $50 billion to combat foreclosures of owner-occupied, middle-class homes but is divulging few details. An announcement of the administration's housing plans is expected in the coming weeks. Testifying before House lawmakers on Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the government would provide incentives to "try to induce economically sensible restructuring of mortgages," but offered no specifics. More than 2 million American homeowners faced foreclosure proceedings last year, and that number could soar as high as 10 million in the coming years, according to a report last month by Credit Suisse, depending on the severity of the recession. The RealtyTrac report said nearly 67,000 properties were repossessed by lenders in January as the worst recession in decades, falling home values and stricter lending standards continue to sap the U.S. real estate market. That was up from more than 45,000 repossessed properties in January 2008, but down from 79,000 in December. Geithner and Shaun Donovan, the new secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, met with officials from housing and other nonprofit groups, top bank executives and industry lobbyists Wednesday to hear proposals for how the new programs to fight foreclosures should be structured. After the meeting, John Taylor, chief executive of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, a consumer group in Washington, said he was optimistic the new administration would agree to use government dollars to buy up mortgages and remove them from complex mortgage-linked securities and restructuring them at more affordable levels. He said support from government and industry officials for that idea was a "giant step forward" compared with opposition to such an approach by the Bush administration. The Obama administration is also expected to back a push in Congress _ opposed by the mortgage industry _ to let bankruptcy judges alter the terms of primary home loans. Earlier this week, Obama said it "makes no sense" that judges are not allowed to do so. The mortgage industry argues that this prohibition allows lenders to charge lower rates. In the RealtyTrac report, Nevada, California, Arizona and Florida had the nation's top foreclosure rates. In Nevada, one in every 76 homes received a foreclosure, while the number was one every 173 in California. At No. 5, Oregon, formerly a bastion of housing stability, made its first appearance close to the top of the list of foreclosure hot spots. Rounding out the top 10 were Illinois, Michigan, Georgia, Idaho and Ohio. Among metro areas, Merced, Calif., was first, with one in every 59 housing units receiving a foreclosure filing. It was followed by Las Vegas and the Cape Coral-Fort Myers area in Florida. ___ On the Net: RealtyTrac Inc.: http://www.realtytrac.com More on Economy
 
Survey Tallies Cost Of Breaking Up Top
Breaking up is hard to do and it is also expensive, with an Australian survey finding it cost people on average A$69,000 ($45,000) to rebuild their lives after splitting up. The survey for financial services group Bankwest found 19 percent of respondents who had been married estimated it cost over $100,000 to start a new life, while the average cost was slightly less. It also took several years to recover financially.
 
Immigrant Groups Fighting Stimulus Provision Top
Among the many provisions of the $800-plus billion stimulus bill hotly debated and horse-traded behind closed doors, one that remained largely under the radar through the negotiations would have forced employers receiving stimulus money to use a controversial federal computer system to verify that all of its employees are legal U.S. workers. Although preliminary indications are that the requirement did not make it into the final version, the battle over E-Verify is far from over. More on Stimulus Package
 
