Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/180252419?client_source=feed&format=rss
jeff probst king jong il dead south korea baron davis duggar family dingo fidel castro
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Friday, December 30, 2011
Bizarre baseball injuries, illustrated and released as a postcard set... we reme...
Sorry, Readability was unable to parse this page for content.
Source: http://www.facebook.com/JuxtapozMagazine/posts/262098587185945
weather houston small business saturday small business saturday hank baskett beyonce dance for you beyonce dance for you nba lockout over
peHUB ? Nomura Becomes First Japan Firm Investing in China PE
Thoma Bravo has agreed to buy Telestream, a Nevada City, Calif.-based provider of video transcoding and digital media software solutions. Financial terms weren?t announced. The deal is expected to close in January.
PRESS RELEASE
Telestream?, the leading provider of video transcoding and digital media software solutions, today announced that leading private equity investment firm Thoma Bravo, LLC has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase Telestream, Inc. The transaction will facilitate further growth of Telestream?s core businesses in addition to providing additional capital for further market expansion and acquisition.
?This acquisition recognizes Telestream?s history of market leadership, double-digit growth and profitability,? said Dan...
Source: http://www.pehub.com/130132/nomura-becomes-first-japan-firm-investing-in-china-pe/
norad santa epic beard man new york jets nfl standings broncos broncos giants vs jets
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Al-Qaida in Iraq says it was behind Baghdad blasts (AP)
BAGHDAD ? An al-Qaida front group in Iraq has claimed responsibility for the wave of attacks that ripped through markets, cafes and government buildings in Baghdad on a single day last week, killing 69 people and raising new worries about the country's path.
The coordinated attacks struck a dozen mostly Shiite neighborhoods on Thursday in the first major bloodshed since U.S. troops completed a full withdrawal this month after nearly nine years of war. They also coincided with a government crisis that has again strained ties between Iraq's Sunnis and Shiites to the breaking point, tearing at the same fault line that nearly pushed Iraq into all-out civil war several years ago.
The claim of responsibility made no mention of the U.S. withdrawal. Instead, it focused its rage on the country's Shiite-dominated leadership, which Sunni insurgents have battled since it came to power as a result of the U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003.
"The series of special invasions (was) launched ... to support the weak Sunnis in the prisons of the apostates and to retaliate for the captives who were executed," said the statement in the name of the Islamic State of Iraq.
According to the SITE Intelligence Group, a U.S.-based organization that monitors jihadist Web traffic, the claim of responsibility was posted late Monday on militant websites.
The group said the attacks were proof that they "know where and when to strike and the mujahedeen will never stand with their hands tied while the pernicious Iranian project shows its ugly face."
The remark was in reference to accusations by Sunni militants that Iraq's Shiite-dominated government has allied itself too closely with neighboring Shiite power Iran, a bitter enemy of Iraq under the regime of Saddam Hussein.
The Baghdad military spokesman, Maj. Gen. Qassim al-Moussawi, said al-Qaida in Iraq ? no longer focused on fighting U.S. forces ? is hoping to take advantage of the current political tension to re-ignite sectarian warfare.
"It has become a clear scheme to draw Iraq into a sectarian war again," al-Moussawi said. "Al-Qaida in Iraq played a major role in 2005 and 2006 in pushing the county into a civil war and they succeeded."
On Tuesday morning, a car bomb exploded near a police station in the town of Hawija, 150 miles (240 kilometers) north of Baghdad, killing two civilians and injuring another, said Kirkuk police commander Brig. Gen. Sarhad Qadir.
U.S. and some Iraqi officials have warned of a resurgence of Sunni and Shiite militants and an increase in violence after the U.S. troop withdrawal.
Along with the security challenge, Iraq is facing an increase in political tension as Iraq's Shiite prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, is engaged in a showdown with the top Sunni political leader in the country.
Al-Maliki's government has issued an arrest warrant for Sunni Vice President Tariq al-Hashemi on charges that he ran hit squads against government officials.
Al-Hashemi has denied the charges and said they are politically motivated.
___
Associated Press writer Qassim Abdul-Zahra contributed to this report.
newt gingrich chicago bears margarito margarito horton hears a who horton hears a who cotto margarito
QUICK HITS: Texas 21, California 10
Posted by Bryan Fischer
TEXAS WON. It wasn't pretty, and they still didn't see much out of the offense, but it was a win for the Longhorns. If you're a Texas fan, you had to be impressed with what coordinator Manny Diaz has done all season long with the defense and the Holiday Bowl served as a great way to finish out the year. After neither team went to a bowl game last year, it was interesting to see how they respond to the layoff and it appeared to be not well. Cal turned the ball over five times and quarterback Zach Maynard was sacked six times - largely the difference in a game that was pretty close for three quarters.
