tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43285242524508703502024-03-08T05:05:07.063-08:00bojuhlnielsenNews Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comBlogger380125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-51233698928251354262013-03-02T05:12:00.001-08:002013-03-02T05:12:10.113-08:00U.S. evolves on same-sex marriage<br /><!--startclickprintexclude--><br /><br /><br /><div class="cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnn_strylctcntr"><br /><p><strong>STORY HIGHLIGHTS</strong></p><br /><ul class="cnn_bulletbin cnnStryHghLght"><!--google_ad_section_start--><li>The president and the nation have shifted perspectives on same-sex marriage</li><br /><li>Supreme Court ruling on California's same-sex marriage ban a critical test</li><br /><li>Growing public support for gay marriage give proponents hope for change</li><br /><!--google_ad_section_end--><br /></ul></div></div><br /><!--endclickprintexclude--><!--google_ad_section_start--><!--startclickprintinclude--><br /><p><strong>Washington (CNN)</strong> -- The nation's growing acceptance of same-sex marriage has happened in slow and painstaking moves, eventually building into a momentum that is sweeping even the most unlikely of converts.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph2">Even though he said in 2008 that he could only support civil unions for same-sex couples, President Barack Obama nonetheless enjoyed strong support among the gay community. He disappointed many with his conspicuously subdued first-term response to the same-sex marriage debate.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph3">Last year, after Vice President Joe Biden announced his support, the president then said his position had evolved and he, too, supported same-sex marriage.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph4">So it was no small matter when on Thursday the Obama administration formally expressed its support of same-sex marriage in a court brief weighing in on California's Proposition 8, which bans same-sex weddings. The administration's effort was matched by at least 100 high-profile Republicans — some of whom in elections past depended on gay marriage as a wedge issue guaranteed to rally the base — who signed onto a brief supporting gay couples to legally wed.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph5">Obama on same-sex marriage: Everyone is equal</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph6">Then there are the polls that show that an increasing number of Americans now support same-sex marriage. These polls show that nearly half of the nation's Catholics and white, mainstream Protestants and more than half of the nation's women, liberals and political moderates all support same-sex marriage.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph7">According to Pew Research Center polling, 48% of Americans support same-sex marriage with 43% opposed. Back in 2001, 57% opposed same-sex marriage while 35% supported it.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph8">In last year's presidential election, same-sex marriage scarcely raised a ripple. That sea change is not lost on the president.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph9">"The same evolution I've gone through is the same evolution the country as a whole has gone through," Obama told reporters on Friday.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph10">Craig Rimmerman, professor of public policy and political science at Hobart and William Smith colleges says there is history at work here and the administration is wise to get on the right side.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph11">"There is no doubt that President Obama's shifting position on Proposition 8 and same-sex marriage more broadly is due to his desire to situate himself on the right side of history with respect to the fight over same-sex marriage," said Rimmerman, author of "From Identity to Politics: The Lesbian and Gay Movements in the United States."</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph12">"I also think that broader changes in public opinion showing greater support for same-sex marriage, especially among young people, but in the country at large as well, has created a cultural context for Obama to alter his views."</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph13">For years, Obama had frustrated many in the gay community by not offering full-throated support of same-sex marriage. However, the president's revelation last year that conversations with his daughters and friends led him to change his mind gave many in that community hope.</p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph14">Last year, the Obama administration criticized a measure in North Carolina that banned same-sex marriage and made civil unions illegal. The president took the same position on a similar Minnesota proposal.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph15">Obama administration officials point to what they see as the administration's biggest accomplishment in the gay rights cause: repealing "don't ask, don't tell," the military's ban on openly gay and lesbian members serving in the forces.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph16">Then there was the president's inaugural address which placed the gay community's struggle for equality alongside similar civil rights fights by women and African-Americans.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph17">"Our journey is not complete until our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law, for if we are truly created equal, then surely the love we commit to one another must be equal, as well," Obama said in his address after being sworn in.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph18">In offering its support and asserting in the brief that "prejudice may not be the basis for differential treatment under the law," the Obama administration is setting up a high stakes political and constitutional showdown at the U.S. Supreme Court over a fast-evolving and contentious issue.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph19">The justices will hear California's Proposition 8 case in March. That case and another appeal over the federal Defense of Marriage Act will produce blockbuster rulings from the justices in coming months.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph20">Beyond the legal wranglings there is a strong social and historic component, one that has helped open the way for the administration to push what could prove to be a social issue that defines Obama's second term legacy, Rimmerman said.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph21">The nation is redefining itself on this issue, as well.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph22">Pew survey: Changing attitudes on gay marriage</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph23">The changes are due, in part, to generational shifts. Younger people show a higher level of support than their older peers, according to Pew polling "Millennials are almost twice as likely as the Silent Generation to support same-sex marriage."</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph24">"As people have grown up with people having the right to marry the generational momentum has been very, very strong," said Evan Wolfson, president of Freedom to Marry, a gay rights organization.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph25">That is not to say that there isn't still opposition.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph26">Pew polling found that most Republicans and conservatives remain opposed to same-sex marriage. In 2001, 21% of Republicans were supportive; in 2012 that number nudged slightly to 25%.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph27">Conservative groups expressed dismay at the administration's same-sex marriage support.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph28">"President Obama, who was against same-sex 'marriage' before he was for it, and his administration, which said the Defense of Marriage Act was constitutional before they said it was unconstitutional, has now flip-flopped again on the issue of same-sex 'marriage,' putting allegiance to extreme liberal social policies ahead of constitutional principle," Family Research Council President Tony Perkins said in a statement.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph29">But there are signs of movement even among some high profile Republican leaders</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph30">Top Republicans sign brief supporting same-sex marriage</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph31">The Republican-penned friend of the court brief, which is designed to influence conservative justices on the high court, includes a number of top officials from the George W. Bush administration, Mitt Romney's former campaign manager and former GOP presidential candidate Jon Huntsman.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph32">It is also at odds with the Republican Party's platform, which opposes same-sex marriage and defines marriage as a union between a man and a woman.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph33">Still, with White House and high-profile Republican support, legal and legislative victories in a number of states and polls that show an increasing number of Americans support same sex-marriage, proponents feel that the winds of history are with them.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph34">"What we've seen is accelerating and irrefutable momentum as Americans have come to understand who gay people are and why marriage matters," Wolfson said. "We now have a solid national majority and growing support across every demographic. We have leaders across the spectrum, including Republicans, all saying it's time to end marriage discrimination."</p><br /><p class="cnn_strycbftrtxt">CNN's Peter Hamby, Ashley Killough and Bill Mears contributed to this report. </p><br /><!--endclickprintinclude--><!--google_ad_section_end--><br /><!--no partner--><br /><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-68474224495903617532013-03-02T05:10:00.001-08:002013-03-02T05:10:17.726-08:00Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal<br /><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><p class="first">VIENNA (Reuters) – A new film based on the story of Austrian kidnap victim <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_1">Natascha Kampusch</span> shows her being repeatedly raped by the captor who beat and starved her during the eight-and-a-half years that he kept her in a cellar beneath his house.</p><br /><p><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_3">Kampusch</span> was snatched on her way to school at the age of 10 by <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_2">Wolfgang Priklopil</span> and held in a windowless cell under his garage near Vienna until she escaped in 2006, causing a sensation in Austria and abroad. Priklopil committed suicide.</p><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><br /><p>Kampusch had always refused to respond to claims that she had had sex with <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_4">Priklopil</span>, but in a German television interview on her 25th birthday last week said she had decided to reveal the truth because it had leaked out from police files.</p><br /><p>The film, “3,096 Days” – based on Kampusch’s autobiography of the same name – soberly portrays her captivity in a windowless cellar less than 6 square metres (65 square feet) in area, often deprived of food for days at a time.</p><br /><p>The emaciated Kampusch – who weighed just 38 kg (84 pounds) at one point in 2004 – keeps a diary written on toilet paper concealed in a box.</p><br /><p>One entry reads: “At least 60 blows in the face. Ten to 15 nausea-inducing fist blows to the head. One strike with the fist with full weight to my right ear.”</p><br /><p>The movie shows occasional moments that approach tenderness, such as when Priklopil presents her with a cake for her 18th birthday or buys her a dress as a gift – but then immediately goes on to chide her for not knowing how to waltz with him.</p><br /><p>GREY AREAS</p><br /><p>Antonia Campbell-Hughes, who plays the teenaged Kampusch, said she had tried to portray “the strength of someone’s soul, the ability of people to survive… but also the grey areas within a relationship that people don’t necessarily understand.”</p><br /><p>The British actress said she had not met Kampusch during the making of the film or since. “It was a very isolated time, it was a bubble of time, and I wanted to keep that very focused,” she told journalists as she arrived for the Vienna premiere.</p><br /><p>Kampusch herself attended the premiere, looking composed as she posed for pictures but declining to give interviews.</p><br /><p>In an interview with Germany’s Bild Zeitung last week, she said: “Yes, I did recognize myself, although the reality was even worse. But one can’t really show that in the cinema, since it wasn’t supposed to be a horror film.”</p><br /><p>The movie, made at the Constantin Film studios in Bavaria, Germany, also stars Amy Pidgeon as the 10-year-old Kampusch and Danish actor Thure Lindhardt as Priklopil.</p><br /><p>“I focused mainly on playing the human being because… we have to remember it was a human being. Monsters do not exist, they’re only in cartoons,” Lindhart said.</p><br /><p>“It became clear to me that it’s a story about survival, and it’s a story about surviving eight years of hell. If that story can be told then I can also play the bad guy.”</p><br /><p>The director was German-American Sherry Hormann, who made her English-language debut with the 2009 move “Desert Flower”, an adaptation of the autobiography of Somali-born model and anti-female circumcision activist Waris Dirie.</p><br /><p>“I’m a mother and I wonder at the strength of this child, and it was important for me to tell this story from a different perspective, to tell how this child using her own strength could survive this atrocious martyrdom,” Hormann said.</p><br /><p>The Kampusch case was followed two years later by that of Josef Fritzl, an Austrian who held his daughter captive in a cellar for 24 years and fathered seven children with her.</p><br /><p>The crimes prompted soul-searching about the Austrian psyche, and questions as to how the authorities and neighbors could have let such crimes go undetected for so long.</p><br /><p>The film goes on general release on Thursday.</p><br /><p>(Reporting by Georgina Prodhan, Editing by Paul Casciato)</p><br /><p>Movies News Headlines – Yahoo! 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Next Friday's unemployment report and the hefty spending cuts that look like they about to take effect will be at the forefront.</p><br /><p> The importance of whether equities can reach and sustain those highs is more than Wall Street's usual fixation on numbers with psychological significance. Breaking through to uncharted territory is seen as a test of <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362202326700_2">investors</span>' faith in the rally.</p><br /><p> "It's very significant," said <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362202326700_1">Bucky Hellwig</span>, senior vice president at BB&T Wealth Management in Birmingham, Alabama.</p><br /><p> "The thinking is, there's just not enough there for an extended bull run," he said. "If we do break through (<span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362202326700_4">record highs</span>), then maybe the charts and price action are telling us there's something better ahead."</p><br /><p> Flare-ups in the euro zone's sovereign debt crisis and next Friday's report on the U.S. labor market could jostle the market, though U.S. job indicators have generally been trending in a positive direction.</p><br /><p> Small- and mid-cap stocks hit lifetime highs in February. Now the Dow Jones industrial average <.dji> and the S&P 500 <.spx> are racing each other to the top. The Dow, made up of 30 stocks, is about 75 points - less than 1 percent - away from its record close of 14,164.53, which it hit on October 9, 2007. The broader S&P is still 3 percent away from its closing high of 1,565.15, also reached on October 9, 2007.</.spx></.dji></p><br /><p> The advantage may be in the Dow's court. So far in 2013, it has gained 7.5 percent, beating the S&P 500 by about 1 percent.</p><br /><p> THE RALLY AND THE REALITY CHECK</p><br /><p> The Dow's relative strength owes much to its unique make-up and calculation, as well as to investors' recent preference for buying value stocks likely to generate steady reliable gains, rather than growth stocks.</p><br /><p> But the more defensive stance illustrates how stock buyers are getting concerned about this year's rally. While investors don't want to miss out on gains, they're picking up companies that are less likely to decline as much as high-flying names - if a market correction comes.</p><br /><p> The Russell Value Index <.rav> is up 7.6 percent for the year so far, outpacing the Russell Growth Index's <.rag> 5.7 percent rise. Within the realm of the S&P 500, the consumer staples sector led the market in February, gaining 3.1 percent.</.rag></.rav></p><br /><p> There is some concern that growth-oriented names are being eclipsed by defensive bets, said Ryan Detrick, senior technical strategist at Schaeffer's Investment Research in Cincinnati.</p><br /><p> "This isn't a be-all and end-all sell signal by any means, but we would feel much more comfortable if some of the more aggressive areas, like technology and small caps, would start to gain some leadership here," Detrick said.</p><br /><p> Signs that investors are becoming concerned about the rally's pace is evident in the options market, where the ratio of put activity to call activity has recently shifted in favor of puts, which represent expectations for a stock to fall.</p><br /><p> "We are seeing some put hedging in the financials, building up for the past month," said Henry Schwartz, president of options analytics firm Trade Alert in New York.</p><br /><p> The put-to-call ratio representing an aggregate of about 562 financial stocks is 1:1, when normally, calls should be outnumbering puts.</p><br /><p> Investors have no shortage of reasons to crave the relative safety of blue chips and defensive stocks. Although markets have mostly looked past uncertainty over Washington's plans to cut the deficit, fiscal policy negotiations still pose a risk to equities.</p><br /><p> The $85 billion in spending cuts set to begin on Friday is expected to slow economic growth this year if policymakers do not reach a new deal. Markets so far have held firm despite the wrangling in Washington, but tangible economic effects could pinch stock prices going forward.</p><br /><p> The International Monetary Fund warned that full implementation of the cuts would probably take at least 0.5 percentage point off U.S. growth this year.</p><br /><p> EASY MONEY AND TEPID HIRING</p><br /><p> Investors will also take in a round of economic data at a time when concerns are percolating that the market is being pushed up less by fundamentals and more by loose monetary policy around the world.