Jeffrey Sachs: A Proposal on How to Clean the Banks Top
The Treasury is still without a plan to clean the banks. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner told us yesterday that a new "Public-Private Investment Fund" would remove up to $1 trillion of toxic assets from the banks' balance sheets, but he didn't tell us how. In fact, they're still trying to figure that out. If the government pays too much for the bad assets, it bails out the banks. If it pays too little, it de-capitalizes them, leading to a further squeeze on lending. There is way, however, to be both fair and efficient. The taxpayers should take over the bad assets in return for bank equity, but with a twist: the amount of equity transferred to the taxpayers would not be determined immediately, but only after the government has sold off the toxic assets. Rather than guessing their eventual market value, or forcing a "fire sale" of the toxic assets now, the bad assets would be sold off gradually, with the realized losses "booked" against the holdings of the private shareholders by transferring equity to the government. The lower the sale price of the toxic assets, the more equity will be transferred to shareholders to make up for the losses. In the meantime, the banks would be fully re-capitalized and back in business. Here's how the process would work. Consider a bank balance sheet with 100 in assets at face value, 90 in liabilities, and 10 in shareholder equity. For simplicity, suppose that the 90 in liabilities are in government-insured deposits. The assets are worth less than face value. Suppose that 80 of the assets are actually worth face value, while 20 are at a deep discount. If the true value of the 20 is 15, the true shareholder value is 5, while if the true value is only 5, the bank is insolvent, with zero true shareholder value and a government net liability of 5 to honor the deposit guarantee (once the bad assets are realized). The problem is that the market value of the assets is not known now because the credit squeeze has temporarily eliminated the liquidity in the markets of the toxic assets. There is an added problem. If the government pays fair value for the 20 of toxic assets, it willy-nilly forces a severe write down on the balance sheets even if it pays fair price. This in turn can lead to a further squeeze of lending. If the toxic assets are indeed worth 15, and these are swapped for 15 of government bonds, the recognized bank capital falls to 5, and capital adequacy standards would induce a further retrenchment of loans. The bank can be recapitalized at fair value to taxpayers and without inducing a squeeze on bank capital and lending in the following way. The government would swap 20 in government bonds for the 20 in toxic assets plus contingent warrants on bank capital, the value of which depends on the eventual sale price of the toxic assets. The government would then dispose of the 20 in toxic assets at a market price over the course of the next year or two and exercise its contingent warrants at that time. The cleaned bank now has true market capital of 10, equal to 100 in good assets minus 90 in deposit liabilities. The 10 in equity would then be shared between the original shareholders and the taxpayers, with the division to be determined by the eventual sale price of the toxic assets. If the 20 in toxic assets end up selling at their face value, the taxpayers end up with zero ownership of the bank. If the toxic assets end up selling for less than 10, the bank ends up wholly owned by the taxpayers, because the bank is in fact insolvent at the time of the swap. If the toxic assets end up selling for over 10 and less than 20, the taxpayers get an equity stake equal to 20 minus the eventual sale price. A sale price of 12 (of the 20 face value) leaves the taxpayers with 8 in stock ownership (20 minus 12) and the original shareholders with the remaining 2 (10 minus 2). The taxpayers are thereby fully compensated as long as the bank is solvent, and are left to cover the deposit liability in the event that the bank is in fact insolvent. The shareholders also get the true value of their claims, ranging from zero (if the bank is insolvent) to the face value of equity (if the toxic assets turn out to be good assets). In this process, there are no taxpayer bailouts, and there is also no squeeze on bank capital resulting from the exchange of toxic assets at less than face value. In practice, the conversion of taxpayer warrants into bank equity would proceed step by step. Suppose that the taxpayers already own 2 and the shareholders own 8 as a result of partial liquidation of the toxic assets. Now, at a later date, additional sales of the toxic assets cause a further realized loss of 1. The bank would then issue further equity at that date equal to 1 (at the contemporaneous market value), further diluting the existing shareholder claims by 1 and raising the taxpayer stake to 3. During the period of liquidating the toxic assets, the government would exercise a kind of receivership over the banks, preventing the stripping of remaining assets through bonuses, balance sheet transactions, or "Hail-Mary" lending (in which shareholders of zombie banks gamble recklessly because they have nothing to lose and possibly something to gain). In practice, this could be exercised in the form of a "golden share" which gives the government the right of refusal over major bank decisions, including executive compensation. Once the warrants are exercised, the government would sell its ownership stake to private investors. The bank cleanup has been stymied to this point over the valuation conundrum, stuck between paying an unduly high price for the toxic assets, and thereby bailing out the shareholders, and paying a low price, and thereby expropriating them while inducing a further credit squeeze. A "contingent warrant," as recommended here, can combine bank recapitalization with a fair value divided between the taxpayers and original bank shareholders. More on Timothy Geithner
 
GM's Hummer Sale Draws Interest From China, Private Equity: Report Top
Feb. 12 (Bloomberg) -- General Motors Corp., planning asset sales to keep $13.4 billion in U.S. loans, has attracted interest in its Hummer brand of light trucks from a Chinese company and a private-equity firm, people familiar with the talks said. The pace of negotiations has intensified in the past few weeks, said the people, who wouldn't name the suitors and asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. More meetings are scheduled this week, one person said. "The Hummer review is progressing and an update is due by the end of the first quarter," said GM spokeswoman Joanne Krell, who wouldn't comment on any bidders. More on China
 
Mandy Moore Engaged To Ryan Adams Top
LOS ANGELES — Singer-actress Mandy Moore and rock singer Ryan Adams are engaged. Moore's publicist Jillian Fowkes confirmed to The Associated Press on Wednesday that the two are planning to wed. No details were announced. The 24-year-old Moore started out as a squeaky-clean teen singer and later crossed into movies with featured roles in such films as "License to Wed," "A Walk to Remember," "Saved" and "American Dreamz." Adams, who played in the band Whiskeytown during the 1990s before turning solo, is known for his song "New York, New York," which appeared on his album "Gold," released in 2001.
 
