Reports: Retired general target of leaks probe

WASHINGTON (AP) ? A former vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff is under investigation for allegedly leaking classified information about a covert cyberattack on Iran's nuclear facilities, according to media reports.

Retired Marine Gen. James "Hoss" Cartwright has been told he is a target of the probe, NBC News and The Washington Post reported Thursday. A "target" is a person whom a prosecutor or grand jury has substantial evidence linking them to a crime and who is likely to be charged.

The Justice Department referred questions to the U.S. attorney's office in Baltimore, where a spokeswoman, Marcia Murphy, declined to comment.

The investigation of the leak about the Iran cyberattack is one of a number of national security leak investigations that have been started by the Obama administration, including ones involving The Associated Press and Fox News.

In June 2012, the New York Times reported that Cartwright was a crucial player in the cyber operation called Olympic Games, started under President George W. Bush.

Bush reportedly advised President Barack Obama to preserve Olympic Games.

According to the Times, Obama ordered the cyberattacks sped up, and in 2010 an attack using a computer virus called Stuxnet temporarily disabled 1,000 centrifuges that the Iranians were using to enrich uranium.

Congressional leaders demanded a criminal probe into who leaked the information, and Obama said he had zero tolerance for such leaks. Republicans said senior administration officials had leaked the details to bolster the president's national security credentials during the 2012 campaign.

The Times said Cartwright was one of the crucial players who had to break the news to Obama and Vice President Joe Biden that Stuxnet at one point had escaped onto the Internet.

An element of the program accidentally became public in the summer of 2010 because of a programming error that allowed it to escape Iran's Natanz plant and sent it out on the Internet, the Times reported. After the worm escaped onto the Internet, top administration officials met to consider whether the program had been fatally compromised.

Obama asked if the program should continue, and after hearing the advice of top advisers, decided to proceed.

Cartwright, a four-star general, was cleared in February 2011 of misconduct involving a young aide. An anonymous accuser had claimed Cartwright acted inappropriately during a 2009 overseas trip on which the aide traveled as a military assistant. Several sources confirmed that the former aide was a young woman.

The Pentagon inspector general quickly cleared Cartwright of the most serious allegations, which involved claims that he may have had an improper physical relationship with the woman. The report did find that Cartwright mishandled an incident in which the aide, drunk and visibly upset, visited his Tbilisi, Georgia, hotel room alone and either passed out or fell asleep on a bench at the foot of his bed. Cartwright denied any impropriety and was later cleared of all wrongdoing.

Cartwright, once considered the leading candidate to become Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, resigned from the military in August 2011.

NBC said Cartwright did not respond to request for comment and that his attorney, former Obama White House counsel Greg Craig, said he had no comment.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/reports-retired-general-target-leaks-probe-020959907.html

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Research raises concerns over smoke detectors' effectiveness in waking children

June 27, 2013 ? Standard domestic smoke detectors may not always wake children in the event of a fire, according to research by the University of Strathclyde's Centre for Forensic Science and Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service.

The study of 34 children -20 girls and 14 boys- aged between two and 13, found that 80% slept through smoke detector alarms. Each child was tested six times and only seven of the children woke during any of the tests.

Only two children woke on every occasion and none of the 14 boys in the research woke at all.

While the findings do not call into question the value of smoke alarms in alerting people to fires, nor their capacity to help save lives, the fact that the children failed so often to wake up on the activation of the alarms does raise concerns.

Professor Niamh Nic Daeid, of Strathclyde's Centre for Forensic Science, who led the research said 'While the results of this study remain preliminary given the number of children involved, they do highlight concerns that cannot be ignored about the effectiveness of smoke detectors in waking children."

"Further research is required to build on the findings to date and investigate robust solutions to the issues highlighted."

Dave Coss, East Midlands Regional Fire Investigation Dog Handler and Watch Manager with Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service, conducted the study as part of his Masters degree taken at the University of Strathclyde.

Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service reinforces the importance of having a working smoke alarm on every level of the home and that the research finding emphasise the importance of having a pre-planned and practised escape route or plan that everyone in the home, whether a family member or overnight guest, is aware of. This plan must account for waking, alerting and evacuating all children in the home.

The Service also continues to campaign and work towards domestic sprinklers being fitted into all new domestic dwellings and retrofitted into the homes of those most vulnerable to fire, as and where appropriate.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/mstauAWBoR4/130627131827.htm

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Matthew Morrison: Engaged to Renee Puente!

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/06/matthew-morrison-engaged-to-renee-puente/

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Stocks sag, but Dow logs best first half of year since 1999

stocks

JeeYeon Park CNBC

3 hours ago

The Dow and S&P 500 dropped on Friday as investors were reluctant to jump in following a three-day rally, but major averages still capped the volatile quarter with gains.

Stocks finished lower for the month of June, logging their first monthly drop this year. But all three major averages logged their third winning quarter in four. And so far for the year, the Dow has surged more than 14 percent, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq have spiked more than 13 percent each.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average declined 114.89 points to close at 14,909.60, pulling back after logging its third-straight day higher. Still, the Dow posted its strongest first half of the year since 1999.

The S&P 500 fell 6.92 points to finish at 1,606.28. The S&P 500 logged its best first half performance since 1998. The Nasdaq eked out a gain of 1.38 points to end at 3,403.25.

The CBOE Volatility Index (VIX), widely considered the best gauge of fear in the market, finished unchanged below 17.

For the quarter, the Dow rose 2.27 percent, the S&P 500 climbed 2.36 percent, and the Nasdaq soared 4.15 percent. Microsoft was the best performer for the quarter on the Dow, while IBM tumbled.

Financials topped the S&P 500 sector gainers in the second quarter, while utilities lagged.

Stocks initially opened in negative territory after Fed Governor Jeremy Stein highlighted the upcoming September policy meeting as a possible time when the central bank may need to consider paring back its QE program, adding that the Fed consider the overall economic improvements since it launched the stimulus instead of giving undue weight to the most recent round of tepid economic data.

(Read More: Buckle Up! Expect More Market Volatility This Year)

Stein's comments contradicted comments from other Fed policymakers who have suggested the central bank will bide its time before scaling back its bond purchases.