WHY TEXAS WON. Don't look at the offense, which struggled most of the night. Quarterback David Ash was given the start and despite having issues moving the ball through the air early, got the ball in the hands of his playmakers. The reason the Longhorns will be able to enjoy their trip back to Austin however, is because of Diaz' defense. The front seven was particularly active and put plenty of pressure on Maynard. They also bottled up running back Isi Sofele, who showed some flashes but was limited after scoring a touchdown in the 3rd quarter. Underclassmen Jackson Jeffcoat and Jordan Hicks were particularly active with two sacks each.
WHEN TEXAS WON. Cal had threatened several times throughout the game but always seemed to shoot themselves in the foot. In great field position following a punt return, the offense just started to go backward and then Adrian Phillips sacked Maynard, who committed the fourth turnover of the night by fumbling. Reggie Wilson recovered and on the next play, Marquise Goodwin ran it 36 yards to set the Longhorns up inside the 10. On the first play of the 4th quarter, Cody Johnson punched it in from the four-yard line to push the lead to 21-10.
WHAT TEXAS WON. It was a disappointing season by the Longhorns' high standards but plenty of programs would be happy with a bowl win and eight wins. With such a young team, Mack Brown hopes this win can be a building block for next season. Sticking with Ash despite his early struggles seemed to indicate that he would be the guy going into 2012. The halftime adjustments were really good and both sides of the ball came alive in the second half. It's not the bowl win Texas wanted but a win is a win.
WHAT CALIFORNIA LOST. The ball for one. The Bears fumbled four times against Texas after only coming into the game with eight. The offense had issues up front all night and Sofele finished with just 58 yards rushing. The lone bright spot might be the kickers and that's not something to be proud of. The defense had its moments but couldn't stop a couple of big plays after bailing out the offense several times. This game was billed as a revenge match because of what happened a few years ago with the BCS but Cal didn't exactly fight like they wanted to win the game.
FINAL GRADE: This game was the definition of ugly for the entire first half. It wasn't as though the defenses were great - they were solid - but the offenses never could get anything going. Were it not for a few big plays out of Goodwin, there wouldn't be much to write home about on this one. The storyline coming into the game was about Cal's BCS snub in favor of Texas a few years ago but after watching this one, it would have been ok if the Holiday Bowl selection committee had snubbed both of these teams based on the way they played. At least Bevo enjoyed the San Diego weather and went home happy. GRADE: C
pacquiao vs marquez pacquiao vs marquez junior dos santos junior dos santos evelyn lauder devin hester devin hester
Thursday, December 22, 2011
China urges others to help keep North Korea stable (Reuters)
SEOUL (Reuters) ? China, which may have received advanced notice of the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, has moved swiftly to call on the United States and other countries to help maintain stability in the reclusive state, officials and news reports said.
North Korea is in mourning since it announced Kim's demise on Monday, two days after the 69-year-old iron ruler died of a heart attack, plunging the region into uncertainty over its stability and who had control over its nuclear weapons program.
The official KCNA news agency said at least five million people -- one-fifth of the population of the impoverished state -- had paid condolences at statues and portraits of the leader and his father, North Korea's founder Kim Il-Sung.
"These places turned into a veritable sea of mourners who bitterly wept, looking up to portraits of smiling Kim Jong-il," it said.
His son Kim Jong-un, thought to be in his 20s, has been anointed the successor but it is likely power rests with a coterie of senior officials, including his aunt and uncle.
The younger Kim, along with top army and government officials, paid respects on Tuesday to his father, whose body was placed in a glass topped bier surrounded by the red "Kimjongilia" flowers named after him, television footage showed.
A leading South Korean newspaper reported on Wednesday that China, isolated North Korea's only major ally, learned of Kim's death soon after it occurred on Saturday.
JoongAng Ilbo quoted an unidentified source in Beijing as saying the Chinese ambassador to North Korea had obtained intelligence of Kim's death and reported it to the capital on December 17, the day Kim died of an apparent heart attack while on a train.
"North Korea informed China of Kim's death through diplomatic channels on the following day," the source was quoted as saying.