Banks Racing To Pay Back Bailout Funds After Congressional Lashing Top
Feb. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Bank of America Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley may decide after enduring yesterday's Congressional hearing that the old Troubled Asset Relief Program is more trouble than it's worth. Eight chief executive officers of the biggest U.S. banks heard lawmakers in Washington criticize their bonuses, underwriting fees and perks. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver, a Missouri Democrat, read questions from angry constituents asking what banks had done with taxpayer money they'd taken from the $700 billion TARP fund, and Rep. Michael Capuano, a Massachusetts Democrat, said he "cannot believe no one has prosecuted you." With more scrutiny ahead, bankers including JPMorgan's Jamie Dimon, Morgan Stanley's John Mack and Goldman Sachs Group Inc.'s Lloyd Blankfein have said they'd like to repay government loans as soon as possible. BB&T Corp. CEO Kelly King told an investor conference yesterday that his Winston-Salem, North Carolina-based bank wants to be first to get out of TARP and escape U.S. restrictions, which can be added retroactively. More on Goldman Sachs
 
Steve Young: O'Reilly Pummeled By Helen Thomas And The Grand Dame of Presidential Press Corp Didn't Even Have To Show Up Top
Hey Bill, sensitive much? Oh, to be a FoxNews fly on the wall at the O'Reilly Factor preproduction meeting putting together Wednesday night's show. Factor Producer: Let's see. We have the Stimulus Package being finalized. The president's press conference. Unemployment reaching critical mass. Banking CEOs testify in... Bill: Helen Thomas! FP: Bill, we covered her last night. Bill: I'm not talking about covering her, damnnit! I'm talking how I was covered covering her! FP: Bill, that's not news. That's opinion based on opinion. We can save that for one of the letters we write for you at the end of the show segment. Bill: No! It's too important to the Folks. FP: How about in Pinheads and Patriots? You could hammer the entire Far-Left, and slam GE all in one shot. Bill: It's not a one shot issue. It's a whole show topic. FP: Bill. You're going to look a little sensitive. How about if we tape it and you can see for yourself how... Bill: No bleeping taping. We'll do it live! And so it READ THE REST OF THE TtHOMAS-O'REILLY SMACKDOWN HERE Steve Young blogs at Steveyoungonpolitics.com More on Bill O'Reilly
 
Make Your Own Peanut Butter And Rest Easier Top
I am peanut butter crazy. With no exaggeration, I can eat a jar of peanut butter by the spoonfuls, just like ice cream. If you like peanut butter as much as I do but don't like being sick, then this whole Salmonella scare is getting in the way of your indulging. I'm over it. I'm thinking I'll just make my own peanut butter from now on. I mean, why not? It'll be cheaper and far less wasteful than buying ordinary peanut butter. If you're with me, I say we band together and start making our own peanut butter. The FDA just adjusted their report on this recent outbreak case to state that the manufacturing company at hand knew that their products were contaminated and still sent them out! I think it's time we showed these companies that we can make D.I.Y. peanut butter, one spoonful at a time. More on Green Living
 
Dubai Economy "In Free Fall," Foreigners Fleeing Country Top
With Dubai's economy in free fall, newspapers have reported that more than 3,000 cars sit abandoned in the parking lot at the Dubai Airport, left by fleeing, debt-ridden foreigners (who could in fact be imprisoned if they failed to pay their bills). Some are said to have maxed-out credit cards inside and notes of apology taped to the windshield. The government says the real number is much lower. But the stories contain at least a grain of truth: jobless people here lose their work visas and then must leave the country within a month. That in turn reduces spending, creates housing vacancies and lowers real estate prices, in a downward spiral that has left parts of Dubai -- once hailed as the economic superpower of the Middle East -- looking like a ghost town. More on Dubai
 