</p><br /><p> The main economic event will be Friday's non-farm payrolls report for February. The U.S. economy is expected to have added 160,000 jobs last month, only a tad higher than in January, in a sign the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362202326700_6">labor market</span> is healing at a slow pace. The U.S. unemployment rate is forecast to hold steady at 7.9 percent.</p><br /><p> While lackluster data has been a catalyst in the past for <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362202326700_5">stock market</span> gains as investors bet it would ensure continued stimulus from the Federal Reserve, that sentiment may be wearing thin.</p><br /><p> Markets stumbled last week following worries that the Fed might wind down its quantitative easing program sooner than expected.</p><br /><p> "It shows the underpinning of the market is being driven at this point by monetary policy," Hellwig said.</p><br /><p> With investors questioning what is behind the rally, it will make a run to record highs even more significant, Hellwig added.</p><br /><p> "There's smart people that are in the bull camp and the bear camp and the muddle-through camp," Hellwig said. "The fact that you can statistically, using historical evidence, make a case for going higher, lower, or staying the same makes this number very important this time around."</p><br /><p> (Wall St Week Ahead runs every Friday. Comments or questions on this column can be emailed to: leah.schnurr(at)thomsonreuters.com)</p><br /><p> (Reporting by Leah Schnurr; Additional reporting by Doris Frankel in Chicago; Editing by Jan Paschal)</p><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-30377938105743093842013-03-01T05:12:00.001-08:002013-03-01T05:12:12.240-08:00Syria war is everybody's problem<br /><!--startclickprintexclude--><br /><br /><div class="cnn_stryimg640caption" readability="8"><p>Syrians search for survivors and bodies after the Syrian regime attacked the city of Aleppo with missiles on February 23.</p></div><br /><br /><div class="cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnn_strylctcntr"><br /><p><strong>STORY HIGHLIGHTS</strong></p><br /><ul class="cnn_bulletbin cnnStryHghLght"><!--google_ad_section_start--><li>Frida Ghitis: We are standing by as Syria rips itself apart, thinking it's not our problem</li><br /><li>Beyond the tragedy in human terms, she says, the war damages global stability</li><br /><li>Ghitis: Syria getting more and more radical, jeopardizing forces of democracy</li><br /><li>Ghitis: Peace counts on moderates, whom we must back with diplomacy, training arms</li><br /><!--google_ad_section_end--><br /></ul></div></div><br /><!--endclickprintexclude--><!--google_ad_section_start--><!--startclickprintinclude--><br /><p class="cnnEditorialNote"><em><strong>Editor's note:</strong> Frida Ghitis is a world affairs columnist for The Miami Herald and World Politics Review. A former CNN producer and correspondent, she is the author of "The End of Revolution: A Changing World in the Age of Live Television." Follow her on Twitter: @FridaGColumns</em></p><br /><p><strong>(CNN)</strong> -- Last week, a huge explosion rocked the Syrian capital of Damascus, killing more than 50 people and injuring hundreds. The victims of the blast in a busy downtown street were mostly civilians, including schoolchildren. Each side in the Syrian civil war blamed the other.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph3">In the northern city of Aleppo, about 58 people -- 36 of them children -- died in a missile attack last week. Washington condemned the regime of Bashar al-Assad; the world looked at the awful images and moved on.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph5">Syria is ripping itself to pieces. The extent of human suffering is beyond comprehension. That alone should be reason enough to encourage a determined effort to bring this conflict to a quick resolution. But if humanitarian reasons were not enough, the international community -- including the U.S. and its allies -- should weigh the potential implications of allowing this calamity to continue.</p><br /><div class="cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnn_strylctcntr cnn_strylccimg214"><br /><img src="http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/111012033349-frida-ghitis-left-tease.jpg" alt="Frida Ghitis" border="0" class="box-image" height="122" width="214"/><p>Frida Ghitis</p><br /></div></div><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph7">We've all heard the argument: It's not our problem. We're not the world's policeman. We would only make it worse.</p><br /><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph9">This is not a plea to send American or European troops to fight in this conflict. Nobody wants that.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph11">But before we allow this mostly hands-off approach to continue, we would do well to consider the potential toll of continuing with a failed policy, one that has focused in vain over the past two years searching for a diplomatic solution.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph13">U. S. Secretary of State John Kerry has just announced that the U.S. will provide an additional $60 million in non-lethal assistance to the opposition. He has hinted that President Obama, after rejecting suggestions from the CIA and previous Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to arm Syrian rebels, might be ready to change course. And not a day too soon.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph15">The war is taking longer than anyone expected. The longer it lasts, the more Syria is radicalized and the region is destabilized.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph17">If you think the Syrian war is the concern of Syrians alone, think about other countries that have torn themselves apart over a long time. Consider Lebanon, Afghanistan or Somalia; each with unique circumstances, but with one thing in common: Their wars created enormous suffering at home, and the destructiveness eventually spilled beyond their borders. All of those wars triggered lengthy, costly refugee crises. They all spawned international terrorism and eventually direct international -- including U.S. -- intervention.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph19">The uprising against al-Assad started two years ago in the spirit of what was then referred to -- without a hint of irony -- as the Arab Spring. Young Syrians marched, chanting for freedom and democracy. The ideals of equality, rule of law and human rights wafted in the air.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph21">Al-Assad responded to peaceful protests with gunfire. Syrians started dying by the hundreds each day. Gradually the nonviolent protesters started fighting back. Members of the Syrian army started defecting.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph23">The opposition's Free Syrian Army came together. Factions within the Syrian opposition took up arms and the political contest became a brutal civil war. The death toll has climbed to as many as 90,000, according to Kerry. About 2 million people have left their homes, and the killing continues with no end in sight.</p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph25">In fairness to Washington, Europe and the rest of the international community, there were never easy choices in this war. Opposition leaders bickered, and their clashing views scared away would-be supporters. Western nations rejected the idea of arming the opposition, saying Syria already has too many weapons. They were also concerned about who would control the weaponry, including an existing arsenal of chemical and biological weapons, after al-Assad's fall.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph27">These are all legitimate concerns. But inaction is producing the worst possible outcome.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph29">The moderates, whose views most closely align with the West, are losing out to the better-armed Islamists and, especially, to the extremists. Moderates are losing the ideological debate and the battle for the future character of a Syria after al-Assad.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph31">Radical Islamist groups have taken the lead. Young people are losing faith in moderation, lured by disciplined, devout extremists. Reporters on the ground have seen young democracy advocates turn into fervent supporters of dangerous groups such as the Nusra Front, which has scored impressive victories.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph33">The U.S. State Department recently listed the Nusra Front, which has close ties to al Qaeda in Iraq and a strong anti-Western ideology, as a terrorist organization.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph35">Meantime, countries bordering Syria are experiencing repercussions. And these are likely to become more dangerous.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph37">Jordan, an important American ally, is struggling with a flood of refugees, as many as 10,000 each week since the start of the year. The government estimates 380,000 Syrians are in Jordan, a country whose government is under pressure from its own restive population and still dealing with huge refugee populations from other wars.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph39">Turkey is also burdened with hundreds of thousands of refugees and occasional Syrian fire. Israel has warned about chemical weapons transfers from al-Assad to Hezbollah in Lebanon and may have already fired on a Syrian convoy attempting the move.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph41">Lebanon, always perched precariously on the edge of crisis, lives with growing fears that Syria's war will enter its borders. Despite denials, there is evidence that Lebanon's Hezbollah, a close ally of al-Assad and of Iran, has joined the fighting on the side of the Syrian president. The Free Syrian Army has threatened to attack Hezbollah in Lebanon if it doesn't leave Syria.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph43">The possible outcomes in Syria include the emergence of a failed state, stirring unrest throughout the region. If al-Assad wins, Syria will become an even more repressive country.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph45">Al-Assad's survival would fortify Iran and Hezbollah and other anti-Western forces. If the extremists inside the opposition win, Syria could see factional fighting for many years, followed by anti-democratic, anti-Western policies.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph47">The only good outcome is victory for the opposition's moderate forces. They may not be easy to identify with complete certainty. But to the extent that it is possible, these forces need Western support.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph48">They need training, funding, careful arming and strong political and diplomatic backing. The people of Syria should know that support for human rights, democracy and pluralism will lead toward a peaceful, prosperous future.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph50">Democratic nations should not avert their eyes from the killings in Syria which are, after all, a warning to the world.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph52"><i>Follow us on Twitter </i><i>@CNNOpinion.</i></p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph53"><i>Join us on </i><i>Facebook/CNNOpinion.</i></p><br /><p class="cnn_strycbftrtxt">The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Frida Ghitis.</p><br /><!--endclickprintinclude--><!--google_ad_section_end--><br /><!--no partner--><br /><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-35246841190955989262013-03-01T05:10:00.001-08:002013-03-01T05:10:22.953-08:00Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal<br /><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><p class="first">VIENNA (Reuters) – A new film based on the story of Austrian kidnap victim <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_1">Natascha Kampusch</span> shows her being repeatedly raped by the captor who beat and starved her during the eight-and-a-half years that he kept her in a cellar beneath his house.</p><br /><p><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_3">Kampusch</span> was snatched on her way to school at the age of 10 by <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_2">Wolfgang Priklopil</span> and held in a windowless cell under his garage near Vienna until she escaped in 2006, causing a sensation in Austria and abroad. Priklopil committed suicide.</p><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><br /><p>Kampusch had always refused to respond to claims that she had had sex with <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_4">Priklopil</span>, but in a German television interview on her 25th birthday last week said she had decided to reveal the truth because it had leaked out from police files.</p><br /><p>The film, “3,096 Days” – based on Kampusch’s autobiography of the same name – soberly portrays her captivity in a windowless cellar less than 6 square metres (65 square feet) in area, often deprived of food for days at a time.</p><br /><p>The emaciated Kampusch – who weighed just 38 kg (84 pounds) at one point in 2004 – keeps a diary written on toilet paper concealed in a box.</p><br /><p>One entry reads: “At least 60 blows in the face. Ten to 15 nausea-inducing fist blows to the head. One strike with the fist with full weight to my right ear.”</p><br /><p>The movie shows occasional moments that approach tenderness, such as when Priklopil presents her with a cake for her 18th birthday or buys her a dress as a gift – but then immediately goes on to chide her for not knowing how to waltz with him.</p><br /><p>GREY AREAS</p><br /><p>Antonia Campbell-Hughes, who plays the teenaged Kampusch, said she had tried to portray “the strength of someone’s soul, the ability of people to survive… but also the grey areas within a relationship that people don’t necessarily understand.”</p><br /><p>The British actress said she had not met Kampusch during the making of the film or since. “It was a very isolated time, it was a bubble of time, and I wanted to keep that very focused,” she told journalists as she arrived for the Vienna premiere.</p><br /><p>Kampusch herself attended the premiere, looking composed as she posed for pictures but declining to give interviews.</p><br /><p>In an interview with Germany’s Bild Zeitung last week, she said: “Yes, I did recognize myself, although the reality was even worse. But one can’t really show that in the cinema, since it wasn’t supposed to be a horror film.”</p><br /><p>The movie, made at the Constantin Film studios in Bavaria, Germany, also stars Amy Pidgeon as the 10-year-old Kampusch and Danish actor Thure Lindhardt as Priklopil.</p><br /><p>“I focused mainly on playing the human being because… we have to remember it was a human being. Monsters do not exist, they’re only in cartoons,” Lindhart said.</p><br /><p>“It became clear to me that it’s a story about survival, and it’s a story about surviving eight years of hell. If that story can be told then I can also play the bad guy.”</p><br /><p>The director was German-American Sherry Hormann, who made her English-language debut with the 2009 move “Desert Flower”, an adaptation of the autobiography of Somali-born model and anti-female circumcision activist Waris Dirie.</p><br /><p>“I’m a mother and I wonder at the strength of this child, and it was important for me to tell this story from a different perspective, to tell how this child using her own strength could survive this atrocious martyrdom,” Hormann said.</p><br /><p>The Kampusch case was followed two years later by that of Josef Fritzl, an Austrian who held his daughter captive in a cellar for 24 years and fathered seven children with her.</p><br /><p>The crimes prompted soul-searching about the Austrian psyche, and questions as to how the authorities and neighbors could have let such crimes go undetected for so long.</p><br /><p>The film goes on general release on Thursday.</p><br /><p>(Reporting by Georgina Prodhan, Editing by Paul Casciato)</p><br /><p>Movies News Headlines – Yahoo! News</p><br /><div><br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://data-vocabulary.org/Review-aggregate"><br /><div><br />Title Post: <span itemprop="itemreviewed"><strong>Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal</strong></span><br />Url Post: <strong>http://www.news.fluser.com/cellar-victim-kampusch-raped-starved-in-film-of-ordeal/</strong><br />Link To Post : <strong>Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal</strong><br />Rating: <span itemprop="rating" itemscope="" itemtype="http://data-vocabulary.org/Rating"><br /><span itemprop="average">100%</span><br /></span><br />based on <span itemprop="votes">99998</span> ratings.<br /><span itemprop="count">5</span> user reviews.<br />Author: <b><span class="vcard author"><span class="fn">Fluser SeoLink</span></span></b><br />Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment</div><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-6412385499141743302013-03-01T05:02:00.001-08:002013-03-01T05:02:37.404-08:00Leaving NKorea, Rodman calls Kims 'great leaders'<br /><p class="first">PYONGYANG, <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362139807895_4">North Korea</span> (AP) — Ending his unexpected round of basketball diplomacy in North Korea on Friday, ex-NBA star <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362139807895_1">Dennis Rodman</span> called leader <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362139807895_3">Kim Jong Un</span> an "awesome guy" and said his father and grandfather were "great leaders."</p><br /><p>Rodman, the highest-profile American to meet Kim since he inherited power from father <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362139807895_2">Kim Jong Il</span> in 2011, watched a basketball game with the authoritarian leader Thursday and later drank and dined on sushi with him.</p><br /><p>At Pyongyang's Sunan airport on his way to Beijing, Rodman said it was "amazing" that the North Koreans were "so honest." He added that Kim Jong Il and <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362139807895_5">Kim Il Sung</span>, North Korea's founder, "were great leaders."</p><br /><p>"He's proud, his country likes him — not like him, love him, love him," Rodman said of Kim Jong Un. "Guess what, I love him. The guy's really awesome."</p><br /><p>At Beijing's airport, Rodman pushed past waiting journalists without saying anything.</p><br /><p>Rodman's visit to North Korea began Monday and took place amid tension between Washington and Pyongyang. North Korea conducted an underground nuclear test just two weeks ago, making clear the provocative act was a warning to the United States to drop what it considers a "hostile" policy toward the North.</p><br /><p>Rodman traveled to <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362139807895_6">Pyongyang</span> with three members of the professional <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362139807895_9">Harlem Globetrotters basketball</span> team, VICE correspondent Ryan Duffy and a production crew to shoot an episode on North Korea for a new weekly HBO series.