The billfold–by Noah Lambert–is made [...]
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GearFactor/~3/5UUBH9rNBlc/
dan gilbert david stern david stern julian beever appeasement ian stewart ian stewart
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Gorgeous, Minimal Wallet Cut From One Piece of Leather
Why is it that the simplest, plainest designs always cost the most? Possibly because the resulting elegance comes from lots of hard work. Or maybe it’s just that the best products use the best raw materials. Whatever the reason, I must have this beautifully simple wallet, despite its $90 price tag.
The billfold–by Noah Lambert–is made [...]
The billfold–by Noah Lambert–is made [...]
Friday, December 30, 2011
Tech 2011: Biggest News Stories of the Year
The editors of Gadget Lab recap the tech industry news stories that had the biggest impact in 2011. Apple and Google led the way, but that doesn't mean other companies didn't capture a few news cycles -- if only for nefarious reasons.
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GearFactor/~3/yRDOa7v8Bkg/
myth busters tracy mcgrady tracy mcgrady mash alec baldwin kicked off plane alec baldwin kicked off plane mumia
Book: Petraeus almost quit over Afghan drawdown
FILE - In this June 23, 2011 file photo, CIA Director nominee Gen. David Petraeus testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, before the Senate Intelligence Committee during a hearing on his nomination. A new book says general-turned-CIA director David Petraeus almost quit over President Barack Obama?s decision to quickly draw down forces from Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File)
FILE - In this June 23, 2011 file photo, CIA Director nominee Gen. David Petraeus testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, before the Senate Intelligence Committee during a hearing on his nomination. A new book says general-turned-CIA director David Petraeus almost quit over President Barack Obama?s decision to quickly draw down forces from Afghanistan. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen, File)
WASHINGTON (AP) ? Four-star general-turned-CIA director David Petraeus almost resigned as Afghanistan war commander over President Barack Obama's decision to quickly draw down surge forces, according to a new insider's look at Petraeus' 37-year Army career.
Petraeus decided that resigning would be a "selfish, grandstanding move with huge political ramifications" and that now was "time to salute and carry on," according to a forthcoming biography.
Author and Petraeus confidante Paula Broadwell had extensive access to the general in Afghanistan and Washington for "All In: The Education of General David Petraeus," due from Penguin Press in January. The Associated Press was given an advance copy.
The book traces Petraeus' career from West Point cadet to his command of two wars deemed unwinnable: Iraq and Afghanistan. Co-authored with The Washington Post's Vernon Loeb, the nearly 400-page book is part history lesson through Petraeus' eyes, part hagiography and part defense of the counterinsurgency strategy he applied in both wars.
Critics of counterinsurgency argue the strategy has not yet proved a success, with violence spiking in Iraq after the departure of U.S. troops, and Afghan local forces deemed ill-prepared to take over by the 2014 deadline.
The book unapologetically casts Petraeus in the hero's role, as in this description of the Afghanistan campaign: "There was a new strategic force released on Kabul: Petraeus' will."
Broadwell does acknowledge that Petraeus rubs some people the wrong way.
"His critics fault him for ambition and self-promotion," she writes. But she adds that "his energy, optimism and will to win stand out more for me."
The book also is peppered with Petraeus quotes that sound like olive branches meant to soothe Obama aides who feared Petraeus would challenge their boss for the White House.
"Petraeus tried to make clear that he and Obama were in synch," Broadwell writes of Petraeus' Senate testimony on the Afghan war.
The book describes Petraeus' frustration at still being labeled an outsider from the Obama administration, even as he retired from the military at Obama's request before taking the job last summer as the CIA's 20th director.
The book depicts Petraeus' rise at an unrelenting, near-superhuman pace. He starts his career as a fiercely competitive West Point cadet known as "Peaches," where he famously wooed the school superintendent's daughter, Holly Knowlton. He went on to command the 101st Airborne Division as part of the invasion of Iraq, then masterminded the rewrite of the Army and Marine Corps' counterinsurgency training manual before returning to command the surge in Baghdad. He was then appointed to head Central Command, overseeing the campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as military affairs across much of the Gulf and the Mideast.
He accepted a cut in authority and pay to lead the Afghanistan war campaign when Gen. Stanley McChrystal was forced to resign after a Rolling Stone article that "scorched the general (McChrystal) and his aides, caricaturing them as testosterone-addled frat boys as they insulted Obama" and other officials, Broadwell writes.
She describes how Petraeus' first act was to lift McChrystal's restrictions on the use of force ? especially on airstrikes ? if civilians were nearby.
"There is no question about our commitment to reducing civilian loss of life," Petraeus told his staff. There was, however, "a clear moral imperative to make sure we are fully supporting our troops in combat."
Broadwell adds that the problem, according to Petraeus, was less McChrystal's order than how it was even more strictly re-interpreted by lower commanders.
In her account, Petraeus also faults McChrystal for overpromising and underdelivering in places like Taliban-riddled Marjah in the south, producing months of embarrassing headlines that hurt the war effort back in Washington.
But the book also includes Petraeus' own Rolling Stone-esque moment, when he was quoted badmouthing the White House in Bob Woodward's latest book, "Obama's Wars." A frustrated Petraeus is described as telling his inner circle, on a flight after a glass of wine, that "the administration was (expletive) with the wrong guy."
"Petraeus later expressed his displeasure to all of them for betraying his confidence," Broadwell wrote. "But he knew he was ultimately responsible for making the intemperate remark," a candid admission, through Broadwell, of his lapse in judgment.
He also concedes the Afghan war is not yet won.
"He had wanted to hand (Marine Corps Gen. John) Allen ... a war that had taken a decisive turn," Broadwell writes of what had been Petraeus' goal for his successor. "He knew that, despite the hard-fought progress, that wasn't yet the case."
Yet that admission also presents a get-out clause when combined with the book's account that he considered resigning over the rapid drawdown of troops, neatly removing Petraeus from responsibility if the war goes wrong.
And the account does nothing to puncture the mythology his troops built up around him, something an early mentor, retired Gen. Jack Galvin, told Petraeus to embrace.