If Valentine's Day Cards Told The Truth Top
Men and women tell each other that honesty is the most important part of a relationship, which is itself a lie. Men want their wife to tell them she's never been with a lover who rocked her world quite so violently. Women want their husband to tell them ... whatever the hell it is women want to hear. We asked you to use our article from a few years back as inspiration, and show us what Valentine's Day Cards would look like if they were actually honest. The winner is below, but first the runners up ... More on valentine's day
 
Catherine Hardwicke: I Turned Down Huge "Twilight" Sequel Payday Top
LOS ANGELES — "Twilight" director Catherine Hardwicke says she walked away from the payday of a lifetime to direct the sequel "New Moon" because she didn't want to make the movie under the deadline and budget constraints that would have been placed on her. That's one of the key revelations in an interview she did with Entertainment Weekly in which she also discusses the forthcoming "Twilight: Director's Notebook," inspired by the on-set journal she kept while shooting the smash-hit vampire romance. Hardwicke says in the interview posted on ew.com that she was having dinner in Paris with the film's young stars, Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart, when her cell phone rang. She'd been in negotiations with Summit Entertainment, which released "Twilight," about directing part two in Stephenie Meyer's best-selling series. Summit executives called to offer her "more money than I or anyone in my family has ever seen," she said, but they added that she'd have to shoot "New Moon" under a tight deadline and modest budget. Hardwicke turned them down. "I was devastated," she says now. "I really did feel a strong connection to the people around the world that liked the movie _ and to Stephenie and the actors. But I just didn't think I could make a good movie under those circumstances." Summit Entertainment had no comment on the report, spokesman Paul Pflug said. Chris Weitz is now set to direct "New Moon," which is preproduction. Pattinson and Stewart will reprise their roles as tormented vampire Edward Cullen and smitten high-school student Bella Swan when the movie comes out Nov. 20. Hardwicke's "Twilight: Director's Notebook" is due in stores March 17, with the "Twilight" DVD coming out March 21. She had the highest opening ever for a female director when "Twilight" made nearly $70 million in its first weekend. It's grossed about $188 million since its November opening. ___ On the Net: . http://www.ew.com
 
Experts: Take It Easy On The Apocalyptic Claims, Weather Top
She writes: "Having to rein in extraordinary claims that the latest extreme [event] is all due to climate change is at best hugely frustrating and at worse enormously distracting. Overplaying natural variations in the weather as climate change is just as much a distortion of science as underplaying them to claim that climate change has stopped or is not happening." She adds: "Both undermine the basic facts that the implications of climate change are profound and will be severe if greenhouse gas emissions are not cut drastically." Dr Peter Stott, a climate researcher at the Met Office, said a common misrepresentation was to take a few years data and extrapolate to what would happen if it continues. "You just can't do that. You have to look at the long-term trend and then at the natural variability on top." Dramatic predictions of accelerating temperature rise and sea ice decline, based on a few readings, could backfire when natural variability swings the other way and the trends seem to reverse, he says. "It just confuses people." More on Global Warming
 
House GOP Touting Stimulus Opposition In Ads Top
House Republicans are hoping to salvage a big loss on the economic stimulus bill by making it a political millstone for moderate Democrats. The party's campaign arm will start airing radio ads Friday in approximately 30 Democratic districts to argue that the bill violates the lawmakers' campaign pledge to restore fiscal responsibility to Washington.
 
