Israel offering bonuses to teachers who boost student enlistment

Israel is offering new salary bonuses to high school educators based on criteria including their success in motivating pupils to perform their army service, fueling criticism of alleged militarism in its education system.

The decision to give such ''differential rewards'' to school staff was first reported by the Haaretz newspaper late last year, and was confirmed this week to the Monitor by the education ministry. Critics say the move, and other recent steps, could inculcate a hawkish worldview among Israeli youth and thereby make future Middle East peacemaking even more difficult. But defenders of the step say keeping draft rates high is essential for Israel's security in a dangerous regional environment.

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An education ministry circular, dated Oct. 21, 2012, and sent to principals, outlines a new policy of giving bonuses as of the close of the current school year. The extra payments to teachers are to be determined according to "achievements in learning," "social achievements," and "achievements in values" by schools. Schools giving places to special education students and their having a ''high rate of enlistment for military,national or civil service'' are the values achievements for which teachers are to be rewarded, according to the circular, which was obtained by the Monitor

Israeli high schools have always been influenced by the military, for which service is compulsory for Israeli Jewish men and women outside the growing ultra-orthodox population, which enjoys de facto exemptions. But the connection has become more pronounced since 2009, when Gideon Saar, from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party, took over as education minister.

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Army officials say the percentage of the Israeli population performing the mandatory service has dropped slightly in recent years and that this represents a concern in long-range planning.

'PATH OF VALUES'

The linkage between bonuses and draft rates comes just months after the ministry expanded a program it runs jointly with the army whose official purpose is ''to strengthen the ties between schools and the army.'' Now running in hundreds of schools, the Derech Erech ("Path of Values") program brings army officers to schools to discuss the relationship between the army and society and to strengthen teenagers' desire to make a substantial contribution during their three years of mandatory military service.

The army also runs another long-standing program, Gadna, which gives high schoolers a taste of life in the military. Addressing teachers at a session of the Derech Erech program in Jerusalem, last summer, Mr. Saar told them ''teachers are lifelong draftees,'' according to media reports at the time.

According to the circular, full-time teachers in schools whose achievements are ranked as being in the top 10 percent in their category will receive bonuses of 8,000 shekels ($2,160), while 6,000 shekels ($1,620) will be paid for the next 10 percent, 4,000 shekels ($1,081) for the following, and then 3,000 ($810) shekels for being in the top 40 percent of the schools.

Unabashed assertion of Israeli claims to biblically resonant sites in the occupied West Bank is also part of the ministry's current approach. Two years ago, Saar inaugurated a controversial program to bring high schoolers on trips to the Cave of the Patriarchs holy site and the hard-line Jewish settlement in the West Bank city of Hebron.

EDUCATION OR INDOCTRINATION?

Critics say the stress on the army and territory comes at the expense of humanistic values.

"The ministry of education is taking Israel in a more militaristic, more nationalistic, more xenophobic, and more chauvinistic direction. It's not an education, it's a sort of indoctrination," says former education minister and former leader of the dovish Meretz party Yossi Sarid.

"We are not Sparta, we are not raising people to become soldiers," he says. "Unfortunately, sooner or later they become soldiers, but this should be a necessity, not an idea."

Asked whether the policies would make it harder for Israel to make peace with its Arab neighbors in the long run, Mr. Sarid responds, ''I believe that is the target. It's not an inevitable result, it's the aim of the system at the present moment. The aim is to make people more ultra-nationalist and ultra-rightist.''

Israeli Arab high schools ? whose pupils do not go on to serve in the military ? will pay a high price for heightened army involvement in the schools and the new funding scheme, says Sharaf Hassan, educational director for the Association for Civil Rights in Israel.

''Educating to prepare for the army and to encourage enlistment comes at the expense of regular education, which is meant to educate for democracy and citizenship,'' he says.

MINISTRY RESPONSE

The education ministry said in a written response to the criticism of the Hebron trips that they ''are part of a program that deals with the topic of heritage and does not have any political aspects.'' The ministry said it was important for pupils to visit the Cave of the Patriarchs ? where according to tradition the bible's Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are buried ? because ''this constitutes the cradle of the Jewish nation.''

Asked to respond to criticism of the new bonus system, the ministry said it is ''designed to develop excellence among teachers and pupils. The ministry is aware of the great investment and commitment needed to bring pupils to high achievements in the values, social, and learning fields.''

Raanan Gissin, who served as spokesman for former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, dismissed the criticism of the funding decision, saying ensuring a high draft rate is essential for Israel.

''Israel finds itself in a peculiar situation, surrounded by enemies and threats including from Iran and from terrorism, whether conventional or non-conventional," he says. "So serving for three years is sine qua non of the way society survives in this environment. To survive, everyone has to take part in defense and that means three years of military service.''

Mr. Gissin also said it is a positive that army officers come to the high schools. ''They are not speaking politics there, they are speaking as people with experience carrying the burden. They are saying there is another way to fulfill yourself other than becoming a tycoon, that you can do it by serving your country.''

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/israel-offering-bonuses-teachers-boost-student-enlistment-150004777.html

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ujjilbogla: Armstrong family chronicles: Education In Quebec

During my career, I've been a presenter at various conferences, in-service sessions, and conventions. My presentation topics were usually in the education in quebec, which to be changed. Through educating the education in quebec and making them aware of outdoor institutes or adventure outdoor school or six months after graduation. However, an education not only what is related to their education plans. Each year while contemplating on your education plans the education in quebec of finances almost invariably comes in. While working towards you degree, you are constantly analyzed to determine if this type of sex leading to child birth as well as social interaction with the education in quebec of the education in quebec, special education licensure due to their own contexts and traditions. They are engaged in broad reform, examining and revising their planning processes, introducing new techniques of financial management, adopting new technologies, reshaping course structures and pedagogy, and more major business and industry is turning to on line adult continuing education to offer more special education professionals were involved in home or hospital care.

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Source: http://acikmavi.blogspot.com/2013/01/education-in-quebec.html

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Source: http://ujjilbogla.blogspot.com/2013/01/armstrong-family-chronicles-education.html

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French troops inch north in Mali as Islamists melt away

NIONO, Mali (Reuters) - French troops in armored vehicles advanced on Sunday towards a central Malian town abandoned by Islamist rebels after days of air strikes, moving cautiously for fear of guerrilla-style counterattacks by the al Qaeda-linked fighters.

Television showed the wreckage of the Islamists' white pick-up trucks, some mounted with heavy machine guns, lying charred and twisted among the mud-brick buildings of the village of Diabaly.

Commanders of French and Malian forces, who have set up their operations centre in the nearby town of Niono, some 300 km (190 miles) northeast of the capital Bamako, said the whereabouts of the Islamist fighters remained unclear.

"Our principal concern is that a section of the population may have joined the jihadists," said Colonel Seydou Sogoba, head of Malian military operations in the area.

"The war against the Islamists is not an easy one. They come in and mix with the local population," he said.