"They want you to be bigger than you are, so they magnify you," Galvin said in an interview with Broadwell. "Live up to it all with the highest standards of integrity. You become part of a legend."
"All In" fits neatly into that.
___
Online:
www.paulabroadwell.com
___
Kimberly Dozier can be followed on Twitter (at)kimberlydozier.
Associated Pressletter from santa sweet potato pie sweet potato pie twas the night before christmas detroit lions cincinnati bengals jaws
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Police name Texas Christmas shooting suspect
GRAPEVINE, Texas |
GRAPEVINE, Texas (Reuters) - Dressed in a Santa suit, Aziz Yazdanapah showed up at his estranged wife's home near Dallas during a Christmas celebration with her sister's family, and killed everyone before turning the gun on himself, police believe.
The seven bodies were discovered strewn in the living room area of the Grapevine apartment, amid opened presents and near a Christmas tree.
Police identified the dead on Tuesday as two families connected through a pair of sisters.
Suspected shooter Aziz Yazdanpanah, 58, had been estranged from his wife and two teenage children when they moved out of the family's upscale home in nearby Colleyville earlier this year.
His wife, Fatemeh Rahmati, 56, who was a licensed manicurist at a local salon, as well as their daughter, Nona Yazdanpanah, 19, and their son, Ali Yazdanpanah, 14, were also killed.
In the other family, who were visiting Rahmati's apartment on Christmas morning, were her sister, Zohreh Rahmaty, 58, Hossein Zarei, 59, and daughter Sahra Zarei, 22.
"Aziz is the one that was dressed in the Santa suit, and whom we believe ... to be the shooter at this time," Grapevine Police Lieutenant Todd Dearing told Reuters late on Tuesday.
"It was a family incident, they were all related by marriage or blood," he added.
The dead were found by police answering a voiceless 911 emergency call, authorities said.
Evidence released by police on Tuesday narrowed the time of the shooting down to an 18-minute window between 11:16 a.m. when one of the victims sent an "innocuous" text message and 11:34 when the 911 call was received, Dearing said.
The text message "said something along the lines of 'I'm here, Aziz is here dressed as Santa, trying to be the Dad of the Year,'" Dearing said.
It was not immediately clear who sent or received the message.
'QUIET BUT VERY NICE'
Dearing said investigators do not yet know whether Yazdanpanah arrived at the apartment with the intention of killing his family and in-laws.
"We can't possibly know his full intent," Dearing told Reuters. "We don't know whether he was invited or not invited. It could be that Fatemeh told him he could stop by and drop off presents."
Yazdanpanah's family, Iranian immigrants who had settled in the Dallas-Fort Worth area decades ago, had been fighting foreclosure and had declared bankruptcy on their home, a 3,000-square foot house built in 1990 and recently valued near $350,000, according to public records.
Neighbors said that while bankruptcy and foreclosure proceedings moved through the courts, Yazdanpanah had continued to live in the home on Sycamore Court in Colleyville, which borders Grapevine, known for its upscale suburban lifestyle and situated just a few miles away from the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.
He was a friendly man who loved his children, neighbors said.
"They were very good neighbors," said Fred Ditmars, who lived across the street from the family for more than four years. "Quiet but very nice."
Ditmars said Yazdanpanah would watch his house when he and his family were away.
The killings rocked the quiet, festive Dallas suburb dubbed the "Christmas Capital of Texas" and known more for its tourism, Christmas season events, festivals and vineyards than for violence. It was the worst outburst of gun violence in the history of the town, which hadn't seen a homicide since June 2010.
Two pistols were recovered from the home, said Sergeant Robert Eberling of the Grapevine police department, who called it a "gruesome crime scene."
No one was found alive by police arriving at the home, he said.
A memorial organized by Nona Yazdanpanah's best friend is scheduled to take place at Parr Park in Grapevine on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m.
(Additional reporting by Karen Brooks and Tim Gaynor; Editing by Jerry Norton)
Source: http://feeds.reuters.com/~r/reuters/MostRead/~3/MgISt93FA-c/us-bodies-texas-idUSTRE7BO0GV20111228
two fat ladies dennys kindle fire glen davis kobe bryant war of the worlds a christmas story
Verizon experiencing nationwide data outage?
That phone on Big Red having problems with data? Apparently you're not alone, as the carrier appears to be having issues again judging by the metric ton of emails we've gotten from you experiencing LTE, and in some cases CDMA, blackouts across the country. Our Galaxy Nexus in New York is chugging along with 1xRTT while a Thunderbolt in Washington DC is doing just fine with CDMA. We've just pinged Verizon and will update if we hear back.[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
Verizon experiencing nationwide data outage? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 28 Dec 2011 14:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
Permalink | | Email this | Comments
Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/iyXV623nRkE/
weta weta rudolph the red nosed reindeer rudolph the red nosed reindeer adam carolla desean jackson rick neuheisel
AP: Niece's texts show the timeline of a Texas shooting in which a man dressed as Santa killed six relatives: http://t.co/v69p78HY -EC
- Passer la navigation
- Twitter sur votre mobile ? Cliquez ici m.twitter.com!
- Passer cette ?tape
- Connexion
Niece's texts show the timeline of a Texas shooting in which a man dressed as Santa killed six relatives: apne.ws/rZYoJY -EC 
AP The Associated Press
Pied de page
Source: http://twitter.com/AP/statuses/152111371859935232
annie zuccotti park leymah gbowee gabby giffords gabby giffords hunger games trailer hunger games trailer
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Sony PlayStation Vita: List of Launch Games Lineup Revealed [VIDEO]
Sony has revealed the list of games that will be available alongside the upcoming PlayStation Vita on its launch day on Feb. 22. As many as 25 launch games from Sony and others from its development community are set to arrive alongside the most-awaited hand-held gaming console.
As far as the Sony titles are concerned, the launch day games include the likes of ModNation Racers: Road Trip, Uncharted: Golden Abyss and wipEout 2048. The third-party games that are also set to come include Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3, Square Enix's ?evil Pikmin,? Rayman Origins and Army Corps of Hell. Other games, set for a later release, are MLB 12 and Gravity Rush (from Sony).