</p><br /><p>Kim, a diehard basketball fan, told the former <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362139807895_7">Detroit Pistons</span> and <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362139807895_8">Chicago Bulls</span> star that he hoped the visit would break the ice between the United States and North Korea, said Shane Smith, founder of the New York-based VICE media company.</p><br /><p>Dressed in a blue Mao suit, Kim laughed and slapped his hands on a table during the game at Jong Ju Yong Gymnasium as he sat nearly knee to knee with Rodman. Rodman, the man who once turned up in a wedding dress to promote his autobiography, wore a dark suit and dark sunglasses, but still had on his nose rings and other piercings. A can of Coca-Cola sat on the table before him in photos shared with AP by VICE.</p><br /><p>Smith, after speaking to the VICE crew in Pyongyang, said Kim and Rodman "bonded" and chatted in English, though Kim primarily spoke in Korean through a translator.</p><br /><p>Thursday's game ended in a 110-110 tie, with two Americans playing on each team alongside North Koreans. After the game, Rodman addressed Kim in a speech before a crowd of tens of thousands of North Koreans and told him, "You have a friend for life," VICE spokesman Alex Detrick told AP.</p><br /><p>At an "epic feast" later, the leader plied the group with food and drinks and round after round of toasts were made, Duffy said in an email to AP.</p><br /><p>Duffy said he invited Kim to visit the United States, a proposal met with hearty laughter from the North Korean leader.</p><br /><p>Kim said he hoped sports exchanges would promote "mutual understanding between the people of the two countries," the official Korean Central News Agency said.</p><br /><p>North Korea and the U.S. fought on opposite sides of the three-year Korean War, which ended in a truce in 1953. The foes never signed a peace treaty, and do not have diplomatic relations.</p><br /><p>Rodman's trip is the second attention-grabbing American visit this year to North Korea. Google's executive chairman, Eric Schmidt, made a four-day trip in January to Pyongyang, but did not meet the North Korean leader.</p><br /><p>The Obama administration had frowned on the trip by Schmidt, who was accompanied by former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, but has avoided criticizing Rodman's outing, saying it's about sports.</p><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-69585969775247189242013-02-28T05:12:00.001-08:002013-02-28T05:12:15.618-08:00Taiwan ebullient over Ang Lee's Oscar<br /><!--startclickprintexclude--><br /><br /><br /><div class="cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnn_strylctcntr"><br /><p><strong>STORY HIGHLIGHTS</strong></p><br /><ul class="cnn_bulletbin cnnStryHghLght"><!--google_ad_section_start--><li>Ang Lee's name beamed on building in Taiwan after Oscar win</li><br /><li>Lee, born in Taiwan, won award for best director for "Life of Pi"</li><br /><li>Lee's win created excitement in Taiwan and China, both claimed him as their own</li><br /><li>Ryan: "In some ways it feels like 'Linsanity' all over again"</li><br /><!--google_ad_section_end--><br /></ul></div></div><br /><!--endclickprintexclude--><!--google_ad_section_start--><!--startclickprintinclude--><br /><p class="cnnEditorialNote"><em><strong>Editor's note:</strong> Andrew Ryan is a host and producer at Radio Taiwan International, a government-owned station that broadcasts in several languages and countries. He first came to Taiwan in 1996 as a Fulbright scholar and has spent the last 16 years as a translator and observer of politics and culture.</em></p><br /><p><strong>Taipei (CNN)</strong> -- It's not every territory in the world that puts an Oscar-winning director's name up in lights on a towering building. But that's just the sort of thing that happens in Taiwan -- and it did on Monday night after Ang Lee picked up his second "Best Director" Oscar, this time for "Life of Pi."</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph2">The moment wasn't just celebrated in grand statements, but in small scenes played out in front of televisions across Taiwan when his name was announced.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph3">I was at a TV station in Taipei that was broadcasting live coverage of the Oscars, working with a team of translators that was creating the subtitles for the rebroadcast. When Lee's name was announced the office erupted in applause. Down the hallway, more cheering could be heard.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph4">READ: Oscar winners: Analysis of who won</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph5">I couldn't help but think back to the Athens Games in 2004, when Chen Shih-hsin won Taiwan's first ever Olympic gold medal (under the team name "Chinese Taipei"). Even veteran news anchors shed tears when the young taekwondo star defeated her Cuban rival.</p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph6">It would be reductive to suggest that these displays of patriotism are simply the response of a small country that just doesn't crank out that many Oscar winners or Olympic golds. It also speaks of a place that has been largely marginalized in the international community.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph7">Today, Taiwan has just 23 official diplomatic allies -- mostly other marginalized nations, in Central America and Africa. That's because China still sees Taiwan as part of its territory more than 60 years after the Chinese Nationalists retreated to the island at the end of a Civil War against the Communists. The Nationalists -- or Kuomintang -- are now the ruling party in a democratic Taiwan, which is officially called the Republic of China (ROC) -- not to be confused with the People's Republic of China on the Mainland.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph8">Having lost its seat at the United Nations to the PRC in 1971, the ROC found itself with a diminished voice in the international community. It turned to manufacturing and technology in the 1980s, spurring on what is now referred to as an "economic miracle." Today, with its economy struggling to move past the global economic downturn, Taiwan has added the arts, sports, and even baking to its repertoire.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph9">READ: Oscars 2013: Hollywood gets political</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph10">What's striking about Lee's win is that it's not just people in Taiwan who were quick to claim him as one of their own. In China, the state-run Xinhua news agency referred to him as "Chinese-American." While Taiwanese media latched onto the portion of Lee's acceptance speech when he thanked Taiwan and the central city of Taichung where much of the movie was filmed, Xinhua's main story included Lee's line of thanks to the 3,000 people who worked on the film for "believing this story and sharing this incredible journey with me."</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph11">In some ways it feels like "Linsanity" all over again, when Taiwan and China both claimed basketball star Jeremy Lin as their own, leaving the international media struggling to chart the dangerous waters of identity politics to correctly describe him.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph12">VIEW: Photos from the red carpet</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph13">A very small voice at the fringe of the discussion wonders why it's important for people to know that Lin's paternal grandmother lives in Taiwan and referred to him as "a real Taiwanese," or that Lee grew up in Tainan and still loves to visit his favorite noodle shop there. Others in Taiwan question why a nation's confidence should be based on its success in the international community.</p><br /><div class="cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnn_strylctcntr cnn_strylctcquote" readability="7.5"><div class="cnn_strylctcqcntr" readability="10"><br /><p>When Ang Lee's name was announced, the office erupted in applause. Down the hallway, more cheering could be heard.<br/><span>Andrew Ryan</span></p><br /></div></div></div><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph14">With China looming to the north, now the world's second biggest economy and wielding an influence that's verging on "superpower" status, the metaphor of Jonah and the whale comes to mind. The Taiwanese electorate is sharply divided on how it feels about the way ties with China have warmed ever since President Ma Ying-jeou first took office in 2008. The benefits are obvious, considering China is Taiwan's largest trade partner, but some worry that it could lead to a loss in autonomy.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph15">INTERACTIVE: Oscars by numbers</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph16">The Ma administration has been mindful of the nationalistic rhetoric of the opposition, and although the president was born in Hong Kong, he has referred to himself in the past as "Taiwanese as well as Chinese." Ma was also quick to congratulate Lee following the Oscars, and to urge others to follow in the director's footsteps and "work hard at promoting Taiwan to the world."</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph17">Lee is just one name on a growing list of national heroes that both the government and the private sector have celebrated in recent years for putting Taiwan on the map: people like fashion designer Jason Wu, who moved to Canada from Taiwan and has created garments for U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama; master baker Wu Pao-chun, who beat the French patissiers at their own competition -- Les Masters de la Boulangerie in 2010; Yani Tseng, the world's number one female golfer; and even the humble vegetable seller-turned-philanthropist Chen Shu-chu, who was selected by Time Magazine as one of its heroes of 2010.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph18">So what are people saying when they embrace these heroes as Taiwanese? They are saying "Taiwan may be small and diplomatically isolated, but it deserves to have a voice in the international community." While Lee may not speak about politics and no longer creates movies about Taiwan, he does have a voice and people do listen. And that's worth spreading in lights across the world's second-tallest building.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph19">Follow us on Twitter @CNNOpinion.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph20">Join us on Facebook/CNNOpinion.</p><br /><p class="cnn_strycbftrtxt">The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Andrew Ryan.</p><br /><!--endclickprintinclude--><!--google_ad_section_end--><br /><!--no partner--><br /><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-32834456591333775002013-02-28T05:10:00.001-08:002013-02-28T05:10:22.873-08:00Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal<br /><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><p class="first">VIENNA (Reuters) – A new film based on the story of Austrian kidnap victim <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_1">Natascha Kampusch</span> shows her being repeatedly raped by the captor who beat and starved her during the eight-and-a-half years that he kept her in a cellar beneath his house.</p><br /><p><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_3">Kampusch</span> was snatched on her way to school at the age of 10 by <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_2">Wolfgang Priklopil</span> and held in a windowless cell under his garage near Vienna until she escaped in 2006, causing a sensation in Austria and abroad. Priklopil committed suicide.</p><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><br /><p>Kampusch had always refused to respond to claims that she had had sex with <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_4">Priklopil</span>, but in a German television interview on her 25th birthday last week said she had decided to reveal the truth because it had leaked out from police files.</p><br /><p>The film, “3,096 Days” – based on Kampusch’s autobiography of the same name – soberly portrays her captivity in a windowless cellar less than 6 square metres (65 square feet) in area, often deprived of food for days at a time.</p><br /><p>The emaciated Kampusch – who weighed just 38 kg (84 pounds) at one point in 2004 – keeps a diary written on toilet paper concealed in a box.</p><br /><p>One entry reads: “At least 60 blows in the face. Ten to 15 nausea-inducing fist blows to the head. One strike with the fist with full weight to my right ear.”</p><br /><p>The movie shows occasional moments that approach tenderness, such as when Priklopil presents her with a cake for her 18th birthday or buys her a dress as a gift – but then immediately goes on to chide her for not knowing how to waltz with him.</p><br /><p>GREY AREAS</p><br /><p>Antonia Campbell-Hughes, who plays the teenaged Kampusch, said she had tried to portray “the strength of someone’s soul, the ability of people to survive… but also the grey areas within a relationship that people don’t necessarily understand.”</p><br /><p>The British actress said she had not met Kampusch during the making of the film or since. “It was a very isolated time, it was a bubble of time, and I wanted to keep that very focused,” she told journalists as she arrived for the Vienna premiere.</p><br /><p>Kampusch herself attended the premiere, looking composed as she posed for pictures but declining to give interviews.</p><br /><p>In an interview with Germany’s Bild Zeitung last week, she said: “Yes, I did recognize myself, although the reality was even worse. But one can’t really show that in the cinema, since it wasn’t supposed to be a horror film.”</p><br /><p>The movie, made at the Constantin Film studios in Bavaria, Germany, also stars Amy Pidgeon as the 10-year-old Kampusch and Danish actor Thure Lindhardt as Priklopil.</p><br /><p>“I focused mainly on playing the human being because… we have to remember it was a human being. Monsters do not exist, they’re only in cartoons,” Lindhart said.</p><br /><p>“It became clear to me that it’s a story about survival, and it’s a story about surviving eight years of hell. If that story can be told then I can also play the bad guy.”</p><br /><p>The director was German-American Sherry Hormann, who made her English-language debut with the 2009 move “Desert Flower”, an adaptation of the autobiography of Somali-born model and anti-female circumcision activist Waris Dirie.</p><br /><p>“I’m a mother and I wonder at the strength of this child, and it was important for me to tell this story from a different perspective, to tell how this child using her own strength could survive this atrocious martyrdom,” Hormann said.</p><br /><p>The Kampusch case was followed two years later by that of Josef Fritzl, an Austrian who held his daughter captive in a cellar for 24 years and fathered seven children with her.</p><br /><p>The crimes prompted soul-searching about the Austrian psyche, and questions as to how the authorities and neighbors could have let such crimes go undetected for so long.</p><br /><p>The film goes on general release on Thursday.</p><br /><p>(Reporting by Georgina Prodhan, Editing by Paul Casciato)</p><br /><p>Movies News Headlines – Yahoo! News</p><br /><div><br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://data-vocabulary.org/Review-aggregate"><br /><div><br />Title Post: <span itemprop="itemreviewed"><strong>Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal</strong></span><br />Url Post: <strong>http://www.news.fluser.com/cellar-victim-kampusch-raped-starved-in-film-of-ordeal/</strong><br />Link To Post : <strong>Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal</strong><br />Rating: <span itemprop="rating" itemscope="" itemtype="http://data-vocabulary.org/Rating"><br /><span itemprop="average">100%</span><br /></span><br />based on <span itemprop="votes">99998</span> ratings.<br /><span itemprop="count">5</span> user reviews.<br />Author: <b><span class="vcard author"><span class="fn">Fluser SeoLink</span></span></b><br />Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment</div><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-9148347983645272862013-02-28T05:04:00.001-08:002013-02-28T05:04:13.678-08:00Stock futures tick higher ahead of GDP, jobless data<br /><p class="first">NEW YORK (Reuters) - <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362054305825_2">Stock index futures</span> edged modestly higher on Thursday as investors were reluctant to make big bets following a sharp two-day rally and ahead of a rash of data.</p><br /><p> Investors will also be keeping an eye on the debate in Washington over sequestration - U.S. government budget cuts that will take effect starting on Friday if lawmakers fail to reach an agreement on spending and taxes. <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362054305825_1">President Barack Obama</span> and Republican congressional leaders arranged to hold last-ditch talks to prevent the cuts, but expectations were low that any deal would be produced.</p><br /><p> Major indexes posted their biggest daily gains since early January on Wednesday, putting the S&P 500 back above the closely watched level of 1,500. Over the past two sessions, the index has gained 1.9 percent, lifted by strong data and comments from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke that showed continued support for the Fed's stimulus policy.</p><br /><p> Wall Street has largely resisted predictions it would undergo a correction, with the S&P up 6.3 percent so far this year and the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362054305825_3">Dow Jones industrial average</span> within striking distance of an all-time high. While markets suffered steep losses earlier this week on concerns over European debt, they have since recovered and are flat on the week.</p><br /><p> Revised gross domestic product data is expected to show that the U.S. economy grew 0.5 percent in the fourth quarter, rather than contracted 0.1 percent as initially estimated. The data is due at 8:30 a.m. (1330 GMT)</p><br /><p> Weekly jobless claims, also on tap for 8:30 a.m., are seen dipping by 2,000 to 360,000 in the latest week, while the February Chicago PMI is seen dipping to 54.3 from 55.6 last month.</p><br /><p> Those reports come in the wake of strong pending home sales data Wednesday and a proxy for business spending plans that was more robust than expected, which added to the positive tone in markets.</p><br /><p> S&P 500 futures rose 2.7 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures added 16 points and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 4.5 points.</p><br /><p> J.C. Penney Co Inc <jcp.n> shares slumped 15 percent to $18.01 in premarket trading a day after it reported a steep drop in sales, prompting the department store to overhaul its pricing strategy.</jcp.n></p><br /><p> Groupon Inc <grpn.o> also reported revenue that missed expectations, sending shares down 26 percent to $4.41 before the bell.</grpn.o></p><br /><p> Salesforce.com Inc <crm.n> and Gap Inc <gps.n> are on tap to report results later Thursday.</gps.n></crm.n></p><br /><p> With 93 percent of the S&P 500 companies having reported results so far, 69.5 percent have beaten profit expectations, compared with a 62 percent average since 1994 and 65 percent over the past four quarters, according to Thomson Reuters data.