Menawhile, Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker said markets should brace for more volatility as they digest news the Fed will scale back bond buying later this year, but the swings will not derail growth. Lacker said he expects U.S. growth to remain around 2 percent for the "foreseeable future."

(Read More:Fed Out in Force as Markets Stabilize)

On the economic front, business activity index in the Midwest fell in June to 51.6 from 58.7 in May, according to the Institute for Supply Management-Chicago. A Reuters survey of economists on average expected a median reading of 56.0 in June versus the May figure of 58.7.

Meanwhile, consumer sentiment improved in late June, with the final reading on the overall index at 84.1, above the preliminary reading of 82.7, according to Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the final June reading of 82.8.

Japan's benchmark stock index hit a three-week high on the heels of positive economic reports that include much stronger than expected industrial output and retail sales numbers.

"We had better job market numbers, better production numbers, and even consumer prices are picking up. So data-wise, today is a pretty good day for Japan," said Takuji Okubo, principal and chief economist at Japan Macro Advisors.

Traders will closely watch gold prices, as the precious metal dipped below a key level of $1,200 per ounce. Analysts warned that miners could be severely affected if prices remain this low.

(Read More: Three Reasons Gold Will Go to $800)

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Texts, video cited in charges against Hernandez

ATTLEBORO, Mass. (AP) ? In the final minutes of his life, Odin Lloyd sent a series of texts to his sister.

"Did you see who I was with?" said the first, at 3:07 a.m. June 17. "Who?" she finally replied.

"NFL," he texted back, then added: "Just so you know."

It was 3:23 a.m. Moments later, Lloyd would be dead in what a prosecutor called an execution-style shooting orchestrated by New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez because his friend talked to the wrong people at a nightclub. Hernandez was charged Wednesday with murder and could face life in prison, if convicted.

Hernandez was cut from the NFL team less than two hours after he was arrested and led from his North Attleborough home in handcuffs, and nine days after Lloyd's body was discovered by a jogger in a remote area of an industrial park not far from Hernandez's home. The 2011 Pro Bowl selection had signed a five-year contract last summer with the Patriots worth $40 million.

His attorney, Michael Fee, called the case circumstantial during a Wednesday court hearing packed with reporters, curiosity seekers and police officers. Fee said there was a "rather hysterical atmosphere" surrounding the case and urged the judge to disregard his client's celebrity status as he asked for Hernandez, 23, to be released on bail.

The judge, though, ordered Hernandez held without bail on the murder charge and five weapons counts.

Another man, Carlos Ortiz, 27, was arrested Wednesday in Hernandez's hometown of Bristol, Conn., as part of the murder investigation, New Britain State's Attorney Brian Preleski said Thursday. Ortiz was charged as a fugitive from justice and waived extradition to Massachusetts. Prison records show he is being held on $1.5 million bail at a Hartford jail.

Hernandez was scheduled to appear at a bail review hearing Thursday afternoon in Fall River, according to Bernie Sullivan, spokesman for the Bristol County sheriff.

On Wednesday, Hernandez stood impassively with his hands cuffed in front of him as Bristol County Assistant District Attorney Bill McCauley laid out a detailed timeline of the events, cobbled together from sources including witnesses, surveillance video, text messages and data from cellphone towers.

Lloyd, 27, a semi-pro football player with the Boston Bandits, had known Hernandez for about a year and was dating the sister of Hernandez's fiancee, the mother of Hernandez's 8-month-old baby, McCauley said.

On June 14, Lloyd went with Hernandez to the Boston nightclub Rumor. McCauley said Hernandez was upset Lloyd had talked to people there with whom Hernandez had trouble. He did not elaborate.

Two days later, McCauley said, Hernandez texted two unidentified friends and asked them to hurry to Massachusetts from Connecticut. At 9:05 p.m., a few minutes after the first message to his friends, Hernandez texted Lloyd to tell him he wanted to get together, McCauley said.

Later, surveillance footage from Hernandez's home showed his friends arrive and go inside. Hernandez, holding a gun, then told someone in the house he was upset and couldn't trust anyone anymore, the prosecutor said.

At 1:12 a.m. June 17, the three left in Hernandez's rented silver Nissan Altima, McCauley said. Cell towers tracked their movements to a gas station off the highway. There, he said, Hernandez bought blue Bubblicious gum.

At 2:32 a.m., they arrived outside Lloyd's home in Boston and texted him that they were there. McCauley said Lloyd's sister saw him get into Hernandez's car.

From there, surveillance cameras captured images of what the prosecutor said was Hernandez driving the silver Altima through Boston. As they drove back toward North Attleborough, Hernandez told Lloyd he was upset about what happened at the club and didn't trust him, McCauley said. That was when Lloyd began sending texts to his sister.

Surveillance video showed the car entering the industrial park and at 3:23 a.m. driving down a gravel road near where Lloyd's body was found. Four minutes later, McCauley said, the car emerged. During that period, employees working an overnight shift nearby heard several gunshots, McCauley said.

McCauley said Lloyd was shot multiple times, including twice from above as he was lying on the ground. He said five .45-caliber casings were found at the scene.

Authorities did not say who fired the shots or identify the two others with Hernandez.

At 3:29 a.m., surveillance at Hernandez's house showed him arriving, McCauley said.

"The defendant was walking through the house with a gun in his hand. That's captured on video," he said.

His friend is also seen holding a gun, and neither weapon has been found, McCauley said.

Then, the surveillance system stopped recording, and footage was missing from the six to eight hours after the slaying, he said.

The afternoon of June 17, the prosecutor said, Hernandez returned the rental car, offering the attendant a piece of blue Bubblicious gum when he dropped it off. While cleaning the car, the attendant found a piece of blue Bubblicious gum and a shell casing, which he threw away. Police later searched the trash bin and found the gum and the casing. The prosecutor said it was tested and matched the casings found where Lloyd was killed.

As McCauley outlined the killing, Lloyd's family members cried and held each other. Two were so overcome that they had to leave the courtroom.

The Patriots said in a statement after Hernandez's arrest but before the murder charge was announced that cutting Hernandez was "the right thing to do."

"Words cannot express the disappointment we feel knowing that one of our players was arrested as a result of this investigation," it said.

