This Charming Band

Illustration by Lilli Carr?.

I am not a casual fan of the Smiths.

This is most clearly evidenced by the large tattoo on my right shoulder that simply reads ?Morrissey.? I met the singer in a back hallway at Late Night With Jimmy Fallon in March 2009. (Friends who work on the show did me a favor.) I brought a marker, intending to ask Moz to sign my arm, then head to a tattoo parlor to get his signature etched onto my shoulder. I did just that. I have not regretted it even one time. This tattoo was made a permanent part of my body four days after I saw Morrissey play a great show in Montclair, N.J., where I?two months out from my 30th birthday?leapt on stage and managed to grab his hand before a burly security guard wrapped his arms around my waist and flung me into a corral specifically built to deal with the stage invasions that are a fixture at Morrissey shows.

Furthermore, I recently had a rough summer and in the aftermath of two pronounced panic attacks decided the only way to deal with my troubles was to again turn to Manchester?s favorite sons. I now sport across my right bicep?just inches from my Morrissey signature tattoo?ink that reads, ?It takes strength to be gentle and kind.? Non-Smiths fans will think this is a good sentiment, yet maybe an unnecessary piece of body art. Those who are familiar with the band may recognize that lyric from ?I Know It?s Over,? a track off their classic album The Queen Is Dead. But fans with a true obsession for Morrissey, Marr, Rourke, and Joyce will recognize that my particular tattoo was more likely inspired by the version of the song that appeared on the band?s post-breakup live album, Rank, since ?I Know It?s Over? is undeniably a good song on The Queen Is Dead but the live performance of it on Rank captures Morrissey at his most passionate. Embracing the Smiths means, to me, embracing their outsider and underdog ethos, it means identifying yourself with independent values, and it means finding catharsis through lyrics that capture the feelings of loneliness, being different, and raging against a world that looks to put one into a box better than any band before or since.

As mentioned, I am not a casual fan of the Smiths.

Still, I?m far from their most committed devotee. Even at my last Morrissey show?my ninth?I was granted access by a friend of mine named Joey who had secured an extra ticket and allowed me to buy it off him. Joey travels the country when Moz is touring, catching as many of his shows as possible. The cult of Morrissey that still follows the singer around is obsessive to a degree even I can?t imagine, and it spans all demographics?after the show, I went to a diner with Joey, as well as a number of young ladies who fit the stereotype of Smiths fans, and a middle-aged woman, and a couple from California who fashion themselves the surrogate leader of this unlikely pack and go so far as to refer to my friend Joey as their son. These were the types of Smiths fans that view me as chump change because I only have two Smiths-related tattoos.

It?s fandom like this that makes a 658-page book about the Smiths possible, and so I?m likely the ideal reader of Tony Fletcher?s A Light That Never Goes Out, a comprehensive biography of the band that even I found to be a bit too comprehensive. I can?t imagine what someone who wasn?t already deeply in love with the band would think.

The book starts with a simple sentence: ?The story of the Smiths is intrinsically entwined with that of Manchester.? This seems harmless enough, and even passing fans of the band would undoubtedly agree that it?s true. From that simple sentence, though, Fletcher launches into a lengthy exploration of Manchester?its history, its economic circumstances leading into the ?80s, its working-class culture, how its slums came to be built, how Irish immigrants dominated certain neighborhoods, not to mention his breakdown of its music scene as he writes about what seems to be every concert staged in Manchester from the dawn of rock and roll forward. It?s exhaustive, but it?s also exhausting. Even I?a man with the lead singer?s signature tattooed on my shoulder?found much of the information in the first third of the book to be so tangentially connected to the Smiths that it was hard not to get frustrated. Eventually, Fletcher does a good job of looping this vast amount of information back to Morrissey and Marr?s influences and upbringing, but I simply found it hard to read almost 200 pages of a book about the Smiths that take place before the Smiths even meet each other.

Here is Fletcher, on Page 198, speaking to the backgrounds of Morrissey and Marr:

Too much would be made over time of the pair as opposites?in geniality, exuberance, hedonism, sexuality; in hours kept, clothes worn, and books read. In fact, as already noted, they had a phenomenal amount in common: Irish immigrant parents, working class roots, a single female sibling (within close age range), a strong relationship with mother and a distant one with father, the violent drudgery of the Manchester Catholic schools system, and forced slum clearance from the inner city.

As Fletcher himself indicates, all of this is ?already noted.? That?s what?s in the previous 198 pages. The above quote by and large saves you close to an entire book?s worth of reading if you wish to start closer to the actual journey of the Smiths, which would presumably be the story you wanted to read upon purchasing this book.

Source: http://feeds.slate.com/click.phdo?i=3d940c3acc7b927929666940a96abe38

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Geo Group anticipates special dividend for 2012

BOCA RATON, Fla. (AP) ? The GEO Group Inc. said Friday that it may issue a special dividend payment before the end of the year.

The correctional institute services provider said it may pay a special dividend totaling $340 million to $360 million on or before Dec. 31. The payment is still subject to approval by its board. The company expects the board to approve the dividend by Dec. 7.

The potential special dividend would be paid in connection with board's consideration of whether GEO should elect to convert into a real estate investment trust.

GEO has about 61.6 million shares outstanding, according to FactSet, implying a per-share payout of $5.68 at the midpoint.

Geo Group is one of a number of companies considering whether to move up its quarterly payout or issue a special end-of-year payment to protect investors from potentially having to pay higher taxes on dividend income starting in January.

Since 2003 investors have paid a maximum 15 percent on dividend income. But that historically low rate will expire in January unless Congress and President Barack Obama reach a compromise on taxes and government spending. As it stands, dividends will be taxed as ordinary income in 2013, the same as wages, so rates will go up depending on which income bracket a taxpayer is in. For the highest earners, the dividend rate would jump to 43.4 percent.

Shares fell 21 cents to close at $28.20 but gained 80 cents in after-hours trading. The stock has gained 68 percent in the year to date.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/geo-group-anticipates-special-dividend-2012-233719306--finance.html

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Changes in nerve cells may contribute to the development of mental illness

ScienceDaily (Nov. 28, 2012) ? Reduced production of myelin, a type of protective nerve fiber that is lost in diseases like multiple sclerosis, may also play a role in the development of mental illness, according to researchers at the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. The study is published in the journal Nature Neuroscience.

Myelin is an insulating material that wraps around the axon, the threadlike part of a nerve cell through which the cell sends impulses to other nerve cells. New myelin is produced by nerve cells called oligodendrocytes both during development and in adulthood to repair damage in the brain of people with diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS).

A new study led by Patrizia Casaccia, MD, PhD, Professor of Neuroscience, Genetics and Genomics; and Neurology at Mount Sinai, determined that depriving mice of social contact reduced myelin production, demonstrating that the formation of new oligodendrocytes is affected by environmental changes. This research provides further support to earlier evidence of abnormal myelin in a wide range of psychiatric disorders, including autism, anxiety, schizophrenia and depression.