</p><br /><p> Fourth-quarter earnings for S&P 500 companies are estimated to have risen 6.2 percent, according to the data, above a 1.9 percent forecast at the start of the earnings season.</p><br /><p> Tim Cook, chief executive of Apple Inc , acknowledged widespread disappointment Wednesday in the performance of the tech titan's stock, which is down 16.5 percent so far this year, but urged investors to take a long-term view on the company.</p><br /><p> (Editing by Bernadette Baum)</p><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-23566589510856466912013-02-28T05:02:00.001-08:002013-02-28T05:02:28.479-08:00Knicks overcome Curry's 54 to beat Warriors<br /><p class="first">NEW YORK (AP) — <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362028087775_1">Stephen Curry</span> rose for another jumper, and by then even the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362028087775_2">Knicks</span> probably figured it would go in.</p><br /><p>Curry had hardly missed in a scintillating second half of the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362028087775_4">NBA</span>'s most electric performance this season, the crowd cheering even before the ball left his hands.</p><br /><p>This time, <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362028087775_5">Raymond Felton</span> jumped with him, making the play <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362028087775_6">New York</span> needed to finally withstand Curry.</p><br /><p>Felton's blocked shot led to J.R. Smith's tiebreaking basket with 1:10 left, and the Knicks overcame Curry's NBA season-high 54 points to beat the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362028087775_3">Golden State Warriors</span> 109-105 on Wednesday night.</p><br /><p>Curry was 18 of 28 from the field, finishing one shy of the NBA record with 11 3-pointers in 13 attempts, in a performance that had the crowd hanging on his every shot. But the Knicks and Felton finally stopped him with 1:28 to play and the score tied at 105.</p><br /><p>"My main thing is to keep playing. Like I said, once a guy gets it going like that, there's nothing I can really do. I've still got to stay in my mindset, still play my game, and I was still able to come up with some big plays at the end," Felton said. "We all came up with some big plays to get that win."</p><br /><p><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362028087775_9">Carmelo Anthony</span> followed Smith's basket with another one and the Knicks hung on to spoil former Knicks star and Warriors coach Mark Jackson's homecoming.</p><br /><p>Anthony finished with 35 points and Smith had 26.</p><br /><p>"We made the defensive stops we needed to make down the stretch," Knicks coach Mike Woodson said.</p><br /><p>Playing all 48 minutes, Curry finished with seven assists and six rebounds while passing his previous career best of 42 points, and Kevin Durant's 52-point performance that had been the best in the NBA this season.</p><br /><p>"I felt good all night. Obviously played the whole game, so was just trying to keep my legs underneath me on the offensive end, and you know, just stick to the game on the defensive end," Curry said. "Once I started seeing that 3-ball go down in transition, all sorts of spots on the floor, I knew it was going to be a good night."</p><br /><p>But he had little help without All-Star forward David Lee, who was suspended one game for his role in an altercation Tuesday night in Indiana.</p><br /><p>Tyson Chandler had 16 points and a career-best 28 rebounds for the Knicks, who won their second straight after a season-high, four-game losing streak. Amare Stoudemire had 14 points and Anthony added eight assists on the day the Knicks learned they could be without reserve forward Rasheed Wallace for the rest of the season because he needs surgery to repair a broken bone in his left foot.</p><br /><p>Strutting all over the court whenever one of his 3s swished easily through the nets, Curry easily blew past the 38 points he scored Tuesday in Indiana, which had been his best of the season. That was spoiled when he was fined $35,000 for his role in the skirmish, which was essentially getting thrown to the ground by Roy Hibbert when he tried to intervene.</p><br /><p>This performance — the most points by an NBA player in a loss since Kobe Bryant had 58 in a loss to Charlotte on Dec. 29, 2006 — was spoiled along with Jackson's trip back to his old home because of a few mistakes down the stretch.</p><br /><p>Curry threw away a pass on the break with 3:13 left, and Jarrett Jack was called for a travel following Smith's go-ahead basket.</p><br /><p>Plus, Klay Thompson finished 3 of 13 from the field, missing two straight from deep in the final minute.</p><br /><p>Jackson, who grew up in Brooklyn and starred at St. John's before being drafted by the Knicks in 1987, didn't get a chance to coach here last season as an NBA rookie on the bench because of the lockout. He brought his wife, Desiree, to a road game for the first time this season, had his mother in the stands, and got a chance to see people he remembered from playing here years earlier.</p><br /><p>He said he hadn't gotten to look ahead much to the game because of the schedule, but clearly enjoyed being back in Madison Square Garden once the day did arrive.</p><br /><p>"This is a special place and it was part of my dreams as a kid," he said.</p><br /><p>His night turned into Curry's, fans cheering even before the ball left his hand in the second half.</p><br /><p>"We were short-handed and we needed a performance like that to have a chance," Jackson said. "He put on a clinic. Knocked down shots. Made plays. Carried us. Led us in rebounding. He did it all. I've seen a lot of great performances in this building and his goes up there. I've seen a lot. I've seen a lot, but that shooting performance was a thing of beauty."</p><br /><p>The Knicks, who hadn't played since Sunday, looked ready to blow <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362028087775_7">the Warriors</span> out early, taking a 25-11 lead that the Warriors trimmed to 27-18 at the end of the first period before surging ahead behind Curry.</p><br /><p>He scored 12 straight Golden State points, cutting it to 35-34 with his third 3-pointer of the second quarter. He followed Richard Jefferson's 3 with another one, giving the Warriors a 40-37 advantage. The Knicks recovered and went back ahead by nine late in the period before Curry answered with six consecutive points, and New York's lead was 58-55 at the break.</p><br /><p>"He's a special young player with a very unique talent," Chandler said. "We ran everything at him. He just got hot. There was some shots that he couldn't have seen the rim."</p><br /><p>Curry's drive gave the Warriors a two-point lead three minutes into the third quarter, but he didn't score again until hitting a turnaround 3 from 27 feet with 5 seconds left in the period, giving him 38 points again and cutting New York's lead to 84-81.</p><br /><p>Already without Andrew Bogut because of a back injury, the Warriors had little size without Lee. Their lineup at one point in the second quarter had nobody taller than 6-foot-9 and Chandler simply climbed over them all night.</p><br /><p>He came in leading the league with 4.4 offensive rebounds per game, and grabbed 13 boards in the first quarter alone.</p><br /><p>Notes: Chandler was also the last NBA player to grab 13 rebounds in one quarter, hauling in 14 in the third quarter for Dallas on Dec. 1, 2010. ... Wallace, who hasn't played since December, will have surgery this week and the expected recovery time is eight weeks. Woodson said he didn't plan to waive the 38-year-old forward and create a roster spot, instead hoping he could be able to play in the postseason. ... Kenyon Martin, signed last week in part because of the uncertainty around Wallace, made his <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1362028087775_8">Knicks</span> debut and was scoreless in 5 first-half minutes.</p><br /><p>___</p><br /><p>Follow Brian Mahoney on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Briancmahoney</p><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-65776599283503278722013-02-27T05:12:00.001-08:002013-02-27T05:12:07.826-08:00Yahoo CEO right to cut remote work?<br /><!--startclickprintexclude--><br /><br /><br /><div class="cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnn_strylctcntr"><br /><p><strong>STORY HIGHLIGHTS</strong></p><br /><ul class="cnn_bulletbin cnnStryHghLght"><!--google_ad_section_start--><li>Raymond Fisman: Marissa Mayer needs to revive Yahoo, and face time at the office is key</li><br /><li>Fisman: Granted, this goes against Utopian vision of everyone working from cafes </li><br /><li>Fisman: In-person work means innovations, avoids misunderstood directives</li><br /><li>He says more jobs will get done and it'll encourage those who work in a half-empty office</li><br /><!--google_ad_section_end--><br /></ul></div></div><br /><!--endclickprintexclude--><!--google_ad_section_start--><!--startclickprintinclude--><br /><p class="cnnEditorialNote"><em><strong>Editor's note:</strong> Raymond Fisman is the Lambert Family professor of social enterprise at the Columbia Business School. He is the co-author, with Tim Sullivan, of "The Org: The Underlying Logic of the Office."</em></p><br /><p><strong>(CNN)</strong> -- When Yahoo's relatively new CEO Marissa Mayer decreed that workers would be required to show up at the office rather than work remotely, the immediate backlash from outsiders was mostly on the side of the angry Yahoo employees who were losing the comfort and convenience of telecommuting. Inside the company, reactions were mixed.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph2">It struck a deep chord, contrary as it was to the techno-utopian impulse that has helped define Silicon Valley: the idea that someday soon we'll all be working in coffee shops or at kitchen tables, with broadband connections replacing in-person interactions.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph3">Mayer may have been extreme in her demands for face time at the office, but it's the right call for a leader who is working to turn around one of the Internet's laggards.</p><br /><div class="cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnn_strylctcntr cnn_strylccimg214"><br /><img src="http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/130226111459-raymond-fisman-left-tease.jpg" alt="Raymond Fisman" border="0" class="box-image" height="122" width="214"/><p>Raymond Fisman</p><br /></div></div><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph4">First, let's consider what's at stake for the company and what Mayer is hoping to accomplish. Yahoo is famous for having bungled its position as a one-time Internet leader. Mayer was brought on specifically to revitalize the benighted company after the departure of Jerry Yang; the firing of Carol Bartz, and the departures of another CEO who inflated his resume and an interim director. All the while, Yahoo has been a company in search of a direction.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph5">What does the end of telecommuting have to do with giving the company a sound footing? The reasons go well beyond the obvious issue of reining in slackers who have taken advantage of Yahoo's reportedly lax monitoring of work done from home.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph6">Talk Back: Is Yahoo wrong to end telecommuting?</p><br /><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph7">Jackie Reses, Yahoo's head of human relations, has it exactly right in the memo she wrote to employees about the policy: Personal interaction is still the most effective way of conveying a company's direction, and keeping tabs on what different parts of the organization are up to. And that's what Mayer has to do with all of Yahoo's 11,500 employees to succeed.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph8">What do in-person meetings accomplish that e-mail can't? Part of the answer lies in time use surveys of CEOs that go back nearly 40 years.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph9">Management scholar Henry Mintzberg was among the first to track how top managers spend their time in the early 1970s. Much to his surprise, he found that around 80% of their time was spent in face-to-face meetings; the subjects of his study had few stretches of more than 10 minutes at a time to themselves.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph10">More recent time use studies by researchers at Harvard, the London School of Economics and Columbia have found that little has changed. Despite the IT revolution, business leaders still spend 80% of their time in face-to-face meetings.</p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph11">The reason is that there's only so much that one can glean from a written report or a spreadsheet. To cut through the hidden agendas, and office politics, most of the time you need to look someone in the eye and ask them, "Really? How exactly would that work?" It is this probing and questioning that allows effective managers to gather the scraps of information needed to understand what's really going on.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph12">Similarly, all the way down the organizational chart, person-to-person interactions are crucial to ensure that an organization's change of direction isn't misrepresented or garbled in its retelling.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph13">The bland proclamations made in reports and e-mails are given clearer meaning through the way they're communicated in the "high fidelity" that only personal interaction will allow. In-person meetings can also help teams avoid misunderstandings: As one of our friends who runs a virtual workplace puts it, with e-mail exchanges alone, everyone starts to get a bit paranoid.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph14">Finally, the Yahoo memo notes that it's hard to innovate via e-mail exchanges or the occasional agenda-filled meeting. New ideas spring up through chance encounters in the cafeteria line and impromptu office meetings. It's an assertion that's backed up by academic research highlighting the importance of physical proximity in driving scientific progress.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph15">Work at home? Share productivity tips</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph16">Yet there are rarely benefits without cost. Lots of tasks are easily managed from a distance. A large number of the affected Yahoo employees are customer-service representatives who aren't going to be driving innovation at the company anyway.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph17">In one study of telecommuting at a Chinese online travel agency, customer-service reps were both happier and more productive when working from home -- probably Yahoo service reps aren't any different from their Chinese counterparts in this regard. And every Yahoo employee surely has some aspects of their jobs that could be done just as well at the kitchen table as in an office cubicle.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph18">But it's hard to create a norm of "physically together" if the office is always half-empty. And once it becomes that way, the half that have been showing up will be less and less inclined to bother. Finally, such a shocking and provocative directive will most certainly have the effect of imbuing the organization with the sense of urgency it needs to get the job done.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph19">Will Yahoo employees come around to appreciating the change? Not necessarily the ones that liked to sleep in or work on a startup on Yahoo's dime, but it may be welcomed by the ones already showing up. Will it be damaging to morale? Possibly, though it may help Yahoo employees to remember that, if they're successful, the change is likely to be temporary.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph20">But the job of the CEO isn't to maximize worker happiness. It's to make sure they get their jobs done. And in driving change at Yahoo, Mayer thinks they need to show up at the office.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph21"><i>Follow </i><i>@CNNOpinion on Twitter.</i></p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph22"><i>Join us at </i><i>Facebook/CNNOpinion.</i></p><br /><p class="cnn_strycbftrtxt"><i>The opinions in this commentary are solely those of Raymond Fisman.</i></p><br /><!--endclickprintinclude--><!--google_ad_section_end--><br /><!--no partner--><br /><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-38888456798489283132013-02-27T05:10:00.001-08:002013-02-27T05:10:18.295-08:00Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal<br /><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><p class="first">VIENNA (Reuters) – A new film based on the story of Austrian kidnap victim <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_1">Natascha Kampusch</span> shows her being repeatedly raped by the captor who beat and starved her during the eight-and-a-half years that he kept her in a cellar beneath his house.</p><br /><p><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_3">Kampusch</span> was snatched on her way to school at the age of 10 by <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_2">Wolfgang Priklopil</span> and held in a windowless cell under his garage near Vienna until she escaped in 2006, causing a sensation in Austria and abroad. Priklopil committed suicide.</p><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><br /><p>Kampusch had always refused to respond to claims that she had had sex with <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_4">Priklopil</span>, but in a German television interview on her 25th birthday last week said she had decided to reveal the truth because it had leaked out from police files.</p><br /><p>The film, “3,096 Days” – based on Kampusch’s autobiography of the same name – soberly portrays her captivity in a windowless cellar less than 6 square metres (65 square feet) in area, often deprived of food for days at a time.</p><br /><p>The emaciated Kampusch – who weighed just 38 kg (84 pounds) at one point in 2004 – keeps a diary written on toilet paper concealed in a box.</p><br /><p>One entry reads: “At least 60 blows in the face. Ten to 15 nausea-inducing fist blows to the head. One strike with the fist with full weight to my right ear.”</p><br /><p>The movie shows occasional moments that approach tenderness, such as when Priklopil presents her with a cake for her 18th birthday or buys her a dress as a gift – but then immediately goes on to chide her for not knowing how to waltz with him.</p><br /><p>GREY AREAS</p><br /><p>Antonia Campbell-Hughes, who plays the teenaged Kampusch, said she had tried to portray “the strength of someone’s soul, the ability of people to survive… but also the grey areas within a relationship that people don’t necessarily understand.”</p><br /><p>The British actress said she had not met Kampusch during the making of the film or since. “It was a very isolated time, it was a bubble of time, and I wanted to keep that very focused,” she told journalists as she arrived for the Vienna premiere.