Here is a list of the upcoming games:
SCEA (Sun Certified Enterprise Architect) Window Titles:
Unit 13
MLB 12
Reality Fighters
Gravity Rush
SCEA (Sun Certified Enterprise Architect) Launch Day Titles:
UNCHARTED: Golden Abyss
ModNation Racers: Road Trip
Escape Plan (PSN Only)
Hot Shots Golf: World Invitational
Super StarDust Delta (PSN only)
Hustle Kings (PSN Only)
Little Deviants
wipEout 2048
Like us on Facebook
Third Party Titles Window Titles:
NINJA GAIDEN Sigma PLUS
LEGO? Harry Potter: Years 5-7
Ridge Racer
Disgaea 3: Absence of Detention
Silent Hill Book of Memories
Supremacy MMA: Unrestricted
Third Party Launch Day Titles:
Army Corps of Hell
Asphalt Injection
BEN10 GALACTIC RACING
Blazblue: Continuum Shift EXTEND
Dungeon Hunter Alliance
Dynasty Warriors Next
F1 2011
EA SPORTS FIFA Soccer
Lumines Electronic Symphony
Michael Jackson The Experience
Plants vs Zombies (PSN Only)
Rayman Origins
Shinobido 2: Revenge of Zen
Tales of Space: Mutant Blobs (PSN Only)
Touch My Katamari
Ultimate Marvel vs Capcom 3
Virtua Tennis 4: World Tour Edition
Source: http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/273412/20111228/sony-playstation-vita-list-launch-games-lineup.htm
turkey map walter isaacson walter isaacson zodiac killer battlefield 3 review battlefield 3 review real housewives of new jersey
so_white: http://t.co/YH0KiFBW #2: Modern Abstract Art Oil Painting STRETCHED READY TO HANG OPB389
- Passer la navigation
- Twitter sur votre mobile ? Cliquez ici m.twitter.com!
- Passer cette ?tape
- Connexion
tinyurl.com/7ew2qov #2: Modern Abstract Art Oil Painting STRETCHED READY TO HANG OPB389 
so_white Pied de page
Source: http://twitter.com/so_white/statuses/150878524050382848
michael lohan fiddler on the roof rally squirrel rally squirrel scumbag steve scumbag steve day of the dead
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
A Christmas tree farmer as president? How he raised spirits during wartime.
US presidents have had Christmas trees at the White House for years.?But only one was a bona fide Christmas tree farmer, according to his?voter registration card.
Many presidents have lit a national Christmas tree outdoors on the Ellipse. They?ve also entertained guests round the bedecked White House Christmas tree inside the Executive Mansion, in the big Blue Room.?
Skip to next paragraphBut only one raised and sold Christmas trees himself. He even wrote ?Christmas tree farmer? on the occupation line of his voter registration card. Who was it?
We?ll give you a hint ? he also hosted perhaps the most sober and moving White House tree ceremony of modern times.
Give up? It was Franklin D. Roosevelt, gentleman horticulturist. He raised Christmas trees at his Hyde Park estate.
He planted the evergreens when they were six inches high. Every two years or so a hired hand would weed them. Trees that reached the age of 10 years were cut for sale. FDR?s secretary Grace Tulley would write chain stores to remind them the president had trees in stock; these outlets would buy them up.
He hoped to produce trees ?in such quantity that it would be a really profitable venture,? said Ms. Tulley in historian Stanley Weintraub?s new book, ?Pearl Harbor Christmas.?
Pearl Harbor was the cause of the emotional tree-lighting ceremony, of course. The Japanese surprise attack took place on Dec. 7, 1941. Within days the United States was at war with Japan and Germany. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill arrived in Washington Dec. 22 for consultations with his new ally. He stayed at the White House, keeping FDR up late into the night for talk and cigars.
On Christmas Eve the two leaders of the free world stood on the South Portico of the White House to light the national tree. Thousands watched in person; millions listened on radio.
FDR said that at such a time, it was natural to question why Christmas trees should be lit at all. The reason, he said, was that the nation needed to armor its hearts as well as its soldiers.
?When we make ready our hearts for the labor and the suffering and the ultimate victory which lie ahead, then we observe Christmas Day ? with all of its memories and all of its meanings ? as we should,? said Roosevelt. The national tree was not lit again until Christmas 1945, in the wake of the Allied victory.
oakland general strike oakland general strike houshmandzadeh houshmandzadeh bieber baby justin beiber dia de los muertos
Monday, December 26, 2011
Mexican actor Pedro Armendariz Jr. dies at age 71
FILE - In this March 31, 2009, file photo, Mexican actor Pedro Armendariz speaks as he announces some of the Ariel awards at the 51st annual Mexican Academy Awards in Mexico City. Armendariz, 71, died on Monday, Dec. 26, 2011, in New York due to cancer, according to local media. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte, file)
FILE - In this March 31, 2009, file photo, Mexican actor Pedro Armendariz speaks as he announces some of the Ariel awards at the 51st annual Mexican Academy Awards in Mexico City. Armendariz, 71, died on Monday, Dec. 26, 2011, in New York due to cancer, according to local media. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte, file)
FILE - In this Oct. 1, 2009, file photo, Mexico's actor Pedro Armendariz, president of the Mexican Movie Academy, attends a press conference in Mexico City. Armendariz, 71, died on Monday, Dec. 26, 2011, in New York due to cancer, according to local media. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, file)
MEXICO CITY (AP) ? Mexican character actor Pedro Armendariz Jr. died Monday at the age of 71. There was no immediate confirmation of the cause of death.
Armendariz was best known for playing sly, sometimes cynical characters he endowed with wit and charisma. Armendariz played Gov. Riley in the 2005 movie "The Legend of Zoro," and had roles in 1989's "Old Gringo" and "Once Upon a Time in Mexico" in 2003.
President Felipe Calderon's office issued a statement lamenting Armendariz' death, calling him "a great actor who reflected well on Mexico at home and abroad."