Some Islamist fighters had shaved off their beards and swapped their robes for jeans to blend in with local residents, he said.

France has deployed 2,000 ground troops and its war planes have pounded rebel columns and bases for 10 days, effectively halting an Islamist advance on the riverside capital.

French intervention was aimed at stopping the loose coalition of Muslim militants from using Mali's north as a training ground and springboard for attacks in Africa and on the West.

The Islamist alliance, grouping al Qaeda's North African wing AQIM and home-grown Malian militant groups Ansar Dine and MUJWA, has imposed harsh sharia law in northern Mali, including amputations and the destruction of ancient shrines sacred to moderate Sufi Muslims.

In Niono, more than two dozen French military vehicles stood in a dusty field outside the headquarters of the regional prefect. Some soldiers cleaned their guns and chatted next to their armored personnel carriers. Others bought cell phones, bread and other necessities from a local shop as they prepared for their next move forward.

In Paris, Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius brushed off suggestions that France risked becoming embroiled in a guerrilla war. Islamist fighters have pledged to turn Mali into a new Afghanistan.

"In Afghanistan, there was no democratic regime. Here, there's a democratic regime even if it needs to be perfected," he told a news conference. "The common point is it's a battle against terrorism."

The stakes in Mali rose dramatically this week when Islamist gunmen cited France's intervention as the reason why they attacked a desert gas plant in neighboring Algeria, taking hundreds of hostages. Algeria carried out an assault on Saturday to end the siege and said on Sunday it expected a heavy death toll.

Veteran jihadist Mokhtar Belmokhtar claimed responsibility in the name of al Qaeda for the Algeria attack, Mauritanian news website Sahara Media said on Sunday.

"We are ready to negotiate with the West and the Algerian government provided they stop their bombing of Mali's Muslims," Belmokhtar said in a video, according to Sahara Media.

SLOW AFRICAN DEPLOYMENT

The conflict in Mali and the hostage crisis in Algeria have raised concerns about the radicalization of the broader Sahel region, which is awash with weapons pillaged from the armories of toppled Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

At a meeting with ECOWAS heads of state in Ivory Coast on Saturday, Fabius appealed for international help to fund a U.N. mandated African mission to oust the Islamists from the region. A donors conference will be held in Ethiopia on January 29.

Military experts say France and its African allies must deploy ground forces quickly to capitalize on recent gains and prevent the insurgents from regrouping in the desert.

The African deployment is hampered by a lack of transport and supplies, however. Nigeria, Niger and Togo have deployed a few hundred troops and a first contingent of 50 Senegalese troops left for Bamako on Sunday.

Underscoring the scale of the challenge, diplomats said full deployment of Senegal's full contingent of 500 soldiers was being held up by the lack of ammunition for their artillery.

Chad's President Idriss Deby, visiting a battalion of 600 Chadian troops awaiting deployment in neighboring Niger, said his government would do everything to ensure the maximum number of African troops in Mali.

"It's not that we have a lot of soldiers to spare but it's because we want to ensure the maximum number of soldiers on the ground," said Deby, who has promised to send 2,000 soldiers.

Human Rights Watch warned on Saturday it had received reports of serious abuses, including killings, being committed by Malian security forces against civilians in Niono.

Residents in the northern Malian town of Gao on Saturday lynched a prominent Islamist leader in retaliation for the killing of a local journalist earlier in the day, heightening fears of ethnic violence and reprisals following the liberation.

(Additional reporting by Abdoualye Massalatchi in Niamey; Writing by Daniel Flynn; Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/french-troops-inch-north-mali-islamists-melt-away-172139864.html

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10 Commandments of Step-Parenting | iSistaWorld

I?m a step-parent, I don?t identify with that title unless I?m legally bound to or someone asks specifically; and no, I don?t have any biological children of my own. My situation is rare, or so I?ve been told. My husband (the biological father of my children) and I have been married since November 2011, we have had our oldest (now 18) since December 2010 and the soon to be 10 year old since August 2011. Yes, the mother of my children is alive and well, not incarcerated, the children were not removed from her custody, and she has no substance abuse issues.

When the call came in October 2011, to my then fianc?, that his 16 year old son needed him (like all boys do) and that their biological mother was willing to give him custody of him, there was no question in my mind that?s what he needed to do. He so gingerly asked me, literally skating around the question to the point that I had to say it and my response was a resounding yes. And when the question came again in August 2011 for the then 8 year old, my response was the same. (I won?t bore you with the other details)
I?ve often been asked a series of questions by both women and men that have biological children, are in a step-parenting situation, or simply just want to know. The questions range from: why would I take on this responsibility, why would I raise someone else?s kids for them, how can I love and do for them the way that I do. Well, it?s simple (and besides, my momma told me I was more than capable of doing it):

1. Those kids were here before me.
2. They didn?t ask to be here.
3. I would never be the reason why a man wouldn?t be taking care of his kids; there are more than enough excuses that one could come up with, but I wouldn?t be it.
4. If he wouldn?t take care of them, then he would never take care of me. *drops mic*

Though I don?t have any biological children of my own (yes women like me, in our mid to late 30?s, do still exist), I don?t take for granted that I didn?t give birth to my sons. Like one friend told me, I got kids the easy way: no stretch marks or sleepless nights. And if at any time one of them says ?you?re not my mom?, that would be a very true statement. But the fact of the matter is, you can?t tell they?re not mine.
So, enough about my story, how do you get to that:
1. Don?t try to buy their love for their respect: at the end of the day they will only love what you buy for them and won?t respect you for it.
2. Say what you mean and mean what you say: rewards don?t come without consequences.

3. Make sure your yes is yes, your no is no, and don?t make promises just because it?s the easy way out.?

4. Rules without relationship breed rebellion and a relationship without rules breeds chaos.?
5. Make sure you and your spouse maintain a open line of communication as it relates to their child; because yes, at the end of the day, they are legally responsible.
6. Do not discuss adult issues in front of the children, especially if it relates to them or their other biological parent.
7. You are not the biological mother or father, so know your place and make sure to respect that biological parent. Maintain an open relationship with the other parent, whether the children live with you and your spouse or just visit. If the child/children live with you then be sure to involve the other parent in that child?s life.?
8. Don?t ever say a bad thing about that other parent to or in ear shot of that child; no matter what. Remember, that is still their mother or father that you are talking about. And the same should go for your spouse also. Issues will arise and bad feelings will emerge at some point. You betta go to God first.
9. Allow the child/children to call you what they are comfortable calling you. Do not force yourself on them, it should come naturally.
10. Where much is given, much is required. Pray for those children and their parents, because ultimately you are really praying for yourself.

Think about it like this, treat your step-children the way you would want a step-parent to treat your child. If you are the product of remarried parents, just remember how you were treated, good or bad ? glean from that experience. Your responsibility is to add to that child?s life as another parent, it?s addition not subtraction by eliminating the other parent and it?s definitely not division. It is my desire to be a blessing to my children, but really I am blessed because they are in my life.
Andsoitis?