Hernandez was drafted by the Patriots in 2010 out of the University of Florida, where he was an All-American.

During the draft, one team said it wouldn't take him under any circumstances, and he was passed over by one club after another before New England picked him in the fourth round. Afterward, Hernandez said he had failed a drug test in college ? reportedly for marijuana ? and was up front with teams about it.

A Florida man filed a lawsuit last week claiming Hernandez shot him in the face after they argued at a strip club in February.

Hernandez became a father on Nov. 6 and said he intended to change his ways: "Now, another one is looking up to me. I can't just be young and reckless Aaron no more. I'm going to try to do the right things."

___

Associated Press writers Bridget Murphy in Boston and Howard Ulman in North Attleborough contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/texts-video-cited-charges-against-hernandez-072445310.html

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Two-headed turtle hatches at San Antonio zoo

SAN ANTONIO (AP) ? A two-headed turtle has hatched at the San Antonio Zoo and officials have named her Thelma and Louise.

The female Texas cooter arrived June 18 and will go on display Thursday at the zoo's Friedrich Aquarium.

Zoo spokeswoman Debbie Rios-Vanskike (van SKYKE') said Wednesday that the two-headed turtle appears healthy and is able to swim and walk. She says experts at the zoo don't foresee any health issues for Thelma and Louise, named for the female duo in the 1991 Oscar-winning road movie of the same name.

The San Antonio Zoo is no stranger to two-headed reptiles. The facility was home to a two-headed Texas rat snake named Janus from 1978 until the creature's death to 1995.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/two-headed-turtle-hatches-san-antonio-zoo-170418385.html

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Info tech company CDW rises in debut on the Nasdaq

NEW YORK (AP) ? CDW's stock climbed Thursday in the information technology company's first day of trading on the Nasdaq.

CDW rose $1.48, or 8.7 percent, to $18.48 in late morning trading Thursday after rising as high as $18.67 earlier.

The offering of about 23.3 million shares was priced at $17 per share. That was at the low end of its projected range of $17 to $18. CDW Corp. raised about $396 million from the IPO.

The underwriters have a 30-day option to buy up to an additional 3.5 million shares.

CDW said in a regulatory filing that it plans to use part of the net proceeds to redeem $156 million senior subordinated notes. It intends to use $24.4 million in proceeds for a one-time payment related to the termination of a management services agreement. The company also plans to use some of the proceeds to exercise its right under an equity clawback provision related to $175 million senior secured notes.

CDW reported 2012 net income of $119 million on revenue of $10.13 billion. In 2011, the Vernon Hills, Ill.-based company had net income of $17.1 million and revenue of $9.6 billion.

The shares are trading under the "CDW" ticker symbol.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/tech-company-cdw-rises-debut-nasdaq-145250509.html

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No, Children of 1990, Computers Are Not the Devil

Computers may be ubiquitous now but in 1990 they were just beginning to enter the mainstream. And like any revolutionary technology, the desktop computer was viewed with more than a little skepticism by the average American. Luckily, David Neil of PBS's Newton's Apple was there to explain to a group of dubious high schoolers that computers are not inherently evil. And he brought a two story exhibit to help illustrate.

In 1990, we still had a foot in the stone age. You've got to remember that high school students then lived before the Internet. They used tapes and CDs, tablets were still just very small tables, and the average cell phone looked like this:

And since computers were still primarily "something my mom uses at work," kids didn't have the native experience with electronics that many do now. That's where How Computers Work: A Journey Into The Walk-Through Computer comes in. This educational short produced by The Computer Museum aims to demystify the inner workings of the desktop computer. By explaining it in a way that even their parents could understand.

Source: http://gizmodo.com/no-children-of-1990-computers-are-not-the-devil-597933666

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Obama to unveil climate change plan with sweeping emissions cuts

Recognizing that Congress is unlikely to pass significant climate change legislation during his second term, President Obama will take some of the most sweeping measures available to him to unilaterally combat global warming.

The new plan, which Mr. Obama will unveil Tuesday at Georgetown University, is expected to include a ramping up of energy efficiency and renewable energy in addition to national preparations to deal with the meteorological and financial impacts of climate change. But by far the strongest element of the plan is a set of new regulations intended to slash greenhouse-gas emissions from existing coal-fired power plants ? not just power plants built in the future.

Obama intends to issue a presidential memorandum directing the Environmental Protection Agency to implement new regulations of greenhouse-gas emissions under the authority of the Clean Air Act. The president's plan is an attempt to deliver on his promise to cut carbon emissions 17 percent below 2005 levels by 2020, White House officials told reporters in a conference call Monday.

RECOMMENDED: Think you know the odd effects of global climate change? Take our quiz.

The move has the potential to cut annually hundreds of millions of tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) ? a potent greenhouse gas ? and far overshadow any carbon-emissions cuts the Obama administration has achieved so far through improved fuel-efficiency standards. But it could also accelerate the closure of many existing older coal-fired power plants across the country, which are already struggling to meet current standards.

"Nothing on this scale in the Clean Air Act has ever been attempted before," says Kevin Book, an energy analyst with ClearView Partners, an energy economics consulting firm in Washington. "This step will be the catalyst for the next wave of coal-fired power plant retirements. It's almost certainly going to get hung up in the courts for years."

Obama seeks to combat global warming in a variety of ways in the new plan. Among the highlights:

• Create new energy-efficiency standards for federal buildings and appliances.
• Ramp up enough clean-energy production on public lands to power 6 million homes by 2020.
• Extend $8 billion in loan-guarantee authority to accelerate investment in advanced fossil-energy and efficiency projects.
• End public financing of coal-fired plants overseas and push for free trade in clean-energy technologies.

But a concrete plan to reach a 17 percent cut in carbon emissions is seen as the cornerstone of Obama's move. That figure is widely considered a requirement for the US to be taken seriously in ongoing international climate talks. Obama wants to reinvigorate US efforts to lead in those talks, White House officials said.

Want your top political issues explained? Get customized DC Decoder updates.

They said the plan to address existing-power-plant emissions has a firm timeline ? adding credibility to the effort. The goal is to finalize power plant emissions regulations by June 2015, long enough before Mr. Obama leaves office to be solidly in force before the next administration takes over.