Donna Schaper: The Depression Under the Depression Top
The Depression Below the Depression My people are shovel ready: they are ready to shovel the manure out of the barn and clean political and economic house. When I gave the pastoral prayer on Sunday, I couldn't help myself. I had to pray to God that God stimulate congress. Stimulate means to activate, deepen, embolden, inspire. What stimulates my people right now? Hope, most of which they are having to come up with on their own. The President is now stumping for the Less than Perfect But Absolutely Necessary Stimulus bill, which sounds like a vitamin that upsets your stomach more than anything else. In the pews, we know what burps. We know the difference between stimulation and boredom, stimulation and soul, stimulation and substance. We know when our leaders don't know - and we wish they would at least fake it. In the pews, there is a triumphant pessimism, a load of boomers become doomers, slum dogs pre millionaires. We knew the government was letting the liars and thieves run the government. We know about the people who do enjoy tax cuts. We have seen their houses, their advertisements for themselves, the amount they spend on face cream, which would feed our family for a week. We still have a sliver of hope that someone might lead the liars and thieves and SUV crowd out of town - and do so with a smile, our smile, on their face. So far, not so good. Thus the confirmation of that bulletproof jacket known as cynicism. At least we are not surprised. It could be different. We could have leaders who understood the relationship between catastrophe and transformation. This is what ordinary people say to each other when terrible things happen: God never closes a door without opening another one. Isn't it great news that the old economy is dead? It was mean when it wasn't unfair. It was a giant Ponzi scheme. It benefited the few and ignored the many. Right now our leaders are missing a great opportunity to take the cynicism out of the electorate. Taking the political depression out of the electorate might even avoid a material depression. A good leader right now would articulate hope. Forget about the material stuff, forget our rail system that shames Bulgaria, our highway system and automotive industry that destroy the air our grandchildren might have breathed. Forget about the shovel ready infrastructure projects, leaders, and talk to us about our souls. They have been trickled down ON for too long. Stimulate them and you will be amazed at the growth that results. My people want nothing less than perfect from our new President. Think how Sullenberger landed the plane. They want him to tell them how things are going to be better, in a different way than they have always been. Nobody needs another hair dryer or toaster. We need protection against depression, and I don't mean the economic kind. We don't need to buy tasteless tomatoes any time of day or any time of year: we'd like our food to taste better and be less fattening and artificial. We need the government to figure out how to move us around without destroying the planet's air. We can't figure that out by ourselves. We are shovel ready - shovel ready to shovel out the s....... that has comprised our government for way too long. You can take the trickle too. What is that s........? It is the government's lying in bed with the rich who have now stolen both the spiritual and the material infrastructure for the American Dream. A good leader right now would say enough of that. A good leader would guarantee that the rich are no longer going to enjoy BONUSES !!!! while the poor and middle class can't get the bank on the phone to remortgage their 3BR, 2Baths. A good leader would work from the bottom up, not the top down. The ground and the pews need attention. If they don't get it, watch out for social revolution. Watch out for the current depression in the pews to turn into anger in the streets. That will also cost pragmatic leaders something: they will think they will have to protect the rich from the poor. Instead they could avoid that expense and funnel stimulus money to the poor and middle class right now. Think of it as a bargain. Want to avoid a depression? Work on the depression that already exists. The Rev. Dr. Donna Schaper is Senior Minister of Judson Memorial Church in New York City and author of GRASS ROOTS GARDENING: RITUALS TO SUSTAIN ACTIVISM.
 
Holbrooke Afghanistan Trip: Security Troops Throng Afghan Capital Before Envoy Visit Top
KABUL — Heavily armed government troops thronged the streets of Afghanistan's capital Thursday, stepping up security before the arrival of the new U.S. envoy a day after Taliban attacks showed how easily the city's defenses can be breached. Richard Holbrooke, President Barack Obama's recently appointed envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, was expected later in the day for his first trip to the country. Security would have already been high for such a visit, but Holbrooke arrives following one of the Taliban's most audacious attacks on the capital. In the east, meanwhile, a suicide bomber Thursday blew himself up outside a police station in Sharan, the capital of Paktika province, killing an officer and wounding 10 others, the Interior Ministry said in a statement. The Taliban regularly target Afghan and foreign troops with suicide and roadside attacks, and other violent incidents have already spiked this year. On Wednesday, Taliban militants killed 20 people in a coordinated assault on three government buildings. Armed with guns, grenades and suicide vests, they stormed through barricades at the Justice Ministry in the heart of Kabul and a corrections department building to the north. One attacker was killed before he could force his way into a third building, the Education Ministry. The Taliban claimed responsibility soon after the assault began. The attack served as a reminder of the challenges facing Obama as he increases America's focus _ and troop levels _ in Afghanistan. The new administration has promised up to 30,000 new troops. Holbrooke is helping the Obama administration chart a new strategy to beat Taliban insurgencies in both Afghanistan and Pakistan. Under rain and snow, troops armed with heavy machine guns swarmed street intersections in Kabul on Thursday, checking drivers' papers and searching cars. "Security measures have been increased 100 percent, particularly at the gates of Kabul," said Abdul Gafar Pacha, the head of the police criminal investigation unit. All eight attackers died in Wednesday's assaults, bringing the death toll to 28. Another 57 people were wounded, according to the Interior Ministry. Amrullah Saleh, the head of Afghanistan's intelligence service, said the attackers sent text messages to a militant leader in Pakistan before the attack. Afghanistan has accused militants based in Pakistan's lawless tribal areas or Pakistan's spy service of being behind several major attacks in Kabul, including the bombing of the Indian Embassy last July, an assassination attempt against President Hamid Karzai in April and an assault on the luxury Serena Hotel in January 2008. More on Afghanistan
 
