Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/02/the-bachelor-sean-lowe-fantasy-suite-rejection-ahead/
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Friday, February 22, 2013
Rape and killing of 3 sisters shock India
REUTERS
A demonstrator stands on a pavement near paintings by other demonstrators, as she listens to a speaker during a protest near India's parliament in New Delhi on February 21, 2013.
?New Delhi - Police say investigators are searching villages in western India for suspects in the rape and killing of three young sisters.
The killing of the girls aged 7, 9 and 11 last week has horrified Indians still angry over the gang rape and killing of a student on a moving bus in New Delhi in December. The youngest girl had earlier been erroneously identified by Indian news reports as a 5-year-old.
The girls' bodies were found six days ago in a village well in Bhandara district in Maharashtra after they had gone missing from school.
The victims' mother said police did not take the case seriously and did nothing for several days until villagers held protests.
Police officer Abhinav Deshmukh said Friday that 30 investigators are now working on the case. - Sapa-AP
Source: http://www.iol.co.za/rape-and-killing-of-3-sisters-shock-india-1.1475552
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Thursday, February 21, 2013
Report: Orlando Magic trade guard JJ Redick to Milwaukee Bucks, NBA sources tell @YahooSports
With the prospect of losing guard J.J. Redick to free agency this summer the Orlando Magic traded him to the Milwaukee Bucks, league sources told Yahoo! Sports.
The Bucks sent the Magic Doron Lamb, Tobias Harris and Beno Udrih for Redick. Gustavo Ayon and Ish Smith were sent to Milwaukee as part of the deal for Redick.
The Magic also traded forward Josh McRoberts to the Charlotte Bobcats for forward Hakim Warrick, a league source told Y! Sports' Marc Spears.
The Bucks have a serious interest in re-signing Redick to a contract this summer. With an increased role this season, Redick has averaged a career-high 15.1 points.
Redick, 28, was a popular player for the Magic, who drafted him 11th overall in 2006 after a storied career at Duke. After entering the NBA as strictly a shooter, Redick has developed into a respected all-around player and will be a significant commodity on the free-agent market this summer.
Other popular content on Yahoo! Sports:
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Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nba--bucks-acquire-j-j--redick-from-magic-200520815.html
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From Lincoln to Argo, Oscar goes to Washington
Top Line
'Washington is Hollywood for ugly people,' so the saying goes. By that standard, the nation's capital should look a bit prettier come Sunday's Oscars. This is a bumper year for Washington, with a trio of movies that have the capital at their core: "Argo", "Zero Dark Thirty", and "Lincoln." And of course it wouldn't be Washington if there weren't a bit of controversy around these films.
Each has been criticized for its accuracy. In "Argo," there is a climactic chase scene that never happened; "Zero Dark Thirty" portrays torture as a useful tool in the hunt for bin Laden, contradicting the Senate; and in "Lincoln," the Connecticut delegation votes against abolishing slavery, which was not the case.
But the controversy around "Zero Dark Thirty" is the most serious, it has the most policy implications. The movie seems to take a side on the raging debate over torture techniques that were outlawed by President Obama. Despite what the filmmakers say, it is clear that the narrative of the film is that torture worked, and helped get bin Laden.
One thing that all three films got right is their portrayals of the Washington middle man. In all three movies, it was the people in the middle, the bureaucrats, and the middle managers who were getting things done. "Argo" was not about President Jimmy Carter authorizing an operation, "Lincoln" wasn't even just about President Abraham Lincoln giving soaring speeches, and certainly, 'Zero Dark Thirty" wasn't about high-powered people with big titles attached to their names. These were movies about the grunt men -- and that really is the way Washington works.
For more of this special Oscar episode, including the one thing "Lincoln" got right that the other Washington films did not, check out this week's Top Line.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/power-players-abc-news/oscar-goes-washington-130104510.html
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PastaGate: Buonanotte Restaurant In Quebec Targeted For Too Many Italian Words On Menu (TWEETS)
Buonanotte restaurant, located in French-speaking Quebec, Canada, recently came under fire for using the words "pasta" and "calamari" on its menu, reports CBC. The reason? The words aren't paired with French translations on the menu, and that's a problem for Quebec's office of French language (OQLF).
CBC reported that the restaurant's owner, Massimo Lecas, was told by authorities that Italian words such as "bottiglia," "pasta" and "antipasto" should all have a French translation on the menu. He also claimed that he was told to translate the Italian words for meatball and calamari into French.
As the news (and outcry!) spread, the OQLF backed down a bit from the original claims. The office admitted that the requests were perhaps "overzealous" and explained that the inquiry began due to a citizen's complaint. Appearing on CJAD radio, Martin Bergeron of the OQLF explained that in order to promote French among the public, official policy says that the most predominant language on a menu must be French. Italian words are welcome to appear, but just not as frequently as French ones.
While Lecas' restaurant might be able to keep using the word "pasta," the social media damage has already been done. A parody Twitter account, @QuebecPasta, has been created, as well as a #pastagate hashtag. A few of our favorites:
Also on HuffPost:
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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/21/pastagate-buonanotte-restaurant-quebec-menu_n_2733933.html
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Survey: 75 percent of workers who applied for jobs didn't hear back from employers
Survey: 75 percent of workers who applied for jobs didn't hear back from employers
February 20, 2013 Updated Feb 20, 2013 at 2:38 PM EST(CareerBuilder news release) Job hunting can be a frustrating process especially if you have no idea whether the employer made a decision or even saw your application.
More than one in four workers reported that they have had a bad experience when applying for a job.
The vast majority (75 percent) of workers who applied to jobs using various resources in the last year said they never heard back from the employer, according to a nationwide CareerBuilder survey.
?
Read the entire news release from CareerBuilder HERE.