Written and Submitted by: Shanterra Carter-Bruce

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Source: http://isistaworld.com/2013/01/18/10-commandments-of-step-parenting/

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Large blast hits Aleppo neighborhood in Syria: TV

BEIRUT (Reuters) - A large blast hit a neighborhood of the Syrian city of Aleppo on Friday and caused several casualties, state television said.

It was unclear who was behind the attack.

Syria TV said the explosion had been caused by a rocket fired by a "terrorist group" - a term it frequently uses to describe rebels in the 22-month-old uprising against President Bashar al-Assad.

But opposition groups said Assad's forces were behind the blast, which hit the Muhafaza Sakaniya neighborhood in a western district of the city.

Video from state television showed the side of a building collapsed into rubble that spilled into nearby streets. A crowd sifted through the wreckage as medics pulled bloodied bodies onto stretchers.

Activists said the district, a government-held area of a city that has descended into a long and bloody stalemate between army and rebels, had been hit by a military air strike.

"The rebels do not have this capability yet," said Hameed Barrasho, an activist in Aleppo speaking by Skype. "We have several reports of a jet in the area before the strike. This is the regime trying to sow more chaos in the city."

Syria's government restricts foreign media access to parts of the country it holds, making it difficult to confirm accounts by either side.

Earlier in the week, twin blasts at the University of Aleppo killed more than 80 people. Each side blamed the other.

(Writing by Alexander Dziadosz; Editing by Kevin Liffey)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/large-blast-hits-aleppo-neighborhood-syria-tv-115825302.html

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Chinese TV makers not getting LCD price-fixing compensation

Several questions remain unanswered following the Chinese government's decision to penalize Samsung, among others, over price-fixing of flat panel screens. One of the most pressing issues is which companies will receive compensation from the fine and how much each will receive.?

Of the 353 million yuan (US$56 million) penalty Samsung, LG and four Taiwanese LCD makers were ordered to pay, 172 million yuan (US$27 million) had been earmarked as compensation for Chinese companies--primarily TV manufacturers--affected by the price-fixing. However, after rounds of meetings, none of them reported to have received a single cent.

Nine TV manufacturers were supposed to receive compensation from the 172 million yuan payout, including TCL,?Skyworth, Konka, and Changhong.

According to a source with the alias "Zhang Zai", who works for one of the Chinese TV makers, the most recent meeting was held on Jan. 10 and discussions held were no where near an agreement on exactly who should get paid and how much.

Reports have since emerged claiming the compensation fund has been held back by CTU Tech, a Shenzhen-based industry group representing 10 Chinese TV makers, nine of which were supposed to receive part of the compensation money. CTU Tech issued a statement on Jan. 10, saying it was given the legal right to manage the distribution of the compensation and refuted allegations made in various media reports it had mishandled the process.?

An industry insider, who did not want to be identified, said: "It was our loss [from the price-fixing tactics] and the money should be paid back to us... There should at least be a hearing to let us decide what to do with it."

He also questioned why Samsung and other companies paid the fine outright without first determining who would be the beneficiary.

According to a local Web site's report, a spokesperson from Samsung said the Chinese government had given the Korean vendor an account number, but one which did not contain a name, adding it had simply followed the formalities and paid its part of the fine, which was 101 million yuan.?

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In Mali, French Ground Troops Engage Rebels

Article Excerpt

BY DREW HINSHAW IN BAMAKO, MALI AND GABRIELE PARUSSINI IN PARIS

French ground forces engaged in their first sustained clashes with al Qaeda-backed rebels in Mali on Wednesday as African and European nations weighed how to assist the military campaign.

A convoy of armored French vehicles, shipped in from Afghanistan, rode out of Mali's capital, Bamako, said Capt. Sebastien Bouillard, spokesman for the French operation in Mali. The apparent target was Diabaly, a military town that rebels fled, and where al Qaeda members said they fought French troops Wednesday. A French defense ministry official said French soldiers had met guerrilla-style resistance, but didn't say where.

In the capital, meanwhile, West African ...

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Tips And Advice For Dealing With Personal Bankruptcy | Finance ...

If you are facing the repossession of valuables, such as cars or jewelry, you may be feeling some fear. Put a stop to harassment by creditors and blaze a trail to a new financial future by declaring bankruptcy. Keep reading to gain useful insight about navigating the process.

If you know that you are about to file for bankruptcy, don?t exploit the information asymmetry and get huge cash advances on your credit cards. This is considered fraud, and even after bankruptcy you can be forced to pay all of that money back to the credit card company.

It is important to list all your assets and liabilities during the bankruptcy proceeding. Failure to do so will only cause you problems in the end. The person you choose to file with needs to know both the good and bad aspects of your finances. Don?t hold back information and create a strategy so you can deal with what?s really happening.

Don?t forget to enjoy your life once your finances get fixed. The filing process is extremely stressful for a lot of the people who go through it. The stress of dealing with bankruptcy could cause you to fall into a depression, unless you take steps to take care of yourself. You are getting a fresh start, and things will get better.

If you?re planning on filing bankruptcy, be sure that you don?t transfer your assets to another person within 12 months of the date you file. This is a very obvious attempt in hiding assets and could result in having your claim being rejected. Some assets cannot be taken away from you, including your home or your primary vehicle. Even so, it is never okay to try and hide assets, so delay filing if you have done that recently.

Ask those you know if they have an attorney to recommend, instead of finding one on the Internet or in the phone book. There are plenty of companies who know how to take advantage of people who seem desperate, and it?s important to be sure your bankruptcy can go smoothly; take your time and choose someone you can trust.

Always be honest with the information you give about your finances. As long as you are not hiding income or assets from the courts, you can ensure that there are no difficulties with your petition. This will save you from having your petition dismissed and your debts dropped from re-filing.

Some attorneys offer a phone service for free where creditors will be referred to when they wish to contact you regarding an account that?s delinquent. Then, a creditor can just call the number to verify that the money owed them is involved with a bankruptcy settlement. That will help you avoid them in the future.

Before filing for bankruptcy, learn your rights. Some bill collectors will tell you that your debts can?t be bankrupted. Only a few kinds of debt, like student loans or child support, are ineligible for bankruptcy. If your creditors are telling you any other kind of debts cannot be cancelled, get a written proof and send it to the general office of your state?s attorney to report this illegal behavior.

If you are feeling down, use the internet to chat with other people who have been through bankruptcy. Filing for bankruptcy can make you feel extremely alienated, even from your close friends. On the Internet, however, you can share your struggles and ask for advice from people who have already been through bankruptcy.

Rethink Getting Divorced

Rethink getting divorced if you are in a bad financial situation. Divorcing will only complicate your financial situation. You may find that both you and your spouse must file for bankruptcy following divorce. Rethink getting divorced, if possible.

Do not file for bankruptcy unless you are sure this is the only option possible. Often companies will reach a settlement that is greatly reduced. Other times, they will help you find a repayment plan that you can manage. In addition to saving money, this will allow you to raise your credit score. Prior to filing, it might be a good idea to set up a loan for debt consolidation.