"We know that we have to get to work quickly in order to not only propose, but finalize the rule," said a senior White House official. "The president will be directing the EPA to start that work."

Neither the briefing for reporters nor the fact sheet and background materials provided by the White House presented an estimate for the tonnage of carbon emissions expected to be cut overall. Electricity-generating power plants emit about 2.4 billion tons of CO2 each year, roughly 40 percent of the nation?s total emissions. But the plan was still received enthusiastically by environmentalists.

"If this means a launch to begin [emissions] cuts to existing power plants, we?ll be very pleased. It?s everything we?ve been asking for,? says David Doniger, climate policy director for the Natural Resources Defense Council in Washington.

Lack of details on exactly how much tonnage of carbon emissions is expected to be cut is not a problem at this point, he and others say.

?It seems they?re not ready to say exactly what they?re going to propose,? Mr. Doniger says. ?But if they are willing to commit to [regulating] existing power plants, then that?s the core of it. That?s what we?ve been asking for. If there?s a deadline now, then that?s them carrying out the Clean Air Act the way it?s supposed to work....?

Coal-industry groups said the plan was misguided and would come at an enormous cost.

?We do not believe EPA regulations are an effective way to address concerns about global climate change,? said Robert Duncan, president and CEO of the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity. ?If EPA proceeds with regulations, they should be based on adequately demonstrated technology and provide an achievable timeframe to allow the coal industry to continue advancing clean coal technologies.

The past several years have not been kind to the coal industry, given the low cost of natural gas and the development of clean energy.

In the first half of last year, for example, 165 new power generators were added in 33 states, but among the 10 states with the bulk of new generating capacity, "most of the new capacity uses natural gas or renewable energy," the Energy Department's Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported.

The trend is expected to continue, with natural gas-fired plants accounting for 60 percent of capacity additions between 2011 and 2035, EIA found. Coal is expected to account for 7 percent.

Utilities have shuttered about 12 percent of the nation?s coal-fired generating fleet since 2010, according to M.J. Bradley & Associates, an environmental consulting firm in Concord, Mass. Most, the study said, are "small, old, and lack advanced pollution control equipment."

These trends led to a 13.1 percent falloff in CO2 pollution from coal-fired electric power plants between 2005 and 2012, according to a recent analysis of EIA data by the Environmental Integrity Project, a Washington-based environmental group.

But the first quarter of 2013 has seen a 7.1 percent increase in CO2 emissions from coal compared with the same period last year as natural gas prices rose, encouraging more use of coal, according to the analysis. Global warming emissions from coal-based electricity are projected to rise 8.7 percent this year, though they are not expected to return to the peak levels of five to 10 years ago, the EIA has projected.

New regulations directed at existing plants could turn that trend, with many more coal-fired plants shuttered ? including even newer plants that cannot meet the new standards, energy experts say.

Still, the Obama administration says cutting carbon pollution will help modernize power plants, spark innovation to create new clean-energy technologies, and put Americans to work. Greater energy efficiency will save American families money, officials add.

Moreover, they point to the rising costs from extreme weather events, which many scientists say can be amplified by the effects of global warming. Last year alone, 11 different weather and climate disaster events incurred estimated losses of more than $1 billion each across the nation. Those events together resulted in over $110 billion in estimated damages, the second-costliest year on record.

?We don?t have to choose between cutting carbon pollution to protect the health of our kids and creating jobs,? a senior administration official told reporters. ?Americans know that we can do both.?

RECOMMENDED: Think you know the odd effects of global climate change? Take our quiz.

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-unveil-climate-change-plan-sweeping-emissions-cuts-100256594.html

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W.Va. higher ed panel approves tuition increases

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) -- In-state tuition is increasing at least 6 percent at five West Virginia higher education institutions.

The Higher Education Policy Commission approved tuition increases on Tuesday for the 2013-2014 academic year at Bluefield State College and West Virginia, West Virginia State, Fairmont State and Shepherd universities, media outlets reported.

The increases range from 6 percent at WVU to 9 percent at West Virginia State. The average increase is $380.

Tuition also is going up at other state schools but those increases are less than 5 percent. The commission's approval is required if tuition increases exceed 5 percent.

Marshall University's tuition and fees will increase 4.8 percent.

"It is not comfortable in the state of West Virginia to have tuition increases ...," commission Secretary Kathy Eddy said, "but I think they made their case."

Two commission members, Secretary of Education and the Arts Kay Goodwin and state Superintendent of Schools Jim Phares, voted against the increases.

"I'm not so worried about (universities) as I am about their students and their families and their loans. But in the very near future, we're going to see those institutions failing because of their student loan default rates," Goodwin said. "I think we only add to the problem when we increase tuition rates."

Phares also is concerned about student debt.

"I'm concerned that students entering college have difficulty matriculating through the college system and ultimately have a huge debt," he said. "The percent of completers are mismatched with the needs of the workforce. Not enough are graduating with the skills and knowledge they need."

Commission chairman David Hendrickson said all the schools took a hard line in an attempt to keep the increases as low as possible.

"There's not any fluff in any of these budgets ... It's really tight across the institution," he said.

All state colleges and universities are facing a 9 percent cut in state funding for the fiscal year that begins July 1.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/w-va-higher-ed-panel-160452357.html

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US envoy: UN failure to act on Syria is disgrace

UNITED NATIONS (AP) ? Outgoing U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice said Tuesday the U.N. Security Council's failure to take action to stop the conflict in Syria is "a moral and strategic disgrace that history will judge harshly."

She told reporters at her final news conference Tuesday before starting her new job as U.S. national security adviser on July 1 that the paralysis of the U.N.'s most important body is "a stain" on the council that she will regret forever ? even though she maintained that the U.S. and its allies were not responsible.

Rice blamed three double vetoes by Russia and China of resolutions aimed at pressuring Syria's President Bashar Assad to end the violence, even though they didn't contain sanctions.

She expressed hope that the Syrian people will ultimately be able to chart their own future "and certainly the United States is committed to supporting them in those efforts and we will remain so."