Source: http://www.wbng.com/news/state/192093401.html
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Coursera Adds 29 Schools, 90 Courses And 4 New Languages To Its Online Learning Platform
It’s almost as if there’s an arms race in online education. Which MOOC platform can expand the fastest? Place your bets now. On the heels of edX’s announcement that it will be expanding internationally with the addition of six new schools (bringing its total to 12), Coursera is doing some addition of its own. Today, the massive online course platform announced that 29 universities from around the globe have agreed to bring their courses online (for free) via Coursera. The new members will join the 33 institutions already on board, bringing Coursera’s grand total to 62. And, of course, just as edX was kicking back to celebrate its five new handpicked international members, Coursera announces that its updated roster just so happens to include 16 international institutions itself. The international expansion of both Coursera and edX is a big win for international students, who (at least in Coursera’s case) now have access to courses in multiple languages, including French, Spanish, Chinese and Italian. Of course, international expansion is also an important part of the roadmap for edX and Coursera (and online learning sites like Lynda.com as well) and could be a boon for both, exposing a whole new audience of potential MOOC adopters to courses from some of the most reputed schools in the world. While edX is a not-for-profit organization, Coursera is decidedly for-profit and, though it has plenty of venture capital in the bank, will need to continue scaling if it hopes to become a sustainable business over the long-term. To do that, as part of the introduction of 29 new schools to its platform, Coursera is also expanding its course offerings by subject, adding 90 new courses to bring its total to 313 courses in all. “With the addition of so many new courses across a wide range of disciplines, languages and academic approaches, we are now able to meet the needs of a more diverse student body, and give students more academic options to explore,” Coursera co-founder Andrew Ng said as part of the announcement. Since launching in April 2012, Coursera has registered 2.8 million students and is now seeing around 1.4 million course enrollments each month. Lately, Coursera has been taking some pronounced steps to begin monetizing its growing user base as well, launching Career Services in December — an opt-in recruiting program that matches students with employers — and adding Verified Certificates in JanuarySource: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/ICsX5Xuxdxw/
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Wednesday, February 20, 2013
The Happiest and Saddest Places in the Country as Told by Your Tweets
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Two new stores coming to Charlotte-area, bringing jobs
CHARLOTTE, NC (WBTV)- Academy Sports? + Outdoors will open two new Charlotte-area stores on March 8, 2013. One store will open in Concord and the other in Kannapolis.
Each of the 71,000 square-foot stores will be staffed with approximately 150 associates.
The Concord store will open at 8675 Concord Mills Boulevard, near Concord Mills Mall. The Kannapolis store will open at 2211 Elder Lane.
"We could not be more excited to add two new stores to this area for customers to shop our wide selection of products at our everyday low prices," says Kevin Chapman, Academy Sports + Outdoors executive vice president of stores. "As we continue our expansion in this region, we look forward to being active members of the Charlotte community for years to come."
Academy is a sports, outdoor, and lifestyle retailer. The company says it is committed to community involvement, including support of local youth sports leagues, conservation groups, regional sports teams, and more.
Both stores will cut their ceremonial ribbons on Thursday, March 7 during a private ceremony where they will also donate $100 shopping sprees to 100 total children from the Boys & Girls Club of Cabarrus County and the Cannon Memorial YMCA ? Kannapolis Branch. Both events are private.
Following the openings to the public; Academy will host a three-day grand opening celebration starting at 8 a.m. on Friday, March 22 at both new stores. Amongst the several giveaways at each store will be a free pair of Crocs to the first 100 customers in line that Friday morning. The celebration will continue throughout the weekend and will feature other giveaways from brands like Adidas, Callaway and Wrangler, product try-ons, interactive demos, product displays, games for the whole family, plus opportunities to interact with pros who represent top brands sold at Academy Sports + Outdoors.
Academy opened its first Charlotte-area store in Rock Hill, SC in March 2012, followed by its Hickory, NC opening this past September. With the addition of the two new stores, the company will have brought a total of 550 new jobs to the region in the past year.
Copyright 2013 WBTV. All rights reserved.
Source: http://rockhill.wbtv.com/news/news/78662-two-new-stores-coming-charlotte-area-bringing-jobs
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Tuesday, February 19, 2013
When Foreign Policy Goals Exceed Military Capacity, Call The ...
The Pentagon, headquarters of the United States Department of Defense.
By Published by the Foreign Policy Research Institute -- (February 18, 2013)
By Derek S. Reveron
With dozens of treaty allies and a strategic priority of promoting the sovereignty of weak states, the U.S. military has been gradually shifting from a force designed for confrontation to one intended to promote international cooperation. To be sure, the U.S. military retains a technical and doctrinal advantage as a warfighting entity. However, over the past two decades, the military has been incorporating new organizations, doctrine, and training to prioritize efforts to prevent war through security force assistance. This has shifted focus to weak states where sub-national (e.g., gangs in Central America) and trans-national security challenges (e.g., al-Qa?ida) jeopardize sovereignty and regional stability.[1] Consequently, countries such as the Philippines, Georgia, Colombia, Uganda, and Pakistan have requested security assistance from the United States. While level of support varies, U.S. forces are enabling partner countries to combat challenges that threaten their own stability.
This shift in focus has raised concerns about the ?militarization of U.S. foreign policy,? which began in the 1990s with the recognition that combatant commanders are as much policy entrepreneurs as they are war fighters.[2] Generals like Tony Zinni or Wesley Clark epitomized the new breed of warrior-diplomat who directly engaged with foreign heads of state.[3] Far from rogue generals, these military leaders were directed by President Bill Clinton to engage with the world and promote security by assisting partners and assuring allies in a security environment freed from the Cold War dynamic. President George W. Bush and President Barack Obama continued the practice of using the military to assist almost every government of the world. As Administrations from both parties came to value the military?s capabilities in peace and war, some contended that defense overshadowed (if not displaced) traditional diplomacy and development efforts.[4] Within defense circles, critics assumed that helping weak states jeopardized American military dominance and undercut preparations for major war.[5] More recently, critics highlight that in an era of declining budgets, the United States military cannot afford nor overcome unintended consequences of attempting to be a ?global force for good.?[6] These are valid concerns, but the United States shows no signs of retreating from a global leadership role and instead seeks partnerships as a key component of U.S. strategy.
With shared challenges of terrorism and nuclear proliferation, and shared goals of development and protecting human security, there are unprecedented levels of international cooperation to share information, target terrorists, and provide governments the tools they need to confront national threats before they become regional ones. This is on display in Afghanistan where 50 countries operate under the ISAF flag, or in the Indian Ocean where 27 countries operate as Combined Maritime Forces. At the center of the coalitions is a U.S.-sponsored framework to enable partners to contribute to international security.
President Barack Obama intends to continue the American tradition of enabling partners throughout the globe. As he noted in his second inaugural address, ?America will remain the anchor of strong alliances in every corner of the globe. And we will renew those institutions that extend our capacity to manage crisis abroad. For no one has a greater stake in a peaceful world than its most powerful nation.? By training and equipping other militaries, the goal is to reduce U.S. American military presence internationally and allow others to provide for their own security. This has positive benefits not only for the U.S. defense budget (e.g., an Afghan soldier costs hundreds per month compared to an American soldier who costs thousands per month), but also for international security. While my earlier book Exporting Security explains why the United States assists governments from Afghanistan to Zambia, an overlooked area is security assistance provided to developed countries.