The Mexican government news agency Notimex reported he died in New York City of cancer, but said his family had asked for their privacy to be respected.
He acted in more than 100 films, including the Mexican hit "The Crime of Father Amaro."
Consuelo Saizar, the president of Mexico's National Arts Council, lamented the death of Armendariz in her twitter account.
He had been married and divorced twice and is survived by several children.
Armendariz' father bore the same name and was a movie star during the "golden age" of Mexican films in the 1940s and 50s.
Associated Pressdenver news kym johnson how old is justin bieber how old is justin bieber north dakota jobs referendum scarlett johansson
Sunday, December 25, 2011
China plans further cut to railway spending (AP)
BEIJING ? China's government announced another cut in railway construction spending Friday amid concern about the debts of the world's biggest rail network and the safety of its showcase bullet trains.
Beijing will spend about 400 billion yuan ($65 billion) next year on railway construction, Railways Minister Sheng Guangzu said at an industry conference, the state Xinhua News Agency reported. That is down from what Xinhua said is expected spending of 469 billion yuan ($75 billion) this year and a sharp drop from 2010's 700 billion yuan ($112 billion).
Beijing is rapidly expanding China's 56,000-mile (91,000-kilometer) rail network, which is overloaded with passengers and cargo. But it has scaled back plans amid concern about whether Sheng's ministry can repay its mounting debts.
Critics complain authorities have spent too much on high-speed lines, a prestige project for the ruling Communist Party, while failing to invest enough in expanding cheaper, slower routes to serve China's poor majority.
A failure to expand rail capacity could choke economic growth because exporters away from China's coast rely on rail to get goods to ports.
The Xinhua report Friday gave no details of spending plans or where the government intends to expand service.
The rail ministry's mounting debts have prompted concern about whether it will have to be bailed out by Chinese taxpayers. Private sector analysts say revenues from ticket sales and freight charges probably are insufficient to pay its publicly reported 2 trillion yuan ($300 billion) in debt.
Beijing reined in the rapid expansion of its bullet train network after a July 23 crash that killed 40 people triggered a public outcry about a system that critics say is dangerous and too costly for a poor country. The speed of the fastest lines also was reduced.
Xinhua described Friday's announcement as the first time the communist government has announced a "clear goal for future railway development." It said construction "has been almost halted" since the bullet train crash.
Sheng, the railway minister, announced a moratorium in August on new rail projects while the government carried out a nationwide safety inspection.
Government plans announced earlier call for expanding the rail network to 75,000 miles (120,000 kilometers) by 2020.
In a report this week, the World Bank called China's system "by far the most densely trafficked railway network in the world." It recommended that Beijing overhaul its system of state-set prices and allow rail managers more flexibility in setting ticket and cargo prices to make trains more efficient and affordable.
lori berenson lori berenson the incredibles yu darvish jon bon jovi dead ndaa new jersey plane crash
Android 4.0 confirmed for Sony Tablet S
Source: http://www.cliqz.com/gadgets/c/94199.html
election results 2011 board of elections board of elections senate bill 5 senate bill 5 joe paterno press conference joe paterno scandal
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Mexico disbands entire police force in top port (AP)
VERACRUZ, Mexico ? The entire police force in the major Gulf coast port city of Veracruz was dissolved on Wednesday, and Mexican officials sent the Navy in to patrol.
The Veracruz state government said the decision is part of an effort to root out police corruption and start from zero in the state's largest city.
State spokeswoman Gina Dominguez said 800 police officers and 300 administrative employees were laid off. At a press conference, she said they can apply for jobs in a state police force, but must meet stricter standards for an agency with officers "who are better trained and more committed and who can deliver under our current security circumstances."
Armed marines barricaded police headquarters Wednesday and Navy helicopters were flying above the city where 35 bodies were dumped in September. It was one of the worst gang attacks of Mexico's drug war.
The change was agreed upon Monday by Veracruz Gov. Javier Duarte and federal Interior Secretary Alejandro Poire.
Mexico's army has taken over police operations several times before, notably in the border city of Ciudad Juarez and the border state of Tamaulipas. But Veracruz becomes the first state to completely disband a large police department and use marines as law enforcers. There are about 2,400 marines in the state of Veracruz.
Dominguez said the Navy operations will last only until the state can train more of its own police. Duarte already had disbanded a police force in the state's capital of Xalapa, but in that case state agents immediately replaced city police.
President Felipe Calderon has pushed an ambitious process for vetting all of Mexico's 460,000 police officers. His administration allocated $331 million for 200 cities to train and re-equip municipal police forces.
Governors have complained they lack the resources to ensure their police forces are clean.
Veracruz is a common route for drugs and migrants coming from the south. It was first dominated by the Gulf Cartel, and then its former armed wing, the Zetas, took over after the two split. The state saw a rise in crime this spring after a government offensive in neighboring Tamaulipas scared drug criminals away to Veracruz.
But the dumping of the 35 bodies shocked Mexico as it turned the port into a battleground between the Zetas and a gang aligned with the Sinaloa Cartel, led by Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman.
mythbusters miami marlins hanley ramirez blago mumia abu jamal mumia abu jamal pearl harbor
Video: Royal surprise for sailors at sea
A crew of disabled soldiers attempting to row across the Atlantic received a surprise call by satellite phone from Prince Harry.
Related Links:
http://twitter.com/nbcnightlynews
Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/nightly-news/45774637/
stuffing brandon mcinerney brandon mcinerney black friday 2011 deals nfl power rankings week 12 nfl power rankings week 12 brine turkey
Friday, December 23, 2011
Do new endorsements mean Mitt Romney has clinched the nomination?
GOP endorsements are piling up for Mitt Romney ? his share of them has grown to 65 percent. While that's no guarantee, it's becoming harder to envision anyone else winning the nomination.?
Increasingly, it's becoming hard to envision anyone other than Mitt Romney actually winning the GOP nomination.
Skip to next paragraphNewt Gingrich? His star is falling fast, and his momentum is all in the wrong direction.