Top South Korean intelligence and military officials have come under criticism for failing to learn of Kim's death before the official announcement by Pyongyang.
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak left on a state visit for Japan some hours after Kim's death, indicating that neither Seoul nor Tokyo -- nor Washington -- had any inkling of his death.
China has given no official comment or even hints suggesting it was told of Kim's death before the public announcement. But in the past, Beijing has had advance notice from North Korea of major events, diplomats say. In 2006, North Korea told China 20 minutes or more beforehand that it would test its first nuclear device, they said.
EXHORTS ALLIES
Beijing has moved swiftly to exhort the United States, Japan and South Korea to help keep North Korea stable.
"Preserving the peace and stability of the Korean peninsula is in the common interests of all sides," Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi told Japan's Foreign Minister Koichiro Gemba late on Tuesday, according to a report from China's Xinhua news agency.
"China is willing to work with Japan to continue making efforts to together protect the peace and stability of the peninsula and the region," said Yang.
The Chinese foreign minister has already made similar pleas in phone calls to South Korea's Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan and to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
It underscores China's desire to avoid ructions over North Korea after the death of Kim, whose successor-son is untested and largely unknown.
With its own leadership transition approaching, Beijing would be loath to allow any form of instability on its borders and the prospect of hundreds of thousands of refugees flooding across the Yalu River.
"China's foremost priority will therefore be to ensure that North Korea's new leader, whoever that may be, will be able to rally and unify the country together," said Sarah McDowall, an analyst at IHS Jane's.
In the Chinese city of Dandong, on the bank of the Yalu River border between the two nations, mourners who appeared to be North Koreans filed through a makeshift mourning centre.
Women in their 20s and 30s wept, wailed and prostrated themselves in front of wreaths of white and yellow chrysanthemums. Some men clasped their hands in front of them and bowed deeply.
In Washington, officials said the United States has signaled to North Korea's new leaders it hopes for progress on resuming talks on curbing Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions and has pushed ahead with discussions on resuming food aid despite the death of Kim.
"Given the mourning period, frankly we don't think we'll be able to have much more clarity and resolve these issues before the new year. But obviously we stand ready to keep working on this," said State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland.
Nuland said the contact occurred on Monday through what is known as "the New York channel" -- North Korea's mission to the United Nations -- but she was unable to say whether it involved any political discussion of the ramifications of Kim's death.
(Additional reporting by Andrew Quinn in WASHINGTON,Seoul and Beijing bureaus; Editing by Jonathan Thatcher)
ohio ohio john beck john beck mariska hargitay gmcr ohio news
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Shutdown likely averted as tax talks go on (AP)
WASHINGTON ? Congress appears on track to avert a government shutdown this weekend, even as President Barack Obama's push to extend a payroll tax cut and jobless benefits for another year is encountering snags.
Those hiccups in finding spending cuts to pay for extending a 2 percentage point cut in Social Security payroll taxes and jobless benefits for millions have prompted Democratic leaders to suggest just a two-month, $40 billion extension of expiring tax breaks and jobless benefits might be needed.
But the first act in clearing away a pile of unfinished business for an unpopular Congress is for the GOP-controlled House to pass a massive, bipartisan, $1 trillion-plus spending measure funding 10 Cabinet departments and U.S. operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
That vote is on track for Friday afternoon, but a stopgap bill could be needed to fund the government into next week.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., told reporters Thursday night that he was still optimistic that bipartisan talks on yearlong extensions of the Social Security payroll tax cut and unemployment coverage would succeed. But as a "Plan B," he said, they were working on a two-month extension as well, which would also prevent cuts in Medicare reimbursements for doctors during that period.
"We're still working on the long-term" bill, Reid told reporters as he exited the Capitol after a day of talks over both the payroll tax and spending measures. As for the two-month version, he said, "We'll only do that if what we're working on doesn't work out."
Reid's remarks put a slight damper on a day on which for the first time, Democratic and Republican leaders expressed optimism at prospects for swift compromise on their payroll tax standoff and a spending battle that had threatened to shutter federal agencies beginning at midnight Friday.
A deal on the $1 trillion-plus spending bill was reached after Republicans agreed to drop language that would have blocked President Barack Obama's liberalized rules on people who visit and send money to relatives in Cuba. But a GOP provision will stay in the bill thwarting an Obama administration rule on energy efficiency standards that critics argued would make it hard for people to purchase inexpensive incandescent light bulbs.