CAPACITY MATTERS
As France recently learned in Mali, while it has capable ground forces and aircraft, it has limited ability to sustain these forces just 2,000 miles from home. To support its foreign policy agenda, France needed the United States Air Force to fly its forces and refuel its attack aircraft. As the operation continues, the United States will probably provide intelligence for French and African forces as they shift to stability operations.
Counterterrorism can certainly explain U.S. intervention in Mali; however, enabling French success explains the timeline. More importantly, the case of U.S.-supported French intervention in Mali is illustrative of the role the United States plays in supporting developed countries. France is the latest developed country to need U.S. assistance, but requests like this are common. This is true for almost every one of the 50 countries serving in Afghanistan today, as it was true with European countries in the Balkans, Australian forces in East Timor, and British forces in West Africa. These examples highlight that the foreign policy goals of many developed countries exceed their military capacity, which requires them to rely on the U.S. military for assistance. As developed countries? defense budgets fall further, reliance on the United States is going to increase. This remains a decades-old frustration. Most recently, the NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said, ?There is a lower limit on how little we can spend on defense, while living up to our responsibilities.?[7]
Pragmatically, the United States would like its partners to do more, but shared challenges and limited budgets will reinforce the value of American logistics, combat experience, and intelligence capacity. Further, American support of other countries reinforces the treaty arrangements with 27 NATO countries and five Asian countries. Twenty years ago, there seemed to be little relevance to these treaties and security arrangements, let alone a rationale for invoking them or expanding them. Yet, the opposite occurred. NATO increased its membership three times from 16 to 19 in 1999, again to 26 in 2006, and again to 28 in 2009. At the same time the number of NATO members increased, NATO changed from its traditional mission of territorial defense to one of global security engagement. With each expansion, new members require training and equipping to NATO standards. With each new operation, NATO countries require access to U.S. intelligence, critical technology, and global logistics.
In addition to formal treaties of alliance, an additional dozen countries are offered protection under the U.S. security umbrella either by law, such as the Taiwan Relations Act or by policy such as United States? support for Israel.[8] These protections include provisions to train and equip their militaries. Another dozen countries are offered special security provisions through Major Non-NATO Ally (MNNA) status. MNNA does not confer a mutual defense relationship, but the largely symbolic act implies a close working relationship with another country?s defense forces.[9] It is more akin to a preferred buyer?s program allowing countries like Australia, Japan, and South Korea access to advanced weapons systems. With weapons purchases also come long-term training and maintenance contracts. From a U.S. perspective, it has a comparative advantage in defense exports; strategically, programs like these are intended to overcome the free-rider problem the United States faces with its partners.[10] For every Joint Strike Fighter Japan buys, the United States can deploy one less to northeast Asia.
Given the diplomatic nature of these security partnerships, the Department of State?s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs focuses these activities, regulates the defense trade and arms transfers to reinforce the military capabilities of friends, allies, and coalition partners, and ensures that the transfer of U.S.-origin defense equipment and technology supports U.S. national security interests. Further, the Bureau promotes regional security through bilateral and multilateral cooperation and dialogue, as well as through the provision of security assistance to friendly countries and international peacekeeping efforts. The overall goals of security assistance include creating favorable military balances of power (e.g., selling weapons and training to Saudi Arabia to balance Iran), advancing areas of mutual defense or security arrangements (e.g., collaborating with Japan on missile defense technology), building allied and friendly military capabilities for self-defense and multinational operations (e.g., South Korea), and preventing crisis and conflict (e.g., facilitating Colombia?s success against the decades-old FARC insurgency). Historically, Israel has been the largest recipient of security assistance and its neighbor Egypt benefited from its recognition of Israel and the Camp David Accords.[11] Given its proximity to the United States and challenges with drug trafficking organizations, Mexico has recently emerged as a top recipient of security assistance. Given the history of American military interventions in Mexico, this has required new efforts to build trust to reassure the government that it seeks to strengthen it and not undermine it.[12]
One reason the United States concentrates assistance on just a few countries is to promote particular countries as regional leaders. In practice, this means that Jordan hosts an international special operations exercise, peace operations training center, and an international police training center. Or in Latin America, Colombia provides helicopter training for regional militaries and El Salvador hosts a regional peacekeeping institute, attracting military personnel from countries throughout the Western Hemisphere. Given the significant U.S. investment in Afghanistan?s military and police training infrastructure, it is likely that Afghanistan could eventually host regional training if the insurgency subsides to acceptable levels. This approach not only strengthens key partners, but it also reduces the need for American presence and the negative attention it sometimes generates. We see the benefits of this today where U.S.-trained Colombian pilots are training Mexican pilots in Colombia.
Table 1: Top Recipients of U.S. International Assistance (Account 150)
| Fiscal Year 2011 ($ in thousands) [13] | ||
| ? | Non-Security | Security |
| Overall | Assistance | Assistance |
| Israel | Afghanistan | Israel |
| Afghanistan | Pakistan | Egypt |
| Pakistan | Ethiopia | Afghanistan |
| Egypt | Kenya | Pakistan |
| Kenya | Nigeria | Jordan |
| Ethiopia | South Africa | Colombia |
| Jordan | Tanzania | West Bank and Gaza |
| Nigeria | Uganda | Iraq |
| South Africa | West Bank and Gaza | Mexico |
| West Bank and Gaza | Mozambique | Lebanon |
?
In addition to the Department of State budget for security assistance, the Defense Department directly funds security assistance through section 1206/7 and other command funds such as Commander?s Emergency Response Program. This authority did provoke more concern about militarizing foreign policy; however, this only makes up about $1 billion annually, which is less than 15 percent of security assistance funded by the State Department. Further, U.S. ambassadors must approve all programs. Thus, the Department of State exerts considerable control of programs at both budgetary and implementation levels through the embassy country team.
CHANGING ROLE OF THE MILITARY
With national security focused on weak states and persistent security concerns among stable allies like South Korea, the U.S. military has been changing over the last 20 years from a force of confrontation to one of cooperation. The military has learned that partnership is better than clientism and is adapting its command structure once optimized for waging major combat to one that is focused on conflict prevention. There is still a tremendous warfighting capability in the U.S. military, but coalition warfare is the norm and developing compatible warfighting partners is a key goal of this cooperative strategy. In some sense, this turns the idea of militarization of foreign policy on its head; the Pentagon is being demilitarized and valued for its ability to impart military capabilities to U.S. partners.