</p><br /><p>Kampusch herself attended the premiere, looking composed as she posed for pictures but declining to give interviews.</p><br /><p>In an interview with Germany’s Bild Zeitung last week, she said: “Yes, I did recognize myself, although the reality was even worse. But one can’t really show that in the cinema, since it wasn’t supposed to be a horror film.”</p><br /><p>The movie, made at the Constantin Film studios in Bavaria, Germany, also stars Amy Pidgeon as the 10-year-old Kampusch and Danish actor Thure Lindhardt as Priklopil.</p><br /><p>“I focused mainly on playing the human being because… we have to remember it was a human being. Monsters do not exist, they’re only in cartoons,” Lindhart said.</p><br /><p>“It became clear to me that it’s a story about survival, and it’s a story about surviving eight years of hell. If that story can be told then I can also play the bad guy.”</p><br /><p>The director was German-American Sherry Hormann, who made her English-language debut with the 2009 move “Desert Flower”, an adaptation of the autobiography of Somali-born model and anti-female circumcision activist Waris Dirie.</p><br /><p>“I’m a mother and I wonder at the strength of this child, and it was important for me to tell this story from a different perspective, to tell how this child using her own strength could survive this atrocious martyrdom,” Hormann said.</p><br /><p>The Kampusch case was followed two years later by that of Josef Fritzl, an Austrian who held his daughter captive in a cellar for 24 years and fathered seven children with her.</p><br /><p>The crimes prompted soul-searching about the Austrian psyche, and questions as to how the authorities and neighbors could have let such crimes go undetected for so long.</p><br /><p>The film goes on general release on Thursday.</p><br /><p>(Reporting by Georgina Prodhan, Editing by Paul Casciato)</p><br /><p>Movies News Headlines – Yahoo! News</p><br /><div><br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://data-vocabulary.org/Review-aggregate"><br /><div><br />Title Post: <span itemprop="itemreviewed"><strong>Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal</strong></span><br />Url Post: <strong>http://www.news.fluser.com/cellar-victim-kampusch-raped-starved-in-film-of-ordeal/</strong><br />Link To Post : <strong>Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal</strong><br />Rating: <span itemprop="rating" itemscope="" itemtype="http://data-vocabulary.org/Rating"><br /><span itemprop="average">100%</span><br /></span><br />based on <span itemprop="votes">99998</span> ratings.<br /><span itemprop="count">5</span> user reviews.<br />Author: <b><span class="vcard author"><span class="fn">Fluser SeoLink</span></span></b><br />Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment</div><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-75999295587527867912013-02-27T05:06:00.001-08:002013-02-27T05:06:35.198-08:00Community college grads out-earn bachelor’s degree holders<br /><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><p>Berevan Omer graduated on a Friday in February with an associate’s degree from Nashville State Community College and started work the following Monday as a computer-networking engineer at a local television station, making about $ 50,000 a year.</p><br /><p>That’s 15% higher than the average starting salary for graduates — not only from community colleges, but for bachelor’s degree holders from four-year universities.</p><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><br /><p>“I have a buddy who got a four-year bachelor’s degree in accounting who’s making $ 10 an hour,” Omer says. “I’m making two and a-half times more than he is.”</p><br /><p>Omer, who is 24, is one of many newly minted graduates of community colleges defying history and stereotypes by proving that a bachelor’s degree is not, as widely believed, the only ticket to a middle-class income.</p><br /><p>Nearly 30% of Americans with associate’s degrees now make more than those with bachelor’s degrees, according to Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce. In fact, other recent research in several states shows that, on average, community college graduates right out of school make more than graduates of four-year universities.</p><br /><p>The average wage for graduates of community colleges in Tennessee, for instance, is $ 38,948 — more than $ 1,300 higher than the average salaries for graduates of the state’s four-year institutions.</p><br /><p>In Virginia, recent graduates of occupational and technical degree programs at its community colleges make an average of $ 40,000. That’s almost $ 2,500 more than recent bachelor’s degree recipients.</p><br /><p>“There is that perception that the bachelor’s degree is the default, and, quite frankly, before we started this work showing the value of a technical associate’s degree, I would have said that, too,” says Mark Schneider, vice president of the American Institutes for Research, which helped collect the earning numbers for some states.</p><br /><p>And while by mid-career, many bachelor’s degree recipients have caught up in earnings to community college grads, “the other factor that has to be taken into account is that getting a four-year degree can be much more expensive than getting a two-year degree,” Schneider says.</p><br /><p>A two-year community college degree, at present full rates, costs about $ 6,262, according to the College Board. A bachelor’s degree from a four-year, private residential university goes for $ 158,072.</p><br /><p>The increase in wages for community college grads is being driven by a high demand for people with so-called “middle-skills” that often require no more than an associate’s degree, such as lab technicians, teachers in early childhood programs, computer engineers, draftsmen, radiation therapists, paralegals, and machinists.</p><br /><p>With a two-year community college degree, air traffic controllers can make $ 113,547, radiation therapists $ 76,627, dental hygienists $ 70,408, nuclear medicine technologists $ 69,638, nuclear technicians $ 68,037, registered nurses $ 65,853, and fashion designers $ 63,170, CareerBuilder.com reported in January.</p><br /><p>“You come out with skills that people want immediately and not just theory,” Omer says.</p><br /><p>The Georgetown center estimates that 29 million jobs paying middle class wages today require only an associate’s, and not a bachelor’s, degree.</p><br /><p>“I would not suggest anyone look down their nose at the associate’s degree,” says Jeff Strohl, director of research at the Georgetown center.</p><br /><p>“People see those programs as tracking into something that’s dead end,” Strohl says. “It’s very clear that that perception does not hold up.”</p><br /><p>The bad news is that not enough associate’s degree holders are being produced.</p><br /><p>Only 10% of American workers have the sub-baccalaureate degrees needed for middle-skills jobs, compared with 24% of Canadians and 19% of Japanese, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development reports.</p><br /><p>Over the last 20 years, the number of graduates with associate’s degrees in the United States has increased by barely 3%. And while the Obama administration has pushed community colleges to increase their numbers, enrollment at these schools fell 3.1% this year, the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center reports. Graduation rates also remain abysmally low.</p><br /><p>Meanwhile, many people with bachelor’s degrees are working in fields other than the ones in which they majored, according to a new report by the Center for College Affordability and Productivity.</p><br /><p>“We have a lot of bartenders and taxi drivers with bachelor’s degrees,” says Christopher Denhart, one of the report’s coauthors.</p><br /><p>Still, the salary advantage for associate’s degree holders narrows over time, as bachelor’s degree recipients eventually catch up, says Schneider.</p><br /><p>Although these figures vary widely by profession, associate’s degree recipients, on average, end up making about $ 500,000 more over their careers than people with only high school diplomas, but $ 500,000 less than people with bachelor’s degrees, the Georgetown center calculates.</p><br /><p>As for Omer, he’s already working toward a bachelor’s degree.</p><br /><p>“Down the road a little further, I may want to become a director or a manager,” he says. “A bachelor’s degree will get me to that point.”</p><br /><p>This story was produced by The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit, nonpartisan education-news outlet based at Teachers College, Columbia University. It’s one of a series of reports about workforce development and higher education.</p><br /><p>View this article on CNNMoney</p><br /><p><strong>More From CNNMoney.com</strong><br /></p><br /><p>Yahoo! Finance – Personal Finance</p><br /><div><br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://data-vocabulary.org/Review-aggregate"><br /><div><br />Title Post: <span itemprop="itemreviewed"><strong>Community college grads out-earn bachelor’s degree holders</strong></span><br />Url Post: <strong>http://www.news.fluser.com/community-college-grads-out-earn-bachelors-degree-holders/</strong><br />Link To Post : <strong>Community college grads out-earn bachelor’s degree holders</strong><br />Rating: <span itemprop="rating" itemscope="" itemtype="http://data-vocabulary.org/Rating"><br /><span itemprop="average">100%</span><br /></span><br />based on <span itemprop="votes">99998</span> ratings.<br /><span itemprop="count">5</span> user reviews.<br />Author: <b><span class="vcard author"><span class="fn">Fluser SeoLink</span></span></b><br />Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment</div><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-12645745752142760412013-02-27T05:04:00.001-08:002013-02-27T05:04:20.230-08:00Stock index futures signal mixed open<br /><p class="first">NEW YORK (Reuters) - <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361970006676_2">Stock index futures</span> were little changed on Wednesday as investors awaited a second round of testimony in Congress by <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361970006676_1">Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke</span> for signs of whether the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361970006676_3">Fed</span> will continue its economic stimulus program.</p><br /><p> Economic data was also in focus with U.S. durables goods and homes data due out at 8:30 a.m. ET (1330) GMT and 10:00 a.m. ET (1500 GMT), respectively.</p><br /><p> <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361970006676_4">Bernanke</span> is due to make his second appearance before the Financial Services Committee at 10:00 a.m. ET (1500 GMT).</p><br /><p> A day earlier, Bernanke strongly defended the Fed's monetary stimulus efforts before <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361970006676_5">Congress</span>, easing financial market worries over an early retreat from the Fed's bond buying program, which had been triggered by minutes of the Fed's January meeting released a week ago.</p><br /><p> His remarks, along with data showing sales of new homes hit a 4 1/2-year high, helped U.S. stocks rebound Tuesday from their worst decline since November.</p><br /><p> Despite the bounce, the S&P 500 was unable to move back above 1,500, a closely watched level that was technical support until recently, but could now serve as a resistance point.</p><br /><p> The S&P 500, up 6 percent for the year, was within reach of all-time highs a week ago before the minutes from the Fed's January meeting were released. Those minutes raised questions about the longevity of the Fed's economy-stimulating measures and since then, the benchmark S&P 500 has fallen 1 percent.</p><br /><p> S&P 500 futures rose 2.5 points and were in line with fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures fell 1 points while Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.25 point.</p><br /><p> In Europe, Italian debt prices and European stocks briefly rose after Italy sold the maximum amount of bonds it planned to offer in a debt auction though borrowing costs soared.</p><br /><p> Italian 10-year yields fell 7 basis points to 4.83 percent while the Bund future was last 25 ticks up on the day at 145.15 after the sale.</p><br /><p> The euro fell to $1.3098 from a session high of $1.3123 just before the results of the Italian bond auction were announced.</p><br /><p> (Editing by Bernadette Baum)</p><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-21951207125163689902013-02-27T05:02:00.001-08:002013-02-27T05:02:17.321-08:00Minnesota takes down No. 1 Indiana 77-73<br /><p class="first">MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Retaining that No. 1 national ranking has been elusive throughout this wild season in college basketball, and <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361954108614_2">Indiana</span> was the latest to lose at the top — again.</p><br /><p>Most important and maybe more challenging for the Hoosiers, however, is holding on to first place in the tough-as-ever <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361954108614_7">Big Ten</span>.</p><br /><p><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361954108614_1">Trevor Mbakwe</span> had 21 points on 8-for-10 shooting and 12 rebounds to help <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361954108614_3">Minnesota</span> take down top-ranked Indiana 77-73 on Tuesday night, the seventh time the No. 1 team in the Associated Press poll has lost this season. Three of those losses were by the Hoosiers, who were No. 1 when they fell to Butler and Wisconsin earlier this season. All three opponents were unranked at the time.</p><br /><p>Indiana (24-4, 12-3) has held the No. 1 ranking for 10 of the 17 polls by the AP this season, including the last four, and that will likely change next week. But fending off <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361954108614_8">Michigan</span>, Michigan State and Wisconsin is what's on the minds of the Hoosiers, who'll take a one-game lead in the conference race into Saturday's game against Iowa.</p><br /><p>"Winning the Big Ten was going to be tough whether we won today or lost," said star guard <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361954108614_6">Victor Oladipo</span>, who had 16 points. "We knew it was going to be tough from the jump. Now it's even tougher. But I think my team is ready for it. We just have to go back and see what we did wrong and correct it."</p><br /><p>Andre Hollins added 16 points for the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361954108614_4">Gophers</span> (19-9, 7-8), who outrebounded <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361954108614_5">Cody Zeller</span> and the Hoosiers by a whopping 44-30 and solidified their slipping NCAA tournament hopes with an emphatic performance against the conference leader. The fired-up fans swarmed the court as the last seconds ticked off, the first time that's happened here since a 2002 win over Indiana.</p><br /><p>"There were just too many times when that first shot went up and they were there before we were because we didn't get into their bodies," Hoosiers coach Tom Crean said. "We weren't physical enough on the glass. That's the bottom line."</p><br /><p>Zeller, the second-leading shooter in the Big Ten, went 2 for 9. He had nine points with four turnovers. Minnesota had 40 points in the paint to Indiana's 22.</p><br /><p>Mbakwe, a sixth-year senior, had a lot to do with that. While positing his conference-leading seventh double-double of the season, the 24-year-old Mbakwe was a man among boys in many ways in this game, dominating both ends of the court when the Gophers needed him most. He grabbed six of Minnesota's 23 offensive rebounds, two of them to keep a key possession alive. His off-balance put-back drew contact for a three-point play with 7:22 left that gave the Gophers a 55-52 lead.</p><br /><p>Mbakwe was called for a loudly questioned blocking foul, his fourth, with 4:39 remaining on Zeller's fast-break layup and free throw that put the Hoosiers up 59-58. But Austin Hollins answered with a pump-fake layup that drew a foul for a three-point play and a two-point advantage for the Gophers.</p><br /><p>The Hoosiers didn't lead again, and Joe Coleman's fast-break dunk with 2:35 left gave Minnesota a 68-61 cushion that helped it withstand a couple of 3-pointers by Christian Watford and one by Jordan Hulls in the closing minutes. That was the only basket Hulls made after halftime. He had 17 points.</p><br /><p>"Just the way we bounced back is unbelievable. We showed that we can beat one of the best teams in the country. Now we have to build off this," said Mbakwe, whose team lost eight of its previous 11 games starting with an 88-81 loss at Indiana on Jan. 12. The Gophers were ranked eighth then. They didn't even receive a vote in the current poll. That could change next week.</p><br /><p>The Hoosiers are still in position for their first outright Big Ten regular-season championship since 1993. With another home game against Ohio State on March 5, Indiana could still clinch the title before the finale at Michigan on March 10.</p><br /><p>For now, though, the Hoosiers have to regroup and re-establish their inside game after the trampling in the post they endured here.</p><br /><p>"They were relentless on the glass. We just didn't do a great job of boxing them out," Oladipo said.</p><br /><p>___</p><br /><p>Follow Dave Campbell on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/DaveCampbellAP</p><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-53574088277120223982013-02-26T05:12:00.001-08:002013-02-26T05:12:08.109-08:00Vatican 'Gay lobby'? Probably not<br /><!--startclickprintexclude--><br /><br /><br /><div class="cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnn_strylctcntr"><br /><p><strong>STORY HIGHLIGHTS</strong></p><br /><ul class="cnn_bulletbin cnnStryHghLght"><!--google_ad_section_start--><li>Benedict XVI not stepping down under pressure from 'gay lobby,' Allen says</li><br /><li>Allen: Benedict is a man who prefers the life of the mind to the nuts and bolts of government </li><br /><li>However, he says, much of the pope's time has been spent putting out fires</li><br /><!--google_ad_section_end--><br /></ul></div></div><br /><!--endclickprintexclude--><!--google_ad_section_start--><!--startclickprintinclude--><br /><p class="cnnEditorialNote"><em><strong>Editor's note:</strong> John L. Allen Jr. is CNN's senior Vatican analyst and senior correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter.</em></p><br /><p><strong>(CNN)</strong> -- Suffice it to say that of all possible storylines to emerge, heading into the election of a new pope, sensational charges of a shadowy "gay lobby" (possibly linked to blackmail), whose occult influence may have been behind the resignation of Benedict XVI, would be right at the bottom of the Vatican's wish list.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph2">Proof of the Vatican's irritation came with a blistering statement Saturday complaining of "unverified, unverifiable or completely false news stories," even suggesting the media is trying to influence the papal election.