"I think we've seen in this region of the world and many other parts of the world that these struggles can be long and costly but rarely can I think of an instance in recent history where at the end of the day ... the unified aspirations of a people for freedom and to chart their own future are ultimately suppressed," Rice said.

She wouldn't comment the refusal of China or Russia to extradite National Security Agency leaker Edward Snowden, and dismissed criticism of human rights in the United States by those countries and Ecuador, where Snowden has sought asylum, saying: "I think the records of other countries speak for themselves."

Rice called the U.S. relationship with Russia "complex and multifaceted," explaining that during her 4 1/2 years at the U.N. there have been disagreements with Moscow but the vast majority of accomplishments by the Security Council "have been accomplishment in partnership and with the support of the majority of the council including the veto-wielding members and that includes Russia."

In the future, she said, there will undoubtedly be important issues of divergence and disagreement.

But Rice stressed: "I'm not prepared to predict that that is inevitable, and certainly not across the board, where on issues as important as Iran and North Korea and many others we have been able to find common ground."

She listed the council's imposition of very tough sanctions on Iran and North Korea among the major accomplishments during her years as ambassador along with the council's authorization of military action to protect civilians in Libya, the birth of the new country of South Sudan, the political transformation in Yemen, the advance of women's equality and the U.N.'s "remarkable shift" on the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people.

Yet, she said, "conflict, abuse, atrocities, poverty and suffering persist in too many places," particularly Syria.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/us-envoy-un-failure-act-syria-disgrace-221722668.html

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Puig leads Dodgers to 3-1 win over Giants

Los Angeles Dodgers' Yasiel Puig hits an RBI single during the eighth inning of their baseball game against the San Francisco Giants, Monday, June 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Los Angeles Dodgers' Yasiel Puig hits an RBI single during the eighth inning of their baseball game against the San Francisco Giants, Monday, June 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Los Angeles Dodgers' Yasiel Puig gestures as he hits an RBI single during the eighth inning of their baseball game against the San Francisco Giants, Monday, June 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Los Angeles Dodgers' Yasiel Puig, right, hits a solo home run as San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey, left, catches and home pate umpire Lance Barksdale watches during the first inning of their baseball game, Monday, June 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Los Angeles Dodgers' Yasiel Puig, left, is congratulated by manager Don Mattingly after hitting a solo home run during the first inning of their baseball game, Monday, June 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Los Angeles Dodgers' Yasiel Puig, right, runs to first as he hits a solo home run San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner watches during the first inning of their baseball game, Monday, June 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

LOS ANGELES (AP) ? One by one, Los Angeles Dodgers opponents are learning the perils of challenging Yasiel Puig.

The rookie sensation hit his seventh home run in 20 major league games and added a tiebreaking single in the eighth inning against Madison Bumgarner, leading the Dodgers to a 3-1 victory over the San Francisco Giants on Monday night.

"Yasiel is a phenomenal talent right now," Dodgers catcher A.J. Ellis said. "The league's trying to figure him out and they're trying to see what the best way to approach him is. But he's making them go back and scratch their heads a lot, because he's hitting everything and hitting it hard. I'm just really happy he's on our side. The way he plays the game is just infectious, and the energy he brings to our lineup is something that was sorely missed.

Nick Punto, who replaced third baseman Juan Uribe in a double switch, led off the eighth with an opposite-field double down the right-field line. Mark Ellis sacrificed Punto to third and reached safely when Bumgarner threw high to first for an error.

Puig greeted George Kontos with a line-drive single to left that scored Punto.

"He's someone who really thrives in the moment," A.J. Ellis said. "One of my best friends in baseball is the Double-A manager for the Diamondbacks, Andy Green. And when I called him and asked him what he thought about Puig, the thing that impressed him the most was that Puig never shied away from the big stage. It seemed like his best at-bats in a game came in the late stages and those clutch situations. And we're seeing that right now. There's no secret that he loves the spotlight."

Hanley Ramirez drove in the final run two batters later on a liner toward the middle that shortstop Brandon Crawford knocked down with a lunging attempt before getting the out at first.

Kontos was recalled from Triple-A Fresno before the game, while Jean Machi was sent back to the Giants' Pacific Coast League club. Kontos was optioned to the minors on June 11, the day he received a three-game suspension for throwing at Pittsburgh's Andrew McCutchen. But since he is appealing the penalty, Kontos is eligible to play until his case is heard by Major League Baseball.

Paco Rodriguez (2-2) got two outs and Kenley Jansen worked the ninth for his fifth save.

The Dodgers' third straight victory tied their longest winning streak this season, which came back in early April. This was their ninth attempt at matching it.

"We've been trying to get over this three-game hump for a while, so it was important for us to break through today," A.J. Ellis said. "We just want to carry the momentum into tomorrow."

Bumgarner (7-5) was charged with three runs ? two earned ? and five hits in seven-plus innings with five strikeouts in his 100th big league start. The 23-year-old left-hander engaged in another tense duel with Hyun-Jin Ryu in a rematch of their April 2 meeting, when Bumgarner spoiled the Korean-born lefty's major league debut with eight innings of two-hit ball and retired 18 consecutive batters during a 3-0 win at Dodger Stadium.

Ryu allowed a run, eight hits and four walks in 6 2-3 innings. He was lifted by manager Don Mattingly after Buster Posey reached second on a fly to right field that Puig was just about to catch when his backside made contact with the auxiliary scoreboard and the ball fell behind him. The play was originally ruled an error, then changed to a double by official scorer Don Hartack.

Ronald Belisario then came on and struck out Hunter Pence.

The Giants began a 10-game road trip with a familiar face back in the lineup: Pablo Sandoval was reinstated from the disabled list Monday after missing 14 games because of a left foot strain. He went 2 for 4.

Puig drove a 1-1 pitch the other way into the lower seats in the right-field corner with one out in the first.

"It's pretty amazing the way he handles that ball away," A.J. Ellis said. "He loves to extend those arms and he's got so much power, foul pole to foul pole. It's another thing that makes him such a rare talent."

The home run ended Bumgarner's 16-inning scoreless streak against the Dodgers, and was their only hit until Puig's two-out single in the sixth.