Given the current structure of the international system and technological advances, the United States does not need partners in the same way as it did in the past where they provided direct benefits through coaling stations, maintenance facilities, or large bases. While the number of forward bases is still substantial, the number of forward deployed forces are greatly reduced. More importantly, the nature of the presence has changed; the United States aspires to create true partners that can confront their own threats to internal stability (e.g., assistance to Colombia?s military) or alleviate security dilemmas (e.g., future basing in Australia). It also seeks to foster independence by training and equipping militaries to support the global demand for peacekeepers.[14] The United States certainly gets increased access to countries around the world through these programs, but given the overwhelming military dominance of the United States, it does not abuse these relationships or ignore seemingly insignificant states. Instead, it seeks to create partners where sovereignty is respected and all parties derive benefits. The latest example of this is U.S. withdrawal from Iraq as dictated by a U.S.-Iraqi agreement.
While the Defense Department?s capacity certainly explains why international assistance missions increasingly have a military face, it is also essential to understand that there is a global demand for U.S. security assistance. The Defense Department has recognized that there are limits to what it can do; the military wants and needs partners from across the government, allies and private organizations. Unfortunately, these ideas remain stunted in the broader foreign policy community that gets easily overwhelmed by the size of the Defense Department?s resources. For critics, U.S. military activities in permissive environments bring old memories of invasion or coup. For them, U.S. foreign policy is on a dangerous militarization path. While that part of U.S. military history is real and still resonates in many parts of the world, it is wrong to overlook the changes that have occurred over the last two decades. Further, it is wrong to overlook the significant demands developed countries place on the United States.
Derek Reveron is a professor of national security affairs at the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island. These views are his own and do not represent official policy. He can be reached at www.usnwc.edu/derekreveron.
NOTES:
[1] Stephen D. Krasner and Carlos Pascual, ?Addressing State Failure,? Foreign Affairs, Vol. 84, No. 4, (July/August 2005).
[2] Derek S. Reveron (ed.), America?s Viceroys: The U.S. Military and Foreign Policy (New York: Palgrave MacMillan, 2004).
[3] Dana Priest, The Mission: Waging War and Keeping Peace with America?s Military, (New York: WW Norton, 2004).
[4] Hilary Rodham Clinton, ?Leading through Civilian Power,? Foreign Affairs, November/December 2010. http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/66799/hillary-rodham-clinton/lead?
[5] Gian Gentile, ?COIN is Dead: U.S. Army Must Put Strategy over Tactics,? World Politics Review, November 22, 2011. http://www.worldpoliticsreview.com/articles/10731/coin-is-dead-u-s-army-?
[6] Gordon Adams, ?Continental Shift: Why the Pentagon Should Pay Less Attention to Africa,? Foreignpolicy.com, January 25, 2013. http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2013/01/25/continental_shift?wp_lo?
[7] Quoted in ?In Europe, a Moment of Truth on Defense,? Wall Street Journal, January 31, 2013.
[8] Congress enacted the Taiwan Relations Act ?to resist any resort to force or other forms of coercion that would jeopardize the security, or the social or economic system, of the people on Taiwan.? Taiwan Relations Act, Public Law 96-8, April 10, 1979.
[9] Title 10 U.S. Code Section 2350a authorizes the Secretary of Defense, with the concurrence of the Secretary of State, to designate MNNAs for purposes of participating with the Department of Defense (DOD) in cooperative research and development programs. MNNA Status does not entail the same mutual defense and security guarantees afforded to NATO members. Status makes a nation eligible for priority delivery of excess defense articles, buy depleted uranium ammunition, have U.S.-owned War Reserve Stockpiles on its territory, enter into agreements with the USG for the cooperative furnishing of training on a bilateral or multilateral basis under reciprocal financial arrangements, use U.S. provided Foreign Military Financing for commercial leasing of certain defense articles, makes a country eligible for loans of materials, supplies and equipment for cooperative R&D projects and testing and evaluation, and makes a country eligible for expedited processing of export licenses of commercial satellites, their technologies, components, and systems.
[10] U.S. military spending is the highest in the world at about 4.5 percent of GDP; most European countries spend just under two percent. Only six countries meet the NATO target of two percent of GDP to support defense.
[11] Given the Arab Awakening and long-term challenges of U.S.-Israel relations this may be changing.
[12] The Marine Corps hymn remembers past invasions of Mexico: ?From the Halls of Montezuma??
[13] Derived from Department of State, FY2011 International Assistance Summary Tables. These data do not include supplemental funds or programs funded outside the Department of State. Regional designations are based on the Department of State?s regional boundaries that vary slightly from the Defense Department?s boundaries.
[14] See Global Peacekeeping Operations Initiative (GPOI) at the Department of State. http://www.state.gov/t/pm/ppa/gpoi
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NBC hires former Obama strategist
FILE - This Jan. 19, 2012 file photo shows David Axelrod, former senior advisor to President Barack Obama, speaking during a panel discussion, "2012: The Path to the Presidency", at the University of Chicago in Chicago. Axelrod has landed a new job at NBC News. The network said Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2013, that Axelrod is joining as a senior political analyst. He'll contribute to broadcasts on both NBC News and the cable network MSNBC. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, file)
FILE - This Jan. 19, 2012 file photo shows David Axelrod, former senior advisor to President Barack Obama, speaking during a panel discussion, "2012: The Path to the Presidency", at the University of Chicago in Chicago. Axelrod has landed a new job at NBC News. The network said Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2013, that Axelrod is joining as a senior political analyst. He'll contribute to broadcasts on both NBC News and the cable network MSNBC. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh, file)
NEW YORK (AP) ? David Axelrod, former strategist and aide to President Obama, has landed a new job at NBC News.
The network said Tuesday that Axelrod is joining as a senior political analyst. He'll contribute to broadcasts on both NBC News and the cable network MSNBC.
Axelrod helped run Obama's successful campaigns in 2008 and 2012 and worked as an adviser to the president during his first term. The former political writer and columnist for the Chicago Tribune started his own political and media consulting firm in 1984.
NBC already employs Steve Schmidt, a top adviser to Obama's 2008 opponent John McCain, as an analyst.
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Monday, February 18, 2013
Photos: Climate-change rally in Washington, D.C.