Geithner's Vague Bad Bank Plan Aggravates Credit Crunch: Analysis Top
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Global credit markets are unlikely to revive as long as the U.S. government continues to dangle the vague prospect of a toxic asset purchase plan in front of distressed banks, some lawmakers warned on Wednesday. The chance that taxpayers could be made to overpay for underperforming assets is making bankers, whose balance sheets are saddled with them, reluctant to sell to lower bidders, suggested Texas Republican Rep. Randy Neugebauer. "People are afraid to buy and afraid to sell because they're afraid the government is going to sweeten the deal," he told Reuters in an interview. "The markets are just waiting to see when we're going to be done." Uncertainty about the government's strategy for toxic assets props up their value above what private investors might pay for them and delays potential resolution of the problems they pose, said California Democratic Rep. Brad Sherman. "As long as there's the prospect the federal government will overpay for the toxic assets ... these banks would be insane to sell" in the private market, Sherman told Reuters. More on Timothy Geithner
 
World Markets Slip On Stimulus Deal Top
Stocks in Europe and Asia slipped and U.S. index futures fell as companies from Electricite de France SA to Diageo Plc posted disappointing results and investors speculated U.S. measures won't revive the global economy. EDF, the biggest operator of nuclear reactors, and Diageo, the largest liquor maker, fell more than 7 percent. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. retreated 1.6 percent before a report that may show U.S. retail sales declined amid rising unemployment. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Ltd., Japan's biggest lender, lost 3.5 percent as U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said he needs time to work out details of a bank-rescue plan unveiled Feb. 10.
 
Geert Wilders, Dutch MP, Plans To Defy UK Entry Ban To Show Anti-Islam Film Top
Geert Wilders, the rightwing Dutch politician accused of Islamophobia, said today he was planning to defy a ban on entering the UK and hoped to arrive this afternoon. But a spokesman for his Freedom party said he feared Wilders, who was due to show his 17-minute film Fitna, which criticises the Qur'an as a "fascist book", at the House of Lords today, would not be allowed to leave the Netherlands. More on Europe
 
