Sunday, September 30, 2012

Prostate cancer testing and treatment guidelines developed

ScienceDaily (Sep. 29, 2012) ? Julio M. Pow-Sang, M.D., chair of Moffitt Cancer Center's Department of Genitourinary Oncology, and colleagues have published two prostate cancer articles in the September issue of JNCCN -- The Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. The articles review and clarify recent updates made to the National Comprehensive Cancer Network's (NCCN) guidelines for the screening and treatment of prostate cancer.

According to the NCCN, nearly 242,000 cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed in 2012, accounting for 29 percent of new cancers among men. It is estimated that more than 28,000 men will die from the disease this year.

According to the journal, prostate cancer is "over diagnosed and over treated" and is subject to a controversy "fueled by large screening studies." This month, Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, the NCCN has offered support for active surveillance, a strategy by which men with low-risk tumors, often classified as clinically insignificant, are monitored over time.

"Depending on the disease characteristics and the patient's life expectancy and personal preference, active surveillance may be a viable alternative to immediate and radical treatment," Pow-Sang said. "For others with high-risk, localized tumors or locally advanced disease, there are recent treatment advances that should be considered."

New agents and therapy combinations According to the NCCN, external beam radiation and androgen deprivation therapy have been the traditional treatments for patients with high-risk tumors. However, the NCCN reports that brachytherapy, either permanent seed implant or temporary placement (high dose radiation), combined with external beam radiation and androgen deprivation therapy is increasingly being used for these patients.

The first article, Prostate Cancer, version 3.2012, noted that two new agents -- abiraterone acetate and immunotherapy sipuleucel-T -- are welcome therapeutic additions for patients with late-stage disease and poor prognosis.

Abiraterone acetate, which inhibits a key enzyme related to prostate cancer, can be given to patients after their chemotherapy. Studies have shown that it can also be used in chemotherapy-na?ve patients.

Sipuleucel-T, a second line therapy, is a live cancer vaccine approved in 2010 for treating asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic patients with metastatic prostate cancer. The NCCN has recommended the new drug for use after chemotherapy failure or as treatment along with chemotherapy.

"The new NCCN guidelines highlight important updates to the management of prostate cancer," concluded Pow-Sang and his co-authors. "These protocols are updated annually and more often when new, high-quality clinical data become available. The guidelines are based on evidence from clinical trials combined with expert consensus."

Active surveillance and PSA density, percent free, and biopsy cores

In a second article, Enrollment Criteria Controversies for Active Surveillance and Triggers for Conversion to Treatment in Prostate Cancer, Pow-Sang and co-author David D. Buethe, M.D., a urologic oncology fellow at Moffitt, examine the controversy and criteria for implementing active surveillance for patients with asymptomatic prostate cancer and identify the triggers that would convert active surveillance patients to active treatment status.

The authors note that for those patients with prostate cancers at low-risk for progression, the active surveillance strategy was proposed a decade ago but is recently receiving more attention as a viable management option.

"However, critical uncertainties still surround active surveillance," Pow-Sang said. "The criteria that qualify a patient as low or very low risk are not clear, nor is the definition of disease progression."

In this article, Pow-Sang and Buethe reviewed recent literature regarding those uncertainties, examining criteria for assisting in selecting men for active surveillance, including PSA density, percent free versus percent total PSA, biopsy positive core results and "volume of involvement" data.

"A PSA density of greater than 0.08 ng/mL/g has been identified as a significant predictor of future disease progression in those with low-risk prostate cancer," reported Pow-Sang. "However, some clinicians use a level of 0.15 ng/mL/g as a threshold."

Percent-free PSA has been found to be a significant predictor of organ-confined disease, said Pow-Sang and Buethe, noting that some reports have shown a significant indirect correlation between percent-free PSA and prostate cancer volume; but as yet this parameter is "not widely accepted as a predictor of cancer extent."

They also looked at studies on positive cores from biopsies and the extent to which core results could be used to develop criteria for treatment. Reports have shown the predictive value of positive biopsy cores, but the frequency for performing prostate biopsies remains controversial for outcomes of active surveillance patients, Pow-Sang said.

"Biopsies are not without consequences," he said. "Rectal bleeding and serious infectious complications from frequent biopsies need to be considered."

Additionally, no standard protocol exists, and controversy remains, for the frequency of PSA testing and the digital rectal exam for patients who are under active surveillance.

"Current guidelines vary," Pow-Sang said. "There are recommendations that the PSA and digital rectal exam should be performed every three to six months, or the PSA every three months and the digital rectal exam every six months. The frequency of biopsies is also variable, from once a year to up to every three years."

New potential tools

Pow-Sang and Buethe also report that a new tool, the PCA3 urinary marker, may be useful. PCA3 is a urine test used to quantify copies of the known prostate cancer gene 3. A PCA3 score of 35 or greater is considered possibly malignant. The test is prostate cancer specific and unaffected by prostatitis or benign prostatic hyperplasia, both of which have confounded the results of PSA testing.

The future of active surveillance

"Most studies report that 30 percent of active surveillance-classified men will be reclassified in the short term to clinically significant cancer that may require treatment," noted Pow-Sang. "Once more, PSA velocity (how quickly the PSA score rises) or PSA doubling time (how often the score doubles) has no clear role in active surveillance."

When counseling men with early prostate cancer, all treatment options, risks and complications should be discussed, Pow-Sang confirmed.

"Active surveillance is a reasonable management strategy for low-risk and very low risk prostate cancer, but allows for continual reassessment and identification of progressive tumors."

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


Journal References:

  1. James L. Mohler, Andrew J. Armstrong, Robert R. Bahnson, Barry Boston, J. Erik Busby, Anthony Victor D?Amico, James A. Eastham, Charles A. Enke, Thomas Farrington, Celestia S. Higano, Eric Mark Horwitz, Philip W. Kantoff, Mark H. Kawachi, Michael Kuettel, Richard J. Lee, Gary R. MacVicar, Arnold W. Malcolm, David Miller, Elizabeth R. Plimack, Julio M. Pow-Sang, Mack Roach III, Eric Rohren, Stan Rosenfeld, Sandy Srinivas, Seth A. Strope, Jonathan Tward, Przemyslaw Twardowski, Patrick C. Walsh, Maria Ho, and Dorothy A. Shead. Prostate Cancer, Version 3.2012 Featured Updates to the NCCN Guidelines. J Natl Compr Canc Netw, 2012 DOI: 10:1081-1087
  2. Pow-Sang and David D. Buethe. Enrollment Criteria Controversies for Active Surveillance and Triggers for Conversion to Treatment in Prostate Cancer. J Natl Compr Canc Netw, 2012;10:1101-1110 DOI: 10:1101-1110

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/most_popular/~3/XOHwwHxdgFQ/120929140229.htm

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Proposal to remove China's Bo from legislature

BEIJING (AP) ? Chinese state media say a local legislative committee has stripped disgraced politician Bo Xilai of his qualifications to serve on the national legislature.

The expulsion, once confirmed by the national body, will clear the way for Bo to be prosecuted on charges ranging from corruption to sexual affairs to abetting the cover-up of a murder by his wife.

Delegates to the national legislature have immunity from arrest and prosecution unless there is special approval.

The official Xinhua News Agency said Saturday that the standing committee of Chongqing People's Congress removed Bo ? who last served as the city's party chief ? as a national delegate. Xinhua said the standing committee of the National People's Congress would review the decision.

Bo has already been expelled from the Communist Party.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/proposal-remove-chinas-bo-legislature-062403354.html

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Saturday, September 29, 2012

China says disgraced leader Bo expelled from party

BEIJING (AP) ? China's communist leadership expelled Bo Xilai from the ruling party Friday and sought to bury him with charges ranging from corruption to sexual affairs, aiming to sweep away their most damaging scandal in decades while finally scheduling their long-awaited leadership transition for November.