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Source: http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20130217/NEWS/130217007/1006/RSS
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Australia shares seen opening flat, eyeing China demand
SYDNEY, Feb 18 (Reuters) - Australian shares are seen starting with a flat tone on Monday as blue chips Commonwealth Bank of Australia and Telstra Corp Ltd trade ex-dividend, while miners are likely to climb as top buyer China returns from holiday. * Local share price index futures rose 0.3 percent to 5,008, a 25.9 point discount to the underlying S&P/ASX 200 index close. The benchmark edged down 3 points to 5,033.9 on Friday, but rose 1.3 percent for the week to extend the market's bull-run to a fifth week. * New Zealand's benchmark NZX 50 index rose 0.3 percent to 4,208.0 in early trade. * The S&P 500 dipped on Friday as Wal-Mart dropped following a report of a weak start to February sales, and the index just barely extended its streak of weekly gains to seven. * Copper dipped as the dollar rose, outperformed again by aluminium and zinc, but investors hoped a surge of buying will emerge when Chinese participants return from holiday this week. * Australian packaging group Amcor Ltd reported a better-than-expected 5.7 percent rise in first-half underlying profit, buoyed by its Aperio food packaging acquisition last year and despite battling currency headwinds. * Both Commonwealth Bank of Australia and telecommunication giant Telstra Corp Ltd will be trading ex-dividend on Monday. ----------------------MARKET SNAPSHOT @ 2206 GMT ------------ INSTRUMENT LAST PCT CHG NET CHG S&P 500 1519.79 -0.1% -1.590 USD/JPY 93.82 0.36% 0.340 10-YR US TSY YLD 2.0052 -- 0.000 SPOT GOLD 1609.19 0.00% 0.000 US CRUDE 96.04 -1.31% -1.270 DOW JONES 13981.76 0.06% 8.37 ASIA ADRS 136.35 -0.34% -0.46 ------------------------------------------------------------- * Wall St ends slightly down, S&P positive for 7th week * Oil sinks, Brent headed for first wkly loss since Jan * Gold drops over 3.7 pct in week on technical selling * Copper falls, aluminium up as market awaits Chinese For a digest of the day's business stories in Australian newspapers, double click on (Reporting by Maggie Lu Yueyang; Editing by John Mair)
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Music subscription service Rhapshody updates client for Windows Phone 8
Published by Ewan Spence at
It's been a good month for music lovers on Windows Phone 8. Joining an updated version of Spotify earlier in February is a new version of music subscription service Rhapsody (reports the official Windows Phone blog). The Windows Phone app allows you to work with your existing 'personal stations' of music, playlists, and selected music that you have curated on your account through other platforms, such as the XBox 360 client.
Features of the client include:
- Listen to downloaded playlists, albums and songs without a connection.
- Do more with My Music
- View your music library
- Save artists, albums and tracks to My Music
- Access My Music from any Rhapsody-supported device
- Be the first to hear new releases from your favorite artists.??
- Explore any genre in depth with stations, new releases and top tracks.
- See what?s popular on Rhapsody.
- Relax with Rhapsody radio. Pick from artist, genre, or theme-based stations. No ads!??
- Build playlists on Rhapsody.com and they will automatically appear on your Windows Phone.???
?
? 
You can download the free client direct from the Windows Store.
Source / Credit: Windows Phone Blog (Microsoft)
Filed: Home > Flow > Music subscription service Rhapshody updates client for Windows Phone 8
Platforms: Windows Phone 8
Categories: Apps
?
Source: http://allaboutwindowsphone.com/flow/item/16861_Music_subscription_service_Rha.php
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Sen. Rubio leaves for visit to Israel, Jordan
(JTA) -- U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) has left for an official visit to the Middle East, including Jordan and Israel.
Rubio, who is a likely frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016, announced on his website Saturday that he was leaving the same day on the visit, in his official capacities as a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee and Foreign Relations Committee. It is his first visit to Jordan and second to Israel.
While in Israel, Rubio is scheduled to meet with President Shimon Peres and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss various areas of "mutual interest," including the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. He will also meet with Israeli political, defense, intelligence and business leaders.?Rubio?said he will meet with Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ismail Fayyad, as well.
"America's friendship with Israel is a truly special one, and we must continue to do all we can to support this beacon of democracy, religious freedom and free enterprise in the heart of an unstable region," Rubio said in the statement on his website. "As Iran continues its pursuit of a nuclear weapon, we must continue to apply pressure through every possible means in order to prevent a nuclear Iran. And I look forward to assessing the impact American security assistance is having and discussing the importance of the peace treaty between Israel and Egypt and how we can maintain it during this time of great uncertainty and tumult in Egypt."
Rubio is scheduled to meet in Jordan with King Abdullah and other members of the Jordanian government, where he plans to discuss the Syrian civil war and how the resulting humanitarian crisis is having an impact on Jordan and the region, he said on his website.
Rubio's wife Jeanette accompanied him on the trip.
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Source: http://www.jta.org/news/article/2013/02/17/3119761/sen-rubio-leaves-for-visit-to-israel-jordan
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V2 video conferencing systems go into a festive new communication ...
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Source: http://ellea608.blogspot.com/2013/02/v2-video-conferencing-systems-go-into.html
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West Liberty University professor scrutinized for barring Fox News as source
Feb. 15, 2013
Dive Summary:
- West Liberty University instructor Stephanie Wolfe assigned students to keep a "politics journal," recording their reactions to various articles from news sources such as The Economist, BBC, CNN and The Huffington Post.
- She specified, however, that the only two sources that students could not use were The Onion and Fox News, the latter of which earned her scrutiny after students shared the assignment with parents, who in turn called the university and local reporters.
- In an interview Thursday, President Robin Capehart said that Wolfe's ban on Fox News was inappropriate, that he would have felt the same way about telling students not to use MSNBC and that Wolfe had since realized her mistake and allowed students to quote from that source.
From the article:
Students in a political science class at West Liberty University were given an assignment recently to keep a "politics journal" in which they would record their reactions to various articles they had selected. The instructor at the West Virginia public institution included some possible news sources, such as The Economist, BBC, CNN and The Huffington Post. But the instructor also specified that two sources could not be used. ...
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/EducationDive-News/~3/ZiodY5Ds5iQ/
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Sunday, February 17, 2013
Articles and Web Contents: Cell Phone Accessories
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Source: http://articlesandwebcontents.blogspot.com/2013/02/cell-phone-accessories.html
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Friday's near-miss asteroid could help scientists find more dangerous ones
Asteroid 2012 DA14 will buzz within 17,200 miles of Earth ? a record for a known object of that size. While it's no threat to hit, it might help scientists find and track others that are.
The passage of asteroid 2012 DA14 through the Earth-moon system is depicted in this artist's rendering.
JPL-Caltech/NASA/Reuters
EnlargeAsteroid 2012 DA14 is on course to buzz Earth Friday, making its closest approach at 2:24 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.
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The object, roughly 150 feet across, poses no threat to Earth. But its close approach, which will bring it to within 17,200 miles of the planet, is a record for a known object of that size.