A senior White House official said the administration supported the two-month plan.
Bargainers were considering the two-month extension of this year's payroll tax cut and unemployment benefits bill because so far, they haven't agreed how a yearlong extension would be paid for, said a Democratic aide who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the private talks.
The two-month bill would cost $40 billion, according to the aide. It would be paid for from a list of around $120 billion in savings that bargainers are considering, including sales of the broadcast spectrum and raising fees that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac charge to back mortgages, the aide said.
The two-month extension would let lawmakers revisit the measure after returning to Washington after the holiday season. That could be risky because that work would come well into the 2012 presidential and congressional election year.
Without congressional action, the payroll taxes would rise and extra benefits for the long-term unemployed would expire on Jan. 1. Doctors' Medicare payments would be automatically reduced that day by 27 percent, a reduction that could prompt some to stop seeing Medicare patients.
"Right now, Congress needs to make sure that 160 million working Americans don't see their taxes go up on Jan. 1," said Obama, referring to the tax cut extension at the core of the jobs program he outlined in a nationally televised speech three months ago.
At Obama's insistence, Congress cut the 6.2 percent Social Security payroll tax to 4.2 percent this year in an effort to stimulate the economy with more consumer spending. The president has proposed deepening the cut to 3.1 percent next year, but Republicans have only shown a willingness to renew it at this year's level.
Obama also wants to leave in place a system that provides aid for up to 99 weeks for the long-term unemployed. The House-passed measure reduces the total by 20 weeks, a step that the administration says would cut off 3.3 million individuals and that Democrats are hoping to soften if not reverse.
Reid indicated that a number of expiring tax breaks were on the table, as well, a list that included a provision that benefits commuters who use mass transit.
The House-passed payroll tax cut measure relied on a pay freeze and increased pension contributions for federal workers, as well as higher Medicare premiums for seniors with incomes over $80,000, beginning in 2017. The bill would also raise a fee that is charged to banks whose mortgages are guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and cancel more than $40 billion from the year-old health care bill, Obama's signature domestic achievement.
The year-end, $1 trillion spending measure would lock in cuts that Republicans extracted from Democrats in negotiations conducted months ago against the deadline of a previous government shutdown threat. It funds 10 Cabinet departments, including the Pentagon and dozens of smaller agencies, awarding a slight increase to the military and veterans' programs while trimming most other domestic programs.
glee project winner kris humphries remember the titans wale wale weather denver weather denver
A little Strikeforce video to get you excited for Saturday?s fights
It's been months since Strikeforce's last main card event, but they are coming back with a doozy. Take a minute to watch this video and be reminded of how fun their cards can be.
Gilbert Melendez is on a five-fight win streak, and Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos is returning to the cage for the first time since June of 2010. Will they retain their belts, or lose them to Jorge Masvidal and Hiroko Yamanaka? Give us your predictions in the comments or on Facebook.
cmas world series of poker joe walsh zsa zsa gabor heavy d dead heavy d dead alaska weather
Friday, December 16, 2011
Why Coca-Cola Is Investing Nearly $1 Billion In A Huge Saudi ...
Coca-Cola announced today that it's buying around 50% of Saudi Arabia's Aujan Industries, one of the Middle East's biggest beverage companies, for $980 million, reports the AP.
And with the investment come big plans, for everyone involved.
Aujan hauled in $850 million in revenue this year, and it expects a surge to double that in just five years with Coke in the game.
Why's Coke spending all this money? Coke's president for Eurasia and Africa Ahmet Bozer cited two reasons in a statement (via Bloomberg).
- The Middle East has some of the highest rates of non-alcoholic consumption per-capita, and it's a high-growth region as well
- It'll be much easier for Coke to be able to get in with Aujan's bottling partners in the region
And Coke will inherit a portfolio of brands from Aujan. Some are particularly strong in the region, like its line of Rani fruit drinks and malt beverage Barbican.
There's a whole lot to gain for Aujan too. With Coke at its back, its global brand recognition is about to skyrocket. And, of course, there's that big money investment.
Coke decided to stay away from Aujan's Iranian business (it does both manufacturing and distribution there), which would have come with a bunch of US sanctions.
NOW SEE: Coke vs. Pepsi -- The Amazing Story Behind The Infamous Cola Wars >
Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/coca-cola-buys-aujan-middle-east-expansion-2011-12
national grid andrew luck andrew luck day light savings time 2011 hocus pocus hocus pocus bj penn
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)