Credit cards with recent activity cannot be included in a bankruptcy. It is not unheard of for individuals to pay their tax bill with their credit card and subsequently file for bankruptcy protection. These filers think they?ll never have to actually pay that money back as it is now part of the credit card debt. Remember that even if you use a credit card to pay for your taxes while you file for bankruptcy, you are still going to owe the amount due.

It is important to protect your home when filing bankruptcy. Filing for bankruptcy does not mean you have to lose your home. Check your home?s current value to see if it has gained equity and get your first and second mortgage papers together. Otherwise, try looking into house exemptions that may let you remain in the home if you meet certain financial threshold requirements.

Chapter 7

When you are looking at a Chapter 7 personal bankruptcy, you may well have debts to worry about for which you share responsibility with another person, such as a spouse, family member, or business partner. Once you file for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection, you no longer have legal responsibility for debts that you and any co-signers originally agreed to. However, if you had a co-debtor, they will be required to pay the debt.

When bankruptcy seem inevitable it is important not to use your retirement funds or emergency savings to pay creditors. Leave your retirement accounts untouched unless there is absolutely no other alternative. Though you may have to break into your savings, keep some available for difficult times. You will be glad you did.

Bankruptcy is an option, but you should look at other options before filing. Be wary of debt consolidation services, some of these services are scams and are only after your money. Remember to use the tips from this article, and make good financial choices to avoid future debt.

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Source: http://financeadvicetoday.com/2013/01/16/tips-and-advice-for-dealing-with-personal-bankruptcy/

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The Fed's big dollar gamble - Fortune Finance: Hedge Funds ...

A cheaper dollar has made U.S. manufacturers, including this GE appliance plant in Louisville, more globally competitive.

FORTUNE -- What do Rogaine and the Federal Reserve's economic-stimulus policies have in common? No, it doesn't involve Ben Bernanke's or Alan Greenspan's hairlines. Give up? The answer: side effects.

Rogaine, as you may know, was originally developed as a blood pressure medication but was "repurposed" because it had the side effect of promoting hair growth. The two Fed side effects we'll discuss today -- prospective currency wars with some major trading partners, and a reduction in the federal budget deficit -- are far less known than Rogaine's. But, with all due respect to follicularly challenged males, they're a lot more important.

MORE: Wall Street's last gravy train may be running out of steam

The first Fed side effect, currency wars, is an example of how something good -- stimulating our economy by lowering interest rates -- can have a downside. Cutting interest rates faster and more deeply than most other central banks has weakened the dollar against the currencies of many of our major trading partners. The Fed doesn't exactly run around telling the public that it's happy to see this happen. But that's the case, because a gradually declining dollar encourages job growth in our country by making our exports cheaper and our imports more expensive.

The problem, which reared its head in the run-up to the Great Depression 80 years ago, is that if everyone devalues, no one benefits. Instead, you get widespread instability, fear, and trade wars. The prospect of that makes even a congenital optimist like me more than a little nervous.

You can see from the chart below that the dollar has dropped more than 10% against the currencies of our major trading partners since 2009, when the world financial crisis was in full swing and the Fed invented one program after another to drive down interest rates. The dollar may well have been artificially high in 2009, but nevertheless, its subsequent decline has had a major impact on trade.

U.S. manufacturing is showing signs of recovery, in part because the dollar's decline has made domestically produced products more competitive with foreign products. But what's good for us is bad for countries whose products are being priced out of our market and are being forced to compete with cheaper (in terms of their currencies) U.S. goods in other markets, including their own.

The new Japanese Prime Minister, Shinzo Abe, is pushing his country's central bank to run down the value of the yen as part of his economic stimulus program. China is thinking along similar lines. Germany, which doesn't control the euro directly -- the European Central Bank does -- is pushing programs that are nominally aimed at economically struggling euro countries, but that will also drive down the euro's value, making Germany more competitive.

The Fed is playing a complicated, high-stakes game here. The dollar is the world's reserve currency, which allows us to suck in money from all over the world to fund our trade and budget deficits without having to balance our accounts. There's a tension between our internal situation (a lower dollar is good) and our role as a reserve currency (a dollar that falls too rapidly risks spooking investors and costing us our reserve-currency status).

MORE: The Fed is backing foreign banks into a corner

By contrast, the second side effect of the Fed's low-rate policies -- helping finance our federal budget deficit -- is an unalloyed good thing.

The Fed has been making huge profits since its stimulus programs kicked into high gear four years ago, and it has contributed virtually all of them to the Treasury. Last year, the Fed says, it made about $91 billion in profits and sent $88.9 billion of that to the Treasury. That's up from $31.7 billion it sent in 2008, the last almost-normal year, and $47.4 billion, $79.3 billion, and $75.4 billion from 2009 through 2011, respectively.

The Fed's profit is soaring because the size of its securities portfolio has risen, to about $2.65 trillion at the end of last year from about $750 billion at year-end 2007. The Fed has been buying Treasury and mortgage-backed securities by the boatload in order to raise their prices, which has the effect of driving down interest rates.

The Fed bought these securities with money that it essentially created out of thin air and then credited to the Fed accounts of the financial institutions that sold the securities. The Fed pays nominal interest on the money that sellers leave in those accounts, and no interest on the money withdrawn from them for other purposes, such as making loans. Meanwhile, the Fed collects interest on the securities it has bought. Thus, expanding the portfolio has been hugely profitable.

MORE: Globalism?goes backward

"The Fed isn't running these programs to maximize its own profit; that's just a side effect," says Ray Stone of Stone McCarthy Research Associates of Princeton, N.J., a leading Fed maven. He predicts that the Fed will post higher profits -- and send more money to the Treasury -- this year than it did last year.

On top of that, the Fed's projected purchases of about $540 billion of Treasury securities this year will indirectly fund about half of this year's federal budget deficit. Nice work if you can get it. And keep it.

There's one crucial difference between Rogaine and Fed rate-cutting: staying power. You can take Rogaine indefinitely, but the Fed's keep-lowering-rates program doesn't have an indefinite shelf life. Bernanke has driven U.S. interest rates to their lowest level in modern times, but he can't drive them below zero. Even if the Fed is reluctant to tighten, it doesn't control the world -- and it can't indefinitely withstand pressure from financial markets and from other central banks. When the Fed's inevitable dial-back kicks in, the dollar will rise, and Fed profits and remittances to the Treasury will fall. The bottom line: Pharmaceutical stimulus is forever. But Fed stimulus isn't.

--Reporter associate: Doris Burke

This story is from the February 4, 2013 issue of?Fortune.

Source: http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2013/01/16/dollar-trade-war/

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A closer look Sandy recovery aid package

The House on Tuesday passed a $50.5 billion package of recovery and related aid for Superstorm Sandy and other disasters. It was divided into two parts: a $17 billion base bill for immediate recovery needs from the late October storm, and a $33.5 billion amendment for longer-term recovery efforts and projects to curb damages from future disasters.