Coming so close, the asteroid represents a prime target for scientists who are interested in the object for scientific reasons as well as to improve their abilities to forecast asteroid orbits as a way to keep tabs on potentially hazardous objects.
Factors that influence those orbits can be subtle, notes Ed Beshore, an astronomer at the University of Arizona at Tucson and a key player in NASA's upcoming OSIRIS-Rex mission to asteroid 1999 RQ36. The launch is slated for 2016.
For instance, when sunlight hits the surface of an rotating asteroid, the asteroid returns that energy to space in the form of heat.
"The heat acts like a tiny rocket thruster that can push asteroids out of otherwise harmless orbits," he says. The reason: A rotating asteroid sheds the heat unevenly across its surface, in effect sloughing it off in the direction of "dawn" on the asteroid. This direction may or may not coincide with the direction the asteroid is traveling along its orbit.
Indeed, this force, known as the Yarkovsky effect, is thought to help resupply the inner solar system with asteroids that otherwise might have stayed in the main asteroid belt, which lies between Mars and Jupiter.
A year ago, Dr. Beshore says, one of the mission's team members performed "a really exquisite set of measurements using radar data and came up with a preliminary estimate for the kinds of forces" this effect imposes on OSIRIS-Rex's target asteroid.
It's about the same as "the force that you feel when you hold a couple of grapes in your hand, he says, adding "that force, applied over millions of years, can literally move these mountains of rock around."
Since the force also plays a role in shaping and reshaping the orbits of near-Earth asteroids, "it's really quite important for us to make sure we understand this force much better."
It also helps explain why researchers will be aiming optical telescopes and radar at close-passing objects like Friday's 2012 DA14.
Researchers will be staffing optical telescopes to measure changes in the asteroid's reflected light as it rotates ? a key element in calculating the Yarkovsky effect. Radar will be used to pin down the asteroid's shape, reveal some of its surface features, and determine its rotation rate and direction.
As close as 2012 DA14 is approaching, it's still a small object, adds Amy Mainzer, who heads a project at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory to use data from NASA's WISE orbiting infrared telescope to hunt for near-Earth objects ? especially those dark enough to make them tough to see visually. Even though the objects are dark, they still radiate heat.
A similar observing effort revealed a treasure-trove of data on asteroid 2005 YU55, an aircraft-carrier-sized object that passed by Earth just inside the moon's orbit in November 2011.
The object's large size was a key factor in the relatively high quality observations astronomers gathered, Dr. Mainzer says.
For those of us who lack direct access to radars at the Arecibo Radiotelescope in Puerto Rico or to NASA's radar in Goldstone, Calif., the agency will be webcasting the event from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, with commentary for the half hour that brackets the time of closet approach. Weather permitting, the webcast will include live images from observatories in Australia, which will have a dark, ringside seat for the event. A longer webcast will originate at the Marshall Spaceflight Center in Huntsville, Ala.
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Saturday, February 16, 2013
Perry says while in California, he discussed the idea of the San Diego Chargers...
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Thursday, February 14, 2013
Finance Act 2013 ? DBASS News
What does it mean for you and your business?
The Finance Bill 2013, containing draft legislation to give effect to the measures announced in last December?s budget, was published on 13 February 2013 by the Minister of Finance, Michael Noonan. The Bill confirms the measures announced in the budget together with any amendments and this year, we also see the introduction of a number of new measures including:
- Changes to the tax treatment of ?key employees? for R&D. Currently, a ?key employee? must spend 75% of their time working on R&D in order for their employer to qualify for R&D tax credit. This has been reduced to 50%.
- An extension to excise duty relief on fuel to private sector passenger transport operators which will come into effect in July 2013.
- The abolition of Foreign Service Relief meaning termination of payments for employees that have been on Foreign Service during employment is no longer exempt from tax.
- An extension to the Employment and Investment Incentive and Seed Capital Schemes from 2014 to 2020, and to include the hospitality sector.
In publishing the Finance Bill, Minister Noonan said that the ?..SME sector will be the driver of the economic recovery across the country.? He added, ?This Government is committed to supporting this key sector and each of the measures included in Finance Bill 2013 are designed to help this critical sector to trade, to grow into new products and markets, to sustain existing and to create new jobs.?
There are some practical measures included in the 10 Point Plan (plus 2) that should help SMEs. The increase in the VAT cash receipts threshold should bring some relief to cash flow to those businesses whose turnover is over ?1 million. The changes to the tax treatment of ?key employees? for R&D should also provide incentive to SMEs to invest in R&D. For the property sector, the Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) is a positive move and should help to stimulate overseas investor interest in the Irish property market.
If you have any questions relating to the measures introduced, please contact ?a member of the DBASS team, we would be happy to advise you.
Here is a summary of the key measures set out in Finance Bill 2013.
PERSONAL TAX
Film relief
The Bill confirms that tax relief on film investment will no longer be available to individual investors. Instead, a single rate of tax relief at 32% will apply and the payment of the tax relief directly to the film production company.
Charitable donations
As announced in the Budget, with effect from 1 January 2013, individuals will no longer be able to claim tax relief on donations to approved charitable organisations. Instead, tax relief will be payable to the relevant charitable organisation at a single rate of relief at 31%. Donations are limited annually to ?1m.
EMPLOYMENT TAX
Termination Payments
Top slicing relief will no longer be available on ex-gratia lump sum payments from 1 January 2013 where the non-statutory element of an employee?s redundancy or termination payment is more than ?200,000.
The Bill also extends to limit the tax exempt payment amount to ?200,000 to include ex-gratia payments on the termination of employment upon death or disability of an employee.? Any excess will be taxed in full.
In addition, the Bill provides for the abolition of the Foreign Service Relief.
PENSIONS
Withdrawal from Additional Voluntary Contributions (AVCs)
As announced in the Minister?s Budget speech, the Bill introduces a new section whereby an individual who has made AVCs (including additional voluntary PRSA contributions to an AVC PRSA) to an approved scheme or statutory scheme will be allowed to exercise a once off option to withdraw up to 30% of the accumulated value of the AVCs. The provision will be available for a period of three years from the date of passing of the Finance Act 2013.
Approved Retirement Funds (ARFs)
Finance Bill 2013 withdraws two provisions introduced in the Finance Act 2011 in respect of ARF options & Vested PRSAs, they are:
- The increase in the minimum guaranteed pension income i.e. Specified Income from ?12,700 per annum to 1.5 times the State Pension (Contributory), currently ?18,000 and;
- The maximum ?set aside? amount required to be placed in an Approved Minimum Retirement Fund (AMRF) from ?63,500 to 10 times the rate of the State Pension (Contributory), currently ?119,800.