Activists Call Offshore Drilling "Flirting With Disaster" Top
WASHINGTON — Environmental advocates urged Congress on Wednesday to reinstate the broad moratorium on offshore oil drilling, but a key congressman said on that issue "the ship may have already sailed." Rep. Nick Rahall, D-W.Va., chairman of the House Natural Resources Committee, said the political reality is that the broad moratorium across 85 percent of the country's Outer Continental Shelf _ lifted by Congress last fall _ is unlikely to be reimposed. But Rahall, who opened the first of three hearings on offshore drilling, said Congress may need to establish protective buffer areas and place certain regions _ including some waters off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts _ off limits. "If we are going to start drilling in new areas offshore we're going to have to be aware of what the trade-offs are ... that it can be done safely," said Rahall. He argued that the "vast majority" of Outer Continental Shelf oil resources are already in federal waters, available for leasing. The hearing came a day after Interior Secretary Ken Salazar ordered a review of offshore oil and gas development, scrapping a sweeping blueprint for expanded offshore drilling proposed in the Bush administration's final days. While not ruling out expansion of some offshore drilling, Salazar promised to pursue a new direction in energy development, with greater emphasis on using coastal waters to generate energy from wind, the sun and waves. At a House hearing, Philippe Cousteau, grandson of legendary ocean explorer Jacques Cousteau, urged Congress to reinstate the offshore drilling bans that until last fall had been in effect for 25 years in Atlantic and Pacific coastal waters. "It's absolutely critical for the health of the oceans," said Cousteau, a board member of the advocacy group Ocean Conservancy. "Oil spills still occur." Actor Ted Danson, a founder and board member of Oceana, an ocean advocacy group, said offshore drilling is "flirting with disaster" because of potential oil spills not only at drilling rigs, but in transporting the oil produced. Danson said the country should be moving away from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources such as offshore wind and energy from tidal waves because of the threats of climate change, which he said is another threat to ocean health. Tourism and fishing industry spokesmen from North Carolina, Florida and California said they are worried offshore drilling would impact billions of dollars a year fishing and tourism industries. "We cannot afford any kind of spill. ... We can't take the risk," D.T. Minich, executive director of the St. Petersburg/Clearwater, Fla. visitor's bureau, told the House panel. W.F. "Zeek" Grader Jr., executive director of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Association, said he's not so worried about spills, but that exploratory seismic activities and drilling rigs would "kill fish... scare fish and make it impossible for fishing operations to be held." But Jefferson Angers, president of the Center for Coastal Conservation in Louisiana said: "The fishing and oil and gas industries have coexisted in Louisiana for half a century and they've worked well together." On restoring the broad moratorium, "it may be the ship has already sailed," said Rahall, adding that the issue is, "do we need buffer areas, do we need certain areas off limits?" Rep. Doc Hastings of Washington, the House Resources Committee's top Republican, countered that expanded offshore drilling is "about creating good American jobs" and reducing the nation's dependence on foreign oil and the OPEC oil cartel. But energy experts acknowledge that any new offshore oil development would do little to spur short-term job creation and that it would take years for new leases to be issued and another 5 to 7 years before oil would begin to flow from any new discoveries. The Interior Department estimates there are at least 18 billion barrels of oil in offshore waters that until recently were off limits, about half of that off California. The oil industry contends that modern drilling technologies allow environmentally safe offshore oil and gas development and cite the absence of any significant spills from oil rigs during hurricanes Katrina, Gustav and Ike in recent years. More on Environment
 
"Twincest" Lawsuit Against New York Nightclub Top
A matched pair of burlesque dancers charge in a shocking new lawsuit that they were pressured to perform "twincest." In papers filed in Manhattan Supreme Court, "Porcelain Twinz" Heather and Amber Langley say the owner of a Manhattan nightclub bullied them into performing sexual acts on each other in private with him and on stage in their erotic show. While the Langleys had made a ca reer out of simulating sex acts with each other on stage, they "are identi cal twin sisters who never before have engaged in incestuous sexual relations with each other either privately or professionally within the confines of their perform ance art," their suit says.
 
The Obamas Step Out For Ford's Theatre Gala Top
WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama stood beneath the flag-draped box where Abraham Lincoln was shot inside Ford's Theatre, honoring the "hallowed space" on the eve of the 16th president's 200th birthday. Hollywood stars and Washington power brokers celebrated the theater's reopening Wednesday night, hearing Obama praise one of his favorite presidents for Lincoln's conviction that a divided nation could be made whole. "For despite all that divided us _ North and South, black and white _ he had an unyielding belief that we were, at heart, one nation, and one people," Obama said. "And because of Abraham Lincoln, and all who've carried on his work in the generations since, that is what we remain today." Surrounded by actors and artists, Obama said Lincoln's passion for education and the arts will thrive at the famous theater after its recent $25 million renovation. The theater is reopening after 18 months of installing more comfortable seats, a modern lobby and new dressing rooms. Those in the audience stood and turned to applaud Obama and first lady Michelle Obama as they made their way down the aisle to the tune of "Hail to the Chief." Violinist Joshua Bell opened the show with a traditional spiritual on a violin that hadn't been played since the night Lincoln was shot in 1865. Later, a video was played of former presidents Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush reading the Gettysburg Address. The film will be added to the theater's museum. Before the event, guests ranging from Cabinet members and congressional leaders to movie producers strode down a red carpet in sharply cut tuxedos and colorful gowns. Talk included prime-time television plotlines and the economic stimulus package being hammered out in Congress. Many reflected on how Obama and his Civil War-era predecessor inspired them, including Lincoln Medal honoree Sidney Poitier. The 81-year-old actor broke down racial barriers with movies like "A Raisin in the Sun" and "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner," and was the first black man to win an Academy Award for best actor in 1963. "Now, finally, we have lived to see the election of an African-American to the highest office," he said, calling Obama a man of "simple origins" inspired by Lincoln. Poitier said Lincoln's values live on "in our homes, in our streets ... and in every one of these United States." Actor Kelsey Grammer also spoke of his inspiration. "I still get a tear in my eye every time I see him on television," Grammer said, adding that he doesn't always agree with Obama's politics. "Star Wars" creator George Lucas, who was honored with the Lincoln Medal for his movies and efforts to improve schools with multimedia tools, challenged Obama to make education his top priority. "I will say the most important thing the human race has for our survival is our brain," he said. If knowledge is not passed down to the next generation, Lucas said, "we will become extinct." Exxon Mobil Corp. Chairman and CEO Rex Tillerson, who led fundraising for the theater, said officials have garnered more than $49 million for the renovation and ongoing projects. Organizers expect to raise more beyond their $50 million goal, he said. Exxon Mobil contributed $5 million to the project, and the District of Columbia government gave $10 million. Also offering tributes to Lincoln were actress Audra McDonald from TV's "Private Practice"; actors James Earl Jones, Richard Thomas, Ben Vereen and Jeffrey Wright; opera singer Jessye Norman; and journalist Katie Couric. The group joined in singing "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" for the finale. The theater will reopen to the public Thursday for Lincoln's birthday and then on Monday for President's Day. Regular tours resume on Feb. 17. A revamped museum is slated to open later this spring, and there are plans to build a Lincoln Center for Education and Leadership across the street. ___ Associated Press writers Nafeesa Syeed and Christine Simmons contributed to this report. ___ On the Net: Ford's Theatre: http://www.fords.org/ More on Barack Obama
 