A statement from the party's Politburo amounted to a surprisingly strong and wide-ranging indictment against Bo, effectively ending the public of life of the flamboyant 63-year-old populist who was one of China's best known politicians and whose ambition was considered a menace to the country's top leaders.

The former Politburo member and regional party chief is to be charged with crimes dating back more than a decade, including abuse of power, bribe taking and improper relations with several women ? banned by the party because they are considered an inducement to corruption. He also is accused of involvement in the cover-up of his wife's murder of a British businessman, which was instrumental in triggering his downfall.

"They want to drive a stake through the heart of his political career, and make it absolutely impossible, not only for him to reappear but for anyone else who has that idea of trying to create that sort of personalized, political, charismatic leadership in some part of China which may challenge the leadership," said Rana Mitter, professor of Chinese history and politics at Oxford University.

The Politburo also announced the party congress would take place Nov. 8.

Dates for the congress, held once every five years, were overdue and highly anticipated because it will see President Hu Jintao step down after 10 years as party boss ? and China's ultimate leader ? to be replaced by Vice President Xi Jinping.

The congress had been expected to take place in mid-October, although the preparations were overshadowed by the Bo scandal.

"Bo Xilai's behavior resulted in serious repercussions and enormous damage to the reputation of the party and the nation, producing extremely vile effects domestically and overseas, and causing heavy damage to the cause of the party and the people," the Politburo said in a statement issued following its meeting in Beijing.

Speculation swirled for months over whether the party would harshly punish one of its own for criminal wrongdoing, or merely allow its own disciplinary arm to deal him a slap on the wrist.

The scandal was set off when a trusted Bo aide disclosed that his boss's wife had murdered a British businessman. Bo was sacked as party chief of the city of Chongqing; his wife, Gu Kailai, was given a suspended death sentence after confessing to the murder; and the aide, Chongqing police chief Wang Lijun, received a 15-year prison term for initially covering up the murder and other misdeeds.

The trials of Wang, which wrapped up this week, and Gu, which finished earlier, cleared the way for the party to decide whether to charge Bo with criminal wrongdoing. But his ouster from the leadership early this year opened a window into the divisive jostling for power as president and party leader Hu prepares to retire to make way for younger leaders.

Bo is the first Politburo member to be purged and handed to prosecutors since Hu had Shanghai party secretary Chen Liangyu sentenced for corruption in 2007. In that case, more than a year passed before Chen stood trial, perhaps auguring a long wait before Bo's case goes to court.

High-level purges, however, are almost always more about political power plays than crimes.

Bo was a divisive figure among Chinese leaders. Self-assured and comfortable with the media, he promoted populist policies as party chief of Chongqing and rode high-profile campaigns to bust organized crime gangs and promote communist culture to national popularity. His ambition was seen as a threat not only by Hu but to Hu's soon-to-be-installed successor, Xi Jinping.

Bo's supporters called the Politburo decision a political tactic. "I have doubts on any criminal wrongdoings of Bo Xilai. I need to see the evidence," said Han Deqiang, an economics professor at Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics and a leading voice in what Chinese call the new left. "I think this is a political battle turned into a criminal one."

Bo's detractors, however, were cheered by the news, though they too saw politics at play in the decision.

"This announcement is long overdue. This means there is some progress in the rule of law in China. There is more transparency," said Li Zhuang, a formidable defense lawyer who found himself jailed in Chongqing after he accused police of extracting his client's confession by torture. "Of course it is also political. In China, politics and law often go hand in hand."

The decision by the 25-member Politburo, of which Bo had been a member, said that "investigations show that Bo had seriously violated party discipline ... abused his power, committed grave mistakes and should be held responsible for the Wang Lijun case as well as Gu's murder case."

The mention of Gu's case appeared to be a reference to obstruction of justice. Wang testified that Bo ignored him when he told him of his suspicions, then boxed him in the ears, demoted him, and detained several of his subordinates.

It was the first direct mention of Bo in state media in months. His name was not mentioned for both Gu's and Wang's trials.

The Politburo statement said that he took huge amounts of bribes directly or through his family and "maintained illicit relationships with numerous females." It said Bo's crimes dated from his time as mayor of the eastern port city of Dalian, through his term as commerce minister and as leader of Chongqing.

Bo's removal is seen as strengthening Xi's position, leaving him the undisputed leader of the party's "princelings," as the offspring of high-ranking communist elders are known.

"Now Bo is finished, Xi can take over those supporters from Bo and enlarge his network among the princelings," said China politics analyst Willy Lam of the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Yet his ouster will do nothing to win over Bo supporters among party hardliners and admirers of Bo, who was widely popular among working-class Chinese.

"Xi is safer with Bo gone, but the hardliners will withhold their cooperation at the congress as a sign of their disapproval," said China expert Feng Chongyi of the University of Technology in Sydney, Australia.

Friday's Politburo meeting sets a series of events in motion. The 204-member Central Committee, a cross-section of the national party elite, usually convenes about a week before the congress to approve decisions already made by the Politburo. Privately, the committee will also approve the incoming leaders and a policy blueprint for the next five years.

___

Associated Press writers Gillian Wong, Didi Tang and Isolda Morillo contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/china-says-disgraced-leader-bo-expelled-party-102144876.html

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NYer pleads guilty to stalking actress Cotillard

In this Feb. 4, 2008 photo, Actress Marion Cotillard poses on the press line at a party honoring Cotillard for her Academy Award nomination for best actress in the film "La Vie En Rose" in Los Angeles. A New York City woman has pleaded guilty to stalking ?The Dark Night Rises? actress Marion Cotillard, Friday, Sept. 28, 2012. (AP Photo/Dan Steinberg)

In this Feb. 4, 2008 photo, Actress Marion Cotillard poses on the press line at a party honoring Cotillard for her Academy Award nomination for best actress in the film "La Vie En Rose" in Los Angeles. A New York City woman has pleaded guilty to stalking ?The Dark Night Rises? actress Marion Cotillard, Friday, Sept. 28, 2012. (AP Photo/Dan Steinberg)

(AP) ? A New York City woman has pleaded guilty to stalking "The Dark Knight Rises" actress Marion Cotillard (koh-tee-YAR').

Teresa Yuan pleaded guilty Friday in Brooklyn federal court. Prosecutors say she sent 504 emails and 120 webcam videos of herself to a Cotillard fan website over four days in 2011.

In some of the videos shown in court, Yuan appears to be topless, hisses like a cat and discusses playing Russian roulette. Her lawyer says he agrees the videos could seem threatening.

The Daily News reports (http://nydn.us/TOhkYD ) the 32-year-old Queens resident told a judge that she's undergoing psychiatric treatment for bipolar disorder.

The charge carries a sentence of up to 16 months in prison, but her lawyer says prosecutors have indicated they wouldn't object to probation and psychological treatment.

___

Information from: Daily News, http://www.nydailynews.com

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2012-09-28-People-Cotillard%20Stalker/id-c590bfab1f4f4467b9de24aa14006a21

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Obama mixes debate preparation with fundraising

WASHINGTON (AP) ? President Barack Obama warned Democrats about becoming too complacent with six weeks left before the election. He joked that Democrats tend to believe that the "sky is falling" or that "everything is great."

"This is going to be a close race right down to the wire," he told about 90 donors gathered Friday evening at the Washington home of Sen. Jay Rockefeller, a West Virginia Democrat.

The president's remarks came amid public polls that show him gaining advantages in some key battleground states. It also came months after anxious Democrats worried that Obama would not be able to keep up with Republican rival Mitt Romney's fundraising.