"I feel like every pitch I made to Puig, I threw where I wanted to and just mixed it up on him," Bumgarner said. "He got me the first at-bat and I didn't expect him to do that. He's obviously good, or else he wouldn't be doing what he's doing. It's going to take everybody a couple of times facing him to see what he's trying to do. I think it's pretty clear what he's trying to do, but it's just a matter of seeing him a few more times."

The Giants tied it in the second inning with an RBI double inside third base by Andres Torres that scored Joaquin Arias from first base ? but Arias strained his left hamstring on the play and came out of the game.

Crawford, who replaced Arias at shortstop, flied out with the bases loaded to end the third after Ryu got a visit from pitching coach Rick Honeycutt.

The Giants had the bases loaded again in the fifth, but only because Posey slipped and fell rounding third base on a one-out single by Sandoval before scampering back to the bag. Crawford followed with a comebacker to Ryu, who calmly threw to the plate to begin an inning-ending double play.

"He realizes the key situations of the game, and when he needs a groundball and when he needs a strikeout," A.J. Ellis said. "I mean, this guy's pitched on the world's stage forever, and he's had bigger games than this and was representing a lot more people than just us. It was a great performance by him to keep us in the game. Getting that big double-play ball from Crawford on the comebacker, that was the biggest at-bat of the game."

NOTES: Puig was 3 for 4 in his first game against the rival Giants. ... Pence was 2 for 2 with a walk against Ryu, and has six hits in eight at-bats against the lefty overall. ... Ryu is 0-1 with a 2.73 ERA in four starts since beating the Angels 3-0 with a two-hitter for his first major league complete game.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2013-06-25-Giants-Dodgers/id-a4c91e0341364c4b8fe41710b04f0d48

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No word from Hong Kong on Snowden's return

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Edward Snowden, the former government contractor who says he revealed that the National Security Agency collects Americans' phone records and Internet data from U.S. communication companies, now faces charges of espionage and theft of government property.

Snowden is believed to be in Hong Kong, which could complicate efforts to bring him to a U.S. federal court to answer charges that he engaged in unauthorized communication of national defense information and willful communication of classified communications intelligence information.

In addition to those charges, both brought under the Espionage Act, the government charged Snowden with theft of government property. Each crime carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.

Hong Kong was silent Saturday on whether Snowden should be extradited to the United States now that he has been charged, but some of Hong Kong's legislators said the decision should be up to the Chinese government.

The one-page criminal complaint against Snowden was unsealed Friday in federal court in Alexandria, Va., part of the Eastern District of Virginia where his former employer, government contractor Booz Allen Hamilton, is headquartered, in McLean.

The complaint is dated June 14, five days after Snowden's name first surfaced as the person who had leaked to the news media that the NSA, in two highly classified surveillance programs, gathered telephone and Internet records to ferret out terror plots.

It was unclear Friday whether the U.S. had yet to begin an effort to extradite Snowden from Hong Kong. He could contest extradition on grounds of political persecution. In general, the extradition agreement between the U.S. and Hong Kong excepts political offenses from the obligation to turn over a person. Hong Kong could consider the charges under the Espionage Act political crimes.

Hong Kong had no immediate reaction to word of the charges against Snowden.

The Obama administration has now used the Espionage Act in seven criminal cases in an unprecedented effort to stem leaks. In one of them, Army Pfc. Bradley Manning acknowledged he sent more than 700,000 battlefield reports, diplomatic cables and other materials to the anti-secrecy website WikiLeaks. His military trial is underway.

Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, welcomed the charges against Snowden.

"I've always thought this was a treasonous act," he said in a statement. "I hope Hong Kong's government will take him into custody and extradite him to the U.S."

But the Government Accountability Project, a whistle-blower advocacy group, said Snowden should be shielded from prosecution by whistle-blower protection laws.

"He disclosed information about a secret program that he reasonably believed to be illegal, and his actions alone brought about the long-overdue national debate about the proper balance between privacy and civil liberties, on the one hand, and national security on the other," the group said in a statement.

Michael di Pretoro, a retired 30-year veteran with the FBI who served from 1990 to 1994 as the legal liaison officer at the American consulate in Hong Kong, said "relations between U.S. and Hong Kong law enforcement personnel are historically quite good."

"In my time, I felt the degree of cooperation was outstanding to the extent that I almost felt I was in an FBI field office," di Pretoro said.

The U.S. and Hong Kong have a standing agreement on the surrender of fugitives. However, Snowden's appeal rights could drag out any extradition proceeding.

The success or failure of any extradition proceeding depends on what the suspect is charged with under U.S. law and how it corresponds to Hong Kong law under the treaty. In order for Hong Kong officials to honor the extradition request, they have to have some applicable statute under their law that corresponds with a violation of U.S. law.

Hong Kong lawmakers said Saturday that the Chinese government should make the final decision on whether Snowden should be extradited to the United States.

Outspoken legislator Leung Kwok-hung said Beijing should instruct Hong Kong to protect Snowden from extradition before his case gets dragged through the court system.

Leung urged the people of Hong Kong to "take to the streets to protect Snowden."

In Iceland, a business executive said Friday that a private plane was on standby to transport Snowden from Hong Kong to Iceland, although Iceland's government says it has not received an asylum request from Snowden.

Business executive Olafur Vignir Sigurvinsson said he has been in contact with someone representing Snowden and has not spoken to the American himself. Private donations are being collected to pay for the flight, he said.

"There are a number of people that are interested in freedom of speech and recognize the importance of knowing who is spying on us," Sigurvinsson said. "We are people that care about privacy."

Disclosure of the criminal complaint came as President Barack Obama held his first meeting with a privacy and civil liberties board and as his intelligence chief sought ways to help Americans understand more about sweeping government surveillance efforts exposed by Snowden.

The five members of the little-known Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board met with Obama for an hour in the White House Situation Room, questioning the president on the two NSA programs that have stoked controversy.

One program collects billions of U.S. phone records. The second gathers audio, video, email, photographic and Internet search usage of foreign nationals overseas, and probably some Americans in the process, who use major Internet service providers, such as Microsoft, Google, Apple, and Yahoo.

___

Associated Press writer Jenna Gottlieb in Reykjavik, Iceland, contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/no-word-hong-kong-snowdens-return-171151884.html

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Can Democrats Win Back the Deep South? (Atlantic Politics Channel)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories News, RSS Feeds and Widgets via Feedzilla.