Ron Paul? He may well win Iowa ? and even New Hampshire, which admittedly would throw Mr. Romney for a bit of a loop ? but his base of support just isn't broad enough to get the actual nomination, especially once success causes the other candidates to turn their negativity on him.
Rick Perry? Jon Huntsman? If the field is blown wide open by early Paul wins, combined with a dismal showing by Romney, then it's possible one of them could become a factor ? this is, after all, one of the most volatile primary contests in recent memory, and fortunes can shift quickly. But given where they both are right now, it seems a monumental task.
Rick Santorum and Michele Bachmann barely seem worth mentioning at this point.
Which leaves... Romney. It may be one reason that more and more key GOP figures are coalescing around him.
Romney has always been more the choice of the Republican establishment, but now he's starting to win endorsements from key conservatives outside the establishment as well.
South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (one of Sarah Palin's "Mama Grizzlies") is one of the most high-profile recent examples. And he has the endorsement of Christine O'Donnell ? the tea party favorite who won the Delaware primary (and lost the general election) despite having the GOP establishment against her.
This week he got the Des Moines Register endorsement too (although according to New York Times polling analyst Nate Silver, their track record for choosing candidates is mixed).
coriolis effect giants patriots yolo steelers vs ravens jack dempsey lake malawi hines ward
New tour offers glimpse of New Orleans movie sites
NEW ORLEANS?? Sitting near the New Orleans streetcar line aboard a van equipped with video screens and a speaker system, tourists watch actress Vivien Leigh ride the city's vintage electric rail vehicles in a scene from the 1951 film "A Streetcar Named Desire."
In the French Quarter, passengers look on as Bruce Willis escapes attackers outside a praline shop in the 2010 film "Red." They also watch a young Kirsten Dunst bite into a woman's neck in Jackson Square in one of her early roles as a bloodthirsty child vampire in 1994's "Interview With a Vampire."
A new multimedia tour being offered in New Orleans takes passengers to locations where famous movie scenes were filmed and shows them a clip from the film on site. The tour also includes peeks at the New Orleans homes of actors Brad Pitt, Sandra Bullock and John Goodman.
"It really is a different way to see the city," said Debbie Carroll, a self-proclaimed movie buff from Springfield, Mo., who took the tour earlier this month. "I love movies, so I was excited to take this tour, but I also like that I got to see parts of the city I had never seen before."
Besides the tourist-heavy French Quarter, New Orleans Movie Tours includes stops in lesser-known neighborhoods such as Treme and the Faubourg Marigny. Clips from those neighborhoods include an action-packed fight sequence with Jean-Claude Van Damme in 1993's "Hard Target" and scenes from 2004's "Ray" about the life of singer Ray Charles, which landed Jamie Foxx an Academy Award.
The HBO television series "Treme," which frequently films in both the Treme and Faubourg Marigny neighborhoods and is currently filming its third season in New Orleans, is also in the tour.
The tour is approximately two hours long, includes popcorn, and is packed with location stops and clips from roughly 30 films shot in New Orleans, among them 2008's "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" starring Pitt; 1965's "The Cincinnati Kid" with Steve McQueen and Ann-Margret; 1969's "Easy Rider" with Dennis Hopper and Peter Fonda, and 1958's "King Creole" starring Elvis Presley.
New Orleans Movie Tours was launched this past summer by the husband-wife team of Jonathan and Michelle Ray, movie lovers from Willington, Conn., who moved to New Orleans roughly 10 years ago.
"We fell in love with the culture, the music, the people, the food, basically everything that we didn't have in Connecticut," Jonathan Ray said.
The couple followed the growing film culture in the city, he said.
Since Louisiana film tax credits were introduced in 2002, movie production hubs have popped up in cities across the state, including Shreveport, Lafayette and Baton Rouge. But New Orleans continues to see most of the activity. This year alone, roughly 45 projects ? almost half of all those filmed in the state ? were shot in the New Orleans area.
-
-
Celebrity breakups of 2011
George Clooney and Elisabetta Canalis, Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore, and yes, those wacky newlyweds Kim Kardashian and Kr...
- Arguing with mom preps teens for peer pressure
- Search for missing Maine toddler goes inside home
- Which special guest did Ann escort on Dec. 26, 2001?
- Stuck in car for 9 days, woman 'thankful to be alive'
-
Celebrity breakups of 2011
"If there's something filming, we try to include it on the tour, so the tour can change slightly from day to day," Jonathan Ray said.
During the hot summer months, the temperature-controlled van is a comfortable alternative to the walking tours the city offers, he said.
The movie tour appears to be a growing draw for tourists and locals alike, said Jennifer Day, a spokeswoman for the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau and former director of the New Orleans film office. Day said the movie tour fills a void that's existed for some time.
"When I worked at the film office, we got calls all the time from movie buffs wanting information on where movies were filmed and from visitors in the city who wanted to keep an eye out for the movie they saw filming," she said.
The tour appears to be one of only a handful like it in the U.S.
"You have to be at a site where a lot of movies have been filmed for it to work," said Doug Lumsden, owner of Monterey Movie Tours in Monterey, Calif., one of fewer than a dozen multimedia movie tours in the United States. Besides New Orleans, such tours are also offered in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Boston, Chicago, and Savannah, Ga., Lumsden said.
One of the first movie tours opened on the Hawaiian island of Kauai in 1995. That tour, Hawaii Movie Tours, includes more than a dozen stops at such locations as Wailua Falls, where the TV show "Fantasy Island" was made, and Kapaa Town, where the 1993 Steven Spielberg-directed blockbuster "Jurassic Park" was filmed.
Lumsden said his tour takes movie lovers through Monterey, Pacific Grove, Carmel and Pebble Beach. Among the highlights is The Lodge at Pebble Beach, where Doris Day ran through the entry in the suspense drama, "Julie."
Lumsden said the Rays visited California and took his tour before launching their own venture in New Orleans.
"They are really good," he said. "They did their homework, and they really know their stuff."
___
If You Go...
NEW ORLEANS MOVIE TOURS: Daily, 10 a.m. and 1 p.m.