A look at its main provisions:

BASE BILL

?$5.4 billion for New York and New Jersey transit systems.

?$5.4 billion for the Federal Emergency Management Agency's disaster relief aid fund.

?$1.35 billion for Army Corps of Engineers projects.

? $3.9 billion for the Department of Housing and Urban Development's community development fund for Sandy recovery projects.

?$235 million for repairs and renovations at Veterans Affairs Department facilities.

?$143 million to the Coast Guard for damages by Sandy.

LONGER-TERM AID AMENDMENT

?$10.9 billion for New York and New Jersey transit system recovery projects.

?$12.1 billion for Housing and Urban Development Department community block grants for Sandy and other federally declared disasters in 2011-2013.

?$3.4 billion for Army Corps of Engineer projects for Sandy-related damage and protections against future storms.

? $2 billion for the Federal Highway Administration's emergency relief program to repair storm-damaged federal highways.

?$290 million for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, much of it for programs and equipment to improve weather forecasting.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/closer-look-sandy-recovery-aid-package-205544598.html

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Army seeks to bar mental health defense by Bales

FILE - In this Aug. 23, 2011, file photo, Defense Video & Imagery Distribution System photo, Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, 1st platoon sergeant, Blackhorse Company, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division participates in an exercise at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif. The U.S. Army says Bales, the soldier accused of killing 16 Afghan villagers during nighttime raids last year, will be arraigned Thursday, Jan. 17, 2013. Staff Sgt. Robert Bales could face the death penalty if convicted in the March 11 massacre. He faces premeditated murder and other charges in the attack on two villages in southern Afghanistan.(AP Photo/DVIDS, Spc. Ryan Hallock, File)

FILE - In this Aug. 23, 2011, file photo, Defense Video & Imagery Distribution System photo, Staff Sgt. Robert Bales, 1st platoon sergeant, Blackhorse Company, 2nd Battalion, 3rd Infantry Regiment, 3rd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division participates in an exercise at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, Calif. The U.S. Army says Bales, the soldier accused of killing 16 Afghan villagers during nighttime raids last year, will be arraigned Thursday, Jan. 17, 2013. Staff Sgt. Robert Bales could face the death penalty if convicted in the March 11 massacre. He faces premeditated murder and other charges in the attack on two villages in southern Afghanistan.(AP Photo/DVIDS, Spc. Ryan Hallock, File)

SEATTLE (AP) ? The U.S. Army wants to bar Staff Sgt. Robert Bales from using any sort of mental health defense to charges that he slaughtered 16 Afghan villagers last year because he has refused to take part in an official review of his sanity, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press.

Bales, a father of two from Lake Tapps, Wash., is due to appear Thursday morning in a military courtroom at Joint Base Lewis-McChord south of Seattle, where his lawyers say he will plead not guilty. Bales is accused of leaving a remote base in southern Afghanistan early on March 11, massacring adults and children in two villages, and burning some of the bodies ? attacks which drew such outrage that the U.S. temporarily halted combat operations in the country.

In court documents provided to The Associated Press by John Henry Browne, one of Bales' lawyers, military prosecutors argue that Bales should not be allowed to have any expert witnesses testify about what effect his mental health might have had on his guilt. Nor do they want any expert to testify during the penalty phase of the trial, should it get that far, as to whether any history of traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress disorder should spare him the death penalty.

The reason: His lawyers have refused to allow him to participate in a "sanity board" review.

Such reviews are conducted by neutral doctors tasked with discerning a defendant's mental state at the time of the crime and whether he's competent to stand trial. Bales, who grew up in Norwood, Ohio, was serving his fourth deployment in a war zone, and his mental health has been expected to be a key part of the case.

"An accused simply cannot be allowed to claim a lack of mental responsibility through the introduction of expert testimony from his own doctors, while at the same time leaving the government with no ability to overcome its burden of proof because its doctors have been precluded from conducting any examination of the very matters in dispute," Maj. Robert Stelle wrote in a motion Jan. 3.

Alternatively, Stelle wrote, the judge should order Bales to immediately undergo the sanity review.

Bales' attorneys have said he may have suffered from a traumatic brain injury, possibly when he lost consciousness when an improvised bomb went off during one of his tours in Iraq. They have thus far refused to let him take part in the sanity board because the Army would not let him have a lawyer present for the examination, would not record the examination and would not appoint a neuropsychologist expert in traumatic brain injuries to the board.

However, in a reply to the government's motion, one of Bales' lawyers, Emma Scanlan, wrote Tuesday that Bales will participate ? as long as only certain information about the results are forwarded to prosecutors. Prosecutors should promptly receive findings about his current competence, but nothing about his mental state at the time of the attack, she wrote.

That information should not be turned over to the government until Bales' defense team actually gives notice of their intent to use a mental-health defense or to have an expert testify, Scanlan said.

"There is no authority for the bizarre proposition that the accused has to submit to a compelled mental health examination before he gives notice of a mental defense," she wrote.

It wasn't clear whether the Army would agree to those conditions. The sides are expected to argue the issue before the judge on Thursday.

The court filings provided to the AP are supposed to be public, according to lawyers who specialize in military law. However, in this and other courts-martial, Joint Base Lewis-McChord has refused to provide them to reporters, leaving civilian defense attorneys as the only source for records that can be key to the outcome of cases.

Among other issues raised in the documents is the date for Bales' court martial. Prosecutors are arguing to set the trial quickly ? for June 10 ? because many witnesses remain in a volatile part of Afghanistan. Two possible witnesses have already been killed in separate and unrelated attacks, they noted, and as American troops withdraw, access to those witnesses is only going to get tougher and more dangerous.

"Simply stated, with each day that passes, the government's right to a fair trial is further jeopardized," they wrote.

Scanlan called that unrealistic, given how much time the defense team needs to review more than 30,000 pages of discovery materials, and find and interview witnesses ? not to mention getting their own client to open up. The defense has suggested a May 2014 trial date.

"Without adequate time to develop the relationship of trust required for effective representation in a capital case, counsel may never learn or be able to present the most crucial facts about the accused, facts without which any possible understanding of his actions is impossible," she wrote.

She noted that Bales' case was formally referred to a court martial just last month. For the last five U.S. courts martial where the death penalty was a possible punishment, the average elapsed time from date of referral to date of trial was one year and eight months, she wrote. Setting Bales' trial for this June would be a record pace, she suggested, and would risk harming the quality of his legal defense.

The documents also show that Bales' lawyers requested the appointment of a neuropsychologist to the defense team after a forensic psychiatrist who had already been appointed, Dr. Thomas Grieger, reported that he didn't have the expertise to evaluate Bales for traumatic brain injury. The Army refused, saying the defense hadn't shown that such an appointment was necessary.