Pope Condemns Holocaust Denial Top
VATICAN CITY — The Vatican said Thursday that Pope Benedict XVI will make his first visit to Israel in May and he told Jewish leaders that it was unacceptable for anyone, especially a priest, to deny the Holocaust. The pope met with Jewish leaders in hopes of ending the rancor over a bishop who denied that 6 million Jews were killed by the Nazis. The Vatican also said that the pope's planned visit to Israel _ the second official visit by a pope _would take place in May. The Vatican scheduled the pope's audience with about 60 American Jewish leaders Thursday after Benedict lifted the excommunication of a traditionalist bishop who denied the Holocaust, sparking outrage among Jews and Catholics alike. Issuing his strongest condemnation of Holocaust denial yet, Benedict affirmed the Catholic Church was "profoundly and irrevocably committed to reject all anti-Semitism." "The hatred and contempt for men, women and children that was manifested in the Shoah was a crime against God and against humanity," Benedict said, using the Hebrew term for the Holocaust. "This should be clear to everyone, especially to those standing in the tradition of the Holy Scriptures." "It is beyond question that any denial or minimization of this terrible crime is intolerable and altogether unacceptable," he said during the meeting in the Vatican's Apostolic Palace. Jewish leaders applauded his comments, saying the crisis with the church that had been sparked by Bishop Richard Williamson's comments was over. In an interview with Swedish state TV broadcast Jan. 21, Williamson denied that any Jews were gassed during World War II. He said only about 200,000 to 300,000 Jews were killed, but none of them gassed. The Vatican said Benedict did not know of Williamson's views when he agreed to lift the excommunication, and stressed that it did not in any way share Williamson's views. But confronted with mounting Jewish outrage, the Vatican demanded Williamson recant before he would be fully admitted as a bishop into the church. Williamson has apologized for causing distress to the pope, but has not recanted. He said he would correct himself if he is satisfied by the evidence, but insisted in an interview with the German magazine Der Spiegel that examining it "will take time." Benedict lifted the excommunication of Williamson and three other bishops consecrated by the late Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre without papal consent in 1988. Lefebvre founded the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X in 1969, opposed to the liberalizing reforms of the Second Vatican Council, particularly its outreach to Jews. Benedict's trip in May, which had been planned before the Williamson affair surfaced, would be the second official visit by a pope to Israel. Pope John Paul II made the first official visit in 2000. The only other visit by a pope, in 1964, reflected the strained nature of the relationship in those years. Pope Paul VI spent only part of one day in Israel, and never ventured into Jewish west Jerusalem. He never uttered the word "Israel" in public. More on Pope
 

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