RESERVE ONLINE: http://www.nolamovies.com or call 800-979-3370
PRICE: Adult tickets are $39, children ages 4-12 are $29
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Source: http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/45749489/ns/travel-destination_travel/
dramamine dramamine nba season we bought a zoo we bought a zoo iron bowl iron bowl
Thursday, December 22, 2011
A New Path to Longevity (preview)
Feature Articles |
Health
See Inside
See Inside
Researchers have uncovered an ancient mechanism that retards aging. Drugs that tweaked it could well postpone cancer, diabetes and other diseases of old age
?| December 20, 2011?|
Image: Photographs by Evan Kafka
In Brief
- In 2009 scientists discovered that a drug called rapamycin could significantly extend life span in mice, doing so by interfering with the activity of a protein called mammalian TOR, or mTOR.
- The finding is the most compelling evidence to date that mammalian aging can be slowed pharmaceutically, and it galvanized interest in mTOR?s role in the aging process.
- The result also highlighted a mystery: Why would suppressing cellular growth and replication?oneeffect of interfering with mTOR?extend life span?
- Research into that question could lead to medicines that postpone or mitigate aging-related disorders?from Alzheimer?s disease to cancer to heart failure?and perhaps even extend how long humans can live.
On a clear November morning in 1964 the Royal Canadian Navy?s Cape Scott embarked from Halifax, Nova Scotia, on a four-month expedition. Led by the late Stanley Skoryna, an enterprising McGill University professor, a team of 38 scientists onboard headed for Easter Island, a volcanic speck that juts out from the Pacific 2,200 miles west of Chile. Plans were afoot to build an airport on the remote island, famous for its mysterious sculptures of enormous heads, and the group wanted to study the people, flora and fauna while they remained largely untouched by modernity.
Articles You Might Also Like
Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=cc2256c3b0d8c43dd66a4a70a6b73124
jimmy rollins let it snow unemployment extension golden state warriors jason trawick tony romo jerry lewis
Monday, December 19, 2011
"Who's Still Standing?" Israel puts mark on U.S. TV (Reuters)
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) ? NBC's new quiz show "Who's Still Standing?" has contestants dropping through the floor, and the burgeoning Israeli TV industry whooping with delight.
The fast-paced trivia game, which sends losers falling through trap doors, makes its U.S. debut in a week-long series of shows this coming Monday, December 19, as the first Israeli reality program to find its way to the United States.
Judging by the in-roads being made by Israeli producers and creators on television around the world, it won't be last.
Twenty years after Israeli television broke away from its one channel model of mostly news, and British or U.S. drama imports, young producers are making their mark internationally with original programming often made on shoestring budgets.
"It has been a quick learning process," Tel Aviv-based producer Lisa Shiloach-Uzrad told Reuters. "We started with simple game shows and buying international formats and adapting them. But in the last few years we have seen more and more original programming, scripted shows, reality shows or game shows."
"Who's Still Standing?" (or "Still Standing" as it is called in Israel), has been sold to 13 countries including Spain, Hungary and France since Shiloach-Uzrad created the show in 2010 with business partner Amit Stretiner.
The duo are also the creative team behind "The Frame", a reality show hybrid of "Big Brother" and "The Amazing Race" that has sold in 30 countries and is due to make its way to the CW network in the United States in 2012.
Elsewhere, cable channel Showtime's critically-acclaimed psychological thriller "Homeland" has its creative roots in Israel, and HBO is making a U.S. version of Israeli crime drama "The Naked Truth".
QUIZ, COMEDY AND TRAPDOORS
"Who's Still Standing?" will be hosted on NBC by Ben Bailey and features one main competitor and 10 challengers in a battle of wits for a $1 million jackpot. As soon as a contestant answers a question incorrectly, they disappear through trap door and are out of the competition.
Shiloach-Uzrad, co-partner of Israel's July August Productions, said she believed the show owed its success to a format that combines "a trivia show where the viewer is playing along and the comic effect of physical humor."
"The Frame" was developed specifically for international audiences. It features eight couples who live in small rooms around the clock for all to see, and gives them challenges. The audience votes off the least popular couple.
"You see lots of reality shows where you take people out of their natural environment and put them into a fantasy land. In this case we said, what can be more intense than being closed in with your partner for 6-8 weeks in a very small space?," Shiloach-Uzrad said.
The claustrophobic effect is both a product and a bonus from working with limited resources. HBO's therapy drama "In Treatment", adapted from another Israeli original, also found success by using a small number of actors sitting in one room.
"We have to work with low budgets. This means you really have to find smart and creative solutions to make things work," said Shiloach-Uzrad.
"With scripted shows, you have to lean on high quality writing and good acting and great characters because there is no money for Hollywood special effects or car chases to cover up for weak plots," she said.
(Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)
Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tv/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111216/tv_nm/us_israel
kris humphries remember the titans wale wale weather denver weather denver ambition
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Lowe's pulling ads from Muslim show sparks protest
ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP) ? Protesters descended on a Lowe's store in one of the country's largest Arab-American communities on Saturday, calling for a boycott after the home improvement chain pulled its ads from a reality television show about five Muslim families living in Michigan.
About 100 people gathered outside the store in Allen Park, a Detroit suburb adjacent to the city where "All-American Muslim" is filmed. Lowe's said this week that the TLC show had become a "lightning rod" for complaints, following an email campaign by a conservative Christian group.
Protesters including Christian clergy and lawmakers called for unity and held signs that read "Boycott Bigotry" and chanted "God Bless America, shame on Lowe's" during the rally, which was organized by a coalition of Christian, Muslim and civil rights groups.
Rep. Rashida Tlaib, a Detroit Democrat and the first Muslim woman elected to the Michigan Legislature, said it was "disgusting" for Lowe's to stop supporting a show that reflects America ? the conservatives, liberals and even "the Kim Kardashians" in the Muslim community, she said.
"We're asking the company to change their mind," said protester Ray Holman, a legislative liaison for a United Auto Workers local. He said he was dismayed that the retailer "pulled sponsorship of a positive program."