In a day partly devoted to a fundraising blitz for himself and other Democrats, Obama also offered themes of political unity, telling another group of donors that the nation is "not as divided as the pundits make it seem."

"I don't know how many folks will vote for me this time around," Obama told an afternoon audience of donors at a hotel near the White House. "But I say the same thing to them (as in 2008): I will be your president, too."

"I'm not fighting to create Democrat or Republican jobs," he added. "I'm fighting to create American jobs."

Obama continued to seize on a leaked video in which Romney said that 47 percent of people "will vote for the president no matter what." Romney described them as people who pay no federal income tax and "believe that they are victims."

Obama spoke at the first of three fundraisers after another Friday afternoon of debate prep at Democratic National Committee headquarters. He will face off against Romney in Denver on Wednesday.

The afternoon fundraiser at the Capital Hilton drew an estimated 700 guests with tickets starting at $250.

Tickets for the event at Rockefeller's home cost $20,000 per person.

The final fundraiser, back at the Hilton, drew an estimated 200 people who paid $2,500 or more to attend. The money was set for Obama's campaign, the Democratic National Committee and state Democratic parties.

"If you guys have written all the checks you can," Obama told donors at the final event, "go find some friends."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-mixes-debate-preparation-fundraising-174226864--election.html

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Friday, September 28, 2012

John Vespasian: Free e-book about how to be rational and find ...

John Vespasian: Free e-book about how to be rational and find peace of mind. Stress management under difficult circumstances

Free e-book about how to be rational and find peace of mind. Stress management under difficult circumstances


  • How to be rational
  • Stop worrying
  • Build self-confidence and self-esteem
  • Overcoming obstacles to personal growth
  • How to deal with difficult people
  • Stress management
  • Overcoming anxiety
  • Self-development in difficult circumstances
  • How to find peace of mind
A presentation of The 10 Principles of Rational Living: Free e-book about how to be rational

Source: http://johnvespasian.blogspot.com/2012/09/free-e-book-about-how-to-be-rational.html

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'I care,' Romney declares, as he duels with Obama in Ohio

Both Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney and President Barack Obama campaigned in Ohio on Wednesday. With Obama gaining more and more of an edge in the polls, Romney tried to appeal to voters, telling them he cares about all Americans.

By Ben Feller and Steve Peoples,?Associated Press / September 26, 2012

Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney speaks during a campaign stop at American Spring Wire, Wednesday in Bedford Heights, Ohio.

David Richard/AP

Enlarge

Slipping in states that could sink his presidential bid, Republican Mitt Romney declared Wednesday that "I care about the people of America" and can do more than President Barack Obama to improve their lives. In an all-day Ohio duel, Obama scoffed that a challenger who calls half the nation "victims" was unlikely to be of much help.

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Romney's approach reflected what he is up against: a widening Obama lead in polls in key states such as Ohio, the backlash from a leaked video in which he disparages Obama supporters as government-dependent people who see themselves as victims, and a campaign imperative to make his policy plans more plain.

With under six weeks to go, and just one week before the first big debate, Obama's campaign reveled in the latest public polling ? but tried to crush any sense of overconfidence. "If we need to pass out horse blinders to all of our staff, we will do that," said campaign spokeswoman Jen Psaki.

The day's setting was Ohio, where Obama's momentum has seemed to be growing. It's also a state no Republican has won the White House without carrying.

Romney, eager to project confidence and brush aside suggestions that he was faltering, went after working-class voters outside Columbus and Cleveland before rolling to Toledo. Obama rallied college crowds at Bowling Green State University and Kent State University, reminding Ohioans their state allows them to start cast ballots next week. Early voting has already begun in more than two dozen other states.

For Romney, in his appearances and in a new TV ad in which he appeals straight to the camera, it was time for plain talk to contrast himself with Obama, and to mince no words about his expectations.

"There are so many people in our country who are hurting right now. I want to help them. I know what it takes," Romney told the crowd in Westerville. "I care about the people of America, and the difference between me and Barack Obama is I know what to do."

That message so late in the campaign ? a presidential nominee declaring his concern for all the people of the country ? was part of his widening effort to rebound from his caught-on-video comments at a fundraiser.

In those comments, made last May but only recently revealed, Romney said "47 percent of the people" pay no federal income tax, will vote for Obama no matter what, see themselves as victims, think the government must care for them and do not "take personal responsibility and care for their lives."

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/7scOrUwrHXI/I-care-Romney-declares-as-he-duels-with-Obama-in-Ohio

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Thursday, September 27, 2012

Poll: How Do You React to a Region Locked Console? | GamePolitics

Let?s say there?s a new console coming out that you?ve totally got your eye on.? It?s a groovy piece of kit, it?s reasonably priced and it?s got a bunch of games you want to play.? You?ve got your money saved up and you?re just ticking off the calendar days until its launch.

And then you find out it?s region locked.

What now?? Do you buy the console anyway and resign yourself to the fact that you won?t be importing any games you otherwise would have bought in a heartbeat?? Do you mod your console so that it will play import games?? Do you even care about import games in the first place?

Maybe region locking is such a deal breaker that you flat-out refuse to buy the console.? Or maybe you?re hardcore and will import an additional console to play a different territory?s games.

Such is the subject of this week?s poll, folks.? Keep in mind, I?m not necessarily referring to the Wii U.? Maybe you?re a Sony gamer through and through and are waiting on pins and needles for the PlayStation 4.? How would you react if it turns out the PS4 is region locked?

Vote in the poll and let us know.? Write spiffy comments in the ever so appropriately named ?Comments? section.? Send us email at SuperPACPodcast@gmail.com.? Make sure you finish your homework before you play video games into the wee small hours of the morning.? Brush your teeth before you finally go to bed.? Did you remember to let the dog out?? Maybe that?s why there?s a puddle by the back door.

Sorry.? Where was I?

Oh yes.? We?ll discuss the poll results and your comments on the next week?s Super Podcast Action Committee and so get cracking!? The poll closes sometime this weekend.? Tick tock, tick tock?

"vote label" ? Tribalium / Shutterstock. All rights reserved, used with permission.

-Reporting from San Diego, GamePolitics Contributing Editor Andrew Eisen

Source: http://www.gamepolitics.com/2012/09/26/poll-how-do-you-react-region-locked-console

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Little 'Mrs. Bieber,' 6, loses battle with brain cancer - TODAY ...

By Scott Stump, TODAY contributor

The 6-year-old Boston girl best known as ?Mrs. Bieber?? died Wednesday morning from the brain cancer she had battled for nearly her entire life.

TODAY

Justin Bieber and Avalanna Routh.

Avalanna Routh struck up a friendship with Justin Bieber after he heard her story and about her love of his music. The two had a Valentine?s Day date in New York in February after an online campaign and a report by WHDH came to Bieber?s attention. In 2011, a Jimmy Fund benefit helped Routh "marry" Bieber in a pretend ceremony, earning her the moniker ?Mrs. Bieber? and the popular #MrsBieber hashtag on Twitter.

A post on her official Twitter account, which has 146,000 followers, reported the news of her death, which was confirmed by multiple media outlets.

"Our darling Avalanna went to Heaven this morning. Oh Avalanna, the brightest star?-- you took our hearts with you, our greatest Love," the post read.

On their date in February, Routh declared she had "Bieber fever,?" and playfully messed with the pop star's famous hairdo. The two played board games and signed autographs for each other. In June, Bieber brought Routh onstage at the Apollo Theater.

"It?s wonderful,?? Aileen Routh, Avalanna?s?mother, told NBC News after the date in February. "It was another fun moment.?"