"We knew that a lack of social interaction early in life impacted myelination in young animals but were unsure if these changes would persist in adulthood," said Dr. Casaccia, who is also Chief of the Center of Excellence for Myelin Repair at the Friedman Brain Institute at Mount Sinai School of Medicine. "Social isolation of adult mice causes behavioral and structural changes in neurons, but this is the first study to show that it causes myelin dysfunction as well."

Dr. Casaccia's team isolated adult mice to determine whether new myelin formation was compromised. After eight weeks, they found that the isolated mice showed signs of social withdrawal. Subsequent brain tissue analyses indicated that the socially isolated mice had lower-than-normal levels of myelin-forming oligodendrocytes in the prefrontal cortex, but not in other areas of the brain. The prefrontal cortex controls complex emotional and cognitive behavior.

The researchers also found changes in chromatin, the packing material for DNA. As a result, the DNA from the new oligodendrocytes was unavailable for gene expression.

After observing the reduction in myelin production in socially-isolated mice, Dr. Casaccia's team then re-introduced these mice into a social group. After four weeks, the social withdrawal symptoms and the gene expression changes were reversed.

"Our study demonstrates that oligodendrocytes generate new myelin as a way to respond to environmental stimuli, and that myelin production is significantly reduced in social isolation," said Dr. Casaccia. "Abnormalities occur in people with psychiatric conditions characterized by social withdrawal. Other disorders characterized by myelin loss, such as MS, often are associated with depression. Our research emphasizes the importance of maintaining a socially stimulating environment in these instances."

At Mount Sinai, Dr. Casaccia's laboratory is studying oligodendrocyte formation to identify therapeutic targets for myelin repair. They are screening newly-developed pharmacological compounds in brain cells from rodents and humans for their ability to form new myelin.

Dr. Casaccia is the recipient of the Neuroscience Javits Award by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, a division of the National Institutes of Health, who also funded this research (R37-NS42925-10) along with the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by The Mount Sinai Hospital / Mount Sinai School of Medicine, via Newswise.

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

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Journal Reference:

1. Jia Liu, Karen Dietz, Jacqueline M DeLoyht, Xiomara Pedre, Dipti Kelkar, Jasbir Kaur, Vincent Vialou, Mary Kay Lobo, David M Dietz, Eric J Nestler, Jeffrey Dupree, Patrizia Casaccia. Impaired adult myelination in the prefrontal cortex of socially isolated mice. Nature Neuroscience, 2012; 15 (12): 1621 DOI: 10.1038/nn.3263

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/bM4e8GVU6uI/121128122035.htm

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Analysis: Mexico's new president to reset drug war, push reforms

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico's new president takes office on Saturday seeking to shift the focus away from a grisly drug war and onto economic reforms aimed at sparking fast growth and pulling the country out of the shadow of regional powerhouse Brazil.

Enrique Pena Nieto inherits a $1.2 trillion economy that lagged other emerging markets for most of the past decade but has gained ground over the past two years, drawing in record investment despite continuing criminal violence.

The former state governor must grapple with the legacy of outgoing President Felipe Calderon - a raging battle with drug cartels that has killed over 60,000 people in the last six years and shaved an estimated percentage point off annual growth.

Returning to power the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) that ruled Mexico for most of the past century, Pena Nieto has stepped back from Calderon's military offensive against the cartels, saying he will focus on reducing murders and crime.

"Where am I heading?" Pena Nieto said at a meeting of Mexican businessmen this month. "Toward a country with greater public security. So Mexicans can live more peacefully."

He says he will push through economic reforms and infrastructure projects to speed up trade with the United States and give young people an alternative to crime.

"The main problem we see in the United States and Mexico is the common challenge of lacking jobs," Emilio Lozoya, a close ally of Pena Nieto and likely member of his cabinet, told Reuters. "That's where we think we should focus more."

President Barack Obama told Pena Nieto during a private meeting at the White House on Tuesday that he does not want a "monothematic" relationship with Mexico based only on joint security, an aide to the new president said.

Pena Nieto, 46, wants to open up the state oil monopoly Pemex to more private investment, an idea that leftist opponents and some of the more traditional members of his own PRI balk at.

Mexico is the world's No. 7 oil producer and is heavily dependent on oil revenues, but crude output has slumped by about a quarter since reaching 3.4 million barrels a day in 2004, and Pena Nieto wants the private sector to help boost exploration.

He hopes to emulate the success of Petrobras, the partly privatized state-controlled Brazilian oil firm.

Brazil was for years the darling of investors in Latin America, boasting economic growth almost twice as fast as Mexico this past decade. Today Mexico is gaining ground and in 2012 has attracted much more investment in stocks and bonds than Brazil.

Pena Nieto is also planning to present a fiscal reform bill in his first year in office in a bid to increase the tax take, a step credit rating agencies say is vital if the credit rating on Mexican debt is to improve.

REFORMS MAY BE DILUTED

Congress this month approved a wide-reaching labor reform pushed by Calderon and his conservative National Action Party (PAN) in a sign of cooperation between Pena Nieto's PRI and the PAN that could bode well for the new administration.

But without a majority in either house of Congress, Pena Nieto will be forced to horse-trade.

"I think that he is focused on the right reforms," said Nader Nazmi, an economist with BNP Paribas in New York. "These are crucial for increasing potential growth in Mexico."

"There are interest groups involved in all these negotiations ... so there will be a watering down of reforms. The hope is that the watering down will not be substantial."

His hands tied by a hostile Congress, Calderon struggled to push through meaningful reforms, and changes to energy policies he oversaw in 2008 were significantly diluted.

Until the latter half of Calderon's administration, the economy barely expanded, and mustered average growth of just 1.9 percent per year over 12 years of PAN rule. In addition, Mexico's poverty rate rose to 46.2 percent in 2010 from 44.5 percent in 2008 according to official government data.

Public opinion has been highly critical of Calderon's management of the drug war. A survey published this week by pollster GCE found that nearly two thirds of Mexicans felt drug cartels were winning the battle with authorities.

Federico Guevara, a spokesman for the government of Chihuahua, the state hardest hit by the drugs war, criticized Calderon for trying to "fight fire with fire", and called his military deployment too much show and not enough substance.

"It was like the scene from 'Apocalypse Now' with the helicopters blasting Wagner out of the speakers," he said, referring to Francis Ford Coppola's 1979 Vietnam War film.

Images of headless corpses dangling from bridges and pickup trucks stuffed with parts of dismembered bodies are seared into the public consciousness after six years of relentless brutality.

Some Mexicans quietly hope the new government will come to an understanding with the cartels to calm the violence.

"Pena Nieto has to change the nature of the fight. I think there will be deals with drug traffickers and they will bring the killings down bit by bit," said Ruben Munoz, a shopkeeper in Ciudad Juarez, one of the cities worst affected by the violence.

But there is also skepticism over whether Pena Nieto's plan to unify security forces that have long squabbled among themselves into a 40,000-strong gendarmerie rather than rely on the military to lead the fight will make much difference.