A local rabbi extended his support to clergy at the protest and local Arab Americans, saying he and other Jews would have been at the protest had it not fallen during the Jewish Sabbath.
"I hope that they would likewise stand up and demonstrate should something outrageous like this take place against another religion," Rabbi Jason Miller said in a statement.
Lowe's spokeswoman Karen Cobb said Saturday that the company respected the protestors' opinion.
"We appreciate and respect everyone's right to express their opinion peacefully," she said.
The show premiered last month and chronicles the lives of families living in and around Dearborn, a suburb of Detroit at the heart of one of the largest Arab-American populations outside the Middle East.
Dearborn is home to the Islamic Center of America, one of the largest mosques in North America. Overall, the Detroit area has about 150,000 Muslims of many different ethnicities and is served by about 40 mosques.
It airs Sundays and ends its first season Jan. 8.
The Florida Family Association has said more than 60 companies it emailed, from Amazon to McDonalds, pulled their ads from the show, but Lowe's is the only major company so far to confirm that it had done so. The group accused the show of being "propaganda that riskily hides the Islamic agenda's clear and present danger to American liberties and traditional values."
The travel planning site Kayak.com also pulled its ads, though its marketing chief said the decision was made because the company was dissatisfied by the show's quality and TLC wasn't upfront with advertisers about how the show would be presented.
Saturday's rally was met by about 20 counter-protesters including John White, who lives in nearby Livonia and called those protesting against Lowe's "terribly misdirected." He acknowledged that he hadn't watched the show, saying he'd seen previews and read about it, but believed the company made a decision based on business, not bigotry.
"Americans are not suspicious ... of baseball-playing, apple-pie eating Muslims," he said. "It's the ones you see on the news."
The manager of the Lowe's store, Doug Casey, said the company wasn't influenced by any outside group or ideology. He said those who criticized Lowe's have a right to their opinion, but that "it's not the opinion of most of the customers I spoke to in the store today."
"I'm deeply sorry if it's caused any divide in our community," he said. "It was never our intention to offend or alienate anyone."
The hubbub didn't keep people from shopping at the store. Keith Rissman, who was buying finishing boards for windows he's installing in his mother's garage, said he supported the company.
"It's a decision they're allowed to make," the 57-year-old said. "If (people) don't want to shop here, they don't have to."
Karen Lundquist, 65, came to the store with her son even though she didn't support Lowe's decision. "It just seems like they yielded to a Christian hate group," she said.
Associated Pressmukesh ambani mukesh ambani bob harper aapl x factor judges x factor judges raiders news
Watch Comet Lovejoy Playing With Fire and Surviving [Video]
kourtney kardashian pregnant again kourtney kardashian pregnant again apple juice apple juice jay cutler carole king katharine mcphee
Saturday, December 17, 2011
'The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson': Kenneth Branagh Accused Of Playing With Himself (VIDEO)
There was a very strong theme running through Craig Ferguson's interview with Kenneth Branagh on "The Late Late Show" (Weeknights, 12:30AM ET on CBS). Branagh may have caused it by keeping one hand in his pants pocket during the early part of the interview.
When Ferguson was asking him if he'd ever done a film just to get to spend time with a specific actress, Branagh was very vehement in denying it. But there was that hand.
"Are you playing with your junk right now just 'cause of the idea?" Ferguson asked. In response, Branagh removed his hand but the damage was done and the theme was set.
The pair talked about vulgar architecture then, with Ferguson clarifying that the opera house in Sydney, Australia is not phallic, but rather shaped like a woman's genitals. He talked about how most structures are phallic, but "Sydney said, No we're gonna go the other way. We'd like a vagina right there."
TV Replay scours the vast television landscape to find the most interesting, amusing, and, on a good day, amazing moments, and delivers them right to your browser.
order of operations carrie underwood eric church sara evans lionel richie cma awards cma awards
The deal averting a government shutdown: Who achieved what? (The Week)
New York ? Congress reached an 11th-hour deal to keep federal agencies running. But the horse-trading isn't over
Just 27 hours before a deadline that could have shut down the federal government at midnight Friday, Democrats and Republicans reached an agreement on a $1 trillion spending bill that will keep the lights on through the end of the fiscal year in September, 2012. They still have to work out the particulars of another sticking point ? a separate measure extending a temporary payroll tax cut and jobless benefits. So what did both parties gain, and give up, to break the impasse? Here, a brief guide:
So, the parties settled their differences?
Not exactly. They still have to work out how to pay for the $120 billion payroll tax cut extension for 160 million workers, to keep it from expiring on Dec. 31. But they got close enough that the White House and Senate Democrats figured it was safe to detach the payroll-tax issue from the spending bill, which they were delaying in an attempt to force the GOP to negotiate. Now Congress can approve the spending bill, and focus on settling lingering differences over the payroll tax.
SEE MORE: Why the GOP caved in the payroll tax fight: 4 theories
?
Who caved?
Both sides gave up a little on the spending measure. "The final bill strips out a Republican amendment to the Treasury budget to reinstate Bush-era restrictions on travel to Cuba" ? something President Obama opposed, says David Rogers at Politico. But it also includes some GOP provisions that are hard for Democrats to swallow, such as one blocking new, greener standards for light bulbs.
Will extending the payroll tax be easy now?
Both sides say a deal is near, although anything can happen. Democrats have reportedly dropped their insistence on offsetting the cost with a surtax on people making more than $1 million a year, which was a dealbreaker for the GOP. But Republicans haven't budged on one provision Democrats have described as a poison pill ? a controversial proposal to expedite the review of the Keystone XL oil pipeline.
SEE MORE: Congress' 'wild final month': 5 predictions for December
?
What happens if they can't agree?
Both sides want to extend the payroll tax holiday. If they let it expire, the portion of Americans' paychecks withheld for Social Security and Medicare will rise 2 percent ? from 4.2 percent to 6.2 percent. In such a scenario, someone making $50,000 would have to pay $1,000 more in payroll taxes. To avoid that, Congress is likely to pass a two-month extension if no long-term agreement is in sight. That way members will be able to head home for the holidays, and put off a final showdown until February.