BUSINESS TAX
Employment and Investment Incentive Scheme
The Bill introduces an extension to the Employment and Investment Incentive tax relief scheme from 2014 to 2020. The qualifying activities eligible under this scheme have also been extended to include operating hotels, guest houses, self-catering accommodation or similar establishments for a limited period of time. The extensions are subject to EU approval.
R&D tax credits
As announced in the budget, the Research & Development (R&D) tax credit is being enhanced by increasing the eligible expenditure from ?100,000 to ?200,000. Under the ?key employee? provision of the R&D regime, the ?key employee? must spend 75% of their time working on R&D. This is being reduced to 50% in order to assist SME?s.
Corporation Tax relief
The Bill confirms a three-year relief for start-up companies is being extended to allow any unused credit arising in the first three years of trading to be carried forward for use in subsequent years. The relief is still capped to the amount of Employer PRSI paid in a year.
Intangible assets
The claw-back period of capital allowances in respect of expenditure incurred on intellectual property is currently 10 years. The Bill introduces a reduction in the claw-back period if the assets are disposed or cease to be used in the trade to 5 years.
Close company surcharge
The exemption amount which can be retained by a close company without giving rise to a close company surcharge is being increased from ?635 to ?2,000.
Auto diesel excise duty relief
The Bill also gives effect to the auto-diesel excise duty relief for licensed and tax compliant hauliers that the Minister announced in his Budget speech. The relief will be extended to the licensed passenger transport sector. The relief will take effect from 1 July 2013 and the amount of relief will be linked to the price of auto-diesel. The maximum amount of relief will be 7.5 cents per litre.
VAT cash receipts threshold
The threshold VAT on cash receipts will increase from ?1m to ?1.25m with effect from 1 May 2013.
Public bodies
The Bill amends the list of goods and services chargeable at the 13.5% VAT rate to include non-member and member owned golf courses from 1 January 2013. The services threshold of ?37,500 for VAT purposes also applies to certain public bodies engaged in the supply of certain sporting and physical education activities.
PROPERTY
Urban renewal initiative
The Bill introduces a scheme for the refurbishment of Georgian buildings built between 1714 and 1830 in certain urban areas and will be piloted in Limerick and Waterford. It will apply to owner-occupied properties and also to the refurbishment of certain retail and other commercial properties. The scheme will be commenced by Ministerial Order and will apply to qualifying expenditure incurred within a five-year period of that date.
Stamp Duty ? resting on contract
The Bill brings into force previously announced anti-avoidance provisions aimed at schemes enabling the transfer of interests in land where no stamp duty was payable due to an absence of a stampable document. For contracts entered into after 13 February 2013 and where 25% or more of the consideration has been paid, a charge to stamp duty will arise.
Real Estate Investment Trusts (REIT)
A Real Estate Investments Trust (REIT) is being introduced to attract foreign investment capital to the Irish property market. REITs are listed companies which are exempt from corporation tax on income and gains from rental investment property, provided the profits are distributed.
Dealing in or developing land
With effect from 13 February 2013, the release of debts attributable to loans borrowed to acquire land held as trading stock will be treated as an income receipt in the year of release.
Provision is made to ensure that the amount is chargeable even where the trade has ceased before the time of the release of the debt. Release of a debt refers to any form of debt forgiveness.
Losses will be restricted to the amount of interest actually paid or the decline in land value that has actually been realised by way of a disposal of the land. The provisions apply to any interest expense incurred or any write-down in land value which takes place on or after 13 February 2013.
Young trained farmers
The relief on transfers of agricultural land to young trained farmers has been extended to 31 December 2015.
CAPITAL TAXES
Capital Acquisitions Tax
The Bill confirms the increase in the CAT rate from 30% to 33% effective from 6 December 2012. It also confirms a 10% reduction in the CAT-free thresholds for gifts and inheritances taken on and after 6 December 2012.
Capital Gains Tax
The rate of capital gains tax has increased from 30% to 33% in respect of disposals made on or after 6 December 2012.
CGT on disposal of agricultural land
A once-off relief from capital gains tax on disposals of farm land for farm restructuring purposes will apply in respect of transactions from 1 January 2013 to 31 December 2015. Relief is available where the proceeds are reinvested for the same purpose. The sale and purchase of the farm land must occur within 24 months of each other. This relief is subject to obtaining EU State Aid approval.
Flat-rate farmers
The unregistered farmer?s flat rate addition will be reduced from 5.2% to 4.8% with effect from 1 January 2013.
LOCAL PROPERTY TAX
The Finance (Local Property Tax) Act 2012 which was enacted in December 2012 is to be amended by the Finance Local Property Tax (Amendment) Bill 2013. Read our Local Property Tax ? Your Questions Answered for more information about the new tax and how it will be administered. Finance Bill 2013 confirmed the following amendments:
- To provide an exemption for residential properties which have been damaged by pyrite, are used by charities for recreational activities or which are occupied by incapacitated individuals and the property was acquired due to its suitability or has been modified for the individual. The chargeable value of the property can be potentially reduced where the property has been adapted for disabled persons.
- For the first valuation period (2013-2016) only the chargeable value of properties owned by local authorities and approved housing bodies will be deemed to fall into the lowest valuation band. In addition, the 2013 payment will be payable by 1 January 2014.
- The property tax will also have to be returned and paid in order to receive a tax clearance certificate.
The Finance Bill 2013 is still subject to amendment before enactment.
For further information:
Budget 2013: The main points from Budget 2013
Budget 2013: Download our Budget 2013 highlights
Budget 2013: Read our summary of Revenue?s FAQs to help you better understand the Local Property Tax
Finance Bill 2013: Download documentation on the Finance Bill 2013 on the Department of Finance website
Source: http://www.dbass.ie/blog/finance-act-2013/
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Pope's abdication could upset Berlusconi comeback
Livio Anticoli/Presidenza del Consiglio via Reuters, file
The resignation of Pope Benedict XVI -- seen being greeted by then-Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi at Rome's Ciampino airport in 2009 -- could hamper Berlusconi's political comeback bid, experts say.
By Alastair Jamieson, Staff writer, NBC News
ROME -- The abdication of Pope Benedict XVI is a move of global magnitude, but it is causing even bigger waves in Italy, where some experts believe the blanket media coverage could thwart the political comeback of Silvio Berlusconi.
The disgraced former prime minister is seeking a return to the spotlight by leading a center-right alliance in this month?s elections, triggered by the resignation of his successor, Mario Monti.
Berlusconi?s alliance is behind in the polls, not least because of the impending "bunga bunga" court case, where he is accused of paying for sex with an underage nightclub dancer.