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph3">Two basic questions have to be asked about all this. First, is there really a secret dossier about a network of people inside the Vatican who are linked by their sexual orientation, as Italian newspaper reports have alleged? Second, is this really why Benedict XVI quit?</p><br /><div class="cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnn_strylctcntr cnn_strylccimg214"><br /><img src="http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/120528080343-john-l-allen-jr-left-tease.jpg" alt="John L. Allen Jr." border="0" class="box-image" height="122" width="214"/><p>John L. Allen Jr.</p><br /></div></div><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph4">The best answers, respectively, are "maybe" and "probably not."</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph5">It's a matter of record that at the peak of last year's massive Vatican leaks crisis, Benedict XVI created a commission of three cardinals to investigate the leaks. They submitted an eyes-only report to the pope in mid-December, which has not been made public.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph6">It's impossible to confirm whether that report looked into the possibility that people protecting secrets about their sex lives were involved with the leaks, but frankly, it would be surprising if it didn't.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph7">There are certainly compelling reasons to consider the hypothesis. In 2007, a Vatican official was caught by an Italian TV network on hidden camera arranging a date through a gay-oriented chat room, and then taking the young man back to his Vatican apartment. In 2010, a papal ceremonial officer was caught on a wiretap arranging liaisons through a Nigerian member of a Vatican choir. Both episodes played out in full public view, and gave the Vatican a black eye.</p><br /><br /><div id="expand18" class="cnnGalleryContainer cnn_strylftcntnt"><br /><div class="cnnStoryElementBox"><br /><div id="expandableTarget18" class="cnnArticleExpandableTarget"><br /><br /><br /><div class="cnnArticleGalleryCaptionControl"><br /><p>Pope Benedict XVI</p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><p>HIDE CAPTION</p><br /><br /></div><br /><div><br /><p><span><<</span></p><br /><p><span><</span></p><br /><div class="articleGalleryNavContainer"><br /><p><br /><br /><span>1</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>2</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>3</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>4</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>5</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>6</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>7</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>8</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>9</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>10</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>11</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>12</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>13</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>14</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>15</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>16</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>17</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>18</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>19</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>20</span><br /></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><p><span>></span></p><br /><p><span>>></span></p><br /><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph8">In that context, it would be a little odd if the cardinals didn't at least consider the possibility that insiders leading a double life might be vulnerable to pressure to betray the pope's confidence. That would apply not just to sex, but also potential conflicts of other sorts too, such as financial interests.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph9">Vatican officials have said Benedict may authorize giving the report to the 116 cardinals who will elect his successor, so they can factor it into their deliberations. The most immediate fallout is that the affair is likely to strengthen the conviction among many cardinals that the next pope has to lead a serious house-cleaning inside the Vatican's bureaucracy.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph10">It seems a stretch, however, to suggest this is the real reason Benedict is leaving. For the most part, one should probably take the pope at his word, that old age and fatigue are the motives for his decision.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph11">That said, it's hard not to suspect that the meltdowns and controversies that have dogged Benedict XVI for the last eight years are in the background of why he's so tired. In 2009, at the height of another frenzy surrounding the lifting of the excommunication of a Holocaust-denying traditionalist bishop, Benedict dispatched a plaintive letter to the bishops of the world, voicing hurt for the way he'd been attacked and apologizing for the Vatican's mishandling of the situation.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph12">Even if Benedict didn't resign because of any specific crisis, including this latest one, such anguish must have taken its toll. Benedict is a teaching pope, a man who prefers the life of the mind to the nuts and bolts of government, yet an enormous share of his time and energy has been consumed trying to put out internal fires.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph13">It's hard to know why Benedict XVI is stepping off the stage, but I doubt it is because of a "gay lobby."</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph14"><i>Follow us on </i><i>Twitter @CNNOpinion.</i><i> </i></p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph15"><i>Join us on </i><i>Facebook/CNNOpinion.</i></p><br /><p class="cnn_strycbftrtxt">The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of John L. Allen Jr. </p><br /><!--endclickprintinclude--><!--google_ad_section_end--><br /><!--no partner--><br /><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-10172524125530012542013-02-26T05:10:00.001-08:002013-02-26T05:10:23.008-08:00Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal<br /><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><p class="first">VIENNA (Reuters) – A new film based on the story of Austrian kidnap victim <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_1">Natascha Kampusch</span> shows her being repeatedly raped by the captor who beat and starved her during the eight-and-a-half years that he kept her in a cellar beneath his house.</p><br /><p><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_3">Kampusch</span> was snatched on her way to school at the age of 10 by <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_2">Wolfgang Priklopil</span> and held in a windowless cell under his garage near Vienna until she escaped in 2006, causing a sensation in Austria and abroad. Priklopil committed suicide.</p><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><br /><p>Kampusch had always refused to respond to claims that she had had sex with <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361825469398_4">Priklopil</span>, but in a German television interview on her 25th birthday last week said she had decided to reveal the truth because it had leaked out from police files.</p><br /><p>The film, “3,096 Days” – based on Kampusch’s autobiography of the same name – soberly portrays her captivity in a windowless cellar less than 6 square metres (65 square feet) in area, often deprived of food for days at a time.</p><br /><p>The emaciated Kampusch – who weighed just 38 kg (84 pounds) at one point in 2004 – keeps a diary written on toilet paper concealed in a box.</p><br /><p>One entry reads: “At least 60 blows in the face. Ten to 15 nausea-inducing fist blows to the head. One strike with the fist with full weight to my right ear.”</p><br /><p>The movie shows occasional moments that approach tenderness, such as when Priklopil presents her with a cake for her 18th birthday or buys her a dress as a gift – but then immediately goes on to chide her for not knowing how to waltz with him.</p><br /><p>GREY AREAS</p><br /><p>Antonia Campbell-Hughes, who plays the teenaged Kampusch, said she had tried to portray “the strength of someone’s soul, the ability of people to survive… but also the grey areas within a relationship that people don’t necessarily understand.”</p><br /><p>The British actress said she had not met Kampusch during the making of the film or since. “It was a very isolated time, it was a bubble of time, and I wanted to keep that very focused,” she told journalists as she arrived for the Vienna premiere.</p><br /><p>Kampusch herself attended the premiere, looking composed as she posed for pictures but declining to give interviews.</p><br /><p>In an interview with Germany’s Bild Zeitung last week, she said: “Yes, I did recognize myself, although the reality was even worse. But one can’t really show that in the cinema, since it wasn’t supposed to be a horror film.”</p><br /><p>The movie, made at the Constantin Film studios in Bavaria, Germany, also stars Amy Pidgeon as the 10-year-old Kampusch and Danish actor Thure Lindhardt as Priklopil.</p><br /><p>“I focused mainly on playing the human being because… we have to remember it was a human being. Monsters do not exist, they’re only in cartoons,” Lindhart said.</p><br /><p>“It became clear to me that it’s a story about survival, and it’s a story about surviving eight years of hell. If that story can be told then I can also play the bad guy.”</p><br /><p>The director was German-American Sherry Hormann, who made her English-language debut with the 2009 move “Desert Flower”, an adaptation of the autobiography of Somali-born model and anti-female circumcision activist Waris Dirie.</p><br /><p>“I’m a mother and I wonder at the strength of this child, and it was important for me to tell this story from a different perspective, to tell how this child using her own strength could survive this atrocious martyrdom,” Hormann said.</p><br /><p>The Kampusch case was followed two years later by that of Josef Fritzl, an Austrian who held his daughter captive in a cellar for 24 years and fathered seven children with her.</p><br /><p>The crimes prompted soul-searching about the Austrian psyche, and questions as to how the authorities and neighbors could have let such crimes go undetected for so long.</p><br /><p>The film goes on general release on Thursday.</p><br /><p>(Reporting by Georgina Prodhan, Editing by Paul Casciato)</p><br /><p>Movies News Headlines – Yahoo! News</p><br /><div><br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://data-vocabulary.org/Review-aggregate"><br /><div><br />Title Post: <span itemprop="itemreviewed"><strong>Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal</strong></span><br />Url Post: <strong>http://www.news.fluser.com/cellar-victim-kampusch-raped-starved-in-film-of-ordeal/</strong><br />Link To Post : <strong>Cellar victim Kampusch raped, starved in film of ordeal</strong><br />Rating: <span itemprop="rating" itemscope="" itemtype="http://data-vocabulary.org/Rating"><br /><span itemprop="average">100%</span><br /></span><br />based on <span itemprop="votes">99998</span> ratings.<br /><span itemprop="count">5</span> user reviews.<br />Author: <b><span class="vcard author"><span class="fn">Fluser SeoLink</span></span></b><br />Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment</div><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-23690019336529240212013-02-26T05:04:00.001-08:002013-02-26T05:04:13.119-08:00Stock futures tick up after sell-off, Italy woes remain<p class="first">NEW YORK (Reuters) - <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361882766516_3">Stock index futures</span> edged higher on Tuesday, indicating equities would partially rebound from the previous session's steep drop, though concerns persisted over the state of <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361882766516_2">Italy</span>'s economy and government makeup.</p><br /><p> In <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361882766516_1">Italy</span>'s election, groups opposed to economic reforms posted a strong showing, resulting in a political deadlock with a comedian's protest party leading the poll and no group securing a clear majority in parliament.</p><br /><p> Major indexes plunged more than 1 percent on Monday, with the S&P 500 having its biggest daily drop since November as investors fretted that if Italy does not undertake reforms, that could once again destabilize the euro zone. The CBOE Volatility Index <.vix> surged 34 percent in its biggest jump since August 18, 2011.</.vix></p><br /><p> The rise in futures indicates that a recent trend of investors buying on dips will continue. Last week, concerns over whether the Federal Reserve might roll back its stimulus policy earlier than expected prompted a sharp two-day decline, though equities recovered most of ther lost ground by the end of the week. Weakness continued in Europe on Tuesday, with shares <.fteu3> down 1.2 percent.</.fteu3></p><br /><p> Financial shares may be among the most volatile on Tuesday, as the group is closely tied to the pace of global economic growth. Morgan Stanley <ms.n> was one of the top percentage losers on the S&P on Monday, dropping more than 6 percent on concerns about the company's exposure to European debt.</ms.n></p><br /><p> Dow component <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361882766516_4">Home Depot</span> Inc <hd.n> will also be in focus after the home improvement retailer reported adjusted earnings and sales that beat expectations. Home Depot was up 1.3 percent to $64.75 in premarket trading.</hd.n></p><br /><p> S&P 500 futures rose 2.6 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures added 49 points and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 3.25 points.</p><br /><p> In the S&P, the 1,500 will be watched as a key level after the index closed below it on Monday for the first time since February 4, with selling accelerating after falling below the level that had acted as support. An inability to break back above it could portend a weaker technical backdrop. The index remains 4.3 percent higher on the year.</p><br /><p> Gains this year have largely been driven by strong corporate earnings. With 83 percent of the S&P 500 having reported so far, 69 percent beat profit expectations, compared with a 62 percent average since 1994 and 65 percent over the past four quarters, according to Thomson Reuters data. Fourth-quarter S&P earnings are seen having risen 6 percent, above a 1.9 percent forecast at the start of the earnings season.</p><br /><p> Companies scheduled to report results on Tuesday include Macy's Inc <m.n>, Priceline.com <pcln.o> and Tenet Healthcare <thc.n>. MetroPCS <pcs.n> reported revenue that was slightly ahead of expectations earlier Tuesday.</pcs.n></thc.n></pcln.o></m.n></p><br /><p> Cyclical shares, including financials and materials, have been among the strongest performers in 2013, lifted by signs of improved economic growth. That could leave the sectors vulnerable to a pullback as events in Italy progress. Goldman Sachs on Tuesday cut its 2013 gold price forecast to $1,600 an ounce from $1,810, citing an increase in U.S. real interest rates.</p><br /><p> While the political uncertainty from Italy may be the primary driver for markets, domestic government concerns will also be in focus. U.S. equities will face a test with the looming debate over so-called sequestration - U.S. government budget cuts that will take effect starting on Friday if lawmakers fail to reach an agreement over spending and taxes. The White House issued warnings about the harm the cuts are likely to inflict on the economy if enacted.</p><br /><p> (Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)</p><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-53182093490267824022013-02-26T05:02:00.001-08:002013-02-26T05:02:16.154-08:00AP source: Tom Brady gets 3-year extension<br /><p class="first"><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361833566141_1">Tom Brady</span> will be a Patriot until he is 40 years old.</p><br /><p>Brady agreed to a three-year contract extension with <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361833566141_4">New England</span> on Monday, a person familiar with the contract told The Associated Press. <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361833566141_7">The extension</span> is worth about $27 million and will free up nearly $15 million in salary cap room for the team, which has several younger players it needs to re-sign or negotiate new deals with.</p><br /><p>The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the extension has not been announced.</p><br /><p>Sports Illustrated first reported the extension.</p><br /><p>The 35-year-old two-time league MVP was signed through 2014, and has said he wants to play at least five more years.</p><br /><p>A three-time Super Bowl champion, Brady will make far less in those three seasons than the going rate for star quarterbacks. Brady currently has a four-year, $72 million deal with $48 million guaranteed.</p><br /><p>Drew Brees and <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361833566141_6">Peyton Manning</span> are the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361833566141_2">NFL</span>'s highest-paid quarterbacks, at an average of $20 million and $18 million a year, respectively.</p><br /><p>Brady has made it clear he wants to finish his career with the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361833566141_3">Patriots</span>, whom he led to <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361833566141_8">Super Bowl</span> wins for the 2001, 2003 and 2004 seasons, and losses in the big game after the 2007 and 2011 seasons. By taking less money in the extension and redoing his current contract, he's hopeful New England can surround him with the parts to win more titles.</p><br /><p>Among the Patriots' free agents are top receiver Wes Welker and his backup, Julian Edelman; right tackle Sebastian Vollmer; cornerback Aqib Talib; and running back Danny Woodhead.</p><br /><p>Brady has been the most successful quarterback of his era, of course, as well as one of the NFL's best leaders. His skill at running the no-huddle offense is unsurpassed, and he's easily adapted to the different offensive schemes New England has concentrated on through his 13 pro seasons.</p><br /><p><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361833566141_5">The Patriots</span> have gone from run-oriented in Brady's early days to a deep passing team with Randy Moss to an offense dominated by throws to tight ends, running backs and slot receivers.</p><br /><p>Brady holds the NFL record for touchdown passes in a season with 50 in 2007, when the Patriots went 18-0 before losing the Super Bowl to the Giants. He has thrown for at least 28 touchdowns seven times and led the league three times.</p><br /><p>Last season, Brady had 34 TD passes and eight interceptions as the Patriots went 12-4, leading the league with 557 points, 76 more than runner-up Denver.