Sources: CNN, NY Times, Politico, Washington Post
View this article on TheWeek.com
Get 4 Free Issues of The Week
Other stories from this topic:
Like on Facebook?-?Follow on Twitter?-?Sign-up for Daily Newsletterdallas weather badgers badgers the killing fields the killing fields texas killing fields burzynski
Friday, December 16, 2011
Canadian Music Studio Brandish Poop Flute for the Holidays [Video]
publishers clearing house scare tactics stacy keibler stacy keibler dancing with the stars season 13 cast tay sachs tay sachs
Ohio boy who weighed 200 pounds to live with uncle
Attorney John Lawson, who represents the boy, speaks to the media after a court proceeding Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2011, in Cleveland. An Ohio judge says a third-grader who was taken from his mother after his weight topped 200 pounds will be removed from foster care and placed in his uncle's custody. The judge says the boy's weight has dropped to 192 pounds while he's been in foster care for two months. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)
Attorney John Lawson, who represents the boy, speaks to the media after a court proceeding Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2011, in Cleveland. An Ohio judge says a third-grader who was taken from his mother after his weight topped 200 pounds will be removed from foster care and placed in his uncle's custody. The judge says the boy's weight has dropped to 192 pounds while he's been in foster care for two months. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak)
CLEVELAND (AP) ? A boy removed from his mother's custody over health concerns when his weight ballooned to more than 200 pounds will be taken from foster care and placed in the custody of an uncle, a judge ruled Wednesday.
Judge John Hoffman also said the boy, who celebrated his 9th birthday Wednesday but didn't appear in court, would be allowed a weeklong visit with his mother for Christmas. His name was withheld by Cuyahoga County Juvenile Court.
The mother left court without commenting, but the placement with her brother living in the Columbus area had been accepted by all sides before it was announced during a brief court hearing.
The court-appointed attorney representing the boy's interests, John Lawson, said he was sure the youngster would be happy with the agreement.
"This is only an interim plan because the real goal of everybody here is to get him back in his home with his mother and his sibling," a brother, Lawson said.
"He's a very smart boy and I think he's got goals about himself," Lawson said, including losing weight.
While in foster care, the boy's weight dropped from about 200 pounds to 192.
Mary Louise Madigan, speaking for the Cuyahoga County Children and Family Services agency that sought foster care for the boy over weight-related health issues, said having the uncle caring for the boy was part of the county's goal of getting him to a healthy weight and back with his mother.
"He's in a least restrictive placement with a family member and I think that's what the court was looking at," she said.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio joined the case on the boy's behalf and said he should be with his family.
"We think it's a fundamental liberty for a child to be brought up in his home among family and friends," said the ACLU's James Hardiman.
Taking a child from the home over weight issues could set a bad precedent, he said.
"We're concerned that if this were to establish a precedent that it would be a pretty dangerous precedent. So we take it as a basic fundamental civil liberties issue," Hardiman said.
Associated Pressoklahoma fall back time change when does daylight savings start when does daylight savings start earthquake in texas earthquake in texas
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Publisher says Poe novelist did not lift material (AP)
NEW YORK ? The publisher of a novel about Edgar Allan Poe's child bride defended the book against allegations that its author, Lenore Hart, lifted material from another work about Poe's young wife.
St. Martin's Press released a brief statement Tuesday saying it had compared Hart's "The Raven's Bride" to Cothburn O'Neal's "The Very Young Mrs. Poe" and found any similarities limited to the inevitable overlap of two novels covering the same subject: Virginia Clemm, who married Poe when she was 13 years old.
St. Martin's said Hart had supplied a detailed response that cited her biographical and historical research.
"As Ms. Hart explained in her response, of course two novels about the same historical figure necessarily reliant on the same limited historical record will have similarities," the statement read. "We have reviewed that response and remain satisfied with Ms. Hart's explanation."
British author Jeremy Duns has posted numerous excerpts on his blog ? http://jeremyduns.blogspot.com ? noting the two books share not just plot points, but language and even invention. In November, Little, Brown and Company pulled Q.R. Markham's "Assassin of Secrets" after Duns and others had noted the novel had taken material from numerous other books.
"How utterly absurd and frustrating of them," Duns wrote in an email Tuesday about St. Martin's statement. "As I repeatedly pointed out, Hart stole scenes and passages that O'Neal invented for his novel; i.e. they never happened." He added that the "level of precise language" the novels have in common "cannot be coincidence."
O'Neal's book was published in 1956. The author died in 2001.
A sample passage from his book reads: "Beyond Hopewell and the confluence of the Appomattox, the James grew narrower and wound in great loops around Bermuda Hundred. Further on, the current was swifter, foaming against gray boulders and lush green islands which twisted the channel torturously."
A passage from "The Raven's Bride," published early this year, reads: "Beyond the confluence of the Appomattox, the James grew narrower and wound in great loops about Bermuda Hundred. The current ran more swiftly there, shoving its relentless force against gray rocks and lush low peninsulas which twisted the channel into a shallow treacherous serpent whose narrow back we must ride."
Duns and Hart exchanged angry messages last month on Hart's Facebook page. In the messages, Duns repeatedly pointed out similarities between her book and O'Neal's while Hart, whose previous novels include "Ordinary Springs" and "Becky," denied any impropriety. (The messages have since been deleted).
In an interview in May with the online magazine http://www.bookslut.com, Hart acknowledged reading O'Neal's book, but only after she had turned in a "corrected draft" of her novel.
"I was engaged with it in some places and bored in others," she said, adding her "apologies to the late Mr. O'Neal."
"A lot of his exposition is rendered in summary punctuated with lots of long, rather too lofty conversations," she said. "The two novels might feel similar for other reasons: We both write about the same real people and real events, not fictional ones either of us had created out of thin air. We both told the story of HER life."
Sales have been slow for Hart's book and the paperback is "bargain priced" on Amazon.com at $6.24. As of Tuesday afternoon, it ranked 989,250 on Amazon.
packers aaron rodgers patsy cline packers stock sale packers stock sale broncos broncos
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)