"Building this new force in some ways will only be changing the cloth from the military cloth to something more civilian," said Carlos Ramirez, an expert on Mexico at the Eurasia Group consultancy. "It is a risky bet."

As a debate over possible drug liberalization grows in Latin America, especially after two U.S. states legalized recreational marijuana use, some within Pena Nieto's circle want to see the United States curb consumption more aggressively.

One of Pena Nieto's allies, Chihuahua state governor Cesar Duarte, went as far as to say Mexico should legalize export of marijuana after the votes in Washington and Colorado states.

(With reporting by Dave Graham, Miguel Gutierrez and Julian Cardona; Editing by Kieran Murray)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/analysis-mexicos-president-reset-drug-war-push-reforms-172841678.html

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President signs whistle-blower bill for US workers

WASHINGTON (AP) ? President Barack Obama signed legislation Tuesday that affords greater protection to federal employees who expose fraud, waste and abuse in government operations.

Capping a 13-year effort by supporters of whistle-blower rights, the new law closes loopholes created by court rulings, which removed protections for federal whistle-blowers. One loophole specified that whistle-blowers were only protected when they were the first to report misconduct.

Obama also signed legislation that protects U.S. airlines from having to pay into a European Union program to cut down on pollutants. Earlier this month, the EU postponed its enforcement of the payment for non-EU airlines amid protests from numerous countries and threats of a possible trade war.

The whistle-blower law makes it easier to punish supervisors who try to retaliate against the government workers.

The federal official who investigates retaliation, Special Counsel Carolyn Lerner, said her office "stands ready to implement these important reforms, which will better ensure that no employee suffers retaliation for speaking out against government waste or misconduct."

The new legislation, however, would go beyond restoring protections, to expand whistle-blower rights and clarify certain protections. For example, whistle-blowers could challenge the consequences of government policy decisions.

Specific protections would be given to certain employees, including government scientists who challenge censorship. Workers at the Transportation Security Administration, who provide airport security, would be covered under the law for the first time.

The bill also would clarify that whistleblowers have the right to communicate with Congress.

To stop illegal retaliation, the bill would make it easier to discipline those responsible, by modifying the burden of proof required when taking action against those trying to punish whistle-blowers. Also, the Office of Special Counsel, which was established to protect federal employees, would no longer be liable for attorney fees of government managers if the office does not prevail in a disciplinary action.

The new legislation would suspend the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals' sole jurisdiction to review decisions in whistle-blower cases.

The bill's supporters said the court consistently narrowed protections and ruled for whistle-blowers only three times in 229 cases between October 1994 and May 2012. A review by all federal circuit courts was added as a two-year experiment.

Tom Devine, legal director of the Government Accountability Project, said, "This reform took 13 years to pass because it can make so much difference against fraud, waste and abuse. Government managers at all levels made pleas and repeatedly blocked the bill through procedural sabotage."

Devine, whose organization represents whistle-blowers, said the bill sailed through Congress once some senators who previously worked in secret to block a vote dropped their opposition.

The new airlines law was a response to an EU program that places a cap on carbon dioxide emissions from industrial polluters. Early this year, the law was expanded to include all airlines flying into and out of Europe.

U.S. airlines complained that they would be charged even for the emissions discharged over the United States or the Atlantic on their way to European destinations. The U.S. industry says it would cost them some $3.1 billion between 2012 and 2020. Those payments were to start in April, but the EU postponed that earlier this month.

"Although European leaders have temporarily pulled back their tax proposal, the law signed by the president today will help ensure the EU scheme will not resurface next year like a phoenix rising from the ashes," said Rep. John Mica of Florida, the Republican chairman of the House transportation committee,

The airlines emissions legislation urges the administration to engage in international talks to seek a global approach to aircraft emissions.

"The Obama administration should seek binding regulations and limits on such pollution when it meets with international partners to establish these rules at the International Civil Aviation Organization," said Sarah Saylor of the environmental group Earthjustice.

___

Associated Press writer Jim Kuhnhenn contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/president-signs-whistle-blower-bill-us-workers-192511402.html

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Peanut butter plant closure angers New Mexico town

This Nov. 27, 2012 photo shows the Sunland Inc. peanut butter and nut processing plant in eastern New Mexico, near Portales, which has been shuttered since late September due to a salmonella outbreak that sickened dozens. The Food and Drug Administration on Monday, Nov. 26, 2012, suspended the registration of Sunland Inc., which is the country's largest organic peanut butter processor. FDA officials found salmonella in numerous locations in Sunland's processing plant after 41 people in 20 states, most of them children, were sickened by peanut butter manufactured at the Portales, N.M., plant and sold at the Trader Joe's grocery chain. The company had announced plans to reopen its peanut processing facility on Tuesday after voluntarily shutting down earlier this fall. (AP Photo/Jeri Clausing)

This Nov. 27, 2012 photo shows the Sunland Inc. peanut butter and nut processing plant in eastern New Mexico, near Portales, which has been shuttered since late September due to a salmonella outbreak that sickened dozens. The Food and Drug Administration on Monday, Nov. 26, 2012, suspended the registration of Sunland Inc., which is the country's largest organic peanut butter processor. FDA officials found salmonella in numerous locations in Sunland's processing plant after 41 people in 20 states, most of them children, were sickened by peanut butter manufactured at the Portales, N.M., plant and sold at the Trader Joe's grocery chain. The company had announced plans to reopen its peanut processing facility on Tuesday after voluntarily shutting down earlier this fall. (AP Photo/Jeri Clausing)

This Nov. 27, 2012 photo shows the Sunland Inc. peanut butter and nut processing plant in eastern New Mexico, near Portales, which has been shuttered since late September due to a salmonella outbreak that sickened dozens. The Food and Drug Administration on Monday, Nov. 26, 2012, suspended the registration of Sunland Inc., which is the country's largest organic peanut butter processor. FDA officials found salmonella in numerous locations in Sunland's processing plant after 41 people in 20 states, most of them children, were sickened by peanut butter manufactured at the Portales, N.M., plant and sold at the Trader Joe's grocery chain. The company had announced plans to reopen its peanut processing facility on Tuesday after voluntarily shutting down earlier this fall. (AP Photo/Jeri Clausing)

PORTALES, N.M. (AP) ? Farmers in a revered peanut-growing region along the New Mexico-Texas border should be celebrating one of the best harvests in recent memory.

Instead, millions of pounds of their prized sweet Valencia peanuts sit in barns at a peanut butter plant shuttered for two months amid a salmonella outbreak that sickened 41 people in 20 states.

Farmers are worried about getting paid for their peanuts, nearly a third the plant's 150 workers have been laid off, and residents wonder what toll an increasingly contentious showdown between the nation's largest organic peanut butter plant and federal regulators could ultimately have on the region's economy.