"That was one of the best things I have ever done," Bieber tweeted after their date. "She was AWESOME. Feeling really inspired right now."

Related content:

Source: http://todayentertainment.today.com/_news/2012/09/26/14112746-little-mrs-bieber-6-loses-battle-with-brain-cancer

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Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Report: Americans feel more confident in economy

In this Monday, Sept. 10, 2012, photo, a woman talks to a clerk at a watch repair kiosk in Salem, N.H. U.S. consumer confidence jumped this month to the highest level since February, bolstered by a brighter hiring outlook. The Conference Board said Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2012, that its Consumer Confidence Index rose to 70.3. That's up from 61.3 in August, which was revised higher. And it's the highest reading since February, when the economy added 259,000 jobs. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

In this Monday, Sept. 10, 2012, photo, a woman talks to a clerk at a watch repair kiosk in Salem, N.H. U.S. consumer confidence jumped this month to the highest level since February, bolstered by a brighter hiring outlook. The Conference Board said Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2012, that its Consumer Confidence Index rose to 70.3. That's up from 61.3 in August, which was revised higher. And it's the highest reading since February, when the economy added 259,000 jobs. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

In this Monday, Sept. 10, 2012, photo, a clerk straightens out her display at a shoe store in Salem, N.H. U.S. consumer confidence jumped this month to the highest level since February, bolstered by a brighter hiring outlook. The Conference Board said Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2012, that its Consumer Confidence Index rose to 70.3. That's up from 61.3 in August, which was revised higher. And it's the highest reading since February, when the economy added 259,000 jobs. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

In this Monday, Sept. 24, 2012, photo, shoppers walk by stores at the Loop in Methuen, Mass. U.S. consumer confidence jumped this month to the highest level since February, bolstered by a brighter hiring outlook. The Conference Board said Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2012, that its Consumer Confidence Index rose to 70.3. That's up from 61.3 in August, which was revised higher. And it's the highest reading since February, when the economy added 259,000 jobs. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

In this Monday, Sept. 24, 2012, photo, shoppers walk by stores at the Loop in Methuen, Mass. U.S. consumer confidence jumped this month to the highest level since February, bolstered by a brighter hiring outlook. The Conference Board said Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2012, that its Consumer Confidence Index rose to 70.3. That's up from 61.3 in August, which was revised higher. And it's the highest reading since February, when the economy added 259,000 jobs. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Americans are more confident in the economy than they have been in seven months, an encouraging sign for President Barack Obama with six weeks left in the presidential race.

A new survey of consumer confidence rose Tuesday to its highest level since February on expectations that hiring will soon pick up. And a separate report showed home values rising steadily, signaling sustained improvement in housing.

"This is like an opinion poll on the economy without the political parties attached," said John Ryding, chief economist at RDQ Economics, a consulting firm. The confidence survey "says people are feeling better. If so, they are less likely to vote for change."

The Conference Board's index of consumer confidence shot up in September. The jump surprised many economists because the most recent hiring and retail sales figures have been sluggish.

The increased confidence could help explain recent polls that show Obama with a widening lead over Mitt Romney in some battleground states.

The consumer confidence index is closely watched because consumer spending drives nearly 70 percent of economic activity. The index jumped from 61.3 for August to 70.3 for September. It remains well below 90, the level that is thought to signify a healthy economy.

Among those feeling more optimistic about the economy is Darlene Johnson of Silver Spring, Md., who works for the National Institutes of Health. The value of Johnson's 401(k) account has risen. Home sales in her neighborhood have ticked up, too, and are commanding higher prices.

"I feel like things are stabilizing," she said. "I don't feel as uneasy as I did a few months ago."

But Johnson, who voted for Obama in 2008, remains undecided on which candidate to back. And she's still a bit nervous about the future.

"It will depend on how my pockets are looking," she says. "Everyday circumstances will drive my decision on how I am going to vote."

Economists point to some key reasons why consumers have grown more confident.

Stocks are up: The Standard & Poor's 500 stock index has surged nearly 15 percent this year. Gas prices have leveled off after rising for several months. And the broad increase in home prices is likely giving would-be buyers more confidence. When prices rise, buyers don't worry so much that a home might lose value after they bought it.

National home prices rose 1.2 percent in July compared with a year ago, according to the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index released Tuesday. That was the second straight month in which year-over-year home prices have increased.

Some economists question whether the higher level of confidence is sustainable. They've seen the index spike briefly before since the Great Recession ended more than three years ago. Some say confidence could be affected by negative campaign ads that focus on the economy.

But others note that even a weak economy doesn't feel so bad to many consumers once it begins to make steady improvement.

"The economy is perceived in relative rather than absolute terms," noted St. Louis University political scientist and pollster Ken Warren.

Mark Vitner, a senior economist at Wells Fargo, suggests that former President Bill Clinton might have helped boost confidence with his rousing speech on Obama's behalf at the Democratic National Convention in early September. The Conference Board's consumer confidence survey was conducted Sept. 1-13.

Clinton "rekindled memories of better economic times" and assured voters that the U.S. economy was on the right track, Vitner said.

The consumer confidence survey polled 500 people. The part of the survey that gauges consumers' confidence in the economy now and the part that gauges their outlook for the next six months both rose. Consumers were much more optimistic about the short-term outlook for business conditions, employment and their financial situation.

The rising home prices could also help Obama's prospects. Prices are rising in many large cities in swing states such as Florida, Colorado, Michigan and North Carolina. Prices have risen 3.6 percent in Tampa, Fla., in the past year, for example. And they're up 5.4 percent in Denver, 6.2 percent in Detroit and 2.2 percent in Charlotte, N.C.

A Washington Post poll out Tuesday showed Obama leading Romney among likely voters in Ohio, 52 to 44 percent. The president also had a slight edge in Florida, 51 to 47 percent among those most likely to vote.

Obama is also gaining the upper hand on which candidate is better able to handle the economy. Registered voters in Ohio preferred Obama on the economy by 50 percent to 43 percent, and in Florida by 49 percent to 45 percent.

___

D'Innocenzio contributed from New York. Associated Press Writer Jim Kuhnhenn in Washington contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-09-25-Economy/id-d1b24e4f3ffb4648a11865894f4e91ce

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Creativity | Sandis Self Improvement Blog - Arnoldolexaro85s blog ...

Hello

I remember at school, being encouraged to be creative. ?In between Maths, Science and Geography came Art, Textiles and Home Economics. ?In between writing essays and analysing newspaper articles for English came creative writing. ?I have been working for many years now, and every now and then something comes along and I am suddenly able to be creative and I love it. ?At the moment my organisation is trying to look at new ways of doing things, and adopting a Kaizen philosophy and culture ? I don?t know if I have mentioned it before but here is a link to a bit of information about Kaizen: ?http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaizen

I am helping some people put together a quarterly Kaizen ?Bulletin? for our department to promote Kaizen, share current initiatives under way, and the other day I got some ideas about how to help make it an appealing document that people will want to read, click on links and for it to be colourful and appealing. ?One of the other guys started suggesting we add webcasts and other fancy things to it, and suddenly we were being creative. ?We work in a financial organisation, and to be able to play with pictures and graphics and colour was so refreshing. ?I even found myself playing with it at home ? and I generally avoid bringing work home at all costs!

Toastmasters has allowed me to be a little more creative, too, as my speech topics are really up to me. ?It has had my brain working in a different way, and all this recent creativity has reminded me how much I enjoy creative writing. ?I remembered bragging to my Mum that I would write a novel some day, as she read her Mills & Boon romances I scoffed and said ?I could write one of those?. ?Me, with very little romance in my life at the time, such arrogance! ?But it has my brain buzzing a little lately, remembering that brag ? that I would write and potentially be published some day.