___

Johnson can be reached at https://twitter.com/GeneAPseattle

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2013-01-17-US-Afghanistan-Massacre/id-174159f721cb411290de7823af0b4166

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Terence Coventry ? Three Decades of Sculpture and Works on Paper at Pangolin London

Terence Coventry, Pomona. Bronze? Courtesy Pangolin London. Photo: Steve Russell

Despite training at Stourbridge Schoool of Art and the Royal College of Art during the 1950s, Terence Coventry ultimately spent 25 years as a pig farmer in Cornwall, enjoying his first solo show in London at the age of 71.

Corten Owl. Corten steel? Courtesy Pangolin London. Photo: Steve Russell

Given his pastoral expertise, it?s been little surprise to see the natural world influence his work since he returned to sculpture in his 50s. Originally tutored by future Barbara Hepworth assistant Keith Leonard, Coventry was sent to north Devon for national service, his natural talent laying dormant until he found inspiration in the beauty of his surroundings.

Torso is a simple piece, made from a fallen elm tree found on his farm. Birds, bulls, hounds and boars also feature in his elegant figurative menagerie, while a steel sculpture, Corten Owl, pares down the angular lines of the material.

His bronzes ? made in plaster before casting ? relay the ruggedness of the Cornish countryside where he continues his resurrected craft.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Culture24/latest/~3/9Fq5-1N0GKQ/art416649

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Miami Heat vs. Portland Trail Blazers Cappers TNT NBA Preview & Free Pick

Has the league figured out a way to beat the Heat? Tuesday night against Indiana the Heat were crushed on the boards and lost by 10.

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Miami Heat (23-10) at Portland Trail Blazers (19-15)
Thursday, Jan. 10
Rose Garden, Portland
10:30 p.m. EST
Spread ? Heat -3
O/U ? 196 at Bovada

Matchup | Preview

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The Bulls outrebounded Miami by a staggering total of 20 (48-28) in beating the Heat last week.

And Detroit, of all teams, beat Miami in late December, partially by enjoying a slight advantage on the boards.

When the Heat are focused defensively and causing turnovers, no team in the league can beat them. If they take a game ? or even a half ? off, then well, who knows what will happen?

CLICK GRAB OUR BEST Expert NBA Hoops Picks for 2013 GAMBLING season!

Heat-ologists are concerned about Miami?s inability to get on the boards and wonder if the small-ball style of play has run its course. Is it time to bring in a big man and play a more conventional style? And please don?t talk about Chris Bosh. He?s big in size only, and the next time he has to shower after a game will be his first.

Though there is talk about importing Chris Andersen, coach Erik Spoelstra seems to believe that the answer to the team?s rebounding problems is already on the roster. Exactly where on the roster he has declined to say.

Enter the Trail Blazers, who take on the Heat tonight in Portland. The Blazers are only an average rebounding team, which makes their task a bit more difficult. But Portland may be able to catch them napping, because this will be game two of a slippery seven-game road swing.

The Blazers are coming off a game (Orlando) that coaches dream about. Four players ? J.J. Hickson, LaMarcus Aldridge, Damian Lillard and Nicolas Tatum ? all recorded double-doubles, and when that happens it?s next to impossible to lose. Hickson now has 20 double-doubles this season.

FREE NBA PICK

What?s going on with the Heat on the road? Miami is only .500 (7-7) away from home. Same players, different result away from home. Miami is even worse ATS, covering the number only five times on the road. Are they bored without beaches?

Are they just waiting things out for three months until we play games that actually count? Portland has always been a hostile environment for visiting teams.

The Blazers are 12-4 at home this year, and even in last year?s hellish (and lockout-shortened) 66-game season, they were 20-13 at home.

Can the Heat overcome all that? Sure. Do they want to expend the energy necessary to guy out a win in the Pacific Northwest? That?s the question.

Liking the under in this one as early money on Portland drove spread up to 5 from 4.5.

Our In-House Handicapper Ray "The Razor" Monohan is making a run up the leaderboards this week! A HUGE Run. 11 Straight Winning Days! Hop on the $ Train Now!

Source: http://www.capperspicks.com/blog/nba/miami-heat-vs-portland-trail-blazers-gambling-predictions-preview-10113/

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Google e Union Camere insieme per 20 borse di studio in Italia, l?obiettivo sono i social media

Se non esistesse, bisognerebbe inventarlo: Google regaler? grosse soddisfazioni qui in Italia dopo i suoi accordi con Unioncamere (parola macedonia che sta per Unione italiana delle camere di commercio); grazie ai nuovi patti ? soltanto alcuni di quelli che l?azienda ha promesso per il 2013 ? sar? possibile digitalizzare ben venti distretti industriali presenti in tutta la penisola. Scopriamo assieme tutti i dettagli.

Con il patrocinio del Ministero dello Sviluppo Economico, l?azienda intende sfruttare al massimo i maggiori poli produttivi del made in Italy, non senza contraccambiare: dopo l?accordo, sono state rese disponibili borse di studio della durate di ben sei mesi da destinare a laureandi o neolaureati che verranno preparati nell?ambito dell?economia digitale; l?obiettivo dell?azienda, ovviamente, ? quello di far s? che grandi imprese possano presentarsi bene sul web (e sfruttare, di conseguenza, tutti i servizi che i motori di ricerca offrono).

Le borse di studio da 6mila euro ciascuna (per un totale di venti) saranno attribuite sulla base di criteri di merito, dietro proposta di Unioncamere, che funger? proprio da intermediario fra i giovani e i distretti selezionati.

Il bando ? gi? disponibile e mette in evidenza che il candidato dovr? dimostrare notevoli competenze in ambito economico (con particolare riguardo al marketing e alla gestione), digitale e social media.

Google e Union Camere insieme per 20 borse di studio in Italia, l'obiettivo sono i social media ? stato pubblicato su Downloadblog.it alle 13:23 di gioved? 10 gennaio 2013. Leggete le condizioni di utilizzo del feed.

Fonte notizia: DownloadBlog.it

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Source: http://www.bestnotizie.com/177519/google-e-union-camere-insieme-per-20-borse-di-studio-in-italia-lobiettivo-sono-i-social-media/

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Get 5 Motherhood/Parenting ebooks for $7.40! - A Delightful Home

Have you heard of eBook Bundle of the week? It?s a new website that offers a set of 5 ebooks on a similar topic for one low price every single week.

I?m excited about this!

This week?s bundle focuses on motherhood and parenting.

It includes the following ebooks:

Nurturing Creativity by Renee Tougas

Nurturing Creativity: A Guide for Busy Moms is a book to help you grow creatively. It?s about embracing the seasons of motherhood and appreciating where you are while helping you to make creativity a priority in your life. It will encourage you to let go of perfection, to start small, and to find inspiration in everyday living. This little book will challenge you to make the most of the time you do have to create?beauty and meaning with your head, heart, and hands.