The tension boiled over when the Food and Drug Administration on Monday said it was suspending Sunland Inc.'s registration to operate because of repeated safety violations, meaning the plant will remain indefinitely shut down as the company appeals the decision. The company had planned to reopen some its operations this week after voluntarily recalling hundreds of products and closing its processing and peanut butter plants in late September and early October.

Many in this flat, dusty and solidly Republican farm town of about 20,000 denounce the FDA's tactics as unfair and unnecessarily heavy-handed ? and become defensive about the shutdown of the largest private employer in town.

"We had the best crop in years, and then these (expletives) came in and started this," said resident and local telecomm worker Boyd Evans.

For the first time ever, the FDA is using authority granted under a 2011 food safety law signed by President Barack Obama that allows the agency to shut food operations without a court hearing.

The FDA said inspectors found samples of salmonella in 28 different locations in the plant, in 13 nut butter samples and in one sample of raw peanuts. Inspectors found improper handling of the products, unclean equipment and uncovered trailers of peanuts outside the facility that were exposed to rain and birds. Inspectors also said employees did not have access to hand-washing sinks, and dirty hands had direct contact with ready-to-package peanuts.

The FDA has inspected the plant at least four times over the past five years, each time finding violations. Michael Taylor, the FDA's deputy commissioner for foods, said the agency's inspections after the outbreak found even worse problems than what had been seen there before.

The salmonella outbreak was traced to Trader Joe's peanut butter produced at the plant. Sunland produces products for a number of national grocery and retail chains, and New Mexico Peanut Growers Association President Wayne Baker says the industry generates about $60 million in the region each year.

Valencias are a variety of peanuts that come almost exclusively from eastern New Mexico. Because of their sweet flavor, they are favored for organic and natural peanut butter products because they require few additives.

The peanut is celebrated every year at the town's annual Peanut Valley Festival, and most residents have stories related to peanuts, whether growing up on a peanut farm, helping to haul them to harvest or knowing peanut workers or farmers.

"Peanuts is, like, everything here," said local shopkeeper Brittany Mignard.

The plant's retail store remains open, although its shelves are bare of its own products. The few items remaining include peanut brittle made in Lubbock, Texas. The shelves are stocked with jelly, but no peanut butter.

Baker, who is also a Sunland board member, said the company had never been notified of any past violations. And the company has vehemently denied FDA allegations that it knowingly shipped any potentially tainted products.

Plant officials said they were blindsided by the FDA's suspension on Monday. Just hours before it was announced, the plant had announced plans to start shelling the bumper crop on Tuesday. Plant officials said they had notified the FDA last week of their plans to reopen the processing operations while waiting for approval to resume making peanut butter.

"The FDA is overreaching its power and putting out information that isn't true," Baker said. "We don't understand what is going on. We don't think we are guilty."

FDA officials wouldn't comment on his allegations, saying it was an ongoing investigation.

Food safety expert and Cornell University professor Bob Gravani said given the number of salmonella outbreaks in recent years, he believes the FDA is being heavily scrutinized about why they are not using their rules more frequently or more aggressively.

Putting aside the "he-said, she-said" between the FDA and the company, he said, "I would say suspension is warranted in this case."

This is not the first major outbreak since the FDA gained authority to pull a facility's registration in the 2011 food safety law. An outbreak of listeria in cantaloupe in 2011 is linked to at least 30 deaths and investigators found similar conditions at Jensen Farms in Colorado. Unlike Sunland, however, Jensen Farms did not attempt to restart operations after the recall and FDA investigation. The company later filed for bankruptcy.

Baker said officials have been trying for the past two months to cooperate with the FDA to get the plant reopened.

"That hasn't worked," he said. "But we are not going to give up. We are going to fight this. We have got no choice."

He said officials have begun calling the state's senators and congressman and talking with other agricultural groups about getting help in Washington with an appeal of the FDA action. No hearing has yet been scheduled.

Coburn said about 30 percent of the plant's workers were laid off Monday.

Although peanuts can be stored for a while, Coburn and Baker acknowledged that time is of the essence for getting to work on what Coburn said were "many, many millions" of pounds harvested from this year's crop.

Farmers, Baker acknowledged, are worried about getting paid. But he said Sunland has committed to paying them for their crops.

Under a worst-case scenario, he said, Sunland could sell the peanuts to other producers.

___

Associated Press reporter Mary Clare Jalonick in Washington contributed to this report.

___

Follow Jeri Clausing on Twitter at http://twitter.com/#!/jericlausing

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-11-28-Tainted%20Peanut%20Butter/id-9296362b1c064667ab396da4e800d3cf

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Senate Dems divided over cuts to benefit programs

In this Nov. 27, 2012, photo, White House press secretary Jay Carney speaks during his daily news briefing at the White House in Washington. Senate Democrats are deeply divided over whether cuts to popular benefit programs like Medicare and Medicaid should be part of a plan to address the nation?s financial problems, raising a big obstacle to an agreement to avoid the fiscal cliff, even if Republicans agree to raise taxes. Much of the focus during budget negotiations has centered on whether congressional Republicans would agree to raise taxes in exchange for spending cuts. "It is the president's position that when we're talking about a broad, balanced approach to dealing with our fiscal challenges, that that includes dealing with entitlements," Carney said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

In this Nov. 27, 2012, photo, White House press secretary Jay Carney speaks during his daily news briefing at the White House in Washington. Senate Democrats are deeply divided over whether cuts to popular benefit programs like Medicare and Medicaid should be part of a plan to address the nation?s financial problems, raising a big obstacle to an agreement to avoid the fiscal cliff, even if Republicans agree to raise taxes. Much of the focus during budget negotiations has centered on whether congressional Republicans would agree to raise taxes in exchange for spending cuts. "It is the president's position that when we're talking about a broad, balanced approach to dealing with our fiscal challenges, that that includes dealing with entitlements," Carney said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Deep divisions among Senate Democrats over whether cuts to popular benefit programs like Medicare and Medicaid should be part of a plan to slow the government's mushrooming debt pose a big obstacle to a deal for avoiding a potentially economy-crushing "fiscal cliff," even if Republicans agree to raise taxes.

Much of the focus during negotiations seeking an alternative to $671 billion in automatic tax increases and spending cuts beginning in January has centered on whether Republicans would agree to raising taxes on the wealthy. President Barack Obama has insisted repeatedly that tax increases on the wealthy must be part of any deal, even as White House officials concede that government benefit programs will have to be in the package too.

"It is the president's position that when we're talking about a broad, balanced approach to dealing with our fiscal challenges, that that includes dealing with entitlements," White House press secretary Jay Carney said Tuesday, referring to the mammoth Social Security and Medicare programs.

But even if GOP lawmakers agree to raise taxes, there is no guarantee Democrats can come up with enough votes in the Senate to cut benefit programs ? as Republicans are demanding.

"I hope not if it means Social Security or Medicare benefit cuts," said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I.

There's a growing consensus among Senate Democrats and the White House that Social Security should be exempt from any deficit-reduction package. But some centrist Democrats in the Senate argue that fellow Democrats must be willing to consider cuts to Medicare and Medicaid in order to get concessions from Republicans on taxes.