Creativity, creative dreams ? I enjoy my hobbies, and that monster I knitted recently was done without a pattern. ?But I struggle for ideas much of the time, when I try to force creativity ? I love to write and scribble and draw but none of it is taken seriously by me. ?I wonder what is waiting to be hatched inside my brain?

Maybe I?m just listening to too much The Trouble with Templeton ?

Sandi

Source: http://sandidolphin.wordpress.com/2012/09/21/creativity/

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Source: http://arnoldolexaro85.typepad.com/blog/2012/09/creativity-sandis-self-improvement-blog.html

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Source: http://ramoslamont.typepad.com/blog/2012/09/creativity-sandis-self-improvement-blog-arnoldolexaro85s-blog.html

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Lottery luck strikes 3x for one Norwegian family

(AP) ? Luck can strike more than once.

A family from western Norway has hit the lottery jackpot for the third time in six years when the son won more than 12 million kroner ($2 million) earlier this month.

He added to the successes of his father and his sister, who had also picked seven correct numbers to bring in winnings of more than 8 million kroner each in 2006 and 2010.

The Norsk Tipping AS lottery company said Tuesday it has had cases when one person has won the lottery twice but that the teenager's recent success was Norway's first reported occurrence of three members of the same family separately winning the lottery.

The company was looking into working out the mathematical odds of the family's six-year lucky streak.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/aa9398e6757a46fa93ed5dea7bd3729e/Article_2012-09-25-Norway-Lottery%20Family/id-b8dc9f44c97c4847b9963551898379c9

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Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Dividend Growth Stocks: All Investments Carry Risk

What is your financial goal? If it is to accumulate wealth for a comfortable retirement, then there is no risk-free path. Throughout time every angle has been tried and failed. However, some approaches carry less risk than others. Let's consider some of the popular paths...

Cash/Money Markets/CDs

I have always considered "Cash Investments" an oxymoron. Cash is where investors park their money when they believe the investment risk is greater than the potential return - their sole focus is capital preservation. However, some people consider Cash/Money Markets/CDs et.al. as investments. This is a dangerous assumption. Their slow and predictable growth is generally always below inflation, but since it is growing the "investors" often lulled into a false sense of security and do not notice that they are actually losing ground each year until it is too late.

Land/Real Estate

The philosophy of "They aren't making anymore land" led to a false sense that you can never go wrong with real estate. Many investors have discovered the hard way that bubbles can also occur in the real estate sector. What was once seen as a safe place to put your money and forget it is now in the midst on an ugly down-turn. Home prices have fallen in many parts of the U.S over the last several years.

Gold/Precious Metals

If you look at a historical chart of gold prices, you will see a pattern, gold spikes to a new level during a crisis, then comes down to a level above the previous steady state. It then trades sideways until the next crisis. It would be hard to time your retirement to coincide with a crisis/spike.

Professionally Managed Equity Mutual Funds

Every year several professionally managed mutual funds out-perform the market. Unfortunately, it is rarely the same funds each year. It has been well documented that over time, most professionally managed funds under-perform the market.

Treasuries/Bonds

Treasuries and bonds tend to be less risky than equity investments, but have historically under-performed equities. It is important to note that there is risk associated with them. For corporate bonds, the companies could default and not pay them. For all bonds, including those issued by government, there is an interest rate risk - rising interest rates drive the price of bonds down. Bonds are an important part of many investors asset allocation. You can purchase bonds directly in the open market or bundled in funds/ETFs. Below are some low-cost Vanguard bond ETFs:

Vanguard Short-Term Bond ETF (BSV) - Yield: 1.7%
The Fund seeks to track the performance of the Barclays Capital 1-5 Year Government Index. This index includes U.S. Government, investment-grade corporate, and international dollar-denominated bonds, with maturities between 1 and 5 years.

Vanguard Intermediate-Term Bond ETF (BIV) - Yield: 3.5%
The Fund seeks to track the performance of the Barclays Capital 5-10 year Government/Credit Index. This index includes U.S. Government, investment-grade corporate, and international dollar-denominated bonds with maturities between 5 and 10 years.

Vanguard Long-Term Bond ETF (BLV) - Yield: 4.0%
The Fund seeks to match the investment performance of the Barclays Capital Mutual Fund Long Government/Corporate Index.

Vanguard Total Bond Market ETF (BND) - Yield: 2.9%
The Fund seeks to generate returns that track the performance of the Barclays Capital Aggregate Bond Index, and will maintain a dollar-weighted average maturity consistent with that of the index. The Index measures investment-grade, taxable fixed income securities in the U.S.

Also, if you live in the U.S. you can purchase Savings Bonds via TreasuryDirect.gov.

Index Funds/ETFs/CEFs

For many investors, indexed investments including mutual funds, exchange traded funds (ETFs) and closed end funds (CEFs) make up the core of their investment allocation. In effect, you are aligning your investment risk with what the index fund tracks. If you believe that over time that certain index funds, such as the S&P 500, will outperform the the various approaches listed above, you should have money invested in it. Index funds allow you to easily track any sector, market cap or index. Here are some varied funds in this category:

Vanguard 500 Index Fund Investor (VFINX) - Yield: 1.8%
The Fund seeks to track the performance of a benchmark index that measures the investment return of large-capitalization stocks. The Fund employs a "passive management" approach designed to track the performance of the Standard & Poor's 500 Index.

IShares MSCI EAFE Index Fund (EFA) - Yield: 3.3%
The Fund seeks to provide investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the MSCI EAFE Index.

IShares Trust DJ US Basic Mat Sector (IYM) - Yield: 2.2%
The Fund seeks investment results corresponding to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Dow Jones US Basic Materials Sector Index. Component firms are involved in the production of aluminum, chemicals, commodities, chemical specialty products, steel, and other goods and resources.

IShares Trust DJ US Real Estate Index (IYR) - Yield: 3.4%
The Fund seeks investment results that correspond generally to the price and yield performance, before fees and expenses, of the Dow Jones US Real Estate Index. Uses a representative sampling strategy. Component firms include hotel and resort firms and REIT's.

Individual Stocks

Inherently, individual stocks will carry higher risk due to the lack of diversification when evaluated on a stand-alone basis. You can mitigate this risk to a degree by selecting solid dividend paying companies with a track record of increasing their dividends each year. Over the years, some of my personal favorites in this category include:

Abbott Laboratories (ABT) is a diversified life science company that is planning to split into two publicly traded companies, one in diversified medical products and the other in research-based pharmaceuticals. ABT is a member of the S&P 500, a Dividend Aristocrat, a member of the Broad Dividend Achievers? Index and a Dividend Champion. Yield: 2.9%

Genuine Parts Co. (GPC) is a leading wholesale distributor of automotive replacement parts, industrial parts and supplies, and office products. GPC is a member of the S&P 500, a Dividend Aristocrat, a member of the Broad Dividend Achievers? Index and a Dividend Champion. Yield: 3.2%

The Coca-Cola Company (KO) is the world's largest soft drink company and also has a sizable fruit juice business. KO is a member of the S&P 500, a Dividend Aristocrat, a member of the Broad Dividend Achievers? Index and a Dividend Champion. Yield: 2.6%

McDonald's Corporation (MCD) is the largest fast-food restaurant company in the world, with about 33,500 restaurants in 119 countries. MCD is a member of the S&P 500, a Dividend Aristocrat, a member of the Broad Dividend Achievers? Index and a Dividend Champion. Yield: 3.1%

Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (WMT) is the largest retailer in the world,Wal-Mart operates a chain of over 10,000 discount department stores, wholesale clubs, supermarkets and supercenters. WMT is a member of the S&P 500, a Dividend Aristocrat, a member of the Broad Dividend Achievers? Index and a Dividend Champion. Yield: 2.1%

When it comes to investing your money, there is no escaping risk. A good investor will determine the desired outcome and and invest in a way to achieve their goal with minimal risk.