</p><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-13891136080794951172013-02-25T05:12:00.001-08:002013-02-25T05:12:26.580-08:00Vatican 'Gay lobby'? Probably not<br /><!--startclickprintexclude--><br /><br /><br /><div class="cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnn_strylctcntr"><br /><p><strong>STORY HIGHLIGHTS</strong></p><br /><ul class="cnn_bulletbin cnnStryHghLght"><!--google_ad_section_start--><li>Benedict XVI not stepping down under pressure from 'gay lobby,' Allen says</li><br /><li>Allen: Benedict is a man who prefers the life of the mind to the nuts and bolts of government </li><br /><li>However, he says, much of the pope's time has been spent putting out fires</li><br /><!--google_ad_section_end--><br /></ul></div></div><br /><!--endclickprintexclude--><!--google_ad_section_start--><!--startclickprintinclude--><br /><p class="cnnEditorialNote"><em><strong>Editor's note:</strong> John L. Allen Jr. is CNN's senior Vatican analyst and senior correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter.</em></p><br /><p><strong>(CNN)</strong> -- Suffice it to say that of all possible storylines to emerge, heading into the election of a new pope, sensational charges of a shadowy "gay lobby" (possibly linked to blackmail), whose occult influence may have been behind the resignation of Benedict XVI, would be right at the bottom of the Vatican's wish list.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph2">Proof of the Vatican's irritation came with a blistering statement Saturday complaining of "unverified, unverifiable or completely false news stories," even suggesting the media is trying to influence the papal election.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph3">Two basic questions have to be asked about all this. First, is there really a secret dossier about a network of people inside the Vatican who are linked by their sexual orientation, as Italian newspaper reports have alleged? Second, is this really why Benedict XVI quit?</p><br /><div class="cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnn_strylctcntr cnn_strylccimg214"><br /><img src="http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/120528080343-john-l-allen-jr-left-tease.jpg" alt="John L. Allen Jr." border="0" class="box-image" height="122" width="214"/><p>John L. Allen Jr.</p><br /></div></div><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph4">The best answers, respectively, are "maybe" and "probably not."</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph5">It's a matter of record that at the peak of last year's massive Vatican leaks crisis, Benedict XVI created a commission of three cardinals to investigate the leaks. They submitted an eyes-only report to the pope in mid-December, which has not been made public.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph6">It's impossible to confirm whether that report looked into the possibility that people protecting secrets about their sex lives were involved with the leaks, but frankly, it would be surprising if it didn't.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph7">There are certainly compelling reasons to consider the hypothesis. In 2007, a Vatican official was caught by an Italian TV network on hidden camera arranging a date through a gay-oriented chat room, and then taking the young man back to his Vatican apartment. In 2010, a papal ceremonial officer was caught on a wiretap arranging liaisons through a Nigerian member of a Vatican choir. Both episodes played out in full public view, and gave the Vatican a black eye.</p><br /><br /><div id="expand18" class="cnnGalleryContainer cnn_strylftcntnt"><br /><div class="cnnStoryElementBox"><br /><div id="expandableTarget18" class="cnnArticleExpandableTarget"><br /><br /><br /><div class="cnnArticleGalleryCaptionControl"><br /><p>Pope Benedict XVI</p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><p>HIDE CAPTION</p><br /><br /></div><br /><div><br /><p><span><<</span></p><br /><p><span><</span></p><br /><div class="articleGalleryNavContainer"><br /><p><br /><br /><span>1</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>2</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>3</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>4</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>5</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>6</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>7</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>8</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>9</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>10</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>11</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>12</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>13</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>14</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>15</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>16</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>17</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>18</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>19</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>20</span><br /></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><p><span>></span></p><br /><p><span>>></span></p><br /><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph8">In that context, it would be a little odd if the cardinals didn't at least consider the possibility that insiders leading a double life might be vulnerable to pressure to betray the pope's confidence. That would apply not just to sex, but also potential conflicts of other sorts too, such as financial interests.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph9">Vatican officials have said Benedict may authorize giving the report to the 116 cardinals who will elect his successor, so they can factor it into their deliberations. The most immediate fallout is that the affair is likely to strengthen the conviction among many cardinals that the next pope has to lead a serious house-cleaning inside the Vatican's bureaucracy.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph10">It seems a stretch, however, to suggest this is the real reason Benedict is leaving. For the most part, one should probably take the pope at his word, that old age and fatigue are the motives for his decision.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph11">That said, it's hard not to suspect that the meltdowns and controversies that have dogged Benedict XVI for the last eight years are in the background of why he's so tired. In 2009, at the height of another frenzy surrounding the lifting of the excommunication of a Holocaust-denying traditionalist bishop, Benedict dispatched a plaintive letter to the bishops of the world, voicing hurt for the way he'd been attacked and apologizing for the Vatican's mishandling of the situation.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph12">Even if Benedict didn't resign because of any specific crisis, including this latest one, such anguish must have taken its toll. Benedict is a teaching pope, a man who prefers the life of the mind to the nuts and bolts of government, yet an enormous share of his time and energy has been consumed trying to put out internal fires.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph13">It's hard to know why Benedict XVI is stepping off the stage, but I doubt it is because of a "gay lobby."</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph14"><i>Follow us on </i><i>Twitter @CNNOpinion.</i><i> </i></p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph15"><i>Join us on </i><i>Facebook/CNNOpinion.</i></p><br /><p class="cnn_strycbftrtxt">The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of John L. Allen Jr. </p><br /><!--endclickprintinclude--><!--google_ad_section_end--><br /><!--no partner--><br /><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-50454625769528051732013-02-25T05:10:00.001-08:002013-02-25T05:10:32.627-08:00‘Argo’ wins best picture on scattered Oscar night<br /><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><p class="first">LOS ANGELES (AP) — Just as Oscar host <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361784727566_1">Seth MacFarlane</span> set his sights on a variety of targets with a mixture of hits and misses, the motion picture academy spread the gold around to a varied slate of films. “<span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361784727566_4">Argo</span>” won best picture as expected, along with two other prizes. But “Life of Pi” won the most awards with four, including a surprise win for director <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361784727566_8">Ang Lee</span>.</p><br /><p>“Les Miserables” also won three Academy Awards, while “<span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361784727566_5">Django Unchained</span>” and “Skyfall” each took two.</p><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><br /><p>Among the winners were the front-runners throughout this lengthy awards season: best actor <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361784727566_9">Daniel Day-Lewis</span> for his deeply immersed portrayal of Abraham Lincoln in <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361784727566_3">Steven Spielberg</span>‘s epic “Lincoln,” best actress <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361784727566_6">Jennifer Lawrence</span> as a troubled young widow in “Silver Linings Playbook” and supporting actress Anne Hathaway as the doomed prostitute Fantine in the musical “Les Miserables.” Christoph Waltz was a bit of a surprise for supporting actor as a charismatic bounty hunter in <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361784727566_2">Quentin Tarantino</span>‘s “Django Unchained,” an award he’d won just three years ago for Tarantino’s “Inglorious Basterds.”</p><br /><p>The 22-year-old Lawrence, who got to show her lighter side in the oddball romance “Silver Linings Playbook” following serious roles in “Winter’s Bone” and “The Hunger Games,” gamely laughed at herself as she tripped on the stairs en route to the stage in her poufy, pale pink Dior Haute Couture gown. Backstage in the press room, when a reporter asked what she was thinking, she responded: “A bad word that I can’t say that starts with ‘F.’” Keeping journalists in hysterics, she explained, “I’m sorry. I did a shot before I … sorry.”</p><br /><p>That’s the kind of raunchiness MacFarlane himself seemed to be aiming for as host while also balancing the more traditional demands of the job. There was a ton of singing and dancing during the three-and-half-hour broadcast — no surprise from the musically minded creator of the animated series “Family Guy” — including a poignant performance from Barbra Streisand of “The Way We Were,” written by the late Marvin Hamlisch, during the memorial montage. But MacFarlane also tried to keep the humor edgy with shots at Mel Gibson, <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361784727566_7">George Clooney</span>, Chris Brown and Rihanna.</p><br /><p>An extended bit in which William Shatner came back from the future as his “Star Trek” character, Capt. James T. Kirk, had its moments while a joke about the drama “Flight” being restaged entirely with sock puppets was a scream. A John Wilkes Booth gag in reference to “Lincoln” was a bit of a groaner, perhaps intentionally, while MacFarlane relied on his alter ego, the cuddly teddy bear from his directorial debut “Ted,” to make a crack about a post-Oscar orgy at Jack Nicholson’s house. (MacFarlane already has indicated he’s one-and-done with Academy Awards hosting.)</p><br /><p>But it was Day-Lewis who came up with the kind of pop-culture riffing that’s MacFarlane’s specialty. In accepting his record third best-actor award from presenter Meryl Streep, he deadpanned that before they’d swapped roles, he originally was set to play Margaret Thatcher “and Meryl was Steven’s first choice for ‘Lincoln,’ and I’d like to see that version.”</p><br /><p>Besides best picture, “Argo” won for Chris Terrio’s adapted screenplay and for William Goldenberg’s film editing. Affleck famously (and strangely) wasn’t included in the best-director category for his thrilling and surprisingly funny depiction of a daring rescue during the 1979 Iranian hostage crisis. But as a producer on the film alongside George Clooney and Grant Heslov, he got to take home the top prize of the night.</p><br /><p>“I never thought I’d be back here, and I am because of so many of you in this academy,” said Affleck, who shared a screenplay Oscar with pal Matt Damon 15 years earlier for their breakout film “Good Will Hunting.”</p><br /><p>Among the wisdom he’s acquired since then: “You can’t hold grudges — it’s hard but you can’t hold grudges.”</p><br /><p>Lee, who previously won best director in 2006 for “Brokeback Mountain” (which also didn’t win best picture), was typically low-key and self-deprecating in victory. His “Life of Pi” is a fable set in glorious 3-D, but Spielberg looked like the favorite for “Lincoln.” The film also won for its cinematography, original score and visual effects.</p><br /><p>“Thank you, movie god,” the Taiwanese director said on stage. Later, he thanked his agents and said: “I have to do that,” with a little shrug and a smile.</p><br /><p>“Les Miserables” also won for sound mixing and makeup and hairstyling. The other Oscar for “Django Unchained” came for Tarantino’s original screenplay. Asked about his international appeal backstage, Tarantino was enthusiastic as usual in saying: “I’m an American, and a filmmaker, but I make movies for the planet Earth.”</p><br /><p>Speaking of global hits, the James Bond action thriller “Skyfall” won for its original song by the unstoppable Adele (with Paul Epworth). It also tied for sound editing with “Zero Dark Thirty,” the only win of the night for Kathryn Bigelow’s detailed saga about the hunt for Osama bin Laden.</p><br /><p>Among the other winners, “Searching for Sugar Man,” about a forgotten musician’s rediscovery, took the prize for best documentary feature. Pixar’s fairy tale “Brave” won best animated feature.</p><br /><p>One of the biggest moments of the night came at the end, as First Lady Michelle Obama announced the winner of the best picture prize. Backstage, Affleck described how surreal it was when he heard her say the word: “Argo.”</p><br /><p>“I was sort of hallucinating when that was happening,” he explained. “In the course of a hallucination it doesn’t seem that odd: ‘Oh look, a purple elephant. Oh look, Michelle Obama.’”</p><br /><p>___</p><br /><p>Contact AP Movie Critic Christy Lemire through Twitter: http://twitter.com/christylemire</p><br /><p>Entertainment News Headlines – Yahoo! News</p><br /><div><br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://data-vocabulary.org/Review-aggregate"><br /><div><br />Title Post: <span itemprop="itemreviewed"><strong>‘Argo’ wins best picture on scattered Oscar night</strong></span><br />Url Post: <strong>http://www.news.fluser.com/argo-wins-best-picture-on-scattered-oscar-night/</strong><br />Link To Post : <strong>‘Argo’ wins best picture on scattered Oscar night</strong><br />Rating: <span itemprop="rating" itemscope="" itemtype="http://data-vocabulary.org/Rating"><br /><span itemprop="average">100%</span><br /></span><br />based on <span itemprop="votes">99998</span> ratings.<br /><span itemprop="count">5</span> user reviews.<br />Author: <b><span class="vcard author"><span class="fn">Fluser SeoLink</span></span></b><br />Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment</div><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-2577016025595138502013-02-25T05:06:00.001-08:002013-02-25T05:06:44.040-08:00Stay a Step Ahead of the New Medicare Surtax<br /><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><p>Many tax rates were up in the air as 2012 wound down: dividends, capital gains, estates, to name a few of the biggies. But one new tax was poised to move full steam ahead for 2013 regardless of whether Congress took action to avert the so-called fiscal cliff: the 3.8% Medicare surtax. (The tax also affects trusts and estates, but for this article, I’ll focus on how the tax affects individuals.)</p><br /><p>The tax, part of the Affordable Care Act, will be imposed on the lesser of an individual’s net investment income for the year or adjusted gross income in excess of $ 200,000 for single filers and $ 250,000 for married taxpayers filing jointly. (Note that investment income is included in adjusted gross income.)</p><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><br /><p>That means that a couple with $ 275,000 in adjusted gross income and net investment income of $ 15,000 in 2013 would owe the 3.8% tax on the $ 15,000 in investment income. (That amount is less than the $ 25,000 by which their adjusted gross income exceeds the $ 250,000 threshold.) By contrast, a couple with $ 220,000 in adjusted gross income and $ 15,000 in investment income wouldn’t owe the surtax at all because their adjusted gross income doesn’t exceed the $ 250,000 threshold; that amount ($ 0) is smaller than their investment income. Meanwhile, a couple with a $ 300,000 adjusted gross income, $ 150,000 of which consists of investment income, would owe the surtax on $ 50,000, the amount by which their adjusted gross income exceeds the $ 250,000 threshold and is lower than their investment income.</p><br /><p>As you can see from the examples above, the tax will have the greatest impact on people with high incomes and a lot of investment income that’s subject to the tax. Even if you have a high adjusted gross income, you’re not likely to owe the surtax unless some of that income is coming from investments. Even if most of your income comes from investments, you’re not going to owe the surtax unless you have an adjusted gross income that’s high in absolute terms.</p><br /><p><strong>What Counts as Net Investment Income?<br /></strong>Adjusted gross income is fairly straightforward, but what counts as net investment income isn’t. As you might expect, net investment income encompasses stock dividends and interest from cash and bonds; it also includes short- and long-term capital gains, the taxable portion of annuity income, royalties, and rents. In addition, net investment income includes trading of financial instruments and commodities and income from passive activities (earnings from a business in which you have limited involvement).</p><br /><p>That’s a big list, but there are some notable exceptions. Municipal-bond income does not count as net investment income; the same goes for distributions from IRAs or other qualified retirement plans and pension and Social Security income. Capital gains from the sale of a principal residence don’t count either, assuming the gains don’t exceed $ 250,000 for individuals and $ 500,000 for couples and meet the other requirements to qualify for the Section 121 exclusion. (That’s right–a widely distributed email stating that all home-sale proceeds would be subject to the tax is patently false.) Nor does the surtax apply to payouts from tax-deferred nonqualified annuities or the proceeds from the sale of an active interest in a business that’s structured as a partnership or S corporation.</p><br /><p>Those exceptions create a few potential opportunities for alert investors aiming to limit the surtax’s effect. Of course, as always, it’s a mistake to rearrange your investment portfolio simply because of tax considerations. If you’re mulling action to blunt the impact of this or any other tax, it’s worthwhile to check with a tax or investment advisor beforehand.