"It has to be both ? a significant revenue increase as well as spending cuts," said Sen. Max Baucus, D-Mont., chairman of the Senate Finance Committee.

Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D., who is retiring as chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, said rising health care costs in Medicare and Medicaid are helping to drive future spending, making them an essential part of a long-term deficit-reduction package.

"I've been part of every bipartisan group here. We've always put everything on the table," Conrad said. "If you're going to solve this problem, you're going to have to deal with where the spending is and the revenue can be raised."

But senators like Baucus and Conrad increasingly are being drowned out by other Democrats emboldened by the recent election results to fight against benefit cuts.

Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, said he is willing to find savings in Medicare and Medicaid by making them more efficient. But, he said, he won't support benefit cuts.

"I think the election spoke very strongly about the fact that the vast majority of American people don't want to cut these programs," Harkin said.

Sen. Dick Durbin, the No. 2 Democrat in the Senate leadership ranks, said he doesn't think there should be a rush to overhaul entitlement programs in connection with the move to avert the fiscal cliff in the remaining weeks of the current session.

The Illinois Democrat said in a CNN interview Wednesday that "what we need to put on the table short-term is mandatory deficit reduction." Durbin said entitlement reforms to programs like Medicare and Medicaid should be "part of the long-term strategy" of reining in federal deficits.

Durbin repeated his position that Social Security should not be a part of the discussions. And he said that "we want to make sure that Medicare at the end of the day is a program that is solvent and we can count on it for years to come."

Congress and the White House are devoting the next three weeks to finding at least a bridge over the fiscal cliff by reducing the sudden jolt of higher taxes and spending cuts in January while laying a framework for addressing the nation's long-term financial problems next year.

Obama wants to let tax rates rise for wealthy families while sparing middle- and low-income taxpayers. Some Republican leaders, including House Speaker John Boehner of Ohio, have said they were willing to consider making the wealthy pay more by reducing their tax breaks. But most Republicans in Congress adamantly oppose raising anyone's tax rates.

Negotiations are going slowly as each side waits for the other to make concessions.

Democrats already have tried to take Social Security off the table. Carney, the White House spokesman, said Monday that changes to the massive retirement and disability program should be done separately from any plan to reduce the deficit. That's the same position taken by 28 Democratic senators and independent Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont in a letter to fellow senators in September.

"We will oppose including Social Security cuts for future or current beneficiaries in any deficit-reduction package," said the letter, which was signed by many top Democrats, including Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada. In the House, Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi has taken the same position, not only on Social Security, but also on Medicare and Medicaid.

"There hasn't been the slightest suggestion about what they're going to do about the real problems, and that's entitlements," said Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, the top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee. "There's a certain cockiness that I've seen that is really astounding to me since we're basically in the same position we were before" the election.

Durbin has tried to find common ground, saying he would be willing to require wealthy seniors to pay more for Medicare benefits.

"If we simply stand by and say 'don't touch Medicare in any way, for any reason, ever' we are inviting a crisis that opponents can exploit to eviscerate Medicare or even to end it," Durbin said Tuesday. "Progressives should be willing to talk about ways to ensure the long-term viability of Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, but those conversations should not be part of a plan to avert the fiscal cliff."

___

Follow Stephen Ohlemacher on Twitter: http://twitter.com/stephenatap

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-11-28-Fiscal%20Cliff-Entitlements/id-bad9780410a24e13a81413d6874ba343

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Fiscal Cliff, Meet Bully Pulpit

Obama greets onlookers at One More Page Books on Saturday in Arlington, Va.

Photo by Kristoffer Tripplaar-Pool/Getty Images.

During negotiations over raising the debt limit in summer 2011, President Obama got stroppy with House Majority Leader Eric Cantor. ?Don't call my bluff,??he said, according to Cantor. ?I?m going to the American people with this.? During this season?s budget fight, the president is not waiting for talks to break down. He?s hitting the road early. On Friday, he will highlight the damage that will be done to the middle class if the country sails over the fiscal cliff on a visit to a manufacturing operation in Hatfield, Penn. (If the Republicans were feeling fun, they?d schedule an event in McCoy.)

The president?s aides say he is working inside the negotiating room and outside of it, and that a president must do both. But according to one who has discussed Obama's second term with him, the president believes he spent too much time in his first term engaged with members of Congress?even members of his own party.?In the second term he's going to use his office to generate outside support that puts pressure on Republicans. In this case that means one thing: agreeing to raise tax rates on the wealthy. In the president's view, that's either going to happen through agreement in the room, or after the Jan. 1 deadline has passed and public pressure forces Republicans to cave.?

Will the outside game work? It didn't when Obama had that confrontation with Cantor. During the 2011 debt-limit fight, the president's approval ratings dropped to their lowest levels, as he was bogged down in a battle opaque to most people. But a lot has changed since then. Most obviously, Obama has been re-elected. If a deal is not struck, the president will not suffer at the ballot box. Obama?s re-election also indicates a mandate of this specific question of tax rates for the wealthy. Exit polls show 60 percent of voters support the hike. Polls also show that people are primed to blame Republicans if no deal is struck.?Forty-five percent surveyed in a new?CNN/ORC?poll said they would blame congressional Republicans if there is no agreement. Only 34 percent said they would blame President Obama.

There is a theory?argued most effectively by Brandice Canes-Wrone, in Who Leads Whom???that presidents cannot lead the country so much as shape public opinion. Presidents are effective only when the public is already with them.?Last summer the fight was unfocused. Now the lines are clearer. Though the fiscal cliff debate touches all areas of government, the?immediate debate is essentially focused on raising or lowering taxes on the wealthy. This president has won battles with Congress when the topic is narrow, as he did over the extension of the?payroll tax cut?and?holding down student loan interest rates.?

Republicans don?t like the president taking his case to the public. ?We already know the president is a very good campaigner,? said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. ?What we don?t know is whether he has the leadership qualities necessary to lead his party to a bipartisan agreement on a big issue likes this.? On the House side, one aide to Republican leadership said Republican members are concerned the president?s public campaigning is an attempt to prepare public opinion for an eventual failure to reach a deal, and thus a possible sign that he?s not really serious about a deal. For the moment, those working on a deal from the House GOP side say the White House is negotiating in good faith (though not with the level of specificity they?d like). If they start to see the White House ?slow walk? negotiations, they?ll know that Obama has decided that going over the ?cliff? is not that big a deal and the campaign-style trip is an effort to build leverage for the post-Jan. 1, 2013 period.

White House aides insist the president wants to get a deal. He thinks the post-Jan. 1 shock to the economy would be real and that the recovery is too fragile. ?Just because everyone in Washington thinks this can be worked out in three weeks if we go over the cliff, no one in the business world or families would think that way,? says a White House official.