Full Disclosure: Long ABT, GPC, MCD, MCD, VFINX . See a list of all my dividend growth holdings here.

Related Articles
- 10 High-Energy, High-Yield Dividend Stocks
- 12 Dividend Stocks For A Powerful Income Stream
- 7 Dividend Stocks Sporting A Five-Star Rating
- 10 Dividend Stocks Ignoring The 4% Rule
- Dividend Stock Bubble: Is It Even Possible?

(Photo: sean carpenter)

Tags: [ABT] [GPC] [MCD] [MCD] [BSV] [BIV] [BLV] [BND] [EFA] [IYM] [IYR] [VFINX]

Source: http://www.dividend-growth-stocks.com/2012/09/all-investments-carry-risk.html

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Review: New works at St. Claude Avenue galleries | Art Review ...

Are people becoming more generic? Like it or not, we are increasingly wired into an invisible world of electronic networks that know way too much about us. How long before they take over and turn us into hi-def replicas of ourselves? Such are the thoughts inspired by Sarah Amacker's graphically modified photos that stylishly flatten her subjects into two dimensions. Some even have bar codes. Self Check Out: Who Am I? (pictured) is emblematic, a geometrically exaggerated high-fashion babe no doubt with perfect teeth somewhere behind the big bar code that displays her identity as a commodity. Even the ones without bar codes are flat and geometric. Yet as commodities in their own right, Amacker's photographic concoctions are shockingly inexpensive. What gives? It seems that in real life she's a Baton Rouge biologist who does art on the side. Perhaps she is an evolutionary biologist, a savant warning us of what we may all become in the not so distant future.

More graphical extrapolations appear at Barrister's Gallery, in Wendell Brunious' Buried Alive painterly pop collages of comic strip characters interwoven with visions of black female stardom, most pointedly in the form of Whitney Houston. Something about the way this is layered is both musical and wavelike, suggesting a visual dirge for the drowned diva. The mood turns ambiguous in Vanessa Centeno's abstract compositions, where viscous reds vie with more bilious shades in works mingling saturated sensuality with creepy science fiction overtones. If this sounds noir, it is.

??Ryn Wilson's large pseudo film stills of elegant women carrying valises deep into foggy forests, or appearing only as a pair of shapely lifeless legs under a blue velvet dress, convey a darkly atmospheric romanticism, a hint of looming oblivion accompanied, implicitly, by an elegant soundtrack. ? D. ERIC BOOKHARDT

Source: http://www.bestofneworleans.com/gambit/review-new-works-at-st-claude-avenue-galleries/Content?oid=2075553

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PassWallet Brings Apple's Passbook to Android [Video]

PassWallet Brings Apple's Passbook to AndroidPassWallet Brings Apple's Passbook to Android Android: Apple's Passbook app for managing loyalty cards, coupons, tickets and more looks cool, but it's only available, as you'd expect, on Apple devices running iOS 6. PassWallet for Android, however, does everything Passbook does and ports Passbook digital items into your Android device.

Passbook for iOS 6 stores its mobile wallet items as .pkpass files. PassWallett for Android detects these files and imports them automatically from your email messages and websites you visit. This means you can organize digital coupons, travel and event tickets, loyalty cards and the like from services such as Fandango, Ticketmaster, and Walgreens.

The app has been out for a while, but we're not placing any bets on Apple letting it last very much longer once it becomes aware of the app. Still, you can grab PassWallet now from the link below and get Passbook functionality on your Android.

PassWallet | Google Play via iDownloadBlog

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/VVFb2WWcUWo/passwallet-brings-apples-passbook-to-android

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Monday, September 24, 2012

9 climbers killed, 6 missing in Nepal avalanche

KATMANDU, Nepal (AP) ? An avalanche hit climbers on a high Himalayan peak in Nepal on Sunday, leaving at least nine dead and six others missing, officials said. Many of the climbers were French or German.

Police official Basanta Bahadur Kuwar said the bodies of a Nepalese guide and a German man were recovered and that rescue pilots had spotted seven other bodies on the slopes of Mount Manaslu in northern Nepal, the eighth highest mountain in the world.

In Madrid, Spain's Foreign Ministry said one of those killed was Spanish, but did not release the person's identity.

The identities of the other victims were still being confirmed.

Ten other climbers survived the avalanche but many were injured and were flown to hospitals by rescue helicopters, Kuwar said.

Rescue pilot Pasang, who uses only one name, said three injured French citizens and two Germans had been transported to hospitals in Katmandu.

He said rescuers were also attempting to bring the bodies of the dead back to the base camp.

Weather conditions were deteriorating and it was not possible to continue air searches of the mountain Sunday afternoon, Kuwar said.

The avalanche hit the climbers at a camp at 7,000 meters (22,960 feet) early in the morning as they were preparing to head toward the summit, which is 8,156 meters (26,760 feet) high.

There were Italian, German and French teams on the mountain, with a total of 231 climbers and guides, but not all were at the higher camps, officials said.

It is currently the beginning of Nepal's autumn mountaineering season. The autumn season comes right after the end of the monsoon rains, which make weather conditions unpredictable, and is not as popular among mountaineers as the spring season, when hundreds of climbers crowd the high Himalayan peaks.

Nepal has eight of the 14 highest peaks in the world. Climbers have complained in recent years that climbing conditions have deteriorated and risks of accidents have increased.

Veteran mountain guide Apa, who has climbed Mount Everest a record 21 times, traveled for months across Nepal earlier this year campaigning about the effects of global warming on the mountain peaks.

He told The Associated Press the mountains now have considerably less ice and snow, making it harder for climbers to use ice axes and crampons on their boots to get a grip on the slopes.

Loose snow also increases the risk of avalanches.

Officials were investigating the cause of Sunday's avalanche.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/9-climbers-killed-6-missing-nepal-avalanche-101046461.html

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PFT: Peyton's comeback falls short, Texans top Broncos

An Arizona Cardinals fan celebrates their 27-6 win over the Philadelphia Eagles after their NFL football game in PhoenixReuters

On Sunday afternoons during the NFL season, I?m sitting in my house with three TVs showing games in one room, plus another game showing on my iPad, with my laptop at the ready to check scores and stats. I have the Sunday Ticket package and I watch the Red Zone channel and the Game Mix channel, and I?m the fastest draw in the West when I need to change the channel. My wife brings me snacks so I don?t have to get up for even a minute. If anyone should be able to keep up with every single thing that happens on an NFL Sunday, it?s me.

And as this Sunday?s nine early games came to the late fourth quarter, even I couldn?t keep up with it all. What an amazing Sunday afternoon.

Don?t you wish we could see Sunday?s highlights as edited by Steve Sabol? Sabol, the NFL Films president who died of brain cancer on Tuesday, would have told an amazing story with the material the NFL gave him on Sunday. The nine early games featured three overtimes, three other games decided by a touchdown or less, a shocking upset by the Vikings, a tremendous defensive effort by the Bears and a Bills-Browns game that was, well . . . let?s just say there were eight really good games.

My choice for the best game of the day was that insane finish in Tennessee, where the Lions came back from 14 points down with 18 seconds remaining to send the game into overtime, only to end up losing 44-41. But the Chiefs-Saints battle was also lots of fun, and every time I looked at the Bengals? 38-31 win over the Redskins I saw one of the league?s bright young stars (either Cincinnati?s A.J. Green or Washington?s Robert Griffin III) making a big play. There was no shortage of greatness on display on Sunday.