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Kim Kardashian Baby Photos: What Will North West Look Like?!

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/06/kim-kardashian-baby-photos-what-will-north-west-look-like/

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Apax Partners raises $7.5 billion private equity fund

By Greg Roumeliotis

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Apax Partners LLP said on Friday it had raised $7.5 billion for its latest global private equity fund, Apax VIII, two years after it approached investors with the goal of raising $11.8 billion (9 billion euros) from them.

While some of its European buyout peers have exceeded their fundraising targets, with Advent International Corp raising 1.5 billion euros more than its 7 billion euro target and BC Partners Ltd raising 500 million euros more than its 6 billion euro target, Apax had to contend with weaker investor demand.

Apax appeared initially to be off to a strong fundraising start. In March 2012, it told investors it had secured $4.3 billion for the fund, almost half its target, in just 10 months - the largest so-called "first close" of a private equity fund since the 2008 financial crisis.

The London-based private equity firm has since been trying to address investor concerns over fund performance as well as staff turnover. In June 2012, Reuters reported that more than half of its senior dealmakers had left over the last five years.

Apax's previous buyout fund, the 11.2 billion euro Apax Europe VII, launched in 2007, was marked at just 1.1 times its investment cost with a 2.8 percent net internal rate of return as of the end of December 2012, according to data on the website of the Washington State Investment Board, an Apax investor.

The firm decided to cut a tenth of its investment staff and shrink its London headquarters as a result of the smaller size of its latest fund, a source familiar with matter said in March.

To be sure, fundraising within the wider private equity industry is challenging. Five years on from the 2008 financial crisis, a clearer picture of fund managers that are capable of delivering returns even through a downturn is emerging in the minds of investors. Money is piling into such managers at the expense of others.

In the first quarter of this year, 129 private equity funds reached a final fundraising close like Apax, raising a total of $67 billion, compared with 203 funds that raised $79 billion in the first quarter of 2012, according to market research firm Preqin.

In April, European buyout group Permira Advisers LLP told investors it had so far only raised 2.2 billion euros for its latest fund after it announced plans in September 2011 to raise a 6.5 billion euro fund, only to lower its target later to 4 billion to 5 billion euros.

European rival Cinven Ltd also started fundraising in 2011 but managed to reach its target, announcing last week it had raised 5.3 billion euros for its latest buyout fund.

CVC Capital Partners Ltd, another London-based private equity firm, started fundraising this year, seeking 9 billion euros for its latest buyout fund and is on course to securing it.

The Apax private equity portfolio includes footwear and accessories retailer Cole Haan, North American insurance brokerage HUB International Ltd, foreign exchange provider Travelex Ltd and General Healthcare Group Ltd, Britain's largest private hospitals operator.

(Reporting by Greg Roumeliotis in New York; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/apax-partners-raises-7-5-billion-private-equity-195747367.html

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Video: We Need to Pass Immigration Bill: Nikpour

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Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/video/cnbc/52279849/

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Border security: Boost for Senate immigration bill

WASHINGTON (AP) ? A breakthrough at hand, Republicans and Democrats reached agreement Thursday on a costly, military-style surge to secure the leaky U.S.-Mexican border and clear the way for Senate passage of legislation giving millions of immigrants a chance at citizenship after years in America's shadows.

Lawmakers in both parties described a Southern border that would be bristling with law enforcement manpower and technology as a result of legislation at the top of President Barack Obama's second-term domestic policy agenda. The emerging deal called for a doubling of the Border Patrol, with 20,000 new agents, 18 new unmanned surveillance drones, 350 miles of new fencing, and an array of fixed and mobile devices to maintain vigilance.

"This is a border surge. We have militarized our border, almost," said Sen. Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican.

"Boots on the ground, drones in the air," summed up Sen. Chuck Schumer, the New York Democrat who has been at the center of efforts to push immigration legislation through the Senate.

The plan was announced by Sens. John Hoeven of North Dakota and Bob Corker of Tennessee, Republicans who had been publicly uncommitted on the legislation. Both said other GOP fence-sitters would also swing behind the measure if the changes were incorporated, and by late in the afternoon, two had done so.

A final vote on the legislation is expected by the end of next week.

The next move would be up to the House, where majority Republicans are overwhelmingly opposed to granting citizenship to immigrants living in the United States illegally. Talks on any final compromise would be held in the fall ? if then.

The White House declined to respond to requests for comment on the Senate proposal, even though congressional officials said administration officials were involved in the formal drafting of the terms. Obama met at the White House recently with key Democrats to discuss the measure, and kept apprised of the negotiations while on his just-completed European trip.

Under the emerging deal, an estimated 11 million immigrants living in the United States illegally would be eligible to obtain legal status while border security was increased. They could not be awarded green cards, which bestow permanent residency status, until the entire border enhancement plan had been put into place.

That effectively would give the government a decade to set up the additional security, since the legislation envisions a pathway to citizenship that gives immigrants provisional status after six months but requires them to wait at least a decade before they become eligible for green cards.

Despite the changes, the legislation appeared certain to retain the basic contours negotiated over many months by a so-called Gang of Eight, four senators from each party.

Whatever its impact on the bill's prospects, the deal failed to satisfy a group of conservative Senate critics who want proof that the border has been secured before legalization begins, rather than the mere placement of new agents and equipment.

"My impression is this is a promise of future performance and there is no contingency in the form of a trigger" to assure its effectiveness, said John Cornyn, R-Texas.

Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., also cautioned that the highly touted agreement had not been drafted yet, much less read by members of the Senate and their staffs.

The legislation has a broad array of outside interests pushing for its passage, although two organizations objected to the plan for changes.

Speaking for CAMBIO, an organization that favors immigrant rights, Christian Ramirez said the deal should include lapel cameras to deter abuse by border agents, as well as the placement of 1,000 distress beacons in the desert.

The ACLU called the proposed agreement a "massive deployment of force" that would be "simply devastating for border communities."

Corker and Hoeven both said they expected the legislation to be formally unveiled in the Senate late Thursday. While it had not yet materialized after several hours, officials said the agreement on border security provisions had been reached, and other matters remained under discussion.