Republicans are looking for any number of ways to take the microphone back from the president. Grover Norquist proposes that Republicans push to have the fiscal cliff negotiations televised. ?The only way for Republicans to have a chance is to have American people in there, not allow establishment press to explain to you what happened. The president has a better megaphone. Unless you focus on what's happening in the room, the press focuses on those who bend toward the TV cameras, but who aren?t in the room.?

If Obama is trying to take his message to the people, Norquist is trying to take the people to the negotiations. Norquist also wants to have whatever deal is struck posted online for seven days before a vote so that people can have a look at it. If these gambits sound familiar, it?s because young and innocent Barack Obama of the 2008 campaign vowed to have negotiations on television and post bills online for five days. The White House is not likely to go along with either of these ideas and John Boehner might not want to either. As a skilled legislator, Boehner knows that the final deal might include lots of fudging and weasel words that can get votes but that won?t be so easy to explain once Twitter, bloggers, and talk radio get to whack at them for a week. Sometimes, when you take an issue to the public you want it to be a done deal.

Source: http://feeds.slate.com/click.phdo?i=cfe12718e74ff2f3a50214ce2017ba6f

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Nexus 7 gets its turn at 4.2.1 -- it's pushing now or can be manually flashed

Just as we saw this morning with the Nexus 4 and Nexus 10, the Nexus 7 is getting updated to Android 4.2.1 via an OTA update. There's nothing groundbreaking here, its simply a bug fix for the omission of December from the people application and an update to add joysticks and gamepads as HID devices. 

But updates are updates, and we know that plenty need to get them ASAP. Thanks to XDA, the manual download link is available and advanced users can flash at will. You'll end up with build number JOP40D, and everyone you know that was born in December is now allowed to get a year older again. Grab the OTA package below, and head into the forums for questions about flashing.

OTA  package download; via XDA

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/XE4X3ElMXGw/story01.htm

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Apple Bought Lightning From This Company - Business Insider

Apple had to purchase the "Lightning" trademark from Harley Davidson, in order to name its new tiny charger on the iPhone 5 and other iOS devices,?reports Patently Apple.

The news comes from the EU Patent & Trademark Office, which published two trademark applications for Apple's Lightning connector.

Apple doesn't own the trademark entirely though. It was approved for a partial transfer, which?Gizmodo?speculates to mean that Harley Davidson can still use the Lightning trademark for motorcycle-related products.?

Harley Davidson's previous trademark covered not only motorcycles, motorcycle electrical parts, protective helmets and turn signals but also TVs, computer game programs, and eye glasses.

Don't Miss:?Samsung Has Stopped Supplying Apple With Batteries For iPads And MacBooks >

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-bought-lightning-from-this-company-2012-11

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Five killed in attack on Pakistan Shi'ite gathering, 90 hurt

DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan (Reuters) - A bomb killed at least five people and wounded 90 near a Shi'ite procession in Pakistan on Sunday, police said, as the government struggled to contain sectarian Sunni militants who have been stepping up attacks on the minority sect.

Sunni hardliners threatened to carry out major attacks this weekend, an important one in the Shi'ite religious calendar, prompting authorities to halt cellphone coverage in several areas to prevent bombings triggered by remote control.

Authorities have also restricted motorcycle travel, hoping to deprive suicide bombers of one mode of transportation.

Television footage showed the wounded being carried away in the northwestern city of Dera Ismail Khan, where a bomb targeting Shi'ites killed at least seven people, including four children, on Saturday.

Pakistan's Taliban movement, which is focused on trying to topple the U.S.-backed government but is also allied with Sunni sectarian groups, claimed responsibility for both attacks.

"For Interior Minister of Pakistan Rehman Malik, who blocked mobile phones across the country and banned motorbikes, you can't stop our activities against the Shi'ite community and security forces," Taliban spokesman Ehsanullah Ehasan said by telephone from an undisclosed location.

"We will keep continuing our activities and this is a failure of security forces, police and army that we have made successful attacks in Dera Ismail Khan."

Past attacks during the religious event have killed large numbers of Shi'ites.

Sunday's bomb, planted in a shop beside a street market, also wounded five security officials, said senior police official Malik Mushtaq.

Doctors at a hospital in Dera Ismail Khan said five people were killed and 90 wounded. "There is a lack of ambulances and not enough hospital beds," said one. "People brought many of the injured to the hospital on rickshaws."

Hardline sectarian Sunni groups, which are becoming increasingly dangerous, have threatened more attacks as the Shi'ite mourning month of Muharram comes to a climax on Sunday.

Security officials say organizations such as Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) are stepping up attacks on Shi'ites, who they regard as non-believers, in a bid to destabilize nuclear-armed, U.S. ally Pakistan and establish a Sunni theocracy.

Al Qaeda, which is close to LeJ, pushed Iraq to the brink of a sectarian civil war several years ago with large-scale suicide bombings of Shi'ites.

More than 300 Shi'ites have been killed in Pakistan so far this year in sectarian conflict, according to human rights groups. The campaign is gathering pace in rural as well as urban areas such as Karachi, Pakistan's biggest city.

Shi'ites account for up to 20 percent of this nation of 180 million.

The growing death toll has discouraged some Shi'ites from taking part in processions this year during one of their most sacred rituals, when people flagellate themselves with chains and other items to commemorate the martyrdom of the grandson of Islam's prophet, who was killed during the battle of Karbala.

"If I were to compare with last year, the fear has definitely increased," said Sadia Fatema, 28. "Just last night me and my mother were asking my father and brother if they really had to go to the procession. We are worried."

Others say the pressure has made Shi'ites stand up to Sunni hardliners.

"There is fear, but there is also anger and defiance among Shi'ites," said one, who asked not to be named.

"Shi'ites never felt like a minority in Pakistan but now they are slowly being turned into a real minority. And Shi'ites will not let this happen."

Washington, a critical source of financial aid for cash-strapped Pakistan, has been pressuring the South Asian nation to crack down on militants based in tribal areas who cross the border to attack American-led forces in Afghanistan.

Pakistan, meanwhile, faces major domestic security challenges from a wide range of groups, including the Taliban, who capitalize on issues such as unemployment, official corruption and poverty to boost recruitment.

A series of crackdowns has failed to break the back of militant groups based along the border with Afghanistan.

(Additional reporting by Jibran Ahmad in PESHAWAR and Mehreen Zahra-Malik in ISLAMABAD; Writing by Michael Georgy; Editing by Nick Macfie)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/least-two-killed-attack-pakistan-shiite-gathering-061225951.html

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Five killed in attack on Pakistan gathering

By Reuters

DERA ISMAIL KHAN, Pakistan - A bomb killed at least five people and wounded 90 near a Shi'ite procession in Pakistan on Sunday, police said, as the government struggles to stop a wave of attacks by sectarian Sunni militant groups determined to wipe out the minority sect and seize power.?

Sunni hardliners threatened to strike hard this weekend, an important one in the Shi'ite religious calendar, prompting authorities to halt cellphone coverage in several areas to prevent bombings triggered by remote control.

Authorities have also restricted motorcycle travel, hoping to deprive suicide bombers of one mode of transportation.