These are the days when you sit there on your couch and just say, This is why I love football. What a great day.

Here are my other thoughts from Week Three in the NFL:

The replacement officials need to pick up the pace. Games are simply taking far too long. Heading into this week the average length of games was about five minutes longer this season than last season, and maybe that doesn?t sound like much. But those delays while the officials are sorting things out are making some games really drag. The Steelers-Raiders game, in particular, felt like it was taking forever. If Raiders kicker Sebastian Janikowski had missed his game-winning field goal and the game had gone into overtime, it?s entirely possible that it still would have been going on into the start of Sunday Night Football.

The NFL needs to fine Bill Belichick heavily. I don?t care how bad the officials are ? and they were bad during Sunday night?s Patriots-Ravens game ? you simply cannot put your hands on an official. Belichick put his hands on an official. A fine of $100,000 might be enough to send the message that that simply cannot happen.

Still, the Belichick story shouldn?t overshadow the larger issue. The quality of the officiating in the NFL right now simply isn?t acceptable. The NFL has to fix it.

How did Matt Schaub get cleared so quickly? NFL teams are supposed to have an excess of caution about players suffering concussions, taking the time to have the medical staff check anyone who takes a hard hit to the head, and only clearing players to return to the field if everything is OK. So something seemed suspicious about Texans quarterback Matt Schaub missing only one play after taking a brutal and illegal helmet-to-helmet hit, a hit that had him crumpling to the ground and grabbing his head. I hope I?m wrong to be skeptical, but it sure didn?t seem like Schaub was out long enough to get the kind of thorough examination that a hit like that would warrant.

Jason Hanson should be a Hall of Famer some day. Hanson, the Lions? 21-year veteran kicker, is the oldest player in the NFL at age 42, and has played 314 games with the Lions, the most games any player has played with one team in NFL history. But Hanson doesn?t just have longevity on his side, he has one of the most impressive kicking legs the game has ever seen. On Sunday against the Titans he went 4-for-4 on field goals, making kicks from 47, 53, 33 and 26 yards. That 53-yard field goal was the 51st field goal of his career from 50 yards or farther, the most any kicker has made in NFL history. Oh, and when Lions punter Ben Graham went down, Hanson stepped in and punted flawlessly, averaging 39.3 hards a punt and landing one of them inside the 20-yard line. Hanson probably won?t make it to the Hall of Fame because kickers are remembered for big field goals in big games, and the Lions haven?t been in many big games in Hanson?s career. But the Hall of Fame is supposed to be about individual greatness, and there?s been no greater kicker in NFL history than Jason Hanson.

Jamaal Charles is in very good company. Charles, the Chiefs? starting running back, had 233 rushing yards and 55 receiving yards in Sunday?s win over the Saints, joining Jim Brown as the only players in NFL history with at least 225 rushing yards and 50 receiving yards in the same game. Charles and Brown are also the only NFL players with more than 230 rushing yards in two different games. And if Charles keeps running at his career 6.0 yards-per-carry average and gets 196 more rushing attempts, he?ll break Brown?s record for the highest yards-per-carry average of any running back in NFL history with at least 750 carries. For half a century, Brown has been the gold standard for NFL running backs. It?s amazing that Charles is putting himself in Brown?s company.

Greg Schiano is right in the kneeldown controversy. Schiano, the Buccaneers coach who angered Giants coach Tom Coughlin last week by instructing his players to try to force a fumble while the Giants were kneeling down to run out the clock, did it again on Sunday against the Cowboys. Coughlin might not like it, but I do. Schiano coaches football the right way: Play hard until the game is over.

Source: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2012/09/23/texans-take-it-to-the-broncos-as-peytons-comeback-falls-short/related

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Sunday, September 23, 2012

Barack Obama, Mitt Romney essentially tied in Florida, new Times/Herald/Bay News 9 poll shows

By Adam C. Smith, Times Political Editor
Adam C. SmithTampa Bay Times In Print: Sunday, September 23, 2012

It's Florida, after all, so what would you expect?

After a constant stream of Sunshine State visits by President Barack Obama and Republican nominee Mitt Romney, after many millions spent on TV ads, and even after a Republican National Convention in Tampa, Obama and Romney are essentially tied in America's ultimate battleground state.

A new Tampa Bay Times/Miami Herald/Bay News 9 poll finds 48 percent of likely Florida voters backing Obama, 47 percent supporting Romney, 1 percent with Libertarian Party nominee Gary Johnson and just 4 percent undecided.

"It's still very much a toss-up. It's a turnout game," said Brad Coker of Mason-Dixon Polling and Research.

The needle has barely budged since the last Times/Herald/Bay News 9 poll in July showed Obama leading 46 percent to 45 percent, though Obama's lead with independents grew 6 percentage points while the number of undecided voters dropped 3 points.

The good news for Romney? Fifty-two percent of Florida voters say the country is heading in the wrong direction and only 43 percent say it's on the right track.

What's more, Romney's recent spate of negative publicity, including the release of a secret recording of him suggesting that the 47 percent of voters backing Obama are dependent on government and view themselves as victims, appears to have done little or no damage to the Republican nominee in Florida.

"We've had this swirl of coverage over the last couple of weeks, and it doesn't seem to have made a real impact with average voters," said Coker, who led the poll last week just as Romney's 47 percent comment dominated the news. "The talking class and the analysts, and the inside the beltway bubble people all think this stuff is big and important, and the voters don't think it's all that important."

Romney's comment about people dependent on government certainly didn't bother Lake City resident Dale Varnes, 52.

"He was preaching the truth, he knows that Obama has those people on his side and he's going to get them automatically because he's giving them what they want," said Varnes, who is disabled.

The phone survey of 800 registered Florida voters ? all likely to vote in the November election ? was conducted Sept. 17-19 for the Times, Herald, El Nuevo Herald, Bay News 9 and Central Florida News 13. The poll, which included respondents using landlines and cellphones, was conducted by Mason-Dixon, a nonpartisan, Jacksonville-based company. The margin of error is 3.5 percentage points.

The bad news for Romney? It's close to impossible for him to win the presidency Nov. 6 without Florida's 29 electoral votes. And contrary to widespread early predictions that Florida would lean Republican by this point, the poll underscores how much work Romney still has to do here in the final six weeks while still trying to gain ground in other battleground states.

Most troubling for the former venture capitalist and Massachusetts governor, his central argument ? that he's best equipped to turn around the economy ? is falling short. Florida voters are evenly divided on whether they trust Romney or Obama more to improve the economy, with independent voters giving Obama the edge.

"That probably is the one number that is the most worrisome if I were in the Romney camp," Coker said.

Mary Ann Krueger, a registered Republican and retired office supply store owner in Sebastian, said it's Romney's background that makes her think he wouldn't do much to help small businesses like the one she used to own.

"Romney doesn't have a clue as to what it's like to struggle in life," said Krueger, 74. "He doesn't have a background in small business."

More ominous signs for Romney: He trails Obama, 49 percent to 45 percent, in Tampa Bay, the battleground region that typically decides statewide elections, and he trails Obama by 11 percentage points statewide among independent voters.

Overall, 47 percent approve of Obama's job performance and 45 percent disapprove. Forty-six percent have a favorable impression of Obama and 43 percent have an unfavorable one, similar to Romney who is viewed favorably by 43 percent and unfavorably by 39 percent.

Romney has an 11-point advantage over Obama among men, and Obama has a 15-point advantage among women. Romney leads among white voters, 55 percent to 40 percent, while 95 percent of African-Americans back the president. Obama leads Romney by 9 points among Florida's coveted Hispanic voters, less than his margin of victory four years ago, though those questions have a higher margin of error.