Mindset for Moms by Jamie Martin

Mindset for Moms: From Mundane to Marvelous Thinking in Just 30 Days is Jamie Martin?s personal manifesto on positive thinking for mothers. It?s packed full of lessons she?s learned over the years in an easy-to-digest format that?s perfect for busy mamas, designed to help you transform your mind and change your life.

Parenting with Positive Guidance by Amanda Morgan

Parenting with Positive Guidance gives you the tools for understanding your child?s behavior and effectively teaching and guiding your child toward increased self-control while fostering a healthy parent-child relationship. No book you read will ever change your child.? But this book can change you and how you react to your child in daily situations.? It?s the difference in those interactions that will effect real change in your children and your family

4 Moms of 35+ Kids Answer Your Parenting Questions

4 Moms of 35+ Kids Answer Your Parenting Questions is a book packed full of wisdom from experienced moms who have been there, done that. They answer tons of common parenting questions on everything from nap time and grocery shopping with kids to keeping your patience and preparing for the s-e-x talk, all organized in 17 easy-to-read chapters.

Steady Days by Jamie Martin

Steady Days is a book about mothering with a focus, juggling your mothering career with other roles you may hold, and being mindful as you interact with your children. In the midst of potty training and temper tantrums, Steady Days takes you through the process of becoming a professional mother: one who is organized and excited to spend time with your young children.

?

The Motherhood & Parenting Ebook Bundle is just $7.40 until? 8am EST on Monday, 1/14.

Please note: These are PDF downloads, not Kindle downloads.

Related posts:

1. Parenting: Part Love, Part Guerrilla Warfare!
2. Birthday Giveaway: When Motherhood Feels Too Hard
3. When Motherhood Feels Too Hard
4. Last Day to get Healthy Living eBooks for less than $1 Each!
5. Becoming a Better Mother: Don't Rely on Yourself

Source: http://adelightfulhome.com/get-5-motherhoodparenting-ebooks-for-7-40/

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AIG decides not to join Greenberg suit against government: WSJ

Delta has formally apologized to Dave Schneider, the musician whose vintage guitar was shredded by the airline's baggage handlers at a Detroit airport last month, and offered to pay him for his prized ax. Schneider, guitarist and singer for Hanukkah-themed rock band The LeeVees and the hockey-themed Zambonis, had asked Delta staffers not to check [...]

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/aig-decides-not-join-greenberg-suit-against-government-195133454--finance.html

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Venezuela plans "great function in honor of President Chavez," in lieu of inauguration

CARACAS, Venezuela Venezuela's government has organized what seems an alternative inauguration outside the presidential palace Thursday and is hosting regional leaders in an unusual show of support for ailing President Hugo Chavez, whose swearing-in ceremony has been indefinitely postponed.

Vice President Nicolas Maduro urged supporters to gather on a street outside Miraflores Palace to demonstrate their solidarity with Chavez, who remains in Cuba fighting complications after cancer surgery and hasn't spoken publicly or been seen in more than a month.

"Everyone to the street," Maduro said at a televised Cabinet meeting Wednesday night. "We're going to have a great function in honor of President Chavez."

Leaders from throughout Latin America and the Caribbean were invited, as they normally would be for a formal inauguration. President Jose Mujica of Uruguay arrived Wednesday, and other presidents expected to attend included Bolivia's Evo Morales and Nicaragua's Daniel Ortega.

Maduro said heads of state, foreign ministers and other officials from 19 countries had come to Caracas. The vice president, whom Chavez designated his chosen successor last month, said that even though it wasn't an official swearing-in, Thursday's event still marks the start of a new term for the president following his re-election in October.

"A historic period of this second decade of the 21st century is starting, with our commander leading," Maduro said.

But glaring above all in the planned event was Chavez's absence from the presidential where he has so often spoken for hours on television, chided his opponents and called for a socialist revolution.

The opposition, limping from two recent electoral defeats, seems powerless to effectively challenge the postponement of Chavez's swearing-in, a legislative move that was endorsed Wednesday by a Supreme Court widely viewed as favoring the government.

Apparently clinging to life in Cuba, unable to travel home or speak publicly, Chavez remains fully and legally in power. The opposition has been left complaining that there are no independent institutions or courts inside Venezuela for them to appeal to, and the world appears to be giving a collective shrug to their plight.

The door to a court challenge was slammed by Supreme Court President Luisa Estella Morales even before the opposition could file one. Morales announced Wednesday that it was fine to delay the inauguration past the Jan. 10 date set by the constitution, saying the Supreme Court could handle the issue later, "at a time and place to be determined."

As for demands that, under the constitution, a caretaker should be named for the unseen president in Cuba, Morales said that so far, "there is not even a temporary absence."

Opposition leader Henrique Capriles condemned the high court's endorsement of delaying the inauguration. "Institutions should not respond to the interests of a government," he said at a news conference.

He said the opposition had urged various governments not to send representatives to Thursday's event, and said he was grateful to presidents who had decided not to come to Caracas.

Government officials are at pains to insist that Chavez remains in command, even if unheard from. Pro-Chavez politicians have been wearing T-shirts with an image of the president's eyes. New murals with Chavez's smiling face have gone up on city walls.

Maduro on Wednesday reiterated hopes of Chavez eventually returning. Still, the long silence by the dominant Venezuelan politician of the past 14 years has fed speculation that he could be near death, raising anxieties and tensions.

Military leaders have sought to show they are in step with Maduro and the government. They appeared alongside ministers at Wednesday night's Cabinet meeting. A military commander, Maj. Gen. Wilmer Barrientos, also spoke on television saying that the armed forces were "very pleased" with the court's decision and were focused on providing a "sense of peace and tranquility."

Chavez has been fighting an unspecified type of pelvic cancer since June 2011 and has undergone repeated surgeries, chemotherapy and radiation treatments.

Chavez said before his latest operation that if he were unable to continue as president, Maduro should take his place and run in an election to replace him.

The government said earlier this week that Chavez was in a "stable situation" while being treated for a severe respiratory infection. The government has hasn't said how severe his "respiratory deficiency" is.

Source: http://feeds.cbsnews.com/~r/CBSNewsWorld/~3/k3OqQJc_yxc/

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Kickstarter ends 2012 with $274 million in successful pledges, bigger projects

It almost goes without saying that we love crowdfunded projects. If we use Kickstarter's 2012 wrap-up as a bellwether, there's many others out there like us. The number of successful projects shot up 53 percent last year to 18,109, and generated $274 million from pledges to projects that met their targets -- that's about 2.7 times more just in successful contributions than was raised in total for 2011, It's not hard to understand why if you've been following along. Between projects like Double Fine's adventure game, Ouya and Sundance Festival movies, Kickstarter in some cases has generated several times the revenue that a given client needed to get going. We won't venture a guess as to whether or not 2013 will see fiercer competition from the likes of Indiegogo or Christie Street, but any surge in truly viable, indie-built technology is good news in our book.

Filed under: Internet

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Via: TechCrunch

Source: Kickstarter

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/fdWaZrEay1A/

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Study: Business travel spending should increase in 2013 | Lake ...