The wounded were carried away in the northwestern city of Dera Ismail Khan, where a bomb targeting Shi'ites killed at least seven people, including four children, on Saturday.

Pakistan's Taliban, who are focused on battling the state but are also allied with Sunni sectarian groups, claimed responsibility for both attacks.

"For Interior Minister of Pakistan Rehman Malik, who blocked mobile phones across the country and banned motorbikes, you can't stop our activities against the Shi'ite community and security forces," Taliban spokesman Ehsanullah Ehasan said by telephone from an undisclosed location.

"We will keep continuing our activities and this is a failure of security forces, police and army that we have made successful attacks in Dera Ismail Khan."

EPA / Saood Rehman

Pakistani security officials inspect the site of a bomb blast targeting a Shi'ite Muslim mourning procession in Dera Ismail Khan, Pakistan.

Past attacks during the religious event have killed large numbers of Shi'ites.

Sunday's bomb, planted in a shop near a street market, also wounded five security officials, said senior police official Malik Mushtaq.

Doctors at a hospital in Dera Ismail Khan said five people were killed and 90 wounded. "There is a lack of ambulances and not enough hospital beds," said one. "People brought many of the injured to the hospital on rickshaws."

Hardline Sunni groups, which are becoming increasingly dangerous, have vowed to carry out more attacks as the Shi'ite mourning month of Muharram comes to a climax on Sunday.

Security officials say organizations such as Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) are stepping up attacks on Shi'ites, who they regard as non-believers, in a bid to destabilize nuclear-armed, U.S. ally Pakistan and establish a Sunni theocracy.

Al Qaeda, which is close to LeJ, pushed Iraq to the brink of a sectarian civil war several years ago with large-scale suicide bombings of Shi'ites.

More than 300 Shi'ites have been killed in Pakistan so far this year in sectarian conflict, according to human rights groups. The campaign is gathering pace in rural as well as urban areas such as Karachi, Pakistan's biggest city.

Shi'ites account for up to 20 percent of this nation of 180 million.

The growing death toll has discouraged some Shi'ites from taking part in processions this year during one of their most sacred rituals, when people flagellate themselves with chains and other items to commemorate the martyrdom of the grandson of Islam's prophet, who was killed during the battle of Karbala.

"If I were to compare with last year, the fear has definitely increased," said Sadia Fatema, 28. "Just last night me and my mother were asking my father and brother if they really had to go to the procession. We are worried."

Others say the pressure has made Shi'ites stand up to Sunni hardliners.

"There is fear, but there is also anger and defiance among Shi'ites," said one, who asked not to be named.

"Shi'ites never felt like a minority in Pakistan but now they are slowly being turned into a real minority. And Shi'ites will not let this happen."

Washington, a critical source of financial aid for cash-strapped Pakistan, has been pressuring the South Asian nation to crack down on militants based in tribal areas who cross the border to attack American-led forces in Afghanistan.

Pakistan, meanwhile, faces major domestic security challenges from a wide range of groups, including the Taliban, who capitalize on issues such as unemployment, official corruption and poverty to boost recruitment.

A series of army offensives has failed to break the back of militant groups based along the border with Afghanistan.

"Our children are being killed but the government is powerless," complained Shi'ite Amina Bokhari. "What is the purpose of this security they claim to give us?"?

More world stories from NBC News:

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Copyright 2012 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

Source: http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/11/26/15440747-five-killed-in-attack-on-pakistan-gathering?lite

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Gomez helps Bayern beat Hannover 5-0 in Bundesliga

By CIARAN FAHEY

Associated Press

Associated Press Sports

updated 5:36 p.m. ET Nov. 24, 2012

BERLIN (AP) -Mario Gomez marked his return from injury by scoring seconds into his Bundesliga season debut to wrap up a 5-0 win for Bayern Munich over Hannover on Saturday.

Gomez left a Hannover defender sprawling and beat Hannover goalkeeper Ron-Robert Zieler from a tight angle in the 67th minute, 27 seconds after coming on for only his second appearance since ankle surgery in August.

"It's a great feeling. It was a long time without football," Gomez said. "For me personally it was a beautiful moment."

Bayern tops the standings nine points ahead of Borussia Dortmund, which came from behind to win 2-1 at Mainz for the defending champion's third win in a row.

Schalke and Eintracht Frankfurt had been joint second, but lost ground on Bayern after drawing 1-1.

Werder Bremen hung on for a 1-1 draw at Wolfsburg, where all the attention was on Klaus Allofs, the former Bremen team manager of 13 years who left to join Wolfsburg 10 days ago.

"I was completely focused on the game, but I know that many people around here were thinking of different things," Bremen coach Thomas Schaaf said.

Promoted Greuther Fuerth drew 0-0 with Nuremberg as Germany's oldest derby was played in the Bundesliga for the first time. Both sides had a player sent off.

Nuremberg coach Dieter Hecking best summed up the action: "Emotional, hectic, little football, at times much too much provocation from both sides, not a good game, a real struggle, red cards deserved, point won."

No other Bundesliga side ever claimed as many points, 34, as Bayern has after 13 games, while the Bavarians' goal difference of plus 33 is also a record.

Hannover, which had played in the Europa League on Thursday, had won only once on its previous 23 visits to Munich.

"Hannover weren't bad today, but the manner in which we created and scored the goals was outstanding," Gomez said.

Record signing Javi Martinez opened the scoring with his first Bayern goal in the fourth, an overhead kick after Bastian Schweinsteiger had helped on a corner.

Toni Kroos added another 20 minutes later, when he met Philipp Lahm's cross on the volley to send it inside the left post.

Franck Ribery joined in with his fourth league goal in the 37th, before Brazilian defender Dante claimed his first Bayern goal in the 63rd, a header from a free kick.

Gomez then scored on his first appearance in the Bundesliga since May 5.

"They took us apart at times. Today in phases there was a difference in class. Congratulations to Bayern," said Hannover coach Mirko Slomka, who has been touted as a replacement for the 67-year-old Heynckes once he retires.

Schalke opened the scoring in Gelsenkirchen in the 11th, when Lewis Holtby capitalized on Stefan Aigner's mistake to send Klaas-Jan Huntelaar through. The Dutchman controlled the ball with his right foot before dispatching it past Kevin Trapp with his left for his first league goal since Sept. 28.

Aigner atoned two minutes later when he scored with a header from Bastian Oczipka's inch-perfect cross.

Frankfurt had Karim Matmour sent off for a second yellow late in the game, when the home side almost claimed a late winner in a frenetic finale.

In Mainz, Marco Caligiuri scored with a stunning left-foot shot on the half-volley to the top right corner in the fourth.

Robert Lewandowski equalized seven minutes later when he got the slightest of touches to Marco Reus' cross.

Mario Goetze sprung the offside trap for Lewandowski to score again with a deft chip over Christian Wetklo two minutes before the break.

"The head wanted to play football but the spirit wasn't there in the beginning," said Dortmund coach Juergen Klopp. "It was a psychological game. We passed the test."