The survey points to a Florida electorate as polarized as ever, with 87 percent of Democrats behind Obama and 92 percent of Republicans backing Romney.

Nor do many minds appear to be changing. The July Times/Herald/Bay News 9 poll also found Obama leading by 1 percentage point, though he has slightly strengthened his advantage among independents since then, when more Floridians disapproved of the president's job performance than approved.

In the new poll, voters younger than 35 overwhelmingly support the president, voters between 35 and 50 are closely divided, and Romney leads by 6 percentage points among those 65 and older.

Democrats had hoped to chip away at the GOP's typical advantage among seniors by highlighting Republican vice presidential nominee Paul Ryan's proposal to change Medicare's guaranteed benefit for younger people. The poll shows little sign that has worked.

Asked whether they trust Obama or Romney more to keep Medicare financially stable, 49 percent of voters said Obama and 47 percent Romney. Voters 50 and older said they trusted Obama more, but not significantly.

"I don't think that Medicare is as big a wedge issue as it has been," Coker said, noting that the unpopular Affordable Care Act has helped change the political dynamic. "The health care law is very unpopular and it's almost a neutralizer with the traditional attack the Democrats make on Medicare."

Jean Auris, a registered independent and retired pharmacy technician in Homosassa, however, said she resents the criticism she hears of entitlement programs and beneficiaries.

"I take Social Security and I take Medicare, those are social programs. And I can't understand these older people that turn against it. They don't want to admit that they're a middle-class poorer person,'' said Auris, one of those surveyed. "I think that sometimes people look at Fox News and Fox News tells them that they're better than that. You're not better than that, you're a poor middle-class person. Come to the reality."

Florida voters have a bleak view of the economy ? 51 percent say they are worse off today than four years ago, and 41 percent say better off ? but don't necessarily blame Obama. One in three says Obama deserves most or all of the blame for the current economic situation, about equal to the number of voters who say he deserves none of the blame.

Scott Hudson, 47, owns an electrical engineering firm in Tallahassee and says Romney's business experience makes him a better candidate.

"He's made money, he's made decisions that have changed the financial outlook of companies," Hudson said. "Obama hasn't done anything with the economy. After four years of not seeing anything drastically change with the economy, I can't support Obama."

While a majority of voters see the country heading on the wrong track, they are not entirely pessimistic about Florida. One in three sees the state's economy getting better, one in five sees it getting worse, and 45 percent say it seems to be staying about the same.

The economy has been the dominant issue in the campaign to date, though recent turbulence in the Middle East, including attacks on U.S. facilities in Libya and Egypt, have elevated foreign policy as an issue. Obama has an advantage there, with 51 percent of voters saying they trust the president more and 45 percent saying Romney.

Times staff writers Katie Sanders and Michael Van Sickler contributed to this report. Adam C. Smith can be reached at asmith@tampabay.com.


Source: http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/national/barack-obama-mitt-romney-essentially-tied-in-florida-new-timesheraldbay/1252518

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Saturday, September 22, 2012

Project X Haren Creates Riots In Holland - Business Insider

According to the Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf, riot police have had to be called in after a teenagers Facebook event saw thousands of revelers descend on the small suburban town of Haren (pop. 18,000).

The video below was uploaded half an hour ago and shows riot police in a stand off.

WATCH:

Dutch media is also reporting on that journalists are being attacked by the crowd.

Incredibly, this whole thing apparently began as a simple Facebook event for a 16-year-old's birthday party. When the birthday girl didn't set to event to "private", the event swiftly went viral and thousands of strangers said they would be attending. Enterprising guests began creating viral videos, "official websites" and t-shirts, dubbing the event "Project X Haren" (a reference to an American movie about a wild party). According to Volkskrant, 30,000 people eventually signed up to attend the party.

Here's one video that was made to promote the party:

WATCH:

According to DutchNews.nl, the family of the birthday girl have now gone into hiding, and police took various measures including removing street signs, closing roads, and banning the sale of alcohol.

These measures appear to have failed. De Telegraaf reports that the situation is "completely out of hand", with police officers being pelted with bottles and stones, and street signs and cars being destroyed.

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/project-x-haren-creates-riots-in-holland-2012-9

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Friday, September 21, 2012

Warners Hires SNL Vet to Write New Looney Tunes Movie

That 2003 Looney Tunes movie, Looney Tunes: Back in Action, did a number on the Looney Tunes brand. It performed so poorly at the stateside box office, only $21 million on budget of $80 million, that another Looney Tunes movie hasn't been seen in theaters since. Things are about to change.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Warner Bros is rebooting the franchise and has enlisted former Saturday Night Live cast member Jenny Slate to write the script.

Details about the new movie are under wraps, but, like the previous ones, it's going to be a live-action/CGI hybrid.

Recently, the professional basketball player LeBron James wrote on Twitter that he loves Space Jam and wishes he can be in Space Jam 2. Is it possible that James' tweet may have set this whole reboot in motion? Time will tell.

Space Jam for those who don't know is the 1996 Looney Tunes movie starring Warner Bros iconic animated characters and some of the top professional basketball players from those days like Michael Jordon, Charles Barkley, etc.

That movie cost an estimated $80 million to make but made $90 million in the States and $140 million overseas for a total of $230 million. Since a sequel wasn't made, one can only assume it wasn't profitable for the studio after all the fees were paid out.

Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1925932/news/1925932/

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School lunches: Students protest less portions, rising nutrition

School lunches are changing due to new federal guidelines requiring school districts to serve more grains, fruits, and veggies. Michelle Obama promoted "Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010," which touts these changes but students are not thrilled.

By Jim McLaughlin,?Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / September 21, 2012

Nutritional content in school lunches is rising - like this healthy chicken salad in the lunch line of the cafeteria at Draper Middle School in Rotterdam, N.Y., Sept. 11, 2012 - yet student support for these changes is declining.

AP Photo/Hans Pennink

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By 7 a.m. Monday, senior Nick Blohm already had burned about 250 calories in the Mukwonago High School weight room.

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He grabbed a bagel and a Gatorade afterward; if he eats before lifting, he gets sick.

RELATED: Are you a 'Helicopter Parent?' take our QUIZ!

That was followed by eight periods in the classroom, and then three hours of football practice. By the time he headed home, he had burned upward of 3,000 calories ? his coach thinks the number is even higher.

But the calorie cap for his?school lunch? 850 calories.

?A lot of us are starting to get hungry even before the practice begins,? Blohm said. ?Our metabolisms are all sped up.?

Following new federal guidelines, school districts nationwide have retooled their menus to meet new requirements to serve more whole grains, only low-fat or nonfat milk, daily helpings of both fruits and vegetables, and fewer sugary and salty items. And for the first time, federal funds for school lunches mandate age-aligned calorie maximums. The adjustments are part of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 touted by Michelle Obama and use the updated Dietary Guidelines for Americans from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The changes are hard to swallow for students like Blohm. On Monday, 70 percent of the 830 Mukwonago High students who normally buy lunch boycotted cafeteria food to protest what they see as an unfair ?one size fits all thing.? Middle schoolers in the district also boycotted their school lunches, with counts down nearly half Monday. They?re not alone in their frustration; schools across the country are reporting students who are unhappy with the lunch offerings.

The sub sandwich line at Mukwonago High used to let students pile veggies on a six-inch French bread bun. Options now include a fist-sized whole wheat roll or multigrain wrap, and the once popular line is now mostly empty.

The healthier food is less the issue than the portions.

?A freshman girl who weighs 100 pounds can eat this lunch and feel completely full, maybe even a little bloated,? said Joey Bougneit, a Mukwonago, Wis., senior.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/D86XmzjC37g/School-lunches-Students-protest-less-portions-rising-nutrition

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