But the 76-year-old billionaire has been catching up with the center-left alliance led by Pier Luigi Bersani, using his media empire to make a string of television appearances ? last month clocking up 63 hours of airtime in only 21 days.
That media-led surge could now be stopped as newspapers and television stations focus on the pope?s decision to stand aside ? and the speculation about who will take over.
The Vatican says the pope will likely not be named pope emeritus to avoid having two popes at once. NBC's Anne Thompson reports.
?The election campaign ended at 11:46 a.m. on Monday,? wrote political analyst Luigi Crespi in La Repubblica Tuesday, referring to the moment of Pope Benedict?s announcement.
'Legacy of a moral leader'
He is one of a number of experts who believe the sudden shift in national tone from political concerns to issues of spiritual leadership is likely to hit Berlusconi hardest.
Beppe Severgnini, writing in Corriera della Sera, said the departure of Benedict and the search for his successor would ?inevitably fill newspapers, websites, social networks, talk shows and news programs for the next two weeks.?
?And one of the contenders -- no need to say which -- needs all the stage in order to set up the show, and he will not have one,? Severgnini added, in reference to Berlusconi. ?A story like this forces you to think about the role, responsibilities, and the legacy of a moral leader.?
That will add to the pressure on Berlusconi, even though his "bunga bunga" trial hearing was this week delayed until March 4 ? a week after the parliamentary poll, which takes place on Feb. 24 and 25.
Marcello Sorgi, a columnist for La Stampa newspaper, said the actions of all politicians in Italy would be seen less favorably when compared to the pope?s humility and self-realization that he is no longer physically able to serve his church.
Voters will see the pope?s act as courageous and compare him to "a political class that has been living off its failures for 20 years," Sorgi wrote,?according to Agence France Press.
Giovanni Orsina, political commentator and professor of history at Luiss Guido Carli University in Rome, said it was ?hard to say? if the pope?s resignation would affect the way Catholics vote.
Petar Pismestrovic / Kleine Zeitung, Austria, Politic
Click here to view this cartoon slideshow.
?But it certainly will have an impact on whichever candidate is the most hungry for television coverage and who has the most to gain from media exposure ? and that is definitely Berlusconi,? he said. ?He is the person who needs to use the media the most.?
?I think it is unprecedented for such a big event in the Catholic church to happen so close to the climax of an election campaign like this,? he added.
Orsina pointed out that opinion polls are banned in Italy for the final two weeks of the campaign, making it hard to measure how the pope?s decision has affected voting intentions.
In November 2011, Berlusconi was forced to resign as prime minister after it became clear that his denial that the country was in an economic crisis was bringing Italy to the brink of disaster.
In October last year, he was sentenced to?four years in prison for an epic offshore tax fraud, put off pending appeals to higher courts.
He was also placed at a distance by the Vatican, which grew concerned that his personal life did not reflect his political rhetoric of moral leadership.
Related:
Italy's comeback kid Berlusconi defends wartime fascist Mussolini
Witness: Italian ex-PM Berlusconi hosted strippers dressed as nuns
Pope says retirement is for 'good of the church'
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Facebook PMD Email Tells Advertisers: No Pay, No Play - Business ...
Scott Olson/Getty Images
CEO Mark Zuckerberg: No more Mr. Nice Guy when it comes to Facebook freeloaders.
?
Facebook has temporarily halted one of its most important advertising programs ? the so-called Preferred Marketing Developers badge system ? in order to change it so that it focuses on advertisers and agencies who buy paid ad media on Facebook.The message is clear: If you want to play with Facebook, you must now pay for the privilege ? in the form of ads.
Separately, we noted earlier that Facebook wields a big stick when it comes to advertisers who don't want to follow the rules: They get banned, ultimately.
The policy change was articulated in an email to new potential Facebook PMD clients, which was obtained by Business Insider.
Previously, the program, which serves advertisers who want to have a presence on Facebook and learn more about the social network's capabilities, was open to companies that only wanted Facebook's free pages for companies, or those who provided analytic and measurement services that did not include paid ad buys.
But, "the new badge criteria will include a focus on paid media," according to the email Facebook is sending new potential members of the PMD system.
In a statement to Business Insider, Facebook said there was no strict link between PMD membership and paid ads:
There is no specific requirement that all PMD's run ads, which this article seems to indicate. Additionally, we are still badging on all other fronts, including insights, pages, and apps. What we are working on, just as we do for brands and agencies, is ensuring that the PMD ecosystem is comprehensive in its knowledge of the entire Facebook marketing platform versus a smaller subset. The intrinsic link between paid, earned, and owned media on Facebook means that PMDs must have a deep knowledge and understanding across all of those areas to ensure marketer success. Many of the most successful PMDs offer comprehensive Facebook marketing solutions, through creative partnerships with other PMDs or by offering multifaceted tools.
The new version of the PMD program, which will go live soon, will require advertisers and their agencies to buy paid media on Facebook in order to qualify. Those who do not want to overtly buy ads must demonstrate that they have "a Facebook holistic strategy and influence your clients on media spend."
The email is mostly likely to affect companies which offer their clients Facebook analytics, management tools and dashboards but don't prioritize paid ad buys.
Here's the text of the email:
Dear applicant,
We would like to thank you for applying to our Preferred Marketing Developer Program.
If you have been in touch with a PMD Team representative, please ignore the rest of this email.
If you haven't, we would like to apologize for the delay in our response.
The reason for this delay is that we have been reshaping our PMD Badge requirements and application process. Our goal is to make the PMD Program and its members even stronger by raising the bar.
This should?go live in the next few weeks?and we will let you know via email then.
In the meantime, here are the things you should know to get prepared:
?? ???? ?The new application process will be based on a referral system so please make sure somebody at Facebook you have worked with is willing to vouch for you.
?? ???? ?The new badge criteria will include a focus on paid media across all 4 Qualifications, so please prepare details on how you have been successfully helping brands develop their presence on Facebook with their paid, owned and earned media strategy (please note that if you do not buy ads or sponsored stories on behalf of your clients, you will need to show us that you have the ability to pitch a Facebook holistic strategy and influence your clients on media spend).
Once you re-apply, please mention in the form that you received this email and we will prioritize your submission.
Best regards,
The PMD Team
And here's Facebook's "Gone Fishin'" message to new PMD applicants:
Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/facebook-pmd-email-tells-new-advertisers-no-pay-no-play-2013-2
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Wednesday, February 13, 2013
33.5 million tuned in to watch US President Obama's State of the Union address - @NielsenWire
Source: Nielsen
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