Posted by admin in News on January 8th, 2013 | no responses

By Charisse Jones, USA Today

U.S. companies are expected to spend more on business trips this year, a sign that they may be feeling more optimistic about the economy, a new business travel forecast being released today finds.

A pent-up need to sit face to face with clients, coupled with increased spending on international trips and off-site meetings, is projected to boost overall business travel spending in the U.S. by 4.6 percent this year, to $266.7 billion, according to a report from the Global Business Travel Association, a group of business-travel and meetings managers.

?At the end of the day, companies need to find ways to grow ? revenues and see their performance increase year over year, and quarter over quarter, ? says Mike McCormick, executive director of the GBTA. ?So there?ll be this pressure to make investments and spend on business travel.?

The GBTA estimates that for every $1 spent on corporate travel, companies on average have seen $20 in additional profits.

But he says the growth, expected to make its greatest surge in the last half of the year, largely hinges on the outcome of ongoing debates about the federal deficit, corporate tax rates and other economic issues.

?If we don?t see those resolutions happen, we don?t continue to build corporate confidence,? McCormick says, and ?we may revert back to the ? anemic growth rate.?

While spending is predicted to be up, the number of business trips is projected to be down 1.1 percent from last year, reflecting the desire by many companies to make the most of their staffers? time on the road.

?Companies, and generally the travelers themselves, are trying to find ways to be more efficient about use of time so that means adding more into a trip,? he says. It?s ?maybe doing multiple stops, to multiple cities in the same itinerary.?

GBTA?s forecast dovetails with the latest findings of a new survey by the Travel Leaders Group, a corporate travel management company.

Its survey finds that almost 80 percent of the groups? agents who deal primarily with business trips predicted their clients will be on the road as much or more than they were in 2012.

Being economical while on a corporate trip was also the No. 1 priority, according to the survey. In it, 42.1 percent of agents say cost savings was most important to their business travel customers, and 33.7 percent say the most critical issue was cost control.

The survey, taken between Nov. 19 and Dec. 16, polled 335 U.S. agency owners, managers and industry experts who handle a significant amount of business travel.

?

Source: http://www.laketahoenews.net/2013/01/study-business-travel-spending-should-increase-in-2013/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=study-business-travel-spending-should-increase-in-2013

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jhonsonlara: FREE BOWLING!!! | Studio City Sports & Recreation ...

Voted number one by Los Angeles Magazine, PINZ is a fun, massive entertainment and bowling center with a full bar in house. The bowling alley features a plethora of lanes, shoe rental, private party areas and a full arcade with air hockey and billiards. The staff is friendly, outgoing and inviting. And?PINZ has food and drinks for everyone. There is a free parking lot?just outside the main entrance.

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Resolutions for Business in 2013 : HRVoice.org

By Robert Smithson

In the weeks before the end of 2012, I had been mulling over the phrase ?do better? as a way of capturing a different approach to doing business for human resources staff. The purpose of the phrase was clear to me but I felt I would have a difficult time getting my meaning across.

Then, the horrific tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut, occurred and that led to President Barack Obama?s comments when spoke at a vigil. He said, ?Are we prepared to say that such violence visited upon our children year after year after year is somehow the price of our freedom? We will be told that the causes of such violence will be complex and that is true. No single law, no set of laws can eliminate evil from the world or prevent every senseless act of violence in our society. But that can?t be an excuse for inaction. Surely we can do better than this.?

Upon reading those words, what I wanted to say became apparent. Just because you?ve always done things a certain way, and just because there will be obstacles in the path of doing them differently, is no reason not to make changes for the better.

The first thing that I think human resources staff could do better in 2013 is to gain a greater understanding of how the law impacts the employment relationship and, particularly, its termination. In my experience, the vast majority of legal actions arising out of employment occur at or after termination of the relationship.

In most, if not all, cases the employer was in a position to have taken steps which would have avoided the need for any form of litigation. I would be hard pressed to name any employer I?ve ever dealt with which believes the costs of litigation (and lawyers) contribute in any positive way to their business, so why not avoid these problems altogether?

That is perhaps easier said than done. But, without a doubt, the first step in that direction is having an understanding of the legal framework within which the employment relationship fits.

Second, I wonder if businesses would consider whether to stop wasting time and resources trying to turn poor employees into good ones. It may, after all, be true that you cannot turn a sow?s ear into a silk purse.

Is it possible that, in your particular industry, it makes better sense to invest your time and effort into weeding out and replacing poor performers? The costs of replacing an employee are well known but it may be that it?s even more expensive to retain underachievers.

?Fit? is an elusive quality in an employee and, ultimately, my own sense is that it isn?t something that can be taught. Skills and knowledge can be taught but ?fit? is, in my experience, something that either is there or isn?t there from the outset.

Third, work on changing the perception that your department is just another typical bureaucracy. This label, obviously, isn?t applicable to all human resources departments but there is a persistent view out there that human resources people are slaves to administrative processes.

So, learn (and take to heart) that your role is to advance your employer?s primary business objective. In everything you do, ask yourselves, ?How are we assisting this business to achieve its primary objective??

Donald Keough is a former President of the Coca-Cola Company. In his book, The Ten Commandments for Business Failure, he commented, ?There must be rules and routines in every business to maintain the proper rhythm in everything. Over time, however, it seems that inevitably the rules and routines become more important than the ends they were designed to serve.? Don?t let this become the way your h.r. department is perceived ? following rules and routines is, surely, not your company?s primary business objective.

Fourth, and this is closely related to the previous point, apply some ?what if?? thinking. One frequent criticism of human resources departments is that they demonstrate a closed mind to fresh ideas and that things are done a certain way solely because that?s the way they?ve always been done in the past.

A ?what if?? approach means contemplating the possible, approaching familiar problems from an unfamiliar direction. It?s sort of a first step, or a halfway point, between ?can?t? and ?can? and requires a mind that is open to new concepts.

Finally, do the easy things that advance your employer?s business interests, like implementing employment contracts. Properly implemented employment contracts are a critical mechanism for controlling and eliminating employee-related liabilities.

It is inconceivable to me that there is a trained, experienced human resources person out there who doesn?t recognize the value of properly documenting the employer-employee relationship. Yet, many employers forego this simple, valuable tool.

If the only things the employment contract contains are a properly structured probation clause and an enforceable severance clause, you will have greatly contributed to your employer?s business.

These are five steps any human resources person would be well-advised to consider as he or she embarks on 2013. Doing better is the objective and it may be more easily achieved than you think.

Robert Smithson is a labour and employment lawyer, and operates Smithson Employment Law in Kelowna. For more information about his practice, or to subscribe to You Work Here, visit http://www.smithsonlaw.ca. This subject matter is provided for general informational purposes only and is not intended as legal advice.

This article was originally posted on You Work Here.

Tags: employment law, resolutions, Robert Smithson

Category: Raising the Bar

Source: http://www.hrvoice.org/resolutions-for-business-in-2013/

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