</p><br /><p>Those disclaimers aside, investors who expect to be hit by the new surtax might consider a few steps to reduce its impact, including the following.</p><br /><p><strong>Take a look at munis (again):</strong> Muni-bond income has a double benefit when it comes to avoiding the surtax. Not only does it not count toward your adjusted gross income, but it’s also a rare type of investment income that’s not subject to the new surtax. At the same time, if you’re looking at munis to help save on taxes, be sure to mind the fact that municipal bonds issued to fund private activities, such as sports venues, are subject to the alternative minimum tax, even though they skirt other types of taxes. Fidelity’s muni funds grab the highest number of Gold Analyst Ratings from our fund analyst team.</p><br /><p><strong>Maximize contributions to tax-advantaged vehicles, mind asset location:</strong> Maximizing contributions to tax-advantaged vehicles, such as IRAs and 401(k)s, makes good sense no matter what, and the surtax provides yet another reason to do so. Not only are distributions from IRAs and 401(k)s exempt from the new tax, but reinvested income from stocks and bonds held within the confines of these wrappers doesn’t count as net investment income. That underscores the importance of paying attention to what types of assets you hold in which types of accounts. Munis, individual stocks, low-turnover stock funds, and broad stock market index trackers are good bets for taxable accounts, whereas investments with a heavy tax burden should generally be stashed within tax-advantaged accounts.</p><br /><p><strong>Investigate Roth anything, including conversions:</strong> Even though income from traditional and Roth 401(k)s and IRAs is safe from the new surtax, Roth IRA and 401(k) withdrawals are even more bullet-proof. Distributions from traditional 401(k)s and IRAs have the potential to push up a taxpayer’s adjusted gross income above the thresholds for the surtax, which in turn could increase one’s vulnerability to the new tax. Roth IRA distributions, by contrast, don’t contribute to adjusted gross income. That’s another reason to consider making new contributions to Roth vehicles (or fund a backdoor Roth IRA) rather than traditional IRAs and 401(k)s, as well as converting traditional IRA assets to Roth. But also bear in mind that money from the conversion will increase your adjusted gross income, which in turn could increase the likelihood you’ll owe the surtax. In the case of conversions, check with a financial or tax advisor to make sure you’re thinking through all of the variables and understand the taxes you’ll owe upon conversion.</p><br /><p>A version of this article appeared July 16, 2012.</p><br /><p><strong>See More Articles by Christine Benz</strong></p><br /><p><strong>Register Free for Individual Investor Conference</strong>Discover how to secure stronger returns in a challenging market at Morningstar Individual Investor Conference 2013, starting at 9 a.m. CDT Saturday, March 23. The live online event is tailored to a variety of financial goals: Learn how to improve your investment mix, build your income stream, optimize your long-term benefits, and much more.Click below to check out the full day’s sessions and speakers–and register absolutely FREE.</p><br /><p>Yahoo! Finance – Personal Finance | Insurance</p><br /><div><br /><div itemscope="" itemtype="http://data-vocabulary.org/Review-aggregate"><br /><div><br />Title Post: <span itemprop="itemreviewed"><strong>Stay a Step Ahead of the New Medicare Surtax</strong></span><br />Url Post: <strong>http://www.news.fluser.com/stay-a-step-ahead-of-the-new-medicare-surtax/</strong><br />Link To Post : <strong>Stay a Step Ahead of the New Medicare Surtax</strong><br />Rating: <span itemprop="rating" itemscope="" itemtype="http://data-vocabulary.org/Rating"><br /><span itemprop="average">100%</span><br /></span><br />based on <span itemprop="votes">99998</span> ratings.<br /><span itemprop="count">5</span> user reviews.<br />Author: <b><span class="vcard author"><span class="fn">Fluser SeoLink</span></span></b><br />Thanks for visiting the blog, If any criticism and suggestions please leave a comment</div><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-42660332507811584492013-02-25T05:04:00.001-08:002013-02-25T05:04:40.094-08:00Stock futures advance, Barnes & Noble up early<p class="first">NEW YORK (Reuters) - <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361795706966_3">Stock index futures</span> rose on Monday, suggesting the recent rally for equities remains intact in spite of concerns that the U.S. <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361795706966_1">Federal Reserve</span> could curtail its stimulus sooner than many expected.</p><br /><p> * Stocks have been strong performers so far this year, with the S&P 500 jumping 6.2 percent in 2013. Pullbacks have generally been slight, with investors using any dip as a buying opportunity. While the S&P fell last week, the decline was a slight 0.3 percent and it was the first weekly drop after a seven-week streak of gains.</p><br /><p> * The gains have come on strong corporate earnings, as well as a backdrop of stimulus from the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361795706966_2">Federal Reserve</span>. Last week's decline came when some Fed officials seemed to suggest the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361795706966_4">stimulus</span> may be curtailed faster than many expected, though subsequent comments seemed to allay those concerns.</p><br /><p> * Another test for equities will come with the looming debate over massive U.S. government budget cuts that will take effect if lawmakers fail to reach an agreement over spending and taxes. On Sunday, the White House issued more dire warnings about the harm the cuts are expected to do to the economy if enacted.</p><br /><p> * More government-related uncertainty came from Italy, where a close election left questions about how the country would handle its three-year debt crisis. Last year, inconclusive Greek elections sparked a protracted selloff and a period of uncertainty in U.S. equity markets as well.</p><br /><p> * Still, European shares <.fteu3> were higher on Monday, rising 0.6 percent after a smooth Italian debt auction.</.fteu3></p><br /><p> * S&P 500 futures rose 6.4 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures added 39 points and Nasdaq 100 futures rose 17.25 points.</p><br /><p> * In company news, the Wall Street Journal reported that Barnes & Noble Inc <bks.n> Chairman Leonard Riggio is considering a bid for the company's bookstore business. The stock jumped 18 percent to $16 in premarket trading.</bks.n></p><br /><p> * Lowe's Cos Inc <low.n> reported earnings that beat expectations, helped by rebuilding efforts after Hurricane Sandy in the United States.</low.n></p><br /><p> * Other companies scheduled to report quarterly results include Autodesk Inc and FirstEnergy <fe.n>.</fe.n></p><br /><p> * Fourth-quarter earnings for S&P 500 companies are estimated to have risen 6 percent, according to Thomson Reuters data, above a 1.9 percent forecast at the start of the earnings season.</p><br /><p> * U.S. stocks closed higher on Friday, boosted by strong results from Hewlett-Packard Co <hpq.n>, as well as allayed concerns over Fed policy.</hpq.n></p><br /><p> (Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)</p><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-696898747911259072013-02-24T05:12:00.001-08:002013-02-24T05:12:11.648-08:00Vatican 'Gay lobby'? Probably not<br /><!--startclickprintexclude--><br /><br /><br /><div class="cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnn_strylctcntr"><br /><p><strong>STORY HIGHLIGHTS</strong></p><br /><ul class="cnn_bulletbin cnnStryHghLght"><!--google_ad_section_start--><li>Benedict XVI not stepping down under pressure from 'gay lobby,' Allen says</li><br /><li>Allen: Benedict is a man who prefers the life of the mind to the nuts and bolts of government </li><br /><li>However, he says, much of the pope's time has been spent putting out fires</li><br /><!--google_ad_section_end--><br /></ul></div></div><br /><!--endclickprintexclude--><!--google_ad_section_start--><!--startclickprintinclude--><br /><p class="cnnEditorialNote"><em><strong>Editor's note:</strong> John L. Allen Jr. is CNN's senior Vatican analyst and senior correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter.</em></p><br /><p><strong>(CNN)</strong> -- Suffice it to say that of all possible storylines to emerge, heading into the election of a new pope, sensational charges of a shadowy "gay lobby" (possibly linked to blackmail), whose occult influence may have been behind the resignation of Benedict XVI, would be right at the bottom of the Vatican's wish list.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph2">Proof of the Vatican's irritation came with a blistering statement Saturday complaining of "unverified, unverifiable or completely false news stories," even suggesting the media is trying to influence the papal election.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph3">Two basic questions have to be asked about all this. First, is there really a secret dossier about a network of people inside the Vatican who are linked by their sexual orientation, as Italian newspaper reports have alleged? Second, is this really why Benedict XVI quit?</p><br /><div class="cnn_strylftcntnt"><div class="cnn_strylctcntr cnn_strylccimg214"><br /><img src="http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/dam/assets/120528080343-john-l-allen-jr-left-tease.jpg" alt="John L. Allen Jr." border="0" class="box-image" height="122" width="214"/><p>John L. Allen Jr.</p><br /></div></div><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph4">The best answers, respectively, are "maybe" and "probably not."</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph5">It's a matter of record that at the peak of last year's massive Vatican leaks crisis, Benedict XVI created a commission of three cardinals to investigate the leaks. They submitted an eyes-only report to the pope in mid-December, which has not been made public.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph6">It's impossible to confirm whether that report looked into the possibility that people protecting secrets about their sex lives were involved with the leaks, but frankly, it would be surprising if it didn't.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph7">There are certainly compelling reasons to consider the hypothesis. In 2007, a Vatican official was caught by an Italian TV network on hidden camera arranging a date through a gay-oriented chat room, and then taking the young man back to his Vatican apartment. In 2010, a papal ceremonial officer was caught on a wiretap arranging liaisons through a Nigerian member of a Vatican choir. Both episodes played out in full public view, and gave the Vatican a black eye.</p><br /><br /><div id="expand18" class="cnnGalleryContainer cnn_strylftcntnt"><br /><div class="cnnStoryElementBox"><br /><div id="expandableTarget18" class="cnnArticleExpandableTarget"><br /><br /><br /><div class="cnnArticleGalleryCaptionControl"><br /><p>Pope Benedict XVI</p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><p>HIDE CAPTION</p><br /><br /></div><br /><div><br /><p><span><<</span></p><br /><p><span><</span></p><br /><div class="articleGalleryNavContainer"><br /><p><br /><br /><span>1</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>2</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>3</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>4</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>5</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>6</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>7</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>8</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>9</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>10</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>11</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>12</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>13</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>14</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>15</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>16</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>17</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>18</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>19</span><br /></p><br /><p><br /><br /><span>20</span><br /></p><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><br /><p><span>></span></p><br /><p><span>>></span></p><br /><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br /></div><br /></div><br /><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph8">In that context, it would be a little odd if the cardinals didn't at least consider the possibility that insiders leading a double life might be vulnerable to pressure to betray the pope's confidence. That would apply not just to sex, but also potential conflicts of other sorts too, such as financial interests.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph9">Vatican officials have said Benedict may authorize giving the report to the 116 cardinals who will elect his successor, so they can factor it into their deliberations. The most immediate fallout is that the affair is likely to strengthen the conviction among many cardinals that the next pope has to lead a serious house-cleaning inside the Vatican's bureaucracy.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph10">It seems a stretch, however, to suggest this is the real reason Benedict is leaving. For the most part, one should probably take the pope at his word, that old age and fatigue are the motives for his decision.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph11">That said, it's hard not to suspect that the meltdowns and controversies that have dogged Benedict XVI for the last eight years are in the background of why he's so tired. In 2009, at the height of another frenzy surrounding the lifting of the excommunication of a Holocaust-denying traditionalist bishop, Benedict dispatched a plaintive letter to the bishops of the world, voicing hurt for the way he'd been attacked and apologizing for the Vatican's mishandling of the situation.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph12">Even if Benedict didn't resign because of any specific crisis, including this latest one, such anguish must have taken its toll. Benedict is a teaching pope, a man who prefers the life of the mind to the nuts and bolts of government, yet an enormous share of his time and energy has been consumed trying to put out internal fires.</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph13">It's hard to know why Benedict XVI is stepping off the stage, but I doubt it is because of a "gay lobby."</p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph14"><i>Follow us on </i><i>Twitter @CNNOpinion.</i><i> </i></p><br /><p class="cnn_storypgraphtxt cnn_storypgraph15"><i>Join us on </i><i>Facebook/CNNOpinion.</i></p><br /><p class="cnn_strycbftrtxt">The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of John L. Allen Jr. </p><br /><!--endclickprintinclude--><!--google_ad_section_end--><br /><!--no partner--><br /><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4328524252450870350.post-67192270795659119162013-02-24T05:10:00.001-08:002013-02-24T05:10:20.172-08:00Relativity Moves ‘Turkeys’ Up a Year; Amy Poehler Joins Voice Cast (Exclusive)<br /><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><p class="first">NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) – <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361581566121_1">Relativity Media</span> has moved up its animated film “<span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361581566121_7">Turkeys</span>” by a year and will release it November 1, multiple individuals close to the project told TheWrap. In addition, <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361581566121_2">Amy Poehler</span> has joined the voice cast for the film, which Relativity and <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361581566121_6">Reel FX</span> are co-producing and co-financing, TheWrap has learned.</p><br /><p>The movie had been scheduled to debut November 14, 2014, but Relativity and Reel FX made the aggressive scheduling move based on early footage, according to two of those individuals. Development on the project began in June 2009 and physical production began in January 2011.</p><div class="home-content-ad"><br /><div class="ad-code"><br /><br /></div></div><br /><br /><p>Poehler, who joins <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361581566121_5">Owen Wilson</span> and <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361581566121_3">Woody Harrelson</span>, will voice the female lead.</p><br /><p>Executives at the studio met about the film this week, weighing the challenges the move will pose to the filmmaking, marketing, sponsorship and merchandising teams with the opportunity to seize this Thanksgiving’s family market.</p><br /><p><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361581566121_4">DreamWorks Animation</span> recently moved “Mr. Peabody & Sherman” from November 1 to March 2014, opening the door for kid-friendly fare before the November 22 opening of “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire.” Most of the other movies scheduled for October and November will cater to more mature audiences, spanning genres like science fiction (“Gravity,” “Ender’s Game”), horror (“Paranormal Activity 5,” “Carrie”) and action (“Malavita,” “Thor: The Dark World”).</p><br /><p><span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361581566121_8">Jeffrey Katzenberg</span>‘s animation house has released a movie in the fall for eight of the last nine years, but its new distribution partner, Fox, moved “Peabody” to March, a month when the studio has had prior success with the “Ice Age” franchise.</p><br /><p>DreamWorks Animation had a costly miss last November with “Rise of the Guardians,” which grossed $ 301 million at the box office – a healthy sum, but not enough to cover costs. The company is expected to take a hefty write-down as a result in its upcoming fourth quarter earnings.</p><br /><p>Reel FX, the Dallas-based animation and visual effects studio behind “Turkeys,” actually sold “Guardians” to DWA five years ago.</p><br /><p>“Turkeys” features the voices of Wilson and Harrelson as two spunky birds that take a time machine back to the first Thanksgiving. They want to expunge turkeys from Thanksgiving’s culinary tradition. Lesley Nicol of “Downton Abbey,” George Takei of “Star Trek” fame, <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1361581566121_9">Keith David</span> and Colm Meaney have also been cast. Dan Fogler was already lending his voice.</p><br /><p>Jimmy Hayward is directing the film from a script by Craig Mazin, David I. Stern, John J. Strauss.</p><br /><p>Movies News Headlines – Yahoo! News</p><br /><br /><br />News Satu Untuk Semuahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12431820897146969246noreply@blogger.com