Klopp now has injury concerns over Ilkay Guendogan. The Germany international hobbled off in the 34th after a challenge on his left ankle from Nikolce Noveski.

Wolfsburg twice hit the post and was denied a penalty before Eljero Elia crossed for the unmarked Marco Arnautovic to score for Bremen in the 35th.

Bremen defender Lukas Schmitz was sent off with a second yellow in the 62nd, and Bad Dost equalized two minutes later after quick interplay between Diego and Vierinha.

"The sending off influenced the game without, no doubt," said Bremen coach Thomas Schaaf. "For me it was clearly the wrong decision."

Security was tight in Fuerth for the 255th Franconian derby, a bitter affair going back 108 years.

Nuremberg midfielder Markus Feulner was sent off in the 35th, and Sercan Sararer earned his second yellow card in the 63rd, but neither side could score.

Fuerth is still waiting for its first win at home in the top flight.

? 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Man United back on top

Manchester United fought back to beat Queens Park Rangers 3-1 on Saturday, provisionally reclaiming top spot while condemning the bottom-placed team to the worst start any Premier League side has made after 13 games.

Arsenal held to 0-0 draw at Aston Villa

??BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) -Arsenal endured its third 0-0 draw of the English Premier League season, allowing Aston Villa to climb out of the relegation zone on Saturday.

Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/44039190/ns/sports-soccer/

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Refresh Roundup: week of November 19th, 2012

Your smartphone and / or tablet is just begging for an update. From time to time, these mobile devices are blessed with maintenance refreshes, bug fixes, custom ROMs and anything in between, and so many of them are floating around that it's easy for a sizable chunk to get lost in the mix. To make sure they don't escape without notice, we've gathered every possible update, hack, and other miscellaneous tomfoolery we could find during the last week and crammed them into one convenient roundup. If you find something available for your device, please give us a shout at tips at engadget dawt com and let us know. Enjoy!

Continue reading Refresh Roundup: week of November 19th, 2012

Filed under: Cellphones, Tablets, Software, Mobile, Samsung

Comments

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/wqQdnXol7Og/

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John Lewis weekly sales up 11 percent, hit November record

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's biggest department store group John Lewis saw sales rise 11 percent in the week to November 24 compared to a year ago, marking the first time ever that November sales rose above 100 million ($160 million).

The company said on Sunday that department store sales in the week totaled 109.6 million pounds, 19.6 percent above the previous week's figure.

A John Lewis spokeswoman said the figure included online sales, which were 34.6 percent higher than a year ago.

Overall sales were driven by strong demand for technology products such as tablet computers, radios, cameras and coffee-making machines, as well as items for the home such as furnishings and Christmas trees.

"We are extremely pleased to have achieved such a strong uplift in sales," said Maggie Porteous, head of selling operations. "There is no doubt that Christmas sales are really beginning to take off."

John Lewis has been outperforming rivals and the wider market because its generally more affluent customers have been less affected by Britain's economic downturn.

($1 = 0.6246 British pounds)

(Reporting by Laurence Fletcher; Editing by Sophie Walker)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/john-lewis-weekly-sales-11-percent-hit-november-152812614--finance.html

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Hello all!~

I figured I might as well introduce myself. Hello, world!

You can call me either Inariko or Inari - it's a nickname I chose based off Inari Okami of the Japanese Shinto religion, who has foxes as messengers. As my name and avatar implies, I love foxes. They are just too cute. Especially the white ones. <_<

I am a high school senior who feels like she is constantly busy fulfilling the laborious decrees of slavedriver teachers, but in reality, probably wastes a lot of time lazing about, daydreaming, and making mountains out of molehills. I lament. Just where does my all time go?

Anyway, this is my first time role playing online. I've done about three years of D&D on and off with my friends in real life - overwhelmingly hectic gatherings of crazy fantasy-obsessed people - so I'm pretty decent at creating characters and stories. I am a relatively good writer and a stickler for mechanics (delighted to see that everyone on this site expects proper, literate English as well). I'd probably join a plot-driven RP with fantasy elements.

Here are some of my various hobbies...
I've danced classical ballet for about 11 years now. Still dancing and loving it.
I enjoy listening to music and can sing in about five different languages, although I'm only fluent in two and am learning a third.
I do both traditional and CG art, usually drawing people or dragons. Self-taught, and recently trying to go for a more realistic style rather than anime. I still doodle anime, though. Check the artwork forum! I'm sure I've got something on there somewhere.
I like to ski, although I seldom get a chance to go because I'm so busy and skiing is expensive. Winter break, however, offers a tempting, excellent opportunity...
I like reading fantasy/fiction. I check out books from my library in towering stacks of ten. I obsessively horde collect bookmarks, too. :3
I like to write stories, but I never finish them...writer's block and procrastination, you see, is a deadly and fatal combo.
I like frozen persimmons. Random, yes. But if you send me frozen virtual persimmons instead of setting out the usual plate of internet cookies, I will love you forever.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RolePlayGateway/~3/40F6-90r5FU/viewtopic.php

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Video: Where does the GOP go now?

Don't be fooled! Great camera deals are harder to spot on Black Friday

While there are plenty of deals and discounts to be had on TVs, phones, laptops and other tech products, camera-wise, there aren't a lot of reasons to wait in line until midnight after Thanksgiving dinner. That's because the year's best cameras ? many of which are rounded up here ? simply aren't subject to fire-sale pricing.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/vp/49903754#49903754

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DIY Gifts Are the Ultimate Remedy for Black Friday

Black Friday seems to be firmly polarized between those who love the thrill of the hunt and those who view the year's biggest shopping day as selling out family, holidays, and leisure time for a few bucks less on imported goods. If you find yourself among the critics of Black Friday why not strike out against that symbol of greed and do something positive by making DIY gifts at least some of your friends and family this holiday season.

Trent Hamm of personal finance weblog The Simple Dollar writes that handmade gifts are not only ways to save money, but they build skills and part of the value for both the maker and the recipient is the time and care invested in these gifts and that care can also translate in putting more thought into commercial gifts purchased as well.

Sarah and I haven't had as much time to produce such a wide array of handmade gifts as we had during the fall of 2010. With every single gift we've given since then, though,our thoughts have focused not just on checking someone off of our list, but on how the gift can really build a better bond with that person. A good gift isn't (usually) one you find on Black Friday. Instead, it has some other traits, ones that build up your relationship without tearing down your wallet.

So, if you find yourself disgusted by the mob mentality at large brick and mortar stores today, perhaps consider making one more gifts this holiday season. Two days ago our own Melanie Pinola posted a wonderful guide to handmade gift projects with everything from cell phone accessories to cookware to photographic keepsakes. Invest some time into learning how to make something new and both you and the gift recipient will be the better for it. Photo by Travis Modisette.

Giving Gifts That Can't Be Bought on Black Friday | The Simple Dollar

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/cxKUzjx6yS0/diy-gifts-are-the-ultimate-remedy-for-black-friday

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