The agreement was a turn in the Senate spotlight for the two men, who have spent days in secretive talks with fellow Republicans, and then with Schumer and Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey.

"We must secure the border first" before anyone in the country illegally can gain citizenship, Hoeven said on the Senate floor. "That's what Americans demand and that's what we must do." He said the 10-year cost included $25 billion for the additional Border Patrol agents, $3 billion for fencing and another $3.2 billion for other measures. Other officials said the overall cost of the security upgrade could reach $40 billion over a decade.

Corker told reporters the plan amounted to 'border security on steroids" and said it would impart "tremendous momentum" to the bill on the Senate floor. By day's end, Republican Sens. Mark Kirk of Illinois and Dean Heller of Nevada said they, too, were prepared to vote for the bill if the changes were incorporated.

That brought to 10 the number of Republicans who have indicated they will vote for the bill, far more than enough to assure it will have the 60 required to overcome any attempted filibuster by last-ditch opponents. Democrats control 54 seats, and party aides have said they do not expect any defections from their side of the political aisle.

Apart from the border security measures, the legislation as drafted already included implementation of a biometric system to track the comings and goings of foreigners at air and sea ports as well as land crossings, and a requirement for businesses to verify the legal status of job seekers.

At the same time the border security talks appeared all but settled, officials disclosed changes on other thorny issues.

Under one of them, sought by Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, immigrants would not be able to claim credit for Social Security taxes they paid while working without lawful status. Credits are used to determine the amount in benefits a worker receives from the program after retirement.

Also under discussion was a second proposal by Hatch to prohibit the federal government or the states from making immigrants eligible for welfare until they had held legal status for five years.

Officials also said the White House had taken a role in drafting a change to clarify when immigrants would become eligible for federal subsidies under the health care law that is now taking full effect. Details were not immediately available.

Democrats and Republicans alike said Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, was pressing for a toughening of the E-Verify program, and that a small group of Southern Republicans wanted changes made to a new program that would permit farm workers from other countries to work in the United States temporarily. The outcomes of those talks ? and the votes of several Republicans as well ?were unclear.

In addition to border security issues, the legislation would increase the number of visas going to high-skilled workers whose labor is sought by U.S. technology firms, create a new program for lower-skilled immigrants and allow farm laborers to come to the country temporarily to perform seasonal jobs.

Separately, younger immigrants who came to the United States illegally as children would be eligible for legal status more quickly than others.

For foreigners looking to move to the United States legally, a decades-old system that emphasizes family ties would be replaced by one that gives more weight to education, work skills, English proficiency and relative youth.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/border-security-boost-senate-immigration-bill-210012196.html

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Small business owners hope to see economic boost after U.S.?China summit

Local business leaders in the Coachella Valley hope that the high-profile summit between President Obama and Chinese President Xi Jinping will help usher in new economic life into the region.

The leaders of the world?s two most powerful countries conducted business at the Annenberg Retreat at Sunnylands, bringing international attention to the serene Coachella desert valley. And a successful summit has the potential to have a lasting impact that?ll make overseas investors and tourists want to put their money into the region.

?The next time I go to China, I?ll have these front page headlines with Xi and Obama?and I?m going to sell that,? said Wes Ahlgren, Chief Operating Officer of the Coachella Valley Economic Partnership, which helps locals get foreign investments and agreements to start their own businesses.

[Related: Faces of protest: Scenes and stories from presidential summit protests]

If you have government backing, or appear to be related to government, Chinese businessmen trust you and you?re more likely to get investors, he explained. ?If you?re in with the government, you?re in with business.?

Small businesses may not have seen a direct boost in sales or customers as a result of the presidential summit, but local business owners from a variety of industries say the international exposure in the long-term will be the biggest benefit of this high-profile visit.

Andy Jessup Jr., General Manager of Jessup Auto Plaza said his company doesn?t do any direct business with China since his inventory primarily consists of American models such as Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick, and GMC. But he still thinks the summit will increase future economic prospects.

[Related: Barack Obama and Xi Jinping: Dreams from their fathers]

?We may not be able to track a return on investment within the weekend the presidents stay here, but I am sure the significant exposure builds a momentum of interest for future visits by families and consideration of relocation by businesses,? he said.

This meeting ?brings notoriety back to the desert,? said Larry Davis, Vice President of Forest Lawn Memorial Parks and Mortuaries, and former Chairman of the Cathedral City Chamber of Commerce. ?It was called the playground of the presidents. President Ford, President Nixon, President Kennedy and President Reagan spent a lot of time here, so I think this re-emphasizes the wonderful community we have.?

Cello?s Restaurant owners Bonnie Barkley and Tom Stefernak haven?t seen the economy picking up in their industry and they expect to continue struggling through the summer months without much of a bump in business from the presidential summit. But they don?t see a downside of their region hosting the meeting.

[Related: Inside Sunnylands: Presidential summit meeting site has a rich, and secretive, history]

"I think it's exciting and it showcases our valley,? Barkley said. ? I think it?s more important that they are marketing [Sunnylands] as the White House of the west. It?s a brilliant plan,? which she hopes will help drive future tourists to her restaurant.

And that might just happen, if the projected numbers turn out to be correct.

?This [meeting] will have a big impact?we?re looking at tourism growing by the hundreds of thousands over the next five years,? Ahlgren said with a smile.

[Related: Interview with the director of the Sunnylands Center and Gardens]

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/small-business-owners-hope-economic-boost-u-china-185146351.html

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Inside the Weird Mathematical Mystery of "0!"

When you're a kid, you learn that you can't divide by zero. But the more you learn, the more you find out there are some interesting nuances around the edges of that rule. Likewise you may remember learning that 0! (zero factorial) is 1. "It just is." But why is it? Numberphile explains.

Read more...

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/_BtEFrrqYG4/inside-the-weird-mathematical-mystery-of-0-512081063

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Looking For The Perfect Cloud Based Online Marketing Software ...

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Everything we do at PME 360 helps local businesses grow by getting you found online, generating new leads, and measuring and tracking results, which is what each of these online marketing software systems can do for you.

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Source: http://www.pme360.com/blog/online-marketing-software

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